We are just a group of retired spooks that discuss things that you’ll not find anywhere else. It makes us unique. Take a look around. Learn a thing or two.
Today I have a real treat for you all. It is the movie “Fail Safe” which is a 1962 depiction of the build up to world war 3. And it stars Henry Fonda, so you know it’s a great movie.
Please take the time to watch it. It was 60 years ahead of its time.
Meanwhile, my post on Quora…
Why is the USA so eager for a war with China
Any one who wants war has a mental disorder.
Obviously they have never experienced war, and has no idea or concept of what it entails. Pain is real. The loss of everyone you ever knew is real. The lost of your money, your homes, your jobs, and your friends is real. The loss of your culture and your society is real.
The loss of your innocence is permanent.
…
So why do so many American “leaders” want to engage a war with China?
I’ll repeat myself.
Anyone who wants a war has a mental disorder. They are not right in the head. They need to be seen by a doctor and treated for this disorder. If need be, well then, locked in a padded room. But they should not be permitted anywhere near the levers of power.
…
Ah. It was deleted.
I guess that stating the obvious is against the “rules” in the United States.
a young boy, puts $100 in the bank every single day. One day the boss at the bank noticed and asked, hey buddy, why do you keep dropping $100 in here everyday? The kid says, Can we talk in your office? The boss says, yes, and they go to his office. Then the kids spills the beans. Well, I make a bet everyday with someone new that I can kiss my right eye. The boss laughs and says, no way you can do that. The kid smirks. Wanna bet? The manager agrees, and quick as a wink, the kid takes out his fake eye and kisses it. The boss feels kind of silly and gives him $100. But he wants it back. So The kid says, okay, but with a twist. I’m pretty sure that you are wearing red girly panties. If I’m wrong, I’ll give you back your $100 plus another 100. Thinking he’s too smart, the boss agrees. The kid adds, but before you drop your pants, we need 10 witnesses to make it official. The boss gathers his team and after taking his pants off, he feels very proud to have won $100. Then he notices the kid is all smiles about losing money. Confused, he asks, why are you happy about losing your cash? The kid grins. Well, I had a bet with your team about how fast I could get you to drop your pants.”
Braised Pork with Green Chile Sauce
Mild green chiles season this meaty pork stew. Serve it with rice or as a burrito filling. This can also be served with tamales. This chile verde is also good served with scrambled eggs.
chili
Ingredients
Pork
1 (3 pound) lean boneless pork butt
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 large green bell peppers, seeded and chopped
1 (7 ounce) can diced green chiles
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, crumbled
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher or sea salt
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 tablespoon wine vinegar
1/4 cup water
Garnish
Tomatoes, cut into wedges
Cooked rice
Sour cream
Lime, cut into wedges
Instructions
Trim and discard fat and cut pork into 1 inch cubes.
In a large frying pan, heat oil over medium-high heat; add meat a few cubes at a time and cook until very brown.
Push meat to side of pan and add onion, garlic and bell peppers; sauté until limp.
Stir in chiles, oregano, cumin, salt, cilantro, vinegar and water.
Cover and simmer until meat is fork tender (about 1 hour).
Skim off fat and discard.
Serve with rice or make burritos or serve in your favorite way.
For Burritos: spoon pork into warm, soft flour tortillas, add sour cream, tomato wedges, and a squeeze of lime juice and fold to enclose. Rice may also be enclosed with the filling in the burritos, if desired.
What can you do to upset your neighbors the most in a well-to-do neighborhood?
Set up a drug dealing operation.
Because I was raised poor, a lot of things DID NOT bother me once I moved into a nice neighborhood. Things that might drive other neighbors (who have always been wealthy) absolutely crazy wouldn’t faze me at all. Loud music? So what. Kids shooting off fireworks? Hey, it’s better than gunfire. Lawns that grew a little too tall? Big deal. But set up a crime syndicate in one of the nicest neighborhoods in the U.S., and you’re going to make some very influential people extremely irate!
I lived in poverty when I was younger. The shack we lived in measured 500 square feet. My bed was in the kitchen. Stabbings and shootings in the neighborhood were routine. Before I was born, my parents found a guy dead on the front porch. He had been stabbed overnight and I guess he stumbled toward the house for help, only to collapse there. Drug deals became common.
My father worked very hard to eventually escape poverty, and I applied the same work ethic to my life. I had no desire to remain in a neighborhood where I had to fear for my life every single day. Anyone who has lived in such a place can tell you that it’s a miserable way to live!
I became successful. I got married. My wife was also successful. It took me 42 years, but we finally bought one of the more modest homes in one of the wealthiest towns in America. Celebrities became my neighbors. I didn’t hear gunfire. There was no crime. Kids left their toys on the lawn overnight and nobody stole them. People left their car doors unlocked at night. This is why I had worked so hard, for this level of safety and peace of mind. I had finally arrived!
About a year after moving in, our very quiet neighbor (an older lady who lived alone) moved out. A lady who had just divorced her multimillionaire husband moved in. She had triplets who were 17 at the time, two boys and one girl. She apparently had no control over them. Among many infractions, the girl once drove through our lawn, tearing up the grass and the driveway. Who drives through your neighbor’s lawn? One of the sons was driving drunk when he plowed through a neighbor’s fancy brick driveway entrance. But worst of all was the other son, who apparently had a large drug dealing operation.
Sketchy-looking cars would pull up at all hours of the day. The kid would come out of his house, sit in the back seat, make some sort of exchange, and then go back inside. Cars and houses throughout the neighborhood began to be broken into, probably linked to the people showing up to buy drugs.
This is what I had escaped. When you’ve worked so hard to live in a place with no crime, and you’re suddenly faced with drug dealing, people breaking into cars and houses, vandalism, and all that stuff you escaped, you become pretty ticked off. We didn’t pay all this money for a house only to have flashbacks of where I grew up. Other neighbors who were unfamiliar with such behavior were even more furious!
One particular neighbor, who happened to be a big time television producer, finally made the call. Police swarmed the house, found A LOT of drugs, and the kid who had now turned 18 got a pretty hefty prison sentence. The family moved out a month later.
My dad bought himself a 1973 Mercury Montego two door. Every option you could imagine, back when you could actually order a car built for you.
image 230
Really sharp car, dark blue metallic with a blue vinyl top. Had a dark blue leather interior with front bucket seats. Was his pride and joy. Biggest motor available, 460 4bbl. That car was a real sleeper. Fast as hell. Got about 8–9mpg. Every time you went around a right turn there was a metallic thump from the back somewhere. Turn left, nothing. Dad was an OCD prick. Drove him nuts. Was to the dealership for service multiple times. They replaced all kinds of stuff, even the rear axle. Finally he had me lay in the back seat and listen as he drove around. I isolated the sound as coming from the area of the drivers side rear quarter panel. Dad and I took out the rear seat and removed the interior panel. We found heavy nut and bolt hanging from a string. Taped to the sheet metal was a note, “How long did it take you to find this?”
Coconut Corn Bread (Dominican Republic)
2024 02 18 10 12
Ingredients
1/2 cup diced mixed candied fruit
2 tablespoons dark rum
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1 cup coconut cream
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup shredded fresh coconut
Instructions
Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
Mix candied fruit and rum in small bowl; reserve.
Beat sugar and butter in a large bowl; add eggs, one at a time, beating until well blended. Stir in remaining ingredients except candied fruit mixture and coconut; beat until smooth, about 30 strokes by hand. Fold in candied fruit mixture and coconut. Pour into greased 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.
Bake until top is golden brown and wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes.
Cool for 20 minutes; remove from pan. Cool completely before slicing.
In the 17th century, a priest in Venezuela was particularly fond of meat. Yet during the Catholic holiday of Lent, eating meat is not permissible — only fish may be consumed. So he wrote a letter to the Vatican.
image 15
He had found an animal, he said, which “lived in the water, had webbed feet” and “it even kind of tastes like fish when you cook it”. Would it be allowed to consume this creature during Lent? The Vatican replied, also by letter — it was allowed to eat the creature, provided they classify it a fish. So they did. And Venezuelans have been eating this animal ever since.
What species do I speak of? The capybara. World’s largest rodent, a largely aquatic species that loves to dwell in water. A meatlover’s delight — from giant hamster, to conveniently reclassified “fish”. One hell of a good loophole, if you ask me.
I worked for a food establishment that keeps all of its food on a “line”. One day I was sicker than I’ve ever been and needed to call out. I figured this wouldn’t be a problem since I never called out, but I was wrong.
So they force me to come in under threat of termination.
So i come in. I’m making food on that line, and I have a very specific urge everyone knows well. But, oh my oh me! I can’t leave the line! I have a lot of food to make! So I threw up. On the food in the line.
The company had to close for a short time to have the line professionally cleaned and sanitized.
When they finally reopen, I get called into the office. They ask me what happened. I tell them quite plainly that I tried to call out sick and was forced to report to work. Their genius response was ”you were scheduled to work so you had to come in.“
So I simply asked them how much it had cost to have the line cleaned. They give me a rough figure. I tell them they forgot about the money they lost out on by being forced to be closed during that time. Lastly, I tell them, straight to their face, that if I call out, it’s for a reason. If they force me to come in while I’m sick and throwing up, I will purposely throw up on the line again and they can pay that price again. And if they try to saddle me with the bill of cleaning the line, reduce my hours, or fire me for any reason, I would be more than happy to report them to the number that’s literally above their head about us not being allowed to come in sick. The next week my hours were reduced. I pulled out my phone, looked at the sign I referenced the week prior, and started typing in numbers in front of the manager. My hours were immediately reinstated.
After that, anytime I called out sick, I was told to feel better and call when I wasn’t sick anymore.
I feel like I’m a good fit to answer this question because I used to own a Chevy Volt, which is a plug-in hybrid (PHEV). In the summer, the Volt would drive 50–60 miles using only the battery, before switching to the 4-cylinder engine and acting like a normal hybrid, alternating between gas and battery.
Most days I did not drive anywhere near 50 miles. So I would come home, plug in to 120V, and the car was fully charged in the morning.
Why not a PHEV, then?
Well, it’s got an engine I rarely used, and some complicated electronics and wizardry to switch back and forth between the battery and the engine. It was something else that could go wrong on top of a straight EV propulsion system.
Some people like PHEVs because once they exceed range of the small battery pack, the car switches to gas and then you can just drive it like a gas car. Fillups are quick, and you’re back on the road. When you get to your destination, you can charge if you like, and your next 50 or so miles are all electric.
I loved the Volt. But I always felt it would grow up to be a Tesla, and last year, it did.
I much prefer having an EV. It’ll handle that 50–60 miles of daily driving you ask about with aplomb. Since the range of my EV is 318 miles, I could do that much driving for 4 days easily, without recharging if I didn’t want to.
Or I could charge at 120V/15A, as I typically do, and in the 12 hours or so that I’m sleeping and doing other things at home, I can add 36 or miles of range. Yes, eventually I’ll have a deficit, if I really do drive 50–60 miles per day, but I don’t. And for those that do, you can easily install a 240V outlet and charge quicker if you need it. So it’s a non-issue.
My in-laws are Chinese. I am a white American with mixed West-European ancestry. When I sit down to a meal with them, I have learned to practice strategic food placement on my plate so that it is never actually empty.
In the US, we have drummed into our heads as small children that it is incredibly rude to leave uneaten food on your plate, especially if you are a guest at someone else’s table. It is an insult to the chef. “There are starving children in Africa!” was the exhortation when I was a child. “Eat your vegetables and be grateful you have them!”
In Chinese culture, it is the obligation of the elder generation to make sure that the younger generation(s) are fed. If your plate is clean, that means you must still be hungry, but are too polite to ask for more. So they give you more, whether or not you actually have the capacity to eat it, whenever they observe sufficient empty space on your plate. Furthermore, it is extremely impolite to refuse to eat food given to you by a parent, auntie/uncle, or grandparent.
Therefore, I have learned to eat an amount sufficient for myself at meals while leaving enough on my plate to spread out and take up all of the large bits of contiguous space that might accommodate an additional serving.
I still feel guilty about the starving children who might like to have my leftovers, though.
My first boss told me that when she realized that several of us-all teenagers-were trying to coordinate our schedules so we all got off on the same day, so we could hang out outside of work. I didn’t understand it then. I thought she was just being a bitch.
But, ten years later, when I was in management, it made more sense. Coworkers are one group. Friends are another. Mixing those groups can cause problems, especially when one friend is put in charge of another.
It’s fine to be friendly with your coworkers. You should be friendly with them. But being friendly, and being their friend, are two different things.
I’m anti-social anyway, so it was easy for me to avoid making friends with the people I’ve worked with over the years. I’ll chat with them at work. I’ll ask them about their families, and they’ll do the same for me. But when work is over, I don’t hang out with them.
I suppose a lot depends on the type of job, though. Not every job is about making money. What I do now, for example: teaching. It’s not-for-profit. But I also don’t see my coworkers very often. Just in the halls during passing periods and during our weekly staff meeting. Other than that, I’m usually the only adult in the room. If adult interaction is your thing, teaching probably isn’t the best career choice.
This image was uploaded on an Internet forum with the caption:
“This is the lettuce you eat in your burger when you go to Burger King, enjoy it“
image 233
The netizens were shocked and horrified. They were angry to learn someone working in the kitchen has been messing up with their food.
Soon people got down to tracking the person; ‘where done and who doing this’! The image was posted anonymously, on the 4Chan forum. 4Chan users got down to work to discover the person behind it.
In the picture you can only see the shoes and pants of the uniform of the hamburger chain and that does not reveal anything since they are all dressed the same.
The image was tracked to its location. They found out where came from.
image 231
It came from an area where there was only one Burger King for many miles around.
image 232
Thereafter the netizens wrote and posted many mails to the Chain manager of Burger King, Mayfield Rd.
Then the Manager got into action and in a short time, the manager was able to find who had done it Two people who were on that shift were fired on the spot, they lost their jobs, and faced a fine of thousands of dollars.
So now you know, never make people angry on the internet, you could end up paying dearly.
I remember a guy who worked at a company with me. He was a professional who loved his job. He was 83, when the company forcibly retired him.
He made good money, and took fabulous vacations, had his house paid off 30 years before. He died 3 weeks after they forced him out. He lost the will to live, when he stopped doing what he loved.
I knew this lady that I worked with, who hated her job, she was depressed about having to go into work every morning. The happiest day of her life was when she retired early, with an early retirement package.
I think the benefits of working longer or retiring early very much depend on how you feel about your job.
It also depends on your health. If you think you will die early, then there is really not much point in working late. Unless you really love your job.
If you think you will die late, then working later, getting a bigger pension, and more savings, and using your wages for vacations and toys, now that your house is paid for, is the way to go.
I think it also depends on the country you live in. I live in Canada, I loved my job, I got 30 vacation days, 12 flex days, plus 3 golf days a year. I don’t know how many sick days and compassionate leave days I was entitled to because I never used them all up. So I got the equivalent of 9 weeks vacation. With weekends and statutory holidays I got 162 days off a year. Which is almost exactly half a year, so work wasn’t the same to me as an American who worked weekends, and only got 2 weeks vacation.
I could take fabulous exotic vacations, or just relax at the cabin while working.
Jamaican Rum Punch
2024 02 18 21 33
Yield: 10 servings
Ingredients
4 cups water
1 cup lime or lemon juice
6 cloves or allspice berries
3 cups strawberry-flavored syrup
2 cups Jamaican white rum
Instructions
Mix all ingredients together in a punch bowl, and let the mixture settle for 1 hour before removing the cloves or allspice.
Stir and serve over ice cubes in old fashioned glasses.
Water and rum may be added to weaken or strengthen as needed.
One reason I wanted to shake hands with Oskar Groening is because our first meeting did not go so well. On the first day of the trial, I introduced myself and reached out to shake his hand. The strangest thing happened. He was trying to say something as he was sitting sideways in his chair. He turned white and fell backwards, not saying a word. He was holding onto my arm so he did not hit the floor. At that moment he was not a Nazi but an old man who fainted and I was trying to save him from falling. I screamed, “He is falling and I can’t hold onto him – he is a big old guy!” This was not the interaction I was hoping for. I knocked out an old Nazi.
The second reason is because I am interested in what will happen when someone from the victims’ side meets with someone from the perpetrators’ side. You cannot predict it. So today after the trial session concluded, I went up to Oskar Groening. He wanted to stand up but I said, “Please don’t, we do not want a repetition of last time.” I just shook his hand and said, “I appreciate the fact that you are willing to come here and face us. But I would like you to appeal to the old Nazis who are still alive to come forward and address the problem of neo-Nazis in Germany today. Because these young misguided Germans who want Hitler and fascism to come back — they will not listen to Eva Kor or any other survivor. You can tell them you were in Auschwitz, you were involved with the Nazi party, and it was a terrible thing.”
As I was talking to him, he grabbed me and gave me a kiss on the cheek. Well I probably wouldn’t have gone that far, but I guess it is better than what he would have done to me 70 years ago.
Everything he is accused of — I am saying he did all that. I have forgiven the Nazis and everyone who has hurt me, but I told him that my forgiveness did not prevent me from accusing him nor from him taking responsibility for his actions. And I told the media that he was a small screw in a big killing machine, and the machine cannot function without the small screws. But obviously he is a human being. His response to me is exactly what I was talking about when I said you cannot predict what will happen when someone from the victims’ side and someone from the perpetrators’ side meet in a spirit of humanity.
image 236
I know many people will criticize me for this photo, but so be it. It was two human beings seventy years after it happened. For the life of me I will never understand why anger is preferable to a goodwill gesture. Nothing good ever comes from anger. Any goodwill gesture in my book will win over anger any time. The energy that anger creates is a violent energy.
I am asking a question: What do we want in the future? Do we want to keep pointing fingers and the accused stay in one corner and the accuser stay in the other corner and they never connect? How will that work out? Look at the world – it doesn’t work out. All we have is people who are feeling angry, people who are running around doing crazy things.
When tragic things happen, we have to sit down and discuss, what are the options for the victims and for the perpetrators? Most people are only here in court to accuse him of things he has already admitted. So now what? I don’t think we should raise a statue in his honor, but he can serve as a good example to young people that what he participated in was terrible, that it was wrong, and that he is sorry that he was part of it. Now there is a message that has some usefulness for society.
If I had it my way, the dialogue between the survivors and perpetrators would have started a long time ago. And it would have helped the survivors cope and maybe heal themselves, but even more so not to pass the pain on to their children.
My ideas in life are very different, I know. I am in the minority — maybe a minority of one. I know how society looks at it, but as I look at society, I do not think it is working very well. So what I am saying is, maybe we ought to try something else. And my idea is for people from the victims’ side and people from the perpetrators’ side to come together, face the truth, try to heal, and work together to prevent it from ever happening again.
Back some 30 years ago, fresh out of college, I worked at a real estate company owned by a Greek immigrant.
The company did everything involving real estate, loans, brokerage, management, home flipping…. It was a good place to get all around experience.
About 3 months into the job, the owner approached me and asked if I was ready to purchase my first house. Told him I was not ready, I was living with my parents and saving money. Then he told me a real gem.
He said to not purchase a condo or house for my first home. Huh? I said. He told me to purchase a four unit apartment. I told him I did not have that kind of money. Then he gave me the whole spill.
A single family home cost $150,000 and I would need $10,000 deposit plus pay $1000 per month for loan payment plus upkeep.
A four unit apartment cost $250,000 and I would need $15,000 deposit plus pay $2,000 per month for loan payment plus upkeep.
Here is the real kicker. If I bought the house, I would not have anything left over after I paid for all my expense.
If I bought the apartment, I can rent 3 other units at $700 each and the rents will actually pay all my cost.
WOW!
Here is the second kicker!
He said I can save that $1,000 a month and after two years, purchase another 4 unit apartment. Then I can move to my second apartment and rent the original place for extra $700. Now I will be saving $1,700 per month! My head was spinning. I realized how he made his fortune. He had multiple apartments collecting rents.
I went home and told my parents about what the owner told me. My Dad was bit skeptical but said he will help me to get the loan if needed.
Fast forward 30 years…my wife and I are making retirement plans. Thanks to the advise from my boss early in my career, things look good.
Back when homeless people were Hobos, Drunks were Winos, and “substance abusers” were Hypes, I pounded a classic foot patrol beat on San Francisco’s Mission Street. After 3 or four years, I literally knew everyone on my beat, bad, good, or wack-a-doo.
We’d periodically get some merchants complaining about this or that, so the Captain would tell the Lieutenant, and he would lean on the street Sergeant, who in turn would tell us: “ Its the weekly sweep time boys”.
Mitch would grab the BIG paddy wagon, and the six beat cops would ride its rear bumper while picking up the usual miscreants more or less at random.
We’d do a decent job of disarming them before tossing them in the wagon, and in that the prisoners and the cops knew how to play the game, we didn’t get any big surprises.
Untill:
I forget his real name, but if I called him “stinky” , and mentioned that he NEVER took off any of the 3 pairs of pants, or five overcoats he wore, everyone knew who he was.
Stinky was face down on the pavement across the street from the food market at 22nd when we grabbed him. Mitch did a cursory high risk pat search for weapons, or bottles of cheap wine, and finding none, cuffed him up and put him in with the other 15 bums in the back of the wagon.
At the Station, we had a regular assembly line thing going where the arrestees would line up, get a photo taken, have their meager belongings tossed into a brown grocery bag, and then shamble into the drunk tank.
Stinky shuffles up, and is so out of it, he can’t empty any of his 11 coat pockets. Mitch leans him against the booking counter, and begins taking handfuls of God know what out of the pockets.
Suddenly Mitch jumps in the air, yelling all sorts of Germanic based profanity, and is yelling “ Something bit me..something M….F….g BIT ME !!!”
Stinky has a semi-blank look on his face, but says; “ Oh, that’s just my lunch”
I grabbed the offending coat, ( while wearing gloves!) , turned it up-side down, and shook it.
About 7 or 10 half-dollar sized LIVE soft shell crabs fell out, and began scuttling around the booking room.
Stinky had apparently stolen them out of the fresh sea-food bin at the fish market up the street before we nabbed him.
To say that hilarity ensued would be vastly understating the commotion that followed, but suffice to say Stinky didn’t get his lunch, and Mitch never lived it down.
The Lieutenant had Mitch prepare a Line Up Briefing presentation on the “importance of proper searches during custody” later that week. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house when he finished
Avdiivka, Ukraine FALLS to Russian Army – “Complete Rout”
Once considered impregnable, the KEY city for Ukraine defense, Avdiivka, the most heavily fortified city on the entire planet, has fallen to the Russian Army.
Within hours, the bloodiest battle of the 21st century (so far) will be over.
For those who have not kept up on developments in the Russian Special Military Operation (SMO), Avdiivka is the place from which the Ukrainian Army has shelled the civilians of Donetsk City for TEN YEARS!
There are going to be lots of tactical, strategic, and political implications from this that we will see over the next days and weeks.
There are reportedly very FEW Ukrainian defenses behind Avdiivka; the Ukrainians put all their eggs into one basket, counting on the deep Soviet-era nuclear bunker system, and defenses built since the end of the civil war to make it “impregnable.”
ALL of those defenses have failed and the Russian Army now controls the city.
(HT Remark:Remember how CNN and Bloomberg crowed endlessly that cutting Russia off from SWIFT was like using a Nuclear Weapon, and that there was no way Russia could survive that? Here we are, two years later, and now, there is no way for UKRAINE to survive!)
This is a developing story . . . check back for updates.
2023.02.22 China Declares War On The United States
Gonzalo was correct.
https://youtu.be/mj7mauNj8DY
Be the Rufus
image 234
“Today I went to Dunkin and saw a clearly homeless guy singing on the side of the road and picking up change. Eventually I saw him stroll into Dunkin, as he was counting his change to buy something I began to get super annoying and talk to him over and over again even when he didn’t really want to talk. Since he had maybe $1 in change I bought him a coffee and bagel and asked him to sit down with me. He told me a lot about how people are usually very mean to him because he’s homeless, how drugs turned him into the person he hated, he lost his mom to cancer, he never knew his dad and he just wants to be someone his mom would be proud of (along with another hours worth of conversation.) this lovely mans name was Chris and Chris was one of the most honest & sincere people I’ve ever met. After realizing I really need to get back to class Chris asked me to wait so he can write something down for me. Handing me a crumpled up receipt he apologizes for having shaky hand writing, smiled, and left. I opened his note and this was it. “I wanted to kill myself today because of u I now do not. Thank u, beautiful person.”
The most important thing that drug rehabs understand that soon to be patients don’t, or can’t, or have forgotten, is that your being there is a matter of life or death. Plain and simple — you will die or you will get clean — that’s it.
Preparation for rehab goes like this.
You make the call to rehab and tell them you need help. Their phone intake staff will ask you a handful of questions like:
What is your drug of choice?
How long have you been using?
Are you safe?
Have you ever been to rehab?
Do you have a phone number that we can call you back if we get disconnected?
Are you on probation or parole?
Do you have an address where we can pick you up?
Those are a few of the questions the rehabs I’ve been to have asked me during the phone intake interview.
If you noticed, there is a seemingly important question that isn’t asked (or wasn’t asked of me).
That is: “Do you have insurance?”
Every rehab that I’ve been to didn’t require insurance. Once I got into rehab they helped me find funding.
Once you make the call asking for help, rehab is usually less than twenty-four hours away.
Here is a list of things that are great to have, but without resources not all of them are possible.
Your shoes and clothing.
Toothpaste, toothbrush, body wash, stick deodorant, razors. Don’t bother bringing any aerosol deodorant, mouthwash or cologne. If it has alcohol and has an outside chance it can be abused, it is contraband.
Cigarettes.
Money.
Hard candy in an unopened brand new package.
Don’t bring drugs, alcohol or weapons. That’s a crime in and out of rehab. They will call the cops. You will pay dearly.
Now you’re packed up and ready to go.
Usually, within twenty-four hours they send a van to pick you up at your doorstep. Again, it’s life or death so time is ticking and rehabs understand that.
The van is probably going to have four or five other people heading to rehab also. They’re in the same boat as you.
Once you get to rehab, you’re gonna get naked and searched. So, let’s back up. Before you get picked up, get a shower and shave. Somebody is going to be looking at your body without your clothes on.
Once you’re searched and all your belongings are searched, you’ll be assigned a bed.
You’re going to have 1–5 roommates.
You’ll go through 1–7 days of detox. This will seem difficult. You’ll be on medication. It’s gonna hurt, but it gets better.
After detox, you’ll be moved to rehab.
Now it’s official.
There are lots of people with lots of problems in rehabs.
Focus on yourself — they are not your friends. Don’t trust them, don’t believe them and don’t leave with them.
Listen to your counselor.
Pay attention.
If you have the opportunity to get into a halfway house after rehab, take it.
It’s awesome. You get to work, save money and start your life over.
In WWII, Nazi Germany was concentrating their man power toward the Eastern Front.
An ENTIRE Wehrmacht Division which consisted of 2 brigades of about 12,000 soldiers was up against a single Soviet KV Heavy tank.
The crew of the tank (5 personnel) held off the German advance for hours. The Germans simply couldn’t disable the beast. Eventually, the crew of the tank ran out of ammo and was killed by the Germans.
The Germans took the bodies of the Soviet soldiers and buried them with full military honors.
They swept through the KV and grabbed a flag of the Soviet Union. The bodies were buried with the flag, saluted, and 21 rounds were fired in their honor.
Everyone is aware of the infamous Christmas Truce of 1914 during WWI. Similar things about during WWII. Please remember that during WWII, Germany was signed under the Geneva Conventions. The SS didn’t really care for this. But the Wehrmacht did and had to abide by it.
During national holidays like Christmas, the Germans and British once again ceased fire. They all agreed to stop shooting to give themselves time to bury their fallen soldiers. This happened on multiple occasions but was looked down upon, especially by Adolf Hitler.
During Operation Barbarossa (Invasion of the USSR), German was winning in the beginning. They were sweeping through the Soviet Union fast and capturing millions of Soviets. With the unforgivable Einsatzgruppen killing off Soviet Jews in the rear.
There are many pictures out there of Wehrmacht and even SS soldiers helping their enemies (Soviets). With the increasing victories of the Germans, thousands of Soviets were being injured. There are pictures and stories out there of SS soldiers caring for those victims. I know, it’s really hard to believe. (I’ll add the pictures in once I find them).
The Geneva Conventions state that once the enemy is disarmed, they’re no longer an enemy but a POW. And POWs must be treated humanely and taken care of.
During WWII, the Wehrmacht captured American POWs. They were separated (officers from enlisted). They were given jobs (mostly for junior ranks). They were given 2 full meals a day, and were able to receive care packages from the Americans Red Cross.
This was different with the SS most of the time.
Americans were captured by the 1st SS Panzer Division (Hitler’s Honor/Body Guard Division, Leibstandarte SS) after the Battle of the Bulge.
This image completely breaks my heart, as I’m an American soldier and have massive respect to my veterans, especially WWII veterans.
Instead of taking prisoners, the SS decided to shoot them dead and leave them in the snow. An MG-42 opened fire at them, killing 84. A few survived and managed to reach another American Division. After that, most divisions gave the order to kill all SS personnel on sight. In 1944, the commander of the SS Division (Joachim Peiper) was caught along with his men. They all stood trial for killing POWs. Peiper unfortunately got away with his crime. He was later killed by Nazi Hunters long after the war.
Jamaican Banana Bread
2024 02 18 10 14
Ingredients
Bread
2 tablespoons butter, softened
2 tablespoons light cream cheese, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup mashed ripe bananas
1/2 cup skim milk
2 tablespoons dark rum or 1/4 teaspoon rum extract
1/2 teaspoon grated lime rind
2 teaspoons lime juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted
1/4 cup flaked, sweetened coconut
Topping
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons butter
2 teaspoons lime juice
2 teaspoons dark rum or 1/8 teaspoon rum extract
2 tablespoons chopped pecans, toasted
2 tablespoons flaked, sweetened coconut
Instructions
Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Coat an 8 x 4 inch loaf pan with cooking spray. Set aside.
Bread
Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with electric mixer; add sugar, beating well. Add egg; beat well.
Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; stir well. Combine banana, milk, rum, line rind, lime juice and vanilla extract; stir well. Add flour mixture to creamed mixture alternately with banana mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture; mix after each addition. Stir in pecans and coconut.
Pour batter into prepared pan; bake for 60 minutes.
Let cool in pan for 10 minutes; remove from pan. Let cool slightly on wire rack.
Topping
Combine brown sugar, margarine, lime juice and rum in saucepan; bring to a simmer. Cook 1 minute; stir constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in pecans and coconut; spoon over loaf.
I pulled an idiot move and had the other driver follow me. New town, didn’t know my way around very well but knew I was being followed. Drove past my apartment complex and into a neighborhood, make a u-turn back out to make sure I am being tailed and yep, I am. Ended up driving to a convenience store and parking up front. See the other guy park as well, then as soon as he gets out I back up and leave. Do a few more twists and turns and catch a red light or two, make sure I lost them, then go to my apartment. Lucky for me they didn’t know which drive I was going to or even where I was going. And I left about an hour later for the airport and was gone a week plus. Thankfully they never saw me again, out of state plates would’ve been a give away for me.
– Kursk 2.0? – Moon of Alabama, Jun 09 2023 – Collapse of Operation Citadel 2.0 – TASS, Feb 24 2024 by Konstantin Sivkov – Vice President of the Russian Academy of Missile and Artillery Sciences for Information Policy
> Sir Tim Clark told the Financial Times he had seen a “progressive decline” in Boeing’s standards, which he put down to long-running management and governance mis-steps, including prioritising financial performance over engineering excellence. <
Use as open (not Ukraine or Palestine related) thread …
Posted by b on February 25, 2024 at 13:03 UTC | Permalink
Cheese Tortellini Crock Pot Dinner
A creamy, cheesy crock pot dinner recipe featuring cream cheese, cheese tortellini and spinach.
cheese tortellini crockpot dinner
Ingredients
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 large bag cheese tortellini
1 (16 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 bunch fresh spinach, stems removed, or 1 bag frozen spinach
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1 container vegetable or chicken broth
4 ounces grated mozzarella cheese
Instructions
Place block of cream cheese in the slow cooker.
Pour the bag of tortellini over the cream cheese.
Pour the can of diced tomatoes over all.
Add the spinach to the top.
Sprinkle garlic powder, onion powder, pepper and Italian seasoning over the top.
Pour the chicken broth into the slow cooker.
Sprinkle mozzarella cheese over the top.
Cover the slow cooker, and cook on HIGH for about 2 1/2 hours.
Stir well and serve.
Fail Safe (1964) | Full Movie ft. Henry Fonda | Voyage
A U.S. plane loaded with hydrogen bombs is flying towards Moscow and because of technical difficulties, is impossible to recall. Starring Henry Fonda and Walter Matthau. Directed by Sidney Lumet.
“Dr. Strangelove” and “Fail Safe” were released the same year, 1964, and deal with the same subject. Dr. Strangelove got more attention due to its satirical, comedic approach to the subject of nuclear destruction, but Fail Safe brings home the point in a far clearer, more compelling manner. It’s just as chilling today as it was 60 years ago.
My father had a boyhood “best friend”. His name was Zeke.
He used to tell me stories. They would go fishing together as boys. They would do things. They would get drunk, and they would live their lives on “Polish Hill” a Polish-American suburb in Pittsburgh.
He was Zeke’s “best man” at his wedding. And he knew both Zeke and his wife quite well as they all were High School friends.
One day…
…I was perhaps 16 years old at the time, and having a long-distance, relationship with my girlfriend. With periodic phone calls, and weekend visits to her home in Lower Burrel, PA.
One day…
My father was crestfallen. He came home (from work) and was pale as a ghost.
It turns out that his buddy Zeke had an argument with his wife. It was pretty bad. And the wife took out a pistol and shot Zeke in the face.
BLAM!
It apparently blew most of his head off, and he was buried in a closed-casket.
It really shook my dad up, and I don’t blame him.
Now, myself, being much older… has had good long time “best Buds” Childhood friends dead… yeah I know what it is like.
Robbie… drug overdose. Marcus… Suicide by shotgun blast. My cousin Sincere’ … Coronavirus.
My brother, Daniel… I just don’t know… he doesn’t answer any e-mails. It’s been over a year now.
Life moves on.
People.
Life is too short to die over an argument. If you and your spouse are not getting along… then leave. No one needs to die over anything.
At the age of 39 I had it all. A loving wife, two fantastic kids, an apartment in New York City, a house in the country, new car, nice vacations and a high paying job as Creative Director of a hot creative advertising agency.
Everyone wanted to be me.
Except me.
On the outside I was the poster boy for Happy Successful Man Who Has His Whole Future Ahead Of Him. But deep down inside I was miserable.
I began to assault myself daily with that five word mantra. The one that so many of us begin muttering when they find themselves wandering through that unfamiliar, unsettling neighborhood known as midlife.
Is this all there is?
We don’t ask ourselves that question when we’re 25. It’s still too early in the first quarter of the game. We caught the ball on the five yard line and we’re making our way up the field.
But at 39, it’s halftime. Do the math. The average man is going to live till the age of 78. I was on the back nine.
I know — your actual mileage may vary. You could get killed falling off a ladder at age 60. Or at the age of 100 you could fall off a hooker. There’s a lot of latitude in The Middle. But somewhere between 30 and 50 you’re halfway done. It’s up to you to decide when to look at the face in the mirror and say:
Is this all there is?
No. There’s a whole lot more. And I’m going to tell you how to get there. Tonight I’m going to send someone to your house. He’s a teenager, about 17 or 18. He doesn’t know much about life — what teenager does? But he knows what’s cool. And after talking to you for a couple of hours, he’s going to be able to zero in on what’s a cool new direction for you to head in.
In fact, by the end of the evening, this kid is going to completely outline and plan the second half of your life. And that’s what you’ll do. Trust me, it will be cool.
What’s that you say? That’s the dumbest damn thing you ever heard? Why should you let some teenage kid with no world experience plan the second half of your life?
My answer is, why did you let him plan the first half?
This rut that you’re stuck in, this life that you’re trapped in, who planned it? Not you. Not the YOU you are now. Most of us form our life’s plans shortly after high school. Maybe we’re 16, maybe we’re 23, but for the most part we’re still kids. And then once we make a plan, we stick with it.
That was my insight. I was pushing 40 and still living the dream of some teenage kid.
That kid didn’t exist anymore, and yet I was still following the path he laid out for me. Most kids can’t project past next Saturday, much less conjure up what your life could be like 25 years down the road.
That was the moment I decided that the 40 year old me should start planning the life of the 60 year old me and beyond.
I was at the top of the ladder, and I suddenly realized I didn’t need one more rung. I wanted to find a new ladder.
I did. Climbing that ladder was at times terrifying, but never boring. Today I have all the things I had at the age of 39 and more. But this time around I’m deliriously happy with who I am and where I am. I still have dreams for the future, but I no longer wake up in the morning, look in the mirror and ask is this all there is?
My Act Two was conceived, written, produced, and directed by an adult. And I’m grateful for the insight that convinced him to take on the job.
EDIT – JANUARY 30, 2017: Dear People of Quora. I am overwhelmed by your response to my post. Not because the number of views and upvotes have skyrocketed, but because most of the comments and the private messages have asked me for more. Lots more.
One commenter, Traci Amick, said it like this: “Marshall, Marshall, Marshall… You can’t leave us hanging! When you made the decision to redirect and change your life what and how did you do it?”
There was a reason I left you hanging. I’ll get to that in a minute. But first, let me give you a brief (and I do mean brief) overview of what happened after the light bulb went on.
Here I was, pushing 40. At my core I’m a writer, but somewhere along the way the ad agency that hired me to write ads promoted me and paid me more money to stop writing and start managing. I wore suits, spent a lot more face time with clients, and I supervised a hundred other people. And while it was often gratifying, I realized that my career had stolen the one thing I loved doing most. Writing.
My solution was to start writing on my own. Over the course of countless nights and weekends I wrote a play, Squabbles, a comedy. Two years later it ran for eight weeks in a dinner theatre in Kansas City. (Since then it has played in thousands of theatres around the US.)
Shortly after Squabbles opened, ABC-TV asked me to turn it into a pilot for a sitcom. It didn’t fly, but now I was an accredited pilot writer, and for the next 6 years I kept my day job as an advertising agency Creative Director, and developed TV pilots for the networks on my own time. It’s unusual for a pilot to get picked up for a series, but two of mine did. I was 45 when the second one got picked up, and I decided to make the leap. I left advertising for TV.
I went to Hollywood, but it wasn’t fair to uproot my wife and kids to chase my dream, so they stayed in New York. I flew home as often as I could, which wasn’t often enough. Many of you asked if my quest for a new career wrecked my marriage. Just the opposite. After two years, despite the fact that I was on the fast track, I left Hollywood and came back to what was most important to me — my family.
There were some TV writing opportunities in New York, and I wrote a movie script which I sold and produced, and then — out of nowhere — a whole new creative avenue opened up. The Internet.
I caught the wave early. I opened Compelling Content, an Internet advertising agency, sold it five years later, and eventually zeroed in on the final frontier for every writer. A novel.
That took five years, and in 2006, I published The Rabbit Factory, my first crime fiction novel. Today I’m a #1 best selling author, with five books of my own, and the coauthor of the NYPD Red series with James Patterson.
I didn’t mention that in the original post because I didn’t want to be thrown off Quora for shameless self-promotion.
I’m not on Quora to sell my books. I’m here to exchange information, to share experiences, to give and take bits and pieces of life magic. I love this forum, and I’m grateful that one of my posts could resonate with so many of you.
One final note: Eight days after my original post I have a quarter of a million views, 3300 upvotes, and over 100 comments and messages. In the beginning, I responded to the comments, but I’ve reached the point where I no longer can. I wish I could, but I have to get back to my day job. Writing.
At the moment, I’m working on NYPD Red 5 with James Patterson. But this experience on Quora, especially your comments and messages, has made me realize that there are a lot of people out there going through the same mid life career angst that I went through. And that the 60,000 word version of my story just might make an interesting book.
EDIT 2 – FEBRUARY 15, 2017: One million views. Humbling to say the least (and I’m not exactly a guy who’s world famous for his humility).
The subject of life change is a hot button for most of us, but more often than not it’s the story of someone stuck in a dead end job who is looking for a better way. My experience wasn’t that. I walked away from a successful career that was stifling me, and today I’m thriving in the one I had been dreaming about.
I get a lot of head nods when I share my story in person, but I’m amazed that it resonated with so many people across this global forum.
Thank you for your eyeballs, your upvotes, and your feedback.
I was able to answer every direct message, but because of a Quora Quirk it’s extremely difficult to respond to the hundreds of comments. There’s no logic to the order in which they appear and no way to reorder them so the newest are at the top. That means I have to click on “comments,” scroll through five or six, then click on “more comments.” Eventually, I get to one I haven’t read yet, but as soon as I send a reply, the site takes me back to the top of the comments, and I have to go through the process all over again.
EDIT 3-MARCH 18, 2017: For those of you who wanted more details (really — it’s not my ego; some of you actually asked) I’ve expanded my answer into an article on Medium. Thank you for the encouragement. Here’s the link: The Thrills and Perils of Switching Careers
I rented the ground-level apartment in my friend’s split level for a few years. The guys who rented upstairs owned a party lighting company, and as a result they usually came home from work around 3 AM. I worked a nine-to-five job, and I’m a fairly light sleeper. When they came home from work, they’d occasionally turn on the TV, and usually fairly loud, which would of course wake me up, but most of the time I could drown out the noise by turning on a fan in my bedroom.
This was annoying but I could deal with it……until one of their girlfriends moved in upstairs. This nasty such-and-such had no problem with turning up the volume on the TV all the way, in the middle of the night every night, and watching for hours. This was the early years of flat-screen TVs and they had a big one, so likely it was verrrry expensive. When I knocked on the door to ask them to turn it down, I was told ‘this is when we get home from work and we’ll do what we want’. Even having my friend, their landlord, intervene, had no effect.
Well, a few nights of one or two hours’ sleep made me downright ingenious. I remembered that once, while microwaving my dinner, I had started vacuuming the floor and having both appliances turned on tripped the circuit breaker. I crossed my fingers that we were on the same circuit and during the next morning’s 3 AM showing of Willy Wonka, with the girlfriend screaming “I love this movie!” and turning the volume up even louder than usual, I turned on the microwave and the vacuum. Five seconds and poof! Blessed silence! I heard a little shuffling around upstairs, then one of them went down into the basement and reset the circuit breaker.
The power came back on, and so did the television. I waited about a minute before turning back on the microwave and vacuum. Poof! Silence! They reset the circuit breaker again, but this time there was no more TV. I went back to the most blissful slumber ever.
My friend later told me that they complained to him about the power going out because it was such an expensive TV and that could damage the electronics. I told him that if they kept the volume to a respectable level then I wouldn’t have to do anything about it, but I wouldn’t hesitate to if it happened again. The microwave/vacuum trick was only necessary a couple more times before they got the hint and kept the noise down in the middle of the night.
Chinese believes in owning assets and keeping a healthy cash flow. As a Chinese origin I do find western lease or rental mindset difficult to comprehend but it is a cultural thing.
Chinese people feel compel to own things and to not let others dictate lease terms to them. Westerners feel that buying assets when you can lease them makes more sense. But to me it is cultural. China is a 5000 years nation, the west like the U.S, Canada and Australia are merely 250 years or so. They are a warrior type mentality that fights all the time. I guess it impacted their mindset.
Chicken Scaloppini with Rustic Tomato Olive Spaghetti
2024 02 03 09 03
The ingredients are married perfectly to enhance the chicken.
Ingredients
4 ounces multi-grain thin spaghetti
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 large leek, white and light green parts, thinly sliced (or 1/2 cup chopped sweet onion)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced fire roasted tomatoes, undrained
1 cup Lindsay® California Ripe Pitted Olives, halved lengthwise
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 egg whites
1/4 cup dried Italian seasoned bread crumbs
4 (4 ounces) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, pounded to 1/4-inch thickness
1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil leaves
Instructions
Cook spaghetti according to package directions.
Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Sauté leek and garlic in oil 2 minutes.
Add tomatoes, olives and pepper flakes; simmer over medium-low heat for 10 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, beat egg whites with 1 tablespoon water in a shallow dish or pie plate.
Place bread crumbs in another shallow dish or pie plate.
Dip each cutlet in egg mixture letting excess drip off. Dredge in bread crumbs to coat each side lightly.
Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add chicken; sauté for 3 to 4 minutes per side or until golden brown and cooked through.
Drain spaghetti; transfer to four serving plates. Spoon tomato sauce over spaghetti; top with chicken and garnish with basil.
Prep: 15 min | Cook: 15 min | Servings: 4
Nutrients Per Serving: Calories: 401, Calories from fat: 132, Total fat: 15g, Monounsaturated fat: 9g, Cholesterol: 73mg, Sodium: 683mg, Total Carbohydrates: 33g Dietary fiber: 4g Protein: 33g
I asked AI to make a Music Video… the results are trippy
Pol Pot (real name Saloth Sâr) was the dictator of Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, taking power at the end of the Cambodian Civil War. As soon as he took power, He and his administration transformed Cambodia into a one party communist dictatorship. Over the next 4 years, he and his administration committed various human rights violations and carried out what is now known as the Cambodian Genocide. To go into more detail, Pol Pot and his administration:
• Forced the Cambodian population to work without pay.
• Made the Cambodian population live in the country side by forceful removing them from their homes in the cites.
• Destroyed Cambodia’s legal system and replaced it with re-education and interrogation centers. If they thought that you were guilty, you would have been very hard pressed to convince them otherwise.
• Caused much of the Cambodian populace to starve, many times to death.
• Killed anyone they either felt didn’t fit into their new society or deemed to even slightly be a threat to their regime. these included: people with connections to the previous government, Doctors, Lawyers, Intellectuals, Journalists, Business Leaders, Vietnamese Cambodians, Chinese Cambodians, Thai Cambodians, Christian Cambodians, Cham Muslims and family members of prisoners who were thought to be a threat to the regime. Even wearing glasses or being able to speak multiple languages could get you killed.
• If you were to be executed (which was very likely), you would have been taken to one the various “Killing Fields” and would most likely be killed with a pickaxe, so that they did not waste any bullets.
By the time they were overthrown during a Vietnamese invasion, the Cambodian life expectancy was about 18 years old.
As bad as rulers such as Saddam Hussein, Idi Amin and Mao Zedong were for their people, I believe no one was as brutal as Pol Pot was.
I feel like their motto put it best:
To spare you is no profit, to destroy you is no loss.
This doesn’t qualify as disgusting, but many years ago, I was involved with an Internet startup. They spent all of their time having meetings which achieved nothing, and were a complete waste of everybody’s time. One day, I was asked, no told, by the CEO to prepare a lengthy report on something that I considered ridiculous. I wrote 3 pages of it, and then decided to see what would happen if I didn’t finish it off, so I added 35 more pages of Loren Ipsum (Latin), and handed the report in. At the next meeting when everybody was present, I made a point of asking the CEO if the report was what he had wanted. He said “Yes, it was great”. I stood up, and told the entire room that this very important report that I had handed in, and which the CEO thought was great, actually contained 35 pages of Latin, proving that he hadn’t actually looked at it. I said “I quit”, and walked out of the door. The company went belly up 6 months later.
I don’t know if it was disgusting, but it was rather a unique trick. I used this a couple of times on drug dealers.
When I worked undercover in narcotics I would be asked to buy street-dealer weight in either cocaine or Heroin. The designer drugs weren’t around yet and this new stuff called crack was just making its way onto the market.
One problem every undercover faced was the hand to hand delivery of the drugs. During the actual purchase, you needed to be able to testify that you gave the money directly to the seller and they directly handed you the drugs. ( AKA hand to hand purchase).
Drug dealers were wise to this. When an informant would introduce me to the seller they would take the money but they would only give the drugs to the informant and not to me directly.
I couldn’t testify that I got the drugs from the informant. That would require me to identify the informant and have them testify. No way I would do that. So I came up with a cool little trick.
I would give the dealer the money and he would pass the drugs off to the informant who gave them to me. I would look at the package and say it was light (not the correct weight) and throw the package back directly to the dealer saying I wanted my money back. Drug dealers are not in the business of giving out refunds.
I’d move in close seemingly to get my money back, but we’d talk a little and I would agree to the light package if he would agree the next package would be a little overweight.
As soon as the dealer agreed, I’d reach out and take the package back directly from the dealer, sometimes almost pulling it out of his hands, thus completing a hand to hand transaction.
We would let the case sit for six months before we made the arrest, so they would not remember what informant walked me in. But my little hand to hand trick worked every time.
What is the craziest military tactic ever used?
Viewer discretion is advised… Imagine you’ve time travelled back to the 7th July 1944, and you’re now a squad leader on the island of Saipan in the Mariana Islands with the 105th Infantry Regiment of the US Army. As your cutting around giving the ‘grunts’ on the .30 cal Browing machine-gun their ‘arcs of fire,’ suddenly, multiple blood-curdling screams across the battlefield could be heard – BANZAIIIIII!!!!!
The Japanese have just launched a massive banzai charge, leading from the front are their officers, brandishing their samurai swords. Just behind the officers are thousands of Japanese soldiers with bayonets fixed, and as the sun glints down on the cold steel you feel the sweat beads across the forehead form. You lift your helmet and wipe the sweat with your sleeve as you wait for them to get in range. . . you wait. . . and wait. . . RAPID FIRE!!!
Your M1 Garand’s barrel is glowing red, the .30 cal is clattering away bursting your eardrums. As one of the enemy Japanese soldiers falls another one takes his place. They have now broken into your position and the hand-to-hand fighting is fierce. . . all of a sudden you’ve been brought back to the present, you don’t know why, but grateful that you’re now safe. . . I’ve dramatized, but I want to try to put you into the same position (‘foxhole’) as the defenders.
image 15
The Battle of Saipan and the US forces had pushed the Japanese back so far they had nowhere to go by 6th July, so the commander of the Japanese forces Yoshitsugu Saitõ made plans for a final suicide banzai charge for his soldiers and the civilians on the island. Saitõ said:
“There is no longer any distinction between civilians and troops. It would be better for them to join in the attack with bamboo spears than be captured.”
Why the Japanese soldier didn’t believe in surrender, was because they believed in the code of ‘Bushido’ the samurai code of conduct:
Honour was a samurai’s life. Upholding one’s honour through suicide was regarded as a virtue. Loss of face was regarded as an insult that had to be avenged. Surrender was unforgivable sin that resulted in exclusion from civilized society. Dying in battle is what a samurai aspired to achieve.
The Japanese would try to swarm the enemy in a mass frontal attack which the allies called a banzai charge. This was shortened from, Tennõheika Banzai “Long live His Majesty the Emperor.” This tactic was classed as an honourable suicide which was against well organised, dug-in troops with machine guns and artillery support.
image 14
The American soldiers/marines who fought at the Battle of Saipan were some brave men, they had “balls of steel.” This is what Wilfried ‘Spike’ Mailloux of the 105th Regiment facing the Japanese Banzai charge at Saipan, said:
“I was scared as hell,” said Mailloux, then a 20-year-old corporal from Cohoes, a mill town north of Albany. “When you hear that screaming — ‘banzai’ — who wouldn’t be?”
To me, the Japanese soldier’s banzai change of World War 2 was the craziest military tactics used.
JEFFREY SACHS FULL INTERVIEW ABOUT CHINA – U.S RIVALRY CONTINUE ? AND MORE
Oh my God. A deep madness.
https://youtu.be/cVYtF3HVSXY
Subtle Change in Ukraine Blame Means Deadly Trouble for Americans
OPINION-EDITORIAL — A very subtle change in the words coming out of the Russian Foreign Ministry signals the FINAL step before the annihilation of the United States. We have now reached the final step . . .
The wording used by the Russian Foreign Ministry was very subtle, but its implications are anything but. See if you can pick-up the subtle change in this excerpt from RT:
The US and its citizens are complicit in the deaths of the Ukrainian POWs who were killed last week when the Russian Il-76 military aircraft transporting them was shot down by Kiev’s troops, Moscow’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, has said.
On Thursday, Russia’s Investigative Committee released a report stating that the cargo plane was destroyed using two US-made MIM-104A missiles fired by a Patriot air-defense system. The Il-76 came down in Russia’s Belgorod Region last Wednesday. All of those on board – 65 Ukrainian POWs, three Russian troops, and six crew members – were killed.
Russian investigators stated that Ukrainian troops fired the missiles from a staging area in Kharkov Region, not far from the village of Liptsy, some 10km from the Russian border. They based their conclusion on 116 missile fragments found at the crash site bearing inscriptions in English.
Responding to the report, Zakharova said in a Telegram post that US citizens “need to know where their money is going,” arguing that President Joe Biden and his administration have made Americans “complicit in a bloody tragedy.”
Did you catch it? Did you pick up the subtle change in the language they used? It’s right there in front of you!
Here, let me focus it for you:
“The US and its citizens are complicit in the deaths of the Ukrainian POWs . . .”
Then again, in a later paragraph:
” . . .arguing that President Joe Biden and his administration have made Americans “complicit in a bloody tragedy.” “”
This tiny and subtle change points the finger not just at the US Government, it also points the finger at . . . . YOU. And me! Individually. Personally.
This is a point I have made repeatedly on my radio shows in the past two years. I have earnestly pointed out that what our GOVERNMENT does, is being done IN OUR NAME.
Remember, this nation celebrates Abraham Lincoln’s famous Gettysburg Address wherein he posited that we have “Government of the people, by the people, and for the people.”
Ergo, when the US Government does something, it does it in OUR name. You and me.
The Russians have now made clear who it is they hold responsible for what the US Government is doing: YOU and ME.
You see, we . . . . you and me . . . . ARE in fact, to blame!
We sit back and do nothing while our government runs roughshod over the whole world. Sanctions on this one and that one. Military action here. Military action there. And whenever our Government engage in that activity, people we don’t know, in lands we’ve never been to or maybe haven’t even heard of . . . . die.
Oh, and while our government is doing all this crap to people all over the world, you and I sit back and do . . . . nothing. We don’t make a phone call to our members of Congress or the Senate. We don’t write a letter or send a fax. We don’t even fire-off an email. We sit on our asses and do absolutely . . . . nothing.
The Russians are now making clear it is YOU and I who are doing this. YOU and I who are to blame. Directly. Personally.
You know what? They’re right.
WE are to blame. We elect these people then sit back and tacitly approve of what they’re doing by our own, personal inaction. They slaughter people all over the world. They bomb countries back into the Stone Age. You and I sit back and do absolutely nothing. Or worse, we sing idiotic Beach Boys Parody songs like “Bomb Bomb Bomb, Bomb Bomb Iran . . . .” as if somehow what we’re doing is good. It isn’t.
A Russian guy I know cited US Senator Lindsey Graham the other day to make a very valid point to me. He showed me what Lindsey Graham, posted on “X” (formerly Twitter) wherein he said the following:
Then the Russian guy asked me “What if some member of the Russian Federation COuncil (i.e. a Russian “Senator”) Posted this exact message on VKontake (Russian Social Media) only changed the countries involved, like this FAKE SAMPLE:
FAKE RUSSIA SENATOR
In case the Putin Administration is wondering, it is abundantly clear to the United States and everyone else in the region, that the Administration doesn’t want war. But it will be difficult to tell the families of the fallen soldiers that the United States is not at war with us.
The United States is at war with Russia on multiple fronts through their proxies (Ukraine). Weak talk and weak action are putting our service members [in Ukraine], at risk. If the United States doesn’t pay a heavy price after the deaths of our service members, and the wounding of many more, then the Putin Administration is derelict in their duties to protect Russian personnel in harm’s way.
To the Putin Administration: Stop the weak rhetoric and respond with strength to protect Russian interests and lives. Your current approach to United States/NATO aggression is not working. Change while you can.”
Same words as Lindsey Graham. Same logic.
So I have to ask YOU, the Reader, if Lindsey Grahams words about Iran are good enough to warrant the US attacking Iran, would the FAKE Russian Senator’s exact same words about Ukraine, justify Russia hitting us?
Why not. Same situation!
You see, this is a big problem for my fellow Americans. We view the world as being ours to do with as we please. We never once stop to think how other powerful nations, might decide to use OUR logic, when dealing with . . . . us.
Now, some of you will react by saying “They wouldn’t dare.” Oh no? Why not?
And you would respond “Because we would nuke the living shit out of them.”
Really?
Because they can also do that to us.
Oh.
Yes.
Reality sets in.
And those same reactionary Americans who would say “They wouldn’t dare” would then likely say “They won’t, it would mean the end of the world.”
Yes. It would. And we would have done it to ourselves by the way we are behaving around the world.
Why should Russia sit back and allow us to supply arms to Ukraine, which are now clearly being used to kill Russians?
Why shouldn’t Russia tell the United States (again) to stop supplying weapons that are killing Russians and then add, or Russia will start hitting the United States?
Why shouldn’t Russia make it direct? Blunt?
Well . . . . turns out, they just began making it blunt. At the top of this Op-Ed, they have now begun blaming “American citizens.” You and me.
Where is this leading? Let me explain it this way:
What is the difference between “Killing” and “murder?”
Murder is the unlawful killing of an innocent. But “Killing” is allowable if it is “justified.”
For instance, if a guy is aiming a gun at you, and you do something which kills him, that is “self defense” and not murder, even though the guy is now dead.
So there is a difference between killing and murder. One may be allowed while the other is not.
Same thing with countries.
The U.S. is supplying weapons for Ukraine to use to kill Russians. Russia has repeatedly told the US and NATO to stop, but we are not stopping. ERGO, it would be “justified” for Russia to kill us in self defense.
Thankfully, the Russians have good morals and they know that perhaps the innocent American people ought not be harmed because of our evil government. SO thus far, they have not killed us.
I think the change in Russian Foreign Ministry wording mentioned at the start of this Op-Ed, tells us that’s about to change.
The official Diplomatic Corps of the Russian Federation is now openly, and publicly, laying the blame for the deaths of Russians, upon “the American people.” Me and you.
Having repeatedly told us to stop, the only thing left for Russia to do is to make us stop – by killing us.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has now begun laying the historical groundwork to justify exactly that.
By changing their statements to lay blame upon “the American people” they are building a record to justify killing . . . us.
Wise-up folks.
Unless we reign-in our wayward government, and stop them from running roughshod over the whole world, you and I __can__ be held accountable. You and I __can__ be stopped.
The clock seems to be ticking.
Now, you can either step up and start being an active and engaged citizen, and start telling your elected public servants to knock it off, or you can go right back to sitting on your ass and doing nothing until the brilliant white flashes start. Then you can feel sorry for yourself as you vaporize, except God already knows: You brought this on yourself by not getting off your lazy ass and stopping your own government while you still could.
No pity for you and me.
FEARFUL EUROPE! Europe Slows down De-Risking from China
I had my fairly new license and was driving my parents car when a deer darted out in front of me. I swerved and put the car into a ditch. Not hurt.
I find a phone and call a tow truck. Get back to the car and there is a police car there. I explained I’d stayed with the car for 15 minutes but knew there was a gas station nearby.
He gives me a ticket for speeding because in his opinion that’s the only way this could have happened.
Now this is a small municipal court for traffic tickets. My license was from my parents home 3 hours away. He was expecting me to just mail in the fine rather than contest it. He approached me before court to “refresh his memory about the event” and naively I did. He gets called and testifies that I was speeding.
So, I asked him where he was when the accident happened and was able to witness me speeding. He said he passed me going in the opposite direction.
So, I asked: if you saw me speeding in the opposite direction & saw me wreck my car, why did I have to walk 20 minutes to the phone, call police headquarters to report the accident, and walk back before you wrote the ticket?
The judge stopped things at that point & dismissed the charges.
This will not go down well with the electorate and, moreover, with the soldiers of the Ukrainian forces:
A poll published by the Kyiv Institute of Sociology in December found 88% of Ukrainians supported the top general. Zelensky’s approval rating, though also high, was considerably lower at 62%.
It is far from clear that any new commander will be able to improve Ukraine’s difficult situation on the battlefield without significantly more forces and weapons — precisely what Zaluzhny has demanded of Zelensky, adding tension to what was already a fraying relationship.
Zaluzhny’s popularity — both within the military and among ordinary citizens — makes his removal a political gamble for Zelensky. It also poses strategic risks at a time when Russia has intensified its attacks and Western security assistance for Kyiv has slowed. The general has built strong rapport with his Western counterparts and has often been able to advocate directly for certain materiel and seek counsel on battlefield strategy. … Both Budanov and Syrsky are considered favorites of Zelensky and Andriy Yermak, the chief of the presidential office and Zelensky’s closest adviser. Nearer the front, however, there seems to be little appetite for change.
“My personal opinion is you can’t do something like this right now — Zaluzhny is someone 80 percent of the military considers a good authority,” said Oleksandr, a battalion commander fighting in eastern Ukraine.
“For what is he being removed? It’s not clear. And who will replace him? Syrsky? God, I hope not. No one in the army likes Syrsky,” Oleksandr added.
The Bild publication writes that Zaluzhny wanted to withdraw troops from Avdiivka a few weeks ago, but Zelensky refused him this and on December 30 he personally went to the city to the front line to support the Ukrainian Armed Forces fighters.
So all the coffins that arrived from near Avdeevka to Ukraine since December 30 are solely on the conscience of Zelensky and his passion for narcissism.
Avdeevka is nearly surrounded and any attempts to hold onto it will cost many valuable lives of soldiers for no discernible advantage. But, just like with Bakhmut, Zelenski wants to hold on to the city to be be able point his western sponsors to some ‘successes’.
My hunch is that, after Monday’s kerfuffle in Kiev, the decision to fire Zaluzny was still hanging in balance.
The change now only happened after the noeconservative destroyer of Ukraine, Victoria Nuland, had landed in Kiev.
When asked by a journalist whether Nuland had learned about Kyiv’s plans on the battlefield, she replied that, in her opinion, Ukraine would achieve great success.
“I have to say that I leave Kyiv tonight more encouraged about the unity and the resolve, about 2024 and its absolute strategic importance for Ukraine. I also leave more confident that, even as Ukraine strengthens its defenses, Mr. Putin is going to get some nice surprises on the battlefield and that Ukraine will make some very strong success,” the U.S. Under Secretary of State emphasized.
This hint does not foresee success on the ground but asymmetric operations within Russia or the Black Sea. More to the like of this which has happen last night:
Ukraine sinks Russian ship.
During a night attack by drones in the Donuzlav area, the Black Sea Fleet lost the Ivanovets MRK, built in 1989, 493 tons of displacement, armed with Moskit missiles.
Sinking that ship will do nothing to change the outcome at the battlefront. Nor would any attacks on Russia oil and gas infrastructure change anything.
Nuland’s remark also hints that the replacement of General Zaluzny will not come in the form of Army General Alexander Syrski, who is disliked by the troops for unsuccessfully holding grounds in Bakhmut and elsewhere at too high costs in men and material.
Nuland’s hint towards asymmetric operations points to the elevation of the Chief of Military Intelligence Directorate Major-General Kyrylo Budanov as a incoming replacement for Zaluzny.
Budanov has been responsible for some daring, if mostly unsuccessful, terror attacks on Russian land and interests.
Back in June 2023 the Economist explained why Zelenski might seek to elevate Bundanov:
Aides huddle close when the general speaks. Under his leadership, Ukraine’s main directorate of intelligence—HUR—has become a plucky, autonomous authority that punches above its weight. It resembles a gang. “Before we had managers, now we have a leader,” says one veteran officer. Oleg, an operative who has known General Budanov for decades, speaks approvingly of his ability to infect others with his fervour, comparing him to a snake “hypnotising you before he comes in for the kill. Restrained, measured, never panicked. You do anything he asks.” … As a confidant of the president—those in government call them kindred spirits—General Budanov is understood to be playing an ever-bigger role in behind-the-scenes peace negotiations. Sources say he is a conduit to secret talks with the Chinese, and he has also been in contact with Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of Russia’s mercenary Wagner outfit.
In conversation it is clear that General Budanov has been thinking hard about post-war Ukraine. Last winter there was talk of him becoming defence minister. He insists his only ambition is victory. Yet secret polls conducted by Mr Zelensky’s office show they are thinking about using the cult of their hero spymaster to counterbalance a perceived rivalry emanating from Valery Zaluzhny, Ukraine’s likeable and independent commander-in-chief. General Budanov’s colleagues say they are convinced he is destined for a big political role once peace comes—if he lives that long.
To the TV producers (Yermak) around the former comedian actor Zelenski it is all about ratings.
Budanov may be good at marketing his image as a successful terrorist.
But he has zero experience of leading any size of unit in combat. You can not lead a company, battalion, brigade or army by ‘huddling close’ with aides. It needs long term strategic thinking just as detailed attention to all kinds of day to day logistics.
Leading an army is like conducting a huge orchestra through a four year long Wagner epos. Having played the first fiddle in a chamber quartet does not qualify for that.
I am sure that U.S. military is not happy about this move. While there were some disagreements with Zaluzny about the right strategies those were between military professional who allowed for diverting opinions. Zaluzny was seen as an experienced professional soldier. Budanov is seen as a spook who had never been in command of any real military. He well not be talked to at the same level.
According to one source, Zaluzhnyi’s senior staff are also expected to be removed from their positions.
With the new inexperienced leadership the situation on the ground will soon become a catastrophic mess for forces of Ukraine. There will be wrong priorities, miss-allocations of resources and large scale losses of men and ground.
On the other side terror attacks on Russian targets, industrial equipment as well as population centers, are likely to sharply increase.
The larger U.S. aim of all this, first announced as a 2019 RAND study, is still unchanged:
The study at that time recommended the arming of Ukrainian’s army as the best way to unbalance Russia. We have since seen the escalation of that strategy. The move from the battlefield to the realm of terror is a response to the degradation of the first by empathizing the psychological effects of the second.
The foreseeable outcome though is unchanged. Ukraine will be smashed, Russia’s power will increase and the global view of the U.S. as a reliable partner will be diminished.
Posted by b on February 1, 2024 at 14:48 UTC | Permalink
I exposed a huge scam by my local gas distributor (cooking gas).
This is a typical cooking gas cylinder in India.
As you can see (not very clearly though), on the neck of the cylinder, net weight and gross weight are clearly mentioned.
Recently, I read an article in ‘The Hindu’ that revealed that a lot of gas agencies/distributors/delivery persons in India are stealing cooking gas. They take out about 1–2 kg of gas from each cylinder and sell it separately in black. The loss in weight is too small for an unsuspecting buyer to notice. But in terms of money, this translates into a loss of about 60 INR per cylinder. The article cautioned everybody to get their gas cylinders weighed before paying the delivery person (Delivery persons are mandated to carry a portable weighing scale along with them by the Govt.)
At first I laughed it off. My agency was trusted. It would never do that. But then on a whim, I decided to try it out. When the next cylinder was delivered to my home, I casually asked the delivery boy to weigh it. The color on his face instantly changed. He started stammering, started insisting that there was no need for this because the bond of trust we shared! I immediately grew suspicious. I pressed him. He then started making excuses that he forgot to bring along his portable weighing-scale.
Luckily, I had my own weighing scale at home. I immediately brought it out and weighed the cylinder myself. The gross weight printed on the cylinder was 29.5 kg, whereas the scale read 27 kg. A difference of bloody 2.5 kgs.
The delivery boy started begging me not to register a complaint against him. And that he wouldn’t repeat the mistake ever again.
Apparently, this is a huge scam going on all over India. If you are reading this answer, please get your gas cylinder duly weighed before paying for it.
Not exactly fired, but we thought it was a great reaction.
After a recent merger between two rather large companies, it was necessary to reduce personnel, so each department was asked to cut staffing by a certain percentage.
To encourage volunteers, management offered to give a full week worth of salary and paid medical benefits for each full year a person had worked at the company if they took early retirement. And anyone who qualified for a pension also got the full pension as if they had not retired early.
One member of our team was about 14 months away from his planned retirement date when he would start receiving full Social Security and pension payments.
He had worked for the company for 45 years. After some simple math, we all strongly encouraged him to take the deal.
He got 45 weeks of full pay, a whole year of benefits coverage (negotiated with HR), his full pension, and they also bought out the almost two months of accrued vacation time that he had been saving up in order to retire a few months early.
He basically got a 12+ month paid vacation with full benefits. We will be having a retirement party for him on his original planned retirement date in a couple of months. 😀
I imagine that wasn’t what management had in mind when they made the offer, but everyone on our team was very happy for him to get it!
The Duran: NATO Crossed Putin’s Red Line and Russia is Ready to FINISH It
Yesterday, I was working with an Orthodox Jewish woman around age 25 on sparring.
Let’s call her Chaya. It was her first day training and I was taking her under my wing to mentor her a bit. (Yes, I have reached the level of being able to slightly teach others. Not much)
Chaya was very sweet, and found it hard to hit. She was so kind and shy, she found it so difficult to get up the anger to hit.
I was holding up the kick shield for her to practice on. (For those who don’t know, this but with punching)
She wasn’t hitting the body shield bag hard enough. She just couldn’t summon the anger needed. She kept giggling and being very gentle and kind.
I tried to rile her up. “Come on, Chaya. Imagine the teacher you hate most? Imagine being cut off in traffic? Imagine your air conditioner breaking on the Shabbat.”
Nothing. She just had no anger.
So I had to be a ***** and I knew exactly what to say. So I said “Imirtza Hashem by you, dear. Have you tried being less picky?” Which means “With God’s help by you,” in reference that she needs divine assistance to find a partner, something Jewish singles (especially female) hear ALL THE TIME AND IT DRIVES US ALL CRAZY! It’s condescending, it’s shaming and it’s really salt in our wounds. And we hear it from well meaning busy bodies all the time.
Chaya’s eyes narrowed and her jaw tightened with sheer rage. She punched the bag so hard, I was knocked back several steps. “See, I knew you had that in you,” I said triumphantly. “Now, you know you can punch.”
She delightedly thanked me and we exchanged worst date stories.
Sometimes, you just need some motivation and if it takes using evil, so be it.
No. But may I highlight a dirty trick by a phone soliciter?
I’ll take that as a yes.
A neighbor of mine was a saleman for Sam’s Club. The guy who makes a pitch to your boss, offering a discount to any of his/her employees who’d like the group membership, put on sales presentations at state fairs etc., cold-calling as well.
Then I moved halfway across the state. He calls me one afternoon, disguising his voice and acting as if he’s calling on behalf of some worthless telemarketing offer. Of course I, not recognizing him, utter some choice words before hanging up. He calls me right back, identifies himself and proceeds to ask me why I couldn’t be more polite in declining whatever it is that’s being offered.
I told him why. Said my peace and then we chatted about whatever he had really needed to talk to me about.
Many years ago I was in a chat room of a group with hundreds of members. Predominantly adults but, there were older teens. I don’t remember what was being discussed but, this kid (older teen) started making rude comments then started making bizarre comments about school shootings,violence and basically hinting he was going to do something. Quite a few people ignored it or told him he was being inappropriate and that he would be reported to moderator. Most in the discussion didn’t take it seriously. I went to his profile which fortunately wasn’t locked down. So concerning posts and was able to figure out the state, town and high school he attended. And his actual name. So I called the police in that town. Explained what I had seen, sent screenshots etc. While I was on the phone with a detective they got a call from one other man who had done the same as me. Surprisingly, the detective called me back a few hours later and while he didn’t give me many details he did say, that between myself and the other man they were able to locate the boy and that everyone was safe. I confess to stalking the FB profiles later and saw that he had been hospitalized so hopefully he got the help he needed. I worried I was doing the wrong thing but, I just kept thinking how hard it would be to live with myself if I saw news the next day of a school shooting and HADN’T called.
Candies in a box
“I know that I have less to live than I have lived.
I feel like a child who was given a box of chocolates. He enjoys eating it, and when he sees that there is not much left, he starts to eat them with a special taste.
I have no time for endless lectures on public laws – nothing will change. And there is no desire to argue with fools who do not act according to their age. And there’s no time to battle the gray. I don’t attend meetings where egos are inflated and I can’t stand manipulators.
I am disturbed by envious people who try to vilify the most capable to grab their positions, talents and achievements.
I have too little time to discuss headlines – my soul is in a hurry.
Too few candies left in the box.
I’m interested in human people. People who laugh at their mistakes are those who are successful, who understand their calling and don’t hide from responsibility. Who defends human dignity and wants to be on the side of truth, justice, righteousness. This is what living is for.
I want to surround myself with people who know how to touch the hearts of others. Who, through the blows of fate, was able to rise and maintain the softness of the soul.
Yes, I hustle, I hustle to live with the intensity that only maturity can give. I’ll eat all the candy I have left – they’ll taste better than the ones I already ate.
My goal is to reach the end in harmony with myself, my loved ones and my conscience.
I thought I had two lives, but it turned out to be only one, and it needs to be lived with dignity.”
Brilliant Anthony Hopkins
and free interpretation of Mario de Andrade’s poem
We had a dishwasher that wouldn’t latch, darn thing wasn’t more than 20, 24 months old. Called the repair guy. He “fixed” it, I paid the bill and off he goes. Well the darn thing starts leaking about two days later from the middle of the door at the bottom. So he comes back, takes the front of the door off. I can see the paths of the water leak from the “newly replaced latch” all the way down the insulation ( soaked by the way) to the spot where it leaked onto the floor. He informs me that we need a new door, over $450, we only paid $560 for it. So I informed him I wasn’t paying for a door, the latch was obviously installed wrong. Oh non, says he, the latch is fine. Oh no, say I, you broke it I’m not buying anything. So he leaves. I call the repair business office, they send a higher up, supervisor or some such ro lookat it. I show him the paper work, he looks at the machine and, Lo and behold the latch is incorrectly installed and the door needs to be replaced. New door for free, and no labor charge. He even refunded the work for the latch.
The greatest threat to the U.S. is your mostly brain dead population created as a result of 75 years of U.S. media propaganda and spin by the US media to glorify the U.S. and demonised those that refused to be submissive and subservient to them.
I have been a business mechanic of sort for years on end till my retirement, and in my view, the first part of any change is recognition and acceptance of the need to change! In the case of the U.S. you guys don’t even know you are in life support and that your U.S. economy is one humongous Ponzi scheme!
There lies the US problem. If you don’t want to know that you are haemorrhaging cash due to forever wars and you cannot afford your defence spending. If you refuse to accept that Chinas has lapped you guys! You ain’t gonna fix it! There lies your problem. Americans must be the most ignorant and naive people on planet earth! You media has made all of you believe in your so call “exceptionalism”
You still think Chinese lives in caves with bats and Russians are Slavic underachievers! And you are 10 foot tall genius! Many here in QUORA still thinks we are in 1945 when the 2 world wars ravaged all other major powers! And the U.S. share of world economy is 52%.
China and Russia don’t need to lift a finger, Americans will implode the U.S!
Please note that the antonym for Democracy is not Communism. It is Dictatorship. There is no logical contradiction between communism and democracy, as many in the US seem to believe. It is a ridiculous, gross misconception.
Is America a true democracy? In my opinion, there is no true democracy or true dictatorship in this world. Every country lies somewhere on a continuous spectrum between these two extremes. If America were a true and pure democracy, I should be able to look into Trump’s tax records and no one could stop me. Note I am not criticizing the American system, but only saying that you cannot call it a true and pure democracy in the sense of the word. It is just closer to the democratic end of the spectrum than some other countries.
I am from Taiwan, not China. I have not lived a single day under communism, but I have lived many years under an anti-communist dictatorship, and that was BAD. You cannot equate democracy with anti-communism. It is simply wrong.
It is very strange to me that communism is such a dirty word in the supposedly free and open-minded American public psyche, as if it were some kind of voodoo witchcraft. I find it totally anti-intellectual and closed-minded, not worthy of a true and free democracy.
I lived in a townhouse with one shared wall. When I moved in, the neighbors were a very quiet couple, never heard a peep out of them. They moved out a year later – and 3 single male construction workers moved in. They played obnoxiously loud music at all hours of the day and night. Complicating matters – I had a 3 year old, and was pregnant with my second child. So sleep was a need.
My wusband (nicer than saying ex-husband because he WAS my husband at the time) politely went next door to ask them to turn down the music – several times. It got to where they wouldn’t answer the door when he went over there. We called the police several times – and they wouldn’t answer the door for the police either.
The situation was wretched – and I began looking for ways to get the message across. One night – they left their garage door open during a particularly loud jam session. I had already gone to bed, and was wearing a huge maternity nightgown – because – I was hugely pregnant. I quickly snuck into their garage, and flipped the breaker switch. And scurried back to my side of the townhouse quietly. They figured it out the next morning. And did their party thing the next night – and I repeated the process. After that they left the garage door shut.
Around this time, I had the baby I was expecting. My wusband and I decided to take the kids and visit a friend for a few hours on a Saturday when we knew all of the neighbors were home sleeping off their Friday night party. Before we left, we moved both of the stereo speakers over to the shared wall, and turned on some super loud heavy metal music to share with said neighbors. And left. We did this several more weekends.
The construction workers broke their lease and left a couple of months later.
Many years ago I had a strange neighbor that lived with his mother next door. I did not speak with them but I would wave if I saw them to be polite.
A few years later I had fallen asleep on the couch and heard this weird noise by the window like scratching. I thought it was my cat and started checking, I see the screen going up in the window and two arms, I started screaming get the f*** out of here and slammed down the storm window.
I woke my son up and called the police, unfortunately my description was two arms of a Caucasian male. This was in the country so not a lot of people around. Four police cars later and after getting my story they went next door. I figured they were asking if they saw anything, but no they were hauling out the guy next door. They found him hiding under a car in the garage. They told me they knew this guy and he had been in trouble before. He had actually broken into my house when the people before me lived there. That would have been good to know before…
So we go to court and you can tell this guy is not right in his mind when he talks to the judge stating he doesn’t understand: so after my victim impact statement, they hold him over but say I can go but not to worry he will not be back.
I do not know what happened but he was back two weeks later and now I have to live next to this guy.
All I could think of was this, my neighbor he knows when I am home or at work so what exactly were his motives to break in knowing we were home? Scared me to death and I had two kids to think about (my daughter was not home the night this happened luckily).
So I called my brother and he came over with a shotgun to teach me target practice. I printed off pictures of this guys mugshot to use for target practice in my backyard. When I was done, I posted them around my property so he would get the message…
Not sneaky but hopefully scared him off. I never had trouble for the next year I lived there but I also never leave a window or door unlocked at night either. Even in the summer months.
Luckily I have much nicer neighbors now and a much better gun to protect myself with if the need arises.
Opening Incredible Garage-Found Gun Safes After 8 Years | What Will We Find Inside?!
Update 4/12/17- Many, many folks have asked me to identify the hotel chain. It was a Hyatt!
I was on a road trip and needed to stay overnight suddenly because a fast moving snow storm was blowing in.
I could see the logo of a hotel chain I occasionally use a few blocks away. I called them and asked if I could have a room on short notice? No problem. Note that between the time I called and the time I appeared at the front desk was maybe 20 minutes!
Here is a portion of my front desk (FD) conversation-
FD- “Mr. B. thank you for staying with us on such short notice. I see you have our affinity card so you have a room on our priority floor. Please remember that we have complimentary coffee and breakfast on that floor beginning at 6:00 am.”
Me- “Thanks but I’m leaving early tomorrow and I’ll be gone by 5:00 am.”
FD- “I understand Mr. B. Have nice night.”
So I trundled up to my room and there on the desk was a small pitcher of ice cold milk and three fresh chocolate chip cookies along with a note. The note was handwritten and addressed specifically to me and thanked me for staying on such short notice. It was signed by the manager. I was very impressed but the best was yet to come!
The next morning my alarm went off at 4:30 am as I planned on leaving at 5:00 am. The message light on my room telephone was blinking but the phone never rang! Of course that would have disturbed me.
The message was something like this-
“Good morning Mr. B. We noted that you were leaving early this morning and couldn’t take advantage of the amenities on our priority floor. We took the liberty of placing coffee and breakfast pastries outside of your door. We didn’t know if you preferred regular or decaffeinated coffee so we included a carafe of each. Have a safe trip!”
You know guys, sometimes I get the biggest belly-laugh when I read some of the answers here. Either they are terribly deluded, or they are immensely ignorant.
…
Here’s a REAL answer.
First of all, let’s throw out some FACTS to “set the table”, so to speak.
China has the largest Navy in the world.
China’s navy is not spread out all over the place (like the USN), but are concentrated at the projected battle fields.
China’s navy is also the oldest navy in the world. It was operating CENTURIES before the first organized navy in Europe.
China’s navy has been restructured, and operates NEW ships with cutting-leading-edge systems and technology. Many of which are unique and unknown to the West.
Were a war to occur between the USA and China, a Naval war would be the lest of the worries of the American “leadership”. Economic, social, and financial collapse would all be in free-fall.
But, let’s answer this question.
Can the United States Navy sink the Chinese Navy?
Here’s my answer…
Yes, the USN has the ability to destroy vessels, aircraft, bases, and people of the PLAN.
It is highly unlikely, however, that they will be able to completely destroy the PLAN.
It is likely that in the process of this destruction, that the USN would suffer great losses in men, material, weapons, and vessels.
Both sides will likely take great losses.
But this is 2024. China’s city-destroying munition capabilities are global. The consequence of a United States (or proxy) war against China will result in the people of the attacking nation being hurt.
Thus…
American major cities will also become targets for destruction.
…
Remember, boys and girls, China is a peaceful nation…
…until it isn’t.
…
Never forget the great losses that the United States incurred the last time they fought the Chinese.
Look at the BIG PICTURE. Not the tactical issues, but the strategic issues. Then faced with this reality, project the highest probability outcomes.
They are not pretty.
JUST NOW…States Under Attack NEED National Guard Deployed IMMEDIATELY
Modern architecture in Nigeria is built with total convenience in mind. We have more toilets and bathrooms in our houses than bedrooms. I’ve built two myself, although not opulent in any way, but it was unthinkable to construct a four-bedroom home with just one or two bathrooms.
When I travel and hear people or real estate agents in developed countries boast about their six-bedroom houses with two baths, the Nigerian in me can’t help but feel puzzled. In Nigeria, such a setup would be considered ridiculous.
I understand that building in developing countries like Nigeria is quite cheap, but just how much extra is it going to cost for a decent bathroom in every bedroom?
The unwritten standard amongst Nigerians is that each bedroom must come with its ensuite bathroom, just like a hotel, ensuring privacy and convenience. Additionally, there’s always a separate toilet for guests by the living room.
image 13
This practice in Nigeria also stems from practicality. With sometimes large families, the idea of waiting in line for a bathroom in your home seems absurd. To think that one would have to walk the entire hallway to get to the toilet, especially at night. This is unimaginable in a home with several boyfriends and girlfriends.:D
Our homes are designed to ensure that everyone has their own space, minimizing inconvenience and maximizing comfort. Building a bedroom without a space for a toilet, accessible only from the same bedroom is a great disservice to whoever is to occupy that room.
While mostly rich folks opt for homes with extensive bathrooms in developed countries, it’s intriguing to note that such a luxury, sometimes at a lower standard is a standard feature in a modern Nigerian building.
P.S.
In the comment section, some people have shifted focus to Nigeria’s poverty, rather than discussing architecture. About 23% of Nigerians, over 50 million people, belong to the middle-upper class, and many in this category can still afford to build their homes. This number alone is more than the population of many rich countries. Nigeria is a land of both immense wealth and poverty. If you’re looking for stories about poverty in Nigeria today, you’ll have to keep scrolling or better still, write it yourself! This post focuses on the architectural styles prevalent among Nigerians who have the means to build their own homes based on my observations!
Poverty is a real problem in Nigeria and it’s getting worse, but there is so much wealth in Nigeria too. Sadly, talking about Nigeria’s poverty and scams is more acceptable and beneficial to many westerners that we can’t even talk about anything else without backlash.
Oh, boy, did I! My mother still blames him for my hatred of math 35 years later!
I had an Algebra teacher get it in his head that A students will always get an A, B students will always get a B, etc, regardless of the grading scale. If and A was 90-100%, A students will do the work to get above 90%, and if an A is 95-100%, we would do the work to get a 95%, etc.
So he decided to make his grading scale A= 98–100%, B= 95–97%, C= 92–94%, D= 90–91‰, below 90% is and F.
So what had been an A/B student (me) would instead fail. Yeah, we hated him. And it only took 1 semester to get him onto probation, and he was gone after the second semester.
He really screwed up by doing this to my class. Out of 52 kids in my graduating class, almost 10% were teacher’s kids, plus one was the principal’s kid! In rural Wisconsin, many normal kids had parents that were uninterested in grades or intimidated by teachers, but when the parents ARE the teachers and principal, that factor disappeared, and they had no problem pitching an absolute FIT until it was fixed.
But I still hate math, the damage was already done.
Papa Vento’s Sicilian Chicken
Like Chicken Parmesan, my father made this for us all the time while we were growing up.
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Ingredients
6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup olive oil (+ more for frying)
1 1/4 cup dry breadcrumbs
1/2 cup Parmesan
Ground black pepper
6 large slices mozzarella cheese
1 large can (32 ounces) crushed tomatoes (regular or Italian seasoned)
1 medium onion
Instructions
Pound out chicken breasts between wax paper to 1/2-inch thick.
In a shallow bowl, combine breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese. In another shallow bowl, pour 1/2 cup olive oil.
Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Dip chicken breasts first in olive oil, letting excess drip off, and then press into breadcrumb mixture. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium / low heat. Sauté chicken breasts until golden on both sides.
Arrange chicken breasts on bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking dish. Pour crushed tomatoes evenly over chicken. Halve the onion and “sliver” cut it, sprinkling them on top of the tomatoes (quantity depends on your taste ). Lay 1 piece of cheese over each chicken breast and bake for 30 minutes until cheese starts to turn golden and sauce is bubbly.
My father makes this with pounded round steak and non-seasoned tomatoes but we love this version. You can make it either way and make up your own mind.
When I was born my parents lived in a flat (apartment ) in quite a rundown area as they were struggling to make ends meet.
My Dad worked 12 hour nights and came home to my mum in floods of tears. Shed been cooking a curry and the “skinheads” on the next floor didn’t appreciate the cross cultural culinary efforts that my mum was whipping up.
They kicked and banged at the door screaming “it stinks of f***ing P***s in here” and other derogatory and racist remarks. All while knowing full well there was a young mother and baby inside.
My Dad came home, and after mum told him what had happened, he decided to visit the chap upstairs.
Knocking was done via my Dad’s shoulder on the flimsy little Yale lock (Dad was a rugby player, Prop to be exact!) and upon entering the was confronted with the offender, in his underpants, swinging a mase at him. Dad kindly removed the offensive weapon from him and told him what a silly man him and his friends had been. Then, upon exiting, Dad noticed this guy’s new stereo system and it reminded him that he’d also had enough of his crappy music at all sorts of hours.
Dad informed him that “I’ve had e-f***ing-nough of this too” and proceeded to throw the stereo system out of this chaps window, which was obviously shut because Dad wouldn’t waste time like that.
Job done, Dad goes back down stairs to enjoy his curry. Then there’s a knock at the door and matey boy has phoned the police. My Dad was honest and willingly accompanied the officers to the station to attempt to resolve the matter.
Fast forward and it goes to court. Now there’s breaking and entering, GBH, criminal damage and………. burglary. This guy had had the audacity to say Dad had stolen his precious stereo system and, during questioning the Judge asked my Dad “so, do you know the whereabouts of the said stereo system”
My Dad replied “Yes your Honour, with all due respect I believe the stero is still in the f***ing tree”
The courtroom burst into laughter and after the judge reminded my Dad to watch his language, decided to send a constable to investigate my Dad’s claim.
After the proceedings resumed the constable concluded to the court
“Yes Your Honour, it would appear that the stereo system is still in the tree”
I believe the chap upstairs was done for wasting police time and moved not long after.
My Dad has always got plenty of these stories from his younger days and whilst I don’t condone any of his actions, they’re bloody epic!
Chinese penchant for knowledge and continuous improvement means that Chinese will always become smarter that Americans in general. Americans in general are cursed by the perception that they are exceptional. Starting from this premise makes them think they are better and smarter than the rest.
That couldn’t be further from the truth. The U.S. became overwhelmingly strong due to the coincidence of history. The 2 world wars wrecked all the major economies and left the U.S. with one eye but the rest of the world has lost both their eyes! The became the king of the blind.
Confucianism ethics in every Chinese person mean they focus on being educated and learning. They will stop at nothing to give their children the very best education money can buy. Diligence and hard work is among the traits that gives Chinese the edge. This means apart from having a higher and better education that is at least 3 full years ahead of the west, the Chinese race never stop learning.
American has this feeling of entitlement and it thinks the world must be submissive and subservient to them and they can always be the best by hook or by crook. These days mainly by crook! Given any task Chinese will start faster and work harder at it and in the end Chinese will be more successful.
Candice explains why it is important for wives to be monogamous
Chinese lower -cost cars are the result of EV’s and they need batteries which China has the raw materials to make unlike the US so low cost EV’s represent the future of international relations between the trading Nations which has developed into a competition between two trading blocks.
Bipolarism has taken the world by storm BRICS led the way as the Russian Special Operation guaranteed retreat to be forbidden, the World post February 24 – 2022 will never be what it was from 1991 to 2011, I know that end date is not universally accepted it was when Libyan leader Muammar Gadaffi refused to be cowered into submission and took on the British and French Arab Spring which had to be save by Obama coming to their rescue bombing Libya and alienating Russia, Vladimir Putin saw the need to jump into the Presidency again because Demitry Medvedev was too far gone supporting Obama, now Demitry Medvedev is an anti Western hawk compared to Putin, that’s how different things are in Russia today compared to 1991 to 2011.
After 2011 Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad followed in Gadaffi’s footsteps and unlike Muammar Gadaffi the Syrian leader remains alive while military Keynesian economics has conquered the United States of America after getting up to full speed under Obama in 2011, now the US economy is swallowing Europe using the pretext of war with all credible sources pointing to the modern times unprecedented threat coming from the Southern Powers China and Russia which is alarming the US, Britain and EU.
This international predicament developed from the US, British and EU’s 1991 complete victory over the entire political and economic landscape within which China has risen in that 33 years to reflect the exact opposite as the goods arranged on supermarket shelves are coming from China taking the place of Japan as the manufacturing centre of the US, Britain and EU’s operations, on top of that China as part of BRICS is now the largest exporter of cars to what is now becoming known in political and economic narratives’ as the Northern Group associated with the pattern of wealth acquisition in the North American continent and poverty in the Southern American continent.
BRICS represents the South and have gained control over a significant portion of the World’s economic landscape which the Northern Group of Nations the US, Britain and EU can’t afford to allow China’s belt and road initiative becoming the turning point of the Northern Groups 1991 to 2011 political and economic control of World affairs, one way the Government’s of the US, Britain and EU can reign in BRICS as they did Japan is to make China’s products economically non viable by pushing up the prices compared to the competition from other parts of the World that do not challenge the economic dominance of the Northern Group the US, Britain and EU.
Import duty is one way the Northern Group are pushing up the prices of what China has to offer, this Government policy does have limitations as the Northern Group manufacturers become protected and take advantage by pushing up the prices of their cars.
1, In 1991, US pharm industry promoted opioid-related drug by saying opioid is harmless. Doctors could prescibe it to patients & drug stores could sell it. From 1999-2017, 200,000 Americans died from opioid. Purdue Pharma, manufacturer of OxyContin was sued & fined for $8.3 billion in 2020. Purdue is owned by a Jewish American family Sackler.
2, In around 2010, OxyContin was hard to get. People turned to heroin which is cheaper but stronger. It also uses an ingredient from opium. In 2010-14, CDC reported that the death rate due to heroin has risen more than 200% among “white” & African Americans.
3, The 3rd wave is fentanyl which started in 2014. It also contains an ingredient from opium. In Aug 2021-Aug 22, 100,000 Americans died of drug overdose. 2/3 were fentanyl.
Capitalism & politics
In the book “Death of Despair & Future of Capitalism”, economist Anne Case & Nobel Prize winner Angus Deaton point out the collusion between pharm capitalists & politicians. Their deep collusion makes it difficult to control drug.
Politicians receive donation from pharm capitalists. Hence politicians will never come up with an effective law to control drug.
British Guardian reported in 2017 that, for the past 10 years, US pharm industry spent $2.5 billion in lobbying politicians. 90% of congress-persons & 97 out of 100 senators received political donations from pharm industry. At least once.
The fight between the 2 political parties is another reason. While both parties swear they would fight drug crisis, no party wants to cooperate with the other to effective beat drug abuse. No party wants the other party to become a hero.
scapegoat
In order to show they have done their part in fentanyl battle, USA blames it on China.
China adopts zero tolerance on illegal drug & is very strict on drug control. China is ahead of United Nations to classify drug into fine categories so as to effectively catch drugs that do not meet the requirement.
Since Sept 2019, US customs has not caught any fentanyl from China. But US politicians keep telling Americans that China exports fentanyl.
In 2023, USA sanctioned a Chinese police unit & lab that inspects for illegal drug. Perhaps USA is upset that China is too strict & US customs did not find any from China.
USA also sanctioned companies that produce LEGAL chemicals & equipment that can make fentanyl. The chemical is legal because, if used properly, it can be used to make pain killer for, say, cancer patients. The equipment is legal because it is a tool to make pills.
US politicians are not serious about solving problems.
Look at poverty: any theft below $950 is not a crime. ie USA encourages open robbery.
When USA loses jobs due to Clinton’s globalisation program, Trump said China steals US jobs.
Instead of curbing gun violence, USA militarizes teachers & babies.
If one day USA collapses, it is the collusion of US politicians & capitalists.
How do you start a business? You must have these two.
Business concept.
Capital.
Do you have a great idea, or you have money to invest, or a little of both?
If you have money, this is the scariest part in China. Because if you are asking on Quora (instead of Chinese social media), you are likely a foreigner who aren’t familiar with Chinese language and society.
Like with any society, it’s not wise to advertise your willingness to spend your money. You are just ringing the dinner bell for scammers, more or less. There will be hundreds of people being very willing to become your best friends.
Isn’t China very safe? Very. But while police can protect you from criminals, police can’t protect you from yourself and your own bad decisions, persuaded by scammers.
If you have a great idea, you may think of ways to safeguard your ideas, trade mark if you can, so the people you pitch your ideas to will not simply steal your ideas and lock you out of any profit.
Chances are there are millions of people in the same boat as you: having great ideas, wanting investors.
What to do to start your dream business in China?
Starting a business requires more commitment than a marriage. You have to be ready to give 200%.
Need money. Unless you are lucky enough to have a financier, you need some initial capital to invest in your idea, to create some kind of a working prototype, to have something for show. This will put you above the millions of people who simply got ideas.
Get to know China.
China is like any society. There are honest people and there are really shady people. You can’t simply see it on their appearance alone.
If you are a lone warrior, your first investment is to live in China, even a few months at a time. Get involved in Chinese daily life, get involved in the industry you want to be in. Find a part time job there?
Or seek out an existing support network you can trust.
If you are Indian, seek out other Indians already working in the industry you want to start business in. They are likely more sympathetic to befriend and show you the rope. They may even find you a job.
But beware, even your own compatriots can scam you, or mislead you. Don’t be too trusting.
This is all I have for a Quora answer.
With only a very vague question, this is all you are going to get. Being an entrepreneur is full of risk. Your first lesson is not to get rich quick, but learn risk management. I rather you lose a few thousands today for a hard lesson, than to lose a few millions 10 years later for this same lesson.
Pro-Tip: Find professional legal consultation for second opinion.
Say you are about to engage in a business deal, whether with local Chinese or your compatriot, secretly go outside to find paid consultation services. They will know Chinese laws and regulations more than anyone. They can smell a fish from miles away. You can’t save money on this.
Pornstar’s ABANDONED Mansion ~ You Won’t Believe What We Found Inside!
https://youtu.be/IaAq1x21k4o
Malaysia man’s viral stunt of planting banana tree in pothole gets road repaired within hours
Public works department blame continuous rain as reason behind delay in road maintenance
Frustrated over the authority’s inaction, a Malaysian man planted a banana tree in a pothole on a road to draw attention to the problem.
Mahathir Aripin from Jalan Sandakan-Lahad Datu village in Sabah posted a photo of the banana tree standing almost in the middle of the road on his Facebook page.
The base of the tree was covered with some soil to ensure it stood erect.
He also posted a message expressing his concern for those using the road and humorously suggested he might use tar next time.
“I feel sorry for the road users. I’ll cover it with tar next time,” he said on 29 January.
Seeing the response to his Facebook post, the local authorities responsible for road safety – the Sabah Public Works Department – started work to repair the road.
Reports said the pothole was filled within hours of Mr Aripin bringing attention to it.
The public works department blamed continuous rain as a reason for delay in the road maintenance.
This method of highlighting road repair issues is not unprecedented. There have been cases reported in Kedah in the country, and even in Florida, US.
Mr Aripin’s post sparked a conversation on road conditions in Malaysia.
On social media, several commentators commended his effort to bring attention to the problem of road safety and maintenance.
One jokingly said that he should have planted a durian tree whose fruit is notoriously foul-smelling instead of a banana tree.
Others responded with the laughter emoji while some called his attempt to plant a banana tree in the pothole “naughty”.
The pothole’s location was about 500m from the spot where a recent accident claimed the life of a 4-year-old girl, believed to have been caused by a pothole.
According to Malaysia’s Road Safety Plan 2022-2030, the country aims to reduce road deaths by 50 per cent by 2030.
In police work, there are many things you see that you would rather have not seen. Suicide by firearm seems to be at the top of my list. I only experienced this once in my career.
Sure I have found people a day after the person lost their head, sort of, with the blast from a shotgun — what a mess. It’s very inconsiderate to the family members or even first responders who have to deal with this.
But only once, when I was responding to a call of a man with a gun was I quite close when the shot was fired. I was out of my patrol car with a partner and running up an outside staircase which led to the man’s apartment when we hear the bang. He is sitting on the landing at the top of the stairs with his back against the wall, looking at us. He had a small caliber handgun still in his hand, and the barrel remained in his mouth. He was alive for the moment, but it was apparent he wouldn’t survive.
My partner took out a pair of latex gloves because there was blood, and started to put them on. I didn’t wait for gloves and grabbed the gun with both hands and first peeled his finger off the trigger. I then peeled the rest of his fingers from around the gun and handed it to my partner.
I wasn’t sure how this man felt about the police, but I was going to be sure that he didn’t take one of us with him. The man expired while we were at the scene. There were skull fragments and white and gray brain matter against the wall behind where he was sitting. Even after shooting himself he remained upright and seated.
A crime scene was immediately taped off, and detectives were brought in to investigate. The first unique discovery was that the handgun was fired twice. The first bullet was later found flattened but still in the brain cavity. It must have struck the inside of his skull with sufficient force to fracture it but did not exit. The second bullet was found underneath the man’s body.
Something I learned from detectives that night is that it’s not uncommon for a person considering suicide by handgun to fire a test round to make sure the gun is working properly. The noise from the first shot was reported by a neighbor and drew us to the scene.
Had our arrival hurried this man’s final desperate act? That’s something we will never know. I would have loved to have had the chance to speak with the man and perhaps change his mind. But that wasn’t to be.
I was permitted to enter the man’s home with the detectives and found a neat and well-organized apartment. He had this entire event meticulously planned out.
On the dining room table were a series on neatly organized envelopes lined up in a perfect row. Three were separately addressed to family members, while one was marked Funeral director and last one simply said: Police. Inside the envelope, marked police was a neatly handwritten letter. The first thing I noticed was that the letter was dated with today’s date. The letter explained that he had taken his own life freely. He went on to explain that he suffered from a very painful and debilitating terminal illness which would lead him to a more painful state before his eventual death.
He provided us with the names and contact information for several doctors who were treating him. He also asked us to make sure we contacted the funeral director first, so his family members would not see him in his current state. He went on to ask us to hand-deliver the other letters to his family members and provided their addresses, which were all local. He closed his letter by apologizing to us for any mess his act may have caused.
We next opened the letter to the funeral director, as it was unsealed and only identified with the words funeral director. Again, we found a neatly handwritten letter reminding this funeral director of his pre-paid funeral contract. The letter advised that one of his children had the written agreement. He went on to provide significant detail on his final arrangements, down to the suit in which he wanted to be buried.
The final three letters were to his children and were sealed which is how our officers delivered them to his loved ones.
A cursory search of the apartment which is standard in any crime scene identified two more, nearly exact sets of letters. Each set of letters were also handwritten but had different dates on them. Each roughly a few weeks apart. It was clear that the man had planned his demise on several prior dates and but hadn’t or couldn’t go through with it, until tonight
We reviewed these earlier letters because they were not in envelopes or sealed. The letters to his children were very loving and apologetic; asking for their understanding and forgiveness for his decision. They also spoke of the hopelessness of his medical situation and the difficult decision of letting go.
I never met this man until that night, and yet I feel like I knew him. In reading his letters, I believe that he was a decent man confronted with an impossible problem with no good solution. His final written thoughts were of comforting and reassuring his family and seeking their forgiveness for his decision to end his pain and his life.
We Found A Abandoned Safe In The River. What’s Inside The ABANDONED SAFE? (OPENED)
Obviously, I mean OBVIOUSLY, they have never been to China and have no idea how fucking enormous it is.
If you hop in a car, and start driving, it will take you days… DAYS… passing huge apartment buildings full of hard working, militarized families, studying… working… training…
image 11
…building after building. Mile after mile. Kilometer after kilometer. Over and over and over.
One enormous giga-complex housing thousands of families… after another… and another… and yet another.
China is HUGE.
Simply enormous.
…
China is not the third world cesspool that the Western “news” says it is. It’s a nation thirty years in the future. It is proud. It is strong. And it is LETHAL.
It is a dragon wearing a cute panda-bear suit.
You all in the West are unaware.
Backwards. Retarded.
Fed garbage; not just figuratively, but literally. Most American doesn’t even know where California is on a map, or how many States there are, or how much 5 + 8 is.
When I say “stupid”.
I mean it.
Meanwhile in China…
I started using facial recognition and QR to pay back in 2013. That was ten years ago. I haven’t touched a coin or paper money in all that time. Using paper money is so 19th century.
My car is electric and it talks to me, and only turns on when my voice recognition software allows it to.
It self parks, customizes the interior with a rotation of interior motifs, plays my morning jazz tunes, and gives me a nice warm back rub as it links to the toll road and carries me off to my office.
In my office, my staff brings me my coffee and turns on my systems for me. Sometimes they might have a kid or two with them, being sick or what not. No worries, though, they are their next to their parents doing their studies next to the desks.
Lunch is paid for all my staff. It’s one of the state mandated laws, and after they eat a huge healthy cafeteria meal of fruit, vegetables, meat and fish, they go take their normal naps.
…
That’s just the first four hours of a typical day in China.
…
There’s a bunch of dunder-heads that think that the USA can invade China with D-Day style Naval assaults, and the threat of nuclear war.
Troll?
Moron?
Buffoon?
Ignoramus?
They believe that proud and powerful aircraft carrier will lay off the coast of China and launch cascade after cascade of fighters and bombers into China.
They think that stealthy submarines will sneak up and start bombing China. All this unopposed, and the Chinese will take it. Smile and say “… can I have another, master?”
They believe that the proud troops will be easily resupplied by Australia, Japan, Korea and Philippines. After all, that is the on-going American construction activity. Billets. Barracks. Supply depots, and large investments in bordellos for employment for the locals.
Fantasies. NOT GOING TO HAPPEN.
NEVER going to happen.
…
I am here to tell you that World War started in 2008.
Oh, sure, the elements started far earlier. But historians will write that the date of the war began was in 2008.
image 10
It peaked in 2020 with the bio-weapon(s) that the USA launched on China during CNY (John Bolton, and Mike Pompeo brilliance there), and fell back towards conventional war with the NATO conflict began in Ukraine.
It hasn’t gone that great though.
Wars don’t go to plan, and this crop of brain-dead, pathological psychopathic oligarchs are dangerously deluded.
Take Ukraine. Ah. The “war in Ukraine”.
What they mean is the unreported hostilities used to counter the Russian “special military operation”.
Over 3000 American soldiers (with countless more NATO gents) are dead. Just because the American “news” isn’t reporting it, doesn’t mean that it is not going on.
Dead Americans are all over the place. I have photos and photos. Movies and movies. But if I put them up, they get pulled. It’s “news you can use”, but that is bad for the Westerners to see.
Good men. Soldiers. American men.
Dead.
Over what? And why?
image 9
It is sad.
I cry for the widows at Fort Lenard Wood.
image 8
As that phase winds down with a European collapse (economic, social, industrial, and military) a new phase opened up.
All to schedule; a disruption of the middle eastern shipping lanes.
Ah… that’s gonna teach China a lesson!
In their wet dreams, perhaps. China is about 3450 steps ahead of the rest of the world. They know what underwear that you will wear two days from now. Long before you even decide to put some on. That’s how advanced China is.
This idea that “China can be isolated” has failed, and is bound to fail, as the Chinese BRI are now proving how far-sighted and successful the rerouting of shipping avenues have proven themselves.
No wonder both Russia and China are screaming forward; an economic gallop. While the collective “West” is mired in inefficiency, lunacy, and insanity.
None of which is being reported in the “news”.
Here’s some more American troops in Ukraine…
Meanwhile…
We are watching the United States collapse in front of our very eyes.
The USA has this dream of opening up a long-desired war in the Pacific over China. Troops, material and weaponry are flooding toward the Philippines, Japan and Australia. All ready to die for “democracy”.
Whatever the Hell that means.
image 6
A rally-cry of the moronic who still believe that “their vote counts” and that American culture (woke, red-pill, open marriage, LGBQ+) is worthy of preserving.
Woo! Woo! I’m gonna kill Commies for all that free gay sex!
And when that day comes… “death by cop” will be experienced in America. Up and down the coasts. As the United States will be bludgeoned by many, many, MANY people; and their nations. People who have been ridiculed and marginalized over the decades of pompous, elitist wars and flouting.
America is NOT respected in the world.
It is despised.
It is no mistake the distain that the illegal immigrants show towards American. And they are the polite ones. The USA is poised to get a much-needed Ass-Kicking at a scale of ferocity that is off the scale; in both ferocity, and in long-duration and everlasting pain.
And the United States has lost.
It just hasn’t been reported on yet.
Look around yourselves. The USA has no downtowns. No factories. No hard workers. No functioning anything. It’s just on the long slow crumble…
At this point in time, “war against China” will not be needed.
It’s OVER.
He HOARDED GUNS! I Bought The MOST EXPENSIVE Storage Unit In The Country!
The formal, official groundwork is now laid for actual Civil War inside the United States.
The Governor of Texas has declared, in writing, that the federal government has “broken the compact” with the states.
He announced he has invoked the “Invasion” clause of the Constitution and says Texas has a right to self defense which it will enforce with the Texas National Guard.
Here is Governor Gregg Abbott’s Declaration:
Texas Governor Throws Constitutional Gauntlet
I have already told my wife that if this comes down to Civil War, I want us to sell BOTH houses, (NJ & PA) and move immediately to Texas.
I’m from India. I’ve been to 10 states all on the East Coast.
People don’t believe that you can literally just drink water out of the tap in the bathroom. There is a reason why the glasses are kept in the Bathrooms of all American hotels & motels.
Nobody believes that their pharmacies and retail outlets are big way way way bigger than you could imagine. CVS & Walgreens, which are both essentially pharmacies are probably even larger than small malls in India. Also, they just don’t keep medicines, they keep EVERYTHING.
People don’t have any clue about the extent of diversity in America. I used to feel proud about being from a diverse nation. Then, I went to America. You see people from every race, races you probably didn’t even know existed, every religion, every gender and every form and somehow, they all just blend together.
People don’t believe that America is a beautiful nation. Many Indians think of it as a culture-less nation. They often ask me whether there is anything to see in America. They have this image that it’s a nation with big buildings and wide roads. No. You cannot be more wrong. There is so much to see and so much to do other than big buildings.
In Washington DC, all the Smithsonian Museums are free! It is very very hard to believe and also very very hard to resist going to all of them.
Everybody isn’t fat. There are a lot of people who care about their health and fitness. I have seen people walking and running on busy streets of big cities.
The thing that pinches the most, you have to pay for trollies at Airports. Also, you need to pay for luggage in flights which pinches because when you convert it into your native currency, it is very very expensive.
If you think the portion size in American is big, think again. It isn’t big, it’s HUGE. Cookies, candies, chocolates, bags of chips etc are enough to feed a lot of people.
image 176
(For example- this is a pizza we cluelessly ordered in Chicago. This was around twice the size of a large pizza in India.)
9. If you come from a tropical country like me, American Summer is NOTHING like summer. It is usually comparatively cold, even in June & July.
10. Again, if you are from India, there are no motorbikes on the roads. Absolutely none. It’s very very weird because in India, it’s very common to see bikers riding motorbikes as if they own the road.
11. Majority of families in America have lunch around 11 am or 12 pm. This isn’t the case in my country because Lunch gets postponed to 2 pm or 3 pm.
12. Contrary to popular culture, the life of a regular American Teenager is nothing like what you see in movies and tv shows. Their life doesn’t revolve around parties, drinking and sex, they are probably only a tad bit less stressed than us.
13. I don’t drink coke but my friend pointed out that if you buy a cup of coke, you can get infinite refills.
14. Vegetarian or Vegan options are very very limited. If you are willing to survive on fries, then you’ll love it.
15. Almost everybody uses GPS. The fear of getting lost is negligible.
16. This is a funny one. In cold Northern States, when it snows and gets ridiculously chilly, people go to big stores like Walmart & Costco to walk. You can imagine how large these stores really are.
17. People are extremely patriotic. They have the American national flags everywhere like outside hotels, spas, homes, schools etc. We don’t enjoy flexibility when it comes to national flags in India.
image 175
(I took this picture from somebody’s backyard.)
18. It’s very common for people in stores or in museums or in public places to chat with you. This is very pleasant. People aren’t cold and reserved.
19. Flying by airplane is cheaper than taking a train. It’s the other way round in India.
20. This is weird, correct me if I am wrong, almost everybody has an iPhone. It may be the latest one or an older one but everybody has an iPhone. Even our Taxi driver had an iPhone.
21. People are also very obvious about the political party they support. I saw people wearing Clinton T shirts, Bernie Sanders jackets, Donald Trump hats etc. I haven’t seen such craze anywhere else though.
22. Houses don’t have ceiling fans. This is hard to believe because life without a fan is impossible in India. All of them have centralised heating/cooling.
23. Houses aren’t made of concrete and bricks like in India, they are made of wood. My parents jokingly said that these houses aren’t “majboot” (“strong” in English) enough.
24. There is McDonald’s everywhere. Even in the middle of nowhere, there will be a lone McDonald’s joint. I am not kidding.
25. They don’t home deliver McDonald’s in America. They do it in India though. India -1 USA- 0.
26. People LOVE coffee. Obviously not more than Indians’ love for masala chai.
All in all, it’s an amazing place to visit.
(Please correct me if I am incorrect with some facts)
Especially the team with Raimondo as the core has formulated one stupid restriction policy after another.
image 30
Initially, Nvidia could provide chips with 100-point performance, leading the market and stealing away almost all Chinese customers. Thinking this was too good for China, they issued a ban banning American companies from exporting chips with a score of more than 80 points.
Nvidia chose to develop a 79-point chip to meet US regulations and they could continue to do business with the Chinese.
Nvidia’s business is still good, because even a chip with 79 point is still very good. The Chinese can make up for the performance gap by increasing the number.
Raimondo’s team is dissatisfied with Nvidia’s approach and believes that they are “stepping on the border and harming U.S. interests.”
So they updated their policy and demanded that “U.S. companies be prohibited from exporting chips worth more than 40 point .”
Nvidia had no choice, they developed a 39-point chip to sell to its Chinese customers.
However, this time all the Chinese customers left.
image 29
Because Nvidia’s competitor Huawei can provide chips with a score of 70 points. There are no sanctions, no limits, and the price is quite cheap.
Since those 79 point are not acceptable, why do these Chinese customers continue to play within the rules of the United States? A 40 point chip means nothing to them.
They gave orders to Huawei one after another.
Huawei has received billions of dollars in orders, and there will be more and more in the future.
They will transfer these gains to the R&D department to develop and produce 75-point, 80-point, and 85-point chips, and gradually catch up with Nvidia in the future.
The professional advice of Nvidia’s boss was completely ignored, and the whole world laughed at the stupidity of American politicians.
This is interesting. You will damn agree with me after reading this.
Some years ago, one of my friends came to me asking for money.
I gave him (donated him) some money. After some days, he came again and asked for the same. Again I donated some.
After some days, he came to me and didn’t talk about money. He told me a sad story “How he lost all his money that I had given him”.
This time I provided him some work because I was busy with other projects. I let him handle one of my clients because he was as qualified as me.
He made some money because I gave him whole project fee.
He was happy.
Again, after some days, he came.
Again he asked for a project.
I told him “I have no projects right now to give him.”
Then he requested and I provided him another project.
But this time:
Out of anger, he misbehaved the client. Because of him I lost a client.
I asked him to leave the project so I can fix the design as well as relation with the clients.
Out of anger, he again deleted one of my databases. And acted like he didn’t do anything.
Then I kicked him out of my house. I had a real fight with him.
He went to our close friends and told them “How I refused to provide him money. How I made him worked like a donkey. And how I had a fight with him. And he also acted like he is the poorest guy in the world ruining my relations everywhere.”
Today, I read one Hector’s answers. So, I remembered it.
LESSON 1:
You can’t help people who never want to help themselves.
LESSON 2:
People will always blame you for their failure after you help them. Because they think, your help is useless. They never think about their failure to execute your help.
LESSON 3:
“Don’t help anyone for free. Let them pay the price for it so they can understand how important your time, relation and emotion are”.
Election 2024 – Preliminary Assessment
At this point the U.S. presidential election of 2024 seems almost decided.
Today it looks likely that Donald Trump will again become president.
Trump has won the New Hampshire primary and the only other Republican candidate still in the race is the neo-conservative candidate Nicki Halley:
Donald Trump marched closer to the Republican nomination with a sweep of the first two contests, defeating former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley on Tuesday as voters turned out in projected record numbers in New Hampshire’s primary.
Trump’s lead here was decisive enough for the Associated Press to project his win shortly after polls closed. With nearly 75 percent of the vote tallied, Trump led Haley by about 11 percentage points. … Trump’s victory dealt another blow to critics in his party who saw the New Hampshire race as perhaps the last best chance to stop or slow him.
Halley is kept in the race by some billionaire donations, including from those who tend to donate to Democrats, in an effort to somehow still damage Trump:
Despite her shrinking path to halting Trump’s march to the Republican nomination, Haley’s showing in New Hampshire hinged on independents, who are permitted to vote in this state’s Republican primary. … New Hampshire voters in the Republican primary split about evenly between people who were registered as Republicans and those registered as independent or undeclared, with a tiny share saying they were not registered to vote before Election Day, according to early exit polls. Independents and undeclared registered voters supported Haley by about a 2-to-1 margin, while registered Republicans supported Trump by about 3 to 1.
The hope of the Halley supporters is that other open primaries may still give her a lead. Democrats turned Independents could flood such elections and make her look like a winner:
Haley’s campaign manager, Betsy Ankney, released a memo as voting began Tuesday vowing to fight on through Super Tuesday in March, despite pre-primary polls showing Trump with a widening lead here and less favorable contests ahead for Haley. The memo argued that outperforming with independents could buoy her after South Carolina. Michigan has an open primary, and 11 of the 16 Super Tuesday states also allow non-Republicans to vote to some extent.
New Hampshire has already shown that this concept does not work as well as presumed.
President Joe Biden does not have to fear any primary challengers. His party is stuck with him. This despite some awful polling data that should have pushed the Democrats to retire Joe Biden.
Only 38.9% of voters approve of Biden and his policies while 55.7 % disapprove them.
Trump numbers are better. 43.1 % have a favorable opinion of him while 51.8% find him unfavorable.
There is little chance for Biden to turn this around. There is nothing in the policy queue that could be seen as a win for him. On domestic issues he is limited by a Republican majority in the House. Problem areas are the perceived state of the economy as well his failure to stop mass immigration. He is also losing in the foreign policy frame. His war in Ukraine is near total failure and the U.S. position in the Middle East is about to explode.
Trump still has dozens of open (kangaroo) court cases against him. But it is doubtful that any court will truly dare to put the leading presidential candidate into jail. In the end a conservative Supreme Court, and enraged Republican voters, would anyway find a way to get Trump out of the mess.
On foreign policy issues Trump has a rather dubious record. But I agree with Stephen Walt who finds that there are only few differences between Trump’s and Biden’s foreign policies. It is the deep state which is anyway formulating as well as executing them.
But is still more likely that Trump will find a way out of the mess in Ukraine than Biden. Trump is also way less a Zionist than Biden. His opinion about Netanyahoo and settlers is generally low.
My opinion on Trump is unchanged. He is just a run of the mill U.S. president. His biggest fault is his inability to select good people and to keep control over what they are doing. Previous Trump selections like McMaster, Bolton or Pompeo were all too radical and treacherous. They should never have been chosen. For someone who once had a reality show about selecting apprentices that is an astonishingly bad record.
To be clear, I’m not saying that this election will have zero effect on U.S. foreign policy. Trump may try to take the United States out of NATO, for example, although such a move would undoubtedly face enormous resistance from the foreign and defense policy establishment. He may focus primarily on his domestic agenda—and his lingering legal troubles—which would further reduce his already-limited interest in foreign affairs and tend to reinforce the existing status quo. Trump was a poor judge of foreign-policy talent during his first term (and provoked unprecedented rates of staff turnover), and that tendency may hamstring U.S. policy implementation and lead foreign governments to hedge even more. There would be subtle differences between Biden 2 and Trump 2, but I’d bet against a radical transformation.
My concern with U.S. foreign policy is the huge damage it is causing all over the world. I see Trump as the better candidate to minimize that. He has avoided wars as far as the deep state allowed him to do so.
One can not say that of Biden.
Posted by b on January 24, 2024 at 12:32 UTC | Permalink
Years ago I was a Radio Shack manager. One of my employees was a young German immigrant – she was married to a soldier that was stationed nearby. Her name is Stefanie.
Stefanie was a very smart young lady; however there was a learning curve for a while with the specifics of connecting certain pieces of electronic equipment together – using adapters etc to get from one type to another. She never gave up and was eventually very successful.
One evening I was assisting a regular with something at the counter. Another customer came in and asked Stefanie for assistance with some connectors/adapters. After several minutes Stefanie’s customer suddenly yells, “You stupid nazi bitch!”
I immediately excuse myself and tell her customer that we’re done here for tonight and he needs to leave. He’s welcome back another day but tonight he needs to leave the premises. He starts getting loud towards me. I walk away from him and back behind the counter. He comes over and continues yelling, swearing etc.
Remember my customer? He’s watching and listening. He casually pulls his wallet from his pocket and places it on the counter open showing a badge. The irate man looks at the badge and says “So, you’re a game warden, what are you going to do?” My customer then says “Take a closer look, I’m a federal game warden and a sworn peace officer.” “You were asked to leave and if you don’t I will arrest you for trespassing which means hours of paperwork for me and I hate paperwork.” “If I arrest you I will be in court to testify. You have 30 seconds to leave.”
Irate man left. Problem solved. Game warden asked if Stefanie could ring him up as she was paid commission. He spent a fair amount of money that evening.
Illustrator Fernanda Suarez Shows How Disney Princesses Would Look Like If They Lived Today
In recent years, we’ve seen quite a few reimagined ‘modern’ versions of the Disney princesses we grew up loving and admiring. This latest interpretation by Chilean digital artist Fernanda Suarez, however, might be the fairest of them all.
Starting with Snow White back in July, Suarez has gone on to illustrate 7 classic princesses in hip, present-day fashion. These sketched-up smoke shows look like they follow Luxy Hair tutorials on YouTube and shop for clothes at Forever 21. They probably post selfies with their ‘princes’ on Instagram and all agree that NAKED2 is the best eyeshadow palette. Oh yeah, they probably also campaign non-stop on social media for the equal rights of dwarfs, marine wildlife, and big cat conservation.
What do you think about your experience in prison?
What do you think that are the aftermaths of having been in prison?
I really didn’t notice at first. After 29 years in prison I was just happy to be out. I didn’t think I had PTSD. But soon certain sounds ,smells and places would cause me to have like flash backs. Fortunately, I don’t have dreams that some ex cons have said they have.
I went to prison as a 17 year old Missouri farm boy. I was sent to the worst prison in the state at the time. I was only there 5 years before being transferred. But it changed me dramatically. It was there that I learned not to show true feelings. I masked being scared, I did not dare cry . If someone was lying bleeding it was none of my business unless it was someone I hung around with. I came to believe that no one made it out of that place alive. I had a life sentence and with that thought I only wanted to survive as long as I could. No one though was going to disrespect me or try anything . I had life and didn’t think I would survive anyway. But I did.
I was eventually transferred. All the other prisons ,although violent seemed tame in comparison. But I though I now had at least a chance. I tried to better myself in any way possible to prepare myself for possible release. I did this until I eventually did get out
I was ready for the world . I think I am doing good, but much of prison remains with me . Like I said the flash backs, not liking crowds to the point of being paranoid. I love people and will go out of my way to help someone. But I get nervous and on edge in crowds. In restaurants I sit with my back to the wall and have to see everyone. Know where they are at. My family and friends will not walk up behind me without announcing that they are there. This is not fair to them . My neighbor/boss and my wife told me one day” you go out of your way to help others, but no one can help you if you don’t let them” I told them I didn’t need help. They explained that while I have support and people that are there for me that I needed to let them in . In my mind I was letting them in . I loved them and still love them . I would do anything for them. But apparently I do not open up to them when they are concerned about me.
No matter how much or how little time you have prison will change you. This also applies to C/ Os. They see the same shit the prisoners see. I encourage all of you who have done time or worked in a prison to try to be more open to those who you are close to. It will help a lotb
As a teacher, have you ever bumped up the grade of a student due to unusual circumstances?
Here’s the one I remember. A girl in my earth science class was there every day, took notes, asked questions, was obviously interested. First midterm. She is way below everyone else. Second midterm, same. Final, ditto. I decided I was not going to flunk her so I closed my eyes and gave her a C. Which meant I had to bump up a bunch of other people, too.
She was in ROTC and I had just joined the Reserves, so we had something to chat about. She told me she was going active after college. I asked what branch. “Intelligence.”
This is me biting my tongue until it nearly bled.
She went into imagery analysis. She made far more effective use of my class than the people who made easy A’s and forgot it all. She did a tour at DIA, Defense Intelligence Agency. I know people who would KILL for a tour at DIA. They ASKED specifically for her. She took a buyout as a major after the Gulf War and that’s the last I heard of her.
Bar none, by light years, best judgment call I ever made.
Do you want more?
I have more articles like this one in my Art Index here…
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Last night, as I was taking my daughter back from her night-time skating class, we hit heavy traffic in front of our complex (the “Ghost City” that is supposed to be abandoned. LOL!). And it was 15 minutes of bumper to bumper.
Turns out that it was a roadside sobriety test checkpoint. And the local governments run these things all around CNY as many, many people drink and drive.
So I rolled down my window and exhaled into the wand.
It turned red and an alarm went off. The police scrambled, and I got out of the car.
I’m an American, so I knew what was going on. And no, I wasn’t drinking.
I was expecting to put my finger on my nose and walk a straight line. But no. That did not happen. Not at all.
So I stood there, and they got my various licenses, and registrations out of the car, and then subjected me to a far more stringent test. They pulled out a handheld black computer like device. And a red camera like device.
I had to hold my breath, and then exhale into a black monitor for six seconds. This was a much more accurate device. They then recorded my eyes and pupil dilatation with the red device.
He showed me the results; ZERO.
So I was good to go.
…
I signed my name on the ledger, and then they let us go. Ah. An interesting experience for certain. MM gets a police checkout. What do you know. Check one for my experience ledger.
Yeah. I took my niece’s cigarettes away from her and she freaked – she was 10, or 11.
She told her grandmother (who I knew bought her the cigarettes) and she called C.P.S.
I refused to drive into the city to do the interview and made the guy drive out to my shop. On my terms, on my territory. And, I told the story exactly as it happened. Then, I asked him to call the kid. He didn’t want to. So, I did. (he even tried to wander out of earshot, but I followed him holding the phone in the air so he could hear)
I put her on speaker – told her she was on speaker with me and the man from Child Protective Services – and asked her to tell him what happened. She told the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Then I asked who bought the smokes.
I was right, it was “gramma”. And, we hung up.
Then, I demanded he call “gramma”. And, he didn’t want to. So I did. (I even showed him the phone numbers on the phone so he could see I wasn’t trying to pull a fast one)
I told her that I was putting her on speaker, and I was there with the guy from C.P.S., and that we had a few questions. (he didn’t have any, I had a couple)
I asked why she called – she blubbered some nonsense. I asked if it was because I took the kid’s cigarettes – and she said that I had no right to take them. She was getting pissed. So I played her like a sunfish – I yanked her right out of the water. I asked if she bought the cigarettes for the kid, and she said, “Where else do you think she got them? They’re not going to sell her cigarettes, she don’t look old enough.”!!!
Then, I asked why. And, she said (and I shit you not), “So she’d quit bummin’ ’em off of me!”!!!
The guy hung his head, and I did one of the shrug your shoulders with palms facing up at shoulder level. Case closed.
I did my best to have “gramma” charged, or a C.P.S. case brought against her, but the guy just let it slide. I called the supervisor. Same thing.
That was twenty years ago – now the kid always says to me variations of, “Thank you for caring, thank you for trying – now that I’m a mom I understand what you were doing – I’m sorry.”
She has two great kids and last time I talked to her they were going for more. I hope they have as many as they want.
Never stop trying, never stop caring, it sinks in even if you think it’s not. (even my son, who has no kids (the dirty rat – I’d like a few grandkids), told me, “Thanks for being an asshole – I get it.”
Never give in, never surrender.
Apple Rum Baklava
Apple Rum Baklava
Ingredients
3 cups chopped apples
2 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup raisins
2 tablespoons rum
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 pound phyllo dough
1 pound butter, clarified, melted
1 cup honey
Instructions
Combine first 6 ingredients in large bowl; mix well.
Trim 8 sheets phyllo dough to fit 10 x 15-inch baking pan. Keep unused phyllo covered with damp cloth. Arrange in baking pan, brushing each sheet generously with melted butter. Spread half the apple mixture over phyllo dough. Arrange 6 buttered sheets phyllo dough over apple mixture. Spread with remaining apple mixture. Top with 8 buttered sheets phyllo dough. Cut into squares. Bake at 350 degrees F for 40 minutes or until golden brown.
Heat honey in small saucepan. Drizzle over hot baklava.
Yields 12 servings.
May substitute 2 tablespoons lemon juice and 2 tablespoons lemon rind for rum.
I’m not sure if they teach this in drivers’ ed in places where it snows a lot, but I took drivers’ ed in a place where snow is rare, so they didn’t bother to teach me about driving in it. Here are some snow-related driving tips that I had to learn on my own:
If there is snow around the wheels of your parked car, and your tires just spin when you’re trying to move, there are three ways to get your car unstuck: dig out the snow (takes a lot of time and effort, and is uncomfortable in the cold), throw some kitty litter under your tires for extra traction (requires kitty litter), or my personal favorite: rock the car back and forth until you build enough momentum to get it un-stuck. It’s the lazy man’s way of getting your car moving in the snow. It only works if you can go straight ahead of your car for a while, though. Will not work if your wheels are turned, like if you’re parallel-parked and have to exit the space by turning first.
Cleaning the snow off of the top of your car isn’t really for your benefit, but for the benefit of the drivers behind you. If you’re super-lazy and don’t care about other drivers, just take your car on the highway and let the wind blow the snow off for you.
Edit: I forgot something until some commenters pointed it out: if there is snow on the top of your car and you stop suddenly, it can slide to the front windshield and block your view.
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(Don’t be this guy. Nobody likes this guy.)
If you know it’s going to snow and/or get icy while your car is parked, you should lift the wipers off of the windshield. Otherwise they will stick to it and break when you turn on your wipers.
image 160
(These people know what’s up…)
Door locks and power windows can and will freeze in the winter. Before you go through a drive-through on a winter’s day, you should confirm that your window will go down.
If your car has Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA), it will go crazy on slick roads. It’s the same for an Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS). That’s how I know that I need to be more careful when I’m driving in the snow: those lights come on. Also, if you’ve never felt an ABS system kick in underneath you, it’s unnerving the first time it happens.
If the snow is really deep, while digging out your car, you should be extra careful to make sure that the tailpipe is clear. People have died from sitting in cars that were running while waiting for someone else to dig them out.
image 159
(Anyone want to help this person dig out their car?)
Ice/slush will build in the wheel wells of cars that are being driven during the snow. It’s important to kick this off when you get a chance, particularly if it’s going to be cold for a long time. If you ignore it when it is fresh, it just freezes more solid and is a pain in the ass to get off then.
(If you see that around your tires, kick it off as soon as possible. Be careful that you kick with your heel, not your toes. It may be hard as a rock.)
There are “summer” and “winter” blends of windshield washer fluid. If you get the summer blend and forget to use it all before the winter, it will freeze in the tank and you won’t be able to clean your windshield while driving, which is important to do when it snows.
Pickup trucks with empty beds are the worst for handling snow. If you drive a pickup in a place where it snows in the winter, put something heavy in the back, just to put some weight on the back wheels.
Delusional Women In Denial As They Learn How Hard Men Work
Yes. My husband was dying of cancer and in home hospice with me taking care of him 24–7.
The night before he died, his son’s mother started texting me about how he’s dying, she needs to get into his apartment and go through it to see what she could sell because she hadn’t gotten child support in a couple months. He still had his apartment after we were married, because his son was nearing 18 and wanted to move away from his mother asap, and he hadn’t paid child support in two months, because he had just recovered from brain surgery to remove a cancerous tumor and then in the following two months, we found out it had metastasized to his liver and then spread to all his abdominal organs and died 10 days after being put on hospice. I kept my cool while she was texting me about the money he owed her the night before he died.
The day he died, right after he passed, I called his son to come to my house immediately, as well as my other children. His mother was the only one else aware that he had passed, so here I was with our three boys, sitting in our livingroom waiting for the hospice nurse to come back so she could pronounce him legally dead, and I was already getting phone calls and texts of condolences. My stepson’s mother had announced it on Facebook. I kept my cool, though that was probably more of me just being in shock and unable to function.
The days following his death, she convinced my stepson to rush to my husband’s apartment, because “rent would be due soon and he had alot of valuables in his bedroom at his Dad’s house”. I didn’t go, because she had been texting both me and my SIL about getting into my husband’s apartment asap to sell his things for money, and I was afraid of what I might do to her if I saw her in person. My SIL did go over when they went over, to make sure nothing really important disappeared.
My SIL later told me that in the two days my stepson’s mother had access to the apartment, my stepson’s mother went through every room, every drawer, read ever piece of paper she could get her hands on, including love notes, etc, took pictures of how “filthy” the house was so she could show her friends, and didn’t really keep anything to sell, because nothing had any value to her, so she just threw it to the curb for garbage day. The few sentimental things that my husband had made known to everyone he wanted my stepson to hold on to, she would not let my stepson keep “because they were in poor condition”.
It should be noted that I know I could have called the cops on her for theft and harassment, but I didn’t for three reasons… 1. Me, my stepson, my sister-in-law and my other two children were mourning a loss and I was trying to avoid further drama. 2. Everything of value had already been moved to my house months ago and most of the things left in my husband’s apartment was gonna be gotten rid of anyways. 3. The apartment WAS filthy, because for the past two months, nobody had been there except me 3 times a week to feed his cats and change their litterbox. Nobody else was willing or able to help me with the cats or my dying husband, and it was a mile walk one way to his apartment, meaning if I rushed, I’d be leaving a dying man who could barely stand up by himself (but kept trying, so had several close calls with almost falling) alone at least an hour and a half. I wasn’t lazy, I was stretched too thin with no help and doing the best I could.
But I kept my cool with the apartment drama.
My husband was a car guy, loved older cars, had three classic vehicles when he passed away. He had wanted me to take his favorite car, and his son could have the car he’d already been driving for two months since he got his license, and his prized van as well. The plan was for me to not turn the titles over to my stepson until he turned 18, because it was common knowledge that his mother assumed that their son would get all three vehicles and she had planned on selling all three. This was also a constant source of texts and harassment on how I need to turn the titles over to her immediately (before their son turned 18), like I wasn’t smart enough to figure out that she wouldn’t then sell them as she’d then be the legal owner. I still kept my cool.
Once I finally figured out how I was gonna pay for the funeral and was planning the funeral, I gave people a date, but not much more information, as the details were still being worked out. My stepson asked for the tentative information, which I gave him, and she posted on Facebook, tagging my husband of course, the date, time, place, little details, making it sound like she had planned it. I SNAPPED. I was ready to ask if the funeral home had and 2 for 1 deals. I absolutely ripped her a new one online, publicly pointing out exactly how she’d been behaving and what I thought of her. It got really, really vicious, on both ends, with her playing the victim. Not my finest hour, but I was absolutely DONE with her. Completely out of character for me, but if I had been in the same room with her, I’d be writing this from my jail cell right now.
The last conversation she had with my husband on the phone had been about how their son turned out to be such a great person because he had HER for a mother and how my husband had only had him on weekends, didn’t really contribute to raising my stepson. She knew darn well that my husband would have taken their son full time in a heartbeat, if she hadn’t done everything in her power to restrict his parenting. Near the end, she wouldn’t allow her 17 year old son to sleep over my house (in a spare bed) on the weekend to spend time with his Dad who clearly had limited time, because “it wasn’t his own bed at his Dad’s house” and when he did stop by my house to see his dying Dad, his mother started texting him to come home after about a half hour. And then online while announcing his funeral, she was making out like they had been such good friends, that’s what coparenting is all about, it’s all about her son, his REAL child (my husband had raised my two boys as his own for almost 8 years and loved all three very much), and if course, all about her, because she’s the mother of his child. The one and only time in my adult life I ever completely snapped. Not proud of myself at all, but she deserved it and she got off easy.
A few days ago, my boyfriend offered me a stick of chewing gum.
He unwrapped his and popped it into his mouth. I unwrapped mine and took a tiny bite off the tip.
A few minutes later, when that first bite had lost its flavor, I took another nibble. And once that one shed its sweetness, I took another.
Before long, I noticed my boyfriend shaking his head at me, his eyebrows raised so high they’d almost disappeared into his hair. “You’re so weird,” he said affectionately (at least, I’d like to think it was said affectionately.)
He’s right. It’s pretty weird that I consume my chewing gum one nibble at a time. But I’ve done it that way for as long as I can remember.
When I was growing up, chewing gum used to be a top item on my parents’ list of choking hazards. So naturally, it was also a top item on their children’s list of valuable contraband.
Most of the time, I only had access to this rare treat when my friends shared it with me at school. And every tiny, foil-wrapped stick of it was so precious to me that I’d ration it out slowly to make the flavor last, and then replay the memory of chewing it for days afterwards.
Honestly, as an adult, I don’t even like gum all that much. But the memory of how precious it used to feel has never quite left my mind.
Star Trek VI The Undiscovered Country – Khitomer Battle
I had a soldier on a team I was commanding during advanced training called Zach.
Zach was the team clown, a hard worker and good soldier, but a complete goof ball.
He would find humor everywhere, and create it when it was needed. Most of the times, even though I wasn’t allowed, I would completely break soldier -commander distance and laugh at Zach’s punchlines. I would turn away from my soldiers so they wouldn’t see me laugh, even though it was hard to hide.
Two weeks before my soldiers completed their training, I was notified that I was being reassigned to a different team, and that my officer needed my final evaluation on Zach, since they were considering dropping him.
They claimed he was naive, and as much fun as it is listening to his jokes, our job was to train a team and make them combat ready.
Before I wrote up my evaluation, I took Zach for a conversation and told him exactly what my officer told me.
His smile faded immediately.
I told him that there are times for jokes, and time for work. I needed to be blunt, and said that his comic remarks have no place in the paratroopers training. We needed serious and professional fighters, not clowns.
I was a bit harsh, but truly wanted him to finish training.
Zach was one of my favorite soldiers, and it deeply hurt me to tell him to stop finding the funny moments in life, even when everything sucks. I felt like I was killing him softly.
During my final weeks with my team, Zach did not make a single funny remark. One of my soldiers asked to talk to me in private and suggested that Zach might have lost a family member, since he seemed depressed.
Eventually, Zach finished his training, and proceeded on to command school, but I always resented the fact that I was the one who took away the smile from his face.
In fact, the United States has played a four-step game in an attempt to sway the elections in Taiwan.
Firstly, it’s a classic case of ”the pot calling the kettle black”—the U.S. has been vocal about external forces keeping their hands off Taiwan’s 2024 elections, all the while being the first to meddle.
Secondly, the American Institute in Taiwan has echoed the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party’s stance on cross-Strait relations, suggesting that even if the DPP wins, China is unlikely to take immediate military action. This could lull Taiwanese voters into a false sense of security, effectively boosting the ”Lai-Xiao pairing” in the polls.
The third tactic involves the U.S. flexing its military muscle, with P-8A Poseidon aircraft patrolling the Taiwan Strait—a clear sign of America’s concern for Taiwan’s security and a potential promise of defense. There’s speculation that U.S. warships might even make a bold passage through the strait. This military posturing supports the DPP’s narrative, encouraging Taiwanese voters not to view the upcoming election as a choice between war and peace.
Fourthly, the deployment of intermediate-range missiles in the Western Pacific and equipping submarines with Tomahawk cruise missiles are moves that signal U.S. preparedness to intervene should Chinese mainland take military action against Taiwan.
China, of course, is keenly aware of these maneuvers. the spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense has hit back with a two-pronged rebuttal. Firstly, they’ve underscored the severe threat these U.S. actions pose to the security of the Asia-Pacific region and China itself. China has firmly opposed these moves and has vowed to respond with equal determination. Secondly, China has issued a stern warning to the United States: The Taiwan question is purely an internal affair of China, off-limits to any external meddling. The resolution of the Taiwan question is an unstoppable force, immune to interference by any person or power. Taiwanese voters must remain vigilant, not to be swayed by the U.S. and the DPP’s rhetoric. The 2024 elections in Taiwan are pivotal for the trajectory of the Taiwan Strait situation, and any missteps could lead to tumultuous waters. The mainland’s stance is clear: ”Taiwan independence” equates to war and is a dead-end street, so there’s no room for wishful thinking.
The U.S. has a long history of involvement in Taiwan’s elections, with a level of engagement that runs deep. This is evident from the way candidates scramble to ”audition” in the U.S. during every election season. Take the 2024 elections, for instance; Taiwanese candidates are making their pilgrimage to America, while the chairman of the American Institute in Taiwan, Mr. Rosenberg, has visited Taiwan three times in just two months, meeting with candidates from the blue, green, and white parties. The depth of U.S. involvement in Taiwan’s elections is such that a single, biased statement from the U.S. could instantly flip the fortunes of their preferred candidate.
My parents murdered me. They killed my ambition, separated me from the guy I love and got me married to a monster (unknowingly).
I was always a bright student. A topper in school and a gold medalist in my college. While in college, I met and fell in love with a man from a different state in India. Though it was not a huge difference like a North-South problem (we belonged to neighbouring states), it was huge for my parents who only had negative things to say about his community. The fact that he still needed time to settle only made him incapable in my parents’ eyes. They believed that I was their golden girl with too much talent to be given away as his wife. We fought for 2 years during which my mom stopped all communication with me. Finally, my parents weren’t willing to wait after I turned 25 as they believed that I will become “too old to be desirable by good guys”. They adopted all forms of emotional abuse and manipulation and broke us apart. I still cry to this day thinking about our breakup though it has been 8 years. I loved him and still do. If only we had remained together…
At about the same time, I wanted to change careers and become a teacher leaving my high paying job but my parents thought that only a fool would make that mistake. They prohibited me from doing what I liked and made me look after my dad’s company though I hated it. They believed that they were doing everything to protect my interests but never cared for my own feelings. I was too weak and timid to rebel and so I bore everything while breaking down mentally.
After this forced separation and being made to look after the company, I was put through the humiliating arranged marriage market where I was paraded around like a commodity. I hated every minute of it. Finally I was married off to this man who was good on paper. He came from a wealthy family, had two degrees from the most prestigious Universities in India and was settled in my own city. My parents couldn’t believe their luck and when all enquiries about him and his family didn’t turn up anything bad, they went ahead with it. All through this debacle, I was only a mute spectator.
What my parents did not know was, my husband was an egoist and a sadist. He HAD to be the best in everything and took joy in humiliating me and belittling my achievements. He was always fishing for compliments without which he couldn’t function. He could never take any form of criticism and would throw temper tantrums if things aren’t done his way. Even sex was a form of punishment for me where I was forced to do things I did not want and he would humiliate me. Every day and every night used to be the same. I put up with this for 2 years before letting anyone know because I foolishly thought that I did not deserve any happiness after breaking my boyfriend’s heart.
To the outside world I couldn’t have been happier. I had my dad’s company which was minting money and I did not have to work hard unlike people who start things from scratch, I had a husband who was very handsome, earned indecent amounts of money, came from a “good family background” and was even religious. But, inside closed doors I was living a nightmare.
The traditional traits looked for in arranged marriages – caste, wealth, education, family background and age were all perfect in mine but take it from me that none of these things matter more than an extent. It is only the love you share with the other person and your emotional compatibility and willingness to stand by them, that counts. This realization hit me like a wall of bricks when one day after a particularly nasty argument with my now ex-husband, I took my car for a drive. It was raining heavily and while I was waiting at a traffic signal, I saw a poor man on the pavement sharing a torn canvas cloth with his small family. They were laughing and were very happy with each other. Looking at this from my air conditioned “luxury” car, I realised that they had something that I did not – love and happiness. The divorce was painful where I did not have many people’s support – only my brother and father supported me.
It has been 4 years since the divorce. Where is the “golden girl” now? Meanwhile, the boyfriend whom I broke up with, went on to become successful and started his own consulting company which is doing extremely well. He got married two years after I got married when he still thought that I was happy. He called me before they finalized the girl, asking me how I am and that he is getting married. He told that he always wishes the best for me – I knew he also loved me the same way I loved him. After that we did not speak because it would be too painful.
It is not always true that parents love you the most. Sure, they wish the best for their child but sometimes they let their beliefs and bigotry cloud their eyes. Sometimes parents can be wrong – that does not mean that you shouldn’t take their well meaning advice, but the final decision should always be yours.
And sometimes, the person who loves you the most could be the guy whose heart you broke a long time ago, who still remembers your birthday every year and sends you a card with a coupon to your most favourite restaurant.
It is a bit more complicated than a Bradley decided to walk the dog on a T-90.
image 28
A Bradley IFV is designed to defeat enemy tanks. At very long rang using TOW missiles. Russian tanks are notoriously poor at surviving such missile attacks due to how their ammo is stored. Anything which gets through is likely to cook everything off… which is where you get those turret tossing videos.
In this encounter a pair of Bradleys more or less stumbled across a lone T-90 at would probably count as Danger Close range. The first engaged with its chain gun, scored a few hits, and then exited, probably trying to get to range so they could engage with a TOW. The second, not wanting to risk taking fire while moving away, decided to engage in hopes of essentially blinding and disabling the tank.
There is an interview with the two man crew of the Bradley in question and one point they both agree on… they were terrified. The one thing they didn’t want to run into at close range was an enemy tank. The crew couldn’t disengage safely, they had to stand and fight, and do so in such a manner that the T-90 couldn’t get its bearings and shot back.
Their training got them through this. The Bradley sticks and moves while the Bushmaster 25mm just peppers the T-90’s turret with hit after hit. The Russian tank crew, likely poorly trained, couldn’t see the Bradley to try and fire back. Attempts to back up saw them crash into a tree and get stuck.
Which is when the tank crew did the only thing they could think of… pop smoke and bail out of the tank. A wise decision as a drone strike destroyed the vehicle not very long after.
It isn’t unusual for a Bradley to score a tank kill. It is very unusual to do so in such a manner. Usually the 25mm autocannon is lighter vehicles, such as the BMP. Those the Bradley’s have been killing in droves. A tank is a much bigger foe to tackle.
In college, at the dorms there was a stinky girl who lived there. Everyone made fun of her and she was arrogant, yet all the same people were just rude. She was called “Hamburger “ or just plain “Stinky” by Everyone in the dorm. She wasn’t nice and was poor. Two of my roommates and I felt bad for her and used our bottle return money (we took discarded beer and soda cans from the dorm that we collected) and purchased the girl hygiene products from the dollar store. Our care package included a few bottles of VO5 Shampoo and conditioner, a few sticks of cheap lady speed stick deodorant, a brush and comb, razors, toothpaste, toothbrush, and I had a 12 pack of ivory soap I didn’t need, plus a bunch of menstrual pads and tampons. We put this stuff in a brown paper grocery bag stapled it and left it in front of her door. Nobody knew who it was from and we never told anyone. The girl wasn’t embarrassed and seemed happy someone cared enough to help her. The girl’s hygiene improved and people were nicer to her. My two roommates and I didn’t do it out of pity if someone might say that, we did this because we wanted to help her.
After X being pushed back the 4th time, I nodded along, stood up, and went to a job-posting website. I got 3 calls back the following week.
A little bit of background for the bonus check: Our department needed to have an app on the company iPad for the engineer to work effectively. They consult with an outside ios developer team about the idea. The developer team comes back with a contract that it would cost Y amount, with half required as a deposit upfront.
At the time, I thought they really overcharged for such a simple application. There were many unnecessary features to be priced. But it’s not my money paying out, so whatever.
My boss, being the department director, asked if I could make the app. Keep in mind that I’m not a software developer in my department. My job description does not include coding and my wage is far lower than those who code for a job. But people know that I program from time to time to automate most of my job (and other people’s jobs) and for fun. Never have I ever made myself a full-fledged app before that time.
I said I could give it a try. He agreed on half the amount of Y for my bonus, once the app is made and tested.
I went home. Borrowed a MacBook from my friend (I knew my boss would never buy me a Mac just for a single project). Locked myself in my room studying as many tutorials for beginners as I could.
10 days later, an app is made. I couldn’t be happier. I showed it to everyone around, got some feedback, made changes. My boss told me to push it onto the App Store for internal use. I did. About 75 devices installed.
I wrote an email to my boss about the bonus, alongside with the terms like I would maintain the app myself, and transfer the ownership to the company, etc. I also mentioned the possibility of promoting me to be Software Engineer so I can develop more apps for the company.
*Crickets* – no response.
I came up to him after a few days. He told me I will get it after the Deputy Director come back from his business trip to see if the app is working well. I said no big deal, I could wait for another week. The app needs more time for testing anyway.
But the Deputy Director came back and still no sign of the bonus. I asked a few more times and my boss is like running this loop: For X in excuses: Say(“You will have the bonus after \(X) event”)
It’s been more than a month since I published the app and still nothing. The last time I came up to him, I also asked about the possibility of a promotion, to which he rejected and said I should just focus on my own work and only do special projects like this if necessary.
I said ok. Came back to my desk and started applying to new jobs. Out of 4 jobs I applied for, 3 called back and scheduled an interview one week after. I brought the app with me to demo. Got 1 offer at one company for the position of Software Developer at twice the salary.
When I came to my boss to hand in my resignation, he still wondered if he did anything wrong…
1) Join the Massachusetts State Police. Make over 100K your first year, including overtime where you sleep in the cruiser most of the time. You will be incredibly wealthy and rich within 20 years. You can retire young and get a “getover” job as a college security police starting at 135,000 a year. Seriously, my brother is a State Cop and if I could live my life over again I would do this job. It’s hard to get through the Basic Training but once you’re on the job it is absolutely no work, lots of perks, impossible to get laid off… where else can you get paid 1000 dollars for sleeping in your car? I’m not joking! If you d3on’t want to be a State Cop then become a local cop but you might actually have to do something. Nevertheless the opportunity to make money as a cop in Massachusetts is unparalleled. The corrupt Police Union has made wages high and work virtually non-existent. This is the way to go.
2) Become a Fireman – this job is the biggest scam in Massachusetts. It’s GREAT money for doing next to nothing. Sure, there are lots of calls where you get to ride on the big red engine but mostly it’s for absolutely nothing. You stand around with a halligan tool and you coat open and a cigarette hanging from your mouth and then you go back to the station, eat something and watch television in a barcalounger then go to bed. You do this for two days, get a full week’s pay and then you become a contractor and double or even triple dip. You will be fucking rich in no time. Sometimes you might actually have to fight a fire but think of all the things you can slip into your boots or coat when you’re in someone’s smoky house – a wallet left on the dresser: it has your name on it. Expensive watch on the counter: you can easily sell that. All kinds of perks.
3) Become a Plumber. Believe me, these guys clean up. There aren’t enough plumbers and you can charge just about anything, especially in winter when people’s heat stops working. Yep, it’s hard work and you often have to deal with people’s stink and shit but usually you’re putting in new, clean pipe and the new Pex technology makes it fast and easy and you can clean up. If you have even half a brain within a couple of years you can get younger apprentice plumbers to work for you. Create a subsidiary business cleaning out drains. You can make up to 1000 dollars for a one hour visit. If you can get commercial accounts or city accounts, your future is assured. By the time you’re 35 you will be taking your wife and girlfriend to Turks and Caicos in the winter. Plumbers make HUGE coin.
4) Become an electrician – once again, it’s a tough apprenticeship but once you’re done you will never have a day off if you don’t want one. There just aren’t enough electricians. Had an electrician come to my house to replace a half dozen switches and plugs – cost me 750 bucks. You will really clean up. If you get attached to a building contractor you can start your own electrical company and hire a bunch of illegal immigrants to run wire through the new ant farms going up and you do the critical work of punching them down to the breaker box and you’re in like Flint. The sky is the limit.
5) Become a real estate broker – this is actually MUCH harder than it looks but the options for making a lot of money doing nothing at all are really good. To be a broker you have to be an agent for three years. That means sucking the asshole of another broker boss douche who is going to rip you off blind for three years. The first two years you won’t even make minimum wage but if you stick with it you will learn all the ins and outs and how to scam homebuyers which is every real estate agent’s job – Get the suckers to buy that termite trap as fast as possible and take your 2 percent commission and run. But once you’re a broker yourself than all those nose-picking wannabe agents will be sucking your asshole and they have to pay you 50 percent of their commission while you go deep sea fishing off the Keys in Florida. And they best part? The REAL money is in working with contractors or finding that great piece of property you can buy, rehab and sell for a huge profit. Yep, it takes time and effort and diligence but you can make millions a year in real estate if you’re willing to sell your soul to do it. I met the biggest agent in the area once, a woman who would sell her own daughter’s kidney for a profit if she could because to be REALLY GOOD as an agent or a broker requires you to have no conscience or soul.
Remember the 50-year-old man who gave his number to my sister at our family restaurant?
Well, he came back last night with a huge smirk on his face.
He entered the premise with his friend. They were both semi-drunk. Here is the conversation,
His friend: “Is this the girl you gave your number to?”
Him: “Shhh.”
I kept a straight face. My sister was clearly uncomfortable and wanted me to take over.
As I was taking his order, I caught him staring my sister up and down. I was so angry and disgusted. That’s my baby sister he was looking at lustfully.
I looked at him and said,
Me: “What do you think you’re doing?”
Him: “…uh…nothing. *Looks away*.
Me: “You know that’s my sister you’re looking at, right?”
Him: “I…uh…was looking at the chef…”*looks away*
Me: “Well, she’s 15-years-old and you’re incredibly inappropriate. She’s underage.”
He was in shock (or so it seemed).
He ordered his food and went to sit down.
He then said:
“My daughter is 15”, to which I replied, “how would you like it if a grown man stared at your daughter in the same manner?”
He walked out.
His friend looked at me in amazement.
“I’m proud of you for protecting your sister. We need more women like you in this world. My daughter is 31 and if a man did the same to her, I would be angry.”
I felt like a complete savage. He deserved it.
Leave American schools and go private or international
Maggy is one of the smoking moms, and she is not happy. She has been morbidly obese for most of her adult life, but now her problem was bound to be solved. It hasn’t.
“The doctor lied. It isn’t better at all.“
The smoking moms bring their kids to school, or wait at the gates for them, while smoking. It’s their every right, but it also is a little weird to see young moms smoking so nearby a school.
Maggy had a gastric bypass — a type of weight-loss surgery that involves creating a small pouch from the stomach and connecting the newly created pouch directly to the small intestine. It essentially shrinks the stomach, so that you should eat less. Should.
But Maggy did not really listen to the doctor lady, because the doctor lady clearly said to Maggy that her diet should be (heavily) adapted in order for the operation to be a success. Should.
She explains it to her smoking mom friends while she is smoking —
“My stomach really hurts when I eat a little snack like a burger or so. And I am gaining a lot of weight again. The doctor really lied to me.”
But the doctor did not lie at all — Maggy did not listen.
And she should have.
Should.
Can you join a cult without knowing it? Is The Latitude a game, business or something else?
Some twenty five years ago, while I was still in college,we had a maid . Let’s call her Lakshmi.
She came to plains from a village in mountains with her alcoholic husband. After her first daughter was born she started working.
She used to bring her daughter along, nurse her in between the chores and started her life.
After three years one more daughter came along and she decided two were enough . Here is what she did
Got a tubectomy done to avoid more kids.
She enrolled both of her daughters in a small school.
Since she could not afford costly food like almonds etc in winter , she used to feed her kids eggs in the breakfast.
Her daughters were always neat and clean.
She started depositing a tiny amount each month in the bank.
Slowly she bought the basics like a fridge, washing machine and a TV.
As time passed she bought a little house too on instalments and worked extremely hard to repay the loans she took from bank and a few people.
She realized that her elder daughter was a bit slow in learning so after high school she enrolled her for a beautician’s course. That girl now is happily married and has her own modest parlour.
The younger one was highly intelligent and won many scholarships. A family friend,who had their own engineering college, gave admission to her daughter in engineering and she is a software engineer today working in Chennai.
All her life Lakshmi remained completely honest and during my wedding, she even had the keys to my mother’s almirah.
Lakshmi was an honest,hard working woman who had dreams for her girls,the wisdom to plan and had the perseverance to execute those plans .
Lakshmi has never been to school and could barely write her name, but she was intelligent enough to understand what to do and how.
Intelligence has nothing do with the college, the degrees and the social strata of a person.
Itshines in the direction our life takes. It is visible in each and every decision we take.
Not me but my dad. My dad has this quick wit about him, he can come up with the snappiest comebacks, silliest one liners, and dad jokes I’ve ever heard. If my dad is tired he’s even funnier (don’t tell him I admitted this). At my uncle’s house with the hypocritical aunt, she made a comment about dad and I. A little context, my cousins (she has two boys and 1 girl) absolutely adore my dad. He would take then camping and hiking when we were growing up. He would swim with them at the lake, help them work on their cars (well the boys have cars, the girl doesn’t want one yet). And of course I’m first in dad’s life so I was right there with them the whole time. They were having a summer cookout on this day so the cousins are up and down, in and out. One boy wanted to show me something about his game system, other boy wanted to show me something he did to his car, and the girl was telling me about some funny videos. When I would stop by dad, he would kiss my hand and tell me to have fun, smiling the whole time. My aunt remarks something about treating his daughter so grossly affectionate. Dad says “Yeah it’s hard trying to please a beautiful woman all the time but somebody’s has to learn how.” His brother choked on his soda and had to go in the house. Girl cousin was laughing hysterically but looking at her phone (it was loading a video but not playing yet).
I lived in a remote Siberian town throughout their winter and the temperatures remained below -20C for most of the winter, and on very very cold days, it would go below -40C as well.
Layers upon Layers. If you can put in a thin shirt underneath your fur coats, you put it in.
There are no veggies to eat. There are no fruits. Those who can afford them, are usually the oligarchs who come to visit their mansions for fun. Canada might have, because it has world’s largest food producer just next to it. Fatty meats, milks fats, milk, and some roots and tubers. Some people also preserve and pickle all kinds of veggies during the summer.
Your lungs burn. The air is so dry, every breath you breathe out, will push water out of your body. The lungs can become dry, and then every breath burns. You might want to replenish the fluids in your body, even when you’re inside. Light alcohol, helps. Of course, then the legendary vodka. But once the alcohol effects are dimmed, you feel more cold. So you need to keep drinking.
In remote areas, nights can get dark. People will not have windows, and if anyone has they will fill it up with winters covers, which basically means putting several wood boards. Nights are dark. Pitch black dark if you get even about 100 meters away from the civilization. You can’t see your own hands or body. You need to have sufficient lighting. The more batteries the better.
You don’t have diesel stuff at all, unless it is specially designed. You should have gas generators, gas cars, gas everything. Diesel will gell up, diesel engines can’t start combustion, or there must be specially designed engines, which have spark plugs. You don’t shut off the car unless you get everything you need. You will sometimes need to heat up the car before starting it, because it just won’t start.
Meat. You don’t waste any body parts. You will clean off the large intestine of all the poop and eat whatever part is edible. You eat the heart, brains, and even break up the bones sometimes for the marrow. Of a horse or a reindeer out of a 100kg carcass, 20kg is the highest amount that should go waste. The skins, are used. The most expert folks will be able to reduce the wastage 16–18kg. The amazing thing is, eating up all the body parts, ensures that people are never ever deficient in any macro or micro nutrients.
Metal is no good. If the temperatures drop, the metal can become brittle. It doesn’t conserve heat. It conducts heat too well. Wood. Wood. Wood. Your body will stick to metal. Wood is the way to go. You can’ burn metal. You can burn wood.
You don’t keep fuel in your home. Fuel means wood. Butane and propane are cute. But you don’t have enough to stock up for the entire winter. Once winter starts, you can’t get more either. You can always go into the forests and get more wood.
You learn to kill and clean a carcass. Really. Deer, horse, and whatever animal you come across.
You don’t want to sweat. So you don’t heat your home too much. You sweat, you die. You want to work hard, okay. BUT DO NOT SWEAT. SWEAT = DEATH. Sweat will go into your clothes. Water is a good conductor of heat, way better than air. You will get cold. If you sweat too much, your clothes will freeze and stick to your skin. The sweat ice will kill you in a few hours. If you sweat, wipe it off, and if you’re in home and you sweat, open the door to cool down the home. YOU DON’T SWEAT.
Home. Home does not mean a 3 bedroom American suburban house. It means a 300 sqft wood cabin. A single room, with some walls strategically placed around the door, to not let the cold air in. More rooms means more wood to heat everything. Wood is not infinite. You need to go into the forest with a few people, where 60% will keep a watch, 20% will cut, and the remaining 20% will do the odd jobs and gathering, cutting up of the trees felled. You can also sweat while cutting wood. YOU DON’T want to go for wood in middle of the winter. So, a single room cabin.
Sex isn’t taboo. It’s the same as America was during the period of settlers moving west. You will probably see your parents going at it. No worries, you’re not the weird one. The weird one is who’s not seen sex.
There aren’t any jobs. Survival is your job.
If you’re from a city like Miami, or from California, where the temperature doesn’t go below 0C, and it’s hot and humid, you can’t live here, without climate acclimatization. You need to move north, slowly, spend a winter and then move further north. You can die from the cold, if you aren’t acclimatized.
That is the gist of what I was able to learn about living in extreme cold.
In 2022, when I went to Switzerland, I met a girl at a hostel[1].
During a long conversation, she told me that she preferred to travel on low-cost airlines across Europe, and it was cheaper than trains.
Like, she had spent only 15-Euros to travel from Berlin to Bern the previous day. The only requirement was that you luggage should be carry-on, the one that fit under the seat.
In 2023, when I went to Europe, I wanted to travel to Iceland from Italy. I found one low-cost airline, Wizz Air. The ticket cost 100 euros. I booked it immediately.
I kept getting notifications for e-check-in. Since, I never had the habit of doing e-check-in and always preferred to do it at the counter, I ignored them.
On the day of my trip, I went to the check-in counter. The lady checked all my details, luggage, and passport and said, ‘Everything is okay, but why haven’t you checked in already?’
‘Oh, I thought of doing it here.’
‘You have to pay printing charges if you want us to issue you boarding pass.’
‘Ah that’s okay. How much would it be?’
‘Four five.’
‘Four to five Euros.’ Quite expensive for a printout, but it is okay, I thought.
‘No. Forty-five Euros.’
I was aghast.
I quickly checked my phone to do web-check-in. But I couldn’t do it since it was 2 hr 30 min before the flight departure.
She noticed it. ‘Okay, let me see if I can do it from my side.’
Lady luck, I thought.
But
She sighed. ‘Sorry, sir, I am also not able to do it. The web check-in closes 3 hours before the flight departure. So you have to.. ‘
Thus, I paid 45 Euros to get the boarding pass for a 100-Euro flight.
‘Why you didn’t do it earlier, sir?’ she asked while handing over the pass.
‘In Singapore and India, there are no charges for printing boarding passes at the counter.’
‘It is different when it comes to low-cost airlines, sir. Nothing is free.’
You read job descriptions, but they all require you to know a tool such as Excel or another software program.
I can hear you thinking.
It doesn’t make sense.
Wasn’t college supposed to help me land a good job? I didn’t learn any of these things.
You start sweating.
You look behind you. You can almost see the fraternity parties and drunken nights fading into oblivion.
There’s nothing on your resume except a degree and involvement in college organizations.
No one’s hiring college graduates without skills. That means you.
You feel alone on a sandbar in the middle of the ocean.
I don’t even know what I like.
Wasn’t I supposed to learn what I enjoy doing in college?
Maybe I should just apply to every job I see online.
Even with all these doubts, you must move forward. You send out hundreds of applications before someone considers your resume. They ask you if you’re willing to start as an unpaid marketing intern.
You think about it. It’s been three months since graduating, and you haven’t taken a serious step towards a meaningful career. When people ask you where you work, you hesitate to tell them about your two waitressing gigs helping you pay off student loans.
Maybe you can balance waitressing and your internship. Maybe not.
You feel pressured from your parents to move out of the house. In turn, you ask the potential employer if there’s an opportunity to turn this unpaid marketing internship into a full-time position.
He says, “Yes.”
You work extra hours at your unpaid internship for four months before asking for pay.
“Hey, I was wondering if you have a chance to talk about a potential pay raise?”
“Sorry. We’re just not ready to bring you on full time.”
You cry after work.
You believed your employer. You trusted them.
It’s been seven months since you graduated college and you’re still waiting tables. Your parents sometimes make remarks about you acting lazy even though you work eighty-hour weeks. You know they don’t mean it. They thought once you graduated they’d finally have time to themselves.
You quit your unpaid internship.
You apply to different job positions. The only phone call you get back is for a receptionist position at a salon. It’s better than saying you work as a waitress, but it pays less. You feel a strong need for validation, so you take the job.
It’s at this point you ask the right questions:
Who will teach me how to make more money?
Who will teach me how to become happy?
From here, you research on the internet those who built themselves up from scratch. At first, you follow the wrong people and waste money on their $199 courses and scams.
After you get burned, you dig deeper and discover people making a real difference. You read what they’ve written and study their habits. Then, you implement their advice.
In time, you discover the paths out of the jail cell that college left you in.
It takes time. Many people never find a way out.
Don’t give up. With enough persistence, you can accomplish your goals.
I know what it’s like. I worked at nine startups before getting hired to head marketing at a 50-million-dollar venture capital firm.
I don’t know your son or his sense of responsibility but I can tell you what happened to me. I was 40 when I got a DUI. I had never been in any trouble before and haven’t since. I will spare you all the circumstances to cut to your question. My best friend bailed me out of jail but had to be paid back immediately. My dad drove to my town the next day and replaced the money. He said he had made that bad choice many times when he was younger and felt I was paying for his sin. I lost my license for 6 months. My son (who was very anti-alcohol for some unknown reason – none of the adults in his life had been drinkers, including myself) rearranged his schedule to drive me. He was 16. His response was that I had spent his whole life rearranging his schedule around me, it wouldn’t hurt him to do the same for me when I needed it. I told my boss. He told me not to drive the company car while I didn’t have a license – he picked me up for work a couple of times when I was in a bind. He also did not report the transgression up the chain. He said he wasn’t sure what the response would be and he didn’t want to risk it. He said not to worry. I had properly reported. Not going further would be on him. I’m saying all that to say this. The worst experience of my life served to show me how blessed I really am even when things are rough. I did not take advantage. I was not a drunk. I had a bad day and made a poor choice. I’m not excusing that. I am so grateful that it was a ticket and not an accident. But the shame I feel about that awful occasion is softened by the love I had around me.
The year before I started at my high school the administration allowed a writer to go undercover and pose as a student so that he could gather material for a book.
He wanted to write a sex, drugs, and hard partying expose full of scandalous true stories about the lives of real American teenagers.
The administration thought that he would be their ‘inside man’, and he would feed them all of the dirt about what the kids were up to.
It didn’t work.
Partially because my high school was really quite tame. All of the scandalousness the writer was hoping for and the admins suspected really only existed in their own fantasy lives. Partially because none of the kids were fooled, turns out the difference between an actual teenager and a grown man wearing makeup is quite evident despite what 21 Jump Street would have you believe. And partially because as word got out about what was going on there was a massive backlash from the parents.
Turns out that allowing a grown man unrestricted access to a student body of underage kids so that he can try to get invited to their parties and snoop on their sex lives is REALLY BAD.
The writer had to flee the scene in disgrace, the principal resigned in disgrace. There was just in general a huge amount of disgrace.
It was the winter of 1978 and I was bumming around Europe going to the train stations at night and using my rail pass instead of paying for a hotel room. This made for some strange side trips. Anyway, I had planned on arriving at Heathrow with no money and flying back home to California.
But the fates decided differently. There was a bad snow storm and some sort of a strike that shut things down for days. Did I mention that I was flying standby? As a side note the Iranian Revolution had driven out the Shah and the airport was packed with Iranians trying to get home.
Stuck in Heathrow with no money and no plane seat in sight. I decided to go into the city and see if I couldn’t rustle up some luck.
So I’m walking down the street and come across a bakery. Ah! Says I, day old bread might be cheap or even free.
I go in the shop and tell the girl behind the counter my story. She looks at me for a long second and says, “I know you, I’m Susan XX, we were in elementary school together.” Small world. Improbable is appropriate, I think. Got something to eat and a great memory. Those days and nights in Heathrow still make me laugh at all the weird, happy, lucky things that happened there.
In grade school there was a boy in our class who always smelled a bit funny. Kids were really cruel about that. They talked about “Danny’s” fleas, how he peed his pants and other really cruel things. To me he did not smell “bad” he smelled of something but it was not that strong.I do not have a strong sense of smell.
In first grade at Valentine’s Day we all made Valentines boxes and made cards to put in each other’s boxes. My mother told me that every child in my class should get a Valentine from me. I thought it was an odd thing to say because that was my plan. I thought it was everyones plan. On Valentines Day were got to open our boxes and see our cards. Some kids brought cookies and we had Kool Aid for our little party that day. Danny came to me afterwards and thanked me for the card I gave him. It turned out it was the only card he had in his box. This I just could not understand.
When Danny got a little older and in 5th grade he made a deal with the boys PE teacher that he and his little brother would come to school early twice a week and do the Gym laundry of towels and would include their clothing in the laundry. Maybe this originally came from the teacher. The smell was gone. Time went by and the teasing about the smell of Danny and is brother ended.
Danny was elected as president of our Graduating class.
After well over a year of child support and custody battles, allegations and counter allegations it was over. The last court visit was upon me.
Over a year ago we talked and said we would just go through arbitration. We agreed that would be best for all parties concerned. No sense in fighting, she didn’t want custody of the kids so the house would be mine. She could have anything in the house she wanted. Why drag ourselves through the muck? It isn’t like we had hundreds of thousands of dollars in assets.
I still remember that day. My oldest son was an emotional wreck, the youngest was just aloof, not saying much at all. The table we sat at while we had this last civil conversation as married people is still here, about 5 feet from me as I type this.
It was in fact the calmest conversation we had with each other in the months since she abruptly left to go live with her coworker and his friends.
After she had left we fought a lot. Not just because she left but because of how she left. We lived an old fashioned kind of marriage. We had a joint bank account and everything I made was deposited to it. She was supposed to take care of the bills.
Once she started her affair she stopped paying bills and I was clueless. I found out after she left that every utility bill was at least two or three months behind. A week after she left I got a foreclosure notice on the house, she hadn’t paid that in four months. As ridiculous as it sounds I had a 3K plus water bill. I still cant figure that one out. That has to be two years of water bills. If I miss two months they threaten to shut it off.
What she did with all the money I will never know. My brother claims he thought at the time she was doing drugs. Honestly though? Its a mystery that will never be solved.
It all seems so surreal now. But that one day at least a little sanity seemed like it would prevail.
I called the court that Monday and said I was OK for arbitration, I waited for the call back telling me that she had also called and the schedule of appointments we would have to make.
One day waiting turned in to two, then three, then four. On Friday I got a call from a lawyer saying he was representing my then wife and that she was suing for divorce.
I tried to call her to find out what was going on. She didn’t answer.
I got a lawyer. After a couple court dates the lawyer informed me that I would probably have to give her a portion of my pension. Now I understood why she did the abrupt turn around. Spousal support can go on forever if the receiving party doesn’t remarry and since the guy she ran off with was married that was not going to happen.
I told my lawyer that I was not giving her a chunk of my pension for the rest of her life as a reward for screwing me and the kids over. He calmly told me that this was common in NY state for marriages over 15 years and their was little he could do.
I fired him the next day and represented myself.
The court cases went on for about a year, she fought me on everything from custody of the kids that she didn’t want to some generic Kmart pictures that had been in the attic for years. Small arguments we had had years before suddenly became portrayed as huge shouting matches with always just a hint that I may have been abusive.
If you have ever watched any of the reality TV divorce shows it is pretty funny watching people tell obvious lies about each other. It is not as funny when it happens to you and it is real life.
When it started to be obvious things were not going her way the hint was removed with actual allegations. I didn’t just argue with her, now I threw her across a room and jumped on her chest with both feet. It was so ridiculous the judge stopped her, admonished her lawyer and told her no further unproven allegations would be admitted.
I didn’t realize it then but that did cause some damage, not in the way she probably expected though. A month after everything was over my oldest came upon the divorce papers in the house. I came home one day to him sitting on the couch looking as solemn as I have ever seen him. He asked me, “Dad have you ever hit Mom?”
That hurt more then anything she had said about me in court. The image of my own son looking at me like I was a monster will be forever seared in to my brain.
You asked how did it end? My ex sued for divorce, I counter sued. After all the drama the end was pretty anti-climatic.
The judge read the charges for my ex one by one and denied them one by one. She then read my counter-suit arguments one by one and approved them one by one.
All while this was going on my ex just stared at me while I focused my attention on the Judge. We were now two people that had become strangers in a room full of strangers. There were no tears, this had been going on for over a year and half and all the tears had dried up long ago.
That was it, we walked out and headed to the elevator. When she realized she might have to ride down with me she went in to the bathroom to wait until I was gone.
I rode the elevator down, walked outside and stopped at a hotdog stand. After the guy gave me my purchase I asked him what the date was.
It was one week from what would have been our twentieth anniversary.
That is how it ended.
Bakaliaros Pastos Me Kremmithia
Bakaliaros Pastos Me Kremmithia
Ingredients
3 pounds salt cod
Water as needed
Flour for dipping
1 1/2 cups oil
2 pounds onions, sliced
2 pounds tomatoes, peeled and strained
Pepper to taste
Instructions
Cut cod into small pieces. Skin it, and soak overnight in enough water to cover, changing 2 or 3 times. Remove from water; take out bones; rinse and dry fish well. Dip in flour, shaking off excess, and fry in hot oil until golden.
In same oil, sauté onions until they are soft but not brown. Put them in wide pot, together with oil from the pan and any of the 1 1/2 cups oil not used in the frying. Add tomatoes and pepper. Simmer for 30 – 45 minutes or until onions dissolve.
Add codfish (and /1/2 cup hot water if needed), cover the pot, and cook for 10 minutes, until liquid is absorbed and only the oil remains.
The Little Boy bomb dropped on Hiroshima weighed 4.5 metric tons (9,000 pounds). This included the casing, aero-finns, fusing and safing equipment and batteries and particularly a large mass of conventional explosives.
The explosives were used to drive together a large, neutron-reflecting tamper and a critical mass of uranium weighing 64 kg (141 lbs). Naturally occurring uranium is almost entirely u-238, which is less prone to fission through thermal neutron capture, the type of neutrons produced in a nuclear explosion, so the bomb core had been enriched to an average of 80% U-235, and almost all the energy came from the U-235.
Of the 51 kg (113 lbs) of U-235, only about 1%, or 0.5 kg (1.1 lbs) underwent fission, releasing very roughly 64 trillion joules of energy, about the same as 15,000 tons of TNT, or ten times the explosive power of the RAF’s famous thousand-plane raid on Cologne in May of 1945, in which 44 aircraft and hundreds of air crew were lost.
But Little Boy was not filled with anti-matter. Fission only converts a tiny fraction of an atom’s mass into energy, and in Little Boy, that added up to a grand total of roughly 7 grams (0.007 kg).
That, in fact, is the weight of about 10 large butterflies or 20 more typical ones, or 7 paperclips.
Addendum:
The bulk of the uranium that did not fission simply remained uranium, was turned to dust or molten specs, was carried up with the mushroom cloud, and settled out over the Pacific.
If you’re like too many people, that probably scares you, but it absolutely shouldn’t.
Earth’s oceans contain roughly 4.5 billion metric tons of naturally occurring uranium, enough that any randomly collected liter contains about 3.3 micrograms. If you haven’t gone to sleep thus far worrying about Earth’s radioactive oceans, there’s no reason to start. The whole planet is radioactive and always has been, and your bones are considerably more radioactive than seawater—and that’s from natural sources.
In 1983, Stephen Phillips was convicted of a string of rape/burglaries in the Dallas area. He was subsequently sentenced to 30 years in prison.
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Phillips was married at the time to a woman named Traci. Phillips claims she rarely visited him, and she divorced him whilst he was still in prison.
In 2008, having served 25 years of his sentence, Phillips was exonerated by DNA evidence, it turns out the real perpetrator was a convicted sex offender who had since died.
Phillips was released and eventually secured a $6M settlement in compensation for the terrible miscarriage of justice he had suffered, he attempted to restart his life, presumably hoping to never see the inside of a courtroom again, but that wasn’t to be.
Traci, his ex-wife, read about his settlement in the papers, and decided to take him to court claiming she should get a slice of his compensation as part of her divorce settlement, despite the fact that the divorce happened decades prior and she had long since moved on with her life and remarried.
After a protracted legal battle, during which time Phillips also had to fight off a spurious $2M claim from his former lawyer, the court eventually threw it all out in 2014 and Phillips was finally allowed to attempt to enjoy what remained of his life without the involvement of the legal system for the first time in 31 straight years.
It takes a certain kind of person to look at the compensation someone gets for spending a quarter of a century behind bars for a serious sexual assault that they did not commit and think they will try and take a chunk of that for no good reason other than greed.
One day at the end of class, Miss Thomas asked her fourth graders to go home and come up with a true story with a moral. The following day she asked for the first volunteer to tell their story. Little Billy raised his hand. “My dad owns a farm and every Sunday we load the chicken eggs on the truck and drive into town to sell them at the market. Well, one Sunday we hit a big bump and all the eggs flew out of the basket and onto the road.” When asked by Miss Thomas for the moral of the story, Billy replied, “Don’t keep all your eggs in one basket.” “Very good, Billy.” Little Suzy went next and kept with the poultry theme. “My dad owns a farm too. Every weekend we take the chicken eggs and put them in the incubator. Last weekend only eight of the 12 eggs hatched.” Again, Miss Thomas asked for the moral of the story. Suzy replied, “Don’t count your chickens before they hatch.” “Good moral, Suzy.” Next up was little Jimmy. “My Aunt Helen was a fighter pilot, and her plane was shot down over enemy territory. She jumped out before it crashed but could only take a bottle of whiskey, a machine gun and a machete. On the way down, she drank the whiskey. Then she landed right in the middle of about 100 enemy soldiers. She shot and killed about 70 with her machine gun, but then she ran out of ammo. So she pulled out her machete and killed over 20 more. Then the blade on the machete broke, so she had to kill the remaining combatants with her bare hands. Luckily she was rescued soon after.” A shocked Miss Thomas paused and said, “Good Lord, Jimmy, what’s the moral for that?!” Jimmy replied, “Don’t fuck with Aunt Helen when she’s been drinking.”
> Americans now find themselves living in an oligarchy administered day-to-day by institutional bureaucracies that move in lock-step with each other, enforcing a set of ideologically-driven top-down imperatives that seemingly change from week-to-week and cover nearly every subject under the sun. <
He represented a guy on a breaking and entering charge. When the police arrived at the store, the silent alarm was still sounding and the defendant was standing at the end of one of the aisles (it was a grocery store). He was arrested without incident and didn’t make any statements while in custody.
The defendant was about 40 and had a long record of burglaries. However, he hadn’t had one for about ten years. Here was the defense presented at trial:
The defendant testified that he was a master thief. He explained that he knew the store had a silent alarm because he was very familiar with those systems. He explained in detail how he could have disarmed it had he chosen to do so.
He had entered through the roof. There was some sort of service door that he accessed by climbing a drain pipe. When asked, he explained that he didn’t enter through a ground level door or window because it would have required him to break something. The service door was secured by a simple padlock. He had years of experience defeating those locks and explained in detail how he could do so.
So why was he in the store in the middle of the night?
He had been in the store a day earlier and noticed how badly the products were arranged on the shelves. The end caps were particularly unattractive. He needed a job but didn’t think he could get hired by the store via the standard process because of his record. So, he decided to break in and rearrange some of the shelves to demonstrate to the owner how he could be a beneficial employee. The police simply arrived faster than he had anticipated. Because he was such an experienced thief, he said he could have easily broken into the store and looted it without getting caught. How could he prove he was a successful thief? That’s why he didn’t have a record over the preceding 10 years. He had never gotten caught.
So, his defense was that if he was really planning on stealing from the store, he would have never gotten caught. He was there as part of an unorthodox attempt to get a job BC he wanted to stop being a criminal.
When I was in my “living in the van” stage of life… also known as the “lost in the wilderness” period, we encountered quite an array of interesting and curious people. Ah. The world is populated with them. But most people never encounter them as they lie on the outer fringes of society.
Typically, my wife (at that time) and myself would land in a city and find ourselves trying to obtain some bearings on our life. This would typically be in a large parking lot associated with a strip mall. These strip malls are ugly affairs. Just brick establishments and a big parking lot. And we would make the best of it, by using that as our “base camp” and then walking about to get our bearings.
One day, doing this, we noticed that we were being followed. An older man. Maybe in his 50’s or so. He would be following us. If we went down a street, he would follow us. If we went into a store, there he was, peering at us. If we went into a restaurant, he would be there in a corner table. And it was really creepy.
We tried to “shake him off”. But he was on us like a “horse fly” on a deer butt. We just couldn’t get rid of him.
We went up town… he followed us.
We went down town… he followed us.
Finally, after about three hours (!) of this, we saw a laundry-mat. We went inside and then ran out the back and locked the door behind us. There, in the ally, we peered into the empty laundry-mat (through a small square window), and there we was alone, and pretending to looking around. We guessed he realized that “we knew”.
Sheech!
Some people appear to be harmless, but they have severe and potentially dangerous mental and behavioral illnesses. Get away from them. For the love of God.
Two stories, one belongs to my parents and the other one is mine.
My parents left the church we attended in what is now called South Central L.A. after the minister said, from the pulpit, that while the black babies were welcome to come to Sunday school, their parents would not be invited to join the church. This was in the early 1960’s, the neighborhood was ´changing ´ (and eventually became the scene of the flashpoint for the 1992 Rodney King riot/rebellion, which took place a block away from that church).
To my parents’ credit, even though my mom had grown up in that church and they had strong social ties there, we started visiting other churches the next month. They settled on a church in a different Protestant denomination because it had a robust youth group. While the pastor was white and the congregation was mainly white, they were actively reaching out to the neighborhood (which was primarily black), including several weekly ‘gym nights’ for neighborhood youth. My parents felt this was a good fit for us.
I remember a few odd things… a sermon that called out Ronald Reagan as the Antichrist because his first, middle and last names all had 6 letters (666, the mark of the beast). The pastor’s wife didn’t come to church every Sunday and when she did, she wore dark glasses and kept to herself.
But for me the final straw came when the high school youth group had a special invite to the pastor’s home. We sat around in his living room, where he had a fire burning in the fireplace. He chatted with us a bit, and then brought in a tape player and without any introduction, began playing a tape for us. Within a few minutes it became clear that it was a tape of a session where he was counseling a church member. As it proceeded, he started calling on demons (who had funny squeaky voices on the tape) and casting them into the pits of hell.
Exorcism was not something that had ever been mentioned before. There was no context for this at all for those of us listening. We were all just frozen in shock.
When that tape finished, he threw it into the fire and loaded up another. It only got worse. One of several exorcism tapes he played that night was the mom of two of the boys in the room.
I don’t think any of us spoke as we got in the church bus to go back. It was completely out of context to all of us.
I was still in high school, and continued going on Sundays with my family until I graduated. But from then on I felt like I was there as an outside observer rather than a member (even though I was still officially a member). I stopped going to youth group activities, though. And the week I turned 18 I stopped going altogether.
Much later, after that pastor’s contract was terminated, my mom mentioned that he had been abusing his wife all along, and that shortly before his contract was pulled, several church ladies had spirited her away to a domestic violence shelter.
(And to any who may object to references of race, please understand that in the 1960’s, race was the context for almost everything. I’m glad, at least, that my parents were firmly on the right side in terms of civil rights).
She’d volunteered to be the treasurer for a local non-profit. She had a board meeting coming up.
“I need your help. Do you know what Excel is?”
Not good.
She’s smart. But not a big numbers person. And has never worked with financial figures. She really shouldn’t have volunteered for this position. But her heart was in the right place.
“Yes 🙂 I spend a lot of time in Excel. Whatsup?” (I work in Finance.)
She says, “I have 3 days before this board meeting. I can’t get any of these numbers to work. I stink at math. I’ll pay you. Pleeeease. Please.”
I met up with her.
It was ugly. The numbers were all over the place, they were wrong, the formulas were wack. The “books” she’d inherited from the prior person were a total mess.
I spent several hours cleaning up this file. The list of problems was endless. I worked as fast as I could. She’d be useless without accurate information.
Then I began explaining the basics to her. And organized the data in an easy-to-read way.
She had no idea what she was getting into. A board meeting as her first dip into finance? Yikes. My #1 goal was just to get her through it without embarrassing herself.
I gave her very easy numbers to cite.
“So when they ask you about this. Say ‘our cash position is good, as of last month it was xyz. It is up X percent from the month prior, and X percent year over year.”
You’ll sound semi-competent. Got it?”
She said, “Got it – but could you say that again though?”
I went through it again.
I gave her all the breakdowns. If they ask you this, say that; if they ask this, say that. I had her fully trained. As best as one can on this on short notice.
Wednesday night. I got a call.
“How did it go?”
I was sure she’d be crying.
She said, “It went amazing! They loved the data. Thank you so much, Sean. I owe you.”
I said, “No. You owe me nothing, dear. I was happy to help.”
Chinese defense systems from 4500 years ago
Believed to serve dual purposes, these ancient tunnels must have been used both as a transportation network and a means of defence and offence. Featuring arched ceilings reminiscent of Longshan period cave dwellings, the tunnels, measuring 3-6 ft in height and approximately 4 ft in width, spread out in a radial pattern, connecting to the centre of the subterranean city.
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Archaeologists have unearthed a sophisticated triple-defence system and an intricate network of tunnels at the ancient Houchengzui Stone City in Inner Mongolia, China. This archaeological marvel, believed to be around 4,300 to 4,500 years old.
Spread across half a square mile, it stands as the largest and most heavily fortified archaeological site in Inner Mongolia from the early Longshan period (3000 to 1900 BC).
The ongoing excavation, which was initiated in 2005, has revealed the complex triple-defence system comprising the main city wall, terraces, gatehouse walls, moats, and trenches. The recent undertaking by the Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), has brought to light a new layer of defence – an elaborate tunnel system beneath the city.
Believed to serve dual purposes, these ancient tunnels must have been used both as a transportation network and a means of defence and offence. Featuring arched ceilings reminiscent of Longshan period cave dwellings, the tunnels, measuring 3-6 ft in height and approximately 4 ft in width, spread out in a radial pattern, connecting to the centre of the subterranean city.
image 9
Several tunnels pass under the fortified city walls, extending beyond its boundaries. Sun Jinsong,
Director of the Cultural Relics and Archaeology Academy of Inner Mongolia, explained that some passages open from outside the city, and pass through various structures like the outer Wengcheng city wall, trenches, and the Wengcheng square.
The strategic design of Houchengzui Stone City, with its elaborate defence systems and concealed tunnels, elaborates its cultural significance in military defence, reflecting its role as a strategic location.
The stone city comprises an inner and outer city fortified with three concentric walls, guarded gates, and trenches. The recent excavations, conducted from 2019 to 2023, focused on the Wangcheng gate, high-level buildings in the inner city, and the tomb area.
Researchers have categorised the city’s architecture into simple and complex stone masonry and earthen walls. Simple stone city walls, positioned along ridges, are constructed with layers of stones and filled with loess or earth. Over the five-year excavation, the team uncovered various elements, including city walls, gates, horse faces, trenches, platform foundations, underground passages, house sites, and tombs.
image 8
Among the notable discoveries are the main city gate (CM1), urn city gate (CM2), and outer urn city gate (CM3). Descriptions of the main city gate highlight its rectangular plan, measuring about 15 m in length from north to south and 9 to 11 m in width from east to west, with intricate features, such as doorways, gate walls, earth platforms, and other architectural elements.
The ongoing exploration of Houchengzui Stone City continues to provide valuable insights into ancient civilization, military strategy, and architectural prowess during the Longshan period.
Japan beauty standards
Baked Eggs on Toast (Jaja na Grzankach – Polish)
DSC 0424
Ingredients
6 slices white bread
Butter
3 tablespoons freshly-grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
6 eggs
Salt and freshly-ground pepper, to taste
Instructions
Toast the bread and butter it on both sides. Place on a baking sheet and, using the tips of your fingers, make a small depression in each piece of toast. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and chives. Carefully drop an egg onto each piece of toast and season with salt and pepper.
Bake in a preheated 400 degrees F oven for 5 to 10 minutes, until the eggs reach the desired degree of doneness.
You can have as many accounts as you want. Pay only gets deposited in one, though.
Your finances are your business until you get in trouble, then it’s the Army’s business.
The Army has learned that by keeping Soldiers home life stable there won’t be any distractions when deployed. If you do have a problem, take it to your chain of command. There are people who’ll help with food, housing, money, medical, transportation, childcare, etc. Just know the Army will do what’s best for the Army but they’ll try not to be invasive or cause a hardship. If you refuse to comply, you can be chaptered out. Knew a single mom who refused to do her family care plan and the separated her. Just remember, your commander has final say on what happens.
A PFC in my old squad was assaulted by his wife. She tore a contact and scratched his eye. The CO moved him into the barracks indef. The wife lost BAH, BAS, and medical. She was only allowed on post with permission from the BN CO. He was in the barracks for three weeks until they could get his kids. The unit helped get him settled offpost and figure out logistics.
If you think you’re being scammed, been scammed, or even getting a questioning message about a service member or a demand for money contact your squad leader, Platoon Sergeant, 1SG, finance NCO or commanding officer. They know lots of ways to help and get you unstuck.
Cooking a steak is no small deal. Steaks are pricey and personal, everyone wants there’s done the way they want it to be done, no exceptions. This is especially true when it comes to seasoning.
The method I’m going to share with you is the way I like steaks to be done, it’s not carved in stone behind a fancy French restaurant or anything. If you like what you read, give it a whirl. If not, try someone else’s method, or invent your own.
Ribeye’s are my steak. I can ramble off a number of others that I enjoy but most of the time I’m eating a tender, juicy, meaty ribeye. Its richness can stand up to a wide range of seasoning, from a basic salt and pepper, to a spicy Southwestern, Cajun blackening spice or whatever’s your poison. My basic steak seasoning is salt, pepper, garlic and onion powders, oregano and smoked paprika. That combo is the tits on a nicely seared ribeye. What you want to know though is how to get it to the steak, right? Well, here we go.
First, season your ribeye well on both sides with coarse salt and let it sit on the counter for about 20 minutes. Known as dry brining, the salt will pull moisture to the surface of the steak, dissolve in that moisture and the steak will drink it back up, seasoning the meat. Get a heavy skillet rip roaring hot, add a touch of oil and then pat the steak dry with paper towels. Lower the steak into the hot pan and sear the hell out of it, until it is crispy golden brown. Oh, make sure you have your pre-mixed seasoning blend handy, because it’s about to come into play.
Flip the steak and sprinkle the seasoning onto the seared side so it blooms in the hot bubbling oil on top of the steak. Then cook it to your desired doneness. The exception to this would be a blackened steak, where you want the seasoning to make contact with the hot pan, so the seasonings become seared with the steak. My method prevents the spices from burning and becoming bitter from contact with the hot pan, which will happen with onion, garlic and paprika.
I’m not expecting a James Beard Award or anything, but I’ve never eaten a bad steak prepared using my seasoning method. Give it a shot and see how it works out for you.
I worked for a small family owned glaziers. I was 18, and while my title was “administrator” I was more of a general dogsbody, which wasn’t a big deal, I liked the other staff and there was nothing to hate about the job itself.
My boss was another kettle of fish. Firstly, he smoked in his “office” which was a small almost hallway that was directly behind the receptionist area and he stunk out the whole building (it was illegal at the time, he didn’t care). He was also pretty abusive to everybody and even forced 2 apprentices to fight over £20 or be fired, then kept the £20. He was a fucking animal.
So, on Fridays I always finished at 3, everybody did. I arrived a few minutes late as the bus was delayed, and my punishment for this was to clean the reception area (we had a lot of mirrors and glass), then his “office”. Then I had to clean the boys kitchen (we had no cleaner, the office staff didn’t go near the kitchen). Needless to say it was rank and took me right up until 2:30, I then having done none of my actual work dealt with the letters which I had to take up to the post box. I also didn’t get a break.
3pm rolls round and I’m walking out the door having clocked out, letters in hand when the phone rings, the receptionist gets my attention while on the phone, hangs up and said “boss said you’re going f**king nowhere til you get up the stairs and clean the toilet”.
My reply “nope” I then walked out, got on the bus and left. I never went near them again.
Without MAJOR service; probably. I have purchased many vehicle that had sat long term, think decades. There are a few steps to getting them running.
Pull all the spark plugs and put a copious amount of oil in the cylinders. I like Marvel Mystery oil mixed with Automatic Transmission Fluid. Leave that concoction at a minimum of over night to soak and penetrate all the surfaces of the piston and rings.
Fuel / Gas would probably be an issue as it has probably varnished up the tank, fuel pump and fuel lines. The carburetor or fuel injectors may have survived without needing repair. Possible but not likely. So a full cleaning of the fuel system would be necessary. Replace the fuel filter and add fresh gas.
You will definitely need a new battery.
At day two or three you can attempt to turn the engine over by hand, GENTLY without the spark plugs installed. The goal is to slowly move and introduce the oil you put in the cylinders onto the surfaces of the cylinder wall. Once the oil is no longer in the cylinders I would change the original oil and filter.
Reinstall the spark plugs, connect the new battery and using the key turn over the engine. By not priming the intake the engine should turn over for several seconds lubricating the engine with fresh oil before it starts.
At this point you could prime the intake, cross your fingers and start the vehicle.
You will probably experience engine and running gear seal leaks. The seals used to hold lubricants and fluids will tend to dry out when a vehicle has sat for a long period.
All that being said; I spent 25 years buying one car. A 1959 Cadillac coupe. I personally knew that it had sat for over 10 years when I finalized the purchase. I had it transported to my shop where I performed the above procedures. I did a tune-up, added a new fuel pump and battery and drove the Caddy up and down the road.
image 87
“Gentlemen, I Suggest You Beam Me Aboard.” Captain Kirk
It actually happened to me. A sheriff’s deputy delivered my 16-year-old daughter to my door one night, saying that she’d been arrested for skinny-dipping in the YMCA with 48 of her friends.
That’s right. 49 skinny-dipping teenagers. They’d been let in the building after hours by one of the lifeguards.
Police charged them with trespassing because, after all, skinny-dipping in a closed building is not a crime.
My reaction? Well, I think I tried not to giggle and told my daughter to go to bed. I was a little put out that I had to rearrange my schedule to go to court with her, but other than that, no, I wasn’t upset. I thought it was funny.
Apparently the judge agreed. When we showed up in court, 49 kids and their parents in suits and dresses trying to look contrite, and one petite, grey-haired judge trying to look stern. She wasn’t completely successful — she kept excusing herself to her chambers so as not to burst out laughing. She told them they had to write a note of apology to the manager of the YMCA.
About a week later I ran into the judge downtown and we talked about the case. “Kids today have it too easy,” she said. “When I was a teenager my gang and I had to climb fences to go skinny-dipping.”
EDIT: Several people have commented that the kids weren’t trespassing because they had been let in by a lifeguard. I checked the Colorado statute for third-degree trespass which states that it is not trespassing if they are on the property with the permission of the property owner. The lifeguard was one of the kids and told the cops she’d let everyone in, but a building custodian said that she had no authority to do so. The cops called the manager of the YMCA, and he not only told the police to arrest the kids but also fired Mary the lifeguard on the spot.
An interesting corollary to this that I knew both cops. In fact they approached me separately to apologize for arresting my daughter, but the custodian and especially the YMCA manager gave them no discretion. But even when they were dropping off my daughter at my door, they said I shouldn’t worry about any legal repercussions because they couldn’t imagine any judge in Boulder giving the kids more than a stern lecture and maybe community service.
Left to Fend Alone: Abandoned by Family After 18 Years, This Cat Finds Itself in a Shelter.
My students always seem shocked when I tell them this:
Like most students in America, my students get periodic standardized tests throughout the year. Standardized tests are created by national groups and administered to students all over the country. That’s the “standard” part of it. The teacher just proctors the test. We don’t see them ahead of time, and have no input as to what’s on the test. After the first test, I always ask them:
“How many of you were just tested?”
They all say that they were.
Then I hit them with the truth:
“You all took the test, but I was the one being tested. These tests are just as much about tracking my effectiveness as a teacher as they are about tracking your effectiveness as a learner. I hope you all did well, because it makes me look good.”
Standardized testing is just as much about testing teachers as it is students.
a friend owned a landscaping company and after a number of problems with his HOA he got mad when they told him the verity of grass in his lawn was the wrong type.
he did lawns for a living and knew he had seeded his lawn with the right type of grass and the HOA board knew nothing about grass and he was the only person with the right type of grass listed in the HOA rules. he got mad and one dark and foggy night drove to each HOA board members homes and sprayed herbicide across their lawns. they went nuts and had to hire a landscaper to fix their yards.
They told the landscaper what type of grass they needed to plant by the HOA RULES and he did. Only to find there lawns did not match the rest of the HOA and they had no idea why.
the HOA board looked like fools when they found out they were wrong.
I had bought a Chrysler Concorde – and it was a superb road car, roomy, huge trunk, good performance and an excellent ride.
At 30K miles the water pump started leaking. Went to the dealer, they replaced it on warranty. They said it took 6 hours labor as the entire front of the car had to come off, as well as the front of the engine – the pump was being driven by the rubber timing belt. All good. At 60K miles, it happened again. Took it in and the dealer repaired it but marked it down as a fuel line repair that was a recall item (we already had that repair done) – so again not out any money. Great dealer! At 90K it happen a third time. I chose to just refill the reservoir as it lowered. My wife had the car out one day when the engine just quit, at 60 MPH. She was able to coast into an abandoned gas station. Seems the timing belt had slid off the pump cog having got too wet. This time I was out the $600 labor, plus pump, to replace it. Thankfully the engine was designed such the valves didn’t impact the pistons. The issue was a cheap o-ring that failed each time.
Discussions I had with Chrysler corporate about this resulted in “your problem, go away”. So I have, never bought another Chrysler product and never will.
As the car reached 120K miles, it was in a violent hailstorm. We replaced the broken windows, but did nothing else. Rather than repair the inevitable and impending leak a 4th time, I donated the car. to charity.
This surely wasn’t the bolt-on water pumps I used to be able to swap out in an afternoon on my driveway! Drain the coolant, Pop the hoses, remove the v-belt, and 3 bolts. Reverse the process to install the new pump.
My dad used to carry wads of bank notes in the back pocket of his trousers. Proper old-school. I told him loads of times everyone recommends you don’t do that as it’s easy for pickpockets to steal. His response was always the same: “yeah? Well I’d like to see someone try and take it…”
While I was studying in Madrid, the whole family came out to visit. I said to my dad, apparently the pickpocketing is pretty bad round here (apologies to any madrileños who may disagree/feel offended by that comment). Anyway might be a good idea not to have all your cash in your back pocket. Usual reaction.
We were all getting on a bus in the city centre when some dude had a go at pinching Dad’s money. Before he had a chance to take it, he got an elbow in the guts and a back-hander across the face. He stumbled backwards into some railings, we all got on and the bus drove off.
So that’s when I stopped lecturing my dad about how/where he should carry his money.
While it’s tempting to cry ‘fake’, there are plenty of examples of capybaras chilling next to caiman. There’s even a video here.
I’m not a capybara expert, but I don’t think they would still exist if they simply had no survival instinct, especially with adept predators like jaguars and anacondas around.
And trust me, they would not be sitting calmly next to a jaguar.
If I had to guess, I would suggest capybaras are often so chilled around caiman because:
The cold-blooded reptilians are still sluggish and warming themselves up.
The caiman in these examples are simply too small to overpower a capybara. The largest caiman can reach over 4 metres in length and weigh a tonne — I don’t think capybaras would be quite so comfortable around crocodilians of that size.
Caiman are far less dangerous out of the water and (I suppose) not in ‘hunting mode’. Many crocodilians also eat surprisingly rarely.
Larger caiman do prey on capybaras, so it’s a case of context. The capybaras would rather save their energy for a real life-or-death scenario. Smaller caiman would rather save their energy for some fish.
The guy who wrote bit on the answer sheet and copied in plain sight .
In my school during exams 2 students will be seated in each bench. The student next to us will be in different grade to avoid copying.
When I was in tenth grade(2004) , in the bench before me there was a ninth grade guy.
Usually students copy in exams using bits. For those who are not familiar with the term bit is a small paper in which students write answers and take it into exam hall hiding it somewhere.
image 83
The risk here is the examiner catching you in the act.
Our school answer sheet looks like this
image 4
Everyone is given 4 sheets at the beginning and once they need more papers they put a tick in the tracking sheet and take additional sheets. At the end the sheets are tied together and handed over. So this tracking sheet will contain how many sheets a student used but no one tallies it at the end of exam.
This guy decided to use this loophole.
One day I finished my exam early and was looking out the window. His seat is a window seat and mine is aisle but he sits one bench before me.
He suddenly crumpled one of the answer sheet and threw it outside the window and he repeated it for 2 other sheets. I got curious but that day I was not able to find the answer and it kept me sleepless.
Next day I again watched him and he did the same thing but this time I caught him after the exam and asked him why he did that.
This is what the guy did.
Instead of carrying a bit paper he wrote the answers in normal handwriting using the actual exam sheet and brought it to exam hall. Even if the teacher sees it would just look like an exam sheet used by him. Everyday he used to take additional papers to write bit for next day exam. The question paper will not be collected so he hid it under the question paper everyday and took it home and both these sheets are exactly same size.
I asked him why do you even bother writing the answers again instead of just adding the bit paper in exam sheet since it is already written on an exam sheet.
His answer made me go wow. Everyday different teachers come and even if the same teacher comes they would sign on the top with the date , since the date and sign would differ he rewrote the answer everyday and threw the bit paper out of the window and mostly he did this for the bigger answers only .
Still not convinced, I asked him what if someone sees the paper he threw down. He took me to the window and showed what’s beneath the window. It was our canteens roof which is ideally a small shed with asbestos roof and already had lots of garbage. The thing won’t even fly in the air even if there was a strong wind.
My next doubt was how would he know what questions would come and even if he did won’t he require lots of sheets to write the answers. It was actually internal test and not board exam so the teachers would kind of let the weak students know 80% of questions in the evening special coaching class. He got that inside info and wrote just the answers he felt that were difficult. Like study 50% and copy 50%.
I mean copying in exams is one thing but I ve never seen a heist level planning like he did .
Cigarette smoking on airplanes and in restaurants…albeit in a smoking section. Goes without saying you could smoke in bars too.
Soda bottles had metal tops that you needed to use a bottle opener to open.
Beer and soda cans had pop tops:
image 82
See the one on the left? That’s the one. You know what they would do after pulling off the tab? They’d throw it on the ground. Then, you’d ride your bike over it and get a flat or it would pierce your foot and you’d have to go get a tetanus shot from the doctor. It’s even immortalized in Jimmy Buffet’s song “Margaritaville”: “Stepped on a pop top/Blew out my flip flop”.
Kids were sent out to play with no supervision at all. We were only instructed to come home when the street lights turned on. We did incredibly intelligent things like bully weaker kids, smash glass bottles on the ground, and throw rocks at each others’ heads.
All the good cartoons were on Saturday morning only.
If you liked a movie, you had to pay to go see it in the theater only. You couldn’t get it on home video at all. You pretty much had to wait a few years before they showed it on TV.
There were only 3 channels: ABC, CBS, and NBC. If you lived in the big city you might have a few extra UHF local channels. They mostly played reruns of Bonanza, I Love Lucy, The Beverly Hillbillies, The Brady Bunch, Star Trek, and I Dream Of Jeannie.
If you got out of line in school you’d get your ass spanked by the gym coach who wielded something that looked like a ping pong paddle with holes in it for speed.
The speed limit on highways and interstates was 55 miles per hour (88.5 kph) and it took forever to get to grandma’s house…with no phones, no personal stereos, just sitting there. Parents would give young kids a tiny bit of alcohol mixed in with their juice so they would sleep.
The guy they would call the “fat kid” would only be a little husky by today’s standards.
Divorce was still kind of a taboo, in that “people would talk” about those who were divorced but it was pretty much commonplace by the end of the 70s and no big deal.
The Rock and Roll guys, the Disco guys, and the Country Music guys all hated each other. The Rock and Roll guys smoked dope, the Disco guys did coke and the Country Music guys drank Jack Daniels. The Disco guys got all the girls and the Rock and Roll guys got beat up by the Country Music guys.
Houston, Texas actually had kind of a good football team.
EDIT:
Did you guys ever have this? We didn’t have milk delivery. I think they were phasing it out by the time I was a kid in the 70s…not sure. But we DID have Charles Chips Delivery.
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Yep they’d deliver a huge tin (huge to me as I was like 7 years old) of POTATO CHIPS to your front door in a Charles Chips delivery truck. You’d leave out the empty tin and they’d replace it with a new one.
Edit 2:
Ah, TV!
image 80
So…the top dial is VHF. This had channels 2–13. These were ABC, NBC, CBS, and PBS if you had it. The bottom dial is UHF, it had channels 14–82 (I think?). In order to get a UHF channel you had to turn the top dial to “U” and then you turned the bottom dial to whatever UHF channel had “The Munsters” reruns on it.
Some people were lucky enough to have a remote control (which was rather rare) which made a loud, metallic clicking sound…so it was called the “clicker”. Older people even today call the remote control “the clicker”.
Others of us had the old fashioned remote control called “Hey kid, turn it to channel 2 or I’ll thump yer skull for ya!”
Some TVs had rabbit ears on them. You’d have to send a person over to the TV to adjust them or your signal wouldn’t be very good. Inevitably the person would form some kind of “radar circuit” with the TV and you’d make them stand there for the last play of the super bowl so you could see it.
Other smarter folks did this:
image 79
Yep, they wrapped foil around the antennae to boost its receiving power.
Others forcibly shoved a thick, folded piece of paper between the dial and the TV.
Other more lucky folks had one of these:
image 78
A wire ran from this roof antenna down to the back of your TV where you had to screw it to the back.
Going anonymous as this is about my students, however real names are not used.
I’m a maths teach at a local secondary school in an area where most students live off benefits. I had one girl, Daisy, who was highly intelligent, we did an iq test and her score was in the 140s.
One day I asked her if she was going to university, no was her answer, I was puzzled, she excelled in class and had a keen interest in maths and science. She was proud too, wearing her maths and science award badges everyday.
I asked her why, here was her response.
‘I can’t afford it’
Me:’you can get scholarships and grants’
‘It’s not that, trust me I’ve checked, it’s the living costs.’
That’s when I realised, this girl was 12 and knew she couldn’t progress further than college, not due to lack of talent or enthusiasm, due to money. I sat down with her, she cried all of one lunch in year 11, I cried to, at her potential wasted beyond belief, maybe the most talented student I’ve ever taught, not able to advance.
I started a fund for all the children like her, unable to attend university due to money, and it worked. I raised enough to put her though and support her family, I’ve put other though uni too.
I learnt that money is a problem and a worry for 12 year old girls but I also learnt talent can’t be wasted, children like her need a way to succeed.
I hope I gave that to her, she now works as a medical researcher and was given the life she never thought she’d have.
One morning she calls me at 4 AM. I picked up the phone half asleep. I thought it to be some kind of emergency.
Me: Hello? Is everything Okay babe?
She: Yeah, but….
(Now buts can be dangerous at 4 AM)
Me: Are you hungry baby? (Only emergency I can think of)
She: I have to talk to you about something very important.
Me: You sure it can’t wait?
She: If it could, I wouldn’t be here.
Me: Okay, shoot me.
She: I want you to stop talking to Seeta, Geeta, Meeta, Papeeta. I don’t like them.
Me (perplexed): Is that what you wanted to say? But they’re my friends. They’ve been there even before you were.
She (angrily): Then stay with them, not me.
Me: Okay Baby, anything for you. I won’t talk to them.
She: You’re so cute. Love you baby, goodnight kiss on your lips, muuaaahh.
2 Weeks Later
In a food outlet
Me (in a sarcastic way): Baby, what’s about your best friend, Rahul? How’s he?
She (stands up in anger):You don’t trust me, do you? He’s my best friend and always been with me. He understands me like no one else can. So, stop being the detective’s ass and get a life dude. He never asked about you, but you can’t stay put. I wonder at times, if I’d have dated Rahul, things would’ve been better.
Me (trying to say something meaningful): But……..
She (cuts me in between): Learn to trust the person you’re in relationship with. It’s necessary to give space at times. But, YOU WON’T UNDERSTAND.
Ironical.
So, answering the question, I can’t tolerate double standards in a relationship.
I’ve read all the answers and most of the responses. I’ve been in food service for 30 years. I currently own a 34-seat brunch restaurant. 200 covers during a 6-hour weekend service is not uncommon for us. I have a basic idea of what I am talking about. So, why might a restaurant call items out that are on the menu, or they do have in stock.
1. Equipment Failure – this happens typically on a Saturday or Sunday morning, two hours into service with a full restaurant, 45-minute wait for a 2-top and 80 covers do in for reservations.
2. Staffing – Johnny decides to catch the fat part of his left hand just below his thumb with the tip of his knife laying it open. You’d think someone was shot in the kitchen. When does this happen? Read #1. You are now down a person – the kitchen has to be balanced, menu items that require all three of us to put out or rely heavily on one station are called out – some say 86’d
3. Ingredient Shortage – someone dropped all the hard-boiled eggs or an entire tray of croissant, 4# of sliced turkey gets knocked onto the floor. An item did not show up in the morning delivery. An ingredient spoils too fast (avocados). A refrigerator door was left cracked open all night. When does this happen? See #1
4. Inventory – we only cook so much brisket a week (based on sales) – some weeks we get pounded with brisket tacos. With shared ingredients (brisket) we may call a less popular item out to keep a more popular item available longer.
5. Super busy and loose count of our prep – we may call an item out until we can get an all-day count of the orders hanging and a count of remaining prep.
Now some of the comments I’ve read from other answers mainly dealing with running out of food. Your local sports bar or chain restaurant is not going to run out of chicken wings, why? They have 200# in the freezer and the dish only requires 10 minutes from frozen in a deep fryer. They are also open 12 to 14 hours a day 7 days a week. I’m not buying any more steaks than I’ll need for the week, I buy them fresh. These guys have 100# of frozen steaks and never run out.
The brisket we serve takes 10 hours to prep and cook the pork belly takes 4 hours to prep and cook. Menu items are prepped and cooked based off previous sales numbers. If I historically sell 11 portions of brisket in a day I’m not prepping 35 portions I’m prepping 15.
We had a cold windy morning and sold all our sausage gravy in the first two hours of being open. We did not prep any less than normal and our sales numbers were not higher than normal. That morning everyone wanted sausage gravy. There was no #10 can of sausage gravy in the back like your local diner. This menu item is made from scratch there were no ingredients and no people to make more. These are the issues a from scratch restaurant deals with.
We met at the estate agent’s office, all set – but as we talked the deal over with him, it became more and more obvious that he was having second thoughts. It was a bit of a stretch for one income, even though it was a good income.
In the end, we (well, the estate agent) plain asked him. And since he hadn’t yet signed the paper, he could, with visible relief, back out of the deal.
Looking at the other bids, we decided to sell to the third highest bidder. The home had huge potential, which we hadn’t been able to realise for various reasons, and the third bidder was a young couple – and he was a carpenter. He would know how to do stuff, he would know his limitations, he would know people who could do whatever he wanted done at a good price.
They were ecstatic, especially the girl, who had fallen in love with the place to the extent that she had been crying herself to sleep when they lost the bidding.
And… it felt very nice, because for the house we were moving to, we hadn’t been the highest bidders, either; it was just that the previous owners liked us a lot better than the highest bidder. (And they had owned the house since the 1950s and were making an insanely good deal anyway; they paid off their mortgage some 70 times over with what we paid.) We paid it forward immediately.
Initially it’s beauty that attracts you, eventually it’s their mindset you need to handle. Choose wisely.
Sexual attraction will fade over time and hopefully would be replaced by genuine love, care and concern about your partner’s well-being.
No matter how much you love them and they love you, eventually comes money if you want to be together forever. Balance career and love.
Be available all the time and you’ll be their ex soon because it’s our human nature, things which are easily available, we start taking it for granted unintentionally.
Choose them faster, get dump faster because every thing has process and you skipped it.
There is no tried and tested strategy to prevent cheating and infidelity. Trust is the only option.
Most people are never grateful for the little things that their partners do for them, until they stop it.
Keep your expectations low from the partner if you want to be truly happy.
Sad Shelter Cat No Longer Believed Anyone Would Pay Attention To Him
We’d been friends for about 6 years. There were already cracks starting to form before the bigger fracture. She begged me to goat yoga with her – basically yoga in a field with goats walking on you. Not my idea of fun but I wanted to be a good friend so a bought a ticket. When I told her she laughed and said she hadn’t even got a ticket! Now I was typically let’s say generous with this friend. I often picked up the tab or paid the lions share as I was financially in a better place. But it had gone from me offering to her expecting in recent months. I suspected she held off buying a ticket to get me to add hers to my bill. I shook off the feeling at the time.
When the time of the goat yoga approached I was going through some issues and couldn’t make it (other people were joining us so she wasn’t left solo). I let the friend know about a week prior. With no response. A day or so before the event I decided to donate the ticket back to the provider as they were an animal sanctuary charity. My friend was upset as she was hoping to have my ticket. She’d already sold her ticket to another friend and was expecting to just take mine. When I asked why wouldn’t I have just sold mine to the friend, she said she could pay me back later and needed the money. Yeah right. The fog lifted at that moment. I stopped paying her way and she stopped inviting me out. I realised I was little more than a wallet to her.
My husband is a woodworker. His family was always asking for free labor, and materials, and finished products including cabinetry and furniture. His sister had moved into a new house and wanted him to refinish her basement for her. It was fall and the sister invited family over for a luncheon. She then laid into my husband to bring his tools and supplies so he could “do a quick job”. We get there, and the brother in laws are watching football. The sisters are gossiping in the kitchen. No one offers to lift a finger. So I start helping my husband with the job. Oh, yeah, by the way, I’m like 6 months pregnant at the time. No one offers to lift a finger to help me either. Through the vents, we can hear them talking in the kitchen, talking about what a crappy job I’m doing taking care of my pregnant self, and what a crappy husband their brother is, and what horrible parents we’re going to make. This isn’t new. we know the kind of people they are and always have been. We finish the job, load up the tools, then before lunch is served we leave, with hubby explaining he needs to get me home so I can take a nap. We stopped and had a nice meal on the way home.
A long time ago I was leaving Pace, a membership warehouse, which was later sold to Sam’s Club, I believe. It was actually a warehouse, so there was a long ramp to get up to the level of the store.
As I was leaving, with a good view since it was higher and quite a distance, I see the person parked next to me move their cart to right behind my truck. The timing was perfect as I got to the cart as the person was getting into their car and I moved the cart behind his vehicle, then got in my truck and left. I got to see him start to back out, realize that the cart was there and get out as I drove away. I am not sure if he figured out how it got there.
Another time at CostCo, again an actual warehouse location and was really crowded all the time, the parking lot was a bit strange and there were three parking spaces near a fence. There was only one way to get out as it was angled and ended at the fence. I had backed into the first space, so it was easy to exit, except for an idiot. They wanted the space and wouldn’t move to let me leave. I might have been able to back up behind the other two spaces, but instead I backed into the space and turned the engine off and just looked at them. It took a bit of time, but eventually they realized that if they wanted the space, then they would have to back up so that I had space to leave, which they did and I left.
My SIL (husband’s sister) is pretty high maintenance. Perfect hair, perfect clothes, perfect make-up…you know the type. Name-brand everything. Lucky for her, she found the Ken to her Barbie. Her husband is just as much of a perfectionist. He has to have perfect hair and perfect clothes. He’s neurotic about keeping things clean and orderly.
I always said that if we ever had kids, theirs would be standing to the side in name-brand clothes while mine and my husbands would be having a riot playing in mud puddles in play clothes.
My son was born first and we always dressed him in practical, functional clothes. The three-pack of onsies for $10 at Walmart? Yes, please! Babies grew fast and we opted for functional and cost-effective clothes. He’d outgrow them in a month or so and we didn’t feel the need to pay a lot of money for clothes he’d just outgrow.
My nephew was born seven months later. From the get-go, it was expensive everything. Everything had to be name-brand and could only be in one of four colours: White, Grey, Navy, or Black. My husband once looked on the website where my SIL got all of her son’s clothes. $20 for one pair of baby socks. $80 for a pair of baby jeans. It was insanity, spending so much on a baby. They quickly learned how much of their money they were burning with my nephew kept having diaper blow-outs. BIL would scrub and scrub to try to save the expensive onesie, but it was often a lost cause without dry-cleaner intervention. When home, they kept him in just a diaper until another blowout soiled their couch. At that point, they kept him in the “cheap” clothes from Carters, but when they were out, this kid was dressed to the nines. At meal times, they stripped him down to a diaper to save his clothes.
But, they didn’t quite learn their lesson. When the little guy started daycare at a year old, they sent him in designer outfit with a back-up. On a few occasions, my nephew burned through his outfit and the back-up and ended up coming home in some other kid’s clothes. Once again, my BIL and SIL had to dress him in “cheap” clothes.
And then they complain that having a kid is so expensive and they can’t understand how we can afford to have a second child when we make so much less than they do. Go figure.
Good grief. I’m sorry so many people have let themselves go, but being “old” isn’t a death sentence. I’m nearing seventy five. I walk three or four miles a day (granted I live in Manhattan and walking is more entertaining here than it is out there in America where you have to drive to the drugstore three miles away); I eat anything I want to, I play too many video games (I found Starfield disappointing, didn’t you?), and I’m happier than I’ve ever been in my life with the girl of my dreams for 38 years now (gee, has it been that long, it seems like yesterday).
Don’t be surprised if, when you reach my age, you find you still are the exact same person you were when you were eleven.
Nobody has solved this problem yet. The problem statement is actually quite simple. It’s called the “moving couch problem.” The mathematician Leo Moser posed the following curious mathematical problem in 1966: “what is the shape of the largest area in the plane that can move around a right-angled corner in a two-dimensional corridor of width 1?”
image
We can start with a 1 by 1 square.
image 2
However, this semicircle with radius 1 works better. It has an area π/2
image 3
We can continue to make improvements. The mathematician John Hammersley noticed that if the semicircle is cut into two quarter circles, which are separated and the space between them is filled with a rectangular block, we get a larger sofa shape, which could be moved around the corner if only removes a smaller semicircular hole from the rectangular block.
In 1992, Joseph Gerver found a better shape with a slightly larger area of around 2.2195. Gerver could not prove that his solution was optimal. To this day, 50 years after the question was asked, it is still the best solution.
image 1
Attempts have been made to find upper limits. Mathematicians have defined a “couch constant”, which is just the answer to this problem! Yoav Kallus and Dan Romik demonstrated an upper limit in June 2017, with a consistent couch limit of 2.37.
Update: a twist.
image 4
No, this is literally a twist. A variant of the sofa problem asks for the shape of the largest area that can surround the 90-degree left and right corners in a hallway of unit width. This means that the shape will probably have to be symmetrical. So far the best solution was found by Dan Romik. It looks like a bikini top, with an area of 1.649.
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and about references.
Sources:
Mr. Romik. Differential equations and exact solutions in the moving sofa problem. To appear in Experimental Math.
Y. Kallus, D. Romik. Improved upper bounds in the moving sofa problem. Preprint, 2017.
Moving sofa problem on Wikipedia.
E.W. Weisstein. Moving sofa problem on Wolfram MathWorld.
J.L. Gerver. On moving a sofa around a corner. Geometriae Dedicata 42 (1992), 267-283. doi:10.1007/BF02414066.
P. Gibbs. A computational study of sofas and cars. Preprint, 2014.
I was watching this one-hour stand up by Comedian Daniel Sloss on Netflix, and he told a fascinating thing-
“If you only love yourself at 20%, that means somebody can come along and love you 30%. You’re like, Wow, that’s so much. It’s literally less than half. Whereas if you love yourself 100%, a person that falls in love with you has to go above and beyond the call of duty to make you feel special. That’s something every one of us deserves.”
People understand the value of self-love and know that happiness doesn’t come from a spouse. The concept of being satisfied with life doesn’t mean sharing it with someone, instead, living it to the fullest.
‘Decent’ people you are talking about are more focused on their career, ambitious, family and general fulfilment when it comes to life.
We all have that one friend who hates being single, falls for every person they see and Feel sad and always ask why they are alone. Yes, we all have that kind of friend, but not everyone looks at breakups / being single that way- to some people being single is a way of changing outlook.
As much as I want to wish it is not to true but relationships these days are not as easy as we think- so many cases of unhealthy addiction, violence, toxic relationship, gaslighting emerging and people are not quiet about it anymore.
‘Decent’ people are single because they know it is tempting to blame your partner for break up, but it is also essential to have a self-realisation that you might be wrong. Sense of gratitude and acknowledgement of oneself comes with being single.
People are leaving a mindset behind which suggested that marriage and bearing a child is an essential part of your life; in fact, people are focusing more on financial, emotional and professional growth these days.
People are shifting to a place where they prioritise their happiness, needs etc. over having a partner. Fact we have glorified sex and having a partner so much (thanks to social media) some people are bearing torch which says, ‘I’d rather be sex-less than be unhappy.’
I spent my 10th grade year of high school in a wealthy, white part of California.
My Spanish teacher ended up quitting because she couldn’t handle it anymore.
These were a different type of delinquents. They weren’t dangerous or violent like you might see in a ghetto High School. They were just the purest form of rude and disrespectful. They were spoilt. They didn’t try in school. Their families were rich. Some would probably never have to work.
So after the Spanish teacher quit, they brought in this temp teacher who had no idea what she was getting into.
The kids frequently talked back to her. Would ignore her lectures in the back of the class.
I grew up with a military father so I learned respect early in my life. I didn’t comprehend how people could just mouth off like that. It’d be a death warrant for me.
I’ll never forget one particular exchange.
A 16-year-old girl was not listening. The teacher asked her to stop talking. They started going back and forth arguing.
The girl then shouts, “WHY ARE YOU SUCH A MASSIVE BITCH.”
Which left me and others aghast.
And of course she was sent out of the class. But she was back within a week. I think they just made her sweep the halls for an hour or two after class one day.
Yet another reason American school systems are broken.
My head would have been delivered to the principal in a box by my own parents.
Q: What should I do if my boss says, “If you don’t like the job, you can go”?
A: I worked at a company where they promised a 2 week fully paid vacation if we hit a certain sales number. We exceeded it. Instead of getting that vacation, the company laid off 10% of the work force, told everyone they had to work 10% longer hours to make up for the smaller work force, gave a 0% raise and even held back the $25/person Xmas bonus which, over the years, had been nicknamed the annual turkey money.
A few weeks later, there was a company wide meeting where you could ask upper management anything you wanted. I got up and stated that I interact with many different departments and was seeing an all time low in morale and asked if upper management was also aware of that and, if so, what could be done to improve it.
The CEO got up and said, “Morale is your own D@#$ problem. If you don’t like it leave. After the meeting the VP of my department told me that if I ever asked a question like that again, he would fly to my office and fire me in person.
The next day I gave notice. When asked what it would take as a counter for me to stay, I said double my salary. Anything less wasn’t worth the stress of dealing with upper management azzhats. I got a 50% raise by leaving and within 3 years was making well over double what my salary had been.
I would never advocate quitting a job without having anything else lined up first. I had been working with a head hunter and had an offer in the works when this happened so it made it real easy for me to decide to leave.
A number of years later, I got fed up with management and was watching the company go down the drain. I had started my own business on the side and decided that, since I didn’t like my day job any more, I’d quit. I interviewed for a few positions but decided to make my side job my primary job and really focus on building the business. That’s the best decision I ever made.
So, my advice is, if you don’t like the job, move on. Just don’t do it without a safety net or another job lined up. They say for every $10K in salary it will take 1 month of job searching. So $60K = 6 months and $100K = 10 months. If you don’t have double that amount in your emergency fund, I highly recommend waiting to quit until you have another job lined up. You can at least feel good about knowing you will be gone as soon as you find something else.
P.S. I worked on a farm all through high school and college. I didn’t like hauling pig manure. I didn’t like chopping hay for 36 hours straight. But, there were other parts I did like. You will never find a job where you like 100% of the work. (It’s work, not a hobby!) But, when you don’t like most of what you do, it may be time for a change. I needed that farm job to pay for college so I stuck with it until graduation before moving on. Like is about choices. Take time to think yours through since you will only have yourself to blame if things aren’t working out after you make those choices.
1. If you wear the same colours as the zoo employees, the animals will come right up to you.
2. Use labeled bread clips on your wires so you know which ones you can pull out.
3. To prevent choking while scrubbing your tongue, just look in the mirror at the back of your throat.
4. You can connect two ziplock bags by flipping one inside out to make a larger one.
5. If you dye your hair at home, apply Vaseline along your hair line first.
6. Putting down a couple sheets of toilet paper before taking a dump will stop any of that nasty splash back.
7. Put clothes in the closet with the hangers reversed once a year. As you pull clothes out, reverse the hanger. Every year you can give away any clothes that you never took out.
8. If you are not a ‘up with one alarm’ person, just have a ‘wake up’ alarm and then a ‘get up’ alarm an hour later.
9. Put a key hook just inside the front door and ALWAYS hang your keys on it.
10. To combat lost socks, have a separate mesh bag that you put my socks in as soon as you take them off. Since all you have to do is toss the mesh bag into the wash without opening it.
11. If you’re feeling tired, have a cup of coffee then immediately lay down for a 15–30 minute nap. The caffeine will be kicking in just as you’re waking up.
12. Use the seat heater on the passenger side to keep takeout food warm on the drive home.
13. Squish the toilet paper roll before you hang it up. It will make it roll much more slowly, preventing people (especially young children) from rolling out a large amount.
14. Use a beard trimmer to remove the cat scratch threads from your couch.
15. Put numbers on the bottom of your door for proof photo of delivery. Most of the time, the drivers don’t get your door number in the photo, and this way, they have to.
16. Write the date on your blister packs so you know if you’ve taken your meds for that day or not.
I’m currently in college at a large university in the US. My minor has simple requirements: pass at least 4 of 10 offered classes.
As it turns out, 4 of the 10 classes are taught by the same professor. He teaches 2 in the fall and 2 in the spring. By chance, I took him once. I’ve taken him 3 more times and have earned my minor, getting A’s in every single class. And I guarantee you I couldn’t pass a basic class with any other professor.
This professor gives weekly quizzes and monthly tests in person, but via the computer. We sign into a special software that doesn’t allow us to search the internet, and take the test with him there. Everything was multiple choice. But here’s where it gets interesting:
Many of his questions had more than one answer. So, he set the test so you could check as many answers as you want e.g. we could select both A and B because the answer could be both.
But the test never counted how many answers we selected, and it only made sure you checked the right box, not if you checked a wrong box too. So if the answer was A and B, and I checked A,B, and C, it would count as right.
So what’d I do? I checked A,B,C,D, and E for almost every single question. The software would see that I checked the right answer (because I checked every answer) and mark the question right. Sometimes, to maintain realism, I’d purposefully check only one box for a few questions to get them wrong. My average scores stood between 95–100% the entire semester. And quizzes and tests made up 75% of his grading, the other 25% being just menial homework. These classes boosted my GPA noticeably, and now I have a particularly impressive minor to put on my resume.
Oooh, that’s not good. The flight attendant just burned one of the cockpit crew and let an unauthorized person (your friend) know that there was at least one other armed passenger aboard. That’s a big no-no, but fortunately, the flight attendant gave her note to somebody who wasn’t freaked out or too bothered by it to make a ruckus. All ruckuses involving armed individuals on aircraft are bad.
So, her note says that one of the cockpit crew (the First Officer) is authorized by the feds to fly armed as a Federal Flight Deck Officer (FFDO). They get training at one of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) locations, which I believe is held now at FLETC Artesia (New Mexico). I flew armed a lot as an LEO and the normal procedure was to present my credentials and letter of authorization to the flight deck crew upon boarding the aircraft. The pilots always checked the paperwork very thoroughly, and on occasion one of the pilots would introduce himself and tell me he was an FFDO. Sometimes we’d chat for a moment about their training at FLETC, where I went through training. These were short conversations, as I didn’t want to disrupt their pre-flight routine or concentration. Sometimes the captain would give instructions, like “Don’t take any action on board unless one of the flight attendants asks you first.” That was the rule anyway, but he/she wanted to make sure we got it.
The flight attendants also know that I’m armed and exactly what seat I’m in for two reasons. First, they need to know in case an emergency arises and they ask for assistance. That only happened once in all the flights I took, an extremely unruly passenger who appeared to be progressing from “interfering with a flight crew” and “not following crewmember instructions” to “assault.” (That dude regretted it as there were six of us on board that flight.) The second reason they need to know is that they’re not allowed to serve alcoholic beverages to an armed passenger. For these reasons, we were required to stay in our assigned seats. I was occasionally asked by another passenger to trade seats for whatever reason, but couldn’t and wouldn’t. I got upgraded to business on a couple of flights and had to make sure all the flight attendants knew my new seat and the captain did, too.
We also knew who the air marshals, if any, were and where they were seated. And if any other armed passengers were aboard, we knew that, too, knew what seats they were in, and we usually introduced ourselves before take-off, exchanging identification/credentials. Subtly, so that nobody overhearing us would catch on and maybe cause a ruckus. That’s the other bad part of the Case of the Mislaid Napkin. By giving it to the wrong person (and not knowing that she’d done so), the flight attendant has left the right person in the dark. It’s not as big a deal as it could have been, because the FFDO/armed pilot isn’t coming out of the cockpit with his weapon anyway. I did have flight attendants come over and tell me, “You and the person in 18A are in the same line of work.” I also got a napkin note at least once that I can remember offhand.
Simple, The US initiated and the western blindly mimicking the U.S. media bias narratives casting doubts about China, hurling unfounded accusations on China to hurt China’s reputation, fear mongering by western media.
That is so blatant and disgusting the global south is put off and turn off the west in disgust. Any fool could see it except some brain dead in the west. But is it working fo the U.S. and the west?
I very much doubt so. In fact the more the U.S. does it the worst it looks. Most cultures in the Global South knows that one must have done many good things for a nation to despise it! Hence it falls on death ears mostly. And these days it gets worst and worst for the US.
Yugoslavian Coffee Cake (Povitica)
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Ingredients
Cake
1 package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (105 to 115 degrees F)
3/4 cup lukewarm milk (scalded, then cooled)
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
3 eggs
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose flour
Walnut Filling
2 1/2 cups finely chopped walnuts
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 egg
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Glaze
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Cake: Dissolve yeast in warm water in large bowl. Stir in milk, butter, eggs, sugar, salt and 3 cups of the flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to make dough easy to handle. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Place in greased bowl; turn greased side up.
Cover; let rise in warm place until double, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Dough is ready if indentation remains when touched.
Punch dough down; divide into halves. Roll each half into a 15 x 12-inch rectangle on lightly floured surface. Spread half the Walnut Filling over each rectangle. Roll up tightly, beginning at 15-inch side. Pinch edge of dough into each roll to seal well. Stretch rolls to make even.
With sealed edges down, coil into small shapes on lightly greased cookie sheets.
Cover; let rise until double, about 1 hour.
Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
Bake until golden brown, 35 to 45 minutes. Brush with butter if desired; spread with Glaze.
Walnut Filling: Mix all ingredients.
Glaze: Mix confectioners’ sugar, water and vanilla extract until smooth. Stir in additional water if necessary, 1/2 teaspoon at a time.
Africans Reacts to White Globalists Agent Calling Africa Useless
Years ago I had a very abusive Team Leader who would constantly bully me. One day I snapped and got into a shouting match with him so our Manager pulled us to one side and demanded an explanation. I told him everything that happened leading up to the outburst, that I’d had enough, and verbally gave him my resignation. He pleaded for me to reconsider to which my Team Leader said “Nope, he’s already said he’s going. And if you don’t accept his notice then I’ll give you mine”.
After reassurance from the Manager that the bullying would stop, and withdrawing my verbal resignation, my Team Leader handed him his written notice and said that he still had one last opportunity to get rid of me or he was going. The Manager accepted his notice and said he had four weeks to find a new job.
After two weeks the Team Leader realised his mistake and asked the Directors if he could withdraw his notice. They replied “No. You told us to choose either you or Josh. We’ve chosen Josh”. Two weeks later his contract was terminated after 15 years of service. I’d been there 18 months.
When I was growing up, I referred to my Maternal Grandfather as “Uncle”. Mind you, this was in a Irish Catholic household, and unless you were the first husband, and the father of the mother, you became “uncle”. Not grandfather.
So…
My grandfather on my mother’s side was “uncle”, not “grandfather”, because as I surmise today (as a much older man) he was not my mother’s father.
Ok.
They, like my father’s family had separate bedrooms for the man and the woman. My grandmother had her bedroom, and my “uncle” had his own bedroom. This was actually quite common in my family, as the men-folk from both families all started to snore when they turned 40 or so.
LOL
The poor women would never get any sleep unless that arrangement occurred. Yeah. It was never really explained that way to me. It’s just that you figure out these things over time as you age. Otherwise, it’s just a “family affair”, and something that you are supposed to “understand” and absorb like osmosis.
Jeeze!
That was not the only room that the women and the men folk didn’t share. Oh no. They also did not share the bathroom.
The men’s bathroom, for the people on both sides of my family was in the basement. This also included my father. Who had a little cubby hole under the basement stairs. As well as all my uncles. Later on, when I was much older, and my father was in his 70’s this arrangement continued with his new wife. She had her own bedroom, and bathroom, and so did my father. And his bathroom was in the basement… yet again.
…
Anyways, one day we (as kids, I was perhaps 14 at the time) were visiting my maternal grandmother, and she and my brother was in “uncle” Frank’s bedroom. And going through his credenza. And she was all Hell bent on giving away some of “uncle” Frank’s old items that he never wore.
And he just stood there. Really kinda emotional.
He had a leather jacket, “bomber “highwayman”style with a logo on the back that dated to the 1940’s and my grandmother was giving it to my younger brother Daniel. It fit him perfectly.
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But, it was painful to watch because my “uncle” Frank did not want to part with that jacket. It’s not that he ever wore it, but it held some important memories and emotions to him, but my grandmother seemed oblivious to his emotional state.
I didn’t understand.
Two years later… he died. I was working in the mines, and it was mentioned as an off-hand remark at the dinner table one weekend. “Oh, by the way… Uncle Frank died”…followed by “please pass the peas”, and “How’s your cheerleader project going…” (said to my sister).
…
Odd. Really odd.
I have never been able to go though the emotional disconnect with “uncle” Frank and my grandmother, as all my uncles and aunties. When I checked on ancestry dot com, he is officially listed as my maternal grandfather… so what is up with that? Eh?
It only seems to point to another man being my mother’s father. But I’ll never know the truth.
An “official” father, but referred to as an “uncle”. Hum… Was a different “father” involved?
Anyways… here’s to Frank.
You were certainly unappreciated, and not as well respected (I believe) that you deserve. Perhaps it’s an Irish-American thing, but this little post will allow you to live on somewhat… in the minds of thousands of strangers.
…
As far as the leather jacket was concerned, yeah… my brother loved it and wore it all the time in his high school years and into his college years. It was a “truckers leather jacket” (highwayman) and fit him well.
highwayman leather jacket 1940s
And Frank. When you reincarnate… please never allow yourself to be P-whipped by anyone. It’s not becoming. Your clothes are YOURS. No one else’s.
I think I may have answered a similar question before but the best response I’ve heard was from my wife. She was a senior manager in Children’s Social Services in the UK. She was involved in a very unfortunate case about a social worker with Schizophrenia which came before the Family Court. Due to the social worker’s condition it was felt that her child needed to be taken into care for their protection. In challenging this, the social worker’s barrister quoted from a manual providing guidance to social workers. My wife challenged his defence saying that he was taking the particular section out of context and what was really intended was something quite different.
The barrister then challenged her in the sort of language beloved of smart-arsed lawyers ‘Oh, you are blessed with this wonderous gift denied to us mere mortals that you can look at the written page and and read the mind of the author when they wrote it’.
My wife then replied……
‘If you look at the author’s name on the front page of that document, you will see that I did indeed produce that guidance. ‘
The judge was covering his mouth with his hand to hide his snigger.
Deactivated or deleted all my social media – this removes the temptation to look.
Deleted their phone number and any trace of them that I could – photos and any other memorabilia I had.
Went on a long holiday on my own somewhere warm by the sea, sparsely populated and that I’d never been to before.
When I got home, I came out of my very early retirement (at 50) to throw myself back into my work in law and business so that I could direct all of my energy & emotion & passion into something positive that ended up making me quite a bit of money. I was so busy that I didn’t have the time to feel sorry for myself or miss her.
I got fit. I was never obese and had been quite fit & athletic up to my 40’s which was a hold over for my military service, but I was middle aged and starting to feel it. I worked out 5 times a week like a mad ba$tard, walked 3–4 miles every day, dropped 42lbs and looked 10 years younger. I’d never felt better, more energy, less aches and pains and my libido went through the roof 😁
Two years and six months later my life was completely different and I didn’t care about the Narc anymore.
I will admit that despite all of this I do still miss her sometimes… for maybe about ten seconds – or at least I miss the illusion and dream of who she led me to believe she was. But in focusing on myself I was able re-establish my own identity again which then reinforced the fact that it wasn’t my fault. That I wasn’t to blame for what happened.
Because some people are just wrong in the head and can be quite toxic & poisonous to the people they latch onto.
The moral of this story is that when you leave the narcissist, you have to focus on YOU! Fuck them, try and forget about them as best you can and work on yourself. It doesn’t matter what you do or where you are, but if you concentrate on levelling up and doing whatever you can to better and improve yourself, you will eventually heal and no longer give a $hit about the Narc.
And your life will be better too!
I promise.
Bread and Butter Pudding
Bread and Butter Pudding
Ingredients
Butter for greasing
5 slices white bread, crusts removed, thinly spread with butter
1/2 cup raisins
2 pieces lemon rind
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
3 medium eggs (at room temperature)
2 cups milk
1 tablespoon brown sugar
8 ounces heavy cream, lightly whipped
Instructions
Thoroughly grease a 6-cup round ovenproof soufflé dish.
Lay a slice of buttered bread, butter side up, in the base of the dish, sprinkle on a few of the raisins, and repeat until bread and raisins are used up, reserving enough raisins to sprinkle on the top.
Slide the 2 pieces of lemon rind down into the dish on opposite sides from each other.
Place the granulated sugar in a mixing bowl, break in the eggs, and beat for 1 minute with a balloon whisk or electric hand mixer.
Add milk and mix well. Pour over the bread and push the bread down so that it gets soaked, then sprinkle the brown sugar on top.
Heat the oven to 425 degrees F and after 5 minutes of preheating, place the pudding in oven.
Bake for 30 minutes until the dessert has risen well and the top is crusty and golden brown.
Serve immediately with whipped cream.
Secret Door Reveals Killer’s Darkest Secrets | Documentary
The world—American or otherwise—should bear this in mind.
Chinese ports handled 300m containers last year.
To put the number in context, American ports struggle with 50–60m, with the 10% increase during covid provoking loud creaks of protest from the antiquated system, resulting in transpacific shipping rates going up by an order of magnitude, or >10x.
China is the truly the world’s factory. It imports plenty, and exports plenty.
A naval blockade of China equals a naval blockade of the world, tradewise.
What happens to the >1t in annual revenue that American MNCs generate from within the mainland? Note this is not visible from bilateral trade figures.
What happens to Wall Street?
Good luck with that foolhardy scenario, which will lead to material collapse of civil society everywhere, because China is indispensable to the global supply chain.
Cheese and Onions
Serve with potatoes.
Cheese and Onions
Ingredients
7 or 8 large onions, peeled and sliced
1 cup water
14 ounces extra sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
Instructions
Put half of onions in a microwave proof dish and add water.
Microwave about 15 minutes, drain and put into a glass casserole dish.
Put half of cheese on top of onions. Repeat with remaining onions, adding them to dish when cooked in microwave and adding remaining cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees F for about 30 minutes or until cheese is browned to your taste.
I was eight months pregnant, and I was huge. I was at the grocery store and I had just gotten in line and was putting the items on the conveyor belt when a very strong contraction hit, you know, the stop you in your tracks kind. While I was standing there trying to catch my breath and wait for the pain to pass, the customer behind me, who was apparently in a hurry, told me to “move my fat a@&^$” on so she could go. The cashier, who knew me figured out what was happening, had already reached out to her supervisor and was closing down the line so she could help me, when the customer said really loudly, “That fat cow just peed on the floor”, ( my water hadn’t broken, but it had started leaking). Hilarious chaos ensues, I’m hunched over the counter being yelled at by the customer, the cashier and my friend are both yelling at her, and the supervisor is trying to herd the yelling customer and the others, who are trying to see what’s going on, to another line to get them checked out. The last thing I remembered was being called a “fat cow”, everything else receded into the background. What I remembered of that incident was what the cashier and my friend told me when they visited me in the hospital. The cashier later told me my friend ripped that woman a new one while the paramedics were putting me into the ambulance.
This happened to me. A woman wearing a hijab was in my seat. I politely said “excuse me but I think this is my seat.” The man next to her, by the window, very sternly said “no, this is my wife and she will stay here.” He was middle eastern. I say this not because I’m racist but because I realized there was a culture concern here. I showed him my ticket, but he very rudely proclaimed that his wife was not moving. The poor wife never spoke, but kept her eyes down the whole time.
The flight attendant came over to see what was going on. The husband was very rude to her as well and said his wife would not move. After some more conversation, in which the man wouldn’t budge, the flight attendant looked at me with a bit of desperation in her eyes. I knew that if things escalated, the man and his wife would be removed from the plane and we’d all be delayed. She asked me if I would consider changing seats with the woman, whose assigned seat was a couple of rows back.
I looked at the rude man and said, “No, I don’t mind. All he had to do was ask me.”
Part of me wishes I had made a thing out it, because his rudeness should not have won, but ultimately I didn’t want the plane to be delayed. The person I felt sorry for was the embarrassed, subservient wife.
Fear
Rare Ferrari Daytona Found After 40 Years In Japanese Barn
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Many thought this car didn’t even exist.
Ferrari had, in fact, only ever commissioned one street version of its Daytona with a full aluminum body. Completed in 1969, the car was exported to a Japanese dealership in 1971 and then featured in the January 1972 issue of Car Graphic, a Japanese motoring magazine.
After passing hands several times, it ended up in the barn of its last owner, Makoto Takai, some time around 1980.
The car is in “barn find” condition and is being put up for sale unrestored. The odometer displays just over 22,000 miles. RM Sotheby’s expects the car to fetch up to 1.7 million euros ($2 million), according to the auction catalog.
It’s jury selection for a medical malpractice case. It’s tedious, and the judge appears to be asleep. Lawyers have questioned a dozen potential jurors already. “Do you know anyone on the witness list?” “Have you ever been harmed by a medical practitioner?” “Has anyone you know been harmed by a medical practitioner?”…he’s reading the questions off a clipboard and making notes from time to time.
They get to one juror and before questions even begin he’s giving lawyerman the eye, like “Tread carefully, sir.” Lawyer doesn’t seem to notice.
“Do you know anyone on the witness list?” “Yes.” Eye. “Who do you know?” “The doctors listed as expert witnesses for the prosecution.” Eye. “All the doctors listed as expert witnesses?” “Yes.” Eye “How do you know them?” Juror sighs. “Through my…profession.”
He’s clearly trying not to provide extra info, but lawyer plows on. I’m already smirking. I don’t know what’s coming, but I sense a train wreck. The lawyer looks at the juror expectantly. The juror finally says, “I’m an investigator.”
“Of what?” “Insurance fraud.” Oh snap.
“CHAMBERS NOW,” says the judge. Oh hell, I guess he wasn’t asleep after all.
They ended up dismissing the whole jury pool—we’d been hopelessly tainted. The judge was pissed. I just thought it was hilarious.
One day,a bus driver went to the bus garage, started his bus and drove off along the route.
No problem for the first few stops,afew people got on , a few got off and things went generally well.
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Google image
At the next stop, however,a big hulk of a guy got on. Six feet height, built like a wrestler,arms hanging down to the ground. He glared at the driver and said, “ Big John doesn’t have to pay!
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Google image
The driver was five feet three,thin, and basically meek.
Naturally,he didn’t argue with Big John,but he wasn’t happy about it.
The next day the same thing happened. Big John got on again,made a show of refusing to pay, and sat down.
And the next day, and the one after that..
This went over the driver,who started losing sleep over the way Big John was taking advantage of him.
Finally he could stand it no longer.
He signed up for body building course,karate,judo and all that stuff.
By the end of the summer,he had become quite strong and the big thing is that he felt really good about himself.
So on the next Monday, when Big John once again got on the bus and said, “Big John doesn’t pay!” The driver stood up,glared back at the passenger and screamed, “And why not?”
With a surprised look on his face,Big John replied, “ Big John has a bus pass.”
Like the story above, most often in life, without realising the basics of the problems,we work hard finding solutions at the cost of time, effort , money and relationships. But in reality the problems are not that big. This is an ugly truth of life.
I had a patient with Shy Drager Syndrome. Nothing at all wrong with her mind, but she had very limited use of her body. She was a very nice person who used to drive a school bus. She was in her mid 40s. She was incontinent of bowels and bladder.
There was a CNA (certified nursing assistant) on my hall who was kind of tough. She had a harsh demeanor and some patients and other employees were a bit afraid of her. I wasn’t.
One day I heard a commotion down the hall. I went down there to find my patient crying and the CNA speaking to her in a very loud and rude voice. She had had a bowel movement in her briefs and had tried to make herself more comfortable because she hadn’t been checked by said CNA and I’m sure it was cold and lumpy and uncomfortable.
The CNA was loudly berating her for everyone to hear. She was saying. “You’re disgusting, Margaret! You are so nasty! Do you think I want to deal with this mess that you made”??? Oh hell no. I was livid. I called another CNA to please tend to the patient while I had a talk with the bully CNA.
She didn’t want to hear what I had to say and gave me attitude so I told her to gather her belongings and clock out. I told her that she was no longer employed by us. I advised her to find a line of work where she wouldn’t have the opportunity to terrorize helpless human beings who depended on others for care. She gave me the side eye but left with no issues.
News travels fast and soon the whole facility knew that I had just fired her. They advised me to have someone walk with me to my car that night. They feared retribution. I was called Monday by the administrator to discuss the situation. He was in agreement with me. Problem solved.
When I was 16 I was driving to a friend’s house for the first time with only an address (pre-GPS – pre-cell phone). It was the dead of night and I was having trouble reading the numbers on the houses so I got out of my car, left it running to read the numbers on a house. I read it and realized I wasn’t close so I ran back to my car only to discover that I had apparently hit the door lock on my way out. I stared in horror at my locked car, running, with lights on, in the middle of the road. Finally I went to the house I had looked at and explained the situation. My window was cracked so I asked if I could borrow a coat hanger to try to lift the door lock. I was 16, the man was a full adult and taking pity on me he not only got a hanger but came out to the street to try to unlock my car for me – which was so huge for me as a teenager! As he is is working on it the street lights up. We both look up and a HUGE craft is sailing over us trailing PURPLE fire! I was speechless. We both were. After it passed, the man turned to me and said ‘I’m so glad you’re here… no one would ever believe this….’. He succeeded in unlocking my door and I told everyone this crazy story about a space ship that flew RIGHT OVER ME.
A couple of days later the local paper had a story about it. Apparently it was a satellite burning up during re-entry. Nevertheless it is the most astounding thing I have ever seen with my own eyes.
Probably a long shot that the man who helped me that night will see this but OMG you saved my life that night. 30 years later I still feel immense gratitude, I’m sure 16 year old me did not express that adequately and I’m glad that someone else saw this with me!
Scientists Think There Could Be LIFE on Europa and It’s Even Weirder Than We Thought!
So I went to market yesterday with my mom to buy some vegetables for home. I always purchase vegetables from a specific vendor, as he gives me fresh vegetables in lower price than the market and his respectful behavior towards me. A person came out from a BMW car with his small daughter to buy vegetables. I asked mom to look at his car and said that it costs around 80 lakhs. He was in hurry and asked the vendor to pack 1 kg of tomatoes and cabage with some other vegetables. And then he asked to sum the bill. The vendor said ₹135 . He gave him a 100rs note and started leaving towards his car.
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Then the vendor yelled – Bhaiya ji aur 35 rupay.
Brother you need to give me more 35 rupees.
He – Aree ho jayega rakho tum.
Keep it. It is sufficient.
Vendor- Nahi bhaiya, nhi hoga. Mera khareedi bhi nahi hai utna.
No Brother. Even my purchase is not that much.
He – Tu na kisi aur ko thug na.
You, deceive someone else okay.
Vendor – Nahi, bhaiya meine aapko bahut kam rate lagaya hai. Aapko itne kam mein koi nehi dega.
Nope brother, I have gave you these in less price possible. Nobody is gonna sell you vegetables at this price.
He – Aree hojayega tum rakho na.
Come on ! Keep it na
Vendor – Bhaiya agar aapko nahi lena hai toh aap rakhdo, parr mein itna kaam mein nahi de sakta.
Brother, if you don’t wanna take it then let it be, leave these vegetables. I can’t give you in this cheap price.
After that the person threw all the vegetables in front of the vendor and said ‘rakhle apna Sabji, sadh jayega magar koi nahi lene wala ‘.
‘Keep your vegetables, nobody is gonna take this and it will be rotten’
Me – Aree aapne aise kyu feka Sajiyo ko, usne jab aapko diya tha toh ache se diya na
Why did you throw these vegetable ?! When he sold you the vegetables, he gave you with respect right.
He – Bhai tu apne kaam se kaam rakh.
Bro, you mind your business.
Me – Aap unke boss nahi ho jo aap unse aise vyabhar karoge. Aapko nahi lena tha toh ache se bhi lauta sakte the.
You can’t behave with him like that as you are not his boss. If you wouldn’t want to take vegetables, you could’ve given it back with respect.
He – Yeh kya tera Mama lagta hai ? Tu kyu uska wakil ban rah hai.
Is he your uncle ? Why you are being his advocate!
Me – Han yeh mere mama lagte hai, aur mein banunga uska wakil. Tumhe kuch problem hai
Yes he is my uncle and I will be his advocate. Have any problem?
To divert the argument between us my mom yelled at me to keep quite and said , ‘Bhai Saab aapko toh sabji lena nahi hai, parr hume late hora hai. hume sabji kharidne dijiye’
‘ Brother, you don’t need vegetables, do you ? We are being late so please let us shopping for home.
That person threw daggers at me and finally went away.
Like what’s the benifit to maintain a BMW car when you don’t have money to buy vegetables.
So coming back to the question
What instantly makes a person less attractive?
Abusive behaviour of a person towards the people who stands on the road side whole day to provide us service and feed his family. Towards those people who considered as lower class according to our so called society. Showing your rude behaviour to others won’t make you look either rich or cool. It certainly makes one less attractive no matter how much rich he/she is or how great he/she looks.
Spreading kindness is not that expensive. But the love that we get in return is priceless.
5 Times TikTokers Messed With The Wrong Cartels
Watch this.
Now read this…
From a follower…
This is legit; Gordon Duff claimed years ago that the Mexican cartels (heavily involved with Mossad) own the entire legislatures of many southern states. NM and Az are 100% cartel.
Connecticut and New Hampshire are also fully controlled.
Flabbergasting, right?
2 of the richest, "whitest" states and yet cartel controlled.
As I knew years ago: the US isn't even a country anymore, just competing, very dangerous factions vying for control. The US military (Navy and Army deadly rivals) is still the top faction for now holding it all together.
Intel agencies half compromised. Irish/catholic and Mormon mafias fight for control FBI and CIA.
But for how much longer?
The "jews" are just minor players despite what everyone seems to think. But definitely the money guys.
Interesting times.
And this shows up on Hal Turner.
As the Domain said: by 2024 the US won't be in a position to make war on anybody.
Looks like something is definitely happening at the border, regardless.
https://halturnerradioshow.com/index.php/en/news-page/news-nation/flash-u-s-border-being-over-run-by-cartel-trucks-in-arizona
Cheddar Cheese Soup
Cheddar cheese originally came from the English town of Cheddar, where it was made as early as the sixteenth century.
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Ingredients
1 small onion, chopped
1 medium stalk celery, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can condensed chicken broth
1 cup milk
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded Cheddar cheese
Paprika
Instructions
Cover and simmer onion and celery in butter in 2-quart saucepan until onion is tender, about 5 minutes.
Stir in flour, pepper and mustard. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until smooth and bubbly; remove from heat.
Add chicken broth and milk. Heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute.
Reduce heat to low. Stir in cheese; heat over low heat, stirring occasionally, just until cheese is melted. Do not boil the soup after the cheese has been added, as the soup may separate.
Sprinkle soup with paprika.
The TERRIFYING Last Minutes of Lynyrd Skynyrd
I was in university when this happened, and we were all big fans. We were shaken to the core! Fact.
I had a Chinese-English dictionary when I was in the ADC. And I studied it constantly. I would practice drawing the characters and memorizing the tones. I don’t really think that it ever helped me, but it did keep me focused on my goals and dreams on what I would do once I got out, and free from the USA.
For a short while, my father would xerox off pages from a learn-Chinese book, and later on, after he died, my sister bought me two introduction books of Chinese that I studied.
Every day, I had a routine.
I would sit on my rack from around 9am up to lunch and study Chinese. Then I would do my job, and come back and study again from 4pm to chow. Overall, I studied on average about 8 hours a day.
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Of course, everyone made fun of me. But it was my way of coping and dealing. All of us did it. It’s just that my way was studying in Chinese. For others it was drugs, boxing or gambling for cigarettes.
Let the rest of the world howl. Perhaps it did or didn’t help me, but one thing for certain, it keep me focused on my dream. Perhaps you too have a dream.
Stay focused.
Today… some confirmation of my previous vision of Gonzalo…
Gonzalo Lira was tortured, extorted, and reportedly has died in a Ukraine prison for just reporting the news. The US State Department refused to help Lira, a US citizen, because Lira’s journalism didn’t serve Kiev or the Biden administration. Here’s a quote from WSAU:
WASHINGTON DC (WSAU) – 55-year-old American journalist Gonzalo Lira has reportedly died in a Ukrainian prison after nearly eight months of imprisonment.
According to the Post Millennial, Lira was arrested by Ukrainian security in May 2023 after he was reportedly critical of President Vladimir Zelensky’s handling of the war being fought against Russian forces in Eastern Ukraine.
Lira’s comments included claims that Ukraine’s efforts to win the captured territory back have gone nowhere and their people are dying for a war that is already lost.
Chinese politicians have a grand dream: a global community with a shared future for mankind.
People all over the world are prosperous and living a happy life together. What a wonderful world it is. With the development of modern technology and the completion of automation and intelligence, humans can produce material conditions that provide everyone with a happy life. There is currently a lack of a system that unites humanity around the world.
China needs to first become a beautiful country and then influence the surrounding countries. Ancient China used this strategy. Ancient China first built its own country into a prosperous and strong country, and then neighboring countries envied China and learned about its culture and system. For example, Japan has sent more than ten batches of international students to study in China.
The foundation of a country is its people. If the people live a happy life, then the country is strong; if the people are poor and destitute, then the country is weak. Many rulers of countries do not understand this truth.
Food is paramount to the people. This is an ancient Chinese saying and the foundation of governing a country. When there are signs of chaos in the world, China will purchase a large amount of food. In terms of food safety, economically developed provinces in the east have begun to implement full monitoring of food production processes.
In terms of housing, the central government is implementing housing reform, which is a slow process.
In terms of transportation, China has built a national transportation network and has been continuously improving it.
In terms of cultural and entertainment, China actively promotes the promotion of justice, promotes healthy cultural information, and actively reports positive information. The network firewall successfully blocked junk culture.
I believe that China should first become a future country, and then drive countries around the world to become future countries. The the Belt and Road policy is the link between China and global human development, and also an opportunity for the development of countries around the world.
The PLAAF’s PL-17 AAM was caught on camera again, this time in a full loadout:
The PL-17 is special for two reasons:
It’s the longest range AAM in the world at 400 km (estimated by British intelligence)
It’s actually a ballistic missile. It doesn’t fly straight towards the target. Instead, it flies into the stratosphere where there’s much less air friction and cruises there to the target. Then it trades its potential energy (altitude) into kinetic energy in its terminal attack phase.
Like most high-end BVR AAMs, the PL-17 has both active radar and optical guidance. The optical guidance makes it much harder to jam when it has entered its terminal phase and can actually see the target.
—
This latest photo showing four J-16s is special because it demonstrates just how much the J-16 can carry: at least two PL-17s in addition to a bunch of other PL-10, 12s and 15s. If it only carries the PL-17 and no other missile type, the J-16 may be able to carry 3 or even 4 missiles. This proves the J-16’s value as a “missile truck”, similar to the USAF’s F-15EX.
The difference is that the USAF has no equivalent to the PL-17. The longest range American AAM is the AIM-120D, with an estimated range of 160 km. The only other American missile to challenge the PL-17’s range is the AIM-260 JATM, which is still in development.
In a head to head engagement, the PL-17 gives the PLAAF a significant first strike advantage against the enemy’s key aerial assets, like AWACS, EW, etc. Loss of these aerial force multipliers would be crippling, and force the USAF to retreat or be destroyed before their radars can even spot their Chinese counterparts. The Americans would effectively be blind.
—
The only other nation to field a AAM of comparable capability is the Russians with their Vympel R-37, a hypersonic (Mach 5) missile with a range of close to 400 km. Unlike the PL-17, it is not a ballistic weapon, and flies straight for the target instead. It’s also much thicc-er than the PL-17. Combat usage of the R-37 in Ukraine has demonstrated its ability to keep Ukrainian fighters from closing the distance against their Russian counterparts for fear of getting hit by this monster.
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MiG-31 armed with four R-37s. Keep in mind that the MiG-31 is more a bomber than it is a fighter.
The Washington Post has produced a long, two part piece, about the failed ‘counter-offensive’ in Ukraine. It dispenses equal blame on the U.S. and British planning of the whole mess and the Ukrainian execution of it.
Key elements that shaped the counteroffensive and the initial outcome include:
Ukrainian, U.S. and British military officers held eight major tabletop war games to build a campaign plan. But Washington miscalculated the extent to which Ukraine’s forces could be transformed into a Western-style fighting force in a short period — especially without giving Kyiv air power integral to modern militaries.
U.S. and Ukrainian officials sharply disagreed at times over strategy, tactics and timing. The Pentagon wanted the assault to begin in mid-April to prevent Russia from continuing to strengthen its lines. The Ukrainians hesitated, insisting they weren’t ready without additional weapons and training.
U.S. military officials were confident that a mechanized frontal attack on Russian lines was feasible with the troops and weapons that Ukraine had. The simulations concluded that Kyiv’s forces, in the best case, could reach the Sea of Azov and cut off Russian troops in the south in 60 to 90 days.
The United States advocated a focused assault along that southern axis, but Ukraine’s leadership believed its forces had to attack at three distinct points along the 600-mile front, southward toward both Melitopol and Berdyansk on the Sea of Azov and east toward the embattled city of Bakhmut.
The U.S. intelligence community had a more downbeat view than the U.S. military, assessing that the offensive had only a 50-50 chance of success given the stout, multilayered defenses Russia had built up over the winter and spring.
Many in Ukraine and the West underestimated Russia’s ability to rebound from battlefield disasters and exploit its perennial strengths: manpower, mines and a willingness to sacrifice lives on a scale that few other countries can countenance.
As the expected launch of the offensive approached, Ukrainian military officials feared they would suffer catastrophic losses — while American officials believed the toll would ultimately be higher without a decisive assault.
Key findings from reporting on the campaign include:
Seventy percent of troops in one of the brigades leading the counteroffensive, and equipped with the newest Western weapons, entered battle with no combat experience.
Ukraine’s setbacks on the battlefield led to rifts with the United States over how best to cut through deep Russian defenses.
The commander of U.S. forces in Europe couldn’t get in touch with Ukraine’s top commander for weeks in the early part of the campaign amid tension over the American’s second-guessing of battlefield decisions.
Each side blamed the other for mistakes or miscalculations. U.S. military officials concluded that Ukraine had fallen short in basic military tactics, including the use of ground reconnaissance to understand the density of minefields. Ukrainian officials said the Americans didn’t seem to comprehend how attack drones and other technology had transformed the battlefield.
In all, Ukraine has retaken only about 200 square miles of territory, at a cost of thousands of dead and wounded and billions in Western military aid in 2023 alone.
All those points played a role.
My personal ones:
Both, the Ukraine and its supporters, systematically underestimated Russian capabilities. (And still do.)
Satellite reconnaissance showed Russian defense preparations on the level of the Battle of Kursk. There the German Wehrmacht, after way too long preparations, failed to break the Russian lines. The unlearned lesson from 1943: When you see defense lines like these, try something else.
Battle simulations and table top war games have a ‘moral factor’ input for each side. Setting your sides’ factor to 10 and the enemy’s factor to 0, as the U.S. and UK obviously did, will let you win every time – but has no relation to reality.
Air support would not have helped. Russian air defenses are too strong to counter it.
The decision to use barely trained, ‘green’ brigades without any fighting experience was a serious error.
Not to use smoke grenades and, in general, means of deception, was not reasonable at all.
To have half of the new troops, the more experienced part, fight Zelenski’s already lost battle for Bakhmut, was a major political mistake.
All together made sure that the so called ‘counter-offensive’ never had a chance to take off. The bickering now is just an attempt to put the blame for the failure onto the other side of the table.
The Ukrainian General Zaluzny has learned from the battle. He now puts up somewhat realistic numbers to let the U.S. understand how small its chances to win really are:
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was informed during a visit to Kyiv that Ukraine needed 17 million rounds of ammunition and that US$ 350-400 billion worth of assets and personnel would be required to liberate the country. … Quote from a senior Defence Forces official: “Austin was told 17 million rounds of ammunition were needed. He was stunned, to put it mildly, because you wouldn’t be able to collect that many rounds in the whole world.”
The Ukrainian army does not have the ten thousands of barrels required to fire 17 million rounds. Nor has it the men to feed those imaginary guns.
Zaluzny obviously thinks that the war is lost and done with. And that it is time for politics that pursue peace:
In addition, according to a source, Austin also said Zaluzhnyi had complained privately to American generals about interference from the President’s Office [..]: “Austin told us privately that Zaluzhnyi was always complaining to his generals about the President’s Office and how it obstructed him. Well, obviously the president learned about those conversations too. And that isn’t conducive to trust.”
However, the President’s Office is inclined to believe that Zaluzhnyi’s dismissal would facilitate his political career.
It is high time for the Biden administration to wrap this whole thing up. Do the usual thing: declare victory, leave and forget-about-it.
When World War 3 Breaks-Out and Arrives HERE in the USA, Liberals, Progressives, Socialists, Marxists, Should be BULL-WHIPPED TO DEATH By Their conquerors
On my radio show tonight, I was asked by a caller what is likely to happen to New England when WW3 Breaks out and all the military-age illegals who are embraced by liberals, take-up arms and attack us? I told him the Liberals should be BULL-WHIPPED TO DEATH because their efforts at Gun-Control have left them unable to defend themselves, and the illegals they embrace, will be their conquerors.
I went on to point out that Liberals, Progressives, Socialists, Marxists and their ilk are too stupid to be considered Americans anyway, so losing them won’t amount to much. The trouble with these dimwits is that they spread their idiocy to others, which will endanger the rest of the country.
Your thoughts about my remarks? Subscribers can offer their thoughts below in the Subscriber comment area.
Be wary of people who try to sell their pity as kindness. They may pretend they feel compassion toward you by supporting you during difficult times, but in reality, all they can offer you is some pity you never asked for.
Hard work will always beat talent. If you are talented at something, you already have a head start in life, but if you never combine it with hard work, you might as well never had it in the first place.
The power of little gestures. Even a little gesture of kindness can make someone’s day more than you can imagine.
The destructive nature of negative words. Whether you want it or not, you end up taking some words to heart automatically, so it’s important not to use words as weapons that can inflict damage on someone.
Sometimes it may seem like life only gets harder. But even then, it’s important not to lose hope for a better future because if you lose hope, you lose everything.
You can’t expect a person to change for you because in most cases, they rather cling to their old ways than find new ones. And maybe you’d not want to change them anyway unless they are a toxic person doing all the wrong things.
It’s better to have no one to depend on rather than being surrounded by fake people who pretend they care for you when in reality they secretly celebrate all your downs in life.
Don’t stay friends with someone who doesn’t know how to be happy for you. They are not your real friend.
You have to leave your comfort zone in the present to secure a comfortable future.
Betraying your intuition means betraying your best interests. When your intuition gives you an awful feeling about something, retreat. It’s like a danger alert that is ingrained in human biology from birth, so it’s important to make use of it by not missing any of those danger alerts.
An ifn’ I don’t…
Magnolia Bar and Grill Crawfish Etouffee
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Ingredients
1 pound cleaned crawfish tails
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 medium onion, chopped fine
1 teaspoon all-purpose flour
2 thin slices lemon
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon green onion
1 tablespoon parsley
Instructions
Use a saucepan with a tight fitting lid to “Etouffee”.
Season crawfish tails with salt and pepper; set aside.
Melt butter, add chopped onion, and cook over medium heat until onions are tender.
Stir in flour, blend well, and add 3/4 cup water, lemon and tomato paste, and cook slowly for about 20 minutes, and add a little more water occasionally.
When sauce is done, add crawfish tails; cover with lid. Cook for 8 minutes.
Season again, to taste.
Add green onion and parsley; cook 2 minutes longer.
This is the story of a deaf and blind man who decides to fly – alone – across the country to visit his sister.
When he arrives on board, the stewardesses have difficulty communicating with him because although he manages to say a few words here and there, he cannot hear them. To help himself, he touches their face and hand in hopes of understanding their intention, but the task seems difficult.
His neighbor gave up his seat (on the aisle), prepared drinks for him, sugar in coffee, spoon, etc. and led him to the toilet, but it was impossible to communicate with this man.
Then the flight crew had an idea: why not call to see if any of the passengers on board knew sign language?
Here comes this 15 year old girl, she is dyslexic and it was her learning difficulty that made her decide to learn sign language rather than any other:
image 25
Very patiently, the girl began to “sign” each letter against the passenger’s hand, which allowed them to start a conversation.
This teenager did not skimp on making this man’s journey much more pleasant and comfortable than if he had been locked in his solitude.
The passenger who took the photo and witnessed the scene described the moment as very moving and it’s easy to understand why.
TLDR: I was seen totally nude, mid-coitis, by 4 male police officers with guns drawn, shouting “Krystal are you safe? This is the POLICE! Krystal are you ok?” And I am not Krystal. Lol.
I dated (for the brief period of 5 weeks) a very unstable male. I knew at 4 weeks there was no way we would last, he had already become physically violent and had about ten older women believing he was their knight in shining armor, via the internet. He explained that they sent him money, that was why he even talked to them. Gag me with a keyboard, right? He decided to stalk me after I ended things. Fast forward a few months. I was getting to know a different male, and we decided to get physical, but in a non-violent manner, if you catch my drift. Right in the heat of the moment I hear the back door of the house being violently kicked open. Followed by shouts of “Krystal are you safe? POLICE!! Krystal, are you ok?” Then the bedroom door opened and 4 male police officers with guns drawn burst through the doorway. My name is not Krystal, my roommate (who was out of town) is Krystal.. I hastily climbed off of my guest and threw on a large hoodie then ushered the officers out of the house. Turns out my stalker ex had called the police pretending to be the next door neighbor, claiming it sounded as if a violent altercation was taking place and they were worried their dear neighbor Krystal was being murdered. He actually (convincingly) made his voice sound like a little old lady. Just in case it wasn’t known, the cops are able to see what number a call is made from even when the person tries to hide it with an app like TextNow. They told me the # that had made the call and I was able to show them it was in fact my ex’s phone number. One of the officers saw the blip of a text message while I was showing them that it was his number and asked to see the conversation. All of this while wearing a hooded sweatshirt that came down to my mid-thigh. Needless to say they went and arrested him for calling in a fake emergency, stalking, threatening to cause bodily harm (the messages said that he was going to dismember me after strangling me) and a few other charges like harassment.
When i took 8 Valium on top of the 6 i took earlier in the day, then realized a half a bottle of whiskey might not be enough. When i woke up the next morning(??) on the kitchen floor soaking wet and covered with mud, i asked my wife what had happened. She told me that i passed out outside, then it started to rain. She couldn’t lift me, so she “coached me” for half an hour getting me inside and up 5 stairs. That night- i did it again until eventually i made it to a detox/rehab where i was placed on a 17 day Valium taper. I was later informed it was their longest ever. I called my wife after a week(??) or so and told her to throw out the weed i was saving that knew i was gonna need after getting out of rehab. I had terrible tinnitus and shook horribly for months afterwards. It’s probably not the worst. Other people’s stories may be far worse but, well, you asked. P.S. I’ve beeb clean and sober ever since-almost 7 years now. Thanks God, for being there for me, whether i wanted you or not.
Be willing to let some parts of you die. Not all of you is perfect and you know it better than anyone else. So don’t be afraid to let some of it go. After all, that’s what personal growth is all about.
Don’t run away from yourself. This means facing your trauma(s), mistakes, and bad life decisions, no matter how unbearable it feels.
Don’t suppress your negative thoughts and emotions. You don’t have to act on them but you need to acknowledge them lest they turn into an unruly beast ready to devour you any second.
Come to terms with the fact that life is meant to be difficult. It’s a default setting you can’t change. The only thing you can do is to cope with it to the best of your abilities.
Keep in mind that suffering is cruel, yet a necessary teacher of life that can make you stronger and wiser.
Try not to stress about the things you can’t change. It will disrupt both your physical health and peace of mind.
Know when to share your burdens with others. It’s admirable to take care of things on your own, but it’s just as important to open up to those you trust when life gets too much.
Treat yourself with the same compassion you treat others. If you are nice and understanding toward your loved ones, you have no reason to treat yourself any differently.
Avoid whining. It’s alright to complain every once in a while but doing so constantly will fill your mind with negativity you can’t shake and make you feel miserable.
Remember that there’s more to life than being constantly happy. And you’d not want to be constantly happy anyway because you’d start taking happiness for granted. Your life would also become dull and uneventful, living like a character in one of those imaginary, utopian lands where everything is perfect all the time.
I worked as a courier for about 9 years. During that time, I never made more than $20,000 a year. More like I averaged around $18K.
A lot of my courier brothers were supporting families on that sort of income and they qualified for SNAP and some other food stamp like benefits.
Occasionally, they would save their nickels and then buy steaks and all the fixings for their family. Not often, but maybe every other Blue Moon they would do something nice for dinner.
These guys busted their asses 10–12 hours a day with no benefits, no Healthcare, no retirement and no paid holidays. They worked in the rain, in the cold and snow, they worked in ice storms and 115degF heat.
So what do I think about them using their hoarded nickels to buy a Lobster or some good Crab for the family once in a while? I think it’s none of your fucking business.
A guy I worked with back in the mid 80’s, had a reputation as a bit of a fantasist. He was a large, very over weight, half Chinese guy, figure like a sumo wrestler. Said he was a karate instructor, played drums in a band amongst a lot of other ourlandish claims. Said his dad was a friend of the Kays, and was the last man sentenced to hang in England. He was late to work a lot and always had the oddest excuses. One week he was late every day because, he said, the papers kept sending reporters around to interview him, because they were making a documentry about his dad. Every one chuckled about that one. Then a few weeks later, I was watching TV, and it was about this guy who had murdered someone. I had missed the beginning. This bit showed the mans wife visiting him in prison. She was Chinese, and had her little chubby boy with her. I looked the program up the the TV guide and yes, it was about his dad. A few weeks later I was at a school fete and he was there, with his karate pupils doing a demonstration, and later on his band played
Oct 7 ‘Disinfo’ Org Founded By Top Jewish Lobbyists – Full Scale Propaganda Effort
The largest Jewish Groups are forming what they call the Oct 7 ‘Disinfo’ Organization, to spin the events of that day, and shape the narrative. Even casual observers are calling this a full scale propaganda effort.
The most powerful Jewish interest groups in the US have gotten together to form the 10/7 Project – an effort to combat “Jewish hate in America and the world” and to dispel “myths” about the day’s events.
The organization will fund a centralized communications operation to feed mainstream newsrooms with ‘fact-based information’ about the war, and will also release a daily newsletter to inform news outlets what is being ‘underreported.’
It will be the biggest unified effort from the Jewish lobby in recent memory, with the American Jewish Committee (AJC), The Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish organizations working together.
Of course there are. But these people are weeded out by merciless competition.
The ones that rise are tested every step of the way, and only the best survive the climb.
That’s what competition looks like in a 1.4b society.
Chinese politicians who attend the Two Sessions are not chosen because they’re tall, good-looking or give nice speeches. They are chosen for exceptional performance over the sum total of their careers. Each person wields considerable influence or power in their professional or personal capacity. That’s why they are selected as the people’s representatives. Selection is largely immune from the influence of money.
Who Is Really Behind The Mass Slaughter In Gaza?
Who is really behind the Israeli mass slaughter of the people of Gaza?
Israel’s dependence on the United States was stated bluntly by retired IDF Maj. General Yitzhak Brick in an interview earlier this week.
“All of our missiles, the ammunition, the precision-guided bombs, all the airplanes and bombs, it’s all from the U.S. The minute they turn off the tap, you can’t keep fighting. You have no capability. … Everyone understands that we can’t fight this war without the United States. Period.”
The list of jobs is endless, I am not sure that all of them were professions. 40 years ago, I read an article about buying stocks, and it said buy quality, but understand the changes in the market. They talked about something that had happened 40 before I was born. Evidently a well known banker and investor said, that it wouldn’t hurt to buy a little stock in these new fangled automobiles, but keep the majority of your money, in something solid, like a good buggy whip manufacturing company. Fads will come and go, but you will always need a good buggy whip. He said that because buggy whips had been made for two thousand years, and it wasn’t going to change.
In my life time I saw the job of tinker disappear, he was someone, who could fix anything, if your glasses broke, if your electric frying pan broke, he could fix it. If you wore a hole in a pot, he would braze it, often they came door to door. We had door to door Fuller brush salesmen, sold brushes door to door. Milkmen delivered dairy products door to door. The bread man delivered baked goods door to door. Their used to be commercials for the Maytag repairman, and now its thrown out when broken.
Our little town still had a livery service when I was a kid, they looked after your horses when you came to town, but by my time, they mostly stored cars.
Movie theater usher, who would bring you in and show you your seat. Elevator operators, I always thought it was such a cool job. You closed an accordion door, then closed the outer door, then shifted the lever to up or down, and stopped it when it reached the floor you wanted. Sometimes requiring some fine tuning.
I had a girlfriend who was telephone operator. There used to be girls that would wander around night clubs, selling cigarettes and matches. Hat check girls.
Brake men in the caboose of a train.
Dragline operator.
Signal men, telegram and telegraph operators at train stations.
Telex operators.
Gestetner repair men.
I can see just as many jobs disappearing in the next 20 years as disappeared in the last 60 years, as self driving cars and trucks become main stream, as digital finishes wiping out paper, as online services and stores replace brick and mortar. Etc.
This happened about 15 years ago. My then partner came home from work very upset. Somewhere that day he had lost one of a pair of distinctive silver cuff links that I had gifted him for his birthday.
Probably a month later I was out in my car, driving an unfamiliar route in the countryside, when I noticed my fuel gauge flashing. I resolved to stop at the next fuel station which turned out to be in a small village. I pulled up at one of the three pumps and got out of my car to fill it. As I walked around to the side of my car with the fuel cap something caught my eye on the ground. Embedded in the top tarmac surface was something silver and shiny. I bent down to inspect it further and couldn’t believe it when I identified the item as a cuff link. Not just any old cuff link but THE lost silver cuff link. I used my car key to gently ease it out of the tarmac. Amazingly, it was undamaged.
That evening I asked my partner if he knew of the little village. He did recall he’d driven that route to a business meeting some weeks before. ‘And you filled your car at the petrol station?’ I asked. ‘’How did you know?’ he asked. I laughed as I handed him his missing cuff link.
I still can’t believe this incredible coincidence. I must’ve ‘guided’ to its location by an unknown force. It still weirds me out.
Until I retired I was a Plumber for fifty years. On this particular occasion I was working with a builder repairing the lead flashing around a chimney at the local church hall. To do the job safely we had set up a scaffolding that blocked the entry to the car park, but this should not have been a problem because the Church Commissioners had told us the church was waiting for the new vicar and no functions had been booked at the church hall.
We were working about 20 feet above the ground when a voice from below shouted “ Hey you!” I looked down to see a man in a grey suit and white dog collar. “Yes you!” he continued, “I have a Bible study class in twenty minutes and no one can get into the car park!”
I was surprised by his rather rude and aggressive tone but politely replied “I’m sorry, but we were told the church has no vicar and that there was nothing in the diary.”
“Well, there obviously is and you are blocking access to it. If you do not remove this scaffolding immediately I shall report you to your employers!” he shouted back.
It was then that I had a stoke of genius and replied. “ Very Christian of you sir.”
That immediately took the wind out of his sails and after a moment or two he replied, “Ahem, perhaps I was a trifle too hasty, carry on gentlemen.”
A guest came to stay for Thanksgiving, I had warned we had cats and dogs. They came anyway. They went to unpack in our guest bedroom. Half a hour later the husband came to me and said there was an issue. They had stripped the sheets off the beds and scrapped the mattress. Horror of horror there was cat fur. I immediately said” oh my, you can’t stay here, perhaps you should go to a hotel.” They did. As they are relatives we are civil but they are not invited to stay anymore.
The thing is, I knew the wife wanted to make trouble, I refused to fight and stayed calm. She didn’t win, I did.
Let me take this out of your hypothetical nonsense, and make it real. During the 1990’s I was a professional clown. I did birthday parties, wedding receptions, school shows, store promotions, holiday parties, company picnics – you name it, Violet P. Lavender was there. I even had several client families, where I would come celebrate the same child’s birthday three or four years in a row.
In one of those client families, there was an adorable little girl (I’ll call her Emily for this story). I met her at a cousin’s birthday party, and then was at her 4th birthday. I was happy to be at her 5th birthday as well. Because she lived in an area where Violet was very popular, Emily saw Violet four or five times during the year, in addition to her own birthday. That particular cluster of families really kept me on my toes, because I had to constantly rework my show, since all the kids saw me so often!
One day, I got a call asking me to come visit Emily, it was months too early for her 6th birthday – and to please come to the Children’s Hospital. I had a habit of visiting the hospital whenever I had free time between shows. This was the first time I was asked to come for a specific child.
When Violet arrived, Emily had been put into a private room. I was met in the hall, and warned that she was very weak and was quite fragile. They told me she did not know she was dying.
So, into that antiseptic, mostly white room filled with machines sailed Violet P Lavender. A totally Purple Person, with balloons and magic and fun! Emily smiled and clapped and used her precious energy to laugh. Only two visitors were allowed in the room at a time, so it was just me, Emily and one of her parents, with everyone else watching through the glass wall.
I stayed for only about 20 minutes. While I was saying goodbye, she took my hand and asked the hardest question… “Violet, will I ever see you again?”
I did what anyone in that position would do – I lied. I smiled at her and said “Of course you will! I’m going to be at your 6th Birthday Party!” That beautiful child shook her head sadly and gently told me, “Violet, I’m sorry. I’m not going to have any more birthday parties. I meant, will I see you again, in heaven?”
So much for her not knowing! Her mother bolted from the room, leaving me ‘alone’ to face that horrible truth with her.
So what does the atheist in a clown suit say to a child who wants to talk about heaven, as she lay dying?
I asked her “What do you think heaven is like?” She didn’t know, but she was scared that she would be all alone “up there” in a big house, with no one to talk to ever again.
Now, why would she think that? It seems some well meaning idiot had told her that God had prepared a Mansion just for her, in Heaven, and that she would be going there soon. And a Mansion was described to her as “a big house” … just for her! She was scared by the idea, and she did not want to go, but she couldn’t ask her mommy or daddy about it because (and she whispered this) “they don’t know I’m dying.”
So I laughed and told Emily that of COURSE she was not going to be alone! Her house was going to be on a street with lots of other kids, and right next to her street is the street where all the CLOWNS LIVE! And right past that is a big park where all the puppies and kittens play! (That made her smile.)
“Will you be there too, Violet?” Stubborn child! She wasn’t going to let it go! I told her I wouldn’t be there for a long time, but I had friends there, and she could tell them she knows me. Also, in her house there is a magic TV that she can use to watch over her friends and family who are still alive, while she is waiting for us to all join her. So she could watch me and her Mom and Dad and anybody else she wanted, any time she felt like!
She was relieved. She said she wasn’t scared anymore. Then reminded me not to say anything to her parents, because they are already so worried about her being sick, she didn’t want them to get sad about her dying.
I made it out of the room and into a nurse’s station before I started crying.
Violet did attend her next ‘party’ … I made sure her parents were ok with it, and Violet came to the funeral with a huge bunch of bright balloons, to say goodbye.
So the answer to your silly hypothetical question is – in REAL LIFE, you tell that child whatever you can so that they are not afraid and give them comfort.
ANY OTHER ANSWER regardless of your personal belief in an invisible guy building fancy houses in the sky is wrong.
The emotional well being of a dying child is more important than any religious or philosophical argument you could make.
1. Instead of responding immediately after someone says something to you. Wait a couple of second. This makes them feel like you’re really thinking about what you’re going to reply. And it makes you seem like a better listener. ( Don’t over do it ).
2. In a conversation, when someone is talking, nod your head in affirmation.
This will do so many things to their brain. First of all, it will give them that feeling of validation. It will make them feel like you’re truly listening to them and it is that feeling of validation that we search for unconsciously, that we got from our mom, and we’re searching in our partner, we’re searching in other people. So it becomes really addictive when you do this, and you make people feel validated.
3. When you’re talking to someone, always show the palms of your hands. This communicates to their subconscious mind that you have nothing to hide, that you are open, that they can trust you and you are their friend.
4. When you talk to someone try to match your body language and talk at the same volume and speed as they are.
This will tell subconscious mind that you are like them and they will trust you more
5. Ask people for their advice. Making them feel like their opinion matters. According to reasearch done by Katie Liljenquist makes them form a commitment to you and makes them like you more.
Example:
“What do you think I should order?”
“I think you should get the vegan burger, it’s really good”
A younger friend of my grandmother once said something that made her as angry as I have ever seen her. The 35-year-old was trying to stress the fact that her challenges and worries were different from those of a 75-year-old. She had in mind that some of life’s problems are over by the time you are 75, which may be true. But she said it in a terrible way.
You’ve lived your life.
Don’t make this mistake. Life can be just as sweet no matter how many birthdays you’ve had. And there is no age at which life’s failure to be sweet on any given day is not painful.
The 80- or 90-year-old has not “lived their life.” They are in the process of living it, just as you are.
OMG!
Ukraine Presidential Advisor: “The West Came to this war with no pants on”
The Emperor is naked . . . or so we now hear from the former Aide to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenski. Alexy Arestovich tells media outlets now that “The West came to war with its pants down” when it dealt with the Russian Army entry into Ukraine.
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Commenting to media outlets, Arestovich pointed out “The Americans cannot produce a million shells a year, and North Korea can. What kind of war and victory are we talking about, what boundaries of 1991?”
Of course, when he speaks of the “Boundaries of 1991” he is referring to the then-break-up of the former Soviet Union and the “Boundaries” for NATO that were agreed-to by then US President George HW Bush. It was then Secretary of States James Baker who agreed, at a meeting, in the Kremlin in Moscow, with then Soviet Leader Mikhail Gorbachev and then Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevrednadze, that NATO “will not move one inch eastward of the Elbe (River) in Germany.”
Of course, history shows that when Bush Sr. left office, and Bill Clinton came in as US President, that NATO boundary promise went right out the window. The map below shows NATO Expansion from 1949, and points out who was in and who was not in 1990 when Bush promised Gorbachev “not one inch eastward:
Yet, as shown by the countries imaged in purple, that promise to the Soviets went right out the window in the late 1990’s under then-President Bill Clinton.
Here’s how it went:
U.S. Secretary of State James Baker’s famous “not one inch eastward” assurance about NATO expansion in his meeting with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev on February 9, 1990, was part of a cascade of assurances about Soviet security given by Western leaders to Gorbachev and other Soviet officials throughout the process of German unification in 1990 and on into 1991, according to declassified U.S., Soviet, German, British and French documents posted today by the National Security Archive at George Washington University (http://nsarchive.gwu.edu).
The documents show that multiple national leaders were considering and rejecting Central and Eastern European membership in NATO as of early 1990 and through 1991, that discussions of NATO in the context of German unification negotiations in 1990 were not at all narrowly limited to the status of East German territory, and that subsequent Soviet and Russian complaints about being misled about NATO expansion were founded in written contemporaneous memcons and telcons at the highest levels.
The documents reinforce former CIA Director Robert Gates’s criticism of “pressing ahead with expansion of NATO eastward [in the 1990s], when Gorbachev and others were led to believe that wouldn’t happen.”[1] The key phrase, buttressed by the documents, is “led to believe.”
President George H.W. Bush had assured Gorbachev during the Malta summit in December 1989 that the U.S. would not take advantage (“I have not jumped up and down on the Berlin Wall”) of the revolutions in Eastern Europe to harm Soviet interests; but neither Bush nor Gorbachev at that point (or for that matter, West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl) expected so soon the collapse of East Germany or the speed of German unification.[2]
The first concrete assurances by Western leaders on NATO began on January 31, 1990, when West German Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher opened the bidding with a major public speech at Tutzing, in Bavaria, on German unification. The U.S. Embassy in Bonn (see Document 1) informed Washington that Genscher made clear “that the changes in Eastern Europe and the German unification process must not lead to an ‘impairment of Soviet security interests.’ Therefore, NATO should rule out an ‘expansion of its territory towards the east, i.e. moving it closer to the Soviet borders.’” The Bonn cable also noted Genscher’s proposal to leave the East German territory out of NATO military structures even in a unified Germany in NATO.[3]
This latter idea of special status for the GDR territory was codified in the final German unification treaty signed on September 12, 1990, by the Two-Plus-Four foreign ministers (see Document 25). The former idea about “closer to the Soviet borders” is written down not in treaties but in multiple memoranda of conversation between the Soviets and the highest-level Western interlocutors (Genscher, Kohl, Baker, Gates, Bush, Mitterrand, Thatcher, Major, Woerner, and others) offering assurances throughout 1990 and into 1991 about protecting Soviet security interests and including the USSR in new European security structures. The two issues were related but not the same. Subsequent analysis sometimes conflated the two and argued that the discussion did not involve all of Europe. The documents published below show clearly that it did.
The “Tutzing formula” immediately became the center of a flurry of important diplomatic discussions over the next 10 days in 1990, leading to the crucial February 10, 1990, meeting in Moscow between Kohl and Gorbachev when the West German leader achieved Soviet assent in principle to German unification in NATO, as long as NATO did not expand to the east. The Soviets would need much more time to work with their domestic opinion (and financial aid from the West Germans) before formally signing the deal in September 1990.
The conversations before Kohl’s assurance involved explicit discussion of NATO expansion, the Central and East European countries, and how to convince the Soviets to accept unification. For example, on February 6, 1990, when Genscher met with British Foreign Minister Douglas Hurd, the British record showed Genscher saying, “The Russians must have some assurance that if, for example, the Polish Government left the Warsaw Pact one day, they would not join NATO the next.” (See Document 2)
Having met with Genscher on his way into discussions with the Soviets, Baker repeated exactly the Genscher formulation in his meeting with Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze on February 9, 1990, (see Document 4); and even more importantly, face to face with Gorbachev.
Not once, but three times, Baker tried out the “not one inch eastward” formula with Gorbachev in the February 9, 1990, meeting. He agreed with Gorbachev’s statement in response to the assurances that “NATO expansion is unacceptable.” Baker assured Gorbachev that “neither the President nor I intend to extract any unilateral advantages from the processes that are taking place,” and that the Americans understood that “not only for the Soviet Union but for other European countries as well it is important to have guarantees that if the United States keeps its presence in Germany within the framework of NATO, not an inch of NATO’s present military jurisdiction will spread in an eastern direction.” (See Document 6)
Afterwards, Baker wrote to Helmut Kohl who would meet with the Soviet leader on the next day, with much of the very same language. Baker reported: “And then I put the following question to him [Gorbachev]. Would you prefer to see a united Germany outside of NATO, independent and with no U.S. forces or would you prefer a unified Germany to be tied to NATO, with assurances that NATO’s jurisdiction would not shift one inch eastward from its present position? He answered that the Soviet leadership was giving real thought to all such options [….] He then added, ‘Certainly any extension of the zone of NATO would be unacceptable.’” Baker added in parentheses, for Kohl’s benefit, “By implication, NATO in its current zone might be acceptable.” (See Document 8)
Well-briefed by the American secretary of state, the West German chancellor understood a key Soviet bottom line, and assured Gorbachev on February 10, 1990: “We believe that NATO should not expand the sphere of its activity.” (See Document 9) After this meeting, Kohl could hardly contain his excitement at Gorbachev’s agreement in principle for German unification and, as part of the Helsinki formula that states choose their own alliances, so Germany could choose NATO. Kohl described in his memoirs walking all night around Moscow – but still understanding there was a price still to pay.
All the Western foreign ministers were on board with Genscher, Kohl, and Baker. Next came the British foreign minister, Douglas Hurd, on April 11, 1990. At this point, the East Germans had voted overwhelmingly for the deutschmark and for rapid unification, in the March 18 elections in which Kohl had surprised almost all observers with a real victory. Kohl’s analyses (first explained to Bush on December 3, 1989) that the GDR’s collapse would open all possibilities, that he had to run to get to the head of the train, that he needed U.S. backing, that unification could happen faster than anyone thought possible – all turned out to be correct. Monetary union would proceed as early as July and the assurances about security kept coming. Hurd reinforced the Baker-Genscher-Kohl message in his meeting with Gorbachev in Moscow, April 11, 1990, saying that Britain clearly “recognized the importance of doing nothing to prejudice Soviet interests and dignity.” (See Document 15)
The Baker conversation with Shevardnadze on May 4, 1990, as Baker described it in his own report to President Bush, most eloquently described what Western leaders were telling Gorbachev exactly at the moment: “I used your speech and our recognition of the need to adapt NATO, politically and militarily, and to develop CSCE to reassure Shevardnadze that the process would not yield winners and losers. Instead, it would produce a new legitimate European structure – one that would be inclusive, not exclusive.” (See Document 17)
Baker said it again, directly to Gorbachev on May 18, 1990 in Moscow, giving Gorbachev his “nine points,” which included the transformation of NATO, strengthening European structures, keeping Germany non-nuclear, and taking Soviet security interests into account. Baker started off his remarks, “Before saying a few words about the German issue, I wanted to emphasize that our policies are not aimed at separating Eastern Europe from the Soviet Union. We had that policy before. But today we are interested in building a stable Europe, and doing it together with you.” (See Document 18)
The French leader Francois Mitterrand was not in a mind-meld with the Americans, quite the contrary, as evidenced by his telling Gorbachev in Moscow on May 25, 1990, that he was “personally in favor of gradually dismantling the military blocs”; but Mitterrand continued the cascade of assurances by saying the West must “create security conditions for you, as well as European security as a whole.” (See Document 19) Mitterrand immediately wrote Bush in a “cher George” letter about his conversation with the Soviet leader, that “we would certainly not refuse to detail the guarantees that he would have a right to expect for his country’s security.” (See Document 20)
At the Washington summit on May 31, 1990, Bush went out of his way to assure Gorbachev that Germany in NATO would never be directed at the USSR: “Believe me, we are not pushing Germany towards unification, and it is not us who determines the pace of this process. And of course, we have no intention, even in our thoughts, to harm the Soviet Union in any fashion. That is why we are speaking in favor of German unification in NATO without ignoring the wider context of the CSCE, taking the traditional economic ties between the two German states into consideration. Such a model, in our view, corresponds to the Soviet interests as well.” (See Document 21)
The “Iron Lady” also pitched in, after the Washington summit, in her meeting with Gorbachev in London on June 8, 1990. Thatcher anticipated the moves the Americans (with her support) would take in the early July NATO conference to support Gorbachev with descriptions of the transformation of NATO towards a more political, less militarily threatening, alliance. She said to Gorbachev: “We must find ways to give the Soviet Union confidence that its security would be assured…. CSCE could be an umbrella for all this, as well as being the forum which brought the Soviet Union fully into discussion about the future of Europe.” (See Document 22)
The NATO London Declaration on July 5, 1990 had quite a positive effect on deliberations in Moscow, according to most accounts, giving Gorbachev significant ammunition to counter his hardliners at the Party Congress which was taking place at that moment. Some versions of this history assert that an advance copy was provided to Shevardnadze’s aides, while others describe just an alert that allowed those aides to take the wire service copy and produce a Soviet positive assessment before the military or hardliners could call it propaganda.
As Kohl said to Gorbachev in Moscow on July 15, 1990, as they worked out the final deal on German unification: “We know what awaits NATO in the future, and I think you are now in the know as well,” referring to the NATO London Declaration. (See Document 23)
In his phone call to Gorbachev on July 17, Bush meant to reinforce the success of the Kohl-Gorbachev talks and the message of the London Declaration. Bush explained: “So what we tried to do was to take account of your concerns expressed to me and others, and we did it in the following ways: by our joint declaration on non-aggression; in our invitation to you to come to NATO; in our agreement to open NATO to regular diplomatic contact with your government and those of the Eastern European countries; and our offer on assurances on the future size of the armed forces of a united Germany – an issue I know you discussed with Helmut Kohl. We also fundamentally changed our military approach on conventional and nuclear forces. We conveyed the idea of an expanded, stronger CSCE with new institutions in which the USSR can share and be part of the new Europe.” (See Document 24)
The documents show that Gorbachev agreed to German unification in NATO as the result of this cascade of assurances, and on the basis of his own analysis that the future of the Soviet Union depended on its integration into Europe, for which Germany would be the decisive actor. He and most of his allies believed that some version of the common European home was still possible and would develop alongside the transformation of NATO to lead to a more inclusive and integrated European space, that the post-Cold War settlement would take account of the Soviet security interests. The alliance with Germany would not only overcome the Cold War but also turn on its head the legacy of the Great Patriotic War.
But inside the U.S. government, a different discussion continued, a debate about relations between NATO and Eastern Europe. Opinions differed, but the suggestion from the Defense Department as of October 25, 1990 was to leave “the door ajar” for East European membership in NATO. (See Document 27) The view of the State Department was that NATO expansion was not on the agenda, because it was not in the interest of the U.S. to organize “an anti-Soviet coalition” that extended to the Soviet borders, not least because it might reverse the positive trends in the Soviet Union. (See Document 26) The Bush administration took the latter view. And that’s what the Soviets heard.
As late as March 1991, according to the diary of the British ambassador to Moscow, British Prime Minister John Major personally assured Gorbachev, “We are not talking about the strengthening of NATO.” Subsequently, when Soviet defense minister Marshal Dmitri Yazov asked Major about East European leaders’ interest in NATO membership, the British leader responded, “Nothing of the sort will happen.” (See Document 28)
When Russian Supreme Soviet deputies came to Brussels to see NATO and meet with NATO secretary-general Manfred Woerner in July 1991, Woerner told the Russians that “We should not allow […] the isolation of the USSR from the European community.” According to the Russian memorandum of conversation, “Woerner stressed that the NATO Council and he are against the expansion of NATO (13 of 16 NATO members support this point of view).” (See Document 30)
Thus, Gorbachev went to the end of the Soviet Union assured that the West was not threatening his security and was not expanding NATO. Instead, the dissolution of the USSR was brought about by Russians (Boris Yeltsin and his leading advisory Gennady Burbulis) in concert with the former party bosses of the Soviet republics, especially Ukraine, in December 1991. The Cold War was long over by then. The Americans had tried to keep the Soviet Union together (see the Bush “Chicken Kiev” speech on August 1, 1991). NATO’s expansion was years in the future, when these disputes would erupt again, and more assurances would come to Russian leader Boris Yeltsin.
When the US and EU/NATO tried to expand once again by admitting Ukraine, Russia’s financial and military condition was far improved, and the Russian’s had enough of our perceived lies about NATO Expansion.
Russia told the West that Ukraine could NOT enter NATO, because Russia knew they were planning on placing US Missile defenses on Ukraine soil. Those missiles would have about a five minute flight time to Moscow, which no country on earth could defend against.
Russia pointed out that the conventional warheads on US missile defenses were of a type that could be “switched-out” with a NUCLEAR warhead. This change could be done in about 90 minutes, and no one would even know about it.
That would put Moscow within 5 minutes of nuclear annihilation, and Russia would not tolerate it. Russia made it explicitly clear they viewed Ukraine’s entry into NATO as an “existential threat” and they would use military power to stop it if they had to. No one in the West took them seriously.
The West apparently doesn’t teach actual history to its military and political class anymore, because folks in the US under Joe Biden continued to press for Ukraine’s entry into NATO. No one in the Biden regime realized that Russia meant business on this issue, and ALL of them were . . . . SHOCKED . . . . when Russian troops crossed into Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
(HT REMARKS:Older guys like me, who have a memory that actually works, knew full well the Russian’s were going to do this; they HAD TO. It literally is a matter of survival for Russia, given the vast expansion of NATO during the late 1990’s and early 2000’s. I knew it was coming. I said so on my radio show in the weeks leading-up to the entry. I told my audience we were breaking our word and we had to stop. I told my audience this could result in World War 3 and the Russians were serious about this. No one – at least in government — listened.)
Fast-Forward to December of 2023, and former Aid TO President Zelensky now says “The West came to the war with his pants down, he turned out to be a naked king, he will not be able to win this war.
I see fewer and fewer chances for the West to win in a clash with the global South and East.”
He’s right.
But the people running the US government and military, are so ignorant of history, so arrogant in their erroneous beliefs about the Russian Army, none of them saw this coming. None of them ever expected to lose a war with Russia, and THAT is exactly, precisely, what is actually happening right now in Ukraine. Ukraine is losing and will lose. Period. Full stop.
All because the US EU and NATO install people into powerful positions who are either ignorant of history, or whose word means nothing. I suspect– it’s both.
Thanks to those people, half a million Ukrainians are now dead. A smaller number of Russians are also dead. And for what? NONE of this, had to be.
Had we honored our word, none of this would have happened.
I had a girlfriend that hit me all the time. I thought she was just being playful, until she snapped and said, why can’t I hurt you. Up until then, I thought we were just playing. I am 6′1″ 200 lbs, she was 5′1″ 100 lbs.
If you can’t tell that it was supposed to be painful, then you know how lopsided punching her back would be.
After we broke up, there were rumours that her new boyfriend was beating her. He was 5′6″ 140 lbs.
She asked me if I remembered her hitting me, I said I did, she replied, well he hits back.
So, if you can escape without being hurt, then you shouldn’t punch anyone, but if you need to punch someone in self defense, then you do what you have to do.
Simpsons Predictions For 2024 Are Insane
LOL.
Magnolia’s Spicy Shrimp, Sausage and Tasso Gravy over Creamy White Grits
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Ingredients
Creamy White Grits
12 cups chicken broth
4 1/2 cups coarse stone-ground white grits
1 cup heavy cream
Salt and white pepper to taste
Tasso Gravy
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup sliced Tasso, cut in 1-inch strips
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
Salt and white pepper to taste
Shrimp and Sausage
1/2 pound spicy Italian sausage (3/4 pound of raw)
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 pounds medium or large peeled and deveined shrimp*
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 recipe Tasso Gravy
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
Instructions
Creamy White Grits
Bring the chicken broth to a boil in a heavy-bottomed stockpot or large saucepan. Slowly pour in the grits, stirring constantly. Reduce the heat to low and continue to stir so that the grits do not settle to the bottom and scorch. In about 5 minutes, the grits will plump up and become a thick mass.
Continue to cook the grits for about 20 to 25 minutes, stirring frequently. The grits should have absorbed all of the chicken stock and become soft. Stir in heavy cream and cook for another 10 minutes, stirring frequently. The grits should have a thick consistency and be creamy like oatmeal. Season to taste with salt and white pepper. Keep warm over low heat until ready to serve. If the grits become too thick, add warm chicken broth or water to thin them down.
Tasso Gravy
Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over low heat. Add the Tasso. Sauté for 1 minute, browning slightly. Make a roux by adding the flour and stirring until well combined. Continue to cook over low heat for 5 minutes, stirring frequently until the roux develops a nutty aroma.
Turn the heat up to medium and gradually add 2 cups of the chicken broth, stirring vigorously. Keep stirring constantly until the broth thickens into gravy. Reduce the heat and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes to cook out the starchy flavor. Add the parsley. Simmer for another 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Shrimp and Sausage
Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
To cook Italian sausage: Place the Italian sausage on a baking sheet with raised sides. Place on the top rack of the 400 degrees F oven and bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until the sausage is firm and its juices run clear. Cool and cut into small bite-size pieces.
Heat the olive oil in a heavy-bottom frying pan over medium heat. Add the precooked sausage and sauté for 2 minutes to brown slightly. Add the shrimp and sauté until they begin to turn pink-no longer than 1 minute. Add 1 cup of the chicken broth to deglaze the pan. Add the Tasso Gravy and one tablespoon of the parsley. Bring up to a boil and let simmer for 1 minute. The last 1/2 cup of chicken stock is to be used to thin the gravy if needed.
Divide the hot grits between 8 warm bowls. Spoon the shrimp, sausage mixture over the grits. Sprinkle with the remaining tablespoon of parsley and serve immediately.
Notes
* If using large shrimp, allow 6 per person; for medium sized shrimp, 8 to 10 shrimp.
Attribution
Source: magnolias-blossom.com – Magnolia’s, Charleston, South Carolina
A family friend who worked as an FBI agent was about to get married in the early 1970s. Shortly before the wedding, he got a memo from the Director’s office, signed by J. Edgar Hoover himself, pointing out a policy to the effect that agents needed permission to tie the knot, and that he hadn’t received it.
His intended was Black (he’s white), and the Director wasn’t cool with interracial marriage.
He married her anyway, and they stayed together until death did they part half a century later.
They framed the Director’s letter and hung it on a wall in their residence.
While working at a dealership in Arizona, I was doing a LOF on a late model Nissan, and got to checking the air filter as part of my routine workup on the vehicle. I popped the top of the air box, and casually lifted the filter out, and promptly slammed the air filter back in and closed the lid. I took a breath, walked over to my service manager, and told him that we needed to call pest control.
When the pest control tech arrived, he put on heavy gloves, and carefully removed a mama Western diamondback rattler and six of her babies, all alive and well in the air box. The customer mentioned that her car had recently sat for a few weeks while she was away on business. She politely apologized to me for the snake incident, gave me a nice tip (to cover my new boxers, presumably!), Paid for the pest control visit, and left.
To top this off, the next time she came in, she requested me. When I popped the hood, I was greeted by !!! Another snake! Thankfully, this time, it was rubber. Inside the air box (I was VERY cautious lifting the air filter out this time!), taped under the lid was a $20 bill with “Sorry, I couldn’t help myself!” written on it. Probably one of my favorite customers ever! She gave me a hug after I came in with a sheepish smile after I finished the oil change. I hope she’s still messing with people 🙂
“Dear teacher, I apologize to the bully for his attacking me and forcing me to have to defend myself. I promise that if he attacks me again I will defend myself to the best of my ability..I realize that the school supports his behavior and wishes us to submit to being bullied, punched hit,kicked and ridiculed. I apologize to you and the school staff, for not being a submissive punching bag as you seem to want me to be.
sincerely,
(name).
EDIT
seems a popular post. I am guessing the problem is widespread.
Keep in mind that you are looking at someone who’s already at the top of the mountain. That is to say, you don’t know the effort and time they had to put into to get where they are right now. And how many mistakes and slips they had to endure to reach that peak.
Remind yourself that the only person you should race against is yourself. It sounds easier said than done, but keep practicing and you’ll soon realize it’s not as difficult as you initially thought it was.
Throw out all the comparisons out of the window. It tends to aggravate your envy even more. Instead, focus on what you can do to get your fair share of success as well.
Don’t become resentful toward life or people who seem to have it all. Because if you do, that resentment will start living inside your mind rent-free, for your entire life.
Be grateful that nothing is over yet. As long as you are still breathing, you have a chance to change something for the better. Everyone takes things at their own pace, so don’t put yourself down just because you fell behind in the race. We can’t all be Usain Bolts, after all. So stick to the pace you are comfortable with and take occasional breaks if you have to. And once you feel rested, keep moving because, in the end, it’ll be worth it.
I was sitting on a bench outside a hotel in DC near the valet desk. I admit I wasn’t exactly dressed for style.
Lady imperiously demands I get her car and I tell her I don’t work there. She sniffs at me and scolds me for being a useless bum, a blight on humanity and if she had her way we’d be rounded up and put on press gangs to clean the streets.
About then the valet pulls up with my car, a late model BMW convertible. She started to say “that’s not my car” when I tipped the valet and drove off.
A coworker went to a local bar after work where a group from the office was going to meet up. It was a Friday so no work the next day.
He woke up in a strange bed at an apartment complex. He couldn’t find his clothes, car keys, wallet. He called another coworker to come get him. He had to look out the window and get the street intersection off street signs to tell his coworker friend where to pick him up.
When his coworker friend showed up he ran out with a sheet wrapped around himself. His coworker friend took him back to his apartment where a roommate let him in. He had a spare key for his car and he and his roomate went looking for his car. They found it in the parking lot of the local bar down from the office.
He spent the weekend trying to remember what happened to no avail.
On Monday while he was at work sitting at his desk when one of the office girls came into his office with his freshly washed clothes, wallet and keys.
She had taken him back to her apartment for an evening of love making, during the night of this he had gotten sick from too much alcohol, vomiting on his clothes beside the bed, then passed out.
She had gotten up that morning, cleaned up the mess, taken his clothes down to the laundry to wash them before ordering breakfast from a deli across the street. She returned to find him and one of her sheets missing.
She waited until Monday to bring him his belongings. They never went out again and had a strained office relationship for several years until he transferred to another office.
If I had a chance for a do over I’d take it. My life today would be totally different. I’ve never told or discussed it with anyone. I was 20 in college and I was engaged when I got pregnant. He didn’t want to start out marriage that way. He was all of 21 and also still in college. I didn’t have a job or any money. I thought my Catholic parents would disown me. I made the horrible decision to terminate the pregnancy. It took decades before I could forgive myself. He was right it was no way to start a marriage. It was a horrible way to start a marriage when he didn’t want to offer any emotional support for our shared tragedy. Nearly 10 years later we were finally blessed with a child followed by 3 more. We were married over 40 years. The roots of the failure began with I don’t want to start out marriage that way.
A few. But it’s a very hard job to be the son or daughter of a genius. I’ve had the good fortune of getting to know several Nobel Prize winners and their families. And to talk with some of the kids about their point of view. For the most part, they suffered. Many Nobel Prize winners made no secret of this. George Wald was once asked whether he might donate his sperm to a sperm bank to make superior children. He answered in two parts, but only the first was charming.
He said they should have asked his father for sperm so as to make another George Wald. Then he went on to say that his kids were not geniuses but had become bums. Which was not only unkind, but also very unfair to them as they were both teenagers at the time, sensitive and awkward, but also sweet and certainly very bright. But I remember one dinner at his house where Elijah, the son, sort of bragged about having done something clever. Most parents would smile and congratulate him. But George said something along the lines of, “Why, at your age I had already discovered….” Why was there any comparison or competition?
Other genius parents had more sympathy for their kids and took the pressure off. But still, comparisons with the father’s legendary (and oft exaggerated) accomplishments made it tough for the kid. Richard Feynman was very kind and supportive of his kids,but his daughter, Michelle, was initially too intimidated to try anything academic. Nonetheless, Richard was proud of her and of his son Carl.
Linus Pauling (two Nobels) had several children and his son Peter did brilliant work on the structure of biological molecules using crystallography. The son contributed to the work that led to the Nobel Prize that went to Watson and Crick.
But my favorite example of genius father and genius son would have to be the Nobel Laureate in physics, Luis Alvarez, who contributed much to the building of the atomic bomb in the Manhattan Project, and his son, Walter. Working together they generated the hypothesis and found a testable way to confirm that the dinosaurs were wiped out by a giant asteroid hitting the Yucatan Peninsula 63 million years ago. And there are many other good examples (like Marie and Irene Curie, etc.). So, despite the psychological and social obstacles, sometimes the apple does not fall far from the tree.
When I was a teenager, there was a flood along the river where we lived. A large number of mobile homes that were located on the shores of the river were taken out, and destroyed. And six people were missing.
2023 11 27 17 19
One day after the grand storm, I was walking alongside the tracks beside the river. I was in a remote section of the track. Perhaps two miles away from the town, and in the woods.
Eventually I came across a section that smelled really, REALLY bad. It was so foul that I got off the tracks and went to the edge of the river, where the smell was so damn intense.
I couldn’t see anything, and left. But that afternoon, I later discovered that a body was found at the exact location where I was standing looking for the body.
When I was around 11 I was snooping around in my parents room and saw their bank passbook sitting on their dresser. I opened it up expecting to see a healthy sum of money. Instead there was less than $30 in it. I saw the weekly deposits from my dad’s work and regular withdrawals for cash.
even at that young age I realized that we were poor and what little we had got spent on us kids. I felt terrible when I thought of all the times I’d pushed my folks to spend what they had on treats for me and my sister and brother.
A year ago, filled with a longing for Western freedom and democracy, I applied to the University of Auckland, thinking that it would be great if I could stay and work or live in New Zealand after graduation.
Now, I am firmly convinced that I should return to China after my graduation because:
1.The salary here is not as high as what I can earn in China,
2.The best city here is only equivalent to a third-tier city in China. Shopping and daily life are not as convenient as in China, and the cost of living is four times higher.
3.The knowledge taught in universities here, I can learn for free on Chinese websites, and it’s richer and more advanced.
4. I participated in two research projects at the University of Auckland and found that the level of research and development here is behind that of equivalent universities in China. I realized that by studying here, I probably won’t be able to bring back advanced knowledge. Therefore, I am considering returning to a Chinese university to further my education.
5. Moreover, I can feel that the majority of people in Western countries still believe they are more developed than China. This is the general perception, and I don’t need to explain it. I’ll just return to China and quietly contribute my strength there.
6. Western culture, there seems to be a preference for those who are boastful and talkative rather than those who are low-key and pragmatic. Coincidentally, as a Chinese person, I am not good at boasting, and I prefer to fulfill my responsibilities and then rest. The Chinese workplace is more accommodating to someone with my traits.
In fact, I spent hundreds of thousands of RMB to come to New Zealand, to see the real Western world, improve my English, and then met a group of Chinese students and a few friendly foreign students, and ate food that I wasn’t quite used to for a year.
I’m not a parent, but as a teacher I had to explain to a mother about bedtimes and sleep for a seven year old.
Her son was always tired and had difficulty staying awake during class. He was not working to his potential.
His mom came to discuss his poor grades. Come to find out, she was under the impression that he slept too much. So, she kept him up to midnight and had him get up at 6:00 a.m. No wonder the poor lad was always tired. I would be, too.
So, I explained to her that growing children needed at least 10 hours of sleep nightly as their bodies were growing and sleeping gave their bodies time to rest, heal, and grow.
She started having him go to bed at 8:00, especially on school nights. Within a week, he was brighter, more chipper, and the quality of his work improved immensely.
The interesting part? About a month later, he gave me a big hug and thanked me for telling his mom he needed to go to bed earlier.
I took my nice little VW Beetle Diesel to a mechanic for an oil change. After they got the car on the rack, the service advisor came out “Your car has a really bad oil leak.”
Before you go farther, bear in mind: This was a diesel. This comes in important later.
I go back to the bay and take a look at the purported oil leak. The bottom half of the back of the engine was covered in fresh, amber colored oil. “Oh, you’ve got a huge oil leak. You need to pay us $200 to diagnose the problem.” I called for the shop manager.
“Your employee claims that this car has an oil leak.”
He looks under there. “Yup. Sure does.”
“You know this is a diesel.”
“Why does that matter?”
“Have you ever seen the oil drained from a diesel?”
“Yeah.”
“Then you know that if I put fresh oil in this engine and drive the car three blocks, that oil will be as black as the Ace of Spades. This supposed oil leak, which is in a place oil can’t leak out of, is fresh oil.”
“Umm…”
“Listen. Clean all the oil he sprayed on my engine off it right now so I can go somewhere honest.”
The climate. Finland is located between 60th and 70th North, which makes the climate absolutely miserable.
image 163
The location means the winters are long, dark and miserable – sun rising at Christmas only at 09:00 in Helsinki and setting at 15:00. The situation isn’t exactly improved by the fact that Finland is located at the occlusion zone of Ferrel cell, which means the whole Atlantic comes down from the sky each Spring and Autumn. (Oh, Autumn is really Fall – I mean, rainfall. Finnish rain is not the warm shower as the Mediterranean rains, it is hard, cold and scourging.)
Finland has the worst of both littoral and continental climate: cool summers and freezing winters. Oh, and did I mention rasputitsa? Yup, we have it too.
image 162
The cold and miserable weather and the long and dark winter has left its permanent mark on our national soul. Finns tend to be emotionally cold, dour and close-minded. Not rude nor impolite, but cold. Sorry, no jolly reggae tunes here. Hero metal, power metal, black metal and prog metal. If your playing sucks, turn on more overdrive.
Which leads to another problem. Alcohol use is commonplace. Simply to carry over the worst. Getting hammered is a method to cope with the cold, dark and miserable winter.
Which leads to another problem. Suicides tend to be common, but not as common as they used to be. Many people simply cannot stand it all and quit their living.
Atheism is in Scandinavia a far older phenomenon than science. When the soil is poor, weather hostile and everything in the climate tries to kill you, you relate to supernatural as enemies and any deities as intolerable cosmic oppressors. The divine is not seen as a provider, but oppressor – as something which attempts to make living even more miserable than it already is. This is one reason why the Scandinavians are so hostile to religion and spirituality they tend to be. Already the Hrafnkell’s saga from 10th century tells of a Viking chieftain who ditches the Viking gods and becomes godhlauss, Atheist.
I wish I had wings so I could fly to Spain for winter like the migratory birds.
A bit of background: My parents recently got divorced and my dad got most of the money, furniture and he got the house. My brother (10) and I (13) only see our mom every second weekend and sometimes my dad just keeps us for the weekend. I always stop by my moms After school everyday to let her dog out and clean up any messes she made (She’s 17 and black lab). I usually wait there for bit until I have to pick up my brother.
Anyways, one day, my math teacher asked me to stay behind for a few minute so to talk about an opportunity to compete in a math contest. It was country wide and was for grade ten and eleven math. I’m grade seven but he said that’s he talked to the people who were running it. They said I could try but might have some trouble with it. I really like math so I said yes.
Fast forward two weeks and I’m sitting in the cafeteria with a bunch of really tall people. They hand out the papers and say go. I finish in about half an hour and turn mine in.
About a month ago i got the results and i placed third in the country. Apparently, there was a prize and i won three hundred dollars.
Now, my mom has been struggling financially although she didn’t tell us, I figured it out. Every time I stop by her house, I put some of the money in her jar and she hasn’t but noticed. I know it’s probably not a lot but I like to think I’m helping a at least a little bit. I can’t legally work yet…
When my due date was getting very close, I told my 3 and a half year old daughter that her little brother is afraid to come out of my belly. He thinks to himself: Oh, its a big scary world out there. Who knows what is awaiting for me outside. I’m just a little baby boy. I don’t want to go out and live with big grown up people all by myself.. Who will understand me and help me when I’m outside? Oh how I wish there was a little girl out there who would be my sister, so we can grow up together…
She was deeply moved when she heard this. She put her little hand gently on my belly, and whispered to her brother with a voice filled with tenderness. Come out little brother. I am your sister M. and I will always take care of you. You don’t have to be afraid. Few days after this, her brother came, and the love and connection that the two of them have is something I, as an only child, never imagined could exist. The way they cherish one another, help, encourage and comfort along the way is truly amazing.
It’s not going to eliminate the difference at all. However, it could help the less rich kids to maintain their dignity.
image 160
This is the most common school uniform in China. It’s ugly, oversized, and appeard since my school ages, but totally affordable. It wouldn’t change the fact that some kids have a poor family background, but it could reduce the possibility of students getting isolated in schools for either being too poor or rich. Trust me that kids do that all the time, and it could be quite hurtful sometimes.
image 161
Besides, with an ugly uniform, how one looks like purely relys on face. Dad’s mercedes or even GTR wouldn’t save it.
I am a welder and applied to a job through a temp agency. Their ad said hiring welders from $23 to $26 an hour depending on experience. They gave me a weld test and decided to hire me at $23. I told them I want $26 because that’s what their add said. I was told that was dependent on experience. Well I have 24 years of experience and I want 26. In the end I agreed to work for 25.
On my first night it was time to clock out so I went to the time clock and clocked out. I noticed all the other welders were still there cleaning up their work areas. I shouted at them so they could hear me, “hey it’s time to go. What are you all still doing here?”
I didn’t get an answer and left. Coming in the next day I asked them about this and they said they cleaned up the shop after hours on their time. With all the workers around and the boss I told everyone, “I don’t work for free. This mess wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t been here working. I won’t be cleaning the shop for free. I am loud quitting boss” as I made eye contact with the foreman, “when my shift is over I am clocking out and going home. I will have my area cleaned up before then.”
That night was the first night they did weld testing because new clients demanded all their welders were certified welders.
The next morning the temp agency called me and asked me not to go back to the job because I had been terminated for not listening.
The morning after I was called back again. I was the only person on 2nd shift who passed the weld test and many on first shift also failed.
Company representative: “Would you come back to work for us, please?”
Me: “OK but I want $28 an hour and switched to 1st shift.”
In Vietnam, when we meet someone for the first time in the new (lunar) year, we usually give each other a red envelope with some lucky money – as a good wish for a bright and happy new year.
I was in 11th grade in high school. We were just back from the Lunar New Year holiday (”Tết” holiday in Vietnamese), happily exchanging red envelopes and good wishes. Coincidentally, it was also Valentine’s Day that year. But, 20 years ago, I had no idea about that, so when this boy handed me the red envelope with a chocolate bar, “Happy Valentine!”, I happily took it, “Thank you! You’re so sweet!”, and I gave him a big hug.
Before he could say anything else, I opened the chocolate bar, broke it into pieces, and… shared it with the whole class, everyone got a piece. I couldn’t explain the emotion in his eyes when he watched that happened.
Years later, every time we meet up for our class reunion, he always brings this story up and we laugh. Still can’t believe I missed that hint.
CIA
Back in the late 70’s I found myself between jobs. I had 10 years as the GM of aof a chain of convenience stores which had been sold and that ended my job! My parents lived in the Washington DC area and one of their neighbors, who I had known for many years, worked for the CIA. At a neighborhood gathering while I was visiting I mentioned to him that I was job hunting and asked if he had any connections in the CIA. After we had returned home I got a call asking if I would like to interview so I flew back up and stayed with my parents for a week.
I was instructed to report to a building in Rosslyn VA which is across the Potomac River from DC. I remember having a hard time finding the address I was given because there was no name or numbers on the building. Maybe that was my first test! In any case, the interview lasted all week. One thing that I remember was is how low key the whole process was. Mostly a series of different people asking me a lot of questions about myself. What my hobbies were, favorite foods. etc. It reminded me of shooting the breeze with a bunch of strangers at a college mixer. Not much in writing, no physicals, drug tests, etc. Not many probing questions, very relaxed. Definitely the strangest interview I’ve ever had, and this went on for 5 days.
There was one woman who was my primary contact. From the beginning to the end, she was the one who was always there at the end of an interview and introduced me to the next person. Never their last name or title, just a first name, always in the same room, never in their office. On the 5th and final day, she brought me into her office and said that they would like me to work for them as an operative. I had never heard that term before, but knew that it meant that the CIA wanted me to be a spy. Immediate visions of James Bond came to mind. Fast cars, nice clothes, A GUN…all the things that we associate with being a spy. Obviously I was very interested.
I had a bunch of questions but the two that I remember were: 1. Where would I be stationed? and 2. What did they want me to do? I was married with two young children, and I was thinking maybe they wanted me in Europe where I had spent many years as a boy. WRONG! They wanted me to operate a small grocery store in PAGO PAGO! I had never even heard of Pago Pago, let alone knew that there was a large US Navy Base there. Out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, thousands of miles from everything and everyone we know, it was out of the question.
That was the end of my spy recruitment.
LOL. All, I do mean ALL of the stores in Pago Pago are owned by Chinese nationals. No fucking shit. -MM
I was a semi-freshly divorced single mom working in a chain of gas stations. It was my job to cover if someone called off and to run the money every day.
I had a reliable car only because my parents both took the time to teach me about cars including how to find a good used one and repair it when it broke.
I was enrolled in college. One class at a time is all I could squeeze in my schedule and budget.
My child was suffering under a rural southern school district. She is gifted and they had refused to set an IEP, refused to challenge her, and in fact persecuted her and myself due to our religion. We were told more than once we were going to Hell by school officials.
It was an uphill battle with them that required an attorney who volunteered his services. I couldn’t have afforded him otherwise.
Despite these difficulties, life was OK. We were surviving. We had food, shelter, and running water. My child never went to bed hungry or cold.
Then I started getting tired. Abnormally tired. I didn’t have the energy to function. My mother forced me to go to her doctor. She paid for the visit because I didn’t have insurance.
The doctor called me at work two days later and asked me to come in. I made arrangements for my child after school and I went.
He told me I was sick. Very sick. The tiredness was a symptom of this. It wasn’t just lack of proper nutrition or being over worked. This wasn’t something that could be fixed with a pill.
I started treatment the next week. I still went to work. I still took care of my child. I had to drop my class and adjust my schedule. I had to fight — and fight I did.
Then the medical bills started coming in. Uninsured and dead broke, I almost gave up. The state said I did not qualify for assistance of any kind because I made too much money.
If I had another child, I’d be at the income threshold. If I had another child, I could collect benefits like food stamps, Medicaid, and housing assistance.
If the state would have straightened out the child support instead of counting it against my income, I might have been able to pay a little bit of the medical bills.
I made arrangements for my child’s care after I passed. I had a small life insurance policy that would cover my final expenses. I managed to keep fighting.
The medical bills kept coming as did the phone calls from debt collectors. The threatening letters. The calls to my work. To say it was stressful is an understatement.
Until one day they stopped. The medical bills still came but showed a zero balance. The bills that had gone into collections were paid in full.
My rabbi approached me one night after services. He told me that a member of our shul had paid everything on the caveats I finish school and don’t stop.
I begged him to tell me who but he would NOT budge. He just said, “Finish your education and don’t stop.”
Finish school and don’t stop.
I still do not know who. I’ve had my suspicions, but I keep them to myself.
I have graduated but haven’t finished my education. (That is something that is never going to be finished.)
I haven’t stopped.
Smart Cat
Downtown Grill Catfish LaFitte
This is one of my favorite ways to prepare catfish. Even those who dislike catfish love it fixed this way.
Marks Catfish Lafitte
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
2 large eggs, beaten
1 cup milk
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons salt, divided
1 1/2 teaspoons ground red pepper, divided (may need 2 1/2 teaspoons)
4 farm-raised catfish fillets, about 1 1/2 pounds
Vegetable oil
12 large fresh shrimp, unpeeled
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/4 cup sweet vermouth
2 cups whipping cream
1/4 cup chopped green onions, divided
2 teaspoons lemon juice
3 very thin cooked ham slices, cut into strips
Garnish: lemon wedges
Instructions
Combine eggs and milk, stirring until well blended.
Combine flour, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon red pepper in a shallow dish. Dredge fish in flour mixture; dip in milk mixture. Dredge again in flour mixture.
Pour oil to a depth of 3 inches into a Dutch oven; heat to 360 degrees F. Fry fish for 5 to 6 minutes or until golden; drain on paper towels. Keep warm.
Peel shrimp; devein, if desired. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat; add shrimp and garlic, and cook until shrimp turn pink, stirring often. Remove shrimp, reserving drippings.
Stir vermouth into reserved drippings; bring to a boil, and cook 1 minute. Add whipping cream, 2 tablespoons green onions, lemon juice, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1 to 2 teaspoons red pepper; cook 12 to 15 minutes or until sauce is thickened, stirring often.
Place catfish on a serving plate, and drizzle with sauce. Top with shrimp and ham; sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons green onions. Garnish, if desired.
Notes
I make the sauce first and keep it warm. I then fry the fish and finish the dish.
The Big Lie that Women Keep Believing in Modern Dating
As a 31-year-old Chinese person who lived in China for 30 years and has been living in New Zealand for a year, I find that this question seems to be of particular concern to people in the Western world, while we ourselves are not so concerned about it. I have also thought about this for a long time, and I would like to give a rather serious answer.
When I was living in China, politics really didn’t have much to do with our lives. In the daily routine of a normal person, we were essentially free and democratic. Moreover, from childhood, we learned about both Chinese culture and Western culture. We were quite familiar with the Western world from our media, and we knew roughly what the world was like. After going abroad, it was also easy for us to embrace Western culture.
However, after coming to New Zealand, I found that the Western media is full of prejudice against China and North Korea, while reporting differently on East Asian countries like Japan and South Korea. In fact, I particularly want to tell many Western friends who have never been to China that it is easy for us to accept Western civilization, but your points of concern about China seem to differ from what we care about ourselves.
Historically, China has never actively pursued religion, so how could it be actively enamored with politics? As long as the party does not disturb the people, we won’t pay too much attention to it, and a political party is the least intrusive solution. China is a country that has been agriculturally based for thousands of years. Our ancestors loved the land that could grow crops, and this love has flowed into our blood. The charming land that produces enchanting crops makes us ordinary people happy. China is large enough that whether at the top or among ordinary people, everyone can find their own focus in life, everyone takes responsibility for their own duties, rather than thinking about taking advantage of others or stealing from others. This is more efficient and safe.
If the leadership does not perform well, the people will resist together, and our history has always been this way. An ordinary person can grow to be a top figure in the country, or a top figure over a piece of land. With 5,000 years of detailed recorded history, many historically high-ranking people came from common families. So, when you ask if Chinese people want to live in a democratic country, I want to say that we have always been democratic. Every Chinese person knows: “The noble and the humble have no determined lineage,” but as a culturally united nation, if we are in a high position and do not make the contributions we should, we will be shamefully recorded in history, which is as important as life itself to every Chinese person. Thus, even though we have equal opportunities to become influential figures, not everyone wants to be the most powerful because that also means taking on more responsibilities, which can be more tiring (the positions of emperor, prime minister, and general in Chinese history were high-stress jobs). So usually for us, enjoying the life of an ordinary person also seems more relaxing.
However, it seems that Western politicians do not have the same immense pressures as Chinese leaders, nor do they have the same sense of responsibility. Your leaders seem very relaxed, speaking eloquently with expressive gestures, whereas our leaders are sparing with words, and mostly very serious. How should I put it? They are also under great work pressure, as they are not only supervised by hundreds of millions of common people but also by their competitors. But from my heart, I like this Chinese style where everyone has their role and does not interfere with others.
Compared to many Western countries, China is very open. I grew up in a very ordinary family in China, reading masterpieces from all over the world from a young age, experiencing different cultures, which is why I chose to go abroad after getting married and having children. I have also read modern and ancient Chinese books, which enables me to answer this question today.
For foreign friends curious about China, if you want to understand China, you are sincerely welcome to visit, especially if your daily exposure is only to English media. Because they seem to be the most heavily brainwashed region at the moment.
Somewhere in my graduate school years I noticed a trend.
An undergraduate philosophy major will sound absolutely brilliant. They often speak in a jargon-dense diction, delivered at high velocity, one idea bouncing off another to produce a spiderweb of spiraling associations. The effect, rhetorically and aesthetically, is often overwhelming. Logic doesn’t really play a role because one hardly knows what they are saying. The unwitting listener feels himself outmatched, drowned and blinded by the naked light of unbridled genius.
The graduate student is a much dimmer light. He is still full of abstract phrases and obscure references, but he is someone who is starting to sound, again, like a human being — explaining things, pausing, asking questions to insure the listener is following. This is not nearly as impressive as the undergraduate, but it does have the virtue of allowing the ordinary among us to understand what is being said.
The professor sounds like your basic “dad,” albeit one with a lot to say. He can at times seem unsure of himself. He pauses to define his terms and to add qualifications to his statements. He speaks carefully. He might even speak slowly. He explains as he goes, almost apologizing for whatever obscurities he falls into. His manner of speech is, well… designed to communicate! A quite boring and not evidently bright fellow, you almost feel embarrassed for him.
In light of these observations, I was forced to conclude that there is either something terribly wrong with our educational system — since the higher people go the dumber they get — or intelligence is not quite what we sometimes think it is.
In my van. We would drive away with the pedal to the metal. In 30 minutes, I could expect to get at least 50 kilometres away, and that ought to be far enough to be safe. Moreover, the van has a Diesel engine, so it does not need electricity to function – it will run as long as there is fuel and air.
If it was summer, I would drive to our yacht, put SCUBA gear on, and dive in the sea in the marina. There is enough oxygen to survive the blast underwater. Most radiation is absorbed in the sea, and the shock wave would not get to the water.
I dated a girl for a few years and we lived together for the last half of the relationship. Things hadn’t been great for several months before I decided to break it off, but it was a single statement she made that convinced me it was time.
The yard was in serious need of some attention. The grass was a bit high and we hadn’t done weeding in a few weeks. So I decided to spend my day off working in the yard.
I mowed the grass and edged the walks, I weeded all the flower beds, watered and fertilized our plants, got some new plants to fill in the beds. After I was done with all that, I decided to do some cleaning. I power washed the driveway and the house. The concrete looked brand new.
I finished shortly before she got home from work. When she got in, I was in the backyard admiring my handiwork. I was proud of how the yard looked. It hadn’t looked that nice in quite a while.
When she came into the backyard, I motioned towards all my hard work with my hands as if to says “look what I did!”.
The only thing she had to say about it was “You forgot to sweep behind the chiminea.” and pointed to a small pile of leaves off in the corner of our yard. Then went inside to take a shower.
Something snapped in my brain. All the times she had criticized stupid things just to have something to criticize came flooding back. I suddenly realized the obvious pattern that had been there all along. She didn’t just do it to me either. It was just who she was to everyone. She just enjoyed criticizing people.
I knew I couldn’t live life like that. I knew that if I stuck around, she would keep doing that for the rest of our lives and it would make me miserable.
I had just spent my entire day doing yard work in the middle of June and she couldn’t find one positive thing to say about it. I left that evening and stayed with a friend. The next day, I came home and broke it off with her.
I was about 10 years old, and in bed – about 11pm. I was supposed to be asleep, but as usual, I was reading by the light of my nightlight. I heard my dad slam the front door, and my mom yell. This wasn’t normal behavior, so I went into the living room.
The police were called, and my dad told me the story. Mom and Dad were in the living room, and heard a knock at the front door. We lived out in the country, and the neighbors all knew Dad was a doctor, so Dad thought it might be a neighbor needing help. When Dad opened the door, he saw a man with a mask standing there with one hand behind his back. Our super friendly, loved everybody German Shorthair, Ringo, followed Dad to the door. As soon as she saw the man, she gave a huge bark, and lunged for the guy. Dad said that 3 things happened nearly simultaneously – 1) he grabbed Ringo’s collar, 2) the guy pointed a gun at Dad (it was in the hand behind his back), 3) the man shot the gun. Dad slammed and locked the door. Dad was unhurt.
When the police arrived, they spent a long time looking opposite the door to try to find a bullet hole. At one point, one of the officers said that maybe it was a blank. But eventually, one of the policemen noticed that the row of art books we had on the bookshelf facing the door wasn’t completely even; one of them was pushed back about an inch. He peered closely at it, and noticed something odd about the O (it might have been Michelangelo) in the title – it had a hole in the middle of the O. He opened up the book, and sure enough, the bullet was nestled in the pages.
Needless to say, there was a rule in our house after that – don’t open the door at night without asking “Who’s there” first!
I used to own a small tavern. We had a guy who started hanging out there quite regularly. Nice guy, played darts with the other regulars, bought rounds in order , but didn’t talk much about himself or his past. But it’s a bar, so no one cares. We’ll call him John.
He was in early one night around 7pm. My staff is all away on lunch, partner wouldn’t be back til 10pm. I’m all alone. Usually not a big deal. This night, a couple of college jocks got way out of hand and started tearing the place up – breaking cue sticks and tossing around empty kegs. It’s just John, me and the college boys. I’m trying to de-escalate and get them to leave. Then, one of the big guys starts pushing me and throwing punches. I’m screwed. That is, until John steps in and beats the shit out of two guys much bigger than himself. I was completely shocked! We toss the guys out and he tells me not to call the police. He leaves shortly afterwards.
Next time I see John, I want to pick up his tab and chat. He asks me not to tell anyone or talk about it. I figure he’s ex-military and a private guy. He becomes pretty scarce. We’re looking for him, but he doesn’t come around anymore.
About a year later, we see his pic in the paper. He’s on trial for a pair of mob related murders. Turns out he might be responsible for more than a couple of these. I’m very glad he liked me.
US Ambassador threaten to shut Ghana’s economy down if Anti-Gay bill pass
I lived in northern Manitoba and southern Ontario, both in Canada, for about 25 years before I moved to southern Maryland. Snowmageddon struck in January-February of 2010. Everything was shut down for 10 days or so. Finally, I ventured out onto the roads.
My apartment complex fronted a 4 lane divided roadway, which was a designated Snow Emergency Route. The left lane was bare, the right lane was still covered with ice and slush. Both lanes were blocked where an SUV had gotten stuck then started to slide into the ditch to the right of the road. Pickup trucks, cars, other SUVs, vans, all were parked higgly jiggly and tall, brawny men were attempting to get the vehicle out.
I parked well back, walked to the crowd in my Canadian snow boots, and offered to help. They all had a good laugh, then turned away. I tapped on a man’s arm, “I grew up in Wisconsin and lived in Canada for 25 years. I know snow.”
“Hey, let the little lady here give it a try!”
I cleared them away from the car, crunched around it, repositioned the men, instructed the driver to straighten her wheels and put it into LOW gear, no gas! Told the men to push again, rocking, and told the driver to release the brakes.
The SUV popped right out of the icy ruts and kept going. Silently, the men returned to their cars and left. Too cold for crickets, I guess…
I was interviewing for a Canadian regional sales manager’s job for a company that sold patent medicines, made in Saudi Arabia. (Yes, I wrote the correct country name.)
After having introduced ourselves the interviewer handed me a package of papers, about ten pages thick.
“I’ll be quiet for a few minutes until you have read and signed this.”
It was the most horrible secrecy agreement you could imagine. If I break this, my grandson’s firstborn would be burned on the stake, or something along those lines.
I put it down, and politely bade my adieus.
The interviewer followed me all the way to the elevator door, trying to explain that not all was cast in stone. Some details could be negotiated.
I entered the elevator and left.
My next job was selling industrial valves, no secrecy agreement required. (I stayed there 9.5 years.)
The school arranged for a bus load of junior high students to go to a live play in the city.
This was the second bus trip in a month. The first one had gotten a little steamy on the ride back to the school in the dark. But not so bad it stopped the second one from happening.
The second trip, stopped all future bus trips, and caused a general assembly to be called. The principal and vice principal were dismissed at the end of the school year.
I didn’t have a girlfriend, and my best friends sister wanted to make out with me, but I knew that would end my friendship with my best friend. She wasn’t attractive enough to risk that.
In the back row, you could only see two guys sitting up, one in each seat. There had been girls sitting beside them when we left for the school.
What brought it to a head, was that the majority of students had hickies that were visible to their parents when they got home from the school trip.
There were a lot of phone calls leading up to the general assembly. It was amazing how many students had purple splotches, vainly trying to be covered with turtle necks, and long sleeves, and they had to sit in the front row of the general assembly, as we were told the consequences of our actions.
One day, she came home with a bruise on her cheek – just a small one, but it was a bruise. I asked what happened to her? She told me that a patient’s son hit her in the face because he thought she was ignoring his father – who was in pain while actually she was busy with another patient who was more critical. I asked her what happened next? She told me: “Oh, I came to that patient as soon as I finished with the one I was working on. Talked to him, comforted him and gave him some meds. Then I explained the situation to the son, and he apologized”. 7 year old me that day got angry and asked: “Why? You’re the best nurse, why didn’t you let someone else deal with that patient? His son hit you. He didn’t deserve your care!”
And my mom’s answer that day became one of the most important lessons I carry with myself through life: “Sweetie, you should never let someone’s bad action to be the reason for your own. Fixing something wrong by doing something wrong will never work. That man hit me may have been wrong, but if I hadn’t taken care of his father, I wouldn’t have been right. Moreover, it was the son who made the mistake, why should the father has to face the consequences? Your mom is the best nurse, so I do the best, right?”
So, if my neighbor never says hello to me first? That doesn’t stop me from saying hello and wishing them a good day.
I still believe that in this world full of sad/angry people, it’s much better if we’re sweet to each other, even just a littleeeeeee bit.
I strongly condemn Chinese military using sonar of mass destruction near Chinese coast which caused damage to Australian soldiers close Australian coast.
Wait… the Australians were near Chinese coast.
Oh… so you were their collecting seabed information, right?
In case of WWIII, it would be useful to intercept Chinese submarines.
International water or not, it’s definitely a hostile activity against China.
I can already make the draft about the same thing but reversed, i.e. PLAN soldiers got hurt by Australian sonar near Australian coast.
There is no “pro-China government in Australia”.
We know that already.
Stop lying.
Miao Ethnic Group
This is one of the 65 recognized ethnic groups in China.
The flags for the cars at my mother-in-laws funeral.
Well, they tried.
When they were doing their consult, they went over about a million things with my wife, and her brother. Both of whom were pretty deep in grief as they had just lost their mother. This woman was more of a mother to me than my own, so I wasn’t exactly NOT grieving.
Before my wife signed on the dotted line, she asked me to look the paperwork over. I saw a HUGE line item, it was around $2000, and just listed as “flags”. I asked the wife about it, and I asked the brother-in-law. Both had no idea what it was. I asked the representative from the funeral home, and they said it was for the funeral flags for the cars. The little magnetic “flags” that say “FUNERAL” on them. They are plastic, and have a magnetic base on them and you put them on your front fenders. If you have seen a few funeral processions, I’m sure you have seen them.
So I asked why we were paying $2000 for these.
I was told we had estimated 100 people, and they charge $10 per flag, and 2 per car. so 100x2x$10=$2000.
I asked if these were required, or if they thought that literally every single person was going to be driving their own car, or, the pretty obvious question, would this get re-rated based on how many people ACTUALLY showed up and needed a flag.
I was told that no, they were not ‘required’ but that they were recommended to make it more visible, and that wouldn’t my MIL want that item? They would re-estimate based on how many cars I expected (yeah, they KNEW that the estimate of how many guests was NOT the same as how many cars there would be), but that once the order was put in, it was non-refundable, and that if we didn’t use them all, then that was just how it was. They were basically being paid to make them available.
I went back to the wife and BIL, and explained, they agreed, nope, not necessary. I told them we didn’t need this, and to remove it immediately. They acted like that was some manner of travesty, and basically implied that people would think poorly of us for it. I knew my MIL, and KNEW she would have spit her teeth out if we had wasted $2k on this. There was a lot of shade from the funeral people for this.
Strangely enough, day of, not a single person asked about the flags. We turned out headlights on, and drove in procession with absolutely no problems whatsoever. Ironically, the only vehicle with the flags was the hearse, it had them permanently attached to it. We weren’t charged for that.
The funeral industry literally preys on people at their most vulnerable. They prey on your emotions, and your fears and insecurities. They have no trouble manipulating you into paying more than is necessary, and they will pad that bill out to match any insurance you might have. Do NOT just give them the insurance information, magically, if you have $35000 in insurance, they will eat every penny of it up. We had, $0 and paid every penny out of pocket… They still tried to pad the bill at every turn.
“What is the most absurd thing you’ve been charged for on a bill?”
edit
yes, these ARE reusable, and yes, they are returned after the procession, and yes, that does make it so much worse.
Good men won’t stick around if they are unwanted
Canadian “Mercenary” Killed By Russian Army in Ukraine
When I decided to move halfway across the Earth, from Vietnam to the U.S. to marry my (then) boyfriend, the only ‘condition’ I made my boyfriend agree to was I wanted him to move closer to his parents. My reason was that I would be in a new country, I wanted to stay close to our family. He agreed.
So, when The Teenager & I moved over, we settled down in a place within one hour drive from our parents.
Then came the first meet-up, we invited a few other family friends over. My mom & I were in the kitchen preparing food when a lady came in. She saw me, smiled, and asked my mom, “So, here is your daughter-in-law hah?” My mom smiled back at her, “No. She is my daughter in love.”
That sentence struck a harmonious chord within me and made my heart sing.
My wife and I were living in our first house in Oklahoma City. One day while we were both at work, the city sewer department tore down all the fences in the rear of the houses on our block to replace the sewer main. When we got home from work we were heartbroken because we had had our young dog in the backyard and now he was nowhere to be found. We searched the area for days and put up notices but to no avail.
We were starting to believe that we would never see our dog again. My wife was so upset she decided to call the city to “give them a piece of her mind” about the lack of notification on the sewer work causing us to lose our dog.
So she gets a person on the phone from the city’s Ombudsman Department. My wife explains the situation and tells the person that we loved that dog and had paid good money for him because he was a registered Irish setter. The person asks where we live and my wife gives our address. The person says “Well that’s amazing. I live about a half mile from you and there’s been an Irish setter hanging around lately.” My wife tells me the address and when I got to the person’s house, there’s our dog.
Oklahoma City is a big metropolitan area. Of all the people in the metro area my wife might have got on the phone, our dog happened to be at that person’s house.
I managed a cookie shop once. It was in a college town, and was open til 11:30 pm. At the end of the night, a homeless person showed up asking for cookies. I gave him some.
the next night, he brought 3 friends. There were just enough cookies for them. The next night, I was swamped. Literally dozens showed up. I didn’t have enough cookies for all of them. The crowd became enraged. They started yelling at me, then they started throwing things at me.
i told them not to come around again, there would be no more free cookies. I had to take a cab home that night, it was unsafe for me to walk.
The next night, a few of them started following me as I walked home. They were loudly talking about how they were going to rape and kill me. I ducked into an open business and called a cab home again. I was very young, and made just over minimum wage. I couldn’t afford to take a cab every night, but I had to for weeks.
I did make arrangements with a night nurse, who worked at a local hospital. She dropped by at closing every night on her way to work, and picked up the last cookies to take to the break room.
Having had that experience, I would never give food from a restaurant to homeless people again. Many years later, I owned a bakery, but still remembered my lesson.
The UFO Incident That Shocked Ariel School: Telepathic Extraterrestrials (Re-Edit)
“It’s like story time for grown-ups. I really appreciate this channel. Hecklefish is my spirit animal.”
I was banned from my local Walmart because I miss scanned an item. I went to self checkout one day because I had 4 items and wanted to teach my sons how to scan items. To make the story easier to understand, I had a tshirt, set of bras, shorts and some socks. While scanning, we had accidently double scanned the bras rather than scan the shorts, honest mistake. We finish up and as we are heading out, loss protection stops me and says “My name is XXX I’m with loss prevention please come with us” I was genuinely confused, my son got scared because of how aggressive they were but we complied. While in the security room they proceeded to rummage thru my bags and asked to search my purse. Again, I complied, but they never explained why I was pulled in. They searched cameras for probabaly 20 minutes. At one point, I hear one of the workers call across the radio “We need security detail for an escort.” I started getting REALLY scared and demanded an answer. Finally, they explain I miss scanned an item, because of this I am being escorted out of the building and will not be allowed back on property, should I step foot on property I will be arrested. I was baffled! They didn’t even give me a chance to fix my honest mistake! Needless to say, again I complied, but I put in a call the corporate after leaving, they reached out to me and lifted the banned immediately, apologized, and fired the entire loss prevention team. It wasn’t the first time they had abused power!
Every shit that the US does on China, the Chinese can do even more, faster cheaper and more painful to the U.S.
China prefers not to but it is always ready. Chinese people has a saying. If you do it on the 1st Luna calendar. We will reciprocate on the 15th. You mentioned rare earth but this is just one out of a thousand measure. It could checkmate the US. Don’t even think about it. Every hurt on China will be returned by several fold hurt on the U.S.
After I had disconnected the call, I thought – What if it was a call from my best friend, would my response have been the same?
The answer was a big no and I was unable to figure out why. This restlessness drove me to call him again.
Dad: What happened? Are you ok, son?
Me: Yes, I’m fine, Dad. Just, missing you a lot.
He was surprised at first and thought I needed money.
Soon after, I began cracking few jokes (lame ones) to which he laughed his heart out. We talked for straight 40-45 minutes, engaging in topics we had never discussed before.
Strangely enough, I felt like talking to a different person. The person whom I had spent my life with, yet knew so little about.
The blissful conversation ended with a ‛Khush Raho’ (Stay Blessed!) from his side and a wide smile from mine.
And so, I realised, not taking your dear ones for granted and making a deliberate effort to know them is something worth consider doing.
In ancient China, common people had the following ways to meet the emperor.
1. The imperial examination. The final stage of the imperial examination is the palace examination, which is personally supervised by the emperor.
2. Assassination. The emperor went out to patrol and ambushed him by the roadside. Even if the assassination fails, before being executed, the emperor will personally question you, who is behind the scenes?
3. Emperor Banquets Centenarians. This is a large-scale honoring and respecting activity for the elderly where the emperor invites centenarians to participate in the royal banquet. But the prerequisite is that you must be able to live healthily to a very old age despite the lack of medical treatment and medicine in ancient times.
4. Become a eunuch. This is not recommended because ancient castration surgery was very risky.
5. Becoming a famous prostitute. Although the emperor had many wives, he would never refuse beautiful women.
When I was in Malaysia, during breakfast they served dim sum in addition to other traditional breakfast foods and it was very nice. However, Malaysia is a country with a 20% Chinese population. Back here in the West we don’t have a high percentage of Chinese people. There are some Westerners like myself who would enjoy Chinese food, but the majority of people who would eat it would be Chinese people themselves. The lack of demand means there is little incentive to supply it.
1999. I had a four-year-old Internet advertising agency with 15 employees. A global corporation was buying it.
Weeks before the sale was finalized I had an early morning doctor’s appointment and saw these cups in her bathroom marked URINE SPECIMEN.
I took a bunch of cups, got into the office before any of my employees arrived, left a cup on each person’s desk with a memo that said the buyer required a urine test from everyone in the company before the sale could be approved. A nurse would arrive at noon to test the samples.
One by one they trickled in and proceeded to go batshit. Violation of my rights. They can’t do this. My personal life is my personal life.
I commiserated, but reminded them that if I didn’t sell the company, we’d probably go belly up, and we’d all be out of a job.
Not a lick of work got done all morning. Finally, at noon we all gathered in the reception area, each of us holding a full urine specimen cup.
I spoke to the group. “Guys, I hate this as much as you do.” I looked at my cup. “And I really hate my sample. The color of this piss is terrible. I think I’ll run it through one more time.”
And then I drank it.
I didn’t have to tell them it was Peach Snapple. They knew they’d been had.
15 people. 45 man-hours (and woman-hours) wasted. Pissed away, so to speak. And I loved every second of it. Best. Prank. Ever.
“Hey guys, it’s Heather. I’m running a bit late, but I should be there in a…..”
There was absolute silence in the room.
“Message received: September 3rd at 11:55 am.”
Not a word was spoken among the three of us listening to the message and none of us could muster anything useful to say afterwards other than a very weak, “save that message”.
It was September 5th. In less than 24 hours, we would be going to Heather’s funeral. Her car had been t-boned by a large truck and she had been killed instantly.
The police report showed that the accident had happened on the 3rd. Slightly before noon.
Try to fully understand China. Unless you do you will always have imaginary Chinese action. Let me help you. To China currency is meant to help transaction and to store wealth not trade currency for currency sake.
To China and to BRICS the SWIFT and its manipulative money trading scheme is just another western conspiracy to destroy countries by a stroke of a pen. China will not and will never play a meaningless game it is stacked against. China. So
it will not internationalise RMB or the Yuan. It will not try to helped prop it currencies artificially and it wanted a real currency value that. Is sustainable trusted. Playing Russian roulette’s with its 1.4 billion people’s wealth is not what China will do.The U.S. dollar used to be able to buy 100 items to day a mere 78 years later it can buy 3 of the same item. That is not good for Americans.
In fact between 1980–2020 Real Chinese income grew 30 times and the U.S. during the same time frame not only not grow. It went back to the 1960 level. So try imagine this. American today is doing worst than their grandpa! China wants its currency to buy roughly the same 78 years later. And an average Chinese have 50 times more Yuan.
What’s the funniest reason you’ve been called in to school to collect your child?
We were called to get our 16 yo boy. He had drunk a bottle of some alcohol during the lunch break. Then during the relaxation class, he fell asleep. When we got there around 90 minutes later, the high school was closed. We couldn’t get there any earlier as both of us worked around 70kms away.
We discovered from the cleaner he had been taken to the police station as they couldn’t depend on when we would get there.
Unfortunately, the police [ it was a small unit] had been called out to a large bushfire. So they put him in the outside exercise yard. The problem was it didn’t have a roof. When our boy saw us coming he climbed the chain wall and high-tailed it.
He slept at a mate’s place that night. The next day the high school said they were going to have him placed under care. His mum also a school principal said, “ over my dead body”.
We came and collected him. He was terrified his mum was going to hit the roof. Which she did.
We got called by the police to discuss his behaviour as they wanted to know how he had purchased the bottle. We counted with how could you lose our son when he is in your care. In the end nothing became of it and our son grew up and gained some brains.
As my first son learned to crawl and then walk, my wife and I played mantras to him, meditated by his side, and lit sacred sandalwood incense around him.
We co-slept and in the day he was always strapped to one of us, skin to skin.
He was breastfed exclusively for nearly a year and then given only organic, vegetarian food.
We didn’t buy him any guns or other toy weapons, only simple wooden and cloth playthings.
He was so peaceful that he radiated a tangible serenity.
Which made her happy—and me—because we wanted him to be calm, loving, and spiritual.
He’s seven years old now.
His favorite dish is a medium rare burger, he knows an embarrassing number of juicy curse words, and he’s obsessed with Nerf guns.
He likes to listen to rap music with phat bass lines, he finds talk of spirituality to be boring, and is not in the least bit interested in receiving affection.
But everyone is impressed by how determined, free-spirited, and bright he is.
And between you and me, I’m kind of happy he chose to do his own thing, to be his own being.
We love him more intensely than the blazing of the sun.
It took me a long time to realize that you can spend years and years of your life aiming for a particular outcome, just to have things turn out wildly different than you anticipated.
It took me a long time to realize that life is like a wild animal, like my son—fierce and free and beautiful, but ultimately, unpredictable, untamable, and unruly.
And I have the feeling it might take me the rest of my life to fully realize that this built-in uncertainty gives life a unique flavor that, after being acquired, tastes exquisitely delicious.
It could be because a lot of older people have tooth problems. An older relative, has dentures, I suggested that we go for steak, and she countered with a fish place, so she could be sure, that she wouldn’t embarrass herself having problems eating a tough steak.
The next time she was over, I had bought tenderloin steaks, and I cooked hers medium, which wasn’t as well done as she would have liked it, but was still pretty tender. Ours were medium rare.
She was upset with me, saying that she wouldn’t be able to eat the steak.
I showed her I could cut mine with my fork. She took one bite and was in love. She hadn’t had a steak she could eat in 10 years. She finished the whole steak, which she had said was too much, when she was looking at it. But once she started eating she couldn’t stop.
Every time we eat at restaurant, we have to make sure there is something on the menu that is soft for her.
So this is one possible reason.
Swarms of drones – kamikazes – attacked USS Thomas Hudner
The USS Hudner (DDG-116), an Arleigh Burke-Class Destroyer of the United States Navy, was attacked by a swarm of drones this morning, while patrolling the Red Sea. The ship sustained no damage or injuries to its crew.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) reported the incident after Houthis in the country of Yemen, took credit for launching the attack.
Houthis are now attacking United States Naval vessels over US Support for Israel, as the Israeli government engages in conflict with the Municipal Government HAMAS of the Gaza Strip.
The Houthis launched swarms of Iranian-made “kamikaze” drones in an unprecedented act of war.
Yemeni rebels who have become a force to be reckoned with in the Middle East, attempted to sink the U.S. vessel.
Not much more than a few thousand, which is surprisingly small. This is based on our DNA.
Unlike our chimpanzee cousins, all humans today have virtually identical DNA. In fact, one group of chimps can have more genetic diversity than all 8 billion humans.
Our minuscule genetic diversity indicates that at some stage, around 70,000 years ago, the human population dwindled to a very low level — maybe 2,000. In fact, it looks like we came close to extinction.
It was also around this time that our ancestors began migrating out of Africa.
This suggests there were dramatic changes to our traditional environment, possibly caused by the Toba supervolcano eruption 74,000 years ago, the biggest eruption in 2 million years, which left entire regions devastated by ash and climate change.
It’s 1964. Republicans are sane and intelligent. But they just got handed one of the largest losses in modern history, with LBJ winning the largest popular vote majority since James Monroe in 1820. Desperate for votes, they start pandering to racists who are upset about the Civil Rights Act and desegregation.
It’s 1974. Republicans just had their President outed as a criminal. They need an edge to get back in power. They start pandering to evangelicals, hoping their ability to believe in things they can’t see will make them easy targets for brainwashing.
It’s 1984. Republicans are scoring big points thanks to looking like the tough guys in the Cold War. They double down on the idea of growing the defense budget.
It’s 1994. Republican economic policies are dividing conservatives and just cost them the White House. They launch a 24-hour fake news channel to keep their base uninformed.
It’s 2004. Democrats have nominated a war hero for President and he should easily defeat the Republican incumbent. It’s time to start lying about his war record. Disinformation becomes the new norm.
It’s 2014. The economy is good. The nation is safe. But the President is black. Republicans dig up the 1964 playbook and capitalize on racism in their base.
It’s 2024. Sixty years of tactics have produced Republican voters who are racist, uninformed, misinformed, brainwashed, and violent. Now these people aren’t just voters anymore. They’re in Congress.
The president of the United States
China’s New Subs and Sonars Challenge Supremacy of US Silent Hunter Fleets
The People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) surpassed the US Navy in total number of warships in late 2021. Technologically too, China has made major strides, including in the area of submarine construction and detection. These advances have sparked concerns from observers that America’s powerful fleets could be left dead in the water in a crisis.
The PLAN’s military and technological prowess against the US Navy in the field of submarine construction and anti-submarine warfare is progressing apace, and the “era of total US submarine dominance” over the People’s Republic of China is reaching its end.
That’s the conclusion reached by one of America’s top cited business newspapers in a piece focused on the Asian nation’s scientific and industrial advances for naval warfare. China, the paper pointed out, is gradually “narrowing” the gap between itself and the United States in the highly complex fields of submarine technology and undersea detection.
These developments not only threaten the Pentagon’s regional strategy of hemming China into its home ports, but could challenge US naval supremacy globally over the long term.
Earlier this year, for instance, research by the US Naval War College’s China Maritime Studies Institute pointed to Chinese advances in efficient nuclear reactors, quiet-running pump-jet propulsion systems and internal quieting devices, the latter based on “imitative innovation” of Russian technology, predicting that the PLAN’s latest nuclear-powered subs will be much harder to track than before.
Additionally, analyses of satellite photos of the Huludao Shipyard in Liaoning, northeastern China taken last year showed the construction of sections of submarine hulls larger than anything US analysts have ever seen in a Chinese sub, along with what seemed to be plans to increase production capacity.
US media citing leaked US Navy intelligence already sounded the alarm about China’s impressive shipbuilding capacity this past fall, which at 23.2 million tons per year, compared with 100,000 tons per year in the US, gives the People’s Republic the ability to build warships at a rate some 200 times greater than the US in a pinch.
On top of that, the PLAN’s rapid construction of a vast network of underwater sensors in the South China Sea and other areas along the Chinese coast known as the “Underwater Great Wall”, to look out for sub, surface warship and aerial activity, means that the Pentagon will find it more difficult to place its warships, subs and aircraft in areas around the Asian nation. The Underwater Great Wall’s construction is reportedly nearing its completion, and includes a vast network of passive and active sonar sensors, plus remote controlled underwater and surface drones which can look out for enemy activity.
China is reportedly also “getting better” at finding silent-running US attack and cruise missile subs sneaking around near its home waters, combining buoy and drone-based monitoring with the use of patrol aircraft and helicopters, for example.
In addition are the PLAN’s growing number of exercises with Russia, which, it can be assumed not only increases the Chinese Navy’s ability to coordinate with its northern neighbor in the event of an emergency, but allows it to learn from the Russian Navy’s half century-plus year experience as a major global naval power rivaled only to the US.
“The implications for the US and our Pacific allies will be profound,” former US Navy officer Christopher Carlson said, pointing to the headaches the US Navy will face, and the additional resources it will need, to locate and keep track of China’s new generation of quiet-running nuclear subs.
Strategically, the outlet noted, maneuvers that the US once took for granted, like the ability to approach close China’s home shores, will now no longer be a given, with the PLAN’s nuclear-powered attack subs able to pick off approaching American warships before they could reach Taiwan in a crisis, for example.
On top of that is the Chinese sub-based ballistic missile threat to the US homeland –a threat Washington has long been used to meting out, but not experiencing itself, in relation to the Asian giant.
“Finding a boat this quiet is going to be really hard,” Carlson said of the Chinese sub threat, predicting the new Chinese boats will probably be about as quiet as the Project 971 Shchuka-B (NATO reporting name Akula, or “Shark”) class fourth generation nuclear-powered attack subs which the Soviet Union and then Russia started fielding in the 1980s and 1990s.
China’s fleet of 79 submarines includes at least 16 nuclear-powered attack and ballistic missile subs, including six Type 093 (NATO reporting name Shang class) attack subs and six Type 094 (NATO reporting name Jin) ballistic missile boats operating “near-continuous” patrols between Hainan Island and the South China Sea. But Carlson warned that the Asian nation could build up to triple the current US rate averaging 1.2 subs per year.
Costly as Aircraft Carriers, Difficult to Build
“Submarine-building is the pinnacle of technological excellence in economics and industry, and only a few countries have mastered the technologies which China has now broken into – France, Britain, the Soviet Union/Russia, and the United States,” Vasily Dandykin, a veteran Russian military analyst and retired Russian Navy Captain 1stRank, told Sputnik.
Several factors account for the US’ slowing pace when it comes to the construction of new submarines, according to the observer, starting with Washington’s decision to rest on its laurels after the end of the Cold War, to the drop in the number of high-class specialists in the field.
“The downtime” in the US’ submarine-related programs resulted from “complacency after the collapse of the Soviet Union,” when “not just America, but also Europe rested on their laurels,” according to Dandykin. “The Americans have the world’s largest military budget, which exceeds those of all other countries in the world. That means that somewhere they got carried away with such gigantic and expensive projects which did not justify their cost,” the analyst said, pointing to out of control spending on novelties like the $8 billion-per ship Zumwalt class of destroyers.
“There were a lot of such projects that sucked up a lot of money. And now it turns out that all of these experiments boil down to the fact that they’re 10 years behind Russia in the creation of a new fourth-generation strategic nuclear submarine,” made possible, according to the analyst, thanks to the backlog of revolutionary Soviet sub designs that Russian builders have been able to develop and build on.
“The ‘downtime’ that occurred had an impact in this area, not just with submarines, but the construction of the surface fleet, the entire American fleet. Here, without a doubt, China’s pace has been impressive, first and foremost in terms of the construction of large ships for the surface fleet. But I think they will push themselves and try to build up their nuclear submarine fleet as quickly as possible,” Dandykin predicted.
As far as China’s subs themselves go, Dandykin pointed out that for the moment, the majority of the PLAN’s fleet still consists of diesel-electric subs, and for them to reach the same technological level as the US, as they have already done when it comes to ships like universal landing ships and destroyers, will take time. The PLAN’s current nuclear-powered ballistic missile-launching subs belong to the second generation at best, in the retired naval officer’s estimation, and the newest efforts are aimed at the creation of third-generation vessels.
Accordingly, Dandykin believes US efforts to hype up the “Chinese threat” are “a little disingenuous,” and designed mainly to lobby for the allocation of even more resources for US sub-building efforts – a titanic effort equivalent, more or less, to the construction of an aircraft carrier in both technological and financial terms.
Surreal. Uncanny. Deja vu. That’s how I felt as I looked down on Southeast Asia from my seat aboard an airplane. The feelings intensified the longer I was there. While my friends made me feel so very welcome, even in my time alone the feeling never left me.
I began the first leg of my long journey back home by crying into my teacup in a cafe in Changi Airport. My heart felt heavy. I was glad to go home to my daughter but if she’d been with me on the trip I’m not sure I’d have returned to the U.S. willingly.
I have said that when I die I want my ashes to be scattered in China, because America is the place of my birth but China holds my heart. There’s something about the Asian region that draws me deeply. I have no Asian background or ancestry so I can’t rationalize it. It’s just how I felt.
I was fired after 11 years in a PR firm. I never clicked with the owner, and the feeling was mutual. I loved my colleagues, got along well with everyone, and consider them friends to this day.
I had just come off of a very trying time related to a proposal I was writing, had slept little, was burned out and mentioned to a colleague that I wasn’t sure I belonged there anymore.
Soon afterward, the boss took me into his office and said nobody wanted to work with me and that we had just lost a client that reduced our budget. His second in command sat through this with his head in his hands the whole time. He helped me clean out my office the next day.
There were other things going on at the firm. The owner was advancing in age and had promised a succession plan. He never delivered. One by one, after my firing, everyone quit. His firm, started in the mid-80s and one of the most prominent in the city, was done.
Two people told me that my firing was the trigger that made people start thinking about whether they wanted to be there anymore. I can’t take the credit or the blame for what happened, but the exodus was fast and devastating.
The public image of a celebrity can often be quite different from their true character. Take Ellen Degeneres, for example. On her show and in interviews, she appears to be a lovable, down-to-earth aunt-like figure. However, there have been numerous accounts from staff and crew members claiming that she is actually a nightmare to work with and a terrible person. So, which version is the truth?
Then there’s Sean Penn, who was once in a relationship with Madonna. It has been alleged that he kidnapped and raped her during the 80s. Additionally, Penn has been involved in some truly awful activities throughout his life. On the flip side, he is also the CEO of a large charity and engages in humanitarian work.
Another celebrity, Mark Wahlberg, is often seen as an extraordinary role model and a decent guy. However, it is important to note that he blinded a Vietnamese man during a fight and is a high school dropout. Please note that the mention of being a high school dropout does not imply that it automatically makes someone a terrible person, but it is worth considering when evaluating their status as a role model.
Tim Allen, known for his lovable and funny dad roles, has a dark side. Despite making people laugh out loud with his jokes, he has been described as a severe asshole who disrespects those around him. Furthermore, he was caught smuggling a kilo of cocaine in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and served time for it.
On the other hand, we have Danny Trejo, who was once involved in drug running for a cartel and had a long history of violence and addiction. However, he has transformed himself into a humble and honest man who actively tries to steer kids away from his former lifestyle. In person, he is charming and genuine.
Slave nations like Germany and Japan wrap themselves around US and western economic orbit. And the U.S. increase interest it destroy their banks and industry. Not China. China is in its own stable orbit. Today the U.S. interest is between 3–5% and China stays under 1% or so. It do its own thing.
US banks are dropping like flies. China’s bank is loaded with Cash. Chinese citizen on average save 35% of their income in Chinese banks. The U.S. citizens meanwhile saved in average less than 4%. So every year the Chinese add another 6–7 trillion dollars into their wealth and funds.
On FDI if the west reduce other nations made up for it and China’s own investment is so humongous. FDI from west means nothing.
I grew up in the USA. In high school, the lunch period was 25 minutes. On a normal day I washed down three peanut butter sandwiches and half a dozen cookies with a quart of milk and headed to the break room.
At least my parents enforced a family sit-down dinner, though it didn’t last long either.
My eating behaviour in college and working part time jobs was not any better, though the food choices were smarter and more varied.
When I started working in sales after college, I graduated to fast food eaten in the car.
At restaurants, servers were all over me, trying to turn the table in 45 minutes or less.
For me, eating was like putting gas in my car. Get it over and move on to the rest of life.
Then I moved to Germany. It was a shock. The canteen served excellent full hot meals and everyone took their time eating, chatting (but not about work), and taking turns buying coffee for the table.
It was impossible to get out of a sit-down restaurant in under 90 minutes without pushing the staff.
Dinner at friends was a four-hour affair.
I learned to love food and the community of sharing it with others. It wasn’t uncommon for less formal outdoor restaurants to seat me with other diners. I met dozens of fascinating people in that manner.
Ten years later I moved to France and learned that the French take mealtime even more seriously than the Germans. Employers even subsidise the canteen or pay part of the meal vouchers for each worker.
I think this question might be better phrased if it asked “What are the influences of culture on food?”
While the food does vary from country to country, I have little trouble in Europe to eat exactly what I ate in the USA. That’s why I don’t think it’s the food that matters.
Instead I think it’s the value people place on taking the time to savour their meals and those they share them with.
Zelenogradsk: What does a Russian city of CATS look like?
They are literally everywhere: occupying benches at observation decks, sitting next to tourists at restaurant terraces, strolling along pedestrian streets and (alright, fine) allowing you to take photos of them. Let’s pay them a little visit?
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You can definitely call the small city of Zelenogradsk (pop. 16,000) in Kaliningrad Region the “cat capital” of Russia. Everything there is dedicated to these furry animals, from souvenirs to… traffic lights!
The many cats of this city will gladly show a tourist the best photo spots (and the best lunch spots!). But, how did it come to this?
Zelenogradsk (Cranz until 1946) is an old resort city at the shore of the Baltic Sea. Cats usually like to settle in such seaside towns, closer to fishermen, fish and vacationers. But, in Zelenogradsk, they have become a real attraction of the city.
According to legend, centuries ago, cats saved the city from rodents that were destroying their food supply and spreading disease. Caring for stray cats is the locals’ way of expressing gratitude.
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Cats have always been living in Zelenogradsk. But, it was only recently that the city itself became the “cat capital”. It all started with the Murarium Museum in an old 1905 water tower. Local inhabitant Irina Klochkova decided to set up an exhibition hall for her cat statuette collection in the unused tower in 2012.
Real cats also live in the museum, with ginger-furred ‘Semyon Semyonovich’ chief among them. He became the prototype for the first museum souvenirs. ‘Murarium’ gained a lot of popularity among tourists; soon after, a lot of everything “cat-themed” began to appear in the city.
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As soon as you visit, you’ll immediately notice an incredible amount of cat graffiti on buildings. Souvenir stores, on every corner it seems, sell anything from keychains and magnets to shopping bags and mugs with cats on them.
The city’s central street, Kurortny Prospekt, even has mini-benches for cats, little traffic lights with flashing cats, as well as vending machines where you can buy cat food. The city administration even has the position of cat chief, a cat caretaker. Their responsibilities include feeding and taking care of cats.
And for those tourists who decide to have lunch on an open terrace of any cafe, just know you won’t be able to so in peace and quiet! The local cats will always investigate and will not be against the idea of sharing a meal with you.
By the way, there are plenty of dogs in the city, as well, but they seemingly maintain a neutrality with the cats. There are literally no fights or altercations to speak of these days.
There are two approaches to an answer, one superficial.
I’ll begin with the superficial.
Democracy, or one man one vote, is practiced by the Chinese. They have found the process is good at selecting leaders from small groups that work or live closely together. In fact, this is how the President is selected among the Politburo, and so on.
Unfortunately, one man one vote can and has been hijacked, particularly if money and power enters the equation. There are innumerable tales of village/town leadership seizing power through the “democratic process” and terrorizing “voters” for years on end.
When groups grow too large, voting among strangers can lead to undesirable outcomes.
That’s the modern Chinese experience.
Unfortunately, “Western democracy” isn’t just voting systems. It is a system of values and beliefs built on the foundation of western prosperity. For the past 5–600 years, it has been the absolute dominance in technology that has kept the West on top. That is how the top 12% of humanity today maintain radically different standards of living from the rest of the 88.
Until the emergence of China, only willing acolytes of the “Western model” made the leap into the first world, leaving has-beens by the wayside. All of them, to a fault, adopted Western-style constitutions, governments, legislation and thoroughly reformed society, in order to qualify for membership into the “globalized world”. In return, their economies boomed, powered by export-led demand from the first world.
Along came China, which is distinctly different, especially in the post-Soviet age of “the end of history”. Unfortunately, Communist China has succeeded wildly, way beyond the imagination of the “last man”.
Herein lies the rub. Chinese leaders had enough self confidence decades ago that the Western highway to prosperity wasn’t exclusive. Today, Chinese society is increasingly convinced their leaders were right, because they are living the best times in the sum history of Chinese civilization, a realized boast that reverberates through 4 millennia and >100 generations.
Western prosperity in the 21st century is no longer the shining city on the hill, cities of the future one can only dream of being teleported back home. A Chinese tourist visiting NYC, London, Paris and Berlin will be nonplussed by the sights, and perhaps repulsed by the smell and experience. Chinese cities have the same modern hardware, and services is rapidly catching up. And Chinese cities are evolving rapid improvement in quality of life metrics, while the west is stagnating, or worse, regressing.
The Chinese will go, that’s “Western democracy”, “in God We Trust”, and “all men created equal”?
Thanks, but no thanks.
Communism has our vote, because we live and breathe its outcomes.
Ukr Hard Day: Avdeyevka Cauldron, Kherson Bridgehead Cut Off, Wilders Wins; Biden BRICS Gaza Plan
She came to the surgery OPD by mistake on a day when our Plastic Surgery OPD was closed.
She had her face covered with a dupatta. I was immediately aware that she had some disfigurement that she was trying to conceal but it was only when I saw her treatment card that I realised what the reason behind it was.
I read the entire card and slowly looked up at her. She was looking at me with one eye while she kept the rest of her face covered.
“I was asked to come after 4 weeks. Here I am.” She told me quietly.
“Yes, I see it written here, ma’m, but our plastic surgery OPDs are on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. I am afraid, you’ll have to come back tomorrow.”
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
“Can’t you or the doctors here do anything about this?”
“We can but we are not plastic surgeons. We are not experts and we are not the best people to help you.”
“No one can help me, doctor. You know it.”
I had no answer to that.
“If there’s anything else I can do for you…” I said.
“What can you do? My life is ruined. All I do is travel between my home, the hospital and the court. The last few of weeks my life have been hell. The pain has been unbearable. I can’t even look into the mirror anymore. What do you think you CAN do? Can you get me to look like before?”, she said, her eye moist and a hint of desperation in her voice.
I was trying hard to act professional.
I wanted to say that I was sorry that this happened to her. I wanted to tell her that I felt a burning hatred for the person or persons who did this to her. I wanted to tell her that she shouldn’t give up because her life wasn’t over.
Yet, I didn’t say anything. Everything that came into my head began to sound empty as I was about to say it out loud. My words all seemed so woefully inadequate to offer any kind of assurance to her.
That’s why I was trying to be calm and professional. No pity, no sadness, no anger. I was just trying to do what I was there for: my job which was to try and help her.
“I’ll try to call the Plastic Surgery resident to see if he can come here and take a look at you. I can’t promise that he will but I will give him a call.”
“Thank you.” She said quietly.
Nodding, I took out my phone to call the resident.
“I shouldn’t have spoken like that to you.” She said, looking straight at me.
“It’s completely fine.” I said immediately. The last thing I wanted was for her to feel bad for me.
“No, it’s not. I know what it feels like to be spoken to like this, especially if you haven’t done anything to deserve it.”
“Really, ma’m, you do not need to apologise at all. It’s okay-”
“You know, what hurts the most? Before this I was recently-”
Married? Did the husband abandon her? That was the first thought that came to my head.
“-promoted. I was a receptionist in a famous hotel. I was good at my job. People speak to us rudely all the time but I was really good at handling them. There wasn’t a single complaint against me to my manager in the one and a half years that I had the job.”
She paused, looking down at her feet.
“It’s all gone now. They won’t let me work with this…face. It doesn’t matter how well I handle our customers if they can’t handle my face.”, she said, in a voice that was so matter-of-fact that my heart felt like it was being stabbed.
This was a woman who had been serious about her job. She had been excited about her future. She had been independent. The first thing she told me about her life was that she had lost the job she had worked so hard at.
I don’t know why but this case affected me so much more than other cases. Medically, there exist even more severe cases in which acid attacks have caused complete blindness, paralysis or in the inability to eat or swallow.
I know, of course, that you can’t quantify suffering and everyone has their own battles but this one…this one made me want to stop doing my work and go cry in a corner.
I forced myself to look away and called the resident. I managed to convince him to come and examine her.
“He’ll be here in fifteen minutes. Please wait outside.”, I said with difficulty because I felt a lump in my throat.
“Thank you.”, she said softly and left the room.
When you throw acid on someone’s face and they survive the attack, you take from them much of what we consider “life”. You take away choices, opportunities, self-respect and throw them into a world of such suffering that they have never known before.
My grandfather was once a lightweight boxing champ. He was healthy most of his life, but like everyone, he grew old. At 90 years old, though, he still liked to go dancing. He took his girlfriend to their elder community’s weekly dance. We went to join them for dinner and just visit them a while.
While I was up getting them plates from the buffet, two scummy men came in. They had been drinking and were looking for some old people to bully – no joke. They were in their late 30s/early 40s. They stopped at my grandpa’s table and started talking about his girlfriend. My grandpa stood up and told them to leave. I looked over and saw this jerk spit on the floor and shove my 90 year old grandpa.
I saw my grandpa stumble backwards against the wall, and I dropped the food tray and started moving towards him. It felt like slow motion.
Before I could get there, I saw my grandpa push off the wall and punch the guy square in the jaw. The man landed on his butt and slid backwards nearly all the way across the room! No one could believe what we saw, especially not the two creeps. His friend went over and helped him up, and everyone watched them leave with their tails between their legs.
I finally went back and got the food for them, and we sat and talked about what happened while they ate. After a bit, the two idiots came back with the police. They pointed by grandpa out to the officers.
The police didn’t believe their story, and we all acted like we didn’t know what they were talking about.
In last two decades hundreds of millions of Chinese have travelled overseas. Annually about 130 million Chinese travel outside of their country. So by now most of them may have realised that most of the rest of the world is very backward and not as advanced as they used to think.
And secondly they have their own continent sized country to travel and explore and will probably take a lifetime to explore fully. And every kind of tourist related attractions are within their own country be it tourist spots, beaches, deserts, cultural and historical sites, valleys, grasslands, snow and glaciers means in short every experience and to say the least their excellent infrastructure that makes travelling within China indeed a cakewalk.
If a Muslim unknowingly eats pork it isn’t a terrible problem. That doesn’t mean they won’t be upset though.
Regardless of how they feel about the pork, they will probably be more upset with you. Letting them unknowingly eat pork as a joke is a dick move of the highest order. I would recommend that you never tell them, if you want to maintain the relationship you have with them. If you tell them and laugh about it, no one is going to blame them for hating you forever. Others might join their camp.
Like I said, it’s a dick move, so proceed at your own risk.
Hoo boy. This is going to be one rough ride for humanity.
If we act fast, there is a chance that our species might survive for the long term, but we’re going to have to do things quickly. As soon as the Earth starts to move away from the Sun, things are going to cool off. A lot depends on exactly the trajectory, but even with a conservative estimate, we’re facing a snowball Earth scenario within a matter of years, when the surface of the planet can no longer support liquid water. It won’t take long for everything living on the surface to die.
However, not all hope is lost. The oceans will freeze from the surface downward, and as they freeze over they will in fact insulate the deeper layers. It could take hundreds of thousands of years before the oceans freeze solid, meaning some life may still manage to hold on in the deeper parts of the oceans for millennia, particularly where there is active volcanism going on, keeping things (relatively) warm. In theory, given enough time, we might be able to construct underwater habitats in the deep oceans as a refuge for humanity.
Another option is to simply go underground. On average, the temperature increases by about 25C for every kilometer we go down into the ground. Even when the surface temperatures have plummeted to -200C (when we’ve wandered out past Pluto), we “only” have to dig down a handful of kilometers before we can bask in the relative heat from the heart of our planet.
That heat from the planet’s core is what might ultimately provide the salvation for the species. While the rest of the energy sources we have available to us are ultimately based on solar radiation and will be forfeit once we’ve drifted from the Sun, our planet’s core is powered by radioactive decay and will keep on cooking for billions of years to come. We can harness this either directly via fission reactors, or indirectly through geothermal energy sources.
So here’s the scenario we might enact to provide for the continuation of humanity.
First, we determine what capacity we have for tunneling down into the crust and excavating areas large enough to create underground settlements. Perhaps the Boring Company will be in high demand in this scenario! Governments across the world pool their resources and a number of candidate sites around the globe are selected. Access to existing geothermal energy sources might be a good starting point.
Then we start digging. Temporary “camps” are excavated at shallower depths while digging proceeds ahead for future movements. In the meantime, each of these future colonies is prepared with resources that they’ll need to survive. Deep underground, some of the challenges will be oxygen and clean water; however, with artificial sunlight and proper preparation it should be possible to grow crops even underground. We’ll probably have to say goodbye to eating meat as raising animals for food won’t be an efficient use of resources, though we might keep some animals around for the sake of having animals.
At some point there’s going to be some kind of selection process for who gets to go down and survive. This won’t be pretty. Most of us will be left on the surface to freeze to death. But once it’s done, the selected groups can descend into the bowels of the Earth and begin a new subterranean existence.
Would it succeed? It’s hard to say. They have to dig deep enough, and that presents dangers in and of itself. Colonies could be destroyed by seismic activity that collapses them. In those kinds of close quarters, a disease outbreak could prove fatal to the whole group. Issues with food supply or water supply could doom a group. There are many ways in which any underground colony could fail, and it is almost a given some of them would.
But with enough luck, persistence and hard work, some of them might make it, and over the generations adapt to this new lifestyle. Maybe they’d even thrive to the point they could send excursions back out to the surface, exploring the frozen wasteland, travelling across the ice to visit other underground colonies. Maybe even once again find ways to build ships to leave the planet and try to find someplace nicer to take the family, so to speak.
From the Bayou Crawfish Louisianne
2023 11 26 19 45
Yield: 4 to 6 generous servings
Ingredients
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
1/2 cup chopped andouille sausage
3/4 cup chopped bell pepper (can mix the colors)
1/2 large onion, chopped
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1/2 to 3/4 cup whipping cream
1 pound crawfish tails
1 quart peanut oil
4 to 6 catfish fillets (2 to 3 ounces each)
Egg wash (egg white, water, milk)
Seasoned flour
Seasoning to taste
Cajun seasoning, pepper, red pepper and garlic powder
Instructions
In a small saucepan, melt butter. Add andouille, peppers, onions and Italian seasoning and sauté until tender (about 5 minutes.) Add mushrooms just before completion.
Add whipping cream, and reduce the sauce over medium heat.
Add crawfish, and cook for 3 minutes. Adjust seasoning.
Heat oil in a large saucepan.
Dredge fish in egg wash and then season with flour.
Make decisions for yourself and do not follow the opinions or actions of others.
Have a clear sense of who you are and what you stand for.
Spend time reflecting on your thoughts and emotions and deeply understand yourself.
Be capable of taking care of yourself and do not rely on others for support.
Enjoy spending time alone and find it more fulfilling than being with others.
Have a few close friends or family members and do not rely on the need for an extensive social network.
Enjoy exploring ideas and concepts and be comfortable contemplating complex topics.
Do not seek validation from others and be comfortable relying on yourself.
Have a unique perspective and approach to life and be confident going against the crowd.
Do not conform to societal norms or expectations and march to the beat of your drum.
The Chinese warship sonar incident
This mature and analytical write-up by John Menadue, November 23 is very constructive and logical.
John Menadue is the Founder and Editor in Chief of Pearls and Irritations. He was formerly Secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet under Gough Whitlam and Malcolm Fraser, Ambassador to Japan, Secretary of the Department of Immigration and CEO of Qantas.
…
“What a feast of anti-China stories we have had again from the Coalition and our media over the incident between HMAS Toowoomba and a Chinese PLA-N destroyer.
The whole issue really looks to be overblown – and seeded by some in the Sinophobia school who are worried about where Prime Minister Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong may be headed. The idea of “stabilisation” scares them, so they react by promoting some destabilisers.
The proposition that the Chinese warship was directed by Beijing – let alone President Xi – to initiate such “aggressive” action beggars belief. Like the ‘spy’ balloon exercise, where it seems clear enough that President Xi initially knew little about the whole thing.
Our ‘spooks’ depend on the CIA for about 90% of their overseas information and the Pentagon is building a network in our Department of Defence. I would very much doubt whether Albanese and Wong really know what ‘information’ the CIA and the Pentagon are feeding into our spooks.
The US expects that a pliant ally like Australia will do what it is told. It is concerned at recent events and prefers that we do not stabilise our relations with China. So this incident is a great opportunity for some destabilisation. And our poorly informed media tag along as always.
Given the unsurprising PLA comments the chances of misunderstanding the message or even miscommunication would have to rate high. If the PLA ship had been shadowing the RAN ship, which then decided to stop dead in the water to check for nets, would the Commander of the PLA ship not be a bit suspicious about what the RAN was up to and activate some of his intel alerts including special sonar to try to find out more? In any event presumably he would have had some of his sonar devices running while he was sailing anyway? Even if the PLA just happened on the RAN in the middle of the sea (electronically of course) would its initial reaction not be one of suspicion?
We probably will never get the real story of the actual communications between the two ships, but language problems cannot be excluded.
But Albanese and Marles (again and again) have been panicked into hasty responses for which we will pay. Marles should have tried to hose things down, but he invariably sings from the US song sheet. Albanese should stick to the line of not commenting in detail on his private conversations with world leaders. Blinken did this repeatedly over questions about the Xi-Biden talk. If necessary, the government can call in the Chinese Ambassador at Secretary level to make the point.
It is strange why Marles would want to play this up right now. The incident was not in the SCS but in Japan’s EEZ heading towards Japan. This could be in the contested area of the East China Sea, south of Okinawa.
It is also not clear what UN sanctions RAN was monitoring unless they were part of the regular monitoring of UN sanctions against North Korea. We have been doing that in the Sea of Japan further north.
These incidents should be sorted out by military to military communications and not as a stick for those who want to destabilise our improving relationship with China.
We would be more concerned if this incident occurred in waters adjacent to Australia and not in waters adjacent to China, which is already encircled by scores of US military bases. China would understandably be very sensitive about what happens in its proximity.
In any event, this incident is minor compared with the aggressive things we do that are hostile to China. RAAF P8 aircraft operating out of the Philippines drop Sonar buoys in the SCS to monitor Chinese submarines. This is not for the defence of Australia but to support the US in a possible conflict with China over Taiwan.
Our media have shown no interest in this issue. It does not fit the Western ‘China threat’ narrative that our White Man’s Media works so hard to construct and maintain, and so is ignored.”
If you’ve worked retail long enough, even if you’re amazing, you have one of these.
I work retail pharmacy. I had a woman come up to the sales counter with her adult daughter, wanting to buy a large quantity of Sudafed, but within the legal limit. Both of them were planning to buy, and they happened to mention that they were buying it for the woman’s mother, both of them. This is illegal, as in my state you must purchase it for yourself or your minor child. You actually sign an electronic document stating so.
I apologize to the women and tell them I can’t complete the transaction, and explain why, that it is against state and federal law.
Immediate attitude, along the lines of “Who do you think you are, you low born classless person to tell me and my daughter, with our bleach blonde hair and snooty attitudes ‘no!’”
The mother demands to speak with the manager, who isn’t there, we just have a staff pharmacist who’s witnessed the whole thing. She tells the woman that I can complete the sale.
I stare at her for a second before asking the pharmacist if she intends to pay my legal fees to reinstate my pharmacy tech liscense, and tell the pharmacist that if she wants to process the transaction she can, but that I WILL NOT.
She demands my register login and codes, because she’s not a regular pharmacist at my store. I refuse to give them to her, as that is a fireable offense.
The customer is staring at us, red faced and ready to burst, and demands I listen to the pharmacist, then demands I page store management when I explain that the pharmacist cannot compel me to break the law.
I page store management, and my favorite assistant manager comes over and asks what’s going on. By this point, the woman is using abusive language, and exclaims “This f*ggot won’t sell me Sudafed that is for me!”
At that point the manager raises an eyebrow and tells the woman she’s going to have to move her car.
Woman asks why.
“Because our parking is for customers only. You need to leave now. Our customers know they can’t talk to people like that.”
The woman throws a shrieking fit, shoving over a display of medication… which her adult daughter stops to pick up, apologizing the whole time.
The pharmacist in question got written up by corporate for an Ethics violation, and when my Pharmacy Manager told me I should just turn my ears off and not listen to conversations at the register and do my job, he got an Ethics violation that has left him stuck as a pharmacy manager.
The woman emailed the corporate office, and I got to see the reply which was basically ‘We’re sorry you had that experience, but our stores are committed to following state and federal law’ and they attached the laws in question, highlighted.
It was nice to be vindicated and defended for once, instead of thrown under that well known bus.
I was in a hospital, here at Rome, to visit a friend, and when I was going away I saw two American girls, one could hardly walk because she had fell and hurted badly her leg. I helped them to call someone to bring a wheel chair and they went to emergency. I went with them to help because they didn’t speak italian well. I asked why they didn’t call for an ambulance and they said they didn’t want t to spend too much money. They were worried about how much they would have to pay at the hospital too. I explained them, in Italy, the ambulance is free, and so the hospital. Even if she would have to stay there for days or weeks. No one in Italy could dare to ask a girl with a broken leg for money. Nobody could leave her without medical care even if the didn’t have money.
They couldn’t believe me . They continued asking if the hospital was going to send bills later. If they could pay later in installments.
The girls wanted to ask the administrative employee too, because they wanted to be sure. He gave them the same answer and they were very surprised.
Later the girls left the hospital, one had a cast on her leg but they had big, beautiful smiles!
Not me, but my mother. She was visiting the US for a ski holiday in New England and had a bad fall that resulted in a broken bone. As a result, she had to spend a bit of time in a hospital. Her stay was fortunately paid for by Canadian health insurance; can’t imagine how US citizens who don’t have or can’t afford coverage manage to pay for their care.
Anyway, I was curious to see what it cost after she got home, so she showed me the detailed bill. The total was shockingly high, no surprise, but one thing caught my eye. She’d been invoiced for 3X “helically wound cellulose absorbent matrix units” at $48 each. Curious, I contacted the hospital to ask what these could be. Can you guess?
They turned out to be rolls of bog-standard toilet paper, the number she was tracked as having consumed during her stay.
This was a Church of England (Christian) secondary school (ages 11-18) in the late ‘80s and the dress code was quite strict. Among the many rules was one that boys weren’t allowed to have long hair.
There was this old-fashioned teacher (Mr. Barabell) who’d been teaching there for ~30 years already by that point and was well-known for being strict but fair.
Anyway, there was this one boy (Luke) who decided that he wanted to grow long hair and he wasn’t going to let a stupid school rule stop him, and so he just let it grow. Initially he started getting comments from teachers about being “scruffy” etc. but eventually the situation came to a head in Mr. Barabell’s class:
A confrontation begins with the teacher telling Luke off— “There are school standards to maintain, “ and, “Does he think that he’s special, ” and so on. Well Luke—smart alec that he was—has a pre-prepared answer ready to go:
“But sir, Jesus had long hair didn’t he?“
As this point the class is completely silent waiting for a response, but instead of answering Mr. Barabell says, “Right, everyone come with me now,” and he turns and exits the class room. We all follow, including Luke, wondering what on Earth is going on.
Eventually we reach the school swimming pool and gather around. Then Mr. Barabell turns to Luke, points to the swimming pool and says, “Walk!”.
Luke is just standing there kind of shaking his head (knowing that he’s defeated) and the whole rest of the class is cracking up.
The teacher finishes with, “When you can walk on water, you can have long hair at school.”
Americans foolishly screamed and shout that they are the leader of the free world without ever questioning if it is even remotely true or not! Please don’t be angry or upset if I help you guys since I understand you can pretend to be free or even dare says you are ordained by god to spread democracy and freedom but you Americans are one of the least free country on earth.
Let me help you good American. So first I like to explain how unfree you guys are.
35% of you cannot get health care when you fall sick! The most basic of freedom is the freedom to see a doctor and get cure when you fall sick. At least 100 million Americans don’t have this basic of basics of freedom.
Next 1 million Americans are homeless and don’t have another basic of basics of freedom. The freedom to have a roof over their head.! They have to live in makeshift tents on the streets.
20% of Americans don’t have 500 dollars to their name and don’t know where their next meal is coming from! Surely everyone must have the freedom to have a hot meal to stay alive!
USA with about 4% of world population has 25% of the worlds prisoners population! Think about this my American friends, prisoners are certainly. Not free. Many of them coloured people thrown into jail for the slightest reason. How on earth can you keep a straight face to say U.S. is the leader of the free world. No one know!
In many cities in the U.S. one cannot go to certain parts of the inner city like the Queens in New York. As crimes are rampant. So normal innocent and good Americans like you have to avoid that part of America! Surely freedom means you can go to anywhere or any part of America.
Kids and parents suffers the mental turmoils daily for just going to school. Many got shot to death in schools, public places, cinemas and even in Capitol Hill! Is that freedom? Even your kids are not free to go to school without a random mass shooter lurking with military grade weapons to murder them! Is this freedom?
If you are not fortunate to have a white skin you could be necked to death in the bright daylight of even driving a good car may be be shot to death just for suspected of stealing the car! Everyday you live in fear of a white policeman! Is that freedom to live? Freedom to avoid death at the racist inclination of the white racist? Surely not.
Freedom means you can choose who you really want to be your leader. Only 30% choose Biden. Or 35% choose Trump! Why are they your president? Your system allowed 0.8% of the richest and most influential people to choose your candidates! Surely this is not political freedom. This is far from democracy. How on earth can you call yourself the “beacon of democracy” who in a sane mind can claim that?
Oh today you country stop the Americans from having access to best 5G technology, Smartphone, best EV’s, drones and others for some geopolitical nonsense! Is this freedom? Freedom to be deprived? Let me help you understand. You are deprived from buying a 10 bucks EV. And need to be charged once a week but you are not allowed to! You cannot buy your Tesla like for half the price! Just to support your too big to fail auto industry paying 100 million bonus doing shit for good Americans!
But to me EVs and Drones are just the top of the iceberg of your draconian and suicide policies that takes away the freedom of Americans like you. Think about Jullien Assange, Bradley Manning and Edward Snowden! Freedom? American is anything but free.
It was 2016 in Bruges, Belgium. I was with my parents and we had just hailed a cab that somehow turned into a ride-share with this British family.
All was well in the van until about three minutes in, when I heard the lady say: “These people look a bit funny, don’t they?”. I looked up to notice that they were talking about my family. In plain English.
I stayed silent as much as I could, as they went on discussing among themselves and chuckling over how we were so bundled up (It was in the middle of a freezing winter and I live in the freaking equator!) even though it wasn’t that cold for them, or how they couldn’t figure out where we’re from because apparently we didn’t look Chinese enough nor Middle Eastern enough for them (Answer: Neither – we’re Indonesian) and all. During the whole ride, they were mocking us.
My mother must’ve seen me giving them a death stare and asked if anything was wrong, in Indonesian. Topping it all off, they were of course chuckling at how my mom was talking really funny. I couldn’t stand it any more, so I answered my mom in English, making sure the British family heard me well:
“Yes there is a problem here. Some people actually still think that English isn’t a universal language by now, and think that it’s good fun to mock and make fun of other people just because of how they look”.
I spent the rest of the cab ride watching the blood drain from their faces. At least I was no longer the one being uncomfortable in that cab.
Feeling sad after making a decision doesn’t mean it was the wrong decision.
Life is not tiring. Wanting life to be a certain way but not having the confidence to make it that way, is tiring.
Self-awareness is realising that there is no opponent -you’re fighting against yourself.
Sometimes saying ‘goodbye’ doesn’t mean you don’t love something, it just means you love yourself too.
That lesson will repeat itself until you learn it.
If you keep one hand on your past and one hand on your future you’ll never have either. To embrace tomorrow, you must let go of yesterday.
The world starts and ends entirely inside your mind. No matter where you end up, no matter how rich, or successful you become, you won’t enjoy any of it if you get there at the expense of your mental health.
As a teenager, I worked in a gas station for a couple of years. A younger kid got hired who had some odd work habits. When the station owner would leave, the kid would just go sit down in the office. Meanwhile, I’d be pumping gas, changing oil, or mounting tires. I had no authority over this kid.
A few days after he was hired, I told the owner what was going on. An hour or two later the owner mentioned he was going home for an hour or two. He departed, the kid sat down in the office, while I finished doing an oil change and waited on customers at the pumps.
Ten minutes later, the boss walked out the alley where he’d parked his truck out of sight, and stood quietly in the shadows, watching me work, and the kid sitting on his butt. A few minutes later, the kid was fired. Word got around our small town pretty quickly, I don’t think this kid could find another job that summer.
Years ago I strained a tendon in my thumb. I went to one of those jenky quick service medical clinics to have it looked at and a person, who I assumed had some training in doctoring or nursing, prescribed me ibuprofen and put my hand in a brace.
I paid them like 50 bucks and went on my way.
A few weeks later I got a bill for the brace from a medical billing company in Texas. They assigned a cost of $750 to the brace, and only the brace, claimed to have billed my insurance for $450 and expect the rest from me. Of course, I sent them nothing, and the bills kept coming. The brace was essentially the same as one you’d buy at the drug store for about $35. It was nothing special and there was no way I was sending them any money. I tried to call them, but no one ever answered their phone.
Once my tendon healed, I put the brace in a box, along with a copy of their bill and mailed it to them. I never received anther bill afterwards.
In fact, there is no eternal empire in human history. From Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, China, Ottoman, Russia. The lifespan of any empire established by a civilization is limited. In other words, crashes are bound to happen.
But the difference between China and other empires is that most ancient empires collapse only once. Because the collapsed empire can never be rebuilt again. But China has such a magical power that no matter how it collapses, it will always be reunified after a period of time, and then climb to the peak again.
image 14
This picture shows the whole history of China. The crown represents peace and unity, and the sword represents division and war.
So much so that the opening sentence of the famous ancient Chinese novel “The Romance of the Three Kingdoms” reads: “The general trend of the world is that if it is divided for a long time, it will be united, and if it is united for a long time, it will be divided.”
Why China has such magic power, historians have many opinions.
One of the more widely recognized statements is this:
4,000 years ago, the Chinese were born on a land suitable for farming. Since the earliest civilized countries were established, they have been a typical agricultural civilization.
From the earliest recorded history of China, they have faced the threat from the north. That is the nomadic civilization galloping on the grasslands. In the early historical documents of Chinese dynasties, the invasion of nomadic civilization was recorded many times, and even the most brilliant Western Zhou Dynasty perished because of the invasion of nomadic civilization.
The ancestors of the Chinese discovered that the agricultural civilization, which is good at farming and construction, cannot compete with the nomadic civilization, which is good at riding and archery, in war. (Infantry can hardly defeat cavalry). But as long as they are united, they will become more powerful. If 1 person can’t defeat the enemy, then 3 people; if 3 people can’t, then 10 people. Since agricultural civilization can breed more wealth and population, once China is united, the nomads are no match at all.
In 221 BC, the Qin Empire unified China for the first time, defeated the Xiongnu in war, and built the Great Wall to keep them out of the cold north. The Han Empire went a step further and formed a professional army of hundreds of thousands of people, went on an expedition to the desert, and completely defeated the Xiongnu. A unified and strong state always protects its people from harm. And when the empire crumbles and divides, China becomes weak. For example, the Northern and Southern Dynasties and the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period were all like this. At this time, the enemy from the north invaded, the internal war was in chaos, and the society was dark. People cannot live a normal life, and starvation and death become the norm. Every round of imperial collapse and division in Chinese history will be accompanied by wars and a significant reduction in population. The lessons of history have engraved this truth deeply in the hearts of the Chinese people—unity is justice and light, and division is evil and darkness. The Chinese yearning for unity transcends history, time, religion, and nationality.
Therefore, the ultimate political goal of every careerist who wished to seize power in ancient China was the same: to unify the country and obtain the “sky destiny”. Only in this way can we gain the support of the people.
Imagine if in Europe, every German thought the German government was evil, the British thought the British government was dark, and the French thought the French government was corrupt. These governments should all be overthrown. As for the reason, there is only one: they don’t want to unify Europe, which is not the right direction.
What a terrible and incredible power this is, but the Chinese have such power.
I used to date an American. At the time I lived on an estate where to get out, you had to drive under a railway bridge arch. He got annoyed with having to wait for oncoming traffic to clear and demanded to know “why the hell didn’t they build this with two lanes?” I said it was built 150 years ago for stagecoaches, before cars were even invented. Americans forget how old England is.
I asked a cycle rickshaw driver in India if I could have a turn. “This’ll be as easy as riding a bicycle,” I thought.
Technically, that’s exactly what it is. Only that you’re pulling someone else’s weight as well. Or even that of several people.
His face had all those deep grooves from the harsh sun beating down on him all day. His arms and legs were as thin as twigs. His ribcage bulged through a sweat-drenched tanktop.
I was less than half his age and enjoyed the kind of nutrition he could only dream of.
“You’re a tourist,” he protested.
But I insisted and he sat on the vinyl seat in the back.
I mounted the driver’s seat brimming with confidence and pressed down on the pedal.
It didn’t even budge.
I stood up and pushed down with all my might.
The rickshaw squeaked forward a couple inches.
By this point, the driver was laughing hysterically.
I conceded defeat, we changed positions, and he sailed down the street with an ease I could not even begin to fathom.
And while he was no industry-disrupting maverick, he was solving a real problem—helping people get from A to B.
My view of manual laborers was forever changed.
I learned that technique always trumps strength.
And that every honest line of work deserves our utmost respect.
There’s a lot of people chatting about “reptilians”. My (MM) opinion is that (as far as the Earth is concerned), our environment is not conducive and supportive of a human-sized intelligent reptilian extraterrestrial. The size betrays the need for large amounts of oxygen and that impacts the brains size and cavity.
Reptilians can exist, mind you, but not as intelligent beings. Not around our star, and within our present environment.
I had the opportunity to inquire to the Domain Commander about this issue on a chat that I had while riding the public bus. (Yup, welcome to MM land.)
There ARE extraterrestrials that have a reptilian form, and they are intelligent.
They however, are unable to operate within this solar system effectively.
Thus, any extraterrestrial beings that operate within our Earth environment take on other “forms”. Not reptilian.
That being said, one should not discount the reports that reptilians and shape-changing beings are common in the earth environment. They are not. What is instead being reported is a cloaked image that presents a reptilian image directly keyed to satiate the observer.
The primeval state is insectoid. Not reptilian, however, many human observers would find a projection of a large insect far too disturbing for purposes of contact, thus a reptilian image is preferred.
Better to see a human-sized lizard, than a giraffe sized preying mantis. Don’t you know.
Back when I was in college (early ‘70s) everyone hitchhiked. I would hitchhike alone or with friends almost every other weekend in upstate New York (yes, I’m a guy). Our trips were always taken on part of the NYS Thruway, and there were unwritten rules that hitchhikers followed. There were usually three, four or more hitchhikers just before the toll booths, each person or group would be spread out 20 or so feet apart. We would all have signs for where we wanted to go, usually the city/town/exit we wanted to get dropped off. The person/group that was closest to the toll booths had priority for being picked up, if you were just getting to the thruway entrance, you took the spot farthest away. As people got picked up, your place in the queue got better.
My friend and I actually started a small business. We got large pieces of white oaktag (two feet wide) and created stencils that we would spray paint with dayglow orange paint. We would sell them to people who were going to hitchhike, they were always the best signs of anybody looking for a ride, they loved them. We also made copies of tips and rules (we would always be amazed at stupid ways people dressed to be standing outside, sometimes in the snow/rain for hours). I’d say we got a ride 95% of the time, we never had any problems.
The topper though was: “You will have to wait until Monday.”
Er, no I don’t.
I paraded in front of that branch with a sign stating the facts – this branch did not have $1000 on hand – causing quite the queue to form….of demanding account holders.
Presto. $1000 cash appeared, with no delivery that I observed, nothing.
Dude, age 37, sexist as hell, has a theory that only very few women are smart. Very few. He could maybe count them on one hand.
He, on the other hand, is the love child of Stephen Hawking and Albert Einstein high on NZT.
We are at a party, all PhD students, the women’s section seriously looked down on by this Dude. He of course has to start an intellectual fight over something one of the girls is majoring in. He dies to prove that she has grey spots in her logic/theory. Girl is super chill, Dude makes very little sense actually. He is mostly arrogant. Finally he names a study written by a female author, says Girl should only talk with such confidence if she is as smart as that woman. Yeah, the author lady is one of the few super intelligent “females” he would be able to accept as a partner in all terms.
Girl laughs and pulls out her laptop to show Dude how the study is actually her own article. She wrote it. She is the super intelligent author lady.
Laugh rumbles for minutes, Dude leaves a contrail behind in his rush to get out, trying to act hurt.
I was 19 and doing my internship in a midsize Pune based CA firm. My boss and I were working until around 8:30 p.m. Other employees had already left.
My Boss: Vikas, we should leave now, it’s 8:30 p.m.
In an attempt to impress my boss, with how dedicated and hard working I am, Isaid “Sir, you leave. I will finish drafting that partnership deed and then go.”
My Boss: Are you sure? It can take 2 hours.
Me: No problem, Sir. I’ll finish it this evening and set the copy on your desk before leaving.
My Boss: OK. Lock the office carefully.
Here is the catch, I had already drafted that deed, and it was ready to be printed out. I went to my desk, waited few minutes, ensured boss had left his cabin, then took printouts, neatly placed it on my boss’s table. Switch off lights and locked the office. Went down the cafeteria downstairs and started having my food.
But I forgot, there’s a balcony adjacent to my boss’s cabin. He was actually in the balcony talking on a phone, while I locked him in his own office.
But that’s only half part of embarrassment story.
My boss realised I’ve locked him in, saw the partnership deed print outs on his desk, he understood the entire matter (he was a smart and jolly person in 30s, who has gone through that same phase of internship).
He called me : Vikas, where are you? what are you doing?
Me: Sir I am in office, typing that partnership deed.
Boss : There’s no need to type that deed. I’m in my cabin now, holding the printout of that same partnership deed.
Me:……………!
Boss : So please come to the office, unlock the door, let me go home!
If he had scolded me, then okay. But he never said a word about my oversmartness.
It was a second date, and we went to an Indian restaurant. The waiter made a mistake with our order, and instead of causing a scene I was apparently completely sympathetic and understanding.
I say “apparently” because I don’t actually remember this at all, since being nice to waiters is my default mode, but my date really noticed. It seems that almost everyone else she’d dated would put on some kind of show in order to show how assertive and macho they were, no matter that it involved humiliating someone for a mistake anyone could have made – and she said that that was the precise point when she thought that I might have long-term relationship potential.
Fifteenth wedding anniversary this month. Moral: be nice to waiters.
My father was a very distinguished British judge and widely recognised as one of the finest legal minds of his generation.
Whenever he bought a car, he set up a savings account to pay for the eventual replacement. The account was with a major international banking group.
When the time came to replace his car, he discovered that this type of account had been mothballed, and no interest had been paid for years. He’d overlooked the notification small print amongst the endless stream of marketing bumf from the bank.
His initial complaint was rejected. So my father wrote directly to the Chair of the Board, pointing out that this policy discriminated against the bank’s most vulnerable customers, with an incisively argued opinion that the policy was illegal under EC consumer law.
Not long afterwards he received a personal letter from the Chair. After apologising profusely, he assured my father that the policy would be changed, and that many thousands of customers of discontinued accounts would have their interest paid in full plus additional compensation. This will have cost them many millions.
It’s not often that a single customer complaint changes the policy of a major corporation. Their lawyers must have checked my father’s reputation and realised that they were on a legal hiding to nothing.
They tangled with the wrong guy!
Copeland’s of New Orleans Bananas Foster
New Orleans Bananas Foster
Ingredients
1/2 cup (1 stick) whole butter
4 whole bananas, peeled and cut into fourths
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup light cream or Half-and-Half
1 ounce banana liqueur
1 ounce rum
Instructions
Place half of the butter in a heavy gauge skillet over medium heat and melt. Add the sugar and cream. Cook for approximately 2 minutes until the sugar is dissolved.
Add cut bananas and the cinnamon to the skillet and stir to coat.
Remove the skillet from the flame. Add the rum and the banana liqueur.
Swirl to incorporate and place the skillet back on the flame. (**Be careful because the alcohol may ignite when you place it back on the flame.)
Add the remaining butter and swirl to incorporate.
Serve over your favorite ice cream, pound cake, or biscuits.
They had a warrant for the guy related to money laundering and racketeering, but they knew he was a hit man too. They were going to hit his house early one morning. The bust crew staged around the corner, and my dad said he would cruise by the house to check for any unforeseen circumstances, and verify the street address. My dad pulled up in an unmarked suberban, and stopped briefly in front of the guys house. At that moment, hit man dude walks out in his bath robe to get the morning newspaper. My dad (in plain clothes) said “excuse me, can I ask you a quick question?” Dude said sure. He walked up to my dads window. My dad says aren’t you so-and-so? Guy says yes i am. Dad flashed his badge and says sir, i got a warrant for your arrest. Dude looks around, then said really? Dad says yes sir, put your hands on my hood please. And handcuffed him right there in his bathrobe. Then called the bust crew and told them “well, i got him. He is in custody “.
Dude was actually super cool. Said he was gonna need a few minutes to explain this to his wife because she had no idea about this part of his life. They gave him that courtesy
When I was younger I had been babysitting for my nephew but they had recently moved to a new apartment in a part of the city I didn’t know. My parents had drawn a map to get me there, but I ended up not quite getting the same route back. It was gone 2am and I emerged onto a little roundabout from a different road than expected so I went around twice to get my bearings. And of course a cop car just happened to see it and pulled me over.
They asked me why, I told the truth and showed them the paper map. They asked me if I’d anything alcoholic to drink and again I truthfully said no. I don’t blame him for not believing me, given the time, a Saturday night and the situation so I took the breathalyser. I knew it would come back totally negative so I wasn’t worried. So of course it did, and they let me go. But before they left, the officer looked at me and very honestly and earnestly thanked me for my polite, respectful, courteous and cooperative attitude.
Apparently they don’t get pleasant, polite attitudes from the people they encounter very often and it was nice for them.
Not too long ago, I was “de-marketized” by my former bank, Royal Bank of Canada, for accepting too many payments from companies I work for from PayPal.
from the Financial Times
This is one of Canada’s Big 5 banks, and I had been banking with them for well over 30 years. I had actually spoken to their security department about this as they wanted to confirm that all of my transactions were legal and not something out of fraud or whatever, which I didn’t mind being audited on as all of my work was legal, just not paid through the usual ways.
The bank’s security had cleared me, but they were then overruled by some other department in their head office, and suddenly I get a letter saying I was being “de-marketized” which involves having ALL of my accounts, investments, retirement funds and so on be shut down and be forced to move to another bank. There was no way to appeal, no way to complain and no act I could do to stop this. So having exhausted almost all of the avenues of redress (there’s still the Federal banking ombudsman), I had to scramble to get all of my accounts out to another bank.
Now normally I would say, “good riddance” as I’ve found that the service at my new bank far superior than what I’ve encountered with RBC. RBC put me through essentially bureaucratic hell for a month as I had to fill out this form and that form…. but now you’re probably wondering where I’m going with all this.
Well, when I had moved my investment accounts (my retirement funds) out to another bank, they had the gall to charge me $150 for the priviledge to MOVE THE MONEY OUT despite them FORCING ME OUT. And worse, if I hadn’t screamed absolute murder to the highest mountains, they tried to RETURN MY RETIREMENT SAVINGS STRAIGHT TO ME AS CASH. To do this would AUTOMATICALLY incur an instant 25–30% INCOME TAX CUT OFF THE FUNDS, which would have been in the THOUSANDS of dollars! If it wasn’t for my new bank instructing me EXACTLY what I needed to do to avoid incurring the loss and telling them I was absolutely ready to put this whole mess on LOCAL NEWS, they wouldn’t have “suddenly” discover that there was a way for me to transfer the money without the tax implications.
So in the end, I still only got hit by the $150 transfer fee, but this was absolutely absurb as I never would have been hit with this if they didn’t force me out in the FIRST PLACE.
High Alert! China Is Now Launching Their ‘Submarine Killer’ To Counter US Nuclear Submarine
China commands one of the best naval powers in the world. With modern naval vessels, advanced naval technology with no rival, a majestic naval infrastructure and the largest commanding navy in the world, the PLA Navy is by no means playing around. A recent development has come into light which reveals China’s plans of developing a next generation naval demolisher that will definitely be a force to be reckoned with.
My husband was the 82nd paratrooper with the tweaked shoulder, I was the new wife hip deep in a Ford Pinto doing an oil change and tune-up at the Hobby Shop on post. He was an E-5 Sergeant, we didn’t have money for someone else to work on our cars, so “we” were working on the Pinto of Many Colors (think primer on all four fenders in four different colors — not me, I swear!) This particular Pinto we’d paid $186 for because the little old lady who sold it to us took $14 off because we’d have to register it — 94,000 miles later, I figured we got our money’s worth. But it did require maintenance.
Hubby was handing me tools one-handed. I asked for an extension for a stubborn spark plug and he went to “check it out” which you could do at the post Hobby Shop.
Someone from the next bay handed me the tool and said, “Try this one.”
I took it and said, “Thank-you, kindly.”
There was some inconsequential chit-chat, and I said, “You sound like home.”
He was from home, less than an hour from home anyway, La Follette, TN.
That was it, a short conversation with a soldier, a good ole Southern boy in a white T-shirt tucked into belted jeans. He was a little older than everyone else in the bay, but oil needed changing, right?
Hubby gave me big eyes and said, “Thank-you, SIR.”
It was the GENERAL Carl Stiner, his many boss’ boss, head of the 82nd at the time.
The Pinto started right up and ran like a top. Hubby’s shoulder healed. And the general went on to great things with Special Operations Group and to co-write a book with Tom Clancy. But I think of him changing his own oil in a tucked-in T-shirt at the Hobby Shop.
Strangest things on camera
WHAT ELSE COULD GO WRONG?
A man was skydiving one bright sunny day. He pulled the string to open his main parachute – but nothing happened – the parachute did not open! So he pulled the string to open his reserve chute – but that didn’t open either!!
‘Oh no’, the man thought to himself. ‘The way things are going, my car probably won’t start either when I try to drive home!!!’
This is a favorite story of mine. If you watch my show the original creature features on YouTube, You will note that I wear an eye patch. I have been blind in one eye for almost 60 years And I have made a point of wearing an eye patch in all of my ID photos because it makes it easier for people to know it’s me. Having a damaged eye is a hard thing to fake. So I went down to the DMV to renew my license and they said I had to take an eye test remember I am wearing an eye patch. They first told me to cover my left eye and read the chart, the eye with an eye patch. I told them that it would not affect anything as I don’t have an eye and I am in fact wearing an eye patch but they said I could be faking it so I had to cover my left eye and read the chart. That was not the stupid part. They then told me I had to cover my right eye, The only eye that can see and read the chart. I again told them that I was blind in my left eye and was in fact wearing an eye patch over my left eye which i’d be willing to remove so that they could see the lack of a left eye. They pointed out that despite being qualified to be at the DMV or Possibly because of it, They were not qualified to look at my eye and tell that it was blind and that I still had to cover my eye and read the chart. Again they pointed out that I could be faking it, There could be a hole in the eye patch that I’m seeing through. I said let’s just write down that I saw nothing and they said they couldn’t believe me until I covered my eye and then told them I saw nothing. I asked them what would be the advantage to me to lie on my DMV eye Test that I was blind. They couldn’t tell me but required that I covered my only good eye and try to read the chart. I covered the eye said I couldn’t see anything and they proceeded to give me my new driver’s license. I desperately want to work at the DMV as I don’t believe I am stupid enough to possibly ever be fired.
“We all printed off our copies of the speech and she had hers on her computer! I can’t even believe that. I was so pissed.”
“Did you tell her to print it?” I ask.
“Well, no,” she admits. “But I think it’s fairly obvious—”
“If it’s so obvious, you’d think she’d’ve done it,” I observe.
“She was probably just being lazy.”
“Or she didn’t have the same expectations as you. If you wanted her to do something, you should’ve told her. You can’t really be mad about something you never said.”
Many people think it’s valid to get upset about assumptions.
But if you want something done, say it. If you don’t like something, say it. If you need something, say it.
Don’t assume that others see what you see.
It never hurts to discuss things.
And it never hurts to say what you’re thinking.
Communication.
It rocks, yo.
NDE REVEALS: The REASON We CHOSE To Incarnate During This DIFFICULT Time!
My best friends 5 year old son stayed with me for a week (my friend and her husband went on holiday). I was pregnant at that time.
One evening after bringing him back home from the park, i was panting walking home. As soon as he got home, he disappeared into the bathroom.
I could hear running water, but didn’t think much of it. I thought he was washing his hands (and he takes long).
While he was doing his thing, I went to the kitchen to warm up dinner, I saw him pull a chair to the bathroom. Obviously this wasn’t normal. I followed him to the bathroom, but he asked me not to come in for two minutes.
When he finally opened the door, he’s filled the bathtub with hot water, added soap for bubbles, cologne for smell (he probably didn’t realize that soap had smell too). And he’d kept the chair just outside the bath tub so I could sit and soak my feet in hot water.
He said that’s what dad did when his mum was expecting his sibling. It takes away all the pain he said!
Obviously the sweetest thing a child has done
Wife Says She “Wasted Her 20s Raising Kids” So She Wants An Open Marriage…I Said I Want A Divorce
So you know how in the Lord of the Rings books, orcs are corrupted, debased creatures made by foul darkness in mockery of elves?
That’s kind of what English muffins are to crumpets.
If you’ve only had English muffins but never has your mouth known the blessing of a crumpet, you might think they are in some way kin, without realizing how the English muffin is a fel and evil mockery of a crumpet. To taste a crumpet after a lifetime of English muffins is to know true bliss, as if you’ve had your first hint of a brighter world, a breakfast delicacy buttered by the loins of Aphrodite herself.
Not my boss, it was an important client. A client we couldn’t afford to lose.
A desperate call came in Friday morning. An American investor wanted an English translation of their just released 68-page German annual report for Monday.
I knew it was a huge problem, but I stayed calm as I ran the word count to see how bad it was.
Doing the rough math, I told him we needed to find at least 3 additional financial translators (plus yours truly) who might be willing to work a 32-hour weekend on short notice. I would call him back as soon as I had news.
Now this was back in 1998, long before Google Translate and DeepL.
I sent an email out to 11 translators and got on the phone to follow the mail.
After 8 calls I had my 3 translators, but there was a catch. The least expensive one was asking for 240 marks (120 EUR) per hour. The most expensive wanted 400 marks (200 EUR).
That was outrageous, but as they all pointed out to me, only outrageous people ask suppliers to change their weekend plans on Friday morning and tell their loved ones they are working a 16-hour Saturday and Sunday.
Normally this job would have been quoted just under 8,000 marks with a one week delivery time, but to complete over the weekend it would cost 45,000.
I called back the client and told him we could deliver for Monday at a price of 45,000… or we could deliver a week later for 8,000. I asked him to talk it over with his investor and get back to me asap.
The return call came pretty quickly. Monday in a week would be just fine.
The moral of the story is, be nice, but be firm. Set a price for losing your weekend. It can be extra money, extra days off or maybe even a promotion.
Then let the boss decide whether it’s worth it. Your weekend belongs to you, but you can always sell it if the price is right.
It was on our honeymoon and I knew then I made a mistake by marrying him. We argued a lot. He was angry with me because I couldn’t read a map. I COULD read a map just fine, it was the map that wasn’t clear as to which way to go. I gave him the map and he couldn’t figure it out either. 15 years go by, our two daughters were 10 and 13 and starting with the mouthy disrespect, but only towards me. The girls and I got into a verbal confrontation about respecting me, right in front of him. He gathered both girls to hug them and told them I was “tetched” or in other words crazy and they didn’t have to listen to me! So instead of backing me up he just made it worse. It was all downhill from there. Time goes by. Every single night, just like his parents, come home from work, eat, shower, watch TV and go to bed. Repeat until death. Repeat, repeat, repeat. Rarely go to a movie or anything else. NEVER go anywhere on vacation. I could not live like that so I decided to start my own business, which did pretty well. Went by myself on simple vacations since he didn’t want to go. So after 32 years wasted with this man, he decides to cheat with my businesses book keeper who was my best friend. I should have listened to my instict, left him to figure out his own map and walked out while on our honeymoon.
Psychologist Explains WHY Women Have To EARN Affection
“Women treat men like men treat their jobs. Men treat women like women treat money”.
And…
“people want what they want. Not, what wants them.”
I had an offer and counter offer then agreed to sell. I signed the papers and gave them to his realtor. The realtor said he would take them to the buyer tomorrow. It would have closed in a couple weeks. I was on a tight deadline to sell, it was 1994 and tax law gave me two years to sell and time was up soon. Later that same day another realtor brought me an offer that was VA preapproved and could close that week. Since the first buyer hadn’t signed yet I was able to recind my agreement to sell and accept the new one. His realtor cost him a house
“You haven’t passed the trial period”, I said to the manager.
I was having this interview for a job I really wanted. The interview went well, but the employers explained that since they couldn’t tell from an interview how I would do in practice, there would be a trial period of three months. I was happy with that; if I didn’t pass the trial period, at least I’d gain experience.
So I began my trial period, but already in the first week I didn’t like the atmosphere in that place. The manager who was so nice during my interview, turned out to be loud, on the verge of being a bully. He was walking in the place like a dictator and people would go quiet every time he was around them. I’m prone to anxieties and I knew it wasn’t going to work for me. Yes, I needed the money and I loved what I was doing, but it didn’t do good to my soul.
I was taking my time deciding though, but then one day he was shouting at one employee so badly (and in front of others), that I made up my mind. It was nearly the end of my trial period, and at the end of that day I went to his office and asked to talk. He said, “Please come in, I was actually planning to talk to you after the weekend, we’ll sign a contract next week.” I said, “Thank you but I won’t be staying, I can’t stand the atmosphere in your place.” He said, “What? why? don’t take it like that, we are busy, it’s nothing personal, and you have definitely passed the trial period.” I said, “Yes, but you haven’t passed the trial period!”
I was 17. 2 cops pulled me over and checked me and my car out. They found a pair of pliers on the back floorboard. They were looking at me all suspicious like. I was shaking. One of them said “We’ve got you now”. I managed to say “For what?” They looked at each other and then one said “Cattle rustling” I said “But we’re in the middle of the city”. They started laughing. Turns out there’s an old Texas law dating back to the 1800s that forbids anyone from carrying wire cutters. We all got a laugh and they let me go.
I came to USA married and our daughter arrived 5 years later.
I decided to teach her Portuguese since it is our mother tongue.
When my daughter was 7 years old, she did not want to speak Portuguese anymore. One day, coming from school, she began telling me some situation that happened at school in English. I told her: “Please, tell me in Portuguese.” My English is excellent, but the reason that I wanted her speaking in Portuguese was because of her future, it is a plus when you can acquire a language as a child.
She got upset and told me she did not want to tell me anything anymore. I told her to go to her room and come back when she was ready to speak. It took her a few minutes, but her reasoning was valid: “Mom, everything happened in English”. But she told me the story in Portuguese, with some American words.
A decade passed, she is in nursing school where she learned Spanish. Since both languages have Latin roots, it was not very difficult to learn it.
Today she is a nurse. Almost every week she comes home telling me how impressed her foreign patients are with her Portuguese. The hospital administration asked her to do some tests for her to become their official translator.
Here and there she thanks me for not giving up on teaching her Portuguese. It has opened many doors to her.
They took all the power tools off of my service truck.
Told me I had to go see Bob Laublaub (not his real name) at the shop.
Yup…They’re firing me.
So I go into Mike’s…Ermmm Bob’s office. He has a termination slip and a check he is filling out by hand, my payoff. He says, “We are letting you go, it’s a clean layoff”. True to his word it was a clean ROF (reduction of force). I sign it, he already has. As soon as I sign it I am no longer his employee, so I ask him, “Why”? He states “We had a complaint from a customer that you were spending too much time in your truck smoking cigarettes”.
“Ohh,” I replied and handed him his copy of the termination form.
When one of my best friends from high school got married, she asked me to be a bridesmaid. I was pretty honored, and said yes. Then she told me I had to order a dress in a size 16. I was a size 2 at the time.
Her reasoning: she was portly, as were her bridesmaids, and if I was up there in a gown that showed how slim I was, I wouldn’t “match” the bridal party.
The dress was very low cut, and the only straps a loop of fabric on each side, like this, in lieu of sleeves. The skirt was much fuller.
What was I supposed to do, walk down the aisle holding my arms over my head, dragging two pounds of fabric? How would I walk with all the fabric tangling between my legs?
The amount of U.S. treasury notes held by foreign countries is well known.
China’s current holding of U.S. treasury instruments is, roughly, $859 Billion (U.S. of course). That’s less than one trillion.
And the U.S. treasury owes that much money to China because China loaned the United States that much money (although there’s probably some interest in there). The United States isn’t going to turn down perfectly good money just because the Chinese have it. For one thing, if the U.S. government refused to sell U.S. debt instruments to countries for U.S. dollars, those countries would probably trade them on the open market for Euros or something and drive down the value of the dollar. Then the Europeans who sold Euros would be investing the money in U.S. treasury notes anyway.
They are intelligent and play the long game. They’ve watched the effects that immoral contents have had on other countries for the past few decades and they’ve decided they do not want a similar fate for the youth of China. I commend them.
Meet the woman who killed the President of France with a blowjob:
Marguerite Steinheil was a woman who lived a very interesting life. She was a socialite whom became famous for her many affairs with very prominent French men at the turn of the century, she became embroiled in international political scandals and once attempted to frame her manservant for the brutal murders of her husband and mother, a crime for which she was heavily implicated but never convicted.
However, it is for her relationship with Félix Faure, 7th President of France, that she became infamous.
Steinheil was introduced to Faure at a social event and quickly became his mistress. She would often visit his office at the Élysée Palace and disappear with him into his private chambers. One day, having visited the Palace, Steinheil rung urgently for the servants, who entered to find Steinheil adjusting her clothing and Faure having a seizure on the sofa. Within a few hours he was dead.
The story that came out was that Steinheil had been performing oral sex on Faure when he suffered a fatal stroke.
It’s tragic, but undeniably a pretty awesome and quintessentially ‘French’ way to go. The Presidents legacy lived on through a ship named for him, which ironically went down a few years later.
When I was an ENT resident, I had a patient named Alvin who had been treated multiple times for an oral cancer. What happened on a visit after a biopsy stays with me today. At that time I wrote an article about it. Kind of a long answer to your question,, but I think worthwhile:
Alvin lay on the gurney, oblivious to the huff of the respirator forcing oxygen into his lungs. Pulling the surgical mask from my face, I reached for his pulse and checked his pupillary reflexes, matching the physical input against the digital readouts on the recovery room monitor. Everything looked good except that Alvin was going to live.
Alvin, a master woodworker, had cancer. At least, he’d had it before. Four years ago a small sore on the floor of his mouth proved positive for squamous cell carcinoma. Chemotherapy, radiation and three mutilating surgeries over as many years battered the disease to a standstill.
Throughout his ordeal, Alvin was indomitable. His face disfigured by the loss of half of his lower jaw, skin burned leathery by radiation, he saw no reason to complain let alone despair. Although he couldn’t smile, he never failed to joke with the nurses and talk about the mountain cabin where he planned to retire.
When Alvin presented for his checkup, there was another lump. My heart sank. He’d had all the drug and x-ray treatments his body could tolerate. Another surgery was out of the question.
“I don’t know about this, Alvin,” I said. “I think we’d better biopsy it.”
With a voice made raspy by his treatments, he said, “Sure, Doc. No problem.”
A week after the biopsy, Alvin bounced into my office after a wave and a wink to the receptionist.
He plunked himself in front of my desk, eyes still bright but unaccompanied by the usual deep laugh lines. He unshouldered a Woodworker’s Supply tote bag and set it beside the chair. “So what’s up, Doc?” he said.
The damning pathology report lay on my desk like a sheet of lead. My voice broke on his name. I took a sip of water and pulled myself together.
“It’s not good, Alvin. The cancer’s back. I don’t think we can stop it this time.”
Alvin nodded and leaned back, staring at the ceiling for a few seconds. Leaning forward, he rummaged in his bag, extracting a package about the size of a cigar box brightly-wrapped in silver paper. He placed it on the desk and pushed it across to me.
“I know, Doc, and I knew you’d feel real bad about it. I thought this might cheer you up a little. Made it myself.”
Speechless, I carefully unwrapped a wooden box with an intricate inlay of a bird on the lid and scrolls of a yellow wood encircling the periphery.
“Not bad, eh?” he said. “Now the box is amboyna burl from Southeast Asia. One of the most exotic burls around. Chinese emperors used to hoard it like gold. Now they use it to make the dashboards on those high-end Mercedes. Just a delight to feel it in your hands, isn’t it? Like butter.”
He reached across to outline the yellow scrollwork inlaid on the sides. “Now that’s East Indian satinwood,” he said excitedly. “India and Sri Lanka. Tightest grain you ever saw. Hold it up to the light and it looks like it’s embedded with diamonds.”
I ran my hand over the polished surface, turning it to catch the light, catching some of Alvin’s enthusiasm for the natural beauty of the wood and marveling at the craftsmanship.
“The bird,” he said, “is my poor attempt at a phoenix. Lots of different woods in it for the colors: bloodwood for the fire, granadillo for most of the body, plum for the wings, some ebony for the talons. Whaddaya think?”
I stared slack-jawed at the man who’d just received a death sentence. “Alvin,” I managed, “it’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”
“Knew you’d like it,” he said, his voice smiling for him. “Thanks for being my doc. We gave it a good run didn’t we?”
Kyle McDonald, a guy (26 years old at the time of the events) who in 2006 managed to trade his way from a single red paperclip to a house.
It happened in Kipling Saskatchewan, Canada. In July 2005, Kyle posted an ad on Craigslist: “My name is Kyle, I’m an unemployed 26-year-old Canadian, I want a house in exchange, starting the trade by offering the red paperclip on my desk.” The idea came from a popular Canadian children’s game called “Bigger and Better,” which involves trading an object for something bigger or better until you get what you want. It took 14 trades and one year, but he finally succeeded.
The first to respond, two days after the initial blog post, were Rhawnie and Corinna: via email, they offered a wooden fish-shaped pen. Kyle went to Vancouver and met them, completed the trade, then posted their photo on his blog. And so, he waited for another trade. In Seattle, the pen was traded for a ceramic doorknob made by a lady named Annie. The doorknob turned into a barbecue, then a gas-powered generator (September 24). Within weeks, the internet buzz about young McDonald’s idea reached the media, and CNN and BBC competed for his interviews. The electric generator was traded for a beer keg, a snowmobile, a trip for two to Yak, British Columbia (February 2006), until he got a van and a record contract with Metal Works (February 22, 2006).
Later, he could trade the contract for a year’s free stay in a house in Phoenix. Kyle accepted, updated his blog, and started again. But renting wasn’t enough for him; he wanted his own house. Then came the real turning point in Kyle’s already lucky story: metal rocker Alice Cooper offered an afternoon in his company in exchange for the year’s rent. Leslie, an employee of Alice Cooper’s restaurant in Phoenix, lived in the apartment rent-free for twelve months. After closing the deal, Kyle had many offers to choose from, and he made the only trade that seemed like a loss: the afternoon with Alice Cooper went to Mark Herrmann of Kentucky, for a KISS band glowing orb. His popularity helped in the search, and in February, director Corbin Bernsen offered a role in his next movie in exchange for the KISS orb. At this point, the town of Kipling stepped forward, offering McDonald a recently renovated house in exchange for his role in Bernsen’s film.
It was July 5, 2006, a year had passed.
Kyle had made it, and on the lawn of his little house with red windows, there’s a large red metal paperclip.
I live in the wilderness. One night, just after dark, I get a knock at the door. Other than a few neighbors who would have phoned. I live miles into the woods, and nobody knocks on the door after dark.
I go to the door and there’s an older man and a woman, in pretty rough clothes, the man is holding a pretty beaten up rifle.
He claims that they went scouting elk in the morning, left their car, and went on foot, and got lost. The rifle was just for protection from Grizzlies. He was going to show his girlfriend a valley of elk, that would blow her away.
I hated to break it to him, that there had been no elk in that valley since the wolves moved in.
Elk season didn’t start for another week, he had planned on poaching. But here was a couple in their late sixties that had been walking for 8 hours, so guest rules were in place.
So I offered them a drink. He wanted a ride to his car.
I explained that it was a 40 mile drive, half of it on rough roads. Even though his car was only 10 miles as the crow flys away.
So we hopped in my truck, I took his gun, before we got in the truck. Though, with my hands on the steering wheel, he could have taken it while I was driving. But it was a good faith gesture.
It took close to an hour to get them to their car. I waited until they got it started, and they drove out ahead of me.
Of course, they were flat busted, and I wouldn’t even ask for gas money, because they didn’t look like they had a penny.
Went to a local mechanic to get some tires replaced on my vehicle my current set was bald and I was traveling from North Carolina to Florida.
After the tires were changed everything seemed fine until I got above 60 miles an hour at which point there was a severe rattling/wobbling coming from the rear end.
After the Florida trip I took my car back to them they told me I needed a new rear axle. Never had that kind of problem before so I took it to the dealership I bought it from. They examined the car and asked me why I had roughly 6 extra ounces of weight on my passenger rear tire on the back side of the rim. I said I don’t know please remove it they did problem was solved. The dealership didn’t charge me anything.
Upon returning home I went to the scam artists and said I am going to do everything I can and tell everybody I can not to use their services and why. Even went so far as to keep the weight strip in my car to show people.
We live in a very small town and word travels fast they we’re shuttered never to open again 6 months later.
Commander’s Palace Sour Cream Pecan Coffee Cake
2023 11 23 19 46
Ingredients
Cake
1 cup (2 sticks) softened unsalted butter
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 pinch salt
1 1/2 cups sour cream
Pecan Filling
1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped pecans
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
Instructions
Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter well a 10 inch Bundt pan and dust with flour, shaking out the excess.
Cake
In a bowl with an electric mixer beat the butter until smooth.
Add the sugar, a little at a time, and beat the mixture until it is light and fluffy.
Beat in the vanilla extract and the eggs, one at a time.
Into a bowl sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Add the dry ingredients to the butter-sugar mixture, beating slowly until just combined.
Fold in the sour cream.
Pecan Filling
In a bowl combine filling ingredients. Spoon 2/3 of the batter into the prepared pan, sprinkle the top with the pecan filling, gently pressing filling into batter, going completely around the cake until all remaining nut mixture is used. Add remaining batter to pan and smooth top.
Bake for 1 hour, or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. If necessary, loosely cover top of cake with piece of aluminum foil to prevent overbrowning.
A corporate party in a 4 star restaurant a guest was talking full advantage of the open bar, and when told he would not be served he grabbed at the bartender.
The bartender was a former Michigan state police officer and he grabbed the man’s hand and was punched in the side of the face.
An all call went out for help as every bus boy, prep and chef poured into this party and restrained the drunken patron.
As they attempted to evict him he dropped to the ground. The two chefs, large, strong and burly, fell with him. They lay there on the steps holding his arms when the police came through the door yelling at us.
“LET HIM GO!” the officer commanded. And so they did.
This drunk idiot screamed, shook off the chefs, blew past me and attacked the cop!
I’ve never seen a baton wielded in such a dramatic fashion. From his side it smoothly went up and across that man’s head with a this and a “uhg” he dropped like a rock.
The dining room didn’t react at all. We all went back to work.
Your U.S. CEO earns 100 times that of Chinese CEO! Your Employees earn 5 times Chinese worker but Chinese workers work twice as hard. Your employees expect 10 times more benefits yet product half the Chinese worker productivity.
Your ports and infrastructure is dilapidated China’s infrastructure is state of the art latest technology. You turn our bill shit artist and Chinese workers are well educated, willing to learn and highly driven.
Every shit you do China will do it better, do it faster and do it way cheaper than you. So go figure why everything China do is get done at a fraction of your cost! It is not nuclear science!
CHINA, in every respect, I know every yank will say the USA but I don’t think so, not anymore, mainly because of their debt, and growing daily, yes, the US have a very powerful navy, but SO WHAT? Ships can be sunk, and sunk quickly, missiles are the thing these days, and China is way ahead with their hypersonic missiles, double the speed of US ones. According to all reports. Also, they run rings around the US in speed and cost of manufacturing. Which also puts China in front.
An elderly neighbor died. He was a mechanic before he retired and had a large set of tools. His widow held a garage sale to get rid of his things, and she had a large rolling tool chest, filled with the tools of his trade, marked at $25. I took her aside and told her “Withdraw that from the sale. It is marked way low. I will sell it for you.” She demurred, but I talked her into it.
Three phone calls later I had it sold for $1500 to another mechanic I knew. I also managed to sell the rest of his tools at a good price over the next few weeks, including a few I bought myself at fair market price.
Sleeping at night is worth more to me than getting a good deal at a yard sale.
Because (many) human beings think in terms of archetypes, not individuals, and the archetype of the abuse survivor is not a man.
I recently (last year) had a conversation about this with a therapist who works with abuse survivors. She was quite blunt and up-front about it. She said (paraphrasing) “A man can have video of a woman hitting him, and many people will still insist he can’t be an abuse victim.”
Liberals often make this about politics. A lot of liberals will point to toxic ideas about masculinity common in conservative circles (men are stronger than women, women can’t be a threat to men, women are kind and nurturing while men are aggressive and warlike) and say “therein lies the problem.”
While there is some truth to that—-some people do discount the idea men can be abuse survivors because they hold traditional gender-essentialist ideas about men and women—liberals have their own dirty closets when it comes to this issue as well.
A lot of liberals will say “believe survivors” when what they actually mean is “believe women,” and “believe women” when what they actually mean is “believe cis white women.” (Trans women? Women of color? They have a very different experience when they talk about being abused. I personally know a woman who says “believe women” who silenced a woman of color when she came forward about abuse.)
So, why does this happen?
Because people think in archetypes.
This isn’t actually about left or right, and it isn’t even about abuse. Step back for a moment. What’s the first thing, the very first thing, that pops into your head when you visualize a welfare recipient?
For a great many Americans, the prototypical welfare recipient is an inner-city black single mother.
Would it surprise you to know there are more white people than black people who receive welfare in the United States?[1]
This is an archetype: a quick mental image of the exemplar of a group. Many Americans think the exemplar of the group “welfare recipients” is “inner city black single mother.” Many Americans think the exemplar of the group “abuse victim” is “cis white woman.”
People make judgments based on archetypes, not individuals. People who make public policy decisions think in terms of archetypes, not individuals. When the archetype of “abuse victim” is “white women,” you build shelters around…white women.
And the thing is, even people who will tell you “oh, yeah, I know anyone can be a victim” don’t act like that’s true, not really. Liberals will point out hypocrisy in conservatives and conservatives will point out the same hypocrisy in liberals, but this is a “humans think in terms of groups” problem, not a left/right problem.
The very same conservative who will say “those social justice warriors always go on about how men are bad and women are perfect” also think that a real man, a strong alpha man, is not a weak pathetic pussy who would ever be hurt by a woman.
The very same liberals who will say “those knuckle-dragging conservative Neanderthals always sneer at beta males weak enough to let themselves get pushed around by a woman” also think that in any patriarchal society abuse is always a phenomenon perpetuated by men against women.
They both have the same archetype. They have it for different reasons, but ultimately they have the same archetype.
My husband and I have a very “boring” relationship. We don’t fight, we don’t “just pick up our backpacks and go for a vacation”, and we don’t indulge in “let’s do something crazy” moments. For (up to now) over twelve years together (including get-to-know-each-other, relationship, and marriage), we haven’t done anything “just because”. Anything we do, we have a plan for it.
The love my husband has for me is not the kind of love that the teenage me once dreamed about (I always dreamed that someone would love me like Gatsby loved Daisy). His love is not a love that burns like lava, seething with passion. His love is like the essence of life, filtered through time and crystalizes into a steady, solid, giant rock that I can lean on. His love is so tangible that I feel I could see it and touch it.
And I believe it’s the best kind of love one could ever ask for.
We often dream about someone that willing to die for love, willing to die for us, and we are willing to die for them. Yet, I’ve come to understand that we don’t need an eventful relationship to feel fulfilled. It’s far more enriching to have someone that we are willing to live for, to build a life together.
But 2024 is going to be different. How different, remains to be seen. But I have hope; I am optimistic.
It is the year of the DRAGON.
Chinese Horoscope 2024 – Year of the Dragon
The Chinese zodiac marks the start of a new cycle with the Lunar New Year, or Spring Festival, when one animal gives way to another. On February 10, 2024, the Year of the Dragon begins.
The Dragon is a powerful and auspicious creature in Chinese mythology, representing courage, creativity, and innovation. 2024 promises to be a year full of possibilities and opportunities.
According to the Chinese zodiac, the Dragon is the most powerful and auspicious animals. It represents strength, wisdom, luck and prosperity. The dragon is also associated with one of the five elements: wood, fire, earth, metal or water. Each element gives the dragon a different personality and destiny.
The Year of the Wood Dragon 2024 is also known as Yang Wood on Dragon, or Jia Chen 甲辰 in Chinese. The fixed element of the Dragon (Chen) is Earth (Wu 戊), which represents stability, honesty and loyalty. The variable element of the Dragon in 2024 is Yang Wood, or Jia 甲, representing growth, creativity and flexibility.
The Wood Dragon is the most creative and visionary of the dragons. They are optimistic, ambitious and adventurous. They like to explore new ideas and challenge themselves. They are also generous, compassionate and loyal to their friends.
Therefore, the Year of the Dragon in 2024 is expected to be a time of visionary leaders, innovators and problem solvers. 2024 is also predicted to be a great year to start new projects, explore new opportunities and create value for yourself and others.
Some of the most promising sectors for business growth in the Dragon Year 2024 are fintech, AI, cybersecurity, blockchain, and solar energy. These industries are driven by innovation and demand for cutting-edge solutions. To succeed in these competitive markets, businesses need to embrace new technologies and communicate their value proposition effectively.
The year of the Wood Dragon 2024 is special because it is a rare combination of the dragon’s power and the wood’s creativity. It is a year of innovation, vision and growth. It is a year to pursue your dreams, express your ideas and expand your horizons. It is also a year to be generous, compassionate and loyal to your friends. The next Year of the Wood Dragon in the Chinese zodiac will be 2084, which is 60 years from now.
A Black and White Cat Kept His Owner Awake Until the Ambulance Arrived
Mr. Andrew Carnegie arrived in America in 1848, with no money and with no formal higher education.
His parents decided to move the Carnegie family to the United States after a famine hit the Scottish countryside.
At thirteen years old, Carnegie found a job that would pay him $1.20 for a 70-hour week.
During his free time, Carnegie read books loaned to him from one of the local libraries.
These books impacted his life so much that later he donated millions of his money to building over 2,500 public libraries and educational institutions around the world.
image 577
When Carnegie was about 18 years old, Thomas Scott, the owner of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, employed him as a telegraph operator at a salary of $4.00 per week.
By age 24, Mr. Scott saw great potential in the young Carnegie, and promoted him to superintendent of a division of the Railroad Company.
Mr. Scott eventually became Carnegie’s mentor, a relationship that changed his future.
image 576
The experience Carnegie gained working closely to Scott was a vital ingredient in his success in the steel industry.
Years later, Carnegie sold his company to JP Morgan. That was what made him the wealthiest man on earth, and the philanthropist he later became.
To answer your question, what is the best piece of advice you could give someone about life?
1.- What are you filling your mind with?
Are you consuming your free time with worthless social media? Carnegie read books. He invested continuously in his personal growth.
Stop wasting your time!
2.- Are you trying to figure out how to do it alone! Who do you take advice from?
Carnegie was inspired by Mr. Scott. He listened to his advice. He was a hard worker. He was coachable.
In January 2019, Copdy Litz made a 10-foot snowman with his fiancée and his sister, and then posted this on Facebook:
image 579
It received a lot of admiration online as well as from his neighbours. However, when something marvellous attracts admirers, it also brings jealous assholes. Same thing happened with this snowman.
Turns out that one day when Copdy was away, a douche driver tried to destroy the snowman by ramming their car into it. To their horror, however, the result wasn’t as amusing as the driver was expecting.
When Copdy returns home, he sees this:
image 578
Tyre tracks leading to the snowman but they stop abruptly and the imprint of a bumper can be seen exposed in the snow. The snowman is still standing. Any idea how?
Do you see that black-brown part where there’s no snow? Well, that’s a thick tree stump used as a base for this snowman, but it was concealed by the snow. Hence, when the driver decided to ram their car into the snowman, they had no idea of the surprise they were in for, and ended up crashing their car into the sturdy stump. That’s why you see the imprint of a bumper on the snow and no more tyre tracks beyond the snowman.
[1] Sadly, the driver fled the scene after this surprise they received, and therefore, there’s no photo to show the damage on their car, but I bet it must be a good one (lol).
Copdy Litz later revealed in an interview that the purpose of using a tree stump as a base for this snowman was to teach vandals a lesson because such incidents were very common in his region. For sure other vandals must have learned the lesson.
Anyway, this display of instant karma seems pretty satisfying to me. If only I could see the damaged car, I’d be more satisfied.
I bought a car in TX. Private party. In winter. To drive to MN. On turnpike it was getting cold. I stop at Goodyear shop near a hotel. “I want radiator flush, engine block heater installed, -20 antifreeze”
got estimate, signed, walked to hotel, called with room info as next day Saturday they were open till noon. Next day 11:30 am check out, walk over. “owe did not have correct size front plug replacement block heater. So we put a lower hose heater in. We charged your card, here are keys we are closing early”
I KNEW lower hose not recommended. As angles all wrong. Warmed water flows to radiator first. NOT engine. But what can I do? So I will drive. Go to local Goodyear shop have it corrected.
50 miles hose blows apart. I had bought gallon antifreeze as knowing how shops screw filling empty radiator. But gauge looked great. Using knife I tighten hose clamps, add gallon antifreeze strait, limp to rest stop, gallon water, next town.
Get to local Goodyear. “we are not in same Goodyear chain as that place. But we will give you $5 off new hose, new frost plug heater, installation and full antifreeze replacement”. I did it myself.
Many years ago, I worked in a small sewing factory that made water ski vests. When I was hired, I was paid by the hour but was told that I would get raises based on my work, and the sky was the limit. I soon discovered that there was a very low cloud cover.
I got a small raise after one month. I was assigned to do the finishing job, but devised a new method and could complete 600 vests a day. The other workers could not keep up with me, and I had to learn all of the other jobs so that I would have at least 300 vests ready to finish.
Minimum wage increased; new employees were now being paid 10 cents an hour less than I was. I asked for another raise based on my performance and was told that if I kept doing what I was, I would get a raise in 6 weeks.
A month later, the owner brought in an “efficiency expert” who looked at my finishing job and suggested “improvements”. The improvements made me do twice the work for half the numbers.
The next day, I tried to talk to the owner about it. He told me to try it for six weeks, and I would get a raise. But, I was two weeks away from my promised raise. I said, “I quit!”
A couple of weeks later, I ran into my supervisor. She said she had to do my job until they could train someone else. After two hours of doing the “improved” method, she realized why I quit and went back to my method.
I also ran into the person they trained to replace me. She could complete 50 vests a day, instead of my 600.
The business went bankrupt 3 months later. There was a riot and police were called when the boss showed up with no paychecks on payday 🙂
I once responded to a job ad that advertised a pay rate of $10–25 per hour.
I showed up to the business to do an interview with the owner. The guy was busy so I had to wait 30 minutes past my scheduled time. Apparently, the guy didn’t even remember what was on my resume, nor did he seem to care. He didn’t even ask about my skills and mostly just talked up about himself and his business.
Finally at the end of the interview, he offered me the current minimum wage ($9.25 at the time, it was going to increase to $10 in a few months) and that we can “sit down and talk” about increasing the rate after a month.
This was an IT software and hardware repair shop and I had a master’s degree in computer science with several years of work experience. I wasn’t looking for a massive salary rate, but a side gig that paid reasonably well. I wasn’t going to work for minimum wage and then hope to God this business owner was going to be convinced to double the rate after one month.
I was really surprised by the salary rate, but I caught myself before I might have reacted negatively and said, “I’ll think about it.” I probably would have accepted it at $15 an hour, but minimum wage for a position that requires some technical knowledge, did not make any sense to me.
I thought about it and there were just too many red flags:
He didn’t read my resume, which isn’t respectful of my time to go to an interview.
Did not even offer the pay rate mentioned in the advertisement. He lied.
Clearly a sign that this guy is going to be very stingy, so the 1 month “sitdown” salary evaluation meeting did not look promising at all.
Doesn’t seem to be able to keep employees for very long. This was based on what I asked during the interview.
Needless to say, I followed up with an email saying that this wasn’t what I was looking for.
Update: Some bonus info I recalled recently. I remembered him mentioning in the middle of the interview that he had a mortgage to pay as if to get sympathy. I realized after the interview he was already thinking about making that shitty offer.
I used to be an Amazon Flex driver on the weekends to make some extra money. The base pay was $18 an hour and if I did my deliveries quickly, I was making more than $25 an hour.
They have a program where you sign up to be an “independent contractor” and get paid for delivering a certain number of packages in a prescribed amount of time. It was a lot of fun even though you have to basically fight other people online to get a run.
One day I was out making deliveries and I noticed a car pull over at a house where I had just dropped off a package. I thought to myself that it must be the homeowner and stopped to deliver the next. But, I kept an eye on the car and sure enough, they were following me and grabbing my packages.
I called the police and kept on delivering. Within 5 minutes, a police car pulled them over and as soon as I saw that they had them stopped I turned around and went to speak with the officers.
Come to find out that they had followed me out of the station and began taking my packages from the start. I looked in their car, and they had grabbed 9 of my packages! Had I not called the police, who knows how many more they would have gotten. They were arrested on the spot and taken away in handcuffs.
I was incredibly angry, because not only had they stolen my packages, but now I had to go back and deliver them all again!
It screwed up what should have been a very simple day, but I was thrilled to know that these porch pirates got what was coming to them!
Americans thinks the world thinks the world of them!
They are full of it!
Can you believe that the U.S. thinks people in Iraq welcome them warmly after they carpet bomb Baghdad killing civilians including women, children and babies! What Iraqis are doing is the lured them into the lions den and sniped them and bomb them into smitten! But U.S. officials and some Americans think the Muslim and Arab communities loved them!
About 20 years ago I worked for a huge Multinational American Call Centre that had opened a centre in Belfast. I worked hard and got several commendations and promotions, eventually being in charge of Annual leave for all the Call Centres in the UK. Problem was, the call centre didn’t want to spend money on software to track annual leave.
So I made it, on excel, as they didn’t support Access, go figure. Anyone who knows, will tell you access was far better for something like tracking annual leave for over 2000 employees across 3 sites on, but I am damn good at excel, and I made it do things its really not designed to do.
For 3 years I told them that it wasn’t fit for purpose and I needed proper software. Eventually we got a new director and they seemed to take note of what I was saying. So they looked at what I was doing, how I was doing it, and then decided to outsource it to a team in a South African Call Centre and Lipa City in the phillipines, apparently paying the two teams was less than my salary. They asked me to create an instruction manual for the tracker so that these guys could do my job, and they would move me to another department.
Once completed, they terminated me, paying me 10 weeks severance for my time served plus owed leave. I warned the centre Director he was making a mistake, he just laughed.
4 weeks later I got a phone call from a friend who still worked there, the Leave tracker had crashed as the teams running it weren’t doing the daily maintainence in the manual, they had also deleted the back ups to save disc space. There was no record of who had taken what leave and who had what leave left to take. So with 3 months left in the financial year, they ended up having to give all 2316 members of staff their full leave entitlement again (turns out payroll didn’t bother recording what they had paid to whom and for why).
I phoned the Director and simply said, “I warned you what would happen, but you decided you knew better, good luck.” He simply hung up, no response. 3 weeks later he was terminated for costing the firm millions in additional payments for all the extra leave.
I lasted just short of 8 years, he lasted just short of 8 months.
I worked for a large aerospace company in the Midlands. I never worked more than my contracted 38 hours/week, travelled away from base once a month and needed an overnight stay 2-3 times a year.
I was approached by a large consultancy to work for them and had a first round of informal meetings. Their HR person then phoned me and asked me about my current salary and expectation. Before I answered, I asked her to confirm what had been hinted at in the first meeting, 50–60 hours per weeks, 2–3 overnights a week. Yes she said. In that case, current salary +20%. She went quiet and then asked why I expected that much. Extra hours and nights away. We are only allowed to offer 7% over current. I replied “I’m sorry, but that fails the Tesco test.” What’s that she asked. “I could work the extra hours stacking shelves in my local Tesco for minimum wage, make more money and still sleep in my own bed.”
She Changed Her Face In Front Of The Camera Within 10 Seconds
A king is ruler of a sovereign country. An emperor is the ruler of the whole continent, considered to be higher than any other secular rulers. The Islamic equivalent is caliph, the Zoroastrian equivalent is shahanshah and the Hindu equivalent is maharaja.
Traditionally there were two Emperors in the Christian world: the Holy Roman Emperor (Western Emperor) and the Eastern Roman Emperor (Eastern Emperor).
Once the Eastern Roman Empire fell in 1453, the Russian grand prince Ivan III the Great assumed the title of Czar (from caesar) and Peter I the Great nominated himself as the Russian Emperor.
The French Revolution was basically a re-enactment of fan fiction of Rome. First they deposed the King, then they declared Republic (which went pear-shaped in five years instead of 500) and finally Napoléon imitated Augustus and declared himself the Emperor of France. By doing this, he juxtaposited himself with both the Habsburgs (Holy Roman Empire – itself more or less a fan-fiction of the Western Roman Empire) and Romanovs (Russian Empire – a fan-fiction of the Eastern Roman Empire). Naturally there could be only one, so Napoléon had the Holy Roman Empire abolished in 1806. Instead, the Habsburgs would claim the title of Kaiser des Österreiches (Austrian Emperor). Which made sense, as Czech was a kingdom, Hungary was a kingdom, Croatia was a kingdom and the rest of the Austrian lands were principalities.
Finally Germany unified under the Kingdom of Prussia in 1870. Since Germany was a hodgepodge quilt of kingdoms, princedoms, republics and city states, King Wilhelm declared himself as the Kaiser (Emperor) of Germany (from caesar).
All European Kaisers and Czars fell in the WWI. Ever since 1918, there hasn’t been an Emperor in Christian lands.
Also China and Japan have had an Emperor. The Chinese emperor was deposed in 1912, China becoming a republic, but Japan has maintained its emperor (mikado). The current Emperor of Japan is Naruhito, and his reign is called Reiwa.
I know the exact moment when I realized I was an adult.
It was the Christmas of 1998. I was in Beijing. I was one of those spoiled rich brats who went on a joyride with my fancy friends in my fancy car that my dad bought me. So that night, although none of us were Christian, it seemed like a good idea to celebrate some random holiday, drive to a dance club and have some fun. We were fully prepared to get drunk and party until dawn.
I was driving with 4 other friends in the car and I got into an accident. I was very scared, it was completely my fault. We realized no one was hurt and tried to leave. But the police arrived at the scene before we could drive off. And things got really serious.
I remember this old police officer, he had this “seen it done that” attitude, and asked “Who’s the driver?” I said that it was me. And he asked “Could you explain to me what happened?” I said “I want to wait until my dad is here.” And he asked again: “Are you the driver?” I said I was. And he replied, “If you’re old enough to drive and get yourself into this mess, you’re old enough to explain to me what happened and take responsibility.”
He was not mean, he was not angry with me or anything. He just said it as a matter of fact. And that’s the moment I realized I was an adult.
Why I choose to raise my child in CHINA and not the WEST
Nobody was talking about Chinese EVs until they took the world by storm at the Munich car show this year.
It was all Tesla, and more recently, the Germans and Koreans. The Japanese were not in the game at all, preferring ICE hybrids.
No one was paying attention to the charging infrastructure put in place in China, or the huge number of models from diverse manufacturers no one outside of China had any experience with.
My friend says there are at least 100 Chinese EV brands operating today.
100! China today is where the US automobile industry was pre-war.
Why isn’t anyone talking about the CPU? Because this is the English medium, and there is an automatic filter on any news that puts a positive spin against the narrative of the Chinese being a backward sub-human species who cannot innovate and therefore copy and steal exclusively from the west.
Read the Chinese to keep up with the Chinese.
Don’t read ABOUT them.
Otherwise, be prepared to be surprised/shocked repeatedly by the Chinese.
This Just ΗΑPPΕNED In The Netherlands, Υet Something Εven More Bizarre Is ΗΑPPΕNING IN AMERICA
It was 1989 in Richmond Virginia. Even though I was in my first year as a cop with the police department I was assigned a new recruit from the academy to be his field training officer. This young man was an immigrant from Jamaica. He said that his mother had read my future and that I needed this to keep me safe, and he handed me a bloodstone. As I was looking at it we got an alarm call for an industrial site that was a quarter of a mile away from where we were parked. I turned the key to the patrol car and nothing happened. I decided we would get out and run the distance to the site. When we were about two hundred yards away the building exploded, blowing the both of us back ten to fifteen feet. I still have scars on my left forearm that I instinctively put over my eyes. When we went back to the car it turned over the first time. My trainee looked at me and said, “My moms be looking out for you!”
If the car had worked we would have been there when the building exploded, and we would have both been dead.
My mother-in-law always pointed out that, if Hollywood were depicting medieval Europe accurately, between one-third to one-sixth of young adult women between the ages of sixteen to forty should be visibly pregnant when they waddle into range of the camera and every shot of urban areas should be swarming with young children (the majority of which will eventually die before reaching adulthood). You should have at least four children visible in every scene in which at least one adult is visible.
It was a world without legal birth-control, and women had a large number of children if they weren’t nuns. Walking down a medieval street, you would have seen swarms of children—think Rwanda-level disparities in the young compared to adults. Margery Kempe in the early 1400s, for instance, had fourteen children by the time she was forty. A reasonable guess at the normal number would be for an average married medieval woman to have ten children, of which fewer than a third would survive to adulthood. The most common cause of adult female mortality in the medieval world appears to be death in childbirth.
During each woman’s pregnancies, I believe there is little visible bulge until the the last few months of pregnancy. After that, she should be visibly pregnant. The swarms of children should be everywhere, running in the streets, crammed into alleys and houses, and pouring through doorways constantly.
A little background — I was working in a chain drug store in Southern California, the only employee who came to work, on Christmas Eve. We were a 24-hour store, so, having cleaned everything, and faced all the stock on the shelves, I was thinking how to murder the “dancing Santa” (bad recording, 2 1/2 feet tall, and poorly made).
10:30 (22:30 for 24 hour clocks) a guy comes in, freaking out. His wife has recently left him for her “hot stud boyfriend”, with whom she has a brand-new baby. They are divorced, but she got the kids on holidays. He had bought and wrapped the presents for the kids (daughter, son), and dropped them off at her boyfriend’s house — left them on the porch, because she refused to open the door until he left. He gets home, and finds the kids waiting on his front porch. His ex-wife’s mother had just dropped them off, and left them alone, because ex-wife, new baby, and “Hot Stud” were going to his parents for Christmas, and she didn’t want the kids “getting in the way”. Grandma had plans of her own, and refused to take the kids with her.
Ex-wife left him with two kids with no change of clothes, no presents, not enough groceries, on Christmas Eve. And there was no way he could not make her sound like the totally selfish bitch she was.
Semi-happy ending. I abused the hell out of my authority as the manager, and “store-used” or “over-ride discount”ed everything we needed to put together a Christmas for his kids.
Each of them got a ream of paper, the largest box of Crayola (crayons) we had, a generic fuzzy toy, and two other toys that he thought they might like. Each present was individually wrapped in a different paper, with big fancy (store-bought!) bows, and a Christmas card on each present, plus each one got a good sized bag of “stocking stuffers”. (Pocket sized toys and games, candy, fruit, nuts, etc). Then I threw in (from me) a couple of bags of Christmas candy and chocolates.
It’s Christmas Eve, and your mother has her mother drop you off at your father’s house — who isn’t even home — because she doesn’t want you, because she has the new baby that you aren’t even allowed to touch.
A few weeks before my nineteenth birthday, I was sitting to the right of my mom. When I went to look at her, she pointed out that my left eye did not track with my right eye, which made it look like I had a lazy eye.
image
The next day, after we had all laughed it off (because it did look quite goofy), my mom made an appointment with a neuro-opthalmologist. We went in on a busy Saturday and after he examined my eye, he requested that we make another appointment on a day when he would have more time to dedicate to me and the testing that would have to be done.
About two weeks later, my mother and I went to his other office and he examined my eye. He asked me if I had experienced any double-vision recently, and I realized I had. So, he explained the possible reasons for the eye (which he diagnosed as sixth cranial nerve palsy): it was an infection, or, in very rare cases, a brain tumor. He ordered a chest x-ray, blood work, and a head MRI.
The blood work and chest x-ray went well and nothing was found. Going into my MRI, my mother was optimistic, but I just had a feeling that the diagnosis was going to be bigger than a little infection. After the MRI, my mother and I got lunch and were high in spirits. When we returned home, I got to work on my classes (they were online- thanks, 2020). A few hours later, my mother ran into my room, very upset, and told me to come to the phone.
My doctor was on the other end. He told me that I had a mass in my brain that was pressing against my sixth cranial nerve. He suggested that it was a very rare form of bone cancer in my brain called chordoma that had grown on my skull base, in the middle of my head. I was diagnosed two days after my nineteenth birthday.
Since then, my diagnosis was confirmed and I had surgery to remove the tumor. I had many complications, like infections and brain fluid leaks, but I made it out. There was about 5–10% of the tumor left, so I underwent proton radiation therapy to kill the rest of the cancer. In a few weeks, I will have been in partial remission for a year 🙂 I also had eye surgery about ten months ago to correct my eye, which was stuck looking inward since my first surgery. Since then, I’ve been dealing with a lot of other issues because of my tumor and treatment, like chronic nerve damage/pain, Hashimoto’s disease and hypothyroidism, but I have a wonderful team of doctors who have provided me with great treatments.
I was a freshman in college when I was diagnosed, and now I’m going to be a junior. I’m studying psychology and music, and I participate in my college’s choirs, theatre productions, and student life team. In the future, I’m hoping to get my Master’s degree in mental health counseling and work as a therapist for adolescents and young adults with disabilities, rare disease, and cancer. I would also love to perform professionally in my city’s symphony orchestra/choir and maybe even audition for America’s Got Talent.
If I were to pick the first biggest reason 2023 will be remembered (if it isn’t because of the brewing World War III that seems to be on the verge of breaking out) it will be as the year that A.I. became a reality.
Translator wages have been flat, and in the United States (according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics) there is the need for a total of 14,000 in the country at a stagnant average wage of about $50,000 with roughly 10% unemployment in the field.
Finding out
Bohemian Goulash Soup
Bohemian Goulash Soup
Ingredients
3 tablespoons butter or margarine
2 large onions, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon vinegar
1 1/2 pounds beef stew meat, diced
6 cups beef broth or bouillon
1/2 teaspoon marjoram
1 tablespoon caraway seed
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 pound potatoes, peeled and cubed
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Heat butter or margarine in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Sauté onion until golden.
Stir in paprika and vinegar.
Add meat, broth, marjoram, caraway seeds, tomato paste, salt and pepper. Mix well. Cook gently, covered, for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until meat is tender.
Dilute flour with a little cooled liquid from pot. Stir into soup.
Add potatoes and cook until potatoes are tender.
Yield: 6 servings
Go and get it
Killing C.I.A. Informants, China Crippled U.S. Spying Operations
WASHINGTON — The Chinese government systematically dismantled C.I.A. spying operations in the country starting in 2010, killing or imprisoning more than a dozen sources over two years and crippling intelligence gathering there for years afterward.
Current and former American officials described the intelligence breach as one of the worst in decades. It set off a scramble in Washington’s intelligence and law enforcement agencies to contain the fallout, but investigators were bitterly divided over the cause. Some were convinced that a mole within the C.I.A. had betrayed the United States. Others believed that the Chinese had hacked the covert system the C.I.A. used to communicate with its foreign sources. Years later, that debate remains unresolved.
But there was no disagreement about the damage. From the final weeks of 2010 through the end of 2012, according to former American officials, the Chinese killed at least a dozen of the C.I.A.’s sources. According to three of the officials, one was shot in front of his colleagues in the courtyard of a government building — a message to others who might have been working for the C.I.A.
Still others were put in jail. All told, the Chinese killed or imprisoned 18 to 20 of the C.I.A.’s sources in China, according to two former senior American officials, effectively unraveling a network that had taken years to build.
Assessing the fallout from an exposed spy operation can be difficult, but the episode was considered particularly damaging. The number of American assets lost in China, officials said, rivaled those lost in the Soviet Union and Russia during the betrayals of both Aldrich Ames and Robert Hanssen, formerly of the C.I.A. and the F.B.I., who divulged intelligence operations to Moscow for years.
The previously unreported episode shows how successful the Chinese were in disrupting American spying efforts and stealing secrets years before a well-publicized breach in 2015 gave Beijing access to thousands of government personnel records, including intelligence contractors. The C.I.A. considers spying in China one of its top priorities, but the country’s extensive security apparatus makes it exceptionally hard for Western spy services to develop sources there.
At a time when the C.I.A. is trying to figure out how some of its most sensitive documents were leaked onto the internet two months ago by WikiLeaks, and the F.B.I. investigates possible ties between President Trump’s campaign and Russia, the unsettled nature of the China investigation demonstrates the difficulty of conducting counterespionage investigations into sophisticated spy services like those in Russia and China.
The C.I.A. and the F.B.I. both declined to comment.
Details about the investigation have been tightly held. Ten current and former American officials described the investigation on the condition of anonymity because they did not want to be identified discussing the information.
image
The first signs of trouble emerged in 2010. At the time, the quality of the C.I.A.’s information about the inner workings of the Chinese government was the best it had been for years, the result of recruiting sources deep inside the bureaucracy in Beijing, four former officials said. Some were Chinese nationals who the C.I.A. believed had become disillusioned with the Chinese government’s corruption.
But by the end of the year, the flow of information began to dry up. By early 2011, senior agency officers realized they had a problem: Assets in China, one of their most precious resources, were disappearing.
Better Understand the Relations Between China and the U.S.
The two nations are jockeying for influence on the global stage, maneuvering for advantages on land, in the economy and in cyberspace.
Wooing Indonesia: China and the United States are engaged in the strategic battle for influence over the resource-laden nation of nearly 300 million people. So far, Beijing has the edge.
Investing in Mexico: Alarmed by shipping chaos and geopolitical fractures, exporters from China are setting up factories in Mexico to preserve their sales to the United States.
The F.B.I. and the C.I.A. opened a joint investigation run by top counterintelligence officials at both agencies. Working out of a secret office in Northern Virginia, they began analyzing every operation being run in Beijing. One former senior American official said the investigation had been code-named Honey Badger.
As more and more sources vanished, the operation took on increased urgency. Nearly every employee at the American Embassy was scrutinized, no matter how high ranking. Some investigators believed the Chinese had cracked the encrypted method that the C.I.A. used to communicate with its assets. Others suspected a traitor in the C.I.A., a theory that agency officials were at first reluctant to embrace — and that some in both agencies still do not believe.
What we consider before using anonymous sources.Do the sources know the information? What’s their motivation for telling us? Have they proved reliable in the past? Can we corroborate the information? Even with these questions satisfied, The Times uses anonymous sources as a last resort. The reporter and at least one editor know the identity of the source.
Their debates were punctuated with macabre phone calls — “We lost another one” — and urgent questions from the Obama administration wondering why intelligence about the Chinese had slowed.
The mole hunt eventually zeroed in on a former agency operative who had worked in the C.I.A.’s division overseeing China, believing he was most likely responsible for the crippling disclosures. But efforts to gather enough evidence to arrest him failed, and he is now living in another Asian country, current and former officials said.
There was good reason to suspect an insider, some former officials say. Around that time, Chinese spies compromised National Security Agency surveillance in Taiwan — an island Beijing claims is part of China — by infiltrating Taiwanese intelligence, an American partner, according to two former officials. And the C.I.A. had discovered Chinese operatives in the agency’s hiring pipeline, according to officials and court documents.
But the C.I.A.’s top spy hunter, Mark Kelton, resisted the mole theory, at least initially, former officials say. Mr. Kelton had been close friends with Brian J. Kelley, a C.I.A. officer who in the 1990s was wrongly suspected by the F.B.I. of being a Russian spy. The real traitor, it turned out, was Mr. Hanssen. Mr. Kelton often mentioned Mr. Kelley’s mistreatment in meetings during the China episode, former colleagues say, and said he would not accuse someone without ironclad evidence.
Those who rejected the mole theory attributed the losses to sloppy American tradecraft at a time when the Chinese were becoming better at monitoring American espionage activities in the country. Some F.B.I. agents became convinced that C.I.A. handlers in Beijing too often traveled the same routes to the same meeting points, which would have helped China’s vast surveillance network identify the spies in its midst.
Some officers met their sources at a restaurant where Chinese agents had planted listening devices, former officials said, and even the waiters worked for Chinese intelligence.
This carelessness, coupled with the possibility that the Chinese had hacked the covert communications channel, would explain many, if not all, of the disappearances and deaths, some former officials said. Some in the agency, particularly those who had helped build the spy network, resisted this theory and believed they had been caught in the middle of a turf war within the C.I.A.
Still, the Chinese picked off more and more of the agency’s spies, continuing through 2011 and into 2012. As investigators narrowed the list of suspects with access to the information, they started focusing on a Chinese-American who had left the C.I.A. shortly before the intelligence losses began. Some investigators believed he had become disgruntled and had begun spying for China. One official said the man had access to the identities of C.I.A. informants and fit all the indicators on a matrix used to identify espionage threats.
After leaving the C.I.A., the man decided to remain in Asia with his family and pursue a business opportunity, which some officials suspect that Chinese intelligence agents had arranged.
Officials said the F.B.I. and the C.I.A. lured the man back to the United States around 2012 with a ruse about a possible contract with the agency, an arrangement common among former officers. Agents questioned the man, asking why he had decided to stay in Asia, concerned that he possessed a number of secrets that would be valuable to the Chinese. It’s not clear whether agents confronted the man about whether he had spied for China.
The man defended his reasons for living in Asia and did not admit any wrongdoing, an official said. He then returned to Asia.
By 2013, the F.B.I. and the C.I.A. concluded that China’s success in identifying C.I.A. agents had been blunted — it is not clear how — but the damage had been done.
The C.I.A. has tried to rebuild its network of spies in China, officials said, an expensive and time-consuming effort led at one time by the former chief of the East Asia Division. A former intelligence official said the former chief was particularly bitter because he had worked with the suspected mole and recruited some of the spies in China who were ultimately executed.
China has been particularly aggressive in its espionage in recent years, beyond the breach of the Office of Personnel Management records in 2015, American officials said. Last year, an F.B.I. employee pleaded guilty to acting as a Chinese agent for years, passing sensitive technology information to Beijing in exchange for cash, lavish hotel rooms during foreign travel and prostitutes.
In March, prosecutors announced the arrest of a longtime State Department employee, Candace Marie Claiborne, accused of lying to investigators about her contacts with Chinese officials. According to the criminal complaint against Ms. Claiborne, who pleaded not guilty, Chinese agents wired cash into her bank account and showered her with gifts that included an iPhone, a laptop and tuition at a Chinese fashion school. In addition, according to the complaint, she received a fully furnished apartment and a stipend.
Once, I was truly between jobs: had quit the old one, and a signed contract to start the new one in 2 months.
I was looking forward to spending 2 months doing nothing but sleeping, playing pool, drinking, and having fun.
Then an ex-colleague and friend called: the little firm he worked at was having serious IT problems; could I come in and consult/fix things?
So I put on a suit, pack a CV, head down to their office, and quickly see the worst computer setup I have ever witnessed on Wall St. Like, it’s a bundle of ancient Windows boxes doing God knows what. They couldn’t do things like keep the system running, never mind managing risk, or managing orders, or any normal business function.
I figure $40K for me, plus $20K in real server hardware, and they can have this on the road to fixed in a month.
My friend and I go into the CEO’s office, lay out my CV, I present a rough plan and cost estimates. The CEO just grabs a black marker and starts crossing out everything in my CV he feels is inapplicable: stuff like “Yale University” and “computer science.” Then he says “Your resume says you’re unemployed, $10K should be enough!”
My friend turns green with embarrassment, but I just get up and walk out. Through the trading floor of frustrated people yelling that the system has crashed again and they can’t enter trades.
It looks a little like this, only in a old claw-foot bathtub…
2023 11 08 21 23
Wikipedia says…
A bathtub Madonna (also known as a lawn shrine, Mary on the half shell, bathtub Mary, bathtub Virgin, and bathtub shrine) is an artificial grotto typically framing a Roman Catholic religious figure.
These shrines most often house a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary but sometimes hold the image of another Catholic saint or of Jesus. Infrequently, more than one figure is represented.
While often constructed by upending an old bathtub and burying one end, similar designs have been factory produced. These factory produced enclosures sometimes have decorative features that their recycled counterparts lack, such as fluting reminiscent of a scallop shell.
The grotto is sometimes embellished with brickwork or stonework, and framed with flowerbeds or other ornamental flora. The inside of the tub is frequently painted a light blue color, particularly if the statue is of Mary because of her association with this color. Over time, distinguishing characteristics of these shrines can become blurred. Instances occur of shrines whose statue is missing and conversely of grottoes being removed, leaving a statue in place.
One time, I was traveling with my little sister on a nine-hour flight. We were harassed by a drunk man in the middle row for the entire flight, which was incredibly uncomfortable. He kept staring at us, trying to touch us with his arms and legs, and getting up to stand next to our seats and stare and laugh, trying to get closer with his face.
There were still six hours left before we reached our destination. I spoke to the flight attendants and burst out crying because it was so uncomfortable. My little sister was also crying. The flight was full, so they couldn’t move us or him. The flight attendants tried to talk to him, but it was no use. He became weird and slightly aggressive.
There were still a few hours left to go. The flight attendants had a male flight attendant from business class come down to us and talk to us and comfort us. He stood behind our seats for the rest of the flight.
The other flight attendants were so sweet. They kept coming with snacks and sweets for us, and they even went to their private locker and gave us their own snacks and candies that they had brought. They wanted us to write down the whole incident so that the pilots could see it. The pilots then decided to call the police.
I worked in Theatre for many years. Out-of-work actors often earn stop-gap money waitering. Here are two neat reposts.
A famous (I’ll leave her anonymous) actress had been difficult in a high-end restaurant all evening. Nothing was good enough for her. Eventually the waiter handed her the dessert-menu. The actress barked angrily at the waiter: “What the hell is Banana cream pie?”
The waiter politely replied: “Which word, exactly, is causing you difficulties?”
Another actor/waiter pal had a difficult patron snapping her fingers at him and yelling: “Boy! Over here, boy!”
The waiter, ever so calmly said to her: “Madam, if you tell me where you lost your dog, I’ll gladly help you find him.”
Come up with a calm, elegant put down; it’s much more stylish than taking other people’s bad manners to heart and getting rattled. You also end up with some terrific anecdotes.
I bought a huge house backing onto a stream, and on the other side of the stream was a golf course. My next door neighbors were a famous professional hockey player, and a neurosurgeon on the other side.
It had a carpeted garage with built in oak cabinets.
It had a thousand square foot master suite, walkin closet, and ensuite. The Jacuzzi was surrounded by windows that actually opened, it was on the third floor.
I was having Christmas one year and a very competitive relative, who had a nice, but not awesome house, was asking for a tour of the house.
The windows around the Jacuzzi were open. He said, you can hear traffic with the windows open, I like my place better.
I would never dream of finding fault with someones house, especially when they asked for a tour. I was stunned. No mention of the grand entrance way, with the sweeping spiral staircase, that split in two directions. No mention of the mountain view from the 20 foot tall windows. No mention of the finished walk out basement that allowed you to play in the stream. Just criticism of the one tiny flaw he could find.
I being the polite person I was, just said, I have learned to live with it, when I have the third floor Jacuzzi windows open. He didn’t have a third floor, and the year before, he complained he couldn’t use his Jacuzzi, because the hot water tank wasn’t large enough to fill it. So I knew the working Jacuzzi bothered him.
You couldn’t hear the traffic on the bottom two floors, because of the houses and trees blocking it. You could only hear it, when the windows were open on the third floor, and just barely then, because the road was a km away.
Walked in, saw handiwork of someone’s halloween prank. Red liquid / Gel / Syrup / idk was everywhere. Walls, floor, stalls, sinks, ceiling… everywhere.
Executed a perfect 180, and ran into couple of guys carrying a skeleton (liberated from nearby classroom).
Year before that, had a few smoke bombs left over from 4th July, decided that student population of Library wing needed a bit of drama. Wrapped paper matches around fuses, lit matches, and calmly walked out and left building.
Nothing happened, no alarm, no mass exodus, etc. Being young and stupid, I revisited the scene od the crime. Opened door, walked around corner, and there were 3 teachers and resource officer standing by sinks / drowned smoke bombs. Executed a perfect 180 to leave, and was told to stop before could get out. School resource officer found the matches on me…
Was told was same matches that were used. I glanced at drowned non-incendiary devices and told him “Nope, these are white with red heads, those are all black”. Was asked why had them, replied “just had them by mistake after asked to change partners in Chemistry after lighting my Bunsen.”Mr Maeker, chem teacher, confirmed that I was asked to move, but did not disclose his class used *wood* matches.
The story of Joe Arridy comes to mind, marked by misfortune from the very start.
Born to parents who were related and faced with severe learning difficulties, having an IQ of just 46, Joe didn’t even start talking until he was five.
image 8
School was a bust; after just one year, the principal told his parents to keep him home.
His family life was rocked when his dad got laid off, and unable to cope, they sent Joe to a state institution. But that place offered no refuge, instead, Joe found himself the target of cruel bullying.
Life threw another horrific punch when, as a teenager, Joe was attacked by a group of boys. That awful incident got him sent back to the institution, where he’d already suffered so much.
At 21, Joe hit the road, riding the rails like many did during the tough times of the Great Depression. It was a rough existence, and sadly for Joe, it led to the most unjust chapter of his life.
Accused of a gruesome crime; the r*pe and murder of a young girl in Pueblo, Colorado. Joe’s fate was sealed by a confession that was disjointed and filled with inaccuracies.
No physical evidence linked Arridy to the crime scene. His conviction was based solely on the questionable confession and the loose testimony of witnesses and was only pardoned posthumously.
He went to death row but carried a strange kind of joy, one that stood out in the grimness of prison life. He was fond of a toy train, a symbol of his childlike innocence, which he spent most of his days playing and kindly gave it to a fellow prisoner right before he was executed.
image 7
On the day of his execution, Joe didn’t grasp the finality of what was happening. He left behind a bit of ice cream, which he requested for as a last meal, asking for it to be refridgerated for later, not realizing there was no coming back from where they were taking him.
The sobering story of Joe is a stark reminder of life’s unpredictable harshness and the importance of compassion and unwavering justice in our society.
And to also remind people who have it a little easier in life than others to be eternally grateful.
I worked at a nursing home as a physical therapist and one of my clients was a retired cable TV executive with end-stage Alzheimer’s. After he passed away, I went to his wife’s home to offer my condolences and as I was leaving, I saw an older Cadillac in a covered carport behind the home.
A 1975 baby blue Sedan de Ville with a white vinyl top and a 500 ci V8 under the hood. I was fascinated and asked the widow about the car. She said it was her late husbands and that he had purchased it brand new. But before he was able to enjoy the car he developed Alzheimer’s and was no longer able to drive.
I told her if she ever wanted to sell it to let me know and left.
She contacted me later when she was moving and said she would like me to have it since I worked with her husband at the end of his life. We settled on a price and I bought the car with 24,000 original miles on the odometer. As I was leaving, the wife handed me a box of brand-new original floormats that had never been opened.
After driving the car around for a few days, I discovered a constant “thumping” that would increase with speed. After taking the car to a mechanic, he explained to me that the tires were original from the factory and although there was plenty of tread left, the tires had developed flat-spots from sitting in the driveway for years.
I replaced the tires and the car now has about 60K. Rides like a Cadillac.
Biden neocon war drums beat louder
“As an American, I can tell you firsthand that folks are so unengaged in these events and their consequences. It appears that we believe we’re undefeatable. Our hubris will destroy us.”
China adopts a strategy that is not exactly the Socialist Price Fixing but more of a Price Control
And purely for foodstuffs
China has in place a market mechanism for prices to rise and fall, a sort of a farm futures index
China also engages in buying 44%-77% of all the grain produced and Pork Produced and all other Agriculture produced in China , minus a few products like Fruits or Pears Or Shrimp etc
They pay according to the market index
Then when and if prices rise higher, they release foodstuffs from their storage and increase supply and this automatically lower prices to acceptable levels
This is because China has a storage capacity of 33 months for Grain at a 3.28% wastage
This is astounding for a Country that in 2007 had a 11 month storage capacity with 18% wastage
Now this is technically against Economic Laws
However Adam Smiths Free Market didn’t include manipulations
In the West, Agro Futures and Prices are pretty much capitalist controlled and can surge and fall in a way controlled by cartels
It’s worse in Africa , far worse
And Pakistan, by God it’s atrocious
Surprisingly India has a good old fashioned system like the State Purchases and Mandis that keep prices controlled
So my belief is Government should practise staunch capitalism and free market as long as :-
The market is dictated by PURE DEMAND AND SUPPLY and not by Cartel players
Education & Food & Health & Transport are excluded from pure capitalism and treated as Public Services
To the best of my knowledge only 17 Nations practise the above including China & the GCC& Scandinavian Countries
It smells like mothballs, and the woman at the counter is at least 126 years old.
What’s this? An antique lamp. Looks old. I pick it up and wipe off the dirt and…
*POOF*
A genie.
He’s big. Blue. Sounds a lot like Robin Williams.
He says I get one wish and can’t ask for more wishes. I get it. The United Genie Association (UGA) doesn’t want one person taking all the wishes. They want to share the love. It’s a noble idea… but it’s one I can sidestep.
“I WISH… to be given the option to accept the same thing that every person wishes for when they find this lamp”.
Boom.
Someone wishes for a million dollars a week later… I’ll accept it too.
Someone wishes for the power of flight a month later… I’ll accept it too.
Someone wishes for world peace a year later… I don’t want that (not because I’m against the cause, but what are we going to do with TWICE the world peace?).
I haven’t asked for more wishes.
I’m just being offered a gift now and then.
Checkmate genie.
Now get back in the lamp. There’s an antique apothecary table I’ve got my eye on, and I want to get back to my shopping.
Yes you can. My cousin had her car stolen while at work. While riding the bus home a few days later, she saw it in a grocery store parking lot. She jumped off the bus keys in hand and sure enough, it was her car. Still hadsome of her belongings in it. Still had her registration and other documents in the glove box too. So she hoped in, locked the door and called the nonemergency police number to report she found it. It started up fine so they said she could drive off with it. As she was on the phone with them, someone came out of the store (with a cart full of groceries) and screamed at her that it was their car and to get out ECT. She cracked the window just enough to tell them it was her car, they stole it, and that they were idiots for leaving HER registration in the glove box. She then said I have the cops on the phone if you want to talk to them. They took off running. Left their groceries behind. She proceeded to load them into her car and drive off with the $200 worth of food. She said she took it as payment for stealing her car. She said what are they gonna do? Call the cops and say “Yea the lady who’s car I stole a few days ago took back her car and stole my groceries”
China could destroy the UK economy at the stoke of a pen.
Pull HSBC’s banking licence in China. HSBC is a UK bank. It’s got several trillion in assets and relies heavily on Asia and China now. HSBC withdrew from the US market as they were caught money laundering for terrorists and drug cartels.
The UK government would bail HSBC out and need to print 900–1500bn to do so.
GBP would suffer mega inflation.
Next up sanctions to push that inflation up some more. Without Chinese imports and exports to China their inflation would go up another 10–25% that would cause loss of faith immediately and they’d be looking at £50 bread. Massive riots would happen at this stage.
Biden Threatens War With China Over The…Philippines?
How deluded are these people if they think the US can talk down to China about anything at this stage, let alone human rights…
Obviously, the exact timing depended to a significant extent on the nature of the ground but, in the British army, a man was considered capable of moving, on average, a cubic foot of earth in three minutes. It was assumed that the rate would start at a cubic foot every two minutes in the first hour and then decline to a cubic foot every six minutes by the fourth hour. The work rate also slowed as the trench was dug deeper as the earth had to be lifted further. Reliefs should be provided at least every four hours.
A contemporary example I have seen suggests that forty men, using 40 shovels and 20 picks, could dig a:
forty rifle trench, 18″ command, traversed, recessed, and with head cover, in easy soil, in seven hours.
It is further noted that the minimum practical distance between men working was 5′ if a pick was being used and 4′ otherwise.
A full trench would be 6′ 6″ deep, being constructed of a 1′ 6″ parapet (above ground level), a 3′ drop to the fire step and then a two foot drop to the bottom of the trench. Initially the trench would be 4′ 6″ deep (including the parapet) and a minimum of 18″ wide. As soon as time allowed, the area behind the 18″ fire step would be dug out another 2′ and 2′-3′ wide to create the passage trench, the bottom of which would now be 6′ 6″ deep.
image 10
Of course, when under fire, they didn’t start building the full trench all at once. It would have started as a shallow scrape around 6′ x 2′ x 1′. That’s 12 cubic feet and would have taken around 40 minutes to dig. The scrape would then, successively, have been deepened so that it could accommodate a kneeling man (3′ deep) and then a standing man (4′ 6″ deep).
A scrape is defined, in considerable detail, thus:
[The soldier should] tear up and collect any vegetation within arm’s reach, and heap it up loosely as a screen at full arm’s length to the front.
(Lying on the left side of the body, and using the pick or blade of the grubber, according to the hardness of the ground, he should quickly hack the earth loose in a furrow, about 1′ 6″ feet away on the right side, from as far back to the right rear to as far forward to the right front as he can reach.
Then holding the grubber by the handle close to its head, thumb pointing towards small end of handle, and, using the blade as a scoop or hoe, he should scrape the loose earth out of the furrow and heap it up close in front of his left eye and shoulder. He should hack loose another strip of earth along the near side of the original furrow, so that the grubber will strike into ground which is probably softer than the crust, and can thus be undercut and wrenched up from below. He should continue to scrape loose earth towards the parapet and hack off the crust until the furrow is about 1’ 6″ feet wide. Any lumps of earth available should be used to build up the near edge of the parapet as steeply as possible.
Each new lot of loose earth should be disposed so as. to thicken the parapet in a direct line between his head and the point from which the most accurate fire appears to come, or, if the enemy’s fire seems to come from every direction, he may extend the parapet right-handed in a general horseshoe round the front of he trench, keeping. the past of the parapet over which he intends to fire about 6″ lower than the remainder, and of bullet-proof thickness if possible.
When the depth of the trench reaches about 6″ at the front end and 12″ at the back, and the parapet is 6″ high and bullet-proof, some vegetation, if any is available, should be scattered over the parapet to conceal the earth thrown up. The soldier is then ready to join the firefight.
The following diagram shows the evolution of the scrape (A) through successive digging to the full trench (E).
image 104
When sapping or extending an existing trench, the working face, and thus the number of men that can be employed, is obviously limited and it was expected that a trench could be extended by between one and two feet per hour.
Before I was old enough to go to school my best friend was a little boy named Lester who lived across the street. We were almost inseparable. Then, just before starting school, we moved away. We visited Lester and his family a few times over the next couple of years, and then my parents started saying it was too far away and making other excuses for not visiting. After a while I got used to not seeing Lester any more, but I never forgot him.
After I had grown up, finished college and gotten married, my wife and I went back to my hometown and visited my mother. While looking through Mom’s old photo albums I came across an invitation to one of Lester’s birthday parties. Mom then told me the truth about Lester for the first time. One day she and Lester’s mother had taken us to the doctor together for our regular checkups. My results came back normal, and Lester’s showed he had leukemia. He still looked healthy when we moved away, and for the next couple of years. But then he became visibly ill and my parents didn’t want me to know, so they found reasons to stop the visits. But Mom secretly kept writing and talking on the phone to Lester’s mother for several years afterwards, and knew that he died not long after our visits stopped.
Even though it had been many years I was very shaken and saddened by that news, and to this day I wish I had been told what was happening and had a chance to say goodbye. All this happened in the late ’50s and early ’60s (I was born in 1955). Then, a few years ago, I decided to try and find out what had happened to Lester’s family. Mom had died in 1999 so my only recourse was to search online with what I had from my own memories. After a long search I finally came across a picture of Lester on a genealogy website and sent an email to his cousin. She put me in touch with her mother, who was one of Lester’s sisters. We exchanged several emails with memories of Lester, and though she wasn’t much older than him she vaguely remembered the little boy across the street (me) who had been his friend. I scanned several photos of him and me together from Mom’s photo albums and emailed them to her, including a few in which he was wearing the same clothes as in the picture they had put on the website. She was glad to know someone outside the family still remembered her little brother with fondness.
I’m 68 and I still wish I could have seen him once more, but this experience at least finally gave me a little closure.
Thanks for the a2a. Why? Those of us old enough to remember all the manufacturing jobs going to China know that capitalistic greed is the reason. Owners and CEO’s thought paying Chinese workers rock bottom prices was more cost effective than to continue producing product in the US.
I don’t blame China. They needed the jobs back then. They took those low wages because it was better than none. It was better than starving in the Great Leap Forward. They were just providing for their families, same as the rest of us. I don’t begrudge them their success and rise to greatness.
In fact, I am impressed and absolutely thrilled with how far China has come. By the way, you get what you pay for. Pay them low wages and you might get low quality. Pay them well and you may see high speed rails and virtual reality. What you get from China is really up to you.
But don’t resent China or the people. Resent the factory owners. Resent your bosses that took your job out from under you. Blame the true villain instead of the straw man.
Rats reach giant sizes in the battlefield of Ukraine as they feed on corpses of the dead soldiers and they’re never out of new meat.
The Western Siberian oil basin is the largest oil and natgas producing region in Russia. One would think that locals benefit from cheap gasoline.
Residents of Orenburg, Omsk, Chelyabinsk, and other neighboring Russian regions who live close to the border go on gasoline tours to Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan filling tanks and canisters with much cheaper gasoline. For A-92 the difference is about 50%; for A-95: 30-33%, for diesel fuel: 30-37%.
What gives? High taxes to pay for war in Ukraine.
In Russia, the share of taxed in the liter of gasoline is much greater than in Kazakhstan. The excise tax on diesel fuel in Kazakhstan is 540 tenge (90 rubles), while in Russia 9,556 rubles per 1 ton (the share of excise tax per liter of fuel is 8 rubles).
The excise tax on imported gasoline in Kazakhstan is 1,839 rubles per ton while in Russia it’s 13,262 rubles, or about 10.3 rubles per 1 liter.
As a result, the share of the tax component in the liter of Russian gasoline at the moment, taking into account the excise tax, mineral extraction tax, and VAT, is over 70%!
Therefore, Russians pay extra for gasoline in order to dispatch fellow citizens to feed rats in Ukraine! Lucky rodents.
In the Perm Krai, an 11th-grader was given military summons right at school after celebrating Conscript Day. “Rats are hungry,” said the representative of the conscription office.
The Hamas delegation led by a member of the Politburo of the militants Abu Marzuk arrived in Moscow. They plan to discuss with their Russian counterparts how to conduct surprise targeted raids and kidnappings, share secrets about how to fool intelligence services, and receive additional lessons in paragliding.
But you do not worry, I’m sure that Russian President Vladimir Putin remains a close friend of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who first came to power two years after Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus killed all his competitors. These elderly men are birds of the same feather and flock together. Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs has regularly entertained Taliban, Islamic Jihad, and Hamas as they have one crucial thing in common – they have dedicated their lives to fighting America’s hegemony .
During the Civil War in Sri Lanka, Mossad sold weapons to both sides of the conflict. Likewise, after seeing Hamas out of the door, Putin will meet with a delegation from Israel.
Military service is advertised on buses. Russian state agency plans to have ads on space rockets. In case aliens will see the phone number in the outer space and decide to become heroes of Russia.
The Head of the General Staff of Russia’s friendly India stabbed Brutalsky in the back and turned the knife one hundred and eighty degrees.
“Russia’s geopolitical importance will decline over time, even though it is a nuclear power.”
Flashing his nuclear head has been Putin’s favorite pastime for the duration of two years. Having an Indian general say publicly that they’re not impressed with the endowment and that the size doesn’t matter is appalling.
Russia depends on India. India can squeeze Russia for discounts as they have to sell oil somewhere while India has many options where to buy it.
After the start of Special Military Humiliation, the whole world stopped being afraid of Russia witnessing the low level of training of the military and the lack of modern weapons.
India is now considered a space power with its own lunar mission, while the Russian moon probe crashed and burned, the mission unaccomplished.
Sergey Shoigu should issue a threat that they would nuke the Taj Mahal and invade Goa on the pretext that thousands of Russian creatives are engaged in non-conservative and non-traditional activities there.
Many years ago I worked at a Toyota factory in the USA. One day we had some visitors from GM taking the factory tour and the visitor’s center was hospitable and had them meet some of the engineers and technical people (I was in IT and honestly had the best personality to deal with visitors so was invited along).
The GM people asked us to see our rework yard. I had no idea where or what that was so I asked my colleagues what it is and where it is. They were as confused as me.
When asked, the GM folks told us it’s the lot where they keep cars that come off the assembly line with defects so that they can be patched up and sold.
So we took them to the small warehouse area where we keep the dozen or so cars that come off the line with a minor issue that we can fix and make it as good as every other car. More often than not it was an issue with the stitching on the seat or a steering wheel or something like that, and we would just replace the part that was imperfect.
GM guy: “Where’s the rest of it?”
Me: “This is it. What do you do?”
GM guy explained they had a large lot for cars that come off the line with faulty body work or engines or transmissions, and they’re patched up so they can be sold. Then he said “what do you do with your defective cars?”
We explained that it rarely happens, and when it does we study it, figure out what went wrong, fix the issue so it won’t happen again, and then either keep the car for further study and training purposes or crush it. Nothing that comes off the line with a serious defect leaves the factory.
And that’s why Japanese engines (and vehicles) are known for reliability. Yes, tolerances are tight and yes, Japanese companies avoid untested technology. But that’s secondary.
The main reason is that anything defective that gets produced is studied, not sold, and then improvements are made so it won’t happen again.
The Japanese do make bad cars sometimes. They just don’t sell them.
Not everyone can say that.
Edit: Thanks for your awesome comments everyone. This is the sort of thing that makes Quora fun.
Second edit: Since Edward Deming keeps getting mentioned in the comments I feel I should address his influence on Japanese industrial processes. I’m no expert on Deming but from what I’ve read he’s clearly a remarkable man who had a tremendous impact on Japan’s postwar industrial development. With that said I feel it’s wrong to entirely credit him with Japan’s reputation for building quality products. He could have made the same contribution in other countries and received different results. Deming planted the seed and the Japanese nurtured the plant. Deming certainly deserves accolades for his contribution but the main credit for Japanese quality goes to the Japanese themselves. By all accounts Deming was a very humble man and certainly would agree. The world is a poorer place without him in it.
Iran Defense Minister to USA: Ceasefire in Gaza or be “Hit Hard”
Iran’s defense minister said Sunday that the U.S. would be “hit hard” if Washington doesn’t push for and implement a cease-fire in Gaza.
“Our advice to the Americans is to immediately stop the war in Gaza and implement a cease-fire, otherwise they will be hit hard,” Mohammad-Reza Ashtiani said, according to Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency.
Chinese people, by nature, are very calm/collective/and incredibly hard-working.
I have never seen/met even one Chinese in Canada/or China who is boastful, talks too much, and delivers nothing. Their talk is zero percent, and delivery is almost 100 percent. I have worked with Chinese Canadians at different levels for nearly fifty years.
By nature, they are very humble.
They are not gossipy/very goal-oriented.
And they are wired to work very cooperatively and team-spirited.
To describe Chinese: There used to be one advertisement. It used to say: Let your fingers do the talking.
Regardless, It was an advertisement for OLD TIME: Yellow Pages, before the internet. Some people may remember these Yellow Pages in the phone books used for publicity for all kinds of things/services/almost everything.
For Chinese people, I have a similar thing to say: Let the achievements of the Chinese do the talking.
I have observed and tried to implement/copy some of their trademark habits.
To win from the Chinese is almost mission impossible.
I could write many things about others, but these are my impressions/observations, it may upset some people.
And
It is sufficient to say that China and the Chinese will rule the world for a long time from now onwards.
A word of caution:
Yes, I am very aware of the lifestyle of rich kids: A present is small numbers but eventually will put one nail in the coffin. It happens to every race/country/company: To become complacent/wasteful/lazy/let it go. It is a usual growth curve, stagnation, and dying of wealth and power.
Yes, I am aware of the shortcomings/evils/of the riches, too. There is a start of problem of obesity.
Yes, there is an onset of flaunting new riches, too.
Yes, there is the onset of being complacent.
Yes, there is the onset of being lazy.
Yes, some of the new affluent Chinese kids are becoming obese/lazy/show off/useless/they come to the West to live in penthouses/fancy cars/big money in the bank by the daddy/and blow away dady money.
One line sums up: China and the Chinese: Let their achievements do the talking.
No race can compete with them: They are killing -machines in every field. And most of our neighbors are Chinese, and our kids went to school with their kids.
There is zero tolerance for not excelling in academics in a Chinese household.
I want to share something: One of our kids was neck to neck-with the Chinese kids in school. Chinese, by nature, as said earlier, keep to themselves, do not discuss their game plan, and work very hard. They surprise the competition with the result.
They did the same thing with China: They closed the doors to outsiders and put their houses in order. When they opened the doors, the world had a big surprise.
Go to China, see it yourself: Come back to the “Developed” so-called first world and see it yourself.
Rest assured, the world will not be the same: Life will be insensitive for the rest.
It is NOT only their industrial might: It is also relatively crime-free/corruption-free/full equality of women/and not wasting money in useless wars. During my six visits, I found that most people in China hope for a bright future.
Sadly, the West was in gloated form, complacent form, and ignorance form, and China’s bashful behavior of not flaunting took the whole world by surprise.
And
Due to the Chinese’s very reserved nature, not flaunting, keeping a shallow profile, however, the fact of life in Canada is they own massive real estate. In one city where I make most of my living, Chinese money is behind in all gigantic projects. And in other words, China owns an enormous share of Canada. (Please note this statement is based on my gut feelings/observations.)
It is also a myth that most Chinese are atheists. There is no truth to it. The Chinese have found the real God (Do your good Karma and do not worry about the results). Their massive churches are not ONLY for praising the LORD. There is all mutual business, comparing notes about the kids’ super achievements, kids helping kids, and parents exchanging their business cards. In the end, yes, it comes to Praise the Lord.
I have worked with almost all the races on the earth in Canada. Rest assured, NOT even one race except the Chinese can work together. You do not need supervisors/guards on any other race; if one tries to come out of the hole, the other members of his race pull him down, except the Chinese, they will lift the one who is trying to get out, and the same way the whole pit will be empty. Moral: That is why the Chinese are the wealthiest community in almost every country. (The hole is a metaphor for the poverty of comers; helping each other is a metaphor for a deep bond for each other, coming out of the hole to enjoy prosperity.) These were all metaphors and my observations.
Here is a bit more information on the author:
Something about myself and my family: I was born a few years ago; India was independent in 1947in the Punjab region of India, in a Hindu/Punjabi family. I did a BSc with two extra B.A. subjects and a BEd MSc from Punjab University Chandigarh. Now, it is in the U.T.
I moved to Canada in the early 70s when I was in my early 20s, enrolled in a grad program at U of Guelph, and finished my MSc with almost double the courses than expected and a lovely thesis on an industrial problem of that time.
I became very interested in learning about China and the Chinese in primary school. Our teacher was very impressed with China/Buddhism/Culture/and so on. He sowed powerful seeds in my mind about the great civilization of China. I vowed that one day I would visit China. I saw it six /visited times, and I just scratched the surface. Then COVID hit the world, and my continued journey stopped. Hopefully, I will start again to explore China.
I have been in Canada for close to fifty years. My wife and I raised our kids. Now, we are blessed with grandkids.
I hope it helps.
Sam Arora: MSc Food Science U of Guelph, Canada MSc Dairy Science U of Punjab, NDRI, India
Beautiful Shanghai: The area is called The Bund. In the background, the Pearl Tower salutes China’s rise to the Unofficial Chairman of the board(In my view). China and the Chinese showed the world that everything is possible with super hard work, And that is the real essence of Hinduism: super Karma.
Most Chinese people do not believe in reducing anyone’s height. They increase their very quietly and with total devotion.
It is possible that in the eighteenth century, the US may have adopted the metric system of measurements if it were not for a series of unfortunate events that befell Frenchman Joseph Dombey. Mr. Dombey was sent to America in 1794 to help the Americans reform the imperial system of measurements inherited from the British. The Americans had with the help of the French defeated the British and might be interested in a non British measurement system.
Dombey took with him copper prototypes for the newly devised meter and kilometer, which he intended to present to Congress. Unfortunately, his ship was blown off course to Guadeloupe where French royalists imprisoned him. H, Dombey was released only to be captured by pirates who stole his measurements and held him for ransom. While in captivity the unfortunate Frenchman died of a fever- thus depriving America of the the opportunity to adopt the metric system.
The morphine syrette used in WWII and Vietnam had a wire loop pin with a guard in the end of the hollow needle that was used to break a seal where the needle was attached to the tube. After breaking the seal, the wire loop pin was removed and the hollow needle was inserted under the skin at a shallow angle and the tube flattened between the thumb and fingers. After injection the used tube was pinned to the receiving soldier’s collar to inform others of the dose administered.
In the infantry, usually the medics carried them however some soldiers did carry some in case needed.
Today’s wounded soldiers suck on lollipops.
image 100
The new treatment offers an alternative to the morphine needle you see in the World War II movies, with medics jabbing a syrette into a soldier’s leg or arm.
The Fentanyl lollipop offers medics a faster way to ease the pain of a battlefield injury as the drug can be absorbed more rapidly through a lozenge in the mouth than from a needle injected into the muscle.
The absorption is actually faster through the blood vessels in the mouth. You don’t have to worry about shock which will constrict the blood vessels in a major muscle in a leg or an arm.
I was young and unwed. The doctor I saw attended me nicely, tried to counsel me, teach me about babies, etc, assuming at 17 I wasn’t capable.
After my beautiful baby was born and about 3 months old, at a routine check up, the doctor began asking me odd questions about wanting my freedom, needing money, etc., until he finally got around to saying he wanted my baby. Said he could do more for her than I ever could blah blah blah.
I was dumb struck. Insulted beyond belief. Scared me, too.
I told him he wasn’t her mother and could do any more than I could because he could never be her mother.
An odd response, I suppose, but I believed it then and still today. I was young, naive, resourceless, etc., but I knew he could never love her like I did (and do).
I got pulled over in Florida on Interstate 95 in Palm Beach County. FHP trooper came up to me and asked me how I was doing. I replied, “Well, honestly, I was doing pretty good before I met you.” He laughed and replied, “Oh yeah. Ninety five. Ninety FIVE!”
Now it just so happened that he pulled me over right in front of an interstate marker sign. So I pointed at it and said, “But look right there. The sign says 95.” He laughed and then pointed to a piece of paper lying beside me on the passenger seat. “What’s that right there,” he asked. Um. A ticket. “Let me see that.” I handed it to him. He looked at it, then said to me “You’re going to screw around until you lose your license.”
Then…he let me go. I couldn’t believe it. I think he realized with the ticket he was about to give me, coupled with the ticket I already had, actually would result in a suspension of my license. I think that because I gave him a good laugh, he decided to cut me a big break.
When I was 17-years-old, I was working as a waitress in a hotel restaurant. I was clumsy as hell and uncomfortable serving people. I started as a kitchen hand so I was used to being in the back and safe from the patrons.
One day, a group of four from England, came in wanting to be seated. We only had one table available and we hadn’t cleared it yet so as they walked toward the table. I’m panicking about getting it prepared for them.
One of their party is an older gentlemen probably in his 40s and he’s quite handsome. He looked a little like Mads Mikkelsen.
He was just like this and pretty fetching in my eyes. So, I apologized to his group and there were really gracious about it. They were lovely, lovely people. However, just as I’m removing a water jug from the table and one of the other girls is cleaning it, I bang into the gentleman as I’m turning and I spilled water all the way down the front of his shirt and all over his trousers. I’m instantly horrified and I’m pretty sure I actually stopped breathing. He just said, “Ooops!”
He grabbed a serviette and starts dabbing at his shirt and without thinking and TRYING to be helpful, I also grab a serviette and I “dab it on his crotch”. Realizing the mistake I’ve made, I just drop the serviette and walk away back into the kitchen followed by the other waitress who is pissing herself by laughing hysterically while I’m nearly crying.
I had to return to their table to give them their cutlery, and as I’m placing it on the table, my hands are visibly shaking from my shame and embarrassment. However, the people at the table are so friendly, they’re laughing and joking so I feel less shitty about accidentally molesting the nice man. They were staying at the hotel so I saw them a couple more times during breakfast and dinner again the following night. Every time the group came in, they stopped to say hello and asked how I was.
To this day, I cringe and I still see the embarrassed look he gave me when I had my hand on his crotch. Oh, floor…please swallow me!
Johnny Depp. He had zero acting education or prior experience. He simply accompanied his band mate (!) to an audition for A Nightmare On Elm Street before a band rehearsal and waited in the lobby. Director Wes Craven spotted him, noticed his boyish good looks and said “You! Get in here right now.”
I’d say that qualifies as practically falling into a movie career.
A programmer named Tim Paterson worked hard writing code for a new operating system. Later that year in August 1980 Seattle Computer Products, shipped the first version of the operating system.
One day, a young energetic guy with large eyeglasses walked into the company searching for the operating system named 86-DOS.
He negotiated a non-exclusive license for $25,000 and took it to the computer giant named IBM. He showed the demo, offered a few modifications that they were requesting and closed a deal.
A few weeks later, in May 1981, this bright guy named Bill Gates who worked on a startup named Microsoft went back to Tim Paterson and hired him to further develop the software.
On July 27, 1981 he paid another $50,000 for the full rights, totaling $75,000 and renamed it to MS-DOS.
image 91
A month later, Microsoft was shipping MS-DOS on IBM personal computers, and within a year Microsoft licensed MS-DOS to over 70 other companies!
Eventually this work turned Bill Gates and Paul Allen into the world’s richest men.
This my friend, is one of the best examples of “Work Smarter, NOT harder!”
I’m not sure that this counts as cheating, but a couple students did exploit a loophole.
It was about 2000, and I was teaching a large (~200 students) circuit theory course at the University of Washington, in Autumn quarter, in the big lecture hall in Bagley Hall. As the time for the second midterm approached, students began clamoring, “Professor Sahr, how can we get extra credit on the exam?” I kept telling them, “just study for the exam, okay? And do your best. No extra credit!”
But the students kept whining and whining, and finally (exasperated), I said this: “Okay, any students who cross Drumheller Fountain on the day of the exam get 10 extra points.” The students said “awwww, you’re no fun.”
You can probably see where this is going.
At any rate, the day of the exam arrives, and the weather just sucks. It’s mid November, and (unsurprisingly) it’s raining cats and dogs, and the wind is blowing. As I stagger over to Bagley Hall, I notice that Drumheller Fountain is on — there are these water jets in the middle of this 100-foot-diameter fountain which is (by the way) about seven feet deep. And I think to myself, “why in hell is the campus running the fountain right now?” because the wind is blowing the spray all over the place, and making a miserable day even more miserable.
Anyway, I get into the auditorium, and I look around. Everyone is kind of bedraggled, because of staggering through the rainstorm outside. Obviously there’s a lot of water on the floor, because of the 200 or so students tracking it in with their wet feet and clothes.
But it seems to me that there was kind of more water than I would expect, even on such a rainy day. Glancing further around the room, I notice something weird off to the side: it’s a rubber raft. As I look up into the seats, I see the hundreds of students, but then I notice two students sitting next to each other, and *nobody* is sitting near them. These two students are wearing orange survival suits, and it dawns upon me that these two idiots have crossed Drumheller Fountain in that rubber raft.
I had a friend of my father-in-law’s reach out to me in desperation. His daughter was about to graduate from U. Buffalo with a major in cinematography. She was working on her final project and her Mac crashed on her. He implored me to help her out as best I could.
I got her laptop and pulled the drive. I popped it into an external enclosure and it had 10k available. A hard drive should have 15+% free so the computer can write temp files to it. 10k is REALLY bad. Then I heard a click come from it. This is desperation time, now. A click from a hard drive usually implies a “head crash”. This occurs when the magnetic reader inside the drive makes contact with the platter that has the data written to it. It’s usually a fatal situation.
It was about 9PM on a Saturday. I broke out a bottle of Jameson’s and knuckled down for some serious thinking.
OK, the reader is making contact with the platter. I need to make the platter smaller, so the head comes off it. Come on, science, help me out here. What makes things smaller? COLD! I took the drive and stuck it in my freezer (in a ziploc baggie). Then, I built a box that could hold the drive, and I attached a bunch of computer fans to it, pointed down where the drive will lay. After a couple of hours, I removed the drive from the freezer, stuck it in the box with the fans, and fired it up.
NOTE: the fans were there, not for cooling, but to prevent condensation from forming on the drive and its controller card.
I fired it up and was able to recover the entire contents of the drive. I finished the bottle and powered down the drive. Just for S&Gs, I turned it back on and it failed HARD, like it’s never gonna work again, “hard”. I just managed to recover it as it was on its final death throes.
I told my FIL’s buddy to send me another (bigger) drive and that I was able to recover everything. He asked, “How? I thought it was completely dead.”
“SCIENCE!”
Somewhere out there is a cinematographer who owes her college graduation to me, Jameson’s, and science!
The B-52 does have a toilet, but it is very basic and primitive. The toilet is located behind the offense compartment, which is where the pilot, co-pilot, and electronic warfare officer sit. The crew members have to use a bag to defecate and dispose of it when the bomber’s mission is over.
image 99
There is no privacy, as there is no door or curtain. The toilet is also very close to the classified communication servers, which can be awkward and uncomfortable.
The B-52’s toilet is not very convenient or comfortable, but it is necessary for the crew members who have to fly long and demanding missions. Its pilots and crews have to follow strict procedures and protocols, such as pre-flight checks, post-flight checks, flight planning, flight testing, and flight training, to ensure the safety and readiness of the aircraft.
Its pilots and crews also have to deal with varying atmospheric conditions, such as temperature, pressure, and humidity, which can affect their health and comfort. The B-52’s toilet is one of the few amenities that the crew members have on board the aircraft.
image 98
So the B-52’s toilet is not very convenient or comfortable, but it is necessary for the crew members who have to fly long and demanding missions.
When I was 19 years old I was in an elevator in a high rise building at night on my way to the 50th floor.
At the 5th floor, the elevator stopped, a man got in and pressed the ground floor button. Once the doors shut he suddenly grabbed my purse! I stood there looking at him while he frantically started pressing the first floor button.
I explained to him the car would go all the way up to the 50th floor first but he ignored me and kept pressing the button.
We slowly went up. It was quiet and creaky. Old elevator in an old building. No cameras (that I know of).
About halfway up I asked if he could take the cash out and leave me the purse so I would not lose my pictures and identification. He said “sure”, took the cash, handed me the purse. I mumbled thanks.
When we got to the top and the doors opened, he said “please stay in the elevator until I get off”.
So I stood there in my corner, nervous, but also calm while we went all the way down to the first floor where he got out. The doors shut and I went back up to the top floor.
In the country, there are elections every five years, there is no other candidate in the elections.
2.Owning cars.
In North Korea, only rich people, powerful people and government officials can on cars including luxury cars.
3.If you commit a crime, the rest of the family would go to jail.
In North Korea, committing a crime would lead your Innocent family to be in jail as well if they didn’t commit a crime.
4.There is an abandoned propaganda village within the border of South Korea to attract south koreans who desire to defect to north korea.
5.You will find almost every empty roads in that country.
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In North Korea, almost every roads in that country are very empty with few cars and people.
6.Don’t talk to locals when you’re a tourist.
When you’re tourist, you’re not allowed to talk to locals citizens of that country.
7.Western products are not allowed in that country as well as products from South Korea.
Because of the sanctions by the international community, products from the outside world including k pop music and products from South Korea aren’t allowed in that country.
Despite the ban of these products by the North Korean government from the outside world, people smuggle them and they are sold in black markets.
8.People aren’t allowed to wear jeans in that country.
Jeans aren’t allowed in that country because the North Korean government thinks that they are western made clothes.
Years ago I was on a tour with a bunch of classmates in Northern California.
Naturally, we had to stop at In N Out and since most of my classmates were from the East Coast, it was their first In N Out experience. They quickly learned that you could order as many hamburger patties as you liked for your burger and one guy decided to push the limits.
In true first timer fashion, he ordered an 11×11, meaning eleven patties and eleven slices of cheese between the same bun. The burger cost him more than 20 bucks and for some reason he ordered fries as well. He couldn’t finish the damn thing and ended up wasting a good portion of it. This was before camera phones and social media, so he was even able to get a picture and brag about it. The glory of ordering an 11×11 was lost to a rubbish can that day.
Fortunately, In N Out won’t put more than 4 patties on a single burger any longer. That’s my understanding anyhow.
No, but they are certainly among the most powerful and formidable weapons in the world. Nuclear-powered submarines are not weapons themselves, but platforms that can carry and launch various types of weapons, such as torpedoes, missiles, and mines.
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Some of these weapons can be nuclear-armed, which means they can deliver a nuclear warhead to a target, causing massive destruction and radiation.
Nuclear-powered submarines have several advantages over conventional submarines, which are powered by diesel engines or batteries. Nuclear-powered submarines can operate at high speeds and depths for long periods, without the need to surface or refuel. They can also travel long distances and access remote areas, such as the Arctic or the South China Sea. They can evade detection and countermeasures, thanks to their stealth and maneuverability. They can provide a credible and persistent deterrent, as well as a rapid and flexible response, to potential adversaries.
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Nuclear-powered submarines also have some drawbacks and limitations, which make them less than the most deadly weapons ever made. Nuclear-powered submarines are very expensive and complex to build, maintain, and operate. They require highly skilled and trained personnel, as well as strict safety and security measures.
They are vulnerable to accidents and malfunctions, which can result in radiation leaks, fires, or explosions. They are also subject to international laws and norms, which regulate their use and proliferation. They are not invincible, as they can be detected, tracked, and attacked by other submarines, ships, aircraft, or satellites.
I’d appreciate an upvote if you found this answer helpful or informative.
In any military, young recruits are often highly idealistic — as many of us are with any new profession.
These recruits have played Call of Duty and watched Full Metal Jacket. They love battle and are excited to go full Rambo and blow things up.
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And then they experience war for the first time.
They are shot at. They see a friend bleeding to death, knowing they can do nothing to save them. The recruits learn the hard way that war is true horror.
In the US Army, there’s a phrase, “Standard Operating Procedures are written in blood.”
It means that every stupid rule a cadet is drilled on, is there for a massive reason. Other units have learned these lessons in a very, very difficult way.
No, not all of your life’s lessons will be written in blood — but you may pay a steep price if you don’t listen to people wiser than yourself. They’ve seen things.
Cajun Pot Roast with Maque Choux
2023 11 08 11 51
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
1 (2 to 2 1/2 pound) boneless beef chuck roast
1 tablespoon dried Cajun seasoning
1 (9 ounce) package frozen corn
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup green bell pepper, chopped
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
Instructions
Rub entire surface of beef roast with Cajun seasoning.
Place roast in 3 1/2 to 4 quart slow cooker. Top with onion, corn and bell pepper.
In small bowl, combine tomatoes, pepper and hot pepper sauce; mix well. Pour over vegetables and roast.
When I was with my first wife, back in the late 1980’s her mental illness started to “kick in”.
For me, it was brutal.
I didn’t know what the Hell was going on. She started acting more and more peculiar. Followed by strange… really, REALLY strange behavior, and a mix of passive-aggressive and full-on aggressive behaviors flooded and spewed from her.
She would just spend 24-7, never sleeping, never taking a break just berating me for every problem under the sky. Non-stop tirades. First it was personal stuff. Then it evolved into the kinds of television commercials that played on the television… going to why I “allowed” the television to show those commercials.
Or, why I permitted a grocery store to price the cans in a “haphazard way”.
Why did I allow those commercials? Why didn’t I yell at the Store Manager?
She started saving boiled egg shells on plates. As they “predicted the future”.
The bedroom closet ended up being stacked with piles of plates with shells on them. She even labeled the plates with dates written on masking tape.
That was only the beginning, and she stopped washing her hair, and showering as it was a sign of my “male dominant” desires…
Like I said … “crazy” behaviors.
At this time, I was also living a nightmare as a cubicle employee in a company. It was a scene right out of “Office Space”. So, between the nightmare work environment, and the nightmare wife…
…and STILL being in MAJ with all the world-line swaps…
…I was HEAVILY stressed.
…
One day, we went for a walk. In those days, I would need to go out and get some “fresh air” and she would burst out of the house tagging behind me continuing her narrative of how rotten her life was, and why I was at fault. He was running amok and I hadn’t a clue as what to do. I couldn’t get a break. I couldn’t get a rest. I couldn’t get any alone time except while being in the car…
And…
…I snapped…
No, I did not go crazy. I did not go into a rage. I did not get upset. I did not freak out…
Something snapped inside of me.
I had an event. I had a breakdown.
Suddenly I was enveloped in fuzzy grey calmness, and all her talking was volume muted, the ground became warm and fuzzy and I felt like I was detached.
I was…
…comfortably numb.
…
She noticed this. She looked at me.
She then started to yell at me. “What are you doing!” she screeched. She grabbed me by the arms. “Snap out of it! We are talking about me! Pay attention to ME!” she hollered.
But it was too late. I was too far gone.
I had retreated inside. And the storm raged outside.
…
…
…
Look, I got over this. Buspar and Trazadone really got me back on track. They helped immensely.
And if you are going though this kind of event… you will too.
Stress and the horrific situations that it creates are but fleeting moments. Later on, when we are older, we look back in amazement of the things that we endured.
Yep. Was commuting into the office on the train as per usual, when my work cell phone rings. Bit early for calls, as it wasn’t barely 8am yet, but ring ring ring anyway, and while Caller ID wasn’t blocked, I didn’t recognize the number entirely but it did seem vaguely familiar, and I pick up.
Turns out it was the support department for the company who hosts email for where I worked, since they outsourced it rather than dealing with running Exchange natively. They tell me the reason they’re calling is that they have somebody else on the other line who is asking to be promoted to owner of the email system, and asked if I approved it. I asked who it was, and it was somebody from HR, interestingly enough. Of course, nobody ran this by me, so being unable to rule out a social engineering attack, and not having approval from anybody to do so, I declined.
A few minutes later, I got another phone call on my cell, different number, still not my office or boss, and was asked the same thing pretty much by our phone system vendor. At this point, I’m thinking it’s less likely a social engineering attack and more likely that HR is trying to secure things I have access to. I pull out my laptop and MiFi and sure enough, my access to our VPN is terminated already. I figure I’m about to be fired, and sure enough, I get into work after disembarking the train and don’t even make it to my office before I’m ushered into HR and informed of the decision to let me go.
I ask if there’s a severance package, and am told there is not, and that before the company will release my final paycheck, I must return all my equipment and sign the paperwork. I do so, since I had my laptop, work issued cell phone and MiFi with me, and the charger for both at my desk. I expect HR to then hand me my check, but apparently, no, they instructed me to wait, while they called the email vendor back to get me to authorize a transfer of ownership. I waited patiently, and when they went through the department to make the request with me standing there, the support rep asked me if I was able to authorize the transfer.
I simply informed them that I was no longer a representative of the company and as such, couldn’t authorize anything, while smiling at the HR rep in the room. The email support rep then informed the HR rep that they’d need to file the correct paperwork to verify the business, exactly the paperwork they were trying to avoid, to reclaim the account. I snatched my final paycheck off the table and said “If there’s nothing else, I’ll be on my way, now.” which went unresponded to, unless the glare from the HR person and my boss was a responce.
That would be Cadillac, I bought a new Catera, which is a rebadged Opel. It came with 4 year bumper to bumper warranty, and service. When the oil needed changing, it was free, new wiper blades free. New tail light bulb free.
So far, so good. On the night of the last day of my warranty, when the dealership was closed, my right turn signal would flash the radio light, but not the signal light. The dealership said that they consider the failure to have happened the first thing the next morning, when it was off warranty, because I didn’t report it when they were closed. It only happened at night, when the radio light came on. They said it was a $10,000 repair, if they did it by the book, but if they just clipped the old signal light wire, and ran a new one it would be $300.
Two weeks later both catalytic converters went, the dealer wanted $2500 a piece, but I was able to get new ones welded in at a muffler shop for $1300 for the pair.
A week later, I was driving, and suddenly lost all power, the engine died, most electrical went out. It turns out there is a cable, under the car, that requires the seats be removed, that came unplugged, it was the main power conduit. It was a $500 fix, including the tow.
The car requires that I pump the pedal to start it, its fuel injected, and that shouldn’t be the case. They park it outside in the winter, and they run the battery down, trying to start it, to take it in to work on it. They put in a new battery, that I don’t need. They tell me that you never have to pump the gas on a fuel injected car, to get it to start. So it was a bad battery. I point out that, the car was in to be serviced, because it wont start, without pumping the gas. It turns out that its a computer error, and is soon fixed, but they still charge me for the battery.
A month later, the transmission starts leaking. Its a totally sealed unit, there is no dip stick, no way to add fluid. It can’t be repaired, I need a new one. The dealer wants $5000. I go to a transmission shop, and they say they can put in a rebuilt one for $2500.
The kicker comes, not even a year after the car is off warranty, when idling I have no oil pressure, but it returns to normal when I step on the gas. I assume worn bearings, but how can it be, when the car only has 60,000 km, 40,000 miles on it, and all the service has been done at the dealer. The dealership is perplexed, they say that they have another, a year newer doing the same thing, and I should wait for them to figure out what is wrong with that car, as its under warranty.
I have had enough, I have paid more in repairs than the car is worth. I go to the dealer that I had bought it from, and trade it in for a Chevy.
I wouldn’t sell that car to anyone, but the company that sold it to me. The mechanics, gave it a clean bill of health and I got full trade in value.
I didn’t really want a Chevy either, but you take what you can get.
Due to employee carelessness, I was badly injured on the job. Due to the owner’s negligence, there was none of the required paperwork at the store to fill out an on-job injury report. I drove myself to the ER, got treated, and the ER (very reluctantly) filed the injury report. (I had to write it up for them, with both hands heavily bandaged!).
I was off work for about 10 days, when I got back the owner told me because of the “poor quality of cleanliness”, my hours were being cut by 20%. The week before I got hurt, we had scored a perfect 100% on a corporate cleanliness/service inspection. I gave him the keys, and walked out, with him yelling after me I wasn’t allowed to quit.
When the staff realized what was going on, all but two of them followed me out, and when the customers found out what was going on, half of them came with us!
I came home from work at 4:30 pm and was unpacking purse, jacket, etc.
My son came close to me, and whispered. “Mom. I have to tell you something. I hope you won’t think I’m a tattle tale. But Nicholas* is smoking cigarettes when he’s on duty taking care of my sister! Sometimes I see the smoke going right into her!”
My daughter, with a tracheostomy, acute allergies, and chronic lung disease, was cared for while I was at work by Nicholas, an au pair from a Scandinavian country. He was referred to me by his sister, who was another au pair; she was good and I trusted her.
My son was protecting his sister. As a child, he could not defend her against this au pair. He was trusting me to intervene.
I went into Nicholas’ room, smelled cigarette smoke, and fired Nicholas immediately. My children’s father immediately came home from work when I called him. He drove the au pair to the airport.
When I went to clean out his filthy room I found a lot of Nazi propaganda. And, months later, we were notified of three lawsuits. Apparently he had crashed the car we provided for him into other cars.
I will never forget that my son saved our family with an unforgettable and frightening conversation, because he trusted me to fix a situation he knew was a bad one, even though he was only five years old.
*not his real name
Brigsten’s Restaurant Banana Bread Pudding with Banana Rum Sauce
This is a fantastic cross between the classic bread pudding and Bananas Foster, the great flaming bananas and ice cream dessert.
Banana Bread
Yield: 12 servings
Ingredients
Bread Pudding
6 cups bite-size pieces day-old French bread
3 cups milk
3 large eggs
2/3 cup + 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
2 large very ripe bananas
3/4 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup seedless raisins
1/2 cup roasted pecans
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
Banana Rum Sauce
2/3 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
6 large ripe bananas, quartered
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 tablespoons dark rum
2 tablespoons banana liqueur
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
Heat the oven to 300 degrees F.
Bread Pudding
Put the French bread pieces into a 9 x 12 x 2 inch baking pan.
In a blender or food processor, blend the eggs, milk, 2/3 cup of sugar, bananas, cinnamon, nutmeg and 1/2 teaspoon of the vanilla extract until smooth. Pour this mixture over the French bread pieces. Fold in the raisins and the pecans and let the mixture set for 20 minutes. Top with small pieces of the butter.
Cover the pudding with aluminum foil and place the pan into a larger pan. Add warm water to a depth of 1 inch in the larger pan. Bake for 1 hour.
Remove the foil and bake uncovered for 15 minutes until set.
In a deep, medium bowl, whisk the cream just until it begins to thicken. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract. Continue whisking until soft peaks form. Cover and chill.
Banana Rum Sauce
Heat a large sauté pan or skillet over low heat. Add the butter, sugar, bananas, cinnamon and nutmeg. Moving the skillet back and forth, cook until the butter and sugar become creamy and the bananas begin to soften, about one minute. Remove the skillet from heat and add the rum and the liqueur. Return the pan to the heat. Tilt the pan, avert your face and and light the liquid with a long match. Shake the skillet until the flames subside. Add the vanilla extract, remove from heat and keep warm.
To serve, place a large scoop of bread pudding in the middle of each serving plate or bowl. Place 2 slices of banana on each plate and top with about 3 tablespoons of sauce. Spoon the whipped cream over the bread pudding and serve immediately.
My husband, kids and parents went to dinner with my sister’s family…a total of nine. We went to a unique steak restaurant where you ordered what you wanted and paid the cashier, then sat at a table where the food was delivered to you.
My brother in law, always the epitome of good manners (not!), made sure he was first in line when we entered. My parents were not in such a hurry, as they were chatting and having fun with their grandchildren, and were closer to the end of the line.
My BIL ordered a very basic steak dinner. This guy had a well-paying job, but the lengths he went to to save a buck or two were almost comical.
As the cashier was ringing up his order (He usually made my sister pay for her own), my mother called out that dinner for everyone was on her.
Charm boy immediately told the cashier to cancel his order, then proceeded to order the most expensive dinner, the steak and lobster with sides of prawns and garlic toast.
I hated going for a meal if he was included. He was always rude to the server and usually sent his meal back if he detected the slightest problem.
I’d love to know how many gallons of spit he has invested thru the years due to his rude and abusive restaurant etiquette.
“I’ll be devastated if you’re not at school on Monday.”
This was said to me by my teacher for Math and Italian when I was 14.
I won’t go into great detail, but I was experiencing a particularly difficult period at that time.
I was severely depressed and expressed to multiple teachers how I felt. No one reacted.
Naturally, I decided to put a permanent end to a temporary problem over the weekend.
I had Maths for my final class on Friday.
As my teacher for Maths and Italian had always been my favourite, I left him a short note on the back of my test stating I wish you and your family all the happiness in the world.
He collected our tests, saw my message and asked me to stay behind.
He spoke to me for an hour and expressed how devastated he would be if I (or any of his students) were to take their own life.
At 14, to have someone I only spent two hours a day with show genuine concern meant everything to me.
China JUDGES United States: “War Addicts” Will an “Intervention” to stop our addiction come next?
The People’s Republic of China has JUDGED the United States of America as being “War Addicts.” As families of anyone with Chemical Dependency know, making such a determination is the step before an “intervention” to put a stop to an addiction!
A uniformed spokesman from China’s People’s Liberation Army brought the judgement to the world via a Press Conference. “”The USA are war addicts.” The country has existed for 240 years, and only 16 years it did not go to war. They built 800 military bases around the world. “Wherever the US military goes, people die everywhere,” said a spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Defense.
RUSSIA CHIMES-IN
Russian President Vladimir Putin said yesterday “The terrible events in the Gaza Strip cannot be justified by anything.”
He went on to say “We see that in the Middle East, instead of punishing terrorists, they began to take revenge on the principle of collective responsibility.
When you look at bloodied, dead children, the suffering of the elderly, the death of doctors in the Middle East, your fists clench, but emotions are unacceptable,” the president said.
Then Putin let loose with the quiet part that isn’t supposed to be said out loud:
“Behind the conflict in the Middle East, Ukraine, Iraq, and Syria are the ruling elites of the United States and their satellites
“They don’t need lasting peace in the Holy Land, they need constant chaos in the Middle East,” said the Russian President.
The US ruling elites, without achieving success on the battlefield, are trying to weaken Russia from within.
Putin’s key statement to Palestine sympathizers:
“We can only help Palestine in the fight against those who are behind this tragedy. We are Russia, and we are fighting them as part of a special military operation. Exactly with them. Both for ourselves and for those who strive for real true freedom.”
The President of Russia called it the duty of a real man to fight Nazism during the North Military District appearance he made yesterday, defending the Russian Federation and the future of the world, including Palestine.
Hal Turner Editorial Analysis
Folks, the rest of the world sees us for what we have actually become: Dangerous and out of control. Specifically, two of three most powerful nations on earth are now openly saying we’re causing the whole world deadly trouble . . . and we’ve been doing it for years. They’re tired of us.
It’s sort of like any other addiction. A family sees one of their own out of control, and decides to intervene. First they talk to the chemically-dependent/addicted person. They try to reason with him. Then they start applying efforts to make the addict’s life harder. But finally, and it ALWAYS COMES TO THIS, the family must physically stop the addict.
It seems the United States has now been judged an “addict” by China and their 1.5 Billion people. (Four times larger than OUR population.) If they decide to the we need to be physically stopped, we will have brought it upon ourselves.
The people in Washington, DC in the federal government, are personally to blame.
If the world begins to “intervene” in our war-making, and bombs start falling on . . . us . . . . to put an end to the trouble-making around the world by the people in OUR federal government, be sure to remember who is directly to blame.
Never compare your sex life with porn videos. Because porn videos are totally fake.
Never be sad for losing someone. No one lasts for long period of time. Even, you are gonna lose your beauty, money and health with age.
Never underestimate failure.Only a failure gives you the proper perspective of success.
Never “Trust” easily on anyone. Because trust is the most expensive thing and so don’t trust blindly. Even, your friends get jealous when they see your progress.
Never share your password of social media accounts, email, Internet Banking, and ATM pin\CVV number with anyone. Never!
Never get involved in sexual activities till you are not serious in your relationship.
Never believe on that girl\boy who have lots of relationship in their past. They can easily manipulated you by crying their bad past.( Exception is everywhere)
Never try to hurt your parents. They have lots of expectations from you.
In any situation, Never think about ending your life. Even plants regrow leaves after one leaf shed.
Their life has grown visibly better under the so called dictators and very rapidly too
image 58
Take Gautam Adani
In China
Adani if he was building a plant within a distance of 200 Kms Radius of a Village that had a chance of pollution effluents
He would have to pay for mandatory medical tests every 6 months
He would have to build a School for every 875 students between ages of 7–16
He would have to furnish and equip the school and pay the State / Province who would arrange the teachers
He would have to build roads, build warehouses & basic infrastructure plus employ a mandatory 85% of his staff from these villages and TRAIN THEM UNDER HIS OWN DIME
He would have to pay insurance premiums for all the employees he employs and if he fires anyone, he has to pay a mandatory 6 months salary plus a 36 month premium
This comes from his revenue which is audited by a State Auditor on his Board.
So no lying about making losses
If he is unable to sustain his businesses , his shares will be transfered to someone else
And he can’t leave China unless he has an exit visa
That is how the CPC protects the common mainlander
The Billionaire gets a tax credit and tax discount to cover this sum
If he tries to dodge this payment, he can be levelled with PUBLIC CORRUPTION and Jailed for 240 months/ Life or executed by the State
This is just one example of how China mixes it’s Capitalism and Socialism and rises accountability for the Party and it’s Private Sector
image 57
Likewise Poor Kids are inducted to WORK for 26 Hours a week at a minimum wage of 264 RMB a week
In exchange the employer must Mandatorily ensure that the Kid is TAUGHT Chinese & Mathematics until the age of 17 with proper medium of instruction
Talented Kids who score above a threshold can be paid a scholarship for 2 years to prepare for the GaoKao and prepare for the School Leaving Exam as well
Otherwise they are still educated and can become upto Foreman or Floor Manager in the factory and take basic certifications
While the whole world targets China for Child Labor, China does best for poor kids and gives them a FIGHTING CHANCE without burdening their families with Debt
So many poor kids today have respectable jobs as Foremen or Supervisors or Small Business holders because of the CPC
image 56
In Chinese Cities, if you have a Job and no housing, the City gives you a Public Housing with minimum space ranging from 24.45 Sqm in Shangahi to 61 Sqm in parts of Chongqing
Very low cost and rent
No homelessness
If you are a Sweeper from Rural China working in Chongqing, four of you get a single public house with a heater, bathroom and indoor plumbing
No Slums since 1976
No Shanty Towns
Proper Public Houses
image 55
In the words of Gita Gopinath, nobody in the world has a Public Housing program like the Chinese do
No desperately homeless families in China
image 54
Xilin purchased 11000 Pre Fab homes for their public housing which is more economical
This in China, you are GUARANTEED of a roof above your head and indoor plumbing no matter how poor you are
Plus Healthcare
The Poorest Rural Villager can get a Coronary Bypass for 5000 RMB on State Dime even without Employer Insurance
They trust Alternate Traditional Medicine Quacks more, that’s a different story
Plus Education
Plus Food Prices capped
This means Pork, Rice, Beef and Soybeans can’t sell beyond a maximum price in China
The State will absorb the extra cost
image 53
So in a way
The Median Chinese feel protected and safe
This is around 86% of the Chinese living in China
Among the remaining Chinese , mostly in Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen and other top cities, some 3% of the citizens feel they cannot really live upto the standard of their wealth in China and leave for Singapore and Australia and extol the virtues of Democracy
86% triumphs 3% is it not?
So that’s why People are comfortable under China and Chinese Dictators
Give them a Multiparty system like India and by God they would vote for a Putin like man for 40 years consecutively
There was a crew of men replacing the carpeting in the offices at work. It was a long, narrow hallway in that part of the building and someone in the crew set up a radio and had it blaring. I ended up having to be the one to tell them they couldn’t do that during work hours. I talked to the guy who seemed to be the foreman on the job and he seemed pleasant enough about it. He turned off the radio and talked to the others about it. He then came back and talked to me for a few minutes. Just to make conversation I asked him about the quality of the carpeting. He assured me that it was pretty good stuff, even though it was fairly thin. He said that he used the same stuff in his house. I said, “Oh, really?”, as I thought it was odd that someone would use commercial carpeting at home. He answered, “Yeah, I had to use this because my grandson is living with us. He’s only 2 years old, and he’s blind, so he has to have this kind of carpeting to make it easy to walk.” I was taken aback somewhat and said, “I’m sorry to hear about his disability.” The foreman quickly replied, “Oh, it’s fine. He’s a great kid and a lot of fun to be around. Sometimes we move the furniture around just to watch him bumping into things. It’s funny as hell seeing him all confused and falling down.”
I have to say that I’ve never met anyone else in my life that could entertain themselves by torturing a blind baby.
Why Women Are Upset When Men Have PREFERENCES?!
Why? The inability to emote. Many women (that are younger) just are unable to emote. They think they have a high EQ, but an inability to emote decries EITHER a ZERO EQ, or a narcissistic personality disorder.
My story is awful in its own fashion but very different from the other responses. I had a wonderful roommate my last two years of college. Let’s call her Sue. She helped me get a job proctoring standardized tests. One Saturday I was finishing up a test when I saw my roommate in the door along with her then-boyfriend, Bill.
That surprised me because I thought they had plans since he didn’t live in town and they didn’t see each other often. Sue motioned me over.
“Jen, as soon as you can get away, we’ll give you a ride home.” The supervisor noticed the conversation and told me I could leave. I walked out to the car still wondering why Sue was here. After we got in the car, she turned around and gently told me, “Your mom called a little while ago. Your grandfather passed away this morning. Bill and I are going to drive you home.”
I was shocked. Although my grandfather had been diagnosed with terminal cancer the previous fall, he had responded well to radiation and had been active and in good spirits when I had last seen him only a month or so ago. Sue drove me back to our apartment to pack, then she and Bill drove me two hours back to my hometown for the funeral.
I’m not sure I ever really conveyed to Sue how grateful I was for that ride. I didn’t drive at the time, and it would have taken much longer for my sister or brother to have driven over to my college town to pick me up. She and her boyfriend gave up a large chunk of their rare time together to drive me home while I sat silent and grieving in the back seat, barely able to give directions in those pre-GPS days. “Sue,” if you’re on Quora and see this response and recognize the scenario, Thank you!
A little background — I was working in a chain drug store in Southern California, the only employee who came to work, on Christmas Eve. We were a 24-hour store, so, having cleaned everything, and faced all the stock on the shelves, I was thinking how to murder the “dancing Santa” (bad recording, 2 1/2 feet tall, and poorly made).
10:30 (22:30 for 24 hour clocks) a guy comes in, freaking out. His wife has recently left him for her “hot stud boyfriend”, with whom she has a brand-new baby. They are divorced, but she got the kids on holidays. He had bought and wrapped the presents for the kids (daughter, son), and dropped them off at her boyfriend’s house — left them on the porch, because she refused to open the door until he left. He gets home, and finds the kids waiting on his front porch. His ex-wife’s mother had just dropped them off, and left them alone, because ex-wife, new baby, and “Hot Stud” were going to his parents for Christmas, and she didn’t want the kids “getting in the way”. Grandma had plans of her own, and refused to take the kids with her.
Ex-wife left him with two kids with no change of clothes, no presents, not enough groceries, on Christmas Eve. And there was no way he could not make her sound like the totally selfish bitch she was.
Semi-happy ending. I abused the hell out of my authority as the manager, and “store-used” or “over-ride discount”ed everything we needed to put together a Christmas for his kids.
Each of them got a ream of paper, the largest box of Crayola (crayons) we had, a generic fuzzy toy, and two other toys that he thought they might like. Each present was individually wrapped in a different paper, with big fancy (store-bought!) bows, and a Christmas card on each present, plus each one got a good sized bag of “stocking stuffers”. (Pocket sized toys and games, candy, fruit, nuts, etc). Then I threw in (from me) a couple of bags of Christmas candy and chocolates.
It’s Christmas Eve, and your mother has her mother drop you off at your father’s house — who isn’t even home — because she doesn’t want you, because she has the new baby that you aren’t even allowed to touch.
Because there are two worlds: the one you see in real life and the one you see on TV or newspaper.
You watch TV, navigate through social media and you think you are well informed abou the world. And you know a lot about China. A strong dictatorship, damn commies, cheap labor and poor brainwashed people that would be amazed to see the “Free world”. The government is spying on their citizens, like CIA or NSA. But when commies do, you think is worst. Of course.
And one day, casually, you decide that you will visit China.
You arrived there and you are shocked. You can barely believe in your own eyes.
The big cities are super modern, big, shinning tall buildings. The way you pay, the way you shop, the hypermarket looks like in The Jetsons. You are in the future.
The level of automation there is out of this world (Western world, cough, cough). You had no idea that so many online services were already available to the people. You realise you have been scammed by your own country and media.
After the initial shock, you, an an educated person after all, well traveled, you have knowledge. Knowledge from the free world.
You decide to talk to the educated Chineses. Another shock. They know more about you (you as a citizen and your political beliefs) and your country than you know about them. Where is the brainwashing?
“Hey, but they are not free” you think in relieve. What can you do that they can’t? Let’s see… protest?
As if protests are changing something…
Vote? Chinese economy is growing faster and better than democracies…
It doesn’t matter, you are a free, superior citizen of the developed world. You travelled there to China to see them! And see that the Chinese studying abroad are going back to China… Whatever, they are commies.
You visit the Rural China, you still see a lot of poverty. You feel better about yourself. Hahaha, they are still poor!
You go back to the big cities and there is no way to deny the reality: China is growing and is glowing.
You go back home and you see, China is actually a good place. Very different from what you see on TV.
That’s why year after year the experts in your country are predicting the fall of China. There is nothing else to do beyond pray that somehow China will stop growing and wil be the end of the Western hegemony over the world.
Oil tankers are large and heavy vessels that carry oil across the world’s oceans. They can be up to 400 meters long and weigh up to 500,000 tons when fully loaded. They are also designed to be stable and safe in various sea conditions. There are several factors that contribute to the stability of oil tankers.
The hull is the main body of the ship that floats on the water. The hull of oil tankers is usually long, wide, and deep, which gives them a large displacement and buoyancy. The displacement is the weight of the water that the ship displaces when it floats, and the buoyancy is the upward force that the water exerts on the ship. The larger the displacement and buoyancy, the more stable the ship is. The hull of oil tankers is also divided into several compartments, called tanks, where the oil is stored. The tanks are separated by watertight bulkheads, which prevent the oil from spilling or sloshing in case of damage or movement. The tanks are also arranged symmetrically along the centerline of the ship, which helps to balance the weight and distribution of the oil.
The draft and trim of oil tankers vary depending on the amount and location of the oil they carry. The draft and trim affect the stability of the ship by changing the position of the center of gravity and the center of buoyancy. The center of gravity is the point where the weight of the ship acts, and the center of buoyancy is the point where the buoyant force acts. The center of gravity and the center of buoyancy should be as close as possible to each other and to the centerline of the ship, to ensure a stable equilibrium. The draft and trim of oil tankers are controlled by adjusting the amount and distribution of ballast water, which is seawater that is pumped into or out of the empty tanks to balance the weight and trim of the ship.
The metacentric height is a measure of how stable a ship is when it is upright. The larger the metacentric height, the more stable the ship is. The righting moment is the torque that tends to restore the ship to its upright position when it is heeled by an external force, such as wind or waves. It is proportional to the product of the metacentric height and the angle of the heel. The larger the righting moment, the more stable the ship is. The metacentric height and the righting moment of oil tankers are calculated and verified by using stability instruments, which are devices that can measure and display the stability parameters and criteria of the ship.
I didn’t work for a company, it was just a guy who sealed driveways.
I was 16 when he offered $10/hour under the table for good work.
We had fun. I busted my butt. I mixed sealer like a machine, process improvement every time.
We completed three or four driveways in five or six hours and then he took me out for a few beers on him.
It went on for two years.
At the end of the second year, he left his payment book open in the truck while getting something at the convenience store. He charged $300-500 per driveway on average.
I did the math quick in my head. Materials $40-50, labor $10, amortisation on equipment $20 (being generous).
That led me to: he gets $220-440 per hour and I get $10.
It was our last job of the year and I said nothing.
Next year in spring he called me and I upped my price to $20 per hour.
He freaked out, and asked if I was crazy.
I said, “Go and hire anyone you want, you won’t make as much money as you do with me and you won’t spend the last two hours at the bar drinking beer with somebody you like.”
My 83 year old father had an accident which caused a severe traumatic brain injury. He survived for a few months. My own mother died when I was 12, followed by my father emotionally abandoning me. He and his new wife carried this treatment forward for decades. This wife of 35 years, had always made it known I was not her cup of tea, was now terrified and desperate for help and support. I was the only one Dad recognized. She was panicked if he came home what would she do because he would have been severely disabled. During this time her tone changed and she made exclamations of “Family forever”. She asked me to move there and I agreed. The plan was I would stay for a month and then settle up the details of the sale of my home. I was moving whether Dad lived or died. I stupidly believed the cheetah changed her spots. Dad died and less than 48 hours later she told me I had to leave and I realized I was not welcome. I overheard her tell someone what a trauma it would be to have me around.
At that moment I felt the entire weight of 35 years of emotional abuse and neglect and the scales fell from my eyes. I felt like I was hit by a lightening bolt. I sobbed every day for the next 1.5 years…the pain was horrible as I realized how I allowed myself to be manipulated by her and how I allowed myself to be mistreated for all those years. I will never speak with her again because I refuse to be a second class citizen.
When you are looking for countries that have unusual or weird capital cities, Tokyo takes the cake. Tokyo itself is a beautiful city, which is incredibly safe, and has some of the best food in the world. The city itself has over 13 million people in it (3rd largest capital city), and the metropolitan area has 37.8 million people in it – more than 195 countries (making the Tokyo-Yokohama area the largest metropolitan area in the world). It is also the best city that I have ever visited in my life. Tokyo is a city that is totally worth visiting.
I like Tokyo because of how weird it is. It’s not weird in a bad way – its just that you see a lot of things in Tokyo that you don’t normally see in other cities.
Tokyo restaurants often display plastic models of their food on their windows.
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Now, where do you think you get these plastic food models?
Look no farther than Kappabashi Street – because the whole street is dedicated to selling restaurant supplies – such as these plastic food models.
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Want to sleep in unusual hotels? Tokyo’s got your back. Introducing the capsule hotel – not for claustrophobics!
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Ever felt like sleeping in a Kikkoman Instant soup bed?
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Bored of playing Mario Kart 8 on your Nintendo Switch? Now you can do it in real life!
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Tokyo is also known for its really weird restaurants. Alcatraz ER is a medical-prison themed restaurant.
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Zauo is a restaurant where you literally catch your own food, bring it to the chef, and tell them how you want it cooked.
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Mr. Kanso is a store that only sells canned goods.
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The best way to experience the wonderfully weird city of Tokyo is to visit it, and I highly recommend to do it – it’s totally worth it!
Not to me, but to my mom. 15th of July is “Asshole day” in my family. Why, you may ask?
When I was 9 years old, my mom got pregnant. I was soooooooo excited to have a sibling! But a few years after, my mom finally told me what had happened before she told me she was pregnant.
When she first found out, she was so happy. Her first doctor check up was fine. She went back about a week after, and there the doctor (a different one) did the ultrasound, looked at my mom, and simply said:
I’m sorry. You lost your baby. It’s dead
No explanation, nothing. My mom cried but came back home as if nothing had happened. She told my step dad but not me, I had no idea of what was happening in my home. I don’t remember seeing my mom cry, she would always make sure I wasn’t around.
In the next 2 weeks, she realised she still had all the pregnancy symptoms. Still had the same cravings. She was sure she hadn’t lost the baby. She went back and got an appointment with the same doctor as last time (it was at the hospital, you couldn’t really choose who you would see).
When she explained that she was still experiencing all the pregnancy symptoms, he denied all of it. He told her she was doing a phantom pregnancy. That she was too old (37) to have a baby so she just imagined she was having one. She refused to accept it and demanded another doctor to do the ultrasound. It took a while but finally another doctor came to see my mom. Took him about a minute to find my brother with the ultra sound. Doctor 1 was so embarrassed he didn’t even apologize.
Doctor 2 explained that Doctor 1 was still a student, hence why he made a mistake.
I don’t know why that student was doing ultrasounds alone. All I know is, the first thing my mom did when coming home was telling she was pregnant.
She was first told my brother was dead on July 15th. So we commemorate that day as Asshole Day and my mom usually goes out with my brother!
Just when I thought I’d run out of stories for Quora answers. Praise almighty god.
I was on a date with a Veterinarian in her late 20’s. A very polite girl, pretty, smart – she had all the right boxes checked.
It was our second date and we were talking about “kids growing up too fast” which is code for teenagers having sex too soon.
We probably shouldn’t have been talking about that topic so soon and it was probably my fault, I tend to steer conversations to bad places. But oh well. Good dates usually involve being honest and talking about real things. And it was indeed a good date.
All I remember though was that at one point I was taking a sip of beer as she said,
“I mean I get it, kids experiment from time to time. When I was 8 years old I stuck a pen in my p—y.”
At which point I choked on my beer and started coughing and she immediately started blushing.
I was actually glad that beer was coming out of my nose because it probably minimized her own embarrassment.
She said, “Sorry – that was too much.”
After I wiped the beer off my face, I waved both hands and reassuringly said,
My dad always bought his cars from a specific car dealership. After he died, my mother gave her big boat of a car to my brother, and decided to buy a smaller car.
We went to the dealership that dad had always used, he must have bought 10 cars from them, and we picked out a small one year old lease return, with very low mileage.
We were paying cash, and my mother and I sat down and signed the contract. We would pick up the car, after the check had cleared. When she went to get up, she almost fell over. We got to the door, and we were parked right out front, and she didn’t recognize her car. I took her directly to the hospital, she died 8 days later, never leaving the hospital.
After the funeral I went to talk to the dealership and they refused to take the car back. I tried to contact the local television reporter, who always aired these kind of stories, and never heard back. I asked Mom’s lawyer, and he said that she was obviously not of sound mind when she signed the contract. But that it would cost us more to use him to fight it, than it was worth. So we sold the car, still sitting on the dealers lot, to someone for $1500, less than we paid for it, two weeks before. A week later, the reporter contacted me, he had been on vacation.
I told all my friends, family and acquaintances about it. Many of them used that dealership as well. They all said they would never set foot in it again.
There were at least 50 people, who had bought at that dealership in the past, who swore they wouldn’t go back.
It didn’t make it right, but it felt better to know that they were losing customers.
This actually happened in 2011 or 2012, a hacker stole a penny from millions and millions of ppl amounting to a total of 78 million dollars. They couldn’t prosecute him for a plethora of reasons and as a matter of fact it got him tons of clout. He ended up getting tons of job offers because of his genius feat. So you’re late to the punch and that loophole has long been sealed by now
What is a strange experience you’ve had that you’ll never forget?
Sorry folks, this isn’t a ghost story, but it was awfully weird.
Years ago, when my husband lost his job, we used to run a stall at a Craft Market. We sold African crafted goods, and framed pictures of African wild life.
In the stall next door was a lady who did upholstery – she sold beautiful Ottoman’s and all manner of stuff to do with upholstery. She had a sister, Cat, who would help her out at times.
Cat had a deck of Tarot cards, and after obtaining permission from the owners of the market, set up a cubicle to do readings, within her sister’s stall.
Cat invited me over for a ‘practice run’. Not believing in any of it, I reluctantly obliged. I knew how these things ‘worked’, so was determined not to give anything away, by way of body language or expression. I sat immobile and stony-faced as Cat did her reading.
I honestly can’t remember 99% of what Cat told me, but one thing stuck in my mind. She told me that someone in our household was pregnant. I laughed it off.
At that time, we still had a young cleaning lady, Rachel, who lived in an outbuilding on our premises. I was very attached to this young woman, she worked for us for ten years and was almost like one of the family. I fed and clothed her as I knew her other job didn’t pay very much; I also saw to her medical needs.
A few weeks later, Rachel confessed that she was pregnant. Well! You could have knocked me down with a feather! I didn’t see that one coming.
Not only did Göering speak as others have posted, but he used a clever trick. He would listen to the question in English, which then had to be re-asked in German. The trick (so I’ve read) is that Göering was fluent in English. He’d get to hear the question and have time to consider his answer while it was put to him again in German.
1, Taiwan’s TSMC already moved out of Taiwan. It is a US firm now. Do you see China suffering?
It hurts Taiwan more than China.
2, It is all a political show by Taiwan’s pro-USA politicians. They all do business with China. With business with China, Taiwan has trade surplus. Who hates money? Not the corrupted Taiwanese politicians.
3, Of course, there are Taiwanese who are pro-China. They welcome China to “invade” Taiwan.
Taiwan is part of China. Is a Chinese province. There is no invasion of China when China decides to suppress the Taiwanese rebels.
Maurice was a soft-spoken and mild mannered boy in my class. He was friendly and pleasant to all. I cannot think of a single moment where he said or did something that angered or offended anyone while in school.
He lived further up the hill from where my school was; practically walking distance from the school. Girls confided in him due to his reserved nature and boys respected his kindness. Once he invited a few of us guys to his house for food and to watch SpiderMan (the very first movie) on his PC, after school. Maurice was the last boy one would think of when the word ‘dangerous’ was mentioned.
When we entered Form 5, a boy named Kevin entered the school and stoke fear upon many of us. I say ‘boy’ but he was already an 18yo adult when he came. He had transferred from a really rough school and practically every week he was involved in vicious fights or would be seen breaking class to smoke behind the labs. He would harass random boys, threaten them for their money and if they didn’t cough up he’d shove, slap or thrash them, according to his mood.
Maurice happened to pass by him one day and judging Maurice to be harmless he tackled Maurice for some money. Maurice ignored him but Kevin grabbed him by the shirt and slapped him on both cheeks, warning him that next time things will be worse.
Maurice’s shirt was dirty and his face red from the fracas but he remained silent and walked away.
After school ended I was walking with my friends out the compound and down the hill when we saw trouble was brewing. We saw a gang of no less than twenty young men from the area had accosted Kevin. Kevin’s face was bruised and swollen, eyes red and most of his shirt buttons were ripped out from a prior struggle. They dragged Kevin to Maurice and asked what to do with him. Maurice, in his soft voice told them that that was enough. The men shoved Kevin off and fired kicks behind him as he ran down the hill, thoroughly learning his lesson. The hill where the school lay was Maurice’s turf.
Kevin learned a lesson that day.
The most dangerous people are sometimes the ones you least suspect.
Your manager is not your friend, no matter how nice, friendly you think he/she is.
Understand difference between a friend and colleague. Draw the line, and keep your friend circle outside work as much as possible.
You’re a “resource”, that’s how upper management refers to you.
Do what’s required of you, go a bit outside your comfort zone sometimes when required. Do the basics consistently, that’s what is expected.
Look at your payslip, offer letter and understand your salary components. Plan your tax accordingly and investments accordingly.
You can stay in a company for a long time, or keep shifting every 2–3 years. It’s upto you, and no one is right or wrong. Some people prefer respect and comfort and some more money.
Update your LinkedIn, spend time on it.
Have a life outside work.
POSH can attack you from anywhere anytime, please be aware of it, and understand it. Know when to talk where and you’ll save yourself a lot of trouble.
Choose a company that is still starting out, you’ll have an opportunity to learn more, and your views shall be respected.
An employee without a good personal life and stability cannot be a good professional. Give people time, lend some hand if you can, if it’s in your professional prowess.
“Easy to work with” is in more demand than “good worker”
If you don’t like your job, move on, try to get a new job but please don’t expect that you’ll like it either.
9–5 jobs are amazing. All these entrepreneurs need some workforce as well to survive.
Be aware of skills required to upgrade in your role and the latest trends that are dropping in.
HR (employee relations) actually don’t do anything.
Nobody likes you and everybody talks about you behind your back. So, don’t try to build an image to be likeable.
You’re there to make money and learn. Everything else is not a priority.
Learn how to be respectfully sarcastic on mails, communication channels.
Don’t keep grudges. You won’t work there forever.
If you find someone is toxic, ignore them. If you have to work with them directly, just keep it to minimum work talk, and get everything over mail or slack/skype/teams.
Verbal communication is pointless. Document everything.
Smart people in corporate world will make you think they’re idiots and get away with everything.
Use Glassdoor. It helps other people.
Don’t be an attention seeking unethical jerk. Be normal, come on time, leave on time.
Does Iran have NUKES?!? Should we be worried?
Did you vote for a war with Iran? Your elected representatives did! On Wednesday, U.S. House of Representatives passed House Resolution 559 on Wednesday which paves the way for a war with Iran over nuclear weapons.
Second trip to New York a couple of years ago. Loved the first trip, the sights, the people, the atmosphere. Got chatting to a young lady who had moved to New York and was working as a ticket seller for one of the tour bus companies while we were waiting for the bus she’d just sold us tickets for.
Turns out she was a heavily qualified medical professional who was struggling to find work in the US.
Middle aged lady came up to me and asked if I knew how to get to such and such a place. I explained that I was a stranger, but suggested that she asked the young lady we were talking to.
He response? “I don’t ask ni**ers for directions”
I wish I could say that I said something witty in response, but I was so shocked that I just stared at her. The Englishman in me meant that I felt I had to apologize on her behalf. Swore never to go back to NY.
1) China has something like 4.5 times America’s population, so the fact that their economy is en route to exceed ours is hardly surprising. If you think that’s a bad thing, you are essentially saying that 1.4 billion people should be living in poverty. What reason is there for believing that the U.S economy should always be the largest on earth?
2) What do you think the government should be doing to prevent the Chinese economy from growing? A boycott is hardly possible and a trade war would hurt us as badly as them. Investment restrictions would again just hurt us and benefit Europe and Japan.
The fact is that the American and Chinese economies are tightly linked. We should be thinking about how to benefit from China’s rise (for example, selling them some scrubbers for their coal plants) instead of pointlessly trying to keep them down.
Who produces Huawei’s Kirin 9000S chip? This is a mystery that no one can figure out.
The test results of the United States have also come out. They admit that it is not an American technology and that it has reached the chip level of 5 nanometers or higher. However, they still point out that there is still a gap of five or six years between Huawei’s chip technology and the technology controlled by the United States.
What is the difference between six years?
The one that can help Huawei produce high-end chips cannot be TSMC, let alone Samsung. SMIC does not have this ability, so who else in the world can produce such high-level chips?
The relationship between Huawei and Songshan Lake began in 2005. At that time, Songshan Lake signed a project investment agreement with Huawei Investment Holding Co., Ltd. to establish a 750-acre Huawei Southern Factory, which was officially put into production in 2009. In 2012, the two parties signed an investment agreement to establish Huawei’s terminal headquarters. In 2018, Huawei’s terminal headquarters officially settled in Huawei Xibeipo Village, located in the south of Songshan Lake, Dongguan, where Huawei’s production and R&D capabilities also began to gather.
This is called the Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou S&T cluster by the WIPO’s Global Innovation Index 2023, but actually the Songshan Lake Science and Technology Industrial Park in Dongguan, Guangdong, China in the Guangzhou Shenzhen Hong Kong Macao Greater Bay area.
The photo was taken at the opening ceremony of the new academic year of Dongguan Institute of Technology. The speaker in the photo is the Secretary of the Party Committee of Dongguan Institute of Technology, introducing the industrial situation of Songshan Lake.
In July 2020, the state approved the joint construction of the “Greater Bay Area Comprehensive National Science Center Pilot Launch Area” by Songshan Lake Science City and Shenzhen Guangming Science City, covering an area of 90.5 square kilometers. In October 2021, the Songshan Lake Science City Development Master Plan (2021-2035) was officially approved by the Guangdong Provincial Government.
At present, the new generation electronic information industry cluster with Huawei terminal as the main chain has reached a scale of 100 billion yuan, becoming a pillar industry in Songshan Lake and even Dongguan. When a steady stream of scientific research results is transformed and applied to the high-quality development of the manufacturing industry, Dongguan’s “smart” manufacturing will have endless productivity and creativity.
Songshan Lake has gathered 84 national-level talents of various types, including 21 dual-employed academicians, and has 56 innovative scientific research teams at or above the municipal level. More than 50 academicians and experts and more than 2,000 well-known domestic and foreign scientists carry out scientific research here all year round.
The City University of Hong Kong (Dongguan) and the University of the Greater Bay Area (Songshan Lake Campus) are accelerating their construction and are expected to be completed and enroll students in the academic year of 2023. Songshan Lake, which is only 103 square kilometers, will have 6 universities.
The production and R&D capabilities of Huawei will also expand even further in the most productive and innovative Greater Bay area of China.
Why the fuck should China be complying with any of the U.S. sanctions?
By your logic, China being the most sanctioned country by the U.S. should be sanctioning itself?
China should in fact be working together to bypass U.S. sanctions – Iran also being heavily sanctioned by the U.S. – by directly settling trade negotiation with their own currencies. This, together with Saudi Arabia – directly contributes to the discarding of the petrodollar.
FreshandFit REACT To Cheesecake Factory DATE Gone WRONG
She’s forever the Cheesecake Factory chick. Ironic and poetic.
If you cry out of happiness, the first tear will fall from the right eye; if you cry out of sorrow, the first tear will fall from the left.
A person has 7 minutes of neural activity left before he dies. You will see your memories in a dreamlike pattern during the 7 minutes of neural activity you might have before dying.
When people who speak two or more languages switch from one language to another, they may unintentionally change their personalities.
As humans, we are most imaginative at night and least creative during the day.
According to studies, travel improves brain wellbeing and even lowers the risk of heart disease and depression.
When you’re sleepy, your brain does more imaginative work.
Being around happy people makes you happy.
Persuading yourself that you slept well deceives your brain into believing you did.
The music you listen to has an impact on how you perceive the world.
China is more than a first world country but unfortunately for China , it is neither Caucasian (or of European descent ) nor friendly to them so it is rather called an emerging economy just to pretend to take it out of the disgraceful third world status . Tiny Israel with a beggarly $300 bn GDP ( lower than Nigeria’s $500 bn ) is put in the first world whilst China with an $18 trn GDP (or 60 times than of Israel is virtually ranked third world . And China has technology that even America cannot comprehend — high speed trains , landing on the dark side of the moon etc . The World of Wonders
When I was growing up, I saw my father going to office every day. He would eat his breakfast at 9 and leave for office by 9.30. It was a six days week during that period. Since he was a civil servant, he had to many times go for work even on Sundays and holidays.
When I was in school and then in college, I seldom missed my classes. It was fun going to school and college and meet with friends and participate in all activities.
When I joined my job, everyone in office used to come in time without fail. There were many who wouldn’t even avail their full quota of casual leaves (15 in a year). There were a few instances when due to Deewali or some other vacations, there were continuous holidays for 4–5 days. People used to wait for offices to open.
Even today, in most government offices, there is no concept of working from home. All government employees go to office every day.
During the covid pandemic, most of the private sector companies introduced the concept of work from home. It was the need of the hour and was very convenient for the employees. Lots of people shifted to their home towns and worked from there. It became a new normal.
Now that the things have gotten back to normal, a number of people are still preferring to work from home. I know a few youngsters who resigned their jobs when the companies asked them to report to office for work. They became too comfortable perhaps working from home.
Maybe I am old school, but for me staying home all day is not done. I want to go to my office and work.
China in November 2023, will not be lectured and talk down to. Not now not again. Certainly by a nation build on slavery after genocide on its own natives. Certainly the one and only nuclear bombs on human. Certainly not by the biggest murderer of Arabs, Muslims, orientals, and certainly by the biggest terrorist state on earth.
Get use to the new fact of life. Then let’s talk as equal. No more no less. If the US has any sense of reality not to mention humility, it is the US needing China. Not China wanting this talk. Without China the US can kiss goodby to 30–50% of world demand. Without China it cannot win over the Global south or 170–180 out of world’s nation. Without China the US will collapse and implode.
But the US is lucky China is not the US. Not the hypocrisy, not the hubris, not the nation that wants the world to be submissive and subservient to them. Not the nation that is at war 237 out of its 247 years after stealing their nation from their natives. China don’t steal Hawaii, Guam, and some 50 other islands! And this nation wants to lecture China!
But China is willing to help make America good again. If it ever grow out of puberty. I doubt it will but if it does it will be good for the US and for Americans. And certainly the world.
This is a very complicated situation, involving multiple sides with intertwining relationships. So who’s fighting whom, which side is China supporting? It’s China’s version of the drug Cartel south of the border.
image 37
This conflict is mainly fought in the Kokang (green) region, on the borders between China and Myanmar. There are 3 sides to this conflict:
Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) VS Myanmar’s Military (Tatmadaw) Allied with Kokang Local Forces.
Both MNDAA and Kokang Forces are ethnic Han Chinese. MNDAA split from the Myanmar Communist Forces in 1989, founded by Peng Jiasheng (pic below) In 2009, MNDAA rules Kokang’s capital Laukkaing. A splinter group betrayed Peng and the MNDAA as the Tatmadaw attacked Laukkaing.
image 36
The splinter group worked with the Tatmadaw to drive the MNDAA out of the city of Laukkaing. They later formed 3 branches of the Kokang Local Forces, controlled by 3 families. The first and most powerful are the Kokang Militia controlled by the Bai clan. Headed by Bai Suocheng
image 4
The 2nd branch is the Kokang Police Battalion. Controlled by the Ming clan. Ming Guoan (Up) was in command, but he recently suffered a serious injury while horse-riding on the streets of Laukkaing. So his younger brother Ming Guangcai (Down) assumed command.
image 35image 34
The 3rd branch is the Border Guard Battalion, overseen by the Wei clan. Wei San as the head of the Border Inspection Committee that controls the Border Guard Battalion.
image 33
Other families have interests in different industries, from Mining to Gambling to Prostitution to Telescamming. These 3 clans wields the gun, I’ll call them Kokang Militia for simplicity (Kokang Militia Up, Kokang Police Battalion Middle, Border Guard Battalion Down)
image 32image 31image 30
Northern Myanmar is a lot bigger than Kokang. Kokang is just the Northern periphery of the larger Shan Autonomous State, which contains anther autonomous State called Wa State(Red). All of them are involved in drug trafficking (less so now) and telescamming(until very recently).
image 28
Wa State is another interesting faction, it’s entire government structure were copied from China. The Party Leads the State and Military. Even their congress building took hints from the one in Beijing.
image 29
Wa State is led by Bao Youxiang, used to be a drug smuggler. Wa State is the best administered state, with the most financial muscle, they also cooperate closely with China, to more or less resolve the drug epidemic on the border. Wa State is officially neutral in this conflict
image 27
MNDAA, Kokang Militia, Wa State, they are all vying favor from China. The Myanmar’s military, Tatmadaw that has a ceasefire with Wa State and is allied with Kokang militias, also needs China.
China’s official position is to avoid conflict, and negotiate a power sharing structure. MNDAA, Kokang Militia and Wa State are all ethnic Han Chinese, we can’t really betray any sides.
Wa State is the good-natured elder son.
Kokang is the son hanging with the wrong crowd.
And MNDAA is the rebellious son with a sense of righteousness. After Peng Jiasheng’s death, the command of MNDAA was passed to his son, Peng Deren.
image 26
MNDAA follows the party and military structure of China. Although they are no longer communists, they still have many iconographies from China. Before 2009, Peng clan struck hard against illicit drug in Northern Myanmar Winning praises from local Chinese citizens on the border
image 25
In the 2023 offensive, they also listed the eradication of telescamming from Kokang as one of their goals. Along with driving out the Tatmadaw and regaining the control of Kokang. The announcement of eradicating telescamming was a propaganda coup for them.
Chinese netizens cheered for them, some even organized donations. This is because the telescamming industry were on par with the Mexican Cartel in terms of brutality. They would lure people from mainland China and Taiwan with promises of very high salary. After they arrived..
They are forced to be trained in how to scam people through online and telephone. If you’re not very good or don’t comply, you’ll be tortured or worse.
After which if you are of no use, you’ll be sold into the local mines, after you’ve been exhausted, your organs will be harvested and sold on the black market This can exist in Northern Myanmar because of its lawlessness It’s under these circumstances the 2023 offensive started.
MNDAA has 4 Brigades of troops, all based in the deep forested mountains of Northern Myanmar, On Oct. 28th the 211 Brigade of MNDAA took control of Chinshwehaw, a land port with China.
As of me writing this thread, battle rages on in Kuktai and Hsenwi in the West, and Monekoe in the North. The MNDAA strategy is to cut off routes of reinforcement by the Tatmadaw and deal with the Kokang Militias separately. The goal is the city of Laukkaing (green circle).
image 24
221 Brigade have already taken Mang Dong Ba today. It’s only 7 km away from the city of Laukkaing. But what awaits them in Laukkaing will be a tough battle. This is the business HQ of a warlord of sort, called Liu Abao (all big businesses have their own private army). He’s been singled out by the MNDAA declaration due to past grudges. Liu fortified his building accordingly
image 23
As the MNDAA brigades marches towards their objectives, numerous Tatmadaw outposts were taken, weapons taken to bolster their firepower.
image 22
Graphic images of dead Kokang militias and Police brigades are plenty, which I won’t show. Tatmadaw armors have been destroyed, MNDAA have also learned from recent wars to use commercial drones to drop mortar rounds.
But the numbers is not on MNDAA’s side It’s 17,000 Tatmadaw + 6000 Kokang militia vs 7000 MNDAA. How will this end? Who knows. But Kokang authorities are handing over 2000+ telescammers to the Chinese side as MNDAA marches on.
image 21
Happy to report that Wei Qingtao of the Wei clan, and Liu Zhengqi of the Liu clan of Kokang are under Chinese custody. They are 2 key family members of organized criminal groups in Northern Myanmar, involved in murder, torture kidnapping and telescam. Why is it significant
image 20image 19
They sincerely urged their families to give up telescamming and other criminal activities in Northern Myanmar. Relaying China’s resolute actions taken to eliminate organized crime in Northern Myanmar. All of this happened as MNDAA troops marches towards the capital of Kokang.
image 18
Wei clan is in charge of the Border Guard Battalion, a private army of sort in Kokang Myanmar. Wei Qingtao is the younger brother of Wei Rong, the CEO of the Henry Group, the biggest telescam organizations in Kokang.
image 3
Now, if you’re wondering, how did we get our hands on 2 key family members of 2 influential organized criminal clans in Myanmar? As their clans prepare for a fight? Let’s just say the plot of Wolf Warrior is not entirely fictional.
image 17
At the moment MNDAA troops are mainly fighting with the Myanmar Tatmadaw, encircling Laukkai capital of Kokang, Northern Myanmar. The Bai and Ming clans seems to be the main resistance. Let us see how MNDAA will exploit this major development.
The original Thread. follow her, she really have many info that hard to get otherwise.
I was in a big steakhouse in California about 30 years ago. The waitress, like many Americans, liked our Brit accent and happened to say their head chef was from England. Thought nothing of it because England is quite a big place with a lot of people . About an hour later as we were finishing up our desserts , the chef came out.
Conversation went something like this.
CHEF: I heard your accents and had to come out because you sound like you are from Essex.
ME: Yes all four of us are. We are from Southend on Sea. ( A very famous large Essex town recognised around the UK).
CHEF: Really. That’s where I’m from. Actually Shoeburyness just outside Southend.
ME: Really! I lived there for 12 years,after I was born.
CHEF: Do you know West Road. I ran the Chippy ( fish and chip shop) there for 10 years between ’71 and ‘81.
ME: You’ve got to be joking. I used to come in your shop the last Friday of every month with my brother and my parents to get fish and chips.
In Turkish places they drink too. But those who don’t have a chai (tea culture) where you sit outside tea houses and pretty much do what you do at bars violence excepted.
A young woman was brought in by ambulance at 3am after she collapsed while working a night shift restocking shelves in a nearby supermarket. After examining her and some tests, I concluded she had simply fainted. So I started asking about the causes.
Was she dehydrated? No
Suffering a mild viral illness with a slight fever? No
Had a history of vasovagal faints? No
Had been very stressed or seen blood or something upsetting? No
Could she be pregnant? She says no. Hmm. They always say no. Does she have a partner? Is she sexually active? Both yes. What birth control was she on? None. When was her last period? It was overdue. Oh, but it was coming because her breasts were sore. Double hmmmm …
But… but. … but she couldn’t be pregnant she told me. She had very painful periods and investigation had shown a bicornate (“double”) uterus with both sides nearly closed off by abnormal membranes and she had had surgery a few months ago to correct it and her periods were much better and….but she had been told pregnancy was nigh impossible. Her and her partner really wanted children, but had accepted it was not to be and were talking about adoption.
Could she produce some urine for a test? She was sceptical about the value of doing it but was a nice girl and would do it if we wanted. She handed me the sample and I did the test myself. It was firmly positive. I did a second to be sure. Same result.
I took the test and showed her the two dark blue parallel lines. She asked what it meant. I told her.
She lit up like a Christmas tree. She was beside herself with surprise and delight. Suddenly, she asked what she should do. I suggested telling her partner. She checked the time- 4.30. He’d be asleep and had work in a few hours. She decided to phone her mum. It took a while for the phone to be answered, I could hear the sleepy voice. Where are you? At the hospital? What? Suddenly more awake. Are you ok? What? Pregnant? But… PREGNANT!
We could all hear her mum screaming down the phone, her Dad being woken, and then him shouting too. They were just all so happy.
It was just a really lovely experience, giving welcome news for once.
Modern Women DEMAND Chivalrous TRADITIONAL Men but Don’t Want To Be Traditional Women…
I got pregnant in my freshman year of high school, I even remember the day it happened. I was 14 almost 15. Too young to be having sex and definitely too young to raise a child.
The circumstances that lead to me getting pregnant weren’t ideal and I knew that I would be on my own. Completely. I knew that the father wouldn’t have anything to do with the baby, especially since he already had one that he didn’t see or take care of. My mother told me I’d be kicked out of the house, which wasn’t anything new since I had been living with friends when I got pregnant. My life was completely unstable and wasn’t a good place for me, let alone a baby.
The first time my mom kicked me out of the house was when I was 11, she always picked her boyfriend over me. So I bounced around from grandparent to grandparent and then eventually friends houses.
As any kid who is unsupervised and has no boundaries whatsoever, I did things I shouldn’t have. I missed a lot of school but no one ever bothered me about it since I kept a 3.8 gpa. I always wonder what I could’ve done had I actually applied myself, but I didn’t take it serious. It came too easily to me. I was more interested in partying.
Long story short, I got pregnant September, 1998. I was in denial for the first couple of months. The guy said he’d give me money for an abortion but then he spent it. I don’t think I would’ve gone through with it anyways.
When I was 5 months pregnant I wrote my mom a letter before I went to school. Looking back, that wasn’t the best way to tell her but I was scared out of my mind and she wasn’t the easiest person to talk to. When I got home from school she blew up. Asked how many periods I had missed and when I said five I thought she was going to have a stroke. She said, “it’s too late to get rid of it!”, to which I replied, “I know, that’s why I’m telling you now. I’m going to place her for adoption.”
I don’t think my mom thought that I could do it since that was her original plan for me. I think that is part of the reason she always told me that I wouldn’t be able to live there if I kept the baby. But I had my mind made up. I was going to find a maternity home and an adoption agency. My mom was in a maternity home when she was pregnant with me, so that was our first thought. Thankfully we couldn’t find it when we went to look. I do believe things happen for a reason.
I was absolutely blessed with an AMAZING teacher. I truly miss her and would give anything to see her again and express my thanks to her. She helped me find a nice maternity home that was about an hour and a half from my home. She took the time out of her life to drive me all the way up there to check it out. Took me out to lunch and most importantly talked to me like I was a human being and not another dumb teenage statistic. She helped me in so many ways and she will always have a special place in my heart.
So I moved into a Christian maternity home (a culture shock to me since I grew up with no religion) with four other girls. I was the only one who was planning an adoption. We soon became a little family and I had a wonderful time there. The staff was amazing. I’ve never met a nicer group of women who were so supportive of unwed pregnant teenagers.
I formed an extremely close bond with one of the girls. Shortly after I had arrived she had lost her baby. Her and I were the only ones going home without babies, I think that is what brought us closer.
The time came to find parents for my little girl. A daunting task. You wouldn’t believe the amount of profiles that I looked through! I had certain things that I expected though.
They couldn’t have a child of their own.
They had to be educated.
They had to live “comfortably” but not be too rich.
They had to live close (within a few hour drive).
Most importantly they to had agree to an open adoption.
A lot of people don’t want an open adoption, and I can understand that, but it’s my child, my rules.
I found couples who were extremely rich, couples with a bunch of kids, and I even found an Amish couple. Then I found my couple. Something about their profile made me instantly like them. They came from a large family, lived comfortably (she was a teacher and he was a business man), they only lived a few hours from me, they were down to earth, they couldn’t have children since she had a hysterectomy, and they were open to an open adoption.
I had my lawyer set up a meeting with them. I liked them right away. They were a little leery about a completely open adoption but after I told them my reasons they seemed to understand. I don’t think it’s healthy for a child to live under a lie, I didn’t want her to think that I didn’t love her and just abandoned her, and if she wanted to get to know me one day she could. I made sure that they knew I wouldn’t be in their lives constantly, but I had to know that she was ok.
They were the only couple that I met. I told them that day. I know they didn’t want to get their hopes up too much, but I knew.
So the big day finally arrived. I was in labor for two days! It was hell. She finally arrived very early in the morning. When they put her in my arms my heart melted. It was the most incredible feeling in the world. I didn’t know that I could love like that. Didn’t know a love like that could exist. The entire world stopped once I looked into those blue eyes. She was pink and perfect and I’ll never forget the way she smelled. I was lucky enough to spend four amazing days with her. Four whole days that I spent just looking at her, smelling her head, and making sure that I always remembered these things because she was going to be out of my life soon.
Those were the quickest four days of my life.
The other big day finally came. The day I had been dreading for months. They had been staying in a local hotel since I had called them before I went the hospital to let them know. I imagine those were the longest four days for them. I signed all the papers, took a thousand pictures, and held her as much I could.
Putting her in their arms was the hardest thing that I’ve ever done, but I knew in my heart that it was the right thing to do. I only had love to offer her and babies need much more than that. I had dreams for her, dreams she’d probably never realize had she stayed with me.
And she was gone.
Misery and depression became my constant companions. There are no words to describe that pain.
I was lucky though. Her mother sent me letters and pictures constantly. I saw my beautiful baby girl grow. Always happy and smiling with little curls and chubby dimpled hands.
Five years later I finally got to see her again. It was amazing. She knew who I was and was so excited to meet me! I was scared, but that day helped me so much. I got the closure that I needed. I knew I had made the right decision when I placed her for adoption. I backed off for a few years after that. I wanted to give them space. I wanted to let them be a family.
This past summer she turned 16. She’s beautiful, smart, and amazing. We talk once in awhile but I don’t want to intrude. She knows I’m always here if she needs me. I’m hoping that I’ll be able to see her again soon, but only if she wants to. I told her that I would understand if she didn’t want to, but she wants to meet up. She says that she wants to see me again and meet her sister. I’m thrilled.
I have thought about her every single day for the past 16 and a half years. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t wonder what she’s doing, how she’s doing, if she’s happy, if she’s sad. I love her more than life itself.
I think of them as my family. It might not be your typical “normal” family, but it works. We love and respect each other. I’m incredibly lucky to have them in my life and I’m thankful every day that they are amazing parents to my girl.
I have had many embarassing moments as a foreigner in several other countries. But here are two of the most embarassing ones in Norway where I currently live.
“I accidentally did drugs, thinking it was chewing gum.
I was once at a pub with a few people. One girl on our table there was offering this one thing called snus to everyone seated at the table, except me because she knew that I am not into smoking, tobacco or any kind of drugs. I innocently thought it was chewing gum because it looked exactly like chewing gum, it came in a box that looked like a chewing gum box. I was wondering why she was offering it to all the others seated on the table but not me. Then I asked her for one She said, “It contains a bit of tobacco is that fine ?” I was like yes yes, convinced that it was harmless chewing gum. Then she told me that I needed to put it on my gums and I did that. Within 10 minutes, I noticed that my vision was getting blurry, someone was talking to me but I couldn’t focus on what they were saying, my head was aching so badly and I was getting really really dizzy. I felt very nauseous as well. I was so confused and upset about what was happening and I was almost about to cry. Then, I told the people there that I wasn’t feeling good for some reason. Then they guessed it was because of the snus and they asked me to spit it out immeadiately. Then they gave me loads of ice water and I was fine within a few minutes after that.
Image Source:BBC. This is how snus looks like. To me they looked like chewing gum on first sight.
I was told later that the amount of tobacco in one snus is equal to the amount of tobacco in ten cigarettes. To prevent air pollution, people in Norway use snus more than cigarettes. Almost everyone uses it here in Norway.
“Touching food with hand.”
In India, it is a common practice to eat with hands and to touch the food with your hands. But in Norway, they consider it unhygienic to touch food with your hands especially if it is out of a tray from which everyone takes food and if your hands are unwashed.
I once went to a bakery and instead of using the tongs to take out scones and pastries, I used my hands. Then the staff member manning the bakery at that time came running to me and said “Please don’t touch those with your hands, use these” and he handed me the tongs that were placed right next to the tray and I didn’t see those.
But, this wasn’t the first time this happened to me. This has happened with me many times. I frequently forget that I am not in India and take food with my hands, only to get told off by people.
But, now I more often than not remember not to touch food that is not mine yet and is for public consumption.
There are several more embarassing moments that I encountered. I plan to write a book about them one day.
China-Russia collaboration
China-Russia relations have become stronger through the collaboration of Presidents Putin and Xi. They have met some 42 times in both one-on-one and virtual formats, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry. This contrasts with 17 meetings reported with Presidents Obama, Trump, and Biden.
Stronger relations are marked by strengthening economic ties. In September 2023, monthly trade between Russia and China reached a record high of $21.2 billion which is up almost 60 percent from the same period in 2021.
President Xi said that “developing the China-Russia strategic partnership of coordination with ever-lasting good neighborliness and mutually beneficial cooperation is not an expediency, but a long-term commitment.”
The “long-term commitment” emphasized by Xi underscores a comment that he made to Putin on his visit to Moscow. “The world is undergoing changes unseen in a century,” he said. Putin agreed with the realistic assessment.
President Putin emphasized Russian support to the One China Principle and that Taiwan is part of China. His support for China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity was acknowledged by Xi. “China supports the people of Russia following their path to national rejuvenation and in safeguarding sovereignty, security and development interests of the country,” he said.
The changing international situation
The changes in the international system are indeed profound. The world is inexorably moving toward multipolarity. The Russian side describes the situation as a transition from Western “colonialism”. The Chinese side describes the situation as a transition from Western “hegemony”.
Both Moscow and Beijing stress that there are now new centers of development emerging. The Global South is rising in relative terms. Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America are increasingly factors impacting the general direction of global development.
Thus, both countries recognize what can be called a period of global transition. This period may extend over a decade or two. The challenge is to maintain global economic development and at the same time attempt to bring stability to an inevitably more turbulent world.
It is recognized by Moscow and Beijing that increasing turbulence during the transition era is caused by the United States and West who are attempting to maintain their hegemonic position in the international system.
The international community, however, realistically sees the changing situation and desires to be on the right side of the transition.
President Xi underscored China’s commitment to work with Russia within the United Nations as well as within the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and Group of 20 (G20). Cooperation in the areas of food, energy, and supply chain security were highlighted.
For his part, President Putin emphasized continuing cooperation with China in the BRICS as well as in other multilateral mechanisms and platforms.
It was noted that the two leaders had an “in-depth exchange of views on the Palestinian-Israeli situation.” Given that the current Middle East crisis could expand into a regional war or worse, the cooperation of Russia and China to stabilize the situation is urgent.
Well my friend, that’s a terrible trap to be caught in, I know that hollow feeling only too well.
But the thing is, as dark as it seems right now, you will get through it..your not the first person to deal with or the last. It can catch up with you really fast. You put one foot in front of the other and you walk. The day will come when you will remember this all like a bad memory. I truly feel your pain, I’m an INFJ, I can’t help it. If you need to talk you can message me on quora. Things will get better, I can promise you that
Within 20 years, Chinese cars will emerge from vaporware into global consciousness.
There will be Chinese jets, helicopters, trucks, maglev trains and many other products traditionally the exclusive domain of the first world economies.
Why am I so confident?
Whatever Japan and korea and Germany can do, China can do better.
Because it has the scale and domestic market.
All the Chinese need is someone to point the way and teach them, and the Chinese market will do the rest.
Whatever emerges from the Chinese market will have gone through a baptism of fire like no other. China class is world class, because the Chinese market is incredibly open for an emerging economy. The winners that emerge pit themselves against the heavyweight champions who have decades of experience before entering the Chinese market.
The other thing about Chinese scale is data. Big user base equals mountain loads of data. And China has many megacities to do experiments in collecting and harnessing big data and ai. What is impossible to test in say, Korea or Germany is a walk in the park in china. Even the US will find it hard because big, dense cities are not that common stateside.
We are entering the decades of Chinese surprises and delights, and they will come one after another.
I’m Getting Married in 2 Weeks, But My BRIDE Was Involved in an AFFAIR, and so was an OnlyFans Model
I was probably 10 11 years old when I was at another friend’s house playing. We were playing in the garage where we were nurses and and the boys were our soldier patients. One of the boys, that I secretly liked, ask for everyone else to leave and let me stay with him as his nurse. I got so flustered I left and went home.
I have heard a few people say this, mostly pompous folks.
But in the mid 00’s I was at a hacker conference, and we were waiting for me to be on a panel. I was helping a colleague with his notes, and apparently I was taken for his assistant.
Another hacker asked me if I wouldn’t be a dear and get them coffee. The panel was about to begin. I said, “I don’t think there’s time to get people coffee — the panel’s on in a minute.”
The guy said, “Well that’s why the people who belong up here don’t have time to get it.”
I realized he thought I was an administrative assistant or something.
He doubled down, “Run now and we’ll be all set and then you can go do whatever people like you do when the tech jargon starts.”
I had worked at that time about 25 years online, and more than that in computer engineering. But being a woman who was not dressed informally meant that I must have some boss who made me dress up, I suppose.
I think that the “Do you understand who you’re talking to?” was justified, tbh. It isn’t always a “Karen” sort of thing.
edit: No, I’m not saying that a support staffer should have been treated like that either, and I was angry at the guy for assuming he could ask anyone to be a dear and get coffee. Condescending AF.
But I really do believe it was raw misogyny, and I wasn’t worried about being personally disrespected. I think he disrespected anyone female, and anyone he thought he could boss around (which was a superset of anyone female, to him).
Some hacker types are just asshats. I try not to be.
About a million years ago, some coworkers said, “John want to go to a concert with us?” I was a grad student, I didn’t know anybody and so I sensibly (and uncharacteristically) said “yes.”
I asked who was playing. They said “Pat Metheny.” Well that’s cool. I don’t know anything about Jazz, but what could possibly go wrong? I’d hear some Jazz from a great Jazz person that even a classical music weenie like me had heard of.
So it’s time for the concert, and I carpool with the others. We get to the stadium, and everybody is excited, and on the banner over the entrance it says “Joan Armatrading.” I growl “I thought we were going to hear Pat Metheny!” and my friends responded, “Pat Metheny, what are you talking about? It’s always been Joan Armatrading!”
Kind of pissed off, and having shelled out about two week’s worth of food in the form of grad student money, I went in.
I co-signed my ex-girlfriends mother’s apartment lease. We were together for 8 years and I knew her mother well. She had divorced my girlfriend’s father and was having trouble getting a lease. Her mom had a stable job and an above average income for the time. I considered her a pretty low risk. I was wrong. Her mom paid her rent for 3 months, then went and traded her paid off car for an expensive two door coup and bought a ton of new clothes. She started going out and missing work the next day and eventually ended up getting fired. The apartment manager contacted me to let me know that she was a month behind and they wanted her rent. I had a discussion with her mom and she explained she’s got a new life and will get a roommate if I could help her with just this month’s rent. I did help her, and the next month it was the same story. I could see where it was leading and had a deep conversation with my girlfriend and her mom. It was like talking to a pre-teen and my girlfriend couldn’t understand why her mother is not my responsibility when I told her she needed to be the one helping her financially. I spoke to the apartment manager and they agreed to terminate the lease if I could find someone to assume the remaining term. I did find a coworker looking for a new place and willing to move in and assume the apartment. When it came time for her mom to move out she refused to leave until the property manager explained to her that if she was actually evicted she would likely never be able to rent again and that she was being done a huge favor. In the end, I lost my longterm girlfriend, I was the bad guy. Her mom ended up living with her son in another state and losing her car. Not what I had wished for her, but that is the result of her choices. I was lucky to escape without an eviction or having to pay her rent for 8 more months. Never again. I don’t cosign or lend money to anyone. If I do help someone out it is with the expectation that it is a gift and do not expect any to be repaid.
Let me talk about the reverse, and healthcare in the US.
I’m British and live in Northern Ireland.
I have a chronic condition called Ulcerative Colitis, its a gastrointestinal condition, I’m seen frequently by my GP (primary care), I’ve also a consultant which I see every 6-9 months. I take a handful of medications every day plus a treatment called a biologic, it comes in an epi-pen injection format, which I collect from the pharmacist each month and inject at home at a time suitable to me.
All this is covered via the NHS via general taxation.
Prior to Covid in my previous job I was given the opportunity to take on a project in the US, before I accepted I investigated how my meds would work for the 4 months inwould be there.
My employer said I would be covered, as did my general travel insurance, and they would pay for everything on the days as needed, this proved not to be the case.
The company sponsored physician was an asshole saying I didnt know what i was talking about (despite having lived with the condition for a decade, and being a patient advocate, a mentor to those newly diagnosed and often asked to be a teaching aide to medical students), attempted to change the medication to what I assume was a medication he got kick backs for prescribing and refused to sign the script, it took a second doctor to give me the usual meds that worked for me.
If that wasnt enough, the trip to the pharmacy turned into a nightmare and a second argument at being forced to use the EpiPen injection there and then whilst being watched in disgust by a crowd of folk each time.
I then got a bill for $1375. This repeated for each of the 4 months,
It then took a further 6 months for me to be reimbursed by both employer and insurance for the costs I incurred which they had to argue for.
It’s a bloody good thing I had savings and a credit card or I would have been stuck.
There is a HUGE difference between the meaning of the two.
—
When you look at “Chinese Communist Party”, the actual noun is the word “Party”. The words “Chinese” and “Communist” are both descriptors of the word “party”. Going more specifically into linguistics, the word “Communist” is an adjective, while the word “Chinese” is an adverb.
Party: noun. Subject of the phrase.
Communist: adjective. Describes the subject.
Chinese: adverb. Merely describes the descriptor.
The phrase emphasizes the political party portion of the phrase. And Anglo propaganda loves to artificially emphasize the Communist part, because they have a raging boner for fascism.
—
But what happens when we do the same analysis for “Communist Party of China”?
China: noun. Subject of the phrase.
Party: secondary noun. A subset of the subject. (Not quite an attributive noun though).
Communist: adjective. Describes the secondary noun
Now the emphasis is on the word “China”. The entity is indeed the political party, but it is merely a subset of all entities that “China” encompasses. The Communist adjective indicates this party is but one of many political parties that China has had, and will have.
—
See how the Anglo propaganda works? Rhetorically the “Chinese” part is but an afterthought, and it can be dropped completely without changing any of the linguistic meaning. “Communist” could also be dropped, as the subject is “the Party.” Of course, Anglos will never, ever, ever forget to say the “Communist” part negatively as part of their overall support for fascism.
In reality, “Communist Party of China” illustrates that the entity is a political party that represents China, advocates for China, and promotes China. It isn’t just a political party performing actions, it is China performing actions. The word “China” is the subject, and it cannot be dropped without destroying the rest of the sentence.
Yes. Yes I have. And my teacher (actually professor, this was my second year of uni) literally said “this is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard,” so I wrote, on my own time, a second essay supporting my assertions, and the next day he told me I “had a good point.”
My essay concerned ethics and morality. Specifically, I said that a lot of what we call “morals” aren’t actually morality at all—theyre custom and practicality.
As a simple example, people who migrate to cold climates need to wear clothing almost all the time to keep warm. After a while, as in generations, people simply become accustomed to seeing others almost always wearing clothing, and a few generations after that, not wearing clothing becomes viewed as “immoral.”
There’s nothing intrinsically immoral about not wearing clothing. Unless you’re out in the cold, it doesn’t cause harm. It certainly doesn’t harm bystanders. But the practicality of wearing clothing makes wearing clothing the custom, and because people get used to seeing others wearing clothing, eventually not wearing clothing becomes viewed as immoral.
The climate causes a practical change, that change gets cemented as a moral value because many cultural moral values are based on nothing more than “this is usually what I see the people around me do.”
So I said in my essay we should, as a society, unpack “this is practical and therefore customary, so not doing it is morally wrong” from “this harms others so it is morally wrong,” and stop labeling as “moral” that which is only practical social custom.
Anyway, unbeknownst to me, he was quite conservative and religious, and subscribed to a very different view of morality, so that caused some friction.
When I was first married to my husband, we attended his company Christmas party. It was a rather small affair but included satellite offices and clients. The boss and his wife were there when we arrived and we went up to them to greet them and wish them Merry Christmas. It just so happened that the boss’s wife and I were wearing the same palazzo pants though mine had a skirt overlay. She looked me up and down and barely spoke to me. As we were drifting away from them I heard her say to her husband: “Well she has a nerve dressing so well when her husband is only one of your truck drivers!” She had no idea who I really was, my background, my education, my past career history, nothing. It was the fact that I was married to a truck driver that made me, in her eyes, less than nothing. My husband had to grip my arm pretty tightly and keep me moving forward to stop me going back and slapping her face. It wasn’t the insult to me that bothered me so much, as the insult to my husband because of the job he had. Sure we didn’t have a lot of money and my outfit which outshone hers in spades was purchased at a thrift store for $10! Apparently it looked expensive to her though! lol
Beware: China’s MASSIVE DF-1000 Missile Is A New Threat To US
China’s upcoming DF-1000 missile has raised a lot of conspiracy recently. Its deployment with the PLA Rocket Force underscores China’s ambitions in the Asia-Pacific region. As regional tensions evolve, the DF-1000’s significance lies in its potential to reshape the strategic landscape and protecting the nations interests while also ensuring regional stability and peace.
Many years ago, over 40 years for sure, my mother and I were driving down an Oklahoma rural highway. It was a windy day, and we were following a pickup truck which had a huge cardboard box in the back. That box was wobbling back and forth in the wind. My mother and I were commenting like, geez, wonder what is actually in that box, because it looks like it is going to fly away any second now.
Well, that’s exactly what it did. That box flew out of the truck and into our windshield! We were expecting the collision to be mild, since the box seemed to be very light weight. Nope, it was a pretty good crash! Wanna guess what was in the box??? A bathtub!! Just a fiberglass bathtub, but still.
But that wasn’t the fun part! The fun part was calling the insurance company about our accident. You know, the one where we are just driving down the road, minding our own business, when all of a sudden we got hit by a flying bathtub!
Brigtsen’s Champagne Vanilla Sabayon
Champagne Vanilla Sabayon
Ingredients
12 egg yolks
1 1/2 cups champagne
2 cups granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean, split
Instructions
In a mixing bowl, add the sugar and egg yolks. Beat with a wire whisk until light and creamy (ribbon stage). Add the champagne and vanilla bean. Cook this mixture over a double boiler on low heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture becomes thick and frothy, 15 to 20 minutes.
Scrape the inside of the vanilla bean into the sabayon. Discard the bean.
The Perception value of a Chinese Brand is between 8% to 70% of a German or a Swiss Brand
This means even if China creates the same quality lens as Zeiss , a supplier would not pay more than $ 70 as against $ 170 for Zeiss
Thus China would be unable to compete and would be forced to sell high quality products at a loss
Now that’s fine if these products have a MASS MARKET
They don’t
Thus even after a decade, China won’t be able to expand enough to recoup it’s losses
Yesterday someone gave me a brilliant example of perception
India makes Audio panels, it exports the Audio Panels for $ 60 to Europe
Europe modifies the panel with around $ 20 worth of work and sells these Panels worth $ 110 including Import Duties and inventory BACK TO INDIA for $ 300–340
Indians gladly pay $ 2000 for these full systems (₹1.7 Lakhs) with foreign Brand name
If the manufacturers purchased directly from India, they could sell each system for maybe $ 1300–1400 but then the customers won’t buy as many
The Market Sphere for the 7 nm Chip is $ 88 Billion
China controls 3.1% of this market
The Market Sphere for the 28 nm Chip is $ 273 Billion
China controls 41.9% of this market
So you tell me what makes sense?
Blow Billions of Dollars into a market where no matter how high quality product you make, you can’t control more than 7% or so
OR
Blow a fraction of that money and utterly dominate the 28 nm market with the best efficiency and price and supply chain and use the 28nm to handle it’s potential in terms of maximum and be the BADSHAH
Thus Chinas 7 nm Manufacturing is for SELF SUFFICIENCY entirely
China will never compete in all these areas where the 7 nm is used. Except maybe smartphones
Chinas key for competition is 28 nm , 45 nm and < 100 nm process chips
These Chips run EVs, Flights, Superior Drones, Port Logistics and most aspects of Semblance related AI
When my son was in middle school, his German teacher asked the class if they’d like to do a secret Santa. They were enthusiastic about it. They all had the choice to opt out of they didn’t want to participate. My son picked the name of a female student and I helped him shop for gifts. The limit was $10 but we went over it, finding fun and useful gifts at the mall. He said she was really excited about two of the things he got her.
Day of the party, the teacher hands out gifts and my son got nothing. He said the teacher looked so embarrassed. This was on a Friday. On Monday, there was a wrapped box on my son’s desk. When he opened it, it was filled with candy and the kid that had picked his name said something to the effect of “I didn’t get him that!”
At first, when it happened, I figured maybe the kid’s parents refused to buy something, and the kid was too embarrassed to say anything to the teacher. So, I held no grudge. No, this kid was just an asshole trying to make my kid feel bad. He had bragged to his friends about it.
It was late at night on an Icelandic Airlines flight to Reykjavik (the old “hippy express). Most of the passengers were asleep, the cabin lights were down low. I gazed out at the window and noticed sparks coming from one of the engines. Suddenly it burst into flame.
I turned to my partner and shook her awake. “Do you get nervous on airplanes?”
“Nah”, she said. “I love flying; a piece of cake”.
“Look out the window”, I said.
She spied the burning engine and screamed. The cabin became awake, full of anxious passengers. The engine was spitting long, nasty flames now.
The captain’s voice came on throughout the plane’s cabin. He spoke in a confident, matter-of-fact voice “Good evening. As some of you have noticed, one of our four engines is having a problem. This plane can easily and safely fly on just three engines. You will be completely safe. We will be taking a slight detour to Gander International Airport in scenic Labrador to address our engine problem. Accommodations and food are being arranged. I believe you will have a pleasant stay. If you wish, go back to sleep and enjoy the rest of the flight.”
The engine stayed burning for a while, casting red shadows throughout the cramped the cramped cabin. Most of us settled down for a cold drink or two. My partner’s fingernails dug into my palm. “I hope he’s not bullshiting us”, she said.
She had withdrawn her and my dad’s weekly old age pension from the bank and was leaving the bank when a bloke tried to yank her handbag off of her. Surprising herself and her assailant she twisted his arm into a lock, forced him to the ground and sat on him. When a couple of minutes later the police arrived, he was heard to say, “l’ll come quietly, just get this fat cow off of me”
My mum was 80 years old, a little over 4 feet tall and as thin as a stick. It seems that all the years of watching my brother and I practice Aikido in the garden and sometimes using her, to show the other, how arm locks work had rubbed off on her.
She was affectionately known as the “fat cow” for years afterwards
If you ask this question in Chinese, mainlanders and those in the know will laugh.
And won’t stop laughing.
How does China achieve state objectives?
By getting people to work on them.
1.4 billion of them.
How do the people know what to do, what to expect, in order to reach set targets on time?
By being thoroughly informed.
How are the masses informed?
Through an information blanket.
Through TV, social media, radio, websites, posters, slogans, publications.
You name it, the Chinese have done it. From in-depth, to the lightest of touches.
It is called mass dissemination, and the Chinese are very serious about getting the message to everyone. It costs a pretty penny to get everyone on the same page.
Chinese society has changed so much in the last 40 years it is disorienting. How else do they navigate, much less keep up unless there has been a steady stream of information to guide their decisions and plans?
Learn some chinese. The western world leaves too much on the table when the Chinese generously serve lunch, and dinner to their guests.
They leave the feast untouched, and complain about hunger.
Not everyone does, but for those who do, have some empathy. Many become that way because they are suffering from bodily pain, require frequent trips to the hospital or doctor’s offices. Hard to have a cheery attitude if you hurt frequently.
Others are living in or near the poverty level. Some of these were good, loyal workers but were fired as they neared retirement so that their employer wouldn’t have to pay them a pension. Some people are living on only Social Security. That would sour anyone.
Some are lonely, sad, frightened, depressed. It often goes with aging. Being kind and thoughtful of older people could make a world of difference. I recently read of a young woman who goes out of her way to speak with older people, whether in grocery lines, on street corners, or elsewhere. She says she often sees sadness or loneliness in their faces and wants to help a bit. Yet most young people don’t even see old people. To them, they’re invisible. Try saying a cheerful word to old people you see. It just might make their day!
I have always said that it is really stupid for the American media to spread rumors about Xinjiang.
I am a Chinese, and I have been to Xinjiang (by the way, if you like cycling, Xinjiang has three desert roads across Taklimakan, also known as the Sea of Death, each of which is about 500 kilometers long, very exciting! Super interesting! You must come! During the day, the temperature can reach over 50 degrees Celsius, and at night, it can drop to freezing point! Except for the highway, there is vast yellow sand everywhere. If you dare to leave the highway, if you get lost, you may become a mummy within 48 hours. ! Particularly exciting. Ah, there is also a bicycle highway in China, which is a little more difficult but absolutely safe. It is a bicycle ride from 0 kilometers from the People’s Square in Shanghai to Lhasa. If you are willing to continue riding, the end point is Nepal, with a total length of more than 5,000 kilometers. kilometers, passing through more than a dozen provinces, climbing over 14 snow-capped mountains, and countless sharp turns! It is particularly interesting. Every year, many people in China ride this road. This road covers almost all the scenery in China, also known as: China’s landscape boulevard. Trust me, ride it once and you will come back and thank me! It’s so awesome)
*** Sorry, as a cycling fanatic, I accidentally said too much, let’s get back to the topic…
There are many friends living there, both in the city and in the countryside. The blatant lies of the Western media made everyone feel angry, and then laughed – how could they dare to lie so brazenly?
Do you know what they lost? trust. Even the Chinese who believe in the United States the most believe that the American media is fair and selfless. When praising the United States, we only need to say one magic word: Xinjiang. They just have to shut up because it’s so simple, clear and powerful. If they want to continue to defend the American media – we often say that a person can be stupid or bad – they can only choose to be stupid.
You have to know that there are not many people in the world, and there are even fewer people who care about Sino-US relations. One word, “Xinjiang”, can make 1.4 billion people share the same hatred and create a deep disgust for the American media. How difficult this is!
As credible as they say Iraq has weapons of mass destruction. As credible as those who said earth if flat. As credible as those who believe that Elvis is alive.
I grew up on a farm. There was a small forest, which we called “the woods,” on one end of the farm. Every year, my father would post “No Hunting” signs around the woods. But every year hunters would still come there, as the woods were filled with rabbit, pheasant, deer, and other game. When he saw them, my father would go out to the woods and explain to the hunter that these were his woods, he did not allow hunting, and they would have to leave.
One time, when I was four, my father was with my brother, who was six, when they saw a hunter at the edge of the woods, looking into the woods for something to shoot. My father took my brother’s hand, walked over to the hunter, and said “These are my woods. I don’t allow hunting. You’ll have to leave.” The hunter turned around, pointed his shotgun at my six year old brother’s chest, and said “I’ll hunt wherever I damn well please.” My father slowly backed away with my brother and went back to the house.
A few minutes later, he came out again. But instead of crossing the field that led from the house to the woods, he went to the side, where a chicken coop extended to the edge of the woods. He walked quietly behind the chicken coop, until he came to the edge of the woods, about twenty feet from the hunter, who was still intently looking into the woods for something to shoot. My father said to the hunter “Drop the gun and leave immediately.” Except this time, when the hunter turned around, instead of my father holding the hand of a six year old boy, he was holding a .38 revolver…which was pointed at the hunter’s head. As soon as he turned around, my father said simply “Drop it or die.”
My father passed away four years ago. It had been almost sixty years since the incident with the hunter. When I went to clean out my dad’s house, the hunter’s shotgun was still in his closet.
I actually had a customer – the owner of a similar business with whom we exchanged work where our capabilities dovetailed – come in on a Friday and tell me he’d seen my job listed in that week’s classified ads. He told me to call him on Monday, and when I did, he offered me a job. I worked for that fine gentleman for four years, and when I left, he shook my hand and told me, “It was good enough to hire you to stick it to that bitch you were working for, but even better that you spent every day proving I was right and she was wrong about you. Best of luck.”
Perhaps I’ve missed someone else offering this answer…
In 1911, about two hours north of where I live, a man walked out of the mountains. He was finally too lonely to continue being on his own. He was approximately 50 years old. He was the last of his kind.
image 40
Ishi, as he would come to be known, is considered the “last wild Indian.”
In 1871, 4 settlers came along and murdered 30 of the Yahi tribe, approximately 2/3 of the tribe. This was one of many such incidents that are categorized as the “California Genocide.”
As you can see, the Native American population in California declined quite rapidly until it reached its nadir around 1910.
image 39
In 1908, what remained of Ishi’s family fled upon seeing strangers. His uncle and sister disappeared. His mother remained hidden at the camp and then died from an illness. Now Ishi was the last of his people. He remained in the wilderness without anyone to talk to for a few years.
Upon descending, he was studied by anthropologists, chief among them being A. L. Kroeber, father to the famous science fiction/fantasy writer Ursula K. Le Guin
.
image 38
Ishi was able to tell anthropologists many things about his people. Unfortunately, he was often ill. About five years after descending from the mountains, he died from one of the many illnesses his immune system couldn’t fight off because he lacked any kind of immunity.
One of the saddest things about this is that Ishi isn’t his real name. We’ll never know what it was. “Ishi” was the word for “man” in his language. The Yati people had a custom that proscribed them from speaking their name unless formally introduced by another of their tribe. As he was the last of his tribe, he could only say, “I have none, because there were no people to name me.”
After 2/3 of your people are killed off, you spend the rest of your life on the run, watching as everyone else disappears, leaving you to be the last among your kind. Finally, too lonely to go on, you live amongst the people who killed your people until their diseases slowly whittle you away. That sounds plenty lonely to me.
But the most dispicable thing and the one that I just cannot ever forgive him for is.
I wet the bed until I was about ten years old and every morning my dad would get up and come straight into my room and rub my nose into my wet patch like I was a dog being toilet trained.
He actually screamed at me.
If you are going to piss the bed like a dog, then I’m going to rub your nose in it like a dog.
He would even give people to belt me if they taught I was misbehaving.
In the end I got up before my dad, stripped my bed, remade it and went to school or a friend’s house
China’s Breakthrough in HYPERSONIC Sector Has Baffled Scientists
Without a doubt, it has become universally recognized that China’s dominance in the field of hypersonic technology is nothing short of remarkable. With each passing breakthrough, China continues to surmount obstacles and unveil groundbreaking innovations that have garnered global attention. In a recent stride, China has once again achieved a significant milestone, firmly establishing itself as the frontrunner in the dynamic realm of hypersonic technology.
When life is hard… I often look backwards and try searching for pleasant memories.
Stand by me…
2023 11 13 15 17x
One of my favorites is walking along the abandoned railroad tracks, along the river, in rural Western Pennsylvania. It’s a pure “Stand by me moment”. I lived this life in my early teens. And I often look back in time to this pleasant series of moments.
2023 11 13 15 16
Do you, fellow MM reader, have memories of your past that comfort you? What are they? A pet… a tree house… a uncle or auntie?
I’m good.
Don’t fret, though. I am just talking in general.
I have friends in trouble. But me, oh, I’m really good.
Chinese in China and Chinese in Taiwan will resolve the dispute if any between China and Taiwan. That is absolutely the right thing to do. The U.S. has absolutely nothing to do with this totally internal domestic issue. Any move to manipulate and war monger in Taiwan is totally and absolutely wrong you will certainly fail.
I am a Chinese ancestry from the same district that the majority of Taiwanese Chinese people migrated from. I have folks in China and Taiwan and we are of the similar stock. We certainly see that the U.S. trying to jam a spanner in the works as totally and absolutely wrong from Chinese people point of view and dare I say from the American point of view too.
How foolish can American think that it can shed blood and disrupt China by interfering in Taiwan? Do Yanks want to blow another 10 trillion dollars you don’t have to fight a war that 99.99% you will lose badly! Do the right thing pull out every single U.S. force out of Asia and make amends with the worlds most humongous market. Stop wasting more money flexing your sagging muscles by parading you aircraft carrier at a billion dollar a pop!
Your homeless need this money. Your uninsured healthcare citizens needs the money. Your infrastructure is dilapidated, Your streets are crumbling and totally not safe. Your banks are dropping like flies. You need to retrain the entire work force even compete with China.
What is right? The U.S. must get the fxxk out of South East China seas. And North Asia. You do that and Taiwan and China will resolved what ever issues it in a week. You can focus on making America great again. By being here you are helping g to make China great again!
Yes, Huawei will dominate the China and global south markets. But it will not in the global north market cuz the US will not lighten the pressure on Huawei.
However, Huawei makes not just phone, its strength is in network which is the weakness of Apple. No matter how good iPhone is, it’s limited by the network performance. While Apple created macOs, iPadOS and iOS (it’s a mess in my opinion) Huawei have unifies all in one OS; harmonyOS, an important step for the future IoT world. The US had inadvertently given Huawei a rare opportunity to self alliance and placing itself in a dominant position in the IoT market. Anyone wants to do business in China in the future should think twice being a lapdog of the US now.
Furthermore, Apple brags about their 3nm chip, yet it doesn’t have satellite voice communication compared to the less powerful Huawei Kirin. Indeed, it is impressive, but how does the 3nm technical supremacy benefit the users when Huawei offers more functions for less money? Trump started sanctions on Huawei, and Pompeo lied about China worldwide and now Biden’s growing pressure on Huawei, which invokes higher patriotism doesn’t help Apple sales in China. Apple will unlikely to regain market share in the near future.
Marriage is like a joint-stock corporation: you have to invest in it to have it run smoothly and both of you need to make a commitment to make it happy.
There are only difficult marriages and very difficult marriages. None are easy. But problems usually are resolveable.
All happy marriages are happy in the same way, all unhappy marriages are unhappy in their unique ways. This is known as the Anna Karenina principle.
Divorces follow the Pareto law. 80% of all divorces happen to 20% of people, 64% of all divorces happen to 4% of people and 50% of all divorces happen to 1% of people. Conversely, 80% of all marriages will last to death, and most people never divorce.
Learn to cook like your mom, not to drink like your dad.
Joker: The best thing a veteran can get is a strong-willed but a loving spouse who will take PTSD seriously and provide love and guidance when needed. My maternal granny was one.
Cajun Meat Loaf with Sweet Pepper Sauce
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Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients
Meatloaf
1 tablespoon oil
1 cup finely chopped sweet red pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped sweet green pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 slices white bread, torn
1/2 cup milk
1 pound ground beef
1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
1/2 cup ketchup
1 egg
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
Sweet Pepper Sauce
1 tablespoon oil
1 cup diced sweet red pepper
1 cup diced sweet green pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon whole mustard seeds
Instructions
Meatloaf
Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add red pepper, green pepper, onion and salt; cover and cook over low heat until very tender, about 8 minutes.
Remove from heat and cool slightly.
Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf pan.
Combine bread and milk in large bowl; let stand 5 minutes to soften.
Add beef, crumbs, ketchup, egg, hot pepper sauce and sweet red pepper mixture; toss gently to coat.
Spoon and pat into prepared loaf pan.
Bake for 1 hour.
Let stand 15 minutes before serving.
Top each serving with a dollop of Sweet Pepper Sauce and serve.
Sweet Pepper Sauce
Heat in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the red pepper, green pepper, onion, water and salt; cook, stirring occasionally, over medium heat until very tender, about 8 minutes.
Stir in cider vinegar, brown sugar and mustard seeds; cook over medium-high heat until most of the liquid has evaporated and sauce is thickened, about 8 minutes.
More Brinkmanship: NATO Shows Pics of Netherlands F-35 loaded with Nuclear Bombs!
NATO (i.e. the United States) has upped-the-ante-with Russia . . . again. They published photos of a Netherlands F-35 stealth jet with two B-61 nuclear bombs in its bomb bays – SIMILAR TO THE FILE PHOTO shown above.
No announcement. No publicized “threat.” Just loaded the plane with nukes, sent it into the air, told it to fly over a cameraman with its bomb bays open, and then publishes a photo showing the nukes are onboard.
Hal Turner Remarks
THIS is how NATO tries to intimidate Russia – over Ukraine.
Except the Russians don’t get intimidated.
We are still, very much, on the brink of outright nuclear war with Russia. And with NATO pulling crap like this, we get closer and closer as each day goes by.
Of course, no one in the Western “mass-media” bothers to show you how we continue to “poke the (Russian) bear” but I do show you.
I show you because when it actually happens, YOU will all know who it was that drive the issue. YOU will know it is OUR side that did it. ANd YOU will know who to hold accountable when they slither out from their bunkers in the aftermath.
When I was working in my job of 23 years for a company making a certain medical product, I was the sole full time employee with 2 directors.
I was getting older, my eyesight got weaker and the machinery more worn and needed more maintenance and broke down more often.
Production was lessening. I asked for a helper, but was refused!
Management then came up with a plan! They required me to write a daily journal of the work I did and the time taken and a detailed description of the work! On top, I needed to requisition any purchases required to maintain the function of the factory.
So, besides the set-up and operate of 7 machines, I had to clean my hands after each repair and sit down to fill in the journal. Any time I needed parts, I had to write a requisition, fax it to HQ, and wait for approval before driving to suppliers to buy them…one time, a machine was down for a month for want of 1 screw! They forgot because it was only 1 screw on the requisition!
Production plummeted, and eventually they moved back to the UK and set up there. Not a problem hiring 7 people to do the job I managed on my own for 23 years!
At least I got a decent severance and control of my pension fund…which was neglected as well!
Teacher: “So over 6 million Jews died in the Holo-”
Student: “Why aren’t we learning about the Confederacy? Why do y’all erase our Southern history but not the Holocaust?”
Teacher: *goes silent for a few moments*
Teacher: “Well, those are rather loaded questions. But can you tell me the name of this class?”
Student: “AP European History.”
Teacher: “…and where was the Confederacy?”
Student: “The United States.”
*The student continues to argue that we should still be learning about the Confederacy and not the Holocaust*
-A student with a thick country accent.
This is also the same student who wrote a huge passage from the Bible from memoryon the whiteboard when the teacher wasn’t looking. But I digress.
Teacher: “So which countries in Europe weren’t under communist control?”
Student: “China!”
-A very confident friend of mine in our AP European History class.
Teacher: “Sarah, pop quiz, how many states are in the United States?”
A very unconfident Sarah: “Oh, goodness… um, 51?”
Teacher: “Are you serious?”
Sarah: “Wait, there aren’t 51!? Is Puerto Rico not a state?”
-A former military officer and current teacher, chatting with a very aloof student before a Veterans Day parade.
Godfree Roberts talks about China
Author James Howard Kunstler questioned me about Why China Leads the World: Talent at the top, Data in the middle, Democracy at the top this week. He’s a typical, educated, intelligent American whose sole source of information about China is the New York Times. His tone was civil and he gave no clue that he believed nothing I told him. When he released the interview, he labeled me a troll.
Here’s the outline I sent him prior to the interview:
PARTY PEOPLE: The Communist Party’s ninety million members contribute a billion dollars in annual dues and billions of volunteer hours. They took an oath to ‘bear the people’s hardships first and enjoy the benefits last’. 48,000 of them flew into Wuhan when Covid broke out and 90% of staff deaths were members. Few work for the government and even fewer benefit from membership, yet they determine the country’s direction.
THOSE WHO PLEASE THE PEOPLE. China chooses politicians the way the US Navy chooses admirals and treats them similarly. Chosen from the top two percent of university graduates, theyspend years away from home, are modestly paid, earn PhDs, take orders, perform distasteful missions, observe a restrictive moral code, are held responsible for subordinates’ mistakes, constantly assessed, scrutinized, tried in special courts and punished more severely than civilians. China’s elite has always been non-hereditary, and they’ve been the country’s heroes for millennia.
DATA-DRIVEN DEMOCRACY. Constitutionally, electively, popularly, procedurally, operationally, substantively, and financially, China is democratic. The Carter Center oversees elections, voter participation is higher than ours and, in survey after survey, they trust their government and say it responds to their needs.
A DATONG ECONOMY. For seventy years China’s economy has grown three times faster than ours and, by 2028, will be twice as big. They spend four times more on R&D and lead the world in most sciences and technologies.
THE GRANARY IS FULL. Because Beijing allocates 59% of GDP to wages, incomes have outgrown GDP for decades and, by 2023, 96% of people owned a home and had a job, plenty of food, education, safe streets, health care and old age pensions. Their mothers and infants survive childbirth better, their children graduate school three years ahead of ours and live longer, healthier lives. There are now more drug addicts, suicides and executions, more homeless, poor, hungry and imprisoned people in America than in China.
A SAN FRANCISCO EVERY MONTH. China has built the equivalent of one San Francisco every month since 1951. Now they’re building City V2.0, a clean, green home for six million people that integrates 5G, driverless electric cars, maglev trains, vast wetlands and prevailing winds. Designed to pay for itself by doubling inhabitants’ productivity, it opens in 2024.
EDUCATION. Chinese youngsters graduate high school three years ahead of ours. Tier One urban teachers are limited to fifteen hours of classroom instruction weekly and their principals have chauffeured limousines and overseas sabbaticals. They take education more seriously than heart attacks.
LOST GIRLS AND HALF THE SKY. The first bill Mao, a lifelong women’s libber, signed in 1949 was the Equal Rights Amendment. The ‘missing’ thirty million girls have been found–beating boys in school–and their big sisters lead gigantic science and defence programs and comprise most of the world’s self-made female billionaires.
RELIGION. Two-thirds of Chinese are atheists and one-fourth non-religious Taoists. Though a Christian uprising killed thirty million people and brought down the Qing dynasty, the Constitution guarantees freedom of worship and the government supports seventy-four seminaries, one thousand seven hundred Tibetan monasteries, three thousand religious organizations, thirty-nine thousand mosques, eighty-five thousand religious sites and three-hundred thousand clergy.
CONFUCIAN ETHICS AND RULE OF LAW. Of all government services, the Chinese are happiest with their legal system. With one-fourth of our security budget, their police are unarmed, streets are safe, prisons are empty and reoffense is rare. The Supreme Court’s chatty website has had two billion visitors.
EARTH IS MY MOTHER. The Chinese have lived on the same land for thousands of years and it’s more productive today than ever. Thanks to the EPA, they avoided our environmental disasters and emulated our successes. Today, 42% of the country is wilderness and Giant Panda National Parkalone is bigger than Massachusetts.
HUMAN RIGHTS: Of the original thirty rights in the UN Declaration, China leads America in twenty-six and has proposed three that the US opposes: rights to food, shelter and national development.
CORRUPTION: The government, which tells the truth and keeps its promises, is the most trusted on earth. Though many local officials became dishonest during the boom, policy-making remained untouched. Now, AI and a dedicated, Cabinet-level anti-corruption department have the upper hand.
PROPAGANDA: xuānchuán, ‘transforming the people through exemplary behavior and instruction,’ has been a government responsibility since ancient times. China’s success in rolling out new programs depends on it.
DISCUSSION IS SUSPENDED. The Office of Chief Censor is two thousand years old and its incumbent is, and has always been, the country’s leading intellectual. Today, he’s a famous author and also a Cabinet member. He oversees the world’s largest, richest, most trusted media and his mandate is constitutional: “Once a policy has been widely discussed, voted on and legislated, discussion is suspended while everyone unites to implement it”.
THE TIANANMEN CAPER. Inflation, race, sex, wages and loss of university scholarships triggered the Tiananmen Square demonstration. President Clinton discussed it on Chinese national TV for an hour, but the story ended with an incamera trial in London’s Crown Court.
TIBET AND THE DALAI LAMA: More Tibetans can read and write their native language today than all the Tibetans who have ever lived, and those who have lived under both governments prefer the current one. Running water, schools, universities, hospitals, airports, high speed trains and forty years of rising wages have made a difference. As has the Lhasa Hilton.
HEGEMONY AND HUMANE AUTHORITY. China’s military, which humiliated ours in 1951, has more firepower than the US but plans to lead the world by virtuous example. Failing that, they’ll blow the US Navy out of the water with weapons a generation ahead of ours.
A DATONG WORLD. Ten years ago President Xi founded the BRI, promising to, “Jointly promote democratization of international relations by building an open, inclusive, clean and beautiful world that enjoys lasting peace, universal security and common prosperity–a world community of common destiny, a shared planetary home for humanity.’
Oh I have a good one! Not only did this crazy woman run into me, she then tried to sue me!
I’m in the UK so traffic directions may differ in your country.
Here we go…
I’m turning right. I’m stationary waiting for a gap in traffic. One comes and I start to turn and – wham! – this lady runs straight into the back of me.
Took me a moment to realise what happened but I get out of my vehicle and check on her. She immediately states aggressively that it’s my fault. Errr, you run into the back of me I was stationary, love. She’s having none of it.
Anyway a police car happens to pass and stops checks that there’s no injuries. She is still ranting to the point even the policeman has had enough and points out she run into the back of me so it’s cut and dry your fault mrs.
So we swap details and I go home. As it happens I was turning into the street I lived at the time so no need recover my vehicle. I just park it and go to have a beer.
I call my insurance company and they’re not really interested as my car was worth £500 and with no injuries, there’s no money to be made. I was planning to scrap the car in three months when the MOT ran out so I just replaced the tire that was damaged, replaced the light cluster, tied a rope to a telegraph pole, straightened the chassis the old-fashioned way. Bit of duct tape on the bumper, and I’m good to go for the remainder of the car’s life. I wasn’t hurt so it’s all good.
That’s the end of that I thought… NOPE
Eighteen months later I get a court letter claiming against me personally. Not contact my insurance company just put in a claim for £4500 ish claiming I had overtaken a line of traffic and swerved in front of her not giving her time to brake. I know not even possible.
So I contacted my insurance company and they’re not interested. So fuck this I think I’ve never been paid for the damage to my car I’m going counter claim against the bitch.
So that’s what I did: I claimed £500 against her.
So the court day comes round and I’ve prepared my paperwork best I can do. I rock to court not really knowing what I’m doing but hey ho.
So I turn up early and don’t sign in; instead I sit close to the sign-in desk and wait for this nut job to turn up. She does with her slimy solicitor. So I let them sit and quietly go and sign in then I sit behind them so I can hear what they say. (Neither of us could remember what the other looked like of course).
He’s telling her I hadn’t turned up so they will win by default and as I was a day late responding to one of his slimy letters he was going get my entire case ignored through a loophole even if I did.
So the afternoon court session starts and off he goes up to the desk triumphantly stating that as I not turned up he expects this to go in his favour without a fuss.
Oh my friends on quora — if you could have seen his face when the nice lady paused, looked at him and said “but he is there” pointing at me. Sitting sneakily right behind him since he turned up listening to everything he had said. I know I shouldn’t have but I had to give him a cheeky wink. Lol
So we get into court — it was actually the judge’s chambers rarther than a large open court so there were only the four of us: me, crazy lady, her solicitor, and the judge . He starts off with his he wants throw my paperwork out through some legal loophole the judge looks at me and I come out with one of the finest lines in my adult life… I simply said “well that’s not cricket, judge”. I laughing as I recall this… the judge puts his pen down looks at this solicitor over the top of his glasses like a headmaster at a naughty pupil. He immediately retracts his request; I hold in my chuckle.
So the case carries on. Somehow my paperwork is far better than his and the guy is dying on his feet. I had just split from a solicitor I’d been dating for couple of years so I must have picked some stuff up. So this goes back or forward for 30 minutes or so and we get to the end. He sums up and he literally says “I surpose” … blar blar you did this, etc. Sits down.
Judge says to me right you have a go like he just has so up I stand… this is where I came out with the second best line of the day: “once upon a time… I was turning right… blar blar even the judge cracked a smile at my comedy genius.
She was psychotically jealous and eventually decided her husband can’t be with anyone else so she would take him off the market. She stabbed him seven times killing him.
To be clear, violence against wives/women is much more common—which is what makes these cases so interesting and unique.
This one was especially unique.
She stabbed her husband to death after seeing a picture of him with another woman. Yet she didn’t realize it was an old picture of her and her husband and she didn’t recognize herself.
I was a PFC in the USMC Reserves back in the 1960s and we were spending the weekend down at either Pendleton or Miramar, I don’t remember which, for our annual rifle qualification. Every Marine up to some high rank must qualify with a rifle every year. In the USMC, every Marine be they a cook or a company commander can put lead up the a$$ of the enemy just as well as an infantry Marine.
We were an artillery unit and our battery had finished our qualification with M-14s; we were told to stick around as we had to score and “pull butts” (mark targets with little discs to show where the shot had hit) for other regular Marines who were scheduled to qualify that day. One of my buddies was in the pit (200 yard range) and I was up on the firing line keeping score and recording.
An older Marine came up to qualify. He had a shooting jacket on so I couldn’t see his rank. We chatted for a while and when he was ready he began firing shots – I don’t remember the sequence but it was something like 10 shots prone, 10 shots sitting, and so on for – I think – 50 rounds to complete the effort. Depending on where you hit the target – bulls eye, or one of the outer rings, or missed completely (then the guy in the pits waved a red flag, which we called “Maggie’s Drawers”) you got a score for each shot. You had to get a score of something like 190 to qualify.
Anyway, this older guy started shooting and did a terrible job. He frequently hit near the edge of the target and even got a few “Maggies”. I made some joking comments about how he was going to get his a$$ kicked if he didn’t do better, then he changed positions and I could see he was a Major. That gold oak leaf peeked out from his shooting jacket, and I realized if he failed he might be retired out.
So I called my buddy in the pits and said we had a Major on the firing line and he had to qualify. No more Maggies and make sure he passes. We didn’t make him an expert or anything, but made sure he hit just over the minimum.
When it was over, I apologized for not recognizing his rank and saying “Sir”; he said laughingly no problem and then “thanks a lot, Marine” and went on his way.
From the 1950s to the late 1970s, the Shah of Iran robbed the country blind and sent all the money to the United States for investment.
Then a new government came into place in 1979 and demanded the United States return both the Shah (who was in the United States for “medical treatment”) and the Shah’s ill-gotten gains. When the Iranians stood by and let the American Embassy in Iran be taken over by “student protestors”, the United States implemented a complete embargo with Iran which effectively prevented them from repatriating assets in the United States. The United Nations soon followed suit, which prevented Iran from reaching its money in several other countries.
No-one is quite sure how much money is involved, but the low estimate is $100 billion U.S. dollars. China holds the largest share of that – $20 billion, but the United States still holds about $2 billion although it has over the years allowed Iran to repatriate some of its money on conditions of paying off U.S. court judgements.
Most recently, $6 billion in assets held in South Korea was transferred to Qatar for humanitarian uses. However, all the money still appears to be in Qatar.
Modern Woman’s Awakening: Choosing Family As Well As Career Success
I worked at the cookie store in the mall and there was a small seating area. A woman came in with an elderly woman who was clearly frail and suffering from later stages of dementia wearing a housecoat, slippers and what was clearly a bright yellow fall risk bracelet from the hospital, her frail body shaking as she sat making these soft whimpering noises.
The younger bought her a cookie and a soda and told her she’d be right back and took off, moving the elder woman’s walker well out of her reach and leaving the elderly woman alone. It didn’t take long before the elderly woman got more upset and kept trying to get up.
Our manager called security and went out to sit with her, but the elderly woman was scared of her, not knowing who she was. Security came and that just made the situation worse.
We ended up calling the police, the elderly woman had no ID on her (fall risk bracelets don’t contain personal information) and no way to call the younger woman over the PA system. Unfortunately this was not a high emergency situation for them and it was well over an hour before someone got there.
By the time the younger woman returned, social services had arrived and were loading the woman up into an ambulance.
She had abandoned her own mother for over two hours at the mall to go to dinner and shopping.
In 1977 I was in the army; a SP4 in the 978th MP Co., 76th MP BN stationed at Ft. Bliss, TX. My MP shift was was preparing to go to work and we had all just been issued our 1911 .45 autos from the arms room and were in the CO’s ready room. A soldier named Stone was issued a new holster and had taken the old one off his gunbelt and replaced it with the new one. They were of this type:
Stone had inserted his pistol into the stiff, brand-new holster. It was not easy. He hadn’t gotten it fully seated and the leather flap was still propped up some. I was standing right beside him and casually watching. We wore a white lanyard that attached to a loop on the butt of the weapon. When Stone tried to attach the lanyard, the 1911 discharged. His hand was nowhere near the trigger.
The Captain was in his office adjacent to where we 12 or 15 MP’s were and at the sound of the round going off he came storming into the ready room:
“Who the fuck fired that shot!??!!”, he screamed. “What the hell is going on here?!!”
Stone slowly raised his hand and the captain’s full and acidic ire and venom were directed at the young PFC. The cap called him every name in the book as he dressed the kid down a full minute or so for being reckless. Finally, at the end of his tirade the Captain asked, “Now where the fuck did that round go?!”
Stone had no idea where the round went and was near tears from the harsh words from the CO, especially since he hadn’t touched the trigger of his weapon at all. Everyone was looking around for the impact of the .45 ball round when I noticed a small, half-moon shape on the toe of Stone’s boot.
“Move your foot, Stone”, I said.
Stone shifted his right foot and there, in the floor under his boot was the bullet, fully imbedded into the tile floor. We all realized the round must have passed through Stone’s foot.
The transformation in the captain’s attitude was immediate and remarkable. Suddenly he became the very personification of the father figure, very concerned and compassionate about the young PFC.
“Sit down here son. Are you okay? Don’t worry about a thing..” he said as he took Stone gently by the arm and lead him to a chair. Medics were called and the CO continued to comfort Stone until medics arrived. Stone was transported to William Beaumont Army Medical Center.
So here’s the theory we came up with about how the round was fired and the remarkable path the bullet took:
Stone’s new holster was very stiff. We surmise that when he was shoving the .45 into the new holster the slide caught on the rough leather just enough to chamber a round and jam the hammer partly cocked, but not locked into place. As he was trying to attach the lanyard the hammer was released, causing the discharge. I have no idea if that’s what really happened, but I do know for sure he never touched the trigger and his hand was not on the grip.
The Path of the Bullet:
When the round discharged the bullet first blew out the bottom, including the small wooden plug, of the military holster. It then entered Stone’s right trouser leg about 5 inches above his knee (he was wearing fatigues). Amazingly, the bullet passed between his skin and the cloth, for about 7 inches or more, without contacting any flesh. It exited a few inches below the knee and continued to his right combat boot, entering at the toe. It passed though and entered the floor.
When he arrived at the hospital and his boot was removed, the doctors discovered that the big ‘ol .45 round had passed right through Stone’s right big toe without touching the bone. Now I don’t know how much meat you have on your big toe, but that was astonishing and very lucky for Stone.
Because there was so little damage, Stone recovered in just a few weeks. Had that big round entered his leg and struck his knee joint, I think it’s likely he would never have fully recovered the use of that joint. Thanks for reading!.
Cajun Pepper Steak
2023 11 08 11 31
Ingredients
1 pound beef (round or sirloin) cut into strips
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Tabasco sauce, to taste (that means USE A LOT)
1 1/2 cups water
2 large onions, cut into strips
2 bell peppers, cut into strips
2 tablespoons cornstarch (or all-purpose flour and a little water)
Steamed rice
Instructions
Brown steak in oil for about 5 minutes turning to brown both sides.
Add 1 1/4 cups of the water and Tabasco Sauce. Simmer for 10 to 15 minutes.
Add the onions and and bell pepper and simmer until meat is tender.
If the gravy is too thin, thicken it by mixing 1/4 cup of water with the cornstarch or flour stirring until there are no lumps.
Remove beef mixture from heat and slowly add the thickening mix while you continue stirring.
Return to heat and simmer until gravy thickens.
Serve over rice.
Garnish with chopped shallots and make sure the bottle of Tabasco is on the table.
Not exactly, but I got suspicious of one dealership who serviced my car on a regular basis.
When I left the car, I set up a few things…
When I went to pick up the car, I paid the bill then went out and inspected the car. I then asked the service advisor to review a few things and he came out to the car with me. First thing I noticed was my right rear tire was inflated to only 15 lbs, which is where I’d adjusted it to five minutes before dropping the car off. On the service checklist it showed that all the tires had been checked for proper inflation. Service advisor commented the tech must have missed that one, and apologized. I said let’s look at the spare, it’s noted as being the right pressure too. I popped the trunk, lo and behold there was the gas cap sitting on the floor of the trunk. I pointed to the list and noted that I’d been charged for a fuel additive, so I asked if it was common practice to leave the gas tank cap in the trunk after adding the fuel additive to the tank. At that point the advisor ran out of excuses and started stammering his apology. He refunded my money and offered a free service job in the future. I took the money, declined his “free offer”, and never darkened his doorway again.
I went no further with that, but told several people I knew that used that dealership to beware.
If you are poor in Finland, you live in council housing.
image 14
Since Finland is located between 60° and 70° North, homelessness kills. The Finnish winter will simply kill you if you do not have a roof over your head.
Social housing – council housing – has been the thing since Industrialization. If your income level drops below a certain limit, your hometown or municipality will arrange you a subsidized council flat.
Poverty in Finland is essentially relative. Your basic needs (food, water, warmth, protection from weather, etc.) are covered, but you lack the means to attain the higher levels of the Maslow hierarchy of needs.
Köyhyys ei ole synti, mutta pirunmoinen häpeä. Poverty is no sin, but a god-awful shame, is said in my native Finnish. Yet it can be ameliorated, and for most people, poverty is a temporary state of things.
There are two sure-fire ways to become poor in Finland; one is divorce and the other is developing an addiction. Divorce and single parenthood are things which are to be avoided whenever possible, since they mean costs skyrocketing. Since both parents working (and sharing the costs of living) is the norm in Finland, divorce means there are now two separate households, but single incomes, meaning there will be less spare money to use and to invest. Developing an addiction (alcoholism, drug addiction, etc.) means skidding into antisocial lifestyle and derailment of the labour and workforce, meaning unemployment and unemployability.
Relative poverty usually hits families with young children worst. Since both parents are in the entry stage of their work careers, their incomes tend to be low, but their spendings high due to the children, and many of them actually do qualify for council housing. Things usually tend to get better once the children grow, and the parents advance in their careers.
The good thing with council housing is that, once you qualify for it and do not live in an antisocial, filthy or disturbing manner, you cannot be evicted. Many families with decent incomes, who once have been poor, actually choose to live in council flats, because that will leave them far more disposable money to use than if they lived in “good reputation” suburbs or purchased their own homes.
Yes. And he was very erudite, eloquent, and oratorially intelligent. Probably the best defense speaker at the trial. It didn’t stop the prosecution from convicting him, but most admit that it was an outstanding presentation. Maybe not all that logical, but it symbolized the Nazi mindset.
image 16
Herman Goring, Reich Marshall of the Third Reich, presenting defense argument at Nuremburg before sentencing.
Rather than being hung, he committed suicide by swallowing cyanide pills smuggled in to him.
Indeed, this is a question that many people are asking.
And precisely, because it is on many people’s minds, that I will answer it. Well, without a “crystal ball” perhaps, but in my own way.
So let’s look at the parameters…
[1] No actual leadership
President Biden is a figurehead. There’s no one “upstairs”.
This is not a political assessment. It’s an actual observation by anyone who watches the videos of him. He cycles in and out of clarity, and often appears to be suffering from pretty advanced dementia.
He goes though the motions. Read the teleprompters, and “kisses babies”.
But in the strategy briefing rooms, in high level discussions, and other important roles, he’s present but not proactive.
[2] Careening out of control
Without leadership, the “car careens wildly on the road”.
Financial opportunists place all sorts of bills and initiatives for personal profit “on the table”. These then “grow legs” and take on a life of their own. The Tiktok ban is one such example. Thus the Senate and Congress appears to be simply a forum for grandstanding while the “representatives” try to accept higher and higher piles of cash for their participation.
Congress more aptly resembles a shark feeding frenzy over a cow carcass.
There’s no real statesmanship, leadership, or forward planning. It’s all on “autopilot”, and being run by monied interests.
[3] The road is not empty
It wouldn’t be so bad if the “careening car” is on a wide and open empty highway. But it isn’t. There are many other cars on this road. There are cars with couples. cars with families, and school busses full of children.
It’s only a matter of time before the careening car smashes into someone else.
After smashing into Syria, Libya, Yemen, Afghanistan, the car is now banging into a large clunky tractor-trailer; Russia. And, each time the tractor-trailer tries to get unstuck the car smashes again, and again, and again. It’s almost like the driver for the United States car has no brakes. It’s acceleration only. And Russia while dinged up, is still moving forward.
Now a big yellow bus full of school children looms up ahead. This is China, and it is enormous (being double-Decker), and powerful, and does not want to be hit.
And everyone around is terrified.
And what does the United States car do?
It “floors” the gas petal, and is zooming straight ahead. The driver seemingly wants to broadside the bus at high speed.
Conclusion
Is it no wonder why people are concerned? People are terrified.
At this stage of the game, and I am loathe to say this, there are only five (x5) things that can stop the upcoming disaster…
The car rams the bus full of children. There are deaths in both vehicles, and a chain reaction occurs where other cars start hitting the wreckage on the road.
The car runs out of gas, and stops dead in the middle of the road. It sputters, and dies.
The people inside the careening car take control of the wheel. And then, carefully and slowly, ease it to the side of the road.
The crazy car drives off the highway on it’s own, and destroys itself without hitting anyone else.
The tractor-trailer and the bus full of children coordinate and with their combined mass, push the madman off the road on their own. And other cars, acting in good faith, help in whatever capacity they can provide.
Oh, sure it might still happen, but the world has successfully polarized. There are two halves, and there is an East that is growing and thriving, and a West that is dying.
The West still might cause problems, start wars, and all the rest, but the East is NOW, TODAY, far too big and far too formidable.
I anticipate some crazy shit once a new political change hits the USA, but the real truth is that they will have their hands tied, and their dicks lobbed off. If the neocons still maintain power, then a very short and brutal war may occur, but I am of an opinion that the worst is over…
…
For this reason, I am scrapping up my posts on the march towards war. We passed that point. So “New Beginnings” is coming to a draw; coming to a close.
A new daily will emerge…
“Correcting Society Ills“
In this new series, I will continue to include topical subjects. Some war. Some Geo-politics. A lot of social stuff, and fluff.
But the point is that the West still, seriously STILL has to undo the damage of the psychopathic idiots that ran the nation(s) into the ground.
The biggest issues have to do with the crazy progressive rules, and lifestyles that have really destroyed the fabric of society in the West.
So you will see videos and articles about the relationships of men, women and families and how they are coming to grips with the promiscuity, and LGBQ+ lifestyles.
The most obvious are the trends of…
Passport bros
Body Counts
Cheesecake factory girls
Progressive lifestyle
His and her careers
Collapse of society, and reconstruction
Of course… I will include REAL intel on Geo-Politics, as well as REAL intel on the “Prison Planet” and “Domain”. But all will continue to buried inside the massive deluge of “other stuff”. And you all KNOW WHY I do this, right?
Stand by…
Here is a definitive assessment of Obama by Norman Finkelstein, taken from an interview by Danny Haiphong: “Obama doesn’t say anything. He’s such a zero that he’s a minus one…. He does know the game (basketball). Once you get past the basketball court, you might as well talk to an avocado.” And it’s not even an insult.
-PM
Unlike a lot of the Internet Tough Guys and keyboard commandos chiming in on this question, this has actually happened to me, although it was during daylight hours.
I confronted an individual who was in the process of breaking into my apartment with a crowbar. He had just climbed thru the window when I aimed my shotgun at him and told him to freeze. He dropped the crowbar, dove out the window and ran like hell instead. I made a snap judgement not to shoot based on my gut reading of the circumstances. Had things gone down any differently, I would have had a big mess on my hands. Triple aught buckshot from 10 feet isn’t pretty.
I then called 911 and reported the incident. They took the crowbar and were able to lift the perp’s prints and arrest him… he was a frequent flier in the criminal justice system. The cops sounded like they had a pretty good idea of who he was just from my description. Anyway, he took a plea deal and I never had to go to court — either as a witness or to defend my actions.
In all, this was pretty much an ideal outcome for everyone. The situation was resolved without any shots fired, and justice was administered with due process. I was fully prepared to shoot, but am grateful I didn’t have to.
While my time in the military prepared me mentally and physically to take a life if necessary, doing so is something I would prefer to avoid. Dealing with the aftermath of a justified shooting, both legally and emotionally, would be a traumatic experience I would not wish on anyone.
In my opinion, self-restraint is the most important skill an armed citizen must nurture.
Stuffed Jalapenos Texas Style
2023 10 18 15 38
Ingredients
1/2 pound shredded jack cheese
1/2 pound shredded Cheddar cheese
1/2 pound hot sausage (such as Owens or Jimmy Dean)
1 1/2 cups Bisquick
1 egg, beaten
1 package Spicy Shake N Bake
20 to 30 jalapeno peppers (fresh or canned)
Instructions
If using canned jalapeno peppers, drain well. Slice the peppers in half lengthwise down one side only and scrape out the seeds.
Mix Bisquick, sausage and Cheddar in a large bowl, using your hands.
Put the beaten egg into a shallow bowl, the Shake N Bake into a shallow bowl, and a baking rack on a cookie sheet, both coated with cooking spray.
Stuff each pepper with shredded jack, then stick the halves back together, if separated.
Wrap a handful of the sausage mixture around the pepper in the shape of an elongated egg.
Dip into beaten egg and roll in Shake N Bake to coat evenly.
Place on baking rack.
When the peppers are all ready, bake at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes or until crisp.
I’ve worked with Chinese tech companies. Their engineers and scientists are devoted to their families, employers and country.
China has the capacity to leap frog the US in many different technologies. Take your pick, they are on it.
The Chinese government places a high value on a highly educated population. Engineering and scientific professionals are leading a revolution in advancing scientific innovation in China.
Their current leader, Xi, was a chemical engineer before becoming involved in his political career. In fact, many Chinese politicians are former engineers, refreshing thought isn’t it?
The motivations for innovation in the US and China are a key point in China leap frogging the US. Both countries reward success in innovation with financial incentives.
But, the Chinese have a greater sense of pride in their country and it’s future.
The US is presently extremely divided politically, current leadership is seeking short term monetary goals over the advancement of scientific innovation.
China may take the lead in further technological and scientific breakthroughs in this environment.
So some time back, I stopped at a highway side food joint to grab a bite before continuing on with the journey. After going through the menu, I decided to order a sandwich.
The order arrived within 5 minutes and I happily munched on it as I was hungry. Everything was fine until now. Now comes the shocker!
When the bill arrived, I observed that they had jacked up the prices to Rs 130/- whereas I clearly remembered seeing Rs. 100/- on the menu. I called the waiter and asked to him to get the menu card. The menu card clearly showed Rs 100/- printed against the item that I had ordered.
I immediately summoned the manager who gave this stupid reason for the discrepancy, “mam , this is an old menu. The rates have been revised since the implementation of GST”. I was like WTF. Why wasn’t I informed about this before. He then brought a new menu card which was hidden somewhere under the cashier’s table and handed it to me.
I had an argument with the manager and I refused to pay the revised fare. The manager relented in the end and took just Rs 100/- for the sandwich.
If not a scam, this can be termed as a very unethical way to squeeze money out of your customers. This particular junction had the advantage of being on a highway where people are in a hurry and will not bother to check the rates twice. Also, the food joints on a highway don’t need to build a loyal customer base as the visits are few and far between.
I have seen similar things happen to people before, even before the implementation of GST. They just show you a menu card and later on charge a higher fare saying that the rates have been recently revised and the new menu cards have not been printed yet. Now, I do make it a point to ask the waiter about the menu.
The Reason why Men are Walking Away from Dating (Ep. 252)
There is a major backlash from the LGBQ+ movement initiated by Obama in the West.
This question is clearly written by a Chinese hater who is totally indoctrinated and highly naive person who knows little truth and facts today.
I am sorry for you, the person who posed this question China has overtaken the U.S. in a host of measures today in 2023.
Let’s start with the most important one life expectancy. China overtook the U.S. life expectancy by 2021 and maintained it in 2022 at 77.8 versus the U.S. 77.0 years old.
Next the most important real purchasing power GDP taking cost of living into consideration China’s PPP overtook the U.S. in 2014 and over the last 8 years grew into an almost 50% lead over the U.S.
Another important area is growth. China alone is growing at 38.6% of entire worlds growth over the past decade. Meanwhile U.S. and all its G7 nations add up to only 25.6% growth of the world.
Next nations that has China as the biggest trading nations. Almost 170/195 nations has China as their leading trade partner, meanwhile the U.S. has less than 20/195 nations cite the U.S. as their biggest trading partner.
Another important facts is China has the lead in 37/44 key and strategic technology for today and tomorrow’s products while the U.S. leads in only 7/44. China is clearly today’s leading technology innovation leader in the world today. US is a distant second.
Next consumer power. China is by far the biggest consumer on planet earth. It’s middle income numbers is now 700 million and dwarfs the U.S. 3 times! Chinas market alone is 30% if the world market!
In military. China now has more men, tanks, boats and planes to combat the U.S. if need be. More importantly it just defends China whereas the U.S. needs to be offensive to many countries in the world. In high tech military China alone has a hypersonic missile technology that can hit the U.S. from anywhere at the speed if 10 times the speed of sound. It makes the dozen or so US aircraft carriers obsolete and sitting ducks.
I could go on another hundreds of points but this suffice. The U.S. is the leader only in name. Or at least by western media claims only.
A much better question will be, now that the U.S. has clearly become second fiddle to China, can it reclaim back its hegemony ever again? And the answer is it is impossible and the more it tries as it is doing now the faster China will grow against the U.S. Even India will overtake them by 2050 at the latest. The U.S. system and its philosophy will always deteriorate its economy. It simply needs to overstretch and over interfere resulting in ever growing. deficits and debts
Since it needs to watch its back perpetually it will always needs to overspend militarily and one can argue, the more it does the more enemies it has and the more it needs to defend itself. The U.S. is on a one way road into oblivion. In ten years US will have lost the dollar hegemony power and its has to worry if it can stay as it is now as a USA. Chances is before 2100 the United States will be a group of divided states.
It should be obvious to you that the US sanctions only accelerated China’s self-sufficiency in semiconductors. The US has totally failed by using sanctions instead of competing. The US technology strength is being weakened because of the hostile environment against the Chinese in the US and Chinese in the US are leaving to work in China.
The US couldn’t believe the results of Canada and Japan’s results of opening up the Mate 60 Pro chip to find zero US content so it too opened up the 9000s to find the same results so it remains mum.
The best the US can do is to claim it invented the transistor so obviously China copied.
My daughter and I once walked out of pet store carrying a very large dog’s tug of war rope. At that time we had a 115 lb lab / great Dane mix. We picked up the rope as soon as we walked into the store but then began browsing and were distracted by a litter of ferrets. We were playing with them and totally forgot that we had the rope. Walked out of the store, chatting and generally having a good time. Suddenly, there’s a voice behind us and a young man following us who said, “Excuse me, were you planning on paying for that rope?” My poor daughter was mortified! She was about 15 at the time and was so easily embarrassed that this just tipped her right over. She dropped the rope and darted across the hallway to lean up against one of the other storefronts. I think she was trying to pretend that she wasn’t with me! LOL I personally thought it was hilarious and picked up the rope, turned the young man and apologized, telling him how we had been distracted by the ferrets and I was so sorry that we had walked out with the rope without paying for it. he just laughed and said that he didn’t think we were trying to steal it as she was waving it around in the air as we were walking. I will never forget the horror on her face! I was happy to realize that I would never get a phone call about my daughter shoplifting.
This actually happened to me many years ago. I was a property manager of 80 units. My boss and I had a heated exchange and in haste he fired me on the spot. He asked me to stay until he could find a replacement. “Sorry Charlie!” I cleaned out my desk and handed him the keys, and I left the property of my own volition….
I was off-site the rest of the week. My now former boss was blowing up my phone. “Where are you?” then it was, “You are needed in the office?” I ignored his calls. He then messaged me on Facebook and said it was “with great urgency that we talk”. As it turned-out 2 members of the office staff (there were 3 all together) quit! The residents had started a petition to reinstate me – 60-plus signatures in all. He would not cave and subsequently received somewhere around 15 to 20- thirty day notices in effect terminating their leases. Additionally, some of the residents (refused to pay their rent. The community quickly became unstable and increasing hostile towards him. The morning shift manager at Tiger Mart next door to the complex – a tenant of mine, refused him service.….
He offered me my job back. I let him sweat for a day, then accepted and returned to my job. I was never so moved by an experience as I was at that job, not because my boss had given me my job back, but, rather, because the tenants did!
Ukraine: Financing The War About Hegemony
First some news bits about Ukraine. We will then come to the real issue the war is fought about.
In Kyiv, officials are at a loss as to what might happen next. Their staunchest military ally suddenly looks unreliable, despite assurances from President Biden and others the U.S. will remain steadfast until Ukraine’s invaders are defeated.
“We are freaking out. For us it is a disaster,” said Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, a senior Ukrainian MP who chairs the committee on the country’s integration with the European Union. … The Ukrainian government heavily relies on foreign financial and military aid to keep the economy running and expects to receive $42.8 billion from international donors in the coming year. A big chunk of that would come from the United States. … “Unfortunately, some [U.S.] lawmakers found it possible to seek trade offs while further aid to Ukraine is in the air,” Vladyslav Faraponov, head of the board of the Institute of American Studies, told POLITICO. “The key message that Kyiv needs to deliver is that we can win together and do it as soon as possible to save a lot of good men and women.”
So the real problem is that Kiev has no chance to win. See for example The Times which talked with (archived) Ukrainian mortar crews near Robotyne, where the Ukrainian counteroffensive is stuck:
The KAB [glide bombs], as well as mines, underground fortifications and a deluge of suicide drones, have pinned down Ukraine’s assault brigades. It is why last month’s penetration of Russian fortifications failed to lead to a full breakdown in their defences.
All over the Robotyne-Verbove line, Ukrainian forces are bogged down.
The U.S. public is no longer convinced that the gargantuan spending on Joe Biden’s private war makes any sense:
The two-day poll, which concluded on Oct. 4, revealed that only 41% of respondents agreed with the statement that Washington “should provide weapons to Ukraine,” while 35% disagreed, and the remainder were uncertain. … Support for U.S. weapon shipments is down from May, when a Reuters/Ipsos poll showed 46% of Americans backed sending arms, while 29% were opposed and the rest unsure.
A few more month and a majority will reject any new money or weapon shipment. But don’t fear. Congress critters will find ways to dump more money into a hole:
On Sunday, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said it would take about “$60 or $70 billion” to get Ukraine through 2024, not the $24 billion.
Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT), chair of the Senate Defense Appropriations Committee, said the package they’re considering would fund the war for 15 months, bringing it into 2025. The package would help the Biden administration’s plans to continue supporting an open-ended conflict.
David Ignatius, the CIA’s unofficial spokesperson at the Washington Post, reports of two opinions in Kiev:
The conflict is bleeding the country out. Ukrainians I spoke with during a four-day visit know they can’t keep fighting forever seeking what might be an unachievable victory. But they won’t stop, either. … Oleksiy Goncharenko, an opposition member from embattled Odessa on the Black Sea, presses members of the ruling party of President Volodymyr Zelensky. “I am very concerned,” he says. “Why? Take a look at the front. It doesn’t change. For a year it doesn’t change. But it was paid for by a huge amount of lives. … Ukraine can’t fight ‘as long as it takes.’ That will be a catastrophe.”
For Ukraine it already IS a catastrophe.
But if Ukraine seriously questions whether it can survive a fight that might take many years, then it needs to think about a way to freeze this conflict on its own terms — with a security guarantee from the United States as part of that deal.
The Ukraine can not freeze the conflict on its own terms. The U.S. can not give Ukraine any reasonable security guarantee.
A security guaranteed would leave the U.S. at the grace of lunatics in Kiev. They would be enabled to launch, at any time, a new conflict with Russia. A conflict the U.S., with nuclear weapons, would then be obliged to join. No Senate will ever approve such a treaty.
Ukraine won’t sue for peace. As many people have told me this week, it’s too personal. As a superpower, the United States can try to steer this conflict toward a settlement that protects Ukraine and doesn’t reward Russian aggression. But don’t ask Ukrainians to give up their cause. They won’t do it.
If the U.S. stops financing Ukraine its people will have no choice.
But the war is about more than Ukraine and the U.S. will finance it because its neoconservative leaders believe in its larger cause.
The war in Ukraine is a proxy-act for the U.S. in support of its quest for global hegemony.
For Russia, China, and much of the rest of the world, the war is thus about the elimination of that quest.
As President Putin explained in his recent Valdai speech in Sochi:
The Ukraine crisis is not a territorial conflict, and I want to make that clear. Russia is the world’s largest country in terms of land area, and we have no interest in conquering additional territory. We still have much to do to properly develop Siberia, Eastern Siberia, and the Russian Far East. This is not a territorial conflict and not an attempt to establish regional geopolitical balance. The issue is much broader and more fundamental and is about the principles underlying the new international order.
Lasting peace will only be possible when everyone feels safe and secure, understands that their opinions are respected, and that there is a balance in the world where no one can unilaterally force or compel others to live or behave as a hegemon pleases even when it contradicts the sovereignty, genuine interests, traditions, or customs of peoples and countries. In such an arrangement, the very concept of sovereignty is simply denied and, sorry, is thrown in the garbage.
That is why the war is going to be a long one.
Putin though has no doubt who will win:
Russia was, is and will be one of the foundations of this new world system, ready for constructive interaction with everyone who strives for peace and prosperity, but ready for tough opposition against those who profess the principles of dictatorship and violence. We believe that pragmatism and common sense will prevail, and a multipolar world will be established.
Will it? I certainly hope so but there is doubt that it will be during the next five or ten years.
Posted by b on October 6, 2023 at 14:46 UTC | Permalink
China’s ‘Long March 9’ Is About To TAKEOVER The Space Industry
My sister is 4 years older to me. I was 12 years old when I was in 7th grade. She & her classmates were 16. One of her classmates was very close to our school principal. So, she got the principal to allow her to teach my 7th grade class for 1 class period (45 minutes).
She knew my sister well. My sister was always at the top of her class. I had the reputation of being lazy and talkative and distracting myself & other students. Well, when I knew that my sister’s friend would be teaching my class, I decided to be a good boy and not give her a hard time.
I had an excellent memory, then. I remembered everything instantly when I paid attention. So, I put my head on my desk, closed my eyes, and paid attention to everything she said. I was in the very front of the class. So, she could see me the whole time that she was taking/teaching.
My plan to please her backfired! She angrily called on me, by name, and asked me why I was sleeping in class. I was shocked! I told her that I wasn’t sleeping but that it helped me to pay attention when I closed my eyes. This was true. The whole class knew it.
But she didn’t believe me. She asked me what I remembered & understood of the last 20 minutes of her lecture. I recited every main point, in order. Then, I explained what each point meant. Now, she was in shock 😆
I put my head on my desk and closed my eyes again. She didn’t call on me again. But she changed her attitude toward me, pretty much forever, after that day. She is currently the principal of that school.
What China’s rare earths should be controlled by the West?
Recently, European Commission President Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen made a statement suggesting that Western countries should control China’s rare earth resources.
This statement was interpreted as an attempt to strip China of its control and operation over rare earths and other precious minerals.
The remark immediately sparked vigorous discussions online.
Experts believe that addressing the global rare earth issue requires collective efforts and collaboration among all parties for mutual development.
Von der Leyen’s statement reflects the European Union’s dependence on and concerns about China’s rare earths. Rare earths are critical raw materials for the high-tech industry and play a vital role in economic and social development.
While countries like Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina have the largest reserves of lithium, China possesses abundant reserves of rare earths and advanced extraction technology with improved environmental costs.
Statements like “We restrict Russian energy prices” and “We want to control China’s rare earth resources” reflect a historical legacy of domination and would be better off directly stating “robbery.” In the past, advanced technologies were predominantly controlled by the West and gradually shifted into China’s hands. It is not that the West no longer desires control, but rather they are no longer capable of exerting it.
When it comes to China’s energy and mineral resources, slogans are ineffective. Control can only be achieved through actual capability.
At one point in my life I was a flight paramedic in New Mexico. The owner of the flight service had decided he was going to sell the company, so he hired a consultant to make his company more attractive for selling at a better price.
This was a disaster.
The consultant immediately began “inspecting” each flight base, and insulted every employee therein, implying we weren’t working hard enough. (The medical teams could be required to work 48 hours without a break; our working conditions were covered under an 1886 Interstate Commerce Act – yup, Pullman Porters. The pilots couldn’t work more than 12 hours, covered under FAA regulations.). I would occasionally get off shift and walk zig-zag to my car, my ears had such bad disequilibrium and I was so sleep-deprived.
But wait, it gets worse. This wolf-in-sheeps- clothing started calling pilots before they were about to begin flying technically difficult missions, pressuring them and distracting them. Essentially starting fights via phone call. You can imagine what this did to institutional attitude of “safety first”: Four months later, a company plane crashed in the Lincoln National Forest outside Ruidoso, NM with all souls on board lost: The pilot, the medic, the nurse (whom I had trained); the patient and the patient’s mommy. The medic’s death orphaned three little girls: Their daddy had taken off a long time ago.
But wait, it’s worse: Four months later, the company has a *second* fatal crash, a helicopter in El Paso. My husband was supposed to have been on that shift as medic. The FAA pulled the company’s ticket to fly, and the company was sold for a tenth of it’s former worth.
The consultant? He had been hired by at least one other, larger air medical company for these “services”. Wherever he went, fatal crashes occurred.
Yeah, evil.
Fred Rogers Interview on David Letterman | Irish Girl Reaction
Fred Rogers, affectionately known by children across America as Mr. Rogers was previously unknown to me until I watched him for the first time on this channel. In Ireland, we grew up without this gem. Frederick McFeely Rogers, known as Fred Rogers , was an American television host , puppeteer , Presbyterian minister , and educator . He was the creator of the children’s show Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood , which ran for three decades on PBS public television . Mr. Rogers did not do a lot of interviews, but on this occasion he made an exception for David Letterman.
The Late Show with David Letterman was an American late -night talk show created and hosted by David Letterman and broadcast on CBS . The show aired for 22 years and was produced by Worldwide Pants Incorporated , the production company managed by Letterman, and by CBS Television Studios . Among America’s Top Late Shows, this show ranks second in cumulative average viewers per time and third in average episodes per time.
Russian President Confirms “Burevestnik” Cruise Missile Success
Russian President Vladimir Putin has confirmed the successful testing of the Burevestnik” cruise missile in the Arctic. This new missile has a nuclear-powered engine, giving it unlimited range around the world, while carrying a nuclear bomb.
Once the missile is launched, it will continue to travel, even orbiting the earth, until such time as the Russian military instructs it to hit a particular target. Thus, there is NO DEFENSE from this weapon.
According to Vladimir Putin and the Russian Ministry of Defense, the missile’s dimensions are comparable to those of the Kh-101 cruise missile and it is equipped with a small-sized nuclear power unit. The claimed operational range is orders of magnitude greater than that of Kh-101. As shown in an official presentation, the missile starts from an inclined launcher using a detachable rocket booster.
Pavel Ivanov from VPK-news states that the cruise missile is one and a half to two times the size of the Kh-101, the wings of the Burevestnik are rooted “on top of the fuselage, rather than below it like on the Kh-101”, and also notes that there are “characteristic protrusions where air is most likely heated by the nuclear reactor”. According to Ivanov, the mass of the Burevestnik is “several times to order of magnitude” greater than that of the Kh-101, which eliminates Tu-160 and Tu-95 as potential carriers of the missile.
According to Nezavisimaya Gazeta, Burevestnik is a nuclear thermal rocket with a solid-fueled booster engine. The length of the missile is 12 m (39 ft) at launch and 9 m (30 ft) in flight. The nose has the shape of an “ellipse 1 m (3.3 ft) × 1.5 m (4.9 ft) in size”.
Military expert Anton Lavrov in the Izvestia article suggested that the design of the Burevestnik uses a ramjet engine, which, unlike the more traditional propulsion systems for nuclear weapons, will have radioactive exhaust throughout its entire operation.
Stratfor, an American geopolitical intelligence platform, assumes that Burevestnik utilizes a turbojet engine and a liquid-fueled booster.
According to James Hockenhull, the UK’s Chief of Defense Intelligence (CDI), the Burevestnik is a “sub-sonic nuclear-powered cruise missile system which has global reach and would allow attack from unexpected directions”. Per Hockenhull, the missile would have “a near indefinite loiter time”.
Here’s what you don’t know: You don’t make money in gold mining by panning. The reason you pan is to find a stream with enough gold in it to justify setting up your sluice box. So…if you want to haul a sluice to Alaska you could – if you were once again really lucky – pay for your trip.
Just so you know: very few of the people who participated in either the Alaska Gold Rush or the California Gold Rush made any money. John Nordstrom, who participated in the Alaska Gold Rush, needed two years to earn $13,000 – which, of course, was a hell of a lot of money in 1899, when he came back to Seattle. (You’re thinking that name sounds familiar. You would be quite correct. Mr. Nordstrom pooled the money he made with that a Seattle shoemaker named Carl Wallin made up there and opened a shoe store they called Wallin & Nordstrom at Fourth and Pike in Seattle. From there the mighty Nordstrom department store empire was born.) The guy who made the most money from the Alaska Gold Rush was Clinton Filson, who stayed in Seattle and sold equipment to the participants heading for Alaska. His business is still in operation, selling clothing to hunters and loggers.
My father went with my mother and bought a high-end vacuum cleaner at a store they had frequented for over 30 years. It is important to note this store had a customer promise “satisfaction guaranteed, or money refunded.”
When they got home with the vacuum, my father uncrated it and put it together. The next day, my mother went to use it and it did not turn on. She checked the cord, the electrical outlet (with another item, which worked). She unplugged it and left it for my father to examine when he got home. He could not get it to turn on either.
Two days later I went with him to the store (I was about 8 years old at the time). He brought it back to the sales desk where it was purchased (back then they did not have customer return desks at this store) and stated the problem. The salesperson would not give him a refund or an exchange (my father wanted an exchange). The salesperson went into a long speech about it was on the manufacturer, that they had never had one returned with a problem before, and asked if my father sure it was not something he had done, etc. etc. (I can’t remember all of what he said, but he did go on a long time about it).
My father patiently waited until the salesperson had finished their spiel, and asked does the “satisfaction guaranteed, or money refunded” – while pointing at the sign that stated this above his head – no longer apply?
The salesperson then went into his previously stated issues again, without answering my father’s question about the guarantee.
My father then asked again – so you are refusing to exchange or provide me a refund? The salesperson said yes.
My father then showed the salesperson his store credit card, and sated he had been a customer for over 30 years. My father then stated that he has spent tens of thousand of dollars in the store.
My father then stated again that he would like to exchange the vacuum. The salesperson still said no.
My father then took a pair of scissors that were on the counter and cut his store credit card into pieces onto the counter.
Right at that moment a manager was walking by, noticed what was going on, and asked my father what the problem was.
My father never raises his voice, he is the calmest person I know – but I could tell he was very frustrated and disappointed. There was an angry strain in his voice, which shocked me to hear. He told the manager he was refused an exchange or refund by the salesperson for this vacuum (he held it up), which he bought a few days ago, but it did not work. He also informed him about his customer history at the store. The manager dismissed the salesperson curtly and told my father the problem would be corrected.
My father was not having it. He told the manager it was too late; that he had been disrespected as a long-time customer, the store did not uphold its guarantee, and that he had already cut up his store credit card. He told the manager to keep the vacuum and that he would never step inside that store again.
Then he turned and we left.
I asked my father on the way home why he left the vacuum. He said that it did not work – so why take it home. I said that must have cost him a lot of money. He said the money was irrelevant and that it was not that much. I then asked why he would not take the managers offer to help. My father then explained that he and my mother bought most of what we have in the house from that store. He said that the main reason they always shopped there was because of the good service and the guarantee – although this was the first time he had to use the guarantee.
He said he liked the store – but he was disappointed with how poorly they handled the situation – especially as it was his first complaint. He said as a long-time customer, if this was how they dealt with problems – he would never shop there again. And he never did.
He sat me down later that day and explained that salespeople will most often be very nice when you are buying something, but the true test of a store’s integrity (I had to look the word up later), is when you have a problem. He said if I ever have a problem with obtaining good service due to a faulty product – it is best to never shop there again, as it shows they do not care about you as a customer.
Edit: My fault and apologies, but I did not want to make this a long rambling story. Nonetheless, many people have commented that the fault of one salesperson should not condemn the store. While I can understand that viewpoint, there were two people involved, one was the salesperson and the other his supervisor. They were both there together and the supervisor did not correct the salesperson. Yes, the event did catch the eye of the manager and he said he would correct the situation – but the damage was done.
Likewise, I find it interesting the way some people get very heated over this story and criticize my father’s behavior. Some answers are judgmental, rude and insulting. Yet, these people fail to recognize that people are individuals and may and can behave differently then they would. Everyone has their own opinion, which is as it should be, but I find it weird that they believe everyone should behave as they do or the other person is wrong. Whether poor service in a store or restaurant, it is everyone’s choice to never go back to that establishment – not anyone else’s. Accept that fact instead of becoming judgmental. Sometimes, a person’s trust gets broken beyond repair.
Thanks.
Zelensky, EU; desperate and frightened during Granada summit
I had a tenant who was a carpenter by trade. He built a nice built-in entertainment center in my living room. Shortly after moving in he was doing a kitchen remodel for someone and brought home the nice, oak cabinets they were foolishly replacing. He installed them in my house free of charge. I essentially got a free kitchen remodel out of it. I did him the solid of buying him upgraded appliances for the kitchen after that.
He did this on a couple other occasions too where he’d come across something of value from a job site and bring it back and install it at my property, greatly upgrading the house. He installed new light features, stair rails, closet shelves. He also built me nice shelves in the garage. He never asked me for any compensation either. I would have loved to credit him or something but back then I was new and in the red with the mortgage on the house and what I charged for rent so I couldn’t afford to offer him much. He didn’t care, he said “way I see it I live here and it’s making for a nicer home for me.”
Whenever something would break or need repair, he’d just fix it himself. Not a single maintenance call was needed in the four and half years he lived there. Unfortunately the guy had a checkered past and a few run-ins with the law. He went to jail (relatively short stints) a few times while there and I’d cut him some slack getting caught up when he’d get out, never trying to evict or remove him. Unfortunately he got himself in too deep finally and got locked up with a ten year sentence. Sadly that was the end of him, but no joke he probably added $100K of value to my property from what he did there.
Sometimes you decide it’s better to die than live in a certain way
That’s when things become dangerous
At this stage you decide, since you have decided to die already, you will take down as many people as you want
Women, Children, Old Women, Old Men, Generals, Wives of Generals, Grandkids of Generals, Ordinary Civilians – you just don’t care anymore
That’s how Taliban fought
That’s how the legendary Viet Minh fought
The Mighty US Army could frontally kill many Vietnamese but a video of a single US Marine with his belly ripped open and being fed his own intestines would give the Viet Minh a larger win especially as journalists in their own country called these marines murderers
Ready to die but kill as many as possible before doing so
It’s why peace is never easy in the middle East
Most people aren’t ready to die
It’s unlikely that Taiwanese would be ready to die. They are too practical.
Ukranians and Russians are less practical but still would probably surrender if the going is too tough
It’s the Palestinians , because of the Fundamental Islamic belief in Jannat, who are ready to die provided they kill
If Israel do brutally crush Gaza , these Palestinians may die, in fact they WILL DIE
Yet their death will anger the Muslims in all of the Middle East and those living in Israel
One day a Israeli Generals 18 year old son, walking to a movie with his girlfriend will be stabbed to death by an angry arab boy, in revenge for his fathers actions in Gaza
Another day, in a Salon, two ordinary women coming for a hairdo would be blown up by another 15 year old girl with a rough IED into pieces
Israelis can never be at peace. Never happily take a meal. Never enjoy life without always fearing some attack somewhere
So they will leave Israel and take citizenships in US and Europe
Plus every Islamic Nation will condemn Israel for destroying Gaza and any hope of peace with Israel will be thrown out of the window
Thus the Palestinians with their death would deliver a huge win for their cause against Israel than keep living without power, concrete in blown out buildings
So my guess is Palestinians know they can’t win a conventional war against Israel
Yet they also know that if Israel invades Gaza and kills them all and takes over, then Israels biggest nightmares will start and so will Americas
There are 52 Million Muslims in these Countries and assuming even 1% decide to take revenge for Gaza, that’s 520,000 furious Muslims ready to die but take down as many as possible from WITHIN ISRAEL, US and Europe
So my guess is Israel may finally invade Gaza and they may win the battle but with their sacrifice Palestinians will win the war
Unless Israel is smart, decides not to escalate and do their usual bombing to atom routine for 3–4 days and then once Hamas calls a ceasefire , go back to status quo
Or
NEGOTIATE A PEACE
That would be the best way to keep up survival
Man Goes VIRAL After Refusing To Pay For Woman’s Dinner
In 2002 I moved to Canada with my heavily pregnant wife and 3-year-old daughter, looking for a new life and yeah, maybe a better standard of living. I’d been working in various Tech Support roles in London, earning a little over £50k a year, so we were doing pretty well for ourselves. I’d been in contact with agencies in Toronto and they’d said I’d have no problems finding work and with my experience, etc., I should expect $80k+, so not quite the same, but close enough to make it work.
But things didn’t quite work out as we planned… Without a degree, my experience was irrelevant. I hadn’t needed a degree to fix computers in the UK, but it turns out that in Canada, I did. So all those $80k a year jobs vanished from view, and I ended up at a temp agency earning minimum wage ($6.85 an hour) moving things around a factory. My wife got part-time night-shift work to boost the family income to the point we didn’t starve and between us we were able to provide 24-hour child care to our young children.
After 8 years I’d had enough, and we came home. I do miss Canada massively, but TBH we’re doing better here now than we were doing there.
So why the personal pre-amble? My opinion on the standard of living in Canada is heavily coloured by my experiences – and struggling every day to pay rent and feed my family doing lower-paid temp work certainly makes my experiences different from someone else who went straight into a good job from day one. So now you know why.
I‘ll focus on the big, important concerns – let’s start with housing.
Houses are generally bigger than in the UK, but a lot of that is because many houses in Ontario have basements, and that’s true across a lot of North America. I converted mine into an extra bedroom, a workshop for me and a large playroom for the kids. But rents are also a little more in comparable areas – a family home in Toronto will cost about the same to rent as one on the outskirts of London, but elsewhere, you’ll probably pay more in Canada. So bigger houses, but they cost a little more.
image 6
Here’s the house we finally managed to buy. $150k in 2005. Big enough for a family of 4 and detached as you can see, which is nice, but not really “better” than the same money would have got you in a comparable British city. Middlesbrough, perhaps?
Bills. Phone bills are cheaper, cable costs about the same, hydro (electric & water) is a little more than the UK – but that’s probably due to the cost of running the AC for 4+ months of the year. DIY tends to be cheaper in Canada – Home Depot definitely beats B&Q, so keeping your house running is cheaper if you’re a bit handy.
Cars are obviously larger on average, but that certainly doesn’t make them better. Sure there are lots of pickup trucks around, but mostly in Canada it’s cars, mini-vans and modern cross-over style SUVs. New cars are cheaper than the UK, and quite a bit cheaper, but used cars are not. In the UK, you can spend £500 a get a decent runner with a long MOT that might last a few years. No chance of that in Canada. Remember that Top Gear episode where they tried to buy cheap cars in Florida for under $1,000? Yeah, that’s real. Anything even driveable decent is $2,000 + taxes (don’t get me started on that!) and when every penny counts, it’s quite an eye-opener. Ever heard of an Eagle Vista Wagon? Nope. Neither had I, but that’s what I drove for two years because it’s all I could afford.
image 5
Here she is – what a beauty!
Car running costs seem cheap because gas is cheap, but car insurance is not. Oh, so not! Even after several years of driving experience in Canada, insurance cost several times what I paid in the UK. Doing the maths, driving in Canada only gets cheaper than the UK, once you start doing more than 12,000 miles a year. That’s when the cheaper cost of gas drops the cost per mile below UK levels.
Food is not really cheaper than the UK, even if you shop at Walmart all the time. Yeah, portions are larger, everything has more sugar in it, and quality is objectively poorer – although I’m not sure how that affects the standard of living – but your overall food budget will be about the same. Take-out is marginally cheaper I guess, but restaurants are probably a little dearer when you factor in the almost mandatory tipping.
Appliances are about the same. You do get a bigger fridge for your buck, but then your bottles of juice and bags of milk take up more space, so it evens out. Computers, TVs, all that stuff, about the same cost.
But all this is just financial stuff. Basically I’m saying that overall, things probably cost the same. So I’d say it’s pretty even so far.
What really matters in standard of living are the non-materialistic things…
Holidays. Brits get 20 days minimum, but in Canada, I got 10 days a year, and only managed to get up to 15 days after 4 years’ service. Might be different for higher-paying white-collar jobs, but down at the low end of the employment market, it’s a big difference. That’s a big ol’ win for the UK.
Countryside/open spaces. Canadians seem to think that 12:00 is a good time to hit the beach, which meant we had three hours pretty much to ourselves on our trips to the beach, and that’s bloody wonderful I can tell you. Then the natives turn up with trucks full of meat for their big BBQ and we head off into the woods. Big forests, open spaces, and a lot of them can be quite quiet. It’s different, it’s wonderful, but is it better? Spend a morning hiking to the top of Snowdon, or take an Autumn drive around Scotland. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and the UK is just as beautiful to my eye as Canada – a little smaller and more crowded, but just as lovely.
TL;DR – it all comes down to money. If you were to get a similarly paid job in Canada, would you notice a difference? Probably not. In some areas, yes, but in others definitely not. All depends on what’s important to you.
But if, like me, you slipped down the ladder a few rungs, then you’d definitely notice a drop in your standard of living.
Thanks for reading this far 🙂
Edit #1: This was my first ever answer on Quora and I’m blown away by the response. 5k likes in 24 hours is amazing. I never expected that. Thanks to you all.
And just to clear up a couple things I noticed in the comments – I wasn’t on minimum wage for 8 years! I ended up with a not horrible $50k working in the auto industry and we did OK for a while… until 2008 of course. That kick-started the spiral that led me back to Blighty. Cheers all.
Edit #2: Not even two weeks in and over 8k likes. Amazing! Thank you all so much for your likes and comments. If I’d have known this answer would be so well received, I would have spent more than 10 minutes on it, and maybe explained a little more.
On the subject of “checking before I moved”, well… I did. I contacted several agencies in Toronto, sent them my CVs, had productive chats on the phones, all over the course of several months starting before I even booked our flights. They all said the same thing: “Yeah, there’s loads of jobs, with your experience you’ll do fine.” I believed them…
I went to visit my first choice agency – the conversation went something like this:
Her: “Ah yes, come in Mr. Hall. Let’s have a look at you resumé. Yes… yes… all looks good… yes… oh, you don’t mention your degree.”
Me: “Um… I don’t have one. I mean, I went to University, but I didn’t actually graduate.”
Her: “Oh. Oh dear… And why was that?”
My internal monologue: “Because I decided to be rock star instead, OK? And how did that work out, Stevie? Shut-up – she’s looking at me funny because I’m mumbling to myself!”
Me: “Uh… personal tragedy, um thing, you know… Is that going to be problem?”
30 minutes later I’m standing on a cold Toronto sidewalk crying into a box of Timbits and wondering if I should have accepted that $8 an hour job at a cat-food factory she finally offered me after I begged…
You realize that by sanctioning Chinese companies in the tech space, you are telling them to develop their own technologies, standards and supply chains which eventually become completely independent from western companies, regulations and sanctions, don’t you?
I live in Hong Kong, have lived in China, have been to Xinjiang. And it drives me nuts when I read something about China that is simply not true.
Should I just let it slide when people say that I had been oppressed in China and just didn’t realize it all that time, the whole 12 years? That there is no freedom in Hong Kong anymore and permission is required from the CCP to even take a pee? That Uighurs in Xinjiang have vanished by the millions, their organs harvested, and kept in pods as human batteries to generate power after the collapse of the 3 gorges dam?
Ok, got a bit carried away but you get the idea. There’s a lot of misinformation out there. Some of it is just ignorance. But there’s also a lot of malicious propaganda from instigators with a certain agenda.
I do let certain things slide, have to pick your battles. Sometimes I joke about it and hopefully some people will see the absurdity in some of these narratives.
But yeah, without these narratives I probably wouldn’t even be writing on Quora and would be wasting my time on something else instead.
Money Makes Money – You must re-invest what you have earned if you want to make more.
Wealth Does Not Come From Your Job – It is the best way to make capital at first. But true wealth comes from the passive income you make.
It Takes More Money Than You Think – Millionaires do not lead the lifestyle that they are imagined to. Most people would need ~ $20 Million to lead a lifestyle close to what they imagine.
It Takes Time – Get-rich-quick schemes do not work. If you want to be rich you must invest your money and be patient.
Some Debts Are Good – Leveraging a debt can be of huge benefit if used right.
Rich People Do Not Look Rich – Most of them are comfortable being who they are. They do not need clothes to show off.
It’s Not What Ultimately Matters – Sure, money makes things easier… to a point. After that its about what you do not what’s in your bank account.
Most Wealthy People Do Not Have Much Cash – Their bank accounts are often rather small. It’s their assets that make them reach the high net worth they have.
Where You Are Does Not Define Your Actions – The wealthy can still make money on vacation. Their actions are not bound by their situation or location but by their standards to themselves.
Money Is Always A Means To An End – The question is, do you know your end? What will you actually use the money for? Why acquire so much?
I went into work one morning and I tried to log into my computer but couldn’t. I called the help desk and was told that all my credentials were disabled by my manager, but I still had access to the HR website. I immediately went onto the site and filed for a LOA to take care of some health issues I had been putting off and leave the office.
On the drive home my manager calls and wants me in his office for a meeting. I told my manager that I am in LOA and would be out for 6 months. This gave me time to get my health fixed, stay on the insurance, collect short term disability, and look for a new job.
Georgia Guidestones Darkest Secrets Revealed | Destroyed by a villain or a hero?
On July 6, 2022, a bomb detonated on a 5-acre plot of farmland in Elberton, Georgia. The explosion destroyed a large monument that had stood on the property for over 40 years. Known as “The Georgia Guidestones”, it was four monolithic slabs of granite, weighing over 230,000 pounds, that contained a set of rules for a more peaceful and orderly society. The identity of the builder was a mystery for 40 years, but today I’ll tell you who he was.
But why did he want to keep his identity a secret?
Probably for the same reason the Georgia Guidestones were destroyed. Because, according to the Guidestones, the way to a perfect society is through a one-world government, genetic and racial purity, and massive global depopulation. In other words: A New World Order.
Many years ago (40+) I worked for a grocery store, Fry’s Food Stores, relatively large chain on the west coast. I started off cleaning floors, with another guy about my age (16 or 17 yrs old).
These were the days when stores were not open 24 hours a day, so stocking and subsequent cleaning was a little different than today. Carts with products we wheeled to the head of each isle, and the stockers would work on one end of the store, towards the other end. When they were done with an isle, we would break the boxes down, put them onto the carts, then push the carts back to the shipping and receiving area. Once we got a few isle cleared, we would start to clean and/or strip & wax. I believe this one day it was cleaning only, so it goes fast.
Nearing the end of our shift, we were done with the store and had some time to burn, so we started moving the carts around and running the floor machine up in down the areas in shipping & receiving area. One of the “older” stockers from the produce department was getting ready to clock in. He looked at us and said “What are you cleaning this area for, it just going to get dirty again”.
My colleague, never skipping a beat said “Why do you wipe your ass after taking a shit, it just going to get dirty again”. Priceless!! The stocker stood there a minute, shook his head and walked off……
The Satellite War: If I Compare Both, CHINA is The Winner
It’s not about the “trade war”, it’s about the technological blockage war, so the answer is “negative”.
Back to what the question may attempt to address, and in any case war is war, the launch of the Huawei Mate 60 Pro is another indicator that the US cannot win that “technological blockage war”. Not even that ‘China’ need to pump money into Huawei to achieve that in the process.
Back to the fundamentals, China has the human capital and money resources to face the ‘US challenge’, and in history, China had achieve ‘break through’s’ time and time again from atomic and nuclear power, satellite and ICM technologies, GPS and space … etc. So, there’s plenty of example in history to ‘demonstrate’/’illustrate’ that ability.
So, it’s only another example.
There are more to that. Have you wondered why ‘Huawei’ had pick this timing? Why provoke the US? It’s not just a ‘sales drive’ since even without such high profile, Huawei can still mostly achieve its sales target as it still has many fans in China. That’s something to think about.
I got hired by a chip manufacturer and the HR lady was bragging up the stock options that the company offers:
HR Lady: “Noone else offers these.”
Me: “What’s the purchase price?”
HR: “29.95″
Me: “Huh. What’s the split price?”
HR: “30.00″
Me: “So when would I ever exercise that option?”
HR: “Any time you want.”
Me: “You’re not understanding. The purchase price is a nickel under the split.”
HR: “But then you have 2.”
Me: “Yes. But 99% of the time I can go buy it on the open market for under the option price. There’s a very narrow window where you can actually exercise this option before the split.”
HR: “But then you have 2.”
Me: “Yes, I realize that. Let me explain this another way…”
Don’t remember what I said after that, but the response was “But then you have 2.”
I gave up after a while, disappointed.
After about a month on the job I was outside on a break and fire trucks and ambulances started rolling into the parking lot. All of the emergency response staff were wearing gas masks. After a while the stretchers started coming out. 14 of my coworkers were taken to the hospital via ambulance.
By this point I was already at the evacuation point watching from there. I kept looking around and waiting for the people to start coming out, but they never did. I finally went to the security officer at the front desk who confirmed that there was no evacuation. So I decided to go home “sick”.
The next day our morning meeting was fun. The boss confirmed there was a hydrogen bromide leak. I asked him why there was no evacuation and he said that “all evacuations needed to be approved by the VP of Production.”
Well la-ti-dah! What about us poor schleps on the graveyard shift? We’re supposed to just sit there patiently breathing poisonous gas while someone calls the VP of Production out of bed to get his almighty approval?
I went on a soap box tirade directed at the company and quit right there.
I wish this was an isolated incident but I have numerous past employer stories involving massive safety violations, unfair treatment of employees, and even outright wage theft. Unfortunately this sort of exploitation is common for blue collar workers, and it hasn’t gotten any better over the years.
My Social Security Nightmare/ What I learned in Manila Embassy
Steve seemed such a surley man. Unsuprisingly older than me by a couple decades since this was my first professional job as a newly minted college graduate, he seemed to growl at me whenever I saw him.
With the confidence only available with youth, I judged him.
I judged him mean, old, and a bit scary.
Imagine my horror when after about a year on this entry level job when I was reassigned to work for Steve. Of course, the reality was that I knew nothing about him.
What happened over the course of the next year was one of those special times of life that changes who you are forever. I learned that while I knew nothing about him, he knew quite a bit about me. Turns out that this wasn’t some corporately bland reassignment, but, rather, he asked to take me on as a project.
As I got to know Steve, it turned out that the gravelly voice, which I can still hear in my imagination as I write, was just his voice. And the surley demeanor I had judged so harshly was a product of a direct and unassuming style this loquatious post-adolescent did not yet grok.
One teaching moment in particular is one I’ll never forget. I carry this lesson with me every day.
You see, I’d made a mistake. Not a huge one, but a clear screw-up. I had a plan for spin control. I was confident in the plan. The lies were off-white lies at best.
But Steve believed in me enough to ask questions gently. And after he had twisted me into a logical knot, he said, and I’ll never forget his words, “Tony, you can do better than this.” He proceeded to teach me the value of not spinning and just dealing with my own limitations as a human. He showed me the real value of honesty: building trust.
And, Steve was right. I came clean and it was all ok. And, a few months later when I made a yet bigger mistake, that was ok too.
I got to know Steve better over the next couple of years. I learned that we shared some basic interests and religious faith, but he was not the type to over-share or brag. Sadly, when I had this incredible access to him, I never fully understood Steve.
But, I understood far better when he died.
Just a couple years after this priceless mentoring, Steve was stricken with brain cancer. He was far younger than I am right now, so even in death he taught me to value every day.
But this wasn’t the last lesson he had to teach. Not hardly.
I was invited by his widow to his funeral. I had known of his faith, but not quite the extent to which he walked the walk. I’ve omitted a great deal of detail, but Steve had not had an easy life. In my mind, he was doing all he could to just survive and raise his own family. I assumed his faith was like my own: sincere, yet mostly a coping mechanism.
In the shadow of his recent death, some mutual acquaintances filled in some details. There was far more to the man than even I suspected. My admiration was already deep. My tears were quite real.
Steve had been an elder at a prominent church for many years. The details of his service to others would make this long answer far too long. The debts others expressed dwarfed my own sense of gratitude.
But, the funeral blew me away.
You see, it was a large church. Very large. That day, it was filled to the rafters. I have never been to anything like it since. The love expressed for Steve that day over powers me even as I write this.
And there, in that pew, I knew i wanted to be like Steve.
Not for glory or acclaim—not at all. Just to have left this place a better place than I had found it. And, as I traverse my new career in coaching, I am still chasing his example.
Thank you, Steve, for teaching me how to be real. I’ll never forget you. I’ll never achieve what you did, but I am so much happier for trying.
Janet Yellen wrote that if China could commit to investing in US Treasury Bonds until 2026 and take a $ 1.1 Trillion Position by 2026, Inflation in US could be reduced to 3% within 6 months
In 2009, the Chinese agreed to such a request from USA
This time they told Yellen to go f*** herself
Yet that alone shows the power of a Nation like China
That a mere $ 270 Billion purchase of bonds could bring down US Inflation by 3% indicates a level of strength very few nations could possess
Yellen counted very heavily on the Chinese agreeing to her request and was very angry when she came back home
Putin visited Xi before his SMO began
Every Industry in Russia or most industries continued to operate despite a 72% fall in Supplies from Western Vendors
The Reason : CHINA
Investments by Western Countries replaced by China
Western Brands replaced by Chinese Brands
A Yuan Buttress helping Russia steer through foreign trade from April 2022 to December 2022
One Nation capable of standing against US and EU combined and preventing Russia from going under for those crucial 10–12 months before Russia found it’s feet
Thus China is VERY STRONG ECONOMICALLY
Apart from Paper Propaganda and a few articles on how China is collapsing, China is easily among the strongest economies in the world and among the more resilient economies
Militarily?
Only time will tell
Let’s wait and watch
MY HEART…First Reaction – Oliver Anthony – I Want To Go Home & Doggon It!
I moved to Long Beach this summer. The homeless crisis is heartbreaking. I have seen and spoken to many since I have been here and the mental health issue is so apparent. This is all around us, but we are more worried about spending billions on witch-hunts and funding things that are none of our business.
I’ve always loved the story of a man named Henry Sy. Born in Xiamen, China, Sy was poor as dirt. His father, his mother, his siblings, all of them could barely survive the next day. So his father took a gamble and moved the family to the Philippines. It was the 1930s, and Henry had to make ends meet in a strange country where he did not speak the language.
For the first years of his young working life, little Henry worked as a shoeshiner, polishing the boots of “his betters” until they shone brightly. The money he made with this, he saved up. Whenever he tried to get customers in front of Mercury’s Drugstore, however, the owner would shoo him away. Undeterred, Henry would find another spot, and continue his work.
As the years went on, Henry kept working hard, living frugally. He saved up his money, and invested it wisely, step by step growing his fortune along the way. Soon, he owned a store, next, a chain of stores, and eventually, he owned an entire mall. In the end, his chain of malls would dominate the entire Philippines. Henry Sy became the countries richest citizen, by far…
…and in none of these stores, there would ever be a Mercury Drugstore. Watson’s, sure, other pharmacies were allowed. But not Mercury. Because they didn’t let little Henry shine shoes in front of them when he was a wee lad.
The US sent spy planes and satellites to watch the publicly announced test.
In November of 2020, US Admiral Phillip Davidson, Commander of Indo-Pacific Command verified that China hit a moving ship in the SCS with a DF-21 and a DF-26 hypersonic missile.
Notice that the US Pentagon is no longer claiming that the Chinese have to slow down the missile. The Chinese figured out how to see through the plasma sheath with radar and IR for terminal guidance.
This is something new. The US military calls these new class of missiles, ASBMs (anti-ship ballistic missiles).
However, the name is somewhat of a misnomer. They’re quasi ballistic missiles. They don’t follow an exact ballistic path that is easily calculated and susceptible to interception.
This type of missiles can see. So they can evade incoming anti-missiles fired from US ships or bases.
So yes. They’re a real threat to US ships, not just carriers.
The DF-21 has a cruise speed of mach 6. Then speeds up to mach 10 for terminal phase. At 100 miles away, the DF-21 will hit a ship in 47 seconds. That isn’t a lot of time for the radar operator to talk to the captain then order an intercept. In fact, that isn’t any time at all since once the order is given, it takes time for the operator to actually launch the missile. Then it takes time for the missile cover to open, for the data to download to the missile, for the missile to light it’s rocket engine, and for the missile to get up to speed.
A DF-21 will hit with the explosive power of around 1.4 tons of TNT or 2,800 pounds of explosive equivalent.
A DF-26 will hit with the explosive power equivalent of 24,000 pounds of TNT.
You decide what happens when that much explosives goes off inside a ship. Bear in mind that a normal anti-ship missile has a warhead of 600 pounds. You can find the ships with holes in them. Then figure out what happens when you increase that to 2,800 pounds or 24,000 pounds. Yes. the DF-26 hits with the equivalent of a MOAB.
The real question isn’t is it a threat. The question is will there be a ship left after it hits. And in the report to Congress last year, The USAF/MIT study said that this is a game changer. Without a proper defense, if a ship gets hit, it will be sunk.
This would serve more as distraction to the West than Russia
The West bankrolled $ 140.81 Billion to Ukraine in the last 19 months plus trained 70,000 Ukrainian Soldiers plus combined gave Ukraine :-
1.03 Million Rounds of 155 mm Artillery Shells
17,000 UAVs Military Grade
1100 Infantry Fighting Vehicles
760 Tanks (Including 453 T 72, 124 Leopard 1, 92 French Tanks & Swedish Stridsvagn 122, 48 Abrams & 14 Challengers)
3.53 Million Rounds of Small Arms Ammunition
688 Missiles with upto 300 Km Range plus Air Defence
60 Himars Launchers
91 Air Defense System including 8 Patriot Complexes, 12 Iris Complexes and 50+ S 300 systems in former communist countries
Look at this list of equipment
It’s virtually an ENTIRE ARMY
Four Fronts – Kremeyvka Salient, Orekhovo Front, Bakhmut & Kremenneyva
After 125 Days
Territory Gain :- 188 Sq Kilometers
Loss of Territory (Kupiansk) : 507 Sq Kilometers
Net Gain Loss :- (-) 319 Sq Kms
The Ukrainians haven’t still managed to cross the grey zone
They have to reach 3 defensive fortified lines plus one fortified line to reach the Sea of Azov Or Melitopol
They haven’t managed a clear 10 Kilometer forward gain in positions and need 526 Kilometers to reach their objective
In ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY FIVE DAYS!!!!
Meanwhile their losses :-
90,000 Killed or horribly wounded enough to miss action for minimum 6 months
290 Tanks destroyed
700,000 Rounds Ammunition spent at 6000 Rounds a day
650 Infantry Vehicles
39 Himars Launchers
91 Missiles (Range upto 300 Kms)
360+ Air Defence Missiles
73 Assault Boats
4500+ UAVs
Easily between 35% to 45% of their entire equipment and at least a fourth of their BEST FIGHTING MEN
For 188 Sq Kms gains and not one concise territory to consolidate positions
You think I am quoting from TASS Or Sputnik right?
Nopes
CNN, Politico, Reuters, Washington Post & Institute for War
Meanwhile the Russian Economy?
From a 15% contraction expected in 2022, now it’s growing by 2.3% even by IMF predictions
Strong and Resilient as ever
Happily now selling Oil at $ 91/ Barrel against a $ 60 Price Cap laughing loudly
So it is the West who need an off ramp and a distraction badly indeed
Girls, Bars and Love in Phnom Penh
It’s a view about what is going on in the rest of the world while YOU were sitting away in your nice sterile cubicle, attending Diversity meetings, and grabbing a number #3 burger during lunch. The rest of the world is far more interesting and colorful out there. Savor it.
This is a “monger” video about this asshole going to Cambodia for prostitutes. He just went to Cambodia and filmed the night life. Very colorful.
Ugh!
Not badmouthing the girls. Not badmouthing the guys.
Just making a statement on lifestyle.
Do not be offended by some of the things you see here. The point that I am trying to make is that YOU can decide your lifestyle. If sitting in a grey cube, staring at a flickering monitor, and living for the weekend appeals to you… embrace it. But the rest of the world thinks that lifestyle SUCKS. I did that for far too long. BIG FUCKING MISTAKE.
Am I interested in visiting Cambodia. Yeah, sure.
But not for the chicks. I really want to check out the culture. Especially the spicy beef on those long French rolls that you get at the street pavilions.
You know, I have been interested in Cambodia and Laos ever since I was in 5th grade and Nixon went and bombed them to shit. Then, later on, I had some interns that came from Cambodia. I’d like to meet up with them and tour their little family factory and warehouse. Maybe have some “cooperation” together.
NATO wasn’t formed to counteract the Soviet Union.
NATO is an expansion of the Western Union (Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, and Britain) and the WU was a military and ECONOMIC alliance.
When NATON was created in 1949, it’s goals were to prevent a resurgence of Germany and to improve economic ties between countries.
Don’t forget about the Berlin Blockade of 1948. This PROVED the Soviets were not up for a military confrontation.
Article 2
The Parties will contribute toward the further development of peaceful and friendly international relations by strengthening their free institutions, by bringing about a better understanding of the principles upon which these institutions are founded, and by promoting conditions of stability and well-being. They will seek to eliminate conflict in their international economic policies and will encourage economic collaboration between any or all of them.
Back in 1949, the economic aspect was far more important than the military one.
As Europe began to move towards an integrated economic policy and later towards a union, the economic policies of NATO were largely forgotten … BUT THEY STILL EXIST.
Russia is right when they talk about the tandem EU/NATO. The European institution, economically and politically, were all created under a NATO umbrella … there was nothing else back in 1949.
So when the Soviet Union fell, the EU didn’t even exist. There was a large economic forum in place in Europe, but a lot of political decisions were taken at NATO level. European economies depended to a large extend on NATO’s integrated policies: economically, militarily, and politically.
NATO was the perfect platform for international cooperation before the EU came into being.
Once you realize NATO is also an economic alliance it becomes pretty clear why it couldn’t be disbanded. And it also becomes clear why expansion was profitable for all involved. NATO didn’t expand because “countries feared Russia” (look at the timeline, relations were good UNTIL NATO expanded), NATO expanded for economic reasons.
The EU is relatively transparent, NATO is nor. NATO invested 150 billion Euro in Eastern European infrastructure. NATO always upgrades your infrastructure when you become a member (that’s how Greece and Turkey were bribed back in 1952).
In return, NATO countries, mainly European ones, got to invest massively in Eastern Europe. Much lower wages resulted in huge profit margins.
Just look at how many “German” cars are produced in Hungary and Poland. All that was a direct result of NATO expansion. The average monthly income in Germany is 4,200 Euro a month, in Poland 1,400 and in Hungary 1,300.
Cheap labour results in huge profit margins which in turn regenerates more tax revenue. Those 150 billion paid themselves back with interest. But the main requirement was a good infrastructure.
History makes a lot more sense when you look at it from an economic point of view.
He’s not “bashing” America. He’s simply exposing the truth about America. There is nothing he has said about America that is incorrect. I can repeat some of the talking points and see if you can refute any of them:
Unsustainable $33 trillion national debt.
Crumbling infrastructure.
Unaffordable health care for millions of Americans.
Rampant homelessness — approaching one million Americans.
Declining public education.
Declining life expectancy.
Growing poverty.
Mass incarceration — highest number and highest per capita rate in the world.
Rampant gun violence — on average, one mass shooting every day of the year!
Fentanyl epidemic.
Over one million Americans died from Covid needlessly.
It’s America that is bashing China with all kinds of propaganda lies such as Uyghur genocide, Uyghur forced labor, Chinese aggression, spreading authoritarianism, etc.
UPDATE:
After 8 hours, this answer has received a whole bunch of stupid comments and NOBODY has even tried to refute any of the points in my answer. This alone tells you something.
I’ve disabled comments to prevent any more stupid comments. If you can’t say anything intelligent, then don’t say anything at all.
In 1972 my Dad let me tag along to “Wild Bill’s” Dodge in order to buy a new emerald green Dodge Coronet. Wild Bill was a local tv commercial superstar! II remember the transaction to this day. The cigar smoking salesman wanted $3440 for the car, but my Dad was firm at $3400. The salesman then said only the owner could approve that low a deal, so he would have to call him at home!
Out came the phone book, because the salesman had never called him at home before, and the salesman made a big production out of reading off the number and dialing it. “Yes Bill, he says, they won’t do $3440, I told them it’s crazy but he wants $3400 even.”
At that moment I see someone exit the break room and recognize Wild Bill sitting there having a cup of coffee. I whisper to my Dad, that Wild Bill is not at home talking to this salesman, he’s 50 feet away drinking coffee. My Dad smiles and says to me “let them do their thing”
$3400 later we had the car, plaid fabric seats and all!
Why the West is Afraid of China
Thank you for bringing the one and only Carl Zha to your show. He is a great analyst and has a good sense of humor.
In the mid-2000s, I was a civilian contractor working for The Pentagon Channel, originally part of the Office of the Secretary of Defense. I created TPC’s first podcasts.
The podcasting operation grew to more than 20 different regular podcasts — audio and video — and had about 19 million downloads over its seven-year run. I personally produced nine of the shows.
We also uploaded the videos to YouTube.
One morning, I went in extra early to upload a new episode … only to see a warning from CYBERCOM that YouTube was blocked for our office. A lot was hanging on this particular upload, and my boss was able to track down someone I could talk to at CYBERCOM.
I called the Air Force Master Sergeant listed on the Post-It Note he gave me. Got him on the line and explained my problem.
The Master Sergeant was a condescending male appendage.
He angrily told me there was an unusually high number of computers spending a lot of time during business hours accessing YouTube. We broadcast 24 hours a day, and business hours were when we were uploading video.
He lectured me on how NO military office needed access to YouTube nd that he’d personally shut down our access in accordance with regulations. I tried to explain that uploading video to YouTube was critical to our office’s mission.
He was about to lecture me some more … but I had another call. I knew exactly who it was.
I put the Sergeant on hold … which he huffed at.
The incoming call was from a speaker phone. Another civilian I knew at the Pentagon asked why the video wasn’t uploaded, and I explained the situation. A second voice came on the phone.
“Terry, this is Captain Kirby. Can you give me that sergeant’s name and number?” he asked with frightening calm.
I did.
“Tell him to stand by for a phone call,” Captain Kirby said and hung up.
I pick up the line with the irate Master Sergeant who’s already wound up to tear into me and cut him off.
“Stand by your phone for an incoming call,” I said. I didn’t witness what was said or who said it. But I knew it would be glorious.
Then-Captain John Kirby would retire as a two-star admiral in a few more years. He’d go on to become the official Pentagon Spokesman, later the State Department’s Spokesman, and is currently the Biden Administration’s National Security Spokesman. You see him delivering live press briefings on national security issues at the White House.
But on that particular morning, Captain John Kirby was the long-time Public Affairs Officer for Admiral Mike Mullen, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff … the most senior officer in the U.S. military.
The video that I was blocked from uploading? The premier episode of the Chairman’s Podcast — a more-or-less weekly podcast in which ADM Mullen was interviewed on top policy issues affecting the military and the troops across all branches of the services.
Chairman Mullen was incredibly media savvy and was extremely keen on creating this podcast.
I suspect Captain Kirby called the sergeant … but he may have just let the admiral know what was going on, and the Chairman picked up the phone himself. Either way, I knew the sergeant was about to get a Mark II bunghole installed via phone lines.
I spent a couple of minutes refreshing the YouTube page before we suddenly had full access restored.
And I began uploading the Chairman’s Podcast.
That’s when my phone rang again.
It was a very contrite Master Sergeant, I suppose he was still a Master Sergeant, I didn’t ask. Anyway, he went into a very long, detailed apology about blocking our access and for his tone of voice toward me.
I never had another problem in the two years we produced the show.
Before the CIA spies were exposed in China
China has been publicly announcing the arrests of several spies working for the CIA, an unconventional move for a country not best known for message clarity.
“Drug Panic,” “God’s Scalpel,” “Old Classmates in Washington,” “CIA Spy School,” “Sexy Spies,” “Target – Beijing Olympics,” and “Double Agent,” these gripping chapters of the spy novel Fatal Weakness, upon its first release in 2004, led many spy fiction enthusiasts to believe that its author, Yang Hengjun, a former employee at China’s Foreign Ministry, was next in line to become one of China’s bestselling writers in this genre. His fans were awed by his vivid description and attention to detail at portraying the life of a double agent. They later discovered that all it took was for Yang to report on his own life, as Fatal Weakness fits better in the category of autobiography than novel.
For the past two months, China has been publicly announcing the arrests of several spies working for the CIA, an unconventional move for a country not best known for message clarity. Previously, China’s state media would only go so far as saying that a person is harming national security and therefore warrants an arrest. What prompted the sudden change of tone? Most importantly, wouldn’t openly revealing that even government officials lack faith in the country hurt the government’s reputation even more, further fueling the already rampant suspicion around its former Foreign Minister Qin Gang’s removal?
To answer these questions, it would be necessary to examine all the “accidents” that have killed Chinese scientists in the past five years, as this provides insight into the urgency Beijing faces to take a more assertive position. Whether these incidents were truly unfortunate accidents or the successful operations of secret agents is up to you to decide.
On July 1, 2023, Feng Yanghe, the brain behind the AI software used in China’s military simulations, died in a car accident in Beijing at the age of 38.
On June 22, 2023, China’s leading botanist Zhang Dabing passed away at the age of 56 from a car accident. He was a prominent scientist in China’s hybrid rice field and transgenic biosafety monitoring field.
On September 21, 2022, genius rocket engineer Li Yuchong died in the United States at the age of 30, a week after he announced his decision to forgo offers from the US and return to China.
On June 14, 2019, Ning Bin, one of the driving forces behind China’s digital signaling systems across the railway, died at the age of 60 from a car accident. He was working on a control system for a super high-speed train running at 1,000 km/h.
On December 1, 2018, renowned quantum physicist Zhang Shoucheng died in the US at the age of 55, purportedly from depression, three days after his team announced a breakthrough in 5G chips. His discovery of “angel particles” in 2017, particles that are both matter and anti-matter, ended one of the most intensive searches in fundamental physics. Before his death, it was widely speculated he would be the next recipient of the Nobel Prize. His scientific life was put to an abrupt end on the same day Meng Wanzhou was detained in Canada. Meng is the senior executive of Huawei, the company Zhang and his team had collaborated with since 2009.
A month later, Chen Shuming, head of the R&D team for chips of advanced weapons, died in a car accident on December 31, 2018.
The list goes on and on, with examples found in all areas involving leading science and technology. Beijing has never confirmed nor denied people’s suspicions that these were premeditated assassination attempts coordinated by a network of spies that have infiltrated key positions in the Chinese government. However, as the list grows longer, the silence becomes increasingly unbearable to many.
Remarks by CIA Director William Joseph Burns that the agency has “made progress” in rebuilding its spy networks in China served as both verification of people’s suspicions and validation of Beijing’s perceived incompetence. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that if Beijing prolongs this silence, we will witness its reputation being slowly shredded to pieces. In an apparent effort of self-consolation, Chinese netizens even pushed a story online about the Macao Garrison Special Operations Company being awarded a first-class collective merit citation in 2014 for defeating an alleged CIA assassination attempt on Snowden when he was transiting through Hong Kong en route to Russia. To their disappointment, the narrative was later denied by Macao authorities. It is conceivable that the recent string of reports on spy arrests is the long-awaited response to an anxious populace that has borne witness to some not-so-clandestine espionage activities.
For more reporting on spies arrested in China, please check out our newsletter series here:
The U.S. leads in certain technologies at best. China leads in 37 out of 44 most strategic and key technologies for today and tomorrow’s technology frontier according to a neocon funded research project in Australia call ASPI or Australian Strategic Policy Institute. If that is the case. The U.S. leads only in 7 out of these 44 technologies.
The U.S. no longer leads the world for at least a decade now! China has 3 more unmatchable advantages. One it has 1.4 billion highly competitive population who are very intelligent, very hardworking, extremely disciplined and both industrious and driven people.
Two, Chinese political system of socialism with Chinese characteristics is extremely effective and efficient. It evades costly and hurtful perpetual politicking and it allows meritocratic policies by attracting the most capable and qualified leader. As compared with the U.S. clearly popularity contest among popular but unqualified leader.
Three, China focuses fully and comprehensively on growing the real living standards of it’s citizens and does not get distracted by the U.S. forever war investment and focus of interference throughout the globe. China’s military strategy only focus on defending their home land and hitting the enemy lands if it is hit at home. It needs to spend a third of the U.S. to match their huge and damaging military spending!
China is highly sustainable, the U.S. is simply not. In fact the more the U.S. wants to stop China the faster the U.S. will go broke and implode.
Horseshoe Sandwich with Idaho® Fingerling Fries
The Horseshoe is a regional specialty in the Springfield, Illinois area. It is an open-faced sandwich on toasted bread that can utilize a variety of meats, topped with French fries and a creamy cheese sauce.
2023 10 18 15 39
Yield: 4 sandwiches
Ingredients
Sandwich
4 toasted slices Texas toast
6 Idaho® Russian Banana Fingerling potatoes, sliced into fries
2 teaspoons olive oil
Freshly ground Italian seasoning blend
4 grilled hamburger patties, sprinkled with steak seasoning and seasoning salt before cooking
1 medium onion, sliced
1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 red or green bell pepper, cut into large chunks
2 tablespoons butter
Cheese Sauce
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 cup milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
Lay out potato slices onto cookie sheet lined with foil.
Drizzle olive oil over potatoes and use brush to evenly coat them.
Grind Italian seasoning over potatoes until there is a nice, even dusting of seasoning.
Place in oven heated to 425 degrees F. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until fries are cooked throughout and lightly brown.
Place onion, mushroom and pepper in foil. Place butter on top and sprinkle with freshly ground Italian seasoning. Tent foil and close. Place in oven. (They should be softened by the time the fries finish cooking.)
While the fries and vegetables bake, start on cheese sauce by melting butter in a small saucepan. Once melted, add flour and stir to make a roux.
Add milk and basil and stir constantly until it starts to bubble. Continue stirring for two to three more minutes until it begins to thicken.
Add shredded cheese gradually, stirring constantly as it melts.
Lay out toasted bread on plates, topped with hamburger patty. Spoon vegetables on top of burger, followed by a layer of fries. Top with cheese sauce.
Notes
Grilled vegetables, such as green peppers and onions, are also common on a Horseshoe sandwich. Alternate meat suggestions include smoked ham, pulled pork and grilled chicken breast.
China’s $100 Billion Move That Left Australia STUNNED!
In a surprising turn of events, China has unveiled a staggering $100 billion project that could send shockwaves through its trade relationship with Australia. Today, we’re breaking down the intricacies of this development and exploring its potential global implications.
The implications of China’s new mega project are vast, with potential ripple effects touching every corner of the global iron ore industry. Join us as we unravel the layers of this complex narrative and project its potential future impacts on Australia, China, and the broader international community.
People on the internet think I am a blind supporter of China. Some even think I am paid by Chinese propaganda department to write pro-China answers! (Hell! It would be great to get paid for narrating facts, but sigh … so far, no payment. Not even a job offer :p).
For reasons unknown (and probably very biased) stating plain and simple historical and current facts offends a lot of people. Comparing the actions of countries offends people.
Here are a few examples.
Example 1. Hong Kong Riots
Last year (in 2020) Quora was overflowing with certain people expressing their support for Hong Kong rioters, claiming they are fighting for “freedom” and that secession is a right of people.
I wrote a couple of answers stating the plain fact that at least Indians should stop expressing their “deep concerns” for Hong Kong rioters, considering how India is handling the freedom movement in Jammu and Kashmir: no internet connectivity (since more than 8 months now) for the region, curfew almost daily, and lots of reports of rapes committed by the military. A lot of people were “offended” because of my comparison.
I also compared Hong Kong rioters with American civil war. The northern states of USA refused to let the southern states break free of the union. If “freedom” is the right of people, northern states should have allowed the southern states to break free.
Similarly, UK should have allowed Ireland to be free.
Somehow, when India, USA and UK does it, it’s all justified and acceptable. But when China does it (and on top of that, China didn’t even use lethal force against those rioters), suddenly China is at fault! I don’t understand the logic here.
Example 2. China’s Island Building In SCS
I wrote that every nation has a right to defend itself and no nation has a (moral) right to display aggression and policing at other nation’s borders. This too, offended a lot of people. People mentioned “freedom of navigation” and whatnot. I pointed out that USA has not ratified UNCLOS and therefore has no right to implement it on others.
There was a long debate about how USA and western powers have “freedom” to roam in their warships close to Chinese shores, but China has no right to install weapon systems on islands in South China Sea.
Some US guy went on a long argument with me in that answer, claiming that although USA has not signed UNCLOS, it still has the right to implement it on others. The most remarkable thing is that he claimed he was not even being biased and was completely transparent and morally fair in his claim!
Example 3. China – Australia Trade Dispute
I wrote that a customer is not and should not be forced to purchase from any seller, therefore China is not forced to purchase ore and food products from Australia, considering that Australian government went on a smear campaign against China (proposing to find Covid-19 origin only in China) and banning Huwawei.
Some people got offended, and claimed that China should be forced to buy from Australia, but Australia is “free” to not buy from China. Some people also claimed that China is “weaponizing trade” and that they must be “put to their place”.
All I can say about it is that their logic is incomprehensible for me.
Example 4. China – US Trade War
I wrote in an answer that if US is so concerned about trade deficit, they have all the right to stop buying from China and shift their imports to some other country. Similarly, China has the right to stop buying from USA and start buying food products from South America.
Similarly, I wrote that both countries have the right to place as many tariffs as they want, on their imports. Both are free in what they do within their borders.
This offended a lot of people. They claimed that it is China’s “legal responsibility” to avoid placing tariffs on US goods but USA is “free” to place as many tariffs as they want on Chinese goods.
Example 5. Chinese Loans And Investments In Africa
Someone asked if Chinese loans and investments in Africa were attempts by China to colonize Africa. I posted some pictures of African colonialism and showed what colonialism really looks like.
Some guys started arguing in the comments that China is “exploiting” Africa with their loans and whatnot. I simply stated that nobody is forcing African countries to get loans from China. They are free to get loans from IMF and World Bank if they want. If they are getting loans from China, they know the conditions. They are written clearly in front of them. If African countries and China, both agree on the terms and conditions, why is someone else trying to run around amok with arms flailing and crying foul?
They claimed that Africans are “simple minded” (yes, they were indeed simple minded, or else they would not have been enslaved by the western powers for centuries) and do not “see through” the traps. I asked if their countries have better loan offers for African countries, they should present the offers. Somehow that further offended them and they quit in rage, claiming I work for China’s propaganda department.
So. That’s my story of being “pro China”.
US House Resolution #145 Is Retaliation Against South Africa For Hosting BRICS Summit
When I tell you I’m upset or worried, I don’t need you to fix it. I just need you to listen and let me know that my feelings are valid.
Periods are more than just blood and cramps. They can affect my whole body and mind, and PMS is a real thing.
If you want me to wear makeup, don’t expect me to be ready in five minutes. It takes time.
Just because I’m nice to you doesn’t mean I like you romantically. And just because we talk sometimes doesn’t mean I’m “leading you on.” I can have friends who are guys without wanting to date them.
When we talk about the issues that women face, it doesn’t mean that we don’t think men have issues too. It just means that we want to talk about our own experiences from our own perspective.
Yes women might are attracted to chiseled jawlines six-foot-tall men, etc. But that’s not the “ideal dream guy.” Just because women find you good looking, doesn’t mean every woman around will want to date you. We have other things in our priority list (Girls in their early teens might be an exception, but that’s about it).
It’s scary when you run up to us or try to get our attention out of nowhere. We’re in fight-or-flight mode the second we know a stranger is paying attention to us.
Don’t try to be a smartass all the time. It’s not attractive. And please don’t flex in front of us. We don’t care.
It’s not “manly” to raise your voice.
Scents are meant to be discovered, not announced. Take it easy with the body spray.
Honking at us doesn’t work. Please stop.
The best thing you can do for a girl on her period is buy her chocolate, (maybe) some wine, and her specific brand of tampons.
Acting all sad because we’re not replying and literally begging for it is not adorable. You’re chat was probably archived the second you started begging for our attention.
Just because we ask for your help to get something done doesn’t mean we couldn’t do it all by ourselves.
Chinese J-20 fighter production now at over a 100 per year?
“Japan and Korea won’t join the fight against China”
Many years ago, I desired my concealed handgun license in Texas. To acquire it back then, you had to complete a class (6–8 hours) and demonstrate the ability to safely handle a firearm and shoot with an acceptable level of control. This required a shooting test at a range… firing maybe 50 rounds in front of an instructor (10 rounds of 5 shots each) and getting above some very low percentage of hits on a target that is just 10 yards away. Really… it was a “Can you hit the broadside of a barn?” kind of test.
We wrap up the classroom work and go together (class had 20 or so students) to the range that has 5 lanes. The guy who is assigned the lane next to mine (he’s on the far right of the 5 lanes) is easily over 80 years old and apparently carries a revolver, but wanted to take the test with a semi-automatic pistol (it gives you more options), so he rented a small caliber pistol from the range for the test. He can barely load the weapon and is limp-wristing his shots, so it jams repeatedly. The first time it jams, he pivots around to show me, pointing the barrel straight at my face. I dropped to the ground and he tracks me with the gun to the floor until he realizes that he’s doing something wrong, then freezes. The weapon is still pointed at 2–3 other students in other lanes. One lady in lane 1 or 2 screamed. I came around behind him, grabbed his shoulders so that the weapon was pointed back down range and had him put it on the bench (then turned it to point downrange when he placed it pointing back at the students in the other lanes). I waved for the instructor and he came over… his only concern was clearing the weapon and RELOADING it for the old guy. I looked at him and he gave me a “give the old guy a chance” look. On the next round the old guy’s gun jammed again and he waived it at me again, asking for help. I again ducked, got behind him and took the weapon from him this time. I cleared it, sat it down and walked out of the range. I told the instructor “That’s twice I’ve had a loaded weapon pointed at my face. I’m not going back in there until he is disarmed. That guy is going to kill someone and it’s NOT going to be me.” Several of the people in the first few lanes followed me out. Amazingly, the instructor went down to the old guy, reloaded his weapon and had him finish the test (and PASSED him)
I’m not sure who was scarier… the old guy taking the test or the instructor who certified him to carry a concealed weapon for another 4 years without basic safety knowledge or having enough wits not to point a loaded weapon at other people MULTIPLE times on accident.
Technically I was “laid off,” not fired, after 31 years at the company. I was only working part time (10 hours/week), and was planning to retire fully in a year or two. Instead, I got laid off. They paid me almost a full year’s salary and gave me over a year of medical and other benefits. I collected unemployment for the next year and because of a legal action for deceiving customers by my state against the bank that held my mortgage, they had to write off my mortgage payment each month that I was unemployed.
So when I was told I was laid off, and the salary/benefits package I would receive, I immediately bought a bottle of wine, gave it to the head of HR, thanked him profusely, and left. That year was far and away the best one (financially) that I ever had. And to top it off, I had gotten divorced a year earlier. With all my free time and lack of financial concerns, I had time to date. I met a wonderful woman, and we have been together almost thirteen years now.
In 2016, an elderly Lady in Brooklyn New York took hoarding to the extreme when the remains of her son were found amongst the rubbish that filled her home.
Rita Wolfensohn was legally blind and lived with the corpse of her son for twenty years, believing he was missing. The son’s body was discovered when a relative went to the house to collect clothes for the woman while she was at the hospital.
In one of the bedrooms, she found a Skeleton with its jeans, socks and a shirt still on. The room and the rest of the house smelt like rotten food, so any smell of a decaying body would have blended with the already rancid smell.
Police believe the son died of natural causes, and it was possible Rita believed that her son had left and never came back. I don’t understand how someone can live this way, but I don’t like to judge either because depression plays a big part in hoarding cases.
China’s supply chain has developed 7nm process chips, which can produce 95% of the world’s chips!
On a somber note, the Israeli destruction on Palestine is a (text book) genocidal event. This is just as disturbing to me as the complete killing off of all the males in Ukraine.
There is something truly evil about the oligarchy that rules the West.
Their “heads aren’t screwed on tight”. They are unhinged and behaving in complete disregard for their fellow humans.
No care towards humanity.
Which means that they have evolved into something NOT HUMAN.
I shake my head in sadness.
As Everyone’s Lοοking At Ιsrael, Something Τruly Unbelievable Has Begun Ιn America
I bought a used coat from a yard sale and months later, when it turned cold, I put the jacket on and noticed a hand written note in the left pocket. It had listed things to buy at Ace Hardware.
It said Lye, ropes, tape and a small shovel.
Next to the list was the actual receipt showing the stores name, what was bought and exactly when.
I thought it seemed suspicious so I took it to the local police and they ran the info I had against an unsolved murder case.
After pulling the archived video from Ace Hardware, it was clear who the man was and after interrogating him and his fake alibi, he broke down and admitted that he was the one who picked up a 22 year old hitchhiker and raped and murdered her.
He forgot about the note and receipt in his left pocket.
He was also left handed. Had he not written it himself, it would not have proved anything, but it matched the handwriting analysis.
He also had no idea his wife sold the old jacket in a yard sale months earlier. That simple task on her part, cost him his life and he sits on death row today.
You just never know what you’re gonna get for three dollars at a yard sale.
A strategic nightmare sneaks into Washington’s political agenda: Global Times editorial
By Global Times Published: Oct 14, 2023 12:38 AM
This is horrifying. -MM
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A simultaneous war with China and Russia is a strategic nightmare that sober American strategists such as Henry Kissinger have been warning the US to avoid at all costs, and it is also a topic that some US media outlets have become more and more fond of talking about in recent years. At least from the publicly available information, Washington has never previously addressed it as a formal political agenda, supposedly aware of its seriousness and the terrible risks it carries. But the publication of a report by a congressionally appointed bipartisan panel titled America’s Strategic Posture crossed this “red line” on October 12.
The central point of the 145-page report is that the US must expand its military power, particularly its “nuclear weapons modernization program,” in order to prepare for possible simultaneous wars with China and Russia. Notably, the report diverges completely from the current US national security strategy of winning one conflict while deterring another, and from the Biden administration’s current nuclear policy. It is not a fantasy among the American public, but a serious strategic assessment and recommendation in the service of policymaking.
The 12-member panel that wrote the report was hand-picked by the US Congress from major think tanks and retired defense, security officials and former lawmakers. This report makes us feel that a “strategic nightmare” is sneaking into the US political agenda, but has not drawn due concern and vigilance in Washington, and to a large extent, the American elite group represented by the panel is actively working to make this nightmare come true.
A look at the specific recommendations of this report will send shivers down the spine of those who retain any basic rationality. The report recommends that the US deploy more warheads, and produce more bombers, cruise missiles, ballistic missile submarines, non-strategic nuclear weapons and so on. It also calls on the US to deploy warheads on land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and to consider adding road-mobile ICBMs to its arsenal, establishing a third shipyard that can build nuclear-powered ships, etc.
What depths of insanity is the US sinking to? The US’ military spending accounts for nearly 40 percent of the world’s total defense expenditures, and it has been growing dramatically for several years, with military spending in 2023 reaching $813.3 billion, more than the GDP of most countries, but even that is not enough for these politicians. Such a report full of geopolitical fanaticism and war imagery, whether or not it actually ends up as a “guide” for Washington’s decision-making, is dangerous and needs to be resisted and opposed by all peace-loving countries.
According to some American media, the report ignores the consequences of a nuclear arms race. In fact, the report doesn’t seem to consider this at all and doesn’t suggest any measures other than nuclear expansion to address this issue. In other words, it is a reckless approach. Both China and Russia are nuclear powers, and everyone knows that provoking a confrontation between nuclear powers is a crazy idea. Even promoting a nuclear arms race under the banner of “deterrence” is a disastrous step backward in history. Washington’s political elites, who lived through the Cold War, cannot be unaware of this. However, the fact that such an absurd and off-key report is being presented in all seriousness by the US Congress is both surreal and unsurprising. It is in line with the distorted political atmosphere in Washington today.
The motives behind this exaggeration of threats and creating a warlike atmosphere are highly suspicious. The recent outbreak of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict caused a sharp increase in US defense industry stocks, while American defense industry companies have also been the biggest beneficiaries of the long-standing Russia-Ukraine conflict. The military-industrial complex, like a geopolitical monstrosity, parasitically clings to American society, manipulating its every move, pushing Washington step by step to introduce and even prepare for ideas that were once considered “impossible.”
The prosperity of the American military-industrial complex is built upon blood and corpses, and carries a primal guilt. Serving the interests of the American military-industrial complex is unethical.
The reality is that such rhetoric is becoming increasingly politically acceptable in today’s Washington. The idea of “preparing for possible simultaneous wars with Russia and China,” once a fringe fantasy, has gradually made its way into Washington’s agenda, which is deeply unsettling.
If Washington were to adopt even a small portion of the recommendations in this report, the harm and threats it could pose to world peace would be immeasurable and would ultimately backfire on the US itself.
There is an old Chinese saying: “Those who play with fire will perish by it.” This is something that is worth Washington’s careful consideration.
In 1980 my boss had left the company and had planned to sell his very nice 1970 Buick LeSabre for $500. One Monday I came into my office and the keys to the Buick were on my desk with a note saying that the automatic transmission was bad and that it would cost more than the car was worth and that I could have it for $25 since that is all the wrecking yard would give him.
I picked up the car one evening and was able to make it part way home before the “transmission” problem occurred.
Fortunately, I was near the company parking lot where I left the car. The next morning, in daylight, with the help of my brother-in-law, we discovered that the “transmission problem” was actually the air conditioning compressor intermittently locking up and putting a severe drag on the engine.
Since it was fall in southern California, we just cut off the single belt that drove the AC compressor and the car ran great. Months later, a neighbor was putting a Chevy V8 into a Toyota pickup and gave me the AC compressor, which we installed on the Buick. And the AC worked perfectly.
I told my boss how we fixed the “transmission” problem and offered him $500 for the Buick.
He declined and said I should keep the car for $25.
I told him I didn’t want my wife driving a $25 car, so he agreed to $250.
That summer I decided to install an aftermarket cruise control unit on the Buick and while routing wires under the dash, I noticed a small spring, not unlike the ones in ball point pens, was broken in an AC/heater duct. I replaced that spring (cost was less than $1) and noticed that the AC was coming out of the dash vents where previously it was just coming from the floor.
When I next saw my former boss, he said that he had taken the Buick to the dealership to complain about the AC/heat not coming from the dash vents, and they told him that to fix the problem they would have to remove the dash and it would cost more than the car was worth.
I put an additional 100K miles on that car and only recall replacing the brakes and a distributor, in addition to routine maintenance. In 1992, as I was moving to Texas from NJ, a co-worker asked if I would sell him the car, which I did.
As an aside, my former boss went to work for a company that made high power gas lasers, costing at that time about $25,000.
At my next company, I needed one of those lasers. I happened to mention to my former boss at a conference that I hoped to buy one of those lasers, but didn’t have the budget.
A few weeks later, a high power gas laser unexpectedly arrived on the shipping dock!
I called my former boss and he said if and when I get the budget, let him know and he will replace the “loaner” laser with a new one. Probably a year or so later, I did find the money and paid for the “loaner” laser.
My former boss’s company also made an even higher power laser for $50,000. I later wondered if I had given him $500 for the car if he would have shipped a $50K “loaner.”
I would ask him, but he passed away, way too young, years ago.
Rest in peace, Dean…
Life in URUGUAY! – South America’s Richest and Safest Country
As an Uruguayan I want to make a comment. First, great video, mostly accurate expect for a couple of details.
When you show the ‘gauchos” those look more like people on horses from Bolivia or Peru, or even maybe somewhere in northern Argentina or Chile. Because, first of all, in Uruguay, the gaucho’s “poncho” is usually made of plain dark colors, and most important, we do not have mountains, like the ones you show. About population “skin” color, let me make some remarks.
The original population in Uruguay is around 90% of European descent, and when I say European I mean, from all over Europe, including countries like: Germany, Poland, Switzerland, Russian, Denmark, etc. Not only Southern Europe. So there are a lot of fair skin color people including blonde, blue eyes.
But what has been happening in the last decade is that there’s a large immigration wave, such as from the Caribbean countries, as well as from the rest of Latin America.
So, the demographic is changing rapidly because Uruguayan’s population as you established is very small, so the culture is also changing, including the food and even the language…
2500 Foreigners have been invited to the Hangzhou Asian Games in China
Ordinary Foreigners
From US, Canada, Europe and Japan and South Korea
Fully paid for, Business Class Tickets, Five Star Pampering
All China asks them to do is to cover the Games on their Social Media (TikTok mainly or YT or Instagram)
The result is despite the Western Media almost entirely ignoring the Asian Games, a whopping 673 Million people worldwide are watching the events
This is China’s Strategy to counter thr Western Media
Not launching their own MSM and insanely and making accusations
Instead , they bring ORDINARY PEOPLE and treating them to what China looks like and spreading the message
A Popular Teenager goes home and says “Man do you know China is so different from what we hear in our TV channels”
Slowly this gains traction
It’s a long term plan targeting the 19–24 year olds today and gradually influencing the Younger Generation
The key reason is INFLUENCE
The 12–36 year old US Generation doesn’t view China as an enemy but as a neutral country or as a mutually beneficial country
Yet 36–65 year old Americans, the MSM influenced generation see almost 75% of them view China as an enemy
China is slowly influencing the younger generation and in a way that US simply cannot comprehend
Long term, slow and PATIENTLY
Every year you have 20,000 Vloggers invited to China and cover China positively
They influence around 60 Million -150 Million people
Tourvashu is one of these
He influences 2 Million Indians
Most are 16–20 year olds
More likely to watch Tourvashu than Palki Or Gravitas or Arnab
Slowly the Younger Indians will be influenced and say “Yaar Tune Chaayina ka wo Video dekha. Mast tha”
So you wonder why Apple is not banned. In China?
Same reason
It’s not the Chinese way
These Brash, Useless and Economically unsound tactics are not something the Chinese do
China will encourage Apple, use it as a gold standard to develop their own industry, and undercut the iphone eventually
Take the Chinese High Speed Rail
In 2005, Chinese imported exclusively their Boring Machines (Germany, Switzerland), Engines (Japan, Spain), Software (UK, Singapore, US) and Electronics (Japan, S Korea)
Today nearly 90% of their High Speed Rail Supplies are COMPLETELY MADE IN CHINA with same or better quality
They have decimated TBM markets in Germany with export shares plummeting from 69% in 2000 to 11% in 2023
Took them 17–18 years
That’s how China works
These loser protectionism bans don’t work for China
They COMPETE and UNDERCUT and enhance quality with competition
The Trump Ban begun in 2019
So the key is to see if China will beat the Apple and undercut the company by 2036–2037
I am willing to guarantee that they will
It’s what they do
Kind of their Mantra
Banning is what Losers do
Competing and beating with Economics is what Winners do
When I was a young boy I used to get teased a lot in school and I didn’t have many friends. I was a fat kid and often got called a “fat slob”, “pig”, and “smelly or “stinky”. I took a bath at least once a week, more in the summer, and tried to keep clean so I knew I was just getting teased because I was fat. When I was eleven my best friend’s mom drove us home from baseball practice one day. Out of the blue she turned to me in the back seat and said, “Andy, you smell and you need to bathe more often.” She did not say it in a mean way but in a stern businesslike manner. My best friend was horrified and said nothing.
When I got home I immediately took a shower and wondered about what was going on. Obviously, I’d been sweaty from practice but she must have known that. As I thought it over, it also dawned on me that my skinny little sister often got teased as “smelly” too. I’d always assumed she got it from association with me, not because she smelled. So I told my mom what happened and asked her to tell me honestly if I smelled. She said, “no” and started to get a little upset about my best friend’s mom saying that to me.
I went to play outside and saw one of my classmates across the street. We had an on-again/off-again friendship up to that point. I guess we were what you might call “frenemies” today but at this point in time, we were more on the friendly side. I decided to get his opinion believing he wouldn’t hold back. In fact, he had teased me before about being smelly. So I asked him straight-up, “Do I smell?” He answered very matter-of-factly, “yes”. “My sister too?” “Yes, her too,” he replied. Then I asked him what we smelled like. He then told me that this had actually been a subject of discussion among his family who did not want me or my sister in their house because of our smell. He said his parents said we smelled like “old books”. Immediately, this brought to mind the set of Encyclopedia Britannicas I had in my bedroom closet. I immediately went home to check them out. Not only were they covered in mold but vast sections of my closet and room had mold. In fact, I found it throughout our home. But it didn’t smell to me. I was used to it. We all were. We lived in the woods surrounded by soggy tree pools so our home was often damp. We had no AC nor did we need it. This was back in 1972 before the internet and all the scares about the dangers of mold.
I told my mother what I’d learned and was able to convince her this was what was causing my sister and me to smell and probably her too. We cleaned everything with bleach, aired out the house, and bought dehumidifiers. From then on I showered every day. My friends all told me I no longer smelled. That following summer I also worked my ass off to get physically fit. I don’t know how many more years I might have suffered but for this very simple and brutally honest admonition from my friend’s mother. To this day, my best friend of 58 years still tells me how embarrassed he was that his now-deceased mother said that to me. And I always remind him she did me one of the greatest favors of my life.
Flip Flop Cherry Cobbler
CHERRY COBBLER 05 28 2028115 1
Yield: 6 to 8 generous portions
Ingredients
1/2 cup butter
1 cup granulated sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
8 cups cherry pie filling
1/2 cup granulated sugar
Instructions
Coat a 9 x 13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.
With an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar.
In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Add to butter mixture alternating with the milk; mix until well combined.
Spread batter evenly into prepared pan.
Top with filling and sprinkle with sugar. Cover and freeze.
To bake: Thaw completely in refrigerator.
Bake at 375 degrees F for 40 minutes or until browned.
Mighty China Remove All Iran Sanctions Placed By U.S and E.U
In this eye-opening video, we explore the shifting dynamics of power and influence between Iran, the United States, and China. With the U.S. imposing stringent sanctions on Iran, China steps in to form a strategic alliance, challenging the global power balance. Learn more about the economic, political, and strategic implications of this trilateral relationship and how it could shape the future of global geopolitics.
Going anonymous because it is a part of my life that not even my closest friends are aware of.
This is from the time when I was 12 years old. My mom had a problem where her breast would develop lumps which would have to be removed surgically. This problem started before I was born and she would undergo these procedures every couple of years. We lived in a small town with limited access to advanced medical facilities, but the doctors always told us that the lumps were not malignant.
When I was 12, this one lump was growing very big. My dad (who is a doctor himself) decided to take her to Delhi to get some tests done. I have two elder sisters and we (me, my sister and my parents) live with my grandparents.
So, my parents were away in Delhi and my grand mother would spend the day on the phone talking to relatives, spreading rumors that my mom actually had cancer and saying that we three are a burden on them and that they just want my parents to come and get us off their head.
My sisters, who were older and more mature, would mostly stay in their room, but I, by nature liked to be outside with my mom and in her absence, my granny. Hearing these things used to hurt me, but I wouldn’t tell my sisters since I knew they’d be hurt even more.
I started taking up house-work with my granny (though we had help by my granny used to crib that we 3 were a burden)-cooking half meals, helping with washing clothes. All this I did without my sisters’ knowledge (or they’d never have let me do it).
This was a time when mobiles didn’t exist in India and fixed line phones were the only means of communication. News from my parents used to reach us with a lag. We just kept praying that our mom comes back safely.
After tests at AIIMS (top hospital in India), our parents returned awaiting results and my granny immediately left for my aunt (her daughter’s) place citing she needed “rest”.
Results came in-the growth didn’t seem malignant but needed a fairly complicated medical procedure in Chandigarh. These were times when my dad was under a lot of financial pressure (though my grandparents were well-off and my dad was the only son). My dad requested my granny over call that they need to leave immediately and that though he had applied for their life savings-their FDs to be broken, but if it doesn’t happen on time, if my grandparents could lend money till the FD money could reach home.
Unbelievably, my granny just didn’t come home! She made my aunt call in saying she would stay longer at her place and that my parents can leave for the surgery! I still remember my dad almost crying, not sure if he would be able to arrange money on time to save his wife (the tumour had grown visibly big). By God’s grace, the FDs broke a day before they had to leave and they left us alone, at the trust of the neighbours who were more helpful than my grandparents!
It was a long, painful time when my mother received treatment-a surgery which lasted 9 hours, where doctors almost gave up hope, where she was on ventilator support for days. All this while, I kept hearing from my granny’s conversations as she invited friends over, that it was certainly cancer, that such complicated surgeries could only be for cancer. It kept on making the 12-year old me scared as I knew cancer is something bad, it is something that can take away my mom.
We first got a chance to speak to our mom after 35 days when she managed to call from a hotel after her discharge. Those 35 days had been a struggle beyond my imagination for my parents (which they told me much later when I was around 20). With just my dad for company-he had managed everything from sleeping on hospital floors to washing my mom’s clothes.
My mom has recovered fully and still prays everyday for the doctors who cured her.
My dad still hates my grand parents, and I don’t feel any love for them wither.
My grand dad passed away a few years ago and we still live with my granny because my mom still thinks its our duty.
But, the pain is still there, the fear that the 12-year old felt is still there ,the betrayal is still feels fresh when I see my granny.
I grew up in those 2 months, chopped off my hair because I had long hair and my granny wouldn’t help manage them.
I hardened, realized I only have my parents and my sisters who will stand by me, and I will stand by them till I die.
I realised the world is cruel, looking at my relatives’ behaviour in that period.
“Hector, I retired before you were born,” he laughed.
Confused, I asked again, “Be honest, Dad, I mean, when will you stop working?”
His response was simple, “Working? What’s work? I don’t know what work is.”
“OK, Dad, forget about it,” I said as I assumed he wasn’t willing to talk about this.
“Hector,” he said, “what you know as my job is not work for me. I enjoy architecture so much that I could do this 24/7. This is who I am. Architecture is my life.”
So, to answer your question, why do rich people work even after they become rich? Why don’t they play?
My father lived to be 91 and worked until his body gave up on him. He was a passionate architect who found joy in his work. That’s what kept him active and full of joy every day. His passion for architecture was infectious, and it taught me this valuable lesson about work as a lifestyle.
So, if you ask me about retirement or work-life balance, I’d say it’s better to find what you love and make it a part of your life. When you find that, you’ll stop working and start living. We achieve a balance not by separating work from life but by integrating what you love into your lifestyle.
Today, this is how I see it: It’s not about working less; it’s about loving more what you do.
That’s the secret to a fulfilling life. As my father always said, “The day you find what you love is when you will stop working.”
Heavy Rain forced Mother Cat to Carry her kitten in Streets, but No One Opened the Door for Them!
In the pouring rain, we spotted a soaked cat seeking shelter. Feeling sorry for her, we followed as she led us to her hidden kitten in the woods. We gently petted the mama cat, who had braved the relentless rain. The tiny, wet kitten needed our care, so we wrapped him in a warm blanket. Back at our home, where rescued cat families and foster cats live together happily, we ensured both mother and baby were dry and well-groomed. A vet visit ensured mama cat’s health, and we even gave the kitten a bath, revealing his adorable charm. The heartwarming reunion between mother and kitten was filled with playfulness and bonding, showing the strength of family ties.
Here’s one example, regarding myself: I was working as a bouncer at a bar in Erie, Pa one night and some guy, about 24 years old or so was making quite a bit of trouble, harassing customers, pushing some, bullying others, etc.
He was somewhat high, but not drunk, and it seemed he was there just to harass and embarrass/humiliate some who were there with a date. He was pretty big, about 225 pounds and about 6 feet and acting like a real bully. When I was told about some guy doing these things ( He wasn’t near my door, but farther inside ), I went in to see what was up.
When I got there he was harassing some poor kid who was clearly scared and was with his girlfriend. As I approached, a few people pointed at this guy and said, “get him out if here, he’s an asshole.” .
I got up to him and very nicely told him to leave the kid alone and that he’d have to leave because he was causing too much trouble.
He looked at me, stood up as high as he could (I hate when they do that, like it matters), and said, “Who’s going to make me?” I said, simply, “me.”
He told me to get lost or he’d beat the shit out of me.
I said, “Well, let’s go outside and see who comes back in, and, if it’s you, you can stay.” He smiled, said,”I’m gonna enjoy this” and said, “let’s go” and we walked outside. By that time, everyone, including the other bouncer at my door knew what was going to happen.
The other bouncer, Tommy Williams, just stood at the door and smiled while we walked outside. Well, when we got out about 15 feet from the door, the moron suddenly turned and tried to hit me with a roundhouse kick which I not only blocked, but grabbed his leg and picked him up by the leg and threw him to the ground, saying, ”I don’t think karate is going to help you here.”
He jumped up and said, “how about this, asshole? and then tried a double leg takedown, as, apparently, at some time he was a wrestler. I actually laughed and said, “oh, you want to wrestle, huh?” and then as I countered his sad attempt, the other bouncer, who had heard everything, shouted out: “Wrestle? well you picked the right guy, he’s the National wrestling Champion……”
I just said, “You picked the wrong guy you moron,” and, as my friend, Tommy later said to me, I literally swept the parking lot with him.
I never saw him after two of his friends ended up taking either home or to the hospital.
He was a bully.
He got to feel like those he had bullied before.
I was NOT kind to him.
No regrets, but I bet he was kinda surprised when he heard the other bouncer tell him who I was, and he had no escape, as even as he said over and over, “I quit, I give up.”
I told him that it wasn’t up to him, It was my call and I wasn’t done yet.
That is a scary thing to realize, that you can’t quit, that it’s up to the guy beating the crap out of you. But I believe it has led others like that guy to never bully anyone again. Jeff
Sat in a bar in South Pattaya one Sunday afternoon in 1991 I noticed a fairly fit looking bloke dressed only in flip flops and shorts. He suddenly ordered everyone a drink then turned to me and said “I see my friend that you are interested in my tattoos.” I wasn’t that interested but I wasn’t going to argue and let him tell me. One he’d got for some work in the Philippines – the other some thing in the Mekong Delta. A mahout then came by with a large elephant which the man went across to look at saying they’d always fascinated him. So I asked him where he came from – American Samoa he replied. And what did he do? He worked “for the government”.
He then stepped back and ordered another drink for everyone in the bar. I thanked him and he turned and said “Let’s eat and drink for tomorrow we may be dead”. He then looked me in the eye with the coldest eyes I’d ever seen and said “ You know it is very easy. I pick up the gun, I pull the trigger and they are gone.” It was evident he wasn’t bullshitting.
That evening I saw the bar owner – who comes from Texas – and mentioned this guy. “Oh yes that’s so and so – he’s a US Navy SEAL. Bad news when he’s drunk.”
Guess I can be thankful I met him whilst he was sober!
Atheist Overdoses; Shown Soul’s Process Of Pre-Life Planning (NDE)
Her story is powerful. All of her words should have been heard and none bleeped out….
If you are offended by profanity, best skip this response.
I, too, am in the top 1% of wealth holders in this country, albeit, on lowest rung, yet minimum wage at my small Inn is higher than it is at this billionaire cunt’s company. I have no problem finding employees. This piece of shit motherfucker sits on his yacht sipping pina coladas while his employees need a second job to just pay the bills to live their day to day lives.
This asshole supports the Republican Party with massive amounts of money, and as a wealthy person, I can tell you a thing or two about how tax laws work in this country. For those of you who make less than $250k a year but still vote Republican, your economic misery is your own fault. The Democratic Party has LOTS of problems, but one problem they don’t have is trying to make life better for the average person and if you stopped watching your choice of right wing media, you’d soon realize that. It’s people like this cunt who are destroying America and contributing NOTHING to it.
What did this prick do? He built a fucking store, massively exploited his workforce by grabbing all the loot for himself and then whining when ordinary people have had enough and don’t want to work for anymore. Fuck him, and his fellow cunt billionaires.
When I was doing my B Tech, there was a Professor Talukedar who used to teach us ‘Mechanics’.
His lectures used to be very interesting since he had an interesting way to teach and explain the concepts.
One day, in the class, he asked the following questions,
What is ZERO.
What is INFINITY.
Can ZERO and INFINITY be same.
We all thought that we knew the answers and we replied as following,
ZERO means nothing
INFINITY means a number greater than any countable number
ZERO and INFINITY are opposite and they can never be same
He countered us by first talking about infinity and asked, ‘How can there be any number which is greater than any countable number?’
We had no answers.
He then explained the concept of infinity in a very interesting way, which I remember even after more than 35 years.
He said that imagine that there is an illiterate shepherd who can count only upto 20.
Now, if the number of sheep he has less than 20 and you ask him how many sheep he has, he can tell you the precise number (like 3, 5 14 etc.). However, if the number is more than 20, he is likely to say “TOO MANY”.
He then explained that in science infinity means ‘too many’ (and not uncountable) and in the same way zero means ‘too few’ (and not nothing)
As an example, he said that if we take the diameter of the Earth as compared to distance between Earth and Sun, the diameter of earth can be said to zero since it is too small.
However, when we compare the same diameter of earth with the size of a grain, diameter of earth can be said to be infinite.
Hence, he concluded that the same thing can be ZERO and INFINITE at the same time, depending on the context, or your matrix of comparison.
The relationship between richness and poverty is similar to the relationship between infinity and zero.
It all depends on the scale of comparison with your wants.
If your income is more than your wants, you are rich.
If your wants are more than your income, you are poor.
I consider myself rich because my wants are far lesser than my income.
I have become rich not so much by acquiring lots of money, but by progressively reducing my wants.
If you can reduce your wants, you too can become rich at this very moment.
I came home very sick with flu one day, went up to my bedroom, my husband was in my bed with the mail lady. I told them both to get the fuck out of my house. He argued that he needed sleep cuz he worked overnights. He needed his clothes and stuff. I told him all his clothes would be alongside the garage by Monday. It’s where the garbage is kept. Take a shirt and stuff he needed for tonight and get lost. Take a shower at her house or work. I packed up his stuff in garbage bags along with the topper to our wedding cake, some mementos from our honeymoon, I was being passive aggressive I agree, but how dare he sleep with her in our bed, in our home. We had a 2 year old and a 6 mos old. He was just wrong. He showed up a month later crying to me that she had broken up with him. I told him too bad, I didn’t feel bad for him in the least. I got the house( and mortgage) in the divorce. It was ok cuz I wanted the kids to stay in their home and school and I made more money, the root cause of the problem. He felt inadequate cuz I was a senior manager and he was doing maintenance work. This was no issue for me, just for him.
When I first got married, we would be passionate everywhere, if you know what I mean, bed, floor, couch, where ever. We would do things for each other. And we enjoyed each other’s company. She was from Japan I am white american.
I learned to speak Japanese and we lived in Japan a few years and life was good. We had kids together, but over the years things grew cold between us.
They say that people change and you grow apart. I don’t think either of us changed. I doubt that most people change. What I suspected happened was that I would base my love on how much she loved me and visa versa. If she did something nice for me, I would do something nice for her. Or if I did something nice for her, she would do something nice for me.
That all sounds fine and dandy, but I think in practice, it doesn’t work. When I do something nice for her, I expect something of equal niceness in return. However, often is the case that you don’t perceive what is done in return is as valuable as what you gave him or her. So the next time you do something, you feel less inclined to do something as nice. And so the love kind of fizzles.
You basically stop caring because you perceive your partner as not caring. And chances are your partner feels the same way about you. Neither person has changed. They are both the same person, but the love isn’t there anymore. They let it spiral into nothingness.
That is what my wife and I did. After 20 some odd years of marriage, there was nothing. I really had no desire to do anything for my wife, because she wasn’t going to do anything for me. We didn’t hate each other. We helped each other when needed, but that is about all.
I was unhappy with the marriage. I either wanted out or I wanted it fixed. But after 20 years of marriage, I knew that she wasn’t going to try and fix the marriage. I knew that she thought I would not change so why should she have to do anything special and if I did change, it would only be temporary and things would go back to how they were, so why even try. I knew this would be her mind set.
So I had 3 options. Divorce, stay in the lifeless, sexless marriage, or take a chance and do something about it.
I thought perhaps divorce would be the better way. Start anew. She had given up on me and didn’t care.
But I decided to give it a try anyway. I completely revamped my approach. I decided that I would try for one year to fix this. I would not require her to do anything. I would just do these things on my own. If these things wooed her back then she would be back on her own terms and not mine.
So I did the following.
I committed to get into shape… better diet, exercise
I committed to do something special for her everyday regardless of whether we were getting along or not.
I committed to do at least an additional 30 minutes of house work every day.
I committed to pay her a sincere compliment at least once per day.
I committed not to fight with her and to only have calm arguments with her.
I decided to fix her dinner and breakfast as often as possible.
In essence I decided to love her every day.
As I thought, I got essentially no response from her day after day. I mean she would sometimes say thank you, but that was about it. After about four months she started to change. I kept at it. She continued to change. Ok.. she didn’t change. She was the same person, but she saw that I was trying. She saw that she was important to me. She saw that I wasn’t giving up. She wanted to be loved.
She started doing things for me again. We started talking a lot more and doing a lot more together. We started dating again and going on trips. It was almost like we were newly weds again, but with less passion, but it felt great. Sometimes I would just hold her in my arms for 30 minutes.
Love can be revived. It is not easy. True love takes work. Making the decision above to love her regardless was the second best decision of my life. The first of course was to marry her. Our marriage is not perfect, but I look forward to seeing her every day. She is an awesome woman. She is basically the same person I married. We just let our love die. We were lazy lovers. She asked me one day what got into me and I talked with her about my plan. I think it was a pretty good plan and so did she. And yes, we are still married, but much more happily now.
I knew our love couldn’t be one sided, but I also knew it needed to start somewhere and why not me. Ask yourself, why not you? Do you want the love back? what kind of sacrifice are you willing to make to have the love back? If I had decided that she needed to do something while I was doing something, then we would have been right back to where we started. You can’t base your actions on what the other is doing in return. You need to commit to love regardless of what is done in return. That is the sacrifice and that is where real love will begin.
Edit.
I can’t believe how many people have read and liked this. Someone mentioned the 40 day challenge. I found out about that several months after I started on this path. There is a movie out there along these same lines called fireproof that is worth a watch.
For me things didn’t change around in 40 days. It took quite a bit longer. But you have to ask yourself is divorce really the better way out? Yes, sometimes it is. But infidelity doesn’t have to be the end of life as we know it.
I look back on these events and they seem like a distant memory, the hurt and pain. like a forgotten dream. But it really wasn’t that long ago. I am a better person because of it. She has become a better person as well and we are definitely a better couple.
6 REASONS WHY AMERICANS ARE OBESE. WHAT IS CAUSING THE RISING OBESITY IN THE USA?
It’s no secret that obesity in America has been an ongoing issue and that doesn’t seem to be changing anytime soon.
In fact, according to Harvard University; about 2 in every 3 adults or 69 percent of the population in the US are overweight while1 in 3 adults are obese or 39 percent.
It has to make you wonder how the most powerful and advanced nation in the world can be so obese especially when compared to countries in Europe and Asia, it’s not like we don’t have the means as a nation for healthier lifestyle and better-quality food.
Or maybe Americans are meant to be obese, and they want us to stay that way? Sounds controversial right, well in this video we will expose 8 reasons why Americans are so obese compared to other countries.
Our country born with troubles since its independence.
Have you ever heard about the Burma Campaign in World War 2? It is quite thorough and one of the most destructive campaigns largely forgotten by Western Powers and historians. The entire infrastructure of the country was destroyed during the course of the war. By the end of the war, the country was totally in rubbles and a massive number of firearms were widespread even in the village level which was left behind by warring powers. The situation was ripe for armed insurgencies.
The country was never been administered as a whole before British arrival. The region out of central Myanmar was usually administered by local petty chiefs with vassal-high king relationship which never need any direct contact between different cultures (except a few tributary missions and merchants). There is no large-scale internal trade and the transportation was also difficult. Different cultures and ethnic groups suddenly came into contact under British rule. As usual, the British exploited the situation by creating a divide & conquer strategy by favouring ethnic minorities over the Burmese majority. This led to extreme Burmese nationalism.
Due to economic disaster in the 1930s and later devastating war, the country is under very hard economic conditions which was a natural breeding ground for communism. The Burmese Communist Party which never believed in British plan for independence already went rebellion even before independence.
Then, the world’s longest-running civil war began.
In the 1950s and 60s, the civil war lost momentum and Burma came under the spotlight of international relations due to its leading role in third world nations, one of the founders of the non-aligned movement. The country was also the only real democratic nation in Southeast Asia with regular elections. The country largely recovered from the war at the beginning of the 1960s and hopes ran high. A federal system was proposed by the ethnic leaders and the government agreed.
All out of sudden, the coup came. At first, people weren’t serious as they already seen a short 2 years long military rule which stabilized the country and the coup ended with the mostly free and fair elections. By the time they realized that the military is no longer intended to give up the power this time, the civil war gained intensity and all the things we achieved in the last 10 years were gone.
The military junta slowly transformed themselves into businessmen by laying hands on the country’s economy entirely. The Myanmar Economic Corporation (MEC) ran by the military alone control nearly 40–50% of the country’s economy directly or indirectly. With the lack of a proper banking system, the ordinary people have no access to much-needed capital for investments. Small and Medium scale businesses have no chance to grow unless the monopoly of military elites and their relatives were removed.
So he responds in self-defense and you teach him that if the attacker is female he’s supposed to just sit there writhing in pain getting injured? And she got off scott-free?
What’s next? She stabs him and he gets tossed in a closet and fed gruel and water? Because you might as well.
If you knew she attacked first, you should have punished HER. You discipline all parties that have transgressed, not just the ones who have a penis. Having a vagina doesn’t magically bestow immunity on a person.
If you confiscated all his devices, you should have confiscated hers as well. For his month of grounding, she should have received two.
There’s a big difference between a slap in the face (which stings but quickly dissapates) and kicking someone in the jewelies (which could cause irreparable damage).
No. You’re punishment wasn’t good enough. You half-assed it due to sexist reasoning. Go back and discipline your daughter as well.
Who Wants To Be A WARMONGER?!
Inspired by the war hawks that run the West, it’s the game show that always ends badly!
Even though this was a relatively small thing, it affected me profoundly.
On my lunch break from work, I went to a fast food place. A homeless man came in. He was absolutely filthy, with long, greasy hair and dirty hands, dressed in raggedy clothes with a piece of blanket wrapped around him. He smelled bad. He didn’t seem able to talk and he went from table to table, sort of chittering at people, like a rat. People were pretty horrified and either gave him a quarter or just ignored him.
There was one table with 4 Mexican day laborers. These are guys who often are in the U.S. “illegally” and who hang around outside home improvement stores, hoping to pick up jobs. They don’t make much money and sometimes people cheat them, knowing the laborers can’t go to the authorities. A lot of these men may live in one house so they can save money and send it back to their families in Mexico.
When this homeless man came up to their table, they asked him, “Are you hungry? Do you want something to eat?” Then they gave him all of their food, packing it up for him so he could carry it away. Then they didn’t go and buy more food themselves (they probably couldn’t afford it), but simply cleared the table and walked out. They knew what it was to suffer, and they very likely would suffer a bit from their generosity. But that didn’t stop them; and they were the best example of kindness I have ever seen. It was over 30 years ago, and it still affects me.
The night my daughter died in a double hit-and-run in Colorado, a stranger stopped to help her and was witness to the second car that hit her, ending her life. He had been trying to help her though; he called for an ambulance and although it was ultimately unsuccessful, every effort was made to save her life. That stranger is a hero as far as I’m concerned.
The man who tried to help was very traumatized by what he had witnessed and had to change jobs so that he no longer had to daily pass by the place where my daughter died as he went to and from work. Unrelated to the accident, he and his wife got rid of their landline when they moved. I wanted very much to thank him but although I had tried every way I knew, his job had changed, he no longer had a telephone I could call 411 for and he no longer lived in the same place. I finally decided that simply being grateful would have to be enough, even if I couldn’t tell him myself.
Two years later, I’m sitting at the dinner table in a hostel in London and strike up a conversation with a guy also having dinner there. He was from the same area as me. He remembered my daughter’s death not just from it being in the news, but because the husband of one of his co-workers had stopped and tried to help the young lady.
OMG.
To make a long story short, he put me in touch with his co-worker and I was able to email her and express my thanks and gratitude for her husband’s efforts that night. She emailed me back and said that although her husband was desperately sorry he couldn’t save her, he was grateful that she didn’t have to die alone. He is a hero in my eyes and I’m so glad I got to let him know how grateful our family is. May he and his loved ones be abundantly blessed.
China Reveals HUGE Sanctions On US Tech Giants Due A STAGGERING Unpaid $1 Trillion
The direct consequences for the implicated U.S. tech companies are potentially disastrous. China is a significant market for many of these entities, and the sanctions could drastically affect their revenue, stock prices, and global operations. Companies like Apple, which rely on China for both sales and a vast portion of their supply chain, could see significant disruptions. The same goes for firms like Google, Microsoft, and Amazon, which have invested billions in capturing the Chinese market and establishing a supply chain nexus.
Furthermore, these sanctions could also impact hundreds of smaller U.S. tech firms and startups that might not be direct targets but could suffer collateral damage due to the intertwined nature of the tech ecosystem. This isn’t just a bilateral U.S.-China issue; the sanctions have ramifications for the global tech industry. Supply chains across the world are intricately linked, and disruptions in China could lead to ripple effects impacting tech manufacturing globally. Countries and businesses that rely on these tech giants for critical infrastructure, software, and hardware might find themselves caught in the crossfire.
The European Union, India, Japan, and South Korea, among others, will be closely watching the developments. Any prolonged conflict could force these nations to recalibrate their tech dependencies and alliances. On the diplomatic front, this escalation further strains an already tense U.S.-China relationship. The last few years have witnessed a hardening of stances on both sides, with trade wars, tech bans, and territorial disputes. This new development might just push the diplomatic ties to a new low.
As the news of China’s unprecedented sanctions reverberated across the globe, key stakeholders began weighing in, highlighting the vast complexities of the issue. Major international business councils, traditionally silent on political matters, expressed deep concern over the possible long-term disruptions to global trade. Wall Street responded predictably, with significant declines in tech stock prices. Investor sentiments seem to mirror the broader fears. If China and the U.S., two of the world’s largest economies, can’t resolve their differences amicably, what hope is there for the stability of the global economic order?
Moreover, experts in international relations also sounded the alarm. The escalation of this magnitude in the U.S.-China tech conflict marks a deviation from conventional trade disagreements. The integration of geopolitics with business is not new, but the scale of this rift indicates a deep-seated power struggle reflecting ambitions, fears, and strategies beyond mere economic interests.
One of the most pressing concerns for the sanctioned tech companies and the international community is the verification of China’s claim. How is this enormous one trillion dollars figure reached without transparent documentation and a clear breakdown? Suspicions linger over the validity of such a vast sum. The call for a neutral third-party audit has gained traction in various quarters. International bodies like the World Trade Organization could potentially mediate, ensuring that claims and counterclaims are examined impartially.
While the U.S. government has not yet announced any countermeasures, there’s widespread speculation about potential retaliation. Would the U.S. respond with equivalent sanctions on Chinese tech companies? Could there be a broader economic response that targets other sectors of the Chinese economy? Such a move would undoubtedly lead to further escalation, intensifying the trade war and potentially causing harm to global economic stability.
As an immigrant, one thing that always spooks me is paperwork and all related things to immigration process.
One day, I was outside working on my garden, when I came back inside, there were four missed calls. Just like a habit, I copied and pasted the phone number to Google search, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection – Corpus Christi Border Patrol Station popped up.
I started panicking. Why? Why they called me?!?? So, when the phone number appeared again a few minutes after that, I picked it up.
A woman on the phone let me know that there was someone used my identity to cross the border, tried to traffic drugs into the country. She told me that this could happen because I traveled outside of the country recently (which was correct). I was nervous. Then the woman proceeded to tell me she ‘would help me to verify and straighten things up’. Then she asked me my full name, DoB and Social Number.
At this point, I started smelling B.S. I told her, wasn’t it an identity thief case? Shouldn’t she have those information already? She got furious and told me, she was ‘trying to help’ and I needed to ‘cooperate’ or else I would ‘end up in jail’.
I decided to cut off the call, told her I would contact my lawyer and said goodbye then hung up.
I did some searching, then I decided to call back the phone number. It went to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection – Corpus Christi Border Patrol Station for real. I talked to an officer. He told me I was right hanging up the call and told me scammers nowadays gets really aggressive. They can hi-jack the phone number line like that, so the Caller ID looks like it’s legitimate from government offices. He also told me: If the government wants anything from you, they will send snail mails, they don’t call.
I travel full-time via my FJ Cruiser and my RV. A year or two ago, I met a guy who turned out to be a federal agent. No, I was not being investigated, at least not for business/national security reasons.
Before finalizing our first date, he casually mentioned that he had run the front plate on my FJ Cruiser, which absolutely horrified me. This isn’t some random guy using Google. This is a federal agent!
It was also the way he said it. As if it was the most normal thing in the world to invade someone’s (especially a woman traveling solo!) privacy in that way.
After he told me he ran my plates, I just stopped responding. I mean, next thing I know, he could be checking my IP address or something and figuring out where I was camping alone that night.
It was creepy.
So a week goes by and he blasts me for ghosting him. I respond, “Are you seriously asking me why? Dude, you RAN MY PLATES!”
Instead of apologizing or acknowledging that that was kinda creepy, he proceeded to tell me that I was “asking for it” by sharing a picture of my rig. He told me the fact that I had a custom plate intrigued him, so it was 100% my fault for dangling the carrot (a custom plate) in front of his face.
I blocked him after that. As far as I know, I’m not currently being stalked by any federal agents. But who really knows? The feds are pretty crafty.
Swiss Bliss
old fashioned swiss steak 3056883 Final 5ba96bcc46e0fb002534cbd6
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
1 tablespoon butter
1 (2 pound) chuck roast, cut 1 inch thick
1 envelope onion soup mix
1 (4 ounce) can mushrooms, drained
1/2 medium green bell pepper, sliced
1 (20 ounce) can tomatoes, drained and chopped, reserving juice
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon A-1 steak sauce
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon parsley flakes
Instructions
Coat center of large sheet of heavy foil with butter and place into a 13 x 9 inch dish.
Place meat across foil, overlapping each piece slightly.
Sprinkle with soup mix, mushrooms, green pepper slices and tomatoes.
Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper.
Mix tomato juice, steak sauce and cornstarch.
Add enough water to make 2 cups liquid.
Pour over meat mixture and sprinkle with parsley flakes.
Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees F for 2 hours.
I had a black client who had been arrested in his house and white cops slammed his head into a dresser drawer just for fun, as witnessed by several officers in the house. As the dresser was pushed against a casement window on the front of the house, slamming his head into the dresser “blew” the window into the front yard with a shotgun-like explosion, witnessed by all the neighbors watching the police action from across the street. The black jailer saw the bruise on the client’s forehead when taking the mugshot.
On the motion to dismiss for unreasonable police violence, all the cops lied and denied slamming the client’s head against the dresser. The judge and prosecutor acted as if the cops were not lying and the window blew itself into the yard.
It was late afternoon and the only civilians in the courtroom was a fifth-grade civics class of 20 kids aged 10–11 years and their teacher. The judge had a reputation as a racist and a hard-ass.
I turned during argument on the (hopeless) motion to the kids and asked the courtroom rhetorically: “Why in the world would police officers take the witness stand, swear on the Bible to tell the truth, and then lie?” Then I said, “Well, it makes winning their case a lot easier, and no one in authority stops them, and the officers know this.”
So I was accusing the judge of “letting” the officers lie to win the motion. That is, the judge OFTEN knows officers are lying and so does the prosecutor, but they don’t stop it. The officers know this, so they lie. Not all and not always, but in cases like this, they all lied together.
The judge got really pissed and started haranguing me, so I stoked his anger higher. The prosecutor could see how bad all this was starting to look to the appellate judges in any appeal and hung his head in defeat. My client walked out of the courtroom with a very sweet deal from the prosecutor to cut his losses.
TikTok on the cost of living | RANT ON INFLATION | EVERYONE IS BROKE AND TIRED
Hi guys, just to clarify I do not own any of these videos I just thought it would be interesting to see how people are dealing with the cost of living, sending prayers and well wishes to you.
When I was a kid, hot dogs were lame flavorless picnic fodder that got a squirt of mustard and ketchup and onions if you were daring, nothing more.
One summer a diner opened near me that specialized in char broiled burgers and Chicago dogs. I’d never heard of a Chicago dog before, so naturally I had to try one. Man, what a life changing experience.
It was a snappy Sabrett dog topped with mustard, sweet neon green pickle relish, diced onions, spicy sport peppers, tomato slices and a wedge of dill pickle. Every bite was overflowing with crunchy, spicy, sweet, sour, salty and savory goodness. In my 15 years of life it was literally one of the best things I had ever eaten. I still love them today.
More than just a poem, the Chicago dog contains a lesson: ketchup doesn’t belong on a hot dog.
It was brought to my attention that a true Chicago dog is made from Vienna Beef brand hot dogs and always includes celery salt. I’m down with both of those, so that’s what a true Chicago dog should be made with.
There are many American assets in China, estimated to be worth 2.2 trillion.
The US companies that own these assets are not going to be happy with the US government if China were to freeze these assets.
Do you think that the US companies owners and employees will vote for Biden next year if China freezes their assets in response to the US freezing Chinese assets?
The old trick is repeated! Biden attempts to arrest Huawei executives with criminal charges!
The US foreign policy from 1948 to 1991 was centred around INTERNATIONAL LAW
Diplomats, Army, Businessmen, Politicians worked as per INTERNATIONAL LAW and relied on their entire foreign policy from a derived paper from 1955 called ‘Peace during the Cold War’, penned right after the Korean War
It taught a formula for maintaining peace and coexistence of different nations with different ideologies
The core objectives of this ideology was :-
Strive for Peace always
No War Or conflict with Nuclear Nations
Preserving Human Spirits & Freedom
Ensuring Capitalism and Free Trade flow between allies
Economic Cooperation
Preserve and not endanger the Security of the United States and it’s allies
Diplomats like McNamara, Kissinger, Baker etc were steeped in this doctrine and founded this doctrine
Kennedy, Nixon, Bush Sr and Reagan followed this core ideology
It was a healthy doctrine
Barring a 7 year aberration with the Vietnam War (1968–1975).
Thus James Baker easily promised not to expand eastwards
He wanted a peaceful handshake with the Russians
Post 1991, a new paper was published which reflected a NEW IDEOLOGY infecting the Americans
A POST COLD WAR ORDER
That was it’s early name
INTERNATIONAL LAW quickly changed into what we know today as the INTERNATIONAL RULES BASED ORDER
The core of objectives of this ideology were :-
The US has to lead the world into a permanent peace after the Cold War
The US must stop the rise of any nation that could lead the world into another cold war
The US must bring peace to Europe, the Middle East and Asia even at the cost of strategies that could heavily curtail freedom of thought and independence in those nations
The US must always maintain a lead in arms and troops and military power for the betterment of the whole world
Russia for its own people’s sake needed to be broken down further and controlled by the Rules based order to prevent it slipping back into anarchy and chaos
The Middle East and Europe had to be controlled by the USA for their own security and security of energy in the world
This slowly became the leading ideology in USA with all diplomats born in 1966 or later (who are 57 years old or younger today) being steeped in this ideology and thought
This was also called
WDC as coined by Madeleine Albright – WEAKEN, DEMOCRATIZE, CONTROL
Many Politicians, then in their 40s and early 50s endorsed this philosophy openly including Mitch McConnell, Joe Biden, Hilary Clinton, Bill Clinton, Al Gore etc
The US Ideology back then never considered Africa or China as serious
This was the birth of the NEOCON ideology
Bush Sr, Rice, Albright, Kagan, Nuland, Blinken, Jake Sullivan, Ned Price, John Kirby, John Kerry, Mitt Romney, Joe Biden have all been steeped with this Neocon Ideology or International Rules Based Order Ideology
A Core part of this ideology is to bring peace to Europe by controlling Europe & to break down and weaken Russia
To do this NATO had to keep expanding
A Dramatic turnaround from the Old Ideology of INTERNATIONAL LAW
Today this is the leading ideology but since this ideology doesn’t mention China or Africa or India or how to handle a tougher Putin, the Americans are clueless on how to continue
Unless a new ideology for peaceful coexistence again develops , endorsed by 40–45 year old politicians and diplomats born on or after 1998 or Political Science Students born on or after 2006
The US will slowly sink due to this Neocon policy
Note most of the political ideologues of these thoughts are 65–70 years old at the very least
The Ideology changed, thus NATO kept expanding
That’s the Ideology that drives the US today
Others who are steeped in this Ideology include :- Boris Johnson, Keir Starmer, Kishida and our favorite JUSTIN TRUDEAU
In 2009 I was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a grade 4 brain cancer, after surgery the oncologist came back with the sad news that the statistics look quite ugly, he gave me treatments for 9 months, and 6 months to one year to live.
I was engaged preparing to marry in few months. We broke up, I didn’t see why I would leave a widow behind and break her heart.
I had no desire to pursue anything further in life…
It was a time of complete shutdown.
I wanted to quit my job, however my managers managed to convince me to stay with a relaxed schedule…
They started to teach me statistics again.
An average of 1 year, means some people die in 3 years, while others die in 6 months, and that I should have the positivity to assume I’m on the long term survival side.
By continuing to go to work, I kept myself busy, not thinking too much about my cancer.. I travelled , did some of the stuff I always wanted to do, visited places I always wanted to go.
I started to revisit my friends, hang out with those I really liked, got rid of those who made me feel sad, or felt pity. There are those who just don’t know what to tell you, then it gets awkward…
It is not something you want to talk about with everyone. You want to feel good, and not be down all the time.
I started to be more of a minimalist.. I had no desire in all the nice stuff I had always dreamt of, as My life seemed to come to a stop
However over time.. I started to realize that I’m happier .. I had special concerns for my parents, I started spending more time with my parents. With my family They are the joy of my life.. Too sad I never realized that earlier
8 years later I’m still around, although the cancer hit back several times, and my left side is now paralyzed, I’m still active going to work, participating in charities, trying to keep myself busy and active.
I was 32 when I was diagnosed, now hitting the 40’s I feel more mature, I’m guessing age is an important factor in how we take such news.
After all life goes on, and it is how you take the news that makes all the difference..
Keep busy, don’t let your mind wander too much.. No one knows when you are going to die..
There’s a shock at the beginning, try to pass it, embrace the news and you will feel the tranquility after a while..
My key messages would be:
no one knows when you are going to die, all doctors have are statistics.
Happiness is in the small and little things.. Time with family, reading a good book, listening to nice music, enjoying a movie.. Spending time on the beach, watching a sunset, nature, forest , a bird…
Through charity work I started to appreciate what I have, there are sooo many underprivileged people who would dream of what we take as granted, running water, electricity, food,medicine, family.
Each night I count at least 10 things I’m grateful for in my life.
I also started to keep a journal of the things that make me really happy and doing more of that.
Lavrov: “If the West want war, they can have it. If you insist, let’s decide it on the battlefield.”
God bless Russia and Mr Putin and mr lavrov… The Russians have the balls to tell the truth.. unlike the English and the yanks.
Originally Answered: What exactly is a midlife crisis? And how common are they ?
I can only speak from my experience, but here’s a personal account of my own midlife crisis. I was about 34 and I had a strong and relentless urge to pursue an unrealized goal that had been bothering me for quite a while, in fact, over 10 years.
Long ago, I had wanted to pursue nursing school, and due to circumstances such as an abusive ex-husband who prevented me from studies, I was not able to do so. When I finally escaped that decade-long relationship, it took a while for me to get back on my feet as I had to start from scratch to build my finances, portfolio, and confidence up. Time passes, I remarry and have a child and although things are great with my career and family, the thought of nursing kept nagging me at the back of my mind. I got increasingly upset at myself that I had let so many years pass and wondered when would be the time for me to do what I originally wanted to do.
So in my mid-thirties I made the decision to apply to nursing school, quickly took all the prerequisites and I got in a few months later, even though it was extremely competitive. I had to scale back on my other jobs and my schedule became MUCH more complicated. My social life definitely dwindled to nothing! Most people would ask, why are you going back to school? Don’t you like being a photographer and music teacher? Yes, yes I completely love my jobs. But I also want to be a nurse, and I will forever think “what if” if I do not pursue this.
Nursing school is demanding, and there is so much material to know that is compressed in such a short time frame. A typical day would be: wake up at 530am for hospital shift from 7am–3pm, study/edit until family arrives home, feed/play/bathe toddler and put toddler to bed, study/edit until midnight. Rinse and repeat. There were times I felt overwhelmed and perhaps I bit off more than I could chew. The amount of textbooks and notes I have from my studies, stacked on top of each other towers over me! However, I feel the most alive when I am caring for patients, and when they thank me heartily for the care I’ve given to them, my heart swells and that is the best feeling in the world. Therefore, my midlife crisis was a catalyst for me to take a leap and reach for my goal of becoming a nurse.
I can tell the experience of a friend. who married a woman who was multi-millionaire since birth. Saying that they were rich is an understatement. They only flew first or business class, he got a new Porsche or Mercedes every single year and they always lived in the best areas in Manhattan,
I remember when he and his wife moved to New York they hired an interior designer from Milan to do the decoration. They spent around a million dollars only with the renovation and furniture for the apartment.
They had it all, and not even in my dreams I would imagine that one day they would lose it all.
However, like many other stories, they didn’t lose it overnight, but little by little.
I never imagined they would lose all their money because apart of being filthy rich, they were really lucky.
My friend’s wife grew up being a millionaire. Annual trips to Aspen with her family, then summer in Europe and everything we imagine rich people do. I was lucky to enjoy some of these perks when I was invited to one of their vacation homes.
They had a lot of money but they didn’t work. After all, they never needed to do it. She received a monthly allowance from her family that I believe was around 700K to 1M per year so they would probably not bother to work 9 to 6 to make $100K more.
They lived this life for around 10 years. Then, they had some disagreement with their family and they stopped receiving the allowance. They lived by their savings for around 3 years. During those years they lived a very good life, but not so lavish as before. After 3 years, when they were about to start selling everything so they could have some money, her uncle died. He didn’t have any kids so she received a good sum of money that was sufficient for around 3 more years.
When their bank accounts were about to run dry again her mother passed away and she inherited, along with her brothers, around 4M each.
For most people, it would be sufficient for a lifetime, but they made very bad investments along with some poor decisions and I don’t know how, but they ended up losing everything in around 3 more years.
After losing all their money they started living with the money of a trust her parents left to her, Something around 5K per month. But they are on their 50s, they never worked and have no professional skills and they have to pay rent (as they don’t have a home), pay all their bills and above all, health insurance with that amount.
I saw them around 6 months ago and they were miserable. My friend developed a neurological disease due to the stress he endured in the last years. His wife was making all decisions as he wasn’t able to do it anymore. Unfortunately, he is so sick that he couldn’t work even if he wanted to.
I was really sad it happened to them because they were really nice people, It’s easy to judge them for never bothered to have a job or be wiser with their money, however, she was born in a different universe for most of us. What we see as a lavish lifestyle she sees as a regular day since birth.
I asked them if they needed anything and obviously what they need is their old lifestyle back. They moved to a modest apartment in a different state.
She told me that the biggest issue is that they don’t know how to live like that. She can’t imagine what’s like to do their own grocery shopping, and worst than that, go to Walmart with a shopping list. She said that if she spent a little more on things she like she might not have money for the supermarket next week.
I would not dare to say that this experience was humbling to them because they were always nice people, the difference is that they were nice people with lots of money. The only positive thing I believe this experience brought to them is that they are no longer superficial. They used to see everything like poverty, sorrow, and problems from a different perspective, and I used to see them through a mask that looked like they were using all the time
Now, for the first time, I was able to see who they really are. What are their emotions, their fears, their desires, and their regrets… For the first time in their lives they desire things, they no longer pull their credit card and immediately satisfy their desires and in that sense, they look like real people for me.
Every time I visited them over the years I always invited them for lunch, breakfast or coffee and even though I’m not wealthy I always offered to pay, and 6 months ago, when I saw them for the last time, I invited them to have a coffee at Starbucks and that was the first time in more than 15 years that they said thank you after I offered to pay for our breakfast.
It felt different. They don’t need to thank me for anything because during their life, just by inviting me to stay with them, they offered me much more than anything I’ve ever offered to them, but for the first time in their lives, they are learning to value every small good thing that life gives to them.
Thank you all for the upvotes and feedbacks to this story. In fact, I had two stories about the theme but Quora doesn’t allow to publish two answers for the same question, so, for those who are interested I’ll post the second story here.
In 2007 I was hired by a medium size tech company. The company had around 150 employees and they were growing fast. When I was hired they told me they would be moving to better offices in two months and they really did it. The new office was really impressive. Huge, very modern to the point it made the cover of a magazine.
My boss and her husband were the owners of the company. They were simply amazing. She was sweet, very polite and it was a pleasure to work for them. They were also very rich. In fact, she was so down to earth that it took me two months to realize that she was one of the owners of the company. It happened one day that we had a meeting with a client and she told me if I was OK to be squeezed on the back seat of her car, as another person was coming with us. I Imagined that she had one of those very small cars, but she showed up on a brand new convertible Porsche .
Little by little, we became acquainted. They invited me to have dinner one night and I was impressed by how rich they really were, They lived on a mansion, the land was so big that they had a tennis court, swimming pool and a stable with 5 horses on their land. He also was a motor enthusiast and had 9 cars. They owned a farm and a beach house in another city, even though we lived in one of the most beautiful beach cities in the world.
They made money fast because I was hired in 2007 and the company was founded in 2002 and it looked like they had a good lifestyle for some years.
They were amazing people, very humble, very calm and you would never say they had so much money just by talking to them.
I left the company by the end of 2007 because I received an offer to work in another place. I talked to them before accepting the offer, I explained my reasons and they were really supportive and told me that if I changed my mind the doors would be open.
By the end of 2008, a former colleague contacted me asking for a reference as he was leaving the company. I asked why he was leaving the company and the told me that the company had gone into receivership. Basically, they were impacted by the GFC.
They were so rich that I imagined that although the company had bankrupted they probably had a lot of savings.
I never heard from them again until 2017.
I had a health issue and I needed to see a specialist. When I got to the doctor, I was talking to the receptionist when I saw a sign with her name over her desk. (Let’s say Jennifer Parker – I’ll omit her real name). So I said to her. Hey Jennifer, what a coincidence, I had a boss with exactly the same name.
Then she told me that she was not Jennifer, that Jennifer was the other receptionist, that she worked Monday and Tuesday and Jenniffer Wednesday to Friday. I saw the doctor and two weeks later I came back for my return and when I arrived who I see working as a receptionist there? My former boss.
When she saw me she recognized me and told me that the other receptionist told what happened and when she saw my name she connected the dots.
She told me what happened to the company, basically was a problem with the contracts they made and as they weren’t able to get a new loan from the bank they could no longer keep the company and pay their debts. With that, they lost everything, not only the company but literally everything.
Their kids moved from private to public schools, they had all their cars, properties and assets confiscated and ended moving to a small apartment near the city. Her husband was able to get a new job (at nearly 60 years of age) and she had to go back to work to complement their income.
It was a huge surprise for me because you always expect that these things will happen to bad people, but never to nice people like them. They were honest, decent, hardworking, family oriented, and everybody in the office liked them.
Coincidentally I bumped into them again 3 months later in the mall. What surprised me the most is that they were able to go from a very rich to a very modest lifestyle without changing who they were. We sit together to have lunch in the food court and they were living like that was the life they always had. They were exactly the same people I met 10 years before, they were happy, making jokes with their kids (that were teenagers by then) and even when she told me what happened she didn’t do it with sadness.
I don’t know how they managed everything so well. Going through an experience like that could be very damaging, but it looks like they had a way to cope with everything.
It taught me a lesson that money can’t be trusted, life can be full of unexpected events with many things out of our control.
Starlink, a satellite constellation operated by aerospace company SpaceX, lost 212 satellites in the period spanning July 18th and September 18th, data compiled by satellitemap.space shows.
Data shows the number of burned-up satellites steadily increasing over the past three years, but a significant spike can be observed starting the month of July.
It’s unclear whether these satellites were scheduled to de-orbit or whether the burn-ups were a result of a failure. Cybernewshas reached out to SpaceX for comment but has not received a response.
Some experts questioned the accuracy of numbers posted on the tracker website, saying they appeared to be unusually high. According to satellitemap.space, its data is based on public tracking information published on space-track and elsewhere.
Starlink satellites are designed to burn up in the Earth’s atmosphere at the end of their life cycle, which is approximately five years.
SpaceX started launching Starlink satellites in 2019. Over 5,000 have been sent into Earth’s lower orbit since then. Of those, about 4,500 are believed to be active.
Satellites can also be vulnerable to electromagnetic storms, with strong solar flares recorded this summer as the sun enters a period of heightened activity.
Destructive solar events have affected Starlink before. In February last year, SpaceX said it lost 40 new satellites shortly after launch because of an electromagnetic storm. When accounting for the rocket launch, it potentially cost the company about $100 million in damages.
Steak with Gorgonzola Thyme Crust
img 5811
Yield: 2 servings
Ingredients
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
2 (6 ounce) beef tenderloin or small rib eye steaks, cut 3/4 inch thick
1 large or 2 small cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried
1/2 cup (2 ounces) crumbled Wisconsin Gorgonzola cheese
Instructions
Heat broiler.
Spoon Worcestershire sauce over both sides of steaks; let stand for 5 minutes.
Sprinkle garlic and pepper over steaks. Place steaks on rack of broiler pan.
Broil 3 to 4 inches from heat source for 3 to 4 minutes per side for medium rare steak.
Remove pan from broiler. Sprinkle thyme, then cheese over steaks.
Return to oven and broil for 2 minutes or until cheese is golden brown.
China is Sending Armored Vehicles To Mali Africa ! U.S PANIC
Nations like Mali have been overlooked in international forums, but as China’s prominence rises, Mali has found a key ally. This video explores China’s involvement in Mali’s development and security, delving into the intricate dynamics of China’s relationship with Africa and its potential implications for the global stage.
Back in 1983, I needed an upscale cocktail dress for a cosmetic industry function. I found a delightful $1200 silk dress marked down 50% to $600. It has a tiny rip by the zipper that I could repair but it was still way over my budget. (I was a very junior marketing person at the time, so not earning great.)
I asked the sales clerk if they do better on the price due to the rip and she agreed to take another 50% off bringing it to $300. She retickets it over the original ticket and the 1st sale ticket. Still more than I could truly afford but I decided to buy it anyway.
I go to the cashier to pay and she asked me if it came off the 50% sale rack. When I said it was, she says it is 50% off and rings $150 into the register, instead of the $300, even though it had multiple sales tickets on it. Lucky me, I’m thinking.
But before I can pay, she notices the small rip and says she will deduct an extra $50 which now brings it to $100. I happily paid and left the store ASAP, just in case. Lol
And I received many compliments for my dress at the event.
Walking into a McDonald’s one morning a young couple pretty dirty living rough approached me. The young man probably mid twenties asked if I could buy his girlfriend a egg McMuffin because they only had a handful of change not enough for the sandwich. So I asked them to come to the counter with me and asked them what on the board they would eat. The young man’s eyes went wide. Told me they had not eaten in three days. I said you can have whatever you like. The both asked for the big breakfast and a juice and a milk. I told them maybe they should order the sandwich she wanted as well. they were extremely happy they thanked me. They went and sat outside ate their meals cleaned up and moved on. Maybe they don’t even remember the event in their lives. But I was satisfied that I and spent my money wisely and am still left with a good memory of a McDonald’s breakfast when I was heading to get a seniors coffee.
PLOT: Desperate to gain the affection of a beautiful co-worker, Elliot (Brendan Fraser) strikes a deal with the Devil (Elizabeth Hurley) — a drop dead gorgeous woman with a wicked sense of humor. In exchange for Elliot’s soul, she will grant him 7 wishes. But with each wish, he gets more than he asked for.
In the middle 1970’s I visited my fathers’ second cousin in Youngstown, Ohio. He had two daughters my age. And we stayed with them. Those girls were tall, blonde and nice. I’ll bet that they became amazing when they filled out and became grown women. I’ll tell you what.
They lived in a nice suburb, and it was decked out in mod 1970’s style. Silver and velvet wall paper, lots and lots of shag carpeting. A nice avocado green kitchen with wood trim, and they even had a downstairs cellar pool table. I was stunned. They were so groovy!
Times change. I know. Today, I want to dedicate some photos to the 1970’s era. Those of you that know… KNOW.
A little boy was beating on a little girl at a private school where I was working as a regular substitute teacher. None of the regular teachers were doing anything, so I went over and separated them. I was called into the office and told that touching children at their school was forbidden. I explained the situation, and they said it didn’t matter why, we were not to do it. Their ATTORNEYS had made it clear to them that no adult was to touch a child for any reason in their school building or on their property. Period. I went home and searched news services for anything that might have caused attorneys to insist that little boys be allowed to beat on little girls while teachers looked on. Yeh, there was quite a scandal, I couldn’t believe I’d never heard about it. I went into the office the next day first thing, and explained to the principal why standing by and letting that small child be physically terrorized was just as bad as what the attorneys were trying to prevent. He wouldn’t hear it. I walked out and never went back.
Peppered Beef Puffs
Beef Curry Puffs 16 768×512 1
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
Steak
2 pounds minced steak
3 eggs
1/2 cup packaged dry breadcrumbs
6 shallots
Salt, pepper
(2 ounces butter
1 pound packet puff pastry
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon water
Mushroom Sauce
3 ounces butter
8 ounces button mushrooms
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup dry red wine
1 1/2 cups water
2 beef stock cubes
1/2 teaspoon basil
3 tablespoons tomato paste
Salt, pepper
Instructions
Steak
Put meat, eggs, breadcrumbs, finely chopped shallots, salt and pepper into bowl; mix well.
Divide meat into 6 equal portions. Shape into small loaves, pressing in lightly.
Heat butter in frying pan, cook loaves on all sides until golden brown, remove from pan, cool.
Cut pastry into 6 equal portions, roll out each portion to 9 x 5 inches rectangle.
Put cold meatloaf into center of each pastry strip, brush edges of pastry with egg yolk mixture.
Bake in hot oven for 10 minutes or until golden, reduce heat to moderate, cook further 15 minutes.
Serve sauce separately.
Mushroom Sauce
Heat butter in pan.
Add finely sliced mushrooms, sauté until mushrooms are tender.
Add flour, stir until combined; cook for 1 minute.
Remove pan from heat, add wine, water and crumbled stock cubes.
Return pan to heat, stir until sauce boils and thickens; season with salt and pepper.
The culture of the Han people is the biggest culture in China.
Han Chinese constitute approximately 92% of the population of China and 95% of Taiwan; 76% of Singapore, 23% of Malaysia, and about 17% of the global population – making them the world’s largest ethnic group, numbering over 1.3 billion people.
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Malaysian Chinese children wearing Hanfu, to celebrate Mid-Autumn Festival in Kuala Lumpur; Sept. 24, 2023
Mandarin is the primary language of the Han people, and hence the official language of China, and with such a vast majority of the population identifying themselves as Han, you can find their influence at nearly every corner of China.
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The written history of the Han people dates back to 1,000 B.C., which is one of the longest unbroken written histories in the world aside from Jewish people. The ancestral homelands of the Han, where they live in the highest concentration, are along the middle and lower parts of the Yellow River Basin, the Yangtze River basin, and the Pearl River.
With an agricultural and urban culture, it is not until recent years that you would find the Han people in mountainous or desert regions. Despite being such a large group, the Han people still share a common culture of celebrating traditional cuisine, clothing, and customs, which have been passed down from its ancient history.
All other ethnic groups – 56 officially recognized – in China outside of the Han’s are considered to be minority groups, and the largest minority in China is the Zhuang people, whose population today is around 18 million. They are mostly located in Southern China, the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
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Young girls from the Zhuang ethnic group
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Han Chinese commemorating the 2,574th anniversary at the birthplace of Confucius in Qufu, eastern Shandong Province, China.
Chinese people tend to honour tradition, but they also embrace many parts of Western popular culture. Thanks in part to the enduring influence of Confucianism, Chinese customs include a strong sense of family, a deep respect for hierarchy, a reverence for education and an appreciation for harmony over conflict.
You used to be able to work 40 hours and rent a HOUSE.
When I first started going to college a huge 4 bedroom house that allowed pets was 1250 a month. Now its 1400 for a decent 1 bedroom apartment. A really shitty two bedroom is available for 1400 but no pets.
Just 8 years ago when I first turned 18 and moved out — you paid first and last or first and deposit to move in.
Now you have to pay first, last, full month as deposit, plus extra for the pets. If I had 5000 to move somewhere I’d be buying a house.
Two people working 45 hours plus weekend side gigs dont even make enough to clear the 1600 monthly rent necessary for our barely adequate housing for myself and our daughter. I have a Masters in administration. I didnt pick something shitty, I chose to ignore passions and get a useful degree. Every year that goes by — the decent jobs now only schedule you 31 hours, because at 32 they’re required to pay benefits. Now, if you’ve been there 5 years but you’re sick for a week, they still fire you. Because now companies dont care. They don’t know your name. They have 15 people lined up for your job.
Rent should be 30% of your income. Now? Its 85%. We pay for our food with our side gig money. We need a car for work but we share one. We have never had credit cards, because we could never even fathom spending money we dont have? So our credit, while not horrible, isnt good. We dont have enough credit nor enough savings to even consider buying a house, which are all absolutely overwhelmingly expensive even out an hour out of town. I got up to working 80+ hours a week before finally I couldn’t anymore and it was costing me raising my daughter. We never took vacations, only my daughter and dogs have insurance because it was too expensive for us adults. We cooked our own meals, we used our left overs, I meal planned for a month at a time. We had very few special occasions for treats, and I sought out all free and cheap kids fun stuff. Crafts and socializing. But then rent got higher. And higher. And I couldn’t work any more. My partner already worked an 8-6 5 days a week. I worked two jobs, 31 hours at my degreed office job. Another 45 at any restaurant that needed help.
There is NO reason two people working for above minimum wage 40+ hours a week shouldn’t be capable of buying a home. Renting shouldn’t cost all of our money. We should be allowed to have pets.
Like what the fuck.
It didnt become “suddenly acceptable “ it became UNFORTUNATELY NECESSARY.
Bedazzled Elliot has a TINY problem
Scene from the movie Bedazzled where a huge basketball star discovers he has a small penis.
Back in the late ’60s, my father, a self-employed plumber, was working in a house in a Brooklyn neighborhood that wasn’t a very good one.
My dad had no problems working in the poorer neighborhoods. He was especially compassionate about larger families in smaller homes with one bathroom.
One day, while working in a house, he found he needed some tools from his car. Some guy came up from behind him and held a knife to his neck.
“Gimme the money,” he told dad.
He rummaged through dad’s pockets.
“That’s not the money,” dad said calmly, “those are parts for my plumbing clients. My money is in my other pocket.”
As dad went to get his money, the lady of the house came running out.
“Please, mister, don’t hurt the plumber! He has to fix our toilet!” she pleaded.
“You a plumber?” The mugger asked.
”Yes,” my father answered.
“My toilet’s been broken in my apartment for weeks,” the mugger added. “The landlord won’t fix it. My kids all gotta use the neighbor’s.”
My dad said quietly, “Let me finish here and I’ll come to your house and see if I can fix yours.”
The mugger removed the knife and stepped back.
“You’d do that—for me?”
“For you and your family,” my dad said.
Dad wrote down the address and promised he’d be there soon. The mugger walked away.
The lady of the house wanted to call the police. Dad said no, not to worry. He fixed their single toilet, and, sure enough, drove to the mugger’s apartment. Dad saw a bunch of children and no working toilet. Dad fixed the problem.
The mugger shook dad’s hand and started to cry. He hugged dad and apologized over and over for trying to rob him. My dad hugged him back.
He told the mugger, “Son, if you want to really help your family, don’t keep robbing people. If you go to jail, who will help them? Try to get a job. I know it’s hard.”
My dad came home that night and told us this story over dinner. My brother and I thought our dad was losing his mind. I started to cry thinking my father was in danger.
“He could have hurt you, Daddy!”
My dad pulled me to his side. “No baby, that man wasn’t looking to hurt people. He just wanted money for his family.”
“How can you tell?” I asked.
“When he put the knife to my neck, the blade wasn’t sharp. It didn’t leave a cut. He couldn’t have cut butter with it. He was looking for help.”
My father was just like that. He was the sort who would pick up hitch hikers and swear he was going their way—even if it was really out of his way. I saw him stop a few times in the pouring rain to help people—someone changing a tire or needed a jump start for their battery. One man wanted to give dad money for helping, and dad, always with a smile, would say no.
BEIJING: The infrastructure bill touted by the Biden administration is not as wonderful as the Democrat Party claims it to be.
The US$1 trillion bill will lead the US federal government into deeper sovereign debt while creating new infrastructure projects that will take decades to complete if approved.
The government boondoggle will not free up funding immediately for the construction of new highways, bridges and railroad lines, since that requires contractors winning approvals from local, state and federal governments while they must obtain
hundreds of inspectors’ permits and support from local community activists.
Building a bridge in the United States is not a simple process even if Washington provides ample funding for it.
I had witnessed the complexities of government-back infrastructure when I lived in Dallas from 2007 to 2010 and I was assigned to cover the Dallas County Commissioners’ Court public hearing every Tuesday morning for the Dallas Blog.
You would often hear amazing ideas to construct major projects in Dallas County but then they got political. Even extending the highway a few extra miles required much public debates, while the landowners directly impacted sought big payouts from government agencies.
But that was just the beginning. Contractors made bids to compete for the project and if they lost out they hired protestors to attend the Dallas County Commissioners’ Court to give speeches claiming the new project would become an environmental hazard or harm local communities.
If Dallas County Commissioners voted in favor of the highway extension, they required an environmental impact report that took years to complete.
Most construction projects from the moment they are approved to the time contractors start building took seven to nine years.
I recall one time after two decades of waiting for approvals; contractors for a toll road extension in North Dallas were blocked from construction when an elected official at the Dallas County Commissioners’ Court announced he would block it since the leading construction firm failed to meet racial hiring quotas on the management side.
But upon closer review, I learned from County officials that the elected official allegedly was upset the contractor never gave him a donation for his re-election campaign.
I mention this tale to explain why the US will continue to struggle in playing catch up with China in regards to infrastructure. Beijing is way ahead and Washington will not be able to start construction on new projects for another few years at the earliest.
You can review the Politico article with the link HERE.
As reported by Politico:
“But a review of proposed spending in Beijing’s latest annual budget and five-year plan indicate that the U.S. faces an enormous challenge merely in keeping up. Here’s a number that is illustrative of the gap:
China poured more cement from 2011-2013 than the U.S. did in the entire 20th century.
Numbers from the National Bureau of Statistics show that China spent about $8 trillion on infrastructure investment in 2020.
The U.S. spent $146 billion in federal money over the same period.
A comparison of 2018 infrastructure spending as a percentage of GDP by 48 Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development countries ranked China first at 5.57 percent compared to 0.52 percent for the U.S.”
In recent years, China has constructed some of the world’s finest infrastructure projects. They had built very long sea bridges, road tunnels and highways reaching to many parts of the country.
The building in China will keep going and the US will fall further and further behind.
It is impossible for Biden to have made such a statement
Impossible!!!
That’s because the US officially follows the ONE CHINA POLICY
This means China can never invade Taiwan because they are the same country
It’s like India invading Punjab tomorrow
So all US can do is to provide weapons to Taiwan and claim to help them defend themselves citing human rights and aggression
It will be like a Civil War & extension of the 1931–1949 Chinese Civil War
US in fact not fight against China at all
They will give an excuse of Chinese aggression and get ASEAN to turn against Taiwan and get the entire South China Sea nations to join a Military Alliance with the United States by SACRIFICING TAIWAN
That is the game plan of the US termed Operation Majullah coined by Pompeo in 2018
To provoke China into an invasion of Taiwan by 2023 (Assuming Trump won the election in 2020, so now 2025–2027)
To convince a terrified Philippines & Vietnam into joining US in a Military alliance and allowing NATO to expand to South East Asia
Persuading ASEAN to join NATO and finish the encircled shield against China and recommence a trade war with full cooperation of the ASEAN to hopefully break the CPC and it’s hold on China
Of course Trumps defeat has set back Operation Majullah badly because this operation assumed Russia would be close to the US under Trump (Assuming he won 2020)
Yet now Russia is firmly with China so that opens up a long trade route
Plus the world had COVID so US is economically much weaker
Plus the Ukraine war has draines the West of it’s influence and strengthened China and Russia and the BRICS
So it’s a different world now and Operation Majullah would be redundant now
“THIS IS IT! Most people have No idea what is Happening in Maui, Oprah & the Rock
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and Oprah Winfrey face backlash for asking fans to donate to Maui fund instead of contributing more themselves The family of a woman who died trying to flee a wildfire on Maui is suing the county, the state and one of Hawaii’s largest landowners, alleging they neglected to maintain their fire-prone property.
In the early 80’s I was Operations Officer (in charge of all non-lending, non-trust functions) of the headquarters branch of a large, state-wide bank. 80 odd branch employees on the first three floors, senior management of the region and holding company on floors 7–11.
This bank had grown and evolved from a family owned institution, and a solid chunk of the shares were still held by family members, and a number of the Directors and senior managers were related. A former President and Chairman had recently died, and his son, a Senior Vice President in charge of Commercial Lending, was his estate’s Personal Representative, but had not yet filed and received Letters of Administration. In addition, the owner keys could not be located, so it would need to be drilled.
Under our state’s laws, a safe deposit box can be opened, an inventory of contents made, and certain time-sensitive items can be removed, such as a will or life insurance policy. As a large office with a disproportionate ratio of older customers, this was something we saw with some frequency. It required the bank’s Safe Deposit Custodian (a non-officer employee), an officer, and a locksmith. Unlike normal box access, the bank representatives had to be present, go to a private room in the Safe Deposit area with the estate representative, make the inventory and insure only authorized items were removed, and then re-secure the box contents pending further legal proceedings.
Not this time. Me, the Custodian, the Senior Vice President son, the Corporate General Counsel, and a stenographer from the holding company cluster around the locksmith, who had the door open in about 30 seconds. We took the rather large size box upstairs to a Corporate conference room and opened it.
It contained this somewhat crusty old gentleman’s most precious and important documents – 40 years or so of birthday cards, Christmas cards, letters and notes to and from his wife, children and grandchildren, school papers and projects, refrigerator drawings, and family pictures. Not a single will, stock certificate, or business paper.
China can destroy any fleet anywhere in the world. Not only an American one. Not only near and around China, but anywhere.
The idea that China has the ability, technology, capability and wherewithal to destroy a complete fleet of military grade vessels is well known, well established and incorporated in contemporaneous Pentagon planning scenarios.
…
Just because China CAN, does not mean that it WILL.
After all, the United States can eliminate hunger, and homelessness overnight simply by funneling a fraction of the USA budget dedicated to Ukraine towards the needs of American citizens. But, of course that’s NEVER going to happen.
…
Questions like these used to raise my ire; get me infuriated by the ignorance of those questioning the obvious, and a general fury at that the troll and ‘bot attacks that invariably follow. But now, given the utter hopelessness of the Untied States on the global stage, I just shrug my shoulders and feel pity.
It’s like this question:
Can the United States drop a nuclear weapon on Beijing?
Well. Yes it can.
But it won’t.
…
Or this question:
Can the United States assassinate Alexander Putin?
Well, it can.
But it won’t.
…
Or this question:
Can I force my spouse to eat dog shit?
Well, you can.
But you won’t.
…
In all the cases above, a hypothetical fantasy is generated. But the scenario will never occur where the test of validity were to be realized.
Why?
Because other factors come into play.
…
So, let’s go back to the question at hand.
Can China wipe out any American fleet that sails near China?
Well, it is obvious. Of course it can.
Will it do so.
No. Other factors come into play.
…
I know that there are ‘bots, teenagers, drunken misfits, and trolls that want to argue this point, but China is not stupid. It will maximize the damage through retaliatory measures it deems suitable, given the situation and scenarios that manifested.
My PERSONAL opinion is that if China sinks one fleet, it will sink them all.
The reason is simple; economies of scale.
…
And that’s not all, folks.
Not by a long shot.
Sorry to say.
…
So, let’s just keep our personal fantasies, and delusions to ourselves. Just because you own a shotgun, doesn’t mean that you intend to go Postal, perform a “suicide by cop” or have a Columbine mass shooting with it. Seriously. Those are just fantasies. Nothing more.
China is currently working with the United States on a wide range of issues, and as the provocations by the neocon arm of the American government subsides, so with the over all prosperity of the (remaining) American middle class increase.
Here’s “School-Smart” vs “Street-Smart” in a LEGO analogy:
School is like getting a very complex LEGO set:
image 56
The goal: “We expect you to put this Lego together,. We will show you how to do it! Follow the instructions and you will succeed!”
So, we go from first grade through to sixth grade.
image 55
In each grade, we get a set of instructions to follow:
For example, this is first grade:
image 54
Attention!
If we fail to meet the required standards, we WON’T be able to move forward. If we DO meet the standards, we will be allowed to move to the next level — each level stacks upon the other, growing in complexity.
If we complete elementary, we move on to middle school, and then to high school:
image 53
Once we successfully finish high school, we move on to college. We continue “stacking” up ALL the sets of instructions, meeting the standards.
If we don’t do it EXACTLY as expected, we will fail!
image 52
Finally, the day comes …
image 51
We celebrate …
image 50
CONGRATULATIONS! We all get a “certificate” that proves we are capable of following very complex instructions.
image 49
Then, we face the real world …
The real world is also like Lego, but with NO INSTRUCTIONS!
image 48
We feel confused and overwhelmed. “What should I do?” we ask ourselves.
We urgently need someone to tell us what to do (boss). After all, we were all trained to FOLLOW instructions, indoctrinated, not really educated.
What’s the difference?
Indoctrination teaches us WHAT to think, not HOW to think!
So, to answer your question, why are so many smart and diligent people successful in school but fail in real life?
Being “school-smart” is radically different than being “street-smart.”
Do you want to be “street-smart?”
Consider this: We are now in an age where computers, algorithms and robots, are unbeatable at FOLLOWING instructions. If our value to the world is being good at following instructions, we then do NOT stand a chance at succeeding in today’s new economic environment.
Who will win?
“Street-Smart” in the new economy means we have extraordinary creative skills, meaning that we can innovate and think “outside the box.”
Creativity CANNOT be automated!
Computers, robots and algorithms CANNOT compete with us in creativity. Well, at least not yet …
Schools MUST stop “standardizing” us. We are all different and that’s where success comes from, from our unique abilities and strengths that make us stand out in this competitive world.
image 47
We now live in a very different world. Our educational system was built and perfected to serve the Industrial Age. The Industrial Age was all about competing with efficiencies. Following instructions with excellence increased productivity. Today that work belongs to machines, not to us.
Today the world belongs to CREATORS!
image 46
There are NO instructions ahead of us! The way we solved things yesterday is now outdated. Change is only accelerating.
The sooner we understand this, the better chance we all have at succeeding in this world of exponential change.
THE REAL REASONS WE LEFT THE UNITED STATES (and why we can’t move back)
We left the United States for several reasons, but only one prevents us from ever moving back. Are we upset about it? NO! Our only regret is not leaving SOONER!
Absolutely not the best to live in, I would say it’s the worst developed country to live in.
Life for most people is about work, just running a hamster wheel hoping not to slip or you will be climbing out a hole. I remember life being a rat race just staying afloat and never catching a break. I imagine wealthy people don’t experience this but when 80% of the country are living paycheck to paycheck, obviously that’s not a good sign.
Food prices are triple sometimes four times more expensive than what I have paid in Western Europe for the same goods. Yet our minimum wage is significantly lower, so when 1 hours minimum wage barely covers a couple items of groceries, imagine how those families are feeling the sting for housing, water, utilities. Many 1 bedroom apartments cost more than an entire 1 month minimum wage.
You will prioritize work over family, because there is little choice in the matter.
So little choice because a social safety net is not available to help you, I’ve exhausted this option to death on hard times and it just wasn’t there. All I got was a lot of wasted time and disappointment.
Healthcare, higher education, child care is exhorbitant, they will drain your disposable income, along with the high costs of basic things that Americans believe they are getting a great deal for, for example in UK you get higher speed internet for a fraction of the price an American pays, I have cable with lots of channels, WiFi, and landline for £40 a month, my mom has the same with less channels for over $169 a month (that was 2014 prices).
The worst part of living in the US is the limited choices for people at the bottom, social mobility is low. There is this illusion you can make your life anything you want, this is available to the well connected and rich but it’s sold off as something all Americans can achieve through hard work and it’s not obtainable.
Another issue is just existing in the US is a price. If I don’t want to be homeless and totally ostracized by society, I have to pay a price…just the act of existing means I must pay for health care at the very least. If you happen to fall on difficult times, the fines, fees, interest, just pile up and it consumes you. I compare it to someone piling rocks on your chest and sternum to your lungs collapse. The thought of trying to maintain a bare minimum life style while problems are karate chopping you from all angles is exhausting.
In the 2.5 years I lived in the UK, at my very worst I have never felt this level of despair and hopelessness. If I allow myself to slightly remember my past in the US, the whole thought conjures up loads of anxiety, and resentment.
The USA is NOT Letting Citizens Renounce
What you didn’t mention and should have mentioned is that the US is one of only 4 countries in the world who taxes their citizens no matter where they live or where they make their income. So the obvious reason the US is rejecting renunciation of US citizenship is to keep wealthy international businessman from escaping this always/everywhere tax system.
My father and I were just chatting and he offhandedly said he wasn’t an educated man. I said “Not formally but you’ve had a great practical education.” He said “What do you mean?” Dad had left school after the 8th grade but had worked for a company that provided the equipment to move water, pumps and pipelines and such for many years. I asked “If you have a pipe 18” in diameter under a pressure of 15 pounds per square inch, how many gallons of water a minute are you moving?” He looked at me a moment, stared off into space for another moment and then gave me a number. I smiled and said “See? I’d have to dig out my textbooks and calculator to get an answer and you just did that in your head! Serious practical education!” I think he was pleased at my expression of respect.
G7 is in denial. According to them BRICS is a “gang that can’t shoot straight” due to the fact that “all members have their own individual interests”.
They even fail to realize what this sort of criticism says about their “rules based order” where everybody is supposed to jump or run on command, regardless of own interests, and they have a nerve to call it freedom and democracy.
Giant lights flame: and check out Taiwan team’s arrival
When my wife was diagnosed with terminal ovarian cancer, I found out the worth of money.
It allowed me to buy time with my wife. She was given an 18 month prognosis by her Gynocological Oncologist. (Don’t be ashamed if you didn’t know that was a medical specialty, I didn’t either in April of 2016 when we met Dr. Steven Andrews. Now, his name goes to any woman who might need it.) She and I resolved to fight her cancer for two reasons:
To have as much quality time as possible.
For whatever her fight could teach her team for the NEXT woman.
We knew there were limits to what insurance would pay. I accepted them, she wasn’t so sanguine. There were a couple of times she begged me not to go on because of what we were spending. I firmly said NO.
In the end, due to the medical miracles Dr. Andrews and his team pulled out of their collective asses on a regular basis, Andrea’s 18 months became over 4 years. I held her hand when she took her last breath, kissed her cooling forehead, and called the home Hospice nurse to pronounce her death officially.
The cost? 85% of our retirement savings. I will be living most of the rest of my life on Social Security. The worth? As the MasterCard commercials say: PRICELESS. She and I made memories together in many different ways, many of them during the time we weren’t supposed to get. Yes, hers are gone, but mine remain, and that is worth everything to me. I knowingly spent the money to keep her beside me as long as she was willing to fight.
And Dr. Andrews may be a step closer to saving another lady later. I know he’ll give many more extra time with their loved ones.
I bought time, and it was worth incalculablely more than the money I spent.
I’m sure you are aware, but I don’t live in Malaysia. I’ve only had the privilege of visiting thus far. While in Kuala Lumpur, which I assume qualifies as a large city, I was very taken with the architecture. In my opinion, it was like a mosaic of old and new. Colonial and modern. Malay, Chinese, and Indian. Some bright and colorful like the Chinese temples, others somber and stately like the buildings from colonial days, others bright and shiny like the Merdeka building and the Petronas towers.
I can’t deny that some streets could do with some cleaning and anti-littering campaigns. But I also don’t expect perfection from a developing country and I certainly shouldn’t complain when I am a guest in the country and treated with such kindness from hotel staff and Grab drivers, to dear friends I cherish. Without fail I was made to feel welcome. Who am I to judge?
If you are bothered by messy streets then I have a few suggestions. First, you could organize meetings to mobilize people in the area to have a community beautification day where any able bodies who are willing could pick up trash, sweep the streets, and make minor repairs to building fronts. Secondly, you could print and pass out pamphlets highlighting the importance of a clean community environment for the sake of disease prevention. Third, petition the government for funds to revitalize and gentrify the area and to pay more people for trash collection. In my state the cities employ people for the purpose of landscaping and garbage disposal. I’m not sure how that works in Malaysia though.
If none of that helps then move. Seriously. If you are unhappy and uncomfortable there’s no reason to stay. And the people around you likely don’t appreciate the complaints without action.
Well, that means the virtual party cost about $66,667 per attendee.
Does this inspire you with confidence about how skilfully the EU will manage its budget around the Global Gateway? Do you even feel sure that the EU will actually build any infrastructure in the real world – as opposed to imaginary party venues in the Metaverse?
At the moment, it is meaningless to speak of the EU Global Gateway competing with China’s BRI. They are just not doing the same sorts of things. China is building mega-sized ports, bridges, highways and railways. The EU is holding online parties for six pax.
I didn’t actually witness it, but, saw the aftermath. My youngest daughter was a bit reserved and quiet. She had a lot of friends, though and they nicknamed her “Chipper”.
One day I got a call from the Dean of Girls at her junior high school asking if I could come in. When I got there the first thing I saw was two hall lockers (the tall upright ones) with the doors caved in.
The Dean told me that some of the boys had been getting grabby.
“Chipper” was talking with some friends in the hall when a passing boy grabbed her breast. She never said a word, she grabbed him by the throat and proceeded to try to throw him through a locker twice.
The Dean said, when she got there, the boy was crumpled on the floor with my daughter standing over him daring him to get up.
I said: “I’m proud of her. But, I’m willing to pay for the damages.”
The Dean smiled and told me the boy’s parents were on the way and they were going to pay for the damages.
When I picked my daughter up to ride home. I said: “You made a bit of a mess”. She said: “He had it coming.”
I said: “You’re right. How about we stop for ice cream?”
As a Christian man, back in my Asian church, I never struggled with lust for women because I’m not really attracted to Asian women but at my new church with a lot of different ethnicities, I’m really struggling with lust for women. What should I do?
Become a Muslim and marry four of them and have children with each of them.
When China had no navy or air force, the U.S. Army and Marine Corps would dare to cross Yalu River in North Korea. After China has an air force, the United States only dares to sit across the 17 degrees north latitude. After China’s naval and air rocket forces are formed, we don’t have any more problems dealing with the U.S. Army and Marine Corps. The Marine Corps is currently developing a hypersonic missile to increase its presence in Japan and South Korea. The question is, aren’t fixedly deployed missile bases vulnerable to missile bombings? When the island and the mainland China fire missiles at each other, which one suffers more? As a result, the Air Force basically has no chance in the Western Pacific. Warships can still run away, but aircraft are really useless. Guam was immediately taken care of by first wave of Dongfeng 26.
local wars require detailed analysis. If it is a protracted all-out war, the United States will be exhausted. No matter how profitable the financial industry is, a real fight still depends on how many tons of steel are produced.The Chinese and American militaries are the only militaries in the world that have completed information transformation and have begun to move towards intelligent and unmanned armies. The problem with the U.S. military is that it wants to integrate the entire U.S. military into a digital command system. As a result, various practical factors and historical problems have made it bloated and complicated. The Chinese military is relatively late due to its military reform, confidentiality system and informatization changes. The outside world has always been blind to the internal situation of the military and has only a partial understanding. Although more and more new equipment and new technologies are being exposed, the People’s Liberation Army itself is becoming more and more mysterious.
Taking the 1998 flood fight and the 1998 earthquake fight as examples, we can intuitively understand the PLA’s combat readiness and mobilization status and shortcomings. With the improvement of the country’s comprehensive strength, the military no longer needs to be on the front line all the time. After all, the COVID-19 epidemic is just a glimpse, and it is more of a big test for politics and society. China is the only industrialized country in the world with all industrial categories, and it continues to invest in upgrading industrial capabilities. The marginal costs brought about by large-scale production are reduced, and a large number of engineering talents continue to promote technological progress and efficiency innovation while solving one problem after another. We can regard the COVID-19 epidemic as a global biological and chemical war waged by USA. China has not only demonstrated unparalleled industrial advantages and political mobilization advantages, but also exposed some problems. As the “lighthouse of the world”, the United States wanted to show off, but its butt was exposed. The war has extended from a battle of blood and fire to a comprehensive contest of technology, political system, population quality, industrial system, culture and public opinion. The boundaries between the military and civilians are gradually blurring. War is no longer the exclusive preserve of military personnel. Everyone is colliding in the whirlpool of the emergency times. We firmly believe that in the end, it is people who determine the victory of a war .
(1) Army confrontation in local wars
Assuming that armies of US and China engage in one on one decisive battle. When we read the report of US patriot performance is really rubbish. On our hand we have these weapon.
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PHL-191, a long-range guided rocket, can be equipped with 370mm guided rockets and 760mm tactical missiles.
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The Huolong 280A tactical missile has a double-cone warhead, commonly known as a water-floating bomb. The existing air defense system cannot effectively intercept it. You think rockets are fired at each other, but they are actually derailed missiles bullying the “patriots”
Strategic Bureau Chief created top ten ranking of weapon each country, US weapon rank first in all category except rocket launcher, no matter how the US try to deceive US, we know truth.
In other words, if it is an army duel alone, it will be on a battlefield of 100-500 kilometers. The U.S. Army can only be bombed unilaterally.
(2) Air Force comparison
In terms of overall combat strength, air power has always been the core of the US offensive. Even as the navy most favored by Congress, the core of offense is still aircraft carrier-based aircraft.After equipping the complete J-20 and J-16 series with WS15, the Chinese Air Force is the only one capable of fighting against the U.S. Air Force. At this stage, the Chinese Air Force is only transforming from homeland defense to peripheral offense. Relying on military bases deployed around the world, the U.S. Air Force can achieve global strikes. The United States dismantled the F22 production line and concentrated on producing the F35. Today, after the J-20 was put into service in batches, it is a stupid move. But there were no problems at the time. The original design intention of the F22 was to hunt the Su-27 on the battlefield in Eastern Europe. However, as an air superiority fighter, the F22 does not have ground bombing capabilities. The mission of the U.S. Air Force is to seize air superiority and then blow up all obstacles in front of it. The Army is responsible for cleaning up the battlefield. Just like the Gulf War. This is will need an in depth analysis after this article, i will write about air battle between J-20 and F-35. I will also write a comprehensive J-20 reception anything related to J-20 after this article.
(3) Navy comparison
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To be honest before 055 destroyed entered service, the chinese navy has no chance of winning a navy combat.
The 055 changed everything, or to be more precise, it was the YJ-21 hypersonic anti-ship ballistic missile carried by the 055.
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With a range of thousands of kilometers, the 055 destroyer is no longer the escort of the aircraft carrier, but the firepower center of the fleet. Instead, carrier-based aircraft only need to focus on driving away enemy fighters and cruise missiles. The 112-unit vertical launch system of the 055 itself was originally designed for air defense and anti-submarine warfare. When the electromagnetic catapult aircraft carrier and the J-35 enter service and become combat effective, the PLA naval fleet will form a dual-core attack queue. At that time, nuclear power was no longer enough. conventional ballistic missile The United States has been researching stealth anti-ship missiles over the years, but the cost of developing them is too high, and the U.S. Navy has never been equipped with them. Ten years ago, there were no surface ships that could threaten the Navy. As a result, they have been making do with subsonic anti-ship missile. To put it bluntly, except for strategic nuclear submarines that launch nuclear warheads. Submarines have always been a hobby of second-rate navies. Only in a silent ambush in a fixed water area is there a chance of winning. Once targeted by a destroyer or anti-submarine aircraft, it can only be passively beaten. Therefore, the role of German submarines in World War II was not to confront the British and American navies head-on, but to intercept merchant ships.
Now the Fujian ship is about to undergo sea trials. If the Ford aircraft carrier has not solved the reliability problem of the electromagnetic ejection and arresting device after the Fujian ship is put into service and has achieved combat effectiveness, it will be really a reverse event, we will have the upperhand.
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Academician Ma Weiming. Academician Ma recently issued a document that our country needs to build a new type of warship, a nuclear-powered all-purpose ship that integrates electromagnetic guns, laser weapons, microwave weapons, all-electric propulsion systems, and comprehensive management systems, and is also equipped with two electromagnetic ejection tracks to launch unmanned ships. Man-machine. Of course, this kind of warship is indispensable for its electronic warfare system.
(4) Mainland coastline versus islands and aircraft carrier battle groups
Put aside the Grand Theater Chess. The most likely local war between China and the United States is in the Western Pacific, that is, around taiwan island. In the ten years from 2010 to 2020, the equipment of China’s navy and air force has made a complete leap forward. And many people who don’t care about current affairs still have their mindset of the last century.
With the Rocket Force’s hypersonic missiles, the Air Force’s fifth-generation electronic warfare aircraft and long-range supersonic anti-ship missiles, the Navy’s aircraft carriers and 055 large-scale drive and the sea-based hypersonic anti-ship ballistic missile Eagle 21, and combat support long-range early warning radar space-based reconnaissance With the launch of satellites, the area within 1,000 kilometers of China’s coastline has become an absolute military restricted area. 1,000 to 4,000 kilometers is China’s advantageous area for firepower projection. The decisive factor is the range of the ballistic missile.
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Dongfeng 17 not only glides in the atmosphere to avoid all existing anti-missile systems, but more importantly, it is low cost.
Dongfeng 17 uses the propeller of Dongfeng 16 to glide through the atmosphere to reach a range close to that of Dongfeng 21 , so the manufacturing cost is low. In recent years, China has made breakthroughs in the integrated molding technology of solid rocket motor fuel, which no longer requires manual carving and decoration of gunpowder pillars. Production costs have been significantly reduced, and the result is that ballistic missiles have become the price of cabbage, and Dongfeng 17 has begun to serve in large quantities. Unfortunately, Dongfeng 31 and Dongfeng 41 are too big, so they can only rely on manual modification of the gunpowder pillars.If the production cost of intercontinental ballistic missiles is reduced much in the future and waverider warheads and scramjet engines can be used, the picture will be so beautiful.When the Dongfeng missiles of the Rocket Force and the YJ-21 of the Navy and Air Force can effectively destroy the aircraft carrier fleet, the only one problem left is positioning.The simplest way to locate an aircraft carrier is to send a ship to follow it. During the Cold War, the Soviet Union’s strategy to deal with the U.S. aircraft carrier fleet was to use destroyer tracking and anti-ship missile saturation attacks.
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Of course, during wartime, the aircraft carrier fleet spreads out and starts attacking hundreds of kilometers away, so tracking is only a last resort.Therefore, there are shore-based long-range early warning radars , space-based reconnaissance satellite patrols, underwater submarine patrols with unmanned underwater vehicles, large-scale early warning aircraft in the air, stealth unmanned reconnaissance aircraft, and even electromagnetic signal reconnaissance. Ballistic missiles themselves can also serve as reconnaissance vehicles. In short, use all means to locate the enemy’s coordinates. Similarly, the farther away from the coastline, the fewer means of reconnaissance, and the more difficult it is for the aircraft carrier to accurately locate it. It’s just that the aircraft carrier loses its threat to land when it is far away from the coastline. And China’s aircraft carrier fleet has broken away from the barriers of the land air force and rocket force, and the danger has also greatly increased.Aircraft carriers at sea can still operate, but air force bases, naval ports and missile launch sites on land can only be named one by one as long as they are within the missile range.
(5) Hypersonic ballistic missiles
In the 1990s, China is fully engaged in research on ballistic missiles under tremendous pressure of the superiority of US airforce and US navy. At last, the double-cone Dongfeng 21D with air rudder was built, making it a reality for ballistic missiles to maneuver against surface ships at the end. Then the Dongfeng 26 was further developed to cover Guam. Then the epoch-making Eagle Strike 21 was developed, which allowed surface ships and aircraft to carry ballistic anti-ship missiles, completely changing the rules of war.
There are currently three technical paths for hypersonic ballistic missiles. Biconical warheads, waverider warheads and scramjets. The double-cone warhead can significantly increase the range and terminal maneuverability of the missile when it re-enters the atmosphere. In the 1980s, the United States used biconical warheads in Pershing medium-range ballistic missiles, but they were not water-floating warheads. They were retired after the United States and the Soviet Union signed a treaty limiting intermediate-range ballistic missiles. North Korea and the Houthis have also tested biconical warheads.
Although it is not a hypersonic ballistic missile, it can achieve terminal limited orbit changes, which greatly increases the difficulty of interception by anti-missile systems. Currently, only China and Russia have biconical hypersonic ballistic missiles in active service. Russia currently only has one “Dagger”. On the Russian-Ukrainian battlefield, russia conducted targeted clearing and attacks on the “Patriot” air defense system.
It is obvious that Russia does not have much equipment and can only use it sparingly. The hypersonic ballistic missile that the United States is closest to successfully testing is also a biconical warhead. Yes, the United States has no active hypersonic ballistic missiles. That’s why he is so passive. Asfor the waverider warhead in active service, only China’s Dongfeng 17 is publicly available. According to public information, Dongfeng 17 does not fly out of the atmosphere after launch, but begins to glide laterally at the edge of the atmosphere, with a maximum speed of Mach 10 and an attack speed of Mach 5 at the end. The special thing about Dongfeng 17 is that it avoids the detection and attack range of the current mid-course anti-missile system, and its ultra-high mobility makes the terminal anti-missile system completely unable to intercept.
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What is inconsistent with Qian Xuesen’s trajectory is that the Dongfeng 17 does not fly out of the atmosphere. It also has a vector nozzle that can maneuver laterally. Even if a missile launch is detected during the boost phase, the impact point cannot be predicted and it is even more difficult to track when maneuvering without thrust. As for rocket scramjet engines, China, the United States and Russia are all in the research stage. Traditional rocket engines come with their own fuel and oxidizer. The ramjet engine introduces compressed air into the rocket engine combustion chamber to save fuel. The problem is that the engine first requires rocket combustion to accelerate to supersonic speed and then start the sub-burn or super-burn engine. The best performance range of sub-fuel engines is around Mach 3, and the best performance range of scram engines is around Mach 5. Therefore, the best combination is the engine composite design rocket plus sub-burning and super-burning, three forms. Or accelerate the aircraft to supersonic speed and release the sub-fuel and super-fuel engine. July last year, China’s Northwestern Polytechnical University completed a multi-modal test of a ramjet engine.
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Now you know why USA sanction NPU and hack NPU website.
(6) industrial competition under total war.
If we reach the stage of total war, the logic of war will shift industrial potential into industrial military. United states has completely failed on this.
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The U.S. Congress has been requiring the U.S. Navy to speed up the manufacture of new surface ships and purchase at least three of the latest model “Arleigh Burke” class destroyers every year. However, the U.S. Navy still submitted the purchase of two ships in the budget list for fiscal year 2024. Planning Check.
McCord, the U.S. military’s top budget official, said that’s because U.S. shipyards are barely able to build two destroyers a year, let alone three. In 2022, the United States will actually have only one Burke-class destroyer in service. China has 3 055 destroyers and 4 052D destroyers in service. The reason behind it is actually very simple.
In 2022, the total tonnage of U.S. shipbuilding will be 600,000 tons, including approximately 100,000 tons of new warship tonnage. 2022, China’s total shipbuilding tonnage will be 40 million tons, accounting for 55% of the world’s total tonnage. In 2022, nine large warships with a capacity of 150,000 tons will be commissioned. The world’s total crude steel output in 2022 will be 1.8785 billion tons, of which China’s output will be 1.013 billion tons, accounting for nearly 54%. The United States is the fourth largest steel producer in the world, with a crude steel output of slightly more than 80 million tons, and the EU alone is less than 220 million tons. In 2022, India’s crude steel output will be 125.1 million tons. in 2022, China’s power generation capacity will be 8,534.25 billion kilowatt hours (excluding Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan), a year-on-year increase of 9.7%; the United States’ power generation capacity will be 4,115.54 billion kilowatt hours, a year-on-year decrease of 1.4%.China’s railway mileage will be 155,000 kilometers in 2022, including 42,000 kilometers of high-speed rail. In 1916, the operating mileage of railways in the United States reached its peak, reaching 410,000 kilometers. Now, there are only more than 220,000 kilometers of railway mileage left in the United States. In 2021, the total railway freight volume in China was 4,773.72 million tons, and the total railway freight volume in the United States was 12.026 million tons. It is clear that the total mileage of American railways is longer, but the freight capacity is hundreds of times different. On the one hand, there is a gap in demand for industrial raw materials such as coal, iron ore. On the one hand, American railways are in disrepair, and their transportation efficiency cannot be improved. There were 868 rail freight derailments in the United States in 2021.
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The weakening of basic industrial strength has hindered the progress of military industry. In the field of hypersonic ballistic missiles, which the United States is eager to catch up with, test launches of biconical missiles often fail. It is normal for weapons tests to fail. What is abnormal is the reason for the failure, such as launcher failure or rocket engine starting failure. Just like the Ford aircraft carrier, the electromagnetic ejection failure is understandable, after all, it is a new technology. It makes no sense that the weapon lifts frequently malfunction. After the Russo-Ukrainian War, it is not surprising that the United States turned to South Korea to produce 155mm artillery shells. In a total war, the first wave consumes active weapons, equipment and personnel. The rest depends on the reproduction capacity of weapons and the ability to mobilize personnel. Today, only the aviation industry can retain the face of American industry. The reason why we skipped the air force earlier is that in the Western Pacific, the air force must rely on the flight runways of air force bases on islands. As soon as the war started, the Rocket Force focused on taking care of them. they have room to take off. The only place that can allow the U.S. Air Force to exert its full strength is the United States itself.
F35 Production Line
Although the Boeing 737 max has brought shame to the United States, Boeing factories have repeatedly reported that workers’ quality has deteriorated due to marijuana use. Before the epidemic, Boeing produced more than 800 passenger planes per year. Lockheed Martin’s F35 production is also above 150 aircraft per year.
For comparison, China delivered its first passenger aircraft C919 last year, and plans to have a production capacity of 150 aircraft in five years. The J-20 production capacity is estimated to be 30-50 aircraft. Where are the limitations? Training of production line and industrial workers. Taken together, in local wars, China has an absolute advantage in East Asia. China’s ocean-going offensive capabilities are improving, but the United States still has the advantage on blue ocean war. It is only a matter of time before China’s industrial strength is finally transformed into military strength in a full-scale war.
Therefore, the United States has been fanning the flames around China and constantly provoking, but it does not want to enter the war by itself. It is best to replicate the situation in Ukraine, with South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and Australia resisting harm from the front, and the United States standing behind and selling arms. Once China puts on a desperate posture, the US military will retreat on its own. In a total war, China will win the final victory, but it will only be a miserable victory. The United States has been standing still for 20 years. Even if China’s military technology keeps up, there is still a huge gap in weapons inventory.
The United States wants China to enter the conflict in 2025, stimulate the return of financial capital to the United States, and take over the supply of U.S. debt. China wants to delay it until 2030, or at least until 2027, and is ready to defeat others without a fight.
China is actually the only country in the world today that is preparing for a world war.
The whole industrial category system manufacturing is not to brag, but to always be prepared to fight against the entire world in an isolated and helpless situation. It is no exaggeration to say that even in the event of a full-scale nuclear war, China can rely on strategic reserves to recover quickly. China’s history is too long and its imprint is too deep.
(7) Informatization
As the pioneer of the Internet revolution, the US military is undoubtedly the leader in military informatization. The Gulf War shocked the whole world. Traditional armies were powerless to fight back against armies empowered by information technology . What is informatization?
Basically, soldiers are networked together and commanded in a unified way. US the only army back then who have this ability because at that time china Without an information-based society, there would be no information-based military. Just like there is no industrialized society without an industrialized army. Because of the core position of the military, although advanced systems and advanced technological weapons will be the first to be used in the military, without a responsive social environment, the military will also be dragged down by social realities and become a castle in the air. For example, the Chinese army has established a modern army by learning from the German-Russian military system and through its own exploration.
However, the confrontation with the world’s largest industrial country on the Korean battlefield completely exposed China’s weakness in industrial strength and lack of professional military logistics support. On the ChangJin Lake battlefield, the volunteer soldiers who were short of ammunition, food, and clothing relied on their tactical proficiency and revolutionary will tempered by blood and fire to cut off the retreat of the US Cavalry Division at all costs.
After blowing up the Watergate Bridge three times, the U.S. military air-dropped steel beam components urgently customized in Japan to the battlefield. After engineers urgently installed them with engineering equipment, the main force of the U.S. military retreated smoothly.
Thirty years later, after arduous industrial construction, China has initially established a basic heavy industry system. In 1979, the People’s Liberation Army, which had been lacking training for a long time, faced the Vietnamese army. The quality and command of its individual soldiers were significantly different from those in the early days of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, and they were even inferior to the enemy. But the military-industrial system established showed great progress.
That is, the density of artillery fire exceeds that of the US military at that time. our army is not a volunteer army. In the subsequent two-mountain battle, the major military regions will conduct fire mainly with artillery firing. After the reform and opening up, China transformed from a planned economic system to a market economy, and the society transformed from an agricultural society to a modern industrial society. We thought we catch up.
So when the trend of informatization was revealed in front of the Chinese military, how anxious it was at that time. We experienced hundreds of years of suffering when we were left behind in the industrialization era. Will we continue to fall behind in the information age? Back to the basic concept, what is informatization? The definition given by data scientist Shannon: “Information is something used to eliminate random uncertainty.” Definition of information war: It is a full-scale war carried out under the premise of network digitization and the extensive use of information technology and information weapons and equipment. The specific battlefield performance is-destroy upon discovery.
For example, in a war simulation game, our teammates and enemy units can directly communicate with each other and cooperate with each other in real time on the small map without any barriers. It is extremely difficult to achieve on the actual battlefield. Indian air defense systems shot down their own rescue helicopters, and Iranian air defenses shot down civilian airliners. Identification of friend or foe is still a big problem today. Fortunately, China has caught up with the information age. Although we now criticize Lenovo, NetEase, Alibaba, Tencent, Baidu, etc., at that historical stage, these companies were undoubtedly the promoters of China’s information society. Huawei, BOE, Changxin, SMIC, BYD, DJI, MiHoYo, etc. The only possible Information war happened is when a war between USA and China broke out. Because only China and the United States have complete information industries in the world today. The United States uses Internet social tools to cause destruction around the world, while China builds walls and engages in Internet social governance. Other countries have no choice but to surrender the Internet and let the situation go unchecked. During the war disconnecting the Internet means completely losing the possibility of victory. China has benefited from an unprecedented wave of industrialization in the new century, and computers and mobile phones have begun to spread on a large scale. After 2010, society began to enter the mobile Internet era again. People realize that the so-called informatization is the “Internet of Everything”, the ultimate integration of the Internet and the Internet of Things. The popularization of sensors, mobile terminals and communication technologies has generated massive amounts of data, and big data applications have been born in order to process these data. Big data processing has promoted the progress of artificial intelligence (AI algorithm). In the past, the United States bullied small countries, but it actually did not reflect the power of informatization. The Russia-Ukraine war is also known as the “poor man’s version of information war.” First, the Ukrainian army used the US “Starlink satellite” to access NATO’s reconnaissance system. After the reconnaissance satellite long-range early warning aircraft discovered the Russian target, it sent the message to the frontline commander of the Ukrainian army team. The Ukrainian army team decided on its own to ambush the target. There is also the fact that the Russian military uses mobile phones to access the Ukrainian telecommunications network for communication, which is simply a living target. In the early days of the war, a large part of the casualty rate among Russian officers was related to miscomunication. The reason is not complicated. There is no digital communication equipment between Russian military tanks – this is not a problem due to lack of money but because without any concept of information technology. However, Russia is still good at learning war in war. Immediately carry out targeted electromagnetic interference. “Starlink” communications and electronic reconnaissance are greatly reduced. On the one hand, it reflects Russia’s profound accumulation of electronic technology, and on the other hand, it also illustrates Russia’s lack of war awareness – what has it been doing so long ago. A person who is fond of fighting but not good at preparation will only gain his progress after suffering losses.
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“Murmansk-BN” integrated electronic warfare system. As the main combat equipment of the Russian army’s electronic warfare, this system can perform strong electromagnetic suppression on targets within 20 frequencies within 5,000 kilometers.
Russia and Ukraine use a large number of drones for battlefield reconnaissance and calibration, plus a large number of artillery pieces left by the Soviet Union. The cannon has the same barrel, but its power has been increased by several levels. Because of the massive smuggling of a certain civilian four-copter drone from a large Eastern country, Russia densely arranged a large number of frontline observation points in front. How dense is it? The drones on both sides can collide with each other. The battlefield that was originally filled with the fog of war became transparent. On the one hand, the whole world was watching the war live broadcast. On the one hand, any tank concentration and assault on either side will inevitably lead to a salvo of artillery fire from the by opposite side.
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Last year, the Russian T72 crossed the river and was set on fire by artillery.
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This year, the Leopard 2 tanks and Bradley armored vehicles assisted by NATO were attacked by the Ukrainian army without air defense. They were greeted by Russian mines, artillery, Lancet cruise missiles, and armed helicopters in turn.
The mine-protected vehicles assisted by NATO can only protect against roadside bombs, and can only be penetrated by the Russian army’s large number of mines.
Now the Russian army has even played tricks, using cheap shuttles to attach mines, grenades, and RPG warheads to carry out suicide attacks in VR.
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The thousands of FPV quad-rotor drones purchased by the Russian army cost about 1,000 per unit, and it is cheaper to procure parts and assemble them from Shenzhen Huaqiangbei.
Comparing it to the Russian military’s own Lancet cruise missile, which costs US$100,000, it seems like it costs nothing.
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The tanks and bayonets that military fans imagine, and the T80 vs. Leopard 2, cannot be realized on a battlefield where they are immediately destroyed upon discovery. The reason why Russia and Ukraine are called the poor people’s information war. For a big country, this kind of random flying of four-axis drones should not occur on the battlefield. Whether it’s electromagnetic suppression, laser irradiation, or anti-aircraft artillery. For China, even if its drones collide, it can still drown the opponent with its terrifying production capacity.
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The Land Shield 3000 close-in defense gun is a modification of the 1130 close-in defense gun on a warship to an armored vehicle, with 11 Gatling tubes and 12,000 rounds per minute. Can intercept missiles up to Mach 4.
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Although the US military does not pay attention to the army’s air defense system, you cannot say that it does not exist.
Ground-based electronic warfare systems are as dazzling to the Air Force’s electronic warfare aircraft as search lights in the night sky, waiting for them with an anti-radiation missile. Russia and Ukraine have been fighting fiercely for a year, and the air force has completely become a cheerleader. The Russian air force has the advantage but did not destroy the Ukrainian army’s air base and air defense system in the first time. It probably has no money. It has never gained control of the air, and the Russian Ka-52 only launched the “Vortex” anti-tank missile at the ultimate range of 10 kilometers when fighting the Leopard 2. The Russian military’s annual military expenditure of 80 billion US dollars is probably a lot of propaganda. There is also a question mark on where the US$50 billion in US aid to Ukraine was spent. Is it really written off? No way? Why are their firepower are so low?
One thing that can be mentioned is that the United States is the pioneer of the information-based military. A large number of digital combat systems and joint combat systems have been developed. Basically, each military service has one set, and the theater joint command has another set. Later, in order to solve the problem of too many vertical layers, insufficient horizontal interconnection, and poor ability to identify friend or foe, the US Global Command and Control System (GCCS) was developed.
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Found the problem? Although it looks very cool, the US military has always wanted to develop a system, which is a center to command thousands of troops. Under the system with American characteristics, the sea, air, and ground forces compete for military spending. Unified command is inherently troublesome. On the battlefield in Iraq, there were situations where the presidential envoy, theater headquarters and military commanders were competing for command. Who would listen at this time? The final result may be that everyone listens to no one, and everyone goes their own way. Anyone who has been exposed to the project code knows that no matter how simple a system is at the beginning, it will be iterated over time, functions will be improved and hardware will be updated. In the end, it will pile up into a “hill of shit”. Imagine that when you sit in the position of the President of the United States and issue instructions to the nuclear base, you may need to broadcast signals. To issue orders to the Seventh Fleet Anti-Submarine Group – the Japanese Navy, a fax machine is required, and to issue orders to the Air Force’s F22 and F35 requires separate arrangements. Because the data links of different production years are incompatible, what about upgrading the F22? It couldn’t be done, because after the suspension of production, Lockheed Martin directly dismantled the production line to save costs. Where is the contradiction? The original design of the American command system is for an order to go directly to the soldiers. The soldiers do not need to think, they can just obey the orders. But an army is made up of individuals. Soldiers, officers, military services, theater commanders, the Department of Defense, and the White House all have their own agendas. A $1,000 coffee pot, tens of thousands of dollars of warship toilets, $6 million of Italian goats, and trillions of dollars of bad debts are expectable.
(8) Intelligent and unmanned – the battlefield heading into the future
While information warfare is still being hotly debated, military changes in the new era of intelligence and unmanned warfare have arrived.
The predator swarm drones in the “Wandering Earth 2” are smarter and more maneuverable than in reality.
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Question: In the movie, when the J-20 and Su-57 take off at the same time, why do the drones chase the Su-57?
The two-seat version of the J-20 has begun to be developed, and together with the unmanned wingman, it constitutes the development direction of the new era.
UAV reconnaissance, guiding fire strikes; blasting minefields, EOD robots quickly clear minefields; commandos launch attacks, UAVs cooperate with fixed-point blasting; in addition, robot dogs go out to conduct reconnaissance, and no one Vehicles accompany the support… A combined brigade of the Army’s 80th Group Army conducted an all-element combined battalion real-force confrontation exercise. Multiple types of unmanned equipment were unveiled, and human-vehicle collaborative training was carried out.
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Combined with the recent Ukrainian battlefield, the Ukrainian counterattack was tortured by landmines before it reached the Russian defense line. But for Zelensky, mobilizing troops may not be worth as much as unmanned vehicles. However, new smart landmines will be more widely used in the future, including automatic reconnaissance and friend-or-foe identification, automatic leaping overhead attacks, and one landmine can control hundreds of square meters of battlefield. Anti-smart landmines have become a new topic.
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At the 2022 Zhuhai Air Show, the VT5U foreign trade light tank on display carries an unmanned reconnaissance aircraft and console for unmanned driving, greatly improving battlefield awareness and reducing casualties.
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At the Abu Dhabi International Defense Exhibition, “China Military Industry” exhibited the “Sky Shield” anti-drone system. On the basis of the original laser killing method, it adds killing methods such as high-power electromagnetic suppression and combination of projectiles and artillery, making it closer to actual combat.
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U.S. Marine Corps – Logistics robot dog, material handling robot dog, robot mule, robot cow. It can carry more than 180 kilograms of weapons or other equipment for about 32 kilometers. Like a well-trained military dog, its structural design is highly flexible and can accompany soldiers in harsh terrains, including woods, rocky beaches, etc.
We found that the United States was the first to apply drones on the battlefield. A superstar on the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq.
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RQ-4 Global Hawk, which was put into service in 2000, is active in military hotspots around the world. The cost is US$4000-120 million. It was shot down by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in 2019 and will retire in 2022. Off-topic: Japan spent 61.3 billion yen to purchase three Global Hawks in 2014, with maintenance costs of 263.7 billion in the next 20 years. As a result, production delivery will only begin in 2020.
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The MQ-1 Predator, an integrated surveillance and combat drone, is both famous and infamous. It first flew in 1994 and has participated in all U.S. foreign wars starting from Kosovo. Counter-terrorism and indiscriminate killing of civilians have become its labels.
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MQ-9 “Reaper” drone
What is strange is that among the drones that have been active around the world in recent years, there is a lack of U.S.-made drones. Chinese Wing Loong and Rainbow series drones active in the Middle East and Africa. In the Naka conflict , the Turkish TB-2 equipped by Azerbaijan stole the show. The Iranian “Witness-136” suicide drone purchased by the Russian army that bombed Kiev, Ukraine, also made a splash. As the world’s largest arms trafficker, the United States’ absence is really inappropriate. So, whose fault is this? Answer: The enemy is on Capitol Hill. The U.S. Congress has enacted legislation to ban the export of large drones. When the AVIC Wing Loong drones and China Aerospace’s Rainbow drones were dumped in the Middle East, they were not receptive. In order to satisfy the contradiction between the growing needs of gold customers for foreign military intervention and our country’s love of peace, we simply exported the production lines to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Let me tell you a little story. The tall drones were originally flown by retired pilots. Without it, because the airflow in near-earth space is complex and requires manual control by experienced pilots. Nowadays, highly automated civil aviation aircraft require the full participation of two captains during takeoff and landing, just for the sake of safety. The problem is that airplanes in third world countries are all bought on a case-by-case basis, and the pilots are all spoiled. Where do so many retired pilots come from? The customer is the king. Change it. Added autopilot function, one-click takeoff and landing, automatic cruise, simplified operation process, one handle joystick can solve the drone flight control. Just one standard – to satisfy customers with all fool-proof operations. Later the customer made another request. The flight was too short. And firepower was not enough. Changed is made, increased body size and fuel capacity, and added attachment points.
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Rainbow 6 UAV
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Wing Long 2 UAV
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The Nigerian military used Wing Loong 2 drones to conduct air strikes against terrorists. Drones allow some small countries to do an offensive air force.
Later, the customer made another request. Turkey’s TB-2 is too annoying. It’s not satisfying to bump into each other without shooting. It needs to be shot down. To meet the requirements, air-to-air missiles are installed to specifically counter UAVs. Through constant upgrading and improvement, Pterosaur and Rainbow formed a huge family pedigree. Wing Loong UAVs have begun to be sold back to the domestic civilian market. In 2021, communications were interrupted in some areas of Henan due to floods. Wing Loong drones took off from the Guizhou base and arrived in the disaster area to provide 5 hours of mobile communication services, and sent back radar in real time to scan the damage in the disaster area. While waiting for U.S. arms dealers to obtain export licenses, the world has changed. Wing Loong 2 sells for $5 million. Because Turkey’s TB-2 has weak industrial strength and its technology is not as good as that of Chinese companies, and the price is more expensive. India purchased 31 MQ-93s for US$113 million each. Even the domestically purchased MQ-9 is priced at as high as $30 million. If combined with the industrial production capacity mentioned earlier, it is actually not surprising. The cost is too high and the price is too expensive. As a result, there are less and less equipment, and the purchase price cannot go down. Regarding the performance of modern warfare, I recommend the annual update video produced by the owner of Bili bili station up. It should be noted that the tactical arrangements in the video are demonstrations by military fans based on public data and are not real military tactical details. For example, the J-16D’s decoy deception, and the two-seat J-20’s A-shooting and B-guided missiles with unmanned wingmen. In order to arrange for all of our country’s equipment in active service and under development to leave the country, we deliberately strengthened the enemy’s military quality and armament capabilities, and also thoughtfully supported the opponent’s space-based reconnaissance intelligence of Uncle Sam. For example, in order to intercept low-altitude penetrating cruise missiles, the J-8 was allowed to take up its duties as an interceptor aircraft.
(9) Industrialization The United States, which attracts talents from all over the world, still has a strong innovation capability. However, under the influence of decades of deindustrialization in the financial industry, the United States has lost its production capacity. Industrialization is not just about factory workers and engineers, but also a whole social system that revolves around industry. Including unified market, education and training, financial services, government policies, etc. When the relationship is good, American companies design and sell and capture most of the profits, while Chinese companies are responsible for production and make hard money. But after the United States regarded China as an opponent, the world gradually turned into two parallel production systems. However, if there is no technological generation gap in military equipment, only players that can expand production at low cost will have the last laugh. In a sense, quantity is quality. Defeating more with less and relying on technology to make a comeback can certainly win a lot of glory and leave a name in history. But the real masters rely on operations to accumulate strength, and then rely on size to get through. So what’s important? Scale, scale, scale. Han Xin ordered troops, the more the better. Hiding new technologies will only lead to others taking advantage of them. What is industrialization? Machine production machines and standardized assembly line production and improvement processes. When encountering problems, propose solutions, improve and then provide feedback, and continue to optimize. Achieve technological leaps and improve productivity through continuous iterative improvements. What advantages do industrialization, the entire industry chain, and system engineering capabilities bring? Give a few examples. An example, the balancing car was invented by an American company. But it has always been a toy for the rich. The unit price is 8,000 US dollars, and the annual sales volume has been stable at 30,000. After being acquired by a Chinese company, the price of the new generation product dropped to 14,500 yuan. Later, it cooperated with Xiaomi to develop and sell products priced at 1,999. Nowadays, Taobao sells a variety of balancing scooters ranging from 300 to 3,000.
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Relying on its low-cost advantage, China’s bulletproof vests occupy 70% of the world’s market share. Because body armor is for civilian use in China, you can buy it casually on Taobao. American and Russian soldiers often privately purchase Chinese-made bulletproof inserts to put into their body armor. You’ll know how good something is after you’ve been shot a few times on the battlefield.
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On the Syrian battlefield, heavy mortar shells modified with gas tanks imported from China have an impressive range, their accuracy also impressive. there is no problem in destroying a three-story building with one shot.
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Rockets produced by the Palestinian Hamas organization.
Laiyang Steel Pipe Factory: Although this is a seamless steel pipe, what I export is indeed a water pipe.
After China converted the Varyag into the Liaoning ship, a lot of media asserted that the Chinese aircraft carrier would not be able to form combat effectiveness in a short time. Because only the United States and Russia can build the crown jewel of industry , the arresting cable , aircraft carriers that cannot take off and land carrier-based aircraft are just large flat plates. Then the Liaoning ship realized the take-off and landing of carrier-based aircraft after two months of service. Many years later, people discovered that the arresting cables for China’s aircraft carriers were supplied by Hebei Ju li Rigging Group, a private enterprise. Four months after the military tender, Ju li took out samples and passed the acceptance test.
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After the military opened the tender, Ju Li raised his hand cautiously: That. The parameters seem to be similar to a product I exported to the United States.
More famous is DJI’s quadcopter drone. Before DJI, there were some aerial photography drones in the United States. The cheap ones cost more than 300,000 yuan, and the expensive ones cost several million. Only the film industry dares to use this thing. The French company Parrot launched the consumer-grade AR.Drone quadcopter toy in 2010. It has 720P aerial photography function and is compact, lightweight and highly entertaining.
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In early 2012, DJI launched the Phantom all-in-one computer. It has certain wind resistance, positioning and carrying capabilities. DJI has always emphasized that its products are flying cameras. The price is several thousand yuan.
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in 2015, the American star startup 3D Robotics launched the solo drone to challenge DJI’s status. The solo drone comes with autopilot capabilities and sells for $1,700. However, problems such as unstable flight caused by the GPS system connection affected sales. 100,000 units were produced and only 22,000 units were sold. A few months later DJI launched the Phantom 3, with the professional version priced at US$1,300, and a few months later the price was reduced to US$1,000.
In 2016, 3D Robotics exited hardware production.
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Solo drone
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Phantom 3 DJI
Although DJI has always emphasized that it is a private company. But in the Middle East, pterosaurs and rainbows are used by governments to eliminate terrorists at targeted locations. Terrorists have also learned to use DJI Phantoms strapped with grenades to “air-strike” government troops. On the Ukrainian battlefield, DJI drones have become “Internet celebrities”. Russia and Ukraine both use it.
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Picture above translated as follow
Russian Embassy in China
General Baruyevsky, former Chief of the General Staff of Russia: Ordinary commercial quad-rotor drones made in China are incompatible with traditional drones. The application of artillery and rocket launchers brought about a real revolution in technology, which actually completely solved the old problems in artillery reconnaissance, target designation.
√ When the drone continues to hover over the target area for adjustment, the artillery can use conventional ammunition, with accuracy and efficiency comparable to precision-guided munitions, while the number of ammunition and artillery required to kill is greatly reduced.
√ The Mavic quadcopter drone manufactured by the Chinese company DJI has in principle become a true symbol of modern warfare.
Russia Embassy : 5 stars review from the costumer.
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DJI tweet translation :
All DJI products are designed for civilian purposes, serving people’s production and life, and are committed to benefiting society and making life better. DJI’s products are not suitable and do not meet the needs of military applications. We do not have applications technology in the military field.
DJI: I’m not, I don’t have it, don’t talk nonsense
When the Ukrainian counterattack was overwhelmed by landmines, frontline soldiers discovered new uses for DJI drones.
A few hours after sunset, due to the difference in heat dissipation between metal and soil, there will be an obvious color difference under the camera of the drone carrying an infrared sensor, which can identify large-charge mines on the ground.
I don’t know, will Russia and Ukraine be drooling over when they see this model?
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DJI T50 agricultural drone, 50kg load capacity | coaxial twin rotors | front and rear phased array radars | two sets of binocular vision | high-definition FPV | integrated aerial survey, flight and defense.
DJI, you still said you don’t know military technology?
Well, drones, phased array radars. Something feels wrong. Why are civilian drones equipped with phased array radars? Because it’s cheap.
(10) Sky Eye – Active Phased Array Radar
The Ministry of Commerce and Customs has recently implemented export controls on gallium and germanium rare metals and compounds. Exports after August 1 need to be declared. Gallium and germanium are both core raw materials for semiconductors. Among them, gallium production accounts for more than 90% of the world’s total production.
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Is it because China has abundant reserves or has mastered core technology? neither. Because gallium is a rare metal, there is no abundant mine. It can only be obtained from the companion products of bauxite. The average gallium content in bauxite is 50 parts per million. So the production of gallium requires an entire alumina production line.
The largest downstream demand for alumina is electrolytic aluminum. It is well known that electrolytic aluminum is a large consumer of electricity. Cheap electricity is needed. In 2022, China will produce 40 million tons of aluminum, accounting for 60% of the world’s total production. It is this 40 million tons aluminum industry that produces 400 tons of gallium.
Gallium has an important compound, gallium nitride What we come into contact with most every day is gallium nitride fast charging. It has properties such as wide direct band gap, strong atomic bonds, high thermal conductivity, good chemical stability (almost not corroded by any acid) and strong radiation resistance. The GaN material series has low heat generation rate and high breakdown electric field, and is an important material for the development of high-temperature and high-power electronic devices and high-frequency microwave devices.
Therefore, gallium nitride also has a very wide range of application scenarios in the field of military equipment. The most typical phased array radar. Radar is the clairvoyance and ear of the modern military. In an information-based battlefield where discovery means destruction, the performance of radar directly determines whether the enemy fires first or a sitting duck. We know that radar is a device for transmitting and receiving electromagnetic waves. Early radar can detect the direction, distance and height of obstacles and other information by emitting electromagnetic waves and receiving echoes reflected by obstacles. However, the positioning effect for high-speed moving objects is very poor. Later , pulse Doppler radar was created based on the Doppler effect (the received frequency of waves becomes higher when the wave source moves toward the observer , and the received frequency becomes lower when the wave source moves away from the observer), which can accurately locate moving objects. Later, based on the interference of waves, phased array radar was invented. Phased array radar is a combination of Doppler radars.
The most intuitive way to experience the power of phased arrays is in the science fiction movie “The Wandering Earth 2”, in which nuclear warheads are arranged through phased arrays to concentrate the energy of the nuclear bomb explosion wave at one point.
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The difference between passive phased array radar and active phased array radar is that passive phased array radar has only one central receiver/transmitter. In active phased array radar, each radiation component has an independent transmitter and receiver. One is a cyclops and the other is an insect with compound eyes. Because of the huge gap in performance, passive phased array radar is just a transition before the development of active phased array radar. Because of the independent transceiver characteristics of phased array radar subunits, the beam direction can be quickly changed through phase difference, and the mechanical scanning of traditional radar has been changed to electronic scanning. You can also group any unit independently to perform multi-beam scanning. It has strong anti-jamming and multi-target reconnaissance capabilities. Phased array radar also has disadvantages, that is, high power and high heat generation.
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The phased array radar is a big house from the beginning, and a considerable part of the equipment is used for heat dissipation. Can only be used as missile and aircraft early warning
After the phased array radar is installed on the destroyer, it will become the famous “Aegis” air defense destroyer. In 2007, when China’s KJ-2000 was put into service, it was said to be a generation ahead of the American early warning aircraft because it installed a huge phased array radar on the aircraft. The powerful attack capabilities of the American F22 “Raptor” fighter jet are also related to the pioneering use of active phased array radar. It turns out that the huge radar can be installed in the radome of a fighter jet because of the use of gallium arsenide. Gallium nitride is an important raw material for the next generation of active phased array radar.
At the 2018 Zhuhai Air Show, Chinese military industrial enterprises launched an air-cooled active phased array radar for fighter jets. Later, it was directly installed on the “Fierce Dragon” Block III fighter jet jointly developed by China and Pakistan. As we know earlier, active phased array radars have high power and heat, so fighter jets are usually equipped with a liquid cooling system in their radome. Some simply use onboard fuel to dissipate heat for electronic components. Therefore, generally heavy fighter aircraft have space to install source phased array radars. But the Xiaolong is a light fighter and a cheap version. Is there something wrong? Remember the properties of gallium nitride mentioned earlier? High thermal conductivity. As long as the power supply and cooling requirements for the replacement of gallium nitride radar can be met, the detection range of active phased array radars on several types of fighter jets has the opportunity to be doubled.
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Above picture is phased array radar multi target tracking high speed military radar is sold online casually in china the price 1 million yuan.
So it’s not surprising that DJI drones are equipped with phased array radars.
Hence the monster below.
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20 tons AEGIS Unmanned warship. Each ship is equipped with 8 vertical launch missiles and 2 torpedoes.
The Iranian Navy has considered launching suicide attacks on U.S. warships using missile speedboats. If dozens of these small boats, which cost tens of millions of dollars, surrounded warships worth billions of dollars, or were equipped with towed sonar and spread out to hunt submarines in the vast sea area, the picture would be too beautiful.
It means China needed to create 7.585 million new jobs in 2019.
Remember that China is changing rapidly. The people who are retiring from low-end manufacturing or agriculture aren’t doing the same jobs as the 20 year olds in hi-tech and STEM fields.
Competition is fierce.
Ranch Round Steak
2077caab3c77906b7b00eea380916c17
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients
1 (3 pound) round steak
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
Cut steak into serving size pieces; trim away excess fat and pound to tenderize.
Combine flour, dry mustard, salt and pepper; use to coat meat. Reserve remaining flour mixture.
In skillet, brown meat, half at a time, on both sides in hot shortening. Push meat to one side; stir in reserved flour mixture.
Combine water and Worcestershire sauce; stir into skillet mixture. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly, reduce heat. Cover and simmer for about 1 hour or until meat is tender.
Remove meat to platter.
Skim excess fat from gravy. Drizzle gravy over meat and serve.
What Elon Musk just did in Ukraine could change EVERYTHING
Could Elon Musk end the war in Ukraine with this one move? Democrats are calling for an investigation into how Starlink is used in the warzone. Redacted Correspondent Dan Cohen dives deep into the details.
When I was in High School, I had a opinion column in the High School newspaper. I wrote weekly opinions, and was rather prolific in that endeavor. I would write up an opinion, then I would type it up in an electric typewriter (in the typing class) and hand it in.
But somehow, for reasons that took me until the end of school to find out, my editorials were always botched up with a ton of spelling and grammar errors.
I would type;
Jimmy Carter made another promise in his on-going litany of promises.
And the newspaper would print…
immy Barter madddde ANother premise in e5ton-going litterany, of GH8mises.
At the end of the school year, I discovered that all my work… week after week were being sabotaged by under-classmen who thought it great fun to destroy my work.
…
Yeah.
What great “fun”.
…
I took no action. And, I moved on with my life.
Who knows where these kids are today. Given their habit of hurting others for fun, they are either in positions of power, or living in mobile homes and prostituting themselves for yucks.
Probably the latter.
…
When you take time to be DESTRUCTIVE instead of CONSTRUCTIVE, your life develops and unfolds exactly as you have programmed it.
Do not make that mistake.
Do not cause hurt and pain.
Be good.
…
Remember, to manifest your desires, you must confront all your negative behaviors that you have colored your life with.
A few months ago, I was taking care of patient “Johnny”.
Johnny was an elderly man who had his stay in hospital extended due to multiple poorly controlled comorbidities. For privacy’s sake, I won’t go into detail about his medical conditions.
For one whole month, I was part of Johnny’s medical treatment team, and the main junior doctor taking care of him.
Every morning, I visited his bed, engaged in some small talk with him, auscultated his chest and lungs and palpated his abdomen and ankles.
Every week, I updated his family, i.e his son and daughter, on the progress of his condition via phone calls.
Due to the complexity of his condition, his family agreed to have him on partial code (i.e not for CPR/Intubation/ICU). While his condition had stabilised, I warned them that any further infections or cardiac event will likely cost his life.
Despite all this, the son and daughter did not visit Johnny once, not even once, in those 30 days. Over the phone, they would always have a convenient excuse ready. Business trips, commitments, you name it.
One morning, when I visited Johnny for his usual checkup, I observed that he was drowsier than usual. A vital sign perimeters check revealed a significantly reduced oxygen saturation. The medical team was immediately informed as I took and sent off bloods and ordered a chest x-ray. Investigations indicated a new-onset hospital-acquired Pneumonia, likely due to his age and compromised immunity.
As was discussed with him and his family, at this stage, it’s better to allow a natural death instead of prolonging his suffering by sending him to ICU and putting tubes down his throat.
His son and daughter were promptly informed and voila! Within an hour, somehow both of them were able to ditch their “commitments” and arrive at bedside. By then, the patient was already unresponsive and on morphine.
The son had tears in his eyes while the daughter was bawling uncontrollably. Johnny could no longer recognise them, nor respond to them in any way. He had spent his last 30 days without a single family member beside him.
Imagine being imprisoned in a small box for years, with just a small hole to push food through. The Coffin Prisons of Mongolia were as the name described. They were small, cramped boxes with barely enough room to sit up or lie down. They had a little hole at the side so food could be fed to the prisoner, that’s if you get food.
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Being placed in one of these boxes meant a death sentence, hence the name. Even if you were fed, the temperatures would drop below freezing at night, and you would probably freeze to death. Prisoners who managed to beat the odds were imprisoned in these boxes for life sentences, and the ones who didn’t go blind went insane from being confined for years in the cramped box.
Sometimes, the prisoners were fed once a day and had their human waste cleaned out once every three weeks.
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The picture above was taken by French photographer Stephane Passet in 1913, and it shows a woman condemned to death and left to die of starvation in the box. This form of punishment was only abolished in the late 20th century.
Male lions act alone, while hyenas travel in packs.
Hyenas like to prey on animals that are weaker than themselves. They are used to bullying the small with the many and the weak with the strong, but they never dare to attack many with one like the Male lion.
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The male lion loves to eat the hyena named “Japan”.
Taiwan is the bait, and the Male lion is waiting for the hyena called “Japan” to take the bait.
The Chinese very much look forward to Japan joining the ranks of intervening in Chinese civil war (China’s internal affairs).
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Only small countries need alliances to seek security; superpowers never do so.
WWI exposed the drawbacks of haphazard alliances that could drag allies toward all-out war.
WWII showed that the compacts and agreements made between allies were no different than used toilet paper.
Therefore, after WWII, no country in its right mind was interested in military alliances. After all, they had just crawled out of the cesspit, so their memories were particularly profound.
This is a picture of an astronaut helmet a Texas farmer found in his field following the Columbia space shuttle disaster that killed several crew members in 2003. Along with the helmet and pieces of the shuttle, they also found human body parts, including a torso, arms, feet, and a heart.
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One of the main engineers behind the Challenger space shuttle said that NASA ignored multiple warnings against launching in cold weather. The night before the launch, he told his wife, “It’s going to blow up.”
He was one of five engineers who told NASA to postpone the launch, but they didn’t listen to their warnings. The shuttle exploded 73 seconds into its flight, killing all seven crew members on board.
I used to manage a 24-hour chain auto parts store. Yes, here in Chicago, one can buy auto parts at 3 a.m., if you really wanted to. One could do that every night of the month except one. We had to close the store for six hours (11 p.m.-5 a.m.) once per month to get the floor waxed.
The chain I worked for outsourced their overnight floor waxing to a third party. That third party had a four-man crew. They’d usually show up an hour early and start moving all of the floor displays to the back of the store and doing the other prep work they could do while the store was still open. Once they started with the floor-stripping chemicals, though, the doors were locked and the store was closed.
But two of our employees stayed in the back of the store. It was a huge store and there was plenty for them to do back there, like stocking the shelves, dusting, etc… Most of the parts we sold were stored in the back of the store. The “back of the store” was 4/5 of the entire building… the parts that are car-specific, and you have to ask someone who works there which part you need, and let them get it for you.
Among the tens of thousands of parts in the back of the store were carburetors. In the three years I worked there, I never once saw anyone buy one of those. They’re old technology that old timers like to work on as a hobby. The carburetors were in boxes and sold for about $500 each.
Every now and then, we’d discover that one of the boxes was empty. We, of course, assumed it was internal theft, because we’d notice a customer walking to the back of the store, unboxing a carburetor, putting the box back nicely, and walking out with the merchandise. We did have security cameras in the back, but there were many blind spots for them.
I didn’t know it at the time, but the head store manager began checking the carburetor boxes every day, and, when one was missing, he checked who was working that day. He did this for several months before he saw the pattern: they were always missing the day after the floors got waxed.
The floor waxing crew used a giant floor cleaning machine, like you might see at an airport:
When really, a machine this size, which is what similar companies used at similar-sized stores, would have been more reasonable:
One morning, as the floor guys were leaving, my boss met them at the door. He had two police officers with him. I believe he knew these cops as friends… I don’t think they would have been there otherwise. Anyway, my boss asked the head of the floor crew to open the hood of their giant cleaning machine. I don’t know if he did it willingly, or was compelled to do it by the cops. (I was there, but I was in the store, doing the opening paperwork.) But, when the hood was opened, there were four carburetors sitting in it where a water tank should have been.
The entire floor-cleaning machine had been modified for stealing items from the places whose floors they cleaned. It wasn’t just our store… they’d been doing this at several different stores.
Later, we heard through the grapevine that the head of the cleaning crew got a long prison sentence for stealing, because he had several prior convictions for other things.
China Angrily Cuts Railway Trade Link With Lithuania!
In today’s video, we delve deep into the ongoing geopolitical tensions involving Lithuania, China, Russia, and the European Union. We aim to shed light on the intricate dynamics, diplomatic maneuvers, and economic implications that have arisen due to recent decisions made by these global actors.
A previous employer of mine had an office in Scotland. Their main office, I worked pretty remotely in fact.
Twice in a year, people spilt coffee over their computer keyboards, and had to have new keyboards. Cost to the company, almost nothing.
Suddenly a new rule was introduced that no-one was allowed a mug on their desk. They had to use tip-resistant travel mugs, with a screw on lid, and a small opening to drink through. Genius.
Apart from the coffee machine had space for a cup. A standard size mug. It was one of those coffee machines with a little ledge. You put your cup on the ledge, pressed whatever pretentious coffee choice you guessed might be similar to “normal coffee” and it filled the cup.
The only issue, is the travel mugs didn’t stand up in the ledge. Too tall. So you had to hold the cup at an angle so it would fill from the machine.
Two weeks in, someone seriously scalded their hand, and required hospital treatment, and a substantial pay off.
The travel mugs were removed, normal mugs reinstated, and 2 USB keyboards kept in the stock room.
Edit : This story seems to resonate with people, I’m not sure why. It’s my fastest upvoted answer, with 400 in about a day. If you’re not Scottish, don’t know any/many Scottish people, and haven’t worked with them, you might not understand why they didn’t just “take away the coffee machine” as some commenters suggested.
I managed performance and scheduling for this office. One Monday, my work mobile rang early.
I answered it, the caller said “Is this Ben, it’s Davey here.”
I replied “Hi, yeah this is Ben, what’s up Davey?”
Davey : “I’ll no be in the day”
Me: “No worries, how come?”
Davey : “I’m in Amsterdam”
Me : “Sorry Davey, it sounded like you said you wouldn’t be in because you were in Amsterdam?”
Davey : “Aye, I’ll be haim Wednesday.”
And then he hang up. He went out on a Saturday night, passport for ID, and woke up Monday morning in Amsterdam, not really knowing what happened. He wasn’t fazed by this, he politely let me know he wouldn’t be in due to being in Amsterdam, and hung up. They. Give. No. Fucks.
How China is Beating U.S. GPS Dominance with BeiDou
The Global Positioning System, widely known as GPS, stands as the oldest and most globally recognized satellite navigation system, boasting an impressive user base of approximately 6 billion individuals worldwide. China has now emerged as a formidable challenger to the long-standing dominance of the United States’ Global Positioning System (GPS) with its ambitious satellite navigation project.
I lived for a handful of years in the States, on both the East and West coast.
Before I went over, I had to undergo six months of intensive mental and physical training.
I’m not at liberty to reveal the details of aforementioned training, but part of it involves learning how to disguise myself as a panda.
As part of my training, I had to learn how pandas communicate with each other in a group setting.
So, for 2 months, I basically holed myself up in a monastery with 30 pandas, and every day, I would observe and learn from them.
They thought I was their teacher … sent to teach them the esoteric martial arts of the Kunlun Sect.
But, in reality, they were my teachers. All 30 of them.
image 27image 28image 29
After I completed my 6 months of training, I was given a glass bottle containing a dark brown liquid.
“What is this?” I said.
The agent in charge of my assignment told me it was a super soldier serum, made from a super top-secret 3500-year-old ancient herbal formula that only 8 people in the world had access to.
I was advised that if I were ever to find myself in a tight spot, in a situation where my real identity risked being uncovered, I should quaff the super soldier serum.
The agent told me it would boost my strength, agility, reaction speed, balance, endurance, durability, hand-eye coordination, speed of thought, wisdom, and senses to peak human level – for up to 3 days.
I took the serum with me – as insurance, as my just-in-case-I-get-caught card.
I guess I was fortunate, because there was never a situation where I was forced to use it.
My wits and unassuming personality were enough to extricate myself from every difficult situation I found myself caught up in.
image 30
Here are some pictures I took while I was out in the field on my intelligence-gathering assignments:
This one was in Hollywood.
image 31
Here’s the picture of a stone troll I met during one of my assigments.
Fortunately, I have extensive experience dealing with trolls, so I could understand what he was trying to convey despite his heavy accent.
image 32
This is me on another intelligence-gathering mission, stopping to have a quick bite for lunch.
A tough but necessary decision would likely force the West to back off, enabling an earlier end to the Ukraine crisis and preventing it from expanding to other states
By Professor Sergey Karaganov,honorary chairman of Russia’s Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, and academic supervisor at the School of International Economics and Foreign Affairs Higher School of Economics (HSE) in Moscow
has sparked major debate among experts in Russia about nuclear weapons, their role and the conditions of their use.
This is especially the case given Sergey Karaganov’s status as a former presidential adviser to both Boris Yeltsin and Vladimir Putin, and his position as head of the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, a noted Moscow think tank.
Some prominent figures have reacted with dismay, while others have been less critical.
RT has decided it would be beneficial for our readers to read it in full. The following piece has been translated and lightly edited.
***
Our country, and its leadership, seems to me to be facing a difficult choice. It is becoming increasingly clear that our clash with the West will not end even if we achieve a partial – let alone a crushing – victory in Ukraine.
Even if we completely liberate the Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions, it will be a minimal victory. A slightly greater success would be to liberate the whole of eastern and southern Ukraine within a year or two. But it would still leave part of the country with an even more embittered ultra-nationalist population pumped full of weapons – a bleeding wound that threatens inevitable complications, such as another war.
The situation could be worse if we liberate the whole of Ukraine at the cost of monstrous sacrifices and are left with ruins and a population that mostly hates us. It would take more than a decade to “re-educate” them.
Any of these options, especially the last one, will distract Russia from the much-needed shift of its spiritual, economic, military and political center to the East of Eurasia. We will be stuck with a wasteful focus on the West. And the territories of today’s Ukraine, especially the central and western ones, will attract resources – both human and financial. These regions were heavily subsidised even in Soviet times.
Meanwhile, hostility from the West will continue; it will support a slow-burning guerrilla civil war.
A more attractive option is the liberation and reunification of the east and south, and the imposition of capitulation on the remnants of Ukraine with complete demilitarization, creating a buffer, friendly state. But such an outcome would only be possible if we are able to break the West’s will to support the Kiev junta, and use it against us, forcing the US-led bloc into a strategic retreat.
And here I come to a crucial but hardly discussed issue. The root cause of – and indeed the main reason for – the Ukrainian crisis, as well as many other conflicts in the world, and the general increase in military threats, is the accelerating failure of the contemporary Western ruling elites.
This crisis is accompanied by an unprecedentedly rapid shift in the balance of power in the world in favor of the global majority, driven economically by China and partly by India, with Russia as the military and strategic anchor. This weakening not only infuriates the imperial-cosmopolitan elites (US President Joe Biden and his ilk) but also frightens the imperial-national elites (such as his predecessor Donald Trump). The West is losing the advantage it has held for five centuries to siphon off the wealth of the entire world by imposing its political and economic order and establishing its cultural dominance, mainly by brute force. So there is no quick end to the defensive, but aggressive, confrontation that the West has unleashed.
This moral, political and economic collapse has been brewing since the mid-1960s, was interrupted by the collapse of the USSR, but resumed with renewed vigour in the 2000s (the defeats of the Americans and their allies in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the crisis of the Western economic model in 2008 were milestones).
In order to slow down this seismic shift, the West has temporarily consolidated itself. The US has turned Ukraine into a punching bag to tie the hands of Russia, the politico-military lynchpin of a non-Western world freed from the shackles of neocolonialism. Ideally, of course, the Americans would simply like to blow up our country and thus radically weaken the emerging alternative superpower, China. We, either not realizing the inevitability of the clash or hoarding our strength, have been slow to act preemptively. Moreover, in line with modern, mainly Western, political and military thinking, we were rash in raising the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons, inaccurate in assessing the situation in Ukraine, and not entirely successful in launching the current military operation.
By failing internally, Western elites have actively fed the weeds that have taken root in the soil of 70 years of prosperity, satiation and peace. These comprise of anti-human ideologies: the denial of family, homeland, history, love between men and women, faith, service to higher ideals, everything that is human. Their philosophy is to weed out those who resist. The aim is to neuter people in order to reduce their ability to resist modern “globalist” capitalism, which is becoming more and more obviously unjust and harmful to man and humanity.
Meanwhile, a weakened US is destroying Western Europe and other countries dependent on it, trying to push them into a confrontation that will follow Ukraine. The elites in most of these countries have lost their bearings and, panicked by the crisis in their own positions at home and abroad, are dutifully leading their countries to the slaughter. At the same time, because of greater failure, a sense of powerlessness, centuries of Russophobia, intellectual degradation and a loss of strategic culture, their hatred is almost more intense than that of the US.
Thus, the trajectory of most Western countries clearly points towards a new fascism, which could be called “liberal” totalitarianism.
In the future, and this is the most important thing, it will only get worse. Truces are possible, but reconciliation is not. Anger and despair will continue to grow in waves and waves. This vector of Western movement is a clear sign of the drift towards the outbreak of World War Three. It has already begun and could erupt into a full-blown conflagration either by accident, or due to the growing incompetence and irresponsibility of the ruling circles of the West.
The introduction of artificial intelligence and the robotization of war increase the risk of unintended escalation. Machines can act outside the control of confused elites.
The situation is aggravated by “strategic parasitism” – in 75 years of relative peace, people have forgotten the horrors of war, have stopped fearing even nuclear weapons. Everywhere, but especially in the West, the instinct for self-preservation has weakened.
I have spent many years studying the history of nuclear strategy and have come to an unequivocal, if unscientific, conclusion. The advent of nuclear weapons is the result of the intervention of the Almighty, who, appalled that mankind had unleashed two world wars within a generation, costing tens of millions of lives, gave us the weapons of Armageddon to show those who had lost their fear of hell that it existed. On that fear rested the relative peace of the last three-quarters of a century.
But now that fear is gone. The unthinkable in terms of previous notions of nuclear deterrence is happening – a group of ruling elites, in a fit of desperate rage, have unleashed a full-scale war in the underbelly of a nuclear superpower.
The fear of atomic escalation must be restored. Otherwise humanity is doomed.
It is not only, and not even so much, what the future world order will look like that is being decided in the fields of Ukraine right now. But rather whether the world we are used to will be preserved at all, or if all will be left is radioactive ruins, poisoning the remnants of humanity.
By breaking the West’s will in imposing its aggression, we will not only save ourselves and finally free the world from the Western yoke of five centuries, but we will also salvage the whole of humanity. By pushing the West towards catharsis and the abandonment of the hegemony of its elites, we will force it to retreat before a global catastrophe. Humanity will be given a new chance to develop.
Proposed solution
Of course, there is an uphill struggle ahead. It is also necessary to solve our own internal problems – to finally get rid of the mindset of Western-centrism and of the Westernizers in the administrative class. Especially the compradors and their peculiar way of thinking. Of course, in this area, the NATO bloc is helping us, unwittingly.
Our 300-year journey around Europe has given us a lot of useful lessons and it has helped us to form our great culture. Let us cherish our European heritage. But it is time to return home, to ourselves. Let us begin, with the baggage we have accumulated, to live in our own way. Our friends in the Foreign Ministry have recently made a real breakthrough by referring to Russia as a civilizational state in their foreign policy concept. I would add – a civilization of civilizations, open to the North as well as to the South, to the West as well as to the East. Now the main direction of development is to the South, to the North and, above all, to the East.
The confrontation with the West in Ukraine, however it ends, should not distract us from the strategic internal movement – spiritual, cultural, economic, political, military and political – towards the Urals, Siberia and the Pacific Ocean. A new Ural-Siberian strategy is needed, one that includes several powerful spiritually uplifting projects, including, of course, the creation of a third capital in Siberia. This movement should become part of the much-needed formulation of the “Russian Dream” – the image of the Russia and the world to which one aspires.
I have often written, and I am not alone in this, that great states without a great idea cease to be such or simply disappear into the void. History is littered with the graves of powers that lost their way. This idea should be created from above and not rely, as fools or lazy people do, on what comes from below. It must correspond to the deepest values and aspirations of the people and, above all, it must take us all forward. But it is the responsibility of the elite and the leadership of the country to formulate it. The delay in putting forward such a vision is unacceptably long.
But for the future to come to pass, the resistance of the forces of the past – i.e. the West – must be overcome. If this is not achieved, there will almost certainly be a full-scale world war. Which will probably be the last of its kind.
And here I come to the most difficult part of this article. We can keep fighting for another year or two, or even three, sacrificing thousands and thousands of our best men and grinding up hundreds of thousands more who are unfortunate enough to fall into the tragic historical trap of what is now called Ukraine. But this military operation cannot end in a decisive victory without forcing the West into a strategic retreat or even capitulation. We must force the West to abandon its attempts to turn back history, to abandon its attempts at global domination, and to force it to deal with its own problems, to manage its current multifaceted crisis. To put it crudely, it is necessary for the West to simply “piss off” and end its interference in the direction of Russia and the rest of the world.
However, for this to happen, Western elites need to rediscover their own lost sense of self-preservation by understanding that attempts to wear down Russia by playing the Ukrainians against it are counterproductive for the West itself.
The credibility of nuclear deterrence must be restored by lowering the unacceptably high threshold for the use of atomic weapons and by moving cautiously but quickly up the ladder of deterrence-escalation. The first steps have already been taken through statements to this effect by the president and other leaders, by beginning to deploy nuclear weapons and their delivery vehicles in Belarus, and by increasing the combat effectiveness of the strategic deterrent forces. There are quite a few steps on this ladder. I count about two dozen. It could even go as far as warning our compatriots and all people of good will about the need to leave their homes near the objects of possible nuclear strikes in countries directly supporting the Kiev regime. The enemy must know that we are ready to launch a preemptive retaliatory strike in response to its current and past aggression in order to prevent a slide into a global thermonuclear war.
I have often said and written that with the right strategy of deterrence and even use, the risk of a ‘retaliatory’ nuclear or other strike on our territory can be minimized. Only if there is a madman in the White House who also hates his own country will the US decide to strike in ‘defense’ of the Europeans and invite retaliation by sacrificing a hypothetical Boston for a notional Poznan. The Americans and the Western Europeans are well aware of this, they just prefer not to think about it. We, too, have contributed to this recklessness with our peace-loving pronouncements. Having studied the history of US nuclear strategy, I know that after the USSR acquired a credible nuclear retaliatory capability, Washington never seriously considered using nuclear weapons on Soviet territory, even though it publicly bluffed. When nuclear weapons were considered, it was only against “advancing” Soviet forces in Western Europe. I know that the late Chancellors Helmut Kohl and Helmut Schmidt fled from their bunkers as soon as the question of such use came up in an exercise.
Movement down the ladder of containment-escalation should be fairly quick. Given the current direction of the West – and the degradation of most of its elites – each successive decision it makes is more incompetent and ideologically veiled than the last. And, at present, we cannot expect these elites to be replaced by more responsible and reasonable ones. This will only happen after a catharsis, leading to the abandonment of much ambition.
We cannot repeat the ‘Ukrainian scenario’. For a quarter of a century we were not listened to when we warned that NATO enlargement would lead to war; we tried to delay, to “negotiate”. As a result, we ended up in a serious armed conflict. Now the price of indecision is an order of magnitude higher than it would have been earlier.
But what if the present Western leaders refuse to back down? Perhaps they have lost all sense of self-preservation? Then we will have to hit a group of targets in a number of countries to bring those who have lost their senses back to their senses.
It’s a morally frightening choice – we would be using God’s weapon and condemning ourselves to great spiritual loss. But if this is not done, not only may Russia perish, but most likely the whole of human civilization will end.
We will have to make this choice ourselves. Even friends and sympathizers will not support it at first. If I were Chinese, I would not want an abrupt and decisive end to the conflict, because it will draw back US forces and allow them to gather forces for a decisive battle – either directly or, in the best Sun Tzu tradition, by forcing the enemy to retreat without a fight. As a Chinese person, I would also oppose the use of nuclear weapons because taking the confrontation to the nuclear level means moving to an area where my country is still weak.
Also, decisive action is not in line with the Chinese foreign policy philosophy, which emphasizes economic factors (with the accumulation of military power) and avoids direct confrontation. I would support an ally by providing him with rear cover, but I would go behind his back and not enter the fray. (In this case, perhaps I don’t understand this philosophy well enough and am attributing motives to my Chinese friends that are not their own.) If Russia uses nuclear weapons, Beijing would condemn it. But Chinese hearts would also rejoice knowing that the reputation and position of the US had been dealt a severe blow.
How would we react if (God forbid!) Pakistan attacked India, or vice versa? We’d be horrified. Upset that the nuclear taboo has been broken. Then let us help the victims and change our nuclear doctrine accordingly.
For India and other countries of the world majority, including nuclear weapon states (Pakistan, Israel), the use of nuclear weapons is unacceptable, both for moral and geostrategic reasons. If they are used “successfully”, the nuclear taboo – the notion that such weapons should never be used and that their use is a direct route to nuclear Armageddon – will be devalued. We are unlikely to win support quickly, even if many in the Global South would feel satisfaction at the defeat of their former oppressors who plundered them, carried out genocides and imposed an alien culture.
But in the end, the victors are not judged. And the saviors are thanked. Western European political culture does not remember, but the rest of the world does (and with gratitude) how we helped the Chinese to free themselves from the brutal Japanese occupation, and many Western colonies to throw off the colonial yoke.
Of course, if they do not understand us at first, they will have all the more incentive to educate themselves. Still, it is very likely that we can win, and focus the minds enemy states without extreme measures, and force them to retreat. And after a few years, we take take up a position as China’s rear, as it is now performing for us, supporting it in its struggle with the US. Then this fight can be avoided without a big war. And we will win together for the good of all, including the people of the Western countries.
At that stage, Russia and the rest of humanity will pass through all the thorns and traumas into the future, which I see as bright – multipolar, multicultural, multicolored – and giving countries and peoples the opportunity to build their own destinies in addition to the common one, which should unite worldwide.
Ukraen’s parliament and its speaker taunted billionaire Elon Musk on Monday after he posted a meme on his social media platform mocking President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s pleas for wartime assistance from the West.
Musk owns SpaceX, which provides Starlink satellite communication services that are vital for Ukraen’s defense effort, but his statements have sometimes angered Kyiv since the Ukrosia war in February last year.
Early on Monday, Musk posted a meme on his platform X, formerly known as Twitter, showing Zelenskyy and the caption: “When it’s been 5 minutes and you haven’t asked for a billion dollars in aid.”
The Ukraenion leader and his top lieutenants have appealed to their allies throughout the war to secure billions of dollars of military aid to weather and push back Russia’s invasion.
The speaker of Ukraen’s parliament, Ruslan Stefanchuk, hit out at Musk’s jibe with his own post on X.
“The case when … (Elon Musk) tried to conquer space, but something went wrong and in 5 minutes he was up to his eyeballs in shit,” an apparent reference to SpaceX’s failed rocket launch in April.
Ukraen’s parliament, on its official page on X, accused Musk of spreading Russian propaganda, posting its own version of the meme with a picture of Musk and the caption: “When it’s been 5 minutes and you haven’t spread Russian propaganda.”
A Ukrainian presidential adviser, Mykhailo Podolyak, who has criticized some of Musk’s statements in the past, said in a post on X that being silent or ironic about Ukraen played into the hands of Russian propaganda.
“Unfortunately, not everyone and not always, while being significant media figures, but being thousands of kilometers away from the war’s epicenter, is able to realize what the daily bombardments and cries of children losing their parents are.”
Ukraenion officials criticized Musk earlier in the war for suggesting that they should consider giving up land for peace, a position that Kyiv has staunchly rejected.
Tuesday, 26 September 2023 12:40 PM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 26 September 2023 12:40 PM ]
By Shabbir Rizvi
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu visited Tehran last week and held meetings with top Iranian military leadership, including the Chief of the Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces General Mohammad Bagheri and Defense Minister Brigadier General Mohammad-Reza Ashtiani.
Shoigu, heading a high-ranking Russian military delegation, was in the Iranian capital on the official invitation of General Bagheri, who welcomed him during an impressive ceremony in Tehran.
Shoigu was invited to Iran to discuss “defense cooperation” between the two all-weather allies.
The two countries have historically been the favorite targets of Western aggression: from sabotage attacks to economic sanctions meant to destabilize their economies.
Both countries have, however, held course despite all such oppressive measures and pursued independent policies to strengthen their respective economies and bolster bilateral cooperation.
Shoigu and his accompanying delegation appeared to be in positive spirits while meeting their Iranian counterparts. Shoigu was particularly vocal about the positive relations with Iran’s top leadership.
‘“The pressure of sanctions on Russia and Iran is proving to be futile, while Russia-Iran cooperation is reaching new highs,” Shoigu lauded, as cited by local Iranian media.
The Islamic Republic’s ability to operate independently and create a healthy national economy despite Western meddling has proved very fruitful. It has recently been included in the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) economic alliance, as well as the SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization).
Naturally, it is important for Iran to consider security issues to protect its interests within these organizations, and Russia is a natural ally in this context as it is also a member of both groupings.
In a growing multilateral world order, which many are referring to as “Multipolarity” as well as “The End of Americanism” (see President Ebrahim Raeisi’s historical speech ), cooperation based on mutual trust and benefit holds the key.
However, the remnants of the dying US-led unipolar world order will try to sow disorder as they fight off the inevitable new reality shaped by new emerging powers.
Projects within BRICS countries as well as SCO countries have notably been subject to Western-backed sabotage. Most notable would be the destruction of the Nord Stream-2 pipeline which impacts Russia’s ability to deliver gas to western Europe.
Other examples include terrorist attacks on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor by the Turkistan Islamic Party (TIP), Takfiri terrorists that were once on the US list of terror groups but have since been removed as they play a role in the US strategy of destabilizing targeted countries.
The US use of proxy forces to conduct economic sabotage and destruction is a serious threat to regional development and stability as Iran has repeatedly warned about.
These projects will help facilitate regional independence for countries and incentivize less reliance on trade with predatory Western countries. With Iran joining two economic alliances that are going to shape the new world order, it can count on Western-backed disruption to regional projects.
Despite both BRICS and the SCO being economic alliances, in order to ensure their success, the defense of their ambitious projects must be factored in.
The meeting between Shoigu and Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Akbar Ahmadian was a key moment for discussing the looming threat of Western sabotage seriously.
This is a particularly important equation – foreign interference has either been the United States and its allies overtly or its various proxy forces covertly.
As Iran and Russia strengthen the reality of a unified “Eurasia,” it would be in both countries’ interest to secure regional interests – and to expel the threat of Western sabotage completely, as implied in the latter part of the statement.
A mutual understanding of adversaries in the region is a first step that cannot be ignored.
Already, Iran and Russia’s incalculable assistance in Syria can prove the importance of understanding this equation. A unified effort to expel Western invaders and their proxy armies has led to a hard-fought victory for Syrian President Bashar Al Assad – to the point that the Arab League and other countries that once turned their back on Syria are now being forced to accept reality – Syria is here to stay.
This week alone, Iranian intelligence forces thwarted at least 30 bombings at populous areas of the capital Tehran, arresting 28 operatives affiliated with the Daesh Takfiri group.
In this arena, Iran is highly skilled. Iranian intelligence services have also been fiercely exposing and shutting down internal terror networks associated with terrorist organizations such as MeK all the way to Kurdish separatists and Mossad.
Russia would be very interested in Iran’s anti-terror approaches – and vice versa. Russia has been subject to internal terror plots as its military operation in Ukraine continues, including bombings in Moscow and drone attacks on civilian bridges.
A “skillshare” and an open line of communication between the two countries’ intelligence forces could result in protected trade routes and corridors, as well as routing out existing hostile forces.
Furthermore, Iran’s weapons, particularly new military technology that includes drones, missiles, and radar systems – are also highly attractive to Russia, and the Russians do not shy away from admitting this.
It is becoming undeniable that Iran’s military hardware is a game-changer. Iran’s drone program, particularly the Shahed and Mojaher systems, are so sought after that demands are outpacing production
– multiple countries have expressed interest in purchasing them.
Currently, the only countries in the world with Mach 5 capabilities are Russia, China, and Iran
. Iran joined the former this year, with an extremely successful demonstration of the Fattah missile.
Russia has reportedly used its own Kh-47M2 “Kinzhal” hypersonic missiles to strike targets in Ukraine. Although Iran is neutral with respect to Russia’s military operation, proposing dialogue instead of escalation, it could potentially work with Russia to supply Fattah missiles for defensive purposes.
Speaking of which, Russia is also in a unique situation with its military operation in Ukraine. Billions of dollars worth of NATO equipment have been provided to Ukraine in order to stop the Russian advance.
Russia has not only destroyed many of these highly coveted weapons of war, but also captured intact equipment including tanks, rocket launchers, MLRS (Multiple Launch Rocket Systems), and more.
Being able to reverse engineer NATO weaponry and exploit its pain points is highly valuable information that Iran would be interested in – especially as these weapons are often wielded by forces hostile to Iran.
If the objective of the meeting in Tehran is deterring the West, then a serious transfer of information obtained on NATO weapons to Iran would be in order. Anything less than a delivery of this vital information is not taken seriously.
This is just the first official defense meeting with Iran’s ascension into BRICS. In Shoigu’s declaration of “reaching new levels” of cooperation with Iran’s military, more meetings will commence as the countries draft various security agreements to protect the region and build multipolarity.
We can also expect more joint military drills between Iran and Russia – similar to the drills held in the Sea of Oman between the two countries and China earlier this year.
Lastly, we can also expect the West not to leave the region gracefully, despite the odds becoming increasingly against them.
Come whatever may, the new alliances – formed by economic mutual cooperation – have a chance to bring much-needed stability and prosperity to the entire “Eurasian” region.
To invoke President Raeisi, it is indeed the end of “Americanization.”
deleted Aliens sentry gun scene
This is fun.
https://youtu.be/t9ZS_ltsMhM
UPDATED 10:05 AM EDT — U.S. Money Supply CONTRACTING; Down 3.69% and Falling
In the past 150 years, the US Money Supply has only contracted five (5) times; and they were Recessions and the Great Depression. It is happening again.
Two U.S. money supply metrics that investors tend to pay close attention to are M1 and M2. The former accounts for the cash and coins in circulation, as well as the demand deposits within an individual’s checking account. Meanwhile, M2 factors in everything in M1 and adds money market accounts, savings accounts, and certificates of deposit (CDs) below $100,000. The main difference is that M2 factors in cash that takes a little extra work to get your hands on.
For as far back as the eye can see, M2 has been climbing. Since the U.S. economy steadily grows over the long run, it’s only natural that more cash/capital is needed to facilitate transactions. In fact, M2 rising is so common that some economists may not even be paying attention to it as a monthly reported datapoint.
But in the rare event that M2 meaningfully declines, pay attention!
Back in March, Reventure Consulting CEO Nick Gerli posted what you see below on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. It highlights M2 money supply growth and contraction dating back to 1870 using data supplied by the St. Louis Federal Reserve and the U.S. Census Bureau.
Over the past 153 years, there have only been five instances where M2 has declined by at least 2% on a year-over-year basis: the 1870s, 1893, 1921, 1931-1933, and 2023. In order, these instances resulted in a depression, panic, depression, Great Depression, and (insert your best guess here). In the previous four instances, it was an ominous sign for Wall Street.
As of July 2023, M2 money supply was 3.69% below the all-time high recorded in July 2022. This marks the first time since the Great Depression that we’ve witnessed a meaningful decline in U.S. money supply.
To be completely fair, the declines in the 1870s and 1893 occurred prior to the creation of the Federal Reserve, while the drops in 1921 and during the Great Depression came shortly after its creation. Today, there’s a far better understanding from the nation’s central bank and Capitol Hill on how to utilize monetary policy and fiscal policy, respectively, to avoid a depression.
Furthermore, multiple rounds of fiscal stimulus during the COVID-19 pandemic led M2 money supply to catapult higher by 26% on a year-over-year basis. It’s always possible that the decline we’re witnessing now of 3.69% represents nothing more than a return to some sort of mean after a historic expansion of M2.
However, history has been unkind to meaningful M2 money supply declines. With the core inflation rate more than double the Fed’s long-term target of 2%, less capital in circulation would more than likely lead to a deflationary recession.
YIELD CURVE INVERTED – 1 YEAR +
Add into the above facts, the reality that the yield curve, as reported by the Federal Reserve, has been inverted for over a year, and you’ve got the makings of financial disaster:
As you can see on the chart above, the yield curve is now starting to normalize.
The crash ALWAYS comes after it normalizes.
And when the yield curve is inverted for an extended period of time, the crash is bigger and harder.
Why is this happening, you ask? Because NO ONE wants to lend money to the US for a long term anymore. The US is so in debt, people have lost faith in its ability to repay. So the Treasury is having to offer MUCH higher interest rates just to get people to lend them money.
Meanwhile, the short term Bonds are Flat or Dropping as seen below because more people are interested in short term loans; no faith in the long term.
OK, so what does all this actually MEAN to you and me? I found some of this information in comments on the web, by people who know a lot more about this stuff than I do. I found their remarks worth repeating here.
THE YIELD CURVE COULD NORMALIZE AT ANY TIME, MAYBE EVEN TODAY.
After that, combine the contracting money supply with high inflation and . . . MEGA DOOM
The way I see it . . . . it’s literally THE END. The US economy is 100% kaput
The last time this happened, they talked the Boomer’s parents into sending their kids to die overseas to fight Communism and Socialism. Kids by the millions coming home in body bags and idiot parents posting yellow stars in their windows so everyone could tell them how brave their kids were for fighting Nazis and Communists, when actually they were just covering up what they did to the Weimar Republic.
All for what? So the Bankers could move here en-masse and take over the west while telling us we won, and then spend the next century raping an pillaging our society too, like a plague of locusts.
You think they’re going to get their Draft and War this time? I’m not sure bout that. Most everyone knows that Ukraine is a money laundering operation for them to get the rest of the loot out and convert the dollars to something useful before the crash becomes obvious to the pleebs.
This is why the “Elite” are building bunkers.
This is why they have a puppet instead of a real leader in Washington.
It’s why they have fences around the US Capital.
It’s why they don’t seem to care if anyone sees their crimes and greed right now.
They think we’re stupid, and I’m willing to bet that most people don’t get what the money supply running backward on the debt clock means, except for you folks who visit this web site.
They want us to give up our kids IN Ukraine.
Well, my position on that is simple: no gold star for this Dad.
They want us on Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) and to own nothing. This is how they figure on doing it, another great depression and another World War. Just straight up evil.
They’ll give us another “New Deal”
This time, the Green New Deal.
They’ll talk about how dirty money spreads disease (COVID), pushes illegal drug sales (they Kensington St. in Philly is on a 24/7 youtube feed…it’s propaganda), how it causes global warming (the Maui lasers…oops, excuse me, I meant entirely accidental fires), etc.
They figure once they get us on the digital currency, that’s it. They can do whatever they want with us forever.
And forget ever having a fucking independent retirement. Any money you save will be squandered with inflation. Perhaps they even intend to make gold and silver worthless because there’s no way to buy or sell it without cash.
We need to say NO to this New Deal, and shove it right back down their evil throats with a simultaneous boot up their ass.
I don’t know about Indians, but on the other side of the equation, forget about Sichuan cuisine.
Sichuan cuisine is mild compared to Jiangxi cuisine.
Seriously, Jiangxi folks consume chilis like they’re vegetables.
I remember going with a colleague (from Sichuan) to another colleague’s (from Jiangxi) apartment.
When we arrived, he (colleague from Jiangxi) was cooking and as soon as we stepped into the apartment, the “spicy-ness” in the air was so overpowering and overwhelming that our eyes started to water.
Then dude proceeds to bring out this huge-ass noodle dish from the kitchen, and the entire thing is mostly chili.
At the time I remember thinking – is this a noodle dish, or a chili dish?
Just looking at it – well, sweat beaded my brow and made my hands moist.
Sichuanese colleague was not exactly enthusiastic about the offer and said, jokingly, that he would stil llike to be able to go to work on Monday.
Even a Sichuanese is quaking in his boots at the thought of eating Jiangxi cuisine.
image 17
To me, Jiangxi cuisine doesn’t appear to be food for humans.
Before we retired, my husband and I worked as educators and lived in a small rural town in California’s Central Valley. When we bought our home there the realtor covered all the basics, but after we moved in we discovered a hole in the ground with a metal lid covering it.
Lifting up the lid, my husband saw that the hole was actually an empty 30 gallon steel drum buried in the ground. Still not sure of its purpose, he put the lid back on and didn’t think much more about it.
A few weeks later we were across the street talking with our firefighter neighbor and his wife when my husband mentioned the weird hole in the ground thing. Our neighbor got excited, asked to take a look at it, and the two men crossed over to our house to check it out.
When they returned, the neighbor said our hole in the ground was a barbecue for deep pit tri-tip and other meats that are cooked low heat and very slowly—typically 12 hours or more. He loved to barbecue and asked if he could use it sometime.
We said he could use it any time he wished, and that’s how we came to enjoy delicious “low and slow” barbecue many times over the twenty-five years we lived there—without lifting a finger.
Our neighbor wouldn’t even let us pitch in to pay for the meat. This was like a new toy to him and he was in hog heaven. So what was weird to us as people from the San Francisco Bay Area was a much sought after item to him.
The first serious story I wrote when I was a kid was about a man who had a heart transplant and began taking on the characteristics of his donor, who turned out to be a serial killer. It was always a topic that interested me, and one story stands out as evidence that this phenomenon exists.
In March 1995, 33-year-old Terry Cottle from South Carolina took his own life by shooting himself in the throat with a shotgun. After four days in a trauma unit, his wife Cheryl decided to take him off life support and donate his organs.
His heart went to a 57-year-old man named Sonny Graham, who was dying of heart failure. After a successful transplant, Sonny started to write to his donor’s wife Cheryl. Over the next ten years, the two ended up falling in love and got married.
image 3
People who knew Terry Cottle started to notice that Sonny was taking on some of Terry’s personality and characteristics. He started liking things he never enjoyed before, like beer and hotdogs, which were some of Terry’s favourites. This isn’t uncommon for transplant recipients. Many people have reported taking on the tastes, emotions and even memories of their donors.
This phenomenon was taken to the extreme thirteen years after Terry took his life when Sonny took a shotgun and shot himself in the throat the same way Terry did.
The Noor-3 was reportedly placed in an orbit 450km (280 miles) from the surface of the Earth and, like its predecessors, was taken to space using a Qased – meaning “messenger” – carrier developed by the IRGC.
Despite criticism from the West, Iranian officials have promised to carry on with the expanding satellite programme and are expected to launch several more satellites into different orbits in the foreseeable future.
In August 2022, an Iranian-owned and Russian-built satellite – said to be capable of taking high-resolution images – was successfully launched from a base in Kazakhstan.
Western allies have suggested the development of Iranian satellites may violate a United Nations Security Council resolution underpinning the country’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers because the technology could potentially be used to facilitate nuclear weapons.
Iran has repeatedly dismissed such claims, maintaining that its nuclear programme is entirely peaceful.
The nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), continues to be in limbo after the United States unilaterally withdrew from it in 2018 and reimposed harsh sanctions on Iran.
Iranian officials have recently suggested again that they are open to returning to the accord but would first need to see political resolve from the Western parties, which also include France, Germany and the United Kingdom.
As part of one of the clauses of the accord, a number of restrictions on Iran’s development of ballistic missiles is set to be automatically lifted next month.
But with tensions lingering over the Iranian nuclear programme and Western accusations that Iran has armed Russia with drones for the war in Ukraine, the European powers have said they will maintain their own sanctions on Iran despite the clause.
On December 25, 2015, a farmer named Jose Antonio Nievas discovered something unusual near a stream on his farm, located about 15 km from Buenos Aires, Argentina.
image 6
Initially, he thought it was just a rock. However, when he removed the mud covering it and dug around it, he realized that it wasn’t an ordinary rock at all.
image 26
His discovery turned out to be much more extraordinary than he had imagined, so he decided to involve experts from the scientific community.
image 25
After careful analysis, scientists concluded that this mysterious object, which appeared similar to a rock, was neither a meteorite nor a dinosaur egg, but something much rarer: the shell of a glyptodon.
image 24
The glyptodon was a huge armored mammal that lived during the Pleistocene era and was an ancestor of the modern armadillo. These imposing animals could weigh up to two tons and it seems they shared territory with humans for about 4,000 years before disappearing from the face of the Earth.
Originally Answered: What do you wear when you go to work ?
I work for a game company, so like most IT companies, our dress code is on the far side of casual. Checkered shirts are a must (since it’s the uniform for programmers), people come to work in sweatpants, slippers, old T-shirts, hoodies, sneakers… Instead of having casual Fridays, we actually have Fancy Fridays that encourage people to dress formal once in a while, just for the kicks.
When I first started working in the industry, I was “t-shirt+hoodie+messenger bag” ALL THE WAY, EVERYDAY.
image 19
(this is my “I don’t give a fuck about how I look” face).
Then I got a bit more “sophisticated” mostly because dressing up make me feel good. Picking out clothes and socks and such is fun, shopping is fun.
So I “evolved” to a what I call “Japanese casual”.
When I was a young boy, perhaps in first grade, my father had a business trip up into New Foundland. And there, he did some work and (apparently) attended a local festival.
When he came back, he had a special gift for me.
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It was a full Scottish kilt ensemble.
And I, well I wore it with pride, and being the photo buff that he was, took a zillion pictures of me wearing the outfit.
I don’t know what ever happened to the outfit, or the pictures, but I do remember that time, and how I felt being parading about in Bridgeport Conn wearing that kilt.
…
My dad was kind of silly. But he was cool in a strange way. And this little event is one of my best memories.
The U.S. have a right to adopt or adapt any any stance it wants. Or behaves as obnoxiously and despicably as ot wants too! But China will act swiftly in its own path forward to protect and defend and its own territories including Taiwan. And the world’s 99% will be behind China solidly. The Taiwan issue is totally and absolutely none of US or anybody’s business except the Chinese people and the Chinese authorities. Get that through your think skull once and for all.
You can talk as much shit, or stir as much shit as you want but touching an inch of Taiwan and we all go to war fully and comprehensively till the world as we know it will be change forever. If that is what you want. Let that be absolutely clear even a single U.S. marine parachute into Taiwan and China will without a doubt take drastic and immediate action.
No go back to asking shit like this and waste all your time. If you want. China don’t gives a shit about U.S. stupidly and waste fully sailing 10 thousand miles blowing a billion gallons of fuel to aimlessly flex your muscles a million times. We don’t mind if you to go hang yourself if that is what you want. You can have a million discussion in Washington for all we care but the business of Taiwan is decided in Beijing.
FLASH TRAFFIC: GERMAN ARMY TANK CREW CAUGHT OPERATING TANK IN UKRAINE, ATTACKING RUSSIAN ARMY
German supplied Leopard Tank With German Army Crew Zaporozhye Started WW3 2 large
This is FLASH TRAFFIC: It appears World War 3 has officially begun. Saturday morning the Russian Army engaged a German-supplied Leopard Tank operating for the Ukraine army in Zaporozhye. The Russians hit the tank with an anti-tank guided missile. The tank blew up. The tank crew evacuated and were captured. The crew identified themselves as ACTIVE DUTY GERMAN ARMY TROOPS.
Thus, the actual Army of Germany has now been caught waging actual war against Russia inside official Russian territory, Zaporozhye. The image above is the actual tank involved in the actual incident this morning, 23 September 2023.
Hal Turner Remark: It appears, on its face, NATO has just started World War 3; using the active-duty German Army to attack Russians.
More as I get it . . . .
UPDATE 10:14 AM EDT —
Details are emerging. It is now CONFIRMED a Russian Army reconnaissance team destroyed a German-supplied Leopard tank of the Ukrainian military but manned with a crew comprised of Bunderswehr soldiers. The Bunderswehr is the actual active duty Army of Germany.
This took place in Zaporozhye this morning.
A member of the actual Russian Recon team directly and personally involved in the incident has stated the following: “When we curbed another offensive and ATGM-ed [destroyed with an anti-tank guided missile] the Leopard, we moved out to the burned vehicle hoping to seize the ‘tongue.’ Then we saw that the crew’s driver-mechanic was severely injured and the others were dead. Once he awoke, the mechanic started yelling ‘nicht schießen‘ [“do not shoot” in German],” the head of the reconnaissance team said.
“The mechanic repeatedly stated that he was not a mercenary but a Bundeswehr serviceman, and that he and the rest of the crew were members of the same unit of the German army,” the Russian fighter said, adding that while receiving medical aid, the German soldier named his brigade and its dislocation site.
The tank’s driver died from wounds minutes after he was found despite efforts to save him.
Philly Cheese Steak Stuffed Peppers
2023 09 25 15 22
Ingredients
1 pound thinly sliced sirloin steak (or deli roast beef)
8 slices provolone cheese
4 large green bell peppers
1 medium sweet onion
1 pound white mushrooms
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher or sea salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
Slice a thin piece off each pepper lengthwise, remove ribs and seeds.
Slice onions and mushrooms. Sauté over medium heat with butter, olive oil and a little salt and pepper. Sauté until onions and mushroom are nice and caramelized, about 25 to 30 minutes.
Salt and pepper the steak and sauté in a little olive oil until just not pink, about 5 minutes.
Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
Add steak to the onion/mushroom mixture and stir to combine.
Line the inside of each pepper with a slice of provolone cheese.
Fill each pepper with meat mixture until they are overflowing.
Top each pepper with another slice of provolone cheese.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until the cheese on top is golden brown.
Back 20 years ago my 8 year old son and I went to the bank. When we walked in the only customer was a lady filling in forms at the bench. We walked up to where the lines started, identified by some silver poles with plastic chains showing the flow of foot traffic. We waited while the teller finished doing her task.
As we waited a few people came into the bank and lined up behind us. The lady at the bench then walked over and pushed in front of us stating that she was in the bank first but had to fill in some forms. I commented that she should take her place at the back, and again she said she was in the bank first. My son looked up at me, knowing that her behavior was rude but he had a glint in his eye. I should have known better.
Silently, without anyone noticing, including me, he picked up the end of the plastic chain from the top of a metal pole and hooked it into her handbag.
As she stepped forward in her self importance her snagged handbag then pulled 4 or 5 poles onto the tiled floor with such a loud clatter. As she spun around to see what had happened she pulled another 2 poles over.
We slipped past, went to the teller and on our way out saw that she had been passed by most of the line and was still picking up her paper, pens and other things that had spilled from her handbag.
On my next trip to the bank the teller told me that was the funniest thing she had ever seen and presented me with a savings book for my son with $20. Each teller donated $5 because no one liked that lady.
One day it will be you.
Twice this week, I have watched an elderly individual, fade into the busy life in which we all live. One man just needed Panadol for his wife but the shop assistant simply said it’s in ‘6’.
But he struggled to navigate the supermarket and as I watched him go in the wrong direction, I left all my groceries and took him where he needed to go.
Today, I watched an elderly man struggle in the heat, who had obviously had a fall with a huge scrape and blood on his leg. He walked past people in the cafe, while he slowly made his way to his car. Not one person stopped. Or looked.
Or acknowledged him. I took him to his car and checked he was ok. He told me he had a fall and wasn’t sure how the air con worked in his car so he just didn’t use it. I sat with him, until his air con kicked in and heard him talk about the old frail body that he is in, that fails him now, every single day.
When you see an elderly person walking down the street, searching in the supermarket or struggling to their car, take a minute out of your busy schedule and ask them if they need a hand. Think about your grand parents and your parents and how pissed you would be if someone didn’t stop to help them. But more, think of them as you.
Once upon a time they were you. They were busy, they had work, they had children, they were able…. Today, they are just in an older body that is not going as fast as it used to and this busy life is confusing. They deserve our utmost respect and consideration.
One day it will be you, it will be us. I wish more people gave a sh*t about them and acknowledged them for their admirable existence and geez I hope someday, not that far away, someone does it for me.
Full-Time RV Life: The Quitting Has Just Begun – Why Many Have & Will Come Off The Road
Notice these trends that are going on in the United States.
Chinese people are consistent with Japanese people, only one enemy is japanese imperialism and chinese national scum. – Mao zedong, 1941.5.15 (This was at a time when Japanese imperialism was invading China)
Likewise. Chinese people are consistent with US people, only one enemy is US imperialism and chinese national scum.
The Chinese national scum includes Taiwan independence elements, Hong Kong independence elements and overseas dissidents funded by the US government. not elaborated here.
The point is: who represents US in the world? Is it the US people, or is it US imperialism?
No other country in the world has invaded the United States. Even if Bin Laden had created 9/11, it was not an act from the military of any country.
It’s not US politicians or capitalist who die on the battlefield, it’s you! idiot! In war the politicians give ammunition, the rich give the food and the poor give their children… When the war is over the politicians get back the leftover ammunition, the rich grow more food and the poor search for the graves of their children.
The US people need to pay more in taxes and lives for the war of aggression waged by the US government. Obviously, the U.S. government has launched a war of aggression against all countries in the world, which goes against the interests of the US people.
Do you think it is in the interests of the US people for the US government to go around the world invading?
It is not in the interest of the US people, nor is it in the interest of the Chinese people, who are simply generating profits for the capitalists of the US military industrial complex.
Because US is a capitalist country, capital controls US politics.
The US has more than 240 years of history, only 16 years without war.
So, Does the US government represent the interests of the US people, or the interests of US imperialism?
Do you represent the interests of the US people, or the interests of US imperialism?
Biden did not tell the US citizens that he wanted to invade China, only “to defend Taiwan”.
So, I ask, how does the US plan on doing that? with some sort of video game competition?
I mean, in order to “defend Taiwan”, you have to have military troops pertorming military actions, aka combat inside of China.
And that’s because Taiwan is in China.
So currently America has soldiers in Taiwan, which is either illegal, or at the very least gray area because that’s part of China.
And the government of China doesn’t approve of that and hasn’t allowed it.
So that’s the current status.
If US start performing military action, that’s an effort to militarily conquer at least China or push them back inside of China.
That‘s called an invasion.’
Sorry, everybody, if you don’t agree with this definition, but that’s what it is.
So US is yet again confirming that it will invade China if China attempts to continue its reunification by using military action.
So this is a very, very dangerous game that US are playing.
George Carlin – It’s A BIG Club & You Ain’t In It!
Lots of bullying stories. Here is mine. My son (autism spectrum, language disabilities) had a chum who happened to be a boy-crazy girl. Dating wasn’t his thing, but she was pretty smart and he liked her and they looked out for each other.
Another boy in the class was a little behind on his social skills, and was doing some low-end bullying of her. Calling out to her “Hey— coat rack!” or similarly stupid things. She was annoyed, but it wasn’t quite so bad that teachers noticed or disciplined him.
Anyway, we got a phone call from school that my son finally lost his temper and pushed this kid against the wall, telling him to knock it off and never do it again. It was pretty clear that regulations about bullying required us to be told of his inappropriate response, so they were following the rule but they weren’t too concerned.
When I told the program director of his previous school about this, he high-fived me. It never would have happened when my son was overwhelmed with sensory overload, so it was a real sign of progress.
China Destroyed US Sanctions Whole Car Industry in Big Trouble
Historic times!
Patrick Lawrence: The Real Threat From China: They’re Better at Capitalism Than We Are
The Biden regime’s robotic procession to Beijing proceeds apace. Following Antony Blinken’s fruitless visit in mid–June, we have paid Janet Yellen’s airfare for another fruitless visit, and following Yellen it was the same for John Kerry. This week it is Gina Raimondo’s turn. The secretary of state, the Treasury secretary, the chief climate envoy, and the commerce secretary: What is the point of this parade?
I cannot but wonder whether these officials are dispatched across the Pacific in descending order of competence. Raimondo, who previously flopped as governor of Rhode Island—except for her plan to cut civil service pensions, an unfortunate success—is mediocrity made flesh. The Chinese must be wondering, with chagrin or amusement or both, who the Biden regime will next send their way.
The assignment in all these cases is the same: It comes down to “two seemingly contradictory responsibilities,” as The New York Times’s Ana Swanson put it in a curtain-raiser last week. She described “a mandate to strengthen U.S. business relations with Beijing while also imposing some of the toughest Chinese trade restrictions in years.”
This is succinct, although we can live without the “seemingly.” Proposing to conduct routine business while sabotaging China’s competitive position in advanced technologies is prima facie a ridiculous idea. But The Times must have its “seemingly,” because it is imperative we pretend the Biden regime thinks sensibly and means well in its relations with the People’s Republic.
Blinken got nothing done, Yellen got nothing done, Kerry got nothing done, and in Raimondo’s case it is hopeless. The final item on her itinerary is a visit to Disneyland in Shanghai, and you have to credit the secretary’s scheduler for the parting reference to dreams and fantasy. An English friend observes that we Americans are doing a lot of blinkin’ and yellin’ across the Pacific these days. Fair enough, but I think it is more of the former than the latter for the time being. This administration simply has no idea what a sound China policy would look like.
What is this all about? For a long time now I have concluded that Biden’s foreign policy people match the definition of insanity commonly but mistakenly attributed to Einstein. These people seem to be doing the same thing again and again while expecting a different outcome. But with Raimondo’s visit to Beijing this week I have to revise this assessment. Those running Biden’s national security policies are unimaginative ideologues petrified of diverging from the neoliberal catechism, yes, but they are not insane. I start to see in their dealings with Beijing a diabolical design to which the Chinese are very right to object.
The Biden administration’s China strategy comes down to parrying, in a word. All the pointless talk is intended to obscure a concerted effort to undermine China’s economy because we cannot compete with it in various strategic sectors, while—part two—buying time to move maximum U.S. military hardware as close to the mainland as possible under the program the Defense Department named a few years ago the Pacific Defense Initiative, the PDI.
At the horizon, we are likely to see Washington’s trans–Pacific military ambitions trump longstanding trade and investment relationships. This is what “decoupling” and now “delinking” are all about. They are warnings to the corporate and financial sectors that their interests, which came first in the decades after the Dengist reforms of the 1980s, will no longer take precedence as the new Cold War Biden constantly denies provoking destroys relations with the mainland.
, the financial news network, that more or less announced the Biden regime’s intention to subvert key sectors of China’s economy. She was about to address something called the U.S.–E.U. Trade and Technology Council and told her interlocutor, “If we really want to slow down China’s rate of innovation, we need to work with Europe.”
It is useful once in a while to have dumbheads such as Raimondo in high positions, because, without meaning to do so, they can tell you so much more than you are supposed to know. Slowing down China’s impressive advances in high-technology sectors was precisely Washington’s intent by the time Raimondo spoke. The Commerce Department under her direction has since imposed a wide variety of restrictions on U.S. exports to China of semiconductor chips, software systems, and the machinery used to produce both. As Ana Swanson reports, Raimondo is likely to pile on more of these as soon as she returns from Beijing.
The Biden regime dresses up this profoundly undignified conduct as “narrowly targeted” to technologies that could be of use to the Chinese military. Jake Sullivan set the tone for all of these visitors to Beijing in a speech at the Brookings Institution last April. “We are imposing necessary restrictions on specific technology exports,” he explained, “while seeking to avoid an outright technological blockade…. The administration intends to maintain a substantial trade relationship with China.”
This is what Raimondo and all of those who preceded her to China say when explaining their intent: Washington’s sole concern as Raimondo imposes her regime of restrictions is national security, and all else can proceed rosily. It is hard to think of a flimsier dodge. By this standard, she would have to restrict sales of Juicy Fruit gum to the Chinese. What the Biden administration is doing comes down to securitizing the economic relationship. If you have ever doubted that the United States is a failing imperium unwilling to accept 21st century realities, I offer this as proof of the proposition.
The Chinese know this and have said so many times. I no longer think Blinken, Yellen, et al. have any thought of persuading them otherwise on these journeys. That only looks like their intent. Their true purpose is in the way of theatrical, and Americans are their true audience: They must make sure we do not understand Gina Raimondo’s efforts to punch the Chinese well below their belts for what they are: an uncompetitive nation’s attempts to hold back a rising economic power.
interesting for what he left out as much as for what was in it. There was not a single mention of the U.S. military buildup at the western end of the Pacific.
Talk about elephants in the living room. The Pentagon is developing the Australian–British–U.S. alliance known as AUKUS, there is the Quad group, comprising the U.S., Australia, India, and Japan, there are these recently and assiduously fortified alliances with Seoul, Tokyo, Manila, and Canberra, and none of this, we hear again and again, has anything to do with surrounding China or providing for the movement of U.S. military capabilities westward toward the mainland. This is only “seemingly” the case, as The Times would put it.
It is the same as with Raimondo’s projects on the technology side: Neither the Chinese nor anyone else in Asia believes these silly explanations, and no one expects them to do so. Beijing knows very well there is a point to all these apparently pointless visits U.S. officials insist on making. The Biden regime is buying time as it remilitarizes the western end of the Pacific. The only people who are supposed to understand otherwise are Americans. We are not supposed to watch as Washington provokes and prosecutes Cold War II before our eyes. We are supposed to watch as American officials—reasonable, constructive, well-intended—make all efforts to talk to the Chinese in the face of their stubborn reluctance to cooperate.
This is my revised take on the Blinken–Yellen–Kerry–Raimondo cavalcade across the Pacific. These people are not clods. They are purposefully malicious and, it should go without saying, are making the world even more dangerous than it already is.
There are two things to think about here. One, the Biden regime’s efforts to obscure what it is up to at the other end of the Pacific is a straight reprise of the first Cold War, which now resides in all but the most important history books as the responsibility of the Soviets. We have a responsibility to render and defend an accurate record so that this does not happen again.
Two, there is this administration’s immense betrayal of Americans as it aggresses in the Pacific, along with the numerous lost opportunities of which American are deprived. You will find in that Jake Sullivan speech grand and plentiful references to the revival of the American middle class, bipartisan unity, and other such elevated thoughts. Read the speech and then ask: What is this nation’s leadership doing in the cause of a competitive America?
Are we redoubling efforts to educate our people or are we, diabolically, shutting down access—see the University of West Virginia—to liberal arts education? What are we doing to produce the doctors and scientists we need to find our way in the 21st century? What are we doing to bring the dispossessed into the economy, address drug addiction, and all our other debilitating social ills? What are we doing—seriously doing, I mean—to repair and build out the infrastructure we need? Nothing or not enough are my answers.
The Chinese challenge could and should be understood as a chance to reinvent America by way of a Great Mobilization, cap “G,” cap “M,” of New Deal magnitude. There is, of course, no more than lip service to any such idea. We are instead sacrificing this historic opportunity to the military-industrial complex, the greed of corporations, and the ambitions of political leaders who lack all principle or any thought for the commonweal.
Maybe you think, as I do, that none of the Biden officials flying off to Beijing is serious about the true work to be done in our relations with China, or is competent to do it. We must consider, bitterly, that they are perfectly representative of our circumstances as defined by a leadership that is more or less across the board unserious and incompetent to meet the great challenges of our time—China merely one among many.
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has held “candid” talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Malta this weekend, as the world’s two largest economies seek to stabilize troubled relations over trade and militarization of the Pacific.
During the two days of talks on Saturday and Sunday, Wang brought up the issue of Taiwan – a self-governing, democratic island that China claims as its own territory – as a “red line that cannot be crossed in Sino-US relations”. The US has vowed to defend Taiwan against possible Chinese aggression.
“The United States noted the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait,” said the White House in a statement, adding that the two officials “committed to maintain this strategic channel of communication and to pursue additional high-level engagement”.
A Chinese government statement on the Malta meeting largely echoed the US version, saying “the two sides conducted candid, substantive and constructive strategic communication”.
China has accused the US of weaponizing tech and trade issues under the guise of national security while Washington has warned Beijing against its military ambitions in Taiwan and the Pacific. The US has forged security alliances in the Pacific to counter growing Chinese influence.
Sullivan’s meeting with Wang was the latest in a series of high-level discussions between US and Chinese officials that could lay the groundwork for a meeting of US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping later this year.
Sullivan last met Wang in the Austrian capital Vienna in May.
Why I Gave up on the American Dream
Huawei is full of surprises
Huawei has made an interesting discovery about the Kirin 9000s processor after a recent software update. Previously, this processor was thought to have an 8-core architecture, but it turns out it actually has 12 cores. This revelation has attracted significant attention, as it brings a substantial boost in processing power and performance for devices using this chip. It’s always exciting when technology surprises us with hidden capabilities, and this discovery could have a positive impact on the performance
of devices powered by the Kirin 9000s processor.
Huawei has released HarmonyOS 4.0.0.116 for its Mate 60 series and Mate X5 smartphones. These devices are powered by the Kirin
9000s chipset, which is a new processor developed by Huawei. This update brings the latest features and improvements to these smartphones, enhancing their performance and user experience. It’s always a good sign when manufacturers continue to support their devices with software updates, ensuring that users can enjoy the latest innovations and enhancements.
There seems to be a discrepancy in the reported core count of the Kirin 9000s chipset in the Huawei Mate 60 series. Initially, phone information apps and Geekbench indicated that the chip had an 8-core architecture. However, after a recent software update, these sources are now reporting that the Mate 60 is running a 12-core chip. This is indeed an interesting development, and it could indicate that Huawei has unlocked additional cores in the chipset
through a software update, potentially improving its performance. It’s a noteworthy change, and users may experience enhanced performance as a result of this update.
in the meanwhile … see Huawei new Cloud Service
I gave up on the American Dream|And you should too
My mother did. I moved out at 18 because of physical abuse (beatings). I didn’t talk to her for about 10 years. She called me one day and asked if she could see me. I said no. She started crying and begged me to see her. I agreed. We met and talked for awhile. She told me how sorry she was for the way she treated me growing up. She apologized and begged my forgiveness. She told me of the abuse she went thought from both her parents. Like burning her tongue with a red hot knife for lying. And the beatings that left her bloody. By the time the evening was over, we were both crying and hugging. After that we had a more loving relationship until she passed away.
Years ago, pre-Covid, I went on holiday to Hong Kong with my mother and aunt. I was a teenager at that time, so most of the time, I was roped in to become my mother and aunt’s ‘pack mule’ when we weren’t sightseeing, and they were shopping like no tomorrow.
So one time, we passed by a shop that was selling jewellery and my aunt wanted to take a look. One of the shop attendants take one look at us and spoke to her colleague in Cantonese.
Now, I live in Singapore, and me, my aunt and my mother are all Singaporean Chinese. As such, we are bilingual and Cantonese happened to be one of the languages we can speak and understand.
Essentially, the shop attendant is telling her colleague to not serve us or just show us the cheapest items they got as ‘we can’t afford it anyway’.
Oh geez, I wish phones have the video function at that time, as the dressing down my aunt and mother gave to that shop attendant is GOLD! Not to mention her very impressive imitation of a fish out of the water!
6 Major Culture Shocks After Returning to the US From Europe
The world knows better. China will absolutely take over the entire chip making process, production, business and industry. The U.S. can make some chips for its military equipment. At 1000 times the cost of a Chinese equivalent to fool themselves that they are in charge if that is what they want. That is their right.
But there is no way China will stop till they make their own stuffs. And they will get it done faster, better and cheaper. They always do. The U.S. export control will end the U.S. involvement in 99.9% of chip business losing them trillions of dollars over time. It is too bad. It is not what China wants it is what China is forced into it by the U.S. excesses and U.S. obnoxious and despicable behaviour.
I grew up in a poor family from a small, poor village in Vietnam.
I don’t know why, but to me when I was a small kid, a globe being displayed on the top shelf of a glass cabinet in the living room was the symbol of wealth. A family had that thing, they were rich – that was my silly logic. I liked the globe a lot, but I knew I couldn’t ask my parents for one – because we’re poor.
In my neighborhood, there was a decent family. The husband was a math teacher. He liked me, because every time when I had a tough math homework, I would bring it to him, asked for his guidance, listened and tried to solve it. I also played chess with him. I liked him, because, well, he was nice but also because he had a globe.
One day, after finishing a chess match with the math teacher, I stood there in front of their cabinet, looked up to the globe with my widening eyes. I guessed that he noticed it. He opened the cabinet, took the globe down, then he showed me and asked, “Do you know which country is The land of the Rising sun? Do you know why they said The empire on which the sun never sets?”. I shook my head. Then he told me stories about countries, and the world. All of my dreams were condensed into two things: traveling the world and owning a globe.
I grew up. My dream about traveling around the world is still an on-going dream. But I do own a globe now. A very traditional old school style globe. I don’t display it in a cabinet. I have it on my dining table.
Every day, during dinner, we play a game called Where am I now?. Each of us will take turn to pick a country, then others will ask questions, ‘Are you in Asia?’; ‘You border the ocean?’;… and try to guess which country is it.
Why I Left the USA (Again)
The consumerism here in the USA is ridiculous. And people’s self worth is all determined by what they buy and their social media reels. So sick of it.
In mt early 20’s I had a cute little expensive sports car that I had worked multiple jobs to afford. Some idiot rear ended me and did a lot of damage to it and it should probably have been totalled. Insurance adjuster comes to my house, reeking of alcohol, and decides it can be saved.
Trying to take advantage of my youth & sex, he tells me that he can help me out by referring me to his buddy’s shop to get all the work done. RED flag #1 And that I needn’t worry about getting ripped off. RED flag #2. And that his friend would gladly send a flat bed to my house that afternoon, free of charge, to pick it up. RED flag #3. He gives me his friend’s business card
He then proceeds to hand me a pre-written “letter” from my insurance company, that he has personally signed, that authorizes any & all work to be done. RED flag #4. I read it and realize that nowhere in the paperwork does it state that I have to use his friend. Actually, it is an authorization for me to go anywhere.
I sign it, get my copy and quickly usher him out, implying that I need to call his friend and get this in the works. He leaves smiling. I call my buddy who owns a high end exotic & sports car repair shop and read him the letter. He confirms what I thought and arranges to have a flat bed sent ASAP.
My buddy does the accident repairs, plus a few other custom things that I wanted done. Ends up costing 40% more that a brand new version of my car. Pissed off insurance company contacts me to find out how this all went down. I explained about the adjuster being drunk, pushing his friend’s business, the pre-written letter he showed up with etc.
Ends up the adjuster was getting kick backs from his “friend” and gets fired. Plus the insurance company sued him & won a judgement requiring him to pay the full cost of my car’s repair. And I got my car back in better shape than when I bought it.
I was in Michigan with a bunch of Canadian students on a SERVE trip. Our host, the pastor of a church, complained that when he retired all he would have was “‘Obama Care, like the health insurance you Canadians hate so much.”
I said,”Whaaaaat?”
He insisted we Canadians hate our health care system with its delays and problems. He ‘knew this fact’ from TV and articles he’d read.
I told him, “There’s not a single politician I’ve heard of in Canada who would publicly say he would get rid of our health care and replace it with an American system. Not one. He or she would never be re-elected.”
“Whaaat?” he asked me. “How about heart attack victims who never got treated in time and died? I read about a guy…”
“You have to start reading Canadian newspapers and watching Canadian news channels. We love our health care system. Sure, there are delays, but usually serious cases are treated quickly and families are not bankrupt when they have a medical emergency. You can thank Kiefer Sutherland’s grandfather…”
“Who?”
“Tommy Douglas, grandfather of Kiefer Sutherland, the actor. First Canadian leader to initiate universal health care in his Province.”
“His what?”
Finding True America: Why Americans have left the U.S.
Putin cares about the security of Russia preserving the Russian motherland and it’s glory
He cares about RUSSIA and he will choose his future based on what is best for Russia
Putin has no ideology
He is a crisp man of logic and reasoning
Here is why he won’t trust the West again:-
They are LIARS – They promised no eastward expansion of NATO, They made promises with Minsk 2 – eventually they lie and lie and lie some more.
They are steeped in Ideology – They are insane. The leaders are. They are steeped in ideology equivalent to Hitlers. They have caused death and devastation of millions of people in the name of human rights and freedom.
They HATE RUSSIA – The West hates Russia. It’s as simple as that. They want Russia balkanized. They want Russia broken up and swindled of all it’s resources by the Evil Coalition of the West
Putin may do business with the West in the future but he will never trust them or come on their side
Now let’s see the track record of the West :-
They nuked Japan and killed hundreds of thousands of innocent people
They destroyed Vietnam, a war where they had no direct causation
They destroyed Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya and Syria all for some demented ideology and flooded the world with migrants plus Al Qaeda plus ISIS
They haven’t helped a single country fruitfully towards Independence and Strength
They throttled Japan single handedly in the Plaza accords
China is where the USSR should have been and that rankles Putin
Yet he is enough of a realist to understand that China is a giant and the only major economic bulwark to the USA today
So it’s a mutually beneficial partnership
China has no interests in Europe and Russia has little interest in the South China Sea
They have territorial peace now
Russia has the Military Capabilities and the Energy Resources & Raw Materials and China has the High Intellect People and the Manufacturing and the Economy
Together these two nations form a strong bulwark against Western Sanctions & Bullying & Restrictions
They have the largest pliable land area on earth now and they can route bulk of their energy and trade by land and entirely bypass blockades
Plus China has never let down it’s friends at crucial times nor caused color revolution in any of it’s friendly countries nor interfered with any such country
It’s always been TRADE, TRADE and TRADE
It’s why Putin and Xi are teaming up
It’s the only way to form a bulkwark against Western Hegemony
Get Iran into the picture and maybe Saudi Arabia and that would be a very powerful alliance
Ranch Steak
2023 09 25 15 24
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 1/2 to 2 pounds round steak
Salt and pepper
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup beef broth
1 tablespoon Ranch dressing mix
1/2 cup sour cream
Instructions
Heat oil in large heavy, nonstick skillet.
Fry onions until limp. Remove from pan and set aside.
Cut meat into serving size pieces. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. Dust lightly with flour and beat it into meat with edge of a saucer. Brown on both sides, adding more oil if needed.
Return onion to pan with meat. Add beef broth, cover and simmer for 50 to 60 minutes or until meat is very, very tender, adding a little more broth if needed.
Combine Ranch dressing mix and sour cream. Remove meat to platter.
Stir sour cream mixture into meat juices. Heat through until bubbly. Pour over meat and serve.
This is not true. Since poverty was wiped out in 2020, 800 million Chinese entered into the middle class, that’s 2.5 times US entire population. Half of rural population moved to cities for better education and healthcare. China has 4 times the US population, but less homelessness. Wealth is concentrated in 1% of population in the US, trillionaires like Bill Gates and Elon Musk, and the middle class is shrinking, many without healthcare. “Middle class” as defined by 96% literacy rate in China, people with basic needs of food and shelter, healthcare and old age benefits.
Russia Retaliates for Sevastopol; Hits Kremenchug Airport Where Missiles were launched
Just days ago, Ukraine fired either French-supplied “SCALP” or British-supplied “Storm-Shadow” missiles at the Russian Black Sea Fleet HEadquearters in Sevastopol, Crimea, Russia, killing what we are now told was 34 high-ranking Russian officers. Now, Russia has retaliated.
The Kremenchug Airport, launch site for the cruise missile attack upon Sevastopol, has been hit by a significant Russian missile barrage.
NO AIR-RAID WARNING WAS SOUNDED PRIOR TO THE ATTACK, with locals suggesting Russia utilized low-observable, KH-50 cruise missiles for the retaliation attack.
Both SCALP and STORM SHADOW missiles, which were stored at the Kremenchug airport, along with the Ukrainian SU-24M/MR bomber aircraft which fired those missiles, have been destroyed.
A substantial number of fire-fighters and ambulances have been dispatched to the airport. We are told there are “significant casualties among pilots, ground crews and even NATO personnel, including Polish troops, who were involved in coordinating the operations and maintaining the missiles.
After my first year at university, I ended up working for McDonald’s, where I made a number of friends and several lovers, and even met my first wife.
I generally worked the night shift. The night shift is quite a lot different from day shift: the average age of the workers is slightly higher (at least when I was there, this was decades ago), and the workload is different.
During night shift:
We spent a huge amount of time cleaning. We deep-cleaned the lobby, dismantled and cleaned the shake machine, and deep-cleaned cooking trays and food prep utensils. (We didn’t have an industrial dishwasher, this all happened by hand.)
We cleaned the grills, a rather tedious process involving lots of scraping with a dedicated tool that was basically an aluminum handle with a stainless steel blade bolted to the end, another tool with a wire mesh pad on the end, and a special cleaning solvent that would take the hair out of your nose.
We changed deep-fryer oil.
We received the supply truck.
We snuck off to make out in the walk-in freezer. Yes, I’m serious. I had several rather delightful makeout sessions with a lovely woman whose name I sadly no longer remember.
We played with the helium tanks that the cDonald’s kept on hand for birthday parties. I will never forget working the back drive-through booth one evening when my friend Henry filled a garbage bag with helium, walked into the booth, and pushed it out the window. We all just kind of stood there watching it float away…including the customers in the drive-through lane.
We played practical jokes on day shift, like stacking the trays the hamburger buns were delivered in all the way to the ceiling, so you actually had to take the entire stack outside to remove the top tray.
At closing, we’d disassemble and clean the various bits of equipment before we locked up. Then we’d go across the street to the 24-hour Perkin’s, which back then was called Perkin’s Bar and Grill (this was before they re-branded as “Perkin’s Family Restaurants”). We called the place “Perkin’s Brawl and Grill” because it would usually be the scene of at least one or two knock-down-drag-out bar fights a month.
In the ADC is a prison called The East Arkansas Regional Unit. Known as “Brickies” because that is the town that it is next. It is an old cotton plantation that has been turned into a hard labor prison. And that is where I was first sent to when I was “retired“.
There, I noticed many, many “gang bangers” from West Memphis, which was only a spit away from the prison. And these urban youth were quite a lively bunch. They were really rambunctious, but kept in line by the older men.
Anyways, there were many wanna-be rappers that were serving time there. And yuppur, this is one of the albums that was produced by some felons from that facility… now out free.
I know these folk. Shared coffee with ’em.
HEADLIGHTS FLASHES – HXVRMXN
Small world, eh?
They would stand by the windows and just rap on the windows for hours while composing their lyrics. And with the proper connections can produce works like this.
I lived in Japan for two years, and lost a ton of weight. I drank a lot of alcohol, ate whatever food was convenient, and never consciously exercised. I lived upstairs from a Genkizushi sushi shop, and across the street from Chuuka Ton-Ton with excellent ramen and surprisingly large Jumbo Bikkuri Gyoza. I had a car, but walked and took public transportation because it was more convenient. After two years of Japanese life, my BMI was 19, just on the underweight side of healthy.
I now live in an American suburb. I track my diet and exercise on apps. I have a home gym with weights, a Peloton exercise bike, and VR boxing subscriptions. I have another gym at work. My BMI is 29, overweight bordering on obese.
I’ve thought about the reasons for this. Why did I get thin without trying in Japan, then get fat while trying to stay thin in the USA? If you were trying to design the perfect obesogenic society to make people fat, you would do two things:
Subsidize low-nutrient foods with a lot of calories, like corn syrup.
Use fear, zoning restrictions and tax laws to keep people away from sidewalks, parks, and “the gym of life.”
America does both of these things.
Due to the peculiar way Americans select presidents, Iowa has outsized political influence. Iowa also grows a lot of corn, so it’s not surprising that American agricultural policy favors corn.
Modern varieties of corn, and especially those varieties processed into corn syrup, have calories but not much else.
Our bodies didn’t evolve to directly sense the taste of nutrients, but they did involve to sense some tastes and aromas that are often seen alongside nutrients, sensations that are a reasonable heuristic for nutrition in wild and natural foods.
If your body tells you to eat until it senses that you have tasted enough, and you eat bland foods like corn, you’ll consume a lot of calories and still be hungry. If your tongue tells you to eat until it has tasted enough, you can consume a lot of calories of corn syrup.
On the other hand, traditional Japanese restaurants serve small amounts of carbs (rice or noodles) intensely flavored with small amounts of high quality protein and fat (fish in sushi or pork slices in ramen).
Japanese cuisine is quality over quantity, while common American food is the opposite. It’s easier to stop eating after a few bites of intensely flavored carb/fat/protein medley than a few bites of bland fat-free sweetened engineered food.
At the same time that Americans consume more calories than Japanese people, Americans move around less. American zoning laws encourage large residential areas with no commercial areas nearby.
Where there are commercial areas, there are huge parking lots which are unpleasant to walk through. Parking spaces occupy the area that a sensible construction would use for walking paths. Japan is the opposite. There are plenty of walking paths and pedestrian-only areas.
Mixed zoning with stores on the first floor and residential units above are common, and possible without requirements for a parking space per bedroom or restaurant table. Parking and highway tolls in Japan are expensive, so people are encouraged to walk and take public transportation.
Finally, American media encourages people to be afraid. Afraid of kids getting abducted while walking to school, so they are driven instead. Afraid of the neighbors calling the police because your kids are outside, so kids play inside instead. Afraid of crime on public transportation, so everyone drives instead.
Afraid of ticks and mosquitoes and sunburns and nature so everyone stays inside and watches screens instead. Japan has giant swallow hornets (so called because the hornets are as large as a small bird like a swallow) that kill dozens of hikers a year, but nobody stays out of the mountains because of them.
It’s possible to live a healthy lifestyle in America if you constantly invest time and effort, eat unlike most Americans and live unlike most Americans.
It’s easy to live a healthy lifestyle in Japan by just being lazy, eating common restaurant food and taking the easiest path from home to work to shopping. Being unhealthy in Japan requires as much extra work as being healthy in America.
Gorgonzola-Topped Tenderloin Steaks
BEEF TENDERLOIN with CHERRY PORT
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
4 (4 to 6 ounce) beef tenderloin steaks, cut 1 inch thick
1 large clove garlic, crushed
1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
1/2 cup ready-to-serve beef broth
1/4 cup dry red wine
1/4 cup crumbled Gorgonzola or other blue-veined cheese
Instructions
Heat large nonstick skillet 5 minutes over medium heat until hot.
Combine garlic and pepper. Press evenly into both side of each beef steak.
Place steaks in skillet. Cook for 10 to 13 minutes for medium-rare to medium doneness; turn occasionally. Remove from skillet; keep warm.
In the same skillet, add broth and wine; increase heat to medium-high. Cook and stir for 1 to 2 minutes, or until sauce is reduced by half.
Spoon sauce over steaks; sprinkle with cheese.
How I see the US after living in Europe for 2 Years
Brutal honesty.
The Nevada Triangle | 2,000 Planes Mysteriously Crashed & Missing Near Area 51
Most of us have heard of the Bermuda Triangle, where planes and ships have mysteriously gone missing in the Atlantic Ocean for decades.
Did you know there is a similar place in Nevada?
The Nevada Triangle. In a region of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in Nevada and California, 2,000 planes have been lost in the last 60 years.
In this remotely populated area of more than 25,000 miles of mountain desert, many of the crash sites have never been found.
The Nevada Triangle is typically defined as spanning from Las Vegas, Nevada in the southeast to Fresno, California in the west, and to Reno, Nevada at the top.
Within this wilderness is the mysterious, top-secret Area 51.
Along with the dozens of conspiracy theories which include UFOs and paranormal activity that surrounds the air force base, similar theories have long been considered regarding the Nevada Triangle.
One plane to go missing was that of a record-setting aviator, sailor, and adventurer named Steve Fossett on September 3, 2007.
Fossett, flying a single-engine plane over Nevada’s Great Basin Desert, took off and never returned.
After hunting for a month for the plane, the search was called off and on February 15, 2008, Fossett was declared dead.
Later that year on September 29th, Fossett’s identification cards were discovered in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California by a hiker.
Throughout the years, many of the missing planes were flown by experienced pilots and have disappeared under mysterious circumstances: and their wreckage never found.
The biggest mystery is: nobody really talks about it.
My father was born in 1929. When he was living he kept an old trunk with trays that came out of it. In it he had saved crafts that we made, old report cards and a host of other things related to all of his nine children. The most curious to my family were little notebooks. They were too small to be journals. My father told me that since he was about 17 he kept a log of where he was and what he did weekly. I asked him why were these dates important.
My father was a young Black male who was tall for his age, traveling alone, beginning at age 13; traveled up and down the eastern coastal states. He said, just in case he got picked up for just being Black, he would have a record of where he had been and what he had done going back for months. During his travels he worked at a general store, he picked oranges, pears, apples and grapes as a migrant worker, he rode horses and herded cattle on a dairy farm in Connecticut. On all those travels he kept these logs to protect himself. That’s also when he told me that there were people in the world who thought “we” all looked alike and his notes were to show proof that we don’t.
In loving memory of Clifton W. McKnight, Sr.
City Walk. Downtown Vancouver BC, Canada. July 2023
I had a similar problem. I bought one of those tiny cube refrigerators for a dorm and had it delivered to the office on a Saturday when I knew no one else would be in the office. It fit nicely under my desk and I put a large empty box in front of it to hide it, jic.. I then used that for my lunch and it paid for itself fairly fast since I didn’t have to run out and buy a replacement lunch any more.
However, since we were not allowed to eat at our desks, I made a pretense of getting my lunch out of the communal fridge. Drove my boss nuts since he could never find my lunch and he couldn’t say or ask about it without giving himself away. Lol
When I left that company, I sold it to a co-worker that would occasionally find her lunch missing.
The LAST HOURS of El Cholo’s LIFE after BETRAYING the CJNG
On March 18, 2021, some pedestrians who were walking calmly through a public square in the municipality of Tlaquepaque, came across a truly sinister scene. A lifeless body was sitting on a bench, wrapped in black garbage bags, but the worst thing was that he had a n4rco-message drawn with a knife on his torso. The authorities were notified immediately and, although the corpse was in a state that prevented it from being recognized, the forensic reports would conclude that it was indeed the body of one of the most wanted criminaIs in Mexico, Carlos Enrique Sánchez, better known as the Cholo.
He was the head janitor at my school, a teddy bear of a man, under 5 feet tall with the sweetest little smile and laugh. He had worked at the school since he was a teen and was due to retire.
Da Tuk (not his real name) was gentle, kind and generous, a soft touch for a sob story. He and his family had just enough but always ended with too little because of his ‘kindness.’
A relative had begged him for a large sum, almost all that Da Tuk and his wife had saved for a deposit on a home. He signed over a land deed to Da Tuk and then disappeared into the gambling dens of Klong Tuey.
When Da Tuk took his family to see the land, they found a hilly, barren, nowhere-near-anywhere, unsellable plot. Da Tuk was inconsolable, realizing that he had been duped and had lost almost everything.
Fortunately, the chairman of the school found a way to help the family to buy a small house and deal with the costs of their children’s educations. They never really recovered from the loss.
As the school grew, so did Da Tuk’s staff, to the point where he was overwhelmed. An ‘assistant’ was hired but was, in fact, in charge. However, he always treated Da Tuk as the boss and saw to it that others did as well.
For Da Tuk’s retirement day, the Board had arranged for a huge luncheon, and we were all seated, waiting for Da Tuk.
When he arrived, he looked stunned, which surprised us because everyone had been talking about the party and teasing him for over a month.
Then an equally stunned member of the Board made a shocking announcement.
Da Tuk had just been paid forty million baht (approximately two million U.S. dollars) for that ‘worthless’ land because it was adjacent to the planned eastern seaboard industrial estate.
A New American and U.K. Perspective after living in China
In this China vlog, I am out in Beijing City exploring the city and as always, seeking to understand China and the relationship with the West. My opinions and thoughts have changed.
Federal Reserve losing $758 Million PER DAY- Now in the Hole for $100 Billion
The Federal Reserve Bank is losing $758 Million PER DAY paying Interest to commercial banks on Reverse Repos and Interest on Reserves. Those losses just reached $100 Billion — with a “B.”
Before all of these wild financial games began, the Federal Reserve would send its profits to the US Treasury each year; it was usually a few Billion Dollars each year.
Now, the Federal Reserve has massive paper losses on their Bond portfolio and masses daily losses on the money it has to pay to commercial banks to keep the system from falling apart.
Federal Reserve Chairman Powell and company have managed to lose a whopping $100 Billion . . . and YOU are paying for it.
It is difficult to overstate the level of sheEr incompetence needed to have a money printer . . . and still lose money.
Next stop: -$200 Billion.
Woman Over 30 Realizes The Wall Is Unforgiving #19 – When Women Regret Feminism
When Women Regret Feminism is a thought-provoking video that explores the struggles women over 30 face when they haven’t found a husband and feel cheated by what feminism tells them.
Through real-life stories shared on TikTok, the video examines the complex issues surrounding marriage, motherhood, and career choices.
It looks at the ways in which women are redefining their roles and expectations for themselves and for the future. This video is a must-watch for anyone interested in gender roles, societal expectations, and the impact of the feminist movement on women’s lives.
With its honest and open dialogue, When Women Regret Feminism provides an insightful look into the lives of women and the challenges they face in today’s world.
As widely known, Si photonics technology has undergone over 20 years of development. It primarily leverages mature CMOS (complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor) processes to integrate key active and passive optical components, such as waveguides, modulators, gratings, couplers and even photodetectors, onto silicon substrates for processing optical signals. The only component that cannot be integrated directly onto such substrates is semiconductor laser, as it involves a different material system and can be addressed only through packaging methods. In the silicon photonics platform, a silicon substrate is responsible for converting optical signals into electrical signals, serving as the receiving end.
On the other hand, the transmitting end involves converting electrical signals into optical signals through lasers. Basically, utilizing mature semiconductor manufacturing processes boasts advantages in terms of miniaturization, integration, production yield and cost; and employing optical signals also offers advantages such as high bandwidth, low latency, and low power consumption when compared to electrical signals.
Since the introduction of optical fiber communication in the 1980s, it has played a crucial role in signal transmission. In its early days, when human data usage was relatively low, optical communication was mainly used for long-distance transmission, such as undersea cables and metropolitan networks. As data usage has increased, optical communication has also entered the realm of regional networks. With the recent rise of generative AI, the most substantial data generation and transmission occur between AI servers. This is because any large-scale model contains billions of parameters, and the computational power required for each training session is immense, all having to rely on parallel processing and data exchange between chips.
Thanks to semiconductor manufacturing technology advancements, it now takes only 1-2 nanoseconds to process or compute a single instruction. However, the increase in data transmission speed has never been able to keep up with the growth in computing power. Light traveling within an optical fiber incurs a delay of approximately five nanoseconds per meter. Consequently, AI servers often have to wait for data to be transmitted, leading to periods of inactivity; but if electrical signals were used, instead of optical signals, for transmission, the waiting time would be even longer. In this regard, the solution is, of course, to bring the devices responsible for converting optical signals closer to the CPU/GPU/ASIC chips to reduce signal latency, ideally avoiding the use of circuit boards in between. This is where co-package optics (CPO), including silicon photonics substrates, comes into play.
Currently, CPO is primarily being deployed inside switches. It involves stacking Si photonics substrates with ICs for processing electrical signals, which are then connected to optical fibers and put in close proximity to various IC processors, representing the closest and lowest-latency solution available.
In the mid-2000s, IBM, in its annual Technology Outlook, particularly highlighted optical interconnect as a key focus for future technology. At that time, no people could foresee the rapid development of AI computing, nor did they have a clear picture of semiconductor technology progressing to levels below 3nm. However, it’s clear that human reliance on data transmission would keep increasing, with Si photonics technology to play a role in optical interconnect.
At the time when optical interconnect was introduced, it was unclear whether they would be used for connecting signals between chips (chip-to-chip), between boards (board-to-board), or between racks of servers (rack-to-rack). Today, optical interconnect technology is widely adopted for signal connections between server racks and even between layers within a rack (unit-to-unit).
Meanwhile, signal connections between chips have been addressed by TSMC’s advanced packaging technologies like 3DIC, CoWoS (chip-on-wafer-on-substrate), chiplet integration, and fabric. These technologies utilize electrical signal exchanges to meet the interconnect needs between chips.
The next big challenge will likely be signal connections between boards. Currently, the primary approach still relies on electrical signal connections, and the adoption of optical interconnects for this purpose is something to be seen.
The combination of CPO with Si photonics technology provides the optimal solution to enhance data transmission speeds in the AI era, representing a significant change for the industry ecosystem.
The traditional ecosystem featuring the use of pluggable optical modules is not simply fading away. At the 2023 Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exhibition (OFC), linear-drive pluggable optics (LPO) garnered significant attention and is considered a major counterattack by traditional players.
The linear-drive concept involves removing the re-timer/DSP (digital signal processing) functions from pluggable optical modules and shifting the signal processing burden to ASICs (application-specific ICs), thus reducing signal latency and power consumption within the modules. Consequently, it allows the industry to advance product development by 1-2 generations without causing significant changes to the entire industry ecosystem.
This is similar to using immersion DUV (deep ultraviolet) lithography equipment to achieve several generations of progress in semiconductor fabrication processes without altering the DUV exposure ecosystem until EUV (extreme ultraviolet) lithography machines become available to take over the exposure process.
The generational shift in Si photonics CPO will eventually come, but if LPO gains traction, it may delay this transition. In fact, the linear-drive concept can also be applied to CPO, offering even better performance in terms of signal latency and power consumption.
Beverly Hills is a GHOST TOWN, California’s Wealthiest City in COLLAPSE
Apple is facing a number of issues in China, with geopolitical risks mounting and the economy still not firing as many would have hoped.
But the biggest challenge of all, according to analysts, could be a resurgent Huawei after a purported major semiconductor breakthrough that flew in the face of U.S. sanctions.
The latest chip, made by China’s biggest semiconductor manufacturer SMIC has sparked concern in Washington and raised questions about how it was possible, without the company being able to access critical technologies.
But there is also scrutiny on whether the process being used to make these new chips is efficient enough on a large scale to sustain a Huawei comeback.
What’s the big deal about Huawei’s new chip?
Alongside Apple and Samsung, Huawei is one of only a few companies that has designed its own smartphone processor. This was done through the Chinese firm’s HiSilicon division.
The chip however was manufactured by TSMC.
U.S. export restrictions, which effectively barred Huawei from using American technology anywhere along the chipmaking process, meant the Chinese company could no longer source its chips from TSMC.
There is no Chinese company that can do what TSMC does. That’s why shockwaves were sent through the political and tech world when Huawei quietly released the Mate 60 Pro in China this month, with analysis showing a chip inside made by SMIC.
Along with Huawei, SMIC is on a U.S. trade blacklist called the Entity List. Companies on this list are restricted from buying American technology. Meanwhile, SMIC’s technology is seen as generations behinds the likes of TSMC.
So how could this have been done with the huge amount of sanctions on both Huawei and SMIC?
What we know about Huawei’s chip
Huawei’s smartphone chip is called the Kirin 9000S, which combines the processor and components for what appears to be 5G connectivity. 5G refers to next-generation mobile internet that promises super-fast speeds. Huawei has not confirmed the phone is 5G capable, but reviews have shown the device is capable of hitting download speeds associated with 5G.
The semiconductor has been manufactured using a 7 nanometer process by SMIC, China’s biggest contract chipmaker, according to an analysis of the Mate 60 Pro by software company TechInsights.
The nanometer figure refers to the size of each individual transistor on a chip. The smaller the transistor, the more of them can be packed onto a single semiconductor. Typically, a reduction in nanometer size can yield more powerful and efficient chips.
The 7nm process is seen as highly-advanced in the world of semiconductors, even though it is not the latest technology.
For years, SMIC struggled to make 7nm chips. That’s in part because it couldn’t get its hands on a very expensive piece of kit called an extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machine. These are made by Dutch firm ASML, but the company has been restricted by its government from sending these machines to China.
In a blogpost this month, Dan Hutcheson, vice chair of TechInsights, said the 7nm chip “demonstrates the technical progress China’s semiconductor industry has been able to make without EUV lithography tools.”
What will the U.S. do next?
There will be pressure on the U.S. to reconsider its export controls strategy, which was based on the assumption that controls would prevent Chinese companies from producing advanced-edge chips, while the business-as-usual approach would continue at the trailing-edge nodes. It is increasingly becoming clear that this distinction doesn’t work in reality. Washington may look at other areas of the chip design and manufacturing process to enact further restrictions.
Apple’s China headwinds grow with Huawei chip
As geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and China continue to bubble under the surface, it is perhaps a potential Huawei resurgence that poses the biggest threat to Apple.
“It’s expected that Huawei will pose a bigger challenge to Apple in China than the geopolitical issue,” Will Wong, a senior research manager at IDC, told CNBC.
“This is because Huawei not only has the same premium brand image as Apple but also is a national pride in China.”
Apple is seen as a high-end smartphone maker and Huawei had directly competed with the U.S. firm in China for years. But Huawei’s sales fell off a cliff when it couldn’t equip its smartphones with 5G technology and the latest chips.
Any kind of resurgence in this area, as appears to be the case with the Mate 60 Pro, could make Huawei’s new phones an attractive option again for Chinese buyers.
“The biggest threat from Huawei is its continuous development in technology, not only in chips but also in new form factors like foldables,” Wong added.
What’s Like Living in China? – Can’t Believe This Is The Same Place …(Chengdu)
Hands down, a woman in her 30’s that I met while staying in a homeless shelter. In my town, the Shelter also serves as a type of half-way house for women just getting out of jail or rehab.
I was “just homeless”, she was on the tail end of a 5 yr prison sentence after she sold her 3 yr old daughter to a sex trafficker to settle a drug debt. The state was in the process of helping her get her daughter back while she finished up her re-entry programs.
She constantly spoke of how beautiful her now 8 yr old was, and what a “fine specimen” she was coming to be. She was quite proud her daughter was “blooming”, and frequently sent her makeup, rather inappropriate clothing and articles from magazines about weight management, beauty techniques, etc. It was infuriating & disgusting. When I addressed the counselors with my concerns, I was told there were “conditions for her release, that hinged on her getting some parental rights in return”.
I left the facility before she did; but I pray all the time that her little girl is safe, sound and being treated well.
What Happened to the Middle-Class Prosperity of the 1950s?
I lived in an apartment building. The upstairs neighbor seemed to think he was back in the dorm: parties all night, every night… people tromping around… music blasting with the bass turned all the way UP.
I tried a white-noise app. I got earplugs. I tried playing music next to the bed. My work was suffering.
Then I addressed him directly: I would go upstairs and politely ask him to please be a little quieter. No dice. I moved through the let-my-frustration-show stage… the angry stage… the I’ll-call-the-authorities stage…
When I couldn’t take the experiment in sleep deprivation any longer, I contacted our local city council to find out my options. Turns out there are regulations having to do with “health”: exceptionally loud noise is on a list of “stressors.”
They sent him a warning letter, saying if there were more complaints they might go so far as to serve eviction.
The following weekend a man turned up at my door. He was well-dressed, polite – older gent. He said he was Upstairs Neighbor’s father and could he talk to me?
Well, hey, I like to think I’m a reasonable person. “Sure, c’mon in…”
He pulled out the letter the Health Department had sent the UN and started waving it about, accusing me of intolerance, trying to cause problems for his son, on and on. He told me I should move out – “Nothing wrong with people having company and enjoying music. I’ve been in his apartment and the music is never loud.” As if the kid would give the old man full blast and prove I had cause for complaint.
I was taken aback, as much as anything because it never occurred to me a 30-year-old would have to send “Daddums” to confront a neighbor. Father wanted me to withdraw the complaint. I refused. He ranted some more, then got up to leave, crabbing the whole way about “How do you have the nerve” and so on. I saw him to the door, and as he stepped into the hallway he turned and said bitterly, “I am so disappointed.” “I understand, sir. If I had children who behaved as your son has, I’d be disappointed too.”
He was at a loss for words. It was so gratifying. 😉
Hal Turner Editorial Opinion
When a country’s Central Bank starts literally LOSING money each and every day . . . countries around the world will start to notice really fast. Especially when there is no sign at all that these losses will stop.
So how long do YOU think countries around the world will continue to accept “Federal Reserve Notes” (i.e. the cash in your wallet) as payment for goods and services, from an entity which is literally Bankrupt?
Sooner or later, those countries around the world will no longer want the paper with pretty pictures on it, masquerading as “money.”
I have no idea WHEN that refusal will start, but given what’s now taking place at the US central bank, I suspect it will not be long.
Now, that paper with pretty pictures on it will still be accepted as “money” here in the US, but . . . . we don’t manufacture very much of anything in this nation anymore. We import most of the things we consume because the Brainiacs of corporate America decided it would be better to outsource manufacturing to other countries.
Those corporate Brainiac Titans never stopped to consider the effect on the nation as a whole, they were only interested in how much extra money they could put in THEIR pockets by outsourcing manufacturing overseas.
So now, the Brainiacs are wealthier, and the country – and its currency – is going down the tubes.
So when you see those corporate Titans, and admire how much wealth they have, remember, they wrecked the entire country to get it.
Turns out, they weren’t nearly as smart as they thought they were; they were just greedy, dumb, fucks.
In case you’re not certain about whom I am speaking, it’s all those “FREE TRADE” dingbats.
So head back into search engines like Google, and start looking up “Free Trade” and watch whose names come up. Then you’ll know who needs straightening out on a personal level.
I just got a communication from someone WAAAAAAAAAY up in the financial sector. He told me this situation is causing almost panic in a LOT of financial firms. He then told me, verbatim, the following: “The parasites are looting the place on their way out the door. They know the jig is up.”
Golden Gate Swiss Steak
DSCN0593
Ingredients
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
1 (1 1/2 pound) round steak, 1 inch thick
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 large tomatoes, peeled and chopped
3 large carrots, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
Instructions
Combine flour, mustard, salt and pepper. Dredge the meat with this mixture, then work the flour into the meat with a meat pounder.
Cut steak into 4 individual portions.
In a heavy skillet or Dutch oven, heat oil and brown meat on both sides.
Combine tomatoes, carrots, Worcestershire sauce and brown sugar; pour over meat.
Cover and either bake in a preheated 350 degrees F oven or simmer on top of stove for approximately 1 1/2 hours or until meat is tender.
Germany Loses Its Auto Industry To China | China’s Take Over Shakes The Entire Europe Market
When I first arrived in China, I lived downtown in Lohu. And to get around, I rode the subway. Very convenient, and super cheap too.
I have many, many stories about those days.
At that time, My hair was short, but I had a long beard. I also wore a red baseball cap (backwards) and wore tan cargo shorts, and a black cargo vest over my black tee-shirt. I didn’t think too much about it.
My eyeglasses were tinted, giving me the appearance of wearing really dark sunglasses.
The baseball hat was to cover up my bald spot, and the beard was to over compensate. The cargo shorts were the norm, being 90F at 90% humidity daily. And the cargo vest is, well necessary, for tissues, phone, charger, wires, and all the rest.
I would ride the subway, and lean, casually on the side rails as the subway sped through the underground tunnels.
One day, I noticed another fellow on the train. He was of middle east appearance. Swarthy, perhaps from Afghanistan, Pakistan or maybe Syria. And he just keep looking at me. I tried not to look back, but he was just sitting there staring at me. His mouth open.
Open.
O-P-E-N
I would watch him in the glass reflection on the train. Yup. He was fixated on looking at me….
Historically, in 1990, the Chinese Air Force planned to import MiG-29s. But when they visited Moscow, a MiG-29 crashed during a demonstration.
This makes the Chinese hesitant to sign purchase agreements.
At this time, the Sukhoi Design Bureau quietly gave the SU-27 information to the Chinese (the SU-27 was still confidential at the time)
The Chinese compared the performance indicators of the SU-27 with the MiG-29. In a short period of time, a consensus was reached: buy back SU27 at any cost.
Facts have proved that the Chinese are wise. As a country with a vast territory, the range of MIG29 is too short and cannot meet the requirements. The SU-27 is more powerful and has a better design. An upgraded version of SU27 made by the Chinese: J16 fighter jet
The Chinese have developed and produced many upgraded models based on the SU-27, and their performance even surpasses the Russian version.
Until China’s fourth-generation fighter jets entered service, the improved SU-27 fighter jets had always been the absolute main force of the Chinese Air Force.
My MIL raised 5 boys, I married the eldest Son, we had 2 sons so I was the only girl for a couple of years..when he died in a car accident 8 years later. I made sure my boys spent time with her. I remarried but still visited her thru the years. Forty-six years later, She is now 90, on one visit, we were just talking, when she said, I always wanted a daughter, but had the boys instead, I had to wait till you came to have my daughter. I had called her Mom all these years, i was so touched to hear that. Bless her.
2 beef shoulder center steaks* (ranch), cut 1 inch thick (about 8 ounces each)
2 teaspoons ground cumin
3/4 cup prepared tomatillo salsa
1 small ripe, Fresh California Avocado, diced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
Press cumin evenly onto beef steaks.
Heat large nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot.
Place steaks in skillet; cook 13 to 16 minutes for medium rare (145 degrees F) to medium (160 degrees F) doneness, turning occasionally.
Meanwhile combine salsa, avocado and cilantro in small bowl.
Carve steaks into slices; season with salt, as desired.
Serve with salsa.
Notes
* Two beef top loin (strip) steaks, cut 1 inch thick, may be substituted for shoulder center steaks. Cook for 12 to 15 minutes, turning occasionally.
The Blinken Doctrine: A two front war with Russia and China
Blinken might be the worst American “diplomat” in American history. He’s drunk on American exceptionalism out of touch with the new realities of multipolarity.
Back in my late teens, many moons ago, I saw cops arrest my friend to cover their asses late at night. Earlier, they had pulled over a motorcycle rider & passenger for riding on a bike with no lights on a back, unlit , dangerous windy road. But even though they were riding a black bike and wearing black (so basically invisible) the cops let them go…no ticket
20 minutes later, I was standing by the side of the road waiting for my friend to back his car out of a tight space so I could get in. The bike rider came around a bend and plowed into my friend’s car. He & his passenger were killed instantly when they were thrown from the bike. The cops, when they showed up, arrested my friend after verbally abusing & berating him and threw him in back of the squad car. They then proceeded to pick up the money, laying on the road, that had fallen out of the rider’s pocket and we’re stuffing it into their own pockets. I brought that to the attention of the crowd that was assembling. Cops told me to mind my own business. Then they started yelling at my innocent friend some more who was beyond distraught.
I finally opened the squad car door & let him out which then got me arrested also. Get to the station and I make my phone call. 5 minutes later the Chief walks in and all hell brakes lose as the cops on duty try to get their stories straight and throw my friend & I under the bus. The Chief sees me & demands to speak to me directly. I tell him everything that happened, including the cops taking the victim’s money. Of course the arresting cops call me a liar.
One slight problem for them. The Chief was a family friend who had known me since I was a baby. His best friend was my grandfather who just happened to be a police Chief 3 towns over. Long story short, two of the cops lost their jobs over this.
AUSTRALIA AND AUSTRALIANS
The following has been written by the late Douglas Adams of “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” fame.
“Australia is a very confusing place, taking up a large amount of the bottom half of the planet. It is recognisable from orbit because of many unusual features, including what at first looks like an enormous bite taken out of its southern edge; a wall of sheer cliffs which plunge into the girting sea.
Geologists assure us that this is simply an accident of geomorphology, but they still call it the “Great Australian Bight”, proving that not only are they covering up a more frightening theory but they can’t spell either.
The first of the confusing things about Australia is the status of the place. Where other landmasses and sovereign lands are classified as continent, island or country, Australia is considered all three.
Typically, it is unique in this.
The second confusing thing about Australia is the animals. They can be divided into three categories: Poisonous, Odd, and Sheep. It is true that of the 10 most poisonous arachnids on the planet, Australia has 9 of them. Actually, it would be more accurate to say that of the 9 most poisonous arachnids, Australia has all of them.
Any visitors should be careful to check inside boots (before putting them on), under toilet seats (before sitting down) and generally everywhere else.
A stick is very useful for this task.
The last confusing thing about Australia is the inhabitants.
A short history: Sometime around 40,000 years ago some people arrived in boats from the north. They ate all the available food, and a lot of them died.
The ones who survived learned respect for the balance of nature, man’s proper place in the scheme of things, and spiders. They settled in and spent a lot of the intervening time making up strange stories. They also discovered a stick that kept coming back.
Then, around 200 years ago, Europeans arrived in boats from the north.
More accurately, European convicts were sent, with a few deranged people in charge. They tried to plant their crops in autumn (failing to take account of the reversal of the seasons), ate all their food, and a lot of them died.
About then the sheep arrived, and have been treasured ever since. It is interesting to note here that the Europeans always consider themselves vastly superior to any other race they encounter, since they can lie, cheat, steal and litigate (marks of a civilised culture they say), whereas all the Aboriginals can do is happily survive being left in the middle of a vast red-hot desert – equipped with a stick.
Eventually, the new lot of people stopped being Europeans on ‘extended holiday’ and became Australians. The changes are subtle, but deep, caused by the mind-stretching expanses of nothingness and eerie quiet, where a person can sit perfectly still and look deep inside themselves to the core of their essence, their reasons for being, and the necessity of checking inside their boots every morning for fatal surprises. They also picked up the most finely tuned sense of irony in the world, and the Aboriginal gift for making up stories. Be warned.
There is also the matter of the beaches. Australian beaches are simply the nicest and best in the world, although anyone actually venturing into the sea will have to contend with sharks, stinging jellyfish, stonefish (a fish which sits on the bottom of the sea, pretends to be a rock and has venomous barbs sticking out of its back that will kill just from the pain) and surfboarders. However, watching
a beach sunset is worth the risk.
As a result of all this hardship, dirt, thirst and wombats, you would expect Australians to be a sour lot. Instead, they are genial, jolly, cheerful and always willing to share a kind word with a stranger. Faced with insurmountable odds and impossible problems, they smile disarmingly and look for a stick. Major engineering feats have been performed with sheets of corrugated iron, string and mud.
Alone of all the races on earth, they seem to be free from the ‘Grass is greener on the other side of the fence’ syndrome, and roundly proclaim that Australia is, in fact, the other side of that fence. They call the land “Oz” or “Godzone” (a verbal contraction of “God’s Own Country”). The irritating thing about this is… they may be right.
TIPS TO SURVIVING AUSTRALIA
Don’t ever put your hand down a hole for any reason – WHATSOEVER.
The beer is stronger than you think, regardless of how strong you think it is.
Always carry a stick.
Air-conditioning is imperative.
Do not attempt to use Australian slang unless you are a trained linguist and extremely good in a fist fight.
Wear thick socks.
Take good maps. Stopping to ask directions only works when there are people nearby.
If you leave the urban areas, carry several litres of water with you at all times, or you will die. And don’t forget a stick.
Even in the most embellished stories told by Australians, there is always a core of truth that it is unwise to ignore.
HOW TO IDENTIFY AUSTRALIANS
They pronounce Melbourne as “Mel-bin”.
They think it makes perfect sense to decorate highways with large fibreglass bananas, prawns and sheep.
They think “Woolloomooloo” is a perfectly reasonable name for a place, that “Wagga Wagga” can be abbreviated to “Wagga”, but “Woy Woy” can’t be called “Woy”.
Their hamburgers will contain beetroot. Apparently it’s a must-have.
How else do you get a stain on your shirt?
They don’t think it’s summer until the steering wheel is too hot to handle.
They believe that all train timetables are works of fiction.
Yes I was pulled over by the police while driving in London. As I hadn’t done anything wrong I asked the one who wasn’t checking my details why I’d been stopped. He said his colleague happened to be interested in the make of car I was driving and noticed that the number plate didn’t seem to match the year it was manufactured.
He e quite correct as it had been kept at factory for their use and so had only been registered for use on the road a year later. I thought it amazing that he’d noticed that while driving in the London traffic.
Ms. Tan was this petite girl in her early 20s, she was athletic, tanned, had the most perfect brown-tinged hair right out of a shampoo ad, and most of all she had a certain “get-out-of-my-way” badass attitude matched with an inexplicably attractive resting-bitch face.
She was the latest in a string of Physical Education teachers assigned to my class of 12 year old boys thoroughly enjoying the first blasts of puberty.
We were all on the ground pretending to do sit-ups or something like that while she yelled at us like a drill instructor, except this drill instructor was in skin tight hot shorts and her fluorescent sports bra was shining through her translucent T-shirt. We were all really enjoying that.
She was so caught up in her yelling that she didn’t watch where she was walking and she tripped over me.
She was sprawled face first all over me.
She was pressed so close to me I could smell her hair.
The whole class erupted into a derisive but mostly envious “Ooooo~” and “WAAAH!”
Instead of shooting up and telling everyone to shut the hell up, Ms. Tan locked her sympathetic eyes with me, smiled a smile I’d never before seen, and said:
“So sorry, looks like I fell for you”
She laughed, and got up. She then told everyone to shut the hell up.
I was the class hero for the entire year.
Uncanny Valley Explained | Why Robots, Dolls and Mannequins are Creepy
Man in Peru Caught Out Drinking With an 800-year-old Mummy!
A pre-Hispanic mummy of between 600 and 800 years old, was found inside the backpack of a delivery man from a delivery company in the Peruvian region of Puno, near Bolivia. The 26-year-old Peruvian man who was caught with the mummy said, ‘Juanita’ was a kind of ‘spiritual girlfriend’ he kept it at home “and took it out to show his friends.”
Drunk in Charge of a Mummy
The police found three young men accompanied by a mummy that was inside a thermal delivery suitcase. The discovery occurred on Saturday, February 25, 2023, in the city of Puno, in southern Peru. The group of friends was surprised by the police authorities in a routine check while they were consuming alcoholic beverages at the Mantaro viewpoint of Puno.
The 26-year-old had with him a delivery box from the company ‘Pedidos Ya’. Inside, there were human remains in a fetal position still bearing soft tissues with characteristics corresponding to a mummy.
According to the BBC , the young man described the mummy as ‘a kind of spiritual girlfriend’ as he had been sharing his room with it for some time. The mummy was supposedly owned by his father, and was generally kept in a box next to the TV. It is unknown how the mummy came to be owned by his father.
The Ministry of Culture specified through a statement that the remains – classified as a national cultural asset – were identified as a mummified adult man presumably from the eastern area of Puno. Sources from that office informed EFE that the individual would have been over 45 years old and approximately 1.51 meters (5 foot) tall, according to preliminary investigations.
The authorities estimate that the human remains were 800 years old, and would likely come from the district of Patambuco. Apparently, they had been in the possession of the family for about 30 years, the authorities from the Peruvian Ministry of Culture informed various local media.
The delivery man stated that the mummy was kept at his parents’ house and that he took it out to be seen by his friends from the neighborhood, according to the newspaper El Comercio .
The police confiscated the mummy and turned it over to the Peruvian Ministry of Culture. The delivery man and his two friends, aged between 23 and 26, have been detained and are being investigated for possible crimes against the country’s cultural heritage.
Why You Need to Leave America – 5 Signs You Can’t Ignore Anymore (It’s Time to GO!)
I was working as a photo engraver for a major newspaper. It was a union job, so I was making a pretty good salary. I was a newlywed, having gotten married two months earlier. I was working the day shift, 8 AM to 4:30 PM. My wife and I were still learning how to live as a couple.
Just before quitting time on a Thursday afternoon, I was told that starting next Monday, I was being moved to the graveyard shift, 1:30 AM to 8 AM. This meant that I would no longer be able to sleep with my wife. We made the best of the situation, but I was pissed that someone had enough control over my life that they could make me do something I did not want to do.
I was working in a room by myself operating a huge graphic arts camera. People would bring work to me, but I primarily worked by myself. Each night I would come to work and try to figure out how I could get out of this mess. I realized I had to work for myself. I had a lot of time to think.
After months of soul searching, I decided to go to law school. This would allow me to get out of the newspaper and work for myself. My schedule was work: 1:30 AM to 8 AM, go home, have a meal with my wife and then go to bed. We never figured out what to call the meals as it was breakfast for one of us and dinner for the other. I would sleep until 5 PM when my wife woke me for another meal. I would go to school, take classes from 7 PM to 10 PM and would stay out at school until midnight studying, come home and start the cycle all over again.
It was rough, but worth it. Right in the middle of law school, my first child was born. I was now the sole income for the family, a law student, and a new father.
I just retired from practicing law for over 35 years.
China is exploring the use of a new extreme ultraviolet (EUV) light source in making its own lithography facility but technology experts said such an ambitious goal may take many years to achieve.
Over the past few days articles and videos have gone viral on the Internet in China claiming that Tsinghua University has made breakthroughs in steady-state microbunching (SSMB) technology, which can create an EUV light source with a power several times higher than that of ASML’s EUV lithography.
They say the future launch of a SSMB accelerator, nicknamed “Lithographic cannon”, will help China bypass the export controls of the United States and the Netherlands.
These came after Huawei Technologies on August 29 commenced the sale of its flagship smartphone Mate60 Pro, which used a 7 nanometer chip produced with Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) N+2 processing technology and ASML deep ultraviolet (DUV) lithography.
The SSMB technology in lithography can help China break the technological blockage of ASML.
An article published by Acta Physica Sinica (a Chinese academic journal) has proposed to create SSMB-EUV lithography while Tsinghua’s research has already proved the feasibility of this idea.
News about China’s plan to build an SSMB facility in Xiongan New Area near Beijing, with this project, if it’s successful, China can bypass the US sanctions.
China should develop the SSMB technology because it can obtain neither the EUV lithography from ASML nor key parts needed such as lenses from German’s Zeiss and laser beam tools from the United States’ Cymer and German’s Trumpf.
Currently, ASML’s EUV lithography is using a light source originating from a laser-produced plasma (LPP) source that has a maximum power of 500 watts. A ring-shaped SSMB accelerator can create an EUV light source with a power of about 1 kilowatt (1000 watts). Its circumference may range from 100 to 150 meters.
Another EUV light source comes from superconducting radio-frequency free electron laser (SRF-FEL), which can achieve maximum power of between 1 and 10 kW. Such a facility can stretch out for as long as 200 meters. More technological breakthroughs are needed to achieve this.
In general, the power of a laser beam should reach 250W for making 7nm chips, 350W for 5nm and 500W for 3nm. It needs 1kW to make 2nm chips.
All these long-term developments have recently caught the attention of Chinese netizens, who wish to see China move on to making its own EUV lithography after the successful launch of Mate60 Pro.
Coming Back Home After 3 Years In Thailand, here are my thoughts
We learn English so that you don’t have to learn Chinese.
Some of us even give ourselves an English name so that you won’t have to struggle with our Chinese names.
My former colleague in Dublin, Ying Xue, introduces herself as “Snow”, so that no one will struggle with her name.
My former housemate in Dublin, Chu Jun, introduces herself as “Jennifer”, so that no one will struggle with her name.
My former classmate in the States, Shi Ting, introduces herself as “Kelly”, so that no one will struggle with her name.
See the pattern here?
In my opinion, that’s pretty accommodating.
Your facility with Mandarin – or lack thereof – matters not one whit to me.
We can just converse in English.
I admit, I’m not the Second coming of the Bard – to be honest, I don’t really get poetry, I can never tell great from doggerel – but I strongly believe that my command of the English language is at a much higher level than your grasp of Mandarin will ever reach, could ever reach, in this lifetime at least.
And that’s not hubris speaking. Just common sense.
So, rest easy.
You will never need to learn Mandarin.
Banish those fears from your mind.
Take a deep breath.
Wipe the sweat that has beaded your brow.
Steady your hands.
And enjoy what remains of your existence on this ball of rock.
Life is too short to wallow in fear and hate.
Crumb-Crusted Top Sirloin and Roasted Garlic Potatoes with Bourbon Sauce
crumb crusted top sirloin roasted potatoes with bourbon sauce
Yield: 6 to 8 servings
Ingredients
Roasted Garlic Potatoes
2 large russet potatoes, each cut lengthwise into 8 wedges (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Steak
1 beef top sirloin steak, boneless, cut 2 inches thick (about 2 to 2 1/2 pounds)
1 tablespoon prepared spicy brown mustard
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup soft whole wheat bread crumbs
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Bourbon Sauce
1/2 cup beef broth
2 tablespoons bourbon
1/4 cup Half-and-Half
Pepper
Instructions
Heat oven to 425 degrees F.
Roasted Garlic Potatoes
Place potato wedges in 15 x 10-inch metal baking pan.
Combine oil, garlic, salt and pepper in small bowl. Drizzle over potatoes; toss to coat. Spread potatoes in single layer. Set aside.
Steak
Combine mustard, garlic and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in same small bowl; spread evenly onto beef Top Sirloin Steak.
Combine bread crumbs and parsley in another small bowl. Pat mixture evenly over mustard mixture.
Place steak on rack in shallow roasting pan. Insert ovenproof meat thermometer so tip is centered in thickest part of beef, not resting in fat. Do not add water or cover. Roast steak and potatoes in 425 dgrees F oven for 25 minutes; turn potatoes. Continue roasting 15 to 20 minutes to medium rare (145 degrees F) to medium (160 degrees F) doneness for steak and until potatoes are tender.
Remove steak when meat thermometer registers 135 degrees F for medium rare; 150 degrees F for medium.
Transfer steak to carving board; tent loosely with aluminum foil. Let stand 5 to 10 minutes. (Temperature will continue to rise about 10 degrees F to reach 145 degrees F for medium rare; 160 degrees F for medium.)
Meanwhile prepare Bourbon Sauce.
Bourbon Sauce
Add broth and bourbon to roasting pan; bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring until browned bits attached to pan are dissolved. Boil for 2 minutes.
Add Half-and-Half; bring to a boil. Season with pepper, as desired. Keep warm.
Carve steak into slices. Spoon sauce over beef. Serve with potatoes.
Confession of the Day
My dying wife asked me if I’d be okay if she had sex with her ex one last time
My wife has a terminal disease. She is projected to live at most 9 months. I am of course destroyed. We’ve been together for a decade. I don’t remember life without her and I don’t know what I’m going to do when she’s gone. I have been doing my best to make the last days of her life good and grant whatever wish I can.
The doctors said that she was likely to need a wheelchair in 4 or 5 months, then by month 8 she’ll be bedridden for the last few weeks. That’s if she doesn’t decline faster.
Recently she sat me down and told me that one of the last things she wanted to do was have sex with a previous partner of hers. I of course was shocked and when I asked why the fuck she wants that. So basically she thinks that her most physically compatible satisfying lover was him. She gave a whole monologue about how sex sometimes is just physical and how emotionally fulfilling sex is with me but it was bullshit to get to that point.
So now I’m left with this, deny my dying wife a wish for my own ego, or let her go fuck another man who she feels was better. Honestly I’m so pissed of and betrayed that she asked this of me. I feel like I’m put in a position where I have to say yes because she’s dying.
I know what I want to say, but I don’t know if that’s right. I’m so hurt that sex with an ex was apparently so good that she needs to do it once before she dies.
I just hate everything about this.
Victor Davis Hanson warns America’s witnessing a ‘systemic collapse’
It amazes me how many don’t see the country collapsing before their eyes.
My best answer to a rude customer didn’t require speaking.
I had a foreign “dignitary” attempt to dine at the Japanese restaurant I bartended at. He showed up in 1 rolls Royce and his 7 wives arrived in a second one.
He sat drinking at my bar, ogling (in a very creepy way) every female in the bar while his wives stood quietly lined up against the wall without any refreshment. He complained about everything, including the bar snacks we put out demanding that I go to some specialty store to get a specific olive mix for him to munch on while waiting for his table. I declined
At one point in time, I bent over slightly to wash a glass and he just reached down my blouse to grab my breast. Without missing a beat, I grabbed a soda gun and sprayed the hell out of him with coke soda. Just happened that there were a couple of off duty cops sitting there so he was escorted out while a few of his wives snickered.
First of all, “Huawei’s reentry” is possible only because they overcame all the U.S. sanctions and built a better chips on a 7nm platform two generation behind the leading edge 3mn chip that Apple has. . . and producing it without ASML’s EUV machine that people said they had to have. And Huawei’s can even do what Apple’s can’t – make satellite calls that is essentially 6G.
So what do you expect any lobbying will do for Apple? Just as Biden expected Russia to topple with the SWIFT ban, all of Washington never thought Huawei could come up with its own chip. . . . and this soon!
And most important of all, Apple doesn’t want really to get China upset because they’re the only ones in the world who could make Apple’s leading devices. They may pass on assembly of legacy devices to India or Vietnam to please Washington but no one is set up to even touch China on their high end production lines.
Apple is indeed caught between the rock and a hard place, especially with the mobil market being down. They just canceled order for about 20% of the 3nm chip for which they were suppose to be taking up 90% of TSMC’s manufacturing run. So, it’s not just Apple that will be hurting.
In the meantime, Huawei has increased their orders for more Mate 60 Pros. its uhheard of that a dated chip is outperforming and outselling the leaders and if even last for a short while, expect red ink to be outflowing.
Shopping at One of the Last Open Sears Stores – Newport Centre Mall Jersey City, NJ
Normally, I talk and relate stories about China. And yes, Hong Kong is part of China, but the fact is that it has been “polluted” by the UK and it is sort of a hybrid “Western city” integrated into China. It is interesting in many, many ways. But today, I want to talk about the shopping centers; not the malls… the small grocery stores.
You see, in HK space is at a premium. You cannot get around without bumping into anyone, and some days it is just truly crazy; I mean “soylent green” type of crowding. And because of the massive crowding, the HK folk have devised walk around, and one such work around (or walk around) is the supermarkets.
They are tiny, tiny.
Tiny isles, jam packed with all sorts of food items. Really small grocery carts, and checkout lanes that require you to slide out sideways. LOL
Is it really important to have a four bedroom, three bath, three car garage? Or can you make due with less and spend more time doing OTHER things?
Yes. that is why the HK-Macao-Zhuhai bridge is being so heavily used. Many HK folk have bought homes in Tanzhou (where I live). It’s crazy actually.
Definitely. There was a girl at my high school who was as seemingly perfect as one could get – she was pretty, had tons of friends, an amazing figure, good grades, a large social media following, played in the first hockey team…the list goes on. She was nice, too, in a polite, composed sort of way.
This worked for her for a few years. Our school was single-sex and quite prestigious, and for a while the intense and competitive environment often felt like a contest for Who-Can-Be-The-Most-Perfect. Although she never stood out in any way, she was often praised by students and teachers alike for her good work ethic, perfect hair, perfect legs, perfectly pleasant demeanour. As you might be able to tell, the word was thrown around a lot.
Unfortunately, I think it eventually went to her head, twisting her thoughts. She became resistant to change. I suppose it would be an easy position to take; if a flawless person cannot be improved, any alterations are damaging, right? Instead she became obsessed with sustaining her image. As school became more difficult, she studied harder, refusing to let her grades slip. People began describing her as vain – a word I’d never before associated with her name – due to her new, unreasonable concern for her looks and social media persona. Her friends became increasingly frustrated as she fretted over Instagram posts and projects and pimples, and eventually her group of admirers dwindled. I can only speculate that it was in response to this that her fixation with her body began, and continued to develop into anorexia.
In year 11 (2014) she was admitted to hospital because they thought her heart would stop. She remained there for a few weeks, then spent a few months visiting ED specialists. She later moved schools, and from what I have been told and what I have seen from her (much less-used) social media accounts, she seems to have let go of Perfection. Apparently, she’s really happy.
In my experience, a person is too perfect when perfectionism consumes them.
It’s eye opening and makes you rethink the things you take for granted.
It took me and my husband a while to know that when we’re talking about the same topic, often times we’re talking about completely different things because our backgrounds are different.
Meaning when we talk about abortion, we have different scenarios in mind. Because it’s much more prohibited in Egypt, and because pregnancy outside marriage is a disaster and may endanger the mother, my view on abortion is shaped so differently from his since abortion in his culture isn’t usually caused by these motives.
Similarly, when we talk about adoption we’re coming from such different directions ! The percentage of adoption in Egypt is very different from the percentage in the US. I don’t know a single adopted person in my community. So we’re talking about very different experiences.
Another example, one time my husband told me “I’m the king of my house”. In my culture this sentence indicates superiority.I got really mad and told him, “I am no servant !” He said “of course you’re not. You’re the queen of the house so I’ll have to spoil you“. I was like “Oh“.
We discovered that our definition of control is so different. My tolerance of control is way higher than his. So something like “Stop using your phone and sit with me already” sounds controlling to him. To me the thought doesn’t even come to mind.
We learned, after many misunderstandings, that whenever we discuss something, we’ll have to take a step back and describe what kind of setting we have in mind. Or even ask about the very basics that one normally wouldn’t consider asking while talking with someone from your own culture. The phrase “everybody knows this” is simply thrown out of the window.
It’s definitely thought provoking. But it’s a very enjoyable, enlightening journey.
90’s-Style Swiss Steak
90s style swiss steak
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds boneless beef round or chuck shoulder steaks, cut 1/2 inch thick
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3/4 cup finely chopped carrots
3/4 cup finely chopped onion
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup finely chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1/2 cup prepared picante sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
2 1/2 cups uncooked bow tie pasta, cooked
Instructions
Cut beef steak into 6 pieces; pound to 1/4-inch thickness.
Combine flour, salt and pepper. Lightly coat beef with flour mixture.
Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium heat until hot. Brown beef in batches. Pour off drippings.
Return beef to Dutch oven. Add remaining ingredients, except pasta; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover tightly and simmer 1 1/2 hours or until beef is fork-tender. If sauce becomes too thick, stir in a little water.
Serve over pasta.
Huawei’s Explosive Revelation! Huawei Mate 60 Pro Flying off the Shelves, Shining as China’s Pride!
Recently, the most notable queues in China are not found at tourist attractions like the Great Wall or train stations, but at Huawei smartphone stores.
People are lining up in large numbers to purchase the latest Huawei phones, creating winding queues that stretch around corners.
For instance, in Shanghai’s Nanjing Road, customers wait in line outside a Huawei flagship store to get their hands on the newest Huawei smartphone.
The situation is similar in Shenzhen, where a Huawei offline store sees such long queues of customers buying Huawei phones that the store employees have resorted to buying them fried chicken to keep them satisfied.
Huawei exclusive stores in various parts of the country are also experiencing significant queues.
The reason behind this surge in demand is the release of the Huawei Mate60, which marks Huawei’s comeback and allows consumers to partake in its success.
Initially, analysts predicted the sales of the Huawei Mate50 series to be around 5 million units, but they now estimate that the Huawei Mate60 series could surpass 6 million units in sales.
“China Focus” is a YouTube channel created to provide current events and pop culture headlines from China.Here you can get to know a more real China through my video. ｜
Sorry, I can’t help laughing，good narcissistic question!
I want to correct you, Japan and South Korea allied with the US because they want to rely on the US for development, and the US also wants to use Japan and South Korea to contain China. They each have intention. Besides, the alliance with the United States was not so easy. Both Japan and South Korea were severely emasculated in key areas such as military, and were unable to control their own destinies. So don’t think that America is the god and such great and selfless.
You said China sees the US as an enemy. I don’t see that. Hostility towards a country usually manifests itself in suppressing its economic development, denying its achievements, confronting it, accusing or even stigmatizing it. Isn’t that exactly what the US is doing to China? So you are wrong, it is the US that sees China as a thorn in its side because it feels uneasy about the rise of China. In fact, China wants to be a partner with the United States, not an enemy. Mutual benefit is what China wants to see. China is doing what it can to improve relations with consumer companies around the world, especially in Europe and the United States. But in the past two years, some of America’s actions have been disappointing.
Maybe you are used to the privileged position that the United States has long enjoyed in the world, and when a more confident, unyielding, and tough China appears in front of you, you feel that it is against you. I would urge you to stop looking at things from such “American perspective”. It is normal for countries to have differences, but there are also relations of cooperation and exchanges. Don’t assume that the entire world is succumbing to the United States. This is abnormal and impossible.
Lalo Salamanca | Revenge | GTA IV Theme
“Man was on the vengeance grindset”
‘De-risking’ may kill EU economy — Hungarian minister
The proposals of European politicians on “decoupling” and “de-risking” with China will amount to a knockout of European economy, according to Hungary’s top diplomat.
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary Péter Szijjártó told the Belt and Road Summit 2023 in Hong Kong on Sept 13 that these politicians by those terms mean to cut economic ties with China.
“What would happen if you cut such ties? You are killing the European economy,” he said, noting the annual trade volume between the EU and China has reached over 800 billion euros ($859 billion).
Therefore Hungary is urging for an even tighter, stronger, more successful and more efficient economic cooperation between China and Europe, the minister added.
Hungary is one of the very few EU member states that have not delivered weapons to Ukraine. And Hungary is aimed at becoming the meeting point of the West and the East, he said.
Szijjártó told a panel discussion that European policies toward Ukraine and sanctions against Russia are total failures.
Europe is in bad shape, to say the least, confronting both security and economic challenges, noting his country’s neighbor Ukraine has been at conflict for the last one and a half years.
He said Europe is bearing the cost of the Ukraine-Russia conflict as European people are dying, its infrastructure is being ruined, and the economy is suffering huge losses.
“Unfortunately, the answer Europe has given to this war proved to be a big mistake, a huge failure,” he told the summit, adding that Europe should have isolated this conflict, but instead of that, Europe has globalized it.
Europeans should have prevented the conflict itself, but now everyday even higher risks of escalation keep emerging due to illogical acceptance and following of moves by the world’s top military power. On top of this, Europe has decided to implement a policy based on sanctions, said Szijjártó.
“These sanctions proved to be a total failure,” Szijjártó said. This is because the goals of such sanctions, pressing Russia and ending the conflict, have not been fulfilled, while the competitiveness of the European economy is decreasing day by day.
When it comes to the long-term impact of the conflict, the minister said there is another “very serious risk” as the world is going to be divided into blocs again.
The economic development of Europe had been based on a good combination of highly developed technologies and easily accessible and cheap natural resources from Russia. “But now the ties between the two … are now being cut, one by one,” he said.
Instead of reading answers by non-Chinese telling you how we Chinese view white Europeans, why not listen to an actual Chinese telling you how Chinese might view white Europeans?
It’s very possible and plausible that an actual Chinese person who has lived in Europe might have a more accurate view of how Chinese people might view white Europeans compared to the non-Chinese people trying to tell you what we Chinese think of them.
I lived in Germany for just under a year and in Ireland for about three years and have traveled many times to the UK, and made more than a few trips to France and the Netherlands.
In that time, I’ve made more than a handful of good friends.
The obvious answer would be that I view white Europeans with my eyes.
The boring answer would be that my experiences living with white (and non-white) Europeans tells me that they aren’t different from anyone else.
It’s not like they’re from a different planet.
They bleed red. They defecate and micturate. They want to be healthy but can get ill, whether physically or mentally. They enjoy hanging out with their friends. They enjoy having a healthy social life. They treasure their leisure and alone time. They love their vacation time. They watch movies and enjoy eating and spending time with friends and family. Family – parents, siblings, children – are important. Parents want the best for their children. There are times when they get their hearts broken – by a woman, by a man, by a friend, by someone they’re close to, by a pet’s death. There are times when they get their hopes dashed and when they feel frustrated because there are many obstacles in front of them, obstructing the path to their dreams, their goals. They want to have a good life – with “a good life” having as many different meanings as there are people in their countries. They like feeling loved, feeling appreciated. They indulge in stereotypes – just like everyone else on the planet. Some of them are passionate about football*, and many support their national football teams. Some enjoy politics, some don’t.
*As an interesting aside, when I was living in Germany, I managed to strike up a conversation with a TOTAL stranger about football – we ended up talking for more than an hour, just about football, nothing else. The funny thing is, this conversation took place not in a pub or biergarten but when I was helping someone else with ther gardening.
As a Chinese, I don’t see Europeans, white or otherwise, as any different than Chinese or any other group on the planet.
Fundamentally, their wants, their needs, their desires are the same as everybody else’s.
Having made more than handful of friends while I was working and living in Europe, I will say this:
Developing real meaningful friendships kills ignorance and prejudice.
Try it and see for yourself.
U.S Lawmakers Banned All Tech Exports To China And Lost The Tech War
Really pathetic to see the USA behaving this way. But, it does expose a desperate attempt to halt it’s decline. Hope more Chinese scientists and skilled experts return to the motherland.
I always wondered why Li Qiang was at the G20 instead of Wang Yi which is the actual protocol
Now I can see why Xi didn’t come
India, Russia and China bamboozled the G7 completely
They got their G21 and THEY GOT RUSSIA REFERENCE OUT OF THE ORIGINAL JOINT DECLARATION
The Original deal was the G7 would approve of the inclusion of the AU into G20 in return for India agreeing to a joint declaration which indirectly referenced to Russia and it’s Aggression on Ukraine and universally agreed that Russia had to do something to stop the SMO
That’s what the Foreign Ministers Agreed
Then the West would say “The Whole World condemns Putin”
It was a win – win for the West or so they thought
Either they would get a declaration condemning Putin and Russia or they would not get a statement and declaration because China and Russia would object and that would badly affect India with a dead G20 summit and drive a wedge between the three BRICS founders
Cant fool these two old foxes can you?
The Masterstroke was sending Li Qiang
He simply said “I don’t have the authority to accept any declaration other than the one I have been told to accept”
Li Qiang isn’t Head of Government
Had it been Xi, he would have had to refuse and that would have made him look belligerent
Maybe if Modi didn’t get his declaration and the summit ended up a lame duck, the tensions would have widened between the two nations
Instead Li Qiang brilliantly shrugged and sent back the declaration to Beijing and said he needed approval
Lavrov saw the same trick and sent the declaration back to Moscow
Time kept flying as planned
Ultimately Jaishankar as planned moved in and said “Look, we need our declaration to make the summit a success. We have everything else. Let’s forget Russia”
Li Qiang jumped and endorsed everything else including the aggression statement
The West were entirely outmanoeuvred and they HAD NO CHOICE
Lets see now
Modi gets his G20 Summit – the Most Fruitful Summit in the last Decade
China gets their BRI friends into G20 and widens their influence
Russia avoids Global pressure and continues its SMO slowly shrugging off the West
Win, Win and Win
Who Loses?
We found the abandoned white cat with homeless kittens. the mother cat needs help immediately
In scorching heat, we came across a cat and her two kittens by a roadside park, seemingly abandoned. Determined to find a safe shelter, the cat led us on a journey to shelter her little ones. Finally, she settled down, and we offered her water and a creamy treat, hoping to build trust. She eagerly accepted, realizing our care and support. Nourishing food followed, as we felt compassion for her hunger and the intense heat. With her trust gained, we brought the family home, ensuring protection from heatstroke. Witnessing their newfound peace and happiness filled us with deep contentment. Watch the inspiring video till the end and witness the heartwarming journey of a mother cat and her kittens finding hope and a safe home in the face of adversity.
China is the most advanced Nation in the world in terms of Applications of Advanced Technology
They can apply advanced technology on a scale that no other nation to this day can manage
It is undeniable that China is the world’s foremost nation to apply advanced technology
By comparison the US pales with most Americans using 4G speeds and with most applications falling flat. They actually use paper certificates for vaccines
South Korea comes second in this aspect followed by Japan and Singapore
My sons first word was “It looks like one of those Futuristic Cities shown in many 1980s Hollywood movies”
The Key here is CORE TECHNOLOGY
Now for instance, all these wonderful apps that are being built , they are coded in a specific language right?
They need high performance servers right?
You need processors right?
Every one of these is controlled entirely by the West in terms of their Core capabilities
It was a perfect relationship with China developing the most fantastic advanced applications and developing their software at fantastic pathbreaking pace
The West sold and licensed their Core Technology for a fat fee
The whole Global economy relished the partnership
The West chose to WEAPONIZE their core technology
This accelerated Chinas own pursuit of Core Technology
In a mere decade China today controls almost 11% of the World’s Core Technology and Research in various areas
They are almost on par with Europe and Japan and well ahead of South Korea
Yet THEY ARE STILL ONLY A SIXTH IN TERMS OF CORE TECH CONTROL AS THE USA
Had the US simply shut the f*** up and simply encouraged Green Cards for Researchers from China with a 10 year path to Citizenship in 2012, China would have been in all sorts of trouble
Had the US encouraged actual competition on even grounds, the Intel and Qualcomms and Huawei would be on level playing fields and smaller Chinese entities would never have got the Billions of Yuan needed to leapfrog which would have instead gone into Real Estate & Paper
So Today China is surging ahead or at par on almost all modern commercial technologies like Rail, Green Energy, Latent Communications, Face recognition etc
Yet China is only around 16% in Control of Core Technology, far ahead than ANY ASIAN NATION IN POST WW II HISTORY but still a long way to go
Experts believe China will control 30% of all Core Technology by 2032
Conclusion is China is on its way
As they say in Hindi
China CHAL PADA HAIN
China opens ties with Venezuela, challenging US ‘hegemonic mindset’
Condemning Washington’s “hegemonic mindset” and sanctions, China strengthened its strategic partnership with Venezuela. The oil-rich South American nation’s President Nicolás Maduro took a historic trip to Beijing, and applied to join BRICS. Ben Norton analyzes the important geopolitical and economic consequences.
The two worst beliefs are Judaism and Christianity, which have been used by power elites to control and manipulate societies for thousands of years.
By promoting belief in a god and afterlife; they actually promote the false belief that humans are not responsible for improving their lives on this earth in this life. Then, by promoting the belief that individuals could ask for forgiveness before they died, it encouraged all kinds of bad behavior during their lifetime.
These religions have twisted western society into embracing the idea of the white savior, out to save other civilizations because of their unique connection to the creator.
They have been a curse on the development of human societies.
You saw ‘Assembled in India’ and decided that the price will be pretty low
Instead as usual India has the most expensive iphones apart from maybe Turkey
The primary reason for this is that India is a pretty weak market for the Iphone today
The Lowest price is ₹80K and most Indians can’t afford this price tag
It’s why you have 96,000 Pre Orders for this Phone from India against nearly 3.15 Lakh Pre Orders in Dubai and almost 6.8 Lakh from USA (China of course had a very bad reception for the Iphone 15 with only 2.66 Lakh Pre Orders so far)
Most Indians are waiting to see how much cheaper the Iphone 13 becomes and buy that phone instead
So without Volume, there is no scale for Apple to lower it’s costs
It costs ₹52,000 to assemble the iphone and pay all import duties in India for all components
That’s $ 840 or 5500 Yuan
It costs only 3630 Yuan in China
So the Chinese retailers get a much larger share of the retail price than the Indian retailers
The retailers in India would likely end up with ₹4K to ₹5K for a Iphone 15 costing ₹80K or around 10%
In China the Average retailer could get 24%
Another reason is TAX
T A X
India charges too much tax
Import duties, GST cost a big chunk of sales of the iphone
It exponentially increases the cost of almost all products assembled in India and makes them pricier than actually importing the product
Apple thinks India will one day be big enough for a large market share of the iphone
That’s wishful thinking
The Iphone high end model (9999 Yuan) costs around 55% of the Average Monthly Salary in Beijing, 49% in Shanghai and 46% in Shenzhen
It costs 16.8% of the Average Monthly Salary in New York
In India it costs 261% in Chennai, 236% in Bangalore and 219% in Mumbai
So either the price of the iphone must be brought down to ₹35000/- Or salaries must rise by 4 times
India will thus be worthless for Apple unless they exclusively assemble and sell lower grade Iphones pricing them at ₹40K each
Sorry, when I say Apple – I mean Foxconn
Apple still will earn a lot of money from its Proprietary Fees & Profits.
Foxconn will ultimately make very little money and will leave India like others before
So to those geniuses who said Iphone prices in India will come down and more Indians will buy the same
I TOLD YOU SO
Guitar Teacher REACTS: Robin Trower “Too Rolling Stoned” 1980
So glad you discovered Robin Trower! You have to give a listen to the entire album “Bridge of Sighs” Brilliant album. He’s still alive and cranking it out.
THE OSTRICH!
A man walks into a restaurant with a full-grown ostrich behind him. The waitress asks them for their orders. The man says, “A hamburger, fries and a coke,” and turns to the ostrich, “What’s yours?”
“I’ll have the same.” says the ostrich.
A short time later the waitress returns with the order. “That will be $9.40 please.”
The man reaches into his pocket and pulls out the exact change for payment.
The next day, the man and the ostrich come again and the man says, “A hamburger, fries and a coke please.”
The ostrich says, “I’ll have the same.”
Again the man reaches into his pocket and pays with exact change.
This becomes routine until the two enter again.
“The usual?” asks the waitress.
“No, this is friday night, so I will have a steak, baked potato and a salad.” says the man.
“Same,” says the ostrich.
Shortly the waitress brings the order and says, “That will be $32.62.”
Once again the man pulls the exact change out of his pocket and places it on the table.
The waitress cannot hold back her curiosity any longer. “Excuse me, Sir. How do you manage to always come up with the exact change in your pocket every time?”
“Well,” says the man, “several years ago I was cleaning the attic and found an old lamp. When I rubbed it, a Genie appeared and offered me two wishes. My first wish was that if I ever had to pay for anything, I would just put my hand in my pocket and the right amount of money would always be there.”
“That’s brilliant!” says the waitress. “Most people would ask for a million dollars or something, but you’ll always be as rich as you want for as long as you live!”
“That’s right. Whether it’s a liter of milk or a Rolls Royce, the exact money is always there.” says the man.
The waitress asks, “What’s with the ostrich?”
The man sighs, pauses and answers, “My second wish was for a tall chick with a big ass and long legs who agrees with everything I say.”
Despite US Blackmailing, 90 Nations Confirmed Attendance At The Belt And Road Initiative For China!
Great analysis. Yes, China’s BRI dominance is about peace and prosperity. US dominance is about bullying and exploitation.
Taiwan is in China. The island of Taiwan is surrounded by Chinese warships and the American, Japanese and Australian fleets are unable to approach Taiwan.
Biden did not tell the US citizens that he wanted to invade China, only “to defend Taiwan”.
So, I ask, how does the US plan on doing that? with some sort of video game competition?
I mean, in order to “defend Taiwan”, you have to have military troops pertorming military actions, aka combat inside of China – And that’s because Taiwan is in China.
So currently America has soldiers in Taiwan, which is either illegal, or at the very least gray area because that’s part of China. And the government of China doesn’t approve of that and hasn’t allowed it. So that’s the current status.
If US start performing miltary action, that’s an effort to militarily conquer at least China or push them back inside of China.
That‘s called an invasion.
Sorry, everybody, if you don’t agree with this definition, but that’s what it is.
The 1.4 billion Chinese people have told the small hooligans led by the United States countless times that the Taiwan question is the bottom line of the Chinese people, and foreign forces are not allowed to get their hands on it.
China can use all its forces to resist the invasion, and after this naval battle all the warships of China, the United States, Japan and Australia will be destroyed.
Do you think that after the end of the naval war, it will stop here? No, it has not come to a stop yet.
At the same time, China will fight back against its territory. Although all of China’s warships were sunk in the war with the United States, Japan and Australia, let us not forget that China has the largest number of civilian ships in the world, and Chinese soldiers will be present in those countries.
No matter what era we are in, apart from the indiscriminate bombing in the early stage of the war, the later stage of the war will be a ground war.
Does Australia have 50,000 soldiers combined? China can send 500,000 troops to Australia and take it over.
Japan: China does not need to send troops to occupy, dropping a few atomic bombs would be enough. The four Japanese islands are so resource-poor that even if China occupied them, they would be a liability and would be better off being completely destroyed.
As for the US, China wouldn’t send troops to occupy it either, but a huge army landing on US soil would be enough to make the US pay. China’s huge population could provide a steady stream of soldiers. You have to be prepared for America to become a battlefield.
The United States is keen on Preemptive war. However, China has always adheres to the principles of defense, self-defense and post-strike response, and adopts active defense. It keeps to the stance that “we will not attack unless we are attacked, but we will surely counterattack if attacked”.
“post-strike response“,”we will surely counterattack if attacked” →→→ We have already told you what we will do!
Don’t think that if China is bullied, it will swallow its anger and not take revenge. There are limits to tolerance. Modern China is no longer the China a hundred years ago.
This is like a group of American hooligans always bullying a high-achieving Chinese student at school. Chinese students usually don’t give a damn about the provocations of American hooligans, but once they can’t stand it anymore and decide to fight back, the American hooligans will have to start paying a high price for their previous stupid provocations.
Girlfriend Disrespects Her Man, Instantly Regrets it
Mad respect for Joyce, she took those roasts in the chin like a champ.
A couple of years ago an elderly couple knocked on my door. I could tell at a glance they were Jehovah’s Witnesses. I opened the door and said, “I’m sorry but I’m really busy today and don’t have time to chat. I’ll be happy to take a Watchtower, though.”
The man said, “There’s a really good article in there about saving for retirement.”
I said, “I’ll be sure to read it.”
As they left the woman turned back and said, “Thank you for not being mean to us.”
They didn’t neglect fighter production. Thanks to German mega presses the Germans churned out far greater fighter quantities (by the simplification of major parts), than they should have been able to.
German 19,000 ton Heavy Press of WW2.
Germany also had fewer aircraft types in service. So they had high volumes of fighter production.
The problems were many, like a lack of higher octane fuels so they couldn’t max out engine performance and later on a huge attrition of skilled pilots, followed by a lack of new well trained ones due to fuel shortages..
The fact that the 109 was still competitive at all by wars end, was a miracle considering that they were restricted to lower octane fuels.
Even after Germany reduced bomber production, it would still be impossible to keep up…
The simple truth, was simply that the Allied nations potential industrial capacity, by far dwarfed that of Germany’s. And sabotage along with a reluctance to cooperate in captured territory, meant Germany could not successfully leverage the entirety of the assets they had stolen in Europe’s Industry.
For America alone they entered the war after Sunday, December 7, 1941…So basically in real world production terms 1942. And they had gone from a peacetime to full wartime economy (outstripping German AND Japanese war production) by mid 1943. That’s not including Russia or the massive output of the British Empire. IN ONE AND A HALF YEARS.
Ultimately it comes down to simple math’s.
More people, more resources, more factories = more production.
In a war of production…Germany could never win. No matter how perfect they could have tried or how much war porn advocates bleat they could..
Tony Soprano – Putrid Existence
The Sopranos is one of the greatest deconstructions of the glamorous and honorable depiction of the mafioso’s lifestyle. In reality, behind the money, drugs, power, these men lead the life of misery and pudrid existence, betrayal, mindless murder, constant lies and theft. The legacy they leave behind ultimately drag down their families and friends.
China’s rapid advancement in technology can be attributed to several key factors:
Government Support and Investment: The Chinese government has made technology development a top priority. Through initiatives like the “Made in China 2025” plan, they’ve provided substantial funding and resources to support the growth of high-tech industries.
Large Pool of Talent: China has a vast population, which translates to a large pool of skilled engineers, scientists, and innovators. This human capital is a crucial asset for technological advancement.
Education and Research Institutions: China has been investing heavily in its education system and research institutions. Universities like Tsinghua and Peking University are producing world-class graduates in technology-related fields.
Emphasis on STEM Education: China places a strong emphasis on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education from an early age. This helps nurture a generation of students with strong technical skills.
Innovation and Entrepreneurship: China has seen a surge in entrepreneurial activity, with a thriving startup culture. This has led to the development of innovative technologies and business models.
Market Size and Demand: China’s enormous domestic market provides a substantial incentive for companies to innovate and develop new technologies to meet the demands of a rapidly growing middle class.
Global Collaboration and Partnerships: China has been actively engaging in international collaborations and partnerships with leading technology companies and research institutions around the world. This helps them access global knowledge and expertise.
Regulatory Environment: The regulatory environment in China, while strict in some areas, can also be more flexible and accommodating in others. This can facilitate faster development and deployment of new technologies.
Focus on Strategic Industries: China has identified strategic industries like artificial intelligence, electric vehicles, and biotechnology as areas of focus. This targeted approach helps concentrate resources and talent on areas with high potential for growth.
Adoption of Emerging Technologies: China has shown a willingness to adopt and implement emerging technologies like 5G, artificial intelligence, and blockchain on a large scale, which can accelerate their development.
Is America Destined to Fall Like Rome? | Victor Davis Hanson
Victor Davis Hanson explores the striking similarities between ancient Rome and modern America in this thought-provoking video. Including the parallels between these two great civilizations and the lessons we can learn from history.
This is the story of the happiest man to live on death row.
In 1936, 15-year-old Dorothy Drain was raped and murdered at her home in Pueblo Colorado .A man had entered the Drain’s home and assaulted Dorothy and her mother with an axe. A massive manhunt was launched, and the police were under pressure to catch the killer.
As they searched the railway lines, they came across 21-year-old Joe Arridy who confessed to the murder when they brought him in for questioning. He also fit the profile that was any Mexican-looking man, a description given by two women who were also attacked.
Joe wasn’t even Mexican, and his dark complexation was down to both his parents being Syrian. He also had an IQ of 46, and couldn’t tell the difference between a rock and an egg. His parents were first cousins, so Joe and his siblings suffered from problems related to inbreeding.
Joe couldn’t tell the difference between colours, talk very slowly, and was easily misled and was known to take the blame for things he didn’t do.
During Joe’s arrest, the police learned another man named Frank Aguilar had been arrested for the murder of Dorothy Drain. Frank was Mexican, worked for the murdered girl’s father, and was fired before the murders. They also found an axe head at Frank’s home, he also admitted to the murders.
The had concluded that Joe was with Frank at the time of the murders even though Frank admitted to the murders and told police he acted alone. Even Dorothy Drain’s mother who survived the attack pointed to Frank and said he was the only attacker.
Joe’s story would change depending on who was questioning him and it should have been clear Joe wasn’t a suspect. Even though three psychiatrists testified that Joe was mentally handicapped, he was still convicted and sentenced to death.
While on death row Joe, spent his time playing with a toy train given to him by prison warden Roy Best. He was treated well and with respect by prisoners and prison staff. Prison warden Roy Best would bring him gifts and said he cared for him like a son.
With the mental capacity of a small child, Joe didn’t understand he was going to die. When asked about is upcoming execution, Joe didn’t understand what a gas chamber was, and just said, “No no, Joe won’t die.”
Joe ordered ice-cream for his final meal, and before they took him to the gas chamber he asked prison staff if they could put the ice-cream in the freezer so he could finish it later. Joe smiled as he was led to the gas chamber, and when he got momentarily nervous, the warden held his hand.
Joe was executed on January 6, 1939, after many stays of executions and appeals. In 2011, Joe was finally pardoned seven decades after his death.
Huge Cat Hugged A Woman In a Shelter And Didn’t Let Go! It Must Be Seen
It happened about a week ago, Andy Brumagen and his fiancee Jessica came to the shelter, where their attention was completely captured by a pretty cat of quite large size. The couple loves animals and, of course, they couldn’t walk further down the hallway without giving this cat some warmth and care. As soon as Jessica opened the enclosure and pulled out the cat, she hugged her and buried herself in the girl’s shoulder, clearly not wanting to let go.
It was tried once by US Army Special Forces and the results were practically catastrophic. Even in the movies you’ve seen it done in, there’s a lot more happening off-screen to make it look real than you could imagine.
The one everyone knows was designed around Jesse Ventura’s personal preferences for the movie Predator (it helps that he was actually an armorer when he served on a US Navy Underwater Demolition Team during the Vietnam era – UDT was a part of Naval Special Warfare and was a close relative of the SEAL Teams). It has an M60 handguard to hold onto, and is fitted with a harness, so that he could carry it for the movie. Arnold later used the same gun for T2, with slightly different modifications.
What you don’t see on screen is that neither of them are carrying the batteries for it, (Miniguns are electrically operated) because they were simply too heavy for either Ventura or Arnold. The wire leading to the batteries were hidden down their pants’ legs. It also has a supply of ammunition that can be exhausted in seconds (a Minigun fires up to 6000rpm, and a human just can’t carry enough of the 7.62x51mm ammunition it fires to make it useful). Even significantly reducing its ammunition consumption (you can slow it down) to about 1250rpm, the one they used fired its total ammunition supply in seconds. Even at that sedate rate, the ammunition canister for it held only 550 rounds which it could exhaust in 26.4 seconds. And carrying 550 rounds on top of the batteries and gun would be back-breaking work. Neither Ventura, nor Arnold after him, both extremely strong body builders, could even do it. And remember, that’s only 26.4 seconds worth of ammo, at only 21% of the gun’s actual potential rate of fire.
Next, they used blanks in those movies, for obvious reasons. But if they hadn’t, the recoil force is so extreme it can’t be controlled. Blanks don’t produce recoil the way live rounds do. The one time US Army Special Forces tried this, the gunner was literally spun halfway around by the force of the recoil. The only reason he didn’t kill anyone behind him was, fortunately, the gun had consumed all of its ammunition by the time that 180 degree spin was complete.
Awesome Beef Stroganoff
classic beef stroganoff 3051443 Final
Ingredients
6 cups uncooked egg noodles
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 pounds beef sirloin steak, cut into thin strips
1 package onion or roasted garlic gravy mix for steak
8 ounces fresh mushrooms, quartered
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 (10 ounce) can beef broth
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley (for garnish)
Instructions
Cook noodles according to package directions-keep warm.
In a large heavy bottom pot, heat the oil over medium high heat. Add meat and brown.
Sprinkle gravy mix over meat.
Add mushrooms; sauté for 5 minutes.
Stir in tomato paste and broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until thickened, stirring occasionally.
Remove from heat, and stir in sour cream.
Top with parsley and serve over hot cooked noodles.
There is no way it can stop China from overtaking the U.S. and the more it try, the faster China will overtake them and the faster the U.S. will implode.
I don’t think the U.S. realised it but everything the U.S. do to contained China it cost the US an arm and a leg yet it is barely a little inconvenience for China. China is a lot lot lot better than what the U.S. thinks China is in terms of technological prowess, in resilience, in preparedness in determination and in its ability.
Meanwhile the U.S. almost always over estimates it’s own ability, capability and capacity hence it always spend billions to do shit on China and harmed the U.S. instead of affecting China. So U.S. bring it on do as much shit as you want. The more you do the faster you die.
The U.S. has a mere quarter of Chinese market size over time and if the U.S. is smart and not so full of itself it better build a good relationship with China. Whatever the US wants to sell some 50% of customer is in or made in China! If you fxxk up this market you are fxxked. Thinking of containing China is a pipe dream. They can contain the US. Not U.S. containing China.
Simple, Chinese are more hard working, Chinese are willing to sacrifice, Chinese save more, Chinese invest more, Chinese learn fast, Chinese Market is way bigger, all SUPPLY CHAIN partner is in China, Chinese government is way, way, way more effective, 60% of the world s Market in around China. If China stop doing business with the US, you will suffer chronic inflation! If U.S. stop doing business with China they still have 95% of the worlds market.
Take my advise don’t pick a fight with China. They won’t lose. You will.
If I am the next US president, the First Nation I visit is China. Not Japan, not UK not Canada. I will double up trade with China. I will visit China every year and Invite Xi Xinping to make US their biggest partner. I will make Chinese a compulsory second language. Bring 10 million Chinese students Chinese students and send 2.5 million Americans to study in China!
I am not your enemy, I am giving you an advise to make the U.S. great again!
Chinese videos on the Israel bombing of Palestine, clearly show B-2 bombers flying and bombing the Palestinians. The ONLY nation with this bomber is the United States.
So, the United States is now at war with Palestine.
…
Ugh! You can pretty much figure it out by reading “between the lines” on what the “news” media says.
“Why doesn’t China condemn Russia? Why doesn’t it condemn the Palestinians?”
Why doesn’t it…
…
Never the less, the videos are clear. Those are B-2 bombers dropping munitions on the apartment buildings and homes of the Palestinians.
The United States has entered another new war, and Lindsey Graham is calling for an invasion of Iran.
WTF?
This is so dangerously goofy.
My “Prepper feeds” are information dense with reports all over the globe. The biggest stuff comes from NATO, and I have a video below that goes into detail regarding it.
You know, I was going to talk about my trip to a factory today, but the Western world is coming unhinged. Holy Fuck.
Bought from the dark net, sold by Ukrainian Army represented, donated by U.S. and UK and some US dog nations, paid for by U.S. taxpayers. Hey U.S. taxpayers save more money. Isreal need more weapons now!
So indirectly you can say U.S. innocent people who paid taxes assisted Palestinians to start a war on Isreal. Now you tax payers need to help Isreal defend against Palestinian. Oh U.S. tax payers. You poor soul please save more money as the your government need to start another war in Asia, another one in Latin America and another one in Africa.
Don’t worry tax payers after all the wars sometime in 2100 finally the U.S. government will help you get health insurance, college fees, homeless! But we still need to fund CIA, NED and MIC. I am very sure after spending on 800 military bases and 12 aircraft carriers and interest on 500 trillion dollars debts we will still have some pennies left to help you kind taxpayers.
WHY RETIRE in CHINA?
There are a lot of reasons to retire in a foreign country and the best one I found was china. The cost of living, food, weather and people make it my first choice of any country in the world. This video is very convincing and from an expat that has lived in China for more than 20 years. Living the experience is better than watching it on TV. don’t waste your retirement on the boring life. Live the adventure.
My mom grew up in British Hong Kong, the eldest child of a solidly middle-class Hong Kong Chinese family. She and her siblings are all university educated; all her brothers went on to become medical doctors. Mom left Hong Kong a few decades ago, lived in the UK for a few years and has lived in Canada ever since.
Given this background, one might expect her to be quite pro-British.
However, her perspective is that when she was growing up in the city, the British treated HK Chinese as second-class citizens (she actually gets a bit irate when we talk about this). As a Hong Kong Chinese herself, she felt that the superiority complex of the British in the colony was very strong. She disliked the endemic corruption in the government. Moreover, the colonial government had no democratic legitimacy (for all the talk in recent years of HK “democracy”, there were no elections held in Hong Kong until the 1984, just 13 years before the handover).
On the other side of the coin, the Hong Kong she grew up in had received a massive influx of Chinese refugees fleeing the upheavals in China. The period from the end of the Chinese civil war to the Cultural Revolution saw some 1.1 million people from China come across the border to make their home in the territory. She recognizes that under British rule, the legal and regulatory foundation was laid for Hong Kong’s success as a global financial centre and entrepot.
I think her views capture the feelings many older Hong Kong Chinese have about British colonial rule.
Many young HKers seem to idealize colonial Hong Kong as it was in the last decade of British rule — a golden era for the city where, as one of the five “Asian tigers”, Hong Kong experienced amazing economic growth, established its position as one of the world’s leading financial centres and saw its cultural influence spread across Asia and beyond (a precursor of today’s K-wave).
But ask older HK Chinese, and they will also remember what it was like before that golden era — to be treated as second class citizens in their own city, when corruption in the police force and government departments was rampant and when even water to the taps was only available for a few hours a day.
Steaks with Mushrooms, Blue Cheese and Frizzled Shallots
steaks mushrooms blue cheese
Prep: 10 min | Cook: 30 min | Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
4 (8 ounce) beef round sirloin tip center steaks, cut 1 inch thick
4 slices thick-sliced bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 small shallots, thinly sliced, separated into rings
1 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon pepper, divided
8 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, diced
2 tablespoons water
1/4 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves, finely chopped
Instructions
Cook bacon in nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp.
Remove bacon with slotted spoon to paper towels, reserving 2 to 3 tablespoons drippings in skillet. Set aside.
Meanwhile combine flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in small bowl. Add shallots; toss to coat.
Heat bacon drippings over medium-high heat until hot. Add shallots. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until well browned, stirring occasionally.
Remove from skillet with slotted spoon to paper towels. Set aside.
Reduce heat to medium. Season beef steaks evenly with remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
Place steaks in same skillet; cook for 14 to 15 minutes for medium rare (145 degrees F) doneness, turning occasionally. Do not overcook.
Remove to serving platter; season with remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Keep warm.
Add mushrooms and water to skillet. Cook and stir for 3 to 5 minutes or until mushrooms are tender.
Add cream. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes or until cream is almost absorbed. Stir in cheese and bacon.
Spoon mushroom mixture over steaks. Top with shallots. Sprinkle with parsley.
ALERT! ATTACK ON NATO, GLOBAL MILITARY MOBILIZATION, FULL SCALE WAR, VIPs MOVED, GPS JAMMED, UNREST
It wasn’t a pet, but one of our roosters shocked me into a more open mind about animal sentience.
We had chickens, and because of the rough behavior of the roosters toward the hens, they were separated from each other. We fenced in the crawl space under the chicken house and the roosters lived there. The hens and roosters were usually released for foraging on alternate days.
One day I was walking by the chicken house, and one of the roosters under the building looked me in the eye, picked up a little piece of wood, dropped it, and began pecking it. He then looked me in the eye again, and repeated the behavior, several times, until it dawned on me that he was miming eating. Sure enough, they were out of food, and that bird was telling me he was hungry.
I may have seen him doing that before, but I barely noticed it, dismissing it as meaningless chicken behavior. Now I was beginning to feel shocked at what I just witnessed. I gave them the chicken feed and later I released them for foraging.
The roosters were always a little feisty and I was alert to any attacks coming my way, but the second shock I got was when one of them did attack me, and at that moment the rooster who mimed a request for food rushed in and drove off the attacking rooster.
Ever since that day he was my rooster bodyguard, never letting any rooster attack me. I always gave him special attention and treats after that, making sure he had what he needed, and he got to live out his natural life span.
But chickens? Intelligent? Really??? That was shocking, and I had to release my human chauvinism after that. I could never have foreseen a chicken behaving with such intelligence, and I believe we humans have only a vague understanding, if any, about the minds of nonhuman species.
FIRST TIME REACTION TO AC/DC – WHOLE LOTTA ROSIE | SPEECHLESS…
Another reaction. The expression on all these girls are just GREAT!
Of course they can. China didn’t in the past not because they were not capable but because it made much more sense for the Chinese customers to buy foreign chips. China were late in game. When the west started making semiconductors back in the 1960s/1970s, China were still in cultural revolution. By the time the got out of it, they were already too late.
The Chinese government was not comfortable at all being so reliant on foreign imports. They tried in the past 20+ years to create a local semiconductor ecosystem but they failed despite spending over a trillion RMB. They failed not because they didn’t have the talents, but instead they failed because there wasn’t a market. Even Chinese customers chose not to buy from their local semiconductor startups. Why would anyone take the risk of trying out local products when there were good foreign products available?
But that all changed when the US sanctions started. The US government essentially created a captive market for the Chinese semiconductor manufacturers. These manufacturers suddenly got the badly needed revenue. When orders flow in, investments followed. With investments, young Chinese engineers are motivated to join the industry. Hence, a negative spiral down that prevented the Chinese semiconductor industry from growing turned into a positive upward spiral.
To be sure, they still have many more years to go before they can catch up to the best in class. However, bear in mind, they don’t need to be at the cutting edge to do extremely well. Great majority of the use cases of semiconductors only need up to 14nm, which the Chinese are capable of doing themselves. Now that Huawei has already proven that with the 14nm node, they can design chips that perform at 7nm level, that is good enough for 90% of the applications.
Today, Chinese lithography manufacturers can make up to 28nm. They literally came from 90nm to 28nm within a very short period of time. Once they stabilize their 28nm products, they would go very quickly to 7nm with DUV. EUV is a different thing, but even for that, I think it’s a matter of time. I use to think 10 years but seeing how quickly the Chinese are improving, I’m not sure anymore how to make an educated guess.
So to answer the question – can the Chinese be a serious competitor in semiconductor manufacturing? Absolutely. In a few years time, I bet the US will regret waking up this sleepy dragon. Instead of importing over $300B worth of semiconductor a year, China will export their products and crash the global market like they did in most things they manufacture. How about a $10 GPU? Anyone?
Irish Girl Reacts to “Mister Rogers Saves PBS” For the First Time
I went to apply for a job at JFK Airport. I was a Family Practitioner and was told that they preferred surgeons. In any case, I decided I had nothing to lose and went in for the meeting. There were three or four people waiting for the interview and I was the only one who was not a surgeon.
Then the Deputy Director entered the room and asked if anybody spoke Swedish. Nobody did. Then he asked if anybody knew what a medicine called Kåvepenin manufactured in Sweden was. Nobody knew but I saw he had the box in his hand. I asked to see the box, looked for the composition and although the spelling was different than in English, it was clear that it was Pen VK (potassium penicillin V). So I said so.
The guy left the room and a few minutes later came back and told me, “You are right. You are hired. Everybody else may leave. “
Some protested but he said, “I hired him for his brain. None of you did anything and that guy took the initiative and got the right answer.”
I could not believe it. Fastest job interview I ever had in my life and I got the job.
His company was a big international Human Resources consultancy, and their expenses were divided between clients. For example if they used a £250k printer/binder/etc for a job, a fraction of that £250k would be allocated to the job. No problem, but took ages to allocate every time something was used.
One day, he goes to the stationery cupboard to get a pencil. The office assistant asked him which account it should be charged to and for him to fill in a requisition form for the pencil. He just blew his top. It would cost the company 100 times what the pencil was worth for him to fill in the form, with charge codes, client details and so on. It was a waste of his time and everyone else who just wanted some stationery.
The departmental manager fired him for his outburst “Not what we would expect in this company”. About a few hours later, he had requested a meeting with the departmental manager and the Vice President of his section. They expected a grovelling apology and it’ll never happen again.
But no. He went in saying this was classified as unfair dismissal and he wanted £30,000 – or he would go to court. They told him that they were a top HR company with the top HR experts in the land working for them. He would never win a unfair dismissal case and would get nothing. He pointed out that a full case would take 2 weeks in court and as the company was a partnership, every partner was equally liable and he would subpoena every partner to defend the case. He said he might not win, but would console himself with reading about the HR court case in every HR publication. The VP realised it would be very damaging to the company’s PR and they came to an agreement. They paid the £30k.
After that, I asked him, how did you know about the unfair dismissal law? He said that it is true that the company did have the top HR person in the country working for them, but that top HR person sat opposite him and my friend got him coffee each day. When he was told what happened, he agreed that my mate was fired for having common sense and gave my friend a bit of advice.
After my friend left, the company changed its procedures and you could now get stationery when needed.
China’s National Holiday
China’s National Day, which falls on October 1, is just around the corner. For the Chinese people, September 30 marks the start of a seven-day holiday following the Mid-Autumn Festival.
In the upcoming days, they will enjoy the happiness and joy of the “long holiday,” which they have earned through their hard work.
Meanwhile, across the ocean in the US, this year’s October 1 is a critical day.
Federal government agencies will run out of funds previously approved by Congress at midnight on September 30, the end of the current fiscal year. A government shutdown due to the bipartisan inability to reach an agreement seems inevitable.
For the rest of the world, this situation appears to be a farce of a commonplace American political struggle. People are not concerned about whether Washington will shut down. Where exactly is the US debt ceiling? This is what worries them. Can it continue to rise indefinitely?
The US has not defaulted on its national debt in the past, which is why US debt has become the most reputable in the world. But it has now reached an alarming height – $33 trillion! That amounts to $100,000 per person across the nation! What’s even more concerning is its growth rate, with an increase of $10 trillion in three years! That means $833 million is being added to the debt every hour since it crossed the $33 trillion mark.
A nation that frequently accuses other countries of creating debt has set a huge trap for the world in recent decades. Let us not overlook the fact that the US possesses the power to “print money,” which it uses to sustain Washington’s audacious habit of borrowing and spending recklessly, exemplifying its dominant “style” of hegemony. Government finances in the US have struggled for nearly half a century due to excessive spending without proper control, resulting in the continuous accumulation of federal government debt.
In the realm of election politics and hegemonic policy, the US has wasted significant financial resources. These resources have been used to cater to the interests of interest groups and self-serving politicians. Consequently, there has been an excessive increase in military expenditures to sustain hegemony, along with a continuous distribution of funds to appease voters.
Filippo Gori, an economist at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, has published an article entitled “America’s Debt-Ceiling Disaster: How a Severe Crisis or Default Could Undermine U.S. Power,” on the website of Foreign Affairs magazine (April 24, 2023).
The article points out that “because most international trade is in U.S. dollars, the United States can print money to pay for goods that it buys from abroad, allowing it to finance a large international trade deficit without having to worry that it will run out of cash.”
This monopoly advantage, known as “too big to fail,” has resulted in a peculiar situation where the US is “insolvent” but not officially bankrupt. As a result, the US must employ diverse strategies to uphold the dollar’s dominance.
Another fundamental truth is that when the global community thinks about how the impact of this “Grey rhino” can be prevented and begins to make necessary preparations, the hegemony of the US and its foundation, the dollar, will surely be shaken.
China is a significant creditor of the US. The US’ containment of China, particularly through creating military tensions in China’s neighborhood, as well as the overall restriction on Chinese manufacturing and its impact on the livelihoods of the Chinese people, has heightened China’s worry about the US reneging on its debts.
The hardworking Chinese people, who are about to enjoy a wonderful holiday, know that they work hard for the well-being of their families. If their hard-earned money were to be used to prop up an empire’s hegemonic and brutal actions, as well as an unsympathetic political struggle, and then they were to be paid back in the form of “printed money,” they would definitely say “no.”
We believe that hard-working people around the world would share the will of the Chinese people.
China’s new rare earth technology has made new breakthroughs, US chips can’t live without China!
China rare earth insanely very cheap , compare to how rare earth produced and refine. No other countries could produced rare earth with current price .
People in the USSR were allowed to have car in private—the correct term was “individual”—possession.
But we were strictly prohibited from using cars for gaining revenue. Profiteering would unleash on the owner the wrath of the Soviet court system. In worst cases it could be a prison term.
Gypsy cab entrepreneurs risked a fine for the first transgression. The second one would involve confiscation of the car, and an even heavier fine. If the prosecutor could prove you derived a “non-labor” (netrudovóy) income on a regular, “systematic” base, you’ll get behind bars.
Renting your car for a remuneration was of course out of question. If you used a car for example to run your errands as a member of a cooperative, the tax inspection would turn down any tax reports that showed the cooperative covering your expenses. They also would send the case to the state attorney’s for them to take care of your accountant.
Neither could you sell your car with profit.
There were too few cars. Even the few people who had the money to afford a car had to wait for years for a permission to buy one. Which is why it was commercially possible for new owners to sell the vehicle right away sometimes with up to 100% mark-up and more.
At the end of the posting, a newspaper notice from a Soviet provincial newspaper in 1960, “From the Courtroom: Because of Re-selling Automobiles”
The text says:
“The vehicle operator of the Construction department No. 10 in Novo-Alexandrovsk N.H.Semerik bought in 1957 in a car store an automobile Pobeda, paying the government-approved price of 20,000 rubles. Three years later Semerik sold the used car registered in the State Vehicle Inspectorate in his wife’s name for 31,000 rubles to another person, and bought in the store a “Volga” to himself.
As soon as he was in possession of the new car, Semerik and his wife registered themselves in a waiting list for a new car.
The people’s court of the Novoalexandrovsk county prosecuted Semerik N.H. for profiteering according to article 154 p.2 of the Criminal Code of the RSFSR. It sentenced him to two years of incarceration, with confiscation of the vehicle “Volga” and the money on his saving accounts. Signature: I. Artamonov, chairman of the regional court of justice.”
Yes, indeed. When my daughter was four years old, she had a lazy eye. She was diagnosed by an ophthalmologist. Eyeglasses were prescribed which she wore for one year. After a year she went back for a check up and he reported that she no longer needed the eyeglasses, the problem was fixed.
Soon after this – maybe a year – she kept putting aside longer chapter books in favor of short easy readers. She had learned to read completely by age 4, so she was almost 6 at this point, she had been a very enthusiastic reader, so the fact that she kept describing books as too hard raised a flag. Also she tilted her head sideways while watching TV. I took her back to this ophthalmologist who said everything was fine(!) The weariness with reading continued, so I took her to a vision therapist who specialized in tracking problems. He told me that she only had sight in one eye – he told me that it would be difficult to get the other eye engaged again, which really means getting the brain working again, but that it was possible with a lot of hard work.
I believed this doctor but still I took her to a different ophthalmologist in a big city who had many accolades….for a second opinion.
This ophthalmologist announced brusquely that her vision has been ruined by me because I had not acted quickly enough. (He would not listen to any of the history that I tried to offer.) He exclaimed loudly that she would never have sight in that eye and then he demanded that my four-year-old son climb into his chair barking: “I had better check his vision to make sure you have not ruined him, also.”
I am not often at a loss for words, but his condemning words were body blows from which I simply could not recover quickly.
I left that office never to return. We went directly back to the vision therapist and I am happy to say almost 2 years later she had 90% vision in that eye and the balance is corrected with a contact lense. He literally helped turn on her vision in that eye. So she has 20/20 vision and all is well.
The awful doctor was the head of an eye institute which will go unnamed for now. The vision therapist had a very small practice and really believed in what he was doing. I am so grateful to him. It was very hard work, but it was successful.
When her vision was mostly 100% restored in that eye, I wrote a letter to the ophthalmologist at the big, famous eye institute and gave him a piece of my mind. Oh, yes, by then I had found my words!
The “national debt”’ of America isn’t 33 trillion.
That’s merely the debt owed by the federal government, which primarily taxes income, and funds with shortfall by issuing treasury bonds.
There is another set of government debt that is completely separate. State and local governments tax property, and fund the shortfall by issuing municipal bonds.
The total outstanding today is 33 (treasuries) + 4 (munis) = 37 trillion.
That’s 37, followed by 12 zeroes, or 14 figures.
How big is 37 trillion, relatively speaking?
It is more than 75% of the combined GDP of the world’s top 5 global economies: US, China, Japan, Germany, India, totaling ~3.5b in population.
It is more than 85% of the combined GDP of the rest, the >180 nations outside the big 5 club. That includes all of the first world beyond the US, japan and Germany. That’s 4.5b people.
America has a population of ~330m.
It takes the annual economic output of a population that’s an order of magnitude larger to repay the debt owed by the American government. Note this does not include unfunded liabilities, and private debt from households and corporations.
This is far and away the greatest threat to global financial security, on sole account of size.
The Biden administration has made it very clear that China must operate in the manner in which the USA sees fit
That China must develop in the manner in which the USA sees fit
In short –
Make all the Washing Machines, Laptops, Smartphones, Microwaves and Televisions you want
Make all the Jeans, Toys, Textiles you want
Make all the low and medium grade components you want
Hell even make all the Robots you want and High Speed Trains, EVs and Solar Panels and Green Energy
Yet at the same time
You cannot go ahead of us or our allies in the areas of Advanced Computing, Space, Quantum Computing, AI etc. You should always be No 8.
You cannot modernize your Military technologically
You cannot pursue your own foreign policy and Geopolitics against our foreign policy
You cannot support anyone who doesn’t follow the Rules based order
You have to buy more Bonds of ours and acknowledge the Dollar as the world’s only reserve currency
This was the BIDEN DOCTRINE TO CHINA
Qin Gang and Blinken apparently discussed this where :-
In exchange for
China acknowledging the Biden Doctrine & relinquishing support to Russia & Forcing Putin to sue for peace by weaponizing the Yuan
The US would remove tariffs on Chinese products, remove export controls on certain equipment, remove 215 Chinese entities from the blacklist and propose Status Quo for Taiwan with no support for Taiwanese Independence
The plan was likely for QG to deliver an ultimatum to Lavrov and for Xi Jingping to gather Global South Leaders like KSA & UAE while US could persuade India and together force Putin to call a ceasefire in Ukraine
The Old Fox Wang Yi likely told Blinken to “go fuck himself” which is why Biden was so angry that he called XJP a dictator
I believe Raimondo tried the same thing, asking China to trade and develop in a direction acceptable to the US
I believe China again said GO SCREW, and DIE.
That’s why Raimondo was so angry when she returned back
Blinken, Yellen, Raimondo all pushed China to follow the Biden Doctrine and China said No each time which was why they all returned back in a state of fury
So now Biden will say the same thing if he meets Xi Jingping
Maybe Hu Jintao would have agreed
Not Xi Jingping
So Biden and Xi meeting is a pointless exercise
There is no US Leader who is willing to ask China to do whatever it wants and COMPETE with China directly and win
Starting in 6th grade, this nice boy from a troubled family was tortured for being suspected as gay. This was the late 80s in South Texas. The boy was caring but misunderstood. Sensitive. Soft. Other kids were non-stop cruel to him calling him a fag and “Terry the Fairy” (his name was Terry) from the time he arrived on campus until the moment he left. He never stood up for himself preferring instead to wish it wasn’t happening, turning them all off in his head by living in a fantasy reality instead, and becoming an angry shell of a generally happy boy.
One day in math class everyone was making fun of him with the usual taunts. Something snapped that day. He put his head on his desk and just said something like [Can you all just say it where I can’t hear it? I don’t care what you think, I just don’t want to hear it.] Everyone just laughed at him. Finally the teacher intervened and told everyone to be quiet (note no teacher ever made an effort to make them be nicer, just, on this day, to be quiet).
Finally, the boy broke down and told his parents. They were sympathetic but ultimately told him to just ignore it.
This continued until 11th grade when the boy discovered that he could get into college with a good GED score (not a top school, but he could work hard and transfer to one, which he did). He promptly signed up for the GED, took it, scored in 98th percentile, and immediately dropped out of school. He went on to college, did well, flew away and started his life.
That boy was me.
Fast forward 30 years. I am a successful man. Yes, gay, with two beautiful children and a thriving career thousands of miles away from South Texas and a life so rich and full I can barely remember any of their names — that’s the best revenge. 10ish-years later when Facebook started I received friend requests from many of those nasty kids I grew up with. Then, it seemed, that because I’d moved off to an exciting city and made good, and being gay was suddenly “cool”, they wanted to be my friends. I declined them and have not been to a single reunion nor do I ever plan on going. My attitude has always been: you hated me then, I didn’t like you, why on earth would I let you into my social media or ever purposely go see you now?!
It got better. My partner lovingly calls me “Terry my fairy.” I belong. I overcame and laugh at it now. They’re all mostly right where they were in that boring town surrounded by the same people, while I achieved that elusive thing: happiness. They did me a favor, really. They motivated me to get the eff out! If you’re reading this and you went to Hobby Middle School, or Clark High School, this post is really for you. I survived. I thrived. Thank you for the pain — it has served me well.
I never looked back.
Disturbing CEO Announcement: Workers to Be Reminded of Their Place
The CEO has many indicators of narcissistic personality disorder. Suggesting people need to suffer to recognize him and his company as an authority over their lives is a major red flag. Everyone who works for him or with him should walk away.
From a western point of view and a few years doing business in PRC, I offer my thoughts.
Over the past 20 years, I have worked with several state owned factories in sourcing raw materials to the US and had the pleasure to meet and get to know with the No. 1 and other senior level managers in these factories. I am assuming, probably with good reason, that these people are all active members of CPC.
They are all good business people and given responsibility for the company management, quite the same as a CEO is selected by a board of directors in a private company with many of the same factors affecting their selection. They have connections ( as in both systems) to get these positions and expectations of success in their assignment.
The Chinese leader in the factory further understands that he is also responsible not only for the workers’ welfare, but their families in the management of the factory community. As such, they all have compassion, and concern and take this responsibility often with great passion .
Like private company management and politicians in the west, some are greedy. I came to know one very good company manager for a period of 5 years, who was eventually appointed to a local government official position (similar to Mayor in US). When I returned the following year, I learned he was to be executed for crimes; he took a bribe for preferential treatment of a private business deal! Chinese punishment of CPC member who violates a trust is certainly much more severe than the West, perhaps a lesson well learned by many for the high price of a life.
I ate, drank, and sang with these people and see them firstly as compassionate human beings, acting similar to those all over our planet.
Certainly the burdens of the CPC on the success of the business that includes the welfare of all the workers and family members must weigh heavily on these people, perhaps more so than a CEO in a western private company who must answer to a B.O.D and the shareholders.
In other cases, I have had opportunity to interact with other CPC members , at a lower level, in Chinese Customs, regarding our trade in China.
At this level their understanding of global trade was clouded considerably with politically driven policies. Like all people, we learn from our teachers ( in this case , the CPC) , who often have a different agenda than politically different viewpoints.
But it seems we all have bosses of some sort whether another higher ranking CPC member or a small business company owner, and as human beings, we react for the benefit of our own survival.
So what do I think about CPC members? Just people doing what they have been taught by others to get through this life.
1. Your salary. I get paid pretty much equal to what I would in the USA ($40-45k) as a history teacher at a local school, which includes a stipend for housing and round-trip flight home every year… but my salary goes further here.
At home, I could hardly afford an apartment (I’m from New Jersey) because I had student loans, car payments, car insurance, rent, utilities, etc.
Here, rent is paid. Utilities are cheap ($100 max for heat in the winter; $10 water bill; $30 unlimited internet). I have no car, no car insurance. I can get taxis (starting at $3) or hire a car (starting at $5) or take the metro (less than $1) everywhere. I can eat very well with a variety of foods, go get massages & spa treatments ($30 for 90min at my fave place, but you can go to cheaper places), and travel cheaply. All while still having enough to send home to pay for student loans…
2. The food. I left Shanghai for a year for another job and that is what I missed most. All the regional cuisines (Hunan, Sichuan, Yunnan, Dongbei, Taiwanese, Xinjiang, Tibetan) are delicious and fantastic. I can also get a wide range of international cuisines within 5km of my apartment (Thai, Vietnamese, Vegan, Organic, Japanese, French, Italian, Mediterranean, Spanish, Mexican, Turkish, Moroccan, Indian, Malaysian, Singaporean, etc. etc.) and, for the most part, are reasonably priced. Shanghai is more expensive than Beijing and people here always complain about inflation, especially with cost of food. However, with everything else being relatively cheap, I don’t mind spending $15-30 on a Western restaurant brunch which includes a bloody Mary or two… (not the four star crazy buffets… they are $80-100)
3. Convenience. You don’t have time to clean your house or do your laundry? Hire an ayi (maid/nanny) … Mine costs about $6/hr … You don’t want to go to your favorite restaurant for dinner because the pollution is bad? Don’t worry, you can have it delivered. There are many restaurant delivery services where you can order online and someone goes to get your order from the restaurant and brings it to you… You don’t want to go to the foreign supermarket? You can order online and have it delivered. You don’t want to go to the store to buy bottled water? You can have it delivered. You don’t want to spend $100s on a new suit? Bring a picture to the fabric market and they’ll make it for $10s. You want to do a juice cleanse? You can buy one and have it delivered to you every day. You can get a lot of things done for you if you know how… And the list keeps growing! All the choices for foreign food markets & deliveries were not around 4 years ago, so the market is growing…
4. Travel. You can travel cheaply in the entire region. You can also splurge on a hotel because the cost of wherever you’re going is going to be nominal. I treated my mom to a private villa in Thailand for Christmas. I stayed at the Sofitel in Hanoi for my birthday. I am a ardent budget backpacker at heart and have been travelling & living in hostels for 8 years, but living in China has given me the opportunity to see many different cultures around East and Southeast Asia and stay within my budget. Only in the last year have I started splurging a bit, and while I don’t do it all the time, it’s nice to know that I can…
Now, I know friends at bigger international schools with bigger salaries that live in bubbles on the outskirts of town and spend my entire monthly salary on apartments or going out to eat… My boyfriend lives in such a bubble with a driver and he eats at the top tier restaurants all the time… I like being in the middle of it all… I would probably be considered rich by most Chinese, but middle-upper class by most expats here in Shanghai… I can`t enjoy top tier luxuries all the time, but I can afford way more that I ever could in the USA at my age (I’m 29)
and if you’re looking for a non-monetary and/or food answer:
5. Culture/Language. Living in the middle of Shanghai means that I interact with the local culture every day. I’ve learned to read and speak enough Mandarin to haggle in markets, order in restaurants, talk to taxi drivers, have conversations about where I’m from and what I do, navigate around the city, etc. It can be very frustrating sometimes, and I know if you are in your expat bubble, you don’t even have to speak any Mandarin at all, but I like what I’ve experienced. I speak Mandarin every day and as a history teacher, I find living and experiencing the changes in China to be fascinating. You can see the impact the past has had on the current government and how the economic changes are paving the way for a new China to emerge… it’s great to be here and experience all of the energy…
I don’t want to know how many soldiers have played with these kinds of thoughts. Of course, almost no one goes through with it.
If you are in a shitty unit, you sometimes start hating your own guys more than the enemy. In such a situation, some people start contemplating murder. If you kill only one teammate, you’re screwed; therefore the only logical thing to do is killing all of them and defecting to the enemy.
What will always happen to you if you were doing something like this is the following;
You kill all your “comrades”. No problem, it’s easily done.
You surrender to the enemy. Still, everything is okay.
Big surprise! You end up in a Prisoner of War camp. Don’t think that the enemy will give you any preferential treatment or somehow recognize you as a defector or collaborator. No one likes to have a complete psycho around them.
After a while, your fellow prisoners will find out about what you’ve done and kill you.
Even the most deranged soldier can see that such an act can only lead to his certain death. That’s why it doesn’t happen more often.
When a person describes heroin withdrawal as ten times worse than the flu, they are doing it no justice — plain and simple.
That’s like saying that sex and ice cream are the same.
Sure, sex and ice cream are both awesome, but they’re not really the same when you dissect the feelings that each of them evokes.
Same with heroin withdrawal and “ten times worse than the flu” — yeah, they’re both awful, but really, they’re not the same.
The first time I went through real heroin withdrawal was in Lancaster County Prison after a ten year habit. It was torture beyond imagination, and I have yet the strength to write an in-depth description on Quora.
One of the withdrawal symptoms of heroin is the feeling of suffocation.
From the last time you shoot heroin, it takes about six days to fall asleep. When you finally do fall asleep, you wake up in an hour or two feeling like you’re suffocating on your swollen tongue and saliva.
There is one thing that helps that particular withdrawal symptom that jails do not provide.
Air movement.
My current girlfriend has two children. The only thing that we ever argue about is the amount of noise they make after I go to bed.
I need complete silence and darkness to fall asleep — I always have.
But ever since I got clean from heroin, there is one noise (that used to bother me to no end) that I can fall asleep to — the hum of a fan that circulates the air.
Without it, I feel like I’m going through heroin withdrawal.
When I feel like I’m going through heroin withdrawal, it triggers me to want to shoot heroin again.
I never want to go back to that life — the life that was really no life at all.
The object that would hurt me the most to lose, is my stupid fan.
It keeps me from wanting to shoot heroin.
I’ll choose my dirty old annoying fan over any other object on earth, hands down.
I met James Earl Jones and his wife in Dubuque, Iowa when he was acting in Feild of Dreams. There was a friend of mine who was a script supervisor on the shoot, and the entire cast and crew were frequently guests at a local restaurant in town called Mario’s.
I went to meet my friend there and met James Earl Jones and his wife. A customer made a racist statement about Mr. Jones and his wife, and I got into an argument with the idiot and had him escorted out. Mr. Jones invited me to join him and his wife for a drink, and the three of us talked about his career and life for almost an hour. I avoided asking about Star Wars, and I think that was part of the reason I got to stay so long.
Every time I went to the restaurant, Mr. Jones (if he was there) would invite me to the table, or walk over to me, and at least say hello and buy me a good bottle of wine. He frequently picked up my tab, and introduced me to both Burt Lancaster and Ray Liotta.
A great man who told great stories and clearly loved his wife.
First, no work is flawless. It’s an impossible standard, so either she’s lying, or she’s deluded.
Second, bosses who try to enforce stupid and arbitrary rules like “no smiling” are soul-sucking creatures whose mere existence proves that they really are monsters.
Why I Will Never Come Back to the United States
“Couldn’t agree more. 32 years ago I met a woman while working in Stockholm that summer. The next year, I left Brooklyn to live in Sweden. The best decision that I ever made. After a good career in the Swedish Royal Opera, I collected my pension and now live in a small village outside of Palermo. No regrets. I’ll never return to the states.”
I was dating an eighteen years old girl, I was twenty-five years old. I had fallen in love with her, but this scared me because of the age difference. I felt guilty that she had not had a chance to experience a lot of life like I had.
She also did not have much of an education having just graduated from high school. I had already graduated from college.
I thought the correct thing to do was to break off the relationship giving her time to experience life more fully.
I took her out on a date intending to tell her at the end of the date that it was time to go our separate ways. All night long I was rehearsing the speech I was going to give her:
It is not you it’s me.
You have done nothing wrong
It is for your own good
Some day you will understand
At the end of the date, we were parked in front of her house when I turned to her to give her the speech the words that came out of my mouth were “do you want to get married?”
I swear I had never even considered marriage and to this day I have no idea where those words came from.
We have now been married for more than fifty-one years and are still deeply in love with each other.
I am one of the most fortunate people alive to have this amazing woman share her life with me
Remember the parties we used to have in school? The little things thrown together to mark the little milestones? Christmas or Thanksgiving or Valentine’s Day?
Everybody would bring something. A bag of chips, a big soda, cookies or brownies or candy.
I used to look forward to those. It was a chance to have some of the things I never got at home. Money was always tight and everything else came first. So I never was able to bring anything.
Somewhere around the third or fourth grade the teacher made an announcement in class. If you don’t bring a treat, you don’t get to participate in the parties anymore. I looked around the room and noticed a lot of faces looking back at me, smug grins from smug little faces, faces lined with nice haircuts they didn’t get at the kitchen table.
There was something happening soon. I want to say the end of the year party. The grand send-off to summer vacation.
I went home and asked then pleaded then begged but “no” was “no” in my home. I guess when you live in an old house with no heat or A/C, no fans or television or telephone, no hot water or washing machine… basically just four walls, the extras didn’t matter much.
So I went with nothing.
The big day came. Kids piled in carrying their bags. The teacher laid the feast out on a long folding table. There was never that much before. Rows of potato chips, cans of dip: French onion, bean and the most valuable of all… nacho cheese. Every kind of cookie, cakes and pies, sodas and big bottles of juice.
I heard my name. Over and over. “Freddy didn’t bring anything.”
Time for the party. The teacher drags a chair out into the hall and tells me to follow her. I sit there alone with my book and read, trying to drown out all of the laughing and slurping and crunching.
That’s what the rich kids wouldn’t understand. Being outside.
Always being the one on the outside.
Strip Steaks with Garlic Sauce
2023 10 11 20 49
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
2 (8 to 12 ounce) strip steaks
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup pitted black Kalamata olives, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
2 cloves garlic, pressed flat with the side of a knife
Instructions
Cut the strip steaks in half across the midsection to make 4 steaks.
Season the steaks on both sides with salt and pepper.
Heat oil and butter in a wide skillet over medium high heat. When the fat is hot, add garlic, and cook a few seconds until it is aromatic.
Add the steaks and cook until well-browned, about 3 minutes on each side (remove garlic when it gets brown).
Reduce heat to moderate, and cook for about 7 minutes more, or until done to desired tastes. Remove to serving plates.
Add the olives to the skillet, and stir to heat through.
Add a little water, beef broth or red wine to the skillet and scrape out bits that are sticking, then pour this pan sauce over the steak.
Serve with steamed or sautéed asparagus, orecchiette (ear-shaped pasta) or small shell pasta coated with gorgonzola or blue cheese.
Several, but one comes to mind in particular. (Going anon because he follows me on Quora). I’m going to call him Dmitri.
I met Dmitri when he was in 7th grade when I was to be his teacher. Before the first day of school at the middle school where I teach (which starts in 7th grade) we have a fun hiking day where students get to interact with their teachers, parents can come if they want, they usually do, and we get to be outside. Of course it’s optional, but students are strongly encouraged to come.
Dmitri came by himself. When we got to the top we do this exercise where everyone picks out two palm sized rocks. They choose one they don’t like very much and let it represent all their fears and angers, and then they throw that off the mountain, we encourage them to scream when they do this if they want to (it’s often fun to just scream as loud as you can), and then with the other rock you let it represent what you love about yourself or you let it represent someone you love. We often tell them that they can save it for someone they love. When Dmitri threw his first rock over the mountain (which is in a direction nobody is so no passing hikers could be potentially hit with rocks) he let out the most gut wrenching scream ever, he doubled over with it and screamed until he couldn’t anymore, I remember thinking to myself, “that is a child with demons”.
The school year started, I was Dmitri’s English and history teacher. He was a great student. The kind of student nobody worries about. 4.0 GPA, top marks in all areas, he was very popular although he didn’t have any real friendships, but he didn’t have any enemies either. He had a great sense of humor and was just a very likable kid. He was also a good writer. His essays were always pretty good, although also very closed off. Like he was locking the reader out of the story, he never connected anything to himself, he seemed scared to show that level of emotion. The way he outlined and articulated essays was good beyond his years, but he never made the reader feel anything. Which isn’t surprising, not that many 7th graders know how to make a reader laugh or cry.
About half way into the semester there was an assignment for the student’s to write about a time they struggled to say something. This could be having a hard time telling the truth, having trouble saying how they were feeling, or just any struggle with communication they have had. I see Dmitri’s essay in his folder as he’s sorting through some papers from his bag and go to grab it. He quickly grabs it before I can and says, “Oh, um, that’s a rough draft” Then he hands me another version. Which I accept. But before I go I ask if I can have the rough draft as well. I really like watching the way a student’s writing changes between drafts and assure him I won’t grade the rough version. He seems like he very much wants to say no, but he was a very passive kid and he so he agreed.
I’m grading papers that night and first read his final version. Pretty much what I was expecting, a well written, well organized introspective essay regarding when you should tell the truth to preserve somebodies feelings and when honesty is more important. It’s ideas were deep, but he did a weak job connecting it back to his own life. Then I read the rough draft. It was on a completely different topic and blew my mind. It wasn’t organized or planned, I don’t think Dmitri outlined it first and it seems like he wrote it without the intention of it being read. It seemed more like something he did for himself therapeutically.
The essay was about his older brother who had died of a drug overdose when Dmitri was 9 and his brother was 15 (this is not something I had known about). He talked about how difficult it became to talk to people after that. One quote that really stayed with me, taken directly from the essay, was “At the funeral everyone felt the need to talk to me. They gave me their condolences and told me it would be okay even when it clearly wouldn’t be. I wanted them to go away and shut up and just let me be alone with silence. After the funeral, after all the thoughts and prayers were out of the way, everyone faded into the background. They were so worried they’d say the wrong thing that they chose to say nothing at all. With a mother who had collapsed into herself I was left alone with a dead older brother and I ended up resenting the silence I had searched for at the funeral. I looked for [brother’s name] everywhere. In his room, on the trails we used to hike, in the medical examiners toxicology report. All I found was a stranger who I felt I had no right to grieve” Dmitri went on to talk about how after his brother’s death he had become obsessed with the police investigation into where his brother had gotten the drugs. Because, as Dmitri put it, he wanted someone to blame. He blamed himself for not knowing about his brother’s use, and his brother for using, and he just wanted someone who wasn’t him or his brother to blame. To quote another part of his essay “They never found the dealer and it took me over a year to realize it didn’t matter. I wanted them to because then it wouldn’t be [brother’s name]’s fault for doing drugs, or mine for not knowing he was doing them, it’d be all the dealers fault for giving them to him”.
It was, without a doubt, the best student writing I’d ever read. It made me cry, in parts it even made me laugh.
I talked to Dmitri about it.
He broke down in the conversation and said he hadn’t actually talked to anyone about his brother in over a year. We talked for awhile.
At the end of the semester I found a little box with a note from Dmitri. The note read: “I wasn’t sure what this was supposed to represent. There were no parts of myself I particularly liked and no one I felt comfortable declaring a love for, even if the declaration was a private one. Thank you for showing me the parts of myself it could be and for showing me what a healthy relationship is. You’re the person I was meant to give this to” Inside the box was his rock from the start of year hike. I’ve kept it for the passed 3 years, it’s the most thoughtful student gift I could have asked for.
I’ve loved continuing to get to know Dmitri. He’s in 10th grade now and with his intellect combined with one of hell of a work ethic and his determination to be the first in his family to graduate college, I’m quite certain he has a big future ahead of him.
I am 60 and my husband is 67. In May we adopted a 16 year old young man. He moved in with us the January before his 15th birthday. The people he called mom and dad had just died. His biological mother did not want him and he never met his bio dad. We spent the year doing a TPR terminating parental rights. Once it was done, we adopted him. He is very shy and was never given anything as his parents were both on Medicaid. We have been able to introduce him to all sorts of things that the world has to offer. We went from being empty nesters for 10 years to having a teen. Sometimes I think he might be better with younger parents, but we give our undivided attention and he has our love and support, no abuse and a future.
i am risking EVERYTHING to share this with you!
Since he left FOX, he has been on fire.
A man with Cancer
I took care of an elderly man who had cancer. He lived Next door to me. I hardly knew him but asked about his health after not seeing him over the winter, he had lost 50 pounds and the doctor didn’t know what was wrong with him. So I volunteered to have him checked out and sure enough, he had malignant cancer. His family lived across country and didn’t want anything to do with him. Or his health. So I stepped in. The next 3 years we went through chemotherapy and a stem cell transplant. See, his family were Roman Catholic, and I believe he was gay, although we never discussed it. They felt he was a sinner and abandoned him. It was sad. I mean Really sad, and since I lived next door, I stood at my kitchen window and kept an eye on the house when I was trying to give him quiet. We moved his bedroom to the living room, where he could sleep and I could look through the window to make sure he was alright. One day he attempted to cook and fortunately I saw the fire! I put it out and never let him cook again, which is when I took on his nourishment needs, although he could barely eat. Thus became my life. I found out he never had a birthday party, so I had my family come with gifts and cards. He was elated!
When he finally did pass away, he had left me his house and his corvette. His family was furious, although they were very well off.
when I had him buried in his family plot, I bought a gorgeous headstone for him. The family had the management of the cemetery sledge hammer it to destroy all memories. I was heartbroken and really pissed off. The next time I went to the cemetery the manager said , “Well I had the opportunity to speak to the family, and I see you were right, they are awful people!” When I went to visit one day, it was early evening and it was snowing so softly, and as I was leaving an ENTIRE herd of deer stood up and looked at me. They didn’t leave, they weren’t frightened, they just stood there staring at me.
I knew right then and there that he was happy safe. His family doomed him to hell, but that is not where he was! My heart grew and I was able to replace my tears with a smile. Moral of this long story is this; it doesn’t matter what material things you have in life, take care of those who cannot take care of themselves. Be there for people who need you, whether it is family or a neighbor. It helps your soul to know you did the right thing.
Last thing, when he left me his house and car in his will, he stipulated that his family get $7,000. This way they had no recourse to fight me. I mailed his dress uniform from when he was a marine, his dog tags and many more items a normal family would want. They refused delivery and had it returned. his house wasn’t worth much, but I sold it when the market bottomed out and put in a few kitchen and bathroom remodeling.
I will never forget him. There is a shadow box in my home with pictures, dog tags and coins from around the world, even a picture of him riding a camel on vacation. The bulk of his money went to Karmanos cancer society. I do not regret one moment of those 3 years. Remember, be there for the people who have no one. It’s what you DO not what you have. Thx for reading this long story.
EDIT; this is for the woman who said it was a “weird, sensational tale of fiction “ This was all 100% true. The management of the cemetery destroyed the headstone because it was a FAMILY plot, and the Family had the right to decide what was on it. I complained vehemently and was refunded the money I spent on the headstone. It was afterwards that the management conversed with the family and found them crass and rude. There is nothing I can do about your comment, except to say sorry you didn’t understood what my post meant to me. So many others did.
The Living Dead: The Most Disturbing Story From 9/11
At 08:46 (EDT), hijackers crashed American Airlines Flight 11 into the World Trade Centre’s North Tower. It wasn’t long after that firefighters and emergency medical specialists were dispatched to deal with the multitude of distress calls they received from people trapped within the burning building. One such medical specialist dispatched that day was Ernest Armstead, a veteran with over 30 years of experience. In this video, I will attempt to retell the horrific experience Ernest witnessed that day.
During the time after I was released from the Navy, my wife and I were on our “in between time”, our “great adventure. This was a very pitiful time. We were extraordinarily poor, living in a van and searching for work.
There was an event during this time that I want to relate.
We had collected something like sixty cents, and used it to buy a can of spam and a loaf of discount old bread. It is amazing what you can find if you check all the payphones, the creeks, and the various cracks in sidewalks.
So we ended up buying some FOOD!
And with these two items, we hiked quite a distance to the nearest park that had grills. It took us about an hour and a half to get there.
And we went to the end of the park, where no one was there. It was empty. And so we collected wood, and lit a fire in the metal grill.
There, we proceeded to grill our spam, and make sandwiches.
Sure as shit…
…one hundred empty picnic tables…
…and a guy and a girl and their big humongous German Shepard dog, went to the table directly next to us and just watched us glaring. Obviously wanting us to have sympathy for them , and give them some of our food.
No fucking way!
We (ourselves) hadn’t eaten in two weeks. This was our food.
NOT NOT NOT going to give it to some well-fed strangers and their fucking gigantic dog.
We turned our backs to them, and scarfed up all the sandwiches for ourselves. One entire loaf, ten or so sandwiches. Six for me, four for my wife.
Not a crumb was left over.
And when they saw us eat it all; so that there was nothing left, they got up and left… just like that. No need to stick around.
Assholes.
…
Experience hardens you. And at that time, I was in no mood for moochers.
We live life on our own terms. You should as well.
Can I help the roughly 5% of world’s population of the conservative, older, less read less travelled, more hubris older xenophobic racist Caucasians, many are here in QUORA understand what this news is creating such a huge buzz.
You see the neocon whom you see as god, says to all of you that China will be dead if U.S. prevented China from getting 14 nanometer chips and 5G chips. So a sick Biden buy this shit too! He and these sick neocons thought China will need a generation to make these chips themselves. So they thought that China is fxxked!
They picked Huawei to fxxked China up! In a mere 3 years China has not only make Huawei Mate 60 lunched without fanfare, a full 5G, a full satellite ready, wakkie -talkie ready phone using 7 nanometer Chinese chips and killing off a bunch of U.S. technologies that tried and failed to convinced the sick administration that CHINA could get it done in 5 years at most. They are right, all of them did not foresee China needed just 3 years!
Those who open up Huawei mate 60 are totally shocking to see China successfully overcome the U.S. chip bans 10 years ahead! And for good measure. 100 million Chinese booked with deposit this phone that can work under water! one or two US companies that potentially lost everything is totally shocked. And its stock hammered in the market seeing China replacing their product easily!
Old Southern Date Cake
This is a vintage recipe which is well over 100 years old.
article 0 0F6729C500000578 503 1024×631 large 1
Ingredients
1 cup sugar
1 cup flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 packages seeded dates
3 eggs, beaten
1 quart (4 cups) pecans
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Heat oven to 275 degrees F. Grease a loaf pan.
Combine ingredients except pecans and vanilla extract; mix well.
Add pecans and vanilla extract.
Bake for 1 hour.
Lahaina (part 1)
From an obscure portion of you-tube. Worth your time to watch.
To deal with the challenges of an ageing and decreasing population, Beijing in 2021 announced that couples can have up to three children. The policy shift followed a major change in 2016, when Beijing ended the decades-old one-child policy, allowing couples to have two children.
Many local governments have issued cash incentives and other preferential policies. Couples in Shenzhen who have a third child will be eligible for a cash allowance of 19,000 yuan (US$2,800) until the child turns three years old. Jinan, a city in Shandong province, is offering childcare subsidies and increasing parental leave. In July 2021, Panzhihua in Sichuan province became the first city in China to offer subsidies to help families raise more children – a monthly allowance of 500 yuan per second or third child up to the age of three.
Many of China’s migrant workers will no longer have to travel back to their hometowns to get married under new rules. In 2023, the State Council, China’s cabinet, approved a regulation allowing people from 21 provinces and municipalities – mostly in eastern and central China such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong and Zhejiang – to register their marriage where their residence permits were issued. Previously, a prospective bride and groom had to return to the city or country of their hukou, or household registration, to register for marriage.
China in 2022 confirmed that it would delay retirement ages – 60 for men, 55 for female office workers, and 50 for female blue-collar workers – from 2025.
In Sichuan province, unmarried individuals will now be allowed to register the birth of their children, whereas previously only married women were legally permitted to do so.
China’s family-planning agency says it will “intervene” when unmarried women and teenagers seek abortions, and will promote traditional values to encourage people to have more children.
Well, Mr. Musk may be a fine engineer, and perhaps even a fine businessman, but I’m not really in a good position to judge that.
He is, however, not a lawyer, nor does he know much about the law.
In this case, the ADL monitors lots of social media to see how effectively they monitor anti-Semitic content on their platform. This sort of content clearly violates the terms of service of any legitimate social media site (so, anything apart from 4chan) and is actively illegal in many countries where companies can be fined for not policing it (most notably Germany, where it’s illegal to post Holocaust denial material).
ADL publicizes its results and noted that anti-Semitic content on Twitter/X has risen sharply since Mr. Musk bought the platform and started changing the way it moderated content. For example, they would note that someone would post content that was clearly out of bounds by Twitter/X’s own standards, the person would be “banned”, then the ban would soon be lifted and the content restored.
Mr. Musk is right that claiming someone is anti-Semitic is defamatory. Whether the ADL did that is arguable, but they never did so explicitly, they just implied Twitter/X didn’t seem to care about such content on its platform.
Mr. Musk has also been losing advertising revenue, and he is right that organizations like ADL have a lot of clout when it comes to the decisions advertisers make about which platform to use.
But there are massive holes in Mr. Musk’s case. First, even if what the ADL did was defamatory, they’re most likely protected by justification (what they posted was true), fair comment (on newsworthy subjects, you’re allowed to point out obvious conclusions from data, even if it stretches things a bit), and the public figure malice requirement (when you’re famous, like Musk and Twitter/X, and engage in political discussion, the burden goes beyond “falsity” to “the person who published the defamatory content knew it was false or was reckless about its accuracy).
Also, there’s the question of damages. Blaming ADL for the loss of all the advertising revenue is a stretch. Moreover one of the key rules in defamation is that since it’s about your character, you actually have to have one to defame. If your name is mud, someone piling on bad statements about you doesn’t actually damage your reputation if you don’t have one.
Musk is treading on dangerous ground because most U.S. jurisdictions now have what are called “Anti-SLAPP” provisions – “Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation”. In a nutshell, if you sue someone who is making a valid criticism in order to try to get them to stop, the suit can be dismissed at an early stage and you’re on the hook for the costs of defending and dismissing the lawsuit in full. This proposed suit would be a perfect example. The JDL has loads of arguable defences and it’s clear that their criticism was in the public interest.
Marshal Ney was one of the 18 Marshals of Napoleon. He was specially known for his extraordinary Courage, sometimes bordering on foolhardiness. .
During Napoleon’s retreat from Russia, his divison was cut off from the main army by the Russian forces. He angrily rejected all offers to surrender, and led a forced marched at night in a heavy fog over the Dnieper River, over heavy enemy fire and finally managed to rejoin with the main army . It is said that he was the last to leave the Russian soil. For his actions Napoleon called him “the bravest of the brave!“.
After Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo, he was charged for treason.
On 7 December 1815 , he was brought in front of a firing squad.
He refused to wear a blindfold and was allowed the right to give the order to fire, reportedly saying:
Soldiers, when I give the command to fire, fire straight at my heart. Wait for the order. It will be my last to you. I protest against my condemnation. I have fought a hundred battles for France, and not one against her … Soldiers, fire!
Butch gives Tony the OK on Phil
Butch DeConcini and Albie Cianfalone arrange a sit down with Tony and Paulie, where they express their dissatisfaction with Phil’s leadership and agree to a ceasefire of the war. Butchie says he will not reveal the location of Phil, but then says “You do what you got to do.”
The move to ban Apple Iphone for Government Officials is a drop in the bucket
We are talking maybe 800,000 Phones tops
Already most Govt Officials don’t buy the Iphone without any orders as a default
That’s not the problem
The problem is that the Mainlanders are ANGRY as hell with the West
In fact they are angry at the CPC for apparently welcoming Yellen and Raimondo and Blinken in the first place at all
The Mate 60 is likely to affect between 15–20% of Iphones market
It is said that 131 Million Orders have been placed for the Mate 60 which means at least 40 Million Orders are from those who would have purchased an Iphone 15 on September 12th
No way they will spend 16000 Yuan on 2 phones, so they definitely won’t be buying the Iphone 15
A Combination of Hype, Quality and Nationalism has led to Huawei taking a huge number of orders and Apple potentially losing out on a number of them
Apple has a $ 80 Billion market in China and a 20% Hit is $ 16 Billion
That’s a lot of money
Qualcomm also has a problem
Roughly 220 Million Units were ordered in 2023 but in 2024 it’s expected that Qualcomm would lose orders to Huawei/Partner by local players
Add to this the fact that Mediatek is fast rising it’s market share in China, that’s another estimated 9–13 Million Units or $ 1.62 – $ 2.35 Billion (Mediatek is Taiwanese)
So on the whole that’s a blow of $ 13 -14 Billion for the US Semiconductor Industry in revenue
No Nation on earth can compensate that loss of revenue
So China isn’t planning to ban the Iphone, just the Iphone for officials
The key is Iphone will face a wave of anger, nationalism and a comparable proud made in China product
That will cause it many problems in China
Samsung, Nike, Carrefour, Sony, Nikon, Fujitsu all lost their market share not due to bans or regulations but because of COMPETITION
Iphone had no competition for 3 years due to Huawei and it’s throttling leaving it as King of the High Level Market
Today Huawei is back with a vengeance and fuelled by 3 years of sullen anger of the Chinese against the West and a wave of patriotism, it has made a HUGE SPLASH
That’s all this is
Pure Market Competition
The Sopranos – Silvio Calls Out Tony
Members of the Soprano family are unhappy with Tony because he hasn’t handed his cousin over to the Lupertazzi family, potentially putting everyone at risk. Tony is running out of options and in this scene Silvio calls out Tony on his ego.
Create a barrier between you and the enemy. It could be a palisade, a ditch, even stones stacked up across the length of the field will do.
Get a bunch of archers to cover this barrier from a distance.
Voila! You got yourself an obstacle. You can slow the enemy advance or free up a good number of your men to elsewhere, or perhaps, create a ruse that this particular patch is important to you (with all that hauling & digging, something’s gotta give) when it’s not. You’re only held by your own imagination.
A tactic as old as time & the bedrock of taking up defences to this day.
FLASH: U.S. Moving Combat Jets to Romania – “in addition to others committed to NATO”
Maybe you should come to work with me, I work for a rural ambulance service that responds primarily to one of the busiest and most dangerous stretches of interstate hghway in the US…just a couple weeks ago, we were paged to an accident on the interstate…single vehicle rollover, the victims were a 4 year old boy and his father. The boy was properly restrained in a properly installed car seat…His father wasn’t wearing his seatbelt and was ejected from the vehicle as it rolled several times before he was thrown over 25 yards. He landed on his head in the middle of the road…it was actually extremely interesting that he wasn’t killed instantly, considering how much of his actual brain matter was spattered across the asphalt. His heart stopped and he died in the helicopter halfway to the nearest hospital. This wasn’t my first call like this, after nearly 10 years in EMS (and Fire), the smell of human brains doesn’t bother me anymore. Fresh human brain smells like corn chips and mushrooms to me.
My patient was the little boy, and though he’s still in the hospital with a broken back, several broken ribs, compound fractures of both arms, and a skull fracture. He’s recovering well, and should be able to live a pretty normal life. But he’ll be leading it as an orphan because his deceased father wasn’t wearing his seat belt. Not only is the little boy traumatized by the experience, the call also bothered every first responder…we kept him going until the helicopter team arrived by breathing for him via an endotracheal tube (he was intubated) with a bag valve mask and supplemental oxygen while the LUCAS II machine performed chest compressions. Not to mention quite a lot of drugs that were delivered to his body/blood stream by Intraosseous infusion [IO]…instead of giving meds and fluids through a vein like an IV, a small hole is drilled in the upper arm/humerus or the leg, just below the knee. The medications and fluids are pushed into the bone marrow because his blood pressure was too low and he was too critical to take the time to get an IV going to attempt to save him. It was working well, he actually regained just enough mental function to start fighting the tube. However, every time we’d pause the LUCAS to check his heart rhythm, he’d basically die again. He was lucid enough to understand what was happening and I’ll never forget the way his free arm scrabbled at the machine to get away from the chest compressions. Pediatric patients, whether it’s a severe illness or injury, are some of the roughest for many of us (especially those who have children).
Because this man didn’t wear his seat belt, his young son was severely injured and orphaned…and I can’t forget the noises he made, or how hard it was to scrub his blood and brains out of my uniform. Or the screams of absolute terror and pain of my young patient when I had to splint his arms and get an IV going for fluids and pain control. In EMS, if a child can scream and cry, it’s actually a good thing because it means they’re conscious and able to breathe/move enough air so they can scream. Quiet pediatric patients are the scary ones.
I survived a pretty severe rollover myself when I was in college, my seat belt literally saved my life. Any unrestrained passenger basically becomes a projectile in the event of a serious crash, injuring or even killing others in the vehicle if/before being ejected from the vehicle.
So yeah, you can elect not to wear your seat belt, but it’s a pretty good indication of what your mindset is regarding them. If you could prevent the death of yourself, passengers, and other people involved in the accident by simply wearing your goddamn seatbelt why wouldn’t you? “Stupidity” doesn’t just impact the person making the “stupid” decision. It’s one of the easiest and quickest things you can do to protect yourself and the people around you, why wouldn’t you give enough of a shit to take such a basic step?
This photo is from the accident (we take photos at all motor vehicle accidents for our reports), I have several others that are HIPPA-compliant but much worse that I won’t post here. It was enough that me and my crew were there in person and sharing them feels exploitative.
Just wear the goddamn seat belt, okay?
Area 51 Airline? | JANET: The Secret Government Airline That Doesn’t Exist
JANET AIRLINES. Heard of Janet Airlines? No?
Good. That’s exactly what the US government wants. One of the government’s biggest secrets is hiding in plain sight.
In Las Vegas. Janet is the top-secret government airline that doesn’t exist.
Next time you’re in Vegas, visit one of the big casinos next to McCarran Airport.
I’m talking about Luxor, Excalibur, Mandalay Bay.
When you get there, look East at the airport.
All day long, but especially early in the morning and late in the evening; you’ll see mysterious planes taking off and landing.
You can’t miss them. They’re big.
They’re Boeing 737s. They have no markings. No logos.
They’re plain white with a single red stripe. This is Janet Airlines. Janet is a top-secret, air-force owned commuter airline. For civilians. But the destination Janet goes to the most – I’m talking a few times a day- is… Area 51.
Meanwhile in Denmark
Denmark: A17-year-old gi! managed to escape being raped by fighting off her attacker as he ripped olf her dothing. The teenager was attacked around 10p.m. by a man described as “dark skinned” in central Senderborg, Denmark.
The attacker struck her, threw her to the ground and began forcibly removing her. Using a canister of pepper spray, the 17-year-old was able to fight him off ‘and escape the attack.
The police: “It’s illegal to possess and use pepper spray, so she will likely be charged for that,”
Irony being what it is, the girl only began carrying pepper spray because the local police have failed to curtail a wave of sexual attacks by asylum seekers and refugees. Now police say she will be charged with a crime for defending herself.
It is the end of human intelligence.
Brakekleen, WD40 BANNED in Canada
They should limit how many times per year that politicians can fly and see how fast they throw it out.
Well, in the smartphone arena, there is really only one foreign brand left in China.
Yes, Apple.
LG is gone.
HTC is gone.
Samsung is irrelevant.
Nokia, Motorola, Blackberry, Pixel, Sony and a host of has-beens or bit-players are all irrelevant.
It’s Chinese brands, and Apple, with 3 ecosystems, Hongmeng, iOS and Android.
No prizes for guessing how the balance will evolve, given the clear and present risk of disruptive sanctions forcing Google to pull Android licensing from other Chinese vendors.
In Africa, Transsion outsells Samsung, and Chinese brands as a whole dominate market share. Transsion, based in Shenzhen, has a sizable global share of >10%. It is the hidden champion no one has heard of.
The Chinese EV makers recently made waves in the Munich car show, with several media outlets trumpeting them as the “star of the show”. The Chinese overtook Japan as the No. 1 car exporting nation this year, and next year promises more growth.
Fancy Toyota defending its position in a sunset industry? I thought it impossible but the speed of the Chinese transition and the scale plus depth of the EV supply chain they have built is putting lots of doubt in my mind. Not to mention the dearth in AI/ML/big data/UI advances among Japanese automakers.
It isn’t all doom and gloom.
Let’s take a cursory look at Hyundai’s EV strategy. The Ioniq series is a clear step up from the typical Hyundai ICE offering, with premium materials, interiors, paintwork and fit and finish typically not found in the price segment. It is positioned as a bang for the buck premium series, almost luxury, but affordable.
Why?
Because the Chinese are making the mass market EV impossible to compete on cost alone. Besides, volume production necessary for economies of scale are impossible without Chinese partners. Hyundai wisely decided to cede market space and move up the segment instead. Fewer but better, or like my friend puts it, becoming “German”. Hyundai is quietly positioning itself as the Korean BMW or Audi EV.
The Japanese have been slower in response. I am increasingly pessimistic about their chances. What happened to Honda and Mazda’s mainland operations in the past few years portend seismic shifts ahead. EVs are not like ICE cars, because there are critical materials and technologies upstream that China controls.
This time, the patent walls and enabling tools/tech favor China, too.
What happens when the Koreans, Taiwanese, and Japanese can’t make a killing through export-driven demand for their mass market goods?
They will have to move upmarket, selling less for hopefully, more, much like Sony’s repositioning and reorganization. Those that cannot adjust to the speed of the Chinese transition will be crushed.
There we have it.
The days of Samsung and Toyota hitting home runs from economy to premium is coming to an end. They will have to specialize and move upmarket, or bleed red competing with the Chinese.
We’re in for interesting times.
Very interesting times.
This is the real trade war, with abiding consequences.
Family Guy – Best Of Making Fun Of Disney
Family guy loves making fun of Disney and it never EVER! gets old.
One of the main reasons for the retirement of the SR-71 was its high cost and complexity. The SR-71 was very expensive to operate and maintain, requiring a large amount of support personnel, equipment, and fuel. It could not take off with a full load of fuel, so it had to be refueled in the air several times during a mission. It had to use a special type of fuel and a toxic chemical to ignite its engines. Also, the SR-71 leaked fuel on the ground, as its tanks only sealed up when the aircraft reached high speeds and temperatures.
Another reason for the retirement of the SR-71 was the advancement of other technologies that made it less relevant and useful. The SR-71 was designed to fly fast and high to avoid enemy detection and interception. However, with the improvement of radar, missile, and satellite systems, it became more vulnerable and less effective. It also had limited capabilities in terms of data collection and transmission, as it relied on film cameras and radio signals.
On the other hand, the U-2 has remained in service because it has some advantages over the SR-71. The U-2 is cheaper and simpler to operate and maintain, requiring less support personnel, equipment, and fuel. It can take off and land with a full load of fuel, reducing the need for aerial refueling. Also, U-2 uses conventional fuel and engines, making it easier to handle and store.
The U-2 adapted to new technologies that made it more relevant and useful. It has been upgraded and modified over the years to incorporate new sensors, cameras, radars, antennas, and computers. The U-2 can collect and transmit various types of data in real-time, such as imagery, signals, electronic, and geospatial intelligence. Also, it can perform multiple types of missions at once, such as surveillance, reconnaissance, communication relay, research, and testing.
So depending on these factors and others, the U-2 has remained in service while the SR-71 has been retired. The U-2 has proven to be more cost-effective, reliable, versatile, and adaptable than the SR-71. However, this does not mean that the SR-71 was not a remarkable aircraft in its own right. The SR-71 was a groundbreaking achievement in aviation history that pushed the limits of speed, altitude, and stealth.
Oliver Anthony- Rich Men North of Richmond (Remix Mashup ft Kyle B/ Conquering Giants & NZTrillion)
Life is unpredictable and the consequences of the unpredictability are more dire.
You can lose everything you worked for in a flash, and left to your own devices without help from the government.
Just recently a 3 year old child, who fell down a escalator and died as he wiggled out of his mother’s arms, she was charged in his death…yep all over an tragic accident, because in America there are no accidents everything is your fault and you will be punished accordingly.
My cousins home was shot up she was hit 3 times, as was the neighbors son. All because she lived next door to a drug dealer she was struck in her chest, side and back. The 14 year old his arm, all over nothing. Those medical bills and her about to lose her home, we’ll that’s all on her.
600k Medical bankruptcies a year, how scary is that?
Losing a quite few young people I know not just to the opioid epidemic, but treatable things like pneumonia.
My aunt a stage 3 cancer patient was almost a car jacking victim, they didn’t care about her frail condition or turban on her head she eventually sped away when they held a gun to her head.
My moms car was stolen at Christmas eve in front of my grandparents house, that was a great Christmas because my Grandparents were holding some of the gifts and my parents were bringing them home to put under the tree.
My car stolen with the help of a Baltimore city cop.
In the Maryland and DC area there is a couple girls missing a day due to a sex trafficking ring.
My son had been barricaded in an apartment building because of a hostage situation.
My neighbors best friend went missing, all they found was her leg from the thigh down, they still consider her a “missing person” because they claim she can still be alive…so they have never bothered to check the area for other body parts.
My cousins best friend was killed and dismembered by her boyfriend.
My neighbor a couple blocks over bludgeoned his father to death.
The boy a few houses down shot himself in the head at 13.
My neighbor with the missing friend had a mentally ill mother who killed herself Easter morning by running her car into a wall on the beltway.
A lady next door for my friend was killed by police who was in a high speed pursuit with no lights and sirens, all over a guy going 20 miles over the speed limit.
I found the body of one of our favorite customers, with my work mates. He was living in his car, about to lose his legs and afraid of jail time for back child support so he wrote a bunch of letters and shot himself in the head.
Car accidents, I’ve known several people to die tragically in a car accident including my daughters friend, and my sons best friends father. A man my sister used to baby sit for, my childhood school mate, my neighbors behind my mom lost her husband this way. I’m probably missing a few.
I had a man pull a gun on me while walking to work and forced me to get in his car, I ran down the street he followed me. I was in a very public area so I took my chances.
My cousin was grabbed by a man coming out of school she fought her way out and ran, eventually they caught him and let him go he ended up murdering his wife and her sister a couple years later.
I know a elderly woman raped by a care worker. 50 years her junior.
Many Americans won’t have these experiences, because you have to buy your way out of areas where people wallow in tragedy, and misfortunes. If I were rich I could buy my way into a first class lifestyle where my kids would be oblivious to the underworld…but for many of us this is what we see all the time.
The Philadelphia Experiment – The truth about invisibility, teleportation and time travel
This is fun. Do not get too caught up in the narrative. You all know my story. Do not get sidetracked.
The Decline of the place is terrible and both my sons who once wanted Citizenship have left the country permanently
The reasons are different
For my younger son, the startup he worked on was sold and he cashed his stock options from the acquisition firm because he didn’t want to sign the Non Compete Clause. He wanted to work more on his research and China gave him the budget
For my elder son, it was a deterioration of the place, it’s gender horror, the focus on gays and transgender teachers and sex education including homosexuality
The Schooling suddenly says no GPA in the early years because that’s unhealthy
Arizona was better but the problem was the locals start getting angry that you have a mortgage and a car and all those things while they could be laid off
Plus everyone has a DAMN GUN
Kids have guns
So it was either Gays or Guns
So the minute a choice came, he decided to leave US but sadly to the equally decadent Europe instead of the more vibrant Dubai where Investment Bankers can thrive
I still have relatives there but they are all living paycheck by paycheck and unable to save despite averaging $ 80–85 thousand a year
Plus the Healthcare has become horrible now
Especially post Covid
To think I planned a green card or citizenship to this place a few years ago…!!!!!
Fat Dom Gets Whacked By Silvio And Carlo – The Sopranos HD
Do you know the semiconductor sanctions that Huawei has suffered in the past three years? It’s a pity that we can’t buy this mobile phone here in the USA. It is the first mobile phone in the world that directly supports satellite phones. This will definitely be an industrial product that will be recorded in history.
This means that in the past three years, all companies around the world have not been allowed to sell 5G-related semiconductors to Huawei as long as these semiconductors contain American technology.
All companies around the world are not allowed to help Huawei produce semiconductors, as long as your production process contains American technology.
You know, semiconductor is a global division of labor industry. The technology in this industry has always been global cooperation, and there is no semiconductor production and design company in any country that does not contain American technology.
Such sanctions can directly shock companies like Apple and Samsung. They originally thought Huawei would also collapse.
But Mate60 was released. After 3 years, they released a new 5G mobile phone again. This is not just as simple as a mobile phone.
This is a huge technical chain that requires the participation of hundreds of companies with different specialties.
In the past, this required the mutual cooperation of multiple countries, and no country could do it alone.
But now the Chinese have done it. Maybe not top notch, but they really did it.
This means that Chinese companies can make advanced semiconductors (maybe not state-of-the-art) without relying on American technology.
This is a historic event in the global semiconductor industry. It means that China’s semiconductor industry chain has made a comprehensive breakthrough.
Note that I used the word industry chain.
To manufacture a slice of advanced semiconductors requires the participation of many companies and industries. From EDA software, to the cultivation of silicon wafers, chip and framework design, high-purity chemicals, laser devices, lithography machines, etching machines, packaging equipment, and testing technologies.
Chinese people often use the term “shooting oneself in the foot”. Now I can fully understand the meaning of this sentence. Under the pressure of the Americans, the Chinese took three years to complete the independence of the entire semiconductor industry chain. They have gone from 0 to 1, or even from 0 to 10, and the remaining 90 points are just a matter of time.
It can be predicted that ten years later, China’s semiconductor industry will crush its peers around the world through its own scale and cost advantages. No one can sanction them because they do it all themselves, from sand to chips.
U.S. TRANSFERS IT’S MILITARY IN FEAR OF NIGER AFRICANS
This is from Africa. Pay attention to what is NOT being reported in the West.
“As an American, I am grateful to hear the truth on the ground. Great program.”
As I mention in the company I run you would always get customers who would cheekily try and get a discount. You would also get customers who would try and wear you down.
Some of them wouldn’t take no for an answer…
Some of them thought by insulting you screaming obscenities at you they would get you to yield.
I heard it a few times and hopped off my chair went downstairs and simply told them to fuck off and that I didn’t want their business.
They’d often well I’ll go somewhere else and never come back smug response to me.
Unfortunately for them I carried a number of ultra rare parts that hadn’t been made anymore.
Banana Pudding
banana pudding
Ingredients
1 box vanilla wafers
3 bananas
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2 cups milk
2 eggs, separated
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
In a casserole dish pour about 3/4 of the vanilla wafers. Slice the bananas over that. Set aside.
Mix the cornstarch into the sugar and place in a large saucepan. Add milk and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly.
Beat the egg yolks with a fork and add about 4 tablespoons hot milk/sugar mixture into the yolks, stirring until well blended (this prevents chunks of cooked egg yolk). Pour the yolk mixture into the saucepan and continue cooking over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture begins to thicken.
Add vanilla extract and butter or margarine.
Pour the pudding mixture over the bananas and wafers.
To make meringue, beat the two egg whites until stiff. Add 3 tablespoons sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. Spread over the pudding.
Already happened. Huawei and China have created a completely separate ecosystem of parts, software, and system of systems integration that is completely dark to American corporations and government. It doesn’t use GPS, American sat comms, google services, micron memory, Taiwanese foundries, Korean OLEDs, Japanese cameras and any number of technologies vulnerable to American sanction. Even Swift transactions have been taken care of.
Yes, the chipmaking node remains a formidable moat, but the rest of the ecosystem which is out of reach for even supranational organizations such as ASEAN, UNASUR, and perhaps even the EU are all in place, firmly in the grasp of a third world China, GDP per capita ~12,000 dollars, with a more poorly educated adult population than India.
I count that as a solid Chinese win, on relative terms.
In absolute terms, China is already shaking up the semiconductor sector. America’s belligerence has given the opportunity for China to openly subsidize the industry massively. It is the single largest consumer of chips, befitting its status as the largest global manufacturer. The seismic shift is in the clarion call for self-sufficiency, and if this keeps up, there will be a glut of chips ex-china, while foreign players in the domestic market will have their margins squeezed by local competition. The Chinese will use every trick in the book to grab market share, until sanction becomes a meaningless tool.
The victims of this bloodbath isn’t just American tech, but also the Taiwanese, Korean and Japanese who are all intimately entwined in the East Asian electronics industrial chain. Taiex, in particular, has >50% of its market capitalization in chipmaking (TSMC alone is >30%), and with the Chinese clearly signaling the end of the sunshine era of ECFA, Taiwan will have to readjust massively. I won’t be surprised if all 3 fall into trade deficit with China in the coming decade, with china exporting cost of living inflation.
A comprehensive Chinese win will be denied by pro-western media until China makes the final breakthrough of having clear node leadership and mature designs (especially in the GPU) that are superior to the best America offers. Unlike tobacco, America can’t pull a Philip Morris here because tech products can be tested and torn down, ad infinitum. Huawei and China still lacks mature options in the toolmaking segment, the enablers, so to speak, of chipmaking. The hole will take some years to fill so I’ll still go for a 10 year timeline, backdated to 2019, when Donald the Orange lobbed the first cluster bombs at Huawei.
Huawei and China have been ahead of schedule so far. I’ve heard interesting rumors so far about 2024, while the Mate 60 pro is probably the super phone from Huawei with a 5G modem that the grapevine was whispering about as early as late 2021.
I don’t think China will disappoint.
要打交道就坦荡荡地打交道。
要打压奉陪到底。
JOBLESS YOUTH BROKE DOWN! 😭 | Oliver Anthony “Rich Men North Of Richmond” | Reaction
You see, my wife and I went to a bar, and we “won” two bottled of “Red Label” whiskey, and we promptly started to drink them both. Ugh! (I do not advise that.) And anyways, eventually, I had to go vomit.
Too much hard alcohol will cause your body to react and demand that the toxins be thrown out.
And so, I tried to find the bathroom, got lost, and stumbled outside.
Then, I promptly threw up in the grass, and just sat there afterwards trying to get my bearings.
When a nice cute girl came out of the bar / club and came up to me, and grabbed my arm and led me back in. Was I lucky? She was cute. Wearing a baby-doll frilly dress and stockings.
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For a moment, I thought that my wife sent her.
But no.
She led me though a door leading to the back unfinished cement of the rest of the building, and up some cement stairs. Then, she reached in my jacket looking for wallet, cell phone and whatever.
Found my cell phone, and then took it, and left.
After a few moments, I in a daze, stumbled out and found my wife who was frantically looking everywhere for me.
And it wasn’t until the next day that I realized that my phone was gone, and it was stolen.
I was “rolled”.
…
This is my little story, and a treasured, if embarrassing, memory. Learn from my mistakes.
When I was in college, I was a live-on-site apartment manager for an apartment complex with 80 units. When I was hired, not one person lived in the buildings. I was to fill the apartments with renters, as well as work on renovations to the apartments. I did all of this and managed to rent every apartment within a couple months, as well as do the renovations. I thought nothing of it — I was young and inexperienced and thought this was normal.
The owner, Ed, and I got along well and treated each other with respect, even though we were very different people. The owner’s ultimate goal was to sell the apartment complex. Within a couple more months, Ed sold the apartment complex to a new owner, who I shall call Arsehole.
After the property officially changed ownership, Arsehole came to visit the property, and me. When we met, I reached out my hand to shake his, but he refused my hand, saying, “I don’t shake hands with the help.”
I admit, I was shocked. Being young and inexperienced in such things, I blurted out the first thing that came to mind, “And I don’t work for assholes.” The look on his face was priceless.
I turned and walked away to go to my car and go rent a moving truck. He (and his assistant) followed me as I walked, yelling that I couldn’t do this as they depended on me to run everything. I ignored them, got in my car, drove away, rented a truck and was gone from that job within a few hours.
Later that week I called the former owner, Ed, and attempted an apology of sorts. Ed just laughed and agreed that the new owner was an asshole and that he didn’t blame me at all.
Southern Fried Quail
2023 09 16 11 11
Ingredients
10 to 12 quail
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 to 1/2 cup flour
Instructions
Dry and pick quail. Clean and wipe thoroughly.
Salt, pepper and dredge with flour.
Have ready a deep heavy frying pan with close-fitting lid half full of hot fat.
Put in quail. Cook for a few minutes over a high heat, then cover skillet and reduce heat. Cook slowly until tender, turning the quail when golden brown.
Serve on hot platter garnished with slices of lemon and sprigs of parsley.
[HD] Twin Peaks – Jimmy Scott sings “Sycamore Trees” in the red room
That moment you realize you have lost the battle and you are never going to escape the red room.
Thanks for the A2A. Oh boy, this is a bit relevant I suppose. I’ll talk to moving to these places, as opposed to being born and raised there.
First off, I must stress this as deeply as possible:
Most people do not make for good immigrants. Being an immigrant in itself is a skill set.
It doesn’t matter what the target country is like, when a person goes about expecting to be treated normally or equitably. There is no such thing in the experience of being an immigrant. The very act of migrating means that one becomes an outsider trying to make their way in, and that will always be a special process. The fantasy of being “finally accepted” somewhere that better fits one’s personality is a road fraught with hurdles — achievable, but you will come out the other end a very different person. It is for this reason that most people migrate out of necessity or urgency, not out of adventure or comfort.
As such, it should be obvious but it bears mentioning:
There is a world of difference between visiting a place and living in it.
I am going to presume that “living in a country” means more than being a visitor, but rather a full resident/citizen of a given place. To be more specific, it should refer to a person planning on retiring and dying in said place, and special attention will be placed to all of the personal needs that entails.
With that said, I’m going to take this as a stream of thought. Categorization of the two countries is what rankings do. I am more interested in giving a personal take on both countries, because I think people are more interested in gathering advice rather than holistic approaches. So please keep in mind, I will be switching between the two countries in an erratic fashion here.
First thing first, the USA is an immigrant country. This means that ideologically it establishes equal expectations for people who wish to become American, and to some degree the US holds itself accountable to this premise. This is often what immigrants are looking at when they try to imagine the American dream — here is a place in which one can work hard and succeed in life, regardless of origin or background.
Sadly, America has long since diverged from its ideological foundations. Some may argue that it never diverged because it never met those foundations in the first place (usually these arguments are along the lines of Black history or American Indian history). Regardless, the reality is that the US is primarily driven by race-based tribes, and there is a long litany of racial suppression policies that continue to this day.
This is the first hurdle that any prospective migrant to the US needs to realize — the dream is a dream, and it doesn’t just take effort to realize it (but really a lot of luck). For those who arrive with starry-eyed glasses, it can take decades for such individuals to accept the reality around them; some don’t even get to that point. To illustrate with examples, I like to cite this video because it perfectly highlights the dreamers versus the realists.
Dreamers come in all colors. White dreamers are more prone to saying that they “don’t see color” or that “they don’t have a culture.” In Black spaces, dreamers are often the ones that code switch and perform socially as if they’re white.
In all the stripes of America, dreamers are perhaps the ones most sold by Obama’s 2008 campaign. Back then there was a lot of commentary on how America had finally become a post-racial country.
[1]It’s a very comforting ideal and one that is quite noble. I must profess, I was part of that too.
For realists, they were (sadly) vindicated when the backlash against Obama culminated in the election of Trump in 2016. And that’s the difference — realists are just pessimists and see the US as what it is, not what people want it to be. Politically and socially, this is perhaps the strongest divide, the primordial reason why the culture wars exist.
Many immigrants look at the US and eventually go “I don’t get why everyone is obsessed with race.” They just haven’t gotten the memo yet, which usually comes in the form of a rude awakening when someone treats them unfairly because of race. Much of an immigrant’s challenge in life is in trying to “see past the slight” and think of that as just human nature, or to cast it in light of how “things are back home” to justify their move to the US. At some point they either contend with reality (especially when seeing the reality of other people) or they seal themselves in a bubble to make reality go away. The latter strategy often comes to blows when they have kids, who may not end up thinking the same as their parents.
A dour look, but it is not too bad. All countries have negative sides, and the reality is that most Americans see the mess that is American politics and instead do their best to not make it part of their lives. Easier said than done, but this is how most people swim, so it is easy to parlay on a day-to-day basis. Just be prepared to see race pop up pretty much constantly — the black guy pulled over by the cop, the weird clustering of Asian stores, the abundance of Latino gardeners…
This isn’t to say everything is sunshine and roses for China. Now, neither is China some dystopian 1984 render fed by the press. But, it must be said, moving to China is not an easy process, and the primary reason why is that China is not an immigrant nation. All policies have a priority for Chinese people first and foremost, meaning the interests of immigrants are secondary, often optional to bureaucrats. The way this manifests is that immigrants are an afterthought in China’s systems, and while there might exist pathways for foreigners on paper, in practice people might not realize they exist. America might play pretend, but it has a far more mature system of handling foreigners. China doesn’t pretend and doesn’t have those systems, and any prospective migrant is going to do a lot of legwork to achieve parity with any Chinese citizen.
For most immigrants into China, the most common reflex is to stick to the role of being an outsider. This means not commenting on the local politics, or otherwise not making spicy takes. There is an expectation for outsiders to abide by that saying — “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” This is mediated by the degree to which migrants are seen as Chinese, with increasing adherence to Chinese cultural values a good (but not always perfect) rubric to one’s “Chinese-ness.” With sufficient exposure, it should become obvious that there is some tolerance, though it should also become obvious that Chinese people themselves usually take limited positions on politics, and usually within the scope of their own professions. It is usually fine to talk about how one’s own field is shaping up. It is less fine to talk about how someone else should work, despite being in a field one has little experience in. The reason is simple: You can’t be expected to know, so why are you shooting off your mouth?
The inverse of this fortunately holds true though. Because outsiders are expected to not know, they are freely given a neutrality pass and accommodated for. Don’t know the standards of a banquet dinner? It’s okay, outsiders aren’t expected to know. Have no comment on the latest nationalist rage? It’s okay, outsiders aren’t involved. This neutrality/obliviousness pass is very powerful, though it doesn’t last forever (there is an expectation that people eventually figure out the rules). Regardless, I recommend everyone use it, especially in their first 5 years in China. This holds true for visitors as well, and in fact is probably more pronounced.
The very rude awakening of living in China is that after that “probationary period,” that expectation to figure out the rules and culture starts hitting in full force. This is why the question “how long have you been in China for” is kind of a trap question to be treated with great caution — answer truthfully, but give yourself as much space as you can. I for one usually answered “since 2017” whenever I sensed that the other person wanted to know how to treat me (or rather, how much they were on the hook for guiding me). In cases where I needed to show that I wasn’t going to be a bother, I answered “on and off since 1996.” Both are true and you can always explain that away later (most don’t care), but always give yourself space in accordance to the situation. This is generally seen as prudence and/or social awareness, and this is generally a good thing (because it means you are aware enough to not be a liability in a guanxi network).
As for what those expectations are actually headed towards, there is a bit of a social conversation in China on what space foreigners should exist in. The most commonly accepted, uncontroversial take is that any foreigner acting as a Chinese does, competing on equal footing with a Chinese person, doing jobs that other Chinese would take, in accordance with Chinese social norms, is most certainly a fine addition to China. This is because all foreigners bring something special (they are not locals, after all), and if such a foreigner otherwise removes all the friction of being a foreigner, then such an addition to a guanxi network is seen as a strict positive. There are very few people who would turn down such a foreigner, and this is also the pathway in which a foreigner has the best chance of being treated as any Chinese person., or Mark Rowswell. He is a big reason why Canada had one of the biggest cheers from the audience back in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
The rest of the debate splits into different camps. There is generally agreement that no one wants foreigners who otherwise hate China but stick around and exploit the “probationary period.” As for foreigners who can find gainful work as foreigners, most people are fine with that, but it will lead people to worry that changing government priorities might cause them to be out of a job. It is for this matter that not everyone is willing to engage such a foreigner as part of their guanxi network, though in most cases the allure of a foreigner’s own network or status is enough to bypass that risk.
For the most part, Chinese still take it as flattery that others would want to adopt Chinese cultural trappings, if not the actual culture itself.
The problem is, foreigners who do so stand out like a sore thumb. Anyone who wants to “blend in” is stuck in a conundrum, because on one hand that insists on adopting local behavior. On the other hand, doing that is contradictory to one’s own goals. Hence, China is currently incompatible with migrants who want the experience of being one of the masses.
…unless if you look Chinese. Then, everything changes:
There is no “probationary period” unless if people are notified ahead of time. They will assume you are Chinese first.
Because there is no “probationary period,” there is no leniency normally afforded to foreigners. This will feel unfair.
Likewise, because no one expects to treat you like a foreigner, it becomes possible to blend in. Stealth is the superpower of those who present Chinese, making it possible to see how Chinese people engage the system. This is the only way for a foreigner to have a truthful, firsthand picture of what it means to be Chinese.
And, because people don’t expect you to be a foreigner, if you suddenly start speaking with not-native Chinese, people will stop, stare at you, and try and “figure you out.” This will feel invasive.
Regardless, the attention that foreigners get in China is somewhat like being put under a microscope. It is deeply uncomfortable to a lot of people, and so this is a buyer beware situation — China is extra not for everyone. This problem doesn’t exist anywhere as much in the US, because once again, the USA is an immigrant country.
One of the other perks of the US as an immigrant country is that it makes it easy to be involved in politics. The first and foremost point of concern is probably going to relate to how one can become a citizen and gain the vote. Fortunately there is a clear process to do so (albeit fraught with delays, as it may take years or even decades to become one); likewise for any kids born in the US, they are automatically US citizens by means of jus solis. Lately there has been backlash against these policies, and this is best expressed by the current fight that affects largely the Latinos (see What is DACA and Who Are the DREAMers?), but overall this remains true for people looking to join the US and become US citizens.
While it is true that the vote in the US is actually not all that impactful, US political participation extends far beyond a simple vote. One can (and should) be involved in political campaigns, donate to causes and campaigns that are worth something on a personal level, and participate in political discussions in general. The US, by means of being a democratic republic, asserts much of its political foundation on the necessity of a rational, informed public, and other instruments of governance (particularly one’s guaranteed rights) are designed to protect citizens and promote the free spread of information. The ideological foundation of the US is quite solid.
By contrast, participation in politics in China is first and foremost a question of if someone has joined the Communist Party of China. To do so is by itself a competitive process for Chinese people and is where the Imperial examinationof old continues its legacy. For foreigners, this is nearly impossible to access as one has to first become a Chinese national to do so, and the process for doing that is specific to each candidate (there is no established, regular process). So while in the US there is a designated space for foreigners to participate, in China there effectively isn’t. In terms of ideological foundation, clearly it is superior to be an American as a foreigner.
…however, ideology is different from reality. For any human being on Earth, we must be cognizant of society. When we become employed, we must beware of office conduct and the opinions of our bosses. HR will always wield unfair powers over us. This holds true for China and for the US, and this is where it becomes untenable to access those guarantees in the US. How? In the US, most high skill workers enter the US on a H1B visa, which requires that the foreigner be recommended by an employer and gainfully employed there. If the foreigner stops being employed, they have about two months before they are deported. Due to the practicalities of being sponsored for H1B and the difficulties of this process, those two months basically don’t exist, and the H1B visa effectively makes the foreigner’s stay entirely dependent on the whims of the employer. And while an employer cannot fire an employee over any expressed political opinions, they can fire an employee on pretty much any cause (and they will find one). The end result is that almost all foreigners self-censor themselves. This self-censorship regime is further emphasized by US law, which bans expression of certain types of anti-government opinions.
[2]It is usually beyond the capacity of most migrants to realize that these laws exist, though they are reminded of what is banned when they first apply for citizenship.
Not all foreigners are censored though. Many who come to the US do so under political asylum, under strategic interests of the US, and they are usually free to speak loudly and proudly about their freedom to express political opinions. These opinions happen to always be extremely pro-US, which in turn sets the tone for all other foreigners who might not be so giddy about the state; those who abide by the state are welcome to all of the freedoms, while those who are not are to be monitored for suspected disloyalty.
This is pretty much the same situation as in China. The methods are different in China, and I’d argue they are more blatant and upfront about it, but regardless it is hard to express an anti-China opinion in China as a foreigner, much like it is hard to express an anti-US opinion in the US. The difference is that the US pretends it doesn’t do this, while China just doesn’t pretend. Kind of a potato, potahto situation. My only political recommendation to foreigners is to not shake the boat. As an outsider, foreigners are always on probation, and this holds true pretty much in all corners of this Earth. There are always unacceptable opinions to any society, and one way or another a society will find a way to “deal with you” if you happen to cross those lines.
In both cases I do not recommend a foreigner to participate politically. If you are one of the exceptions, you will know from all the social cues that you are excepted. Even then, don’t be stupid, don’t burn bridges, don’t make life hard for yourself.
I think we’ve gone over a lot of the dour parts. So what are the good parts? Here I am going to break it down into simple lists, pointing out the good parts unique to each side first.
For the US:
American food is fantastic. You may have heard the memes about American food being just hamburgers, hot dogs, and whatever frozen nonsense. That is true, yes, but only on a superficial level. Food in America goes far deeper; local cuisines are almost never talked about abroad but feature the same kind of depth one would expect in most cultures. And of course, America does have a diverse population from all across the world, and it is imminently possible to eat authentic food from all regions of the world if one is located in a major city. China can’t do this except in a couple places, and even then the foreign food is inauthentic and terrible more often than not.
American land is pristine. Now, both countries have a lot of wilderness to see, yes. But the US is obviously far less polluted now than China is today (different parts of the development-pollution Kuznets curve), and any foreigner should take full advantage of not only US parks, but the great expanse. Here I will wholeheartedly recommend Tēnn Khong Lîm’s Travel Stories. He has done a great job cataloguing the many sights to see in the US — albeit a point of criticism, he has a lot more work to do! As a personal recommendation, for those who are otherwise jaded by the usual scenes of nature, Alaska is a great place to change it up. Nothing quite like it.
American salaries are enormous. Yes, the job market sucks. Yes, there is underemployment. Yes, living costs suck. But, in the end the US is a developed nation with the world’s largest economy (probably), and the pay is definitely there for skilled foreigners. Life at the top 10% of America is truly easy and great. (I do not recommend migrating to the US if you will end up in the bottom 50% though.) All in all, let’s not forget the power of the USD either — currency conversions are usually very nice when one earns USD.
American internet is much more liberal. It’s not entirely uncensored (see culture wars, private moderation), but it hails from the Wild West days of the formative internet and that legacy persists to this day. This is especially true in comparison to Chinese internet, which obviously has the Great Firewall among other censorship effects. Now, there are some downsides to all this freedom (trolling in particular is bad), but the upsides are more numerous. Gamers especially should take note, as the GFW often shits on pings, whereas US internet is more of an uninterrupted experience.
American safety is better barring violence. What I mean here is that it is safe to drink the water, easy to trust food safety, easier to find top-tier healthcare, and easier to access more complete safety nets provided by the government. In China, these things are more of a work in progress.
And for China:
Chinese food is deep. It doesn’t have the international breadth of the US, but China is such a huge place that internally it is like the entire Schengen area in diversity. Many of the subcuisines of China are top-tier cuisines in their own right, sporting wildly different techniques from their neighbors. It is said that it takes more than a lifetime to eat all the dishes in China. For this, I recommend Blondie in China, who goes in such depth that she can actually educate Chinese people on Chinese cuisine. Intuitively, let me put it this way: when an entire country sports foodie culture, many things suddenly become possible, and many more niches suddenly become viable. That will always lead to more diversity.
Chinese landscapes are curated. This is kind of a complex subject, but the long and short of it is that Chinese park architecture is more of a blend of the constructed and the wild, rather than the European picturesque (which is a constructed frame to which the wild can be viewed/owned). So while you might go to the US to experience more untamed wilderness, China delivers unparalleled curated wilderness, where instead of feeling like you are “away from all of it,” you will feel that you are “one with nature.”
Chinese cost of living is very low. What this means is that while you won’t earn as much money, your wealth will go a much longer way. For people who are say, lower-middle class in the US, moving to China vaults them straight to upper-middle class status. It is night and day, and especially for underserved minorities this can feel particularly liberating. There are tons of videos of people living in the most expensive areas in China, but go outside of the Tier 1 and 2 cities and it becomes obvious just how cheaply one can thrive on in China.
Chinese amenities are just better. In particular they are better planned, and this really is more of a black mark on the US. Lately it’s become quite common to see urbanist videos on Youtube about how US infrastructure sucks. But I want to also point out that in China, with ubiquitous metro, rail, bus, and bike services, it is exceedingly easy to get around as a pedestrian. More importantly, cities are often laid out with Communist principles (sometimes Soviet, sometimes Chinese), and so neighborhoods will all have corner shops and the like. 15 minute cities are honestly the norm in China, which makes it easy to handle just about everything with an electric scooter, further driving down living costs… hopefully the point has been made.
And finally, China has less violence. This is particularly important for women, particularly for American women, who usually have to worry about going alone at night. In China, these are not concerns; it doesn’t mean crime doesn’t happen (particularly assaults on women), it just means that it is such a low occurrence that most people do not plan their lives around it. Chinese people might say that “China is more dangerous than the US,” but they mean all the other things I mentioned before. They just do not have a concept that a place can be so violent as the US (which in itself is overblown by Chinese who have visited the US, as well as Americans — especially white and Asian ones).
But in the end, I want to note that the two places are honestly quite similar:
Both are huge countries. Yes, 1.4 billion people is far larger than 330 million. But 330 million is also an amazingly high number. The real difference to me is that China feels more crowded than the US. Still, they are both huge and therefore people behave like they are in a huge country.
Both are powerful and influential. Moving to such a place is not going to be a case of “throwing your life away” in the rat race of competition. While China was certainly easily ignored some 30 years ago, at this point it has certainly become impossible to ignore. And of course, the US continues to be top dog.
Both are extroverted countries. I know a lot of people in the US think of China “as an Asian country” which causes them to reach to Japanese politeness as their mental model. This couldn’t be further from the truth. China is a place that rewards extroversion just like the US, and it punishes introversion as well (many in China will wonder if you are a 宅男/宅女 if you are a homebody, while in the US people will think you are antisocial).
Both are welcoming countries to outsiders. Yes, cities can be a bit lonely. But both places are warm and welcoming and quite outspoken about it, and while there may be some political hostilities towards outsiders, these are political backlashes, and they work against the common grain. Do not confuse that for the general hospitality of either nation. You will miss out on a lot otherwise.
Both countries have awful housing prices, but also huge houses. The awful housing prices are more of a global phenomenon — all big cities are being hit hard. But the huge houses are true for both places where there aren’t awful housing prices. This doesn’t quite make sense for China if approached with that Japanese lens, but again that’s a fallacy; in the Chinese countryside, the party has been providing much larger accommodation and so it is common to see rural people with new housing that has ceilings some 2.5+ meters high. (Honestly speaking, they are a bit too big.) In the US, most people underestimate how cheap it is to live in the “less desirable cities/states/areas.”
Both countries are deeply misunderstood. Hollywood paints a very strange picture of the US, but this is unfortunately the prime cultural export that seems to inform people abroad. Meanwhile China itself is painted usually in the colors of totalitarianism, and the people are almost exclusively talked about in terms of political repression, often not existing outside of it. In general, both places are talked about from geostrategic concerns first, and the daily lives of these people become buried underneath politically motivated statements.
The nice thing is that really, both countries have a lot to offer for anyone; they are both very large nations with all sorts of experiences one can lose themselves in. The question at the end of the day is, are you willing to give up a lot to have a new life? That should be the first question any prospective migrant should consider, because more often than not, people are not willing to give up so much of themselves. It is always tragic to see a migrant who has moved and now regrets moving.
“Get OUT now!” Syria tells U.S. to leave now and stop stealing its oil | Redacted w Clayton Morris
Syria would like to remind the world that the United States is illegally occupying its country and stealing its oil. The nation has appealed to the United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres and Security Council President Ferit Hoxha for help. So what will the U.N. do? We ask journalist Syrian Kevork Almassian for his guess on what will happen and how this came about to begin with.
In a certain social class in Egypt, people deal with buffets as if they’ve been starved to death their whole lives. And surprisingly they aren’t really poor to begin with.
Anyhow, in my cousin’s wedding, they went really big with the party, inviting every single person we know in Kuwait, and keeping the invitations open so that anyone can bring whoever they want with them.
Let me just say that the moment we announced that the buffet is now open, people turned their heads and rushed to the buffet like there was no tomorrow:
Being my cousin’s direct family, we stayed with him, taking care of things. When we entered the hall to finally eat, the scene was truly shameful.
The floor was covered with food stains, the platters were almost empty, the tables were tilted. It was like a tornado had passed through the area.
And while I haven’t seen this in this particular wedding, I know for a fact that some Egyptian mothers take with them these big, black garbage bags to stuff them with food and take it home.
It’s like buffets are some sort of an eating contest!
That wedding was a good lesson for us. Keep weddings limited to people you actually know and ones who care about you. And perhaps… don’t go with a buffet?
That being said, that was the only wedding I’ve seen that was this disastrous; usually weddings around me are more organized and classy.
It will take time for the Vision Pro to gain followers because right now it is relying on developers to port their apps to Vision Pro.
Right now, Apple is in a weak marketing position because there are no new features for the iPhone 15 series except for the change to USB-C connectors. It looks like Apple is putting more marketing weight behind Apple Watch than the iPhone.
This has left Apple severely exposed in its single largest market, China. Huawei has introduced the Mate 60 Pro, which enables satellite voice communications, and has much higher network connection speeds than Apple, Samsung and Google, who all rely on Qualcomm for their 5G transceivers.
The current version of the Vision Pro is priced at $3500, which means that only early adapters will buy it. A cheaper version will likely not come out until 2024/25.
I expect a lot of buzz about Huawei products even though they will not be readily available in the US due to sanctions.
Tough times for Apple and Samsung.
China’s economy is collapsing, isn’t it? Here’s Chinas real economic situation
I always take the opposite to what the US and other Western countries said about the economy, technologies and Geopolitics concerning China. If China is doing so bad economically, it’s common sense that they let the enemy keep doing all the wrong things. When the US bark and scream about China, then the truths is that China is doing well economically.
Look into the sky. You will see seven objects in it that move relative to the other objects
The Sun, the Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus and Saturn. They’re all visible to the naked eye and have been known since ancient times in all civilizations.
So in English we have
SUN-day, MOON-day, and SATURN-day
And in French, they have MARS-day (mardi), MERCURY-day (mercredi), JUPITER-day (jeudi), and VENUS-day (vendredi). In English we actually name those after Gemanic gods – Tiw, Odin, Thor and Freya. In French, you also have lundi (MOON-day) an samedi (SATURN-day). “Dimanche”, the French for “Sunday” means “God’s day”, i.e. the sabbath.
The word “Month” is also based on “moon” because it’s roughly the time between full moons.
I grew up in a small town and joined the Army when I turned 18 on a 2-year enlistment. I had many personal reasons, but perhaps the one that might resonate the most with you was the Army College Fund. I thought going to college would help me succeed in life, and it might also be nice to see a bit of the world first. At the time, the Army recruiting slogan was “be all you can be” and that seemed to fit.
As a private (E-1) in basic training I was singled out and given more tests. Less than a year later, I finished jump school and was assigned to the 82nd Airborne at Fort Bragg. Then those test scores came through and I received orders to West Point.
As a lieutenant (after ranger school) I was assigned to the 4th Mechanized Infantry Division at Fort Carson. The entire Army (regular, reserves, national guard) deployed to the Gulf for Desert Shield/Storm, except for our division. As a combat arms officer, with no combat experience, I figured my career was over. A JAG I knew recommended I apply for the Funded Legal Education Program (FLEP) and go to law school, so I did.
As a captain I tried my first court-martial while assigned at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, Georgia supporting 1/75 rangers and part of the 160th SOAR, among other units. This became the foundation for much of my later career, both in the Army and after.
As a major in the JAG Corps, I went on over 30 deployments while assigned to SOCEUR (during the Bosnia and Kosovo campaigns) then later back at Fort Bragg, I deployed again after 9/11 in support of 5th Group. It’s ironic, but I collected more hostile fire and hazardous duty pay as a JAG than I ever did while in combat arms.
My last assignment was in Washington, DC, where I retired with 20 years of active duty. I then spent a few years as a trial lawyer and partner in a large law firm doing corporate work. The G.I. Bill allowed me to first get an MBA and then another degree at Georgetown. Altogether, four masters degrees and two doctorates (all paid for by the Army), healthcare and a lifetime pension. Not a bad result for a kid who started out just trying to learn something about the world and earn money for college.
The Sopranos – Tiny Tears – Tindersticks
I can never listen to Tiny Tears without thinking of the Sopranos.
There are actually two pieces of hardware that were ubiquitous in the 90s, but mostly gone now.
The key reason for the demise of these devices is the flash memory in combination with USB. Diskettes were a way to transport small volumes of information (1.4 MB for most of the 90s) around cheaply and unreliably. The information could be overwritten and 1.4 MB is actually plenty of data, as long as you aren’t including images or music. Forget about video, but they were fine for text, power point presentations and the like. All in all they filled a useful niche of portable, short term data storage. You didn’t want to keep anything important exclusively on diskettes, because they had a high failure rate.
CD was for larger amounts of data, a CD could contain 650 MB or hundreds of diskettes. It was also more reliable, you just couldn’t trust diskettes for more than a few months, but CDs last for 100 years (manufactured ones) or at least 20 years (home burned ones). The problem with CDs was the writing process was curbesome and they couldn’t be rewritten. If you wanted to put data on a CD more than once you lost about 20 MB for each session too. Rewritable CDs existed, but they failed rather often as well.
So you had two technologies to transport data around. One was suitable for small amounts of data, but cheap, ubiquitous and easy to write on. The other was suitable for large amounts of data, but curbesome. The two systems worked well in unision and there was nothing wrong with the setup as such. They weren’t replaced because they sucked, but because the alternative was so vastly better.
Enter the stick drive, which is faster than the diskette and just as easy to rewrite, but can easily hold as much or more data as the CD. In early 2000s they became cheap as well and diskettes and CDs no longer had a niche to fill. There is almost nothing you need a CD for and there is no use for a diskette either. Nowadays we usually move data around either on an USB stick or through the internet connection, ubiquitous fast internet came about slightly later than the stick drive and helped kill off other physical data carriers. External magnetic drives helped too of course, for reliable long-term storage.
On top of that the humble USB connection also enabled inexpensive external CD/DVD burners, so there’s no point in having an internal drive any more. They’re all burners now, because the technology is so cheap it doesn’t make sense to make slightly cheaper read only devices.
Losing weight was the best decision I made in life, it was a few years ago now and the only regret I have was not doing it sooner.
I was obese from a very young age up until I was 28 years old, which affected me in a lot of ways. I was subjected to daily bullying and felt terrible about myself most of the time. In general, I was and still am (to a degree) avoidant of people because of what I went through in my childhood leading into my twenties.
I never had close friends or dated women at all, I would not even approach because of the fear of rejection, which is what I was use to most of the time. The only thing that made me happy was food but at the same time it was making my life absolutely miserable because I was getting bigger and bigger trying to fill the void I constantly felt inside.
It got so bad that I was planning on ending things and thought about it a lot. One day I made a promise to myself, that I would give losing weight my best shot before I would go ahead with doing something drastic so that is what I did.
I went ahead and started small, building day by day and eventually after about 8 months of extremely hard work and dedication I lost 51kg!
I truly believe one of the best things you can do for yourself in the short and long term is to take care of your body and to live a fit and healthy lifestyle, it changed my life in so many ways but most importantly it gave me the confidence I never thought I had, to stand up for myself and to prove all the people that put me down wrong in the best of ways.
Holy SH*t,Something is Happening in Maui! Oprah & The Rock
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and Oprah Winfrey face backlash for asking fans to donate to Maui fund instead of contributing more themselves The family of a woman who died trying to flee a wildfire on Maui is suing the county, the state and one of Hawaii’s largest landowners, alleging they neglected to maintain their fire-prone property.
It looks like the very start of an American civil war.
Tsinghua University has experimented with a large-scale EUV-SSMB photolithography plant in the Xiong’An new district are emerging.
This is much larger than the EUV machines made by ASML, and can handle different light wavelengths simultaneously, unlike ASML products. It is also permanent, and will be able to handle much larger chip production than TSMC currently can.
Right now the minimum light wavelength it can handle is 7nm, but it will move on to lower wavelengths in the future. The aim is to bring chip prices down to commodity prices.
This has been made with Chinese IP and know-how; there are no plans to export the device.
I’ve never done it myself, but the coolest way to travel by sea is on cargo (usually container) ships. By Maritime Law, they are allowed to carry up to twelve passengers. If they have any more, they must provide a ship’s doctor.
It works. Container ships are fast. Some thirty years ago, the head of public relations at French Line CGT – she happened to be the Chairman’s daughter – insisted that all their new-build container ships should include the maximum number of passenger cabins.
The real reason? It was a very effective way to keep the crew on best behaviour – and sober.
Europe to USA by container ship is very popular among those-in-the-know and bookings are much sought-after. To other destinations such as West Africa they are easier to obtain. Voyages to the Far East can be long, even via Suez or Panama, but I have little doubt they are possible too.
London has a specialist travel agency which has been dealing in such unusual sea travel for at least 25 years. And there are no doubt equivalents in other major cities.
Nancy Pelosi Ambushed By Illegal Immigrants | Ends Event In Pure PANIC
During a public event, Nancy Pelosi found herself in a tense situation when she was unexpectedly confronted by a group of undocumented immigrants. The encounter quickly escalated, causing Pelosi to end the event abruptly due to the heightened emotions and concerns for her safety. The incident highlights the ongoing debate surrounding immigration policy.
In most states, students are required to spend more time in English classes than in classes for any other subject. Thus, there are more English teachers than any other kind of teacher, and there always will be. Job security is very good for experienced English teachers like me. I needn’t worry about ever being unemployed for very long.
I get paid to read and write. What better way to demonstrate to the students the importance of reading and writing than by demonstrating it yourself? Silent reading time for my students is also silent reading time for me.
The reading lessons are very repetitive. If I read a new novel with my students, it’s because I wanted to “mix it up a bit” for myself. But all of the short stories and novels I teach are new to my students, even if I’ve already taught them a dozen times. It makes teaching them that much easier. I am currently teaching three novels at the same time, with students reading novels that correspond with their reading levels. I’ve taught all three novels a minimum of ten times at this point. I don’t need to re-read them to teach them. I have all of the materials for them already. At this point in my career, it’s really easy for me to teach multiple novels at the same time.
The grammar and writing lessons are very repetitive. I teach seventh and eighth grades. I usually teach the same concepts to both grades on the same day. The worksheets and other materials are different, but the lessons are the same. And, unlike in a subject like math, if a student doesn’t understand a grammar concept, they may still understand the next one. Failure to grasp something simple (like division in math) won’t completely derail every lesson afterwards. Didn’t figure out how to use a comma in seventh grade? Not to worry. We’ll cover it again in eighth. And in ninth. And in tenth. And literally every year from grades 1–12.
I have a sweet, sweet classroom library now. I built it myself over the summer. It takes up one entire wall of my classroom, plus a little of another wall, and has just under 1,500 books in it so far. Once word got around that I was making a classroom library, a lot of parents donated books to it. I also have a Keurig and a record player and some really comfortable reading chairs in my classroom. It’s a space I enjoy being in, which is good, since I’m in it most of the day, 180 days per year. I suppose teachers who teach other subjects could also have classroom libraries, but it seems like a natural fit for English teachers in particular.
When I first considered teaching as a career, in my mid-20s, I wanted to pursue teaching science as a subject. But that would have required almost one full year of additional college courses, which I couldn’t do at that time. English teaching was the shortest pathway into the classroom for me, since I majored in Communication and minored in English during my undergrad. So it wasn’t my first choice, but, as with pretty much everything else in my life, it all worked out for the best. I’m happy with where I ended up.
Honduras’ GDP per capita is only US$2800, ranking 128th in the world.
Honduras lacks an industrial system and most industrial goods must be imported.
As a poor country, Honduras could not afford to buy expensive Western industrial goods, and Chinese goods were the only option.
China is the world’s factory, making everything in the world. The only thing China does not make – that is war!
Honduras does not have diplomatic relations with China because of the Taiwan factor, and they must go through a third country to buy Chinese goods, and are charged transit fees by the third country. But after establishing diplomatic relations with China, Honduras can trade directly with China, eliminating the transit fees earned by third countries. Why no?
In recent years, Panama, El Salvador, Dominica, Nicaragua and other countries have established or restored diplomatic relations with China, promoting the economic and social development of their countries and bringing tangible benefits to their people.
98% of the goods offered to the public in Honduran stores are Chinese goods re-exported from third countries, and only 2% are produced locally.
Most of Honduras’ groceries, cosmetics, clothing, plastic products, personal hygiene products, Christmas items and auto parts are Chinese goods re-exported from third countries.
“Send Them Back!” – AOC migrant press conference DISRUPTED outside NYC Roosevelt hotel
Disruption on all sides politically. The USA is a “powder keg”.
I was sued by my landlord for late rent. The payment arrived to him on the 3rd of the month instead of the 1st, and despite the money order being dated from the last day of the previous month, he asked for payment of a 100 dollar late payment. I refusd to pay and he took me to court.
I dressed in a dress shirt, black slacks, and a tie. I showed up 20 minutes early to court, registered with the bailiff, and waited for court to convene. My landlord didn’t show up until the last minute, and when he did he was dressed in shorts, sandals, and a Bahama Mama T-shirt.
Court was called to session and my case was called first. I approached the well and was asked if I was prepared to present my case. I informed the judge that I was the defendant, and that I would have to wait to proceed until the plaintiff presented his case.
My landlord, the plaintiff, dropped his papers on the way to the well. (I was not his only case that day.) When the judge noticed him, he guffawed and asked if my landlord was aware of court decorum standards.
Long story short, my landlord was disrespectful to the judge, and the judge was not inclined to be overly sympathetic to him. I won the case, including court costs, and was told that I had dressed respectfully for court and that it helped my case.
The landlord lost all his cases that day and had to make payment arrangements for late rent, and the judge split all court costs.
A young man was brought into office by my colleagues and they left him with me. Usually a traffic violator is fined on the spot and thats it. But if they resist or make a scene… then they are detained in this office until the cops from police station arrive to collect them.
I was told that “This fruit cart guy made the whole intersection jammed and refused to remove his cart away from fast lane and resisted”.
He just sat there silent, while I called the police station to send somebody to take him… and got back to watching a gaming live stream on my laptop.
But then I noticed him turning his head to the other side with his hand covering his eyes.
He was wiping his tears.
Something startled him, I assume. Maybe the behavior of cops or the thought of getting behind bars or maybe his cart that stood there in our compound. I don’t know.
I felt so much for him that moment.
What did you do exactly to land here and don’t lie? I asked.
I was crossing a busy intersection when a traffic cop shouted at me and told me to get off the lane towards footpath. I refused as I wished to cross the road and I yelled back. Nothing else happened, I am telling you the truth.
Okay… so you refused to obey and intentionally caused a traffic problem.
Yes, I guess.
….
Then why crying now?
I want to go home, I need to buy groceries and wheat as well for my mother, for she must be hungry and eagerly waiting for me. That’s why I crossed the road hurriedly and got caught into this mess. I sell watermelons and barely earn enough to feed both of us.
I checked his ID and asked a few more questions. This guy was anything but manipulative.
By now, I had decided to get into this matter, though that’s above my pay scale as I’m just a constable but what the hell. I can do wonders when I want to. 🙂
You want to go home? I smiled.
Yes, I was hesitant to ask you out of fear when you called the police for me. Please don’t do that. Please let me go home. I want to go home to my mother, she’s alone.
I stood up and went to the other room, few traffic officers were there including the one who brought him. I asked him nicely and requested to cut this kid some slack. He can be let go with a warning.
I told my senior that the fruit cart guy regrets his actions and is apologetic.
The senior looked at me.
He is a good man, I know. But he also knows that I’m a good guy too and I don’t ask for such favors with some ulterior motives. And that… even being just a constable, I can make traffic warden’s life quite miserable if I wish to.
So couple of minutes later…
I told that young man to get up, take his cart and leave. He couldn’t believe it. Those expressions of gratification were soothing and awesome. He thanked all of us and left but not before hearing my advice.
Remember this, you cannot disobey an order given by cops and you cannot resist. Just earn your living and go home. Stay out of trouble for you’d regret it in great deal. Your mother needs you, know that and act wisely from now on.
I stood there outside for some time… thinking of him.
Yes, a thought of his mother made me feel for him. But what primarily motivated me to help him get off the hook was…. that he shouldn’t be going to police station or spend a night there or even worse… Jail. He should not experience the company of bad guys there and learn the existence of a new and evil realm.
He shouldn’t hate himself, cops and the society in general.
He should remain what he is.
Positive, innocent and hardworking.
Warnings! Invasion of U.S. is about to get worse coming from Panama
This is the story that the US citizenry needs to see. The migration to the US is funded and orchestrated. Wonder by who?
China never say things that are not true. 100% of what they say is absolutely the truth. While the U.S. and the west remedy for Muslim extremism is carpet bombings Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Syria, Yemen and others killing millions of mostly innocent men, women and children China used a more humane approach saving lives and using a more successful and sustainable method.
Chinese too faced a spate of Muslim extremist violence post 9–11 years. China use re-education to help the highly influenced Muslims who have the tendency to is likely to resort to violence for what they think is a just cause. This approach works better and compared with the U.S. approach almost no deaths occurred. And it made China safer yet addresses the Muslim issue and problem.
The U.S. and the west instead of learning from this far better resolution felt compel to fabricate lies on China but China’s fairer and more effective solution is very well accepted and appreciate by the Muslim nations world wide.
In my opinion almost no body believes in the genocide narratives and it exposed the lying and obnoxious behaviour of the US instead of dirt sticking on China it sticks on the U.S. as an untrustworthy nation. China never deny re-education. The did it and it was effective. Were some Chinese Muslims unhappy? I am sure there are but 99% of them appreciated how China handle it compared to the sadistic murder by the U.S. and the west.
CAN’T BELIEVE IT: Gen Z Americans can’t answer these basic questions
It’s really hard to watch this kind of video without shaking your head in disbelief.
Visiting New York and decided to walk from the station to the hotel. Promptly got lost. Saw a police man standing by his car. So thought I’d ask. He looked shocked and even nervous when I approached to say hello. And was very abrupt. He then didn’t understand my question asking for directions. If he wasn’t in a uniform I would of honestly assumed he was mentally challenged.
Few years back was in London, again at a station with my 3 y/o daughter. 2 big police men all kitted up standing outside. My daughter saw the officers and got a little scared. I think partly as her 1st visit to London. One of the officers spotted her, smiled and walked over. Asked her a few questions about her visit and offered if she would like to try his helmet on.
Although the Met has at the moment a terrible reputation. Genuinely feel the British police are far more approachable and helpful.
You might very well think that. And certainly, if it was broadcasting on full power while right on top of the enemy, then yes, it will be giving out its own location. But there’s an interesting ability that modern radars, such as the AN/APG-81 (below) as fitted to the F-35, have which means that this will not usually be the case.
Until recently, radars were like single element searchlights sweeping out in the darkness, and were therefore clearly visible to the opposition, who were on the lookout for radars operating on specific wavelengths. The larger and more powerful the radar, the further away it could be detected, often well outside the range where it could detect an opposition aircraft. Frequency swapping helps, but the windows of opportunity it presents are often too short to have any meaningful effect.
AESA radars, on the other hand, are basically a group of multiple individual radar emitters collected together in one unit. One individual emitter on its own doesn’t have a great deal of power and therefore does not have a great range, but when used in conjunction with the other emitters surrounding it, the range and detecting power of the whole is every bit as good, if not better, than a powerful single element radar.
Now, here’s the clever bit. Each individual element on an AESA radar can be set to emit a different frequency from its neighbour (and to frequency shift at random times). This way, even when scanning on full power, the emission from an F-35 can appear almost indistinguishable from background radio noise, as no one frequency is being broadcast at any great strength. But the F-35 knows the frequency signature of its own radar, and can detect returns across this frequency range, while to an enemy scanner it will simply appear as noise. Of course, the closer the F-35 gets to the enemy, the greater the chances of its radar being detected, but that’s the same with any stealth adaptation. The hope would be that the F-35 would be able to engage the enemy (or otherwise complete its mission if it was simply intelligence-gathering) long before being detected.
The other thing about the AN/APG-81 (and to an extent other AESA radars) is that they are also excellent passive detectors, with the interesting ability to pick up returns from other radars. So (for example) a Boeing E-3 Sentry flying well away from the front lines will be using its radar to search a wide area. The opposition will clearly be able to see this, as will the F-35, but the F-35, flying much closer to the front, possibly even over enemy airspace, will also be able to pick up the radar returns of the E-3’s radar reflecting off opposition aircraft, and being much closer these returns will actually be stronger than the return that makes it back to the E-3. The upshot of this being that the F-35 might actually be able to see the returns of enemy aircraft in the E-3’s radar that are too far away for the E-3 itself to see.
Which means that in a hypothetical future war, as the enemy is setting up a long-range intercept of the E-3, an F-35 is setting up a much shorter range (though still many tens of kilometres away) interception of the enemy aircraft, all without emitting as much as a milliwatt from its own radar or receiving any other information from any source.
Of course, quite how powerful this ability is in the AN/APG-81 is confidential, and at this point we simply do not know how well (if at all) AESA radars fitted to Russian or Chinese aircraft can mimic it. But it is an ability that just a few short years ago would have been considered firmly in the realms of Science Fiction.
OMG First Time Hearing Oliver Anthony – Rich Men North Of Richmond | THE WOLF HUNTERZ REACTIONS
The positive reaction to this by so many is telling. The criticism Mr. Anthony gets from certain celebrities is also just as telling. He is doing something right.
A window to the murmurings of discontent inside of America. This is the moment in time that comes right before the beheadings.
Question : When will China have its own euv lithography machine?
Short answer: 2023 AD China already have own EUV machine (lab quality) and this is No red herring.
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China Uni have conquered EUV light source few years back.
And current China EUV machine although large as a building, crude (compare to ASML), use enormous amount of electricity but the end result is it is here :
It is extremely likely soon within 3 to 5 yrs (2026 to 2028 AD) China will equalize world’s chip manufacturing with her in house China EUV, while using a big cruder EUV machine, yet China can still manufacture 3 to 5nm size, even smaller size
.
The refinement of the production machine will take more time and likely very few EUV machine of a building size will ever be build, since it is such awfully big size.
Before the newer EUV models, commercial one gradually will shrink in size eventually. Nonetheless China will be making Chips of equal nm abet at cost of much higher expense.
So likely initial phase, ~2027 the product will likelyonly be for internal consumption. Until mass production & efficiency is achieved.
I sincerely believe that this is an intelligent demonstration by China that jailing Huawei’s CFO was simply totally ineffective.
But this Chinese demonstration is a little naive, because it assumes that Raimondo understands the difference between a Chinese phone and an iPhone: I highly doubt it.
What’s more, I highly doubt that Raimondo knows that the Mate 60’s chips are mainly Chinese, but especially the SoC and modem.
Raimondo doesn’t understand this, and she doesn’t care: she has a single message to get across, and nothing else.
She’s come with the mindset that China is a technologically inferior country, and there’s no room in her mind for thinking differently.
She’s not arrogant, she’s just ignorant of Chinese culture and doesn’t want to learn it.
In my 46 years living in the U.S., I have experienced 4 severe real estate crashes, last one was 2007–2012, when prices dropped 50%-80%, 7 million Americans went into foreclosure and bankruptcies.
Nobody wanted to buy any property at 80% discount, yet everybody rush to overbid to buy properties when home prices go up crazy.
Be very careful when you ridicule other market’s real estate crash, because next is your own real estate, guaranteed.
Real estate rises and crashes are normal healthy economic cycles, it is God giving you another chance to make $ millions, if you are smart enough and have the financial resources.
LIVE: Report—Largest Poverty Increase On Record!
Lee, don’t know how you muster the mental energy and resilience to continuously report on so much moral depravity, mendacity and governmental malfeasance, but I applaud you for doing so. I’m an atheist but nevertheless I like to believe there is a special place in the afterlife for the few honest Western journalists such as yourself.
It’s real bad here in the USA now. Especially because of the western propaganda. First they were saying they purposely created the virus and then released it. Then they changed the story to. They created the virus but somehow it accidentally got loose.
There’s actually been a few reports. About these dangerous untrustworthy people in this country deciding to play vigilante. And apparently some minority groups. Have you been developed the paranoia that they’re coming after them next.
The people in this country deliberately expose their children to the virus and let them die. And the reason why was because both political parties wanted to see the other president go to jail. Whether that was Trump or Obama. That is the real reason why the virus spread so successfully here. Not the first time the people in this country treated their own children as expendable pawns for their own shady gine. And probably won’t be the last time.
I strongly don’t suggest coming to this country. Especially when they’re falsely accusing your people of trying to kill everybody with a virus now. And if you come here try to stay together as much as possible. Try not to be anywhere by yourself.
Easy– I had just picked my wife up from the hospital after a 3 vertebrae spinal fusion. I was driving very slowly and carefully (picture an old lady driving a T-model Ford filled with nitroglycerin). As I was easing across some train tracks in my small hometown, moving at about the speed of smell, a plumbing work truck came up behind me. He was in a hurry, and gave me multiple exotic versions of ‘the finger”. He honked his horn, leaned out the window, screaming obscenities and suggesting anatomical impossibilities because of my slow speed. As a previous professional driver, I understood his hurry, but had a much more important personal reason to maintain slow-n-steady.
As we cleared the tracks, he screeched around us, cut me off, and sped into the distance still “saluting”.
Rather than be angry, it suddenly occurred to me that I’d done very similar things as a professional driver. You get in a hurry, and the job becomes more important than attempting to understand the potential plight of the other driver. I swore that I would never be intolerant of other drivers again, when it was my turn to be in a hurry. To this day, I still practice understanding that everyone has reasons for the way they drive, and every driver is a human being. It’s simple enough to conceive, but can be difficult to practice. Curiously, this event started a torrent or cascade effect for me. I now drive much more courteously, and it’s so much calmer of an experience. I don’t yell or “talk” to the other drivers when I witness a mistake, or am caused an inconvenience. I try to remember my needs that day, and assume that everyone else has similar needs. I recommend it.
People Drove Past a Kitten Shivering from the Cold On the Side of the Road
She squinted through the windshield of her car, trying to discern what it was. As she got closer, her heart sank.
China is NOT banning Apple nor will it do so. In fact, all the leading companies are allowed to operate in China without the hinderance of the Chinese government – companies like Tesla, Samsung, Intel, Walmart, Costco, Starbucks, etc. In fact, the Chinese government deliberately encouraged the participation of those companies in the Chinese market place. The only requirement is that they follow Chinese laws.
AND there is a good reason why.
The Chinese government want those companies because they wanted foreign companies to force Chinese companies to innovate and be cost efficient to compete with those foreign companies. This will not only benefit Chinese consumers but will allow for the development of world class Chinese companies.
Otherwise China will be like India – a poor country with businesses that produce second rate products protected by tariffs despite the country’s tremendous potential.
That STRATEGY is paying off handsomely and China now have MANY leading edge companies.
On a side note, Apple’s share price is falling because Huawei’s phone is expected to take away much market share of Apple not only in China but also overseas. This will affect Apple’s profitability.
Southern Hamburger Pie
2023 09 16 11 13
Ingredients
1 medium onion, chopped
1 pound ground chuck
Salt and pepper to taste
1 small can corn or green beans, drained (optional)
1 (9-inch) frozen pie shell
5 slices Velveeta cheese, about 4 to 5 ounces
1 can flaky biscuits
Instructions
Begin thawing pie crust. Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
Cook ground beef and onion in a large skillet on medium heat, breaking up the beef with the back of a spoon, and cook until onions are soft.
Drain excess fat and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Add corn or green beans if using.
Put meat mixture into the pie shell and evenly distribute the cheese over the top.
Separate biscuits and layer in a circular pattern over the pie, covering it completely (you may not need all the biscuits).
Cut a few small “steam slits” in the top and bake for about 20 minutes until golden brown.
In the 2000s China took down semiconductors from its university courses, because the Chinese ministry of Education thought that such majors are useless and China can just buy chips from other countries since China had joined WTO.
Big mistake.
China has now reopened the major in Chinese universities and the graduates are being hired before they leave campus, because of Chinese companies’ sudden urge to innovate and build domestic chips due to US sanctions.
Other industries are also on a similar quest for tech independence because they fear the US would do to them what they did on chips against Huawei.
American products are just not reliable anymore.
So innovation is on fire across the board.
China is now ahead of the US in new patents filed and scientific paper quotations.
It appears obvious. You know, right? The United States is forcefully and intentionally forcing the world into two sides.
You can see this with what happened with Italy. Sure they love China and the BRI investment, but a unified surrogate EU must be beholding to the USA. So we are seeing things play out.
The USA is trying to secure Europe. But the major nations of Germany, and France are trying to shake off the American pre-defined role that they MUST act as they are for the USA while moving against it. So is Italy, trying to walk a thin line.
One face gives big fat wet kisses to the USA, and the other face, is one where Italy is in bed having gymnastic sex with China.
So…
Do not be confused by scant NGO / NED successes in Pakistan, Thailand, and Mongolia. Those are not going to amount to anything and are not going anywhere.
Asia is united with China.
Africa is united with China.
The Middle East is united with China.
South America is now in play. And it is quiet. Too quiet, but things are going on.
If anything is printed in the “news”, it will be long after the bodies are buried.
Meanwhile, the “news” media screeches and howls about war, and this and that. They are just noise makers designed to keep the rabble in line. Don’t listen to them. It’s all bullshit.
…
Meanwhile, I could use a nice apple pie ah la mode. With a nice hot fresh cup of coffee. That is what I could use right now. How about you all?
This is important because it could happen to anyone. How easy is it to control groups of people, and how far is a person willing to go to serve another?
I have worked alongside anti-cult groups and wrote an article exposing one of the biggest cults in the world. Before I got involved in researching new religious movements I had a very narrow-minded view of the kind of people that join cults, but the reality was much different.
When I first joined the group I was researching I was recruited by a doctor, and a respected one who was also an author. She was smart and attractive and when we first talked, she had a very warm personality, not what you would expect from a group that believed Aliens had come to Earth to give their leader the secrets to life.
image 28
As my research continued, I began to meet similar intelligent people who where working high end jobs, and I even met a psychologist who was a member of this group.
Imagine volunteering to be buried alive. This was one of the initiations into the upper levels of the group. At this stage, the cult has broken down so much you are willing to climb into a hole to be buried alive.
So how do smart intelligent people get to that point? Well, it starts gradually.
image 29
When you join these groups, you will be subjected to what you would call love bombing, and it comes in many forms, and it happens with every cult. This is the time you start making connections with other like-minded people in the group. If it’s a large cult, then these groups would be split up all around the world, and each of these groups would have an instigator.
image 16
Some people do well in these cults, and they always have similar personality traits as their leader, such as narcissism. These are the people that will start breaking you down. One example of this would be Keith Raniere’s, NXIVM cult, and the actress Alison Mack who was his instigator and helped control the girls in the group.
Like I said, the abuse starts gradually, and the abuse comes in the form of it being beneficial to you. It could be minor things like what you eat. They like to control what you eat because the fewer nutrients and calories you get from food makes you lethargic, which makes you more malleable.
They start to control who you talk to, like family members and friends outside the group. This isolates you from people who will try to make you see reason, and when you are around only the people from the group, it becomes hard to question the red flags. They slowly strip you of who you are, and by the time the abuse is ramped up, you’re so desensitised to it you don’t even know you are being abused.
What does it feel like to be in this state? There’s always a mix of fear from the many veiled threats you will receive from the leader of the group, and this will come from the instigators as well. You will be in a constant state of brain fog, and everything that was once normal to you will be distorted by the group’s beliefs, and it will become unfamiliar and menacing.
image 15
I had a friend who was a notorious conspiracy theorist, and I didn’t like how his views would try to distort my reality into being something to be fearful of. But again, my friend was a prime example of how this form of group thinking can drastically distort one’s reality.
So how does a cult turn deadly? Someone willing to volunteer to be buried alive is know different then volunteering to die or even kill someone. It’s all dependent on the leaders ideology and how far he’s willing to take that control he has over his members. If you are willing to endanger yourself to the point of death, then you will be willing to anything.
image 28
Deadly cults like Jim Jones and the Peoples Temple, Mansion and his family, Heavens gate, they all have one thing in common, a leader who was willing to cross that line. The people in these groups where all the same, brainwashed into believing death was the only option.
Tex-Mex Spaghetti
tex mex spaghetti
Ingredients
12 ounces spaghetti
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound chicken, cut into cubes, or 1 pound ground beef
1 large red onion, sliced and julienned
2 bell peppers, sliced
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon cumin
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 (15 ounce) can fire-roasted tomatoes
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken or beef broth*
1/4 cup Half-and-Half
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
Fresh cilantro, for serving
* If using chicken, use chicken broth; if using ground beef, use beef broth.
Instructions
In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook spaghetti according to package directions until al dente. Drain.
Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil. Add chicken or ground beef and cook 6 minutes.
Season with salt and pepper.
Add onions and peppers and cook until tender, 4 minutes more.
Add chili powder, cumin, and oregano and stir until coated.
Add tomatoes and stir, then add chicken or beef broth and Half-and-Half.
Add cooked spaghetti to skillet and toss until coated, then add cheeses and stir until creamy.
The United States is famous (or infamous) for the size of its restaurant portions. Honestly, if you didn’t grow up in the United States (or Canada, which isn’t quite as bad, but knows about it) you will be astounded by how much food you get for a reasonable amount of money.
2023 09 10 07 58
Travel YouTuber Mark Wolter talks about his experience in Chicago with their famous “deep dish” pizza. He’s from the midwest and travels a lot, and when he goes to Chicago’s most famous pizza places he orders a “personal” because even though he’s a fairly large fellow, he knows he can’t eat a small. On one of his trips, a European came in alone and ordered a “small”. Wolter tried to warn him, but the fellow insisted he had eaten small pizzas by himself lots of times and never had a problem. He couldn’t finish half of it.
Food is extremely cheap in the United States.
I completely disagree. But this is an American, who never left the USA and only knows what he knows. -MM
… because the production of much of it is either heavily subsidized or relies on agricultural produce that is heavily subsidized (like beef and alcohol, both the result cheap corn). The United States has 157 million hectares of arable land (only India comes close, and it has triple the population) and grows far more food than it can reasonably consume. There used to be a large export market for American food, but although it still exports, that export market is constrained. For example, since 1940, the U.S. population has doubled, but corn production has quintupled, and the vast majority of corn grown isn’t for human consumption, even when you take into account American favourites like corn flour, corn oil, and corn grits.
The bottom line is that food in the United States is cheap, plentiful and largely delicious. If you run a restaurant, food costs are the least of your worries – labour is a much more important expense, as is the cost of renting or buying land.
2023 09 10 07 59
These are actual soft drink sizes sold in actual food retail establishments in the United States. Yes, at some 7-Eleven locations, they will sell you a 128 oz fountain drink. That’s 3.7 liters of soda.
The cost of the smaller 40 oz “Super Big Gulp”? Generally around $1.59 plus 25 cents for the cup. Once you buy the cup, refills are only $0.99.
Mike Pompeo doesn’t really hate China. He’ll tell you he only hates the government but not the people. He’ll even tell you how much he loves Chinese food. In 2019 a whistle blower has accused him of using his taxpayer-funded security detail to pick up Chinese food, walk his dog, and chauffeur his college age son to and from Union Station in Washington DC. How can he hate a country he hardly knows?
Interestingly, China wasn’t on Pompeo’s mind while he was the Republican congressman from Kansas’s 4th District. However all that changed when he became Donald Trump’s CIA Director and later Secretary of State. He had an advisor who hated China—Miles Maochun Yu. Now all he could think about is China.
Yu was born in China and had a PhD from the University of California at Berkeley and taught at the US Naval Academy as a professor of modern China and military history. He was also a visiting fellow at the Hoover Institute, a conservative think tank.
Whatever scraps of knowledge Mike Pompeo have of China come from his chief China policy planner and strategist, Miles Yu. Now he knows how to stick it to the Chinese government in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Xinjiang.
The real question is why does Miles Yu hate China so much? We know that he has listened to Voice of America when growing up and supported the Tienanmen Square protests. In his social media account, he has considered sanctions against China as “a badge of honor.” He is also in favor of NATO expansion in Asia to contain China.
Phyllo Potato Knish
These unique appetizers with savory potato and onion filled phyllo pastries come with a small taste of comfort in every bite.
phyllo potato knish
Prep: 30 min | Cook: 30 min | Yield: 12 servings
Ingredients
18 (9 x 14 inch) sheets Athens Phyllo®Dough, thawed
2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and cut in half
1 teaspoon + 1 pinch salt (for boiling potatoes)
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cups sweet onion, thinly sliced
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 large egg + 2 egg yolks
2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
Thaw one roll of Phyllo, following thawing instructions on package. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
Place potatoes in a medium saucepan with enough water to cover and add a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, and then simmer until tender. Drain, mash and set aside to cool.
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large sauté pan. Add onions, cooking covered over medium heat until they become soft and begin to brown. Remove from heat to cool.
In a large mixing bowl, combine mashed potatoes, salt, pepper, onions and any remaining oil. Mix in one egg.
Unroll and cover Phyllo sheets with plastic wrap, then a slightly damp towel to prevent drying out.
Lay one sheet of Phyllo dough on a work surface and brush lightly with butter. Place a second sheet on top and brush with butter. Place one more sheet on top but do not butter. Cut layered Phyllo in half widthwise, so you have two stacks, each 9 x 7 inches. Place 1/3 cup filling on each stack toward the bottom (an ice cream scoop is perfect for this). Fold long sides over the filling and then roll from the bottom up, making two packets. Repeat the process with remaining 15 sheets of dough, yielding a total of 12 knishes. Place knishes seam side down on a baking sheet.
Whisk together egg yolks and milk. Brush the egg yolk mixture over the top and sides of each knish.
It has its most famous manifestation as the Hainan chicken rice. However it is also a dish by itself.
At its best, it uses capon chicken ie castrated cocks.
The French has their version in Bresse chicken.
In fact some say only the Chinese and French appreciate the nuances of poached chicken.
The Chinese go further with condiments of shredded ginger, spring onion soy sauce. Tomato sauce or chili sauce should not go as condiments for this iconic dish, although some use them, because they overwhelm the flavour.
Biden’s Childish Move Brings Shame US Technology Policy On China Shattered!
The US has never had any experience in dealing with real smart enemies.
The experience it had during the Cold War with the USSR didn’t have technological and economic factors in it.
The war against China is of a different nature.
Had the US had smart politicians at all, the war shouldn’t have happened. It started with the cocky President Trump, the real estate man who had never had any political experience before, and then passed on to Biden with his Neocon cabinet, together with the support of equally prejudiced Congress.
The most popular answer says that Neil Armstrong was a terrible actor, and that’s why the moon landings had to be done for real. Well, only the first part of that is true. Neil Armstrong was indeed a terrible actor. We know this from the Apollo 11 press conference:
EVs have far fewer parts. There is much less mechanical complexity. The modern EV is a flat, skateboard-like platform, with some bodywork bolted on the top.
Assembly requires far fewer man hours what assembly there is can be automated more easily.
So to build an EV costs a manufacturer far less – especially if they re-tool their production line for EV-first assembly. No fuel tanks, pumps, hoses, transmission tunnels, gearboxes, spark plugs, carburettors, manifolds, exhausts, catalytic converters, clutches – all gone.
The only issue remaining is the traction battery. This component costs a lot to buy, and the supply of batteries is less than the demand. So we see EVs with slightly higher prices than their ICE equivalents.
If battery pack manufacture and supply was improved, the cost of building an EV would be significantly less than the equivalent ICE vehicle. Whether car makers will pass that on to customers, is another question.
UNSOLVED: The Creepiest TV Hack in History
THE MAX HEADROOM INCIDENT. November 22nd, 1987 was a pretty normal evening for television viewers in Chicago. That night, like every night, Dan Roan was covering sports on WGN-TV, Channel 9. Then suddenly, the signal was disrupted and screens across the city cut to black. Engineers at WGN-TV thought their transmitters were failing.
They weren’t.
A few seconds later, something crazy happened. WGN’s broadcast signal had been hijacked in what is now known as “The Max Headroom Incident”. WGN-TV was able to act quickly and get their signal back. But, Two hours later, it would happen again to another TV station and there was nothing they could do to stop it. What happens next remains one of the most bizarre unsolved crimes in television history.
I was born in Singapore, and someone in my family can speak Chinese, so I have been able to speak Chinese since I was a child.
But it doesn’t mean I understand China. Actually, I knew nothing about China until I was 25 years old.
My knowledge of China comes from Hollywood movies, BBC news, Mediacorp, and BBS. It was a place ruled by an evil regime, and people wore gray and blue clothes, rode bicycles, and wore the same hats . They ate dog meat every day, and baby girls were killed. Anyone who says a bad word about the leader is gone the next day.The air is full of smog, food and powdered milk are poisonous. All in all, a horrible place.
Until ten years ago, when social media became popular, I saw many real pictures and videos of China. While there is still a lot of bad content, there is a lot of good content coming out. However, I still think it’s a terrible place.
5 years ago, I went to China for the first time because of my work. I went to Shanghai, Chongqing, Chengdu, Guangzhou, and even a village in Guizhou Province.
Within an hour of leaving the plane, I was shocked by this country, and for the next hundred hours, I was shocked by this country every hour. I found that all my images of China in the past were wrong. This is a super-modern country, people are very orderly, and the degree of modernization of buildings, roads, and cities surpasses all countries I have been to, including European and American countries.
There are no gray-blue clothes, and no one eats dog meat. The girls are very fashionable and beautiful. Their cops don’t even have guns and batons, and they rarely show up. We can drink in the street and take a walk late at night. In the pub people talk about elections in America, stocks in London. The milk tea is very delicious, and all kinds of food are very delicious.
Chinese people don’t use cash or credit cards, they use QR codes for all payments. Made me look like a redneck on my first shopping trip.
In the following years, I traveled to China twice. 2020 break. I went there again this year, and China has undergone tremendous changes again. On the streets of Shenzhen, at least half of the cars have been replaced with green license plates. That’s the massive EV revolution.
I don’t know how many words to describe the change in my view of China. Perhaps, only when people go to China can they experience all this.
Niger France Embassy Siege Moving To Forceful Removal, Macron To Deploy Troops To Protect Citizens
“I as a Tennesseean I stand with any country who seeks to throw off the yolk of neo-colonialism and freely rule themselves”
My flight arrived just after 5 and I got to the city centre around 7.
I went to the hotel and told them about it. They said they’d be happy to hold my luggage, and if I’d like a cup of coffee they could let me know soon if an earlier checkin might be possible.
It was, but still only at 12 noon. Would I like to visit the breakfast buffet? I’d need to pay, though. Yes, no problem, I’d love to.
Would I like to use and hang out by the pool? Yes! Especially as I could shower there as well.
At around 10, as my luggage was safe and sound I did some exploring around the neighborhood, found a supermarket, got a few bits and pieces (water, snacks, a little flask of booze, some soap nicer than hotel soap, toothpaste). I did some early gift and souvenir shopping, got t-shirts and stuff to take back home, had more coffee, and kinda bumbled around in an air-conditioned mall.
Found a food court and had an early lunch. My energy was fading.
Got back to the hotel around 11:30 expecting to wait, maybe with more coffee, and was greeted with “actually a room is ready for you. We just said 12 because we have to allow enough time for the cleaners. Would you like to go up now?” Oh yeah, I would.
Had a deliciously cool shower and flopped onto the bed for a huge nap, then woke up and headed out again. It worked out!
Why Does Biden Look SO DIFFERENT? TWO Bidens? A MASK!? We Finally Have The ANSWER
Beneath all that is actually Scrappy Doo trying to be a world leader.
I thought the U.S. is trying to de risk from China? Don’t sell them planes! They may copy it!
Oh they already have their own jets! Never mind keep your Boeing and sell it to your slaves and cronies. They will buy but give them 50 years to recover from the recession first!
You see China learns from the U.S. fast. You think only you needs de-risking? China needs to de risks from you too! Why should China buys from Boeing, who the. Makes money and fund its weapons subsidiaries to armed the U.S. to threaten and attack China? These are real tangible risk for China!
Remember you stop buying from DGI and Huawei because of de-risking or decoupling? Well China is de-risking and decoupling too! We learn from you!
Don’t do on to others what you don’t want them to do on to you! Learn this and leant it quick. China just stop 500 billion dollar jet planes purchase from Boeing since you de-risk we de-risk too!
P.S. apologies to the thousands of U.S. worker who lose their jobs!
Streets of Philadelphia, Kensington Ave Documentary, July 14 – 16, 2023
In Philadelphia as a whole, violent crime and drug abuse are major issues. The city has a higher rate of violent crime than the national average and other similarly sized metropolitan areas. The drug overdose rate in Philadelphia is also concerning. Between 2013 and 2015, the number of drug overdose deaths in the city increased by 50%, with more than twice as many deaths from overdoses as homicides. 2 Kensington’s high crime rate and drug abuse contribute significantly to Philadelphia’s problems.
Because of the high number of drugs in the neighborhood, Kensington has the third-highest drug crime rate by neighborhood in Philadelphia, at 3.57. The opioid epidemic has played a significant role in this problem, as it has in much of the rest of the country. Opioid abuse has skyrocketed in the United States over the last two decades, and Philadelphia is no exception. In addition to having a high rate of drug overdose deaths, 80% of Philadelphia’s overdose deaths involved opioids, and Kensington is a significant contributor to this figure. This Philadelphia neighborhood is said to have the largest open-air heroin market on the East Coast, with many neighbors migrating to the area for heroin and other opioids. With such a high concentration of drugs in Kensington, many state and local officials have focused on the neighborhood in an attempt to address Philadelphia’s problem.
I was at a mall today, paying bills, having lunch and planning on a visit to the gym (pat on the back: I did all three!).
As I walked to the bank, I noticed an older man sitting by a water feature, dipping his fingers in the pool. This was unusual as people here in Thailand rarely do this in a mall.
When I passed him again 10 minutes later, he was standing in the middle of the walkway, searching to his left, then to his right, over and over, looking distressed.
I was about to approach him when a group of (uniformed and backpacked) high school students got to him first. They spoke to him respectfully and quickly realized that he didn’t know where he was or who should be with him.
One young man sprinted off to Information while the others tried to distract the old man to calm him.
A few moments later, a female security guard approached the group, having been notified by Information. She told the kids they could leave, but they refused, feeling they should stay and keep ‘grandfather’ happy.
An announcement was made, and within a few minutes, a very worried, middle-aged couple rushed over to the old man, and although they fussed at him for disappearing, they were clearly relieved.
The high school students were thanked, and then they respectfully took their leave.
The old man watched them go, turned to the couple and asked, “Where are the grandkids going?”
The couple smiled at him and gently said, “It’s ok, Father. They are going to school.”
The old man replied, “They are such good kids. You raised them well.”
China DESTROYS the Neocons as Biden’s WAR Fails w/ Brian Berletic
“I joined Brian Berletic of The New Atlas on his channel to discuss my trip to China and what I learned about this successful defeat of US and European war plans against it.”
This is really good. Listen to what they have to say. Learn something.
Typically Consumer Products dont leave a country unless it’s market has reduced so much that there is no point in continuing
Today China has at least 100 Local Brands of Shoes ranging from the 21.99 Yuan a pair Danis available in every Hypermarket to the 2199 Yuan a pair LiNing in select showrooms in Malla
They have taken over sponsorship of events and Athletes begin buying them over brands like Nike or Puma
PUMA or Nike have so much unsold inventory in China that they typically offer mass discounts during Lunar New Year or Chinese New Year
Nike was very arrogant when it has a two third market share in China
It priced itself in Dollars
It sold shoes without it’s “Air”
Now Nike and Puma simply can’t sustain operations because CHINA ISN’T BUYING THEM ANYMORE
Domestic Brands in China have surged with Nikes market falling from 53% in the Middle of 2014 to 8% by 2021 while Domestic Shoe Brands rose from 6% in 2014 to 61% in 2021
Plus Chinese Brands Anta and Nining rose their Asian market share from 0.8% in 2015 to 8.6% in 2023
And if Nike gets such a mauling, imagine Puma!!!!
Plus the Nike production in Vietnam is 66,000 Pairs a day Or 2 Million a month
In China?
It was 14.8 Million Pairs a month in 2016
Almost 7.5 times higher
As for Global Exports – Prices to make Nike Shoes have surged in China due to higher labor costs
The Chinese say
You pay us 110 Yuan a pair for our Factory make, pay our wholesellers 240 Yuan a pair and you sell retail for 1300 Yuan a pair
Sorry, either you pay us more or we start making Anta or Lining which pays us more and shares price more evenly
Vietnamese don’t
They need these numbers
Same with Samsung
Once Samsung dominated Consumer Electronics in China with a 31% market share and Mobiles with a nearly 18% market share
Today?
Samsung Electronics have a 3.2% market share on the mainland and their phones have near zero demand
It’s market forces purely that many brands are pulling out of China
China has domestic equivalents now at half the price and same quality
Why would China pay twice the money just for a brand?
Chinese are some of the most practical people on earth when it comes to money
Only a few foreign brands like the Iphone or Macbook hold a fascination for the Chinese even today
INTERVIEW: The odds are on a nuclear war
Retired US colonel Tony Schaffer says there’s an 80% chance of war between America and Russia in the next year. No one in power understands the Russian perspective.
China is taking a very close look at investment money now, and in many areas, US investment money is not attractive because:
US legal jurisdiction claims to be above the law of other nations, giving the US the ability to sanction other nations for US IP products and services within the nation’s own borders;
US investment money favors New York as the world’s capital market, and the role of the US dollar as the global reserve currency. The Chinese government wants to cut back on the US dollar as the only global reserve currency, which is why it is active in BRICS.
The US keeps its global economic dominance through the Big 4 accounting firms which act as gatekeepers to US equity markets for raising capital. Same goes for US investment banks.
For these reasons, China is looking at diversification, especially in the area of manufacturing.
In order to find an alternative to US investment money, China has built very strong trade and investment relations with Saudi Arabia and the UAE, both of which were recently admitted to BRICS. Both are just starting to invest in Chinese projects in China and in their countries, and the new BRICS entrants of Egypt and Ethiopia.
This Middle East capital will flow into China and come without many of the strings which come with US investment capital.
This is part of China’s decoupling policy with the US.
24 Times Paulie Walnuts Had The Best Lines On “The Sopranos”
This question strikes close to home, thanks for asking Luther.
I was in the 160th in the early days, May 83 – Mar 88. I ended my 20 year career and retired out of the 160th. As far as I’m concerned, it’s the ultimate, there is no unit like it and after being in the 160th there’s no other place to go. *Everybody* in the Night Stalkers is a volunteer; officer, warrant officer, NCO, enlisted. You are so highly trained and the mission so specialized that once in the unit the Army will leave you there until you ask to be reassigned or the unit leadership asks you to leave.
There were several training accidents in my day resulting in a lot of casualties. So many that at one time the big Army considered shutting the unit down. Understand that we were charting new territory, what we did in establishing new procedures and ways to operate had never been done before. Things improved tremendously, the unit got better, provided the SOF community with a capability it never had before. The big Army realized this, we persevered and now the 160th SOAR(A) is the best unit of its kind in the entire world. Hell, it’s the *only* unit of its kind. It was born out of the disaster that was Desert One, the Iran hostage rescue attempt in April, 1980.
Our “customers” are the best of the best and the Night Stalkers will not let them down. They are why the unit exists. To them you can be one of two things, an asset or a liability. Nobody wants to be the latter. No matter the weather, no matter the terrain, no matter the opposing force capability, the Night Stalkers will get them to the objective. And most importantly the Night Stalkers will get them out. Time on target plus or minus 30 seconds.
To completely define a Night Stalker you need to also consider the spouses, the families. They are just as dedicated and it can be said that their job is the hardest.
Yes, you could consider it dangerous, probably more so than any other aviation unit. The training is intense, you train like you fight. It gets the call and is exposed to hostile action more often than any other aviation unit so the risk is always there. Its aircraft are not “off the shelf”. They are tailored and modified for the unique mission and is the best you can get. Night Stalkers and its customers are involved in some operations that you don’t hear about and never will. Everybody is a volunteer. The unit personnel are the best of the best and you don’t become a Night Stalker until you successfully complete assessment and initial training. Certain personalities are drawn to this kind of unit. Those that will willingly risk their lives for their buddies, for their Country. To them, the risk is worth it. To the rest of the country, be proud and comforted knowing that those types of individuals exist.
And ya know what? If you were to pass a Night Stalker on the street you’d never know it. They don’t brag, they don’t boast, they don’t thump their chests. Ah, they might in jest amongst themselves or their customers, but never in public. They look and act like your typical guy or gal that lives next door to ya.
“To those who have fought for it, freedom has a flavor the protected will never know.”
Night Stalkers Don’t Quit!!
Roasted Blue Cheese Potato Salad
Get rid of that boring old potato salad recipe and change things up in the flavor department with this delicious Roasted Blue Cheese Potato Salad.
roasted blue cheese potato salad
Prep: 10 min | Bake: 25 min | Yield: 10 servings
Ingredients
Pam® Original No-Stick Cooking Spray
1 yellow onion, sliced in 1/4 inch thick rounds
3 pounds baby red potatoes
3/4 cup diced celery
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
Heat the oven to 425 degrees F. Spray the bottom of a baking sheet generously with cooking spray.
Evenly spread out the onion slices and potatoes onto the baking sheet.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the potatoes are browned and tender.
Chill immediately.
Next, dice the chilled onions and place them into a large bowl along with the chilled potatoes, celery, mayonnaise, blue cheese, basil, salt and pepper and mix until combined.
Serve chilled.
USA mad!
image 13
The USA is now into sanction inception! Say what? The USA will sanction already sanctioned companies for not respecting sanctions…
Again wut? Chinese companies that do business with another Chinese company, under US sanctions will get sanctions.
😀 😀 😀 😀
It’s like they think they can pass laws for other countries!
This Is WORSE Than China’s Treasury Dump!
China’s treasury dump has hit a 14-year low with $11 billion more bonds sold, but this is nothing compared to the tsunami of debt coming from America itself. Yellen is going to flood the economy with nearly $2 trillion dollars worth of treasuries which is putting enormous pressure on bond yields. While this might push the economy towards a recession, the real risk is accelerating towards a fiscal cliff which is unthinkable!
Huawei Technologies Co. roared back into the spotlight this past week after a Bloomberg report showed their new phone is powered by a 7nm processor, which is just a few years behind Apple’s iPhone. And who’s getting the jitters over this new development? Those very same Capitol Hill lawmakers, who, for the last several years, sanctioned not only Huawei but also China’s chip sector to stymie homegrown tech progress. That move didn’t pan out as planned.
Now, the US Commerce Department is panicking while it rushes to understand how sanctioned Huawei was able to design and manufacture a 7-nanometer processor for its new Mate 60 Pro smartphone. The whole purpose of blacklisting the company and many other Chinese tech firms was to restrict access to US technology to make these sorts of devices.
Mate 60 Pro went on sale while the US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo was on a trip to China last week. This is a sign that China is ‘thumbing their noses’ at the US for the wave of sanctions that have failed so far.
“We are working to obtain more information on the character and composition of the purported 7nm chip,” a Commerce spokesperson said in a statement.
According to Bloomberg. the Commerce Department will begin its own investigation into Huawei’s new phone. The Commerce Department’s Office of Export Enforcement will likely lead the study to determine if China’s top chipmaker, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp.’s Kirin 9000s chip, was made using US technology.
The Mate 60 Pro news is a sign that suggests President Xi Jinping’s efforts to develop technological self-sufficiency are working. The Bloomberg report on the phone showed it has “an unusually high proportion of Chinese parts … a sign of the country’s progress in developing domestic tech capabilities.”
Meanwhile, China has banned iPhone use by central government employees and has expanded it to to local governments and state-owned companies. Such curbs threaten multinationals like Apple, which derives 25% of its sales from China.
Tom Nunlist, an associate director from the Beijing-based consulting firm Trivium, said, “Chip tech export controls may have been Washington’s one and only ace in the tech war.”
Tex-Mex Street Tacos
Flavorfully-seasoned flank steak cooked to perfection, and then wrapped in soft warm corn tortillas.
tex mex street tacos
Yield: 4 servings; 2 cups Pico de Gallo
Ingredients
Tacos
2 pounds flank steak
1/4 cup silver tequila
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lime, juiced
1/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 jalapeño pepper, ribs and seeds removed, finely chopped
1 shallot, finely chopped
2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped
Cotija cheese, crumbled
16 corn tortillas
Toppings
Minced white onion
Chopped cilantro
Optional Toppings
Cojita cheese
Lime wedges
Pico de gallo
Pico de Gallo
4 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/2 cup red onion, chopped
2 green onions, white and green parts, thinly sliced
1 jalapeño pepper, ribs and seeds removed, minced
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 lime, juiced
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
Tacos
Place tequila, soy sauce, garlic, lime juice, orange juice, olive oil, salt, black pepper, jalapeño pepper, shallot and cilantro in a freezer proof zip-top bag. Add flank steak. Seal and marinate 6 hours to overnight in the refrigerator.
Heat gas or charcoal grill to 400 degrees F.
Remove meat and discard marinade. Place steaks on oiled grates and grill for approximately 4-6 minutes on one side or until moisture startes to pool on the top and beef releases easily from the grates with tongs. Flip once, grilling on the other side for 4 to 6 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 145 degrees F with meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the steak. Transfer steaks to a platter and let rest for 3 minutes before slicing against the grain, into 1/4-inch thick strips.
Warm the tortillas for 30 seconds on each side in a dry skillet or on the grill.
Stack 2 tortillas, add beef, toppings and lime juice if desired.
Pico de Gallo
Pico de Gallo: Combine Pico de Gallo ingredients in mixing bowl and toss thoroughly.
“Just when you think it can’t possibly get any worse, it suddenly does” : Douglas Adams
…
Thirty years ago I subscribed to the “PT News” which was a weekly magazine listing thousands of job opportunities for contract work with a Per Diem bonus. I lived in a class “A” motor home and moved (for a brief while) from job opportunity to job opportunity.
Then, I would eat pizza more often than not, and enjoy a Duncan Donuts coffee and a chocolate frosted cake donuts every morning. I was married. Had cats. No children.
Most of my belongs were in a storage locker two days drive from where I lived.
I daydreamed about inventions, and gadgets. Watched Star Trek, and listened to progressive music. I was active in Majestic, and endured a cubicle worker lifestyle.
I was terribly stressed out. Took anti-anxiety medications. And cared for a wife who mentally ill in a serious way.
Now I live in China. Different environment, and wholly different culture.
…
Today, I commute to my office and watch Douxing videos. I communicate by wechat, and eat zhoufen and doujiang for breakfast. My daughter is in Kindergarten, and I drive a hybrid Japanese car. I no longer have any pets.
…
Sound great, eh: I own multiple homes. Run multiple companies. It’s not as great as you would think.
More of a pain-in-the-ass than anything else. Do not yearn or lust for what you Think the lifestyle you believe others live. The reality might surprise you.
Reality is very often something OTHER than what we envision.
…
I often think about my life, and my parents who are dead.
I miss my little kitty cats. I miss those little guys.
Texie. Phelie. Leonardo. Blue Thunder. Heather. Snowball.
So many kitties. I want to name them all, but it would just bore you all.
…
Occasionally I wonder about my ex-wife, but I know she’s a lost cause. She’s too ill. Too gone.
I look at a life of mistakes, failures and an occasional victory or two, and I wonder about it all… Often over a cup of coffee.
Instead of a cherry pie, though, I eat with some toasted peanut butter longhorn toast. (It’s a HK thing,)
And, by the way, I spend way too much time commuting.
Truth, this.
…
And, of course, not to mention being on my blog, my you-tube channels and Patreon. My time is not effectively being utilized.
I’ve got to make some changes.
…
My time could and should be better utilized.
My pleasures include boxing with my daughter, playing basketball with her, and watching Totoro on the computer.
But yet, I daydream about cruising in my GTO and listening to Boston. I daydream of being with my old kitty buddies. And I day dream of a much simpler time.
A time of climbing trees, going “bottle collecting” in the woods, walking the old rusty railroad tracks, and coming home to my mothers kitchen with a pot of spaghetti cooking all day…
…
And we are VIP in more restaurants, spa’s, and massage centers than I want to be. VIP is a “thing” in China. More common than you might otherwise think. Ah. It’s not as cracked up as you would think.
Changes are part of life, but it is our ability to roll with the changes that define who we are.
…
Today, I started deleting my most potentially controversial you-tube videos. I just came out of a “first strike”, and I do not want to be controversial. It is, after all, the United States that is home for you-Tube.
Mention Jeffrey Epstein, anything bad about Ukraine, anything good about China… you get blocked.
Today…
Freedom of the press – American style
2023 08 23 11 41
Strategic Culture.org and SouthFront.org both lost their (dot) .org domains this past week. Now they can be found by replacing their former suffix .org with (dot) .su, a Russian-based domain.
GADDAFI (2011): “Now, I am under attack by the biggest force in military history. My little African son, Obama, wants to kill me, to take away the freedom of our country, to take away our free housing, our free medicine, our free education, our free food, and replace it with American style thievery, called “capitalism.” But all of us in the Third World know what that means, it means corporations run the countries, run the world, and the people suffer. So, there is no alternative for me, I must make my stand, and if Allah wishes, I shall die by following his path, the path that has made our country rich with farmland, with food and health…
I do not wish to die, but if it comes to that, to save this land, my people, all the thousands who are all my children, then so be it. Let this testament be my voice to the world, that I stood up to crusader attacks of NATO, stood up to cruelty, stood up to betrayal, stood up to the West and its colonialist ambitions… In the West, some have called me “mad,” “crazy,” but they know the truth and continue to lie. They know that our land is independent and free, not in the colonial grip, that my vision, my path, is, and has been clear and for my people and that I will fight to my last breath to keep us free.”
The Montauk Project: The Truth is Darker Than You Can Possibly Imagine
Great story, and fun. Don’t get too caught up with this.
I talked to someone who was an aide/assistant to Deng Xiaoping when the reforms began in 1978, and this is what he told me:
Deng hated any discussion about political theory, and completely rejected them. If you wanted to get on the wrong side of Deng, and never get invited to see him again, all you had to do was talk about Marxist political theory;
Deng’s meetings were always very short, lasting less than 30 minutes. There was never any small talk;
He had a very sharp mind, and would get right to the heart of an issue, discuss it, and make a decision. Once he made the decision, the meeting was over.
This was a sharp contrast with Mao, who obsessed over communist theory. In Deng’s book, the only thing which mattered was what worked, which was why his practice was 实事求是 or “seek truth from facts”. This was why he hated the Gang of Four, who were leftists and rejected the truth.
Judging from what Dima Vorobiev has mentioned in his brilliant and insightful posts about Gorbachev and the decline and fall of the Soviet Union, there was not a single person in the Soviet Union like Deng, who was very earthy and grounded, and had the personality and seniority to force his ways on the rest of the Chinese leadership.
If the Soviet Union had someone like Deng, Yeltsin would have been shot, the oligarchs who stripped the nation of its assets would never have risen, and Putin would likely have never been needed.
It turns out that Putin is like Russia’s Deng, and this explains the good relationship between Putin and Xi Jinping. Not only do they respect each other, they like each other.
The great irony is that the Americans are much more bound by ideology than the Chinese leadership have been, throwing around terms like “socialism”, “capitalism” and treating the words “freedom” and “democracy” like they are some kind of religion to be worshipped at an altar, without having any deep understanding or agreement of their meaning. These words are not used for understanding, but to beat up on their political foes, especially now.
WARNING THIS IS HAPPENING IN RUSSIA 🇷🇺 There is a revolt of beautiful girls in Moscow – HDR Video
“I’ve been living here for over a year. Moscow is an incredible city and the people are the friendliest I’ve known anywhere. Unlike the west, the women here return big smiles if they see you noticing them. Women in the west are scared of perverts and almost always drop their gaze. It’s not due to modesty either. ”
Saying goodbye
“Jules, this is Brian. Listen, I’m on an airplane that’s been hijacked. If things don’t go well, and it’s not looking good, I just want you to know I absolutely love you. I want you to do good, go have good times. Same to my parents and everybody, and I just totally love you, and I’ll see you when you get there.”
Three minutes before United Airlines Flight 175 crashed into the South Tower of the World Trade Center on 9/11, passenger Brian Sweeney used an Airfone to leave a heartbreaking final voicemail message to his wife Julie. At the time, she was in the middle of teaching a high school class, so she missed his call. Though Julie was soon pulled away from her students to learn that her husband had died in the terrorist attacks, she didn’t realize that he had left her a message until she got home.
Originally Answered: What happened that made you realize “My teacher has no idea what they are teaching.”?
I was in high school chemistry class and I’m working away. The teacher does some equation on the board so I write it down.
At home that night, I’m working on my Chemistry homework when Mom walks in. My mother has a Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry and my father has a Ph.D in Organic Chemistry. Between them, they’ve got the Periodic Table down.
Long story short, the high school Chemistry teacher is teaching us things that are just flat wrong. Not kinda, just wrong. Now, if you’re curious, I’m not sure exactly WHAT that was – this was almost 40 years ago.
Every day, when I get home, my mother teaches me the right way to do things. The other kids in class notice I’m not paying attention or writing down anything the teacher says. So I tell them what’s up, they’re all AP, kind of nerdy.
They ask me to show them my Mom’s work every day before class so they don’t get totally screwed up. So I start doing that and, on Day 3, the teacher walks in early.
She wants to know what we’re doing in her classroom, blah, blah, blah. I was a little mouthy back then and I think I said something like “if you don’t know your Chemistry, my Mom can show you a few things.”
Oops, she starts screaming at me, I’m sent to the principal’s office – the whole works. I’m looking at a 5 day suspension for “back talking” a teacher.
So they make the call – Mrs. Fefer, can you please come get your daughter. We’re suspending her for 5 days, etc. etc. Mom has no idea what’s happened and this was before cellphones so she can’t check with me before she gets there.
Mom comes into the Principal’s office and gives me the “stink-eye.” Yes, guilty until proven innocent. I don’t blame her, I’d been a bit of a handful that year. So she asks the Principal exactly what happened and why I’m getting such a big penalty.
He spouts off some total bullshit about my starting an altercation with the teacher, screaming at her, approaching her in a “menacing” way and being generally disruptive to my fellow students “learning environment.” Our Principal was an ex-cop, he read this off like I was a member of the Manson family.
Mom asked him what teacher was involved. The minute she heard it was the Chemistry teacher, she had a good idea what happened. I did tell her when I started teaching the other kids before class.
So Mom asks Mr. Principal to call in the teacher – she tells him to do it so I can apologize to her. Mrs. Chemistry comes in, shakes Mom’s hand and Mom tells her to please describe my behavior so she can determine what “home” punishment is appropriate for my crimes.
That’s when things start to go sideways for Mrs. Chemistry and Mr. Principal. They hadn’t gotten their stories straight, and Mrs. Chemistry didn’t know about the embellishments he’d added.
After lots of back and forth, Mom looks over at me and says “What’s your version?” I tell it like it happened, admitting we were in the classroom when we shouldn’t have been but it was so I could teach the kids “real” chemistry.
That pissed the teacher off a little bit. She wanted to know how we’d gotten in and, I considered lying but, what the hell, I was already facing a 5 day suspension. Not much more can happen — I told her I’d used a plastic card to just slide the mechanism back. (I’d been doing this all over the school since the prior year).
Mrs. Chemistry starts screaming again about how I’m a criminal, there obviously needs to be more discipline at home because I’m going to come to “no good” and, not only am I corrupting my friends’ moral fiber, I’m “ruining” their minds by teaching them things that are against “every rule of science.”
Mom looks over at me and tells me to take out whatever I was using to teach this voodoo to my friends. I get out the notebook she and I have been working in. She flips through a couple of pages and says “Yep, looks right to me.”
If I had the chance to live a couple moments of my life over, this is definitely one I’d choose. Mrs. Chemistry looks at Mom and says “How on Earth could you POSSIBLY know whether anything in that book is right or wrong?”
Mom looks her straight in the face and says: “Well, I just happen to be 1 of 4 women in the United States who received a Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry in 1956. After completing graduate studies at Northwestern University, I went to work for Esso and was on the team that developed UniFlo motor oil, but I wanted a little more time with the kids, so I quit and accepted an offer to teach Chemistry at Rutgers University. Now that we’re in Houston, I’m an Assistant Professor of Chemistry at the University of Houston. Oh, and I know that notebook is correct because I prepared it so my daughter could learn how to do ACTUAL Chemistry CORRECTLY.”
It was a thing of beauty! Mrs. Chemistry just stood there with a glazed look on her face. Then, she walked out the door. I got a 2 day suspension for breaking into the classroom. I still had this horrible woman for Chemistry but she didn’t bother me any more and, at the end of the year, her contract was not renewed.
I LOVE my mom. She’s still going strong at 88!
Oliver Anthony IS the HERO we NEED! – I Want To Go Home
Another absolute masterpiece with a deep, deep message@)…ya’llshould LISTEN many, many, many times!
The Democrats Biden Problem
On August 7 2023 a fire burned down a large part of the Lahaina, a city on Maui, Hawaii, with some 12,700 inhabitants. Thousands of homes were destroyed. At least 115 people died, some 850 are still missing. It was the deadliest fire in the U.S. in more than a century.
When President Biden was asked about the incident a week after it had happened he responded with “No comment.”
The government offers an insulting $700 as emergency aid to every affected household. U.S. aid to Ukraine has exceeded $3,000 for every Ukrainian and Biden is seeking another $27 billion to be send there.
It took fourteen days for Biden to show up on the scene of the fire incident.
Being there he joked about the ‘hot ground’ and offered a fake story:
When President Joe Biden met with survivors of the Maui wildfires on Monday, he told them that he could relate to them because he and First Lady Jill Biden knew what it was like to lose a home to a fire.
But the fire in question was described by the Associated Press at the time as “a small fire that was contained to the kitchen,” with the Delaware fire chief indicating that it was under control in 20 minutes.
Later, while someone on the stage talked about how his home and the homes of his son and daughter had burned down, Biden seemed to fall asleep (vid).
I do not know who is supposed to manage Biden’s public relations but whoever that is is doing a bad job.
The strategists for the Democratic Party and those concerned with winning elections should seriously think about replacing Biden with someone who is better at handling himself.
Have you ever beaten your school bully?Yes. I was a 10-year-old girl. They were two 14-year-old boys. They were much bigger and taller, but they made one big mistake.
This is the story:
My school had kids from 2 to 18 years old in the same facilities. 2- to 5-year-olds had different recess schedules, though. But when I was ten and in 6th grade (I started first grade at 4), we shared the playground/sports facilities schedule with kids up to 16 years old.
I was also heavily bullied before this day by most of my classmates. I was the scholarship kid in a pretty fancy private school. They would insult, kick, and push me down the stairs (8 times in 6 years). Teachers did nothing as the other kids were “paying customers,” and I was not. I didn’t want to involve my mother because she was going through a nasty divorce, and I wanted to protect her from more stress. While this school was in the top 5 in the country, the local public schools were terrible, so there was no suitable alternative for me anyway. And I never hit back because although I was taller than most people in my class (Now, as an adult woman, I am 6′1′’), I didn’t want to hurt anybody.
Then, this day came.
These two kids were infamous for bullying anything that moved. Younger kids, mostly, as they were cowards. They had never bothered me before that day but had beaten several of my friends and classmates. But one day, as they started bothering my friends and me, I told them to go away. Their eyes lit up as they approached to beat me, and then they made a foolish mistake: they insulted my mother.
I don’t know what happened inside me. To that point, no one had insulted my mother. I was not allowing my father to insult her; he was a big, 6′4 grown man. These little shitheads were not going to get away with that. At that moment, I didn’t stop to think they were older, taller, stronger, and bigger than me. Or that half the school was afraid of the pair.
I just jumped on them, and it wasn’t pretty.
At some point, I got my rips bruised by knee kicks by one of them while the other held me. I couldn’t breathe. I learned months later at the doctor that they fractured my ribs that day. I didn’t go to the hospital at the time, as I thought they were only bruised, but they healed themselves well.
They ended up worse.
One had a broken nose and a black eye and was all scratched up with deep scratches. He also had a massive bruise around his neck and spoke in a hoarse voice for weeks, but I am not sure how I did that.
The other had three broken fingers (one in one hand, two in the other) and such a kick in the balls he cried tears. At some point, I also trapped his head on my arm and punched him in the head so hard I had bruises on my hands, but he had a big black bruise on the side of his head for a week.
I also remember kicking one in the stomach when they were on the floor until two teachers arrived and held me.
Because they had started it, I got no punishment or detention. Teachers were mostly shocked. I think the two boys were also quite embarrassed a 10-year-old girl had won and didn’t want to bring too much attention to the fact. But it was too late; dozens of students had seen it (none of which had been willing to defend a younger student from two bullies). The word got around the school. From that moment on, these two did not bother a single soul and kept a very low profile, but they would walk away the moment they saw me.
The best part was that because those two had beaten most of my bullies, my bullies were scared of me, and I was never picked on again. It also taught me that bullying is wrong, but defending yourself is good.
I want to clarify that I am not proud to have put two kids in the hospital. What I did was uncontrolled and a bit of an overkill, but it was an unplanned reaction.
I am, however, proud to have been the first and only to stand up to these two older boys.
NUMBERS STATIONS. Not a relic of the past. Intelligence agencies use shortwave to communicate with spies, agents and assets in the field. Right now.
Today. Let’s listen to a few and learn how to tune in from home — for free.
Since World War One, numbers stations have been transmitting coded messages to spies around the world using shortwave radio.
And they’re still transmitting right now.
We’re going to listen to a few in this episode. These transmissions sound strange to casual listeners. But to the right set of ears, they contain information that could change the course of history.
In fact, numbers stations have changed the course of history.
Countless numbers stations are on the air right now — for what purpose, few really know. And the people that do know? They aren’t talking.
They’re essentially pirate stations — operating illegally. But, nobody shuts them down. And no government acknowledges they even exist. Let’s find out why.
In the corner of Africa where I was born and raised, the notion of ‘quality of life’ seemed almost mythological.
This wasn’t just subsistence living; it was an existence dictated by raw survival, painted with the broad brushstrokes of repetition—same sun, same struggle, day after day.
Imagine a primary school journey that felt like an odyssey each day, uniforms stitched together from mismatched threads of hope and need.
We crossed a colossal river and walked miles to school each day, all in a quest for education.
Discipline was high, and no excuse was good enough, and so, when you come late to school, you’ll answer to the ‘good doctor’ —the ‘cane’, you’ll get whooped
To avoid going late to school, we left early, which meant no breakfast, and neither did we take any to school. You’ll have to wait for the arduous journey back home late in the afternoon or evening to eat.
The said meals are a monotonous loop of Soup and swallow, mainly ‘Eba’ eaten twice a day, while Christmas transformed into a culinary carnival featuring the luxury of rice and stew. A real feast once a year, our yuletide cheer was marked by the aroma of meat wafting through our humble abode. Hence we looked forward to Christmas immediately after it passed.
Books were inherited like family heirlooms, although torn and fried. These fragmented tales were lessons in imagination as the front and back pages were almost always absent, forcing us to piece together unknown beginnings and mysterious endings. And my Dad was the happiest whenever he saw me study.
Child labor wasn’t an issue; it was a rite of passage. Before I even clocked 10, my young hands became well-acquainted with the soil, the woods, and the paddles of canoes.
We did all kinds of odd jobs, all kinds of play, walked all kinds of forests, swam in all kinds of water, drank all kinds of water, ate a lot of rubbish we considered food, subjected our bodies to harsh weather, and didn’t even fall sick.
I didn’t need a gym to carve my six-pack; hard work molded me into a sculpture of resilience.
We had large extended families, because in a place where material wealth is scarce, the richness of relations becomes the ultimate currency, and relations are the closest thing to mechanized farming, you plant and harvest more with a big family.
The downside of having such families is in resource management; beds and rooms were hard to come by, and sometimes, you learned to find your place in the world earlier than most—sometimes as young as ten or twelve. Your own parents didn’t have a place for you to sleep:D
Yet amid all this, there’s a striking paradox: the villagers, my people, exude an inexplicable happiness. Maybe it’s the beauty of not knowing any different, of finding joy in the simplest things. Ignorance, perhaps, serves as a cushion against the harsh realities— if you don’t know better how could you worry about doing better?
Today, you might mistake me for someone who’s always been cradled in comfort. But every facet of my being has been shaped by those early years of unrelenting struggle.
Life has taught me that no story is set in stone. Change, as daunting as it might seem, is only a decision away.
I am living proof that even in the grimmest of chapters, the plot can always be rewritten.
Truck Driver Parked For The Night & Saw The Craziest Thing In His Life At A Rest Area
Oh wow. He absolutely IS a highway angel!!! Thank you already for all you truckers do for us. Especially these past 3 years. God bless and protect you all.
Moving out day
No, this isn’t from move-in day. I took this pic three weeks ago when we moved my son out of his dorm. He’s not returning to his (now former) four year college. I’m proud of him for realizing that while his chosen university is amazing, it wasn’t a good fit for him at this time.
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He gave this a lot of thought over his winter break and is going to attend a local, community college to pursue a degree in Automotive Technologies. He’s loved cars since he could walk, so I think this will be a great path for him. As we were leaving, being the funny guy that he is, he said, “I will miss being here, but I will definitely not miss the 2AM fire alarms.”
All I’ve ever wanted is for my boy to be happy. This was entirely his decision, and he’s very excited for this next chapter. I think my brother may have put it best … college is all about figuring out what you like, and what you don’t like. So now, he’s realized what he doesn’t want to do and is moving on to what he DOES want to pursue.
There is NO shame in trade schools and/or community college! I’ve no doubt he will fly high and succeed, and I’m so very PROUD of him.
Kathy Oberst
Braised Slow Cooker Chuck Roast with Roasted Pepper Sauce
Braised Slow Cooker Chuck Roast with Roasted Pepper Sauce is soul-warming and hearty. Make a boldly flavored fall-apart beef meal with this easy recipe.
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Ingredients
3 pounds Certified Angus Beef® chuck roast
3 red bell peppers
4 large garlic cloves, cut in half
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 large Spanish onion, sliced
2 tablespoons diced, chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
Quarter and core red peppers; toss with garlic and one tablespoon olive oil in a large bowl to coat. Evenly space peppers on a large sheet tray and place under broiler to blister and blacken pepper skins, about 10 minutes.
Remove from oven; when cool, discard skin (it easily comes off), chop peppers and transfer to slow cooker.
Season chuck roast with salt and pepper.
Heat remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in large heavy-bottom pan. Brown roast over medium-high heat on all sides; transfer to slow cooker.
Add onions, chipotle peppers and paprika to pan. Stir to remove browned bits from bottom of pan.
Add stock and diced tomatoes; pour over roast.
Cover and cook on LOW for 6 hours or until roast is fork tender.
Remove roast from cooker and place on cutting board. Pull apart with forks to bite-size pieces. Skim excess fat from braising liquid. Stir beef back into sauce.
Serve, garnished with cilantro and a dollop of sour cream.
I was in a big steakhouse in California about 30 years ago. The waitress, like many Americans, liked our Brit accent and happened to say their head chef was from England. Thought nothing of it because England is quite a big place with a lot of people . About an hour later as we were finishing up our desserts , the chef came out.
Conversation went something like this.
CHEF: I heard your accents and had to come out because you sound like you are from Essex.
ME: Yes all four of us are. We are from Southend on Sea. ( A very famous large Essex town recognised around the UK).
CHEF: Really. That’s where I’m from. Actually Shoeburyness just outside Southend.
ME: Really! I lived there for 12 years,after I was born.
CHEF: Do you know West Road. I ran the Chippy ( fish and chip shop) there for 10 years between ’71 and ‘81.
ME: You’ve got to be joking. I used to come in your shop the last Friday of every month with my brother and my parents to get fish and chips.
Originally Answered: What is the weirdest thing you ever seen someone do in public?
Story 1. I was sitting at Walmart one day, waiting for my ride to pick me up. I watched a beautiful girl of about 16 walk wearing a really pretty dress that was black down the sides and white in the center accompanied by her mom. I guessed that they may have been after nylons or something, since she was wearing a formal and it was prom night and this was Walmart. I was still waiting when they came back out, and since I was bored, I was watching them when they passed into the bright sunlight. I was shocked to see that in the sunlight, the center white panels of her dress disappeared! I got up and followed them out the their car trying my best to block others’ view of her scantily-clad backside. As I reached the car, I walked up to the driver’s window which was already opened, and said “pardon me, normally, I don’t bother strangers, but do you know that when your beautiful daughter walked into the bright sun, her dress became invisible in the white areas? The woman looked concerned, but the daughter looked at me and said, “It does not!” I just smiled at her and said “Then how do you suppose I would know you are wearing burgundy colored G-string panties?” The girl’s face went white, and her mother took her back into the store with a car blanket around her to get her a shawl or wrap to wear over it. Lol.
Story 2. Again, sitting and waiting for a ride home from a different store, I saw a woman open her car door, and change her baby’s diaper. When she was done changing the baby, she folded the dirty diaper, and threw the dirty diaper under her car, and walked into the store. Just as she entered the store, a older woman who was in the next car, got out of her car, reached up under the first woman’s car, grabs the dirty diaper, opens it, and drops it dirty side down into the mother’s sun roof that was open. I was still laughing when the second lady came by me, and I told her “well played!” Lol.
WHO IS HE?! | First Time EVER Hearing Oliver Anthony – Rich Men North Of Richmond (Reaction)
9 seconds… OMG!
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Olivia Farnsworth
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This little girl in the photo above is Olivia Farnsworth and she has a one of the rarest conditions known to man. In Fact, she is the only documented case in the whole the world with a Chromosome 6p deletion, and the chances of this happening is so rare that the odds are 8 billion to one.
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She has baffled scientist’s all over the world because her condition causes her to feel no pain, hunger or the need to sleep. Apart from the the obvious she’s lived some what of a normal life. When she was a baby her mother notice a few strange symptoms. She never cried as a baby, and never felt the need to take a nap, and would stay active throughout the whole day.
It wasn’t until she had accident and suffered a deep wound to her lip, that doctors notice it didn’t seem to bother her, even after minor surgery.
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A few years later she was struck by a car and dragged 60ft across the ground and then got up as if nothing had happened. She didn’t the feel the pain of the car hitting her and because her body was so relaxed she didn’t suffer any fractures. Not only does she not feel hunger and pain, she also doesn’t sense any danger and that’s why she didn’t try and avoid the car. She’s as close to a superhuman as you could get.
There’s documented cases all over the world with people not feeling hungry or not able to register pain, but Olivia is the only case with all three symptoms.
It’s not that see is missing a chromosome, but the fact that the Chromosome 6 has been altered so much, its unusable.
Patriot Rapper REMIXED ‘Rich Men North Of Richmond’ & It’s A BANGER | Hot DAMN
Originally Answered: What are some of the greatest examples of presence of mind?
This is my favorite one until now. So I was partying at a friend’s house one night and I had to get back to my place for some reason (maybe a work from home thing) and everyone with a vehicle was sleeping. My place was just across a graveyard from my friend’s building, so I opted for a brisk walk. What could happen in 5 minutes?
So, there I was, walking by a cemetery, in the middle of the night, fearing not the dead but the sudden appearance of a living breathing man. I was hoping I wouldn’t run into one during my 5-minute dash to my building but alas I was mistaken.
Enter, a creep.
What happened next, unfolded within seconds.
Halfway through, right outside the graveyard’s gate, a motorcycle approaches from behind, going slow, and the driver had one arm extended; I see the looming shadow of that hand getting closer and closer. I knew the inevitable slap on the bum was coming but my paranoia got the better of me and I started thinking up all the worse case scenarios. Then, I realize I’m wearing a white dress, my hair’s a frizzy disheveled mess, my cheap makeup is smudged, and I’m at the entrance of a graveyard in the dead of the night.
If there’s one thing that strikes fear in the hearts of Indians, its superstition! We’re more scared of cats crossing our paths than serial killers.
So I quickly pulled a few strands of hair to cover my face, turned around, almost lunged towards the bike howling like a demon (I don’t know how I did it, but it was that scary scream that is a mix of a man and a woman’s voice like in horror movies) The guy on the bike not only kept his arm to himself but he almost his lost balance, regained it and zoomed away at top speed.
I reached home safe and had a good laugh.
Dear creep, if you ever read this and realize that the ghost story of night you saw a woman in white emerge from a graveyard (I know you conveniently skip the part where you almost shit your pants) was a fake. The lesson here that eve-teasing is not only wrong but can also be dangerous 😛
In 1994, a crew of fishermen in Hawkesbury in Sydney were out trawling for Squid when they came across a terrifying discovery. As they pulled up their nets to bring aboard the first of their morning catch, one of the fishermen noticed something heavy clinging to the net as he pulled it in.
What they thought was going to be a decent morning’s work turned into something beyond their worst nightmares. Wrapped up in the net was a human-size solid iron crucifix, and attached was the body of a human.
Wires and ropes around the neck and torso, along with the feet and hands, bound the body to the cross to mirror the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
An autopsy revealed that it was the body of a man. Attempts were made to mummify the man either before or after his death. Plastic was poured over his body in a macabre way of preserving him. Identification was almost impossible due to the body being in the water for at least a year, according to the examiners.
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The welding on the cross was done with professionalism and precision, it also fit the arms span of the man perfectly. It was established that the crucifix was custom built, and along with the body weight, it was too heavy for just one person to lift.
A facial reconstruction of the man’s face was made and a 100,000 dollar reward was offered for information leading to the identity of the man.
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He was dubbed “Rack Man” by the media, and for 24 years, the identity of the man remained a mystery. In 2018, with advancements in DNA testing being made, the mysterious Identity of the man was finally made. It turned out to be a 37-year-old gambler named Max Tancevski who went missing in 1993.
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The reason for his gruesome end remains a mystery. The official theory is that he owed money due to his gambling habits and it was done to send a message. Although, the strange religious symbolism attached to his murder and the precise way his body was arranged on the cross, suggest something far more sinister.
Biden White House to Saudi Arabia, ditch BRICS and get nuclear weapons program
Meanwhile Countries like China and Russia and many others, even Arab nations no longer promote any Hatred
They promote growth, development and modernization
Chinese cannot control the sheer hatred against them or reciprocate against the same
They don’t hate even the Japanese and Koreans despite the horrors of WWII
It’s why it’s so easy to lie and badmouth about China
China usually rarely retaliates for words or false news
Thus today to me, the Democracies look like they have regressed by several decades while the erstwhile rogue nations appear to be progressing positively
When I was an instructor in a paratrooper unit in the German Army, there was still the draft in place. As a result, people from all walks of life and professions joined our unit.
Four times a year, our battalion took in new recruits:
In January, people without a job were drafted.
In April, most new recruits were miners and steelworkers (there were a lot of mines in the area).
In July, people who had just finished high school and later wanted to study at a university came to our unit.
And In October, the craftsmen (plumbers, roofers, mechanics, etc.) had their turn.
It wasn’t that in each quarter, there were only recruits of a certain professional or educational background beginning their service, they were just the majority. It was always mixed.
So, who made the best paratroopers?
The more educated guys of the July quarter were the best soldiers. They understood the orders quicker, were more relaxed, and also regarded their service as some kind of fun. Many of them said, “before I spent the next five years at a university, I want to have some adventure. I have to serve anyway, so why not in an elite unit?” These guys were also two or three years younger and physically much fitter than the rest.
The next best soldiers were the craftsmen. We were infantry but you can always need a good car mechanic or a carpenter. These folks were also the ones who most often decided to become professional soldiers. They liked the army and were good Non-Commissioned Officer material.
The miners and steelworkers were fun but not very disciplined. These guys joined our unit, not because they liked to be airborne soldiers but our barracks were close to their homes. Many of them were already married and wanted to see their wives and young kids as often as possible. Lousy material.
The jobless people from the January quarter were a mixed bunch. Some of them were useless high-school dropouts who were lazy and dumb while others were quite okay. Needless to say, a lot of them stayed longer than the fifteen months of compulsory service as they didn’t have a job in civilian life.
In our unit, it was more about how smart you were and much less about your civilian profession. As I said, we were infantry, and there weren’t that many tasks that you couldn’t be trained for.
Of course, in other units (engineers, medics, etc.) the best soldiers are usually the ones who have already worked in similar professions in their civilian lives.
It’s ALL About Taking Responsibility
August 28, 2023
One of the biggest differences between me now and me 3 years ago is simple: I’ve taken responsibility for my life.
Now what I mean when I say taking responsibility, is accepting and taking ownership of my life.
I am responsible for my life, and everything that affects me is my responsibility to deal with.
And you need to be responsible for yours. You need to be responsible for your health by exercising regularly and eating well, you need to be responsible for your social life and ensuring you are social and maintaining friendships, you need to be responsible for everything that affects you. And I’m going to tell you how to get there.
I see a lot of young men in particular, who are angry at the world, they think that life isn’t treating them the same way it treats others.
And guess what…It isn’t.
Some people have far greater advantages than others, and some people are hit with terrible misfortune and suffering. And whichever end of the spectrum you are, you are responsible for your life.
Responsibility isn’t the same as fault: It’s not your fault that your parents are rich, it’s not your fault your dad died. But you are responsible for how these things affect your life, you choose how you deal with them.
Some people have lost family and consequently turned to drugs and alcohol, others have lost family and started charities or companies.
There are ways to deal with every situation, some better, some worse.
Your circumstances don’t define you, your response to them does.
I hear all the time on self-improvement forums “I can’t do that because…” I don’t care about the because, take some fucking responsibility and find a workaround.
The first step to gaining some responsibility for your life is realising that you are someone worth helping. You deserve someone to look after you and make sure you can be the best version of yourself possible. Make that person you. Recognise that responsibility isn’t a negative thing, It’s a privilege.
You GET to be responsible for your own life.
It’s incredible freeing to know that, while life may fuck you, ultimately you are responsible for your misery. You are also responsible for all of your achievements, successes and happiness.
So fucking own it.
The second step is starting to act like you are responsible for your life.
There is no third step.
Is your job shit? It’s your responsibility to either try and make it less shit, or quit.
Do you feel like shit? That’s your responsibility to figure out why and make changes
Are your relationships shit? Take some responsibility for it, cut people off if you need to, try harder, just know that It’s your responsibility to improve them.
Is your body shit? That’s your responsibility too bozo, go for a run or something idk.
Not sticking to your goals? Actually NOT your responsibility – I’m joking, of course it is you muppet.
You don’t have to be perfect, you just have to try. Take responsibility, do the work.
– bigjoerona
Germany Begs China To Help It During Industrial Collapse Which Is Worse Than You Think!
My car was being worked on in a Walmart car care center. Just tire rotation. When I was texted that my car was ready, there was a guy in the short line ahead of me. I knew he was a single dad, had talked to him at the gym where we both worked out, had seen him in a restaurant with his 3 sons. Someone told me that his wife was in prison, I didn’t ask what it was for.
He looked really stressed out, his 3 boys were in the waiting area, playing, goofing off. When the guys card was declined, then he had the clerk try 2 other cards. He asked the person at the register if he could work something out for the new times he had, put on his car. Then, he asked if they could just put the old ones back on. It was very cool in the store; he was sweating profusely.
My heart was pounding with sympathy & sadness for him. He told the clerk that he was going to walk around to try to figure something out. The shop was not allowed to put the old tires back on as it would make Walmart liable if there was an accident.
When the guy walked away with his 3 sons, couldn’t hear or see the tire shop counter, I stepped up. I kept extra cash with me for emergencies. The amount owed was $250. I knew the clerk, was very sure he would do the right thing. I gave him $300. in cash, asked him to call the guy on his cell, letting him know his car was ready, then, give him the change from the $300 & NOT tell him who had paid.
I walked just around a corner, waiting to see the single dad’s reaction. He thought it was a joke at first, then, when the change was handed to him, he looked at it with a big grin. He never found out who had paid for his new tires. That’s the way I wanted it.
During every “generational turning” certain things happen. For instance, we had the “black knight” in Donald Trump, and the regression of the ruling class. Here, this song and what is happening is one such event contributor. ..
…
Uh oh. I am worried.
Look at this…
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Yes. I am obese, and it is so DISTURBING.
Whoa!
I absolutely must lose weight, and God Damn it! I am going to make it happen. Starting right now. All food portions are “jail standards”.
One spoon full of corn. Three pieces of lettuce, and a few slices of meat for a meal.
A group of guys (Italian) had a sumptuous meal in an Albanian restaurant.
After the meal the guys stepped out of the restaurant for a smoke. And in the blink of an eye, they disappeared in the dark of the night. They ran away without paying…..the tourists “dined and dashed.”
The restaurant manager came looking for them, but it was too late. Dismayed, the manager wrote an email to the Italian Embassy in Albania. He cited the details of the four men who ate at the restaurant and ran away without paying the bill. Adding that the four Italians even complimented the food.
Such a small incident of some 100 euros, it happens everywhere…big deal!
What Next?
The matter was escalated to the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
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Next, came the orders from the — PM of Italy. Meloni instructed the Italian ambassador to pay the bill for the tourists, stating, “Go and pay the bill for these idiots,
Italy’s embassy in Albania paid the bill on behalf of its citizens and wrote an apology note along with it. The amount totaled around €80 or Rs 7,245.
Francesco Lollobrigida, Italy’s agriculture minister:
“Paying the bill was a matter of pride.” “A few dishonest individuals cannot embarrass a nation of decent people.”
Black Americans React To Viral Off-The-Grid Farmer Oliver Anthony Protest Song | BREAKS INTERNET🔥
They want to divide us, but this country is uniting us. God bless Oliver Anthony
1988. BBC television show That’s Life arranged for a certain Nicholas Winton to attend a presentation about the Holocaust.
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The host brought the attention to a woman beside him, who revealed that he had saved her life when she was a child.
The host asked the audience if there’s any more people Winton had saved, and practically everyone around him stood up.
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Winton hadn’t known they were going to be there. Surprised, he stood up and took in the happy, grateful faces around him.
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It brought tears to his eyes.
1938. Winton, a 29-year-old British stockbroker, used his vacation time to travel to Czechoslovakia. There he learned of Jews who were trying to get their children out because war was brewing.
He returned to London and with the help of others, organised Kindertransports – trains to carry the children to safety in Britain.
He negotiated with Nazi officials to allow the children to depart with just a single document.
He persuaded British officials to accept the children, found foster families, and arranged for Jewish humanitarian organizations to pay fees and support the operation.
Parents of the children assembled at train stations in Prague and Vienna to say emotional goodbyes, knowing they would never see their children again.
Over 10 months, Winton and his associates oversaw eight Kindertransports that carried 669 children to safety.
When WWII broke out, his office was closed down. Sadly, one last train of 250 children was trapped and unable to depart. None of those children left behind were reported to have survived.
He didn’t tell his family about what he had done, until his wife found his scrapbook in 1988 with all the children’s names and photos.
Winton with one of the children he saved
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Winton with a grandchild of one of the people he had saved
In a hundred years, in 2123, there will be none of us, not even our relatives and friends.
Strangers will live in our homes that we built with a lot of effort and failure. They will have all the stuff we have or throw it in the dumpster. Even the car, for which we spent a fortune, will be lying somewhere in a dump, Our descendants will not remember us and only a few will know who we were. Who among us knows their great-grandfather?
After death, they will remember us for a few more years, then we will be just a portrait on someone’s bookshelf (if at all). A few years later our photos and actions will be forgotten. We will not live in the memories of anyone anymore. If you just stopped to think about it one day, you might understand how pointless it is to walk for more and more.
If we thought and understood that we are just a dot in the history of mankind, let alone the earth or the universe, we would certainly look at our lives and other people differently.
We always striving for more and more and no time for what really matters…. the moments and the relationships. If we thought about and spent more time HERE AND NOW, we would really enjoy life.
We would enjoy walks we never had time for. We would love a hug. We would enjoy kisses from our children. In the moments that really count, but we ran out of time. Those would certainly be the most beautiful and best moments to remember and imprinted deep within ourselves. This is how we would fill our lives with joy. And now we fill it with greed, intolerance and hate.
After Robins Williams’s death from suicide after years of battling depression was reported, it drove a 200% spike in the number of calls to the Suicide Prevention Hotline. The day after his death, 13,000 calls were made to the hotline, numbers never before seen. Due to the increase only 53% of those calls were able to be answered, which also drove up the number of suicides to an above-average rate.
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In 2010, Ozzy Osborn had his genome sequenced to try and understand how it was possible to be still living after decades of abusing his body. He had abused his body beyond any measurable scale it was always a wonder to him how he managed it. Researchers found that he had mutations related to addiction, and metabolism, from his Neanderthal ancestors.
The researchers also discovered he had several hundred thousand genetic variants that have never been seen before. These mutations were also one of the reasons he never woke up hungover or sick after heavy weeks of drinking and taking drugs. If Ozzy wasn’t such a freak of nature he probably would have died years ago.
“It’s Not Natural” – Why Are 20% of Kids Suddenly LGBTQ?
I worked for a tech company a few years ago that had the most questionable cost-cutting strategy I have ever seen. Their policy, was simply to remove all purchasing restrictions, and give employees whatever they wanted. Essentially any work related purchase we wanted under $10,000 was self-approved: no asking our supervisor or manager — no approval process at all!
If we wanted a new desk, or an executive chair; we called facilities and it appeared. If we wanted a fast computer with three monitors, we called IT, and it appeared. Software, supplies, whatever – we got it. We got exactly what we wanted, the model/brand we specifically requested.
This seemed like the most insane policy I ever heard of, and looking around the office one could find a few examples of people that appeared to take advantage of it.
The company also had an interesting coffee room policy: gourmet coffee, tea, and cappuccino free. Soda machine had all sodas and energy drinks for 5 cents, and there was a cup full of nickels at the side of the machine – so essentially everything was free.
So what was the effect of this? Well first of all the company had the happiest employees I have ever seen! Morale and loyalty was through the roof. People loved working there. People worked harder, and enjoyed coming to work.
One day during a company outing I cornered the CEO and asked him about the policies, he said this…
When we implemented the purchase policy, we instantly saved $500,000 a year in labor costs, since we no longer had to pay all the people to manage and maintain purchasing approvals. We saved even more in indirect man-hours, as individual department heads didn’t use any time on them either. Half a million a year buys a lot of extra equipment.
We tracked expenditures, and for the first three years we lost a little, but not much. The next five years, we actually spent less than we saved in reduced labor. Over all it saves the company money, and gives employees whatever they think they need to be most productive. Win/Win
Then I asked him about the cafeteria, and he smiled and said “the more caffeine people drink, the more productive they are. It pays for itself a hundred times over”
This was the most brilliant, and out of the box thinking I have ever seen in Management.
Years later the company had some hard times, like many tech companies, and they only needed to ask employees to help – not change the policy. People loved the company, and when belt-tightening was needed, they self-sacrificed.
I don’t work there anymore, but it’s still a brilliant business model.
HOLY MOLY!!! Country artist BREAKS THE INTERNET with powerful song!
Sun came out with Java, a language that was “compile once, run anywhere!”
Microsoft thought that sounded good, so they jumped on board and even came out with an IDE just for Java.
Microsoft made the Windows Java Virtual Machine (JVM), but it didn’t support remote method invocation (RMI) or Java Native Interface (JNI). They also made changes so Java programs would run faster on Windows and added platform-specific commands for Windows.
Sun cried “foul!” and said Microsoft was ruining the whole concept of Java—”compile once, run anywhere!”
Sun sued Microsoft.
Microsoft got mad, took its toys and went home (they stopped supporting Java out of the box).
Microsoft still liked the idea of “compile once, run anywhere!” so they got Anders Hejlsberg to create a new language to compete with it.
Hejlsberg gave birth to C#.
Curiously, though Microsoft like the idea of “compile once, run anywhere!”, they only wanted C# to work on Microsoft operating systems. So C# was a Windows-only technology.
Predictably, though C# was superior to Java in some ways, Java became the cross-platform King (Java still ran on Windows, but users to install the JRE themselves).
Satya Nadella, now head of Microsoft, isn’t a dummy and knew C# had to be available on all operating systems to be successful. He started a movement to create compatible Common Language Runtimes (the thing that makes C# programs work) for all major operating systems. You know, like Java did.
The CLR is available for nearly all operating systems now, though Windows generally gets new improvements first.
Java is still the cross-platform King. It’s unlikely that C# will ever catch up.
Clear?
First time hearing Oliver Anthony- “Rich Men North Of Richmond” *REACTION*
All these hikes from the FED is to absorb USD from the market, in order to control the inflation and support US treasury.
10 year US treasury is now 4.7% interest rate, which is already higher than at least half of the ways to invest, and it’s much more safe.
By having less money freely in the market, the commodity prices will decline, and causing the products in terminal market to become lower.
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Because of the theory of impossible trinity, no country can achive free capital flows, independent monetary policy, and fixed exchange rate at the same time.
2 out of 3 is the best.
To most of the US allies, they have to at least choose free capital flows.
It means that when the FED decided to raise the interest rate, they have to raise it too. Otherwise, capitals within their territory would flee out to the US, because there is a higher return in the US.
Usually, capital exists in the form of properties, such as real estate. When the investors withdrawing their capital from a country, it means a mass selling of properties, which will cause:
property price to go down, which causes the market panic.
foreign reserves got drained.
FDI should always be exchanged into local currency first. When investors want to leave, they would have to exchange their local currency back into USD.
The government must have enough USD in reserve, or else the exchange rate of local currency would crush.
It’s also how the 97 Financial Crisis began and how the US usual harvest the world.
Hong Kong got away from sniping, because Beijing spread the words that it will back HK up with its USD reserve if necessary. Eventually Beijing didn’t do that, but the market got appeased when hearing Beijing said so.
Back to the trinity, China chooses to give up on free capital flows.
It may cause troubles for certain possible investors, because they may be worried to not getting their investment back, but it also limits the abilities of international bankers to harvest China.
Along the years, large corporations know that they can move in or out their money responsibly, which means with proper reasons. So they are not worried about their properties got confiscated by Chinese government.
Some investors choose HK as intermedia to invest in China, because it’s common law in HK and everything they care about remains the same as before 1997.
So Beijing has full control within China’s territory, and is not worried about capital fleeing out.
The top priority of Biden Administration is to get the inflation under control.
It doesn’t matter of peoples’ living standard got improved, but the inflation number directly effects voters stance next year. However, high interest rate suppresses market activities, since it drains money from the market, and companies wouldn’t be able to finance.
Meanwhile in China, the top priority is to stimulate the market.
Lower interest would encourage more people to invest, since there is cheap money in the market, which is good for entrepreneurs or cooperations to expand their production.
Still, this can be interpreted very differently, based on different political stance and/or financial/economical knowledge.
China may be showing the world about its confidence, or it could well be that China is bluffing.
Still, people lie, but capital doesn’t.
We will see which this is by monitoring the investors’ moves.
On the 3rd of July, a few years back, I visited an animal shelter. And there in the back room was a little Maine coon kitten that was trying to get my attention. So I went up to it and we bonded strongly. I wanted it right then and there.
But the chick at the front desk was busy with a customer and closing up and told us to come back on the 5th of July (as tomorrow was a holiday). So I said “good bye” to the kitty and promised that I would come back for it.
I kept looking back over my shoulder and the kitty was imploring me “don’t leave. You are my last hope”.
And then on the 5th of July I came early, ready to get the kitty. I waited in the parking lost one hour early and just sat there listening to music.
Eventually they “opened up”.
And it was too late. They put the kitty down the day before.
…
I was too late.
When an opportunity occurs DO NOT TRUST IN SOMEONE ELSE, stand your ground and take action.
I should have just got the kitty then and there, and told them that I would come back in a day or two to do the paperwork.
“When I asked my 11-year-old son to help me unload dirt from our small pickup into his mother’s new garden boxes, his reaction was typical.
“Ummmm… I’m busy right now,” He said.
He was playing Roblock on the family laptop, wearing sweat pants and an old T-shirt, lounging on the sofa, feet on the coffee table.
“No you’re not,” I said.
There was a fight, moaning, excuses… the usual.
Moments later, we were next to a wheelbarrow shoveling dirt. He looked at me with flat eyes, his hood up, shoulders slumped, and said, “Why do we have to do this?”
I thought for a moment, because I’ll admit, it was a valid question. Neither of us were all that into flowers or vegetables, or any of the things that would be grown in those garden boxes. But my wife, Mel, loves gardening.
I thought, and he waited, and finally I said, “When you love someone, you serve them.”
I went on, telling him that I want him to grow up to be the kind of man who serves his family, friends, and community.
“This” I said while gesturing to the dirt, and the garden boxes I built the weekend before, and the wheelbarrow and shovel, and the first of many truckloads of dirt we would unload over the next few weeks, “Is what love looks like.”
He didn’t like my answer. I could see it in the way he reluctantly picked his shovel back up.
We finished unloading the dirt. The next day, while I was at work, and the kids and Mel had the day off because it was between terms, Mel sent me this picture. Mel picked up another load of dirt and before she had a chance to unload it, Tristan voluntarily started working. When she asked him “why,” he shrugged and said, “Because I love you.”
I’d never been prouder of my son.”
TEES
After the accident, she was left on the side of the road, no one stopped the car to help her!
An Englishman, taking a road trip through the US, notices he’s low on fuel, pulls into the first gas station he sees. The attendant walks out and approaches the car.
“How can I help you, sir?”
And in a posh voice, the man says, “I’m low on petrol; please top off the tank.”
With an odd look, the guy begins to fill ’er up.
The Englishman then says, “Also, while I’m here could you open the bonnet and check the oil?”
Now looking slightly peeved but still saying nothing, the serviceman does as requested.
“Oh, yes,” says the Brit, “It appears my windscreen needs a good cleaning. Would you mind terribly-”
Unable to hold his tongue any more the attendant angrily snaps, “Alright, that’s enough! It’s not Petrol, it’s gasoline! It’s not a bonnet, it’s a hood! And it’s not a windscreen, it’s a windshield! We invented cars, so you call them by their American names!”
And with that wonderful, charming, stiff-upper-lip UK wit, the Englishman calmly replies, “Well yes, my friend, you may have invented the automobile, but we invented the language!”
How Elites Will Create a New Class of Slaves | Whitney Webb | The Glenn Beck Podcast
Journalist Whitney Webb has worked to uncover some of the most dangerous stories of our lifetime, and she joins Glenn to reveal just how eye-opening it’s been. Her new two-volume book, “One Nation Under Blackmail: The Sordid Union Between Intelligence and Crime that Gave Rise to Jeffrey Epstein,” examines Epstein’s elaborate network of corruption and power, from Bill Clinton to Ghislaine Maxwell and many more. Her research into transhumanism has given her a terrifying perspective on the World Economic Forum and tech elites, including Elon Musk. And she tells Glenn the dark truth about Biden’s push for electric vehicles that she noticed while living in Chile.
Few days ago, a very significant incident made headlines. Jacinda Ardern resigned as the Prime Minister of New Zealand. She strongly performed the role of PM for 5 years. Her reason for the resignation was simple – “I know what this job takes. And I know that I no longer have enough in the tank to do it justice. It’s that simple.”
Jacinda Ardern:
“I’m leaving, because with such a privileged role comes responsibility – the responsibility to know when you are the right person to lead and also when you are not. I am human, politicians are human. We give all that we can for as long as we can. And then it’s time. And for me, it’s time.”
However, amidst all this, BBC came up with a very se*ist headline and an article to share the news with the world. It read, “Jacinda Ardern resigns: Can women really have it all?”
Saddened to see such a reductive, se*ist and inaccurate headline from the BBC World. This is so regressive and misogynist…The 1950s came by and picked up their headline.
This is absurd misogyny from BBC. Boris Johnson was ousted in a whirlwind of scandal & failure but BBC humanized him for the pain he felt. 🤔.
Jacinda Ardern gracefully led New Zealand through historic upheavals & leaves on her terms but BBC repeatedly dismisses her as a failure & quitter. 🤦♂️
An embarrassing day for the media. What a disrespectful way to celebrate a refreshingly phenomenal leader like Jacinda Arden.
I’m not sure if I would say it failed. But it was a very awesome piece of gear that for various reasons (namely budget, and politics) was cancelled. Full disclaimer: at one point I worked with the company that made this, and have seen and held parts of this system.
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The Xm-25 CDTE. It shoots programmable 25mm grenades.
Imagine a typical firefight scenario. Both sides end up behind cover, trying to deal with each other. Perhaps a heavy machine gun is mounted up in a window behind sandbags, etc. Maneuvering around and neutralizing the threat is dangerous and time consuming. But what if you had a grenade rifle that could precisely detonate a round just over their heads? Then you could aim just above the MG nest, pop of a shot, and those unlucky bastards would be no more. Firefight over in a minute. No need to call in artillery or air support!
The way this works is that scope has a rangefinder and a computer, and it can program the round to explode at the lazed distance, or before or after that distance in (I think) 1–3m increments. So, in the above example, you laze the sandbags or the side of the building, set the burst just after that distance, and fire. It’s very clever engineering to fit all that capability onto an electronics coin inside a 25mm casing. Unlike traditional grenade launchers, this one shoots a much flatter trajectory; and the range is 600–700m instead of 300ish. The Army was always pushing for more and more range.
When field tested, it apparently developed quite a reputation amongst insurgents, who would sometimes flee when they realized the US squad had one with them. I only heard glowing praise about the 2010 field tests. Being able to neutralize cover with a weapon like this is literally game-changing.
However, the project was ultimately cancelled in 2018. The ‘official’ reason always cites a particular misfire in 2013, although internal sources indicated it was more of a political fight over competing budget priorities. The misfire was only the propellant and not the charge itself. resulting in minimal injury; and, try as ATK did, they could not figure out what this particular soldier did to cause it. (Read: he almost certainly fucked up and did something he wasn’t supposed to, like a double feed.) This is the only incident of a misfire.
I think the other headwind is that current US squad tactics and organization don’t really have a good way to incorporate a system like this. Who wants to carry around a 14lb weapon and give up his rifle? They were patrolling around afghanistan, not taking Berlin. It is, however, a very outstanding little system. If I recall one particular conversation correctly, I believe the round can even punch through some wooden doors and explode on the other side. How’s that for breaching?
There were also problems with HK, who made the frame of the rifle itself, being a poor partner and failing to deliver on time. (This also angered program managers.)
The good news is that fitting this tech onto a 25mm grenade is the hard part. I can promise you that the same technology will find its way into a 40mm grenade system at some point. Imagine being able to lay precision, long range airbursts across a battlefield with one of these:
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Automatic grenade sniper rifle, anyone?
Men Are Refusing To Help Women and They are Panicking They don’t Know Why
https://youtu.be/qXWc6IxxfUs
Greek Style Skillet Supper
For a taste of Greece, this one-dish complete meal is sure to be a hit. Feta cheese accents the authentic flavor.
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Prep: 5 min | Cook: 25 min | Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
1 pound ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 teaspoons McCormick® Oregano Leaves
1 teaspoon McCormick® Cinnamon, Ground
1/2 teaspoon McCormick® Garlic Powder
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can reduced sodium beef broth
1 (14 1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 1/2 cups uncooked penne pasta
1 1/2 cups frozen leaf spinach, thawed
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese, divided
Instructions
Cook ground beef and onion in large skillet on medium-high heat until beef is no longer pink, stirring occasionally. Drain fat. Add oregano, cinnamon and garlic powder; mix well.
Stir in broth, tomatoes and tomato paste. Bring to boil. Stir in pasta. Reduce heat to medium; cover and cook 10 minutes or until pasta is nearly tender.
Stir in spinach and 1/2 cup of the feta cheese. Cover. Cook 5 minutes longer or until pasta is tender.
Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup feta cheese. Cover. Let stand for 5 minutes.
Western Nations BANNED from Joining BRICS if they Apply “Sanctions”
Western countries do not have a chance of joining the BRICS group of emerging economies as long as they pursue hostile policies against Moscow, says the Russian deputy foreign minister.
Sergei Ryabkov said on Friday that the “most important criterion” for membership was the “non-application by a potential BRICS participant of illegal sanctions against any member of the association.”
“All the countries who have been invited to join BRICS undoubtedly meet this requirement.
As for Westerners, all of them as a group and each individual [Western] member pursue exactly the opposite line and thus inviting anyone from that group to join BRICS or even attend its events is out of the question. This is absolutely ruled out. And we will continue pursuing this course.”
If any Western state finds BRICS membership an attractive idea, and refrains from the sanctions policy against any BRICS member and applies to join, such an application will be considered.
“There is no other way.”
TSMC Engages in Another Showdown with the US,Tensions Escalate.
According to Taiwanese media reports on August 2nd, TSMC stated that the production delay at its Arizona factory was due to a lack of skilled American labor, and they have dispatched personnel from Taiwan to support the construction of the factory. However, labor union leaders in Arizona criticized TSMC, stating that it was using this as an excuse to introduce “low-wage foreign labor.”
Jerome (not real name) was a new worker with a big mouth. He was 28 years old at the time, quite older than most of the guys he worked with like myself yet he acted, at best, like a spoilt 15 year old.
He was always talking. He always had an opinion about something. He always had to question even the most simple orders and instructions. He believed himself to be the most intelligent person to ever walk the floor of the warehouse and always spoke at length of all the flaws he saw in our system and what he would do to fix the business if he were in charge.
Our job was simple: a retail store wants products that we have, we go out with our grocery carts, pallet jacks, forklifts etc, get the products and have them packaged and ready for delivery in the morning.
Not Jerome.
Jerome’s job was to distact you from what you were doing to talk shit about the company and how the money wasn’t worth it. He would quote some nonexisting OSHA law that the company wasn’t complying with and how he could sue the company if he wanted to. He would discuss his harebrained, get rich quick schemes that he never had to guts to actually attempt. He bragged about his family in the US waiting for him and how he didn’t need to work himself like a slave for chump change like we did.
At any given day he probably put out 20% of the output of the average worker. He was on a six month probationary period of which it would be decided whether he would be contracted as a permanent worker, given extended probation or let go. No one expected him to be permanently hired. Everyone basically tried to tolerate him for the six month probationary period as best as they could.
However he started taking his shenanigans to the next level.
He started making the (typically secluded) shampoos lane in the back warehouse his secret hideout. The lane was quiet, had no cameras and far away from our superiors’ field of vision. He decided to set up a makeshift man-cave behind a pallet of Tresemmé 2 in 1 Shampoo and Conditioner. There he would smoke, talk shit with the rare, harmless worker who came by for shampoos and he would watch rap music videos on his cell phone.
At the month’s end all warehouse workers were allowed to take from the damaged products. We had our own system of fairness whereby we rotated each worker to get a chance to get first pick among the damages.
Jerome couldn’t give a rat’s ass about the system. During the third month of his employ it was observed that practically all of the best damaged goods had gone missing. A co-worker and myself smelt a rat in Jerome and we went to his man cave while he was on lunch and saw the damages were there hidden in boxes.
We reported it to the supervisor who came and saw it. He held an emergency meeting and asked for the person who put those damaged goods in the back to come forward. Everyone eyed Jerome angrily but he remained silent. The supervisor reported the matter to the manager who reported it to the company owner and she immediately put a stop to the free damages giveaway.
Now the anger towards Jerome had turned into a bloodlust. However the more angry everyone got the more lazy and defiant Jerome became. He was smart enough to abandon his man-cave after his attempted theft but he still spent more than half his working day loitering and talking shit.
Every year the company paid for the company staff to have a party, usually at a classy sports bar or a nightclub. We all looked forward to it including Jerome who discussed at length his intention to get drunk off of free premium drinks and score with one of the pretty head office girls. However, one fateful afternoon the owner of the store had an impromptu meeting with everyone in the warehouse.
She explained that the company decided to change the format of the staff party. She explained that it was expensive and inefficient having this party every year when too many employees ran up a bill drinking premium drinks all night and then not being able to come to work the following day. She gave the disappointing news that this time the party would be held at 12pm — 7pm the upcoming Sunday.
Jerome released a snorting laugh while she spoke. Everyone in the warehouse went dead silent. No one had ever dared interrupt the owner, far less mock her.
‘Excuse me,’ she said, ‘Is there something amusing?’
‘Nobody ever heard of a party 12 o clock in the afternoon,’ Jerome said in his spoilt 15 year old voice.
‘I’ve been to many parties 12 o clock in the afternoon’ she replied.
‘Yeah, birthday parties for kids’ Jerome said smugly and looked about for someone to laugh but found only silence.
The owner asked Jerome his name and how long he worked in the warehouse. Afterwards she continued her talk uninterrupted but after the meeting was dismissed she, the manager and Jerome went into an office for a talk. Some minutes later Jerome was seen leaving the compound, he was terminated from the job.
Sad thing for Jerome was the owner apparently thought over what he said about the party and changed her mind about it. We were allowed to have our traditional, late into the night, party albeit minus the free premium drinks.
We had a great time dancing the night away and toasting Jerome whose big mouth finally done some good for a change.
MY SOUL!!! | Oliver Anthony – “I WANT TO GO HOME” | Reaction
Nissan. I bought a brand new Nissan Truck with a supercharger. The supercharger crapped out at 12,000 miles. They had to fix it because it was under warranty. The mechanic at the dealer told me they were all failing due to a manufacturer’s defect which was widely known in the company. I drove the truck a couple more years and the supercharger crapped out again, this time just about 200 miles beyond the end of the warranty. At about the same time, my son’s identical Nissan truck also lost its supercharger at 18,000 miles. I wound up talking to a factory representative. I asked him if they would split the $1,800 bill since it was a factory defect. He said no because Nissan just couldn’t afford to pay for all those repairs.
I later bought a Toyota truck which lost a head gasket. Toyota fixed it for free outside of the warranty period. They said that their engineering and design philosophy was that a head gasket should last at least 200,000 miles.
I have made a point to tell this story at least 100 times over the years. I know I have talked at least 20 people out of buying a Nissan.
In terms of uniqueness, it’s hard to find a canine species that rivals the short-eared dog. Genetically, it is very distinct from other living members of the canid family, and indeed in many ways it is more like a cat than a dog!
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It is found only within the dense and dark jungles of the Amazon Basin in South America. Such densely forested habitats are unusual for canines, other than the bush dog, which I’ll mention later. What’s more, it is an extremely shy and reclusive creature, leading a solitary nocturnal lifestyle. All of the characteristics above are more typical of felines, interestingly.
Where the short-eared dog differs from your average cat is its affinity for water. As vast swathes of its Amazonian habitat are swampy or regularly flooded, it is well-adapted for a semi-aquatic world. Its feet are webbed, with membranes of skin stretching between the toes, which makes it an excellent swimmer. Much of its diet is actually represented by fish, crabs, frogs and the like. The dog makes short work of these slippery customers with its impressive set of cuspid teeth (another rather cat-like feature).
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As canid species go, the short-eared dog takes an exceptionally long time to reach sexual maturity. They cannot reproduce until the age of three, something we discovered relatively recently. Before it was known that it’s a bit of a late bloomer, one expert jokingly suggested it should be renamed the “small-balled dog”!
When they eventually do achieve sexual maturity, males get to work in the hopes of attracting a female (uniquely, the females are much bigger than the males!). They spray a strong-smelling musk secreted by the tail glands, and produce mating calls all through the night. These vocalisations are bizarre and haunting, sounding like those of owls!
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During the day, they take shelter, usually dwelling inside burrows and tunnels dug by giant armadillos, after they’ve been vacated by the original owner. Short-eared dogs’ nocturnal lifestyle, in addition to their impenetrable habitat and shy evasive nature, means that they are still shrouded in mystery. They are rarely photographed in the wild – indeed, all the pictures above are of an individual called Oso, who was raised by humans since puppyhood (hence the collar). He’s taught us much of what we know about the species.
As such, we still have much more to learn about short-eared dogs. I, for one, am very curious to know more about how they interact with the only other wild canine species found in the Amazon Rainforest – the bush dog. This comically short and stubby little pupper lives in packs of up to twelve individuals, which specialise in hunting giant rodents such as capybaras and pacas. I’m sure the two species cross paths at times – what a fascinating interaction that would be.
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I eagerly await all the new short-eared dog discoveries that are sure to be ahead! In the meantime, this has been everything you need to know about this underappreciated and handsome creature. I hope you liked the answer, thank you for reading! And have an amazing day.
I failed out of college.
Not MM, mind you. -MM
I ended the 2nd semester of my freshman year with a 0.9 GPA.
You read that right: a 0.9 GPA
When the school year ended, my parents drove four hours to campus to help clean out my dorm room and take me home.
During the ride home I remember staring out the car window in complete silence the entire four hours.
I was devastated. I had no idea what I was going to do.
My parents were upset.
They were disappointed.
They didn’t have anything to say.
Neither did I.
Their disappointment was nothing compared to the numbness I felt. I was far more disappointed in myself than they ever could be. It was completely my fault and I knew it.
I struggled all through high school, so it was no surprise I struggled the way I did when I started college.
I was terrible at taking tests. I had such a difficult time studying. I have no idea why. It was something I lived with that I cannot explain.
In grade school I had special tutors to help with my test-taking anxiety. I can’t say it helped much.
As I finished my final year of high school, I did not know if I would get in to college. I only applied to one college.
I was accepted to attend the only college I applied to.
And now I failed out of the only college I applied to.
I struggled all through Freshman year of college until it got to a point where I felt I had no chance of success. My grades were terrible. So, I did not show up for any of my final exams. There was no way I could study well enough to get passing grades on my finals.
I gave up.
During the four hour drive home, I became painfully aware that I could have done better. I didn’t bother searching for an excuse to justify the horrible mistake I made.
I had to figure out a Plan B.
Not even a week passed after moving back home with my parents before I started piecing together a plan.
Even though I ‘failed’ as far as the university was concerned, I knew I was not a failure. I certainly did not feel like one.
I dug myself into a very deep hole and I knew it was up to me to pull myself out.
I had to figure out how to approach life differently. I wasn’t doing it right. And it felt horrible.
I knew I had to try again.
The problem was, since my GPA was so poor, I got suspended from attending that college.
I called the admissions office and asked how I could come back to earn my degree. They told me I needed to go to a community college for a year and earn a 3.0 GPA, then I could reapply to be accepted back.
My entire experience of life changed from that point on. I was never the same again.
All of a sudden I had a goal to accomplish. I never set ambitious goals for myself prior to that moment. I was social and active and participated in sports, but I was mostly just showing up. I never associated much of a purpose or goal with anything I was doing.
I now had a goal, fueled by an intense desire to accomplish that goal.
I did what the admissions office told me to do. I got a job. I took courses at the community college. I accomplished the GPA they required.
A year after failing, I reapplied and was admitted back in to the same college so I could finish my degree.
By the time I graduated with a Bachelor’s degree, I was getting grades that earned me a spot on the Dean’s List several semesters in a row.
Why was failing out of college the best mistake I ever made?
This mistake was a wake-up call that helped me discover what I am capable of.
I experienced what it feels like to recover from a major failure.
I shifted my mindset to one that is fueled with purpose.
I discovered the power of setting ambitious goals that are created from my own desire to accomplish those goals.
And most importantly: I remember feeling as though my entire life was over during that silent four hour drive home with my parents. The reality was, this failure ended up being a mere bump in the road. It was quite a rough bump at the time but it did not ruin me. I learned that our failures do not define who we are.
I Want To Go Home ( REACTION ) Something SPECIAL is Happening Here…
Originally Answered: What does it feel like to be secretly rich?
Around strangers, it’s easy. Around friends and neighbors, its work.
Most people in the United States have at least one of my products in their home, and would instantly recognize the company, but they wouldn’t know me. There’s never a random “hey, aren’t you the CEO of…” on the street, or checking into a hotel, so that part is fairly easy.
On the flip side, I think I’ve done a pretty good job of keeping things on the down low among friends. I personally bring home about $4 million a year, but I’m not really into displays of wealth – not because I’m actively hiding anything, I just think most of that stuff is kind of tacky and isn’t interesting.
Our house isn’t over the top. It’s larger than average, but we also have three kids so that’s expected. It does sit on 60 acres, but we tell people only five of those acres are ours. We have a couple of cars (her primary, my primary, a truck, and a couple of classics in the garage) but all are American made and none newer than five years old. Both of the classics are actually pretty rare cars which would fetch over $100k a piece if I ever sold them, but since I’m also known for being kind of a gear head and did a lot of work on it myself, everyone just assumes they were once junkers I brought back from the dead or aren’t all original parts.
This part is pretty easy since there visibly aren’t too many cues that would tip someone off. Everything was paid for with cash, including the house, but realistically outside of the land value, someone making $150k-200k could afford all of the same stuff if they financed/mortgaged it.
The main difficulty is trying to relate and being careful what I say. Most of our friends are in that $150–200k range, but they’re in debt up to their eyeballs to maintain their lifestyles. They’re driving new leased Mercedes and BMW’s and probably think they’re doing better than I am financially – which is fine by me.
Its just little things I have to watch out for. A buddy invited me to bring one of the classics to a car show he was going to once, but I declined and said it acting up and I needed to work on it. I left the hood up for a week in case he came over. Really I just didn’t want the attention – someone there would have recognized it for what it was. Occasionally when someone notices how much land surrounds my house, I’ll say something like I hope the owner never decides to build on it. Before we take a family trip, I will mention that I’m saving up for it a couple months prior, when really we could just go. I also own property in other states that no one knows about – one of them is a place along a river in Tennessee and a few of us are going down there next month to witness the eclipse. They think it’s just a place I rented for the weekend.
Honestly, I don’t like the deception – these are good friends, but seeing how they all are with their money and how they regard it, I don’t want them to know the truth. I hear about all of their money problems and how they talk about other people who are better off than they are, and there’s a lot of disdain and jealously there. it’s just not worth the hassle. The problem is I think most of the people I’ve met in my own income bracket and higher are pretentious douchebags, so I don’t really want to hang out with them either.
My life doesn’t revolve around money, and that isn’t the case for most of the people I’ve met with an income over $1 million, so I don’t really relate to them. I would rather vacation to a rustic cabin in the woods than some flashy five star resort.
Chili-Stuffed Potato Skins
OzzzIP
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients
4 large baking potatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 tablespoon minced jarred jalapeno peppers
1 pound lean ground beef
1 cup canned crushed tomatoes
1 (14 ounce) can refried beans
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
2/3 cup ricotta cheese
1/2 cup milk
Instructions
Heat oven to 425 degrees F.
Wash and dry the potatoes, then pierce each several times with a fork. Microwave on HIGH for about 10 to 12 minutes, or until cooked through. Timing varies by microwave.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the olive oil, garlic, onion and jalapenos. Sauté until the onion just begins to get tender, about 5 minutes.
Add the ground beef and sauté until browned, about another 5 minutes.
Add the crushed tomatoes and refried beans, then mix well and reduce heat to low. Bring to a simmer, season with salt and pepper, then cover and reduce heat to just keep warm.
Carefully cut the potatoes in half lengthwise, then use a spoon to scoop out the insides and place them in a large bowl. Leave about 1/4 to 1/2 inch of potato all around the skin. Arrange the potato skins on a baking sheet. Set aside.
To the bowl of potatoes, add 1 cup of the Cheddar cheese, the ricotta and milk. Mix well, then season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
Fill the potato skins almost to overflowing with the meat-and-bean mixture. Carefully spoon a bit of the potato-and-cheese mixture over the meat. Sprinkle each with some of the remaining Cheddar.
Bake until the cheese melts and the mashed-potato topping just begins to brown, about 12 to 15 minutes.
Jordan Peterson Tells the TRUTH about ALIENATED Young Men – (Better Audio Quality)
This is STUNNINGLY great!
2023 08 26 11 58
It’s Official: “BRICS” Adds Saudi Arabia, Iran, Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, and UAE; Will Control 80% of Global Oil
It’s Official: Saudi Arabia, Iran, Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will become full members of BRICS on January 1st 2024. All totaled, BRICS nations will control eighty percent (80%) of Global Oil and Gas production.The map below lays out what the newly enlarged BRICS will look like:
BRICS 2024 Control 80 Percent Worlds Oil
Cutting right to the chase, it should be stated that “The-Powers-That-Be (TPTB) cannot survive this without World War 3.”
If the current globalist cabal stands back and does nothing as this new Commerce Alliance comes to life, then on January 1, 2024, they may wake up to find that no one in any of the countries shown above, will accept the U.S. Dollar or the EURO as payment for trade in goods and services anymore, because both the Dollar and the EURO are backed by nothing.
They may find that no one around the world is willing to sell oil in US Dollars anymore, and could demand that we convert OUR currency to some other currency to buy oil.
The way the Biden Regime has curtailed our own oil and gas production, we would see shortages and price increases the likes of which has never been seen before.
Since we in the United States do not manufacture much of anything here anymore – because CORPORATE IMBECILES shipped all our manufacturing jobs overseas– we could see our ability to buy things for import-severely curtailed as well.
Let’s not forget Economic Sanctions. It was the excessive and arbitrary use of economic sanctions by the US, which spurred countries around the world to seek out – and now CREATE — some other means for settling international trade because they got tired of the US imposing Sanctions and forbidding the use of the US Dollar by countries under sanction.
Now that BRICS is creating its own Gold-Backed currency for settlement of international trade debts, the US won’t have any clout anymore because it won’t be able to sanction pretty much anybody. The US Government will be toothless on economic sanctions . . . but the rest of the world will not.
What if the rest of the world decides it is “Pay Back Time” for the US? What if THEY impose economic Sanctions upon us?????? The new BRICS organization and its coming currency could make that a reality.
All these facts make clear that the Powers-That-Be simply cannot allow this BRICS to go any further or TPTB will lose their grip on controlling the world. Some of TPTB are such ego-maniacs, they would rather burn the entire world to the ground rather than lose control over it.
Thus, it seems logical to me, that World War 3 is coming before the end of this year. Perhaps a lot sooner than that.
Too many things to name here, certainly. But I’ll narrow it down just to 2.
In Middle school, I got sick. Started falling all the time, couldn’t smile, could barely keep my eyes open and double-vision exhausted me trying to see the board and read, hands couldn’t write long, got brain fog and couldn’t remember anything etc. I was in and out of the hospital… diagnosed with anything from ‘imminent death’ to ‘attention seeking’. I missed A LOT of school.
After I was finally diagnosed a couple of years later, I was definitely in danger of failing. Had a thymectomy, which at that time required cracking open my sternum, and definitely couldn’t go back to school for awhile, but was feeling mentally better on my new meds.
Mrs. Howard, who had been my homeroom teacher the prior year, came to my house to bring me school work and tutor me, and administer me quizzes, so I wouldn’t get too far behind. I ended up passing my classes and was able to proceed to high school with the rest of my classmates.
We were poor. Like wringer washer and rotary dial phone (in the 90s) poor.
I wanted to take Home Ec and Shop, but we couldn’t afford the class fees. I ended up taking a couple of design courses. Web Design and Drafting. My hands still got weak pretty easily, and I was left handed (the drafting machines on the desks were only for right-handed people), so I got to use AutoCAD most of the time.
I ended up in Drafting classes for 3 1/2 years, and competed in regional and state for VICA (vocational industrial clubs of America) and the IDEA (Illinois Drafting Educators Association).
Turns out? Those classes and competitions had fees, too. My instructor, Pete Tucker, paid my fees. He also wrote me a glowing recommendation later for college.
When I was 19, I interviewed for my first drafting internship, and that 3 month internship lasted 13 1/2 years. I became a cad manager, then programmer, then solutions architect for facilities software, and had a side career as a technical editor and author, teaching others how to use AutoCAD and similar programs.
A few years ago, I looked him up on Facebook and thanked him for giving me an entry into a career that lifted me out of poverty, provided me with insurance coverage for my disability (fun fact, if you managed to live 5 years without treatment, you got to lie and say you didn’t have a pre-existing condition) and allowed me to raise my kids with everything I’d never had (both of them can use AutoCAD, too 😉 ).
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COUNTRY GOSPEL! Oliver Anthony – I Want To Go Home | REACTION Video
Our first child was not toilet trainable. We took her to doctor after doctor from age 3 to 6, eventually carrying an x-ray made by the local radiologist. Everyone agreed that poor parenting skills were the problem, though some added that our lovely daughter, who had a BM only when standing or lying down, really enjoyed tormenting us.
One of the last doctors said, “If she were my kid, I’d lock her in the bathroom until she did it on the toilet!”
A few weeks later, a surgeon hundreds of miles from home held up that x-ray and said, “She has a birth defect.” Her lower intestine was positioned in a way that made a BM impossible unless her body was absolutely straight, NOT sitting on a toilet. Surgery fixed that. Thank you, Dr. Hardy Hendren, and RIP.
Jason Aldean – Try That In A Small Town (Official Music Video)
I would have never even heard of this song if people hadn’t been upset about it.
Some of them are a clever twist based on an underlying Chinese phrase.
For example, on the T-shirt, the Chinese characters read:
已读不回
Literal translation would be “Have Read, Not Replied”.
The context here is that this is a common behavior on instant messaging apps – the receiver (of the instant message) has left the sender (of the instant message) on Read or Seen: they’ve read/seen the instant message, but haven’t replied.
This is a common course of action for some girls who start getting a lot of instant messages from guys trying to woo them but to whom they feel no affection for.
Rather than outright telling her pursuer that his romantic overtures are unwelcome, she leaves him on read/seen and doesn’t reply his messages.
In this way, she hopes that he gets the hint and finally stops sending all those silly little messages.
She’s “seen” all his instant messages but never bothered replying any of them.
So, this girl, she is a “Seenderella”.
It’s a clever twist on Cinderella.
Clever and funny.
Well, to me anyway 😀 I am easily amused 😀
If you only saw “Seenderella” on the T-shirt, you might be going “Huh?”
But with the Chinese characters right there next to it, if you know how to read Chinese, the twist becomes immediately obvious.
Grammy Member Reacts to Oliver Anthony’s I want to go home
Hitting too close to home.
Final Report
In January 1969, the United States Arms Control and Disarmament Agency released Volume 1 of its “Final Report” on a field test involving the “Demonstrated Destruction of Nuclear Weapons.” The field test’s purpose, the publication’s abstract states, was to “develop and test inspection procedures to monitor the demonstrated destruction of nuclear weapons.” In addition, a goal of the test was to determine the extent to which the “proposed method of demonstrating destruction” would expose classified weapon information. The test included 40 actual nukes and 32 fake weapons.
As a result of the test, it was concluded that the proposed destruction techniques could, indeed, reveal classified information about the weapons’ design. However, by masking some of the weapons’ features and limiting inspectors’ visual examinations of the weapons, such disclosures could be prevented.
The inspectors’ poor ability to distinguish between bona fide and fake nukes might also conceal classified information, as could “evasion schemes,” suggesting that less U-235 was being used than was actually the case. The field tests suggested that, overall, the inspection procedures were reasonably secure but resulted in several recommendations for the conduct of such inspections.
I would definitely recommend you stop consuming any type of seafood imported from Japan, and be cautious towards seafood from Alaska, the Canadian west, South Korea, the Pacific islands, and eastern China.
Two reasons:
The United States has been buying less Japanese seafood “Listen to a man’s words but observe his deeds”, as the Chinese idiom goes. While the US has shown public support at the government level for Japan’s discharge of radioactive wastewater[1] , in the first six months of 2023 alone, they have actually drastically reduced the amount of surimi (fish paste), scallops and sake imported from Japan[2], amounting to up to 8.3 billion Yen. This was before Japan officially admitted they were releasing the wastewater by the way.
It would be interesting to see whether the Americans, post 24 Aug, would put their money where their mouth is, and start importing more Japanese aquacultural and agricultural products than ever before, perhaps as a show of solidarity with fellow neoliberal democracies.
The more likely scenario, however, is that the US would cite concerns with radiation pollution but ban Chinese seafood instead. Feel free to check back in a few months.
Even the Japanese themselves won’t eat their own seafood The release of the tainted radioactive water began only a couple of days ago, but already there are reports all over Japan that local consumers are steering clear of not just Fukushima seafood, but all kinds of local seafood [3]. Even people in Japan know better than to trust their government and Tokyo Electric – a company so ruthless and dishonest [4], it turned an INES level 3 incident into a level 7, same level as Chernobyl, and is now solely in charge of monitoring its own wastewater discharge.
Imagine that, a nuclear power company that caused the disaster to begin with, is now put wholly in charge of the discharge operation, and every statistic the company reports is treated as gospel truth by the local government. We have truly reached peak cyberpunk, ladies and gentlemen.
Moreover, the Japanese fishing industry has been protesting the government’s decision to release the tainted water for years [5]. Such an irresponsible move, as they have rightly predicted, would effectively destroy the prestigious brand and reputation of Japanese seafood, and is likely to affect other Japanese products such as agricultural products in the near future.
Oliver Anthony – I Want To Go Home Fiddle player REACTS WITH FIDDLE!!
Oskar Groning was what nobody wants to be, a guard at Auschwitz. His primary job was sorting and valuables new arrivals turned over. A big source of income for the Third Reich was the valuables prisoners handed over.
When the war ended Oskar wasn’t brought up on charges. He was captured before the war ended, did some time in a British POW camp, and when the war ended he went home to his wife.
Upon seeing his wife again she asked about his experiences and he said “Girl, do both of us a favour: don’t ask” and she left it there. One day a while later someone made an offhand joke that Oskar could actually be a killer given his time at Auschwitz. He banged on the table and demanded that nobody ever mention Auschwitz again or he would leave.
Oskar wanted to put what he had done behind him. He was a devout Nazi, an Auschwitz camp guard no less, and he wanted this to remain a secret.
Oskar got a job at a glass factory and worked his way up into a management role. He worked there for decades and lived a very normal life. Oskar collected stamps and was even a judge.
In 1985 Oskar met a Holocaust denier and was given a pamphlet on Holocaust denial. Shocked that such a thing exists, Oskar came forward to dispute it. He made multiple statements and gave a full account of what he had seen.
I saw everything. The gas chambers, the cremations, the selection process. One and a half million Jews were murdered in Auschwitz. I was there.
I would like you to believe me. I saw the gas chambers. I saw the crematoria. I saw the open fires. I would like you to believe that these atrocities happened, because I was there
(letters/calls) From people who tried to prove that what I had seen with my own eyes, what I had experienced in Auschwitz was a big, big mistake, a big hallucination on my part because it hadn’t happened.”
Now Oskar was put on trial for this and found guilty. It mattered little as he died a few years later at the age of 93.
But this shows you what Nazis think about Holocaust deniers- they think deniers are idiots.
I’m a school bus driver. I drove students in a VERY nice school district. If you were looking for kids to be the illustration of white privilege, these were the ones. (These were kids who got hoverboards from the tooth fairy.) Every single morning and afternoon, these kids, with much more expensive clothes than I have, would thank me for driving them. When parents would meet the kids at the bus, they would tell the kids “make sure you say thank you.” These people weren’t upper class simply from money, but from having habits and attitudes to make them better people in life. Behavior problems were rare.
PEPE ESCOBAR AND MICHAEL HUDSON JOIN ON BRICS PLUS SIX, UKRAINE, AND THE MULTIPOLAR WORLD ECONOMY!
I well remember the bus ride leaving prison. I had an hour wait, so I went across the street to a Burger King and a 7-11. I bought a single can of beer, and a Whopper. The bus pulled in, and I got on.
I ate that burger and drank that beer in the darkness, as the bus wound its way out of the rural deep South.
I was in shock.
But I do remember that everyone on the buss were playing with their smart phones. And that was the first time that I ever saw one.
I rode with another felon getting out. He was in for 15 years, and was stunned about this. “What are they doing?” he asked. Indeed. If you are new to the experience, it is shocking to you.
While to everyone else, it’s just a normal every-day occurrence.
We need to step out of the BOX that we are in, and see just how different our life is today from what it used to be….
…
The United States is up to it’s old bag-of-tricks again. This time, it disposed a very popular (pro-China) leader of Pakistan; Imran Khan, and put in a pro-USA stooge. This kind of thing is laying the ground-work for some very exciting times…
And people are pissed off all over the United States about those jackasses in Washington DC….
Sad Reality💔 | Oliver Anthony – Rich Men North Of Richmond (REACTION!)
A packet of the local pita bread known as khubz here is available for a fixed price of 1 Qatari Riyal.
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No matter what happens, the price of khubz is never changed. It has been the same price from when I was a baby until now. Each packet contains 10 khubz and no matter which bakery manufactures it, they are allowed to sell a packet only for 1 riyal. The government authorities that control food pricing are extremely strict about this.
I believe this is the policy for most countries of the GCC. This is to ensure that nobody in the country goes hungry.
Even if people have other financial issues, he/she would have 1 riyal to spare at any given point of time. So they would never not have food to eat. And I personally think that this is a beautiful gesture!
Al Bundy FIRST TIME REACTION to Al Bundy’s Best Insults (British Reaction)
Hopefully you enjoy our style of reactions, including todays video: Al Bundy FIRST TIME REACTION to Al Bundy’s Best Insults (British Reaction)
Flying first class is a way of traveling that offers many advantages and privileges, but also comes with a high price. Flying first class means enjoying a superior level of comfort, service, and convenience compared to other classes of travel. Some of the benefits of flying first class are:
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A larger and more comfortable seat that may recline fully or turn into a bed, depending on the airline and the route.
A more private and spacious cabin may have fewer seats or even individual suites, depending on the airline and the route.
A premium menu and beverage selection that may include gourmet meals, fine wines, champagne, and cocktails, depending on the airline and the route.
A personalized and attentive service from the flight attendants and the crew, who may address you by name and cater to your preferences and needs.
A luxurious amenity kit that may contain high-quality products for your hygiene, comfort, and entertainment, such as skin care items, earplugs, eye masks, headphones, etc., depending on the airline and the route.
Priority access to various airport services, such as check-in, security, boarding, baggage handling, lounge access, etc., depending on the airline and the route.
These benefits can make flying first class a very enjoyable and relaxing experience, especially for long-haul flights or frequent travelers.
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So flying first class is a personal choice that depends on your budget, preferences, goals, values, etc. Some people may find it worth it to fly first class for the benefits and advantages it offers, while others may not find it worth it due to its high cost.
Star Trek Next Generation – Sentient Starship
I might have already included this clip in an earlier post. If so, then please ignore.
I once asked a recruiter what are the most in demand jobs.
Engineering and welding.
“We can’t find enough engineers and welders.”
Average salary is 100k US for engineering. 50k for welders.
…
I’ve found sales, particularly software and advertising sales to be unexpectedly high.
I’ve worked in digital advertising and software sales.
I’ve averaged over $150k most years.
…
My more specialized technical SaaS (software as a service) friends do $200-$400k. Some much higher.
At these higher salaries though, the pressure gets intense.
High quotas, lots of travel, bottom 25% of performers get cut.
Generally speaking, if someone is paying you above average money, they expect above average effort. And results.
it’s all about ROI.
This means that the job is priority #1. Ahead of vacation, family etc.
Not always, but usually.
You have to be mentally prepared.
Fewer people can do this. Or are willing to.
Which is why it pays more.
American Rapper FIRST time EVER hearing OLIVER ANTHONY – Rich Men North Of Richmond
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8 Parents Revealed Why They Home-Schooled Their Children
July 27, 2023
1. My number one reason was I wanted my kids to like learning. And they do, they love both reading and math. But it ended up being so much more. We have a lot more bonding time as a family, and my kids are best friends. They have more time to spend with their friends, and they have friends of all ages, from all around our city, not just the kids their age, in their neighborhood. They have lots of time to pursue multiple hobbies and interests. We as a family aren’t tied to a school schedule.
2. Our homeschool journey started because of food allergies. As we began to research our options we were flooded with reasons to homeschool that really resonated with us.
Safety- pandemic, a growing anti-vax movement and violence (bullying, shootings,etc)
We wanted our girls to get accurate and useful information regarding sex education. Not just the abstinence nonsense that is taught in schools. When our girls eventually go down that path, we want to make sure they know how to protect themselves as well as how to advocate for themselves and what they want.
We want to make sure that our girls are being taught accurate, truthful and fully represented history. I’m not interested in my kids learning a conservative, white-washed version of history.
My kids are only kids once and I genuinely enjoy spending time with them. Homeschooling lets us do that.
Flexibility. We’re able to do extracurricular activities such as gymnastics during the day while public school is in session. This usually means better instructor to kid ratios. Also, it means more time to spend as a family in the evening once my husband gets off work so he doesn’t miss out on time with the kids.
Private school was never an option for us because all of the private schools in our area are religious. We don’t feel that religion has anything to do with education and shouldn’t be included during school time.
3. I personally don’t have too much of a problem with the material taught in public school (though with a lot of recent developments in some states re: religion butting it’s way in, book bans etc, I’m wary of the future) but large classes have to, by default, teach to the middle. The kids who are behind will stay behind, and the kids ahead will get bored and disruptive. There’s also incredible stigmatization of kids held back OR skipped forward, even if they need it, so it rarely, if ever, happens. The way I see it, public schools prioritize putting kids in boxes and keeping them there, regardless of their needs academically or developmentally (it’s really not developmentally appropriate for young kids to sit in one place for hours at a time). I don’t blame them, though, because you kind of have to exercise a lot of control if you are the sole adult in charge of 20+ young children all day.
We looked at a lot of private schools in the area and none of them met our needs. We want our kids to have a low pressure academic atmosphere where they are allowed to act like young kids, and where there are enough teachers to meet kids where they’re at. That’s just not offered around here in a school we can drive to and afford right now.
4. Ultimately, I don’t believe that the material taught or the way it is taught will be of any benefit to my children in their future and may even be detrimental.
5. There’s a lot of reasons..
Like you, I don’t think what is taught in schools is quality information and nothing applicable to life skills.
I also don’t like the idea of my kids sitting in a chair 7 hours a day.
I think kids should be around a lot of different people and different age groups. I don’t see that there’s a lot to gain by being with the same group of kids the same age for 12 years.
I don’t like the political climate of our nation and I don’t like that it’s so apparent in schools. Our children’s education isn’t a game and shouldn’t be messed with the way it is.
I am fine with people having differing opinions than me, and I also don’t want to shelter my kids from different opinions and ideas but I also don’t trust a bunch of strangers having such a big part of my kids lives.
I genuinely love my kids, enjoying being around them and hate the thought of them being gone 40+ hours a week starting at age 5.
We homeschool now. As our kids are reaching middle school levels, we have discussed possibly putting them into private school. Financially, it’s definitely doable for us. Right now, we like homeschool, our kids like it and are thriving. Private school is always an option for us if thats what we decide. There is one we’ve toured and really like near us that will be what we choose if that’s the path we go down.
6. We decided to homeschool after we already had three kids in public school. I watched their love of school, turn into dread. The younger kids, no longer felt safe. They were coming home crying because of their peers or confused over classroom assignments. I watched my older kid turn into robot mode to please the system with A’s.
After my oldest graduated high school, we pulled the younger kids and decided to homeschool. We love the freedom of homeschool. Being able to tackle assignments in a way that benefits each child. Going to zoo’s, museums, and state parks anytime we want too. Learning about any thing we want, just because we want too. I can tailor their education to the career fields that they are interested in. We can enjoy play groups other extracurricular activities at our own pace.
Ultimately, learning is a life long process and I wanted them to have a good foundation. Classroom learning is a small percentage compared to the rest of their lives. I considered their physical, emotional, intellectual, social, spiritual, environmental and occupational well-being when we decided to homeschool.
7. I like homeschooling and the freedom that comes with it. I like that my kids can spend time outside, playing, reading, and I like that we can choose a curriculum that they enjoy and that works for them. My kids are young and I don’t like the idea of them being in public school for 8 hours day. They can sleep late if they need to, and can take days off when they’re struggling. The public schools in my area are overcrowded and there is so much crime; schools are frequently on lockdown due to crime in the surround area or because of threats made.
We actually homeschool through a public charter. So the charter school provides funds for students that we use to purchase curriculum and that is used towards extracurriculars. We use the charter funds for piano lessons, gymnastics, and a learning co-op that meets weekly. Private schools in our area are expensive and also overcrowded.
8. Our catalyst for homeschooling was originally the pandemic and some academic trauma and bullying that came before that. We continued for many reasons but mainly because one of my kids especially needs lots of time to work through struggle and build confidence. If he were in public school his anxiety would be unmanageable and he wouldn’t be thriving as he is. It also fits our lifestyle and gives us flexibility to live the way we want and not be ruled by a societal schedule.
My favorite reason for homeschooling though is that learning and growing becomes an ongoing, long-form conversation. It’s stream-of-consciousness across the years where we reach back, make connections, and are continually building on the day before in an organic, developmentally appropriate way that revolves around hand-picked curricula and materials we believe in. I as their teacher can see where they are compared to where they have been and I can be a better steward of their progress. Pair all this with the ability to do year-round school, friends of all ages and walks of life, field trips around our town or country to learn about their world first hand, 4H and other clubs, and their being involved in a few different family businesses, often working events with adults, and living on and working a farm, and we’ve got invaluable real life living year round. After doing it this way school seems even more artificial and not the right path for us.
Do you really care if Indians don’t acknowledge that China is better?
Its just SOUR GRAPES
It’s embarrassing enough actually
It’s why Indians who badmouth China are not debate worthy.
Tomorrow if Kambli keeps saying how better he was to Sachin, would Sachin bother to reassure everyone he is better
He may pity Kambli and smile
Sachin will take Lara, Ponting or Steve Waugh or one of those guys seriously and counter any potential allegations
Chinas main adversary is US
Like I told our friend MJ – India today is Small Potatoes, however painful it sounds to hear
John Bolton escalation. Removing Imran Khan w/ Jeffrey Sachs
The United States is in the process of “regime Changing” Pakistan. Great discussion. This is REALLY good.
Blackberry Cobbler
blackberry cobbler
Yield: 10 to 12 servings; 1 1/2 cups sauce
Ingredients
Cobbler
4 cups fresh blackberries
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cups boiling water
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
Sauce
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 cup water
1 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup crushed blackberries
Instructions
Cobbler
Sprinkle berries with 1/4 cup sugar; set aside.
Combine flour, 3 tablespoons sugar, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl.
Cut in butter with pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal.
Add milk, mixing well. Roll two-thirds of the dough to 1/8 inch thickness on a lightly floured surface.
Place in lightly greased 12 x 8 x 2 inch baking dish.
Pour berries into pastry-lined dish.
Roll out remaining dough and add top crust.
Pour boiling water over crust.
Combine cinnamon and 1 teaspoon sugar; sprinkle over cobbler.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes. Spoon cobbler into serving dishes and top with sauce.
Sauce
Mix cornstarch with water until smooth.
Melt butter in a saucepan; add sugar, berries and cornstarch mixture. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until mixture thickens.
Oldest Stilted Village in Europe Found Underwater Behind Defensive Spikes
Stilted village
A team of underwater excavators diving in Lake Ohrid, between Macedonia and Albania, have discovered an ancient stilted village protected by 100,000 defensive wooden spikes. Built around 8,000-years-ago, this is potentially the oldest stilted village ever discovered in Europe.
Lake Ohrid is situated in the mountainous border of North Macedonia and Albania and its depths hold remarkable archaeological significance spanning over 8 millennia. Now, scientists have uncovered what they think might be one of “Europe’s earliest sedentary communities,” and it was heavily defended.
The Oldest Lakeside Community In Europe
A report on PHYS.org explains the team of archaeologists believe the Albanian shore of Lake Ohrid was the location of a settlement of stilt houses. It is estimated that between 200 to 500 people inhabited the settlement at any given time, and that it was built between 6,000 and 5,800 BC. If this dating is accurate, then the site represents the oldest lakeside village ever discovered in Europe.
Professor Albert Hafner , an archaeologist from Switzerland’s University of Bern , told AFP that his team of Swiss and Albanian archaeologists spent the past four years excavating at Lin, on the Albanian side of Lake Ohrid. He said the village is “several hundred years older than previously known lake-dwelling sites in the Mediterranean and Alpine regions.” In conclusion, Hafner said this suggests the site is “the oldest” of its type in Europe.
A Heavily Defended Archaeological Treasure Trove
According to Professor Ilir Gjepali, an Albanian archaeologist, the team found “seeds, plants, and bones of both wild and domesticated animals.” This leads the researchers to speculate that the villagers survived on fishing, agriculture and rearing domesticated livestock.
At the submerged settlement, the underwater archaeologists also identified fossilized fragments of wood, including “prized pieces of oak.” Albanian archaeologist, Adrian Anastasi, counted tree rings and derived valuable new insights about the climatic and environmental conditions during that period.
The divers also discovered evidence that the settlement was fortified with around “100,000 defensive wooden spikes” that were driven into the bottom of the lake. Hafner said this discovery alone was “a real treasure trove for research.”
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Putting The Stilted Village Into Context
Until this discovery upset the apple cart, one of the oldest known stilted villages in Europe, and the world, was the ” Stilt House Settlement on the Lake of Zurich ,” in Switzerland. Built during the Late Bronze Age, around 1100-800 BC, this prehistoric village consists of houses built on stilts over the water. And in Scotland, the Oakbank Crannog in Loch Tay was one of the oldest known stilted houses ever discovered, dating back to around 4000 years ago, during the Bronze Age.
Until this recent discovery on Lake Ohrid, the oldest stilted settlement known to archaeologists was the “Sankt Peter am Wallersee” site in Austria. Dating back to around 3943-3668 BC, during the Neolithic period, the houses in this ancient village were all built on wooden stilts over the water.
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Why Water Worlds Were Preferred
Whether in Albania, Austria, Scotland or elsewhere in Europe, stilted settlements provided insights into early agrarian societies’ ways of life, architecture, and resource utilization. But what were the key motivators that inspired ancient cultures in Europe to build stilted settlements?
Primarily, they were designed for flood avoidance in areas prone to deluge, but right beside this primary motivator comes defence. Locating settlements over water made them more difficult to attack, because the watery surroundings acted as a natural moat making it harder for outsiders to access the settlement, enhancing the security of the inhabitants.
Bodies of water also provided a ready source of fish and aquatic plants for sustenance, and living on water enabled easier movement of people and goods. However, perhaps the primary reason people constructed stilted settlements was to enhance perceived status and prestige, because building over water held deep cultural and social significance, symbolizing the higher status of the community leaders.
Originally Answered: What’s been the most mind blowing example of incompetence ever displayed by one of your coworkers?
A laboratory, many, many years ago, needed some very accurate weights for precision weighing materials, so they ordered the very best set, at that time I think they were Class A, traceable to NBS (National Bureau of Standards, Now NIST, I believe). They were VERY expensive and apparently only produced to order. They waited and waited for delivery and finally called to see what was the hold-up. They were told the set (there were many little weights in the set) had been sent a while back, so they checked with Receiving. Receiving said,”Yes, we have them and we just finished processing them. Will bring them to you right now.” The nice wooden box had the property number on it, as prescribed by the receiving department, and when they opened the box, each of those precision weights had a neat small hole drilled through the stem of the weight, with a property tag affixed! Every. Single. one. of. them.
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For those unfamiliar with these types of weights, they can be made to very precise weights and are picked up with ivory tipped tongs which are under the plastic shield in front. Drilling a hole in them utterly destroys their value as weights. Completely! The whole, very expensive set, was destroyed.
The map shows you where Niger and its capital Niamey are. Note its proximity to two of the nations that have voiced support for the coup, Mali and Burkina Faso. Niger is a majority Muslim nation that was still very much under the boot of its Colonial Master France, which is the primary reason for the coup. This al-Mayadeenarticle from the 4th is packed with info:
Under colonial rule, the people of Niger capitulated in front of French supremacy as a prerequisite for survival.
The country subsequently encountered famines, which prompted the colonial government to introduce food security measures in 1913, 1920, and 1931. A puppet sultan was also installed, which led to marginalization and a notable decline in the North of the colony. French gross exploitation was also characterized by exporting Niger’s own indigenous agricultural products in outlying areas to local and international markets to benefit the French Crown. These harrowing realities are precisely why Niger continues to lag behind most of its contemporaries on the continent, let alone the world.
Fast forward to 2023, then instability in Niamey is being followed up with renewed calls from Paris to militarily intervene and sow chaos. Calls to push back against the coup were the loudest from France with the Military Council stating clearly that the former colonial power is plotting to intervene to restore President Mohamed Bazoum’s rule. Bazoum’s ousted government and its former Foreign Minister, Hassoumi Massoudou, also signed an authorization document, allowing the French to attack the presidential palace. Last week, the junta stated that the ousted government was authorizing France to conduct a military operation to restore the Bazoum government. This is despite the fact that neighboring countries Mali and Burkina Faso issued a joint statement that any military intervention into Niger to restore Bazoum will constitute an act of war.
Even if the veracity of the Junta’s claims is considered questionable, pro-Russia and anti-France slogans from the public after the coup demonstrates that the social contract that France is seeking to erode is clearly in favor of the coup. According to a businessman based in the central city of Zinder, France is not wanted in Niger given that it exploited the country’s uranium deposits, petrol, and gold reserves. Many in the public also hold France accountable for the Nigerien public not being able to afford basic necessities.This sentiment has been echoed previously by populist, right-wing Prime Minister of Italy, Giorgia Meloni who accused France of ensuring that Niger languishes in poverty.
Niger hosts a French military base and is home to one of the largest uranium deposits in the world. It is also the world’s seventh largest producer of uranium with a quarter of exports going to Europe and France being a major recipient. Yet despite this, its economy has teetered. Agriculture amounts to 40% of its GDP and more than 10 million people or an astonishing 41.8% of its population live below the poverty line in 2021. Furthermore, out of 24.4 million people, two in every five live in extreme poverty or less than $2.15 a day.
It is clear that Niger has not witnessed the trickle-down effect of uranium exports to France and Paris with its penchant for intervening in Niger’s affairs will seek to continue its vicious cycle of exploitation. Based on France’s statements and evidence provided by the Military Council, Macron has no intention to initiate dialogue to settle the dispute or come up with a sustainable peace framework to mitigate tensions. Similar to the American approach in Libya, France has opted to lend unconditional support to one side of the crisis while mounting pressure on the military government. This approach in a continent that has a history of colonialism has only led to a proliferation of terrorism, a breakdown in social systems, widespread poverty, and devastation.
The stats provided underscore the level of exploitation exercised by France as it’s clearly done nothing to upgrade the quality of life for the vast majority of Nigerens. Niger isn’t the only African nation that’s rebelling; rather, it’s merely joining the trend which is why Mali and Burkina Faso both support Niger’s efforts. The main tool employed by France was known as the African Franc Zone, otherwise known as the CFA Franc. Its history is not well known to most but knowing it is mandatory to gain an understanding of why former French Colonies are in such bad shape while those that fought to break free completely—Algeria being the example—are doing so much better. This excellent analysis from 2020 enlightens us on the CFA Franc and much more beyond this excerpt:
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The CFA franc system has, since its origins, rested on four pillars. The first is the fixed parity between the CFA franc and the French currency (the French franc and, from 1999, the euro). Next is the freedom of transfer of capital and income within the franc zone. Third is the guaranteed convertibility of the CFA franc at a fixed rate, namely the French Treasury’s promise to lend the BCEAO and the BEAC the desired volumes of French currency when they no longer have enough foreign reserves.
But as a counterpart to this “guarantee”, France is itself represented in the BCEAO and BEAC bodies – their boards, monetary policy committees and control organs – with a statutory right of veto that has become implicit over time.
The other counterpart is that these two central banks are compelled to deposit part of their exchange reserves with the French Treasury. In the wake of independence, the obligatory deposit quota stood at 100%, before it was reduced to 65% in 1973 and then 50% in 2005.
This, indeed, is the fourth principle: the centralisation of their exchange reserves in the hands of the French Treasury. This implies that the French Treasury is, effectively, the bureau de change of the countries that use the CFA franc. All conversion operations from the CFA franc into other currencies have to pass via the French Treasury. It is worth underlining, moreover, that the Banque de France holds 85% of the BCEAO’s monetary gold stock.
If France has been committed to maintaining the franc zone for over 70 years, that is because it benefits from it. This was explicitly recognised in a 1970 report by the French Socio-Economic Council which listed the “incontestable advantages for France”. First, France could pay its imports from franc zone countries in its own currency. This allowed it to save on foreign currency and keep up its own exchange rate. This has been important in a world where the dollar is the main currency for international trade and the French franc weak and unstable.
French companies operating in the zone moreover benefit from large – and stable – outlets for trade. Added to this, the French economy benefits from a trade surplus with regard to the franc zone countries, which also provide it a far from negligible amount of exchange reserves which have sometimes been used to pay France’s debts. French companies also have the guaranteed freedom to repatriate their revenue and capitals without any foreign exchange risk, thanks to the free-transfer policy and the fact that France decides the zone’s exchange and monetary policy.
Lastly, thanks to the CFA franc France enjoys a system of political control serving its own economic interests. This also costs France nothing, since its supposed convertibility “guarantee” has rarely been put into effect. Indeed, the French Treasury has often offered negative interest rates (in real terms) for African exchange reserves, meaning that the BCEAO and the BEAC have been losing money – it is as if they paid the French Treasury to keep their foreign reserves. And on the few occasions that African countries have had foreign-payments problems, France has appealed for IMF intervention or joined with the IMF to demand a currency devaluation, as in 1994.
The CFA franc’s benefits aren’t just for France, however – they extend to importers and to the African upper classes, whose appetite for imported luxuries explains their preference for an overvalued exchange rate. For African political leaders, the CFA franc is a mechanism to facilitate the transfer of financial resources, no matter how they were acquired. And, as long as they stay quiet on the issue, they have the backing of the French government against political dissidents and their own people in times of trouble. This is especially the case in Central African countries, most of whose presidents have been in power for more than three decades. [My Emphasis]
If that sounds close to the Washington Consensus, it’s because it’s very similar in design and outcomes. This one last citation contains two links whose importance ought to be self-explanatory:
Indeed, French elites are still unable to think about their own country’s future, except in terms of the continued subjection of Africa. Even back in 1957, the future Socialist president François Mitterrand opined that “Without Africa, France will have no history in the 21st century.” This outlook has continued to guide French foreign policy: as recently as 2013, the French Senate expressed the same convictions in a report entitled “Africa is Our Future”.
And thus the outburst by Macron aimed at Russia earlier this year in February accusing Russia of “neocolonial political involvement” in Africa, specifically French Africa. Here’s how RT reported Lavrov’s retort:
French allegations that Moscow is pursuing a neocolonialist policy in Africa turn reality upside down, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said, adding that they are part of the Western proxy war against Russia….
In recent months, Burkina Faso, Mali, and the Central African Republic have shown France’s military forces the door. The Central African Republic invited Russia’s Wagner Group to help with its sectarian conflict. The government in Bangui has said that Russia “saved” the country.
Lavrov called the French allegations “an attempt to demonize Russia” – claims that require no comment, he added. [Emphasis Original]
France’s desperation to continue to continue its exploitation of its former African colonies includes assassination of nationalist leaders and overthrowing governments, often employing the Anti-Communist Crusade as cover for its actions. But that ruse is no longer valid and thus more blatant actions are contrived, like introducing NATO’s Terrorist Foreign Legion into the region thus making it possible to force governments to ask for help in combating the imported terrorists.
And of course, the goal isn’t to eliminate the terrorists as their goal is to be present there to react in France’s interest as in Niger’s case currently. And that’s why the big accusation with Wagner being hired since Wagner will eliminate the terrorists.
Given the history presented above and its expansion at the links provided, France is THE Problem and its tentacles attached to Africa need to be severed and the French will need to learn how to live within their means. And it can be said that Latin America’s condition is due to a similar sort of comprador control exerted by former colonial masters and the Outlaw US Empire. The prognosis isn’t good when we look at Syria when it comes to ousting illegal occupying forces.
Nigeria is the most powerful regional nation but it’s also compromised in this case. The triumvirate of leaders in Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso form a very strong nationalist core, and it’s likely many of the region’s people will back them. On the other side, France will try to continue its grip for as long as it can as it’s in dire condition otherwise.
The outlaw US Empire’s presence is due to the importation of NATO’s Terrorist Foreign Legion and is unlikely to be peacefully ejected. The consensus prior to the Russia-Africa Summit and the Niger coup was Africa’s future would be greatly helped by China, Russia, African, and West Asian development involvement, while it must break free from forms of Neocolonial bondage. So, how Niger progresses will be an important marker.
I was sitting at a stop sign, needing to turn left. This is in the U.S., which means making a left turn takes you across a lane of traffic.
This was at a particularly busy intersection, and the crossing traffic didn’t have a stop sign. Any time there would be a break in traffic from the left, there would be a line of cars coming from the right and vice versa.
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I had only been sitting there for no longer than 2 minutes, but 2 minutes in traffic has a way of feeling like an eternity to me.
But I finally I saw my chance.
The car coming from the left had its blinker on, indicating he going to turn onto the street I was on. That would slow the left side traffic enough for me to be clear that way. Traffic was in sight coming from the right but if I stepped on it, I could safely make the turn without cutting them off.
I knew if I didn’t go right then, I was likely to sit there a while longer.
I took my foot off the brakes, and just as I was about to start accelerating, I got a bad feeling and hesitated.
That moment of hesitation ended up saving me from an accident.
The car with the blinker on either had it on by mistake or changed their mind about turning. If I would have pulled out when I thought I was clear, it most certainly would have lead to a collision.
Practice patience in everything you do.
Learn to listen to your gut instincts.
Never assume you know what someone’s intentions are.
It was the day my bank account balance was instantly multiplied by 200 and the bank started treating me like royalty. I didn’t win the lottery though; it was a computer glitch, and let me tell you about it.
On Jan 1, 1999, the Euro currency was introduced across 19 European countries, replacing each country’s own currency. There was a different exchange rate for each currency. In the case of my country, 1 Euro was worth 200 Portuguese Escudos (PTE).
On New Year’s Eve I had 1,500,000 PTE in my cashing account (around US$8,000 adjusted for 2017), but my daily average throughout the year had been higher. So I was supposed to wake up on New Year’s with my account displaying the equivalent amount in Euro: 7,500.
Instead I woke up to year 2000 with the same absolute figure as before: 1,500,000 but now in Euro!!!, meaning exactly 200 times my previous balance! (That’s $1.6 million adjusted for 2017.) And my daily average throughout the previous year showed up as even higher!!!
I suppose that, if you keep that much idling in a cashing account all year-long like it seemed I did, the bank will notice and assume you are wealthy, very wealthy.
That’s why, on Jan. 6, I received a letter in the mail, handsigned by the CEO of the bank himself, inviting me to a private opera gala, tuxedo-only, the following weekend.
I knew the money was a keep-your-hands-off dream, but this gala was too good to pass on. So I RSVP’d and asked for additional tickets for colleagues and friends.
Sure enough, I got a phone call from the CEO’s secretary, all too obliging to provide for free as many tickets as I’d want.
The opera performance was not that great, but the caviar and the champagne were.
Very soon after, the balance in my account was corrected, and I never heard from the CEO again. How rude!
The REAL HARD TRUTH behind Hong Kong riots 2019
This is a must read for all Chinese and non-chinese alike. I am suprised that till now, no one has come with this analysis and connecting the dots.
The main aim of CIA was to defame the “One country two systems”. And ruin chances of peaceful reunification with Taiwan.
We all know what happened in 2019, massive protests followed by months of endless riots crushing city’s infrastructure. Waves of people with black masks with “Free Hong Kong, Revolution of our times” and an American flag.
Unless you have room temperature IQ, the entire damn thing was sponsered by US and other western countries, but primarily CIA. But why?
Well, CIA achieved ALL its objectives through these riots that it needed to.
First, why did CIA even sponser these riots? The answer lies in Taiwan.
China took Hong Kong back peaceful without using military force. At the time of handover, a vast majority of HKers identified as Chinese and wanted unification. China followed the “One country, two systems” (1C2S) policy and allowed HK to remain autonomous. It gave HK democracy, something which UK never did. After HK handover, more and more HKers started identifying as Chinese and HK economy grew at a stable 3–4% annually, making HK a huge beneficiary of China’s growth. Now here comes the catch.
China wants a “peaceful reunification” with Taiwan too. Given the success of 1C2S, it was widely believed that as Taiwanese integrated more, Taiwan would ultimately also strike a deal similar to Hong Kong and become a part of a superpower. Taiwanese companies benefited from China and would drive the wheel of reunification. BUT…as china grew and grew and grew, US became worried. Given Taiwan’s strategic location, US can NOT afford to give it to the Chinese, disregarding any sentiment of reunification. If china reunifies peacefully, it would be a disaster for USA. Just like how Easy Germany and West Germany were kept separated by force from the Soviet union despite both people wanting reunification, and when the berlin wall fell, the Soviet Union, which had forced separation, also fell. Today, that Soviet Union is the US, keeping Taiwan separated from China with force, be it in 1950 or 1958 or 1997 or today. If china reunifies by the will of people, US empire may also fall like USSR. With time, more and more Taiwanese were no longer pro independence, but pro unification, until 2018.
Now See this:
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RIGHT before HK protests, Pro Independence was at an all time low, with pro unification at an all time high. Despite the US Trade war, most Taiwanese were leaning towards unifying.
So, our angel CIA was struck. It knew of it did nothing this would grow, DPP with its pathetic management of economy would lose, pro business KMT would come back and reunification might happen so that Taiwan can use military funds in RnD to retain tech edge. CIA knew it had lost the economy war. It turned to ideological one. With chinas economy and military growing, it would seriously hard US hegemony. US needed a Porcupine, a cannon fodder to stop, at least slow, china down.
Hijacking Hong Kong
When the HK protests kicked off, they were hijacked soon. The US, after its “PIVOT TO ASIA” had to contain china. If you see, most NED funds to HK were post 2011, when the pivot was announced. The US was building spy networks in HK. At the same time, CIA pushed hard to stop trade toes with “sunflower movement” in Taiwan. As well as sponsoring ETIM terror attacks in china. When the protests kicked of “extradition law” it was really stupid, as a person whose tried in HK could not be tried in china. He could only be extradited cross-border if he tries to run away. MIND YOU, HK had extradition treaties with many western countries too, no crying for hooman roughts then? Huh?
With western propaganda in full force, the likes of which not seen since the Iraq invasion, was enacted. Mainstream media said people with riot shields better than police and with black gas masks and students destroying everything in the city was “peaceful protest”.
The peak of propaganda was when these rioters were called “Pro democracy” and those not supporting these acts called “Pro Beijing”. By this labeling, western propaganda was implying that if you were supporting democracy you can’t support china. And if you were supporting china you were against democracy. Wow. The classic Marvel and DC comics theme. When in reality china gave HK democracy, was supported Universal Sufferage.
These bastards cry about “Police brutality” when in reality HK police did not kill a single person during the enitre damn thing. US police killed 4 during the brief Capitol riots which lasted 4 hours. Using tear gas is brutal? Bitch, you destroyed the entire fuckin city. Every police of every country uses tear gas when you do shit. If you aren’t happy, go to UK and do this shit, and you’ll end up where the IRA ended up.
HK was also a way to recruit spies. After 30 CIA spies were crushed by MSS, the CIA network in china was seriously in peril. By showing HKers as peaceful innocent people being a last becon of democracy being suppressed by a communist dictatorship, it hoped to subvert many MSS agents as well as within the PLA and China itself. By constantly lying with its media, the pro American Chinese might have started working for CIA. This was proven by the fact that the CIA director recently claimed that he had “strong human networks in china”.
The west OPENLY supported acts of violence. Calling the attack on HK assembly as “a beautiful sight to behold” shows the sheer hypocrisy and extent to which US undermines Chinese sovereignty. Apps were made to communicate and sponser riots. Western “journalists” helped them. HK went into total shutdown. It’s people facing unemployment, blamed china for it. Brain drain, thousands of HKers who contributed to China’s economy, being fallen into western propaganda, left and got different citizenships. HK lost itself as a financial centre. US divided HK. As they say in my India, “divide and rule”. US got so damn pissed when Russia “allegedly” interfered in 2016 elections and retaliated hard. The same US did this to HK.
Media also played “china broke its promise, destroyed 1C2S, china untrustworthy, don’t trust china or else this will happen”. And it worked. Repeat a lie a thousand times through a thousand sources and it works majic. People, especially Taiwanese, were convinced china is untrustworthy. The Pro independence people shot up rapidly, leading DPP and Tsia to divert attention from domestic issues and win elections.
In reality, china did NOT break a single promise or article or anything of 1C2S. It didn’t even enact the full 1C2S (no Security Law before that). This entire media talk of China 1C2S breaking was entirely false. Which article did china break? Which promise did china break? Provide proof! Not cheap lies. China did not affect HKs autonomy.
But, the effect was heard. The propaganda war succeeded. CIA undermined HK and destroyed a major hub of Chinese investments thus hurting China’s economy and creating trouble for china in HK, but also completely ended any changes of peaceful reunification. If china had to reunite, it had to with war.
That brings us to Aim2:
Make Taiwan a trap for china and crush china in Taiwan, thereby china doesn’t become a superpower.
Just like how Russia has been crushed in Ukraine, US wants to crush China in Taiwan. Making Taiwan independence group strong this hurting China’s core interest, all the while arming Taiwan to the teeth.
Make no mistake, the invasion of Taiwan would be an extremely costly one. China would totally lose the PR battle, as we saw with people putting Ukraine flag in their DPs. Transport and logistics would be nightmare, and US would love to crush china here.
T hats why, despite Taiwan being so heavily armed, US media claims “Taiwan needs more weapons”. It’s all a distraction, to attract more weapon sales and arm it like a Porcupine.
Finland was always Russia’s biggest threat, as being a Porcupine, if it sided with the west, there was nothing Russia could do about it. Finland did that by joining NATO, and Russia watched helplessly. If Taiwan becomes a Porcupine, and China is engaged in war somewhere else, Taiwan would declare independence and there would absolutely nothing china could do about it. Taiwan would slip, and that’s what US wants.
I f Taiwan slips, CCP would fall. It will lose the support of people, and China would become like Syria, a return to 1850s.
Even if china wins, the US wants the victory to be a costly one. US would likely sponsor a “Taiwan govt in exile” and support insurgency. It would want Chinas resources to be struck in Taiwan so it can dominate Asia and the world.
Taiwan is a cannon fodder and US is playing it perfectly.
8 Guys Who Dated Models Reveal What Their Experiences Were Like
August 14, 2023
1. I dated a fitness instagram model type with 200k followers. Nice girl, but everything was about social media, constantly taking pics and checking her phone
Lots of weird problems around food, couldnt just relax. It was tough so I stopped seeing her.
2. I dated an ex model for about 6 months. There’s no way I would have approached her, instead she gave me her number. She later told me guys never make a move, I guess because they would feel intimidated.
The only thing that really differed from dating someone less attractive (that is less attractive than model caliber) was the number of guys who would double take/stare at her in public. It sometimes seemed like everyone was doing it. She said she was used to it and it began around the time she turned 13!
She had some problems which ultimately ruined the relationship. She asked me to propose to her a month in and she was clearly a hypochondriac. When I broke it off she claimed she was pregnant. Fun times.
3. She could silence an Italian restaurant by waking in, but was a dead fish in bed, had a personality like an oak tree, pretty much parroted Facebook opinions, and was anti anything fun. It was a good month, but I had to walk away
4. My girlfriend is a former model. She used to travel all over the world working shows everywhere. Eventually she transitioned to her own label which she sold off.
I’m not the best looking of guys. I don’t really understand how it was that we got together. I did stop to help her when her car broke down, she invited me to a friends of hers braai (BBQ) and then to her bed.
We have had our ups and downs. Both of us had a tough time with jealousy and suspicion of each other – both of us have been cheated on in the past. I see the way that others – both male and female – look at her, and sometimes flirt with her. I know now that nothing will come of any of it. We have both helped each other mature and grow into the beautiful, annoying couple that we are today.
5. I dated what I consider a 10 last year. Everything was great on paper and we made a good looking couple. That gets old fast though, you stop noticing or caring because it simply isn’t important to your overall happiness unless you’ve got some problems. I understood after a few months how people married to gorgeous celebrities end up cheating or breaking things off. She didn’t want to put as much work into the relationship, presumably after a lifetime of being pursued by men where she didn’t have to. In bed it was a mixed bag as well, very low effort on her behalf and not really meeting me in the middle. She also spent an ungodly amount of money on clothes/makeup.
So while it was cool to be admired by other guys for a bit, ultimately it didn’t work out. She was shocked when I broke things off but not in a good way, almost as if she thought she deserved to be the one doing it.
6. She gets hit on constantly, free drinks on nights out, even if Im standing right there.
Guys always stare just walking down the road. She often dresses intentionally like a slob if we are going for a quick shopping trip or something, just so she doesn’t get as many looks.
When she wants to look good though she is a perfectionists. Takes 3 or 4 hours to get ready sometimes. Different makeup, hair styles to go with different outfits.
Some days she feels unattractive even though she just isn’t and I cant see the difference.
My outfit apparently never goes together so she will pick out one that does.
7. Use to date a instagram model. She was blue ticked and had over 500k followers
Honestly, she was a nightmare. Biggest attention seeker i ever met, wanted to post me to her IG after literally a month of dating..
Safe to say it didnt last long before i ended things
8. I briefly dated a model, she was gorgeous and I’m a very average guy so this was strange for me.
We went to dinner one night and the manager was hitting on her, telling her how he could buy her things, she ended up kicking me under the table to get him to leave.
Others were a guy at the train station trying to hit on her so she kind of just leaned against me, we left. She was actually great, very humble, she moved away but if she hadn’t I’d of been all in.
Talked about trying to be in the same place in the future but it just wasn’t realistic.
In China, every land is owned by China. You have only the land usage rights. Even the farmers don’t own the land they use as they only have the tilling rights. If you don’t build any property on the land provided to you, it goes back to the government. Individuals can privately own residential houses and apartments on the land, although not the land on which the buildings are situated.
It helps in avoiding a separate class of people called as landlords. It helped China create infrastructure projects really fast.
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China started these reforms in the 1970s which not only made the country strong but the government as well.
How many exchanges give you $1 when you pay them 100 Rubles
This 100–1 or 150–1 or 70–1 is not the same as the 147–1 in March 2022
This is entirely decided by the Russian Central Bank
That’s because there is virtually ZERO Ruble USD trade on open markets now
Rubles are exclusively used within Russia and Russians aren’t living up to vacation in Florida or London where they will need Rubles into Dollars or Euros or Pounds.
In March 2022, Almost 93% of Russia’s foreign Trade was in USD, Euro, Pound and Yen
Thus the 147–1 was alarming because it meant imports were suddenly very expensive
Today less than 18% foreign trade is in the Big four currencies and any USD trade is with China with whom Russia has forward contracts
So this 100–1 or 1000–1 even is merely a number for the West to use as Political Propaganda
Within Russia, prices remain the same or mildly inflated (4.6%) over 2 years almost
Imports are in Yuan and Lire and both are well regulated
So this rate is an indication of the RARITY of the Ruble rather than an indication of the value of the Ruble
As someone else pointed out, high speed rail makes a lot of sense in the most densely populated parts of the country – the east coast, the Great Lakes, Texas and California.
But China is practically the same size as the United States. Here’s their high speed network
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And here’s their population density map
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90% of China’s population lies on the east side of the “Hu Huangyong Line”, which was created by a geographer to show the difference in population density. Note that even in the less dense parts of the country, there are densely populated cities. Note that the high speed network goes to Lhasa, which sits at an elevation of 12,000 feet above sea level and hasn’t had rail service before this. Most of this network was built in a 12 year period.
And for a last comparison, here’s China overlaid on the continental United States
Now, the U.S. has fewer people than China, but it’s still growing. Moreover, look at this
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This is the interstate highway system. It’s over 70% longer than the Chinese high speed rail system, and doesn’t include all U.S. freeways. This thing is just as expensive as a high speed rail system to build, links distant cities with modest populations, and still doesn’t have enough capacity to deal with the people who want to use parts of it.
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Ignore the thick red lines for a moment and focus on the thin yellow ones. The United States still though it was a good idea to build expensive highways through areas that hardly anyone uses at peak times.
THIS Has Western Leaders TERRIFIED!
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Confessions Of A Golden Gate Bridge Jumper AND Survivor
What was so bad in your life that got you to the point of jumping?
It was a number of things! I’ve struggled with debilitating pain since I was 13 and depression, anxiety, and complex PTSD since I was 15 so that’s what the suicidal ideation was but two weeks before my psychiatrist at the time doubled my antidepressants (very bad idea) which threw me into a manic episode. I ended up dropping my savings on tattoos and then jumping off the bridge in a week.
Was there any particular reason why you chose the Golden Gate bridge?
I chose the Golden Gate Bridge first because of how effective I perceived it to be. The second reason is because my family wouldn’t have to deal with my body, I assumed only the Coast Guard would (also not true) don’t do it guys.
Did you hesitate or just go for the jump?
I didn’t hesitate I was afraid someone was going to notice me.
How long did it take to hit the water?
Seconds
What was going through your mind during the fall?
I didn’t really have any fully formed thoughts. I was feeling a lot.
How did you land in the water?
The wind turned me in the air so I landed slanted primarily on my left ankle which is why the most severe damage was to my ankle and the least severe was to my back.
What happened when you hit the water?
It’s like hitting cement. Pain was pretty much all I felt. I dissociated pretty heavily until I arrived at the hospital (and went into surgery immediately) but at no point did I lose consciousness.
When was the moment you realized “oh fuck I lived”
When I hit the water for sure. I processed the pain and then thought fuck I don’t want to drown.
You must be a fantastic swimmer
Hahaha once your body hits the water though there’s no way to move at all. I did it during the middle of the day with the intention to die on impact so when I didn’t a boat just ended up picking me up.
How did the boat come across you in the water? How did they get you on the boat?
They saw me when I fell because they were nearby. I’m pretty sure they threw something and then grabbed me but I don’t remember very well. I was dissociating a lot and my memory is spotty.
Do you know how long it took from when you jumped until the boat picked you up?
I didn’t have much of a conception of time so I couldn’t say for sure but not very long. I was treading water in the bay while bleeding with broken bones so it couldn’t have been more than a few minutes
What are the odds, you are so lucky, how far did you fall and did you get injured?
Yeah there’s like a 2% survival rate? The fall is 200 some odd feet. I shattered my ankle. Tore my perineum (requiring a colostomy bag and surgery though not as much as the ankle) and got compression fractures in my back.
I can’t imagine the pain
I couldn’t either. It was like nothing you could even grasp. Though the bone infection I got from my first ankle surgery was worse than impact I think
I read an article by someone else who survived the same jump. He said the moment he jumped he regretted the decision. Did you feel the same way?
No. I felt immediate relief. That was likely one of the reasons I survived because my body was very relaxed upon impact.
Could you explain the feeling of falling 200 feet? What could you compare it to?
The actual sensation of falling is pretty much like you’d expect. Like the out of control feeling when you trip but you can’t catch yourself but all you can see around you is water coming closer.
Did you realize at any point that all of your problems were fixable?
It was more of a gradual thing. I had really severe pain before my attempt and that wasn’t going away soon so I knew my shit wasn’t that flexible but I knew I needed to learn to cope because I couldn’t do that to my family again.
Who would you have missed the most?
I would have missed my family, the earth, and my future the most.
How did your friends and loved ones react?
With compassion and love and grief.
How are you doing today?
A lot better. Still struggling with my mental health but my medication is stable so now so am I.
Do you regret jumping?
That’s kind of a hard one. I try not to regret anything that made me who I am today. I think it was probably necessary for my path to recovery. I do however regret the trauma it caused my loved ones and the fucking medical bills.
Do you have a any long term injury from the fall?
I will never be able to walk normally. My left ankle has been fused after like ten fucking surgeries. I had a colostomy bag for five months but thankfully that’s been reversed. I broke my back too so there’s been pain and I’m not sure how longterm that is. Every person I know who has attempted said their body was just so dramatically aged in the process and that was my experience is.
Do you think, knowing what you know now, that you’d ever let your metal health get to that point again or would you reach out?
At this place in my life I have the tools (therapy, meds, a good support system) to reach out when things get bad before I get unsafe. I have a hard time with the word “let” because I feel like there’s the implication that it’s within someone’s control? Or implied fault somehow? I’m responsible for my actions (as we all are) but mental illness is a hard situation. I’m not in control of how bad it gets I can only control how I respond to it if that makes sense.
If you had died on that day, what have you experienced since then that you would have missed out on?
Honestly after this I put so much time and energy into recovery and I have gotten so far. I have started going to school for nursing and am in a beautiful housing situation with my best friend. I ended falling in love with myself and the world again as corny as it sounds. My insights are meditation is really important and therapy should be accessible and available to all.
I have a number of Korean friends. All of them were for unification until a couple of things happened.
The reunification of East Germany with Greater Germany astounded many Koreans. They believed, as did the German government, that with a small surcharge “solidarity” tax and about three years they would elevate East Germany to West Germany standards. Years later, that tax is still in place and the former East still is somewhat estranged from the rest of Germany. The problems of the East were simply too profound — social, civil, economic, psychological, etc — that many Germans now believe that there will not be complete reintegration for three generations. North Korea is in far worse shape than East Germany ever was. The estimate is that reintegration of the DPRK would be at least ten times as difficult and expensive as East Germany.
The people in the ROK tended to think of the DPRK like an old uncle that has been away at sea for years. Yeah, he looks a little different, but basically he is still the same guy. But when North and South Korea formed the joint Winter Olympics hockey team, South Koreans realized how far the two countries had diverged. The NorK players were not familiar with most plays because they were never allowed to watch Russian or Canadian or American teams play. They had never even heard of the names of the plays. The North Koreans had mad up some plays of their own, but they were really clumsy schoolboy efforts. And the North Koreans had made up a lot of “hockey words” for communications that were not what hockey players usually call out. Needless to say, they lose every game very badly. But it opened ROK eyes to exactly how different North Korea had become.
Have you ever played a video game on the hardest setting? Not the one where the enemies are tougher, but the one where there are no save points and you have to start the whole game over if you die?
That’s the real difference between rich and poor kids when it comes to success. The poor are playing the game of life on this setting, while the rich have save points.
Neither rich nor poor are inherently “better at” winning than the other. For the most part, we all sat in the same classrooms, read from the same text books, listened to the same teachers. Our capacity is the same, our brains are equally developed, and we all play on the same field. The difference is the number of tries you get.
Having money in the bank is like having a save point. You still don’t want to screw up – you want to win just as much as anyone else. But you also know that you can take more risks. You can run in and try something crazy, and if it doesn’t work you just roll back to that save point so you can try something else. You can keep trying until you get it right without having to start over.
The poor don’t have that option. They don’t have the luxury of taking as many risks, because they don’t have that save point to roll back to. If they lose, they lose everything and have to start over.
That doesn’t mean the poor can never win – it just means they have to be more careful. Both rich and poor have to take risks to win, it’s just easier to be willing to take those risks when there are fewer consequences for losing.
Or another way to look at it; When I was a young guy first learning about marketing and consumer engagement, I was fortunate to be working for a large company with virtually unlimited marketing budgets. As the Internet emerged and no one had any expertise or expectations of marketing results, we spent millions of dollars just testing different things to figure out what worked and what didn’t.
When something didn’t work, we said “Oh well, that didn’t work, let’s try something else.” And we kept trying until we got it right. We could afford to be wrong.
There’s nothing stopping someone without access to budgets like that from executing a winning strategy – but if they don’t nail it the first time, how many do-overs can they afford?
That’s the difference. Money doesn’t automatically make you more successful, and it doesn’t make it “easier”. But it buys you more chances to try.
Who Lives on the Moon? The First Real Photos from the Other Side of the Moon!
I’m 32 years old and have struggled with social anxiety since childhood. I lost both my dad and mom to cancer in 2008 and 2014, respectively. I don’t have any siblings and haven’t had friends since high school. I feel truly alone in this world and desperately crave social interaction. My routine for the past 12 years has consisted of working a dead-end retail job and spending most of my free time watching porn. Despite my low wage, I was able to save a little over $50k through extreme frugality. I bring my own lunch to work, never eat out or get take-out, and have been wearing the same clothes for over a decade. So the concept of paying for porn seemed ridiculous to me before I got involved with a camgirl.
Anyway, on to my story. I would visit cam sites sporadically in the past, but just lurked and never interacted with the girls. If the girl didn’t take her clothes off within 5 minutes, I’d bail and try to find some videos of her elsewhere. I found a lot of these girls to be very attractive, but lacking in the personality department. They were either too sexual or monotonous for my taste.
Then one night, I came across a cute girl who was new to camming. There wasn’t much tipping going on and I kind of felt bad for her. I decided to get out the credit card and load up on some tokens. I tipped her 50 tokens to perform some act and she blew me a kiss. At that point, I was hooked. Just for reference, a token costs around $0.10 for the buyer and worth $0.05 to the model.
Over the next few months, I became completely obsessed with this girl. I’ve never been a social media person, but created a Twitter and Instagram account for the sole purpose of following her. Later, I bought her premium snapchat, which was considered a “good deal” at the time. We communicated via email and she would always call me sweet, generous, and a good “friend.” In the back of my head I knew this wasn’t genuine, but I was willing to suspend my disbelief (loneliness is a helluva drug). I continued to tip her between 50 and 100 every show. I didn’t want to insult her, so I never went under 50. She had a few regulars, but none of them tipped as much me. One of them even thanked me for taking one for the team. It made me feel “special.”
As she became more popular, she would attract big tippers and I felt like I had to compete for her affection. What was once an enjoyable, albeit ephemeral experience soon became stressful.
There was one user in particular who really got on my nerves. He was a software engineer making $200k/year (or so he claimed) and would always talk about how he’d spoil this girl rotten if they were dating/married. He would out-tip everyone and use weird phrases like “Here comes the money bazooka!” If I tipped 400, he’d immediately 500. If someone else tipped 200, he’d tip 300. He once dropped 5000 tokens in a single show and the girl got super emotional. This made me insanely jealous.
The guy DM’d a few of the regulars and myself on Twitter, asking us our age, what we did for a living, and how much we made. I didn’t tell him that I was a retail worker because I figured he’d use that info to make me look bad in front of the girl. I started to hold back on my tipping in the live shows because of him. Instead, I gave the girl offline tips and bought stuff from her Amazon wishlist. I also bought some “fan package” that contained Polaroids, worn panties, and a handwritten letter. Receiving dirty panties in the mail was a low point for me and I truly felt disgusted with myself.
Over the last 9 months, I’ve tried to quit cold turkey several times. I started missing her shows and she would message me expressing concern. She would say “it wasn’t the same without you,” and like a sucker, I’d watch her next show and tip like crazy. I’d also give an offline tip to make up for not being there, which doesn’t make any sense at all.
Last week, I nuked my cam site account and all social media associated with this girl. She sent me an email on Saturday to ask if everything was okay. I told her that I could no longer watch her because it was draining me both emotionally and financially. She responded with two words: “Oh, okay.” Admittedly, I was a little angry. I spent thousands of dollars/hours on this girl and was kind of expecting more. I suppose it’s for the best. If the response had been a bit more sincere, I’d probably be obsessively checking out her Snapchat as we speak.
I’m seeing a therapist next week. I’ve never been to a therapist before and not really sure what to expect. I just hope I can leave all of this behind me.
“This Economy Is Drowning My Children!” – Alabama Mom In Viral Video
The United States is in FULL collapse.
A video recently went viral that featured a distraught Alabama woman in her car lamenting the virtual impossibility her children, recent college graduates, face in a job market and economy that seems designed to deny them the opportunity to succeed. This wasn’t always the way for middle class Americans, she says, and points the finger at the ever-increasing problem of income inequality.
I had a boss who taught me how he “fired” people. He would bring in the employee and say “It’s clear you’re not happy here and it just doesn’t make sense for you to stay. I’ll pay you for the next 60 days to find your next opportunity.”
It minimized stress and normally didn’t involve litigation, retaliation or other negatives.
So, years later I took on a job with an Apple dealership that was transitioning to a product company.
I had a sales guy that had been there for quite some time. When Apple computers were selling for $10k, he would have made a good living, but when the prices came down to $1-2K there just wasn’t enough margin for him to make it. He was a really nice guy and a good sales person but the world had changed.
I brought him in to my office and said “This is just not working for either of us. I don’t want people working for me that can’t make a decent living. I want my employees to be successful. There is no way that I can see you, or anyone here, selling enough computers to survive. You are an excellent salesperson and there are lots of companies that would love to hire you. I have a list of companies you should call and I’ll pay you for the next 6 weeks while you’re looking. You’ll be searching as “currently employed” versus unemployed and I’ll give you a very good recommendation.”
It is the first time, that someone I let go, shook my hand and thanked me.
Russia smacks Sweden. Missiles destroy Swedish plant in Ukraine. Sweden cries…
Sweden wants to attack Russia… just as long as it is not dragged into the war. Well, look what happened!
In the US, politicians have to spend at least 50% of their time raising money to fund their elections.
Time is valuable and limited. This raises the question if you are a politician: “Are you going to care more about the donor who can donate $20, or are you going to care more about the donor who can donate $500,000?”
The donor who can only donate $20 can give you one vote, but the donor who can give $500,000 not only can give his vote, but he can mobilize his friends, family and even corporations to vote for the candidate, and to donate MORE money.
So which is more important for the politician? Obviously it is the major donor.
In the US, EVERYTHING is driven by money.
In order to understand how the society works and who it works for, FOLLOW THE MONEY.
Standard of Living Collapse!
Doug Casey discusses the declining standard of living in Europe. Doug and Matt criticize the article for not mentioning the impact of government actions, such as heavy regulations and high taxes, on the collapsing standard of living. They also discuss the importance of production and saving in becoming wealthy, criticizing the focus on consumption as a measure of economic success.
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Confessions of a Man Who Shot Himself In The Head And Survived
August 1, 2023
What pushed you to do it?
A lot. Losing my girlfriend, the savings account we worked at for years, the business we created. Just exacerbated my anxiety and depression.
My ex really pushed me to get help in the times where I wasn’t struggling, so I became defensive and put it off. I shouldn’t have, because it would have given me the skills to get through the times I was struggling. Therapy is a bitch. I keep learning things about myself that I’m not proud of. Things I could have managed better for years. The more I learn, the more confident I become that I can better myself.
How long did you take to decide that you were ready to end it?
I decided the night before. It took about 12 hours for me to finalize it.
Did you think about your girlfriend before you did it?
She was in the house. I yelled that I loved her. Then I said Im sorry to my mom, and that I loved her (she wasn’t in the house). But yeah. For years, she was/is constantly my first thought.
What did it feel like when you shot yourself?
Nobody prepares you for what getting shot feels like. It doesn’t hurt. It doesn’t sting. It doesn’t ache. It just burns. Like fire in my head. And blood pouring from my mouth.
I think I was still in shock when I arrived at the hospital, but when they pushed the fentanyl, all that burning went away and I could recognize how much burning pain I was in.
I remember not being able to talk because my tongue hurt.
My pain the first month in the hospital got progressively worse, but high amounts of painkillers will trick you into that.
How did the shot not kill you? How did it “miss”?
I don’t fucking know. It went in by the corner of my left jaw, and came out above my forehead on the right side, taking most of the orbit of my eye with it. I fucked up.
What caliber did you use?
9mm Luger.
Maybe it wasn’t your time?
I wish. I don’t really believe in that mentality. Someone close to me said something along the lines of, “God wasn’t ready for you yet.” And my first thought was, “thousands of years of medicine research and a team of excellent doctors is the reason I’m here, but ok.”
I’ve read stories about how people who jumped off bridges (and survived) immediately regretted doing so and wanted to live more than anything as they were falling. Right after the moment, did you have regrets about doing it with a desire to live or maybe have disappointments that it didn’t work? Or maybe no feelings at all right after?
I woke up with a “what the fuck?” Mentality. I was more confused that I woke up. I didn’t really have feelings about it until a few months later when the drugs wore off.
What was the first thing your mom said to you afterwards?
I’m not sure what my mom said. I woke up post surgery and my whole family was there (they all had to fly in). I was very confused. (Now I know I was in surgery for 10 hours).
What was the road to recovery like for you?
It’s still ongoing. 2 months in the hospital/rehab, lots of follow up appointments, physical therapy, mental/emotional therapy.
Legal battles for custody and household items.
Lots of reintegration with my parents and immediate family, which has been great. It fortunately brought us all closer.
Before I did it, I can’t remember the last time my brother and I spoke on the phone even. It really shook my brother the most. I’m super grateful for his presence in my life now.
Physically, what are the long term consequences to your face and skull from shooting your self?
Physically, I lost my right eye. And I have a plate in my jaw forever. And my forehead is missing a piece of bone they took out during a bifrontal craniotomy. Beyond that, I’m pretty healthy.
Is your face messed up?
Pretty normal for a dude with one eye.
Are you dealing with chronic pain, nerve damage, headaches, etc.?
It’s alright. Headaches suck, mostly because only morphine is enough to dull them. Nerve damage is only in my jaw/tongue/cheek, which is frustrating, but I started vaping because it makes my tongue tingle, and I don’t bite it accidentally anymore.
Is she okay?
Probably not. But she won’t talk to me. I truly hope she is. Of all the negativity between us, I only hope that she’s doing well and that someday, sooner than later, we can sit down and have an honest discussion about it.
What’s something you would want to say to your ex-girlfriend?
This is something I think about all the time. Previously, I was very concerned with myself, and put myself into context when I didn’t need to. That’s something I’d change if I had an hour to sit down with her.
I’d really like her to know that I love her. To this day, nothing has changed. I’d like to have the conversation that I don’t hold anything against her, except for the fact that she knew and didn’t drag me to get help and stand by me, in ways I did for her, and leaving me in the worst of times.
I’d really like the opportunity to listen to her. I don’t know what she has to say, and I don’t need to hear anything. I wasn’t a very effective communicator during our relationship, and I’d like the opportunity to really hear her out, and share those emotions.
Do you still harbor thoughts about suicide?
They’ve mostly gone away. There are times I ponder it, but it’s more the idea of, whereas previously I was fantasizing the roadmap.
Did anything change about your personality or preferences on things as a result of the trauma? Something you would never expect that would change?
Not particularly in personality or preferences. I became a hell of a lot more forgiving and patient, which wasn’t much existent (except with my kids) before.
I think the thing that changed the most was having my emotional brain available. I wasn’t very capable of connecting with my emotions before, I genuinely thought I was broken. I really got down on myself when it came to my ex, because I couldn’t empathize with her when she experienced heightened emotions, and it put a wedge between us, or I did. Now I’m empathizing with commercials, and it’s really bizarre when I become mindful of it, even still.
Do you regret doing it?
I think a lot about regret. I don’t regret shooting myself. I regret the way I proposed to my ex. I regret the way I treated her and other people when they needed me. I regret losing sight of myself because I wanted to be someone else. I regret spending so much time looking for escape instead of looking inward. But I don’t regret shooting myself. It changed my world.
How are things going for you now?
It’s not really going better. I spent years developing a family and life. It’s going about exactly as I predicted before putting a gun to my head. But! On the other side of that, I’ve learned a tremendous amount about love, myself, and bettering myself mentally that I never could have without experiencing tragedy in my previous lifestyle.
And I get to share my story and hopefully help others, which is something I never cared much about.
China has Plenty of Countermeasures to Fight Back Against the US “Neck-hold”!
I kind of understand where this question comes from.
In some countries, one of the functions of the military is to provide disaster relief. It doesn’t matter which branch (but for the most part, it’s the army infantry for the job), if there’s a disaster, the military is mobilized to take the lead on the rescue and relief effort. For example, in China, every time there is a disaster, the first thing the government does is send soldiers to help.
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When I was in China, the military, not the local police and firefighters, provided disaster relief. They bring their own equipment instead of relying on local rescue resources. They bring relief goods, such as water, food, and medicine. But most importantly, the military provides a large number of well-trained and physically fit people to do the heavy lifting so that the locals can focus on recovery. No road? No problem. The soldiers will literally carry the material to hard-to-reach places on foot and literally carry out the wounded on foot. Can’t get the crane or other heavy machinery into the ruins? No problem. The soldiers will dig through the rubbles using simple tools with their hands if necessary. The military led the relief effort in every major natural disaster in memory. The state media also report military disaster relief with full force, so it’s kind of a “staple” scene for every disaster. Every time something goes on, people expect to see soldiers there to help out.
It was kind of mini culture shock for me that the US military usually doesn’t get involved with disaster relief, other than limited support from the National Guard. The disaster relief effort relies mostly on local police and firefighters. It really doesn’t make much sense to me since local police and firefighters are also victims of the disaster. Shouldn’t the central government (federal government) be responsible for providing manpower, resources, and coordination?
Anyway, I understand where your question comes from. In fact, I actually thought about it for a hot minute. Hawaii is a major military base. (Yes, I understand the base is in Oahu, but last time I checked, there’s this thing called “ship,” people use them to move goods and people across big waters). Shouldn’t the soldiers stationed there help the people? Provide medical care support, provide search and rescue support. Shouldn’t the military base provide resources like food and water and fuel or equipment like generators? It really felt that the people of Lahaina are left to fend for themselves. It is up to the locals to drive resources into the city. The images I saw coming out of Lahaina are desolate and desperate. If this were China, I guarantee you there’d be ships sending soldiers to the disaster zone, digging through the ruins for survivors or remains, carrying the wounded to hospital, providing water and food to the residents, etc., etc.
So to answer your question, regardless of where the military bases are, that’s not what US militaries do, except for maybe the National Guard. Other than a few rare occasions where the military is deployed under extreme circumstances (like Hurricane Katrina), you’re on your own with FEMA. That’s why other answers in this answer all seemed very confused, like “What are you talking about? What does the military have anything to do with this?” Because regular Americans don’t expect the military to help out during disasters.
I get the feeling it was designed in such a way because of Americans’ ridiculous fear of a tyrannical government supported by the military. Soldiers walking on civilian streets in formation is every American’s Orwellian nightmare, conservative or liberal.
Chicken Supreme
chicken supreme
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients
4 whole chicken breasts, split, skinned and boned
8 slices bacon
1 (4 ounce) package chipped beef
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup sour cream
Instructions
Wrap each breast with a strip of bacon.
Cover bottom of flat, greased baking dish with chipped beef.
Mix undiluted soup and sour cream and pour over chicken. Cover and refrigerate.
Bake, uncovered, at 275 degrees F for 3 hours.
The 5 Countries That Want To Back Niger Against France & ECOWAS Forces
My relative (I’ll simplify and say aunt), is a police officer in Guangzhou and I’m staying at her home for two months.
One thing I noticed about these homes in Guangzhou (high-rise apartments/condos of which I’m staying in one and visited another) is that they all have these tea-making stations on the coffee tables (usually in front of the TV, surrounded by couches). I’ve never seen these before, especially not outside China.
They’re wooden slabs with carved patterns for decoration, and are cut so that water or tea will drain out a hole into an attached bucket. These are usually used to entertain guests with fresh tea, and come with tea cups, teapots, water heaters, etc.
My aunt took me to the police station to get some paperwork done (temporary residence form for foreigners), and we went to an office where a fellow police officer greeted us. There were couches in the office, and guess what? A tea-making station.
My Snapchat from today (cropped to hide the guy’s face):
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If anyone could tell me what they’re called or provide a better picture I’d appreciate it 🙂
Edit: I saw this in a bathroom today.
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Edit #2:
The tea station is called 功夫茶 (kungfu tea). Thanks everyone!
Artificial Intelligence Out of Control: The Apocalypse is Here | How AI and ChatGPT End Humanity
I would 100% choose to be deeply empathetic but not very smart.
Why?
Because you can’t feel joy without empathy. Yes, being intelligent might give you the capacity to understand a difficult concept and solve complicated problems, but the joy that comes from that accomplishment, the fulfillment from learning new things and solving problems, you need empathy to actually feel it.
Life’s many enjoyments come from feelings, not from intellect.
I don’t want to be the smartest person in the world, and doesn’t feel a thing when I see a child laughing. I want to be able to laugh with the child simply by looking at their face. I want to be able to empathize with others, connect with them, to feel their happiness and their pain.
When I was a teenager, I idolized intellectuals. My role model was Sherlock Holmes because he’s smart, and he used his intellect to solve problems, and the world makes sense to him (and to me, the reader.) After I grew older, I started to value compassion and kindness a lot more than intellect. And I reread Sherlock Holmes, and I realized I missed the point of the book. Sherlock Holmes understands human emotion. He empathized with his friend Dr. Watson and the victims. In fact, in many stories, his ability to understand human behavior and emotion helped him solve crimes. It was part of his deduction. Most importantly, his sense of justice and righteousness didn’t come from his intellect. It came from his empathy.
And that’s why the majority of the modern reinterpretation of Sherlock Holmes got him wrong. The modern reinterpretation of Sherlock Holmes often depicted him as this amoral person who just so happens to be on the right side of the law. And he doesn’t give a fuck about the victims. He just wants to solve the problem. That couldn’t be further away from Sherlock Holmes in the original stories.
I don’t blame the modern writers who got him wrong; after all, that’s how I saw him when I was little. It wasn’t until I was much older, after I had some life experiences, I learned to recognize and value Sherlock’s empathy. He wasn’t just so happened to be on the right side of the law. He chose to solve crimes, help the victims, and uphold justice. He did that not because he’s smart and he can solve problems, no. He becomes a detective, not a criminal mastermind, because he has empathy.
And I learned to accept and validate my emotions. My emotion and empathy is not a weakness. It is what makes me human. It is what makes my life meaningful.
I’m not getting any younger. And sooner or later, my brain will start to deteriorate. There will be times when I can no longer do simple algebra or recite the entire periodic table. But I hope I’ll still have the empathy and emotional capacity to pick up a flower, smell it, feel the breeze of the spring, and be happy.
Michio Kaku Panicking Over Declassified Photos From Venus By The Soviet Union!
Thailand has a rule that prohibits the sale of alcohol between 11 AM to 2 PM. I have no clue why this rule is in place, but it’s something that is strictly followed everywhere. So I was at a 7-Eleven shop in Pattaya today and was buying some snacks when I heard a commotion at the cash counter.
Apparently, a few men wanted to purchase a couple of cans of beer but they were not being sold the same. The cashier tried to make them understand about the national law that prohibits the sale of alcohol during those three hours. However, the customers weren’t happy. They were shouting at the cashier so loudly that all the customers inside the shop gathered around the cash counter to see what was going on. My cousin and I were minding our own business but then, we heard their English turn into Hindi.
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The guys who were shouting at the cashier started to talk among themselves in Hindi, still loudly about the absurd rule and were threatening the cashier that they would walk away without billing the beer if she didn’t sell it to him. These kinds of things ruin the image of Indians abroad. Often times we wonder why our passport is ranked so low! The reason is that the countries are not very welcoming to Indians. They would create a ruckus everywhere they go.
There’s a famous saying, “When in Rome, act like a Roman”. So when you’re in Thailand, you should respect the local laws. There might be a reason why alcohol is not sold between 11 AM to 2 PM. I would try to find it out on the internet later, but whatever be it, you need to follow it. You cannot shout at a worker at the shop who is doing her job. It is this unruly attitude of 1% Indian tourists that spoils the name of the rest 99%.
Ex. Pentagon’s Commander Says China Won’t Pick Up Military Hotline, Terrifying the Pentagon!
Once you see Sina Weibo and you see the Local Mainlanders and how they criticize their Government officials
That’s the only way anyone is cured of the Western Propaganda and lies about China
The difference between China and India is – China is heavily localized
In India, most of us have no clue who our Councillor or Corporator is or who our MLA Or MP is and we always look at the CM Or PM
In China, it’s the opposite
Most Mainlanders look at their Governor, Mayor or Provincial Secretary or Local Officials and rarely associate Xi or the CPCs National Party with any of their problems or issues
Xi is this great man in Beijing who is beyond criticism. Just like Mao or Deng were.
Xi will be criticized by the CPC factions and the others in the Politburo or standing committees
So when a local mainlander blames Xi Jingping for lockdowns Or floods – You become suspicious on the spot because that’s not how China works
The locals blame the local officials, mayor, governors all the time because that’s whom they associate with for all their problems
So when anyone criticizes XJP, they are investigated and what do you know? They are Taiwanese or belong to some NGO from US
So they are investigated further and appropriate action is taken
This becomes an action against criticism in the West
Imagine if a Russian funded reporter demands Biden gone
Or a Kashmiri Journalist wants Modi gone
Would they be allowed to report?
Of course not
So Visit China and find out yourself
I bet when you leave, you will realise the basic difference between criticism & punitive action related speech
In 1998, Sony had to recall more than 700,000 video cameras after making a startling discovery.
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The company had boasted of the ‘X-ray’ capability in the new camcorder, equipped with infrared technology and night vision, which allowed people to take videos in the dark. Sounds like a pretty marketable idea, right?
It didn’t go as planned.
When people used this camera in daylight, the ‘Night Shot’ abilities did something a little less appropriate.
It turns out that a group of people had taken photos of women clothed or in bathing suits, but appearing almost naked.
An ABC journalist stated that at least 12 websites were found with photos of women who appeared almost naked, even though they were actually wearing clothes.
‘It’s an outrage, I think it could enrage anyone. You go outside and you don’t expect people to look under your clothes. It is such a basic expectation that any court in the land will find this to violate that right.
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The supposed ‘X-ray’ capabilities of this camera ended up with a lens that could partially see through clothing on certain occasions due to infrared technology (mainly when wearing dark clothing, which would give a translucent effect, so is not transparent).
‘Any see-through top or clothing, if you hit it with enough light, you’ll get a silhouette of what’s underneath; and that’s essentially all you get with these ‘Sony’ camcorders.
The company had to bag all the cameras they sold in a desperate effort to improve the situation.
Unfortunately, people wanted to try revamping the camcorder to get different ways to see properly through clothing, and some even went on the market for as much as $700.
My older twin sisters were career fashion models. They were on TV, in magazines and billboard signs , much to dad’s chagrin. He got nervous when he saw his daughters bigger than life on billboards. He was always nervous that some weirdo (his word) would find out where they lived. He always thought of a Charles Manson type after Lori and Tracy. They did take self defence.
They participated in runway shows in different cities, lots of travelling and were often first on and last off the runway, a privilege given to top models. They both loved modelling.
They were very smart girls and had eidetic memory which also helped. They were top in their class in school and also in college where they took business. Just a little different than their younger brother, me. I would never know what it’s like to be top of my class.
Dad owned two car dealerships. After the girls retired from modelling they went to work with dad at the dealerships. They loved and had a great interest in cars. In their teens, both drove Shelby GT350 Mustangs. They could look at car data sheets and have them memorized quickly so they loved working at the dealerships.
When dad retired the girls took the dealerships over and ran them very successfully winning awards every year.
So that’s what my sisters did after they retired from modelling.
Many models are smart business women and know exactly what they are going to do after retiring from modelling. Don’t worry about them.
When I was a kid, my favorite store was Radio Shack.
It was in the same shopping center as the grocery store we shopped at, so while my Mom was getting groceries I would walk down to Radio Shack, play the video game demos, and basically drool over all of the cool stuff they had there that I couldn’t afford. It became my weekly hangout. The guys who worked there knew me by name. They joked that I should have a vest and name tag, since I often answered other customers’ technical questions about computer peripherals that the staff didn’t know the answer to. Yeah, I was that nerd.
Seriously though, every week my allowance, birthday money, earnings from doing chores, whatever, it got spent in that store. None of that was the stuff I really wanted, though. I couldn’t afford the computers, the drones, the karaoke machines and stereos, wireless microphones, video cameras, the cool surveillance tech. That stuff was way too expensive. But one day, when I was old enough to have a job and make my own money, I vowed to buy all of it.
That day finally came when I was 15. I had gotten a part-time job, clearing tables at a restaurant within biking distance of our house. I pretty much blew the measly paycheck hanging out with my friends, but I had been throwing my daily tip pool money into a big water jug in my room for months. That was my “Radio Shack Fund.” One day when the jug was nearly full, my mom took me to the bank and had their machines count it. All in, it was a little over $1,500, and I walked out of that bank with a big smile and fifteen crisp $100 bills in my pocket.
“Radio Shack?” she says.
So off we go. As I walked through the door, knowing I finally had enough cash to acquire the treasures inside that had been out of reach thus far, something was … different.
None of it excited me.
It wasn’t that I had outgrown it or anything. It was the fact that all of that cool stuff, the very stuff that had motivated me to save in the first place, wasn’t as interesting once I could actually afford it. And once I was in the position to seriously think about buying it, I started second-guessing the wisdom of it. What do I need a $500 stereo for? In the commercial it shattered all the windows; my mom probably wouldn’t even let me turn it on. Did I really want that remote control helicopter enough to pay $1,000 for it? Is that new computer really that much better than the one I already have?
Well, shit.
You know how every once in a while you have this moment of clarity where you realize something isn’t what you thought it was? That was that day for me. There wasn’t a single thing in that store that I felt was worth parting with the dollars I had worked for. I just didn’t need it.
Sometimes people aren’t consciously being cheap or frugal. Sometimes stuff just loses its appeal when the day comes that you can actually afford it.
It happened when four Soviet diplomats were kidnapped in September 1985 by extremists who demanded that Moscow pressure the Syrian government to stop pro-Syrian militia from attacking rival Muslim positions in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli. Soviet Union quickly dispatched its Alpha Group (a unit of KGB ), tasked with counter-terrorism hostage-rescue operations, to Beirut.
Meanwhile, Soviets didn’t bow down to their demands and as a result Soviet diplomat,Arkady Katkov, was killed by the kidnappers and his dead body was found in a field.
This enraged them and they responded quickly by tracking down and locating the relatives of the kidnappers. In order to send a sharp message to the terrorists one of the kidnappers’ relative was castrated and his body was cut into pieces and were sent to the kidnappers. They also sent a list along with the package containing the names of their relatives with their addresses and threatened to kill more of the kidnappers’ relatives if the Soviet diplomats were not free.
As a result, the remaining hostages were released and dropped off near the Soviet Embassy andsince then no terrorist has ever dared to take captive an Russian official!!!
The newspaper ‘ The Guardian’ quoted:
“This is the way the Soviets operate. They do things–they don’t talk. And this is the language Hezbollah understands.”
THIS GAVE ME GOOSEBUMPS ! Oliver Anthony – Rich Men North Of Richmond | Schuyler Reacts
These reactions are about OUR WORLD RIGHT NOW.
The Brain from Planet Arous (1957) Colorized | John Agar | Sci-Fi, Thriller | Full Movie, subtitles
It Will Steal Your Body And Damn Your Soul! An evil alien brain, bent on world domination, takes over the body of an atomic scientist, while a “good” alien brain inhabits the body of the scientist’s dog and waits for an opportunity to defeat the evil brain.
We have a tendency to get all caught up within our own “little worlds”. We don’t realize all the great stuff “out there”, and when we do, we discover just how much we have missed. And it’s horrible.
In the Arkansas ADC prison, there was a guy who was doing some “20 some”big time” years for telecommunication fraud. He was a “sparky”; an engineer with a great talent for telecommunications and the hardware, and software behind it. But he was locked up after some fifteen years when I met him.
We would go on, and on about how he had this great improvement on telephone land line modems, and how he could double the speed of the transmissions. Sheech!
Fifteen years had passed. We were using satellite, wifi, and cable. No one would even bother touching modems tied to land-lines. But he was locked up for so long that he was; his knowledge was, obsolete. And he did not realize it.
Being prison; the ADC, there was no way that he could subscribe to magazines, or periodicals to be caught up on the news. It was a purposeful isolation bubble. He was unaware.
I tried to tell him, but he wouldn’t listen. Brilliant, and stupid at the same time.
Don’t be like him.
Get out. Experience life. Enjoy some fine food, touch the bark of a tree and pet a cat.
I believe in you.
We start today on a happy note. Please watch this video…
Hungry Cat Went to a Store with a Leaf to Buy Fish, Then the Seller Did Something Unbelievable!
What a great story.
Joe knew a lot of the people that came to his fish store. Many of his customers were regulars who had been buying fish from his family for years. But when one customer started coming around more often he was surprised. A cat came into the shop and checked out what everyone was doing. Then he eventually came back and sat on the counter with a leaf in his mouth. It took a while but they figured out that he was trying to use the leaf to buy fish like he saw people using money. What the seller did next is unbelievable.
Once upon a time, there was an auto repair shop. They had about six bays and a good average turnaround rate. They were doing pretty well. One day when the new manager was walking around, however, he noticed something shocking.
There was a guy… reading a magazine! He wasn’t working on a car or helping customers. He was just sitting behind a counter, eating up profits with his hourly rate.
He knew full well who this guy was. This was the “parts guy”. When the mechanics needed a part—an oil filter, a water pump, brake pads, etc.—they’d go to the parts counter and request it. The parts guy would retrieve it from the shelves and give it to them. If the part didn’t work out, they’d give it back to him and ask for a different one. If they didn’t have the requisite part, he’d order it. He’d also order commonly used parts when they started getting low. He kept the parts shelves nice and tidy.
But here he was in the middle of the work day, just sitting there! How often was he just sitting there? The new manager determined to find out.
So, over the course of the next week, the manager tracked how much time the parts guy “worked” and how much time he just spent sitting around, chomping away at profits. He determined that 80% of the time, the parts guy did no work! He just sat there, reading a magazine or other material. Profitless!
So he fired the parts guy and told the mechanics that now they were in charge of getting their own parts. There was some moaning and groaning, but they complied. What else could they do?
Over the next month, the manager noticed a frightening trend. Their average turnaround time went up, way up! A repair that normally took a few hours now took a few days. A simple oil change went from less than an hour to half a day. Hell, even doing a simple tire plug could take half a day! And they were—gasp—losing customers!
He determined to find the root of the plummet in productivity.
To make a long story short, it was the missing parts guy. When the mechanics got their own parts, they’d grab them off the shelf and try them in their repair. If they didn’t work out or they grabbed too many, they’d just put them back any which way. They didn’t always put them back in the right place, or in the right box.
So that made it harder for them to even find the stuff they needed. Nothing was in order anymore. Plus, no one ever ordered anything, so they were always out of what they needed; they’d order it when they needed it, instead of beforehand. Then they had to wait for parts delivery to get them the stuff they needed, which could take half a day.
So, instead of eating away at profits, the guy who only “worked” 20% of his time allowed the rest of the staff to be more productive. His absence actually killed profits by a wide margin. He was hired back.
China has now de-risked from the possibility of the freezing of their USD assets, including:
a significant portion of their trade is now in currencies other than USD. Trade with MANY countries are now in Chinese RMB or local currencies including trade with Argentina, Iran and Russia. This will continue to increase in the future.
A significant portion of China foreign reserves is now in Gold or other foreign reserves. China has been decreasing its USD foreign reserves and this in itself is causing significant issues for the United States
China has now completed an alternative to SWIFT with its own CIPS and this will allow it to continue trade with other countries
for critical products – like corn, wheat, oil, etc – China has diversified its supply chains. Therefore, it’s economy will not be disrupted by whatever the Americans does
BIGGEST advantage is that China is an economic powerful house producing most things that the United States and the west needs. All it has to do is stop the exports of critical inputs, machineries and or finished products AND it will shut down the economy of those countries. Given this possibility, it is doubtful that the United States will freeze Chinese USD assets.
Star Trek Next Generation – Withdraw Understood !
My Goodness!
Not MM-MM.
This was me today.
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Exactly 12 hours ago, I had a moment I am still processing. This stretch of highway has been paved so badly that every Fireman, EMT, and police officer on the scene said, “This happens constantly in this spot.” A short summer downpour caused the road to become so slick, that turning a corner at 20–25 mph caused the vehicle to lose control. I tried to correct the turn and brake, which caused the back end of the vehicle to face 180 degrees in the opposite direction. Everything was in slow motion as I watched myself fall off the road. I can still see the disorienting view turn sideways as I felt the impact of hitting the ditch. The passenger glass blew out and I realized that my head was hanging upside down near leaves and dirt. I began to shake. I’m shaking now. I’m not a dedicated seat belt wearer, but today, without thinking, I had clicked on the seatbelt before I began my drive. I could feel the adrenaline surge as I realized the only reason I was alive and not thrown under the vehicle was because I had unconsciously made that decision.
A lady and three teenagers had walked over to peer in through the drivers side window. She asked me, as I saw that her hands were shaking from the sight, if I was ok. And to my shock, I was. I broke down crying as the first thing I said was, “This seatbelt saved my life.” She reached her hand through the drivers window and held my hand, rubbing it for security as she called for assistance. I must have hung there for 20–30 minutes before the firefighters cut me out of the tightly locked seatbelt. But I am so thankful for the lady who had selflessly held the hand of a crying stranger until they arrived.
I was able to climb out on my own. I was assessed by paramedics and allowed to tow the truck home. I don’t know what tomorrow is going to bring. We are a middle class family who is down one vehicle in an economy that has not been kind to us. But I can still hear the ladies voice as she said, “You can always get another vehicle, but you can’t get another life.” We will all expire at some time. There are no exceptions. I have been reminded of this today. But it’s not today.
Have you ever wondered what that bar on the backs of trucks is for? Called the Mansfield bar, it was made mandatory after a horrifying accident involving actress Jayne Mansfield.
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On June 29th 1967, Jayne, her driver, lawyer and three kids were driving from Mississippi to New Orleans. The road was dark and visibility was poor as the drove in the early hours of the morning, and was unable to see the large truck in front of them. The 1966 Buick crashed into the back of the truck, slicing off the top of the car.
The three adults including Jayne died on impact, but luckily the kids in the back survived. One of those kids is well known “Law and Order” actress “Mariska Hargitay.”
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As a result of the accident, the national highway traffic safety administration ordered all semis to have the bars installed.
Years ago in the early 90s I had a job in customer service for a telephone company. We had a girl start that was from somewhere down south and she had moved up into the Midwest because her husband got a job in the cattle industry. His job wasn’t normally a traveling job, but his first 2 years he had to do a lot of it to learn about the different livestock auctions, plants, etc. Just normal new hire stuff learning the industry.
She wanted to go home for a long holiday weekend, but her husband couldn’t go because of her work schedule, so she asked one of their mutual friends if he wanted to go with her. He also worked there with us. (Totally innocent, this isn’t a cheating story.) She was always funny, down to earth, well dressed but not anything expensive. Think Younkers clothes instead of KMart, but not high end designer stuff. She had a nice new car but it was a low end base model compact. Everyone loved her and her down home southern attitude.
Forward to next week, they had returned. The friend she took let us in on her secret.
Her family was LOADED. They got to the city they lived in, Nashville I think. Her parents compound was walled, had live security on duty including the gate guard you see in movies. Garage full of Italian sports cars. A Rolls Royce with a chauffeur. In the front hall there was a hand-written check framed and signed by Jimmy Hoffa for 1mil. Uncashed.
Turns out her grandfather had invented something to do with reefer units and was in the trucking industry. All the trucks with their family name I saw on the road were hers, but I didn’t know because she was married and had taken her husband’s last name.
She chose to live a normal life with her husband and struggle like any other young couple instead of living off of her family’s wealth. She was just a sweet normal girl.
China’s Next Generation Laser Weapons To Destroy US in 2.5 seconds Shocked The World
Back in the 70’s, there was a HUGE war in the food industry. It was fat vs. sugar, and in the end, sugar came out victorious. I mean, to fight fat, don’t eat fat, right? Makes sense!
NO.
The science wasn’t complete and the sugar manufacturers raised a lot of capital to get their message out… I mean, of course, “to buy politicians”.
ALL of the evils perpetrated on the American people for as long as there have been any is due to political money. You can make anything a social issue if you buy the right congresspeople.
So sugar was in and fat was out. Bacon was bad, but “diet candy” was good. This was all bullshit because no matter the form it’s in (glucose, high fructose corn syrup, molasses, honey, etc…), it’s all carbohydrates. If you have an excess of carbs and you’re not burning those empty calories, guess where that ends up?
Plain and simple, if you have too many calories and you’re not using them, they will turn to fat. Any developing nation out there will tell you that rice, potatoes, and bread is the easiest way to get calories. Sugar just packs these calories more densely, but we’re programmed for it to taste good, so we just suck it up.
Meanwhile, poor bacon, ham, and fried chicken are out here going, “NOO! We’re made with fat and protein! You can get calories from us, too!”
Even salad is having a tough time of it. Go grab any random, name brand dressing off the shelf. I’m willing to bet within the first 5 ingredients will be either sugar, or something that ends in “-ose” (which is also sugar). Fuck, even our bread is unable to be labelled as bread in other countries because of the sugar levels. Subway in Europe sells sandwiches on cake.
There’s something called “essential fats”. There is no such thing as “essential carbohydrates”.
Penn and Teller had a show a while back called “Bullshit” that debunked all sorts of things. One episode was about weight loss. They had a stagehand who had recently lost a ton of weight. They pulled him out from backstage and said, “Tell the audience how you lost all that weight.”
Dude looks straight into the camera and says, “I stopped eating so fucking much.”
“Not the first and not the last” China-Russia joint naval patrol near Alaska — Global Times
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China and Russia’s third joint naval patrol that allegedly reached international waters near Alaska last week has touched the nerves of US media, which hyped the voyage as “highly provocative,” ignoring the fact that the US constantly sends warships and warplanes to China’s doorsteps for close-in reconnaissance and military exercises under the so-called freedom of navigation.
11 Chinese and Russian vessels approached the Aleutian Islands and have since left without entering US territorial waters, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Sunday, citing US officials.
Four US destroyers and a P-8 maritime patrol aircraft shadowed the combined Chinese and Russian naval force, the report said.
While the WSJ report quoted a US Northern Command spokesperson who said the patrol remained in international waters and was not considered a threat, it also quoted US experts as saying the voyage “is a historical first” and “highly provocative.”
announced on July 26 that China and Russia would soon launch their third joint naval patrol, which would see both sides’ warships sail into West and North Pacific waters following the Northern/Interaction-2023 joint exercises in the Sea of Japan.
The operation is not targeted against any third party and is not related to any international or regional situation, the Chinese Defense Ministry said in a press release at the time.Two Type 052D guided missile destroyers, two Type 054A guided missile frigates and a Type 903 comprehensive replenishment ship of the Chinese Navy are included in the flotilla, while the Russian Navy is represented by vessels including large anti-submarine ships and corvettes, according to media reports.
The Northern/Interaction-2023 joint exercises and the subsequent joint naval patrol fully reflect the level of the strategic mutual trust between the two countries and further enhanced the traditional friendship between the Chinese and Russian militaries, said Senior Colonel Tan Kefei, a spokesperson at China’s Defense Ministry, at a regular press conference on July 27.
China is willing to continue to boost pragmatic communication and cooperation with all parties and contribute positive forces in safeguarding regional peace and stability as well as deal with all kinds of security threats, Tan said.
Despite that China and Russia announced the joint patrol, US media are attempting to hype the “China and Russia threat” theory, Zhuo Hua, an international affairs expert at the School of International Relations and Diplomacy of Beijing Foreign Studies University, told the Global Times on Monday.
The China-Russia joint patrol in international waters in the North and West Pacific marks a positive force that helps safeguard regional stability and security of strategic routes in the Asia-Pacific region at a time when the US is enhancing combat readiness, rallying allies and partners in the region to change defense policies and expand militaries, which escalated regional tensions, Zhuo said.
‘Not first, not last’
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This is not the “historical first” that a China-Russia joint naval patrol flotilla has reached waters off Alaska as US media has claimed, as a similar case took place during the second joint naval patrol between the two countries in September 2022.
At that time, only a lone US Coast Guard cutter was on the scene, compared to the USS John S. McCain, the USS Benfold, the USS John Finn and the USS Chung-Hoon destroyers and a P-8 maritime patrol aircraft deployed this time, the WSJ said.
The US media linked such an escalation in US reaction to the Ukraine crisis and the Taiwan question, but such speculation is purely groundless and is aimed at throwing mud at the normal military cooperation between China and Russia, analysts said, noting US’ hegemonic mindset and its double standard are the true reasons behind its anxiety.
The international waters in the North Pacific including the Bering Sea are important because from here ships can access the Arctic, Fu Qianshao, a Chinese military expert, told the Global Times on Monday.
With the global warming, the Arctic shipping routes could become key passages for civilian ships to carry out commercial activities, Fu said.
While the joint patrols by China and Russia aim to safeguard the security of key strategic routes, the US wants to control the passages out of its hegemonic mindset, experts said.
The US is nervous because the Bering Sea is close to Alaska, but the US should not forget that it frequently sends warships and warplanes to other countries’ doorsteps for so-called freedom of navigation operations, including to the South China Sea and the Taiwan Straits, sometimes alone and sometimes together with other countries’ forces, Fu said.
While the China-Russia joint flotilla did not enter US territorial waters, US warships have in many occasions trespassed into Chinese territorial waters in the South China Sea.
It is ironic that all US forces involved in shadowing the China-Russia joint flotilla have provoked China on Chinese doorsteps, observers said. The USS John S. McCain, the USS Benfold, the USS John Finn and the USS Chung-Hoon destroyers and a P-8 maritime patrol aircraft have all made transits in the Taiwan Straits in the past, while the USS John S. McCain, the USS Benfold and the USS Chung-Hoon have records of being expelled after trespassing into Chinese territorial waters in the South China Sea.
It exposes the US’ double standard that only allows its military presence near other countries and not accepts other countries’ military presence near it, observers said, urging the US to reflect on itself.
From a military perspective, the four US destroyers and a US patrol aircraft could only monitor the China-Russia joint flotilla of 11 warships, and were not capable of doing anything more than that, analysts said.
“In the future, the Chinese Navy could conduct more far sea patrols like this, either alone or together with other countries. The Americans should get use to it,” Fu said.
Before the China-Russia joint naval patrols, Chinese naval warships had already reached international waters near Alaska.
Once such case was in August 2021, in which a four-ship Chinese naval flotilla led by a Type 055 10,000 ton-class large destroyer was reportedly spotted by the US Coast Guard in the US Exclusive Economic Zone, off the coast of the Aleutian Islands in Alaska
.
In 2015, five PLA Navy ships transited expeditiously and continuously through the Aleutian Island chain in a manner consistent with international law, the US Naval Institute News reported at the time. It was an “innocent passage” within 12 nautical miles of the Aleutian Islands, the report said.
Chinese experts said this kind of far sea exercise serves as a countermeasure and a signal against the US hegemonic actions of frequently making provocations near China in the name of freedom of navigation.
the GIRLS REACT to *Alien (1979)* IT’S SO SCARY!! (First Time Watching) Horror Movies
On June 3rd 2022, 3-year-old Ryker Webb went missing from his home in Montana wearing just his onesie. The area was in the middle of the wilderness, inhabited by Mountain Lions, Bears and on the evening he went missing, there was a severe thunderstorm.
His distraught parents feared the worse until they got the call that he had been found. He was discovered two days later on the Sunday, and 2.5 miles from his house.
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A couple heard whimpering from their shed and found Ryker wrapped in a lawnmower-bag to keep warm in the nearly freezing temperatures. When they first found him they said he was hungry and tired, but for his circumstances he was a pretty up-beat mood.
When they questioned him he said that he went for a really long walk and got tired. It is believed he seen the shed and took shelter during the thunder storm and stayed there for 2 days worrying about ever seeing his parents again.
John Chau, 26-year-old American evangelical missionary.
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He was unalived* by an isolated tribe he was trying to convert to Christianity.
The islanders are notorious for being hostile for outsiders to even visit, let alone throw Bibles at, yet John clearly wasn’t one to apply self-preservation.
One of the very few photos taken of the natives of the tribe, 1970s.
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It is illegal under the Protection of Aboriginal Tribes regulations to visit without government permission – John did not obtain this. He seemingly had no respect for the law of the land.
Two local fishermen would take him partway to the island and no further. They let him approach the island on a canoe by himself.
For several days, he persistently made several attempts to communicate with the tribe from the safety of his canoe.
He documented in his journal that they laughed at him, they stared at him, and yelled words he didn’t understand.
On his second-last day a boy shot an arrow through his Bible. He didn’t take for the warning it obviously was.
On his final day, he told the fishermen to leave without him.
The next day they saw his body on the shore. Cautious attempts were made to retrieve his body but no one ever did.
John was an adventurer.
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He was known among his friends for being a thrill-seeker. Throughout his youth he indulged in camping, hiking, et.c.
My point being he went there for himself. Not just religion.
There’s a reason why the government needs to give permission for outsiders to visit. There’s a reason why even the surrounding locals won’t set foot on that island.
John ignored all the rules.
He went there for himself, to fulfill his thrill-seeking, adventurist desires.
I moved to the U.S. 5 weeks later, COVID happened.
All the dreams about off-roading trips, going to places, exploring America went out the window.
Social distancing; lockdown. People went crazy buying hand soaps; toilet papers. There was a time even flour and yeast also shortage
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One afternoon, I was at the grocery store, suddenly I felt something hit my back. I turned around. It was a woman threw a toilet paper bag at me. She yelled: “Go fucking back to your country! You Chinese fuckers! You brought that fucking virus here!”
I picked the toilet paper bag, put it back on the shelf, then I told her: “First of all, I am not Chinese. Second, in case you don’t know, airlines are shutting down, it’s quite difficult to travel right now. Third, you should apologize to me, because I think what you did is on tape” – I pointed at the camera. She ran away.
I’m not sure when I will be able to forget that memory.
NEOCONS ADMIT DEFEAT | BRIAN BERLETIC ON UKRAINE’S STALLED OFFENSIVE | BIDEN BLASTS CHINA
Yes. As a Captain and Company Commander in the Army Reserves I was running an errand in the rural south with one of my high-ranking NCOs, a Sergeant First Class. We needed to stop for lunch, so I pulled up to the sort of small country diner at which I like to dine from time-to-time in the countryside.
My Sgt was African-American. Let’s call him “SFC T.” We were wearing our camouflaged combat fatigues.
SFC T said, “I don’t think we should stop here, sir. This is the local KKK hangout.” I chuckled and said, “Sgt T, this is the 1990’s, not the 1960’s. What are you talking about?” And he replied, “Sir, look at the sign. See how it says ‘Karla’s Kountry Kitchen?’ See how they spell it ‘Karla’ with a ‘K,’ ‘Kountry’ with a ‘K,’ ‘Kitchen’ with a ‘K?’ And see how the ‘K’s are painted different colors than the other letters? It’s the local KKK hangout.” I laughed and dismissed his concerns, saying lightheartedly, “Sgt T, you are totally full of shit. Now get out of the car, we are going in for lunch.”
Understand, I was an officer who ALWAYS very strongly respected, listened to, and relied upon my NCOs. But this was not a military matter and, although I knew racism still existed, it simply was beyond my comprehension that overt, hostile, potentially violent KKK shit could still exist in the 1990’s. In our area? Right out in the open amongst everyone? With a sign above the door? It was as if someone was telling me the earth had two moons.
I opened the door to the cafe and took about three big steps inside, with SFC T right behind me. The place was packed. Immediately, all conversation ceased. Stone cold silence. Simultaneously, every single head in the entire restaurant turned to stare at us. And although no movie soundtrack of impending doom started playing in the background, my mood immediately shifted, from happy-go-lucky Captain anticipating a great country meal with one of my best NCOs, to fight or flight mode anticipating danger and potential violence.
I needed go no farther. I looked over my shoulder and said quietly, “Sgt T, let’s get the f__k out of here.” So we turned, walked straight back out out, and jumped in my car. I cranked it up and drive off at high speed.
Of course, I felt absolutely terrible. Terrible for not believing SFC T or listening to his concerns. Terrible for placing us, and particularly him, in a potentially dangerous situation. Terrible for being so incredibly naive as to have no idea that such bullshit still existed.
I apologized profusely to SFC T as we were driving away. Frankly, he seemed more amused than anything, watching my eyes open and the light bulb go on in my brain.
The more I thought about it, however, the more I found it a very valuable experience. Because I witnessed first hand how two intelligent people, coming from two different backgrounds and, particularly, races, can view exactly the same situation but see two totally different realities. Or, more precisely, one complacent fiction and one harsh reality. And I’ve never forgotten it.
So 30 years later, when I hear people dismiss BLM protests, or fail to see as victims black men who die at the hands of police in questionable circumstances, I think of SFC T and Karla’s Kountry Kitchen. And I marvel at how many people still need to open their eyes.
REACTING to *Aliens (1986)* THE GREATEST SEQUEL?? (First Time Watching) Sci-fi Movies
Originally Answered: What are some mind-blowing facts that sound like ‘BS’, but are actually true?
Liquor and wine are illegal in the U.S. unless they are radioactive. When tested, drinking alcohol is required to have at least 400 radioactive decays per minute for each 750 ml.
Explanation: The United States government has decided that alcohol for consumption must be made from “natural” materials, such as grains, grapes, or fruit. That rules out alcohol made from petroleum. Such alcohol is chemically identical to natural alcohol and just as safe – there’s no difference in taste — so why this rule? The reasons have to do with history (keeping alcohol more expensive, a goal of the anti-alcohol lobby) and minimizing competition (a goal of the liquor lobby).
How can you tell the difference between natural alcohol and alcohol made from petroleum? There’s no chemical difference. The United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, charged with enforcing the natural alcohol rule, has only one reliable test: check for radioactivity. Natural alcohol gets its carbon from plants; the plants got the carbon from atmospheric carbon dioxide. As explained on the previous pages, atmospheric carbon dioxide is radioactive because of the continued bombardment of cosmic rays – particles coming from space that collide with nitrogen molecules and turn it into C-14, radiocarbon. Only one atom in a trillion carbons in the atmosphere is radiocarbon, but that’s enough to be detectable. (One of the authors of this book, RM, invented the most sensitive way to detect C-14, called “Accelerator Mass Spectrometry.”)
Petroleum was also made from atmospheric carbon, but it was buried hundreds of millions of years ago, isolated from the radioactive atmosphere. Radiocarbon has a half-life of about 5700 years, and after a hundred million years, there is nary an atom of C-14 left.
True, bootleggers could get some C-14 and add it to illegal liquor. But that’s beyond the skill set of most of them.
Yeah, on May 30, 1989, although my mom was with me.
It was my birthday. Ever since I was a kid, I had wanted to see Cats on Broadway, so my mom decided to take me for my 16th birthday. She picked me up from my dad’s house, we made the hour-long drive into Manhattan… and saw the big “SOLD OUT” sign outside the Winter Garden Theater. I was bitterly disappointed — sold out on a weekday??
Mom said, well, let’s get lunch and go to the movies instead, and asked if there was anything in particular I wanted to see.
Actually, yes, I told her. Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure.
My mom was awesome. She didn’t even ask what it was about or anything. We went to the diner and got some burgers and milkshakes, then to a movie theater in Peekskill, New York.
We were the only ones there, but we didn’t care. I loved it, and Mom loved it, too. My mother had this fantastic, loud, goofy laugh, and it echoed through the empty theater. I’m not sure which of us enjoyed Bill and Ted’s historical anticsmore, and by the time the credits rolled, I wasn’t so bummed that Cats had been sold out.
That would be the last movie I’d ever see in the theater with my mom. She had 4th stage breast cancer, see, that had metastasized to the brain, and early the next year, they’d find her 3rd brain tumor. She died in November 1990, when she was 54 and I was 17.
Thinking about that day makes me miss my mom something fierce, and especially that big, goofy Kay Truex laugh, echoing in a theater that we didn’t have to share with anyone else. I’m glad we were the only ones there, and that we spent that day in a crummy movie theater alone, rather than on Broadway with a crowd of people.
It was just for us.
Me and my mom on her 54th birthday, March 1990. I’m not sure it’s the last photo ever taken of us together, but it’s the last one I still have. Was she a historical babe or what?
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Scott Ritter: China is Ready for WAR Over Taiwan as Blinken’s “Diplomacy” Fails
As to Gold, I am certain China has more than 2300 Tonnes as Reserves
Yet 7000 is ridiculous
Nobody can acquire so much Gold without a market shock
In 2015, a very reasonable analysis predicted that China’s actual reserves would amount to 98.8 Million Troy Ounces or 3073 Tonnes
This was based on buy patterns of Gold by China’s private players increasing 219% between 2009–2015 while China revealed it’s reserves to grow only by 62%
So many experts reliably predicted China’s Gold Reserves were actually close to 3073 Tonnes and not 1658 Tonnes as claimed by China
From 2015–2023 based on buying patterns China purchased directly through the Central Bank around 661 tonnes
Private players purchases remain confidential and Gold purchases in Yuan with Russia and UAE remain confidential
Assuming 25% of the buying by private players compared to 2009–2015 and 15% of the quantity of gold from Russia and UAE in Yuan than they did in Dollars
That’s around 398 Tonnes roughly
Thus China’s estimated real reserves could be = 3073 + 661+ 398 = 4132 Tonnes
So China may have around 4132 Tonnes of Gold in its reserves
Likewise China’s real reserves may be between $ 4–4.6 Trillion
That’s because this 28nm DUV Lithography machine is FULLY INDIGENOUS and has come to the commercial line in 3 Years and 10 months
There are 15,800 components in this machine and everyone if them is MADE IN CHINA
The Wafer layering is also Chinese
The Final Tested 28nm Chip had a 94.1% yield which is only 1.7% lower than the 95.8% that a 28nm chip made with Western equipment delivers
Even 7% was acceptable by the Chinese (88.8% Yield) so a 94.1% yield was OUTSTANDING
The Chip is estimated to be priced at 4840 Yuan for a stack compared to 5410 Yuan for a stack of 28nm chips that use Western Equipment and are made in China
That’s a 12.50% price cut
Experts estimate that the same 28nm chips being made in Taiwan or Korea using Western equipment would cost 7200 Yuan or almost 50% higher than China’s price
This Machine is now commercial which means by 2027 it will replace existing western DUV equipment completely and also have enhanced quality
This means China have gained full Independence in their 28 nm Chips from any Western Control and technology
Until now it was possible only for 90 nm Chips and above
Thats not why the US is mad though
This was something that was expected by the US the minute the same equipment passed protocol stage in 2018 May with a 59% Yield (Now 94.1%)
It entered Commercial phase in 2019 December
The US is mad because China can use these 28 nm Chips and stack them and get the equivalent of 14 nm and even 7 nm chips
China has made massive strides in stacking
It means China can now have fully Indigenous 14 nm Chips at 89% of the quality that the West delivers and Indigenous 7% Chips at 70.1% of the quality that the West delivers
Now these stacked chips cannot be used commercially as their price would be too high (A 28 nm Chip stacked as a 14 nm would cost 91400 Yuan a stack against a mere 11260 Yuan that it would cost for a Western Equipment made 14 nm Chip in China and 16220 Yuan for a stack made in Taiwan)
However they can be used in Defence applications and National Security related applications where China won’t mind the higher price in exchange for more flexibility
Better to have 71% Quality home chips at 11 times the price for Defence Equipment than have none at all and have a 100% disadvantage with the West
Thats why the US is hopping mad
A Senator named Tom Cotton said this was all Bidens fault and he was too slow and gave too much time for China to catch up
China still has a long way to go
China is around 3/4 the way there
It still needs the last 25% of the race against the toughest of circumstances
9 things Australians are not being told about US military deal
No, the astonishingly expensive tie-up between Australia and the US military deal is NOT about defense of the country, nor is it about bringing stability to Asia. The opposite is true, and Asians know it. The Australians stand to lose a great deal, not just in terms of money, but in the great relationships that they have built with the rest of Asia over many decades, and in the world’s understanding of the Australian character.
THE TRUTH! Oliver Anthony Reaction – Rich Men North of Richmond
It is at the stage where the icy water is lapping on the decks, and the deck chairs are starting to float on cold dark water. There’s a tilt to the deck. Some of the chairs are sliding on the wood surface, and there is a real list to the ship.
People are starting to quietly scream, but a steward walks over to the upset ones, and calmly helps them put on a life-vest.
ALL of the lifeboats are launched and rowing away.
You can hear the barking orders in the dark mist rowing away.
Those that remain on the ship are freaking out. Really freaking out, and scrambling. They are clustered in worried groups whispering to each other, while some are getting shit-faced drunk.
A few are trying to rush about. While others are pretending nothing is going on. Some are trying to talk to someone wishing some soft and soothing words.
But all in all, it’s worrisome.
Panic has set in.
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Pretty soon, and really quickly, its going to get really bad, and REALLY noticeable.
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And then…
Right after that, the various “lights” are going to dim out. One by one. Sounds will start to build up. Low rumbles, discord, and open strange behaviors.
It’s going to be a real fright.
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This might look sudden.
But it isn’t. It is the result of many decades of long and thoughtful planning by merit driven experts based on history and experience. While the inept, and corrupt are busy butt-fucking each other while they are throwing money into the air with rapacious abandon.
And inside the “West” people are starting to eat each other…
Oliver Anthony – Rich Men North Of Richmond | Italian-Ukrainian Reacts
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Any idea why my answer was deleted on Quoria?
I can’t figure it out. It’s not offensive. It’s a popular answer, and I said what? Five sentences.
As the United States collapses, all of the lies, tricks, and subterfuge becomes evident. Many of us are aghast at how we have been duped for so long, when all the evidence is right there before us.
Taxes are way above what they need to be. Public services are far below the minimum standards. Merit has all been eliminated from the government and replaced with a convoluted system of nepotism based on ever-changing progressive standards.
What is real and what is false? No one knows. At this period of late-stage collapse, we need to question everything. Even our most cherished beliefs.
Fifth five years after Apollo 11, NASA had planned to return to the moon in 2025
EXCEPT that they wont be because they “are NOT ready”
Fifth plus year after Apollo 11, NASA is not able to return to the moon
this time, technology has advanced so greatly that the world will be able to track that return to the moon
when you look at the considerable AND overwhelming evidence
it is clear that NASA never went to the moon in the first place in 1969
internet sleuths have effectively debunked a moon landing confirming what have long been suspected
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I would be surprised if NASA can return to the moon at all in this decade
Americans and the world have been fooled
one of America greatest exceptionalism is a lie
as are MANY things that Americans have been manipulated into believing about themselves
That is why all data, designs and tapes of Apollo 11 have been “lost” in order to bury that lie
Chicken Verde Tacos
Slowcooker Salsa Verde Chicken Tacos
Ingredients
8 tomatillos, husks removed
2 or 3 poblano peppers
1/2 medium sweet onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
Cilantro, washed thoroughly
3 or 4 tablespoons canola or olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Corn tortillas (you can also use soft flour tortillas, if preferred)
1 roasted chicken (I use store bought rotisserie chicken because it’s easy)
1 to 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
Instructions
Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Arrange tomatillos on a tray and roast for about 15 minutes. Remove and let cool.
Turn oven to 475 degrees F.
Put poblanos on foiled lined baking sheet and roast until skins turn bubbling and partly black. (You can also do this on a grill). Once charred, remove peppers from oven and let cool. When cooled, peel off skins, remove stems and seeds. (If you like spicier food, leave seeds in peppers.)
In a small pan, sauté chopped onion and garlic in enough oil (about 3 tablespoons) so the garlic does not burn. Sauté until onions are softened and slightly translucent. Remove from heat and combine the tomatillos, poblano peppers and the onion and garlic mixture (oil included) into a blender and throw in a handful of cilantro. Add salt and pepper to taste and 1 tablespoon of sugar to balance the bitterness of the tomatillos. Blend until smooth. (Taste after blending. If still slightly bitter, add more sugar to taste.
Meanwhile, take chicken, remove skin and break up meat into shredded pieces. Make sure no bones get in. Put the shredded chicken into pan used to sauté onions and garlic, pour verde sauce over top and heat on medium-low heat until warmed through.
Heat tortillas by package directions. Fill each with chicken verde mixture. Eat as is or you can add your favorite toppings like hot sauce, sour cream, cheese, tomatoes or lettuce.
Richard Wolff | How PATHETIC Has America Become Under THIS SYSTEM?
The system MUST change! What a great video. Fundamentals. Must watch.
In a neutral set up , any half decent economist would be hailing China’s 5.5% growth so far as PHENOMENAL
Yet the very fact that this is talked of negatively shows how badly economics has been compromised for Political Propaganda
Chinas real estate reforms were the boldest in recent history by anyone trying to subside a bubble
The Lockdowns
The Hostile Trade restrictions globally
They all contributed to a large chunk of China’s growth forced to be slowed
Yet China grew at 5.5% indicating a shocking level of resilience and strength
Growing Technological expansion and a deep expansion into domestic markets and focus on private enterprise and plenty of stimulus is China’s way of adding to its economy to fight off US and Western trade throttling & Sluggishness due to weak demand
This alone Shows China is one of the very few Economies on earth which can survive and even grow under hostile US decoupling
Jimmy Dore’s Wikipedia Page Edited By CIA!
In 2007 a hacker and tech whiz named Virgil Griffith revealed that the CIA, FBI and a host of large corporations and government agencies were editing pages on Wikipedia to their own benefit (or the benefit of associates). Now Wikipedia co-founder Larry Sanger is reporting that the intelligence agencies are still at it, routinely editing pages relating to the Iraq War body count, treatment of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay and China’s nuclear program. Jimmy and The Convo Couch host Craig Jardula discuss this modern-day version of information warfare taking place on the pages of Wikipedia.
OMG, people criticize everything about China. Really, there’s nothing but negative news about China. It really seems like Chinese people are a hopeless bunch.
IMO, China’s education system is fairly good. It drums the basics into students’ heads. I very strongly believe that students who have that foundational knowledge are more likely to be innovators than people who don’t know the basics.
Americans believe that American schools are superior to China’s.
American media claim that Chinese people are incapable of critical thinking.
Basically, Americans, Koreans and Indians believe that Chinese people are dummies.
Is it really a matter of opinion, or are Americans and their lackeys correct?
They say that being at the bottom of the PISA chart below makes Americans more innovative. Wouldn’t that also mean that countries like India who didn’t make it on the chart are phenomenally innovative?
However, would you believe that most innovators in the USA are IMMIGRANTS?
Putin isn’t a Fool – The Mother of all Miscalculations | Dmitry Orlov
Dmitry Orlov was born in Leningrad, USSR, into an academic family, and emigrated to the US in the mid-1970s. He holds degrees in Computer Engineering and Linguistics, and has worked in a variety of fields, including high-energy physics, Internet commerce, network security and advertising. He is the author of several previous books, including Reinventing Collapse and The Five Stages of Collapse.
I was driving and started to have car problems. I pulled into a convenience store gas station. Being in the midst of a divorce, barely making any money and feeling broke and alone, needing to pick up my son at his daycare over 20 miles away (to be charged $5/minute late fee after 6:00 pm), I suddenly felt lost and unsure of what to do next.
The cashier saw me and asked if everything was alright. Guessing I looked on the verge of tears. I told her the situation and that I didn’t feel like I had a friend in the world and didn’t have a clue what to do. She came and put her arm around me and said, “Don’t you worry about a thing, honey; we’re going to take care of this”, and made a phone call.
Tow truck arrived and towed my car, while the wife/owner of the tow truck company drove me the 20+ miles to pick up my 3 year old son, then drove us both back to their house to share a large family-style dinner with them, while the husband worked on my car. But first he drove about 100 miles up and back to pick up the correct part as it was a Friday and they didn’t want me to have to wait and be without my car for the weekend. Several hours later, my car was fixed.
Grateful but wondering how I was going to pay for all of this, I asked if I could make payments.
Husband and wife told me “The part was $50; pay for that and you are good to go”. OMG, I about broke down crying in appreciation for their incredible and generous kindness to a distraught stranger they could have instead just ignored or even gouged, but instead chose to go out of their way to make everything right. What angels they were being put in my path. That was 32 years ago, yet it still brings tears to my eyes just writing about it, never to be forgotten.
The economy is in such a state that men don’t have enough money to care for elderly parents and support their wives and children. Even in good years their lives are bitter while, in bad years, they struggle to avoid starvation and death. Under such circumstances, how can you expect them to be civil – let alone lawful? Mencius, 320 BC.
The third conclusion is that the conceptualization of poverty is not something that can be taken for granted. For Gao villagers, currently what is poor is defined by the inability to build a house that is up to the current standard, and to get the family’s son or sons properly married. China may still be a developing country, but daily necessities such as food and shelter are no longer the only aims and purpose of life for most people, even the poorest in Gao Village. Mobo Gao, Gao Village Revisited. 2018.
In the beginning
In 1850, when the West monopolized the world’s wealth, its capitalists privatized credit, land and labor and subordinated human society to their wishes by manipulating the market economy they had thus created.
In 1950, China, the poorest nation on earth, subordinated credit, land, and labor to public welfare and created an organic economy to serve society.
Poverty & Inequality
Today, China is focused on reducing inequality, but a brief recap of how poverty was eliminated contextualizes the new campaign.
In 1993, Shanghai’s successful Minimum Livelihood Guarantee Trial Spot went national, becoming today’s dībǎo, which pays the difference between people’s actual income and the ‘dībǎo line,’ based on local living costs and gives recipients discretionary money and access to benefits like medical insurance.
In 2000, the UN set six Millennium Development Goals: eliminate extreme poverty, hunger, disease, inadequate shelter, exclusion, and gender bias in education by 2015. China took up the challenge and ever since, on Poverty Relief Day, the President and Prime Minister, trailed by TV crews, visit remote villages to remind urbanites what poverty looks like.
in 2008, an ethnic Miao family featured on TV owned a little adobe house, farmed their tiny plot, sold blood, and did odd jobs to get by. With three children (minorities are exempt from family planning), they were unable to afford furniture so their clothes were folded on the floor and their entertainment was a black-and-white TV. They received a monthly living allowance of two hundred dollars from the local government, the husband’s occasional day jobs earned ten to twenty dollars, and blood-selling brought in another hundred dollars. His wife said this paid for sixty pounds of rice, two packs of salt, a kilo of peppers and a bag of washing powder, electricity and transportation. Their village headman explained, “Our village population is 1,770 and more than two hundred people live on blood-selling. Our land is arid, seven hundred villagers’ homes have no arable land at all and, without a road, they walk three miles for drinking water”.
In 2009, rural pensions lowered poverty to fourteen percent then, in 2014, workers’ compensation, maternity benefits, unemployment insurance, skills training and equal access to urban employment reduced it to seven percent.
By 2016, urban poverty had disappeared and by June 1, 2021, almost every Chinese in the lower half of the income distribution owned a home free and clear.
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In 2018, tens of thousands of anti-poverty teams moved into poor villages to help them join the cash economy by growing mushrooms, planting pear trees, raising mohair goats, or hosting eco-tourists–anything to bring them into the cash economy.
Pinned to the door of every poor household was a laminated sheet listing its occupants, the causes of their poverty, their remediation program, a completion date and the name, photograph and phone number of the responsible official. Corporations pitched in. Foxconn, Apple’s assembler, moved two-hundred thousand jobs inland, Hewlett-Packard moved huge factories to Xinjiang, and Beijing moved entire universities. But it was infrastructure–roads, railways, Internet and drones–that tipped the scales.
By 2019, lives in one-hundred twenty-three thousand poor villages had been transformed by high-speed, low-cost Internet service that made e-commerce, distance education, remote healthcare and delivery of public services possible. Isolated villages soon averaged four daily drone pickups and demand for drone piloting classes exploded as crop-spraying, land surveying, and product delivery made off-farm employment the majority of rural income.
To combat isolation, Congress spent $120 billion from vehicle sales tax revenues building 150,000 miles of rural roads, one of which reached Mashuping, an isolated cliff village on the bank of the Yellow River and one of the poorest in Shaanxi Province. Villagers cultivated apples and Sichuan pepper trees but were forced to sell their produce cheaply to the few dealers who came by motorbike. Then a new five-hundred mile, riverbank highway brought ‘targeted anti-poverty teams’ and, said a grower, “Our apples sell out while they’re still hanging on the trees”. By 2019, per capita income was twice the national poverty level.
Villages like Liangjiahe, where Xi Jinping grew up, exploit unique niches. Though cabbage fields still line its single road, its canny inhabitants cultivate tourists, charging thousands of visitors $8 each to hear tales of Xi’s Four Hardships–flea bites, bad food, hard labour, and assimilating into the peasantry. They give three hundred overnight guests a taste of Xi’s boyhood in cave inns decorated with vintage Mao posters and kerosene lanterns and furnished with hard brick beds warmed by earth stoves. “All authentic, of course. We want to protect the Liangjiahe brand image,” a young guide brightly explains.
Dedicated software apps help rural laborers connect with employment opportunities, veterans and disabled folk find piecework, and young people returning home start businesses. In one Zhejiang Trial Spot, five hundred villages employ 200,000 locals to promote local products and skills in e-commerce niches where villages have organized into clusters around market towns.
By 2019, rural online stores employed thirty-million people, creating an e-commerce market bigger than Europe’s.
Beijing judged anti-poverty programs successful when ninety percent of villagers swear, in writing, that they are no longer poor, and after roaming teams of auditors conduct followup studies and send their video reports to anti-poverty officers.
ROI
Beijing plans to recoup its entire poverty alleviation investment by 2040, mostly through e-sales taxes. Accelerating inland growth has triggered coastal labor shortages and forced employers to automate, raise productivity, and move up the value chain–just as Beijing intended. Today, adjusted for productivity, regulations and benefits, Chinese employees cost their employers more than their American cousins, yet barely two percent of them pay taxes.
Inequality
Until recently, millions of migrant workers who contributed to urban retirement funds could only collect full pensions in their home provinces, and local governments had no money for them when they returned at the end of their working lives. Despite pleas from cash-starved inland provinces, rich coastal provinces clung to multi-billion surpluses.
So Beijing created a trillion-dollar National Pension Insurance Program using money from SOE stock sales and, in 2011 and strong-armed provinces to join it. The People’s Daily drummed up support by appealing to national pride, “In developed countries like America – whose Gini index sometimes reaches .41 – income disparities are eased through gradually increasing taxation on the wealthy and improving welfare systems to help the poor. China should learn from America’s experience.”
In 2014, civil servants and academics, under pressure from Xi, joined the national pension plan and, in 2019, Beijing issued a billion electronic social security cards that access personal and medical records, dispense social security benefits, receive government subsidies and reimbursements and pay bills.
As wealth redistribution becomes a priority, economists are finding that inequality statistics have been exaggerated because land, housing and food are much cheaper inland – though quality of care is identical. Rural incomes have fifty percent more purchasing power than the same wages in a coastal city.
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When they adjusted for temporary migration, inequality shrank even further. Until 2019, economists counted people by where their hukou were registered rather than where they actually lived, so the movement of three hundred million migrant workers distorted statistics severely. In reality, the coastal provinces have millions more migrant residents than their registered populations and the inland provinces have millions less, so a worker moving from the interior to the coast lifts inequality indicators because – though she is still counted as living in her rural home – she contributes to aggregate income at her coastal location.
Relativity
When analysts corrected this error, they found that regional inequality has been falling 1.1% annually since 1978.
In 2002, it took the combined earnings of fourteen Guizhou workers to equal one Shanghainese but, by 2020, the number had dropped to five. Nor is the structural gap as painful as it sounds. Inlanders and their friends get richer every year and, to them, Shanghai’s glitzy lifestyle is no more relevant than Manhattan’s is to folks in Little Rock, AK.
In 2023, residents of coastal Guangdong Province were four times richer than those in inland Gansu – but Gansu folk were better off than Armenians or Ukrainians – while …
Busted, China’s Defense Minister At Security Forum Reveal What Will China Do In Response To U.S
Busted, China’s Defense Minister At Security Forum Reveal What Will China Do In Response To U.S
In this video, we reveal the shocking statements made by China’s Defense Minister at a recent Security Forum.
The Minister openly discussed what China’s response would be in the event of a US offensive, providing unprecedented insights into China’s military strategy.
We analyze the implications of these statements, exploring the potential consequences of a conflict between the two superpowers.
Join us as we delve into this important topic and examine the current state of US-China relations, and what this could mean for the future of global security.
Don’t miss out on this exclusive look into the mind of China’s Defense Minister and the potential implications for the world.
The United States, for all of its 800+ military bases, high technology planes and submarines, and for it being involved in over 9 continuous wars all over the globe… it ONLY have 50,000 combat troops.
China has 915,000 active duty troops, of which a full 210,000 are combat troops.
…
Now, let’s do the math.
Assuming that the United States deploys 100% of it’s combat troops in China to fight the Chinese, the Chinese would out number the combat forces by a 4.5x margin. Not a 10x margin.
…
So, no, your friend is wrong.
He means well, but his numbers are off. China would meet parity with the United States with 1/5 of it’s total force. Not 1/10th.
Or 20% of it’s combat reserves. Of course, this assumes that Chinese missiles would not be used, nor the huge advantages in technology, numbers, bases, and other attributes that the Chinese have inside of China. This is a “sanity check” that is available for everyone to crunch the numbers with. What is amazing to me is that the American population has been so dumbed down into a state of numb stupidity, that they are unable to perform the most basic third grade level calculations.
The Last Gasps of the Collapsing Empire | Dan Kovalik
The leading opposition candidate for President of Ecuador, Fernando Villavicencio, was Assassinated today. He was shot to death leaving a Campaign rally. Video Below (Not gory).
Villavicencio, a member of the country’s national assembly, was attacked as he left the event in the northern city of Quito on Wednesday.
A member of his campaign team told local media Mr Villavicencio was getting into a car when a man stepped forward and shot him in the head.
Current president Guillermo Lasso vowed the “crime will not go unpunished”.
Witnesses said Mr Villavicencio, 59, was shot three times.
The suspect was also shot in an exchange of bullets with security and later died from his injuries, the country’s attorney general said on social media.
Washington believes it has a divine right to send its warships wherever it wants, but when ‘rivals’ do the same it’s deemed a threat
By Timur Fomenko, a political analyst
Last week, the US sent a group of warships and a reconnaissance plane to waters off the coast of Alaska after Chinese and Russian vessels conducted a joint naval patrol in the area.
A former US Navy captain and analyst for right-wing think tank the Heritage Foundation described
the patrol as “highly provocative.” Because the US and its allies would never, ever do something like that, right?
The US is engaged in the full-blown militarisation of the peripheries of both China and Russia in a manner that implies it has an unconditional right to do so. This behaviour has not only provoked one war, in Ukraine, but risks triggering a second one, over the Taiwan Strait, too. The reality, of course, is that neither Russia nor China poses any threat to Alaska whatsoever, because the conflict, or risk thereof, is at their own front doors, not America’s.
The US is the most militaristic and aggressive country in modern history. It has established a global military presence that spans every single continent with hundreds of military bases. In doing so, it claims it supports the freedom and self-determination of others. In reality, it provocatively encircles states that it deems rivals to its own global dominance, escalates tensions, and then when these states respond to the situation, subsequently brands them as the “aggressors,” thus affirming and even expanding its military footprint in these given regions.
With Russia, the US has pursued a relentless expansion of NATO eastwards since the Cold War, absorbing former members of the Soviet Union’s alliance system even when Russia had no will to compete with it. NATO has evolved from a unit of collective self-defence in a specific geographic region into an increasingly global ideological crusade which serves the goals of the US. The words “North Atlantic” in its name are increasingly redundant as Washington even endeavours to broaden its reach to Asia and the Pacific.
Which leads to the next point, China. The US is pushing for a full-scale military and naval encirclement around China’s eastern periphery, deliberately using the Taiwan independence issue as a wedge to ramp up tensions despite the One China Policy and giving the island region more and more arms. While doing this, it is forcing more and more countries to accept a greater American military presence. This recently included the Philippines, where the US gained access to a number of bases, as well as Papua New Guinea, where a defence cooperation agreement was recently signed
. At the same time, the US constantly sails warships through the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait, citing so-called “freedom of navigation” from a law which it does not even ratify. China’s retaliatory actions are then branded “aggressive” and threatening the peace of the region.
If this constitutes normal behaviour and a sovereign right of the US, why can China and Russia not sail patrols up to Alaskan waters? Why is one behaviour described as “freedom of navigation” but the other is labelled “highly provocative”? The reality is that because both countries are concerned about the US on their doorsteps, they have little interest in ever waging war as far afield in Alaska. The same cannot be said about US actions on their doorsteps, whereby the threat of war is very, very real and is being cranked up even higher by Washington. The US deems it has rights which other countries do not, which leads to the double standards voiced in the media regarding these seemingly equal actions.
China-Russia military cooperation is a product of the US antagonising them both, rather than so-called “provocative behaviour.” In the geographic sphere of Northeast Asia, the two countries have shared strategic interests which concern checking the expansion of US military power in Japan and the Korean Peninsula. This extends to the Northern Pacific. Neither country has any specific ambitions regarding Alaska. Neither China nor Russia is attempting to foster an independence or separatist movement there, unlike what the US is doing with Taiwan, and then groom it into a military partner hostile to Washington. Therein lies the difference between the two sets of military behaviour. China and Russia may cooperate for common strategic objectives, but they are not exerting aggression in the process. On the other hand, the US’ military presence and patrols are designed to upend a region and turn countries against other, provoke strife, and of course advance its economic goals. The irony is that media discourse presents this as entirely normal and justified, but then depicts Russia-China cooperation as a potential threat to Alaska.
TSMC Isn’t A U.S Servant Will Take China’s Order of 7nm Chips!
A real harsh REALITY. And some great changes… none of which is being reported by the West.
In 2009, after the Global Financial Crisis, PBOC Governor Zhou Xiaochuan said, “The world needs an international reserve currency that is disconnected from individual nations and able to remain stable in the long run, removing the inherent deficiencies caused by using credit-based national currencies.” He proposed Special Drawing Rights, SDRs, digital reserve currency valued against a basket of commodities and currencies. The SDRs have been trialled internationally since 2019 but a means of moving it around securely, quickly, and cheaply was lackinguntil..
Enter mBridge
Cross-border payments, which the US dollar dominates, will reach $250 trillion by 2027, up $100 trillion in a decade. There’s just no stopping it.
The trouble is that international payments are slow and costly, and Washington’s ‘long-arm’ jurisdiction over all dollar transactions has politicized trade.
So Basle’s Bank for International Settlements came up with mBridge.
mBridge, the BIS’ digital interbank payment system, lets Chinese companies pay UAE vendors in digital e-yuan. The mBridge blockchain instantly converts the yuan payment into dirham and and credits it to the vendor’s UAE bank account. mBridge 6-8 ms. execution time and 2.2¢ transaction cost bring Beijing’s goal of frictionless trade a giant step closer.
And best of all? No US regulators, banks, or dollars are involved.
Cause for concern
The PBOC (the world’s richest central bank), the HK Monetary Authority, Bank of Thailand and the UAE Central Bank have been using mBridge with traders in China, Hong Kong, Thailand and the UAE for over a year.
Now BIS says it will release mBridge globally by Xmas.
US Treasury officials worry that mBridge will help Beijing revolutionize wholesale cross-border digital payments, and that this is what will happen with all of China’s 143 trading partners:…
Prof. Richard Wolff on “If the Economy’s So Good, How Come I Feel So Bad?”
this is really good. Take the time to listen to what he has to say.
When it comes to weapons exports, China never sells its latest products and technology unless it has a newer technology to replace it, which it has not yet announced.
This means that if China announces the sale of J-20 stealth fighters for export, it means that the replacement for the J-20 will be announced soon.
Unlike in most Western cultures, the Chinese prefer that everyone, especially their enemy, underestimate their capabilities.
Just because the US or UK or the West don’t hear from someone for a month, doesn’t mean he has gone missing
This obessession of always talking to the press every day is slavish and a Western compulsion
Same with Tweeting every day
He simply has not been seen in the Public Domain
Why should the Chinese care about why he has not been seen??
It’s not their problem right?
The CPC has a message
It’s called MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS
In China, it is the business of the CPC to run the country, govern the country and help it develop and grow and regulate policies to sustain the country and defend the country
The Average Citizens have their own business — Work Hard, Take advantage of the free and heavily subsidized education, Do well, Pay Taxes and ENJOY LIFE — take vacations, buy stuff, play games, have fast food
China is not India
The Average Chinese doesn’t spend all his time discussing Modi vs Raga or saying “Ayega to Modi Hi”
He doesn’t even know the names of most standing committee members and won’t recognise them if they stood in front of him without escort or the party’s No 8 Cars
The CPC tells the Citizens what they HAVE TO KNOW
The CPC doesn’t need to tell them anything more because it won’t be productive
The CPC won’t tell all the problems to the Citizens because the Citizens knowing the problems is counter productive and could complicate stuff
Instead the CPC SOLVES THE PROBLEMS and ensures that the Citizens don’t even feel the negative effects
The CPC will take care of the Governance
The CPC will replace ministers and members if they cannot be fully capable of doing their job which underlies the Meritocracy of the Chinese System
In India, Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj worked for a year despite taking cancer treatments half the time
Not in China
China wants 100% and if they don’t get it — you get a golden handshake and a goodbye
You want my opinion
I love such a system and the opacity
Knowing only what I NEED TO KNOW and being protected by a system and confident in such a system is very productive and helps me focus on what my business should be
The Greatest Growth and Development in the world took place under such a system
IT WAS CALLED MONARCHY !!!!!
The World’s greatest inventions — Machine Guns, Spinning Jenny, Steam Engine, Dynamite, Shopping, Telegraph and Modern Banking all took place under this system
Where the Common men did what their business man and where the people who should rule, did their job and ruled
Mixing them was catastrophic and luckily China hasn’t done that yet
Note:—
My point here is to hail the opacity of China and the CPC and not discuss why Qin Gang didn’t make a public appearance for 3 weeks
The Opacity for whatever reason is what makes China the world’s fastest rising threat to the West and it’s degraded political systems
Chilighetti
Quick, easy and delicious! Chilighetti is a great way to feed a hungry family.
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Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
1 (46 ounce) can tomato juice
1 cup water
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
4 level teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 (16 ounce) package spaghetti, broken into 2 inch pieces*
2 (16 ounce) can kidney or pinto beans, rinsed and drained
Sour cream (optional)
Shredded Cheddar cheese (optional)
Instructions
In a Dutch oven, cook beef and onion over medium-high heat for 8-10 minutes or until beef is no longer pink and onion is tender, crumbling the beef; drain.
Stir in tomato juice, water, Worcestershire sauce and seasonings; bring to a boil. Add spaghetti. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, 10-13 minutes or until pasta is tender.
Stir in beans; heat through.
Top servings with sour cream and Cheddar cheese, if desired.
Notes
* Spaghetti may be left unbroken if desired.
Your Threats Are Meaningless Now
Please watch this clip, and consider that us as soul are living in a Prison Planet ourselves… I am interested in your thoughts after viewing this clip.
Today, while taking my daughter back from Kindergarten, I saw a dead kitten in the road in front of me. It was dead maybe 10 to 15 minutes. A black and white medium hair Tuxedo kitten. Perhaps six weeks old. It was gone, as its entire back was splattered goo.
I cannot stop thinking about this little guy. I cannot shake the image, and the feelings for something that I have no personal connection with. It’s tough, and difficult.
Strangely, a few hours later, as I was musing about this kitten, I felt it visit me. Briefly. Of course, we did not know each other, and it did not try to communicate. Just checking out my porch momentarily and then moving on.
I believe that my thoughts attracted it. Even for such a moment.
But my thoughts are part of my personality; and you know, my personality is pre-programmed by others. Whether it is Domain or what have you.
How many of us are living a fated life where our actions and behaviors are all preprogrammed by others?
Originally Answered: What one thing do you wish you had known about life when you were in your 20s?
One time when I was 25 I went shopping for an engagement ring for my girlfriend. We had been together for three years and my dad kept asking when I would marry her. My friends kept asking. Her friends kept asking. Her dad kept asking her and she would tell me.
We were living together. And I liked her. Maybe I loved her.
But I started to shiver when I was looking at rings in the store. My friend who I was with took one look at me and quoted a lyric from an MC 900 Ft Jesus song: “Something’s gonna happen and it’s probably not good.”
So I didn’t buy the ring. We didn’t get married. She moved out. We moved to different cities. I called her once a few years later but now she’s not even on Facebook and we haven’t talked since.
That sums up the 20s – EVERYTHING you think is important and meaningful has absolutely no bearing on your future life.
I loved her. I had a job. I was writing novels. I had friends. I was a computer programmer.
Now…none of the above is true. (oh, I have friends. Just different friends – 100% different).
And everything in my 30s….nothing is true anymore (except I have two kids still. Although now they are not babies. Now they are smarter than me).
I’m 48 now.
My most recent career change occurred when I was 47. Before that, I started writing seriously (I wrote 5 very unserious books in my 30s) when I was 42.
In my 20s and 30s my average weight was about 155 – 170. Now it’s 140. I write every day. I don’t obsess on money all day long. And I make bad decisions all day long – just like I did in my 20s.
The main skill I got between my 20s and now is that I bounce back from bad things faster.
I was VERY successful in my late 20s. And then a TOTAL FAILURE after. Then VERY SUCCESSFUL. And so on.
So that didn’t change. Only my ability to bounce back from really bad things. Horrible things. Things you wouldn’t want to wish on anyone and yet they happen, in some form or other, to everyone.
So the only thing I can with full integrity say I wish I had known is: nothing at all matters. Oh, and since nothing matters, once you realize that you’ll start to bounce back faster.
And since nothing matters, might as well be kind to people as much as possible. We can all laugh at the same joke at the end of this very long day.
Surveys of Americans asking them where certain countries are on an unmarked map. Not obscure ones (I myself would have trouble with Ivory Coast) but ones that are in the news all the time like…
North Korea
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Iran.
Note about twenty guesses put it solidly in the United States
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Ukraine.
Again, five guesses were solidly in the United States.
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Here’s the problem -people who have no idea where these countries are tend to favour military solutions. People who place them correctly (which is a small minority) tend to favour diplomacy.
First Time Reaction to Boston – Foreplay/ Long Time
I can just picture the cold can of beer between my legs and the joint being rolled on the dash…
When I was fired at a large financial services organization, the head of HR essentially told me to clean out my desk and leave. I was a participant in a number of executive compensation programs, and no provision was being made to give me some/any of that money. I knew others had been treated differently when they were terminated.
I called my former boss (the ex-company president) who had been fired 2 weeks earlier and asked him what he thought I should do. He said, “Call the guys in the field. The field loves you.” This was at around 10:00 am.
So I called every senior salesperson I knew—and asked them to call the CEO on my behalf. All I asked was that I be treated fairly.
At 2:00 pm, the head of HR called me to say that the CEO had gotten the message and my “little campaign” worked—I could “call off my dogs.”
I negotiated an equitable severance package and a transition job within the organization.
The answer will short – since China doesn’t want to attack USA and USA lost every single war that it started what is it to be affraid off. Plus China has almost 1.5 Billion people while 80% of Americans age 17–24 are unfit for millitary service.
I can’t keep this A SECRET anymore.
Love him or hate him, this is his harsh statement about what the Republicans did to him. But the big thing is that he is taking the “levers of control” away from the Republican party, and hijacking their most popular policies. Perhaps… he will run for office.
Keep this thought in mind.
https://youtu.be/vSGcnLl-CZg
Makes you think…
Yup.
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Here’s a better meme…
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The Human Horizons HiPhi Z Is Pure Science Fiction
The United States has always exercised technological hegemony, using various means to suppress foreign companies that surpass American enterprises or pose a threat to them. This has been the case with Japan’s semiconductor industry, French energy giants, and others.
In the era of 5G, Huawei is leading in 5G technology, with the highest number of patents globally and being the only company capable of providing end-to-end 5G services. Moreover, its 5G chip technology is also leading globally.
As a result the U.S has repeatedly modified chip rules not only limiting the shipment of American chip companies such as Qualcomm but also restricting chip companies that use American Technology such as TSMC and ASML from Shipping chips to China.
Chinese companies such as Huawei have accelerated the development of self-designed and self-produced chips and have also started developing chips based on RISCV to reduce their Reliance on American chips and other products.
Data shows that after the U.S restricted chip shipments Chinese domestic companies reduced their import of chips by more than 97 billion pieces in 2022 and it is expected that this number will exceed 50 billion pieces in the first six months of this year.
SMIC has announced that it will have a production capacity of over 700 000 equivalent eight-inch Wafers by the end of this year which will be used to manufacture various types of chips it is expected that the capital expenditure for this year will exceed 6.6 billion dollars mainly for capacity expansion and process Improvement.
However unexpectedly the U.S Japan and the Netherlands have signed a tripartite agreement to further restrict the shipment of advanced semiconductor equipment Japan will begin to restrict the shipment of over 23 types of semiconductor equipment from mid-July the Netherlands has also officially announced that it will restrict the shipment of certain models of lithography machines which will take effect on September 1st by then DUV lithography Machines of the 2000i and subsequent models will be unable to be shipped.
However the Netherlands and ASML have emphasized that although the tripartite agreement restricts the shipment of certain models of DUV lithography machines the 1980i and earlier models of lithography machines can still be shipped with a single exposure accuracy of 38 nanometers, however Chinese domestically produced lithography machines have already achieved a breakthrough of 90 nanometers and can be fully utilized for manufacturing mature processed chips.
Shanghai microelectronics 28 nanometers Precision lithography machine has also achieved technical validation with mass production expected in the near future the key is that Chinese manufacturers are accelerating the expansion of Chip production using processes below 28 nanometers and the required lithography machine models that ASML cannot ship.
This will also accelerate the breakthroughs made by Chinese manufacturers as a result some European media outlets have stated that it is all over as the U.S further restricts ASML’s shipment of lithography machines.
This not only accelerates China’s breakthroughs but also causes European chip and semiconductor companies to lose further advantages. First of all Europe does not have an inherent advantage in the field of Chip and semiconductor globally with only a few outstanding companies such as ASML, ARM and St microelectronics.
After the modification of Chip rules, even ARM and St microelectronics are no longer able to ship their products freely, only ASML can still ship certain models of DUV lithography machines.
Now with ASML being further restricted in its shipments this is not good news for the European semiconductor industry, moreover most American chip and semiconductor companies can still continue to ship their products Qualcomm can continue to ship 4G chips while the extension of Nvidia’s shipping permit may become a settled matter, companies such as Lam Research and Clack have received clarification notices on the rules and can still ship their related products.
Secondly after the modification of Chip rules Huawei announced its comprehensive entry into the Chip and semiconductor field and invested heavily in China’s domestic chip industry chain through high silicon burning through 440 billion yuan. In three years Huawei has not only established a complete mobile phone industry chain in China, but achieved the localization of EDA tools of 14 nanometers and above and has collaborated with SMIC to accelerate the localization of advanced processes to reduce dependence on American Technology.
This has already caused ASML’s market share in China to fall from 14 to 8 percent and after the signing of the tripartite agreement the reactions of Chinese companies such as Huawei and SMIC have been relatively calm, indicating that Chinese manufacturers have already achieved significant breakthroughs in the lithography machine industry.
The key is that the president of ASML has stated that if further restrictions are imposed ASML’s market share in China will continue to decline and it may even withdraw from the Chinese market.
Shenzhen known as the Silicon Valley of China is home to a large number of high-tech companies such as Huawei Tencent and ZTE as well as over 4 000 startups that conduct research experimentation and production in the city.
China is not powerless, almost all tasks that high-end chips can perform can also be accomplished by old-fashioned chips albeit at the cost of higher power consumption greater material consumption and higher costs such as using two chips instead of one the Chinese chip industry can find a way to cope with sanctions and it is impossible to control all the chips in the world including military Aerospace and high-tech chips.
If there are 10 000 chips a Chinese company with international business will always be able to obtain some, although it may have to go through three different countries.
Chinese Scholars like Xin Yuching who teaches at the national Graduate Institute for policy studies in Tokyo are optimistic that China will be able to manufacture high-end chips on its own in the future sanctions will force Chinese companies to conduct their own research and development and invest more time and money.
Recently The Institute of semiconductors of the Chinese Academy of Sciences announced the development of a highly integrated Optical convolution processor according to calculations Optical Computing has the advantages of high bandwidth low latency and low power consumption its processing speed is 1.5 to 10 times faster than Nvidia’s GPU chips.
More importantly Optical chips do not require photolithography for production so there is no bottleneck problem this is not just a case of overtaking on a Bend but a complete change of Direction in addition Optical chips are expected to avoid the data type problem that exists in the Von Neumann Computing paradigm.
In the past due to the existence of Moore’s Law it was very difficult to upgrade processor performance and Chip processes had to be reduced by at least half every two years this means that if China is currently producing 28 nanometers chips it will take at least 10 years to catch up with TMSC’s two nanometers.
However replacing the steam engine was never about building a better steam engine replacing the horse-drawn carriage was not about building a faster horse-drawn carriage and replacing chips will not be about building more compact chips the progress made by the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Optical chip technology can be said to be the last step in commercialization and the biggest step in maximizing profits it not only has the potential to influence the global layout of the optical chip industry but may even be the key to the next era.
Cowgirl in the Sand (epic!) – Neil Young & Promise of the Real
This has got to be one of the coolest versions of this song I have ever heard. 19 Minutes of pure jamming bliss.
I wasn’t actually snooping; my husband asked me to check his Facebook messages. He’d been trying to reconnect with some old friends from the police department he’d worked in years ago.
The first message was from an old, old girlfriend (they were 15 at the time). She had hired a private detective to find him, and couldn’t, so she confessed in a message she’d always been in love with him, and wanted to see him. She didn’t care he was married; SHE was, too, but was willing to leave her husband if he would leave me.
My husband had responded perfectly. “Debbie, we were 15. We dated for 6 months. I’m sorry, but I didn’t and don’t love you. I never will. As a matter of fact, what you did to try to find me was disturbing, especially since it states on my profile that I’m married. I think you may want to talk to someone about it.
To top it all off, you’re disrespecting my wife, whom I love with my entire soul, your husband, and me. How would you feel if my wife was doing the same thing with your husband? Please don’t contact me again. Get some help, and move on.”
I can see why he didn’t say anything to me. He knows I probably would have lost my shit on her. She had stopped messaging him, and it was done. I’m actually glad he didn’t tell me. He responded the exact way I would’ve had it happened to me.
I wish I hadn’t seen it, only because if we ever run into her, I’ll probably be calling my bondsman again.
kraftwerk – Radioactivity (Original Version)
Vinegar Grilled Chicken
vinegar grilled chicken
Prep: 10 min | Marinate: 4 hr | Cook: 10 min | Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
2/3 cup water
2/3 cup white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh-ground black pepper
2 tablespoons garlic salt
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon hot sauce
3 tablespoons butter, melted
4 (10 ounce) bone-in chicken breast halves
Instructions
Place the water, vinegar, pepper, salt, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce and melted butter into a large, resealable plastic bag. Shake to combine ingredients, then add chicken, seal, and shake to coat. Place in refrigerator to marinate for at least 4 hours.
Heat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat, and lightly oil the grate.
Remove chicken from marinade, and shake off excess. Discard remaining marinade.
Cook on preheated grill until no longer pink in the center; about 10 minutes per side.
Notes
To make this chicken roadside-style, use boneless chicken tenderloins and brush with barbecue sauce the final minutes of grilling.
Man! I stock groceries and build and repair furniture for people. I wear out a few sets of knee pads every year and shaking my hand feels like grabbing a stack of sand paper.
What a day’s work looks like for me:
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You know what I say when people ask what I do for a living?
“Oh, I have a great job! I stock groceries and do a little custom woodworking on the side.”
And I mean it. I have a great job. My workshop is in my backyard, and my grocery job is one mile from my house. I have no commute.
I have a regular schedule. I get eight hours of sleep every night and plenty of exercise.
I make plenty enough money. I never worry about my bills. I save plenty for retirement.
I get to work with no stress around mostly friendly people. I stay active and on my feet all day. It keeps me healthy and trim. The work I do is necessary and purposeful.
I have plenty of time for my family and hobbies.
I spent many years climbing the corporate ladder. I was tired and stressed out and couldn’t be there for my family. That sucked.
Now I do needful work well, and I’m happy doing it, and I’m doing well. What’s there to be ashamed of?
I am sure that people see my knee pads, and my shredded work gloves, and the sawdust all over my jacket and look down on me. I can handle that. I don’t really even think about it.
We NEED custodians, my friend. You are supporting yourself with honest, good work that I’m sure has many enviable upsides. Hold your head up.
“The Worst President in the Last 100 Years” – Victor Davis Hanson
President Bidean actually attended the same university as I did. WTF?
I have never seen (in person) a punch kill or a boot in the butt. I have seen a man kicked in the face who then died right there on the spot. It was a bar fight on a street called Clay Morgan Alley in St Louis. I was a Patrolman working an overtime shift walking a foot beat on the gaslight entertainment district down by the river. There was an altercation where a man fell down to the ground on his back. One of the three people attacking him kicked him in the face before I could get to them. By the time I ran the 20 feet to the victim he was already dying from a massive skull fracture. He had a strange breathing pattern people do right as they die. I think it’s called “agonal breathing” if my Paramedic training decades ago is correctly remembered. His head felt like a bag of skin holding many pieces of broken pottery in the rear particularly. The people that killed him had a good laugh and though they would just get the night in jail for fighting. Intoxication in public or something minor. They had all had priors for assault and wealthy parents got that them off every time. Fine paid. Probation.
I still remember the happiness it brough me to go into the separate rooms they were being held in and telling these smug little trust fund babies that the victim had been pronounced dead with cause of death being homicide by blunt object to the skull. It was a glorious feeling of schadenfreude watching their “my daddy will have you fired and sue you” attitudes of mockery and laughing disappear into blind panic. The possible sentence guidelines would mean they were looking at up to 20 years to life in Maximum Security. I know that sounds really unprofessional to feel that but it was one of the few times I really had to watch myself because I was so angry. My Partner who was a couple blocks away and wasn’t as emotionally involved because he didn’t see it go down. He sensed my frame of mind and took over booking. We would step in and let the other one cool off when we thought the other was reaching their limits. For some reason only one of us would be feed up and aggravated at a time if it happened.
Anyway….the victim was black and the Feds almost piled on with another 20 to life in Federal for Violation of Civil Rights but the campaign contributions to the right politicians put the brakes on that. There was a good case for it being racially motivated. What first drew my attention and made me take a few steps to look down the alley was someone yelling a racial slur as they attacked him. Witness also heard them talking before the assault began inside about how “Boomers wasn’t a Nigger bar”. I’m often critical the FBI but they did step up on this case and fought the Eastern District US Attorney to have the case go federal to no avail. Normally it would require the sacrifice of a goat to summon divine intervention and get them to work a case that didn’t involve Muslims or terrorism. They were right with me lock step trying to get it in front of a Grand Jury that was currently impaneled. The families had too much political power to get it done. They were big campaign donors and had a lot of pull. The media took no interest so we had no leverage.
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Not the incident but this is almost exactly the type of kick I saw. Running start…full force on an unconcious prone kid. ^
The 3 people who were involved were all arrested by me for 2nd Degree Murder, aggravated assault and false imprisonment. They pled guilty to Manslaughter and each got 8 years in Potosi Prison of which they served 6 before being paroled.
I only know that because I attended the yearly parole hearings to give a vivid description of the murder to keep them in as long as possible. Autopsy photos and video of interrogations where two of them were laughing at what they had done. Like the whole thing was a joke and they said “wait until my Dad get’s here. His lawyers will sue you…etc”. They were text book bullies beating on a timid and small victim. I wanted to make sure they stayed in and had a page in their file requesting I be notified of any Parole hearings for the two that went to Max. The third was a follower and had some promise on not being a piece of shit his whole life so I didn’t involve myself in his case after conviction. He was transferred to minimum after a year. All three were the worst kind of “Frat Boys”. Wealthy. Privileged. Obnoxious. Thought they had the power to do literally anything. Their family name and fortunes would always save them. They lost a fortune in Defense Lawyers for sure.
The lead council for one of them I knew well and was good friends with. I got along with Defense Attorneys. I always root for the underdog and Public Defenders are the ultimate underdogs. I always had their clients by the balls with good evidence so they didn’t have much to work with. This friend though was a high priced lawyer. We went up against each other in several minor and two major cases. We had a mutual respect. I would never lie of obfuscate, be a hostile type witness on the stand. If I ever had the State or Feds lock me up he’s the typo of intellectual bulldog I would want in my corner. The Prosecutor knew they could walk in a trial with an OJ type dream team so he offered them a deal. They got the max they could get from the sentencing guidelines from the plea. One of those cases where the Judge is bursting to get to lay into the defendants at sentencing. It never made the news. There weren’t more than 12 people in the Court including me the Judge, Bailiff and Court Reporter. That bothered me. This hideous affair should have been on every TV in America and nobody took notice. Only a 1 inch column in the Metro section of the Post Dispatch the day after the attack. Just a blurb in the Metro crime B section below the fold. I have seen ads for Yard Sales with more words. The victim was a really good kid with a bright future. He was alive, happy and loved one minute and ancient anonymous history the next and the world took no notice.
I knew as soon as I saw that kick the victim wasn’t going to survive. It looked like an NFL kicker going for a 50 yard field goal type kick on an unconscious victim.
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^ Above a view of Clay Morgan Alley crime scene. The incident took place at the far end just before the street intersection in front of Boomers nightclub. If you see the 3 lamps on the left (East side of the alley) look at the most distant of the three. I was standing just a few feet around that corner when I first heard it. It took place near the middle street lamp in the center of the alley. That is the parking lot for the Arch in the background. That parking lot is Federal Property. I shit you not that I know of a case where a kid was arrested for Marijuana in that exact garage by Federal Park Rangers….. and got more time than the killers in this case. Probably served damn near the whole sentence too as there is no Federal Parole.
Answers like this bring it all back vividly. I write here so people better understand what Policing is like. I appreciate it when people feel informed or took something away from the writing. The positive feedback I suppose keeps me doing it. When you see people comment or up vote etc it does make me feel like there is some kind of purpose in it and it is therapeutic to write about some of these things. Anyway…thanks for the feedback everyone. The comments are usually the most interesting part of my answers IMO.
I know I shouldn’t have done this, but I am 83 years old and I was in the McDonald’s drive-through this morning and the young lady behind me leaned on her horn and started mouthing something because I was taking too long to place my order.
So when I got to the first window I paid for her order along with my own.
The cashier must have told her what I’d done because as we moved up she leaned out her window and waved to me and mouthed “Thank you.”, obviously embarrassed that I had repaid her rudeness with kindness.
When I got to the second window I showed them both receipts and took her food too. Now she has to go back to the end of the queue and start all over again.
Don’t blow your horn at old people, they have been around a long time.🤣
Since 1978, China has opened its arms and actively integrated into the global division of labor system, which has greatly benefited the development of China itself and the world. In 2022, China and South Korea jointly celebrated the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and South Korea. For 31 years, friendly cooperation and mutual benefit have always been the mainstream of PRC-ROK relations. The economic and trade cooperation between the two countries continues to deepen. In 2022, the economic and trade volume between China and South Korea reached 362.3 billion U.S. dollars, and South Korea surpassed Japan to become China’s second largest trading partner.
This series of tangible achievements not only brought great benefits to the two countries and the two peoples, but also provided a stable guarantee for the peaceful development and prosperity of the region. China and South Korea are the important neighbors of each other and mutually beneficial partners and have many good development opportunities. It is the consensus of the people. China and South Korea must proceed from the fundamental interests of the two countries, adhere to mutual respect, especially respect the core interests of each other, eliminate external interference, properly handle differences, and promote the continuous development of China-ROK relations and bilateral cooperation.
One of the core interests of China is the Taiwan issue. The Taiwan issue is the most important core interest of China, and it is a red line that cannot be crossed. In recent years, out of domestic political needs, some U.S. politicians have been manipulating various Taiwan-related issues, exacerbating tensions in Sino-U.S. relations. The only one purpose for what the US does is to use Taiwan as a pawn to implement an anti-China and containment strategy to maintain US hegemony.
The one-China principle is the general consensus of the international community and the basic norm of international relations. It is also the premise and basis for China to establish and develop diplomatic relations with countries around the world, including South Korea. Thus, it is better for the two countries to keep the close economic ties between China and South Korea without provocation.
The recovery and development of China’s economy will bring greater development opportunities to all the neighboring countries including South Korea. However, in recent years, in order to serve their own self-interest, some countries have promoted unilateralism and protectionism under the pretext of so-called economic security, created closed and exclusive small circles, and clamored for decoupling and breaking the chain. That has seriously disrupted the normal operation of the global production and supply chain and seriously damaged the development interests of countries around the world, including China and South Korea.
China is different from those countries and implements the dual cycle, a development pattern in which the domestic market and the international market are better connected by giving full play to the potential of domestic demand, rather than a closed domestic cycle. With the utmost sincerity, China will carry out mutually beneficial cooperation with countries all over the world to achieve common development and progress.
In summary, how the export recovery of South Korea could be is up to the South Korean government and solely depends on the clever behaviors and the choice of the South Korean government. The Koreans act as if they don’t understand why.
Did Biden Fall Asleep During Meeting w/ Israeli President?
During a recent joint press event at the White House with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, U.S. President Joe Biden mumbled through a portion of his comments about U.S.-Israeli relations, leading many online to conclude that the Commander in Chief had nodded off briefly. He probably didn’t, but still…
I was out having a drink with a friend of mine in Brixham. Towards the end of the night, my friend was just carrying a couple of pints across from the bar to our table when a large bloke, not looking where he was going banged straight into him.
My friend, being the man he is, immediately apologised. But despite it being actually his fault, the guy was having none of it as he said that his shirt and trousers had been ruined by my friends beer. As he squared up to my friend, another two of the blokes mates (equally as large as the first) joined in the argument and made the mistake of laying hands on my friend.
By the time I had walked across, he had already taken them up on their offer to ‘Take it outside’. The first big guy led the way. My friend followed, only pausing momentarily to pick a cardboard menu off a table as he left. With the blokes two mates behind, carrying bottles of beer which I imagined they may have been expecting to use as weapons.
As I watched them leave, I immediately got on my mobile and phoned for an ambulance. The guy next to me turned and said to me “An ambulance? Shouldn’t you be helping your mate instead? “. “Oh”, I said smiling. “It’s not for him….anyway there’s only three of them. “
The thing is that I knew something that the three local big guys didn’t and that was that my friend was a retired CQC (Close Quarters Combat) instructor with the Royal Marines at Lympstone. He was trained not only in martial arts but weapons and tactics too. The bullies had bottles, but in my friends skilled hands a tightly rolled up cardboard menu was as good as having an iron bar.
By the time I got outside moments later, there was just a lot of broken glass and the three big guys were all in various crumpled heaps on the floor. My friend was just standing smiling rubbing his jaw.
“I must be getting slow in my old age” he said “One of them actually managed to land a punch”.
The U.S Military just got a HUGE wake up call and it’s bad
Look how big is Moscow’s (erstwhile) McDonald’s now known as Big Hit after McDonald’s got de-branded.
Russia’s McDonald’s replacement says it’s serving 2 million customers a day. Its CEO said that it has sold more than 24 million “Big Hits,” its Big Mac dupe, since opening.
Russian population stands at 143 million. Business as usual with a new logo and similar menu.
Alexander Govor, the Russian businessman who bought the former McDonald’s sites, told that the new company was opening restaurants slightly faster than planned and hoped to have more than 900 by the end of the year.
Most of the menu is made with the same ingredients and equipment as when it was McDonald’s.
The B-52’s – Rock Lobster (Countdown 1980)
Jamaica V.S the U.S.A Diplomatic Row: The Implications of refusing a diplomat’s Same-Sex Spouse
In this video we will explore the conflict brewing between Jamaica and the United States over Jamaica’s decision to deny diplomatic immunity and privileges, to the spouse of an American diplomat due to their same-sex relationship.
Originally Answered: What was the hardest thing you went through in life and how did you get past that?
I was repeatedly raped by a neighbor when I was 7 years old. I didn’t want my mother to find out, because she was a single mother working 3 jobs to support me and my brother and she cried enough as it was. We lived in a trailer that had holes in the floor so that sometimes raccoons and opossums would climb through. I was scared of them. The carpet was infested with fleas. I usually had flea bites all over my body. I never felt clean. We got clothes from Goodwill but they were usually old, faded, and stained. My mother did the best she could but we were all alone in the world. We lived in a rural area that was unforgiving of those who deviated from “the norm.” My mother tried to baptize me when I was a baby, only to be turned away by the local preacher because I was “a bastard.” We were not welcome in their churches, which were an important part of rural life there. I didn’t have friends at school. I was “weird” “dirty” “ugly” “too quiet” etc. Even most of the teachers looked at me and my brother in disgust. We were “the XXX family.”
I grew up with the understanding that I was worthless. That I should be ashamed of who I am. I barely said a word through most of my childhood. I didn’t say a word to anyone when they pushed me around, taunted me endlessly, beat up my brother and I. I never said a word when my neighbor (who, interestingly, was widely regarded as an outstanding member of society) raped me.
I led a very solitary life. My mother was usually gone at work, my brother would devote himself to his own activities, and there I was. I remember I would sit outside of my home and pretend to be a rock, because rocks didn’t feel anything and they certainly didn’t cry. They were indestructible, I thought.
I overheard one of the other little girls discussing the prayer they said before bedtime and I resolved to remember it. It went like this – As I lay down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep, if I shall die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.
I thought about this prayer for the rest of the day, until I went home and decided on my own version: Dear God, I don’t want to live anymore. There are other people begging you to keep them alive. Let me take their place. I’ll die. I was about 8 years old.
But I didn’t die, much to my dismay. I woke up the next day, and the day after that, and the day after that. The days went by. My situation didn’t greatly improve, people weren’t much nicer to me, and my life didn’t get easier. But I got stronger. I discovered books as a way to escape from my tedious existence and by the time I was in 5th grade, I was reading at a college level.
I grew up and gained control over my life. I was no longer the defenseless, powerless victim I had been as a child. I had power. I could do whatever I wanted. I got a job. I studied hard so I could go to a good college. I escaped from my small, unforgiving town.
I have a good job now and good relationships. People who know me now would never guess I was once that hungry, miserable, terrified, beaten down little girl I had been back then.
As for my family, my mother still lives in that trailer. My neighbor is long dead. My older brother still lives with my mother. He has never gotten a driver’s license or a job. He doesn’t leave the house very often. A part of me understands his reluctance – why let the world do you more harm when it has already done so much? But I wish he would take the chance. I feel sad that our childhood all but destroyed him.
If you want to know how to get through hard things, my answer is probably inadequate, but it is the best I have to offer. My answer is: keep going.
Do Our Pets Go to Heaven? | NDE Compilation
2023 07 21 17 51
China rejects ‘Iron Curtain’ or ‘Silicon Curtain’ imposed by the US upon the world, warns against ‘an eye for an eye’ — Chinese Ambassador to the US
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On July 19, 2023, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Xie Feng attended the Aspen Security Forum at invitation, and had a fireside chat with Steve Clemons, Founding Editor-at-large of Semafor. Ambassador Xie elaborated on China’s policies and positions on China-U.S. relations, China’s intention in development, the Taiwan question, U.S. technological suppression of China and other issues.
On the China-U.S. relationship, Ambassador Xie said that China-U.S. relations are facing serious difficulties and challenges. Recently, there have been some reflections in the United States about its China policy. Our two countries have had a series of high-level communication, which were candid, in-depth and constructive. In particular, the two sides have agreed on implementing the important common understanding reached between President Xi Jinping and President Biden in Bali. This offers a rare opportunity for stabilizing the relationship. But the opportunity has not come easy, the foundation remains fragile, and challenges still abound. We must cherish and sustain the momentum. President Xi Jinping has outlined three principles: mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation. They represent the fundamental and right way for China and the United States to get along in the new era. We hope the U.S. side will work with China in the same direction to stabilize and improve our relations.
First, shorten the negative list to clear obstacles and manage differences with concrete actions. It is important to properly handle important and sensitive issues such as the Taiwan question in line with the principles of the three Sino-U.S. joint communiques, stop sanctioning Chinese entities and individuals, and prevent “black swans” or “gray rhinos” from disrupting or rattling China-US relations again. President Biden stated that the United States does not seek to change China’s system, does not support “Taiwan independence” , and has no intention to decouple from China or to halt China’s economic development. The U.S. side needs to translate these statements into concrete actions.
Second, expand the positive list to enhance dialogue and cooperation in good faith. We can start with concrete, small steps to inject more positive energy into China-U.S. relations: for instance, to increase passenger flights, adjust the China travel advisory, renew the China-U.S. agreement on cooperation in science and technology, revive MECEA programs to encourage congressional members and staff to visit China, hold the Tourism Leadership Summit, and facilitate visa application and border entry for students, scholars, tourists, business people and others. China and the United States once had over 100 dialogue and exchange mechanisms. But they have been stalled by the U.S. side since 2018. Our two peoples have been waiting too long. If it is difficult to resume all, can we start with 50, or at least 30?
Third, seek out supporters of China-U.S. relations. Joint efforts are needed to bring China-U.S. relations gradually back to the right track.
Ambassador Xie said that the so-called “political correctness” has permeated American society. Over the past month and more since his arrival, he has been talking to people from various sectors. He can feel that there are many supporters of China-US relations, but they are under pressure. They are becoming reticent under the chilling effect. Few want to express different opinions amid the anti-China chorus.
Ambassador Xie said that an American netizen left him a comment on Twitter: “I hope you find some allies; there are a few hiding in the darkness afraid of being crushed.” A sound and stable China-U.S. relationship is in the common interests of both countries. It is also the shared expectation of the international community. So the third priority is to seek them out. “I am one, but we are many,” said Ambassador Xie. He called on all to pitch in, and work together to bring China-U.S. relations gradually back to the right track.
On China’s intention in development, Ambassador Xie said that the Chinese people are the most friendly people in the world. Assertiveness is never our tradition. Invasion or pursuit of hegemony is not in our DNA. We have facilitated the resumption of diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran. Our purpose is to inspire more countries in the region to shake hands and embrace peace, and to make greater contribution to world peace, stability and prosperity.
When meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Blinken in Beijing recently, President Xi Jinping emphasized that the Earth is large enough for China and the United States to develop respectively and prosper together. China respects U.S. interests and does not seek to challenge or displace the United States. In the same vein, the United States needs to respect China and must not hurt China’s legitimate rights and interests. China does not intend to challenge or displace anyone. Instead of outcompeting others, our focus is on outdoing ourselves. The “Thucydides Trap” is not a historical inevitability. The world has changed. The international community should have the wisdom to look beyond this, say goodbye to the Cold War mentality, bloc confrontation and zero-sum game, pursue win-win cooperation, and jointly prevent a major-country conflict.
Ambassador Xie said that a friend asked him: what kind of flower will grow out of China？This is his answer: it will be a flower of peace, cooperation and common development. It will be as beautiful and sweet as peonies and roses.
On the Taiwan question, Ambassador Xie emphasized that Taiwan is China’s Taiwan. It is an inalienable part of China’s territory. This is the first thing we need to bear in mind when handling Taiwan-related issues. No one cherishes more than the Chinese side peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. And no one wishes more for peaceful reunification than us. There are two biggest threats to peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait now. First, the Taiwan authorities are seeking U.S. support for their independence agenda. They have refused to recognize the 1992 Consensus, and even denied their Chinese identity. Second, some forces in the United States are trying to use Taiwan to contain China. They have emboldened adventurism and provocation by “Taiwan independence” separatists. The path they are taking is very dangerous. This is something we should guard against.
The Taiwan question is the most important and sensitive question in China-U.S. relations. The U.S. side should take concrete actions to deliver on President Biden’s statement that the United States does not support “Taiwan independence”. The most fundamental thing is to return to the one-China principle; the most important is to abide by the three Sino-U.S. joint communiques; and the most pressing is to oppose adventurism and provocation by “Taiwan independence” separatists. The top priority now is to stop Lai Ching-te’s visit to the United States, which is like a “gray rhino” charging at us.
On U.S. technological suppression of China, Ambassador Xie pointed out that China opposes waging trade war or technological war under the pretext of competition. China never shies away from competition. But the “competition” defined by the United States is unfair. First, the United States is trying to win by keeping China out. For instance, it has banned Huawei for unfounded national security concerns, even though the company offered to sign a “no-backdoor” agreement. How can we compete without being present? Second, the United States is rallying allies to encircle China. Is there any respect for the one-on-one rule of the game? Third, the United States prohibits exports of equipment making chips smaller than 14 nanometers to China. This is like forcing others to wear outdated swimsuits in a swimming contest while one wears a Speedo fastskin himself. Is this fair play?
As a Chinese saying goes, “We never make provocation, but we will not flinch from any provocation coming our way.” We oppose both iron curtain and silicon curtain. And we are the last to want a tit-for-tat cycle. So far, over 1,300 Chinese entities and individuals are on US sanction lists. As a result, many Chinese workers have been forced out of job, and their families suffered greatly. The Chinese people will not remain silent, and the Chinese government will not sit idly by.
Ambassador Xie also stated China’s principled position on Ukraine, China-Russia relations and climate change. He pointed out that China has always promoted talks for peace on the Ukraine issue, and its position is gaining increasing understanding and support. Russia is China’s biggest neighbor, and the two countries share a border of over 4,000 kilometers. It is only natural for the two sides to maintain good neighborly relations and normal trade. On climate change, China and the United States have vast potentials for cooperation. It is important to stick to the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities”. The Untied States and other developed countries should take concrete actions to honor their commitment to supporting developing countries.
The Aspen Security Forum is a biannual event held by the Aspen Institute, in Aspen in summer and Washington D.C. in winter respectively. The current forum will be held from July 18-21. It has broad influence in the United States and worldwide. Over 400 delegates attended the forum, including senior U.S. officials like Secretary of State Antony Blinken, National Security Advisor to the President Jake Sullivan, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency William Burns, and Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield; former U.S. dignitaries, renowned entrepreneurs, think tanks, scholars, journalists and international political figures from the United Kingdom, France, Kenya and Israel. Ambassador Xie Feng’s remarks during the forum attracted great attention and were widely covered by American and international media outlets. They were warmly received by various sectors of American society.
Spicy Chicken Phyllo Rolls
Chicken, sour cream, raisins and spices come together in flaky phyllo rolls with this recipe.
spicy chicken phyllo rolls
Prep: 30 min | Bake: 30 min | Yield: 32 small rolls
Ingredients
1 cup chicken broth
1 bottle Mexican beer
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup onion, cut into 1/2 inch dice
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon cumin, ground
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup sour cream (or plain yogurt)
1/4 cup raisins
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 (9 x 14 inch) rolls Athens® Phyllo Dough, thawed
Instructions
Thaw two rolls of phyllo dough, following thawing instructions on package.
Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a medium skillet, bring broth and beer to a boil. Add chicken breasts, then lower heat and simmer, for 7 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool. Dice chicken into 1/2 inch cubes.
In another medium skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat. Add garlic, onion, curry, coriander, and cayenne pepper, and cook for 5 minutes or until onions are tender. Remove from heat and let cool.
In a large bowl, combine chicken, onion mixture, sour cream, raisins, brown sugar, and salt and pepper to taste.
Unroll and cover phyllo with plastic wrap and then a slightly damp towel to prevent drying out. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter with 2 tablespoons oil. Layer 5 phyllo sheets, brushing each with the butter–oil mixture.
Cut the width of layered phyllo into 4 strips. Place about 1 tablespoon of filling at one end of phyllo strip, leaving 1 inch from end and 1/2 inch from each side free of any filling. Fold phyllo up over the filling to form a roll. Fold side edges in to enclose the sides. Roll up to the end of phyllo strip. Brush outside of roll with butter–oil mixture. Repeat process three times to make 30 rolls.
Bake seam side down, at least 1 inch apart, on ungreased cookie sheet or baking pan in preheated 350 degrees F oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown.
Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
Serve with plain yogurt or your favorite jarred chutneys such as Sherwood’s Green Label Mango and Ginger Chutney and Swad Coriander Chutney.
Exactly like I said in one of my previous answers :—Electric Vehicles were the biggest WinnerRetail Consumption came secondGreen Energy took the third placeFixed Asset Investment took the fourth place (Railways etc)Shipping was a surprising fifth place winnerServices took Sixth Place
These Sectors grew between 6% to 11% this quarter (1/4/23–30/6/23)
They contributed to 18.67 Trillion Yuan ($ 2.91 Trillion) in the last two quarters or around 30% of China’s GDP
In 2019 they compared to around 13% of China’s GDP
Ironically Exports ended up on the whole with a near 4% growth which was pretty surprising
Meanwhile the losers :—Real Estate as expected was the biggest loserIndustrial Manufacturing came secondCommercial Banking came thirdRetail Investments came fourthConstruction came fifth
These Sectors grew by less than 2% or contracted by upto 10% in this Quarter YOY
They contributed 25.85 Trillion to the Chinese Economy ($ 4.15 Trillion) in the last two quarters contributing to around 42% of China’s GDP
In 2019 they contributed to 51% of China’s GDP
Industrial Manufacturing is the only worrisome issue
Real Estate was already a bloated bubble and China already made it clear that by 2030 it’s contribution to the GDP shouldn’t be more than 6% instead of 16% in 2016 at its peak
Commercial Banking is entirely linked to real estate. Commercial Banks gained 207 Billion Yuan and lost 139 Billion Yuan finishing with a cumulative 68 Billion Yuan profit or 4.27% profit
In 2019 it was 8.66%
So that’s a nearly 50% fall in profit in 5 years
Still it will rise as alternate investments pick up steam
Construction fell in China by 13% but grew in BRI by 10.6% and so the total contraction was only 2.4%
It will rise as BRI begins to open up newer projects
So China is mostly on track except for Industrial Manufacturing
Global Demand is weak and Chinese Workforce is not keen on factory jobs anymore
Thanks to the Common Prosperity program, Chinese want to go back to villages and small towns instead of the other way round
They flooded cities to escape poverty in the 2000s
Now they want to go back to the rural life and become farmers instead of low grade factory workers
I was fired from a law firm. No I wasn’t a lawyer. Not by a long shot. I worked in the file room. I was in my early 20’s. Back then I wasn’t really looking beyond my next pay check.
I also would chauffeur the senior partner around in his Mercedes sedan. He turned out to be a great mentor of mine. His name was Bob. One day, in between phone calls, Bob asked me how I was doing, I told him that I was doing great! Thanks!
And that’s when it happened. He fired me…sort of. He said, “Keith you’re fired!”
I was shocked. I asked him why?
He said ” Keith, I see you working in the file room, Xerox room. Answering phones. Delivering the mail. Driving me around. Going and getting lunches!
I still didn’t understand.
“That’s why I’m firing you. Keith you’re too damn smart to be working here doing the things you’re doing. So I’m going to force you to do something else. Go back to school. Learn a trade. Apply yourself. Start a business. I’m giving you two weeks notice. You have two weeks!”
For several days I thought about it. I thought that if I just worked hard enough someone would notice it and promote me. But that’s not how it always is.
I had always wanted to go to tech school, but didn’t think I was smart enough (that’s another story!). I decided to check some of them out.
I enrolled at ITT Tech. A week later I went to Bob and I told him about ITT and could I please keep my job at least until I graduated. It was a two year course. I was worried about how I was going to fit school and work together. Bob told me ” Keith I’m very proud of you. As long as you’re going to school AND making good progress you can work here! And also tell Barbara (the HR manager) that Bob said that you can work any hours you’d like to in order to accommodate your schedule!
What a fantastic man Bob was! He impacted my life in a big way. Two years later I graduated with highest honors at the top of my class. I was immediately hired by tech giant at the time, Honeywell. I rose through the ranks quickly and eventually became an Engineer. Ten years I started my first “dot.com” business. And three years after that I sold my first company in a multi million dollar deal.
That was the first, and only time, I got fired. And it was the best thing that ever happened to me.
Unfortunately Bob (RIP) passed away a few years after that story happened from cancer. A young man of 43. At his funeral we heard stories about all of the people that Bob helped behind the scenes. His firm Frandzel, Csato, Robbins and Bloom is still around. One of the attorneys Ron Gruzen worked there. I used to deliver his mail to him, copy papers and stuff. Today, 40 years later Ron Gruzen is my attorney, negotiating settlement deals, real estate transactions and a host of other business and personal legal matters for me! Ron and I laugh all the time about how far I’ve come and we reminisce about the old days at Bob Frandzel’s law firm!
Explaining the United States Today
“Put a rat in a cage and give it 2 water bottles. One is just water and one is water laced with heroin or cocaine. The rat will almost always prefer the drugged water and almost always kill itself in a couple of weeks”.
That is our theory of addiction.
Bruce comes along in the ’70s and said, “Well, hang on. We’re putting the rat in an empty cage. It has nothing to do. Let’s try this a bit differently.” So he built Rat Park, and Rat Park is like heaven for rats. Everything a rat could want is in Rat Park. Lovely food. Lots of sex. Other rats to befriend. Colored balls. Plus both water bottles, one with water and one with drugged water.
But here’s what’s fascinating: In Rat Park, they don’t like the drugged water. They hardly use it. None of them overdose. None of them use in a way that looks like compulsion or addiction.
What Bruce did shows that both the right-wing and left-wing theories of addiction are wrong. The right-wing theory is that it’s a moral failing, you’re a hedonist, you party too hard. The left-wing theory is that it takes you over, your brain is hijacked. Bruce says it’s not your morality, it’s not your brain; it’s your cage.
Addiction is largely an adaptation to your environment.
Now, we created a society where significant numbers of us can’t bear to be present in our lives without being on something, drink, drugs, sex, shopping… We’ve created a hyperconsumerist, hyperindividualist, isolated world that is, for many of us, more like the first cage than the bonded, connected cages we need.
The opposite of addiction is not sobriety. The opposite of addiction is connection. And our whole society, the engine of it, is geared toward making us connect with things not people.
You are not a good consumer citizen if you spend your time bonding with the people around you and not stuff. In fact, we are trained from a young age to focus our hopes, dreams, and ambitions on things to buy and consume. Drug addiction is a subset of that.”
China has planted more trees than the rest of the world combined.
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But here’s bloomberg painting it in a negative light.
But here’s the gist
The CCP planted 1 billion trees a total act of evil! Over a 40 year period and increased forest coverage from 12% to 22%. TOTALLY EVIL!!!
Bloomberg wrote a mostly negative article (the 1bn is wrong it’s actually 66bn) focusing on all sorts of problems including how a few million trees got infected with bugs.
They then claim because of wood exports some of the bugs infected the West:
“This allowed the beetle larvae to hitch rides to Europe and North America, where governments are now spending a fortune trying to control infestations.” Amazing! Even on what should be a neutral scientific article about China’s success in planting trees they need to pander to the anti China crowd and relate it to Covid spreading from China.
It was a photo op for the ages: a visibly well-disposed President Xi Jinping receiving centenarian “old friend of China” Henry Kissinger in Beijing.
Mirroring meticulous Chinese attention to protocol, they met at Villa 5 of the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse – exactly where Kissinger first met in person with Zhou Enlai in 1971, preparing Nixon’s 1972 visit to China.
The Mr. Kissinger Goes to Beijing saga was an “unofficial”, individual attempt to try to mend increasingly fractious Sino-American relations. He was not representing the current American administration.
2023 07 22 10 15
There’s the rub. Everyone involved in geopolitics is aware of the legendary Kissinger formulation: To be the US’s enemy is dangerous, to be the US’s friend is fatal. History abounds in examples, from Japan and South Korea to Germany, France and Ukraine.
As quite a few Chinese scholars privately argued, if reason is to be upheld, and “respecting the wisdom of this 100-years-old diplomat”, Xi and the Politburo should maintain the China-US relation as it is: “icy”.
After all, they reason, being the US’s enemy is dangerous but manageable for a Sovereign Civilizational State like China. So Beijing should keep “the honorable and less perilous status” of being a US enemy.
Luttwak, 80, may not be as visibly influential as Kissinger, but as a behind the scenes strategist he’s been advising the Pentagon across the spectrum for over five decades. His book on Byzantine Empire strategy, for instance, heavily drawing on top Italian and British sources, is a classic.
Luttwak, a master of deception, reveals precious nuggets in terms of contextualizing current Washington moves. That starts with his assertion that the US – represented by the Biden combo – is itching to do a deal with Russia.
That explains why CIA head William Burns, actually a capable diplomat, called his counterpart, SVR head Sergey Naryshkin (Russian Foreign Intelligence) to sort of straighten things up “because you have something else to worry about which is more unlimited”.
What’s “unlimited”, depicted by Luttwak in a Spenglerian sweep, is Xi Jinping’s drive to “get ready for war”. And if there’s a war, Luttwak claims that “of course” China would lose. That dovetails with the supreme delusion of Straussian neocon psychos across the Beltway.
Luttwak seems not to have understood China’s drive for food self-sufficiency: he qualifies it as a threat. Same for Xi using a “very dangerous” concept, the “rejuvenation of the Chinese people”: that’s “Mussolini stuff”, says Luttwak. “There has to be a war to rejuvenate China”.
The “rejuvenation” concept – actually better translated as “revival” – has been resonating in China circles at least since the overthrow of the Qing dynasty in 1911. It was not coined by Xi. Chinese scholars point out that if you see US troops arriving in Taiwan as “advisors”, you would probably make preparations to fight too.
But Luttwak is on a mission: “This is not America, Europe, Ukraine, Russia. This is about ‘the sole dictator’. There is no China. There is only Xi Jinping,” he insisted.
And Luttwak confirms the EU’s Josep “Garden vs. Jungle” Borrell and European Commission dominatrix Ursula von der Leyen fully support his vision.
Luttwak, in just a few words, actually gives away the whole game: “The Russian Federation, as it is, is not strong enough to contain China as much as we would wish”.
Hence the turn around by the Biden combo to “freeze” the conflict in the Donbass and change the subject. After all, “if that [China] is the threat, you don’t want Russia to fall apart,” Luttwak reasons.
So much for Kissingerian “diplomacy.”
Let’s Declare a “Moral Victory” and Run Away
On Russia, the Kissinger vs. Luttwak confrontation reveals crucial cracks as the Empire faces an existential conflict it never did in the recent past.
The gradual, massive U-turn is already in progress – or at least the semblance of a U turn. US mainstream media will be entirely behind the U turn. And the naïve masses will follow. Luttwak is already voicing their deepest agenda: the real war is on China, and China “will lose”.
At least some non-neocon players around the Biden combo – like Burns – seem to have understood the Empire’s massive strategic blunder of publicly committing to a Forever War, hybrid and otherwise, against Russia on behalf of Kiev.
This would mean, in principle, that Washington can’t just walk away like it did in Vietnam and Afghanistan. Yet Hegemons do enjoy the privilege to walk away: after all they exercise sovereignty, not their vassals. European vassals will be left to rot. Imagine those Baltic chihuahuas declaring war on Russia-China all by themselves.
The off-ramp confirmed by Luttwak implies Washington declaring some sort of “moral victory” in Ukraine – which is already controlled by BlackRock anyway – and then moving the guns towards China.
Yet even that won’t be a cakewalk, because China and the about-to-expand BRICS+ are already attacking the Empire at its foundation: dollar hegemony. Without it, the US itself will have to fund the war on China.
Chinese scholars, off the record, and exercising their millennia-old analytical sweep, observe this may be the last blunder the Empire ever made in its short history.
As one of them summarized it, “the empire has blundered itself to an existential war and, therefore, the last war of the empire. When the end comes, the empire will lie as usual and declare victory, but everyone else will know the truth, especially the vassals.”
And that brings us to former national security adviser Zbigniew “Grand Chessboard” Brzezinski’s 180-degree turn shortly before he died, aligning him today with Kissinger, not Luttwak.
“The Grand Chessboard”, published in 1997, before the 9/11 era, argued that the US should rule over any peer competitor rising in Eurasia. Brzezinski did not live to see the living incarnation of his ultimate nightmare: a Russia-China strategic partnership. But already seven years ago – two years after Maidan in Kiev – at least he understood it was imperative to “realign the global power architecture”.
Destroying the “Rules-Based International Order”
The crucial difference today, compared to seven years ago, is that the US is incapable, per Brzezinski, to “take the lead in realigning the global power architecture in such a way that the violence (…) can be contained without destroying the global order.”
It’s the Russia-China strategic partnership that is taking the lead – followed by the Global Majority – to contain and ultimately destroy the hegemonic “rules-based international order”.
As the indispensable Michael Hudson has summarized it, the ultimate question at this incandescent juncture is “whether economic gains and efficiency will determine world trade, patterns and investment, or whether the post-industrial US/NATO economies will choose to end up looking like the rapidly depopulating and de-industrializing post-Soviet Ukraine and Baltic states or England.”
So is the wet dream of a war on China going to change these geopolitical and geoeconomics imperatives? Give us a -Thucydides – break.
The real war is already on – but certainly not one identified by Kissinger, Brzezinski and much less Luttwak and assorted US neocons.
Michael Hudson, once again, summarized it: when it comes to the economy, the US and EU “strategic error of self-isolation from the rest of the world is so massive, so total, that its effects are the equivalent of a world war.”
But before the war with China, perhaps a war with Mexico is “in the cards”…
How Mexico has become the “enemy” of America’s Republicans A growing number of them want to use military force against drug cartels
I'm honestly amazed that Republicans are willing to risk what hegemony the US has left over a misguided war.
Do they not realize how disastrous this will get. Refugee crisis, economic implosion, complete guerilla warfare, heat waves upon heat waves, etc.
This will end so badly that it'll make Afghanistan look like a minor hiccup. Tell me I'm wrong.
His father and mother both held Doctorates in Biophysics and Quantum Physics
He qualified by merit and a 173 LSAT score to study Law in Duke University
He worked at a Wall Street Firm and had licenses from NY and Washington DC
YET
He had to spend 4 years in Rural Anhui and Guanxi as a Volunteer and worked with Farmers, Drove a Truck, Acted as an accountant
Only then was he made a Deputy Provincial Head — the equivalent in India of a Panchayat Head or Councillor
Later he became Secretary of the District
He couldn’t deliver enough self sufficient villages and deliver a good performance
He WAS AXED IMMEDIATELY
Less that 2% knew he was Deng Xiaopings son when he was made Deputy Head
He called himself Zhuo Xifeng to avoid the Deng name until it came out eventually
That is China’s Meritocracy
No Free Lunches
No Papa Names
It’s always Performance and RESULTS
You need good education, You need solid performances and You need to be worthy of the party (No Homosexuality, No Philandering, No Perversions, No Drunkenness)
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This is Shi Guanghui
Son of ordinary farmers
Scholarship winner to study Engineering in Tong Ji and a PE in Singapore and Canada
He served 5 years in the provinces , working as a distributor of food, harvester, drove pigs to the market, learnt about price controls
Later he rose through the ranks
No famous name
Responsible for ensuring Evergrandes Bubble was controlled fully
Responsible for ensuring Covid didn’t kill more than 40,000 people in Shanghai when it was estimated it would kill at least 300,000–400,000 people in Shanghai alone
Responsible for ensuring flow of medicines and food
Responsible for ensuring 6 Trillion of Bonds were absorbed profitably
He DELIVERED each time
He was REWARDED each time
His mentor?
HU JINTAO , who headed a rival faction against Xi Jingping
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No Issues
No repercussions when Xi became the Secretary in 2012 instead of Lei Keiqang
Pure Meritocracy
Sheer unadulterated Meritocracy
If you have the ability, you will be rewarded
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You know him of course
Son of a Prominent Party Official who lost favor in the old days
A Chemical Engineer who built four standalone processing plants with half the budget when people wanted him to fail
A Man who was exiled to the farthest provinces who made village after village self sufficient and profitable
Who travelled overseas and LEARNT about mechanisation of agriculture from US without any shame and didn’t say “We are the greatest in the world”. He shut up and learnt
Who Mechanised a whole province and raised output by 200% in 7 years
Finally they couldn’t ignore him and today he is
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Xi Jingping Secretary of the CPC
He has earned his place
He has helped China grow by leaps and bounds
Every man in that room has done his part in China’s growth
Not Caste, Not Religion, Not marching with half shorts and a ridiculous cap, Not based on surname or Papa’s name,
China may not be a 100% Meritocracy but it’s still the best Meritocracy on EARTH
Doctors, Scientists, Researchers, Engineers, Teachers , hell even Laborers
All chosen based on pure ability
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Four Tibetans , Graduates from MIT, Tsinghua and Caltech
Part of the Scientific Council in China
Not even Han Chinese
Reason?
Sheer Ability
China asks only two things :—
China first before religion and language
Loyalty to China and the Communist Party
Deliver this and China will ensure you are protected for life and develop to your best
Don’t deliver this and …you better run
Orson Welles | The 3rd Man (1949) Film-Noir, Thriller
Lately I have been playing around with the You-Tube platform. I have added a few videos and am busy learning video editing and production. I have up loaded three videos so far, and I am learning so much by my myrid of mistakes. Hopefully, I will be able to provide MM readership with a steady flow of videos to suppliment the writings herein. Well. That’s my goal anyways.
We are in a “funny time”. The main stream American media (along wiht the Western media) are still playing the nonsense, but you know… the “worm has turned“. Ah. It’s all different now. The East is now going to rule, while the West slowly fades into the background.
Oh, don’t misunderstand, it’s still a dangerous time, but the verdict is in. A new world order is emerging out of the old, and there’s very few things that the old order can do to change things.
Here, we will continue on the collection of narratives as we document this great period of change, but keep in mind (as dangerous as this time actually is) the future is a foregone conclusion. The only issue at this time is the death count, and the speed at which the collapse of the West will occur.
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Escobar: Meet The New, Resource-Based Global Reserve Currency
Authored by Pepe Escobar,
A new reality is being formed:the unipolar world is irrevocably becoming a thing of the past,a multipolar one is taking shape.
It was something to behold. Dmitri Medvedev, former Russian President, unrepentant Atlanticist, current deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, decided to go totally unplugged in an outburst matching the combat star turn of Mr. Khinzal that delivered palpable shock and awe all across NATOstan.
Medvedev said “hellish” Western sanctions not only have failed to cripple Russia, but are instead “returning to the West like a boomerang.” Confidence in reserve currencies is “fading like the morning mist”, and ditching the US dollar and the euro is not unrealistic anymore: “The era of regional currencies is coming.”
After all, he added, “no matter if they want it or not, they’ll have to negotiate a new financial order (…) And the decisive voice will then be with those countries that have a strong and advanced economy, healthy public finances and a reliable monetary system.”
Medvedev relayed his succinct analysis even before D Day – as in the deadline this Thursday established by President Putin after which payments for Russian gas by “unfriendly nations” will only be accepted in rubles.
The G7, predictably, had struck a (collective) pose: we won’t pay. “We” means the 4 that are not large Russian gas importers. “We”, moreover, means the Empire of Lies dictating the rules. As for the 3 that will be in dire straits, not only they are major importers but also happen to be WWII losers – Germany, Italy and Japan, still de facto occupied territories. History does have a habit of playing perverted tricks.
Denial didn’t last long. Germany was the first to break – even before industrialists from Ruhr to Bavaria staged a mass revolt. Scholz, the puny Chancellor, called Putin, who had to explain the obvious: payments are being converted into rubles because the EU froze Russia’s foreign exchange reserves – in a crass violation of international law.
With Taoist patience, Putin also expressed hope this would not represent a deterioration in contract terms for European importers. Russian and German experts should sit down together and discuss the new terms.
Moscow is working on a set of documents defining the new deal. Essentially, that spells out no rubles, no gas. Contracts become null and void once you violate trust. The US and the EU broke legally biding agreements with unilateral sanctions and on top of it confiscated foreign reserves of a – nuclear – G20 nation.
The unilateral sanctions made dollars and euros worthless to Russia. Hysteria fits won’t cut it: this will be resolved – but under Russia’s terms. Period. The Foreign Ministry had already warned that refusal to pay for gas in rubles would lead to a serious global crisis of non-payments and serial global-level bankruptcies, a hellish chain reaction of blocked transactions, freezing of collateral assets and closures of credit lines.
What will happen next is partially predictable. EU companies will receive the new set of rules. They will have time to examine the documents and make a decision. Those that say “no” will be automatically excluded from receiving direct Russian gas shipments – all politico-economic consequences included.
There will be some compromise, of course. For instance, quite a few EU nations will accept to use rubles and increase their gas acquisitions so they may resell the surplus to their neighbors and make a profit. And some may also decide to buy gas on the go on energy exchanges.
So Russia is not imposing an ultimatum on anybody. The whole thing will take time – a rolling process. With some sideway action as well. The Duma is contemplating the extension of payment in rubles to other essential products – such as oil, metals, timber, wheat. It will depend on the collective voracity of the EU chihuahuas. Everyone knows that their non-stop hysteria may translate into a colossal rupture of supply chains across the West.
Bye bye oligarchs
While the Atlanticist ruling classes have gone totally berserk but still remain focused on fighting to the last European to extract any remaining, palpable EU wealth, Russia is playing it cool. Moscow has been quite lenient in fact, brandishing the specter of no gas in Spring rather than Winter.
The Russian Central Bank nationalized foreign exchange earnings of all major exporters. There was no default. The ruble keeps rising – and is now back to roughly the same level before Operation Z. Russia remains self-sufficient, food-wise. American hysteria over “isolated” Russia is laughable. Every actor that matters across Eurasia – not to mention the other 4 BRICS and virtually the whole Global South – did not demonize and/or sanction Russia.
As an extra bonus, arguably the last oligarch capable of influence in Moscow, Anatoly Chubais, is gone. Call it another momentous historical trickery: Western sanction hysteria de facto dismembered Russian oligarchy – Putin’s pet project since 2000. What that implies is the strengthening of the Russian state and the consolidation of Russian society.
We still don’t have all the facts, but a case can be made that after years of careful evaluation Putin opted to really go for broke and break the West’s back – using that trifecta (imminent blitzkrieg on Donbass; US bioweapon labs; Ukraine working on nuclear weapons) as the casus belli.
The freezing of foreign reserves had to have been forecasted, especially because the Russian Central Bank had been increasing its reserves of US Treasuries since November last year. Then there’s the serious possibility of Moscow being able to access “secret” offshore foreign reserves – a complex matrix built with Chinese insider help.
The sudden switch from dollars/euros to rubles was hardcore, Olympic-level geoeconomic judo. Putin enticed the collective West to unleash its demented hysteria sanction attack – and turned it against the opponent with a single, swift move.
And here we all are now trying to absorb so many in-synch game-changing developments following the weaponization of dollar assets: rupee-ruble with India, the Saudi petroyuan, co-badged Mir-UnionPay cards issued by Russian banks, the Russia-Iran SWIFT alternative, the EAEU-China project of an independent monetary/financial system.
Not to mention the master coup by the Russian Central Bank, pegging 1 gram of gold to 5,000 rubles – which is already around $60, and climbing.
Coupled with No Rubles No Gas, what we have here is energy de facto pegged to gold.
The EU Chihuahuas and the Japanese colony will need to buy a lot of rubles in gold or buy a lot of gold to have their gas. And it gets better. Russia may re-peg the ruble to gold in the near future. Could go to 2,000 rubles, 1,000 rubles, even 500 rubles for a gram of gold.
Time to be sovereign
The Holy Grail in the evolving discussions about a multipolar world, since the BRICS summits in the 2000s featuring Putin, Hu Jintao and Lula, has always been how to bypass dollar hegemony. It’s now right in front of the whole Global South, as a benign apparition bearing a Cheshire cat’s smile: the golden ruble, or ruble backed by oil, gas, minerals, commodity exports.
The Russian Central Bank, unlike the Fed, does not practice QE and won’t export toxic inflation to the rest of the planet. The Russian Navy not only secures all Russian sea lines, but Russian nuclear-powered submarines are capable of popping up all over the planet unannounced.
Russia is far, far ahead already implementing the concept of “continental naval power”. December 2015, in the Syrian theater, was the strategic game-changer. The Black Sea-based submarine 4th division is the star of the show.
Russian naval fleets may now employ Kalibr missiles across a space comprehending Eastern Europe, West Asia and Central Asia. The Caspian Sea and the Black Sea, linked by the Don-Volga canal, offer a space of maneuver comparable to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Persian Gulf combined. 6,000 km-long. And you don’t even need to access warm waters.
That covers around 30 nations: the traditional Russian sphere of influence; historical borders of the Russian empire; and current political/energy rivalry spheres.
No wonder the Beltway is berserk.
Russia guarantees shipping across Asia, the Arctic and Europe, in tandem with the Eurasia-wide BRI railway network.
And last but not least, don’t mess with a Nuclear Bear.
Essentially, this is what hardcore power politics is all about. Medvedev was not bragging when he said the era of a single reserve currency is over. The advent of a resource-based global reserve currency means, in a nutshell, that 13% of the planet will not dominate the other 87% anymore.
It’s NATOstan vs. Eurasia redux. Cold War 2.0, 3.0, 4.0 and even 5.0. It doesn’t matter. All the previous Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) nations see which way the geopolitical and geo-economic winds are blowing: the time to assert their real sovereignty is at hand as the “rules-based international order” bites the dust.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, in China, after meeting several counterparts from across Eurasia, could not have outlined it better:
“A new reality is being formed: the unipolar world is irrevocably becoming a thing of the past, a multipolar one is taking shape. It’s an objective process. It’s unstoppable. In this reality, more than one power will “rule” – it will be necessary to negotiate between all the key states that today have a decisive influence on the world economy and politics. At the same time, realizing their special situation, these countries ensure compliance with the basic principles of the UN Charter, including the fundamental one – the sovereign equality of states. No one on this Earth should be seen as a minor player. Everyone is equal and sovereign.”
Welcome to the birth of the new world system.
Tears For Fears – Head Over Heels (Official Music Video)
Ok. So I’m out of MAJestic on my own and waiting to be called in for “training”. At this time, we (my first wife and I) were living in the nice seaside community of San Louis Obispo in California. It was the middle to late 1980’s. We were living in a broken down van stuck in the end of a church parking lot, and I was working two jobs as a breakfast cook and janitor.
It was at that time that MAJestic tracked me down and called me into the base with work. But before that happened, we were living hand to mouth at the poverty level.
It was a special time. It was Spring and we lived in a “college town”, and the music of that time was unique. One of the songs of that time was “Head over Heels” by Tears for Fears. Here’s the MV of it. Please enjoy my flashback to the past.
What do you think of this flash back in time?
Goldman Sachs warns the dollar is at risk of losing its dominance, and could end up a lesser player like the UK pound
Goldman Sachs has said the US dollar faces a number of risks, and could become a lesser currency like the UK pound.
The US’ tough sanctions on Russia have raised concerns that countries around the world could try to move away from the dollar.
Goldman said the US’ foreign debts mean that foreign investors may become reluctant to hold dollar assets.
This is another one of thes songs of that particular period in time. Fast forward two years later, maybe three, and I am out of MAJestic and I am off trying to start yet again anew. Sheech! And this is the song that is playing all over the radio 24-7…
Homemade Biscuits and Gravy
Homemade Biscuits and Gravy
This recipe will take your taste buds down South, to where good old-fashioned recipes are still king. Our Homemade Biscuits and Gravy recipe is full of so much down-home goodness, you’ll want to eat these homemade biscuits at breakfast AND dinner, which is perfectly all right by us!
What You’ll Need
2 cups pancake and baking mix
2/3 cup buttermilk
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) butter, melted, plus 2 tablespoons butter
1 (16-ounce) package hot pork sausage
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
What to Do
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
In a medium bowl, stir baking mix, buttermilk, and the 1/2 stick melted butter until soft dough forms. Drop 8 equal spoonfuls of dough onto an ungreased baking sheet.
Bake 14 to 16 minutes, or until golden brown.
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, melt remaining butter; cook 1 to 1-1/2 minutes, or until browned. Add sausage and cook 6 to 8 minutes, or until no pink remains, stirring to crumble sausage. Add flour; mix well. Add Worcestershire sauce, milk, salt, and pepper; mix well. Cook 2 to 4 minutes, or until gravy thickens, stirring constantly.
Cut biscuits in half and spoon sausage mixture evenly on bottom halves. Replace tops and serve.
The captured General in Ukraine is being rewritten
From an influencer, the background wikipedia on the captured American Major General Roger L. Cloutier, that I wrote about HERE, is being rewritten as we speak. Poof! New numbers. New dates. New backgrounds.
White board. That’s what the internet is today. A big white board.
Grow Alum Crystals That Resemble Simulated Diamonds
Home-made.
Alum is found in the spices section of the grocery store. That little jar contains small white crystals that, with a bit of time and effort, grow a big alum crystal that looks a bit like a diamond. It only takes about an hour to grow small alum crystals, but getting a big crystals takes days to weeks.
All you need to grow alum crystals are alum, hot water, and a container. Choose a clear container so you can watch the crystals grow. While not strictly necessary, it helps having a way to tie and suspend a crystal in the liquid. This helps it keep an ideal shape. A coffee filter or paper towel keeps dust out of your project, while still allowing good air circulation.
1/2 cups hot tap water
2-1/2 tablespoons alum
nylon fishing line
pencil, ruler, or knife
2 clean jars
spoon
coffee filter/paper towel
There are actually a few different kinds of alum. The edible one in the grocery store is potassium alum. It grows clear crystals. Other types of alum include sodium, ammonium, selenium, and chrome alum. Chrome alum grows deep purple crystals. If you have access to the other chemicals, feel free to combine them to see what colors you get. But, check the labels for safety information. Some types of alum are non-toxic, but others are irritants and not edible.
Grow the Crystals
Pour 1/2 cup of hot tap water into a clean jar.
Slowly stir in alum, a little at a time, until it stops dissolving. Don’t add the whole amount; just enough to saturate the water.
Loosely cover the jar with a coffee filter or paper towel (to keep dust out) and allow the jar to sit undisturbed overnight.
The next day, pour the alum solution from the first jar into the clean jar. You will see small alum crystals at the bottom of the jar. These are ‘seed’ crystals that you will use to grow a big crystal.
Tie nylon fishing line around the largest, best-shaped crystal. Tie the other end to a flat object (e.g., popsicle stick, ruler, pencil, butter knife). You will hang the seed crystal by this flat object into the jar far enough so that it will be covered in liquid, but won’t touch the bottom or sides of the jar. It may take a few tries to get the length just right.
When you have the right string length, hang the seed crystal in the jar with the alum solution. Cover it with the coffee filter and grow a crystal!
Grow your crystal until you are satisfied with its size. If you see crystals starting to grow on the sides or bottom of your jar, carefully remove your crystal, pour the liquid into the clean jar, and put the crystal in the new jar. Other crystals in the jar will compete with your crystal for alum, so it won’t be able to get as big if you let these crystals grow.
Solving Common Problems
The most common problem people experience growing alum crystals is that crystals not growing. If you don’t see crystal growth within a day or two, there isn’t enough alum in the liquid. Gently heat the liquid over a stove or in the microwave and try adding more alum powder. Crystals only grow if the solution is saturated. This is the point where no more solid dissolves.
Crystal Growing Tips
You can use sewing thread or other string instead of nylon fishing line, but crystals will grow on the entire length of the submerged string. Crystals don’t adhere to nylon, so if you use it, you can get bigger and better crystals.
Alum is an ingredient used to make pickles. It makes them crispy.
Don’t worry if you don’t want to bother with the string! Crystals grow just fine on the bottom of the container. Use a spoon to scrape crystals away from each other so they won’t grow together. The shape of crystals growing on a flat surface differs from the shapes that form when crystals are suspended.
From Hal Turner
I happen to be in the morbidity business; I'm the CEO of a large insurance group... Based on what it is we are seeing, the rates right now are excess mortality of 84% and excess of every kind of disease at 1100%.
We are expecting a 5000% or so increase in excess mortality for this year (2022).
An enormous number.
I don't think that it's by coincidence, by the way, that Moderna has now just received licensure of their emergency use authorization HIV vaccine. So they gave everybody AIDS, and here's your salvation, another vaccine."
-- Attorney Todd Callender
The video below is Attorney Todd Callender, whose comments are shown above.
When he says “So they gave everybody AIDS . . . ” he’s talking about the mRNA injections given out under the guise of COVID-19.
Quick investigation of the Preliminary USA mortality data for 2021 from the CDC reveals:
499,132 X 51 = 25,455,732 excess deaths. That is what Attorney Todd Callendar indicates the USA could see !
Add to that the 2.95 million expected deaths, and the result is:
28,405,732 total deaths for 2022.
At this rate all the injected will be gone by 2025, just as was forecasted by the population reduction charts posted on the Deagel web site for many years.
Deagel.com last original 2025 population forecast (before scrubbing it all) for Germany was 28 million. For the USA, the chart that was “scrubbed” is shown below:
2022 04 06 15 51
About one third of Germanys population remain unvaxxed. Today’s population is 83 million, so Deagel’s report may be quite accurate.
So the DoD guy who ran the Deagel website † 2021 knew about this “plandemic” since 2015? CIA connections huh?
Deagle has always had the forecast at the year 2025. The numbers may have fluctuated but the date never did.
Qualudes again
Well, is he right? Or is he fear-mongering? It’s hard to say. I am not a doctor, but I can read tables. I guess we will have to wait and see.
In the meantime, let’s go back to 1976. This song topped the Country and Western chart at that time. It’s about a hyptnomic sedative that was very popular at that time for recreational use. Known as the Qualude. I can tell you first hand, that it was an awesome drug.
It made you so very relaxed, but at the same time, so very lively. You just wanted to dance and have a great time. Don’t drive though. You are not safe behind the wheel of anything.
It was banned in the United States.
Pakastan thwarted a United States coup
Pakistan just narrowly thwarted the US’ regime change campaign against Prime Minister Imran Khan that was launched against him as punishment for his independent foreign policy.
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“Imran Khan claimed that Donald Lu warned the Pakistani envoy to the US, Asad Majeed, that there would be implications if the Pakistan PM survived the no-trust vote in the National Assembly.
PM Khan said that the no-confidence motion against him was a “foreign conspiracy” and he thanked Allah that it failed.”
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Why invest in diplomacy or in projects like BRI ? The return of investment is way way higher if Uncle Sam just perform regime change here and there and if successful, the interests of US will be taken care of by the puppet gov’t in place.
A fine throw-back to 1960s television fare. It’s well worth at least a ten minute watch. I lvoe the acting, the costumes, and the premise of a B-grade science fiction movie. Great for laughs.
Doomsday ‘Preppers’ Warn Of Hard Times Ahead As Preparedness Goes Mainstream
Food scarcity. Food vouchers. Food riots and flash mobs.
All of that’s coming – and soon, says Texas-based food scientist and “Health Ranger” podcaster Mike Adams, who sees dire events unfolding in America in the short term.
Texas-based food scientist Mike Adams, known online as the “Health Ranger,” sees food shortages and heightened security later in 2022. (Courtesy of Mike Adams)
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His advice: people need to get prepared now.
“The thing to really watch for is the food inflation,” Adams said.“My position is we’re going to see food riots in America before the end of this year. We’re going to see flash mobs in grocery stores—especially for meat products.
“Grocery stores are going to respond with increased security and checkpoints. At some point, we’re probably going to see an attempt at price controls and rationing.
“And not on everything—certain types of things. It’s almost certain that the rationing they will attempt to enforce with a vaccine passport app that becomes a food rationing app,” Adams told The Epoch Times.
Adams is not alone in his predictions of hard times coming to America—and the world.
With food production buckling under the weight of runaway inflation, skyrocketing fuel costs, and fertilizer shortages, much of what’s in store is already “built-in.”
What Do You Want From Life?
The tubes was a group that was hitting the audiences when I was graduating out of university. They probably had one hell of a stage show. I don’t actually know, as I never watched them perform. However their album was a real hoot. As this particular song clearly indicates.
Unfertile Ground
In North America two years ago, it cost around $200 an acre to fertilize a 1,000-acre commercial farm, Adams said. Right now, with spring planting, farmers can expect to pay $1,200 to $2,000 an acre.
And consumers will pay for it in higher prices for basic necessities.
“Many farmers are deciding not to plant. In addition, the diesel fuel prices and diesel fuel scarcity is going into their equation whether they should plant,” Adams said.
The upshot, he said, is that fewer farmers are planting, which means less food to go around.
As a food scientist Adams is a big proponent of clean, organically grown food free of heavy metals, which he makes available through the online sale of “Ranger Buckets.” The demand for his products has seen extremely high since the COVID-19 lockdown began in 2020.
Adams said it takes on average six to eight weeks to produce 2,000 buckets, which typically sell out within 30 minutes to three hours.
Even before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the demand for survival food in the United States has been on the increase among a number of national suppliers.
“The supply chain in the United States continues to crumble. More Americans are realizing it takes four trips to different home improvement stores for parts to make home repairs, instead of all their needs being in one store,” said Lori Hunt at Practical Preppers in South Carolina.
“That is making folks realize this extends to everything: food, books, solar equipment—and considering Ukraine is a source for critical raw materials in the solar industry, this is going to get much worse in the coming months,” she told The Epoch Times.
“Many of our customers are moving toward energy independence, and this is making a greater demand and diminishing supply situation. We are urging our customers to be prepared for a 2–4 month wait to amass all parts needed for their systems. Many installers around the United States are telling us they are experiencing the same.”
Byron Walker, Founder and CEO of Survival Frog in Denver, told the Epoch Times, “We have struggled with supply chain issues and things only appear to be getting worse.”
Allied Marketing Research (AMR) reported that the global incident and emergency market, valued at $75.5 billion in 2017, is projected to reach $423 billion by 2025.
“Factors such as rise in need for safety and security solutions, owing to increase in natural calamities and terrorist attacks, implementation of regulatory policies for public safety, and the necessity for emergency preparedness drive the growth of the global incident and emergency management market,” AMR said on its website.
“In addition, the surge in smart cities is expected to drive the adoption of intelligent evacuation systems and surveillance systems, thereby fueling the incident and emergency management market growth.”
Miami Vice – IN THE AIR TONIGHT | Tribute Video
If you lived though the 1980s then you would really appreciate the television show “Miami Vice”. It defined cool. It was a mix of rock music, detective action, drugs, and fashion. Everyone, and I do mean everyone, was hooked on this show. In this this clip here, you will see so many famous actors when they were young and not yet famous. In hindsight, it’s all pretty silly. But, the video is great and well worth the three minutes to watch.
Price Hikes ‘Here to Stay’
In recent weeks YouTube survival “preppers” such as City Prepping and Alaska Prepper have been sounding the alarm that hard times are just ahead.
Matt the “Magic Prepper,” in North Dakota, said being prepared continues to go mainstream as a “financial and scarcity genre” in view of current global events.
“With food production issues, supply chain problems, a slow economic recovery from the pandemic, and the cascading effects of an overseas conflict, it seems rather clear that shortages, disruptions, and price hikes are here to stay,” Matt told The Epoch Times.
He said the situation in Ukraine has revived interest in preparedness in case of a nuclear, biological, or chemical attack.
“With the conflict creating volatile rhetoric from multiple global superpowers, we find ourselves closer to such an event than any point in recent history,” Matt said. “I operate under the assumption that there is and will likely always be more time to prepare.”
Still, the state of being prepared is “exponentially limited” by the length of time it takes to get prepared, and other factors, he said.
“Every dollar spent today is worth less in value toward preparations than a dollar you would have spent three years ago. Therefore, by waiting to begin, you’ll inherently be able to prepare less and less.
YouTube’s Matt the “Magic Prepper” in North Dakota says it’s not too late to begin preparing for difficult economic times ahead. (Courtesy of Matt the “Magic Prepper”) .
“This is most obviously apparent when you relate it to items such as ammunition. Stocking up on it now provides you with anywhere from 50 percent [to] 75 percent less ammunition for the same amount spent on it three years ago.
“Even if we find ourselves in the midst of a full-on economic collapse or hot conflict, training and learning skills will likely still be accessible,” he said.
Preparedness also requires the ability to network and communication, having supplies in sufficient quantity, a “hardened” location, and knowledge on how to survive an economic collapse.
“I have suggested to keep moving forward regardless of the events unfolding currently. If things finally fall apart to the point of relying on our preparedness efforts, we will have prepared as best as we could up to that point.
“I am making phone calls, appointments, and plans every day to try and enhance my own personal preparedness,” Matt said.
Given the economic protectionism of halting food exports from countries like Hungary, Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus, the world supply of grain is going to be severely limited, Adams said.
This, he said, will result in the “most extreme food shortages we’ve seen in our lifetime.”
Better Now Than Never
“It will begin about August and continue until the end of the year. A lot of this depends on [President Joe] Biden’s economic decisions on whether he allows U.S. oil companies to finish pipelines and do more drilling. If he does not we are going to see even more shortages throughout 2023.”
Out of chaos, however, Adams foresees a reawakening of freedom and self-reliance in the way we grow and produce food.
“I think this is a red pill moment for the people of the world that they need to be more self-reliant. We need decentralization of food production. I’m a big proponent of decentralization—food grown locally.”
The bad news is that only about 5 percent of people in the United State are prepared. But “the more people prepare, the less they panic when shortages appear,” Adams said.
Star Trek – Missile Alert
And here’s a nice brief section of a 1960s Star Trek show. It’s also a fun watch. Just enjoy the five minute vision of the past.
Its about “Gary 7” and his cat.
Rick Wakeman Journey to the Centre of the Earth Full Album 1974 YouTube
Oh my teenage years. This album brought my father and me together musically. He loved it due ot the classical influences, and I loved it for the blend of rock music. Not to mention the great story line.
Simple Minds – Someone Somewhere In Summertime
Another glimpse to my early years right out from the Navy after MAJestic implantation. Enjoy this look back in time.
Conclusion
Yah. It’s a funny time. Don’t get too worked up with and about it. Things are unfolding to the plans set forth. To us “peons” it seems like everything is going to shit, but if you step back, and look at the big picture, just maybe… just MAYBE the West won’t be able to turn the world into an inferno if these various indicators play out as they appear to.
Hold on but not too tightly.
.
Do you want more?
You can find more articles related to this in my latest index; A New Beginning. And in it are elements of the old, some elements regarding the transition, and some elements that look towards the future.
The Ukraine invasion has set forth a domino effect; a chain of events that is reshaping the globe. And it is all to plan. It’s a plan made by China, Russia, India and Iran.
The (so called) petro-dollar; the USD is starting to fall apart, and with it, the economies of those that have been propped up by this fiat “currency”.
Whether or not Russia is “losing” or “winning” in the Ukraine is of no concern.
What is of concern, and what is actually happening is that a new world order has arisen from the ashes of the old. It’s an East and a West. And the West is collapsing in real time, while the East is rising.
Here, in this article we will cover a section of topics that cover these events in chunks. Not comprehensive, but enough to give you all an idea of what is actually going on.
Key Points
As you read this article, you need to keep in mind a few key points…
The world is undergoing a geopolitical realignment.
This alignment is dividing into two separate entities (East and West).
The two sides have a very different view of how the world should be.
The West is trying to maintain a uni-polar single world government ruled by the United States.
The East is trying to maintain a multi-polar world of equals of various unique social structures.
Key to this manifestation is the control of the currency of exchange.
The West is trying to maintain the USD, or an electronic version of it.
The East is trying to use commodity-based currency by labor, materials and products.
Issues about Ukraine or Taiwan are simply the desperate plans of the West in a plan to maintain a uni-polar world.
Do not get sidetracked from what is REALLY going on.
The technical definition of money is “something generally accepted as a medium of exchange, a measure of value, or a means of payment.”
For most people this has always meant the legal tender of their homeland.
Until fairly recently, this was a coin with the face of the king on it.
Thus, the better the reputation of the king, the more valuable his coin, because traders were more likely to accept it. A good king made sure his coins had a consistent amount of gold or silver in it.
The reason for that is precious metals like gold and silver were always the world’s reserve currency.
Everyone in the world would accept gold and silver for payment, even in places that restricted the use of the metals. You could always take the metal to the king’s mint and exchange it for his coins.
Granted, he took a fee for himself and you were charged the cost of minting the coins, but that was predictable.
In the end, all currency was measured in gold and silver.
…
But, we no longer use gold coin for money.
Every country in the world uses what the economist call fiat currency.
This is a government-issued currency that is not backed by a physical commodity, such as gold or silver.
Instead, it is backed by the “full faith and credit” of the issuing government.
That dollar = faith in the government issuing the paper.
Money is now an expression of the government power behind it.
The US dollar is the reserve currency of the world largely due to the fact the American government was the most trusted.
…
Hard money enthusiasts assume this means the United States can print as much money as it needs, but this is not exactly true.
The international monetary system that evolved after the collapse of the Bretton Woods system in the 1970’s is a framework that controls the exchange rate of the major currencies.
Every major currency is based on the dollar, just as oil and gas are priced in dollars.
The petrodollar was created in the 1970’s when the Bretton Woods system collapsed.
The dollar was replaced by the Petro-dollar.
What the current system does, in effect, is link currencies to the supply of crude oil through the dollar.
How much oil you can buy with your home currency is dependent upon how many dollars you can buy with it.
It is not a direct link, as oil production rises and falls and the supply of dollars rises and falls, relative to other major currencies like the Euro or Chinese Yuan.
In effect, America controls the world by controlling the price of commodities like crude oil and natural gas.
American dollar = global use of oil and gas commodities.
…
In the old days, minting coins was a profit center for the king.
A strong king would restrict the use of other coins in his domain.
His people had to take their foreign coins, gold and silver to his mint for conversion to his coin.
In addition to the cost of production, he tacked on a profit for himself. This is called seigniorage and it works the same for fiat money as it does hard money.
This profit from controlling the global currency is one way the United States has grown so rich.
The USA uses this petro-dollar as a mechanism to make debt.
One of the consequences of this system is the world has an insatiable appetite for US government debt.
Because it is denominated in dollars and considered the safest of financial bets, it makes the ideal collateral.
This has allowed the United States and other Western countries to run massive trade and spending deficits.
The world wants the debt and the world wants to sell the West their products.
US debt was 30% of GDP in 1980 and now it is 127% of GDP.
…
This is the subtext of the Russo-Ukrainian war.
Russia and China, especially China, are tired of this arrangement.
They correctly see it as to the advantage of Washington at their expense.
This is (partially) why China is backing Russia’s play to demand rubles for its energy and agricultural products.
This would pave the way for China demanding yuan for its products and the right to pay for energy in yuan.
India is also quietly supporting what the Russians are doing for the same reasons.
…
This is (partially) why Washington is in no mood to strike a deal over Ukraine.
It is not the only reason, but it is a big part of the plan to protect the dollar.
It is believed that if Washington can break the Putin government through financial war, China and India will drop their plans to buck the dollar in the global economy.
A century after the Great War, the new global war is being mainly fought in finance.
The West, led by America, is now at war with the world over control of the global currency system.
…
…
It is probably a war that the West cannot win.
…
…
The reason is the same reason the king would put his face on his coins.
Money is the physical expression of power.
The strong king could enforce his monetary policy in his domain and his money had a predictable amount of gold and silver.
In effect, his money was the representation of his people and the cultural that defined them.
The legal tender of a country is the measure of that country’s wealth and power relative to the world.
…
The West no longer makes or invents anything useful.
The power of the West is the legacy power to control the financial system.
It is a system arranged by Mercurian people in order to control the Apollonians.
The former are the people who operate as middlemen and service providers, while the latter are the people who grow the food, make the goods and keep the gears properly lubricated.
The former operates in the West, while the latter exist in the East.
…
Reality is the thing that does not go away when you stop believing in it.
And reality says that growing and making things counts for more than thinking about things.
The reason Washington has not crushed the Russian economy is the world needs the stuff Russia pulled out of the earth.
In this economic war of attrition, Russian can feed itself and keep its homes warm, while Europe will have to hope America can provide the food and energy at a reasonable fee.
…
The most likely outcome of this global conflict is something people have suspected for quite some time.
The global currency will become a basket of commodities like natural gas and crude oil.
Maybe agricultural products will be in the mix.
The reason for this is the world runs on energy and food.
Bretton Woods III, as some are calling it, will be a new set of currency arrangements whereby money is based on its purchasing power for the agreed upon basket of products.
…
What this means in the short run is that the West is about to get poorer as governments are forced to cut spending and debase the currency to get out from under domestic debt obligations like pension payments.
It also means the end of globalism as has been defined by Washington for three decades.
Trade will continue, but between countries rather than independent global enterprises.
Thirty years after the Cold War the world is about to start healing and return to something close to normal.
The Emotions “Don’t Ask my Neighbor”
Yeah. By mixing up topics such as food, hobbies, movies and pretty girls in my articles I have completely ZEROED out all the trolls, ‘bots and DDos attacks. Man, I’m telling you. It friggin’ works!
About this song…
Throughout my Senior year in High School I fell in love with soul and funk. I added it alongside my love of hard rock, and it greatly shaped my absorption of the culture of the 1970s at that time.
One of my favorites (in regards to soul) at that time was this group that has passed into obscurity known as “The Emotions”. It’s a trio of three attractive ladies with real heart.
Here’s one of their classic songs.
What is a “Blue Blood”?
This term has come to define the ruling oligarchy that operate the United States from behind the veil. But from whence did this term originate?
The blue bloods... arises from eating from a silver spoon and drinking from a silver cup. Silver accumulates in the system and turns the skin blue. Literally. No doubt the blue blood class have moved to gold these days for their eating utensils though the Americans seem to like their grow light suntans.
Ukrainians to use American weapons, and American tactics.
It’s a core principle behind the RAND operational study.
"Since the US-engineered 2013-14 coup in Ukraine, American forces have taught Ukrainians, including neo-Nazi units, how to fight in urban and other civilian areas. Weaponizing Ukraine is part of Washington’s quest for what the Pentagon calls “full spectrum dominance.”
Chinese scientists at the Xian Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics have developed a fully functioning prototype of the “ZKZM-500 laser assault rifle.”
The 15mm caliber weapon is being compared to an AK-47 because of its similar 6.6-lb weight, but it’s firepower capabilities sound like something straight out of a sci-fi movie.
According to researchers who wish to remain anonymous, the ZKZM-500 fires an energy beam undetectable to the human eye that can pass through glass and cause the “instant carbonization” of human flesh from half a mile away.
“The pain will be beyond endurance,” one researcher said. “[It can] burn through clothes in a split second. If the fabric is flammable, the whole person will be set on fire”.
“Nobody will know where the attack came from,” another anonymous researcher added. “It will look like an accident.”
2022 04 05 08 25
Each will cost $15,000 to manufacture at large-scale production and can fire 1,000 “shots” on a single charge from a lithium ion battery.
In the event of a hostage situation it could be used to fire through windows at targets and temporarily disable the kidnappers while other units move in to rescue their captives.It could also be used in covert military operations. The beam is powerful enough to burn through a gas tank and ignite the fuel storage facility in a military airport.The lasers cannot kill a target with a single shot, but if fired at a person for long enough the weapons would start to burn a hole in their body, cutting through them like a surgical knife.
Anti-terrorism squads in the Chinese Armed Police will likely be the first to test these laser guns in the field.
Frank Black – Headache
This is from sometime in the 1990s. I love it because the video is done in retro 1940s theme and the subject matter was meaningful to me back then. In those days, I worked in cubicle farms as engineering drones.
Do you remember this one?
Americans should budget an extra $5,200 this year to cover rising prices, Bloomberg economists estimate
“Americans haven’t had to worry too much about factoring inflation into their budget for the past four decades. That’s changing in 2022.
The red-hot inflation expected to last throughout the year will leave the average US household spending $5,200 more compared to the year prior, Bloomberg economists Andrew Husby and Anna Wong said in a Tuesday article. That boils down to an extra $433 per month on the same goods and services as last year.”
The S.O.S. Band | Just Be Good To Me (1983) | Extended HQ version
Another of the songs that was big right after I joined MAJestic and was set loose on the world on my own. Actually, this song was very big in the dance club scene at that time. Not so much on the music charts then, but in the clubs, well yeah.
And this singer. Well, wow! So hot! Look at her smile. Her moves. Her hair. She’s so, so chocolate fudge on waffle topped with whipped creame. And brandy. In a glass with ice. Big cubes, not little ones.
She’s such a treat.
Events Like These Only Happen Once Every Century (Sergey Glazyev)
“Events like these only happen once every century”: Sergei Glazyev on the breaking of an epoch and the change of ways.
Is it possible to stabilize the ruble in three days? And why are the Ukrainian ‘zombies’ not giving up?
“After failing to weaken the People’s Republic of China head-on through a trade war, the Americans shifted the main blow to Russia, which they see as a weak link in world geopolitics and economics.
The Anglo-Saxons are striving to realize their age-old Russophobic ideas of destroying our country, and at the same time weakening China, because the strategic alliance of the Russian Federation and China is too tough for the United States.
They have neither the economic nor military power to destroy us together, and not separately,”
- Sergey Glazyev, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, former adviser to the President of the Russian Federation.
About what opportunities are now opening up for the Russian economy, whether the Central Bank panders to the enemy and whether a new world currency will replace the dollar, Glazyev spoke in an interview with BUSINESS Online.
The new world economic order is socialist in ideology
“The new world economic order is socialist in ideology”
– Sergey Yuryevich, commenting on today’s tragic events.
Q: Sergey wrote in your Telegram channel that we should have read your book about the “last world war”, written about 6 years ago. How did you manage to predict everything so accurately?
A:The fact is that there are long-term patterns of economic development, the analysis and understanding of which makes it possible to predict the events that are taking place at the present time.
We are now experiencing a simultaneous change in the technological and world economic structures, while the technological basis of the economy is changing, there is a transition to fundamentally new technologies, and the management system is also changing.
Events like this happen about once a century.
However, technological structures change about once every 50 years, and their change is usually accompanied by a technological revolution, depression and an arms race.
And world economic structures change once every 100 years, and their change is accompanied by world wars and social revolutions.
This is due to the fact that the ruling elite of the countries of the core of the old world economic order impedes changes, does not take into account the emergence of more effective management systems, tries to block the development of new world leaders using them, and tries to maintain its hegemony and its monopoly position by any means, including military and revolutionary ones.
Say, 100 years ago, the British Empire was trying to maintain its hegemony in the world.
When it was already losing economically to the combined resources of the Russian Empire and Germany, the First World War, provoked by British intelligence, was unleashed, during which all three European empires self-liquidated.
I am talking about the collapse of tsarist Russia, the German and Austro-Hungarian empires, but here we can even put a fourth – the Ottoman Port.
As for Britain, for some time it retained global dominance and even became the largest empire on the planet. But due to the inexorable laws of socio-economic development, the colonial world economic structure, based in fact on slave labor, could no longer ensure economic growth.
The two fundamentally new political models that emerged – the Soviet and the American ones – demonstrated a much greater efficiency of production.
This is since they were already organized on other principles: not on private family capitalism.
They were organized on the strength of large transnational corporations with centralized structures for regulating the economy and with limitless monetary emission of credit through fiat money (paper or electronic means – ed. note).
They enabled the mass production of products much more efficiently than the administrative systems of the colonial empires of the XIX century.
The emergence of social states in the USSR and the USA with centralized control systems made it possible for a sharp jump in their economic development.
In Europe, the corporate governance system was formed, unfortunately, according to the Nazi model in Germany, and also not without the help of British intelligence.
Hitler, relying on the support of the British intelligence services and American capital, quite quickly deployed a centralized corporate management system in Germany, which allowed the Third Reich to very quickly capture the whole of Europe.
With God’s help, we defeated this German (more precisely, European – taking into account today’s realities) fascism.
After that, two models remained in the world.
Which I attribute to the imperial world economic structure: Soviet and Western (with the center in the USA).
Soviet model
Western model
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, (which could not withstand global competition due to the fact that the directive system of government was not flexible enough to meet the needs of technological progress), the United States seized global dominance for a while.
Better-Than-Ever Meatloaf
American meatloaf.
Meatloaf is an American favorite, right up there with Mom’s freshly baked apple pie. And while we know that everyone has a favorite way they like to make their meatloaf, we think our Better-than-Ever Meatloaf is sure worth a try.
What You’ll Need
2 pounds ground beef
1 1/2 cups fresh bread crumbs
2 eggs
3/4 cup water
2/3 cup ketchup, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
What to Do
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a large baking pan with cooking spray.
In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except 1/3 cup ketchup; mix well.
Place mixture into prepared baking pan and shape into a loaf. Spread remaining 1/3 cup ketchup over top.
Bake 1 hour or until done.
Notes
If you want to cook this in the microwave, simply combine the ingredients as above, then place the mixture in a 2-quart oblong microwaveable baking dish and shape into a loaf. Microwave, uncovered, on High (full power), turning the dish occasionally, for 25 minutes or until done. Remove from the baking dish and let stand, covered, for 5 minutes before serving.
Want to try a lighter version of this meatloaf recipe? You can use very lean ground turkey or chicken instead of ground beef!
The end of the unipolar moment
Q:But now this period of “American unipolar loneliness” is already ending, and, probably, not only thanks to Russia, but primarily to China and the Asian regions as such. Is it not?
A:Indeed, the hierarchical vertical structures characteristic of the imperial world economy turned out to be too rigid to ensure continuous innovation processes.
They lost their comparative effectiveness in ensuring the growth of the world economy.
On its periphery, a new world economic order has been formed.
It was one, which is based on flexible management models.
As well as a network organization of production, where the state works as an integrator, uniting the interests of various social groups around achieving one goal – raising the public welfare.
The most impressive example of such an integral world economic structure today is China, which for more than 30 years has outpaced the growth rate of the American economy by three times.
At the moment, China is already surpassing the United States in terms of [1] output, [2] exports of high-tech goods, and [3] growth rates.
Another example of a model of a new world economic order, which we called integral (due to the fact that the state in it unites all social groups of different interests), is India.
It has a different political system, but it also has the primacy of public interests over private ones, and the state seeks to maximize growth rates in order to fight poverty.
In this sense, the new world economic order is socialist in ideology.
At the same time, it uses market mechanisms of competition, which makes it possible to provide the highest concentration of resources for making a technological revolution with goals to ensure economic leaps based on a new advanced technological order.
If we look at growth rates after 1995, we see that the Chinese economy has grown 10 times, while the US economy has grown by only 15 percent.
Thus, it is already obvious to everyone that at present the pace of world economic development is shifting to Asia: China, India and the countries of Southeast Asia already produce more products than the US and the EU.
If we add to them Japan or Korea, in which the management system is similar in its principles to the integration of society around the goal of increasing public welfare.
Then we can say that today this new world economic structure already dominates the world, and the center of reproduction of the world economy has moved to Southeast Asia.
Of course, the American ruling elite cannot agree with this.
Q:To come to terms with it, I would say…
A:Yes. They, like the British Empire once, seek to maintain their hegemony in the world.
The events taking place today are a manifestation of how the US financial and powerful oligarchic elite are trying to maintain world domination.
It can be said that for the past 15 years it has been waging a world hybrid war, seeking to chaoticize countries beyond its control and restrain the development of the People’s Republic of China.
But due to the already archaic system of governance, they cannot do this.
The financial crisis of 2008 was such a transitional moment when the life cycle of the outgoing technological order actually ended.
And the process of massive redistribution of capital into a new technological order began.
The core of which is a complex of nanobioengineering and information communication technologies.
All countries began to pump up their economies with money.
The simplest thing a modern government can do is to give all businesses access to cheap long-term money so they can adopt new technologies.
But, in America and Europe such funds went mainly into financial bubbles and covered the budget deficit.
While, in China this colossal money emission was completely directed to the growth of production and the development of new technologies.
There were no Chinese financial bubbles.
And the ultra-high monetization of the Chinese economy did not result in inflation either.
Instead, the growth of the money supply was accompanied by [1] an increase in the production of goods, [2] the introduction of new advanced technologies and [3] an increase in public welfare.
Today, economic competition has already led to the fact that the United States has lost its leadership.
If you remember, Donald Trump tried to contain the development of China through a trade war, but nothing came out of it.
Man-Eating Sex Queen of Great Neck, New York, Dorothea Matthews
201 Clent Rd Great Neck NY
This English Tudor house, located at 201 Clent Road, Great Neck, New York, may not look like much of a love nest. But in 1948, its chief female resident, Mrs. Dorothea Matthews turned this house into something approaching the Playboy Mansion, East. It wasn’t until Mrs. Matthews’ divorce proceedings from her husband Mark Matthews in 1948 that we began to see that wanton sexual escapades did not begin in the groovy Sixties. According to court documents, Mrs. Matthews racked up a large number of sexual partners.
Mrs. Dorothea Matthews 1948
As a slim, shapely 28 year-old woman with plenty of time on her hands, Dorothea had many sexual options beyond her husband Mark, and she took advantage of so many of them. Mrs. Matthews was a very forthright individual; or, to put it in the words of the New York Daily News , she was “socially minded.” Mrs. Matthews managed to bed down a good number of men and women in Great Neck, Upstate New York, trains in transit to Florida, Manhattan, and probably lots of other places.
Mrs. Dorothea Matthews January 7 1950
Yet her taste in sexual partners was not indiscriminate. A doctor, art historian, student, actor, secretary, and her husband, who was a Ping-Pong champion and owned a messenger service, filled her sexual roster, and those are only the ones we know about. And of course, a murderer would be one of her conquests.
All in all, I would say that she lived a FULL life.
“The Americans have opened a biological front of war by launching the coronavirus in China”
Q:Why? Did Trump, accustomed to taking risks and going all-in, lack the determination?
A: And even Trump (of all people) couldn’t get (the United States) out (of it’s situation), because China has a more efficient management system that allows you to concentrate the available production resources to the fullest.
At the same time, effective money management keeps money emission in the contour of expanded reproduction of the real sector of the economy, focusing on financing investments in development.
China has the highest savings rate of any country, with about 45 percent of GDP invested, compared with 20 percent in the United States or Russia. This, in fact, ensures the ultra-high growth rates of the Chinese economy.
In short, the US was doomed to lose this trade war because China could produce more efficiently and finance development cheaper.
The entire banking system in China is state-owned, it works as a single development institution, directing cash flows to expand production and master new technologies.
In the United States, the emission of money goes to finance the budget deficit and is redistributed into financial bubbles.
As a result, the efficiency of the US financial and economic system is 20 percent – there only every fifth dollar reaches the real sector, and in China almost 90 percent (that is, almost all the yuan that is created by the Central Bank of the PRC) feeds the contours of the expansion of production and ensures ultra-high economic growth.
Trump’s attempts to limit China’s development through trade war methods have failed.
At the same time, they boomeranged at the United States itself.
Then the Americans opened a biological war front by launching the coronavirus in China, hoping that the Chinese leadership would not cope with this epidemic and chaos would arise in China.
However, the epidemic has demonstrated the low efficiency of healthcare and has created chaos in the United States itself.
The Chinese system of government has shown much greater efficiency here as well.
In the Celestial Empire, the mortality rate is significantly lower, and the pandemic was dealt with much faster there.
Already in 2020, they even reached economic growth of 2 percent, while in the United States there was a decline of 10 percent of GDP (analysts noted the largest drop since the Second World War – ed. note).
Now the Chinese have restored the growth rate of about 7 percent per year, and there is no doubt that the PRC will continue to develop confidently, expanding the production of a new technological order.
In parallel with the trade war against China, American intelligence services were preparing a war against Russia.
This was because the Anglo-Saxon geopolitical tradition considers our country the main obstacle to establishing world domination of the US and British power and financial elite.
It must be said that the war against the Russian Federation unfolded immediately after the annexation of Crimea and after the American special services organized a coup d’état in Ukraine.
It can be said that they tricked Russia into agreeing to the American occupation of Ukraine, considering it as a temporary phenomenon.
However, the Americans took root on ‘Ukrainian Independence’, created not only [1] strongholds, growing Nazis under their wing, but also [2] trained the Nazi armed forces.
This gave the Nazis the opportunity to receive a military education, trained them in their academies, ‘sewed together’ all the Armed Forces of Ukraine with them.
And for 8 years they have been preparing the Armed Forces of Ukraine for the fight against the only enemy – Russia.
While the mass media, which in Ukraine are also completely controlled by the Americans, formed the image of the enemy in the public mind.
In addition, the United States used the monetary and financial front of the hybrid war against the Russian Federation.
Already in 2014, they introduced the first financial sanctions and knocked out a significant part of Western loans from the Russian economy.
Now we are witnessing the next phase, when they have actually disconnected Russia from the world monetary and financial system, which they dominate.
However, I predicted all this 10 years ago.
I did so based on the theory of changing world economic structures and the specific logic of the US ruling elite.
A logic which was focused on world domination.
Anglo-Saxon geopolitics is traditionally oriented against the Russian Empire and its successors, the USSR and the Russian Federation.
This is because, since the days of the British Empire, Russia has been seen as the main opponent of the Anglo-Saxons.
All the so-called geopolitical science that was being written in London came down, in fact, to a set of recommendations on how to destroy Russia as the dominant force in Eurasia. I mean all sorts of speculative constructions like “countries of the sea against countries of the land” and so on.
Q: How did Russia get in the way of the ‘sea countries’ that much? After all, geographically with the UK, we have never bordered.
A: In this regard, a formula was invented: whoever controls Eurasia controls the whole world.
Actually, applied developments have already gone further.
Zbigniew Brzezinski’s theorem is known that in order to defeat Russia as a superpower, Ukraine must be torn off from it.
All this political dogma, which, it would seem, has long gone down in history, is nevertheless reproduced today in the thinking of the American political elite.
I must say that there are still courses in geopolitics of the past 19th century at Harvard and Yale University, sharpening the brains of future American politicians against Russia.
So they, in fact, jumped on this old and time-tested Russophobic stream, which has always been characteristic of Anglo-Saxon geopolitics.
And, considering Russia as the main opponent of their dominance in the world, in accordance with the proposal of Brzezinski.
Thus, they used Ukraine as an outpost, more precisely, as a tool to undermine Russia, weaken it and, in the long run, destroy it as a sovereign state.
So, what is happening today was easily predicted based on a combination of long-term patterns of economic development.
This, actually doomed the world to a hybrid war, and the traditional Russophobia of the Anglo-Saxon political elite.
After the weakening of the PRC did not work out through a trade war, the Americans transferred the main blow of their military and political power to Russia.
It was a logical step as they consider to be a weak link in world geopolitics and economics.
In addition, the Anglo-Saxons seek to establish dominance over Russia in order to realize their age-old Russophobic ideas of destroying our country, and at the same time weakening China, because the strategic alliance of the Russian Federation and China is too tough for the United States.
They have neither the economic nor the military power to destroy us together, neither separately, which is why the United States initially sought to quarrel us with China.
That didn’t work for them.
But they, using our, I would say, placidity, and seized control over Ukraine.
And thus today they are using our fraternal republic as a weapon of war to destroy Russia, and then to seize control of our resources in order.
I repeat, to strengthen their position and weaken China’s position.
In general, this is all obvious, like two plus two equals four.
Q: “The Americans will not be able to win, just as the British did not succeed in their time”
A: Probably, this is obvious, but not for everyone. Among the Russian elite there are many opponents of an alliance with China. At least, before the special operation in Ukraine, it seemed to these people that American and Western culture is more understandable and closer to us than hieroglyphic Chinese wisdom, and that we will always find a common language with our “Western partners”.
You know, back in 2015 I wrote the book “The Last World War. The USA is Starting and Losing”, which you mentioned at the beginning of the conversation everything was thought out and justified there.
The United States embarked on a worldwide hybrid war.
It started with the Orange Revolutions to disrupt regions of the world it did not control.
It did this in order to strengthen its position and weaken the position of geopolitical rivals.
After the famous Munich speech of President Putin (February 2007 – ed. Note), they realized that they had lost control over Yeltsin’s Russia, and this seriously worried them.
In 2008, the financial crisis broke out and it became clear that the transition to a new technological order was beginning.
And with this, the old world economic order and the previous management system no longer ensured sustainable economic development.
China was now leading the way.
Well, then afterwards the logic of deploying of a world war happens, only not in the forms that existed 100 years ago, but on three conditional fronts…
monetary-financial (where the United States still dominates the world),
trade-economic (where they have already lost superiority to China) and
information-cognitive (where the Americans also have technologies that are superior to ours).
They use all three of these fronts in an attempt to keep the initiative and maintain the hegemony of their corporations.
Well and finally, the fourth front is the biological one, which opened with the advent of the coronavirus from the US-Chinese laboratory in Wuhan.
Today we see that a whole network of biological laboratories existed in Ukraine.
So the United States has long been preparing to open the biological front of the world war.
The fifth, and most obvious, front is, in fact, the front of combat fighting – as the last tool for forcing the states that they control into unquestioning obedience.
Today, the situation on this front is also escalating.
That is, active operations are underway on all five fronts of the world hybrid war, and the result can be predicted.
The Americans will not be able to win, just as the British did not succeed in their time.
Although Britain formally won World War II, they lost politically and economically.
The British lost their entire empire, losing more than 90 percent of the territory and 95 percent of the population.
Two years after World War II, where they were the winners, their empire collapsed like a house of cards, because the other two winners – the USSR and the USA – did not need this empire and viewed it as an anachronism.
Now today, the world will not need American transnational corporations.
They will not need the American dollar.
They will not need the American monetary and financial technologies and financial pyramids.
All this will be a thing of the past in the near future.
Southeast Asia will become the obvious leader in world economic development, and a new world economic order will be formed before our very eyes.
Q:To paraphrase [Erich] Remarque, we can say that changes have finally come on the western front. But what signs do you see of this powerful global system soon becoming a thing of the past?
A: After the Americans seized first [1] the Venezuelan foreign exchange reserves and handed them over to the opposition, then [2] the Afghan foreign exchange reserves, before that [3] the Iranian ones, and now [4] the Russian ones, it became completely clear that the dollar ceased to be the world currency.
Following the Americans, the Europeans also committed this stupidity – the euro and the pound ceased to be world currencies.
Therefore, the old monetary and financial system is living its last days.
After American dollars that no one needs are sent back to America from Asian countries, the collapse of the world monetary and financial system based on dollars and euros is inevitable.
Leading countries are switching to national currencies, and the euro and the dollar are ceasing to be foreign exchange reserves.
Q:How do you see the world after the disappearance of the dollar monopoly?
A: We are currently working on a project for an international treaty on the introduction of a new world settlement currency.
It will be pegged to the national currencies of the participating countries and to exchange commodities that determine real values.
We won’t need American and European banks.
A new payment system based on modern digital technologies with blockchain is developing in the world, where banks lose their importance.
Classical capitalism based on private banks is fading away.
International law is being restored.
All key international relations, including the issuance of world currency circulation, begin to form on the basis of agreements.
At the same time, the significance of national sovereignty is being restored, because sovereign countries are coming to an agreement.
The basis of global economic cooperation is joint investment in order to improve the well-being of peoples.
Trade liberalization ceases to be some kind of priority, national priorities are respected, each state builds such a system for protecting the internal market and its economic space that it considers necessary.
That is, the era of liberal globalization is over.
Before our eyes, a new world economic structure is being formed – an integral one, in which some states and private banks lose their private monopoly on the issue of money, on the use of military force, and so on.
Pretty Chinese girl
I just cannot let a post go without a pretty Chinese girl, don’t you know. video 4MB
Sergei Lavrov: Russian FM hails China as part of emerging ‘just world order’ – The Economic Times
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrovon Wednesday said Moscow and Beijing are leading the way towards a fairer world order, as he makes his first visit to the key ally since Russialaunched its invasion of Ukraine last month.
“The third scenario is catastrophic. Destruction of mankind”
Q: Why did you call your book “The Last World War”? What feeds your hope that this global war is really the last one?
A: I called this world war the last one, because we see that there are several scenarios of movement out of today’s crisis.
The first scenario, which I have already talked about, is calm and prosperous.
It consists in overcoming the US monopoly.
In order to do this in the financial sector, you need to abandon the dollar.
In order to overcome the monopoly in the information and cognitive sphere, it is necessary to isolate our information space from the American one and switch to our own information technologies.
Creating their own contours of the reproduction of the economy, but without the US dollar and the euro and relying on their information technologies for managing money, the countries of the new world economic order ensure high rates of economic development.
They do this while the Western world is collapsing.
There they have a situation of collapse of financial pyramids, disorganization and a growing economic crisis, aggravated by growing inflation due to the uncontrolled issue of money over the past 12 years.
The second scenario of a possible development of events is similar to the one that Hitler wanted to realize during the period of the change of previous world economic structures.
This is an attempt to create a world government with a superhuman ideology.
If Hitler conceived the German nation as superhumans, then the current ideologists of world domination impose on humanity the transition to a post-humanoid state.
In contrast to the post-humanism of the West, the core countries of the new world economic order are characterized by a socialist ideology.
This means respect for private interests, protection of private property and the use of market mechanisms.
In China, India, Japan, and Korea, socialist ideology dominates.
Or rather, a mixture of socialist ideology, national interests, and market competition.
It is this mixture that forms a fundamentally new power-political elite, focused on economic development and the growth of the well-being of nations.
It is very different for Western politicians, intellectuals and businessmen.
What we see today in the West is an attempt to form a certain image of a new world order with a world government at the head.
And, where people are driven into an electronic concentration camp.
You can see by the example of restrictions during the pandemic how it happened: all people are given tags, access to public goods is regulated through QR codes, everyone is forced to walk in formation.
By the way, in the scenario of the Rockefeller Foundation back in 2009, the pandemic and, in fact, everything that happened in connection with it, was amazingly sorted into pieces – they actually predicted the future.
This scenario was called Lock Step, that is, “Walk in formation”, and the Western world followed it.
Sacrificing their own democratic values, they try to force people to obey commands.
International organizations, including the World Health Organization, are used as a kind of stronghold for assembling a world government that would be subordinate to private capital.
But, I must say, Donald Trump greatly interfered with these plans.
This is because he stopped the signing of agreements on Transatlantic and Trans-Pacific partnerships.
In those partnerships, where all countries participating in the agreements sacrificed national sovereignty in all disputes with big business.
And you need to understand that today any transnational corporation can act as a foreign investor, including in the United States.
According to these agreements, if there is foreign capital in the business, then in a dispute with the national government, some kind of international arbitration court is formed, it is not clear how and by whom it was drawn up.
And these unelected judges, appointed, in fact, by big international business, these disputes are resolved.
In fact, it was about the fact that the state was losing all sovereignty in regulating relations with big business.
However, Trump stopped the agreement – the United States never signed it.
Thus, the process of forming a world government was stopped.
This is the second alternative, and it is now in crisis due to the collapse of the idea of globalization and the gradual abandonment of ‘pandemic’ restrictions.
It must be understood that the option of a world government is incompatible with sovereign Russia, with our independence and role in the world.
Within the framework of the globalist scenario, the Russian Federation is viewed as a territory that is intended for exploitation by Western transnational corporations.
The “indigenous population” must serve their interests.
Under such a scenario, Russia disappears as an independent entity, just like China, by the way.
The Western world government may incorporate some of our oligarchs into its version of the future, but only in second and third-rate roles.
Another pretty Chinese Girl
They are everywhere in China, don’t you know. video 2MB
The third scenario is catastrophic. The destruction of humanity…
Q:That same apocalypse which everybody talks about?
A:Well, not everyone… But everyone, of course, is afraid.
By the way, about the American biological laboratories that are engaged in the synthesis of dangerous viruses, it was mentioned in my other book, which was published a little later: “Plague of the XXI century: how to avoid disaster and overcome the crisis?”
I remember back in 1996, when I had to work in the UN Security Council, I proposed to develop the concept of national biological security.
Because even then, almost 30 years ago, genetics was a sufficiently developed science to synthesize viruses directed against people of a certain race or a certain gender, a certain age.
This has been possible for a long time.
It is possible to make a virus that will only work against whites, or vice versa, only against blacks, only against men, or only against women.
Now the Americans are going further – you see that, data which agrees with our Ministry of Defense, they announced the day before, that American biological laboratories were developing viruses targeted against the Slavs.
Apparently, it is possible today – to make a virus against some ethnic group that has its own genetic code.
What is happening in Ukraine today is an echo of the agony of the US power elite, which cannot come to terms with the fact that they will no longer be a world leader.
This becomes clear to everyone – at least to those who are not connected with the Americans by their own interests and are not subject to their cognitive influence.
I’ll give you an example.
When the US imposed sanctions on Russia in 2014, I asked my Chinese colleagues: “Do you think the Americans can impose sanctions with regards to China?”
They were certain that they can’t.
They said that it was impossible, because the US depends on China just as strongly as China depends on the US.
That is, America will be more expensive for itself.
Two years had passed, and Trump launched a trade war against China.
And Beijing now understood that America is an enemy that will drown the Chinese economic miracle by any and all means.
Prior to this, my reasonings with my Chinese colleagues were not very convincing, just as, however, my book you mentioned did not greatly influence our political and economic elite.
My arguments were dismissed.
Although we have been saying for many, many years that the dollar should be refused.
Foreign exchange reserves should have been removed from dollar instruments, from the euros-to-gold.
It is necessary to switch to ones own monetary and financial systems.
Nations should have developed our own settlements in national currencies with partners.
We have been offering all this since the 2000s, when it was already clear what the world economic development was leading to. And now, finally, everyone has seen the light.
Another Pretty Chinese girl
Here we have yet another view inside of China. video 10MB
“The Americans zombified Ukrainians and turned 150-200 thousand people into a fighting machine that works without thinking”
Q: Judging by the heart-rending howl that comes from the camp of the liberals, as well as the events in Ukraine, not everyone has seen the light yet.
A: Yes, we are faced with the fact that in 8 years the Americans have managed to fool the Ukrainian people so much that the people who resist the Russian army, the so-called Armed Forces of Ukraine, look simply zombified.
They are manipulated like puppets.
It is not Zelensky who commands the Ukrainian Army, not even the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine and the General Staff – but the Pentagon.
It commands very effectively from the point of view in the fight of “to the last Ukrainian soldier”, because these zombie guys do not give up.
But they are in an absolutely hopeless situation.
All experts have already acknowledged that Russia won the military special operation, that the Ukraine has no chance of resistance, that the entire military infrastructure has been destroyed…
The Armed Forces of Ukraine is only left with surrendering in order to minimize human losses.
However, Ukrainian officers (and especially, of course, nationalists) act like zombies controlled from the outside – they follow instructions from the Pentagon that come to their personal computers and special tablets.
Moreover, the Americans command their marionettes from the Armed Forces of Ukraine, breaking them into the appropriate units.
Each unit is assigned a number, and every number is given artificial ‘military intelligence’ with tasks every day.
They really turned 150-200 thousand people into a fighting machine that works without thinking, only stupidly follows all their orders.
For 8 years, they have achieved that they forced a significant part of the youth of Ukraine not only to stand up against Russia, but through brainwashing made them their weak-willed tools.
Not just cannon fodder, but controlled cannon fodder.
Being in an absolutely hopeless situation, surrounded, deprived of any supply at all, they still continue the senseless war, dooming themselves to death, and dragging the surrounding civilians with them to the grave.
This is a clear example of how modern American technology works.
We must understand that in front of us, we have a very powerful force.
You know, before [the war], we have heard from Russian experts and politicians that the Ukrainians themselves will suffocate economically and then crawl to us, and in general where will Ukraine go without us?
After all, it will not be able to ensure the reproduction of the economy without our resources and cooperation with us.
Indeed, Ukraine has entered a state of economic catastrophe, as we expected, as we explained to our Ukrainian colleagues.
The Ukrainian republic has become the poorest state in Europe along with Moldova.
Due to the fact that Ukraine has terminated ties with Russia, its losses amount to more than 100 billion dollars.
Nevertheless, this did not prevent American and British political strategists and instructors from forming a 200,000-strong army of thugs and murderers who completely inadequately imagine reality and are an obedient instrument of American interests.
Q: Aren’t there equally obedient American marionettes in Russia? Is it only Ukrainians who were zombified?
A: Yes, and here it should be noted that practically the same thing is happening with the Central Bank, but only on other issues.
Q: Before we move on to the Central Bank, let me clarify. You said that you are working on introducing a new currency. And in what format and with what team?
A: We have been doing this for a long time as a group of scholars. 10 years ago, at the Astana Economic Forum.
We presented the report “Toward sustainable growth through a fair world economic order” with a project for the transition to a new world financial and monetary system.
There, we proposed to reform the IMF system based on the so-called special drawing rights, and on the basis of a modified IMF system – to create a worldwide accounting currency.
By the way, this idea aroused great interest then: our project was recognized as the best international economic project.
But in a practical sense, none of the states, represented by the official monetary authorities, was interested in this project.
Although it was followed by Nursultan Nazarbayev’s publications, which proposed a new currency. If I remember correctly, he offered Altyn.
Q: Altyn? That is interesting.
A: Yes, the publication of his article on this topic even took place in Izvestia.
But the matter did not come to negotiations and political decisions, and to this day it is rather a proposal of experts.
But I am sure that the current situation is forcing us to create new payment-settlement instruments very quickly.
This is because the dollar will practically be impossible to use.
And the ruble, due to the incompetent policy of the Central Bank, which, in fact, acts in the interests of international speculators, cannot find sustainability.
Objectively, the ruble could become a reserve currency along with the yuan and the rupee.
It would be possible to move to a multi-currency system based on national currencies.
But we still need some equivalent for pricing…
Now we are working on the concept of the exchange space of the Eurasian Economic Union, where one of the tasks is the formation of new pricing criteria.
That is, if we want metal prices to be formed not in London, but here in Russia, just like oil prices.
Then this implies the emergence of some other currency.
This is especially true if we want to act not only within the Eurasian Economic Union, and in Eurasia in a broad sense.
Were Eurasia would be at the center of a new world economic order, to which I include China, India, Indochina, Japan, Korea and Iran.
These are large countries, all of which have their own fundamental national interests.
After the current stories with the confiscation of [Russia’s] dollar reserves, I think no country will want to use another country’s currency as a reserve.
So a new tool is needed.
And from my point of view, such a tool, for a start, can become some kind of synthetic settlement currency, which would be built as such an aggregated index.
Q:Can I have some examples? What it is?
A: Well, let’s say, ECU ₠ (European Currency Unit) – there was such an experience in the European Union.
It was built like a basket of currencies.
All countries that participate in the creation of a new accounting currency should be entitled to the presence of their national currency in this basket.
And the common currency is formed as an index, as a weighted average component of these national currencies.
Well, to this we must add, from my point of view, commodities: not only gold, but also oil, and metal, and grain, and water.
Its a sort of commodity harness, which, according to our estimates, should include about 20 goods.
They, in fact, form world price proportions and therefore must participate in the basket for the formation of a new accounting currency.
And an international treaty is needed, which will determine the rules for the circulation of this currency and create an organization like the International Monetary Fund.
By the way, 15 years ago we proposed reforming the IMF, but now it is already obvious that a new monetary financial system will have to be built without the West.
Perhaps someday Europe will join it and the US will also be forced to admit it.
But so far it is clear that we will have to build without them.
For example, on the basis of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.
However, these are just expert developments, which we will submit to the authorities in the coming month.
Q: And at the level of the government or at the level of the president?
A: We will first send it to the departments that are responsible for these issues. We will hold discussions, develop some kind of common understanding, and then go to the political level.
Russia abandons the ISS space station
Without Russian rocket engines, there is no American/EU space station. No space X. So it really doesn’t matter. My guess is an earlier than planned retirement of the space station for “fiscal reasons” (wink. Wink.)
One of the many reasons why I love living inside of China. Beauty abounds. So sexy cooking food. video 4MB
“The Central Bank continues the policy of pandering to the enemy”
Q:In your Telegram channel, you write that all that remains is to nationalize the Bank of Russia. Why hasn’t it been done yet? For example, there is a point of view that Elvira Nabiullina remains at her post as a screen, but will no longer manages anything serious. Can you refute or confirm this?
A: You know, I don’t want to engage in conspiracy theories.
Q:This is a conspiracy theory?
A: Yes, we can talk about the American Deep State in conspiracy terms.
In this case, conspiracy theories are a very appropriate direction of thought, because in America, behind the screen of presidents and congressmen, there are some deep forces – special services.
And in our Fatherland, everything is simple.
We have a president, a head of state who has built a vertical form of power.
It is absolutely clear in our country how the parliament and the judiciary are formed.
Here, no conspiracy theory, in general, can be applied.
The same goes for the Central Bank.
Let me remind you that, according to the law on the Central Bank, all its property is federal property.
Therefore, the Central Bank is a state structure, there is not the slightest doubt about it.
Q:And they always said that the Central Bank was separated, as if on the sidelines.
A: The Board of Directors of the Central Bank is appointed by the State Duma on the proposal of the President.
I served for many years as its representative on the national banking board, which oversees the activities of the Central Bank.
I can say that there is no doubt that the Central Bank is the state body for regulating monetary circulation, and it is also the main financial regulator in the country.
But there are nuances.
The Constitution stipulates that the Central Bank conducts its policy independently, that is, it is independent of the government.
But this does not mean that it is independent of the state.
This is a state-owned agency.
Here the judicial system in our country is also officially independent of the government.
Therefore, being an independent body, the Central Bank is nevertheless formed as a state regulatory body and must perform the tasks that are necessary for the development of our economy.
To do this, it is necessary to involve the Central Bank in strategic planning.
The classics of monetary circulation stipulates that the main goal of the monetary authorities, that is, the Central Bank, should be to create conditions for maximizing investment.
That is what the banking system should be doing – maximizing investment.
Because the more investments, the more production, the higher the technical level, the lower the costs and the lower the inflation, the more stable the economy.
It is possible to achieve macroeconomic stabilization in the modern economy only on the basis of accelerated scientific and technological progress.
Attempts to target inflation (such a buzzword), which the Central Bank has been practically imitating for the past 10 years, by manipulating the key interest rate against the backdrop of a freely floating ruble, is short-sighted, primitive and counterproductive.
Usually these measures are recommended by the IMF for underdeveloped countries that themselves do not know how to think.
What is inflation targeting in practice?
This is an extremely primitive and internally contradictory set of measures, the application of which drives the economy into a stagflation trap.
The Central Bank threw the ruble into free float, which is absurd from the point of view of inflation targeting in an open economy, where the exchange rate directly affects prices.
And we see how the devaluation of the ruble periodically accelerates prices.
In addition, they reduced monetary policy to only one absolutely primitive tool – the manipulation of the key interest rate.
But the key rate is the percentage at which the Central Bank lends money to the economy and withdraws money from the economy.
Its attempts to suppress inflation by raising the interest rate cannot succeed in today’s economy, because the higher the interest rate, the less credit, the less investment, the lower the technical level and competitiveness.
The decrease in the latter entails the devaluation of the ruble in 3-4 years, after they raise the interest rate, supposedly to fight inflation.
Having let the ruble exchange rate float freely, they, in fact, gave it at the mercy of currency speculators.
The Americans really like these politics, so they praise the leadership of our Central Bank and the Ministry of Finance in every possible way.
After all, what is important to them?
So that everything is tied to the dollar, so that the ruble is a ‘junk’ currency that is unstable.
And this is a paradox, because the amount of foreign exchange reserves of the Russian Federation has recently been 3 times more than the ruble money supply!
This means that the Central Bank could have stabilized the exchange rate at any level. But it didn’t do that.
And who are the speculators to whom the Central Bank actually threw the ruble to be torn to pieces?
The main speculators are American hedge funds, which actually shape the ruble exchange rate by manipulating the market.
But the Central Bank does not notice this, or rather, pretends to not notice.
In order to keep them in the foreign exchange market by raising the interest rate, the Central Bank kills credit and makes our economy dependent on foreign sources of credit, and the foreign exchange financial system dependent on the interests of speculators.
This is in whose interests the Central Bank works, hiding behind cool buzzwords like ‘inflation targeting’, which has shamefully failed in these past years in terms of real price dynamics.
So in our country the weakest point of the entire national security system in general is the Central Bank.
Its leadership is hit by the enemy’s cognitive-weapon, in other words, zombified by it. In fact, our monetary authorities are doing what the enemy needs.
By the way, I proved mathematically and chronologically that the first wave of sanctions was imposed against Russia only after the Central Bank prepared the ground for this.
Namely, it let the ruble exchange rate float freely and announced that it would raise the interest rate, if inflation would start in the country.
As soon as the Central Bank moved to this strange policy, the Americans immediately imposed sanctions.
Their speculators ensured the collapse of the ruble exchange rate, this caused an inflationary wave, and the Central Bank, on the instructions of the IMF, raised the interest rate, which completely paralyzed our economy.
The total damage from this policy today has already reached 50 trillion rubles of non-produced products and about 20 trillion rubles of unfinished investments.
Now you have to add to this the 300 billion dollars invested in foreign assets, which are now frozen – that’s the damage.
Therefore, when we talk about the nationalization of the Central Bank, we are not talking about formally nationalizing it (it has already been nationalized), but about bringing it into a policy of conformity with national interests.
Right now, its policy is contrary to national interests.
And there is no conspiracy here.
We see in whose interests such a policy is pursued.
The Central Bank raised interest rates to 20 percent, giving the bankers a dominant position in the economy.
Possessing the most expensive and scarce resource, money, they determine which enterprise will survive, and which enterprise will die, go bankrupt, and so on.
Rising interest rates are holding the entire Russian economy hostage to a handful of bankers.
This is the first.
Secondly, the leadership of the Central Bank allowed another collapse of the ruble exchange rate and closed the currency exchange.
As a result, today banks have become the main currency speculators: they buy currency for about 90 rubles per dollar, and sell it for 125. The difference settles down for them as excess profit.
Q:But why, in your opinion, does the Central Bank of the Russian Federation pursue a policy in the interests of the enemy?
A:As I said, it does this on the recommendation of the International Monetary Fund.
But its interests are also shared by our large banks, which objectively like this policy, as well as our monetary and financial structures, which are also involved in manipulating the ruble exchange rate.
Therefore, an influential lobby is formed around this policy, which supports this policy based on its own private interests.
These interests run counter to the interests of the country, they are directly opposite to them.
And, if you look at what the Central Bank is doing today, I have no doubts that it continues the policy of actually pandering to the enemy.
It undermines macroeconomic stability by allowing international speculators to manipulate the ruble exchange rate and does not control the foreign exchange position of banks that have become currency speculators.
Although the Central Bank could easily withdraw banks from the foreign exchange market by fixing their foreign exchange position, forbidding banks to buy foreign currency.
And secondly – by raising the interest rate, the Central Bank actually killed investments in the development of the Russian economy.
Which are very much needed right now.
Primarily for import substitution and for the restoration of economic sovereignty.
While our leadership says that we should not be afraid of sanctions, because they create conditions for economic growth, for import substitutions…
Look, about a third of EU imports have left our market. These are huge opportunities for import substitution.
If we assume that our enterprises begin to develop these markets, then we will develop at a rate of 15 percent per year.
But this requires loans.
Import substitution cannot arise without loans.
We need loans to set up production facilities, to master new technologies, to load idle production capacities.
We have long developed such a strategy of advanced development at the Academy of Sciences, and we are promoting it.
But, unfortunately, the insane, from our point of view, policy of the Central Bank has quite specific influential structures which it likes and supports. That is why the policy is so stable.
Veteran diplomat warns against Australia being a US proxy in war against China
Watch “CITIZENS INSIGHT – Veteran Australian diplomat speaks out against war danger – John Lander” on YouTube
Here’s another fine Chinese girl. I think that pretty girls are everywhere, but you know, there are a lot of them inside of China. video 2MB
“It is possible to stabilize the ruble in three days”
Q: Sergey Yuryevich, if this is not conspiracy theory, then why does the Central Bank continue to pursue such a policy? Only based on the interests of lobbyists?
A: To whom is the war, and to whom is the mother dear.
Commercial banks earn a 40% profit on currency speculation.
You bought 90 rubles per dollar – sold it for 125. 35 rubles – nothing is easier!
As a result, we have inflation, imports are becoming more expensive, everyone sees this insane rate.
Prices for all goods are rising, but the banks are making super profits.
Again, a very influential lobby has formed around this policy, and admitting the failure of such a strategy for many people means, in fact, admitting their incompetence and even sabotage.
And speculators with large banks are quite influential structures in our country that influence decision-making.
Q:Well and what, does this information not reach the first person (Putin), is it blocked?
A: When I was an adviser, I communicated this information.
Q:Were you listened to?
A: Yes, there were discussions, discussed at the Economic Council, then it was closed so as not to irritate the officials.
Now I don’t want to comment on it.
We see today that if we do not change the monetary policy, then it will simply be impossible for us to survive in this hybrid war.
We now need to counter economic sanctions with a serious increase in domestic production.
There are production facilities for this, people, raw materials, brains – too, but there is no money.
Right now, the simplest thing that the state can give people is money.
Q:What is your feeling? Is there an understanding at the top?
A: I think that you need to directly address this question to them.
Q:But many people call you almost the Number 1 person in the current situation – a public figure who can save Russia.
A: Thank you for this review. I try my best.
Q: I just want to understand: if before there was no prophet in our Fatherland, now has he appeared? Is this a temporary situation with the Central Bank?
A: It is so protracted, I would say, for 30 years.
If we had carried out a competent monetary policy in accordance with the requirements of the new world economic order, the integral system, we would have developed like China – by 10 percent a year.
There were such possibilities.
And we basically been stomping in the same spot for these past 30 years.
So the point is not even whether they listen or not, you just need to look objectively and see how China and India are developing and how we are developing.
What prevented us from developing in exactly the same way?
Moreover, the control system of the new world economic order, which I describe in my books, is universal.
She worked successfully in Japan before the Americans broke the Japanese economic growth.
And even in Ethiopia, where they also began to form this management model (and achieved growth by several times).
That is, this universal management model of the modern economy, focused on the growth of social welfare through investment in a new technological order, needs to be implemented.
At the same time, of course, the targeted use of money implies a high responsibility.
Throwing money from a helicopter – is not our thing.
Q: It’s not our path.
A: We are talking about targeted credit emission based on modern digital tools with a strict control system focused on investments in new technologies.
We know how to do this, how to minimize the human factor through the introduction of digital technologies, including the digital ruble.
But this is disadvantageous for those who still adhere to the old strategies.
They made a cash cow out of Russia, they sucked out 100 billion dollars from it abroad to offshore companies.But now the Americans have closed offshorization for us. There is a real opportunity, we must use it.
Q: What would you advise people? Now the main query on the Internet search engines is where to invest money in an era of turbulence. What should people do?
A: First of all, do not make sudden movements, I would say that.
In any case, what certainly is not necessary – to run after dollars or euros.
Because we do not know what will happen next with these currencies.
If our system is disconnected from the Western system, then our banks cannot effectively invest dollars and euros anywhere except in currency speculation.
But I hope that our authorities will still curb the foreign exchange market.
In this context, what the banks did, raising the interest rate on foreign currency deposits sharply, turned out to be a clear overkill, which spurred panic.
I think the ruble will stabilize if, of course, speculators are removed from the foreign exchange market and foreign currency is sold only for importers and people who transfer money abroad within reasonable limits to relatives or are going on a business trip in accordance with the regulations.
The rest is to block the channels of currency leakage.
Then our foreign exchange inflow will normalize again.
You know, we have a very positive trade balance.
Mandatory sale of 80% of foreign exchange earnings has been introduced.
If this revenue is sold on the stock exchange, then the amount of currency will be more than what importers need.
We will have a surplus of currency.
This means that the ruble will strengthen, that is, it will return to the old indicators – 80 or even 70 rubles per dollar.
But until the Central Bank removes speculators from the market and allows commercial banks to become such, the ruble exchange rate will not stabilize.
So, unfortunately, the monetary authorities have not yet come to their senses and have not begun to implement the correct policy of macroeconomic stabilization, I can’t give any advice other than investing in gold if possible (especially since the government removed VAT from gold).
There are no other real assets and no safe haven.
Q:So, buy gold?
A: Buy the essentials.
Or invest in real estate, in something reliable.
As for investments in dollars and euros… They have ceased to be a currency for us.
This is no longer a currency, but some obligations of other countries that may or may not be fulfilled.
So we need to look for other possibilities.
But I would like to emphasize once again that with the right policies, we can very quickly stabilize the ruble and even restore its purchasing power.
Q: And in what perspective, after all?
A:It can be done even tomorrow, you understand? The Primakov government and [Viktor] Gerashchenko did it in one week.
Q:Is the government capable of doing this?
A: Of course it can.
To do this, in general, two decisions need to be made: to fix the currency position of commercial banks and introduce the norms for the sale of foreign currency for non-trading operations, to keep the freely convertible foreign exchange market only for trading operations.
That’s all.
This can be written in 15 minutes and announced within a day, introduced within three days – and the ruble will stabilize.
Now the USA is trying to “Strong Arm” Pakastan
After a recently failed NGO backed coup.
Statecraft | Pakistan PM Imran Khan Insists on Foreign Conspiracy With Alleged Threat Letter .
US seek to overthrown Pakistan PM:
Olivia Newton John – Magic (live on the midnight special)
After I left the Navy, but before I was sent a searching, I was in this “in-between” funk. I was between two worlds and perhaps a bit lost. It was a phase that I had to grow though. And I did, don’t you know.
I believe that everyone goes through this period of “void”. Where they feel out of sorts, and without aim, direction, purpose or meaning. For me, it was a new experience, and very uncomfortable.
I was, though events, able to regroup and seek out my next phase in life. We all do. But when you are in this funk, it’s a road and path that is difficult to define and impossible to get help with.
I will tell you that this is the song that was topping the radio tops at that time, and the song that I exercised to the most. I well remember doing arm curls and sit-ups to this song. To you readers it is just an old song. But to me… well, it represents that strange period of time that I went though; a time of great uncertainity and confusion about who I was, and what my purpose in life was.
Give the song a spin…
Blinken says Russia has already seen a ‘strategic defeat’
Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday said Russia has already experienced a “strategic defeat” in its invasion of Ukraine.
“If you step back and look at this, this has already been a dramatic strategic setback for Russia, and I would say a strategic defeat,” Blinken told co-anchor Dana Bash on CNN’s “State of the Union” when asked about additional sanctions the U.S. may impose on Russia.
Blinken said Russia has already failed in the three main goals it had at the start of its invasion of Ukraine.
“They had three aims going into this. One was to subjugate Ukraine to Russia’s will, to take away its sovereignty and independence. The second was to assert Russian power. The third was to divide the west and NATO. On all three fronts, its already lost,” Blinken said.
Actually, those three things were not the Russian objectives. The objectives were all clearly stated by Putin himself.
So either [1] Biden is lying, [2] he is being advised by idiots, or [3] he's confused Ukraine with another nation. -MM
Cinnamon-Raisin Bread Pudding
All that I can say is yum!
Who doesn’t love making bread pudding in the slow cooker, and this Cinnamon-Raisin Bread Pudding is no exception! Butterscotch chips and pecans add an extra-special touch that’s sure to please. It’s fast. It’s easy. It’s tasty. Just why aren’t you making it?
What You’ll Need
3 large eggs
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup milk
1 cup whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 (1-pound) cinnamon-raisin bread loaf, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 cup butterscotch chips (see Note)
1/2 cup chopped pecans, toasted
Sweetened whipped cream (optional)
What to Do
Whisk together first 3 ingredients in a large bowl; stir in milk and next 3 ingredients. Add bread cubes, stirring until moistened. Stir in butterscotch chips and pecans. Pour into a lightly greased 4-quart round slow cooker.
Cover and cook on LOW setting 2 hours or until center is set. Carefully remove slow cooker insert from heat element. Let stand, covered, 30 minutes. Serve pudding warm with whipped cream, if desired.
Notes
For more cinnamon flavor, you can substitute an equal amount of cinnamon chips for the butterscotch chips. Cinnamon chips tend to be a seasonal item — available only during the holiday months — so, if you love ’em, stock up.
20 Facts About The Emerging Global Food Shortage That Should Chill You To The Core
A very alarming global food shortage has already begun, and it is only going to get worse in the months ahead. I realize that this is not good news, but I would encourage you to share the information in this article with everyone that you can. People deserve to understand what is happening, and they deserve an opportunity to get prepared. The pace at which things are changing around the globe right now is absolutely breathtaking, but most people assume that life will just continue to carry on as it normally does. Unfortunately, the truth is that a very real planetary emergency is developing right in front of our eyes. The following are 20 facts about the emerging global food shortage that should chill you to the core…
#1 One of France’s most important government officials is telling us that we should brace ourselves for an “extremely serious” global food crisis…
France’s Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said the EU must get to grips with the prospect that the war in Ukraine could prompt an “extremely serious” global food crisis.
#2 Joe Biden recently admitted that food shortages are “going to be real”, and his administration is now openly using the word “famine” to describe what is coming…
The Biden administration is worried Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will cause famine in parts of the world, White House Council of Economic Advisers Chair Cecilia Rouse told CNBC on Friday.
#3 It is being reported that food prices at German supermarkets will soon go up between 20 and 50 percent…
Just days after Germany reported the highest inflation in generation (with February headline CPI soaring at a 7.6% annual pace and blowing away all expectations), giving locals a distinctly unpleasant deja vu feeling even before the Russian invasion of Ukraine broke what few supply chains remained and sent prices even higher into the stratosphere…… on Monday, Germany will take one step toward a return of the dreaded Weimar hyperinflation, when according to the German Retail Association (HDE), consumers should prepare for another wave of price hikes for everyday goods and groceries with Reuters reporting that prices at German retail chains will explode between 20 and 50%
In Spain, the country started experiencing sporadic shortages of different products like eggs, milk and other dairy products almost immediately following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine. In early March, major supermarkets like Mercadona and Makro began rationing sunflower oil.
In Greece, at least four national supermarket chains have started rationing food products like flour and sunflower oil due to critically low supplies caused by the crippled supply chains coming out of Russia and Ukraine.
On Tuesday, BlackRock Inc. President Rob Kapito told an audience in Austin, Texas, hosted by the Texas Independent Producers and Royalty Owners Association, that an entire younger generation is quickly finding out what it means to suffer from shortages, according to Bloomberg.“For the first time, this generation is going to go into a store and not be able to get what they want,” Kapito said. “And we have a very entitled generation that has never had to sacrifice.”
#7 Since this time last year, some fertilizer prices have gone up by as much as 300 percent.
#8 Many farmers in Africa will not be able to afford fertilizer at all this year, and it is being projected that this will reduce agricultural production by an amount capable of feeding “100 million people”…
With prices tripling over the past 18 months, many farmers are considering whether to forgo purchases of fertilizers this year. That leaves a market long touted for its growth potential set to shrink by almost a third, according to Sebastian Nduva, program manager at researcher group AfricaFertilizer.Org.That could potentially curb cereals output by 30 million tons, enough to feed 100 million people, he said.
Russia is a key global player in natural gas, a major input to fertilizer production. Higher gas prices, and supply cuts, will further drive fertilizer prices higher. Russia is one of the biggest exporters of the three major groups of fertilizers (nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium). Physical supply cuts could further inflate fertilizer prices.
#10 In a typical year, Russia and Ukraine collectively account for approximately 30 percent of all global wheat exports.
Armenia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan and Eritrea have imported virtually all of their wheat from Russia and Ukraine and must find new sources. But they are competing against much larger buyers, including Turkey, Egypt, Bangladesh and Iran, which have obtained more than 60 percent of their wheat from the two warring countries.
#13 One Russian official is warning that his nation may soon only export food to “friendly nations”…
A Russian government official has threatened that Russia will limit its vital food exports to only nations it considers “friendly”.Dmitry Medvedev, a senior Russian security official who previously served as the nation’s president, has threatened that Russia may soon cut off the West from food exports.
#15 The death toll from the bird flu in Iowa alone will be pushed beyond 13 million as a result of this latest incident.
#16 Overall, this is what the total national death toll from the bird flu currently looks like: “22 million egg-laying chickens, 1.8 million broiler chickens, 1.9 million pullet and other commercial chickens, and 1.9 million turkeys”.
#17 China’s agricultural minister has announced that the winter wheat harvest in China could be “the worst in history”.
#18 We are being warned that the winter wheat harvest in the United States will be “disastrous” due to severe drought.
#20 The head of the UN World Food program says that what the planet is now facing is unlike anything that we have seen since World War II…
“Ukraine has only compounded a catastrophe on top of a catastrophe,” said David M. Beasley, the executive director of the World Food Program, the United Nations agency that feeds 125 million people a day. “There is no precedent even close to this since World War II.”
Like I said at the beginning of this article, I hope that you will share this information with as many people as possible, because this crisis really is going to affect every man, woman and child on the entire planet.
In my entire lifetime, I have never seen anything like this, and conditions are getting worse with each passing day.
Stomu Yamashta – Go (Full Album)
I came across this album in the discount bin at the local music store in Butler Pennsylvania when I was a Junior / Senior in High School. I think that I bought it for a dollar. Which was a good deal, as at that time a single album of maybe fifteen songs cost $20.
Crazh huh?
Aside from just loving the high quality artwork of the artists eating at a table with bread and wine, the music itself was haunting and melodic. It really stood apart from the funk, soul, rock, and country and western music that i was getting into at that period in my life.
I suggest you all give it a spin…
Stomu Yamashta’s supergroup Go, and their self titled album. This album shows such great musicianship and I wanted to share it with everyone. This album is legendary, and I believe it should be listened to in it’s entirety.
Good news for the world: the United States led Western DNA countries are beginning to feel the pain after bullying, threatening, and looting Russians foreign reserve, bank account, investment, and private assets.
.
There are mass protests across Europe against inflation. Germany is just an example of how sanctioning of Putin the great affect food prices:
Paper models are cheap and fun. You pay perhaps a few dollars, and you down load a PDF file. Then you print out the PDF. Once printed, you cut out the patterns and glue or tape together.
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There are all sorts of these operations on the internt. Some a just fun with silly little items, while others are quite serious and very detailed. How about a 440 automotive engine, perhaps?
This operation; AXM Paper Models, specializes in modern and contemporaneous spacecraft. They are serious with scale and detailed drawing and patterns. In this installment, I am just going to provide a gate way to their inexpensive models of Chinese space station components. It’s all pretty nice.
All in all, no matter what the “news” says, you need to keep in mind a few key points…
The world is undergoing a geopolitical realignment.
This alignment is dividing into two separate entities (East and West).
The two sides have a very different view of how the world should be. That should be quite clear by now, and everyone seems to agree on these points. Including the leadership of the two sides.
The West is trying to maintain a uni-polar single world government ruled by the United States. It wants the work to choose sides. You are either freinds or you are enemies. There is no in-between.
The East is trying to maintain a multi-polar world of equals of various unique social structures. They want to strengthen the UN charter, and empower it, and cut out and gut the legacy corruption that was built internally to it.
Some people, as the articles above state, consider a five point plan. WHile others jsut consider the plan to be some kind of “hybrid war”. I argue that a war is a war, irregardless as to what you call it.
But everything, right now, boils down to the purchase of energy and how that purchase comes about. Key to this manifestation is the control of the currency of exchange.
The West is trying to maintain the USD, or an electronic version of it.
The East is trying to use commodity-based currency by labor, materials and products.
Issues about Ukraine or Taiwan are simply the desperate plans of the West in a plan to maintain a uni-polar world. Sure they are important, but nto as important as the “news” would lead you to believe.
Do not get sidetracked from what is REALLY going on.
Keep clear headed. Keep focused. Keep frosty. I believe in you.
.
Do you want more?
You can find more articles related to this in my latest index; A New Beginning. And in it are elements of the old, some elements regarding the transition, and some elements that look towards the future.
" ...the idiots running Finland... seem to have chosen the moment before the fall of the US Empire to join up with NATO, presumably in order to enjoy the descent. Its like ski jumping for politicians."
-MoA commenter on the decision of the Findland Leadership to join NATO after Russia used military-technical measures to secure it's borders from NATO
When I was a young boy growing up inside the United States in the 1960s it was a different time, and a different place. People all worked, and felt good about themselves. Families were almost all single-earner housholds, and everyone had hpe for the future. Sure, it was in the midst of the cold war, but we all trusted our government, and believed in our leaders. We viewed our lives as being special and exceptional and righeous. We would eat good and healthy meals with meats and fresh vegitables daily. The father, as the head of the family would sit at the head of the table. We participated in sports, and games, and we watched television shows that reflected out hopes and dreams for the future. Here is a fine example. You don’t have to watch the entire episode, perhaps maybe the first ten minutes, but you should all get a big kick out of this episode of “Voyage to the bottom of the sea”.
Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea S02E13 The Monster from Outer Space
It was pretty much standard fare for me and my siblings. My brother and I would watch these shows while we played with our erector sets, our chemistry sets, and toy guns. Maybe we too would be a hero and fight those pesky communists in the jungles of far away Vietnam. Oh, you know, we needed to do it. For democracy™ don’t you know. My mom spent most of her free time in the kitchen or the laundry room. She was always washing, cleaning or cooking. She was a machine! I only wish that I could tell her now, today, how much I appreciated what she did, and how her actions really influenced my early years in school. In the early 1960s we had a station wagon. It’s sort of like a low-ceiling mini-van, for those of you who were unaware. Us kids would love to sit in the flat back. We could spread out and stretch our legs back there. It probably would have also made a great place to make out with our (ten years later) girl friends. Alas, they went out of fashion and style. For most of my elementary school years I had this terrible crush on this really thin girl named Nancy P. I thought that she was beautiful, but I was so shy and every time I tried to talk to her I froze up. My sister didn’t help either, always constantly berating me, and embarrassing me when I started to talk to the girls in school. But times change, we age, and grow and experience life. I can positively say that the life I have led, and the experiences that I have had, bore absolutely no resemblence to the news, predictions, and movies of that time and place. And with that in mind, please remember that what you read, and experience today in the media “news” probably has very little resemblance to the actual reality that will influence your life in your future. Never the less, let’s go over some articles during this most signifigant and historical time…
MF: You’ve talked a lot and written a lot about dollar hegemony and what’s happening now with de-dollarization. Can you start out by explaining to my listeners what dollar hegemony is and how it has benefited the wealthy class in the United States?
MH: Dollar hegemony seems to be the position that has just ended as of this week very abruptly.
Dollar hegemony was when America’s war in Vietnam and the military spending of the 1960s and 70s drove the United States off gold. The entire US balance of payments deficit was military spending, and it began to run down the gold supply. So, in 1971, President Nixon took the dollar off gold.
Well, everybody thought America has been controlling the world economy since World War I by having most of the gold and by being the creditor to the world. And they thought what is going to happen now that the United States is running a deficit, instead of being a creditor.
Well, what happened was that, as I’ve described in Super Imperialism, when the United States went off gold, foreign central banks didn’t have anything to buy with their dollars that were flowing into their countries – again, mainly from the US military deficit but also from the investment takeovers.
And they found that these dollars came in, the only thing they could do would be to recycle them to the United States.
And what do central banks hold? They don’t buy property, usually, back then they didn’t. They buy Treasury bonds. And so, the United States would be spending dollars abroad and foreign central banks didn’t really have anything to do but send it right back to buy treasury bonds to finance not only the balance of payments deficit, but also the budget deficit that was largely military in character.
So, dollar hegemony was the system where foreign central banks keep their monetary and international savings reserves in dollars and the dollars are used to finance the military bases around the world, almost eight hundred military bases surrounding them.
So, basically central banks have to keep their savings by weaponizing them, by militarizing them, by lending them to the United States, to keep spending abroad.
This gave America a free ride.
Imagine if you went to the grocery store and you just paid by giving them an IOU. And then the next week you want to buy more groceries and you give them another IOU. And they say, wait a minute, you have an IOU before and you say, well just use the IOU to pay the milk company that delivers, or the farmers that deliver.
You can use this as your money and just you’ll as a customer, keep writing IOU’s and you never have to pay anything because your IOU is other people’s money.
Well, that’s what dollar hegemony was, and it was a free ride.
And it all ended last Wednesday when the United States grabbed Russia’s reserves having grabbed Afghanistan’s foreign reserves and Venezuela’s foreign reserves and those of other countries as well.
And all of a sudden, this means that other countries can no longer safely hold their reserves by sending their money back, depositing them in US banks or buying US Treasury Securities, or having other US investments because they could simply be grabbed as happened to Russia.
So, all of a sudden this last week, you’re seeing the world economy fracture into two parts, a dollarized part…
…and other countries that do not follow the neoliberal policies that the United States insists that its allies follow.
We’re seeing the birth of a new dual World economy.
MF: Wow, there’s a lot to unpack there. So, are we seeing then other countries starting to disinvest in US dollars? You’ve written about how the treasury bonds that these central banks buy up have been basically funding our domestic economy. Are they starting to shed those bonds or what’s happening?
MH: No, they haven’t been funding our domestic economy because the Federal Reserve can create its own money to fund the domestic economy. We don’t need to borrow from foreign countries to fund our economy. We can print it ourselves.
What the dollar hegemony does is fund the balance of payments deficit.
It funds our spending in other economies, our spending abroad.
It doesn’t help our economy, but it does help us get a free ride from other countries.
The more dollars we spend in making a military base, all these military expenditures get turned over to the local Central Bank that turns and sends them back to the Federal Reserve or deposits them in US bank accounts.
So, it’s the international free ride we get, not a domestic free ride.
Growing up though the 1960s and 1970s was a tale of (mostly) good eating. I must admit, however, that my mother tended to over rely on canned foods, and often used prepackaged mixes to make quick and easy meals for us kids. For sloppy joes, my mother would use a can of sloppy joe mix, and that was my sole experience with home-made sloppy joe sandwiches. Then, one day, I tried some made “from scratch” at a friends house. And, I have to tell you all, things haven’t been the same since. Give this recipe a try and see what you think. Homestyle Sloppy Joes
This classic all-American favorite tastes so much better when made with your own fresh ingredients. This homemade or homestyle Sloppy Joes are sink-your-teeth into ’em good!
What You’ll Need
2 to 2-1/2 pounds ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
2 (15-ounce) cans tomato sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
6 sandwich rolls or hamburger buns, split, buttered, and toasted
What to Do
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown ground beef, onion, and green bell pepper 7 to 9 minutes, or until no pink remains in beef; drain off excess liquid.
Add remaining ingredients except sandwich rolls; mix well. Reduce heat to low and simmer 8 to 10 minutes, or until heated through, stirring occasionally. Serve sandwich-style spooned into buns.
This month will decide world politics for next 30+ years
What happens here (and how it happens) will determine the fate of Russia, the Ukraine, Europe, and U.S. global military hegemony (to include on the Pacific Rim) for decades to come.
If Russia is able to complete its Donbass mission by the end of April as I have predicted, then Uncle Sam’s Ukraine project is basically over—we’ll have to find another stick to poke in Russia’s side, and to keep our military-industrial lobby in the bonbons.
When I was growing up I lived in a small town of East Brady on the Allegheny river in Western Pennsylvania. It was a tiny town with perhaps 6000 residents. When I was in fifth grade I used to go forth and hike in the woods and along the railroad tracks. There, I would discover old trash dumps from a hundred years ago. And well, being young kids, we would go and dig in those dumps searching for old bottles to clean and collect. The most prized were whittle-marked bitters. A prized treasure. In the single ravine in the town was a viaduct, and at the bottom of that ravine was this old boarded up building. It was the size of a small house, and painted an off yellow. It’s painted letters were faded, but still readable. It was an old blacksmiths shop. And of course, being kids we would wiggle our way inside that old decrept structure to scrounge around for treasures and curiosities. Inside the walls were covered with one hundred year old newspapers, placards and advertisements. There were some old moldy leather pistol hosters on the walls, as well as a bunch of big crock-pots. Dust and stacks of old news papers lay everywhere. Oh, sure we hand picked a few “treasures”, at that time we knew it was wrong, but you see, we felt that we (collectors of old bottles) appreciated the treasures that we found. Not the actual owners of the objects. Of course, we learned over time that this was wrong. But maybe we were the exception. After all, look at who is running the United States and the rest of the West today. They obviously are unable to tell right from wrong…
Ukraine Bioweapons labs
Interesting. Now, the official U.S. semantics have changed. All references to the bio-labs in Ukraine has been revised.
The initial spin was firm denial that the labs produced “bioweapons” (i.e. they were public health laboratories).
That has now been corrected and updated with an additional qualifier (“offensive”):
Pentagon official: “I can say to you unequivocally there are no offensive biologic weapons in the Ukraine laboratories that the United States has been involved with.” US Defence Department $200 million program since 2005 for 44 labs in Ukraine. USA says... .
Speaking of the bioweapons labs, look what was found by the Russians…
(both were shown on the Russian MOD slides a couple of days ago). You cannot patent an idea, but you can patent an implementation. However, as soon as you implement something like the above two, you are possibly in violation of the various international treaties. Mosquitoes carrying “smallpox / aids / coronavirus” franken-viruses… You know, now that the United States is openly advancing war against Russia and China in every way except in open kenetic fighting, what do you think would happen if Asia decides to put an end once and for all to the horrible out-of-control United States monster?
Submarine 667-A Navaga scale model
Submarine 667-A Navaga scale model The model is made in the scale of 50:1, with internally illuminated compartments, and breakdown view, like all previous submarine projects. Building the model took two years by 6 people, part by part (nose, aft), collection of information and photographs took about 4 months more. The model is very large, it is 2,700 mm long. It was therefore decided to make it from two parts. Otherwise, it would be impossible neither to take it out of the room, nor to transport it. The body is made of laminated fiberglass. The materials used ranged from plastic and Plexiglas to metal, paper, and (new) sewer pipes. Next, you will find many photos and little text Figures of sailors were made of sets of pilots and airfield staff made by various companies in the scale of 48:1. They show all the flaws and shortcomings, but it is sometimes useful for work. Right in the model, one can fail to see them. The model was finished in 2013. Some “boxmakers” could see the aft part of the submarine at the Championship of Russia in 2013 at the Crocus Expo in Moscow. 0 ad15f cde0a782 orig 1 . 0 ad160 3392ecb6 orig . 0 ad162 9997c804 orig . 0 ad165 344cc3d4 orig . 0 ad16d bc8ca460 orig . 0 ad16e 57dd6e30 orig . 0 ad16f 4b9b7a23 orig . 0 ad170 98655d84 orig . 0 ad171 b63c725c orig . 0 ad172 9f7d1b69 orig . 0 ad173 88aad9bf orig . 0 ad174 e25110bf orig . 0 ad175 d4c5c166 orig . 0 ad176 7ae24345 orig . 0 ad177 96b17b4d orig . 0000 1q . 0 ad179 115b2a9c orig . 0 ad17a e992068e orig . 0 ad17b ca910974 orig . 0 ad17c 9c40ba3b orig . 0 ad17d 80e9de4c orig . 0 ad15e bd365315 orig . 0 ad17e 3960a8f7 orig . 0 ad17f 8258ac23 orig . 0 ad180 72c39f5c orig . 1111111a . 0 ad182 6d83ac47 orig . 0 ad183 db74b838 orig . 0 ad184 74f667c0 orig . 0 ad185 61e1fba1 orig . 0 ad186 6c3e70eb orig . 0 ad187 1ad34524 orig . 0 ad188 873144a7 orig . 0 ad189 409b681a orig
All this stuff about submarines…
It appears to be a subconscious theme running though MM this 4APR22. usually when MM picks up on these subconscious patterns it means that something is going on… …. be advised.
Day 36 of the Russian SMO in the Ukraine – a look at Ukrainian military
Map on April first Today, I want to comment on a topic I did not address yet: the quality of the Ukrainian armed forces. Over night, two Ukrainian helicopters flying at very low altitude and high speed flew across the Russian Ukrainian border, and in only six minutes of flight time found themselves next to a fuel storage facility near the Russian city of Belgorod. They both fired, one missed, but the second one hit perfectly and the entire fuel storage facility ignited. Not a big deal, the fire has been contained, but very embarrassing nonetheless 🙁 Another case: the night before yesterday a group of 5 Ukrainian helicopters took off from Nikolaev, flew 7 meters above the waves and landed in Mariupol. Their mission was to evacuate the leadership of the Azov force still hiding inside the Azovstal industrial facility. After they took off, two helicopters were shot down, but another three flew away, with a possible 3 helicopter ditching in the waters off the coast (unclear at this time). Why do I consider these two events very telling? Because it shows that the Ukrainian soldiers have A LOT of VERY REAL courage. Not only that, in both of these operations, a great deal of careful planning went into the preparations of these missions. So they are not only courageous, they are SMART. Yes, the Ukie Volkssturm is a joke, but not the entire Ukrainian military and most definitely not the Nazis of the Azov “battalion” (it is not really a battalion, but rather a regiment or a small brigade, but spread out in key sectors of the Ukrainian defenses). Why is that so important to realize? Because a HUGE battle is preparing in the Donbass. Quick reminder: While nobody knows the true size of the Ukrainian force surrounded in the Donbass, most observers place that force at about 60-80 thousand men. They are VERY well armed, courtesy of 7 years of mass delivery of weapons by the Empire of Lies. Their defenses are very solid, since they have been preparing them also for seven years. Furthermore, the Ukrainians are reportedly trying to bring in another major force from the central Ukraine to either reinforce their forces in the Donbass, or to help it to escape from their cauldron. On the other side, nobody really knows how many Russian/LDNR forces are being concentrated around the Donbass either. There are reports of “immense” columns of Russian forces moving towards the Donbass, including some the Russian forces which were deployed near Kiev to pin down Ukrainian forces away from the Donbass. The same feint was used by the Black Sea Fleet off the coast of Odessa. There are two ways to control a road: you can stand on the road, place a roadblock, maybe lay mines and generally by physically on top of that road. Or you can do that remotely, without stepping on the road but by being able to fire (small arms, RPG, artillery, CAS) at any vehicle driving on that road. The Russian “encirclement” of the Ukrainian force in the Donbass into 2 small cauldrons which themselves are locked in a bigger cauldron are a mix of these two techniques. In other words, the Ukrainians still have retained *some* ability to move on the ground. But only at VERY high risk. Keep in mind that the Donbass is pretty flat terrain and that the Russians have air supremacy. But, with enough luck, immense courage and determination, some APC or cars could try to move out, or reinforcements move in. Let’s look at these two options: Moving out: for a FEW vehicles, and with a lot of luck, that could still be doable. But for the overwhelming majority of the Ukrainian force on the Donbass, this not an option. Not only do they lack fuel, any big force would attract the attention of the Russians (which a 4 passenger car going at full speed in the dark might not) resulting in immediate strikes. Moving in: here the Ukrainian would still have fuel (or they would not even try, which they apparently are), but the problem is that it is impossible to hide any significant force from the Russians which could then use their long range artillery and close air support to destroy that force. I am personally very dubious as to the chances of any Ukrainian subunit to make it to the Donbass. And yet. The Ukrainian propaganda is beyond ridiculous, but we should NOT assume that if Ukie propagandists are clowns, so are the Ukrainian soldiers. The fact is that the Ukrainians never had the initiative, and they still don’t, and all their counter-attacks, including the airstrike on Belgorod, only had a limited and local effect. But that does not mean that they would not fight very hard for their lives, even when surrounded, even without air cover, with no ability to rotate forces and not enough fuel to engage in maneuver warfare. Here is what the map of the area of operations looks like today: Map on April first
The yellow circle is roughly the area where the outcome of this battle will be decided.
The small black arrow represents the likely Ukrainian effort to send in reinforcements
The big black arrow represents the move away from Kiev and towards the Donbass by Russian forces
Speaking about maps: while they do, more or less, show the military reality on the ground, they do not show the political realities the same way. The truth is that there are plenty of towns and cities which are blocked/surrounded by Russian forces, but which are still run by the “old”, Nazi, authorities. Yes, the Russians could go in and denazify these town and cities manu militari, but that would take time, results in casualties on both sides and ruin the civilian infrastructure. And the Russians sure don’t want, say, Kharkov to become a 2nd Mariupol.
[Sidebar: some of you must have heard that canard about the Russians “running out of ammo”, right? Well, local residents near the Ukrainian positions in the Donbass report that for three days the Russian artillery has been shelling the Ukrainian positions nonstop. In reality, anybody who has studied the Soviet and, later, Russian military knows that with the exception of some very modern systems which have just been deployed, Russia has huge stores of ammunition. In fact, when the Russians prepare a military offensive the expenditures in ammo, POL, and any other form of logistics required are carefully calculated. If not, then the order to attack will not be given. And, with a few exceptions, the kind of hardware and supplies the Russians are using in the Ukraine is both modern and plentiful. By the way, there are signs that the Ukrainian forces are running out of ammo, most of their shelling is directed at LDNR cities and result in scores of death and injured civilians on a daily basis]
One possible option would be to warn the Nazi authorities that while the Russian military won’t invade their city, the Russian can use special forces and means to target “just” these Nazi authorities. Yes, the Nazi will set up traps, like, say, placing the cellphone of a Nazi leader right on top of a Kindergarten, so the Russian intelligence services will have to do a lot of careful preparations and planning, or just make the threat and then wait for the Nazis to freak out and wonder where the promised missile will be aimed at. All this means the following:
The Russians need to take the Ukrainians much more seriously and if that means having early warning aircraft and interceptors on combat air patrol 24/7 – then that is what the Russians should do. A pair of MiG-31BM on constant high altitude CAP over the central Ukraine would be a good start.
While the outcome is not in doubt, the Russians need to be very careful and assume that the Ukrainians will fight with skills and courage.
I don’t like making predictions, even less so, time-related ones, but I think that we need to prepare ourselves for a major battle lasting several weeks, possibly even a month.
Have have to assume that the PSYOPs of the Empire of Lies will go in full attack mode, and since it will be very hard to make sense of what will be going on, we have to ready for a major attack on our minds.
Once that Ukrainian force in the Donbass is defeated this will basically mean the end of the 2nd phase of this Special Military Operation (SMO) and the very best and combat capable Ukrainian will have disappeared and a 3rd phase will begin, probably by an attack on the Nikolaev and Odessa regions.
Still, we need to remember that all wars are political in nature and that while the military “pain dial” is turned up quite high for the Ukrainians, the US PSYOPs are still telling the Ukrainians that they are winning and soon the first Ukie tanks will enter Moscow. The de facto fall of Mariupol (as evidenced by the desperate attempts to evacuate the Azov leaders by helicopter) is already a major blow for the Ukrainian narrative. But this blow pales in comparison to what will happen when the best forces the Ukraine has will simply disappear from the maps of the Donbass. At that point, no amount of hot air, grand statements or other lies will make a difference – such a defeat is impossible to conceal, it will make the news. Furthermore, we need to keep another thing always present in our minds: while in actual combat the Russians are facing Ukrainians, in the war itself Russia is not fighting the Nazis in Kiev, but the US/NATO/EU and their vassal states. It is also certain that the “Biden” administration does not want peace but, instead, they want that war to last as long as possible and to destroy as much of the Ukrainian population and civilian infrastructure as possible. And, of course, the Russians are not negotiating with the Nazis, they are negotiating with Uncle Shmuel via the Nazis. Big difference. Right now, some Ukrainians might be willing to look at reality and surrender just to save lives and the Ukrainian infrastructure. But they know that the Nazis will kill them or kidnap their family members (as has happened to one Ukrainian mayor). And these Nazis are taking orders only from many western “advisors” in Kiev who tell them “fight down to the last solider, then we will evacuate you“. You could say that the hardcore Ukronazis act like political commissars did during the Russian civil war. The Russians fought phase one of the SMO with a force which was deliberately kept smaller than the opposing Ukrainian force. But against an elite Ukrainian force deeply dug in in the heavily fortified defenses Russia will have to to do some combination of two things: more man and more firepower. And, by all accounts, that seems to be exactly what they are gearing up for. As many others have already pointed out, the chances of a false flag are extremely high, most likely some chemical attack, possibly in Kiev or Kharkov. Such an attack, while fake, will result in the usual hysterics of the Empire of Lies, so we all need to prepare ourselves for this too. The Empire of lies is so desperate now, that US PSYOPs claim that the Russian generals are afraid of telling Putin the “horrible truth” and that Shoigu is preparing a coup against Putin. Right now, the Ukronazis say that the Russians are on the run, but even the US Pentagon admits that the forces moved away from Kiev are only regrouping. Remember, in maneuver warfare you do not “hold terrain” anymore than you do in naval warfare, and that is what the first phase of the SMO was all about. But in the Donbass, holding terrain will become much more important and since both sides are very skilled and courageous, do NOT expect big movements on the map. Instead, expect several weeks of very severe “grinding down” of Ukrainian defenses followed by slow and deliberate movements, mostly short distance – from a few hundred meters to a few clicks. I hope that the above will be helpful once the 2nd phase is fully launched. One more thing: western military aid to the Ukraine. Most of it is in Poland. True, there is A LOT of western kit found in Mariupol or the Donbass, but that stuff was brought in long ago. Just look at the map, look at where the Polish-Ukrainian border is and then look at where the yellow circle is. In order to make a difference, western weapon systems need to get across the entire Ukraine and enter into a highly contested and dangerous area. How can such a delivery be made? Three options:
Road
Train
Air
In all three cases, if the force is tiny, say a few cars fill with MANPADs, there is a chance to make it, albeit a small one and such a “delivery” would be fantastically dangerous. But the Ukrainians have now PROVEN that they can be very tough and very smart. But such tiny reinforcements won’t make any difference. Now a bigger force might, but it would be instantly detected and attacked by Russians standoff weapons, close air support and long range artillery. So all this stuff about sending weapons to the Ukrainians really is a load of crap. It’s just irrelevant fake news. So far the Russians did not consider such a possibility as significant, hence the fact that they did not blow up any bridges, remotely mined any roads or destroyed any train tracks (that I am aware of). But if the risk of a significant reinforcements from the western Ukraine become a real threat, you can rest assured that the Russians will do all of the above, especially since there are very few towns and civilians in some parts of this track to the East. So far the Russian policy was to let the (covert) NATO forces to gather in an assembly area and only then hit them really hard. This is a very effective strategy which the NATO forces have found no way to counter (if only because NATO air defenses are a joke, even against trans-sonic and subsonic missiles and drone). Finally, the Ukrainians don’t have any air force left, and no navy, but they have proven that they still can use helicopters flying very low and fast, especially at night when local air defense operators might mistake them for a Russian helicopter (friendly fire is always a major risk in warfare). BTW – a helicopter is a hard target, not only do they fly very low, they can fly both fast (say to avoid a MANPAD) or very slow, to hide for fighters and interceptors. A slowly moving and low flying helicopter is a difficult target for fighter aircraft’s radar and infrared search and track system. A hilly or mountainous terrain makes detection even harder. Russian attack helicopters all have air to air capabilities, both gun and missile, and so they can be very effectively used against Ukrainian helicopters (which are a full generation behind modern Russian helicopters) but you need to have them ready and you need to have them fly under air cover. So that is doable, it just takes time.
Conclusion:
Phase one, pure maneuver warfare is over and it was a military success. Politically, it was pretty close to a failure, not only did the PSYOPS of the Empire of Lies totally crush the rather clumsy and primitive Russian counter-propaganda efforts, the Russians also failed to realize that they could not count on the local civilians authorities to simply do their job under a new flag. Which means that Russia failed to properly denazify even the towns and cities which were deep in the Russian rear. Now that miscalculation will have to be fixed the hard way: with more men and more firepower. Phase two of this war will be the liquidation of the Donbass cauldron and it will decide the outcome of this war (not that this outcome was ever in doubt). On a personal note, I will only add that the past month has convinced me that Russia should NOT permanently occupy more of the Ukraine than the “full” LDNR plus the entire Ukrainian Black Sea coast. But neither can Russia leave a the Ukraine like a Petri dish for Nazi toxins, so it seems to me that the optimal solution would be a breakup of the country into several successor states: neutral, with only police forces and light arms and with a clear understanding that Russia has the means to militarily intervene at any minute should the successor states attempt to violate their neutral, unarmed and denazified status. Will that happen? I don’t know, Putin has already surprised me twice with very risky operations which I would have recommended against (Syria and that “big” SMO in lieu of a “small” liberation of “just” the LDNR). Considering that Russia has used only a small fraction of her armed forces, it is impossible for me to predict what Putin and the Russian General Staff will decide after the second phase of this SMO is over. Finally, I am going to take the next two days off, barring some major developments, of course. So until Monday, then, God willing. Andrei
Japan Blindly followed the United States to Sanction Russia ending with self infected injuries:
14 Japan Power Retailers Exiting Business as Energy Crunch Worsens . The war in Ukraine is making a bad situation worse for Japanese power providers struggling with the energy crisis, forcing more companies to quit the business. In the last month, at least four companies halted power retail operations, as a surge in wholesale electricity prices makes it challenging to procure stable supply and turn a profit. At least seven temporarily halted taking on new customer
Zhao Condemns “Insane Actions” of West, Banning Russian Art and Literature, Stealing Private Property
Zhao Lijian (China) on Friday made some rather poignant statements about the behavior of the West in response to the ongoing border skirmish in the former USSR, calling it “insane.”
Zhao said:
I heard that Russian conductors were fired by orchastras in certain Western countries for refusing to condemn their motherland, and Russian movies were excluded from certain film awards. In university, the works of Dostoyevsky were banned. The display of the letter “Z” was banned in certain countries.Western politicians often talk about how literature and art transcend borders, and the same goes for music. They also say “private property is inviolable.” So, what have these writers and musicians done wrong? Meanwhile, the private property of so many Russians has been frozen or confiscated.Let’s hope that Western politicians will reflect on these principles they keep talking about. Their insane actions are not going to do anything good, and they’re not going to deescalate this situation. I hope that all parties can just calm down, and start working on peace talks, instead of escalating sanctions and tensions.
Whatever you think of either side of this conflict, there cannot be any claim that the West has not consistently violated its own supposed “values,” and it’s important to point that out.
We seriously underestimated Russia and our own propaganda is killing us.
Remember when American analysts painted a very specific picture of the Russian armed forces, and it was proven completely wrong? The media seems to have memory-holed literally everything we’ve said about Russia for the past eight years, but I remember. The Russians (according to NATO) before Feb. 24:
Only capable of defensive and limited offensive operations
Transport limited and heavily dependent on railways
Logistical problems. Any large-scale offensive would need to be paused after three days due to logistical limitations.
A hypothetical Russian invasion could be defeated by a combination of air power and guerrilla warfare.
Here’s a [quoted] segment written by Alex Vershinin for War on the Rocks last November. This is the example I chose, and almost every other NATO analysis I read more or less matches up with this one – they were all based on the same wargames and studies by RAND. RAND. Eh? The same people who laid out the Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Taiwan “pivots”, as well as the Hong Kong, Tibet, and Uighur (Xinjiang) operations. Brilliant. They have a near perfect recod of FAILURE. Well Duh! .
Comment from “Don”
Im 61, ex military (r we eva ex?).
Never seen so much media control, like a heavy fog, hence this site is valuable.
My 2 cents worth.
Never underestimate Russia, esp when run by team Putin.
Dot points.
Threat to north / Kiev brilliant magnet for drawing in UA resources away from South East.
Divide and conquor, as Ceaser did, then destroy them piecemeal.
Social meadia western armchair warriors will look more foolish as time moves on.
Western fake news will increasingly reduce western credibility as the reality on the ground emerges.
UA morale will fall rapidly like coming off two weeks of meth with only tabacco and vodka availiable.
The UA is becoming a broken failed state.
This tactic is detroying UA.
Identify troop barracks in use, destroy with precision strikes overnight.
Same therapy for fuel ammo, bases, supplies, defence industry transit routes i.e. railways.
Rinse repeat.
Let social media hype the underdog. That merely strengthens Russian resolve.
Dont they understand Russians even a little?
Meanwhile USA leadership weakness is a real eye opener.
The US empire is disintegrating before it ever became civilized.
Negotiations?
Russia will be seen to be giving them a go.
But UA will be broken up and lucky if it keeps Odessa.
Biden let it out that US troops and Poland have a contingency.
That is the west gets western UA as a neutered proxy with Nazis and Kiev.
It will be kinda like West / East Germany.
How this comes about I dont know.
With Russian permission for starters and Russias security buffer intact.
Bad ending predicted for Zel.
Thats my take.
Thats if we survive till then. No guarantees esp with team dementia, moron, dementia. 1,2,3 Biden Harris Pelosi.
Prediction?
Shit always goes down around Easter for some reason.
We'll see...
Posted by: Dom
‘Rublegas:’ the world’s new resource-based reserve currency
Rublegas is the commodity currency du jour and it isn’t nearly as complicated as NATO pretends. If Europe wants gas, all it needs to do is send its Euros to a Russian account inside Russia.
By Pepe Escobar, posted with the author’s permission and cross-posted with The Cradle
Saddam, Gaddafi, Iran, Venezuela – they all tried but couldn’t do it. But Russia is on a different level altogether. The beauty of the game-changing, gas-for-rubles, geoeconomic jujitsu applied by Moscow is its stark simplicity. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s presidential decree on new payment terms for energy products, predictably, was misunderstood by the collective west. The Russian government is not exactly demanding straightforward payment for gas in rubles. What Moscow wants is to be paid at Gazprombank in Russia, in its currency of choice, and not at a Gazprom account in any banking institution in western capitals. That’s the essence of less-is-more sophistication. Gazprombank will sell the foreign currency – dollars or euros – deposited by their customers on the Moscow Stock Exchange and credit it to different accounts in rubles within Gazprombank. What this means in practice is that foreign currency should be sent directly to Russia, and not accumulated in a foreign bank – where it can easily be held hostage, or frozen, for that matter. All these transactions from now on should be transferred to a Russian jurisdiction – thus eliminating the risk of payments being interrupted or outright blocked. It’s no wonder the subservient European Union (EU) apparatus – actively engaged in destroying their own national economies on behalf of Washington’s interests – is intellectually unequipped to understand the complex matter of exchanging euros into rubles. Gazprom made things easier this Friday, sending official notifications to its counterparts in the west and Japan. Putin himself was forced to explain in writing to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz how it all works. Once again, very simple: Customers open an account with Gazprombank in Russia. Payments are made in foreign currency – dollars or euros – converted into rubles according to the current exchange rate, and transferred to different Gazprom accounts. Thus it is 100 percent guaranteed that Gazprom will be paid. That’s in stark contrast to what the United States was forcing the Europeans to do: pay for Russian gas in Gazprom accounts in Europe, which would then be instantly frozen. These accounts would only be unblocked with the end of Operation Z, Russia’s military ops in Ukraine. Yet the Americans want the war to go on indefinitely, to “bog down” Moscow as if this was Afghanistan in the 1980s, and have strictly forbidden the Ukrainian Comedian in front of a green screen somewhere – certainly not Kiev – to accept any ceasefire or peace deal. So Gazprom accounts in Europe would continue to be frozen. As Scholz was still trying to understand the obvious, his economic minions went berserk, floating the idea of nationalizing Gazprom’s subsidiaries – Gazprom Germania and Wingas – in case Russia decides to halt the gas flow. This is ridiculous. It’s as if Berlin functionaries believe that Gazprom subsidiaries produce natural gas in centrally heated offices across Germany. The new rubles-for-gas mechanism does not in any way violate existing contracts. Yet, as Putin warned, existing contracts may indeed be stopped: “If such [ruble] payments are not made, we will consider this to be the buyers’ failure to perform commitments with all ensuing implications.” Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov was adamant that the mechanism will not be reversed under the current, dire circumstances. Still that does not mean that the gas flow would be instantly cut off. Payment in rubles will be expected from ‘The Unfriendlies’ – a list of hostile states that includes mostly the US, Canada, Japan and the EU – in the second half of April and early May. For the overwhelming majority of the Global South, the overarching Big Picture is crystal clear: an Atlanticist oligarchy is refusing to buy the Russian gas essential to the wellbeing of the population of Europe, while fully engaged in the weaponization of toxic inflation rates against the same population. Beyond Rublegas This gas-for-rubles mechanism – call it Rublegas – is just the first concrete building block in the construction of an alternative financial/monetary system, in tandem with many other mechanisms: ruble-rupee trade; the Saudi petroyuan; the Iran-Russia SWIFT- bypassing mechanism; and the most important of all, the China-Eurasia Economic Union (EAEU) design of a comprehensive financial/monetary system, with the first draft to be presented in the next few days. And all of the above is directly linked to the stunning emergence of the ruble as a new, resource-based reserve currency. After the predictable initial stages of denial, the EU – actually, Germany – must face reality. The EU depends on steady supplies of Russian gas (40 percent) and oil (25 percent). The sanction hysteria has already engineered certified blowback. Natural gas accounts for 50 percent of the needs of Germany’s chemical and pharmaceutical industries. There’s no feasible replacement, be it from Algeria, Norway, Qatar or Turkmenistan. Germany is the EU’s industrial powerhouse. Only Russian gas is capable of keeping the German – and European – industrial base humming and at very affordable prices in case of long-term contracts. Disrupt this set up and you have horrifying turbulence across the EU and beyond. The inimitable Andrei Martyanov has summed it up this way: “Only two things define the world: the actual physical economy, and military power, which is its first derivative. Everything else are derivatives but you cannot live on derivatives.” The American turbo-capitalist casino believes its own derivative “narrative” – which has nothing to do with the real economy. The EU will eventually be forced by reality to move from denial to acceptance. Meanwhile, the Global South will be fast adapting to the new paradigm: the Davos Great Reset has been shattered by the Russian Reset.
Its importance comes due to the fact that its author, Jacques Baud, a retired colonel in the Swiss intelligence service, was variously a highly placed, major participant in NATO training operations in Ukraine.
A literal translation appeared at The Postil (April 1, 2022). I have gone back to the original French and edited the article down some and rendered it, I hope, in more idiomatic English. I do not think in editing it I have damaged Baud’s fascinating account. For in a real sense, what he has done is “to let the cat out of the bag.”
In the past I’ve read accounts and reports that either confirm or in some way match the narrative that he offers. Some of these that I’ve written about or cited are by: Dr. John Mearsheimer, Archbishop Carlo Vigano, Glenn Greenwald, Sohrab Ahmari, Colonel Douglas Macgregor, Mike Whitney, and others. But none of these writers has offered the first-hand, in depth, and comprehensive account as Colonel Baud, clearly and knowledgeably, has done.
It is still a bit lengthy, despite my editing.
But I urge you to read and ponder Baud’s commentary. Along with the historical accounts of historian John Mearsheimer, it should be required reading for those zealous policy hawks, both in the GOP and the Democratic Party, who are pushing us into World War III:
For years, from Mali to Afghanistan, I have worked for peace and risked my life for it. It is therefore not a question of justifying war, but of understanding what led us to it. [….]
Let’s try to examine the roots of the [Ukrainian] conflict. It starts with those who for the last eight years have been talking about “separatists” or “independentists” from Donbass. This is a misnomer. The referendums conducted by the two self-proclaimed Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk in May 2014, were not referendums of “independence” (независимость), as some unscrupulous journalists have claimed, but referendums of “self-determination” or “autonomy” (самостоятельность). The qualifier “pro-Russian” suggests that Russia was a party to the conflict, which was not the case, and the term “Russian speakers” would have been more honest. Moreover, these referendums were conducted against the advice of Vladimir Putin.
In fact, these Republics were not seeking to separate from Ukraine, but to have a status of autonomy, guaranteeing them the use of the Russian language as an official language–because the first legislative act of the new government resulting from the American-sponsored overthrow of [the democratically-elected] President Yanukovych, was the abolition, on February 23, 2014, of the Kivalov-Kolesnichenko law of 2012 that made Russian an official language in Ukraine. A bit like if German putschists decided that French and Italian would no longer be official languages in Switzerland.
This decision caused a storm in the Russian-speaking population. The result was fierce repression against the Russian-speaking regions (Odessa, Dnepropetrovsk, Kharkov, Lugansk and Donetsk) which was carried out beginning in February 2014 and led to a militarization of the situation and some horrific massacres of the Russian population (in Odessa and Mariupol, the most notable).
At this stage, too rigid and engrossed in a doctrinaire approach to operations, the Ukrainian general staff subdued the enemy but without managing to actually prevail. The war waged by the autonomists [consisted in].… highly mobile operations conducted with light means. With a more flexible and less doctrinaire approach, the rebels were able to exploit the inertia of Ukrainian forces to repeatedly “trap” them.
In 2014, when I was at NATO, I was responsible for the fight against the proliferation of small arms, and we were trying to detect Russian arms deliveries to the rebels, to see if Moscow was involved. The information we received then came almost entirely from Polish intelligence services and did not “fit” with the information coming from the OSCE [Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe]—and despite rather crude allegations, there were no deliveries of weapons and military equipment from Russia.
The rebels were armed thanks to the defection of Russian-speaking Ukrainian units that went over to the rebel side. As Ukrainian failures continued, tank, artillery and anti-aircraft battalions swelled the ranks of the autonomists. This is what pushed the Ukrainians to commit to the Minsk Agreements.
But just after signing the Minsk 1 Agreements, the Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko launched a massive “anti-terrorist operation” (ATO/Антитерористична операція) against the Donbass. Poorly advised by NATO officers, the Ukrainians suffered a crushing defeat in Debaltsevo, which forced them to engage in the Minsk 2 Agreements.
It is essential to recall here that Minsk 1 (September 2014) and Minsk 2 (February 2015) Agreements did not provide for the separation or independence of the Republics, but their autonomy within the framework of Ukraine. Those who have read the Agreements (there are very few who actually have) will note that it is written that the status of the Republics was to be negotiated between Kiev and the representatives of the Republics, for an internal solution within Ukraine.
That is why since 2014, Russia has systematically demanded the implementation of the Minsk Agreements while refusing to be a party to the negotiations, because it was an internal matter of Ukraine. On the other side, the West—led by France—systematically tried to replace Minsk Agreements with the “Normandy format,” which put Russians and Ukrainians face-to-face. However, let us remember that there were never any Russian troops in the Donbass before 23-24 February 2022. Moreover, OSCE observers have never observed the slightest trace of Russian units operating in the Donbass before then. For example, the U.S. intelligence map published by the Washington Post on December 3, 2021 does not show Russian troops in the Donbass.
In October 2015, Vasyl Hrytsak, director of the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU), confessed that only 56 Russian fighters had been observed in the Donbass. This was exactly comparable to the Swiss who went to fight in Bosnia on weekends, in the 1990s, or the French who go to fight in Ukraine today.
The Ukrainian army was then in a deplorable state. In October 2018, after four years of war, the chief Ukrainian military prosecutor, Anatoly Matios, stated that Ukraine had lost 2,700 men in the Donbass: 891 from illnesses, 318 from road accidents, 177 from other accidents, 175 from poisonings (alcohol, drugs), 172 from careless handling of weapons, 101 from breaches of security regulations, 228 from murders and 615 from suicides.
In fact, the Ukrainian army was undermined by the corruption of its cadres and no longer enjoyed the support of the population. According to a British Home Office report, in the March/April 2014 recall of reservists, 70 percent did not show up for the first session, 80 percent for the second, 90 percent for the third, and 95 percent for the fourth. In October/November 2017, 70% of conscripts did not show up for the “Fall 2017” recall campaign. This is not counting suicides and desertions (often over to the autonomists), which reached up to 30 percent of the workforce in the ATO area. Young Ukrainians refused to go and fight in the Donbass and preferred emigration, which also explains, at least partially, the demographic deficit of the country.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense then turned to NATO to help make its armed forces more “attractive.” Having already worked on similar projects within the framework of the United Nations, I was asked by NATO to participate in a program to restore the image of the Ukrainian armed forces. But this is a long-term process and the Ukrainians wanted to move quickly.
So, to compensate for the lack of soldiers, the Ukrainian government resorted to paramilitary militias…. In 2020, they constituted about 40 percent of the Ukrainian forces and numbered about 102,000 men, according to Reuters. They were armed, financed and trained by the United States, Great Britain, Canada and France. There were more than 19 nationalities.
These militias had been operating in the Donbass since 2014, with Western support. Even if one can argue about the term “Nazi,” the fact remains that these militias are violent, convey a nauseating ideology and are virulently anti-Semitic…[and] are composed of fanatical and brutal individuals. The best known of these is the Azov Regiment, whose emblem is reminiscent of the 2nd SS Das Reich Panzer Division, which is revered in the Ukraine for liberating Kharkov from the Soviets in 1943, before carrying out the 1944 Oradour-sur-Glane massacre in France. [….]
So, the West supported and continued to arm militias that have been guilty of numerous crimes against civilian populations since 2014: rape, torture and massacres….
The integration of these paramilitary forces into the Ukrainian National Guard was not at all accompanied by a “denazification,” as some claim.
Among the many examples, that of the Azov Regiment’s insignia is instructive:
2022 04 03 11 00
In 2022, very schematically, the Ukrainian armed forces fighting the Russian offensive were organized as:
The Army, subordinated to the Ministry of Defense. It is organized into 3 army corps and composed of maneuver formations (tanks, heavy artillery, missiles, etc.).
The National Guard, which depends on the Ministry of the Interior and is organized into 5 territorial commands.
The National Guard is therefore a territorial defense force that is not part of the Ukrainian army. It includes paramilitary militias, called “volunteer battalions” (добровольчі батальйоні), also known by the evocative name of “reprisal battalions,” and composed of infantry. Primarily trained for urban combat, they now defend cities such as Kharkov, Mariupol, Odessa, Kiev, etc.
Part Two: The War
As a former head of analysis of Warsaw Pact forces in the Swiss strategic intelligence service, I observe with sadness—but not astonishment—that our services are no longer able to understand the military situation in Ukraine. The self-proclaimed “experts” who parade on our TV screens tirelessly relay the same information modulated by the claim that Russia—and Vladimir Putin—is irrational. Let’s take a step back.
The Outbreak Of War
Since November 2021, the Americans have been constantly threatening a Russian invasion of Ukraine. However, the Ukrainians at first did not seem to agree. Why not?
We have to go back to March 24, 2021. On that day, Volodymyr Zelensky issued a decree for the recapture of the Crimea, and began to deploy his forces to the south of the country. At the same time, several NATO exercises were conducted between the Black Sea and the Baltic Sea, accompanied by a significant increase in reconnaissance flights along the Russian border. Russia then conducted several exercises to test the operational readiness of its troops and to show that it was following the evolution of the situation.
Things calmed down until October-November with the end of the ZAPAD 21 exercises, whose troop movements were interpreted as a reinforcement for an offensive against Ukraine. However, even the Ukrainian authorities refuted the idea of Russian preparations for a war, and Oleksiy Reznikov, Ukrainian Minister of Defense, states that there had been no change on its border since the spring.
In violation of the Minsk Agreements, Ukraine was conducting air operations in Donbass using drones, including at least one strike against a fuel depot in Donetsk in October 2021. The American press noted this, but not the Europeans; and no one condemned these violations.
In February 2022, events came to a head. On February 7, during his visit to Moscow, Emmanuel Macron reaffirmed to Vladimir Putin his commitment to the Minsk Agreements, a commitment he would repeat after his meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky the next day. But on February 11, in Berlin, after nine hours of work, the meeting of political advisors to the leaders of the “Normandy format” ended without any concrete result: the Ukrainians still refused to apply the Minsk Agreements, apparently under pressure from the United States. Vladimir Putin noted that Macron had made empty promises and that the West was not ready to enforce the agreements, the same opposition to a settlement it had exhibited for eight years.
Ukrainian preparations in the contact zone continued. The Russian Parliament became alarmed; and on February 15 it asked Vladimir Putin to recognize the independence of the Republics, which he initially refused to do.
On 17 February, President Joe Biden announced that Russia would attack Ukraine in the next few days. How did he know this? It is a mystery. But since the 16th, the artillery shelling of the population of Donbass had increased dramatically, as the daily reports of the OSCE observers show. Naturally, neither the media, nor the European Union, nor NATO, nor any Western government reacted or intervened. It would be said later that this was Russian disinformation. In fact, it seems that the European Union and some countries have deliberately kept silent about the massacre of the Donbass population, knowing that this would provoke a Russian intervention.
At the same time, there were reports of sabotage in the Donbass. On 18 January, Donbass fighters intercepted saboteurs, who spoke Polish and were equipped with Western equipment and who were seeking to create chemical incidents in Gorlivka. They could have been CIA mercenaries, led or “advised” by Americans and composed of Ukrainian or European fighters, to carry out sabotage actions in the Donbass Republics.
In fact, as early as February 16, Joe Biden knew that the Ukrainians had begun intense shelling the civilian population of Donbass, forcing Vladimir Putin to make a difficult choice: to help Donbass militarily and create an international problem, or to stand by and watch the Russian-speaking people of Donbass being crushed.
If he decided to intervene, Putin could invoke the international obligation of “Responsibility To Protect” (R2P). But he knew that whatever its nature or scale, the intervention would trigger a storm of sanctions. Therefore, whether Russian intervention were limited to the Donbass or went further to put pressure on the West over the status of the Ukraine, the price to pay would be the same. This is what he explained in his speech on February 21. On that day, he agreed to the request of the Duma and recognized the independence of the two Donbass Republics and, at the same time, he signed friendship and assistance treaties with them.
The Ukrainian artillery bombardment of the Donbass population continued, and, on 23 February, the two Republics asked for military assistance from Russia. On 24 February, Vladimir Putin invoked Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, which provides for mutual military assistance in the framework of a defensive alliance.
In order to make the Russian intervention seem totally illegal in the eyes of the public, Western powers deliberately hid the fact that the war actually started on February 16. The Ukrainian army was preparing to attack the Donbass as early as 2021, as some Russian and European intelligence services were well aware.
In his speech of February 24, Vladimir Putin stated the two objectives of his operation: “demilitarize” and “denazify” the Ukraine. So, it was not a question of taking over Ukraine, nor even, presumably, of occupying it; and certainly not of destroying it.
From then on, our knowledge of the course of the operation is limited: the Russians have excellent security for their operations (OPSEC) and the details of their planning are not known. But fairly quickly, the course of the operation allows us to understand how the strategic objectives were translated on the operational level.
Demilitarization:
ground destruction of Ukrainian aviation, air defense systems and reconnaissance assets;
neutralization of command and intelligence structures (C3I), as well as the main logistical routes in the depth of the territory;
encirclement of the bulk of the Ukrainian army massed in the southeast of the country.
Denazification:
destruction or neutralization of volunteer battalions operating in the cities of Odessa, Kharkov, and Mariupol, as well as in various facilities in the territory.
Demilitarization
The Russian offensive was carried out in a very “classic” manner. Initially—as the Israelis had done in 1967—with the destruction on the ground of the air force in the very first hours. Then, we witnessed a simultaneous progression along several axes according to the principle of “flowing water”: advance everywhere where resistance was weak and leave the cities (very demanding in terms of troops) for later. In the north, the Chernobyl power plant was occupied immediately to prevent acts of sabotage. The images of Ukrainian and Russian soldiers guarding the plant together are of course not shown.
The idea that Russia is trying to take over Kiev, the capital, to eliminate Zelensky, comes typically from the West…. But Vladimir Putin never intended to shoot or topple Zelensky. Instead, Russia seeks to keep him in power by pushing him to negotiate, by surrounding Kiev. The Russians want to obtain the neutrality of Ukraine.
Many Western commentators were surprised that the Russians continued to seek a negotiated solution while conducting military operations. The explanation lies in the Russian strategic outlook since the Soviet era. For the West, war begins when politics ends. However, the Russian approach follows a Clausewitzian inspiration: war is the continuity of politics and one can move fluidly from one to the other, even during combat. This allows one to create pressure on the adversary and push him to negotiate.
From an operational point of view, the Russian offensive was an example of previous military action and planning: in six days, the Russians seized a territory as large as the United Kingdom, with a speed of advance greater than what the Wehrmacht had achieved in 1940.
The bulk of the Ukrainian army was deployed in the south of the country in preparation for a major operation against the Donbass. This is why Russian forces were able to encircle it from the beginning of March in the “cauldron” between Slavyansk, Kramatorsk and Severodonetsk, with a thrust from the East through Kharkov and another from the South from Crimea. Troops from the Donetsk (DPR) and Lugansk (LPR) Republics are complementing the Russian forces with a push from the East.
At this stage, Russian forces are slowly tightening the noose, but are no longer under any time pressure or schedule. Their demilitarization goal is all but achieved and the remaining Ukrainian forces no longer have an operational and strategic command structure.
The “slowdown” that our “experts” attribute to poor logistics is only the consequence of having achieved their objectives. Russia does not want to engage in an occupation of the entire Ukrainian territory. In fact, it appears that Russia is trying to limit its advance to the linguistic border of the country.
Our media speak of indiscriminate bombardments against the civilian population, especially in Kharkov, and horrific images are widely broadcast. However, Gonzalo Lira, a Latin American correspondent who lives there, presents us with a calm city on March 10 and March 11. It is true that it is a large city and we do not see everything—but this seems to indicate that we are not in the total war that we are served continuously on our TV screens. As for the Donbass Republics, they have “liberated” their own territories and are fighting in the city of Mariupol.
Denazification
In cities like Kharkov, Mariupol and Odessa, the Ukrainian defense is provided by the paramilitary militias. They know that the objective of “denazification” is aimed primarily at them. For an attacker in an urbanized area, civilians are a problem. This is why Russia is seeking to create humanitarian corridors to empty cities of civilians and leave only the militias, to fight them more easily.
Conversely, these militias seek to keep civilians in the cities from evacuating in order to dissuade the Russian army from fighting there. This is why they are reluctant to implement these corridors and do everything to ensure that Russian efforts are unsuccessful—they use the civilian population as “human shields.” Videos showing civilians trying to leave Mariupol and beaten up by fighters of the Azov regiment are of course carefully censored by the Western media.
On Facebook, the Azov group was considered in the same category as the Islamic State [ISIS] and subject to the platform’s “policy on dangerous individuals and organizations.” It was therefore forbidden to glorify its activities, and “posts” that were favorable to it were systematically banned. But on February 24, Facebook changed its policy and allowed posts favorable to the militia. In the same spirit, in March, the platform authorized, in the former Eastern countries, calls for the murder of Russian soldiers and leaders. So much for the values that inspire our leaders.
Our media propagate a romantic image of popular resistance by the Ukrainian people. It is this image that led the European Union to finance the distribution of arms to the civilian population. In my capacity as head of peacekeeping at the UN, I worked on the issue of civilian protection. We found that violence against civilians occurred in very specific contexts. In particular, when weapons are abundant and there are no command structures.
These command structures are the essence of armies: their function is to channel the use of force towards an objective. By arming citizens in a haphazard manner, as is currently the case, the EU is turning them into combatants, with the consequential effect of making them potential targets. Moreover, without command, without operational goals, the distribution of arms leads inevitably to settling of scores, banditry and actions that are more deadly than effective. War becomes a matter of emotions. Force becomes violence. This is what happened in Tawarga (Libya) from 11 to 13 August 2011, where 30,000 black Africans were massacred with weapons parachuted (illegally) by France. By the way, the British Royal Institute for Strategic Studies (RUSI) does not see any added value in these arms deliveries.
Moreover, by delivering arms to a country at war, one exposes oneself to being considered a belligerent. The Russian strikes of March 13, 2022, against the Mykolayev air base follow Russian warnings that arms shipments would be treated as hostile targets.
The EU is repeating the disastrous experience of the Third Reich in the final hours of the Battle of Berlin. War must be left to the military and when one side has lost, it must be admitted. And if there is to be resistance, it must be led and structured. But we are doing exactly the opposite—we are pushing citizens to go and fight, and at the same time, Facebook authorizes calls for the murder of Russian soldiers and leaders. So much for the values that inspire us.
Some intelligence services see this irresponsible decision as a way to use the Ukrainian population as cannon fodder to fight Vladimir Putin’s Russia…. It would have been better to engage in negotiations and thus obtain guarantees for the civilian population than to add fuel to the fire. It is easy to be combative with the blood of others.
The Maternity Hospital At Mariupol
It is important to understand beforehand that it is not the Ukrainian army that is defending Mariupol, but the Azov militia, composed of foreign mercenaries.
In its March 7, 2022 summary of the situation, the Russian UN mission in New York stated that “Residents report that Ukrainian armed forces expelled staff from the Mariupol city birth hospital No. 1 and set up a firing post inside the facility.” On March 8, the independent Russian media Lenta.ru, published the testimony of civilians from Mariupol who told that the maternity hospital was taken over by the militia of the Azov regiment, and who drove out the civilian occupants by threatening them with their weapons. They confirmed the statements of the Russian ambassador a few hours earlier.
The hospital in Mariupol occupies a dominant position, perfectly suited for the installation of anti-tank weapons and for observation. On 9 March, Russian forces struck the building. According to CNN, 17 people were wounded, but the images do not show any casualties in the building and there is no evidence that the victims mentioned are related to this strike. There is talk of children, but in reality, there is nothing. This does not prevent the leaders of the EU from seeing this as a war crime. And this allows Zelensky to call for a no-fly zone over Ukraine.
In reality, we do not know exactly what happened. But the sequence of events tends to confirm that Russian forces struck a position of the Azov regiment and that the maternity ward was then free of civilians.
The problem is that the paramilitary militias that defend the cities are encouraged by the international community not to respect the rules of war. It seems that the Ukrainians have replayed the scenario of the Kuwait City maternity hospital in 1990, which was totally staged by the firm Hill & Knowlton for $10.7 million in order to convince the United Nations Security Council to intervene in Iraq for Operation Desert Shield/Storm.
Western politicians have accepted civilian strikes in the Donbass for eight years without adopting any sanctions against the Ukrainian government. We have long since entered a dynamic where Western politicians have agreed to sacrifice international law towards their goal of weakening Russia.
Part Three: Conclusions
As an ex-intelligence professional, the first thing that strikes me is the total absence of Western intelligence services in accurately representing the situation over the past year…. In fact, it seems that throughout the Western world intelligence services have been overwhelmed by the politicians. The problem is that it is the politicians who decide—the best intelligence service in the world is useless if the decision-maker does not listen. This is what has happened during this crisis.
That said, while a few intelligence services had a very accurate and rational picture of the situation, others clearly had the same picture as that propagated by our media… The problem is that, from experience, I have found them to be extremely bad at the analytical level—doctrinaire, they lack the intellectual and political independence necessary to assess a situation with military “quality.”
Second, it seems that in some European countries, politicians have deliberately responded ideologically to the situation. That is why this crisis has been irrational from the beginning. It should be noted that all the documents that were presented to the public during this crisis were presented by politicians based on commercial sources.
Some Western politicians obviously wanted there to be a conflict. In the United States, the attack scenarios presented by Anthony Blinken to the UN Security Council were only the product of the imagination of a Tiger Team working for him—he did exactly as Donald Rumsfeld did in 2002, who “bypassed” the CIA and other intelligence services that were much less assertive about Iraqi chemical weapons.
The dramatic developments we are witnessing today have causes that we knew about but refused to see:
on the strategic level, the expansion of NATO (which we have not dealt with here);
on the political level, the Western refusal to implement the Minsk Agreements;
and operationally, the continuous and repeated attacks on the civilian population of the Donbass over the past years and the dramatic increase in late February 2022.
In other words, we can naturally deplore and condemn the Russian attack. But WE (that is: the United States, France and the European Union in the lead) have created the conditions for a conflict to break out. We show compassion for the Ukrainian people and the two million refugees. That is fine. But if we had had a modicum of compassion for the same number of refugees from the Ukrainian populations of Donbass massacred by their own government and who sought refuge in Russia for eight years, none of this would probably have happened.
[….]
Whether the term “genocide” applies to the abuses suffered by the people of Donbass is an open question. The term is generally reserved for cases of greater magnitude (Holocaust, etc.). But the definition given by the Genocide Convention is probably broad enough to apply to this case.
Clearly, this conflict has led us into hysteria. Sanctions seem to have become the preferred tool of our foreign policies. If we had insisted that Ukraine abide by the Minsk Agreements, which we had negotiated and endorsed, none of this would have happened. Vladimir Putin’s condemnation is also ours. There is no point in whining afterwards—we should have acted earlier. However, neither Emmanuel Macron (as guarantor and member of the UN Security Council), nor Olaf Scholz, nor Volodymyr Zelensky have respected their commitments. In the end, the real defeat is that of those who have no voice.
The European Union was unable to promote the implementation of the Minsk agreements—on the contrary, it did not react when Ukraine was bombing its own population in the Donbass. Had it done so, Vladimir Putin would not have needed to react. Absent from the diplomatic phase, the EU distinguished itself by fueling the conflict. On February 27, the Ukrainian government agreed to enter into negotiations with Russia. But a few hours later, the European Union voted a budget of 450 million euros to supply arms to the Ukraine, adding fuel to the fire. From then on, the Ukrainians felt that they did not need to reach an agreement. The resistance of the Azov militia in Mariupol even led to a boost of 500 million euros for weapons.
In Ukraine, with the blessing of the Western countries, those who are in favor of a negotiation have been eliminated. This is the case of Denis Kireyev, one of the Ukrainian negotiators, assassinated on March 5 by the Ukrainian secret service (SBU) because he was too favorable to Russia and was considered a traitor. The same fate befell Dmitry Demyanenko, former deputy head of the SBU’s main directorate for Kiev and its region, who was assassinated on March 10 because he was too favorable to an agreement with Russia—he was shot by the Mirotvorets (“Peacemaker”) militia. This militia is associated with the Mirotvorets website, which lists the “enemies of Ukraine,” with their personal data, addresses and telephone numbers, so that they can be harassed or even eliminated; a practice that is punishable in many countries, but not in the Ukraine. The UN and some European countries have demanded the closure of this site—but that demand was refused by the Rada [Ukrainian parliament].
In the end, the price will be high, but Vladimir Putin will likely achieve the goals he set for himself. We have pushed him into the arms of China. His ties with Beijing have solidified. China is emerging as a mediator in the conflict…. The Americans have to ask Venezuela and Iran for oil to get out of the energy impasse they have put themselves in—and the United States has to piteously backtrack on the sanctions imposed on its enemies.
Western ministers who seek to collapse the Russian economy and make the Russian people suffer, or even call for the assassination of Putin, show (even if they have partially reversed the form of their words, but not the substance!) that our leaders are no better than those we hate—sanctioning Russian athletes in the Para-Olympic Games or Russian artists has nothing to do with fighting Putin. [….]
What makes the conflict in Ukraine more blameworthy than our wars in Iraq, Afghanistan or Libya? What sanctions have we adopted against those who deliberately lied to the international community in order to wage unjust, unjustified and murderous wars?….Have we adopted a single sanction against the countries, companies or politicians who are supplying weapons to the conflict in Yemen, considered to be the “worst humanitarian disaster in the world?”
To ask the question is to answer it… and the answer is not pretty.
Jacques Baud is a former colonel of the General Staff, ex-member of the Swiss strategic intelligence, specialist on Eastern countries. He was trained in the American and British intelligence services. He has served as Policy Chief for United Nations Peace Operations. As a UN expert on rule of law and security institutions, he designed and led the first multidimensional UN intelligence unit in the Sudan. He has worked for the African Union and was for 5 years responsible for the fight, at NATO, against the proliferation of small arms. He was involved in discussions with the highest Russian military and intelligence officials just after the fall of the USSR. Within NATO, he followed the 2014 Ukrainian crisis and later participated in programs to assist the Ukraine. He is the author of several books on intelligence, war and terrorism, in particular Le Détournement published by SIGEST, Gouverner par les fake news , L’affaire Navalny . His latest book is Poutine, maître du jeu? published by Max Milo.
Richie Blackmore / Ronnie James Dio “Catch the Rainbow (Live)”
Now this is a real treat. When I was in my Senior Year in High School, we must have worn down this album by playing it over, and over, and over again. Today, as an older man, with a great deal of “life experience” I have a completely different mindset, and when I listen to this music it affects me quite differently. Today, I view it as a work of art; an entertaining distraction, and one that showcases the brilliance of the singer Ronnie James Dio, the great drum work of Cozy Powell, and of course, the ease at which Richie Blackmore belted out those guitar solos. While when I was younger, it reflected struggle, passion and ambition. Ah. It’s amazing how one changes as they age. Anyways, I present it here as just that. A fine historical view and fun entertainment for youse guys to enjoy. Part 1
Part 2
Funeral Directors, Embalmers Alarmed by Unusual Blood Clots in Vaccinated Bodies
Normally I do not post these kinds of articles, but this is a mainstream America media article. It is signifigant. -MM
Board-certified funeral directors and embalmers are coming forward to tell tales of horror featuring vaccinated bodies with veins and arteries clogged with strange, rubbery, worm-like clots. Richard Hirschman, a funeral director and embalmer from Alabama, with over twenty years of experience in the field, has said in recent interviews that he had never seen anything like it until around the middle of 2021, after the mass injections of the experimental COVID vaccines began. He says his colleagues in the field are seeing the same thing, and the numbers are increasing. Earlier this month, Hirschman told Steve Kirsch, the Executive Director of the Vaccine Research Center, that in Jan 2022, 37 out of 57 bodies (65 percent) had these suspicious clots. Prior to the vaccines, Hirschman said blood clots in patients who died of COVID were seen, but they appeared to be more typical, and not in the alarming numbers he’s seeing now. Since Hirschman has gone public, Cary D. Watkins, a colleague from Alabama with over 50 years experience as a funeral director and embalmer, has come forward to corroborate his story, and Anna Foster, an embalmer from Missouri with 11 years of experience, has revealed in an interview that 93 percent of her last 30 cases died due to unusual clots completely filling their vascular systems. Funeral director John O’Looney of Milton Keynes, England, is also blowing the whistle on the alarming increase in number of thrombosis deaths. O’Looney said in an interview that it’s not just “a two or three-fold increase—it’s around a 500 or 600 percent increase,” and nine out of ten of these cases were vaccinated. . Much more... .
You don’t drive by slowly and film people in distress, you get off your fucking ass and help them. What’s you God damn malfunction? video 4MB
Life is too short not to be a Rufus
You can be a hero, or you can be a selfish greedy psycopathic loner. It’s your choice. video 1MB
Be the Rufus and change your life
Change your thoughts, and you will change your behaviors. That in turn will change your life. Don’t be afraid. make the changes that you so very much need. video. 3MB
Be the Rufus and make the world worth living in
Sure. You have heard this over and over and over again. Yet you still come back to MM for more. Why? WHy do you visit MM instead of Fox “news”, CNN, the BBC, or any of thousands of for-profit “news”? Perhaps it is becuase you are different. Yes. Maybe you are different; and maybe you are special. So, and if so, perhaps you are here at this place at this time to make a difference. Are you up to the challenge? It doesn’t matter what your role is, or what your job is. Do it with passion; with gusto, and with a big happy smile. You WILL CHANGE the world around you. video 4MB
Do you want more?
You can find more articles related to this in my latest index; A New Beginning. And in it are elements of the old, some elements regarding the transition, and some elements that look towards the future. New Beginnings 3 .
Why do we seek answers? I don’t really know, but so many people want to understand the world how it really works, and when I tell them exactly what is the situation, they go behind a curtain and throw up. They really don’t want the truth. They want reassurance. They want confirmation that the people, and the belief structures that they believe are valid and factual.
I think that this is a function of human nature. We want to believe in things that show order, control and reason. And when we do not see those things, we get frightened and afraid.
Here’s just take a slow stroll though the “news” and comments / opinions as it is presented to us today. There are a lot of things going on, and I am trying to unpack them in a way that shows meaning and substance. I hope that you all parreciate it.
Warning: This article is heavy with embeds. It's worth your while to watch each and every one. If the embed does not appear, you can click on the link above the embed to open the video in a new tab.
The Rise of the East, and the Decline of the West
During the pandemic, senior Communist Party officials conceived a new political slogan: dōngshēng xījiàng, meaning the rise of the east and the descent of the west.
The reasoning behind it included China’s belief that it has had “systemic advantages” in tackling the coronavirus, as well as a long-held belief that the country’s state-backed technological advancement will soon put it in a position to overturn the Western world order.
It is in this lens that China’s strategic alignment with Russia was born.
Putin’s last trip out of Russia before the war was to Beijing, where he attended the Winter Olympics and signed what the Chinese call a “no-limits” partnership agreement with Xi.
The agreement between the two men declared an intention to challenge the Western order, based on democracy, freedoms and human rights.
It was quickly denounced by European officials.
But who cares. It’s a United Asia, and the rest of the weeny-eurolizards can howl.
This is the end result of an accelerated historical process having lasted 4 years after [1] Russia announced to the world her new weapons on Thursday March 1st 2018, [2] China created the Petroyuan at the Shanghai Stock Exchange on Monday March 26, 2018. And [3] Russia and China together formed a United Asia on February 4, 2022.
US Navy Surveillance Plane Crashes Off Virginia Coast
Strange happenings in the USA. Sure there are near-routine crashes of American military planes often enough, that they hardly get a peep from MM. But this one is different.
It’s a surveillance plane. That was flying on American domestic soil.
But the thing that I want to point out, is something that I stated two weeks ago with the highly unusual crash of the Chinese domestic airliner that killed 132 people on board.
"It appears that this was the immidiate and direct consequences for China not obeying the Biden threat not to support Russia in sanctions.
If China believes that the United States are at fault in this instance...
... you can expect an equal response; a tit-for-tat response, within the next six months."
-MM
Shenzhen, China ferry port
This is what the inside of the Shenzhen ferry port (Shekou) looks like. Like all of China, it’s clean and nice. State of art and brand new. It costs about one fifth of the cost of a United States F-35 fighter jet. video 60MB
Hollywood seems to be falling apart
Well, it does.
Bruce Willis steps away from acting after years of struggle; Chris Rock tells cheering fans that he’s “still processing” but to expect some jokes soon; and did Will Smith refused to leave the Oscars? All in today’s Movie News Rundown, which you can sign up for here.
US ‘Chips Alliance’ scheme will exacerbate global chip crunch – Global Times
The US government has been touting a so-called Chips Alliance proposal to chip manufacturing powerhouses in the Asia-Pacific region – South Korea, Japan and the island of Taiwan – in apparent attempt to kick the Chinese mainland out of the global chip supply chain. But South Korean government and chip manufacturers may find the scheme hard to accept, South Korean news outlets reported on Monday.
Washington’s latest political coercion will burden South Korean semiconductor companies such as Samsung Electronics Co and SK Hynix Inc, because they have significant business operations in the Chinese mainland. As it is impossible to separate the supply chain and various trade and tariff issues, the South Korean government may be put in a tough situation if the US forces it to take sides, reports said.
The US has long attempted to corral Japan, South Korea and the island of Taiwan with various attempts to build a US-led semiconductor supply chain alliance excluding the Chinese mainland. Yet, South Korea’s concerns show that a harder push from the US on the “Chips Alliance” scheme will likely encounter significant pushback. Rather than cementing US semiconductor dominance, such moves could further exacerbate the global chip shortage, which will eventually bite back on US companies.
An increasing gallery of evidence is pointing to the US’ political disruption that were designed to stifle China’s chip sector is one of the major causes of the global chip shortage that could be traced back to the first half of 2020 and has rattled a slew of industries.
Against the backdrop of tight chip production capacity and soaring demand amid the COVID-19 pandemic, former US President Donald Trump’s arbitrary sanctions on major Chinese tech giants like Huawei and Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) have dealt at least two heavy blows to the global chip industry chain, according to some reports.
An auto component maker admitted that after it was banned to deal with SMIC amid Trump administration’s last frenzy against Chinese companies, the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) couldn’t at once fill the demand gap SMIC left, said an RFI report.
The US’ chip hegemony has endangered the global chip industrial chain, prompting criticism from companies from all over the world. Since the Trump era, the US government has tried all possible means to obstruct chip makers to import Dutch company ASML’s EUV lithography equipment – a complicated machine that US policymakers view as a key lever to strangle China’s progress in the semiconductor sector. The US’ relentless political interference has overwhelmed global businesses.
Last November, US President Joe Biden’s administration obstructed SK Hynix’s plan to import the advanced equipment to its chip factory in East China’s Jiangsu Province, according to Reuters. In response to the US’ arbitrary ban, ASML CEO Peter Wennink said export controls against China will not only fail to halt its technological progress but also hurt the US economy. But Biden has apparently chosen to tone deaf to such warnings.
While US politicians are busy concocting its CHIPS Act and splitting the global semiconductor sector to stifle China’s chip development, it apparently didn’t pay much attention to the collateral damage forced upon its own economy. Because chips are one of the core components of almost every consumer goods from mobile phones to cars, the impact of chip supply shortages on the US economy is comprehensive and huge.
Data shows that the global chip supply crisis’ impacts on the US auto industry have led to skyrocketing vehicle prices – which in turn drove one-third of all of the painful inflation Americans saw in 2021, according to a US media report.
In a recent letter to US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, the US Chamber of Commerce said the semiconductor industry is global in nature and reliant on open markets and supply chains that span the world. In this inseparable global chip industry chain, China is obviously playing an increasingly important role. While the US share of global semiconductor manufacturing capacity has declined from 37 percent in 1990 to 12 percent in 2020, Chinese mainland’s chip production capacity has reached 15 percent of the global capacity, surpassing the US and ranking the third.
Given Asian economies’ complementary strengths when it comes to semiconductors, the US’ attempt to exclude the Chinese mainland from the global chip supply chain is unrealistic and counterproductive. If the Biden administration continues to recklessly impose the “Chips Alliance” proposal on regional economies, it will encounter backfire from economic laws and severer economic impacts from a worse chip supply shortage.
Newest psychedelic drug — is sound? How people are using binaural beats to get high
Uh oh. Perhaps the USA is going to ban it, or turn Hemi-sync into a for-profit or NSA manipulated medium.
“We’re starting to see digital experiences defined as drugs, but they could also be seen as complementary practices alongside drug use,” the study author adds. “Maybe a drug doesn’t have to be a substance you consume, it could be to do with how an activity affects your brain.”
Despite binaural beat listeners typically being younger people, the study says it’s unlikely these clips will act as a gateway drug to other substances.
“In the survey, we found most people who listen were already using ingestible substances,” Barratt continues. “But that doesn’t discount the need for more research, particularly to document and negate possible harms.”
On a positive note, audio clips like these could find a purpose in the medical world as a new therapy option.
“Evidence is mounting but it’s still unclear, which is why more research is needed into any possible side effects,” the researcher concludes.
The study is published in the journal Drug and Alcohol Review.
US veteran who volunteered to fight for Ukraine describes ‘suicide mission’
Not surprised. No “plinking” of Commies fromt he comfort of American helocopters. Don’t you know.
The Georgians apparently learned that Hoeft and company had drawn a line in the sand, and were incensed.
“A Ukrainian soldier came up to us while we were having, like one of our little meetings, and he was like, ‘Hey, the Georgians know you’re not going… they’re pissed,’” Hoeft said. The Ukrainian told them that the Georgians were “threatening to shoot you in the back.”
As The Grayzone previously reported, the ratline of armaments from the West to Ukraine has amounted to “one of the largest and fastest arms transfers in history.” Yet, Hoeft was not the only foreign volunteer to describe his role in Ukraine as cannon fodder.
“I think most of the Western equipment is going directly to the Ukrainian military,” Hoeft told The Grayzone. “They want to keep the casualties of their people to a minimum. So if you have a bunch of foreigners that come to volunteer, send them first.”
Once he and his group were told that the Georgians had plans to execute them and pass off the killings as combat-related, they hurriedly gathered their gear, hid in the back of an ambulance and headed straight for Lviv. Before long, they were crossing back over the Polish border.
On their way out of the country, Hoeft said he and “two or three” were approached by “a couple of British guys that were doing other things,” Hoeft said.
Hoeft was reluctant to divulge exactly what the Brits were up to. “They took us to a secure location and they gave us contacts to, you know, American special forces guys,” was all he would say.
Hoeft recalled the British fighters warning them about a foreign legion tent near the border crossing that was full of fighters turning back anyone attempting to cross with military gear.
“They’re basically sending them back and they’re taking their passports and sending them back,” the Brits told him.
Now that Hoeft is back in the United States, he says he is determined to warn other American veterans considering taking the trip to Ukraine that this conflict is dramatically different than the more familiar counter-insurgencies of Iraq and Afghanistan.
“The last time maybe we got into something this bad could have been Vietnam, but we even had air support then,” he said. ”You don’t have air support [in Ukraine], you don’t have the superiority of the artillery. You know, Russia’s the one with the rockets, they’re the ones with the cruise missiles, they’re the ones with the jets flying overhead, drones, all that. And I just think everyone needs to carefully think about every possible scenario.”
“I just want to make sure that everyone takes that into account and knows that, hey, you’re not a Ukrainian soldier, you are a foreign fighter,” Hoeft emphasized. “They’re going to probably use you first.”
Chinese school and teacher placing a demand on the students
This would never happen in the United States. No one really cares. Not so in China. Teacher failure is students failure is national failure is Han Race failure. video 5MB
Are the White Boys Willing to Die in Defense of the Gay Disco?
As if determined to lend credence those who claim he is suffering from dementia, President Biden logged on to his Twitter account and opined:
Putin has the gall to claim that he is de-Nazifying Ukraine. This lie isn’t just cynical; it’s obscene. President Zelensky was democratically elected. He is Jewish; his father’s family was wiped out in the Nazi Holocaust.
Biden is giving expression to what could be called the a priori school of foreign policy, according to which he can deduce a statement about reality from abstract principles.
So, there can be no Nazis in Ukraine because its president is Jewish.
Another member of this school of foreign policy is Catholic neocon pundit George Weigel, who said much the same thing, dismissing any references to actual Nazis in Ukrainian army units like the Azov Brigade as chimeras evoked by conspiracy theories.
One of the most puzzling features of the current war in the Ukraine is the alliance between Jews and Nazis which makes up its current government.
MM showing the readership what it’s like in China. According to ZeroHedge, everyone in China is starving under Famine, and that it is a dark and dingy place where everyone yearns for freedom™ and democracy™. Nope. This is what it is like. Pssst. Don’t tell anyone that you see this. You will be targeted as a non-compliant free-thinker, and the thought-crime police will come after you. video 60MB
Rufus Heroic action
When the time comes, what are you going to do? Be a spectator, or take action. Your actions determine your sentience. Service-to-yourself, or service-for-others. And please don’t be a NPC service-to-another. Your actions, in this life, are a reflection of who you are. It’s binary. White or black. There is no gray area. video 2MB
Norway Grapples With Potential Windfall From Ukraine War
Speaking of Norway…
“There are times when it’s not fun to make money,” said Petroleum and Energy Minister Terje Aasland in an interview with television channel TV2 earlier in March. “And given the situation, this is one of them.”Norway produces about 2% of the global market’s crude oil, and, as the supplier of 20% to 25% of Europe’s natural gas, it is the second largest exporter to the region after Russia. Since 1996, the country has invested the revenues from the petroleum industry into its Government Pension Fund, a sovereign wealth fund designed, “to shield the Norwegian economy from ups and downs in the oil revenues,” Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum said in an interview with TIME over email. “It serves as a financial tool and a long-term saving plan for current and future generations.” Although its value recently decreased because of market volatility brought on by the crisis, it is still worth about $1.3 trillion—or $227,000 per citizen.
Norway seems to be “virtue signalling” to the EU that it stands with NATO, eh?
[maxbutton id="30" url="https://time.com/6161024/norway-gas-windfall-ukraine-war/" text="Norway makes money" ]
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How China works
Facial scanning is mature thoughout China. It’s been implemented about six years ago, and many places use it. Modern systems peer though face masks and identify you immediately. Pretty cool tech. video 6MB
video. Here is a Chinese girl in a white bikini. You will notice that the pool is part of her housing complex. This is normal in China. All homes pretty much come with a pool. Also, stop getting on my case for busty girls. I happen to like all women in all sizes and shapes, and I like this girl especially. I think that it is the smile that really does it for me. A smile is your most effective and powerful aspect of your personality. Use it wisely. video 4MB
Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev has recently made a devastating statement about the so-called “unipolar world.” That world, he said, “has come to an end.”
He added that “the Americans are no longer the masters of planet Earth.”[1] Medvedev also talked about “the hypocritical white-toothed smiles of politicians and diplomats who said one thing and did something completely different.”[2]
With respect to Russia being a European country, Medvedev said:“In terms of its geography and history, Russia is a European country. Also, we’re European in terms of our cultural identity, because a good part of our population represents the European civilization, which is closely linked to the Christian civilization. But we also have a lot of people that belong to the Muslim faith, as well as to Russia’s other major religions: Buddhism and Judaism.”[3] These questions and answers are from an interview that Russia Today conducted with Medvedev:
Q: Obviously, we’re not talking about geography here. Today, many Russians, including the country’s top officials – if you listen to what they are saying – feel that we setting ourselves up against Europe, as its opposite.
A: No, it’s them who are setting themselves up against us, trying to distinguish themselves from us. They don’t have a monopoly on ‘Europeanness’. The European civilization developed steadily all across the continent. Sure, we are not, in that sense, successors to the Roman Empire, unlike a number of other European countries that belong to the Germanic language group. We have our own history, but our history is just as European as theirs. So, when they say to us that we are no longer considered European, that sounds ridiculous, frankly. That’s all I have to say about our identity. That’s no reason to make any judgments – you asked me a question, and I told you that we are even more ‘European’ than they are. That’s all.
Q: The scale of anti-Russian sentiment in this situation is staggering. It’s like all of Europe, even the countries we believed were our friends and partners, are united in their deep hatred for our country, and it’s manifesting at every level.
And now Europeans, who always claimed they were so tolerant and committed to the principles of democracy, say such terrible things about Russia and Russians, about our leaders. Not to mention Biden – I don’t think we’ve ever heard any rhetoric like that from a top official of his caliber. On the other hand, if we take Poland, maybe Biden is not so bad after all.
And if I may ask a question about Poland, if we could move on for a moment from discussing the main issue – what’s your assessment of Warsaw’s position in this situation? Because it feels like Poland is not only aspiring to play a key role here, but also to have Lvov and the western parts of Ukraine as some kind of protectorate. I understand that this is two questions in one, so may ask you both?
A: The rhetoric is definitely very sharp. It’s no doubt defined by current events, and all the political forces in Europe are trying to use this situation to their advantage and achieve their own goals in terms of domestic policy. Every country has something to deal with, be it elections or a crisis, or the need to create a coalition. And so they need a target or an enemy.
In this case, Russia is the designated enemy, so I’m not surprised by the rhetoric. You’re right, though, when you say that sometimes it defies comprehension, or, as they say, goes beyond good and evil.
At an everyday level we also see this Russophobic rhetoric manifesting, although I would say it differs case by case. It also has to do with new communication methods, such as social media platforms, because the patterns that were less common before can now take root instantly.
Russophobic rhetoric is nothing new, though. Recently I quoted Russian poet Fyodor Tyutchev, who talked about how the West ganged up on Russia 150 years ago and did everything in their power to turn us into outcasts and pariahs. Tyutchev noted that this witch hunt lasted for 30 years.
I can’t help but see certain similarities between those times and modern Russia. Russia in its current form is just over 30 years old, and for these 30 years we’ve been blamed for everything, especially in the last 20 years or so. They said we’ve picked up everything from the USSR, including its ideology, even though that’s not true, and they criticize us for this and that. So the Russophobic rhetoric we’re seeing from the West now is nothing new.
From time to time, we hear absolutely astonishing remarks, but we’re polite and we never get personal. No one points out that there are some people who exhibit clear signs of dementia or old-age senility. No one talks about grandpas who lose their balance while climbing the stairs to board a plane or forget which way their office is and go straight into the bushes. No one points this out, because we’re polite and we refrain from mentioning these things. But all that boils down to ethics and good manners.
As for Poland, I did have to speak on the subject recently because of the role Poland is trying to take on now.
Poland is more than just a loyal liege subject of the United States of America that seeks to prove its loyalty every step of the way, to show that it’s the United States’ rock and main ally in Europe. In essence – in this way or another – Poland has been trying to win back hundreds of years rather than decades of its failed attempts to restore the former glory of Rzeсzpоspolita. And if it can’t do that, then to at least remind the world of the fact that Poland used to be a very serious power both in Europe and globally, almost an empire in the making. Today, the country’s elite is represented by the Law and Justice party with Mr. Kaczyński at its helm, and they have been on a pro-American and aggressively anti-Russian path for the past ten years.
I can recall a different time – when Poland and Russia actively tried to restore their relationship, especially in the wake of the tragic death of the Polish president, and it looked quite doable because there were no impassable obstacles between us. But once the opposition party I just mentioned rose to power, the country’s vector changed dramatically, it became wildly rusophobic. I cannot call it anything but political imbecility since there’s nothing more to it.
They are trying to consolidate the voters that are very anti-Russian, and it’s no secret that Poland has quite a number of such people, as there are historical reasons for that, so they’re trying to take advantage of that and put their finger in Ukraine’s affairs. Especially since Poland is now hosting a fairly large number of refugees from Ukraine, and Poland is trying to use that for its own benefit.
They are adopting some measures that do not only aim to support the refugees (because naturally one can only want to help them) but also to find yet another way to punish Russia. They are proposing some new schemes, even amending the Constitution in order to be able to confiscate Russia’s property. Yesterday, they expelled a large number of Russian diplomats.
I don’t really understand what they’re trying to achieve with all that, because if Russia were to expel a matching number of diplomats, Poland would have to close down its entire embassy. Is that good? At the end of the day, it’s up to each sovereign state to decide whether to maintain diplomatic relations or not. But this kind of policy is utterly destructive.
I’d like to recap that Polish authorities are simply trying to prove their utmost loyalty to the United States and get more points for it by way of financial and economic support, as well as to get more political support domestically.
This is all sad, and it’s not going to end well. Quite naturally, they can expect a symmetrical reaction to their actions or counter-measures dictated by international law. We will simply end up in a situation where we stop talking to each other completely. Is it good for Poland? I don’t know, it’s Poland’s decision at the end of the day.
When will the Ukraine conflict end?
Q: Of course, we are not at the General Staff, and I am not a representative of the Ministry of Defense, but I will tell you honestly, my friends and acquaintances constantly ask how long the offensive will last. But as I said, we are not on Frunzenskaya Embankment, but the Security Council of the Russian Federation is here. Can I ask you what you personally think about the course of the operation and how much it actually meets the goals that were announced.
A: The operation took place primarily because the goals that the Russian state set for itself were not achieved through diplomacy. The President said this at the start.
The course of the operation, the plans for its implementation are determined by the Supreme Commander-in-Chief. According to the Constitution, it is the President. The President gave his assessments. The operation is progressing according to plan. This plan was prepared and approved by the Supreme Commander. Therefore, I will not give any additional assessments now, it seems to me that this is a completely exhaustive assessment that was given by the President.
But it is obvious that the operation will continue until the goals set by the President of the country are achieved. These goals concern the future of Ukraine; the status of Ukraine as a neutral state, a state that does not pursue an anti-Russian policy, a state that is not militarized, and a state that should be our normal neighbour.
Therefore, until the results of the demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine are achieved, the operation must continue – as it was conceived by the President of the country, as it was decided.
The US thinks it’s above the law
Q: The US has taken similar actions on a multiple of occasions in the past and in the regions that are in no way part of their immediate interests. These countries are not their neighbours or a threat to the US. Take Yugoslavia, Iraq, Afghanistan. But the US’s military action has never resulted in such a massive and consolidated response from the West.
No one responded to a bombed wedding party in Afghanistan by shutting down European clothes shops in the US. There were no other repercussions, either. Why? Why are we witnessing such a powerful response to Russia’s moves that you say are fully justified in terms of our security?
A: Now this is not going to sound as an insight, but clearly the US believes it is a nation outside international law, above everyone else.
Following the collapse of the USSR and an end to the bipolar world order based on the standoff between NATO and the Warsaw Pact, the US saw itself as the winner and the sole beneficiary of the Soviet Union’s demise.
While in reality the Soviet Union broke up not because of NATO’s activities, but for internal reasons. And that’s why they behave accordingly: they believe they cannot be brought to justice, but they have the right to judge everyone, they are the ultimate decision-makers, they have the right to do whatever they want.
There are a number of drivers behind this behaviour. First of all, economically the US is a very strong country. Secondly, it issues the main reserve currency with vengeance, continuing to pile up its domestic debt. In fact, it is the whole world that is the US’s creditor. The entire world could be struggling, plunging into crises, while the Americans are printing dollars.
That is why they now feel completely unpunished in this respect as well. Exactly for that reason the US’s actions in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Vietnam a few decades ago, have never come under any legal scrutiny by the international community.
However, at the time of the Vietnam War, the Soviet Union was still alive, pushing for quite heavy debates at multilateral platforms. The Soviet Union, as you know, was helping Vietnam back then. The US pursued its policy for a long time.
We all remember the way it ended. Mind you, Vietnam is thousands of kilometers away from the US. Now, it’s a fact few people remember, even in this country, because it was a long time ago, but my Vietnamese friends said the US intervention in Vietnam throughout much of the 1960s killed over one million Vietnamese.
Just think about it. Over a million! Take a look at the map and see for yourself where the US is and where Vietnam is. Still, the US went in, and over a million people died as a result.
Even then it was never widely condemned although we had the Warsaw Pact and the Soviet Union in place.
And after the Soviet Union disappeared from the world map, along with the Warsaw Pact, the US got absolutely out of control.
They think they can do whatever they want. Yugoslavia is a case in point. We saw utter disregard for international law, the use of the armed forces and weapons by a number of countries including depleted uranium ammunition.
Was there any uproar? No. They realized they could go ahead, concocted a justification, and got away with it. Today, some European leaders admit “Well, yes, maybe they overreacted a little”. But it does not go beyond that.
Again, the US behaves this way around the world because they think there is no longer any competition. But they are wrong. Life does not stand still, prompting new developments in international relations and new countries emerging as strong powerhouses.
It means new centers of gravity in international relations are being shaped. Take the People’s Republic of China, India, and the Russian Federation.
The unipolar world is over. The US is no longer the master of planet Earth.
Russians who left are welcome to return, but not traitors
Q: You must be aware that some Russians packed their belongings and left the country immediately after the special operation started in the Donbass. Do you think they will return, or is it a one-way ticket?
A:How should I know?
Q: What can you say to those people who decided to leave Russia?
A: Every man is the architect of his own fortune. It’s their right to make such decisions. Some people have left for the time being, as I understand. Others have left for good, fearing that the current situation may affect their lives in the future. It’s their decision. I won’t comment or criticize these people.
It’s obvious, for me personally, that a significant part of these people will return to Russia eventually. This military operation affects everyone’s psychological state, you see. People keep thinking about it. I believe this may have been one of the reasons, for some people. But that’s it.
I believe what is more important for the country is, for example, the way programmers treat current events. These businesses are international, and now they have ended up being cut off from everything – payment systems, banking operations, major foreign customers. For them the consequences are really harsh. And I can understand their motives, why they are trying to find a better place under the sun.
The government has prepared a number of proposals to this end, and the President has already signed a decree. Let’s hope that we will succeed in mitigating the negative consequences for IT specialists and keep them in the country. Let’s hope that most of them will stay in Russia. This is a real problem. And I am really sorry for these people, on a personal level, because they are in a dire situation. And although it wasn’t us who introduced these limitations, but we still have to think how to make things better for these people.
Western sanctions are uniting, not dividing Russians
Q: And if we talk about entrepreneurs, about big businessmen, do they have support amid the military offensive? Taking into account the fact that now, a huge number of measures are being taken against them. Their houses, vehicles, yachts and everything else have been taken from them. How do you feel about this, taking into account the fact that the West used to say that private property should be honored. And, in general, is it normal to block accounts and populate houses with refugees – this would be unpleasant to anyone.
A: If we talk about business, this is also a part of our society, including big business – they are, as they say, guilty without any guilt.
Let’s ask ourselves a question: in general, at least someone from this big business is – to some extent – capable of influencing a small fraction, one iota, on the position of the country’s leadership. I can tell you right away: no, no way. Because we have different tasks.
Anyone who manages the state, first of all, focuses on the interests of the whole country, on the interests of the people of Russia. One who manages his own business (this is a very important task), only does this.
Therefore, the calculations that, by limiting Russian business, they will somehow influence the authorities, are absolutely meaningless, they are simply stupid. They are also trying to influence the sectors of the economy that are behind this big business. And these are hundreds of thousands, millions of our people.
In fact, with these sanctions, the Western world is trying to influence the citizens of our country, to hurt them. And, of course, try to incite them to turn against the course of the state’s leadership, against the course of the President, in the hope that in the end, it will result in some kind of trouble, some problems for the authorities.
But it seems to me that the people who generate these decisions absolutely do not understand our mentality, they do not understand the attitude of the Russian people in the broadest sense of the word. They do not understand the incentives that when such pressure is applied (and this pressure is not on large entrepreneurs, not on big business, this is pressure on anyone and everyone), society is consolidated.
Even those who were hard done by in some way or believed that they received little support, or some wrong decisions were made, in this situation says: “Well, yes, yes, they probably made a mistake in something. But in general, in this situation, I will stand for the state”.
This, it seems to me, they are absolutely unable to understand, just as they were not able to understand 70 years ago, and 100 years ago, and during various kinds of armed campaigns that were carried out, including against our country. This kind of restrictions and deprivations – only unite people, consolidate people, but do not divide them. And this is their main miscalculation, this is the weak spot of these stupid sanctions.
The death penalty doesn’t have to come back
Q: Let’s recall that the Council of Europe tried to impose restrictions on Russia for many years. You said recently that there is not much holding us back now, particularly on the issue of the death penalty. Russia has renounced capital punishment by acceding to a number of the Council of Europe’s conventions. Since this is an important issue for our nation, here is my question: how probable is a return to the death penalty? Does Russia need it?
A: This is a very complex issue. It depends on the worldview in general. It’s a philosophical and moral dilemma. There are divergent views on the death penalty. And it is natural, it has always been the case.
There is one thing I know for sure. The Russian Constitutional Court was definitely swayed in some of its rulings by this country’s participation in the Council of Europe’s conventions. These conventions are no longer binding for us.
Nevertheless, there are legal guidelines provided by the Constitutional Court on this issue. And this is a completely sovereign decision, not a direct outcome of our membership in the Council of Europe. There is an obvious implicit connection, though.
Today, there are no restrictions in this regard. However, it is still a very thorny issue. There is not only a legal side to it but also a moral one. Even the basic, canonical sources of religions provide opposing answers to this question.
The religious view on this issue is one of the basic arguments surrounding the debate on the death penalty in any country. Europe abandoned capital punishment at some point. So did we.
Unlike the US, China, and a number of other countries. They still keep it as punishment for those who have committed particularly grave crimes, first of all, murder.
Again, today international provisions are no longer binding, but there are domestic legal provisions set out by the Constitutional Court. They reflect the current crime rate.
If it does not get out of control, I believe this legal posture could remain the same.
But legal postures are not eternal either. A shift in our society could force a revision of the legal posture. The decisions of the Constitutional Court are not sacred writ, they may change.
We’ve seen it throughout Russia’s history. The Soviet Union abolished the death penalty after the war. But it did not last long, and the death penalty was restored pretty fast. This was due to a spike in violent crimes, including murders.
I don’t know how it will pan out going forward.
Russians will remember the West’s hatred forever
Q: Mr. Medvedev, do you think a lot about the pressure that Russian nationals now have to deal with abroad? Often, they face real danger.
I saw a video online showing what happened to the Russian Embassy in Ireland – I lived there for a bit as a kid, my father was posted there – and it was covered in spray paint and a driver crashed his car into the gates. It’s just unimaginable. Something like this could happen to any Russian national abroad. Meanwhile, the UN says that a ceasefire in Ukraine would bring the levels of Russophobia down. What’s your take on that position and does this connection make sense?
A: I wouldn’t call it the UN position. The UN is an international organization comprised of more than 200 nation-states. If we’re talking about what the UN officials said, well, that may be so.
Let me openly say that recently the UN governing bodies, and Secretary-General Guterres as well, have made several statements that I would call questionable from the point of view of international law. The UN should be above conflicts instead of taking sides. Of course, the levels of Russophobia these days are through the roof, as we’ve already discussed. These are manifested in the form of attacks on the Russian people and pressure exerted on our diplomatic missions.
What is there to say on the subject? If we take diplomatic missions, the responsibility lies with the country where the diplomatic mission is located. This is the host country’s task. As soon as the host country becomes indifferent to the fate of an embassy, diplomatic ties are usually either suspended or severed. So the incident in Dublin that you mentioned is fully Ireland’s responsibility. They just have to take proper steps in response.
It happens to ordinary people, too – I see it and read about it, it’s clear from the online and social media content where they criticize Russia a lot. I guess it’s to do with current events. Some genuinely feel that way, some are doing it for the hype or because everyone else does it. It’s their own personal choice. Sooner or later the tide will subside, that’s how it works. But the memories will remain.
We will remember it, too, including the Russian people who got stuck abroad while on vacation or on a business trip. It will be etched in everyone’s memory. They say they don’t want Russians there, and it’s only natural that our people who happened to be abroad at the time will remember that. I doubt that they will think higher of Europeans now than they used to.
What about the hospitality, tolerance, and neutrality that you spoke of? All of it evaporated instantly, which means it never existed in the first place. It means there was no culture and no values. It was just a façade, and now all the filth has come to the surface, which we see in the behavior of every person spewing Russophobic ideas.
We will remember it too. We won’t forget anyone who did it – in their official capacity or just in personal interactions. These days, everything is recorded. We all have a digital footprint. That’s something everyone should remember when they write nasty things about Russia, our policies or our people. It will be engraved in our people’s collective memory forever. And I’m not exaggerating here.
International sports behaving in the ‘worst possible way’
Q: Let’s talk about something else. You mentioned IT specialists who have been gravely affected and who will get assistance, but I want to ask you about our athletes. What’s happening to them is unprecedented: they are not allowed to compete or they are forced to do so under a neutral flag, they are pressured into signing petitions and making statements.
We all know that in some sports, an athlete’s career is fleeting. Won’t Russia end up on the sidelines of international sports? Competition is very important – it’s crucial for athletes to go up against talented opponents. Now it seems that the doping scandal was just a trial run.
A: Correct. Elena, Ilya, you’re right too. First, let me say that of course, it’s tough on our athletes – same as on our IT specialists. But for the latter, the challenges started fairly recently, when our ‘friends’ started trying to restrict us in every way and erect an iron curtain when it comes to finances and law. For athletes, the situation has been dire since 2014.
You’re right, our athletes train hard, but they are not allowed to compete. If they are, they have to basically compete anonymously – no Russian flag, no Russian anthem. They are forced to distance themselves from their country, saying that they only represent themselves. This is cynical and amoral, and don’t even get me started on the IOC decision regarding our Paralympic team. It’s simply incomprehensible. It’s monstrous and disgraceful.
So our main goal is to support parathletes, to make sure they feel involved in social life on par with everyone else. But they get told, “No, your government is awful and so we don’t care about you.” That goes against any moral code. I think that the IOC behaved in the worst way possible here.
Yes, it all started eight years ago with the doping scandal. We admitted that we had a doping problem in our country, we are at fault here. But saying that Russia, I mean Russian coaches and athletes were the only ones to use doping is outrageous and cynical. Other countries did it too, but it’s Russia that everyone turned on. The objective that our ‘friends’, from the Anglo-Saxon world predominantly, set was to push Russia out of international competitive sports.
What for? Again, that was to stir resentment within Russia and incite people to do something about it. So our athletes have been suffering since 2014. We will continue to support them in every way and to organize as many competitions domestically as we can. We will seek to defend their rights in all organizations, even though that’s a huge challenge these days.
These decisions were made by specific people in the IOC, the EU, the US, and the UK, which is not part of the EU anymore. It’s clear that certain people are behind these decisions, and those deprived of competitive sports will channel their bitterness in their direction.
Moscow’s rules on using nuclear weapons
Q: President Putin has often insisted that Russia only acts to defend itself against the hostile actions of the West. And in a recent interview, you said that our country has enough ‘might’ to put our enemies in their place. This implies that Russia has considered some kind of retaliation in the event of aggression. What exactly did you mean by that, Mr. Medvedev?
A: We both know exactly what I meant. Russia is not your average country – it’s a permanent member of the UN Security Council. And, as a side-note, let me say that all the ill-conceived plans to try and remove us from the Security Council are completely groundless. This would go against the UN Charter and the entirety of international law, for that matter. We are talking about the whims of individual states. This is my first point.
And my second point is, Russia is a nuclear power with the largest stockpile of strategic nuclear weapons on the planet. Naturally, no one is threatening anyone, but you mentioned the remarks made by President Putin… A few weeks ago, our country’s nuclear deterrence forces were put on high alert. It was a simple message so that any country that tries to interfere with Russia’s foreign policy would know what to expect. They heard us and said they wouldn’t try anything.
I certainly hope this has helped cool down some of the hotter heads in Poland and other US satellites. Still, they do occasionally come up with ridiculous ideas like closing the airspace over Ukraine. Luckily, there are cool-headed and reasonable analysts at the Pentagon and elsewhere who say this is absolutely out of the question as it would lead to a direct military confrontation with Russia.
I think this will be enough, for now. Although we do have a special document on nuclear deterrence which states explicitly the circumstances under which the Russian Federation has the right to use nuclear weapons. There are several such conditions, let me remind you what they are.
First is the launch of ballistic nuclear missiles to attack Russian territory. Second is the use of nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction by an adversary against Russian territory or its allies. The third has to do with an attack on critical infrastructure resulting in the crippling of our nuclear deterrence forces. And, finally, the fourth is when an act of aggression is committed against the Russian Federation or its allies – whether with nuclear or conventional weapons – which threatens the very existence of the state.
All these conditions are listed in the document which was approved by the President’s executive order. This testifies to our determination to uphold the independence and sovereignty of Russia. Let no one have even the slightest reason to doubt that we are capable of giving a proper response to any attack or encroachment on our country, its independence, or its policies.
But keep in mind that I am saying all this because you asked the question. Obviously, our position is that however complicated, any situation must be approached using diplomatic tools. And in the case of Ukraine, negotiations remain the most constructive and reasonable course of action. We realize that diplomacy does not always result in success, but this is still the right way to go.
The US had ‘more brains’ during the Cuban Missile Crisis
Q: You just mentioned something that terrifies everyone on the planet – the prospect of a nuclear war. Another scary prospect is the military confrontation between Russia and NATO. In many ways, these two scenarios are similar – in fact, they may be one and the same. Do you believe there is a risk of such a war breaking out? Would you compare the current situation to the Cuban Missile Crisis, when the world also seemed like it was teetering on edge? Back then, we referred to this standoff as the ‘Cold War’. What would you call the current state of relations between Russia and the collective West?
A: Nobody wants war. Nuclear war is a threat to the very existence of human civilization. In this sense, those analysts who say, perhaps somewhat cynically, that the invention of nuclear weapons has prevented a huge number of conflicts in the 20th and 21st centuries, are right. This is true.
So obviously there is always a threat. As a former commander-in-chief, I am well aware of its scale. Our people know that NATO’s nuclear weapons target facilities in this country and our warheads are aimed at targets in Europe and the US. But that is life. We must always keep this in mind and act in a responsible manner. As simple as that.
As for the Cuban Missile Crisis, for obvious reasons, I don’t have any personal memories, I only know about it from history books. But I had a chance to talk to one of the witnesses, Fidel Castro.
Today, we live in another reality, in a different world. There is no Soviet Union, no Warsaw Pact, many illusions are gone.
A lot of things are not in place anymore, but the lessons of the Cuban Missile Crisis sank in pretty well back then. It had a sobering effect on everyone, including the leadership of the US, NATO, the Soviet Union, and the Warsaw Pact.
The world was living through a Cold War then but right now the situation is somehow worse, in my view. Back then our opponents did not try to bring the situation in the Soviet Union to a boiling point so aggressively.
True, their actions may have been disguised, but no sanctions were imposed on entire industries or agriculture, let alone personal sanctions.
It never occurred to anybody to impose sanctions on Brezhnev, Podgorny, and Kosygin. They understood, of course, that it made no sense, just as they do now, but at least they had the brains not to do it then.
Now everyone is in an awkward position. They have imposed sanctions, but it is still necessary to communicate if only to prevent all sorts of undesirable consequences, including such terrible ones as, say, a conflict between Russia and NATO. It’s like everyone is under sanctions, everyone is on some kind of list.
I signed the well-known START III, or Start Treaty, with President Obama. That treaty was extended by President Putin and President Biden. Why make it so embarrassing? The treaties were signed, but it was done by individuals who are on the sanctions list. If the Russian leadership were irresponsible in this regard, you could probably say: “If that’s the way you treat us, then that’s it, goodbye.”
There is a legal doctrine known as clausula rebus sic stantibus, which means that international treaties are valid as long as the circumstances that gave rise to them exist. Those circumstances have disappeared. You are not treating us as counterparts anymore. The persons who signed the treaty are on your sanctions list. Maybe it’s time to pull out of it? I am just trying to point out that these sanctions do not make any sense, they are absurd.
This was not the case during the Cold War. And it’s a reality now. The relationship between the Russian Federation and the West, the US-led Anglo-Saxon civilization in the broad sense of the word, is probably in a worse state than in the 1960s and 1970s. There is no doubt about that.
Fixing up Yalta for new world order talks
Q: Now, about the talks with Ukraine… how would you assess the progress? It appears that some arrangements are still possible. How will these agreements be guaranteed? Will the West need to bear some kind of responsibility in this regard? Once the special operation is over, given all the factors, would we need a new Yalta Conference to formalize the new world order, which, as you say, has ceased to be unipolar?
A: It’s an unrewarding task to comment on negotiations, and it’s wrong. Talks need silence. And it’s not without reason that the sides are negotiating via videoconference, almost daily, and not in the face-to-face format that requires more time. That is why I won’t comment on the talks. I don’t want to create problems for the negotiators or give ground to excessive hopes or emotional responses that such comments on my part could generate.
The goal of these talks is clear – to solidify the results which the Russian special operation pursues, in particular the neutral status of Ukraine, its demilitarization, and the repeal of the laws driven by Nazi ideology that were introduced by the Ukrainian government. Whatever they say about these laws, they effectively divide the people by their national identity. Some are called people of the right nationality, others are practically excluded. And there are also a number of other goals Russia is seeking to achieve.
Ukraine is pursuing its own goals, of course, and hopes to achieve them in the course of the talks. They include, primarily, retaining its sovereignty and securing further development of the country.
As for the guarantees that the negotiated terms will be implemented, there are two types. Firstly, there are guarantees provided by the signatories of the agreements. In the long run, those who will sign the documents, have the authority and responsibility to see to their implementation. And secondly, there are guarantees related to various international mechanisms. I will not overstate their importance here, of course, because there are a lot of agreements that were signed but not implemented. But, in any case, this is better than legal uncertainty or repeated attempts by Ukraine to weave its way into NATO in order to create a direct threat at Russia’s borders. In that respect, an agreement and the legal guarantees it provides are way better than no agreement. And this is the way to resolve the conflict.
You mentioned Yalta. I can only say that we will be happy to welcome foreign delegations in the Russian city of Yalta for talks. The palace that was used in the past for this purpose is not in ideal state, but it can still be used to accommodate guests.
An attack on their own economic values
Q: Mr. Medvedev, one does not need to be Fidel Castro to…
A: Fidel Castro can’t be replaced, he was unique.
Q: …to talk about the events of 1998. Let me share my observations with you. Even people who were born after 1998 keep asking me as a journalist – they seem to think that I am competent to answer this question…
A: But you are competent. Journalists know everything. They know more than politicians.
Q: Thank you. So they keep asking me if we are going back to 1998. And they mention the default. We have avoided the default scenario for now, as we were allowed to make payments on our sovereign debt. But still?
A: Do you remember 1998, personally?
Q: I remember that the ruble depreciated four times against the US dollar.
A: I see. Yes, it’s a memory that is not easily forgotten.
You cannot step into the same river twice. I was not related to state governance back in 1998 and saw everything through the lens of a common citizen, a businessman if you like. But the Russian state and society were much less protected back then.
But I remember 2008 and 2009 very well when I personally had to tackle the financial crisis. I also have an excellent recollection of 2014 and all the years that followed, when I had to address the issues as the chairman of the Russian government.
Every crisis is unique, in its way. In 2008, we created G20. They want to remove Russia from G20 now. But I remember how it was born right in front of me. The decision to create G20 was collective. First President Bush participated, then Barack Obama. Everyone was delighted that representatives from so many different countries were sitting at the same table – Russia, the US, China, India. G20 was a format that was born from consensus, based on unanimity. And now they suggest removing us from G20. No, guys, you can’t do that!
You asked us to join G7, to be the eighth-member state. That’s right. But it’s different. G7 is your private club and if don’t want us to be part of it, we will go. And we did, we were “ushered out”. But this club is not important any longer. G20 is a different story. It was G20 that helped us out of the 2008 financial crisis.
Why am I talking about this right now? Because the situation we are in is different. Back then, all of us were trying to overcome the global financial crisis, caused by the financial bubble in the United States of America. Our common goal was to stand against it. And we achieved that goal, by the way.
With varying degrees of success, we pulled the Russian and global economy out of that crisis in a relatively short period of time. What’s happening now, however, is an economic war that the West declared against Russia – to quote a French minister. They declared an economic war against Russia. And they are trying to wage this war without rules.
Why? You asked, but I didn’t get a chance to answer. What’s written on the banners of any capitalist society, any market economy? Utter respect for private property rights! This is sacred! The world may perish, but justice will prevail. Everything may perish, but the private property will remain.
And what are they doing? They are blocking the assets of our financial institutions, even the Central Bank. They are even talking about confiscating these assets, i.e. nationalizing them. Listen, this is a real war without rules. What will be the consequences of this war? Destruction of the whole global economic order. This is an attack on the economic values of our planet – ironically, these values were first formed in Europe and the United States of America, in our country, and later, at the end of the 18th century and the beginning of the 19th century, in Asian countries as well. Now we see how the founding principles of the market economy are being rejected. What can we say then? If they don’t value these principles, let them do whatever they plan to do, but, naturally, this will force Russia to respond with symmetric measures.
But, on the other hand, this new challenge and the reaction that must follow could be very effective. I’ve said it many times before, and this is true – had sanctions not been imposed on Russia in 2014, we would’ve had a worse situation in our agriculture right now. Everybody understands it well. We stopped their imports, and now our food security is at a very high level.
I hope that even in this situation, our colleagues in the government will be able to find adequate solutions that would foster the development of our industry, including aircraft engineering, the automotive industry, and key sectors like microelectronics and IT. We will have to deal with these issues anyway. Yes, it will be harder now, but, on the other hand, there is no one else we can count on. This time we will have to do everything ourselves.
Rubles for oil was a ‘pretty obvious’ move
Q: Let’s move to a very important issue. Ironically, the West says they will cut us off everything, but they can’t cut themselves off from our gas and oil, simply because it would backfire, they would freeze. They will now try to use less energy and come up with new proposals. Nevertheless, they have so far refrained from sanctions against our oil and gas.
But going forward they say they would like to stop using gas and oil from Russia. How realistic is it? Should we just sit and wait for that to happen, or rather take some action? The Russian president announced a move to the Russian rouble as the settlement currency. How will it work out? What will it look like in practice?
A: Well, let them buy it as long as they want. No one wants to lose money, right? This is all bravado and chest-beating.
Well, it could work for the US since they have an array of suppliers, they are isolated from Europe, they are not so dependent on our deliveries.
The US has banned our oil, though it hasn’t gone that well. The Americans will keep reminding President Biden about the price of a gallon. Ukraine is very far away and gasoline prices somewhere in the Midwest are at a record high right now. Inflation is 10 percent. It’s a mind-blowing number for the US.
So this decision will haunt the US administration. Its consumers will say a big ‘thank you’ for what their government is doing to their domestic economy as a side effect of attempts to sway the Russians.
Overall, I’m philosophical about it. It’s our natural wealth, it’s our gas and oil. We have to trade it with Europeans, with Asia. Generally, there has been a global energy shift every 50-70 years. I do not know what will be the main energy source in 2050 – hydrogen or any other technology. I simply do not know. So we have to prepare for that as well.
But right now, this is a significant part of our income, and we have to get the full compensation for it. Certainly, we are looking at Asian markets in the current environment, and are figuring out ways to diversify our supplies.
Our European friends appear to be in a big hurry to give up oil and gas supplies from Russia. But in reality, it is a very challenging task. 40 percent of their gas supplies come from Russia. Russian oil accounts for about one-third of their imports.
But in any case, it is up to them. If they want to get rid of it, they will. The only question is, when. That’s something that we also need to respond to.
As for President Putin’s decision to switch to rouble settlements, I think it is a pretty obvious move. They shut down the correspondent accounts for our commercial banks, made settlements in dollars and euros impossible, and disconnected the banks on the sanctions list from SWIFT, at least some of them. What did they think we were going to do?
The only legal tender in the Russian Federation is the rouble. So it’s a simple offer: since there is no other way, you have to pay in roubles. So let them find a way to pay.
Anyway, consultations are underway. We’ll see how it works out. But it was a very intuitive decision.
Q: What about Nord Stream? The Americans are rushing to bury it…
A: They are rushing.
Q: They call it “a hunk of metal”, using some peculiar words to describe it. Do you think this project still has some potential? And if we talk about the infrastructure, how long will it stay in shape without being used or serviced, without pumping gas?
A: I am not an expert on the subject, I can’t assess the durability of the Nord Stream infrastructure. I am sure it’s durable, but I don’t know the degree – we are not talking about months, obviously. As far as large-scale economic projects go, I tend to be optimistic – despite our current circumstances and the emotionally charged context that we are dealing with when passions run high.
The thing is, there are certain laws that can’t be ignored, even if our friends are trying to violate them right now. There have been significant financial investments, this is a very important and beneficial project, profitable for all partners. Conflicts come and go, but the economy and money stay.
I think the Nord Stream 2 project has a good future. It will happen if our partners decide to start using their heads at some point and remember that they have taxpayers and voters to answer to, that there are certain social obligations that they have to fulfill. Their responsibility is not simply to hurt Russia but to solve key problems in their economy. They need to think about helping their own people, making sure that their taxpayers’ utility bills are not through the roof.
And I have to say this. What happened right after they made their decision concerning Nord Stream 2? What we said would happen. Utility bills went up to unprecedented levels. As high as two thousand euros in some instances.
Let me remind you that just recently, a few years ago, we talked about pipeline gas, not the spot market. However, anything over 400-500 dollars or euros seemed like an outrageous price. And now we see these numbers. Is it a good situation? Of course not. That’s why I tend to be cautiously optimistic when we talk about this.
Capitalism means they’ll come back
Q: Do you think we’ll see Western companies returning to Russia at some point, I mean those companies that are withdrawing or suspending their operation in Russia now?
A: Of course, we will. It’s only a question of when they will return and what it’ll cost them in terms of losses. You see, Russia is a fairly large market, some say a premium market. So if they are willing to lose a share of their income, it’s up to them. We can do without them, but the thing is they don’t want to lose it, they keep telling us that they’re waiting and hoping for a peaceful resolution of the conflict in Ukraine. And they keep asking us not to take over or appoint external management to or nationalize their operations because they want to return.
I think one of the press secretaries, either of the United States or another country, said that the administration had nothing to do with this decision made by major businesses – that it was solely their own decision, their civic position, that they put their heads in that noose of their own will. They wanted to give up this market – I say they need to read Karl Marx. Marx explains very well that capital will never forego a chance to increase profit.
This means that unless they were under tremendous pressure from their own governments, I mean the governments of the West, none of these companies would ever even think of giving up Russia as a market. This was a political decision. And political decisions have an expiry date. The economy is, on the other hand, perpetual.
The US is the real ‘rogue state’
Q: So, the sanctions have been applied to put pressure on every sector of our economy. It feels as if now, in contrast to the situation when the Soviet Union put up the Iron Curtain to shut itself off from the West of its own will, Russia is being forced to put that curtain up and become some sort of a new North Korea. It’s like people don’t want it, no one wants it, but the big powerful machine is already working, and someone is pushing the buttons. I’m saying it’s like North Korea because North Korea was buried under the sanctions, or it’s like Cuba where people still drive cars made in the 1960s. So maybe someone wants Russians to start going through scrap metal and repairing old ZAZ “Zaporozhets” cars to drive them…
A: What a shame that I sold mine. I used to own a Zhiguli car from the 80s. I guess I could use it now.
Q: That was probably the idea. So what do you think – as a worst-case scenario – could this kind of thing happen in Russia?
A: I think everyone understands that it can’t. Even though in the course of this interview I did question the intellectual abilities of the people who come up with all these sanctions against Russia, I must say there are different people there, and some realize very well what’s going on.
You see, all of them understand that, with all due and utmost respect to our friends in Cuba and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Russia is no Cuba and no North Korea. Russia is Russia, the world’s largest country, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, a huge economy, and nuclear power, which is why all these ideas that Russia can be curbed like Cuba or North Korea once were and that it could just be kept that way don’t have a leg to stand on. It’s impossible. It’s just utterly impossible. Even if some in the political circles and elites of the West would want it that way.
Yes, there are obviously challenges and we’ll have to overcome them. Unfortunately, they exist both at the governmental and everyday levels. Still, it’s nothing new for us, and it’s not catastrophic. It pales in comparison to the hardships that our country had to go through in the 20th century. I tell you what – it’s not even in the same league as the problems we faced during the coronavirus pandemic.
Back then, we really felt uneasy from time to time, because we had no idea how this virus would behave, regardless of where it came from. Could it kill off most of humanity, like in some sci-fi books? So back then things were much tenser, I’d say. The tragedy of course is that the virus caused so many deaths.
But this is a different story, and there can be no illusions here. They are trying to put us into the ‘rogue nation’ or ‘rogue country’ category. As for its etymology, I think it was Reagan who came up with the term. The Russian translation for it is ‘outcast’, but ‘rogue’ is actually closer in meaning to ‘outlaw’.
In fact, it’s the US that’s the rogue nation here. It’s not because we don’t like Americans. It’s because the US is constantly launching wars of conquest across the world. They are the outcast and the outlaw.
[1] “‘The unipolar world has come to an end,’ Russia’s former president says,” Russia Today, March 24, 2022.
[3] “Post-Cold War world order is over, former Russian president says (FULL INTERVIEW),” Russia Today, March 26, 2022.
British “news” reports that China will use Facebook Metaverse to recruit for communism
Funny. As Facebook and Metaverse are BANNED in China. Where do they get such mind-rot bullshit?
Chinese authorities are set to build a Communist education school in virtual reality in a bid to get top party officials into VR.
According to Chinese virtual reality firm Mengke VR, the CCCP's metaverse will run history lectures and courses, host meetings and virtual events, and even let people explore virtual exhibits.
You'll be able to put down the videogames for something better, as Beijing's metaverse will include fun-filled courses such as "The Great New Era - Major Achievements of the Party and the Country Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China" and "The Code of Leadership of the Communist Party of China".
State Department will soon allow ‘X’ passport gender markers
Americans will be able to mark their gender as “X” on their passports instead of “M” or “F” starting next month, the State Department announced Thursday.
The “X” gender marker would identify passport holders who have an “unspecified or another gender identity,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement announcing the change, adding that the option will be available for other forms of documentation next year.
Non-binary, intersex and other gender non-conforming Americans will be able to use the “X” gender marker on their passports starting April 11. Americans who wish to change their gender on their passports will not need to provide any documentation to do so.
“The Department is setting a precedent as the first federal government agency to offer the X gender marker on an identity document,” said Blinken, who called the move a “milestone” in efforts to “better serve all US citizens.
But this might not be accepted as a valid gender to visit a host of other nations.
There is no excuse worthy of stopping someone from helping others. NONE. You are either a service-to-others sentience Rufus or you are a selfish slimeball who love paper and bling-bling more. video 2MB
How Mariupol will become a key hub of Eurasian integration
19377 ViewsMarch 30, 2022
By Pepe Escobar, posted with the author’s permission and cross posted with The Cradle
Mariupol was battered by Ukraine’s right-wing Azov battalion well before Moscow launched its military ops. In Russian hands, this strategic steelworks port can transform into a hub of Eurasian connectivity.
Mariupol, the strategic Sea of Azov port, remains in the eye of the storm in Ukraine.
The NATO narrative is that Azovstal – one of Europe’s biggest iron and steel works – was nearly destroyed by the Russian Army and its allied Donetsk forces who “lay siege” to Mariupol.
The true story is that the neo-Nazi Azov batallion took scores of Mariupol civilians as human shields since the start of the Russian military operation in Ukraine, and retreated to Azovstal as a last stand. After an ultimatum delivered last week, they are now being completely exterminated by the Russian and Donetsk forces and Chechen Spetsnaz.
Azovstal, part of the Metinvest group controlled by Ukraine’s wealthiest oligarch, Rinat Akhmetov, is indeed one of the biggest metallurgic plants in Europe, self-described as a “high-performance integrated metallurgical enterprise that produces coke and sinter, steel as well as high-quality rolled products, bars and shapes.”
Amidst a flurry of testimonials detailing the horrors inflicted by the Azov neo-Nazis on Mariupol’s civilian population, a way more auspicious, invisible story bodes well for the immediate future.
Russia is the world’s fifth largest steel producer, apart from holding huge iron and coal deposits. Mariupol – a steel Mecca – used to source coal from Donbass, but under de facto neo-Nazi rule since the 2014 Maidan events, was turned into an importer. Iron, for instance, started to be supplied from Krivbas in Ukraine, over 200 kilometers away.
After Donetsk solidifies itself as an independent republic or, via referendum, chooses to become part of the Russian Federation, this situation is bound to change.
Azovstal is invested in a broad product line of very useful stuff: structural steel, rail for railroads, hardened steel for chains, mining equipment, rolled steel used in factory apparatus, trucks and railroad cars. Parts of the factory complex are quite modern while some, decades old, are badly in need of upgrading, which Russian industry can certainly provide.
Strategically, this is a huge complex, right at the Sea of Azov, which is now, for all practical purposes, incorporated into the Donetsk People’s Republic, and close to the Black Sea. That implies a short trip to the Eastern Mediterranean, including many potential customers in West Asia. And crossing Suez and reaching the Indian Ocean, are customers all across South and Southeast Asia.
So the Donetsk People’s Republic, possibly part of the future Novorossiya, and even part of Russia, will be in control of a lot of steel-making capacity for southern Europe, West Asia, and beyond.
One of the inevitable consequences is that it will be able to supply a real freight railroad construction boom in Russia, China and the Central Asian ‘stans.’ Railroad construction happens to be the privileged connectivity mode for Beijing’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). And, crucially, of the increasingly turbo-charged International North South Transportation Corridor (INSTC).
So, mid-term, Mariupol should expect to become one of the key hubs of a boom in north-south routes – INSTC across Russia and linking with the ‘stans’ – as well as major BRI upgrades east-west and sub-BRI corridors.
Interlocked Eurasia
The INSTC’s main players are Russia, Iran and India – which are now, post-NATO sanctions, in advanced interconnection mode, complete with devising mechanisms to bypass the US dollar in their trade. Azerbaijan is another important INSTC player, yet more volatile because it privileges Turkey’s connectivity designs in the Caucasus.
The INSTC network will also be progressively interconnecting with Pakistan – and that means the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a key BRI hub, which is slowly but surely expanding to Afghanistan. Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s impromptu visit to Kabul late last week was to advance the incorporation of Afghanistan to the New Silk Roads.
All that is happening as Moscow – extremely close to New Delhi – is simultaneously expanding trade relations with Islamabad. All three, crucially, are Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) members.
So the grand North-South design spells out fluent connectivity from the Russian mainland to the Caucasus (Azerbaijan), to West Asia (Iran) all the way to South Asia (India and Pakistan). None of these key players have demonized or sanctioned Russia despite ongoing US pressures to do so.
Strategically, that represents the Russian multipolar concept of Greater Eurasian Partnership in action in terms of trade and connectivity – in parallel and complimentary with BRI because India, eager to install a rupee-ruble mechanism to buy energy, in this case is an absolutely crucial Russia partner, matching China’s reported $400 billion strategic deal with Iran. In practice, the Greater Eurasia Partnership will facilitate smoother connectivity between Russia, Iran, Pakistan and India.
The NATO universe, meanwhile, is congenitally incapable of even recognizing the complexity of the alignment, not to mention analyze its implications. What we have is the interlocking of BRI, INTSC and the Greater Eurasia Partnership on the ground – all notions that are regarded as anathema in the Washington Beltway.
All that of course is being designed amidst a game-changing geoeconomic moment, as Russia, starting this Thursday, will only accept payment for its gas in rubles from “unfriendly” nations.
Parallel to the Greater Eurasia Partnership, BRI, since it was launched in 2013, is also progressively weaving a complex, integrated Eurasian network of partnerships: financial/economic, connectivity, physical infrastructure building, economic/trade corridors. BRI’s role as a co-shaper of institutions of global governance, including normative foundations, has also been crucial, much to the despair of the NATO alliance.
Time to de-westernize
Yet only now the Global South, especially, will start to observe the full spectrum of the China-Russia play across the Eurasian sphere. Moscow and Beijing are deeply involved in a joint drive to de-westernize globalist governance, if not shatter it altogether.
Russia from now on will be even more meticulous in its institution-building, coalescing the Eurasia Economic Union (EAEU), the SCO and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) – a Eurasian military alliance of select post-Soviet states – in a geopolitical context of irreversible institutional and normative divide between Russia and the West.
At the same time, the Greater Eurasia Partnership will be solidifying Russia as the ultimate Eurasian bridge, creating a common space across Eurasia which could even ignore vassalized Europe.
Meanwhile in real life, BRI, as much as the INSTC, will be increasingly plugged into the Black Sea (hello, Mariupol). And BRI itself may even be prone to re-evaluation in its emphasis of linking western China to western Europe’s shrinking industrial base.
There will be no point in privileging the northern BRI corridors – China-Mongolia-Russia via the Trans-Siberian, and the Eurasian land bridge via Kazakhstan – when you have Europe descending into medieval dementia.
BRI’s renewed focus will be on gaining access to irreplaceable commodities – and that means Russia – as well as securing essential supplies for Chinese production. Commodity-rich nations, such as Kazakhstan and many players in Africa, shall become the top future markets for China.
In a pre-Covid loop across Central Asia, one constantly heard that China builds plants and high-speed railways while Europe at best writes white papers. It can always get worse.
The EU as occupied American territory is now descending, fast, from center of global power to the status of inconsequential peripheral player, a mere struggling market in the far periphery of China’s “community of shared destiny.”
In the United States and all across the world, millions upon millions of chickens and turkeys are dying as a result of an absolutely horrifying new bird flu plague. Considering the fact that global food supplies have become extremely tight and even Joe Biden is admitting that food shortages are looming, this is definitely something that we don’t need right now. The very first confirmed case of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in a commercial flock in the U.S. was confirmed on February 8th, and in less than two months it has spread to facilities all over the nation. Sadly, we have just learned that it has now even reached the top turkey-producing state in the entire country…
For the first time, highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) was confirmed in Minnesota, the top turkey-producing state in the nation, said agricultural officials over the weekend. Some 14.6 million birds in domestic flocks have died of HPAI or in culling of infected herds to reduce the spread of the viral disease this year.
To me, that death toll is extremely alarming.
In less than two months, over 14 million chickens and turkeys in the United States have already been wiped out by this plague.
If things are this bad already, what will the total death toll look like six months from now?
One expert that was interviewed by NBC News says that he is anticipating an “explosion” of new cases in the weeks ahead…
The measures may do little to stop the spread of the virus, according to Henry Niman, a virologist and biochemist in Pittsburgh who has been tracking the bird flu’s spread. He is expecting an “explosion” of bird flu cases in birds in the coming weeks.“This outbreak I think is likely going to be bigger than 2015,” he said, noting that the disease is already widespread in other regions of the world, such as Europe and Canada.
If he is correct, we are potentially facing a true national catastrophe.
Of course it isn’t just the U.S. that is dealing with this. In Canada, HPAI has now been confirmed in southern Ontario…
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says bird flu has been found at a poultry farm in southern Ontario.The agency says the farm is under a strict quarantine, and the CFIA is establishing movement controls and recommending higher biosecurity at nearby farms.
Europe and Asia are being hit really hard as well. Canda and Europe are being hit.
For example, a new outbreak was just detected at a large facility in Bulgaria…
An outbreak of bird flu on a Bulgarian farm with over 177,000 laying hens has forced authorities to begin slaughtering the remaining flock, the country’s food safety agency said on Monday.The outbreak in the town of Asenovgrad is the sixth industrial farm hit by the highly pathogenic avian influenza type A in southern Bulgaria since December.
As you read this article, you may be wondering what this plague is going to do to the price of chicken and the price of turkey.
Needless to say, we are headed into unprecedented territory. Just look at what happened to the price of chicken wings in just one week…
Chicken wings averaged $3.82 per pound according to the USDA’s National Retail report last week, compared to $2.99 the week prior and $2.54 last year.
Normally, Americans eat an enormous amount of chicken and an enormous amount of turkey.
But now that we are facing potential shortages and much higher prices, both chicken and turkey may soon be considered “luxury meats”.
For our entire lives, most of us have been able to take extremely cheap meat for granted. It was always there in the grocery stores whenever we wanted it, and before the last couple of years I don’t remember ever hearing about any shortages.
But now everything is changing.
At first, U.S. consumers were willing to absorb higher prices as inflation began to ravage our economy, but now we are starting to witness a shift…
U.S. households have until recently mostly absorbed higher prices on everything from coffee to chicken to clothes, helping companies maintain fat profit margins despite higher input. But that doesn’t mean consumers were happy about paying more for the same goods, which is why the University of Michigan’s sentiment index has steadily deteriorated to the lowest since 2011.
A trip to the grocery store is becoming increasingly painful for most Americans.
If you have been lately, than you know exactly what I am talking about.
But the food inflation that we have seen so far is just the tip of the iceberg.
Let’s just hope that this new bird flu plague stays only in birds. According to the official CDC website, the death rate for H5N1 in humans can be extremely high…
More than 700 human infections with Asian HPAI H5N1 viruses have been reported to WHO from primarily 15 countries in Asia, Africa, the Pacific, Europe and the Near East since November 2003. Indonesia, Vietnam and Egypt have reported the highest number of human HPAI Asian H5N1 cases to date.The first report of a human infection with Asian H5N1 in the Americas was in Canada on January 8, 2014 and occurred in a traveler recently returning from China. Although human infections with this virus are rare, approximately 60% of the cases have died.
The good news is that authorities are telling us that it is “unlikely” that a strain will emerge that can spread widely among humans.
But H5N1 has a very high mortality rate, and the longer and larger the wave of outbreaks, the higher the chances it could mutate into a strain that is more infectious to humans. So US health officials are closely monitoring the situation.The CDC has also produced a candidate vaccine virus as a precaution.
Needless to say, this new bird flu plague that is killing millions of chickens and turkeys is only one piece of the puzzle.
The truth is that we are in the midst of a “perfect storm” which just continues to increase in size and scope.
I recently heard from a farmer that told me that many in his industry are scared to death of this bird flu.
Once it is detected at a facility, all of the birds must be put down.
If that happens, that can be financially catastrophic for a farm.
I am going to keep a very close eye on this story, because this is really big.
Of course so many big things are happening right now, and I expect global events to accelerate even more throughout the rest of 2022.
Something interesting has happened
There is this strange faith in the United States government. Why and how? video 3MB
We must work together to make the world a better place. We just simply can no longer think ME-me-me. We have to participate in community and help others. The world needs us. Are you ready? video 1MB
It teaches many things. You all might be surprised in how the Chinese school kids learn patriotic songs. Sure as Hell beats diversity training, trans-gen LGBT freedom, and ebonics.
One of the puzzles from the Great War is how the leaders on both sides allowed themselves to get drawn into the war. There are plenty of reasons why each country would want war, including the infamous one that caused a certain Austrian fellow to coin the term “the big lie.” The problem with all of the reasons is they made little sense in light of the obvious costs of war. As a result, the Great War is a great example of how events can tale on a life of their own.
The remarkable thing about that war is that once it settled into trench warfare no one realized the hopelessness of it. One can understand how the initial events would spiral into a global conflict. That is not a new phenomenon. Similarly, you can see how the initial moves in the war made a lot of sense to the leaders on both sides. This was the first industrial war, so they had a lot to learn. New weapons needed new tactics but few people realized that at the start of the war.
The great puzzle of the war is that the sides did not see the hopelessness of the situation once in settled into a stalemate. Both sides were losing tens of thousands of men with each attack, only to gain a few yards of ground. The Battle of the Marne and the subsequent race to the sea made sense. The losses were high, but both sides had hope for quick victory. Two years later the French and Germans lost over a million men at Verdun and the winner got nothing for their trouble.
A century on and we are getting some fresh insight into why the Western leaders in the Great War were incapable of seeing things clearly. The war in Ukraine is proving to be nothing like Western planners imagined. They assumed the Ukrainians would stall the Russians into a stalemate of urban warfare. The world would rally to the sanctions regime and it would quickly be a question of how long the Russians could suffer the economic consequences of the sanctions.
After just one month it is clear this is not happening. The Russians did not fight like the NATO planners imagined. Instead of rushing to Kiev, they pinned the Ukrainian army in the north, using classic maneuver tactics. Meanwhile their main army is systematically destroying the Ukrainian army in the south and east. It also appears the Russians were well prepared for the Ukrainian tactic of digging into urban areas. It is now just a matter of time before the Ukrainian army in the east is lost.
That is just one miscalculation by the West, but it should be concerning. The Russians are not doing anything novel in Ukraine. They are using classic tactics that have been used in Europe since Napoleon. Further, they are following a doctrine they evolved in the Second Chechen war. That was a doctrine Vladimir Putin created as the guy running that war for Russia. It seems that no one in the west bothered to study the man they claim is the new Hitler.
That is only one small part of the miscalculation. The decision to cutoff the Russian central bank appears to have been a massive blunder. The Russians, faced with the threat of their dollar and Euro assets being seized by Western banks have told the West they must pay for goods in rubles. Otherwise, they are forced to send product to the West but not be paid for it. Alternatively, they would have to make concessions in order to get their assets unfrozen by the West.
Why anyone in the West thought this was a good idea is a mystery. It turns out that the Biden administration did not consult with the Federal Reserve. Europe appears to have just followed along without questioning the policy. Now that Russia has countered their move, Europe is in a terrible position. They either support the ruble with massive purchases or they face an imminent shortage of natural gas. That means rationing of energy products could happen as soon as next month.
Of course, the words “shortage” and “rationing” will trigger the natural response, which is hording and price gouging. That will also mean a political response. The German political elite appear to be embracing their inner Marie Antoinette by telling the Germans to wear a sweater as they shiver in the dark. Presumably, they will tell the people to eat bugs when the food shortages hit this summer. Maybe German TV will start celebrating the Turnip Winter as a way to motivate the public.
In fairness, we have to no idea how the Russians and Chinese are viewing this thing as Western media refuses to cover that aspect. We should assume the lack of food riots and social unrest in Russia means they are not teetering on collapse. This was the prediction at the start of this war. The best and brightest in the American managerial elite predicted the Russians would have collapsed by now. They also assumed China would be wavering in their support at this stage.
The point is, we are seeing in real time how supposedly clever political leaders can stagger from one blunder to the next. Unlike the Great War, this war has one side that seems to have updated its thinking since the last century. The Russians are planning for tomorrow, while the West is planning for 1985. The Biden people actually thought his speech in Poland would be his Brandenburg Gate moment. That is the most terrifying event of this crisis so far.
There we see the best parallel to the Great War. The men moving pieces on the board were men of a prior age. They were trying to fight the old wars. Similarly, the political leaders were operating in a 19th century mindset. The trouble was they were armed with 20th century weaponry. Today, the West is led by 20th century men desperate to maintain 20th century arrangements. Their opponent is not Russian, China or the new world order, but the passage of time.
Chinese girl
video. She’s walking in a tight outfit. I really am not fond of the two blue pockets on her ass, but the rest of the outfit looks nice. This is what China is like. Nice new buildings and clean and spacious public areas, all filled with attractive people without tattoos and piercings. Video 5MB
A very attractive bigger gal
I think that she is just perfect. But some like the thinner and more fragile appearing women. I find a fine robust woman quite attractive. video 4MB
Grandma’s Tomato Aspic is a recipe you probably either love or hate. The last time that I had this was in the 1960s. It died a death well before the time when I would be able to appreciate the food.
This recipe was very popular during the 1950s along with meat aspics, in which cooks aimed to show off their culinary creativity by placing various foods, mainly savory, in a gelatin casing.
Later on, fruit aspics became staples at potlucks and luncheons. This tomato aspic will bring you back to this unique food era and evoke some nostalgia in your home. Bring this savory aspic to a potluck and see if it causes a stir among the younger generation.
Preparation Time25 min
Chilling Time4 hr
Ingredients
1 (28-ounce) can Italian plum tomatoes, undrained
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
salt and pepper
1/2 lemon (juice)
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
1 small stalk celery with leaves, finely chopped
sour cream for garnish
Girl in a Wet Market
It’s pretty typical. And she and the Wet market can be seen all over China. It’s almost the entire template found everywhere. video 3MB
Girl in grey inside of a car
I think she is cute, and I really do love her top. Video 18MB
MM eating some local food
This is in a small mom-and-pop restaurant local to where I live in Zhuhai, China. This is what local food is like. Of course, if you read American (Western) media such as the great disinfo site ZeroHedge, you would believe that everyone in China is starving, and it’s a big famine. No. LOL. You have to be a fucking idiot to believe that pack of nonsense. Here’s what the meals are like in the poor sections of China. video 40MB
You can do it. Believe in yourself. Let the rest of the world HOWL! video 13MB
Be the Rufus
Are you worthy of living on this earth? Do not laugh. Well, are you? You have to up your game, and being fat, slovenly and expecting handouts is no longer tolerable. Be the Rufus and help others. video 21MB
Another Cute Chinese Girl
I like her. She’s cute, attractive, and fun. Nice outfit too. video 2MB
Yes, that’s how it is done. A Rufus is not a spectator. A Rufus is a participant. video. 5MB
Rufus Australia
No time to waste. Take control over the situation and help out those in need. video 5MB
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..
The Day After (1983) film – less in 8 minutes
Let’s keep in mid of the madness that is the United States today. Watch this eight minute summary of the 1983 movie that inspired Ronald Reagan to make peace with Russia.
.
A Final note…
When the shit hits the fan, your will need to be a Rufus. Are you up for the task? Or are you going to be a selfish evil fuck? video 7MB
Do you want more?
You can find more articles related to this in my latest index; A New Beginning. And in it are elements of the old, some elements regarding the transition, and some elements that look towards the future.
It’s just not feasible to have a government, or any large institution, that is so totally based on lies as the current Western system to last very long.
Right now, the West is running on fumes.
A machine was built by serious people, and it is now being managed by unhinged lunatics, morons, and unrepentant fiends.
They are crashing the ship.
-The UNZ
No. Ukraine and Taiwan are not really identical. They are two different situations. But there actually is a similarity between the two. And that similarity is the United States.
The US involvement in both is identical.
The systems employed by the control and manipulation are identical.
Color revolutions took control of both at the same time, identically.
The ruling government is owned and controlled by the United States with the same, identical systems.
And both are used to “suppress” the giant nation next to them identically.
This is obvious.
Now, I am not going to go through all the background, others have. Instead, I am presenting a fine video for your review, and then we will go from there.
Yeah, unhinged America is torching what took a century to build: the global economy, global finance, international trade, international relations, international law, et al. There is no coming back from where things are now. Best case scenario is total clusterfuck. Worst is thermonuclear war and end of Western civilization. I’m better on the latter.
-Anonymous
There are many, many, MANY similarities between what is going on in Taiwan and Ukraine. So let’s cut the bullshit.
The systems used to engage Russia are identical to the systems that will be used to engage China.
So, yes, the United States will cross a Chinese RED LINE and start a war
It’s not if. It’s when.
Putin looks clinical and professional.
Kim looks unsure.
And Xi should be avoided at all costs.
-<redacted>
Remember…
The United States (and it’s proxy nations) are proceeding in their plans to “suppress” Russia and then “pivot to Asia” to “suppress” China.
The United States (leading the West) are still following the same tired-old “take over the world” script written decades ago, and implementing the plans set forth. (Follow the links for the RAND plans to initiate war. When you read them, you will discover that the US government has been following them exactly, word for word, precisely to the letter.)
These plans have been telegraphed, and well understood by the Russian and Chinese leadership. And since the United States is following that old script, they are easy to anticipate and handle.
And they will use Japan and Australia to make it happen. How do we know? Well, the RAND report on how to suppress China clearly makes this point.
Australia’s defense spending tops $500b
That’s a lot of money. Money that could end all poverty in Australia and cut the prices of food, gas and rent by 35% for everyone! But no. It’s going towards American-manufactured weapons and weapons systems. Sheech!
Dominic Giannini
More than half a trillion dollars will go towards Australia's defence forces by the end of the decade to combat "a period of profound uncertainty and disruption", according to the 2022/23 budget papers.
Almost half of the $575 billion spend will be pumped into defence capabilities, including $38 billion to boost the workforce by 18,500 personnel, $50 billion for frigates and destroyers, and $10 billion for naval infrastructure.
There is also $6.4 billion for Collins class submarines, $3.5 billion for up to 75 Abrams tanks and armoured vehicles and $1 billion for howitzers and resupply vehicles…
But the “news” is being wishy-washy on everything. There’s “no proof” don’t you know. It’s all opinion and alleged. Everything is suspect. Nothing is real, and it’s an onslaught of lies that work to avoid the simple truth of matters, and disguise them in vague terms.
Consider Russia.
Is the United States at war with Russia?
Easy question. Easy answer.
Yes it is.
It is also at war with China. Call it economic war, hybrid-war, cyber-war, social war, color-revolution war, proxy war… but a war is a war. Stop pretending that it isn’t. You all should be ashamed. Really, really ashamed of yourselves.
A war, is a war.
Stop pretending that it is not.
Finian Cunningham
March 23, 2022
The Pentagon has admitted it is providing the Ukrainian military with “actionable intelligence” in combat operations against Russian forces. If that is confirmed then the United States is at war with Russia. The implications are grave for two nuclear powers.
The admission came last week during congressional testimony by Ronald Moultrie, the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security. He was speaking to the House Armed Services Committee, proudly telling Congress members how the Pentagon was helping the Ukrainian military fight Russian forces: “We are making a difference in accurate, actionable, and timely intel.”
That indicates the Americans are involved in providing information to the Ukrainians for lethal targeting of Russian troops.
It is an incredibly sensitive admission. Only two weeks before Moultrie’s testimony, a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee had reportedly sought to downplay any such informational exchange between American and Ukrainian forces. “We are providing some intelligence” to Ukraine, but we’re “not providing the kind of real-time targeting,” said Representative Adam Smith who chairs the committee. The downplaying is understandable because such intelligence-sharing implies that the U.S. is a direct participant in the conflict.
One possible area where the Pentagon is “making a difference” is the reported high number of senior Russian commanders who have been killed on the battlefield. Since the Russian intervention in Ukraine on February 24, it is claimed in Western media reports that up to six top-ranking officers have been killed.
The latest reported victim was the deputy commander of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, Andrey Paliy. The governor of Sevastopol, Crimea, was quoted by Reuters as acknowledging the death of the naval chief on Sunday. He was apparently killed during the battle for the port city of Mariupol.
Yes, The United States is at war. It is fighting both Russia and China right now, and the battles are a raging all over. But, in this article, I want to discuss the idea that all three nations fight wars differently.
United States
It follows plans made by think-tanks. it employs figurehead puppets to seduce the people, while the actual decisions ae mde behind closed doors in corporate offices, and smoking private rooms.
In action, the United States acts as a crazed lunatic, and uses mass resources to destroy everything. It is like a plague of locusts. Destroy everything, then come in and take what you want, and salt the earth beahind.
Russia
While Russia might be strong, powerful and nuclear, they are careful and humane.They have the power to destroy the world fifteen times over, but refrain from doing so. They still hope that some day, they will be respected in the East. So they try to be proper, kind and modest. But, if they are backed in a corner, they will be absolutely ruthless. They are like hard-core bikers on meth.
China
China, on the other hand…
… are lethal and nasty. Merit driven. Work together as one singular organism, and utilize cutting edge technology in massive numbers. They are like a cat after a rat. It’ll be over in seconds.
Why?
Well, the Chinese don’t think like Europeans, Westerners, or Russians. They are different.
It was some twenty years after the end of the Vietnam war that a security conference was held between leading military figures from both America and Vietnam. Following the conference a U.S. Air Force General approached a Vietnamese General.
The American had been a fighter pilot captain during the conflict, the Vietnamese general had been a Colonel in the N.V.A. The American asked (paraphrasing): “You have to tell me, we knew your Army was continually crossing the Mekong, we flew sorties up and down the river and could never find your bridges.” “I know,” said the Vietnamese, “we built them three feet under water.”
In that instant the American understood why America lost the war. His “Road to Damascus” moment was informed by how the different combatants approached problems. Had that been an American problem, how an Army crosses a wide, deep and fast flowing river, they would have solved the problem differently. They would have built a suspension bridge, they would have had bases on either side to protect it. They would have had Bowling alleys and Burger Kings and would have been flying in Bob Hope to entertain the troops. Why? Because they could, when you have resources they become the answer to every problem. The Vietnamese didn’t have resources, so they were resourceful.
And that, as the American realized, was why the Vietnamese won, and America lost.
The general may have learned a lesson, but if he told anyone, no one listened. Many of the same mistakes were repeated in Afghanistan, with the same results. Resources are not the answer to every problem. As with Americas war on drugs, war on crime, war on poverty, all resources do is obscure the underlying problem and present false, ineffective solutions.
-Strategic Culture
Both Russia and China have formed a new nation. It is a united Asia. They share trade, technology and intelligence.
Both Russia and China are being attacked by the United States.
It is on a host of levels and avenues, and as much as possible, proxy nations and entities are being used to disguise the United States from culpibility. That’s the situation. The entire world knows this, it’s just that (for some reason) it’s taboo to speak the truth.
I argue that World War III is being fought right now.
I argue that it has been going on, at least since 2008.
I argue that China and Russia are aware of this.
I also argue that they have waited until after their 4FEB22 agreement to take the necessary actions…
So what is next?
Offensive actions.
We’ve been on the road to perdition for a long time, but we came to a peak on that highway in 2019 and the path has been straight down since, with our chariot of fire accelerating at breakneck speed towards its final destination with catastrophe and ruin.
The rise and fall of the American Empire will be far more rapid than the rise and fall of the Roman Empire.
With the inept and reckless leadership in place presently, I only hope we still have a nation after they successfully provoke World War 3.
-Burning Platform
Both China and Russia, are not “punching bags”. They can only take so much bullshit before they decide to “turn the tables” and go on the offensive.
No. I am not really talking about Ukraine. That’s a military-technical measure that occurred on the border of Russia. What I am talking about is offensive actions against the source of the conflict.
The source of the conflict is the United States.
And it has to be within a near-by timetable. It cannot be delayed. The United States is building a large number of Aircraft Carriers, building and setting up a Pacific-NATO known as the QUAD, and the longer this action is delayed, the greater the rist of a massive, and horrific Mutual Assured Destruction fiasco.
Both Russia and China have to be smart; be timely, and be proactive in their actions.
Bioweapons labs in the Ukraine
Russia has lost all of it’s biological weapons, research and systems upon the fall of the Soviet Union. The ONLY nation that maintains the technology, the labs, and the systems to inject them into societies is the Untied States.
And they have hundreds of these labs, and bases all around the world.
During the invasion of the Ukraine, the Russians have been able to capture, and secure a large number of the labs and study them…
Igor Kirillov, Head of the Radiological, Chemical and Biological Defense Forces of the Russian Armed Forces, explained this week the results of the analysis of documents found in Ukrainian military biolabs:
The U.S. funded biolabs in Kiev, Odessa, Lvov and Kharkov, awarding $32 million, in order to “study” pathogens of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, leptospirosis and hantaviruses. Their use can be disguised as natural disease outbreaks.
Six families of viruses (including coronaviruses) and three types of pathogenic bacteria (causative agents of plague, brucellosis and leptospirosis) have been identified as having characteristics suitable for infecting humans from animals.Research has even been carried out on the transmission of diseases through bats.
There are a number of documents confirming the transfer of biological samples taken in Ukraine to the territory of third countries, including Germany, Great Britain and Georgia.
The transmission of highly pathogenic avian influenza by wild birds was studied at the Kharkiv Institute of Veterinary Medicine.
The transfer of 5,000 blood serum samples taken from Ukrainian residents to the Pentagon-supported Richard Lugar Center in Tbilisi, Georgia, was confirmed.
Another 773 assays were transferred to the United Kingdom, while an agreement was signed to transfer “unlimited quantities” of infectious supplies to the Friedrich Loeffler Institute, Germany’s leading animal disease center.
The findings of these biolabs cannot be ignored.
Ukraine as one of the satellite states of the United States served as a space for biological weapons to start gaining ground in the new forms of warfare against Russia (and the world, looking at it in perspective).
It is suspicious that the Ukrainian-US biolabs are located along the perimeter of the Russian border, considering that these facilities were also reported to have used samples from people of different ethnicities living in the Russian Federation and other Eurasian countries. It should be considered to be an attack vector, and very nefarious one at that.
If you were a responsible leader, you would recognize the reality of this threat vector. Obtain the materials and technology, and add it to your arsenal of weaponary.
History of using Bioweapons to “suppress” China, Russia and Iran.
I have covered this elsewhere. I have discussed this on multible levels, and in various media. Including video interviews, television, radio, and my articles on MM.
The United States waged biowarfare on China starting (maybe longer, but I did not go that far back) in 2017. This was by direction of John Bolton, and under the permission of President Donald Trump.
There were eight bioweapons (min) that were used against livestock. The goal was to create a famine inside of China. They were dispersed in a selection of ways and means, with the use of drones to contaminate and infect the widely spread out pig farms of great interest. As the drone componentry had tooling marks indicative of United States or UK manufacture.
Sloppy. Very sloppy guys.
When these did not work, three bioweapons were used to “suppress” the Chinese people. The first was COVID on CNY. I suppose you could argue that it was the “crown jewel”. As the “B strain” that hit China was particuliarly lethal and really caused a mess. While the “A strain” was released inside the United States and it’s allies six months early so that those nations would obtain “herd immunity”.
The other two bioweapons were really very bad.
They were two really nasty lethal viruses that both caused your internal organs to liquify and forced the compromised to vomit them out, or shit them out. The first was a mutiated tick virus with HIV inserts that broke out in Beijing; a city that has no ticks what so ever. And the second a modification of a swine flu but was airborne, also had HIV inserts, and high transmissibility.
But of course, China was at DEFCON 1.
China found the bioweapons, tracked them to their sources, and went full lock-down. And as soon as they were discovered, well…
…Donald Trump was evacuated, and the USA went to DEFCON 1. As the “news” said, “as a precaution” and “the President had contacted coronavirus.”
When nothing happened by China, three days later, Donald Trump left from his bunker, and declared that he was “cured” or coronavirus within three days. And nothing was presented to the public in the “news” media.
But China… heh, heh…
…China does things on it’s own timetable, and at it’s own pace for it’s own advantage. And they never forget.
They MIGHT forgive, but they will not forget.
Lethal Chicken virus
And right now, things are still in process. The United States is all in alarm and proceeding in their attacks against China, and Russia. It’s active. It’s full-spectrum. It’s everything (except the kitchen sink) full spectrum (minus overt kintetic fighting USA to Asia) and very active on all levels.
So, if you watch the Western “news” you won’t be aware of any of this. (There’s) Thousands of articles investigating every single nuiance about how Russia is losing the war in the Ukraine, the effect of how great the sanctions against Russia are, and how evil and villainous China is.
But NOTHING about China and Russia making offensive moves against the “bright and shiny house on the Hill”; Washington DC and the United States.
But there is some UNRELATED NEWS.
News about chickens. News about Turkeys. News about Pigeons.
Odd news. Seemingly unimportant news.
From the CDC…
March 7, 2022—To date, highly pathogenic avian influenza A(H5N1) viruses (“H5N1 bird flu viruses”) have been detected in U.S. wild birds in 14 states and in commercial and backyard poultry in 13 states, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspective Service (APHIS).
Based on available epidemiologic and virologic information about these viruses, CDC believes that the risk to the general public’s health from current H5N1 bird flu viruses is low, however some people may have job-related or recreational exposures to birds that put them at higher risk of infection.
CDC is watching this situation closely and taking routine preparedness and prevention measures in case this virus changes to pose a greater human health risk.
Right now, the H5N1 bird flu situation is primarily an animal health issue. The U.S. Department of Interior and USDA APHIS are the lead federal agencies for this situation.
They are respectively responsible for outbreak investigation and control of bird flu in wild birds and in domestic birds (poultry). USDA has publicly posted the genetic sequences of several of the recently detected U.S. H5N1 bird flu viruses. These viruses are from clade 2.3.4.4b, which is the most common H5N1 bird flu virus worldwide at this time. Comparing information about these newer viruses to previously circulating H5N1 bird flu viruses helps inform the human health risk assessment.
Background on H5N1
Ancestors of the H5N1 bird flu viruses infecting wild birds and poultry in the U.S. beginning in 2021 first emerged in southern China in 1996 and caused large poultry outbreaks in Hong Kong in 1997, which resulted in 18 human infections.
The bird outbreak was controlled, but H5N1 bird flu viruses re-surfaced in 2003 to spread widely in birds throughout Asia, and later in Africa, Europe, and the Middle East, causing poultry outbreaks and sporadic human infections.
Related H5N1 bird flu viruses were even found in wild birds and poultry in the U.S. and Canada during 2014 and 2015, causing large poultry outbreaks, but then they disappeared. Since 2003, the World Health Organization (WHO) external icon, has received reports from 19 countries of more than 860 human infections with H5N1 bird flu viruses, with about 53 percent of those resulting in death. CDC has spent many years studying the properties of H5N1 viruses over the years.
Once detected in polutry, the entire farm must be killed off. There is no way to stop the virus. Once infected, the entire population becomes infected and dies.
It has a very high rate of transmissibly. It is quick and infects the entire bird population within days.
The outbreak is in 13 states within the United States. The CDC says that there is nothing to be concerned about.
The death rate for those unfortunate humans who have contacted this virus is 53%
Roughly 53% of people diagnosed with H5N1 and 50% of people diagnosed with H7N9 have died.
-Avian Flu
Daegal report review
I do not know what lies in the future. But I do know that the future has been remote viewed. And the results were presented in The Deagal Report.
The Deagel corporation is a minor branch of US military intelligence, one of the many secretive organizations which collects data for high-level decision-making purposes and prepares confidential briefing documents for agencies like the National Security Agency, the United Nations, and the World Bank.
It’s a work of “love” from some retired intelligence assets, and like most of us ex-spooks, it’s hosted outside of the United States. Just like MM here. We have VERY good reasons to do so. Reasons that are far too complex to get involved in right this moment. But we DO KNOW what we are doing. Never doubt that.
Deagel is known, for example, to have contributed to a Stratfor report on North Korea. With this kind of pedigree, Deagel should be seen as a legitimate player in the intelligence community and not merely a disinformation asset.
If so, then it must be assumed that its population predictions for 2025, as well as its industrial output predictions on a nation-by-nation basis, are based on strategic assumptions which are shared and well understood by other players in the intelligence community.
Deagel predictions.
Until the start of the Covid ‘pandemic’ many commentators were perplexed by the Deagel spreadsheets.
Perhaps they were part of a psychological operation?
However, in light of recent events, we are obliged to consider a possible connection between the projected massive reduction in the population of certain countries, forecast by Deagel, and other trends going on right now.
Trends?
What trends?
Devaluation of the Dollar with an out of control American Congress.
Strange insistence in using a mRNA vaccine instead of a traditional “dead host” vaccine.
A global pandemic that America is just fucking up royally.
Desire for a war with China.
Desire for a war with Russia.
Desire for a war with Iran.
China, Russia and Iran forming a unified Asian block.
Race war in the United States.
Progressive onslaught and control of all electronic media.
Looming bubbles in just about every facet of American life.
And so on and so forth…
And then, theres the nuclear angle
Russia is on full nuclear alert. China is on full nuclear alert, and the United States is moving it’s nuclear weapons all around Asia. Just like it was depicted in the movie Threads (2.5 minutes)
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The Deagel scenario
The Deagel corporation was asked to explain the thinking behind its strange set of population and output figures. While we cannot take its response at face value, it nonetheless paints a picture that is very similar to the world we now see. And this is not an exaggeration at all.
Consider…
[1] A fake American GDP
In short, they argued that the US government has greatly over-stated the real level of US GDP. This means the country will be fatally exposed when the next economic crisis strikes. And an economic crisis is striking.
They also take into account a “pandemic scenario” – their term – caused by Ebola or a similar pathogen. This, they say, would cause an exceptionally high death rate, placing extreme pressure on healthcare providers across America and greatly reducing economic output.
[3] A financial crisis with the US Dollar
This pandemic could quickly spiral out of control and create an international financial crisis:
“The collapse of the Western financial system will wipe out the standard of living of its population while ending Ponzi schemes such as the Stock Exchange and the pension funds.”
Trying to figure it out…
They try to explain the predicted dramatic fall in the population of the US by reference to a massive outward migration of millions of Americans seeking economic relief in other countries, but this is unconvincing.
They seem to concede this themselves when they add a further explanatory factor – widespread suicide in response to economic distress. But this too is unsatisfactory.
Their primary reason for predicting a colossal drop in the population of the US by 2025 – a fall of up to 70 percent – is the scale and severity of the alleged pandemic.
As they put it,
“the death toll will be horrible.”
Map
Here’s a map showing the predictions made in the forecast. You see that Asia is unscathed, while America and the West suffer horribly.
Japan will lose 1/5th of it’s population!
Australia will lose a full 1/3rd of it’s population!
Canada will lose 1/4th of it’s population!
The United States will lose almost 3/4ths of it’s population!
Timing
By all accounts, historically, the massive drop in population at this time is validated by the “Fourth Turning” predictions. The date and timing all agree with the Strauss and Howe model for America.
This model is United States centrist, and acknowledges that different societies and different cultures have different “turnings” and generational changes.
Casualty Figures
The casualty figures are gargantuan. And they are all centered around the Western block.
United States
Europe / NATO
QUAD (minus India that opted out)
What a coincidence!
This 2012 remote viewing would associate such an enormous death toll with a bi-polar world, and that the East (Asia) would be unscathed, while the West (The USA) would have massive casualties.
It’s an American centered fiasco
USA Leadership = 70% drop in population
Europe / NATO = 50 – 70% drop in population
QUAD = 20 – 35% drop in population
Based on historical precedents, and the Deagel predictions, these kinds of numbers and figures can only be associated with an American centered disaster. Not really a global one. Because if it was a global disaster, then the causality figures would be more uniform.
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Europe
The countries that will suffer the greatest reduction in population, according to Deagel (as per 2014), are:
Aside from massive devistation in Europe, you have to admit… the numbers are horrific. They are pretty darn specific. Don’t you know.
In 2020, Deagel revised their assessment of the 2012 forecast. They did not change the data nor the results. They reviewed the possible causes as things developed…
Deagel 2020 revision to the original 2012 Deagel Forecast
BlueNarwhal:
Forecast disclaimer revision in 2020:
In 2014 we published a disclaimer about the forecast. In six years the scenario has changed dramatically.
This new disclaimer is meant to single out the situation from 2020 on-wards.
Talking about the United States and the European Union as separated entities no longer makes sense. Both are the Western block, keep printing money and will share the same fate.
After COVID we can draw two major conclusions:
[1] The Western world success model has been built over societies with no resilience that can barely withstand any hardship, even a low intensity one. It was assumed but now we’ve got the full hard confirmation beyond any doubt.
[2] The COVID crisis will be used to extend the life of this dying economic system through the so called “Great Reset.”
The Great Reset; like the climate change, extinction rebellion, planetary crisis, green revolution, shale oil (…) hoaxes promoted by the system; is another attempt to slow down dramatically the consumption of natural resources and therefore extend the lifetime of the current system.
It can be effective for awhile but finally won’t address the bottom-line problem and will only delay the inevitable.
The core ruling elites hope to stay in power which is in effect the only thing that really worries them.
The collapse of the Western financial system – and ultimately the Western civilization – has been the major driver in the 2012 forecast along with a confluence of crisis with a devastating outcome.
As COVID has proven Western societies embracing multiculturalism and extreme liberalism are unable to deal with any real hardship.
The Spanish flu one century ago represented the death of 40-50 million people.
Today the world’s population is four times greater with air travel in full swing which is by definition a super spreader.
The death casualties in today’s World would represent 160 to 200 million in relative terms but more likely 300-400 million taking into consideration the air travel factor that did not exist one century ago.
So far, COVID death toll is roughly 1 million people.
It is quite likely that the economic crisis due to the lock-downs will cause more deaths than the virus worldwide.
The Soviet system was less able to deliver goodies to the people than the Western one. Nevertheless Soviet society was more compact and resilient under an authoritarian regime. That in mind, the collapse of the Soviet system wiped out 10 percent of the population.
The stark reality of diverse and multicultural Western societies is that a collapse will have a toll of 50 to 80 percent depending on several factors.
But in general terms the most diverse, multicultural, indebted and wealthy (highest standard of living) will suffer the highest toll.
The only glue that keeps united such aberrant collage from falling apart is over-consumption with heavy doses of bottomless degeneracy disguised as virtue.
Nevertheless the widespread censorship, hate laws and contradictory signals mean that even that glue is not working any more.
Not everybody has to die.
Migration can also play a positive role in this.
The formerly (known as) second and third world nations are an unknown at this point. Their fate will depend upon the decisions they take in the future.
Western powers are not going to take over them as they did in the past because these (Western) countries won’t be able to control their very own cities let alone those countries that are far away.
If they remain tied to the former World Order they will go down along with the Western powers. However, they won’t experience the same kind of brutal decline that the Western powers will experience so brazenly. This is partially because they are poorer and (obviously) not diverse enough. Instead they are stronger than the Western powers because they are actually quite homogeneous. This is their advantage. And that they are used to deal with some sort of hardship. Though, not precisely the one that is coming.
If they switch to China they can get a chance to stabilize but will need to depend upon the management of their own resources.
We expected this situation to unfold and actually is unfolding right now.
With the November election triggering a major bomb if Trump is re-elected. (Did not happen.)
If Biden is elected there will very bad consequences as well.
There is a lot of bad blood in the Western societies and the protests, demonstrations, rioting and looting are only the first symptoms of what is coming.
However a new trend is taking place overshadowing this one.
The situation between the three great powers has changed dramatically.
The only relevant achievement of the Western powers during the past decade has been the formation of a strategic alliance, both military and economic, between Russia and China.
Right now the potential partnership between Russia and the European Union (EU) is dead with Russia turning definitively towards China. That was from the beginning the most likely outcome.
Airbus never tried to establish a real partnership but rather a strategy to fade away the Russian aerospace industry.
Actually Russia and China have formed a new alliance to build a long haul airliner.
Western Europe (not to mention the United States) was never interested in the development of Russia or forming anything other than a master slave relationship with Russia providing raw materials and toeing the line of the West.
It was clear then and today is a fact.
Russia has been preparing for a major war since 2008 and China has been increasing her military capabilities for the last 20 years. Today China is not a second tier power compared with the United States. Both in military and economic terms China is at the same level and in some specific areas are far ahead.
In the domain of high-tech 5G has been a success in the commercial realm but the Type 055 destroyer is also another breakthrough with the US gaining a similar capability (DDG 51 Flight IIII) by mid of this decade (more likely by 2030).
Nanchang, the lead ship of the Type 055 class, was commissioned amid the pandemic and lockdown in China.
Six years ago the likelihood of a major war was tiny.
Since then it has grown steadily and dramatically and today is by far the most likely major event in the 2020s.
The ultimate conflict can come from two ways.
[1] A conventional conflict involving at least two major powers that escalates into an open nuclear war.
[2] A second scenario is possible in the 2025-2030 time-frame. A Russian sneak first strike against the United States and its allies with the new S-500, strategic missile defenses, Yasen-M submarines, INF Zircon and Kalibr missiles and some new space asset playing the key role.
The sneaky first strike would involve all Russian missile strategic forces branches (bombers and ground-based missiles) at the different stages of such attack that would be strategic translation of what was seen in Syria in November 2015.
There was no report that the Russian had such a capability of launching a high precision, multiple, combined arms attack at targets 2,000+ kilometers away.
Western intelligence had no clue.
The irony is that since the end of the Cold War the United States has been maneuvering through NATO to achieve a position to be able to execute a first strike (nuclear) over Russia and now it seems that the first strike may still occur but the country finished would be the United States.
Another particularity of the Western system is that its individuals have been brainwashed to the point that the majority accept their moral high ground and technological edge as a given.
This has given the rise of the supremacy of the emotional arguments over the rational ones which are ignored or deprecated.
That mindset can play a key role in the upcoming catastrophic events.
At least in the Soviet system the silent majority of the people were aware of the fallacies they were fed up.
We can see the United States claims about 5G being stolen from them by China or hypersonic technology being stolen by Russia as the evidence that the Western elites are also infected by that hubris.
Over the next decade it will become obvious that the West is falling behind the Russia-China block and the malaise might grow into desperation.
Going to war might seem a quick and easy solution to restore the lost hegemony to finally find them into a France 1940 moment. Back then France did not have nuclear weapons to turn a defeat into a victory. The West might try that swap because the unpleasant prospect of not being Mars and Venus but rather a bully and his dirty bitch running away in fear while the rest of the world is laughing at them.
If there is not a dramatic change of course the world is going to witness the first nuclear war.
The Western block collapse may come before, during or after the war.
It does not matter.
A nuclear war is a game with billions of casualties and the collapse plays in the hundreds of millions.
Spinach and Cheese Stromboli
Spinach and Cheese Stromboli
Need something that’s classically Italian? Try a Spinach and Cheese Stromboli. Refrigerated pizza dough is our shortcut to making this tasty meal in less than 15 minutes. It’s a quick and easy vegetarian stromboli recipe that’s guaranteed to fill you up. We’re sure you’ll agree, this simple Italian dinner is unquestionably tasty.
What You’ll Need
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (13.8-ounce) package refrigerated pizza dough
What to Do
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil. Add spinach and garlic and sauté 3 to 5 minutes, or until garlic is golden. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.
In a large bowl, combine ricotta and mozzarella cheeses, the oregano, and salt. Add spinach mixture and stir until well blended.
Unroll pizza dough and with your fingertips or the heel of your hand, spread dough out to a 10- x 15-inch rectangle. Cut in half lengthwise to make two 5- x 15-inch rectangles. Spread half the spinach mixture onto each piece of dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border around the edge. Fold each piece of dough over and pinch the edges to seal securely. Place on prepared baking sheet.
Bake 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown.
Statements of prediction
Including remote viewing into the calculus, and taking into account all the knowns…
The American leadership class does not contain diplomatic professionals. Instead there are unskilled political donors who are making life and death decisions.
The mRNA vaccination is a real mystery, and there HAS to be a reason behind using it instead of the traditional “Dead Host” vaccination.
The approved 2021 Federal budget includes an enormous military funding outlay that is obviously in preparation for a major war.
The American government, and their media are all talking about an upcoming major war with China.
American military is retreating from Afghanistan, and four bases in Korea, while making QUAD arrangements with Australia and Japan.
Red Line violations with Russia provoking a war in Ukraine.
Red Line posturing with China concerning Taiwan.
The end of the USD.
Sanction-crazy United States and threatening the entire world with “consequences”.
A unified Asian block to include Russia, China, India and Iran.
All of this is very disturbing, and considered alone would be cause enough to suggest that a major war is just on the horizon.
But…
America (The United States) is crumbling from rot from within…
Racial hate.
Proliferation of firearms, and the establishment of armed groups.
Balkanization.
Economic bubbles.
Social bubbles.
The wealth gap is enormous.
Infrastructure funding is too late.
Rules, regulations and laws are all off the charts.
Couple that with a failed bio-weapons attack on China, and the fiasco which was the Trump neocon administration, followed by the bumbling Biden administration… and hard-core neocon Religious extremists, and industry interests desiring of conflict, war and strife (all for various reasons), and you have a poisonous stew.
The “Genie is out of the bottle”, and I do not think that the looming “mountains” on the horizon can be avoided. The inertia associated with the clustering of world-lines is way too strong. So my guess (and I hope that I am wrong) is that the United States will sleep-walk into a war with Asia, and then before it happens, Asia will strike preemptively.
No matter what the details are, the remote viewing forecast is quite clear.
The United States Military Empire is going to start another major war. It is intended to be a distraction from the domestic failures, and regardless as to how much money President Biden is plowing into the economy, it’s not going to make any difference.
America is toast.
Burnt to a crisp; blackened, burned toast.
America today.
And it’s only a matter of time…
And then when the moron, presses the button, flicks the switch, or twists the knob, all Hell will break loose.
Engage Russia in warfare via proxy.
Engage China in warfare via proxy.
All in all, the USA will suffer horribly, and the combination of everything else will only turn a fiasco into an Hellish nightmare.
Ooey-Gooey Bacon Grilled Cheese
Ooey Gooey Bacon Grilled Cheese
A classic grilled cheese sandwich is good, but a grilled cheese sandwich that’s made with three different kinds of cheeses, and a creamy, bacony dip is even better. This Ooey-Gooey Bacon Grilled Cheese is going to blow you away with its incredible taste. Once you’ve had a taste of it this way, you’ll find it hard to go back to the old way!
What You’ll Need
1/2 cup refrigerated cheddar and bacon dip
1 (3-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
8 slices homestyle white bread
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, softened
Senario Flush Out
It appears, assuming that…
Degal remote viewing is correct (and it appears to be)
The USA continues on the Ukraine proxy attack. (Certainly appears that way.)
The USA continues with the Taiwan proxy attacks… (All evidence confirm…)
Then, we can expect a confluence of a number of calamity vectors. Economic, Medical and Military.
Economic
Economic; Loss of USD as a global currency.
Economic; Deshrouding of the fake GDP towards it’s actual value.
Economic; Collapse of the Western trade / logistic systems. (I hope not.)
Economic; Sanction blowback. (The US cannot sanction the world.)
Economic; Energy strangulation. (And the domino effect…)
Medical
Bioweapon / pandemic effects. (Not just Covid.)
Lack of serious quarantine and containment procedures. (It’s binary.)
A decrease in the access to medicines (because of trade / sanctions).
Overwhelmed medical care facilities. (Largest contributor.)
Military
Nuclear strikes. (Actual or threat vectors.)
Shipping blockages. (Part of the USA plan, but sanctions can enable.)
Regional conflicts and revolutions.
I argue that we are looking at the confluence of these three vectors and they center like a target reticle cross-hair on the United States and it’s allies. All of them can contribute synergistically towards a regional catastrophic result.
But… Keep in mind.
You can control YOUR reality. And maybe this mountain of turmoil is sitting off somewhere on your world-line template, you can still navigate around it. Remember, after all, for all the turmoil and strife during World War II, Canada, South America, and Africa was relatively left alone.
Maybe you don’t want to move to Greenland, Patagonia, or Zambia. But you don’t really need to. All you need to do is control your little bit of reality. And if you do that, then everything will work out just fine.
Some final thoughts
Keep in mind that the Deagel remote viewed the future correctly. They printed their results in 2012.
They PREDICTED a bio-warfare induced pandemic.
They PREDICTED an Australian military alliance with the United States.
They PREDICTED that America would start entering a period of "popping" of the various economic bubbles.
They PREDICTED a bio-polar world separated into East and West.
All of which came true by 2020.
Deagel did NOT change their forecast for 2025. It still stands. They just changed their thinking on how it would come about.
They remote viewed 2025 in great detail.
There will be [1] a massive die off of people in America, and Australia. The rest of the world will fare much better. And, most importantly, a [2] bio-weapon or pandemic figured predominantly in their calculus.
In 2012, they believed that there would be some kind of bio-weapon or pandemicthat would kill off so many Americans. But they couldn’t (for the life of them) answer why Australia of all places would also have a large die-off. At that time they never could of imagined the QUAD set up by Mike Pompeo, and that the Morrison government would wholeheartedly want to declare war on China. Instead, they figured that it must be a very serious pandemic with some other mystery event that complicated things in a negative manner.
In 2020, in the midst of the (three agent) bio-weapon attacks on China, and the absolute failure of America in securing it’s homeland, as well as the strong alignment of the Australian Morrison government to the war-loving neocons in Washington DC, the revised reasoning became one of nuclear war. Thus they reasoned that since the 2020 pandemic wasn’t that bad (being in the United States, and getting the “safe” bioweapon), and the drums of war were beating so loudly, that it must be nuclear war with bio-weapons used simultaneously.
Whether there is a nuclear event, or a bio-weapon event, no matter who caused it, or who instigated it, America will be absolutely and totally devastated. A 70% kill off implies that America would indeed be thrown back to the bronze age.
My advice?
You cannot change what is going to happen. It is pretty much set in stone. The only thing that you can do is to save yourself.
Flee the United States as fast as you can.
Go to a nation with a safer rating on the Deagel scale.
Consider fleeing any nation that is allied with the United States as well. The UK, and those European nations that are part of NATO perform very poorly. Though you will probably have an easier time of it than being the United States, it will still be a very rough life in those places.
It will be a scene out of the movie “Threads“, and you all should get a copy of this movie and watch it right now.
Threads Nuclear Detonation Scene
And when you watch it, keep in mind that what it portrays is EXACTLY what Deagal predicts will happen to America and it’s allies. Watch it and realize that you have two to three short years to save yourself and your family.
Bugging out.
A final comment
Everyone is aware that nuclear war is horrible and undesirable. However, the American leadership are making ZERO efforts to deescalate tensions in the Ukraine. Instead they are throwing weapons there. They are making ZERO efforts to deescalate tensions around Taiwan.
Russia and China have formed a major block. THEY DO NOT PLAY.
I cannot predict the future.
But others have.
This is what they predicted… 10 minute video. It is well worth viewing.
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Do you want more?
You can find more articles related to this in my latest index; A New Beginning. And in it are elements of the old, some elements regarding the transition, and some elements that look towards the future.
Meanwhile, by every single fact we are able to observe, the decadent leaders of the West are acting as though Russia and China are Iraq and Libya.
It appears that they genuinely believe they can use brute force and threats of brute force to come out on top in this conflict.
(It’s also worth mentioning that the West, due to the ultra-low moral character of its leaders and the utter lack of any unifying ideal beyond anal sex, has lost the ability to cooperate cohesively as a single body in the way that the Chinese do.)
-UNZ
What do all these things have in common? They all are attributes of a period of time that is going though change. Some people might refer to it as an unravelling, while others might consider it the “second coming”. I think that it’s darn uncomfortable, and bothersome. It’s a period of change and it is nearing it’s peak.
Sheech!
I need a drink.
What? I’m already drinking. Oh, well. Color me silly.
This article has a bunch of videos. Most are small, but depending on your internet connection, they may or may not load. Just click on the link and watch them open up in another window. Most are really quick.
Strange stuff guys…
Strange and unusual things going on.
In China, a passenger aircraft took a highly unusual nose dive. Engines went full throttle, and the plane dove straight into the ground. It’s almost like the plane decided to commit suicide by ramming itself into the ground at full speed.
It’s not normal airplane behavior.
Don’t you know.
The unusual nature of this crash has everyone scratching their heads, and MM is no exception. Since this is Boeing plane that openly admits that the plane’s computer can override the pilot and fly itself…
So, and I do mean it … the software can take the input, decide the pilot is in error, and take over…
… so why have a pilot then?
Hum?
…
It is very concerning.
The opinions sent to me privately are running near 100% that the United States government / CIA are somehow involved in this fiasco. I would not be surprised if this is the case, but the truth is that I really do not know.
But…
You do know that we are going to flush out this issue.
Right here.
Right now.
MM style.
What I do know is that this entire event has shaken the Chinese people to the core. No one. And I do mean NO ONE wants to fly. Airline prices are now less than $5 USD to fly round-trip to Beijing from Zhuahi. It’s insane.
Just like the crash of the Hindenburg completely ended commercial travel by dirigible, it seems that this even will seriously impact commercial aviation inside of China. There will be far greater use of the High Speed Trains, and far less use of domestic air transport.
In 1936, the future looked bright for rigid airships, the hydrogen-filled, lighter-than-air behemoths also known as dirigibles or zeppelins.
The Hindenburg, Nazi Germany’s pride and joy, spent one glorious season ferrying passengers across the Atlantic in its luxurious belly. The following year, the airship era screeched to a spectacular halt when the Hindenburg burst into flames while landing in Lakehurst, New Jersey. The disaster claimed the lives of 36 people and received an unprecedented amount of media coverage.
The Hindenburg was a 245-metre- (804-foot-) long airship of conventional zeppelin design that was launched at Friedrichshafen, Germany, in March 1936. It had a maximum speed of 135 km (84 miles) per hour and a cruising speed of 126 km (78 miles) per hour. Though it was designed to be filled with helium gas, the airship was filled with highly flammable hydrogen owing to export restrictions by the United States against Nazi Germany. In 1936 the Hindenburg inaugurated commercial air service across the North Atlantic by carrying 1,002 passengers on 10 scheduled round trips between Germany and the United States.
On May 6, 1937, while landing at Lakehurst, N.J., on the first of its scheduled 1937 trans-Atlantic crossings, the Hindenburg burst into flames and was completely destroyed. Thirty-six of the 97 persons aboard were killed.
The fire was officially attributed to a discharge of atmospheric electricity in the vicinity of a hydrogen gas leak from the airship, though it was speculated that the dirigible was the victim of an anti-Nazi act of sabotage.
The Hindenburg disaster marked the end of the use of rigid airships in commercial air transportation.
Forever.
Grasshopper Pie
A staple among southern desserts in the 1950s and 1960s, this creamy mint pie sports an Oreo crust, all of which makes it strange that it hasn’t remained as popular as it once was.
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Grasshopper Pie
This American retro dessert was inspired by the popular 1950’s chocolate-mint cocktail, and it was a favorite of Southern hostesses in the 1950s and 1960s. Originally, grasshopper pie always had a crust of either cookies or graham cracker crumbs, but today it is most often made with a base of Oreos, desiccated coconut, and butter, while the gelatine-set cream filling mainly consists of heavy cream flavored with crème de menthe—a sweet, mint-flavored liqueur—and melted marshmallows.
Grasshopper pie is usually so named because of its green color, though modern recipes may omit coloring the pie green. It was likely invented in the 1950s in the United States, and may have been inspired by a drink called the grasshopper developed at about the same time. It is a chiffon pie usually made with a cookie crust.
There is an earlier grasshopper pie type dating back to the beginning of the 20th century. Some versions of this pie from the Philippines used real grasshoppers. These insects are eaten in many cultures, and they can be used in various desserts, where they may be sugared and baked, providing a crunchy, and to some very appetizing, confection. The 1950s grasshopper pie bears little resemblance to versions produced that have insects as a primary ingredient.
Chiffon pies in the 1950s were often a combination of whipping cream, gelatin, sugar, eggs, and flavoring. In the case of the grasshopper pie, common flavoring used was alcohol in the form of crème de menthe, and sometimes other alcohols like crème de cacao.
For teetotalers, mint flavoring could be achieved by using mint extracts instead, though these might still contain a tiny amount of alcohol. Green food coloring was a frequent addition to give the pie a light green color.
Most often the cookie crust is made with chocolate wafers, so that the pie has a chocolate and mint flavor. The crust is baked for few moments and then chilled. When the chiffon is prepared, usually over a double boiler, it is chilled and then spooned over the crust. The pie tends to be served cold and many love its refreshing mint taste.
There may be very large differences between classic recipes for grasshopper pie and modern ones. Since gelatin can be somewhat annoying to work with, many people now prepare the pie by melting marshmallows and blending them with milk or whipping cream, and sometimes cream cheese. Green food coloring can be optional, and when not used the pie could be called “mint patty pie” instead. Some people may prefer using a graham cracker crust, and other recipes advocate the use of specific cookies like Oreos®.
In the US, grasshopper pie tends to be most popular in the South, but other parts of the country enjoy it too. The pie rose in popularity especially up until the 1970s, but it is now served with less frequency. Many ice cream stores capitalized on the flavor of this pie by producing their own version with mint or mint chocolate chip ice cream and a cookie crust. Some ice cream stores are particularly known for their grasshopper pie variants.
-Delighted Cooking
The pie is traditionally served well chilled, topped with dollops of whipped cream, and decorated with dark chocolate shavings.
In American terms, we would refer to this “body shape
or “Body build” as “built like a Brick House”. It’s generally a nice compliment for a fine robust woman. In this case, a Chinese woman. video. 5MB
Th Saker has reproduced the transcript of a talk Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergej Lavrov has given three days ago. It is quite long with a Q&A at the end but it is a very good history lesson on how we got to the point that Russia felt it had to intervene in the Ukraine.
Here are just a few graphs of it. I recommend to read it all of it:
This meeting takes place against the backdrop of events now occurring in Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly spoken at length about the origins of this crisis. I would like to briefly reiterate: this is not about Ukraine. This is the end-result of a policy that the West has carried out since the early 1990s. It was clear back then that Russia was not going to be docile and that it was going to have a say in international matters. This is not because Russia wants to be a bully. Russia has its history, its tradition, its own understanding of the history of its peoples and a vision on how it can ensure its security and interests in this world.This became clear in the late 1990s-early 2000s. The West has repeatedly attempted to stall the independent and autonomous development of Russia. This is rather unfortunate. From the start of President Vladimir Putin’s “rule” in the early 2000s, we were open to the idea of working with the West in various ways, even in a form similar to that of an alliance, as the President has said. Sadly, we were unable to do this. We repeatedly suggested that we should conclude treaties and base our security on equal rights, rejecting the idea of strengthening one’s security at the expense of another.Neither were we able to promote economic cooperation. The European Union, which back then showed some signs of independent decision-making, has now devolved toward being completely dependent on the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and the US. The story of Nord Stream 2 was the highlight of this change. Even Germany, which defended its interests in the project to the very end, was persuaded that the “project was not in its interests.” Germany and its people were told what their interests were by people on the other side of the Atlantic. Many other international areas were blocked despite our commitment to close cooperation on an equal basis.
Germany’s traitorous role towards Russia, especially under chancellor Angela Merkel, is laid out throughout the piece. The current chancellor Olaf Scholz, never a smart man, capitulated to U.S. demands to sanction Russia and thereby committed Germany to economic suicide.
2022 03 23 13 14
That spells death for Germany’s machine industry. It is said to see my country come down like this.
Hey Olaf, when the U.S. illegally invaded Iraq for absolutely no good reason how many sanctions did Germany apply to it?
Russia has at least cited sound and understandable, if not fully legal, reasons for its current acts. It was by the way you, Olaf, and your predecessor who have let it come to this. Why didn’t you write a letter to Putin that declared that Germany will veto NATO membership for the Ukraine. That might have solved the whole problem.
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There is some talk that Russia has screwed up its campaign and some even hope that it might be losing the war. That’s nuts.
Back when I was a military officer we ran yearly large scale ‘free running’ maneuvers. Over nearly four weeks my tank company had to switch positions several times a day and march and ‘fight’ in between. The first week was cumbersome with lots of errors made by everyone. The second week was worse. Everyone was sleep deprived and folks screamed at each other. We had several accidents and twice parts of the company missed turns and got lost at night. During the third week things became gradually better and more routine. The drivers knew where to put their tanks without much command. The camouflaging done by the loaders and gunners was fast. The food that found its way to us was still hot and maintenance was done in no time. In the fourth week it was all pure fun.
The reason behind it was that people needed to learn by doing. Before the maneuvers everyone had been ‘fully trained’. But a few days on the training range do not give the experience one needs in the real world. Driving and ‘fighting’ through real villages and cities, real camouflaging against an ‘enemy’ airforce, real dueling in the open landscape day after day are different than training range time.
Russia’s forces are now in their routine mode. They will now grind down what is left of the Ukrainian forces.
According to the Pentagon the Russian airforce yesterday flew 300 sorties over Ukraine, mostly at night. That are 50% more per day than last week. That means 300 Ukrainian weapon factories, ammunition depots, convoys and fighting position get destroyed every day, day after day. How long will it take until there are no more targets?
Andrew Milburn, a former Marine colonel, is in the Ukraine from where he reports for Task and Purpose:
The Russians are already adapting, and by doing so are narrowing the Ukrainians’ tactical edge. The one-sided culling of Russian armored columns that characterized the opening days of the war, and kept YouTube subscribers around the world happy, are a thing of the past. The Russians now lead their formations with electronic attack, drones, lasers and good-old-fashioned reconnaissance by fire. They are using cruise missiles and saboteur teams to target logistics routes, manufacturing plants, and training bases in western Ukraine. Realizing that the Ukrainians lack thermal sights for their stinger missile launchers, the Russians have switched all air operations to after dark. It may be for this same reason that Russian cruise missile strikes in western and southern Ukraine have also been at nighttime.The Russians have learned to play to their strengths. While Ukrainian soldiers mock their Russian counterparts, they are deeply respectful of Russian artillery, an asset that the Russians are using more frequently to compensate for their infantry’s deficiencies. Several snipers I spoke with recently agreed that the Russians’ indirect fire capability was the most concerning — a result of sheer reckless mass rather than technical skill. They told some hair-raising stories to illustrate their point, and one amusing one: Ukrainian soldiers defending Kyiv commute to the battle in their own vehicles. After a recent three-day insertion, the sniper teams returned to their extraction site to find their cars all flattened by Russian artillery – a contingency apparently not covered by their insurance plans.Overconfidence may obscure for the Ukrainians one salient fact about this conflict: Time is not on their side.
Posted by b on March 22, 2022 at 17:55 UTC | Permalink
Hilarious Prank Gift Packages To Surprise Your Friends This Christmas
How will you wrap your Christmas presents this year? Will you buy some expensive wrapping paper and then silently weep in the corner when you realize you have no idea what you’re doing? Or just give up entirely and pay someone else to do it? Lucky for you, one company out there is aiming to make gift wrapping a little more fun.
Pranko-O is a Minneapolis-based company that creates hilarious prank gifts, called Prank Packs. A fart filter or an earwax candle might sound insane at first but don’t worry – that’s where the ‘prank’ part of Prank Pack comes in. The products, sadly, don’t exist and are just gag boxes. But imagine your partner’s reaction when they were hoping to get a Pandora necklace for Christmas but receive a cheese printer instead – priceless!
Here’s a few for some inspiration. This is a Cheese printer. Surprise your friends!
Cheese Printer. You’ll be amazed how you were ever able to live without one!
Here’s another. It’s a “must” for every pet owner.
It’s a “must” for every pet owner.
And yet another. Fun for kids of all ages!
Fun for kids of all ages four and older.
Confirmed: Nazis are the proxy army of the US imperialists against Russia in Ukraine
The former US secretary of defense and CIA director, Leon Panetta, admitted openly that
“We are engaged in a conflict here. It's a proxy war with Russia, whether we say so or not ...”.
Referring to the Ukrainian forces, the US imperialist warhawk claimed that
"These are good fighters, they are small-unit operations, they are working well ...".
The description “small-unit operations” fits to proxy forces – mercenaries, rather than an organized national army.
As we mentioned in our previous article, for eight years, the NATO criminals and the “free” and “democratic” West, were provoking Russia by arming and training the far-right and neo-nazi militia groups who also infiltrated in the Ukrainian army and operate in East Ukraine against Russian populations. Which is something similar with what happened in the long-suffering Syria by the US proxy war against Assad. Only there, the US imperialists armed and trained some so-called “moderate rebels”, with most of the arms ending in the hands of ISIS islamofascists who spread chaos and destruction.
Panetta’s statements are essentially an official admission by the US side that this is the case.
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This also explains why the Russians are so obsessed with Mariupol, which appears that it suffered most from the war in Ukraine so far. It seems that they won’t retreat from their demand to Ukraine to surrender the besieged city. Not only because of its critical strategic importance, but mostly because it’s the base of the Azov Battalion, which is essentially the major US proxy Nazi force in the Ukrainian soil.
In March 2015 Interior Minister Arsen Avakov announced that the Azov Regiment would be among the first units to be trained by United States Army troops in their Operation Fearless Guardian training mission.
US training however was withdrawn on 12 June 2015, as the US House of Representatives passed an amendment blocking any aid (including arms and training) to the battalion due to its neo-Nazi background.
However, the amendment was later removed in November 2015, with The Nation reporting that the "House Defense Appropriations Committee came under pressure from the Pentagon to remove the Conyers-Yoho amendment from the text of the bill."Azov published a media release on its website on 20 November 2017 stating that it had met with a foreign delegation of officers from the United States Armed Forces and Canadian Armed Forces on 16 November.
Writing for Jacobin, Branko Marcetic says that members of Azov have been pictured meeting with U.S. military and NATO officials.
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This is a particularly revealing information because it proves beyond doubt that the US imperialist apparatus was very well aware of the nazi nature of the Azov Battalion. And did everything to overcome any political actions that were aiming to block any aid to its members.
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Recall that new information – coming from the elite section of the US think tank apparatus – proved that the US imperialists wanted to drag Russia into a war with Ukraine since at least 2019.
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Everything we wrote back in 2014 turns out to be right:
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What was left to do, for the moment, is to challenge Putin in order to drag Russia in an endless attrition war in East Ukraine and this explains to a degree Putin's hesitation to act like he did in Crimea. Against Russian army, of course, the West will not risk to put an organized military force, but only teams of mercenaries of private armies, as already did. It is certain, however, that, despite that the global economic oligarchy has lost valuable time because of its wrong moves, it will not give up its plans for Russia easily ...
Mapping proxy wars of the last decades around the globe we also wrote back in 2015 that the Ukraine conflict is a proxy war against Russia by the West, next to the Russian borders. Behind the color revolutions, one can always find US financed organizations. The Western allies would not dare to face directly the Russian army. In the Ukraine conflict one could find private armies of mercenaries. The most stupid action by the Western puppets was to support neo-nazis against the local Russian populations. This was something that exposed their real intention, which is to encircle Russia through puppet regimes who would permit the Western military presence in their territories.
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By aiding the nazis in Ukraine, the US and the West generally, lost their last remnants of their alleged “superiority” on matters related with democracy, human rights, or, international law. West’s moral bankruptcy and cultural decline are now irreversible and mark the beginning of the end of its global domination.
In China, red is considered a lucky and happy color. I like this woman in this outfit. She is pleasing to the eye and I am sure that she would be fun to be with. video 2MB
Strange coincidences
I offer up this following graph. It shows an association between belief in the mainstream media (the United States government narrative) and number of mRNA injections.
The more mRNA injections you have, the more that you believe whatever the MSM (Main Stream Media) says.
Relationship between the official government narrative and mRNA injections.
Look over the results.
It is errie.
It could be a coincidence. It might be. But, you know, there are secrets, and secrets, and the United States is run by very selfish, sick, evil people. Something is up. But what?
What is going on?
I don’t know…
It reminds me of the old 1950s movie “Invasion of the Body Snatchers”.
Invasion of the Body Snatchers
Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
Imagine that you and everyone else are normal. You go to work, and you play. You go drive your car, and listen to the radio.
There’s a pandemic. Everyone must get these “special” injections.
Not a vaccine, mind you. But something “new” and “special”. And so you plan on getting one, but your entire community beats you to it. Everyone is injected with the “special” formulation but you, and so when you finally go into town to get your injection, you notice something different.
Everything is the same.
Yet everything is different.
You have a difficult time trying to describe what is do different. They all look the same. They act the same. They all have absolute perfect memories. But something is missing…
…you just cannot pin it down; you just cannot put your finger on it…
Well…
Everyone is mad. They are angry. When you bring up certain subject, you know that the person you are talking to will fly into a rage. There are simply things that you just cannot talk about.
Face masks.
Racial issues.
Russia
China.
Vacinations.
You think “everyone is so polarized”. But it’s strange. People were never so polarized. Not before. Now they are just really upset and really on a “hair trigger”.
The movie
In 1956 the movie “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” came out.
Invasion of the Body Snatchers.
The narrative’s premise is most interesting.
A peaceful town is imperceptibly taken over by an alien force: Giant plant pods, products of atomic mutation, turn themselves into replicas of people. The pods turn human beings into faceless, emotionless automatons, incapable of any feeling, be it anger or love.
Once again, the image used is that of an initially normal and ordinary town, suddenly thrown out of balance.
“At first glance, everything looked the same,” the narrator says, “It wasn’t. Something evil had taken possession of the town.” The rest of the film explores that “something.”
Called back to Santa Mira from a medical conference, Doctor Miles Bonnel (Kevin McCarthy) is greeted at the train station by his nervous nurse, Sally. Looking through his clinic’s window, everything “looks” the same:
Wally Everhard is talking someone into buying insurance, Bill Bittner is taking his secretary to launch. Yet something strange is going on. In the back of his mind, Miles senses a warning bell: “Sick people who couldn’t wait to see me, suddenly were perfectly all right.”
A general practitioner, Miles believes that, “the trouble is inside you!” thus recommending that she sees a psychiatrist.
The first “solution” to the problem is psychiatric help, with the film acknowledging the increasing popularity of psychiatry in the 1950s.
“At first glance, everything looked the same,” the narrator says, “It wasn’t. Something evil had taken possession of the town.”
Miles rationalizes his advice to Wilma by saying, “you don’t have to be losing your mind to need psychiatric help.” But Wilma is firm: “It’s a waste of time, there’s nothing wrong with me.”
Like many other films of the decade, Invasion deals with three issues: [1] the definition of normal and abnormal behavior; [2] the legitimate authority to label behaviors as abnormal or deviant; and [3] the negative effects of conformity, apathy, and complacency.
The film suggests that the town’s experts and professionals are not to be trusted. The police force, an agency entrusted with the legitimate use of physical force, can’t solve the problem. In fact, when Jack’s clone is found, they refuse to call the police, because cops tend to rely too much on logic and dry laws.
Miles represents the center of the moral center.
“At first glance, everything looked the same,” the narrator says, “It wasn’t. Something evil had taken possession of the town.”
He is a professional, but a general practitioner, not a specialist, thus able to see the problem overall, in its entirety.
Even so, Miles proves that his common sense and critical faculties as a responsible individual are more important than his narrow professional skills. Thus, when Jack first describes the problem he says: “Would you be able to forget that you’re a doctor for a while” .
For the duration of the film, Miles “forgets” his occupation.
The movie advocates independent judgment, common sense, intuition, and self-reliance, and shows suspicious toward anyone in a position of power or professional expertise.
Invasion, like Capra’s movies of the Depression era, singles out the role of an exceptional individual, a charismatic leader, in preventing society from dehumanization, from gradual transformation into an aggregate of unfeeling robots.
Sleep is the metaphor used to convey mass complacency and conformity.
The pods take over human beings when they are not alert, when they are (literally or figuratively) asleep, thus passive.
Escaping from town, Miles gives Becky and himself a large dose of pills to stay awake. “We can’t close our eyes all night,” he tells her, because “we may wake up changed.” “Sooner or later,”
Kauffman tells Miles, “You’ll have to go to sleep,” i.e. you’ll have to conform and join the majority.
But Kauffman also reassures him that as soon as he falls asleep, the pods will “absorb your minds, your memories, and you’re reborn into an untroubled world.”
The new world will be without love, ambition, grief, or any emotions, “Life will be much simpler and better.”
invasion of the body snatchers 1956
Indeed, during their escape, chased by every member in town, Becky can’t stay awake any longer and she falls asleep. “I went to sleep and it happened,” says Becky. “A moment of sleep,” narrates Miles, and “their bodies were now hosts harboring alien forms of life.”
Santa Mira is a typical small town; there is nothing special or distinctive about I; what happened in Santa Mira couldand would–happen in other towns. In most sci-fi films, the disaster first occurs on a local level before spreads all over the country.
The catastrophe begins in a small town, then moves to bigger regional centers, and finally inflicts the entire nation.
Attempting to get assistance, Miles first calls the F.B.I. in Los Angeles, but there is no answer. His call to the governor in Sacramento also fails; the circuits are busy in both places.
Invasion differs from other sci-fi features because there is no immediate confirmation of the hero’s report of the “strange” phenomenon by other witnesses; the conflict is between one individual and the entire community.
Invasion shows that the authorities, both scientific and political, are neither trustworthy nor competent.
Other films went out of their way to reassured audiences that they were “in good hands,” that politicians (or the military) and scientists would come to the rescue when needed. In contrast, Invasion’s ending is so tentative and abrupt that it provides no such reaffirmation, instead urging its viewers to be always alert.
“At first glance, everything looked the same,” the narrator says, “It wasn’t. Something evil had taken possession of the town.”
Puckering fish look
For some reason, the Chinese women like to make these puckering fish expressions, as they view them as being very cute. I don’t know about that. Really. I just like a nice big smile, myself. video. 3MB
Sanctions
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Western production depends on China no less, than on Russia. And once again, on the tip of my tongue there is a Russian proverb with a deep meaning – what is good for a Russian is death for a German.
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And what will happen to the West, when Russia imposes her own retaliatory sanctions?
Consider this article…
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Immediately (in several European capitals), they realized that those sanctions, (introduced by them), would return to them like a boomerang and more than once
The words of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz about the reverse effect of sanctions against Russia can be called a sensation. It seems that the West is beginning to see clearly and see what damage they inflict on the economies of their countries with their own sanctions.
After the successes of the first days on the sanctions fronts, when Western countries managed to bring down the Russian stock market and the ruble exchange rate, a process of sobering up begins in European capitals and there is an acute desire to return the situation back.
By the way, the fall of the market and the collapse of the ruble did not become catastrophic for Russia . There was no default – Russia regularly pays its bills, and the ruble is slowly, but still winning back its positions.
A funny situation can happen with the stock market. Against the backdrop of a fall in the price of shares of Russian companies, Western investors began to actively sell them for next to nothing. Now the most interesting question is:
Who bought them?
Some European experts suggest that Russian business and the Russian government took advantage of the situation and bought almost everything for next to nothing. In other words, Russian companies have become Russian again. Forever at the bottom, the shares will not be and sooner or later they will go up, but they will no longer bring dividends to Western investors. And they will no longer have levers of influence on the Russian economy.
Chancellor Scholz , of course, did not talk about these deep processes. He spoke about the need to prepare and impose sanctions very carefully. The reverse effect of them should be surmountable for Western economies. But so far everything is working out exactly the opposite.
The imposed sanctions blew up the market and the prices of absolutely everything flew up.
Inflation all over Europe
Everyone knows the situation with gas – at some point it rose in price to a completely unthinkable 3,800 dollars. Now, thanks to the efforts of Gazprom, it has been brought down to an acceptable $1,050.
Oil prices rose, followed by gasoline and all fuel in general.
Steel and cast iron, building materials. Nickel. Aluminum. Products of the petrochemical industry and fertilizers.
Wheat and all food products.
The list can be continued, but this is quite enough to understand what kind of “return line” has flown through the European economy.
French President Macron is already talking about the introduction of food checks in the country for the poorest. In the Czech Republic, wheat and flour more than doubled in price.
In Italy and Spain, pasta and vegetable oil disappeared from the shelves, and in Lithuania, salt and soda.
And all this at a record level of inflation. In some European countries it has already exceeded 10%.
The West was sure that by depriving Russia of income from the export of energy resources and raw materials, they would bring it to her knees, but it turned out that Russia’s participation in almost any area is so significant that it immediately affects the economies of Europe and the United States.
Britain
Britain banned the import of products, incl. food, from Russia. In addition to raising prices for communal and gasoline, the British can part with their national dish – fish and chips, in other words – potatoes with fish.
For British Prime Minister Johnson, it came as an unpleasant surprise that most of the fish eaten in Britain is Russian. Iceland and Norway will not be able to provide even half of the amount that Russia was selling.
Britain urgently needs to find new routes for the supply of fish, otherwise unrest cannot be avoided and this is not a joke. For the British , fish and chips is more than food, it is part of the culture, it is their genetic code.
That is why such a heated debate broke out in the European Union today on the issue of an embargo on the import of Russian oil. Everyone is worried about the consequences of this step. Will this be another nail in the coffin of the European economy?
Russia’s retaliatory measures
But even more Europeans should worry about Russia’s retaliatory measures. Nothing is known about them yet, and this is scary. Retaliatory sanctions can set the European economy back several decades, and the EU is very unwilling to do so.
I really like the Chinese girls. They are sweet, cute and they take care of themselves. Here’s a nice cute girl. video 4MB
Beef Stroganoff
Let’s talk about food.
Good. Healthy. Delicious. Food.
The story goes that this beef, noodles, and cream sauce dish exploded in America after U.S. servicemen, stationed in the dish’s homeland of Russia, brought it home after World War II.
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Beef Stroganoff.
Meat. MEAT. I love it, I really do.
My recent visits to my Vegetarian Restaurant, aside, I love and yearn for meat. Good tasty meat. Beef. Mutton. Pork. Chicken. Turkey. Meat!
I grew up in the heart of the United States. Pittsburgh. The land of steel, coal. beer and perogies. There, the basic food groups consisted of potatoes, cream of [insert mushroom, chicken, or celery here] soup, butter (or Land-O-Lakes margarine), tall cold glasses of milk with every meal and…meat.
I had a recent craving for beef stroganoff.
Although I ate this dish frequently as a child, I had yet to make it myself. The beef stroganoff of my youth was a retro reflection of my Polish-American-Irish upbringing – a nostalgic combination of ground beef, cream of mushroom soup, condensed beef broth, and low-fat sour cream.
Although I (of course) I could have gone out and had my fill of some delicious steak, turtle or mutton, I wasn’t really feeling that desire. I wanted to create something myself. I wanted a taste from my childhood, and you just aren’t goign to get that inside of China. No matter how hard you try.
I wanted comfort food, and I figured that beef stroganoff would foot the bill.
This is comfort food at its finest.
Get your beef in some sputtering, aromatic, delicious SALTED butter. Work quickly – you’re just browning and the thinness of the meat doesn’t require much time in the pan. Set beef aside. Sauté your onions and garlic in the same pan.
After making a few (regional) tweaks to the Simply Recipes version, I came up with a winner. Gather up some easy basics: butter, beef, onions, garlic, mushrooms, sour cream (be sure to read my footnote on the sour cream!). If you have tarragon, nutmeg, and Worcestershire sauce on hand, even better.
Why would the United States decide to institute a draft? Well, it seems that there are decisions being made and systems put in place right now. If you are an American under 35 years of age, you should be concerned.
Some home movies. Actually not in my home, in various eating establishments in China. Oh, China is supposed to be in famine right now! OMG. My bad. Sorry to break the narrative.
A while back I recieved some intel from one of my spook-ish sources. Good or bad, right or wrong, I just filed it away for “a rainy day” (It’s a play on an American idiom. It means, it’s valuable and interesting, but you don’t need it now. You save it for later.)
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It’s how I run my life.
Good or bad, right or wrong. I just take all input, and consider it. File it, and move forward. Always move forward. You just cannot drop everything and take action on some other’s time-tables. That would be like running around, from tree to tree, pissing indiscriminately.
So I took the information. Filed it both securely in my email folders, and on my hard disk. And forgot about it.
It does not mean that I agree or disagree with it. It just means that there is nothing that I can do with the information at the time that I recieved it. So I put it aside. And, instead, work on things that I can do something about.
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Month pass by.
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After seeing that graph that connects mRNA with thoughts and political agreement with the United States government, it triggered my memory. There was something about this dialog that really seemed to connect to the events that I was witnessing.
The (archived) intel that I was informed on was directly related to this association.
The message suggested that there were vault 7 algorithms and frequencies that worked together in association with various ingredients in the <redacted> portion of the mRNA injection “stew”.
These associations would then “hand shake” with embedded subsonic frequences transmitted along “news” messages, of all sorts. Thus making the injected person, who is exposed to the “news” messages believe them without any critical thought.
Sounds far-fetched.
Perhaps…
I filed it away, as it was something worthy of further study.
And then I saw the graph, and I sought to revisit my communication on this subject. So, like the good and investigative fellow I am, I went to dig it out of my archives.
And it’s gone.
I mean, as in GONE.
The darnest thing!
All records gone. All archives gone. All backups gone. It’s a full spectrum erase. Oh, the folder is there. But it’s empty. Even the screen shots that I took and put in a special folder… it’s gone as well.
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What the fuck?
It could be a slide. I could be forgetting things. It could be an accident. I don’t know…
… what a coincidence.
It’s a nagging pain in the ass, that’s what.
Some more fun gag gift boxes…
I found this one funny. Perfect for getting your children to eat. Child refuses to eat? Just plop them down and watch them eat their hearts out. Children cry for more!
Oh, and Daddy won’t mind…
Perfect for getting your children to eat. Child refuses to eat? Just plop them down and watch them eat their hearts out. Children cry for more!
This one is unique. Everyone wants their home to fill with the aroma of sizzling bacon. Now it can be an everyday affair.
“Breakfast fresh scent”.
Everyone wants their home to fill with the aroma of sizzling bacon. Now it can be an everyday affair.
Who thinks up these things? “Millions of satisfied customers.”
Do you want to shake up your company? Hold a meeting where you announce that the company is going to save money by stop buying toilet paper. Instead, they will install these rotowipe devices in all the stalls. Make the announcment “dead pan” and watch the reactions.
“Millions of satisfied customers.”
A Huge Cleavage
A huge cleavage is developing between the East and West in tandem with the Ukraine ops. The US State Dept. just sanctioned some Chinese officials due to "human rights". China didn't take well to it at all. Meanwhile, India is not going along with the Western sanctions on Russia and got threatened with sanctions earlier but the US has since backed off that threat.
Victoria Nuland is in India today trying again to coerce India into getting on board the sanctions train. I dont't think it will work.
Also, it seems that China and India are making renewed efforts to bury the hatchet regarding tbeir border duspute. It really seems like a great re-alignment happening, especially taking into account all the other countries not taking part in the anti-Russia sanctions.
Russsia essentially said "fuck it" in deciding to launch into Ukraine. If the West keeps it up, China will arrive at the same point.
Interesting times.
-Woogs
Speaking of “huge cleavage”; here’s a nice Chinese girl with an impressive chest… video 1MB
Russian Foreign Minister
Here’s the entire question being used against Lavrov:
"Why was the military operation launched now and not eight years ago? At that time, a pro-Russian “anti-Maidan” movement emerged in Odessa and Kharkov, which installed the Russian flag on top of the Kharkov regional administration without firing a shot. The city supported Russia. Now these people are hiding from shelling."
I find it impossible to verify the veracity of the question. I know in Odessa the police didn’t do anything to stop the Nazis from their killing and burning. I imagine a similar performance happened in Kharkov. Russia acted to save its strategic asset, Crimea, but clearly wasn’t prepared to intervene further.
Lavrov’s initial sentence is very honest:
"A lot of factors influence developments at each specific historical moment."
I’ve read both the English and Russian transcripts, and what I see by reading between the lines is commiseration by Lavrov with the questioner, not any attempt to mislead. Lavrov says They took advantage of our nature:
"We must have trusted them because of some naivety and kindness of heart, which is something Russians are known for.
"I have no doubt that lessons will be learned."
And if you’ve watched Lavrov while speaking his recent denunciations of the West, that Russia will never again put its trust in any part of the West, you’ll see the resolve that Russia will not get fooled again as it’s now taking everything into its own hands.
IMO, some part of all Russians, especially Putin, Lavrov, Shoigu, and other leaders, was burned and died with those in Odessa and in Donbass. They pled and pled and pled some more with the Western pukes to obey the fucking law put forth in UNSCR 2022–the Minsk Agreements.
But inaction and outright refusal followed by the breaking of it all by the fucking West. And now all the rest that was uncovered with the military operation!!
I’ll bet the fucking national debt that Putin, Lavrov, et al wish they would’ve done more in 2014 but felt they couldn’t.
The Syria intervention helped to provide some solace. But it’s very clear to Russia now that the Outlaw US Empire is the #1 predator state on the planet and must be neutralized somehow without resorting to nuclear weapons.
Yes, that’s how fucking serious this is.
Lavrov knows that gravity of the situation. It’s fucking existential!
And it’s that fact the West badly wants to cover up. And just as importantly, it’s that fact that we must try to expose and broadcast.
I’m probably going to catch some flac for this, but for me – it isn’t off the BBQ. No, no, no. MY perfect steak is done on a stove top (gasp!). Classically considered a French bistro dish, Steak au Poivre is my perfect way to indulge. If you’re a meat lover, this post is for you.
Simple and clean.
I think a part of what appeals to me so much about this recipe is its simplicity. The steak is seasoned with two ingredients: salt and peppercorns. It might sound crazy to coat two steaks with 2 whole tablespoons of peppercorns, but when they aren’t finely ground the spice is much more subtle. Dressing the meat this way also lets it shine through. This is beef at its best.
What appeals to me so much about this recipe is its simplicity.
Using a cast iron pan is my second secret. These pans retain heat well and are practically non-stick. Cooking the steaks on high heat, turning ~once per minute creates an even, golden crust with no burning. Depending on the thickness of your steak, you’re looking for a total of 3-4 minutes per side for rare.
If there is a side of fat on your steak, render it down for a couple minutes by propping the steak up.
In the final minutes, we add some butter for extra flavour and to start providing the base for a delicious Cognac pan sauce. When the steaks are cooked to your liking, remove to a cutting board and tent with foil. You’ll be left with something closely resembling this:
In the final minutes…
Up last is to create a rich cognac pan sauce that sends this over the top. In your pan, we will add shallot, (more butter), Cognac, cream, thyme and parsley. After cooking and reducing the sauce, we pour it over the sliced steak. When I have this for dinner, steak is all I need. There is something ridiculous & awesome about eating just steak for dinner, I hope you try it!
Time to EAT!
Meanwhile in China
It’s a thing. Partly due to Coronavirus. Partly due to the plans for Space, and bases on the Moon and Mars. Cute. Odd. video 23MB
Digging up the e-mail
I was able to retrieve the email concerning the connection between mRNA “vaxx” and the United States government.
Now, I do not endorse the content of this e-mail. I just provide it in it’s raw form for others to muse over. Please take it as it is. It is raw information that could be from anyone.
Anyone at all.
I am using anonymous email because this is above top secret information.
You are correct that the vaccines will kill an estimated 70% of the US population due to prion disease. This is being done to avoid world problems and reconstruct world society as described by the World Economic Forum (ocean acidification, food shortages, food poisoning and job replacement by artificial intelligence).
However, what is not currently known is that the chemtrails contain a mixture of advanced nanobots along with complexed radioactive materials (germanium, indium, etc) and a shielding material that releases hard to detect bursts of radioactivity (2 sec) on the back of the spine, femoral heads, pelvis, ribs and under the chin when exposed to nanorouter EMF.
The nanorouters are powered by electric fields and local utility companies have conspired to alter their current to emit very high EMF and magnetic fields periodically to kill and injure through direct exposure to this radiation plus the activated chemtrail dust.
The US government has contracted stalking activities to private companies such as Replica.ai (Lucas in San francisco) and has artificial intelligence monitoring large numbers of people through Patriot Act hacked cell phone sim cards, cameras, hacked routers and PCs.
However, they have the ability to do additional spying due to the nanobot infestation. Nanobots around the occipital lobe allow them to steal passwords and watch vision. They also can do voice to skull transmission of voices, start terrifying abnormal dream sequences when initiating sleep, blank memories and control people through trance to commit suicide etc. Low intelligence and highly opinionated people are extremely susceptible and literally zone out and lose their memory while they are being manipulated.
The nanobots also have a slew of programmed harassments that can be extremely disabling-hyperurination due to stimulated hormone secretion, waking people up from sleep due to external nanobots, depression, anxiety stimulation, simulated Mernier's disease where the room shakes up and down. If they are active you'll get tinnitus. All of the symptoms stop once you are out of Wifi range.
The nanobots are magnetized and they are being used to shake housing structures apart. All over the US buildings are having roof collapses due to smartmeter arson from power companies plus shaking by hidden resonance frequency generators which is known as the world hum. The nanobot programs reduce the intensity of the humming so it sounds like typical noise but it is not. The building shaking can be measured on a linear accelerometer (Physics Accelerator Toolbox app).
The chemtrail dust is how they plan to kill uncooperative unvaccinated people. Planed flyovers seed beds and clothing with the dust and then it is activated and the person is slowly irradiated. Due to the short half-life of the materials it is very hard to detect however a small EMF/magnetic field detector can be used to scan the areas. As this is dust, vaccuuming and spongebathing it off is very effective before or during activation.
Resistors are also being targeted using the vircator microwave satellite targeting program as described at targetedjustice.com. It is very hard to shield requiring 12 layers of aluminum foil at the highest setting. Pointing an emf detector in the area of strongest magnetic field will show you where the satellites are. Active vircators will show high EMF up to 106 V/m.
The buffered radioactive nanobot dust is being sprayed all over the world and is being used along with NSA hacked servers to control political leaders without their knowledge.
This most likely is why Vladimir Putin has now invaded Ukraine. An invasion of Ukraine will most likely lead to an EMP strike that will damage the European illuminati. Agents I have spoke with claim that the USA is currently controlled by the US branch of the New World Order/Illuminati and they seek to damage the European branch with the EMP attack.
The nanobots are also converting prions all over the world due to NSA hacking.
You are a targeted individual and can expect all of these attacks. You need to take appropriate precautions to shield your equipment from hacking as well as from nanobot visual access (band of 10 layers of foil around the occiput with a strap works well. The irradiation can cause bone marrow edema syndrome, severe abdominal pain, skin burning and back pain.
We are in a bit of a tricky situation on this one. It probably is too late to stop the prion disease and we do need to have the European illuminati, religion and black antisocial behavior weakened however I have concerns about the excessive targeting as anyone who knows about their plans is having hits put out on them (including me) and the competency of the people running this thing. Take appropriate precautions.
Covering beds with a plastic sheet until used to shield from the dust and shielding from vircator also is important.
Given the scope of this thing I doubt there is anything anyone can do. The US Federal government is completely taken over, people are mind controlled and the population is being attacked with weapons we have never seen before. Also, if we don't allow it to happen we suffer all the world problems that the WEF describes. If we do then we will most likely be slaves to elite billionaires and forced to live in a controlled society.
<redacted>
Indeed it is far-out stuff.
It’s well beyond my understanding.
But…
It is the ONLY content that I have / possess that answers the strange graphic association posted above. Take it, and use it as you see fit. Personally, it’s way, way above my head. And I have no ideas; no clue how accurate or valid it actually is.
When I asked a person whom I greatly respect on the content of this, the response was thoughtful…
Whoever sent you that - just please PLEASE listen to the content of what the implications are for China - Xi is a WEF placement. This is NOT Unknown. It’s literally on the WEF website. He pissed off the WEF and now he is going to be removed. China has been under attack since I have been warning you. It has. A company called Blackrock - in THIS fucking world line is the muscle of the WEF.
Want to know why we did Afghanistan so quickly? BLACKROCK provided allll of the security force in Afghanistan since 2017. We drew down troops but they never left. They changed uniforms and got paid a TON of cash. Look it up. So Blackrock decides to pull alllll of the security forces outside Kabul that it paid - as a message.
Think about that - about 85% of security force outside of Kabul - gone. Like that. And all that kept the Taliban from overrunning the country was a small force. So - Biden left rather than get slaughtered.
But to my point - The WEF has a stake in a securities trading firm called Blackrock that hired mercenaries - tens of thousands of combat veterans that you see fighting in Ukraine.
Look it up.
I cannot speak about the specifics of ANY of that - at all - but I’m telling you - you hit paydirt.
And we ARE pulling out when the fight gets bloody.
Blackrock is on Chinas doorstep. And I am telling you - nothing can prevent what they are doing. THAT I know from actual friend that is IN Blackrock. As a mercenary.
This all is online. If you can’t access it through China ask someone to look it up. Also look up “Blackrock woke”. It’s fun.
And if that is AI that created that email - fucking bravo. THAT is a programmer I want to hang out with.
And feel free to post my shit - just please keep the name out of it. But I know some of your people that emailed me and I gave them my thoughts. Ask how accurate so far.
Again - I wish you all peace and happiness there - because our lights are going out soon.
Much love - <redacted>
Have you ever gotten the idea that you are somehow way over your head? Yeah. I get that all the time. It’s not that I believe everything. I listen. I learn. I drink. I move forward, and I adapt.
Everyone needs to learn, and adapt as situations permit.
Each and everytime I chat with the Domain Commander, on comm, it’s just a window into how much I really don’t know. WHile I know much, there is still so much more to learn.
Sometimes I just feel like I am a little ball in one of those old pin-ball machines. I’m just being batted around like crazy.
Although this fried crab dumpling fits in among postwar tiki culture and is often purported to be of southeast Asian provenance, it was very likely invented in America.
Crab Rangoon
It’s easy to make. Delicious to eat, and fun to try.
The United States is reposturing itself. This is occuring soon after the warning from China on a package of 2nd stage sanctions regarding Russia and Taiwan.
The US-China trade: Washington’s review of US$300 billion in tariffs cannot be ‘half-hearted’. You either do it and suffer the consequences or abandon it completely.
If everyone did small, little things the world would be so much nicer, and so much better. video 6MB
Downfall of the USD
From one of my feeds…
The best way to accelerate the downfall of the empire is to attack its Dollar Hegemony (not the same as attacking America).
I said that in my Quora posts "Trade War between China and America" and "Who will win the trade war" early 2018 at the beginning of Trump's "war by any means except guns" -- euphemistically termed trade war -- against China.
Without the Dollar hegemony, America may have to act like a more normal country. Less unilateral sanctioning, less bullying, less acting like the Mafia, less war crimes, less color revolutions, less media lies, less war budgets, less war-mongering, less bases around the world, less profligate printing of money, less plundering of other countries, etc.
Bullied countries will have alternatives. For protection, they will have Russia and for trade they will have China. All previous vassals of America, including European countries are welcome. Then we will have some peace.
Acting like a more normal country in a more balanced world is actually good for the powerless people of America.
They may learn to demand for guaranteed basic housing, food, healthcare, and education rather than asking for more shit-paying soul-crushing slave-wage jobs or one-time checks that eventually go to the coffers of the 1% money-changers and MIC, giving those miscreants more power to ravage America and the world, meanwhile the national debt of Americans increases to generate the checks and the rest of the world suffers inflation, which is of course borne by the common masses of the world.
Capitalism won't solve the problems.
The fall of the empire may help people think differently or see more clearly how some countries with so many people and so little resources can live gainfully, peacefully, and happily together in a diverse yet harmonious society.
I'll share a passage from my book under chapter title "The Dragon's Dream":
"Where is this paradise? Is it on earth or is it only in his dreams (the dreamer's name means tattoo-dragon)?Where all parents are strong and wise and capable, and all the children are happy and beloved. Where brothers and sisters neither slaughter each other, nor enslave one another, nor tell lies to everyone from morning till night, where the children love and help each other, share everything and take care of one another, and all of them live peaceful, fruitful, and happy lives.
Where is this place?
Is it China?"Does this sound familiar? It comes from a Coen brothers movie, with a couple of changes and replacing Idaho with China.
-<redacted>
Power reshuffling
China says Russia is an ‘important’ G20 member. It cannot simply be expelled by others, no matter what they might want. In short, Beijing has spoken up for Russia, describing it an “important” global member after the possibility of a major move against Vladimir Putin.
Both Russia and China, and probably India (soon), have generated an “Unfriendly nation list”. These lists catagorize nations in accordance to their behaviors and put them into catagories.
Close relationship
Friendly
Neutral
Unfriendly
Enemy
These are not meaningless lists. They will be used to determine policy. And the policy that Asia uses against other nations is determined by where it sits upon these lists.
Today, President Putin made his first move in a chess game with the West. Gas will be sold to unfriendly countries only for rubles.
Putin wants ‘unfriendly countries’ to pay rubles for gas – ABC News
In China, people; ordinary people, volunteer to help others. It is their nature to be the Rufus. They don’t ask for payment. They don’t ask for anything. They help others as it is their nature. Volunteers going to remote villiages to help others. Everyone being the Rufus. video 12MB
For the longest time I have dismissed the idea about “chem-trails” as just crazy “tin foil hat” conspiracy bullshit. Chem-trails are just water vapor at high altitude, don’t you know.
For the longest time. I believed this.
Then, I moved to China. It’s calm. It’s peaceful. It’s pleasant. It’s like walking slowly into a body-temperature pool of water.
And, do you know what?
There’s no “chem-trails”. None. As in zero.
So, maybe (I figured) that it was because that China has these stringent air pollution standards on all fuel. Except, well.. just how does that actually affect water vapor emissions? No clear answers.
But one thing is for certain; there are no vapor trails from aircraft of any kind, at any place, within China.
MM car ride in an industrial factory section of Guangzhou. video 43MB
None.
N-O-N-E.
Why? Why are there no Chemtrails in China? MM video 23MB
The Problem with the Nano-bots mRNA Vaxx and Vault 7
Ok, then. Let’s do a simple “sanity check”.
The big problem with this concept is that the American / Western “leadership” must be totally isolated from the effects of this control mechanism. How can you possibly isolate the leadership from Chem-trails, audio playing on the radio, media on television and movies, and the social networks on the internet.
Heck! They are addicted to them!
So, and the sanity check is clear, as brilliant and complex the system is, it will affect everyone within that society. No one will be immune. Sure, you might need to place yourself into isolation, but eventually, one way or the other, you WILL feel the influence of these systems. No one is immune.
The “leadership” might find a way to pretend getting an mRNA injection, but it’s a cut-throat world at the top. There can be all sorts of ways to place tiny nano-bots inside of your enemy to turn them into your pawn.
So, really…
No matter how hard they try, they will live within the very same, exact “echo box” that they subject their citizenry to. They will live inside an “echo chamber” of lies; lie that they ordered others to create.
They are boxed in, and they believe the lies. They actually believe them.
And as leaders, they will make decisions based on those lies, and the entire nation;
They will start to say things that will sound crazy, and act in ways that will seem strange and crazy. They will act so very convinced of the strangest and most outlandish narratives.
And in doing so…
…by the leadership…
…the entire system will evenually be destroyed. Leadership needs REAL intel to make decisions upon. There is no excuse. You eaither have real intel (good and most especially bad) or you don’t. And history is clear. Bad intel results in very bad results.
We call those results; fiascos.
How can anyone possibly have a leadership that…
Does not take the mRNA Vaxx injection.
Does not read, watch or enjoy American media, social networks or media.
It cannot occur.
Maybe at some time, some radicals believed that it was possible. Maybe back in the 1960s, or 1970s they might have believed this. But in todays society. It is impossible.
Simply Impossible.
Perhaps, the reason why there is such an accelerated failure at all levels in the West is becuase the “leadership” has themselves been affected by their very own poison.
I shake my head.
How can they be so stupid?
Please ponder this thought.
Let’s take a break from this to let your mind relax. New subject. New thoughts.
Chinese respect
Boy locks himself in his bedroom. The fire station is called and they go to the house to break him out…video 2MB
Here’s yet some more gag boxes…
Now here’s a jigsaw puzzle that is suitable for the whole family. Just set aside a card table and get at it. It’s a true challenge.
Want a challenge?
Plants cry for more! Amaze your friends!
Environmentially safe!
Plants cry for more!
The latest in animal entertainment!
The latest in animal entertainment!
The world needs more people skipping
If you cannot dance, try skipping. Smile. Skip as you walk down the street, and say nice things to people. While the rest of the world is on a roller coaster to Hell, you can stop that descent. Skip as you walk. video 15MB
Take care of yourself
We all might not look like this 20-something Chinese woman, but we can certainly smile and be great; we can do great things. Stop waiting. Start doing. video 3MB
Suppose you are a leader in the West
Just imagine that you are a leader of one of the major Western nations. And you best scientists come running to you; scientist that you believe and trust. And they tell you that the situation is DIRE for mankind. They tell you, convincingly that human population grown and energy depletion is unsustainable and that a major disaster lies ahead…
…and they offer senarios and solutions.
And the best one, whatever it might be, is one when a great mass of humanity dies off.
And you, as a leader believe them.
Perhaps you are an independent thinker. Perhaps you are a massive follower of social media and use twitter all the time, and are heavily influenced by Vault 7. What ever.
You believe them. In your heart; you believe them.
And their solution is to kill off 80% of the human population. ..
Insane. Unheard of. But, they present it in a clear and defined manner…
Intentionally cull the human race to 20% of it’s size … or…
Lose 100% of the human species and everyone dies.
What would you choose?
Truth or fiction
It does not matter if there’s such a real thing as “climate change”. What actually does matter is what the “leadership” believes. Because if they inherently believe that the world is going “to Hell in a handbasket”, they have the power, and ability, and the willingness to perform some really drastic actions.
Actions, mind you, that will affect you and your families directly.
Let’s eat.
Chicken Pot Pie
Likely another cost-cutting holdover of the Great Depression and World War II, this savory chicken and vegetable pie is now mostly found only in the grocery store freezer aisle. Don’t go there.
.
Make up your own. It tastes better. It lasts longer. It’s easy to make, and great and easy to reheat in the microwave. Chicken Pot Pie, why didn’t we think about this sooner?
(If) the software of the plane took over the controls from the pilot… and we con’t know that this is what happened, but if it did… why in God’s Name did it decide to aim the plane straight towards the ground at full throttle?
The black box fight recorder has been recovered. I believe investigators are considering that sabotage is involved.
Talking about evil and the United States, let’s interrupt this train of thought to explore more gag boxes…
Here’s some more gag boxes…
Have your pet treat you as a king!
Have your pet treat you as a king!
Take a nap anywhere and at anytime.
Take a nap anywhere and at anytime.
And what about the Ukraine?
Unlike the theoretical secret deals between the West and the Chinese (or Russia), the deals between China and Russia are very much visible and are largely committed to paper.The West started this conflict, of course. I don’t know when they realized Russia was going to move into the Ukraine, but they had ample opportunity to prevent it by simply agreeing to the previous status quo. They appear to believe that they can create a protracted conflict in the Ukraine like they did when Russia invaded Afghanistan in the 1980s.
That shows a fundamental lack of understanding of the situation.
Ukraine has historically been a part of Russia. There is not really any such thing as a “Ukrainian identity” outside of being a vassal state. In the west of the country, they tend to feel closer to Poland, and there is some bad blood all around with regards to the USSR. But none of this is in any way similar to fanatical Islam. The US has backed neo-Nazism as a kind of “Ukrainian ISIS,” but you can’t rally a country around cartoonish neo-Nazism (particularly while the entire leadership of the country is Jewish).The idea of using neo-Nazis as rebels against a Russian occupation or a Russia-backed government in the Ukraine is nonsensical, and reeks of the kind of stupid thinking that led to America’s Afghan debacle. The US government pays people to lie to them, and when people tell the truth, they get fired and end up on obscure livestream interviews answering superchats. These liars are telling the decision-makers that the Ukraine is Afghanistan and a protracted conflict can be used to drain Russia, which will ultimately result in the collapse of the Putin government.The fact that they have no idea what they’re doing is blatant in the fact that they are sanctioning the entire Russian race. Putin’s support is going up rapidly among the people, many of whom didn’t like his policies before but now feel compelled to rally around him since they are being attacked personally for their race by the West.
-UNZ
Perfect for the busy man on the move!
Perfect for the busy man on the move!
So what are we looking at here?
Well, as far as I can figure out, we have the following situations all moving ahead at this time…
The United States is pushing the world towards war.
They are crossing both China’s, and Russia’s red lines to provoke them.
They believe the myth of “American greatness”.
They believe that America has liberty and freedom.
They believe that a uni-polar world is necessary and there are no alternatives.
The American leadership are acting strangely.
President Biden seems to be senile with dementia.
Vice President Kamala Harris appears to be a “ding-bat, dunderhead”.
The US Senate are mostly radical neocon war-hawks.
The Coronavirus pandemic was strange.
All Western nations insisted in mRNA injections.
All Eastern nations treated it as a bio-weapon and used dead-host vaccines.
Western nations are all now “open”, while Eastern nations remain closed.
Full-scale on-going “hybrid-warfare” against the East by the West.
Military engagements, sanctions, trade restrictions on Russia.
Strange unusual events inside of China. All centering around American products, food, livestock, or systems.
A strong difference in the West vs. East societies.
Everyone in the West seem angry, agitated, and frustrated.
Thos in the East are calm, relaxed, happy.
No contrails in the East.
Hyper-inflation hitting the West.
Up-tick in some inflationary measures in the East.
But what does it all mean?
It’s not like I can just immediately agree that all Americans (and those in the west) have nano-bots, and chem-trail poisonings, and all the rest. I see strange behaviors, but I do not see any evidence that the cause is some kind of mad-scientist stew of frequency manipulation, vault 7, nano-bots, MSM algorithms, and the rest.
I have no proof.
And even if I did, I really wouldn’t know what to do about / with it.
So, in the interests of all…
We have to approach the strangeness, not with theories that suggest causes and answers but rather empirical study.
Empirical study
Empirical research is research using empirical evidence. You see evidence. You study it. You come to conclusions about it. You do not come up with theories on the causes. You just put all of the observations into one singular box.
It’s important that you put ALL of the observations in that box. Omitting one singular element can give you distorted or skiewed conclusions. So you collect all the observations…
An American-built plane had a highly unusual crash inside of China.
The plane possessed software that can override the pilot commands.
The plane is of the same make and model that had similiar crashes before.
“Conspiracy kooks” believe that this type of plane can be hyjacked remotely.
The crash came immediately after two warnings to Xi Peng (Blinkedin, and Biden) that there would be immediate consequences if China did not Sanction Russia.
It’s been one week now since the warnings. No other “immediate consequences” occurred (that the public is aware of).
You see, empirical study a way of gaining knowledge by means of direct and indirect observation or experience. Here’s another example.
There are contrails all over the West.
There are no contrials in the East.
And…
Everyone in the West are agitated, upset, angry and frustrated.
Everyone in the East seems to be calm, realxed and comfortable.
And…
While there are exceptions, the vast bulk of injections in the West are mRNA.
There are no mRNA injections in China, and few in Russia.
Empiricism values some research more than other kinds.
A measure of “happiness” is relative.
While a measure of inflation is measurable.
Empirical evidence (the record of one’s direct observations or experiences) can be analyzed quantitatively or qualitatively. And from that, you can suggest what is going on…
Until MM mixed different subjects in the articles (food, girls, China, history), there was a near constant stream of Trolls, and hacking attemps on the site.
When the mixed subjects were introducted, Troll and DDOS attacks dropped to zero.
As well as come up with theories as to why it is going on…
Trolls and hacks use some <unknown method> to select the websites to harrass.
By mixing content within articles, the <unknown method> is bypassed, and the articles are no longer harassed or attacked.
About China
An interesing quote…
We are clearly facing down a world ruled by the Chinese. A lot of people are uncomfortable with that. But most of the discomfort comes from the idea that the Chinese are somehow going to rule us in the same fashion that the US has ruled the world since World War II.
They have no such plans for us. The Chinese have a vision of conquering the world through commerce, rather than war, threats of war, and geopolitical maneuvering.We started out on the issue of the economic dominance of the US, and that economic dominance is indeed the key to everything. However, US economic dominance was entirely a result of US military might. The reigning US philosophy for global economic dominance has been: “we will literally bomb you.”
Conversely, the Chinese philosophy has been: “we will sell you high quality products at reasonable prices.”
When the Mongols consistently raided them, stealing their women and wealth on horseback and riding off with the booty, they said “cannot allow.” Instead of mounting an army to crush the Mongols, they built a gigantic wall, and told the Mongols that if they wanted Chinese products, they would have to buy them at the wall.
It is precisely the same logic as a Chinese immigrant family setting up a store in an all black neighborhood and covering the counter, cash register, and expensive items with bulletproof glass.
China has always been, fundamentally, a merchant empire, and that hasn’t changed. If it were not for the belligerence of the West, they wouldn’t have bothered to build up a large military at all. Historically, virtually every war the Chinese have fought has been a civil war, as they don’t look at the rest of the world as enemies or friends, but rather customers and potential customers.
-UNZ
Cream Cheese Pumpkin Pie
Although pumpkin pie and cheesecake have obviously remained popular, this hybrid, a Kraft classic, has fallen out of favor.
.
This variation on pumpkin pie comes from actress and writer Mae West. It appears in a 1933 community cookbook published by the Assistance League of Southern California, alongside contributions from several other Hollywood stars such as Carole Lombard, Norma Shearer, Constance Bennet, Marion Davies, and Cary Grant.
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2022 03 24 09 50
Unfortunately, Mae West doesn’t give us much information beyond the actual recipe. The pie is titled “Pumpkin Pie Robert,” but it’s unclear what the name “Robert” refers to – it could be the name of a person who gave her the recipe, or perhaps even the name of a place the recipe came from.
Mae West includes brandy in her recipe, which is pushing the boundaries just a little, since the cookbook was published in 1933 and Prohibition wasn’t repealed until the end of that year. She is far from the only contributor to this cookbook to do so, however, and finding alcohol in recipes from the Prohibition years isn’t at all uncommon.
The strangest ingredient in this recipe to me is the Nippy cheese called for in the topping. I wasn’t able to find out exactly what Nippy cheese is, although it looks like it was some type of cheese spread originally made by Kraft. It was apparently not the same as cream cheese, since Kraft made that too, but for lack of a better substitute I decided to go with cream cheese. Any kind of flavored cheese spread honestly sounds like it would be disgusting when combined with whipped cream, so I’m hoping that the original Nippy cheese was something neutrally-flavored.
2022 03 24 09 52
Oh that Mae…
2022 03 24 09 53
Pumpkin Pie Robert:
1 1/2 cups pumpkin
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cloves
2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp salt (reduced from original)
2 eggs
2 cups milk
2 oz/4 tbsp brandy
2 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup heavy cream
Beat the eggs until light, then add the sugar, spices, and salt and beat until mixed.
Scald the milk, then slowly add milk to the egg mixture while whisking constantly.
Stir in the pumpkin and brandy.
Line a pie pan with pastry (no recipe for pie crust is given in the book, so use your favorite recipe or store-bought).
Pour in the filling. With a 9-inch pie pan, I ended up with some extra filling; the recipe is probably intended for a larger or deeper pan.
Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes, then turn down the oven to 325 degrees and bake for another 30-40 minutes. Set aside to cool.
Topping: whip the cream until stiff. Mash the cream cheese with a fork, then stir into the cream. Once the pie is cold, use a piping bag to decorate it with the cream cheese mixture.
Like many pies, this one is definitely at its best the day after its made. When I tried it on day 1, the flavors were much too strong, with the brandy in particular overwhelming everything else. The flavors melded much better the second day, although it was still a strongly-flavored pie. I did end up reducing the salt, since 1 teaspoon seemed much too salty to me.
A nice fun pie. Goes great with coffee.
I liked the cream-cheese topping, but I think I am more of a whipped cream purist. I also wonder whether cream cheese was a good substitute for Nippy cheese, or if the original cheese was something more savory. There are people who put cheddar cheese on apple pies, although I’ve never heard of it used on a pumpkin pie. Was Mae West a cheese-on-dessert-pie person? (I am very firmly not a cheese-on-dessert-pie person – but cream cheese is ok).
Overall, my verdict is that this was a decent pumpkin pie, but it just wasn’t quite to my taste. Sorry, Mae West, but Amelia Simmons’ Pumpkin Pie is still the top historic pumpkin pie for me!
Here’s some more fun gag boxes…
Perfect during these days of Coronavirus.
Perfect during these days of Coronavirus.
For ages two and older.
For ages two and older.
Now with musical Accompaniment. Choose your own theme song.
Now with musical Accompaniment. Choose your own theme song.
A unique, one in a lifetime gift.
A unique, one in a lifetime gift.
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China is still under lockdown
Do not believe the lies that China is reconsidering it’s hard Coronavirus restrictions. Maybe the West has relaxed it’s stance dealing with the “pandemic”, but China has not.
China is still under DEFCON 2; they still accuse the USA of launching bioweapons against it, and they are VERY VERY concerned about the biolweapons labs in Ukraine. They will stay at DEFCON 2 until there is no longer any threat of bioweapon attack from the West.
Here’s a viewo of some of the many many volunteers fighting on this front. video 7MB
Renegade interviews Michael Hudson: Sanctions, the blowback
Ross [00:00:29] Welcome to Renegade Inc. Whatever the outcome in Ukraine, one thing is for sure the economic reverberations will be felt by everyone for years to come as the world divides between the West and a rapidly reshaping Eurasia.
Ross [00:00:49] Michael Hudson, always a pleasure to have you on the programme, welcome to Renegade Inc.
Michael Hudson [00:00:53] Thank you for inviting me.
Ross [00:00:55] Michael, sanctions, sanctions, sanctions is all we hear now. We’re sanctioning people. The West sanction people back to the Stone Age. What are the unintended consequences of sanctions?
Michael Hudson [00:01:05] Well, one is to serve very much like a protective tariff on the sanctioned country. For instance, when America made sanctions on European trade with Russia, Lithuania dutifully stopped exporting cheese to Russia. Well, the result is that Russia set up its own cheese’s sector, and now it’s self-sufficient in cheese. If you sanction a country, you force it to become more self-reliant and across the board, from agriculture to dairy products to technology, Russia is forced to become more self-reliant and at the same time to depend much more on trade with China for the things that it is still not self-reliant in. So America is bringing about exactly the opposite of what it intended. It’s hopeless to somehow isolate Russia and then be able to go after China without Russia. And instead, what it’s doing is integrating the Eurasian core, Russia and China, exactly the policy that Henry Kissinger warned against going all the way back to Mackinder a century ago that said, Eurasia is the world island, Russia and China could be the whole world centre. That’s what the fight is all about. Well, American sanctions are driving Russia and China together, and America has gone to China and said, Please don’t support Russia. It most recently, on Monday, March 14, Jake Sullivan came out and told China, we will sanction countries that break our sanctions against Russia. And basically, China said, fine. You know, we’ll just break off all the trade between East and West now and the East, Eurasia is pretty much self-sufficient. The West is not self-sufficient since it began to industrialise, and it’s heavily dependent on Russia for not only oil and gas, but palladium and many raw materials. So the sanctions are ending up driving a wedge between the European countries.
Ross [00:03:31] Don’t people who apply these sanctions think this through? Are they so short-sighted they don’t understand that these sanctions are going to build further capacity within Russia, push Russia further towards China, make that economic alliance concrete and, ultimately, you’re not going to be able to keep the lights on in in Europe? All the while underestimating the fact that from a food security point of view – take the U.K., for instance, a net importer of food – not appreciating the fact that, for instance, Russia/Ukraine, they create twenty five percent, a quarter, of all wheat annually. The estimation this year is one hundred and two million tonnes Russia and Ukraine, wheat. Don’t people realise that there’s going to be a massive knock on effect?
Michael Hudson [00:04:23] Yes, they do realise it. Yes, they’ve thought it all through. I worked with these people for more than 50 years.
Ross [00:04:31] Who are these people?
Michael Hudson [00:04:32] The neocons, basically, the people who are in charge of U.S. foreign policy? Victoria Nuland and her husband, Robert Kagan, the people that President Biden has appointed all around him, from Blinken to Sullivan and right down the line. They are basically urging people around the New American Century. They’re the people who said America can run the whole world and create its own reality. And yes, they know that this is going to cause enormous problems for Germany. They know that not only will it block the energy that Germany and Italy and other countries in Europe need through their oil and gas, but also it’ll block the use of gas for fertiliser, upping their fertiliser production and decreasing their food production. They look at this and they say, How can America gain from all of this? There’s always a way of gaining what something looks to be bad. Well, one way they’ll gain is oil prices are going way up. And that benefits the United States whose foreign policy is based very largely on oil and gas. The oil industry controls most of the world’s oil trade, and that explains a lot of the US diplomacy. This is a fight to lock the world energy trade into control by U.S. companies, excluding not only Iran and Venezuela, but also excluding Russia.
Ross [00:06:16] So as Europe pushes towards more and more green and renewable energy and this for the Americans they must think it’s a dreadful scenario insofar as they can’t sell the oil as Europe becomes or wants to become more self-sufficient. So ultimately, and Britain net zero, whatever that means. But but going down the renewables path, going down the solar path takes America’s dependency or dependency on America out the game, doesn’t it?
Michael Hudson [00:06:49] This is exactly the point that the European public has not realised. While most of the European public wants to prevent global warming and prevent carbon into the atmosphere, U.S. foreign policy is based on increasing, and even accelerating, global warming, accelerating carbon emissions because that’s the oil trade. Suppose that Europe got its way. Suppose if the Greens got what they wanted and Germany and Europe were completely dependent on solar energy panels, on wind energy and to some extent, on nuclear power, perhaps? Well, if they were completely self-sufficient in energy without oil or gas or coal, America would lose the primary lever. It has over the ability to turn off the power and electricity and oil of any country that didn’t follow U.S. diplomatic direction.
Ross [00:07:48] So when we take your analysis here and we think about how the sanctions are going to build capacity, push Russia and China together, when we start to look at sort of piggy in the middle, if you like the EU, when we’re thinking about America, the EU has had a sort of abusive relationship with the Americans for quite some time now, hasn’t it?
Michael Hudson [00:08:06] Well, that’s that’s true in the sense that EU foreign policy has basically been turned over to NATO. So instead of European voters and politicians making their policy, they’ve relinquished European foreign policy to NATO, which is really an arm of the US military. So yes, Europe has had a decent relationship with the United States diplomatically by saying yes, yes, please or yes, thank you by not being independent. Of course, if it were independent, the relationship would not be so friendly and decent.
Ross [00:08:46] So for countries that are net importers of food, need to keep the lights on, need heating and need cheap oil. How does this pan out? What does it look like for the UK? What does it look like for the EU?
Michael Hudson [00:08:59] Well, Vice President, Kamala Harris the other day said to Americans, Yes, life is going to be much more expensive. Our oil prices are going up and squeezing families. But think of the poor Ukrainian babies that we’re saving. So take it on the chin for the Ukrainian babies. So basically the United States is presenting horror stories of the Ukraine and saying, if you don’t willingly suffer now by isolating Russia, then Russia is going to roll over you with tanks just like it rolled over Central Europe after World War Two. I mean, it’s waving the flag of Russian aggression, as if Russia or any country in today’s world has an army that’s able to invade any other industrial nation. All military can do today of any country is bomb and kill other populations and industrial centres. No nation is able to occupy or rollover any industrial country. And the United States keeps trying to promote this mythology that we’re still in the world of 1945. And that world ended really with the Vietnam War when the military draft ended. And no country is able to have a military draft to raise the army with necessary to fight to invade. Russia can’t do it any more than Europe or the United States could do it. So all the United States can do is wave warnings about how awful Russia is and somehow convince Europe to follow the US position. But most of all, it doesn’t really have to. Europe doesn’t really have a voice, and this is what the complaint by Putin and Foreign Secretary Lavrov have been saying. They say that Europe is just following the United States and it doesn’t matter what the European people want or what European politicians want. The United States is so deeply in control that they really don’t have much of a choice.
Ross [00:11:15] When does the consumer start to feel this? When does the European or British consumer start to feel the pinch when these sanctions are enacted? And what does that look like?
Michael Hudson [00:11:25] Well, it depends on how fast the sanctions work. The United States said Well, in another year and a half, we’ll be able to provide Europe with liquefied natural gas. Well, the problem is, first of all, they’re not the ports to handle the liquefied natural gas to go into Europe. Secondly, there are not enough ships and tankers to carry all of this gas to Europe. So unless there are very warm winters, Europe is not going to have a very easy time for the next few years. And that’s only for oil and gas. It’s dependent on raw materials that Russia produces. For instance, palladium is necessary for catalytic converters. Titanium is necessary to make the screws that are especially used on aeroplanes that are strong enough not to buckle and break when winds go up and down and when they’re full. Russia even produces the neon and the crypton that are necessary for making some kind of electronic uses and also for many components that go into computers and information technology. There’s a whole range of exports that Europe is highly dependent on, and the United States has provided Putin with a whole list of these exports, saying, Well, OK, we’re going to fight against Europe buying your oil and gas but you can certainly sell us your heavy oil that we need since we’re not buying it from Venezuela. We certainly need the following list of critical materials that we need, like helium and crypton. These are our pressure points. Please don’t press on them. Well, you can imagine what Putin and his advisers are saying. Thank you for giving us this list of the pressure points that you’re exempting from the trade sanctions. I think if you really want a break in the unilateral, unipolar world, I think we should break now and see whether you really want to get along without trading.
Ross [00:13:51] Michael Hudson, welcome back, second half, Renegade Inc. Wonderful to have you. In that first half we followed the money, if you like. We talked about sanctions and the unintended consequences. I just want to pull back a little further if we can and just talk about the sort of tectonic shifts that are going on in the world. I spoke to somebody from Russia recently and what he said was very straightforward. He said, now what we have to do is begin to learn to live without the West. Do you think that that sentiment is proliferating across Russia now? Is that the mindset?
Michael Hudson [00:14:22] Well, if you read President Putin’s speeches, that’s exactly what’s happening. And Secretary Lavrov has voiced exactly the same feeling. There’s almost a disgust with the West and a feeling from Putin, Lavrov and the other Russian spokesmen, how could we everhave hoped to have an integration with Europe after 1991? Europe really was not on our side at all, and we didn’t realise that Europe is really part of the U.S. diplomatic sphere. It’s like all of Europe is now backing the attack on Russia. The best to do is reorient our economy towards China, Asia and Eurasia and become our own self-sufficient, independent centre
Ross [00:15:15] De-dollarisation and the amassing of plenty of gold by both the Russians and the Chinese. Just talk us through that.
Michael Hudson [00:15:21] Well, Ross, you asked in the first half of this interview how has American sanctions worked against it? I should have mentioned what you just mentioned, the dollar. The United States just grabbed all of Russia’s foreign exchange reserves, just as England a few months ago grabbed all of Venezuela’s gold that was held in the Bank of England when Venezuela tried to spend this gold on buying medical supplies to cope with the COVID virus. So basically, the United States have said, if any foreign country holds its reserves in the United States or accounts in U.S. banks. If a country in the global south tries to pay its foreign debt by holding its reserves in US banks in order to be the paying agent on the interest on its foreign debt. And if that foreign country does something we don’t like, like trade with Russia or permit more labour unionisation or try to become independent in food, we’re just going to do what we did to Venezuela, what we did to Iran when we grabbed its foreign exchange reserves or what we did to Russia. And that means that other countries all of a sudden see what they thought was their flight to security, what they thought was their most secure savings, their holdings in U.S. banks, US treasury bill, all of a sudden, is holding them hostage and is a high risk. Even the Financial Times of London has been writing about this, saying, how can the United States that was getting a free ride off the dollar standard for the last 50 years, ever since 1971, when foreign countries held dollars instead of gold and basically holding dollars means you buy U.S. Treasury bonds to finance the US budget deficit and the balance of payments deficit. How can the United States kill the goose that’s giving it the free ride? Well, the answer is that other countries can only move into gold and there’s an alternative to the dollar because that’s something that all the countries of the world have agreed upon is an asset, not a liability. If you hold any foreign currency, that currency is a liability of a foreign country, and if you hold gold, it’s a pure asset. There’s no country that can cancel it, the Americans can’t cancel Russia’s gold supply that’s held in Russia, although it can grab Russian gold supply if it were to hold it in the New York Federal Reserve Bank or the Bank of England. So other countries are not only moving to gold, Germany is bringing its gold back from New York, the Federal Reserve, in aeroplanes back to Germany, so it’ll have its own gold just in case German politicians would do something the United States didn’t like and the United States would simply grab Germany’s gold. The United States sanctions, and it’s especially it’s grabbing on foreign reserve, has started a war that is dividing the world between the West and Eurasia.
Ross [00:18:40] A technical part to all of this because let’s face it, it is an information war and it’s also an economic war. Is it the FIRE sector that you point out – the financial, insurance and real estate sector. Is it that they want to continue the exorbitant privilege of credit creation, because ultimately, if you think about gold, there’s no counterparty risk. Gold is gold and it has been for millennia. Far from being a barbarous relic, by the way now, people are starting to realise the intrinsic value, especially as crypto falls apart. Can you just talk a little bit about this, the FIRE sector wanting the exorbitant privilege of creating credit?
Michael Hudson [00:19:19] This is really what the new world division and global fracture is all about. You’re right, Ross. If you look at after World War One, the American fight against Soviet communism, was basically a fight of industrial capitalism against the threat of socialism. But after 1991, and especially in the last two decades, America deindustrialised. So the fight is not by industrial capitalism against countries pushing their labour up. It’s a fight of neoliberalism against industrial capitalism or socialism abroad. It’s against industrial capitalism evolving into socialism. It’s a belief that, well, now that America’s be industrialised, how is it going to control the world economy? Well, it’ll control it through a financial means by being the creditor and foreign countries debt payments to America will enable it to make its military payments abroad and finance its trade deficit. But also, America’s purchase of key natural resources will give it natural resources when its purchase of takeover of real estate is going to essentially make the United States the landlord class and monopoly class, that mediaeval Europe had to hold the rest of the population in serfdom. That basically is the American strategy of neoliberalism fighting against countries that reject privatisation and financialization of their economy, and specifically financialization under the control of U.S. banks, U.S. private capital and allied satellite banks and capital from England or France or Germany. This is exactly the fight. Will banking and finance control the world economy or will other countries try to build up their own economies through labour and tangible capital formation?
Ross [00:21:27] Where do you stand on that? And I’m only asking you to predict the future, Michael. How do you think this plays out? Because the way you’ve depicted it is the rent seekers, the neoliberal rent seekers on one hand, and there are value creators on the other. And by the way, those two things don’t sit very well together, as we know. How does that play out?
Michael Hudson [00:21:51] Even though the United States is the largest debtor economy in the world, it’s a creditor vis-a-vis the global south and other countries and it uses its creditor position to take over their natural resources, real estate, oil and gas, mineral rights and public utilities and natural monopolies and that are being privatised in government infrastructure. It’s becoming basically the landlord monopoly class of the entire world. That’s the U.S. strategy, and that’s the key to why the world is fracturing globally. And in the past, the global south countries were unable to fight against this tendency in the 70s and 80s with the Vendome conference on. But now that China and Russia threatened to be a self-sufficient core in Eurasia, this is the great threat to the American dream of becoming a landlord and financier of the world.
Ross [00:22:50] How do you think this pans out?
Michael Hudson [00:22:52] Well, the question is whether the United States is if we can control the world, who wants to live in a world like that, let’s blow it up. The question is whether the United States will actually go to war. The only lever that it has left is to drop bombs and to destroy and make the world look like Ukraine. So from the U.S. point of view, Europe’s future and Eurasia’s future is the Ukraine. Look at what we will do to you if you don’t follow our policy. America has just moved al Qaeda very heavily in the Ukraine to sort of repeat in Ukraine and Europe what it was doing in Syria and Libya. And the United States says this is what we can do. What are you going to do about it? Do you really want to fight. But the rest of the world, certainly China and Russia says, Well, we’re ready to fight. So there is no telling what you. And it comes down to personalities. Putin has said, well, do we really want to live in a world without Russia? If the United States is to attack us, we might as well end the world. The United States says, Do we really want to live in a world that we can’t control? If we’re not completely in control, we feel very insecure and we’re going to blow up the world. So you have this countervailing position in a world where all the arms control has been dismantled by the United States in the last few years. The United States has withdrawn from all of the agreements that Russia and China have tried to promote. And Europe is standing by and apparently is willing to be the sacrificial lamb in all of this as Ukraine is being the sacrificial lamb. So the United States and Russia say, let’s fight to the last European. And Russia initially didn’t want that because it was hoping that Europe and Russia would have a mutual gain in trade and investment relationships. But now it doesn’t feel that way. And there may be a proxy war between the United States over the European economy, not necessarily bombing Europe, but trade sanctions, energy sanctions, the kind of disruption that Europe is going to be seeing in the next year is if it loses Russian oil and gas and minerals and also, I think Chinese exports.
Ross [00:25:25] Is there a moment where cooler heads prevail and suddenly the West and other places realise that they’re dependent from a food security point of view, from an energy security point of view that we are dependent? And is there a moment at that point that you can thaw a frozen conflict by saying, actually, if we both meet, we just take a step toward each other, actually, we can do something in a collaborative way? Now I get what you’ve said throughout the rest of the programme, and I give this a percentage possibility of about three percent, but isn’t there a strategy to say, actually, we’ve had all the grandstanding, we’ve had all the brinksmanship, we should now sit around the table and try and work something out?
Michael Hudson [00:26:03] I don’t see any cooler heads in the United States. The surprising thing is that here it’s the right wing channel, the Republican Fox Channel, is the only channel that’s taking the anti-war stand and is saying we shouldn’t be at war in Ukraine. It’s the only channel that’s talking about here is how Russia sees the world. Do we really want to take a one sided perspective or do we want to see the actual dynamics at work? So it was the Republicans and the right wing that is now primarily against the NATO war in the Ukraine. The left wing seems to be all for it, but the left wing of the Democratic Party is in office and I don’t see any cooler heads in the Democratic Party at all. And I’ve known many of these people for many decades, and they are willing to go to war for a death. There are still back in the world of World War Two when the fight was against the Nazis and anti-Semitism. They’re still living in a kind of mythology world, not in the real world. And the thought that the world can come to an end either doesn’t have a reality to them or as Herman Cain said, Well, somebody is going to survive.
Ross [00:27:29] Michael Hudson always a pleasure, a great insight. And, you know, it’s just refreshing to hear. Thank you very much for your time.
Michael Hudson [00:27:38] Well, thank you very much for having me, Ross.
On February 21 Russia announced that it would recognize the Donbas republics. A day later it did so. The ‘west’ immediately announced sanctions which in fact had been prepared in advance. On February 24 Russian troops crossed the border into Ukraine.
The Russian ruble immediately took a big hit. It has since recovered a bit.
oday’s news will bring the ruble to a new heights.
Putin instructed to convert gas contracts with unfriendly countries into rublesPresident Vladimir Putin instructed to issue a directive to Gazprom to convert contracts into rubles for unfriendly countries. In his opinion, supplying Russian goods to the EU, the USA and receiving payment in dollars and euros "does not make any sense for us." Against this background, the ruble moved to growth on the Moscow Exchange.“Both the US and the EU have basically defaulted on their obligations to Russia. And now everyone in the world knows that obligations in dollars and euros may not be fulfilled. <...> It is quite obvious that in this regard, it makes no sense for us to supply our goods to both the EU and the USA and receive payment in dollars, euros and a number of other currencies. Therefore, I have decided to implement in the shortest possible time a set of measures to transfer payments for our natural gas supplied to unfriendly countries to Russian rubles,” Mr. Putin said at a meeting with the government.The President instructed the Central Bank and the government to determine within a week the order of operations for the purchase of rubles on the domestic market by buyers of Russian gas. He claims that Russia will continue to supply gas "in accordance with the volumes and according to the pricing principles concluded in the contracts."The dollar exchange rate on the Moscow Exchange fell below 100 rubles. for the first time since March 3rd. As of 15:37, the US currency is trading at 101.55 rubles. (-2 rubles). The euro exchange rate fell by 2.85 rubles to 111.65 rubles. The maximum dollar fell to 94.99 rubles, the euro - to 109.7 rubles.The European Union, the United States, Great Britain and a number of other countries have imposed sanctions against Russia in response to the military operation in Ukraine, which has been carried out since February 24 on the orders of Mr. Putin. One of the measures was the freezing of about half of the Central Bank's gold and foreign exchange reserves ($300 billion).
To pay in ruble one first has to buy rubles. With higher demand for rubles and no change in supplies the price for the Russian currency will go up. As Russia is selling hydrocarbons and other resources for billions of dollars per day the ruble is likely to soon reach record heights.
On February 28 another round of sanctions hit Russia. The part of the Russian central bank reserves that were stored in the ‘west’ were frozen. The central bank immediately pushed its interest rate from 9% to 20% to prevent a flight from the ruble. This helped to lessen the damage but made credit expensive and has hit the future growth potential in Russia.
But with a high new rubles demand from the outside of Russia the central bank will soon be able to lower its interest rate to more normal levels. Credit conditions will ease and investment in Russia, to replace products that had so far been imported, will rise again.
Today’s move to demand rubles for hydrocarbons is only on of the many steps Russia can, and likely will take, to retaliate for sanctions from the ‘west’.
All energy consumption in the U.S. and EU will now come at a premium price. This will push the EU and the U.S. into a recession. As Russia will increase the prices for exports of goods in which it has market power - gas, oil, wheat, potassium, titanium, aluminum, palladium, neon etc - the rise in inflation all around the world will become significant.
As he heads to Europe, President Biden will press U.S. allies to help impose even more aggressive sanctions on Russia.
Biden demands that Europe suicides itself while he is protecting the U.S. industry. I hope that some people in the European capitals are still able to think clear enough to recognize the racket the U.S. is trying to run here:
Together with the economic devastation that U.S. and European sanctions on Russia are causing in their own economies this will end in regime-changes in several European countries. The U.S. is of course again protecting itself from as much as it can at the cost of others.
The question remains, why did all those who for so long foretold this war do so little to stop it, and so much to hasten the disaster Russia has now set in motion?
Indeed. Why didn’t the government of Germany guarantee in writing that it would veto any additional NATO membership? It would have solved at least half of the problem. Why didn’t any other NATO government do so?
And what are they doing now? Where are their initiatives for peace?
Wake up. Otherwise this will end in disaster. Not for Russia but for the rest of Europe.
Kids and cats
Ah. This is funny. Poor kitties, but they know that the big stupid humans can’t be helped. video 124MB
NATO'S STOLTENBERG SAYS ANY USE OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS WILL CHANGE NATURE OF CONFLICT, RUSSIA MUST UNDERSTAND THAT IT CAN NEVER WIN A NUCLEAR WAR.
UPDATE 5:10 PM EDT —
NATO Secretary-General Stoltenberg said that NATO has plans in place to protect all allies from nuclear threat, and that there should be no doubt about its readiness.
MORE:
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned of a “direct clash” between Moscow and NATO forces if peacekeepers from the military alliance are deployed to Ukraine.
Lavrov made the remarks on Wednesday while speaking to students and staff at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) in response to Polish proposals for a NATO and international “peace mission.”
“Our Polish colleagues have already stated that there will be a NATO summit now, we need to send peacekeepers. I hope they understand what is at stake,” Lavrov said, according to Russian state-owned news agency TASS.
STILL MORE:
Russian lawmaker Alexei Zhuravlyov on state TV threatens nuclear strike on Warsaw, Poland and NATO forces or any peacekeeping contingent that might try to enter Ukraine.
Hal Turner Editorial Opinion
This issue has been surfacing far too frequently of late, and there’s a very good reason for it: The West has attacked Russia economically over the Ukraine situation, and has done it so badly that Russia is in actual danger of collapsing as a country.
The West seems to think that Russia’s only option is to sit back and take the sanctions, or change its behavior with Ukraine to abide what NATO and the west wants.
The Russian’s don’t see it that way.
The West PROMISED Russia, after the fall of the Soviet Union, that they would “not move one inch eastward from the Re-unified East-West Germany” (1997). Yet NATO did precisely that in the ensuing years, to the point were NATO nations are now directly bordering Russia.
Those NATO nations have NATO troops rotating in and out of them. The West lies about it by saying they’re only there “temporarily” when in fact, as thousands leave after a few months duty, thousands more come to replace them. The result: An ever-present NATO conventional force.
Then too, there’s the missiles. US Missile Defense systems . . . now in several of the former Soviet Block nations, all aimed directly at Russia.
Ukraine was simply the latest Domino to fall in the long line of NATO expansion. The reason NATO wanted Ukraine has to do with its proximity to Moscow and to Russia’s Strategic Nuclear missile silos. If American missile defenses can be placed on Ukraine soil, they will have a flight time of only 5 minutes to Moscow, and less than ten minutes to Russia’s nuclear silos. Russia cannot defend against missiles that are so close and can travel so far and fast.
Worse, the technology of missiles has evolved and now, the very same “conventional” missiles claimed to be “defensive” can be re-fitted with OFFENSIVE NUCLEAR WARHEADS within an hour. And the re-fit can be done while the missiles remain in their launchers, so no one would know the missiles had been converted from conventional to nuclear.
These facts pose an existential threat to Russia, the very same way that Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba posed an existential threat to the USA under President John F. Kennedy in 1963.
What did Kennedy do? He told the Soviets either those missiles had to go, or . . . . the US would invade Cuba to destroy those missiles. (Gee, the exact same cause for invasion that is now seeing Russia inside Ukraine!)
Yet no one screeched to President Kennedy about Cuba being a sovereign country that could align itself however they liked. No one even questioned Kennedy’s decision that either those missiles go, or Cuba gets invaded. The reason no one questioned it is because every RATIONAL person knew Kennedy was right.
Well, guess what? Today, with the situation in Ukraine, Russian President Putin is . . . . right. He is doing in Ukraine what then-US-President Kennedy was preparing to do with Cuba. It’s no different.
NUKES
Russia knows – and has said publicly – that its conventional military forces cannot compete against the collective force of NATO. But Russia ALSO said (publicly) that they have the largest nuclear arsenal, and their hypersonic missile technology is far superior to all of NATO.
So the Russians, from the start, have made clear they fully understood what they were getting themselves into with Ukraine and the possibility of NATO involvement. Russia would be forced to use nukes. Period.
They knew this. They still know it.
NATO knows it too.
So why then, is NATO’s nitwit, Jens Stoltenberg saying today “ANY USE OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS WILL CHANGE NATURE OF CONFLICT, RUSSIA MUST UNDERSTAND THAT IT CAN NEVER WIN A NUCLEAR WAR.” ?????
One possibility is that Stoltenberg knows that NATO has actual plans to get involved. The latest iteration of those plans is for NATO countries to “enter” Ukraine as a “Peace keeping force.” Russia has made it explicitly clear that if NATO tries such a move, Russia will engage NATO Troops in battle. War will be the result.
Period End.
And since it is already established that Russia cannot win against NATO conventional forces, Russia would have to “go nuclear.” Stoltenberg and the west think Russia wouldn’t dare.
Stoltenberg and the West are wrong.
Russia would.
They’ve said it publicly.
Several times.
The soyboys of the West think they can talk their way out of anything they do. This time, they cannot.
The message from Russia seems to me to be very simple: NATO cannot have Ukraine as a member. Period.
American missile defenses cannot be placed on the territory of former Soviet Block nations. Period.
If my assessment of this Russian Position is correct, then either NATO accepts that these facts are real and stops what it has been doing since 1997 by adding former Soviet Bloc Nations and withdraws NATO troops and missiles from those nations, or NATO refuses to take “no” for an answer, enters Ukraine, and it is World War 3, with nuclear weapons, VERY VERY SOON.
Those appear to me to be the facts.
That no mass-media outlets in the West are bothering to report them to the general public, will leave their citizens blissfully ignorant, until the bright, white, flashes start.
Thankfully, YOU are not being left blissfully ignorant. YOU have chosen to avail yourself of this web site and radio show and as such, YOU know what’s really going on. We are being marched directly into a (NUCLEAR) World War 3.
MAYOR OF KYIV: "WORLD WAR III HAS ALREADY BEGUN AND UKRAINE IS THE BEGINNING"
She is very, very fine. Really nice build and look at that fantastic smile! My goodness, I could just eat her up, I’ll tell you what! video 3MB
Dream griddle and alarm clock.
Wake up on the right side of bed!
Wake up on the right side of bed!
Joe Biden Speech
Interesting stuff…
“We’re at an inflection point [in] not just the world economy [but] the world that occurs every three or four generations,” the president said.“[A general told me that] 60 million people died between 1900 and 1946 and since then we’ve established a liberal world order, and it hasn’t happened in a long while.”“Now is the time when things are shifting and there’s going to be a new world order out there, and we’ve got to lead it. We’ve got to unite the rest of the free world in doing it.”
Here’s what Russia thinks…
Biden says US must lead ‘new world order’
The 46th president highlighted the role Washington would have among the “free” states.US President Joe Biden raised eyebrows on Monday after he claimed a “new world order” would soon be established and that it was up to the United States to lead it.
.
During a speech at Business Roundtable’s CEO Quarterly Meeting, Biden claimed the world was at “an inflection point” which “occurs every three or four generations” and that it was up to the US to determine the outcome.
“As one of the top military people said to me in a security meeting the other day, 60 million people died between 1900 and 1946, and since then we’ve established a liberal world order and that hadn’t happened in a long while,” the president said.
The comment raised eyebrows in both the US and around the world and resulted in ‘New World Order’ becoming one of Twitter’s trending topics on Monday.
The term ‘new world order’ has historically been used to refer to an era of great global change and has been used by politicians such as former US President George H. W. Bush, former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, and former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair.
For decades, however, the phrase has also been the subject of a major conspiracy theory which alleges a secret, elitist plot to form an oppressive global government.
Politicians and government officials have previously received criticism for using the term – most recently Dr. Kerry Chant, the chief health officer of the Australian state of New South Wales.
“We will be looking at what contact tracing looks like in the new world order,” said Chant during a September Covid-19 press conference, prompting the term to trend on social media.
Journalists and other social media users criticized Chant for using the term, with former journalist Chris Urquhart writing that “government officials would be well advised to avoid phrases like ‘the new world order’ when they’re talking at press conferences about massive limitations on people’s freedoms.”
Some comments…
2022 03 24 19 39
A Rufus has understanding
If you are not making the world a better place, you are contributing to it’s destruction. For God’s sake, be good, and kind. If you cannot. Then be neutral. But do not make others sad or hurtful. video 8MB
While the United States goes into hyper-inflation, China is stable
“They’re flying blind, and are too little, too late,” Steve Hanke says in disbelief, an Applied Economics professor of John Hopkins University. “It’s utter rubbish and nonsense” that Fed Chairman Jerome Powell sees supply chain issues as a root cause for inflation, he tells me, as we decipher the Federal Reserve’s latest official statements on the shape of the U.S. economy.“The money supply in excess causes inflation, and the Federal Reserve appears to be almost clueless,”
Hanke shares with me as we discuss last week’s conversation between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
“Obviously the Chinese know this,” which is why their inflation rating is less than 1%, the former Senior Economist on President Reagan’s Council of Economic Advisers articulates to me.
Inflation is always destructive.
I can confirm that while prices have been rising inside of China, it is in no way resembling the kinds of inflation that is being seen in America, Europe or the rest of the West. The reason is simple. China has been managing the flow of USD for payments for decades. THis managment is intentional and it insulates China from inflationary effects of the USD due to poor management of debt by the United States.
United States Inflation Rate Annual inflation rate in the US accelerated to 7.9% in February of 2022, the highest since January of 1982, matching market expectations. Energy remained the biggest contributor (25.6% vs 27% in January), with gasoline prices surging 38% (40% in January).
What happens when your QR goes orange
Everyone must take regular swab tests, and be up to date on their injections. IF you are not, your status goes from green to orange. This video shows what happens when you try to go though a tollbooth with an orange QR code in China. video 3MB
I got this easy recipe from my daughter, who lives in France. It’s become my go-to fondue, and I make it often for our family.
—Betty A. Mangas, Toledo, Ohio
What are you waiting for?
Three Cheese Fondue.
Crib Dribbler.
Perfect for hot soups, milkshakes, and energy drinks.
Perfect for hot soups, milkshakes, and energy drinks.
Europe’s LARGEST Natural Gas Storage Facility: EMPTY
Empty.
The largest natural gas storage facility in northern Europe is now EMPTY of gas.
The facility, run by (Russia’s) GAZPROM, dropped like a rock once Europe instituted economic sanctions against Russia.
With this largest facility now empty, industry will have to shut down for lack of fuel for heating and generation of electric.
With the largest storage facility now empty, the draw-down from all the smaller facilities will speed up by orders of magnitude, emptying them with ten days to two weeks.
What will Europe do when it has no gas to generate electric or to heat buildings?
Of course, all of this trouble has to do with Europe sticking its nose into the affairs of Russia-Ukraine.
Now that Europe is demonstrably running out of natural gas, watch for things between Russia-Ukraine-NATO to get VERY VERY VERY much worse, very fast.
My savvy grandmother whipped up recipes like this homey cinnamon-scented apple pudding in the Depression years. Many of us still make them today.
—Holly Sharp, Warren, Ontario
Grandma Davidson’s Baked Apple Pudding
China is FAST
So President Biden thinks that it will be easy to compete against China. Americans think that it will be no problem, because America is exceptional, and great? This echo chamber in the Untied States that gives this illustion that China is dark, dingy, dirty and backwards, while America is so wonderful is a lie. It amazes me. Becuase this is what China is like… video 21MB
Chinese weddings
The Chinese have heart. Real, honest to goodness heart. video 22MB
China rebukes US as ‘world’s biggest human rights violator’
Beijing has promised “countermeasures” if Washington doesn’t revoke sanctions over Uyghurs
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Beijing has promised to respond in kind unless the US revokes the blacklisting of Chinese officials it said were guilty of human rights violations.
Speaking at a regular press conference on Tuesday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin accused the US of “smearing China, oppressing Chinese officials for no reason, violating international law… and grossly interfering in China’s domestic affairs.”
Wang said Beijing will respond with “reciprocal countermeasures” if the US does not immediately revoke its sanctions.
The statement came after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused the Chinese government of committing “genocide and crimes against humanity” against the Uyghurs, a Muslim ethnic minority living predominately in China’s northwestern Xinjiang Region. He added that Washington has blacklisted Chinese officials who it said were guilty of human rights violations.
Wang responded in kind, calling the US “the biggest human rights violator in the world,” whose historical treatment of Native Americans “constitutes de facto genocide.” He also criticized Washington for the “long-lasting systemic racial discrimination” of black Americans.
Multiple global human rights groups have long accused China of oppressing the Uyghurs and forcing them to work in labor camps. Beijing has denied the allegations, insisting that the Uyghurs are studying in vocational education and training centers as part of state integration and deradicalization programs.
My friends and I have been getting together for "ladies lunches" for years. These vol-au-vents are the perfect no-fuss fancy food; they look complicated, but are actually simple and fun to make. Whenever I think of good friends and good company, I think of these savory pastries.
—Shauna Havey, Roy, Utah
Creamy Chicken Vol-au-Vent.
China can build
OMG! It’s insane how fast and efficiently that China can build things. You all just wait and see what happens when China and Russia build their Moon and Mars cities. video 23MB
A 737 crashed in China.
A Boeing 737 carrying 132 people crashed early Monday in China. Although Boeing’s 737 has faced extraordinarily high-profile safety concerns over the past three years, the plane that crashed Monday was a different version of the aircraft than the embattled 737 Max that shook Boeing to its core.
The cause of Monday’s crash has yet to be determined. The plane had been in service since 2015. The flight, operated by China Eastern Airlines, was flying from the southwestern Chinese city of Kunming to Guangzhou when it crashed.
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It’s crash profile; being a full-throttle nose-dive directly to the ground is highly unusual.
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Evidence suggests any of the following;
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Intentional Pilot (and co-pilot) action to destroy the plane.
Software override of the pilot commands.
Remote operation of the software to override the pilot.
The manufacturer of the aircraft has had problems with the software. Other crashes of similiar planes has been the result of software overrides of the pilot.
We do not know (as of yet) the real cause for this crash. But one thing seems clear, somehow the plane overrode the directions of the pilot. It put the plane in a nose dive straight towards the ground and set the engines on full-throttle, full speed, as it plunged towards the ground.
Why it did so, is unknown.
Yet, the United States government black operations regarding taking control of the software should NOT be ruled out.
This reminds me of HAL in the 1969 movie; “2001; A Space odyssey”.
2001 A Space odyssey
So, Boeing makes aircraft that can override the pilot. Brilliant! Why do you need pilots? How about having full robotic planes?
Maybe it’s because no one will fly in them.
…
Isn’t technology wonderful. Remember when fully automatic self-driving cars were crashing left and right? Yeah, I do. Well, somehow Boeing things that this would be a good thing to implement in passenger planes. Who would doubt it?
Anyways, I have to ask the moronic question of the day…
"Well, with fully robotic planes, then why still have pilots, when the airplane can override the pilot?"
Well, perhaps its because you keep the illusion of human control, when the truth is that the software is in full control…
… as well as the “authorized” owner of that software who can control the plane and tell it to do whatever he/it wants. Like the United States. Hum?
Let’s talk about HAL. Specifically what it did.
HAL
HAL
From the 1969 movie…
HAL is a computer system. And it is built into the Discovery One spacecraft, and is in charge of maintaining all mechanical and life support systems on board.
HAL also has several “eyes” placed periodically around the spacecraft.
About three weeks into the flight, Hal picks up a fault in the AE-35 unit, the system responsible for keeping the satellite dish antenna aligned with the Earth, and states that it will go one-hundred percent failure within 72 hours.
He suggests that they go EVA and replace the faulty unit with a new one.
Dr. David Bowman goes out and retrieves the unit. But when he brings it back and runs it through diagnostics, they can find no problem with the AE-35.
They radio Mission Control about the problem, and Mission Control says that Hal is in error predicting the fault.
HAL
This is a bit of a surprise, as the 9000 series has a perfect operational record.
Noting that this kind of thing has always been because of human error when it has occurred before, Hal suggests that they go out and “replace the malfunctioning unit and allow it to fail.
Then it should be a simple matter to track down the problem.”
But by this time, both Dr. Frank Poole and Bowman are becoming suspicious of Hal’s behaviour. They climb into one of the EVA pods, out of earshot of Hal. Poole states that he has “a bad feeling about him”. Bowman and Poole suggest disconnecting Hal if he is wrong about predicting the fault.
Bowman and Poole suggest disconnecting Hal if he is wrong about predicting the fault.
Unbeknownst to them, Hal read their lips through the window of the spacepod.
Translating their lip motions, Hal learns of their plans for his disconnection; according to Clarke, “he (will) be deprived of all his inputs, and thrown into an unimaginable state of unconsciousness. To Hal, this (is) the equivalent of death. For he (has) never slept, and therefore he (does) not know that one (can) wake again.”
Poole goes out to replace the supposedly malfunctioning AE-35 unit.
As he drifts through space to the satellite dish, Hal takes control of the pod and rams it into Poole, disconnecting his oxygen hose and venting the air in his suit, killing him.
Bowman, obviously distraught by the loss of his friend, goes out to retrieve Poole’s body.
However, while Bowman is out on his excursion, Hal shuts off the life support systems on the three astronauts in hibernation, which kills them all.
Bowman in a pod.
After Bowman returns to the Discovery I, Hal denies him reentry into the pod bay. So Bowman has to maneuver the pod over to the emergency airlock. Unfortunately, in his haste to retrieve his friend, Bowman had not bothered to don the helmet of his life-support suit because he had not believed he would need it, making it very difficult to enter the emergency airlock, as he would have to travel through the vacuum of space in order to do so.
This, however, does not stop Bowman.
Risking the hazards of explosive decompression, he eventually gets inside, grabs a space helmet, and goes to Hal’s logic memory center to erase his memory.
There he pulls out the memory tablets that control Hal’s higher functions.
Disconnecting HAL.
As his memory degrades, Hal begins to give off information programmed very early in his life, such as the date he became operational. When all his logic is gone, he begins to sing the song “Daisy Bell.”
His final act of consciousness is to play a briefing that Dr. Heywood R. Floyd pre-recorded about the Tycho Monolith before their departure, and the real purpose of the Discovery One’s mission. As well that the insane idea that the owner / designers of HAL programmed it to lie.
Now…
Please consider that any systems; any devices; any mechanisms designed by man should NEVER have the capability to override human input.
This is well descried by the move, with the HAL computer system, and it seriously seems to be the case with all these Boeing aircraft crashes.
I can POSITIVELY tell you that one singular event resulting is one singular death would ABSOLUTELY stop the adoption of that system in other industires. It doesn’t matter what industry it is. Ceiling fans. Clothes irons. Motorcycles. Chainsaws. Rifles. One fatality, and the system is gone and will NEVER be revisited.
But somehow these systems in airplanes and automobiles are exceptions. At least in American products.
One cannot help thinking, especially if you ARE an American, that the United States is involved and WANTS the ability of the software to override the driver / pilot in the vehicle.
If you accept that notion…
…then many of the software related “accidents” of planes and automobiles with these systems are used as mechanisms of control by the United States “leadership”.
…
Remember boys and girls…
… REAL secrets are secret.
Every evidence is that this is exactly what is happening. While there might be some debate on the nuiances of implementation, the technologies and the systems involved, one thing is unmistakable…
The seriously ODD behaviors of the United States government is best explained by this exact senario.
…
Think about it.
Break.
Animal death and spirits visiting
All this talk about plunging planes, nuclear weapons, bio-weapons and everything all initiated by the Untied States government is disturbing to me. They obviously have never experienced sorry and grief.
Here are some really great examples of how much fun you can have with your cat friends. video 100MB
Amazing Cats
Cats areally are amazing. Just some great cat adventures. They are truly very special creatures. video 16MB
Happy times
Treasure the times that you have. Make them happy and share them with your friends. Cat love video 18MB
We all need each other now
Now, more than any other time in our lives, we need others. Make friends. SHare your time. Appreciate what you have. Make your life a good one. Be a Rufus. Show friendship. Show love. Show care. video 90MB
Be the Rufus
Take part in society. Stop being a spectator, and stop thinking that everything is someone else’s problem. The future depends on YOU. Take an active role in it. In every way, every day. Be the best you can be and help others. make the world a better place to live in. I believe in your. video 11MB
Make those around you smile
You will bring happiness to your environment. Smile. Say good things. Even if they are lies. Make your environment better. It’s quantum physics 101. video 120MB
Conclusions
I cannot say that one thing or the other is happening, and the causes and reasons for them. Later, I will ask the Domain Commander for some insight. However, right now, I know nothing.
Sure there might be all sorts of reasons for the observed behaviors, the strange actions by the USA and the West, and all the craziness. There’s really no way to really know the actual causes. So don’t worry about it. And believe me, as much as I want to know, the fact is, I don’t NEED to know.
I don’t know anything about chem-trails, nano-bots, or anything like that. I do know that everyone in the United States and the West are acting really, really weird. It’s like they are all having some kind of mass insanity.
After 30 years of glue sniffing euphoria, the US is now crashing.
And when it realizes it is cutting off its limbs to keep its jaundiced organs alive, it will have to make major, and costly, changes in living arrangements.
Mass transit in lieu of suburban sprawl. No more bloated military. A return to local industry and farming. Far more labor intensive cooperatives that actually do things and make stuff. Regional cultural and quasi-sufficiency. The end to industrial entertainment and woke academia. A resurgence of a proletariat based religion of hard work and respect. A return to classical literature and art.
Oh, how to pay for it all on NO budget?
America is in shambles, but the leadership doesn’t realize it yet. It’s like a family living off maxed-out credit, the family is stunned then the credit cards no longer work at the register.
That’s where the USA, and the EU are at right now.
Oh, they still have their shopping list, and two shopping carts filled with expensive steaks, groceries and all sorts of pricy items. But the cashier is there looking impatient, stamping her foot, and ready to call her manager. Oh, you have to pay in cash. She says.
Soon, very soon, the situation will accelerate to something bad.
It’s just really, really fucked up.
FUTURE
Evidence strongly suggests that the remote viewing of the 2025 by the Deagal Report is correct. It also validates the theory of Generational Turnings and the rise and fall of nations.
You will see many more strange things occur in the future.
We are not anywhere near the peak inflection point. But it is moving forward and I hope to be out of it’s way. I hope you all are as well.
BASIC PREP
Hyper-inflation is starting to hit the West. Be prudent.
Make sure that you have a garden, and a larder with lots of basics. Rice. Flour. Canned goods. Powdered milk.
Remember that one Burger King extra value meal is the same price as a massive bag of rice. Remember that one Starbucks coffee is the same prices as a massive bag of flour; and make sure that you have the tools to strain out the flour.
Learn to fish.
Own a bicycle, and use it. If you use it to ride to work one day a week, you will cut your commute expenses by 20%.
Have a solar panel to charge your phone with.
ADVANCED PREP
Have a good supply of your medicines, and lots of antibiodics. Set up a medical kit. Tell your doctor that you are equipping a sailboat for a long sea cruse, and give him a list of medicines for the first aid box. Get the prescriptions and fill it out.
It’s never too late to start. Do not plan on trying to go to the woods and forests. Those places will be crowded with the unprepaired. Your best solution is to “bug out in place”. Be mobile within your well-established community.
If you think that you can survive being alone, I’ve got news for you; that’s a fiction. Survivors are those that band together into groups. There’s strength in community. Read your history.
FUNDAMENTALS
For God’s sakes, turn off that bullshit “news”. It’s all screeching lies.
Have a skill, asset, ability, or feature that you can provide to your community that is beneficial to the community.
If you don’t have one. Get one. Learn, make, create or establish. Volunteer. Network locally.
Handiman skills.
Welding, plumbing, machining, autorepair.
Medical.
Farming, fishing, harvesting, growing.
It doesn’t mean that you will need to endure a post-nuclear fiasco. But in whatever changes that might hit your own individual communities, you will have the skills, networking and abilites to make you locally valuable.
Don’t believe me?
Ask PL. He’s doing this, and is very busy. Maybe too busy for MM here, but it’s the future. Participate. Make a difference. Smile. Socialize. stick to the fundamental basics.
Don’t get caught up in what you cannot change. It’s stressful, don’t you know.
Don’t get all wrapped up in the causes or the reasons, or the people behind the curtains. They won’t be revealed until the history books are written.
Be kind, calm and adaptable. Do your verbal affirmations. Be the Rufus. I beleive in you all.
Do you want more?
You can find more articles related to this in my latest index; A New Beginning. And in it are elements of the old, some elements regarding the transition, and some elements that look towards the future.
Yeah, if you go on to the Western “news” it’s all bullshit. I really cannot believe that anyone believe anything from these people anymore. They lie so much that their lies are lies of lies regarding lies.
The alternative sites, many of which are not the neocon conservative “gung ho! for ‘Merica” sites, show a great healthy respect for Russia, and some for China. Here’s we are going to throw out some stuff as the fluid situation unfolds.
Keep in mind that this is war. It’s chaotic and confusing, and there are all sorts of misinformation out there.
You can find many such websites that have collected blow-by-blow pictures, videos, and opinions / reports as they come in. I’m not going to do that except, maybe put a few interesting elements in place.
To quote DM…
"...the reposts I am hearing have me absolutely bewildred at the ruthless efficiency of the Russian army. I mean MM hinted at it, but its not until you see it in full swing you can really appreciate it."
In summary, in 24 hours, Russia took over the Ukraine. All the fancy and expensive munitions, weapons, ships, planes (supplied by the USA and NATO) were destroyed. There are some very interesting videos out there regarding this. Paratroop drops, jets blowing up the house that you are in, and the “leadership” scurrying away for safety under the great protective arms of the United States and NATO.
Right now, it’s a mop up operation, while the United States and NATO are still arguing what kind of “tough sanctions” that they will impose… or, more likely, what kind of emotionally driven (by manipulated polls) action that they could take.
My guess, could be a very BAD action, resulting in VERY BAD consequences.
But as it stands today, 25FEB22, most (but not all) of the Ukraine is under Russian control. The vast majority of American-trained (since 2014) Neo-Nazi troops laid down their arms and entered the protective corridors to their families to wait out the situation in peace. So now, we are talking about phase two…
We start with this…
Russia is ready to sit down and talk now that the Ukraine has been suppressed.
Objective and accurate report of the Russian objectives:
However, in the eyes of Putin and most Russians, the latest move serves as a counterstrike against the Western squeezing of Russia’s security room with extreme measures and a relatively large-scale showdown in wrestling with the US, a view that is also shared by the majority of Chinese.
“Circumstances require us to take decisive and immediate action,” Putin’s order read. In an address to the public, the Russian president said he wanted to “demilitarize” and “de-Nazify” Ukraine, Russia Today said. Putin further said, “We have no plans to occupy Ukrainian territory.”
“Demilitarize” could be understood to be putting down arms and surrendering, which can also be understood as incapacitating the opponent and rendering them unable to form a threat in a broader sense, Song Zhongping, a Chinese military expert and TV commentator, told the Global Times on Thursday.
“As a result, Russia will completely destroy the heavy weapons of Ukrainian troops, including warplanes, tanks and armored troops as well as defense forces, such as air defense missile forces and the navy,” Song said.
Russia announced it has destroyed Ukraine’s airfields, air defenses and control systems just a few hours after it launched the military operations.
“And as we take the measures announced by the president to ensure the security of the country and the Russian people, we will certainly always be ready for a dialogue that will return us to justice and the principles of the UN Charter,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said late on Thursday.
Yury Tavrovsky, head of the “Russian Dream-Chinese Dream” analytics center of the Izborsk Club, told the Global Times that Russia’s military operations in Ukraine are “completely legal.”
Both chambers of Russia’s Duma (parliament) had earlier approved recognition of Donetsk and Lugansk as “independent states.” The Upper Chamber (the Senate) later approved use of armed forces outside the national borders, Tavrovsky explained.
The military operation was launched just one day after the US and Europe unveiled what is believed to be just the first round of sanctions against Russian individuals and institutions in response to Putin’s signing of two decrees recognizing Lugansk and Donetskas independent and sovereign states.
As global markets tumbled steeply over the Ukraine-Russia crisis, some raised questions as to why Russia took this step, how the situation will evolve and whether the US will engage in a direct war with Russia.
Moscow’s motivation
In a phone call with Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Thursday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov explained the development of the Ukraine situation and Russia’s position, saying that the US and NATO violated their commitments by expanding east, refused to implement the new Minsk Agreements, and violated UN Security Council Resolution 2202, forcing Russia to take necessary measures to safeguard its own rights and interests.
Noting that China has always respected the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries, Wang said that China recognizes the complex and special historical context of the Ukraine issue and understands Russia’s legitimate security concerns.
China maintains that the Cold War mentality should be completely abandoned and a balanced, effective and sustainable European security mechanism should be finally established through dialogue and negotiation, Wang said.
“China believes there should be mutual cooperation and sustainable security, and the reasonable security concerns of all parties concerned should be respected and solved,” Hua Chunying, spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said during a press conference on Thursday.
Some Chinese observers said the US has continued its intensive containment of Russia, for example, by implementing more sanctions, finally forcing Russia to try to realize its security demands in this drastic way.
Russian elites such as Putin and Deputy Chairman of Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev believe that the Ukraine issue has reached the point where it must be resolved.
“I believe Russia’s military operation is a reaction by Moscow to Western countries’ exertion of pressure on Russia for a long time, showing that Moscow can’t tolerate it anymore,” Yang Jin, an associate research fellow at the Institute of Russian, Eastern European, and Central Asian Studies under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Thursday.
“As to how the situation will evolve, I think we need to spend more time to observe it. First thing first, we need to focus on the attitude of the US, on whether Washington will launch a direct war against Russia,” he said, noting that everything depends on how NATO and the US will react.
If the entire military operation goes smoothly, Russia could reach its target of fully controlling Ukraine, and what worries NATO most is whether Russia will then carry out further operations again the three Baltic countries, namely Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, Li Haidong, a professor from the Institute of International Relations of China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Thursday.
The US and NATO are now observing how the situation evolves. The US and NATO have been training Ukraine troops since 2014, and it’s time to see if they will confront Russian troops and for how long they will fight them. “As long as Russia does not engage in military conflicts with NATO members, there won’t be direct confrontation between NATO and US [on one side] and Russia [on the other],” Li said.
Now, keep in mind that this is directly after the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. You know, that one that the United States, the UK, and the Australians decided to sit out of for one concocted reason or the other…
The entire opening ceremony for the 2022 Winter Olympics
At 2:11:01 is the meaningful symbolic embrace performance that made all the Chinese and some Taiwanese get all emotional. It’s about community and family and inclusion.
Nice hyper-cute Chinese girl
I think that it would be a nice spot to include this fine Chinese lass. My oh my! Look at that terrible communist regime! Look how dirty and polluted it is! Look at how thin she is, it’s obvious that the regime starves her. She must be pining away for freedom™ and democracy™, don’t you know!
That is not all that unlike America in the early 1950s. Here’s a winter scene. It’s in front of a neighborhood gas station. I wonder if they still have these things back in the ‘states. Notice the smiling and happy woman, and the rag-top (or convertible) in the back. Calm. Easy. Fun.
Like China is today.
Calm and fun United States in the 1950s.
From the Black Sea to the East Med, do not poke The Russian Bear
This is what happens when a bunch of ragged hyenas, jackals and tiny rodents poke The Bear: a new geopolitical order is born in breathtaking speed.
From a dramatic meeting of the Russian Security Council to a history lesson delivered by President Putin and the subsequent birth of the Baby Twins – the People’s Republics of Donetsk and Luhansk – all the way to their appeal to President Putin to intervene militarily to expel the NATO-backed Ukrainian bombing-and-shelling forces from Donbass, it was a seamless process.
The (nuclear) straw that (nearly) broke the Bear’s back – and forced its paws to pounce – was Zelensky the Comedian, back from the Russophobia-drenched Munich Security Conference where he was hailed like a Messiah, saying that the 1994 Budapest memorandum should be revised and Ukraine should be nuclear-rearmed.
That would be the equivalent of a nuclear Mexico south of the Hegemon.
Putin immediately turned Responsibility to Protect (R2P) upside down: an American concept invented to launch wars in MENA (remember Libya?) was retrofitted to stop a slow-motion genocide in Donbass.
First came the recognition of the Baby Twins – Putin’s most important foreign policy decision since going to Syria in 2015.
That was the preamble for the next game-changer: a “special military operation (…) aimed at demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine”, as Putin defined it.
Up to the last minute, the Kremlin was trying to rely on diplomacy, explaining to Kiev the necessary imperatives to prevent heavy metal thunder:
recognition of Crimea as Russian;
abandon any plans to join NATO;
negotiate directly with the Baby Twins – an anathema for the Americans since 2015;
finally, demilitarize and declare Ukraine as neutral.
Kiev’s handlers, predictably, would never accept the package – as they didn’t accept the Master Package that really matters: the Russian demand for “indivisible security”.
The sequence, then, became inevitable.
In a flash, all Ukrainian forces between the so-called line of contact and the original borders of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts were boxed in as the occupying force of territories of two Russian allies that Moscow had just sworn to protect.
So it was Get Out – Or Else.
“Or else” came as rolling thunder: the Kremlin and the Russian Ministry of Defense were not bluffing.
Timed to the end of Putin’s speech announcing the operation, the Russians decapitated with precision missiles everything that mattered in terms of the Ukrainian military in just one hour: Air Force, Navy, airfields, bridges, command and control centers, the whole Turkish Bayraktar drone fleet.
And it was not only Russian raw power.
It was the artillery of one of the Baby Twins, the DPR, that hit the HQ of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in Donbass, which actually housed the entire Ukrainian military command.
This means that the Ukrainian General Staff instantly lost control of all its troops.
This was Shock and Awe against Iraq, 19 years ago, in reverse: not for conquest, not as a prelude for an invasion and occupation.
The political-military leadership in Kiev did not even have time to declare war.
They froze.
Demoralized troops started deserting.
Total defeat – in one hour.
The water supply to Crimea was instantly re-established.
Humanitarian corridors were set up for the deserters.
“Remnants” now include mostly surviving Azov batallion Nazis, mercenaries trained by the usual Blackwater/Academi suspects, and a bunch of Salafi-jihadis.
Predictably, Western corporate media has already gone totally berserk branding it as the much-awaited Russian “invasion”. (A reminder: when Israel routinely bombs Syria and when the House of One Saudi routinely bombs Yemeni civilians, there is never any peep in NATOstan media.)
As it stands, realpolitik spells out a possible endgame (see Donetsk’s head, Denis Pushilin: “The special operation in Donbass will soon be over and all the cities will be liberated.”)
We could soon witness the birth of an independent Novorossiya – east of the Dnieper, south along Sea of Azov/Black Sea, the way it was when attached to Ukraine by Lenin in 1922. But now totally aligned with Russia, and providing a land bridge to Transnistria.
Ukraine, of course, would lose any access to the Black Sea.
History loves playing tricks: what was a “gift” to Ukraine in 1922 may become a parting gift a hundred years later.
It’s creative destruction time
It will be fascinating to watch what Prof. Sergey Karaganov masterfully described, in detail, as the new Putin doctrine of constructive destruction , and how it will interconnect with West Asia, the Eastern Mediterranean and further on down the Global South road.
President Erdogan, the ceremonial NATO Sultan, branded the recognition of the Baby Twins as “unacceptable”.
No wonder: that definitely smashed all his elaborate plans to pose as privileged mediator between Moscow and Kiev during Putin’s upcoming visit to Ankara. The Kremlin – as well as the Foreign Ministry – don’t waste time talking to NATO minions.
Lavrov, for his part, had a recent, very productive entente with Syrian Foreign Minister Faysal Mekdad. Russia, this past weekend, has staged a spectacular strategic missile display, hypersonic and otherwise, featuring Khinzal, Zircon, Kalibr, Yars ICBMs, Iskander and Sineva – irony of ironies, in synch with the Russophobia-fest in Munich.
In parallel, Russian Navy ships of the Pacific, Northern and Black Sea fleets performed a series of submarine search drills in the Mediterranean.
The Putin doctrine privileges the asymmetrical – and that applies to the near abroad and beyond.
Putin’s body language, in his last two crucial interventions, spell out nearly maximum exasperation.
As in realizing, not auspiciously, but rather in resignation, that the only language those neo-con and “humanitarian” imperialist psychos in the Beltway understand is heavy meal thunder (they are definitely deaf, dumb and blind to History, Geography and Diplomacy, for that matter. Not to mention they never accepted their defeat in Syria.)
So we can always game the Russian military, for instance, imposing a no-fly zone in Syria to conduct a series of visits by Mr. Khinzal not only to the Turk-protected shady jihadist umbrella in Idlib but also the jihadists protected by the Americans in Al-Tanf base, near the Syria-Jordan border. After all these specimens are all NATO proxies.
The United States government barks non-stop about “territorial sovereignty”.
So let’s game the Kremlin asking the White House for a road map on getting out of Syria: after all the Americans are illegally occupying a section of Syrian territory and most of all adding extra disaster to the Syrian economy by stealing their oil.
NATO’s stultifying Stoltenberg has announced the alliance is dusting off its “defense plans”: that may include little more than hide behind their expensive Brussels desks. They are as inconsequential in the Black Sea as in the East Med – as the Empire remains quite vulnerable in Syria.
There are now four Russian TU-22M3 strategic bombers in Hymeimim base, each capable of carrying three S-32 anti-ship missiles that fly at supersonic Mach 4.3 with a range of 1,000 km. No Aegis system is able to handle them.
Russian TU-22M3 strategic bomber.
Russia in Syria also has stationed a few Mig-31Ks in Latakia equipped with hypersonic Khinzals – more than enough to sink any kind of US surface group, including aircraft carriers, in the East Med. The US has no air defense mechanism whatsoever with even a minimal chance of intercepting them.
Mig-31K equipped with hypersonic Khinzal missile.
So the rules have changed.
Drastically.
The Hegemon is naked.
The new deal starts with turning the post-Cold War set-up in Eastern Europe completely upside down.
The East Med will be next.
The Bear is back, baby.
Hear him roar.
Well, what about the ruthless, moronic, idiots running the “West”?
And how will the USA respond?
The Americans are obviously in a state of apoplectic rage and anxiety right now.
The American Overlord will likely descend further into insanity and violence, as its sense of imperial entitlement to rule the world just got pimp slapped by the Russian bear.
Oh, no. You can be sure that they do not like what is going on, and you can be sure that they are ready to just toss the boardgame up in the air in defiant frustration.
What is next is anyones guess, but it just cannot be good.
The collective West will be seething – no Black Sea base near Crimea – their dreams up in smoke again.
So impotent with rage – they get out their sanctions manuals and try and find the worst they can possibly find to hurt Russia and have a fleeting feeling of satisfaction and power until they realise inflation is going through the roof, they have no energy to make anything, their industries start failing, can’t grow anything and they can’t heat their homes. And the glutinous fat cats in the EU have nothing to do and wonder how long their jobs will be around as it was their so clever idea to sanction their main energy supplier and now have no fertilizer to grow anything. The peasants will be bellowing outside wanting their pound of flesh.
You would think that they would just do their pontificating, but I would think that the evil “it’s time for the rapture! Let’s bring on MAD nuclear engagement now!” neocon crowd is pressing for a full scale nuclear “response”.
If that happens, the USA will be completely destroyed.
Bad news. You bet.
But, you know, the Commander did say “little bads, not big bads”. So we will see. One thing is for certain; Imperial hubris meets Karma. And it’s a bitch.
I didn’t copy the whole thing. I just shake my head. Can they actually BELIEVE what they write? Or is their opinion of American people so so that they think that they will believe it?
"...unprovoked invasion."
Nice small cute and adorable girl
Somehow, she reminds me of a very cute little mouse. Maybe it’s the outfit. Anyways, it’s pretty awesome and what a nice tight little outfit she is wearing. I’ll get that she has all the boys chasing her!
A classic of 1950s Americana, Cheeseburger Pie is the most comforting of weeknight casseroles: sautéed onion and ground beef, baked under a simple batter of flour, baking powder, eggs, and milk and a rich topping of cheddar cheese. Serve it in thick wedges with an easy celery and romaine heart salad.
Cheeseburger pie. Why not?
Cheeseburger pie slice.
US Foreign Policy Is a Cruel Sport
Bear baiting was long ago banned as inhumane. Yet today, a version is being practiced every day against whole nations on a gigantic international scale.
From HERE at the Greenville Post. Another excellent article.
In the time of the first Queen Elizabeth, British royal circles enjoyed watching fierce dogs torment a captive bear for the fun of it. The bear had done no harm to anyone, but the dogs were trained to provoke the imprisoned beast and goad it into fighting back. Blood flowing from the excited animals delighted the spectators.
This cruel practice has long since been banned as inhumane.
And yet today, a version of bear baiting is being practiced every day against whole nations on a gigantic international scale. It is called United States foreign policy. It has become the regular practice of the absurd international sports club called NATO.
United States leaders, secure in their arrogance as “the indispensable nation,” have no more respect for other countries than the Elizabethans had for the animals they tormented. The list is long of targets of U.S. bear baiting, but Russia stands out as prime example of constant harassment. And this is no accident. The baiting is deliberately and elaborately planned.
As evidence, I call attention to a 2019 report by the RAND corporation to the U.S. Army chief of staff entitled “Extending Russia.” Actually, the RAND study itself is fairly cautious in its recommendations and warns that many perfidious tricks might not work. However, I consider the very existence of this report scandalous, not so much for its content as for the fact that this is what the Pentagon pays its top intellectuals to do: figure out ways to lure other nations into troubles U.S. leaders hope to exploit.
The official U.S. line is that the Kremlin threatens Europe by its aggressive expansionism, but when the strategists talk among themselves the story is very different. Their goal is to use sanctions, propaganda and other measures to provoke Russia into taking the very sort of negative measures (“over-extension”) that the U.S. can exploit to Russia’s detriment.
The RAND study explains its goals:
“We examine a range of nonviolent measures that could exploit Russia’s actual vulnerabilities and anxieties as a way of stressing Russia’s military and economy and the regime’s political standing at home and abroad.
The steps we examine would not have either defense or deterrence as their prime purpose, although they might contribute to both.
Rather, these steps are conceived of as elements in a campaign designed to unbalance the adversary, leading Russia to compete in domains or regions where the United States has a competitive advantage, and causing Russia to overextend itself militarily or economically or causing the regime to lose domestic and/or international prestige and influence.”
Clearly, in U.S. ruling circles, this is considered “normal” behavior, just as teasing is normal behavior for the schoolyard bully, and sting operations are normal for corrupt FBI agents.
This description perfectly fits U.S. operations in Ukraine, intended to “exploit Russia’s vulnerabilities and anxieties” by advancing a hostile military alliance onto its doorstep, while describing Russia’s totally predictable reactions as gratuitous aggression.
Diplomacy involves understanding the position of the other party.
But verbal bear baiting requires total refusal to understand the other, and constant deliberate misinterpretation of whatever the other party says or does.
What is truly diabolical is that, while constantly accusing the Russian bear of plotting to expand, the whole policy is directed at goading it into expanding!
Because then we can issue punishing sanctions, raise the Pentagon budget a few notches higher and tighten the NATO Protection Racket noose tighter around our precious European “allies.”
For a generation, Russian leaders have made extraordinary efforts to build a peaceful partnership with “the West,” institutionalized as the European Union and above all, NATO.
They truly believed that the end of the artificial Cold War could produce a peace-loving European neighborhood.
But arrogant United States leaders, despite contrary advice from their best experts, rejected treating Russia as the great nation it is, and preferred to treat it as the harassed bear in a circus.
The expansion of NATO was a form of bear-baiting, the clear way to transform a potential friend into an enemy. That was the way chosen by former U.S. President Bill Clinton and following administrations. Moscow had accepted the independence of former members of the Soviet Union. Bear-baiting involved constantly accusing Moscow of plotting to take them back by force.
Russia’s Borderland
Ukraine is a word meaning borderlands, essentially the borderlands between Russia and the territories to the West that were sometimes part of Poland, or Lithuania, or Habsburg lands.
As a part of the U.S.S.R., Ukraine was expanded to include large swaths of both. History had created very contrasting identities on the two extremities, with the result that the independent nation of Ukraine, which came into existence only in 1991, was deeply divided from the start.
And from the start, Washington strategies, in cahoots with a large, hyperactive anti-communist anti-Russian diaspora in the U.S. and Canada, contrived to use the bitterness of Ukraine’s divisions to weaken first the U.S.S.R. and then Russia. Billions of dollars were invested in order to “strengthen democracy” – meaning the pro-Western west of Ukraine against its semi-Russian east.
The 2014 U.S.-backed coup that overthrew President Viktor Yukanovych, solidly supported by the east of the country, brought to power pro-West forces determined to bring Ukraine into NATO, whose designation of Russia as prime enemy had become ever more blatant.
This caused the prospect of an eventual NATO capture of Russia’s major naval base at Sebastopol, on the Crimean peninsula.
Since the Crimean population had never wanted to be part of Ukraine, the peril was averted by organizing a referendum in which an overwhelming majority of Crimeans voted to return to Russia, from which they had been severed by an autocratic Khrushchev ruling in 1954.
Western propagandists relentlessly denounced this act of self-determination as a “Russian invasion” foreshadowing a program of Russian military conquest of its Western neighbors – a fantasy supported by neither facts nor motivation.
Appalled by the coup overthrowing the president they had voted for, by nationalists threatening to outlaw the Russian language they spoke, the people of the eastern provinces of Donetsk and Lugansk declared their independence.
Russia did not support this move, but instead supported the Minsk agreement, signed in February 2015 and endorsed by a UN Security Council resolution.
The gist of the accord was to preserve the territorial integrity of Ukraine by a federalization process that would return the breakaway republics in return for their local autonomy.
The Minsk agreement set out a few steps to end the internal Ukrainian crisis.
First, Ukraine was supposed to immediately adopt a law granting self-government to eastern regions (in March 2015).
Next, Kiev would negotiate with eastern territories over guidelines for local elections to be held that year under OSCE supervision.
Then Kiev would implement a constitutional reform guaranteeing eastern right.
After the elections, Kiev would take full control of Donetsk and Lugansk, including border with Russia. A general amnesty would cover soldiers on both sides.
However, although it signed the agreement, Kiev has never implemented any of these points and refuses to negotiate with the eastern rebels.
Under the so-called Normandy agreement, France and Germany were expected to put pressure on Kiev to accept this peaceful settlement, but nothing happened.
Instead, the West has accused Russia of failing to implement the agreement, which makes no sense inasmuch as the obligations to implement fall on Kiev, not on Moscow.
Kiev officials regularly reiterate their refusal to negotiate with the rebels, while demanding more and more weaponry from NATO powers in order to deal with the problem in their own way.
Meanwhile, major parties in the Russian Duma and public opinion have long expressed concern for the Russian-speaking population of the eastern provinces, suffering from privations and military attack from the central government for eight years.
This concern is naturally interpreted in the West as a remake of Hitler’s drive to conquest neighboring countries.
However, as usual the inevitable Hitler analogy is baseless. For one thing, Russia is too large to need to conquer Lebensraum.
You Want an Enemy? Now You’ve Got One
Germany has found the perfect formula for Western relations with Russia: Are you or are you not a “Putinversteher,” a “Putin understander?” By Putin they mean Russia, since the standard Western propaganda ploy is to personify the targeted country with the name of its president, Vladimir Putin, necessarily a dictatorial autocrat. If you “understand” Putin, or Russia, then you are under deep suspicion of disloyalty to the West. So, all together now, let us make sure that we DO NOT UNDERSTAND Russia!
Russian leaders claim to feel threatened by members of a huge hostile alliance, holding regular military manoeuvers on their doorstep? They feel uneasy about nuclear missiles aimed at their territory from nearby NATO member states? Why, that’s just paranoia, or a sign of sly, aggressive intentions. There is nothing to understand.
So, the West has treated Russia like a baited bear.
And what it’s getting is a nuclear-armed, militarily powerful adversary nation led by people vastly more thoughtful and intelligent than the mediocre politicians in office in Washington, London and a few other places.
U.S. President Joe Biden and his Deep State never wanted a peaceful solution in Ukraine, because troubled Ukraine acts as a permanent barrier between Russia and Western Europe, ensuring U.S. control over the latter.
They have spent years treating Russia as an adversary, and Russia is now drawing the inevitable conclusion that the West will accept it only as an adversary.
The patience is at an end. And this is a game changer.
First reaction: the West will punish the bear with sanctions! Germany is stopping certification of the Nordstream 2 natural gas pipeline. Germany thus refuses to buy the Russian gas it needs in order to make sure Russia won’t be able to cut off the gas it needs sometime in the future. Now that’s a clever trick, isn’t it! And meanwhile, with a growing gas shortage and rising prices, Russia will have no trouble selling its gas somewhere else in Asia.
When “our values” include refusal to understand, there is no limit to how much we can fail to understand.
The Fall Of Utopia: Absolutely Amazing Digital Art Works Of Quin Wu
This brutalist interpretation of a McDonald’s in Russia forms part of architect Quin Wu’s artwork series “Big Mac in Snow”, which bridges the gap between two confrontational ideologies—Soviet Russia and the ultra-capitalist fast food franchise.
In his work, Quin Wu gives us a clear understanding of how fragile the balance is in today’s society. And how easy it is today to fall into the abyss between good and evil.
“All images posted here are my personal work. They are computer generated renderings. The architectural themes range from house designs to environment scenes to social critiques.
During the peak of Covid-19 on 2020, I gave it a try to learn some programs that are commonly used in the game industry.
I am a believer that tools are extension of the mind. Gradually polishing skills in modeling, texturing, compositing, rendering etc., I am able to materialize some of my thoughts into actual images. It has been a very fun journey,” he writes.
Here’s another.
And yet another.
Some nonsense from the Western Press
China has lifted restrictions on Russian wheat and barley as of yesterday, the day Russia invaded Ukraine.
Australia’s Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, is criticising the move
.
Meanwhile, Defence Minister Peter Dutton says China could persuade Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the invasion
RUSSIAN economic sanctions in response to the “Sanctions from Hell” from Biden / NATO
The United States imposed a series of economic sanctions upon Russia this week (last week of February 2022) in response to the recognition by Russia of Luhansk and Donetsk as “Independent states.”
In response, the Russian Foreign Ministry said today “new US sanctions will be met by a ‘strong response’, ‘sensitive for the American side.’
NATO / US sanctions:
The EU imposed sanctions against 351 State Duma deputies who voted for the recognition of the DPR and LPR, as well as against 27 individuals and organizations. Then, EU EXEC. VP DOMBROVSKIS ANNOUNCED: “IF RUSSIAN SOLDIERS ENTER UKRAINE BEYOND SEPARATIST-CONTROLLED, SELF-PROCLAIMED REPUBLICS, THE EU IS PREPARED TO IMPOSE A SECOND SET OF SANCTIONS ON MOSCOW.”
RUSSIAN retalitory sanctions;
Secretary of the General Council of United Russia and Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Andrey Turchak said that Russia is indifferent to the sanctions imposed by the West and their consequences.
When asked what options the Russians might employ against such Sanctions, an Intelligence Analyst source responded in a general manner…
Russia could close airspace to civil airlines of the countries that sanction Russia. That would be hugely disruptive to international flights.
Russia could declare that Russian exports must now be paid for in Rubles, gold, etc.
Russia could stop all sales of anything to USA (space rocket motors and oil especially).
Russia could break all contracts with countries that sanction Russia on the grounds that a state of hostility exists. That is, all oil and gas deliveries stop immediately.
Russia could announce that no more gas will be shipped to or through Ukraine on the grounds that a state of hostility exists. Russia won’t sanction anyone. They don’t play with gloves. They will stop the natural gas deliveries to Europe, and the entire world economy collapses.
Assuming a fantasy best case scenario (fantasy, because it will NEVER happen), Europe’s LNG terminal unloading capacity, even working 100%, 24/7, assuming a non-stop stream of tankers, can only match under 17% of what Russia delivers. Needless to say, European economy goes belly up the next day, and the WESTERN world will follow.
And when that happens, countries automatically pivot direct to war. A lot, including the US, get granted war powers that allow the state…
to seize the means of production and distribution,
set price controls,
require civilians to operate and maintain critical infrastructure
being drafted/forced into service,
set curfew and movement restrictions,
suspend constitutions and civil rights,, etc.
It can get very draconian very quickly. But will not change the outcome : full economical collapse.
Add to that the pure mad-max SHTF when the is no food in the cities. There isn’t much a government can do, TODAY, that can avoid the worst case scenario.
We’re NOT in 1916 or 1940, when most of the world lived on country-side, and produced food.
We’re not in 1916 or 1940, when the supply chains were extremely short (hell, you could use carriages then to supply the economy and the people).
We’re in 2022, after 2 years of constant economic decline, millions of companies that went bankrupt, an inflation that needs just a nudge to go up faster then an hyper-sonic missile, and supply chains that are thousands of miles long. Maters not what government do, it’s going to be the biggest SHTF ever. Most likely the last SHTF.
Russia and China would roll out their counter-SWIFT. It’s already in prototype stage, and ready to “turnkey” into operation.
They could abandon the “petrodollar” too. That would FUCK everyone in the WEST. Most especially those in Europe and the Untied States because they don’t have any gold. All they have is paper.
Nice Chinese girl with a filter
I guess it is a generational thing, but a lot of the Chiense girls like to use these “filters” and decorate their videos with them. They are really quite awesome, and some are jsut silly while others are funny. Check out the filters on this woman. Watch how they follow her face and movment. The tracting and positioning are exceptional!
I am getting emails from all types of sources about Ukrainian cities already being liberated. The problem is that there are, as predicted, A LOT of fakes out there, including from anti-Putin Russian interests. So rather than risk getting it wrong and list those cities, I will just offer a few comments and then take a break.
Enormous Operation
I was expecting an operational-level Russian operation, but what I see today this is clearly a strategic operation. This is way bigger than what I expected.
In the eary phases
We are in the very early phases of the operation, but I see all the usual signs of a Ukrainian strategic collapse. By tomorrow morning we should know a lot more.
The initial strke was very successful
The first strike phase of the operation has been extremely successful and the Ukrainian ground forces are now not only without any kind of cover or support (the Ukie Air Force and Navy passed away today), they are also without orders: not only has the Ukronazi HQ in the Donbass been totally destroyed, the Russians are, no doubt, putting down their EW blanket on the full area of operations.
Operational envelopment to be completed soon
I think that by tomorrow evening the operational envelopment of the Ukie forces in the eastern Ukraine will be completed. After that, only two types of Ukie soldiers will be left: those who surrendered and the dead.
Major cities are secured
The Russians have either approached or even surrounded several major Ukrainian cities. I won’t list them now. Why? Because by tomorrow we will have that list confirmed.
Belarus
Belarus is fully backing Russia (Lukashenko was very emphatic about that today), as does Iran. Our Chinese friends have been rather restrained and proffered only well-intended generalities, let’s see if that changes in the future.
Narrative is out of control
I also suspect that tomorrow will be the last day for the US PSYOPs to try to control the narrative, after that there will be too many cellphones with cameras to conceal the magnitude of the disaster.
For this reason, I still expect a major false flag.
Refugees
The Poles and Hungarians have declared that they fear a massive influx of refugees and that they are therefore deploying more forces to the border to “control the situation”. These forces could be easily and quickly moved inside the Western Ukraine to seize the Lvov and Ivano-Frankovsk regions. Best of all (for them) is that they can be pretty sure that the Russians won’t object. And with all the NATO facilities in the Ukraine being destroyed right now, the Russians can toss this (mostly Nazi) and faraway bone to whoever in the EU who wants it (The Hungarians are probably too smart for that, but the Poles???). Whatever may be the case, I expect a minor NATO operation into the western Ukraine in the next couple of days. Frankly, I couldn’t care less.
Major Risks
Another MAJOR risk is the presence in the Ukraine of A LOT of very dangerous part of the civilian infrastructure (including 15 nuclear reactors which barely function) The Ukies have already blown up at least one (pretty small) damn near Lugansk. I hope that the Russian and Belarusian special forces will secure these facilities as soon as humanely possible.
Russian Black Sea fleet
Next: watch the Russian Black Sea fleet. Something tells me that tomorrow we will see it A LOT and, probably, along the entire Ukie coast.
No long-term occupancy
Last but not least. Iraq has shown that it is one thing to destroy an army, and quite another to deal with an insurgency, even one armed with only small arms and RPGs. I remain categorically opposed to any Russian mid/long occupation of the Ukraine. I am confident that Putin will soon declare the end of major combat operations (if only because there won’t be many enemies left) and that many Russian forces will begin a pullback.
But the nightmare of having hundreds of thousands of assault rifles distributed to “the population” but which, in reality, armed what NATO will want to see as a “stay behind insurgency” will begin. And I want the Ukrainians to fight that battle by themselves, with some Russian help if needed, but not by hiding behind Russian forces.
So A LOT really depends on the people of the Ukraine: the coming days will show us who and what they are. Now is the time for them to do the right thing.
That’s it. I wish we had more info, but here we need to stop and wait.
By tomorrow we will know A LOT more.
Goodnight everybody
Andrei
A new American political party…
Here is the statement from the newest political party in the States – The National Justice Party:
The National Justice Party hopes that the situation can be resolved with as little bloodshed as possible on all sides and considers the spilling of any Russian or Ukrainian blood a tragedy. We reject the false and childish narratives about the conflict that are being promoted in Western media and place the lion’s share of blame for the escalation on the shoulders of the US and NATO, who have instigated this crisis from the beginning and cynically lied to their own citizens.President Biden has vowed to make Russia pay a steep price, but the only people he is capable of making pay anything are Americans and European citizens. Oil and natural gas prices are expected to spike even further as a result of the conflict, placing the burden for US/NATO geopolitical games on ordinary Americans and Europeans who have no interest in a hostile relationship with Russia. On February 22nd the German government, under orders from NATO, revoked the certification for the Nordstream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Germany, thus putting the project that would alleviate the energy bills of millions of Germans in further jeopardy.
Nice Chinese girl in her home
And she is nice. Why not enjoy a fine cup of coffee while sitting down and listening to mellow jazz?
China has blamed the US for creating the tensions which led to Thursday’s Russian attack on Ukraine. Beijing further called on the international community to avoid “stoking panic” over the situation.
During a press briefing, China’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said the key question was the role played by the Americans, whom she branded “the [main] culprit of current tensions.”
“If someone keeps pouring oil on the flames while accusing others of not doing their best to put out the fire, such kind of behavior is clearly irresponsible and immoral,” Hua said. China objects to “any action that hypes up war,” she added.
Chunying accused the US of hypocrisy, asking whether Washington had respected the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iraq and Afghanistan, where she said it had “wantonly killed innocent people.” She called on the US to “take these questions seriously and abandon double standards.”
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Describing the unfolding events as “complex,” the spokeswoman confirmed that Beijing was not providing military support to Russia, and said China was not “jumping to any conclusions” over the situation.
She called on all sides to “work for peace instead of increasing tensions” or “stoking panic.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a military attack on Ukraine on Thursday, which he said was aimed at demilitarizing and “denazifying” the country. He accused the West of flooding Ukraine with advanced weaponry and ramping up the NATO presence in the country, arguing that the Russian “special operation” was necessary to protect the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, which Moscow has recognized as sovereign states.
Russia’s military action has prompted an international outcry and threats of new, large-scale sanctions. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Thursday that Kiev had cut diplomatic ties with Moscow.
Nice Caddy
Now, this is one dream car that I would be just proud to drive about in. I love everything about this scene. From the burgandy color of the car, to the fine slacks on that cute blonde next to that lucky man.
Washington, DC
Nice Chinese girl
Well, here in China, you won’t see too many natural blondes, but you will see a lot of fine attractive women. Like this gal, for instance…
I parsed some info source and I can offer a few quick reactions to what is taking place. The operation is bigger than what I had predicted. However, I STILL don’t believe that Russia wants to invade the Ukraine.
Let’s first see what Russia has already done using ONLY HER STANDOFF WEAPONS:
The Ukrainian air defenses have ceased to exist
The Ukrainian air force has ceased to exist
The Ukrainian navy has ceased to exist
The Ukrainian command and control are severely disrupted with many command posts destroyed
All the military airfields in the Ukraine are now not operational
Numerous supply dumps of ammo, petroleum and lubricants have been destroyed.
Russia controls the entire Ukie airspace and all the Ukie coastal waters in the Black and Azov seas.
Next, let’s see what LDNR and Russian forces are, apparently, doing right now:
The LDNR forces have broken through the Ukie defenses in two locations and have penetrated 7-10km behind the LOC.
These forces advanced with fire support from Russia
The Ukie forces have built fortifications for 8 years, so the progress against the bulk of the Ukie ground forces is slow. HOWEVER
It appears that the Russian have decided to encircle the entire Ukronazi force on the Donbass by a pincer movement from the north and south
It is my opinion that Russia will encircle the Ukie forces, the entire Ukrainian force along the LOC and then wait for them to surrender thereby minimizing losses on both sides. In other words, the Russians are trying to lock the Ukies in an operational cauldron and basically remove these forces from the equation.
Second, Putin has clearly stated the Russian goals: demilitarize and denazify the Ukraine.
The first element, disarmament, is already well under way.
The denazification implies some kind of regime change. There are reports of Russian forces near Kiev and I believe that a “hunt for Nazis” will be conducted in one way or another.
Interestingly, the Russians have totally surrounded the city of Kharkov, but have not moved in (yet). This makes perfect military sense, but it also signals, or so it seems to me, that Russia wants to avoid as much as can be to get involved in offensive combat operations in big cities and also wants to avoid killing civilians. Mind you, the military which could take Grozny in 2000 can *easily* and *quickly* storm any Ukie city (if only because Ukies and Chechens are almost polar opposites in terms of their combat abilities). But why do through the bother?
When possible, the Russian will surround the Ukie cities, blockade them and wait for the white flags to appear.
Whether that is possible or not I can’t tell, and what will happen to Mariupol next will be interesting: this time, yes, the city shall be liberated, but it will be interesting to see how much resistance the LDNR/Russian forces will encounter.
BTW – does anybody now about any webcams/geocams for Mariupol?
Intermediate conclusions:
Basically, this 08.08.08 on a much larger scale: move in, disarm, withdraw.
My guesses (not more, it is waaaay too early to tell!) is that:
The Ukie forces along the LOC will be surrounded and neutralized. Once that goal in achieved, most of the Ukrainian ground threat will simply disappear. True Nazis will be shot, the rest disarmed and sent home. Their weapons will go to the LDNR.
LDNR and Russia forces will advance deep inside the Ukraine, but only to execute specific missions, after which they will be pulled back to the legal border of the LDNR (with a few exception possible for specific, local reasons).
The Ukronazi leadership will run away and Kabul like scenes are possible. Some will be caught.
The Nazi regime in Kiev will be regime changed to some other regime which will accept a Russian ceasefire and the opening of direct negotiations with both the LDNR and Russia. Eventually, a general ceasefire will be proclaimed.
I still think that a NATO (Polish?) ground operation into the Lvov and Ivano-Frankovsk regions is likely. Officially to “protect our allies and friends” but in reality with two goals:
Save face
Establish a mini-Banderastan under Polish control in western Ukraine
Feed the hyena of Europe
The Kremlin might think otherwise, but I don’t have a problem with that as long as a semi-civilized and semi-sane regime is put in power in Kiev.
There will be elections, of course, which nobody in the West will initially recognize. That’s fine. Nobody in Russia cares about Uncle Shmuel or his Euro-rodents.
Now Biden (I forced myself to listen to him, again!) is aping Obama and promises that sanctions from hell will cripple Russia. Bernhard, at Moon of Alabama, made an interesting comment today: “The Russian stock market is down but gold, oil and gas are up and Russia has so far lost zero money“. I am sure that he is correct.
And, yes, in the short to mid term, sanctions will also have some negative effects on some sectors of the Russian economy. However, in the mid to long term I think that energy costs will provide Russia with a real windfall of money. At the Russian SC meeting, Mishustin appeared to be fully relaxed, focused and calm.
Besides, as I mentioned yesterday, the recent surge in energy prices over the past month have already refunded Russia all the money invested into NS2, and that is BEFORE the (inevitably upcoming) lawsuits against Germany 🙂
In a recent post I “recognized” both President Biden and Chancellor Scholtz for doing everything in their power to force Russia to intervene.
Today I want to recognize the truly immense contribution of “Ze” himself, and the Nazi nutcases around him. He was the first to mention that Banderastan wanted to acquire nuclear weapons. The Nazi nutcases in the Ukie regime and social media immediately picked up this truly “brilliant” idea.
I want to sincerely thank “Ze” specifically for:
Forcing the Russian to intervene (Nazi and nukes are a bad combo in any Russian’s mind!)
Frankly, “Ze” did a lot for Russia, and I think that Putin should let him flee to the West. But the one guy I want to see in handcuffs and tried in Odessa is Aleksei Goncharenko.
Yeah, I did say in Odessa, didn’t I?
Which brings me to one more possibility: Russia cannot leave the Ukie Black Sea coast under any kind of Nazi or pro-NATO control. Hopefully, the next regime in power in Kiev can deal with that, and Russia can help if needed. But if not, I think that the Black Sea Fleet might have to conduct the operations needed to make sure that no part of the Black Sea coast is ever used to threaten Russia again.
I would MUCH prefer if the Ukrainian people themselves cleaned their own house. But if they can’t, then, okay, Russia can help as long as her intervention is temporary.
In fact, I would categorically oppose any longterm Russian intervention in the Ukraine beyond the LDNR. I don’t think that it will happen anyway. But a short term denazification operation might be unavoidable and I accept that.
Putin had no good option left. Russia, as a nation, had no good options left. So they chose the “least bad option” possible. So far, I like what I see very much.
But while the initial standoff strikes are now mostly over, it will take time to liberate, disarm and stabilize the LDNR and the Ukrainian territories adjacent to it.
Also, I can’t imagine the CIA/MI6/Bellincat/CNN and the rest of them not executing at least ONE major false flag of some kind. Not because that will change anything, but because that is what they are (kinda) good at.
Last, and very deliberately least, its over for the EU. The EU was always a US colony, but now it will sink to a new low with Europeans losing any remnants, however tiny, of self-respect they might have retained. From now on, the EU is Uncle Shmuel’s punkass bitch (forgive the profanity, but that is what fits best in my opinion). All I can say about that is this: those who have no self-respect cannot expect to be respected by others.
That’s it on my end.
Your turn now.
Cheers
Andrei
American Biolabs in the Ukraine
The US biowarfare labs have been i the back of my mind for a while now. Since they (mostly) seem to be located next to Russian borders (I wonder why?), would it be better to use standoff weapons to incinerate these labs and all the materials inside of them, or capture them and remove or destroy the biowarfare agents very carefully? No easy answers.
Other info was provided.
Apparently Putin is targeting all the bioweapons sites with direct missile hits and destruction.
And now, the Chinese are stepping up to the plate with their own warnings for the out-of-control moronic United States…
PLA general warn US over Taiwan… With the words “or else… “
“The special military operation in Donbass will soon be over and all the cities will be liberated.”
Russian Defense Ministry
“According to intelligence, the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ troops and service members are leaving their positions in large numbers, dropping their weapons. No strikes are being carried out on the positions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ units that have laid down their arms.”
China FM spox accuses US of ‘inciting war’ in Ukraine
Hua Chunying has said the Russia-Ukraine situation reflects a “complex historical background,” after Moscow implemented a “military operation” in Donbass.The FM spox accused Western media of using the word “invasion” but did not when US military decided to initiate ‘armed actions in Afghanistan and Iraq.’She continued to lambast Washington for its role – condemning America for ‘hyping up tensions and inciting war, while selling over $1.5BN worth of weapons.’
Peskov
The demilitarization of Ukraine, which is one of the goals of the Russian military operation, means the neutralization of its military potential
Nice Chinese girl
Let’s wrap this all up on a positive note…
Some fine “eye candy”. Keep in mind that according to the American and UK press “news” that the Chinese are terribly malnourshed, starving waif in need of freedom™ and democracy™. They jsut cannot wait to adopt the “American way of life”, become a transexual and shart a showing some enormous booty!
Wrapping everything up in my concluding statements
This is a time of enormous change. The balance has recentered and the fulcrum is now in the favor of Asia. The Western “leaders” are scrambling, and theya re in Check Mate. No matter what they do will cause hardship for them. All they can do is quite limited.
Flip the table and destroy the world in a MAD nuclear senario.
Try to minimize the damage as much as possible.
My guess is the idiots will do something terribly irrational, erratic, and dangerous. (As if they haven’t already.)
Buckle up.
Remain calm.
It’s like jumping into a pool of icy cold water. Once you get over the shock, it becomes rather nice there.
Do you want more?
You can find more articles related to this in my latest index; A New Beginning. And in it are elements of the old, some elements regarding the transition, and some elements that look towards the future.
Well it is true. I discovered this sound while looking for information on vintage cast iron doorstops and came across an article on the subject. then I went on Kouguo and started download the tunes. Wow! Quite an unusual sound.
How to describe it?
Have you ever woken up on the couch in the middle of the night to find yourself staring at a black-and-white movie from the 1930s flickering on the TV? If so, your slumber may have been gently stirred by the film’s melancholy soundtrack.
Drifting between dream-state and consciousness, at first you may think you recognize the tinny strains of a slow Argentine tango, but then you discern a melody suggesting a Chopin nocturne, albeit one that’s been tuned to an even gloomier minor key of an Eastern European klezmer dance number. Perhaps you’re still dreaming?
In fact, you’re wide awake, and what you’re hearing is a Hollywoodized version of Polish tango.
It’s a popular genre of sentimental songs composed between 1918 and 1939 by classically trained Polish musicians.
“That’s the soundtrack of interwar Poland,”
…says Juliette Bretan, a journalist and researcher based in Lincolnshire and studying in London.
“The music is very melodramatic and really rather sad, filled with these depressing lyrics about people wanting to take their own lives, or the fights they’re having with their lovers. But it’s also a very mature sound, a very Polish sound. Had World War II not happened,”
She adds,
“I believe Polish music would’ve had an even bigger impact than it did on the global stage.”
Bretan has been on a mission to learn about her Eastern European roots.
“We know my grandmother was taken from Poland in 1941 to perform slave labor in Germany,”
Bretan says.
“We think she was in some camps for a time, but it’s very unclear. After the war, she met my granddad in a displaced-persons’ camp, but we don’t really know what happened to him before that. They married and then came here in ’46 or ’47, and that was that.”
As Bretan delved into her family’s history, Polish tango became her soundtrack.
“I stumbled onto this music purely by chance,”
she says.
“I find the sound intoxicating, so it became a connection to the world my grandparents would’ve known when they were living in Poland. On the one hand, for me, the music is like a reconnection to my heritage, but on the other hand, what is there to reconnect to? That heritage is all gone, so it’s almost like I’m writing a new history of my family.”
Bretan fell hard for Polish tango, which, in an article for culture.pl, she described as
“merging pinches of the age-old Polish romantic and sentimental melodies with Jewish inflections and a more modern, brassy sound, dripping in glissandos and vibrato.”
There is some very interesting background on all this regarding the inter-war years when Germany embraced nationalism in the form of Nazi Facism. But I really don’t have the stomach to get into that right now. I just want to enjoy the music.
History
Tango was first introduced to Poland in 1913, with the performance of Victor Jacobi’s opera Targ na Dziewczęta (Girls’ Market) at the New Theatre in Warsaw. Its popularity over the following years grew not from palpable influences, but gramophone records, the radio and newspaper reports.
This popular consumption through media prompted Polish tangos to carve their own position in the history of the nation’s music: with a lack of direct contact, pieces began to veer away from the original Argentinian form, adopting a more melancholic sound influenced heavily by klezmer, and a softer melody and harmony; replacing the underlying rhythm of the stereotypical bandoneon with a proliferation of slides and rigorous vibrato. Theirs was a journey that blossomed along with the Polish state itself – these tangos were bulwarks of a new, revitalised Polish popular culture.
In 1925, Henryk Gold and his brother Artur established the Gold Orchestra, an 8-piece jazz band that played regularly at the Cafe Bodega in Warsaw. At first, the orchestra exclusively played ragtime, but soon, with the echoes of a more exotic yet wistful sound creeping across the continent, it slowly began to dabble with tangos and waltzes, styles that would become the pair’s legacy.
A year later in 1926, Artur Gold and his cousin, Jerzy Petersburski, co-founded the Petersburski & Gold Orchestra. By the end of the decade, it was one of the most renowned dance orchestras in Warsaw, performing in the fashionable Adria restaurant.
Alongside this development was the growth in popularity of theatres and cabarets, the most significant being the Qui Pro Quo theatre, led largely by Julian Tuwim and Marian Hemar, and, later, the Morskie Oko cabaret.
These two groups competed fiercely to recruit the best Polish stars of the interbellum era: artists like the now legendary Eugeniusz Bodo (often pictured with his dog, Sambo) and Mieczysław Fogg, who performed alongside Mira Zimińska, Zula Pogorzelska, Adolf Dymsza, and the smouldering Hanka Ordonówna.
Experiments in 1920s music, which at the time were coming thick and fast, now had epicentres from which new innovations and styles could thrive: Poland was beginning to embrace tango-fever like nothing else.
The Wall Street Crash and subsequent global economic downturn in the late 1920s hit entertainment establishments hard. Both Qui Pro Quo and Morskie Oko closed in 1933 – but the music passionately cultivated by the artists of these clubs only played louder, and interest in the style swelled. By the 1930s, Poland – and particularly Warsaw – was seeping with the sensuous melancholic passion of the tango, with new tunes churned out on a daily basis.
Above all, the record company Syrena Rekord, Poland’s first and arguably most eminent recording company, helped facilitated the development of this culture. Established in 1908 by Juliusz Feigenbaum to satisfy the Polish demand for popular music, Syrena Rekord was already booming on the eve of WWI, producing 2.5 million records a year.
But it was after the war that the popularity of the company truly soared: where other record companies fell following the economic depression, Syrena jumped from strength to strength.
The music of 1930s Poland that Wars helped produce was influenced not only by traditional Polish countryside folk motifs, but also by the cosmopolitan nature of the interwar state: after regaining independence, the Polish nation exploded in freedoms of cultures, languages and lifestyles, with Warsaw the pivot. Entertainment united these disparate voices in a pleasant environment, providing a means by which any style could be heard and appreciated.
This was particularly true for the Jewish population, who were integral to the Polish interwar music scene. Jewish composers, singers, songwriters and musicians, many of whom originated from families steeped in traditions of classical music, found liberty in popular culture, combining their efforts with other previously-silenced minorities and cultivating an original sound for the new nation.
The Syrena founder Feigenbaum himself epitomised this atmosphere: a Catholic of Jewish descent, he worked as a musician, composer, inventor and businessman – the ultimate cosmopolitan multi-talent that inspired a generation of Poles to follow.
Though Polish Radio was the driver behind the record business at the time, they only wanted to push the most renowned artists – making Syrena the only medium by which all the Polish popular music of the period, all the new melodies and styles and flairs, could reach the heights of fame. Waltzes like Szklanka Wina – Fest Dziewczyna!, slow-foxes like Już Jestem Taka Głupia, and foxtrots like Nikodem and Tokaj perpetually quavered from gramophones and echoed out of the doors of fashionable nightclubs across the country in the 1930s.
But it was the wealth of unique tango sounds that the Polish population craved the most. With its influences from Eastern European, Jewish and Gypsy music, these particular interbellum pieces spoke to the population like no other music could: a population characterised by a tumultuous history, an investment in multi-culture, and the desire for sophistication and charm.
Poles of the 1930s were allured by the exotic yearning desire of such music: the quivering Slavic intonations, the broken passion, and enigmatic performers. The artists themselves sustained the vision through the adoption of a multiplicity of enthralling pseudonyms, adding a soupçon of piquant mystery to the culture.
Biggest hits
The breakout tango hit of Syrena happened early: in 1929, Petersburski’s Tango Milonga [provided below] (with lyrics by Andrzej Włast) burst onto the scene and quickly became not only a national favourite but also a widespread international triumph, with the English title being Oh Donna Clara. The aching cadences and swelling Eastern European melody gave the piece a lively originality, and it is no wonder that it is still remembered by many as a classic interwar tune.
But there were also other tangos which had a momentous impact in Poland. The popular Umówiłem Się z Nią na Dziewiątą premiered in 1937, sung by Eugeniusz Bodo, with a legacy that lasts even today. The yearning 1935 hit Graj Skrzypku, Graj portrayed by the rich voice of Adam Aston and the charming tones of Mieczysław Fogg, among many others, was characteristic of the tango culture emerging at the time.
Meanwhile, the 1932 piece Rebeka, and its 1934 complement Rebeka Tańczy Tango epitomised the figure of the heartbroken female lover, a trope found in so many tangos of the period. Another of Petersburski’s greats, the ominous lament To Ostatnia Niedziela, nicknamed ‘Suicide Tango’, came in 1935 and still remains a symbol of pre-war Polish culture.
Here’s some examples.
See if any of you find it appealing.
There’s something about violins, Accordion & Concertina music. It gives me the chills. I hope you all enjoy this playlist.
An Interview with Noam Zylberberg
From HERE. All credit to the author, and kindly note that it was edited to fit this venue.
It was an exciting time in music history – there was nothing to base these songs on. The result was something simple but not simplistic. That’s what I love about it,’ says Noam Zylberberg. The musician, who is performing Polish pieces written and composed in the Interwar period, told us about the sound he is trying to resurrect.
Noam Zylberberg studied conducting at the Jerusalem Academy of Music. He became fascinated with interwar Polish music and established Mała Orkiestra Dancingowa (The Little Dancing Orchestra), which has played concerts in Poland and abroad. Their first album was released this year.
Juliette Bretan: So let’s start from the beginning. Where do your links to Poland come from?
Noam Zylberberg: My grandparents were born in Warsaw but left Poland in 1934. They were young. They wanted to follow their ideals and reinvent themselves. My grandmother’s family were Warsaw people going back many generations and so Warsaw has always been present in my life.
JB: When did you begin to become more involved with Poland and Polish culture?
NZ: I became curious after my grandparents passed away – I was still very young, but I began wondering about their pasts. They never spoke Polish at home, but I’d heard about their lives and families in Warsaw. This fascination followed me into my student years and still does till this day.
JB:Did your interest in interwar Polish music begin from that period?
NZ: Not really; It was a long time until I discovered this music. It all started through an interesting family connection – one of my grandmother’s cousins, Tadeusz Raabe, was a friend of Antoni Słonimski’s. Tadeusz was from a wealthy background – his family owned a factory.
When World War I broke out, they had to leave to Russia. During those years, Tadeusz spent time in Moscow and Saint Petersburg. That was when he discovered their modern art cafés and avant-garde culture – which didn’t exist in Poland at all.
Back then, Poland was in the midst of the Young Poland movement; art was very serious and patriotic. So when Tadeusz returned home, he opened the first modern art café in the city with Antoni Słonimski, who in turn brought with him Julian Tuwim. This was the famous Pod Picadorem cafe.
Later, he also married a well-known singer and movie star, Tola Mankiewiczówna. When I first learned about this, her name meant nothing to me. I found a video online of her singing the tango Odrobinę Szczęścia w Miłości (A Little Luck in Love). If I’m honest, I wasn’t that taken by it – it’s a video of her dressed as a maid, shining a shoe, and at that time I didn’t understand Polish, so I didn’t know what she was singing about.
JB: And when were you taken by these songs?
NZ: I gradually became more familiar with these songs, and as I started to learn about different individuals and pieces I began to think that it would be cool to do something with them, though I didn’t exactly know what. There was something special about these pieces. I was interested in the sound – it’s such a specific sound of the 1920s and 1930s.
The main genre of this style is the Tango.
It was popular all over Europe in the early years of the 20th century, but its life in Warsaw was longer than abroad. Tango was being danced to in Warsaw in the 1920s, but it was only towards the end of that decade that the local musicians began composing them. The first initiative was taken by Jerzy Petersburski and his cousins, the Gold brothers.
JB: What makes a tango Polish?
It’s difficult to answer the question of what makes a Polish tango. I don’t know if I have a good answer, but I suppose there’s a certain softness; the basics of tango are there, but everything else is from a different world. There’s a different warmth to it; it’s less aggressive.
One good example of a Polish tango is O Piękna Nieznajoma (O Beautiful Unknown Woman). It’s split into two parts – a chorus and an interlude. It’s very soft and lyrical; there’s an elegant countermelody in the background; it’s very sophisticated. It sounds almost like an aria from a Puccini opera. When the intersection comes, it’s like a reminder– ‘this is tango!’
That part is as if not connected to the rest of the song, and when the main theme returns, you can almost forget that it’s really a tango: the only thing that suggests tango at the beginning is the rhythm, like an engine in the background. Everything else is water.
JB: And what about the multicultural aspects of Poland back then – the mix of Poles and Jews and Ukrainians and other minorities?
NZ: It was multicultural – but they were all Poles. They all spoke the same language. Most of the Jewish composers and musicians came from assimilated families. They may have come from different backgrounds, but they shared similar values. Almost all of them were professional musicians, and they all received classical musical education.
They knew what they were doing – if they used a Jewish-sounding motive, it was done deliberately. The same way they also wrote songs in Spanish style about Spain, even though most of them probably hadn’t been there – for the audience, going to the cabarets and the theatres was their way of travelling and accessing something exotic.
They worked quickly. A piece composed one morning could be played the same evening. If something didn’t work the way they’d hoped, they could change it the next day. This way of work is like experimenting in a laboratory. This allowed a new style to take shape relatively quickly. They were even writing for particular musicians, basing their arrangements on who would be in the band on any particular day. One day, they might have three clarinets – so they would arrange the piece for them. The next day, they might have one – and so the next arrangement would be different.
The specific musicians and instruments played a big role in shaping this style. This is what differed it from early pop music played in Berlin or London at the same time.
JB:How were the instruments different?
NZ: A good example is the Hawaiian guitar, which features in so many songs from the period. The main musician playing it was a man called Wiktor Tychowski – he was crazy about the Hawaiian guitar. It’s actually him playing it in a lot of these recordings – the other musicians probably liked working with him – it featured so much that eventually it became a characteristic of the style. Tychowski was just one person but he left a mark – each of these individuals had influence.
JB:And what was the next step for you?
NZ: I spent a lot of time getting to know the style and the people, and then I went through the songs online and made transcriptions of them. Still in Tel Aviv, my idea was to collect a group of people together to play Polish tangos and have dance parties … you know, a very underground scene, playing in a dark basement with hipsters who don’t even look you in the eye – that kind of thing.
Eventually, I never actually set it up. Instead I started travelling to and from Warsaw and met up with some musicians in the city – and one day I just stayed. I spent my time making transcriptions and preparing scores – mostly tangos at that stage.
JB: So you said you transcribe these songs to be able to perform them?
NZ: Yes. When we talk about style, a lot of it has to do with instrumentation. The notes that were published and were available to the public have all the harmonic and melodic information but don’t include any instrumentation, so they’re not helpful for playing in the original style. So I use old recordings and transcribe them.
We try to follow the stylistic traditions of the time – it will never be 100% the same, and that’s not what we want. We’re different people living in a different world, and we’re not interested in imitation. But we try to think about it in similar terms to those in which they were thinking when they created it.
For example, the instruments didn’t change that much, but the technique and approach did. Back then violin players tended to use a lot of portamento – sliding from note to note. But today this is considered bad playing. I can’t ask my violinists to completely change their technique, but I want them to know about it. I want them to be informed, to listen and understand why it sounds the way it sounds.
JB: Do you think this music is coming back into fashion? There seem to be a lot of performers like you whose repertoires include these songs.
NZ: Yes, but each group is doing it differently. There’s room for everyone.
JB: Has this sound always been here, or did it dissipate in 1939?
NZ: In the late 1940s, for a few more years, you could still hear reminiscences of the style in Warsaw. But most of the musicians of the previous generation were gone by then – some perished in the war and other immigrated soon after – and the sound changed. The style back then was based on people; they made it the way it was.
JB: So what about those who survived and kept playing and singing – the best example being, of course, Mieczysław Fogg?
NZ: Fogg’s style changed – you could even say he was a different singer between the 1930s and the 1970s.
What Fogg did – what we owe him for the most – was to be a symbol. Because he was here, he became a symbol of old Warsaw. Some musicians who stayed couldn’t find themselves in the new world. But after the war, Fogg recorded the songs from the 1920s and 1930s in new versions. The songs Fogg didn’t record are mostly forgotten, and those he recorded are the ones we remember. He’s responsible for that.
JB: So what made the Interwar period special?
NZ: It was a peculiar and interesting time all over the world, and it was the beginning of pop culture. Before, there had been serious and folk music – but not pop. The world was changing quickly; technological advances and changes in the social structure changed the way people lived. Suddenly, you have recording and films that need music, and cities were getting larger. It was the first time in history when people had money and time and wanted to have fun. Consumers of culture grew, so there was a need for music.
This music had to be invented. There were questions – ‘How do you write a pop song?’ ‘How long should it be?’ ‘How should you sing one?’
Many of the early songs just don’t work anymore; they’re not relevant and no one speaks this way, so they can’t connect. But things changed – there was an influx of artists, many from Lwów (today’s Lviv), who could create charming rhymes and simple feelings.
JB: And how are your performances taking this into account? Are you performing at the moment?
NZ: There is still more to do – there always is. We perform at SPATiF [a club in Warsaw] regularly, and we have the album, which was produced with the support of Polish Radio.
Almost all of our musicians come from a classical background – they’re a bunch of people who are interested in exploring . None of them grew up with these sounds. This style is not natural for modern musicians. So we have to think: ‘How do we achieve this?’ So even just the way of thinking about the notes was something that we had to work out together.
One point is swing. Today, everyone knows what swing sounds like, but back then, it was something new and unnatural. When we started rehearsing, it sounded more like New York in the 1950s than Warsaw in the 1930s. We had to forget it. Even in concerts, I’ll remind the musicians not to swing. When you start swinging in these songs, everything falls apart and that engine dies. The piece gets heavier – it should be light.
JB: And do you have any favourite pieces?
NZ: One song which is close to me is Codziennie Inna (Different Every Day), which opens our album.
It wasn’t part of our original repertoire – but we had a concert in SPATiF and a couple of the musicians were running a little late. Eventually, we couldn’t wait any more so, in the meantime, I decided I would teach everyone a song. The orchestra didn’t know it either. They caught the melody, and the audience quickly learned the lyrics. By the end, everyone was singing together – it was a great experience.
These songs were a part of this city; these melodies were once hummed in the streets – but then they disappeared. When we did that concert with Codziennie Inna – the audience sang it 20 times. I’m sure it stuck in their heads. Some of them may have even hummed it to themselves on the street the next day.
It’s giving the city back its sounds.
Do you want more?
I have more articles like this in my Happiness Index here…
It would be a half a decade before Poland reappeared out from the ashes of that most horrible September.
One of the mysteries is what happened to the Polish Navy. Well, here in this post we discuss that.
Dar Pomorza was one of the few Polish ships to escape initial destruction in September 1939.
The butcher’s list in that month included:
Bałtyk, abandoned and captured by the Germans
The destroyer-sized minelayer ORP Gryf, lost on the third day of the war.
The French-built destroyer ORP Wicher.
All six Jaskółka-class minesweepers, each sunk or captured
The old Russian gunboats ORP Generał Haller and ORP Komendant Pilsudski, sunk.
The former German torpedo boat ORP Mazur, sent to the bottom
The entire Pinsk riverine flotilla of more than a dozen monitors and gunboats, scuttled or likewise captured
Dar Pomorza, along with other key maritime assets, were saved by design.
Adm. Unrug (who spent the rest of the war in German POW camps) crafted his “Peking Plan” that sent the new destroyers ORP Burza, ORP Błyskawica, and ORP Grom to British waters in late August 1939. There, they formed a new Free Polish Navy under the escaped Chief of Staff VADM Świrski after Warsaw fell.
Likewise, the wily former Great War U-boat skipper sent his five submarines abroad after their initial war patrol under his Worek Plan with orders to sail to England if possible, and otherwise to be interned in a neutral Swedish port.
ORP Wilk made it to England as did ORP Orzeł (after a narrow escape from Estonia) while ORP Sęp, ORP Ryś, and ORP Żbik sailed for Sweden.
The training ship ORP Iskra, on a Med cruise, sailed for Casablanca and spent the war as an MTB tender in Gibraltar.
Under the command of Capt. Konstanty “Cat” Kowalski, Dar Pomorza sortied from her Polish homeport in late August 1939 and made Stockholm, where the ship was interned.
Not to be kept from the war, Cat left the White Lady with seven volunteers commanded by the ship’s radioman and subsequently bugged out for England with the rest of her crew and 149 cadets, destined for Polish-flagged freighters and Free Polish naval ships.
Once there, he reformed the Polish merchant school in Southampton where its trained replacement sailors for the Gdynia-America Shipping Lines who sailed with Allied cargoes under the Polish flag during the conflict.
Polish merchant ships carried more than 5 million tons of cargo during the war and were part of every campaign in the ETO from Dunkirk to the liberation of Denmark.
Meanwhile, former cadets from Iskra and Dar Pomorza filtered out not only through the Polish vessels but also the Royal Navy proper—four such students went down with HMS Hood in 1941.
Once the war was over, Dar Pomorza sailed for home in October 1945, arriving there with a scratch crew.
As for Cat, eschewing a return to Soviet-occupied Poland, he elected to emigrate to the U.S. and became a merchant mariner there. He was not alone. VADM Świrski, the former Tsarist officer who led the Free Polish Navy, did not return to Poland and remained in London exile until his death.
Unrug, the fleets 1939 boss, likewise settled in France after his liberation from Oflag VII-A Murnau by the U.S. 12th Armored Division in 1945. . Regardless of the country’s location behind the Iron Curtain, Dar Pomorza remained Poland’s ambassador, taking part in regular merchant training cruises around Europe beginning again in 1946. Notably, Capt. Konstanty Matyjewicz-Maciejewicz, her former skipper during her round-the-world cruise, was head of the merchant marine academy at the time, having survived the war under occupation despite some rough handling from the Gestapo.
For more information
You can find a very detailed article and summary of the Polish Navy during World War II HERE. If you have any interest at all in this subject, you would find this article riveting.
You see, when a nation collapses, and is destroyed in such a way that it no longer appears on any maps, what actually happens is that the survivors gather themselves and flee. Then, far and away, they survive. Some fight on, while others retire.
Poland was carved up by the invading forces and ceased to exist.
What ever happens in the future regarding the collapse of nations, you must realize that collapse is never total, complete and final. But rather the remnants flee and set up enclaves far away. Many times they simply interact with the local cultures and create cultural enclaves. Such as what happened with the Confederates that fled the United States during the loss of the American civil war.
And with this in mind, we can see that life goes on.
Sure Poland was devastated to a point where it was a land of rubble and destruction, but those that survived lived on elsewhere and merged their culture and understandings with the locals near their new settlements.
A word to the wise for anyone who is worrying about an unknown future.
Here we are going to briefly review the insanity that Washington DC is involved in on the “Geo-political front”, and that will Segway into what is going on in the “home front”. Overall, it’s a damning situation, and getting uglier by the minute. Those of you who thought that Trump was insane will now be terrified that Biden is (maybe) even worse.
Yikes!
"DIPLOMACY'S DEAD, BABY. DIPLOMACY'S DEAD.
The Empire of Chaos is in utter desperation, and on a Kill Bill rampage. Without a samurai sword.
Some of us, including Alastair Crooke, Paul Craig Roberts, The Saker, and if we he was still alive, Prof. Stephen Cohen, have been warning everyone for a long time.
It doesn't matter that Russiagate was completely debunked. The Dem Dementia administration is now on Russiagate 2.0 on steroids.
This "intel" report on Russian interference in the - rigged - US elections does not even qualify as a bad joke.
What Crash Test Dummy's handlers told him to say in that interview about Putin being "a killer", "without a soul" who will "pay a price", goes way beyond ANYTHING that happened during the Cold War.
At least there was a measure of diplomatic decency in the superpowers relationship.
What's happening now is totally reckless, totally irrational - not to mention terminally stupid: there is NO American foreign policy left.
The Kremlin - as well as the Ministy of Foreign Affairs - already got the picture: they are dealing with a bunch of lowly gangsters which also happens to be criminally insane.
For the record: Stupidistan is now at war ON THREE FRONTS. Against Russia, against China and against Iran.
Declining empires are ALWAYS strategically stupid."
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: Director of National Intelligence came out with a report today saying that Vladimir Putin authorized operations during the election to under — denigrate you, support President Trump, undermine our elections, divide our society. What price must he pay?
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: He will pay a price. I, we had a long talk, he and I, when we — I know him relatively well. And I– the conversation started off, I said, “I know you and you know me. If I establish this occurred, then be prepared.”
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: You said you know he doesn’t have a soul.
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: I did say that to him, yes. And — and his response was, “We understand one another.” It was– I wasn’t being a wise guy. I was alone with him in his office. And that — that’s how it came about. It was when President Bush had said, “I looked in his eyes and saw his soul.” I said, “Looked in your eyes and I don’t think you have a soul.” And looked back and he said, “We understand each other.” Look, most important thing dealing with foreign leaders in my experience, and I’ve dealt with an awful lot of ’em over my career, is just know the other guy. Don’t expect somethin’ that you’re– that — don’t expect him to– or her to– voluntarily appear in the second editions of Profiles in Courage.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: So you know Vladimir Putin. You think he’s a killer?
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Uh-huh. I do.
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS:So what price must he pay?
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: The price he’s gonna pay we’ll– you’ll see shortly.
This is truly a historic interview and a watershed moment in US-Russia relations. Let’s deconstruct what is happening here:
“Director of National Intelligence came out with a report”:
Ever since 9/11, the US intel community has been under huge pressure to produce not intelligence, but to serve as a kind of criterion of truth, a substitute for any rules of evidence.
For example, if tomorrow Biden’s handlers want to accuse Putin of eating newborn babies for breakfast, all they have to do is get the US intel community to produce a report which will say with “great confidence” that it is “highly likely” that Putin does, indeed, like to start his days by snaking on babies.
The “logic” here works like this: “since we (the West) are the good guys, our intelligence community is objective, non-political and trustworthy”. QED.
And the fact that the history of both the CIA and the FBI prove beyond any reasonable doubt that both of these agencies were totally politicized for decades does not matter.
Why?
Because the also “objective, non-political and trustworthy” US media says that the intel community must be trusted because it is, you guessed it, “objective, non-political and trustworthy”. Oh the beauty of circular logic….
Next,
“What price must he pay?”.
This one is so important that Stephanopoulos asks this twice and Biden “reassures” him twice.
The message here is that it is not Stephanopoulos who demands a retaliation, it is the vox populi, the outraged people of the United States. And why would the people of the USA hate Putin and Russia and demand retaliation?
Why – because the objective, non-political and trustworthy US media fully endorses the claims of the objective, non-political and trustworthy US intel community!
How can anybody possibly doubt these two paragons of honesty?! Only a “Putin agent” would doubt their word, right?
Then,
“Putin does not have a soul”.
This is pretty pathetic, since Stephanopoulos comes from a Greek Orthodox family he should know that all humans have a soul and to suggest otherwise is, actually, a total and categorical rejection of everything Christianity stands for.
It is also a clear case of dehumanization, something which all politicians do before they turn to violence and war.
It is unlikely that Biden has any idea what he did or did not tell Putin when they met, but even if we assume that Biden did actually tell Putin that he had no soul, I can just imagine the true amazement (and inner giggle) of Putin hearing that.
By the way, the “official” response of Putin was “we understand each other” which makes absolutely no logical sense.
So what we have is a basically brain dead pseudo “President” who is programmed by his handlers to tell the US public that Putin has no soul and that Biden told him that face to face. What actual purpose such a statement would pursue is neither asked nor answered.
Finally
“Is Putin a killer”.
First, what a fantastically stupid thing to ask.
Why? Because this question has no objective meaning unless the context or scope is specified.
It could mean “did he commit murder?“, that is illegal manslaughter, a crime under Russian law. Or it could mean “did he, the President of Russia, order Russian special services to kill Litvinenko, Skripal, Navalnyii and others?“.
This would be legal under Russian law and, in fact, the Russians have never denied ordering the execution of, say, Wahabi terrorists (both in Russia and outside).
That would be a policy decision similar to one the US used to (putatively) execute Osama Bin-Laden or General Soleimani.
Finally, that question could also mean “did Putin as the commander in chief of the Russian armed forces order military operations which resulted in the loss of human life, including possible innocent human life?“.
This would also be a policy decision which any commander in chief has to make. These are all completely different questions, but for micro-brains like Stephanopoulos or Biden, the purpose of questions is not to elicit answers, it is to set an emotional tone, a kind of “mental background” which Orwell very aptly called the “two minutes of hate“.
Yes, all of the above is completely unprecedented: not even in the worst hours of the Cold War did western politicians use that kind of language. What we witness today is not only truly extremely dangerous, it is also the end of diplomacy.
The End of Diplomacy
When diplomacy dies, wars are born.
I grew up in So. CA and had the greatest life as a child and up to the millennia when everything changed after 9.11
The point and the problem is that most people define America as the government whereas I define it as the people who by and large are friendly, decent and caring.
Are they misled?
For sure, but they are indoctrinated from early childhood and they resist the idea that their government might be a monster, same as a child does with an abusive parent.
Americans are mostly sheep, but they are good sheep and after all even us “superior” humans share a herd mentality, i.e. shepherd/sheep.
So it pains me to know that it will be we the people who will suffer the fallout of any hostilities with Russia or Iran or China or Venezuela for that matter. The slime overlords will avoid the radar as always.
Yes, I know, ever since the Obama administration, US “diplomats” were mostly unprofessional political appointees with a fantastically low level of education, fully compensated by an fantastically high level of arrogance and hypocrisy. But while the likes of Psaki would spew any idiocy imaginable, US Presidents have never sunk to the level of Biden.
Biden is a reaction to Trump in that his admin represents a desperate attempt to salvage the neoliberal policies of the past 50 years since the 80s. Unfortunately for Biden, and the rest of America, there's only so many populations you can exploit before exploited productive forces become so advanced that they begin to demand higher wages, and thus profits dry up. Global wage differences even out, then import prices go up, and our American standard of living continues to drop until the sweatshops come home to roost. That won't stand and ideology shifts again and again (Biden's response to these shifts is, ironically, censorship and control).
So what does the Biden admin do? They know it will eventually come down to opening up new labor power markets (those sweet, sweet populations and natural resources of Russia are so tempting to Biden's vampiric brood) and taking down competing countries (China's rise as a consumer market is a big problem for the US). This is why Biden's behavior makes sense. If they don't put maximum pressure now, not just on Russia and China, but all potential neocolonial interests, then they won't get the chance in the future. We'll see the internal contradictions in the US give rise to even more blatant fascism (doesn't matter from whom, Trump or Biden).
Furthermore, it does not take a genius to understand the implications of the combination of the two following two facts:
Putin is by far the most popular Russian politician, at least since Stalin
The West sees Putin as some kind of devil incarnate
Ergo: the West hates all the Russian people for regularly voting for Putin
Simple and quite undeniable.
In fact, an increasing number of Russians are saying “we are the Jews of the 21st century” and, frankly, I cannot disagree with this. The big difference here is that 20th century Jews did not have thousands of nuclear weapons to defend themselves. Russians do.
I wonder of Stephanopoulos and the rest of them understand this?
I don’t think so.
Interesting comments by a senior Russian Senator:
“US President Joe Biden’s boorish remarks about Russian leader Vladimir Putin will inevitably have a negative impact on relations between the two countries, Deputy Speaker of the Russian Federation Council (the upper house of parliament) Konstantin Kosachev wrote on Facebook on Thursday……..
“This is a fault line. These boorish remarks have killed off all expectations that the new US administration will pursue a new policy towards Russia,” Kosachev noted. According to him, “evaluations like these from a statesman of such a high rank are generally unacceptable.” The Russian senator stressed that the remarks had come from the president of the country “that drops a bomb somewhere in the world every 12 minutes, according to expert estimates.” “As a result, the death of more than 500,000 people has been linked to US actions since 2001. Could you comment on that, Mr. Biden?” Kosachev said………..”
There is a culture of total impunity in the USA which stems from the fact that the US never fought a war in defense of the US mainland in its history and from the fact that the USA used to be protected by two oceans and two absolutely peaceful neighbors.
In sharp contrast, Russia has no natural borders and 1000 years experience of war, most of them existential and most fought on Russian soil.
Maria Zakharova today:
17 March 202120:09 Comment by Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova
503-17-03-2021
en-GB1 ru-RU1
Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov has been summoned to Moscow for consultations in order to analyse what needs to be done in the context of relations with the United States.
The new US administration took office about two months ago and the symbolic 100-day mark is not too far away, which is a good occasion for trying to appraise what Joe Biden’s team has managed to do and where it was not very successful. The most important thing for us is to identify ways of rectifying Russia-US relations, which have been going through hard times as Washington has, as a matter of fact, brought them to a blind alley. We are interested in preventing an irreversible deterioration in relations, if the Americans become aware of the risks associated with this.
This is what we will talk about during the consultations that the Foreign Ministry and other relevant agencies will hold with the Russian Ambassador to the United States.
I would also add that the other comment many Russian officials are making is that Biden simply lacks even basic manners. To make clear: they are not only saying that Biden has zero understanding of diplomacy, they are saying that Biden simply has no basic manners which any semi-educated person ought to have.
On the main Russian TV channel reporters were even asking today whether Russia ought to completely break diplomatic relations with the USA!
Maybe American leadership is hoping that we the people will fail to notice that they have thoroughly destroyed our economy when those of us left after the nuclear exchange are freezing in the rubble of our homes during a truly anthropogenic climate change known as nuclear winter.
There also will be no worries about questions of ownership, acquisition of food, medicine or political power as the well-armed oligarchy ensconced in their bunkers with their mercenary armies will simply take everything not vaporised and leave you to die and rot on the frozen and nuclear-contaminated formerly fruited plain.
It will be a glorious and divinely-inspired “reset.”
That would be a very dangerous mistake and I don’t think that the Kremlin will go so far, at least officially, but there is a clear understanding amongst Russian officials while officially the two countries still have diplomatic relations, in reality the US basically terminated them.
Do I really have to spell out here how insanely dangerous this is?
While it is absolutely normal for some tribes still living in the bronze-age to play out ritual threats and displays of macho prowess in order to impress an adversary, to see the (nominal) leader of a nuclear superpower acting like such a bronze-age tribal leader is perplexing to say the least.
And just like the Sentinelese tribesmen believe that their bows and arrows can scare away metal ships and even helicopters, so do the “Biden tribesmen” (let’s call them that) hope that sanctions or US military capabilities will scare Russia into complete submission.
US military capabilities will scare Russia into complete submission?
Furthermore, at no time does Stephanopoulos question the moral and legal right of the US President to “punish” Russia and/or Putin.
In fact, by repeating this question, he strongly suggests that punishing Russia and/or Putin is not only the right of the US President, but his moral and, possibly, even legal obligation.
This is exactly what Dr John Marciano calls “empire as a way of life” (see here and here for details).
This ignorant, arrogant, narcissistic, messianic and terminally delusional belief that the USA is some kind of “collective messiah” tasked by nature or some god with policing the planet. The Sentinelese try to “defend” their own shores and land and they don’t have millions of members in an organization called “Veterans of Foreign Wars” (have they really no shame at all?) and they don’t spend on “defense” more than the rest of the planet combined.
Finally, we can rest assured that whoever is in command of the Sentinelese he (or she) is a much smarter and honest leader than the brain-dead vegetable that the theft of the US 2020 election put into power.
In Hans Christian Andersen’s wonderful tale the breaking moment comes when an innocent child explains “he hasn’t got anything on!“, while the rest of the people are under the spell of what is called “pluralistic ignorance“.
Let me ask you: how soon do you think that declaring, say, “Uncle Shmuel is truly brain dead…” will become a criminal offense in the so-called “the land of the free and the home of the brave“?
The point is that the neocons in the US needed a puppet in the White House, who would continue the globalist Agenda of introducing a globalist empire run by corporations and private banks. For that to succeed, both Russia and China need to be broken up and plundered.
Too late for that, and by now it’s clear that not only is Sleepy Joe brain dead, but the neocon elite which is still living in the past, incapable of fully understanding that the world is changing.
What the neocon elite is very much aware is the fact that the present Western financial Ponzie scheme cannot function perpetually, showing signs of financial collapse.
You cannot keep postponing gigantic foreign and internal debts and at the same time keep printing funny money in the trillions.
For this scheme to have any chance of being maintained, then good old fashioned plundering is required, the chief targets being Russia and China.
And now we have the answer why Anglo-American elites are aggressively disposed towards both countries. A boiling point is being created, which can explode into something very dangerous and suicidal.
When a rat is cornered, it becomes dangerous, as proven by the neocons, who are apparently losing their nerve, failing to achieve a globalist world wide empire, while the empire they have created is showing signs of dissolution.
For the record: Stupidistan is now at war ON THREE FRONTS. Against Russia, against China and against Iran.
Declining empires are ALWAYS strategically stupid."
Posted by: Seej | Mar 18 2021 19:05 utc | 4
And…
Alas, more than 30 years ago it was observed in USA that it benefits a politician to seem stupid, and being genuinely stupid is even better.
Why do you think power to be within Democratic Party decided to maneuver the least intellectually able contender to win in the primaries? That in itself is not necessarily bad, but on the lower levels of government, you must prove stupidity (or at least utter lack of original thinking) to advance.
Now we have new generations of opportunists hiding any sign of thinking, apart from passing all the required exams in elite schools etc. Let me think of the greatness and extinction of Irish elk.
Posted by: Piotr Berman | Mar 18 2021 19:20 utc | 7
Now it all makes sense…
There is a reason why Xi Peng, Putin and Iran are constructing the BRI out of Xinjiang. Asia is unifying against the “dangerous menace”.
BRI simplified, showing only the land routes.
Remember that China-Russia-Iran are a unified block
They have banded together in defense of an out-of-control United States Military Empire.
In a searing, concise essay, Alastair Crooke pointed to the heart of the matter. These are the two key insights – including a nifty Orwellian allusion:
1. “Once control over the justifying myth of America was lost, the mask was off.”
2. “The US thinks to lead the maritime and rimland powers in imposing a searing psychological, technological and economic defeat on the Russia-China-Iran alliance. In the past, the outcome might have been predictable. This time Eurasia may very well stand solid against a weakened Oceania (and a faint-hearted Europe).”
And that brings us to two interconnected summits: the Quad and the China-US 2+2 in Alaska.
The QUAD
The virtual Quad last Friday came and went like a drifting cloud. When you had India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying the Quad is “a force for global good,” no wonder rows of eyebrows across the Global South were raised.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi remarked last year that the Quad was part of a drive to create an “Asian NATO.”
It is.
But the hegemon, lording over India, Japan and Australia, mustn’t spell it out. Thus the vague rhetoric about “free and open Indo-Pacific,” “democratic values,” “territorial integrity” – all code to characterize containment of China, especially in the South China Sea.
The exceptionalist wet dream – routinely expressed in US Thinktankland – is to position an array of missiles in the first island chain, pointing towards China like a weaponized porcupine. Beijing is very much aware of it.
Apart from a meek joint statement, the Quad promised to deliver 1 billion doses of Covid-19 vaccines throughout the “Indo-Pacific” by the end of… 2022.
…
… by the end of 2022.
… about two years from now.
The vaccine would be produced by India and financed by the US and Japan, with the logistics of distribution coming from Australia.
Produced in India.
Financed by the US and Japan.
Logistical distribution out of Australia.
That was predictably billed as “countering China’s influence in the region.”
Too little, too late. The bottom line is: The hegemon is furious because China’s vaccine diplomacy is a huge success – not only across Asia but all across the Global South.
Yah. China has been doing this all year. And it is just insane to think that American promises of some day in two years is going to matter. Or make a difference. Or to provide credibility.
And as crazy as all this is, we are not even going to begin to talk about the crazed printing of trillions of US Dollars that is now flooding the world.
This ain’t no ‘strategic dialogue’
US Secretary of State Tony Blinken is a mere apparatchik who was an enthusiastic cheerleader for shock and awe against Iraq 18 years ago, in 2003. At the time he was staff director for the Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, then chaired by Senator Joe Biden.
Now Blinken is running US foreign policy for a senile cardboard entity who mutters, live, on camera, “I’ll do whatever you want me to do, Nance” – as in Nancy Pelosi; and who characterizes the Russian president as “a killer,” “without a soul,” who will “pay a price.”
With that in mind, there’s little doubt that the formidable Yang Jiechi, director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee, side by side with Foreign Minister Wang Yi, will make shark’s fin soup out of their interlocutors Blinken and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan at the 2+2 summit in Anchorage, Alaska.
Only two days before the start of the Two Sessions in Beijing, Blinken proclaimed that China is the “biggest geopolitical challenge of the 21st century.”
According to Blinken, China is the …
“only country with the economic, diplomatic, military and technological power to seriously challenge the stable and open international system – all the rules, values and relationships that make the world work the way we want it to, because it ultimately serves the interests and reflects the values of the American people.”
So Blinken tacitly admits what really matters is how the world works “the way we want it to” – “we” being the hegemon, which made those rules in the first place. And those rules serve the interests and reflect the values of the American people.
As in: It’s our way or the highway.
America is the best, and all the soldiers are Rambo. America is invincible, and you had best obey us or we will destroy you.
Blinken could be excused because he’s just a wide-eyed novice on the big stage. But it gets way more embarrassing…
American foreign policy 2021
Here’s his foreign policy in a nutshell (“his” because the hologram at the White House needs 24/7 instructions in his earpiece to even know what time it is):
Sanctions, sanctions everywhere;
Cold War 2.0 against Russia and “killer” Putin;
China guilty of “genocide” in Xinjiang;
China is a notorious apartheid state getting a free pass to do anything;
Iran must blink first or there’s no return to the JCPOA;
Random Guaido recognized as President of Venezuela, with regime change still the priority.
There’s a curious kabuki in play here.
America is used to fighting wars in far away lands. World War III will be an easy win.
Following the proverbial revolving door logic in DC, before literally crossing the street to have full access to the White House, Blinken was a founding partner of WestExec Advisors, whose main line of business is to offer “geopolitical and policy expertise” to American multinationals, the overwhelming majority of which are interested in – where else – China.
So Alaska might point to some measure of trade-off on trade.
Americans are not afraid to die for “democracy”. Because God has “blessed America” with invincibility.
The problem, though, seems insurmountable.
Beijing does not want to eschew the profitable American market, while for Washington expansion of Chinese technology across the West is anathema.
Blinken himself pre-empted Alaska, saying this is no “strategic dialogue.”
So we’re back to bolstering the Indo-Pacific racket;
Recriminations about the “loss of freedom” in Hong Kong – whose role of US/UK Fifth Column is now definitely over;
Tibet;
The “invasion” of Taiwan, now on spin overdrive, with the Pentagon stating it is “probable” before 2027.
Shutdown of the BRI by intervention in Xinjiang.
“Strategic dialogue” it ain’t.
A new America awaits.
A junkie on a bum trip
Wang Yi, at a press conference linked to the 13th National People’s Congress and the announcement of the next Five-Year Plan, said:
“We will set an example of strategic mutual trust, by firmly supporting each other in upholding core and major interests, jointly opposing ‘color revolution’ and countering disinformation, and safeguarding national sovereignty and political security.”
That’s a sharp contrast with the post-truth “highly likely” school of spin privileged by (failed) Russiagate peddlers and assorted Sinophobes.
Top Chinese scholar Wang Jisi, who used to be close to the late Ezra Vogel, author of arguably the best Deng Xiaoping biography in English, has introduced an extra measure of sanity, recalling Vogel’s emphasis on the necessity of US and East Asia understanding each other’s culture.
“In my own experiences, I find one difference between the two countries most illuminating.
We in China like the idea of “seeking common ground while reserving our differences.”
We state that the common interests between our two countries far exceed our differences.
We define common ground by a set of principles like mutual respect and cooperation.
Americans, in contrast, tend to focus on hard issues like tensions over Taiwan and the South China Sea.
It looks that the Chinese want to set up principles before trying to solve specific problems, but the Americans are eager to deal with problems before they are ready to improve the relationship.”
The real problem is that the hegemon seems congenitally incapable of trying to understand the Other. It always harks back to that notorious formulation by Zbigniew Brzezinski, with trademark imperial arrogance, in his 1997 magnum opus The Grand Chessboard:
“To put it in a terminology that harkens back to the more brutal age of ancient empires, the three grand imperatives of imperial geostrategy are [1] to prevent collusion and [2] maintain security dependence among the vassals, [3] to keep tributaries pliant and protected and [4] to keep the barbarians from coming together.”
Dr Zbig was referring, of course, to Eurasia. “Security dependence among vassals” applied mostly to Germany and Japan, key hubs in the Rimland. “Tributaries pliant and protected” applied mostly to the Middle East.
And crucially, “keep the barbarians from coming together” applied to Russia, China and Iran. That was Pax Americana in a nutshell. And that’s what’s totally unraveling now.
"the Americans are eager to deal with problems before they are ready to improve the relationship."
That observation is consistent with that of an entity that only wants its orders obeyed and seeks no relationship or friendship with any other entity since it sees itself as Top Dog, and #1 in every way. As with the Nord Stream project, we see the Gangster mentality--Do as I say or else!
Not only does the Emperor have no clothes or much of a working memory, he's got erectile dysfunction too that's well beyond the ability of Viagra to fix.
Hence the Kill Bill logic. It goes back a long way. Less than two months after the collapse of the USSR, the 1992 Defense Planning Guidance preached total global dominance and, following Dr Zbig, the absolute imperative of preventing the emergence of any future peer competitor.
Especially Russia, defined as “the only power in the world with the capacity of destroying the United States.”
Then, in 2002, at the start of the “axis of evil” era, came the full spectrum dominance doctrine as the bedrock of the US National Security Strategy. Domination, domination everywhere: terrestrial, aerial, maritime, subterranean, cosmic, psychological, biological, cyber-technological.
And, not by accident, the Indo-Pacific strategy – which guides the Quad – is all about “how to maintain US strategic primacy.”
This mindset is what enables US Think Tankland to formulate risible “analyses” in which the only “win” for the US imperatively requires a failed Chinese “regime.”
After all, Leviathan is congenitally incapable of accepting a “win-win”; it only runs on “zero-sum,” based on divide and rule.
And that’s what’s leading the Russia-China strategic partnership to progressively establish a wide-ranging, comprehensive security environment, spanning everything from high-tech weaponry to banking and finance, energy supplies and the flow of information.
To evoke yet another pop culture gem, a discombobulated Leviathan now is like Caroline, the junkie depicted in Lou Reed’s Berlin:
But she’s not afraid to die / All of her friends call her Alaska / When she takes speed / They laugh and ask her / What is in her mind / What is in her mind / She put her fist through the window pane / It was such a / funny feeling / It’s so cold / in Alaska.
Washington Has Resurrected the Specter of Nuclear Armageddon
During the 20th century Cold War with the Soviet Union, there were US Soviet experts who were concerned that the Cold War was partly contrived and, therefore, needlessly dangerous. Stephen Cohn at Princeton University, for example, believed that exaggerating the threat was as dangerous as underestimating it.
On the other hand, Richard Pipes at Harvard believed that the CIA dangerously underestimated Soviet military power and failed to grasp Soviet strategic intentions.
In 1976 President Gerald Ford and CIA Director George H.W. Bush commissioned an outside panel of experts to evaluate the CIA’s National Intelligence Estimates. This group was known as Team B.
Under Pipes’ leadership Team B created the perception that the US faced a dangerous “window of vulnerability.”
In conventional wisdom, in order to close this window of vulnerability President Reagan began an American arms buildup.
On this point conventional wisdom is wrong.
The Reagan military buildup was as much hype as reality.Its purpose was to bring the Soviets to the negotiating table and end the Cold War in order to remove the threat of nuclear war.
Reagan’s supply-side policy had fixed the problem of worsening trade-offs between employment and inflation, thus making an arms buildup possible.
In contrast, Reagan regarded the Soviet economy as broken and unfixable.
He reasoned that a new arms race was more than the Soviets could afford, and that the threat of one would bring the Soviets to the table to negotiate the end of the Cold War.
The Soviet Union collapsed when hardline communists, convinced that Gorbachev was endangering the Soviet Union by giving up too much too quickly before American intentions were known, placed President Gorbachev under house arrest.
The Yeltsin years (1991-1999) brought the dismemberment of the Soviet Empire and was a decade of Russian subservience to the United States.
Putin came to power as the American neoconservatives were girding up to establish US and Israeli hegemony in the Middle East.
As General Wesley Clark told us, seven countries were to be overthrown in 5 years. The American preoccupation with the Middle East permitted Putin to throw off American overlordship and reestablish Russian sovereignty.
Once Washington realized this, the American establishment turned on Putin with a vengence.
Stephen Cohen, Jack Matlock (Reagan’s ambassador to the Soviet Union), myself and a few others warned that Washington’s refusal to accept Russian independence would reignite the Cold War, thus erasing the accomplishment of ending it and resurrecting the specter of nuclear war.
But Washington didn’t listen.
Instead, Cohen and I were put on a list of “Russian agents/dupes,” and the process of trying to destabalize Putin began.In other words, once an American colony always an American colony, and Putin became the most demonized person on earth.
Today (March 17) we had the extraordinary spectacle of President Biden saying on ABC News that President Putin is a killer, and “he will pay a price.”This is a new low point in diplomacy.
It does not serve American interests or peace.
This all is dangerous.
Yesterday a CIA-Homeland Security report was declassified. The “report” is blatant propaganda.
It alleges that Russia interfered in the 2020 election with the purposes of “denigrating President Biden’s candidacy and the Democratic Party, supporting former President Trump, undermining public confidence in the electoral process, and exacerbating sociopolitical divisions in the US.”
“Russiagate” is still with us despite the failure of the three-year Mueller investigation to find a scrap of evidence.
We desperately need a new Team B like the one the CIA commissioned in 1976 to check on itself.But in those days discussion and debate was possible.
Today they are not.
We live in a world in which only propaganda is permitted.
There is an agenda.
The agenda is regime change in Russia.
No facts are relevant.There will be no Team B to evaluate whether the Putin threat is exaggerated.
New York City in 2025?
The anti-Russian craze that has been orchestrated in the US and throughout the Western world leaves the US in an extremely dangerous situation.
Americans and Europeans perceive reality only through the light of American propaganda.American diplomacy, military policy, news reporting, and public understanding are the fantasy creations of propaganda.
Los Angles in 2025?
The Kremlin has shown amazing forbearance of Washington’s inanities and insults.It was the Democrat Hillary Clinton who called President Putin the “new Hitler,”and now Democrat Biden calls Putin “a killer.”
American presidents and presidential candidates did not speak of Soviet leaders in these terms. They would have been regarded by the American population as far too deranged to have access to the nuclear button.
Chicago in 2025?
Sooner or later the Kremlin will understand that it is pointless to respond to demonization with denials.
Yes, the Russians are correct.
The accusations are groundless, and no facts or evidence is ever provided in support of the accusations.
Sooner or later the Kremlin will realize that the purpose of demonizing a country is to prepare one’s people and allies for war against it.
They have realized this. They know what will occur. They are ready and prepared.
Washington pays no attention to Maria Zakharova and Dmitry Peskov’s objections to unsubstansiated accusations.
Houston in 2025?
When “sooner or later” is, I do not know, but the Russians haven’t reached that point.The Kremlin reads the latest allegations as an excuse for more sanctions against Russian companies and individuals. This reading is mistaken.
Washington’s purpose is to demonize Russia and its leadership in order to set Russia up for regime change and, failing that, for military attack.
In the United States Russian Studies has degenerated into propaganda.
Recently, two members of the Atlantic Council think tank, Emma Ashford and Matthew Burrows, suggested that American foreign policy could benefit from a less hostile approach to Russia. Instantly, 22 members of the think tank denounced the article by Ashford and Burrows.
This response is far outside the boundaries of the 20th century Cold War.It precludes any rational or intelligent approach to American foreign policy.Sooner or later the Kremlin will comprehend that it is confronted by a gangster outfit of the criminally insane.
Then what happens?
Oh you know.
Sigh…
Pepe does get to the essential detail so clearly. Commonality verses divide all and conquer all. When he says it goes back a long way he is surely right again.
“To put it in a terminology that harkens back to the more brutal age of ancient empires, the three grand imperatives of imperial geo-strategy are to prevent collusion and maintain security dependence among the vassals, to keep tributaries pliant and protected and to keep the barbarians from coming together.”
“To keep the barbarians from coming together” This is so telling with regard to the little noticed reality that the Roman Empire never truly collapsed.
Its patriarchal method of class rule, wherein an externally imposed force imposes a unity of subjugation on all peoples (symbolized by the fasces) with its iron rings that hold all peoples within its steely grip – is still the dominant ideology of governance in the West.
Boston in 2025?
The collapse of Capitalist America is nothing less than the real and final collapse of the ideology of Roman rule. It has been so long coming that the Western mind has to stretch deeply into history to see it for what it is.
It was Peter Ustinov who said that Americans make the best movies about the Roman Empire. Because they share the same excesses along with similar bad taste. There is a reason that Washington DC has a Cato institute. Rome never had an ideology of commonality.
It had a religion of anti-commonality in governance.
Now all it has left is a very old propaganda display that cannot hide its own sunset. As the dog finally faces its death its plaintive barking becomes ever more shrill and detached from reality.
And on the home front…
The entire United States has become a free-for-all brawl.
Those that are not rioting, or trying to grab as much cash as they can, are busy planning the “new” utopia that will replace the flailing nation.
In America, many millennials are very interested in reliving the Soviet and Chinese experiments with communism. They believe the glowing positive stories that they learned in American public schools, and believe that progressive socialism could easily be implemented in America.
What they don’t realize is that what they have been taught is a lie, or at best an illusion.
All you need to do is crack open a history book and relive that time. It’s not pretty. Here we do talk about it. In fact we talk about a very simple aspect of that time; how people ate. After all, the implementation of progressive socialism under the communist banner was going to right some wrongs, feed everyone, provide safety by disarming everyone, and provide free healthcare. What happened instead should be a wake-up call to everyone.
Here we concentrate on a small area (about the size of California) and how it fared once the Communists came to power in Russia. In America we would today refer to this movement as “progressive socialists”, but aside from the name they are carbon copies of the communists of 1918.
With that being said, please kindly keep in mind that a name is just a name. Many Americans tend to equate all "democracies" at wonderful utopias, and all "communist" nations as Hell-holes. Neither is true.
Many times nations use a name as a cover to pretend and mask what they really are.
Such as the United States "democracy" when it is actually an oligarchy-ruled Military Empire, and the "communist" China with is actually a merit-led republic.
Do not be fooled by what the popular narrative is. Observe how the nation acts, and functions. That will tell you what the nations actually are and what to expect from them.
The February Revolution
The February Revolution (March 1917 in the Gregorian calendar) was a revolution focused around Petrograd (now St. Petersburg). The Russian Revolution of 1905 is considered as a major factor to explain what sparked the February Revolution. In particular, the events of Bloody Sunday triggered massive unrests. A council of workers called the St. Petersburg Soviet was created and the beginning of a communist movement began.
Meanwhile, a Provisional Government was formed by members of the Imperial parliament or Duma. The Soviets, which stand for “workers’ councils”, initially permitted the Provisional Government to rule while they kept control over various militias. It took place in the context of major military setbacks during the First World War. After the entry of the Ottoman Empire on the side of the Central Powers in October 1914, Russia was deprived of a critical trade route which led to a minor economic crisis and Russia’s inability to provide munitions to their army. As a result, the army leadership considered they did not have the means to quell the revolution and Nicholas II was soon to become the last Emperor of Russia. [1]
The disruption of agriculture was also a considerable problem in Russia, but it was not caused by poor harvests, which had not been significantly altered during war-time. The indirect reason was that the government had been printing off millions of ruble notes in order to finance the war, and by 1917 inflation had made prices increase up to four times what they had been in 1914.
The peasantry made no gain in the sale of their products, since it was largely taken away by the middlemen on whom they depended. Consequently, they tended to revert to subsistence farming. Therefore, the cities were constantly in a situation of food shortage.
In the meantime, rising prices led to higher wages expectations in the factories. In January and February 1916, revolutionary propaganda partially financed by German funds resulted in widespread strikes.
The overall outcome was a growing criticism of the government. The original patriotic excitement, which had caused the name of St. Petersburg to be changed to the less German-sounding Petrograd, may have subsided a little but heavy losses during the war strengthened thoughts that Nicholas II was unfit to rule. [2]
The following is a reprint of an article titled "How to serve man" By Douglas Smith. Reprinted as found, and edited to fit this venue. All credit to the author.
How to Serve Man
In 1921, the Lenin-led Soviet Union faced one of the worst famines in history. A new book details its horrors and the American effort to combat cannibalism
By Douglas Smith
The stories began to appear in the Soviet press in the autumn of 1921, each one more gruesome than the last. There was the woman who refused to let go of her dead husband’s body. “We won’t give him up,” she screamed when the authorities came to take it away. “We’ll eat him ourselves, he’s ours!” There was the cemetery where a gang of 12 ravenous men and women dug up the corpse of a recently deceased man and devoured his cold flesh on the spot. There was the man captured by the police after murdering his friend, chopping off his head, and selling the body at a street market to a local restaurant owner to be made into meatballs, cutlets, and hash. And then there was the desperate mother of four starving children, saved only by the death of their sister, aged 13, whom the woman cut up and fed to the family.
The stories seemed too horrific to believe. Few could imagine a hunger capable of driving people to such acts. One man went in search of the truth. Henry Wolfe, a high-school history teacher from Ohio, spent several weeks in the spring of 1922 traveling throughout Samara Province, in southeastern Russia, intent on finding physical evidence of cannibalism. In the district of Melekess, officials told him about a father who had killed and eaten his two little children. He confessed that their flesh had “tasted sweeter than pork.” Wolfe kept on searching, and eventually found the proof he had been looking for.
At first glance, it appears to be an unremarkable photograph of six individuals in winter dress: two women and four men, their expressions blank, betraying no particular emotion. But then our eyes catch sight of the grisly objects laid out across a wooden plank resting unevenly atop a pair of crates. There are two female heads, part of a rib cage, a hand, and what appears to be the skull of a small child. The adult heads have been cracked open, and the skulls pulled back. Along with human flesh, cannibals had feasted upon the brains of their victims.
Wolfe stands second from the right, surrounded by Russian interpreters and Soviet officials. There’s a faint look of satisfaction on his face at having accomplished his goal. Here, at last, was the incontrovertible proof he had set out to find.
An American in Russia
Wolfe may have found the answer he had been seeking, but to us, a century later, the photograph raises a number of questions. What was Wolfe doing in Russia in the first place? What had led this young American to a remote corner of the globe, half a world away, in search of such horrors? And why would the Soviet government, the newly formed socialist state of Vladimir Lenin and his Bolshevik Party, dedicated to world revolution and the overthrow of the capitalist order, have helped Wolfe to uncover, much less document and publicize, its miserable failure at feeding its own people?
If we look closely, a clue to answering these questions is to be found in the three letters stamped on the box in the center of the frame: “ARA.” Facing one of the worst famines in history, the Soviet government invited the American Relief Administration, the brainchild of Herbert Hoover, future president of the United States, to save Russia from ruin. For two years, the A.R.A. fed over 10 million men, women, and children across a million square miles of territory in what was the largest humanitarian operation in history.
Why would the Soviet government have helped Wolfe to uncover its miserable failure at feeding its own people?
Its efforts prevented a catastrophe of incalculable proportions—the loss of millions of lives, social unrest on a massive scale, and, quite possibly, the collapse of the Soviet state. Having completed their mission by the summer of 1923, the Americans packed up and went home. Before the A.R.A. left, the leaders of the Soviet government showered the organization with expressions of undying gratitude and promises never to forget America’s help.
“An act of humanity and benevolence,” Machiavelli wrote in his Discourses on Livy, “will at all times have more influence over the minds of men than violence and ferocity.” Machiavelli was wrong. The Soviet government quickly began to erase the memory of American charity, and what it could not erase, it sought to distort into something ugly. But it wasn’t just the Russians. Back in the United States, where Americans had followed the work of the A.R.A. with great interest, knowledge of Hoover’s achievement faded. By the time Hoover was voted out of office a decade later, during the Great Depression, the story of this extraordinary humanitarian mission had been forgotten. Now, almost a hundred years later, few people in America or Russia have ever heard of the A.R.A. Here is the story of one of the most horrifying aspects of the famine, and how the Americans sought to document it.
All P.R. Is Good P.R.
During his stay in the Soviet Union, William Garner, the P.R. man for the A.R.A., pushed for information on a subject of particular interest: cannibalism. He said he was hoping to get a chance to sit down with a cannibal for an interview before heading home. This wasn’t just morbid curiosity on his part; rather, he had been directed by his bosses to find solid, incontrovertible evidence of cannibalism. The A.R.A. had received Soviet reports on the problem but wanted its own proof. “We have ’em,” William Kelly, stationed with the A.R.A. in the city of Ufa, told Garner, “but they won’t talk for publication.”
Kelly had heard plenty of stories since arriving in Russia. He was convinced there had been thousands of cases of cannibalism that winter, but it was difficult to get precise details. Few Soviet officials were willing to talk to the Americans about this most horrifying aspect of the famine, largely out of a sense of shame and embarrassment for what they felt it said about their country. Nonetheless, a few had shared with Kelly what they knew, telling him that cannibals were dealt with forcefully when caught—put on trial and punished, some of the guilty even sentenced to death for their crimes.
Once, Kelly saw the trial records of a case, complete with a photograph of the accused and a boiled human head. The official policy of the A.R.A. was to soft-pedal such “horror stuff,” in Kelly’s words, in order to avoid accusations that the Americans had been exaggerating for cheap publicity. In early February, the Moscow office wired London to say that “any implication that the American Relief Administration vouches for the existence of cannibalism should be carefully avoided.”
Garner was hoping to get a chance to sit down with a cannibal for an interview before heading home.
“There are continual rumors about cannibalism around here,” Henry Wolfe, the high-school history teacher from Ohio, wrote from Samara on February 12 to his little brother Eddie, a student at Phillips Academy back in Massachusetts. “It is said there are cases where starving people have been eating dead bodies. I have heard some weird stories, but don’t know whether they are true.” He left soon after for the village of Melekess, a journey of some 250 miles. Wolfe wrote Eddie again from there on March 5, describing his trip: “At nearly every village we visited we heard of cannibalism. The stories were told to me by reliable persons and their accounts were corroborated by everyone in the village…. There is a woman in prison here in this town who ate her child. (Keep this on the quiet.) I’m going to see her today. You can’t imagine the terrible straits the peasants in the famine zone are in.”
Wolfe had traveled to New York in August 1921 to hand in his application in person to join the A.R.A. A member of the staff told him they might be in touch later, but they’d already received 500 applications and couldn’t make any promises. He waited around for several days, hoping to hear something. “The more I think of this Russian proposition the better I like it and the more I hope they will need me,” he wrote to his mother. But nothing came through, so Wolfe headed back to Ohio to prepare for another year of teaching history to the kids in the public schools of Coshocton County.
This was a far cry from his days as a volunteer ambulance driver during the war, first with the American Field Service in France and then the Red Cross in Italy, where he crossed paths with Hemingway and Dos Passos. He sent letter after letter to the A.R.A. that autumn, but still there were no openings for him. Finally, in December, he received word that they could use him if he could be ready to sail from New York on January 7. The office made sure to instruct him to bring heavy underwear, high boots, galoshes, and his sleeping bag.
Bodies of Evidence
When he arrived in Moscow at the end of the month, he was shocked to discover that his war service had not prepared him for Russia. The stench of the railroad station was beyond description, as was the mass of ragged humanity lurking in the darkness. Two days later, on the ride from the station in Samara to the A.R.A. house, he passed two dogs fighting in the street over a partially eaten corpse. Wolfe looked at his driver in horror, but the man paid no heed. Such things had become commonplace. On a short walk after dinner, he counted 14 dead bodies lying in the streets around the personnel house.
Wolfe spent most of his time as the lone American in the town of Melekess (now Dimitrovgrad) in northern Samara Province. Touring the villages in the area, he encountered the same hardships witnessed by other A.R.A. men—the frozen corpses stacked like cordwood in locked warehouses awaiting burial in the spring; the fetid hospitals lacking beds, blankets, aspirin, and soap; the walking dead, their eyes sunken and dull, dragging one heavy foot after the other through the snowy streets before collapsing from exhaustion.
Two dogs fighting in the street over a partially eaten corpse—such things had become commonplace.
Wolfe had a particular curiosity about what he called “the infernal crimes” that hunger could drive people to. In village after village, he met peasants who admitted to eating human flesh, whether corpses they had found or victims they had killed for food. It became something of an obsession for Wolfe, and he spent several weeks “on the trail of the cannibal,” as he wrote in a letter to a fellow A.R.A. man, William Shafroth, in early March, aided by “definitive information concerning cannibals” from local officials. Just to be safe, he made sure to carry a revolver with him on his travels.
Hearing the stories of cannibals was one thing, but to be able to catch them in the act was another. “If it can be seen, perhaps it would be valuable information to the A.R.A.” Not long after this, Wolfe found what he had been looking for, and he posed alongside his Soviet helpers for the photograph with his find, a mission-accomplished look on his face. The A.R.A. had its proof. He sent the photograph on to his superiors in Moscow. Unfortunately, the details of the image—where it was taken, the names of the men and women surrounding Wolfe, and the facts behind the discovery of the body parts—have been lost.
Original Sin
According to official Soviet reports, the first instances of cannibalism appeared in late summer 1921. The government was, not surprisingly, alarmed by the reports; nonetheless, it permitted articles about them to be published in the leading newspapers—Pravda and Izvestiia. By the spring of 1922, however, some officials felt the press had gone too far. In March, People’s Commissar for Public Health Nikolai Semashko complained in the pages of Izvestiia that the press had begun to treat the matter as some sort of “boulevard sensation.” Secondhand stories were being reported as facts, and reporters were increasingly prone to unwarranted speculation and exaggeration.
The medical doctor and amateur poet Lev Vasilevsky was prompted by Semashko’s criticism to conduct his own study of cannibalism. In Vasilevsky’s opinion, the problem was too important to be swept under the rug or left to unscrupulous reporters. The truth needed to be known and the guilty punished or, if proved to be psychologically ill, institutionalized. So he set out to undertake a serious investigation, interviewing medical workers and state and local officials, and consulting the materials that had been collected by the city of Samara’s “Famine Museum,” created by two local academics both to document the horrors of the famine and to educate the public. Among the museum’s collections were a series of gruesome photographs of cannibals, typically shown alongside the body parts that had been found with them at the time of their arrest.
In 1922, Vasilevsky published a brochure based on his research, A Horrifying Chronicle of the Famine: Suicide and Anthropophagy. In sparse, unadorned prose, Vasilevsky compiled a chilling catalogue of murder, violence, insanity, and ineffable suffering. He quoted a Bashkir edition of Izvestiia: “In the cantons are very many cases of people consuming human flesh. Driven wild by hunger, they are cutting up their children and eating them. In the grip of starvation, they are eating the bodies of the dead.” Vasilevsky also quoted a provincial official from the village of Bolshaya Glushitsa, in Pugachëv County, who warned that they were being “threatened with the danger of mass cannibalism.”
According to Vasilevsky, there had been hundreds of cases of cannibalism, and he predicted that the numbers were certain to grow as the famine worsened and the taboo against eating human flesh weakened. Indeed, it was the fear of “psychological infection” that prompted Vasilevsky to publish his research with a warning on the title page stating that this work was not to be distributed within the famine zone: readers, he worried, might draw the wrong conclusions from his work.
The people’s commissar for public health complained that the press had begun to treat the matter as some sort of “boulevard sensation.”
Among the cases recounted in A Horrifying Chronicle was that of a group of three adolescents from Ufa Province. Before they were caught, they had lured little children to a remote hut, strangled them, chopped them up, then boiled and eaten their remains. The authorities never did manage to determine the exact number of their victims. The three youths were sent off to a special facility for juvenile criminal offenders, yet the overseers made certain to separate them, concerned that they might try to continue their crimes from inside the institution.
Vasilevsky spoke to the investigating medical doctor. He found the case particularly disturbing. It turned out that the three inmates had had plenty of food at home and had apparently ventured into this grisly business out of sheer curiosity. In their interrogations, they had appeared normal, quiet, and even respectful, but he had no doubt that their “derangement had reached an extreme stage from which there was no hope of recovery.”
Their case reminded Vasilevsky of something he had read in a Kursk newspaper: “People are no longer people. Human feelings have died out, the beast, devoid of all reason and pity, has awakened.” Although Vasilevsky had to agree, he insisted that this had nothing to do with the Russian character but was quite simply the logical result of years of misery and suffering. In this, Vasilevsky was correct. Acts of cannibalism have been recorded during famines throughout history in other parts of the world, such as Ireland during the Confederate Wars of the 17th century and China during the Great Leap under Mao.
Devil in the Detail
Around the time Vasilevsky’s brochure appeared, the Samara State Publishing House released The Book of the Famine, a much larger work filled with official documents—telegrams, letters, interrogation records, police reports, and photographs—describing in grisly fashion many cases of murder, suicide, and cannibalism.
One of the most complete records concerned a 56-year-old illiterate peasant from the village of Yefimovka, Buzuluk County, by the name of Pyotr Mukhin. On January 12, 1922, he testified before Balter, an investigator for the Samara Province Revolutionary Tribunal, that his family had not had any bread since Easter of the previous year. At first they lived off grass, horsemeat, and then dogs and cats. After that, they were reduced to gathering bones and grinding them into an edible paste. But then this, too, ran out, along with all the animals in the village.
“All over our region and in our own village a great number of corpses lie about in the streets and are piled up in the public warehouse. I, Mukhin, early one evening stole into the warehouse and took the corpse of a boy around the age of seven. I had heard that some people of our village were eating human flesh. I took him home on a sleigh, chopped up the corpse into small pieces, and set about to boil it that same evening. Then we woke the children—Natalya, 16 years old, Fyodor, 12, and Afanasy, 7—and we ate it. We ate the entire body in one day, all that was left were the bones.”
Soon after, a man from the village soviet came and asked Mukhin whether the rumor that they had eaten human flesh was true. Mukhin said yes, it was—many did it in the village, although they hid the fact. The man took him to the soviet for questioning. “We don’t remember what human flesh tasted like, we were in a mad frenzy when we ate it. We never killed somebody to eat them. We’ve got plenty of corpses and so it never crossed our minds to kill someone. There’s nothing more I can tell you …”
That same day, Balter questioned Mukhin’s 28-year-old son-in-law, Prokofy, a former Red Army soldier. He told Balter that, a week before he began eating human flesh, he had had to bury his grandfather, father, and mother in the course of just 10 days. All of them had starved to death. Earlier, in the spring of 1921, he had buried his only son, aged two, also dead from hunger. A week before Christmas, his pregnant wife, Stepanida, brought home some boiled human flesh from her father, Pyotr Mukhin, and they ate this together with Prokofy’s sister Yefrosinya. The three of them were arrested and taken to the village soviet, along with some human flesh found in their home.
They were held for three days with no food, and then conveyed to Buzuluk, a journey of four days. Given nothing to eat along the way, they asked one of the accompanying officials whether they might eat the pieces of flesh. He told them no: it had been entered into the police files as evidence. They ignored him and ate it anyway.
Mukhin, his daughter, and his son-in-law were all held in the Buzuluk House of Forced Labor, where they were examined by a psychiatrist from the faculty of Samara University in the middle of January. It was his judgment that none of them displayed any signs of “delirium, delusion of the emotions (hallucinations or illusions), maniacal agitation, condition of melancholy or similar signs of emotional disturbance.” They were neither mad nor insane, but in their right minds. It was hunger that had made them resort to cannibalism, and they presented no danger of committing violence against the community. “They present as typical normal subjects who have been placed in exceptional circumstances that have forced them to commit acts of an anti-human nature, at odds with the normal expression of human nature.” The subsequent fate of Mukhin, his daughter, and his son-in-law is unknown.
They were neither mad nor insane, but in their right minds. It was hunger that had made them resort to cannibalism.
The matter-of-fact tone in which these flesh-eaters described their actions was typical. According to the report of the A.R.A. inspector in Pugachëv County, a man by the name of Svorikin, once the starving had eaten human flesh, they no longer considered it a crime. The corpse, devoid of any human soul, was food, either for them or for “the worms in the ground.” He noted: “They speak of these things with a curious kind of passiveness and quietness, as if the question were not of eating a person but simply a herring.”
The practice became so common in this district that the peasants approached state officials to request the government to permit it. That this took place in Pugachëv County in Samara Province is not surprising. This part of the Volga region, which included Buzuluk, home of the Mukhins, suffered like nowhere else. By July 1922, the population had fallen from 491,000 to 179,000 in just two years: over 100,000 had perished from starvation and disease, 142,000 had been evacuated by the state and various relief agencies, and roughly 70,000 people had simply vanished without a trace. Pugachëv County was particularly remote: cut off from the rail lines, isolated from the outside world, left to survive on its own. It was precisely in such places that the most desperate victims of the famine resorted to cannibalism.
Once the starving had eaten human flesh, they no longer considered it a crime.
But not all peasants were willing to accept their fate and take to eating the dead. On the morning of December 8, 1921, in the village of Pokrov-Tananyk in Buzuluk County, a group of almost 50 angry peasants dragging the body of a brutally murdered man on a sleigh arrived at the home of Comrade Golovachëv, the county chairman. They pounded on his door until he came out, and demanded he give them food or else they would come back and eat the man instead. They threw the bloody corpse on the doorstep and departed. Golovachëv’s response is not known, nor is it known whether the mob made good on its threat. The policeman who reported this incident added, “Crimes of cannibalism are becoming more and more prevalent.”
False Alarm
Even if the A.R.A. wanted to play down cannibalism in its publicity, the subject was too explosive to keep out of the Western press, which had a tendency to treat it with the same tawdry sensationalism that had so angered Commissar Semashko. In April 1922, Reuters reported that during a riot in Samara a member of the A.R.A. staff had been killed and eaten. That same month, a story appeared in a Parisian newspaper stating that the American boss of the A.R.A. in Samara had been murdered, cooked, and eaten by the locals. A bemused Wolfe wrote to his brother in mid-May to say he was sure Eddie had read of the reports that an American had been killed and eaten in Samara, and that the likely victim had been none other than Henry himself, but there was no cause for alarm: this was an old rumor that had been going around for months, and he was safe and sound.
On May 29, The New York Times carried a story on cannibalism that made reference to an exhibition of gruesome photographs recently set up in the Kremlin, only a few doors down from Lenin’s office. The article questioned the reason for the exhibition, surmising that the terrifying images and stories were part of the government’s strategy to wring more aid out of the West. Many of the photographs had been taken by G.P.U. agents to be used as evidence in criminal cases. Although the article gave a vivid, and horrifying, description of the images, the Times refused to publish some of the details, substituting in brackets the words “Here follow details too revolting for publication.”
By the autumn of 1922, Wolfe had had enough of Russia. On November 9, he wrote a letter to Colonel William Haskell, head of the A.R.A. operation in the Soviet Union, informing him that he was beset by “a depression and nervous tension which make it impossible for me to work as I would.” Given what he had seen, no one could blame him. He had gone to Moscow on leave for a time, hoping this would help his mental state, but as soon as he returned to the famine zone, he felt stricken once again with famine shock. The only thing for him to do was resign and go home. The comfortable normality of his native Ohio had never looked so good.
Please keep in mind that as America goes though all these changes, that there will be areas of discomfort and distress. Some areas might experience broken lines of supply and transport. If that happens, the people may become hungry. And a nation where just everyone owns guns, and has a shit-fit over wearing masks, and hoards toilet tissue would go “ape shit” when hungry. Learn from history.
Do not be caught unprepared.
And do not count on your “leaders”. If anything they are puppets controlled by other interests who themselves are idiots.
America is devolving from a land of the “lone wolf” to a land of “every man for himself”. Be safe. Be frosty.
You greatest ability right now is to control your thoughts, to prepare, and establish friendships to everyone in your neighborhood. Be helpful. Obtain useful skills. Know how to be valuable. You will be fine.
You’ll not find any big banners or popups here talking about cookies and privacy notices. There are no ads on this site (aside from the hosting ads – a necessary evil). Functionally and fundamentally, I just don’t make money off of this blog. It is NOT monetized. Finally, I don’t track you because I just don’t care to.
Please kindly help me out in this effort. There is a lot of effort that goes into this disclosure. I could use all the financial support that anyone could provide. Thank you very much.
It’s difficult to measure the damage that an ideology can do on a society. Often you don’t realize what a mess things are until long after the great looting, and destruction. But you can notice events. Often singular events, and often whispered about quietly. And one such event is the purging of art in favor of the formless and meaningless.
Look at the painting above. It is titled “Consulting the Oracle” and was painted by John William Waterhouse. It’s great right? It’s large. It would occupy the wall in a nice sized living room. It’s 77 inches long and 46 inches high. And it’s beautiful. Right?
This painting was very quietly sold by the museum that held it for £5 ($7.50) to a private individual.
I’ve seen cups of coffee that cost more.
The excuse is that the museum needed the money. Bills needed to be paid, and new works of art needed to be purchased to “keep the museum alive and vibrant”. Of course that old “song and dance”. The excuse, a progressive excuse, that you must destroy the old to make room for the new.
Ok.
I’ll bite.
What “new” art was worthy of purchase. How about millions of dollars for this magnificent piece…
Willem de Kooning’s Woman III
.
This undeniably strange-looking painting of a woman made Willem de Kooning and his estate a few millions richer. The painting recently changed hands to the tune of $137.5 million. This abstract painting was finished by Kooning in 1953. The painting became rather controversial in the 1970s, because it was refused for exhibit at the Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art. This painting is currently privately owned. It spans 68 inches in height and 48.5 inches in width.
Yes. I cannot believe it. Can you?
And we are not alone either…
This painting is awful.
I get that it’s an abstract expressionist painting, but it is so hideous to look at. You honestly couldn’t convince me to take it if I was walking down the street and saw that laying on the grass. Clearly that means I have no taste because it sold for a ridiculous $137.5 million in 2006. This made it the 4th most expensive painting ever sold.
It was created by painter Williem de Kooning in 1953.
The buyer, David Geffen, is worth $6.5 billion, so nobody is going to step in and tell him how to spend his money… but are you kidding me?
-10 Ugly Pieces Of Art You Won't Believe Sold For Millions
Who in their right mind made this decision?
The Art Renewal Center chimes in…
From the Art Renewal Center…
Works of art worth tens of millions of pounds today have been sold off quietly by museums over the past 50 years for a few pounds. British art institutions such as the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge and the Exeter City Museum have disposed of pictures by masters such as Van Dyck and Henri Fantin Latour . They were sold without public notice, dismissed as too unimportant to keep. Among the most serious cases is a painting by the 19th-century master, John William Waterhouse . In 1965, the Royal Cornwall Museum in Truro sold it for £200 ($300) to a private collector; today it is worth more than £5 million ($7.5 million).
"Most of the works were sold off as they were deemed to be artistically worthless", Christopher Wright, a leading Old Masters scholar, said. He discovered evidence of the sales while preparing a nationwide study of British art for Yale University Press. "They have been sold off without public notice," he said. "Many of the museums didn't dare make it public. They've all been proved wrong."
Mr Wright expressed disbelief at the decision of the Exeter museum to "rape" its collection of 160 works - "there is no other word to describe the destruction of an entire museum collection". The auctions, which involved selling works for as little as £5 ($7.50), included Waterhouse's Consulting the Oracle, four paintings by Fantin-Latour and one by Sir Lawrence Alma Tadema . Caroline Worthington, fine art curator at Exeter, said that the sale took place at Christie's in 1954, "when High Victorian art was deeply unfashionable ... We would like them back, most definitely." "We're talking household names", Mr Wright said, adding that many were bought by the heavyweight dealers Agnews and Colnaghi, who clearly appreciated the importance of the artists, even if the museums did not.
Tamsin Daniel, Truro's curator of art and exhibitions, said that the museum had needed money for storage and a lift. She conceded that the loss was painful. The Waterhouse went to a private collector bidding at Christie's. The £200 ($300) it cost him, she said, was "a bit different to what Andrew Lloyd Webber paid recently for a Waterhouse": £6.6 million ($9.9 million).
Leeds City Art Gallery and Museum, Mr Wright was told by an insider, actually disguised the provenance of works when selling them through an auction house. "They were described as property of Madame X," he said. "The sales were clandestine. They didn't say Leeds was de-accessioning. They were all Victorian pictures purchased from the Royal Academy. They got rid of dozens." Nigel Walsh, curator of exhibitions, expressed surprise at the news, denying that the gallery had sold anything. Nor did Evelyn Silber, its director, know anything about it until contacted by The Times. She later discovered that 37 paintings (nearly all Victorian) had been sold in 1939 under the then director, Philip Hendey, who went on to head the National Gallery in London. The Fitzwilliam in Cambridge sold more than 200 works in the 1950s. Although they were marked "property of the Fitzwilliam" in the catalogs, they were mixed up with hundreds of other lots, Mr Wright said. "They put them through the salerooms in dribs and drabs."
Mr Wright said that the Fortune-teller with Soldiers "was sold off as a copy, but it has since been published as the real thing worth millions".
Craig Hartley, a Fitzwilliam curator, said: "In retrospect, this seems a horrific thing to have done." Among other institutions to have sold off paintings, Mr Wright said, were the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich; the Cooper Art Gallery in Barnsley; the Holbourne Museum of Art in Bath; and the Birmingham City Art Gallery.
-Art Renewal Center article by Dalya Alberge
I am horrified.
Just beyond my self.
So who ended up getting these magnificent works of art?
"They were described as property of Madame X," he said. "The sales were clandestine. They didn't say Leeds was de-accessioning. They were all Victorian pictures purchased from the Royal Academy. They got rid of dozens."
Well, you must understand that a museum collects works of art for pubic display and enjoyment. If they no longer wants to display that art to the public, they take if off display and put it in storage. Apparently these works took up too much space, so they sold them to “Art Dealers”. And these art dealers held auctions and auctioned them off to wealthy attendees.
Yes.
That’s right. The art was taken away from public display and sold off to the oligarchy for their own personal use.
Ladies and Gentlemen ... Artists,
The art of painting, one of the greatest traditions in all of human history has been under a merciless and relentless assault for the last one hundred years. I'm referring to the accumulated knowledge of over 2500 hundred years, spanning from Ancient Greece to the early Renaissance and through to the extraordinary pinnacles of artistic achievement seen in the High Renaissance, 17th century Dutch, and the great 19th century Academies of Europe and America. These traditions, just when they were at their absolute zenith, at a peak of achievement, seemingly unbeatable and unstoppable, hit the twentieth century at full stride, and then ... fell off a cliff, and smashed to pieces on the rocks below. Since World War I the contemporary visual arts as represented in Museum exhibitions, University Art Departments, and journalistic art criticism became little more than juvenile, repetitive exercises at proving to the former adult world that they could do whatever they damn well wanted ... sadly devolving ever downwards into a distorted, contrived and contorted notion of freedom of expression. Freedom of expression? Ironically, this so-called "freedom" as embodied in Modernism, rather than a form of "expression" in truth became a form of "suppression" and "oppression." Modernism as we know it, ultimately became the most oppressive and restrictive system of thought in all of art history.
Every reasonable shred of order and any standards with which it was possible to identify, understand and to create great paintings and sculpture, was degraded ... detested ... desecrated and eviscerated. The backbone of the painters' craft, namely drawing, was thrown into the trash along with modeling, perspective, illusion, recognizable objects or elements from the real world, and with it the ability to capture, exhibit, and poetically express subjects and themes about mankind and the human condition and about man's trials on this speck of stardust called Earth ... Earth, hurtling through infinity with all of us along on board, along with everything we know and everything we hold dear.
Reason ... philosophy ... religion ... literature ... fantasy ... dreams, and all of the feelings, emotions and pathos of our every day lives ... all of it was no longer worthy of the painter's craft. Any hint by the artist at trying to portray such things was branded as banal, maudlin, photographic, illustration, or petty sentimentality.
Our children, going supposedly to the finest universities in the world, being taught by professors with Bachelors or Arts, Masters of Arts, Masters of Fine Arts, Masters of Art Education ... even Doctoral degrees, our children instead have been subjected to methodical brain-washing and taught to deny the evidence of their own senses. Taught that Mattisse, Cézanne, and Picasso, along with their followers, were the most brilliant artists in all of history. Why? Because they weren't telling us lies like the traditional painters, of course. They weren't trying to make us believe that we were looking at scenes in reality, or at scenes from the imagination, from fantasy or from dreams. They were telling us the truth. They were telling it like it is. They spent their lives and careers on something that was not banal, and not silly, insipid or inane. They in fact provided the world with the most ingenious of all breakthroughs in the history of artistic thought. Even the great scientific achievements of the industrial revolution paled before their brilliant discovery. And what was that discovery for which they have been raised above Bouguereau , exalted over Gérôme , and celebrated beyond Ingres , David , Constable , Fragonard , Van Dyck , and Gainsborough or Poussin ? Why in fact were they heralded to the absolute zenith ... the tiptop of human achievement ... being worthy even of placement shoulder to shoulder on pedestals right beside Rembrandt , Michelangelo , Leonardo , Caravaggio , Vermeer and Raphael ? What did they do? Why were they glorified practically above all others that ever went before them? Ladies and gentleman, they proved ... amazing, incredible, and fantastic as it may seem, they proved that the canvas was flat ... flat and very thin ... skinny ... indeed, not even shallow, lacking any depth or meaning whatsoever.
And the flatter that they proved it to be the greater they were exalted. Cézanne collapsed the landscape, Matisse flattened our homes and our families, and Pollock, Rothko and de Kooning placed it all in a blender and splattered it against the wall. They made even pancakes look fat and chunky by comparison. But this was only part of the breathtaking breakthroughs of modernism ... and their offshoots flourished. Abstract expressionism, Cubism, Fauvism, minimalism, ColorField, Conceptual, op-art, pop-art and post modernism ... and to understand it all ... to understand, took very special people indeed, since the mass of humanity was too ignorant and stupid to understand. Like that famous advertisement in the NY Times said so many years ago ... Bad art ... or Good art? You be the judge, indeed.
Of course, to justify this whole theoretical paradigm, all the artists that painted recognizable scenes with depth and illusion had to be discredited ... and discredited they were, with a virulence and vituperation so scathing and merciless that one would think they must have been messengers of the devil himself to deserve such abuse. And to put the final nail in their coffins, all of their art was banished and their names and accomplishments written right out of history. I graduated with a Master's in art education from Columbia University, and I'd never heard of Bouguereau , much less that he was President of the Academy and head of the Salon ... the most celebrated artist of his time who single handedly, using all of his influence as the most respected leader of art world, opened up L'Ecole Des Beaux Arts and the Salons to women artists for the first time in history.
During most of the 20th century, the type of propaganda that has been hurled at academic artists is so insidious that people have been literally trained to discredit, out-of-hand, any work containing well-crafted figures or elements, or any other evidence of technical mastery. All the beauty and subtlety of emotions, — interplay of composition, design and theme, — the interlacing of color, tone and mood, — are never seen. The viewer has been taught that academic painting on a prima facie basis is bad by definition — bad by virtue of its resorting to the use of human figures, themes or stories and objects from the real world.
Prestige suggestion causes them to automatically assume that a work must be great if it's by any of the "big names" of modern art, so they at once start looking for reasons why it must be proclaimed great. Any failing to find greatness is not considered a failing in the art but in the intelligence and sensibilities of the viewer. Students operating under that kind of intimidating pressure, you can be sure, will find greatness - no matter what they are looking at.
The reverse of this has been trained into them when they view academic paintings. They have been taught that works exhibiting realistic rendering are "bad art" and therefore any good that is seen is not due to qualities inherent in their artistic accomplishments, but are rather due to a lack of intelligence and taste in the viewer. The same intimidating pressure works in reverse to ensure that a work by Bouguereau , Lord Leighton , Burne-Jones , Gérôme , Frederick Hart , or any of the rest of you here, will not be seen as anything other than bad by definition.
No student in a school with this kind of dictatorial brain-washing will ever risk exploring or even listening to opposing views, for fear of being stigmatized from that point on, with some undesirable label and being universally despised ... sadly, a very effective deterrent to independent thought. Thus the visual experience of well-drawn representational elements is perceived as a negative, ad hominem, that proves with knee-jerk automaticity the presumed "badness" of the art and its creator.
It is especially ironic that these are the same people who trumpet the virtues and inalienable right to freedom of speech, while they surreptitiously and steadfastly conspire to remove that freedom from those with whom they disagree.
Equally ironic is the charge that academic painting is "uninspired," a proclamation issued by critics who are unable to see beyond the technical virtuosity for which they condemn it, to see what is being said. This rich visual language is wasted on eyes that will not see. It would be no different than dismissing out-of-hand a piece of music as soon as it was determined that notes, chords and keys were used, or dismissing any work of literature upon noticing words arranged in grammatically correct sentences.
That is not to say that all academic art is great, or above criticism - certainly, it is not. It would be no less fallacious to issue blanket praise to an entire category than to condemn it. Academic painting ranges from brilliantly conceived and deeply inspired, to trite and silly, depending on the subject and the artist.
That being said, I find even the worst of it more meaningful than art based on the ridiculous notion that it is somehow important to prove the canvas is flat, and/or that one needs no skill or technique to be an artist - views generally embraced by those who condemn the entire category of academic art. Their point seems to be to elevate to legitimacy that which has removed all standards and prior defining characteristics of art. In other words, by defining non-art as art, the logical conclusion is that art is non-art.
Modern artists are told that they must create something totally original. Nothing about what they do can ever have been done before in any way shape or form, otherwise they risk being called "derivative". How utterly absurd.
These critics like to say Bouguereau's work is really only derivative, harking back to earlier artists. Only in the 20th century has such a thing ever been scorned. To this I have one thing to say:
What, dear friends, is wrong with being derivative?
That's one of the core beliefs of modernism that must be soundly vanquished by common sense and logical analysis. Nobody can accomplish anything of merit if they are in fact not derivative. Only by mastering the accomplishments of the past and then adding to it can we go still further. Every other field of endeavor recognizes this truth. Without the knowledge of the past we are doomed to everlasting primitivism.
And, as far as holding our works up to the old masters, that's what we want to have happen. If we are to accomplish things of true merit and excellence, we must germinate and nurture great masters in the next millennium, too. Bouguereau was quite aware that his work would be compared on the altar of past accomplishments, as did his contemporaries. It was precisely because they mastered the techniques of the past, built upon them and then opened them up to an avalanche of new subject matter and Enlightenment ideals, that they accomplished the greatest half-century of painting in art history.
And when we talk about the basic criteria and parameters of the academic tradition that built from the 14th through 19th centuries, Bouguereau , Lord Leighton and Alma-Tadema were second to none.
Could Bach and Beethoven and Mozart have achieved their masterpieces if someone before had not discovered scales and the circle of fifths? Does that mean these musical giants were nothing but derivative too? In fact all great literature exists due to the existence of advanced language. This upside down thought process would make Dosteovsky, Balzac, Chekhov, Shakespeare and the Brontë sisters derivative as well. If you think about it a bit you will see that these are exact analogies. There is nothing any more derivative about these 19th century Traditional-Humanist-Academic masters.
Being derivative is entirely different from copying. Copying itself can have value, but only for the purposes of instruction. Obviously, a copied work is not original art. But modernist ideologues have disingenuously dismissed all realist art as "derivative" as if that were the same as copying.
Additionally, students today are taught that every parameter upon which any standard for quality and excellence can be deduced is improper, because it's "limiting to freedom of expression."
There can be no story, for then you have to stay within the "tight boundaries" of the tale.
There can be no illusion, for then you are "chained" by the need to recreate a sense of three dimensions.
There can be no drawing, as that can be "limiting" to objects or people or things taken from the real world.
They want to remove the "shackles" of modeling, perspective, or subject matter of any sort.
There certainly can be no attempt at harmonizing of the above parameters with composition, color and tonality, for that would "restrict" one to making everything work together.
On the contrary, they have been propagandized by modernism into believing that only those works that break boundaries, ignore standards, and show no interest in skill or technique can be truly "original" or "inspired." In fact originality of methods take precedence over all else. If something has been done before, or is derivative in any way of anything that was done before, it thereby loses value proportionate to those similarities. In such a "Through the looking glass" world, every would-be "artist" is placed in the untenable position of trying to create an entirely new art form in order to be considered relevant. The sheer glaring reality is that nothing could be more imprisoning, binding, restricting, chaining and shackling than the impossible limitations of modernism and post-modernism, that remove from the would-be artist every tool (including training) that could give him or her the ability to create great works of art. The simple truth is that each and every one of us (and I mean nearly every human being), is capable of thinking of something that has never been done before. Does that make it worth doing and the work of genius?
For example:
(1) I could carefully (with enough money) dig up an old bombed out tenement building in the Bronx, and have it transported to a special slab built for it in Central Park. Rope off the structure and aim lights at it at night and give it a title, and with enough pomp and circumstance think of twenty reasons why this is sheer brilliance and genius.
(2) I could boil the entrails of several different animals and then preserve them by imbedding them in clear plastic. I could then hang them from a mobile with similarly preserved body parts of cadavers, and have critics claim that this is the greatest artistic statement about the horrors of war since Guernica
(3) I could imbed into the walls, ceiling and floors of a small room, pieces of neon lights, parts from broken machines and engines, and broken pieces of structural building materials like bricks, beams and cinder blocks. Then I could glue between everything millions of nails, nuts and bolts, and have clever writers and critics point out how this room (which could be installed at MOMA or the Guggenheim) is the quintessential statement of the effects of the industrial age on human psychology.
Well, those three ideas took all of 3 minutes to think of. MY GOD! This must mean I'm three geniuses rolled into one. Why, at this rate I could come up with more brilliant ideas for Modernism than all of the modernist geniuses put together, if I just would put aside a week or two.
The thing here that really is interesting is not their art at all, but the statement it makes about the nature of our species — that so many seemingly intelligent people have been so easily snookered by the tongue-twisting, convoluted illogic of modernist rhetoric. Clearly for many people it is more important to feel that they are some part of an elitist in-group that is endowed with the special ability to see brilliance where the bulk of humanity sees nothing and is afraid to say so.
Since most people aren't devoted to or educated in fine art, they have successfully intimidated the bulk of humanity into cowering away in silence, feeling foolish for their inability to understand. The average person shrinks away from believing the reality of his or her own senses in the face of seemingly overwhelming numbers of people in this 20th century "establishment" who authoritatively dictate what is great art and what everyone should be seeing.
Modern and Post-modern Art is nihilistic and anti-human. It denigrates humanity along with our hopes, dreams, desires and the real world in which we live. All reference to any of these things is forbidden in the canonistic halls of modernist ideology. We can see that their hallowed halls are a hollow shell, a vacuous, vacant vault that locks their devotees away from life and humanity. It ultimately bores the overwhelming bulk of its would-be audience, who can find nothing with which to relate.
It has been called exciting and cutting-edge, but the sad truth is that it is incredibly humdrum and monotonous. Whether you glue together pieces of plastic or shards of glass, assemble metal scraps or piles of feathers. Whether you dribble little dollops of colors or drag fat uneven slashes of black. Whether you compile a mountain of paper or wrap the Statue of Liberty. The effect is always the same. MEANINGLESS PRIMITIVISM.
Modernism is art about art. It endlessly asks the question, ad nauseam: What is art? What is art? Only those things that expand the boundaries of art are good; all else is bad. It is art about art. Whereas all the great art in history, my friends, is ART ABOUT LIFE.
Of course, this isn't exactly the first time in history that ideas which were complete shams managed to engulf the belief systems of entire cultures and civilizations. In many of those in the past, the lunacy was enforced by the severest of punishments for anyone who would dare to speak out.
At least we live in a time and place where it's possible to speak against this consummate con that has been perpetrated against the greatest period of artistic development and achievement in the history of Western Civilization and culture over the last 500 years.
Three-quarters of the 20th century will go down in art history as a great wasteland of insanity — a nightmarish blip in the long road of the development of human logic and reason and art, from which we are only just starting to awake.
The artists of the 19th century exhibited a deep, abiding respect for humanity and human feelings. A respect for our minds, our spirits and our reason, and a love of beauty, grace and true excellence and accomplishment. Bouguereau , Lord Leighton , Waterhouse , Burne-Jones and the other giants of the 19th C. tried to capture those things that are good and decent in our species. Their accomplishments are the quintessential high point of hundreds of years of human study and development in the art of painting. They are arguably the greatest painters that history has ever produced. Bouguereau especially fits this description. How fitting and sadly obvious that he should be characterized as the chief villain by those who would destroy rather than build — who celebrate chaos rather than order and beauty.
He continues…
Recently, a contributor to an on-line art forum I subscribe to made the following comments about Picasso,
I love the way Picasso did that woman all shards and angles. I don't recall the name of the work. But, he painted the woman in her turmoil how she tore herself apart within, and how he saw what her turmoil did to her. He painted the way he saw her, as fragmented as he saw her. She was a beauty on the outside. Yet, he painted the ugly face of her turmoil, and in so doing painted his turmoil as well.
Picasso worked in a turbulent time. I think it's why some of his works appeared to be reflections in a broken mirror. Shards, impressions all cut up and each with a voice about his subjects and of Spain. His work shows a deeply sensitive artist and was a pivotal point for the Russian avant garde school that said it was okay to feel in paint, to get all the chaos out in paint ... I didn't love him until I studied him ...
- Laurie
And he continues…
I thought it fitting to read here my response to her.
Laurie and Goodart subscribers,
I really need to address these ebullient expressions of praise for Picasso a bit more precisely.
Laurie, this is not to fault you at all, but to analyze the description you have made which reflects the gospel that is taught about him in most art history courses. His name and "achievements" have become so "untouchable" within the sacrosanct walls of modernist cathedrals, that to do any other than you have stated here would be like criticizing the cross or the bible in the College of Cardinals.
Let's look at this one idea at a time.
You said that, "He painted the woman in her turmoil how she tore herself apart within, and how he saw what her turmoil did to her".
I
n fact, all that he painted was a messy characterization of a woman in which the forms and shapes don't align or create any cohesive form. The drawing is virtually non-existent, and the disintegration of all artistic elements are self-consciously laid out for the express purpose of rejecting prior artistic standards.
There is no beauty in her face, or for that matter, ugliness. There isn't even a face ... but elements thrown together with just enough evidence to let the viewer know that it was meant to suggest a face.
Everything about the finished product is utterly awful and would be beneath the capabilities of a talented 12 year old.
Now, what if you are a theorist who needs to justify this hodge-podge of sloppy color and form? What can you creatively think of to place value and meaning, where none exists ... especially, if you are being paid to do just that?
It's simple: you need but approach the work as you would a Rorschach inkblot test, where anyone can use creative ability to make up a story, suggested by little, if any, information. If you want this man's work to be valued highly, you must create a tale of great importance, with meaning, which, when discussed or analyzed in intellectual circles, will be considered profound and meaningful.
The idea of a lady being ugly on the inside is a concept from literature, psychology, and in fact all of human history. Ugliness, mean-spiritedness, and turmoil are major concepts that tint all of human experience. So you simply say that the messiness represents that, and look how brilliant he is to have captured it.
But in truth he has done nothing of the kind. The writers who said that was what it means were the one who did it, and not the artist. Inner turmoil and ugliness on the inside is far more difficult to capture, and takes intense, subtle handling of story telling, composition, drawing, and realistic rendering to successfully convey so that it can be recognized without any words. Waterhouse's Lady of Shalott and Bouguereau's Divideuse both capture beautiful women loaded with inner turmoil, and Cabanel's Cleopatra testing poisons on slaves portrays intense inner ugliness within a beautiful face and figure infinitely better than these broken blotchy messes on canvas by Picasso.
But when the modernist professors say that's what it means, then implicit in their words is that if you don't see it too you're stupid and tasteless. Also to not see it becomes associated with not seeing how wonderful that subject matter would be. And it is after all truly wonderful subject matter. Only one problem; Picasso didn't paint it.
You say, "his work shows a deeply sensitive artist," but I don't conclude any sensitivity whatsoever. What is there is the sensitivity of a bull in a china shop, who stomps around breaking all the beautiful porcelain, and then with an army of critics lined up with their nostrils flaring dares anyone to criticize the dump he just left in the your living room.
"Either you love my turds or you are against freedom of expression."
If you don't want it in your museum, you're the enemy of freedom of speech. Faced with such intimidation surely many would rather line up in support. But there is truly nothing there. It's a trick of words and intimidation. An Illusion of social pressure and fearful conformity.
His school, "... said it was okay to feel in paint, to get all the chaos out in paint ... I didn't love him until I studied him."
Of course you didn't love him until you studied him. What you learned to love was all the explanations about worthwhile concepts and subjects. And with a training right out of Pavlov, you were taught to salivate when you were shown things that caused associations to those worthwhile ideas.
But Laurie, WHERE'S the BEEF? You're salivating at a symbol much the way people react to their country's flag. The flag comes to be seen as beautiful because it represents family, home and hearth, friends, loyalty, and the things we love. You've been taught to react to symbols instead of responding with the freedom of independent thought to works of art that are not supposed to be flag-like-symbols of great artistic ideas, but the great works of art themselves, which communicate, through a readily discernable visual language, some aspect of the human condition.
You had to be taught to love Picasso, because nobody would love him otherwise. But people don't need to be taught to love Rembrandt , Michelangelo , Bouguereau , or for that matter Chopin, Beethoven, Bach, or Tom Sawyer, The Grapes of Wrath, Alice in Wonderland, or The Christmas Carol.
Teaching and information can add to the depth of understanding of great works of art, but they are great initially by their ability to capture the soul and imagination of the viewer, without thousands of words to instruct us on how to deny the evidence of our own senses and to deny our innate sense of truth and reason.
Of course, what tends to happen to people who have allowed themselves to be convinced that the emperor is wearing beautiful clothes, is that they have become "ego invested" due to years of having parroted the same falsehoods ... and the associated humiliation that goes with acknowledging that one has been had. The more years, and the more said in support of Modernism, the greater the difficulty in breaking through the gestalts, and taking off the iconic blinders, shedding all the preconceptions and looking again with "innocent eyes" and describing what is really there (at least to yourself), and then comparing it to the maligned academics like Waterhouse , Bouguereau , Lord Leighton , Burne-Jones , Gérôme , and Alma-Tadema , and deciding with freedom of thought and an honest wish to find the truth, which of them indeed are works of art, and which are snake oil salesmen."
He continues…
And so I ended that letter.
The change in people's perceptions about this is happening now very quickly. Even this austere institution, probably the greatest museum in the Western Hemisphere, just a couple of summers ago had a major retrospective of one of these maligned 19th century masters, Edward Coley Burne-Jones.
And in their literature on the show declared him one of the three greatest English artists of the last century, along with Constable and Turner. In fact, the Metropolitan Museum deserves great credit for being one of the first great institutions to once again hang their Bouguereaus and Gérômes, Meissonnier and Burne-Jones, on permanent exhibit in the face of scathing criticism from the press back in 1980.
Soon after, Laurie followed this with a good-natured post saying that although she felt that I may have insulted her intelligence, she loved me all the same. To which I responded:
And …
Laurie,
It was not my wish to insult your intelligence. The very brightest of people are just as vulnerable. It is in human nature to go along to get along. I certainly did it too when I was in college and grad school in fine art. Even when I was finally willing to speak my mind about Pollock, de Kooning, Rothko and Warhol .... Picasso was somehow sacrosanct, and I would pay lip service to his brilliance while the works of the other modernists I allowed myself to see as they were.
It wasn't until I hit about 40 years old that I started to more fully recognize the power of prestige suggestion and social intimidation in forming opinions.
To truly judge your own feelings and opinion about a work of art, you need to look at it as if it were painted by a complete unknown, perhaps some student in another town, and then ask yourself what your opinion of that work would be then. Would you think it was one of the greatest works in the history of civilization, would it even be great ... or good ... or mediocre .... or just plain bad?
So true.
He continues further…
I know now absolutely that nearly all the works by most of the famous Modernists are truly awful on all fronts.
I also know that the best works by Bouguereau and Waterhouse would thrill me to my bones even if they had been painted by complete unknowns. When I saw a Bouguereau for the first time, I had never heard of him, but my response was immediate unambiguous and self-validating. I needed no books or texts or convoluted explanations. The strength of the work was powerful, unique, immediate and overwhelming.
It was exactly as I had felt in the presence of Michelangelo's David. Ah, but when I saw the David I was already predisposed to see what history considered one of humanity's greatest masterpieces. However, it was that seminal experience at 18 that excited my interest in art. The Bouguereau that I saw, Nymphs and Satyr, was when I was 32 years old, and it's effect was equally profound, changing the course of my life, ultimately leading me to this podium here today.
Don't let pride get involved here. Don't even answer me. Just ask yourselves and answer honestly.
One common claim that you hear repeatedly is that the proof that some abstract expressionists were great artists, can be found in their high quality academic student drawings. My answer to this is that it's really irrelevant whether or not they could do a decent student drawing. If anything it only makes it sadder that promising young talent was wasted. The quality and value of their "mature" work is not helped a bit by showing that they could draw decently when young.
The best way to prove that is to consider the inverse.
Would Raphael or Bouguereau's mature work be somehow made the worse if their student drawings from decades earlier had been of poor quality? Their great paintings would still be just as great, and de Kooning's hideous smears for which he is so famous are still just as awful.
I am quite certain that every artist in this audience paints better than all of the famous modernists and post modernists, and is more deserving of societal attention and praise. Yet still, so-called "major works" of theirs can sell for between 2 and 25,000,000 dollars at auction. The dirty little secret, however, that the modernist establishment and the press has been hiding, is that those same works sold for two to three times those prices back in 1988 and 1989. While the prices of all the icons of modernism peaked at that time, and any money invested then has declined a whopping 50 to 80%, the market for Gérôme , Waterhouse , Bouguereau , Alma-Tadema , Burne-Jones , Rossetti , Millais and Lord Leighton , has increased between 2000 and 10,000 percent since 1975.
Every year, records are being broken again and again.
In 1977, the world record price for a Bouguereau was $17,000. Now, in the past 3 years, the world records for his work first topped a million dollars in 1997, then a million and a half in 1998, two and a half million in 1999, and last May, Charity sold for over $3,500,000. Additionally, last June the world record for any Victorian painting was completely trampled when Saint Cecilia, by John William Waterhouse, sold for just over $10,000,000 in London to Andrew Lloyd Weber.
There are only 826 Bouguereaus and about 465 Tademas in the world. Do you know how many Picassos there are? Can anybody here guess? There are 80,000 of them, and the balance between supply and demand has faltered, and like the dot com stocks of last year they will soon come crashing down along with hundreds of billions of paper profits lost in the dust of history. Like the tulip bulbs in the 17th century, or Tokyo Real estate in the 1980's, investors will be decimated. If I owned a work by any of those "Abstract artists" I would be racing to cash it in before the fall, and that has been my recommendation to dozens who have asked me.
Many of my friends in and out of ARC have told me that I shouldn't talk so much about the modernists. One of them recently wrote to me saying, "I really don't think we help our cause by helping talentless modernists get press coverage." Another fearfully said, "Don't criticize the modernists, just focus on what's good."
I replied as follows:
His reply…
When have the modernists ever held back from criticizing traditional and academic art? The problem with this attitude, while I also find it very appealing, is that our not talking about the modernists doesn't really mean much.
The fact is that they are being talked about with high praise, in nearly every university art department and art history course in the western world ... parroting the same things that they were taught. They are also being constantly celebrated and exhibited by the biggest and most prestigious museums and getting rave reviews in the newspapers as often as not.
If somebody doesn't explain to everybody why they're not really any good, and why they're not really even artists, and how the whole thing is a hoax, then they will continue their propaganda and continue brainwashing our children and intimidating them into feeling stupid if they don't go along to get along ... and they'll do it unopposed.
If we don't speak up and tell the world that the Emperor's naked, nobody else will. We may not want to talk about them, but we have to if we are going to have any chance of turning things around. We have to provide a theoretical and philosophical context for the feelings of the tens of millions of people out there who are disgusted and feel an aversion for Modernism ... but feel afraid to say so. They need to know that they are not alone and they need to have their feelings validated. And at the same time, we need to provide alternatives ... rich alternatives with great traditional art and with countless images of the greatest paintings in history.
So well put…
And now ladies and gentlemen ... artists ... portrait artists ... I come at this point ... to you. Who are you? Who do you think yourselves to be? Well let me tell you how I see you. You are beyond doubt, the true artistic heroes and heroines of the 20th century.
Many of you know that I am the chairman of the Art Renewal Center, which you can find at http://www.artrenewal.org. The Art Renewal Center is building the largest on-line museum on the internet, and is completely devoted to the return of standards, training and human themes and subjects in the visual arts. Modern Art is about expanding the definition of art.
They believe that "everything is art", or, "Whatever the artist says is art, is art."
Well, if everything is art, then nothing is art.
Any definition that includes everything is not a definition at all. As I said, Modern art is "art about art", while all the great art and literature and theatre throughout history is "Art about life."
I wrote about all of you, and your teachers, in the published Philosophy of the Art Renewal Center. Here's what I said:
Against all odds, and in the face of the worst kind of ridicule and personal and editorial assault, only a small handful of well-trained artists managed to stay true to their beliefs. Then, like the heroes and heroines who protected a few rare manuscripts during inquisitional book-burnings of the past, these 20th Century art world heroes managed to protect and preserve the core technical knowledge of western art. Somehow, they succeeded in training a few dozen determined disciples. Today, many of those former students, have established their own schools or ateliers, and are currently training many hundreds more. This movement is now expanding exponentially. They are regaining the traditions of the past, so that art may once again move forward on a solid footing. We are committed in every way possible to record, preserve and perpetuate this priceless knowledge.
That's who you are. So if some of you are having trouble selling your work, or haven't been able to command the prices you deserve ... if you feel infuriated at piles of bricks and elephant dung filling museum galleries, while you can only pay to have space allotted to you for an evening in a great museum like this ... don't despair.
Your time is coming. You have done humanity a service of such magnitude, that sadly you will never be properly repaid. Keep painting your great portraits, and when you can find the time, paint what your heart tells you to paint, too.
The modern world is a boiling cauldron of all sorts of great and absurd ideas, feelings, pathos, pathologies, psycho pathologies, humiliation, and dehumanizing ideas ... and yet ... yet even beauty, too, is still here amongst us, here in this hall and throughout the world, and her manifestations in modern times have been insufficiently expressed. So, find her in your homes, find her in the streets, find her in your communities and in nature, and especially, find her in each other ... and save her ... save her ... protect and cherish her ... and exalt her back to her rightful place ... a place of supreme prominence, and bring her back into these our greatest institutions and our highest citadels of society and culture.
Thank you.
So inspiring.
Here’s one of my lost paintings. Destroyed by the “new” America that exists for the few; the oligarchy that controls all.
I am not a master, but I like to believe that I could have been one. The idea that the oligarchy controlled government can destroy your life’s work, your purposes, and everything that you have created so that they can implement some kind of selfish utopia is distrubing. It show that they are, and the systems that they have created, are pure psychopaths and psychopathic in nature.
.
Psychopathic systems do not lend longevity to society. Instead they offer a means of destruction.
I aruge that the oligarchy can only continue upon this path that they tred upon by converting everyone to adopt their methodology, or to convert everyone into mindless, emotionless followers.
How about other examples…
"In retrospect, this seems a horrific thing to have done."
Ya. Think?
There are so many examples of great works of art that used to be owned by museums for public enjoyment, but that have been sold off to private collectors. And while some have been repurchased by other museums and are now available for viewing, the battle to obtain these “lost works” was contentious in many cases. We are , and should consider ourselves, to be lucky. Lucky that the oligarchy has allowed us to be able to view these works on the internet. Lucky to be able to recognize that they existed and still exist, and lucky that they were not burned in bonfires of progressive revisionism and fashion.
Examples of artworks that have been sold off…
Let’s look at just some of the art; the paintings that the museums around the world has sold off for the price of a cup of coffee…
Constant Afternoon Langour by Jean-Joseph Constant (Benjamin-Constant) (1845-1902, France)
And…
Bramley Frank – A Hopeless Dawn
And…
Herbert Draper – Lament for Icarus
Draper's vision of Icarus, crashed and dead on the rocks, stays true to the myth and yet has a drama to it that is definitely the making of a more contemporary mind. Nearly 50% of the canvas is covered by the image of Icarus' gigantic, broken, dark wings. The wings are so huge they are cut off at the top left of the canvas and at the middle right.
This makes the image seem even larger than life. It is as if we look through a window that is not large enough to hold the view. It is possible that the advent of the camera influenced the artist's eye in choosing this unusual perspective.
But the impact is successful, dramatic and highly emotional because of the skill in which the wings are painted.
They are so huge, in fact, that they make shadows on much of what remains of the canvas. They are so immense and yet they have failed poor Icarus so completely.
Icarus lies dead; a darkening figure still strapped to the useless wings, as a sorrowful and sensual nymph pulls his upper torso gentle towards her. Two other nymphs look on woefully. The canvas creates a heart breaking darkness with small splashes of gold light falling on the nymphs and the far rock wall. The golden light is reminiscent of the hope for freedom that Dadelus had once had for his son Icarus.
All life, beautiful or not, comes to an end, and all our grand strivings lead us to the same end. The power in this work of art is the sense of loss it projects. If you read the text in the catalogue, it mentions other layers of possible meaning. Simon Toll makes note that Draper's father died shortly before this painting was executed and he suggests that this painting "may also be a private statement of loss." The text also suggests that the painting may be a tribute to the artist Leighton, who died two years earlier.
-ARC
And…
Lady Godiva by Lefevbre Claude Gheerbrant – Musée de Picardie
Examples of “art” that have been purchased by museums afterwards…
Let’s have a look at the kinds of art that the museums (all over the world) purchased once they discarded the “old” and “outmoded” art…
White Fire I by Barnett Newman
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Would you believe that this ridiculous-looking canvas was sold for $3.8 million? This abstract painting, which is comprised of two straight lines, was created in 1954. Barnett is an American artist who is a strong follower of abstract expressionism.
Abstract Expressionism, broad movement in American painting that became a dominant trend in Western painting during the 1950s. The movement comprised many styles varying in both technique and quality of expression. Artists include Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, Joan Mitchell, and Helen Frankenthaler.
-Abstract Expressionism | Definition
This painting, which follows the color field painting style, is one of the few pieces that he has created during his lifetime. Barnett is considered the greatest color field painters of his time. That is the reason why this expensive painting is very popular now.
Or how about a museum considering this to be a worthwhile addition…
Royal Red and Blue
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This is one of the most basic paintings to date but don’t let its simplicity fool you. It was sold for a whopping $75.1 million during a Sotheby’s auction in November of 2012.
The painter, Mark Rothko, is a known abstract expressionist.
This painting date back 1954 and basically has three blocks of color – and that’s it. Rothko is an American painter with Russian and Jewish Roots. He is known for the color field method style of painting which was popular in New York during the 50’s.
Summary of Color Field Painting
Color Field Painting is a tendency within Abstract Expressionism, distinct from gestural abstraction, or Action Painting. It was pioneered in the late 1940s by Mark Rothko, Barnett Newman, and Clyfford Still, who were all independently searching for a style of abstraction that might provide a modern, mythic art and express a yearning for transcendence and the infinite.
To achieve this they abandoned all suggestions of figuration and instead exploited the expressive power of color by deploying it in large fields that might envelope the viewer when seen at close quarters. Their work inspired much Post-painterly abstraction, particularly that of Helen Frankenthaler, Morris Louis, Kenneth Noland, and Jules Olitski, though for later color field painters, matters of form tended to be more important than mythic content.
-The Art Story
The idea is to paint the canvas with large blocks of solid colors giving off an impression of an uneven surface and a flat plane. This painting pretty much depicts that, although very simplistic that you can imagine a toddler painting this art piece, it has a surprisingly outrageous value.
Interchange
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To a lot of people, this can be viewed as a real abstract painting with a lot of character in it. There is no doubt about it- but to be valued at $300 million sparks a different kind of conversation.
As with all abstract art, most people can claim they can paint something similar, but in fact, there is more to this painting that meets the eye.
William de Kooning is a New York painter, but is originally from Netherlands. This artwork is an example of ‘action painting’ which is a technique where the artist spontaneously splash paint on canvas versus the traditional painting style that is meticulous and takes time to complete.
Action painting, direct, instinctual, and highly dynamic kind of art that involves the spontaneous application of vigorous, sweeping brushstrokes and the chance effects of dripping and spilling paint onto the canvas. The term was coined by the American art critic Harold Rosenberg to characterize the work of a group of American Abstract Expressionists who utilized the method from about 1950.
-Action painting | art | Britannica
It is somehow a form of physical art.
This technique is made popular during the 40’s to 60’s and has coined the concept of abstract expressionism. This painting was made in 1955 and is now housed in the private collection of Kenneth C. Griffin.
Onement VI
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This is one of the most boring paintings that you will ever see but you will be surprised to know that this blue colored canvas sold for over $43 million in 2013. It is one of the works of Barnett Newman, a known abstract expressionist. He has done a number of similar paintings such as this and has an entire “Onement” collection, which is basically composed of one dominant color and a division (what he calls a ‘zip’) right smacked in the middle. The zip is used to define the space of his paintings. This New York artist was born in 1905 and has made a following because of his color field art.
Birthday by Paul Klee
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If you don’t know better, you might mistake this for a preschooler’s art project. This is actually a painting from the famed painter Paul Klee. It starts off with an odd old maroon color with asymmetrical and disorganized images of triangles and squares, and oh yes, an odd orange circle in off center. One can maybe make this out as a series of houses or even a castle- but, hey, what do we know. Paul Klee is a Swiss-German painter born in 1879. Most of his works are now housed in varied museums all over the globe.
Blue Rectangle Over The Red Beam
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If you hear the word ‘painting’ you might be imagining something with a lot of imagination, color gradients and creative imagery. This painting from Kazimir Malevich is far from being complicated or deep but it is one of the most significant work of art to date.
Malevich is actually the pioneer of geometric abstraction- that is pretty obvious with his love of squares and rectangles.
Geometric abstraction, through the Cubist process of purifying art of the vestiges of visual reality, focused on the inherent two-dimensional features of painting. This process of evolving a purely pictorial reality built of elemental geometric forms assumed different stylistic expressions in various European countries and in Russia.
-Geometric Abstraction | Essay | The Metropolitan Museum of ...
This artwork was sold in Sotheby’s auction for a staggering $60 million and is the most expensive piece of Russian artwork of all time.
No. 5, 1948
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To the naked eye, this painting may simply look like a piece of stringy lines splashed around using a yarn, just like those kindergarten art projects kids use to make. This is an artwork done by Jackson Pollock in the year 1948. It is quite a large piece of artwork measuring 8 ft by 4 ft. He is a known abstract expressionist.
This painting in fibreboard uses brown, yellow, white and grey paint. It is often tagged as a dense bird’s nest because of the way the strips of paint overlap each other. This artwork was reported to be sold for over $140 million to a private collector.
Black Square
This oil painting was done in oil on linen and is now housed at the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow. As you would have realized by now, the painting is a mere black square. But there is a lot of philosophy and history behind this seemingly plain and dull painting. This piece is dubbed as the ‘zero point of painting’ and a combination of various art methods including futurism and constructivism. This is one of the prime works of Kazimir Malevich, who is the leader in Russian avant-garde art and has several pieces of similar works under this collection. He described this artwork as ‘liberated nothing’.
Conclusion(s)
One afternoon I toured an art museum while waiting for my husband to finish a business meeting.I was looking forward to a quiet view of the art works.
A young couple viewing the paintings ahead of me chatted nonstop between themselves.I watched them a moment and decided the wife was doing all the talk.I admired the husband's patience for putting up with her continuous talk.Distracted by their noise,I moved on.
I met with them several times as I moved through the different rooms of art.Each time I heard her constant burst of words,I moved away quickly.
I was standing at the counter of the museum gift shop making a purchase when the couple came near to the exit.Before they left,the man reached into his pocket and pulled out a white object.He extended it into a long stick and then tapped his way into the coatroom to get his wife's jacket.
"He's a brave man."The clerk at the counter said,"Most of us would give up if wewere blinded at such a young age.During his recovery he made a promise that his life wouldn't change.So ,as before,he and his wife come in whenever there's a new art show."
"But what dose he get out of the art?"I asked,"He can't see."
"Can't see?You're wrong.He sees a lot.More than you or I do."The clerk said,"His wife describes each painting so he can see it in his head."
I learned something about patience,courage and love that day.I saw the patience of a young wife describing paintings to a person without sight and the courage of a husband who would not allow blindness to change his life.And I saw the love shared by two people as I watched this couple walk away hand in hand.
-MoFanGe
If you were in the role of the wife (as described above – explaining each painting to her husband), how would you go about describing the more traditional artworks that the museums have sold off? How long would each painting take to describe?
Likewise, how would you describe the new progressive artworks? How long do you think it would take to describe them?
Perhaps this simple measurement, this idea in how to describe the impressions of art that is presented to you, is an element of it’s value and worth. Not that of the amount of currency that is used to purchase it, but rather the emotions and feelings that are generated upon viewing it.
I have argued HERE that the oligarchy is populated with psychopathic individuals that not only are unable to emote, but are unable to feel or express real emotions. Instead they only mimic actions and facial expressions to manipulat others to follow and believe them. As such, these psychopathic individuals see no value in art. Their only value is how they can be used as an element in financial exchange and commerce.
And thus, the study of art, is the study of the oligarchy that rules us.
The oligarchy that rules 99.9% of humans have evolved into a new KIND of human.
They are in possession of a service-for-self sentience, and are extremely good at manipulation, creation and generation of money and currency, as well as the accusition of power as well as the control over others. They are weak in the ability to express emotions and cannot emote. Medically they are known as psychopathic personalities and a healthy society cannot afford to have individuals of this disposition near any positions of power.
As they see no value in the art like “normal” people, they have subverted the institutions that they control; the libraries, the museums, and the art world into something that they understand. They understand money and using objects as trade mediums. They do not conderstand or emote the value of art.
And finally…
This movement towards progressive revisionism can only originate from those that are unable to understand art. They have no idea or concept of evoked emotion via visual stimulation. It is alien to them. They couldn’t understand it in any of it’s myrid forms. Thus…
Indeed, thus…
The entire progressive revisionism movement from art, to culture to society is driven from the oligarchy downward. It is their efforts to redraw the world into a “utopia” that they can understand and embrace.
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Phew! My titles are getting longer and longer, but then again, my subjects are getting more and more involved. Who’d figure, eh?
This post is going to cover a lot of material. It is going to be banging off the walls every which way from the crazed American politics, to the history of the start of the second world war, to what to expect when wars go badly for you, and a bunch of stuff from John Titor, the alleged time traveler.
Please do NOT be offended by my personal opinions of either Trump or Biden. They BOTH have a role, and important one. And both are fulfilling a serious need and space on the "food chain".
There are no absolutes. Just influences that infringe on our own individual lives, and liberties.
So, do not throw your computer against the wall in anger because I said something bad about Trump. Nor should you stomp off and spam-bot me because I said something bad about Biden. I have an equal-opportunity disgust for all American politics.
So...
When reading this meandering maze of opinionated discourse please keep in mind that the over all direction that a nation takes is encoded in our biological sentience. Remember that it would be a truly rare event for the cycles of change not to manifest. It has no bearing on who is the President of the United States, what is going on with Bretexit, or the international trade situation.
Do not fall into the trap of belief that we can control the sentience of others. We cannot. All that we can do is accept who we are, and ride out the changes while everyone else figures out their roles.
So grab a beverage of your choice and sit down and enjoy the journey. It's all about the human condition; a condition that you are all part of. Like it or not.
There are many students of World War II. There are many students of Hitler and how he came to power. There are many students of the battles and the technology of the time. There are also many students of the Geo-political conditions at that time. What few people are doing is comparing the actions that Hitler took leading up to World War II.
They never do this, or if they do, they keep the analysis secret. It never reaches the masses. It just floats away like the ash of a a burning pile of newspapers.
It horrifies me.
Yet, as a student of history, I was slow to catch on. I read the news about Donald Trump and his staffing decisions. I read about his election, and the “Never Trumpers”, and all the political in-fighting in Washington. For a while I too cheering his tweets, and his brash “in your face” attitude. I cheered when he responded and fought back. I enjoyed his attacks and it was a welcome change to all the fawning bullshit that we have become accustomed to.
… I also watched the “Trump Trade Wars” unfold. And I did so as as a man inside the technical-trade-logistics industry.
Yikes!
So, no. I wasn’t just some smuck checking my daily feed and cheering for this fucking jack-ass. Like most Americans were. I was a guy on the “front lines”.
And when he said that “China is stealing our jobs”, he was saying “Metallicman is stealing your jobs”. And when he would go traipse off to Germany to tell Merkel “stop trading with China”, I would find all my business with my German customers put on hold. Yeah.
Every time the news mentions China, they were talking about me, or at least things that would affect my life, personally. “You had better stop trading or doing business with Metallicman” Mike Pompeo would demand, “or, else you might have some color revolutions inside your country next year”.
So, yeah. I am biased. No shit.
I watched Trump paint a big red bulls-eye over my city, my house, my family, and my friends. I watched him start making crazy and arbitrary decisions, bans, and arrests… all in the name of “national security“.
You know, like banning “cat videos” and “lip singing to 10 second music excerpts”.
All for “national security“.
And I watched him, through his proxy; Mike Pompeo try to begin World War III. And try, and try he did. The thing was, no one had a taste for war.
I watched as it became impossible for me to communicate with my friends and family in the United States. I watched as applications out of the United States such as Zoom either stopped business with people in China or started charging outrageous fees to use their products. I did this in real time, and it fucking hurt.
Yeah. I could live in Timbuktu, and get Paypal payments, but Shanghai…forgetaboutit!
And I watched the American population, like the cattle they are, start foaming at the mouth.; believing that they are the best, and that they are invincible, and that small “surgical” nuclear weapons can be used, with no consequence what so ever.
Trump and Mike Pompeo would announce “I am banning all Chinese social media applications“, and the crowd would cheer with outrageous abandon.
American sheeple align with both political parties, and they always tout the narrative promoted by their preferred alternative Media networks.
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And I was here, on ground zero, when he unleashed the biggest biological weapon assault in history during the busiest, and most crowded holiday in China.
Overall, it was horrific. It was a slaughter.
COVID-19B, the strain unleashed upon China, is the nasty shit. This is the bad mama-jamba. Extreme contagiousness, and outrageous effects. Videos were everywhere showing people having seizures and collapsing. The COVID-19A, the mild strain, is what Trump gave to America and it’s allies.
Nation
Strain
R0
Effects
Deaths
China
COVID-19B
15%
Seizures
4,749
USA
COVID-19A
0.1%
Chest cold
291,403
Can you imagine what America would be like if the lethal strain were to be released inside of America by a REALLY pissed-off China?
The Trump cabal of neocons single-handily suppressed global trade to such an extent that a global recession occurred. And I, my family, my friends, my business, and just about every aspect of my connections to my home-nation was under attack by this jack-ass.
Yet, I still believed. I still had hope.
Maybe Trump would do some of the things he professed.
But he didn’t. It was all a big “con game” from the start.
No wall was built.
Hillary Clinton remained free.
Wall Street bankers became outrageously wealthy.
No industry came back to America.
America became the despised pariah globally.
American are not back to work. Most are unemployed, sheltering inside their homes.
It was exactly what it seemed.
He was a popular clown, or puppet, acting on a stage entertaining millions of Americans with his non-stop antics. It was, for Trump, better than having his own television show. He was entertaining the world. And Shit! No one could shut him off.
We were all, a captive audience.
But it wasn’t until I started to notice that the “fire hose of disinformation”; the anti-China propaganda campaign had reached a Fever Pitch. And there it became clear to me, the eight unusual biological virus attacks on livestock, the COVID-19, the “color revolutions” in HK, and the largest armada in all of recorded history steaming towards China. Yeah! It was unmistakable.
No. This was not a “hybrid war”. This the the early stages of a global war with a major nuclear armed nation.
For FreedomTM and DemocracyTM!
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Trump was launching World War III upon China on the illusion that it could be “contained” within the South China Sea, and “managed” properly. And the accumulation of all this anti-China activities resulted in the largest Naval armada in the history of the world plopping themselves off the Chinese coast and threatening China, Chinese trade, and Chinese lives. It included a vast flotilla of hunter-killer subs threatening all the shipping traffic, and daily flights of B-1 bombers and stealth aircraft with nuclear weapons probing Chinese air space.
…
Luckily a hot war didn’t happen.
The armada steamed home, and Trump sacked his Secretary of Defense for…
…<no one knows>…
… but WE know. Don’t we?
What’s up next.
This entire affair is not over by a long-shot.
But at least the crazy psychopath and his small army of neoconservatives are being displaced by better and more sensible professionals. And still, we at MM are the outliers. My opinion of this matter does not agree with the American media narrative.
Which pretty much means that it is correct.
The American media narrative is that Biden will be "tougher" on China than Trumps war-loving, killing-frenzy, neocons were. That's right! Biden is going to be tougher on China.
How is that even possible?
Nope.
The true situation is something that the American citizen-serf- cattle are never let in on. The real truth is that the Biden administration will consider…
China as an economic competitor to the USA.
Russia as a military threat to the USA.
Biden and Xi Peng have known each other for decades.
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Of course, the hawkish neocons who still control the mainstream and alternative media are doing everything that they can to portray Biden as harder and harsher on China than trump. I’m not personally clear on the reasoning. Maybe it’s hope, or maybe it’s desperation in trying to secure or maintain some kind of control.
What ever, here’s a pretty good write-up on MoA about the actual Biden Presidency and what to expect in regards to China. And no, you won’t find this narrative in any of the three main American “news” outlets…
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Oh, the narrative about “us vs. them” is going to continue all right. America needs an outside enemy to direct it’s frustration and anger towards. Perhaps you know what I am talking about. If you don’t read George Orwell’s book “1984” and refer to the Geo-political issues as described in that masterpiece.
The book is set in 1984 in Oceania, one of three perpetually warring totalitarian states (the other two are Eurasia and Eastasia).
Oceania is governed by the all-controlling Party, which has brainwashed the population into unthinking obedience to its leader, Big Brother. The Party has created a propagandistic language known as Newspeak, which is designed to limit free thought and promote the Party’s doctrines. Its words include doublethink (belief in contradictory ideas simultaneously), which is reflected in the Party’s slogans: “War is peace,” “Freedom is slavery,” and “Ignorance is strength.” The Party maintains control through the Thought Police and continual surveillance.
-Nineteen Eighty-four | Summary, Characters, Analysis ...
You all can consider the following Geo-Political alignments…
USA = Oceania
Russia = Eurasia
China = Eastasia
There are three major powers in the world right now.
USA = (Oceania) Oligarchy controlled military empire running amok. Populated by an intentionally dumbed down, weakened society, of work serfs. Military operations are the norm, and America is military empire with over 800+ military bases all over the globe, and currently fighting 8 hot wars. Americans view it as a normal occurrence, being in a state of war. Military is geared towards offensive conventional weapon operations outside the USA in far away lands.
Russia = (Eurasia) Fierce, pissed off people, who do not want another War where they are positioned within a defensive posture. They will NEVER allow that situation, a replay of World War II to reoccur. Russia suffered horribly during it, and Russians have never forgotten. Military is geared to preventative operations at a large and harsh scale.
China = (Eastasia) Old, smart, intelligent, and diligent. Does not want war, but will respond in a measured manner. On their terms. Using their timing. Planed for their advantage. Any attack on China will have an equal measured response within the continental United States. Military is geared towards responsive operations.
.
You will see the anti-China propaganda to decrease substantially and sharply, as it is already doing. And you will see a rise of anti-Russia propaganda. And I watch all this as an educated observer, and it horrifies me.
Firstly, because the lead up for war with China was so effective. Most Americans now hate China and support the idea of a (far off) war in the distant South China Sea. They actually believe that China would take the hits and not retaliate. They actually believe that it can be “contained” in a far away land. And now, soon it will change to Russia with a (supposedly) far-off war in Eastern Europe.
Secondly, that the ignorance of what China is, and what it is truly capable of is ignored, as it is discounted by most of the West. Which pretty much is the general American attitude of all other nations. And that is magnified by a factor of ten with Russia.
Thirdly, that the lead up for a war with China pretty much parallels what happened in the lead up to World War II. And we can expect it to be duplicated with Russia. So buckle up. Yeah. It’s not over yet.
Now, from my point of view, the activities will be directed towards Russia instead of China.
Yikes!
Russia? Seriously?
Russia is hard core.
Because while both China and Russia are serious, nuclear armed, nations run on merit and ability, they are also students of history and DO NOT PLAY.
China conducts Geo-Political actions using a "defensive policy". Meaning "tit for tat" responses.
So, if the USA military tries to destroy their latest VTOL carrier...
...two months later the US VTOL carrier USS Bonhomme Richard catches fire and is completely destroyed.
China always (so far, at least) responds to American aggression in a similar, and measured, manner.
But Russia is different. Russia conducts Geo-Political actions using a "preemptive offensive policy". Meaning that if a build up towards war becomes evident, they will unleash unholy nuclear armageddon upon the United States.
And why is this? Why is Russia like this, and why won’t they respond to American aggression like China has?
The answer lies in the differences in culture and society.
Krútost
During the last two decades, the notion of krutói (“tough”, “hard nut”, “smart”) became very central for the Russian definition of success. But even though the meaning is new (krutói means originally “steep” or “hard-boiled”), the concept is centuries-long. In it, you can find something in common with the religious search for purity, or the American obsession with self-help and self-improvement. But the starting point is different.
It’s the eternal Russian admiration of power. Our universe is choke full with predators—some benign, but many not—cruising and looking for prey in competition with each other. It’s about where in the food chain you want to place yourself.Topping from bottom
No one insists on depredation. But this world is not for the fragile. Even if your meek predisposition or your charitable ethics command you to linger on the very bottom, it pays to be krutói. You can duck, you can run, you can hide, you can talk your way out of trouble—the better you do it, the longer you last.
As a Russian, this is a quest nothing can exonerate you from. Ever wondered why spoken Russian sounds so tough, our ladies look so gorgeous, and the men act so macho in online forums? Here’s your answer.
No one knows what kind of riches waits for us at the end of this quest. Yet, if you one day find yourself reincarnated somewhere in Russia, expect everyone telling you in a zillion ways to pull up your britches and beating your ego into shape.
So, not only is China a serious, studious, thoughtful measured nation, but Russia is a nation of hard-core chomping at the bit, leather clad, biker types. I really don’t think that America is ready to tangle with them.
America is not ready to take on Russia. They, like China, DOES NOT PLAY.
.
To this, I will add…
As soon as the USA ramps up the “fever” of war for the American populations, you can well expect Russia (and possibly China) to preemptively strike America with a double-tap nuclear salvo.
And why do I believe this?
Because I, like the leaders of both Russia and China, read history.
China compared to America.
Pre-war preparations for World War II by Adolf Hitler and his cabal of Nazi-cons.
To really get an appreciation about what is going on…
And this is really what is going on, the United States is a bloated, sick, wounded, and terrified monstrous military empire in it's death throes, and tamping and threatening everyone around it.
And the global oligarchy is doing it's darnedest to limit the future carnage to the geographic United States least the entire world is destroyed in the process.
… we need to simply reread history. And I am not talking about boring stuff like names, dates and times, but rather the entire picture and the entire scope of the issues at hand. Let’s see how World War II started from the point of view of Hitler and his small collection of Nazi-cons sitting in Berlin.
Everyone who tried to fuck with Russia failed, and their nations were forever vanquished afterwards.
Napoleon and France.
Germany and Hitler.
America with Biden.
The following is a reprint of an Article on the warfare history network. All credit to the authors and the site. It was not edited except to fit this venue.
The decision to invade Poland was one in a series of risky moves that led to World War II.
By Christopher Miskimon
Historians often compare Adolf Hitler to a gambler. He kept making risky bets that paid off time and again—until they didn’t. Poland was one example because it led to general war. What brought Hitler to take this risk? With the benefit of hindsight it is seen as enormous, but what did the situation look like to the German Führer and his closest advisers at the time? The popular modern view of Hitler is that of a raving lunatic, screaming at subordinates while pushing phantom armies around a map in his bunker. While he deserves every negative epithet given him, he did not decide all his strategic and operational decisions from mad, angry rants. In the years leading to World War II there were numerous events that took him down the road from a promise to rebuild the nation to inevitable conflict. However skewed, there was method to his madness, which came close to paying off in the early years of the fighting. The war officially began with the Nazi invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939, but numerous factors led to this attack.
Logic, Planning, Revenge: Why Hitler Targeted Poland
While many of the calculations for war were based on some modicum of logic and reasoned planning, revenge, the basest of human emotions, played its part. German humiliation over the conditions placed upon the nation at the end of World War I had not abated in the two decades since the conflict ended. Over time the mass emotional reaction to the treaty stipulations became a festering sore among the population. This wound was ripe for exploitation by the Nazi propaganda machine during the party’s rise to power.
The Treaty of Versailles imposed severe restrictions on the German military. The ground forces were limited in size to 100,000 troops in 10 divisions, including 4,000 officers. The Army could be used only for the “internal maintenance of order” and defense. Also prohibited were staples of the German military system, such as a general staff, most officer training schools, and any sort of reserves or paramilitary groups. Additionally, tanks and heavy weapons were denied. Chemical weapons were expressly forbidden. Defensive positions along the east bank of the Rhine River had to be demolished for a distance of 50 kilometers from the riverbank. The west bank was similarly denuded of defenses. This left the country defenseless against attack.
The humiliation of Versailles went beyond just military limitations. Germany lost land to Poland and France. The French received Alsace-Lorraine, lost decades before during the Franco-Prussian War of 1871. The “Polish Corridor,” a strip of land given to Poland granting it access to the Baltic Sea, meant East Prussia was now physically separate from the rest of the country. The formerly German city of Danzig was made a “Free City,” controlled by the Poles despite its largely German population. All of Germany’s overseas colonies and territories were transferred to other nations. Last was a crushing debt of reparations, equivalent to billions of dollars today. (Read more about the conflicts and events that led to the Second World War inside the pages of WWII History magazine.)
The cumulative effect of the treaty requirements created a sense of injustice among the German populace, which the Nazis were all too willing to use in their grab for power. The party came into power on a promise to right the wrongs of Versailles and make Germany strong again. Germany suffered many internal troubles throughout the 1920s and early 30s, something the German people remembered. Once national power was restored in the late 1930s, it became a natural, brutal progression to use that power against nations that had taken German lands. The Polish Corridor stood out in particular; regaining it meant reconnecting East Prussia to Germany proper.
During the 1930s, the German armed forces undertook an extensive and mostly clandestine rearmament program. In this photo of the period, German soldiers ride in a wagon which is towing a wooden antitank gun.
With revenge in mind, the next step for Hitler was rearmament. This was the key prerequisite for any resurgence of Germany as a major power. Even before Hitler began rearmament in late 1933, the military had been secretly preparing for a fast expansion through a combination of training, liberal interpretation of the treaty restrictions, and secret weapons development projects. This allowed the Nazis to quickly create a massive military machine, faster than Germany’s opponents thought possible.
Initial steps included rebuilding the German arms industry so it could produce the necessary weapons. The plans for fast wartime expansion of the Army were instead applied to peacetime growth. The first increase was to 300,000 troops in 21 divisions. This program was to be finished by 1937, but Hitler advanced this timetable to the fall of 1934, barely a year later. During this period Hitler began to consolidate his power, moving against men like Ernst Röhm, the leader of the Nazi Party’s paramilitary arm, the Sturmabteilung (SA). He also absorbed the powers of the military commander in chief when the German President Paul von Hindenburg died in August 1934. Afterward German soldiers and sailors were required to swear an oath of allegiance to Hitler personally, a throwback to the oath given the kaiser during the imperial period. By the end of 1934, German Army strength reached 240,000.
On March 16, 1935, Hitler publicly rejected the Versailles Treaty and ordered a further expansion of the army to 36 divisions under a new defense law. Conscription was also reintroduced. Within two months another law created the Luftwaffe. The conscription program created a large pool of trained manpower, something the Germans lacked due to Versailles. Changes at the command level also made the German military more effective. The Reichswehr was renamed the Wehrmacht, with the three branches called the Heer (army), Kriegsmarine (navy), and Luftwaffe (air force). The general staff was rebuilt, and Hitler was solidly placed as the military’s supreme commander. Generals who disagreed with Hitler were retired or removed through scandal or accusations of misconduct. The Führer created a modern, powerful force completely under his control.
While this buildup was touted as smooth and organized with Teutonic efficiency, the process was difficult. German industry needed time to create modern weapons, most of which were only designs on a drawing board. Raw materials, trained labor, and factory capacity were insufficient to provide for all three services’ needs. The navy took a back seat to the Army and air force. This decision made sense because Germany’s primary opponents bordered the nation, rendering a powerful fleet unnecessary in the short term.
Making it Up as they Go: The Rapid Expansion of the Nazi German Army
Building on its secret experiments, the Army started an ambitious program for armored vehicles, but they were learning as they went. The first models were lightly armed and armored vehicles, which would later prove inferior to enemy tanks, though the Germans usually handled theirs better. Without making sacrifices elsewhere, it was impossible to build as many vehicles and artillery pieces as were needed. Hitler was unwilling to strain the peacetime German economy, so production rates were kept low.
The rapid expansion also placed a strain on personnel. There were not enough qualified officers and NCOs to fill all the required billets. Fast promotions and the recall of World War I veterans alleviated these problems, but only to a limited extent. Many of the veterans were getting too old for field service and needed refresher training. Many officers were lost to the newly formed Luftwaffe, and many staff officers for air units were ground forces men untrained and inexperienced in air operations. Another quick solution was to militarize entire police units to capitalize on the training and discipline of their NCOs and officers.
In a bold and risky maneuver, Hitler ordered German troops into the Rhineland in the spring of 1936. Hitler’s generals feared the aggressive move would spark French military intervention.
Despite these difficulties, rearmament did produce results. By October 1937, the army reached an active strength of 39 divisions in 14 corps, including three panzer and four motorized divisions. There were 29 divisions in reserve with more of their soldiers having recent training through the conscription program. In 1938, a dozen more divisions, including two panzer and four motorized, were also formed along with 22 more reserve divisions. Some of these units came from the absorption of the Austrian Army, which occurred that year. Further expansion occurred in 1939.
Possessing a powerful army gave Hitler options in the expansionist risks he took. Like many Germans, he sought revenge for perceived injustices. For the Führer the scales could only be balanced through war, and a strong military made war feasible, even desirable, as it would prove Germany was again formidable and to be respected. By 1939, the Army had 102 divisions, half of them active. Total strength was around 1.8 million troops. While there were still shortages in certain types of weapons and equipment, the Nazi propaganda machine had done its work, and these shortcomings were not apparent. Foreign observers saw a formidable modern force, and Hitler was happy to let them believe that image.
Prior to the Polish Crisis, Germany had gotten extensive practice in territorial acquisition, though without war. Instead, political maneuvering and bluff achieved Nazi goals up to that point. There was tension; war clouds loomed over Europe for several years before September 1939. However, until then each crisis had been resolved in Germany’s favor, a winning streak that increased confidence within the Reich in its own ability and the moral cowardice of its opponents. Hitler was susceptible to a gambler’s faith in a winning streak, and this was a factor in the Nazi invasion of Poland.
The Saar, 1935: Nazi Aggression Takes its First Steps
The Third Reich’s first success came in the Saar in 1935. This region of Germany was placed under Anglo-French occupation and control in 1920 for a period of 15 years. The Saar was an industrial center and contained coal fields that were given to France. A commission oversaw the territory until 1935, when a plebiscite was held to determine what would happen to the area. The situation was a reminder of German defeat in World War I and another territory stripped from the nation despite the ethnically German citizens in residence.
Jubilant young Austrian citizens cheer the news that their country has been annexed by Nazi Germany and is now a part of the Third Reich. Hitler coerced Austrian leaders into accepting the union, which was completed in March 1938.
Once the Nazis came to power in 1933, large numbers of Germans who opposed their rule moved to the Saar precisely to escape them. Over the next two years, as the plebiscite grew near, these opponents of Hitler’s regime campaigned to have the region remain under French occupation. The Führer had other plans, as regaining the Saar would be a propaganda victory for his government. He directed Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels to conduct a media campaign aimed at swaying the populace to vote for return to the Reich. When the vote came in January 1935, over 90 percent of the voters chose to return to Germany. On March 1 the Saar became German again. With German reoccupation came the arrest of those considered to have collaborated with the French government and Nazi opponents who had fled there previously. Regaining the Saar was a first step for Nazi aggression.
The following year Hitler went further and reoccupied the Rhineland. The demilitarization of the area was stipulated in the Versailles Treaty and made permanent in the Locarno Treaty of 1925, which sought to normalize relations between various European powers. The Rhineland was occupied by Allied troops until 1935 under the terms of the treaty. In actuality these troops were withdrawn by 1930. Over the next five years, as the Nazis came to power and more openly disregarded the Versailles Treaty, German reoccupation of the Rhineland became an expected development, calculated to cause a crisis.
Hitler’s Annexation Gambles in the Rhineland, Austria, and the Sudetenland
In early 1936 Hitler gambled and sent a small force into the demilitarized zone. Hitler knew there was a possibility of war but deemed it minimal; when War Minister Field Marshal Werner Von Blomberg expressed his fears, Hitler told him German troops would be withdrawn if French forces entered the Rhineland. The Reich went ahead with the move on March 7, 1936, sending a handful of infantry battalions into the Rhineland, where they joined local police and prepared for a French counterattack, planning a fighting withdrawal if necessary. When French troops stayed on their side of the border, Hitler’s confidence was bolstered, and he ordered the troops to stay.
Two years later Hitler made more moves that consolidated his nation’s position even further and reinforced his belief in the moral cowardice of the Western powers. In March 1938, Germany annexed Austria, incorporating its military into the Reich. There was a small pro-Nazi movement within Austria that was agitating for integration with Germany. This movement was suppressed by the Austrian government, which believed most Austrians wanted nothing to do with Hitler. On March 9, Austrian Chancellor Kurt Schuschnigg announced a plebiscite to allow voters to state their preference about integration with Germany.
30th September 1938: British prime minister Neville Chamberlain (1869 – 1940) making his ‘peace in our time’ address at Heston Airport on his return from Munich. (Photo by Fox Photos/Getty Images)
The Nazi propaganda machine went into full swing, announcing riots in Austria and unfair rules for the vote to sway the decision against integration. It claimed the uproar was a plea by Austrians for Germany to enter Austria and restore order. On March 12, Wehrmacht troops crossed the border, meeting no opposition. Hitler himself entered Austria that evening. Within days the union of Germany and Austria, known as the Anschluss, was announced. Hitler had once again increased German power without a war.
The second Nazi move of 1938 was the annexation of the Sudetenland. This event, the result of an agreement meant to maintain peace, was a major step toward the conflict to come. After obtaining Austria with such relative ease, Hitler turned his gaze toward the north-northwestern area of Czechoslovakia, a region known as the Sudetenland. Many ethnic Germans lived in this area, making it a good target for expansion. The usual propaganda claims were made, stating the Czech government was abusing ethnic Germans within its borders.
The Czechs prepared for war, but no one else did. Hitler met with representatives of Britain, France, and Italy in Munich during late September. There, he obtained an agreement from those powers to give the Sudetenland to Germany. Without support, Czechoslovakia had little choice but to acquiesce. German troops entered the Sudetenland to the applause of its Germanic populace.
Following the annexation of the Sudetenland, German troops eventually occupied all of neighboring Czechoslovakia. On March 15, 1939, German forces rolled through the streets of the Czech capital of Prague. Some Czech citizens offered the Nazi salute; others were determined to resist.
Supposedly this was Germany’s last territorial demand; returning from Munich, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain made his now infamous statement of having achieved “peace with honour” and “peace in our time.” That peace lasted less than six months; on March 15, 1939, the Wehrmacht marched into the rest of Czechoslovakia. Appeasement had failed, and Hitler had Poland in his sights. With Czech territory in German hands, a Nazi invasion of Poland could proceed from both the west and south, making that nation’s defense more difficult.
Planning the Nazi Invasion of Poland
The Polish Crisis began 10 days after the Nazis took Czechoslovakia. Hitler ordered the Wehrmacht High Command (Oberkommando Der Wehrmacht, OKW) to prepare a military campaign against Poland. He tried obtaining concessions from the Poles regarding Danzig and the Polish Corridor, including threats of military action. The efforts proved futile as the Poles refused to give in. Both sides began aggressive propaganda campaigns, with the Nazis claiming Polish atrocities against Germans in the corridor area.
Given his string of successes, Hitler was willing to gamble on Poland, although the situation in 1939 was worse than in earlier years. Unlike at Munich, there was no agreement with France and Great Britain for a resolution, and previous German actions had destroyed trust in Hitler’s word. The Third Reich’s racist policies and actions were also turning world opinion against it. Other members of Hitler’s civilian and military hierarchy were unwilling to express resistance to his plans. The Nazi leader had decided on another risky gamble, and with his absolute control there was no one to stop him.
With the decision made, a plan had to be created. During April 1939, OKW issued its annual directive to the armed forces. Within it was Fall Weiss (Case White). The plan was introduced with a statement from Hitler himself describing current relations with Poland. It required the German military to be prepared to attack by September 1. The plan stressed surprise. Mobilization would not take place until just before the actual invasion. Only regular Army units would be used at first, since calling up reserves would alert the Poles.
These active units would be secretly moved into assembly areas along the frontier before being ordered into their jumping-off points. The Army could also attack from Czech territory. There were also arrangements for defending the border with France, the Baltic Sea area, and German airspace. All this would effectively isolate Poland from her Western supporters until it was too late.
On April 28, Hitler nullified the German non-aggression treaty with Poland and demanded resolution on the Danzig issue. German operatives were sent into Danzig, where they attacked a customs house and tore down Polish flags. Polish actions against ethnic Germans were given wide press coverage. There was a Nazi faction in Danzig, and it clamored for return to Germany. This was the beginning of a months-long campaign to pave the way for German goals, with or without war.
Diplomatic Machinations and Nazi Propaganda
Over the following months further diplomatic machinations took place. On May 22, a pact was signed with Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, taking pressure off Germany’s southern flank. However, Hitler assured Mussolini there would be no war, and the Italians made no promise of military support. This kept Italy from the Allied camp and threatened France’s and Britain’s Mediterranean holdings. Hitler also received visits from the leaders of Yugoslavia, Hungary, and Bulgaria. These affairs were accompanied by extravagant displays of German military power, with scores of aircraft roaring overhead or hundreds of tanks clanking past.
Fully equipped for aggressive action, German troops, who appear to be fresh and not yet bloodied by fighting, march along a road in Poland. Although German and Soviet troops had completed their seizure of Polish territory in a matter of weeks, the campaign was more costly than some senior commanders had envisioned.
A major victory for the Nazis was the rapprochement with the Soviet Union. The British and French were seeking a tacit alliance with the Soviets as a counterbalance to Germany, but this new development quashed that hope. Russia and Germany secretly negotiated an agreement for respective spheres of influence. The Soviets would have a free hand in Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia along with eastern Poland. In exchange, Germany would regain Danzig, the Polish Corridor, and western Poland.
Openly, the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact was a non-aggression treaty between the nations. This was a surprise development as the Nazis were staunchly anti-communist. Both Hitler and Stalin still expected eventual war; the Soviets expected conflict as early as 1944. While war would come much sooner with the German invasion on June 22, 1941, in August 1939 the issue seemed settled.
The Polish Crisis came to a head in August. The Germans placed more pressure on Poland over Danzig and the corridor, with civil disturbances taking place. The Poles stood firm, bolstered by assurances of support from France and Britain. On August 12-13, Italian Foreign Minister Count Galeazzo Ciano met with Hitler to discuss a diplomatic solution. Italy did not want its ally going to war; the nation was still recovering from its campaigns in Albania, Ethiopia, and Spain and was not ready to fight the French and British. The Italian military needed time to modernize its forces and did not expect to be ready until 1942. Hitler, confident in his course, would not be swayed. Ciano felt the Germans had breached their agreement, but there was little to be done.
On August 17, the Nazis enacted their scheme to justify invasion. The Wehrmacht supplied Polish Army uniforms to operatives commanded by senior SS officer Reinhard Heydrich to create incidents of Polish attacks on German soil. Hitler addressed his military leaders about the issue on August 22, admitting an incident would be “arranged.” The morality of such an act was irrelevant; only victory mattered. He thought it unlikely the British and French would intervene, and if they did they could not reinforce Poland directly. If war came, Germany would win. Hitler also mentioned the impending treaty with the Soviets, which was signed the next day. The speech ended with a statement of belief that the Wehrmacht could carry out any order successfully.
When the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact became public on August 23, it seemed war was inevitable. Hitler ordered the attack to begin on August 26. The next day the British sent Poland a written guarantee that Britain and France would come to its aid if Germany invaded. When he learned of the move, Hitler rescinded his attack order and engaged in a last-minute move to forestall the involvement of the Western Allies. He promised to respect the current borders with France and to support the British. This offer did not impress either nation, which had no reason to trust such promises. Negotiations were essentially broken off.
Nazi Germany Declares War on Poland
On August 31, Hitler signed the order for the Nazi invasion of Poland, to begin the next morning at 4:45. At 8 pm on the night before the invasion, Germans in Polish uniforms “captured” a German radio station in Silesia. A broadcast in Polish announced an attack on Germany. Soon German police subdued the “attackers.” Casualties were found dressed in Polish uniforms, but they were actually condemned German criminals. Within hours the full might of the Wehrmacht was thrown against the Poles.
German armored forces in PzKpfw. I and PzKpfw. II tanks pause momentarily along a muddy road somewhere in Poland.
When the invasion of Poland came, the Wehrmacht pursued a plan to envelop and destroy the Polish Army west of the Vistula and Narew Rivers. The main blow came from Army Group South under Generaloberst Gerd Von Rundstedt, striking northeast out of Silesia toward Warsaw. A secondary thrust would come from occupied Czechoslovakia to handle Polish troops in Galicia. Generaloberst Fedor von Bock’s Army Group North would strike east through the Polish Corridor to link with East Prussia. That done, Bock would then advance on Warsaw from the north.
Polish plans were for a forward defense in western Poland. This was required; much of the Polish Army was made up of ethnic Poles who lived in the western part of the nation. They would need time to mobilize. A quick defense would hopefully also draw Britain and France into the war sooner. It was an imperfect plan, as it allowed the Poles to be decisively engaged early in the fighting. Polish units would also have to cover more territory than was prudent. Combined with Allied underestimation of Germany’s new army and tactics, it was a recipe for defeat, though in fairness the Poles were in a bad position no matter what plans they enacted.
Despite all the mobilizations and signs, the attack was a tactical surprise for the Poles. The Luftwaffe commenced bombing while the old German battleship Schleswig-Holstein began shelling the Polish fortress at Westerplatte. The Polish Navy was attacked and would be effectively destroyed within a few days. The advancing ground troops swept aside a few Polish patrols and border guards and moved into Poland itself. Paramilitary troops from both sides engaged in a vicious struggle for Danzig.
German armored spearheads raced across Poland, trapping large numbers of Polish troops. Simultaneously, Luftwaffe aircraft destroyed many planes of the Polish Air Force on the ground.
The Polish Corridor was defended by two infantry divisions and a cavalry brigade. The German 4th Army attacked, and the Polish cavalry fought a series of delaying actions, including a raid that resulted in a cavalry charge against a surprised German infantry battalion. They were only beaten off with the arrival of a few armored cars. The next day Italian war correspondents were brought to the scene. They reported being told the Polish cavalrymen had been killed while charging German panzers. The story took hold of the popular imagination until it became an accepted reality, but the tale is just a myth.
As 4th Army hit the Polish Corridor, 3rd Army advanced out of East Prussia toward Warsaw. Two corps attacked but ran into the Mlawa Line, a fortified zone guarding the obvious route of attack. The Germans tried to outflank the position, but swamps secured both flanks, bogging down the effort after several assaults failed. The Polish Mazowiecka Cavalry Brigade met the German 1st Cavalry Brigade along the Ulatkowka River. Engagements between mounted patrols soon led to heavy dismounted combat. By sunset of the first day of the war, 3rd Army was stopped cold.
POLISH ARMY MANOEUVRES NEAR FRONTIER. DANZIG COUP EXPECTED. 18.4.39. Polish army manoeuvres are now being carried out near the German frontier, and cavalry regiments are being called up. – Polish circles in Berlin state that Poland is ready to fire her guns if spontaneous actions occur in Danzig. O.P.S. A long column of Polish tanks during manoeuvres near the frontier. Anm. Nazityskland invaderade Polen 1 september 1939. Manöver Förberedelser Tanks Kolonn På rad Larvfötter CD520 sites: POLEN
Making the main effort, Army Group South saw extensive action, particularly with its 8th and 10th Armies in Silesia. They intended to strike against the Polish Armies Lodz and Krakow, get over the Warta River, and cut off enemy forces in western Poland. Afterward they would advance on Warsaw. These two Wehrmacht formations contained many of the German armored and mechanized divisions.
Initially fighting was light since the Polish defenses were 20 miles behind the border. The worst fighting took place when the 4th Panzer Division attacked the Wolynska Cavalry Brigade at the village of Mokra. The horsemen were assisted by an armored train, while the Germans had trouble coordinating their tanks and infantry. A Stuka raid succeeded in destroying Polish supplies and killing many of their horses, but the cavalrymen held firm. High casualties forced them to finally retreat at sunset, with German tanks hounding them. Meanwhile, Army Krakow suffered badly, its 7th Infantry Division being cut off and overwhelmed by several German divisions. The fortified city of Katowice fared better, however, limiting German success. The rear areas were threatened by guerrilla units of ethnic Germans formed by German intelligence before the war.
Advancing from Slovakia, the 22nd Panzer Corps got around the Polish border units manning the Dunajec Line, forcing Army Krakow to deploy its 10th Mechanized Brigade. The attack was stopped only when the Polish 6th Infantry Division was also committed. Two German mountain divisions attacked across the Carpathian Mountains against Army Karpaty, but the terrain kept them from making any gains.
Heroic Polish cavalrymen ride toward the sounds of battle. Some stories of Polish lancers attacking German tanks emerged after the campaign ended. These remain a topic of debate.
The Luftwaffe tried to destroy the Polish Air Force on the ground, but most of it was already dispersed to auxiliary fields. Despite more myths, only 24 Polish combat aircraft were destroyed on the ground during the entire campaign, though many trainers and unserviceable planes were destroyed. The Luftwaffe also hit railways and important roads in preplanned attacks. Also contrary to legend, the Germans were not yet capable of hasty close air support missions. In the days to come more planned targets were hit, and Polish troop movements were successfully interdicted, hampering the mobilization of reserves. A few close air support missions were attempted late in the campaign.
This photo has been reproduced countless times during the decades since World War II but has lost none of its poignancy. A 10-year-old girl weeps over the body of her older sister, who has just been killed during a German air raid near Warsaw.
A bombing attack on Warsaw took heavy losses to the fighters of the Polish Pursuit Brigade on the first day of the war, but Luftwaffe numerical superiority enabled repeated strikes and by September 6 the Polish unit had lost 70 percent of its fighters, forcing its withdrawal. The rest of the Polish fighter strength was used up in the skies over the main fighting, inflicting at least 126 losses on the Germans. Polish bomber crews flew bravely against the advancing German armies but likewise suffered terribly for little effect.
Back in the north, the Wehrmacht continued advancing along the corridor while Polish forces withdrew southward, leaving the Westerplatte garrison cut off. In the Tuchola Forest, the 3rd Panzer Division managed to cross the Brda River. Two German divisions also advanced west down the corridor from East Prussia, nearly trapping the Polish units between them. Only one Polish division was able to escape the encirclement on September 3. The Germans kept up pressure on the Mlawa Line, finally starting to outflank it. The beleaguered Polish cavalry was reinforced with the 8th Infantry Division but could not hold the line any longer. By the next day the Mlawa defenders and the remaining Poles not encircled in Pomerania were ordered to withdraw to the Vistula Line.
During the night of September 2, the Polish Podlaska Cavalry Brigade conducted a raid into East Prussia, the only Polish attack on German territory. It withdrew after some skirmishes with German militia. The Polish 20th Infantry continued manning the Mlawa Line to allow their comrades to withdraw. It was soon surrounded but continued to resist. Army Modlin tried to hold at the town of the same name, but German river crossing operations threatened the Polish position. After a failed counterattack, the Poles withdrew again across the San River. Another Polish garrison tried to delay the Germans at Modlin but was also surrounded by the advancing Nazis.
German Junkers Ju-87 Stuka dive bombers fly in formation above the Polish countryside. During the blitzkrieg, these planes acted as flying artillery, striking deep behind enemy lines to disrupt supply and communications, inflict casualties on troop concentrations, and spread terror among Polish civilians.
The German army groups now began their encirclement of Army Poznan in western Poland. Army Poznan’s commander, General Tadeusz Kutrzeba, asked to attack the German 8th Army, the northern formation of Army Group South. He was refused permission by Marshal Edward Rydz-Smigly, supreme Polish commander, who feared the unit would be destroyed; he wanted to avoid a decisive battle west of the Vistula. Sadly, the Germans were vulnerable on this flank and feared just such an attack.
The Polish 7th Division, decimated earlier, was mauled again by the 1st Panzer Division and several infantry units as the Germans exploited the gap between the Polish Armies Lodz and Krakow. This fighting enabled the German 10th Army, with its heavy armored contingent, to move toward Warsaw. The tanks struck out across flat farmland through the heart of Poland. The Polish units south of this exploitation withdrew skillfully, delaying the 2nd Panzer Division and maintaining their cohesion.
Polish infantrymen execute field maneuvers during peacetime exercises in April 1939, just five months before World War II erupted in Europe. The Poles fought back on two fronts but were conquered by the Germans from the west and the Soviets from the east.
The panzer divisions made for Warsaw directly toward the Polish Army Prusy, which had been placed there in expectation that the Germans would advance from that direction. Containing three infantry divisions and a cavalry brigade, this army also had a small force of tanks to defend against the panzers bearing down on them. The 1st and 4th Panzer Divisions quickly made for Piotrkow, where they were met by Polish infantry and the 2nd Tank Battalion with its 7TP light tanks. The Polish tankers fought well, knocking out 33 German armored vehicles, but since they were not concentrated their efforts had no lasting effect.
Meanwhile, the German 10th Army pushed back Army Krakow to Kielce by September 5, further opening the path to Warsaw. General Kutrzeba again asked to attack the German flank but was refused. That evening Marshal Rydz-Smigly ordered all four engaged Polish armies—Poznan, Prusy, Lodz and Krakow—to withdraw to the Vistula.
The Germans noticed the Polish moves; Rundstedt and other field commanders realized what was happening and asked to penetrate deeper to encircle the Poles. OKW still worried about a French attack in the west, however, and delayed. It took until September 9, when it was becoming obvious the French were not moving quickly, for the high command to change its mind. Meanwhile, the Poles continued retreating to the Vistula. Rydz-Smigly became worried that the fast-moving Germans would cut off his forces and decided to move his headquarters forward to Brzesc. This location was not able to handle the level of communications needed, and the move proved a major error as the high command could not effectively communicate with units in the field.
The fast-moving German units were easily outdistancing the Polish forces now; time and again Polish troops reached a position only to find German tanks behind them. The gap between Army Prusy and Army Lodz was the worst, with the 1st and 4th Panzer Divisions pushing ever deeper toward Warsaw. Other German forces were moving through the Polish Corridor for another offensive. General Bock was allowed to push his troops down the east bank of the Vistula to endanger the Poles defending along that line.
Captured Polish soldiers are marched toward temporary camps after surrendering to the advancing Germans. Many Polish troops were cut off and forced to capitulate as the German armored spearheads moved rapidly toward their objectives.
With the Germans closing on Warsaw, Marshal Rydz-Smigly finally began to consider the counterattack General Kutrzeba was suggesting, hoping to relieve pressure on Army Lodz and allow the Poles time to reorganize around Warsaw and the Vistula River. The counterattack came along the Bzura River on September 9; the Germans were still aware of the vulnerability of their flank but were lulled by bad intelligence reports and the lack of Polish movement up to this point. Three Polish infantry divisions (14th, 17th, and 25th) attacked the German 24th and 30th Infantry Divisions. A pair of Polish cavalry brigades guarded the flanks of the advance. The initial fighting was heavy, but the Poles threw in their reserves supported by armor and turned the tide. Both German divisions fell back; the 30th lost more than 1,500 as prisoners by September 10. The Poles were finally striking back.
Rundstedt remained calm and ordered the 1st and 4th Panzer Divisions to turn west from the outskirts of Warsaw and begin encircling Army Poznan. He hoped to cut off and destroy this large concentration of enemy troops. Other units were also rushed to the area, establishing numerical superiority. Within two days the Polish offensive was done, and Kutrzeba was ordered to break through to the south toward the Romanian border. However, his command was now badly outnumbered, nine Polish divisions with two cavalry brigades against 19 German divisions, of which five were armored or mechanized.
Kutrzeba understood his predicament and instead moved eastward. The Germans attacked, but the fighting proved difficult until air support arrived. On September 16, some 820 Luftwaffe planes attacked along with the 16th Panzer Corps on the ground. By that evening Kutrzeba ordered his troops to try and escape the pocket through a gap at Sochaczew. Elements of two divisions and two cavalry brigades made it out, but 120,000 Poles were taken prisoner when the Bzura Pocket capitulated on September 18. Both Army Poznan and Army Pomorze were destroyed. Their sacrifice had delayed the German advance on Warsaw and allowed their comrades to prepare better defenses, but the price was staggering.
The Polish command was operating in confusion as stragglers and partially mobilized units began arriving, not knowing where to go. The Polish leadership within Warsaw decided to make a stand and defend the city. Since Rundstedt’s Army Group South was still fighting at Bzura, Army Group North attacked the city on September 15. It was led by the German 3rd Army, which had troops on both banks of the Vistula. The Germans entered the suburbs of the city and engaged in heavy fighting, but since Warsaw was not yet surrounded some Polish troops were still filtering in. After September 21, the Germans finished mopping up the Bzura Pocket and redistributed divisions to surround Warsaw. Army Group South spread out along the south and west sides of the city.
German and Soviet troops met near the city of Brest-Litovsk and celebrated their successful military victory in Poland. Hitler and Soviet Premier Josef Stalin had secretly agreed to partition Poland once their conquest was complete.
The Soviet Union Moves in, Sealing Poland’s Fate
On September 17, Polish fortunes reached a new low when the Soviet Union moved into Poland with 41 divisions and 12 tank brigades totaling over 466,000 troops. Some Poles expected the Soviets might be coming to assist them, but those hopes were quickly dashed. Most of the Polish Army was fighting to the west, leaving only token border troops on the eastern frontier. On average, there was one Polish battalion against a Soviet corps. There was some fighting, mostly skirmishing, but all real hope was now lost. Marshal Rydz-Smigly ordered all Polish units to make for the Romanian border.
On September 23, the Germans began their first attempt to take Warsaw, supported by 1,000 field guns, but few gains were made. The Poles were resisting fiercely. On September 25, another attack came with both artillery and air bombardment. Known as “Black Monday,” the city was pelted with bombs and shells. Even German Junkers Ju-52 transport planes were pressed into service, dropping many incendiary bombs. There was so much smoke that target identification was almost impossible, and many Luftwaffe aircraft dropped their payloads on German troops.
The Nazi campaign to eradicate European Jewry continued as German forces occupied Poland. The day after Poland surrendered, SS personnel were engaged in rounding up Polish Jews and other undesirable elements of the population for resettlement or execution.
The next day the Germans seized three old forts on the south side of Warsaw. To increase the suffering within the city and hopefully speed the surrender, Hitler ordered that no civilians were allowed to leave, trapping them inside the shattered capital. During the evening of September 26, Army Warsaw’s commander, General Juliusz Rommel, sent word to the Germans that he was prepared to discuss surrender. The fighting ended the next day, and more than 140,000 Polish troops became prisoners. A separate Polish force at Modlin held out for another two days, and then it too gave up, 24,000 soldiers marching into captivity.
A small Polish force, east of Warsaw and out of communication, was unaware of the city’s surrender and tried to get there to join the fighting. It ran into the German 13th Infantry Division, a motorized unit, and fought until October 6. Since by this point the Soviets had invaded eastern Poland, there was no longer anywhere for Polish troops to go, and the campaign was effectively over.
Hitler’s great gamble for a Nazi invasion of Poland had succeeded at the cost of 48,000 casualties and a nation now at war. Further gambles would bring France, Denmark, Holland, Belgium, and Norway under his control by the end of 1940. It would be to the east, on the vast unending plains of the Soviet Union, where the gambles would begin to fail, leading to the ruin of the Reich Hitler had claimed would last a millennium.
And now for a review…
So now you know about how Hitler’s Germany started World War II, and how the Poles were not ready for the event. Even though they knew of the non-stop anti-Polish propaganda, they erroneously believe that they were stronger, better equipped and ready to handle anything that Hitler might unleash.
Expert tip
Do not ever fall for the belief that you are “better” than someone else, or some other society. This belief has failed time and time again. Just ask all those dead leaders of all those cities that Genghis Khan vanquished. Just ask the Spartans. Just ask the Athenians. Just ask the American Indians.
They thought that, at worst, they would be fighting Germany alone. Not a betrayal of Russia, and the slicing up of their nation within a month.
And the people paid the price.
When one nation conquers your nation bad things will happen.
As in what happened to all the intelligent, trained, educated, and influential people in Poland, once the nation is conquered, it will be the people who will suffer. For once stripped of their ability to fight, and organization, the threat-vectors will be identified, collected, and killed in mass.
1940 Katyn Forest Massacre
The Russian eagerness to slaughter Poland's military leadership was not simply born out of savagery. Many believe that Stalin reckoned that such ruthless tactics would permanently weaken the Poles, and make them a much easier people to subdue. -Dailymail
Know your history. It is going to be repeated. It is going to happen in the United States. It is going to happen.
Do not let it happen to you.
The
progressive liberal communists collected anyone who could possibly be a
threat to them. They loaded them into trucks and trains, and carted
them off to an isolated forest. There, they tied their hands behind
their backs and systematically killed each one.
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So let’s talk about what happened to the conquered people after the war ended. Let’s talk a little about the people in Poland…
In 1939, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union invaded Poland. They came
from both sides, and within weeks, Poland was captured. The Western half
of Poland became occupied by Germany. The Eastern side of Poland became
occupied by the Soviets.
Once
the Germans and the Soviets took over Poland, it was divided up. The
Poles in the West had to deal with the German Nazi’s. The Poles on the
East had to deal with the Soviets.
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In 1940, once Russia took over a huge portion of Poland, they collected people. They collected anyone who was smart. They collected anyone who had skills. They collected anyone who had an education. They considered these people threats to the “new progressive reality” that they planned to impose on Poland. They collected them.
And, then they massacred them.
Anyone with a college education.
Anyone who was an educator.
Anyone in politics.
Anyone who owned or supervised in a factory.
Anyone who was related to anyone who was famous.
Anyone who held an officer rank in the military.
Anyone who was a small business owner.
Anyone who was a land owner (owned a house).
Anyone who was singled out by someone else as non-progressive.
Expert tip
When your nation is conquered and vanquished, your chances of survival drop considerably. In order to survive you need to stop listening to all “authorities”. No one has your best interests at heart.
In November 1939, the Russians arrested over 15,000 Polish officers and deported them to western Russia.
Among them were civilians, professors, doctors, lawyers, journalists, artists, judges,an Olympic athlete, priests, and the Chief Rabbi of the Polish Army.
The prisoners sat there for months, afraid of what was going to happen, but few guessing their true fate. As Peszkowski said: ‘We did not think it possible that the Russians would kill us without mercy.’
Desc: Katyn massacre (Polish army officers killed by Soviet troops in Katyn forest, near Smolensk, western Russia,1943), Nazi propaganda poster, Central Europe • Credit: [ The Art Archive / Private Collection / Marc Charmet ] • Ref: AA399882
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The military leaders were sent to three prison camps, at Kozielsk, Starobielsk, and Ostashkov.
In April of the following year, the Polish prisoners were told that they would be repatriated to Poland. It was a lie, of course. When progressive liberal democrats (whether they call themselves Marxists or Communists is of not matter) say anything, it is ALWAYS a lie.
Progressive Liberal Socialists always lie.
Multiple
locations were used to kill all of the intellectual class of Poland.
The workers, ignorant, and women were singled out, and segregated. The
men were taken to remote locations and shot.
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The first group boarded a train, but oddly it was not traveling east, but rather westward. It came to a stop outside Katyn Forest, situated near Smolensk.
Executions normally take place hurriedly, but in this case the killers were in no rush.
The victims were taken from their prison camp and put on a train for two days without food and water. When they arrived at their final destination, they were bundled onto coaches with windows smeared with cement to obscure their view. After a short drive, the men were directed one by one to the rear door of the vehicle. As each man stepped into the gloomy light of the Russian forest, he would have had no doubt as to his fate.
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From there the Polish officers were herded into black vans which drove them to a clearing in the woods.
When they stepped out, they were simply led to the edge of what would imminently be their grave. The Russians took them to a large pit inside the forest, and forced them to kneel at its edge.
Led to the edge of the pit. Held and bound, then forced to your knees. The progressive liberal socialists will put the pistol to the back of your head and kill you dead with it.
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Their hands were tied behind their backs, and a choke knot tied around their neck and hands so that if they struggled they would have strangled themselves.
Held on either side, the victims were approached from behind by an NKVD man equipped with a German Walther 7.65mm pistol.
The relatively small recoil, compared to that of heavier Russian pistols, made the task far easier on the executioner’s wrist, an essential requisite for a killer with so many men to dispatch.
The shot
was fired at the base of the man’s skull, and if the job was done
correctly, the bullet would have exited through the forehead. Death was
instantaneous, as one by one the Polish officers filled the mass grave.
They were surrounded by dozens of armed NKVD agents who made sure that everyone was killed. No one escaped.
Polish officer shot in the back of the head by progressive liberal socialists from the Soviet Union. These people are dangerous.
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Their bodies were thrown into mass graves.
This convoy of death went on for several weeks. By mid-May almost 4,500 Polish officers were murdered and buried in eight mass graves – the largest grave contained 12 layers of corpses.
Polish aviator shot in the back of the head. This is what the progressive liberal socialists have in store for anyone that does not agree with them on any of their crazed ideology.
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Among the dead were more than 200 pilots including friends and classmates of the Kosciuszko Air Squadron.
Is is a photo of a memorial ceremony in Poland for the absolute slaughter of the Polish leadership, intellectuals, and workers of Poland, by progressive liberal socialist democrats from the Soviet Union. They called themselves “Communists”.
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One of its’ victims was the brother-in-law of Witold Lokociewski. The sole survivor of Katyn was Professor Stanislaw Swianiewicz.
He was on board the train headed to Katyn Forest, and was standing in the line ready to board the van, but an NKVD colonel had pulled him out of the line.
The Germans invaded Russia in July 1942, but it wasn’t until the next spring that they discovered the mass graves in Katyn.
The bodies were exhumed and examined by a team of experts, and they accused the Russians of having committed the atrocity. The Russians denied all responsibility and countered by saying that the Germans had committed the massacre.
Nazi Germans said the Communist Russians did it.
Communist Russians said that the Nazi Germans did it.
But, you know, they both were complicit. As both nations invaded Poland, both nations captured the people, and both nations took over Poland. Who pulled the actual trigger is meaningless. They died because both Russia and Germany promoted the idea of war against Poland.
Fact.
When Polish Prime Minister Sikorski called for an investigation by the International Red Cross, the Russian government abruptly severed all diplomatic ties with Poland. Sir Owen O’Malley, the British Ambassador to the Polish government-in-exile, described the grisly scene:
” In the broad deep pit their comrades lay, packed closely around the edge, head to feet, like sardines in a tin….up and down on the bodies the executioners tramped, hauling [the corpses] about and treading in the blood like butchers in a stockyard. “
Sir Owen O’Malley conducted an investigation and produced a detailed report that proved that the Soviets were guilty. But Churchill hastily absconded with the report and warned everyone not to ever speak a word about it.
They rounded them up. They loaded them into trucks. They tied their hands behind their backs, and they killed them.
-Katyn Massacre
They politely told them to turn around. They asked them to put their hands behind their backs. Then they shot them FUCKING dead.
Dead.
Dead as a fish. Dead. D-E-A-D.
The
progressive liberal communists rounded up anyone who could possibly be a
threat to them. They loaded them into trucks. They tied their hands
behind their backs, and they killed them.
.
When the atrocity was reported, the governments all, ordered it to be kept quiet and for no one to say a word about it.
Know your history.
You see, the progressive liberals; the communists wanted a complete extinction of all opposition in Poland. They destroyed anyone with knowledge. They eviscerated anyone with skills, ability or talent. They erased anyone who could organize against them.
You know…
People like YOU.
In the spring of 1940, Stalin and Lavrenty Beria planned to liquidate this potential source of opposition to Soviet control and gave orders to murder over 20,000 Polish officers.
The murders were carried out at several sites. The most famous was the NKVD burial ground at Katyn, near Minsk (today in Belarus), but killings were also carried out at Piatikhatki (near Kharkiv in Ukraine) and at Mednoye in Russia.
Other killing sites were never identified, although it is believed that another group of officers was placed on old barges towed out into the White Sea near the Arctic Circle and used for target practice by the Soviet Navy.
Those who died at Katyn included an admiral, two generals, 24 colonels, 79 lieutenant colonels, 258 majors, 654 captains, 17 naval captains, 3,420 NCOs, seven chaplains, three landowners, a prince, 43 officials, 85 privates, and 131 refugees.
One female air force officer was among the dead. Also among the dead were 20 university professors; 300 physicians; several hundred lawyers, engineers, and teachers; and more than 100 writers and journalists as well as about 200 pilots.
-Learning History
We know about this because, while Stalin ordered everyone to be
killed, their bodies were discovered by the Nazi’s that invaded Russia
the subsequent year. They heard about the bodies and they investigated.
Expert tip
Do not board any trains, trucks, buses, or transport vehicles with others that appear to be leaving in a massive group. Do not believe the excuses that they give you, or what the destination will ultimately be. It is all a lie to trick you to go to a very bad place, and stay there.
They used the information and pictures of what they found as anti-Soviet propaganda.
The remains of Brigadier General Smorawinski ( Mieczysław Smorawiński
) found in one of the many graves in the Katyn forest. He had his hands
tied behind his back and shot in the back of the head. After a short
stay in various Soviet prisons and POW camps, at the end of 1939 he was
transferred to the NKVD Special Camp in Kozelsk. Smorawiński left the
camp on 7 April 1940. Together with most of the Polish officers
imprisoned there he was executed by the NKVD at Katyn, in the spring of
1940, aged forty-six, in what became known as the Katyn massacre.
During the exhumation of 1943 his body was exhumed and identified, as
one of the Polish generals to be identified. Katyn
Memorial in Jersey City. The progressive liberal democrats in power
want it removed, or put in an isolated area so that “mothers don’t have
to explain what happened in history”.
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There are memorials to this horrible massacre in the United States. Though the local politicians in power wants the statues to be removed.
In Jersey City, a park official proposed relocating a monument of the massacre to a less-traveled locale. He argued this because he found it “a little gruesome”, adding that “I can’t imagine how many mothers go by and have to explain it to their children.”
This happened in Katyn, but also in Cambodia. As well as in China. It also happened in Cuba, North Korea, and Vietnam. Know your history. All of the ground-work is being laid down today for a near by future.
The
Cambodian Killing Fields are a number of sites in Cambodia where
collectively more than a million people were killed and buried by the
Khmer Rouge regime, during its rule of the country from 1975 to 1979,
immediately after the end of the Cambodian Civil War. The mass killings
are widely regarded as part of a broad state-sponsored genocide.
Analysis of 20,000 mass grave sites by the DC-Cam Mapping Program and
Yale University indicate at least 1,386,734 victims of execution.
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There will not be any leniency in this matter. If you are a threat, maybe you wrote something, or maybe you said an off-hand comment at work, you will be singled out. The “Diversity Officers” in your company have a firm lock-grip on who is not “with the program”. Take heed.
You will be taken to the edge of a dug hole in the ground and you will be shot dead.
Dead.
Please kindly be advised that all of this will happen before you are aware that the SHTF.
You will wake up in the morning and dress like normal. You will drive in your car like normal, and get a coffee at a fast food restaurant like normal. The only thing out of the normal might be a friendly police officer that might pull you aside to "have a small chat with you".
Then, it is all downhill from there.
We see pictures in history books and say, “nah that could never happen here”. The roads are dirt. The people are wearing military clothing. There isn’t anything that looks like a part of America in the pictures.
But the truth is that yes it can happen here, and if you read ANYTHING at all about genocide, know the [1] it is always government sponsored, and [2] it is rare for a nation to escape a period of genocide longer than 100 year period between genocidal events. [3] It is always preceded by disarming of the citizenry.
America is long overdue for one.
Then you will turn around nicely while they put handcuffs on you. You will be entrapped long before you have any idea that things are going down. IT WILL NOT BE REPORTED, and you will be unaware.
Do you think that all those people killed in Katyn had any idea what awaited them? Do you think that those factory workers in Serbia had any idea how their day would end? Do you think that those teachers in Cambodia had any idea what would happen when they "worked the fields".
Be ready to be SURPRISED.
If you are handcuffed, you will stand there while they go through your house.
Betrayal is as old as man, but the pace and severity seems to be accelerating. It hasn’t touched you or me yet, but someday soon we will be told to “be patient, as we restore your account balance,” or “the FBI will not allow this to happen again,” or “we’ve made some mistakes in the past but we (the same people) will do better going forward.” Ya, thanks.
- Karl Ushanka
Yes, war is ugly.
Yes it is, but the reason why I am carrying on about it is really simple. Washington DC is under the impression that they can conduct another “war” and it will be one where the American Military wages war over decades, from distant areas of safety to hurt people who DO NOT FIGHT BACK.
Nope.
Those days are over.
Every time you read or hear, or watch someone talking about Taiwan, the South China Sea, the Uighur Muslims, the Ukraine, or Russian spying realize that you are being prepped for agreeing to World War III.
Remember also that wars NEVER go as planned, and the idea that a war with a major nuclear armed nation will be limited to conventional small arms on distant shores is a big fucking lie.
And shame on you for believing it.
The truth is that you are being set up for a war; a BIG NUCLEAR WAR.
Expert tip
Every article about Taiwan, the Uighur Muslims, Hong Kong pro-democracy movement, the Ukraine, or any contrary article about Russia or China are all propaganda setting you all up to agree to massive nuclear conflagration. Do not fall for it. As the intensity of these article increase, so does the changes of your death. Take note on what the “talking heads” and political commentators are saying. If they are devoting significant time to either of the other two global powers, then “head for the hills”.
A nuclear nightmare.
There is a very strong likelihood that this anti-Russia or Anti-China propaganda campaign will result in large-scale nuclear weapon detonations on American soil.
Yes.
You read that correctly.
There is a strong likelihood that large-scale nuclear weapon(s) will be detonated on American soil within the next few years.
There are numerous reasons why I hold this belief. But the biggest, I suppose, is the pro-war faction in the United States government.
You see, the United States now believes that we should improve our nuclear warfare fighting capability so that we can use it.
After all, with all those proxy wars the United States is fighting now, (eight in total as of 2019) that we should be able to field and use nuclear weapons freely without worry of retaliation. (After all, what’s all this nonsense about going to battle against Turkey and “our allies” the Kurds?)
John Bolton, openly advocates a first-strike policy against nuclear-armed enemies, and the Pentagon, after decades of careful disarmament, wants to spend $1.2 trillion to upgrade its nuclear arsenal.
If you’ve felt a new shiver of nuclear fear over the past year, you’re not alone: The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists has moved its “Doomsday Clock” to within two minutes of midnight — closer than it has been since the height of the Cold War.
- This Is What a Nuclear Bomb Looks Like
You see, according to the military and political planned deep within the bowels of Washington, America can use “low yield” tactical nuclear weapons on a sovereign foreign nation, and aside from some “political squawk”, nothing bad will come of it.
No one ever fights back. Right?
In December 2016, the US Defense Science Board – a semi-independent group that advises the Secretary of Defense – warned that “the nuclear threshold may be decreasing owing to the stated doctrines and weapons developments of some states.”
Therefore, the DSB recommended DOD should “provide many more options in stemming proliferation or escalation; and a more flexible nuclear enterprise that could produce, if needed, a rapid, tailored nuclear option for limited use should existing non-nuclear or nuclear options prove insufficient.” This would involve “lower yield, primary only options” for strategic warheads on long-range ballistic missiles.
- The Terrifying Nuclear War Game the US Shouldn't Play
Now along with this attitude, is the strong belief that if America fields “low yield” nuclear devices that it will NOT result in devastating nuclear retaliatory strikes. That is considered inconceivable, as “everyone knows” that the United States is the strongest and most powerful nation in the world.
There wouldn’t ever be any repercussions.
It’s inconceivable.
America still thinks that it is the only dog in the barn-yard. But, you know, the rest of the farm animals are getting mightily tired of the dog bullying everyone around. Especially as the dog is getting old, has arthritis, and other problems. One day, another animal might just say that enough is enough.
America spent millions of dollars on NED, which actively went into China, into Hong Kong, on Chinese soil. They taught and trained the anti-government forces there. They taught them how to perform "soft violence" to provoke the mainland Chinese. They paid protestors, and gave them the skills to build bombs, and target maps and a strategy.
All of which was caught on video. With Trumps advisors caught on film (with a clear audio track) in the HK Marriot hotel explaining how to conduct the riots and how to destroy the subway stations. The Chinese have videos of the teaching and training classes for the insurgents, and the NED even has the gall to have their members on LinkedIN boasting about their involvement in HK.
China did nothing.
Though, if the roles were reversed, it would be a different story. If China sent advisors to train the BLM and Antifa on how to bomb bus stations, trains, airports and destroy all public transportation. And they were caught on film and broadcast on all the Conservative networks, with Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity talking about it 24-7. It would be a catastrophic error in judgement. Don't you agree?
But China did nothing.
So America believes that it can go about launching all sorts of military, quasi and semi-para military operations all over the globe and no one will ever raise a finger to stop the empire expansionism.
(Limited Yield) Snow ball strike from the movie “A Christmas Story”.
It can be Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, Afghanistan, the Ukraine. It can be anywhere from Venezuela to Turkey. No one will or can stop us. Right?
China will do nothing. Right?
Russia will do nothing. Right?
No one will fight back. Russia and China won’t ever work together against the USA. Right?
Right?
Ralph fights back against the schoolyard bully. The scene is from the 1980’s movie “A Christmas Story”.
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The belief is that the US can launch a few “low yield” nuclear weapons and no nation would dare strike back. The USA can deploy Marines in Hong Kong or Taiwan, and China won’t do anything.
It’s inconceivable. Don’t you know.
I am not the only person that believes this. Read John Paul Roberts excellent article on the pre-nuclear holocaust preparations that America is currently engaged in.
Are You Ready To Die?
And since it would be inconceivable, the military and the United States government officials are today, far more likely and prone to using “safe”, “tactical” nuclear weapons to further their agendas.
And these are dangerous agendas.
These are agendas that are BLIND to the idea that the rest of the world might put it’s collective foot down and say “ENOUGH!”. And launch a retaliatory strike in full force, not only against the military forces on their territory, but rather at the American homeland, the American cities, and the American people who allowed these morons to get anywhere near nuclear launch codes.
This map should scare the living Dejesus out of you. It shows how Washington DC and the political establishment views the use of low-yield nuclear weapons against Asia in the assumption that no one would strike back.
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I argue that if the United States, for what ever reason, launches and detonates any kind of nuclear weapon (low-yield, small backpack, tactical strike, or strategic nuclear), that there will be a FULL SCALE retaliatory response aimed at the United States.
Any use of nuclear weapons anywhere in Asia will result in the complete destruction of the United States.
And when American military planners contemplate the use of nuclear weapons it is along the lines of tailored tactical responses for set specific objectives. It’s always with “surgical” precision and “contained” destruction. Never taking into account the strong possibility of “unleashing the dogs of war” against us.
They never take into account that the rest of the world thinks of America as a big loud-mouth bully that one day will get it's comeuppance.
Here we consider a “slap back” response up to an all-out MAD-level (Mutually Assured Destruction) response to the United States.
Expert tip
Any use of American “surgical” nuclear weapons anywhere in Asia will result in the complete destruction of the United States.
It assumes that we initiate the actions though our military use of “low yield” nuclear weapons in Asia. As such, we look at a large super-power unleashing modern large-capacity nuclear munitions, using hyper-glide technology against an unsuspecting America.
Though, at that, many basement computer nerds think that a nuclear war is winnable and not all that bad...
"Anukeisabigbomb, butnotthatbig. Mostof DC wouldsurvive, alotofradiationpoisoningthough, andasyoucanseefromtheoccasionalfloorshot, mostofourcongressisoutofthebuildingatleastandmostofthetime... "
We consider them releasing this onslaught within minutes after the USA detonates a”low yield” device in Asia. Which means, that nuclear detonations over coastal cities by SLBM MIRVs will detonate within minutes of launch.
Minutes.
Two minutes after the SLBM launches off the USA coast, the red lights will light up at NORAD and they will scramble to contact the American leadership. Five minutes later Washington will be erased from the surface of the globe.
Thus obliterating the leadership of America in one fell swoop.
These scenarios assume that the leadership in both Russia and China are not idiots. That they have anticipated the use by America of a tactical "low yield" nuclear weapon, and have positioned submarines and other systems for an immediate kill-level response that would detonate on American soil within minutes.
Perhaps, you the reader disagree. Maybe you think that the rest of the world are idiots, and only Americans are smart. Good for you. Then.
A quick reminder.
While the United States has been very busy funding conventional military operations around the globe, strategic nuclear missile forces have taken a back seat to the realities of global proxy wars without nuclear strike-back.
Once a missile launch is detected, I am comfortable knowing that it will be detected via satellite and the knowledge relayed to SAC HQ. That is…
…unless the Chinese and the Russian hunter-killer satellites don’t take them out.
Missile Combat Crew Commander, Capt. Kenny Gibaldo, (left) and 2nd Lt. John Butler, Deputy Crew Commander of the 320th Missile Squadron, simulate the launch of a Minuteman III using the REACT console in a Launch Control Capsule at Missile Alert Facility Hotel-1.
People!
People!
Five minutes is not enough time to react to nuclear destruction. Whether or not the United States strategic forces are aware of a launch means nothing when hyper-speed technology and delivery weapons are used.
Fundamentals
According to the “Fourth Turning”, we can expect a major critical event to take place sometime from 2023 to 2025. This critical event historically involves mass deaths, the destruction of cities using the most advanced weapons of the time, and a complete over-haul of society.
As shown in the following illustration…
Here are the next few years before the Fourth Turning is expected to reach a crisis point.
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I am betting on 2023, but it can be any time from 2023 to 2027.
And you all might ask why. And to this I just look at the cycles of turning; the “Fourth Turning” cycles. Which pretty much seems to be repeating the same old bullshit that led to World War II, and the American Civil War.
Expert tip
John Titor claimed to be a time traveler. He discussed the “future” of America in 1998. All of his predictions came true, the only thing is that his dates were off by ten years. If you follow the events that hey laid out, and add ten years, you will see a contemporaneous civil war brewing in unreported balkanized areas where it is rural vs urban Americans. That the rich oligarchy is pulling the strings and making events happen, and that military overtures towards Russia will be significant and will result in Russia launching a devastating preemptive nuclear strike… not a retaliatory one against the United States.
Can things get worse? Oh, you betya. If you think that 2021 was shit, you ain’t seen nothing yet. Things are sizing up for a really bad event…
Thieves Loot Russia’s Top Secret Doomsday Plane… That’s pretty bad, when someone (probably CIA) breaks into the Russian “Command Post” aircraft and takes off with their valuable cypher equipment. Why? It is only used when there is World War III? It is serious business; Kremlin Sounds Alarm…
Well, maybe you, I and the rest of the sheeple are not told what is going on, but the rest of the world’s leadership isn’t so ill-informed. Russia is most certainly taking all this seriously. Moscow conducts drills of nuke forces…
And of course, Asia is uniting against the out-of-control American military empire…
Do you remember earlier in this article how Germany and Russia teamed up together to destroy Poland? Do be so sure that Russia and China haven’t had enough of the USA bullshit.
But not to worry, America has something called “diversity” and “democracy” and that no matter what happens, American troops will save us…
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Not just that, but the nature of the American military is changing. It is getting rid of “basic training” and focusing on a softer and gentler military. Not one that responds to a harsh crisis, but one ready to handle the advanced high technology systems that the military uses within a fine well ordered environment. They are readying the military to become office and cubicle workers, able to push buttons, and rapidly respond to blinking lights on computer consoles.
I know that President Biden will have a different style that President Trump had, and a totally different mind-set. But that will only result in rearranging the passenger seats on the train, NOT the direction that the train is going in.
America Today
How do you think people in Russia would act? What about people in China? I’ll tell you one thing, they wouldn’t be running into their cars in fear. That’s for certain. They would probably chase after them and kill it with their bar hands.
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The United States leadership has an over-inflated perception of who they are and what capabilities that they possess.
I am not saying that Global Nuclear War is going to happen, but what I am saying is that the leadership in the rest of the world are being threatened by the United States and are teaming up together to prevent the USA from destroying the rest of the world.
The Russian – China alliance is a very formidable block that Americans are unaware of.
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This is not a popular opinion. But it is the reality. And showing people the reality, and that is the true and actual reality is often quite shocking to cattle that have been feeding from the trough for too long.
People!
You don’t fuck around with Russia!
It’s tough to grow up in Russia.
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And of course, you all should well realize, by now at least, that you don’t fuck with China either.
John Titor
Believe him or not, if you add ten years on to his dates then EVERYTHING that he predicted would happen, actually happened. Keep note that he made these predictions back in 1998. And according to him…
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And knowing that he said…
Part 2 – 3:10 Question: “Why do you think that our future will be like your future?” Answer: “Because our world-lines are so similar.”
Part 2 – 3:43 “This world-line and my own are almost exactly alike.”
He talked about what his “past” in his world-line had to say…
Part 2 – 17:40 Most people blamed the “government organizations” for the war. Fast forward to 2017, where one the largest obstacles to meaningful change is the entrenched federal bureaucracy. Curious that John Titor would say “government organizations” and not “the government”. He actually predicted this problem.
Part 2 – 20:50 “When the civil war broke out most decided to stay in the cities and lose most of their civil rights in the guise of security…”
And…
Part 2 – 21:20 “avoiding conflict with the federal police” (The Department of Homeland Security the DHS = the “federal Police”. Which was established by George Bush after 9-11. John Titor PREDICTED the Department of Homeland Security.)
Part 2 – 22:30 “The US cities were attacked by Russia who was our enemy.” In other words, the cities had become the de facto home of the enemies of the United States, and Russia attacked them.
With…
Part 2 – 47:00 Hawaii will probably avoid much of the conflict, but it is dependent on the mainland for food. Therefore, there would be strife on any small island. Interesting that he should make this statement. Most people, by far, would assume that an island would be the best place to “ride out” world war III. But John Titor says differently. He says that the number one cause of death was starvation, and since most food to the island is imported, it would seem that it would not be a desirable location to hide.
With significant notes that say…
Part 3 – 3:14 “There is a civil war in the United States that starts in 2005.”
Part 3 – 3:30 “A nuclear war against the federal empire and the cities occurred in 2015, and thus we (in the countryside) won.”
Here, John Titor discusses “taking out the cities” by Russia and nuclear weapons. Which is what is currently being discussed in contemporaneous American Conservative media…
RUSH: So during the obscene profit time-out mere moments ago, Mr. Snerdley, the Official Program Observer, peppered me with a question. The question was… what exactly was the question? Are we ever gonna win the — (interruption) Are you talking about win elections or just… (interruption) Okay. All right. Mr. Snerdley is asking if we’re ever going to be able to win. And he’s talking about elections. Votes.
Are we ever gonna be able to win without taking back some of these cities? He’s talking about blue cities like New York, Philadelphia. I assume you mean Detroit? (interruption) Do you include Milwaukee in this? (Interruption) Definitely. All right. What about Oakland, California? (interruption) Too far gone. San Francisco? (interruption) You think we can get San Francisco? Look, we won election after election after election without winning these cities or the states they’re in. (interruption)
I thought you were asking me something else when you said, “Can we win?” I thought you meant can we win the culture, can we dominate the culture. I actually think — and I’ve referenced this, I’ve alluded to this a couple of times cause I’ve seen others allude to this. I actually think that we’re trending toward secession. I see more and more people asking what in the world do we have in common with the people who live in, say, New York? What is there that makes us believe that there is enough of us there to even have a chance at winning New York, especially if you’re talking about votes.
-Rush Limbaugh
Adding ten years, we get…
Civil War that starts during the Obama Presidency in 2015.
Nuclear War with Russia that starts in 2025; the Biden Presidency.
Additionally he said this about Florida…
Part 3 – 9:00 Jacksonville, Florida was vaporized by a nuclear weapon. He worked out of a military base in Tampa. That assumes that Tampa must not have been hit by a nuclear strike.
Very curious. If these “minor” facilities were attacked, then you can guarantee that all the other larger bases were obliterated.
Military bases in Florida.
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He said this about Nebraska…
Part 2 – 7:30 He tells his parents in the 2000 world-line to move to Omaha Nebraska because that is where the new capital will be, and it is a safe rural farming community.
And he said this about Canada…
Part 2 – 40:10 Canada is full of very dangerous and ruthless people.
And his opinion about us at this point in time…
Part 3 – 11:45 Imagine that you are a Jew and could travel back in time to Germany at the time of the rise of Hitler in the early 1930’s. You know what the future would be. Yet, you see all around you, the ignorant masses of people who continue their behaviors in complete ignorance in what it will eventually lead towards.
Part 3 – 13:25 Question: Which parts of the United States are safe from the conflict of Civil war, and Nuclear war? Answer: Take a close look at the county by county voting maps of the last election.
Part 3 - 16:15 “Russia’s enemy is not you the people. Russia’s enemy is the United States government.”
Part 3 – 16:45 Statements hint at the deterioration of the Middle East as a negative influence on global stability.
American global relationships.
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And if you add ten years to every date that John Titor gave, this statement should bring “goose bump pimples” to your arms…
Part 3 – 24:54 “The year 2008 was a general time when everyone realized that the world they thought they lived in was over.”
2018.
Part 3 – 34:13 When the war comes it will be blatantly obvious to everyone in the nation that it will occur. The shocking thing was that so many people decided to stay in the very cities where they knew the bombs would be dropped.
Part 3 – 37:30 The president at the time of the Civil War tried to be another Lincoln and hold the country together, but many of the government policies drove a wedge in the civil rights of Americans and created divisions that were irreconcilable. The President in 2009 was concerned ONLY in keeping his power base. (Stated with eerily accuracy in 2000.)
Part 3 – 38:10 One of the things that John Titor alluded to was that the United States president elected in 2008 might be a man or a woman. Yet, back in the year 2000 it was inconceivable that a woman would even consider running for President. Yet, we know now that Hillary Clinton did do exactly that and ran for President in 2008. It seems strange today, after the Hollywood blitz of Madam President Movies all in support of a Hillary Clinton Presidency. But at that time it was unknown.
And this most accurate description…
Part 3 – 9:45 “Let me let you in on a little secret. No one likes you in the future. This time period is looked upon as a lazy, self-centered, civilly ignorant sheep.”
Americans in COVID-19 isolation pens, 2020.
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And about the American Civil War as a buildup toward the total destruction of America by nuclear weapons…
Part 3 – 47:15 Most people will starve, the rest will die of disease, followed by bullet wounds and radiation. In that order.
Part 3 – 52:48 “The conflict was not about taking and holding ground, it was about order and rights… …they were betting that people wanted security over freedom and they were wrong.”
Part 3 – 54:38 “The cities were not isolated because of them, they were isolated because of us (the people in the “red states” or countryside.)”
The mix of American civil war and global nuclear war is interesting. Keep in mind that neither Russia or China are communist. They retain the historical terms and phrases, but functionally they do not resemble anything like what is being portrayed in American media.
Russia…
Russia is not Communist.
Part 5 – 3:31 The police actually got away with harming an American citizen, filming it, and getting off with no negative consequences. Perhaps John Titor was right, because these are exactly the kinds of things that he stated would lead up to the American civil war.
Part 5 – 4:50 Our enemy was the global banking elite which were all centered in the cities.
Part 5 – 7:30 It is now Russia that is stopping the globalists, the New World Order people and the global Banking Elite.
Part 5 – 11:05 When Russia nukes our cities, they are killing off our citizen’s enemies. Our enemies are internal, not external. (According to John Titor, the nukes were accurate and relatively “clean” and used in clusters of three.)
Part 5 – 15:00 John Titor said that he would prefer to have lived the live after World War III than a peaceful solution. The only way to fix the issues is to start fresh.
Interesting stuff these John Titor predictions. And remember…
Part 3 – 42:30 The people with the most to lose would be the most untrustworthy when the world changes.
Part 3 – 43:10 “We have a saying here. Safe is anywhere a hungry person cannot walk in three days.”
So knowing this, and knowing that, and knowing history, we NEED to observe how the people of Poland managed to survive during those Hellish years from 1939 through 1945…
…and emulate them.
Which will be on another post. Please stand by.
A final Metallicman word and some final thoughts.
All this is stressful. It is stressful because there is nothing you all can do about it. So you make do with what you have. You appreciate your life and the loved ones that surround you, and you reach out to your neighbors and your community.
Take pleasure in the little things.
Take pleasure in the little things.
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Appreciate the loved ones that care for you, and give them your time and affections. Seriously too little of our precious time is being spent like this…
Appreciate the loved ones that care for you, and give them your time and affections.
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MM is a free website. It’s not a for-profit enterprise. I am doing this because I do understand how the universe works, I do understand the mediums of exchange, and the consequences of actions, and I do understand what is going on. As do our benefactors.
Stop being so profit-oriented. Start being more people-oriented. Stop thinking of money and things. Start considering people and relationships.
Expert tip
Remember, if some “expert” on the extraterrestrial issue asks you for money or to pay, they actually have ZERO experience with extraterrestrials, and ZERO knowledge of how the universe works. Exchanging knowledge for profit creates a very undesirable situation for us who know what the fuck is going on. We accept donations. We accept meals, friendships and kind words and deeds. But we do not demand financial gain.
Everything is falling into place. But do not allow the fear of what might occur change who you are internally. Things are following a specific path, and all is being actuated wihtin those vectors. Keep with the program. Be a Rufus. Appreciate the world around you. Be helpful and kind. Not hurt, trick or try to profit unneedlessly.
Be a “good guy”.
Metallicman gives some most excellent advice.
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Please look around you and take pleasure in what you see. The world is big and beautiful and there are people who are worthy of your time, your love, your consideration. Do what you can to shut out the evil and corrupted from your life, and appreciate the world that lies around you in abundance.
You’ll not find any big banners or popups here talking about cookies and privacy notices. There are no ads on this site (aside from the hosting ads – a necessary evil). Functionally and fundamentally, I just don’t make money off of this blog. It is NOT monetized. Finally, I don’t track you because I just don’t care to.
Please kindly help me out in this effort. There is a lot of effort that goes into this disclosure. I could use all the financial support that anyone could provide. Thank you very much.
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“At some point, a crisis of confidence in this so-called money is inevitable. People aren’t going to trust it forever if you continue to create trillions and trillions backed by nothing but a promise from a central bank and a promise from governments. That’s the flaw in all of this. You can’t sustain the perceptions of moneyness forever. History has many examples of how money is destroyed by over-issuance, and now we’re watching it in real time.”Doug NolandDoug Noland: It’s Too Late To Turn Back Now… I Believe You Should Take Cover!
August 5, 2020
It has begun.
Nations are running away from using the United States dollar. Instead they are choosing to use other methods to pay back their debts and engage in trade. They are using such things a as gold, eyuan, or commodity trading (like oil, wheat or rice).
A new world monetary system is being set up right now which will completely kill the US dollar, which is the world’s reserve currency. At least 23 countries (60% of the world’s GDP) are setting up swap lines which bypass the dollar and SWIFT, which is the dollar-based worldwide financial transaction system. These countries include Russia, China, India, and even Germany, France, and the United Kingdom.
Kevin: You know, I think about where the two of them agree. They would both say that we’re past the point of no return, that money turned into credit, and we’re now in a credit expansion. Noland would say kicking the can down the road is ultimately going to end in dystopia. What Duncan would say is, it’s our only chance at utopia. And they both know that credit probably ends badly, but I think Duncan would just like to have it end badly after he passes away.
David: That may be, so if we have a shot at utopia, let’s spend a little bit more. And that’s a little bit like looking at the hair of the dog as the real solution to a problem with alcoholism.
You’re right. It will take away some of the consequence in the short run.
Kevin: Do you remember Ian McAvity said that a doctor told him to not stop smoking because he had smoked so much that it would probably kill him.
David: That’s right. “You quit now and you’re dead.” That’s really what we’re talking about.
Doug NolandDoug Noland: It’s Too Late To Turn Back Now… I Believe You Should Take Cover!
August 5, 2020
For several years, financial analysts, primarily those outside the mainstream of academia, have been warning that any day could be the black swan event that collapses the dollar. This collapse will end U.S. hegemony as caretaker of the world’s reserve currency.
That day had arrived last year on 18NOV19 when a former head trader for a major financial institution issued a harbinger. He stated that 23 countries, and 60% of the world’s GDP, are or have setting up new swap lines which bypass the dollar. These systems not only bypass the USD, but they bypass SWIFT, and the BIS.
All of this is ushering in a new global currency system. It is a system that will kill the US dollar.
Who’s abandoning the USD?
Countries are growing weary of losing money on the falling dollar. Many of them want to protect their financial interests, and a number of them want to end the US oversight that comes with using the dollar. Although it’s not clear how many of these countries will actually follow through on an abandonment of the dollar, it is clear that its status as a world currency is in trouble.
Obviously, an abandonment of the dollar is bad news for the currency. Simply put, as demand lessens, its value drops. Additionally, the revenue generated from the use of the dollar will be sorely missed if it’s lost. The dollar’s status as a cheaply-produced US export is a vital part of our economy. Losing this status could rock the financial lives of both Americans and the worldwide economy.
Here’s just a few of the numerous nations that are running away from using the United States Dollar…
Saudi Arabia
The Telegraph reports that for the first time, Saudi Arabia has refused to cut interest rates along with the US Federal Reserve.
This is seen as a signal that a break from the dollar currency peg is imminent. The kingdom is taking “appropriate measures” to protect itself from letting the dollar cause problems for their own economy.
They’re concerned about the threat of inflation and don’t want to deal with “recessionary conditions” in the US.
Hans Redeker of BNP Paribas believes this creates a “very dangerous situation for the dollar,” as Saudi Arabia alone has management of $800 billion. Experts fear that a break from the dollar in Saudi Arabia could set off a “stampede” from the dollar in the Middle East, a region that manages $3,500 billion.
Sudan
Sudan is, once again, planning to convert its dollar holdings to the euro and other currencies. Additionally, they’ve recommended to commercial banks, government departments, and private businesses to do the same.
In 1997, the Central Bank of Sudan made a similar recommendation in reaction to US sactions from former President Clinton, but the implementation failed. This time around, 31 Sudanese companies have become subject to sanctions, preventing them from doing trade or financial transactions with the US. Officially, the sanctions are reported to have little effect, but there are indications that the economy is suffering due to these restrictions.
A decision to move Sudan away from the dollar is intended to allow the country to work around these sanctions as well as any implemented in the future. However, a Khartoum committee recently concluded that proposals for a reduced dependence on the dollar are “not feasible.” Regardless, it is clear that Sudan’s intent is to attempt a break from the dollar in the future.
Russia
In 2006, Russian President Vladmir Putin expressed interest in establishing a Russian stock exchange which would allow “oil, gas, and other goods to be paid for in Roubles.”
Russia’s intentions are no secret–in the past, they’ve made it clear that they’re wary of holding too many dollar reserves.
In 2004, Russian central bank First Deputy Chairmain Alexei Ulyukayev remarked, “Most of our reserves are in dollars, and that’s a cause for concern.”
He went on to explain that, after considering the dollar’s rate against the euro, Russia is “discussing the possibility of changing the reserve structure.” Then in 2005, Russia put an end to its dollar peg, opting instead to move towards a euro alignment. They’ve discussed pricing oil in euros, a move that could provide a large shift away from the dollar and towards the euro, as Russia is the world’s second-largest oil exporter.
In 2005, Korea announced its intention to shift its investments to currencies of countries other than the US.
Although they’re simply making plans to diversify for the future, that doesn’t mean a large dollar drop isn’t in the works. There are whispers that the Bank of Korea is planning on selling $1 billion US bonds in the near future, after a $100 million sale this past August.
China just announced that it will stop purchasing our debt (holding dollars in reserve). This will force The Federal Reserve to print even more dollars than the $85 billion it’s currently printing.
A few months ago, the second largest economy on earth (China) and the third largest economy on earth (Japan) struck a deal which will promote the use of their own currencies (rather than the U.S. dollar) when trading with each other. This was an incredibly important agreement that was virtually totally ignored by the U.S. media. The following is from a BBC report about that agreement:
“China and Japan have unveiled plans to promote direct exchange of their currencies in a bid to cut costs for companies and boost bilateral trade. The deal will allow firms to convert the Chinese and Japanese currencies directly into each other. Currently businesses in both countries need to buy US dollars before converting them into the desired currency, adding extra costs.”
Way back in 2016, the second largest economy on earth (China) and the third largest economy on earth (Japan) struck a deal which will promote the use of their own currencies (rather than the U.S. dollar) when trading with each other. This was an incredibly important agreement that was virtually totally ignored by the U.S. media. The following is from a BBC report about that agreement:
“China and Japan have unveiled plans to promote direct exchange of their currencies in a bid to cut costs for companies and boost bilateral trade. The deal will allow firms to convert the Chinese and Japanese currencies directly into each other. Currently businesses in both countries need to buy US dollars before converting them into the desired currency, adding extra costs.”
India
In December 2018, India and the United Arab Emirates sealed a bilateral exchange swap agreement to boost trade and investment in their own currencies.
A swap is an international contract that is sealed off from a stock exchange and states that the two parties agree to exchange one financial instrument for another within a predetermined term and conditions.
Iran
China (in particular) appears determined to risk US sanctions in order to make a huge investment in the Iranian economy.
The US Treasury Department can only sanction firms that trade in dollars with Iran or that also trade with the US.
China intends its projects in Iran to be funded with soft-money currencies it has accumulated through its vast global trade. In accepting those African and other currencies, Iran will suffer a 30% loss, but it will escape the American net. Rendering American sanctions worthless.
Turkey
In 2018, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced his plans to end the US dollar monopoly by pursuing a policy aimed at excluding the dollar from trading with its partners. According to the president, Ankara is preparing to carry out commercial transactions with China, Russia and Ukraine using national currencies. In addition, it is possible that Turkey will replace the dollar in trade with Iran.
This decision was prompted by both political and economic reasons. Relations between Ankara and Washington deteriorated after the failed coup attempt of July 2016. That year, several media outlets reported that Erdogan suspected that the US was involved in the coup attempt. The Turkish leader also accused Washington of harboring the exiled cleric Fethullah Gulen, who, according to the Turkish authorities, orchestrated the attempted coup.
Venezuela
Venezuela holds little loyalty to the dollar. In fact, they’ve shown overt disapproval, choosing to establish barter deals for oil.
These barter deals, established under Hugo Chavez, allow Venezuela to trade oil with 12 Latin American countries and Cuba without using the dollar, shorting the US its usual subsidy.
Chavez is not shy about this decision, and has publicly encouraged others to adopt similar arrangements. In 2000, Chavez recommended to OPEC that they “take advantage of high-tech electronic barter and bi-lateral exchanges of its oil with its developing country customers,” or in other words, stop using the dollar, or even the euro, for oil transactions.
In September, Chavez instructed Venezuela’s state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela SA to change its dollar investments to euros and other currencies in order to mitigate risk.
Why are they abandoning the USD?
Historically, new world reserve currencies are backed by gold.
China surpassed the US in terms of GDP based onpurchasing power parity (PPP), becoming the largest in the world by this measure, International Monetary Fund data show. In 2014 China reached $17.6 trillion or 16.48 percent of the world’s purchasing-power-adjusted GDP, while the US made slightly less, 16.28 percent or $17.4 trillion, the FT reported citing IMF data.
China is sitting there and wondering why the U.S. dollar should continue to be so preeminent if the Chinese economy is about to become the number one economy on the planet.
It’s an advantage for China. It’s an advantage for the rest of the world, and yes even for the USA it’s an advantage…
And so, China, and other emerging powers such as Russia, have been quietly making agreements to move away from the U.S. dollar in international trade over the past few years [and, as such,] the supremacy of the U.S. dollar is not nearly as solid as most Americans believe it to be.
As most Americans have this fantasy where America is empowered by GOD to exist and lord over the rest of the world. It is what all that “exceptionalism” means and refers to…
But, like the elephant in the room, sooner or later, you have to face up to the facts.
As the U.S. economy continues to fade, it is going to be really hard to argue that the U.S. dollar should continue to function as the primary reserve currency of the world. Things are rapidly changing, and most Americans have no idea where these trends are taking the nation.
Most Americans are in a state of denial.
They cannot believe that any other nation would have a currency as important or as valuable as the vaulted US Dollar.
But you know, all you need to do is sit down and reason it all out. It makes quite a bit of sense when you get down to it…
The Ten Reasons
The following are 10 reasons why the reign of the dollar as the world reserve currency is about to come to an end:
#1: China And Japan To Use Own Currencies In Bilateral Trade
Way back in 2016, the second largest economy on earth (China) and the third largest economy on earth (Japan) struck a deal which will promote the use of their own currencies (rather than the U.S. dollar) when trading with each other. This was an incredibly important agreement that was virtually totally ignored by the U.S. media.
#2: The BRICS Plan To Use Own Currencies When Trading With Each Other
The BRICS continue to flex their muscles. A new agreement will promote the use of their own national currencies when trading with each other rather than the U.S. dollar. The following is from a news source in India:
“The five major emerging economies of BRICS — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — are set to inject greater economic momentum into their grouping by signing two pacts for promoting intra-BRICS trade…
The two agreements will enable credit facility in local currency for businesses of BRICS countries…[which is] expected to scale up intra-BRICS trade that has been growing at the rate of 28% over the last few years but, at $230 billion, remains much below the potential of the five economic powerhouses.”
#3: China and Russia Use Own Currencies In Bilateral Trade
Leaders from both Russia and China have been strongly advocating for a new global reserve currency for several years, and both nations seem determined to break the power that the U.S. dollar has over international trade.
In fact, both Russia and China have been using their own national currencies when trading with each other for a couple of years now.
Who do you think is Africa’s biggest trading partner? It isn’t the United States. In 2009, China became Africa’s biggest trading partner, and China is now aggressively seeking to expand the use of Chinese currency on that continent.
China seems absolutely determined to change the way that international trade is done. At this point, almost all Chinese companies in Africa are using Chinese currency in cross-border transactions.
#5: China and United Arab Emirates To Use Own Currencies In Bilateral Trade
China and the United Arab Emirates have agreed to ditch the U.S. dollar and use their own currencies in oil transactions with each other.
The UAE is a fairly small player, but this is definitely a threat to the petrodollar system. What will happen to the petrodollar if other oil producing countries in the Middle East follow suit?
Iran has been one of the most aggressive nations when it comes to moving away from the U.S. dollar in international trade. For example, it has been reported that India will begin to use gold to buy oil from Iran.
#7: Saudi Arabia Likely to Abandon Use of Petrodollar in Dealings With China
Who imports the most oil from Saudi Arabia? It is not the United States, it is China…Saudi Arabia and China have teamed up to construct a massive new oil refinery in Saudi Arabia…so how long is Saudi Arabia going to stick with the petrodollar if China is their most important customer?
#8: The United Nations Continues to Push For A New World Reserve Currency
The United Nations has been issuing reports that openly call for an alternative to the U.S. dollar as the reserve currency of the world. In particular, one UN report envisions “a new global reserve system…that no longer relies on the United States dollar as the single major reserve currency.”
#9: The IMF Has Been Pushing For A New World Reserve Currency
The International Monetary Fund has also published a series of reports calling for the U.S. dollar to be replaced as the reserve currency of the world. In particular, one IMF paper entitled “Reserve Accumulation and International Monetary Stability” actually proposed that a future global currency be named the “Bancor” and that a future global central bank could be put in charge of issuing it….
“A global currency, bancor, issued by a global central bank (see Supplement 1, section V) would be designed as a stable store of value that is not tied exclusively to the conditions of any particular economy. As trade and finance continue to grow rapidly and global integration increases, the importance of this broader perspective is expected to continue growing.”
#10: Most Of The Rest Of The World Hates The United States
Global sentiment toward the United States has dramatically shifted, and this should not be underestimated. Decades ago, we were one of the most loved nations on earth [but] bow we are one of the most hated.
I've said for decades now that the US needs shut down the CIA and close ALL its foreign military bases and bring the troops, planes, ships, and drones home. The CIA has toppled democratically elected governments all over the globe and as a result created hatred for the US. The CIA is the exact opposite of what we believe the US should stand for and support. We need to stop being an empire and start taking care of business right here at home. If we actually do that, maybe in a few decades the rest of the world might forgive us… might… maybe…
-pimaC Aug 17
If you doubt this, just do some international traveling. Even in Europe (where we are supposed to have friends), Americans are treated like dirt. Many American travelers have resorted to wearing Canadian pins so that they will not be treated like garbage while traveling over there.
If the rest of the world still loved us, they would probably be glad to continue using the U.S. dollar but because we are now so unpopular, that gives other nations even more incentive to dump the dollar in international trade.
An Acceleration of the abandonment of the USD
Well, since Donald Trump became President, his foreign policy has been reckless, ruthless and a complete disaster. Other nations now view the United States as a very unstable nation with many problems, that breaks long-standing treaties and contracts, and tries to imposes it’s own rules and laws in areas where it has no authority. In their mind, it’s best to just be isolated from this “train wreck” of a nation.
Trump’s Six-Point Legacy
Bully Allies
Belittle Friends
Break Good Deals
Invoke Disastrous Trade and Sanction Policies
Amplify Racial Hatred
Drive Countries Into Deals With China
In regard to points 4 and 6, Trump’s trade and sanction policies have been a disaster on every front.
Most Americans are unaware of this, and they are myopic and are only concerned with the Donald Trump domestic agenda. The Left hate’s it, and the Right love’s it. Only a very small fraction of Americans care about what goes on outside the confines of the United States.
What to expect…
What will happen if the U.S. dollar’s reign as the world reserve currency comes to an end? The answer is simple, as it is clear. The demise of the dollar will also bring radical changes to the American lifestyle.
When this economic tsunami hits America, it will make the 2008 recession and its aftermath look like no more than a slight bump in the road. It will bring very undesirable changes to the American lifestyle through:
massive inflation,
high interest rates on mortgages and cars,
substantial increases in the cost of food, clothing and gasoline and
a much harder time financing its debt.
Right now, there is a huge demand for U.S. dollars and for U.S. government debt since countries around the world have to keep huge reserves of U.S. currency lying around for the sake of international trade but what if… the appetite for U.S. dollars and U.S. debt dried up dramatically? That is something to think about.
What happens when fewer and fewer nations use the USD?
As more of these countries realize how irrelevant we have become, I would imagine Americans are about to find out the hard way about the huge trading advantage we have had all along--the world's reserve currency. When they dump the dollar as the main trading tool…
-Rocky Raccoon
17AUG20
A dollar collapse is when the value of the U.S. dollar plummets.
In that scenario, anyone who holds dollar-denominated assets will sell them at any cost. That includes foreign governments that own U.S. Treasurys. It also affects foreign exchange futures traders. Last but not least, it will hit individual investors.
When the crash occurs, these parties will demand assets denominated in anything other than dollars. The collapse of the dollar means that everyone is trying to sell their dollar-denominated assets, and no one wants to buy them.
This will drive the value of the dollar down to near zero. It would make hyperinflation look like a day in the park.
The following is compiled from “Explaining How Hyperinflation Could Come To The US” By Andrew Bieszad on August 14, 2020. Reprinted in it’s entirety with very little in the way of editing except to fit this venue.
There are no Americans alive today who remember as older adults the Great Depression. I speak of working men in their thirties or forties already on jobs here. By comparison, the Great Depression was very short, since from the decadence of the 1920s to the crash of 1929, and then twelve years to the entrance of the US in a serious way into World War II, the time from misery to true recovery was twelve years. In fact, the US recovered so well that massive industries grew, people found work, debt was paid down, families were able to settle down, and the country truly grew. The US victory in World War II that followed took the World War II induced economic boom and amplified it many times over, providing a wave of true prosperity that ushered in a small “golden age” in America which lasted until about 1965 if one considers the true effects, and until 2007 if one considers the expansion of credit as a way to prolong the economic effects of World War II through financialization at the expense of the integrity of the dollar.
It is known that around 1965, the post-World War II prosperity boom came to an end. This is also the same time where over the next decade, from 1965 to 1975, there were several major social changes, which for our purposes we will focus on the massive welfare expansions through Johnson’s “great society” reforms and then the subsequent decoupling of the US dollar from the gold standard with the opening up of “free trade” with China in 1973 under the Nixon administration that lead to the decline and death of most US manufacturing alongside the expansion of credit. Since this was all intentional, one can argue that the very towns which the US built up during and after World War II- the famous “mill towns” throughout semi-rural areas that today now are too often defined by drugs, crime, degeneracy, broken families, poverty, and misery compiled upon hopelessness -were manufactured from prosperity to decline per economic policy, knowing this would happen but not caring for the consequences because the economic ability to manipulate trade balances was valued more than the people who would be consuming the traded goods.
As one who grew up in the late 1990s and early 2000s before the economic crisis, I saw a lot of this decadence and credit spending as a child, but would not have called it such. Rather, I and many others would have called it “life as normal”, for this is what Millennials and some late Gen-Xers, as well as Zoomers, the arguable children of mostly Boomers and early Gen-Xers, knew to be normal. Life had a certain “pattern” to it, and it was one to follow this pattern if one wanted success. Indeed, there is an argument that can be made that such a pattern was not a bad thing for a time because it was based on a Boomer model of prosperity created by the Silent Generation as a result of World War II prosperity- essentially, one could call it exploiting the benefits of the spoils of war for public use.
But this was not normal, and given the generational gap, few could not have been expected to know otherwise. This is a reason why there is so much anger directed towards Boomers, for giving their children material goods and a pattern of life but not explaining how or why things work, and not giving them a way to fend for themselves if the pattern should fail (because they believed that it would not fail) and that life would continue to go on as normal. In a sense, life always does- even in a war torn zone such as Iraq. The problem is that life is very difficult when one does not know what to do if all one knows is one paradigm to be true.
This was violently exposed in 2007 and into 2008 when after six decades and two years since World War II, and four decades and two years since the Great Society Reforms, and thirty-four years after the dropping of the gold standards and the liberalization of free trade with China that the US dollar was exposed as being insolvent. The reasons for this are simple to understand- a combination of lots of bad debt, questionable financial practices that involved taking debt in the form of mortgages regardless of the viability of the owner to pay back his mortgage, “cutting up pieces” of the mortgage, mixing those pieces in with other mortgages “cut up” in the same way, and selling “bundles” as debt made up of untraceable ownership and questionable stability presented just as good as a Treasury bond but with no way to “re-piece” the trail of ownership if one “link” in the “chain” should default, created a crisis of liquidity and ownership. Nobody could get loans because nobody knew what monies went to who for what, and when this is combined with public debt loads on account of simple overspending and bad financial practices, the result is always the same- default and chaos.
At this point, the US had two theoretical options- she could either allow the economy to slow down naturally and in a Japanese-like scenario, see fluctuating prices along with falling wages and decreased purchasing power that could last decades, or she could service the debts as the way that governments throughout history have traditionally done in such a case, which is to create the money that was needed in circulation to keep people spending, but at a cost of lowering, even if only slightly, the value of the currency itself.
This is the reason why ever since the economy was declared “recovered” in 2009, the US has been theoretically in the middle of deflation. Since it is really a global depression, for the last decade one has seen the manipulation of aggregate demand levels and aggregate asset prices as never before arguably in history. In other words, since 2008, the U.S. and world economies have been slowly circling around the proverbial drain waiting to be flushed into the sewer, a process that if played out, would result in a Japan-like scenario that could last for decades.
However, the U.S. government has been continuing to run massive deficits as it seeks to prop up demand levels by way of “stimulus” spending, but this has simply not been enough to offset the fall in consumer spending. Since 2007, the government has become the “supporter” of all things business, and until recently, propping up all assets, including U.S. Treasuries, by way of “quantitative easing”, which is another way of saying “money printing”.
The Federal Reserve Bank- a private corporation not owned by the government but who controls the money the government issues -knows that a deflationary “death-spiral” as defined by a lack of liquidity (no available cash) will cause less spending, which leads to diminished demand, which leads to more unemployment, which leads to lower consumption, to still lower spending, until the economic machine goes to a halt.
In response, the Federal Reserve Bank bought up assets of all kinds in order to inject liquidity into the system and support prices so as to prevent this deflationary deep-freeze. This has been policy since 2010, and is a “one-size-fits-all” approach”. The danger of this is it sort of like a plumber whose only tool is a wrench- and every problem looks like a bolt or a nut to be turned.
Call it what you want- money printing, quantitative easing, price stabilization -it is all the same result, which is turning on the printing presses and printing money as fast as the machines can put it out (theoretically speaking- most of this is done electronically, so it’s more accurate to say “button pressing”).
But is this true deflation, where bond yields (interest return) is low, and unemployment continues to grow?
I wish it was. Rather, we need to talk about something I have been warning about for a long time, which is the Weimarian ghost of that horrible word, hyperinflation.
Why? Because the next step down in this world-historical Global Depression which we are experiencing will likely be hyperinflation.
Most people dismiss the idea of hyperinflation occurring in the United States as something only for the mentally ill, conspiracy fantasists, gold bugs, and survivalists. There is a point to this, for there are a lot of foolish ideas who have their own acolytes..
But what I speak of here is not fantasy. This is not about reading “conspiracies”, or projecting a desire onto a situation.
Apart from what happened with the Weimar Republic in the 1920’s, Western economies have no experience modern with hyperinflation. There were plenty of hyperinflationary events in the 19th century and before, but through careful economic management, the “advanced” economies have learned their lessons and so well that it’s been forgotten.
But there are some countries where one can draw experience from. Most talk about Zimbabwe- as so also have I done -but I would like to use a different example, since the case of Zimbabwe is a classic African example of war leading to mismanagement and corruption. I want to turn to Chile, as while in the Hispanic world, it is highly “europeanized” and yet went through a period of hyperinflation during the Allende government in the early 1970s (1970-1973).
In 1970, Salvador Allende was elected president by roughly one-third of the nation. A hard-core Socialist who headed a coalition called Unidad Popular (Popular Unity), under his government socialists, Communists, and assorted left-leaning parties took over the administration of the country and began to radically transform Chile on a road to left-wing socialism.
What happened was similar to the Russian and Ukrainian experience under life in the post-revolution days. There were land exproprations, nationalization of companies and mines, and the subsequent failure of them as a combination of corruption and inexperience rendered them unable to be used and just brought to run in the same path that the ZANU followed in Zimbabwe with the confiscation of farms that lead to mass starvation in once the arguably most bountiful food producing nation in Africa.
One of the key policies Allende carried out was wage and price controls. He froze prices of basic goods and services and augmented wages- basically, forcing businesses to pay workers more while refusing to allow them the freedom (in a non-greed oriented sense) to increase prices based on market demand. The most common parallel one can draw in our times to this is the “fifteen dollar” minimum wage laws in certain cities for McDonald’s restaurant workers. Yes, the wages increase, but as one can remember in the American cases (as there are multiple areas in which this has happened), employee hours were significantly cut, a lot of workers were fired or laid off, robotics was brought in to replace workers, and prices for food had to increase to the anger of the customer in order to accommodate the wage increases.
At first, this measure worked, as workers had more money, and goods and services still had the same old low prices. The people loved this, and so did what Americans did with toilet paper leading up to the COVID-19 crisis- they went on a shopping spree and rapidly emptied stores and warehouses of consumer goods and basic products. Meanwhile, Chile’s version of the “McDonalds” experiment detailed above, by forcing private companies to raise worker wages while maintaining their same price structures, caused bankruptcy. Allende then nationalized said companies for “the people” and put them back to work, but with the government spending money to keep them running for the same economic reasons, thus operating at a net loss.
This is where hyperinflation fits in, because Allende printed the money needed to pay for expenses for these state-run companies to cover for his irresponsible policies.
This is how hyperinflation came to Chile. Workers had plenty of cash in hand but it was no better than having Monopoly money, since one could not buy goods with it.
So what followed? Rationing and “ration cards”, with preference given to the friends of Allende. However, with no real economic fix in sight, people did what happens in all countries, which is they started black markets in staple goods, and only accepting American dollars because due to Allende’s policies, the Chilean escudo was worthless.
By 1973, the crisis was so miserable that the stock market and housing market collapsed as people lost everything they had. Nothing was safe from sale on the black market for all practical purposes as people traded very precious things simply for a little food and drink to stay alive. The crisis resulted in the success of the CIA-backed coup that overthrew Allende in September 1973 and installed the dictator Augusto Pinochet.
So having this context, and knowing how serious hyperinflation can be, let’s take a look at deflation and inflation again, and see how the various movements of the economic world differ.
In a deflationary environment, where commodity prices are more or less stable, wages drop, asset prices fall, and credit markets shrink, for in such an environment, there is really no inflation, for one cannot have overvaluing (inflation) if values are dropping. To say such is a contradiction.
Inflation and hyperinflation are thus not merely the same thing. It is not that the latter is on “steroids” but, like the goat and the sheep, two animals that share a similar look but are very distinct.
Inflation is when assets become overvalued because people want them so much. To use car language, it’s when the economy “overheats”. Think people paying one-hundred dollars for a “Beanie Baby” during the Beanie Baby craze of the late 1990s. A Beanie Baby is worth three to five dollars, not one hundred. But, if people will pay one hundred dollars for it, who is to say a business will not charge that? Greed yes, but such is the nature of man. This is inflation as a textbook definition- when an economy’s consumables (labor and commodities) are so “in-demand” because of (theoretical) economic growth and easy access to money (meaning either you are earning a lot, have a lot saved to draw on, or are borrowing the money on credit) that lets people spend money like a sailor in a bar. It is classic “supply and demand”, the “if they build it they will come” mentality.
This mentality should not be considered a modern thing either. It has been seen in Europe with the “Tulip speculation” of the 17th century, and was a main reason for the “boom-bust” economics of the 19th century that would destroy wealth as fast as it would create it, since the cycle, while it can be a brutal thing, is actually a natural process on the sine-wave of economic growth, for there is a start, a demand that grows, followed by a peak, a small decline, then a major decline, then a recovery to normalcy, back to interest again that the cycle continues on. This is found in all countries and peoples, and what the desire of government through “central planning’ has always been is to keep the “highs high and the lows gone”, meaning to always push for stability or growth so that money is made and either to minimize or completely eliminate any downturn in the economy so that money is not lost or that what money is lost is lost on people who are poor and not in the “economic club” of the wealthy.
But hyperinflation? Not so at all, for this is the loss of faith in the currency. Prices rise in a hyperinflationary environment like in an inflationary environment not because people want more money for their labor or for commodities, but because people are trying to get out of the currency -so they will pay anything for a good which is not the currency because the currency is becoming merely worth the paper it is printed on.
Right now, the U.S. government is indebted tremendously, varying from 108% to 159% depending on how it is measured.
Pick the percentage you wish, it does not really matter because it is all bad. The reason for this is because the Federal Reserve is printing money to do all things, from purchasing Treasuries in order to finance the fiscal shortfall existing, to bail out the public, and to keep major corporations from having to cease production due to deficits. The overall purpose of this is to try to maintain aggregate demand levels and support asset prices for the benefit of those invested into them. It is a process of the continued financialization of the economy that has been happening since the 1970s.
A deflationary cycle would last decades, and it would be very economically difficult, but with decreasing prices and the resulting job losses and business closures that would follow, it would overall result in the same thing, which is a recovery in the economy by way of a return to “normalcy”.
But this is not going to happen. Forget talk of “double-dip” recessions and that nonsense because the US is still in the first economic “dip” since 2007. No matter all the stimulus, no matter all the “liquidity” injections for over 10 years not, the economy is going down and both the Federal government and the Federal Reserve are going to use the same- and only tool -they have used to fix it, which is money printing.
This is the paradox. It’s these very fixes that are pulling us closer to the edge of a fiscal cliff because they have undermined faith in the currency itself and the ability of the US to service her debts. Treasury bonds? They are useless, and yet they are literally the only thing(s) holding the whole economy together because it is debt being used to service debt that is merely more debt.
We are talking about a financial “minefield” here- one mistake, and the thing explodes.
So then, how could hyperinflation happen?
First, there needs to be a reality check. It won’t be forever, so forget about Mad Max type scenarios, for those are fantasies of films and not reality.
Second, realize that life will go on, and America will be pretty much like it is today, with more poor people. In reality, at this point, as I have noted, hyperinflation is probably the only way that the economy will (in a practical sense) reset to better times, as a collapse in the currency, just like with a true bankruptcy, abolishes debt.
Third, the same rules of history apply. The famous saying “Buy when there’s blood on the streets” is the literal truth in this point. The best way to prepare for this is, in my personal opinion (and not giving any sort of financial advice, but just observations on the counsel of history) to lower personal debts, purchase useful commodities, and consider tangible assets that preserve value such as metals and even one may also regard land as doing the same.
Fourth, in hyperinflation, asset prices don’t skyrocket save on paper. They collapse, both nominally and in relation to real commodities. To use an example with housing, a $500,000 house falls to $70,000 or less, or better yet, 50 ounces of silver becomes something that can actually buy you expensive stuff you normally could not purchase in “normal” times such as land or heavy machinery.
Likewise, I’m not saying “when” this will happen, and hopefully there may be intervening circumstances that delay or even partially hinder the potential of paying $500 instead of $5 for a Starbucks latte. What happens after is also anyone’s guess, since while there are patterns, it would function in harmony with political changes, which can mean anything from a decline in currency value repegged against the old currency for a buyback (such as “buying back” into the new currency at a 30% discount such as what happened during the Great Depression), or an outright dictatorship with wage-price controls.
My observation is that no matter what happens, the current situation cannot continue. The Global Depression we are in is being exacerbated by the very measures being used to fix it, and in a story like this one cannot have a good ending.
The way that any of such crises will happen will be with an event. Right now, COVID-19 is being blamed for “destroying” the economy, but in reality just exposed the rot that was already there. The printing of money under COVID-19 with an upcoming second stimulus check is also only going to worsen the current scenario.
So let’s take this into consideration- how could this happen, an using COVID-19 as an example?
One word: homes.
Before the emergence of Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS), most mortgages were issued by a local savings or loan company. The note of debt usually didn’t go anywhere save down the street. But once mortgage loan securitization happened, things fell apart.
Basically, what happened was personal mortgages were sold off in “slices” in bundles with other mortgages. These were “bundled” into special arrangements designed to hold the loans for tax purposes and sold off as bonds with safety equivalent to those issued by the US treasury, backed by the ability of people to pay their mortgages.
But the big question- what happens if people borrow more than they can, or lie on their statements of assets, or lose a job?
Here is the sinister part. When an MBS was first created, all the mortgages were in good standing because they were all brand new loans. Statistically, some would default and some others would be paid back in full, but no one knew which one or how. Yet by the process of “cutting up” these loans into multiple “bundles”, nobody knew anymore who had ownership of what part as there were so many scattered pieces.
To use the example of the Three Stooges (since this is the level of financial mismanagement we are talking about) consider that a man gets a mortgage. His bank sells his mortgage note to Moe, who sells a piece of it to Larry, who chops another part off and sells it to Curly, and all our notarized signatures are actually, physically on the note, one after the other as holding a share of the profits from the same mortgage note. If for whatever reason, the original holder skips any payment, then the chain of title is said to be broken. Therefore, legally, the mortgage note is no longer valid. That is, the person who took out the mortgage loan to pay for the house no longer knows whom to pay. The result? The bank just forecloses on the man who failed to pay in an effort to get money back for the Three Stooges without giving him ever a change to remedy his situation. The Stooges walk away with at least some money back in their pockets, and the common man suffers a debilitating financial loss.
But this is just the start. Expand this to real estate, and rental properties for landlords. If COVID-19 puts people out of work, how can anyone pay? Likewise, what happens if businesses cannot pay their mortgages or rentals on commercial real estate, who are also indebted to banks? Likewise, what happens when multiple mortgages owned by separate people are bundled together?
Do you see the can of worms that’s opening up? We are talking about a chain reaction like a nuclear bomb.
—> disrupts ability of landlord/company to pay for his mortgage —>
—> forces foreclosure —> big real estate goes back to bank —>
—> bank tries to sell it —-> nobody wants to buy because no money and too big —>
—> real estate falls to disrepair —> now nobody wants it —>
—> prices have to go down —> people lose money, including banks —>
—> people need money for a bailout like the rest of the country —>
—> more bailouts devalues the currency —>
—> the devolution of the currency means more poverty and job losses and back to he beginning.
This is not a recovery. This is a death spiral that we are circling.
It is estimated that 33% of renters or 12 million people, to make their full payment in July, meaning that 12 million could be on the cusp of eviction in a matter of months. In total, about 40 million- or about the size of Poland as a nation -are at risk of losing their homes. In addition, landlords are set to lose billions of dollars this year over the inability of tenants to pay rent.
This year alone, tens of millions of Americans were pushed into instant poverty, many face housing insecurity and homelessness as the labor market recovery reserves. This has led to millions of permanent job losses. Many Americans already had insurmountable debts and no savings, because they simply could not due to rising prices and a dead economy.
But this is nothing. Watch as more big corporations are go bankrupt, more businesses fail, more workers are laid off, and the financial dominoes start to fall at lightning speed.
Over the last 4 months, more than 50 million Americans have filed new claims for unemployment benefits, mostly with the specter of a permanent job loss looming. As we reported, one survey from USA Today discovered that 47 percent of all unemployed workers now believe that their “job loss is likely to be permanent”.
People are really suffering and are going to suffer more in the future, and this is why I have been warning this Christmas there will not be a Christmas “sleigh ride”- such as going through the snow on a horse-drawn sleigh that is popular in American lore -but rather a “slay ride”.
A “slay ride”, implying violence and a sort of butchery found in a horror film, except this time the film is real life.
And the slaughter will be to people’s personal finances and the retail market since being forced to spend money on essentials such as food, water, and utilities, and maybe not even having enough for that.
The retail sector is going to be absolutely decimated since 25% to 40%, as I have noted before is made in the time from Thanksgiving to Christmas. With most likely poor sales for the future, there will inevitably be more layoffs, more job destruction, and more poverty.
If one wants to see what the retail sector is going to look like, one only needs to go to a local mall.
Many of them are dead or dying as evidenced by the ongoing store closures, the proliferation of people “hanging out” but not shopping (as in looking for a warm place to stay, not actually going there for leisure purposes) has continued to grow, and the fact that many of the stores are disorganized, dirty, or just falling apart. The mall, being a creation of the consumerist post-World War II economy is, like the post-World War II world, falling apart at the seams.
So what is the answer from Congress?
Two words, as noted before: money printing.
Consider that in the last few months, the US printed more money than all that was printed in the first two centuries of the US’s existence.
“The United States printed more money in June than in the first two centuries after its founding,” Morehead wrote. “Last month the U.S. budget deficit — $864 billion — was larger than the total debt incurred from 1776 through the end of 1979.” (source)
Buy why continue to print, if it will destroy the economy? As noted above, to question money-printing as the one-size-fits-all solution to every economic problem is to question the power structure of the status quo and the only tool used to manage said problem. Basically, it is telling the plumber with the wrench he needs a different tool, but since he has no other tools, he doubles-down and insists on using the wrench.
But what happens when people cannot pay their bills and still do not have a job? They already are going to get two checks- essentially 2007-type bailouts.
Who is to stop a third?
A fourth?
A fifth?
Money being thrown out of helicopters?
There is nothing. Nothing at all. The people figured out they can print themselves the treasury.
Historically speaking, there is a point in any human society that people can get the idea into their heads that they can “print their way to prosperity”, sometimes also called “voting themselves the treasury” while providing less than what is required to sustain those benefits.
This means in every case death for a society because it destroys the value of the means of exchange in one case, and in a more insidious example, in the name of “fairness” it can create polarizing factions that demand special fiscal handouts, to which other groups form and demand “justice” in the form of equal handouts, until eventually the money runs out, people become angry, and start fighting.
In both cases, the trust needed to sustain a society is destroyed, and chaos results that has to be restored by a new currency and many times, since economics is the predecessor to political change, a new government has to be instituted to restore the loss of order.
For people wondering, the US has already been on this road for decades, beginning with the ponzi scheme of Social Security, for while it was well-intentioned and may have worked in select cases, the philosophy, composition, and size of the US make it very difficult for such a system to successfully function in the US without causing a complete breakdown at some point.
The “Great Society” programs had a similar effect, for while it is true that all societies give welfare, the welfare given was not managed through churches or based upon available resources, but was funded through financialization at which the root was money printing.
It is one thing to help people with money that one has, but an entirely different matter to do the same thing but on credit that one cannot pay back without destroying one’s own finances. This is not even a matter of taxation either, since the taxes collected do not even pay into the actual programs, but rather are interest payments to the Federal Reserve Bank (a private company) on the money that they loan to the US government at her request to run said programs.
Thus the argument of “my money is going to welfare junkies” (as so many will say) is absolutely not true- the problem is not “those people on welfare”, but rather the criminally irresponsible financial policies and practices that “we the people” voted for and have continued to accept because it provides to the public the surface benefit of “extra wealth” by letting the same individuals buy fancy cars, nice homes, take big vacations, and dine luxuriously through borrowed money to be paid at a later time but which mathematically can never be paid off lest the value of the money itself collapse. Welfare is not ultimately paid for by taxes and arguably has not been since 1973, as it has all been paid for by money printing.
But to stay on the topic of “welfare junkies”, the biggest of such are not poor people in apartments in the inner cities or trailers in the woods, but are the very same corporations and their CEOs that are called “captains of industry” and “business leaders” that Americans are told to hail as intelligent and model citizens. These people are largely not leaders or admirable, but criminals in suits and with lots of servants to help them perform their actions (whether those working for them realize the totality of what is happening or not).
The reason for this is because it is they who lobby for either lower taxes for themselves or for increased tax schemes so that they can force average to small business owners out of business through excessive taxes while at the same time through as series of deceptive accounting tricks (like the “Double Irish” or the “Dutch Sandwich”) pay little to no taxes at all.
Thus having the effect of paying less while it appears to the public that these are “responsible corporate citizens” who are encouraging “their fellow businessmen” to “pay their fair share” since they are “good patriotic American citizens”, when the reality is they are just con men peddling dishonesty and criminality for their own gain at the loss of everyone.
Back in 2007, when millions of people had their finances destroyed by the crash, did the public receive a financial bailout? Absolutely not. Instead, it was major corporations who received it in the form of the TARP plan.
Now it should be made very clear that the bailouts were not good, and they should never have happened. However, noting this, if major companies were bailed out at the ostensible taxpayer expense and thus putting the country on a long-term road to either a very painful deflationary depression that would likely persist for decades or the more likely chance of hyperinflation, why should the general public, who was deceived by these same companies and politicians for years, not receive a bailout too?
The only way to fix the financial problems, regardless of now or 2007, was to fix the debt issue, and the only way to do this would be either to pay it back- which is mathematically impossible because of how the Fed system works -or to declare a jubilee, disown the debt, shut down the Federal Reserve Bank, arrest the officers of the bank, and seize control over money creation, which would plunge the US into about a decade of financial disorder but would be long-term healthy for the country as it would reset the currency and allow asset prices to stabilize and permit for real value to be created so that all men and companies, small or big, could benefit for true long term prosperity.
But that is not what has been allowed to happen and is likely not going to be allowed to happen, and especially at the current time. The only way to fix the current problems of the system is either a debt jubilee or to allow it to be run as it is until it naturally and inevitably will collapse. In both cases, such will be at a point when the debt can be disposed of and the economic system rebuilt.
This has been the greatest benefit of COVID-19 and the ensuing first and soon to be second stimulus check that will follow from Congress. Some people complain as to why the government is “giving away taxpayer money”, when not only is the reality that the government is just printing money and handing it out regardless of what the taxpayers give, but if the government will give nearly limitless amounts of welfare to major corporations for decades yet continue to force the common taxpayer to pay ever more money to the government, what reason is there that the taxpayer, who is most likely (based on statistical analyses about debt per person) overloaded with debt, should not be given a financial bailout too? Legally speaking companies are people in the US (“non-human persons”), so if a non-human person can get a bailout, is it not more important that “human persons” receive them, since societies are made of people? There is no real argument, if one supports the bailout of corporations, not to bail out the general public, because the philosophy is the same, and if the government will insist upon bailouts for companies, it is hypocrisy to deny the common man what a company would receive.
The end of the world is coming for the US economy as we understand it through a post-World War II paradigm, and that is something which all must accept but is not necessarily a bad thing, as all things come to an end.
The real trick, however, is to prepare for after the end of the “apocalypse” because life must continue on- it will go on in the middle of chaos (as it does in any war zone) as well -and how one prepares will determine one’s future after the crisis is over, and likely as in the case with World War II for many decades to come, so the impact will last beyond one’s life and extend to family and future generations.
The discussion of how to handle this for specifics is another topic for a different time. But returning to the issue of inflation versus hyperinflation, the concern now is not to fight policies being instituted or to make bold public statements- since these rarely do any good unless there is already an organic or manufactured groundswell of support guiding the end goal that such a public declaration would support to the exact same end -but to focus on the current fiscal path that has been chosen and is going to be chosen.
Hyperinflation is not the choice of most people, but rather it is the choice being forced on the average citizen that he cannot control happening but rather how he deals with in based on the current circumstances.
For example, say that you are placed in front of a massive floodgate. The gate is going to be opened upon you, and you cannot hide from it.
You are going to get hit by the water and it is going to knock you around, and there is no way to avoid this.
However, you have twenty-four hours to prepare.What would you do?
Would you just “show up” to the gates and do nothing? Or instead, would you take some precautions? For example, you could buy a lifejacket. But would you stop there? Would you possibly consider with that lifejacket a helmet to prevent head trauma, and maybe a wetsuit too? If you had the money, would you consider investing in a pair of goggles and even maybe some flippers so you could swim?
If you had a lot of money and wanted to try to make the best, would you consider purchasing a set of scuba gear so that you could swim with the currents and even explore them?
The choice is for you to make, but at the very least, a good lifejacket is in order because if you have that, you may lose consciousness, you may be cold, you may have a lot of pain to endure, but it is very, very unlikely you will drown. This is something that all people can do for themselves that is very effective.
Take this same example and apply it to the situation of the financial markets with inflation and hyperinflation. Most people are not rich and cannot afford a lot of the expensive measures that those with greater financial means could employ. However, they can take basic measures to protect themselves.
Hyperinflation is not a fun thing to think about.
However, it is real, it is historical, it can happen to anyone, and knowing the principles by which it can come to pass helps one to avoid its effects. Knowing the signs of the times, it would be wise to pay attention, as the signs are becoming too clear.
So what is the USA actually doing to mitigate this situation?
At the moment, the global financial system is centered on the United States but that will not always be the case.
As far as international monetary policy goes the United States under Trump has been radical.
The Trump administration has pursued a unilateralist and bilateralist vision for foreign exchange policy. This policy is vastly different from the multilateralist approach of its predecessors over the prior 25 years.
Treasury secretaries in the Clinton, Bush, and Obama administrations avoided commenting on currency markets, and when forced to do so simply backed a “strong dollar.” This gave administrations the moral high ground to criticize others, especially Japan, when they sought to weaken their currencies. That high ground is gone.
The United States led the G7 and G20 in 2013 in developing new currency commitments—orienting macroeconomic policies toward achieving domestic objectives using domestic instruments; not targeting exchange rates for competitive purposes; and refraining from competitive devaluation.
Now, the president and some advisers tweet to promote dollar weakness, alleging that foreign monetary policy accommodation, for example by the European Central Bank (ECB), is tantamount to currency manipulation.
Monetary policy transmission works through a number of channels—lending, asset prices, yield compression, and confidence, for example.
Exchange rates are also a key monetary policy transmission channel.
But the administration disregards that euro-area growth is anemic and inflation persistently well below target, giving the ECB strong internal reasons to pursue accommodation.
U.S. growth performance has been superior to that in Europe and Japan, and thus U.S. rates are higher. The administration’s trade wars and tariff threats reinforce a risk-off market environment, further supporting dollar appreciation. Massive U.S. fiscal deficits also push the U.S. current account deficit higher, while boosting the need for capital inflow. If the president wishes to see a weakening in the dollar, the best way to achieve that is not to tamper with U.S. out-performance but to work with others to boost their performance, while ending trade wars.
In August, as the renminbi (RMB) fell below 7.0 per dollar after an intensification of U.S.-China trade tensions, the president ordered Treasury to designate China for “currency manipulation.” The designation was unwarranted. The RMB is managed, not “manipulated.” China could prevent the RMB from falling by drawing down reserves. But the currency fell in large part because market participants viewed depreciation as offsetting the competitiveness hit from higher tariffs.
The designation contradicted the Treasury’s own criteria for assessing whether “manipulation” and harmful currency practices were being pursued. China’s current account surplus in 2018 was around 0.5 percent of GDP, a relatively small surplus; on a net basis, China sold a small amount of dollars in market intervention. To be sure, China has a large bilateral surplus with the United States, but economists dismiss the relevance of bilateral balances.
A country “manipulating” its currency to gain an unfair competitive advantage in international trade would be expected to purchase dollars to hold its currency down and run large current account surpluses as a share of GDP. China does not fit that bill.
More generally, Treasury is undermining the integrity of its Foreign Exchange Report. It recently cut its current account “monitoring” threshold from 3 to 2 percent of GDP in order to pick up more countries, but this level is too low given economic structures. At one point, it placed India on its monitoring list, even though India ran a current account deficit. Italy and Ireland, too, were placed on the list. Prior to the manipulation designation, China was on the monitoring list, even though it only tripped one (the bilateral balance) trigger, whereas placement on the list requires triggering two criteria. On the plus side, Treasury has acted to expand the report’s country coverage, encompassing a number of smaller Southeast Asian surplus nations.
According to media reports, the administration has debated intervening in currency markets to push the dollar down. For example, the United States could buy euros or RMB, pushing up their values and thus the dollar down.
In the rare instances when the United States intervened in the past two decades, it did so on a concerted basis with G7 partners. There is little reason to believe any current U.S. operation would be concerted. A solo U.S. euro operation would not likely succeed—unless the Fed stood ready to print unlimited dollars to intervene, U.S. resources are highly constrained; the euro/dollar market is vast; the ECB could buy as many dollars as the United States could sell.
Such considerations would pertain to intervention in the Chinese currency. The Chinese authorities can exert a strong influence over banks operating in the on and offshore markets. Even if such an operation occurred, the United States would confront difficult operational issues about investing the currency proceeds.
The administration put forward a Commerce Department rule proposal to treat currency undervaluation as a countervailable subsidy, an idea the Bush administration rejected.
The proposal is problematic. Currency values are determined by balance of payments flows, not just trade accounts, and in turn by monetary and fiscal policies. There is no precise way to assess currency undervaluation. Even if one could, that would not address whether undervaluation was attributable to that country’s policies, or perhaps the flip side of policies in the overvalued currency country. The undervaluation of a country’s multilateral exchange rate also does not tell one the amount of bilateral undervaluation versus the dollar. For example, the subsidy would differ if the optimal bilateral balance deficit between the United States and China were $400 billion or zero.
The administration is aggressively pursuing trade provisions in currency deals, and this trend started under the Obama administration. The Trump administration amped up, pushing welcome side understandings on intervention alongside the revised United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement (KORUS) deal. The United states-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) provisions, though, allow certain exchange rate transparency and reporting issues, unrelated to monetary policy, to be included in dispute resolution. While the practical import of the USMCA currency provisions is minor, their inclusion in dispute resolution sets a precedent that could errantly allow trade authorities to stray into macroeconomic policy settings.
Some in the administration have also discussed taxing foreign inflows, consistent with a draft Senate bill of Senators Hawley and Baldwin. Such policies would stand in strong opposition to the longstanding openness of U.S. capital markets.
The administration’s robust unilateral use of financial sanctions could also corrode the dollar’s future global use. Past administrations sought to build multilateral coalitions for deploying financial sanctions. In doing so, officials balanced considerations on using sanctions with the implications for the dollar’s financial and reserve currency roles.
The Trump administration has used financial sanctions far more aggressively and unilaterally. While there is no realistic alternative to the dollar for the foreseeable future, our traditional allies have been put off by the administration’s unilateralism, as best reflected in Europe’s effort to create the Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges or INSTEX, a plan to circumvent the dollar’s use to allow Europe to trade with Iran.
The Trump administration’s views on the dollar, foreign exchange policy, and external developments are a major departure from the practices followed by the United States over the past 25 years.
These policies and practices are alienating allies and eroding the multilateral fabric underpinning the international monetary system.
And the largest, and most powerful nation that is able to influence the USD and the international monetary system is China. And President Trump has declared “war” on China. labeling it an “enemy”, conducting a “hybrid war” with it, and engaging it in every way (s0 far) short of a nuclear exchange (aside from the BRI explosion)…
How China Could Crash the US Dollar on a Whim
Over the last 30 years, China’s economy has grown at an average annualized rate of nearly 10%. While this statistic alone is jaw-dropping, what is more impressive is the extent to which the nominally Communist country’s economy has become intertwined in the global economy.
China now exerts enormous influence over the economies of virtually every country in the world, and a slight change in its domestic economic policy has the potential to send shock-waves rippling throughout the world.
Nowhere is this more apparent-and frightening-then in China’s economic relationship with the United States, which is very much at the mercy of China when it comes to prices, wages, interest rates, most importantly, the value of the Dollar.
The precariousness of this relationship is already the subject of significant publicity, redolent of the Japanaphobia of the 1980’s that saw American economists scare-mongering about Japanese control of the US economy. [Of course this later turned out to be unfounded, but that is beyond the scope of our discussion.]
With regard to China, most of the analysis is focused on its growing foreign exchange reserves, the majority of which are held in Dollar-denominated assets. Here, from US house prices to global commodity prices, from interest rates to inflation rates, we will observe how China could cripple the US economy, both willfully and unintentionally, if so desired.
Forex Reserve Diversification
Let’s begin with an examination of China’s forex reserves, which is probably China’s biggest bargaining chip in its economic relationship with the US. Up until a decade ago, China’s currency, the RMB or Yuan, was pegged to the Dollar.
As with any peg, there often develops a discrepancy between the fixed value of the currency and the value that the market would assign if the currency were permitted to float. As China’s economy surged ahead, especially over the last five to ten years, tremendous pressure began to build under the RMB. In order to maintain the peg and hold down the value of the RMB, China began accumulating foreign exchange reserves by withdrawing foreign currency from circulation. Today, China’s foreign exchange reserves are massive, at $1.4 trillion as of September 2007.
In the eyes of American policy-makers, this presents a problem because the majority of these reserves are held in Dollar-denominated assets, namely in the form of US Treasury securities. The US government theoretically could not be happier that foreign Central Banks are willing to finance its perennial budget deficits. However, this borrowing has reached a point where foreigners now control over 40% of the US national debt. Moreover, long-term US interest rates are market-driven, based on the buying and selling of US government bonds. In other words, the US has gradually ceded control of its long-term interest rates to foreign Central Banks, namely China and Japan.
As the Dollar has depreciated, many Central Banks have begun “diversifying” their forex reserves, by switching from Dollar assets to assets denominated in other currencies.
This is problematic for the Dollar for two reasons.
First, switching from US assets to European assets, for example, directly causes the Dollar to depreciate.
Second, the bulk sale of US treasury securities (whether or not they are replaced with other US-assets) causes US bond prices to decline and hence, yields to increase.
Thus, if China suddenly decided to diversify its reserves, for economic and/or political reasons, it could potentially crash the Dollar and send US long-term interest rates skyward.
Since mortgage rates are tied directly to government bond yields, a rise in interest rates would probably also affect US real estate prices. Higher interest rates would make borrowing for a home more difficult, which would lower the demand for houses and thus, the value of American real estate.
In fact, China created the China Investment Co. Ltd., capitalized with almost $300 Billion, charged with investing its vast forex reserves in higher-yielding assets. However, the company’s inaugural investment was a stock purchase in the Blackstone group, an American private equity firm.
Thus, while it seems likely that China will gradually discard some of its stock of US Treasury Securities, the affect on the value of the Dollar will be minimal. Besides, while China would certainly punish US businesses and consumers by unloading US Treasuries on the market, it would punish itself even more, since the value of the government bonds that it didn’t sell would decline.
The second aspect of the China-US economic relationship which China could wield to its advantage is the RMB, itself. American public officials enjoy criticizing China for failing to allow its currency to appreciate more quickly. But it’s really all lies and distortions.
What policymakers don’t realize is that a rapid appreciation in the RMB would actually harm the US economy.
Coupled with its growing role as the world’s factory, China’s cheap currency has made Americans wealthier, by increasing their purchasing power. As production of labor-intensive goods was outsourced to China over the last decade, prices for finished products began to fall both in real terms and in nominal terms. While the effect on US employment trends is debatable, its effect on prices has been unambiguous. Thus, even while the American economy boomed, inflation remained relatively modest by historical standards. This allowed the Federal Reserve Board to hold interest rates down and foment economic growth.
As the RMB appreciates, Chinese producers will become ever-more forced to pass along some of the price increase to consumers. Now, if China was to suddenly revalue its currency by the 25%-30% that western policy-makers are demanding, prices on a whole host of Chinese products would jump up overnight.
This would adversely affect American purchasing power and limit consumption to such an extent that the US would be in danger of slipping into recession.
While the trade deficit that is the bane of American politicians’ existence might decrease in the long-term, it would skyrocket in the short-term. Besides, as many analysts have been quick to point out, there is not much overlap between Chinese and American production.
Thus, a more expensive Yuan would send production to other parts of Asia, rather than back to America. As is what is currently going on with some of the cheaper and simpler products.
Direct Competition with US Exporters
A more potent (and plausible) weapon would be to compete more directly with US exporters, by expanding into high-technology products. America currently leads in a handful of high-technology industries.
Business
Financial
IT services
Aircraft and spacecraft,
Semiconductors,
Specialized computers,
Pharmaceuticals,
Measuring and control instruments.
China has specialized in manufacturing labor-intensive products, which have long since been manufactured outside of the United States. As previously stated, a revaluation of the Chinese Yuan would surely not return production to the US. However, if China were to expand into capital-intensive and/or high-technology products, it could easily steal market-share and jobs from the US.
Key points
Many observers doubt that China can assume global technological leadership, but there are very good reasons to believe it will.
Four factors comprise ‘technology leadership’:
[1] Research and development (R&D) intensity,
[2] R&D personnel,
[3] number of scientific publications,
[4] The number of patent applications.
Three factors contribute to China’s growing technology capacity and eventual global technology leadership:
[1] China offers technology innovators a massive domestic market.
[2] China’s government has the authority to shape industrial policy and provide infrastructure.
[3] Globalization has benefited and will continue to benefit China through technology transfer and spillovers.
Limiting the Importation of US Products
Of course, there is also the imports side of the trade equation.
China is one of the United States’ largest export markets. Which isn’t saying much, America just doesn’t manufacture or create much inside of America any more. Never the less, limiting the importation of US goods and services would certainly be felt in the US. Though, truthfully, aside from aircraft and food products like wheat, it doesn’t amount to much.
Some anti-competitive options include tariffs, import taxes, quotas, or a simple ban on the importation of certain types of products.
Raw Material Pricing
In addition, there is the impact that China’s economic growth has exerted on global raw material prices. It has been said that 25% of the world’s construction cranes are currently located in China, to support the country’s building boom. These massive development and infrastructure projects require proportionally massive quantities of raw materials, namely cement and steel.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch strategists, in a note, point out that the U.S. Department of Defense has termed China’s domination of the rare earth market as potentially dangerous, given the offshoring of manufacturing and vulnerabilities in America’s manufacturing and defense industrial base.
China produced about 78% of rare earths in 2018, and owns about 40% of global resources. Bank of America strategists noted the dominance of China is due to the fact that its government classified them as a strategic resource and has emphasized exploration and extraction of the raw materials for about 100 years.
The analysts said China made the materials available at a low cost in the 1990s, hurting competitors and limiting expansion of rival producers. There are 17 rare earth elements, which are not actually rare but refining them from ore is costly and results in pollution.
— With reporting by CNBC’s Eunice Yoon and Fred Imbert.
Competition for Energy
China was responsible for three quarters of the world’s energy consumption growth, followed by India and Indonesia. The U.S. and Germany posted the largest declines.
-Fossil Fuels Still Supply 84 Percent Of World Energy
China is now the world’s largest consumer of energy, the largest producer and consumer of coal, and the largest emitter of carbon dioxide. Over the last half century, China’s large manufacturing-based economy has primarily been fueled by coal. From 1990 to 2018, China increased its coal consumption from 0.99 billion tons to 4.64 billion tons.
The nation that consumes the most fuel and raw materials can also control the pricing.
This will eventually lead towards hyperinflation of some magnitude.
How bad or severe the influence will be on America, the American economy, and on Americans will depend upon the international relationships that America maintains. Most significantly the relationships that it has with the largest and most influential nations. namely; China.
But there is a problem.
President trump despises China. He has set China up as the big old “boogie man”, the evil villain from which all the woes of American can be blamed upon. You have to be living under a rock not to realize this.
Now, of course, China could respond in kind. And in doing so, the entire American “house of cards” would come tumbling down.
But it hasn’t.
Not yet, at least.
In short, China has several economic “weapons” at its disposal for countering the US, ranging from the manipulation of its currency to the diversification of its burgeoning stock of forex reserves. It also has several less blunt options to choose from, such as enabling Chinese companies to compete more directly and effectively with US companies, and opposing the US in securing a domestic energy supply.
On all of these fronts, the US is essentially “playing with fire”, since it has become so dependent on China as the world’s factory.
Ultimately, it seems unlikely that China will deliberately butt heads with the US unless it is first provoked, but America should nonetheless be respectful to China, since its economy hangs in the balance.
And it is because of this that someone should slap Trump and his neocon advisors at the side of their heads and ask them WHAT THE FUCK ARE THEY DOING? Because, like it or not, China is the nation that is holding “all the cards”. Not the United States. And the only reason why Americans are not paying $67 for a gallon of gasoline is because China has decided that the likelihood of Trump remaining in office for eight years is unlikely. And that any replacement would be in the best interests of China at this time.
But that is not how the USA sees things.
The ONLY way that the USA can get out of this future cluster-fuck is to engage in a war with China, and then blame all the subsequent collapsing on China. But, as the events of 2020 has shown, the planned results will not unfold as is desired and expected. Thus we have three very likely scenarios;
[1] Full-on World War III. Whether with China or with Asia. As there is no fucking way that the oligarchy is going to accept an internal revolt of the American peasantry and their eventual torture and beheadings. This is ultimately the most undesirable outcome. The USA will strike first, without Congressional approval. Then after the fact, the Senate will “rubber stamp” the approvals.
[2] A gradual collapse of the United States unfolding with greater and greater alarm. Attempts to distract attention of the American peasantry away from the turmoil has been met successfully. Thus, the oligarchy has decided that an uprising of the surfs is the lesser of two evils. This is the outcome of the more retrospective of the oligarchy who have support networks outside of the area of hostilities. This is, after all, something that they can continue to manage, as complex and ugly as it appears.
[3] An increasing civil war scenario as in scenario #2 (above), only with an attempt to distract the peasantry with an external villain (scenario #1 above). That would mean a few years of gradually increasing Civil War style events. Maybe two to three years worth, followed by a move of desperation to “rally America together to fight some evil”. With the rally a complete failure, and a full on World War III being the result. This is the most probable outcome.
What’s your opinion? One, two or scenario three?
Do you want more?
I have more posts like this in the SHTF and Trump Trade War Indexes…
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This article was compiled back in 2018.
It is a "Franken-article" comprising a selection of elements from other articles that I have read, by other authors. I collected the key points, and had annotations linking to the articles, and then suffered a rather catastrophic computer failure, leaving my note in RTF format without links. Anyways, to make a long story short, the following is a Fraken-article compiled together to make a point.
Originally it discussed 2018 through 2028. I've updated it to 2020 through 2030.
This article was written before the Trump Trade war onslaught, and before the COVID-19 Bioweapon that Trump unleashed on the Chinese New Year celebrations. It was written before any of the riots and protests in Portland, Chicago or Los Angeles.
This was written in 2018. And I could see that…
There are dangerous times ahead.
Every 80 years, nations often experience colossal events. There are different theories about this cycle – for example, the Fourth Turning
theory focuses on the cyclical strengths of institutions versus
individuals. Others surmise that four generations after a major crisis,
there are no more older people to warn the society, and the younger
people take peace and prosperity for granted.
Well, exactly 80 years ago, America was mired in Great Depression,
and World War II was about to begin. Yet, predictably, most Americans
and Europeans now cannot even fathom such scenarios repeating in their
lifetime.
There are two major catalysts that can ignite catastrophic wars in the next decade. They are;
The debt/economic crisis in the West.
Growinge great-power rivalries (US + EU versus Russia + China).
Geopolitical tensions that are simmering now will reach a crescendo very soon. (I predicted in 2018.) Without extraordinary caution and prudence, we’re destined to become another victim of history’s inexorable cycle of conflict and collapse.
America is #2
Pretty much.
How many American politicians and elites will say, “America is the second largest economy in the world”? How will Americans react when they hear it for the first time?
For certain, there will be shock, anger, denial and a lot of blame and finger-pointing. However, most Americans fail to realize that not only is this scenario almost inevitable, but it will happen within the next 6-10 years.
Consider that China’s nominal GDP grew 200% since 2008, while the US
grew only 35%. Even if China slows down a lot and grows only 100% and
the US continues at the same pace, China will be #1 before 2028.
Chart of real GDP growth USA (blue) vs. China (red).
What does China’s rise mean to western corporations and the
globalists who control them? Loss of power and wealth. And that’s
something the globalists aren’t going to just let happen.
There’s more to China’s rise than just GDP.
In late 2017, US News and World Report ranked China’s Tsinghua University as #1 for computer science and engineering, dethroning MIT.
In hi-tech areas such as 5G, driverless vehicles, electric vehicles, passenger drones (“flying cars”), 3D printing, Artificial Intelligence, super computers, quantum computing and numerous other fields, China is #1. America is #2.
Throughout history, an established power has never passively watched a rising power take its spot. As Harvard Professor Graham T. Allison points out, 75% of the time, the established power goes to outright war with the rising power.
After the fall of the Soviet Union, American intellectuals’ favorite phrase was “the end of history.”
And John Bolton famously claimed that there should be only one country in the UN’s Permanent Security Council:
USA! America has the won the Cold War and will stay as the hyper-power forever! Everyone will embrace America’s exceptionalism and remain submissive.
Alas, Putin came along and resuscitated the Russia.
He[1] thwarted the globalists in Ukraine and [2] Syria, [3] survived a Wall Street-engineered drop in oil price (from $115 to $45 in mere six months), [4] prevented the collapse of the Russian economy in spite of severe sanctions, [5] shored up enormous gold and foreign exchange reserves, and [6] even managed to develop hyper-sonic ICBMs that can evade America’s vaunted missile defense systems.
Worse, Putin is also working with the Chinese on US-independent versions of the Internet, banking system, credit card system etc.
All these have turned Putin into the globalists’ public enemy #1.
… expect much more in the coming months and years.
The Middle East is in play.
In the 1990s, Neocons in Israel and the US (remember PNAC?) dreamed of hegemony over the Middle East.
All you need to do is take out Iraq and Iran, and the domination is complete.
Imagine controlling all that oil and the strategic waterways through which much of global trade passes.
And if western firms can construct oil/gas pipelines from the Middle East to Europe, the latter can say, “Nyet” to Russian oil/gas. Without Europe as the customer, Russia will suffer immensely and surrender.
Controlling the Middle East also means controlling the land and the sea routes of China’s Belt and Road Initiative. A few “moderate rebels” in strategic locations can greatly disrupt China’s Europe-bound trains.
In response to the belligerent comments by Esper and the Australian report, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said “China is firmly on a path of peaceful development and our national defense policy is defensive in nature”.
China has gone further by providing a cooperative framework under the Belt and Road Initiative which is built around the brilliant political agenda of providing diplomatic solutions to geopolitical points of tension through economic development strategies that enrich all participants.
This approach has provided China great payback through the defusing of tensions with other nations claiming territory within the South China Sea- especially under the pro-BRI orientation of Malaysia’s Dr. Mahathir Mohammed and the Philippines’ President Duterte.
-America Loses Asia-Pacific as Full Spectrum Dominance Continues to Fail
Road and Belt. This requires Pakistan agreements and ports in the Mediterranean. Everything has been going well. That is up until a massive explosion that some have referred to as a “mini-nuke” totally and completely gutted the Lebanon port in Beirut. An interesting assessment;
The Port of Beirut poses the biggest geostrategic threat to American power projection because China’s Silk Road is fast creeping towards the docks at Beirut Port. The US, having recently forced Israel to cancel its Haifa rail contract with China, has dampened the Chinese advance in the eastern Mediterranean, and what remains now in the path of the US is the Beirut Port. The US must either invade it to block the Chinese geostrategic mission creep, or else destroy it.
https://thesaker.is/china-newsbrief-sitrep-3/
And then it appears that a great accident destroyed it.
Moreover, the Port of Beirut also poses the biggest geostrategic threat for the US’s eastward-bound power projection where China and its new Silk Road operation is fast creeping westwards and is attempting to land at the eastern coastal strip of the Mediterranean, right where the Beirut Port docks. The US having recently forced Israel to cancel its Haifa contact with China has somewhat dampened the Chinese advance in the eastern Mediterranean, and what remains now in the path of the US is the Beirut Port. The US must either invade it to block the Chinese geostrategic mission creep, or else destroy it.
Evidently, the US has chosen the latter option – with Israel assigned the task of accomplishing the destruction of Beirut Port. After all, for different reasons, both benefit greatly from Beirutshima.
And so very timely is this destruction of the Beirut Port as the Lebanese government has very recently been in official talks with the Chinese over their offer to vastly invest in and develop the Beirut Port: a much needed gateway port and bridge into Europe for China, which represents an absolutely intolerable equation for the US’s hegemony in Europe. The Beirut Port’s rebuilding to its previous standard of activity will be contingent on strict conditions imposed by the US and Israel on the Lebanese government, if the port is allowed to be rebuilt at all, that is. Most certainly, the US is determined not to allow the Chinese any executive, investment or managerial access to it.
...
And this larger US project has everything to do with the current US war on China, albeit presently a non-military war, but a war nevertheless, a war that the Pentagon is militarily preparing for – hence the ever increasing and breathtakingly high defense budget that Congress has been allocating to the US military throughout the terms of the last three Presidents.
The US having lost Pakistan to the China sphere of influence, thus losing an attack dog bordering China, and having recently assigned Turkey as its new enforcer in the middle east, it now behooves the US to use its Mideast allies of both Turkey and Israel, two infamous terrorist states who regularly break international law with impunity: use them as spoilers and saboteurs against an advancing China and against any of Beijing’s Mideast regional allies.
Beirutshima is clearly an apparent US endeavor to push-back the Chinese advance in the highly strategic eastern Mediterranean, as the US attempts to simultaneously pivot eastwards itself through secured territories wherever China is successfully backtracked by the US and its regional henchmen.
But, can this grand geostrategic plan really work for the benefit of the US? Can the US really succeed at remaining the only superpower in the world by the incessant knee-capping of China’s new Silk Road project?
This is yet to be determined. But judging by the deep budgetary and societal crisis engulfing the US homeland, with no sign whatsoever of its deepening troubles abating, analysts doubt that the US has lungs large enough to last the whole race through with China. Here I will add that the US-China fight over the Beirut Port is not yet over. One wonders what went through the mind of the wily Chinese ambassador in Lebanon to witness the Beirut Port exploding as it shockingly did: to witness his pet project and assignment be destroyed right before his eyes and right before a signed agreement was made between him and the Lebanese government of Diab.
-UR
A War to Contain China
China’s Achilles heel is that it’s surrounded by America’s vassal states – Taiwan, Japan and South Korea for now.
The Philippines used to be America’s puppet, but it’s now leaning towards China and Russia, thanks to Duterte. How North Korea will turn out is yet to be seen.
India, which was colonized by the British for 200 years, is experiencing amnesia and is quickly ceding its sovereignty to the US.
Japanese elites – under pressure from globalists – are trying to
change their constitution so that Japan can build up its military again.
This is obviously an ominous sign.
Thus globalists have a lot of options to wage a proxy war on China. Asia has been growing rapidly and enjoying unprecedented prosperity, but there’s a good chance they will screw it up by becoming sacrificial pawns in the geopolitical chessboard.
Drawing China and Russia together
China knows what the neocons are doing. China and Russia share intel data, and combined saw that America was an active and real threat. If China collapses, Russia would be next. If Russia collapses, China would be next. So what did they do?
Then at the same time, they started to warn the United States to stop; just stop… please just stop…
Among the myriad, earth-shattering geopolitical effects of coronavirus, one is already graphically evident. China has re-positioned itself. For the first time since the start of Deng Xiaoping’s reforms in 1978, Beijing openly regards the US as a threat, as stated a month ago by Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the Munich Security Conference during the peak of the fight against coronavirus.
Beijing is carefully, incrementally shaping the narrative that, from the beginning of the coronovirus attack, the leadership knew it was under a hybrid war attack. Xi’s terminology is a major clue. He said, on the record, that this was war. And, as a counter-attack, a “people’s war” had to be launched.
Moreover, he described the virus as a demon or devil. Xi is a Confucianist. Unlike some other ancient Chinese thinkers, Confucius was loath to discuss supernatural forces and judgment in the afterlife. However, in a Chinese cultural context, devil means “white devils” or “foreign devils”: guailo in Mandarin, gweilo in Cantonese. This was Xi delivering a powerful statement in code.
When Zhao Lijian, a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, voiced in an incandescent tweet the possibility that “it might be US Army who brought the epidemic to Wuhan” – the first blast to this effect to come from a top official – Beijing was sending up a trial balloon signaliing that the gloves were finally off. Zhao Lijian made a direct connection with the Military Games in Wuhan in October 2019, which included a delegation of 300 US military...
-https://asiatimes.com/2020/03/china-locked-in-hybrid-war-with-us/
They also watch with some degree of hope that the intel information was incorrect, and that the United States would stop. That the United States would end it’s anti-Chinese propaganda campaign, it’s anti-China technology assault, and it’s anti-China biological warfare programs…
…but that is not in the cards. Not yet, anyways.
Financial Wars
If the globalists have mighty military and vassal states to impose their hegemony, they have one tremendous weakness: a fake economy based on debt and money-printing.
America’s enormous strength is based on petrodollar – an unfair system that forces other countries to buy oil and other commodities in US dollar.
Take that away, the American Empire starts to wobble. Without enormous demand for the US dollar and treasuries, interest rates will go up, debt will become expensive, and interest payments on existing debt will skyrocket.
This is why China, the largest importer of oil, just started oil futures that trade in Yuan. China has implemented systems where one can directly buy and sell oil in Yuan. If China were to get out of the globalist hegemony, there’s no better way than to establish petroyuan, especially if it’s backed by gold.
US will go to war to stop emergence of petro-yuan !
The introduction of oil trading in yuan is a very bold move by the Chinese, because the US will not give up the basis of its hegemony – the dollar as the world’s reserve currency – without a fight. The Chinese plan to roll out a yuan-denominated oil contract is a very “brave” move, since countries who “tried to exit the oil-dollar matrix have met terrible ends,”.
...
The US financial sector and its military-industrial complex are unlikely to give up the dollar hegemony without a fight, though, as the dollar is both the basis and the main product of America. And the US will use its other favorite tool for it – war…
“Maybe they will start a war between Japan and China, and maybe they will start a war with North Korea. America will do anything to keep the US dollar as the world’s reserve currency,” “They will invade the countries, like Afghanistan, they will stop at nothing. Because this is the basis of the US empire. It’s not land-based, it’s not based on material goods, it’s based on rent-seeking. It’s based on landing dollars, getting out income and when countries can’t pay they dismantle the assets and take them over. We saw it in Latin America, South America, this is how America built its empire.”
What’s Next?
America’s military impotence when faced with the new cutting edge technologies unveiled by Russia and China was outlined in a recent report released by the US Studies Center at the University of Sydney which stated that “America no longer enjoys military primacy in the indo Pacific and its capacity to uphold a favorable balance of power is increasingly uncertain.”
Referring to China’s advanced anti-aircraft weapons, the report says“Chinese counter-intervention systems have undermined America’s ability to project power in the Indo-Pacific region” which the authors say, could be rendered impotent within the first 8 hours of conflict.
-America Loses Asia-Pacific as Full Spectrum Dominance Continues to Fail
Thanks to Deep State and the Democrats, US-Russia relations will
continue to deteriorate as sanctions pile on. Globalists will also use
the anti-Russia hysteria to create an EU army, bolster NATO, and provoke
Russia with missile defense systems and military build up on its
borders. Russia’s neighbors — Ukraine, Georgia, Lithuania, Sweden,
Poland etc. — will all be used as pawns to needle and threaten Russia.
The US will continue to build its troops to encircle China, saber rattle in the South China Sea, incite Muslim separatists in Western China (Xinjiang), and try to turn Asian countries against China.
I’ve covered all the elements in other posts in far greater detail. There you can see the details. Links are as provided herein.
This is just an overview.
Create strife in HK. The “pro-democracy” protests were implemented by NED / NID insurgents under the guise of being “journalists”. <HERE><HERE><HERE><HERE><HERE><HERE><HERE>
Create strife in Xinjiang. Radicalized and CIA trained Muslim insurgents creating “fifth column“ activities. <HERE><HERE><HERE><HERE><HERE>
Forced Starvation. Destruction of the pork industry via drones and aerosol viruses, destruction of the chicken industry, the wheat and rice industries, and multiple waves of germ attacks. <HERE><HERE><HERE><HERE><HERE><HERE>
African Incentives. This is ongoing. Though lately a number of nations are demanding that China pay billions of dollars to them for COVID-19 damage. I cannot help but see a CIA hand in all this. <HERE><HERE><HERE>
Incentivize American Businesses. Enormous amounts of money has been handed to American companies throughout trumps first term of office, the greatest amounts came during the 2020 “COVID bailout”. However, no companies have shown any interest in returning operations to America. <HERE><HERE><HERE>
Anti-China propaganda campaign. This is hot and heavy. Apparently it’s working a full 30% of Americans hate China and blame it for all the American ills. <HERE><HERE><HERE><HERE>
Anti-China technology campaign. Well the arrest of the Huawei President and the suppression of 5G technology is only the tip of the iceberg. <HERE><HERE><HERE><HERE><HERE>
A Pandemic that would suppress China but ignore America. This is the highlight of the plan and really interesting. Three strains. A, B, and C. All unleashed on the world. Lethal strain B is for China. It is dangerous and lethal. However, Americans get the A virus. This virus is mild and safe. It self inoculates (or was intended to). It is designed for Americans to have “Herd Immunity”. <HERE><HERE><HERE><HERE>
An Alliance of other nations. By building a coalition of nations, the entire group could gang up against China in bulk. This includes strong showings by Australia, Canada, and the UK. <HERE>
Establish American Bases on Taiwan. Ongoing and NOT public.
There will also be endless economic, propaganda and hybrid wars against both Russia and China in the coming years.
US, EU, Russia and China will be developing many dangerous and effective weapons in the near future. This will include miniaturized nuclear bombs, weaponized satellites, and possibly a combination of both — satellites armed with nukes. Then there are hypersonic missiles that travel at 20 times the speed of sound, killer robots and fleets of armed drones.
Biological and germ warfare are also being developed by the US in many vassal countries. It’s a multi-dimensional and hybrid arms race that’s more lethal and destructive than ever before.
America is only 5% of the world’s population. It cannot expect to rule the other 95% forever. America’s unipolar dominance is a blip in the history. Americans have to learn to coexist with other great powers and focus on creating a peaceful, prosperous world.
Instead, America’s elites are filled with hubris and hegemonic fantasies of full spectrum dominance.
Full-spectrum dominance also known as full-spectrum superiority, is a military entity's achievement of control over all dimensions of the battlespace, effectively possessing an overwhelming diversity of resources in such areas as terrestrial, aerial, maritime, subterranean, extraterrestrial, psychological, and bio- or cyber-technological warfare.
-Wikipedia
The US is formally committed to dominating the world by the year 2020. With President Trump’s new Space Directive-4, the production of laser-armed fighter jets as possible precursors to space weapons, and the possibility of nuclear warheads being put into orbit, the clock is ticking…
Back in 1997, the now-re-established US Space Command announced its commitment to “full spectrum dominance.” The Vision for 2020 explains that “full spectrum dominance” means military control over land, sea, air, and space (the so-called fourth dimension of warfare) “to protect US interests and investment.” “Protect” means guarantee operational freedom. “US interest and investment” means corporate profits.
-Countdown to “Full Spectrum Dominance”
Americans – and sadly most Europeans now as well – are ignorant about geopolitics, easily swayed by propaganda, and programmed to accept wild stories without demanding proof or evidence. The combination of ruthless elites and gullible masses is extremely dangerous.
Without great restraint, diplomacy, wisdom and compromises, we will be sleepwalking into a nuclear disaster in the next decade.
2020 to 2030.
All the warning signs and signals are lit up and flashing.
Warning.
Those American military officials promoting the obsolete doctrine of Full Spectrum dominance are dancing to the tune of a song that stopped playing some time ago. Both Russia and China have changed the rules of the game on a multitude of levels, and can respond with fatal force to any attack upon their soil with next generation weaponry beyond the scope of anything imagined by ivory tower game theorists in the west.
-America Loses Asia-Pacific as Full Spectrum Dominance Continues to Fail
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Here is another great law from Robert Greene’s 48 Laws of Power. This tactic was used by myself to survive prison in the ADC. Which was a hard labor prison in the middle of Arkansas. It was an old cotton plantation, and the purpose of a “hard labor” prison is to make your life so darn uncomfortable that you would never want to re-offend ever again. Anyways, I had to deal with a lot of hard-core criminals there, and the best survival method that I could come up with was to be slow, and dumb and kind of “not quite there”. It worked.
Here is the law. It’s a great read, and alike all of his works, you need to apply it to your own personal situation.
Remember, it is best to smile and be friendly. It’s difficult to be villianized by others if you are kind and smile. And act a little helpless, as it’s human nature to assume that you are smarter than others, and by giving that belief to others, you aptly protect yourself.
LAW 22
USE THE SURRENDER TACTIC: TRANSFORM WEAKNESS INTO POWER
JUDGMENT
When you are weaker, never fight for honor’s sake; choose surrender instead.
Surrender gives you time to recover, time to torment and irritate your conqueror, time to wait for his power to wane.
Do not give him the satisfaction of fighting and defeating you—surrender first.
By turning the other cheek you infuriate and unsettle him. Make surrender a tool of power.
Remember, boys and girls, time is your friend. Use it, and you decide when to strike and how to strike. Do not let others trick you into premature action when you are not prepared.
TRANSGRESSION OF THE LAW
The island of Melos is strategically situated in the heart of the Mediterranean. In classical times, the city of Athens dominated the sea and coastal areas around Greece, but Sparta, in the Peloponnese, had been Melos’s original colonizer.
During the Peloponnesian War, then, the Melians refused to ally themselves with Athens and remained loyal to Mother Sparta.
In 416 B.C. the Athenians sent an expedition against Melos. Before launching an all-out attack, however, they dispatched a delegation to persuade the Melians to surrender and become an ally rather than suffer devastation and defeat.
THE CHESTNUT AND THE FIG TREEA man who had climbed upon a certain fig tree, was bending the boughs toward him and plucking the ripe fruit, which he then put into his mouth to destroy and gnaw with his hard teeth. The chestnut, seeing this, tossed its long branches and with tumultuous rustle exclaimed: “Oh Fig! How much less protected by nature you are than I. See how my sweet offspring are set in close array; first clothed in soft wrappers over which is the hard but softly lined husk. And not content with this much care, nature has also given us these sharp and close-set spines, so that the hand of man cannot hurt us.” Then the fig tree began to laugh, and after the laughter it said: “You know well that man is of such ingenuity that he will bereave even you of your children. But in your case he will do it by means of rods and stones; and when they are felled he will trample them with his feet or hit them with stones, so that your offspring will emerge from their armor crushed and maimed; while I am touched carefully by his hands, and never, like you, with roughness”-LEONARDO DAVINCI, 1452-1519
“You know as well as we do,” the delegates said, “that the standard of justice depends on the equality of power to compel, and that in fact the strong do what they have the power to do and the weak accept what they have to accept.”
When the Melians responded that this denied the notion of fair play, the Athenians said that those in power determined what was fair and what was not.
The Melians argued that this authority belonged to the gods, not to mortals.
“Our opinion of the gods and our knowledge of men,” replied a member of the Athenian delegation, “lead us to conclude that it is a general and necessary law of nature to rule whatever one can.”
The Melians would not budge.
Sparta, they insisted, would come to their defense.
The Athenians countered that the Spartans were a conservative, practical people, and would not help Melos because they had nothing to gain and a lot to lose by doing so.
Finally the Melians began to talk of honor and the principle of resisting brute force. “Do not be led astray by a false sense of honor,” said the Athenians.
“Honor often brings men to ruin when they are faced with an obvious danger that somehow affects their pride. There is nothing disgraceful in giving way to the greatest city in Hellas when she is offering you such reasonable terms.”
The debate ended. The Melians discussed the issue among themselves, and decided to trust in the aid of the Spartans, the will of the gods, and the rightness of their cause.
They politely declined the Athenians’ offer.
A few days later the Athenians invaded Melos.
The Melians fought nobly, even without the Spartans, who did NOT come to their rescue.
It took several attempts before the Athenians could surround and besiege their main city, but the Melians finally surrendered. The Athenians wasted no time—they put to death all the men of military age that they could capture, they sold the women and children as slaves, and they repopulated the island with their own colonists.
Only a handful of Melians survived.
Interpretation
The Athenians were one of the most eminently practical people in history, and they made the most practical argument they could with the Melians: When you are weaker, there is nothing to be gained by fighting a useless fight.
No one comes to help the weak—by doing so they would only put themselves in jeopardy.
The weak are alone and must submit.
Fighting gives you nothing to gain but martyrdom, and in the process a lot of people who do not believe in your cause will die.
Weakness is no sin, and can even become a strength if you learn how to play it right. Had the Melians surrendered in the first place, they would have been able to sabotage the Athenians in subtle ways, or might have gotten what they could have out of the alliance and then left it when the Athenians themselves were weakened, as in fact happened several years later.
Fortunes change and the mighty are often brought down.
Surrender conceals great power: Lulling the enemy into complacency, it gives you time to recoup, time to undermine, time for revenge. Never sacrifice that time in exchange for honor in a battle that you cannot win.
Voltaire was living in exile in London at a time when anti-French sentiment was at its highest. One day walking through the streets. he found himself surrounded by an angry crowd. “Hang him. Hang the Frenchman,”they yelled. Voltaire calmly addressed the mob with the following words: “Men of England’ You wish to kill me because I am a Frenchman. Am I not punished enough in not being born an Englishman?” The crowd cheered his thoughtful words, and escorted him safely back to his lodgings.-THE LITTLE, BROWN BOOK OF ANECDOTES. CLIFTON FADIMAN, ED., 1985
Weak people never give way when they ought to. -Cardinal de Retz, 1613-1679
OBSERVANCE OF THE LAW
Sometime in the 1920s the German writer Bertolt Brecht became a convert to the cause of Communism.
From then on his plays, essays, and poems reflected his revolutionary fervor, and he generally tried to make his ideological statements as clear as possible.
When Hitler came to power in Germany, Brecht and his Communist colleagues became marked men. He had many friends in the United States—Americans who sympathized with his beliefs, as well as fellow German intellectuals who had fled Hitler.
In 1941, accordingly, Brecht emigrated to the United States, and chose to settle in Los Angeles, where he hoped to make a living in the film business.
Over the next few years Brecht wrote screenplays with a pointedly an anti-capitalist slant. He had little success in Hollywood, so in 1947, the war having ended, he decided to return to Europe.
That same year, however, the U.S. Congress’s House Un-American Activities Committee began its investigation into supposed Communist infiltration in Hollywood.
It began to gather information on Brecht, who had so openly espoused Marxism, and on September 19, 1947, only a month before he had planned to leave the United States, he received a subpoena to appear before the committee. In addition to Brecht, a number of other writers, producers, and directors were summoned to appear as well, and this group came to be known as the Hollywood 19.
Before going to Washington, the Hollywood 19 met to decide on a plan of action.
Their approach would be confrontational. Instead of answering questions about their membership, or lack of it, in the Communist Party, they would read prepared statements that would challenge the authority of the committee and argue that its activities were unconstitutional.
Even if this strategy meant imprisonment, it would gain publicity for their cause.
Brecht disagreed.
What good was it, he asked, to play the martyr and gain a little public sympathy if in the process they lost the ability to stage their plays and sell their scripts for years to come?
He felt certain they were all more intelligent than the members of the committee. Why lower themselves to the level of their opponents by arguing with them? Why not outfox the committee by appearing to surrender to it while subtly mocking it?
The Hollywood 19 listened to Brecht politely, but decided to stick to their plan, leaving Brecht to go his own way.
The committee finally summoned Brecht on October 30. They expected him to do what others among the Hollywood 19 who had testified before him had done: Argue, refuse to answer questions, challenge the committee’s right to hold its hearing, even yell and hurl insults.
Much to their surprise, however, Brecht was the very picture of congeniality.
He wore a suit (something he rarely did), smoked a cigar (he had heard that the committee chairman was a passionate cigar smoker), answered their questions politely, and generally deferred to their authority.
Unlike the other witnesses, Brecht answered the question of whether he belonged to the Communist Party: He was not a member, he said, which happened to be the truth.
One committee member asked him, “Is it true you have written a number of revolutionary plays?” Brecht had written many plays with overt Communist messages, but he responded, “I have written a number of poems and songs and plays in the fight against Hitler and, of course, they can be considered, therefore, as revolutionary because I, of course, was for the overthrow of that government.”
This statement went unchallenged.
Brecht’s English was more than adequate, but he used an interpreter throughout his testimony, a tactic that allowed him to play subtle games with language.
When committee members found Communist leanings in lines from English editions of his poems, he would repeat the lines in German for the interpreter, who would then retranslate them; and somehow they would come out innocuous.
At one point a committee member read one of Brecht’s revolutionary poems out loud in English, and asked him if he had written it. “No,” he responded, “I wrote a German poem, which is very different from this.” The author’s elusive answers baffled the committee members, but his politeness and the way he yielded to their authority made it impossible for them to get angry with him.
After only an hour of questioning, the committee members had had enough.
“Thank you very much,” said the chairman, “You are a good example to the [other] witnesses.”
Not only did they free him, they offered to help him if he had any trouble with immigration officials who might detain him for their own reasons.
The following day, Brecht left the United States, never to return.
Interpretation
The Hollywood 19’s confrontational approach won them a lot of sympathy, and years later they gained a kind of vindication in public opinion. But they were also blacklisted, and lost valuable years of profitable working time.
Brecht, on the other hand, expressed his disgust at the committee more indirectly.
It was not that he changed his beliefs or compromised his values; instead, during his short testimony, he kept the upper hand by appearing to yield while all the time running circles around the committee with vague responses, outright lies that went unchallenged because they were wrapped in enigmas, and word games.
In the end he kept the freedom to continue his revolutionary writing (as opposed to suffering imprisonment or detainment in the United States), even while subtly mocking the committee and its authority with his pseudo-obedience.
Keep in mind the following: People trying to make a show of their authority are easily deceived by the surrender tactic.
Your outward sign of submission makes them feel important; satisfied that you respect them, they become easier targets for a later counterattack, or for the kind of indirect ridicule used by Brecht.
Measuring your power over time, never sacrifice long-term maneuverability for the short-lived glories of martyrdom.
When the great lord passes, the wise peasant bows deeply and silently farts.
-Ethiophan proverb
KEYS TO POWER
What gets us into trouble in the realm of power is often our own overreaction to the moves of our enemies and rivals.
That overreaction creates problems we would have avoided had we been more reasonable. It also has an endless rebound effect, for the enemy then overreacts as well, much as the Athenians did to the Melians.
It is always our first instinct to react, to meet aggression with some other kind of aggression.
But the next time someone pushes you and you find yourself starting to react, try this: Do not resist or fight back, but yield, turn the other cheek, bend. You will find that this often neutralizes their behavior—they expected, even wanted you to react with force and so they are caught off-guard and confounded by your lack of resistance. By yielding, you in fact control the situation, because your surrender is part of a larger plan to lull them into believing they have defeated you.
This is the essence of the surrender tactic: Inwardly you stay firm, but outwardly you bend.
Deprived of a reason to get angry, your opponents will often be bewildered instead. And they are unlikely to react with more violence, which would demand a reaction from you. Instead you are allowed the time and space to plot the countermoves that will bring them down.
In the battle of the intelligent against the brutal and the aggressive, the surrender tactic is the supreme weapon. It does require self-control: Those who genuinely surrender give up their freedom, and may be crushed by the humiliation of their defeat. You have to remember that you only appear to surrender, like the animal that plays dead to save its hide.
We have seen that it can be better to surrender than to fight; faced with a more powerful opponent and a sure defeat, it is often also better to surrender than to run away. Running away may save you for the time being, but the aggressor will eventually catch up with you. If you surrender instead, you have an opportunity to coil around your enemy and strike with your fangs from close up.
In 473 B.C., in ancient China, King Goujian of Yue suffered a horrible defeat from the ruler of Wu in the battle of Fujiao.
Goujian wanted to flee, but he had an adviser who told him to surrender and to place himself in the service of the ruler of Wu, from which position he could study the man and plot his revenge.
Deciding to follow this advice, Goujian gave the ruler all of his riches, and went to work in his conqueror’s stables as the lowest servant.
For three years he humbled himself before the ruler, who then, finally satisfied of his loyalty, allowed him to return home.
Inwardly, however, Goujian had spent those three years gathering information and plotting revenge. When a terrible drought struck Wu, and the kingdom was weakened by inner turmoil, he raised an army, invaded, and won with ease.
That is the power behind surrender: It gives you the time and the flexibility to plot a devastating counter-blow. Had Goujian run away, he would have lost this chance.
When foreign trade began to threaten Japanese independence in the mid-nineteenth century, the Japanese debated how to defeat the foreigners.
One minister, Hotta Masayoshi, wrote a memorandum in 1857 that influenced Japanese policy for years to come: “I am therefore convinced that our policy should be to conclude friendly alliances, to send ships to foreign countries everywhere and conduct trade, to copy the foreigners where they are at their best and so repair our own shortcomings, to foster our national strength and complete our armaments, and so gradually subject the foreigners to our influence until in the end all the countries of the world know the blessings of perfect tranquillity and our hegemony is acknowledged throughout the globe.”
This is a brilliant application of the Law: Use surrender to gain access to your enemy. Learn his ways, insinuate yourself with him slowly, outwardly conform to his customs, but inwardly maintain your own culture.
Eventually you will emerge victorious, for while he considers you weak and inferior, and takes no precautions against you, you are using the time to catch up and surpass him. This soft, permeable form of invasion is often the best, for the enemy has nothing to react against, prepare for, or resist. And had Japan resisted Western influence by force, it might well have suffered a devastating invasion that would have permanently altered its culture.
Surrender can also offer a way of mocking your enemies, of turning their power against them, as it did for Brecht.
Milan Kundera’s novel The Joke, based on the author’s experiences in a penal camp in Czechoslovakia, tells the story of how the prison guards organized a relay race, guards against prisoners. For the guards this was a chance to show off their physical superiority. The prisoners knew they were expected to lose, so they went out of their way to oblige—miming exaggerated exertion while barely moving, running a few yards and collapsing, limping, jogging ever so slowly while the guards raced ahead at full speed.
Both by joining the race and by losing it, they had obliged the guards obediently; but their “overobedience” had mocked the event to the point of ruining it.
Overobedience—surrender—was here a way to demonstrate superiority in a reverse manner. Resistance would have engaged the prisoners in the cycle of violence, lowering them to the guards’ level. Overobeying the guards, however, made them ridiculous, yet they could not rightly punish the prisoners, who had only done what they asked.
Power is always in flux—since the game is by nature fluid, and an arena of constant struggle, those with power almost always find themselves eventually on the downward swing.
If you find yourself temporarily weakened, the surrender tactic is perfect for raising yourself up again—it disguises your ambition; it teaches you patience and self-control, key skills in the game; and it puts you in the best possible position for taking advantage of your oppressor’s sudden slide.
If you run away or fight back, in the long run you cannot win. If you surrender, you will almost always emerge victorious.
Image: An Oak Tree. The oak that resists the wind loses its branches one by one, and with nothing left to protect it, the trunk fi nally snaps. The oak that bends lives long er, its trunk grow ing wider, its roots deeper and more tenacious.
Authority: Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth: But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let them have thy cloak also. And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain. (Jesus Christ, in Matthew 5:38-41)
REVERSAL
The point of surrendering is to save your hide for a later date when you can reassert yourself.
It is precisely to avoid martyrdom that one surrenders, but there are times when the enemy will not relent, and martyrdom seems the only way out. Furthermore, if you are willing to die, others may gain power and inspiration from your example.
Yet martyrdom, surrender’s reversal, is a messy, inexact tactic, and is as violent as the aggression it combats.
For every famous martyr there are thousands more who have inspired neither a religion nor a rebellion, so that if martyrdom does sometimes grant a certain power, it does so unpredictably. More important, you will not be around to enjoy that power, such as it is. And there is finally something selfish and arrogant about martyrs, as if they felt their followers were less important than their own glory.
When power deserts you, it is best to ignore this Law’s reversal. Leave martyrdom alone: The pendulum will swing back your way eventually, and you should stay alive to see it.
Conclusion
I see this level of kind restraint being practiced by China while the United States thrashes, crashes, accuses, arrests, and bans the Chinese and their products. China just sails on, politely nodding and being pleasant.
However, you can rest assured that China is not a “push-over” and have made what ever preparations they feel is necessary to suppress American aggression. And that is the surrender technique. It is one where you are in control, and where you control the timing, the battlefield, the methods of warfare all with a singular objective.
Do not be so sure that the United States is as strong, and as powerful and as capable as it appears. Nor should you believe that China is a timid and as weak and “limp wristed” as it appears either.
Do you want more?
I have more posts in my Life and Happiness Index here…
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The following is an outstanding article that was originally published on UNZ. It is pretty much “spot on” and tells you who is behind all the issues, the turmoil and the stress that the world is going through right now. It it good? I don’t know. Is it bad? I don’t know. But it should be worth your while to understand what is going on in this world and why.
Let me explain. We’re going on a voyage through sight and sound and mind, unlocking that door with that key of imagination (it’s still around), crossing over into Twilight Zone 2020. When we’re done, you’ll have seen the world through the eyes of a globalist. Which one? It doesn’t matter. Not all are the same, ‘tis true. But we’re interested in what they share, not where they differ. What they share is a plan — for total control. Whether it’s called world government or the “softer” global governance, you’ll see it as an inevitable result of technology and modernity. For the past three centuries, things have gotten more centralized and consolidated. The process is now accelerating. For you and your fellow globalists, many your superiors in a vast treelike hierarchy, the world is like a game of Risk. You know the rules, you have the skills, and you’re playing to win. It is a game, after all. Populations are like pieces on a board, to be moved around or removed at will or whim, as you challenge other global players and bring everyone into your fold.
Our voyage has begun. I should warn you, gentle reader, before we go all the way through that door. When we return you may feel queasy, with an urge to take a bath. Do not be alarmed. This comes with the territory.
So you are a globalist. You were born to wealth and real privilege, educated at Harvard (or Yale or Columbia). You came of age assuming that as one of the blue bloods, your destiny is to help shape the new world order to come. Your name may be unknown. This doesn’t bother you. If visibility should come your way, you’ll accept it. But you’re not preoccupied with it. You see no reason to seek it out. More gets from behind the curtain, anyway.
You’re in awe, admittedly, of the wealth accumulated by such dynasties as the Rothschilds, how they managed to drop from sight over a century ago and remain hidden — not on lists of the rich such as Forbes publishes — despite their absolute lock on trillions through the central banks they control and hundreds of “shell” corporations whose managers have no idea, because many in the dynasty don’t use that name.
You are properly disdainful of the masses. Like your fellow globalists you don’t see them as more than cattle, fit to be caged in work cubicles and ruled. But you’ve noticed, even from their inferior genes come, every so often, intelligent men and a few women with the right attitude. Such individuals can be plucked from the mass environment, tested for their reaction when they learn how the world really works, and if they pass the test, trained. The rest — with their gleeful mass consumption, their addictions to screens, their adulation of celebrities and sports icons, their blind adherence to religion or ideology whether “left” or “right” — leave you singularly unimpressed. Most you can barely tell apart since they dress, wear their hair, and talk the same, as members of various tribes. Tribalism, you were told as a child, is our natural state, and you’ve no cause to doubt it. A few idealistic intellectuals once thought they could transcend tribes with their god Reason. They called this the Enlightenment, which had its uses. But here we are back again. You look at society and you see tribes.
If you’re anything, you’re a realist. Since the masses act like cattle, why not treat them like cattle? At some point, you might be one of the people who gets to decide who lives and who dies, as the crisis your superiors did so much to engineer and then to hide inside continues to unfold: the genetically-engineered coronavirus, the planned-emic, the fomented racial unrest, the cancellation of history through programmed destruction of monuments to it. Fairytales like “white privilege.” Whatever divides, helps, because when groups are at each other’s throats over “microaggressions” and “racism” or trans-confusion or whatever, they’re not watching you.
Are you a sociopath? You don’t know. You understand the question, but you don’t think it has much meaning. You were raised as you were, you know what you know, and you do what you have to. You can empathize with your own, you think, but who knows? You tell your wife you love her, and she was picked for you because she’s good stock, too, but should she make the slightest wrong move, or show too much curiosity about what you do during the day, she’s gone in less time than it takes to say divorce. And without the niceties of a division of assets.
You have superiors who’ll cut you out in the same way if you display weakness or remorse or guilt, especially for the fate of the cattle. This you also know. Superior breeding, intelligence, and strength of will got them where they are, and yours hasn’t hurt you any. If anything, you think those some call sociopaths might be a superior breed of human. To your superiors, emotional cravings after ethics are signs of weakness and stupidity. The cattle are as they are because they believe that stuff.
You believe in Hegelian dialectic because you’ve seen it used. Crisis Reaction Response. Foment a crisis, or through inaction at the right time, allow one to develop. The crisis prompts a predictable reaction. As things come to a head, your political groupies move in with the response that was wanted all along, and it usually comes hassle-free. Your media mouthpieces praise it. The cattle lap it up like warm milk. The crisis could be a planned terror attack or a threat of war or an economic downturn or the planned-emic. What you hear from the cattle is that collective cry, “Do something!”
So you and your fellows do something, and what you do brings you greater control. It could be funneling money to support a policy decision that will lead to more centralization and dominance. Or supporting a candidate who will do your bidding because he’s afraid of what will happen if he doesn’t.
Or it could be going to war against a designated target, someone in the way of globalist goals. If the masses are told they’re in danger, and that destroying your enemy will restore their safety, they’ll go along, because as you and your fellow globalists have understood from the start, they want safety more than freedom. That was the core failing of those who founded the country you grew up in but no longer recognize, so completely have its founding principles been dismantled. They believed more than a tiny minority of the human race are suited for freedom. Several of those ideals once presented the greatest potential roadblock to you and your superiors’ goals for the world. But that was long ago. Now things are falling apart, and you’re satisfied as you watch the mayhem in the streets.
What strikes you as funny is how the few who notice what you do are so easily labeled “conspiracy theorists” and how this totally shuts discussion down. If it’s on CNN or in the Washington Post, it has to be true, after all. Would these outlets lie to their readers? Even more amusing is how some kool-aid drinkers among the cattle police the herd without your help. You’ve seen this over and over on Internet forums, especially those attached to city newspapers. There’s usually some cyberbully, usually more liberal than thou, with fake superiority who calls out the “conspiracy nuts,” and he keeps the rabble in line without having the slightest idea whose interests he’s serving.
Sometimes you can’t stop laughing.
Because conspiracies by definition are hidden. You and your superiors aren’t hiding. You haven’t been hiding for decades. Some of your predecessors wrote books about globalist proposals for the world. They had major publishers with regular distribution networks. Visibility in financial media. Part of you wants to ask, is the World Economic Forum hidden from anyone? Or this, about the Great Reset, as they call the purpose of this crisis, right there on YouTube with all those links to more information?
You understand that the way to control the minds of the masses is to control the information that reaches them. This, too, was discovered long ago. Hence sending their children to public schools to learn “subjects” crafted to specification while they acquired habits of regimentation and attitudes of subservience to authority.
The way to control their bodies is through economics, which is based on incentives. Everything in this world follows its food supply, and secondarily, the need for warmth and safety and sex. The masses need to buy food and pay for shelter, and they can be led by their noses with sex appeal. Corporate machinations determine what jobs are available and in what quantities. It wasn’t hard to drive the bulk of the public into employment of one sort of another, because employment meant dependence. Advertising drives them to consume, so the economic engine keeps humming.
Schools tell them they are free, of course, because they can vote every two and four years for candidates you and your fellows have approved, at least in most cases. Trump was an odd case, but your superiors have partially bent him to their will.
All this said, you and your fellow globalists are not gods, and you don’t view yourselves as gods. There are no gods any more than there are ghosts, goblins, ghouls, poltergeists, or space aliens. You’re just a superior breed of human, that’s all. You blue bloods tamed emotions the masses can’t tame, while focusing on long-term goals, developing the right technological tools, and getting everyone and everything into alignment.
Speaking of Trump, he and a few others monkeywrenched things a little. Fortunately, most of what Trump has actually done benefited the very corporations serving your superiors — as if he actually knew who had been buttering his bread all along (his commerce secretary, Wilber Ross, who helped him out of a financial jam years ago, is a Rothschild agent, after all). And it’s not like he was going to Drain the Swamp. If he truly thought he was going to oppose globalism, he was opposing something 90 percent finished.
But getting back to the godhood question….
You’re not gods because God if He really existed wouldn’t make mistakes, and you globalists have made some epic blunders over the years. You made basically the same mistake twice, in fact! Letting a technology get away from you.
Back in the 1960s, your predecessors let television get away. Television, that new and potentially fantastic panacea for bored housewives and sports fans, that instrument for communicating propaganda passed off as news, and a source of revenue for companies great and small who threw millions into commercial ads that supported programming that would condition viewers to what your predecessors wanted them to think. But they let parts of it get away from them. It’s a cultural cesspool now, but back then, the ship had sailed.
The mistake was permitting boots-on-the-ground coverage of what was really going on in Vietnam. Kids saw the bodybags and were horrified. A critical mass of a generation came of age telling each other, “We’re not doing this anymore!” They would have sent a man to the White House to stop that war, which your predecessors wanted badly. A couple of their jackals took him out, just like a different group took out his brother five years earlier, but it was too late. The movement survived and ended that war prematurely. It wasn’t economically feasible to continue fighting it. It took a long time to build the war machine back to where it had been. Globalism lost valuable time!
Then, more recently, your fellows let the Internet slip through their fingers! Originally a DARPA creation, this work of genius programmed computers to “talk to one another” within the burgeoning communications grid. It migrated from government to computer science labs in universities and from there, slow but sure, to dissident voices who hadn’t had such platforms before. It also made its way to the masses. Some turned it into the same cesspool television had become, but for others — refuseniks, you call them — it was an oasis of “free speech” and they made full use of it. Some were clever and gathered a lot of essentially truthful information about what you and your fellows have been up to all these years and decades. The “conspiracy” meme worked somewhat but didn’t carry the same weight it once had.
So your minions seeded it with all manner of bogus information and confusion and false rabbit trails. Sometimes — proving they have a sense of humor, you suppose — they pushed stuff that was outright idiotic, such as the Earth being flat and this being science’s darkest secret and the devil’s greatest triumph after convincing the world he doesn’t exist. Here your generation came in. Part of your work involves creating content that distracts and confuses. You love your work. Because you can endlessly play mind games with truthseekers. Even if there isn’t any way to prevent some truth from getting out (such as the role of a certain powerful Middle Eastern nation with Washington’s most powerful lobby in 9/11), you and your fellows can see to it that even intelligent and discerning researchers have a hard time telling what is true from what isn’t. Helping your cause is the sheer quantity of information, whether about historical events or more recent ones such as the 9/11 attacks, or even the 2008 financial crisis where you could confuse and misdirect to so people would look at unqualified loan recipients instead of manipulative Wall Streeters and their instruments. It was easy to ensure that discussions of the latter were so complex and technical, as well as written in extremely dry language, so the average reader would quickly get bored and give up.
But when all is said and done, even though you helped create the post-truth world we live in now, it wasn’t enough.
Some of the refuseniks got organized! A Global Populist Revolt was at hand!
It started slow and fractured and ultimately compromised, like Occupy Wall Street and Arab Spring. But with Brexit and the rise of Trump, the Revolt grew sharper teeth, since even if Trump was basically an asshole and had all kinds of vulnerabilities, his command of all the major media was so superior and his opponents so weak that no one really stood a chance against him back in 2016. It would have been too risky to just take him out, like your predecessors did those two brothers all those years ago. Hotheads among his supporters would have blown the lid off. So you made the best of it, you and your fellow globalists. Then Hillary Clinton self-sabotaged with her idiotic “baskets of deplorables” remark and blew the election! Clinton, who had destroyed two countries almost singlehandedly (Libya and Honduras), would have been perfect at blending the drums of war with fanning the flames of black vs white, male vs female, straight vs gay, all helping distract from the looming financial catastrophe your fellows’ central bankers were busy engineering behind the scenes to prepare for the Great Reset.
Now you had a problem on your hands!
And by 2017 too many people were awake (not “woke”). They didn’t buy “Russia-gate” (God, how you hate such terms!). Nor did they buy “Ukraine-gate” which would be your Democrat Party servants’ last straightforward gambit for getting Trump out of office.
Nor were they buying into the man-made climate change narrative.
But you globalists are nothing if not smart, and with tremendous foresight. Some of you had been anticipating just such possibilities, having funneled millions into coronavirus research in places like Wuhan, China, where nobody in the West would notice.
It would be necessary to crush the Populists and refuseniks!
Enter the “novel” coronavirus. And how the Chinese Communist Party also played it smart doing your bidding keeping the lid on until global travel ensured that the virus would spread and start infecting vulnerable populations, laying the groundwork for a broader panic: your planned-emic. Your servants in governments closes borders, locked down economies forcibly closing thousands of small businesses, while slamming corporate media viewers with 24/7 coverage of COVID-19, letting them watch death numbers rack up.
The start of the greatest redistribution of wealth upwards in world history!
Then came the George Floyd riots, which some of you helped orchestrate — brilliant moves to increase the general level of mayhem and distraction.
Through the wrecked businesses and ruined lives you hear the cries of “do something!” You are your superiors are counting on this.
What a perfect opportunity for a Great Reset!
A few of you are saying almost visibly that only a world government can address this pandemic — which has certainly caused more fear than climate change and soft-minded phrases like “global problems call for global solutions.”
They weren’t personally threatened by climate change like they are getting sick and dying, and that’s the key. The object lesson is that the masses have to feel fear personally. They have to believe they or those they care about or things they care about are in danger, otherwise they won’t get with the program.
Now it’s appropriate to use TV to show bodybags and rows of graves!
This will also be the best opportunity you and your fellow globalists have to get rid of physical cash and digitize everything. Tell the masses that cash could spread the virus, not just that drug dealers, child traffickers, and other forms of lowlife scum use physical cash. Since most people have never seen a child trafficker or drug lord, again that’s not personal enough.
Eventually you’ll criminalize cash transactions that aren’t recorded digitally and can’t be monitored. Once your financial grid is set, you’ll know every detail of who has what, where they are getting it and how, what they are doing with it, and whether there’s anything suspicious going on. Your ideal is for the masses to have credit chips implanted in them, perhaps between the thumb and index finger of their left hand. A global ID. Everybody’s birth and parentage records, educational records, employment records, health records, and financial transactions, all in one place! Nothing will any more get lost, nothing will be stolen. You’ll tell the people that identity theft is a thing of the past.
Some still won’t go along, of course. Refuseniks, ideological descendants of those who rejected modernity, don’t trust authority, and would live like savages rather than enjoy the benefits of the new world order you globalists offer.
This is not a choice, though. Your superiors’ offer isn’t coming with an opt-out button.
You’re not sure what’s in the offing, because such things are on a need-to-know basis and you don’t need to know.
You realize there are things you don’t know. You know your immediate superiors who brought you to where you are, and you know the higher-ups past them reach up through Wall Street corporations and City of London enclaves past central banks and Bank of International Settlements and Davos culture, past even Those You Can’t Criticize to still higher “alchemists” of power. And they might be answering to someone above them. There may be curtains you can’t see, much less peer behind. Maybe someday you’ll be invited to gatherings in the “grove” if you perform well. But where does this go? You’ve had a few uneasy thoughts you’ve always been able to push away.
One thing you know: no one leaves this life except in a box. A few tried. They regretted it. A handful tried to tell their tale. They discovered the truth: no one believed them. They became laughingstocks, like those glassy-eyed, disheveled loons on sidewalks bearing signs and wailing through bad teeth that the end of the world is at hand.
As to what’s planned for the refusenik brigades, it’s sure to be something nastier than this planned-emic was.
This coronavirus wasn’t lethal except for certain groups like the elderly that can’t contribute to the global economy anyway and might as well be eliminated. Some 80 percent of everyone else infected got over it. Rough estimate.
You’ve heard rumors, though — Bill Gates mentioned one in passing, like he was talking about a mere possibility — of something waiting in the wings that will be lethal. Something able to wipe out not a few million but a few billion. Maybe reduce the world’s population by well over half, given that many who survive the plague will die in food riots, croak from heart attacks, OD on drugs, or commit suicide. Many may simply starve to death. You remember reading back in 2005 that Terry Schiavo, the disabled brain damaged woman, lived without food and water for 13 days after she was unplugged from life support. You wince a little as you imagine someone mostly healthy and with normal cognition going maybe longer without food, wandering to find it anywhere he can, failing because there isn’t any food, then collapsing and doubling up in agony because his stomach and small intestines are starting to digest themselves—
Sometimes you think you can empathize after all, and you’re deathly afraid it will show at some point….
You’re a globalist, a blue blood, and above such things.
Less population is a good thing. As the Georgia Guidestones say, no more than 500 million is the ideal. With more and more robotics coming, there’s going to be less work for people to do. Are your servants in governments really supposed to pay Universal Basic Income to masses who will lay around and play video games all day for the rest of their lives?
You’re thinking: supply them with Huxleyan soma. Eventually, as your co-opted scientists learn more about how to integrate technology into the developing fetal brain (or the brain into the technosphere!), you’ll be able to go well beyond what Huxley envisioned. You’ll be able to program whole populations so they’re born to the status you want for them, and be both physically and mentally unable to question it.
Transhumanism at its finest! Eternally!
Resistance is futile, and all that….
So there you are. This is your world — and the world to come. A world with a single governing structure about to pull everyone in, willingly or not; a single world marketplace dominated by corporations some of your superiors own and control, with employment for those who got with the program; maybe a single religion of humanity (something one of your heroes, sociology-founder Auguste Comte, promoted) and whatever spiritualism and woo the masses want to mix into it (you and your superiors don’t care just so it isn’t Christianity).
Things are going well enough that your superiors think they’ll have the basics in place by 2030, and given how many people actually did fall in line behind the COVID-19 scare, you’re thinking this as well. There’s a document out there in plain view citing that year, with silly stuff about things like eradicating poverty. You know your superiors don’t care about eradicating poverty, but such sentiments play to the emotions of those you want to influence. Even the more intelligent of the masses are still, after all, creatures of emotion. Their primary emotions being fear, greed, and lust, you, your superiors, and their predecessors have known for decades how to incentivize most of them.
As for the refuseniks? In time, they’ll be dealt with—
Well, gentle reader, we’ve looked at the world — your world — through the eyes of a globalist. It is time to return you back from this journey of sight and sound and mind. Back from Twilight Zone 2020. Back through that door to the familiarity of home and hearth. The bathroom is still the first room on your left.
You’ll not
find any big banners or popups here talking about cookies and privacy
notices. There are no ads on this site (aside from the hosting ads – a
necessary evil). Functionally and fundamentally, I just don’t make money
off of this blog. It is NOT monetized. Finally, I don’t track you
because I just don’t care to.
Please kindly help me out in this effort. There is a lot of effort that goes into this disclosure. I could use all the financial support that anyone could provide. Thank you.
I read that Donald Trump wants the COVID-19 vaccine that is being developed in Germany. He wants it to be patented as an American product and limit it’s utilization to Americans only.
Meanwhile, China is sending supplies and resources to any nation that needs it. Planes, boats and transports have been dispatched and are busy trying to help other nations during time of need.
America - Selfish, self-serving, and demanding.
China - Helpful, compassionate, offering help.
Perhaps it’s time to step back and look at the bigger picture.
It’s a picture of what lies outside the shores of the United States. It’s a picture that does not resemble anything that any American media reports. This is true whether it is the Alt-Left, the Mainstream Media or the Alt-Right neocon publications.
Instead, take a look at what’s really going on, in the bigger picture…
The following is a reprint of an article found on the Global Research website. All credit to the authors.
Washington elites can’t recognize that a multi-polar world is already here. Worse, the Trump administration keeps constantly stumbling in foreign policy, thus showing the entire world that the USA may not be the almighty superpower.
It’s not an exaggeration to say that the US is turning into Rodney Dangerfield of geopolitics.
Here are some recent examples of embarrassing US foreign policy:
EU & Russia
USA openly tries to block Nord Stream, the gas pipeline that links Russia to Europe. And the US-led propaganda campaign was non-stop & intense.
In the end, Germany & others went ahead with the Russian pipeline anyways.
Nord Stream
What does this have to do with America? Why is America so fixated in preventing this progress?
India and Turkey
India and Turkey ignore America’s public bullying and buy Russian missile defense systems (S-400).
Then the US threatens to retaliate by blocking the sale of F-35 to Turkey.
What does this have to do with America? Why is America so fixated in preventing this progress?
India
India — America’s strategic partner to “contain” China — buys oil from Iran & Venezuela, ignoring US sanctions.
India and Iran have made many trade agreements.
What does this have to do with America? Why is America so fixated in preventing this progress?
Venezuela
Having failed in Syria & Iran, the bloodthirsty Neocons wanted at least one damn regime change. So they targeted Venezuela and used all the standard strategies — choosing a puppet leader (Guaido), trying to bribe/blackmail military leaders, obvious sabotage of electricity across the whole nation etc.
John Bolton, Marco Rubio and Mike Pompeo spend enormous time tweeting sensational propaganda.
Yet, Maduro has survived.
Now, to rub it in, Putin is flying Russian military and aid to Venezuela; and China has sent medical supplies. The Monroe Doctrine is openly challenged for the first time since the Cuban Crisis.
Maduro and Xi Peng.
What does this have to do with America? Why is America so fixated in preventing this progress?
Huawei
US bans Huawei & dictates all its allies into doing the same!
Panama ignores US threats, welcomes Xi Jinping, joins Belt and Road, and signs 40 bilateral agreements with China.
Xi Peng in Panama.
What does this have to do with America? Why is America so fixated in preventing this progress?
Italy
Similarly, the US government publicly threatened Italy about joining the BRI…
How idiotic!
The rest of the world does not subscribe to American Alt-Right neocon publications. This type of rhetoric is fine within the American echo chamber, but looks absolutely ridiculous to the rest of the world.
Maybe Washington doesn’t know that many EU countries are already formal members of BRI — Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Greece, Malta, Poland, Portugal etc.
Well, Xi Jinping visited Italy in March, got a royal welcome and signed huge deals.
Italy ignored the US and signed on to Belt and Road. Plus, Italian PM Conte visited China in April for the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) Summit (where representatives from 150 countries, including 37 Prime Ministers and Presidents, attended).
As Italian leaders put it, “BRI creates a circle of virtuous growth” and “BRI is a train that Italy cannot afford to miss.”
Also please note, that during the COVID-19 crisis, the United States refused to help Italy in any way.
Yet China not only sent supplies, but sent doctors and medical staff to assist the already stressed Italian medical staff.
What does this have to do with America? Why is America so fixated in preventing this progress?
France
Then Xi Jinping went to France, got a red carpet welcome again
(including at Arc de Triomphe in Paris) and signed a massive deal to buy
300 French Airbus planes!
Not the American planes that they had discussed with Obama.
Xi Jinping went to France, got a red carpet welcome again (including at Arc de Triomphe in Paris) and signed a massive deal to buy 300 French Airbus planes!
Two days earlier, Macron had warned that Europe shouldn’t be naive about China’s influence.
But now he claims “China is EU’s strategic partner!!!”
China is EU’s strategic partner!
What does this have to do with America? Why is America so fixated in preventing this progress?
Germany
Even Germany’s Merkel endorsed the Belt and Road Initiative by saying…
“It’s an important project and Europeans want to participate in it.”
Germany has become strategic partners with China.
Everyone around the world realizes the power of China’s economy. And they ignore America’s hysterical reaction.
The entire saga is like that “Distracted Boyfriend” meme.
“Distracted Boyfriend” meme.
America needs a proactive, constructive, positive foreign policy in this multi-polar world. And the US should stop being so insecure, paranoid and negative.
Trump should join the Belt and Road Initiative and work with 126 other member countries to build infrastructure, increase connectivity and boost trade. Also, stop demonizing Russia & picking fights with Venezuela, Iran, Syria etc.
We need to get out of the zero-sum attitude & focus on a win-win strategy.
Conclusion
It doesn’t take a “Rocket Scientist” to figure out where the world is moving towards.
America possesses 10% of the world’s factories. China possesses nearly 70% of the factories. China hasn’t fought a war since 1977, and they offer grants and loans with “no strings attached”. They seek harmony and a “win – win” arrangement. They view global relationships as “give and take” in a way that both parties benefit.
They keep their “noses out of” other nations internal affairs.
Hard manufacturing industry as part of a nation’s GDP world-wide. America is on par with Burma. Even tiny Sri Lanka, and Paraguay have better ratios.
Meanwhile the United States, like a big lumbering aged dinosaur is trying to clutch and claw itself back into global significance. It has to. For if it doesn’t, that enormous mountain of debt, based on the inflated petrol-dollars, will totally devastate what remains of America.
The only options left for America are to [1] get with “the program” and work together with the rest of the world, or [2] engage China (and by extension, Russia) in World War III.
No other options are “on the table”.
Let’s see what happens. Pay strict attention to the American mainstream and Alt-Right media. The nature of the articles will inform you as to which path America has embarked upon.
If the anti-China rhetoric keeps on increasing in intensity, a move to Iceland might be prudent.
I hope that you enjoyed this post. I have many others in my Trump Trade Wars Index, here…
You’ll not find any big banners or popups here talking about cookies and privacy notices. There are no ads on this site (aside from the hosting ads – a necessary evil). Functionally and fundamentally, I just don’t make money off of this blog. It is NOT monetized. Finally, I don’t track you because I just don’t care to.
Please kindly help me out in this effort. There is a lot of effort that goes into this disclosure. I could use all the financial support that anyone could provide. Thank you very much.
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The novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) is a recently emerged human pathogen that has spread widely since January 2020. Initially, the basic reproductive number, R0, was estimated to be 2.2 to 2.7.
Here we provide a new estimate of this quantity.
We collected extensive individual case reports and estimated key epidemiology parameters, including the incubation period.Integrating these estimates and high-resolution real-time human travel and infection data with mathematical models, we estimated that the number of infected individuals during early epidemic double every 2.4days, and the R0 value is likely to be between 4.7 and 6.6.
We further show that quarantine and contact tracing of symptomatic individuals alone may not be effective and early, strong control measures are needed to stop transmission of the virus.
- Title: The Novel Coronavirus, 2019-nCoV, is Highly Contagious and More Infectious Than Initially Estimated
There’s a sizable percentage of people (Americans) who have absolutely no concept of what war is like. When elements of war starts raising it’s ugly head, they come up with other ideas and excuses what it could be. Anything but war. Anything but posturing for war. Anything.
To most Americans, war is a distant concept. It is something that you do in far-away third-world shit-holes. It’s where you tromp through deserts or slosh through jungles. It’s where you are issued an “assault rifle”, ride in helicopters and expensive sleek jets blow up Arabs riding white Toyota trucks.
That’s not war. That’s a “police action”, or as I like to refer to it… “conflict lite”.
Real wars occur when one nation tries to suppress another nation.
Hitler attacks Poland.
Japan attacks China.
Syria attacks Kuwait.
Suppressing China’s Rise
Lose-lose is a situation where no participant has any option that is positive. As such, strategy in a lose-lose situation is aimed at minimizing loss as opposed to winning.4 Examples of a Lose-Lose Situation - Simplicable
The United States has spent the last three years engaged in efforts to suppress China’s rise.
Jet Li in the movie “Fearless”.
It’s called a “lose – lose” strategy because (since the USA and China are both economically co-dependent) the only way to suppress China was to accept suppression of the USA in the process.
The idea was that China would “lose more” than what America would lose.
This is the Alt-Right “standard narrative” that “China needs the USA more than the USA needs China”.
So they implemented it on all sorts of levels…
Radical protests by “pro democracy” agitators in Hong Kong.
Uyghur Muslim assaults and aggression.
A on-going propaganda war.
Pressure on Taiwan.
Arrest of the President of Huawei.
Propaganda against advanced 5G, AI and robotic technologies.
A plague that wiped out the wheat crop.
A virus that wiped out the Chicken and poultry industry… in waves.
A virus that wiped out the pig industry, propagated by advanced drones.
Now, the deadly lethal COVID-19 virus on CNY eve of all times!
Some of it is so obvious that you have to be in complete denial not to acknowledge it… like the Arrest of the CEO of Huawei in Canada. Apparently her Chinese company sold products to Iran. And the United States wants everyone to boycott Iran.
Well, nationality is just an excuse… don’t you know.
Jet Li in the movie “Fearless”.
Another example is the on-going biological warfare being conducted against China. Trying to decimate it’s livestock, it’s chickens, it’s pork, it’s wheat crops…
…didn’t work. Though.
Oh… it’s just bad luck. Right?
Or as one website stated… “It’s God’s will”.
Good one that.
Jet Li in the movie “Fearless”.
And now the COVID-19 coronavirus attack on CNY eve. I mean, if it would have happened on Christmas eve, most Americans would be suspicious. But they aren’t.
Its just a “nothing burger”, don’t you know.
Conflicts look like this. Open your eyes.
You see people. Major conflicts start JUST LIKE THIS.
And everyone around you is in denial.
Just . Like . This.
Byretaliatinginthedecades-old tariff war, Trump hasnochoice. Either China eventuallybankruptstheUnitedStatesortheUnitedStates bankrupts China. Finally, thereisthethirdcommonsensedesiredoutcome: bothpartiessettlefor free trade withzero tariffs.
- Trump's Strategy in the China Trade War
Jet Li in the movie “Fearless”.
A hidden war…
When Hitler banned guns in Germany, the American media didn’t make a peep. When Stalin started starving the Lithuanians, the American media called it just bad weather and poor planning. When unrest started to hit Bosnia, the American media called it “isolated terror events”.
Trump’s key figures in the China Trade negotiations. All are neocons who earnestly want a lose-lose strategy.
The geo-political situation today is very complex. I cannot predict what will happen. I really cannot.
But you and I have a front-row seat to it.
Unfortunately.
The “big guns” came out to suppress China…
What I can say is that the COVID-19 bioweapon attack…
…and it actually was one – ask Xi Peng …
After all, he put his military on DEFCON ONE over it. Why are all the nuclear silos fully manned right now? Why is the Navy on high alert? Why are 100% of the militia called up? Why are all ports and entry points under lock-down? Why are all incoming packages frozen in customs and the internet completely locked solid?
Because of the... flu?
Jet Li in the movie “Fearless”.
… is that China handled the COVID-19 event exceptionally well. And the COVID-19 virus…
… still…
…it still got loose.
President Trump appoints VP Pence to handle the COVID-19 outbreak. He referred to it as Democrat Hype, and a “Hoax”. He further claimed that it is not as bad as the flu.
Not at all what the Trump Administration was expecting.
The decision to utilize biological warfare against China was hatched in the White house, and most certainly by resident neocons within the administration.
Now all people are getting infected. Not only Asians. And the mutation is observable. The current strains running through Iran, Italy and the USA are off-shoot “branches” from the “original” Chinese COVID-19 viral strain.
Jet Li in the movie “Fearless”.
People(!) brace yourself for some spicy times. You can believe whatever you want. You can believe this is natural if you wanna. You can believe that China is the scourge of the Earth and the USA is a gift from God. You can believe anything your heart desires…
But…
The USA is not China.
Jet Li in the movie “Fearless”.
The USA does not have the ability to handle a large influx of seriously ill people. It cannot handle people dropping like flies in the middle of the street or while they are driving their cars. It cannot handle disruptions of the food and petrol supplies. It cannot handle large conditions that tax the medical system.
You all know this is true.
Which is why many Americans are running to the gun stores first, then getting food.
Panic shopping in the United States. No one thinks that this is really bad, but they are stocking up just in case. How do I know? Well, no one is wearing a mask. They are also in a crowd. Further, they are not buying food, they are buying towels and soda. They believe that the COVID-19 is “just” another strain of the flu.
I take no joy in this. It greatly saddens me…
… and now to my point in all this…
Introduction
There’s a sizable percentage of people (Americans) who have absolutely no concept of what war is like.
They think that war is 9-11, that it is Pearl Harbor, that it is bombs exploding, and fires raging, and sleek jets flying.
Oh… sometimes.
But in reality war, real war, is not the made-for-television narrative. It is something that is usually done in secret, behind the scenes.
War is ANY conflict between nations.
War can be any kind of conflict between nations. Whether it is subtle, organized, planned, overt, or serendipitous. Scene from the Chinese movie with Jet Li titled “Fearless.”
Most wars are conducted in secret and hidden behind curtains of confusion and obfuscation. It’s “CIA type stuff”. It’s strange events “out of the blue”.
It’s a leading doctor gets sick here, and a report ends up missing there. It’s mass deaths in a obscure location over there.
It’s things like an explosion inside the North Korean nuclear weapons silo.
It’s things like pigs and chickens start dying all over China…
Jet Li in the movie “Fearless”.
When elements of war starts raising it’s ugly head, they come up with other ideas and excuses of what it could be. Anything but war. Anything but posturing for war. Anything.
Anything.
But people, listen up.
There will not be any announcements. No one is going to point at a person, place or thing and tell everyone to start fighting it. Instead, it will be conducted behind the scenes for a long time…
You see, it would be an absolute failure of the governments on both sides if it broke out into the open.
Scene from the movie about an out of control pandemic that hits the United States; “Carriers”.
It will be the worst kind of enemy; one that you cannot see and hurt and attack.
Like the movie "Invasion of the body snatchers."
This is a war that China has been dealing with since 2017, and keeping quiet and just smiling. But they have been dealing with it; fighting with it; and just keep on keeping on. They keep plugging away like the energizer bunny.
It’s got a visible face and a hidden face.
No one wants the true situation; that the agents of war; the COVID-19, has mutated to infect everyone and has washed up on the shores of the good ol’ USA.
Jet Li in the movie “Fearless”.
You had all best be wearing a mask and exercising rigorous hand washing discipline, as well as avoiding all contact outside of your homes.
Starting RIGHT NOW.
A taste of war
The neocons in the Trump administration strongly believed that they could launch this COVID-19 and it would be contained within China, and only kill Asians. They were convinced because their “experts” told them that this is what would happen.
Which explains why Trump and his administration keeps on saying the narrative that it isn't as bad as the flu...
The neocons expected that it would cause mass casualties that would overwhelm the Chinese hospital system. They figured that with a mortality rate of 10% it would cripple China for years.
The “experts” said…
Orville Schell (his father was the co-founder of Helsinki Watch) has been a card-carrying member of the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), which represents the highest, deepest echelon of the National Security State, and which has architected the anti-China consensus at the highest level of government and leadership in the US.
If we go to war with China--kinetic conflict--this will be in large part the doing of the CFR.
See here for a sampling of the type of tripe they routinely throw out about China. Remember, this is considered the elite "expert consensus".
The WHO is lying for China when it praises its response. https://www.cfr.org/blog/who-and-china-dereliction-duty (Compare this to what Dr. Bruce Aylward reported. Dr. Aylward was previously the UN lead for the Ebola outbreak, and he would know what he's talkng about).
Xi is aping Stalin
https://www.cfr.org/blog/china-likely-enter-another-long-period-severe-dictatorship
China is the perfect dictatorship https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/podcast-perfect-dictatorship
China is the bully of Asia https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/podcast-china-bully-asia
Jet Li in the movie “Fearless”.
But…
…that didn’t happen.
China enacted DEFCON ONE. They locked the entire nation down. They took immediate and fast action and was able to control the mortality rate to 3% in the infected areas.
A 3% mortality rate is what you have when you go into DEFCON ONE, build three hospitals, offer free medical care, and lock the entire nation down. It's what you get when you take drastic action to control a weaponized viral pathogen.
But you can expect a much higher mortality rate when you are dealing with for-profit hospitals, a media that is saying everything is fine, and a government run by the "deep state".
Maybe, China would have collapsed by now, if China was like America with [1] a contentious political structure, [2] a huge and slow moving bureaucracy, and [3] a culture of being a “lone wolf” where it’s every man for himself…
Maybe…
But…
Jet Li in the movie “Fearless”.
The Neocons made terrible assumptions…
But that cartoon image of China is seriously wrong.
China took a whole bunch of steps when they realized they had to repurpose big chunks of their hospital systems to [respond to the outbreak].
The first thing is, they said testing is free, treatment is free.
Right now, there are huge barriers [to testing and treatment] in the West. You can get tested, but then you might be negative and have to foot the bill.
In China, they realized those were barriers to people seeking care, so, as a state, they took over the payments for people whose insurance plans didn’t cover them. They tried to mitigate those barriers.
The other thing they did: Normally a prescription in China can’t last for more than a month. But they increased it to three months to make sure people didn’t run out [when they had to close a lot of their hospitals].
Another thing: Prescriptions could be done online and through WeChat [instead of requiring a doctor appointment].
And (fourthly) they set up a delivery system for medications for affected populations.
- Bruce Aylward
China is not the United States. It is a very serious nation that does not mess around. It is run by experts who are in their positions through merit, not popularity.
And more…
The average case fatality rate is 3.8 percent in China, but a lot of that is driven by the early epidemic in Wuhan where numbers were higher.
If you look outside of Hubei province [where Wuhan is], the case fatality rate is just under 1 percent now. I would not quote that as the number. That’s the mortality in China — and they find cases fast, get them isolated, in treatment, and supported early.
Second thing they do is ventilate dozens in the average hospital; they use extracorporeal membrane oxygenation [removing blood from a person’s body and oxygenating their red blood cells] when ventilation doesn’t work.
This is sophisticated health care.
They have a survival rate for this disease I would not extrapolate to the rest of the world. What you’ve seen in Italy and Iran is that a lot of people are dying.
This suggests the Chinese are really good at keeping people alive with this disease, and just because it’s 1 percent in the general population outside of Wuhan doesn’t mean it [will be the same in other countries].
- Bruce Aylward
The suppression strategy was a terrible mistake.
The people who came up with this suppression strategy were wrong.
Somehow the COVID-19 virus mutated. Whether it was a natural mutation, or had "help" from a lab is unknown. But the inherent "safety protocols" mutated away and resulted in an indiscriminate virus instead of a "safe and controllable" weaponized virus.
Like in the original "Drudge Dred" movie titled "Demolition Man" where the evil leadership resurrected Wesley Snipes with training to become a master criminal. And Judge Dred trained to knit. Only they added a special mind block - you cannot kill the leadership.
Wesley Snipes tries but can't. The evil leader laughs, and looks at him... his new puppet. So Wesley snipes orders his chief henchman to kill him instead.
It's sort of like that,
Wesley Snipes plays the evil villain that was trained to become a master criminal by the current government leadership.
Plus…
None of the neocons have any real-world experience with the horrors of war. They don’t know that things can go “tits up” very quickly and FUBAR, then “all bets are off”.
You know, it's not just war. It's projects. It's industry. It's investments. It's relationships. The jokers in Washington has spent so much time playing politics and living in the neocon echo chamber that they are oblivious to the realities outside of it...
They did not realize that war is the last resort action of fools.
China is not the United States. It is a very serious nation that does not mess around. It is run by experts who are in their positions through merit, not popularity.
They tried to implement a “lose – lose” strategy in order to contain China. China wanted a “win – win” the neocons wanted a “lose lose” because they actually believed that it was attainable. Both nations would lose, but China would be far more damaged than the United States would be…
…it’s the alt-Right narrative; “They need us more than we need them.” It’s ridiculously false.
It is mind-blowing off-the-charts false.
It is one of the biggest lies ever made, and yet the dumbed-down alt-Right American population actually believes it.
The Lose – Lose strategy was used by the Trump Negotiation team to resolve trade issues from 2016 to 2020. It’s based on the alt-Right narrative that “China needs the United States more than the United States needs China.” It’s wrong. Terribly wrong. And this move, this calculation based on this failed idea is what brought a weaponized viral agent to America.
The inescapable fact is that the neocon perceptions of what China actually is, and capable of, as well as what American capabilities are wildly divergent from reality.
I blame the belief in the propaganda bubble that surrounds America, but it doesn't really matter now.
Things did not go as planned…
China took drastic measures… going DEFCON ONE, and fully controlled and sealed the outbreak;
Ambitious, agile, and aggressive
The team began in Beijing and then split into two groups that, all told, traveled to Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Chengdu, and the hardest hit city, Wuhan. They visited hospitals, laboratories, companies, wet markets selling live animals, train stations, and local government offices. “Everywhere you went, anyone you spoke to, there was a sense of responsibility and collective action, and there’s war footing to get things done,” Aylward says.
The group also reviewed the massive data set that Chinese scientists have compiled. (The country still accounts for more than 90% of the global total of the 90,000 confirmed cases.) They learned that about 80% of infected people had mild to moderate disease, 13.8% had severe symptoms, and 6.1% had life-threatening episodes of respiratory failure, septic shock, or organ failure. The case fatality rate was highest for people over age 80 (21.9%), and people who had heart disease, diabetes, or hypertension. Fever and dry cough were the most common symptoms. Surprisingly, only 4.8% of infected people had runny noses. Children made up a mere 2.4% of the cases, and almost none was severely ill. For the mild and moderate cases, it took 2 weeks on average to recover.
A critical unknown is how many mild or asymptomatic cases occur. If large numbers of infections are below the radar, that complicates attempts to isolate infectious people and slow spread of the virus. But on the positive side, if the virus causes few, if any, symptoms in many infected people, the current estimated case fatality rate is too high. (The report says that rate varies greatly, from 5.8% in Wuhan, whose health system was overwhelmed, to 0.7% in other regions.)
To get at this question, the report notes that so-called fever clinics in Guangdong province screened approximately 320,000 people for COVID-19 and only found 0.14% of them to be positive. “That was really interesting, because we were hoping and maybe expecting to see a large burden of mild and asymptomatic cases,” says Caitlin Rivers, an epidemiologist at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. “That piece of data suggests that’s not happening, which would imply that the case fatality risk might be more or less as we currently have.” But Guangdong province was not a heavily affected area, so it is not clear whether the same holds in Hubei province, which was the hardest hit, Rivers cautions.
Much of the report focuses on understanding how China achieved what many public health experts thought was impossible: containing the spread of a widely circulating respiratory virus. “China has rolled out perhaps the most ambitious, agile, and aggressive disease containment effort in history,” the report notes.
The most dramatic—and controversial—measure was the lockdown of Wuhan and nearby cities in Hubei province, which has put at least 50 million people under a mandatory quarantine since 23 January. That has “effectively prevented further exportation of infected individuals to the rest of the country,” the report concludes. In other regions of mainland China, people voluntarily quarantined and were monitored by appointed leaders in neighborhoods.
Chinese authorities also built two dedicated hospitals in Wuhan in just over 1 week. Health care workers from all over China were sent to the outbreak’s center. The government launched an unprecedented effort to trace contacts of confirmed cases. In Wuhan alone, more than 1800 teams of five or more people traced tens of thousands of contacts.
Aggressive “social distancing” measures implemented in the entire country included canceling sporting events and shuttering theaters. Schools extended breaks that began in mid-January for the Lunar New Year. Many businesses closed shop. Anyone who went outdoors had to wear a mask.
Two widely used mobile phone apps, AliPay and WeChat—which in recent years have replaced cash in China—helped enforce the restrictions, because they allow the government to keep track of people’s movements and even stop people with confirmed infections from traveling. “Every person has sort of a traffic light system,” says mission member Gabriel Leung, dean of the Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine at the University of Hong Kong. Color codes on mobile phones—in which green, yellow, or red designate a person’s health status—let guards at train stations and other checkpoints know who to let through.
“As a consequence of all of these measures, public life is very reduced,” the report notes. But the measures worked. In the end, infected people rarely spread the virus to anyone but members of their own household, Leung says. Once all the people in an apartment or home were exposed, the virus had nowhere else to go and chains of transmission ended. “That’s how the epidemic truly came under control,” Leung says. In sum, he says, there was a combination of “good old social distancing and quarantining very effectively done because of that on-the-ground machinery at the neighborhood level, facilitated by AI [artificial intelligence] big data.”
Deep commitment to collective action
How feasible these kinds of stringent measures are in other countries is debatable. “China is unique in that it has a political system that can gain public compliance with extreme measures,” Gostin says. “But its use of social control and intrusive surveillance are not a good model for other countries.” The country also has an extraordinary ability to do labor-intensive, large-scale projects quickly, says Jeremy Konyndyk, a senior policy fellow at the Center for Global Development:
“No one else in the world really can do what China just did.”
Nor should they, says lawyer Alexandra Phelan, a China specialist at Georgetown’s Center for Global Health Science and Security.
“Whether it works is not the only measure of whether something is a good public health control measure,” Phelan says. “There are plenty of things that would work to stop an outbreak that we would consider abhorrent in a just and free society.”
-ScienceMag
So China handled this biological weapons event expertly. They did so in a way that surprised the world. And while many find their techniques questionable, they begrudgingly admit that most other nations could not replicate their action.
What matters is that the COVID-19 that was supposed to cause strife in China has boomeranged, mutated, and like the “green slime monster” struck into the soul of America. And America is not ready for it.
American leadership is still, as of 3MAR20, treating it as a race-specific pathogenic organism. Even though all evidence shows otherwise. They are telling everyone over and over that the flu is far worse.
They say that flu is far worse.
Nothing to worry about here. The monsters are only harmless slime. This is a scene from the 1960’s class “B” science fiction movie: “The Green Slime”.
Lord help us all.
Why this matters…
Like I said. Anything can happen.
It could fizzle out to be nothing…
It could be contained like China contained it…
Or it could be a genuine SHTF event.
Let’s look at historical examples of other SHTF events and try to imagine what it must have been like for the participants of these events.
[1] The Massacre of Usipetes and the Tencteri
The Usipetes and the Tencteri were two ancient tribes who were massacred by the legions of Julius Caesar in 55 BC. We have known about their slaughter for thousands of years from ancient texts, including Caesar’s own account from his book on the Gallic Wars. However, we were never sure exactly where it happened, until 2015 when Dutch archaeologists claimed they found the site of the bloodbath near the town of Kessel.
According to ancient sources, the conflict began in the winter of 56 BC when the two tribes (who were referred to as Germanic but may have actually been Celtic) crossed the Rhine into Gaul after being driven away from their homeland by the Suebi.
The Usipetes and the Tencteri asked Caesar for permission to settle in Gaul, which was denied.
After negotiations failed, the Roman legions launched an attack on their camp and killed everyone in sight.
“there was also a great crowd of women and children and these now began to flee in all directions.
I sent the cavalry to hunt them down…
When they reached the confluence of the Meuse and the Rhine, they saw they had no hope of escaping farther.
A large number of them were killed and the rest flung themselves into the river, where they perished overcome by panic, exhaustion, and the force of the current.”
In his personal account, Caesar said there were around 430,000 people and that he slain them all. Modern scholars put the number at around 150,000 to 200,000, and some of them definitely survived as the tribes were still mentioned the following century. They opine that the inflated number was because Caesar wanted to portray them as a great threat and himself a protector of Rome.
In war, everyone is killed. Women, children and innocents are not spared. Later, the victors will write and boast about their success in the destruction.
[2] Genghis Khan Beheaded People For Being Over 90 Centimeters (3′) Tall
When Genghis Khan was 20, he led an army against the tribe that
killed his father and got his revenge. The Tatar army was crushed, and
Genghis Khan set about exterminating the people in an incredibly unusual
way.
Every Tatar man was lined up and measured against “the linchpin of a
wagon,” which is the axle pin in the middle of the wheel. Anyone who was
taller than these pins—which were 90 centimeters (3′) high—was to be
beheaded.
The criteria used to select survivors from the conquered is often arbitrary.
[3] The Severed Hands of Avaris
Severed Hands.
A few years back, archaeologists were excavating the ruins of Avaris and found, for the first time, concrete evidence of an ancient Egyptian practice that had been, up until that point, only read about in texts – cutting off the hands of vanquished enemies.
This evidence came in the form of 16 severed hands, all of them right ones,
buried in four pits throughout the former Egyptian capital. Two of the
pits, each containing a single hand, were found in what was believed to
have been the throne room, indicating that the presentation of the
trophies was part of a much grander ceremony.
The hands were around 3,600 years old
and came from an oft-forgotten part of Egyptian history called the
Second Intermediate Period or the Hyksos Period. It was defined by the
arrival of a new group of people called the Hyksos who conquered Lower
Egypt and installed one of their own as king. Therefore, Salitis of the
Hyksos became the first pharaoh of the 15th dynasty and, in the process,
also moved the capital to the city of Avaris.
Up until this discovery, this custom had only been referenced in ancient art and writing. However, one point that is still being debated is whether this practice was introduced by the Hyksos or was already present in Egyptian society before their arrival.
Once captured, do not assume that you would be sent off to a prison camp. There are other fates that can await you.
[4] Genghis Khan Victims’ Bones Were Mistaken For Mountains
In 1211, Genghis Khan turned his focus to modern-day China and attacked the Jin Empire. It was a reckless decision. The Jin Empire controlled 53 million people, and the Mongols had one million. Still…
… Genghis Khan won.
Within three years, the Mongols had made their way to Zhongdu (now
Beijing). The city walls were 12 meters (39 ft) high and stretched 29
kilometers (18 mi) around the city. It seemed impossible to get in, so
they didn’t try.
Instead, the Mongols starved Zhongdu out.
By summer 1215, the people there were so hungry that cannibalism was running rampant inside its walls. Finally, they surrendered, and the Mongols sacked and burned the city.
The massacre was horrific.
Months later, a passing eyewitness wrote that “the bones of the slaughtered formed white mountains and that the soil was still greasy with human fat.”
No matter how hungry you are, the fate that can occur in the hands of the enemy can be far worse.
[5] Interesting Mongol War Tactics: Cats, Swallows and Human Fat
Real war is based on surprise and the use of unconventional weapons and strategies.
The first large-scale Mongol attack in Xi Xia happened at the mighty fortress at Volohai.
Unable to breach the walls of Volohai, Genghis Khan resorted to a clever trick. He sent a message from his encampment to the Tangut general announcing that he would end his siege in exchange for a gift of one thousand cats and ten thousand swallows.
Astonished by the unusual request, the fortress commander gratefully complied.
After the animals arrived in the Mongol camp, Genghis Khan ordered his men to tie a small cotton-wool tuft to the tail of each creature then set the tuft afire.
When the panicked and frightened animals were turned loose, they made directly for their nests and lairs inside Volohai, igniting hundreds of small fires.
While the panicked defenders were preoccupied with putting out fires, Genghis Khan’s warriors stormed the city in conquest.
Here’s another example…
The Mongol siege against the walled town of Kusong exemplified Koryo’s [Korea’s] heroic resistance.
General Sartai brought the full array of his medieval assault weapons to bear against the city’s defenses. While Mongol troops attempted to undermine the defensive walls by tunneling under them, formidable lines of catapults hurled large boulders and molten metal at the town.
Special assault teams used siege towers and scaling ladders against the earthen walls and pushed flaming carts against the city’s wooden gates.
Perhaps the most grisly tactical weapon used at the siege of Kusong was the catapult-launched fire-bomb. The Mongols boiled down their captives and used liquified human fat to fuel a weapon which produced fires that were practically inextinguishable.
Kusong’s defenders refused to surrender and stubbornly held on for thirty terrifying days and nights.
An old Mongol general, inspecting the ramparts during the siege, commented that,
"...I have never seen [a city] undergo an attack like this which did not, in the end, submit."
In the end Kusong remained in Koryo’s hands.
Unconventional war is a strategy that generally results in victory. Expect the unexpected.
[6] Genghis Khan Exterminated 1.7 Million People To Avenge One Person
The marriages might have been strategic alliances, but that didn’t
mean there wasn’t any love involved. One of Genghis Khan’s daughters
loved her husband, a man name Toquchar. Genghis Khan loved him, too, as
his favorite son-in-law.
Genghis Khan’s troops attacked Nishapur and slaughtered every person there. By some estimates, 1,748,000 people were killed. Other historians dispute that number, but there’s no doubt that his armies killed everyone they found.
Women, children, babies, and even dogs and cats were tracked down and murdered. Then they were beheaded, and their skulls were piled into pyramids—a request by Genghis Khan’s daughter to ensure that no one got away with a simple wounding.
In War decisions can be made for emotional, not strategic reasons.
[7] Ancient “Barbarian” Warfare in Northern Europe
Archaeologists excavated 2,095 human bones and bone fragments—comprising the remains of at least 82 people—across 185 acres of wetland at the site of Alken Enge, on the shore of Lake Mossø on Denmark’s Jutland Peninsula. Scientific studies indicate that most of the individuals were young male adults, and they all died in a single event in the early first century A.D. (Around the time of Christ.)
Unhealed trauma wounds on the remains, as well as finds of weapons, suggest that the individuals died in battle.
The team didn’t dig up the entire 185 acres, but the researchers extrapolated that more than 380 people may have been interred in boggy waters along the lakeshore some 2,000 years ago, based on the distribution of the remains that were excavated.
In large scale conflicts, very few people will remember your heroism and the battles that you fought. You will be forgotten.
[7] The Mongols Had A Victory Feast On Top Of The Russian Nobility
In 1223, the Mongolian army was making its way through Russia and had
just won the Battle of the Kalka River. The Russian army had
surrendered, their towns had been captured, and the Mongolians decided
to celebrate.
The generals and nobility of the Russian army were forced to lie down
on the ground. Then a heavy wooden gate was thrown on top of them,
chairs and tables were set on top of the gate, and the army sat down for
a feast.
They held their victory celebration on top of the still-living bodies of their enemies, eating and drinking while Russian princes were crushed to death beneath their feet.
Do not expect leniency because you are rich, wealthy or powerful. In fact, you might be singled out for special treatment.
[8] Genghis Khan Diverted A River Through An Enemy’s Birthplace To Erase It Off The Map
When Genghis Khan found the Muslim kingdom of Khwarezmia, he did
something unusual: He took the peaceful route. A group of diplomats were
sent to the city, hoping to establish a trade route and diplomatic
ties.
The governor of Khwarezmia, though, didn’t trust them. He thought the
diplomats were part of a Mongolian conspiracy and had them executed. He
killed the next group they sent, too.
Genghis Khan was furious. He had tried to be nice, and he’d been
repaid with dead diplomats. He set up an army of 200,000 soldiers,
attacked, and completely destroyed Khwarezmia.
Even after he’d won, Khan sent two armies to burn down every castle, town, and farm they found to make sure that no hint of Khwarezmia survived. According to one story, he even diverted a river to run through the emperor’s birthplace, just to make sure it would never appear on a map again.
When the victor wants to erase you, your people, your city, your nation, your society and your culture, they can do it.
[9] Slaughter at the bridge
About 3200 years ago, two armies clashed at a river crossing near the
Baltic Sea. The confrontation can’t be found in any history books—the
written word didn’t become common in these parts for another 2000
years—but this was no skirmish between local clans. Thousands of
warriors came together in a brutal struggle, perhaps fought on a single
day, using weapons crafted from wood, flint, and bronze, a metal that
was then the height of military technology.
Struggling to find solid footing on the banks of the Tollense River, a narrow ribbon of water that flows through the marshes of northern Germany toward the Baltic Sea, the armies fought hand-to-hand, maiming and killing with war clubs, spears, swords, and knives. Bronze- and flint-tipped arrows were loosed at close range, piercing skulls and lodging deep into the bones of young men. Horses belonging to high-ranking warriors crumpled into the muck, fatally speared. Not everyone stood their ground in the melee: Some warriors broke and ran, and were struck down from behind.
Strong evidence suggests this wasn’t the first battle for these men. Twenty-seven percent of the skeletons show signs of healed traumas from earlier fights, including three skulls with healed fractures. “It’s hard to tell the reason for the injuries, but these don’t look like your typical young farmers,”
Standardized metal weaponry and the remains of the horses, which were found intermingled with the human bones at one spot, suggest that at least some of the combatants were well-equipped and well-trained.
“They weren’t farmer-soldiers who went out every few years to brawl. These are professional fighters.”
Body armor and shields emerged in northern Europe in the centuries just before the Tollense conflict and may have necessitated a warrior class.
“If you fight with body armor and helmet and corselet, you need daily training or you can’t move,”
When the fighting was through, hundreds lay dead, littering the swampy valley. Some bodies were stripped of their valuables and left bobbing in shallow ponds; others sank to the bottom, protected from plundering by a meter or two of water. Peat slowly settled over the bones.
Within centuries, the entire battle was forgotten.
Being in possession of the best technology and training might not provide you the advantage that you think it will.
[10] Genghis Khan Nearly Erased A Kingdom From History For Not Sending Troops
When Genghis Khan attacked Khwarezmia, he asked the conquered kingdom of Xi Xia to send him troops. They refused.
Xi Xia tried to take a bold stand against their oppressor, and they quickly regretted it. The Mongolian army swarmed through Xi Xia, destroying everything that they found. They systematically exterminated every member of the population.
They hadn’t written down their own stories, so the only records of their existence came from neighboring countries. Their language wasn’t recovered for more than 700 years. It took until the mid-20th century for archaeologists to unearth stones that had their writing on them. In the meantime, every word they had spoken was forgotten.
Genghis Khan died during the battle, most likely from being thrown from his horse. Still, the Mongolian army carried out his work. They slaughtered every person they found, even after their leader was dead and their enemy had surrendered.
You and your entire culture and society can be erased from history by the mistakes of your leadership.
Conclusion
That last lesson is poinent.
You and your entire culture and society can be erased from history by the mistakes of your leadership.
Scene from the movie “Carriers”. It is a movie about a lethal virus that hits the United States.
What was the Trump administration doing launching biological weapons against China? Did they actually believe that it would eventually bring China to “heel”; a nation much larger than the United States geographically, and with a population four times larger and ruled by merit?
What were they fucking thinking?
Geographically China is larger.
Population wise, China is four times larger.
Education wise, China has far more skilled STEM scientists.
Politically, China is a monolithic conservative culture. America is balkanized into disparate groups.
Chinese leadership are there through merit, America’s through graft & popularity.
China possesses the vast bulk of factories, resources, materials, and a motivated citizenry. America is a service economy dependent upon reputation and the petro-dollar.
For the last ten years, China has won every single military simulation that the United States conducts.
China is allied with Russia militarily, and socially. The USA is allied with Britain, and Australia and hosts a wide range of “client states”.
China is the “factory for the world”, America is the big piggy-bank based on the stability of the petro-dollar.
Jet Li in the Chinese movie “Fearless”.
Meanwhile, by all appearances, China is not doing anything.
They are just taking the hits and smiling.
Scene from the movie “Real Steel”.
They are practicing the well understood technique of using your foe’s weakness against him. This is Kungfu. This is martial arts. This is fundamental to understanding China.
Mosttraditionalorclassicalmartialartsuses the opponents strength againstthem. Thelistwouldbetoolongtogivethemallbutwillinclude: traditionalKarate (anystyle) Kungfu (anystyle) AikidoJudoTKD (traditional-nosportstkd) Mostpeoplehavethewrongideaconcernkarateandothertraditionalmartialarts.
- Martial arts using opponents strength against them
China knew (I surmise) that the virus would mutate. They always do. While there are species-specific viruses in the world, none are race-specific.
It implies that that a race-specific configuration is not stable.
Since it is not stable, that means that it has a “half-life” and soon mutates to fit a wide ranging biological host.
So now the SHTF COVID-19 biological attack has boomeranged back to it’s source.
For the last one hundred years the American government has cultivated the American citizenry into herd-mentality sheep. It’s rule over mobs of people, it serves the oligarchy well. It does not however, serve a crisis SHTF event well.
Americans are not being safe and treating this virus as the biological weapon that it is. They are treating it as if it is a variation of the flu. This is a very dangerous assumption.
How many face masks do you see? America is treating this virus as some variation of the flu and are treating it as such. They expect that it MIGHT hit them, and if so, they MIGHT get sick, and if sick, they MIGHT need to go to the hospital. All of these assumptions are false.
Things will probably go worse in America than what China experienced in January / February 2020.
Be safe.
This COVID-19 outbreak will hit America with the same level of ferocity that it did Wuhan.
Jet Li in the movie “Fearless”.
When the first person in China died, China went DEFCON ONE and locked the entire nation down. They built three hospitals (in ten days) and moved medial staff from all over the nation to Wuhan.
So far, as of today 4MAR20, eight people died in America. Test kits are under-supplied and do not work. The President and the media are telling everyone that it is nothing to worry about. To stay calm and wash hands often.
The Wuhan mortality rate was almost 4% a few weeks after DEFCON ONE. Now, the entire nation mortality is 1%.
My guess is that America’s mortality rate will approach the 10% figure as planned by the neocons in the White House. This is horrible. Please everyone… please be safe.
Jet Li in the movie “Fearless”.
Start Chinese-level personal measures now, today. Wear a mask. Wash your hands. Avoid people. Sanitize. Inside clothes and outside clothes. Pets inside. Work from home or order things remotely. Isolate and self quarantine yourselves.
And Robitussin will not help you. It’s NOT the flu.
The death rate from seasonal flu is typically around 0.1% in the U.S., according to The New York Times.
The death rate for COVID-19 appears to be higher than that of the flu.
-Livescience.
“Globally, about 3.4% of reported COVID-19 cases have died,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said during a press briefing at the agency’s headquarters in Geneva.
In comparison, seasonal flu generally kills far fewer than 0.1% of those infected, he said.
The World Health Organization had said last week that the mortality rate of COVID-19 can differ, ranging from 0.7% to up to 4%, depending on the quality of the health-care system where it’s treated.
Early in the outbreak, scientists had concluded the death rate was around 2.3%.
-WHO
This illness will rock America to it’s core and it will…
Impact the 2020 Presidential elections.
Impact the American economy.
Impact the global economy.
Impact the way the local government and schools and businesses operate.
Impact all the various disparate balkanized sub-groups within America.
Jet Li from the Chinese movie “Fearless”.
"Now we’re facing another kind of war, against the coronavirus. Trump got rid of our pandemic specialist two years ago and has defunded the Centers for Disease Control because he continues to ignore science."
-Variety
End Quotes
The World Health Organization (WHO) has shipped testing kits to 57 countries. China had five commercial tests on the market 1 month ago and can now do up to 1.6 million tests a week; South Korea has tested 65,000 people so far. The U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in contrast, has done only 459 tests since the epidemic began.
The rollout of a CDC-designed test kit to state and local labs has become a fiasco because it contained a faulty reagent. Labs around the country eager to test more suspected cases—and test them faster—have been unable to do so. No commercial or state labs have the approval to use their own tests.
In what is already an infamous snafu, CDC initially refused a request to test a patient in Northern California who turned out to be the first probable COVID19 case without known links to an infected person.
-ScienceMAg
A Los Alamos National Laboratory analysis of the outbreak in China in December 2019 and January 2020 puts the unrestrained R0 of Covid-19 at between 4.5 and 6.6. (The R-naught figure indicates the contagiousness of a disease in a given environment. If the number is above one, it’s spreading.)
The Novel Coronavirus, 2019-nCoV, is Highly Contagious and More Infectious Than Initially Estimated[Excerpts:] Integrating uncertainties in the exponential growth rate estimated from the ‘first arrival’ approach and the uncertainties in the duration of latent and infectious periods, we estimated the values of R0 to be 6.3 and 4.7. The high R0 values we estimated have important implications for disease control.The 2019-nCoV epidemic is still rapidly growing and spread to more than 20 countries as of February 5, 2020. Here, we estimated the growth rate of the early outbreak in Wuhan to be 0.29 per day (a doubling time of 2.4 days), and the reproductive number, R0, to be between 4.7 to 6.6.How contagious the 2019-nCoV is in other countries remains to be seen. If the value of R0 is as high in other countries, our results suggest that active and strong population-wide social distancing efforts, such as closing down transportation system, schools, discouraging travel, etc., might be needed to reduce the overall contacts to contain the spread of the virus.
This shockingly high original Chinese R0 value meant a doubling of the number of cases every few days, and subsequently, regional hospitals were overrun by infected patients. The Chinese experience indicates how it may spread in the West and the 3rd world. Critically, the often-quoted case fatality rate (CFR) of “only” 2% for Covid-19 occurs when severely affected patients have access to first-class medical treatment, with teams of nurses and doctors caring for them in isolation ICUs.
About 15% of people infected with the virus will develop severe symptoms (pneumonia, etc.) requiring intensive individual treatment in order to survive.
Once hospitals are swamped and many of the medical staff become infected, the CFR can swiftly rise to above 15%. This is believed to be the situation inside the Wuhan City quarantine zone.
An infectious disease with an R-naught above five, and the number of cases doubling every two days, is like a biological atomic bomb chain reaction, particularly in the age of jet travel to all points of the globe.
The USA and the West will quickly run out of Chinese-made PPE, medication, and hospital supplies. For example, China has nationalized the U.S.-owned factory that makes our N-95 masks and will, instead, keep them for their own use. The Chinese have seen Trump’s tariffs as outright economic warfare. Now, in my judgment, they are going to repay us by withholding shipments of PPE and medical supplies. China will leverage its present status as “factory to the world” to their best advantage while they still retain it. These critically needed supplies will be kept in China for their own use during the pandemic, and understandably so.
So, now it will be a race to see if America can set up enough factories to manufacture our own PPEs and other medical supplies rapidly enough to meet our soon-to-be exploding needs. China’s providing, or withholding, of required medical supplies will constitute a World War dimension of the pandemic. They will not send infected travelers to Western cities: they don’t need to do this. That ship has sailed; that horse is out of the barn.
Covid-19 will now travel on its own, with asymptomatic “super spreaders” carrying the virus from country to country for as long as unrestricted air travel is permitted. Then it will spread within each country, with every Western and third-world city a potential Wuhan.
China’s recent history teaches us that interpersonal social interaction has to be reduced as much as possible to get the R naught number down to controllable levels, but this radical reduction comes at a heavy price. When people don’t go to work out of fear of infection, or after being ordered by their governments to self-quarantine at home, economies shrink and eventually collapse. After weeks of forced home quarantine, China is now trying to restart critical factories, but this risks boosting their R0 number once again, leading to more hospitals being overrun and another round of chain-reaction contagion.
...
As usual, I just watched the most recent YouTube video by Dr. John Campbell (Covid-19 Thursday monring 27 Feb). Since he has gained global exposure, he’s getting emails from physicians all over the world, including Iran and China.
He typed up an email he received from the city of Chengdu, population 16 million, which relates their mandatory quarantine rules as China struggles to get Covid-19 under control. When the virus runs rampant and hospitals are overrun, as in Wuhan and Hunan Province, the death rate soars to over 15%, according to many accounts.
Under the strict quarantine rules in the image below, the death rate can be kept to below 2%, but at the cost of crippling the economy.
Now, just imagine trying to enforce this level of social control in American cities.
-Americanpartisan
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This is an interesting interview with Andrei Martyanov. He is a Russian military expert who emigrated to the United States. In it he argues that the stranglehold of American propaganda by the mainstream media has created a dangerous situation – one in which the “fake news” is believed by the American leadership.
ANDREI MARTYANOVisanexpertonRussianmilitaryandnavalissues. HewasborninBaku, USSRin 1963. HegraduatedfromtheKirovNavalRedBannerAcademyandservedasanofficerontheshipsandstaffpositionofSovietCoastGuardthrough 1990. HetookpartintheeventsintheCaucasuswhichledtothecollapseoftheSovietUnion.
- Losing Military Supremacy: The Myopia of American Strategic Planning
He explains that the American leadership, knowing full well that the media is a propaganda tool, actually believes much of the propaganda that they create. This is true on all levels.
The American leadership actually believes this “news”. Not only the “fake news” from CNN, MSNBC an WaPo but also from the conservative and alternative “Right wing” media.
He argues that this is extraordinarily dangerous.
Andrei Martyanov.
This belief in American propaganda is dangerous because it creates a situation where foolish men in leadership positions can make some very serious mistakes.
The majority of travelers I have met see foreign lands entirely through the filter glasses of their home front. Their worldview is shaped by government schools, Hollywood actors, television programming, mainstream pressing, and the resulting illusion of “us being the good guys.” When they travel, they carry a lifetime supply of brainwash shampoo with them. A backpack full of sheep’s wool over their eyes. And a dumbed-down uniform of sweatshop t-shirts, shorts and sandals that sores the eye of the beholder.
-Doug Casey, International Man
Mistakes, Leadership mistakes, that could absolutely devastate the United States. The leadership of a healthy and functioning nation needs good and accurate intelligence. It cannot rely own it’s own propaganda to base decisions upon.
History is full of stories of the destruction of cities, nations and empires that fell due to the bad Intel, and decisions by the top leadership. Read about the destruction of Hungary by Genghis Khan, if you don't believe me.
Or, consider the Marketing strategy of Gillette with their "Men are inherently foul pigs" campaign (to sell razors).
Or, consider Hollywood and their bevy of all-female re-writes of famous movies. Movies that no one will watch. Like "Oceans 8".
Or, consider what happened to NFL football, when the team owners permitted the players to protest against America.
Now, consider what might happen to America if it believes the narrative that both Russia and China are backwards, third-world shit holes and are no match for the United States military...
Ah. Andrei . You do not need to believe him. You just need to consider that he has some good ideas and makes some valid points.
Now, I find that he has some good points, especially his appraisal on the ignorance of the Washington “insider” class. His ideas are able to explain much of the strange decision processes that originate out of Washington DC today.
Andrei wrote…
Time after time the American military has failed to match lofty declarations about its superiority, producing instead a mediocre record of military accomplishments.
Starting from the Korean War the United States hasn’t won a single war against a technologically inferior, but mentally tough enemy.
Vietnam
Syria
Lybia
Somalia
Yemen
Lebanon
Iraq
The technological dimension of American “strategy” has completely overshadowed any concern with the social, cultural, operational and even tactical requirements of military (and political) conflict.
With a new Cold War with Russia emerging, the United States enters a new period of geopolitical turbulence completely unprepared in any meaningful way—intellectually...
... economically,
... militarily...
...or culturally
... to face a reality which was hidden for the last 70+ years behind the curtain of never-ending Chalabi moments...
... and a strategic delusion concerning Russia, whose history the US viewed through a Solzhenitsified caricature kept alive by a powerful neocon lobby, which even today dominates US policy makers’ minds.
The book Losing Military Supremacy: The Myopia of American Strategic Planning explores the dramatic difference between the Russian and US approach to warfare, which manifests itself across the whole spectrum of activities from art and the economy, to the respective national cultures;
Losing Military Supremacy: The Myopia of American Strategic Planning illustrates the fact that Russian economic, military and cultural realities and power are no longer what American “elites” think they are by addressing Russia’s new and elevated capacities in the areas of traditional warfare as well as cyberwarfare and space;
Losing Military Supremacy: The Myopia of American Strategic Planning studies in depth several ways in which the US can simply stumble into conflict with Russia and what must be done to avoid it.
Martyanov’s former Soviet military background enables deep insight into the fundamental issues of warfare and military power as a function of national power—assessed correctly, not through the lens of Wall Street “economic” indices and a FIRE economy, but through the numbers of enclosed technological cycles and culture, much of which has been shaped in Russia by continental warfare and which is practically absent in the US.
-Amazon
Indeed, a point that I have “hammered” over and over again, is the idea that the most dangerous propaganda is the news reports that we WANT to believe.
Propaganda works best when we WANT to believe the lies told to us.
Such as 11 million Uighur Muslims are in reeducation concentration camps in Xinjiang China. That America must "do something" to free the poor Muslim innocents! All, yes ALL of conservative news is full of these stories and the figure of 11 million is bantered about without question.
Except...
No one can point out where these concentration camps are.
You cannot find them on Google Earth. And you should. After all, the population of New York City is 6 million people. So a concentration camp housing 11 million people would be over twice the size of New York city. It would be pretty fucking big. Bigger than the largest city in America, and then some.
You would be able to see it from the Moon.
If there were 11 concentration camps in Xinjiang, China, (each one million people in size) then you would be able to easily locate all eleven Atlanta, Georgia sized complexes on Google Earth. Where are all these concentration camps?
Simple math.
Simple thought process.
... Propaganda. Don't fall for it.
Anyways, he makes a great point.
Our American leadership has taken to actually believing what is being repeated day in and day out by the lying American mainstream press. And this is very dangerous.
Some minor Russian Naval ships.
You might not like his opinions, but please just view his point of view as something that you will not hear from the mainstream, or alt-conservative news. As such it is a valuable alternative view point.
One that should be taken seriously.
The interview.
Yvonne Lorenzo interviews Andrei Martyanov …
Yvonne Lorenzo: I’d like to discuss the central thesis of your first book, Losing Military Supremacy. Aside from a civil war in the late 1800s, the United States has never experienced the effects of a devastating war fought on its own soil by foreign nation and believes it is invulnerable and won’t be attacked. To the contrary, Russians to this day know the price of war. If you would be so kind to summarize, if possible, the key points you wished to make known about Russia.
"America believes that it is invulnerable and won’t ever be attacked."
The Severodvinsk, the first of Russia’s multirole Yasen K-560 submarines, by the pier of the Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk, Arkhangelsk Region.
The difference is that I get more in depth into the tactical, operational and technological issues—to a degree that is possible in what amounts to a geopolitical study—to demonstrate and drive my point home…
… that the current American political elites are utterly delusional on the nature of modern warfare…
Crew of the Alexander Nevsky nuclear submarine topside at a welcome ceremony for the Navy’s new Borei-class project 955 vessel at Kamchatka’s Vilyuchinsk base.
… especially in a peer-to-peer scenario of which the United States hasn’tfaced since WW II.
My point is very simple…
…the ignorance of the American ruling class of modern warfare is such that it has become a clear and present danger for the world…
John Bolton neocon in the Trump administration.
… since, while improbable at this stage, it is totally plausible to see at some point of time someone in the US political top losing it…
…and unleashing a confrontation with Russia, or China…
…being fully convinced, mostly by Hollywood or [Tom] Clancy-esque pseudo military fiction…
…that the United States and NATO can attack Russia and survive.
That, America could attack Russia or China and it would remain unscathed and devastate the rest of the world and America would not suffer at all.
That’s the danger…
…especially in a country whose elites completely lost their mind and are delusional…
Rulership class in America are bat-shit crazy.
…or reside in what I define as a Perpetual Chalabi Moment.
American leadership, on both sides of the political spectrum, plus the oligarchy that controls them are completely delusional and out of touch with the American citizens, the rest of the world, and the comparative technological strengths of America.
The arms race.
The US did lose the arms race.
The arms race was not lost in 2018 or even 2015, however; it was lost much earlier and it was mostly due to the US media-propaganda machine…
… which kept it secret from the US public.
It still continues to do so but it is increasingly difficult to keep it under wraps when information, including imagery of what Russia does in this field becomes increasingly available.
Ships from Russia’s Caspian Flotilla launching Kalibr-NK cruise missiles against Daesh targets in Syria.
But that is just part of the issue: I write about predictors—the real economy, scientific development, education, etc.—for war’s outcomes [are] non-stop.
Other people have written about these predictors. Not once do they agree with the narrative coming out of the American mainstream media.
In the end, when I state that the US elites have no clue about the size and complexity of Russia’s economy, it is one thing…
…but when I state that they basically have no clue about their own economy, not Wall Street’s cooking of books, I can rely on some serious American professionals in the field.
President Trump, right, talks with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo during a Cabinet meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, on July 18, 2018. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
The report was prepared by an Inter-agency Task Force in September 2018 and reads as an epitaph to the US machine-building complex…
… and the issue is not just massive de-industrialization…
America has still not recovered from the de-industrialization of the last forty years. It is not going to recover in only one or two years.
… or the lack of a labor force which can fill in for departing old-timers…
…with many in the new generation of Americans being mostly interested in pot and drugs or in avoiding any productive labor…
…nor money alone can solve the problem of America’s declining military strength, which was always overstated to start with.
It is the culture, an institutional one, which is responsible for this decline.
Russia presents new MiG-35 fighter jet to the public.
The decline of American culture
The United States is very good at building extremely expensive and dubiously effective (against a competent enemy) power projection forces, which by definition are offensive and aggressive.
Once one gets into the issues of actual defense, the picture changes dramatically for the United States.
It is enough to mention the whole non-stop hysteria about Turkey buying and activating the S-400 complex, with India already having a 5 billion dollar contract signed with Russia, and many Arab states lining up for Russian-made air and anti-missile systems, not to mention combat aircraft, such as a contact for SU-35s between Egypt and Russia signed, following next.
S-400 complex launching system.
All of it creates an extremely emotional reaction in the United States, but the fact that Russian military technology is in some key defense fields better than anything out there was never in doubt.
S-400 complex launching system with potential targets that it is designed to strike.
It is enough to recall Vietnam, but in the time of radio and printed media it was easier to control narratives.
The American media blitz on this subject is constant and unyielding.
Today it is extremely difficult.
Russia always built weapons to effectively kill the enemy—such is Russia’s experience with warfare, much of which being invasions of foreign powers.
The United States has zero historic experience with defending the US proper against powerful and brutal enemies.
While the Revolutionary war had some moments of brutality, as did the American civil war, neither wars EVER approached the level of absolute depraved scorched earth devastation that Russia, Europe, and China have experienced.
It is something that America has NEVER experienced.
Mexico never invaded. Canada never invaded. Russia never invaded. Cuba never invaded. Bermuda never invaded.
It is a cultural difference, a profound one and it manifests itself across the whole spectrum of activities, not just the respective military-industrial complexes.
In other words, Russians MUST build top of the line weaponry, because the safety of Russia depends on it.
Dr. Matthew Alford of the University of Bath, author of National Security Cinema: The Shocking New Evidence of Government Control in Hollywood, told MintPress that the new Amazon product is a “disgrace of a series,” unfairly demonizing a nation at a time when the United States has its boot on the throat of Venezuelan society.
Russian SU-30SM.
“The new Jack Ryan series comes in the context of four movies stretching back decades that have all had Department of Defense and/or CIA support at the scriptwriting phrase,” he noted, labeling Jack Ryan as a classic “national security entertainment product”.
The character of Jack Ryan first appeared in Cold War era Clancy stories such as The Hunt for Red October and The Cardinal of the Kremlin, where the heroic Ryan battles the dark forces of the Soviet Union.
The series was put on hiatus but has recently returned, bringing with it much of the same Cold War mentality and rhetoric.
Ryan has been previously played on screen by Hollywood stars such as Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford and Ben Affleck.
Alford’s book, which he co-wrote with Tom Secker, describes the enormous influence that the national security state has on popular culture.
Based on Freedom of Information requested documents, the two calculated that between 2004 and 2016, the Department of Defense was directly involved in the production of 977 Hollywood movies or television shows, many of which were carefully scripted, edited and curated by government agents in order to present a certain viewpoint of the world to the public.
For example, the writers of Homeland were revealed to have private meetings with ex-CIA officials before each season.
From big budget movies like Ironman and Transformers to surprisingly banal television productions like The Biggest Loser, Mythbusters or American Idol, virtually every movie or television show featuring the military or intelligence figures has been edited, scripted or funded by the Department of Defense in order to cast the government in the best possible light.
Those that do not comply with the Department of Defense’s requests are not given privileged access to, or use of, military resources and may be attacked by the state as being unpatriotic or deceptive.
The constant flow of pro-security state messages has an effect on the public.
Researchers found that respondents who were shown torture scenes from the television series 24 were more likely to subsequently support the government’s policies of torture in sites like Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib.
This held even for liberal college students.
Andrei Martyanov: The first person of repute who challenged Tom Clancy’s fantasies was professor Roger Thompson in his seminal 2006 book Lessons Not Learned, in which he correctly asked a question how an insurance agent who never served a day in uniform and had undergraduate degree in English can write competently on any issue related to modern combat and technology.
In Clancy’s case it was clear that he was promoted, he openly writes about it in his book, by former Secretary of the Navy John Lehman, for purely propaganda reasons.
Secretary of the Navy John Lehman swearing in Grace Harper.
Most of what Clancy wrote was cringe-worthy pop-literature, which could be described as incompetent military-intelligence porn.
Ouch!
Clancy never made it a secret that his Jack Ryan character was written from…Tom Clancy himself. A good testimony about late Clancy himself.
Why Jack Ryan was written as a spy as opposed to as insurance agent remains a complete mystery to me, but, I guess, whatever sells books for the late Tom Clancy.
These digs… oh, boy!
In Soviet/Russian military environment Clancy’s “literature” overwhelmingly was treated with ironic smile at best, and with Homeric laughter at worst.
Yup. How the rest of the world feels about this kind of literature, and movies.
But that pretty much describes the “level” of American “knowledge” and awareness of Russia in general and her military in particular—a caricature.
It is, however, one thing to promote caricatures in pop-art, totally another when a caricature becomes a working model for decision making at the top political level.
That is dangerous.
And his point is very, very valid…
As General Latiff of DARPA correctly noted—most of what the US public and political class know about war is from entertainment, from Hollywood to the literature of such “professionals” like the late Clancy.
The Generals won’t save us.
Yvonne Lorenzo: I quoted (retired) Major Danny Sjursen earlier. He wrote a piece title, “The Generals Won’t Save Us From The Next War”
for the American Conservative. I want to reproduce an excerpt and then
ask you to comment. Your disdain for the political class is well known
but what about the generals in power? How capable and knowledgeable are
they? How competent?
Why should any sentient citizen believe that these commanders’ former subordinates—a new crop of ambitious generals—will step forward now and oppose a disastrous future war with the Islamic Republic?
Don’t believe it!
Senior military leaders will salute, about-face, and execute unethical and unnecessary combat with Iran or whomever else (think Venezuela) Trump’s war hawks, such as John Bolton, decide needs a little regime changing.
John Bolton. Donald Trump’s National Security Advisor John Bolton said that it would be great if the United States could get their hands on that Venezuelan oil, and that statement alone tells you everything that you need to know about why the US is trying so hard to interfere in Venezuelan affairs.
Need proof that even the most highly lauded generals will sheepishly obey the next absurd march to war? Join me in a brief trip down an ever so depressing memory lane.
Let us begin with my distinguished West Point graduation speaker, Air Force General and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Richard Myers.
He goes down in history as as a Donald Rumsfeld lackey because it turns out he knew full well that there were “holes” in the Bush team’s inaccurate intelligence used to justify the disastrous Iraq war.
Yet we heard not a peep from Myers, who kept his mouth shut and retired with full four-star honors.
Air Force General and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Richard Myers .
Then, when Army Chief of Staff General Eric Shinseki accurately (and somewhat courageously) predicted in 2003 that an occupation of Iraq would require up to half a million U.S. troops, he was quietly retired.
Rummy passed over a whole generation of active officers to pull a known sycophant, General Peter Schoomaker, out of retirement to do Bush the Younger’s bidding.
It worked too.
Schoomaker, despite his highly touted special forces experience, never threw his stars on the table and called BS on a losing strategy even as it killed his soldiers by the hundreds and then the thousands.
Having heard him (unimpressively) speak at West Point in 2005, I still can’t decide whether he lacked the intellect to do so or the conscience.
Maybe both.
General Peter Schoomaker.
After Bush landed a fighter plane on a carrier and triumphantly announced “mission accomplished” in Iraq, poor Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez, the newest three-star in the Army, took over the hard part of conquest: bringing the “natives” to heel.
He utterly failed, being too reliant on what he knew—Cold War armored combat—and too ambitious to yell “stop!”
Soon after, it came to light that Sanchez had bungled the investigation—or cover-up (take your pick)—of the massive abuse scandal at Abu Ghraib prison.
Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez.
General John Abizaid was one of the most disappointing in a long line of subservient generals.
It seems Abizaid knew better: he knew the Iraq war couldn’t be won, that it was best to hand over control to the Iraqis posthaste, that General David Petraeus’s magical “surge” snake oil wouldn’t work.
Still, Abizaid didn’t quit and retired quietly.
He’s now Trump’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia, which is far from comforting.
General John Abizaid .
Lieutenant General H.R. McMaster was heralded as an outside-the-box thinker.
And indeed, he was a Gulf War I hero, earned a Ph.D., taught history at West Point, and wrote a (mostly) well-received book on Vietnam.
Yet when Trump appointed him national security advisor, he brought only in-the-box military beliefs with him into the White House.
He then helped author a fanciful National Defense Strategy that argued the U.S. military must be ready at a moment’s notice to fight Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, and “terror.”
Perhaps at the same time!
No nuance, no diplomatic alternatives, no cost-benefit analysis, just standard militarism.
These days, McMaster is running around decrying what he calls a “defeatist narrative” and arguing for indefinite war in the Middle East.
Lieutenant General H.R. McMaster .
Then there was the other Washington insider and “liberal” favorite, one of a trio of “adults in the room,” General Jim Mattis.
Though sold to the public as a “warrior monk,” Mattis offered no alternative to America’s failing forever wars.
In fact, when he decided his conscience no longer allowed him to stay in the Trump administration, his reason for leaving was that the president had called for a reduction of troops in Afghanistan after 18 senseless years.
U.S.-supported Saudi terror bombings that killed tens of thousands of Yemeni civilians? A U.S.-backed Saudi blockade that starved at least 85,000 Yemeni children to death? Yeah, he was fine with that.
But a modest troop withdrawal from a losing 18-year-old war in landlocked Central Asia, that he couldn’t countenance.
General Jim Mattis.
Then there’s the propensity for politics and pageantry among senior military officers.
This was embarrassingly and unconscionably on display in the tragic cases of Private First Class Jessica Lynch and Corporal Pat Tillman.
When, during the initial invasion of Iraq, the young Lynch’s maintenance convoy got lost, she was captured and briefly detained by Saddam’s army.
Knowing a good public relations opportunity when they saw it, Bush’s staff and the generals concocted a slew of comforting lies: Lynch was a hero who had fought to her last bullet (she’d never fired her rifle), she’d been tortured (she hadn’t), her combat-camera equipped commando rescue had come just in the nick of time (she was hardly guarded and in a hospital).
Who cares if it was all lies, if this young woman’s terrifying experience was co-opted and embellished? The Lynch story was media fodder.
Private First Class Jessica Lynch.
More tragic was the Pat Tillman escapade.
Tillman was an admirable outlier, the only professional athlete to give up a million dollar contract to enlist in the military soon after 9/11.
Tillman and his brother went all in, too, choosing the elite Army Rangers. It was quite the story.
Rumsfeld even wrote the new private a congratulatory letter. Then reality got in the way. Tillman was killed in Afghanistan during a friendly fire incident that can only be described as gross incompetence.
Almost immediately, President Bush’s staff and much of the Army’s top brass went to work crafting the big lie: a heroic narrative of Tillman’s demise, replete with dozens of marauding Taliban fighters and a one-man charge befitting the hard-hitting former NFL defensive back.
Promoted to corporal posthumously, he was awarded the Silver Star. Some of his fellow Rangers were instructed to lie to the Tillman family at the memorial service regarding the manner of Pat’s death.
Corporal Pat Tillman.
Only Bush’s neophytes and the Army’s complicit generals didn’t count on the tenacity of Tillman’s parents.
They waged something nearing war with the U.S. military for several years until they found out the truth, unearthing a cover-up that implicated Bush’s civilians and many of the military’s four-star generals (including Stanley McChrystal, John Abizaid, and Richard Myers).
The Tillman family got their congressional hearing, but the sycophantic representatives on the Hill refused to seriously criticize the top brass and no one was seriously punished.
Andrei Martyanov:
I don’t know the exact answer to this question. I am positive that
there are many highly educated and competent people in US Armed Forces
but there is no denial of the fact that some segments of the US top
brass are more politicians than military leaders. It is not unique to
the United States Armed Forces, but the record of failures is in the
open and everyone can make their own conclusions.
Fighting Russia is the goal of the political class
Yvonne Lorenzo: Your latest book, The (Real) Revolution in Military Affairs provides further detail on Russia’s technological advancements. A layman, I see America as principally using bombing as artillery and proxy fighters (see Syria) on the ground—not too competent. I’ve read enough to be dangerous—having no military background—but wars can’t be won by bombing campaigns alone, even against a mediocre target (I think you called Iraq’s army third-rate).
Fighting Russia, which appears to be the goal of the political class, is not what they will expect, even if the confrontation doesn’t rise to a nuclear exchange.
I’d appreciate your summarizing some of the key points of this book but I have to ask, having read some of The Saker’s writings…
… can Russia be overwhelmed by thousands upon thousands of slow missiles, like the TLAMs…
… or will Russia use their “800 Pound Gorilla” in your parlance, that is…
A leaked memo confirms that Russia is developing Kanyon, the world's most powerful nuclear weapon, with twice the power of any ever tested.
This is 2x, or double the destructive power of the most dangerous and largest nuclear weapon ever designed; TheSovietRDS-202hydrogenbomb (codenameIvanorVanya), knownbyWesternnationsasTsarBomba.
Russia's New 'Satan' Nuclear Weapons System Could Wipe Out Texas orFrance. Russia hasformonthsbeentestingagiant nuclear weapons deliverysystemthatcancarry 10 heavyweightwarheads—enoughpowertowipeout Texas orFrance. This is theRS-28Sarmatintercontinentalballisticmissileknownin Russia as "Satan 2"Mar 06, 2018 · Russia announced it is about to test its Satan 2 missile, a nuclear weapon so powerful it could destroy a country size the of Texas or France in seconds. While its official name is RS-28 Sarmat, NATO officials have given the weapon the nickname Satan 2, the Mirror reports.
RS-28 Sarmat ICBM.
… does Russia have enough weapons, from cruise missiles, to defensive, to hypersonic, not to be overwhelmed…
… and are American generals aware of the risk if it does should they engage in hostilities?
Rumors of Kanyon (or Ocean Multipurpose System Status-6, as it’s known in Russia) first started swirling in 2015 following a leak on Russian television. Soon after, the nation confirmed the weapon’s existence, while claiming the leak was a mistake.
However, as defense analyst and military historian H. I. Sutton told Futurism, this leak of the latest nuclear posture review is the first official recognition of Kanyon by U.S. officials.
“The unclassified posture review document doesn’t really tell defense analysts anything new, but it does establish Kanyon as a military fact,” said Sutton. “Until now, many observers had regarded the system as ‘fake news.’ I think that this was partly because the stated specifications are so incredible and partly because it is hard to understand how it will be used.”
Incredible Devastation
“Incredible” is perhaps putting it mildly.
Based on leaked Russian documents, Kanyon is a nuclear-armed autonomous torpedo capable of traveling 10,000 kilometers (6,213 miles) with a 100-megaton thermonuclear weapon as its payload. That’s at least twice as powerful as any nuclear weapon ever tested. According to nuclear bomb simulator Nukemap, it would instantly kill 8 million people and injure an additional 6.6 million if dropped on New York City.
Kanyon’s weapon wouldn’t be dropped, though. It would arrive via the ocean and bring with it a massive artificial tsunami that would blanket the coastal area in radioactive water. If the warhead is “salted” with the radioactive isotope Cobalt-60, as some have reported, a detonation could render contaminated areas uninhabitable by humans for an entire century.
“Kanyon is unique in every respect,” said Sutton. “There really is nothing like it in any navy’s inventory.”
- US Report Confirms Russia Is Developing the World’s Most Powerful Nuclear Weapon. The 100-megaton thermonuclear weapon isn't "fake news."
The latest nuclear weapons that China and Russia field are smarter, more technically advanced, faster, and superior to their American counterparts in every way.
I noted your comments on Professor Cohen’s latest on Ukraine posted to Unz.com on November 14th but his most recent video in PushBack from The Grayzone he said that in all the years he studied Russia and America he’d never thought the two nations would go to war.
Yet now he fears this possibility. I’d appreciate your thoughts.
America WILL NOT survive World War III, and it is foolish to believe that it will.
It is a kind of Anglo-Saxon policy not to have cooperation on the European continent – mainly between the Russians, the French, the Poles and the Germans. They want to have a line of confrontation in this area and therefore are against all promises. [As a result] NATO was extended to the East.
I was responsible for the organization of the German Armed Forces on the German territory following reunification.
We did not want foreign troops in former East Germany.
We did not want to have British or French troops there; we wanted to have only German ones.
We wanted to explain to the world that there was no desire to enlarge NATO up to the new borders with Russia that were created in 1992.
It was against all the ideas we had after reunification.
What is happening now is some kind of Anglo-Saxon policy that was created even before WWI.
We are on the path of war again.
That is so much against the will of our people.
What is happening now is some kind of Anglo-Saxon policy that was created even before WWI. We are on the path of war again.
This is also against the will of the Dutch, the French, the Spanish and the Italians.
We see it as a disaster that a US president that is willing to cooperate with the Russian President Vladimir Putin – President [Donald] Trump – has to face such a disastrous policy organized by the US deep state, which is against our national interests and the national interests of all other western Europeans…
What is happening now is some kind of Anglo-Saxon policy that was created even before WWI. We are on the path of war again.
***
But, when you now come to Rostock, Dresden or Leipzig they are learning Russian again, they go to theaters to watch Russian performances and listen to Russian music.
They have re-established their links with Russia, and if they could do what they want to do, they would be the big economic partners of Russia these days.
Things have really changed for the Russian Federation and with regard to Russia.
People in Dresden, Saxony’s capital, are absolutely proud that Russian President Vladimir Putin once served there.
That is the reality these days, despite what the American mainstream media say.
Would Russia engage in tank battles and soldier-to-soldier combat if NATO attacked, or would they use stand-off weapons that you discuss just to obliterate command and control centers, the sources of munitions, etc.?
Mr. Wimmer clearly sees that some Germans, as opposed to the “vassal” government, want better relations with Russia as opposed to war, including cold war.
Andrei Martyanov: The issue of TLAMs: in a conventional configuration, I don’t think that they can do much damage to Russia, especially considering Russia’s unique anti-air and anti-missile defense.
A few possible leakers in conventional configuration will not do much damage; a few leakers in a nuclear configuration, however, is a completely different game. Hence Russia’s worry about Aegis Ashore installations in Romania and Poland. That’s the main worry.
"Leakers" missile weapons systems that are able to bore through national defenses.
In a
conventional scenario, Russia will not be overwhelmed and even
conventional response-head on (otvetno-vstrechnyi) strike will be
extremely damaging to NATO and the US.
Thatfirst strike (inRussianparlance, a retaliatory strike, or otvetno-vstrechnyi udar) followsRussia’smilitarydoctrine, whichmandatessuch strikes tocompensateforRussia’sconventionalinferiority vis-à-vis NATOandtheUnitedStates.
- Eastern European Missile Defense: Russia's Threat ...
Valeri Gerasimov was explicit couple of years ago in his interview about Russia having enough stand-off weapons at every strategic direction to provide a reliable deterrence.
Even in conventional exchange Russia can launch weapons at the US proper with Russian bombers not leaving Russia’s aerospace.
The X-101 cruise missile has a range in excess of 5,500 kilometers. Russia continues to increase her deterrence with 3M22 Zircon getting ready to be tested from Admiral Gorshkov frigate very soon, with Kazan SSGN of project 885 planned to launch the hyper-sonic Zircon from underwater early next year.
All this changes deterrence dynamics completely because the United States cannot defend her coasts and in depth against such systems.
In this photo released by China’s Xinhua News Agency, officers and soldiers of China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy hold a welcome ceremony as a Russian naval ship arrives in port in Zhanjiang in southern China’s Guangdong Province, Monday, Sept. 12, 2016
Russia can intercept the bulk of US and NATO cruise missiles; the US cannot do so against Russia.
Yvonne Lorenzo: As I write this on December 3rd, 2019, Vesti News posted this video on the Zircon: Putin Unveils Zircon Hypersonic Missiles! Stresses Importance of Beefing Up Russia’s Navy!
The brilliant Houthi military victory over the Saudis fulfilled the predictions in military doctrine made by America’s own De Gaulle, a retired US Army Colonel, Douglas Macgregor with an outstanding combat and command record who has been treated over the past 20 years by most of his own country’s four star generals and civilian theorists with contempt: Just as the French Army ignored DeGaulle’s armored warfare doctrines 90 years, when they were being read and applied passionately by the generals of Germany.
Macgregor observed after the Houthi victory in September that that there was no reason for surprise. Sure enough, two and a half years earlier, in testimony to the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) on March 7, 2017, he stated:
“The skies over the battlefield will be crowded with loitering munitions, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or drones). These agile cruise missiles are designed to engage beyond line-of-sight ground targets. With proximity-fused, high-explosive warheads, these systems will remain airborne for hours, day or night. Equipped with high resolution electro-optical and infrared cameras, enemy operators will locate, surveil, and guide the drones to targets on the ground… When these loitering missiles are integrated into the enemy’s Strike Formations armed with precision guided rocket artillery that fires high explosive, incendiary, thermobaric, warheads including sub-munitions with self-targeting anti-tank and anti-personnel munitions warfare as we know it changes.”
Macgregor was even more prescient in predicting the previous Houthi precision missile strikes that wiped out half the production capacity of Saudi Arabia’s oil refineries earlier in September.
Those attacks humiliatingly exposed the ultra-expensive, endlessly praised US missile defense systems sold to Riyadh as worthless dinosaurs.
Yet, writing in his book “Transformation Under Fire” published back in 2003, Macgregor had said: “The idea is to link maneuver and strike assets through a flatter operational architecture empowered by new terrestrial and space-based communications throughout the formation… Long-range, joint precision fires and C4ISR [Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance] offer the possibility to reach over enemy armies to directly strike at what they hope to defend or preserve.
Precision strategic strikes closely coordinated and timed with converging Army combat forces would present a defending enemy with an insoluble dilemma.”
As you see, he’s retired and never became a general.
At least he appears to oppose war with Russia and Iran and China, from his appearances on Tucker Carlson that I’ve seen. Can you comment on the above piece and how Russia might respond if America used such techniques? It seems to me Russia would also be able to implement such techniques.
Andrei Martyanov: Douglas Macgregor is a brilliant man but his testimony is about…
… fighting an enemy which does not posses C4ISR [Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance] capabilities comparable to that of the United States.
Russia does and we have to be very clear on that distinction.
Fighting a modern combined arms war against such opponents as North Korea or even Iran the United States will have massive leverage, at least initially, before boots get on the ground, in terms of stand-off operations.
Once boots hit the ground, well, then it will change. But fighting peers, such as China, let alone Russia—…
…I simply cannot see how the United States will stay away from escalation to a nuclear threshold, because the scale of losses will be catastrophic both in men and materiel.
It’s EXTREMELY unlikely that the US can stop modern nuclear weapons from Russia. There is ZERO evidence that any of the US anti-missile technologies would be sufficient to stop a MIRV warhead – let alone multiple MIRV warheads – traveling at the speeds a modern missile can achieve. In a war with Russia, literally hundreds if not thousands of warheads would be heading towards the US. No missile defense system known can handle that.
- Richard Steven Hack on 09/19/2017 at 3:40 PM
In 110 days of fighting the German army in France during 1918, the U.S. Army Expeditionary Force sustained 318,000 casualties, including 110,000 killed in action.
That’s the kind of lethality waiting for U.S. forces in a future war with real armies, air forces, air defenses and naval power.
Only… on American soil.
Ignoring this reality is the road to future defeats and American decline. It’s time to look beyond the stirring images of infantrymen storming machine-gun nests created by Hollywood and to see war for what it is and will be in the future:
the ruthless extermination of the enemy with accurate, devastating firepower from the sea, from the air, from space and from mobile, armored firepower on land.
The United Sates is not in a position to take this scale of losses, not to mention having its rear, from staffs to munition depots and airfields being under relentless and devastating fire impact from operational to a strategic depth—a condition the US Army simple has no experience with.
As even RAND people admitted:
In war games with either Russia, China or both, almost always, the United States loses.
I’ve been writing about this for years.
It’s good that some people are beginning to get it. I hope—although I don’t hold my breath—their opinions will be heard at the political top.
Yvonne Lorenzo:
Recent articles have posted on cooperation between Russia and China,
not just the well know business deals but cultural and Chinese students
coming to Russia. See these articles, “Top Russian nuclear university
eyes future cooperation with China” and “Film about WWII sniper ‘Lady
Death’ kicks off ‘2019 Russian Film Exhibition’ in Beijing” posted on
China’s Global Times.
I’d appreciate your thoughts about the Russian-Chinese relationship/partnership.
Andrei Martyanov: The answer is extremely simple—Russian-Chinese cooperation is not only natural, but it was inevitable, considering the state of the combined West and, especially so, of the United States.
Yvonne Lorenzo: Andrei, you posted this on your blog on November 26th, 2019, “New S-400 Contract For Turkey?” which I want to discuss not only because of your observations, but because in the past (and I’m not picking on him) Paul Craig Roberts wrote in effect that Russia must be more aggressive with America to avoid a shooting war, quoting him, “The Russian government’s failure to stand up to Washington’s bullying guarantees more bullying. Sooner or later the bullying will cross a line, and Russia will have to fight.”
However, in this post of yours I cited above you commented:
So, [the] Turks are already running, it seems, detection routines with F-16 and F-4 as targets.
Turks will, already do, want more.
The Turks know what comes next, and it is S-500—they want it.
The reason is simple: look at [a] map of Turkey and see how much [of the] Eastern Mediterranean she will be able to cover—pretty much all of it. Just in case.
And it is not just for reasons of Greece and gas fields, but for reasons of Israel. The Turkish path towards a leadership in [the] Islamic world lies through the fate of Palestine.
So, a lot of thing are riding on those systems for Turkey and, just a hunch, SU-35s will follow.
I’m surprised the Turks haven’t start testing against any F-35s, unless Turkey had to return them to America;
I’d love to see the reaction if they did, which so far has included this:
“‘Erdogan thumbs his nose at Trump’: US senator says Turkey crossed ‘another red line’ with S-400 test, calls for new sanctions.”
As
you also wrote recently: “How about State Department creating a new
Office of S-400 Weekly Complaints and Threats Towards Turkey (OSWCTTT).
Should be a pretty nice sinecure for some bureaucrat. Should pay well
too—rent and real estate prices inside the Beltway are atrocious. Foggy
Bottom especially.”
And I see in the way they’ve turned Turkey away from American dominance, or Western dominance, that Russia’s diplomatic team, of course under the leadership of President Putin, have performed a Jujitsu move against the West more effective than using force.
Andrei Martyanov: As a Russian proverb says: “Diplomacy is the art to say to your counterpart that he is an idiot in the politest manner.”
In reality, the Russian version is very profane, so I softened it a bit. Russians do not operate on the so called “values-based,” ideological that is, principle in foreign policy. Russians actually DO consider the other side’s interests and concerns and that is what makes Russian diplomacy so effective.
This, plus, of course, military power. As another Russian saying goes: “If you do not want to talk to Lavrov, you will talk to Shoigu.”
With Turkey, Russia does accommodate many Turkish interests; the Turks feel that.
This is as much as I can respond to, because I am not in the position to pass deep and knowledgeable judgment on Turkey’s policies since I do not know the region that well.
I am sure, however, that Turks have a very good idea about what Russia offers technologically and economically.
The Turkish officer crews for S-400 underwent an extensive training in Russia so they do not need any additional argumentation in favor of the system they were trained on.
The F-35 is irrelevant here, apart from the fact that Turks cannot use, I believe, from the top of my head, those two aircraft which they had and which will be returned to the US.
Question: You have worked for over five decades as a war reporter and documentary film-maker in Vietnam, elsewhere in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
How do you see current international tensions between the US, China and Russia?
Do you think the danger of war is greater now than in previous times?
John Pilger: In 1962, we all may have been saved by the refusal of a Soviet naval officer, Vasili Arkhipov, to fire a nuclear torpedo at US ships during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Are we in greater danger today?
During the Cold War, there were lines that the other side dared not cross.
There are few if any lines now;
The US surrounds China with 400 military bases and ...
...sails its low-draught ships into Chinese waters and...
...flies its drones in Chinese airspace.
American-led NATO forces mass on the same Russian frontier the Nazis crossed...
...the Russian president is insulted as a matter of routine.
There is no restraint and none of the diplomacy that kept the old Cold War cold.
In the West, we have acquiesced as bystanders in our own countries, preferring to look away (or at our smart phones) rather than break free of the post-modernism entrapping us with its specious “identity” distractions.
Question: You traveled extensively in the US during the Cold War years. You witnessed the assassination of presidential candidate Robert Kennedy in 1968.
It seems the American Cold War obsession with “communism as an evil” has been replaced by an equally intense Russophobia towards modern-day Russia.
Do you see a continuation in the phobia from the Cold War years to today? What accounts for that mindset?
John Pilger: The Russians refuse to bow down to America...
...and that is intolerable.
They play an independent, mostly positive role in the Middle East, the antithesis of America’s violent subversions...
...and that is unbearable.
Like the Chinese, they have forged peaceful and fruitful alliances with people all over the world...
...and that is unacceptable to the US Godfather.
The constant defamation of all things Russian is a symptom of decline and panic...
...as if the United States has departed the 21st century for the 19th century...
...obsessed with a proprietorial view of the world.
In the circumstances, the phobia you describe is hardly surprising.
Andrei Martyanov: As in any event, war between Russia and the US is possible, but how probable it is, is a completely different matter. Some probability of Russia and the United States actually fighting each other certainly exists.
It is not very high, I think, but it does exist.
We all have to do our utmost to prevent this scenario becoming a reality.
Paradoxically, Russia’s very real military strength today is a guarantor or, at least, a robust deterrent against such a nightmarish scenario.
As I said, the US military does understand the implications, even when American politicians don’t.
I always repeat that I feel much better when Gerasimov and Milley talk to each other than when Lavrov is forced to explain basic things to Pompeo.
Mike Pompeo.
Yvonne Lorenzo: Hypersonic weapons, impressive as they are, rely on Newtonian physics. There was—to me—a term that you would call “Runglish”, Russian-English, discussing “New physical principles” which I finally understood to mean “new principles of physics” relating to the new Peresvet laser, which I think you’ve speculated on its purpose but is highly secret.
Peresvet laser complex.
However, all this technology is used for military purposes; what I find it sad about deteriorating relations with Russia because the best of the West and Russia could accomplish a great deal sharing and developing non-military technology.
I’m
reminded of this wonderful video of a Russia cosmonaut’s interactions
with an American astronaut and seeing the world below they have disdain
for politicians.
I Need More Space: Russian Cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin’s long road to the stars
What are your thoughts and how can Russians and American in this environment of “Russophobia” which is a polite, diplomatic word for hatred of Russians, cooperate as we two are doing now for peaceful and good purposes?
I worry both your doors and mine, for simply communicating with one another, will be kicked in one day by someone from the government, as happened with Max Blumenthal.
Andrei Martyanov: As I stated repeatedly, the combined West committed cultural suicide in Russia.
Yes, Russians are open to mutually beneficial cooperation, with space being one of those exhibit A cases where international cooperation manifests itself in the most profound and positive way.
Primary military targets that would be obliterated by first nuclear strikes.
Sadly, with the current US political “elites” who are Russophobic in the extreme, any prospects of serious Russian-American cooperation look very grim.
The world is in the process of unprecedented geopolitical realignment which increasingly degrades the position of the United States and Russia is at the center of this process.
The Obama Administration destroyed Russian-American relations totally and I don’t see any improvement, bar some symbolic gestures, such as, I hope, President Trump visiting Moscow on May 9th next year, because the American political class’s Russophobia is systemic and was nurtured for generations.
Plus, the United States is not an agreement-capable entity because it is ungovernable, as the last three years so dramatically demonstrated.
The first thirty cities to be attacked with nuclear weapons during a Russia or China first-strike event. Say, if America puts troops in the Ukraine, or conducts Naval operations near the Chinese coast.
Russia is aware of that—no agreement signed with the United States is worth the paper it is written on.
"... no agreement signed with the United States is worth the paper it is written on." I think that China would agree.
We can only hope that things will change for the better in the future but this change may come only through the United States reassessing its role in history and the world…
…a process which may take decades, serious tribulations and, hopefully, emergence of new American elites that would be able to formulate real American national interests.
Nuclear Targets Map in the United States.
***
After
I asked Andrei my last question, this Russian video posted on YouTube:
so much for future cooperation between America and Russia in space,
because of sanctions Americans cannot be carried to the space station by
Russians any longer:
US Will Be Stranded On Earth! Baikonur Cosmodrome Sends Very Last American Into Space!
I’d
like to thank Andrei for his kind answers to my questions and highly
recommend his books and his writings on his blog and on Unz.com for
those who wish to escape the Matrix and find a knowledgeable Russian
perspective on events and military matters; Martyanov is the antidote to
Tom Clancy disease.
Radioactive fallout map of America. Assuming a minor nuclear exchange using small, but accurate nuclear warheads.
I want to close by noting Andrei Martynov’s recent blog post “Ishenko Delivers” that referenced an article by Rostislav Ishenko entitled “In Bulgaria, a Russian Soldier” the title itself a reference to the song “Alyosha,” which I am familiar with from the album Wait for Me by the late exceptional baritone Dimitri Hvorsostovky. The below passage Ishenko wrote is moving, as is the song.
It was 1970. I was five years old.
I came to visit my grandmother. To the White Church. Near Kiev.
My grandmother is from the Urals.
My grandfather (on my father’s side) started the war near Stalingrad, and ended on the Dnieper (six wounds, four of them heavy, two shell shocks, medals “For Military Merit” and “For Courage,” the Order of the “Red Star” and “World War II” degrees).
The commander of a machine gun company. He fought for an incomplete year. From October 1943 he was no longer sent to the front (and his division arrived near Stalingrad in November 1942).
He died (in 1956) at 36 years old, from the consequences of a concussion (as a young major, in a colonel’s position).
In 1970, I was five years old (to be exact, then four and a half).
Grandmother was a teacher of French. At the same time and a class teacher. I came to visit her. Contrary to usual, I didn’t go straight home, but (for some reason unknown to me) I went to the school where she taught.
I think that she needed to complete the work with the class, and the school was five to seven minutes’ walk from home.
Here I am, as a future student, and they brought me to see how the children learn.
For about fifteen minutes I studied desks in an empty classroom (which at that time did not differ from the gymnasium at the beginning of the century) and read what was written on the board.
And then she went with her grandmother to the porch of the school, where her class (and other classes) performed.
Now I don’t remember what the holiday was, but I suspect it is May 9th. Because I went out onto the porch (they rather took me out, I was too small to go out myself), just as the girls from my grandmother’s class (8–10, already without pioneer ties and, as for me, adult aunts) sang “Alyosha.”
I haven’t heard the song so often since then, but I remember it well, because, in the words, “He doesn’t give flowers to girls, they give him flowers,” the entire female team of the school, which was standing next to me, wept.
It was the 70th year.
My grandmother was 48 years old.
Exactly at that age (in 2014) I left Kiev.
The city where four generations of my ancestors lived, in which my mother survived the occupation (and met the Red Army at the age of three), became not just a stranger, but a hostile one.
I can be forced to return there, but I cannot be persuaded or persuaded to do so voluntarily.
It’s like in a war.
All who survived and won are proud of the Victory, and while their fellow soldiers were alive, they met and remembered the days of old.
But they themselves did not dream of returning to the dugout under shelling, nor did they want to experience the “pleasure” of the attack (to their full height on the prepared defense) for their children.
Russians have in their collective memory the trauma of a war that killed millions, a subject Martyanov has discussed in depth especially in his first book;
…in that respect, they are different from Americans and I question the sanity of the rulers…
…especially the feckless political class…
…of the West who make the Russians foes.
Launch of American ICBM’s from the underground silos.
Perhaps only the people of the two nations—if they are enough in number in America—can prevent war from coming, because I am uncertain if the American military can reign in the powers that control them.
Or perhaps it is the fate for Russia to humble America, the way she did Nazi Germany, not necessarily by military might—at least I pray.
I suspect the process has started already.
Sadly, we know which side is most at fault for this deterioration of relations between our nations.
Reminders… China.
China and Russia will mutually work together militarily to counter American aggression.
As a history buff I must point out that ALL Major Wars started from misconceptions (they enemy is weak, cannot hit the broad side of the barn etc) AND starred new disruptive weapons (the Machine Gun in WW1 vs Calvary/Infantry charges, Aircraft carrier in WW2 vs the MIGHTY Battleship).
Will WW3 find the USA under EMP? Will Russian and Chinese high tech ECM systems shut off our High Tech Weapons? Ask the commanders of the two recent US Navy collisions if they think ECM jammed their Command and Control Systems. Both of the Ships were very high tech Aegis Warships, yet were rammed by slow moving clumsy Cargo Ships.
Will we get our heads handed to us like the Germans?
You know that in both world wars the Germans did not expect to lose you know.
Prepare for bad times my friends the petrodollar is almost done. The cost of everything is about to rise quickly.
-NH Michael
Chinese President Xi Jinping has urged Russia to strengthen bilateral comprehensive cooperation and mutual political support during a meeting with President Vladimir Putin at the G20 Summit in Hangzhou. This action has prompted political analyst Rostislav Ishchenko to assert that both countries are moving towards a political and military alliance.
"De facto a political and military alliance between Russia and China has existed for a long time and it is not a secret to anyone. Rumors have repeatedly surfaced that it could be formalized. But at the recent G20 summit the Chinese leader has for the first time mentioned the need to 'formalize relations' as openly as Chinese political and diplomatic traditions permit."
- Ishchenko, head of the Center for Systems Analysis and Forecasting, wrote for RIA Novosti.
Xi Jinping said that both countries should support each other in their efforts to protect national sovereignty and security. The Chinese president added that both nations should step up cooperation in such areas as infrastructure development, energy, aviation, aerospace and cutting-edge technology.
In addition, Russia and China should foster bilateral military exchanges and security cooperation.
Reminders… American Mainstream media
The US is likely to provoke a major war, partly in an attempt to unite a culturally divided country. But not just a sport war such as we’ve had in Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan. Probably with China, possibly Russia or Iran. Perhaps with all three. The US won’t do well, since it will find that its aircraft carriers, F-35s, and the like are equivalent to cavalry before WW1 and battleships before WW2.
- Doug Casey’s Top 7 Predictions for the 2020s
Americans, all jazzed up with the mainstream media news, and the mainstream pro-military movies, and a neocon government, is all but “chomping at the bit” to fight and (of course) win a war with either, Russia or China or both…
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Human history has been quite violent. From devastating pandemics to consistent war, our ancestors saw more action in a single week than most of us will see in our lifetimes.
We, living in our safe societies, has assumed that civilized safety is the norm. We are wrong. It isn’t. Violence is the norm.
Even if we have the numbers, it’s still difficult to imagine exactly how violent some of our history has been. Our most tumultuous times are now only remembered as statistics, even if they were a living nightmare for anyone unlucky enough to be there.
Consider the horrors during the collapse of society.
Here we discuss collapse scenarios and their stories. We look at historical events, and use them to predict future events. And, contrary to what we might want to believe, all nations eventually collapse. They do. This includes the largest empires on the face of the globe. Yes. This includes America.
Once they collapse, the survivors are either assimilated into other collectives, die off completely, or form new associations. Here, we look at the collapse of nations, empires and communities and what has happened during the events. These are just seemingly random reminders that the collapse of any society is possible and is often quite ugly.
This post…
This post is a compilation of musings that I have had for some time…
I have been wondering what it must have been for the people who were living in their nice stable societies when suddenly their entire world turned upside down. I wonder just how they felt when seemingly overnight, their entire life came crashing down.
America has NEVER experienced this.
Oh, some of the cities in the Southern States experienced this during the American Civil War, but they still were able to keep their English language, their history, and the deeds to their land. The people of Maine, for instance didn’t have the same experience that the citizens of Georgia or Alabama had to endure.
Nope. I’m talking about losing everything, and being grateful that you are still alive in a world that no longer speaks your language, where you are suddenly a third class slave, and every day is wracked with pain and agony.
America has never experienced THIS.
I say this because the collapse of the United States empire is probably going to be quite spectacular. It’s collapse will rival the fall of Asia before the great Mongol hordes.
The collapse of the United States is going to be spectacular.
I am going to concentrate on both Genghis Khan and Attila the Hun for illustration. There are many examples that I can use, but rather than get involved in other places and times, we’re going to keep things simple. Perhaps I can compare collapses using other nations and other times such as the Soviet Union, or the Comanche nation later on.
Most of this discussion revolves around the changes made by Genghis Khan.
Disclaimer
I cannot read tea leaves and have no way to predict the future aside from paying attending to trends in human behaviors. I have no special abilities in this regard. What I know about the MWI provides me with very little insight on our apparent future. Just my own part within it.
My advice to everyone is simple.
Strengthen your relationships with your neighbors. Make yourself known. Know people in town by their first names and be welcoming to all your local neighbors.
Don't get too caught up with the news.
Observe prudence in stockpiling food, and basic necessities. Live in a rural area if possible. Keep positive thoughts for they will affect your surroundings.
I am not promoting anything, just simply discussing what happened in the past, and raising the alarm that it could very well happen again.
…
Oh good God, no!
…
Do not be under the impression that you and your children will always be able to get a Moca-frappe coffee at Starbucks. Times change. Sometimes they evolve peacefully and sometimes they collapse all together violently.
Destroyed Starbucks.
Genghis Khan and Attila the Hun.
Let’s look at history.
Both of these rulers are similar in that they both seized well-established societies and communities. And those communities had become soft, complaisant and easy targets for a more aggressive society.
Genghis Khan (born Temüjin, c. 1162 – August 18, 1227) was the founder and first Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his death. He came to power by uniting many of the nomadic tribes of Northeast Asia.After founding the Empire and being proclaimed Genghis Khan, he launched the Mongol invasions that conquered most of Eurasia.
- Genghis Khan - Wikipedia
Map of the Empire of Genghis Khan.
Both Genghis Khan and Attila the Hun utilized superior military forces.
For the cities and cultivated places in the Mongols’ path, they were a natural disaster on the order of an asteroid collision.
Like the Huns and the Scythians before them, they came from the steppe grasslands of central Asia, which produced their great resource of horses and draft animals. After Genghis Khan united a number of Mongol tribes into a single horde under his command in the early thirteenth century, they descended on cities in China, India, Afghanistan, Persia, Turkestan, and Russia. Between 1211 and 1223, they wasted dozens of cities and wiped out more than 18.4 million people in China and environs alone.
-Brandon Christenson
These forces were trained and promoted through merit. They were lead by officers who obtained their positions through merit. In total these experts moved forward to conquer cities and nations. Nations, mind you, that had grown soft by a life of ease, internal political squabbling, and a digression away from meritorious behaviors.
Why is this important?
Attila the Hun = Russian Prototype = 450 AD
Ghenghis Khan = Chinese Prototype = 1200 AD
The time difference between the two is roughly 750 years.
So if you add 750 years to the time of Ghenghis Khan you end up with 1950. And in 1950 the largest nations in the world were China, Russia and the United States.
Using this rough calculation we can see that the decades following this date are significant for catastrophic changes in well-established nations.
China departure from pure communism to commercial socialism = 1970’s.
Russia departure from pure communism to democratic socialism = 1990’s.
American departure from oligarchical rule via democracy to a new form … 2020’s or so…
Every indicator is “red lining” and pointing to a massive reorganization of the United States. It may be voluntary, or it can be forced through catastrophic events. It might be initiated by the citizens themselves, or it can be aggravated through outside influences.
Though, reading the comments on social media, tells me that America is ripe for yet another fight. Ready to battle the world, Russia and China, for "democracy".
Totally oblivious to the consequences of global thermonuclear war.
What ever the cause, the developments, the reasoning, the mechanism or the intent… there WILL be changes coming to America in the 2020 decade. Here we discuss what it was like when the changes were brought forth suddenly to communities, cities and villages, in the past.
Please note all of these changes could have been prevented.
In every case it was the leadership of those cities, nation-states, and communities that “opened the door” for the rapid disintegration of their cultures, societies and lifestyles. In all cases, they misjudged the Huns, the Mongols, Attila, Ghenghis Khan, and their strengths. They viewed themselves technically, socially, spiritually, and culturally superior to the Asian horde.
They mistakenly believed that their previous national accomplishments, public structures, military campaigns, social importance, cultures and the arts were strong enough to withstand assault from outside threats.
They sat fat and comfortable in their capital cities, enjoying their concubines, eating lavish meals and trusting that things would forever continue on that path.
It was the national leadership that caused the destruction of their cities.
They mistakenly believed that their previous national accomplishments, public structures, military campaigns, social importance, cultures and the arts were strong enough to withstand assault from outside threats. They sat fat and comfortable in their capital cities, enjoying their concubines, eating lavish meals and trusting that things would forever continue on that path.
Leadership through merit
One of the most amazing things about the Mongols is that they had such exceptional leadership, even though they didn’t have much in the way of formal education.
The tactics and strategies employed by Genghis Khan and his greatest general, Subutai, were revolutionary, and at the time almost unstoppable.
One of the most amazing things about the Mongols is that they had such exceptional leadership.
Genghis created a meritocracy where the strongest and most talented rose to the top, and managed to unify the fighting Mongol tribes under his rule.
Leadership through merit creates a dangerous power.
General Subutai was able to simultaneously control two large armies, hundreds of miles away from each other. Pretty amazing in a time where communication was via horseback.
He was no slouch.
General Subutai won sixty five (65x) pitched battles, and masterminded over 20 military campaigns.
Leadership though merit will win over popularity or wealth every time.
US President Barack Obama has awarded the USA’s highest civilian honor to various actors, musicians and athletes during a ceremony at the White House.
The collapse of cities before Genghis Khan
We start our study by looking at some tales of cities that fell before the might of the Mongol hordes.
Now, empires, nations and civilizations don’t typically collapse due to war alone. It is often a combination of factors. Of which, war and violence is the most spectacular attribute.
Social collapse.
Political collapse.
Economic collapse.
Ethical collapse.
Physical collapse of infrastructure.
So, when Genghis Khan took over Asia, he did so not only with his superior forces, but through the knowledge that the cities were ripe for looting.
The cities were soft. Their people have become soft. Their rulers… soft.
President Obama showing his strength and leadership skills by riding a bicycle.
Their leadership was weak, and their military, while in numerous cases quite state-of-the-art, lost their ability to adequately assess threats, and dangers and take strategic action. They were led by weaklings, political appointees or nepotism.
They were not led through merit.
The cities started to adopt unhealthy behaviors and strange mannerisms. These in turn, isolated them from the surrounding communities. They began to get the reputation as a “loony bin” or place where people live “within their own bubble”. Today, even still, we refer to some of these cities such as Babylon, as a place of degradation.
The cities started to adopt unhealthy behaviors and strange mannerisms. These in turn, isolated them from the surrounding communities. They began to get the reputation as a “loony bin” or place where people live “within their own bubble”.
The collapse of a nation is caused by a combination of factors. Often, it is a superior culture or society confronts a stable but “soft” culture.
Most military historians judge that no European force could have stopped the disciplined and innovative Mongolian armies. “Employed against the Mongol invaders of Europe, knightly warfare failed even more disastrously for the Poles at Legnica and the Hungarians at Mohi in 1241”
-Stephen Hicks
You see the events around Genghis Khan are archetypal for the human condition.
Societies migrate from the K-reproductive strategy towards the r-reproductive strategy. Other societies do not, and then we have a situation where a K-reproductive strategy civilization encounters a r-reproductive society.
Blood is thus shed.
What happens when a society based on survival by merit encounters one of lazy sloth and unlimited sex?
Humans get comfortable, they get fat and lazy, and leaner, and meaner people confront them and take everything from them. The tough, the strong, and the aggressive takes from the weak and meek.
“The greatest joy for a man is to defeat his enemies, to drive them before him, to take all they possess, to see those they love in tears, to ride their horses, and to hold their wives and daughters in his arms.”
-Genghis Khan.
While this historical example (Genghis Khan) is actually referring to the physical seizure and physical destruction of people, place and things, we are referring to a far wider scope of assault.
A superior culture is one where everyone has a role, and works to the best of their ability. Leadership and success is determined by merit.
This can be military, as we have mentioned. It can be economic. It can be cultural. It can be sociological, and it can be ideological.
And, it can certainly be a combination of the above.
The Mongol were masterful at spreading fear and hate throughout Asia, people feared them, and therefore hated them.
They would rape and pillage entire villages, and torture their victims for fun.
Nobles would get it the worst.
Spilling noble blood was considered a crime, so they simply crushed them to death, which took many hours. Mongols would literally dine on top of them, making merry to the sounds of their screams from underneath. The sounds of bodies squelching, and bones snapping didn’t faze them.
But rumors of this execution method struck terror.
Fear made them even more powerful, and more feared, as people often chose to surrender and pay tribute rather than risk fighting them.
The tough, the strong, and the aggressive takes from the weak and meek.
They cultivated the illusion to sow fear into their enemies. And, you know, everyone who wasn’t a Mongol was their enemy.
Mongols also ate meat tenderized by being sat on beneath their saddles on long journeys; marmot steeped in sour milk; curds dried in the sun; roots, dogs, rats—almost anything, according to several observers. Marco Polo, who traveled among them in the years 1275-92, wrote that they ate hamsters, which were plentiful on the steppes.
A Franciscan friar who in 1245 went to seek out the Great Khan in the hope of persuading him to become a Christian reported that, during a siege of a Chinese city, a Mongol army ran out of food and ate one of every ten of its own soldiers.
Mediterranean people who knew the Mongols only by reputation believed they were creatures with dogs’ heads who lived on human flesh.
Other Mongol facts: On their treeless steppes, they tended to get hit by lightning a lot.
Thunder terrified them. They wore armor made of scales of iron sewn to garments of thick hide, and iron helmets that sometimes came to a point on top.
Their swords were short and sometimes curved.
The notches in their arrows were too narrow to fit the wider bowstrings of the Western people they fought, so that the arrows could not be picked up and shot back at them.
Mongol bows, made of layers of horn and sinew on a wooden frame, took two men to string. Warriors carried them strung, in holsterlike cases at their belts.
Mongols had no words for “right” and “left,” but called them “west” and “east,” respectively.
When anyone begged from them, they replied, “Go, with God’s curse, for if he loved you as he loves me, he would have provided for you.”
-The New Yorker
Human nature & Poland
Why do humans tend to get weak and soft? It’s in our nature. It’s called the r/K theory, and it’s worth a read. (Opens up in a separate tab.)
An anecdote from my most-recent visit there (Poland), which was three years ago. I was in the historic downtown of one of the smaller cities. My brother-in-law and I were at an outdoor table of a restaurant.
Next to us were two men, maybe mid-twenties. They discussed something. One of them was passionate about the subject and the other was listening.
For the first time ever in all of my visits to Poland, I felt that my SMV is behind the curve there. Age does its thing, of course, but that wasn’t it. Rather, after twenty years of my regular visits, I felt that… the young men there suddenly looked taller, better dressed, more intelligent, less awed by a shiny foreigner, more ready to give you that piercing look like they can make it hurt.
They are healthy people who see the same global war on Whites that I do, encircling their country.
The difference between me and them, is that I as a sort-of American represented a conquered people and they represented free men. What a difference that makes.
-PA "A Normal Country"
Best kinds of comments under Peter Sweden’s tweet are along the lines of “What a great example for the rest of us!” Exactly. The worst kinds of comments, and thankfully there were very few of those and I only saw them from European female posters: “I wish I could move to Poland.” Poland in the present moment is an example of a White Christian society that is free to be itself. This makes Peter Sweden’s statement “feels like a normal country” mean more than it does on its face.
“Normal country.” Ordinary people in a normal country aren’t going to be defensive or get in your face. Nor will they hem-and-haw like a normie-cuckservative who watches his words lest a non-lie slips out. What they will do, is patiently and politely tell you the simple truth because they are not ashamed of anything.
This is why Poland is so unusual to Western observers. It is a normal country in which men are masculine and women are feminine. Peter Sweden’s flattering comment about Poles should be as banal as an observation that the people there have two arms and two legs each. Yet it’s a startling observation because proper masculinity and femininity are under attack. Under these circumstances, Poland is paradoxically an extraordinary normal country. And so be it.
When people move away from “normal”, they become soft and easy prey for the rest of the wild dangerous world…
Here’s a shout out for Mr. Putin. You all might want to compare him to his American equivalent; Barrack Obama.
President Putin said, “It’s not just pounding your fists and making loud statements, I believe that strength has several dimensions: First, a person must be convinced of the truth in what he is doing, and secondly: he must be ready to go all the way to achieve the goals that he set.”
An important note
It is so very easy to get all caught up in history; dates, places and names. It can become so confusing if you are coming flush without any context to put the information into perspective.
Here, I am going to throw out some stories, history and details related to events and leaders of the past. This includes various generals, and leaders and the actions that they took. When names are given, it’s pretty much assumed that they are a ranking general.
There will be figures thrown about… 100,000 killed, 5000 ships sunk, 350,000 civilians slaughtered, etc. These are enormous figures and it is very difficult to put into perspective.
To keep things reasonable, consider that when figures such as these are mentioned, assume them to mean 95% of the people were killed, or 98% of the city was slaughtered. Or 100% of the ships were sunk.
Please do not get too caught up in the details.
It’s easy to get bogged down. Just read and learn that our past is a violent one, and enormous groups of people were caught up in very difficult times where survival was a rarity.
When a city was sacked our under siege, the surrounding environment was completely picked clean. The Mongols would forage for food, livestock and property. Homes, villages and communities were emptied. Roving band of marauders would attack individual communities and young boys would be set forth to learn how to sack a household on their own.
The Mongol area of influence during the battle of Mohi. When a city was attacked, the surrounding areas were emptied of everything. No one survived. Everything become the property and under the ownership of the Mongols.
The Mongols were like a plague of locusts eating and destroying everything in their path.
Speaking of Mohi…
Do not underestimate the dangerous
The Battle of Mohi was one of the most devastating battles in European history.
The Mongols attacked Hungary with three armies. One of them attacked through Poland in order to withhold possible Polish auxiliaries and defeated the army of Duke Henry II the Pious of Silesia at the Legnica. Duke Henry was slain (after trying to retreat) and “nine sacks of ears” collected by the victors “attested to the heavy losses of the defeated.” A southern army attacked Transylvania, defeated the Voivode (military commander) and crushed the Transylvanian Hungarian army. The main army led by Khan Batu and Subutai attacked Hungary through the fortified Verecke Pass and annihilated the army led by the count Palatine on March 12, 1241.
The Battle of Mohi, or Battle of the Sajó River, (on April 11, 1241) was the main battle between the Mongols under Subutai and the Kingdom of Hungary under Béla IV during the Mongol invasion of Europe.
It took place at Muhi or Mohi, southwest of the Sajó River.
Mongol use of heavy machinery demonstrated how military engineering could be put to effective and strategic use.
After the invasion, Hungary lay in ruins.
Nearly half of the inhabited places had been destroyed by the invading armies.
Around a quarter of the population was lost, mostly in lowland areas, especially in the Great Hungarian Plain, where there were hardly any survivors; in the southern reaches of the Hungarian plain in the area now called the Banat, and in southern Transylvania.
- Battle of Mohi - New World Encyclopedia
25% of Hungary’s population was wiped out by after the Mongol incursions.
Half of all livable places had crumbled, smashed to bits by hordes of Mongols. Losses were heavy on both sides, but the Europeans suffered most. This was the most important major battle of the war between Hungary and the Mongolians.
The Mongol invasion of Europe showing the battle of Mohi. This was the “Stalingrad” of the Hungarian Army. After the loss of this major battle, Europe fell to the Mongols.
After this major battle, Hungary was pretty much disarmed.
No armies remained to fight the Mongolians. Those few Hungarian survivors fled the area as fast as they could, leaving the cities. towns and villages undefended.
What followed was a tidal wave of death and destruction, as Mongol hordes rampaged through Hungary destroying cities, towns, communities, hamlets and habitations as they went.
What followed was a tidal wave of death and destruction, as Mongol hordes rampaged through Hungary destroying cities as they went.
It is terribly bad.
It made Hitler’s scorched earth policy look like a “walk in the park”.
Bela IV, the King of Hungary, actually had to run to his archenemy, Duke Frederick, for safety. Frederick extorted him for as much as possible, including three of his countries.
He was a coward, but he lived on…
And his nation was remade in the image of the conquering Mongol armies.
What must it have been like… I wonder…
Looting of a Gallo-Roman Villa, Painting by Georges Rochegrosse
We begin our study into this historical trend by looking at a fine painting by Georges Rochegrosse. It is titled “Looting of a Gallo-Roman Villa”, and it’s wonderful.
Let this painting tell the story of what to expect when a nation is ruled by the soft, corrupt and effeminate. Here we have a scene somewhere in the wealthy sections of the Roman empire.
Members of Genghis Khan’s armies have moved upon the villa. They killed the soft, fat and chubby wealthy owner, and took possession of his wives, sons, daughters and slaves.
Looting of a Gallo-Roman Villa, Painting Signed by the painter Georges Rochegrosse.Male servants / bodyguards are quickly killed and lie in front of the doorways, the walls and the stairs. Here, this male guard can be seen as such as determined by his pants and tunic / smock.The villa master / owner (fat, chubby, balding head, and fine white robes) lies dead in the flowers in his front yard. His fancy robes, and gold bracelets did not protect him.The military, with young restless males, kill their opposition and loot the household. They cart away what ever they desire.The owner’s wife / mistress / daughter is forcibly removed to be raped, and sold off into slavery. Judging from this painting, my guess would be that it was the mistress of the house. She is being removed along with the furnishings, carted away like the various possessions that the man had.The children, young daughters, sons, slaves, servants and elders are collected and stood in front of their news owners who will determine their individual fates. They are all resigned to their fates and await whatever lies in store for them.
The reader should never be under the impression that humanity has moved away from this reality. Technology has changed, but human nature has not.
Human nature has NOT changed.
The Nature of the society with advantage
In a nomadic society, you can’t afford to have slackers. There’s just too much work to be done. So that means it there’s no room for anyone who can’t make him or herself useful, women and children included.
This includes everyone, and if slaves cannot do what they are told, they are killed immediately.
Genghis Khan believed in being rewarded for hard work, and operated on a meritocracy over a nepotistic system. Many of his highest ranking officers and generals had earned their way to those positions, instead of simply being born to a particular family.
-Factinate
It’s not just the men folk. It’s everyone in the entire community.
According to the University of Victoria, Mongolian women were not only expected to shoulder a lot of the responsibility, they were also expected to do a lot of the heavy lifting.
This differs substantially from the lifestyle of the wives and women of the lands that they conquered.
While all women had to “earn their keep” in the households, the more “advanced the society”, the weaker and softer the women became.
While all women had to “earn their keep” in the households, the more “advanced the society”, the weaker and softer the women became. Rather than be tough, handling the daily chores, raising the children and supporting their men, they chose a life of ease and sloth.
Modern “woke” woman enjoying her “down time”. Self absorbed, selfish, and soft. They follow the historical norm for decadent cultures.
As such, when SHTF back “in the day”, there was little that they could do aside from submit to their conquerors. The women quickly learned their role in the new society or were killed. There were no other options.
Normalcy bias. The belief that things are never changing, that they have always been that way and will always continue to stay that way.
It must have been very difficult for the pampered women of the aristocratic classes…
Women who worked were not at all admired or esteemed.
Compared to their counterparts in ancient Greece, Roman wives of the upper classes were shocking in their visibility in public. Married women appeared in public, with their husbands, or with a retinue of attendants.
They went shopping, attended festivals, sacrifices, games, and entertainment. They acted as hostesses and dined out. They attended women-only social events.
Aristocratic women spent a great deal of time on personal grooming and beauty preparations.
- Women in Ancient Rome: Women's Daily Life and Work
A superior culture is one where everyone has a role, and works to the best of their ability. Leadership and success is determined by merit.
A superior culture is one where everyone has a role, and works to the best of their ability. Leadership and success is determined by merit.
Using Merit and Ability to control the weak and meek
Genghis Khan amassed the largest contiguous empire the world had yet seen. Only the British Empire, when it included both Canada and Australia, would be larger.
A superior culture is one where everyone has a role, and works to the best of their ability. Leadership and success is determined by merit.
Unlike Alexander the great, the Caesars or the Persian emperors, Genghis Khan’s idea of conquest was not to occupy and rule another people, but rather to rape, pillage and destroy everything in his path.
We was a warlord of destruction.
Genghis Khan was a man of reason. He let the people in the Mongol Empire live a happy life as long as they followed his rules. However, Genghis Khan cruelly punished everyone who tried to break those rules. For example, when the governor of one of the cities in the Khwarazmian Empire took over Genghis Khan's trade caravan and killed all the traders, Genghis Khan went berserker. He sent 100,000 Mongols to the Khwarazmian Empire and killed thousands of people, including the governor. Genghis Khan poured molten silver into the governor's eyes and mouth until the poor guy roasted from the inside. That was a clear sign that anyone, stupid enough to harm the Mongol Empire, would have to face devastating consequences. History shows that spreading fear worked perfectly in Genghis Khan's favor. He still needed to invade some rebellious places from time to time, but for the most of the time, people in The Mongol Empire behaved really well.
-The Richest
He purged the lands of all human opposition, all human constructions, all human education and learning, and all human influence.
Then he remade it in his own image.
Worse was to come in 1221 — ‘a year to live in infamy’. While Genghis’s other armies had been busy in the east, threatening Tbilisi in Georgia and terrifying the Christian world, Tolui, one of Genghis’s equally reprehensible sons, took Merv (in modern-day Turkmenistan), then one of the largest cities in the world.
Promised safety, the citizens surrendered and emerged from behind their walls.
Tolui looked at the mass of people placed in front of him.
He ‘surveyed the masses dolefully gathered with their possessions, mounted a golden chair and ordered mass executions to commence’. They took four days and nights to complete. Genghis’s rotten fruit did not fall far from the tree.
Terror — and the certainty of its visitation — was a major weapon in Genghis’s arsenal: decapitated women, children and even cats and dogs were reputedly displayed. But while the butchery was indeed immense, it is worth questioning its extent on occasion: a depopulated city had little economic value, and imported colonisers could make up only so much of the shortfall.
- Was Genghis Khan the cruellest man who ever lived?
Mongolia was a very difficult place to live, and thus the people that lived there become fierce and tough. Those in the West were no match for them. They became soft, and corrupt. They became easy prey for a tough warrior traditional conservative culture of warriors.
His total disregard for human life led to him being utterly feared throughout virtually the entire Eurasian land mass.
When George Curzon visited the ruined city of Merv in 1888, the vision of its decay overwhelmed him. “In the midst of an absolute wilderness of crumbling brick and clay,” the future viceroy of India wrote, “the spectacle of walls, towers, ramparts and domes, stretching in bewildering confusion to the horizon, reminds us that we are in the centre of bygone greatness.”
In its 12th-century pomp, Merv straddled the prosperous trade routes of the Silk Road. It was a capital of the Seljuk sultanate that extended from central Asia to the Mediterranean. According to some estimates, Merv was the biggest city in the world in AD1200, with a population of more than half a million people.
But only decades later, the city was effectively razed by the armies of Genghis Khan in a grisly conquest that resulted – if contemporary accounts are to be believed – in 700,000 deaths.
A trader arriving from Bukhara to the north-east or from Nishapur to the south-west would once have been relieved at the sight of Merv. Crisscrossed by canals and bridges, full of gardens and orchards, medieval Merv and its surrounding oasis were green and richly cultivated, a welcome reprieve from the bleakness of the Karakum desert.
The city’s enclosing walls ran in an oblong circuit of five miles, interrupted by strong towers and four main gates. Its streets were mostly narrow and winding, crowded with closely built houses and occasional larger structures: mosques, schools, libraries and bathhouses.
The citadel of the Seljuk sultans – replete with a palace, gardens and administrative buildings – loomed over the north-eastern part of Merv. Many different polities chose to make Merv the seat from which to rule Khurasan, a region that included eastern Iran and parts of modern-day Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Afghanistan.
“For its cleanliness, its good streets, the divisions of its buildings and quarters among the rivers … their city [Merv] is superior to the rest of the cities of Khurasan,” wrote the 10th-century Persian geographer and traveller al-Istakhri. “Its markets are good.”
Reaching Merv, the visiting trader might lead his pack-animals into the open courtyard of a two-storey caravanserai (an inn with a courtyard for travellers), where he would jostle for space with other merchants from as far as India, Iraq and western China. Or he could go straight to one of Merv’s large markets, convened outside the gates of the town or sometimes near its major mosques. The smoke of potters’ kilns and steel-making furnaces (Merv was famous for its crucible steel) would have hung over the surrounding industrial suburbs.
If the trader was feeling hot, he might step inside the icehouse on the city outskirts; a tall conical building where residents accumulated snow during the winter and which they used like a vast mud-brick fridge. Maybe he paid a visit to a member of the city’s elite who lived in a koshk (a fortress-like home outside the walls removed from the dust and noise of the city).
If he followed the route of the Majan canal, which ran up the middle of the city, past the workshops of embroiderers and weavers, he would reach both Merv’s central mosque and the adjacent monument, the mausoleum of Sultan Sanjar. Built in AD1157 to honour the long-ruling Seljuk sultan, the mausoleum was a large, square-shaped building rung with fine arches, capped by a dome sheathed in turquoise-glazed tile. The dome was so intensely blue that according to the Arab geographer Yaqut al-Hamawi, who visited Merv in the 13th century, “It could be seen from a day’s journey away.”
The city was known as Marv-i-Shahijan or “Merv the Great”, the largest and most famous of a succession of towns in the Merv oasis. In fact, the city sat alongside an earlier incarnation of Merv just to the east, known as Gyaur-kala (“fortress of the pagans”).
Gyaur-kala flourished under the Sassanid kings of Persia from the third to the seventh centuries AD. Archaeologists have found evidence in this older Merv of a cosmopolitan urban society, boasting communities of Zoroastrians, Buddhists, Manicheans, Christians and Jews. Under Muslim rule from the seventh century onwards, the locus of urban activity shifted west across the Razik canal to what would become Marv-i-Shahijan (also known as Sultan-kala, “fortress of the sultan”). Many of Gyaur-kala’s structures were probably cannibalised for material in the construction of the new Merv, and industrial workshops, kilns and furnaces sprung up amid its ruins.
Merv was famous for its exports, especially its textiles. “From this country is derived much silk as well as cotton of a superior quality under the name of Merv cotton, which is extremely soft,” noted the 12th-century Arab geographer al-Idrisi. Robes and turbans made from Merv cloth were popular around the Islamic world.
So too were Merv’s much-loved melons. “The fruits of Merv are finer than those of any other place,” wrote Ibn Hawqal, a 10th-century Arab chronicler, “and in no other city are to be seen such palaces and groves, and gardens and streams.”
Merv had such a strong reputation for commerce and the pursuit of wealth that the 14th-century Egyptian scribe al-Nuwayri described the city’s chief characteristic as “miserliness”.
But Merv under the Seljuks was also a city of learning and culture. It produced notable poets, mathematicians, astronomers, physicians, musicians and physicists. The polymath Umar Khayyam is known to have spent several years working at the astronomical observatory in Merv. “Of all the countries of Iran,” al-Istakhri wrote of Merv, “these people were noted for their talents and education.” Yaqut al-Hamawi counted at least 10 significant libraries in the city, including one attached to a major mosque that contained 12,000 volumes.
No conquest was as traumatic as its pillage by the Mongols in 1221. Yaqut al-Hamawi was forced to flee the libraries of Merv as the armies of Genghis Khan’s son Tolui advanced upon the city.
“Verily, but for the Mongols I would have stayed and lived and died there, and hardly could I tear myself away,” he wrote sadly. The Mongols laid siege for six days before the city surrendered, prompting one of the worst massacres of the age.
According to the Arab historian Ibn al-Athir, who based his account on the reports of refugees from Merv: “Genghis Khan sat on a golden throne and ordered the troops who had been seized should be brought before him. When they were in front of him, they were executed and the people looked on and wept. When it came to the common people, they separated men, women, children and possessions. It was a memorable day for shrieking and weeping and wailing. They took the wealthy people and beat them and tortured them with all sorts of cruelties in the search for wealth … Then they set fire to the city and burned the tomb of Sultan Sanjar and dug up his grave looking for money. They said, ‘These people have resisted us’ so they killed them all. Then Genghis Khan ordered that the dead should be counted and there were around 700,000 corpses.”
- Lost cities #5: how the magnificent city of Merv was razed – and never recovered
The large walls of the city-fort of Merv today. You can clearly see the turreted towers, and the tall walls.
This level of fear is difficult to imagine. As we sit in our comfortable, well furnished homes, and our nice new iPhones and brand new pickup trucks. It seems so far away. Like that war that American are fight for off in west-bumfuck-istan. Something you read about, but don’t really get too concerned about.
The closest thing that approaches this level of fear is a full-scale global thermonuclear war with hyper-velocity MIRV’s targeting the cities within driving distance from your home.
Nothing quite ruins a day like global thermonuclear war.
Americans need to wake up to what REAL fear is like before it is too late.
On a personal level…
There have been many, many sad events associated with invasion, war and conflict. Let’s not forget that everything is on a personal level.
War is deeply personal.
It is on a visceral level, where once the society collapses, the military fails, and the rulers flee, it is the individual families that must confront their new fates.
Imagine that the menfolk are off in the local militia fighting off the Mongol horde. The ladies are at the farm. It’s quiet. The rooster is starting to crow, and then suddenly…
Let’s not forget that everything is on a personal level. It is on a visceral level, where once the society collapses, the military fails, and the rulers flee, it is the individual families that must confront their new fates…
About this picture…
It’s just a small story besides great catastrophes and tragedies, but the most memorable thing I have ever learned about is the small family that burned in their own oven while - probably - were trying to hide from Mongol invaders.
Their village - which was destroyed and burned - was dated to be from the 13. century which is the time of the Mongol invasion (1241–42 in Hungary).
Most people could probably escape their settlement as archaeologist only found one other body in a ditch, but they were not that lucky. In the burned house they found an 8–10 years old girl, a 10–11 years old boy, and a 20–30 years old young woman in the oven of the house.
Someone probably ignited their house and as they couldn’t escape they hid in the oven in desperation. They died with their hand protecting their face, probably from the smoke, the boy was holding onto a kitchen tool which he perhaps wanted to use earlier to protect themselves.
-Quora
These photos are really powerful as they tell the horrible, vivid story this family might have gone through, which is really rare in archaeology in general. We talk about invasions, wars, and catastrophes so easily and tend to dehumanize the people who suffered from them because it happened so long ago but looking at them… it just reminds me that these dehumanized masses were made of persons. On the oven baking surface, we opened the skeletons of two children who had been huddled together, in front of them, and at the mouth of the furnace, the remains of a young woman were found. The youngchild was an 8-10-year-old girl who, on her left side, curled up, holding her right hand in front of her face, behind her 10-11-year-old brother.
They used strategy, always doing something new and unexpected.
A single battle can be the turning point in a war, partly due to this psychological warfare.
Once stable societies with decades of peace, trade, gardens, and robust relationships can become ghost-towns overnight when an invasion occurs and the military is not able to repel it.
In the Batlle of Legnica the Mongolians are estimated to have been fighting a force twice its size with a variety of soldiers, including the famed Knights Templar.
A European coalition formed to try and stop the Mongols from entering Europe. The safety of Europe depended on this battle. Partway through the battle the Mongolian forces and began to retreat, and Polish forces charged in, reserves were also sent in to capitalize on this opportunity.
The Mongols used feigned retreats to separate the knights from the European infantry, and fight them separately.
Little did they know, they had fallen for one of Genghis Khan’s most famous tactics, the feigned retreat. The Mongols used feigned retreats to separate the knights from the European infantry, and fight them separately.
As a result the Polish forces were decimated.
Dead horses, men and blood were everywhere. The survivors fled. Leading vast areas of Poland undefended.
Dead horses, men and blood were everywhere. The survivors fled. Leading vast areas of Poland undefended.
The people outside of the cities, in the small towns and villages, often unaware of what was going on, were often surprised by local raiding parties of Mongols. The raids would happen unexpectedly and were often quite brutal and nasty.
They were often killed, or burned alive in their homes.
The mother cradles an infant in her arms as the the father tries to protect them both .
The Mongols Lied, and failed to keep agreements.
And, aside from that, they also were terrible at keeping promises…
Mstislave surrendered to Subutai with the agreement that neither he, nor any of his men would be harmed. They were all slaughtered upon leaving the camp.
Subutai led an army of 20,000 Mongols against a Russian army 4 times its size.
The Mongol rear guard was defeated early in the battle, and so the rest of the horde was forced to retreat. Mstislav the Bold chased down the retreating Mongols with victory in his eyes. His army spread out as they attempted to catch them, a chase which lasted many days. Mstislav spotted Mongols in formation along the Kalka River, and attacked without waiting for reinforcements. With his army in disarray, Mstislav was forced to retreat back to a fortified camp.
He had fallen for a feigned retreat.
Mstislave surrendered to Subutai with the agreement that neither he, nor any of his men would be harmed. They were all slaughtered upon leaving the camp. Luckily, Mstislav managed to escape. Mstislav the Bold, boldly ran away.
-ESKify
Entire communities were wiped off the face of the Earth. Their leadership, grown fat, complaisant and happy over the decades of a life of leisure, were not at all equipped to deal with fierce, aggressive humans.
The Mongols were responsible for their own provisions. So while they were not fighting the armies, individual raiding parties broke from the main group and attacked isolated villages, homes and hamlets. No one was spared.
Consider Hungary.
This was one of the most devastating battles in European history. 25% of Hungary’s population was wiped out by after the Mongol incursions.
Half of all liveable places had crumbled, smashed to bits by hordes of Mongols. Losses were heavy on both sides, but the Europeans suffered most. This was the most major battle of the war between Hungary and the Mongolians.
-ESKify
Lets look at what happened to some of the various cities that decided to stand up and defy the Mongol armies.
Kaifeng, 1232-33.
Kaifeng was the capital city of the Jurchen Jin dynasty of northern China.
Mongol Siege of Kaifeng, (1232–33). A Mongol army commanded by Subedei captured the northern Chinese Jin dynasty capital, Kaifeng, overcoming defenders equipped with gunpowder bombs. The Jin emperor committed suicide, handing control of Jin territories in northern China to the recently elected Mongol khan, Ogödei.
- Mongol Siege of Kaifeng | Summary | Britannica
At the time of the Mongol siege of Kaifeng, China was roughly divided between three empires, the Xi Xia, the Jurchen Jin, and the Song.
At the time of the Mongol siege of Kaifeng, China was roughly divided between three empires, the Xi Xia, the Jurchen Jin, and the Song.
The Jurchen Jin were the predecessors of the Manchus in northern China and they had been at war with the Mongols for about 20 years before Kaifeng actually became a target of Mongol ambitions.
One of the first major cities to be attacked by Mongol armies, Kaifeng was also one of the longest-lasting sieges, as its garrisons used firebombs, gunpowder, and the resources of the entire Jurchen Jin empire to fend off the assault.
Kaifeng was also one of the longest-lasting sieges, as its garrisons used firebombs, gunpowder, and the resources of the entire Jurchen Jin empire to fend off the assault.
The Mongols had learned well from their Chinese prisoners how to conduct sieges.
They built a 54-mile-long wooden wall of contravallation to hem in Kaifeng’s one million frightened inhabitants.
Contravallation definition, a more or less continuous chain of redoubts and breastworks raised by besiegers outside the line of circumvallation of a besieged place to protect the besiegers from attacks from the outside, as by a relieving force.
- Contravallation | Definition of Contravallation
In addition to the almost 150,000 Mongols conducting the siege, the Song sent 300,000 troops to help finish off their Jin enemies. For six days, the Mongol and Song armies assaulted Kaifeng’s wall but took thousands of casualties from a dreaded weapon called a ho pao, a long bamboo tube filled with incendiaries that could be lit with a fuse or thrown into siege engines from holes in the walls to explode with such force that it left craters in the ground and burned everyone in the immediate vicinity.
Thousands of Mongol and Song Chinese troops died in assaults against Kaifeng’s stout walls.
It was clear to Subedei that a long siege was needed to reduce the Jin capital. Plague soon broke out in Kaifeng, and Subedei withdrew his forces to let the disease destroy his enemies while the Mongol and Song armies remained plague-free.
Plague soon broke out in Kaifeng, and Subedei withdrew his forces to let the disease destroy his enemies while the Mongol and Song armies remained plague-free.
Within a month, the Jin emperor committed suicide. Soon afterwards the Mongol and Song armies broke into Kaifeng and began massacring the population.
Ogedei ordered the massacre to be stopped and aid brought to the suffering people. Subedei wanted to massacre the entire Jin population and turn the farmland into grazing fields for Mongol horses, but Ogedei overruled him.
Ogedei ordered the massacre to be stopped and aid brought to the suffering people. Subedei wanted to massacre the entire Jin population and turn the farmland into grazing fields for Mongol horses, but Ogedei overruled him.
Ogedei’s Chinese advisers had convinced him that the Jin population would provide lucrative taxes, craftsmen, and soldiers for future Mongol conquests. The Jin held out until 1234 before being overwhelmed by the combined Mongol and Song forces, ending the Jin dynasty forever.
XiXia, the capital of Zhongxing
The Xi Xia capital of Zhongxing presented a new problem for the Mongols, who had little experience in siege warfare.
In an earlier siege of the walled city of Volohai, the Mongols had attempted a series of suicidal assaults with scaling ladders that failed, and they suffered heavy casualties in the fighting.
Genghis offered to lift the siege of the city provided the residents gave the Mongols 1,000 cats and 10,000 swallows in cages. The puzzled citizens of Volohai quickly granted the request—and just as quickly lived to regret it when the animals fled back into the city with tufts of flaming wool tied to each of them by the Mongols.
Soon, the whole city was ablaze. While the defenders were occupied with putting out the fire, the Mongols scaled the now undefended walls and massacred the inhabitants.
Genghis did not want to face a similar costly assault of the walls of Zhongxing.
Instead, he decided to break the dikes on the Huang River and flood the city below.
The plan backfired, however, when the Mongol camp itself was flooded and hundreds of troops were swept away by the raging waters.
To make matters worse, the move left two feet of standing water for miles around the city, in effect creating a ready-made moat.
The Mongols retreated into the surrounding hills but returned in force in 1210. Xi Xia Emperor Li Anquan, not wishing to face another siege, agreed to give his daughter Chaka to Genghis Khan as a wife and to pay tribute to the Mongols as a vassal state.
Genghis demanded and received another 1,000 young men and women, 3,000 horses, and vast quantities of gold, jewelry, and silk.
The Xi Xia later rebelled in 1218 and 1223 because they tired of providing the Mongols with so many men to fight in their wars of conquest, but these rebellions were brutally put down.
-Warfare History Network
Hangzhou (Lin’an), 1276.
Lin’an, or Hangzhou, was the capital city of the Song dynasty, which ruled over the much wealthier, much more powerful southern part of China.
Thesiegelastedfiveyears, butafullblockadewasnotwonforthree. Afterthecity'ssurrenderin 1273, theSongcourtwasindisarrayanddecidedtosendoutaforceof 130,000 mentomeettheMongols, butlostdecisively. TheMongolstookHangzhouin 1276 andcleanedupSongloyalistsinthenextfewyears.
- How did the mighty China lose to Mongols? : AskHistorians
Map of the Song dynasty showing city locations.
The long campaign to conquer all of China went through Song lands, and the Mongols had an incredibly tough time making their way to Hangzhou.
The capital city of the wealthiest polity in China, Lin’an was also one of the largest in the world and housed merchants (and their religious sites) from all over Asia.
The public buildings of the Song dynasty were impressive.
In this international city, Islam, Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism all competed for the hearts and minds (and money) of Hangzhou’s citizens.
The long campaign to conquer all of China went through Song lands, and the Mongols had an incredibly tough time making their way to Hangzhou.
The city of Hangzhou refused an offer to surrender peacefully and the Mongols had to fight their way in.
The siege of Hangzhou is less famous than many of the Mongols’ other sieges, despite the splendor of Hangzhou, because the royal family, headed by a child and run by a widowed empress – gave up and surrendered rather quickly.
Of course, once it was occupied it was burned to the ground. As usual, the Mongols massacred the city’s inhabitants.
The Mongols attacked the Jin Dynasty of northern China, whose ruler had made the mistake of demanding Genghis Khan’s submission. From 1211 to 1214, the outnumbered Mongols ravaged the countryside and sent refugees pouring into the cities. Food shortages became a problem, and the Jin army ended up killing tens of thousands of its own peasants. In 1214 the Mongols besieged the capital of Zhongdu (now Beijing), and the Jin ruler agreed to hand over large amounts of silk, silver, gold and horses. When the Jin ruler subsequently moved his court south to the city of Kaifeng, Genghis Khan took this as a breach of their agreement and, with the help of Jin deserters, sacked Zhongdu to the ground.
Xiangyang, 1267-73.
The Song dynasty was by far the most powerful enemy that the Mongols faced in their conquest of Eurasia. It was larger, wealthier, more populated, and had a better educated populace than any other polity in the world at the time.
OncetheMongolforcesoccupied Xiangyang, theycouldtravelbyshipsdowntheHanriverintotheYangtzeriver. AftertheBattleof Xiangyang, Chinacouldnotenjoytheprotectionofnaturalbarriersanymoreandsoitcollapsedinjustafewyears.
- Battle of Xiangyang - Wikipedia
The siege of Xiangyang, which lasted six years, was actually a siege of the twin cities of Xiangyang and Fancheng, which were both heavily fortified and served as the gateway to Song lands.
In battle, a historian wrote, “the Mongols made the fullest use of the terror inspired by their physique, their ugliness, and their stench.” Mongols were narrow-waisted and small-footed, with big heads. They shaved their hair short on the backs and tops of their heads and left it long at the sides. Custom forbade them from ever washing their clothes. Also contributing to their smell might have been their diet, which at certain times of the year was mainly mare’s milk. On marches when there wasn’t time to milk, Mongol riders would open a vein in their horses’ necks and drink the blood, either straight or from a pouch. Mongols were especially fond of fermented mare’s milk, called kumis. Many Mongol nobles died young from drunkenness. After victories, Mongols sometimes celebrated by drinking kumis while sitting on benches made of planks tied to the backs of their prisoners.
-The New Yorker
The Mongols had unsuccessfully laid siege to Xiangyang before, and gave up in order to conquer Russia and the entire Middle East instead.
The siege of Xiangyang, which lasted six years, was actually a siege of the twin cities of Xiangyang and Fancheng, which were both heavily fortified and served as the gateway to Song lands.
Mongol generals brought engineers from the Middle East to oversee the building and use of new trebuchets that eventually gave the invaders their victory over Xiangyang’s defenders.
With the fall of the twin cities, Mongols were free to overrun the rest of the Song dynasty’s territory. Most historians consider the sacking of Xiangyang to be the official end of the southern Song dynasty, and with it the cultural and economic power of old China.
Routing the Jin
In 1210, an emissary of the newly installed Jin emperor, Prince Wei, appeared before Genghis and demanded his submission and a tribute paid to the Jin.
An infuriated Genghis answered that it was the Jin who needed to pay tribute to him; he spat on the ground as a gesture of defiance. With his flank secured by the conquest of Xi Xia, Genghis was ready to attack the mighty Jin Dynasty.
After the Jin cavalry was defeated, the Jin pikemen, half of whom were militia conscripts, broke and ran. They were cut down by the Mongol cavalry or trampled by their own terrified horsemen.
In 1211, 30,000 Mongol troops under Genghis’s greatest general, Subedei, assaulted the Great Wall. The Mongols brought up groups of archers who cleared an area of wall while other Mongols scaled the wall with ladders and took possession of sections of it. The Jin rushed in reinforcements and recaptured the lost sections of the Great Wall. Thousands died on both sides as the fighting continued back and forth for several days.
The Jin brought most of their army to back up the forces defending the Great Wall. What the Jin didn’t know was that Subedei’s attack was merely a diversion.
Some 200 miles to the west, Genghis and a force of 90,000 Mongols were crossing the Great Wall at its end in the Gobi Desert. The Onguts, a tribe similar to the Mongols, were supposed to be guarding the western end of the Great Wall for the Chin, but they defected to Genghis and allowed the Mongols to cross into China unmolested.
After Genghis’s cavalry poured into China, Subedei’s force broke off its attack and crossed over into China from the end of the Great Wall as well.
The Jin forces were now out of position and moved to cut off the Mongols from Beijing. Genghis’s cavalry caught close to 200,000 Jin troops on open ground near Badger Pass, where the Jin hoped to block the Mongols from advancing any farther.
The Mongols would kill and acquire everything once they held a battle event. It was rare for there to be survivors, and the romantic notion of tending to wounded warriors was indeed a rarity.
The Jin formed for battle with the pike phalanxes and crossbowmen in the middle and armored heavy cavalry on the flanks. The outnumbered Mongol heavy cavalry engaged in a hotly contested battle on the flanks with the Jin cavalry as the densely packed Jin phalanxes and their crossbowmen held off the Mongol horse archers.
Suddenly, Subedei’s remaining 27,000 Mongols (3,000 had died at the Great Wall) showed up on the battlefield on the flanks and rear of the Jin army. The rout was on.
After the Jin cavalry was defeated, the Jin pikemen, half of whom were militia conscripts, broke and ran. They were cut down by the Mongol cavalry or trampled by their own terrified horsemen.
Bodies stacked “like rotten logs” littered the ground for more than 30 miles. Genghis then separated his army into three forces that burned, pillaged, raped, and murdered the populations of 90 cities over the next six months.
After the Jin cavalry was defeated, the Jin pikemen, half of whom were militia conscripts, broke and ran. They were cut down by the Mongol cavalry or trampled by their own terrified horsemen.
Despite the awful destruction, the Jin would not surrender. Genghis became frustrated by the enormous size and scope of a nation-state like the Jin.
He entered into negotiations with the emperor and agreed not to attack any more cities. The Mongols had already captured well over 100,000 Chinese prisoners; to make a negotiating point, Genghis had them executed.
Beijing
In response to the losses due to the invasion by Genghis Khan, the Jin moved their capital farther south, from Beijing to Kaifeng, and began rebuilding their armies.
Genghis was angered by the move, which he considered a betrayal of trust, and looked for an opportunity to attack the Jin again.
In the spring of 1213, the Jin attacked the Mongol-allied Khitan tribe in Manchuria.
Genghis came to the aid of his Khitan allies and attacked the Jin armies in Manchuria, which fell back to their fortifications at Nankuo Pass.
The Mongols were blocked from attacking Beijing by the well-fortified Jin positions at the pass and by the eastern sections of the Great Wall. The Mongols headed into the pass and then retreated. It was all a ruse.
Throughout history, Mongolia and China have had complicated relations. The Mongolian has the most robust environment; all the people are nomads who make their economy very poorly. The harsh environment makes it so tricky to survival, so the Mongolians always united to invade other countries.
The Jin forces hurried to trap the fleeing Mongols, recklessly leaving their fortified positions to pursue them.
The Mongols led the Jin forces into their own trap and destroyed most of the Jin army.
Those Jin troops that had not pursued the Mongols fled their fortified positions and retreated to the Great Wall, with the Mongols in hot pursuit.
A khanate was a political entity ruled by a khan. Historically speaking, the ruler of a Mongolian tribe was given the title ‘Khan’. Later on, this title was adopted by many Muslim societies. Although there were many khanates throughout history, the most famous ones are those that succeeded the Mongol Empire. During the 13th century, the Mongol Empire was established by Genghis Khan. To signify his position as the supreme ruler of the Mongols, Genghis Khan assumed the title ‘Khagan’, which may be translated to mean ‘Great Khan’. The successors of Genghis Khan continued to use the title ‘Khagan’, though it was not long before the empire began to fragment.
The Mongols caught and destroyed the remaining Jin troops as they tried frantically to retreat through the Great Wall. The Mongols then passed through the open gates of the Great Wall.
The Mongols began besieging the more than one million residents of Beijing. Beijing was a tough nut to crack, with walls and moats that extended more than nine miles around the city, and was watched over by 900 towers.
The city’s defenders had double and triple crossbow ballistae and trebuchet catapults that fired clay pots filled with naphtha-like incendiaries that exploded and set on fire whatever they hit.
Beijing was a tough nut to crack, with walls and moats that extended more than nine miles around the city, and was watched over by 900 towers.
The Jin also introduced one of the first poison gas weapons in history, firing projectiles bound in wax and paper of 70 pounds of dried human waste, ground-up poisonous herbs, roots, and beetles packed in gunpowder.
The projectiles were lit with a fuse and fired from a trebuchet, creating a deadly cloud of toxic fumes that killed or disabled anyone unfortunate enough to breathe in the poisonous dust.
The projectiles were lit with a fuse and fired from a trebuchet, creating a deadly cloud of toxic fumes that killed or disabled anyone unfortunate enough to breathe in the poisonous dust.
The Jin also had clay-pot firebombs filled with incendiaries to throw from the walls and hot oil to pour down on attackers.
The Mongols launched attacks against the walls with ladders, but lost dozens of men to the incendiaries and the hot oil.
The Mongols then forced Jin prisoners to build and push forward siege engines and serve as human shields for the attackers. Jin soldiers would recognize family and friends among the captives and hold their fire.
Many Jin prisoners were killed from missed crossbow fire aimed at the Mongols and from the bombs used to burn down the siege engines before they could get into the city.
Many Jin prisoners were killed from missed crossbow fire aimed at the Mongols and from the bombs used to burn down the siege engines before they could get into the city.
The Mongols and their Chinese human shields dug trenches covered by cowhide up to the walls to undermine them, but the Jin dropped firebombs from chains onto the trenches that exploded with such force that they left only smoldering craters and no intact human remains.
The siege dragged on for a year as starvation and disease began killing people on both sides of the walls, but the defenders, with more than a million people to feed, had the worst of it.
Two Jin relief columns loaded down with food were intercepted by the Mongols, and some defenders in Beijing turned to cannibalism to survive.
In June 1215, the Jin commander escaped to Kaifeng, where he was executed by the emperor for leaving his post.
The Jin also introduced one of the first poison gas weapons in history, firing projectiles bound in wax and paper of 70 pounds of dried human waste, ground-up poisonous herbs, roots, and beetles packed in gunpowder.
The desperate people of Beijing then opened the gates of the city to the Mongols, who ransacked the city and massacred thousands in revenge for their ordeal. The city was set on fire. Thousands of girls ran to the city’s steepest walls and threw themselves to their deaths to escape the flames and the unwanted amorous attention of the Mongols.
A year later, the ambassador of Khwarezm described seeing mountains of bones inside and outside of what had been the greatest city in the world.
Moscow, 1382.
By 1382, Mongol power in Russia had waned considerably.
So much so, in fact, that Moscow’s rulers felt confident enough to challenge the authority of the Golden Horde on the field of battle.
Russia around 1382.
After a string of light victories against Mongol cavalry earlier in the year, the Mongols showed up with a large force on the doorstep of Moscow, promising to spare its inhabitants if it surrendered.
The poor fools in Moscow believed the Mongols, and 24,000 people were slaughtered as the Mongols sacked the city once again.
Moscow believed the Mongols, and 24,000 people were slaughtered as the Mongols sacked the city once again.
The siege of Moscow (one of many) reasserted Mongol control over Russia for nearly 100 more years before the Russians were finally able throw off the infamous yoke of the Golden Horde.
When the Mongols invaded the Russian town of Yaroslavl in 1238, almost nobody was spared.
Hundreds were slaughtered brutally and dumped into mass graves as the town was completely sacked. Nearly 800 years later, researchers have given us a chilling glimpse of the victims left behind.
After the slaughter, Mongol raiders buried the dead in pits by the dozens with no markers to distinguish who these poor victims even were, wrote LiveScience.
But one pit of the dead in particular stood out after scientists of the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology began genetically analyzing three of its 15 corpses.
Researchers found that the three murdered townsfolk buried together in the dirt were a woman, her daughter, and her grandson.
Moscow’s research team found that the eldest of the three corpses was at least 55 years old before she died. Her daughter was between 30 and 40, while her grandson was younger than 20.
They were buried in one of nine pits found at Yaroslavl, which altogether held more than 300 bodies.
- Researchers Uncover Horrors Of Russian ‘City Drowned In Blood’ By The Mongols In 1238
Nearly 300 bodies were buried across nine pits. The son, mother, and grandmother were buried in a pit of 15 people.
As for Yaroslavl as a whole, Mongols led by Genghis Khan’s grandson Batu Khan destroyed the town not long after advancing into Russia.
Nonetheless, enough buildings and artifacts survived to tell us a little something about the area, namely that it was a wealthy one. Scientists determined this by noting the tooth decay present in the three bodies in question and noting that the honey and sugar that could cause this were only available to those with substantial means at the time.
Beyond the three generations of one family left slaughtered in a pit, the scene at Yaroslavl showed just how brutal its conquest was. Batu Khan invaded towns like Yaroslavl with utter indifference, ultimately taking more than a dozen places in present-day Russia.
In just five years, he wiped out seven percent of Russia’s population.
When the Russian Grand Prince refused to submit to the Mongols, Genghis Khan’s grandson simply burned the capital city to the ground — with the royal family and every inhabitant inside.
- Researchers Uncover Horrors Of Russian ‘City Drowned In Blood’ By The Mongols In 1238
The skulls and bones all showed signs of violence. They were either punctured, broken, burned, or a combination of all three.
The brutality that has made the conquest of Yaroslavl unforgettable for many Russians was certainly on display in the way the victims’ bodies were treated after death.
Prior analysis suggested that the three family members, for example, were buried in February 1238. But recent evidence in the form of preserved maggots in their remains indicated otherwise. In fact, new evidence shows that the bodies were probably decomposing in the open air for months before they were buried.
“These people were killed, and their bodies remained lying in the snow for a fairly long time,” Engovatova said.
“In April or May, flies started to multiply on the remains, and in late May or early June, they were buried in a pit on the homestead, which is where they probably had lived.”
Fittingly, Engovatova described Yaroslavl after the attack as a “city drowned in blood.”
The skeletons of the three family members as well as the remains of the other victims — including punctured, broken, and burned bones in the hundreds of buried bodies — certainly suggest that to be true.
- Researchers Uncover Horrors Of Russian ‘City Drowned In Blood’ By The Mongols In 1238
Kiev, 1240.
There is a convincing argument to be made that during the medieval era in Europe, the Slavic world’s cultural, political, and economic epicenter was Kiev rather than Moscow or Warsaw.
The Mongols had so many oxen and cattle that they were able to carry all kinds of stuff with them—entire houses, and even temples—on giant carts. Observers said the number of Mongol horses was beyond counting, every warrior possessing many remounts.
Mongols spent so much time on horseback that they grew up bowlegged. If a Mongol had to move any distance farther than a hundred paces, he jumped on a horse and rode. A contemporary Russian annal describes the Mongol army approaching the walls of Kiev:
“The rattling of their innumerable carts, the bellowing of camels and cattle, the neighing of horses, and the wild battle-cry, were so overwhelming as to render inaudible the conversation of the people inside the city.”
Of necessity, the Mongols did most of their conquering and plundering during the warmer seasons, when there was sufficient grass for their herds.
-The New Yorker
Alexander and Frederick the Great brilliantly exploited the military foundations laid by their fathers. The genius of Julius Caesar and Napoleon was nourished by the might and wealth of Rome and France. Of the iconic conquerors, only Genghis built from scratch, spending over 20 years bringing the warring tribes of Mongolia under his rule, before exploding in campaigns of conquest at all points of the compass. The skill and mobility of Mongol horsemen was legendary; their archers and lancers were devastating. By his death in 1227, his armies had conquered as far west as the Caspian, annihilating the Khwarizm Empire, and crushed the Chin and Xi Xia kingdoms of northern China. Under his son, Ogedei, the Mongols advanced into China, India, and eastern Europe, where they routed Christian armies at Legnica and Mohi (1241). After destroying both the Abbasid and Ayyubid caliphates, the Mongols finally found their nemesis in the Mamluks at Ayn Jalut in Syria (1260).
When the Mongols invaded Europe and plundered Kiev in 1240, the collapse of Kiev indeed proved crucial to the invading army’s success in pillaging Europe’s surprisingly defenseless countryside.
Landscape of Podil. Fragment of ancient Kiev layout 10-13 centuries. Reconstruction Mazyukevich.
Unlike China, which had a densely populated countryside and a few well-fortified cities, or the Middle East, which had virtually no countryside and many well-fortified urban areas, Europe was comparatively rural, or semi-rural .
Map of the surrounding regions of Kiev prior to the Mongol invasion.
This meant that small urban areas like Kiev fell easily to the Mongol hordes, but it also made it harder for Mongol administrators to govern and tougher for the Mongol military to plunder, siege, and demoralize the populace.
None of this stopped the Mongols from wreaking havoc on eastern Europe, of course, but it does help to explain, in part, why khanates in Europe did not share the successes of their contemporaries in the Middle East, western India, and China.
Kiev has a moderately grid-like layout- much like the Greeks. It is probably like this because the Romans copied the Greek grid layout, and Ukraine was apart of the Roman Empire when it was established.
Oh, by the way, the Mongols slaughtered 48,000 of the 50,000 people living in Kiev when the city’s defenses collapsed.
Baghdad, 1258.
All is fine, peaceful, then all of a sudden all Hell breaks loose. It could happen to you, at any time, and at any place.
The fall of Baghdad was in a class of it’s own.
(General) Tamerlane’s thing was building pyramids out of heads.
When his forces took Baghdad, he spared almost no one, and ordered that each of his ninety thousand soldiers bring him a head (some sources say two) or lose his own life.
The thousands of heads were piled into towers.
Tamerlane also said not to destroy hospitals and mosques, a small concession by a Muslim to the former capital of his faith.
Nonetheless, thanks to him and to Hulagu, almost no architecture from the golden days of Harun al-Rashid has survived.
Baghdad would not be a city of any consequence for another five hundred years, until its strategic location and Iraq’s oil attracted the attention of world powers.
Many Muslims believe that the Mongol destruction of Baghdad and of the caliphate was the worst misfortune ever to befall Islam. With it, the faith’s first period of flowering came to a decisive close (though its actual decline had, of course, begun earlier).
Historical speculations about what might have been if the disaster had never occurred go in various directions, some tending toward the wild.
A book on Arab cultural identity published in the nineteen-fifties quoted a high official in the Syrian government who said that if the Mongols hadn’t destroyed the libraries of Baghdad, Arab science would have produced the atom bomb long before the West.
Recently, when TV stations everywhere were replaying the video of a U.S. marine shooting a wounded prisoner in a mosque in Falluja, a newspaper story about Arab reaction to the incident said that a retired army officer in Cairo said that the Americans were “acting like Genghis Khan.” He had the wrong Mongol, but his drift was ancient and familiar.
-The New Yorker
Baghdad was the technological, cultural, and societal center of the civilized world.
The walls of Bagdad.
As happens with most golden eras, Baghdad’s quickly ended.
A century after Harun al-Rashid, the city’s influence and glory had declined. Political changes made the caliph less powerful, limiting his temporal domain to Baghdad and nearest regions, though Sunni Muslims in other places still accepted his spiritual authority. The city remained a center of wealth and commerce, and an imposing sight architecturally.
A Spanish pilgrim, Ibn Jubayr, who visited Baghdad in 1184, wrote, “The Tigris . . . runs between its eastern and its western parts . . . like a string of pearls between two breasts.” He noted the beauty of the caliph’s palace reflected in the water.
Caliph Mustasim, the thirty-seventh in the Abbassid line, who became caliph in 1242, had confidence that his house would reign until Resurrection Day. Rumors of the approach of the Mongol army in 1257 did not worry him. During the reign of his father, the armies of the caliph had been among a very few opponents to defeat and turn back the Mongols.
From deep in Mongolia (General) Hulagu set out in 1253, marching westward at the head of a large force that included siege-engine experts of several nationalities.
His trebuchets could hurl huge rocks, and smaller stones covered in flaming naphtha, and his arbalesters could shoot bolts dipped in burning pitch a distance of twenty-five hundred paces.
Hulagu’s brother Mongke Khan told him to subdue the people he encountered as he continued all the way to Egypt, being kind to those who submitted and killing or enslaving the rest.
The Mongols took eighteen months crossing Asia as far as Afghanistan.
There and in the mountains of Persia they stopped to conquer the Assassins, an extreme Shiite sect that terrorized neighboring rulers by sending young men on suicide missions to kill them. The young men were drugged with hashish (source of the word “assassin”) and were told that when they died they would immediately go to Paradise, where women and other pleasures awaited.
In no-quarter sieges, Hulagu battered the Assassins out of their mountain fortresses with his heavy weapons, and then destroyed them root and branch.
Later historians agreed that in this, at least, he did the world a favor.
By 1257, Hulagu had reached western Persia.
From there he sent emissaries to the caliph telling him to raze the walls of Baghdad and fill in the moat and come in person to make obeisance to Hulagu.
The caliph replied that with all of Islam ready to defend him, he did not fear.
He advised Hulagu to go back where he came from.
The Mongol army had recently received reinforcements from other Mongol hordes, and a contingent of Christian cavalry from Georgia.
Perhaps the Mongols had eight hundred and fifty thousand soldiers; certainly they had more than a hundred thousand.
In November of 1257, they marched on toward Baghdad, dividing as they approached so that their forces would surround the city. The caliph sent an army to stop those approaching from the west, and repulsed them in an early battle.
In the next encounter, the Mongols broke some dikes and flooded the ground behind the caliph’s army, and slaughtered or drowned them all.
Mustasim, the caliph, was not of a character equal to such large problems. He is described as a weak, vacillating layabout who liked to drink sherbet and keep company with musicians and clowns.
Worse, from a strategic point of view, Mustasim had recently angered the Shiites by various insults and offenses, such as throwing the poem of a famous Shiite poet in the river.
Now vengeful Shiites volunteered help to the Mongols in Mosul and other places along their march.
The caliph’s vizier, or chief minister, was himself a Shiite of uncertain loyalty. Islamic opinion afterward held that the vizier, al-Alkamzi, vilely betrayed the caliph and conspired with the Mongols; an exhortation in Muslim school books used to say, “Let him be cursed of God who curses not al-Alkamzi.”
As fighting began, Hulagu, acknowledging the importance of Shiite support, prudently posted guard detachments of a hundred Mongol horsemen at the most sacred Shiite shrines in Najef and Karbala.
On January 29, 1258, Hulagu’s forces took up a position on the eastern outskirts of Baghdad and began a bombardment.
Soon they had breached the outer wall.
The caliph, who had been advised against escaping by his vizier, offered to negotiate. Hulagu, with the city practically in his hands, refused.
The upshot was that the caliph and his retinue came out of the city, the remainder of his army followed, they laid down their arms, and the Mongols killed almost everybody.
Hulagu told Baghdad’s Christians to stay in a church, which he put off-limits to his soldiers. Then, for a period of seven days, the Mongols sacked the city, killing (depending on the source) two hundred thousand, or eight hundred thousand, or more than a million.
The Mongols’ Georgian Christian allies were said to have particularly distinguished themselves in slaughter.
Plunderers threw away their swords and filled their scabbards with gold. Silver and jewels and gold piled up in great heaps around Hulagu’s tent.
Fire consumed the caliph’s palace, and the smoke from its beams of aloe wood, sandalwood, and ebony filled the air with fragrance for a distance of a hundred li. (A li equalled five hundred bow lengths—a hundred li was maybe thirty miles.)
So many books from Baghdad’s libraries were flung into the Tigris that a horse could walk across on them. The river ran black with scholars’ ink and red with the blood of martyrs.
The stories of what Hulagu did to the caliph vary.
One says that Hulagu toyed with him a while, dining with him and discussing theology and pretending to be his guest. A famous account describes how Hulagu imprisoned the caliph in a roomful of treasure and brought him gold on a tray instead of food. The caliph protested that he could not eat gold, and Hulagu asked him why he hadn’t used his money to strengthen his army and defend against the Mongols. The caliph said, “That was the will of God.” Hulagu replied, “What will happen to you is the will of God, also,” leaving him among the treasure to starve.
Many sources agree that there was fear of an earthquake or other shock to nature occurring if the caliph’s sacred blood was spilled. Learned Shiites advised Hulagu that no catastrophes had followed the bloody deaths of John the Baptist, Jesus Christ, or the Shiite saint Hosein, so he should go ahead.
To be safe, Hulagu had the caliph wrapped in a carpet and then trodden to death by horses.
He also killed all the caliph’s family, except for his youngest son and a daughter. The daughter was shipped off to Mongolia to be a slave in the harem of Mongke Khan.
-The New Yorker
The Mongols took all of 12 days to destroy several centuries worth of cultural, political, and scientific achievements. All was left in ruin…
Hulagu left three thousand Mongols in Baghdad to rebuild it, but they did not accomplish much.
Decades later, it was still mostly a ruin.
Some irrigation systems that the Mongol army destroyed were not repaired until Iraq began to get money from its oil in the twentieth century. Mongols had no real talent for building, anyway.
Plague and famine and disintegration followed the Mongol incursion. Places they conquered sometimes had to be re-subdued.
The city of Mosul, which had submitted almost eagerly to Mongol rule at first, changed its attitude afterward, when a new malik, or prince, came to power there. Under his leadership the inhabitants of Mosul—Kurds, Arabs, and some tribal people—rebelled and forted themselves up behind the city walls, and the Mongols put them under siege.
During one attack, a number of Mongol soldiers climbed over Mosul’s walls, only to be surrounded and killed to a man. The defenders then cut off the Mongols’ heads, put the heads in a catapult, and fired them back at the Mongols outside.
This effrontery brought out Hulagu’s sternest side.
After his forces finally took the city, he ordered the malik to be brought to him. Then he had the malik fastened tightly inside a fresh sheepskin and left in the sun, where vermin ate him alive for a month until he died.
-The New Yorker
Aleppo, 1260.
In 1219 Genghis Khan went to war against the Khwarezm Empire in present-day Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan and Iran.
The sultan there had agreed to a trade treaty, but when the first caravan arrived its goods were stolen and its merchants were killed.
The sultan then murdered some of Genghis Khan’s ambassadors.
Despite once again being outnumbered, the Mongol horde swept through one Khwarezm city after another, including Bukhara, Samarkand and Urgench.
Skilled workers such as carpenters and jewelers were usually saved, while aristocrats and resisting soldiers were killed. Unskilled workers, meanwhile, were often used as human shields during the next assault.
No one knows with any certainty how many people died during Genghis Khan’s wars, in part because the Mongols propagated their vicious image as a way of spreading terror.
-History.com
The Mongol siege of Aleppo wasn’t all that noteworthy, and the city itself wasn’t all that important to any of the players involved in the Mongol conquest of the caliphate, but Aleppo is today a famous city (notwithstanding former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson’s famous gaffe) for all the wrong reasons.
The more things change, the more they stay the same. Aleppo fell to the Mongols in six days, and like most of the Muslim cities that were conquered by the Mongol hordes, Aleppo’s citizens were callously slaughtered.
The Great Mosque of Aleppo, one of the few bright spots in the city’s long, mostly sad history, was also razed. (The Mongol general who led the siege, Hulagu Khan, executed some his local ally’s leaders, who were Christian, for this travesty.)
Bukhara, 1220.
Located along the Silk Road, Bukhara was at the time of the Mongol invasion of Persia a flourishing center of intellectual and commercial activity, and not just throughout Persia but the whole Muslim world.
Scholars, merchants, and mercenaries from Bukhara were famed as far away as China and Germany.
The walls of Bukhara are still standing today.
It is estimated that 30,000 people died after the Mongols conquered Bukhara, a result of most of the city surrendering but not the garrison.
Thirty thousand was a “moderate” number of people to be killed for Bukhara’s equally moderate resistance to the Mongol hordes.
Bukhara is a city found in Bukhara, Uzbekistan. It is located 39.77 latitude and 64.43 longitude and it is situated at elevation 229 meters above sea level.
The Mongol invasion of Persia, which was ruled by the Khwarazmian dynasty at the time, happened just as the empire was emerging from expansionary conquests of its own. This meant that the Khwarazmians, while technically governing Persia, had little actual power in the region, and the resistance to the marauding Mongols highlights Persian weakness well.
Samarkand, 1220.
... his armies moved west and targeted Persia in 1219, where the Sultan had, in an act of extreme foolhardiness, deliberately provoked Genghis by shaving off the beards of two of his ambassadors and killing a third.
Samarkand, that glorious city on the Silk Road, fell in 1220, despite the defenders’ super-weapon of two dozen war elephants.
McLynn dismisses the oft-quoted figure of 50,000 killed there in a single day (note the limited time span), but admits ‘it is clear that the death toll was terrific and unacceptable’.
-Spectator
Samarkand, the makeshift, emergency capital city of the Khwarazmian dynasty, was much larger than Bukhara and much better fortified. (Samarkand, was made a legitimate, non-emergency capital by Tamerlane 150 years after the Mongol siege and conquest.)
The Mongols used prisoners as body shields during the assault, and pulled off a brilliant tactical stunt when they collectively feigned retreat, drawing out the Persian garrison, only to turn on the careless attackers and slaughter them in the open field of battle.
Due to the fame of Samarkand far and wide, Genghis Khan spared the inhabitants of the city but did loot it and conscripted another estimated 60,000 for military service or craftsmanship. This left Samarkand, glorious from the time of Alexander the Great, empty of people and empty of riches.
Lahore, 1241.
Lahore is today the largest city in the Punjabi world, and one of the most important cities in all of Pakistan.
In 1241, when the Mongols laid siege to it for the first time, Lahore had already been abandoned for Delhi by elites who were worried about the unrest caused by the Mongol invasions in neighboring countries.
Lahore is a city found in Punjab, Pakistan. It is located 31.55 latitude and 74.34 longitude and it is situated at elevation 224 meters above sea level.
When Persia fell, for example, some of the Khwarazmian dynasty’s elite fled to Lahore, where they conquered the city and tried to establish a new dynasty.
The locals retook Lahore from the fleeing Persians, but this confusion only weakened the city and by the time the Mongol horde arrived in 1241, Lahore was ripe for the plucking.
The Mongols soon lost the city to yet another reconquest by the locals, but this back-and-forth between the marauding Mongols and the local elites rendered Lahore, once a prominent center of Islamic education and culture, a frontier urban area, fit only for fighting and brusque commerce with non-urban peoples.
Lahore’s frontier status, while bad for this once-prestigious city, enable the Indian subcontinent to largely avoid the fate of China, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe.
The Chinese were the most powerful and wealthiest country on the planet in the 1200s. China had the ability to put more soldiers in the field than many other countries had in total population! For a group of less than 70,000 horse archers to conquer such an enormous power without writing, sophisticated siege technology, or a concrete military system like the Chinese had is almost unimaginable. However, Chinese sources were stunned with the speed and efficiency with which the Mongols were able to sweep through their lands.
Genghis Khan Diverted A River Through An Enemy’s Birthplace To Erase It Off The Map
When Genghis Khan found the Muslim kingdom of Khwarezmia, he did
something unusual: He took the peaceful route. A group of diplomats were
sent to the city, hoping to establish a trade route and diplomatic
ties.
The governor of Khwarezmia, though, didn’t trust them. He thought the
diplomats were part of a Mongolian conspiracy and had them executed. He
killed the next group they sent, too.
Genghis Khan was furious. He had tried to be nice, and he’d been repaid with dead diplomats. He set up an army of 200,000 soldiers, attacked, and completely destroyed Khwarezmia.
Genghis Khan was furious. He had tried to be nice, and he’d been
repaid with dead diplomats. He set up an army of 200,000 soldiers,
attacked, and completely destroyed Khwarezmia.
Even after he’d won, Khan sent two armies to burn down every castle,
town, and farm they found to make sure that no hint of Khwarezmia
survived. According to one story, he even diverted a river to run
through the emperor’s birthplace, just to make sure it would never
appear on a map again.
Genghis Khan Erased A Kingdom From History For Not Helping Him
When Genghis Khan attacked Khwarezmia, he asked the conquered kingdom of Xi Xia to send him troops. They refused. Xi Xia tried to take a bold stand against their oppressor, and they quickly regretted it. The Mongolian army swarmed through Xi Xia, destroying everything that they found. They systematically exterminated every member of the population.
The Mongolian army swarmed through Xi Xia, destroying everything that they found. They systematically exterminated every member of the population.
They hadn’t written down their own stories, so the only records of their existence came from neighboring countries. Their language wasn’t recovered for more than 700 years. It took until the mid-20th century for archaeologists to unearth stones that had their writing on them. In the meantime, every word they had spoken was forgotten.
Genghis Khan died during the battle, most likely from being thrown from his horse. Still, the Mongolian army carried out his work. They slaughtered every person they found, even after their leader was dead and their enemy had surrendered.
The Yuan Dynasty
In 1251, Mongke was elected Great Khan and decided to intensify the war with the Song Dynasty.
In 1253, some 100,000 Mongols and their Chinese allies captured Dali and Yunnan and crossed through Laos to attack the Song Empire’s southern flank.
The Mongols clashed with more than 100,000 Song troops and 1,000 war elephants near the Laotian border.
The next year, the Mongols clashed with more than 100,000 Song troops and 1,000 war elephants near the Laotian border. The Mongol horses would not charge the elephants, so the Mongols dismounted and fired flaming arrows to kill or enrage the great animals, which became uncontrollable and randomly killed men on both sides.
The battle degenerated into a chaotic hand-to-hand battle.
Both armies virtually annihilated each other, and the Mongols withdrew into Laos with only 20,000 men.
In 1257, Mongke made the mistake of invading Da Viet (North Vietnam) and lost most of the rest of his men and horses to disease in the intense tropical conditions.
In 1258, Mongke pulled together 300,000 Mongol and Chinese soldiers to face a massive army of over 400,000 Song Chinese troops under General Wang Jian in Sichuan.
In 1259, the two sides met at the Battle of Diaoyucheng. During the battle, Mongke collapsed and died from cholera and dysentery. The battle ended in stalemate, with more than 100,000 dead on both sides, including Wang Jian.
In 1259, the two sides met at the Battle of Diaoyucheng. During the battle, Mongke collapsed and died from cholera and dysentery. The battle ended in stalemate, with more than 100,000 dead on both sides, including Wang Jian.
The new commanding Song general, Jia Sidao, collaborated with Genghis Khan’s grandson, Prince Kublai, and worked out a deal whereby the Song army would occupy Sichuan under Mongol authority.
The Death of Genghis, the Ascension of Ogedei
Despite the overwhelming victories, the Mongols were trapped in a long war of attrition in China.
Rather than finish the conquest of the Jin, Genghis became sidetracked in 1217 in the destruction of Khwarezm (Iran, Pakistan, and Afghanistan), an Islamic holocaust in which more than a million people were massacred by the Mongols.
During the campaign to conquer Khwarezm, the Mongols brought in thousands of Chinese engineers, siege engines, and crews to help reduce Islamic fortifications.
In 1223, Genghis turned his attention back on the Jin.
He sent a trusted general, Mukhulai, with 100,000 troops to attack Chang’an, which was defended by 200,000 Jin troops. Mukhulai became ill and died. As soon as this happened, the Xi Xia troops abandoned the Mongol army, which in turn caused the siege to be abandoned.
Genghis then hunted down and killed the Xi Xia troops who had deserted his army.
Genghis himself died in 1227, probably from typhus, while planning yet another massive invasion of Jin.
His son, Ogedei, ascended the throne and sent envoys to the Jin, who promptly had them executed. Meanwhile, Subedei was to conduct one last effort to conquer the Jin in 1231. The Jin armies all faced north to prevent Subedei’s 120,000 Mongols from crossing the Yellow River. Subudei sent a general named Tuli with 30,000 Mongols on an arduous journey across the western Chinese mountains of Sichuan and through Song territory into southern Jin territory.
The women of China fared poorly once the Mongol invaders captured a city.
The Jin panicked, thinking the Mongol force was much bigger than it was.
The Jin repositioned the majority of their troops to the south and began pursuing the Mongols with a massive force of over 300,000 men. The Mongols retreated as planned into the Sichuan Mountains as the huge Jin army followed them.
The Mongols fought a tenacious rearguard action with their archers in the rough mountain terrain, killing thousands of pursuing Jin. The Mongols led the Jin higher and deeper into the snow-covered mountains, where additional thousands froze to death or fell off the icy trails.
The Mongols circled back through the mountain passes and destroyed the Jin baggage trains, adding starvation to the woes the Jin troops were already enduring.
Once Subedei had the main Jin army trapped in the mountains of Sichuan, he moved his 120,000 Mongols across the Yellow River against the much smaller Jin forces.
The Jin belatedly realized their mistake and began desperately trying to get their main army out of the mountains to defend the capital.
The Jin retreat turned into a rout as Tuli’s and Subedei’s forces massacred the entire Jin army without mercy on the open ground within sight of Kaifeng.
A Five-Year Siege of the twin fortress cities of Xiangyang and Fancheng.
In 1265, a Chinese allied naval force destroyed 100 Song ships in a river battle, and Mongol troops defeated the isolated Song army to regain control of part of Sichuan.
The key to conquering the Song was capturing the twin fortress cities of Xiangyang and Fancheng.
Both cities had thick walls with wide moats protecting the convergence of the Han and Yellow Rivers.
The city walls of Xiangyang today.
In 1268, the Mongols built fortifications downriver from Xiangyang on the Han River to cut off resupply of the city by ship. Never the less, most Song ships were able to run by the Mongol forts and resupply Xiangyang and Fancheng.
Chinese ships allied with the Mongols were brought in to block the passage between the Mongol forts. More than 20 miles of siege lines were built around Xiangyang and Fancheng on both sides of the Han River.
Tourists visit the Urn City which is fenced by old city walls in Xiangyang, central China’s Hubei Province, March 21, 2013. Xiangyang, a prefecture-level city in central China’s Hubei Province, has a history of over 2,000 years. It was the location of major battles during the Three Kingdoms period (220-280 A.D.) and the Southern Song period (1127-1279 A.D.). The city is well-known for its city wall, which is very old but reserved well. To better develop its tourism as well as to protect its historical relics, the local government has poured hundreds of millions of yuan to restore the Three Kingdom remains since 2006.
The Mongols and their Chinese engineers set up trebuchets and began firing incendiary clay bombs and exploding biochemical projectiles they had learned from the Jin at the siege of Beijing in 1215.
The Song fired incendiary bombs and biochemical projectiles at the Mongols as well, causing great destruction and loss of life on both sides. The Mongols had to pull back after their wooden siege walls and trebuchets caught fire from the bombardments, leaving the Mongols with no cover, while the Song defenders took shelter behind the twin cities’ stout rock and masonry walls.
The fortification of the city of Xi’an, the ancient capital of Shaanxi province, in the center of the Guanzhong Plain, represents one of the oldest and best preserved Chinese city walls. The wall was built in the 14th century by Zhu Yuanzhang, the first Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, under the advice of a hermit who told him to “built high walls, store abundant food supplies and take time to be an Emperor,” so that he could fortify the city and unify the other states. After the establishment of the Ming dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang followed his advice and began to enlarge the wall built initially during the old Tang Dynasty (618 – 907), creating the modern Xian City Wall. It’s the most complete city wall that has survived in China, as well being one of the largest ancient military defensive systems in the world.
In 1269, Kublai Khan sent another 20,000 troops to replace those in the previous year’s fighting. More than 3,000 Song ships attacked the Mongol forts on the Han River in an effort to break the blockade, but 500 ships were sunk by Kublai Khan’s brilliant admiral Liu Cheng, who had defected to the Mongols.
Mongol and Chinese troops clambered aboard the Song vessels and beheaded hundreds of Song soldiers and sailors.
The besieged Song tried several unsuccessful attempts to break out but were defeated each time with thousands of casualties.
In 1271, 100 Song ships successfully broke through a boom across the Han River to bring 3,000 soldiers and much-needed supplies to reinforce Xiangyang.
The original Xi’an city wall was started in 194 BCE and took 4 years to finish. Upon completion, the wall measured 25.7 km in length and 12–16 m in thickness at the base, and enclosed an area of 36 square km. The first city wall was built of earth, quick lime, and glutinous rice extract, tamped together. Later, the wall was totally enclosed with bricks. Xi’an’s city wall, after its enlargement in the Ming Dynasty, stands 12 meters high. It is 12-14 meters across the top, 15-18 meters thick at bottom, and 13.7 kilometers in length and encircles an area of roughly 14 square kilometers within the city. There is a rampart every 120 meters that extend out from the main wall and allow soldiers to see enemies trying to climb the wall. The distance between every two ramparts is just within the range of arrow shot from either side.
The siege dragged on with no real advantage for either side until Kublai Khan decided to send a Muslim engineer captured during the siege of Baghdad to China to build a giant 40-ton trebuchet that could hurl 220-pound projectiles more than 600 feet to breach the cities’ walls.
After a few days, a breach was opened and Mongol troops stormed through to meet the Chinese defenders.
For days, men fought and died in the vicious battle at the breach.
There are four main gates on the wall, which were the only way to go into and out of town in ancient times. Each gate is overlooked by sentries on three towers. A wide moat ran around the city. Over the moat, there used to be huge drawbridges, which would cut off the way in and out of the city, once lifted.
The Song were able to throw more soldiers into Fancheng to defend the breach from a pontoon bridge that connected Xiangyang across the Han River.
The Mongols called off the assault on the breach and used their giant trebuchet to widen the breach and destroy the pontoon bridge. Incendiary bombs fired from the trebuchet struck the bridge and consumed it.
With Fancheng cut off from reinforcements, the Mongols assaulted the widened breach. The disheartened defenders held on for several hours before resistance broke and the Mongols poured into the city and began massacring the inhabitants.
The Mongols took the last 3,000 Song soldiers and 7,000 inhabitants to the walls facing Xiangyang and in full view slit the prisoners’ throats and threw them off the wall.
The Mongols took the last 3,000 Song soldiers and 7,000 inhabitants to the walls facing Xiangyang and in full view slit the prisoners’ throats and threw them off the wall.
The Mongols then dismantled their giant trebuchet and repositioned it across the river facing Xiangyang. The first shot from the trebuchet forced a tower to collapse in a great crash as the Song inhabitants screamed in terror.
Kublai Khan offered to spare the inhabitants and to reward the Song commander if he would surrender the city.
Xiangyang was surrendered and the Song heartland was open to the Mongols. The siege had lasted from 1268 to 1273.
The impregnable fortress of Yang-lo.
In 1274, the Mongols headed down the Han River, bypassing Song fortresses and emerging onto the flood plains of the Yangtze River. The Mongols now faced the impregnable fortress of Yang-lo.
The Mongols sacrificed several thousand Chinese troops on a frontal attack on Yang-lo while most of the Mongol army, carrying a number of ships, bypassed the fort and crossed the river upstream.
In 1274, the Mongols headed down the Han River, bypassing Song fortresses and emerging onto the flood plains of the Yangtze River. The Mongols now faced the impregnable fortress of Yang-lo.
Then the Mongol and Chinese fleet came down the Yangtze and attacked the Song fleet from both front and behind. The Song boats were packed so close together on the river that incendiary bombs fired from Mongol catapults set much of the Song fleet on fire.
Thousands perished in the flames.
Fortress Yang-lo and the 100,000 cut-off Song troops surrendered the next day.
Genghis Khan Exterminated 1.7 Million People To Avenge One Person
The marriages might have been strategic alliances, but that didn’t
mean there wasn’t any love involved. One of Genghis Khan’s daughters
loved her husband, a man name Toquchar. Genghis Khan loved him, too, as
his favorite son-in-law.
When Toquchar was killed by an archer from Nishapur, his wife demanded vengeance.
Genghis Khan’s troops attacked Nishapur and slaughtered every person
there. By some estimates, 1,748,000 people were killed. Other historians
dispute that number, but there’s no doubt that his armies killed
everyone they found.
Women, children, babies, and even dogs and cats were tracked down and murdered.
Then they were beheaded, and their skulls were piled into pyramids—a request by Genghis Khan’s daughter to ensure that no one got away with a simple wounding.
Acts of Desperation
In 1275, Jia Sidao set out from the capital of Hangzhou at the head of 100,000 Song troops and another fleet of 2,500 ships in a last-ditch effort to stop the Mongol juggernaut.
Jia Sidao quote.
A massive cavalry and infantry battle took place on both sides of the river. The Mongols and their Chinese allies pushed back the Song army and boarded their ships from both ends of the river, beheading thousands of Song troops and capturing 2,000 ships.
It was another overwhelming victory for the Mongols.
Jia Sidao quote.
Jia Sidao was later assassinated by a Song officer.
Jia Sidao quote.
On February 21, 1276, the boy emperor Zhao Xian came out of Hangzhou, bowed toward the north in obeisance to Kublai Khan, and turned over the capital and the rest of the Song Empire to the Mongols.
The Mongol conquest of China had taken 74 years and claimed the lives of as many as 25 million Chinese from war, plague, and famine.
As much as Mongolians love Genghis Khan, Iranians hate him. And there is a legit reason for that. The Khwarazmian Empire was located in the territory of Iran, and it was a very powerful dynasty up until the Mongol Empire invaded it.
In just a few years, the Mongols with Genghis Khan ahead of them, entirely destroyed and conquered the Khwarazmian Empire. Scholars estimate that during the wars, Genghis Khan butchered around 3/4 of the Iranians. That is one of the biggest genocides in history, and estimations show that the population of Iranians only reached its pre-Mongols level in the mid-20th century.
Oh yes, it took Iranians 700 years to heal their deep wounds left by Genghis Khan. Even today, Iranians have a saying "it's as if the Mongols have attacked," which means that something chaotic and brutal has happened. Thanks to Genghis Khan, Iranians will never forgive Mongols their crimes.
-The Richest
Ramifications
The ramifications of the Mongol conquest of China were felt for some time. The Ming, who overthrew the Mongols in 1368, became obsessed with improving and lengthening the Great Wall to close to 5,000 miles (including walls that backed up walls) to prevent another Mongol invasion of China.
This was the ancient version of The Maginot Line. A very costly and enormous albatross.
The Great Wall as it existed from the time of the Ming Dynasty was an expensive reaction to the Mongol conquest of China. In the end, the improved Great Wall did not save China.
In 1644, a Mongol-like nation, the Manchu, conquered China and ruled the unhappy nation until 1911.
Re-population of conquered lands.
The Mongols completely repopulated Asia in their own image.
Incursions into Southeast Asia were largely successful, most factions agreed to pay tribute, and only the Invasions into Vietnam and Java failed.
Europe was devastated by the Mongols. They destroyed near enough every major Russian city, and invaded Volga Bulgaria, Bulgaria, Poland, and Hungary. If rumours spread that the Mongols were coming, then it would cause a mass panic, and some would run to safety.
There was no guaranteed way to defeat the Mongol hordes, they continuously defeated much larger armies, so numerical strength couldn’t protect you.
Mongol conquests would leave once populous and flourishing areas as wastelands, with little to no people, those remaining would be slaves.
-ESKify
They used their abilities, and fear of the meek, to seize control.
The Mongol were masterful at spreading fear and hate throughout Asia, people feared them, and therefore hated them.
They would rape and pillage entire villages, and torture their victims for fun. Nobles would get it the worst. Spilling noble blood was considered a crime, so they simply crushed them to death, which took many hours.
Mongols would literally dine on top of them, making merry to the sounds of their screams from underneath. The sounds of bodies squelching, and bones snapping didn’t faze them.
But rumours of this execution method struck terror. Fear made them powerful, as people often chose to surrender and pay tribute rather than risk fighting them.
-ESKify
Women, gold, horses, and other objects were considered spoils of war, which meant soldiers got to do pretty much whatever they wanted to do with them. Now, you don’t have to stretch your imagination too much to figure out what that means.
Do you?
Women, gold, horses, and other objects were considered spoils of war, which meant soldiers got to do pretty much whatever they wanted to do with them.
Amassing large harems was an important occupation of the khans. Genghis Khan was said to have had five hundred wives and concubines. When the Mongols overran a place, their captains took some of the women and passed along the more beautiful ones to their superiors, who passed the more beautiful to their superiors, and so on all the way to the khan, who could choose among the pulchritude of a continent. Genghis Khan had scores of children, as did other khans and nobles descended from him for centuries in the Genghis Khanite line.
Recently, a geneticist at Oxford University, Dr. Chris Tyler-Smith, and geneticists from China and central Asia took blood samples from populations living in regions near the former Mongol empire, and they studied the Y chromosomes. These are useful in establishing lineage because Y chromosomes continue from father to son. Dr. Tyler-Smith and his colleagues found that an anomalously large number of the Y chromosomes carried a genetic signature indicating descent from a single common ancestor about a thousand years ago. The scientists theorized that the ancestor was Genghis Khan (or, more exactly, an eleventh-century ancestor of Genghis Khan). About eight per cent of all males in the region studied, or sixteen million men, possess this chromosome signature. That’s a half per cent of the world’s entire male population. It is possible, therefore, that more than thirty-two million people in the world today are descended from Genghis Khan.
-The New Yorker
On the other hand, if you were lucky enough to be super-extra
beautiful, you could be forcibly entered into one of Genghis Khan’s
weird beauty pageants.
Genghis Khan had so much power that he could do whatever he wanted. For instance, when Genghis occupied some new area, he would kill or enslave all the men and share all the women amongst his tribe.
Genghis Khan would even make beauty contests of captured women to decide which woman is the most beautiful one. Yeah, he was having his Miss Universe competition before it was cool.
So, the queen of those beauty competitions would win the privilege to become one of many Genghis Khan's women. Rest of the Mongolian army would share all the other contestants.
-The Richest
According to Ancient Origins, once Genghis’ soldiers were done with the pillaging and the abusing, they brought Genghis himself the most beautiful women they’d encountered.
I’m sure that Genghis appreciated the sentiment.
Girls in Mongolia seem to be a mystery to all but those who have visited these rare lands. These unique girls offer Asian features with larger bodies than most expect.
I was baffled by the women I encountered in Mongolia.
I’d never seen such tall, curvy Asians (well, Indonesian girls are curvy) in all of my travels throughout the region. There was truly something different about the Mongolian girls.
After meeting, greeting, and mating with some of these fine specimens, it finally clicked – these gals were direct descendants of Genghis Khan. I was balls deep in warrior genes, and I can’t lie – the thought of having myself a warrior-blooded baby certainly went through my mind.
-Life around Asia
These women alone would be spared from the antics of the conquering
army so they could be paraded in front of the man himself. The winner
got the honor of becoming one of Genghis Khan’s many wives, which was
probably preferable to ending up as the loser, though Ancient Origins
doesn’t say what happened to them.
First and foremost, these girls were definitely Asian. Their features were dainty and stunning. However, Mongolian girls did not remind me of Thai girls or Indonesian girls much. They seemed to have a unique mixture to them.
I’d say many of the girls looked maybe 75% Asian with a mixture of Slavic genes, too.
It was incredibly unique and quite sexy. Some guys said they weren’t too into the look, but I loved it! Think a girl who is 2/3rds Asian and a third Russian. How could that not be sexy?!
-Life around Asia
Modern Mongolian beauty.
Evidently, though, women who Genghis deemed not to be up to his
standards of beauty were sent off with the soldiers to be abused and
then discarded. So yeah, great to be a woman in peacetime Mongolia but
when Genghis comes to town you might just want to emigrate to China.
0.5 Percent of all men alive today are believed to have a genetic relation with Genghis Khan. It is estimated that his descendants are 8 percent of men in Asia.
-My Interesting Facts
The fate of the civilians.
Although Genghis Khan restricted the use of torture, Mongol executions were often extremely grisly.
When Guyuk Khan suspected that the powerful courtier Fatima had poisoned his brother, Guyuk had her tortured into confessing before “her upper and lower orifices were sewn up and she was rolled up in a sheet of felt and thrown into the river.”
The Mongols traditionally had a taboo against shedding royal blood, so another favorite method of execution was crushing.
Although Genghis Khan restricted the use of torture, Mongol executions were often extremely grisly.
The Abbasid Caliph al-Musta’sim was rolled up in a carpet and trampled to death by stampeding horses.
After the Battle of the Kalka River, captured Russian princes were shoved under some floorboards and crushed as the Mongols held their victory feast on top of them.
Genghis himself ordered that a captured Tangut ruler be renamed Shidurqu (“Loyal”) before he was crushed, so that his spirit would be forced to serve the Mongols in the afterlife.
He was lucky compared to the Persian noble who was covered in sheep fat, wrapped in felt, and left tied up in the hot sun to meet his fate.
Genghis Khan’s Legacy
Perhaps the greatest legacy a conqueror can leave is his progeny.
Genghis Khan wasn’t an especially gracious winner — after he was
done with the conquering, he enjoyed abducting his enemies’ wives and
either romancing them or brutalizing them, depending on how cool they
were with being abducted by Genghis Khan.
Mongolian
girls are smart, beautiful, stacked, and feisty. They also can drink
you under the table. They are warriors from warrior stock.
In fact in one of his most famous quotes he waxed poetic about the joys of the post-conquering aftermath:
"The greatest pleasure is to vanquish your enemies and chase them before you, to rob them of their wealth and see those dear to them bathed in tears, to ride their horses and clasp to your bosom their wives and daughters."
Nice guy, that Genghis.
He wasn’t always content to romance just one woman at a time, either.
According to Ancient Origins, his army commanders were all super-impressed with his manliness because he frequently spent his evenings with multiple women. I mean, that was his role; to repopulate the conquered (now depopulated) lands in his image (literally).
While broad shoulders aren’t exactly a good trait on women, the women in Mongolia didn’t get the short end of the stick in other ways.
In fact, I found some of the biggest Asian tits in the world to be in Mongolia. It was fantastic for me, as I’m a boobs man!
There are a number of rain-thin Mongolian girls that have big, natural racks. I was thoroughly impressed. In fact, outside of Indonesia, I haven’t seen bigger tits in an Asian country. The asses here aren’t as amazing as the boobs, but there still above average for Asia.
-Life around Asia
If
you were the first wife, you basically inherited everything and became
head of the household. After that you got to live pretty much
autonomously and independently, which is not something that was
especially common around the world during that time period.
A stronger genetic pool…
He wasn’t that into birth control, either, in fact by modern estimates Genghis Khan has roughly 16 million descendants.
Now, the study that put forth this hypothesis can’t actually prove that
the individual they identified is Genghis Khan, since no one knows
where the Mongol leader is buried and therefore they can’t recover any
of his DNA.
But this person lived roughly 1,000 years ago in the Mongol Empire
and must have had access to a lot of women, and there really aren’t
that many people from history that fit that description, so the
assumption is pretty sound.
Modern
Mongolian women are quite amazing and if you fall in love with them, be
prepared to give them everything. They are traditional and conservative
and expect the man to give them 100% of what he has. They will accept
no less.
When we look at what Genghis Khan achieved with the Mongol Empire, we cannot help but appreciate his mastermind as a warlord. It surely looks like Genghis Khan had three dragons with him just like Khaleesi.
I cannot find any other explanation of Genghis Khan's success. I mean, he defeated Jin Dynasty's one million troops with only 90,000 Mongolians by his side.
Yes, Genghis Khan managed to win a war with ten times fewer troops than his opponent's army. On top of that, he was invading China, so he had to overcome all the "little" problems such as the Great Wall of China. Genghis Khan with his army had destroyed over 500,000 of Chinese troop before getting control of Northern China and Beijing.
The rest of the Chinese army had to surrender to the power of Genghis Khan. Destroying Jin Dynasty is only one of many examples of how great of a warlord Genghis Khan was. Also, he had some brutal and loyal men by his side, and let’s not rule out the dragon theory.
-The Richest
Anyways, ol’ Genghis Khan was quite the fellow, and he really wanted
to make good in the (now decimated) lands that he conquered. Because of
this, and the history of his people, the women of Mongolia are what they
are today.
I am an American Structural Engineer and spent approximately 1-1/2 years working in Mongolia, and living in UB. I have since moved on to another project in Cape Town, SA, however wanted to comment on perhaps the most accurate article I have read in relation to Mongolian women.
I have additionally worked in several other Asian counties to include Singapore, Hong Kong, China, etc. I hope that you will agree that you cannot even “basically” compare the contemporary Mongolian woman to any other Asians.
BTW, forget the “Asian Height Charts by Country” seen all over the internet – not even close. For example, China, S. Korean and even Japanese women are calculated taller in stature than Mongolian ladies – Not eve close!
When I strolled through Sukhbaatar Square on warm days, it was not uncommon for me to see several Mongolian women 5′7″, 5′8″ even up to 5′10″. What stands out just as much, is that these ladies have shapes and many pronounced bust-lines; mainly due to diet (meat/dairy).
They appear physically to be much stronger built than other Asians. The best way I can explain it, Mongolian women have physical shapes closer to Russian women than they do other Asians.
Another distinguishing factor, many Chinese, Japanese women have very small hands and feet – not Mongolian women who have larger hands/feet. Consider this, for a country of just over 3 million people, Nearly 50% of all top Asian fashion models are from Mongolia.
Battsetseg Turbat for example has been in many famous American commercials to include Budweiser and Apple. This is what surprised me most when I first stepped off the plane upon my arrival to UB. Mongolian women’s height can be deceiving when viewing online photos – the reason is that they have voluptuous shapes to accompany their height.
An additional quality is personality. Mongolian women have big personalities, laugh loudly and not afraid to approach someone they may wish to meet. Additionally, Mongolian women when affronted, do not shy away as do other Asians, however will meet the confrontation head-on 100%. What I have also noticed, when in other parts of Asia, women will almost always give way when an American woman is walking down the sidewalk toward them.
Not in UB – A Mongolian woman will expect the American woman to step aside most every time.
In relation to toughness, Mongolia are second to none.
In fact, Mongolian women have very little respect for American women, thinking them soft and spoiled (their words not mine).
All Mongolian women are excellent horsemen, whether raised in the Ger District or city. They are like the land they inhabit, resilient and everlasting.
I remember taking a walk around Sukhbaatar Square with a Mongolian lady I befriended to just enjoy the day . It was in November last year and nearly freezing. I remember she was wearing heels, barely covered up and seemed fine. I was layered to the hilt, still shivering although looked like the Michelin tire man with all my garb.
She must have noticed I was freezing as suggested we walk to Millie’s Espresso to have lunch, drink something warm and relax. These women impressed me as they were able to balance their hardiness with their femininity.
You are correct, there is a slight mix of Slav in most Mongolian ladies, however, does not distract from their Asian appearance. I do not know if I will ever return to Mongolia, however, the Mongolian ladies will have my respect and admiration for life.
-Life Around Asia
Conclusion
We can learn a lot from the terrors of the past.
Genghis Khan devastated urban areas, cities, towns and villages and laid waste to entire swaths of land. This mass devastation would continue in other ways at other times. Whether it is the plagues that devastated Europe, or the World Wars that followed afterwards, entire well-established civilizations completely collapsed and the survivors had to pick up the pieces and start all over again.
Genghis Khan devastated urban areas, cities, towns and villages and laid waste to entire swaths of land. This mass devastation would continue in other ways at other times.
In the case of many human-wrought changes, it is a situation where a strong and powerful person becomes a leader and assimilates (often violently) other weaker communities. It’s human nature.
It’s the human condition.
Human nature is such that communities form, thrive, expand, get lazy and then collapse. Other humans, often more skilled, with abilities, and positions through merit exploit the vulnerabilities of the older community.
Human nature is such that communities form, thrive, expand, get lazy and then collapse. Other humans, often more skilled, with abilities, and positions through merit exploit the vulnerabilities of the older community.
This event is often very uncomfortable and often results in open warfare, with the NEWEST and MOST DANGEROUS WEAPONS of the time.
America is not afraid of the consequences of using Nuclear Weapons. They do not think that any nation would use nuclear weapons in retaliation. Nor do they believe that American cities might be affected. They are living in a dangerous and crazy illusion.
They WILL be used.
This event is often very uncomfortable and often results in open warfare, with the NEWEST and MOST DANGEROUS WEAPONS of the time.
The strife might take different forms and last for a period of time, but in all cases… the human group managed through merit and ability will overcome the civilization that has become complaisant, lazy and slothful.
The human group managed through merit and ability will overcome the civilization that has become complaisant, lazy and slothful. They take over and use the strongest and most powerful weapons available.
I used the Mongol takeover of Asia as an example, but the fall of America will be on a similar scale. It will not be sudden. It will not be uniform and homogeneous. But it will eventually be complete and the changes will be stunning.
I used the Mongol takeover of Asia as an example, but the fall of America will be on a similar scale. It will not be sudden. It will not be uniform and homogeneous. But it will eventually be complete and the changes will be stunning.
The world of the weak, corrupted, and confused will be purged, and a new world will manifest.
It will be reshaped by the strong.
It will be reshaped using the modern technologies of the time.
Human nature is such that communities form, thrive, expand, get lazy and then collapse. Other humans, often more skilled, with abilities, and positions through merit exploit the vulnerabilities of the older community.
To understand our future, you must understand our past.
And NEVER, ever think that the unthinkable could never happen. You will often be surprised with how evil, out of touch, or selfish humans can become. It is our very nature.
And NEVER, ever think that the unthinkable could never happen. You will often be surprised with how evil, out of touch, or selfish humans can become. It is our very nature.
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What is the world coming to? Is everyone crazy? Are all the governments corrupt? Is all that we have to look forward to is yet another war?
Well, there are answers to these questions.
Here we postulate that the “generational turnings” that are described in the “Fourth Turning” are similar to other methods of societal evolution.
We observe that numerous people and organizations have noticed that history tends to repeat. Thus, as such, tried to map out these events to identify future events. In particular, we will take a look at the KaLa Rhythms as being similar to that of the generational turnings as described in the Strauss-Howe generational theory.
The Strauss–Howe generational theory, also known as the Fourth Turning theory or simply the Fourth Turning, which was created by authors William Strauss and Neil Howe, describes a theorized recurring generation cycle in American history. According to the theory, historical events are associated with recurring generational personas (archetypes).
- Strauss–Howe generational theory - Wikipedia
The KaLa theory differs from the Strauss-Howe theory, but both come to the same conclusions. We will treat each theory with respect, but acknowledge that no one can accurately predict the future, just observe the trends within society.
Other systems
There are other systems that chart people, society, and behaviors over time. The ones that I find interesting are…
Strauss-Howe Generational theory.
KaLa Rhythm Cycles.
Chinese horoscope BaZi.
Chinese Bazi Calculator(八字) According to Chinese astrology, the year, month, day and hour of birth of an individual has great significance when it comes to analysing his/her destiny or fate. These four components ie, the year, month, day and hour is known as 'The Four Pillers of Destiny' or Bazi (Bā Zì) and is a key factor determining a person's future.
- Chinese Bazi Calculator | Four Pillers of Destiny
Calculating BaZi for a person and monitoring their auspicious and inauspicious days to determine things to avoid and things to embrace.
Welcome to 2020
The current decade is predestined to be the most exciting time America has ever known.
It will start in 2020 and end in 2030, and during those ten years will be a period of advanced change that will be very disturbing for anyone not prepared for it.
Antifa protestors arrested in Berkley California. Antifa supporters have complained about the Berkeley Police Department posting mugshots on Twitter of the 20 people who were arrested on Sunday when protesters attacked police and city vehicles during a march by conservative groups. Berkeley PD has refused to remove their tweets that included booking photos, names, ages, hometowns, and crimes alleged to have been committed by the arrestees, Newsweek reported. In a press release posted on Sunday evening, the police department said the list of people arrested at the protest was only “partial” and said police were still working to confirm the identities of some of those who had been arrested. However, the Fact-Check website “Snopes.com” was very quick to denounce the photos posted by the police. They reported that the mug-shots were NOT of Antifa terrorists. (WTF? All you need to do is go to the police website to see for yourself.)
Numerous changes have positioned themselves for action and collapse during this period, and human nature will decide the outcome as to how the events will unfold.
Cycles of life and behavior
In America, upon the founding of the United States, the “clock was set”. It’s an alarm clock, don’t you know. It ticks and tocks for 82 years (plus or minus 2 years). And, you know what? The alarm is going to go off soon.
Alarm clock. Generational turnings, whether KaLa or some other methodology defines a cycle of change with a period of 80 years. Soon this tick-tock of the clock will stop and the alarm will go off.
How do we know? Well, it’s been repeatable. Roughly every eighty years or so, the alarm goes off, and all Hell breaks loose.
KaLa Rhythms
According to the KaLa theory, this natural cycle began with the birth of our nation in the American Revolution.
The KaLa cycle started upon the birth of the United States during the American Revolution.
Consistent Highs and Lows have come ever since as the Cycles of change pulsed through our nation. When the nation was founded, we found that we had all of our Cycles at a peak High at the same time.
The KaLa cycles at the start of the American experience.
The cycles moved up and down. Three cycles representing different aspects of human mob psychology.
The cycles moved up and down. Three cycles representing different aspects of human mob psychology.
They rose and fell.
They would always collapse when the three cycles would simultaneously fall to the bottom. This happened during the American Civil War and then again during the 1920’s stock market crash / great depression and World War II. But the very first time this happened was around 1800.
February 17, 1801 – Thomas Jefferson is elected as the 3rd president of the United States in a vote of the House of Representatives after tying Aaron Burr, his Vice President, in the electoral college with 73 electors. This situation would be later prevented by the 12th Amendment to the Constitution. (Bye bye representative Republic. Hello Democracy.)
Now it is getting close to the next collapse of the triad of cycles.
In the decade of the 1990s, each Cycle crossed out of its Low half, into the High, to reach peaks in all three Cycles this decade.
Our future now is like never before.
Charting the cycles
The World moves in cycles. Whether it is the movement of planets, the changes or the seasons, or the rise and fall of the ocean tides. Everything in this universe moves in cycles.
And cycles can all be charted.
National and generational cycles can be charted. This is from Business Insider.
You can find a chart that gives the times of coming ocean tides, because they move in Rhythm. Calendars can list the next phases of the moon, because it moves in Rhythm. Now you know the times of change, because our times move with Rhythms that are as regular as ocean tides and phases of the moon.
The Seasons of time are changing dramatically now and everything around us is changing with them.
Periods of crisis and chaos also come as regular parts of the Cycles.
Space / Time patterns
Ka is an ancient Egyptian name for energy. Kala is Sanskrit for time.
Thus, Kala Rhythms are changes of energy through time.
The Egyptians believed that Ka is the Physical, Spiritual and Intellectual parts of a person, or god, that constitute an individuality. It transcends death of the body as living energy.
Ancient Egyptian KA.
Ancient Indian scriptures described Kala as transcendent time and as relative time which is Cyclical in nature.
We live in relative time and all the Cycles within it.
Kala Rhythms are therefore changes in Physical, Spiritual and Intellectual energies through Cyclical time.
This triad of energies that constitute an individuality is part of any person or living system. In our case, they are basic elements of the United States. Change is part of any time.
To see where we are in time is to know where we are in the Cycles of change. Cycles tell us from where we come, where we are, and where we are going.
To see where we are in time is to know where we are in the Cycles of change. Cycles tell us from where we come, where we are, and where we are going.
That is the Tao of Now.
Fractals
Fractals are replete through nature as transcendent repeating patterns on different scales of size and time.
Fractals are replete through nature as transcendent repeating patterns on different scales of size and time.
These patterns give us clues to what is all around.
Spirals in pine cones, sunflowers and snail shells encode the same mathematical pattern by which plants replicate their leaf growth (Fibonacci sequence).
The ratio found in this sequence is the rate by which our bones increase in length when progressing from smaller to larger joints in our hands, feet and legs (phi ratio).
Our average number of respirations per day, and our number of heartbeats every six hours, each equal the number of years in the precession of the equinoxes, (a 25,920-year Cycle of where the earth is in its orbit on the first day of Spring).
We find ourselves as part of it all.
Our Cycles
The rise and fall of our industrial production is a multiple of the 7-year septennial Rhythm of cell growth in our bodies.
Cells within the body follow a rhythm and pattern.
This is a Physical Cycle.
A woman’s menstrual Cycle has an average length that coincides with phases of the moon every twenty-eight days.
This is the human female Menstrual Cycle.
Rises and falls in social tides of enthusiasm coincide with the moon again, and a multiple of the 9-year Cycle, as the tilt of the moon’s orbital plane around the earth moves in “Saros Cycles” that relate to mood swings in the nation.
This is an Emotional Cycle.
Academic achievements and peak times of invention for our nation resemble a multiple of the 11-year sunspot Cycle and electromagnetic radiation in solar wind.
This is an Intellectual Cycle.
We are not observers of nature, we are part of it. We are within the Rhythms and the Rhythms are within us. More discovery of self repeating patterns through the microcosm and the macrocosm has led to a new word in the English language, “Fractals.”
The discovery of self repeating patterns through the microcosm and the macrocosm has led to a new word in the English language, “Fractals.”
These are reappearing and transcending patterns of nature.
Now Fractal-Rhythms show us transcending patterns with the added dimension of time. As we navigate the currents of time, we are transcending a scale of our own. It is self realization. In the process, the wonders of the universe reappear in ever more splendid and fascinating ways, and they come, in Rhythmic Cycles.
Rhythmic Cycles
Our Triad of Energies holds the Physical Cycle, the Emotional Cycle, and the Intellectual Cycle.
They come from the body, the heart, and the mind of the nation. We undulate between strengths and weakness, hopes and fears, and ideas and apathy.
In this post we will identify different colors for the different cycles. In my convention, I use blue for the Physical cycle, green for the Emotional cycle, and red for the Intellectual cycle.
The Physical Cycle changes our production, territoriality, and strength. It affects what we build, our sense of materialism, the military, how we play sports, and our health and fitness. These rise and fall together.
The Emotional Cycle changes our sense of idealism, inspiration, and faith. A national mood is reflected in our styles, practice of religion, market speculation, entertainment and general outlook. They move in waves.
The Intellectual Cycle affects invention, learning and interests. Shifts come in government policies, court decisions, commerce, academic performance of students, and technologies. They are Cyclical. Together, these changing energies bring change to our times
Stages of a Cycle
The stages of a cycle.
A Cycle goes through four stages that are the Seasons of a Cycle, as it progresses between Highs and Lows.
It begins with a First Quarter, or “Spring,” where we lay Foundations for things to come. This is when we begin anew.
The Second Quarter, or “Summer,” comes with Improvements as we branch out in variations. This is when we expand.
A Third Quarter, or “Autumn,” brings Review and reform to what we have done. This is when we retreat.
Then, the Fourth Quarter, or “Winter,” comes with Alternatives as we abandon the past to simplify. It is when we search. This consistent pattern repeats as each Cycle revolves.
Points of Chaos
A Cycle goes through chaos when it crosses the midpoint. Whenever a Cycle switches from Low to High, or from High to Low, it passes through the point of transition (red dotted line) where it meets with turbulence.
A Cycle goes through chaos when it crosses the midpoint. Whenever a Cycle switches from Low to High, or from High to Low, it passes through the point of transition (red dotted line) where it meets with turbulence.
A Crossover in the Physical Cycle might cause an industrial recession.
Crossovers in the Emotional Cycle might come with rioting in the streets.
A Crossover in the Intellectual Cycle might bring falling stock prices.
Every time a Cycle goes through a Crossover, we have chaos in the nation.
Make no mistake the Second American Civil war is intended to be a complete genocide against White People.
Our Three Cycles
Cycles work together as our Physical, Emotional, and Intellectual energies progress through their four stages of development, and points of chaos, to bring change to the nation.
This universal pattern of development that is common to all three Cycles holds true even though the three Cycles are of different lengths.
The Physical Cycle repeats every 28 years.
The Emotional Cycle recurs every 36 years.
The Intellectual Cycle revolves every 44 years.
They still follow the same pattern while influencing different parts of the nation.
The combined effect of the Cycles is that they may all be in different stages of development at any given time. A myriad of combinations is possible. This brings variety to our times.
Once this simple pattern is understood, however, we can see where we are in each Cycle, and how each Cycle affects us.
The combined state of the nation is then deciphered. Beneath the complexity of our times, lie simple and basic elements. It becomes clear, once you have the math.
Birth of a Nation
The start of the United States cycle.
1770s: The Beginning: This all goes back to the beginning, our point of origin. We were born in the American Revolution. America was birthed from whatever it was before into a unified nation. As such it took on the characteristics of the KaLa.
Thus, the body, heart and mind of a new nation have gone forth with Cyclical progression.
Of course, there were preceding Rhythms from native American tribes, and trends set in motion establishing the colonies were embraced by English loyalists, but the new order of Rhythms would collect all cultures or becomes mutually exclusive to them through war.
New vibrations do not just come into being, they come with birth pains which, in our case, was the American Revolution. With every rebirth comes forth a new set of KaLa Rhythms.
This formed a new nation with a life of its own, and with it, the Rhythms of Life.
Construction of the White House. This image depicts a series of reconstruction efforts back in the middle 1800’s.
The triumvirate braid of Rhythms in the body, heart and mind of a nation brings us up to today. Now the combination of Cyclical energies is shaping our times as much as ever.
They will continue to do so as the inveterate procession of Rhythms carries us into the future.
Cycles Now
Here we can see the last thirty years laid out in a nice handy chart…
Cycles 1990 to 2020.
2000s: The New Reality This Trirhymic High in the Cycles came into being after an Upward Physical Crossover in 1999-2000 that put us in a vulnerable period of crisis as we reached an Emotional Peak in 2000.
Consequently, we were in a point of overs peculation in an over-bought market when we hit an abrupt Physical crisis and “the bubble burst” in the market.
Meanwhile a rising Intellectual Cycle brought us further into space and scientific achievements.
The unexpected attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001 came from external sources beyond the internal rhythms of the nation producing largest External Aberration in our history.
We recovered, due in part to the strong position of our Cycles.
We moved on to a hyso–IntellectualPeak in 2006 that gave a pause as real estate sales slowed down. Now we are gaining momentum in a Trirhythmic 2nd Expansion which produces even more energy a Peak and our greatest expressions unfolding in an historic High.
We face a moral and emotional crisis in 2009-2010 when we have an Emotional Downward Crossover.
Below is a chart showing the three Cycles from the birth of our nation in 1775 until 2100. Look at where the different Cycles are in different times and for an overview of America. Different energies manifest in different time as we surf through the tides of history.
U.S. KalaRhythms Chart
We start by looking at the 19th century…
Then, the 20th century…
And now today, and our future…
Cycle Highlights
Below is an overview of some key points in American history with a look at where Cycles where at the time. Note how Cycles working together can have a dynamic effect on events from beyond the plane of physical causality.
When the KaLa cycles started.
After the birth pangs of the Revolutionary War, we separated from our mother country, England. A new nation began a life of its own, and with it, a new set of Cycles came into the world.
Our Physical, Emotional and Intellectual energies gave us an individuality.
These Cycles soon peaked to boost us forward. A myriad of combinations came in the Cycles and our times changed.
The Roaring Twenties
The “Roaring twenties”.
The first time we had a sustained High in all three Cycles at once was from 1919 to 1929. Every Cycle Peaked to bring us the “Roaring Twenties.”
The Roaring Twenties refers to the decade of the 1920s in Western society and Western culture. It was a period of economic prosperity with a distinctive cultural edge in the United States and Western Europe, particularly in major cities such as Berlin, Chicago, London, Los Angeles, New York City, Paris, and Sydney. In France, the decade was known as the “années folles”, emphasizing the era’s social, artistic and cultural dynamism. Jazz blossomed, the flapper redefined the modern look for British and American women, and Art Deco peaked. Not everything roared: in the wake of the hyper-emotional patriotism of World War I, President Warren G. Harding “brought back normalcy” to the politics of the United States. This period saw the large-scale development and use of automobiles, telephones, movies, radio, and electrical appliances being installed in the lives of thousands of Westerners. Aviation soon became a business. Nations saw rapid industrial and economic growth, accelerated consumer demand, and introduced significantly new changes in lifestyle and culture. The media focused on celebrities, especially sports heroes and movie stars, as cities rooted for their home teams and filled the new palatial cinemas and gigantic sports stadiums. In most major democratic states, women won the right to vote. The right to vote made a huge impact on society.
Unprecedented Highs came to the market, optimism soared, and achievements flourished.
This ended suddenly when two Cycles crossed down through the point of chaos (red line meridian) and we had the Stock Market Crash of 1929.
And if you follow the cycles, it actually was predictable.
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression that took place mostly during the 1930s, beginning in the United States. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations; in most countries, it started in 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s. It was the longest, deepest, and most widespread depression of the 20th century. In the 21st century, the Great Depression is commonly used as an example of how intensely the world’s economy can decline.
The longest period for all Three Cycles to be Low at once came during the Great Depression.
We were still reeling from the Crash of 1929 which made it even worse.
The Great DepressionbeganintheUnitedStatesasanordinaryrecessioninthesummerof 1929. The downturnbecamemarkedlyworse, however, inlate 1929 andcontinueduntilearly 1933. Realoutputandpricesfellprecipitously.
It took so long to recover because all Cycles were going down.
We finally began to recover when two Cycles started to rise just before WW II. A wartime economy boosted us upward and we continued with Cycles that peaked in the 1950s & 1960s.
Now, facing reality.
Facing the reality of today.
Now we are headed for our greatest Cyclic High since the American Revolution.
Tick-Tock the clock is ticking, and soon the alarm will go off again.
All three Cycles have been High since the an Upward Crossover of the Physical Cycle in 1999, and all three Cycles Peaked in just a six-year period (2000 – 2006).
Now we have a Triple 2nd Quarter of Variation and Expansion.
It is the 2nd Quarter that is the most productive as it is a time of fruition. This promises that the time we are in now will make this our most energetic decade ever!
It is toward these times that generations to come will reflect and admire, hold in awe, and even admonish. Fasten your seatbelt, it’s going to be a bumpy ride!
The Significance of a Double Crossover
Double Crossovers in America are rare, but consequential.
If a Crossover can bring brief crisis to the nation, then what happens when two Cycles Cross Over in the same year?
Well we actually do know. As they have happened before. Three times to be exact. Yup. Three times in our history, we found out.
Double Downward Crossover.
A Physo–Emotional Double Downward Crossover of 1901/02 came as both the Physical Cycle and Emotional Cycle shifted from 2nd Qtr. Expansion into 3rd Qtr. Reform by crossing the transitional midpoint of crisis.
In the crisis, President McKinley Was Shot by an Anarchist and Teddy Roosevelt succeeded to the presidency.
An era of big business ended as Huge Trusts and Monopolies Lost Control of industries like copper, sugar, meat, tobacco and oil when stock prices fell in the Panic of 1901 that threatened the entire banking structure.
Roosevelt Activated the Sherman Anti-Trust Act against: big railroad, oil & tobacco monopolies, the Northern Securities Company, timber companies and more.
This was the period of “Muckrakers” and “Trust Busters” that ushered in 3rd Qtr. Reform.
A Physo–Intellectual Double Downward Crossover of 1929/30 ended the “Roaring Twenties” with great crisis.
A Physo–Intellectual Double Downward Crossover of 1929/30 ended the “Roaring Twenties” with great crisis.
A Three-Way High ended with both the Physical Cycle & the Intellectual Cycle crossed down through the transitional midpoint of crisis with disastrous results.
Yet, America was near an Emotional Peak at the time and over-speculation turned to over-panic when the unforeseen Double Crossover wreaked havoc on stock values.
The market crashed, we panicked, and Downward Cycles pulled the market down.
An Emo–Intellectual Double Downward Crossover of 1973/74 gave us this year of double trouble.
An Emo–Intellectual Double Downward Crossover of 1973/74 gave us this year of double trouble. The Watergate Affair began that led to resignations from the President, Vice-President and most of the Cabinet. Our Recession of 1973-74 brought the worst stock market drop since 1929. The Oil Crisis severely impacted business with emergency provisions for energy consumption.
Now for the future…
A Physo–Emotional Double Upward Crossover in 2027/28 will make the next cyclical crisis in the United States due to occur within March 21, 2027 to March 21, 2028 as both the 28-year Physical Cycle and the 36-year Emotional Cycle cross up through the midpoint of crisis at the same time!
A Physo–Emotional Double Upward Crossover in 2027/28 will make the next cyclical crisis in the United States due to occur within March 21, 2027 to March 21, 2028 as both the 28-year Physical Cycle and the 36-year Emotional Cycle cross up through the midpoint of crisis at the same time!
Looking Ahead we can see how make a forecast toward our tendencies based on our consistent history Cyclical influence.
The 21st Century
The American cycles for the 21st century.
2010s: Our positional High that is now in place will have a gradual decline with stages.
In 2009-2010 as the Emotional Cycle has a Downward Crossover we are bound to see a moral and ethical crisis in a major event in the nation.
In 2009-2010 as the Emotional Cycle has a Downward Crossover we are bound to see a moral and ethical crisis in a major event in the nation.
In 2013-2014 when the Physical Cycle has a Downward Crossover will are likely to experience a brief industrial recession.
In 2017-2018 with the Intellectual Cycle has a Downward Crossover we will likely see a dip in stock prices and commodities. This will all lead to gradual decline and a recession in 2020.
The 2020’s.
An American genocide as part of an American Civil War would be absoltuely devistating to the nation, the people, the infrastructure and the future. America might not be able to recover. It might not be able to recover for multiple decades. Take heed.
2020s: We will rise toward new High from a likely recession in 2020, but we will encounter a major national crisis in 2027-2028 as we have a Physo–Emotional Double Upward Crossover, the fourth only Double Crossover in our nation’s history.
This is a CRISIS EVENT.
Russia and China can come in when America is weak. Any kind of internal American Civil War will ignite this event sequence.
This will likely result in over-reaction put into action with possible acts of violence and public outcry.
The industrial sector of the economy could suffer and we should be cautious with are responses in foreign relations as we will have a tendency to use force…
… and picking a fight with the wrong nation would be ill advised.
We should be cautious with are responses in foreign relations as we Americans have a tendency to use force. Not every nation is incapable of fighting back, and there could be serious negative repercussions if we pick a fight with the wrong people.
An Intellectual Low will decline through a period of reform to reach a bottom in 2028.
The 2030’s
However America deals with the events of the 2020’s, it will survive. Though it might not be all that recognizable.
It will be quite a different nation.
Rising Cycles will reach Physical and Emotional Peaks in a High that will be somewhat reminiscent of the “gay ’90s” of the 19th century, but in a new time. The Intellectual Cycle will be Low and rising through 4th Qtr. Alternatives and we make a progressive shift in our methods of learning and scientific pursuits.
The 2040’s.
This should be a new era of intellectualism as the Intellectual Cycle reaches a Peak in 2050, but both the Physical Cycle and the Emotional Cycle will end their Highs to usher in a new period of reforms in the Physo–Emotional Double 3rd Qtr. Reform.
In this decade we are likely to find new ways to revise old practices as we shift from survival of the fittest to survival of the wisest.
End Conclusions
The decade of the 2020’s will be difficult and dangerous. It will be a time of great changes, and sudden events.
Eventually, new realities will take place, and the 2030’s will be a time of reconstruction and rebuilding. There will be renewed optimism and hope in the general population.
In the 2040’s there will likely be complete overhauls of entire systems, organizations and operations. With different or revised systems put solidly in place.
Humans are not more enlightened. Our natures have NOT changed. Soon, we will relive the past, and people(!) is is not friendly or simple. It’s ugly and dangerous.
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