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.
This is for all youse guys that used to read Mad Magazine back in the 1970’s. It was part comic, part sarcasm, and part boyhood joy. Nothing even similar to it exists today. But, back in the day, we all would read it while drinking our sodas, and munching on our Babe Ruth candy bars.
The summers were of baseball, and fishing poles. It consisted of canoes, and mason jars. It was bicycle riding, and rail road track hikes, as well as exploring old homes and factories. It consisted of wall telephones in olive green kitchens, milk boxes on the porch, and hotdogs over an open fire in the evening.
We wore bell bottom pants, polyester billow sleeve shirts with choke collars, and big decorate belt buckles. A “nickel bag” of pot was enough to put on an open album cover, and use your driver’s license to separate the stems from the seeds. We had cigarette lighters built into the cars will back seat ash trays, and “cherry bomb” mufflers.
It was a calmer time; a simpler time. A time before the world went completely MAD.
This is my tribute.
2024 02 22 20 25
MAD Magazine.
What me worry?
fa6d464b7dbdcf6a38bb711ea6504ccc2accdd8842b859b140e6f82e1c5d0839a134efc7c3cbdc2dc5dbc9da273a06449fd143bb0cea8f2dc7c4688858a19fb8Screenshot 2023 09 11 at 11.41.47 AM
I turned 18 and had proof. I looked 14 but it didn’t matter. 2 brothers owned a deli in my neighborhood, they took a liking to me. I made $108:00 a week and drank $150:00 worth of Lowenbrau beer back when it was made in Germany. The refrigerator where they kept the beer was out of sorts. Every beer had ice in it. It was fucken heaven.
The deli brothers slept in a back room at the store. They closed at 11.
I used to bang on the window at 2 in the morning. They were handing me cases of Lowenbrau out the door at 2 am and 4 am. I ran up a very large bill.
I was incredibly popular with the drunks I hung out with, mostly because I was always buying. One night they were robbed as they closed up. One of them reached for a gun behind the counter, the robber blew both their heads off and split.
I came upon the carnage at 1 am. I knew something wasn’t right when the door was open. I went in and saw they were dead. I walked out with 4 cases of Lowenbrau and put them in a friend’s trunk.
We sat in the nature preserve drinking till the sun came up. It was a great summer. I owed close to one thousand dollars in credit. It would have taken me years to pay it off. They were barely scratching out a living in the deli. We were all better off
Beef and Mushroom Stew with Caraway Dumplings
Browning meat in the oven reduces the amount of fat needed for cooking. Serve with julienne parsnips and carrots.
Beef and Mushroom Stew
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients
Stew
1 1/2 pounds round or blade steak
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
Bouquet Garni*
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (if necessary)
1/2 pound small mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 cups beef stock
1/2 cup dry red wine
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Dumplings
1 cup soft fresh bread crumbs
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
1 egg white
Instructions
Stew
Cut steak into 1 1/2 inch cubes. In a bag, combine flour, pepper and salt. Add beef, a few pieces at a time, and shake to coat with flour mixture. Shake off excess and place meat on wire rack in flameproof casserole. Bake in 350 degrees F oven for about 25 minutes or until browned. Meanwhile, prepare Bouquet Garni.
Set meat aside on platter.
Place casserole over medium heat. Only if necessary add all or part of the oil. Add mushrooms, cap side down, and cook until golden, transferring to platter as they brown.
Add onion and garlic; cook until onion is transparent. Add stock, wine and tomato paste; bring to a simmer, stirring and scraping bottom of casserole with wooden spoon to scrape up any brown bits.
Return meat to pan; add Bouquet Garni. Cover and simmer over low heat for 1 hour or until meat is tender. Meanwhile prepare dumplings.
Dumplings
In a bowl, toss bread crumbs and melted butter together with a fork. Combine flour, baking powder, caraway seeds and salt. Mix lightly into crumb mixture. Beat together egg and egg white; add to crumb mixture and mix lightly (mixture will be soft) shape into 8 balls of even size.
Remove Bouquet Garni and discard. While stew is simmering, add dumplings, cover and cook, without removing lid, for 18 minutes.
Notes
* Tie together with kitchen twine 1 celery stalk with leaves, 3 or 4 sprigs parsley, 1 bay leaf and small sprig of thyme.
I worked for a company called Pyxis that made medication dispensing systems. The first CEO of the company was a VERY smart man named Ron Taylor who said “we will NEVER be FDA regulated” – the thinking being that if we are, the weight of the FDA’s requirements for paperwork and process are just *onerous*. Which they are. Anyway, we made sure the product never delivered drugs to patients – that the Nurse or Doc that used our system was ALWAYS the final vehicle of delivery – so we didn’t need to be FDA regulated.
Years later, Pyxis is bought by Cardinal Health who then buys bunch of other med-tech companies and they have this bright young VP who says “since half of our stuff is FDA regulated, let’s make ALL of our stuff FDA regulated!!!”. All of us old-timer engineers told him it was a bad idea, we explained that we’d never release a new software revision or product again… but he didn’t listen.
Once we invited the FDA to the building to check out out, that was that. The doors were very nearly shut, he was asked to leave and the company took a HUGE hit. The FDA didn’t really want to be there, but once you invite them in – they’re in. I was there for the whole transition – not my first time seeing that – and it was pathetic. In my remaining years at that company, not a single major product initiative or update made its way out the door.
I was an assistant manager of a service station (gas ration + garage) and responsible for most of the station’s hiring, training, and firing.
We had hired a kid named “Kris,” who had managed to pass the math part of the application and seemed relatively competent to be polite and make accurate change.
One day, a long time customer of the garage came walking around the bay side of the building and waved me down. He was more my boss’s customers met than mine, but we knew each other well enough.
“Hey, Mark. I wonder if I could talk to ya for moment?” He had a fairly concerned look on his face.
Being someone who was always willing to help a customer solve an issue, I didn’t hesitate.
“Of course! Hat can I do for you?”
“Well, I , uh, I wanted to let ya know that I was talking to the kid in the store and, and he told me that I should definitely not be bringing my car here to you guys.”
I was speechless for a good five seconds, but my eyes were probably meeting my ears.
“Mr. Smith, thank you so much for letting me know. You know how hard Mr. Boss and I work to make sure all of our customers are well taken care of and I appreciate you sharing this with me.”
I walked over to the store side and asked Kris if he had actually told our customer, Mr. Smith, who had been a gas and garage customer for over 15 years, that he shouldn’t trust our shop to take care of his car.
Kris was 19, heading on up to 13, so he thought he was a “man of the world” since he had a 30+ year old sugar momma and must’ve thought that made him something extra special.
“Yeah.”
“You’re fired. I’ll have Mr. Boss down here in less than an hour to write your last check. You can wait here or come back.”
He decided to come back after standing there for a moment without saying anything.
I called up my boss and told him what had happened. He told me to write up a letter explaining why he was being fired, and that he would be there as quickly as he could to get that check together.
Kris came by and I gave him his check in an envelope with the letter. I just handed it to him. He took it and walked out. I didn’t say a word, and neither did he.
Good riddance! I was so glad we had done such a great job by our customers that one of them had no problems letting me know about that kid.
Teaching conditions and pay were not good for government teachers. The premier, Sir Henry Bolte, had thrown down the gauntlet for teachers. There was to be a strike and teachers were to gather at the steps of Parliament House while a bill to make striking illegal for teachers was to be debated.
I decided to go by public transport so I would not get stuck in town or have to pay excessive parking fees (after all, I was a lowly paid teacher). I got to the steps of Parliament House before 9 a.m. There were police shoulder to shoulder forming an impenetrable line – and the only teacher there was me.
I moved up and down, waiting for others to arrive. By about 9:15, no=one else had arrived and a senior policeman stepped down and spoke to me. “Why are you so special that there are so many of us here?” I replied that I was the only one on time and everyone else was late. By 9:30, all except two police left.
By 10, there were a few hundred other teachers there, so the two police were totally overwhelmed. But we did behave!
My moment of fame, and the local papers didn’t get a photo of me facing off to over a hundred police!
My two friends let’s call them John (Christian American) and Fatima (Arab Muslim) are going out.
They have a passionate love story. Tattooed each other’s names on their bodies. Fought a giant backlash from her Arab family against their marriage because he is from a different religion and culture. Made deep promises to have an eternity of love and marriage together.
One day Fatima gets a message from a woman saying that she is so sorry to be the carrier of bad news but John her fiance is cheating with that woman’s sister. The message contains so many screenshots and proofs that cannot be faked and he is indeed cheating.
The texts she showed me were vomit-enducing. He would tell the other woman exactly the same things he tells her. How he only lives for her. How he can think of nothing but touching her. There were nudes exchanged between them and words of adoration.
Fatima’s world collapsed. She came to me crying and asking about what to do. I told her forget about him. What a piece of trash. Dump him this moment. My blood was truly boiling knowing all the sacrifices she made and all the promises that were broken.
Next day, I woke up to pictures of John and Fatima together uploaded online. I asked her and she said “Oh Salma he told me he was just comforting her because she was having hard times. Besides all men play around sometimes and I love him”.
I can’t decide until this moment whether I want to slap him or her…
People will always associate with you when you’re succeeding. No one wants to associate with failure.
Nobody’s busier than a person who doesn’t want you.
Just because you love each other doesn’t always mean you’re meant to be together.
It’s okay to fuck up and make mistakes and to be scared. You don’t have to know what you’re doing all of the time.
There’s nothing better than showering and putting on an oversized t-shirt and then crawling into a bed with fresh sheets.
Nothing turns us on more than someone who sincerely cares about you and who directly communicates their intentions.
Sometimes we get into those moods where we don’t feel like reading, you don’t feel like being on the internet, you don’t feel like watching a tv show or you don’t feel like sleeping and existing in general.
There’re no final version of ours . We never stop evolving, growing/ changing, nor should we.
Sometimes you’re in a mood to destroy your relationship with everyone you know.
Having a baby fall asleep on your chest is one of the purest and nicest things ever.
Dancing around your room to music and not giving a single fuck is one of the ultimate forms of self care.
Privacy is power. What people don’t know, they can’t ruin.
This old gentleman was in court because he got a felony ticket for duck hunting with a self made shotgun round that was one grain too heavy after being weighed by the game warden. Some random obscure law. He had been returned to court a number of times while the District Attorney was trying to figure the case out. A new judge who heard the case had the biggest smile as he heard the story from the District Attorney and the very humorous old man.
The judge started chuckling then roared laughing as the man explained that he was the president of the young duck hunters boy scout something or other for the past 40 years teaching young men to hunt ducks and the Game Warden was his ex-wife’s new victim as the warden had been dumb enough to date her, and so the Game Warden was being a bit of a tool.
The judge was laughing so hard as he asked the District Attorney if it was ok to just drop this silly outdated charge so no one had to listen to the outrageous story anymore.
I had to stop the guy on his way out to exchange numbers and went out hunting with him the next week. Dinner was good.
David: Shots fired at 123 Mockingbird Lane, in the city.
911 Center: Is anyone hurt, is anyone in danger?
David: No more danger. Yes, my wife. She is in need of EMS, just to check her out. She has some pretty serious contusions.
911 Center: What happened?
David: She’s just scraped up pretty bad, but is safe. Three men tried to drag her into their vehicle, as she got out of her car.
911 Center: Where are those three men, now?
David: Two are laying in the street and one is hanging outside of his vehicle. A white panel van.
911 Center: I have police and EMS on the way. Where are you now?
David: I am in my house with the doors and windows locked.
911 Center: Are the three men moving?
David: I have three males suffering from various gunshot wounds, none of them are moving or breathing, that I can tell.
911 Center: I’m glad that you and your wife are okay. Stay in the house. Stay safe. The police will clear the area and then come in contact with you. Are there any other people with guns, in the area.
David: No. It’s quiet. The neighbors are all in their homes. Cars are driving around the bodies.
___________________________________
Dispatch: Break. Units, 31, 202, 103, 104 and 115. Respond to 123 Mockingbird Lane. Victim reports shots fired, 3 male suspects appear to be shot and non-responsive. Victim and his wife are in their home at the same address, and are sheltering in place. Witnesses report no other individuals in the area.
Unit 31: 31 in route. 202, put 103 at the north end of the block, 115 will position at the south end. 104, 202 and myself will clear the area.
Dispatch: Unit 31, EMS from Smiths, and Centerville paramedics are ready to roll in, once the area is clear.
Dispatch: Break, all units, step down from active shooter protocol, be on standby until 31 clears.
__________________________________ Detective Branch: Sir, at what point did you determine your wife was being attacked.
David: I heard her screaming from the street. I recognized her scream as unusual, because she only screamed like that once before.
Branch: When was that?
David: When she was approached by a stray pitbull and the baby was in the yard.
Branch: Then what did you do?
David: I grabbed my AR and ran to the front of the house.
Branch: What did you see?
David: A big guy dragging my wife by her hair, while she was kicking and screaming. The skinny guy was trying to grab her feet, but she was kicking the crap out of him.
Branch: Then what?
David: I yelled, “I have a gun! Let her go!”
Branch: What did the big guy do?
David: He tried to lift her up to shield himself with her body. The skinny guy started to reach into his waistband. I saw a gun silhouette against his white t-shirt. He wasn’t facing me, so I knew he was going to point his gun at my wife. I shot him first.
Branch: Is that why he was shot in the back?
David: Yes.
Branch: Then what?
David: I shot the skinny guy twice before he fell. One got him in the right shoulder, and the second one hit him in the middle of his back. He didn’t get up, which seemed to piss the big guy off, so while he was fighting with my wife, I ordered him to let her go!
Branch: What did he do when you told him to let your wife go?
David: He seemed to not be too sure what to do, but then I heard two gun shots come from the van. A bullet impacted on the side of the house, about 10 feet from where I was standing. The muzzle flashes were quite bright, coming from the van.
Branch: Then what?
David: So I have this low light scope, and the guy in the van was opening his door and he had a large caliber hand-gun, looked like a 45 or 44 magnum. I wasn’t about to let him out of the van with that gun, so close to my wife, so I put the crosshairs of my scope, on the driver’s head, and shot him. I saw a puff of red in his headlight beam and he didn’t move.
Branch: Why is the big guy, dead?
David: Because he looked over his shoulder and didn’t see the driver any more. He called what I am assuming is his name, and “Nick” didn’t answer. He then put his arm around my wife’s neck and he looked like he was going to choke her out or break her neck. He was big enough to do that… I didn’t have a choice.
Branch: What happened then?
David: I yelled to my wife to “run to your left!”. She used her feet and what strength she had left, to run to her left. The big guy turned to the left with her, which exposed his right side profile. I shot him in the right side of his rib cage. He went down pretty quickly.
Branch: Weren’t you afraid to hit your wife?
David: I prayed to God that I wouldn’t. But I knew that if I accidently hit her, she would forgive me. But I couldn’t forgive myself, if I didn’t hit the men who were attacking her.
Branch: Do you have anything else to add in your statement?
David: No sir.
__________________________________
31: Dispatch, this is thirty-one. Paramedic says all three subjects are DOA. Need a coroner out here, with a bio-cleanup crew. We are taping off the area and posting a patrol at the house for the night. Put 103 on it.
Dispatch: Chief wants to know if we are pulling in the vic for the DA?
31: His call. But I am not seeing it.
THE END
Footnote: I originally posted this answer back in October of last year. However, I deleted my account and all my answers after my life was threatened. (Not over this post, but another one.) So, now that that problem is solved. I am going to re-enter Quora. Hopefully, with a few more controls and a nice security system.
Modern Women Get SALTY When Men Start Ignoring Them
I was having a skiing class in St. Anton, Austria back in 90’s and the class took a lunch break. Eric the ski instructor was making conversation and asked how we had all come down to Austria. I told I had driven and he asked if I had found it a problem driving on the RHS in my right hand drive car (Peugeot 205 GTI 1.9 went like hell). I said no and I drove a lot abroad and he then asked which other countries drove on the left. I think I mentioned Japan, Australia and New Zealand and then a Dutch chap said South Africa. There was a moment of silence before Eric said “The British invented concentration camps”. I should have bitten my tongue but came back with “Maybe but we didn’t fit them out with Gas Chambers and Ovens” . “No just machine guns” replied Eric. The Dutch chap then said that many Dutch people wouldn’t ski in Austria as Kurt Waldheim (former secretary general of the United Nations and former member of the SS) was President of Austria. He had been voted in despite knowledge of his war efforts. They had better ski in Holland then said Eric. At which point someone suggested it might be a good idea if we changed the subject and normality resumed. As we get up from the table Eric says “Where would you like to ski this afternoon?” I couldn’t resist it so I said “How about Poland? ” At least everyone laughed, including Eric.
Last week I had the pleasure of babysitting my friend’s 4-year-old daughter for the day.
We had a fun day: going to the library, picnicking in the park, playing on the playground and ending the day with a little bit of ice cream! (I’m allowed to spoil her).
Once we had been home for a few minutes I noticed I was getting a migraine and asked her to play quietly because my head hurt.
I then proceeded to peruse my phone as I waited for the migraine to subside.
“No, no, no,” the little girl said to me.
I glanced up and gave her a curious look.
“If your head hurts, you don’t look at the screens. You close the eyes like this and don’t do the phone or the computer,” she told me.
I obeyed and noticed that my migraine dissipated quicker than usual.
That 4-year-old was incredibly unqualified (what with her still being a toddler and all), but I’ll be darned if she didn’t have some great life advice.
She Tried To Date Women As a Man And Quickly Learned Why Men Are Opting Out of Dating | Part 2 Norah
A guy asked me to be his girlfriend the night before he left to France for a 3-month internship but I rejected him because I wasn’t sure. We remained close friends after that. On the night of my birthday (he was still in France), we video-called and he sent me a link to a website. It turned out that he made a video of each of our friends saying happy birthday to me, along with my favourite songs playing on the background. At the end of the video, he said happy birthday to me with Rascal Flatts’ song My Wish.
“And while you’re out there getting where you’re getting to I hope you know somebody loves you And wants the same things too Yeah, this is my wish”
He is now my boyfriend of 2 years.
AI experts make predictions for 2040. I was a little surprised
My mother did. I was the youngest of six kids. We brown bagged lunches every day. We. included my father. My mom made one heck of a good lunch from leftover from the night before. She always baked and had a slice of cake or some sweet included in our lunch.
My dad was senior test director at our local Army base and was pretty high up in government service workers (GS 15 rank almost equal to a General but was a civilian). He worked with high ranking Army people.
His brown bag lunch started to go missing several times a week. My father was money tight (tight as a crabs ass and the crab is waterproof) so him having to spend money for lunch was not going over very well.
My Mother made cupcakes for dessert one day but iced two of them with, you guessed it right, ExLax. Not just your normal dose for constipation but enough for an almost immediate explosion.
It only took a few hours for my father to find out who was stealing his lunch. That Major was transferred very quickly after the incident.
Hungry Potter and the Chamber of Snacks – (Harry Potter AI)
Not my mom but my dad. I was 12 going into 8th grade, dad and I were doing my back to school shopping at our thrift stores. I had my budget, my list, I knew exactly what to spend. When we got to the counter and after she totaled everything, she could have said this before, but the cashier said the store was under new ownership and there was a 10% purchase fee. WTH!!! I’ve never heard of that except at grocery stores (that cost plus thing). Anyway I’m over budget so I have to take off some things, the shoes I could live without, the belt I really liked, and 2 shirts. Not a lot and I could recycle a few more from last year (my used last year clothes are really showing their age so they get put in work clothes or grease rags) but we total out and leave. My dad who had been so excited early seemed really quiet. After loading this in our truck we head towards home. In my reserve pocket I pull out my ice-cream fund. Every year before or since (even this year when dad took me college clothes shopping) I keep enough for ice-cream. My dad stops at the shop and says he’s not really in the mood for ice-cream. Wait a minute this is our thing always. My dad sets in on this I should have better, he should have made more money, his little girl shouldn’t have to buy 2nd hand clothes for school. He has completely failed me as a father. Maybe I would have been better off with his brother’s family, they have money. I was shocked, appalled, I have never felt that way. I slapped him, harder than I meant to but I did. And I pulled out, as he says, my grandma voice. Listen here mister. You have never once come close to failing me not even for a moment. The love and devotion you have given me is worth more than any amount of money in the world. I don’t need better or expensive stuff. I need you holding me at night when I’m scared, telling me you believe in me when no one else does. Letting me know that beans and bread for dinner is perfect again this week. I don’t want more money or expensive, flashy stuff, I want us. I want our goofy little traditions, our silly little interactions, our weird fun times. You are the best father in the whole world because you value love over anything else. Now this is our ice-cream tradition and if you don’t want to do it then let’s just leave. We both cried alot in our truck that day, and it was the best ice-cream treat we’ve had. My dad has never brought up money again and I haven’t slapped him…well that hard again. I love you always daddy
Trump is a great golfer. The best golfer to ever occupy the White house. It’s not even close. He is very good. Yet, as in most things Trump, he is not as outstanding as he claims to be. He lies and cheats.
that: “once playing with Trump in the 1990s he realized that Trump had placed a ball just feet from the pin that he had never hit. Mulvoy called Trump out on cheating and Trump rationalized:
“Ahh, the guys I play with cheat all the time,” Mulvoy said Trump told him. “I have to cheat to keep up with them.”
Someone I know golfed with Trump at a charity event. Apparently Trump was cheating and was called out.
When asked to stop cheating, Trump responded: “I cheat on my taxes, I cheat on my wives, and I cheat at Golf. Get used to it.”
Trump then smiled broadly, and kept cheating. He didn’t win the tournament. But he didn’t stop cheating.
“I’ve played with him a lot,” says a frequent guest in Trump’s foursomes. “This one time, I was in the fairway and he was right of the green but a little bit down the hill. He didn’t think anybody was watching, but I was. I saw him make a chipping motion from the side of the hill but no ball came up. Then he walked up the hill, stuck his hand in the hole and pulled a ball out. It must’ve been a ball he had in his hand the whole time. Then he looked up and yelled, ‘I chipped in!’”
2. The Quick Rake
This is a sneaky little move in which you hit your approach putt and then quickly walk up and rake up what’s left of it, no matter the length, before your opponents can stop you or think to holler, “Hey, wait a minute!” Trump has mastered this move. He does it sometimes before the ball has even stopped rolling. MSNBC cameras caught him doing it once to a ball that had sped five feet past the hole and was gaining speed. By the time anybody can object, the ball is already in his pocket.
3. The Ball Switch
“Whenever I’ve caddied in Trump’s group,” says Greg Puga, an elite Los Angeles amateur and caddy, who has Trump in his group plenty, “he always gets his own cart. He makes sure to hit first off every tee box and then jumps in the cart, so he’s halfway down the fairway before the other three are done driving. That way he can get up there quick and mess with his ball.
Csipetka (Pinched Noodles – Hungary)
Csipetka
Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Instructions
Mix flour and salt; add egg. Stir to make a stiff dough, sprinkling in a few drops of cold water if necessary. Knead until smooth.
Let dough rest for at least 30 minutes.
Flatten dough a bit at a time between floured palms (or roll 1/8 inch thick on a floured board) and pinch off pieces slightly smaller than a dime. Drop them into rapidly boiling salted water; cook until tender, about 15 minutes.
Drain and rinse csipetke; stir them directly into stew or soup, if ready. Otherwise, turn them into a bowl, coat with oil, and set aside in a warm place until ready to use.
Notes
You can drop csipetke into broth or soup for extra flavor and texture, or you can serve them alongside a main course with sauce or gravy, or you can use them in place of dumplings or noodles in almost any other recipe.
This may have been common at the time but it will still sound pretty bizarre to American ears in 2020.
In May 1894, the federal government put four men on trial for smuggling opium into San Francisco aboard the yacht Emerald. Now, shipping, selling, and smoking opium was totally legal in America that year; there were at least twenty shops selling opium in Chinatown – and advertising in the local papers and the city directory (under “Opium Dealers”). However, everybody had to pay the $10 per pound import duty in order to do so, and as always, there were people who didn’t want to cut the government in on the profits. One of them was Ewen W. McLean, who’d been smuggling opium for almost a decade. But he and his captain, John Voss, had avoided arrest and were safely out of reach up in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Louis Greenwald, George Thomas, George Wichman, and Emerald’s mate, Henry Mensing weren’t so lucky. After a couple of days of testimony, in which two members of what the newspapers called “the Emerald Ring,” flipped and gave up the four and the whole scheme, the prosecutors had a solid case and just needed to tie up a couple of legal bows.
One of these was demonstrating that the duty hadn’t been paid. Not too difficult, because the half-pound tins in which the opium was smuggled were supposed to bear a Customs stamp and none of the ones seized did. The second issue was a little trickier. The government needed to show that the opium was in fact opium and that it had come from abroad (thereby requiring payment of the duty).
There were no crime labs back then, no CSI or Quantico, so the government had a conundrum. They solved it by bringing in an opium expert, a Chinatown resident and long-time opium consumer named Mun Jin Moy, who laid out all the gear he needed to smoke some opium. At the urging of the United States Attorney, Mun broke open six cans from the seizure, withdrew some opium from each, and as the newspaper reported it, “cooked his dope over the little spirit lamp, and then, placing it on the bowl of the pipe, sucked away with apparently great enjoyment as his little eyes blinked and glistened through the wreaths of smoke.”
Undoubtedly fairly wasted at this point, but apparently still able to talk, Moy considered carefully. “’Him velly good,’” he said, and ruled that the opium had come from Victoria, being a higher quality than that from Panama.”
With that testimony “in the can,” Mun left the stand, the only person I know of who was actually paid by the government to get high in a federal courtroom. The jury evidently liked what they heard, because they convicted three of the four defendants, who got five years in San Quentin for what were essentially tax violations.
Up in Victoria, McLean ran dope to Hawaii for a few more years, then left that business and went legit, founding the Vancouver Stock Exchange and making it into “Who’s Who in Canada,” so crime evidently does pay sometimes. John Voss attempted to sail around the world in a canoe and didn’t quite make it, but he wrote a book about it (still in print) and his canoe is in the Maritime Museum of British Columbia.
But paying a drug addict to come to federal court and smoke a bunch of dope (from the government’s evidence) and testify about it? That’s pretty damn bizarre.
Your best memories are not always real. When someone makes us feel good, we tend to color all memories of them positively and they might not be as good as you remember. Kind of like how as kids we thought our parents were super heros. This makes you a better person cause you can leave in the present and not compare your present relationships to the past.
maybe you’re the problem. When in difficult relationships it’s important to consider if and how you’re the problem. Not to say that bad people don’t exist but also if you’re with them, why then are you with them? You do have a problem too
Your family doesn’t love you unconditionally. Try being a pain and you’ll see this for sure. Actually the only people who love you unconditionally are people who don’t love themselves. Even your child will stop loving you and love another mother if you stop mothering them
Not everyone will get to have a peaceful beautiful death. Many will die in painful ways. Enjoy a beautiful peaceful life while you can.
You will likely be completely forgotten about 20–80 years after you die. Your legacy too so stop focusing on building a legacy and instead focus on giving your family a beautiful love cause that’s mostly what they’ll miss before you get forgotten. The people who knew you might never forget you but soon they’ll die too and you’ll seize to exist. Don’t believe me? Just think about it… what’s the name of your grandfather’s grandfather?
Your children don’t care how successful you are. They just want and need your positive attention. If you sacrifice this for work or building a legacy, they’ll very quickly and happily squander your legacy soon as you’re gone
You don’t know what you don’t know. Next time someone speaks allow yourself to listen and discover what you didn’t know
very few people are thinking about you right now. Most of them are thinking about themselves and what you think of them but not really thinking about you
In 10 years you’ll most likely realize you did some things wrong even the rbi gas you’re convinced that you’re doing right. As you acquire more info, you’ll realize how limited your thinking was. Don’t believe me? Just imagine how madly I love you were in that first love. You probably thought that will never change. You now realize you were wrong
many people choose you because they see the value in keeping you around. As soon as you lose that value you will lose those people too
Ok, today (as I write this, might take a few months to get out there, though) it is early April.
Sitrep April 2024
Time for a sitrep that will probably be way out of date by the time your read this.
The United States national debt is higher than what was initially calculated. Currently as of last week, the nation’s $34 trillion debt is approximately 99% of GDP and, according to the CBO, will steadily increase over the next 30 years. We are told that this is nothing to worry about. Meanwhile in China, the debt is 60% of GDP and we are told the “China is collapsing”.
The United States military is policing New York Subways. They are carrying full automatic weapons and this is to make New York safer.
The United States military is all over the Texas border. They are carrying full automatic weapons and riding in tanks and armored vehicles. This is to make America safer.
The United States military is now occupying bases off the coast of China. They are carrying full automatic weapons and manning rocket launchers. This is to make China safer.
I think that it is so caring that Washington DC wants to make the world a better and safer place. Don’t you?
…
Ah, but I digress.
Let’s continue.
Ukraine fiasco is winding down. NATO has given up. The USA is throwing it’s hands up and the Ukrainians are on zombie auto-pilot. Russia is going to “mop up” and probably make a final push to force what remains of Ukrainian “leadership” to capitulate.
The morons in the EU are in a state of (drug induced?) delusion and unaware how truly fucked they are. NATO is kaput.
But, but, but… American tanks are moving toward Ukraine. American troops are in Monrovia. American “volunteers” and Special Forces are in Ukraine. Obviously a buildup is ongoing… to “end the war” before November elections? Politically driven use of military is a Democrat staple. Historically it results in many causalities and is rarely reported. What will happen? Use history as a guide. You tell me.
The new members of NATO Finland and Sweden are all dressed up with nowhere to go. Expect a short fizzle and die sometime in the next decade.
Now you know everything you need to know about Europe.
The United States tried to “go for the gold”, fumbled and now the entire place is a mucky mess. Not a pretty sight.
But the USA has a plan…
Janet Yelen is in China making proposals, threats, warnings and promises. The USA wants money, and some “elbow room”. A cash infusion and a grant, or loan is the minimum demand. China is being ever polite. But honestly doesn’t give a rat’s ass. It doesn’t care.
There are some deep-state bureaucrats in Washington DC pushing the Philippine provocation storms against China. Seemingly going against the direct orders of Biden. Expect that to “blow up” in their faces in the next year and China starts playing REAL HARD ball.
Is that all?
Nope. Things are interesting this year…
Strange tit4tat events. A “earthquake” in Taiwan, followed two days later with an “earthquake” near Washington DC. Hum… what a coincidence. Ah. These strange occurrences are coming hot and heavy don’t you know. Makes you appreciate the hand of God, eh?
Gaza. This event was predicted in the mid 1960’s. It’s an a long timer. Horrific, but this is just the appetizer for what will follow.
Gonna be an “election” in the United States in November. I am sure that the Oligarchy has determined who will be the winner and what will happen. It’s all a shell-game for the mindless rabble to keep their minds off their stressful misery.
Trump is talking up a big anti-China storm. Biden is on his hands and knees begging China. Night and day. The policies that will result with determine the flavor of society of the upcoming years. But will NOT determine if and when the world will end.
Overall…
Global changing demographics continue. Mighty uncomfortable for many. It’s gonna get even more uncomfortable for those of you in the West.
Propaganda spiels are still generously funded out of Langley Va. Expect to hear more about the “Russian failures in Ukraine” and how terrible life is in Russia. Expect to hear a continuation of the narrative how “China is collapsing” any day now, and so on and so forth.
In the West, inflation is reaching unsustainable levels. In times past, the pitchforks and fire torches would be out, as would be hanging nooses and gallows. But you do have to give credit where credit is due. The Western government really have their cattle well behaved and totally enslaved.
The drunken parties in “Capital Hill” continue unabated. They continue to spend like drunken sailors on crack. No signs of abatement or rehab. It’s a clown-show on steroids and its a racing towards the end of the line. The big cliff fall is a mere few years away.
The United States is undergoing a frightful social change where no one is dating, no one is getting married, and the prognosis is a MAJOR drop-off in birthrates to sustain society. Ah. Expect riots long before that. Nasty ones too.
On the technology front are some interesting developments…
Electric Vehicles are talking the globe by storm. Everywhere. That is everywhere except in the West. The gas-guzzler cartel won’t hand over their mantle of power. Oh, not yet. You all want a glimpse of the future? Remember BETAmax?
The “Congress-critters” are all in an outrage about Americans being able to post their views online without censorship. Darn pesky rascals. Not to worry, they are gonna ban Tiktoc. And thus maintain their control over the soapbox of the common-man. That is until the next APP enters the scene. Wanna bet it’s gonna come from Asia?
The American allies are a joke…
Haven’t heard too much on the “news” about Argentina. With the election of the USA-loving, Communist-hating, “president”, a new Argentina has emerged. And if you thought it was a shit-show before, it’s a real cluster-fuck right now. Not being reported on… well… there’s NOTHING good coming out of there these days. So, NOTHING is being reported.
The South Korean “president” is another butt-fuck loving American prostitute. I was particularly moved… to vomit… when he sang the “Star Spangled Banner”. Well, his green card is in place, and money is transferred into American banks, so he has not a care in the world. Just let the 4B movement run its course. He’s doing whatever his owners want. He’s got his. What about YOU?
Many things are going unreported in the world. But that is to be expected. Lots, and lots and lots of “color revolutions” that have dudded out, fizzled out, and pretty much went limp dick. Please pass the peas, Marge…
And moving on…
Meanwhile, the (former) third-world operates 5G, high speed trains, has face recognition, drives electric vehicles, and has inflation a mere fraction of what is terrorizing the West with. The world got on the bus and drove off. The West is still playing in the mud puddle in the road… totally and completely oblivious that the rest of the world just left the building.
But not to worry, the Western media continues to portray the United States as the leader in everything… from “freedom” to “democracy”. From low inflation, to high employment numbers. From the best universities, to the best in everything. Weeeeee!
Maybe you don’t want my colored summaries. That’s fine. ChatGPT will tell you the same thing, only in a much more plausible manner.
The world is evolving. And it is painful; face contorting to endure. It is a dumpster fire, and it is a blazing. But it is going though the washer and drier and it will emerge better than before, by a long shot. I remain quite hopeful, even though the visuals are awfully nasty.
Today…
What is the most useless job that you’ve ever done?
When I was in high school I got my first part time job as a Maize Master.
You read that right. It’s a play on words, since I worked at a giant maze that was cut into a large corn field.
Every year the field is dug up and a new pattern is planted, since the corn maze only lasts about 8 months at best.
My job, was to walk the maze enough times to memorise the ways out and know where all the clues were hidden. It’s actually pretty simple after you’ve walked the maze with a map for a day or two. Then it just becomes engraved in your memory.
The reason this job felt useless was because I spent every weekend, for about eight months, walking this maze 8 hours a day in the blistering South African sun. When people got lost and started to panic they would end up just walking through the corn “walls” and force their way out of the maze.
I ended up spending most of that time strolling about, listening to music and reading the Harry Potter books.
The only fun part of this job, was having three of my friends working with me. We each had a walkie-talkie which was supposed to be used to keep in touch with each other in the maze and point out people that were in need of assistance.
We usually ended up just running around wildly, pointing out hot girls that were coming our way and calling ourselves the “children of the corn”.
Can politicians be called leaders? If not, what is the difference between the two?
Leaders are those who keep the Nation in mind all the time
To them the Country comes first
They make unpopular decisions if it benefits the nation as a whole
They are long term visionaries
…
Politicians are those who keep themselves and their party in mind all the time
They aim to have power to either enrich themselves or become more powerful
They don’t care about the country or the people
They are short term visionaries who care only about votes and elections
…
Populists are a hybrid between Leaders and Politicians
They either endorse a Doctrine or ideology of their own or by an organization like the RSS or NED or Religious Doctrine
Their ultimate quest is to ensure their ideology succeeds and they would do whatever it takes to achieve that
They use both Party and the People to achieve this
I only included Democratic Nations in this list of definitions.
If you are doing something that your partner would be uncomfortable with… THAT is cheating
Yellen trip to China
Reuters has a posting up about Yellen’s trip to China and the title is
Yellen says China is too big to export its way to rapid growth
China is not responding to its economic gyrations like empire wants because China retains control of finance and the PBOC is deciding who takes the losses instead of private interests forcing governments to cover their financial bets, like in the West….and rapid growth internally is not China’s goal, stable world growth is.
I expect China to school Yellen in just that scenario of privatizing profits/socializing losses that is staring the US in the face, again…..rampant social/financial abuse of humanity by the God Of Mammon cult and its supporters like Pope Frank and his Catholic church.
What right does Yellen have to preach anything to China? I have saved a 6 page story from somewhere about Yellen’s trip last year dated April 25, 2023 and we will see what the comparisons are as the circus show unfolds.
Death of empires: History tells us what will follow the collapse of US hegemony
The turn away from expansion, production and trade toward lending and speculation has precipitated decline for centuries
.
One of the curious features of the American landscape is the fact that these days the financialization of the economy is widely condemned as unhealthy, yet little is being done to reverse it. There was a time, back in the 1980s and ‘90s, when finance-driven capitalism was supposed to usher in a time of better capital allocation and a more dynamic economy. This is not a view one hears often anymore.
So, if such a phenomenon is overwhelmingly viewed negatively but isn’t being amended, then perhaps it’s not merely a failure of policymaking but rather something deeper – something more endemic to the very fabric of the capitalist economy. It is of course possible to lay the blame for this state of affairs at the feet of the current crop of cynical and power-hungry elites and to stop one’s analysis there. But an examination of history reveals recurrent instances of financialization that bear remarkable similarities, which invites the conclusion that perhaps the predicament in the American economy in recent decades is not unique and that the ever-rising power of Wall Street was in a sense preordained.
Keep working
Introducing Giovanni Arrighi: Financialization as a cyclical phenomenon
It is in this context that it pays to revisit the work of the Italian political economist and historian of global capitalism Giovanni Arrighi (1937-2009). Arrighi, who is often simplistically pigeonholed as a Marxist historian, a label far too constricting given the breadth of his work, explored the origins and evolution of capitalist systems dating back to the Renaissance and showed how recurrent phases of financial expansion and collapse underpin broader geopolitical reconfigurations. Occupying a central place in his theory is the notion that the cycle of rise and fall of each successive hegemon terminates in a crisis of financialization. It is this phase of financialization that facilitates the shift to the next hegemon.
Arrighi dates the origin of this cyclical process to the Italian city-states of the 14th century, an era that he calls the birth of the modern world. From the marriage of Genoese capital and Spanish power that produced the great discoveries, he traces this path through Amsterdam, London and, finally, the United States.
In each case, the cycle is shorter and each new hegemon is larger, more complex and more powerful than the previous one. And, as we mentioned above, each terminates in a crisis of financialization that marks the final stage of hegemony. But this phase also fertilizes the soil in which the next hegemon will sprout, thus marking financialization as the harbinger of an impending hegemonic shift. Essentially, the ascending power emerges in part by availing itself of the financial resources of the financialized and declining power.
Arrighi detected a first wave of financialization starting around 1560, when the Genoese businessmen withdrew from commerce and specialized in finance, thereby establishing symbiotic relations with the Kingdom of Spain. The subsequent wave began around 1740 when the Dutch began to withdraw from commerce to become “the bankers of Europe.” The financialization in Great Britain, which we will examine below, emerged around the end of the 19th century; for the United States, it began in the 1970s.
Hegemony he defines as “the power of a state to exercise functions of leadership and governance over a system of sovereign states.” Central to this concept is the idea that historically such governance has been linked to the transformation of how the system of relations among states functions in itself and also that it consists of both what we would call geopolitical dominance but also a sort of intellectual and moral leadership. The hegemonic power not only rises to the top in the jockeying among states but actually forges the system itself in its own interest. Key to this capacity for the expansion of the hegemon’s own power is the ability to turn its national interests into international interests.
Observers of the current American hegemony will recognize the transformation of the global system to suit American interests. The maintenance of an ideologically charged ‘rules-based’ order – ostensibly for the benefit of everyone – fits neatly into the category of conflation of national and international interests. Meanwhile, the previous hegemon, the British, had their own version that incorporated both free-trade policies and a matching ideology that emphasized the wealth of nations over national sovereignty.
Returning to the question of financialization, the original insight into its epochal aspect first came from the French historian Fernand Braudel, of whom Arrighi was a disciple. Braudel observed that the rise of finance as the predominant capitalist activity of a given society was a sign of its impending decline.
Arrighi adopted this approach and, in his major work called ‘The Long Twentieth Century,’ elaborated his theory of the cyclical pattern of ascendency and collapse within the capitalist system, which he called the ‘systemic cycle of accumulation.’ According to this theory, the period of ascendency is based on an expansion of trade and production. But this phase eventually reaches maturity, at which point it becomes more difficult to profitably reinvest capital in further expansion. In other words, the economic endeavors that propelled the rising power to its perch become increasingly less profitable as competition intensifies and, in many cases, much of the real economy is lost to the periphery, where wages are lower. Rising administrative expenses and the cost of maintaining an ever-expanding military also contribute to this.
This leads to the onset of what Arrighi calls a ‘signal crisis,’ meaning an economic crisis that signals the shift from accumulation by material expansion to accumulation by financial expansion. What ensues is a phase characterized by financial intermediation and speculation. Another way to think about this is that, having lost the actual basis for its economic prosperity, a nation turns to finance as the final economic field in which hegemony can be sustained. The phase of financialization is thus characterized by an exaggerated emphasis on financial markets and the finance sector.
Women Are RAGING Because Men Are Going Their Own Way
What did you do first after being released from prison or jail?
Once pass the prison gate in the prison van..went over to the bank to cash the state check and then to the motel that I told DOC that I was going to…waited till the van turned,so that officer couldn’t see me leave ..walked over to the state DHS..got my food stamp card..then to Walmart .Got a dome tent and sleeping bag,food, quart of water. fillet knife and a ball of clothes line,a sharpie ,cell phone…once out side , looked in the trash bin and got a cardboard box..walked over to the street that would take me to the interstate..once there, walked over a overhead bridge.. went to sleep in the tent that night ..next morning,walked over the truck stop over the other side.made me a sign on where I was going to…
While I was setting there at the TS..a shoolie came in and 4 guys got out ..we spoke and I asked which way they were going..they was going my way ..I asked if I could join them..so I had a ride . Once there.had them drop me off where I wanted to be..call a person who I could stay with..got my DL , bought a pickup and a on bed camper..lived in it as I started my life outside of prison..
Since I discharged all of my sentences.I could travel and sleep where I wanted to..been out here for 13 years now…had a business that I had till I retired from.. Don’t want a place that I have to pay rent on.. upgraded to a shuttle bus now..not bad for a 70 year old guy…
The fiasco 4B movement
How financialization delays the inevitable
However, the corrosive nature of financialization is not immediately evident – in fact, quite the opposite. Arrighi demonstrates how the turn to financialization, which is initially quite lucrative, can provide a temporary and illusory respite from the trajectory of decline, thus deferring the onset of the terminal crisis. For example, the incumbent hegemon at the time, Great Britain, was the country hardest hit by the so-called Long Depression of 1873-1896, a prolonged period of malaise that saw Britain’s industrial growth decelerate and its economic standing diminished. Arrighi identifies this as the ‘signal crisis’ – the point in the cycle where productive vigor is lost and financialization sets in.
And yet, as Arrighi quotes David Landes’ 1969 book ‘The Unbound Prometheus,’ “as if by magic, the wheel turned.” In the last years of the century, business suddenly improved and profits rose. “Confidence returned—not the spotty, evanescent confidence of the brief booms that had punctuated the gloom of the preceding decades, but a general euphoria such as had not prevailed since…the early 1870s….In all of western Europe, these years live on in memory as the good old days—the Edwardian era, la belle époque.” Everything seemed right again.
However, there is nothing magical about the sudden restoration of profits, Arrighi explains. What happened is that “as its industrial supremacy waned, its finance triumphed and its services as shipper, trader, insurance broker and intermediary in the world’s system of payments became more indispensable than ever.”
In other words, there was a large expansion in financial speculation. Initially much of the expanding financial income derived from interest and dividends being generated by previous investments. But increasingly a significant portion was financed by what Arrighi calls the “domestic conversion of commodity capital into money capital.” Meanwhile, as surplus capital moved out of trade and production, British real wages began a decline starting after the mid-1890s – a reversal of the trend of the past five decades. An enriched financial and business elite amid an overall decline in real wages is something that should ring a bell to observers of the current American economy.
Essentially, by embracing financialization, Britain played the last card it had to stave off its imperial decline. Beyond that lay the ruin of World War I and the subsequent instability of the interwar period, a manifestation of what Arrighi calls ‘systemic chaos’ – a phenomenon that becomes particularly visible during signal crises and terminal crises.
Historically, Arrighi observes, these breakdowns have been associated with escalation into outright warfare – specifically, the Thirty Years’ War (1618-48), the Napoleonic wars (1803-15) and the two World Wars. Interestingly and somewhat counterintuitively, these wars have typically not seen the incumbent hegemon and the challenger on opposing sides (with the Anglo-Dutch naval wars a notable exception). Rather, it has typically been the actions of other rivals that have hastened the arrival of the terminal crisis. But even in the case of the Dutch and British, conflict co-existed with cooperation as Dutch merchants increasingly directed their capital to London, where it generated better returns.
Boss level
Puffy Wings
IMG 1804 scaled
Ingredients
Wings
12 chicken wings
Marinade
1 teaspoon garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ginger root, minced
1/2 cup dry sherry
2 tablespoons sesame oil
Batter
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup milk
Instructions
Add wings to marinade for at least one hour.
Combine dry ingredients, stir in egg and milk.
Pat wings dry.
Dip into batter. Drip off excess.
Heat oil to 350 degrees F.
Fry a few wings at a time for 3 to 4 minutes.
Wall Street and the crisis of the last hegemon
The process of financialization emerging from a signal crisis was repeated with startling similarities in the case of Britain’s successor, the US. The 1970s was a decade of deep crisis for the US, with high levels of inflation, a weakening dollar after the 1971 abandonment of gold convertibility and, perhaps most importantly, a loss of competitiveness of US manufacturing. With rising powers such as Germany, Japan, and, later, China, able to outcompete it in terms of production, the US reached the same tipping point and, like its predecessors, it turned to financialization. The 1970s was, in the words of historian Judith Stein, the “pivotal decade” that “sealed a society-wide transition from industry to finance, factory floor to trading floor.”
This, Arrighi explains, allowed the US to attract massive amounts of capital and move toward a model of deficit financing – an increasing indebtedness of the US economy and state to the rest of the world. But financialization also allowed the US to reflate its economic and political power in the world, particularly as the dollar was ensconced as the global reserve currency. This reprieve gave the US the illusion of prosperity of the late 1980s and ‘90s, when, as Arrighi says “there was this idea that the United States had ‘come back’.” No doubt the demise of its main geopolitical rival, the Soviet Union, contributed to this buoyant optimism and sense that Western neoliberalism had been vindicated.
However, beneath the surface, the tectonic plates of decline were still grinding away as the US became ever more dependent on external funding and increasingly ramped-up leverage on a diminishing sliver of real economic activity that was rapidly being offshored and hollowed out. As Wall Street rose in prominence, many quintessential American economies were essentially asset-stripped for the sake of financial profit.
But, as Arrighi points out, financialization merely stalls the inevitable and this has only been laid bare by subsequent events in the US. By the late 1990s, the financialization itself was beginning to malfunction, starting with the Asia crisis of 1997 and subsequent popping of the dotcom bubble, and continuing with a reduction in interest rates that would inflate the housing bubble that detonated so spectacularly in 2008. Since then, the cascade of imbalances in the financial system has only accelerated and it has only been through a combination of increasingly desperate financial legerdemain – inflating one bubble after another – and outright coercion that has allowed the US to extend its hegemony even a bit longer beyond its time.
In 1999, Arrighi, in a piece co-authored with American scholar Beverly Silver, summarized the predicament of the time. It has been a quarter century since these words were penned, but they might as well have been written last week:
“The global financial expansion of the last twenty years or so is neither a new stage of world capitalism nor the harbinger of a ‘coming hegemony of global markets’. Rather, it is the clearest sign that we are in the midst of a hegemonic crisis. As such, the expansion can be expected to be a temporary phenomenon that will end more or less catastrophically… But the blindness that led the ruling groups of [hegemonic states of the past] to mistake the ‘autumn’ for a new ‘spring’ of their…power meant that the end came sooner and more catastrophically than it might otherwise have…A similar blindness is evident today.”
An early prophet of a multipolar world
In his late work, Arrighi turned his attention to East Asia and surveyed the prospects for a transition to the next hegemony. On the one hand, he identified China as the logical successor to American hegemony. However, as a counterweight to that, he did not see the cycle he outlined as continuing in perpetuity and believed there would come a point where it is no longer possible to bring into existence a state with larger and more comprehensive organizational structures. Perhaps, he speculated, the US represents just that expansive capitalist power that has taken the capitalist logic to its earthly limits.
Arrighi also considered the systemic cycle of accumulation to be a phenomenon inherent to capitalism and not applicable to pre-capitalist times or non-capitalist formations. As of 2009, when he died, Arrighi’s view was that China remained a decisively non-capitalist market society. How it would evolve remained an open question.
While Arrighi was not dogmatic on how the future would shape up and did not apply his theories deterministically, especially with regard to the developments of recent decades, he did speak forcefully about what in today’s language could be called the necessity of accommodating a multipolar world. In their 1999 article, he and Silver predicted “a more or less imminent fall of the West from the commanding heights of the world capitalist system is possible, even likely.”
The US, they believe, “has even greater capabilities than Britain did a century ago to convert its declining hegemony into an exploitative dominion.” If the system does eventually break down, “it will be primarily because of US resistance to adjustment and accommodation. And conversely, US adjustment and accommodation to the rising economic power of the East Asian region is an essential condition for a non-catastrophic transition to a new world order.”
Whether such accommodation is forthcoming remains to be seen, but Arrighi strikes a pessimistic tone, noting that each hegemon, at the end of its cycle of dominance, experiences a “final boom” during which it pursues its “national interest without regard for system-level problems that require system-level solutions.” A more apt description of the current state of affairs cannot be formulated.
The system-level problems are multiplying, but the sclerotic ancien régime in Washington is not addressing them. By mistaking its financialized economy for a vigorous one, it overestimated the potency of weaponizing the financial system it controls, thus again seeing ‘spring’ where there is only ‘autumn.’ This, as Arrighi, predicts, will only hasten the end.
The purpose of this operation is to protect people who, for eight years now, have been facing humiliation and genocide perpetrated by the Kiev regime. To this end, we will seek to demilitarise and denazify Ukraine, as well as bring to trial those who perpetrated numerous bloody crimes against civilians, including against citizens of the Russian Federation.
Another brigade from the 150s batch makes an official appearance.
On October 17, 2023, we reported about the creation of five new Ukrainian mechanized brigades for the possible counter-offensive in 2024. The 151st Mechanized Brigade was officially revealed on October 30 while 154th Mechanized Brigade on November 1.
Today, the 153rd Mechanized Brigade was publicly announced. The unit received its insignia and motto – the power of unconquered.
Since January, the armed forces of Ukraine have lost more than 80 thousand servicemen, 14 thousand units of various weapons, including more than one thousand two hundred tanks and other armored combat vehicles.
The lack of vehicles forced Ukrainian command to back down from the original plans.The leadership of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has reorganized the 153rd Mechanized Brigade into an infantry brigade. This change was announced through the official social media channels of the brigade.
While the official reason behind the change remains undisclosed, it is presumably linked to the shortage of infantry fighting vehicles.
…
The reorganization of the 153rd Brigade may not be an isolated occurrence. According to our sources, the 152nd Mechanized Brigade is also slated for transformation into an infantry brigade in the near future.
Each day the Russian Ministry of Defense reports the observed losses of the Ukrainian army. While the reported numbers are unlikely to be exact the reports are considered to be reliable and do tell a story.
In the first year of the war the Ukrainian army often lost more armored vehicles per day than general vehicles, i.e. trucks. By mid 2023 the numbers of armored vehicle and trucks destroyed per day, as reported by the MoD, were about equal. By the end of 2023 that ratio was on average two trucks per one armored vehicle. It has since increased further. Yesterday’s report claimed 32 destroyed Ukrainian trucks but only 4 destroyed armored vehicles.
The numbers provide that the armed forces of Ukraine, as well as its allies, have run out of armored vehicles of all kinds.
A mechanized brigade is supposed to have some 100 armored (i.e. ‘mechanized’) vehicles of various kind plus some 30 tanks. An infantry brigade has, if its lucky, some unarmored trucks or buses.
An infantry brigade can only fight on foot. Its men have to dig in, by hand, to have a chance stay alive without armor protection. To do this in an environment where the enemy has a near perfect view of the battlefield, a reported artillery supremacy of 7 to 1 plus the ability to drop hundreds of precision guided bombs deep behind the frontline is not really survivable.
A 2024 counter offensive by the armed forces of Ukraine was and is a pipe dream. The five new brigades will be destroyed as soon as they come near to the frontline.
Ukraine has been demilitarized. It is high time to acknowledge that.
To give up now is the only way for Ukraine to survive.
Posted by b on April 4, 2024 at 7:57 UTC | Permalink
Why does China always say that there will never be any compromise on the Taiwan issue?
If one day Beijing compromised on Taiwan issue, the next day white house would know that China is willing to compromise on almost any matter.
Xinjiang would be negotiable, inner mongolia will become a leverage too, HK would go back to be the oriental Casablanca.
Stop developing 7nm semiconductor? YES SIR!
Selling state-owned assets? AS YOUR WISH SIR!
Having 2 parties and elect a lunatic every four years? RIGHT AWAY SIR!
China would soon become Argentina in Asia.
It’s like dating a girl for the first time.
She said to you that her bottom line is no cumming inside, because she doesn’t want to take emergency pills.
Later in the hotel room, the first thing you did is having a big cum inside her pussy cat, and she didn’t fight back or call the police.
Next thing you know is that she is willing to do anything tonight. The limitation will only be your ability to imagine.
Taiwan is China’s bottom line.
Beijing doesn’t matter how the west telling its people, nor how Taiwan having oral orgasms.
It’s been stated in the law clearly:
1. Peaceful unification is always the first choice.
2. In case of every attempt of peaceful unification failed, or foreign powers interfering which causes peaceful unification not possible anymore, a war is the only thing left.
Reality
Don’t bringing up “but what about the choice of 23 million Taiwanese”, because no one ever asked the choice of 1.4 billion mainland Chinese.
The communist party of China is the best possible China the world could have.
If it were a democracy, philippines would face gunpowder powered canon instead of water canon in SCS.
The west has been ignoring the silent majority of China for too long that the majority of the west consider Chinese people as mindless machines.
It’s always when westerners arrived in China and then realized that ordinary Chinese people do have opinions, and they are much more friendly in daily life, and much more aggressive in politics and military.
Too many times
As a matter of fact, Beijing had compromised on Taiwan issues for too many times, and Washington took steps forward after, instead of backward.
Compromising is not the correct choice when dealing with the west.
You need to make the west hurt, so that it would know not to fuck with you.
BTW, Yellen visited China again. It seems that the last legacy of the golden ages wants to try for the last time to save her empire.
She must have felt the pain.
These Confident Men Got Up & Left Their Trashy Girlfriends In The Dust!
What is the one piece of advice you would give to anyone?
1. Time is precious, waste it wisely.
2. Never get into an argument with someone who types faster than you.
3. That one password you use everything and if anyone knew it they could destroy you.
4. Honesty may be the best policy, but insanity is the best defense.
5. Going back to your ex is like having a shower and putting dirty underwear back on.
6. An optimist thinks that this is the best possible world. A pessimist fears that this is true.
7. Not everything in your brain needs to come out of your mouth.
8. Don’t lower your standards, just lower your expectations of people.
9. It’s ok to have bad moments, but don’t give it the power to make it a bad day.
10. Admitting you need help doesn’t make you weak. Neither does accepting it.
USA will stand down
The US will not interfere if Iran attacks Israel Through a series of messages exchanged via third parties, the United States and Iran have come to an understanding.
Iran assured the Americans it will not target U.S. facilities, and in turn the U.S. says it will not get involved if Iran retaliates against Israel.
Israel carried out the attack on the Iranian Embassy in Damascus, without consulting the United States.
Since the Embassy and the next-door Ambassador’s residence are on the same compound which was bombed, they are both Iran Sovereign territory. Israel’s attack was therefore an actual Act of War for which Iran has the right to respond with military force.
Modern Women Are DOOMED After New Anti Paternity Fraud Law In Tennessee
What is the most difficult thing for the elderly to accept? Why?
Nothing. I am 75 years old and many of my close friends are now dead. I not only accept the fact I will die soon, but I embrace the process. I am a Darwinist. The only way for each animal species to improve itself is through death. Death is an important part of life. Can you imagine an insane world where old humans NEVER die? If old humans never died, young humans would need to shoulder insurmountable levels of financial burden and time consuming elder care. I embrace my geezer-hood and I enjoy the simple pleasures I experience every day – like a latte in the morning and a glass of wine in the evening. I now embrace every moment of every day because many of my friends never had the chance to grow old. But I have also made peace with my impending death. The natural death of old people should NOT be a sad event – it is an event that improves the future of the human species. So I have had NO difficulty accepting all things that come with being elderly.
Various pictures of interest
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Default a hyper realistic color epic cinematography of an accu 3
What is the best way to believe in yourself?
I teach mathematics to a girl.
She is in Class X.
One fine day, she came to my house with her father. Her father wanted me to tutor her for mathematics. Her father was so disappointed with his daughter.
He said, “I have been good in mathematics since childhood, I don’t know how she is my daughter. It is difficult to teach this girl.”.
The girl hung her head in shame during the entire conversation.
I said okay and told her to join.
She started coming to the class. I started teaching her. While teaching her, I realized that the girl already knew a lot and it was not at all difficult to teach her.
But, I could see lack of confidence in her. She did not believe in herself. She always hesitated in answering even when she answered. She believed that her doubts and answers are senseless. I could see that in her behaviour.
I realized that the girl has accepted and believed that she does not know mathematics at all.
Her father, her school, her teachers have made her believe that she is not at all good in mathematics and does not know shit about the subject.
She writes down the question and stares at it and says “ Ma’am ye nahi hoga merese.” (I won’t be able to solve this).
I always told her the same thing “Chinmayee tumhe aata hai already. Try karo bas. Have confidence in yourself (“You already know this, Chinmayee. Just try once. Have confidence in yourself”).
And most of the times, she answers right.
My mother asked me “How is this girl in studies ?”
I said “I am getting paid just to make her believe in herself. Rest she knows.”.
Moral of the story : To believe in yourself, first stop believing what others believe about you. Otherwise, you will end up being what others believe about you.
Edit : One year later (6th May,19)
Today I got a call from her. She thanked me and informed me that she cleared her board exams with 85% and she chose humanities with psychology for further studies.
As a white person living in the States, would you feel better if you lived in a majority white town and surrounded by only whites?
No. I wouldn’t. I didn’t. Sit the fuck down and read. Take notes, and let this shit echo in your head, as it has in mine for nearly thirty fuckibg years.
Shiawassee County Michigan. I hated it.
Now, let me tell you why.
I look like THIS:
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And you’re wondering, “well what’s the problem?” Right?
See, I am 3/4 western European, like throw a dart at the map and chances are I have that place in my bloodline.
The remaining 25 percent? The single most undiluted portion of my genetic makeup?
…Japanese.
If you look, and pay attention, some of the classical shapes are there. None of the PIGMENTS, however, are. So I am often mistaken for *MAYBE* part First Nation (sure, there’s some Lakota, but it’s so diluted from so many generations back, I generally don’t mention it unless someone guesses, and even then only to tell them it’s insignificant to how I look as far as the oddities in facial structure). Now here’s where it gets interesting:
Once I told literally anyone, ANYONE in that county I was a quarter Japanese. I lost that person as a friend. I’ve literally been called a “traitor to my race” (whatever the fuck that means for a biracial individual) by more than a few idiots.
These people, whom I’d worked alongside, lived next door to, etc… called me every Asian slur in the book: sl_pe, sl_ant, squ_nt, z_p, z_pperhead, n_p, j_p, g__k, and ch_nk (yes I know neither of the last two are slurs for Japanese people, but apparently we “all look alike” to racist white fucks. Even when they look like *ME.*
This told me that far too many, whom I’d considered friends and dependable people, allies even, who saw me as an enemy. A pest. Some sort of infestation to eradicate.
Let me tell you, son. It’s hard to reconcile the Revelation that your coworkers, the guys you drank at the bar with, the people who once invited you to cookouts…. Would happily march you off for a refreshing cyanide shower if they could get away with it.
And you wanna know what’s really heartbreaking?
Knowing that I, as a white passing person… I’ve literally experienced racism “LIGHT.” That everyone NOT passing, like I am, gets it far, far worse. Knowing that so many other people are treated far more harshly and far more readily so than I have ever been.
Suffice it to say I spent most of my time there working toward leaving. I was glad when I finally got out. I wasn’t born or raised there, but I wish I never ended up there.
I was only there… a year. And it was a year too fucking long.
And I already know, based on past experiences here on Quora, that my answer will open me up to attacks from fuckers who either secretly or openly have a white robe and hood in their fucking closets. Let me just tell you preemptively I’m just gonna a delete your bullshit, because I don’t owe your fucking bigotry an audience.
Rosemary Wings
VZ44DSXCPMI6NCDRCTR22M2M74
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
2 teaspoons dried rosemary
1/2 cup lemonade
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
10 to 12 chicken wings
Instructions
Heat oven to 425 degrees F.
In a small saucepan, heat oil and butter over medium heat.
Add shallots and rosemary and cook 2 to 3 minutes.
Add lemonade, pepper and salt. Simmer over low heat for 6 to 8 minutes or until slightly reduced and syrupy.
Cool slightly.
Meanwhile, cut chicken wings into three pieces, discarding wing-tip joint. Place wings in shallow pan and coat well with sauce.
Bake until skin is golden brown, about 30 minutes.
Tinder Experiment Proves How Brutal it is For Average Guys
What’s the most unexpected life lesson you’ve learned recently?
1. Personality is not set in stone. You are able to take control or change it the way you like.
2. Never leave your parents. They are the reason you are here.
3. Never get confused to select between love and friendship. Both have their respective parts to play.
4. When in anger, isolate yourself. Give yourself some time. Finally think about the situation again with a calm mind.
5. People say “Follow your heart”. Not in every situation guys. Instead “Listen to your heart. Act With Your Brain”.
6. Time heals almost everything. Give some time and experience the change.
7. Thoughts control your Feelings. Feelings control your Actions. Actions control your Results. POSITIVE THOUGHTS = POSITIVE RESULTS
Were German soldiers scared of Americans in WW2?
They didn’t like Ma Duece.
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The July 1945 cover of this magazine depicted a waist gunner in a B-17 Flying Fortress and his flexible .50 BMG M2 Browning in an official USAAF photo by Karl Gaston.
By Barrett Tillman
John M. Browning was a historic figure whose guns started the first World War and helped end the second. In 1914, Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip used a Browning-designed FN Model 1910 to assassinate Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand, inciting the Great War. And though Browning died in 1926, he provided his nation with nearly all its World War II machine guns, its automatic rifle and its foremost sidearm. But he did something even grander. Browning’s magnificent M2 machine gun—chambered in the .50 Browning Machine Gun (BMG) cartridge—gave America and her allies the priceless gift of global air superiority. Nothing else came close.
Actually, the Browning .50 originated in the Great War. American interest in an armor-piercing cartridge was influenced by the marginal French 11 mm design, prompting U.S. Army Ordnance officers to consult Browning. They wanted a heavy projectile at 2700 feet per second (f.p.s.), but the ammunition did not exist. Browning pondered the situation and, according to his son John, replied, “Well, the cartridge sounds pretty good to start. You make up some cartridges and we’ll do some shooting.”
Reputedly influenced by Germany’s 13.2×92 mm SR (.53-cal.) anti-tank rifle, Ordnance contracted with Winchester to design a .50-cal. cartridge. Subsequently, Frankford Arsenal took over from Winchester, producing the historic .50 BMG or 12.7×99 mm cartridge.
The Army then returned to John Browning for the actual gun. Teamed with Colt, he produced prototypes ready for testing and, ironically, completed them by Nov. 11, 1918—the Great War’s end.
The scaled-up version of the .30-cal. (.30-’06 Sprg.) M1917 water-cooled machine gun possessed obvious potential. But the cartridge’s enormous power proved excessive to the Colt-Browning design, forcing the master back to his drafting board. He returned with a buffer system that seemed workable. Tests in 1919 and 1920 confirmed the viability of the cartridge and gun, and Ordnance approved it for production. The result was the M1921 water-cooled .50-cal. machine gun, the basis for today’s M2 model, the fabled “Ma Deuce.”
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“Ma Deuce” still serves today.
Because of its size and weight, the M1921 was issued as a light anti-aircraft gun, both ground- and ship-based. It remained in Navy use until replaced by 20 mm Oerlikon cannons in 1942.
Meanwhile, a more utilitarian .50-cal. gun was underway. After adopting the M1921, the Army decided to evaluate an air-cooled model, far more tractable for soldiers at 120 lbs. with a tripod. The result was designated “Caliber .50 Machine Gun, Heavy Barrel, M2.” The heavier 36″ barrel was expected to handle heat buildup, but experience led to a 45″ version that was adopted in 1933 and used ever since.
To War
The big Browning fought America’s war from the first day to the last. On Dec. 7, 1941, Navy CPO John Finn responded to the Japanese attack on Kaneohe Naval Air Station, Hawaii, by manning an AN/M2 in an instructional mount (“A/N” stands for Army and Navy). Alone and fully exposed, he fired at the raiders whenever they came within range. “I was out there shooting the Jap planes and just every so often I was a target for some,” he said. “In some cases, I could see their faces.” Though struck by 20 bullets or fragments, he remained at his gun until ordered to report for medical attention. Then he turned to arming his squadron’s remaining planes. His actions resulted in CPO Finn receiving the Medal of Honor.
At least four other .50-cal. gunners received the nation’s highest award, including Lt. Col. William J. O’Brien, an Army battalion commander on Saipan in July 1944. When the Japanese overran his position, he replied with an M1911 in each hand, then dashed to a jeep-mounted M2, according to his citation, “firing into the Jap hordes that were enveloping him” until he was killed.
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The three main variants of the .50-cal. Brownings were (top to bottom): the water-cooled M1921 (used mostly in the anti-aircraft role); the aircraft-mounted AN/M2, which could be flexible or fixed; and the M2HB used on the ground.
Undoubtedly the best-known M2 engagement occurred on the other side of the world six months later. In France on Jan. 26, 1945, 19-year-old 2nd Lt. Audie Murphy climbed aboard a burning tank destroyer to man the .50 as a company of German infantry advanced. Though hit in one leg, he remained at the gun, shooting down perhaps 50 of the enemy before running dry. Then he returned to his platoon to organize a counterattack. For this, Murphy received the Medal of Honor, and he would become one of the most decorated soldiers in American military history.
With a global need, it seemed that everyone built M2s, from AC Spark Plug Co. to Frigidaire to Guide Lamp. American Rifleman Field Editor Bruce Canfield’s encyclopedic U.S. Infantry Weapons of World War II shows nearly 350,000 M2 Heavy Barrels (M2HB) produced among nearly 2,000,000 .50 calibers of all models during the war years.
Everybody wanted the Ma Deuce in .50 BMG for its fabled power, range and reliability. One wartime study found that stoppages averaged one in 4,000 rounds, as long as headspace was properly adjusted. Armorers determined that a high ratio of malfunctions were due to faulty ammunition or links.
The Ma Deuce’s limit as an anti-aircaft (AA) gun was range, volume of fire and weight of projectile—especially when compared to 20 mm or 5″ cannons. A single-barrel gun firing a 700-gr. bullet could seldom inflict enough damage to destroy a fast attacker. Even multiple guns engaging the same target were marginal. At the Battle of Santa Cruz Islands in October 1942, the fabled carrier U.S.S. Enterprise expended 400 rounds of .50 BMG versus 46,000 rounds of 20 mm; 3,200 rounds of 40 mm; and 400 rounds of 5″. The main reason for the discrepancy probably was engagement range: few attackers closed to within the .50’s effective distance.
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(l.) Adopted in 1933, the M2HB had a 45″ barrel and weighed about 120 lbs. with its tripod. A typical Army infantry battalion had six M2s. In Ordnance Went Up Front Roy Dunlop wrote: “All ground guns could fire single shots … and very accurate fire was possible.” (r.) The M45 quad mount—with four .50-cal. M2s—could be installed in an M16 halftrack or towed as shown in the Pacific Theatre. Although used mostly for anti-aircraft defense, in ground combat the power of four .50-cal. Brownings could be devastating.
Army anti-aircraft units made good use of the M45 quad .50 mount, either towed or mounted on M16 halftracks. Some of the heaviest AA activity occurred during Luftwaffe attacks on Allied airfields on New Year’s Day 1945. In the Metz area, Army AA gunners engaged 25 enemy aircraft, claiming 14 destroyed and four probably downed. Only 11 rounds of 90 mm artillery were fired with a combined 1,270 rounds of 37 and 40 mm, compared to 24,100 rounds of .50 caliber. Quad .50s also were employed in ground combat. A 1945 study noted, “A few bursts from the quadruple .50s directed at any source of small-arms fire very quickly eliminated the trouble.”
Through most of the war, a typical Army infantry battalion operated 20 .30-cal. machine guns (eight M1917 water-cooled) and six .50-cal. M2s. Weapons platoons typically had a jeep-mounted M2 that could be rushed to a trouble spot. The Axis armies had nothing comparable, though Germany issued light machine guns on a greater scale than the Allies. However, short of 20 mm canons, the Germans had no battlefield guns that could penetrate armored cars or personnel carriers at typical engagement distances.
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The M2HB (Heavy Barrel) could be employed as a ground arm while mounted on its M3 tripod (l.) or on vehicles, such as with the three MPs in their jeep in the winter of 1944-1945 (r.).
Pre-war match shot and American Rifleman contributing editor Roy F. Dunlap described wartime global trekking in his memoir, Ordnance Went Up Front. He wrote, “I believe the .50s have fewer breakdowns than the .30 caliber guns and that about 75 percent of the repair jobs I did were due to rough handling or carelessness on the part of the gun crew.” For practical application, he said, “I cannot think of a better way to screw up a road junction than to work a .50 to within a couple or three miles, set it in a hollow, camouflaged, and every so often throw a few armor piercers or incendiaries over to the crossing. The blue-tipped incendiaries explode with flash, report and puff of smoke. All ground guns could fire single shots … and very accurate fire was possible.”
In a 1945 summary, the U.S. Army in Europe concluded, “The half-track .50 caliber machine gun—one of the most effective weapons we have—is up where it can be used.” The same report noted that mechanized units had scrounged M2s from downed aircraft and adapted them to coaxial mounts.
On the Pacific isles, typical engagement distances were far closer than in Europe, and Japanese armored vehicles—rarely encountered—were vulnerable to .50-cal. fire. One of the Browning’s main advantages in that environment was its unrivaled penetration, as M2 rounds were far less likely to be deflected by foliage than .30s. Nevertheless, the Marine Corps divisional allotment of Ma Deuces declined from 360 in 1942 to 162 at war’s end.
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The .50-cal. water-cooled was the first adopted, and it was the heaviest, too. The guns served in the anti-aircraft role in all theatres of the war. While phased out for shipboard use, the Army continued to use the M2 AA gun.
Air Guns
Entering World War II, the British Royal Air Force installed eight Colt-Browning .303s in Hurricane and Spitfire fighter planes (later augmented with 20 mms) while Germany and Japan favored rifle-caliber guns and 20 mm cannon. But whether Oerlikon or Hispano-Suiza designs, cannon had limited ammunition capacity and were prone to malfunction.
The prewar U.S. Army Air Corps took a middle road. Early Bell P-39Ds had two .50s, four .30s and a 37 mm gun in the nose. The Curtiss P-40B packed two .50s and four .30s, while Lockheed’s futuristic P-38 had four .50s and a 20 mm. The .50-cal. round delivered at least four times the energy of the .30-’06 Sprg. at the same velocity, affording greater penetration and projectile selection. Clearly, the M2 was better suited for destroying modern all-metal aircraft.
Originally the Air Corps adopted the M2 with a 600 r.p.m. cyclic rate. But, as aircraft speeds increased, fighter pilots had less time to track and shoot. Therefore, Frankford Arsenal boosted muzzle velocity from 2700 to 2880 f.p.s. The standard ball cartridge was the 709-gr. projectile atop 253 grs. of IMR-5010. Armorers experimented with various belting combinations, alternating ball, armor-piercing incendiary (API) and tracer. The M2 AP round would defeat nearly an inch of face-hardened steel at 200 yds. Moreover, armor-piercing incendiaries (usually 647 to 662 grs.) were most useful against aircraft, as they could penetrate enemy armor and engine blocks, sever enemy airframe components and ignite enemy fuel tanks.
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The solid-nose version of the B-25 Mitchell was fitted for eight fixed M2s and could sink enemy ships by .50-cal. gunfire alone.
Tracer rounds, typically about 680 grs., had somewhat different ballistic properties than ball, AP and API, and they did not duplicate the others’ trajectories. Tracers probably were more widely issued to anti-aircraft units than aviation organizations. However, various fighter squadrons adopted different policies. Some loaded the last 50 rounds in each belt entirely with tracers to alert the pilot he was running low. But some very successful pilots shunned tracers. Lieutenant Colonel Francis Gabreski, leading U.S. ace of the European Theater, said, “Sometimes you miss with the first burst and tracers can give you away.”
Browning’s big gun won air superiority for America around the world. Army, Navy and Marine fighters were credited with 25,264 aerial victories, nearly all armed wholly or mainly with AN/M2s. The exceptions were 412 victories gained by British aircraft (mainly Spitfires) in American units and some U.S. night fighters, which were aircraft reconfigured or designed for combat in the dark.
Bombers also packed the M2 as single, manually operated guns and as turret-mounted pairs. The U.S. armed forces consumed vast amounts of ammunition—the St. Louis plant alone delivered 6.7 billion rounds of .30 and .50 caliber during the war. In the fall of 1943, when Eighth Air Force bombers flew unescorted deep penetrations into Reich airspace, one mission might consume more .50-cal. ammunition than a month’s worth of that used by the Fifth Army in Italy.
Around that time, aerial gunners began calling their guns “Mrs. Deuce,” an obvious precursor of today’s familiar “Ma Deuce.” The total Army Air Forces (AAF) overseas expenditure was nearly 460 million rounds, but monthly figures alone were staggering. In April 1945, shortly before Germany surrendered, the Army Air Force in the European and Mediterranean theaters fired nearly 25 million rounds of machine gun and cannon ammunition, the huge majority being .50 caliber. In July, Army airmen flying against the Japanese expended more than 6 million rounds.
During the war, about 100 American fighter pilots downed five or more enemy aircraft in one day to become “instant aces.” Six pilots were credited with seven kills in one mission. They flew very different aircraft—Wildcats, Hellcats, Corsairs, Lightnings and Mustangs—but all had the AN/M2 in common. One instant ace and future NRA member was Marine aviator James E. Swett, who received the Medal of Honor for downing seven (possibly eight) Japanese dive bombers over Guadalcanal in April 1943.
The outright record for aerial victories in a single encounter belonged to the Navy top gun, Cdr. David McCampbell. Flying from U.S.S. Essex over Leyte Gulf in the Philippines on Oct. 24, 1944, he and a wingman tackled a large formation of Japanese fighters. In 90 minutes of combat McCampbell was credited with nine destroyed and two probables while his partner added six more. With the confidence of experience and a disciplined trigger finger, McCampbell made maximum use of his Brownings and ammunition. Given the 2,400-round payload of his Grumman Hellcat, McCampbell averaged just 218 shots per victory.
Perhaps the most cost-efficient aircraft kill of the air war demonstrated the .50’s power. Over Okinawa in May 1945 a Hellcat night fighter stalked a Japanese floatplane harassing U.S. ground troops. Marine Lt. J.E. Smurr closed to minimum range—about 50 ft.—and centered the Aichi seaplane in his illuminated reticle. He pressed the trigger for less than one second and the enemy aircraft disintegrated into a fireball. Armorers found that Smurr had fired only 62 rounds. Throughout the campaign, Marine night hunters averaged 567 rounds per victory regardless of size or type of aircraft.
In a naval war such as the Pacific, .50 calibers inevitably were used against ships. Six M2s could cripple a corvette or a destroyer, whose typical 1/2″ plates offered little protection. Japanese destroyer hulls measured 0.4″ to 0.6″ (10 to 16 mm) whereas .50 ball from a 45″ barrel could penetrate 1/3″ (8 mm) at 500 yds. API rounds penetrated 1″ (25 mm) of homogenous plate at 200 yds. and 3/4″ (18 mm) at 650 yds. Face-hardened plate of 0.9″ (23 mm) was defeated at 200 yds. and 1/2″ at 600. The velocity loss from 36″ aircraft barrels did not seriously reduce the .50’s penetrative qualities, which could puncture engines, boilers and magazines.
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As well as its use on the ground, the big Browning proved a war winner in the air with the Army, Navy and Marines. The U.S. Army Air Force used lighter-weight, .50-cal. AN/M2 Brownings as defensive armament, including as a pair in a turret on a B-17 Flying fortress (top l.) as well as in the tail of a B-17 (top, r.). They were also used on fighter aircraft, such as in the nose of the P-38 Lightning (below l.) and in the wings of fighter aircraft in Europe such as the P-47 Thunderbolt (below, r.).
Certainly the outer limits were achieved by North American B-25H bombers optimized for shipping attacks. With eight nose- and fuselage-mounted .50s plus a top turret, two waist guns and the twin-gun tail position, the H model Mitchell was literally a flying gunship that could immobilize merchantmen—even without the short-barreled 75 mm cannon. However, when the H model entered combat in the China-Burma-India Theater in early 1944, shipping targets were rare. River traffic, on the other hand, was easily destroyed by fighters and gunships.
A study of Navy patrol bombers concluded that during 1945, “Dozens of small vessels were destroyed by fires caused by incendiary hits or strafing alone.” Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer bombers expended 2 million rounds of .50 caliber on 600 or more surface vessels, contributing to sinking as many as 300. “The effect was to cripple the remaining Japanese sea transport in most areas and to cause withdrawal of many vessels not sunk because of the danger of attack … .”
The AN/M2 was fully appreciated by the war’s midpoint. In 1943, Gen. Henry “Hap” Arnold, chief of the Army Air Forces, declared the Browning “the outstanding aircraft gun of the Second World War.” He added, “This weapon … is the backbone of offensive and defensive gun [sic] for American aircraft and was brought to such a state of perfection by the Ordnance Department during the years of peace prior to the present conflict that it has enabled the Army Air Forces, the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps to show a definite superiority in aircraft gun power through this global war.”
Despite the M2’s immense success, some operators wanted more. The M3 .50 caliber boosted cyclic rate to 1,200 r.p.m., but the increase came at too high a price. Tests showed greater barrel erosion, and rounds tended to “keyhole.” Only 2,400 M3s were delivered before V-J Day, but development continued. Subsequently, the M3 armed the first generation of American jet fighters, pointing the way to victory in MiG Alley during the Korean War.
In typical military fashion, in 2004 the Army tried to replace the M2 with a less effective arm at twice the price. The wasteful three-year program to develop the XM312 flopped during tests in 2005 but lingered two more years before cancellation. At that point “Big Army” defaulted to the best option: buying more M2s.
Longevity remains a hallmark of John M. Browning’s designs. His timeless M1911 pistol is more widely used today than ever, and “Ma Deuce,” dating from 1921, shows no signs of retiring. In fact, in 2015 the 324th M2 ever produced was finally removed from service—after 94 years in the inventory. The old warhorse was being retired because current standards would require extensive modification. Army Materiel Command quoted an armorer at Anniston Army Depot who said, “Looking at the receiver, for its age, it looks good as new and it gauges better than most of the other weapons.” Said John Clark, a small arms repair leader, “I’d rather put this one on display than send it to the scrap heap.” A veteran approaching its centennial, the M2 certainly deserves an honorable retirement—though its relatives will remain on the firing line well into the current century.
HOT Girl Finds out what it’s like to be an Average Guy on Tinder
Have you ever had such a close call it makes your skin shiver everytime you think about it? If so, what happened?
I first thought it was the worst case of heartburn ever. After working two hours I decided to drive home and have my husband take me to the hospital’s ED. After frantically examining me, several blood draws, multiple EKG tests, and waiting for a few hours I was told it was not my heart, but my liver. An hour later a cardiologist stopped by and told me I had indeed suffered a mild heart attack, and luckily my heart suffered no damage. I would be transported to the main hospital that night for an early morning catheterization to see what was going on.
After the catheterization, the surgeon came to my room to discuss the procedure with my husband and me. He asked how I was doing, and I told him, “That is what I am paying you to tell me.” Looking very somber he told me, “Well you are lucky to be here right now. When we went in, we found your Widow Maker was 99% blocked. From the time of your first chest pain until we inserted the stent was much too long. Your chance of surviving was about 3%, I have never had a patient live through a blockage like that for longer than thirty minutes. In addition, you should have severe heart damage, and you have none. I can’t explain why you are here, and your heart is not damaged. Somebody must want you alive.”
All I could say is, “Damn! Does this mean I can still perform with the New York City Ballet troupe as lead in “Swan Lake?” He chuckled, “As long as you were already part of the troupe before your heart attack!”
I do not like to think about that day, the news, or how close I came to shaking hands with Jesus, or whoever is waiting on the other side. Instead, I joke and say I was knocking at death’s door, and thank god no one answered!
What are some unwritten social rules everyone should know?
Never give advice until you’re asked.
Do not make plan infront of those friends you are not involving.
Don’t talk to someone if they have headphones in.
If someone is being quiet and doesn’t look like in a mood to talk, don’t nag them by asking ‘what’s wrong?’ every freaking second. Give them some space and ask once or twice max. If they want to, they’ll come up and share it with you.
Don’t close talk/invade someone’s personal space.
Do not use your cell phone at movies etc.. it breaks the “spell” and distracts from other’s enjoyment of the performance.
If invited to a dinner party and expected to arrive at 7 P.M., arrive no later than 15 minutes after the hour.
If someone pays for your meal, invite them over/take them out for a meal sometime. Even if they decline, it’s the invitation that matters.
Don’t talk whilst chewing..
The right side of the escalator is for standing, the left side is for walking.
If a person is speaking directly to you, staring at your phone is rude as shit.
Don’t date your friends exes.
Always let people out before you enter.
Be quiet when other people are asleep. That means more than not talking — not slamming doors, drawers, etc.
Put things back where you found them.
What is the single most mind-blowing fact that you did not believe until you looked it up?
The photo is not an original shot of an execution.
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In Iran, it is against the law to put to death female prisoners who are virgin. So, the Basij militias of the government marry and rape virgin female prisoners to get them ready to be killed.
In Iran, the law says that women who are still virgins cannot be put to death. So, the government sets up marriages the night before executions and forces female prisoners to have sexual relations with Besic members. “Women whose new husbands have raped them” are then allowed to be put to death. The Besic member told the reporter, “Even though it’s legal, I’m sorry for what I did.” During his speech, he said that he had just been let out of jail for letting two young people go who had been arrested during the street protests in Iran after the election. Members of Besic say that some of the prisoners who fight back are controlled with sleepy pills and that “many of the prisoners who fight back would rather be raped than killed. “The Besic member tells the reporter what happened by saying, “After the rape was over, I could hear them screaming and calling for help.” I’ll never forget how one of the girls used her nails to scratch her face and neck. She had deep cuts all over.
American Reacts to 6 LIES America Told Me about Europe || Life in the UK
Is Taiwan very important to China? China wants Taiwan so much.
From the point of view of the Chinese government, Taiwan is important for historical reasons, as unification with the rest of China would represent a clear end to China’s century of humiliation and the end of any pro-western colonial presence on Chinese territory. Any Chinese leader who brought Taiwan back into a unified China would be remembered in the history books as the leader who brought this period of humiliation to an end, and would be remembered for this single accomplishment.
Most PRC Chinese also feel this way about Taiwan.
In short, it would be the single largest accomplishment in Chinese history in the 21st century.
Most Americans, including US government officials, do not understand the depth of the Chinese commitment to unification with Taiwan.
If they can understand the commitment of Zionist Jews to Israel and a homeland in the Middle East, why can’t they understand China’s commitment to unification with Taiwan?
Things Genghis Khan did to His Slaves
Why can you only have one child in China?
This is not true.
There are no limits on how many children that you can have in China. So please, stop flooding my inbox with questions about “invasions of Taiwan”, “one child birth policy”, and “when China will collapse”. These are simply CIA propagandized narratives that the gullible believe.
But, instead I do want to address something that I personally find very interesting. Take note people! China does not play around. They are SERIOUS in regards to their population and raising children. It’s not an after-thought like it is in the United States.
Considerations, on the citizenship of the baby.
First off, take note, If you give birth in China, the child is stateless.
It does not get automatic citizenship as in the West. Oh, you can give birth, but it will not be a legal citizen, and will not be protected by law. It will be a burden of the couple that produced the baby.
If you want the child to become a Chinese citizen, then be advised;
You can give birth to a hundred children if you want (and are able to), but…
One parent must be Chinese and have a Houkou (a family register),
BOTH parents must pass paternity tests,
The child must not have any mental, emotional or physical deformities. (this is tested while in the womb by DNA testing, and the burden of payment is on the parents.)
Both parents must be able to afford the child. Not be a burden on society.
If the child, or parents fail any of the above considerations, then the baby will remain stateless and will need to exit the nation with the parents if they want to provide some other national citizenship for it.
That is the REAL deal.
…
One of the tools of manipulation of the people of the West is to keep them ignorant. Then fabricate fantasies that seem to make sense to the ignorant, the illiterate, and the moronic. One such lie is the idea and concept of “one child birth policy”.
If you believe it, you should be ashamed of yourself.
How did the policy of appeasement lead to World War 2?
When I was a child, my father told me to always stand my ground against bullies, “Because when you give them one thing, they will take the whole hand!” And this is true. This is what appeasement is all about. Its a misguided belief we all know, since childhood, doesn’t work. You don’t want trouble. You want to avoid a fight. So you give the bully whatever he desires.
The British establishment at the time, as did many other European leaders, felt that it was best to “play nice” with Hitler and his Nazi party. Just give him what he wants. He wants to add some more countries, annex some more lands for Germany? Let him. Let him make his Fatherland Great Again. Who cares. It sure beats war, doesn’t it? And it does… until the moment it doesn’t. The same line of thinking is seen today with those who hate NATO and sympathize with Russia. They want to give up on aid to Ukraine. Because they don’t want to anger the bully that started the war. This is appeasement, plain and simple.
It didn’t work in WWII. And it sure as hell won’t, now. Appeasement and playing nice with dictators leaves a dictator to feel secure, in control. It makes him feel strong, and makes you look weak. And it only emboldens him, and his friends, to take military action. “Peace in our time” only means: “A wider war is now certain… only a little bit later.”
Which movie(s) made you cry?
Yes! The following scenes from the movie The Pursuit of Happyness made me cry:
Chris and his son sleeping in a bathroom:
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With no money, no job and homeless, Chris turns a dirty subway restroom into an imaginary cave for his son and gets him to sleep there. Being at the depth of his poverty and despair, Chris breaks down in this scene and is shown blocking the door so that his son can sleep well. Heart touching scene.
2. The five-bucks scene:
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Chris’s boss forgets his wallet upstairs and is in a hurry to attend a meeting. He asks Chris to lend him five bucks. Being at the rock bottom of poverty, five bucks mattered for Chris and he lends his boss too. This scene regains our faith in humanity and the act of giving to those in need.
3. Chris gets the job:
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Who can forget this scene where he gets the job and is asked about his struggle? This scene still makes me emotional.
Will Smith is a genius!
Is there anything that China can teach the west about happiness?
I have lived in China for a few years, and I think the west would be a happier place if we adopted the following Chinese wisdoms:
if you cause someone embarrassment, you should also be ashamed of yourself – so, better don’t do that to anyone. It would be such a nice change from our silly, childish revenge culture.
take an entire hour for lunch every day. Better even: two. It celebrates the day, and makes for a more relaxed life.
get seriously into savings and whatever else you can do to build your fortune. We westerners have a debt culture. We live in denial of how unhappy that makes us.
choose the middle ground for all things. We westerners always look for extremes. But longterm happiness is not found in thrill, only in balance.
take naps during the day. You would be amazed how much happier you will be.
spend more time with your folks. Western society is always trying to isolate the individual, when life is so much nicer shared with others – especially your family.
This is a story that took place in the late 1980’s, when we lived in Indiana. At that time we lived in Columbia City, Marion, Kokomo, and one or two other places that were pretty much small communities in the land of corn…
Anyways, one day we went and visited a zoo. I think that it was in Indianapolis. Though, it could have been in Fort Wayne.
So we went there and were looking at the animals.
Sad creatures.
I really couldn’t stand it. What’s the matter with people? Can’t they emote? Gosh! I was stunned that people spent a day looking at sad, sad, and depressed critters.
My heart was sore…
Anyways, we rounded a corner at the far end of the zoo, and walked into an isolated corner of the zoo, and my wife said “hey! look at the cute cat!” and she started to walk to it to pet it.
But I grabbed her arm. I told her “wait!”.
Yup.
One of bobcats, or lynx, got out and was sheltering alone in the isolated privacy of the end of the park.
Poor thing.
It was wild. And it was ready to defend itself. Ears up. Hair ready. Hind legs ready to leap. In a half-crouch.
I told my wife to stand by the entrance to the enclave, and not to let anyone in.
I then went to get a worker.
I found one, but she was too busy with something and didn’t have time for me. She was talking earnestly on the radio. But, you know, I got her attention and said…
…”one of your cats is out…”
She looked at me.
“What?” she asked.
I then pointed to the enclosure. And she walked over, and took it from there.
Sigh.
That was the last time I went to a zoo up until last year when I took my daughter to a zoo. And do you know what she said?
“I don’t want to go back to the zoo. The animals are so old and sad. “
When asked I insisted it was because I “gave everyone a chance” and because “looks don’t matter” and because I “might find a gem.”
The truth is, I didn’t deserve the guys I liked.
I knew it. I knew it by the semi-faded acne scars on my face and the way my tummy sticks out over my jeans and the jokes I make, how when I say something other people sort of cock their heads and wonder where the hell did I get that from?
I’d spend hours on dating apps swiping yes on guys I felt I deserved and no on guys I really wanted.
Needless to say, dating didn’t go well. I found myself just really, really hoping they wouldn’t ask to kiss me at the end because I didn’t want to deal with saying no; I wanted to check my phone while they were talking even though it was rude, even though I wanted to care but I didn’t; even when I enjoyed myself I looked forward to going home alone.
I left every date wondering what a good first date should feel like. Should I feel smitten? Should my heart be racing? Is it okay to just feel content, like I could see them again except the minute I get in my car I forget what their face looks like because maybe I wasn’t really looking?
They say that if everyone around you shares the same trait, it’s not coincidence — something about you is attracting those people to you. So if every guy I dated made me shove my hands in my pocket so that he couldn’t hold them, then it wasn’t the men.
It was me.
I had the rather stunning realization that if I wanted to date men who made my heart skip a beat, then I had to… well, date those men.
But God, I was scared. Acknowledging that you find someone attractive is vulnerable. What if they thought I was too stupid, too ugly, too fat, wholly inadequate in every single way?
What if they weren’t interested in me? What did that say about me as a person — about my worth, my character?
Dating guys I didn’t like was safe because I knew I could turn them down before they did so to me, whether I realized it or not.
But dating attractive men?
Oh no. What if they don’t like me? Or worse — what if they do?
I wasn’t sure I could handle that.
Even so, I couldn’t handle another date with someone I didn’t like. Fuck “giving it a chance” — if you’re not into someone, you’re not into them. There’s no amount of well-wishing that will change it.
So I plugged my nose, closed my eyes, and dove straight into the deep end —
Without floaties.
When I saw cute boys — boys who wrote things I found intriguing, boys with good-looking faces and a physique I liked and ooh, you’re into that? That’s so cool! — I gave them a like. I reached out. I said awkward things. I bumbled. I was, as I described it to a date later, hopelessly myself.
And I started getting dates.
Some were awful (seriously, don’t compare yourself to Ted Bundy on a first date), some were marginal, and some?
Well, some taught me what a good first date is.
I don’t know about you, but for me, it is butterflies in the stomach and redness in the cheeks and flying in the door at midnight with no one to tell about how WOW WONDERFUL it was that you give the whole play-by-play to your cat, who’s just happy to see you’re willing to pet him for once.
It’s staying up late because gah, you don’t want the night to end.
See, happiness isn’t a gift. No one can give it to you and I’d say that no one can take it away. Happiness is what happens when you align what you do with what you want. It’s the serendipitous occasion of realizing that yes, this is where I want to be right now. This is what I want. You are what I want.
When people say not to settle, they’re telling you not to undershoot for fear of getting hurt.
Because you will get hurt. Any time you want something, you’ll go through fire to get there. In business you’ll lose money, in life you’ll lose health, and in love you’ll get your heart broken so many times you’ll wonder how it still pumps.
I don’t know. I heard this at Fort Carson, Colorado, in 1980. Soldier humor — especially in the Infantry — tends to be a bit dark, but here goes . . .
The Company Commander called for the First Sergeant.
When he arrives the C O says:
“Top, just got word that Private Schmedlap’s mother died. Please inform him.”
“Got it, Sir.”
So the Company is assembled for the noon accountability check. Per usual, he makes a few announcements then:
“Private Schmedlap?”
“Here First Sergeant.”
“Your mom just croaked.”
Schmedlap completely falls apart and passes out. An ambulance is called and Schmedlap spends almost a week in the hospital getting back his senses.
The C O is pissed.
“Damn it, Top. The Battalion Commander is on fire about this. I’m going to send you to Tact School. Maybe they can teach you to handle things like this a bit more thoughtfully.”
So, Top spends a week at Tact School. Time passes. Then, one morning . . .
“Top”, the C O says, “Just got word that Private Schmedlap’s father died. You need to inform him and I hope to hell you do a better job this time.”
“No sweat, Sir, I got this.”
So at the noon formation, Top makes a few announcements then: “Alright, listen up. I want everyone whose father is still living to take two steps forward. Not you Schmedlap.”
Just last week I faced this. I had lent my neighbour a drill and an angle grinder so he could do some renovation work on his home before moving out and renting it.
A few days before he moved out he brought back my drill but not the angle grinder. When I asked about the angle grinder he told me he had already returned it to me. Hmmm. I told him I didn’t think so but would check at home for it, which I did and at my business in case I had taken it there.
I let him know I couldn’t find it and that I was fairly sure he had not given it back. He said he would have another look for it too but he was sure he had given it back.
At this point I wrote off the angle grinder in my mind and was prepared to simply buy another. It never occurred to me that he was stealing it, as he is not like that, my thought was he had packed it up with his things or some other person had taken it. Regardless I was not having a good friendship lost over an angle grinder that might cost me $100!
In the end I told him it would turn up. No anger, no accusation, I really didn’t care for the reason above.
A few days pass and he is now at his new place and guess what he finds – the angle grinder!
My text message back to him was – I told you it would turn up.
So for you; all you can do is ask. Something like, “Hey, remember that xyz I gave you last year? Would you mind returning it as I have to clean the widgets. Would you mind dropping it back tomorrow? Or I will come by Wednesday and grab it.”
But if they don’t and they are a good friend or family member then let it go if you can at all afford to. Weigh up the friendship versus the cost of replacing it and make a decision.
Things can be replaced easily, friendships not so much.
BUT next time don’t lend them anything – that ship sailed.
Things my (adoptive) father said that still affect me today:
“I’m a little scared to be your dad, you know.” (This when I was a twelve-year-old child riding in the backseat with curious eyes. I hadn’t replied because communication at the time was a lot of effort for me, though my vocal cords were fine and I had been a talkative boy up to age 8.)
“Nightmare? Okay. Grab a cup and I’ll make you some cocoa.” (This to a progressively older me from 12 to 15, when I woke up from nightmares of the car accident that took my parents and the drug overdose that took my sister.
“Oh… oh.” (This when I finally broke through my walls and told him that I wasn’t afraid anymore. Verbally. It startled him into tears, though if you ask him today he’ll tell you he just blinked a little. That day was the first time I’d ever spoken to anyone since my sister’s death nearly 8 years prior. Of course it was my Dad.)
And last:
“He’s my son.” Or: “This is my son.”
This was the way he introduced me since the car ride to his house when I was 12. As far as he was concerned I was his boy and that was that. He didn’t care that I didn’t even look like his biological child, with flaming red hair to his jet black.
I love my birth parents and always will, but my Dad is my Dad and that’s it.
I was working in the creative department of arguably the hottest ad agency in the world at the time. It was the 1980’s and the place was extremely casual. By that I mean some of the creatives were in full punk, there was frequently a smell of weed in the corridors, there were occasional fights, and often too much drink was consumed, not always out of office hours (not that anyone paid much attention to that, as a few people actually slept in their offices).
The management of the agency didn’t mind because some truly exceptional work was produced. The agency was booming, and if a little anarchy was the price, so be it.
We creatives needed a lot of backup. We needed secretaries to type up TV scripts and generally look after us. They were all pretty good at seeing what the mood was and going with the flow up to a point. But one new secretary came into the dept and I thought straight away “Hmmm…this is going to be interesting”.
For a start she was all twinset and pearls. Then she unpacked a load of squishy animals like a child might have in their bedroom, and arranged them on her desk. Finally she went around to each office introducing herself by her last name and shaking hands. People scratched their heads. She had come from a bank’s headquarters where everything was very correct and formal.
She lasted about three months and when she left I remember her being in tears and saying we were all completely mad. It was a shame because everyone had been nice to her. People watched their swearing around her and no one vomited in her typewriter, (which had actually happened before to someone).
Disney Lost $200 Billion After Elon Musk Called Out Bob Iger
Seriously, the CEO has a responsibility to understand his customer base. When a company fails it is because it no longer provides things that the customers want.
I’ve had conversations with managers about this. It usually goes something like this:
Manager: “I can’t finish this project. I have no idea what Gary did with the project files.”
HR Me: “You have no idea where he put the files in the shared drive?”
“I think he kept them on his laptop.”
“You ‘think’? You weren’t tracking important project documents?”
“I even called Gary at home and you know what he did?”
“Told you to pound sand?”
“Pretty much! He didn’t want to talk to me! He just hung up!”
“Imagine that. We terminated him and marched him out immediately. You were pretty happy that day. What made you think he was going to help you at all?”
“I told him we might put him back on the re-hire list.”
“Oh you sweet summer child… so what did you want me to do about it?”
“Can’t we threaten to sue him or something? Like he stole company property?”
“Did he?”
“Well…”
“You weren’t tracking or centralizing important project files, but if it is on his work laptop, you should ask IT to look.”
“uh, they already reimaged his laptop.”
“Did you get a dump from his email account on the server?”
“A what, now?”
“Of course. Here you are asking me for HR advice and I’m sitting here suggesting ways you could have done your job. You lost company files because you didn’t act to protect them. You worked to fire someone we thought was essential to completing the project, but you didn’t want to wait. Now you look like you need a performance improvement plan for failing to secure work assets. And you want us to go threaten this guy with a costly lawsuit and an internal investigation which would likely document your incompetence. How is it that guy got fired and you’re still here?”
“…”
“I will talk to IT to see what we might have in his email attachments or if there’s a chance we can still recover something from the laptop. If we can’t, I would scour the shared drive with a content search because if you lost something, you’ll have to explain how you plan to recreate the assets you lost or you might be walking out of here with your own empty copier paper box.”
It wasn’t a meeting, but the morning breakfast where many of the local small business owners would gather every day. I was sitting at the large table, doing my morning crossword, when the guy I worked for started telling the story of a particularly difficult-to-diagnose problem we had encountered. He prefaced his story with, “my dummy, here”, meaning ME ! He went on to tell the story, telling of the various things we tried in attempting our diagnosis. He made himself out to be the wunderkind, when I was the one who had actually reasoned out the problem and came up with a solution. As he was laughing at his ‘dummy’s’ ineptitude, I calmly folded my paper, picked up my check, paid and left the cafe. I went to the shop, backed my vehicle in and started loading my tools. Boss rolled in about 15 minutes later. He came in, saw what I was doing and still asked me what I was doing ! He was totally clueless as to what I was doing and why I was doing it ! I told him, “ I rolled ’em in, and I’m rolling ’em out “! He asked, “Why ?” I had to struggle to stay calm as I told that I would not work for someone who had not only insulted me in public, but had also implied that I was some sort of idiot who had to be guided by his ‘superior’ intellect. The look of confusion on his face as I pulled out of the building was indicative of his lack of respect for me. He couldn’t understand how I had been insulted. The little story he had told at the cafe never entered his mind. C’est la vie et au revoir !
It was 530 am and the starbucks drive-thru was already hopping. There were two lanes to order from, but only one had a lit menu. I chose that side, despite the car waiting impatiently at the microphone for the other. After placing my order, I pulled ahead towards the pickup window, where the two lines merged. The car still waiting at the darkened lane honked angrily, and a hand shot out displaying the middle finger.
I had a terrible head cold and already felt miserable anticipating my 24 hrs of trauma call ahead. When he did that I considered my options and very nearly went with my first thought— to slam on the parking break, hop out and give somebody an in-the-face lecture on manners. If he couldn’t figure out that lane was closed, how was this MY fault?? I was tired of this kind of bullshit.
But I live in Arizona. I was likely to get shot doing that.
Next I considered giving him the finger back. I leaned on the window switch, but it was locked, and that allowed me thirty seconds to reconsider.
I felt like shit.
But maybe he felt like shit, too.
Flipping him the bird would just feed into both of our foul moods.
I reached the pickup window, still stewing, and finally managed to lower the car pane. “$4.25,” a teenager named Robin chirped at me, and as I dug into my pocket for my card, wondering how a small cup of tea could possibly add up to over four dollars, the ultimate revenge for the rude driver behind me occurred to my tired brain—-
“And I’ll pay for the car in back of me,” I told Robin.
She smiled. “Pay it forward, huh?”
“Well. Something like that.” I accepted my tea and my card back, waved cheerfully into my rearview mirror, and pulled away, feeling one less thing was wrong with the world.
I was 54 doing a degree in education at an Ivy League university. Most of the students were in their early 20s and from wealthy backgrounds. Each student had to do a presentation on an aspect of teaching. I did mine on the impact of poverty on learning.
Several students told me quite clearly that they were not remotely interested in poverty issues.
Then one student looked at one of my handouts on my topic and said, ‘this is so gay, it’s retarded!’
I had had enough of this crap. I quietly said to the instructor that he needed to deal with this or else I would. He agreed wholeheartedly and simply reminded everyone to use respectful language. That was it. I was pissed. That was not good enough.
So I went to the Dean of Education with this. He was someone the entire university respected. He had also grown up dockside in Liverpool I later learned.
A couple of days later the Dean came to our class and delivered an hour long lecture on poverty and terms like gay and retarded and a bunch of similar terms. He talked about identity, and he talked about cases where teachers have been punched in the face for using terms like that. He went into great detail with each researched case and the results. He talked about all the ways students can sabotage a teacher’s car. He talked about a case in our own city where a teacher used terms like this and the student population took up a petition to silence her. Her classes were chaos as retaliation and she had to be moved mid-semester. Then he talked about ethics, personal and professional, and how they overlap. He went into some detail about what he would do as a principal to a new teacher who spoke in such a degrading way to, or about, students.
Then the Dean asked if anyone in the room had loved ones who were developmentally challenged or gay.
There were several. They were invited to speak about them, and they did, eloquently. It was heartwarming.
This is what the instructor ought to have done.
Coming from no money adds a dimension to perspective that is valuable and important.
At that time, China, the Soviet Union, the United States, and the United Kingdom were the Allies against the Axis Powers such as Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, and Italy. The Chinese army is part of the Allied Forces.
The Chinese defeated the Japanese in Indochina.
image 257
In February 1942, Japanese troops attacked Burma through Thailand. The photo shows the Japanese fighting in the jungles of Burma. The British were unable to withstand the Japanese offensive, and requested the Chinese government to send troops to Burma to rescue the British. On 8 March, the Japanese captured the Burmese capital of Yangon, sending shock waves through India.
image 256
In 1945, Chinese in Yangon hit the streets to welcome soldiers from China’s New 1st Army who had arrived to take part in a military parade celebration dedicated to the victory of the Burma Campaign.
Second expedition (Early 1943 – March 1945)
Between 1942 and 1943, many Chinese soldiers were airlifted from Chongqing to India and joined the ones who had followed the British retreat there earlier, they were trained under American advisors and became the X Force into which the New 1st Army and New 6th Army was incorporated, which was supported by American Special Forces in their field operations.
For most of 1943, the Chinese Army engaged in several conflicts with the Japanese Army while defending the construction of the Ledo Road.
In October 1943, the New First Army managed to defeat the Japanese veteran 18th Division at Hukawng Valley.
To secure the opening of the Ledo Road, the Chinese Army in India was retitled the “Northern Combat Area Command” (NCAC), and re-entered Burma in the spring of 1944.
The Chinese Army engaged and defeated the Japanese forces during various campaigns in Northern Burma and Western Yunnan and recaptured Myitkyina in August.
Allied success in these campaigns enabled the opening of the Ledo Road.
However, by the time Myitkyina was captured, Allied success in the Pacific theatre was reducing the significance of the China-Burma-India theatre.
Intending to coordinate with the X Force, Wei Lihuang’s Chinese Expeditionary Force in Yunnan, known as the Y Force, crossed the Salween River in April and launched an offensive against the Japanese Army.
Y Force was composed of two Army Groups from the National Army; 11th Army Group(Commander Song Xilian, Deputy Commander Huang Jie, Chief of Staff Cheng Gang) and 20th Army Group (Commander Huo Kuizhang, Deputy Commander Fang Tian).
By January 1945, the Y Force had captured the town of Wanting on the China-Burma border and regained control of the land route from Burma to China. The first convoy via the newly opened Ledo-Burma Road reached Kunming in February 1945
100th Monkey Theory
The video cuts off at the end, but the point is that at the 100th monkey, all the monkeys in the world learn how to clean the sweet potatoes. There is a threshold that is crossed, and ESP, PSI takes over.
My patient had just been vaginally delivered of a newborn baby who weighed something more than nine pounds. The obgyn had to cut an episiotomy to prevent a tear into the rectum.
During the repair, which took a lot more sutures than usual, the father asked the doctor to “tighten her up a bit.”
The doctor and I exchanged looks. I let her respond first, because I wanted to say things that were inappropriate for a Muslim and as an RN.
The obgyn said words along the lines of, “I’m down here repairing an injury that your wife has because she pushed like a champion when she could have given up and requested a cesarean section. She did it because she loves the baby, she did it because she loves you. I’m going to let you think about all of that.”
It’s been about 20 years, this was early in my career, and I don’t want to portray the physician as more witty than she actually was, but this is pretty close to an exact quote.
My dad died in 1983. My mom sat and held his hand for a week until he died. He had such a look of pain on his face and my mom was very distraught that he did not have a happy death. I stayed with her for support and began calling family members to announce his passing. In the evening, before the family arrived, my mom asked me if we could be sure he was in heaven and happy. I said that Dad was very good at expressing his feelings and I was positive that he would send us a sign. We prayed and asked him to send Mom a sign so that she would accept his death with courage. Almost immediately there was a light shower that came from the west. Rain never came from the west so she thought that was a good sign. She then called my dad’s name and said “Valent, are you at peace and happy?” almost immediately the evening sun began to shine through the windows. The sun’s rays shone through the rain droplets on the windows and spread little tiny rainbows across the floors and furniture in the house.
My answer is yes, there is an afterlife. Dying is scary, more so because it might be painful. Death might be an end to physical life on earth, but faith will always help me to believe that there is something after death that is worth hoping for. Bless you, and I hope you feel comforted in all our answers to you.
Police say self-checkout aisles invented a new type of criminals
When my child was in grade school, a mother down the block asked me to drive her daughter to and from school every day. I said okay, because I was driving my child anyways. The only stipulation I made was that she eat breakfast before coming to our house. I was on a very strict food budget due to being an at home mom with only one paycheck. At this child’s house, both parents worked full-time and had enough money to put their children in extra activities. I couldn’t afford this for my child. I even arranged any Dr. appointments, dentist appointments, etc. fora time after I would drop this child home. This was all because the older sister had to start school earlier and couldn’t watch the younger child in the morning. After the first week of the school year, this child came every day earlier and earlier. The father would drop her off at my house on his way to work. It got to the point where I was getting up earlier than needed just to let her into our house. Did she eat breakfast at home, NO! I was feeding her every day for the rest of the year. I mentioned to her that she was to eat at home. Did she? NO! She stayed in bed until the last minute and then get into the car with her dad. Never saw dad or mom except when dropping her off. They would do the drop and go before she was even in the house. Did they talk to me at all during the year? NO! At the end of the year, the mother came over with a gift card for $25.00 to the grocery store and a decorative flowerpot. No flower even. I told her I couldn’t do it the next year at that time. The child then no longer was a friend of my child in school and taunted him constantly. When the new school year came, another mother from the block came and wanted me to drive her daughter to school so “I could save the bus money and you’re going anyways.” I told her “No, I am sorry. I am only driving my son this year so I could get things done after school if I need to.” I then became the “bad neighbor” and not talked to again. Don’t get roped into this at the beginning. Just tell the parent “Sorry, no.” No reason, no explanation, just no.
I can’t tell I’m full unless I eat so much that I experience discomfort and, even when I reach that level, it goes away within an hour or so, and I’m often hungry again.
It’s not uncommon for me to begin eating a meal, feel painfully full, and only then remember that I’d already eaten a meal a little earlier, which I’d forgotten about. This happens sometimes when they offer us food at work. My official lunch period at work is pretty late in the school day, so I usually eat my lunch during my planning period, which is earlier in the day. There have been times when I’ve eaten the lunch I brought and then, maybe an hour later, had a lunch provided for me by the school. Halfway through that lunch, I felt discomfort, and only then did I remember that I’d already eaten.
Like C. S. Friedman said in her answer, this is why single-serving portions of food, while more expensive than buying in bulk, are so popular.
If you put me in front of a family-size bag of chips, I can easily eat half of the bag before I start to feel discomfort. So we don’t get big bags of chips in my house. We get the little bags. That way I know when to stop.
It wasn’t until I was well into adulthood that I realized I was missing that “full” sensation that other people had. I always just assumed that everyone else had more self control when it came to their portion sizes. The idea that it wasn’t so much “self control,” but rather their mind actually signaling to them that “you’ve had enough” was foreign to me.
Meals where everyone eats from the same source (pizza, pots of soup or chili, etc.) are particularly problematic for me. When we have those for dinner, after getting my first serving, I have to make a conscious effort to avoid returning to the source for more, or I will eat until I feel discomfort, which is way beyond what I should eat. What usually happens is that I will be the last to serve myself and, as soon as I serve myself, before I even eat it, I will store the leftovers, to remind me that I’ve already had enough. Otherwise, every time I walk by it, I will have some more.
I’ve learned another trick over the years. It’s probably not the healthiest trick, but it does help keep me from overeating. If I know I’m going to be somewhere with a lot of food, if I eat candy about 20–30 minutes beforehand (to spike my blood sugar), I won’t eat as much food later. I’m sure a doctor could explain why that works, and the explanation is probably that something is wrong with me or I’m being even more unhealthy when I do that. But I know that I’m going over to a meal at someone’s house, and I don’t want to overeat there, on the way there, having a few pieces of candy will help me eat less once I get there.
Gym Owners Are Starting to BAN Cameras | Modern Women Are BAFFLED
My father was a mechanic. My entire life Dad would come home sweaty, smelling of transmission fluids, mineral spirits, and all sorts of other automotive fluids.
And yes, it stunk. Bad enough that he’d tell me , “No Pumpkin, dont hug me till I can shower, I stink!”
One Friday night, I had come home from college and called him at work to meet Mom and me at the Mexican restaurant up the street from our house for dinner. He told me the shop had been really busy this week and he had worked hard to get all the cars finished before the weekend. “Pumpkin, I need a shower first, I stink.” I knew once he got home there wasnt going to be a dinner out, he’d shower and be tired. I told him I wasnt worried about that stink and no one else would be either. Because that stink is the smell of money. That stink proved my family’s business was doing well. That stink put food on our table and kept a roof over our heads. That stink put me through college. If someone was offended by that stink then I’d be more than happy to explain why my Dad stinks.
My Dad never worried again about how he smelled directly after work, and often used that line when my mom would tease him about coming in smelly… “Aww Mae come on, that’s just the smell of money!”
When someone has worked hard to earn an income to take care of their family, you keep your mouth shut if they might smell a little, because that’s the smell of money.
In 1979, I arrived in Thailand to study Thai language and culture. I had a job waiting for me in Los Angeles, helping Thai immigrants adjust to U.S. life.
I was living with a Thai family and had brought some of my savings for expenses, but I had never NOT worked (starting at 14). When I heard that the language center where I studied Thai was looking for native speakers to teach, I shrugged and applied to work for a short time. I had no clue that I would remain in Thailand.
Teaching was one of a VERY few jobs open to foreigners.
When I explained to the director that my background was in business, not education, but that I had tutored Thai monks in the U.S., she waved my concerns away and hired me, saying that the school had a training program.
The one-week training did little to calm my nerves about being a teacher. I had adored so many teachers in my school life; how could I ever do what they did and do it well?
My first class was harrowing UNTIL I noticed that the students were just as nervous as I was. I remember thinking, “We’re in this together!”
For 7 years, I worked hard to find better, more effective ways to help my students achieve improvement. I read, I questioned, I experimented, I observed, I listened.
One of my most joyful moments was when a troublesome student thanked me for teaching him and said, “You have a teacher heart.”
Then I was promoted (unasked for) to teacher supervisor and trainer. I was stunned that I was chosen over many who had far more experience (and background).
I used my own struggles and experiences to find ways to help other new teachers.
I never stopped teaching, even when I was a supervisor. When I left that position, although I loved the work, I was delighted to devote my time to the classroom.
40+ years later, the covid situation managed to ‘retire’ me.
When I look back, I am surprised at how passionate I became about teaching and how flexible I was in response to students’ needs.
I am so grateful that life took me to where I needed to be!
p.s. No, they didn’t hold the job for me in the U.S.!
I recall how when I was a boy our family became very puzzled by a noise we heard in the lounge in our bungalow whenever we walked into it. The noise sounded like a little persistent rustling, tapping or clicking noise coming from the ceiling in one corner of the room. In those days we did not use the lounge very often, because with the extension of our bungalow we had another big “living room” space that had formerly been the kitchen but now contained sofas and a TV set, so we did not notice this noise for a long time. However when we finally did notice it, the noise was persistent and we were curious to see what it was. My uncle, who lived next door to us, went up a step ladder through a hatch in the hall ceiling and shone his torch into the dark roof space, and this is what he noticed in the corner of the roof space where we kept hearing this noise, and indeed was the reason for the noise. Do you know what it is ?
image 258
It is of course a wasps’ nest, not the actual nest in the roof space of our bungalow, but a very similar looking one. The rustling, tapping or clicking noise noise was the sounds of the wasps building their nest or moving around in it. It was fortunate for us at the time that my uncle was working as a pest control officer for the local council, and in those days the council would send him to destroy wasps’ nests free of charge if they were a nuisance to householders. He was soon able to destroy this one. Eventually he brought the nest down from the roof space in a box, and it was the first time I had ever seen a wasps’ nest.
We had of course noticed a number of wasps in our home at the time, especially in the kitchen, but the number was no greater than usual, because we were always visited by wasps, especially in the late summer. This was because a ditch ran past our bungalow, and wasps do like to make their nests near water because they need water to make the nest. Indeed in other years I often noticed wasps flying in and out of a location on the bank of the ditch, indicating that a nest was there. One year my uncle tried unsuccessfully to destroy one of these nests, but disturbed it and left us running away from an angry swarm of wasps. I received a sting on the hand in the process, but it was certainly not the only time I was stung by a wasp as a boy.
Harry Pothead and the Stoned Philosopher | Harry Potter Parody Part 1
Then, when you see them arrive, meet them at the door with your coats on and tell them you’ll see them next time.
Then start not answering the door and pretend you’re not home.
Or, just tell your sister it’s time she brought the main dish. Then, it’s her time for 2 side dishes. Then, dessert.
Or, just tell her you want to have a private dinner with your immediate family.
Or, start showing up at her house right before you know they’d be getting dressed to come to your house.
Or just tell her it’s time for them to go home because you’ve got to get dinner ready.
Edited to add:. People, while I enjoy your comments and suggestions, I am not the original poster. I didn’t ask the question. I wouldn’t have trouble using any of my suggestions, but I would most likely use my last one.
Rather than telling me what you think I should do, or get all worked up at how snarky I am, click on the question and tell her. The OP will not see responses to comments.
Edited to repeat: Click on the QUESTION, then under it, click ANSWER. If you’re clicking Reply, you’re talking to me. Since the OP has never chimed in during this long exchange with me, I am assuming the OP isn’t getting some of these really great suggestions. While I appreciate 2.2K upvotes, maybe the OP could use a little support.
Plus, I don’t care. This isn’t my sister, nor would either of them be so rude. Tell the OP, please!
Yes, It kinda does. I work as a shift manager at a fast food restaurant. (I won’t mention the name, I still need the job for a little longer.)
Don’t get me wrong, there are some good days where everything goes smooth.
There are many reasons I hate working fast food.
There’s never a fixed schedule. I have to find out what my hours are every Sunday. Even then, I have been called in on my only off day more than once.
Absolutely no benefits. Except 1 free combo each shift worked. No paid time off, no insurance of any kind, nada!!! Just free food and a bi-monthly paycheck.
It’s a very stressful job. When a car pulls up to to the menu, a sensor triggers a timer to start. When that same car pulls from the window to leave, a sensor stops that timer. Management wants each car to be timed at a maximum of 107 seconds.
You haven’t seen how ugly people can behave until you have worked fast food. I have been pelted with coins, spat at, cussed at, screamed at, punched, doused with soda, and have received countless threats of assault, and a few death threats. People don’t respect fast food employees.
It’s a dead end job. The most you can progress is to a shift manager. Don’t get too excited, they hand that promotion out to anyone who lasts more than a year. Yes, you’ll get an okay pay raise, but don’t expect your checks to be any bigger. The more you are paid per hour, the less hours you will be scheduled for. This is due to the labor percentage. The store computer keeps track of how much money the store is taking in hourly, and tells the GM how much of the money coming in is already spent on wages for the people who are clocked in. The higher your hourly rate, the closer you are to the first pick to be sent home early.
There’s a HUGE language barrier for a lot of my coworkers. They are all from south America. They all speak different varieties of Spanish. They are really cool people, but it’s frustrating to have to pull out my phone to translate what needs to be done, or to simply communicate. Especially during a busy lunch rush.
I can’t wait to finish college. I graduate September of 2025. The moment I walk across the stage with a cap and gown, I’m putting in my two weeks.
Front bumper of her car had been popped off by something trapped under it (dark, wet night: black plastic bin on tarmac). I pushed it back on, but was worried it might be damaged so suggested she get it checked. The dealer she’d bought it from sent her to their branch in the next town.
They said it’d cost £3400, including new bumper, new headlight, new wing, & re-painting several body panels including one at the back.
So she went to the Toyota dealer near one of her workplaces. Different town, different company. At first they said it’d need a new headlight, because the mounting point was broken (less than 10% of what the other lot said), but when they took the bumper off, they found the headlight assembly was OK: just the fastener broken. So they replaced it. No charge. Too small.
She saw the service manager looking at her staff parking permit for the local college. 😉 May have been thinking she might speak to colleagues. It’s a few hundred yards/metres from the workshop.
She’s been back there for other things since, so they’ve got some money from her.
Stop expecting honesty from people who lie to themselves. It’s a really expensive gift, cheap people can’t afford it.
Sometimes your old life has to fall apart before your new life can fall together. So, don’t hesitate to leave the past in the past.
The job, the party, the relationship knowing when to leave is so important. Don’t stick with the toxic environment.
Fitting in will make you miserable. Be your own uncool, weird-ass self and whoever still wants to hang around with you then, keep them close and be weird together.
It’s not your job to fix insecure people. It’s your job to fix the part of you that resonated with your insecurities.
At any minute, there is someone who can come along and change your life. That person is you.
Lord Of The Rings But in Jamaica – Lord of the Rastas
One of my favorite responses from a judge happened at a motion hearing docket. The defendant filed a motion to dismiss, and it was set on the docket with a dozen other cases for that afternoon (I had two of the other cases). The defendant’s case actually got called before mine, so I was present when this happened.
The judge entered the courtroom, and the bailiff announced, “All rise, the Honorable Bocephus Williams presiding.” Everyone except one fellow stood. The judge took the bench and called the first case, which happened to be the guy who didn’t stand. Again, he didn’t stand, just said, “Here,” when he heard his name called.
The judge then called the case again. The state, standing near a podium in the well, announced present, and the defendant, who had taken a chair at the defense counsel table, simply grunted, “Right here.”
“Next case,” the judge said. He then called the following case, my first, and I stood to announce my presence.
“Hey, my case was called.” The man interrupted from his seat.
“You failed to present yourself before the court; the matter was moved to the end of the docket.”
“But I was here … “the man began to argue. The judge struck his gavel and admonished him that he would be heard at the end of the docket.
One of the other attorneys stepped close to the fellow and whispered to him. I can only assume the substance of the conversation, but imagine it was along the lines of “Next time, stand up, and the judge will recognize you.”
The judge worked through the entire docket and, in the end, again called the original case. The defendant, being hard-headed (pronounced dumbass), remained seated. “Still here,” he said.
“Sir, you should consult local counsel and read the court rules. You have failed to maintain proper decorum. Your case is being moved off the docket, and a new date for the hearing has been set. Failure to follow the court’s rules will result in a dismissal, so ensure you are prepared next time.” The judge left the bench while the fellow tried to argue that he was there and ready to proceed.
Always sat in the middle of the theatre in the middle of the row, dead centre of the screen. That was my favourite. Sat in those seats since I was a kid, when I went to the show with my pals, then sisters then girlfriends. Best seats in the house.
I remember when I went to see Bonnie and Clyde. Went with my sisters Lori and Tracy. The theatre was packed, only three seats left. At the very front. I got a sore neck from watching that movie. At one time I thought, “Wow, I could walk right up into Warren Beatty’s nostril!” The heads were so huge. Do you know what that scene was like when they shot up Bonnie and Clyde’s car when you seemed to be sitting 10 feet away? WOW!
Another time when I went with my sisters, I had a large drink and popcorn. My seat was still up and I sat on it to bring it down. I came crashing down in my seat squeezing my drink cup which exploded all of my legs. THAT was a very uncomfortable movie to watch, but I stayed. Lori went and got me another drink great sister that she is. She brought me a small one.
Always loved going to the movies. Don’t go much anymore. Just as good staying home and watching them on the big TV screen. My sons will take me once in awhile so we have some fun together then.
Is Marriage Actually Worth It?
https://youtu.be/vnNY6oSgZBU
Helen Beveridge’s Haluski Grange Stand Favorite
This one is a stand favorite. If you can’t wait a whole year, here is the Haluski scaled down.
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Yield: 10 to 12 servings
Ingredients
1/2 cup (1 stick) margarine
1 large onion, chopped
1 large head cabbage, chopped and steam until tender
1 pound egg noodles, cooked al la dente
Salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste
Instructions
Using pot large enough to accommodate all the ingredients, melt the margarine and sauté the onion until tender.
Add the cabbage and the noodles and stir to combine. Heat thoroughly.
Season to taste.
Notes
Once a year only. Customers love it because ” It’s such a comfort food” Megan Schlow, New York free lance food stylist.
This “sitrep” was compiled and written at the tail end of March, 2024. It contains active elements of the global Geo-Political situation focusing on the “primary core participants” as defined by the United States Department of State. I will intentionally leave out details on the “minor” participants, that while important, is not necessary in this overview.
The world is undergoing a massive shift in global [1] Leadership, [2] Finance, [3] Society, [4] Culture, [5] Military influences, [6] Technology, and [7] Planetary Management.
What was once the realm of the “rules based order” led by the United States (the United States makes the rules that others follow), and obeyed “in lockstep” by it’s captive proxy nations, has been eclipsed by a multi-polar world, led by the Russian / China leadership alliance.
The overriding plan
The United States, embroiled into Thucydides Trap (whether you don’t want to believe it or not, it is painfully clear and obvious that the United States “Leadership” is completely ensnared in this situation.) has worked out a long-duration plan to maintain and regain its hegemony.
The key to this is the suppression, followed by the break up of Russia, followed by a pivot to China.
The Timetable for initiation of hostilities
The Break up of Russia into an easily digestible entity was planned to occur in 2022. The war to start the collapse of Russia, however, got off to a bad start, and Russia has been thwarting all of the NATO efforts to manage that collapse.
However, the time-table has not changed. And as of this date a major push to destroy Russia once and for all is planned to occur in Spring / Summer 2024 this year. Leading participants to this fiasco; the United States, the UK, Germany, and France… with participative elements out of NATO to include Finland, Poland, and Sweden are expecting a NATO win by Fall of 2024.
A “buffer” period, or up to two years is planned to coincide with the planned destruction of China. This is planned for the tail end of 2026 and the Summer of 2027.
The Major Participants
For RUSSIA, the nations of NATO will attack on the chosen battlefields of Ukraine. Eventually weakening Russia to a point where “death blows” can be administered by aircraft and missile attacks.
The NATO troops are expected to consist of large quantities of Germans, Polish, Romanian, and French forces for the main thrust. With Northern contingent consisting of Swedish and Finnish forces that will deploy and assault from the North.
For CHINA, A “island chain” of American proxy nations have formed a QUAD of aggressor nations that is designed to instigate the precipitate motions that will force the Chinese entry into the upcoming Global catastrophe.
The primary antagonizing nation is earmarked as the Philippines, with major support from QUAD nations South Korea, Japan, (and to a lesser extent) taking a backseat, the resupply center of Australia.
It is expected that simultaneous “hot spots” will erupt that will trigger Chinese participation. Perhaps Taiwan declaring independence, with the Untied States, and proxy “toadies” nodding vigorously in agreement. Followed, or led, by disruptive assaults by the Philippines in the South China Sea.
The Timetable for war duration – Russia
What is going on right now in Ukraine is not a war. It is a military action, but not a full fledged war. Yet.
But once the full NATO assault begins in the Spring of 2024, a total war event scenario will begin. The United States, and NATO plans for a quick assault, and a rapid ending of the war.
Reports as ludicrous as the collapse of Russia by mid-November 2024 is being bantered about by the collective idiots in Brussels. Smarter heads prevail, and they anticipate a delay that could last until 2026 depending on a number of unknown factors.
But the plan is one of total victory by NATO over Russia and a “color revolution” internal to Russia that would dispose President Putin and replace him with a pro-American stooge.
Maybe an actor like Zelensky (Ukraine), a ideological imbecile like Javier Milei, (Argentina), a “stooge in debt” like Ferdinand “Bongbong” Romualdez Marcos Jr.( The Philippines), or an easy to control puppet like Yoon Suk Yeol (South Korea).
My understanding is that the replacement Russian “president” and his cabinet has already been selected, and the principals have already been contacted.
The Timetable for war duration – China
The ideal timeline for the “pivot to Asia” is once Russian territory is secure, and a proxy government is in charge. Due to the events of the last two years, this date has been pushed back from 2025 to 2027. But owing to the timer / stopwatch on the abilities of the West, the expiration date for action against China occurs in 2028. So the window for action is narrow, and there is an urgency to accelerate things aggressively.
While there will be a continuation of provocations in both the South China Sea, and in Taiwan, actual “False Flag” justification, and assaults against China is unlikely to occur before 2026. Thus, the window of 2026 to 2027 will be a VERY dangerous time, provided of course, if the West (The United States) is successful in taking over Russia through military victory.
Assumptions
The Pentagon along with a significant number of interested parties have made some baseline assumptions regarding both Russia and China. These assumptions color the battle and strategic policies that will govern this upcoming period of time.
Russia is “a paper tiger” and will not use nuclear weapons.
Russia is not as strong or militarily capable as it seems.
Russia, in regards to Ukraine, has been lucky so far.
The entire world is already against Russia, and the United States is leading the world against a renegade nation.
As far as China is concerned…
China is also a “paper tiger” and will not use nuclear weapons.
China has some basic technology, but it’s military is raw recruit, conscripts, with basic understandings and operates in crude military tactics.
China’s navy is expected to be “light weight”, and nothing to take too seriously.
China will fold once the oceans around China is controlled by the QUAD forces.
End Game
It is absolutely and positively understood that neither China, or Russia would dare attack the United States. As neither nations have the logistical ability to invade or assault America, the survival of the United States is understood as certainty.
So with both Russia and China devastated by massive conventional wars, and the United States left pristine and intact, the United States will rise from the ashes of a global war stronger, and better than ever before. Though looting the resources of both China and Russia, the Untied States can be rejuvenated, and the entire globe will listen to the undisputed leader of the planet; The United States.
Final Comments and thoughts
I personally believe that all the assumptions are wrong. That the timetable is off base, and a kilter, and the “leadership” of the West needs to stop taking so many drugs. We do not know what the future holds, but if this plan proceeds… one thing is certain, those planners in the West will not be happy when things go “tits up”.
Forgotten Chicken
Forgotten Chicken is a great fast and easy recipe! I have made this with chicken tenders, and it’s great. This is also known as “No Peek Chicken.”
forgotten chicken
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups white rice, uncooked
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of celery soup
1 soup can water
Chicken breasts or thighs
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
Instructions
Mix rice, soups and water.
Pour into a greased 9 x 13 inch baking dish.
Lay chicken on top of rice mixture.
Sprinkle chicken evenly with onion soup mix.
Cover tightly and bake for 1 1/2 hours at 350 degrees F.
Shaming
I’ve been at my job for two years and have never called in sick. However, I’ve been vomiting and really unwell so want to call in sick tomorrow but my boss won’t allow it, saying it’s because we are short-staffed – is this allowed?
My boss refused to let me call in sick because I was throwing up. She said that would leave night staff short staffed. I said “no problem”.
I went to work as required. Within 5 minutes of arriving, I was using the wastebasket at the desk to throw up in. Boss insisted I would be fine and refused to let me leave
10 minutes later I was still throwing up. Finally the house supervisor came thru the station and saw me sick as can be. She asked why I was even there. I explained my boss refused to accept my call in.
Supervisor called boss to the nursing station. Supervisor reamed boss a new one and asked her “why would you have a nurse report to work in the ICU when she can’t even leave the trash can”. “Do you even understand ICU patients are in rough enough shape without a nurse throwing up on them”
Boss had to work my shift with calling someone in early for day shift.
No one questioned me calling off the next night too.
What are some daily things that we are unaware of?
Here are some common things we are usually unaware of the purpose of:
Stickers on fruit: The stickers mark the country and producer of the fruit, but it’s the numbers that are the important aspect. If there are 4 digits and the first number is 4, then it means the fruit is sprayed with pesticides. If there are 5 digits and the first number is 9, then the fruit has grown organically, and if there are 5 digits with the first number being 8, then the fruit has been genetically modified.
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Doughnut hole: In the past, it was difficult to get the edges and the middle of the pie equally baked. So they came up with the ingenious idea of using this shape to ensure equal baking on all sides.
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The original reason for sunglasses: today it’s obviously to protect us from the sun’s rays. But the original purpose was to protect Arctic people from the dazzling rays of snow. And in 12th century China, they became particularly widespread among judges in order to hide their true feelings from witnesses.
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Margins on paper: the original purpose was not for extra notes on the side. In the past mice and rats often gnawed on the paper, so in order for them not eat away the information, people started to leave spaces on the sides.
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Holes in padlocks: People usually buy a new lock when their old one doesn’t work due to rain. However, the purpose of the hole is to put in oil – once done, the lock should be able to open with no difficulty.
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Gran Torino , Clint Eastwood – Favourite scene
If you’ve worked in law enforcement, how often have you come across criminals like the Vince Vega character played by John Travolta in “Pulp Fiction,” who actually have intellectual interests outside of their life of crime?
Vince wasn’t an intellectual heavyweight. He was a deeply flawed asshat with an outsized ego and limited self restraint.
Remember the scene with The Wolf? The Wolf was there to save Vince’s idiotic neck, and yet our boy just couldn’t stand that someone else walked in and smoothly took control. When returning home with the wife of his boss, Vince was clearly working his way up to making a pass at Mia in spite of trying to talk himself out of it. If Mia hadn’t OD’d Vince would’ve discovered that his disposal wouldn’t even merit a pine box.
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Obviously my experience isn’t from the perspective of “law enforcement”, but from being locked up with, then living and working with other felons.
Those living a “life of crime” are different from you and your neighbors only because one aspect of their life is something illegal that they got caught doing. That doesn’t mean that they live and breathe crime 24/7.
These people are fully formed and complex individuals, just like you. In many cases, you would find that the “life of crime” really boils down to just one dumb act, not a daily ritual.
The only exception to this would be the addicts I’ve met, particularly the meth users. They might start off as “unique snowflakes” but something about that drug leeches personality from them like bathwater leeches the salts from your skin. Given enough time they become shriveled husks of former humans — having more in common with one another than with anyone else.
Playing around with text-to-picture
Default masterpiece best quality coloring book line art The Ha 3
The Sopranos – Getting everything ready for the Executive game
How does China’s emphasis on manufacturing prompt concerns about overcapacity?
This is what western economists say about the Chinese economy.
But the Chinese government and its economists don’t think that way because they look at potential market size first. In China, the leading importers and processors of minerals and raw materials are state-owned companies whose annual profits are capped at 3–5 percent annually. This means that raw material costs are lower. Chinese manufacturers are increasingly using robotics and automation so that manufacturing costs are lower. Then the Chinese yuan is kept lower against leading currencies to encourage exports.
Put it all together, and it looks to Europeans and Americans like China has impossibly low costs and is making it impossible for other competitors to compete. The problem is that China is different from Europe and the U.S. and its economy is designed to encourage manufacturing and exports.
The Chinese goal is to capture as much market as possible, and then to push costs down further through cost and efficiency improvements. This is different from western companies which start with lower prices to grab market share, but then gradually raise prices through predatory pricing.
How do Japanese see the US in 2024?
Some truths
Investing in a woman you’re not married to is a waste of energy and money.
If you find someone smarter than you, work with them, don’t compete.
Life is all about being intentional and proactive in our choices . The cure for a man’s depression ?? Focus on your purpose and stay busy.
The person who carefully designs their daily routine goes further than the person that negotiates with themselves everyday.
Stop complaining at every slight inconvenience. Do what has to be done . Be happy regardless.
Have you ever seen someone call the cops and it backfired on them?
My now ex wife wanted me out of the house and her life after I caught her red handed having an affair.
My relief called in sick so I had to pull a double shift, I got home and went right to bed, only to be woke up by her whaling away on me with a shoe. I picked her up and carried her out into the living room and gently tossed her on the couch, locked the bedroom door and went back to sleep.
It wasn’t long and there was a knock on the door, it was a couple cops, she had called them to report I was abusing her. They said I would have to accompany them to the station, then I looked up at them, there whole attitude shifted.
They handcuffed her and put her in the back of the squad car, one of the cops told me I should clean myself up, apparently she’d nailed me with a shoe and I had blood running down my face.
I went to sleep, she went to jail, couldn’t have worked out any better.
How many cars have you owned and what were your favourites?
My first car was an old beater VW Karman Ghia . It was a tank, with the engine over the rear wheels it would go through snow, that bigger vehicles couldn’t handle. It was low to the ground, one day the neighbors pigs got out, and they had a huge boar, that blocked the road. He came over and leaned against my side window, and completely blocked the view.
It didn’t have a gas gauge, instead it had a reserve fuel tank, and when you ran out, you switched over, and drove to the nearest gas station.
It wouldn’t go the highway speed limit, maybe 63 mph with the pedal to the metal.
My second car was 1974 Plymouth Duster with imitation alligator skin roof, and a sun roof. It was an OK car.
My next car was a 1976 Chrysler Cordoba with real Corinthian leather seats ( best spoken in a Ricardo Montalaban accent) it had a high performance 400 cubic inch V8 with a 4 Bbl. Jet black with every option known to mankind. Sun roof, air conditioning, power everything. Pure white on white interior, to contrast to the black paint. I have a lot of fond memories of this car.
My next car was a 1969 buick skylark convertible. My plan had been to restore it, and always have a good car to drive. I spent thousands on it, and couldn’t keep up with repairs.
My next car was a 4 wheel drive AMC Eagle. It had air suspension, so it hugged the road, but if you went off road you pushed a button and the sur shocks filled and raised the car, to get more clearance. Best fishing vehicle I ever had.
The I had a 1989 Dodge D100 that was a rebadged Mitsubishi. It had a 4 cylinder that couldn’t get out of its own way, But it was solid steel, I was rear ended and it cost $200 to paint my bumper, but the brand new Previa that hit me was totalled. I wasT boned in an intersection and I I didn’t get a scratch, but it was $5000 to fix the other vehicle. It was a 4×4 with a half inch steel skid plate under the entire vehicle. It never had a problem until my power steering hose, and brake line started leaking. I couldn’t get parts, so I got rid of it.
I bought a 1997 Cadillac Catera , awesome looking car, and the day the warranty ran out, it started costing me money. Thousands.
I bought a 1999 Jaguar XKR convertible, with one year left on the warranty. It was the best looking car I owned, I had people hop out of their vehicle at a traffic light and ride with me until the next light. It was a great car.
I bought a 2004 Nissan frontier 4×4, which I drove in the winter, and the Jag in the summer. The Nissan was just OK, nothing special.
I replaced the Nissan with another 2013 Nissan frontier 4×4, which was significantly better than the first Nissan, but still not a memorable vehicle.
I got rid of the jag in 2021.
Hassayampa Casserole
This casserole is an original and was named after the Hassayampa River that flows in Wickenburg, Arizona.
casserole recipe 9
Ingredients
1 large onion, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
3 teaspoons chili powder
3 teaspoons cumin
1 (8 ounce) can enchilada sauce
1 pound fresh tomatoes, diced
10 ounces frozen corn, thawed
1 cup sliced black olives
3 large green chiles, chopped
1 pound shrimp or imitation crabmeat
12 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
12 corn tortillas
Instructions
Sauté onion in oil and add cinnamon, chili powder and cumin.
Stir in enchilada sauce and diced tomatoes. Set aside 1 cup sauce.
Add to remaining sauce the corn, olives, green chiles, shrimp or crabmeat and 1 cup cheese.
In a 3 quart shallow casserole dish, cover bottom with some of the tortillas.
Spread 1/3 of shrimp/crabmeat mixture over tortillas; repeat with 2 more layers.
Top with remaining tortillas, sauce and cheese.
Bake at 325 degrees F for 40 minutes.
The Sopranos – Albert Barese
What is a historical fact that would sadden most people if they found out?
As a kid I was fascinated by the figure of Che Guevara, who looked cool, died relatively young and fought for a better world.
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Later in life, I read his biography by Jean Cormier, a French journalist/movie director who was a close friend of Che.
It tells the story of his childhood, his medical studies, his trip through South America on a motorbike, how he joined Fidel Castro’s revolution and how they disembarked in Cuba to start a guerrilla war against the Batista regime.
Both had their own regiment in the Sierra Maestra mountains, from where they would launch attacks against government forces. In Che’s regiment there was a little puppy that everybody loved, the mascot of the camp.
One day, Che and a group of soldiers left the camp to ambush a government caravan. But the little puppy had followed them and started barking. They had to shut the dog up or else they would be discovered by the government soldiers. So Che and his men formed a circle around the puppy while one of them strangled it.
I couldn’t put this image out of my mind of these heavily armed guerrilleros standing in a circle to strangle a puppy. They say innocence is the first casualty in any war.
Best Sopranos Scene – “We’re with the Vipers” -All Right Now
I received my ancestry DNA results and I am 0% Italian, however my maternal grandmother is 100% Italian. How is this possible?
Has your grandmother actually had her DNA tested and analyzed?
What I have found in 25 plus years of doing genealogy, and even MORE so since DNA testing came along……people get very invested in family stories and myths. They can build their whole sense of self around them. Then DNA and family history research comes along and blows big holes in their set ideas. Things aren’t what they seem.
There were some doozies told in my family. Some by accident – sort of multigenerational “broken telephones” where things had grains of truth but went sideways in the retelling. Some were deliberate, because it made for a better story. Tales of glory beat tales of misery. Some were told to hide things family members were ashamed of (we had more than our share of those).
DNA can also yank the rug from under you since who you think is your ancestor isn’t always. I have a 78-year-old friend who always believed her father was an Italian fellow who her mother sued for child support in the early 1940’s. Turns out she’s 50% Ashkenazi Jewish without a hint of Italian – and she’s found her biological father’s family, all of whom are at a loss to tell her what the heck happened (to say they were shocked would be an understatement, lol).
Your grandmother may have been born in Italy and raised speaking Italian, but her family could have been ethnically from elsewhere. Nationality should not be confused with ethnicity.
Japan is Changing, and it’s SCARY.
What is one moment in your life you thought could only happen in a movie?
So I have been dating this guy from eight years now. He is my family friend. My first crush,then my first love, my first boyfriend and my first everything. Me and his sister are best friends.
Even though our families knew each other for so long, my family never knew that we were dating, because we Never used to talk infront of them.We(me and him) always used to discuss about how we should convince my parents, how we should ask them and blah blah. I used to get very nervous thinking about my parents reaction. But I was confident that I will convince them and I always knew that he was the one that I want to spend my entire life with.
So one day i went out and came to home , and saw all my family sitting together and discussing seriously, they became silent after seeing me , and my brother asked me to sit beside him and asked me that, they are thinking to get me married. My heart was stumped, millions of thoughts rushed in my head and i was so shocked that i I couldn’t think of one word to say, then he mentioned about the guy that they were considering for me.
Well to my surprise he was none other than my love, the one who makes me feel butterflies even after 8years of togetherness, who just makes me happy by his mere presence. I was so happy that I wanted to jump and dance around. But I couldn’t I simply blushed and said “YES” to my parents. They still didn’t know that we are in love.
We are going to get married soon, preparations are started, IAM on the cloud nine since then. We are going to tell them about us on our wedding day.
I always thought things like this happens only in films and fairy tales. May be every love story is a fairy tale.
Real truth
Do Western countries want South Asia and Southeast Asia to have continuous conflicts? If yes, then what will be the policies of these nations?
They do dont they?
They don’t tend to leave any country alone do they?
They always make decisions based on the people of every country in the world
They must always decide who is free and who isn’t
Any Government that toes their line is ‘Good’ and any Government that doesn’t is ‘Had
They decide human rights violations
If Israel bombs and kills 32,000 Civilians and starves an entire population to death for a single terrorist incident – that’s KOSHER
If Russia invades Ukraine to come to the assistance of 2 Million to 3 Million people who live in Donbass and have been shelled regularly and lost 14,000 lives over 8 years, chronicled in the UN – that’s horrible and thats interfering in the sovereignty of a nation
If Russia arrests 439 people for Social Media posts that’s a huge civil rights violation
If UK arrests 3237 people for Social Media Posts including 900 people just for posting the N word – that’s perfectly acceptable
They have combined killed and liquidated through their decisions – almost 30 Million people in the last 300 years belonging to different countries including :-
Inquisitions
Literally NUKING a nation
Holocaust of 6 Million Jews
Starving a million Indians without a shred of remorse
Enslaving 3.5 Million people and treating them like Cattle and breeding them like Cattle and Dogs
Colonizing and cold bloodedly robbing, slaughtering and displacing 2 Million or more Native Americans , Maoris, Aborigines and stealing their land brazenly
Stealing Texas openly from Mexico and now hunting down the same mexicans as Illegals
Invaded a Nation, killed a known 93,000 people of that nation and displaced and impoverished an estimated 330,000 people literally lying that they had nuclear weapons
Bombed and killed and stole the Oilfields of a Nation merely because their Leader didn’t toe the American line (Syria)
Funded Color Revolutions, Coup de Ats and Uprisings against legitimate Governments by their Agencies
These aren’t conspiracy theories are they?
Every one of these incidents have been firmly listed and verified and is now regarded as history
Yet they always seem to turn the tables
Saddam was a Villian though they invaded Iraq for no reason and destroyed him
Yet Zelensky is a Hero
Gadaffi was a Villian
Mao was a Villian
Putin is a villian
Xi is a Villian
Yet not one of these people have conducted a war of aggression in their lives before 2022
Why?
That’s the key question
I believe the answer lies in an Ideology that is deeply ingrained into their blood for centuries
We are the Good Guys
We are the Angels to help these Backward People develop themselves and save them from themselves and their cruel leaders
Sometimes even if people die, we have to look at the long term and be harsh
Like Gates who openly supports an organization that wants 870 Million People dead because they eat up precious food
Now these Nations, it depends on the people of these nations
China and Russia and Iran and a few other nations have obviously woken up and now see these people for what they are
Putins 87% win is an indication
That people braved a rumoured terror attack and shelling and bombing and yet voted in larger numbers is the best middle finger possible
Niger is another example
The Middle East is slowly realizing things aren’t so rosy now
Others are TOO SCARED
India for instance is too frightened of the West because India is too weak to resist sanctions plus India cannot trust China Iran and Russia fully
Not when 40% of it’s exports are destined for US and EU and most of these export orders are non crucial and can be seriously affected
Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia are also too frightened of the West. They gave been dependent too long on the West and they don’t want to leave their comfort zone.
Some are TOO SUBSERVIENT
Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Philippines are simply too enmeshed into the Western system to come out of it
However luckily the hypocrisy of the West is slowly coming out piece by piece
That too despite the fact that they control the media in every way possible.
When I lived in Indiana, my wife and myself took private dance lessons. We studied ballroom dancing. And we were pretty good at it. Bronze and silver level for certain, and we were studying gold level for Foxtrot and Tango. Which is really very good.
We were top level amateur.
I have many stories from this time, and about this situation. But today I want to relate a funny aspect of that situation…
We lived in a mobile home park, and our trailer was pretty small. Aside from the studio or our dance club, there really wasn’t any place to practice our dancing. That was… until one day.
We found a nice secluded area in the countryside. It was a cemetery at the side of a rural road, and there was a nice flat cement area on one of the cemetery slabs. Indeed, YES… we were dancing on the graves of the people in the cemetery.
So yeah. That well explains why cars would slow down and watch us dancing on the graves of the newly deceased. LOL. I guess I spent much of my time in Indiana dancing on the graves of the people that lived there.
A few years ago, I was in line at a cash register waiting to pay for my purchase at a dollar store. I was waiting behind a little girl who was about 8 or 9 years old. She was alone and I was watching her as she meticulously laid out all of her purchases on the conveyor belt. I thought she was so cute.
Then, the cashier asked her if she was sure she had enough money. She nodded her head that she did. The cashier proceeded to ring up her purchases and she told her what the total was. The little girl took out a handful of pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters. She started to count the coins slowly and carefully. I was actually enjoying watching her do this!
Then, the cashier informed her that she was missing about 60 cents. She said that the girl would have to put some things back. She was hesitating as she was trying to decide what to remove. I looked at the cashier and I told her that I would pay the difference. The cashier took my money and put her purchases in a bag. Then, the little girl left. (I think she thanked me.)
At this point, the cashier told me that this young child came into the store and pulled this con game every week! The unsuspecting customers behind her ALWAYS paid for the remainder of her purchases! This child was extremely convincing – she really pulled the wool over my eyes! I told the cashier that I wish she would have told me before I paid because I would have wanted to say something to this girl.
I would have told her that what she was doing was wrong because she was tricking people (conning them) into paying for her purchases. I wish I could have told her that I thought she was very smart, that she should work hard in school and that she would do well in sales, marketing or acting!
Take a long hard look at a map and you will notice where China is situated. Nowhere near the US right?
Now look at all the US.bases so very far from the shores of the US but situated close to Asia and close to China. Why is the US there and not back home ready to defend their shores which is exactly what China is doing.
The provocative actions of the US is setting the world on a path of destruction.
China doesn’t talk of war but the US is constantly brainwashing the masses into thinking black is whit and white is black.
The US is constantly provoking wars.
The only two things the US sells is weapons and bullshit, so much bullshit.
The US is far from being a guardian angel but a god of war. Enough.
Pinjur (Macedonia)
This is a traditional Macedonian dish, and it is found on tables everywhere in Macedonia.
ajvar lutenitsa pinjur harissa with bread plate 147689 321
Ingredients
Eggplant
1 large eggplant
2 to 6 cloves garlic
Salt (enough to lightly cover the garlic)
Handful roughly chopped walnuts
Optional Ingredients
Olive oil
Fresh lemon
Fresh cilantro
Instructions
Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
Wash eggplant. Poke holes into eggplant randomly with a fork. Place eggplant on a cookie sheet which has been covered with aluminum foil. Roast the eggplant until it is thoroughly cooked and collapses (about 30 to 40 minutes).
While the eggplant is roasting, mash garlic and salt with mortar and pestle until it becomes pasty.
To cool eggplant quickly, slice in half, and leave draining in the sink in a colander. When cool, peel the skin off. Chop eggplant into medium-size chunks.
In bowl, combine eggplant and garlic, mashing eggplant and stirring the garlic throughout. When it is consistently mushy, throw in a handful of chopped walnuts to add crunch and texture. You can add olive oil, a squeeze of fresh lemon, and even cilantro if desired.
Vladimir Putin showed up at Branch No 2 of the National Medical Research Centre of High Medical Technologies – Vishnevsky Central Military Clinical Hospital of the Russian Federation Defence Ministry this week and sat down for a chat with Russian military personnel who had been wounded during the special military operation. Can you imagine Joe Biden doing this with a group of American military personnel? I can’t.
I am posting this because I think it is important that people, especially Americans, have the opportunity to read Putin’s comments. If you are wondering how Putin views the United States, NATO and Ukraine, you need only read the following. There is no nuance. Putin is refreshingly candid.
His concern for the welfare of the soldiers comes across as genuine, sincere. But that is not the news. He makes it very clear that the Western countries are the enemy, not Ukraine. He also vowed to step up attacks on Ukrainian military targets and foreign mercenaries. Putin minces no words in noting that Western hopes of bamboozling him into negotiations for a ceasefire are in vain. Ain’t going to happen
.
President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Hello, guys! Glad to see you. I would like to congratulate you on the New Year.
How is your treatment here going?
Remark: Excellent.
Vladimir Putin: I walked around here, from what I have seen the equipment looks solid, this is clear of course. But, first and foremost, it must be used effectively. I hope, it does.
Remarks: Yes.
Vladimir Putin: You know, of course, I wanted to come here and congratulate you on the New Year, but there was also something I wanted to see. You might have seen me on Direct Line
, at least some of it; it is impossible to watch it in its entirety, four hours, it is crazy just how long it is. But there were things that concerned the Armed Forces and you directly: for example, people asked whether you really had to return to your units after your wounds and treatment and even rehabilitation to obtain the corresponding medical certificates there and even be cleared by military medical commissions. The Defence Ministry denies this, saying it does not happen, at least, not now. Moreover, they said – as I requested some time ago – that housing issues are being resolved during treatment and our service personnel undergo additional training to be able to continue serving, if they want, even those who sustained severe injuries, at military enlistment offices and so forth.
I wanted to hear from you what is really going on, if this is so, if you need to go somewhere else to obtain the necessary documents and certificates. No? So, do you get everything here? The military medical commission examination, all the documents – everything is done here, right?
Remarks: Yes.
Vladimir Putin: Are housing issues being resolved too?
Remarks: Yes.
Remark: Already been resolved.
Vladimir Putin: Ok, I see. They have been resolved for you and they are being resolved for our other fighters. At least, the system for resolving housing issues has been created and it is working, that is the most important thing, right?
And you are also receiving some additional professional training to allow those willing to continue their service in the Armed Forces but in different positions, health permitting. Is that so? Is that the reality?
Remark: Yes.
Vladimir Putin: Thank you. So, how is it going?
Remark: Good.
Vladimir Putin: This is one of the best medical institutions of the Defence Ministry. Not all of them are so well-equipped, so shiny, so to speak. But gradually the Ministry will bring everything up to the standard, to this level in terms of quality.
Any questions you want to ask me, guys? Don’t be shy.
Alexander Dublyanin: Comrade Supreme Commander-in-Chief,
During the special military operation we are liberating Russian territory. How do you feel about Western countries helping our enemy?
Vladimir Putin: The point is not that they are helping our enemy. They are our enemy. They are solving their own problems with their hands. That is what it is all about. This has been the case for centuries, unfortunately, and continues to be the case today.
Ukraine itself is not our enemy whereas those who want to destroy Russian statehood and to achieve, as they say, a strategic defeat of Russia on the battlefield, are mainly in the West, but still, there are different people there. There are people who sympathise with us and who are with us at heart. But there are the elites who think the existence of Russia (at least in its current state and size) is unacceptable. They want to disintegrate it. As a matter of fact, you are young people, some have read about this, perhaps: they do not hide it. They speak and write about this publicly, and have been doing it for decades, if we are talking about contemporary history. For decades, they have simply been writing frankly about it: divide Russia into five parts, one is too much. I can talk about this till morning, but it is obvious.
Therefore, they have been nurturing the Kiev regime for quite a long time, precisely to create this conflict. Unfortunately for us, they have achieved this: they started this conflict and are trying to achieve their objective, namely the task of fighting Russia, with the help of Ukrainians.
You probably see on the battlefield that they are gradually losing their zest. When a projectile flies, it is difficult to understand whether they are losing it or not, but in general you probably know that the situation on the battlefield is changing. This is despite the fact that the entire “civilised” West is fighting us.
You, too, have probably heard many times: the Ukrainian army expends 5,000–6,000 155-calibre shells there per day of combat operations, and the United States produces 14,000 per month. Per month! And they use 5,000 per day. Yes, they are planning to increase it during 2024, but still, they produced 14,000–15,000, they will produce up to 20,000. But if you use 5,000 a day, then the supply depletes quite quickly. It is close to that now. And we are building up and will continue to, exponentially at that. They were supplied with more than 400 tanks (450 or whatever it is), and in a year we will produce and overhaul 1,600. This is not a state secret; in fact, there will be probably more. It is like this almost across the board. Therefore, though it has been their goal to deal with Russia from time immemorial, we will deal with them faster, it seems.
And the most important thing we have is, of course, what I have spoken about repeatedly: the unity of our people and society, because there is an understanding of how important the job you are doing on the battlefield is in the armed struggle for our country and our future. That is what’s most important. The point is not that we do not like that they are supplying Ukraine, that’s not the core of the problem. The problem is not with Ukraine, but with those who are trying to destroy Russia using Ukraine. That is the problem. But they will fail: it is simply out of the question, absolutely out of the question.
I think that the realisation is starting to dawn on them, and the rhetoric is changing: those who were talking just yesterday about the need to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia are now looking for the right words on how to quickly end the conflict. We also want to end the conflict, as quickly as possible, but only on our terms. We have no desire to fight endlessly, but we are not going to cede our positions either. You fought there, you were wounded there; are we going to surrender everything now? The cameras are on, otherwise I would make a certain gesture here now; you all know what kind of gesture it is. So, it is not going to happen.
I am Sergeant Shamalyuk. I have a question. From the very beginning of the special operation, our enemies have been constantly and regularly shelling the territories near the border, killing civilians and children, destroying villages and cities. I have the following question for you. Do you think it is possible and necessary to take tougher measures against the adversary so that the thought does not even cross their minds to commit these atrocities?
in Belgorod is of course a terrorist attack. Why? Because of what they have done under the cover of two missiles – I think it was Olkha: they fired from multiple-launch rocket systems (MLRS). You, as military people, know what MLRS is. This weapon is not selective, it hits areas. This weapon struck right in the centre of the city, where people were walking before the New Year. It was a targeted strike on the civilian population. Of course, this is a terrorist attack; there is no other way to describe it.
Should we respond in kind? Of course, we can hit squares in Kiev or any other city. But Denis, there are children walking there, mothers with strollers. I understand, because I am quite angry, too, but I want to ask you: do we need to do this, target the squares?
Denis Shamalyuk: No, I am not saying that it should [be] against the civilian population, but specifically against military infrastructure…
Vladimir Putin: That is what we are doing.
Denis Shamalyuk: So that they will not be able to come round and respond.
Vladimir Putin: Yes, but that is exactly what we are doing. We strike with high-precision weapons at locations where they make decisions, where military personnel and mercenaries gather, at other similar centres, and at military facilities, above all. These blows can really be felt. We will continue to do this. You probably noticed that the very next day after these attacks were carried out. I think they are continuing today, and tomorrow, too.
Do you know why they are doing it? They want to intimidate us and to create some uncertainty within our country. For our part, we will increase the strikes that I have mentioned. Of course, not a single crime like that, and this is certainly a crime against the civilian population, will go unpunished, this is for sure, there can be no doubt.
Denis Shamalyuk: Thank you.
Vladimir Putin: Please.
Ivan Shushakov: May I?
Vladimir Putin: Yes, please.
Ivan Shushakov: Comrade Supreme Commander-in-Chief,
Major Shushakov.
For two years now, our country has been fighting for its future. Please tell me, how do you assess the progress of the special military operation?
Vladimir Putin: I have already said this, I can repeat, but you can feel this yourselves. Our Armed Forces are getting more capable and prepared to use advanced weapons than any other army in the world.
First, we have weapons that are not available in any army in the world, and second, we can use everything that is being developed and produced. Third, everything that is being developed is being produced and supplied rather fast. I know, there is probably not enough on the front lines, and they would like more of all the latest stuff there, such as drones, as well as more means of suppressing enemy drones, which are flying over you like flies. I understand everything, but still, what is being produced appears quickly enough.
You know what else is rather important? Modern means of warfare and their effectiveness depend on how quickly an army can find out what is the most important thing at this moment and respond in terms of producing and introducing that in combat as quickly as possible.
We are doing this better and better, probably better than anywhere else. And these are very huge advantages that our Armed Forces are gaining. I think that no one else could do the same today. And these capabilities of the Russian Armed Forces are constantly increasing, multiple times over. So, in general, you are already a senior officer, so you know, we try not to give high marks…
Ivan Shushakov: Exactly.
Vladimir Putin: Satisfactory.
Please.
Alexander Davydov: Comrade Supreme Commander-in-Chief, may I ask a question, sir?
We can see that you are very busy. How do you manage to maintain such high performance?
Vladimir Putin: Meeting you gives me strength. I am not joking. I am being honest. When I meet people like you, it gives me extra strength and confidence that we are doing the right thing.
Alexander Davydov: Thank you.
Vladimir Putin: This is a very important element. In fact, I am not being ironic, this is an important element, for me, at least.
My question is, what are the results of the past year and what are the real plans for this year? What should everyone, not just the Armed Forces and military personnel, be prepared for?
Vladimir Putin: The country in general, right?
Yevgeny Korsun: Yes. Thank you.
Vladimir Putin: You know, as far as the results of last year are concerned, I spoke about this on Direct Line, what can I say. The most important thing is that you keep everything tight at the front and, moreover, the practical strategic initiative is in our hands today. Senior commanders have learned to act carefully instead of carrying out combat missions at any cost. At least that is what they report to me. I always insist that everything must be done and any offensive operations carried out after the adversary has sustained heavy fire. This is what concerns the battlefield.
Talking about the country as a whole, of course, the fundamental thing is not only that we preserved the country’s economy, we did not allow it to be destroyed, which is what the enemy was counting on – this is also in response to your question. It was not Ukraine that hoped to destroy our economy; it is not capable of doing it. It has already been completely destroyed itself; there is nothing left there, it lives entirely on handouts. All its leaders travel around with hat in hand, begging for an extra million dollars.
Our situation is completely different. In 2022, our economy contracted by 2.1 percent. But recently, the Government has reported to me – the calculations are ongoing, and new data appear – the latest data are that it declined not 2.1 but 1.2 percent. This is of essence. In 2023 year, the economy grew 3.5 percent. Gross domestic product (GDP), the main economic indicator, is how much the country has produced. You can use money to calculate how much you produced, plus 3.5 percent. And the decline was 1.2 percent. We made up for the decline and moved forward. This is an absolutely fundamental matter. This is the first point, and it is a very important one.
This shows that the economy is stable. Inflation has gone up a little, which means prices have risen, but we are keeping everything under control. You know, we have never seen anything like this. We have always noted with sadness that our main revenues come from oil and gas. For the first time in many years, the growth of processing industries in our economic structure far exceeds revenues from oil and gas. I think that oil and gas revenues grew three percent, while the processing industry has yielded many times more. This has never happened before. This indicates that we are undergoing structural changes in the economy. It is very important.
And why is that? When Western companies left our market, they apparently expected that everything would collapse overnight: businesses would shutter and thousands of people would be left without work. And, in the best-case scenario for the adversary in the broad sense of the word: for the opponents of Russia in general, and not just on the battlefield, people will take to the streets and demand bread and work.
We have the lowest unemployment rate in the history of Russia: 2.9 percent, which has never happened before. And real incomes of the population have grown (there is such a thing as real disposable income of the population) and real wages have grown, and quite significantly. All this suggests that we have a stable economy and stable financial system.
Russia was disconnected from the international payment system known as SWIFT. Apparently, they hoped that everything would collapse here too. We supply our traditional export goods, but what about the settlements? However, everything works.
Everyone thought that enterprises would stop because they stopped supplying us with components, but it turns out that everything is possible. Yes, there are problems, but nevertheless they are being addressed.
Small and medium-sized businesses are also working effectively. Some foreign enterprises have left, but our businesses have taken their place. Firstly, there are highly qualified personnel who have not left; there are good production managers in a variety of sectors both in industry and in the services sector, and everything works. This is the most important thing: the stability of the country’s economy and financial system because this is the foundation for everything.
And, of course, as I have already said, the number of weapons produced in Russia has increased multiple times over, including when I talk about the growth of industrial production, but not only: one third of the growth was achieved in civilian production branches, which is very important. So, the stability of the financial and economic system and the real sector of the economy is probably the most important thing.
In addition to this, we are implementing all our previously planned projects. In terms of infrastructure, as you understand, this means trillions, and we are building roads and opening new routes every week. This is very important, because it is not just to take one ride there and back. A road means life, and economic life too begins with it: small and medium-sized businesses appear immediately, because there was no other way to get there, but now it is possible. A completely different picture of the world emerges.
Despite the difficulties involved, housing issues are gradually being resolved in the country. Social issues are also very important. Many of you have families and children, right? And there is maternity capital, which no one is shutting down. The country continues to meet all social commitments in full. Moreover, we have created quite a powerful and balanced system of support for families with children (this is very important for the future of the country), starting from the woman’s pregnancy until the child is 18 years old. This is important for real people, and therefore for the country as a whole.
So, strange as it may seem, despite the fact that we are in a state of armed conflict, all the main indicators of the country’s viability and effectiveness have gone up. And this is probably the most important indicator of Russia’s situation.
Yevgeny Korsun: Thank you.
Vladimir Putin: What else? Is that all?
Happy New Year to you. All the best. Best wishes. Get well!
My dad and I were on our epic father-daughter trip in the Galapagos. A few months earlier, he had shattered his ‘tibial plateau’ (basically his whole knee area), and been on no-weight bearing for months. So he wasn’t his usual athletic self, in that we needed to walk slower. Especially since on that island, there were no sidewalks or even paths, just uneven rocks everywhere. Anyway, some other guy gets impatient and pushes my dad out of the way to catch up to the naturalist. It only got him about 30 seconds of ‘shortcut’. When we got to the next ‘stop’ with the naturalist, that guy was in the front row. . . and a bird pooped while swerving and covered the whole front of just him and nobody else. I didn’t see it, but I heard my dad laughing and he said he would explain it later. Because that guy was MAD. LOL. Instant karma.
Returning from a service call in Honolulu, the lady in front of me at the TSA line had serious trouble lifting her (obviously very heavy) carry-on onto the x-ray conveyor. It set off all sorts of alarms when it went through, and the TSA guy did a manual inspection as a result. When he opened it up, the suitcase’s contents were revealed: it was completely full of cans of Spam (the processed meat product). I was absolutely convinced that they actually contained something more nefarious and that she’d likely be arrested, but the TSA guy simply zipped the case back up and sent her on her way.
I was next in line, and, noticing the puzzled look on my face, the TSA guy explained that Spam is considered a gourmet delicacy in Japan, where it sells for around 3–4x what it does in Hawaii. As a result, there is a steady flow of Japanese tourists to the islands, who pretty much pay for their vacations by doing what she did. I was born and raised in the UK, where Spam has a reputation for being gross and disgusting, and something you would only eat if you can’t afford any nicer form of protein.
I’m a computer consultant and only take contract work. A few years ago I was contacted by a recruiter for a contract with a company that makes Lasik machines. While I was going to visit the company a few times, the work would be done remotely in my office. I had already worked with a sister company and had experience with their software. The OS was somewhat rare so my 30+ years of experience with it made me a good choice. I negotiated the hourly wage with the recruiter and things seemed to be going well.
The recruiter called me and told me we were all set to go. All I had to do was take the drug test. Huh? I’ve never been asked to take a drug test in my life. I wasn’t worried about passing it, just taken aback. I don’t drive a bus or a cab or an airplane, I write software. What was their concern, that I’d get high while programming and let bugs creep in? This seemed like a red flag. After 30+ years of consulting and having been burned a couple of times I’ve learned to look out for these.
I asked the recruiter why. His response was, it was company policy. He offered to talk to the company but I was done. A red flag is a red flag. A software/engineering company that requires everyone to take a drug test is trying to give themselves an out if they want to get rid of someone. I don’t know what that would have to do with me since you can let a contractor go at any time.
I passed the job onto a friend of mine who was fine with the drug test. He worked for them for a week and then quit. My intuition was right.
First, yes, you have to pay the taxes. They follow the property, not the owner. If you don’t pay the taxes, the municipality can arrange a tax sale.
Second, your lawyer screwed up. It’s real estate law 101 you check to see if there are any outstanding taxes before you close the transaction. It’s a standard clause in most real estate purchase contracts that any outstanding taxes get paid out of the purchase price. Consult your lawyer and if their E&O doesn’t cover it, find another lawyer to sue them.
Third, if you have title insurance, they may be on the hook for this, and they obviously screwed up big time if you bought insurance and they forgot to check tax arrears because that’s insurance law 101. If you have it, contact them immediately.
Fourth, did you use a broker? Again, this is Real Estate Broker 101. If they didn’t know about it, they screwed up. Speak to them as their commission may be reduced by the tax amount and they obviously didn’t earn it. If they won’t help, get a lawyer again.
Fifth, see a lawyer about suing the previous owner. I don’t have your purchase and sale contract. You can’t sue them unless it’s clear from the contract that the sale price included a property free from taxes.
Sixth, your mortgage lender screwed up, because it’s Banking 101 that you don’t give a person a mortgage on a property that has tax arrears. You better tell them because those taxes have priority over their mortgage.
Please note that the municipality doesn’t have to wait for you to recover money from someone else. You may not be personally responsible for those taxes (i.e. you can’t be sued for them) but they’re still a charge on the property.
If you did this without a lawyer, broker or title insurance, consider this a life lesson in trying to save money. If you didn’t even have a lawyer review the purchase offer, double shame on you.
Wife Has MELTDOWN After Husband Wants Nothing To Do With Her After Discovering The Truth About Her
This is MY experience. It does not reflect on the many, many docs I’ve never met.
I cannot stand Orthopedic surgeons. Neurosurgeons and Spine surgeons are not far behind.
These guys make a gazillion dollars and don’t know the first thing about caring for patients. I am convinced that they look up from the knee they just replaced and are stunned to see a person attached to it.
We used to roll our eyes at the whole orthopedic floor, 6 west. The ortho docs would breeze through and leave the bulk of the post-op care to PAs. If a patient got into trouble they would disappear.
So who got called to take care of the poor patient that is now in diabetic or cardiac or pulmonary trouble? Well, it sure wasn’t them. The poor nurses on 6 West would be frantic. They would frequently page overhead…
“ANY INTERNAL MEDICINE DOCTOR TO SIX WEST, STAT!”
“Oh no, we got us a FOOBA.” we would say as we bounded up the stairs to see what problem, that likely could have been anticipated and avoided, was awaiting us.
What’s a FOOBA?
It means Found On Ortho Barely Alive.
We called that unit The Killing Fields.
We used to smirk, “The good thing about 6 West is it’s close to a hospital.”
The orthopedic surgeons would do surgery on anyone! Ninety years old and demented with multiple medical problems, needs a new hip.
I had an orthopod tell me. “It’s my job to replace his knee. It’s your job to keep him alive afterwards.” This after the poor patient, with end stage emphysema, who could not survive a haircut, much less surgery, crashed and went straight to the ICU after this wahoo was done with him.
I used to joke that he was part of the No Joint Left Behind program.
I had another surgeon, who could not remember that he had met me numerous times, ask me repeatedly who I was. I wanted to answer, “I’m the woman who has saved your sorry carcass more times than I can count.”
This guy was discharging a patient when I just happened by.
The poor guy was breathless and grabbing his chest as the orthopod gave him discharge instructions.
I jumped between them.
“Sir, are you having pressure in your chest?”
He nodded, too breathless to speak.
(Yelling) “I need help in here. EKG, O2, aspirin, nitro, beta blocker….NOW!”
We get the patient stabilized, the ortho doc had disappeared.
His note in the chart? Two lines; “Wound clean, dry and intact. Discharged home.”
Next time I saw the surgeon, he introduced himself to me, AGAIN. He had no idea who I was.
Ok, I feel better getting that off my chest.
Wife Accuses Husband Of Cheating And Gets The Shock Of A Lifetime!
There’s a cold spell in Russia and that means broken hot water mains and frozen apartment front doors. My friend reports that in northwestern Moscow region towns Solnechnegorsk and Skhodnya people are left without central heating.
A pipe with boiling water burst in the Moscow Theater of the Moon during a ballet performance of “The Nutcracker.”
Spectators first believed that the sharp explosive sounds were made by the ballet dancer cracking walnuts, when the performance was stopped and more than 300 people were evacuated from the building.
image 89
Residents of another town near Moscow, Podolsk, have not had access to heating for more than 2 days due to a break in the heating main.
Ice appeared on the windows. Indoor toilets turned into outdoor outhouses. This causes another problem. As greedy municipal services deliberately provide heating with less pressure than temperatures required, people turn on home heaters and air conditioner to heat apartments and overburden electric stations causing cascading blackouts.
Entire neighborhoods lose access to electricity on top of lack of access to central heating. Dark and cold like in the Middle Ages when conservative values reigned supreme.
Some residents said they would like to make a fire in the living room but afraid that fire engines won’t be able to extinguish it if it gets out of control because there are no fire escapes and there’s not ladder that can reach 20th floor.
The day before, local residents went out to picket and got detained because it’s illegal to protest in Russia.
image 88
Emergency situation announced in Podolsk over hearing mains breakdown that couldn’t be fixed during night. When I was a kid , “pipes breakdown” happened every winter no exception at our school and we missed one or two weeks of classes.
The Moon is really the worst place where we could set up a colony.
It’s not so bad as to be utterly impossible – but it’s not as good as Mars.
The Moon’s biggest negatives are:
It’s “day” length is 28 days – so you get 14 days of continuous nighttime – and then 14 days of continuous sunlight. This means that all human activities will need artificial light – and a lot of radiation protection. Solar power is pretty much useless unless you have 14+ days of energy storage for everything.
Air and water have to come from ice deposits that can be found only in deep craters near the lunar poles – places where the sun has not shone for a billion years. There isn’t a whole lot of ice there – and if we start getting excited about making fuel for rockets and providing air and water for an entire colony of thousands of people – then it’s going to run out pretty fast – and it’s an irreplaceable resource – once it’s gone, it’s gone forever.
The Moon’s gravity is very weak – it’s possible that it’s enough for humans to thrive there – but it’s also possible that it’ll be no better than zero’g – which would make colonization impossible.
Moon dust is incredibly nasty stuff – under the microscope, each grain of sand looks a lot like a stone-age axe-head with razor-sharp edges. It gets all over everything – and breathing it is very dangerous. Keeping dust out of our habitats and out of every moving part of every vehicle – i s paramount – but because it sticks to everything – that’s going to be a challenge.
The main positive for the moon is close to Earth – just a few days flight time.
Compared to Mars:
Mars’ day length is just 20 minutes longer than Earth – it’s easy for us to adapt so a comfortable day/night cycle is available. Solar panels work well. Radiation is still an issue – but nowhere near as bad as on the Moon.
Air and water also has to come from ice deposits – but we find ice just under the Martian surface almost everywhere. It’s unlikely that we’d ever run out.
Mars gravity is also weaker than on Earth – but about twice that of the Moon – so the odds of it being enough for long term human habitation are much better.
Mars dust is also nasty stuff – it’s toxic – it’s rougher than Earth dust – but not as bad as Moon dust.
Mars has abundant CO2 – which can be used as a starting point for making methane and both hydrocarbons and carbohydrates.
The main disadvantage (compared to the Moon) is that it takes 6 months to get there – and you can really only fly once every 26 months.
My husband was dying of cancer and had less than two weeks to live. I knew this, however, he was in denial. He was a classic car enthusiast and wanted so bad to drive his older van, just for a little bit, however, by that time, he was too weak to stand unassisted, so I told him that he’s very sick at the moment, because he just got out of the hospital and needed to rest, and maybe after he got a little stronger, and we could go for a drive. I knew he’d never get stronger, but it did ease his mind a bit and in his last couple days, he did hallucinate that he was driving his van, so in a way, I turned out to be right.
A couple days later, I lied again, for the second time in our marriage- when he was actively dying, I told him it was okay to go, I’d be okay. Tomorrow will be a month since he passed- I’m not okay that he passed away, but I am okay with knowing that I did everything I could possibly do to ease his worries when he was dying.
I worked at an office job for 5 years in Beverly Hills, for a doctor who did a type of cosmetic electoral surgery for the stars. He was a smart guy who made countless millions but he treated his employees like second class citizens and was all about the Benjamins rather than helping people.
After a couple quarters where new patient numbers had started to go down, the doctor and office manager decided they could cut costs by culling the office of some of the staff in order to bring in new workers for lower pay. Now I had already been planning to leave that hostile environment for awhile anyway, and even had my resignation letter written in my desk drawer so it wasn’t a terrible tragedy when the manager brought me in to tell me I’d be let go. In fact it was better as I wanted to take some time off to travel and this would allow me to claim benefits for a couple months whereas I wouldn’t get anything if I had just quit. But what did get me really perturbed was how the manager made a point to follow me around and sit beside me watching my computer as I went about closing out my workbooks and getting any personal items i didn’t want to leave behind because she thought I might sabotage the files or something in a fit of rage. Well, when she got up for a minute to check her office I decided I would do a little something for myself since I wasn’t even getting to say goodbye to my coworker friends and they were treating me like a criminal. I put a password lock on the databases of doctor names that I had put together and spent years building relationships with and were a vital part of the office. I didn’t say anything and it was a month later my manager called up sounding very sweet, wondering if I might know how to access those filles since she couldn’t find the password. I would’ve gladly given it were it not that they actually fought to try and keep me from getting benefits (unsuccessfully) and so I told her sorry, I seem to have forgotten, and hung up.
SUPERGIRL 2 but is 1920 |Unreleased Fan Made| Alternate Timeline
I am on my forth marriage, 17 years now, and how the first three ended:
My first marriage, 4 years and no children, ended tragically. My wife and I were to meet at our local hangout, which was one block from where I worked, after I got out of work. I was running about 30 minutes late, had to stay over, and when I arrived where we were to meet I was told her was taken to the hospital without being told the reason why. I rushed to the hospital were an officer told me my wife was stabbed by a patron whom she had slapped, I found out later she slapped him for being ‘free’ with his hands in a very inappropriate manner. Three days later she succumbed to her wound, she was stabbed in the heart and the damage was to server (open heart surgery was in its infancy then).
My second marriage, 6 years and three daughters, was great up to the time our third daughter was born. After we brought our daughter home my wife would become very aggressive when I got home from work, she would start right off when I walked in and I allowed her to use me as a ‘punching bag’; I thought better me than the girls, I know that she never hurt the girls as I would have seen any physical evidence (bruises or other signs) on the girls.
Then one day she demanded that I give her $200.00 so she and her mother could go play bingo, and when I refused she grabbed an 8” carving knife and attacked me; in self-defense I slapped the knife out of her hand and punched her (first and only time in my life I ever struck a woman) breaking her nose (out of instinct due to my military training). Yes the police were called and even when she admitted she attacked my with the knife I was forced to leave the home by the police; they left the girls alone with this ‘crazy’ woman (being polite on how I view her). Contacted a lawyer that very next day and started divorce proceedings with desire of full custody. In the end I got my divorce but in the State of New York the father never got full custody of the children (not sure if that is true today) even if proven that the mother is actually an unfit parent. My ‘X’ passed away back in 2016 from over self-medication, my daughters and I have a wonderful relationship.
My third marriage, 22 years with one Son and two Daughters, ended on December 20, 2000 which was the day she walked out , and two weeks later I received the divorce papers from the court, no trial or arbitration, just a divorce decree that the marriage was terminated (no reason was mentioned in the divorce papers). I guess she just got tired of being a married woman, she did wait until our children were grown and out on their own. As far as I knew we had a normal married life, we had our arguments, disagreements, ups and downs, she was not perfect and neither was I. I was 9 years her senior but age was never an issue between us. And even though we have been divorced for 21 years now, I still have contact with her on a very friendly way; I have even gone to her home to repair her vehicles and my present wife and I have even had a holiday meal with my ex-wife and her husband. I know it is a strange situation or relationship, but after all she is the mother of my children and my present wife understands that and encourages the positive relationship between me and my ex-wife – in other words my present wife trusts me.
As for my forth marriage, 17 years and only children is from past marriages, all I can say is we haven’t killed each other yet 😁 I am 70 and she is 69 and neither one of us want to fight for custody of our fur-babies 😂 (our running joke), seriously we are just as much in love as the day we first got married 🥰
Several years ago, maybe 5 or 6, I took $1000.00 to the bank to pay down my credit card bill. There was quite a line and the banks assistant manager suggested to save time to use the atm next to the teller windows. I told him I was using cash and he said fine, no problem, it takes cash. Great! I like to save time and I still had a 1 1/2 drive home. So, as usual, I insert my credit card, select pay statement, tell it how much, and insert my money, listen to the machine whir, and then nothing! No receipt, just a blank screen. Uhg!
That nice gentleman was sitting at his desk, so I stepped over to him and told him the machine ate my money. He asked how much and went to uselessly poke buttons on that ATM. He didn’t know what to say or do. I asked how this would be rectified, he didn’t know, but he had someone to call.
This is where a series of calls were made to IT, help desk and a few others that didn’t have answers. Now, I didn’t want to leave the bank without some clue as to how this would be resolved and some sort of documentation of what happened.
Well, it turns out, the bank main office (or wherever he called) had no policy on how to handle this. They expected me to walk out the door like nothing happened. That was not going to happen. This gentleman bank employee completely agreed with me, that I was entitled to some sort of documentation. The main office left me hanging and after a hour of phone calls it came down to, we will audit the machine at the end of the day, then, if we find a discrepancy, we will credit you. But nothing for me to take home. They did verbally agree to note on my account that I wasn’t to be charged late fee or interest IF they found the money. The main office really left me with a bad taste in my mouth by their lack of ability to give me some sort of documentation.
Those calls ended in a stalemate, they had my money, they wouldn’t or couldn’t find a way to make me feel comfortable about leaving the bank without the money, a receipt, or some sort of trouble ticket.
That gentleman in the bank, spoke to the branch manager and the two of them worked up a description of the situation, basically a statement of facts for me to take home. They agreed completely that they too would not have just left and excepted that it would magically be fixed. They were great, the main office or whatever was not great.
The resolution ended up being a letter in the mail saying my account was credited $1000.00. No explanation, no apology, no acknowledgment that there was a problem.
As I recall, I wrote the corporate offices and got no reply there either. I will no longer use an atm to deposit cash.
The summer of 1990, I backpacked across Europe with my two sisters. We were all very athletic back then. I was a gym rat and avid cyclist, my sister Mary walked a ton and bussed tables at the Space Needle restaurant in the evenings, and Joanne was an accomplished high school athlete.
Though we all spoke a little German, at the time I was semi-fluent, thanks to a knack for languages and a mother who spoke it at home. Anyhoo, in the backpacker circles we traveled, there were a ton of German tourists. So it came as no surprise that I was able to eavesdrop on a few conversations.
Most of them were innocuous, and to be honest I had to really concentrate to mentally translate what was being said. But I’ll never forget what I overheard when we ventured out for our first-in-our-lives visit to a topless beach. (Or as the Europeans would call it, a beach.)
My sisters and I were laying on the sand in our bikinis, tops still on, when Mary and Joanne decided to cool off by getting in the water. As they were walking toward the surf, two German dudes (I will call them Rolf and Jurgen) started talking:
Rolf: Look at those girls. They’re cute, but …
Jurgen: … big muscles.
Rolf: Yes, they would be very pretty if it weren’t for the muscles. What’s the deal, I wonder?
Jurgen: They’re American. Americans like girls with muscles.
Rolf: What makes you think they’re American?
Jurgen: They’re covering their breasts.
I didn’t say anything, but when it came MY turn to go into the water, I waited for them to look, then flexed, Popeye-style, and winked.
My ex-mother in law was a real doozy. I married her youngest son and she did NOT approve. She went out of the way to disrupt our wedding as much as possible. We had hired a classical guitar duet for music at the reception. She didn’t like that and showed up that day with her record player and a stack of records. She talked to the Priest and changed our vows. Decided that we (who paid for everything ourselves) did not have enough food for the reception so she ordered several hundred dollars of fried chicken. Luckily I was able to cancel it. She called the bakery and cut our cake order in half. Managed to fix that, too. Called the church and cancelled our use of the kitchen attached to the reception hall. I managed to fix that too. It was very stressful and she never stopped. We ended up moving 1,000 miles away and limiting contact.
To understand these, let’s see the sanctions and how they play :-
Sanction 1 :-
Embargo on Technology Imports from the West
The Problem was this Embargo was passed on 28/2/22 but was effective only from 1/6/22 and later postponed to 1/7/22
So Russia exported massively these imports from 1/3/22 to 30/6/22
Enough for 2 years almost through Turkey and Central Asian Nations like Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan
That gave them until 30/6/2024 to find substitutes
They seem to have found substitutes for most of these Imports from China & their own Domestic production
This extension was to give UK and others a chance to fill their coffers with Russian Oil and Gas and have good reserves
Sanction 2
Withdrawal of Western Businesses from Russia causing Capital Flight
The Plan was to cause $ 80 Billion of Capital Flight and force a temporary panic
Putin was ready though and immediately got every single business taken over by Russian Entities and took over the equivalent of 560 Billion Rubles ($ 68 Billion) of wealth from these companies
The Swift reaction of Putin prevented these companies from being able to get away with their assets
The Readiness of Russian entities and Chinese entities to take over these assets was another major blow
Sanctions 3
Removal of Russian Banks from Swift
The Problem was that of the 158 Banks connected to Swiss, almost 19 Banks still are connected to SWIFT even today
So these 19 Banks can get all the money it wants and transfer them to the remaining 139 Banks
It’s like keeping SBI connected to Swift but removing Bank of India and Dhanalaxmi Bank
The use of CIPS and alternate systems further ensured Russian Stability of Inflows especially in RMB
These 19 Banks are mandatory because the West wants Russian Fertilizers and Gas and Oil even today, through third parties
Sanctions 4:-
Mastercard and Visa were removed from the Russian Settlement Systems overseas
Again the Local systems of settlement continued because had MasterCard or Visa threatened to cut off their local settlement network, every nation would be kicking them out permanently
This allowed enough time to set up Mir Pay plus get Wechat and other payment gateways including Union Pay from China
Mir quickly established a presence in 39 countries very fast indicating that Putin was prepared for this
Sanctions 5:-
Russia’s Asset Freeze
Problem was Russia had Oil and Gas and it’s own Food
It thus had customers willing to trade in Rubles like China and India and Middle East and Central Asia and Turkey
Thus Russias asset freeze meant zilch
Sanctions 6
Embargo on Russian Oil and Gas
Russia sold to India and India resold to Europe at 30% profit
Europe needed Russian Energy and had no alternate and was helpless
Putin forced them to pay in Rubles so that meant they couldn’t control the money needed
So the Sanctions were weak to begin with and imposed by people who didn’t know their heads from the a**es
They were slowly imposed and more of playing to the gallery than any realistic sanctions
Russia was also very well prepared this time unlike in 2014
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Putin and Elvira did superbly while Biden and his team of clowns were no match
I was a deputy sheriff working in a small town. They had their fair and it was packed. Some guy is very impatient leaving the fair parking. He starts honking—long long blasts at the car in front of him that had stopped. That car is trying to load in an elderly passenger.
The driver of this car remains impatient even though everyone can clearly see the elderly person needs help getting in that car. He finally cuts his wheels to go around the car in front. He then steps on the gas and revs the motor, honks his horn, and then starts to accelerate rapidly while flipping the bird at the other car.
he ran into the gate to exit and does major damage to his driver’s side front fender and the entire driver’s side of his car. It was a nice new car. I walk over snd zi am smiling. He is pissed and wants to think he can intimidate me. Oh hell no. I was just going to cite him for losing traction and driving unsafely. However he wouldn’t shut up and decided to yell in my face.
he smelled of an alcoholic beverage. I decided he needed to perform the drunk driving tests. He failed. I guess he had a little to much beer inside the fair. I arrested him. I towed his vehicle. I figure his impatience cost him a ton of money.
Car damage probably $2000+
DUI (back then) $4,000 (and probation fees)
Attorney fees $8,000
Gate $1,000
tow and storage fees $250
Getting all that because you are rude, impatient and intoxicated? Priceless.
Oh, the people in the car he was honking at left right after I got that jerk out of his car. The circled around snd came back by while i was giving the Jack wagon his DUI tests. They waved, smiled and gave thumbs up!
You may not recognize him today — he looks a lot different from the way he did in 1967, when at the age of 20 he became the founder and frontman for what would become one of the most successful and enduring acts in music history.
But when the band he created was selling millions of albums and playing to packed arenas, Green was long gone — destitute, homeless, and quite mad.
Peter Green had been a rising star in Britain’s blues revival of the 1960s. His guitar playing caught the attention of Bluesbreakers frontman John Mayall, who let the teenage Green sit in with the band when lead guitarist Eric Clapton was unavailable. When Clapton eventually left to form Cream, Mayall gave the job to Green, predicting that within a few years he would eclipse Clapton as England’s greatest blues guitarist.
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After a year with Mayall, Green was eager to front his own band. He poached two of his Bluesbreakers bandmates, Mick Fleetwood and John McVie, enticing them to join by naming the band Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac.
The band, which played a mix of blues standards and original compositions by Green, enjoyed overnight success. Behind Green’s soulful voice and raw, authentic guitar playing, their debut self-titled album, Fleetwood Mac, spent 37 weeks on the UK charts, and was the fourth best-selling album of the year. Green would quickly mature as a songwriter, charting with such compositions as Black Magic Woman (later a major hit for Santana) and the instrumental Albatross, which shot to No. 1.
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As their fame and popularity increased, Green’s bandmates began to notice changes in his behavior. On a tour of Europe in 1970, Green abruptly left for several weeks to join a German commune where he ingested large quantities of LSD. His erratic behavior had intensified; he grew a beard and began wearing long robes and crucifixes, and spoke of his desire for the band to give away the money they’d earned. His compositions around this time became increasingly darker, as evidenced in his song The Green Manalishi (with the Two Prong Crown):
Now, when the day goes to sleep and the full moon looks The night is so black that the darkness cooks Don’t you come creepin’ around – makin’ me do things I don’t want to
Can’t believe that you need my love so bad Come sneakin’ around tryin’ to drive me mad Bustin’ in on my dreams – making me see things I don’t wanna see
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Two months after his stay at the German commune, Green left Fleetwood Mac. He released a solo album the following year as well as sessions with B.B. King, and then faded into obscurity.
image 93
Broke and unable to care for himself, he moved into the home of his brother and sister-in-law, who encouraged him to seek psychiatric treatment. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia in the late 70s and began a long road to recovery. He was given anti-psychotic drugs which managed his symptoms, but according to Green, caused a complete loss of interest in music. So for the next several decades he went on and off the medication, a struggle which lasts to the present day.
He formed the Peter Green Splinter Group in 1997. The band released nine albums over the next eight years until Green abruptly disbanded the group.
He lives today in comfortable retirement in the south of England, looked after by close friends. Mick Fleetwood visited him several years ago and described the bittersweet day: “He’s still warm and kind, but otherwise he’s not the man I knew, clearly.”
It’s unclear whether the LSD Green took triggered his underlying schizophrenia or merely exacerbated it, but one thing seems clear: had he remained healthy, Peter Green would likely have become one of the most influential recording artists of all time.
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Sadly, many people who read this post have probably never heard of him
it was the worst year of my life. We had moved into a brand new dream home with a pool. The boys swam 2–3 times a day. My wife and I talked everyday about how happy we were. My wife got a promotion and we were sitting pretty good.
I went to work and i was severely injured. My employer refused to let me come back to work and retired me. Then the county I worked for started dragging their feet. It took 2 years to get retired.
My wife was diagnosed with cancer and the cancer had already spread. She had a surgery to remove the tumor. Then chemotherapy. That was followed by internal radiation. After 6 months of treatment the doctor pronounced her cancer free. However she got early menopause due to the surgery and radiation.
After a few months she started to plane out and resume her life. We had a couple of more months of happiness. Our middle son had been complaining of stomach/lower abdomen pain. So much so we took him to the emergency room and his GP. Nothing, just his diet we were told.
I got up one June morning and was preparing to enjoy the early summer day in June. I was off because I had taken a job teaching and we had plenty of money so we decided i would stay at home with the kids until school resumed for me. My son got up and told me he felt sick. I thought he was just trying to stay at home so I asked him to go to school and promised I would pick him up if he didn’t feel good.
Our little man of 12 years went to school. A couple hours later i went to get him, he was in the nurse’s office complaining of pain to his right side. We had thought it might be appendicitis. I took him to the emergency room. A test showed it wasn’t appendicitis. A CT scan showed he had a tumor above his large bowel. He was taken by ambulance to Valley Childrrns hospital. After a biopsy by surgery we were told he had Desmo Plastic Small Round Cell Tumor. His diagnosis was terminal. He had a surgery, and after recovery They started chemo. after 5 weeks my son told me he wanted to stop. I asked him to just go a little longer as the round of chemo was almost over. I promised him that if he didn’t get to feeling better I would agree with him to stop taking the chemo. He made it through. After a couple of more rounds of chemo he was sent to Stanford. At the Children’s Hospital there they harvested his stem cells, then chemo to kill all of what remained as well as starting a new chemo therapy plan. After several months he came home. My wife had been with him the entire time while I worked. We had lots of oroblems crop up and started fighting. Eventually we divorced. It hurt our kids. My little man stayed alive. A diagnosis of 6–8 weeks turned into 8.5 years. My wife asked me at the end to tell him he could pass now. He was so skinny, in so much pain. I told him. Nope, he wasn’t having it. He still wanted to live.. When he passed my wife and I finally apologized to eachother. We remarried. Now we have two kids who are married and 2 grand children.that was incredibly hard for me. I lost mycareerr (found another) and went through two major cases of cancer. I miss our son. What did I do to get through it? I finally pulled my head out of my ass realuzedad i want to be with the woman I loved and have our family together—and so did she.
There’s an internally-famous award that the White House gives—I can’t recall the name—but it is named after a guy who fell asleep during a meeting with the president.
I know of it because my dad almost got the award—he had a reputation of getting sleepy-eyed during meetings. But only because he works crazy hours.
In most offices, falling asleep at your desk—it will get you in trouble. Do it enough times—you’ll find yourself creating an account on Indeed (job site).
There are places for sleep—work is not that place.
But in Japan.
They actually see falling asleep at your desk as a sign of good diligence and work ethic.
“Wow—he must be working long hours.”
Some offices have even integrated nap times and nap rooms for workers. (Source: Napping in Public? In Japan, That’s a Sign of Diligence. NY Times. Rousseau, Bryant)
Inemuri (napping) is a permissible practice. You can even sleep in meetings where the president is present. They see you as still being in attendence.
Japan is a very different culture, though. They are among the hardest working people on the planet, with 23% working 80-hour weeks back to back. And 12% working 100+ hour weeks. (Source: Why Sleeping at Work in Japan is Actually a Good Thing. Samson, Carl)
But if you work 40 hours 5 minutes, don’t expect a promotion for your naps at your desk. Directions to the front door are more likely.
Note: I’ve only been to Dubai though – more of a city state.
It is almost entirely “style over content” in that it caters to Sun, service and visual stimulus only. There are no stories, anecdotes, historical perspectives, local colouring or human or philosophical insights to be gained whatsoever.
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You absolutely cannot wander (too hot to be outside for long) down an ancient (everything is new) alleyway (there are none) to a local (nothing is “local”) bistro (none) to eat local fish (no local fish) paired with a local wine (all alcohol is served in either hotels or designated bars in malls) whilst watching the sunset (all alcohol is served inside so others cannot see it) and making friends with the locals (locals don’t speak and everyone else is transient).
You can go to largely empty sumptuous restaurants in hotels where you feel like a King, get driven there in a golf buggy by concierge alongside a candlelit stretch of water filled with lilies, eat great world cuisine and only have to slightly raise an eyebrow in the direction of a servant (sorry – waiter) to get their immediate serfdom (sorry – attention).
The whole place is like a mega shopping mall.
Dubai is both intellectually and creatively bankrupt.
My local farmer’s market has more sophistication.
Every single person I’ve met who liked it was low-IQ or very young but had somehow lucked into a job that paid enough for them to spend time there or someone else paid (although Dubai is not as expensive as popular myth would have you believe, you still need a decent wedge of cash/job to go there).
I have had more fun, authenticity and mind/soul expanding experiences on trips to Greece costing a fifth of the price.
Well, ask Dias Costa of Argentina. His home was invaded by a band of armed thugs who beat him to the ground. The 49-year-old man panicked when they dragged his wife into another room. He yanked a decorative samurai sword off the wall and started slicing. The men, armed with guns of various types, fled the house, and police were able to locate them by following the blood trail.
The car crashed a short distance later.
image 41image 40
All four needed a LOT of stitches. For an untrained man with a decorative sword, he was pretty effective. I suspect this outcome would be pretty common when dealing with common thugs: Slice into the first one, and the rest will panic. Of course, the real point is that he was fully committed to the fight. He would have been effective with any weapon.
Just imagine what might have happened if he actually knew what he was doing?
A sword is a very effective weapon against unarmored targets.
Now, if you’re talking about using a sword to defend yourself against another guy with a sword, that’s a different story. That takes a lot of practice to do effectively (and not end up looking like one of the guys above).
For the medical student, first year is bad; the palpable frustration of trying to mug up hundreds of unpronounceable Latin names in anatomy, wasted effort to remember the ‘millisecond’ timings of a cardiac-cycle in physiology and the ‘spider-web’ structures of biochemistry make most students think if this was all worth it.
But at the start of clinical years, things change. I suppose the charm of ‘white coat’ is much more durable than the ego of the NEET rank.
Then on, mugging matters less, clinical skill starts separating students into categories. During teaching rounds, the guy who picks up the heart-murmur first or suspects the hint of finger clubbing or palpable spleen, that even the consultant did not pick up, is considered a hero of sorts. Most students want to pick up findings and be in the lime-light of tutors.
She was an average hard-working student all through but in the clinic, that suddenly seemed to change, especially during the medicine posting. While for most of us, the stethoscope was a piece of flaunting style; she would put the stethoscope on the patient’s chest, concentrate for a minute, smile and say ‘there is a systolic murmur; I can hear it clearly’
This frustrated most of us.
Most often even the consultants agreed. She was quickly known as ‘Ms. Murmur’ among the students.
For those uninitiated to medical terms, the heart produces two sounds called ‘lubb’ and ‘dup’; a ‘whosshhh’ kind of sound in between is called a murmur. A murmur occurs if a heart has a hole by-birth; or a valve is narrowed or leaking; and can range from super-soft to quite loud. While loud murmurs are picked up by the dumbest student, soft ones are a challenge.
But after a while, it started looking like a scam. Almost every patient she would claim to hear a murmur. Eventually, everyone started making fun of her. One day, after a harsh comment by a senior, she stopped announcing, but somehow, deep inside, I had a feeling that she was not telling a lie.
‘When I hear a murmur I say I hear. I don’t bluff’ she said softly.
One day in clinics, a new tutor was teaching us how to auscultate (listen with stethoscope) for murmurs over organs other than heart (abdomen, skull). In a normal patient, he showed us the areas where we need to place our stethoscope to pick up such murmurs (bruit).
Ms. Murmur placed her stethoscope on the abdomen of the patient, listened intently and her face lit up.
‘Yes sir I can hear the murmur’
‘But this case doesn’t have a murmur’ announced the tutor.
‘Sorry sir, I thought I heard it’ she mumbled, amidst laughter from the rest of our batch.
I felt bad.
Few days later I was reading an article on a rare condition called ‘arterio-venous malformations’ (AVM) in the brain. One clinical feature is, the patient can hear a bruitthemselves, when they close both ears, with the palm of their hand.
A stethoscope closes both our ears. It is possible that she herself has an …
Next morning, I told her to talk to our tutor.
Tutor to Professor, medicine to neurosurgery, X-ray skull to contrast CT scan; things moved fast. It was indeed an AVM. Her parents took her to Mumbai and got trans-catheter closure of AVM done.
No more murmurs, no more taunts.
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(pic – CT scan of a large AVM – Google)
(AVMs are by-birth connection between arteries and veins and tend to grow like a tumour. They have a huge amount of blood flow through them. Common symptoms are headache and fainting. Because of continuous blood flow, they may hear a murmur if both their ears are physically blocked. They can be cured by injecting special material that clog the feeding arteries.)
Researchers did a landmark study on self-awareness using, of all things, a shopping cart.
They took a small cart and attached a blanket to the bottom of it. Then, mothers came in with their infants.
Researchers had infants stand behind the cart. Then, mothers urged their children to push the cart to them.
The infants grew frustrated as the blanket invariably stopped them from moving forward:
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Some threw tantrums. Others looked around trying to figure out what was wrong. One infant even climbed into the cart out of frustration.
Some infants solved it.
One rolled the blanket up and pushed. Another got in front of the cart and pulled it to his mother.
Every infant who solved the problem had one thing in common: they were 16 months or older. Researchers discovered this is the point we first develop self-awareness.
From here, self-awareness is supposed to make our lives easier and more efficient — and it does. But it also becomes a source of immense pain and regret.
This is due to the Self-Absorption Paradox: as we become more self-aware, we make fewer social mistakes, but torture ourselves more over past mistakes.
Higher self-awareness is proven to cause greater psychological distress.
It even hurts our ability to socialize. We foresee mistakes before they happen and avoid interacting altogether.
I was fourteen years old, and I had just lost my virginity to gang rape. I went to my youth pastor for help, because I didn’t even know how to begin addressing my massive new trauma, and was suicidal.
He used a lot of flowery biblical language to blame me for having “gotten myself into that situation” (!!!), expressed his disappointment in me, and wanted me to “repent my sinful ways and get my heart right with God” so that God could love me as much as He loved all my virginal peers who hadn’t “chosen” to get gang raped.
I sat like a lump of clay through that day’s youth sermon, which consisted of the youth pastor exhorting every teen to be willing to sacrifice everything we owned for God, down to the clothes on our backs. And he meant literally, that we should all be prepared to go home and sack up everything we owned to be given away.
And when he went around the circle asking each of us if we were ready to “give it all away for Christ”, I couldn’t say yes like all the other “good” Christian kids, who hadn’t just suffered gang rape. The very thought of packing up my stuffed animals, which had helped me survive the previous night without ending my life, and having no comforts left to me except the comfort of a God who had ignored the men raping me and ignored my prayers to make them stop, was more than I could bear.
I said no, I wasn’t prepared to give up everything I owned for God. The youth pastor gave me a pitying look and said, “until you get your heart right with God, until you can be willing to sacrifice everything for Him, you are at risk of Hell. If you died today, with your soul unwilling to give it all away for Christ, you’d go to Hell.”
So much for salvation being unconditional and eternal, eh?
Many years ago, as in the late 1980s, I was off for the weekend and was about 350km from home when I collapsed with the most agonising pain a bloke can get.
Kidney stones.
My girlfriend drove me to hospital, where I was admitted. Doctors scratching their heads, but the floor coordinator (charge nurse) saw me as I staggered in, and said I had Kidney stones.
She was right. I was in strife allright, the one on the right was blocking the ureter, and urine was backing up AND the ureter was stretching.
This was a serious situation as my right kidney was under severe threat. The rock in the left kidney was still IN the kidney thankfully.
This was Saturday evening… so the next morning, my GF rang my work – my workpkace was seven days a week, and my boss worked Sundays.
She filled him in, and said I was slated for surgery Monday, and would be out of action for a week.
He was okay with that.
Monday comes, I go into theatre, and he rings the hospital demanding to know why I had failed to turn up for work, and would I be coming in tomorrow.
Needless to say, my GF had briefed staff about him, so they politely put him back in his box.
I never knew about it for a few days as I was too whacked out on painkillers.
He rang every day, mot to ask if I was okay, but to know when I was coming back, and they gave him the same answer: He will be back when he is fit to return.
When I did go back, he said he thought I was faking it to have a week off.
Twardy. You are a cretin. A soul less cretin.
America Signals The Unthinkable As US Debt Hits Record $34 TRILLION Dollars
Kind of……. A coworker was dating a girl in HR. He was trying to get me to start a business with him, but I simply had a bad vibe and did not trust him, so I put him off.
He comes to me one day, during a time when rumors of a layoff were circulating and told me I was on the layoff list, his GF had seen it and told him.
WTF?? So I go steaming into a managers office, after my immediate manager told me he knew nothing about this, ready for an unpleasant discussion.
He looks at me, “You are not on any list, where did you get this? I explained it to him. I expected my coworker and the HR girl to get pulled into the managers office and dressed down. Instead they put a 24 hour watch on the HR girls computer. Brainiac that she was, while having lunch with her BF, opened the personnel file of the CEO. Her manager and security were at her desk within minutes to escort both of them off the premises.
The rumors were true, the layoff dropped a couple weeks later. Best part, the coworker turned out to be the only casualty in our department. He actually tried a couple more time to get me to quit and work with him.
Piragi
Piragi are traditional Latvian filled mini-buns, commonly served at special occasions and holidays. They’re wonderful as an hors d’oeuvre, or with soup; serve at room temperature, or warm from the oven.
Piragi
Ingredients
Dough
1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon active dry yeast or 2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon Lora Brody Dough Relaxer (optional, but very helpful)
5 to 6 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
Filling
4 slices bacon
1 tablespoon butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1 pound fully cooked ham steak, diced in 1/4-inch cubes (2 cups)
1 teaspoon caraway seeds
1 teaspoon black pepper, or to taste
Glaze
1 egg lightly beaten with 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
Dough: In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar in 1/2 cup of the water. Set aside. (If you’re using instant yeast, skip this step; add the yeast along with the flour.)
In a large mixing bowl, combine the remaining sugar, salt, and 2 1/2 cups of the flour.
Cut in the butter, then add the yeast mixture. Stir in enough of the remaining flour to make a soft dough.
Knead the dough on a lightly floured work surface until it’s smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes.
Place the dough in a large greased bowl, turning to grease the top, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours. Prepare the filling while the dough is rising.
Filling: In a small pan over medium heat, cook the bacon. Drain it, chop, and set aside.
Sauté the onion in the butter until soft but not brown.
Add the ham, stirring until it’s combined with the onions. Stir in the caraway, pepper and bacon, and remove from the heat.
Assembly: Punch the dough down, and divide it into four pieces. Working with one piece at a time (cover the remaining pieces with plastic wrap), roll each piece of dough into a 1/8-inch thick circle. If the dough “fights back” (the dough relaxer helps prevent this), give it a 5-minute rest, and resume rolling.
Use a cookie cutter to cut the dough into 2 3/4-inch rounds. Place 1 teaspoon of the filling mixture into the center of each round, fold in half (to make a half-moon shape), and pinch the edges closed.
Place the piragi on greased or parchment-lined cookie sheets. Shape them into crescents, and brush with the egg wash.
Bake the piragi in a preheated 375 degrees F oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until golden brown.
Remove them from the oven, and cool on a wire rack.
My mother-in-law was a terrific cook and she taught her son to be a terrific cook.
I am a decent cook, not fancy but you get full if I feed you.
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Anyhoodle.
My mother-in-law was tired of my boring fare. When I was at work, she decided to ‘help’ and cook dinner. At this time her vision wasn’t wonderful, she was on dialysis, and tired very easily.
More than once I came home to find all four burners on and dried, burned food in the pans.
I didn’t care about the food or how long the burners may have been on (usually hours), I was worried about HER. What if a fire had started? What if she put her hand down on the hot burner?
In the end, I took off the knobs on the stovetop every morning. Every evening, when she was up to it, I got cooking lessons. I will never reach her level of expertise. It was actually a nice way for us to bond.
Getting China Wrong: The U.S Would Lose the War with China
Driving home with my wife after grocery shopping in the late evening, I suddenly see police car lights flash on behind me and the inevitable ‘WHOOP WHOOP!’
“Oh God, what now,” I said. I pulled over and waited. I saw the officer get out and slowly start walking up to my car. Other cars are slowly going by, drivers looking at me. I looked at my wife and shrugged.
I put the window down and the cop bent down, leaned on the window ledge and looked in. It was my brother in law.
“Hi,” he smiled, “don’t you feel stupid?” Then he laughed. I didn’t feel stupid but greatly relieved.
“Hi Leigh, is this fellow looking after you?” he said looking at his sister..
“Hi Brucie,” said she, “yes, he always does,” she said smiling.
“He looked at me and asked if I was going to be home the next day. I said yes. He said he was going to pop in for a visit and said he had a load of firewood he was going to drop off for me. Bruce lived out in the country and had lots of trees on his lot. He always brought firewood in for me, maple mostly, which was nice of him.
“I’ll have the scotch ready Bruce,” I said.
So that was funny. I thought I was going to get a ticket for something and it was my brother in law the cop. Big dude. I wouldn’t want to be on his bad side.
My wife’s father was a District Fire Chief and he’d get chauffeured around in a fire department vehicle. He’d often stop at our house and pop in to say high or if my boys were playing soccer he’d stop off and watch a bit.
About 15 years ago, I was the owner, operator, and sole employee of a mobile repair business. I mostly fixed lawn and garden equipment – lawn mowers, weed whackers, chain saws, and whatnot – but would fix just about anything when asked to.
I can’t tell you how many times I went to someone’s house to fix a push mower that had “just quit working” for no apparent reason. Very often the no apparent reason was that the customer had run over some object, be it a tree stump or surveyor’s stake, the customer never knew somehow, they just knew the mower suddenly stopped.
The manufacturers of these machines knew that hitting a solid object with the blade can do great damage, so they designed said machines with a weak point – a flywheel key that would shear off under extreme shock, preventing serious damage. Sometimes, but not always, the blade would be bent too, but usually they had just sheared the flywheel key. This was such a common occurrence that I carried about 25 flywheel keys in the van at all times.
I would always tell the customer that they had hit something with their mower, and that for a total of $30, including tax, I would replace the key and their mower would be as good as new in about 30 minutes.
I can’t tell you how many times the following conversation happened:
Oh, I don’t know. Could you just haul it off for me?
I promise you, this machine will be as good as it was before this happened. They’re made this way to protect the machine.
No, I think I’ll just buy a new one.
I can haul it away, but are you sure? There’s nothing really wrong with it that a three dollar part and 30 minutes won’t take care of.
No, I think I just want it gone.
Okay, if you’re sure.
They would go spend $250 or more on a new mower, and I would spend 50 cents (my cost for the part) and sell the mower to someone for $50.
When I had the repair service, I made more money in this scenario than almost any other. There’s a big market for used lawn mowers.
A couple of decades ago, I landed at LAX and took the shuttle to the rental car office. It was pretty late at night, and there was only one other customer ahead of me in line.
The guy in front of me was making a scene, complaining about not getting the specific car model and color he wanted and demanding a free upgrade. He even went so far as to insult the rental agent personally. Despite the rude behavior, the rental agent remained remarkably patient and eventually convinced the customer to accept what he had originally reserved. The disgruntled customer stormed out, leaving behind a tense atmosphere.
When it was my turn, I immediately apologized for the unpleasant behavior of the previous customer. I acknowledged that there was no excuse for such rudeness, and the rental agent thanked me for my understanding. He checked his computer screen, confirmed my reservation for a simple small sedan, and then paused.
After a moment of thought, he asked, “Would you prefer a minivan for the same price?” (Minivans were relatively new at that time.)
I declined, explaining that it was just me, and I didn’t need that much space. The rental agent clicked a few more keys and then asked, “How about a hybrid?” (Another new technology at the time.)
I chuckled and said, “Thanks, but after 16 hours of flying, I’m not ready for any new technology.”
Then, with a twinkle in his eye, he looked straight at me and asked, “How about a Mustang convertible?”
Within ten minutes, I found myself cruising up the Pacific Coast Highway in a brand-new red convertible with black leather seats, only 63 miles on the odometer, the top down, the moon shining, my own CDs playing in the stereo—all at the cost of a small Toyota. In that moment, I couldn’t help but think, “Damn! I like this world!”
“I investigated the UFO event in Peru and what I found SHOCKED me” Timothy Alberino | Redacted
In the nineties, once I flew from Moscow to Delhi in Aeroflot, the Russian National Airlines.
Could be my fourth or fifth flight in life.
My ears ached due to the cabin pressure as the flight took off.
After a while, it hurted a lot, and I requested the Ruski airhostess to help me.
She smiled, went to the galley, and returned with half a glass of cold sparkling Sprite.
I was upset, and cried ‘Look Miss, I am in pain. It hurts really bad. I was expecting some tablet or ear drops. Here you come with a glass of Sprite as if I asked a mix for Vodka’.
She hushed me and told me, ‘Davai Davai, prostho dhrink’.
I took a few sips reluctantly, and ‘hufff’ went my ears, cleared of pressure and pain, instantaneously!!
I could not control my blush, and thanked her many times, ‘You are a genius. Spaciba Dharagoi’
Wherever she is, God continue to bless her, and the thousands of other angels flying in skies, to keep us in comfort and safety while flying!
The very first time was when I was four years old.
I found out I was something I hated.
My parents got pregnant with my older sister, and then married, at fifteen. I was their second child, conceived at sixteen. (Ahh, the excesses of youth!)
My father found a way to join the military when my Mom was pregnant with me; I was born stateside but within months we were stationed in Hawaii.
They were seventeen, and the lowest rank and poorest. My father worked two full time jobs, my mother was a full time waitress. The place we lived was actually in the poorest part of Hawaii, amongst native Hawaiians. In this neighborhood, kids ran about, in and out of houses, cared for by Tutu wahines, “grandmothers”. If you got hurt, got hungry, had to go to the bathroom, just go into the nearest house and Tutu will take care of you.
I was bilingual then, I spoke fluent Hawaiian like all my friends. One day, in a tutu’s house, she was giving us four of us kids sliced fruit, and the radio was on. I don’t know what it said, but Tutu said, “I hate haoles.” [pronounced ‘howlie’].
Now I had learned by osmosis that the Haole were the white men without breath, meaning they were liars and cheats. They stole our islands.
I said, “I hate haoles too!”
Tutu laughed and hugged me, she said, in Hawaiian, “I’m sorry child, you ARE a Haole. I should not have said that.”
For four year old me, that was just mind-spinning. I told my father, and asked him if it were true. Weren’t we Hawaiians? Because I didn’t lie or cheat or steal anything.
But he told me yes, it was true, we were white, like the evil men that stole Hawaii, but that did not mean we had to be evil like them. That even if people thought we might be evil like those men, because we are white like them, we still had to choose to be good people.
My seventh-grade English teacher was pregnant. She burst into tears one day because being seventh-graders, we were being little idiots and paying no attention to her. It was the first time I had seen a teacher cry, which was probably true for most of the students.
She was clearly embarrassed, even while sobbing her eyes out. Some kids went up and hugged her and/or apologized. I didn’t. I don’t remember why. She then wiped her eyes and went on with the lesson. I might add that despite being idiots, we were decent kids, on the whole, and she had no more trouble from us for the rest of the year.
My eighth-grade year was equal parts wonderful and just batshit insane. I saw two of my favorite teachers cry.
For background, my eighth-grade English teacher was borderline obsessed with Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird (and as far as I know still is). She’s one of the reasons I love the novel.
On February 19th, 2016, a student walked into her class very casually and said, “Hey, did you know that Harper Lee died today?” Then he took a look at her face and left.
She sat down and just kind of overflowed. Her co-teacher, who had been placed in our class for reasons that would be a whole other answer, tried to console her. It was hopeless. We didn’t get anything else done that day.
In this last example, she didn’t actually cry, but I think it still counts.
My Algebra 1 teacher is one of the most incredible women I have ever met. She’s almost six feet tall and rather intimidating, but also an inspiring, capable teacher and a sweet, wonderful person.
This particular incident happened on a Friday. We were the last block of the day, and were working on an assignment. I was in the front row, done, and rather bored.
The teacher got a text. She glanced at her phone, looked away, did a double take and looked back at the text, then picked up the phone and read it.
The color literally drained from her face. I didn’t know that was a thing outside of books until then.
She then stuffed the phone into her purse and stood up abruptly. She started talking about the assignment, but her voice was all wrong – cracking and breathy.
Finally someone spoke for us all and asked her if she was all right.
“No,” she said. “But I will be, and you guys need to learn this, so pay attention.”
She finished the lesson. She told us, mind you, that six squared is thirty-eight and that eight by nine is seventy-five. But she finished the lesson.
We found out on Monday that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer. She was sixty years old at the time.
“Oh, honey, there’s no point in crying,” she told me later. “It doesn’t fix anything, and it just tires you out.”
She did recover eventually, but that, again, is a story for another time.
I used to work on grocery store systems about 20 years ago, and we had a non-contract time/materials customer call us about his store server, which had crashed in a bad way. I drove out, and I recognized the server model as one we were selling/installing about 5 years prior, before I was with the company. It would be a two-drive mirrored proprietary RAID and a cartridge tape backup.
When I tried to boot it, it rolled through cmos and then complained about a missing driver. So, I booted off a diagnostic diskette, and there…. one drive corrupted beyond repair, other drive missing entirely.
I opened the case, knowing now I was going to be replacing hardware. Yeah… second drive was completely disconnected, no power, no data cables. I plugged it back in out of curiosity and powered it up and shut it down again 5 seconds later. There was a reason why the drive was disconnected, it was screaming bloody murder… loud!
The store owner had been watching me like a hawk because… time and materials… and he remembered, another tech had been there a few years earlier for the noise and convinced the owner he didn’t need RAID because he had a tape drive.
Sh!t. That meant two new drives, which I had with me, and a cold reload from diskettes far enough for an OS and the tape drive drivers. And many many prayers that at one of his backups was valid. Those little tape cartridges were not reliable in a good environment. A server sitting under a desk for years with no maintenance? Of course all the tapes were bad.
I won’t go through the rest, there was a way to retrieve and convert some data from a register, and we pieced enough together for him to do his end-of-day processes… it being night now and everything. The rest he would have to hand-key, so his night was just getting started.
He and our manager went back and forth about the bill a few weeks later. The tech that told him it would be ok was from our shop but long gone now. If memory serves, he ended up paying for the drives and half of the labor.
Techs these days have no idea how easy it is now with such reliable hardware.
The Phantom Planet (1961) Science-Fiction | Full movie
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.
2023 12 27 19 57
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.
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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.
image 26
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.
2023 12 06 13 11
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
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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.
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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:
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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:
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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.
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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.
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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.
Well, my doctor has stated that I need to stay in the hospital for a week or longer. And then afterwards, I really have to be very moderate and calm in my activities. Apparently, I can trigger my blood pressure to launch towards the stars, and I need to tame that beast. So, this is MM going calm and serene.
Drinking is going to stifle for a spell. Same with smoking, and many of my favorite vices. Sigh.
Gotta be good, and lend myself to some serious chill.
…
I really get upset about the crazy relationship scene that the West has collapsed into. And this mix of rampant sexuality, free-lovin’ (not that I’m complain’) and isolationism with a woke political class is just another sign of a seriously collapsing Western society.
Men need love.
Women need understanding and compassion.
And let’s not forget about our kitties. Right?
Let’s all strive to be a tad better to ourselves, and to those around us. It’s so easy to get caught up, and ignore our very own needs and situation.
…
We need to chat about food. And stews are great Winter fare. (Unless you live down under) then I would recommend prawns. Stews are great, and I’ll guess that many readers haven’t had a home-made stew in some time. I suggest that you make up one and enjoy it.
With butter and bread.
Life is too short otherwise.
Today…
Cajun Meatball Stew
2023 11 10 09 45
Ingredients
Meatballs
1 pound ground round or chuck
1 1/2 cups soft bread crumbs (3 slices)
2 tablespoons each minced parsley and cold water
1/2 clove garlic, crushed
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon each cayenne and pepper
1/4 cup vegetable oil
4 green onions, trimmed and minced (save tops for gravy)
2 teaspoons salt
Gravy
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
5 cups cold water
4 envelopes or 4 teaspoons instant beef broth
1/4 teaspoon salt pinch of pepper
1/3 cup minced parsley
4 green onion tops, sliced thin
Meatball drippings plus vegetable oil to total 1/4 cup
Instructions
Meatballs
Combine beef, bread crumbs, green onions, parsley, garlic, egg, salt, cayenne, pepper and cold water in a medium size bowl. Mix lightly and shape into 24 balls. Place on tray and chill for 30 minutes.
Heat oil in large, heavy skillet and brown meatballs quickly on all sides (don’t overcook or the meatballs may toughen).
Drain on paper towels; save drippings.
Gravy
Place combined meatball drippings and vegetable oil in a large, heavy saucepan or skillet. Blend in flour, and heat and stir over moderately low heat until flour begins to brown, at least 10 to 15 minutes. Good Cajun cooks take about 45 minutes to make a roux. The roux should be a rich topaz brown.
Add water and instant beef broth gradually, whisking until thickened, about 5 minutes.
Add meatballs to gravy. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally for 45 minutes.
Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed.
Stir in parsley and green onion tops. Heat for 15 minutes longer.
Serve in soup bowls or on plates with the meatballs and gravy ladled over fluffy rice or egg noodles.
I’ve seen this question hundreds of times over the years on Quora and the knee-jerk answer is always some version of “Follow your passion is terrible advice.”
There was a time when I thought exactly that and wrote a similar answer. Sure, following your passion can lead you to become a starving artist or a passionate amateur beach volleyball player who lurches from one financial crisis to another.
At the other end of the spectrum, you have accountants under neon lights, droning through their days like robots, their life becoming a series of monthly, quarterly and annual closes.
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Having been on both sides, I didn’t see a lot of difference in the happiness between those two groups.
My biggest advice is to “see the grey” and not take anyone’s career advice as a one-size-fits-all tip. Be like a CEO and take in differing perspectives of your VPs, and attach weights to each piece of advice given your own circumstances.
Don’t ever, ever, treat anyone’s advice as gospel. And that includes anything I say or write.
Hustle culture has spawned this nauseating obsession with meme-quotes from billionaires that supposedly solve all of our problems.
Spoiler alert: I don’t give a shit what Elon Musk said. He’s smart and capable. But he came up through a very narrow silo in the world. His circumstances are extreme and hardly applicable to most of our own. Hell, I’m half-convinced he’s a narcissistic sociopath.
You can do what you love. Or you can learn to love what you do. Life changes. New passions evolve and the economics of those passions make new paths possible while destroying old ones.
You may wake up one day and realize you hate the thing you thought you’d spend your life doing.
The only constant in success is hard work and focus.
The more I’ve accepted that life is a fluid situation, with everything in constant change, and given assumptions always being tested, the better I’ve done.
Work hard, stay flexible, and expect waves of upheaval. Because I promise those waves are coming. We all get our turns.
The first military tactic, and for thousands of years the most successful by far, was “stand together in a line and point our sharp sticks in the same direction.” Here’s the Sumerians doing it about 4500 years ago:
Proto-warfare involved individual fighters going essentially one-on-one with other individual fighters: think a modern gang fight or bar brawl. But you can’t really do that if the guy you are trying to fight has two guys immediately adjacent to him also holding spears: they’re going to stick you. If the guys in the line have shields and/or armor, you can’t even hang back and chuck shit at them, which was the other proto-warfare classic.
Now, this sounds really easy, but it turns out it actually isn’t. Warfare involves a bunch of people you hate trying to kill you. The natural response to that is to either (1) sensibly run away, or (2) run over and get the bastards first. Standing in a strict formation with even spacing is fairly unnatural in those circumstances: you need to practice it a lot, especially if you want to have any hope of moving.
(1) in particular is hard: even if you know that in theory your phalanx will survive a cavalry charge, it’s a harder sell when you have a couple thousand pounds of muscle and steel coming at you at a gallop. Gaps in your line means you are fucked: it’s hard to convey how absolutely shafted (pun intended) disordered infantry are in the face of cavalry, but it might be helpful to recall that the reason Napoleonic and Civil War soldiers stood in closely packed formation while getting mowed down by musket and cannon fire was because that was the safer alternative. And, to make things even more fun, the first guy to run away is probably going to be fine: he’s got all of his buddies holding them off. The last guy is going to get shishkebabed by a Gothic/Frankish/Norman/English lance, so how much do you trust your buddies?
(2) also isn’t actually easy to overcome, either. If you are a professional soldier, you might like the fighting. That’s how you get honor and, more importantly, loot. If it looks like you’re winning, you might really want to be the first person on the scene. You might make a lot of money. This is actually how the English lost at Hastings. The English housecarls, who were pros, successfully stood in a line with the pointy sticks the right way against a half dozen Norman charges, but broke when the Normans faked a retreat. They were then slaughtered.
But yeah, “get my guys in a line with sticks the right way” was sufficient for Alexander, the Romans, and Napoleon to get into the world conquest game. Simple, but that shit really works if you can actually do it. But you do need to actually do it.
We bought a building that previously had section 8 tenants. None paid on time, the very first month that we owned it. The housing authority didn’t pay either. After 8 phone calls spanning 3 weeks, during which time we had already given 3-day notices to pay, and filed for eviction, the housing authority finally called us back, asking what the heck we were doing evicting THEIR tenant.
We informed them that under state law, we were following the required procedure for eviction for non-payment. They told us that under the terms of the 17-page Section 8 Contract, we could not evict the tenant for any reason whatsoever, including non-payment. We asked why they didn’t pay us on time, and they replied because we had not signed the Section 8 Contract yet, after the purchase. Ah-Hah!
We then informed them that we would be proceeding with the eviction, and would not be signing the Section 8 Contract. They told us that the previous owner had already signed it, and it is not revocable! They then threatened us with legal action if we continued with the eviction.
We told them that we had already consulted our attorney, who told us it is illegal to enforce or coerce anyone into signing or upholding an agreement that they did not willingly enter into. Thus, upon the sale of the property, as clearly stated within the Section 8 Contract itself, and apparently unbeknownst to the Housing Authority, the new owner has a choice to enter into Section 8 or not. And, oh by the way, selling the property is the only way to get OUT of Section 8, and the only way to evict Section 8.
The Housing Authority huffed and puffed, and went away. The tenants were evicted.
End of Story. Yes, it is legal. We’ll never do Section 8 again, ever, for any reason whatsoever.
An articulate well known diplomat with high integrity and trust Wang Yi is meeting a 6 year old mindset, with Neocons drumming his voice with China hate and U.S. hubris thinking China is still in its 100 years of humiliation and the U.S. is still the one eye king after everyone loses both eyes after 2nd World war in 1945.
I hope for Blinken’s sake he will stop talking like the U.S. is the angel and China is the devil. He may think so but 180 out of 195 nations think it is the other way around. Best don’t even go there! Pretend to act civil and learn humility. That will go a long way Blinkyboy!
Confucian ethics says it is better to overestimate your opponent and underestimate yourself than the other way a around. The U.S. needs a lot of this balancing. China don’t listen to hot air after all. China sees more than hear. Anyone can say anything.
The U.S. better not talk about its own self made propaganda, lies, misinformation and fabrications. China is way too smart to let you lecture. Moreover the U.S. has done too much evil to even dare preach. Better focus on how to work with China on each others progress. Projects of common interest and goals to enrich the world, China and the U.S.
Without China the U.S. will die of pneumonia, with China it may suffer common influenza once in a while. Sure China will fly with the U.S. and still travelled at breakneck high speed rail without the U.S. but the faster China goes the more the U.S. will benefit too. If it knows humility.
We bought a house in a small California town, primarily because of our dogs. It had two and a half fenced acres, and was in a semi-rural area. Our dogs were getting old, and we wanted them to have a peaceful place so that they wouldn’t be stressed while we were at work. Well, it seemed like we bought a house in the “snob hill area.” During the first week we were there, a man stopped by our gate and informed me that our car was too old, and that we needed to get a new one. I told him that we were new to the area, and asked him to recommend a dealership. He did so, and I told him that I would meet him there the next morning, and to remember to bring his checkbook. For some strange reason, he hasn’t spoken to me again.
In the military, are you only allowed to keep on you what is issued to you by the government or can you buy extra protection if you want to? (knives, extra guns, extra supplies, etc), also, is your weapons and gear all new when you get them?
From a Navy perspective…
In the military, are you only allowed to keep on you what is issued to you by the government or can you buy extra protection if you want to? (knives, extra guns, extra supplies, etc)
Being on ships, there are some things you can and can’t have. No one, except a few watches, carries a gun on a regular basis. Generally, they’re issued out prior to watch, during security drills, or during actual events that threaten the security of the ship. Having a personal firearm onboard would have been useless, as it would always need to be locked up in the armory. There’d be no reason to have a personal firearm. The only people who MIGHT be allowed to have one would be the Commanding Officer, or a flag officer.
As for knives, I used to have one or two I carried everywhere while on ship. I was an engineer, and knives are essential, but not issued. I usually had a large Buck folding knife (I liked how they kept an edge), along with a small Swiss knife on my keychain. At one point I did have a double edged boot knife that I would keep hidden, specifically because they weren’t authorized. And only certain fixed blade knives were allowed (based on size).
Other types of gear we could go outside of regular issue were certain uniform items. When I was in, we had what were officially called “chukkas”, but which we all called “boondockers”.
These weren’t too bad, if they fit right, and they got more comfortable as they wore in, but they were about as mass produced as you could get, and the quality was inconsistent. They had steel toes that would cut through the inner lining and tear your toes apart, and a little saltwater would destroy the shine and eat the leather.
So, many of us would spend a small fortune on civilian shoes, much like these…
The Navy was fine with them, as long as they had steel toes and were black (for enlisted). They were supposed to be leather, too, but a lot of us would go for the ones that were synthetic, specifically because they were water proof.
There were other items that were not “issue”, but were sold as extras in the uniform shop. Back in the 80’s, there was a light black jacket we called the “Johnny Cash” (not to be confused with the black working uniform with the same nickname). If you ever went to certain overseas ports (generally Hong Kong), you could get your dress blues lined with an Asian motif embroidery on silk. This was out of sight for inspection, so the command never had a problem with them.
As for “extra equipment”, we sailors really didn’t need much more than what was already given us. We were allowed to bring on personal items, as long as they could be stowed properly. Electrical items always needed to be safety checked, and might need a request chit (permission slip) to bring it on board, but I usually had a computer for cruises, and game consoles were popular.
…also, is your weapons and gear all new when you get them?
This all depends.
Your primary issue for almost everything is in Boot Camp. That’s all your uniforms, toiletries, and other kits, such as sewing. These are always new, and upon issue, you have to identify your items with you name. In my time, we had a “stencil party”, which consisted of the entire company sitting down on the deck and using a machine cut stencil and special pens, we stenciled our names on everything.
I can literally smell the stencil ink as I write this. Not unpleasant, but strong.
From that point on, you’re responsible for replacing any items that aren’t up to standard. You get an annual allowance for this, and you can choose where to buy your gear.
I have broken service, and my uniforms weren’t in the best shape when I got back in. I was given an allowance that was meant to buy a new seabag (what we call our full set of uniforms), but I decided to save a little money and go “used”. There are always “boot drops”, the recruits who didn’t make the cut, and they have to return their uniforms. These were in good shape, but stenciled. We could buy our uniforms used, then cross out the old stencils and add our own. Saved about half what I would have paid for new.
Ships also have a lost and found, and those items are sometimes auctioned off for the welfare and rec fund. You could get some decent items from that.
As for weapons, well, you don’t keep your service weapon when you leave. Those are turned around and reissued. You might get new, you might get used.
The Evidence has been submitted and the case is closed
The Judgement has been delivered.
DEATH.
…
The MEA tried many times to help out but Qatar refused to comply
So there is no point discussing the evidence
We can go to the ICJ but given that Qatar is a gas lifeline to Europe, I am certain ICJ will pass
They openly bankroll the Hamas and yet not even a pinky finger has been pointed at them to this day
We need to get our boys out
That’s crucial
Now I am almost certain, the death sentence would not be carried out.
It never does
Except Eli Cohen and a handful of others, most spies are never killed or executed
Eventually there will be trade offs and exchanges
My guess is if India backs a Two State Solution in UN and votes against Israel for a cease fire and UN involvement in the Gaza conflict, that alone could secure a commutation to life imprisonment
Typically there could be a round robin exchange
Meaning a third country could mediate the release of hostages in exchange for India doing something for this third country
Like US or Russia or China
Ideally if we had a few Qataris in our Jail, we could do a swap
We don’t
Qatari tourists to India are non existent
We can’t pull out business contracts because we have only 6% and the Chinese would grin and happily take over
We can’t pull out of Oil and Gas contracts because we have no major long term deals and these are fungible goods
Of course they will, that is a a done deal, in fact they have already. Overtaking the U.S. is a piece of cake. A bunch of war monger selling stuffs no one one wants to buy at astronomical prices because they pay their greedy CEO 100 times that of China with workers that demand 10 times higher salaries working half the hours and insist 5 times more benefits!
Never mind this, the Yanks believed they can spend till thy kingdom come and spend like there is no tomorrow! China will pretend that they fear the U.S. but to the Chinese they not need to lift a finger, Uncle Sam will bankrupt it selves.! Hubris will bury them. Superiority complex will destroy themselves!
Let me help you hubris and racist Yanks understand the real world. As long as you still think the world belongs to you, the easier it is for us! China today in reality is at least twice bigger than you and that is being highly overestimating Uncle Sam and underestimating ourselves!
At the very worst., China is growing 5 times faster than you. The U.S. is totally fxxked! But we will pretend that the Chinese is 50 years behind the US! You loved that don’t you?
Embrace a lifestyle that costs only a fraction of your earnings.
Living below your means is like having a superhero cape you never have to show off. It’s the ultimate life hack for me, it makes one feel invincible, calm, and in control.
It’s likened to standing in a rock-solid tower while chaos swirls around you, that’s a feeling words won’t be able to capture.
In many places, especially in my home country, living modestly is more than just a money-saving trick; it’s a shield against life’s darker corners.
It keeps you off the radar for all sorts of unpleasant situations, from kidnappings for ransom to targeted robberies.
It also makes you less of a walking ATM for friends, family, and even strangers who see you as their personal bailout fund.
Choosing simplicity when you could go grand is a power move. It’s like having an invisible army guarding your peace. You’re not just scraping by; you’re flourishing but on your terms.
This lifestyle is the ultimate stress-buster. You’re cruising in a relatively comfort zone where you’ve got the choice but not the pressure to splurge. When you do spend, it feels like tossing a pebble into a pond, not like drilling a hole in a dam.
Living this way gives you access to a type of joy most people can’t even put into words, let alone experience in their lifetime.
Imagine being able to book a dream vacation or buy a dream home on a whim, leaving everyone around you stunned. That thrill is something money can buy only with a huge dose of discipline.
When you can comfortably afford your belongings, life takes on a different hue. You’re the boss, and everything you own is just a tool to make your life better, not a golden calf to be worshipped.
You only hurt one person, you, when you chose to live above your means. It is a recipe for sleepless nights and constant stress.
Being smart about how you live pays dividends in happiness and freedom, the very assets that are truly priceless.
There was a tall, lanky fellow who always wore long sleeves and sat down the table from me in engineering class. He didn’t talk much, had a strange sneeze and mostly kept to himself.
I had a sneaking suspicion he was smart, really smart. I shouldn’t have cared either way but between my bloodthirsty competitive side and penchant for people watching, my radar was always on.
And it wasn’t like I had any evidence, grades, test scores or even a remote conversation to draw my conclusion from.
All I had was a subtlety I’d noticed: His body language.
It was a cool confidence juxtaposed with a complete lack of stress on his face.
This absence of stress is not to be confused with slackery. He was laser focused on our material but rarely took notes. That pencil just sat by his hand begging for playing time, but no. Class didn’t seem to faze him. It was as if he was just in cruise control, coasting along while we all paddled to keep up.
He would go on to graduate first in his class.
But I had confirmation before that.
One day towards the end of the term, our teacher put a very high level problem on the board and asked who knew the answer. I immediately looked at him – he knew the answer. I could tell. His head sat still while his eyes were darting around waiting for someone to answer.
He was smart. He had it in his pocket. But he wasn’t looking for attention.
The teacher reiterated, “Anyone?”.
Finally, he slowly raised his hand and read off the answer like a trained assassin: calm, cold and collected.
You don’t need test scores to realize someone is smart.
Just watch them, it’s usually there. And it’s usually the quiet ones. Still waters run deeper.
China is TAKING OVER! Tiangong Space Station HUGE Update
Zero! Unless the US cancels all sanctions and restrictions it has placed on China. China is using the proceeds of its bond selling to buy gold. The expectation is that China will begin using gold backed currencies whether the Yuan or a BRICS currency. China sees the US headed for bankruptcy or at best, a financial and economic restructuring. So far, the US continues to print dollars and spending like there is no tomorrow, especially its spending on foreign wars. Yesterday, it was Ukraine, today it is Israel, tomorrow???
Schumer’s recap of his meeting with Xi has the tone that is as condescending of a lecture by an adult to a child. Here are all the points.
Point #1: At the foundation of our relationship must be a level playing field for American businesses and workers as well as responsible competition. We need reciprocity. That means allowing American companies to compete as freely in China as Chinese companies are able to compete in America. I made clear to President Xi that we do not believe there is a level playing field or reciprocity now.
Schumer is complaining about a level playing field? Reciprocity?
This is from a Congress and administration that has more than 1,200 Chinese tech companies on the Entity List and cried economic coercion when China placed restriction on one U.S. companiy. And he’s “making it clear to President Xi” that the U.S. wants a level playing field?
Point #2: “I raised the huge structural inequities and serious imbalances the U.S. faces in its economic and trade relationship with China. For decades, the Chinese government has erected significant barriers aimed at restricting the ability of American companies to compete in an open and fair manner in China. I made clear that the United States cannot sit idly by and that we must address the Chinese government’s forced technology transfers, theft of intellectual property, required joint ventures, and intimidation of U.S. businesses operating in China, among other troubling actions, that undermine economic reciprocity.
“Specifically, I also raised the need to remove restrictions and open up the Chinese market to U.S. companies, including from the semiconductor, financial services, and aerospace industries, and putting an end to policies that intimidate U.S. businesses operating in China.
What restrictions? What structural inequities?
Shouldn’t U.S. companies be making their own decisions on these? And as they say, the proof is in the pudding.
U.S. companies are making money in China. This is why they’re in China. It is precisely because of the structural benefits that China offers that U.S. companies are accepting the Chinese terms for doing business in China. U.S. companies can at any time decouple to India but are not because of the superior structural benefit China offers. And it is also why there is a “structural inequities” between the U.S. and China because, like India, we do have the infrastructure and manufacturing resources to compete with China’s. And this is not China’s fault. If the U.S. and India want to compete, then its incumbent on themselves to build the requisite “structure”.
Evidence of China’s open market? There’s Tesla in China’s automotive market and Apple in the mobile market, both market leaders in the world’s largest market. Nvidia was also the market leader in the world’s largest semiconductor market but its the U.S. banning them, not China.
Point #3: “Equally important to the need for reciprocity is the need for China to take more aggressive action to stop fentanyl from coming into America. Right now, the scourge of fentanyl is costing tens of thousands of lives and destroying American families. I called on President Xi to work with the United States to stem the flow of precursor chemicals that are fueling America’s fentanyl crisis.
And how exactly is China suppose to do this when precursor chemicals are not even banned substances in the U.S.? Fentanyl is a legal drug precribed by U.S. physicians for their patients.
Enforcement of illicit drugs is the sole responsibility of the U.S.. Blaming China is just a sorry excuse for failing at controlling an epidemic of our own making. It’s our greedy Pharmas in collusion with the FDA and physicians that promoted opioid use and solving this can only done by us alone.
Point #4: “I raised with President Xi the unfolding atrocities carried out against Israel and the need for the world community to stand together against terrorism and with the Israeli people, and pointedly requested from President Xi that the Chinese Foreign Minister strengthen their statement; they did.
Schumer is lecturing China on its foreign policy. He stressed the “unfolding atrocities” against Israel but omitted the greater “unfoldering atrocities” that the Israelis are committing against the Palestinians that he wants China to ignore.
Point #5: While we must ensure that our trade policies are fair, the United States will also prioritize our economic and national security, including protecting advanced technologies. Our delegation made clear that America is not seeking a confrontation with China, but we will remain steadfast in our commitment to promoting stability in the region, freedom, and democratic principles, and vigorously defend our values around the world.
This is just BS political talk. He’s saying that U.S. policies should be fair but justified when it’s not when we prioritize economic and national security, including protecting advanced technologies. So the U.S. subsidizing companies to the tune of $52 billion on building chip fab in the U.S. is ok but accusing China of doing the same subsidizing its tech companies as unfair and illegal trade practice. And its ok to sanction China from advanced chips and machines that make them – even forcing the Dutch, South Korean and Japanese companies to join – is justified for the sake of U.S. national security.
Now, how different would a Biden meeting with Xi be from Schumer’s? The Democrats has an election in 2024 and this will be nothing more than an electionering tactic at China bashing to win votes.
Radical Culture Change
Russia’s Top General: “Ready for Post-Conflict Negotiations”
Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said today “Moscow is ready for negotiations on post-conflict resolution of the crisis in Ukraine and on further coexistence with the West.”
Russia knows Ukraine has lost. Russia knows the West can no longer provide weaponry or money to keep that conflict going. Russia knows it’s defense production is SEVEN TIMES GREATER than all the West combined. Yet, they are extending an olive branch.
Hal Turner Remarks —
We in the West should seize the moment and take this opportunity to move forward in peace.
Sadly, I fear the West simply CANNOT seek peace. I think the West – especially the United States — is literally Bankrupt. I believe the West **needs** a nuclear war or at least a partial nuclear war, so they can blame their financial collapse on the war. I perceive the West **needs** debt forgiveness and the only way they can get it is through mass destruction.
It seems to me the West needs to be able to go to their creditors and say “Our cities are destroyed, our people are dead, our economy is smashed. We have no hope at all of ever paying you back. We need debt forgiveness.”
If I am right, the Creditors, seeing this is the actual reality, will have little choice.
I suspect at that point, the very people in the West who perpetrated the massive financial destruction, get to walk away, free and clear, **remain in power ** (that’s the key) and start the whole shitshow all over again. Then, in maybe another 75 years, they have to do it all again. Round and round the wheel spins. Same old, same old.
If the West turns down this move for peace that Russia is offering, then ALL OF US know the whole Russia-Ukraine thing, and the whole Israel-Hamas thing, was specifically designed to intentionally CAUSE nuclear war for debt forgiveness.
Nothing else about these situations, makes any sense to me.
This is especially true of athletes in their mid and late 30s.
Men’s testosterone begins to decline around 30. We don’t recover as fast and lose a bit of our power over time. It’s a subtle change that catches up to them.
And many champions don’t know when to walk away in their prime.
Ronaldo is now sitting the bench on Manchester United:
True soccer fans knew this day was coming—as in fans who aren’t Ronaldo fanboys. He wasn’t playing at a high enough level to start on Manchester United. He was leaving the midfield too open while he camped out waiting to score goals.
He’s 37 and feeling his age. And that’s fine. Father Time catches up to everyone.
The sad truth is that this happens to the best of athletes. And it’s never more evident than in combat sports. Fighters that seem invincible, will go from being 31–1 to suddenly losing 8 of 10 fights in a row.
Muhammed Ali stuck around wayyyy too long and at least accelerated his mental decline.
Anderson Silva used to look untouchable. And then, age 38, he began a long losing streak.
Losing 6 of his last 8 fights.
The only person smart enough to walk away seems to be Khabib Nurgademedov. He was 29–0, and the allure of 30–0 whispered his name—but he stayed disciplined and knew to step away.
Meanwhile, his nemesis Conor McGregor has been racking up losses.
It’s a good metaphor for life.
Some phases of our life have an expiration date. Relationships. Jobs. Parties. And if you stick around too long, it just makes things worse.
The most dangerous creation of society is the man who has nothing to lose.
Today, at age 34 our combined net worth is $1.6M, not including equity in our home and equity in a small business my wife runs.
I can tell you our story, but it will probably bore you to sleep.
I had it in my head at the age of 25 that I wanted to be a millionaire in 15 years. So I sat down in front of a computer and opened up excel. I made a simple spreadsheet that assumed market returns of 7%. I then calculated how much we needed to save each year to obtain millionaire status by 40. We then proceeded to save the amount of money generated by the spreadsheet and invest in index funds, basing our lifestyle around the remaining income.
That is it.
Why did it happen sooner?
My wife hated her job. She was treated with very little respect by some members in the office, I suspect because she was young and good at her job. So she left. I told her to take some time for herself and figure out what she wanted to do. Little by little she began doing some book-keeping and tax work for former clients (she is an accountant). As word got around, more people called. She began networking and eventually built up a small accounting business with her and two employees. It’s humble, but we are able to save 100% of her earnings which helped us reach our goal sooner.
If you met me on the street you’d think I was a generic 30-something with all the same stresses of a corporate job, house and kids that most middle-class 30-somethings deal with. You’d probably assume I was barely getting by when you saw my dirty 14-year-old car, especially after you learned that I like to commute by bike most of the time anyway.
And that’s it. Having means is often more about your life style than your earnings. Unfortunately I’m not a savvy business man who made millions in his 20’s while driving a Ferrari and flying first class. I used a spreadsheet, saved that amount of money and built my lifestyle around that savings rate.
Then my wife and I woke up rich.
I told you it was a boring story.
Cajun Pork Chili
2023 11 10 09 48
Ingredients
2 pounds ground pork
2 large onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 sweet red bell pepper, chopped
1 sweet green bell pepper, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 (28 ounce) can tomatoes
1 (28 ounce) can kidney beans, drained
1/4 teaspoon hot pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried oregano*
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Dash of hot pepper sauce
Salt and pepper
Instructions
In a heavy saucepan, cook the pork over medium heat, stirring to break up the meat, for about 5 minutes or until browned. Pour off the fat.
Add onions, and cook until tender.
Add garlic, red and green peppers and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until vegetables are softened.
Add tomatoes, breaking them up with the back of a spoon.
Stir in kidney beans, hot pepper flakes, oregano, cayenne pepper, hot pepper sauce and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
Notes
* If you prefer a more traditional chili flavor, use cumin instead of oregano, and add chili powder to taste.
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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
image 96image 95
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.
image 93
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.
In China, if you hit a dog or a cat, or any pet for that matter, and the owner comes out and makes a claim against you for killing or wounding their pet, the insurance company will pay no questions asked.
It is automatic.
Most insurance is no-contest up to 3000 RMB, and many (but not all) go up to 5000 RMB for the death of a beloved pet involved in a car accident.
You would NEVER see this anywhere else.
…
So, consider this scenario…
In China, Fido bolts across a busy road. He gets hit, the car and driver slows for a minute but then continues to drive on.
A day later, the owner finds the crushed bones of Fido.
He files a police report, which NORMALLY causes the AI cameras in the region to identify what actually happened.
And just like the Tom Curse movie “Minority Report” the car is identified, the driver is identified, and the time of death is established.
The driver is contacted. He apologies, and his insurance is notified.
There is a insurance pay out to the aggrieved pet owner.
…
This would NEVER happen in the USA. But it’s pretty common in China. It’s an accident and there are no civil or criminal penalties for the driver, but the aggrieved pet owner needs to be compensated, and this is the way China does it.
At one, the funeral of an elderly woman, her only child used the eulogy to mock and insult her to the startled crowd. Also, there was no body and no mention of one. We showed up to a bare room where her child stood at the podium and went on about her shortcomings for about forty-five minutes, until we were dismissed. No gravesite was ever disclosed. To this day we have no idea what happened to her.
At another, a relative leaned over a coffin and contemplated the deceased as he took a long, loud slurp from a Super Big Gulp.
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via The Blaze
And, although strictly speaking this took place after the funeral, I should mention my spirited aunt who tormented my uncle from Beyond. She informed everyone as she was dying that she’d reincarnate as a bird and peck out the eyes of those who’d done her wrong. After the funeral, which was in early spring, her husband came home and a bird was nesting in the back porch overhang. It chose to dive bomb him at the worst (best?) possible time, and for the rest of his life he swore the bird was his dead wife returning to haunt him.
My grandfather was a WWII sniper. It was always funny to me…he had the worst eyesight you could imagine, and I remember seeing pictures of him as a little boy with glasses thick as milk bottles. But by a very wide margin, he was the best shot I’ve ever seen.
One example is something that happened when I was a little girl. We used to go to an annual state fair, and one of the attractions was a turkey shoot. Basically, it was a wooden maze that a live turkey would run through…the body was hidden, but as the turkey ran, he’d bob up and down and his head would be visible for a fraction of a second every now and then. Contestants would pay to take a shot – you stood maybe ten yards behind the maze and you had one shot…if you hit it, you won the (dead) turkey and some sort of cash prize.
We watched other shooters…apparently it was a big test of manhood among the locals, and all the heavy-duty serious shooters were out there, many in camo with various military or law enforcement patches. Definitely some seriously mean looking dudes. The tool of choice seemed to be an expensive looking shotgun, and while some of the shooters seemed to come close, the turkey always eluded them. Many shooters tried, but the turkey was still alive – I started to think maybe the whole thing was rigged somehow, and that there really was no way to win.
Thing is, the crowd was loud enough that you couldn’t really tell where the turkey was at any moment. It might make a beeline for the exit, or it might linger in the maze. It might hear something and keep its head up, or it might not…very unpredictable, and shooters would have to spot the turkey, swing their weapon and get a shot off in almost zero time.
Many of the shooters seemed to use a technique where they’d just pick a small area of the maze and keep their guns focused there. Didn’t seem to make a difference…the movement was just too fast to acquire the target and get a shot off.
My grandfather watched the event too, shaking his head at each of the shooters and telling us what they were doing wrong. At one point, my father suggests that grandpa should show them how it’s done…only issue is that he doesn’t have a shotgun.
Out of pure coincidence, grandpa had taken my older brother to the range a few days prior, and my brother remembered that his .22 was still locked in the trunk of the car. Grandpa starts considering it, and he asks the folks running the event if he can shoot a .22 instead of a shotgun. There was discussion whether this was allowable, but before you know it, my father and older brother head off to fetch the .22.
Grandpa takes out the .22 and the crowd sort of laughs…here’s this feeble 70-something with thick dark glasses and a pretty well worn .22 that might just as well have been a slingshot. People try to explain to him that he needs a shotgun, and one or two of the shooters even offers to lend him one…I remember him laughing them off with, “well, what kind of contest would that be? I have to at least give the poor bird a fighting chance.”
Of course, by now, grandpa’s pride was at stake, and there was no way he was putting down that .22.
Grandpa pays his fee and lines up. He draws a crowd, and with the help of my dad, he gets down into a kneeling stance, and suddenly he looks a little more like he knows what he’s doing.
I was maybe ten, and grandpa looks at me and tells me to stand close, but not too close, and to put my fingers in my ears. I remember him telling me he wanted to make sure I had a good view, and someday I’d either tell my kids about grandpa’s amazing shot, or I’d be telling them what a silly old man he was…either way, he wanted me to witness it.
The buzzer goes off, the crowd starts yelling and the turkey starts its run through the maze. I remember seeing its head bob up and down a few times, and then as it got about halfway through the maze, I hear grandpa’s shot ring out.
We didn’t see the turkey after that…it wasn’t clear if it had been hit or it just ran to the end of the maze with its head down.
Then I heard someone in the crowd: “the old man hit it!”
And sure enough, grandpa hit the turkey with one shot from his lowly .22.
The crowd was going crazy, and I asked grandpa how he did it: “easy – I just watched for the gleam of the sunlight in its eyes.”
I thought he was kidding, but when the bird was fetched, we found out that grandpa managed to put a bullet exactly through the eyes of the turkey…in fact, the bullet went in one eye, and out the other. If I hadn’t seen grandpa shoot before, I would have thought it was pure luck, but I knew better.
We didn’t know it at the time, but grandpa had pancreatic cancer – he died within the next six months…this event, grandma complaining about having to go home and roast a turkey even as she beamed with pride, and the twenty dollars grandpa gave each of us as thanks for believing in him, were some of my fondest memories of my grandfather.
I’m sure there are others that could make that shot, but when you consider his age, physical condition, primitive equipment, and the stress of the situation, it was one in a million in my book.
I was just a girl, probably about 10. My Dad was driving the family to my Grandmother’s place for Sunday dinner. Dad stopped behind a car at a red light when it happened…
Now to know my Dad was to love him. He was all of 5 feet tall, had polio as a child so was bent over with a hump back and had an undeveloped leg in a brace. He was a talker, could converse with anyone. He sang and played the guitar, he boxed with my little brother and built a mean fire when we went camping. He couldn’t chop wood or put up a tent or anything that required muscle, but he could and did, entertain his friends and family as they did it for him. Not one person ever resented helping my Dad. He had a way of making everyone feel comfortable, like he’d known them forever. So… he was a gem.
This day was just like every other Sunday. Except for what happened at that light. I don’t really remember what caused the problem but my Dad did something that pissed off the guy driving ahead of him. This guy slams his vehicle into park and gets out of the vehicle then starts stalking over to Dad’s door. My Mom is worried but not him. He got out of his door, walked all 5 feet of himself up to this brute, stuck out his hand and said something like “I seemed to have annoyed you somehow.” I don’t remember the conversation but I do remember the guy shaking my Dad’s hand and apologizing for getting mad over nothing. Yup, took the wind right out of his sails in a few seconds. Quite the guy.
I became friends with Gordon in Grad School. Gordon suffered from Acromegaly. Acromegaly is a hormonal disorder that develops when your pituitary gland produces too much growth hormone during adulthood. When this happens, your bones increase in size, including those of your hands, feet and face.
He never had friends and had been shunned his whole life. I heard a voice (as I do when it is very important) that said to befriend him. I did, going out for chicken drive-thru, having long talks and visiting each other’s houses. His mom was very curious of me.
I wanted to have a graduate party, about 100 students, at my Dad’s house. Guess whose name was at the top of the flyer? Three hosts, including Gordon. Supertramp was on the record player and it was a great time.
Wonders of wonders, Gordon announced he was going to throw a party. It was word of mouth since there was no internet. Gordon had timed it so his parents were out of town. I arrived early to help. He was busy setting out nuts and such. Unfortunately, it was pouring down raining, hard. Gordon lived in an outer suburb of the city, so it was a drive.
7:30 came and went. Nobody showed. Nobody.
I started to talk to Gordon that it was raining hard, and people do not like to drive in the rain, etc. He listened but was still busy.
At 8:00, there was a ring on the doorbell. Then another, then another.
EVERYBODY was there. He was so happy and I was happy for him.
The next day I went to help clean up. All good.
Later he told me his parents wanted to know why there were shoe prints in the bathtub.
I have had success in school, business, and my marriage, but one of the proudest moments was seeing Gordon’s face that night.
I was working at the corporate headquarters of a major Consumer product goods company in the late 80s. They were undergoing the threat of being purchased by a tobacco company, which was going on at the time (late 80s and early 90s). As such, they were having a significant 14% layoff to improve their position in a potential hostile takeover. (and it did work!), Well, there was a lot of hurt and pain the morning people came in to discover they were pink-slipped. One guy and there was some concern from a PR perspective, was a guy who had worked at this company for over 40, yes, 40 years! He was a year out from retirement(meaning he planned to retire the following year) , and the company was giving generous severance packages. Well, the guy under the terms of severance was getting the maximum full year of 100% pay for 52 weeks. Basically, he was retiring with full pay and retirement benefits but was able to do so a full year early. He and his wife had planned a world cruise to the year after his retirement. Evidently, the first call he made was to his wife to book the ship and pack because we are going this week! He was so gleeful that he had to be escorted out of the building because his utter joy was inappropriate for so many in that office who were now unemployed and hurting. They were also concerned that at his age, he might have a heart attack from his ecstasy and how the press would report it!
I was at an outdoor shooting range and had been talking to the guy next to me during cease-fire breaks. He had his granddaughter with him and he was shooting an old .22 revolver at a 25 yard target. Two men came in and went down to the 10 yard range and were blasting away at their targets, often hitting the ground in their haste. At the next cease-fire, they packed up and walked down the shooting line to leave. The guy next to me said something to them about maybe slowing down their shots and focusing on accuracy. They informed him that they were rookie cops and that they knew what they were doing because of their extensive weeks (days?) of training. He replied that he was a retired Louisiana cop and held up 2 of his targets that he had pulled from the range. He had been shooting heart shapes into the target with that old revolver. As they left, I heard one of the rookies tell the other, “We just got schooled, didn’t we.”
The best badass story I ever heard was in the news here maybe 20 years ago. A guy was running the register at his little convenience store when a punk came in and pulled a pistol demanding money. The store owner started complaining about being robbed several times and that he needed to get a gun. Then he asked the robber how much he would take to sell him the pistol. The robber gave him a price, the owner paid him, took the gun, and turned it on the robber and told him to put his hands up. The story made the news because the police thought it was such a great “dumb criminal story” that they pulled the robber out of his cell at each shift change and made him tell the cops coming on duty what had happened. His lawyer threatened to sue the police department for embarrassing the guy.
I never got amazing grades in my science class. Or any classes really. I was a very distracted student. Class was boring. I enjoyed daydreaming in the back.
But I won the school science fair in 9th grade.
Almost as fun as winning the science fair?
Enjoying death stares from all the smart kids.
I was told that the smartest girl in our class, Liz, who went on to study at MIT, was pissssed. Both of her parents were doctors. She fancied herself a descendant of Science.
The quote that got back to me was, “I can’t believe I lost to Sean.”
But alas. Lose she did. Yours truly, Captain Dumbass, topped a future MIT Grad.
What was my experiment, you ask?
Well, for context, this was back in 1998 after a bunch of major oil spills had occurred and the news had lots of terrible stories about wildlife dying, covered in the tar-like oil.
My experiment measured the use of different types of animal hair in oil spill cleanups. I used hair from barber shops, llama farms, horse farms, and beyond in the experiment, which was done in the backyard in a kiddy pool.
Several types of fibers ended up testing with better results than the synthetic buoys used during actual oil spill cleanups.
After winning regionals at a local university, we traveled to states a month later, where about 50 science experiments were featured.
I think I was the dumbest guy at this science fair, but I placed 3rd somehow.
The guy who placed 1st, a 15-year-old, designed a roof that doesn’t blow off during hurricanes. He brought his own wind tunnel and everything.
Yeah, he kinda deserved the gold.
But I was happy with 3rd. And for having trolled the smart kids at my school back home.
May 6, 2008. My husband of 28 years came home early from work one day, sat down at the table and told me he was just fired for having an affair with a 25 year old girl at work. In that moment, with that one sentence, everything inside me shut down and I was in shock, numb. Until then, I had truly believed he was my best friend and I was a lucky woman.
We ended up losing our dream home, went bankrupt, sold everything of value and cashed out our retirement to survive (I have a good job but his salary was 4x’s mine). We now live in a small apartment like we did when we first got married. Those are just “things” though. What hurts most is how it affected the future of our (then) teen children. We couldn’t help them through college or keep them on health, dentist, and car insurance. All for a few quick fucks.
He is extremely remorseful and worked long and hard to win my heart back. Our marriage counselor considers us a huge success story. I have forgiven him and all seems happy now. But secretly, whatever it was that went numb inside me on May 6th at that breakfast table, has never come back to me. I’m afraid it never will.
I hope if you are married, or even happily employed, that this post will make you think twice should you need to.
The only crucial battle of WW2 that the Axis almost won was the Battle for the Atlantic. This plane and the others that performed anti-submarine patrols enable the flow of men and materials from America to Britain.
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.
I was 14. No friends. Each day I dragged myself home to where I lived with my schizophrenic Mother, just the two of us. I would be in trouble for something: I lived in a perpetual state of confusion as I often couldn’t remember what she told me I had done. She told me I was stupid and needed to go to a special school because I didn’t know what I had done wrong. In the past she had often slapped me until my nose bled and beat me with the metal pole of a fly swatter, but that stopped the summer before high school. She told me she didn’t love me repeatedly for months. According to her I was a horrible daughter. Her friends from church had stopped coming weekly to yell at me and slap me senseless as well. I knew when she sent me away with my Aunt and Uncle the summer that had passed she had read my diary, where I detailed all the abuse and talked about wanting to die. She denied reading it, but it stopped the physical abuse so now it was just verbal and believe it or not that hurt just as bad. I was unloveable and alone.
She didn’t work and depended on government assistance. She just sat at home chain smoking and playing cards. During the week I woke myself up, made breakfast, went to school. She complained about the smell of eggs in the morning and of course I was useless. I had a hard time socializing, and she decided she didn’t like the friends I’d managed to make the previous year, so put me in a very small private Christian high school the church paid for. As a low income, single parent house I was a freak among higher income two parent families. So I spent my days an outsider and bullied at school and then came home to be bullied some more. I got in trouble once because someone told her I walked around with my head down and never smiled! I remember trying out and making the school play that year. I was so proud. My Mother decided to use that as leverage for her every whim: if I did anything wrong (sang doing dishes) she threatened to not allow me to be in the play. It got so bad I just quit the play rather than have it continually be held over my head as a threat.
A school councillor regularily made me talk to him. I refused to give anything up. He persisted. He asked me if I was abused: as she was no longer hitting me I said no. I had no words to explain the verbal abuse. Being stupid and unloveable didn’t seem to qualify. Then one magical day a girl at school approached me and we became friends. A few weeks later she asked me if I could spend the weekend at her house. Her house was beautiful and she lived with her parents and siblings and it was loud, noisy and chaotic. On the Saturday of this weekend sleep over, my new friend had to take piano lessons so I was to hang out in her room until she got back. I was surprised when both her parents wanted to speak with me while she was gone. They informed me that the school had asked them to be my foster parents and presented me with a ‘contract’. They gave me 30 minutes to decide if I wanted to live with them.
I was 14 years old. I had no friends. My Mother was the only family I had ever known. I knew I was stupid. I knew that I was worthless and unloveable. 30 minutes was a ridiculous amount of time for a decision that would change the course of my life that I was too young to make. I didn’t know these people at all. But a voice in my head screamed at me to do it, with everything it had. So I took that leap of faith. I jumped off the cliff away from everything I’d ever known.
My roller coaster ride wasn’t over my any means, but to this day I am so grateful I left. My life 30 years later is wonderful and I often wonder where I would be if I had stayed growing up in that house.
I spent several weeks in a Prisoner of War camp in Central Bosnia. Conditions were bad and so was the food. We basically ate the same things every day:
Breakfast.
A small slice of bacon with bread. The bacon was as tough as leather and full of bones. If you were lucky, one of your roommates was working outside and brought you some Turkish coffee.
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This slice of bacon looks much better than the ones we ate. (Photo: Rainer Zenz, wiki:de)
Lunch.
Most of the time, there was no electrical power and our food had to be heated over a small fire in the backyard. Our captors just threw a bunch of tinned food into a big pot of boiling water. There were two different meals: peas with beef and beans with beef. You always had to be careful when you opened the tins because they were under pressure. Once, I opened a tin and the content just sprayed over my T-Shirt.
Dinner.
We either had another slice of sh*tty bacon or tinned sardines with an onion. Both, the bacon and the sardines, were extremely salty which caused you to drink a lot of water during the night. This was a big problem because there were no toilets in the rooms. If you needed to pee, you had to knock on the door (waking everyone up), shout the number of your room to a guard, and wait. There was only one toilet for all of the seventy prisoners and it could take an hour before someone came to open the door.
The aircraft itself was pretty crappy but that didn’t matter as kinks would be worked out later.
It’s main job was to attack targets in Western Europe and its speed could not be matched by NATO interceptors stationed in Europe except the British Lightning and the F-104 Starfighter … BUT …
The Lightning had a short range and was only operated from British soil, it couldn’t go after the Tu-22. And the F-104 was a very good interceptor but the Europeans used it in the low-level fighter-bomber role, so again not a real threat to the Tu-22.
On top of that, the Tu-22 was a versatile aircraft that could carry a wide range of weapons.
But the most important aspect was psychological.
The fucking commies have a bomber we can’t intercept !!! and NATO collectively shit its pants.
Think about all those billions wasted on modern NATO Air Defences while Khrushchev had already decided to go with ballistic missiles instead of bombers.
With a large arsenal of relatively cheap missiles, the Soviets could have taken out expensive NATO Air Defences and then mop up the rest with cheap (and often crappy) bombers.
The Soviets couldn’t keep up with the West financially so they came up with a wide range of ploys to force the West to spend money on expensive systems that could be easily circumvented … and usually NATO fell for it (they still went broke in the end, but that is another story).
I don’t like to share my personal life with anyone, so writing this anonymously. Though I have made some mistakes in life, this one really tops the chart.
So me any my father were never really close, although he cared for me but never really showed it (like most indian dads) and I was the same as well. It was my final year engineering exams when I received a call from home, it was my sister who said that dad just fainted and we are taking him to the hospital. I reached as soon as I could, he suffered from brain haemorrhage. Though the doctore saved him, he was not able to walk or speak properly after that. He was 57 at the time.
After 3 years went by, we had accepted this fate and were living peacefully. My dad was now able to take care of himself(doing his day to day activities that is) and he used to exercise as well, since the doctors mentioned it was very important for him to keep his body moving.
One fine day he complained to us that he is having some chest pain so he’ll skip exercise, we all thought it was due to gas so didn’t pay much thoguht to it. This continued for 3–4 days after which I had an argument with him and I shouted these exact words to him “You are just finding excuses to not exercise, there’s nothing wrong with you. You are just being lazy.”
Guess what! Next morning he started sweating really bad and fainted. We took him to the hospita and found that he was suffering from a heart attack and doctor said that it must be going on for about 4–5 days now. He asked us how come we didn’t notice any symptoms and we were all blank and cried like anything.
He was not so lucky this time, after being in the ICU for 15 days, he didn’t make it. Life has never really been the same since, beacise all I can think of now is our last coversation in which I shouted at him. That’s my last interaction with him, the amount of pain and guilt I feel now, if I could give everything I have just to change that one moment where I shouted at him, I would not even think twice.
But I can’t, after that day I’ve realised the importance of words and parents as well. Although they may not always show but we(their children) are the best thing that ever happened to them.
Please guys, treat your parents with the love and respect they deserve, because you don’t know which conversation is going to be the last one.
1. They are extremely punctual. For eg: I had a dinner planned with my labmates at sharp 6.00 PM. I was in my room till 6.00 PM and I wondered where everybody has gone as no one was to be seen. Suddenly, I remembered that there was a dinner at 6.00 PM and immediately I rushed downstairs. I reached at there around 6.02 PM and saw everybody there in their seats waiting just for me and they had set a plate with the food for me. When I sat down, then they sang their prayer and started eating.
2. People politely line-up in front of the metro unlike in Delhi metro where people cover the whole door just to get inside (at least that was my experience when I traveled in Delhi metro during my visit there) and it is considered rude to speak in the metro.
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3. Even if train is delayed by 15-20 seconds, a message is displayed “Sorry for the inconvenience”
4. Technology is used even in toilets to keep the seats warm and bidets are there. There is also an audio track to mask the unappealing sounds you emit 😛
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5. Has excellent garbage management: For eg. Mon, Thu – Burnable, Wed- Non-burnable, Fri- Bottles and plastics to be kept in street corner
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6. You can find almost everything of daily use in the 100 yen shop. Not to mention the cheap electronic goods in Japan.
7. There is a 10,000 yen note. And the travel is very expensive. For eg: a ride of 2 km by taxi costs 710 yen in Tokyo.
U.S, tech companies are unfortunately being squeezed by our own government. The Chinese market is existential to these companies. . . . and its the U.S. government banning them from this market.
Biden is continuing trump’s sanctions of China’s tech companies – that latest salvo being the ban on U.S. tech companies from selling to China the latest version chips. But for what end?
Bottomline, on a head-to-head confrontation, the U.S. just can’t win because ultimately, you need to be able to sell what you produce. And this has to be through China because they are the market.
And by banning U.S. tech companies from the Chinese market now is allowing Chinese startups to take over the vacuum left open and effectively replace the U.S. tech companies not just in the Chinese but the global marketplace over the long term.
Back in the ′90s, a new neighbor moved in to the house just down the block. He was a single guy in his early 40s, seemed to be one of those guys who worked with his hands and kept mainly to himself. But… it wasn’t very long before we (as in the ENTIRE block) found out that he was a jerk.
He had a beautiful vintage ‘69 Ford Mustang GT 500, with (what I found out later) one of the fastest engines ever commercially made. Here’s one below, and you have to admit, it looks absolutely stunning, eh?
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Well, the neighbor in question definitely thought so as well, especially the over-powered engine. But in a suburb, where can you show off the power of the engine, really?
How about EVERY MORNING AT 5 AM when he went to work.
Every morning, that lunatic would pull out of his driveway, rev up the engine and demonstrate why that car could go 0–60 in 3.3 seconds! That car (and he) would go straight down the length of the block in practically 2 seconds and burst out onto the cross streets until he disappeared in a tell tale cloud of smoke and exhaust. Our neighborhood had become a 5 AM RACE TRACK.
To put it lightly, the entire neighborhood was NOT impressed. The sound of that car engine could be heard from two blocks away. I think practically all of the residents went to him in the period of a week asking him to not drive so recklessly and dangerously and wake up the entire block every weekday (and some weekend) mornings.
He would fake concern, and assure everyone he won’t do it again. And of course, he did it again and again. We complained to the cops, and they gave him a warning several times, but at the time there were no laws on the books in Montreal about sound decibels between 11 PM and 5 AM. Needless to say, we were stuck.
This went on for about two months until winter set in, and I and several neighbors were assembling the local outdoor hockey rink. As we were filling in the rink, making the ice and so on, we were talking about the jerk when an inspired idea suddenly flashed in our heads. Looking at the wooden boards that we used to make the ice rink, a devious plan came to mind. We rushed back to my kitchen as soon as we could, and started to work on the math. Later, we went door to door to see who we could conscript to help with our evil plans.
(By the way for all you car enthusiasts and collectors, I have NO idea why this guy was using such a classic car as a daily driver, and why drive it in the winter either.)
A few more weeks we all waited (by this time, the secret neighborhood revenge task force grew to about 30 households) for an ESPECIALLY cold day in Montreal (-20C and below) and waited for the chance to execute our plan… and then the forecast came of one especially cold night and day. The time had come.
Seeing as the neighbor always went to work at 5 AM, he almost always went to bed around 9 PM. Assuming that he would take about an hour to get ready for work, that gave us a window of around midnight to 3 AM for our plan. And like clockwork, at the stroke of midnight, 30 people came out, with small shovels, wood brackets (the ones we use to make local rinks), buckets and several hoses from the houses surrounding the target house. We all worked efficiently and effectively seeing as we never did anything like this before. Brackets went up. Snow got piled in. Water poured in.
Did I forget to mention again that it was -24C that night?
By 3 AM, we were all done. Our act of vengeance was complete, and had a few more hours still to harden and solidify. And yes, you’ve probably guessed what we did… and at 5 AM, we heard a very loud man ranting and raving, wanting revenge on whomever that did this, screaming that he was going to do horrible things to the people that did THIS to his beloved car.
Oh, as for what we did… imagine the next two pics COMBINED to see what we did to that beloved ’69 Ford Mustang GT 500.
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Yes, we turned his car into A HUGE ICE CUBE.
Needless to say, when life resumed on the street around 7 to 8 AM as people were going to work, we were greeted to a pretty pissed-off guy hammering at iron-strong ice walls surrounding his car. He wouldn’t even look at anyone as people passed by, and only kept muttering to himself something pretty nasty.
It was about three days before he managed to get his car completely free, and that involved a LOT of hot water, hours of labour and god knows what else he had to do. Add on that he had to get back to work each day, the mornings were peaceful as there was nary a roar or sound of anything.
The cops came and asked for statements from everyone in the area to find out who could have done something so terrible, but no one pointed at anyone, and everyone reiterated about how that neighbor had been a jerk from day two. He even went door to door, absolutely furious and demanded that someone tell him who did this. I think someone must have called the cops on him because he was threatening too many people. Needless to say, his complaints fell on deaf ears, and even the cops, who I think figured out that this was a group event, brushed his rantings away and threatened him with arrest and told him to calm down or else. Overall, a pretty satisfactory conclusion.
Well, there was a slight miscalculation though… the hot water (then cold) had to drain somewhere, and went down the street turning half the block into an ice rink for a while. Still, aside from a few bags of sand and ice, plus the help of the city and ANOTHER warning from the cops about how he was endangering the street, it was still a successful operation with only a minor inconvenience.
For the next few months, the mornings were quite peaceful. No more 5 AM revving or barreling out of the neighborhood like a bat out of hell. And in the spring, a For Sale sign popped up on his lawn. By the summer, we greeted a brand new family to the neighborhood, and life went on in a sleepy (no longer sleep-deprived) suburban neighborhood in Canada.
An acquaintance of mine took his daughter’s college savings away so that he could buy a boat. He did this the year before she went to college to “teach her responsibility” after they had an argument.
After they got into a (relatively minor) fight he told her she had two choices:
1) They could transfer ownership of an almost-paid-off car to her.
2) Let her keep the college fund they’d been growing (they told her this fund was for her, her entire life).
She chose “Keep the college fund”. He changed his mind, took that option away, made her take the car anyway, and kept the college fund for himself instead. Perhaps 2) was never an option, but he hoped she’d choose the car so he wouldn’t feel like such a jerk for taking her college money away.
Shortly after taking her college fund away, a brand new fishing boat appeared in his driveway. It looked a hell of lot like he just wanted an excuse to get his boat.
I am still in abject disgust.
She was a fantastic student and had been told throughout her life that her college would be paid for if she had good grades.
If my daughter had great grades and had the desire to go to a good school, even if I was poor, I would work 3 jobs to make sure she could have the best education.
School always came first in my family so I didn’t understand his actions. Bad grades were quickly punished. Good grades forgave many sins.
Natchitoches Meat Pies with Pepper Jelly
Pepper Jelly is also very good over cream cheese and served with crackers.
natchitoches meat pies recipe 181af2
Yield: about 90 to 100 meat pies; 9 to 10 half-pints Pepper Jelly
Ingredients
Filling
2 pounds ground sirloin
2 pounds ground pork
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon red pepper
1 cup chopped green onion
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
Vegetable oil for frying
Crust
2 cups self-rising flour
1/3 cup Crisco shortening
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup milk
Pepper Jelly
2 cups finely chopped bell peppers
20 to 25 jalapeno peppers, some but not all of the seeds removed
7 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups white vinegar
1 (6 ounce) box Certo pectin
Instructions
Filling
Cook ground sirloin and pork until it crumbles. Add salt, black pepper, red pepper and green onions. Stir in all-purpose flour. Set aside to cool.
Crust
Sift self-rising flour into a large bowl. Cut shortening into flour. Add egg and milk. Form dough into ball.
On a floured board, roll about a third of the dough about 1/4 inch thick. Cut dough in circles about 3 inches in diameter. Place a heaping tablespoon of meat mixture on each circle. Dampen edges. Fold over filling. Crimp edges with a fork and prick with fork on top. Deep fry at 350 degrees F until golden brown.
Serve with Pepper Jelly.
Pepper Jelly
Chop peppers very fine. Place peppers, sugar and vinegar in a tall pot and bring to a boil. Boil for 7 to 8 minutes, then add both pouches of Certo pectin. Boil for 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Put into sterilized jars and seal.
Serve Pepper Jelly with Natchitoches Meat Pies.
Notes
You may need to repeat the crust recipe three or four times to use all of the meat mixture.
Freezes well. Place uncooked pies on cookie sheet in freezer until set. Put in recloseable plastic bags and freeze.
His name is Wang Enlin. He is a Chinese farmer. He was a primary school dropout.
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In 2001, his farmland was flooded by chemical waste from a nearby chemical company. The chemical pollution made the land unusable . Wang had written to the local officials about the pollution but he had no idea what law the company had broken by polluting his land.
‘I knew I was in the right, but I did not know what law the other party had broken or whether or not there was evidence.’
He decided to study law by himself, so he would be able to sue the company.
He spent 16 years educating himself about the law, from 2001 to 2017.
He studied law books in a local bookstore.
He sued the company and had won the first round of the legal battle against Qihua Group which is a state-owned chemicals company.
Took a friend’s child (11m) to swim class. The instructor was a 19 yo college varsity swimmer. First class of the day, heard her talking about her new swimsuit and how her BF got it for a romantic trip they were taking that weekend, but since she had not done laundry, she pulled it out early.
She always swam a couple of hard and fast laps before starting class, finishing with this dramatic pop out of the water to stand infront of where her class gathered. This day was no different. Turns out her suit was a joke swimsuit, made with dissolving threads. It was intended to fall apart in the hot tub of where ever they were going for the romantic weekend. She did her normal dramatic pop out of the water to stand on the deck in front of her class, and let’s just say those 11-year-old boys got quite the education that day.
Showed up for a college English class just as the class was starting. There was only one seat left by the time I got there.
That seat was next to a very hot woman who was way out of my league. So far out of my league that I didn’t bother talking to her. Why set myself up for failure, you know?
Over the next few classes, people kept sitting in the same seats, even though they weren’t assigned or anything. I started to talk to the woman, mainly because the professor had us discuss some things with people near us. Eventually I got comfortable talking to her and forgot she was so far out of my league. Then, after class one day, I offered her a ride to the other side of campus, even though it wasn’t a large campus. I told her I wanted to show her my new car (which was true). She accepted, we started talking more.
Finally, I asked her out; she accepted. We dated for five years, got married, had three kids, one dog, bought a house, and now she’s sitting next to me, trying to figure out how to set up some new speakers she got for Christmas.
All because I was the last one in class and had to take the one seat that was left. Otherwise, I would never have sat next to someone like her.
Cheating Wife LOSES IT After Husband Puts Her Through The Ultimate Mental Gymnastics Before Divorce
Tactically Interesting.
"It's always the dad that ends up broken about the actions of his daughter..."
I was the company’s first employee. It started with just me and the owner working from his living room. He promised me as the company grew so would my paycheck. Two years later… I am running the whole back end of the company out of two warehouses and he is running the front end and doing the administration side. As he travels the world I step up and run it all. He bought his wife and father each a Lexus. I was still living with my grandparents and driving an old beat up car because I couldn’t even afford a studio apartment anywhere in our county but my annual review was coming and since the company and his pay had grown exponentially, I expected a large raise.
My annual review was nothing short of perfect, but all I got was a $0.25 per hour raise. It was bull****. He cried when I gave him my notice, but in my opinion, he kind of asked for it. I would have gladly stayed if he kept his word and my pay really had grown as the business did. After I left apparently there was a power struggle with all the employees in both warehouses all fighting over who would be in my position and it fell apart. He begged me to come back and help it get under control again but that was a big NO.
Xi calls for letting internet better benefit people of all countries
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday called for letting the internet better benefit people of all countries when he addressed the opening ceremony of the 2023 World Internet Conference (WIC) Wuzhen Summit via video.
Xi said that the vision of jointly building a community with a shared future in cyberspace, which he proposed at the second WIC in 2015, has garnered widespread international recognition and positive responses.
The vision answers the questions of our times related to resolving the development deficit, addressing security challenges, and enhancing mutual learning between civilizations, Xi said.
Xi stressed that the international community needs to deepen exchanges and practical cooperation to jointly advance the building of a community with a shared future in cyberspace to a new stage.
He called for prioritizing development to let the fruits of internet development benefit more countries and people.
Xi emphasized the need to improve public access to information-based services, bridge the digital divide, and improve people’s livelihood with internet development.
Calling for building a more peaceful and secure cyberspace, Xi stressed the need to respect cyber sovereignty and each country’s way of internet governance and the need to oppose seeking hegemony, bloc confrontation and arms race in cyberspace.
Xi went on to underscore the need to crack down on cyber crimes, strengthen data security and personal information protection, and properly respond to the risks and challenges brought by sci-tech development to rules, society and ethics.
China is willing to work with all parties to implement the Global Artificial Intelligence Governance Initiative and promote the safe development of AI, Xi said.
He also called for building a more equal and inclusive cyberspace. He stressed the need to better promote the shared values of humanity.
Xi underlined more high-quality online cultural products and efforts to fully showcase the outstanding achievements of human civilizations and actively promote civilization preservation and development.
After working for several companies, I came to a grim conclusion. In most organizations, only ~10% of people are truly high performers. They have great attitudes, are self-starters, smart, and great to work with.
25% are hard-working, competent, and carry most of the company’s workload. About 50% are lazy and just cross the minimum standard of work. 15% are completely incompetent and shouldn’t be at the company.
Many in this bottom 65% are gone at 5:01 PM despite being on a performance improvement plan. And the thing that stinks: many of them once held promise in the eyes of the interviewer. Nobody wants to hire and manage a dud.
Many in that bottom wrung are managers too. They slid up to their own level of incompetence (the Peter Principle). There’s another key distinction between the top 35% and the bottom 65%.
Their attitude.
The high performers don’t grimace when something goes wrong because it means more work. They don’t pout or complain incessantly about their job.
They are all in. They are there to crush their goals.
I noticed this in particular with the Indian coworkers who were there on a work Visa. They were the ultimate in keeping their head down and working, never complaining, and investigating problems thoroughly.
They appreciated the opportunity in front of them. They weren’t spoiled and had grown up in a competitive academic environment.
The head of my department was anonymously accused of sexual harassing a female senior student. Immediately an investigation was started, and he was put on hold.
When first days, and then weeks passed, it became obvious that in this kind of case, you are presumed guilty until proven innocent. I always thought it had to be the other way around.
(Stupid me.)
The weird thing was that although the accusation had been filed anonymously, the student was named in the document — she had not filed it by herself. After a round of interviews, it also became clear that she had not been harassed at all.
In fact, she was totally shocked by the way she had been questioned, as if she had been almost forced to “admit the accusation.” But nothing had happened, which she had repeated over and over again, and still the same questions came.
From the beginning, I was involved in the case as a confidant, and after reading the accusation, it became crystal clear who had written it. (And it wasn’t the girl.) This was a retaliation of the darkest evil, written by people who wanted to get rid of the man, and this was the easiest way.
They tried to erase his every accomplishment by making him a sexual offender. And it actually worked.
Because although he was totally cleared in the end, many people had already decided that he was a sexual predator before the outcome of the investigation. And that type of people usually don’t change their mind afterwards.
And although he was declared innocent, soon after he was “asked” by the dean to step aside as the head of the department (to save the faculty from losing face), and a new head was appointed.
I was running late to a family gathering at my older brother’s house. When I got there I saw my cousins step son going under the water in the pool.(my cousin leaning on the fence,) watching this happen and does nothing. Turns away, my son, the same age and build as the other boy, dove in to help. He can swim, but not well enough to handle a panicking person. I was on my way to the pool, removing my boots to help the first boy, when I saw my son I panicked. Knowing he wasn’t going to be able to help, but become someone else needing help. Meanwhile no one is paying attention except my ex wife. So now I have to get undressed, leaving my underwear on. My clothing would have been too heavy to swim with a child in each arm. By the time I got to the edge my ex was there with 2 towels. And I said, “see, that’s what I’m talking about. He treats those kids like shit. And he just walked away seeing him go under”. Not more that 10 seconds later my aunt was jumping down my throat, saying I was just an ass…… and then it was the rest of my family. I said I am speaking out in defense of a child and you are calling me messed up. But he can watch the kids go under, yelling for help and turn around? I never went to another family function again. And recently decided that I am going to just disown the entire lot.
She: Do you have any specific seat preference, sir?
Me(lightly): A seat beside a cute girl would be great.
She(smiling): Sure, you can take that chair and sit beside me.
Slightly taken aback by that unexpected response.
Me: Not now, but maybe some other time. You can give me your number and I would definitely call you next time I’m in the city.
She: That’s private.
Me(delivering my well rehearsed dialogue): Ultimate privacy is a myth. God sees everything. The cloud records everything. NSA files everything. So, live transparently and don’t waste useless energy hiding yourself.
She(placing the ticket on the counter): Here’s your ticket, sir. If it’s meant to be, we’ll meet again. Till then have a nice journey.
Me(with a wide smile): Thank you.
Later in the flight while I was reading a novel, my attention diverted towards something scribbled at the back of my ticket which I was using as a bookmark. To my horror I saw this:
A half written name and mobile number with a smiley.
One of the security staff must have torn and kept the other half. I re-winded that conversation and cursed myself a million times for not paying attention.
Now, every time I travel through Mumbai I just glance through the Jet Airways counter once, just in case….
A bored, 25-year old intern in Microsoft – named Wes Cherry wrote Windows Solitaire (Klondike) in his spare time and never got royalty for it!
The story in his own words:
I wrote it for Windows 2.1 in my own time while an intern at Microsoft during the summer of 1988. I had played a similar solitaire game on the Mac instead of studying for finals at college and wanted a version for myself on Windows…
At the time there was an internal “company within a company” called Bogus software. It was really just a server where bunch of guys having fun hacking Windows to learn about the API tossed their games.
A program manager on the Windows team saw it and decided to include it in Windows 3.0. It was made clear that they wouldn’t pay me other than supplying me with an IBM XT to fix some bugs during the school year — I was perfectly fine with it and I am to this day.
A few people have paid me “a penny” as a joke. I’d get them in the mail, or in person if someone introduced me as the author of Solitaire and the obligatory no royalties conversation came up. I think I’m up to about 8 cents now.
Microsoft thought that Solitaire will train people how to use mouse, a newly introduced input device back then.
Initially he programmed a Boss Key into the game, which would instantly switch out the game with spreadsheet looking display. He knew already how addictive the game is. But, Microsoft told him to remove that feature.
He is also creator of Pipe Dream which was part of Microsoft Entertainment pack. Although, this time he was paid a few thousand $ in stocks for that (those worth millions today!).
After his internship, he joined MS Excel team.
Today he is growing apples (fruit!) on an island west of Seattle.
In 2004, Microsoft’s Chris Sells described Solitaire as the most-used Windows application in the world surpassing MS-Office itself!
To celebrate Solitaire’s silver anniversary, Microsoft arranged a Solitaire tournament on the Microsoft campus on May 18, 2015.
Hats off to this genius intern, who took the internship to another level just out of self-interest!
I was baking a banana bread yesterday. When I took the loaf out of the oven, my finger accidentally touched the hot baking pan. I exclaimed, “Sonofabitch!”. My husband heard and rushed into the kitchen, “What’s that?”. I showed him my finger, “The hot baking pan burnt me!”, faking a cry. “Lemme see!”, he held my finger and gave it a ton of small kisses. “Better?”, he asked. I nodded and grinned like a little girl.
Sometimes, there is a helicopter hovering over our property. When my husband hears it, no matter what he’s doing, he will drop it, rush out to the backyard, and look up to watch the helicopter. Then he will come back inside, and announce to me with a grin, “It’s a helicopter!” like a seven year old boy.
We definitely are two kids living together (three, if we count The Teenager), and it’s pretty good. I recommend it!
I was once told that a patient in our waiting room was disruptive and probably drunk or high. I got him back to my office, and began to ask him questions. He talked about working all day outside. At that point, something struck me as odd. I asked him how long he had been in our office—less than ten minutes.
It was the hottest part of the Texas summer, and his clothes were dry. There had not been time for them to dry out. He was not sweating.
I got staff to help call EMTs. He went to the hospital with heat injury. He had been in heat stroke. He told us later that the hospital thought he might have kidney damage from it, but he recovered.
Everyone knows cold can kill you. Not as many know that heat can. If you are out in the heat and someone who has been sweating stops, or starts acting crazy, get help. People die from heat stroke, and pretty quickly.
I will never forget it. K.K. Lim had taken me to breakfast at a restaurant in Singapore known for their Laksa. It really is delicious. We were eating and talking and having a pleasant time.
When it was time to leave I pushed back from the table, forgetting the stool I sat on had no back. I proceeded to fall off of it, flat on my back. Did I mention it was a popular restaurant with high traffic? Lots of people to witness my embarrassment.
K.K. was afraid I was hurt and I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to show my face there again, but I was fine. Extremely embarrassed, but fine.
We’ve had a pretty stable routine the last three years, my dog and I: Before we both go to bed, I walk her, then come home and brush my teeth. While I’m brushing my teeth, she goes to the bedroom ahead of me.
A few months ago, we came back from our final walk of the day, and I went to brush my teeth, expecting her to go upstairs to the bedroom. But she didn’t. She just stared at the basement door.
I didn’t think much of it at first. I finished brushing and began walking up the stairs, expecting her to follow me. I was only about two steps up before she started barking at the basement door. I told her to “knock it off,” thinking that she was barking at some other dog’s barking in the distance outside that I didn’t hear. She does that sometimes.
But she wouldn’t stop. She seemed distressed.
So it finally dawned on me that she was trying to tell me something. Something was in the basement that she wanted me to see.
So I opened the basement door and went down the stairs. Sure enough, she was right… there was a problem. I’d left the door to the outside from the basement wide open. I was taking things out of the basement earlier, and I totally forgot to close the door completely. The wind must have opened it all the way.
Had she not let me know about it, it would have been open all night. God only knows what woodland creatures would have found their way into my basement that night.
I rewarded her with a piece of bologna… her favorite treat. Well, really, any meat that humans normally eat makes her really happy.
Elon Musk: Taiwan is an integral part of China; the country will incorporate Taiwan 100 percent
image 87image 86
Succeeding to American billionaire Elon Musk’s public indication that “Taiwan is an integral part of China,”which drew backfire from Taiwan authorities according to CNN, in a recent media video, Musk once again voiced his opinion about the Chinese island, which has gained widespread support from the Chinese public.
image 85
And the video has gone viral:
China does feel very strongly about Taiwan.
They’ve been very clear about that for a quite long time.
I understand the frustration. A couple of my kids had friends that were constantly underfoot. After talking with my kids, there were good reasons those friends didn’t want to go home, and were just looking for a safe haven to shelter in.
At that point, I stopped treating them as guests, and started treating them like my kids. If there were chores to be done, then everyone did chores. If there was homework, everybody sat down and did homework. If we had errands to run, everybody got in the car and we did errands. If any guest balked, they had a simple choice to make—they could participate with us or go home. Easy peasy.
Yes, it jacked up the food bill. Oh, well. I still have children and grandchildren who are no blood relation to me. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
When in doubt, be kind. But being kind doesn’t mean giving over control of your home to someone else.
A few years ago, I was teaching Earth Science to college undergraduates, and I had brought in a bag of small oranges and a bag of larger grapefruit—because you can stack them in various ways, as a visual aid to demonstrate how atoms are packed together in mineral crystals. Sort of like this:
Anyway, when class was over, I offered the fruit to anyone who wanted some. . . and a student came up and took an orange. She happened to mention that this would be the first time she had ever eaten an orange.
I said “Whut?” or something like that. Who the heck reaches the age of twenty without so much as trying an orange at least once?
In the ensuing conversation, it came out that my student’s mother evidently either couldn’t cook, or didn’t want to cook. . . and my student had been raised on fast food throughout her childhood and teenage years—burgers, fries, chicken nuggets, and so on. (For the record, I don’t remember if she had only eaten McDonald’s food specifically, or if she balanced her diet with other fast food chain menus.) She had never tried—or had only recently tried—all the fruits and vegetables that I pretty much took for granted as I was growing up.
You might think that someone who’d grown up on a diet of nothing but fast food would weigh 800 pounds and have lost all her teeth to scurvy, or something like that. But this student was of normal height and weight, and had no obvious medical conditions that I could detect. As a professor I try not to pay too much attention to my students’ looks, but as such things are commonly reckoned she was not bad-looking at all—and pretty smart as well; she did quite well in the class.
So I’m damned if I know how she did it, or what kind of trick metabolism she must have had—but it is evidently possible to eat McDonald’s food for many years and suffer no obvious ill effects. I still wouldn’t recommend it, though.
As I recall, she enjoyed the orange.
RICH Chinese LEFTOVER Women Are Not Attractive to AVERAGE Men Despite Women Being Outnumbered
A Chinese man had brought a dog home from an animal shelter after adoption.
The dog was caring and obedient; however, one night the owner found the dog awake. The dog stood outside the man’s fenced bedroom door. He had been staring at the man while he was asleep.
The man shrugged it off, thinking that the dog was getting used to his new surroundings. But when the pattern was followed night after night, the owner was scared for the dog.
The owner used to play with the dog to make sure he was exhausted at the end of the day and would eventually sleep at night.
But the dog would stay awake and gaze at him every night.
The man showed him to the vet, but the dog was declared healthy.
Finally, the man went to the shelter from which the dog was adopted to seek closure.
The shelter workers revealed that the dog’s previous owner wanted to get rid of him as he had a pregnant wife and he found it difficult to take care of the two.
The owner waited for the dog to fall asleep and then left him at the shelter.
When the dog woke up, he realised that he had been abandoned. Deeply traumatised by it, he found it difficult to trust his new owner and feared being abandoned again if he fell asleep.
Upon learning this, the owner broke into tears. He removed the fence and shifted the dog’s bed beside his own. He believed that this would help build the dog’s trust, lost after being abandoned.
I had a teacher in the 5th grade who kept calling me Jessica. I’ve dealt with this my whole life. Usually, my go to is to politely say, “Excuse me, but my name is Jerrica actually. It’s not Jessica.” That is what I said to this teacher the first day of school. He didn’t respond. He called me Jessica EVERY SINGLE DAY. I corrected him, and he would laugh at me or just shake his head.
At one point, he even said “No, Jessica is your name, stop trying to change your name.” I had a few friends in class try to explain to him that my name is in fact JERRICA. He told them to stop encouraging me.
I asked my mother what to do about this predicament. She, being the wonderful and supportive woman that she is, suggested that I ignore him until he called me by the correct name. So that’s exactly what I did. It got to the point that he was literally crossing out my name on my assignments, writing Jessica on them, and taking points off of everything I handed in with my actual name on it. I would end up with zeros for the day for “being obstinate and refusing to participate.”
I had a D in his class but was an A/B student in everything else. He requested a conference with my parents, and he requested that they both attend as my father was in his opinion the more reasonable parent. As soon as he sat down he started in about me, using the wrong name. “Jessica ignores me in class.,’’ “Jessica does not complete assignments.,” “Jessica is disrespectful.”
My mom asked him what he was talking about and if, in fact he knew how to read. My dad said “I don’t know who Jessica is, but I’m sorry you’re having issues with her. My kid’s name is Jerrica.” He apparently told my parents they shouldn’t have given me such a difficult name, and that this still should not have resulted in the behaviour I exhibited in his class. To which my wonderful father replied, “If your name was Joe and I called you Steve every day for four months, you would be pretty pissed off too.”
I got a grudging, half-hearted apology from my teacher and ended up with a B for my final grade. He never used my name after that, but he did stop taking points off when I wrote it on assignments!
Three takeaways from Wang Yi’s U.S. visit
A meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House, two rounds of talks with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken across two days, strategic communication with U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, and separate sit-downs with members of the U.S. strategic and business communities.
This is what China’s top diplomat Wang Yi has achieved during a closely-watched three-day visit to Washington that concluded on Saturday.
During the visit, the two sides had “in-depth, constructive and substantive” strategic communication on many issues of common concern, and jointly sent a positive signal of stabilizing and improving China-U.S. relations, said Wang, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and China’s foreign minister.
Here are three key takeaways from his visit.
Road to a San Francisco meeting
Throughout the visit, the Chinese foreign minister stressed, more than once, the importance of following through on the common understandings reached between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart when they last met
on the sidelines of the G20 Bali Summit in Indonesia.
During the Bali meeting on November 14, 2022, the two heads of state conducted their first face-to-face talks since Biden took office in January 2021. Xi said China and the U.S. should respect each other, coexist in peace, pursue win-win cooperation, and work together to ensure bilateral relations move forward on the right course without losing direction or speed, still less having a collision.
Biden, on his part, told the Chinese president that the U.S. respects China’s system, and does not seek to change it; that it does not seek a new Cold War; that it does not seek to revitalize alliances against China; that it does not support “Taiwan independence,” and does not support “two Chinas” or “one China, one Taiwan;” and that it has no intention to have a conflict with China. The U.S. side has no intention to seek “de-coupling” from China, halt China’s economic development, or contain China, he added.
In the roughly one-hour – more than double than originally planned – meeting with the U.S. president on Friday, Wang said his visit is aimed at communicating with the U.S. side to follow through on the Bali meeting, and proceed toward a San Francisco meeting, so as to prevent bilateral ties from further deteriorating and bring the China-U.S. relationship back on the track of healthy and steady development at an early date.
During the talks between Wang and Blinken on Thursday and Friday, both sides agreed to make joint efforts for the meeting between the two heads of state in San Francisco, which is set to host the leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation economies in mid-November.
“The road to San Francisco will not be a smooth one, and it will not be left to ‘autopilot,'” warned the Chinese foreign minister when he was hosted by the Aspen Security Group, a policy program of a namesake think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C., on Saturday.
Wang urged real efforts on the part of the U.S. side to eliminate interference, overcome obstacles, enhance consensus, and accumulate results to make the meeting happen.
Wang Yiwei, director of the Institute of International Affairs at Renmin University of China in Beijing, said that the U.S. side, in conducting its so-called Indo-Pacific strategy, has been making trouble for Beijing on the Taiwan question and the South China Sea issue, among others.
“So the key is to watch whether the U.S. side can really follow its words with actions,” the scholar told CGTN.
Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, meets with U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan in Washington, D.C., the United States, October 27, 2023. /Chinese Foreign Ministry
Need to restart dialogue
The Chinese foreign minister’s trip followed Blinken’s Beijing visit in June, as well as a visit to China by a bipartisan delegation of the U.S. Senate led by Majority Leader Chuck Schumer earlier this month, and was partially coincident with California Governor Gavin Newsom’s week-long stay in China that is still underway.
Wang stressed the importance of keeping communication channels open between the two sides during his talks with Blinken. In the coming days, both sides will hold separately China-U.S. consultations on maritime affairs, arms control and non-proliferation, and foreign policies.
“China and the United States need dialogue. We should not only resume dialogue, but also have in-depth and comprehensive dialogue,” he told reporters while standing next to the U.S. secretary of state before their formal talks, which eventually lasted over seven hours across two days.
The call was shared by U.S. strategists, who told Wang in their meeting on Saturday that the U.S. strategic community does not agree with the rhetoric about the so-called failure of U.S.-China engagement and wants the two sides to restart dialogue in various fields.
To stabilize and improve China-U.S. relations, both sides should also have objective understandings of each other’s strategic intentions, Wang told Blinken, in his latest call for following through one of the common understandings reached between the two presidents at the Bali meeting.
Wang Yiwei, the expert on international relations, said it is important to put a strategic framework in place for the two largest economies to manage their relations.
“If ‘competition’ is the word [to describe the bilateral relations], then the competition should be an orderly one, not one with no bottom line, no principles or no rules,” he said.
It should be in line with the expectations of the international community, and be responsible for globalization and the international market, he added, referring to the U.S. rhetoric of “de-coupling” or “de-risking” its supply chains from China.
People-to-people exchanges
During Wang’s visit, China and the U.S. also agreed to further increase direct passenger flights between the two countries, on top of the commitment made during Blinken’s June visit.
Hours after the talks between the two top diplomats, U.S. officials announced that flights between the U.S. and China will increase to 70 per week starting November 9.
The Chinese civil aviation authority said the increase in flights will help facilitate personnel, economic and trade exchanges between the two countries.
In terms of promoting people-to-people exchanges, the two sides also agreed on a China-U.S. Coordination Meeting on Disability Affairs to discuss the signing of a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in disability affairs in the coming days.
Structure
Louisiana Cajun Style Hot Tamales
2023 11 09 17 12
Yield: approximately 25 dozen tamales
Ingredients
Meat Preparation
10 pounds beef shoulder meat
2 onions, quartered
2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
Salt
Pepper
Water
Cornmeal Mush
2 pounds shortening
3 pounds cornmeal
Salt
Pepper
Meat
3 large onions
2 garlic buttons
2 bottles chili powder
1 small bottle red pepper
Salt
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
Instructions
The night before you make your tamales, wash each corn shuck and place in water to soak overnight.
Boil meat until done and falling off bone, about 1 1/2 hours.
While meat is cooking, make mush in heavy skillet. Get shortening hot and add salted cornmeal. Stir meat until golden in color. Make a paste by adding soup off the meat and stirring until smooth.
Take meat off bone and grind together with onion and garlic. Add chili powder, red pepper and salt.
Put shortening in skillet and fry until onion is cooked, stirring constantly. Add tomato paste and soup from meat making it soft. DO NOT GET IT TOO SOFT.
Spread meal mush on shucks about 1/4 inch thick with a flat knife. Then put meat on top and roll into tamale shape.
Notes
DO NOT UNDER-SALT THIS DISH. Cornmeal requires a lot of salt.
What was the most inappropriate thing someone has done in a church service?
Around twenty years ago, when I was pastor of a former congregation, there was a young woman named Anna,* who attended the church. At the time, Anna was in her mid-twenties, but had the mental functioning of a young child. She was brought to church by a kind and caring couple who had a heart for helping people like Anna, and as Anna began inviting her friends to church, we soon found ourselves with four or five of Anna’s friends attending on a regular basis. We had a ministry to some wonderfully unique people dropped right in our laps.
Most of the church did a wonderful job of ministering to these folks. They loved them and were very patient with them. Along with Anna, I fondly recall Mike, who like Anna lived in a group home. Mike would slip into my office at the church and leave little action figures for my then small children. My boys couldn’t wait to get to church and see what Mike had left them. On any given Sunday, there would be Star Wars or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles action figures in a zip lock baggie on my desk. Mike was a real character and he possessed a sweet and caring nature. Later, his family moved him to a group home in Chattanooga, Tennessee and I eventually lost touch with him, but he will always be remembered as the Boo Radley of that little group.
During all this, Anna asked me if she could sing in the church choir. I referred the matter to our church choir director, a kind and compassionate man, and he saw no problem with it. The choir, around twenty members, welcomed Anna as one of their own. Anna couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket, but it was a joy for her to be up there with the choir on Sunday morning, and her sheer delight of singing along with the choir made it a blessing for all of us.
Not long after Anna began singing in the choir, a cantankerous church member named Madge, whom I have written about here before, came to me one Sunday morning before church with yet another complaint, which was no surprise, as I could always tell when Madge was complaining; her lips were moving. The conversation went something like this:
“Pastor, it’s embarrassing that this woman, Anna, is singing in the choir.”
“Awe, come on Madge; she enjoys herself.”
“I don’t care! She’s an embarrassment to this church!”
“Madge, didn’t Jesus say something about letting the children come to him for such is the Kingdom of Heaven?”
“Yes, he did, but she’s still an embarrassment.”
With that, she huffed away and that was the end of it. Her comments and attitude towards Anna and her friends were among the most inappropriate things I have ever seen during a church service or at church.
Eventually, Anna’s family moved to another town, and welater left that church and I was called to another congregation. However, for the last twenty years or so we have kept in touch with Anna. We consider her a very special friend. Last April, her family brought her to our part of Virginia for a visit and my wife and I took her out to dinner. Here we are enjoying some time with our old friend Anna.
Friendships come in all forms and with all sorts of people.
He writes quite a few things and almost always does 1–3 of the above things sometimes all of them backing them up with calculations a lot of the time.
Same thing with Carl Hamilton he questions things and quantifies things.
If more people did that? Politicians wouldn’t get away with half the shit they do. Yet here we are with people literally saying it’s true because the BBC said so!
Reuters a WESTERN News agency counted the number of protesors in Hong Kong.
So let’s go through the thought process above with the 2 million protestors.
Do some calculations.
Does it pass the smell test.
Check later on things you think to be true and see if they are no longer true.
2 million is almost 1/3 of the population.
2 million cannot fit into such an area as other than telephone box challenges you can’t fit more than 3 people per square meter.
So let’s critically read the Reuters source.
Who wrote it
Why did they write it
What possible bias is there?
What was the methodology?
Reuters – Western news source so according to westerners themselves unbiased. If anything anti China.
They wrote it to check on the massive claims.
The possible bias is they side with the protestors.
The methodology was putting cameras at bridges and certain buildings and counting people passing every few minutes.
Meanwhile the 2 million claim? It came from Jimmy Sham
image 71
Let’s do the above with Jimmy Sham.
Who wrote it
Why did they write it
What possible bias is there?
What was the methodology?
Who is Jimmy Sham. He’s a anti government rioter, he was encouraging violence there are speeches you can still find videos of them on Yandex but not google.
Jimmy Sham claimed he’d been attacked for well over a minute by 6 men with hammers. Yet he managed to recover within a few days with only a slight cut to his forehead. Jimmy Sham also produced fliers documenting his attack 2 days before the ‘attack’ Hong Kong leaflets at the bottom state the date of printing.
Why did he write it – To claim more support than there actually was. PORI at HKU (they parted ways) found only 16% had any real support for what the protestors wanted.
What possible bias? – Again he’s anti China.
What was his methodology – He made it up.
Yet westerners are convinced Jimmy Sham is completely credible and Reuters isn’t.
Here’s what I learned from dating/marrying a poor guy: the idea that since he’s not working, he’ll clean and get groceries and cook, is completely lost on men.
They honestly think they can watch TV and play video games all day then when you get home, complain that there are no Doritos and the dishes are all dirty. With a straight fucking face.
And have the nerve to accuse you of assigning them “busy work” when you realize they aren’t going to do it on their own so you still have to be in charge and make them a damn list because they don’t mind wearing the same dirty socks for a week.
There was a time I would have gladly supported the family if I was getting the home handled as part of the deal, but taking care of a fully grown child in addition to everything else is too much to ask.
You broke? If she’s paying the rent and buying the food, you better be cooking it and not just ordering pizza on her card and leaving the laundry in a pile because you put it through the machine but couldn’t be bothered to fold it, sort it or put it away because you had a raid starting.
In the Second World War and under the ruthless command of Surgeon General Shirō Ishii, Unit 731 of the Imperial Japanese Army conducted a string of depraved experiments on Chinese civilians.
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Shirō Ishii.
One of the most heinous of these experiments saw soldiers gift chocolate to Chinese schoolchildren. Why was it heinous? Because the chocolate was laced with anthrax. Killing unsuspecting children with chocolate was far from the only cruel experiment undertook by Unit 731, though.
In another example, they went around villages offering “vaccinations” on the pretence that they would protect inhabitants against a rising epidemic. The truth was actually the reverse; they were creating epidemics by injecting residents with the live, deadly forms of pathogens like cholera. The cruelty in these examples is clear; they were taking advantage of people’s good faith and stabbing them in the back.
They were, in essence, weaponizing people’s trust.
image 65
An older, post-war Shirō Ishii.
Whilst Shirō lounged around in his pristine mansion, eating, relaxing and bathing without a care in the world, the civilians condemned to hellish terror by him were spewing their guts up, writhing in agony and taking their last breath. However, none of that would be enough to see him face punishment.
Understandably even in that era, the kinds of experiments conducted by him would not have been green-lit by most other countries, meaning that Shirō had unique information that other countries coveted. Using that, he was able to get immunity from prosecution in exchange for divulging everything in relation to his research.
With that, Shirō was allowed to go free and live out the rest of his life despite the trail of death that he’d left behind him. The kick in the teeth is that the information he provided proved to be of little use anyway, so he really did get off scot-free in the end. After the war, he opened his own medical clinic and became well-liked in the community, caught religion and lived out his remaining years in peace.
For a simple example, if you binge eat a huge delicious unhealthy brunch, you’ll likely get a double crash: your dopamine and blood sugar levels fall at the same time, leaving you on the couch groaning. If you drank a few mimosas, consider it a triple crash.
A more extreme example is ecstasy. I’ve never done it but my ex did and I was around a bunch of people who were high as a kite on it.
It’s super bizarre to watch. Everyone is touchy-feely, warm, and excessively friendly. However, not in the way that someone on cocaine is, talking fast and moving around a lot. Ecstasy produces a massive release of dopamine. They’d always do it and then go to raves and dance until 4 AM. It was nuts.
image 64
Consequently, it carries a huge dopamine hangover and makes people sadder and less motivated for weeks. I saw it several times with my ex. She was miserable, mean, and incredibly hard to be around.
Nothing is wrong with seeking healthy sources of pleasure, but moderate it and resist the urge for chemical sources of it. The price of entry isn’t worth it.
Biden’s invitation to Xi Jinping to visit the United States was just a delaying tactic by the United States. For two reasons:
For the needs of the new round of elections.
Currently, the United States is deeply tied to Israel. In the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, it has strongly supported Israel despite the opposition of the world, and even put aside its support for Ukraine. Therefore, under the current world situation, the White House first compromised with China and gave China some “verbal promises”, such as “reiterating the one-China policy”, “no arms sales to Taiwan”, requiring China to purchase U.S. debt, stabilize the U.S. dollar market, and stabilize the U.S. economy, to trick China into lifting certain sanctions against the United States. After the situation in the Middle East slows down in the future, the White House will go back and tear up the agreement.
The United States is so shameless, so China will not have any illusions about the United States.
I think another way to ask your question: why don’t more Infantry use a scope on their rifle?
This is my M-4 (I’m in the middle) for Ought-Three Invasion of Iraq, April 4th, 2003, modified with a 14x Leopold scope:
image 77image 76
So, if you want to spend a little bit of money, you can change your Army issue rifle into a “sniper rifle” of sorts. That Leopold scope was better than binoculars, and was always ready. I still had an M2 laser to aim, and believe it or not, I could even still use the Iron-sight. That scope was extremely useful tactically. Just being able to check out whether movement at 500 yards was friend or foe was priceless.
Let me help you with some myths about snipers you might be entertaining:
Myth buster #1.
Snipers are great at choosing a target, but they are not a mass casualty producing weapon. Mortars and Artillery are still today doing 60–90% of the killing. It’s true snipers can call in the artillery/mortars, and that makes them even more deadly, but you still have to realize any soldiers on the battlefield with a radio and a hiding spot can and does do the same thing.
Myth buster #2. There are tactical snipers and there are sniper teams. Tactical snipers are just a dude with a scope, in any Platoon. They will usually be in a Scout Platoon, but could be Infantry/Mortars as well. That is just a dude with a scope, and I agree with your question: units should have more dudes with scopes… Sniper teams are ultimately wasted resources, who do not assault or help with the attack beyond suppression. However, it is a gamble; sometimes they spend weeks hiding, and hit a high value target. If you kill the enemy General, then the gamble of wasting your manpower for a week payed off. If you are a 30 man infantry platoon, dividing out a third of your force just to have three OP-sniper teams waiting in a hide, is ultimately wasteful. Most of those sniper teams will do nothing, and come home having accomplished nothing.
My favorite Scout Sniper in Iraq, switching to M16 so he can help assault:
image 75
Navy SEAL Sniper Team who do their own thing, and do not help assault:
image 74
Myth buster #3.
Wait until we fight an equal Army, like China or Russia, who actually takes ground from us; wait until you see what Infantry do to captured snipers. When your Army retreats, those sniper teams are stranded. If those enemy have any suspicion about whether that sniper has had success on the battlefield, those Infantry will make him squeal before they say goodbye.
There were many people that had done this so I can not take credit for it but it was amazing. There was a certain bank that would give you 5% rebate for purchases. So the trick was I would buy gift cards with the credit card and then take the gift cards and pay the credit card bill with an online bill paying service. This would lead to about 3.5% profit. It got to the point I was spending the whole credit limit of the card each day to buy the gift cards. I had a $19,000 limit on the card. So 4 times a week I would spend $19,000 on the card, come home and pay it off with the gift cards and then go out and do it again. There were some people that did this for over a year. I was only able to do it for about 4 mths before the credit card company shut it down. It was nice while it lasted.
China urges joint efforts before highly-anticipated Xi-Biden meeting
image 9
Ahead of the highly-anticipated meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Joe Biden, a Chinese official on Monday called for joint efforts from both sides to bring bilateral relations back on track.
China hopes the U.S. will act on its commitment of not seeking a new Cold War with China, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning in response to a query about the upcoming China-U.S. summit meeting.
China doesn’t seek to change the U.S., nor should the U.S. seek to shape or change China, Mao said.
The Chinese government has confirmed that Xi is set to meet with Biden in San Francisco, where the two leaders will also attend the 30th APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting.
Mao said China views and handles its relations with the U.S. in accordance with the three principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation proposed by President Xi Jinping. Major-country competition runs counter to the trend of our times and provides no answer to the problems in the U.S. or the challenges in our world.
“China does not fear competition, but we do not agree that China-U.S. relations should be defined by competition,” said Mao.
Speaking of concerns, the U.S. needs to respect China’s concerns and legitimate right to development, rather than emphasizing its own concerns at the expense of China’s interests, Mao added.
“To seek to remodel other countries in one’s own image is wishful thinking in the first place and typical hegemonism which is going nowhere,” she said.
Mao stressed that the Taiwan question is China’s internal affair and resolving it is a matter for the Chinese that brook no foreign interference.
“Successive U.S. administrations have made clear commitments on the Taiwan question,” Mao said. During the summit meeting in Bali, the U.S. said explicitly that the U.S. government doesn’t support “Taiwan independence,” Mao noted.
“The U.S. needs to honor its commitment to one China and oppose ‘Taiwan independence’ with concrete actions,” Mao pointed out.
Over the South China Sea issue, China is committed to settling relevant disputes through negotiation and consultation with relevant countries and will not waver in our determination to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity, Mao said.
“China will neither take any inch of territory that is not ours, nor give up any inch of territory that belongs to us,” Mao said, urging the U.S. to stop creating pretexts and interfering in the disputes between China and relevant countries over territorial and maritime rights and interests.
Noting the world is paying close attention to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, Mao said China stands on the side of equity and justice, stays in close contact with relevant parties and is committed to deescalation and protection of civilians.
“We hope that the U.S. will follow an objective and just stance and play a constructive role in halting the conflict,” said Mao.
I started working at age 8. Mowing lawns and collecting bottles and newspapers to sell at recycling.
At age 12 I had two paper routes, one morning and one evening, and still mowed lawns.
At 15 I was working at a grocery store after school and on weekends. I took drivers ed in school and at that time you could get a provisional license within 180 days of your 16th birthday.
Could only drive dawn to dusk. I told my parents as my 16th birthday approached that I wanted to buy a car. They said no, and how could I possibly pay for one. They had no idea I had almost $10k stashed in a secret place in my dresser.
On my 16th birthday I climbed on my bicycle, with twenty $100 bills in my pocket, and headed for the Volkswagen dealership 14 miles away.
When I arrived I spotted a Bahama Blue 1968 VW on the lot. A salesman came out and asked if he could help me. I asked about the car. He asked where my parents were. I told him they were at home. He went inside and came back with a sales manager. Manager said, “Son, you can’t buy a car because you can’t sign for a loan unless your parents do it or you’re 18”.
I responded “Who said anything about a loan? How much is the car?”
It was a dealer demo and had 2,500 miles on it. I’d done my homework and knew the going prices. “I’ll give you $1400 cash, right now.”
The manager said, “But you can’t buy a car at 16!” Wrong. “I can’t borrow money but state law says I can own a car in my name.
If you won’t sell me this one, I’ll just go somewhere else.” After much consternation and discussion, a few phone calls to the owner of the dealership, they wrote up the sale.
I had called an insurance agent earlier in the week, and called him with the info. Told him I’d be right over to pay him if he’d issue a binder for the dealer.
He did, and I drove from the dealership to the agents office and paid him. A full year of insurance in ‘68 was $120. Drove home and my asshole father had a fit, but he couldn’t do anything. I moved out on my 18th and never looked back.
Put 235,000 miles on the Beetle. Wish I still had it!!
A close friend of mine shared a story that always warms my heart. She had been going through a tough time, dealing with the stress of her job and personal life. One evening, feeling particularly down, she decided to take a long walk to clear her head. Lost in her thoughts, she didn’t notice the time and soon found herself in a part of town she wasn’t familiar with, after dark.
Just as she started to feel uneasy, she noticed someone approaching her. It was a colleague from her office, someone she’d only spoken to in passing. He had seen her walking and, concerned for her safety, decided to follow at a distance to make sure she was okay. When he caught up to her, instead of just offering a ride home, he suggested they grab a cup of coffee at a nearby café.
They ended up talking for hours. He listened to her troubles, shared some of his own, and offered a comforting perspective that helped her see things in a different light. It wasn’t a grand gesture or a dramatic declaration of love; it was a simple act of kindness and empathy at a moment when she needed it the most.
Years later, they’re happily married. She always recalls that night as the moment she realized she’d found someone truly special. Someone who, without even knowing her well, showed her kindness and compassion when she needed it most. She often says it was the most romantic thing anyone has ever done for her, not because it was extravagant, but because it was genuine and heartfelt.
Yes, After a recent merger, I was on a MGT call with the new CEO(. He was like…’Alright team, all of the changes will be done by May 23rd (3 weeks)’. I was not aware of any of the changes, and knew immediately that I would be part of the changes. I was in the early stage of a house sell and purchase and knew that losing my job would create a problem for the new loan, so I immediately rescinded my offer on the house, and never signed the sell contract. Sure enough May 23rd, I got the call at 9 a.m. that my job was gone. Best thing ever! I could not stand the new CEO.
I took the summer off, travelled with my wife, and then looked at 3 offers in sept, increasing my income and stock significantly. Fast forward to a year later. I sold my house for $250k more than I had verbally accepted in 2021, and was able to get my dream house on the golf course!.
Everything worked out well and 2 years later, I am killing it with my new company!
Joining BRICS. This means China and Xi will have nothing to do with the U.K. There’s just absolutely nothing in it for China. The U.K. brings nothing to the table.
As for the U.S., the U.K. can’t afford to decouple. Better to feed off crumbs than nothing at all. The U.S. has nothing to spare especially now that we have to spend billions to support Israel.
I heard this, if memory serves, from a Frenchman whose grandfather was in the Free French forces.
Said grandfather once remarked this:
It was 1945, merely months after the Germans were thrown off my country, and every man I could talk to was in the Resistance. Everyone. Then I wondered, if there had been forty million people in the Resistance, how the hell had the Germans kept France occupied for years?
The truth of it is, when a country is occupied, most people are minor collaborators. For most places, life goes on as it did before the occupying troops arrived, only the authority changes. To keep on with the French example, for the most part, you’d live just like you would a few months earlier, except the police on the streets would be reporting to Germans and sometimes a few German soldiers would be visible passing.
The reason for that is as varied as the people who lived like this. Some feel apathy, others cowardice. Others do not want more blood to be spilled, some see no personal incentive to fight on, some see no point in it all. But for this reason or the other, people do nothing.
Things become problematic when, if, their allies, or the intact parts of their country, come to break the occupation.
Because when that happens, everyone wants to pretend they fought valiantly, like lions, for the freedom of their country.
And so, as the liberation forces approach and the occupiers pack up and leave, they band into gangs, seeking among themselves scapegoats, people whose collaboration with, or apathy towards, the occupiers were more visible than others. They use accusations of collaboration to settle old grudges and deal with jealousies. Societal order breaks down utterly and is replaced by mob rule of the worst sort, where women can be accused of being German whores because of some jealous bastard, where accusations of war profiteering and snitching run galore, where a man’s life is one convincingly accusatory voice away from destruction. Instead of justice, there are executions, humiliations, beatings meted out to those decided by a mob, oftentimes without a single Resistance member involved, so that its members can feel good and pretend they were helping the liberation all along.
If anyone wants to see what happens when the court of public opinion is the only court available, let him look at any occupied area just after the Germans left. He’ll find arbitrary judgment meted out by people who want the status of having been with the Resistance without suffering through its pains, meted out by people just brave enough to look into the eyes of whichever poor man or woman was the next target of the mob, but not brave enough to look into the barrels of German carbines.
image 73
This is sickening.
Ten thousand people were executed summarily without even the barest farce of a trial in France alone. Hundreds of thousands were humiliated, accused, cast out, by people no better than they were. And this is merely a single country. Norway, Netherlands, Belgium, all repeated the same scene.
Just how callously, no, not callously. Just how bloodthirstily a movement supposedly for the good of its nation has devoured the members of which it arbitrarily declared traitors is a horrifying sight.
The answer to how, with this context, is clear.
By whatever punishment the law allows, in a fair trial.
Or we will have this instead:
image 72
And if anyone here is thinking that this is not a deeply troubling sign of profound injustice, let me remind you.
The way the victims of the mob were picked, that could just as easily be you.
These are not “squeegee men” just being annoying and obnoxious, and they are not merely delinquents running past with a key to your door and taking off laughing to one another.
They were throwing rocks (legally deadly weapons, assuming you’re talking about decent-sized rocks, not pebbles), surrounding the car, and making you feel it was not safe to leave.
John Locke opined that it was justified to kill someone who tries to steal from you, because a man who will violate your right to property won’t stop at your right to life. This isn’t the way the law works, generally, but… when it comes to using force in self defense, the relevant question is twofold: 1) Do you, subjectively, have a sincere belief that your life is at risk? 2) Would a reasonable person in your circumstances believe his/her life was at risk? Note that “Is your life actually at risk?” is not one of the questions.
So, you don’t have to think like a juror. You don’t have to give these thugs the benefit of the doubt [Note: it’s been mentioned to me before that “thug” is sometimes taken to have racial connotations, but you don’t say what race they were and I don’t care – white thugs, black thugs, Latino thugs, Asian thugs, or Purple-People-Eater thugs are all thugs]. You don’t have to make the generous assumption that all they want is to commit petty vandalism.
If they are surrounding your car and willing to use physical force, then you are at their mercy – the only thing stopping them from escalating to physical battery, rape, or murder is their supposed good will… and you have no obligation to rely on that.
So honk once for warning, count to three (out loud if you prefer, but silently is fine), then gun it. Any injury will be in self defense.
As for the stop light – non-criminal regulations (and even many criminal statues) yield to the affirmative defense of “necessity”. Basically, the law considers human life and well-being more important than slavish obedience to the law, so if you run a red light to get away from assailants, the law considers that justified.
Disclaimer:
This answer is not a substitute for professional legal advice. This answer is a response to a generalized fact-pattern based on the personal recollection of the posting attorney, and not a response to any specific case or based on any diligent legal research. This answer does not create an attorney-client relationship, nor is it a solicitation to offer legal advice. If you ignore this warning and convey confidential information in a private message or comment, there is no duty to keep that information confidential or forego representation adverse to your interests. Seek the advice of a licensed attorney in the appropriate jurisdiction before taking any action that may affect your rights. If you believe you have a claim against someone, consult an attorney immediately, otherwise there is a risk that the time allotted to bring your claim may expire. If you act on any information contained within this answer, you do so at your own risk.
Two weeks after I started working for a company Walmart pulled their contract with us. They were 60% of our production.
Things got crazy fast as the owners tried to find new customers and cut costs. One night a coworker and I were working late when he came into my office and showed me the new budget schedule our boss accidentally left in the copier. It listed all our names and salary by month.
Mine however showed salary for me only until April then nothing. Being the astute finance professional, I knew what that meant. I got my paper out on the street seeking new employment.
As March rolled around with no new job in sight I was understandably worried; then luck shined down on me. My boss’s boss suddenly took ill and suddenly I was needed again, at least temporarily.
This gave me some breathing room but I knew my days were numbered. I continued my searched. Then one night, again working late, that same co worker stopped by and showed me a legal bill showing charges associated with the sale of the company. Now we both knew the end was near and a race against time.
A few months later we were all called into the lunchroom where we were told the company had been sold. As accountants we were told to close the books one last time before being let go. Everyone filed out quietly and returned to their work areas. As I sat in my office contemplating my next move I got a call from the recruiter I had been working with. Good news he said, you have a new job! As I like to tell the story, I was unemployed for 20 minutes.
I closed the books one last time for company A on Friday and started my new job on Monday. I firmly believe somebody up there was watching out for me.
My story starts nice – neither poor nor abused or depressed. My father worked in a PSU and was doing well financially. My mother was a house wife and is the sweetest. We resided in a tiny town in Middle India. I am the eldest son of three children. I studied well, got into an NIT – premier engineering institute in India.
But my under-graduation was a waste. No, I wasn’t one of those never-wanted-to-do-engineering type of person. I like engineering but like many young and naive people, I didn’t like working hard. I slacked a lot. In the first year, I got 2 backlogs. I did not clear them up in summer hoping to clear them up along with other semesters. I wanted to enjoy my first summer. But it only got worse after that. I accumulated 8 backlogs by the end of my graduation. During this whole time, I was least worried. Seniors had told us grades didn’t matter, ideas did. And we worshiped these words. Only, I did not create any relevant ideas either. I lied to parents constantly and they never knew that my marks were so bad. I even made fake marksheets to show them. I started smoking, drinking and was having fun doing all these. I bought a second hand bike during my third year too.
I participated in lots of extra curricular things though. I was member of the writing club, the Rotaract club, and also a dance club. I used to dance well. Despite my poor academics, I was sure I would make it in life. I thought i was smart, talented and witty and had lots of start up ideas too. And I knew seniors far dumber and with more backlogs who have had awesome careers. I fell in love with a girl too. We started dating and by the end of Btech, we were soulmates.
It should not be a surprise that the only job I grabbed was a 15k per month NGO job. But to me, it was shocking. “I was so smart. How come no company took me!” All my friends left after the course and I had to stay back to clear my backlogs. Slowly reality started hitting me. It was still hard to admit that there were difficult backstories to all these senior-success stories. Hence, I was still adamant not to join a stupid NGO job. I told my parents I am not interested in job and took money from my dad saying I wanted to prepare for UPSC. I tried working on my start up ideas during that time but I realized that it was not easy. No one was ready to fund and I wasn’t skilled enough to build it all on my own. So I thought I will just try UPSC instead while clearing my backlogs. A month passed by.
Then the worst happened. My father suffered a stroke and passed away that winter.
I couldn’t even meet him once, all because I was too fucked up to go home. I hadn’t been home since my third year summer. My family was devastated. While my dad’s salary was good enough, he didn’t have any major savings per se. My mom was old. And my sister was studying in a private Btech and my brother was about to give his high school finals. Everything came crashing down.
I went to mom and said, “I am sorry, Mom. I couldn’t be what you wanted me to be.” But as expected, my mother told me that she only wanted me to be her son and nothing else. She told me I can prepare for UPSC as long as I want and have no pressure to take a job since dad’s savings would work for atleast 2–3 years. She would be very happy to see her son as an IAS officer. And if I didn’t get selected, I could get a job anywhere after passing from an NIT. I was so devastated after hearing this I didn’t say a word. I couldn’t lie anymore but I couldn’t tell her the truth either. That her son was a failure. That no company would take him. That I wasn’t capable enough for UPSC. That I had no goals.
But I knew I had to be strong. I calculated dad’s finances and realised we can go by a couple of years with that if we spend carefully. I started looking for job. I tried to contact the NGO just so that I had 15k in hand atleast. Luckily, they agreed to take me after my summer. I tried getting other IT jobs at the same time. I kept preparing for UPSC but as you know, it’s not easy.
After my summer was over, No company took me, so I continued to work in the NGO. As I said, I wasn’t skilled either. So, I took courses from course-era and udacity to build my skills on the side. I took projects in Freelancer to get some extra money. I was working 20 hours a day with hardly any sleep. My UPSC exams were not up to the mark. But I kept trying. During all these time, I released all my anger and frustration on my gf. My gf and I had constant fights. At the same time, her family wanted her to get married and with her words, it seemed like she wanted to too. And you can’t blame her, the way I was treating her, I would have dumped me too.
And one day finally, she told me that she cannot fight anymore. She asked me to cut all contacts with her. I did.
I cried that night for the first time since father died. I realized what I had lost. But I thought that I wasn’t in a position to fight for her. I wished I could stop her. But I didn’t know how.
The next three years were extremely hard. I moved from the NGO to an IT company but the salary was only 25k per month. Our economic condition was the worst. There were leaks in our home. I stayed in a small shared dormitory to make ends meet. I couldn’t buy anything new for my family even on festivals. I was so broke. My sister was in her final year and I was hoping that atleast she would get a decent job to support the family. My mother was thinking of keeping our house and land in mortgage to make ends meet as my brother will start bachelors soon. I was feeling defeated at that point of time.
I had appeared UPSC 3 times. The last two times I had cleared the prelims but couldn’t clear the mains. This 4th time also, I cleared the prelims and was hoping to get further.
I was depressed and suicidal by now. I stopped all kind of social interactions. I avoided meeting my friends. And only talked to my mom and my siblings daily.
But finally, in 2016, the UPSC results did carry my name. I joined IOFS.
Now, my sister works in a good PSU, just like dad. And my brother took up commerce stream. My mom is happy and healthy. We repaired our house and there’s no question of mortgaging it.
What lessons life taught me?
That just because everything is good now, it won’t stay like that for ever. That just because something worked out for someone else, it won’t work out for you too. That grades are important. That hard work matters. That UPSC can be cleared.
Why MEN have MIDLIFE CRISES: you have to practice being selfish
Yep, you read it right. Killing someone, taking some innocent teenage girl’s life, is the worst thing to happen to ME. Quite ironic, isn’t it? So here’s what happened.
It was about the 27th of March, 2007. It was a windy Tuesday evening, and I was driving my minivan down a foggy lonely road, and was going well below the speed limit, because I couldn’t see anything. I was listening to Lazarus by Porcupine Tree, and merrily making my way to my family, when I suddenly saw a teenage girl, whose name I later found out to be Laura, crossing the street oblivious to my van, and by the time I saw her and hit my brakes and turned my car, I had hit her. I immediately leapt out and raced to look at her, and she was fine. She was on the ground, but there was no bleeding, and she looked conscious but bruised. She got up by herself, and apologized for crossing the road without looking. I was proud of myself for braking in time, but I apologized for not seeing her too. She said that she had a bruise on her abdomen, and a pain in her leg. I suspected a minor fracture, and wanted to call 911, but she asked me to take her to the hospital myself, as she said she was in pain. Just as she said that, I thought to myself, how can a girl get into an accident so easily. I braked, and I swerved. She still got hit. What if she wanted to get hit? What if I take her to the hospital, and she accuses me of something that I can’t defend myself of, and not calling the cops would make me look guilty. So, I called the cops. They came, dealt with me and my insurance, and took her away to the hospital. I went on my merry way home, and forgot about it.
2 days later, I get a call. A call from the police, saying that Laura had died of internal bleeding. I was speechless. The doctor apparently said that she could’ve been saved if she was in eariler, but that was not certain either. I went over to the police, where the family of the girl was waiting for me. As soon as they saw me, they started blaming me for their little girl’s death. They said that I stole a life, that I was probably drunk, and that I should’ve gotten her myself. The cops pulled me aside and asked me to ignore what they said, because calling the cops is always the best option. It didn’t really leave a mark on me at the time, until I was driving home one day, and Lazarus started playing. I stopped the car and broke down. I had taken a life, an innocent 17 year old life, just because I was scared that she was going to set me up. I had nightmares about it for years.
I went to a therapist, and she asked me to get rid of my van, not listen to Lazarus, and to not blame myself for her death. Everyone kept telling me that it was no fault of mine, but in the end, I know that it was me who stole a life. It was me, who stole a daughter from a lovely couple, and a sister from a 6 year old kid. It was me, who killed her.
I know that I shouldn’t really blame myself for it, but it was me who hit her. It was me who didn’t take her to the hospital. It was me who didn’t bother listening to her complaints about being in pain. If I could, I would trade my life to get Laura back. But since that’s not possible, I’ll just be in this regret forever.
That, by far, is the worst thing to happen to me.
Ignore Yellen’s Pleas! China Sells $62 Billion in US Bonds, Adds 7.82 M Ounces Of Gold Reserves
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.
Well, this is the first post for my new series: “Correcting Society Ills“.
This new series, as I have mentioned previously, is concerned with RECONSTRUCTION of the West.
As I have already mentioned, the threat of Global War has passed the DANGER ZONE. That was in 2020 through 2022. What we are experiencing now is a “lesser” state of war. Oh, sure, nuclear weapon threats are being bantered about, and provocations are seemingly everywhere at a global level, but the unseen global counter-threats are not being made public and they will quench any aggressive moves against the great Asian powers.
So, global change resembles this dynamic…
Change; old to new.
Threat of war… either occurs or fizzles out with a *pop*.
I claim that it fizzled out.
What is left is a ruined Western society.
And a need for RECONSTRUCTION.
So we are going to discuss that reconstruction and what needs to occur.
Mind you, actual war can still occur, it’s just that it becomes less and less probable as time progresses forward.
In our reconstruction discussions and talks we will cover all sorts of issues and maladies that the West are suffering through. From fat-generating use of polyunsaturated oils in Western foods, to the destruction of family culture, and the strange ideas of modern Western youth.
You will find all sorts of videos and discussions on related topics herein. It’s part of a phase in our society, and the world must go through this to get to the other side; one of an overall better quality of life.
I can’t answer for near overseas Chinese (that is Chinese in Asia). I can write about my UK experiences.
It was Christianity and FG being a very distant second.
Christianity preyed on recent immigrant types and how they were often alone and isolated having migrated. I had numerous xian types try convert me constantly mistaking me for a migrant.
Same shit when my mother got cancer, some how the jesus types found out and went to find her to try convert her.
I told them to fuck off.
Mother told them to fuck off.
$240 Billion Lithography Machine Order Canceled,China Achieves Full Technological Autonomy!
SMIC, a prominent chip manufacturing company, operates in various areas such as chip design, manufacturing, packaging, and sales. The quality and efficiency of chip production heavily rely on the technological level and precision of the lithography machines, a crucial equipment in chip manufacturing.
However, due to escalating global trade tensions and US export control policies on Chinese high-tech companies like SMIC, the company has been unable to purchase advanced lithography machines and other equipment from the United States. This has prompted SMIC to cancel a $24 billion lithography machine order with the US company ASML, attracting significant attention and raising concerns about alternative markets for chip sales.
The cancellation of the lithography machine order by SMIC is influenced by both the global trade environment and domestic policies. As one of the largest chip manufacturers globally, SMIC’s decision has implications for the global chip industry. The uncertain global trade environment has disrupted the chip supply chain, while the Chinese government’s support for the chip industry has limited its domestic development.
The event’s impact on the global chip industry is two-fold. On one hand, competition in the global chip market will intensify, requiring major chip companies to enhance their technological capabilities and supply chain management. On the other hand, SMIC’s actions may inspire imitation by other countries, further intensifying global chip market competition.
Analyzing the impact of this event reveals that SMIC’s cancellation affects not only the global chip industry but also the US technology sector. Intel, one of the major US tech giants, has highlighted the significant impact on the global chip supply chain, prompting questions about the effectiveness of the Biden administration’s policies for the US industry.
Addressing this challenge requires several approaches. Firstly, China should strengthen international cooperation to collectively navigate the uncertainties in the global trade environment. Secondly, domestic policies should be enhanced to support and promote the development of the chip industry within China. Lastly, SMIC should focus on capacity building, continuously improving technological capabilities, and enhancing supply chain management.
China doesn’t use forced labour to make shoes and apparel. It is another political bit of nonsense that the US government made up.
The US government even claimed that China uses forced labour to pluck cotton, just like how the USA enslaved black people to pick cotton in the past. Goodness gracious, what nonsense, who even uses human beings to pluck cotton nowadays. That’s the old primitive way of the USA. Most of the cotton in China is machine-picked and high-speed packed.
So, This is Happening in West Maui, It’s changes EVERYTHING for Oprah & the Rock
The way these people have been treated is beyond disgusting. Greene lies through his teeth. Banks should freeze their mortgages for at least a minimum of three years to allow the people to get back on their feet.
Funny story. In 1986, I went through basic at Fort Cambell, Kentucky. I had a two-year degree, and so I entered as an E3. A couple of weeks into the training, the 1stSgt called me into his office. He’s reviewing my record and commenting that he thinks my records are wrong. Because of my two-year degree, he thinks I should have entered as an E4.
He looks at me and asks, “When you enlisted, did they promise you E4?” I quickly answered, “Yes, 1stSgt.” He quickly responds, “I knew it! I will have you promoted to E4, but it will take a week or two. I said, “Thank you 1stSGT!” and was dismissed.
A couple of weeks later, the C.O. of the training company stopped me on the way back from evening chow and said, “I wanted you to know that your next LES will reflect that you were promoted to E4. I cannot have you pinned while you are in basic, nor can you wear the rank because you would be the same rank as some of the soldiers assigned to the company, but, you have been promoted to E4.” I said, “thank you sir,” saluted and went on my way.
As soon as I graduated, I upgraded all my rank insignia to SP4. I get to Aberdeen Proving Grounds for schooling, and as I check-in, the soldier behind the counter asks, “Are you promotable?” I did not know what that meant, but I said, yes. Because I identified as E4 promotable, I was assigned to the barracks with all the other E4s and NCOs going through the same school for retraining. No drill sergeants for me!
My Mum was a very formidable Italian lady (all five feet three inches of her!) and took very little nonsense from anybody!! When my sister was 15 and I was 9 my sister went out for the night with a young guy who was 18 (Mum didn’t know this or it would not have been allowed) She was told to be back by 10.00 pm, no later! Midnight approached and my parents were not happy (this was in the days before Mobile Phones) They finally turned up and my Dad went out to remonstrate with the young man whilst my Mum exploded at my sister who was well aware what kind of trouble she was in. Dad came back in with a cut lip where the young Guy had punched him!! Mum grabbed one of my Dad’s hobnail boots went outside and proceeded to bash the young guy around the head and shoulders, loudly cursing him in Italian! The guy screamed at my Mum that he would get the Police on her, she shouted back ‘Do it! my daughter’s 15!! I’ll have you in prison! and every syllable corresponded with another blow to his head and face! After about 10 minutes of the the guy ran away screaming in fear. The next day, right outside our house, the pavement was covered with bloodstains!
New IRS $600 Tax Rule For 2023 (Venmo & Cash App & PayPal)
Americans screwed over YET AGAIN. Good thing, everything is in my Chinese family, not me personally. $20,000 threshold to $600. No fucking way!
You need a drivers license in order to drive your privately owned automobile on public roads. If you drive on your own private property, or someone else’s private property with their permission? No.
The whackos who told you that a driver’s license is for commercial drivers belong to a weird fringe conspiracy cult called “Sovereign Citizens.” To give you an idea how dumb these loonies are, they’re the ones that Flat Earthers point to and say “god, those people will believe anything.”
Sovereign Citizens have all kinds of bizarre beliefs that basically focus on the notion “you do not have to obey any law you do not consent to.” They believe they do not have to obey any law enforcement officers except county sheriffs, they do not have to pay taxes, and that (yes, I’m serious) the Federal government sells each American citizen at birth, and so a “birth certificate” is actually a record of sale to a foreign government.
As you might imagine, these dingbats get arrested rather frequently. When they do, they generally go into court shaking their fists and screaming that the government has no jurisdiction over them and no right to put them on trial, which…goes about as well as you might imagine.
People and people, but this will put Americans into a coma:
Older people going naked in city center parks. (I am not going to post pictures, because if I do I will get blocked by Quora moderators who obviously are not German and have never been to Germany).
16 year olds drinking beer or wine.
Kids riding alone on buses and trains.
Autobahn on a Friday.
Some people will behave like concentration camp guards but when you forget your credit card they will send it to you in the mail.
The U.S. thinks that it is exceptional and that the U.S. must always lord over the world. There lies the problem it is certainly not exceptionally strong or good. It may be seen as exceptionally cruel and evil to the developing nations of the world.
China’s phenomenal growth and rise in a way, together with the phenomenal rise of the non western world has resulted in the ending of a Western centric or U.S. dominated world that is in fact a virtual colonisation post colonialism for 300 odd years.
In effect the poor and underdeveloped countries were forced or connived into the so call rules based international order but in effect it is a set of rules to preserve the wealth of the west and continue the looting and theft of resources of the poor to enriched the west. From 1946-at least 2000. You can call this virtual colonialism.
China together with BRICS effectively put and end or at least the beginning of the end of this virtual colonialism order. That upset the U.S. to no end. That is easy to understand. If the biggest mafia in town lost its ability to steal, to or loot at will it may burnt down some buildings and businesses and probably go on a shooting spree. So you can expect war mongering and doing some shit.
But it does not matter what or how U.S. rave and rant. Asia alone represents 60% of the worlds GDP and U.S. is now a mere shadow of itself since 1945 where its economy alone represented 52% of the world’s economy. Today in 2023 China’s growth alone is 36.4% and the entire G7 including the U.S. together adds up to a mere 25.6%! The Ukraine war and the U.S. sanctions and pure robbery of Russia’s reserves will lead to the end of U.S. dollar hegemony and so will western financial institutions.
To me the more the U.S. try to curb China the faster China will eclipse the U.S. There is nothing the U.S. that can do that don’t make the status worst for the U.S. Today it tries to stop the export of Chips to China. It won’t work. It actually means it actually heighten. It’s inflation and suffer crippling shortages. You see China itself now represent 30% of world demand and another 30% of worlds manufacturing. This ban in effect, deprives the U.S. companies of doing business to 50–60% of the world’s demand.
This act will means bankrupting US and its allies chip makers. China will face some challenges. But in a short 5 years 90% of its chips requirements will be Chinese made and in a decade China will totally handle its own demand and it will totally kill off the U.S. chips. Like everything China will make it faster, better and cheaper.
ANGRY Young Man DIES; Meets ANCIENT Soul Family He Has Known for LIFETIMES!
Still shot of a Blackwater contractor during the Battle of Najaf in April of 2004
Service members of different stripes in a circumstantial combat situation can certainly order each other around if it’s in a joint environment, but in the most recent conflicts, now private military contractors may just be giving the orders too.
During the Battle of Najaf in the early days of the Iraq War, Iraqi insurgents from the Mahdi Army began to surround a Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) Building within the city of Najaf. Within the confines of the CPA compound, the personnel consisted of CPA employees, Spanish/El Salvadoran soldiers, a detachment of US Marines, and an eight man team of Blackwater contractors.
The situation was deteriorating with insurgents having grabbed an unfortunate El Salvadoran soldier, shoving a grenade into his mouth then pulling the pin in full view of the CPA compound. This was on top of the firefights were breaking out between those in the CPA compound and insurgents who were now attempting storm the compound with the mob that had just killed the soldier.
While this was all occurring, a Blackwater contractor called for help to his higher up’s in Baghdad who had been monitoring the situation. The Blackwater contractors in Baghdad then made an ultimate judgment call to intervene with the CPA compound battle when it became apparent that the US military itself will not provide any sort of assistance in the confusion.
Three Little Bird helicopters were then loaded up with six Blackwater contractors coupled with one Little Bird filled with boxes of ammunition and equipment due to the CPA contractors notifying that they were now dangerously low on ammunition.
The contractors then flew to the CPA compound, unloaded the ammunition and additional support, then evacuated a wounded Marine who had been shot during the battle.
With the additional support of the contractors and ammunition, the combined force of Blackwater contractors, Marines, Coalition troops managed to keep the insurgents from reaching the CPA compound. CPA employees would reload empty magazines then run it up to the men who were fighting off the insurgents, keeping everyone busy.
The Blackwater contractors would find themselves dictating where the Marines and other troops to head to during the battle, which would later draw controversy from critics who claimed that now mercenaries were giving orders to military troops.
Eventually, the siege of the CPA compound would subside after almost two days of battle which could be viewed on many videos via Youtube.
Infamous video of Blackwater contractor Travis Haley during the Battle of Najaf. Critics would later use this video to denote how he had no qualms killing random people with a second nature attitude when he was literally going after insurgents attempting to assault the compound.
The Battle of Najaf would serve as an example of how private military contractors mixed with troops in circumstances that called them to fight side by side.
This does not look like it would end anytime soon with the Russo-Ukraine conflict where Russian private military contractors from the Wagner Group and Russian troops are fighting alongside each other in the conflict.
SCOTT RITTER, ANDREI MARTYANOV, AND GARLAND NIXON JOIN ON NATO, UKRAINE’S TIME RUNS OUT
In this special roundtable, Scott Ritter Andrei Martyanov and Garland Nixon join the program to discuss the ongoing developments of the Ukraine proxy war, what it tells us about Russia, and the growth of the multipolar world in the context of history.
I’m going to try to provide an answer with a slightly different perspective.
First off, I’m an Australian Chinese (in that order), born and educated in Singapore. My family is Peranakan or Straits-born meaning that we were the products of intermarriage between the Chinese and locals in what was then British Malaya.
So I grew up speaking English and Malay and a smattering of dialects. As I was educated in English mission schools, I did not learn Mandarin.
As far as I can remember, I was taught to hate Chinese and Communists. Pretty much everything I read about Communists described them as a threat peace-loving people everywhere. And China was communist.
I think I was 17 when I first read Dick Wilson’s A Quarter of Mankind. This was followed by Emmanuel Hsu’s The Rise of Modern China. In those pages I glimpsed a very different China. So I started reading Chinese history, from the Qin dynasty, and continued my inquiry at university.
Most of my working life was spent as a journalist, a sub-editor to be specific, and much of my work involved, among other things, fact checking.
Nixon’s ping-pong diplomacy opened up a new era of ties with China and Singapore was quick to get in on the act (read quick to realise the profits that could be made trading with China. That is the subject of a whole different set of questions and answers). Trading with the enemy? No, it cannot be. But it was.
The opening up of relations with China also led to a relaxation of travel restrictions on travel to the Middle Kingdom. Up till then, I had visited Hong Kong and could only imagine life across the border. I also visited Taiwan and imagined China to be everything the opposite of Taiwan.
Fast-forward many years when I moved to Australia and started travelling to China (Shenzhen, Chengdu, Guangdong, and Shanghai).
I saw modern cities, efficient public transport, rampant capitalism, and I felt completely safe even in quiet streets in the wee hours of the morning.
Many of the Chinese I met were as friendly as people in other places that I have travelled. Often friendlier. Especially to an ethnic Chinese who did not speak the language (I started learning conversational Mandarin at 54 and can now read a write a little).
To the core of the question: Much of the information about China that’s peddled about is false. Many people have very wrong impressions and ideas about the PRC. And most of the people who hold these ideas will never go to China to see and verify for themselves if what is reported is anywhere near the truth.
So I, and many others, try to provide a balance by correcting the grosser erros of belief held by many as a result of, well, propaganda.
A footnote: In my youth I wanted to move to the West (America, UK, the Scandinavian countries, … thataway). If I were young again, I would go east. To China.
Netherlands Reconsiders Huawei After 5G Successes
“If US is not learning from China, it is more important that China learns from US. China should never forget who forsaken her in its hours of need. To be kind to enemy is to be cruel to oneself .”
I won a scratch ticket for $100,000 one hundred thousand. the accoutant handled the taxes.
After claiming my prize we had 2 weeks where different reporters were looking for pictures and wanting to do an interview with the store that sold the winning ticket. churches and charities knocking on the door looking for a slice.
3 people i went to grade school with came knocking I had not seen them in 10 years. Family calling wanting to get a share or asking for a loan they cant afford to repay.
people were confused when I told them I spent it all.
I divided it up 3 ways and gave equal amounts to my 3 kids for thier college funds. I
f I ever hit another winning ticket I am getting a lawyer to deal with the bullcrap and I am gonna move to Alaska to a remote cabin in the middle of nowheresville with no phone or roads.
That you can hope to understand China using the English medium.
I am confident I am in the top 1 percentile when it comes to Chinese proficiency in the pool of English speakers beyond the mainland.
I won’t be surprised if I am in the top 0.1 percentile either.
But if I were honest, I will admit as an east Asian that I find it difficult to keep up with the mainland, even though I possess skills and networks to access media and contacts within greater China.
No, it’s not just about the language struggle, which exists even for someone like me with more than a decade’s worth of formal education in the Chinese language.
It is about developing a contextual understanding for mainland frames of reference and how the mainlander thinks.
That is mostly absent in this medium, even among the rare pool of articles grounded in facts. Most are written by east Asians, not westerners.
My advice? Don’t waste time on the China expert who doesn’t speak Chinese. Even foreigners who do are often wrong or misguided, because that is what it takes to pass through the stringent msm filter these days.
The new employee was just starting, his first day, first morning on the job…
Every morning employees would gather all of their supplies, tools, etc. and load their vans to be ready for the day’s work.
All new employees are to ride with a senior person to gain knowledge and get the hang of things. This was our busiest season and the day was FULL of jobs that needed to be done – all previously scheduled and set in time slots.
This employee was in the process of helping load the van when he came to me and said:
“I need to go to an appointment today; I need the (driver) to drop me off and then pick me up, or wait for me to get done.”
Me: “I am sorry, we are too busy to be able to do all of that on work time. If it is important why don’t you just take the day off, go to your appointment and come back tomorrow ready to go?”
Employee: “Are you F@*king kidding me? What kind of place is this that you don’t care about your employees!!”
Me: “Ummmm, I said you can have the day off, it’s your first day here and I still said go ahead and take the day and come back tomorrow ready to go, I am not sure I understand?”
Employee: “This is BullS@@t, I can’t believe you won’t take care of your employees and have him drive me to my appointment across town and wait for me, you’re F@*ing ridiculous.”
Me: “Um, I am trying to be reasonable here and work with you. How about you can take your own car and follow behind him and when you need to go you can just cut out and go to your appointment. We don’t have the time to do that for you. ”
Employee: “This is ridiculous, I can’t believe you treat your employees this way, you are being so unfair, this is Bull S#@t, F@*!ng ridiculous!”
Me: “Actually, why don’t you go ahead and go home and not come back at all. Thank you for your time.”
Employee then was shocked that I fired him and could not believe or understand why I was letting him go.
This was truly shocking to me. Fired him on the spot within ONE hour of being employed.
“Ukrainian soldiers are being DRUGGED and forced to fight” Ex-CIA Larry Johnson
We now have reports that captured Ukrainian soldiers are turning up drugged out of their minds on some kind of inhibition blocker. Reports say these soldiers are going on withdrawals after being captured. Ex-CIA analyst Larry Johnson joins us to discuss.
The relationship with China from the U.S. perspective as always needs to be one of subservience and submissive to the U.S. That has been the default mode of what US expect it to be since 1945. Let’s call a spade a spade. The U.S. cannot deal with a nation that can and will say no to the U.S.
But if I should be completely honest to the US I will recommend to them to move on and keep your winnings. China with 1.4 billion highly discipline, extremely hard working people who are driven and industrious, today equipped with the state of art infrastructure and leading in 37/44 key and strategic technology cannot be push aside without untold damages to the U.S. itself.
But the U.S. political system, one based totally on popularity contest means that it cannot be pragmatic and realistic. It has to drain tremendous resources to try to keep its hegemonic place, even if it means bankrupting the U.S. that is precisely what the U.S is doing today.
For China is is so simple. Let the US have a long and strong rope to hang itself slowly to death. Lure the U.S. to fight China in a way that drains away the U.S. resources, influence and turned away its allies one by one. It does that be staying the moral high ground. It is the U.S. that is desperate so while the U.S. goes low, China stays high. It is winning without a fight. Remember Mohamad Ali “Rope a dope” the big George Foreman drains all its energy and knock him out in 15 rounds.
China is doing the “rope a dope” while the U.S. is ranting and panting away. Trump thought it wins popularity by starting the trade war with China. China pretends to avoid war but knows so well that it will hurt and harm the U.S. several folds of what it hurts China. Do you notice Biden wants to end the tariff and China says. Not so fast Amigo!
The implications to US allies are particularly bad and the more of a U.S. lackey the worst it gets. Asia is doing just fine and dandy.
How did it come to be? Well China grew astronomically strong economically, politically and even militarily and the U.S. is in denial and Americans are ignorant and naive about China till it is way past too late. The U.S. is in a quick sand. The more it struggles. The faster it sinks.
Since you asked about implications, The US pay the highest price for doing shit on China. The world is moving on faster than the U.S. realised. The U.S. dollar hegemony is all but gone. The U.S. and western order may appeal to a handful of its close allies. No different from a pack of street hoodlums hanging on to its biggest bully as beneficiaries.
US debts will reach 100 trillion in a decade, US deficits cannot go down. It cannot make anything at less than twice it cost worldwide. US standard of living has stagnated back 60 years to the 1960s. And the poor U.S. growing while it’s middle class is collapsing.
Meanwhile for China, you ain’t seen nothing yet! Once it made T-shirts and Toys. Today it makes your computers and smartphones. Soon it makes your EVs and AI and Jet planes. It middle class is now at 700 million will grow to 1 billion people within a generation. 4–6 times the size of the U.S. middle income.
Harvard Economist Reveals Shocking SECRET About China In 2023
Dr. Keyu Jin is one of the most outstanding China insiders. She is a professor at the London School of Economics and has an incredible knowledge of how the US and China both work. In today’s video I share with you her insights into China innovation and how China really works.
16 People Describe What A Dead Body Smell Like
1. “Understand that a pound or two of rotten meat only gives you a faint whiff of the smell of a full-grown corpse. The power of the smell is incredible. Personally, I’m not sure it’s describable. You want to gag when you’re fifty feet away. It can take years for the smell to leave a house. It just lingers in the background. Cars are totalled by the insurance company for the odor. And the guy driving the wrecker can’t drive fast enough to get away from the smell.
It gets on your skin and clothes. (People use bio-suits for body removal for a reason.) Maggots abound, fluids abound, and I’ve never read a good description of the experience. No matter how well you write, it will be but a pale imitation of the experience.”
2. “Buy a Boston Butt pork roast and let it rot. Pigs and humans are apparently similar, meat-wise. It actually turns like a sea blue-green color. (It smells like farts and then gets worse.)”
3. “A dead body, specifically a human corpse has a rank and pungent smell mixed with a tinge of sickening sweetness. Imagine a rotting piece of meat with a couple drops of cheap perfume and you’re halfway to understanding what a human corpse smells like.”
4. “It varies from person to person and how long they have been decomposing.
You get a very sharp, foul smell similar to horrible cheese mixed with the same smell you get from a full trash can in the sun.
If the body decompressed and they had a full bladder, you’ll also smell body fluids, so stale urine and straight fecal matter. For those who don’t know, toilet poop smells bad, but shit that is airborne, not water logged or anything is straight horrific on its own.
If you have flying insect and larva development increase smell this far times two. If it’s hot outside times three and if it’s cold out and the heat in the house is cranked it’s times five at minimum for the dry heat.
The worse part is the materials they died on. Wood mixed with death has a woody slime smell mixed with the death ratio above, carpet has a wet padding smell (like cat wizz) plus death and it’ll it’s on furniture it’s really fun as it usually leaks through to the carpet and wood subfloor.
If you’re smelling these things outside a house, you don’t want to be near it when they go in. Cleaning and deodorizing that is pretty rough.”
“I have assisted in an autopsy on a body several days old, and even though it was in a huge chilling compartment, the smell was in the whole complex. It smells like there are a million dead and rotting rats around you.”
5. “Rotten eggs, feces, and a used toilet left out for a month x 1000. It is unholy.
The smell gets into your throat and you can taste it. You will literally run to find some clean air. Even then, it lingers and you can’t quite get the smell away. Even though you can no longer physically smell it, you remember it and it takes quite a while to get over it.”
6. “A dead body to me smells like a cross between rotting meat and very dirty kitty litter box. Very distinct smell that you won’t forget.”
7. “You ever have like a dead mouse or something hiding somewhere and you just smell something awful? It’s pretty much that. The best I can sum it up to is like shit mixed with meat…in a weird way
8. “In my experience, any formerly living creature, whether human or non-human, has that same powerful, pungent, disgusting odor that I can only describe as a garbage can left to ferment in high heat for an extended period of time. It does vary some between species, though.
A couple of other answers written in this feed point to some things that are accurate. First, two chemicals, Putrescine and Cadaverine, are both found in decomposing tissue. Both are diamenes and they are produced as a result of amino acids (most notably Lysine) breaking down. They each gave their own characteristic odor which by themselves are bad enough. When they are combined due to the simultaneous presence, they are indescribable.
Second, pigs are indeed closest to humans in terms of the odor they give off when decomposing. Any animal with a musk gland (skunks, badgers, and muskrats are some examples. I’m sure there are many others as well) are also pretty stinky when they break down. All produce these same two chemicals because when you think about it, any creature that breathes in Oxygen and releases Carbon Dioxide is going to have a similar metabolic makeup that, when stopped is going to respond in a similar manner.”
9. “Once, I took a trip. When I returned, there was a terrible odor in my den. I know the odor of dead animals on the road or in the forests. Mom puts out poison for mice, so I have smelled them under things in her home. There was a rotten odor like this in my den, so I looked under everything, but I found nothing. The next day, I saw some cops and medics at the next apartment. I learned that my neighbor had died and decomposed for days before anyone found him. The odor is sickening. It’s hard to describe fully.”
10. “It depends how long it’s been dead but if you have ever smelled rotten meat it’s similar to that. some words commonly used to describe it would probably be rancid, foul, putrid, the smell of decay, etc. If it’s decomposed down to the skeleton there probably won’t be any smell anymore since the flesh, muscle, and organs are the ones that create the most smell and decay quickly.”
11. “I recently in countered a dead body that had been rotting in a van near my home for 5-7 days. At first, I though it was Korean people making kimchi, but after seeing the body removal with my own eyes I know that the smell was not of pickled vegetables. I work for a plumbing company so I’m always finding myself walking in raw sewage in basements. And I have to say the smell is similar to sewage or waste. Its nauseating and quite foul. Authorities have removed the body, but the area still smells of fragrant corpse. To be honest, I don’t know why you’d ever wonder about this. But yes indeed, it’s very disgusting. As a female I always find myself running out of breath when I’m dealing with sewage, but a body is about 10 times worse.”
Now, death depends on the environment in my opinion. I’ve smelt a few bodies in morgues and things like that, they just smell of death, it’s indescribable really, but you remember that smell. It’s a cold smell, a heavy smell (this is the best way I can describe it).
Rotting corpses of course just smell like any other rotting mammals, next time you spot some road-kill, stop and give it a sniff, pretty much what a rotting human corpse smells like.”
12. “I was a volunteer firefighter and police had to enter the residence before any of us could. The SCBA is automatic. So I quickly put it on a cop to enter the residence of a woman who neighbors haven’t seen in weeks. Those SCBAs block toxins and the cop ran out of the house drowning on his vomit. He claims he smelled her through the mask….That’s how bad a dead person smells. We eat everything. Those toxins in our bodies is what makes us stink so bad when we die. And to make it worse, when I got home I snorted soap while in the shower. A few hours later I began smelling the stench of her again. The bacteria is said to cling to your nostril hair and remultiplies later until it’s gone. I can’t tell you what it smells like. You’ll know it when you do.”
13. “Not very pleasant. It is a very strong, stomach turning, smell. It does in a way smell like rotten eggs, but it is much more intense. That is the best I can describe the smell, but I heard from someone else on how to make a small replica of it. Take a bag of soy beans, saturate them in water,let them stand a few days in heat above 70F while keeping them moist,crush some of the mixture.In a few days you will smell what decaying flesh/protein smells like.”
14. “My brother-in-law died in his appt. & was there 5 days before being found. When my wife & I went for the funeral (just a picture of him, no body) we went to help clean his place. I can’t describe the smell nor will I ever forget it. It permeated all soft things so badly they had to be throw out, we managed to keep a couple tables only. Even the TV stunk after airing out for week.
15. “Take some meat and leave it in a bag outside for about 3 days in the middle of summer. Then open the bag and mix in some Mexican food diarrhea. Add a good helping of the strongest catfish stink bait you can find. Mix well. This is the best that Death will ever smell.”
16. “Living in an apartment building and the guy next door fell in his bathtub (apparently). We didn’t see him often, so it wasn’t anything weird to not see him but his audio books were put on his doorknob and stayed for a couple days (he was blind, they delivered books to him to listen to).
Started smelling really weird, and since my son was just a baby at that time we’d initially thought somehow we hadn’t put a diaper in the garbage and it had ended up somewhere and was stinking up the place, searched high and low but couldn’t find it. The landlady knocked on his door (all our doors, handing out notices) and we mentioned we hadn’t seen him in a bit…half an hour later she was letting the police into his place.
I can’t imagine the smell in the same room though, it was bad enough being in the next apartment!”
No China don’t need the U.S. to survived or even to be a moderate growth economy in 2023. I will argue that containment, decoupling or de-risking of China which to me and most in the world means the same thing, is counter beneficial to the U.S. and good for China in the long term. The U.S. meanwhile loses the worlds. Biggest market or equivalent to the 2nd to the 10th biggest market for the U.S. put together.
There lies the enormity of the U.S. problem. Without China, the U.S. will suffer between 25–50% inflation which will highly impoverish American’s on the one hand with its U.S. brands becoming unsaleable and losing market share by half at least. All these while losing a humongous market.
By right the U.S. ought to not even dare to utter those threatening words but U.S. politicians lose too much to go soft after their media demonised China for a century. Sure China could be richer with the U.S. being rational. But China don’t take threats by the U.S lightly. The US political system is essentially a popularity contest and even if is suicidal the politicians compete to be a bigger China hawk while its own people suffer.
The trouble with threat is once you utter the word on banning China, sanctioning China, decoupling from China, containing China or even de-risking from China. China won’t hold back to defend itself. And China will make sure it will never depend on the U.S. and the west. That means China will totally do its own thing from now onwards.
That is very bad news for the U.S. as China do everything better, faster and cheaper than anyone on earth by a long shot. And the Huawei Mate 60 pro proved beyond doubt that there is nothing it cannot do! The U.S. should really think many times over before it challenge China for American sake. But the trade war and the chip ban proved to me and the world beyond doubt that the U.S. government don’t care about its own people and it’s own economy.
Don’t follow any instruction related to investing money or sanctioning a loan or allocating money UNLESS YOU HAVE A WRITTEN INSTRUCTION from your superior/cby email or whatsApp or paper letter
Never start smoking due to peer pressure or tension. Use bubble gum instead
First Beer with first month paycheck. First hard liquor after six months of paychecks at least.
Don’t express any political opinion or make any comment apart from work and movies and games and sports
Don’t ever go over your superiors head unless he is on leave or unreachable or is a total dumbo
When a woman wants to come to your office to talk to you, keep your door open or ask a friendly female colleague to sit in the office during the meeting under the pretext of taking notes
Never meet any Vendor or Supplier outside work or at your home. Always meet in office and keep your door open during the meeting and ask a colleague in to pretend to take notes
Never accept any gifts from Vendors or Suppliers whose value exceeds ₹2000/— unless everyone else is accepting the gifts and it’s been approved by your superiors
Never ever accept a meeting in a Hotel room with a potential client or customer. Always MEET IN THE LOBBY OR COFFEE SHOP where you have CCTV cameras
You may be finding yourself forced to spend a lot of money by being in the company of your superiors and indulge in pubs, golfing and high class call girls. Resist. Make excuses and resist until they get the message
No more than 120 ml of Scotch / Rum with 180 ml Club Soda Or Tonic Water Or 3 Tequila Shots at any office party , in fact my son makes the excuse that his liver is weak and avoids any drink entirely
Save around 45% of your paycheck if possible. At least 30%
Don’t ever eat Chickpeas, Beans, Cauliflowers, Kadalai, Sundal for breakfast. If you fart, you become a joke and it’s tough to recover your reputation
Never assume your female colleague who laughs and talks to you likes you romantically. Always ASK if in doubt. Simply ask “Are we friends or could this turn into something more”. Don’t presume.
She Is Against Mandatory Paternity Tests At Birth
This is trending in the United States. Jeeze!
“That woman who said requiring DNA testing would open up a can of worms scared the daylight out of me. Is she suggesting that a whole host of men are providing for children that aren’t theirs and letting this be known would blow up lots of families? What on earth have you women been up to?”
Graham Perry is a UK-based China observer, and wrote a good piece on China/US relations which is worth reading at length:
On the surface things look good in the US; unemployment is low; their economy is growing at 2.4% and inflation is falling. And yet consumer confidence, according to Irwin Stelzer in the Sunday Times, is at its lowest in four months. And Prof Percy Allen – in Pearls and Irritations – concludes that American society is more divided than it has been since its Civil War of the 1860s. “According to a Pew Research poll
about six in ten Republicans and more than half of Democrats have a very unfavourable view of the other party. Thirty years ago, fewer than a quarter in both parties rated the other party badly.”
A recent CNN poll showed almost 70% of Republicans do not accept the electoral legitimacy of the Biden administration. And almost 60% of voters lack confidence that elections in the US today reflect the will of the people.
Other polls by States United Action and Chicago University’s CPOST Research Centre found that over half US voters think elections won’t solve America’s most fundamental political and social problems, and almost half consider political elites, both Democrats and Republicans, are the most immoral and corrupt people in America. The US is fast becoming a dysfunctional nation – and that was before yesterday’s sacking of Speaker McCarthy.
But when it comes to China, Americans unite and rally around the flag. Hatred of China is the one single issue that brings America together.President Biden’s #1 worry
is that China will become the wealthiest and most powerful country in the world. Biden has promised to stop that. He has referred to China as “bad people” who when they have problems do “bad things” The demonisation of China has clearly worked. The 2023 survey by the Pew Research Center found that 83% of Americans hold negative views of China. The share who says China is an “enemy” is now 38%. AnIPSOS poll
found one-third of Americans view China as an imminent threat and two in five Americans think that war with China is likely in the next five years.
The US under Bush and Obama held to the view that China’s economic growth and increased prosperity would bring a relaxation of political rhetoric as the number of Chinese middle class citizens increased. Expanding economic rights would lead inevitably to increased political rights and the downgrading of the role of China’s Communist Party. China would become “compliant reasonable and accommodating”. It has not happened. Billionaires may flourish in China (800+ in number) but the Party remains at the apex of power. China has not changed.
Trump heralded a new and antagonistic approach to China when he started a trade war by unilaterally imposing high tariffs on Chinese goods coming into the US. And when that did not work, he resorted to allegations of genocide against the Uighurs in Xinjiang province to try to demonise China in the eyes of the world. But it, too, has not worked. China remains China and continues to be welcomed by the rest of the world in part because of its Belt and Road Initiative – as historian Professor Francis Fukiyama has said “China has lent more than $1 trillion to more than 100 countries through the Initiative, dwarfing Western spending in the developing world and stoking US anxieties about the spread of Beijing’s power and influence”.
Trump’s successor, President Biden increased economic sanctions on China and announced that “he would not allow China’s economy to overtake America’s” even though, as Prof Allen notes, most economists think that this is inevitable given China’s huge population and income gap.
The flashpoint is Taiwan for two reasons. First, China’s long-standing policy to reunify China with Taiwan and, second, as explained in yesterday’s Post #473, the US is worried sick that a confrontation with China could seriously jeopardise the US economy by impeding, even stopping, the export from Taiwan to the US of essential semi-conductors. Within the US hierarchy – the White House, Capitol Hill, the Pentagon and the Joint Chiefs of Staff – there are those who want to give China “a bloody nose” and fundamentally derail China’s economic growth by military action – the Hawks – before China is way ahead and out of sight. “Act Today Because Tomorrow Is Too Late” is their cry.
There are also Doves who fear hostilities and prefer an uneasy but non-confrontational approach to China. For the Doves, second place to China is preferrable to war with China It is not clear who will win but certainly if the Hawks prevail over the Doves the world will be set on a most dangerous path.
Oliver Anthony- Rich Men North of Richmond (Remix Mashup ft Dax & Jo Tyler)
At Papa John’s Pizza I was getting fed up that they weren’t hiring the sufficient amount of staff to properly run the store. Along with doing bike deliveries I also cashed, took phone calls, entered orders, swept, mopped and emptied garbage. They kept a skeleton staff of 3 workers per shift and whenever they had to pay overtime they grumbled and wanted explanations as to why.
Frustrated and fatigued I applied for Dominos Pizza delivery. This is how snippets of the conversation went during the interview.
Interview Lady: We pay the highest hourly rate of all pizza restaurants. $21 per hour.
Me: Papa John’s paid $20 an hour. This is just a dollar more.
Lady: Yes! The highest rate for delivery riders in the country!
Lady: When you come to the restaurant you’ll be happy to see that you’ll be getting so much deliveries. Endless deliveries!
Me: How much do I get paid per delivery?
Lady: $7 per delivery!
Me: That’s the lowest delivery payment of all the pizza restaurants.
Lady: Yes but you’ll be doing so many deliveries, getting so much tips that it wouldn’t matter.
(I later found out that Dominos charged customers $20 for delivery, the highest delivery charge of all fast food restaurants in the country. They paid the driver $7 out of the $20 charge and the restaurant pocketed the remaining $13 for themselves.)
Me: What are the closing hours?
Lady: 10:30pm.
Me: You mean like only on Fridays and Saturdays?
Lady: No everyday.
Me: Thats a bit late and taxis round here stop working around 8pm. Any transport provided for me to get home?
Lady: No.
Me: Will I be able to use the Domino’s motorcycle to get home? (I was allowed this benefit in a previous restaurant I worked that had this same issue)
Lady: No.
Me: Can I leave earlier then?
Lady: Of course. Due to your transport situation we’ll allow you to leave 10 minutes earlier!
Lady: We are a very flexible organization.
Me: How so? (inwardly groaning, expecting more bullshit)
Lady: We give you the choice to work either as contracted or non-contracted.
Me: What does that mean?
Lady: Contracted means that you work somewhat as a permanent staff. You can work all the overtime hours you want. However overtime would be paid at the usual rate of $21 an hour. No time and a half. The same applies for public holidays.
Non contracted is like temporary staff. We pay the usual time and a half for overtime but as you are non contracted you don’t get overtime hours as we send you home after you’ve made your 40hrs a week. We don’t allow you to work on holidays so you basically get your flat salary every week whereas with a contract you are allowed more hours.
Me: More hours at the same rate?
Lady: Yes.
Me: Wouldn’t that be a lose-lose situation?
Lady: No. It’s a win-win!
Me: Am I entitled to a free meal?
Lady: No.
Me: And the uniform?
Lady: We are the only pizza restaurant that provides free uniforms for staff?
Me: How many uniforms?
Lady: Two free Dominos shirts and a cap. We are having them laundered after being returned by a delivery driver who recently left.
Me: You’re giving me a guy’s used clothes?
No: No. She only used them for two days. They’re practically new.
Me: You’re giving used female clothing?
Lady: It’s a free uniform!
Suffice to say I instantly and humbly returned to Papa John’s and their skeleton staff.
Mystery Cambodia
A nice fun video that takes you to another world. LOL.
It will probably upset some folks, but too bad. This is real life. This guy interviews some prostitutes in Cambodia. If you don’t want the experience then you can pass on this video. It’s ok.
Originally Answered: How can we become a Winner at everything in Life?
What made Muhammed Ali the best Boxer in the world? What made Michael Phelps go above and beyond every time he swam? How come Gandhi made so much more of an impact than anybody else?
None of them were exceptional people since birth.
Sure, there is the claim that Michael Phelps, for example, has double the lung-capacity of most humans, which has been disproven.
And while he does have some physical advantages, like longer arms and shorter legs, while being tall, so does everybody else he is competing against!
What made the difference in their ability was not their born talents but rather the way they approached what they did.
They were willing to work harder and produce more than anyone else was willing to.
They are willing to do whatever it takes, go the extra mile and do more than those around them, which is what eventually gets them to succeed.
I remember reading an article back when Michael Phelps was just getting traction, that talked about how ridiculous his training regiment is and how it was way too intense.
At the time many doctors and health experts argued about his routine.
Today, I cannot find any article even mentioning that he was doing too much anymore.
After about 2 days of looking for that article I gave up.
All articles about him only praise his efforts and his routine; obviously because it worked.
He revolutionized the field.
The same can be said about Mahatma Gandhi, who did something no one else dared to do to make a statement that inspired millions.
And the effort that Muhammad Ali made can be clearly seen by one of his quotes:
I don’t count my sit-ups. I only start counting when it starts hurting. That is when I start counting, because then it really counts.
That’s what makes you A CHAMPION. — Muhammad Ali
Each of them made their entire day about training, sacrificing a lot of their day so they could focus on just that one thing.
And then we wonder why we cannot succeed.
The big question you need to ask yourself is: Are you doing enough?
Are the results showing up in the way you want to? Are you succeeding or do you need to do more?
Now, I cannot give you the exact stats of the men named above, as every page I visited had different numbers they boasted about, most of them disclaiming each other.
So I will instead share my own story and numbers to make this point.
Now I am by no means even close to as great as the men above, but I hope the point still comes across.
I started out as a Writer with a WordPress Blog.
At the beginning, it was just to practice my consistency and I wrote about 300 posts in my first year, yielding a total of 20 followers.
This was very little and so I switched to a site called Quora. In my first 6 months there I wrote about 1,000 posts, averaging 3 a day, before I wrote one answer that went viral.
This was back in 2016. Since then I have averaged about 3 posts a day consistently over the years.
I have been published on The Huffington Post, Time, and many more sites, have over 75,000 followers, 60M content views and get over 1M views a month still, and none of it because I was a good writer!
My very first post that I wrote was a page long block of text that was essentially a Writer’s Nightmare.
The only thing that pushed me through was that no one else wrote that much.
Many people wrote one post a day, if that, some even less.
And let me tell you this, after 18 Months of writing every day, the one viral post did not feel like a stroke of luck anymore, it felt deserved.
The point I want to make here is it is not about where you start or what prerequisites you have.
Winning is not about being better than everybody else.
Winning is about being the last person running in a race where everyone else gave up.
If you want to win you have to break through the noise by either doing more than others are willing to or doing it longer than they want to.
I have seen so many amazing writers leave Quora to never write again because they just did not break through the noise.
Mahatma Gandhi just did not eat, Michael Phelps only swam a lot, and Muhammad Ali trained a bit.
We have all done these things before, they are nothing special when you look at them like that. It’s not like they invented something none of us could ever dream of or did something that was so unbelievable it looked like Magic.
What made them special was the fact that they kept pushing and kept going with it when many people around them gave up or would have given up!
So let me ask you this then: Are you doing anything that stands out?
When you are working out do you do more and take shorter breaks than anyone else? When you are with your partner do you give them more attention and love than they can handle? When you are working at your job, do you work 10x more than any of your colleagues?
Are you doing anything that stands out?
You cannot expect yourself to win by just doing what everyone else is doing.
Sorry, but you are just not that special!
You have to become special by doing something extraordinary, and I mean that in the most literal sense possible:
Extra-Ordinary!
That means you do not overexert yourself.
Don’t expect to be able to train 6–8 hours a day, 7 days a week after having done no training at all.
Take it one step at a time but work yourself up and stay committed to it.
If you have the time and energy, then you can push further faster; it will get easier.
The 3 posts I wrote took anywhere from 3–6 hours a day at first. Now I can often write better posts in 15 minutes.
It does get easier.
Pick something, anything in your life that you wish to win at, and commit yourself to more of that.
Even if it is just an hour a day, if you do it long enough you will become absolutely amazing at it.
Push your limits day by day, even one more minute each day gets you 6 hours more in just one year.
“Let me tell you something you already know.
The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows.
It’s a very mean and nasty place and I don’t care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life.
But it ain’t about how hard ya hit.
It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward.
That’s how winning is done!” — Sylvester Stallone, Rocky Balboa
Breaking US Sanctions: How Huawei Changed US-China Tech War
Carl Zha talks to tech expert TP Huang about how latest Huawei breakthrough in advanced chip design and manufacturing is a game changer in the US waged tech war and economic war against China. Why ultimately US sanctions on China will fail. The rest of this interview is on my Patreon site
During WW2 there was a company that always submitted excellent paper work, head Quarters noticed this and moved their clerk typist to Headquarters, Battalion noticed him and moved him up to their office, he continued to be so dependable the higher ups wanted him, so eventually he ended up in Eisenhower’s front office.
One day, A hard nosed colonel came in to the office and demanded to see Ike, now. The clerk typist asked him, what does this pertain to? The Colonel started getting loud, said he didn’t need to explain anything to a clerk typist.
Ike came out to see the commotion, the colonel again was indignant.
Ike looked around the waiting room, saw another colonel sitting there, took an eagle pin off that colonel’s collar, and pinned it on the collar of the clerk, and said “ Now tell the colonel what you want”, and returned into his office.
The clerk was a colonel for the duration of his enlistment.
On a daily basis, my team and I would clean toilets, floors, rooms, the kitchen, our rifles, the floor around the barracks, our vests, our magazines and even the dog who lived in the barracks. I hated it.
I truly did not understand why I was spending months of paratrooper training time to clean up places that were spotless, instead of shooting and learning to fight.
And then I experienced my first operation.
My team and I were sent with four vehicles to meet up with a field intelligence unit, and prepare for the operation.
I remember meeting the field intelligence guys. It was the first time in my service meeting men, on duty, serving in a different unit than mine.
Their gear was obviously ill maintained, their vehicles were disgusting and dusty, and I could see the soot on the barrels of their rifles who have obviously not been cleaned in weeks. I wanted to tell their commander he was doing a shit job at maintaining his team’s gear.
And then it struck me.
All that cleaning during training has turned me into a neat freak.
Everything, even now in my apartment, needs to be perfectly placed, spotless and maintained. There are no excuses, and there should be none. An organized living is the basis for an organized life.
The lesson I took from all this epiphany?
There is shit in life you will not want to do, and you might even hate doing it, but truly successful people do the things they do not want to do, as best as they can, because eventually it will pay off in the long run.
China-Japan-South Korea Upcoming Summit: What’s Behind this Surprising Diplomatic Shift??
In a surprising turn of events, China has recently announced its willingness to hold a summit with Japan and South Korea leaders. This unexpected move begs the question: what has prompted this significant change? Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, Wang Wenbin, revealed that the three countries have reached an agreement to convene a meeting of their foreign ministers “in the next few months,” with the intention of facilitating a gathering of leaders as soon as possible. Undoubtedly, this initiative is driven by the collective interests of the three parties involved.
This development comes on the heels of China’s denouncement, in late August, of the statement released at the conclusion of the Camp David summit. The gathering, which brought together the leaders of the US, Japan, and South Korea, raised concerns about transforming the Asia-Pacific region into a geopolitical battleground. However, China’s willingness to engage in dialogue with its neighboring nations demonstrates an intriguing diplomatic shift. Be sure to subscribe to my channel for regular updates on global affairs & geopolitical shifts. Don’t miss out on my in-depth analysis of significant events shaping the world today!
The US is digging for a deeper hole.
As Washington reportedly plans to update its export curbs against China in October, an analysis report by a Dutch media posits that the previous export curbs imposed a year ago exposed the Biden Administration seem to have no clear idea of their objectives.
According to Dutch media Bits&Chips, the semiconductor restrictions against China are likely a product of the US struggle between hawks and doves concerning the China issue, leading to loopholes and a lack of clear goals.
To consider the interests of US-based semiconductor equipment and material suppliers, the US government allows the delivery of equipment that may be used to make advanced chips, highlighting the incompleteness and inconsistency of the curbs.
The US Bureau of Industry and Security set a threshold that requires exporters to get a license before shipping to China for equipment that can make logic chips with FinFET or GAAFET architecture of 16/14nm or below. However, the current export controls are insufficient if US export controls aim to deny China’s production capabilities of 14nm and below.
On the other hand, the US may not achieve its intended results if it aims to prevent China’s progress in the semiconductor industry, as demonstrated by Huawei’s Mate 60 Pro, which highlights the fact that China can make advanced chips without advanced equipment.
Huawei has obtained crucial patents on 6G technology, which may allow the Chinese company to thrive in the 6G era, according to Simon Chen, chairman of Adata Technology.
A green Toyota Celica drove into the customers’ parking space and a man alighted and walked into the store.
He was a first-time caller.
He was supporting his trousers with his hands.
‘Please I just need a belt. My belt snapped in the car, and I live far away from here. I am late for work and I don’t have money on me now. Can you trust me, I will bring the money at the close of work today’.
O My God!
First business of the day!
A man I never knew?
And here in this country, Nigeria?
‘Give him, he looks genuine. Could as well happen to you!’, one side of the brain was preaching.
‘Don’t!! Could be one of them. You’ll lose if you do!!’, the other side was screaming and countering.
‘Why can’t we live in a world where we can trust people and help them without fear?’, I was trying to make sense of this mental back-and-forth.
I gave him a very good quality belt, made the necessary perforations and he thanked me profusely and left.
5:06 pm:
The green Toyota Celica pulled up.
It was him.
To make good his promise.
Why isn’t life just this good!
Today, many years after that day, he no longer works around the area or passes through the route daily, but for such a small thing, he is one of my most valuable customers and has repaid the trust many, many times over.
Texas Jambalaya
2023 11 07 15 37
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup diced onion
1/4 cup diced green bell pepper
1/2 cup diced celery
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 cup converted rice, uncooked
4 ounces smoked sausage, cut into 1/4 inch slices
4 ounces ham, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 cans Ro*Tel diced tomatoes and green chiles
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
2 cans Ranch Style Texas beans, undrained
Instructions
In a 5 quart saucepot over medium-high heat, heat oil.
Add onion, green pepper and celery; cook until onions are translucent.
Add garlic, cook 1 minute longer.
Add rice, sausage and ham. Cook 2 to 3 minutes to coat rice with oil, stirring frequently.
Add next 4 ingredients and heat to boiling.
Cover and steam 20 to 25 minutes or until all liquid is absorbed.
Remove bay leaf, stir in beans and serve.
The Exhausted and Unable to Survive, the Cat was Thrown Out on the Grass to Die
On the 1st of October, 331 B.C.E., the Persian king Darius III finally had that Macedonian pest Alexander the Great right where he wanted him – on a big flat plain where Darius could make full use of his cavalry and 2–1 numerical advantage against the Greek upstart.
The location was Gaugamela in what’s now northern Iraq. For the past three years Alexander had been making Darius’s life a living hell but it was payback time.
At the head of Darius’s forces were 200 heavy chariots. The plan was, as usual, to unleash these monsters running at full speed into the Greek infantry lines. The weather was good, the field was dry – perfect conditions for slaughtering the Greeks and sending them all the way back to the Aegean.
Things…. didn’t work out. As with any battle that took place 3,300 years ago there were different stories about what happened. The only things we know for sure are:
Alexander’s forces killed or captured most of the Persian army at a loss of no more than 1,500 troops; and
The chariots turned out to be entirely useless.
Alexander knew the problem posed by the chariots and was ready for them. He drilled his men to fall back into pockets that would allow the chariot to penetrate the line, only to be met by infantrymen with their spears jammed into the ground pointing directly at the pocket.
What would happen is the horses, running at full speed, would run into the pocket but, facing the spears, would stop suddenly. The charioteers would find themselves surrounded on three sides and no way forward, and horses and chariots don’t reverse easily. As you can see, the chariots mostly went through the gap in the Macedonian line, only to find Alexander leading a cavalry charge back at the gap that wiped them out entirely.
The tactic remained a military favourite against horse soldiers for most of the next 1,800 years.
When the tactic was revived in the 15th century, it similarly made knights on horseback pretty much obsolete.
After Gaugumela, Alexander’s tactics were similarly widely adopted and the use of chariots started to tail off as they became ineffective and easy to lose.
Rich Men North Of Richmond, but it’s a Rap Type Beat
Made a beat to the song everyones talking about rn – Rich Men North Of Richmond by Oliver Anthony. Had a lot of fun with this one, went from idea to finished product in a day. The song isn’t set to a bpm so forgive me for parts that are off time, it was tough putting it all in time. Also shoutout to @TimGuitarLessons I used his audio in some parts.
As you get older, you realize that people who lie constantly have some kind of mental problem. It might be a habit; a neurosis, or a DMS-4 illness. But they are not “right in the head”. Something (not saying what it is) is wrong.
Fully functioning adults do not need to lie. They say things as they are. If they don;t want to answer a question, they say so. They have self-confidence, pride and a sense of self-worth.
…
When I first came to China I started to compare my life as an American, to that of China.
And, as such, I quickly realized that SOMETHING was seriously, very seriously wrong with the United States.
The best way for me to describe this is to imagine that you are married to a mentally ill person. (I was, by the way. My first wife was schizo-effective; which had the worst qualities of bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia). Then you get divorced, and meet up with a healthy person.
It was like that.
…
I am in China. It is a healthy nation. It is calm and peaceful. The leadership works towards allowing people freedom and happiness, and it shows.
When I was in the United States, however, everything was a struggle. One problem after the other. And today, it’s only getting worse.
…
Why do I defend China?
Because a mentally ill nation is attacking it using every single DSM-4 technique in the book.
My girlfriend was to remove the patient’s prostate through a so-called radicalprostatectomy. It was Wednesday morning, a couple of weeks ago.
And Wednesdays can be tough.
A typical Wednesday typically includes brutally waking up very early, getting ready, driving to the hospital, and starting the first scheduled surgery at 8AM sharp. Usually a number of operations are planned, depending on the time they take, and urgency.
The afternoon typically consists of a large number of consultations.
After consulting, she usually drives to her father’s house (which is pretty far away from the hospital), because our daughter will be there, but before leaving the hospital, she always visits the patients who had surgery in the morning to have a little chat about the operation, about how the patient is feeling, and about everyday stuff.
When she was back home, we fetched a drink and talked about our day (“what a day, what a day, what a day”), and watched some TV before dinner.
Suddenly she shouted:
“I forgot to see my patient !!”
The prostate man. In all the Wednesday hubbub, she had totally forgotten about the patient, and driven out of the hospital with other things on her mind. She immediately called the hospital and asked a nurse to tell the patient that she would visit him first thing next morning — promised !
The poor man had been a bit worried, thinking that something was wrong, that the cancer was worse than she had expected, and that this was the reason why she did not come.
But next morning, when the doctor was in the house again, he was a happy man. The operation went as planned, and the cancer would be gone now.
Just because China puts up with US bullying doesn’t mean China has to put up with the same shit from a much weaker nation. In fact, Germany is seen kind of like a joke nowadays by the Chinese public, politically, due to it staying silent on NATO blowing up its Nord stream pipeline, and this public sentiment limits how much compromise the Chinese government can have with Germany. Instead of sitting idle and just take the unfair abuse on what’s now pride of Chinese companies for Huawei’s standing up to the US, China would more likely set Germany up as an example in the Chinese philosophy of “kill the chicken to scare the monkeys”.
I can see China starting by reacting proportionately with banning of Siemens from some operations inside China, as well as making life miserable for German cars, which are extremely dependant on China as their largest market worldwide and their factory as well since energy prices drove up costs in Europe, but China being China, it would reserve the stronger responses in hopes of descalation, and would only apply them if Germany escalates things further.
Things are going very, VERY, wrong; Netanyahu Tells Israelis to “Leave Egypt”
Things in the Hamas-Israel fight are going very much wrong for Israel. This afternoon, The US ordered the USS Gerald R. Ford Aircraft Carrier Strike Group to move into the eastern Mediterranean Sea to be closer to Israel. This signals ALL the players that the US is moving-in to get involved militarily. The Players are NOT backing away.
Hamas: Moving the American aircraft carrier does not scare us, and the American administration must realize the consequences of this step.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office calls on Israelis to leave Egypt ‘as soon as possible.’ This is a HUGE . . . no . . . . GIGANTIC . . . flashing RED sign.
Egypt was the first Arab nation to make peace with Israel, and depending upon what course Israel pursues in Gaza (i.e. possible Ground Invasion) that peace with Egypt may now be in very real jeopardy.
The Palestinian President Mohammed Abbas, who was safely away in Jordan, is now leaving Jordan and heading into Syria.
In earlier reporting, I mentioned Intelligence info that Palestinians in Israel got word to their allies elsewhere to be ready to turn up the heat on Europe if Israel engages in a ground war. Now, we see they also got word to their pals in New York City, where, this afternoon, supporters of the Palestinians and supporters of Israel faced each other in Times Square. Chanting . . . for now . . . .
American Middle Class Is the New Poor | Renters Are Out of Options
Working and homeless! The new slogan. It’s not always drug addiction that leads to this. We NEED to stop this stereotype. Cost of living, especially rent is far outpacing wages which are not even remotely keeping up.. For people with no roommates or family to move in with and not making more than 75K, it’s rough out there.
Some disturbing stuff going down right now. The idiots in Washington DC are Hell-bent on war, and all of us are feeling like we are trapped in some kind of cage lashed to the back of a speeding car driven by a madman.
The West has gone completely koo-koo.
No shit.
In case you all haven’t noticed, I am not “reporting” or commenting on the insanity of the Middle East. It’s all a cluster fuck that I want no part of.
A long time ago, I owned one of the first Honda Accords. I had bought it new in 1977, and around 1984, the engine had a very bad oil burning problem. I was pulled over by a Metro Toronto Police constable, who gave me the choice of a ticket for “excessive smoking” or a visit to the Ontario Ministry of the Environment testing centre.
I chose the test, filled the engine with 50 w oil and while there was no smoke, the rest of the needles went fully to the right. Busted.
I was given a chance for a repeat, but knowing I would fail that one also, I put the car on the driveway, pulled the plates and used a borrowed vehicle. About a month after the missed test, a summons came in the mail to appear at the Provincial court one morning in the not too distant future.
I showed up early, and approached the clerk to find out where I should be and when. They never tell you that on the summons, just to appear. While talking the the clerk, a man walked up and was dealing with another of the clerks. I asked the clerk I was talking to “what the fine would be” if convicted. She didn’t know, and man beside me became interested in the matter. I had no idea who he was, but we kind of looked at the summons and neither of us could see anything about a fine. There was a little conversation; I assumed he was a lawyer, and we had a friendly chat. Court was starting shortly, and the fellow left, so I also went inside, told the bailiff I was there – important to do so, otherwise they might not call you for hours – and sat down.
At the stroke of 10:00 am, someone says “all rise” and in walks the Judge, the fellow I was talking to at the desk. Before the proceedings began, the Judge asked me if I had received an answer from the clerk. I told him that I had not, and then the proceedings began.
The Crown (prosecutor) presents the charge, an environmental offence, which he obviously felt was on par with burning down a forest or killing baby seals. Looking very smug, he sat down.
I am called forth, and I told the Judge that yes, the car had failed, but it was off the road and here are the license plates in my hand proving that it was no longer driving or polluting.
The Judge then asked the Crown what the minimum fine was for such an offence. The Crown responded that “the Ministry has a range up to $5000 for such an offence and the usual fine is this case would be $100.”
The Judge asked again about the minimum fine and the Crown repeated his same line. The Judge then asked “so there is no minimum fine?”
The Crown sheepishly answered “No sir” and the Judge turned to me and asked “the car is off the road?” and I responded affirmatively, at which point he said the charges were dropped as the intent of the law was to keep polluting vehicles off the road and obviously this had happened. Case dismissed!
I can’t say for sure, but there was a bit of smile from my new friend on the bench as I walked out of the court.
We’d just celebrated a diversity milestone as part of our quarterly meeting. It was one of those corporate cheerleading events where I stood in the back resisting the painful urge to roll my eyes.
“We are far more than a team of coworkers,” the CEO said, gesturing wide with his arms to the crowd, “We are a family.”
He was such a phony. The summit concluded and I went to the lunchroom. Right as I walked in, I stopped in the doorway and noticed something obvious that I hadn’t noticed before this diversity meeting.
All the white people were at their tables. All the black employees sat at another set of tables. Three Asian ladies sat at another. It was like we were living in the 1950s. And it wasn’t confined to this office. I still see this trend so often when I walk through malls, or along the sidewalk.
A similar phenomenon was observed on the set of Planet Of The Apes in 1968. The director noticed that during lunch, the people dressed as gorillas sat with other gorillas, chimps with chimps, and humans with humans. He described feeling a chill in the air and wondered if we were already in a dystopian sci-fi future. It even happened on the set of Babylon 5. People self-segregated according to their alien skin color.
This trend has long predated echo chambers, and it’s detrimental to your growth.
image 116
The closed network problem
The trend is called homophily, where we magnetize towards clusters of people similar to us. Race isn’t the only sorting mechanism. People sort by social class, age, political ideology, and even the type of music they listen to. And the unfortunate result is that we often live in a “closed network”. We sort ourselves into increasingly tight homogeneous groups.
A closed network forms in these four steps and I suspect you’ll be able to think of a few examples as you read this (I certainly did):
image 74
Putting all moral platitudes aside, social diversity has great predictive qualities for your career and life.
Count on one hand your closest friends. I’d bet that for many of you — they are pretty similar to you across a few demographic touchpoints. It’s no fault to you. This happens naturally, but you can disrupt this habit.
By mixing up your friend group, you are exposed to ideas different than your own and stretch your thinking. Your professional network also becomes much more potent, which is especially important: Within 10 years of graduation, a majority of people won’t work in the area they majored in.
Beware of gatekeeping your network
My ex’s family was deeply conservative — which is fine on its own. People are entitled to their beliefs. But this was often a barrier to who could spend time with them.
They were constantly sizing people up and figuring out their political opinions to determine if they were friend-material. Many people do this without realizing it. These parents were just explicit about it and they had a very small town syndrome (cliquey behavior, when you forget there is an entire world outside of your own).
This introduces the other pesky problem. It’s not all that easy to make friends — especially as we get older. So what next? There are a few solutions.
A route out of Cloneville
I moved 15 times before I turned 18. I lived in California, DC, Florida, Virginia Beach, North Carolina — and every new batch of people was so different than the next. I went to an all white, deeply conservative private school in 9th grade, a liberal high school in Coronado. I was one of the only white kids at an inner city middle school in DC. It wasn’t always easy.
Every summer, I waited for the talk. My mom or dad would come to my bedroom and tell me we were moving and how I was going to love this new school and place. Early on, I realized implicitly, “OK. I need to learn to make new friends.”
I was a new 5th grader at Linkhorn Elementary. We had a substitute teacher who happened to be gorgeous. She was passing out quiz papers. Before she passed out each quiz, she did that thing where she licked her finger to grip the paper.
After she handed me my quiz, I looked across the table at a classmate Joe and say, “Hey Joe! Pssst.”
He turned to me and I pretended to lick my finger and put it down to my thigh and made a hissing sound, like bacon hitting the frying pan. It was a corny joke — but it made Joe laugh and we were instantly friends. And from there, I learned that humor was one quick path to win anyone over.
Often, it’s less about how funny a joke is — and more about the energy it establishes. It signals, “I want to play.” Think about how a dog plants his chest down to the ground while keeping his hind legs standing to get another dog to play with him. This is the human equivalent.
It says, “I like you. Let’s have fun.”
“What if I’m not that funny?”
An even better solution that is painfully overlooked is to smile. Researchers have proven that smiles motivate people to interact with you. They are seen as a “prosocial invitation”. Stand upright and give them a quick, natural smile right when you spot them. It signals you are excited to see them.
After getting to know so many types of people, I’ve realized most people just want to be accepted as a complicated human being. And if you are just nice to them, and seem happy to see them and talk to them — you’ve nearly won the battle already.
When you go to your lunchroom, consider sitting with a new group of people. Don’t be afraid to talk to someone who looks different than you.
There’s a concept called contact hypothesis whereby tension between groups is reduced when they are brought together and interact. It promotes trust and reduces stereotyping. It reminds two different people that they’re both human beings. But the only way to make different types of friends is to actually spend time with people who are different from you.
One of my close friends couldn’t be more different from me. His political views and background are a full 180. But we are both fully candid about our opinions and thoughts, and know we can do so without fear of judgement or being disliked. Sure, he says crazy stuff sometimes but that’s fine. He’s still my friend. He’s taught me a few things about the world and changed a few of my opinions, and I’d like to think the reverse is true.
My hope, is that in a world that is so divided, more people from different walks of life can share the same path. They’d expand their own perspectives. They’d have more love and understanding, and more career opportunities.
And it would save us from being fenced in with our own. Closed networks beget closed minds.
Brazil was inches away from recognising Jerusalem as Israel’s capital not very long ago, mind you.
Surprising split in South America nonetheless, you’d imagine they’d have a uniform stance like they had for Ukraine.
A sea of yellow in Asia with only the usual suspects in blue but hey there’s someone new this time!
India’s position sits perfectly with our new found friends and within our domestic political landscape but ought to disappoint the fellow global southerners. But tbf, it is not to be construed as a paradigm shift in our policy, our Ministry of External Affairs clarified our two state stance on Palestine only yesterday, rather bad memories getting rekindled.
Nepal lost about a dozen citizens to Hamas’ attack. Poor folks go under the radar and didn’t even get sufficient coverage.
Irans sphere of influence, man, from Caspian Sea to Red Sea. Bush what have you done?
This is a map from TRT— Türkiye’s state run broadcaster. Interesting that they construe Erdogan’s position as call for de-escalation.
Sudan’s case is the perfect microcosm of the viability of normalisation deals that Israel is pursuing. You try so hard and get so far, and then a coup happens.
Morocco, UAE understandable, but Saudi and Pakistan? Who would have thought? Not me. Only 2% of Saudis are in favour of normalisation, I wonder if that matters at all. And 2% would be too high a number for Pakistanis.
Those who follow Bangladesh’s politics ought to find Bangladesh’s silence intriguing, if not outright discombobulating, especially with Hasina up for election soon and US breathing down her neck (yeah, not making this up, US is the biggest threat to Hasina’s re-election).
I don’t get Mexico’s neutrality, they don’t even recognise Palestine.
I don’t get New Zealand’s contrarian take either. What gives? I imagined if anyone from the West was going to have a contrarian take it would be Norway. The right is on the rise in Norway, left rules New Zealand, perhaps that explains?
Ghana coming all out to condemn Hamas? With a similar religious demography split like India, I wonder if there’s domestic political considerations involved.
Foreign policy really is domestic politics with its hat on.
Given that Indonesia’s support will be construed differently then Iran’s support, Venezuela joins the “axis of evil”. But in all fairness they joined the club previously after Ukraine invasion.
DPRK has been silent?
What explains the silence of that many African countries? None of our business paradigm?
Putin tells it like it is…
Fudge Cobbler
chocolate cobbler 2 pn
Yield: about 9 servings
Ingredients
1/2 cup butter
1 (1 ounce) square unsweetened baking chocolate
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs, beaten
Vanilla ice cream (garnish)
Instructions
Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease an 8 inch square baking dish.
Melt the chocolate and the butter in a saucepan over very low heat. Stir often. Remove from the heat.
Stir in the sugar, flour, vanilla extract and eggs.
Everyone in the office was paid on an hourly basis and it was each person’s responsibility to keep track of how many hours they worked each day on a paper time sheet. At the end of each week each employee turned in their time sheet to their supervisor who would sign them and then give the to HR so everyone can get paid for the hours they worked. In practice, everyone showed up each day, did their work, wrote down”8 hours” on their time sheet and went home. Everyone was happy.
Then along came a new guy in management who stated that nobody was actually keeping track of their hours and just writing down what HR wanted to see. This meant that the company was losing money and productivity from people not working a full day but being paid for it. So he instituted a new digital time sheet system where each person had to log their times in and out on their computers and the system would track how many hours each of us worked.
What the company discovered was that everyone tended to come into work 10–15 minutes early, hardly ever took a full hour for lunch and often stayed 10–15 minutes late to get their work done. Thanks to the new time sheet system every employee was now getting paid for all that overtime they had been working but not tracking. This affected the company because it was added payroll expense that wasn’t budgeted. So management put out a new rule that nobody would be allowed to work any overtime without written permission from their supervisor and HR. So everyone was very diligent to log in and out exactly in time.
Except now productivity had fallen because nobody was working those extra minutes each day, which multiplied over all staff added up to an extra 60 hours per week of work. The company ended up needing to hire two more people to make up that productivity.
After Huawei released Kirin 9000S, Biden revised the bill: banning China from owning high-end chips.
So China cannot make their own, if they do, they will violate American law.
Malaysia Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said on Wednesday the country’s switch to a dual 5G network will allow for more effective participation by China’s Huawei Technologies Co Ltd.
Malaysia in May had said it would allow a second 5G network to operate from next year, following concerns over a monopoly held by a single state-run network.
The European Union and the U.S. had warned Malaysia of risks to national security and foreign investment amid efforts by Huawei to bid for a role in its telecoms infrastructure.
Anwar on Wednesday acknowledged concerns from some countries over the “security and capacity” of technology stemming from China, but said the decision to allow a second 5G network was made so that Malaysia could benefit from different technologies.
“We in Malaysia… and I believe rightly, decided that while we get the best from the West, we also should benefit the best from the East,” he told an event hosted by Huawei in Kuala Lumpur.
“After extensive discussion… we made the decision to allow for a dual network, and thus the decision for more effective participation by Huawei.”
Malaysia had in 2021 unveiled a plan for a state-owned agency, Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB), to own the full 5G spectrum, with various carriers using the infrastructure to provide mobile services, but the plan had come under industry criticism over pricing and competition.
State-run DNB partnered with Swedish telecoms giant Ericsson to roll out Malaysia’s 5G network. It is unclear how Malaysia’s plan for a second network would affect DNB’s agreement with Ericsson or other mobile operators.
WHAT THESE FILIPINAS CAN OFFER TO THEIR PASSPORT BROS!
They are generally ignorant about China and Chinese, and conversations about China are very shallow and full of misconceptions. It is not worth my time to correct those misperceptions, and there is no reward for doing it.
Chinese are much fun and interesting, and even if they have silly ideas, they are often entertaining. Most importantly, they know the local restaurants and dishes, and can introduce me to some dish I have never had before. Unlike for most westerners, dining out is a social event, not just filling the tummy.
I was age 14 in the early 1960s and living with a family who had one child around my age. On my 14th birthday, my mother said I needed to pay room and board. I decided to pay for a room in other homes where there was no violence. My rapidly increasing scoliosis was becoming a problem. I had three jobs to pay room and board — (1) feeding and washing people in a nursing home and doing laundry), (2) babysitting at the country club 1.5 miles away, and (3) stocking shelves in a dry goods store. I made $29.00 a week. My room and board was $28.00 a week. I went to high school about three days a week.
I was happy with this family. The father was Welsh and sang Welsh songs every Friday night as he walked home from the Legion. The mother was one of the cafeteria ladies at the high school. They were good to me.
Then one day, the father came home with an envelope and pulled out a Beatles ticket and handed it to his daughter.
And then he handed another ticket to me.
TO ME!
It cost $15.00. I told him it would take me years to pay him back. If I didn’t buy shampoo, pads, or deodorant, it would take me 15 months to repay him. The father disregarded this idea with a flick of his hand and a Welsh phrase I didn’t understand.
The father drove us the 80 miles to the venue, let us off and circled the building during the performance and was right there when it was finished. Not only that, but the man put up with us singing Beatles songs all the way home. We were not good singers.
Even now, decades later (and I am a retired person), whenever I do something nice for someone, I think, ‘this is for you, John Cooper, this one is for you.’
I carry such lightweight debts with me.
Pepe Escobar: China Has DEFEATED the Neocon Agenda as US War Fails Before It Starts
I don’t expect Xi or Putin to meet with Biden. He doesn’t make the decisions.
If they know how to do something, they automatically know how to do it at scale.
This is a country that builds entire new cities at one go. They produce 600,000 engineers per year. They make four out of every five solar panels in the world. They can build a 57-storey skyscraper in 19 days, and as we saw during the covid-19 pandemic, a brand new hospital in 10 days. They are the world’s biggest factory.
If they know how to make one Huawei Mate 60, they already know how to make 100 million Huawei Mate 60s.
China does not know how to think SMALL. It is unnatural and weird for them to think on a small scale. China has cities with populations larger than countries such as Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, even Australia. Thinking big is China’s default mentality.
New round of US sanctions started against Huawei! U.S. tech war enters stage 2.0!
In this episode, we dive into the latest updates on the potential second round of sanctions by the United States on Huawei. Huawei, the Chinese tech giant, unveiled its new smartphone, the Mate 60 Pro, sparking intrigue amidst ongoing U.S.-China tech tensions.
These cutting-edge smartphones, powered by 7-nanometer chips from China’s SMIC, bring 5G connectivity to the forefront.
The implications of this move are significant, causing a reevaluation of the technology blockade against Huawei and even calls for a complete halt to technology exports. We also explore China’s efforts to boost its self-sufficiency in chip production and navigate U.S. export restrictions.
But the worst part of my job is that I occasionally have to be the “male voice”.
One of my female colleagues will refer a call to me to tell a caller about some iron clad policy we have that we can never, ever overlook.
I am on the same pay level as all of them. I am not the manager. I often work in a different department. I am, however, the only one of this fairly large group of people that is male.
I tell them the iron clad policy. They shut up. End of story.
Part of the problem is that the engineering profession is still about 80% male, and so is the applicant base. They are not used to being told “no” by someone who isn’t male. It’s not like it’s just immigrants either.
Here’s the irony. The second highest ranking staff member, and the person two steps above me, is a woman. She’s had to put up with it too.
But I will tell you about my ex-colleague, boss and PEO president. She left her position as my boss to take on a five year position at the university she was hired by to get female enrollment in the engineering program up to 40%. It took her one year and she shot past the 40% goal to boot. Then she went to another university and did the same thing.
China’s LATEST Hypersonic Drone Can Destroy US F35 Stealth Fighter in Seconds
China’s hypersonic program has emerged as one of the biggest and heavily advanced sectors of the nation. In this remarkable sector, the PLA boasts having a drone in its arsenal which is capable of reaching hypersonic speeds and destroying world renowned stealth fighters that have dominated the aerial warfare sector for years. Today’s episode is covering China’s hypersonic drone and how it can be used to destroy US Stealth fighters.
Many of the westerners have been to China, like it, and see a lot of criticism of China in the western media which is based on planted information and is basically untrue, in order to drive western public opinion against China.
These westerners try to compensate for this distorted view by praising China. Their intention is to restore balance in how China is viewed.
Unfortunately, the western view of China has become so distorted that it is impossible to have a balanced view of China: either it is completely bad, or it is good.
A balanced view of China would say that there are many good things about China, and there are some bad things as well.
China is just like the US: it is just another country and society, each facing its own set of challenges.
I live in Northern Maine. My property borders a state park/forest. The state forest has a parking lot you need to pay to park in the lot although the park/forest is free to enter. Alot of people will park along the main road and walk into the park. my property is on a side road that is beside the park the park entrance is 2 mile up the main road from my road.
Some park/forest visitors have taken to pulling down my road and parking on my property and hiking across my property to enter the park. they block driveways and the road with poor parking abilities. Some pull into driveways.
My property is a farm I have many driveways used by tractors and equipment to enter the feilds for feeding livestock and tending crops. All driveways are gated (keep livestock in feilds and out of crops)
One group of annoying tourists pulled up in 3 vehicles (2 rvs and a 12–15 passenger van) All had New York plates. they pulled in blocking the access to the feilds and began hiking across my feilds. I caught up to them and informed them that they would be towed if they did not move the vehicles. The leader of the group told me to f-off while giving a one finger salute. I watched as they walked away across the feild. once they entered the park/forest I went to my equipment barn got my large green and yellow tractor hooked up a slurry spreader tank and drove over to the slurry bin and filled the tank. ( Slurry is cow manure that is mixed with water to make it able to spray) I adjusted the spray bar and drove over near the area and sprayed liquified manure (did not spay any on the vehicles) just near the road along the fence a nice heavy thick layer then sprayed more along the area they entered the forest. Since it was 85 degrees outside the smell would bake in the sun to keep it fresh I placed a water tank and sprayer/ sprinkler nearby and set the timers to run for 5 minutes every hour. After 4 hours I called and had the vehicles towed.
They returned and found me spraying slurry in my feilds as they walked across the feilds the slurry is sticking to the shoes (most wearing sandles or flip flops – Nothing like the feeling of liquid poop between the toes) They find the vehicles gone and ask me where they are. I tell them where the inpound lot is and inform them that as they exit onto the main road they should stop and read the large SIGN that says private road. I called the police who informed them that they could walk to impound as it was 20–30 minute walk down the road.
I would imagine that they found out that the oder of sun baked slurry permeates into things. (they left the widows open on the vehicles) and with what was on the shoes it must have been an interesting ride back to New York.
The problem with the EU is Josep the Chief Diplomat’s words do not represent the cohesive attitude, or indeed, policy decisions of the EU towards China. EU member states hold even more divergent and polarizing attitudes.
The fact of the matter is, the G7 does not have a China seat, but the EU gets its own seat, on top of individual EU members. The currencies of these nations power the global financial market, while the yuan issued by the world’s No. 2 economy is an afterthought in BIS reports.
Senior figures in the EU have repeatedly made rude and damaging attacks on China and Chinese interests, including the core issue of Greater China sovereignty. Entities and individuals have been sanctioned, just like their American counterparts, whose actions they mirrored.
Nord Stream is a key European infrastructure that cost billions to build. After it was bombed, the lack of condemnation for an act of war is curious, to say the least. Government findings were blocked from release, while there remains a shocking lack of blowback and demand for accountability in the press.
The EU-CHINA CAI, which is tilted in Europe’s favor, is also dead in the water, after 10 years of painstaking negotiation securing an agreement in principle. EU leaders are complaining about lack of market access in China, when it is self-inflicted.
There is also the issue of the EC, with Ursula completely at odds with Josep’s conciliatory, if shaky, diplomacy. She was given the cold shoulder on a recent visit to Beijing as Emmanuel’s invited partner. The message was clear. She wasn’t the guest invited by the Chinese state.
Who represents the EU? Who has the authoritative voice that can be trusted? How has the EU demonstrated long-term policy independence from the US?
Wang Yi, and before him, Yang Jiechi, have had regular hours-long closed door conversations with Jake, the National Security Advisor. Jake is 46, and not even elected, but he has access to top Chinese leadership that the EU can only dream of, because he is the personal envoy of Joe.
Do we really have to spell out who calls the shots in NATO, which is tied at the umbilical with the EU power structure?
During a 10-hour flight, she was heading from Seoul, Korea, to San Francisco, USA. This mother distributed more than 200 passengers on the plane a plastic bag for each one. The bag contains candy, chewing gum and earplugs as a kind of advance apology for using them in the event that her 4-month-old baby screamed during the flight.
The bag also contained a message containing (hello, I am Jan Woo. I am 4 months old and today I’m traveling America with my mom and grandmother for my aunt’s outfit. I’m a little nervous and scared. This is my first flight in my life. It’s normal for me to cry or cause some disturbance. I’ll try to stay calm, but I can’t promise you. Please use it if my voice gets too loud.. Enjoy your trip. Thank you)
Communism and Marxism is hardly an issue to the U.S. with Vietnam that the U.S. is courting shamelessly and Saudi Arabia a Islamic Monarchy hardly liberal democracy but does it bother Uncle Sam for the last half a century?
For me it is as simple as China cannot be made submissive and subservient to the U.S. that is all to it. And worst China is simply a lot lot more efficient and effective than the U.S. can ever be! In fact China has a better human rights record than the U.S. anyway! That perturb the US to no end.
But what is worst for the U.S. Is 150–175 nations out of the world’s 195 nation prefers Chinese and China way and none in the global south wants anything to do with Uncle Sam. They find them obnoxious and despicable. To me this is not due to China at all but due to the shit U.S. did to the world since 1945.
I know Americans who are mostly highly naive and hugely made ignorant to think the U.S. media or government is well liked by the world. But in truth it couldn’t be further than the truth!
Abusing nations has consequences, bullying nations turned them off, arbitrary sanctions puts nations off, they will hedge, they will stop letting you fxxk them! It does not matter what your media lies and your propaganda says. The world is no fool!
Just figure this. US the biggest murdering nation telling China in Alaska about human rights! Is totally laughable and utterly ridiculous! Chinese officials told Blinken save the advise for your dogs and slave vassal nations!
The “American Dream” is actual Slavery (It’s all a Lie)
I was an admin assistant at a department at my local university. I was just about to clock off and make my way home in a wild windstorm that eventually knocked down 20,000 trees across the city when for some reason I decided to check one of the grad student offices and discovered that the skylight had blown off, exposing multiple desks and computers, some of them running data, to the elements. I called the relevant campus department and was told that restoring electricity and clearing roads and whatnot took priority, and they likely wouldn’t get to replacing the skylight (which I’d located, but lacked the strength and roof access to lug it up myself) until the next day at the earliest. So I cracked open the earthquake kit and rigged, using tarps and duct tape, a patch, then moved, ever so carefully so as not to accidentally disconnect the computers, all six desks away from the skylight shaft, in case my patch failed.
This all took about four hours past my usual knock-off time. Everyone was really glad I’d taken the time and initiative to do it, but my supervisor refused even to consider giving me time off in lieu for those four hours because she hadn’t pre-approved them, never mind that, in those pre-cell days, I’d had no way of reaching her. So I appealed to the department head, who overrode her. She was livid, and thereafter made my life so miserable that I leapt at the first decent opportunity to leave.
People with no medical knowledge make decisions about whether a patient can have a medical procedure, overruling the attending physician.
Now, with the outsourcing of call centers, people with no medical knowledge in Jamaica, India, and Pakistan make those decisions.
Here are some typical costs in Uruguay:
Office visit: US $8.00
ER visit: US $ 10.00
House call: US $12.00.
Electrolyte blood analysis: US $7.11.
Cerebral CT Scan: US $23.29
If you call an ambulance, it arrives with a full-fledged MD, not an EMT.
Before I turned 70 years of age, I paid around US $55 per month for health coverage.
Now I pay around US $70 per month. For that, I get totally free hospital stays and all costs are free, including hospital stay, surgery, medications, doctor care, and nursing care. When you check out, regardless of what was done or how long you were hospitalized, you pay nothing.
The monthly cost for my cancer medication is around US $2.50. The same medication in the US is around $500.00.
It’s been proven China can with Huawei’s Mate 60 Pro.
Chinese companies can rival the giant U.S. tech companies like Intel, Apple and Nvidia but what takes time is building up the ecosystem to make this possible. Thousands of companies make up the support system that manufactures and supports the tools and machines for the manufacturing processes of semiconductors.
The most critical of these companies are in the design (specifically EDA tools) and packaging (chiplets) processes, as well as the lithography machines for the making of the chip itself. There are now Chinese companies with the leading edge (or close to) technologies to rival industry leaders.
Just as critical is the consolidating of resources and capabilities to have the companies to ensure adequate supply of legacy chips. These are actually the more important players because they make up 90% of demand.
U.S. sanctions have forced China to come up with its own self-siufficient semiconductor indiustry.
Chinese don’t necessarily support single party rule; they support a strong central government to maintain order.
Whether it is single party or not is secondary.
In today’s China, it is led by a single party, but it is much more than any western political party because it has 100M members who meet monthly to discuss local, provincial and central government issues, and how to solve them.
Do the Republican and Democratic parties ask their members to meet monthly to discuss how to solve social issues? I think not.
My point is not that one system is better than another, but they are very different, and talking about the ruling party in China being the same as the political parties in the US is silly and ridiculous, because China developed according to its historical conditions, and the US developed according to its historical conditions.
As Everyone’s Lοοking At Ιsrael, Something Τruly Unbelievable Has Begun Ιn America
Very interesting.
He’s saying that (it’s official) World War III is on-line.
People are imbued with cultural and religious ideas they don’t even recognize and simply take for granted.
I, an American, was imbued with the idea “I am my husband’s equal. In marriage we will have the same freedoms and similar expectations of each other. I would never shout at him for wearing shorts, so of course he will not do that to me. I don’t consider cooking his job, so I am sure he won’t consider it my job. I would always discuss a big purchase with him – and naturally he will give me the same respect.”
That sense of equality and “Don’t treat your spouse in a way you don’t want to be treated yourself” was my cultural norm.
I found that my husband had absolutely no cultural or religious norm of equality. He absolutely was willing to treat me in ways he would hate to be treated himself. He did not think a woman deserved what a man deserves.
He found it absolutely normal to expect control over me, and be resentful thst I didn’t make his life as comfortable as he believed a man’s life should be. He was constantly looking at the very unequal marriages of his (Muslim Arab) friends and resenting me for not being a submissive woman who cooked and cleaned and expected nothing but money from him.
My husband and I are in the same profession. I worked longer hours than him. I was also the one who was sometimes pregnant or recovering from childbirth.
But he could not appreciate me. He had a cultural and religious idea in his head : a man should come home from work and be catered to. Clean house, good food, obedient wife who wears certain clothes and lets her husband forbid her from certain activities or friends that do not please him. The man should be comfortable, should be served, should have things his way. (It is similar to the relationship between a dog owner and his dog. They love each other – but the owner does not think the dog should share in decisions or come and go as it pleases. A dog is expected to be happy being owned and trained and played with.)
My husband started off claiming he would love me forever.
It did not last.
But his cultural ideas of what a man is owed and how a wife must serve — those ideas will last in him forever.
Let’s answer this question using 5 Low IQ positions that the US politicians are taking –
Low IQ action 1 – Raimondo threatens Huawei before her China trip. She is simply arrogant and lacks intelligence. Who in the right mind threatens someone’s kid before visiting their home?
Low IQ action 2 – It is simply embarrassing to see a country using full state resources to bring down a private company. You brought an army to a fist fight and didn’t knock your much smaller opponent out!
Low IQ action 3 – The Western chips companies are making large profits selling products to China. And you stopped the sales and force your biggest customer to make their own?
Low IQ action 4 – You give billions of dollars of subsidies to your own chip companies to build factories. But you stop the demand from your top customer. So where are US companies gonna sell their excess chips to?
Low IQ action 5 – You take away Huawei’s access to Google and they went to develop their own operating system to threaten Google’s and Microsoft’s future dominance. You like shooting your own foot?
Irish Girl Watches MISTER ROGERS For The First Time
Oh nostalgia tv, except I don’t know who Mister Rogers is. I’ve always heard the name Mister Rogers as a reference in American tv and films but this Irish Girl had no idea who that was. Join me on a very emotional journey as I watch Fred Rogers first through last tv appearance, see him sing “I like you just as you are” and “ it’s a wonderful day in the neighbourhood” Mister Rogers Neighbourhood. Couldn’t we all do with some nice insight from a Fred Rogers right now.
I was in the US Army stationed in Germany for 3 and half years… Just turned 18. During this time I never took leave and went back. Travelled all over Europe! In Germany, I drunk my first beer, had my first kiss, and my first Girlfriend, was amazed by the people, the culture, the infrastructure, the cuisine, almost everything. I even took German courses and was proficient at least with speaking German. Anyway the day came, when i was being discharged ( I never really liked the army, andjoined for the Gi Bill) Back in the rural midwest, working at Walmart while going to community collage, I realized how much I missed Germany, the lifestyle, the urban vibe and so many things ( missed having a GF too, in the US I wasnt rich enough or cool enough to date anyone, in Germany this was never a thing at all, about money and all that. I decided if I was going to have a dull dead end life with no future, why not go back to Germany? At least have an adventure of some kind, i could always come back to the US.. 7 months after I ETSed ( left the army) I got a passport, got a cheap one way ticket and reconnected with some German civilians I knew.. I ended up staying in germany, has been 30 plus years now. I remember when the plane landed and I was disembarking, and set foot on the ground, I felt like,, this is it..the place you are meant to be.
I takes longer than that but slowly and surely it will.there is not even a speck of doubt. Tell me which nation wants to save in U.S. dollar reserve if can be confiscated away from you at the whims or fancies of the U.S? Do you want to keep your savings in a bank using a currency that the US can take it all away anytime it wants?
No one do, no want does, no one will ever want to. The fact that the US and the west can even phantom that by stealing gold from Venezuela and US dollar reserves from Russia is an acceptable behaviour tell how little the west thinks of the rest of the world.
Every nation on earth, even the US allies are figuring how to hedge against the US dollar. Direct Currency swap arrangement is very popular and it must have have grown several fold in the last year alone! Some agree on a basket of currencies, Others revert back to barter.
JEFFREY SACHS ON A HISTORIC DEBT
Israel Attacks Damascus Airport as IRAN Foreign Minister Plane Coming-in; Plane Forced to Divert
The Israeli Air Force fired missiles at Damascus Airport and Aleppo Airport this morning, just before a plane carrying the Iran Foreign Minister was approaching Damascus for an official state visit. The Iran Minister’s plane was forced to divert from the area to avoid conflict.
Attacking Syria was an illegal act of aggression by Israel. Conducting that attack while a Diplomat was approaching for a state visit is arguably an Act of War.
Damascus Airport is now damaged and closed. Aleppo Airport is also reported to be damaged and closed.
The Iran Foreign Minister plane appears to be returning to Iran.
Syrian Defense Ministry: “At approximately 1:50 pm this afternoon, the Israeli enemy simultaneously carried out an air aggression with bursts of missiles, targeting the international airports of Aleppo and Damascus, which led to damage to the airports’ landing strips and them being out of service.
This aggression is a desperate attempt by the criminal Israeli enemy to divert attention from the crimes it is committing in Gaza, and the great losses it is suffering at the hands of the Palestinian resistance.”
( HT Remark: Nothing like escalating the already bad situation with Gaza into an international incident with a foreign Diplomat. Unschooled, these Israelis. Totally devoid of class.)
According to our Singapore media reports, the cost of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail is approximately US$7.3 billion. We tentatively believe that this number is real.
So this figure exceeds the budget given by China when bidding for the project eight years ago by US$1.2 billion. The project completion time was delayed by 4 years than originally planned.
This doesn’t seem like a good number.
But compared to current plans in other countries around the world to build high-speed rail, these are two very good figures.
1. Cost per kilometer
Even calculated based on all costs after overruns (including land costs), the cost per kilometer of Indonesia’s high-speed rail is only US$58 million. The high-speed rail in the United Kingdom is US$300 million per kilometer, and the high-speed rail in California is US$200 million per kilometer.
India’s high-speed rail was originally planned to cost US$35 million per kilometer. However, it has not actually been completed yet. Only ten kilometers have been built. The cost has been doubled and the final cost cannot be estimated. Due to serious delays in construction, some experts predict that there is a high probability that the cost per kilometer will exceed US$80 million when completed.
2. Time spent
The Indian high-speed railway started construction one year earlier than the Indonesian high-speed railway and is scheduled to open in 2023. According to media reports some time ago, only 10 kilometers have been built so far. The completion date has been changed to 2028, but many experts believe that the actual completion time may be after 2032.
The first phase of the British high-speed railway is planned to build 160 kilometers. Construction will start in 2020 and is scheduled to be completed in 2029. It has now been changed to 2033. The real completion date cannot be determined.
Therefore, although the Indonesian high-speed railway experienced a 16% cost overrun and a 4-year construction delay. But this is mainly due to the virus problem over the past 3 years.
Judging from similar large-scale projects around the world, Indonesians have reached the top level in terms of project time and budget control.
I believe that for many years to come, no country will be able to surpass Indonesia’s level.
This is due to the efficient work of the Indonesian government, the unity and support of the Indonesian people, and the technology and efficiency of the Chinese. Their achievements deserve congratulations.
Star Trek – Fire On the Forcefield
America Can’t Stop China’s Rise — Foreign Policy
There’s little doubt that the American government has decided to slow China’s economic rise, most notably in the fields of technological development. To be sure, the Biden administration denies that these are its goals. Janet Yellen said on April 20, “China’s economic growth need not be incompatible with U.S. economic leadership. The United States remains the most dynamic and prosperous economy in the world. We have no reason to fear healthy economic competition with any country.” And Jake Sullivan said on April 27, “Our export controls will remain narrowly focused on technology that could tilt the military balance. We are simply ensuring that U.S. and allied technology is not used against us.”
Yet, in its deeds, the Biden administration has shown that its vision extends beyond those modest goals. It has not reversed the trade tariffs Donald Trump imposed in 2018 on China, even though presidential candidate Joe Biden criticized them in July 2019, saying: “President Trump may think he’s being tough on China. All that he’s delivered as a consequence of that is American farmers, manufacturers and consumers losing and paying more.” Instead, the Biden administration has tried to increase the pressure on China by banning the export of chips, semiconductor equipment, and selected software. It has also persuaded its allies, like the Netherlands and Japan, to follow suit. More recently, on Aug. 9, the Biden administration issued an executive order prohibiting American investments in China involving “sensitive technologies and products in the semiconductors and microelectronics, quantum information technologies, and artificial intelligence sectors” which “pose a particularly acute national security threat because of their potential to significantly advance the military, intelligence, surveillance, or cyber-enabled capabilities” of China.
All these actions confirm that the American government is trying to stop China’s growth. Yet, the big question is whether America can succeed in this campaign—and the answer is probably not. Fortunately, it is not too late for the United States to reorient its China policy toward an approach that would better serve Americans—and the rest of the world.
America’s decision to slow China’s technological development is akin to the folly revealed by the old cliché: closing the barn door after the horse has bolted. Modern China has shown many times that China’s technological development can’t be halted.
Since the creation of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, several efforts have been made to limit China’s access to or stop its development in various critical technologies, including nuclear weapons, space, satellite communication, GPS, semiconductors, supercomputers, and artificial intelligence. The United States has also tried to curb China’s market dominance in 5G, commercial drones, and electric vehicles (EVs). Throughout history, unilateral or extraterritorial enforcement efforts to curtail China’s technological rise have failed and, in the current context, are creating irreparable damage to long-standing U.S. geopolitical partnerships. In 1993 the Clinton administration tried to restrict China’s access to satellite technology. Today, China has some 540 satellites in space and is launching a competitor to Starlink.
The same principle played out with GPS. When America restricted China’s access to its geospatial data system in 1999, China simply built its own parallel BeiDou Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) system in one of the first waves of major technological decoupling. In some measures, BeiDou is today better than GPS. It is the largest GNSS in the world, with 45 satellites to GPS’s 31, and is thus able to provide more signals in most global capitals. It is supported by 120 ground stations, resulting in greater accuracy, and has more advanced signal features, such as two-way messaging. Other nations have also previously tried and failed to block China’s technical rise. In the 1950s and 1960s, when the USSR withheld nuclear weapons technology from China, China launched its own “Manhattan Project” in the early 1960s and succeeded in testing its first nuclear weapon by 1964. Russian nuclear leverage over China ended that day.
Many of the measures taken by the Biden administration against China were also executed without factoring in China’s capacity to retaliate. While China does not physically construct many truly irreplaceable components of the American technology stack, they are keenly aware of the importance of their raw materials inputs (rare earths) and demand (revenue generation) in fueling the American innovation ecosystem and are now using them as leverage. In the current tit-for-tat dynamic, China will start squeezing these two critical ends of the value chain in response to American technology and capital export restrictions. China’s July ban of the gallium and germanium exports was merely an opening shot across the bow to remind America (and its aligned allies) of China’s dominance in the rare earths and critical metals space. The country has a near monopoly in the processing of magnesium, bismuth, tungsten, graphite, silicon, vanadium, fluorspar, tellurium, indium, antimony, barite, zinc, and tin. China also dominates in midstream processing for materials essential to most of America’s current and future technology aspirations such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, and copper, which are critical for the rapidly developing EV industry globally.
While America and other neutral countries have mineral reserves of many of these materials, it would be naïve to believe that one can simply flip a switch on mining and production. It will take at least three to five years just to build the requisite extraction and processing infrastructure. This is to say nothing for recruiting and training skilled labor, or receiving requisite operational and environmental permits for such activities. Both could prove impossible. The processing of rare earths is a highly toxic and environmentally destructive endeavor. It’s unlikely such approvals will be granted. If Arizona is struggling to find qualified workers for its TSMC fabrication facility, and to address domestic union opposition to importing foreign skilled labor, it’s unlikely that America can develop similar capabilities for material processing. Along the way, China gets to play kingmaker in how it doles out access to its processed materials, likely restricting supply to American technology and defense giants. The failure to factor in China’s retaliatory capacities indicates that the United States doesn’t have a well-thought-out and comprehensive approach to dealing with China.
American measures to deprive China access to the most advanced chips could even damage America’s large chip-making companies more than it hurts China. China is the largest consumer of semiconductors in the world. Over the past ten years, China has been importing massive amounts of chips from American companies. According to the US Chamber of Commerce, China-based firms imported $70.5 billion worth of semiconductors from American firms in 2019, representing approximately 37 percent of these companies’ global sales. Some American companies, like Qorvo, Texas Instruments, and Broadcom, derive about half of their revenues from China. 60 percent of Qualcomm’s revenues, a quarter of Intel’s revenues, and a fifth of Nvidia’s sales are from the Chinese market. It’s no wonder that the CEOs of these three companies recently went to Washington to warn that U.S. industry leadership could be harmed by the export controls. American firms will also be hurt by retaliatory actions from China, such as China’s May ban on chips from US-based Micron Technology. China accounts for over 25 percent of Micron’s sales.
The massive revenue surpluses generated by these sales to China were ploughed into R&D efforts which, in turn, kept American chip companies ahead of the game. The Chamber of Commerce estimates that if the United States were to ban semiconductor sales to China completely, U.S. companies would lose $83 billion in annual revenues and would have to cut 124,000 jobs. They would also have to cut their annual R&D budgets by at least $12 billion, and their capital spending by $13 billion. This would make it even more difficult for them to remain competitive on the global scale in the long run. American semiconductor firms are painfully aware that U.S. actions against China in the chips arena will harm their interests more than Chinese interests. The U.S. Semiconductor Industry Association released a statement on July 17, saying that Washington’s repeated steps “to impose overly broad, ambiguous, and at times unilateral restrictions risk diminishing the U.S. semiconductor industry’s competitiveness, disrupting supply chains, causing significant market uncertainty, and prompting continued escalatory retaliation by China,” and called on the Biden administration not to implement further restrictions without more extensive engagement with semiconductor industry representatives and experts.
The Chips Act cannot subsidize the American semiconductor industry indefinitely, and there is no other global demand base to replace China. Other chip producing nations will inevitably break ranks and sell to China (as they have historically) and the American actions will be for naught. And, in banning the export of chips and other core inputs to China, America handed China its war plan years ahead of the battle. China is being goaded into building self-sufficiency far earlier than they would have otherwise. Prior to the ZTE and Huawei components bans, China was content to continue purchasing American chips and focusing on the front-end hardware. Peter Wennink, the CEO of ASML, stated that China is already leading in key applications and demand for semiconductors. Wennink wrote, “The roll-out of the telecommunication infrastructure, battery technology, that’s the sweet spot of mid-critical and mature semiconductors, and that’s where China without any exception is leading.”
Germany Just Warned Europe On “China’s Counterstrike Move” | Silent EV War Explodes
Simple, like the UK with Brexit, Germany should leave the EU. This will solve the problem, as Germany will then be able to distance itself from investigations implemented by the EU parliament.
Installing antennas and transmission lines on cellular towers.. Day in and day out we would climb 150, 200, 300feet and stay up there literally all day – often 10–12 hours.
Those heights were the norm, but I also did 400ft a couple of times, and then 500ft once.
And I did it because I needed a job and this paid really well. Plus I was a brand new divorcee and just starting over, so at the time working this tough, dangerous job with other guys was a very good thing for me. I made close friends, we partied and had fun, we laughed a lot, and it was just what the doctor ordered.
The end of Evergrande.
Bloomberg News has reported that billionaire founder and chairman Hui Ka Yan was taken away by police earlier this month and put under so-called residential surveillance , a type of police action that falls short of formal detention or arrest.
The surveillance doesn’t necessarily mean that Hui will be charged with a crime, and the exact circumstances of his situation remain unclear. But it’s not looking good: Evergrande has halted trading and confirmed in a Hong Kong stock exchange filing that authorities have told the company that Hui has been subjected to “mandatory measures,” due to “suspicion of illegal crimes.
The latest twist in an ongoing saga for the world’s most indebted developer has left creditors confused and concerned about what’s to become of their investments. The fate of the developer’s restructuring plans are now at risk, and the chances of a full-on liquidation have increased.
There’s a long list of victims: the hundreds of thousands of homeowners who bought into some 706 residential projects that are still being built; people who bought into Evergrande’s wealth management products, worth 40 billion yuan ($5.5 billion) a few years ago; global investors who collectively own at least $30 billion of offshore debt; suppliers and banks who are among those owed some 2.39 trillion yuan in liabilities. The company is facing more than 2,000 lawsuits, too.
I remember a time when Evergrande was still able to overcome its detractors. When a shortsellertargeted it for alleged financial mismanagement back in 2012, a Hong Kong tribunal provided vindication by saying the report was misleading and false.
But so much has changed since then: Evergrande has become a harbinger of the nation’s real estate meltdown. Its fate seemed to be sealed back in 2020, when a liquidity scare fueled by its massive debt load triggered aggressive regulatory tightening. Compounded by pandemic-related woes, the company defaulted the following year.
What happens after Evergrande? As we know, this property crisis is far from over. China’s property developers face a liquidity shortfall worth some 19 trillion yuan, or 15% of GDP, that could morph into a solvency crunch by year-end, Bloomberg analysts estimate.
Property downturns are always painful. In China, that’s especially the case because of the outsized role that the sector plays in the economy: As much as 70% of household wealthis tied to the industry.
The government has responded by relaxing property buying rules, since it doesn’t want the current distress among developers to trigger financial contagion — nor does it want to see social unrest.
Dragging out the Evergrande saga, though, has wreaked havoc among homebuyers, construction workers, suppliers and investors. And as the government has shown no intention of bailing out developers, the only certainty we’re left with is the idea that this pain is far from finished.
My ex was the CFO of one of the largest private construction companies in the world. His main role was to make sure the company stayed profitable. Simple really.
The owners’ son, who recently graduated from college and was having trouble finding gainful employment, (seems nobody would hire him to get stoned) was parachuted into my ex’s job. My ex was quickly let go.
He didn’t mind too much. Even though a little disappointed, he still was paid out fairly and started his own firm with the severance money.
A tender came up for a new skyscraper in London. My ex’s former company put in its bid and came in ahead of everyone else by millions. Turned out months into construction that the new CFO had forgotten to add the cost of electrical wiring into the cost of construction. A mistake that sent his family bankrupt.
Luckily there was one new firm with the creditor’s backing, experience and ability to jump in immediately. My ex hired a lot of the now redundant employees and bought a large chunk of his old company’s heavy equipment at a huge discount in a mortgagee sale.
The lesson here is to never kill the golden goose!
Elderly shelter cat had weeks to live. So this woman adopted him.
This woman is a saint! What she does for these cats is beyond compassion!
The Sixteenth Forum of the World Association for Political Economy (WAPE) took place from 25 to 27 September 2023 in Fuzhou, China, co-organised by Fujian Normal University. The theme of the forum was Chinese modernisaton and the prospects of world modernisation. Although unable to attend in person, Friends of Socialist China co-editor Carlos Martinez was invited to submit a video presentation.
Carlos’s presentation, entitled Capitalist and socialist modernisation, takes up a number of questions: What is modernisation? Is modernisation desirable? How has modernisation been achieved in the West? What is China’s modernisation plan? What are the unique characteristics of Chinese modernisation? How does socialist modernisation differ from capitalist modernisation? What effect does China’s modernisation on the global journey towards development and socialism?
The video and the text of Carlos’s presentation are available below.
What is modernisation, and is it necessary?
Modernisation is a somewhat nebulous concept. It means different things to different societies at different times. By definition, its parameters are constantly changing.
In the broadest sense, it means adapting to the latest, most advanced ideas and techniques for meeting humanity’s material and cultural needs.
In sociology, there is more or less an equals sign between modernisation and industrialisation, and is generally held to begin with Britain’s Industrial Revolution. We can think of it essentially as the transition from ‘developing country’ status to ‘developed country’ status; from a predominantly rural society to a predominantly urban society; from a technologically backward society to a technologically advanced society.
Is this desirable? Beauty is of course in the eye of the beholder, but most people consider modernisation to be desirable, because it enables higher living standards for the masses of the people.
With modernised industry, production techniques, communication methods, transport systems, energy systems and healthcare strategies, there exists the possibility of providing a healthy, meaningful and dignified life to all, such that each individual has reliable access to a healthy diet, to decent housing, to clothing, to education, to healthcare, to a vibrant cultural, social and intellectual life, and to fulfilling work. In short, modernisation makes it possible to attend to people’s basic human rights.
The fruits of modernisation have thus far been divided extremely unequally: the process of industrialisation in North America, Europe and Japan has created previously unimaginable wealth for a few, but this has been accompanied by desperate poverty and alienation for significant numbers. However, modernisation creates a material basis for common prosperity, far beyond what a pre-modern economy can offer.
Specifically in the case of China, the government has set a goal of “basically realising socialist modernisation by 2035”, and has defined some parameters for this:
Reaching a per-capita GDP on a par with that of the mid-level developed countries such as Spain or the Czech Republic
Joining the ranks of the world’s most innovative countries in the realm of science and technology
Becoming a global leader in education, public health, culture and sport
Substantially growing the middle-income group as a proportion of the population
Guaranteeing equitable access to basic public services
Ensuring modern standards of living in rural areas
Steadily lowering greenhouse gas emissions and protecting biodiversity, so as to restore a healthy balance between humans and the natural environment
If achieved, these aims will constitute a significant – indeed world-historic – improvement in the living standards of the Chinese people, and will blaze a trail for other developing countries.
How did the West modernise?
But is China doing anything new? After all, it won’t be the first country to achieve modernisation.
In mainstream modernisation theory in the West, the dominant narrative is that the countries of Western Europe, North America and Japan achieved their advances via a combination of good governance, liberal democracy, free-market economics, scientific genius, geographical serendipity and a dash of entrepreneurial spirit.
Historical investigation reveals a considerably different story.
The most important precursors of the West’s modernisation are colonialism, slavery and genocide. The conquest of the Americas, the settlement of Australia, the transatlantic slave trade, the colonisation of India, the rape of Africa, the Opium Wars, the theft of Hong Kong, and more. The profits of colonialism and the slave trade were essential for propelling the West’s industrialisation, as was so eloquently uncovered in Eric Williams’ classic 1944 work, Capitalism and Slavery.
As Karl Marx famously wrote in Volume 1 of Capital: “The discovery of gold and silver in America, the enslavement and entombment in mines of the aboriginal population, the beginning of the conquest and looting of the East Indies, the turning of Africa into a warren for the commercial hunting of black-skins, signalled the rosy dawn of the era of capitalist production.”
Such is the ugly truth of European modernisation. And the story is not so different in the United States. Many of the so-called founding fathers of that country were slave-owners, and they established a slave-owners’ society. They went to war against the indigenous peoples and against Mexico in order to expand their territory.
In the 20th century, having established their domination over the Americas, they constructed a neocolonial global system that is still in place to a significant degree, imposing American hegemony on the world.
A network of 800 foreign military bases. NATO. An enormous nuclear arsenal. Genocidal wars waged on Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya. Systems of economic coercion and unilateral sanctions.
This is the global system of violence that has facilitated and accompanied North American modernisation.
Japan’s rapid rise was facilitated first by its brutal expansionist project in East Asia, particularly Korea and China, and then through adaptation to and integration with the US-led imperialist system, the much-vaunted ‘rules-based international order’.
South Korea, Singapore and Taiwan Province constitute the small handful of non-imperialist territories that have been able to achieve modernisation, but these are special cases. Their shared proximity to China and the DPRK is no coincidence; they have been inducted into the imperialist club by the US, to play a dual role as regional policemen and living advertisements for capitalism on the frontline of its confrontation with socialism. Both roles rely on at least a certain degree of prosperity for a section of the population.
There is no shortage of countries of the Global South which have attempted to apply the “liberal democracy plus free market capitalism” formula, but none have been successful in modernising. Indeed the West’s prescriptions for (and interference in) developing countries have largely led to chaos and disaster.
The contrast between the West’s success in modernising and the Global South’s failure has fed into a largely unspoken but widespread and pernicious racism: an assumption that white people are somehow inherently more advanced than everyone else.
This supremacism is allowed to fester, because in addition to dividing working class and oppressed communities, it provides convenient cover for the reality that capitalist modernisation is built on the foundations of colonialism, imperialism and hegemonism.
As Kwame Nkrumah commented, “in the era of neocolonialism, under-development is still attributed not to exploitation but to inferiority, and racial undertones remain closely interwoven with the class struggle.”
How is China modernising?
China’s journey towards modernisation starts in 1949 with the founding of the People’s Republic, the early construction of socialist industry, land reform and the extirpation of feudalism and the landowning class, and the provision of at least basic levels of education and healthcare services to the whole population.
In 1963, Premier Zhou Enlai, supported by Liu Shaoqi, Deng Xiaoping and Chen Yun, first raised the question of the Four Modernisations: of agriculture, industry, national defence, and science and technology. Despite a complex political environment this goal was revived in the early 1970s, and, with the launch of reform and opening up in 1978, China accelerated its pursuit of those goals, and ushered in an era of rapid development of the productive forces and improvement in the people’s living standards.
China’s journey of modernisation has evolved again in recent years with the pursuit of the second centenary goal: of building a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious and beautiful by 2049.
China is on a fast track to becoming an advanced, developed country, and this process stands in stark contrast to the West’s modernisation process:
First, China’s modernisation is built on the efforts of the Chinese people rather than on war, colonialism and slavery.
Second, its fruits are to be shared by everybody, not dominated by the wealthy. As General Secretary Xi Jinping said in his work report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, China’s modernisation is “the modernisation of common prosperity for all.”
Even today, not everyone in the West is able to enjoy the fruits of modernisation. Consider for example the US, where tens of millions lack access to healthcare; where over half a million people are homeless; where life expectancy for African Americans is six years less than for their white counterparts; where – according to the US Department of Education – over half of adults read below a sixth-grade level.
Third, China’s modernisation is becoming a green modernisation, fuelled by clean energy, careful not to destroy the planet that sustains us. Again quoting Xi Jinping’s work report, “it is the modernisation of harmony between humanity and nature.”
Capitalist modernisation has had a disastrous impact on the environment. With 4 percent of the global population, the US alone is responsible for 25 percent of historic greenhouse gas emissions. The simple fact is that humanity literally cannot afford for China’s modernisation to follow this pattern.
Socialist modernisation will become the ‘new normal’
The West’s modernisation path is not open to the countries of the Global South, and it wouldn’t be desirable even if it were. Today, the road of capitalist modernisation is closed, so how is China able to modernise?
China does not have an empire, formal or informal, but it does have a particular advantage of being a socialist state, a “people’s democratic dictatorship based on the alliance of workers and peasants”, to use Mao Zedong’s expression. Such a state can use its power to direct economic activity towards the goals of the social classes it represents.
Thus the specificities of China’s modernisation – the commitment to common prosperity, to ending poverty and underdevelopment, to preventing climate collapse and to peaceful development – are a function of China’s political system, its revolutionary history, and the leadership of the CPC.
At a meeting of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2016, Xi Jinping made this point very succinctly: “Our greatest strength lies in our socialist system, which enables us to pool resources in a major mission. This is the key to our success.”
Or as Deng Xiaoping famously commented in 1984: “the superiority of the socialist system is demonstrated, in the final analysis, by faster and greater development of the productive forces than under the capitalist system.”
In a world still largely dominated by capitalism – and an intellectual world still dominated by bourgeois ideology – it’s easy to forget this system’s fundamental and irreconcilable contradictions, which Marx identified with such clarity and profundity 150 years ago; contradictions which lead inexorably to inefficiency, stagnation and crisis. A political economy directed at the production of exchange values rather than use values can never result in common prosperity.
In China, the capitalist class is not the ruling class and is therefore not able to direct the country’s resources according to its own prerogatives. At the top level, resources are allocated by the state, in accordance with long-term planning carried out by, and in the interests of, the people.
This is what is enabling a new type of modernisation, which is blazing a trail for socialist and developing countries the world over.
The fruits of this process are being shared with the world, via mechanisms such as the Belt and Road Initiative and the Global Development Initiative, which are creating a path for the countries of the Global South to break out of underdevelopment, even where they lack China’s resources and political advantages.
As such, China’s evolving modernisation has great historic significance, and offers valuable lessons for the world. It is an embodiment of historical materialism in the current era: capitalism has long since exhausted its ability to fundamentally drive human progress, and therefore the future lies with socialism.
Galvarino was a legendary warrior of the Mapuche people who rebelled against the Spanish Conquers who had invaded their land.
The Mapuche people were natives of the Araucana region of Chile who fought against the Spanish conquest of South America. The Arauco War was the bloodiest and longest-running battle in the history of the New World.
In what became known as the Battle of Lagunillias, Galvarino led his people in a fight against the Spanish invaders who were trying to force them into servitude.
During the battle, Galvarino and his men were captured by the Spanish. As punishment for defying the Spanish, Galvarino had both his hands amputated at the wrists and sent him home as a message to the other Mapuche tribes.
image 107
He returned home defeated and severely wounded. He showed the war council his wounds and begged them to let him lead an army against their oppressors. For his bravery, he was named commander of a squadron of men in a fight against Governor Mendoza.
With long Sharp knives fastened to his mutilated stumps, he led his army into battle against Governor Mendoza and his men. The Brutal battle lasted for an hour, with Galvarino striking and killing Mendoza’s number two in command with his modified stumps.
image 73
Although Galvarino and his men fought a brave battle, they were soon overwhelmed and captured. All the remaining captured warriors including Galvarino, were executed on the orders of Governor Mendoza.
Huawei has established the third truly COMMERCIAL Asian Tech Ecosystem from China and the eighth in Asia after Toyota, Nikon, Canon ,Samsung , BYD, Trina and Xinyi
image 106
The Huawei Ecosystem now has
The Chip
The OS
The 5G Modem
The GPU
The Networks
Yet Huawei Ecosystem is fragile because SMIC the manufacturer of the 7 nm Node depends on Advanced DUV equipment from ASML
Now SMIC has stockpiled massive orders from ASML and that will keep SMIC going till maybe 2026
However that’s still dependence, a lot of dependence on the West
So i would say HUAWEI has made a start
Meanwhile people forget the REAL WINNERS of the three companies that have established it’s own dominant ecosystem on which the West is entirely dependent on :-
image 105
BYD
BYD has:-
The Chip – The Mature 28nm Chip that only China can today manufacture cost effectively and in huge volumes
The Software
The Satellite Navigation System
The Battery
The Dynamic Unit
It’s completely and entirely Independent from Western Technology
Trina and Xinyi who have :-
The Intelligent Chip
The Micrograde Wafer Panel (That to this day no nation can produce except France but at 87% higher cost)
The Carbide micro layering etching equipment (Chinas equivalent of the EUV Lithography Machine)
The Silicon extraction process into Mono, Poly Crystalline Silicon with infusions
Yes Huawei deserves all the admiration for its clawback and fighting
Yet BYD, Trina and Xinyi actually get Proprietary License Fees from the West which is unique for a Nation that to thia day didn’t kowtow to the West unlike Japan, Israel and South Korea
Huawei to win, needs SMIC to become another BYD or Xinyi or Trina
If SMIC can achieve that, then China truly begins the challenge to the established Semiconductor industry
Lego just hit a climate BRICK wall
Lego says that it cannot make bricks from recycled material. They tried and they simply cannot do it without increasing carbon emissions. That’s a refreshing admission. Most companies take on “green initiatives” anyway, even if they prove to make the problem worse. In a similar vein, the CEO of Lufthansa admitted that“going green” would require the airline to use up HALF of Germany’s electricity. So not green at all then. Meanwhile, Ford says that it will pause construction of a $3.5 billion plant to build EV batteries in Michigan. They aren’t saying why. It just goes to show: It ain’t easy being green.
You’ve probably heard of China’s ambitious plan to connect the world with its Belt and Road Initiative, or BRI for short. It’s a massive project that involves building roads, railways, ports, pipelines, and other infrastructure across Asia, Africa, Europe, and beyond. China says it’s a win-win situation for everyone, a way to boost trade, development, and cooperation among more than 140 countries that have signed up for it.
But not everyone is buying it. Some critics in the West say that the BRI is a trap, a scheme, or a tool for China to expand its power and influence at the expense of other countries. They say that the BRI is saddling poor countries with unsustainable debt, damaging the environment and human rights, and undermining the international order. They also say that the BRI is losing steam due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the backlash from some host countries, and the changing global dynamics.
So what’s the real story? Well, if you listen to what China has to say on its official websites, you’ll get a very different picture. According to them, the BRI is not losing steam at all. In fact, it’s gaining momentum and achieving positive results in various aspects.
First of all, they say that the BRI has shown strong resilience and vitality amid the COVID-19 pandemic. China has actively cooperated with other BRI partners to fight against the virus, provide medical supplies and vaccines, share prevention and treatment experiences, and support economic recovery. The BRI has also contributed to the global efforts to build a community of health for all.
Secondly, they say that the BRI has promoted high-quality development and green cooperation. China has adhered to the principles of extensive consultation, joint contribution, and shared benefits, and has followed the international rules and standards in implementing BRI projects. China has also attached great importance to environmental protection, social responsibility, and debt sustainability, and has encouraged green investment and financing under the BRI framework.
Thirdly, they say that the BRI has enhanced mutual trust and friendship among different countries and peoples. The BRI has fostered dialogue and exchange among different civilizations, cultures, and religions, and has supported education, culture, tourism, sports, media, and other fields of people-to-people cooperation. The BRI has also created opportunities for poverty alleviation, job creation, livelihood improvement, and social development for millions of people in the participating countries.
So there you have it. The BRI is not losing steam but rather advancing steadily and fruitfully. The BRI is not a solo show by China but a chorus by all participants. The BRI is not a challenge or threat to anyone but a benefit and opportunity for everyone. The BRI is not a zero-sum game but a win-win cooperation for common development. That’s what China wants you to believe. And if you don’t believe it, well, too bad for you. Because China is not going to stop or change its course anytime soon. It’s going to keep pushing forward with its vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind.
Why Australia’s Housing Crisis Is a Warning for the World
They weren’t misled by Russian trolls. They weren’t ignorant. They weren’t racist or sexist or xenophobic or homophobic. They were mad… they felt left behind and ignored by the media and the federal government… and they had a point.
They were left behind, and ignored.
For many of them, the America their parents and grandparents grew up in was a lot better. And no, that’s not because other groups were oppressed. It was because the economy was better for working-class people back then.
If your grandparents raised a large family on a single income, while the media and politicians cared about what your grandparents cared about, and now, 50 years later, you and your wife can’t get by on your dual incomes, and the media and politicians spend more time talking about transgender bathroom usage than the fact that families like yours are falling further behind each year… then yes, you have a point, and Make America Great Again makes sense.
Blueberry Grunt
2023 10 14 11 57
Ingredients
4 cups fresh blueberries
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup water
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons grated orange peel
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk
Instructions
In a skillet, combine blueberries, sugar and water; bring to a boil. Simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
In a bowl, combine the next 6 ingredients; stir in milk just until moistened (dough will be stiff).
Drop by tablespoonsful over blueberries.
Cover and cook for 10 to 15 minutes or until dumplings are puffed and test done.
All terrorism in the world is linked to the United States! It is no longer a secret that the United States Government supports terrorism in South-East Asia!
US-backed Terrorism Targets Vietnam & Myanmar in Wider War on China
Two terrorist attacks this month (June 2023) in Southeast Asia have been carried out by groups backed by the United States government and its allies for decades;
This includes a singer murdered in Myanmar and a series of armed attacks carried out on police stations in Vietnam killing 9 including several civilians;
British state media, the BBC, and US government-funded media platform Radio Free Asia have attempted to spin and even justify this terrorism as part of a much wider pattern promoting and defending terrorism as a means to counter China’s rise and punish nations working closely with China;
The opposition in Myanmar has openly been backed by the US and UK for decades – fighting to reinstall Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy back into power;
In Vietnam, the ethnic Montagnards had fought alongside US invaders in the Vietnam War, and since then have worked closely with the US through the National Endowment for Democracy toward separatism;
Much of this context is omitted from Western state-media accounts of the terrorism;
Both Myanmar and Vietnam’s current governments have close relations with China. Vietnam, while depicted in the Western media as “anti-China,” has worked with China to build infrastructure within its borders and access Chinese rail projects to bring their products all the way to Europe;
Why Companies That Go Woke Go Broke
I saw the title and I instantly clicked to watch, really wanted to see a documentary about all these companies that went woke, then broke!
Well one fairly amazing thing happened in Penang. I (white Australian) was speaking to my friend (Asian Australian) in English.
An American tourist interrupted us and asked “excuse me, do you speak English?” We were both quite shocked and I said “a little.” I don’t know if she really couldn’t understand Australian English and didn’t realise what language I was speaking.
She said “Can you direct me to XYZ hotel?”
Now ordinarily two Aussies, neither of whom have ever been to Malaysia and speak no Malay wouldn’t be the best choice. But I pointed to the building we were standing in front of and said “walk about 10 yards that way.”
She was WAY out of her depth and her next international holiday should probably be to Hawaii.
However, I did the opposite in Austria. I speak no German, but if I look at a menu and plan out my sentence I can pretend to. So I asked in perfect German “Could I please have 2 hot chocolates; one with whipped cream and one with rum thanks.” She answered with something as simple as “that will be 8 euros” and I looked at her blankly and said in English “I’m sorry, I don’t speak German.” She laughed and did the transaction in English. She said I fooled her.
Pretty much the same thing in Poland, back in the days before Schengen membership. Apparently I needed a visa. So they berated me in Polish for a while, and I said I didn’t speak Polish. They went to the lingua franca of Eastern Europe and said “something something Russky.” I replied with what I’m told is an excellent accent “nye poni mayu po Russkiy.”
Here’s a guy in Lithuania, driving an Estonian-registered car, saying in perfect Russian in response to a question IN Russian “I don’t understand Russian.” I’m sure they weren’t thrilled and may not have believed me but I looked blankly at the rest of their diatribe. So eventually they wrote down my name, pointed me to Vilnius and said “visa.”’
Almost every Chinese City beats Indian Cities hollow in terms of Cleanliness, Safety and Development
image 113image 114
There are Primarily three reasons for this :-
A. One Party Meritocracy & Funds
In China, fund allocation for Cities and their overall Urban development is based on the Urban Development Index (UDI) plus between 15% upto 46% of the revenue generated by a City is used by the Local Government of that Province and the Administration of that City to develop the place
There is no political rivalries or party based discrimination between Fund Allocation and Revenue sharing
It’s all about How much the City develops and how well maintained the City is
In India, funding is a nightmare because the State themselves have no claim over the money they generate as revenue. Everything is handed over to the Centre which then decides how much each State should get and then the State decides how much each City should get
China has 20 times the provincial autonomy than an Indian State
B. Continuous Development to prevent overcrowding
India keeps on dumping on the same city again and again for year after year. Thus every such city attracts migrants like flies and that leads to overcrowding of the worst order
China keeps developing and expanding new Cities regularly
Chengdu, Chongqing etc were small towns a decade or so ago that are now bustling cities, brimming with Prosperity
Urumqi was once a town , now it’s classified as a Tier 3 City
Thus if you notice Shanghai and Beijing both lost 4% and 5.6% of the population due to migration between 2013–2023 whereas Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi and Hyderabad netted between 7.6% and 12% SURPLUS population by migration between 2008–2023
C. Chinas Housing Policy
Everyone living with a proper Job in a City in China MUST have housing
This is a law from the time of Chairman Mao and when it’s a Chairman Mao law, it’s enforcement is very strict
Public Housing is thus available for every single resident of the city including the poorest of them
Only Shanghai and Beijing has slums today , which existed before the 1998 law and thus can’t be torn down
image 112
If you have a legitimate job in CQ City, you get a Public Apartment of 39–52 Square Meters with indoor plumbing, heating, air conditioning and gas and electricity and drinking water for a mere 78 RMB / month
Of course many Chinese become prosperous enough to rent much nicer places and sub lease their public homes for which they pay rent of 78 RMB/ month for 400–500 RMB / month
During Covid 19, many such people were discovered and fined very heavily (30, 000 RMB plus 60 months rent or 100 Days in Prison)
A Fourth reason is the fact that Migration into Cities is heavily controlled
You just can’t come to a City that easily without housing or a job unless you are a tourist there
In India it’s the opposite
You can flood into cities and sleep on the roads and everywhere else and even defecate
It’s like a Zoo
image 110image 111
So it’s the Chinese System
They may have their flaws but by God they have excellent City maintenance and keep themselves very clean
image 109
Their Air Quality improvement in a mere decade is something every nation takes notes on
image 108
Primarily another reason is the Chinese are proud of their country and love their country
Not the bogus love that Indians show which translates into defending India for all it’s weaknesses, glorifying mediocrities as superheroes, forcing people to stand up for the National Anthem etcetera
The genuine love that ensures they actively take pride in their development and their cities
When stray cats see this man, they compete with each other to get a place on his lap.
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.
One of the “head shakers” about China is the ever-present music of Kenny G on elevators, in supermarkets, in malls, and in restaurants. I do like slow easy jazz, and back in the 1980’s. But I, like most Americans, have moved WAYYYY past all that.
We moved past mullets. We moved past Miami Vice. We moved on from large curly hair, and pastels. We moved on from Windows DOS.
But, you know, China never experienced those things, and have no idea how out of date all this is. And us expats, really, have no heart to admonish our friends in China to stop being so retro. We, well, we just let it all ride.
Just like no one ever says “What’s uppppppppppp!” any longer.
First of all, Fentanyl is used for treating severe pain especially for cancer patients and is deem a medicine product which many countries import mainly from China. Likewise it is your own country laws and regulations to prevent abuse instead of blaming China or Mexico or another other countries. If illegal Fentanyl managed to slip into your country, blame your border guards and custom officer for not doing the job or your judges for not imposing severe penalties.
Just like a simple soap for washing and bathing and you decided to abuse it by eating them as food and then you blame China other then yourself.
I suggest in that case better that your country be pure communist like Mao time where China totally shut off from the world where no exports and no imports can take place.
Would that scenerio be a better option for your country . That covers all your citizens from visiting any countries so that they will not be arrested or detained or even your organs been harvested for scientific research.
The moral of my answer is don’t blame others, other than yourself if you decided your own will to do stupid things.
We don’t actually need them. This is from the US military college. A war with China will wipe 3600 US soldiers out or 50,000 a week. That means ONE brigade a day.
Yes. My brother died last September without signing his will (they had it filled out but he didn’t sign it).
I have helped his widow out with cleaning the house.
Because he was intestate, I’m technically entitled to 25% of his inheritance under my state law as our parents are dead, but he was married (75/25 split by law).
He literally told me he wanted everything to go to his wife, who I would consider my sister now.
I’m not screwing a 60 year old lady out of her house.
Yeah, as a working class guy, I could REALLY use 100k+ dollars if I fought it, but I will absolutely NOT destroy his dream of his wife having a nice little home.
Them home cooked meals, talk and sharing memories a couple times every few months are worth more to me than money.
Maybe I’m an idiot, but I love him and her too much to go by “the law”.
Signing that form for her lawyer was about the easiest moral choice I’ve ever had to take.
CN bans ASML products,Lays off 86 million employees; Photolithography machine turned into scrap metal
For china to make a competitive smartphone to Apple with old generation technology is truly remarkable, I know why U.S and Europe is scared of china…they are simply better in technology.
Russia IS a democracy. Merely because they keep electing Putin and the UR Party all the time or because the election rules favor the ruling party doesn’t disturb the definition
Ultimately Putin IS elected by the people of Russia
The Government under Putin has helped Russia rise from a torn apart and destroyed country in 1991 to a very strong, united force in 2023
So the People are happy and the People vote for the Government and President
That’s Democracy to me
If the US don’t like it, they can go f*** themselves
Next China
Chinese society is 5000 years old
The Chinese mindset is entirely based on the premise that EVERY CHINESE has a role to play in Society and if every Chinese plays their role properly, China will flourish
Under the Emperors, this role was defined by birth and family
Under today’s CPC, this role is defined by ABILITY, ABILITY and more ABILITY
That very mindset is completely against Democracy which claims everyone from a Pauper to a Beggar to a Technology Geek to a Clerk to a Oil Baron have the same rights in choosing a Government
The result is before you
India and China became Independent in 1947 and 1949 – at the same time virtually
Yet China is advanced in EVERY SINGLE FACET over India
China stands before the US as such a feared opponent that the US spends every waking moment on trying to countering China with propaganda and lies and failing
Proof that the CPC did more for China than any Democracy in the history of the modern world
Why would they need this US loser version of democracy
The Chinese version of Governance:-
The Worthy keep voting in the Grassroots
The Unworthy do what they are told to do
Only Ability and Merit matters
One Party, different opinions
Gays, Transgenders put in their proper place which is a ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell environment’
That alone is enough for China to grow
They don’t need the horrors of becoming a Cesspit democracy
Oh SH*T, What Russia and China are doing will change everything, and the west wants WAR
What Russia, China and North Korea are doing will change everything. The massive economic expansion is pushing the West to do some very desperate things. This week Russia and North Korea signed remarkable new trade agreements. It came on the same week as China and Russia launched a new cross border energy hub. Do you see what’s happening?
URGENT: RUSSIA **HALTS** ALL EXPORT OF GASOLINE AND DIESEL FUEL
This morning, Thursday, September 21, Russia announced they are “temporarily” halting the export of all Gasoline and Diesel Fuel.
Russia is the world’s single biggest seaborne exporter of diesel-type fuel.
Their decision will have an immediate impact on fuel costs and availability. Expect skyrocketing prices, especially for Diesel, and subsequent skyrocketing prices on EVERY product that moves by truck.
It is not known at this hour, exactly how long this “temporary” halt will last.
Confession of the Day
There’s always someone who ended up in a worse situation with a bigger loss. Every time I hear those stories, it makes me feel a little better that it “could have been worse.” Hope this helps someone realize how bad it can get before you ultimately end in the same place, with the same loss, and the same need for help. It’s also therapeutic to write it down, I’ve found.
In 2012 I had $20k to my name. Turned that into $100k in 5 years buying American Airlines and chip stocks. Took most of the $100k and bought a house to run as an Airbnb. Made about $100k off that in 2 years and sold it when they banned airbnbs. Bought my own house and sold it a year later for another $100k profit. Invested that $300k in the market around the Covid drop and ended 2020 with about $600k. Then I started with options. The ability to make huge gains so quickly was so intoxicating and addictive. $20k in a day. $50k. $100k. I was crushing it and starting to dream of my new rich life. I broke the $1mil threshold and ended the day with $1.1m.
The next day the market sucked and I knew it. But I had such an itch I made a play anyway. I was down $250k by noon because I broke all my own rules just to avoid “taking a loss.” I finally accepted the loss but tried to chase it by jumping to the other side. That cost me an additional $100k loss. Within 2 days I made it back to within spitting distance of being a millionaire once again, but spoiler alert, I’d never see that number again.
Down $200k, another $300k. I finally had to go to my dad for a bailout. He refueled me and I lost it all again within a month. Another bailout, another loss. I was so depressed and suicidal at this point. It was like a bad dream that I couldn’t wake up from. I will forgo buying a drink with a meal because I don’t want to spend the extra $3 but I had no problem loosing $600k in a single day if it meant I could get the dopamine rush.
Then comes the shame of having to admit what happened. The relapses. The broken future. The never ending despair.
I made right moves far more times than wrong but my losses were always much larger than my gains because I couldn’t accept a loss and didn’t want to further risk a gain. In the end, the money didn’t actually mean anything and it was never about the money (not really anyway) it was always about the high of submitting the order and watching the dollars come or go.
In the end, if it wasn’t for anti depressants and my daughter, I wouldn’t be here today. Looking back it’s impossible to imagine how something could have completely high jacked my brain in such a way but it really did.
There is recovery. There is help. It does work. I only wish it didn’t take losing $2mil before I realized it and finally sought help and treatment.
Don’t make my mistake if waiting and find help now. Also, give the “unhappy millionaire” episode of Happiness Lab podcast a listen, changed my life.
Giving up the American Dream is hard.
giving up the American Dream is Hard. I made a few videos: why I gave up the American Dream, the real cost of the American dream and how to ditch the American Dream. Folks have resonated with it, hated it and everything in between.
But let’s be honest, it’s hard to give up the American dream, especially as a Black woman.
Hustle Culture is not for Black women, but the pursuit of the American dream is tied directly to it.
Let’s talk about grieving the American Dream. content included: giving up the American Dream, I gave up the American Dream, Giving up the American Dream is hard, Hustle Culture is not for Black women, Healing for Black women, I gave up Black excellence, hustle culture is toxic, the real price of the American Dream, Black Women deserve good things, Black woman wage gap, I gave up the American Dream, why I gave up on the American Dream, grieving the American Dream, Black women and the American Dream,
I work as a manager in a Charity Shop/thrift Store and I look having a good search through donations for that special item!
One day, I had some items donated and a handbag. In that handbag in a secret pocket was a Genuine Cartier watch.
I was in absolute awe and was so excited!! Thing is, I wasn’t 100% sure I wanted to sell it without the donors consent. (I knew it was genuine as it’s myself who deals with all the name branded luxury items)
I chased the lady through town and told her what I’d found. She broke down in tears telling me they were her late mums things and the watch was lost for many years. Her mum had dementia and her father was only just starting to clear through her things.
So anyway, she asked me to stay with her whilst she rang her father to tell him the news (he also cried which started me off crying!)
After the ordeal of the day I genuinely felt pretty chuffed with myself. I could’ve easily sold it online for a 3figure sum – but something just didn’t feel right.
A few days later that same gentleman came in and thanked me personally. He told me he’d brought it his wife for an anniversary present. I asked how it came to being in an everyday handbag and he explained that she went to get it cleaned (it was boxed) but her dementia was in it’s early stages and was eventually forgotten about. The kind gentleman had a funeral collection in the Charities name and even made a £200 donation to me personally, which I put to the charity.
So yea, that’s my amazing find
Oprah has no idea there’s a Cost of Living Crisis
Why everything feels so expensive right now.
“The basic price of commodities has tripled in my experience from 2019. The same 1 bedroom apartment I rented in Dallas for 700 dollars in 2017 is 1400 dollars in 2023. The house that would cost 180k in suburban DFW just 5 years ago costs 400k. The cost of home and car insurance is over the roof. All this in Dallas which is still very cheap compared to many other big cities in the USA.”
Beijing says it uncovered US National Security Agency operatives behind cyberattack on Chinese university
Article HERE Second Date’ software used in Northwestern Polytechnical University attack is potent cyber espionage tool developed by US agency, says state media After global tracing, Chinese team reportedly found ‘thousands of network devices’ across the country still infected by the spyware and its derivatives
China says it has identified US National Security Agency operatives while investigating a recent cyberattack on Northwestern Polytechnical University, as its top spying and anti-espionage agency vowed on Thursday to root out all “digital spies”. The revelation came just three days after Beijing revealed more details about John Shing-wan Leung, a Hong Kong permanent resident and US citizen the Chinese Ministry of State Security said posed as a philanthropist while snooping for information. He was jailed for life for espionage in May, two years after his arrest in China.
State-run CCTV said on Thursday that China’s National Computer Virus Emergency Response Centre, with help from Chinese antivirus company 360 Total Security, had discovered the identity of the National Security Agency (NSA) operative or operatives – the broadcaster did not specify how many or name them – after it extracted “multiple samples” of a spyware called “Second Date”.
It said the spyware was used in the cyberattack on Northwestern Polytechnical University in Shaanxi province.
‘Stop stealing’: China condemns US over Trojan horse cyberattacks on state-funded university The report said technical analysis showed that Second Date was a cyber-espionage weapon developed by the NSA to sniff out and hijack network traffic and insert malicious codes.
Quoting senior engineer at the National Computer Virus Emergency Response Centre Du Zhenhua, it said software was a potent cyberespionage tool that enabled attackers to take control of target network devices and the data traffic flowing through them, and use them as a “forward base” for the next stage of attacks. It could run on various operating systems and was compatible with multiple architectures.
Du was quoted as saying the spyware was usually used in conjunction with various network device vulnerability attack tools from the NSA’s Office of Tailored Access Operations (TAO). The TAO, now renamed Computer Network Operations, is a cyberwarfare intelligence-gathering unit.
China’s foreign ministry says the international community should be highly vigilant about CIA activities as a new report alleges a years-long global cyberattack campaign. Photo: AFP The report said that after global tracing, the Chinese team found “thousands of network devices” across the country were still infected by the spyware and its derivatives. It said they also found springboard servers remotely controlled by the NSA in Germany, Japan, South Korea, India and Taiwan.
I had an abusive boyfriend. He was great at first, of course. As soon as he was confident of me, he stalked me, tried to run me off the road many times, pointed a gun at my head a few times, cut my phone lines, beat me, fired a gun into my floor pretending to commit suicide (he would never have done that, he only wanted to scare me), destroyed my things, and more. He was military (so was I) and I had no protection. I was able to get him out of my apartment with the help of his best friend and because he was put in a mental hospital for a few weeks. But I never got a break until I was discharged (honorably), moved across the country to a large city, and changed my name. An ex-husband kindly let me take his name, a common one. The abuser knew my friends and family. A false friend who secretly hated me (I didn’t know) kept telling him how to find me and encouraged others to do the same. People thought it was romantic that he carried such a torch for me. I thought he would appear at my door any day and kill me. He stalked me for 13 more years until I persuaded his commanding office to make him stop. I can’t imagine after all those years that this worked, but it did. Perhaps it was because he didn’t deny what he did and the commanding officer threatened his career and his pension. I never heard from him again. In those 13 years, things had changed somewhat.
I went to law school and made it my mission for many years to protect other women who were treated this badly and sometimes worse by abusers. I got them protection orders and divorces. I got their abusers out of their homes and sometimes in jail. It was very satisfying work. I’m retired now and happy to be so. I feel I did my bit.
It will be amazing if BRICS can come up with some gold-backed trading currency. The dedollarization is happening fast. Over the last 20 years, you see the share of global payments in the dollar has gone down at a steady rate.
This is getting even faster now. At the same time, to “truly dedollarize,” several aspects should be taken into account, he added.
“The harder part” in efforts to replace the dollar lies in the reserve aspect of the currency, the Netley Group president noted. For instance, the United States’ big advantage at the moment is the breadth of its bond market, Goddard explained. “One of the ways, I think, BRICS could develop something to compete with that would be the technology to actually link the BRICS bond markets,” the entrepreneur added.
Combining these two things — a stable trade currency and a strong joint bond market — could create the potential to eventually displace the dollar, Goddard also stated. This process could be even sped up with the enlargement of BRICS, increasing the depth of these economic ties, he concluded.
I live in Haifa, Israel, the location of that port.
A few decades ago we decided to build tunnels to connect the north, the south, and the middle of Haifa. We hired a Chinese company from Shanghai with experience in tunnel building to do the work. It was a massive project and took a few years, during which the Chinese workers lived here. The Chinese company did an excellent job. These tunnels have reduced traffic congestion in Haifa.
The Chinese company we chose to run the new Haifa port has a lot of experience in that kind of work.
In both cases, we chose based on objective criteria, not on politics.
Btw, many Chinese students study at the Technion here, and Chinese tourists visit.
China offers subsidies to their EVs in battery making and other areas, heavy subsidies in taxes and waivers to ensure that EVs are produced at a final cost that is 20% cheaper
This makes Chinese EVs deliver lower cost at better quality than many European EVs
Second complaint is that most of the world pays a premium for Chinese EV batteries but BYD and other players pay 45% lower costs for the same battery due to the fact that the batteries are made in China
This is alleged as unfair competition
They want either the batteries at lower costs or a 20% mark up on Chinese EVs that eliminates the subsidy effect
It’s Classic Protectionism 101
Soviet Style rather than Adam Smith
China didn’t do this
When Volkswagens and Citroens and Mercedes Benz and Toyota and Mitsubishi dominated the vehicle markets of China a decade or so ago:-
China didn’t impose extra tariffs on them nor make it unfair for them to import custom made parts by imposing 60–260% tariffs
China told BYD and SAIC and Great Wall to either make similar quality cars or go out of business because the customer needs the best
Thus these companies formed partnerships and purchased technology and leased technology and made a living with limited market share
Yet this competition helped them prepare a lead in EVs and dominate today
However the West isn’t prepared to do the same thing and ask Renault and Chevy and Volkswagen to COMPETE or go out of business
They want to protect their companies
Like US , Germany, France
They talked of free trade when their products were much superior and Asian nations imposed protectionism
Today when they are being left behind, they scream and yell and whine about tariffs and duties
China has many weapons here
China sells 61.5% of the EV Batteries in the world and 86% of EV Batteries today are made by Chinese players with only Tesla having it’s own supply chain and making it’s own battery for it’s own cars
If you want EVs – you need the Chinese Battery, Electric System and Motors and Chargers
The Chinese make the world’s best and most cost efficient products
Even Tesla battery technology is inferior to CATL and it’s latest batteries
It’s only in Autonomous driving that Tesla has an edge
So frankly China for the next 15 years at least can simply ban the export of batteries or impose a 80% tariff on EV exports and ensure European and US EVs simply can’t compete with ICEs
It throttles the EU green initiative
China loses the EU market but critically ensures Russia & Saudi gains a major leverage as EU and US become more dependent on Oil
That is one card
The Bigger card is
China can play it’s own protectionism
China has a huge market for European Cars with Eight Brands having their largest market in China
That’s 157,000 Jobs
China could simply ban the imports tomorrow and that would finish these companies revenue and share wise
Like the Iphone
Intel & Qualcomm openly said if China forced them to choose between the Chinese market and the Commerce Department restrictions, they would have to choose China for the sake of their US stockholders
If China banned Qualcomm entirely today and said “Okay. We will live with inferior phones but you B******* won’t sell or get a fifty cent piece from us”
Qualcomm would be brutally mauled
The Entire smartphone industry will be brutally mauled
The Entire Semiconductor industry will be brutally mauled
The Chinese are VERY PATIENT PEOPLE and they will play their cards very slowly
They thrive on competing
If China simply decides to close its markets to Foreigners except it’s Russian and Global South friends who will sell it all the Energy and Food it wants
Then most of the Tech firms will be brutally mauled
It was predicted that if Apple was banned entirely from China – $ 1.02 Trillion of it’s market share would never come back
The Total hit on the entire industry could touch $ 7–12 Trillion
Who will take up the slack?
India is expected to touch 40% of Chinas present market in 17–21 years (2040–2044)
Nobody else can take up even 3% of this slack
So China has a lot of Brahmastras to use
There will be no more Huaweis
Huawei was a blow
Nobody expected the West to be so brutally lawless and act like a mafia state , like a land with zero laws
Today China is ready
Every US attack has a party from China including the biggest Brahmastra
CUT OFF ACCESS TO PHARMA APIs & Cut off all components needed for Medical Equipment
Devalue US Debt by suddenly pegging an exchange rate of 2 Yuan to 1 USD. China will lose 17 Trillion Yuan and after the peg is removed the rate could reach 10–11 but US will lose 160 Trillion Yuan ($ 25 Trillion) , 8 times worse than the 2008 Crisis
APPLE Shocked! Huawei’s Secret Weapons: NearLink Explained
Amazing technology. Zero coverage in Western “news”.
Chinese wisdom: Wang Yi urges nations to help avert cold war
INTRODUCTION
Human behavior falls into durable patterns of action and reaction/response. Taking China-U.S. bilateral relations as an illustration, one almost always finds that China is forever responding, and that the United States is non-stop plotting, agitating and acting in annoying or irritating ways, resulting in China’s patterned response of rebuttal.
For example, in picking a fight with China, the United States will accuse China of “spying” and/or soliciting a prominent politician to accuse and confront China on “ideological” grounds, making it difficult for China to defend.
How do you defend an ideological choice?
As ideology is value-laden, it was adopted to change a sick Chinese society for the better, by bringing in fresh or foreign ideas that are believed to work.
For China, socialism with Chinese characteristics is designed to address its chronic social inequality and alleviate abject poverty. China’s adoption of a socialist ideology is observably bearing fruitful results, lifting millions of its people out of poverty, and building railways in foreign countries.
But, for the U.S. hardcore irrational antagonists such as Mike Pompeo, China is “on the wrong side of history”. What else then can these self-styled enemies of China do but to use and recycle the “spying” game of accusations, hoping to see their cooked-up situation comes to fruition.
In the following article taken from an English-language newspaper dated Thursday, July 30, 2020, the incidents that happened at the beginning of the Trump era were nearly the same as that is happening in the United Kingdom, which has officially announced that a parliamentary researcher has been lately accused of “spying” for the CCP.
For fear of missing its juicy details, let us go over this article.
Entered Wang Yi Who Called on All Countries to Resist “Unreasonable Acts” and to Help Prevent…
FM Wang Yi called on all countries to “resist” the United States’ “blatant and unreasonable acts”, and to help prevent the world’s two greatest powers from descending into what he called a new cold war.
In a phone call with his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian on Tuesday, Wang said China would take “firm and rational responses” amid the intensifying rivalry with the US, but also stressed that Beijing would strive to maintain stable relations with Washington.
It was the fourth time in less than a fortnight that Wang, who is also a state councilor, has named the US in conversations with foreign official, following calls with his Russian, Vietnamese and German counterparts.
Before that, veiled attacks against Washington might have been made in talks with foreign governments without naming it.
The change in rhetoric and the increased frequency of verbal aggression by both sides has meant a rapid deterioration of China-US relations, and an imperative for Beijing to ensure other nations do not side with Washington.
“Tolerating a bully [such as Pompeo] will not keep you safe. It will only let the bully get bolder and act worse. All countries should act to resist any unilateral or hegemonic act and safeguard world peace and development.” Wang was quoted as saying in a Chinese foreign ministry statement.
Wang said the current decline in China-US relations was caused by a certain political faction in the US, driven by the need to lift campaign prospects and maintain unipolar hegemony.
During the phone call to Le Drian, Wang called for “vigilance against US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s recent remarks instigating renewed ideological confrontation and leading the world to a new cold war”.
In a speech last week, Pompeo called for China’s own citizens to join an international effort to “change the behavior” of the ruling Communist Party.
“We believe that all countries will make the right and wise decisions, instead of being held hostage by a small number of American politicians,” Wang said.
“All countries will make concerted efforts to prevent the world from being dragged into a new cold war of conflict and confrontation,” he said.
But Wong said the interests of the two countries were deeply integrated – and that Beijing stood “ready to maintain the stability of China-US relations through equal communication and exchanges with the US side”.
“We will never allow a few anti-China elements to overturn decades of successful exchanges and cooperation between China and the U.S., nor will we allow ideological prejudice to undermine the future development of China-US relations.”
Ties between the world’s most powerful nations have plunged to the lowest point in decades as they clash over trade, technology and geopolitical clout.
In their latest brawl last week, the US ordered the closure of the Chinese consulate in Houston –over spying claims. China retaliated – by ordering the US mission in Chengdu to shut down.
The foreign ministry rolled out a 10-point rebuttal yesterday against American accusations over the closure of the Houston consulate, denying that it was a hub for China’s spying efforts or that it was used as a base for its “fox hunt” operations to induce the return of Chinese fugitives. (Source: SCMP)
CONCLUSION
Readers may find it amazing after reading the above newspaper article on U.S. accusation of Chinese spying, and China’s retaliatory response. Amazed because the narrative over alleged Chinese spying is the same, except this time it is the UK that is the accuser. This pattern persists, and tensions go up.
The ultimate reality, though, is that “U.S. trade is still chained to sources in China.” Research demonstrates the difficulty of severing the countries’ economic ties. According to NYT.
In the end, it is U.S. pragmatism and Chinese rationality that prevails, settling the “spy” squabbling.
Ties may temporarily go sour; bilateral efforts will be made, and trade activities between the U.S. and China will resume. Wang Yi’s rationality is right and wise.
The latest visits by high-profile U.S. secretaries starting with Anthony Blinken, Janet Yellen and Gina Raimondi wrapped up the futile spying game – testifying to the law that damaging business ties lead to revenue loss.
Only 100 years?! You bet, will be at least 1,000 years, or maybe, better back to the Stone Age!
And then, you might find one day, your country would have to import chips from China, and the products you use would be embedded with Chinese chips. LOL
The whole Western world, especially the nuclear powers, even later the Soviet Union, had blocked nuclear technology from entering into China back in the 1950s and 1960s. Then what?
The first Chinese nuclear test was conducted at Lop Nur on October 16, 1964. Then in less than 32 months, China detonated its first hydrogen bomb on June 14, 1967. Now, China’s nuclear arsenal is the world’s third largest, and China has, more importantly, also developed its nuclear technology for peaceful use, boasting the second largest number of nuclear power units in operation or under construction in the world.
China was officially barred from visiting the International Space Station (ISS) by the United States in 2011. Then what?
China is nearing its completion of the construction of its own space station -Tiangong, with many visits there already done by Chinese astronauts, three of them are right now flying over us in the station. With the ISS retiring sometime in 2030, China’s Tiangong will be the only space station in the world.
China has been under the tough blockade of Western military techonologies, especially high-end, advanced ones. Then what?
China has successfully tested several times of its hypersonic missiles, among the first nations who have achieved success in this most advanced weapon development.
Also, China has finished its third air-craft carrier, with a fully indigenous design, featuring a CATOBAR system and electromagnetic catapults, one of the most advanced in the world.
And China has its J-20, a twinjet all-weather stealth fighter aircraft with precision strike capability. The Y-20, a large military transport aircraft, the first cargo aircraft to use 3D printing technology to speed up its development and to lower its manufacturing cost.
Similar cases also include the tunnel boring machines, giant cranes, giant excavators, deep-sea drilling machines……You name it. Then what?
China has self developed all of them, not only meeting its own market needs, but also exporting them at a much more affordable price than their Western competitors. What’s more ironic is, some of them have been exported even to those countries who had previously blocked their techonologies into China!
So, in the short term, yes, China is sufferting from the heavy blow from the US, but in the long run, the US and its allies would not only lose the lion’s share of chip market here in China, but will have also to face a strong competitor in semi-conductors, or chips, or something alternative which have similar functions, in the not-too-far-away future, maybe in their own market, and also in the global market.
But during the process, the US would have dried up its influence as a banner-holder of liberal market economy, its credibility as the rule-setter who betrays its own rules, its reliability to its allies since all of them would have to suffer along with the US, and hence, its soft power in leading the world.
Nothing much to gain, but a lot to lose, yet, the US is determined to ride on the self-devastating road. The faster it runs, the quicker the fall of its hegemony.
Japanese-Style Sirloin
japanese style sirloin
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
1 pound Certified Angus Beef ® boneless sirloin steak, cut into 1/4 inch strips
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons sake or dry sherry
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
8 scallions, cut diagonally into 1 1/2 inch pieces
1 large red bell pepper, chopped
8 ounces Napa cabbage, chopped
4 ounces bean sprouts
1 cup cooked short grain rice
1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
Combine soy sauce, sugar and sake in a small bowl. Set aside.
Heat wok or electric frying pan to medium heat.
Heat oil, add steak strips and stir until beef is browned (about 3-5 minutes).
Push beef to one side. On the other side, add scallions and peppers and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes.
Add cabbage and sprouts, combining all ingredients in the pan. Stir-fry about 1 minute.
Sprinkle soy mixture over meat and vegetables. Cook for 1 minute.
Serve over warm rice and garnish with sesame seeds.
Why People are Leaving Canada, Top 5 Reasons Why People Leave
I left Canada about 1.5 years ago to travel the world and here are some of the top reasons why I left. I give a lot of my own personal anecdotes as someone who has lived in canada for over 20 years. This video represents my personal opinion about living in canada and why I prefer to live in Asia or other countries.
The main reasons. why people are leaving
1. High living costs creates a low standard of living, especially in Vancouver and Toronto.
2. Lack of infrustructure for transportation which means you need to have a car in order to get around
3. Brain drain and lack of opportunities because most talent go to the states
4. Lack of medical healthcare because most people can’t find a family doctor or are finding it difficult to find one
5. Not much social life /activities for young people, most stores close at 6pm
https://youtu.be/2vXjQHNfiW8
China, the next war
On China, the US is again lying itself into the next war. The US says “The [Defense] Department remains committed to abiding by the well-established one China policy of the United States” and “this Administration opposes any unilateral changes to the status quo from either side of the Strait. We have not supported Taiwan independence, we do not support it now.”
But actually the US is supporting the Taiwan independence from China, while Taiwan is calling its independent government the “Republic of China” which is a violation of the “one China” claim. The US also admits that the principle reason for this attention to China’s internal matters is to sustain the anti-China barriers in the off-shore China region: “Taiwan is located at a critical node within the First Island Chain in the Indo-Pacific region.” More detailed information on the coming anti-China next war is recent testimony in the House Armed Services Committee here and here.
A spoiler must possess some power to manipulate but this India clearly does not have.
India can do nothing within BRICS with China around (that’s why they didn’t even dare to join RCEP). Modi was left sitting in the corner of their meeting hall.and as quiet as a church mouse during the last BRICS summit because he had no allies to support him on anything. BRICS proceeded accordingly to invite those countries that Xi had pursued.
An interesting thing happened between then and the Modi show at the G20 with new BRICS members Saudi Arabia and the UAE getting into the act. And of course Xi completely abstaining from even attending. Expectations are of course that the G7 countries, headed by Biden, would be there to cheerlead to elevate Modi’s ego as their way of wooing him to their side.
As the saying goes, give the guy enough rope and he’ll be sure to do it to himself!
And true to form, Modi came out with a true masterpiece that had behind him the G7 countries – U.S., E.U., Germany, France and Italy – applauding him on. and the Western MSM hyping up Modi as the new major player to contest China’s BRI plans. This is the G7’s main challenge to China and to be implemented unti its GPII initiative!!
But this plan could not have been possible without the push of Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Of course, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have grand plans for themselves – mostly to transition and establish their economy as a major global force after their days of oil dominance is over.
But look at the curious first part of the IMEC journey that has the starting route going through the UAE and Saudi Arabia, which essentially is an alternative route to bypass the Suez Canal.
And then of all places, this very expensive trans-Arabian rail line ends up in Isreal!!!!!
Now, who are the Arabs in their right mind would set up the crown jewel of their economic infrastructure to land in the hands of their arch nemesis to be held hostage anyttime any conflict should arise?
So, you have Modi hoisting himself as a challenger to Xi’s BRI.and also coincidentally, there will be after this G20 a third BRI Meeting in Beijing in October 2023!
The big question is: What are Saudi Arablia and the UAE’s real plans? Are they with the IMEC or are they part of the BRI still and be officially inducted as new BRICS member in 2024?
A friend of mine told the story of going to visit his childhood home in Brooklyn. He had hired a car for the day to go all around the old neighborhood so he wouldn’t have to rely on taxis. On the way to visit his mother’s grave at the cemetery, he spotted a flower shop and thought it might be nice to bring flowers.
He went inside, and found a couple of men playing cards, They didn’t seem to notice him. He cleared his throat to get their attention.
“A customer!” one declared, as if in shock.
My friend said he had grown up in the neighborhood, and he chatted with the proprietor a bit about how things have changed over the years.
“Why don’t you sit down and have an espresso with us?” he asked.
“I can’t, I have a driver outside!”
“Well, invite him in, too!”
After he politely refused, they made a beautiful bouquet for him, fairly quickly. He was impressed with the work.
“How much do I owe you?” he asked.
The florist looked hurt. “It’s for your mother! How could I possibly charge you?”
After a little back and forth, it was clear that they weren’t going to accept payment. He thanked them for their generosity and left.
It dawned on him that this place probably wasn’t a flower shop. But they did make him a nice arrangement.
Something TERRIBLE Just Happened in Maui, Oprah & The Rock
James sues Hawaii for First Amendment violations over ban on public photography in Lahaina “This isn’t merely about the freedom to take photos; it’s about the freedom of the press and the right to hold our leaders accontable.
What are your thoughts on China surpassing the USA
Well, China has surpassed the United States in so many ways, that this question is a tad out of date. China is quite a formidable and powerful force right now. Depending on the measurements used, you can easily map out the dates when the mantel of power was transferred.
Economic = around 2013.
Military = around 1950.
Educational = around 1995.
Social = around 2005.
Manufacturing = around 1990.
Technological = in process.
So what are my thoughts about this?
I really don’t think that China is trying to surpass anyone. And certainly isn’t trying to better the USA. I just think that China is doing what it needs to do to serve it’s people. It’s 1.4 billion people, don’t you know. And they need to be satiated, satisfied, and happy.
China is doing that.
All these sanctions, political posturing, and the general madness out the United States (and it actually is a DSM-4 state of crazy-town) is only accelerating and necessitating China to become absolutely independent of the leashes and chains that the United States controls.
Soon, and I do mean SOON, whatever vestiges of American “greatness” will be eclipsed by a rather harsh reality.
Oh, and it PAINS me to speak of it.
But today, the United States is a lie, on top of a lie, that is covered up by lies, and the only good thing about it is that the lies are so obvious that everyone KNOWS that the lies are simply BULLSHIT.
Today, the USA is a third-rated, banana-republic, ruled by psychopathic morons.
And when history books are written about this has-been nation, it will refer to it as a over-glorified “strip mall” masquerading as transsexual brothel built upon an open sewer.
This is common knowledge in “fly over country”.
Those “Rich Men North of Richmond” really gutted the country, and are now stealing everything they can lay their hands on as they flee the cesspool that they created.
When did China surpass the United States?
Oh, sometime back in 1776. It’s been downhill ever since.
Neocons turn on Joe Biden
Calling Biden a president is like calling Harris a vice president.
This little post is going to make me the most hated man on the internet. Or, perhaps not.
Sigh.
But that is not it’s intention. Instead, my intention is to break down what happens when a woman decides to have a relationship outside of her marriage to her husband.
It’s about a woman who decides to cheat on her husband.
…
When a couple falls in love and starts a family, it is like a match being lit. The flame might brighten or dim, but it will still be ignited.
Events will cause the light to fade, or brighten.
But nothing is quite as devastating as an affair.
It will snuff off the light, and render it unable to ever be re-lit.
…
It’s life.
And, Well… Life is what we all experience.
And, that includes the non-physical with the physical.
Sigh.
…
Infidelity.
…
It is something that is going on with one of the MM followers right now.
And, you know, this is my “advice” to that contributor.
…
Life can be very painful, but we have to be very careful on how we deal with these events that we end up enduring. To do it right, it will take time.
I’m not a novice in these matters.
Lordy! It happened to me. Too.
…
Now, truth be told, this is a unique subset of the infidelity sub-culture. I will do one on men cheating on their spouses at a later date. So in all fairness, expect both sides to the same coin.
I have experienced both.
Sigh.
This is not intended as a DIY, “how to” guide, nor is it intended to be salacious. It is intended to break down, in really simple terms, what is going on and how to avoid having one HELL of a train-wreck in the process. Because (ask anyone who has been there) catching a partner cheating is DEVASTATING to everyone.
There’s absolutely no up-side to it.
It’s a toboggan to Hell.
Why and background
There is an MM influencer that is going though this right now.
Words really fail on how to comfort this person. I have no easy answers, but I can relate my own personal experiences, and these were TERRIBLE.
Thus, to prep for this response, I have, of late, been torturing myself listening to you-tube renditions of reddit discussions on infidelity cases. Ugh! Talk about a dark world! Very addictive, but leaves one drained.
Sheech!
Really horrible stuff.
But, you know, as a man who went through of a couple of divorces, I can (unfortunately) relate.
Now some of the videos and readings sound like fiction. Others are probably elaborated truths.
You have to take what you find on the internet with caution.
Nevertheless…
I want to offer something positive to this world. So, thus in this post, I am trying to address the singular issue of a woman who cheats outside her marriage, and what the ramifications are, and what her options actually are.
I will cover the absolute importance in truth in resolving this matter. And how to avoid the great calamity that is looming up ahead of you.
In the future, I will make a post of a man cheating on his wife.
Let’s start with some solid truths.
Some important notes
This is written by a man discussing men’s impressions and attitudes.
The internet is full of twenty-something single women, and 40+ cat ladies who have very different opinions. You can view those if you disagree what is presented here. This is my opinion based on my experiences.
And one more thing, this post is intended to HELP someone. Nothing more.
The best thing you can do is… don’t even think about it.
Truth One
Your infidelity will be found out. It will be uncovered. One way or the other, and once it is uncovered, you can expect from three years of LIVING HELL to as much as twenty years of horror.
Do not be blind to this fact. It might happen in hours, or over decades, but it will eventually be discovered.
I advise anyone who dares contemplate such an action to proceed very, very carefully. Your actions should not be taken lightly. Regardless of your feelings, you are MARRIED, and thus the weight of your actions affects both you and your HUSBAND. As well as any children that you may have.
Truth Two
When you get married, the man gives up part of his life for RESPECT from the wife. And in exchange for that respect, he provides SECURITY and STABILITY to the wife.
RESPECT for SECURITY
That is why a man gets married.
This is an absolute fact. He does marry to have sex, make money, have kids, or anything like that. He marries to have a partner who RESPECTS him.
The partner who truly respects him will get everything he has. In traditional marriages, he gives all; 100% of his salary, all of his earnings, his time, his devotion, and everything else to the wife.
From the wife’s’ point of view, this is SECURITY. A house. A home. A steady and growing lifestyle. Children, and all the good that comes from the family unit.
SIGNS OF LACK OF RESPECT
Saying derogatory comments about the husband.
No or little amount of sex.
No intimacy.
Hurtful comments.
Truth Three
Wife Instituted change.
When there is a loss in RESPECT by the wife, the husband will change.
He will start to get depressed, and sad.
He will start to get angry and short tempered.
He will see as cascading of troubles to his life.
In every case, to some matter of degree, the SECURITY (of the wife) will diminish.
Perhaps he will lose his job. Maybe he will take on addictive behaviors. Maybe get sick and ill. Maybe he will go “nuclear” with a divorce.
SECURITY is intimately tied to a man’s RESPECT.
If respect is reduced, so too will be the security.
In every event, the SECURITY (of the wife) will reduce. In worst case scenarios, it could be a precipitous fall.
Truth Four
If you have it “good”, human nature will assume that it will stay that way.
So many times, a wife is fine and content with her family life. But it is missing something. So she takes and makes efforts to “improve” it. Thinking “what he doesn’t know, won’t hurt him”, and additionally (and most importantly) my lifestyle is immune to change.
People, not just women, are great at making rationalizations.
He’s not as intuitive as myself. He’ll never know.
He would NEVER do this to our kids.
I deserve this, after all <enter excuse here>.
He cannot do anything. I’ve gotten away with it before, so…
A woman who cheats on her husband risks a great deal.
A sub-par life with a weakened spouse.
A divorce.
A very enraged and violent husband, and a life chained to a living Hell.
Torture and death.
All of the above mentioned outcomes are historically accurate. Do not think that anyone is immune.
Truth Five
RESPECT can be quantified.
Here are some elements that men consider to be strongly tied to RESPECT.
Sex on demand.
NEVER saying anything bad about the husband outside the home.
No infidelity.
Husband comes before friends, family, work and all else. Husband is #1.
There is a woke movement that says the opposite of this. Don’t believe it. Most women of the “woke movement” are retiring in single lives with pet animals.
Truth Six
SECURITY can be quantified.
Here are some elements that men consider to be strongly tied to SECURITY.
Shelter; home, house.
Transportation; car.
Food.
Being an active parent.
Shared future.
A man who is Respected will do his best to maintain the highest quality of SECURITY for his family.
Truth Seven
Precautions.
If you do decide to have a relationship out of marriage (even if it is trivial a “one night stand”) the following precautions will help postpone discovery.
No text messaging. Do not even think about it. Often texting is a #1 sure-fire tell-tail that indicates infidelity. ZERO text messaging, and do not think about “work arounds” like getting the message and then deleting it. The Server, often by law, keeps full records of all texts.
Nophone calls. What can be said about texting goes double for all phone and video conferences and calls.
No sex pictures, and videos. Absolutely. No exceptions. Once recorded, and you are told that they will be deleted, or are secure, and all the rest; do not believe them. In a hostile divorce proceeding, nothing goes against you more than the entire judicial chamber watching you take in three husky men plowing into every one of your orifices while you moan in pleasure.
Do not change routine work hours. This is a common gambit. You state that you have to work extra hours, and then use the time for dating and sexual activities. This is often one of the first lies that are uncovered. Do not even think about it.
Pictures. Never, ever, ever stand beside your “boyfriend” (or girlfriend) in group photos, or in any photos. Don’t do it. No excuses.
Home Visits. Nothing enrages a spouse more than to find out that the interloper has invaded their home and defiled it. This is a big no-no. It can mean all the difference from a simple divorce, to a torture session. Do not even dare contemplate it.
Presents. If you feel the need to purchase a present for your “special friend” never hide it in your house. Never use a credit card to purchase. Never use a QR to purchase. Pay in cash. Hide it outside of the home.
Truth Eight
Maintenance
You must (as a woman) perform three times (3x) to your husband for every act of infidelity. It is not one on one. It might seem like a lot. However, you NEED to over compensate to dispel any doubts.
Even if caught, your husband will think that he is too much of a “lover” than any outsider.
So here’s the guidelines…
Fuck a lover = fuck your husband three times the day after.
Oral or anal sex. Do it three times with your husband.
Give a gift to your lover, provide something of value x3 times in value to your husband.
You do not want to get caught. Right?
And if you are caught, at least your husband would be “scratching his head” as to why you would want someone else. As it would not make sense to him. He would think “Shit! We are fucking like animals all week, where in Hell would she ever have time for an outsider?”
Truth Nine
Cautious behavior.
You can never get your aggrieved spouse to see your point of view. But you can perform “damage control” to minimize the impact of the horror that will be unleashed once discovered.
Avoid local and well-used restaurants. If you are out in public with your lover, go to places “off the beaten path”.
Never compare your lover to your spouse. Ever!
Never “confide” your secrets to anyone (outside of your husband).
Be careful about your new lover. If they are getting emotionally involved then a stop-watch is started for the collapse of your life.
Truth Ten
It is a slow descent into Hell.
It is unusual for a husband to discover cheating immediately. It will take time, but he will notice a few things. No matter how smart and careful you are, and how dull and dim-witted he is, he will eventually know.
It’s not an EQ thing, but rather being married, you two are emotionally and spiritually joined. And he will FEEL something different.
Initially, the man is apt to “brush it off” as his imagination.
But all it takes is one tangible minor issue that will trigger the detective in himself.
And the elevator to Hell will begin.
The stages generally are (variations in duration, and investigation, with actions) will vary from person to person.
Feeling off.
Strange changes in life and behavior.
Detective mode.
Discovery with SHOCK!
Planning to resolve, or end the situation.
Implementation.
Truth Eleven
Fighting a man.
To have an extramarital affair out of wedlock with your husband is to violate your marriage, and attack him personally.
Your actions with your lover is a personal violation of your husband. Period.
You are now in a battle with him.
It might not look like it, and it might seem that everything is just fine and stable, but battles and wars are often fought in secret long before the eruption of violence.
The tools of battle available to the man…
Deletion, erasure, and corruption of all SECURITY.
This means that your savings will disappear, any joint accounts will be emptied, your workplace will fire you, and your possessions will disappear. He might alienate your children from you, and will try to erase your friendships and turn your parents and siblings against you.
Violence
Your husband would get very violent against you. And he could really hurt your lover. He could do this himself, or hire goons / friends, or associates to perform the actions.
Abandonment
This is the softest but most infuriating technique. He just disappears. And the wife is left with a mind spinning trying to figure out what is going on. This is an intentional MIND-FUCK. And it will change body chemistry for the worst.
Head Games
The husband would start dating outside the marriage. He would start playing games and doing things that would trigger the detective in every woman to go into over-drive. A woman's mind can be set into a whirling nightmare, and a husband though careful manipulation wan whip that mind-fuck into a hurricane and tornado.
Truth Twelve
Detaching from your lover
The smart wife (or man) would realize that the road that they are on will result in a fiery crash with significant collateral damage. Sooner or later an off-ramp must be put in place, and the illicit romance or series of escapades must end.
There are many ways to do this. But the most important one is to go “cold turkey” and abruptly call it off immediately with ZERO follow up communication.
Depending on where you are in your marriage, it can be timely and productive, or far too late.
NOTE: Your lover will NOT go “quietly into the night”.
Truth Thirteen
Sorting out the truth for full closure
If the husband finds out, and WANTS to resolve this and keep his marriage intact… then the good news is that your affair will be forgiven.
However, invariably, he will ask for the FULL truthful story as to what actually happened.
Human nature, mean and women, will minimize the truth. This is for all kinds of reasons, but the real truth will never be admitted to.
“a single fling while drunk”
When in reality the wife was having monthly swinger sessions with multiple men at group orgies.
“Sex was fine, but he wasn’t as good as you”
When she is caught on tape saying terrible things about her husband and comparing him to her studly lover.
“It was only once”
When the husband knows of multiple occasions though friends, associates and the internet.
No matter how you parse it, the odds are VERY HIGH that the husband knows much more than what he is letting on.
If what you say does not match his proof, he will call you a liar, and your opportunity is shit-canned.
When he asks for the TRUTH, he means a truth that will match and fit with his evidence in hand. And believe me, when he comes to you and offers to forgive in exchange for truth… this is D-Day. You must be completely forthcoming.
Truth Fourteen
Truth is difficult to obtain
It is in our nature to keep things private and secretive. Even if you want to be open and honest, you will invariably avoid saying the raw truth. And this problem, being serious, can absolutely torpedo any resolution to the infidelity issue.
There are techniques that are guaranteed to get the truth.
Sodium pentathol (truth serum)
You can have family doctor administer the serum while a social worker or psychologist asks questions in a relaxed environment.
Hypnosis
A trained hypnotist can ask questions to the person, and invariably in that relaxed state, the person will more likely than not, tell the truth.
Truth Detection Equipment
Truth Detection Equipment often works on changes in amplitude or frequency of voice, electrochemical reactions in the body or the combination of both.
LSD, MDMA
These illegal drugs offer an unconventional means of dealing with the issue. You will need to both take the drugs together, and you both will talk and emote about this issue.
It NEEDS to be said, that unless professional means are obtained to extract the truth, the husband will continue to doubt his wife for the rest of his life.
You cannot fake this.
It has to be solid and tangible; something that the husband will believe.
I recommend a trained hypnotist, or a doctor administered shot.
Refusal to do this WILL result in unintended consequences to the opportunity presented to you at this time.
Truth Fifteen
The crawl back from the edge of the pit is possible.
But, the solutions are Black and White with absolutely no ambiguity.
Non-contested divorce.
Contested divorce.
Full STOP with the infidelity, and zero communication with the lover.
Staged decoupling, husband, lover, or both.
Open marriage.
Start an alternative lifestyle.
You pick one. Both of you agree to it. And you stick to that decision.
Truth Sixteen
Closure and Future
When a wife cheats on her family, a change in the relationship occurs. How the couple works it out is wildly interconnected, but it really just boils down to two solid events.
Closure. The full truth is shared. Guarantees are made to prevent reoccurrence.
Future. What changes will be made in the relationship and the expectations with them.
Final Comments
This post is about a wife cheating on her husband.
I experienced that myself.
We resolved it by the two-choice method. After my wife returned from a weekend in a distant city with her boyfriend, I sat down with her and made the situation very clear.
[1] Say with me, or [2] go with the lover.
Pick one, and we will move on from there.
But having both a lover and a husband can not continue.
Long story short. My wife chose me, and left him.
And he was pissed!
…
I did not ask for details. I already knew enough. And, you know, I really didn’t need a blow-by-blow of events.
She had sex numerous times. Ok. Meh. This is a no-brainer. Of-course.
She spent a lot of time with him, too much.
He was active in trying to peel her away from me. (A big headache!)
He was /is an investment banker. (He had a LOT of money to spend on her.)
I was just then getting back on my feet. (I was just scraping by.)
He was younger, studlier than myself. Alpha male.
His parents already made arrangements for a mansion, cars, and a lavish lifestyle under the observation of his mother once they “got married” after our marriage was annulled.
Sigh. MM life. Not for the feint of heart. Eh?
My concern (my “big deal”) was “shared relationship” and one where large portions of time was not spent with me, instead she was emotionally attached with her lover. Guys. I don’t like sharing emotions. It’s difficult for me.
Us guys are like that.
When your wife spends “too much time” with another guy, we start to get insecure. Whether it is just talking, writing, texting, or sex… it doesn’t matter. We want your undivided attention. Otherwise, we get insecure.
Insecurity is the result of a lack of RESPECT.
So, I had to end it.
And I respect any man or woman that makes the same decision. Including certain MM influencers living in Europe. Don’t you know.
…
The wife initiated this chain of events.
But it is husband’s responsibility to end them. And, you know, so I did.
I did what I preach. The decision on how to proceed must be clear and unambiguous. The choices were clear and stark. Two men. One a husband, the other a lover. The wife had to choose, and the loser could NEVER, ever communicate with the wife ever again.
Once presented, it was up to the wife to make the decision.
And my wife chose me.
Most wife’s will not want to throw away the relationship that they have with their spouse, but the guardrails and rules must be firm and adhered to. Or else it is just a continuation of torture.
…
In the future, I will make another post about men cheating on their wives. I also have experience in this. And it’s called life experience. Ugh!
Please don’t judge.
It is natural to do so, but we all experience the highs and lows of life, and some are not pretty to look at. And, as I have repeatedly said, I am not an angel. Just a man, full of mistakes and faults.
Relationships change. People change. Life changes us.
No one is an angel. Accept that fact, and be understanding to your spouse who has made mistakes. It’s not a forgiveness; it is rather an acceptance.
Men. Do not be an absolutist.
Be understanding, show kindness and compassion. Most especially to your wife. Everyone deserves to have one major fuck-up. Let her absolve her sins, and move on forward.
Be like water. Adapt to the changes.
…
It is common to be devastated and turn into a solid cube of ice. Fight that force.
Offer the wife a choice, and a firm and clear option with “guardrails”. Allow her a “face saving” out, and a chance to repair the marriage, and then build something new and better from the ruins.
Some good Videos
The following videos will help explain what is discussed herein. They were difficult for me to watch. If you want to watch just a few videos, then just watch the first three.
VIDEO #1
Husband Finds Spicy Video Of Wife With Coworker, Sends It To Her ENTIRE Family And Then Leaves Town!
This video illustrates well what is at stake.
VIDEO #2
Husband Took My Dad’s Business & Left Me W/ No Inheritance Cuz Of My Small Misstep.
This is a pretty good story. Probably the best on the Internet. And well illustrates all the points made up and above.
VIDEO #3
She participated in group sex for years!
This is also a pretty good video.
VIDEO #4
My Cheating Wife Is Going To Be Homeless Because Of A Prenuptial Agreement
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!
During my senior year in High School, I was blossoming into a fine young man. I was a cultural icon of the time. I wore a “choke collar” around my neck, puffy sleeved and colorful nylon shirt, a big colorful belt buckle, and bell bottom jeans.
I had longish hair to my shoulders. Parted in the middle up top. It was light brown in color. Oh those were the days…
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I cruised around in my GTO (that I affectionately referred to as “the goat”) and alternated between Senior year in High school and my work life.
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Evenings were spent “hanging out”, going to “keggers” in the “bony dumps” (old abandoned strip mined areas) and popping “white crosses” (tiny white amphetamine pills used for weight reduction. We used to take four at a time.) and drinking beer (Miller in Pony bottles).
The “white cross” pills were tiny, tiny white wafers with a cross on one side. We popped them and got “the rush”, and then buzzed, we smoked the marijuana, and drank the beer while we cruised the roads though the countryside.
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Typically, we kept the trunk filled with ice, and the beer would be placed in the trunk to keep them cool. You would be amazed how long the ice would last, too. Easily into the middle of the next day.
Then we would fill up the trunk with more ice for the night’s activities.
Two dollars would fill up the gas tank.
I lived in the countryside. My city cousins spent far more time in bars and clubs, but that wasn’t really possible for me at the time. It wasn’t until I was older, that I started to frequent clubs and bars, and that type of lifestyle.
This falls well into my “room theory” of life. You live in one room, and then enter another room, and you life becomes a long series of rooms. Each one different from the rest. This “room” was my “Senior Year in High School prior to College” room. And come September, I entered my “Freshman year in college” room. New friends. New lifestyle. New place, and new everything.
What “room” are you in now, and what does your next “room” gonna look like?
Dazed and Confused (1993) | *First Time Watching* | Movie Reaction
There was a case in Prince Edward Island about 15 years ago where a lady was being sued because part of her house was on her neighbour’s property.
So she hired a surveyor – who told her her house was partly on her neighbour’s property.
So she didn’t pay him. The surveyor sued. He won. The court noted that when you hire an expert, you pay for their expertise and their informed opinion, not for the result you want.
But let me tell you something else. There was a mall in Northern Ontario. Three engineers over a period of thirty years were hired to investigate water leaks. They all said the water leaks were the result of the waterproofing being done improperly but the structure of the building was fine. A month after the third engineer pronounced the building “structurally sound”, part of it collapsed catastrophically, killing two people. The inquiry noted that the engineer had equipment to ultrasonically examine the steel beams, but didn’t use it. The forensic engineers hired after the collapse noted the steel connection that failed was 89% corroded (meaning the connection was 10 times stronger than it needed to be, but still failed). I’m assuming that’s the kind of inspection you were looking for.
America Finally Did It, The Fuse Has Been Lit!
I’m American and I’m disgusted with the corporate control of our domestic and foreign policies.
I will share with you one of the most moving acts of compassion I’ve witnessed.
When my youngest son, Luke, was 10 years old, he played football on a local rec-league team. One evening his team played against one of the big rival teams from a neighboring town. I was surprised at how many people were at this game. After all, these were young children playing.
At a crucial time in the game, my son got the football and was running for a touchdown. He zigged and zagged, dodging and evading players on the opposing team. His teammates did a remarkable job blocking, as well. Finally, there was only one opponent between my son and a touchdown, and one of Luke’s teammates (Mario) made a hard block, knocking the opposing player to the ground.
There was now nothing between the goal and my son, who ran all out, then, slowed, stopped, turned around, ran back to the boy writhing on the ground, and took a knee.
The crowd went wild. Spectators on my son’s team hurled horrific insults at my young son. People I had known for years said the most hateful things, glaring at my son, threatening him, shooting daggers at me.
I ran down onto the field to be with Luke. As I ran down the bleachers, people said hateful things to me about my son.
When I arrived at Lukes’ side, before I could ask if he was okay, Luke looked up at me and said, “Dad, I had to do it. I had to come back.”
“Okay,” I said.
Luke continued, “Mario hit that kid hard. Real hard. When he hit him, I heard a bone snap. I heard it! I knew he was hurt bad, and I knew if I scored, it would take more time for anyone to notice him, and he would be hurting in all that time.”
I nodded my head. I could barely see at this point, my eyes welling with tears, proud of my son.
Luke continued, “And I remembered that you always teach us that being a good sport is about more than winning, so I stopped and came back.”
He looked at me, his eyes wondering how I would react. I had never been prouder of him. I hugged him and told him how proud I was.
Luke was correct — the boy suffered a broken leg. He had to go to hospital.
This is one of the finest acts of compassion I ever witnessed. And a valuable lesson for me.
Have they threatened anyone? The way I see it US and the former colonials are scary! They come to South China Sea from as far away as 10 thousand miles away to pick a fight with China. I did not hear or see China travelling to English Channel or Florida coast to threaten the U.S.! Did you? Last I check And it is NATO wanting to expand to Asia not CCP expanding to Europe or North America!
So who is scary? To us you are scary. It wasn’t that long ago that the British force fed 100 million Chinese to get addicted to Opium and burn down the imperial palace in Beijing and stole Hong Kong for 156 years! And unsatisfied it cohort with the evil US to pay hoodlums an unemployed to pretend to protest for CNN as props. The U.S. and UK orchestrated a protest! The west is scary not China. You guys are spoiling for a fight. China just wants to do business?
What is so scary about a society wanting to do well for its people. Did they asked the world to be like them and adopt their Socialism with Chinese characteristics. They did not. They went further! The says that every nation should adopt what they see as best for them.
They think that Chinese political system may not be suitable for any nation. And that it is not exportable. The U.S. murdered 3 million to stop communism. The U.S. also murdered another 3 million in Iraq to bring democracy to them. And another 2 million to stop Talibanism in Afghanistan! Don’t you think US behaviour is more scary! I thinks so. And so does 87% of the world.
Where do you get “half” the world? You dream it up? You simply follow some lies from the media? No more than 5% of the world disagree with China. 87% disagree with the U.S. outright!
You know what us scary. You! Yes if there are 5% of the world thinking like you. So wrong, so ignorant and so naive. That is very scary!
My husband and his first wife went from Chicago to New York for a long weekend.
As they waited to cross a busy street, they heard two businessmen behind them discuss how they were going to get the better of someone they were doing a deal with—in St. Louis.
Their ears pricked up because his first wife was from St. Louis originally.
As they walked along the next street, they were able to hear and identify enough details to realize that these two men were going to trick her uncle by not disclosing certain information.
When they got to the hotel, his wife called her uncle—who verified that indeed he was in the middle of doing a deal with these two guys in New York!
So no deal happened then!
What are the chances?
China Warns US on Its Ridiculous Plan to Make 150 Nations Leave Belt and Road Initiative!
On the 9th of June 2021, USA introduced a bill, which passed by 68 votes to 32, known officially as the “US Innovation and Competition Act”. In Washington it is colloquially known simply as the “anti-China bill”. Part of USA’s Anti-China bill, USA has allocated over $300 Million every year, for 3 years, to media trash China.
I just WISH USA would stop their warmongering ways, and join China in uniting the World.
I was struggling for over a year looking for steady work. I finally landed a job unloading trailers at UPS. Contrary to popular belief, they didn’t pay very well.
Growing up, I hung out with some guys whose parents had money. This instilled a sense of undeserved entitlement and pretentiousness in me. Looking down on people who worked these, “sh*t jobs.”
Anyways, I had been down on my luck for a bit in more aspects than one, and one day after a long evening of working my tail off I went to a local McDonald’s (McDonald’s employees being one of those jobs/people I’d mocked). After pulling into the drive-thru I checked my bank account. $3.47. I was so, so hungry. I ordered a few things off of the dollar menu, and proceeded to pull up to the window. Thinking I kept the order minimal, I assumed I had enough. The lady there ran one card, declined. Now, somewhat frantic, I pulled my credit card out. Declined. I, embarrassed as all get out, asked the lady if she could take some things off of my order for me. She paused and looked at me for a moment. I don’t know if she could hear the despair in my voice or saw it in my body language, but she looked around before dropping those items back in the bag with a little extra and handed it right back to me. She wished me a good rest of my evening with a quiet smile.
I told her she didn’t have to do that, but she happily insisted. I thanked her as I pulled away from the window. I pulled out of the parking lot, and immediately broke down crying. An uncontrollable sobbing that I’d never felt before. After all of these years of frowning upon people like this lady, she was the one to help me when I just needed something to eat.
McDonald’s lady, wherever you may be, your small act of kindness changed my life.
The global shift away from the US dollar has increased tenfold since February 2022 compared to the previous 15 years, Stephen Jen, the CEO of Eurizon SLJ Capital Limited, told Die Welt on Thursday.
According to the former International Monetary Fund and Morgan Stanley economist, the majority of analysts are missing the trend because they evaluate the nominal value of central banks’ dollar holdings on the basis of data released by the IMF.
“However, if we take into account changes in the value of the dollar, then, according to our calculations, we’ll see that the dollar share in foreign reserves has lost about 11% since 2016,” Jen explained.
He argued that Washington’s decision to freeze Russia’s dollar reserves after the launch of Moscow’s military operation in Ukraen had been the decisive event.
“This has fueled fear and anxiety in Beijing, but also in other emerging countries,” he said, adding that holding reserves in US dollars had been always considered absolutely safe until the drastic move.
Jen explained that the BRICS countries had been increasingly focused on alternatives to the greenback.
According to the economist, since the BRICS group of emerging economies – which presently comprises Russia, Brazil, India, China, and South Africa, but is due to add six new members next year – the economic power of the union has multiplied. Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Argentina, Egypt and Ethiopia will officially join the group in January 2024.
James Gandolfini’s Best Scene from The Sopranos
The range of emotions showcased here is amazing; anger, disgust, fear, sadness, joy, contempt, and lil’ compassion, all within three minutes. A master class for any actor.
Chinese Innovation Foils U.S. Tech War — Clifford A. Kiracofe
Washington calculated that it could restrain China’s technology advancement and thereby stay ahead of the China. However, it appears that this calculation was mistaken.
China’s rapid advances in technology will inevitably foil the United States-led Western technology war against China. Huawei unveiled its stunning new high tech Mate60 cell phone and timed the announcement with the visit of U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo. Sending a message?
The Donald Trump administration launched an intensive trade war and a tech war against China. President Joe Biden continued Trump’s policies and ratcheted them up to a new level. Rather than engage in mutually beneficial trade relations and scientific and technological cooperation, Washington openly admits it seeks to contain and suppress China’s economic growth and development.
Playing this zero-sum game is a dead end for the United States. China is very well equipped in the pursuit of technological innovation. Fundamental to China’s tech progress is the human factor. For example, it is no secret that China every year produces far more STEM (Science-Technology-Engineering-Math) students than does the U.S.
Tech war is economic war
Export controls and restrictions on technology development are nothing new in international commerce. During its colonial period, the North American colonies faced an array of trade restrictions and technology restrictions imposed by the British Empire. These were designed to prevent the colonies from becoming rivals to British manufactures. They also were a factor leading to the American Revolution and War of Independence.
In World War I, the United Kingdom enacted a “Trading with the Enemy Act” which created an export control regime deigned to deny Germany war related imports. After the U.S. entered the war, Congress passed its own Trading with the Enemy Act modeled on the British legislation. These wartime legislative measures were applied again during World War II.
After World War II, export controls on a multilateral basis were created by the West to restrict various exports to the Soviet Union and Communist bloc. The Coordinating Committee for Multilateral Export Controls (COCOM) was created at the beginning of the Cold War. The U.S. thus coordinates, in turn, with NATO allies, Australia, and Japan to restrict the export of sensitive technologies to designated countries.
So the Western use of export controls for the purposes of economic warfare is nothing new. But the revival of this mechanism intensively directed specifically against China is a key feature of the U.S.-led New Cold War. The technological encirclement and blockade of China, however, is not sustainable.
Washington miscalculates
Washington calculates that it could restrain China’s technology advancement and thereby stay ahead of the China. However, it appears that this calculation was mistaken.
Logically, because China’s population is four times larger than that of the United States, there would at some point be a larger pool of STEM trained specialists in China than in the U.S. This is so because of the continuous upgrading of higher education in China and the massive commitment to research and development.
Several years ago, Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. released a study on the STEM issue. The university’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology reported that in 2000 the U.S. issued twice as many doctorates in STEM field as did China. But in 2007, China began outpacing U.S. universities. The report assessed that by 2025 China would produce twice as many STEM Ph.D. graduates.
Because the U.S. cannot compete with its own population base, Washington seeks to import specialists in STEM fields from India as one stop gap measure.
But Chinese innovation is very dynamic and advanced with great future potential. Therefore, it should have been no surprise that China would develop the necessary technology for state-of-the-art semiconductors. This national objective combines the growing pool of high-tech specialists with a large pool of skilled labor together with billions of yuan for investment.
It was not difficult to foresee that China, through innovation and targeted investment, would be able over time to produce the machines and industrial processes to fabricate advanced state-of-the-art semiconductors. This applies to Chinese semiconductor design capability as well.
Why did the Washington miscalculate?
An inter-agency task force on the Chinese semiconductor issue would have concluded that the attempt to block and limit Chinese advances is not sustainable and thus would fail.
Some critics of the administration point to the lack of competence in President Biden’s foreign policy team. They say that Secretary of State Tony Blinken and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan are just not up to their jobs.
Be that as it may, it is possible that racial prejudice affects Washington’s assessments. There was a time after World War II when it was common to look down on “cheap” Japanese goods. But Japanese success in electronics and auto manufacture by the 1980s showed another story.
Anyone from the U.S., a tourist or an official who visits China’s National Museum in Beijing will see exhibits displaying many centuries of Chinese skill and innovation not only in art, such as ceramics and bronze, but also in inventions and technology. China’s history of science and technology goes back millennia.
What does the Huawei Mate60 portend?
Clearly, the advanced smartphone is a perception changer at a minimum. No doubt, it will be seen as a game changer as well. Other high-tech breakthroughs are in the news.
It is now reported that the Chinese firm SMIC has a 7 nanometer (nm) N+2 process semiconductor project that is produced entirely in China with no access to Western equipment and technologies. All of the core components in China’s EUV lithography machines are said to be ready and that the prototype is being tested.
On the day that the new Mate60 phone was announced it was sold out in one minute online. Huawei boosted production to 15-17 million units and beginning September 10 Chinese can purchase the smartphone in Huawei’s offline stores. The phone has a satellite capability.
As Chinese firms develop independent semiconductor design and fabrication capacity, U.S. firms inevitably will lose out on this vast export market. It seems logical that the more intense the anti-China trade and tech wars become the more Chinese consumers will turn to homegrown products other than those from the U.S.
The U.S. lifted a stone only to hit its own feet.
The U.S. politicians must come to their senses and adopt a China policy of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, cooperation, and mutual benefit. Washington’s belligerent and destabilizing foreign policy disrupts the international community, increases tensions, and can lead to a war which will harm the U.S. side in the end.
The Special Cat Looked Sadly Around At the People Passing by His Cage
Life was idyllic for Pinat until the inevitable struck. His beloved owner passed away, leaving the poor cat alone and vulnerable.
I had a cherry tree in my back yard. I was really looking forward to them. I got home from work and there were 6 or more kids in the tree, stuffing my cherries into all sorts of containers. I yelled and they all took off. It wasn’t possible to get to the remaining cherries. Some of them left containers in my yard. A mom showed up and yelled at me for not giving her back her Tupperware.
SMIC has been making 7nm custom GPUs for the past 2–3 years, mostly for crypto customers who couldn’t get in the TSMC queue.
This filled real market demand that other players didn’t, or couldn’t.
SMIC used this opportunity to refine its process, on the quiet.
Huawei, in the meantime, found willing partners to share talent and resources, in a concerted effort to save the high-tech industry on the mainland from American destruction through the threat of sanction.
How did Huawei et. al. find the tools necessary for chip design, especially the GPU? What black magic did Huawei use to improve the transistor geometry? How did they penetrate the Qualcomm 5g patent wall? I don’t know. Neither does my friend in TSMC. It’s a separate ecosystem now, and quite independent.
The fog of war has descended, but the outcome point to solidarity across the ranks, with competitors working together like they are part of a conglomerate.
The Chinese are capable of cooperation on unheard of scale, because of long history.
The Mate 60 Pro is merely a first step, lacking polish and maturity. What’s coming though, will be a deluge.
American reacts to: america – What they don’t show you
Thank you for watching me, a humble American, react to america – What they don’t show you…
President Zelensky’s top aide has suggested that Beijing and New Delhi are unable to analyze the consequences of their moves China’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning.
Beijing has demanded clarification from Kiev after Mikhail Podoliak, a top aide to Ukraenion President Vladimir Zelensky, suggested that authorities in China and India weren’t smart enough to figure out what the actual national interests of their countries were.
Podoliak characterized the two Asian countries as having “low intellectual potential,” in an interview with channel Vlast vs Vaschenko published Tuesday on YouTube. Speaking about the increasing cooperation of Beijing and New Delhi with Moscow amid the conflict in Ukraen, he claimed that China and India “don’t analyze the consequences of the steps they make.”
The aide accused China, India and also Türkiye of “earning money” on the conflict between Moscow and Kiev. The Chinese authorities believe that doing so is in their country’s national interests, but Beijing is better off distancing itself from Russia as it’s “an archaic nation that drags China into unnecessary conflicts,” he said.
1.) No matter how calm and focused a doctor sounds when delivering bad news, they take that shit home with them.
Now a neurologist has to deliver a lot of shit news. Pretty much, if you end up in my wife’s office, something out of the ordinary has gone wrong. Migraines are the least of her worries. She’s dealing with MS, Dementia, Strokes, Epilepsy, Gullien Barre, Neuropathy, Parkinson’s, Brain Tumors, and the mother fucker of all mother fuckers, ALS.
The last one is the worst for her. Because she knows. Almost right away, and can’t say anything. Because a lot of things mimic the symptoms of ALS on the surface, so the process of diagnosing it is not so much to look for ALS symptoms but to systematically rule everything else that it MIGHT be out. Which takes weeks. And weeks. During which the whole time, she knows. But she hopes. And hopes that one of these tests will show another culprit. You know. Like cancer. Yes. It’s a case where she would celebrate finding cancer. At least they can do something about that.
Can you imagine opening up the files of a brain scan and praying you’ll see tumors?
By the time she’s done and can deliver the worst of all hunks of shit news, it’s been weeks of anguish for her. And when she comes home, it’s time to let all the little petty shit from my day go, because it’s NOTHING.
2.) Care and feeding of your physician is essential to maintaining your physician’s health.
Seriously. How my wife managed to get to work before I arrived on scene to make coffee in the morning, I’ll never know. A doctor’s work is never done, once they get home, it’s time to catch up on charting, and if they have a complicated specialty like my wife (neurologist) those charts are extremely complicated.
You know though? It’s important work, so if I can help just a bit by taking care of dinner? Or cranking out coffee strong enough to wake a triceratops fossil? I’m good with that.
3.) It’s friggin EXPENSIVE being a doctor.
What most people know about being a doctor is that doctors make a lot of money.
Yeah. She has no complaints there (it’s probably not as much as you think, but it’s a damn good living)
But Board Certifications, Continuing Medical Education, Malpractice Insurance, about a Quarter Million in Student Loan debt from 10 years of school, this association fees, that one, fee, fee, fee, fee, fee, it’s no wonder the first thing I learned from my wife was “looking for a doctor? Find the cheapest rattiest set of scrubs, there they are!”
4.) They get into it to practice medicine and usually love that, but generally, find themselves buried in a ton of other crap
I mentioned charts. Not the half of it, although for pure volume of work and time spent, it’s just lovely.
They didn’t mind so much when they were marking up paper charts as they were examining you. Now it all has to be done in an Electronic Medical Records system, and there is apparently no such thing as a halfway decent EMR.
Want to see a doctor fly into a violent volcanic rage? Ask them how they feel about their EMR.
Then there’s just the pile of administrative shit. Especially if you’re running the practice which thank God mine doesn’t have to worry about. But there is always a shitton to do that has not a damn thing to do with healing.
I’m keeping count of the number of times mine laments for the carefree days of being a Starbucks barista.
5.) In my experience, they’re usually just genuinely good people.
Now, I’m biased, I admit it. And I suppose I only meet genuinely good-people doctors because I’m married to one who wouldn’t give someone who wasn’t a minute of her time.
And yes, there are some genuine pieces of shit in the profession, just like any other.
But the vast majority of the dozens of doctors I’ve met as a result of being married to one are just good solid people who usually get into the profession to make a real difference in people’s lives, and out of a genuine desire to do good.
As a citizen of PR China who knows a thing or two about history, I must say that I understand why they do that.
Because Republic of China was and is totally a coward.
Because of the good relationship between Chiang Kai-shek and USSR, during Cairo Conference, the US proposed to give the authority of Ryukyu (Okinawa) to China, also part of Japan’s authority, and invited China to garrison in Japan.
Chiang rejected it.
He rejected the proposal from the US to take over Ryukyu and part of Japan, because he wanted to be humble, and he was a mean character when massacring Chinese.
Above is the photo of surrender ceremony of Chinese war zone. Take a guess about who is the winning side.
The answer is the one on the left, eventhough he looked more humble.
On the left it’s He Yingqin, first degree admiral and 2nd place in Republic of China militray.
On the right it’s Asasaburo Kobayashi, Imperial Japanese Army lieutenant general.
They are not even at an equal level. From Japan side, it should be Yasuji Okamura, the commander-in-chief of the China Expeditionary Army from November 1944 to the end of World War II, handed in the Instrument of Surrender.
In the negotiation conferece of surrender ceremony, ROC sent a lieutenant general, and Japan sent a major general. Not in equal position too.
According to Yasuji Okamura’s memoir:
About the ceremony decoration, ROC side initially wanted to have a round table, to avoid being aggressive. It was because of the US intervention, ROC eventually choose long table.
It was agreed when handing in the Instrument of Surrender, Asasaburo Kobayashi was supposed to salute to He Yingqin for 3 times, and He Yingqin didn’t salute back. This idea was probably from the US “suggestions”. However, when Asasaburo Kobayashi saluted for the 3rd time, General He stood up as a return to the salute.
It was not the same when the US and USSR accepting surrender from Germany and Japan. They both ordered Germany and Japan to redo everything they are not satisfied, until everything’s fine. After all, it was a world war, and they were the winners.
Whereas in China, He Yingqin had to lean forward and stretch his arms all the way to the cernter line of the table, which makes him handing in the paper to Japanese.
Everything Chiang did is to tell Japan that “we don’t want to you misunderstood us, and we are not aggressive at all”.
From Japan side, in their opinion, it was the US which defeated Japan, and China is of course just a weakass shit which survived only because the glory of the US.
I don’t blame Japanese for this. As a matter of fact, they do have reasons to think so.
After all, PR China never kicked Japan’s ass since 1949.
I blame Chiang Kai-Shek.
Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970) ‘Confirmation’ & Admiral Husband E. Kimmel’s famous historical quote
“I’ve seen this film so many times as a kid, because it’s really really good. But I always follow it up with the other one, Midway. I joined the US Navy, 89-93, I think these films helped inspire me to sign up. I actually got the USS Lexington AVT-16 as my first ship, I can not describe the chills and feelings I had when I first stepped on board the Lady Lex. I was a little choked up and teary eyed with pride. I had the pleasure of working in nearly every department of that ship for two years, Deck 1st div -Supply Captains Country -Engineering E div – and Air V2. The flight deck crash of October 89 was my first sea cruise. After decommissioning the Lex, the Navy sent me to the USS Normandy CG-60 and straight into war. True story. I got my US Navy Adventure for sure. I only got out to save a doomed marriage.”
I have 13 kids, I have always wanted a big family. I adopted one from China, she is deaf and the sweetest 5 year old ever. We adopted her when she was 3. We get a few racist remarks because we are black and she is Chinese, they think she needs a Chinese family to have a good life. She is happy with us, so nope!
She can’t talk because she is completely deaf and no hearing ads or a cochlear implant will help, she will be deaf forever, unless there is something invented in the future that helps. She is able to say mama because she reads our lips and tries to copy the shape our lips make and make sound, that’s the only word she can say.
She came home from school one day, since she can read lips really good, she is in a hearing school, but in a special class for deaf people or hard of hearing people.
She told her siblings who then told us, that her teacher told her she was “sick” in sign language, Because she is from china. In sign language, you can’t name a virus unless you finger spell it, my daughter is only 5 so it’s hard for her to put words together by spelling it out.
Her teacher was telling her that she brought Covid into this world and that she was sick with it because it started out in China. She was only 2 when Covid started, she didn’t even fully understand about Covid.
The teacher believed every Chinese person had Covid, no matter how old or young. Since my daughter had “Covid” She wasn’t allowed to go to lunch that day and eat, she wasn’t allowed to learn with the class, and she wasn’t allowed to go outside and play. When they were learning, she was sitting in a chair far away with a mask on. I didn’t call the police, but I called the school and got her fired and she might be going to court for a hate crime.
Watch Before it’s Deleted,This is my 3rd Attempt, Oprah & The Rock on Maui
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.
No. The guy with a rifle is not the scariest. That distinction belongs to the guy with a much more dangerous piece of equipment:
The humble radio. This is the guy that could pull down everything from a single mortar round up to and including a bombing run by a fully loaded B-52 to naval missiles to armored cavalry reinforcements. He can tell this support exactly where, what spot at what height in what position, needs a proper lesson in violence. He can tell artillery which direction to adjust their fire, he can warn pilots of infantry with MANPADS, he is the man in control of the tactical battlefield.
You have an ankle bracelet that monitors everyone and their movements?
How do you know people disappear?
Anyone you know who disappeared?
A Relative, Friend, Cousin, Girlfriend?
Even the Foreign Minister of China
He didn’t disappear. The Chinese openly said he was no longer minister.
The Defense Minister who apparently disappeared
Turns out he was in secret meetings with the Venezuelans and North Koreans and later in a Military facility taking treatment
People disappear in other places too
They commit crimes and flee
They are kidnapped and killed
They are murdered and bodies dumped
They fall sick and want recuperation from public life
In India or US, because the Public elects you, you have a public responsibility to inform them about your absence
In China, you only inform the party. Same as if you take medical leave from TCS, you don’t publish it on Twitter
1027 Men disappeared in the US and the West and remained missing for an average of 4 1/2 years
They were incarcerated against their will in Guantanamo and tortured and harrassed
No justification to this day
Its harder to disappear in China than it is in India or US
Your digital footprint is so strong and your records are almost everywhere and you have thousands of cameras recording all around you
What you need to know about PHARMACIES in THAILAND before you visit!
Thailand passed most western countries years ago when it comes to medicine, medical aid, medical treatment and certainly when it comes to quick access to medical professionals and advanced imaging systems. In fact, even in many countries in Latin America, a MRI scan is a walk-in compared to canada where it can take 6 months. Thailand in general is AMAZING!
I sometimes buy frozen food online, and the food always arrives in a large styrofoam shipping container.
The first time I got one, I didn’t know what to do with the box after I unpacked the food. I like to recycle all my cardboard boxes and plastic containers, but none of the facilities in my area would take styrofoam.
The styrofoam cooler was thick and sturdy, and it seemed a shame to throw it out after one use. So I chucked it into my garage. Every time I got another cooler, I put it in the garage.
A few years ago, my husband and I were moving, and I was cleaning out the garage. By then, I had amassed over a dozen of these styrofoam boxes. They were stacked up in three stacks, collectively about 4 to 5 feet wide and over 4 feet high. We had to get rid of these boxes before we could move.
I tried to find the containers a home. I looked online for a place within driving distance that would recycle styrofoam. No luck.
As a last ditch effort, I contacted the stores where I purchased my food asking if I could ship them back. They had no use for used shipping coolers.
I resigned myself to the fact that we would have to throw them out. As my husband and I were getting ready to take the boxes to the dump, I suddenly had an epiphany. I ran to the computer and did a search.
Yes! As I thought, there were people on eBay who would pay money for a used styrofoam cooler. I wouldn’t have to throw them away and they would get a second life.
So I listed all the coolers on eBay, and over several weeks, they all sold.
The strangest way I’ve made money was selling my trash on eBay.
Now every time I buy frozen food online, I immediately list the box for sale on eBay after I unpack the food. I get between $7 to $15 per box, plus the cost of shipping to the buyer. It’s not much, but it’s a nice little coupon towards my frozen food purchase.
TSMC lays off 60% of its U.S. factories,Workers demand a doubling of wages;Mate 60 pro
TSMC lays off 60% of its U.S. factories, Workers demand a doubling of wages;
Huawei orders completely lost.
A couple had come to the upscale restaurant, but the woman started screaming at the waitress, wanting her to be fired.
Does the customer always have the right? Does going to a restaurant give you the right to humiliate the people who work there? I hope not!
This is the story of a girl who worked as a waitress in a restaurant! The story was told by her, let’s listen:
“I was lucky to find a job at an upscale restaurant!
Even though I don’t hear very well with my left ear, and not at all with my right ear, I was given a chance to work here. I wear a hearing aid, so I can hear almost everything that is said to me very clearly.
But one day, an elderly couple came to have dinner.
Me: I’m glad you chose our restaurant! Are you ready to order? Wife: Call the manager, NOW!
Me: One moment. Maybe I can help you myself? Wife: No!
So, I had to go and call the manager.
Manager: Good evening! How can I assist you?
Wife: Why do your employees wear headphones? Are they listening to music? We pay a lot of money here, and believe me, we deserve perfect service! This is not acceptable!
Everyone in the restaurant froze.
Manager: Our waitstaff knows they are not allowed to wear headphones.
But if you notice anyone breaking this rule, please let me know. I guarantee that person will be fired!
Wife: Please. It’s her!
The woman pointed at me.
Manager: I’m sorry. Her behavior is beyond any limit. Wife: I agree!
Manager: I was talking about you! Your behavior is inappropriate! The waitress is wearing a hearing aid.
I kindly ask you to leave this restaurant and never come back!
The woman’s husband did not support her at all. The enraged woman left the restaurant in a fit of anger.
I would like to express my gratitude to all the people who defended me! Thank you!”
US phone and chip companies like Apple, Nvidia and Qualcomm don’t produce chips. They design the chips but outsource it to TSMC, Intel and Samsung to manufacture them. Fabless chip designers have been the in-thing for some decades already, popularised first by companies like Broadcom in the 90s.
Same for Huawei – they design it via subsidiary HiSilicon but don’t produce the chips themselves. They outsource it to TSMC and SMIC in particular. TSMC has been banned by the US Commerce from supporting Huawei and other Chinese companies.
Can the USA companies produce the chips themselves today? The answer is YES. It takes time to develop the volume manufacturing expertise all over again. It is a very complex business and it takes guts to put in the money to invest in R&D resources, mainly PhD-type technical talents and capital intensive wafer fabrication facilities and processing machines, packaging and test equipments. Unless you have deep pockets, this is not the business for everyone.
A high-end wafer fab today requires some $12B upfront capital investment. It also requires a whole long list of vertically integrated suppliers locally to support the wafer fab industry – only Asia has it as the cost is low. At the same time, you must have a flexible and disciplined team of technical personnel and production workers who can work 24/7 round the clock to make the business viable. One mistake out of 1000s of process steps can cause a total disruption to production schedules, customer order delivery slips and production scraps. Automation has its own challenges. Manufacturing yields can be impacted from batch to batch due to workmanship and process variations. Honestly, it is not a business for the faint-hearted investors and demanding customers who expect perfection.
USA has the science but not the art of high volume cost competitive manufacturing anymore. To think that the Biden Administration can bring back wafer fabrication industry back home even with the help of Samsung, Intel and TSMC, is a pipe dream. It will fail badly, very badly. Tens or hundreds of billions of dollars will be flushed down the drain when they realised they can’t make it work. Trust me, failure will be the end outcome and it is already full of production delays and major make or break problems between the investors and the government.
M*A*S*H Winchester looses his temper with a bureaucrat over abandoned baby
Unlike Frank, Charles wasn’t a bad person. He had a shield of arrogance, but he was a superior surgeon and a good-hearted individual. At worst, he was used to being removed from the suffering of the world, but that didn’t mean he didn’t care about it. See the Christmas episode where he recounts a family tradition of giving candy and toys to the poor, but realizes that the value of the candy would provide a month’s worth of staple foods for starving orphans.
While at Treasure island in 1962, waiting to be seperated from active duty, in the Navy,i had a lot of free time to see San Francisco. I was and still am, a fan of jazz, so I ended up at a jazz club ( Jazz Workshop, Blackhawk, I don’t recall which one) mid afternoon one day. The bar was open, so I took a stool at the bar next to a well dressed guy. At his feet was a horn case. I ordered a beer and raised my glass to the stranger next to me, to which he responded with a raised glass and a few words.
We talked a little about what I was doing, why I was in San Francisco, where I called home, just a little chit-chat. He mentioned that he was a musician and said something about sitting in for the performances later on. We never did introduce ourselves, we just started talking.He finished his drink, picked up his horn case and bid me goodbye. The bartender asked if was ready for another beer and asked me how I came to know Miles. I replied by saying “Miles who?” Davis, he replied. You have been talking with him since you came in. I carried his Kind of Blue album with me all the years I spent aboard ship and never put his face and name together. Yup, jaw dropped, but as it turned out, it was best that I did not recognize him. We were just a couple strangers having a beer. I still play that LP today.Damn, that was 60 years ago and still fresh in my mind.
“We have alien bodies and the DNA to prove it” Mexican Congress | Redacted with Clayton Morris
You want alien bodies? Here they are. Ufologist Jaime Massaun rolled out two coffins holding “non-human” bodies in front of Mexico’s congress yesterday. He says these bodies are 1,000 years old and were fossilized in a mine. He also presented DNA evidence showing these bodies are not human.
Imagine a world where there are two ways to conduct commerce. One half of the world chooses one method, and the other half chooses another.
In the West, led by the United States, is a commerce system based on an extraction of wealth.
People work, and they labor. The government take a part of that labor in the form of taxes, fees, clauses, penalties, and regulations. Under that layer is another layer. These are the banking transfer fees, the interest and debt schedules and all the associated rules that one must abide by to use that system. Beneath that system, is a system of organizations. Where to use that organization or society, fees are extracted, prices are managed, and profits are massaged. Beneath that system is a system of businesses, that have their own fees, charges, and profit schedules, and then beneath that is the worker.
For a worker to labor and make money, all of the systems of wealth extraction gets paid first. What ever is left, goes to the worker. Who is then taxes on it, and uses it for his and her own purposes.
In the East, led by China, is a commerce system based on ownership.
If a person earns money though labor, that money is converted electronically into a value, and the mass amount of that value is accessible to the worker. No government, person, entity, organization can siphon income away from that value. It is against the law.
…
Now that is the “quick and dirty” overview. Both systems, have very, very complex subsystems of control and monitoring. Both systems have those that get rich and those that get poor. Both systems are independent of each other, and collaboration between the two systems is possible with “guardrails”.
But what about the question?
Why doesn’t China use “credit cards”?
Credit cards is a Western fabrication and means of wealth extraction. A person is not using money they earned. They are borrowing money from a bank and renting the use of it from the bank.
China uses a system of ownership. A person earns money, and it goes into a bank. Then the Chinese person uses a QR, and biometic scan to extract the money to buy something with it.
That being said, there are areas of overlap between the Western system and the Eastern system of commerce. For instance, you can get loans and mortgages inside of China, just like you can in the United States. The big difference is that the vast bulk of transactions differ substantially between the East and the West.
West = Wealth Extraction.
East = Ownership.
Geo-political manifestations
And it is the FUNDAMENTAL differences in systems why the rest of the world (such as Africa, for example) is turning towards China instead of working “with” the United States on massive Geopolitical ventures.
China. Africa sees results from China. They see dams, hospitals, road and rail. they see ports, and real tangible aid. The African nations OWN these properties, and these systems. They are tangible. They can be seen. They can be touched. they can be felt.
United States. Africa hears a lot of “flowery words” from the United States. Promises of this and that, and military weapons, and military bases. But no roads. No hospitals. No trains. No ports. An occasional plane-load of “greenbacks” that are delivered to the wealthy in a nations, but that is about it. Those African nations so entangled in agreements with the United States enter into debt with them. It’s all nice numbers on spreadsheets, and documents with many impressive signatures, but for the average person “on the street” there isn’t any change in lifestyle.
Meanwhile the entirety of the Global South, via the BRI, are investing in a “basket of currencies” one based on tangible commodities; hard physical items that can be touched, felt and measured.
While the West, led by the United States, are forcing a system of debt upon their allies and “friends”.
Let’s perform a sanity check.
If this description, one where the West and the East differ in means of fundamental commerce and economic theory, then it should manifest in a myriad of ways. Let’s look at home ownership.
Obviously, the nation that functions via wealth extraction will have the bulk of it’s citizenry in debt. While the nation that functions on an ownership basis would have the bulk of it’s citizenry invested in self ownership of properties.
Southern Biscuits
Southern Biscuits
Ingredients
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons Crisco
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon Crisco (for frying pan)
Instructions
Mix dry ingredients together.
Blend in the Crisco until the mixture is coarse and grainy.
Stir in the buttermilk with a fork. Do not over-mix.
Put out onto a floured board and knead just a few times. Pat out the dough to about 1/2 inch thick. Cut with a biscuit cutter or glass. Flour the cutter. Do not handle the dough too much or it will get tough.
Using a heavy cast iron frying pan, place 1 tablespoon of Crisco in the pan and put the frying pan in the oven for about 7 minutes.
Remove the pan from the oven and place the biscuits in the pan. Turn each once in the oil and bake the biscuits at 500 degrees F for 10 minutes, or until light brown.
Kitten Abandoned In The Rain, Cold, Shrinking for Protect Herself – No one heeded his plea for help
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
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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.
“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.
When I was in middle school or so, there was a popular song called “They are coming to take me away”. It was a single, and on the flip side the sound was revered and (to me as a young boy) sounded cool.
I asked my father to buy it for me.
And when it came, he listened to it first before he gave it to me. Heard the flip side (which was recorded and played backwards) and returned the song. Telling the company that the record was defective, and to send a new one.
Sure as shit, a new one came, and he promptly returned it also.
When the third try was delivered, it was incorrectly delivered to our neighbors house and they played that song over and over. And since their bed room was only about ten feet from my bedroom, I was able to listen to the music over and over though my neighbors.
My dad never figured out that the song was supposed to sound like that, and that I liked the sound.
He was really out of touch.
How out of touch am I with my kids? I hope not too much.
We must be more open to the differences to others, and stop being so darn judgemental about other people. Let them live their lives on their terms. Let them be. Just let them be.
US officials visiting China is the result of the precarious situation visited on the US. These officials visiting China, just as the EU did, is because US need a life line and help from China. US $31.8 TRILLION debt and growing is fueling panic in the US with more than 70 countries dumping US Treasury Bonds. Come October, there will be another crisis looming in the US with US hitting another debt ceiling! Janet Yellen went to China with a well concealed begging bowl and went home without China supporting US Treasury as China did in 2008 GFC. China have, effectively, lost trust in the US with consistent and persistent promises made by the US being broken unfailingly each and every time. Why go through the motion for talks and promises which were never meant to be kept?
Fall back flack from the Trump Pro-Democracy moment in HK
It was an aborted “color revolution”.
And all the Judges (UK and Australian citizenship) released all the criminals that caused the riots and damage, and even deaths.
Step one; get rid of the Western puppet “judges.”
Step two, charge and sentence the military operatives…
30 years ago, I owned some furniture stores. It was just before Christmas and a young woman came into the store I was at that night to pick up a roll top desk that she had purchased on layaway. She made weekly payments towards this purchase and was proud and excited that she was able to buy this desk for her husband’s Christmas present. It seemed apparent that it was a real financial stretch for her to have afforded this. She had come to the store with a pickup truck, and we helped load the desk into the truck bed. With a merry Christmas and smiles all around, she left for home.
Half an hour later, the woman came back to the store in tears. She had struck a pot hole in the highway and the desk was launched out of the truck and smashed to the ground. Fortunately no one was behind her, and a passerby helped get the desk back into the truck. Sobbing, she pleaded whether we could do anything to fix the desk. Clearly, though, it was irreparable. She was so distraught, there was clearly only one thing to do. We loaded another desk into her truck and I told her that it was my Christmas gift to her. She was so excited and thankful, and I think it really was a gift to myself. I felt really good about that!
Trim excess fat from beef. Rub surface of beef with salt and pepper. Place beef in 3 1/2 quart or larger slow cooker.
Mix remaining ingredients; pour over beef.
Cover and cook on LOW for 10 to 12 hours or until beef is tender.
Cut beef across grain into thin slices.
Skim fat from cranberry sauce from cooker if desired; serve with beef.
Notes
* Be sure to use a fresh beef brisket instead of a corned beef brisket. A ‘corned’ brisket is a fresh brisket that has been cured in seasoned brine, which would overpower the delicate flavor of the cranberry gravy. If a fresh brisket isn’t available, use the same cut of beef roast that you would use for your favorite pot roast. Also, whole berry sauce is recommended for its appearance, but you can use jellied if you like.
Oliver Anthony – Rich Men North Of Richmond: Asian labourers Emotional Reaction
This is going global, and it is being heard. The world is changing. Wake up! Pay attention!
It depends on when the filthy U.S. drops a viral weapon on China!
The filthy U.S. is the only country in the world that has not signed the Biological Weapons Convention and the Chemical Weapons Convention.
According to reports, the U.S. has more than 300 biological laboratories established worldwide and large-scale dangerous infectious diseases have been found around some of them. For example, the army lab at Fort Detrick in Maryland, which is the country’s largest biochemical weapons base, was shut down in July last year, but the CDC refused to give any details on the grounds of “national security”.
The US has 336 labs in 30 countries under its control, including 26 in Ukraine alone.
TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of National Defense (MND) is planning to build a new biosafety research and development facility.
On Sunday (July 9), UDN published a report claiming the U.S. has urged the MND’s National Defense Medical Center (NDMC) to invest in the construction of a new Biosafety Level 4 (P4) laboratory to “secretly establish virus research and development capabilities” and develop “biological warfare agents, with the target of these weapons being self-evident.” According to UDN, the information was obtained from secret meetings held by the government on June 23, 2022 and in January.
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Entrance to current P4 lab in New Taipei City’s Sanxia District, Taiwan.
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Entrance to current P4 facility in Sanxia District, Taiwan. (CNA photo)
THIS WAS AMAZING!!! Oliver Anthony – Rich Men North Of Richmond[FIRST TIME UK REACTION]
This is from the UK. This is a really good reaction.
My parents (who own a small ranch) bought a new tractor in 1998 for about $50k. Buying a tractor is just like buying a car—they put a downpayment of $1000, and financed the rest.
After a month or two, they noticed they had not gotten paperwork regarding the loan, so they called the dealership. The person there said that the dealership was going through a turbulent time and their loan paperwork had not been fully submitted, but assured them that it would be filed and they would not owe late fees when the statements started coming.
A few months later, they still hadn’t received anything, so they called again. This time, the person at the dealership was very short and with them. The person said that the dealership was going through bankruptcy proceedings and said (very firmly) not to call again.
They never called again, the paperwork never came, and nothing ever went on their credit score. They got a $50k tractor for $1000. That was almost 25 years ago, and the tractor still runs great.
Moral of the story—if you have the chance, buy a vehicle from a dealership that is about to go under. There is a small (but non-zero) chance that you’ll get the vehicle for basically nothing.
EVERYBODY WAS RIGHT!!!! | OLIVER ANTHONY-RICH MEN NORTH OF RICHMOND-REACTION| THE PAUSE FACTORY
Ah, yet another reaction… and again, people are stunned.
Brisket of Beef in Tomato Onion Gravy
Yield: 8 to 10 servings
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Ingredients
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 (4 to 5 pound) beef brisket, trimmed
1 (1 1/2 ounce) package dry onion soup mix
1/2 teaspoon cracked black peppercorns
1 (10 ounce) can condensed tomato soup
1/4 cup beef stock or water
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons balsamic or red wine vinegar
Additional all-purpose flour (optional)*
Instructions
Rub flour into brisket on both sides and place in slow cooker.
In a bowl, combine onion soup mix, peppercorns, tomato soup and beef stock. Pour mixture over brisket.
Cover and cook on LOW for 12 hours or on HIGH for 6 hours, until beef is very tender.
Transfer brisket to deep platter and slice thinly.
Stir brown sugar and vinegar into sauce. Pour over sliced meat or pass separately in a sauceboat.
Notes
* If you prefer a thicker gravy, keep cooked brisket warm and pour sauce into a saucepan. Place 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour in a small bowl. Add 1/4 cup hot cooking liquid, 2 tablespoons at a time, stirring to thoroughly blend after each addition. Stir mixture into remaining sauce and cook, stirring, over medium heat until thickened. Pour over brisket and serve.
A Tired Man’s Reaction to Rich Men North of Richmond by Oliver Anthony
I present to you one of the richest men in Saudi Arabia, Al Waleed Bin Talal, known as Prince Al Waleed, and this is his car.
image 18
This gentleman bought a Mercedes Benz SL600 and decided to give it a little more luxurious touch, he customized it by filling it with diamonds, including the entire bodywork, the tires, the door handles, rearview mirrors, and even the exhaust pipe. This luxurious Mercedes Benz is part of Prince Waleed’s extensive and sumptuous car collection of over 50 vehicles.
image 19
The car went from costing 320 thousand dollars, to almost 48 million dollars, a scandalous figure for a car.
The Three Little Pigs – as read by Christopher Walken
The Chinese are waiting for three events :- Indian Elections 2024 and US Elections 2024 and TAIWANESE ELECTIONS 2024
I have always maintained that China has no strategic use for Arunachal Pradesh or Ladakh
They are far more powerful and are certain India would never launch an offensive against China
They are just waiting for the HIGHEST PRICE they can get for these concessions
The BRICS expansion was unanimous
Modi met Xi Jingping
Both these events were deemed impossible in July 2023
Jaishankar personally stated that :-
Expansion at this stage of Geopolitical Tensions could be misinterpreted, so India is likely to keep expansion to a future date down the road
Brazil and India mutually talked and decided to postpone Expansion
In Politico, which is a mouthpiece for US Democrats, there was an article that stated that BRICS summit was likely to be a washout with no major discussion taken
Yet Modi wholeheartedly supported Expansion towards the end and made a speech to that effect welcoming the new members
Modi met Xi Jingping
So what’s the Price China wants?
The Clue is Irans inclusion into BRICS and Chinas agreement to accept payment in Crude Oil under the Yuan Commodity Mechanism
A PIPEPINE!!!!!
Until 2007, the Straits of Malacca fed China with nearly 84% of Gas and Oil and Energy
Today it’s just 56%
Almost a 40% reduction on reliance
In 2027, it’s estimated to be 44% as Power of Siberia and the Vladivostok Anhui pipelines go on full capacity
Add Gwadar to the mix and the dependence on Malacca reduces to 37%
Add the Suez Gwadar Route and that reduces the dependence to 31%
84% to 31% is a massive reduction
However China want 0%
The Solution is Iran
Iran Pakistan and INDIA
The idea was floated in 2016 of extending the Iran Pakistan Oil Pipelines into India and subsequently to Pakistan
Two Pipelines of 5243 Km each, longest in the world
That will end the dependence on Malacca permanently for China and ensure a Blockade of Malacca would bleed the West while China wouldn’t care too much
It’s a win – win for India as
India gets Oil from Iran, a fellow BRICS NATION and may likely pay for the Oil in Rupees or Imports
India gets a transit fee from China and pays a Transit fee to Pakistan
India isn’t threatened by a similar blockade in the coming years as India too heavily relies on sea shipping (96% as of 2021) along that route
My guess is once the US Elections are finished, China will know the future
If it’s Biden, it’s gonna be a Taiwan conflict and China has to focus on the South China Sea, so securing India is important
If it’s Trump, it’s gonna be a Trade conflict and China has to focus on it’s energy supply and trade routes and securing India is equally Important
The Price then will be full giving up on Arunachal Pradesh and Ladakh claims and from all existing territorial claims made since 1963
In return Indian Navy would not be expected not to participate in any trade blockade of Malacca straits or other parts of the Indian Ocean or support the US in the South China Sea
India would be asked to revise and enter into a massive business and trade agreement with China with a lot of investments from the Chinese side
India would endorse the pipeline from Iran and Pakistan and endorse it’s extension into China by 2030
My guess is India will agree because it’s cheap at the Price
It just cements Indias nonalignment not to interfere between global players and their conflicts
Modi is far more likely to accept this than Rahul would be, because its now clear Rahul would be heavily endorsed by the West and their Doctrine
He may even accept Western Military Bases in India and make India a Chessboard pawn in event of a Taiwanese conflict
Interesting time in 2024 to be frank
Now about the Map that China published yesterday, that’s normal since 1988
They always show Aksai Chin and Arunachal Pradesh
That means nothing whatsoever
There is another option
India could leave BRICS and go to the Western Fold completely
That would be a pity
Yet unless China do something really really stupid, India is very unlikely to take such a step as long as Jaishankar is in charge
Public money raised for the Grayzone never reaches them
Where’s my money? The public around the world raised more than US$90,000 for the Grayzone, a body of independent journalists whose loyalty is to the truth, rather than to the US narrative against China and other communities deemed “rivals” or “enemies”. But our money never reached the journalists. What happened?
An idiot thought he was being funny when he loudly asked me (the pilot flying the plane), “So, what have you been drinking this morning? Vodka?”
At that point I grabbed my kit bag and my hat and departed the plane and I went and got a voluntary alcohol and drug test. The flight was cancelled due to no pilot.
I made sure I announced over the PA the passenger’s seat number and last name so they knew who got their flight cancelled.
Of course my results came back clean, but professionally, I cannot stay on an aircraft after being accused of drinking or drugs, even if it’s a joke.
Florida man caught on camera injecting chemicals into neighbor’s door
A Florida man has been arrested after he was caught on camera injecting a chemical into his neighbor’s front door after complaining they made too much noise.
Back in the 1960’s the US Navy taught a lesson to Norfolk, VA. The town was getting a bit to big for their britches, the local police were shaking down Sailors and Marines and bar owners doing the same. Even taxis drivers were getting in on the fun of ripping of military personnel. Homeowners and businesses were putting up “Sailors and Dogs Keep off the Grass” signs.
‘As a first step to cleaning things up the Navy asked the city to have the signs removed, but they replied that the signs were on private property and the council had no power to have the signs removed. They figured that since Norfolk was the biggest Naval base in the world there was little the Navy could do. Oh how wrong they were. You see fleets are mobile.
One morning the good citizens of Norfolk woke up to a practically empty base. The handful of ships remaining were those that could not move because of physical problems. The Navy had decided to hold an “Emergency Sortie” drill which affected all ships, sending every ship that could get underway to sea overnight. The next day the base was empty and remained so. After the piers remained empty a while, reports came to the city council, that ships that had been in Norfolk were now entering other ports up and down the east coast. My ship was one of the first to re-enter Norfolk and we were very surprised at all the empty piers. The carrier piers that normally had one or two carriers moored-were empty. The supply piers, normally an ant hill of activity getting supply ships loaded-were empty. It was like something out of the twilight zone. When we moored, It seemed that all the laundry trucks in the city arrived had arrived at the pier we moored to, all wanting to know one thing—if the fleet was returning. We had no idea as we were returning from an around the world cruise with long stopover in Vietnam and had no idea what had happened.
It turned out that the city council had suddenly found a way to get those disrespectful signs removed and the police and bar owners had developed a totally different opinion of the Sailors and Marines that made up most of their business. So the fleet returned — to a different Norfolk.
Intel Lost $5 4 Billion as China Rejects Regulatory Approval!
Imagine cheating death twice only to become the world’s luckiest man. The unbelievable true story of Bill Morgan, a truck driver from Australia.
In 1992, Bill Morgan suffered a heart attack after being in a almost fatal crash while driving his truck, which stopped his heart for 14 minutes 33 seconds. He died, but doctors managed to bring him back, and he spent the next 15 days in a coma. Doctors couldn’t believe he beat the odds when he woke up from the coma, and they classed him as a medical marvel.
Since he cheated death, Bill thought about chancing his luck and started buying a weekly scratch card. He did this for about a year until luck smiled down on him again when he scratched a winning ticket, winning a car worth 30,000 dollars.
It was a welcomed surprise, but it wasn’t a life-changing sum of money, so Bill didn’t see it as a big deal. News of his win and his unbelievable back story caught the eye of “Channel Nine Evening News” in Melbourne, and they sent out a reporter to interview him.
The Channel Nine news team brought him to the shop where he bought the winning ticket. They asked Bill to buy another ticket so they could re-create the moment he won the car for the cameras.
The cameras rolled as he scratched the ticket. He stopped for a split second before turning to the cameras in total disbelief and said, “I just won 250,000 dollars, I’m not joking.” Channel Nine News couldn’t believe their luck as they caught the moment Bill rang his wife to tell her she could buy the house.
I CRIED SO MUCH 😭😭 | Oliver Anthony – I Want To Go Home Reaction
Yeah… I feel you. This one smacked me hard as well.
The Soviet Navy painted their ships red for several reasons, many of which are interesting and complex. One reason often cited is that they only used anti-rust primer paint and did not want to apply an additional layer of paint. However, there is much more to it than that.
Firstly, they chose the color red because most optical reconnaissance, satellite reconnaissance, and non-optical reconnaissance devices of that time had black and white color quality. Even thermal imaging devices had black and white imagery. Soviet ships, which carried long-range missiles and often conducted surprise attacks by launching long-range missiles and retreating, rarely had to engage with visually observed reconnaissance aircraft.
Red also provides good camouflage during dusk and dawn, which are considered the “ideal” times for naval combat by the Soviet Navy. When viewed from above without close attention, a red ship can easily be mistaken for a civilian oil tanker or fishing vessel.
The color of the sea is not always blue; it can be red, purple, black, yellow, and so on. Therefore, gray or black may not always be the optimal colors for camouflage at sea. Different environments, lighting conditions, and times of day can affect the appearance of the sea, and using colors that blend well with the surroundings in a specific situation is crucial for effective camouflage. The Soviet Navy recognized this and chose the color red for its ships, considering factors such as the equipment used for reconnaissance and the specific lighting conditions during combat scenarios.
US: No bread for you China,
China: No flour for you US.
Well, I’ve been putting it off, and putting it off, but I made the big leap. I went and got a Botox treatment.
Before:
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After:
article 2690336 1F9B768E00000578 832 634×797
I cannot believe that is me in the mirror!
LOL
Personally, I don’t think it did anything. But everyone else ohhs and ahhs about it. WTF? They say I look twenty years younger. What?
Do I look like I’m 14 years old?
The procedure was simple. They put this icy cold (it was stored in the refrigerator) gel on my face, and then covered it up with clear plastic wrap. Then after about 40 minutes, I laid down and had the procedure.
ouch. ouch. ouch. ouch.
(Only kidding.)
About 50 or so little tiny pin-pricks that I could hardly feel.
And that was that. All the skin on my face relaxed, and those troublesome crevices and gullies disappeared! Who would have thought?
The effect lasts for about six months and then I’ll need to do it again. Don’t you know.
I don’t know what the Hell I was afraid of. It was “nothing”. Really. Not a big deal at all.
Now, if only I could do something about my hair… or lack of it. LOL.
Sigh.
…
The amount of money you pay, vs the look that you are trying to achieve can be either very important or trivial. If it is very important to you, then well… yeah pay that money. If it isn’t, then NOPE… buy a case of beer instead.
It’s all about priorities.
I do not know if I am going to continue with the six month Botox treatments. They cost money, and I am not seeing any real significant changes or improvements in my appearance.
So I probably will not…
…
By the way, a 18 year old girl started to flirt with me today, so….
My family owned and drove nothing but Mitsubishi vehicles for about ten years. Three cars and a (small) truck, all purchased new.
One of the cars died four days after the warranty expired.
Four.
Days.
I don’t mean it developed mechanical problems. I mean the engine locked up solid. Like a brick.
Like all of our vehicles, this one had been well maintained. All scheduled maintenance performed on time, regular oil changes, tire rotations, fuel injector cleanings, the works.
I wrote a long, detailed letter to Mitsubishi Motors, explaining about the car. I made it clear that we were faithful customers, and that we knew the warranty was technically expired, but… four days? Seriously? The car had less than 50,000 miles on the odometer, and it had been immaculately maintained.
I asked if Mitsubishi could do anything.
They responded about three months later with a one-sentence letter. Something to this effect…
After careful investigation, we have determined that that your vehicle’s warranty was expired when the failure occurred.
That pissed me off.
Careful investigation?
I told them in the first paragraph that the warranty was expired. I mentioned it about six times in my letter, along with exact dates, mileage readings, and all the details, including photostatic copies of maintenance records.
Honestly, Mitsubishi could have sent me a $300 voucher toward an engine replacement and kept my business.
Instead, they lost a customer for life.
More than one customer, actually.
My daughter (grown now) won’t even look at a Mitsubishi product. Neither will my (now) ex-wife. And – before I eventually calmed down – I showed their rejection letter to a LOT of people.
I got more than a few calls from people who knew that I’d been driving Mitsubishis for years, wanting to know what kept me coming back. They got an earful.
I’ve probably bought eight vehicles in the years since then, so I know that crappy letter cost them eight car sales. I imagine at least a few car shoppers decided against Mitsubishi after seeing that letter.
Someone once told me that a satisfied customer tells six to ten people about their positive experiences, but an unsatisfied customer tells fifty to a hundred. I’ve told more than a hundred.
Dice potatoes to 1/2 inch. Add to salted water and bring to a boil. Turn off heat, sit for 10 minutes, strain and set aside.
Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
Add bacon fat to skillet over medium-high heat. Sear potatoes until golden, about 5 minutes.
Add onions, garlic, thyme and oregano; sear until onions are transparent. Stir in cabbage and corned beef. Season with pepper.
Gently crack eggs on top of the hash and place skillet in the oven.
Bake for 10-15 minutes depending on desired egg doneness.
Oliver Anthony’s Emotional Speech About the Future of America
Oliver Anthony fought back tears as shared his thoughts and opinions on the current state of the United States of America and its future. Oliver Anthony also gave a very candid response to his song “Rich Men North of Richmond” being used as a political tool with both Conservatives and the left.
Yes, I met a really nice guy that was serving two life sentences. It was really hard for me to wrap my head around the idea had so much time, so I asked him about it. The guy was a Vietnam War vet. He was a tunnel-rat, meaning that sometimes he had to belly-crawl into holes to clear them with just the use of his boot-knife. He got very efficient at it during his tour. Meanwhile, his tour was almost up and he was looking forward to coming home. However, he kept hearing stories about his sister being in an abusive relationship. He explained that normally he didn’t involve himself in the details of other people’s relationships but this was his sister that he was very protective of and he just didn’t know how much he could tolerate knowing that she was in an abusive relationship after he’d spent years killing people just because they were the enemy. So he sent her a letter to break off that relationship, in hopes he would never meet the guy that was abusing his sister.
Eventually, he did return to the United States. He caught a cab from the airport to drive him home. But as they entered the neighborhood the police had everything sealed off because of some crime scene investigation. He didn’t want to step on anyone’s toes but he did explain that he was just returning home from Vietnam and only wanted to get home which was only a block away. So they asked for his address and he gave it only to be met by a detective requesting his company down at the station. So he reiterated that he literally just returned from Vietnam and didn’t know anything about what was going on, but the police insisted.
So he goes down to the station to be informed that his sister and mother were killed by his sister’s boyfriend. Apparently, the guy wasn’t so keen about breaking off the relationship. The police had the guy, it was pretty cut and dry, he was in custody, and the police only asked him to let them do their job without him interfering.
Well, turns out that the boyfriend bonded out, and this Vietnam vet had friends that knew where this guy hung out. So this guy goes down to a bar the boyfriend frequented and had him pointed out. He approached the guy at the pool table and started chatting the guy up. He explained that he just got back from Vietnam and that he was a tunnel rat there. He pulled out his combat knife to explain what it was like belly crawling through tunnels with that particular knife because his .45 would have alarmed the enemy. He told stories of spiders the size of basketballs rushing at him that he had to kill without giving away his position. But the guy he was talking to just wanted to know if he wanted to bet on the pool game.
So he told the guy (his sister’s abusive boyfriend that killed both his sister and his mother), that he had a bet for him. He told him that he was going to take that very same knife he used in Vietnam to skin him alive and that he was willing to bet nobody in the bar would intervene. And so he did. And he didn’t stop cutting up that guy (in front of everyone) until the police arrived and asked him to.
When he went to court, the judge wasn’t too happy about his vigilante justice and convicted him for murder, but when he was asked if he’d like to say anything before sentencing he asked for the name of the magistrate officer that gave his sister and mother’s murderer bail.
Oh SH*T, The Fuse Has Been Lit!
The economy is on its last legs and the Fed is about to push it off a cliff. Powell’s conviction to crash the economy is alive and well, he wants higher unemployment to destroy inflation. Here’s why interest rates will stay higher for longer & how it could collapse this leveraged economy.
So I sat with his attorney and mine….one time….and listed out everything I had bought for our daughter, divided it in half and that’s what his money paid for.
Then I showed my lease and renters insurance and water bill and cable bill and light bill, you get the gist.
Half of all them are for her.
Divided hers in half and started adding up his responsibilities.
It turned out I was short $300 a month of his responsibility.
It took him a minute to look at the breakdown and I stood and leaned over the table and started pointed and numbers and adding them again on my calculator and then handed him the calculator if he wanted to add it himself since he was looking at a major spreadsheet (I do accounting) and asked if he understood.
It took a few minutes for it to sink it but he got it. About 6 months later he asked me to see the chart again and I showed him and he handed me an extra $300.
He said to keep him up and what the bills are and if I need more to let him know. He always paid for her school supplies and new clothes and shoes for school.
Once it was all in black and white and he saw I wasn’t screwing him over like all his friends said then he put his love for his little girl ahead of everything else. He was a crappy husband but a wonderful father.
How I see the US after living in Europe for 5 years
What is America like after experiencing life in Europe? BIG. Consumerism. Gun violence. The homeless. The police. “What do you do for work?” This is how I see the US after living in the Netherlands for 5 years. Sometimes it takes leaving a place for one to truly understand the pros and cons of a place. There are things I love and dislike about the US. Hope you enjoy this short movie!
In 1981, a young Japanese engineer named Kikuo Ibe broke the mechanical watch his father had given him as a gift. Ibe accidentally dropped the watch on the way to work and it broke into pieces on the floor. At the same time, he began to observe some construction workers around his office who were using jackhammers, and he noticed that they never wore watches because of the vibration. After that, he got the idea to create a sturdy watch that couldn’t be destroyed.
When Ibe later got a job at Casio Computer Co., Ltd. , he developed the rugged digital watch called the G-Shock. The G-Shock was designed as a watch that would have triple resistance 10, meaning it would have a battery life of 10 years, water resistance of 10 bar and could survive a drop of 10 meters. As most watches on the market were as slim as possible, it was not an immediate success, only attracting construction workers and police officers. But it later became a style icon when the skateboarding craze hit the world, prompting young people to look for a tough watch to match their baggy clothes. Subsequently G-Shock became very popular among the general public. On September 1, 2017, Casio celebrated its 100 million shipment of G-Shocks worldwide.
Rock Music Producer Reacts to Rich Men North of Richmond by Oliver Anthony Reaction Video
I was living in Arizona and working a good paying job, living in what I thought was a good sized house when a young British man, probably 17, knocked on my door selling books.
Like seriously, who sells books door to door anymore right? And this dude had the coolest accent, and how many British people do you honestly come across in southern Arizona. So what the hell, I invited him in for a soda, and bought some books.
But here’s the thing. Got to chatting with the guy, he was here on some exchange program for the summer, had to live with some American family, only had $3 to spend on breakfast each day (he ate at Denny’s) and had to sell books all day for the company who sponsored the travel.
Slave labor I thought. He had stained dirty clothes that didn’t fit him, and was riding a bike. I felt so bad, I took him to my closet and started going through all my clothes.
I said here, you can have this, and that. If you are going to be selling books door to door in this neighborhood, you ought to look your best.
He smiled humbly, and said friend, you really don’t have to do this. I have lots of clothes back home, and my family…
Nonsense I said. Here’s a nice button up shirt, and some slacks. What size shoe do you wear?
Sir, please, you really don’t have to..
Long story short, we became pals, added him to the Facebook, sent him off on his little bike with a pile of clothes, and kind of forgot about him for awhile.
Sometime later, I noticed a post he made. He was all dressed up in a Tux, attending some royal party in England. Turns out his family was pretty important, and he was super rich.
Probably had a house the size of mine just for his horses.
So the most astounding thing I ever said to a British person visiting America, who happened to be some kind of British Royal person, was “Hey, have some of my clothes friend, and a drink!”
Chinese President Xi Jinping defined all the major decisions embedded in the 15th BRICS summit in South Africa as “historic”. That may be seen as an understatement.
It will take time for the Global South, or Global Majority, or “Global Globe” (copyright President Lukashenko), not to mention the stunned collective West, to fully grasp the enormity of the new strategic stakes.
President Putin, for his part, described the negotiations on BRICS expansion as quite difficult. By now a relatively accurate picture is emerging of what really went down on that table in Johannesburg.
India wanted 3 new members. China wanted as many as 10. A compromise was finally reached, with 6 members: Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Argentina and Ethiopia.
So from now on it’s BRICS 11. And that’s just the beginning. Starting with the rotating Russian presidency of BRICS on January 1, 2024, more partners will be progressively included, and most certainly a new round of full members will be announced at the BRICS 11 summit in Kazan in October next year.
So we may soon progress to BRICS 20 – on the way to BRICS 40. The G7, for all practical purposes, is sliding towards oblivion.
Bur first things first. At that fateful table in Johannesburg, Russia supported Egypt. China went all out for Persian Gulf magic: Iran, UAE and the Saudis. Of course: Iran-China are already deep into a strategic partnership, and Riyadh is already accepting payment for energy in yuan.
Brazil and China supported Argentina, Brazil’s troubled neighbor, running the risk of having its economy fully dollarized, and also a key commodity provider to Beijing. South Africa supported Ethiopia. India, for a series of very complex reasons, was not exactly comfortable with 3 Arab/Muslim members (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt). Russia assuaged New Delhi’s fears.
All of the above respects geographic principles and imprints the notion of BRICS representing the Global South. But it goes way beyond that, blending cunning strategy and no-nonsense realpolitik.
That was stressed by New Development Bank (NDB) president Dilma Rousseff in her report to the South African summit hosts – even as Brazilian President Lula once again emphasized the importance of setting up a work group to discuss a BRICS currency.
Lavrov understood how New Delhi is absolutely terrified of secondary sanctions by the US, in case its BRICS role gets too ambitious. Prime Minister Modi is essentially hedging between BRICS and the completely artificial imperial obsession embedded in the terminology “Indo-Pacific” – which masks renewed containment of China. The Straussian neo-con psychos in charge of US foreign policy are already furious with India buying loads of discounted Russian oil.
New Delhi’s support for a new BRICS currency would be interpreted in Washington as all-out trade war – and sanctions dementia would follow. In contrast, Saudi Arabia’s MbS doesn’t care: he’s a top energy producer, not consumer like India, and one of his priorities is to fully court his top energy client, Beijing, and pave the way for the petroyuan.
It Takes Just a Single Strategic Move
Now let’s get into the strategic stakes. For all practical purposes, in Eurasian terms, BRICS 11 is now on the way to lord over the Arctic Sea Route; the International North South Transportation Corridor (INSTC); BRI’s East West Corridors; the Persian Gulf; the Red Sea; and the Suez Canal.
That blends several overland corridors with several nodes of the Maritime Silk Roads. Nearly total integration in the Heartland and the Rimland. All with just a single strategic move in the geopolitical/geoeconomic chessboard.
Much more than an increase of BRICS 11 collective GDP to 36% of the world’s total (already larger than the G7), with the group now encompassing 47% of the world’s population, the top geopolitical and geoeconomic breakthrough is how BRICS 11 is about to literally break the bank on the energy and commodities market fronts.
By incorporating Iran, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, BRICS 11 instantly shines on as an oil and gas powerhouse. BRICS 11 now controls 39% of global oil exports; 45.9% of proven reserves; and at least 47.6% of all oil produced globally, according to InfoTEK.
With BRICS 11 possibly including Venezuela, Algeria and Kazakhstan as new members as early as in 2024, it may control as much as 90% of all oil and gas traded globally.
Inevitable corollary: operations settled in local currencies bypassing the US dollar. And inevitable conclusion: petrodollar in a coma. The Empire of Chaos and Plunder will lose its free lunch menu: control of global oil prices and means to enforce “diplomacy” via a tsunami of unilateral sanctions.
Already in the horizon, direct BRICS 11-OPEC+ symbiosis is inevitable. OPEC+ is effectively run by Russia and Saudi Arabia.
A ground-shaking geoeconomic reorientation is at hand, involving everything from routes plied by global supply chains and new BRICS roads to the progressive interconnection of BRI, the Saudi Vision 2030 and massive port expansion in the UAE.
By choosing Ethiopia, BRICS expands its African reach on mining, minerals and metals. Ethiopia is rich in gold, platinum, tantalum, copper, niobium and offers vast potential in oil and natural gas exploration. Saudi Arabia and the UAE, incidentally, are also involved in mining.
This all spells out fast, progressive integration of North Africa and West Asia.
How Diplomacy Goes a Long Way
The BRICS 11 Shock of the New, in the energy sphere, is a sharp historical counterpoint to the 1973 oil shock, after which Riyadh started wallowing in petrodollars. Now Saudi Arabia under MbS is operating a tectonic shift, in the process of becoming strategically aligned with Russia-China-India-Iran.
Diplomatic coup does not even begin to describe it. This is the second stage of the Russian-initiated and Chinese-finalized rapprochement between Riyadh and Tehran, recently sealed in Beijing. The Russia-China strategic leadership, working patiently in synch, never lost sight of the ball.
Now compare it with collective West’s “strategies”, such as the G7-imposed oil price cap. Essentially the G7 “coalition of the willing” self-imposed a price cap on Russian crude imported by sea. The result is that they had to start buying way more oil products from Global South nations which ignored the price cap and duly increased their purchase of Russian crude.
Guess who are the top two: BRICS members China and India.
After wallowing in several stages of denial, the collective West may – or may not – realize it’s a fool’s dream to attempt to “de-couple” the West-ruled part of the global economy from China, whatever is spewed out by Washington.
BRICS 11 now shows, graphically, how the “Global South/Global Majority/”Global Globe” is more non-aligned with the West than anytime in recent history.
By the way, the president of the G77, Cuban leader Diaz-Canel, was at the BRICS summit representing the de-facto new Non-Aligned Movement (NAM): the G77 actually incorporates no less than 134 nations. Most are African. Xi Jinping in Johannesburg met in person with the leaders of most of them.
The collective West, in panic, regards all of the above as “dangerous”. So the last refuge is, predictably, rhetorical: “de-coupling”, “de-risking”, and similar idiocies.
Yet that may also get practically dangerous. As in the first ever trilateral summit in Camp David on August 18 between the Empire and two Asian vassals, Japan and South Korea. That may be interpreted as the first move towards a military-political Asian NATO even more toxic than Quad or AUKUS, obsessed to simultaneously contain China, Russia and the DPRK.
The Collective Outstripping of the Global North
The UN lists 152 nations in the world as “developing countries”. BRICS 11 is aiming at them – as they outstrip the Global North on everything from population growth to overall contribution to global GDP growth measured by PPP.
In the past 10 years since the announcement of BRI first in Astana and then in Jakarta, Chinese financial institutions have lent nearly $1 trillion for infrastructure connectivity projects across the Global South. The upcoming BRI forum in Beijing will signal a renewed drive. That’s the BRI-BRICS symbiosis.
In the G20 last year, China was the first nation to lobby for the inclusion of the 55-member African Union (AU). That may happen at the G20 summit next month in New Delhi; in that case, Global South representation will be close to parity with the Global North.
Claims that Beijing was organizing a malign conspiracy to turn BRICS into a weapon against the G7 are infantile. Realpolitik – and geoeconomic indicators – are dictating the terms, configuring the Shock of the New: the G7’s irreversible irrelevance with the rise of BRICS 11.
Oliver Anthony – Rich Men North Of Richmond REACTION
Ethiopia was the only major African kingdom not be colonized by the Europeans, except for an Italian occupation in the 1930s.
It has a significant middle-sized population of 120M.
Ethiopia has a government which is dedicated to the modernization of Ethiopia led by Abi Ahmed.
Abi Ahmed was educated in China and is fluent in Putonghua, and there are other Chinese-educated members of government who are adapting lessons from China’s modernization to fit into the Ethiopian model of development. China has been involved in various infrastructure development projects in the country.
The country also has cordial relations with Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa.
The US and G7 have overlooked Ethiopia for a long time, and have considered it to be unimportant.
Beef and Gravy over Potatoes
Beef Tips Gravy verticle 720×540 1
Ingredients
3 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
1/3 cup water
1 pound ground beef
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 envelope brown gravy mix
1/4 cup milk
3 tablespoons butter, softened
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
Place potatoes and water in a microwave-safe dish. Cover and microwave on HIGH for 8 to 10 minutes or until tender.
Meanwhile, in large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in garlic powder and onion powder.
Prepare gravy mix according to package directions.
Place potatoes in a mixing bowl; add milk, butter, salt and pepper. Beat on medium speed until smooth.
Do you recognize this famous street hawker occasionally featured in international media in discussions related to global economic dynamics?
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He is Sirivat Voravetvuthikun—Mr. Sandwich of Thailand.
Previously a high-flyer multi-millionaire businessman, Sirivat went bankrupt by impacts of the infamous Asian financial crisis of the late 1990’s. The crisis not only took away all his fortunes but also left him in debts of millions of dollars.
But all this mishap could not smash him to simply become a poor and rot. Srivat took himself to the ground to kick off a restart, afresh.
His wife would make sandwiches from night till dawn and he would go out to the street to sell them starting early in the morning.
Soon he became a media-feature, a subject of the critics and many raised their eyebrows at the sight of a multi-millionaire selling sandwich on street.
But nothing could hold him back. Srivat stirred himself through.
Then, as he kept on doing what he was doing, the populace started to re-discover Srivat Voravetvuthikun. The dignity, courage and honesty that Srivat was trying to uphold: he was not trying to cheat or steal someone else’s money. Nor was he trying to escape from his lenders. Nor did he choose to live a disgraceful life of a fallen runner. Instead, he was trying to re-establish himself, to stand again on his own feet, pay off his debts and live with his head held high in the society.
People now started buying his sandwiches.
Sirivat’s sales started growing, then soaring. At the height of his popularity, he earned a loving nickname: Mr. Sandwich.
Soon Mr. Sandwich became a brand—one of its kind and ever, as Srivat started settling with his sandwich/coffee shops nationwide.
image 21
Mr. Sirivat Voravetvuthikun once again became a millionaire. This time a more renowned one, and well-respected.
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To answer the question— unless born with silver spoon in the mouth, a genuinely rich person does anything he/she needs to stay on. I’ve learned about this great man, and I also know about quite a few other rich men. They work hard no less than the mediocrity, even harder than the average people. They don’t care how much it takes, what the critics talk on the face or behind. They only keep their promise to themselves: live in affluence with dignity.
He Died & Was Shown The Future of USA Democracy – Ken Leth’s NDE
Ken Leth shares his Near Death Experience (NDE) that he had when he was 8 years old when he was shown the future and a civil war. This is his testimony
The Company I worked for made over $9B in 2004 on the revenue of $36 billion. That was a lot of money for a company to make back then. And a 25% profit margin is just sweet.
One fine day, in 2004, the leadership decided they needed to be more nimble. More efficient. The solution? Supplies were no longer available on each floor, you had to walk down to the ground floor to get them.
So you’re in the middle of something and realize you need a notepad and a pen.
You walk to the elevator, push a button, wait for it, enter, push the G button, wait, exit the elevator, walk to the supply room, get a pen and notebook, walk back to the elevator, push a button, wait, enter the elevator, push the desired floor button, exit, walk back to your desk.
For a company that paid its software developers well over $100k! This came at a time when tech companies started giving free lunches to keep their employees productive. The waste of time alone meant the change was a net negative.
Who the heck thought it was a good idea to save pennies by removing supplies from each floor from a company that made 25% profit (over $9B / year at that time)?
I know of several people who quit the company over this. Not because this specific thing was painful for them, but because it signaled the company was in a downward spiral. They went to other companies (often competitors) where they were more valued.
In coming years The Company was going to prove those quitters right by losing a lot of market share in key upcoming markets, from the browser to mobile devices.
The photo above is by Cole Carini. He is 23 years old and is from Virginia, USA.
On June 2, 2020 (yes, a few days ago), he walked into a local medical centre with serious injuries to his body… and a missing hand! When local authorities asked about the reason for these extreme injuries, he lied to them saying he had received them because of an accident he had with a lawn mower. Due to the severity of the injuries, the FBI became involved in the case.
But the FBI soon discovered that he was creating a bombshell for an alleged attack on a group of women he described as “Cheerleaders.” During the making of the bomb, he somehow ended up exploding the bomb and blew off his entire hand, causing very extreme injuries to his body.
For me, this is an example of instant karma, though perhaps not so much in everyday life. He was definitely making the bomb to hurt others, but he ended up almost killing himself. I’m sure now he wishes he wasn’t even able to make a bomb!
First Time Hearing | Oliver Anthony – I WANT TO GO HOME | Reaction Video
When he was six years old, my son came excitedly out of the garden and threw a stone he had found in my hand. He told me he found a Stone Age tool. I put it down to a vivid imagination, but to appease him I told him we could ask the head of the local historical society for an opinion.
We did that a few months later, and the man’s eyes popped out of their sockets. He was also a delegate to the state archeology office and said he needed to send the stone to the museum in Stuttgart for a professional opinion. He was sure it WAS a primitive tool.
As it turned out, the stone was a flat tool used to poke holes in leather to sew pieces of leather together. It dated back to the end of the Stone Age. How my six year old recognized I had no idea.
LIBERAL REACTS Oliver Anthony I Want To Go Home & I’ve Got to Get Sober REACTION
Preach it brother!
2023 08 26 11 22
“Information Designed To Show …”
Yesterday CNN published another Russiagate like nonsense story:
Russian intelligence is operating a systematic program to launder pro-Kremlin propaganda through private relationships between Russian operatives and unwitting US and western targets, according to newly declassified US intelligence.
One of the craziest things happening in our world today is how westerners are being trained to overlook the massive amounts of western propaganda they’re inundated with day in and day out and focus instead on “Russian propaganda”, which has no meaningful existence in the west. In 2017 before RT was shut down in the UK, it accounted for 0.04 percent of the UK’s total TV audience. A New York University study published earlier this year found that the supposed Russian Twitter influence campaign ahead of the 2016 election which dominated headlines for years had had “no measurable impact in changing minds or influencing voter behavior”. An earlier study found that suspected Russian accounts showing up in Facebook’s news feed during that time amounted to “approximately 1 out of 23,000 pieces of content.” A study by Adelaide University found that despite headline after headline warning us about a massive wave of Russian bots manipulating online discourse after the invasion of Ukraine began last year, the overwhelming majority of fake accounts they examined (more than 90 percent) were pro-Ukraine accounts.
Contrast this microscopic smattering of influence with the fact that westerners are continually getting their news reporting from western propaganda outlets which openly publish CIA press releases disguised as news on a regular basis. These people are absolutely telling us the truth when they say we’re under constant bombardment by propaganda and influence operations — they’re just lying about who’s really doing it to us.
CNN was not the only outlet that plugged the stupid CIA press release. The New York Times had it too and its report is a bit more revealing:
Reading through the stupid disinformation stuff one stumbles over this sentence:
[T]he information released by the United States on Friday is designed to show how much deeper Russian influence operations are than those efforts to sow dissent on the internet.
That is quite revealing. The information contained in the CIA release was ‘designed’ or construed to create a certain propaganda narrative. It wasn’t just information that could be found or observed by a reporter but a curated collection of items put together to create a certain effect.
Think about that for a minute and you will recognize that most of the ‘news’ one reads is made like this.
Someone asserts that there is a need for to create a certain effect. A narrative is thought up that could lead to it. The some bits of facts or rumors are collected, sorted, filtered and then written up until the constructed narrative is thought to be likely to create the desired effect. This is then the declassified product and fed to the media which are willing to distribute such stuff.
The current very long Spiegel story about the U.S. attack on the Nord Stream pipelines is a nice example for such a ‘product’:
German politicians are too coward to call out the U.S. for the attack and to discuss the necessary consequences. They need a different narrative.
When an attempt was made to declare that ‘Russia did it’ the public did not fall for it. Blaming Ukraine is a convenient out. It can later be forgiven because, they will say, Ukraine did what it thought was necessary and only did it because Russia was attacking it.
That is the desired effect of the story. The information in the Spiegel piece was carefully ‘designed’ to create the appropriate narrative.
That the Spiegel needed 19 named authors to put it out says something about the complexity of such a process. It is still disinformation but on a large scale.
Posted by b on August 26, 2023 at 15:53 UTC | Permalink
Yes. I test drove a demo car. It had been driven by one of their salesmen for year. We agreed on a price. I had everything set up and I was ready to sign.
I looked at the contract and saw $250 tacked on to the price. I asked what it was for. They told me that it was for the pinstriping, floor mats and hubcaps. All things that were part of the car while it was being driven around by the sales person and when I test drove it.
I told them I expected to purchase the car for the price they quoted me as it was shown to me. They offered to remove the pinstriping, floor mats and hubcaps. I said no and once again told them that I was ready to sign for the price I agreed to in the condition the car was in when they gave me the price.
The manager refused to budge and so did I. I walked out. The salesman seemed surprised: I told him I would not pay the extra $250 they tried to slip in on the contract.
The sad part for them is, if they had quoted me the higher price to begin with when we made the deal, I would have purchased the car. It was the fact that they added it at the last minute to the contract they handed me to sign.
Heartbreaking! Oliver Anthony – I Want To Go Home / Reaction Video !
In 1964, two entrepreneurs paid a marketing company to help them come up with a name for their service, which would also be the company name.
They started with Analytical Technology. Then, quite, unfortunately, condensed it into AnalTech. They’ve had the name now for more than 50 years.
They provide services for forensic science and pharmaceutical development. Per their own words, they’ve always faced challenges with people on the internet using juvenile humor about their name (guilty). Additionally, spam filters on other company websites have caused them problems.
JohndoeATanaltech.com never seems to be able to reach anyone’s inbox. They’ve considered other names but seem married to the one they have.
In 2017, a truck lost control and went off the road, not only mowing down the Analtech sign but also plummeting into the actual building:
Adding on to this, and I’m not joking with you — locals reported that a bizarre smell began coming out of the Analtech building after the impact.
You can’t make this stuff up.
MM Commentary
There are a lot of “fringe” and conspiracies out in Internet land.
My favorite (head scratcher) has to do with the strange coincidence that all of the roofs on the homes of the ultra-wealthy were painted this brilliant blue. And everything that was not scorched were blue. Like mailboxes, plastic refuse bins and things like that.
2023 08 30 14 12
Really odd.
And the really strange thing is what the ultra rich did to their homes a few years earlier…
2023 08 30 14 10
I watched a video on you-tube that shows how a laser can destroy everything except the color blue. WTF!
DEW being used on …
Maui Fires, DEWs & The Secret Of The Color Blue!
Maui Fires, DEWs & The Secret Of The Color Blue!
2023 08 30 14 11
So…
Here you have this super strange fire.
And the strange way that the United States government is hiding everything and policing the area… People! This is not how FEMA handles fire devastated regions.
Gov’t Installs BLACK FENCING Encircling Lahaina!
This is damn odd.
In a recent video that went viral online, a Hawaii resident documents the miles of black fencing that has gone up around Lahaina in Maui as well as other burn zones from the recent wildfires. Getting necessary supplies to the fire’s victims has been rather slow, but all this fencing went up in record time. So what’s going on?
Plus, you add on the facts that this prime section of real estate has been in the process of being bought up by very wealthy interests, with the lowly commoners in the town of Lahaina in the way.
As I write this, the latest typhoon is making landfall. In this case, it is typhoon Saola. ZH and GZ self-defense forces are on alert, and for the population it is “all hands on deck” in readiness. It is a “Super Typhoon” of level 17. Could be brutal. (Of course, by the time you all read this, the event will be long over.) We are braced, and all of our activities are in postponement mode.
…
I found out why all the emails to laobangbh@163.com never reached me.
It seems that I was a victim of numerous “saturation attacks” where thousands of emails spam my inbox. The objective of these kinds of attacks is to render your email system inert and useless, as most email accounts have a limit on how many emails can exist.
I have been trying to erase the emails. The 163 software only allow batches of 10 to 20 emails at a time (page by page). I have 73,652 pages of attack emails interspersed with an occasional email of value.
I figure that it will take me half a year to clean out the mails if I devote about 20 minutes a day to erase the emails manually. I am thinking about contacting the 163 server for assistance, but my Chinese is shit in specialized situations such as this, and I am not VIP on this account. Ugh!
…
Back in the 1990s my wife and I had some friends that we used to “hang out” with. We would drink beer and play video games or watch a movie or two. They also had a cat.
It was one frigid Winter night in January while we were inside, and their cat was in heat. It was driving “Misty” our friend, bonkers. But outside was a howling blizzard, and the temperature was -20F, hardly healthy, and quite dangerous. But, I well remember, while the cat was standing at the door howling… she opened the door and let her out saying “go out and have fun, you slut”, and then slammed it shut.
I don’t know what happened to the kitty. Knowing cats, it probably found some kind of shelter. But, still…
For me, I greatly lament what happened. Why didn’t I stop her?
Well, it happened too quickly. It occurred and was over long before I could react.
And there, somewhere in the swirling snow, and darkness, the kitty went to follow her instincts. Right or wrong.
…
We all have to be more aware of the things going on around us. More mindful. More careful and more compassionate.
Todays…
The results of the BRICS summit are great, isolation as a weapon of the USA has been defeated forever — Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova
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“It is not BRICS that threatens the United States of America, it is the state of the USA, its liberal economy, the neoliberal model. I think that the expansion of BRICS will not be some kind of cold shower for the USA, Great Britain and the EU. I think it is too soft and too light a term. It will become a new reality for everyone, and it will be a demonstration of this new reality that they hide and do not show on American channels,” she said.
WOW!! OLIVER ANTHONY I WANT TO GO HOME (EMOTIONAL)
BRICS has very few advantages to countries that aren’t a direct threat to the WEST and are thus ignored by the WEST
2023 09 01 18 49
It’s why Indonesia wasn’t very keen to join BRICS
It enjoys a relatively nice and non aligned foreign policy and isn’t a threat to any one and enjoys business with China and the West equally
Thus no advantages in joining BRICS and a lot of disadvantages including joining a group consisting two nations bitterly opposed to US Hegemony
2023 09 01 18 49e
Same reason why Nigeria is unlikely to join BRICS
Nigeria is already a member of the BRI and has very good trade relationships with China but also has a good relationship with the West who doesn’t really care much about Nigeria because today it’s irrelevant
So it’s joining BRICS is irrelevant
2023 09 01 18 5f0
Today the only nations that can have huge advantages in joining BRICS are those nations which are :-
Directly in the sight of the Western Nations and are at risk of being caught out by sudden cut off from access to the West and it’s financial systems like RUSSIA, SAUDI ARABIA, CHINA and IRAN
Have Non Democratic Stable Rule that is deemed as Dictatorship by the West who will meddle for subservience – Saudi Arabia, Iran, China etc
Have experienced the high handedness of the West and realize the safety in joining an Alliance that offers an alternate route to avoid chaos and disaster that could arise from a western retaliation – UAE, IRAN, SAUDI ARABIA, RUSSIA
Want to have a foot in two camps to avoid being completely dependent on either side – BRAZIL, INDIA
Have been so badly destroyed by the Western Financial System despite having lots of resources that they HAVE to join an alternate alliance for some stability and development – CUBA, VENEZUELA, ARGENTINA
BRICS is a protection from the West in case the West decides to pull a Russia again
Thus it’s not for 90% of the nations of the world
Algeria, Myanmar, Cuba, Venezuela, Syria, Libya, Turkey are other countries who would have tremendous advantages
This rises a question
Does India have any advantages?
Yes
A Foot in both camps
India is a member of QUAD and SCO
India is a member of BRICS and G20
It offers options and high leverage
However I don’t see a future for India in BRICS+ for very long
It’s basically becoming a “Anti Western Group” and India and Brazil and South Africa will find fewer common ground items than China, Russia, Saudi and Iran
Au Jus Beef and Noodles
OIPv
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
2 pounds stew beef meat
2 (7 ounce) cans sliced mushrooms, undrained
2 cups beef broth
1 (1 ounce) package dry au jus gravy mix
Worcestershire sauce to taste
Salt, pepper, garlic salt to taste
Hot cooked noodles
Instructions
Place stew meat in slow cooker.
Add beef broth and mushrooms.
Add seasonings to taste and sprinkle in au jus gravy mix to taste.
Cover; cook on LOW for 7 to 8 hours.
Serve over hot cooked noodles.
Notes
Store any leftover gravy mix in a cool, dry place in an airtight container.
My mother lived and worked in Shanghai from 1945 – 1949. She kept a diary during the time she was there. You can read about it here: An interesting diary
My mother came from a privileged family in late Qing and Republican China; she grew up in a famous hutong home in Beijing, and her father was the controller of the Peking – Hankow Railway when it was built, owned and managed by the French following the Boxer Rebellion. She went to missionary schools and spoke English from an early age.
She lived and worked in Shanghai after the Allies, including the Republic of China (the People’s Republic did not yet exist) defeated Japan. She worked with the United Nations Refugee Relief Association (UNRRA) office in Shanghai.
The thing to remember about Shanghai is that it was, until 1942, a foreign treaty port, which was organized into something called the Shanghai International Settlement. After 1942, the Unequal Treaties which made the treaty port system possible was abolished, and it became part of the Republic of China.
The interesting thing about the Shanghai of that time is that a horse-racing track occupied the city center, which was called the 跑馬汀。If you go to Shanghai now, it is called People’s Square. The racetrack was abolished by the Communists after 1949.
The two best-known universities in Shanghai were St. John’s for men, and St. Mary’s for women. These were founded by the British, and were Anglican.
This may surprise you, but there actually were Chinese who had grown up and lived in Shanghai who were so westernized that they DID NOT SPEAK CHINESE, but only English. My mother had several cousins who were like this. They did not fare well under the Communists after 1949.
I have not had the time to go through all of my mother’s diaries, but I read one entry where she mentioned going dancing one evening at a nightclub called Argentina.
Sometimes I think about tracking down where that nightclub once stood.
Reacting to Oliver Anthony – “Rich Men North of Richmond” | Wilson Brothers
It’s not difficult to use chopsticks at all. And it certainly isn’t an art form. Using chopsticks is just the most efficient, most practical way for many Asians (not all Asians, of course) to consume our meals.
My niece started using chopsticks when she was about 3 years old. She might not have held them the “proper” way, but as long as she could eat with them, it was all good. She was a 3-year-old kid – expectations were quite low.
How hard can using chopsticks be if a 3-year-old can do it? Come on now.
There is a place called Jigokudani Hot Spring in Japan, where there is a kind of “Snow Monkey”. Every winter, snow and snow. It is very cold, and the temperature will drop to about 30 °C.
Fortunately, there are many hot springs in that place. Hot springs can reach about 40 degrees, so the monkeys there learned how to soak in hot springs. The view of a group of monkeys leisurely taking a leisurely dip in the hot springs is very good to many people. Therefore, this place has gained fame as a special tourist destination.
Some people may feel very warm looking at these photos, but they are like both sides of a coin. Tourists only see the warm side.
In fact, not all monkeys can take hot springs. There is a strict hierarchy among monkeys. Only high-grade monkeys can take hot springs, and low-grade monkeys cannot take hot springs no matter how cold they are. They cannot tolerate the cold, but once in the water, they will be bitten and expelled by high-level monkeys, so they can only shiver in the air and snow.
There is a temperature difference of about 70 degrees inside and outside the hot spring. Sometimes that’s the difference between life and death. Moreover, this system is “hereditary”. Low-grade monkey-producing monkeys are also not eligible to take hot springs. In other words, some monkeys naturally belong to the vulnerable group, which is unfair.
NATO CROSSES RUSSIA’S RED LINE | SCOTT RITTER ON CHINA’S WARNING TO BIDEN | PUTIN VISITS XI + MORE!
Russia is not stupid, neither they will not forget. They will retaliate.
Sotria Kritsornis was standing waiting for the bus to take her to school. The snow was coming down hard, and she was stood in the cold for an hour. As she stood waiting, a car pulled up beside her and rolled down his window. “I’ve come down Rainer Avenue, and that’s a long way, and there’s no bus in sight. Would you like a Ride?”
22-year-old Sotria didn’t feel anything off with the man. He was polite and charming, and they were the same age. Everything seemed relaxed as the guy driving began talking about school. When she suddenly realised he was going in the wrong direction, the man’s demeanour changed.
He suddenly began shouting at her, “Why did you take this ride? Why did you even think about getting in this car? You’re never going to make it to school.”
Sotria knew there and then that her life was in extreme danger. She thought about jumping from the moving car, but when she went for the door handle, it was gone. She sat in the car terrified as he continued to scream at her. There was no doubt in her mind that she was in the presence of evil, and it was only a matter of when.
Suddenly the man’s demeanour changed again, he almost seemed disappointed. Sotria had just gotten a haircut and was wearing a hat since it was snowing out. The man driving seemed distracted by her hat and suddenly asked her to take it off.
She was reluctant and when she did take it off the man was surprised. She suddenly realised the man must have been watching her before she got the haircut. He continued to drive for about an hour, before stopping outside her school.
He shoved her out of the car and onto the ground with some force before turning to Sotria and telling her she was lucky.
About a year later, Sotria was at home watching telly. A news report flashed across the screen and her blood ran cold. A picture of a man and his “Volkswagen Bug” appeared on the telly. A man who went by the name Ted Bundy was being charged with multiple murders and it was to her shock she realised she almost became one of his victims.
Because unlike normal porn, you can share food porn with anyone, even your aunt.
Food photos are among the most popular posts on Chinese social media.
We can tell others about this or that dish – where you can find it, what it tastes like, whether it comes with an interesting backstory, we can recommend this or that food establishment to others, share recipes with others, be inspired so that we can try out some cool new tricks with our own cooking, etc.
In my experience, few people dislike food porn. Those who do tend to view food more as “fuel” rather than something to enjoy and delight the senses.
I’m more than happy to share food porn with others.
Here is a picture of some 喜洲粑粑 (Xǐzhōu bābā).
Xizhou is the name of a lakeside village just outside Dali’s old town in China’s Yunnan province. Baba is the local slang for bread.
Baba is a type of thick, round, heavy bread that comes plain or with various fillings – and the fillings can be either sweet or savory.
A savory filling could be pork mince + spring onion + spiced salt. A sweet filling could be brown sugar + rose petal jam + red bean.
It is a popular street food and makes for great breakfast nosh.
So, when people say stuff like “Oh, Chinese don’t eat bread you know!”, take that claim well salted.
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THIS IS OLIVER ANTHONY’S BEST SONG YET! “I Want To Go Home” REACTION
My friend Lisa was in her early 40s, and had congestive heart failure. She was a trooper despite her physical struggles. She grew up in a ‘tough’ city environment, and had the attitude to boot. She was typically a bit high strung, but on this afternoon she was the most mellow I had ever seen her.
Her daughter was at my house playing with my daughter. Lisa came to pick her up after she had stopped at the drugstore to pick up her monthly supply of heart and related medications. Her meds filled a small paper bag. Mellow Lisa proceeded to tell me what went down at the drugstore 10 minutes earlier.
Lisa legally parked her car in the handicapped spot just outside the store’s door. She joked with the pharmacists inside, telling them that if it weren’t for her they’d be out of a job (LOL). She left the store and proceeded, medicine bag in hand, to her car in the handicapped parking space.
A woman was loitering in and out of the store most of the day. When Lisa left, she was hanging around not far from Lisa’s car. As Lisa went to unlock her car door, the woman jumped Lisa and attempted to steal her purse and medications.
Lisa went ape-shit on her ass and flattened her. Lisa ended up sitting on top of the woman and smacking her in the face, much like little Ralphie did to Scut Farcus on ‘A Christmas Story’. She screamed at the woman while giving her the smackdown, “You think you can come here from the city and mug people? Well I’m from the city, too! You picked the WRONG BITCH to fuck with!”.
Just then, a police officer showed up. He happened to be an acquaintance of Lisa’s. He kept saying, “Lisa get off her…I got this!!”. He finally pulled Lisa off the mugger and sent her on her way as he arrested the mugger.
It was ten minutes later that Lisa showed up at my house, mellow as could be. I told her she should buy herself a punching bag for daily use since she felt so much better! She said, “Wow, I haven’t felt this relaxed in a LONG time!”.
I was pretty impressed. A heart patient requiring a handicapped parking space takes out her would-be mugger! Gotta love it!
Sadly, Lisa passed away in 2008 when her big old heart finally gave out. I never knew a more hilarious woman in my life.
I miss you girl!
BEATBOXER REACTS! I Oliver Anthony-Rich Men North of Richmond
The situation around Taiwan and the ongoing territorial disputes in the South China Sea are forcing the PRC to invest in defence capabilities. From 2024 to 2028, the authorities intend to spend a crazy $1.4 trillion to modernise the People’s Liberation Army. The average annual growth rate will be 6.6 per cent.
The defence strategy emphasises the formation of a dominant navy. To achieve this, China plans to implement several forward-looking programmes. In particular, to acquire a fourth aircraft carrier, as well as destroyers of the Type 055 class and frigates of the Type 054A class.
China also wants to commission a Type 096-class nuclear-powered submarine armed with ballistic missiles. The submarine will receive JL-3 intercontinental ballistic missiles with a launch range of up to 9,000 kilometres, capable of carrying three nuclear warheads.
US policy slowing down China’s economy w/ Jeffrey Sachs
About 8 years ago, my dad, aged about 70 at the time, is driving my son aged about 4, and myself into a nearby town. We are driving through the outskirts, in a 40 zone and slowing down as we are about to enter a 30 zone. A hundred yards up ahead are about 6 ‘youths’…aged late teens, possibly up to 20 yrs, all messing about on mountain bikes…doing wheelies and doing skids into the middle of the road. Dad slows down and they move a little to one side, still farting about. One loses control and the bike shoots over and skids in front of my dad’s car, the rider coming off and sliding over the bonnet (hood) of the car, and up the windscreen before sliding off the other side.
Dad hurtles out of the car, closely followed by me, expecting to see some mangled mess of a teen on the floor. Luckily he was fine, getting up, dusting himself off. We’d barely let out a breath of relief when he turns onto my dad – yelling abuse at him, calling him a ****ed up retard…old ****er etc etc. Then his mates drop their bikes to the floor and start advancing on my dad…’come on old man, ready to be ****ed up?’…
Now my dad, back in his day was pretty good at karate….something he did weekly for about 15 years. He is also a very fit man – from that generation of wily, hands-on men who just get on and do things…..breaking up concrete with a pickaxe or sledgehammer – knocking down walls, building walls and so on. So these 6 or so youths start to circle in on dad, I step back a bit to lock the car doors…the first lad, the one who’d slid over dad’s bonnet makes a lunge for my dad, fist punching out towards his face. Dad grabs his wrist, yanks it down and before I could say a single word, has got this kid on his knees, on the road, arm bent back, hand folded back in a somewhat unnatural position. The kid is screaming…’let me go!! Get off!! You’re breaking my hand!!! Get off!!!’
Still holding him by one hand, dad makes a small step towards the other boys….drops the kid’s hand and takes up a karate pose. The kids just turn tail and run…the other boy gets up and legs it after them. Dad just giggles in delight and with an almighty yell….hurtles down the road after them, yelling like a maniac. If the boys were running 5 seconds ago, now they are really running like Usain Bolt with an axe is chasing them, and I am doubled up laughing. Eventually, I pick up the boy’s bikes and lean them against a garden hedge and wait for dad to saunter back having run a hundred yards or so after them.
We still laugh about it – I’m not sure what those boys thought they were going to do to my father, but they really didn’t see that coming. They definitely picked on the wrong person :)))
Beef Burgundy
beef bourguignon 3 1048×1572 1
Ingredients
2 slices bacon, chopped
2 pounds sirloin tip or round steak, cut into 1 inch cubes
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/4 teaspoon marjoram
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1 beef bouillon cube, crushed
1 cup Burgundy wine
1/4 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
2 tablespoons cornstarch (optional)
Instructions
In large skillet, cook bacon several minutes. Remove bacon and set aside.
Coat beef with flour and brown on all sides in bacon mixture.
Combine steak, bacon drippings, cooked bacon, seasonings, bouillon, and Burgundy in slow cooker.
Cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours or until meat is tender.
Turn control to HIGH. Add mushrooms; cook on HIGH for 15 minutes.
To thicken sauce, if desired, add cornstarch (dissolved in 2 tablespoons cold water) with mushrooms.
I had an employer try that crap with me once (kind of)—only I was given a heads up from a dear friend that I was being RIFed, so I had already cleared out my entire office. I had even locked myself out of a system I administered prior to my RIF meeting. When they were going through the separation checklist and told me I could only take with me what I had with me at the time, I said, “Okay, no problem.” When they asked me about scheduling a time to retrieve the rest of my stuff (I’d worked there almost 20 years, so there WAS a lot of stuff), I told them I didn’t have anything else to retrieve. They were shocked. When they had someone quickly verify that my office was indeed cleaned out, they started insisting that I review with them what I had already taken, reveal to them who tipped me off, etc. I simply handed them my pre-prepared ziplock with my ID, proximity badge, building keys, and wiped work iPhone, and left. They insisted that I walk out a particular door. I walked out the door closest to where I was parked that day (with them threatening me the whole time). They were LIVID and could barely see straight. My confidante still works there! It’s hilarious and extremely satisfying.
Scott Ritter clip on what the Pentagon Generals told the White House.
Stop the provocations with China. In any conflict with China, the USA will lose, and lose badly.
Clip segment pre-set at the position in the long video.
Russia legally can’t extradite Snowden, because there is no bilateral extradition agreement between Russia and the USA. America doesn’t extradite our criminals either. Also, Snowden is not a criminal from the Russian legal point of view.
Because his American passport was annulled, Russia was unable to send Snowden to any other country without some kind of special arrangement. So, the choice was between forcing Snowden to stay in the international airport in Moscow indefinitely, or providing him with asylum. After some deliberation, Putin chose the latter.
Snowden actually wanted asylum in Hong Kong (China) or South America, but nobody was really willing to take him in. It made sense for Russia to show its ability to challenge America without getting bombed, but it was not an easy decision for Putin. Because Snowden wasn’t a Russian agent or asset, and Russia had no obligation to protect him. Also, Putin’s opinion about Snowden is rather low. He doesn’t condone his actions. And Snowden doesn’t like Putin either. He openly says that in his interviews.
Russia can’t use Snowden because his access to secrets is long gone. We have IT experts of his caliber of our own, and nobody will trust him with access to our secrets and security networks. Really, he is a burden. But a relatively light one.
Snowden doesn’t work with Russian security services because he wants to return to America at some point. This is technically possible, as long as he stays just a whistleblower and not a traitor. Because the CIA and its ilk have some access to Russian state secrets, they would know when and if he would start cooperating with the FSB and its ilk.
This one is easy, sadly. My “mother” called CPS on me last year. Just because I wasn’t talking to her. My world was turned upside down with one phonecall.
One day a sheriff came to my house. I was surprised because I’m not one to get into trouble or piss anyone off. He said he was there to check on mine and my children’s welfare. I was confused. He said my mother had called and said I hadn’t talked to her in over a year, my husband was abusive and holding me captive, and I was doing heroin and meth. I looked at him and said, “you’ve got to be kidding me!” He assured me it was for real. I told him I spoke to her about 2 months ago, there’s no ball and chain behind me, and I damn sure ain’t doing heroin or meth. He actually laughed. I told him she’s got issues and I don’t want nothing to do with her. He said, “well you look healthy, you’re not locked in a cellar, and your kids are at school where they should be so I’ll be on my way.” I thanked him for his time and off he went. I was steaming pissed that day. I wondered what is wrong with that woman. Now I really won’t talk to her.
The next day, during the afternoon before the kids got home from school, there was a knock on the door. I open the door and there is a sheriff and social worker. Dumbfounded, I ask if I can help them. They tell me someone has made a report to CPS and they’re there to investigate. I was floored to say the least. So we sit down and the social worker begins to interrogate me. She then begins to list the allegations. She tells me I’m supposedly mentally ill, doing heroin and meth, being manipulated and abused by my husband, my children run around unsupervised, the kids aren’t adequately cared for, etc. I broke down and sobbed in disbelief. I asked who made this report and was told it was “anonymous”. I knew by the heroin and meth and husband abusing me bit exactly who it was. The show had just begun.
Another sheriff arrives shortly after. They ask if they can search my home. I said “for what”, and was told if I didn’t consent they would take my kids away. Reluctantly, I said “fine I have nothing to hide.” As the sheriff’s are upstairs searching I’m still being interrogated downstairs by the social worker. My husband arrived and was very upset about the situation, naturally. He’s even more angry seeing me a mess in tears having to be asked appalling questions. Next thing you know, there’s a knock at the door. Lo and behold it’s another sheriff. He waltzes in and I ask what the hell he’s here for. The sheriff’s come downstairs with an empty box that my husband had under our bed from a gun he purchased. They asked where the gun was and he replied it was in the car. They asked to see it and he refused. He’s not a felon and it’s registered and completely legal. That seemed to piss them off but they had no grounds to take it or see it.
So here we are. Sitting in the living room with the social worker and sheriff while another one is in the kitchen and one in the dining room. Why, I couldn’t even tell you. The sheriff had a brown paper bag and said there was some “evidence” in it. He pulled out some pill bottles. He asked me what they were for. I told him I suffer from depression and anxiety. I also take something for an opiate addiction. I’m in recovery and take a preventable medicine. Well, they thought they got me there. Mentally unstable and a drug addict. Perfect ammunition to use against me. They looked at me as though I was despicable. Scum. I could feel the judgement through my bones. The social worker asked my husband and I to accompany her to the kitchen.
That’s when she pulls out the drug tests. She asked if we were willing to take a voluntary drug test. We said absolutely. He went first, then I went. There we were in our home with 3 sheriff’s and a CPS worker peeing in a cup to prove ourselves not to be drug addicts. I felt completely violated. The tests took a few minutes to come out but they were negative. Almost disappointed, she let us see them and told us they were clean. I felt validated, but still so angry. My kids come home from school and ask what’s going on. I didn’t even know what to say. I just told them to get a snack and go to their room and I’d be with them shortly. The social worker said we could wrap up for now, but she’d be in touch. I kindly led them out. My husband and I just looked at each other and didn’t even say a word. We were both too upset to even talk. Every aspect of our privacy and humanity had been stripped of us. Then we had to explain to the kids what was going on. After that we had to clean our home because when the sheriff’s went through our belongings they had just thrown things about and had no respect for our things.
The next day the kids informed me after school that a social worker had come to visit them to ask them questions about mom and dad. They were scared and upset. I told them it would be okay. As long as they told the truth everything would be fine. We’ve got nothing to hide. The social worker paid me a few more visits. Each time I was cooperative and willing to do whatever was needed. Anything to get them to go away and stay away. Turns out my mother had called the principal at school asking him questions about my kids. “Were they stinky, dirty, did they look well fed”, things like that. Then someone who claimed to be an uncle called and did the same. The principal got so uncomfortable he called the social worker and told her he was being harassed and didn’t want to deal with it. She finally said without saying in certain words it was my mother who filed the report. She admitted that the situation was very unusual. She paid me a last visit to let me know that not one claim could be substantiated. She apologized for the intrusion. She told me the case was closed and she would report back to my mother that all is well.
Only after having our house ripped apart, taking drug tests, having my children interrogated at school, calling my psychiatrist, pharmacy, family and friends were we deemed fit enough parents. I can’t begin to tell you what this situation has done to me. You’re probably wondering if I confronted my mother. I sent her a text message after all was said and done and asked her if she had any idea what she had done. I asked what she was thinking. I know what she did. To not only me, but her grandkids. Well, she had nothing to say about it. So I left it there. If she ever comes to her senses and wants to explain herself and apologize profusely I will give her a chance. But never will I go out of my way to have any kind of relations with her. As far as the kids, they want nothing to do with her. That is their choice. I told them they are free to talk to her and see her if they wish they should not suffer anymore. They said they would rather not. So be it.
That is the cruelest thing a parent has done to me. I could give more stories believe me, but I think I’ve said enough for now.
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.
In a month and a half I would have had 20 years with my company and be fully vested in the retirement system. Except that I had just received notification that I was being terminated in four weeks.
They explained a couple of reasons for it, but I knew the real reason. The new president of the company used to be general manager of one of our operating units. I worked for corporate as a “firefighter,” and I was called into that unit to fix a production issue.
The issue was fixed in three days, and I gave him a full report. He offered me a job. Now, remember, I was part of the corporate staff, but he was offering me a position in an operating unit. Yes, it’s kind of a step down, but there was a 4% raise involved. Wait, just 4%? Yep.
I respectfully declined the offer. And my corporate boss was so happy that I was staying that I got a 22% raise!
Well, the general manager was named president, and he went through his list of people who had crossed him. I was way down on his list, but I was still on the list. So was my boss.
But my boss was old enough to retire comfortably. I was 45 and nowhere near retirement age, and now it seemed like I was going to be screwed out of my pension.
I was working remotely from my home in another state at this time as they were moving the corporate office to the new president’s state.
A friend heard I was being let go, and she happened to have some HR experience. She gave me some pointers.
I called the head of HR and asked if my position was being eliminated or was I being terminated. I was told that the position was being eliminated.
That was very important information because according to the law of my state a person being terminated must be given two to four weeks notice. However, if the position is being eliminated then the person must be given no less than eight weeks notice. Hmmmm.
Apparently, HR realized what I was asking, did a little research and called me back saying that they were giving me those eight weeks, which meant I would reach 20 years and collect my full pension.
Fortunately, I was in good standing with HR. After all we worked in the same office for many years.
I was also given a year’s severance pay. Cool, I could now coast for a year.
Except three days after my termination I accepted a job offer from another company.
That’s another story.
Pentagon Dragging Its Feet Over F-16 Gifts To Ukraine
Pushed by the weapon industry the U.S. Defense Department is dragging its feet over the delivery of F-16 airplanes to Ukraine:
The battlefield conditions in Ukraine are currently “not ideal” for the employment of F-16 fighter jets, said Lieutenant General Douglas Sims, the director of operations of the Joint Staff, on July 13.
“The conditions right now for the employment of the F-16s are probably not – they’re probably not ideal,” the general said at a press briefing.
“I mean, the Russians still possess some air defense capability. They have air capability. And the number of F-16s that would be provided may not be perfect for what’s going on right now,” he clarified.
Lockheed-Martin, which still builds and sells the F-16 to various countries, is obviously not happy that the markets will soon learn that the F-16 have no fu**ing chance against modern Russian fighter planes and air-defenses.
Their coming destruction will scream “Buy Russian!” to the world and several countries will probably switch their provider and do so.
BOB IGER PLAN TO CANCELLING SNOW WHITE! DISNEY IS Beginning To Collapse As Panic Rises
With snow white 2024 gaining much criticism after the snow white leaked photos of the seven dwarfs surfaced online…..the film starring rachel zegler and gal gadot as the evil queen…bob iger and the board are now going through a phase of panic for the snow white remake….and with the snow whute plot leaks getting worse the plan to remake the snow white 2024 trailer is underway….however bob iger now has a full fledged plan to cancelling snow white all together…what the board thinks is another story in itself that we will be covering today.
The Most COLD HEARTED Interrogation Ever.
What could drive a loving mother to commit one of the most horrifying crimes of the 21st century?
Money, deception, an icepick, a simmering pot. All of these and more collide in a tragic tale that’s both heartbreaking AND gut wrenchingly gruesome
Our story takes place in a small commuter city in Florida between Daytona Beach and Orlando, named Deltona.
With a mixed demographic of both working and retired people, Deltona residents come and go often.
But sometimes, they leave, never to return again. And that’s exactly what brought Volusia County deputies to the home of 36 year old James Schaeffer on the afternoon of April 4th, 2013.
These are the interrogations of Angela Stoldt.
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Chili Bowls
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Yield: 4 or 6 bowls
Ingredients
16 ounces frozen bread dough
2 tablespoons butter, melted
3 cups favorite chili
1/2 cup Cheddar cheese, grated
1/4 cup onions, chopped
Garlic powder and grated Cheddar cheese
Instructions
Thaw the bread dough until it is pliable. Cut the dough crosswise into 4 pieces. With lightly floured hands, shape each dough piece into a ball. Place balls 3 inches apart on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Brush balls with melted butter. Let bowls rise in a warm place until tripled in size.
Bake at 375 degrees F for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown.
Remove from cookie sheet immediately and allow to cool on rack.
To make chili bowls, slice off tops of loaves and hollow by pinching bread out with fingers. Brush cut side of tops with melted butter and sprinkle with garlic powder and Parmesan cheese.
Toast bowls and tops by placing in the oven or under the broiler.
Fill with hot chili and top with grated cheese and onions.
Notes
For smaller bowls, cut dough into 6 pieces.
15 Dinosaurs Caught On Camera And Seen In Real Life
WTF?
Deliberately Making Things Worse: Biden Calls-up 3,000 Military Reservists for NATO
The (illegitimate) President of the United States, Joe Biden, has just issued a call-up of at least 3,000 Personnel from the U.S. Armed Forces Reserve and roughly 450 from the Individual-Ready Reserve in order to Augment the Forces of U.S. European Command.
The Reservists will also be involved with the upcoming Exercise “Operation Atlantic Resolve” in the Region.
This comes just one day after the NATO Summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, agreed to increase NATO’s forces from 300,000 to 400,000 along Russia’s Border.
Apparently, the stunning effectiveness of the Russian army in Ukraine has significantly shaken-up the powers-that-be, not to mention the frighteningly poor effectiveness of Ukraine’s “NATO-Trained and Certified” army.
Remember, NATO began training Ukraine forces back in the year 2014 for a conflict with Russia. From 2014 through 2022 before Russia entered Ukraine, NATO “Certified” the Ukraine Army as meeting NATO standards.
Now, almost a year and a half into the conflict between Russia-Ukraine, the world has gotten to see just how effective that NATO training and NATO Certification actually is: Almost worthless!
As for “Operation Atlantic Resolve” that refers to military activities in response to Russian operations in Ukraine, mainly the War in Donbass.
It was funded under the European Deterrence Initiative. In the wake of Russia’s 2014 intervention in Ukraine, the U.S. and the U.K. took several immediate steps to enhance the deterrence posture along the eastern flank of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), including augmenting the air, ground and naval presence in the region, and enhancing previously scheduled exercises.
The US described the activities as taking measures to enhance NATO military plans and defense capabilities and maintaining a persistent presence in Central Europe and Eastern Europe. Atlantic Resolve rotations are overseen by a regionally aligned headquarters there.
So here we are.
NATO is upping their troop count from 300,000 to 400,000 and Biden is calling up Reservists.
You’re smart people, ask yourselves: Do governments move this number of troops if they don’t intend to use them?
I think it is safe to say World War 3 is close at hand. We in the West have fomented this. We in the West are wrong; we’re backing a NAZI-infested regime in Ukraine with the intent to put U.S. Missiles in Ukraine.
Russia has already, and repeatedly warned that missiles on Ukraine soil would have about a 5 minute flight time to Moscow. This is a “red line” for Moscow; they will not tolerate this.
Yet Biden is now calling-up Reserves.
I earnestly hope you and your family have emergency food, water, medicines you need to live on. I also hope you have a generator for electric power once the grid goes down, and some fuel for that generator. You should also have some amount of CASH MONEY in the house because if the missiles start flying, all credit, debit, SNAP/EBT cards will cease functioning without machines to approve the charges. So cash will be king. If you have cash, you can eat. If you don’t, you don’t.
This isn’t getting better, it’s getting very much worse. With the NATO call-up of another 100,000 troops, Russia may decide it is better to strike now, rather than wait for NATO to get so many more men into position.
It is worth noting that the last time members of the Individual Ready Reserve were recalled to active duty in a number larger than 10 was right before Desert Storm in 1990, and in 2002 before the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq.
Project Horizon – The US Military Moon Base
In March of 1959, the US Army issued a top-secret document titled Project Horizon to the United States government. Tensions were rising amidst the ongoing Space Race between the US and the Soviets, and the document called for the creation of a lunar outpost that was of critical importance for the armed forces and the interests of the United States on the Moon. Soon, a study to determine the feasibility of constructing a military and scientific Moonbase inhabited by 12 men was set in motion, and it was required to be powered by nuclear reactors, making it self-sufficient and equipped with unguided low-yield atomic warheads to defend it from Soviet incursions. Several top engineers, including Wernher von Braun, were tasked to overview the project, but when the US learned that the USSR intended to celebrate the October Revolution in 1967 on their own Moonbase, the clock began ticking…
Italian Sausage Sheet Pan Supper
Put healthy living fennel-sausage on the menu with our Italian Sausage Sheet-Pan Supper! This fennel-sausage dish is ready to serve in just 45 minutes.
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Prep: 15 min | Bake: 15 min | Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
1 large fennel bulb (1 pound)
1/2 cup KRAFT Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing, divided
2 cups cherry tomatoes
1 (15 ounce) can cannellini beans, rinsed
6 1/2 ounces (1/2 of 13 ounce package) OSCAR MAYER Natural Uncured Italian Style Herb Sausage, cut diagonally into 1/2-inch thick slices
Instructions
Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
Cut stalks and fronds from top of fennel bulb. Chop enough of the fronds to measure 1 tablespoon; reserve for later use. Discard stalks and remaining fronds. Trim root end of fennel; remove and discard any tough or discolored outer layers. Cut fennel bulb lengthwise in half; remove and discard fibrous core. Cut remaining fennel into 1/4-inch thick slices; place in medium bowl. Add 2 tablespoons. dressing; mix lightly.
Line 15 x 10 x 1-inch pan with foil; spray with cooking spray. Spread fennel mixture onto half the prepared pan. Bake for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, toss tomatoes and beans with 2 tablespoons of the remaining dressing.
Drizzle fennel with remaining dressing; stir until evenly coated while keeping fennel on same side of pan. Add tomato mixture and sausage to other side of pan.
Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until fennel is tender.
In a tweet on Wednesday, Robert Kiyosaki, the author of the best-selling book “Rich Dad Poor Dad,” warned of an impending financial crash. He suggested that the upcoming BRICS meeting could be the final blow to the fiat currency system.
He pointed to the BRICS meeting scheduled for August 22 in South Africa as a potential turning point.
“Giant crash coming. Fake money – aka fiat currency – to die.
BRICS meeting in S. Africa August 22 to put nail in coffin of fiat…fake money. Get into real gold, silver & Bitcoin asap. Take care. End of fiat (fake) money near,” he said.
Kiyosaki’s prediction comes at a time when the BRICS nations — Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) — are reportedly considering a gold-backed common currency, which could pose a significant threat to the global fiat money system.
The author’s advice to invest in “real gold, silver & Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC)” aligns with his long-standing belief in the value of tangible assets and cryptocurrencies over traditional fiat currencies.
Previously, Kiyosaki has predicted that Bitcoin could reach $120,000, further emphasizing his faith in cryptocurrencies as a hedge against the potential downfall of fiat currencies.
Chris Hedges | United States Is CRUMBLING…
An amazing video. -MM
Chris Hedges is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, author, and public intellectual known for his penetrating analysis of contemporary social and political issues.
With a career spanning several decades, Hedges has reported from conflict zones around the world, including the Middle East, Latin America, and the Balkans.
Hedges has written numerous bestselling books, including “War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning,” “Empire of Illusion: The End of Literacy and the Triumph of Spectacle,” and “American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America.”
His work has been widely recognized for its critical examination of power structures, war, and societal decay.
A former foreign correspondent for The New York Times, Hedges has received numerous accolades for his reporting, including the Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting in 2002 for his coverage of global terrorism.
Today, he is an outspoken advocate for justice and human rights, unafraid to confront entrenched power structures and challenge prevailing narratives.
Hedges often emphasizes the importance of resistance against systems of power and injustice.
He has been critical of corporate capitalism, the influence of money in politics, and the erosion of civil liberties.
Hedges argues that genuine resistance requires a willingness to challenge and confront these structures, even if it means personal sacrifice and facing potential repression.
He has discussed the need for nonviolent civil disobedience as a means of resistance, drawing inspiration from figures like Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi.
Hedges believes that traditional avenues of change, such as voting or appealing to politicians, have become largely ineffective, and that direct action and grassroots movements are necessary to challenge entrenched power structures.
Hedges also emphasizes the importance of building solidarity and community in resistance movements.
He believes that individuals must come together to challenge the prevailing narratives and create alternative systems that prioritize justice, equality, and sustainability.
Ukraine has received cluster munitions, a military spokesperson said on Thursday, less than a week after the United States announced it would transfer such munitions to Ukrainian forces.
Valeryi Shershen, a spokesman for the Tavria military command in southern Ukraine, confirmed a CNN report citing the commander of the Tavria forces as saying Ukraine had just received cluster munitions but had not used them yet.
Cluster munitions are “in the hands of our defense forces,” Shershen told Ukrainian television but giving few details.
The U.S. announced on July 7 that it would send Kyiv cluster munitions as part of an $800-million security package intended to ensure Russian forces that invaded Ukraine nearly 17 months ago cannot halt a Ukrainian counteroffensive.
Russia has repeatedly warned the United States that this is another escalation by the West, and that Russia has Cluster munitions of its own which it WILL use against Ukraine if Ukraine uses the ones supplied by the West.
When I was about 12 or 13 my father, normally very conservative (in his actions, NOT his politics) decided to buy a brand-new innovative GM car:
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That’s right, a CORVAIR. It had a rear-mounted “pancake” engine that was air cooled – no radiator or fluid to maintain. And the trunk was in the front, of course.
Some months later my parents decided to take us on a trip to visit relatives who lived about 1800 miles away. We’d covered about 300 miles when the oil-pressure “idiot light” started flashing. He pulled into the first gas station and found that the engine was over a quart low so he topped it off. Another 300 miles and again, blinkblinkblink … And so it went, guzzling a quart or every 6–7 hours for the duration of the trip.
When we got back my dad took it to the dealer where he’d bought it. Naturally the “explanation” was that “they all do it” and “it’s because the engine isn’t fully run in yet”.
The oil-burning continued as did my father’s trips to the dealer … and his frustration. He finally told them he was not owning a car that chewed through so much oil and they had to fix it or somehow make good on the sale. When they told him he could have a reduced price on a replacement he hit the ceiling (and you know how high showroom ceilings can be, hah!).
He knew a guy who ran a garage and had some names at GM. My dad fired off a letter to Ed Cole, then a big honcho at Chevrolet (and eventually CEO of GM). His letter was polite but very pointed. And it got results.
The dealership called him in to show what they’d found. He knew I was already interested in cars and let me tag along. Parts of our Corvair were sitting on blocks; the engine block was on a large work table. The mechanics told him that the block didn’t have a single oil port in it; the factory had forgotten to drill them.
The engine had been running dry ever since he’d taken delivery. It was “using oil” because none was making it to the block itself and was being burned off. Even more disturbing, they said we were very lucky the engine hadn’t seized up due to lack of lubrication. To this day I have no idea how or why it ran at all.
I was too young to follow much else in the saga but I do remember us getting a replacement car soon after.
Russia will view sending F-16s to Ukraine a ‘direct nuclear threat’
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov today publicly stated that Russia will view the deployment of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine as a direct nuclear threat.
Lavrov said Russia has privately warned the US, Britain, and France of the dire risks of the planned move to give Kyiv the advanced warplanes. He made clear that the use of F-16 – for which Ukrainian pilots are now being trained – was ‘just one more example of an extremely dangerous turn of events.
‘We have informed the nuclear powers, the United States, Britain and France, that Russia cannot ignore the ability of these aircraft to carry nuclear weapons. ‘No amount of assurances will help here.’
‘In the course of combat operations, our servicemen are not going to sort out whether each particular aircraft of this type is equipped to deliver nuclear weapons or not. We will regard the very fact that the Ukrainian armed forces have such systems as a threat from the West in the nuclear sphere.’ he continued.
He warned: ‘The United States and its NATO satellites are creating risks of a direct armed clash with Russia, and this is fraught with catastrophic consequences.’ The ultra-loyalist chief diplomat said: ‘The conditions for Russia’s use of nuclear weapons are clearly defined in our Military Doctrine. ‘They are well known, and I will not repeat them once again.’
NATO Defending Freedom Or Causing WAR | The Duran | Cyrus Janssen & Reporterfy
Join us for a riveting live stream as we delve into the heart of global affairs and shed light on the upcoming NATO meeting in Vilnius, Lithuania. Our esteemed guests, The Duran’s Alex Christoforou and Alexander Mercouris, alongside Cyrus Janssen and Reporterfy Media, will guide us through the intricate web of international relations.
In this highly anticipated broadcast, we’ll explore the pressing issues dominating the geopolitical landscape. The NATO meeting in Vilnius will take center stage as we analyze the organization’s role in fostering regional security and stability. Our knowledgeable panelists will provide invaluable insights into the strategies, challenges, and aspirations of NATO and its member states.
But that’s not all. We’ll also dive deep into the multifaceted relationship between China, Taiwan, the USA, and Russia. From escalating tensions to potential conflicts, our experts will offer a comprehensive analysis of the intricate dynamics shaping these global power dynamics. As we navigate the complex interplay between these influential nations, we’ll seek to unravel the implications for the international community.
This live stream promises to be a thought-provoking and intellectually stimulating event, combining expert analysis with insightful commentary. Join us as we unravel the complexities of the NATO meeting, scrutinize the China-Taiwan-USA-Russia conflict, and gain a deeper understanding of the intricate global chessboard.
Tune in for a captivating conversation that will broaden your perspective and deepen your understanding of the global stage. Don’t miss this unique opportunity to engage with our esteemed guests and gain valuable insights into the most pressing issues defining our world today.
Brief video below shows an alleged candidate for elected office in Illinois Massachussetts, as he is intercepted during a planned meeting with who he THOUGHT was a 14 year old BOY, for sex, arranged on the Internet. He allegedly told the “14 year old” that he wanted to “worship his balls.”
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When the perp realized he was being video recorded and had been tricked; that he wasn’t really meeting a 14 year old boy to sex, the perp briskly departed the meeting place, proceeded to his automobile parked nearby, with the license plate shown below, and departed the area:
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US should stop playing tricks with China; otherwise, it will capsize: Global Times editorial
By Global Times Published: Jul 14, 2023 12:10 AM Updated: Jul 14, 2023 12:05 AM
In the past couple of days, the US has suddenly brought up the “all-purpose spare tire” of hyping up issues related to China – the so-called Chinese hacker problem. The spokesperson of the US White House National Security Council claimed that US officials have discovered China-based hackers exploiting vulnerabilities in Microsoft’s cloud service to breach email accounts in the US. They then notified Microsoft, which later conducted tracking and investigation.
The matter has been extensively covered by the US media, causing a lot of fanfare. Subsequently, anonymous US officials jumped out and said they could not make a judgment on whether it is truly related to China. This reveals their sense of guilt, because they have never been able to present evidence.
They always surreptitiously throw mud at China and then retreat, trying to avoid a possible retaliation from China. This process and technique have become so familiar to the US that they can execute it skillfully even with their eyes closed.
Let’s look at the initial source of the news, which is the US White House National Security Council. Nowadays, in the US and Western countries, everyone can imagine what it implies for institutions with “national security” in their names. In the past, such news was often released by the US National Security Agency, which is essentially the US cyber command, the world’s largest hacker organization. This time, the news is released by the White House National Security Council instead, but it does not change the fact that the US is engaging in “thieves crying thief.”
Let’s take a look at the timing chosen by the US for this hype. It is reported that the hacked emails allegedly involved US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo. On July 13, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce disclosed that it was in communication with the US regarding Raimondo’s visit to China, while also calling for lifting the unilateral sanctions on Chinese companies imposed by the US. In other words, Raimondo is about to visit China if nothing else. Is it a coincidence that the US suddenly reveals a Chinese hacker attack incident at this time? Based on the consistent approach of the US side, it is possible that they are using this as a means to gain the upper hand in public opinion and a bargaining chip for negotiations regarding Raimondo’s visit to China.
Just before US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to China in June, the US hyped a round of “Chinese hacking incidents.” The whole process is almost the same as this time. But last time it was said that Chinese hackers had been “targeting critical US infrastructure and pursuing development of capabilities that could disrupt critical communications infrastructure between the United States and Asia region during future crises.” This time, it was claimed that “Chinese hackers” had breached e-mail addresses, and the attack was also said to have been discovered in June.
If we observe the recent years of the US hype about “Chinese hackers,” there is a general pattern. These incidents usually occur at critical points in China-US relations, coinciding with a period of “lack of progress” in issues related to China in the US. Thus, “Chinese hackers” or “Chinese spies” are timely fabricated to fill the void. Whether it’s hackers or spies, the US is an expert in this field and knows that such smearing is difficult to prove or disprove. It only causes trouble for others, and that’s the intended purpose.
The current China-US relationship is at a crucial, delicate, and uncertain juncture. The high-level communication between the two countries is recovering relatively quickly. However, the unfavorable winds and countercurrents emerging from the US side have largely interfered with the positive progress brought about by communication.
On July 13, Wang Yi, director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, met US Secretary of State Blinken on the sidelines of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia.
It was the second meeting between the two in a month. The US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry and US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo are both due to visit China in the near future.
This has raised expectations in the international community for a turnaround in China-US relations. China always holds an open and welcome attitude toward such communication and exchange, but we advise the US not to play dirty, otherwise, it will not only get a slap in its face, but also ruin the opportunity for the US-China relations to return to a healthy and stable track.
Cheez-It Chicken Casserole
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Ingredients
1 package chicken tenders
Salt
Pepper
1 (8 ounce) carton sour cream
1 box Cheez-It crackers, crushed
1/2 cup melted butter
Instructions
Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
Fill casserole dish with boneless, skinless chicken breast tenders; sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Spread sour cream over chicken.
Sprinkle crushed Cheez-It crackers over sour cream.
Pour melted butter over Cheez-It crackers.
Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until golden brown.
2023 07 14 18 02
Being accepted to Harvard Medical School without all the prerequisites and without taking the MCAT.
It was the fall of my junior year at MIT. I was studying/hanging out with a girl I had a crush on (a senior) and she was upset that her MCAT scores were not good enough. I was flipping through the brochure for Harvard Medical School, and saw what I thought might be a major loophole. I told her not to give them the MCAT scores, as they were not really an admissions requirement. Of course she didn’t believe me, and challenged me to apply and see if that “loophole” worked.
So I did.
I sent in my application on the very last day applications were accepted, despite being a junior and not having all the prerequisites, finishing my application at 4am after studying for a couple exams and doing a problem set or two.
Not surprisingly, a few weeks later I received a letter from the Dean of Admissions for Harvard Medical School, informing me that there was no record of me having taken the MCATs, so unless their information was incorrect, they would have to withdraw my application.
I called up the admissions office, and after several tries was finally able to speak to the Dean:
Dean Paul, I received a letter telling me that you would have to withdraw my application because I haven’t taken the MCAT.
I understand. Is that incorrect; have you taken the MCAT?
No, I haven’t.
Well, then I’m sorry, but we will have to withdraw your application; the MCAT is an admission requirement for Harvard Medical School.
With all due respect sir, I beg to differ. The MCAT is not an admission requirement for Harvard Medical School.
Wait, you’re telling me, the Dean of Admissions, what the admission requirements are?
Yes sir; I believe you are referring to the paragraph on page 29 that lists the entrance requirements for Harvard Medical School, and includes the MCAT on that list.
Yes, exactly.
Well, it clearly states that the MCAT is an entrance requirement; it doesn’t state that the MCAT is an admission requirement. So if you admit me in April, I will gladly take the MCAT over the summer and have it for you by the time I enter in September.
Ah, I don’t think that’s what it means.
I realize it may not be what you intended, but I’ve checked with two of my linguistics professors, including a Nobel prize winner, and they agree that is what the paragraph means.
Hmmm. Well, I’ll talk to the members of the committee and get back to you.
A couple of days later he called me back and told me that the committee had discussed the matter, and that while it was not what they intended, they agreed that it did indeed mean just that, so they would not withdraw my application.
At first I was very pleased, then I realized was that all that meant was that they were not going to officially withdraw my application, but they could still just unofficially withdraw it; i.e. ignore it and reject me, so I really didn’t think about it much, until I got a call to come in for an interview (that’s a whole different story!).
April rolled around, and a thick envelope arrived with my acceptance letter. Then a couple of weeks later I received another letter reminding me that I had not yet fulfilled all the entrance requirements, including the English and Biology requirements and the MCAT, and asking me to let them know when I would fulfill these.
Of course, the next year the language in the brochure was changed to close this loophole!
The Amazing Millennium Falcon Bedroom
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Redditor Dericrw and his wife built a Star Wars bedroom for their son, in the hopes that he will sleep in his own room. Who could resist? The sleeping pod of the Millennium Falcon is the size of a twin bed and is bolted to the ceiling joists. The rest of the ship is painted on the wall behind it. Check out the inside! It has a fan for air circulation and LED lights.
After the founding of the People’s Republic in 1949, Zhou Enlai, premier of the PRC, maintained a secret correspondence with Chiang Kai-shek which went through an intermediary in Hong Kong. They had a personal relationship from 1921 to 1927: Chiang Kai-shek was the principal of the Huangpu Military Academy and Zhou Enlai was political commissar. Zhou Enlai also helped to keep Chiang from getting killed in the Xi’An incident in 1936.
In early 1975, Zhou Enlai wrote to Chiang Kai-shek urging a political compromise so that Taiwan, the seat of the Republic of China government, could be united with the People’s Republic. Chiang, Mao and Zhou were all in their 80s, and knew that they would not live much longer, and Zhou wanted Chiang to think of his role in history. He said that while the Nationalists and Communists were enemies, they were all Chinese patriots who had taken different routes to make China strong again. It was time to set aside their differences and come together before they died. In order to reach a compromise, Zhou offered the position of premier, his position in the PRC government to Chiang Kai-shek.
Chiang did not respond and died in April 1975. Zhou died in Jan. 1976 and Mao died in Sept. 1976.
If Chiang had taken up the offer, there would have been no Taiwan independence issue exploited by foreign powers, and China would have been united.
The US would not have been able to use Taiwan as an issue years later.
In the end, Chiang was true to his character. He had no plan beyond “recovering the mainland” and his own legacy fell apart in Taiwan as pro-Taiwan independence candidates and politicians took over the Republic of China government, and have dismantled his role in Taiwan’s development, framing him as a killer and persecutor of the Taiwanese.
His own personality prevented him from having the vision to think about how to protect his own legacy. Unlike Mao, he had no plan.
He could not accept that Mao was the better leader and had won.
This character trait continued with Chiang Kai-shek’s son, Chiang Ching-kuo, who had been friends with Deng Xiaoping while they were studying in Moscow in the 1920s and 1930s. Deng made numerous overtures to CCK for unification, but just like his father, he rejected them.
The propaganda machine is inciting ordinary citizens to go to war in Ukraine – where they go through hell
Western mercenaries from countries other than the US are dying for Washington’s interests while President Joe Biden warns Americans themselves to stay away.
Most of the foreign mercenaries in Ukraine at this point aren’t American, according
to Russia’s Channel One news. It’s actually Poland and Canada that lead the charge, with the US coming in third. And now reports are starting to emerge of US intelligence attempting to fill the void with even more foreign recruits to fight for US interests against Russia in Ukraine. The Russian Ministry of Defense estimates that about 2,000 of the approximately 7,000 ‘volunteers’ have been killed.
Recent reporting reveals a troubling trend among Western mercenary deaths: combatants whose military experience is virtually non-existent. Presumably it all looked like good Hollywood action hero fun from afar — until the bullets started whizzing by.
In a story published in May about two Canadian mercenaries who volunteered for Ukraine’s “International Legion” and were killed in the Artyomovsk (named Bakhmut by Ukraine) battle, the CBC revealed that one had previously served in the Canadian Forces as a medic and had been photographed working in search and rescue in Kharkov. Kyle Porter, a 27-year old from Calgary, had been in touch with Canada’s state broadcaster. “Let me figure out how I am going to survive the next few days,” he wrote. “It was a meat grinder the first time and I’m not expecting it any better this time around.” You’d think he’d have taken an offramp at that point. Nope, not Rambo here.
The question that everyone should be asking is how on earth Canadians, whose combat experience amounts to administering band-aids and applying tourniquets, could subsequently end up serving on the front lines — all while the Canadian government seemingly just shrugs. We’re talking here about a government that legislated zero-risk against overwhelmingly survivable Covid, but now can’t even be bothered to save unprepared Canadians from a much more likely death in Ukraine.
Last May, the CBC reported on yet another Canadian veteran, identified only as “Shadow,” describing how he and his colleagues had repeatedly come under fire in the Donbas. While “Shadow” might seem like a code name for a main character in a Hollywood movie about a badass who goes around single-handedly meting out justice, in reality he’s a meteorological technician who “experienced combat for the first time as a volunteer in Ukraine,” according to the report . The weather guy probably shouldn’t be placed in a position to be “blown out of their sniper’s nest by a shell.”
For all his weather expertise, Shadow doesn’t seem to be too well-versed in grand chess geopolitics either. “If NATO had stepped in, the war would have been done in like less than a week, but because everyone sat back and watched, well, we are seeing all those civilians dying,” he told
the CBC. Actually, direct NATO military confrontation with Russia would have resulted in World War III, and probably a few more civilian deaths than Shadow imagines.
The other Canadian mercenary whom Shadow was “assisting,” and whose own superhero name is “Wali,” has been described by the Western press as a “sniper” who had been working as a …software engineer. He, at least, had the sense to bail shortly after arriving in Ukraine, citing shoddy organization. “You had to know someone who knew someone who told you that in some old barbershop they would give you an AK-47,” he said .
It doesn’t look like much has changed since then. The International Legion mercenaries are still largely underqualified for combat, under supported, or both.
American Cooper “Harris” Andrews, died during battle in Artyomovsk in April, according to Fox News.
Described as a Marine with five years experience, he was discharged in January 2022 from Camp Lejeune — as a ground electronics transmission system maintainer. Shortly thereafter, he left for Ukraine where he was then close enough to the battlefront that he was killed by a mortar shell. What’s next — recruiting chefs from Western armies and sending them into the line of fire?
Two other American mercenaries caught recently near Kharkov reportedly complained of poor Ukrainian intelligence and lack of preparation for combat, according to Russia’s Channel One.
One pretty clear indication of that being the case is when the American “trainers” sent to Ukraine, legitimate special forces with combat and intelligence expertise, don’t end up faring much better than the amateurs. Former Green Beret Nicholas Maimer, was killed when his position came under artillery fire in Artyomovsk, Fox News reported in May.
There’s also the obvious question of how much mission creep exists for such “trainers.” After all, once you’re in the Wild West of a combat zone, it can be a slippery slope from training to fighting. What sounds to the average person back home like a classroom role or a desk job could, in reality, end up being something else entirely.
The pool of foreign personnel in Ukraine is dwindling, either because they end up killed or they come to their senses beforehand. Now, unconfirmed reports have emerged from the Middle Eastern press that US intelligence is recruiting a new batch of mercenaries in Syria. One would think that Turkey’s efforts over the past few years to recruit CIA and Pentagon trained “Syrian rebels” to fight in the Western-sparked Libyan civil war would have drained that particular talent pool, but it’s not hard to imagine the desperate measures needed for now desperate times.
Washington is unwilling to send troops en masse to die fighting Russia in Ukraine, to the point where the deaths of American military “trainers” are still considered terrible aberrations. Why, then, should anyone else, from any other country, be goaded or guilted or seduced into fighting in yet another Washington-led NATO conflict?
20 Rare Historical Photos That Scientists Can Not Explain
LOL. This is fun. Watch, but don’t take too seriously.
Well, let’s see. I grew up in one of the worst hell holes of a neighborhood in Chicago. Used to hear lectures of “black unity” and how we have to look out for one another and the white man is evil all the freaking time while at the same time, most of the same blacks calling the white man the enemy would go out and rob other blacks.
On the other hand, when I was sixteen I got a little part time gig delivering newspapers early in the morning. The driver of the truck was white and there was another white guy who rode along with us. These guys treated me like a younger brother and got me into rock music. The driver knew of my intentions to join the Navy someday and one morning at the end of the shift he took me to his parents’ home to introduce me to his dad, who was a Navy veteran. His parents were very kind and welcoming and his dad gave me a few pointers on what to expect in the Navy.
During basic training, there were no black, white, brown or yellow recruits. We were all part of a unit and we looked out for another.
A man who donated his mothers body to Alzheimer’s research found out she was strapped to a chair and blown up. In 2013, after Jim Stauffer’s mother died of Alzheimer’s he donated her body to the Biological Research Centre thinking it would be used to study the disease that killed her. Instead, 3 years later he learned that the BRC had sold her body the US Military to study the damage done by roadsides bombs.
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At a nurse’s suggestion, the family contacted Biological Resource Centre, and within the hour, BRC dispatched a driver to collect Doris. Jim Stauffer signed a form authorizing medical research on his mother’s body, but also checked a box prohibiting military, traffic-safety and other non-medical experiments.
Ten days later, Jim received his mother’s cremated remains, but what the BRC failed to mention was that they only cremated her hand and shipped the rest of Stauffer’s body to a taxpayer-funded research project for the U.S. Army.
Jim Stauffer is now suing the company along with 32 other people who’s family members bodies were used in tests without their consent.
The Soviet intelligence and their spy gadgets
In 1965, the Soviet intelligence agency, the KGB, developed a ring with a tiny camera embedded in it, which was used for espionage purposes. The ring was worn by Soviet agents who were tasked with gathering sensitive information from foreign governments and institutions.
The camera in the ring was incredibly small, and could take high-quality photographs without arousing suspicion. This allowed Soviet agents to gather valuable intelligence without being detected.
The use of spy gadgets like this ring was a common practice during the Cold War, as both the United States and the Soviet Union engaged in espionage and counter-espionage activities. These activities often involved the use of advanced technology and innovative techniques, as both sides sought to gain an advantage in the ongoing struggle for global dominance.
Today, the ring serves as a reminder of the lengths to which governments will go to protect their interests and gather intelligence.
I had a perfect answer for you, which is from French entrepreneur and Internet influencer Arnaud Bertrand, who compared Chinese and Western systems of governance during a debate held in Cambridge, Massachusetts, by the American nonprofit educational organization Intercollegiate Studies Institute on April 5.
The following is edited excerpts of his perspective on freedom.
We’ve progressively come to have a rather skewed understanding of freedom in the West, where we equate freedom with individual freedom, when it’s actually very much not the same thing. When you have a broader understanding of freedom as we used to have in the past, it becomes quite obvious that China might not in fact be the unfree place most people in the West picture it as, and vice versa: The West might not be quite so free.
A prominent example of this is China’s war on poverty. Unarguably an immense success: the largest and fastest reduction in poverty the world has ever seen. Even China’s biggest detractors agree with this.
The fact is that the extreme poverty has, by and large, been totally eradicated in China. I’ve traveled all over China, and the results are obvious. Can anyone genuinely make the case this made people less free, that they were freer when they were poor? Of course not, poverty is the antithesis of freedom. When you live in poverty, you’re quite literally a slave to your condition.
In contrast, there is a lot of poverty in countries like France and the U.S. You go to certain areas of Paris and you see hundreds of tents of homeless people. Any one of you can go to China today, travel all around the country and it’s extremely unlikely you’ll see homeless people on street.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 20.03 million people lived in deep poverty in 2021. Those in deep poverty represented 6.2 percent of the total population and 48.4 percent of those in poverty. Among them, a larger percentage of children under 18 live in deep poverty than adults in any age group. As defined by the bureau, “deep poverty” refers to living in a household with a total cash income below 50 percent of the national poverty threshold.
A recent study from the Urban Institute also revealed that, in 2022, a total of 25 percent of U.S. adults experienced food insecurity, meaning they sometimes can’t afford to eat. In France we’re at 14 percent of the population living under the poverty threshold. Can we genuinely say that those people are really free?
Many have forgotten this but Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1941 gave a so-called Four Freedoms speech in which he defined “freedom from want” and “freedom from fear” as two of the four freedoms America ought to achieve. He, too, recognized poverty alleviation was fundamental to freedom.
On the subject of “freedom from fear,” ask yourself a simple question: Do people feel free to walk alone anywhere in America at any time of the day or night? Do people have this freedom?
This freedom, by and large, does exist in China. The statistics are absolutely incredible: You’re 70 times more likely to be victim of a violent crime in the U.S. than you are in China. This is anecdotal, but in my seven years in China, not only have I never been a witness or victim of any crime but I’ve never had anyone in my acquaintance who was. It is a very, very safe country. This freedom from fear does exist.
The biggest form of freedom, a freedom that Charles de Gaulle, former French President, used to describe as the precondition for all other freedoms, is your independence as a country, your collective freedom to determine your own future.
Can anyone argue that when you’re a so-called “vassal state” or when you’re in a larger state’s so-called “sphere of influence,” you’re really free? Anyone can see that’s not quite true.
America isn’t of course anyone’s vassal state, quite the contrary in fact. But there is something that limits America’s freedom in that regard: its system of alliances. America is in many, many alliances: NATO, AUKUS, the Five Eyes, with Japan and so on and so forth. And of course this, too, limits your freedom of action since, on paper at least, you are committed to certain actions even if they might not be in your interest at that point in time. As we’ve painfully learned from World War I, alliances can be incredibly constraining and destructive.
China is unarguably the freest country in the world in this regard, as it cannot be even remotely considered as being any country’s vassal state and it just doesn’t do military alliances—it doesn’t have any. In fact, many argue that it’s precisely this independence that’s driving the current attempt to contain China. This high level of sovereignty allows China to focus on internal development and to maintain its freedom of action on the international stage.
US 3,000 reservists, mission creep or trip wire. Putin to ditch grain deal
💬 “I will answer what is the basis for the change of power in Nigeria. The basis is the economy. The population of Niger has been driven into poverty for a long time.
For example, a French company that extracted uranium sold it on the market for $218, while paying Niger only $11 for it. You can work with investors on a 50-50 or 30-70 (%) basis, but it’s impossible to give back to the indigenous people of the country, who were born in this country, who live in this country, and who expect that the natural resources of this country belong to them, and according to the Constitution, they belong to them, only 5% of the wealth you receive.
To cover up these economic crimes, the country was saturated with a huge number of terrorists. This enormous number of terrorists, theoretically, should have been controlled by a vast number of different troops, financed by the UN, the European Union, Americans, the British, and others. As a result, the population of Niger, which should have been free and happy due to the economic opportunities in their country, was robbed, and to keep them silent, they were kept in fear for decades.
To show that these thieves and plunderers are needed in the state’s territory, I mean Western countries like France, the USA, and so on, crowds of soldiers were sent there who did nothing but received enormous budgets that were also embezzled at various levels. That’s why the transformation in Niger was simply necessary.
The power that was in league with Bazoum (ousted president) and his followers, simply covered up, allowing the coalition of people who plundered the nation to be present in Niger’s territory. That’s it. Therefore, this is a liberation struggle, a liberation movement for the independence of this country, and God grant them success.”
I was a young 2nd officer of a cargo ship when, in a tricky situation, the captain started to scream at me. I shouted back: ”Come down to help us instead of just shouting, or give me more people to help. Otherwise FU”. He never ever said anything bad or shouted at me again.
I was working with that captain for two years and whenever he got the upper hand on someone he was a mean bastard. For those who dared to answer back he was all right. I hated that kind of cowardliness and treating weaker crew members like shit.
The good thing is that I learned how not to behave and I was working as a captain for 10 years and hope I didn’t treat people badly.
This photo is of me when I later (for 25 years) was working as a ship’s pilot.
I still remember the most expensive piece of food I’ve ever eaten, since it was also the only one that made me actually cry.
It happened in a two star Michelin restaurant. I’ve never been to a place like that before, but a group of investors had a big feast, and invited me over as the ‘futurist’ entertainment for the evening… and covered the cost for my meal as well.
The first few courses were nice. Nothing amazing, but definitely not bad either. But the fourth course really did the trick for me. It was a small glass with a peking duck soup, with some extra spices on top. And as soon as I sipped from it, I started crying. I just couldn’t control myself – my emotions welled up. Tears were actually falling down my cheeks.
Now, my comrades to the meal took notice, and demanded to know what it was all about. One of them, sensing a ‘ratatouille’ moment, called the chef (his personal friend) from the kitchen. They all surrounded me, and waited for me to answer.
Finally, I told them how the taste of the soup sent me back thirty years into the past, to when I was a wee sick child in the hospital, cold and scared and miserable. I hated the hospital food, and the only thing I liked in that place was the 0.5 Dollar chicken soup in a plastic cup from the automated kiosk in the corridor – your basic monosodium glutamate with hot water.
And that soup was exactly the same taste as the Peking duck soup from the two star Michelin restaurant.
They silently absorbed the revelation, and then the stone-faced chef went back to the kitchen without uttering a single word, everybody went back to eating their dishes, and I was never invited again to another Michelin-grade restaurant.
But I still think it was the best soup I ever had.
I know that there are many sipping the “electric kool aide” from the Western media. You all want to believe that America; a nation of Rambo heroes. Where everyone fights for democracy, freedom and individual rights.
You can believe what ever you want.
But…
[1] All credible military studies and war games say otherwise. Not one single RAND study, and military (not supplier) sponsored studies indicate otherwise. In fact, every study show catastrophic defeats at all levels for the United States.
[2] The United States hasn’t won a war against a peer since 1945. There was a short “victory” in Grenada. But aside from that, the United States military has been a glorified police and occupation force against very weak nations that it exploits.
[3] Wars can only be fought with a willing population. During the Vietnam war, the televising of its horrors turned many, many Americans against war. Since that pivotal moment, the American government took control of the vast bulk of media. And today controls either directly, or “in the shadows” all discourse in the USA. From Twitter, to Facebook, to mainstream media to blogs.
Were a war to erupt between the United States and China, China would be destroying American cities, and resources. This would be brazen, horrific and “in your face”. There will be no way for the American government to control the “spin”. As a result, the already balkanized (and armed) American population will be difficult to corral. Only a small percentage of Americans would approve of the war.
Nothing quite ruins your day as having your place of employment bombed and gutted, food is unavailable, as is wifi, and the President is openly lying to you when your personal experience says otherwise. Without popular support, what remains of the USA will implode. China will hasten this process. You can guarantee it.
[4] China is far too big to be defeated. Most people in the West are really unaware of how huge; gigantic; and colossal China actually is. Five (x5) United States can fit inside of one China. There are more Chinese people speaking English than the entire rest of the world combined. The Largest city in the United States is NYC with around 8 million. That qualifies as a town by Chinese standards. The Pearl River delta ALONE is approaching 100 million.
[5] China is a warrior nation. This runs counter to the anti-China propaganda. But it is the truth. China has been fighting battles with thousands of men, in organized assaults at a time when the Europeans were still living in caves and discovering fire. The Qing absorbed the life-blood of the Khan, and the Chinese people have become absolutely terrifying warriors. Battle training and disciplinary is mandated by law to start in first grade.
[6] China is ABOVE peer-capable in military. Again, a hidden truth that must be denied at every turn. China flies stealth bombers, fighters, drones, and uses weapons so advanced that the West hasn’t been able to keep up with naming them. They have search-and-destroy flying grenades, robotic suicide dog-bots, sonic bombs, enhanced neutron (clean green energy) nuclear bombs, penetration creepy-crawlers, railguns, and stuff that nightmares are made from.
[7] China is a nuclear nation without the limitations of public opinion. China will not hesitate, or doubt their use of nuclear weapons. They just do not care what the rest of the world thinks. If your nation is angry, and don’t want to trade with China….fine! Enjoy a life without iphones, cars, tampons, Viagra, televisions, computers, and blood pressure medicine. China “holds all the cards”.
[8] China is peaceful until it isn’t. China is this huge sleeping dragon. It allows you to play around next to it. But it watches you with a careful eye. One misstep, one dangerous move, and you are gone.
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There are many that place “The blanket of scoff” on the idea that China is dangerous. Along with them is a well NSA funded anti-China narrative that is designed to “armor up” Americans and those in the West to HATE China, as well as NOT TO FEAR it. Just do as you are told, and march to your death. Brave Australians to fight China. The Japanese to invade Taiwan. South Korea to be a staging base. The Philippines to base bombers to bomb China…
The entire world KNOWS the plans that the United States has for China.
And…
So does China.
…
To think that somehow China would allow the United States to poke it into a war, on American terms, where the United States defines the battlefields and the the proxy client nations march to their death is DELUSIONAL.
China will not allow that to happen.
…
A conflict with China will not, and never be, “long term”. It will be a long drawn out period of de-faning, followed by death blows.
There are many, many instances in Chinese history where military leaders employed a strategy of attrition and destruction of resources to weaken their enemies.
One notable example is the campaign of the famous military strategist Sun Tzu during the Warring States Period (475-221 BCE). Sun Tzu is believed to have used a combination of psychological warfare, deception, and destruction of resources to wear down his enemies and force them to surrender without engaging in direct combat.
His famous book, “The Art of War,” is still studied today as a classic military strategy guide. And his techniques are well employed daily by Chinese military leaders and businessmen alike.
Another example is the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), which employed a strategy of “defensive warfare” against the Mongol Empire. Rather than seeking to conquer the Mongols, the Ming focused on fortifying their borders and destroying resources, such as crops and water sources, to weaken the Mongols and prevent them from launching further attacks.
During the Three Kingdoms period (220-280 CE), the warlord Cao Cao used a tactic of burning and destroying crops and villages to deprive his enemies of resources and weaken their armies. This strategy was particularly effective against the armies of Liu Bei, who relied heavily on civilian support.
During the Taiping Rebellion (1850-1864), the Taiping rebels led by Hong Xiuquan fought against the Qing Dynasty. The Taiping rebels employed a scorched-earth strategy, burning crops and villages and killing civilians to weaken the Qing army and terrorize the population. This led to widespread famine and displacement, with millions of civilians dying from starvation and disease. The rebellion ultimately failed, but its impact on Chinese society was profound.
The use of attrition and destruction of resources as a military strategy has been employed throughout Chinese history, with examples ranging from the Warring States Period to the Ming dynasty and beyond. These tactics have been used to wear down enemies, weaken their armies, and force them into surrender without engaging in direct combat.
Here are a few more examples of military leaders in Chinese history who employed the strategy of attrition and destruction of resources:
1. Zhang Xianzhong: During the late Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), Zhang Xianzhong led a rebellion against the imperial government. He followed a strategy of scorched earth, burning crops and killing civilians along his path, to prevent the Ming armies from resupplying and isolating them. This weakened the Ming forces and allowed Zhang to gain control over much of Sichuan province.
2. Yuan Shao: During the Three Kingdoms period (220-280 CE), Yuan Shao led a coalition of warlords against his rival Cao Cao. When Cao Cao’s forces advanced towards his territory, Yuan Shao ordered the destruction of crops and villages along the way in a scorched earth strategy. This not only weakened Cao Cao’s army but also deprived them of resources, forcing them to withdraw.
3. Li Zicheng: In the mid-17th century, Li Zicheng led a peasant rebellion against the Ming dynasty. He followed a similar strategy as Zhang Xianzhong, burning crops and killing civilians to weaken the Ming forces. This strategy was successful in helping Li Zicheng to capture the capital, Beijing, and overthrow the Ming dynasty.
4. Mao Zedong: During the Chinese Civil War (1945-1949), Mao Zedong’s communist forces followed a strategy of guerrilla warfare, which included the destruction of infrastructure and resources, such as bridges and railways, to weaken the Nationalist government’s control over the country. This strategy ultimately led to the communist victory and the establishment of the People’s Republic of China.
5. Zhuge Liang: During the Three Kingdoms period (220-280 CE), the famous strategist Zhuge Liang led the Shu-Han army against the Wei army. When the Wei army advanced towards the city of Chengdu, where Zhuge Liang was based, he ordered the destruction of crops and the poisoning of wells to deprive the enemy of resources. This weakened the Wei army and forced them into a retreat.
6. Yue Fei: During the Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279), the general Yue Fei led a campaign against the Jurchen Jin dynasty. Yue Fei employed a scorched-earth strategy, burning crops and destroying infrastructure along the Jurchen army’s path to prevent them from resupplying and isolating them. This weakened the Jurchen army and allowed Yue Fei to win several battles.
7. Qi Jiguang: In the late Ming dynasty (1368-1644), the general Qi Jiguang led a campaign against the Wokou pirates, who were raiding the coast of China. Qi Jiguang employed a strategy of attrition, cutting off the pirates’ supply lines and destroying their ships and resources. This weakened the pirates and forced them to surrender.
8. Lin Biao: During the Chinese Civil War (1945-1949), the communist general Lin Biao led a campaign against the Nationalist government’s forces in Manchuria. Lin Biao employed a strategy of guerrilla warfare, destroying infrastructure, such as railways and bridges, to prevent the Nationalist forces from resupplying. This weakened the Nationalist forces and allowed the communists to gain control over the region.
These few (out of many) examples demonstrate how Chinese generals and military leaders have used the strategy of attrition and destruction of resources throughout history to weaken their enemies. While this strategy can be effective in military terms, it can also have a significant impact on civilian populations and non-combatants, as noted earlier.
These examples demonstrate that the strategy of attrition and destruction of resources has been used by military leaders in various periods of Chinese history. While it can be a brutal tactic, it has proven to be effective in weakening and defeating enemy forces long before they are able to gather their strength to ready up for a long battle or conflict.
The use of the strategy of attrition and destruction of resources in warfare throughout Chinese history has often had a devastating impact on civilian populations and non-combatants.
Scorched-earth tactics, for example, involve the intentional destruction of crops, livestock, and other resources that civilians depend on for their survival. This can lead to famine, disease, and displacement, as well as the loss of homes, property, and livelihoods. Civilians who are caught in the crossfire or who live in areas controlled by the opposing forces can also face violence, abuse, and forced conscription.
Furthermore, the destruction of infrastructure, such as bridges, roads, and railways, can disrupt trade, transport, and communication, which can further harm civilian populations. This can lead to economic instability, social unrest, and political instability, which can have long-term consequences.
In some cases, military leaders have intentionally targeted civilians as part of their strategy, using violence, rape, and other forms of abuse to terrorize the population and undermine support for their enemies. This can lead to widespread trauma, physical and emotional harm, and the breakdown of social and cultural institutions.
Overall, the use of the strategy of attrition and destruction of resources in warfare has had a significant and often devastating impact on civilian populations and non-combatants throughout Chinese history. And the populations once weakened create a situation where the nation is UNABLE to fight long and protracted wars without internal domestic collapse.
…
It is simple, really.
It will begin with [1] a drawn out period of de-fanging the American out-of-control beast.
Pluck, by pluck.
Inflation, raging unemployment, money that is useless, inability to get healthcare, massive drug abuse, and a collapse of the industrial base will be just a bad fore-taste of the deadly future that awaits when the United States walk into the rat-trap set for it.
Then, trapped, check-mated, and helpless with come [2] the one-two blows that China and Russia (oh, yeah, China and Russia are none nation now. Or haven’t you noticed?) will unleash.
…
Don’t like that?
Tough.
Here’s the High Tech capital (Pasadena California) in the United States “today”. Ruined by the out-of-control government that makes the grandiose statements that only the putile ignorant believe.
See what the grand and strong America looks like when “you pull the curtain back” and see it for what it actually is; a toothless old fumbling man with dementia.
…
I argue that the moment that the United States declared war with China back in 2014, China sat-up and took notice. They formalized their plans and initiated counter-military actions. As the United States follows it’s well-worn RAND play-book, so is China. And today we are seeing the fruits of this on-going “stealth” war.
Stealth… because it is not being reported.
…
You can expect the civilian populations of the United States and its proxy nations to suffer. You can expect raging inflation, a drop in basic services, and a gradual encroachment of madness in the “leadership” cadres.
Along with that, will be an emptying of the national treasuries of the belligerents, as well as a destruction of military systems to a point where basic parts, ammo and fundamentals become unobtainable. You will note a cannibalization of existing weapons systems, and an outrageous propaganda machine geared up for a “hot conflict” that the United States will be unable to implement.
…
The United States today is like a “junkie” that needs his “fix” of drugs. He hates the drug dealer that sells it to him, and he hates his life, but he knows that he cannot go “cold turkey” without the drugs. So he yells, and screams. He screams to everyone how bad the “drug dealer” is, but is so nice an friendly when talking face to face with the dealer.
He knows, as bad as his situation is, it can be many, many, MANY times worse if the “drug dealer” closes him out, and turns his back on him. The drug dealer not only has control over his needs, but is healthy, powerful, and has abilities that the junkie doesn’t.
Bottom line…
Do not fuck with China.
They will fuck you right back.
America’s Secret Space Program and the Alien Connection: Solar Warden
This is a perfect example about “going down the rabbit hole”.
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
Pineapple Tequila
Keep a large jar of this tequila working on your kitchen counter. It makes terrific margaritas. After the mixture has been topped with fresh tequila two or three times, you can finely dice the softened pineapple, warm it in butter with extra brown sugar to taste, and serve it as an ice cream topping.
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Ingredients
2 large just-ripe pineapple, trimmed, peeled, cored, cut into 2-inch chunks
2 (1 liter) bottles gold tequila
2 cones (5 ounces total) piloncillo or 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 whole vanilla beans
Instructions
In a large, decorative jar, combine the pineapple chunks and tequila.
Add the sugar and vanilla beans.
Cover and let the tequila stand at room temperature, stirring it occasionally, for at least 1 week.
I went to college almost exactly 1,000 miles from my hometown. That’s about 16 hours if you drive it. When I was in college, I would drive home once per year. I’d drive straight through, stopping only for gas, food, and bathroom breaks. Not to rest.
I’d leave at 3am, and get there around 7 or 8pm that evening.
Those were fun trips. I was young, single, and free. I had the windows down, going 80mph down the highway, usually smoking a cigarette with the music blasting.
Years later, in my early 30s, I thought I could still do that. Not the smoking part—I quit that after college. And not the loud music part-I preferred talk radio at a reasonable volume by then. And I didn’t like the windows down as much. Too windy and noisy and it lets dust into the car.
But still, I thought it would be fun to drive the 1,000 miles, without stopping, to visit my mom.
I left at 3am. By noon, I realized I had made a mistake. I was exhausted. I tried drinking coffee, but that didn’t help. By 2pm, I realized that I wasn’t going to make it. I had to find a hotel. If I continued driving, I would be a danger to myself and others.
My exact thoughts were: “Why did I do this? I’m too old for this shit.”
So I called my mom to tell her I’d be a day late, found a hotel, spent the night, and finished my trip the next day.
I’m planning another solo road trip this summer, to somewhere even farther away. But now I have a minivan, so I’m just going to take the seats out of the back, put in an inflatable mattress, and sleep there whenever I feel tired. I hate paying $100 or more just to sleep at a hotel.
What is China’s secret weapon?
American “news” constantly underlines that China “only” has 400 nuclear weapons. While MM has told you that the amount is 10x that.
A Pentagon report states that China has enough launchers to support the MM statement, though they still argue for small numbers of nukes…
My mother sold vegetables at the local market, and every now and then she would send me to the shops.
She sold stuff like tomatoes, onions, garlic, ginger, et.c. and on that particular day she sent me to buy a box of chicken seasoning. We called them Maggi Cubes and they came in small packets like this.
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This has nothing to do with the Maggi Cubes, or my mother’s vegetables.
So, while exiting the shop with my box, I heard a commotion outside. My nosy self quickly walked towards it, where I saw people dragging a man to a car while everyone else stood by and watched. The man looked faint and fucked up, but that didn’t stop the people from roughly dragging him to the car and shoving him inside, all the while cursing at him.
“Brukim pes blo disla rascal ya!”
“Stealman ya!”
“Paitim em ya!”
From what people were yelling I deduced he was a thief. A pickpocket.
Ah, of course. Leave it to us Papua New Guineans to mind our own business when it’s a man beating the shit out of his wife in public but bring out the vigilante squad when it’s a harmless little pickpocket.
From listening to people who were standing around tsk-tsking and talking, I figured out he had tried to pick someone’s phone. The people assisting him to the car weren’t taking him to the hospital; they were taking him to the police station.
Something else they said caught my attention.
“Ol katim han blo em.”
“Ol man lo hap ya, ol holim han blo em stap.”
I looked to where they were pointing to; it was a smaller crowd. I inched closer, and there it was.
A severed hand. The pickpocket’s hand, apparently.
Some guy was holding it up like a trophy. People crowded around to take photos.
I would have taken a pic too but I felt queasy and left. Now I realise no picture is needed; that disturbing scene has been seared into my mind.
For a phone a man loses his hand while corrupt politicians steal much more and walk free. Such is life.
Of all the crimes we suffer from in the land of PNG, pickpocket is the least common. If you’re caught pickpocketing, people would handle you themselves before turning you over to the police to deal with what’s left.
There are Temples in Japan where the ceilings are drenched in blood of dead Samurai. In 1592, Toyotomi Hideyoshi constructed the Fushimi Castle after he united Japan. After the death of Hideyoshi’s the Kingdom began to fragment and the warlord Tokugawa Leyasu occupied Fushimi Castle with 2000 men.
In 1600, an army of 40,000 men under the command of the Samurai Ishida Mitsunari, marched against the castle. Tokugawa’s companion, Torii Mototada decided to remain in the castle with the 2000 men, while Tokugawa’s marched west.
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Mototada and his men defended the castle against overwhelming odds for 11 days. On the 11th day, with only ten of his men left alive, Mototada realised he had lasted as long as he could, and rather than surrender he and his remaining men committed Seppuku (ritual suicide via disembowelment).
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Though Mototada died, he succeeded in holding Mitsunari long enough that his campaign was critically delayed, leading to his defeat and execution.
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The Gruesome mass suicide of the defenders drenched the floors of the castle with blood, and though the castle was later dismantled, its wood was used in the construction of five temples across Kyoto. And to this day, bloodstains from the siege can be seen on the ceilings of some of these temples.
Originally Answered: As a Police officer, has someone you pulled over ever threatened to call “Daddy”?
Oh yeah….. and it was the Sheriff’s 18 year old daughter. (Sigh) I pulled her over at 2:00 a.m. for running a red light. From my initial contact, based upon her language, attitude, and the odor of alcohol, I determined she was inebriated.
I removed her to the rear of her vehicle. The entire time she was screaming that she was THE Sheriff’s daughter. I knew that. The first step I conduct in my field sobriety tests is the HGN. Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus. That’s where I “wave” my pen in front of your eyes, asking you to track the movement of my pen. It requires me to place my body in close proximity to the body of the detained individual. On this night, that was my mistake. She sucker punched me in the face. Broke my nose.
Hard to believe a 120# female could punch like she did. She knocked me to the ground. I hit my dispatch panic button, and the world responded. The next I knew, she’s cuffed and stuffed, and the paramedics are wanting to transport me.
We finally all arrive at the jail, and my supervisors interviewed me again. They were more concerned about my health than anything. I kept asking for a status on my prisoner, and their only response was “who gives a …. , let’s get you taken care of..”
Then the Sheriff arrived. He spoke with my supervisors… both of them, the Lieutenant and the Sergeant. He spoke with my fellow Deputies who also responded. Then he spoke with his daughter… confined in a holding cell.
Then he approached me, and asked how I was. He really was concerned about my health, and the state of damage to my gear. We talked for several minutes. He apologized profusely for his daughter’s behavior. I kept telling him it wasn’t his fault. And then he said, and I’ll never forget this….. “…., this is a direct order. You will charge this miscreant with Underage consumption, Operating While Intoxicated, Assault on an officer causing injury, and Resisting arrest. You do that, and do it now… or I’ll have your badge.” And with that, he spun on his heels and left without another word to anyone.
The Prosecutor reduced some of the charges (imagine that) but she ended up with time served (bail, for some unknown reason took 2 days), a large fine, and suspension of her DL for 6 months.
Additionally, the Sheriff had her apologize in person in front of the entire Patrol Division, (60 deputies) and I understand the entire Corrections (jail) Department (100 officers).
EDIT: Wow I never thought I’d get this much response. Thank you all. This is a very humbling experience.
Perhaps I should get knocked on my azz more often. LOL NOT.
Please allow me to elaborate on a few of the comments:
*The Prosecutor reduced her charges through a very necessary plea bargain process. It’s not perfect, but it’s usually the best form of justice served in our County. We have 80 ADA’s and only 5 Judges. Judicial gridlock would occur with out this process.
*”Her sentence was too light.” Legally? Perhaps. But here’s the rest of the story….. She had a full ride scholarship to a Big 10 University. She lost it. She lost the car her Father was providing. She lost the nice part time job she had. For the next year, instead of enjoying life as a college student, she worked 70 hrs. a week at a convenience store, to make the weekly payments on a Buy Here Pay Here junk car. And to pay her newly instituted rent at her parents’ home.
She’s now in college…. paying her own way. She’s an often sought speaker at MAAD and AA meetings. She always starts out the same way…. “Let me tell you about the most stupid decision I ever made….. which caused the most miserable night of my life.”
I see her often. Our Agency has family BBQ’s and other events. We all know each others’ family. We all see each other often. She’s a good kid. A good kid who made a poor decision.
And now, she’s paying the price. I’ve let it go. I hope you all will too 🙂
Col Macgregor On Gonzalo Lira DISAPPEARANCE
The same disregard with human rights and the rule of law in Julian Assange’s case.
During a dark period of my own, I asked her if she had ever considered ending her life. She said she had, and I asked what had stopped her.
She replied, “Curiosity, I guess. I wanted to see what would happen next.”
I don’t consider suicide a sin or a crime. I think it’s a failure of the imagination. The pain of the current moment eclipses the knowledge that there will be many more moments, and you just don’t know what they will bring.
About 35 years ago, after a break-up with a girl, I cocked a pistol and held it to my own head. I was alone in my apartment, and in great emotional pain. I couldn’t imagine anyone ever loving me again. Obviously, I didn’t pull the trigger.
Since that decision not to end my own life, I moved to Los Angeles, became a successful voice actor, and was cast as a series regular on a Cartoon Network show that ran for 6 years and won an Emmy. People have told me, on multiple occasions, “You were the voice of my childhood.” I also met my wife and stepson and traveled the world.
My advice, for what it’s worth: Don’t kill yourself, because then, you’ll never find out what happens next.
Originally Answered: What is the best thing that ever happened to you for being nice?
Going anonymous because don’t want the attention.
When I was in college a new person moved across the hall from me in my building.
One day I came home and heard him crying and hysterical in his apartment. I listened for a minute, but finally knocked on the door, as it sounded like he needed help.
He came to the door. We had seen eachother a couple times but never really talked. He had recently moved to New York from China for grad school in biology, and spoke very little English. He explained that he had lost his lab position, had stopped going to class, and would soon fail out and would have to return home. Said he would be the shame of his family.
He explained that he had no other options.
Luckily I worked in the biochemistry department, and had a lot of contacts there. I spent some time with him and helped make a plan to get back on the right track. I introduced him to some professors and administrators in the university, reviewed his letters and emails, and helped him get a job in my cancer research lab, even though he had no experience in cancer research.
I gave him some of my favorite American novels and he read them and seemed very grateful.
I moved a couple years later, but we have stayed in touch; I’ve helped him out with writing and encouraged him along the way when he comes to me with concerns.
It’s been 15 years since we met. He completed two Masters degrees at a great university, and a PhD and now has a position developing drugs to treat and cure cancer.
I like to think I’ve helped to impact his trajectory for the better.
NEARLY EVERYONE IN THE WORLD FEEL THIS!! 😰 Oliver Anthony – Rich Men North Of Richmond | reaction
When I was in 5th grade, my friends and I stumbled upon an old “bottle dump” in the woods. These were 100 year old garbage and trash dumps that were reclaimed by the woods and forests of Western Pennsylvania.
The junk and organic matter was taken over by nature, thus leaving a thick and rich soil covered by native vegetation. The only things not decayed were the glass bottles, and the shards of broken glass that were everywhere.
Thus, we had stumbled upon a “bottle Dump”.
And for the next three or so years I would go out with my friends, happily digging away and collecting all sorts of colorful and interesting 100-year old bottles. My favorites were whittle bottles, and bitters.
Whittle marks are a very descriptive term for a bottle body feature that almost never has anything whatsoever to do with its name. The term "whittled" or "whittle marked" is a reference to a hammered or wavy surface to the glass that one could imagine was caused by the "whittled" marks of the mold maker on the inside surface of a wooden mold. Early 19th century glass makers called this effect "ruffled glass" while later it was referred to as a "hammered look" (Toulouse 1966)
Bitters, intact bottles, were rare and very much prized.
These bottles were the most popular medicine bottles in the 19th and 20th centuries. They were popular because of their content. The Bitters came from mixing natural herbs with a lot of alcohol. These medicines were widespread because, during the movement, they allowed the legal consumption of alcohol.
Anyways, we could collect the bottles, and I must have had hundreds in my basement, and many, many lining my boyhood walls. Where I had hanging model airplanes, books, and the brick-a-brack of my boyhood youth.
All was forgotten when I went to university, and then the Navy. And discarded by my mother by the time I got married.
Bottled collecting was a silly but enjoyable boyhood hobby that I have fond memories of. It allowed me to explore the history of my local area, crawl and climb in the woods and spend a lot of time outdoors.
If your kid ever gets into something so harmless, don’t hassle him over it. Embrace it. It could be far worse. Don’t you know.
Now you know
Two People – an Argentinian and Carmela Vitale of New York filed separate patents – 11 years apart – for a small piece of Plastic that prevented the Top Layer of Cheese and Tomatoes on a Pizza from scraping the Top of the Pizza Delivery box – which often ruined the Pizza.
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The Argentinian did not renew the patent but Carmela Vitale earned royalties for this small piece of plastic of 3 1/2 cents per piece sold from 1.1.1986 to 31.12.2010 and earned a whopping $ 57.7 Million in Royalties alone
I would have to say this is the simplest yet at the same time the most lucrative business idea.
Driving tip
If a deer runs onto the road in front of you while your driving, its better to hit the deer then swerve into a ditch. If a Moose runs onto the road its better to swerve into a ditch, Moose’s are tanks.
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NATO order Italy to stand away from China
“Signing up with China’s BRI was a dangerous mistake, and Italy needs to embrace the United States leadership”.
2023 08 02 16 11
https://youtu.be/cJYFGtuqWsI
The last building standing in Hamburg.
This marvelous feat of modern aesthetics sits smack in the center of Hamburg, and will keep doing so for at least a millennium. It’s a flak tower / bomb shelter for the population, the kind of thing that was really needed in the mid-20th century in Germany.
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When the war was over, the new government tried to get rid of most of the old Nazi-looking stuff that the previous administration had left behind. They commissioned their most elite demolition crew to this specific building. The guys scratched their heads for a very long time and came to the conclusion that tearing this beauty to the ground would require enough explosives to blow the whole city sky-high. So better not.
It’s still there. One of the best clubs in town uses the top floor. The walls are up to 3.5 meters thick, so the music doesn’t bother the neighborhood.
It’ll be the last building standing in Hamburg.
Wild West Chili Soup
2023 08 02 11 54
Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
2 medium garlic cloves
2 cans tomato soup
2 cans pinto beans, undrained
3 tablespoons chili powder
1 cup onion, chopped
1 can beef broth
1 cup water
2 cups macaroni, cooked
2 tablespoons vinegar
Instructions
Brown beef with onion and garlic until tender.
Add remaining ingredients, and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
What’s Actually Happening At U.S.-Mexico Border Is MIND BLOWING!
There’s a tremendous amount of hyperbole and emotion surrounding the border crisis, but what’s really going on? To find out, presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. traveled to Yuma, Arizona and spoke with border guards as well as migrants themselves, and what he learned was nothing short of shocking. Jimmy and RFK Jr. discuss the myths associated with the border situation and the revelations that criminal cartels are actually in charge of U.S. immigration policy.
She frequently trespasses in my garden, sleeps on top of my car, and if I ever leave my door open – as I do during a heatwave – she walks right in like she lives here.
A few weeks ago I was taking a bath with the window open downstairs, with my AirPods in, and I left the bathroom door open so the place wouldn’t steam up, and she came and jumped on me in the bath while my eyes were closed. I don’t know which of us got a bigger fright.
In the US subprime mortgage crisis, the government decided to let Lehman go under before the full extent of the debt was known, and this had a domino effect. The outgoing Bush administration decided that the banks needed to be bailed out to prevent running out of cash, and the losses were passed onto ordinary Americans.
In China’s case, the government is slowly letting the air out of the debt bubble instead of letting it collapse, and it is acting to prevent the losses being passed onto ordinary Chinese. Don’t expect a US-2008 style crash because real estate has been the main savings vehicle for ordinary Chinese over the past 40 years. The Chinese government knows that if they lost value on their homes too quickly, then Chinese would stop spending in the domestic economy, and China wants to cut back on exports as a portion of the Chinese economy. The aim is to switch over to a consumer-driven economy from an export-driven economy and this can only be achieved by making Chinese feel secure. This is the reason for all the spending and development on infrastructure and technology.
The important thing to remember about China is that the People’s Bank issues the currency, and government-owned banks make the loans. The US Fed only has control of interest rates, but the Chinese government has a much finer level of control than the US, and it reports only to the Communist Party, not an independent board of governors as the Fed does.
That makes a huge difference.
US/France threaten intervention in resource-rich Niger – Fears of war in West Africa
War! War! War!
The US and France have threatened foreign intervention to re-install a pro-Western regime in Niger, which produces uranium needed for nuclear energy and hosts large US drone bases. This follows coups led by nationalist, anti-colonial military officers in neighboring Burkina Faso and Mali, which warn intervention could set off a regional war in West Africa.
2023 08 02 16 15
If you are ever kidnapped…
If you ever get kidnapped and put in the boot/trunk, disconnect the brake lights and there’s a chance the driver might get pulled over, given you a chance to call for hel
The worst Nuclear disaster you have never heard of. In 1985 the Goiania institute of radiotherapy in Brazil, moved locations. They left behind a Cesium-137 cancer therapy machine. Two years later on September 13th, 1987, two men break into the building and steal the machine, as the guard that was hired to protect the building never showed up for work.
The men wheeled it home and began to dismantle it, with both men falling sick that night. Despite this they continued to dismantle the machine and by the 16th of September, they were able to puncture a hole in a capsule inside the machine.
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Inside the capsule was a bright blue powder that they scooped up. They shared it with friends and relatives, even painting blue crosses on their shirts and some even used it as make-up, completely unaware of what they had.
The handling of the blue power was enough for the two thieves to require fingers and an arm to be amputated. But before it had gotten to that point the men decided to sell it to a local scrapyard. The machine was further dismantled by the owner, Devair Ferreira. When he was finally able to release the blue powder himself, he was fascinated by the it. Believing it to be highly valuable, even possibly supernatural, he invited family members over to see it, even passing it around.
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From there it was then sold to another scrapyard. Devair’s brother, Odesson, even took a chunk of the material home with him. He was a local bus driver and unknowingly contaminated dozens of passengers. He’s also one of the most contaminated surviving victims of the disaster and he says he can still feel the burning in his hands.
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His six-year-old daughter even played with the blue powder on the floor before having dinner, where some of the radio active material had fallen on her sandwich and she consumed it. Tragically, within just one month she passed away and was buried in a lead coffin, encased in concrete.
Nobody knew that the material was highly radioactive. As time passed, everyone who had came in contact with the machine or the powder began falling seriously ill. It wasn’t until a concerned relative had a feeling the machine had something to do with it and took some of the blue powder to the hospital to be tested. Doctors were quick to determine that they were suffering from acute radiation poisoning.
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They resulted in over 100,000 people being isolated in the Olympic stadium for screening. 250 people were found to be contaminated. 28 skin related injuries from radiation and two men, one woman and one child died.
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Over 40 homes and buildings had to be demolished. The remaining chunk of Cesium, as well as over 6000 tons of contaminated clothing, furniture, pieces of buildings and even dirt were packed into steel drums and containers and dumped in an abandon quarry.
Originally Answered: Why don’t Chinese people wear their traditional dresses on a frequent basis? They are almost always in western dresses. I think they should take more pride in their 汉服, for example.
OK, let’s say, sure, we want to wear our traditional dresses more. But which traditional dresses? from which dynasty? Like, here’s the thing about Chinese traditional dresses or 汉服, we kind of sort of don’t have a very clearly defined and universally accept definition of 汉服.
It’s not like 和服 or kimono. When people say kimono, you exactly what they’re talking about. The style is pretty iconic and consistent. There’s a long and continous tradition of making kimono following a very clearly defined processes from printing the fabric, to the cut, to how to wear them, to how to fold and store them.
Han Chinese traditional clothing do not have that because there are so much records about different type of clothing throughout history. We have record about our clothing style all the way back to the actual Han dynasty some 2000 years ago and beyond.
If someone want to wear a dress from 2000 years ago, we know how to make them.
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If someone want to wear Tang dynasty clothing from about 1000 years ago, we know exactly what they look like.
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So when you think about 汉服 (Chinese traditional dresses), what do you have in mind?
Do you think of something like this?
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Except this is not even 汉服 or Han clothing. This is Manchu clothing, well, not even “traditional manchu clothing”. It is, more precisely, alternated modernized Manchu style clothing most popular during 民国 or Republic of China (1910s – 1940s) era. You aren’t seriously suggesting that the style popular during that 30–40 years represents the entirety of Chinese traditional clothing.
So if you wear this and call it 汉服, a lot of Hanfu purist would be very unhappy. After all, the Manchus are barbarians. Their clothing can not possibily be representative of Han Chinese clothing. That would be blasphemy.
And as a Manchu myself, I wouldn’t even call it “Manchu clothing” because this style is a westernized Manchu clothing only became popular AFTER the fall of Qing (Manchu) Empire.
You’re really talking about a “bastard” style between western and Manchu clothing that you (a westerner) is more familiar with, but has nothing to do with the real Hanfu (or Manchu clothing).
I do want to clarify that I love Republic of China era clothing. This was our “roaring 20s”, and I found the mix of Manchu and western style refreshing and glamorous. It’s just they aren’t Hanfu no matter how you cut it.
And on top of that, there’s also the practical consideration. As you can see most of the Han Chinese style clothing features long skirts (sometimes with trains) with long wide sleeves. They aren’t very practical in everyday life in our modern age. Try get on a crowded bus wearing a Ming dynasty clothing.
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That being said, people do wear traditional Chinese clothing in everyday life.
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Even though we couldn’t quite agree on what exactly is 汉服. They’re all very beautiful.
I am very interested in the implementation details of de-risking because almost all major German manufacturers are public companies which need to report earnings to their shareholders every quarter, and shareholders are interested in the business health of their companies.
These companies have two reasons for their China presence:
That is where their supply chains are based and;
China is their largest single market.
My feeling is that shareholders will want to know in exact terms what de-risking is going to cost? Who is going to pay for the costs of moving supply chains and moving to smaller markets? Since Foreign Minister Annalina Baerbock is making the demand, (isn’t it strange that the foreign minister is telling German businesses what to do), shouldn’t she have discussed with the Economic Minister (also a Green Party member) how these companies would be compensated for their loss? Would there be a corporate tax holiday? Or would the government cover their losses with some kind of subsidy?
Based on what I have seen so far, there is no guarantee of any compensation for their loss. Just look at TSMC’s move to Arizona; they have not been given any money by the US government, even though they have spent more than US$10B on the move. TSMC shareholders are not happy about the move. TSMC’s founder Morris Chang is one very unhappy person and has gone public with his unhappiness. He is in his 90s, so he doesn’t give a damn.
You see, there are problems with de-risking from China:
Every market after China is smaller;
Every supply chain outside China is smaller and less efficient.
So the final question German manufacturers are likely asking is:
Who is going to eat the loss?
Gonzalo Lira seeks political asylum in Hungary
Gonzalo Lira seeks political asylum in Hungary The Duran: Episode 1658
In The 18th century, England’s wealthy had a peculiar taste for garden décor, live ornamental hermits. The English elite had an unique way of showcasing their wealth and tastes. They would hire people to live in their gardens. These individuals were not your typical gardener or caretakers. Instead, they were tasked with embodying the romantic ideal of the solitary, contemplative life
The wealthy landowners would construct follies, decorative buildings, or ruins in their gardens. These follies served as the living quarters for the hermits
The Hermits were expected to dress like druids, avoid bathing and let their hair and nails grow long. They were to spend their days in contemplation, writing and adding an air of mystic to the garden.
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The role of the hermit was taken quite seriously. Some were under contract for years. For an example, Charles Hamilton, reportably offered a hermitage for seven years at his estate, Painshill Park, with a salary of 700 pounds around 150,000 euros in todays money.
However, the hermit he hired was dismissed after just three weeks after he was caught drinking down the local pub. The trend of ornamental hermits died out by the end of the 18th century.
My father ran construction crews in the 70’s and contracted for several builders. One wrote a bad check for the job. After the draft bounced my dad demanded a replacement check and called the bank to verify funds before leaving the office with it.
He took it to the issuing bank to cash and they refused because he did not have an account with them. He asked again if funds were available and was assured there were, but unless he had an account there they would not cash it for him.
He then asked if they would exchange it for a cashiers check. They said they would and took the builders check and issued my dad a cashiers check. My dad immediately requested they cash the cashiers check. The teller refused stating he needed to have an account with them to cash checks there.
At this point my dad got loud enough for everyone in the bank to easily hear the conversation and asked the clerk if they were refusing to honor their cashiers check because it might not be good? Was the bank having solvency issues?
A supervisor came over to handle the issue and after being updated as to the details by the clerk he started laughing and told her “He got you. Cashiers checks have to be cashed regardless of account status as they are written on the bank itself are are guaranteed as if cash.”
But look at the “fat cities” as opposed to the “skinny cities” and you find another correlation. Walkability.
Not a lot of New Yorkers are fat, particularly in Manhattan. Driving is a chore there and walking is often the best way to get around.
But go to Houston. It’s one of the most obese cities in the country. Naturally, the only way to get around the city is to drive. No matter where you are, there’s nothing within walking distance.
The YouTube channel “Not Just Bikes” calls it the “gym of life”. He lives in Amsterdam, The Netherlands and he rarely drives. Hell, he even has a cargo bicycle where he can bike for 15 minutes to a big-box hardware store, pick up stuff, and bike it home. He and his kids are in great shape.
But once he was in Houston, needed office supplies, and tried to walk a half-mile to a nearby office store. After navigating a landscape without sidewalks, including have to cross a small culvert while walking on the side of a road with 70 kph traffic, he took a cab back.
The highest correlation to weight is when your neighbourhood was built. If it was built before 1960, your chances of being obese are low. If it was built after 2000, it’s likely you’re obese, because you’re driving everywhere. Because you have to.
I was 16 years old when I ran away from home. Parents divorced when I was nine, mom was raising seven of us by herself. I was number 4 but the oldest boy. Began working at age 10 (paper route) to give mom money to help. At 12 began de-tasseling corn, putting up hay, mowing lawns, etc. At 14 began working at a Pizza Hut as a cook. At 16, I had no life, never had a date, worked 50 hrs a week, began skipping school, drinking, running around. Doing things that could get me into trouble but not getting caught.
Friend came around and told me the cops were looking for us. I felt I had no life anyway because I was giving most of my money to my mom. We took his car (it was paid for) and ran away that night, ending up in Texas (from Missouri) a couple of days later. We got jobs, an apartment (with a guy from work) and began again drinking (in Mexican bars). No serious crime, never drugs, but heading down the wrong path. High school drop out, runaway, trouble seeking.
After a few months of sharing the apartment, our roommate showed his true colors, disappearing with our rent money and we were evicted. Was able to find a room to rent from an elderly woman, but my paycheck was a few days late so she locked me out. I was homeless for a while until my boss (another Pizza Hut) allowed me to sleep in the restaurant. One day, as we were getting off of work, my friend suggested we join the Marine Corps. I said, “OK, what’s that?” It was 1973 and I had no clue what the Marine Corps was.
Though we were only 16, we enlisted and were sent to recruit training. I don’t remember being asked my age but we were tall for our age and scored well on the ASVAB test. In any event, we were found out on the second day of training and sent back to Texas. I learned that you could enlist at age 17 with a parent’s signature, my mom agreed to it and I reported to boot camp again right after my 17th birthday. The rest is history.
Boot camp was HARD! My drill instructors pushed us hard and would not let me quit. They instilled a self-discipline and confidence that I had been lacking. My first duty station, I served under a 1stSgt (senior enlisted) who, though still firm and demanding, I looked at him as the proud, encouraging father that had been missing from my life.
I ended up serving on active duty for almost 26 years, married, raised a daughter and four sons. All of my children have served or are currently serving. The GI bill paid for my college degree, leading to a 15 year teaching career that I retired from last year.
Two spur of the moment decisions, one with negative, potential life-altering consequences, the other absolutely changed my life for the better.
For information, a few years after enlisting in the Marines, I learned that the cops that were looking for us (that spurred our decision to run away) were truancy officers. Sheesh!
Experts estimate that China’s Scientific roadmap at present is between 33% to 130% in various fields with those of the Western Nations
This is based on Research Papers published and accredited outside their country, Viable Patents (Patents that survive beyond 3 years and go to prototype stage), Number of Doctorate Students, Number of Post Graduates and Research Funding vs Application
Take Semiconductors
Overall, China is Sixth behind US, Netherlands, Japan, South Korea and Germany
Take Construction Technology
China is Number 1 , surging ahead of Japan in 2021
Take Geotechnical Engineering and Structural Engineering
China is Number 1 beating Canada and Israel in 2019 and 2022
Take Satellite Design and Fabrication
China is 2nd behind the US
Yet while US owns around 19 Core Technologies, China owns 13 and relies on the other 6 by less quality substitutions
However US took 47 years to develop these core technologies whereas China took a mere 7 years
Take Aeronautical Engineering
China is Seventh after USA, Germany, UK, Russia, France, Sweden
Take Robotics
China is Third in Cosmetic Robotics after Japan, S Korea beating US to fourth place
China is Fourth in Advanced Robotics after US, Japan and S Korea
China is First in Industrial Robotics beating S Korea in 2021
Areas where the Chinese Scientific Roadmap is way behind that of the West :—
Astrophysics
Nuclear Chemistry
Advanced Cellular Research
DNA and Genome Analysis
Virology & Serology (*)
Micro-engineering
Advanced Processors
In these areas China spends less than 25% of what the US spends on Core Research and less than 50% on Evolutionary Research
Except Advanced Processors where China spends around 310% of what the US spends on secondary research and 185% on Core research.
Thus China is between 25–40% where US is in these fields
(*) Experts Believe China is far ahead in Virology and Serology than it claims due to security reasons
Areas where Chinese Scientific Roadmap is on par with or almost on par with the Western Roadmap:—
Artificial Intelligence
Quantum Computing
Advanced Computing
Satellite Engineering
Integrated Software
Packed Algorithms
Immunology (Vaccine related)
Medical Equipment (High Grade)
Quality Engineering
Core Science
Advanced Physics
Advanced Mathematics
Precision Engineering
In these areas China spends between 55% to 200% of what US spends and is anywhere between 60% to 90% of where the US is today
Experts believe without the export ban, China could overtake the US in these areas by 2030. Now it’s likely 2040.
Areas where the Chinese scientific Roadmap is ahead of the US and the West :—
Mineral Extraction
Deep Sea Bore Tunnelling
Agricultural Sciences
Hydraulics and Hydrology
Construction Technology
Rare Earth Extraction and Development
Transportation Engineering
Low cost engineering
Industrial Engineering
Production Engineering
Manufacturing Engineering
Thorium Salt Reactor Engineering
Chinas Road Map is ahead of the US and the West in these areas
China leads the world in most of these fields and controls the most core technologies and most unique indigenous processes for itself and depends on nobody beyond raw materials
So as an outsider, China may be roughly say 70% of where the US and the Collective West is today — overall as far as Scientific Progress is concerned
Japan is around 80%
So what’s so worrying?
TIME
Japan took nearly 57 years to reach this level of scientific depth with massive massive western cooperation
China took a mere 16 years with minimal western cooperation
Oh SH*T! Now Kenya is INVADING Haiti?
The U.S. government will provide Kenya with the “resources” – presumably this means money, weapons and training – necessary to lead an invasion of Haiti, pending UNSC approval. Kenya will conduct an assessment mission to Haiti in the coming weeks. So, we’ve outsourced the invasion of Haiti. Why? Redacted correspondent Dan Cohen reports on this.
One of the weirdest I have was years ago, back when the old analogue CRT TV’s were still the norm…
One had gone into ‘black and white’- a common issue when the signal strength dropped too far…
The complaint was ‘TV needs colour refilling and leak fixed, it has run out on the carpet and is now black and white’
Um WTF???
And yes- the TV was black and white (and a bit ‘snowy’) ie low signal strength, and there were indeed a couple of stains on the carpet under it, a red one and a greenish/blueish one right next to it…
UM again, WTF???
The real fault???
The balun on the TV antenna had lost its plastic cover, and it had filled with water- which had run down the old ‘air spaced coax’ which acted like a hose- right into the back of the TV…
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Thats it on the left- and each of those ‘air spaces’ is completely open from end to end… like tiny little hoses… (ETA these are the inner cores, both coax cables obviously have a woven metal ‘shield’ and a pvc insulation outer cover- these have been cut away to show the inner wire and the insulation for clarity)
The balun is the black box under the antenna itself (except this ones on the bottom, not the top like the one in the story- obviously this wasn’t the only time it had happened…lol)
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What had happened was each time it rained, it filled the balun on the antenna and sent water down the coax into the TV, and that was corroding various parts of the socket, and other things inside…
The greenish/blue was copper oxide from the copper conductor, and the reddish stain was rust from the metal chassis and screws… And because of the corrosion in the socket, the signal strength had dropped, meaning it dropped back to ‘black and white’
So the lady concerned (who had no technical knowledge of how TVs worked of course) rang it in with ‘the colour needs refilling in my TV, its leaked and run out over the carpet’
I have been traveling a lot to China for the production of IoT products. This falls on the Engineering triangle. China can produce Quality, Fast, Cheap.
I feel all the answers about cheaper labor is missing the point of the question. Since the majority of the third world countries have cheaper labor. From most of Africa, South America, India, and so on… Cheap labor has already been pointed out. Here are a few more:
Mostly because it has a billion people, about the same as the rest of the developed world combined, but isn’t yet developed enough to be heavy in service industries.
China has invested a lot in infrastructure. Factories have reliable power, good highway and rail system to port, and large modern ports.
Educated, young and reliable labor force. People that can read and a good primary school science education.
Stable government policies. Companies know from year to year what the government will do. No surprise revolutions, uprising, and riots.
Good neighbors. The majority of the Chinese factories are owned by Japanese, Taiwanese, Singaporeans and South Korean.
The economy of scale. If you are making shirts, you want to be near button factories, zipper factories, and so on.
About the Quality, time, Cost. You can only pick 2.
If it is Time and Cost:
A bulk of Chinese products are designed to be available fast and cheap. Therefore the “Good” suffers. And it’s because of the fast and cheap, those items generally fail quicker than their other counterparts.
If you pick Quality and Time:
China has the capacity for quality items too, the bulk of electronics like Lenovo, Apple products come from China. They are generally high quality and available immediately. But those products are not always “Cheap.” Let me ask you this? Do Apple products have this reputation?
China only makes whatever quality someone is willing to pay for. iPhones are made in China but you don’t see people complaining about the build quality on them.
Lastly, when you see a product with “made in China” sticker, it’s not all made in China. China usually is the assembly point for most products, the parts come from a wider range of places.
Chinese girls ‘way ahead’ says UK education study
Girls scored better than boys in every ethnic group, and Chinese girls were well ahead of everyone else, says a study of UK academic achievement of 16-year-olds. People of Irish origin were ahead of Brits, contrary to popular prejudices!
We spent the weekend at my parents (in-law) to celebrate my mom’s birthday. We had a fire:
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(The picture of the fire is too beautiful not to share, so I’m sharing)
After the fire lit up, my mom decided to get some s’mores. My dad looked at her walking inside the house, and told us, ‘I want to outlive her, so she won’t have to live a day alone, missing me.’
I think, my mom has succeeded in life, having someone loves her that much.
Is that the true meaning of success?
Putin launches DEVASTATING assault on Ukraine as NATO plan crumbles
NATO has been pushing Ukraine to launch massive armored offensives instead of small scale pin prick attacks. This plan has been devastating to the Ukrainian army which has come under intense air and ground attacks by the Russian army. Is it NATO’s plan to finish off what’s left of Ukraine’s military? Former U.N. weapons inspector Scott Ritter joins us for tonight’s live show.
Subway tip
If you ever fall off the edge of a platform on to the tracks, don’t try and crawl back up, there’s a crawl space built underneath in case this happens.
This is exactly why I have to move 2–3 throw pillows any time I want to sit down anywhere in my house, and then I’m expected to put them back on that seat when I’m done.
I just counted. There are 45 throw pillows in the living room, den, and basement sitting areas. We have another half-dozen throw pillows for our outside seating area, but those are in storage for the winter.
The women in my life… my wife and oldest daughter… are 100% responsible for all of these completely pointless, pain-in-the-ass pillows.
This is what will happen when you let the women you live with do anything they want. If you’re a young man who is thinking of getting married, I highly recommend that you keep your woman’s throw pillow purchasing in check early in the marriage. So many habits that you’ll have to live with for the rest of your life are established in those first few months of marriage. Unless you’re comfortable with seeing this every time you walk into any room with a seat, you need to put your foot down and stop it early:
Several years ago, I had the distinct privilege of teaching for a year in China. How lucky I was! The people were so considerate, kind and helpful. The students were hard working and totally engrossed in learning. The parents super supportive. Assignments were done on time and to perfection. The pride expressed in everything was so refreshing. I return regularly to see my former students and friends. The experience changed my life and how I respond to life. Truly a gift!
Being the true American male that I am, I have more fishing poles than necessary. I have three for me, and two for my kids. I’d have one for my wife, if she wanted one. She doesn’t. I’ve asked multiple times.
I take my younger children fishing whenever possible. I pick one of my poles, and they each have their own pole. My son has a Spiderman one, and my daughter has a Barbie one. Before the gender stereotype police come after me, I want everyone to know that I let them pick out their own poles, and that’s what they chose.
Anyway, I carry my pole with me to the fishing spot, where it sits on the ground while I fish with my 4-year-old daughter’s Barbie fishing pole. She has an attention span for fishing of about five minutes, so I don’t have to take the pole from her. She just sets it down and walks away, and I pick it up and use it for the rest of the time.
She usually explores the shoreline, throws rocks in the water, names the worms we’re using for bait, or just sits and chats with us. She’s not bored… she just doesn’t want to fish.
And that’s fine with me, because I prefer her children’s Barbie fishing pole to mine. It’s short and easy to use and does everything I need it to do: cast out, and come back in. My grown-up pole has some features that I don’t use and just over-complicate a simple process.
I get good results with it too. I’m going to keep using it until I have a reason not to. If you’re in the Chicago area and you see a giant man using a tiny pink fishing pole, don’t be too judgmental of him.
This is NOT me in this picture, but this is the same pole that I’m talking about. This is roughly what I look like when I go fishing now:
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Colorized | The Cosmic Man 1959 | John Carradine | Sci-Fi | Thriller | Full Movie | Subtitles
Today’s treat. Full video.
1950 era science fiction.
I would rate this movie along with Star Trek IV and The Day The Earth Stood Still as being the most positive-minded when it comes to the portrayal of extraterrestrials and the message being presented by them to the people of Earth.
It definitely shows that fear is the default state of Man's way of looking at matters be it toward extraterrestrials or himself and his fellow creatures, and that a new way of thinking is required in order to live life as he is meant to do so, that is to say, a decent, more enlightened and beneficent way to live with his fellow creatures here on Earth as well as those who live out in the vast depths of outer space.
Only then can Man truly call himself a civilized and advanced being. And who is to say that extraterrestrials aren't among us right now making use of materials here on Earth to benefit both themselves, and trying to create a better existence for mankind as a whole!!!
On another (that I just cannot find at the moment), that China has secret bioweapons labs and one was accidentally discovered in California… an army of Covid mice to spread it all over California… not that it would matter. California is mostly a waste as it is.
Huawei phones read your brainwaves… don’t you know…
5G destroys your brains… well it did until… American companies renamed their 4G. Calling it “5G”.
India, Japan and the Philippines are going to stop China “dead in its tracks”… yeah. What ever you say.
The bullshit is really deep these days.
Meanwhile in China, actual troubling reports are coming forth.
I sure as fuck hope that China can sidestep this massive insane buildup towards war, but I am starting to waver and have my doubts. I need to contact the DC and find out its take on all this…
The USA is spewing wars everywhere.
2023 08 03 08 20
“President” Biden is taking a nine day vacation. You know the kind you take right before you know that you will die. And he placed Victoria Nuland in charge.
Personally, I think she promoted herself. As there is NO ONE at the helm.
These are Americans who work and live in US, just like you, 100% Americans, except they are Chinese Americans, nevertheless they are Americans just like Donald Trump and you.
Chinese living in China can’t transfer enough money from China to buy properties in U.S. or any foreign countries, because China has strict $50,000 annual limit. It takes 10–20 years of transfers to buy an average home in California.
“Room-temperature superconductivity would enable long-distance lossless power transmission, leading to a new wave of global infrastructure development in the electricity network. Additionally, breakthroughs are expected in areas such as superconducting magnets, superconducting cables, and superconducting maglev trains, according to media reports.
“The breakthrough in room-temperature and atmospheric pressure superconducting materials would undoubtedly bring about revolutionary changes in various fields, including energy, transportation, computing, and medical diagnostics.”
It shows how pathetic and desperate the western news media houses are. The people all over the world are getting more informed and they are now not easily deceived by their blatant lies and deceptions anymore. Thanks to all these social media apps where fact-checks on faked and fabricated news could be shared at the speed of light to all corners of the world. The more the news media spew such silly news, the stupider they look. Even the old grannies today could differentiate them. A laughing stock!
When will the peak occur? It is occurring NOW, and it will go downhill from here.
Actually that is what western nations has become all due to its own doing. You see the west thought that it could simply keep increasing its price each time it’s Union asked for a pay rise and it’s CEO wants another 10 million dollars dollars bonus!
What it does not know is that when no one knows how to do what you do they have no choice paying higher and higher and higher. But close to around 2000 the world has become way smaller and there is really always an alternative product that is just as good.
Hence when the western producer increase the price it lose customers and market to the point that it no longer makes business sense to produce it in the west and it has to be outsourced to the cheapest and acceptable quality producer. This is almost always China.
Why China? First China has 1.4 billion hardworking, skilful workers who are discipline and highly intelligent working long hours and not demanding benefits and absurd salaries. Their automation robots amount to more than the world put together.
Their infrastructure is state of the art and their government focus on making organisations efficient and effective. Together they are simply unbeatable and everything done in the west cost 10 dollars the rest of the world may do it for 5 dollars. And China does it shipped it back to the U.S. for 3 bucks!
Many racist or superior minded individuals here like to fall into self delusions about cheap labour. But China’s labour is certainly higher than many nations yet it still remains the most competitive manufacturer on planet earth.
Today China U.S. making for 50% of humanity.
To do it yourself you need to reduce your CEO salaries by 90% workers salaries by 70% and you need to spent 100 trillion dollars for 10 years. You need to reduce your 800 military bases to 5 and cut your aircraft carriers by 10 and retrenched 1 million CIA and NED payrolls.
Or in plain simple English. You just cannot and won’t do it.
So stop talking shit about China. Just slapping tariff on some products from China caused you a double digit inflation and now a recession. Imagine China decoupling from you? The U.S. will nosedive into a 50 years recession! If I were you, I will be nice to China.
Interesting video…
How propaganda works and how US politicians get American voters to vote for them. Video put together by American university students to show the absurdity of it all.
Russia forgives African debt
Along with China, they are cutting the purse strings of the West from plundering the global south. More bad news for the USD.
A train coded C2551 slowly pulled out of the Beijing South Railway Station and headed for Tianjin Binhai New Area Tuesday morning, marking the 15th anniversary of the opening of the Beijing-Tianjin Intercity Railway.
As the first high-speed railway (HSR) with a design speed of 350 km per hour in China, the Beijing-Tianjin Intercity Railway carried a total of 340 million passengers since it entered operation.
Over the past 15 years, the daily frequency of trains running on the rail line has increased from 47 pairs to 128 pairs, and the shortest departure interval has been shortened from 15 minutes to 3 minutes, according to data from the China Railway Beijing Group Co., Ltd.
Wang Manman, a resident of Wuqing District, Tianjin Municipality, takes the bullet train to work in Beijing every day. The quickest journey takes only about 20 minutes, and there are eleven trains for her to choose flexibly during the morning rush hour from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m.
The operation of the Beijing-Tianjin Intercity Railway in August 2008 was strong support for the hosting of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games and has accelerated regional integration and development. It has also unveiled a fast-expanding modern HSR network in the world’s most populous nation, coupled with its booming economy.
By 2022, China had 42,000 km of operational HSR, ranking first in the world, and the length of high-speed rail regularly operating at 350 km per hour neared 3,200 km as of June 2022.
High-speed trains have changed people’s commute circle and lifestyle and greatly optimized resource allocation, noted Cheng Shidong, a transport official with the National Development and Reform Commission.
THE MAN FROM UNCLE Season One Long Opening
How US “democracy” really works…
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Japanese Artist Creates Epic Anime Costumes For His Cats
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If you’re a fan of cats, anime, and adorable cats dressed in tiny anime costumes, this one is going to be a treat. Apparently, there’s a talented Japanese man likes to create handmade anime costumes for his two cute cats and you can find his beautiful creations on his Twitter account.
If you know your anime well enough, you might be able to tell that most of the costumes he creates are based on those seen in productions from Studio Ghibli, a Japanese animation film studio. It’s also worth noting that all of his designs are made from scratch and with his own two hands.
My take is that the US will not dare fight China because it fears losing. It is no different from the supposed meanest and baddest mafia refrain from going after their strongest peers. Losing means losing everything.
You see today a good majority of the world still thinks the U.S. is the head honcho. It still fears the U.S. somewhat, though much lesser these days. But what if it is proven without doubt that China’s weapons are much more superior and that in a war the U.S. lose?
What if the Chinese jets simply blow off the F16 in the sky like swatting flies? What if 13 US carriers disintegrate by Chinese hypersonic missiles raining down on them at 10 times the speed of sound giving the U.S. 3 seconds notice? What if a million drones attack in unison and what if China takes Okinawa and Russia takes Hokkaido and Pyongyang takes Seoul and Tehran takes Israel all in a week? What is the dollar becomes a dime a buck? What next?
The U.S. pretence is exposed the aura is gone. For good. It’s weapons will need to be on cheap sales. The U.S. cannot even bully it’s own slaves anymore. That is the real reason it will not fight if China takes Taiwan by force. It won’t and it is smart. China have nothing to lose. The U.S. has everything to lose.
So the U.S. will do the only thing it can do. Talk a lot of shit. And rant and rave. Gang up it’s unholy alliance and pretend it cares. That is what the U.S. can and will do.
White House PISSED at Tucker Carlson for Exposing THIS!
Without exception, being rich in a poor country is the way to go. I moved to the Philippines in 2011. Eleven years later my Filipina wife and I opened our first small day resort on the island of Leyte.
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Though the resort is still under construction, people still want to stop by and enjoy the pool.
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We’ve done a number of projects but this is the biggest and is scheduled to be fully functional with overnight accommodations and all the amenities in three years. Aside from using a backhoe to dig out the pool, everything is done manually using hand tools.
These projects employ a dozen local workers and puts money back into the hands of those that need it the most.
This project started in August of 2021 and my first milestone to have a working pool and pump room was achieved on February 16.
I was raised poor in the richest country in the world. It sucks to be poor in a rich country. Better to be rich in a poor country.
What is Dulles ideology? God’s Mission. America has a mandate from GOD, the King of the Universe, to impose its will on “Godless communism” anywhere, everywhere, on earth, at gunpoint if necessary.
Wild Rice Cheese Soup
2023 08 02 20 05
Ingredients
1 pound Italian sausage
1 small onion, diced
1 cup uncooked wild rice
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can condensed cream of potato soup
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 cup milk
1 cup evaporated milk
1 pound cubed processed cheese
Instructions
Fry sausage and onions in a medium skillet until sausage is no longer pink. Drain and set aside.
In a small saucepan, cook rice in 2 cups of water until tender, then set aside.
In a stockpot, combine sausage, onion, rice, soups, milk and evaporated milk. Cook over low heat until warm.
Stir in processed cheese and heat. Stir occasionally until cheese is melted.
China Issues STRONG WARNING to NATO: Stay Out of Taiwan and Asia or Risk WAR
China has rejected NATO’s plan to expand into Asia and warned the Alliance that such a move risks all out war in the region.
2023 08 03 10 06
France opposes ‘decoupling’ after economic talks with China
French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Sunday that he opposes the “illusion” of countries “decoupling” from China and he does not believe the world’s second-largest economy constitutes a risk.
He made the remarks after China and France concluded the 9th China-France High Level Economic and Financial Dialogue in Beijing on Saturday. The two countries reached a series of consensus ranging from finance to climate change and aerospace.
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Le Maire said Chinese investors are welcome in France, especially in the field of electric vehicles, batteries and energy transition, citing an example of Chinese group XTC New Energy Materials that has invested with French nuclear giant Orano in batteries, French newspaper Les Echos reported.
Le Maire told a press conference on Sunday that France wants to get better access to Chinese markets. France is on the right track, Le Maire said, opposing the “illusion” of countries “decoupling” from China.
In 1986, Ronald Reagan said “There is no problem in lying to your people. As long as you don’t believe the lies yourself and fail to see the truth in front of your eyes”
He was talking about USSR and East Germany
Today that’s the case with the Collective West
They believe their own lies
They twist everything to keep believing in their own lies
They will destroy themselves to keep believing in their own lies
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Take Biden
He is still living in the 1990s
He still thinks Russia is a gas station and China is a cheap factory nation
The Pentagon tries to tell him but he brushes them off
He soon only ensures the YES MEN are heard from and his closest advisors are the same
Like our Indians brainwashed by Whatsapp University, they are all brainwashed by their own lies and propaganda
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Take Nuland
She has never made a diplomatic move in her entire life
She believes the US is supreme and anyone can be threatened and she threatens everyone with dire consequences
So most nations she threatens, hates her and hates the US and waits for the time to plunge the knife into the heart of the United States and twist the handle
Even now they are deluded into believing World War III will be won by them
They are deluded into believing that somehow Putin and Xi will be overthrown by their own Generals and US will triumph once again
They don’t realise that XI AND PUTIN are probably the only ones who are keeping the hawks in their countries at bay
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The Ultra Nationalists like Medvedev or even Lavrov and Kadyrov would happily launch nukes tomorrow and die if the Americans also die
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Anyone who knows China would know General Liu and his faction
Luckily until now these fools don’t have the full power to start WWIII
Macron isn’t quite as deluded as he pretends
Erdogan is a wily fox who plays the middle well
Austin is certainly more Pro Pentagon than White House now
Sunak is a lickspittle but he is too Indian to not be cautious
Gen Milley knows WWIII would be a disaster
Sullivan is a political animal but not an idiot or an ideological fool
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Obama controls a huge chunk of the party today and he certainly is no fool. He wouldn’t want Malia and Sasha to become vapor tomorrow.
So does the Pentagon
So push comes to shove, they can push off Biden and say “F*** off Mr President” or push the old man down the stairs after killing the cameras and say “He had an accident”
Yet who knows?
Ursula Van Der Leyen, Habeck, Baerbock, Nuland, Scholz, Marin are all spineless fools or doped to their eyeballs in Lies and Propaganda and they would burn themselves and their people in their delusions
They can happily start WWIII
So the only hope for humanity is for these insane creatures to be voted out or naturally die of some cause
Collective strike of 500,000 people!Will this president step down early?May have a toughest new one!
In the first few weeks I was here I was required to create a new bank account. I took the subway to the bank headquarters with my passport and a nice little letter from my supervisor confirming I was a current student at my university.
I filled in a form, she looked over my documents, did some typing, went to the back to get something, had me sign something, and BOOM, done! She handed me my new card.
All this in twenty-something minutes.
My little mind was blown to smithereens.
In my country (Papua New Guinea) to create an account it would take two weeks (for the paperwork to be processed). You would go to the bank, fill in the forms and show them your ID, birth certificates, and any other docs they need. You’d be told to come back after two weeks to collect your new bank card when your account is ready.
Even though I could still understand much of what this teller said to me in Chinese, she still made sure to type out what she said on a translator app and show me the message on the phone screen.
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I’ll even go far as to say I got special attention, which, being black, I was not really expecting. While I was seated waiting for my number to be called an assistant bank worker came to check if I have everything I needed, and to let her know if I needed any help. She also pointed out the direction of the washroom in case I needed it. Just doing her job, I know; still, I appreciated it.
I had gone recently to do some transactions via Western Union, they handed me this form.
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That was wrapped up quite quickly, too.
All in all, my experiences with banking had gone smoothly and quickly. You don’t even need a good command of Chinese to get your business done. They usually know English themselves or they’ll try to find some other way to communicate.
Treasury Tsunami Coming – U.S. Deficit Spending A Big Disaster
A massive treasury dump is coming and the markets aren’t prepared for a tsunami of bonds hitting.
2023 08 02 19 43
While the US government spending is nothing new, they are borrowing tons of money at high-interest rates. This creates two big problems. It could spark another banking crisis as well as create an even bigger inflation crisis down the road. Here’s what you must know!
In 1905, a photograph was taken in Japan capturing the moment when a Geisha, a female Japanese performing artist and entertainer, washed her hair before styling it. Geisha are renowned for their expertise in traditional Japanese performing arts, including dance, music, singing, and the art of conversation. They possess a distinctive appearance characterized by long, flowing kimonos, traditional hairstyles, and oshiroi makeup.
Geisha entertain at gatherings called ozashiki, frequently entertaining affluent clients. They also showcase their talents on stage and participate in various festivals.
China’s groundbreaking advancements in the semiconductor industry as wafer laser cutting equipment achieves full localization.
China’s Hua Gong Technology has successfully manufactured the world’s first 100% domestically produced high-end wafer laser cutting equipment, a crucial component in semiconductor manufacturing.
Wafers are made of brittle materials mechanical dicing of thousands or even tens of thousands of chips on a 12-inch wafer typically results in a heat-affected Zone and dicing line width of about 20 microns compared with about 10 microns for conventional lasers the reduction in dicing line width means that Wafers can achieve higher levels of integration making semiconductor manufacturing more cost effective and efficient.
This breakthrough not only enhances China’s self-sufficiency in semiconductor equipment but also reduces reliance on foreign technology, countering US technology restrictions.
This is a video from a purported “engineering” channel.
But you may be shocked by the arresting headline:
How Gotland-Class Submarines Transform NATO’s Approach to China and Russia
My eyes popped when I saw it in my feed.
Sweden isn’t even an official member of NATO and people are already incorporating Swedish military power into the wargame against the Russians and Chinese!
The acceptance that war with Russia AND China being inevitable is frankly, either gut-wrenching terrifying or utterly mind-blowing.
But a reading of the news over the past few years will convince even the skeptic that a consensus is being shaped among the first world citizenry, while the Russia-China axis is under constant dehumanization and presented as cartoon whims.
Victory, it seems, is assured, and plans are afoot to upgrade readiness for real conflict in the near future.
Part of the reason why I write about military affairs (particularly from the Chinese angle) is to draw the Western response.
To describe the experience as sorely disappointing is too mild.
I am gobsmacked flabbergasted by the repeated fairy tales thrown my way that bombers and nuclear subs lobbing tomahawks and other missiles will be able to sink the entire Chinese navy or disable the PLA, in a repeat of the 100-hour Iraq War. The rest of the American military then joins in the mopping up.
In other words, a turkey shoot even more spectacular than the Korean War, where 1 American died for 30 Chinese KIA.
The American-dominated media is suspending reality for the American people. No one has questioned the 200b increase in military spending since Donald took office. To put that figure in perspective, the increase is equal to two thirds of the Chinese military budget, the second largest globally. This is in tandem with massive increase of military spending in Europe, Japan, Korea, India, Australia and elsewhere.
In a recent market research note, one recommendation caught my eye. It promoted the merits of the weapons sector—Lockheed, Raytheon, etc—and pointed to the massive inflow that’s been announced by many governments. As far as killing and maiming is concerned, it’s boom time, never mind the frothy market.
There is no equilibrium right now. The American-led west has been upping the pressure since the Barack administration’s pivot east, to the point President Xi is openly exhorting the PLA to be ready for war at all times.
These are dangerous times.
I see two outcomes.
One: The Americans realize the folly of their ways, and u-turning. I find that unlikely, given the dysfunctional politics that refuses to forego the God complex.
Two: Provoking conflict between Japan and China over Taiwan, dragging Korea into the same mess. The entry of Russia into the issue of Taiwan is a stabilizer for the Western Pacific, because Japan will have to work through the strategic calculus of a direct northern neighbor that has an iron grip on Sakhalin.
The risk goes up with time, as both sides ratchet up and escalate. This will continue until there is a clear winner. The best we can hope for is a continuous stream of economic crises emanating from the first world’s profligate and irresponsible ways, forcing leaders to focus on domestic discontent, rather than fixing “the enemy”.
Five years ago, during Donald’s tenure, I would have put the possibility of war within the next decade at 20–30%. Today, it’s 60–70%.
We, as in East Asians, should all make our own preparations for a uncertain and dangerous future.
How to Prevent Won Ton Wrappers From Drying Out: Keep won ton wrappers covered with plastic wrap until ready to use. Wrap any remaining won ton wrappers tightly in plastic wrap and store in freezer.
Make Ahead: Fill won tons as directed. Place in single layer on baking sheet. Freeze 1 hour or until frozen. Transfer to resealable plastic bag; seal bag. Freeze up to 1 month. Thaw in refrigerator before adding to hot soup to cook as directed.
Ingredients
1/2 pound ground pork
1/4 cup finely chopped shiitake mushrooms
1/4 cup finely chopped water chestnuts
2 green onions, finely chopped
2 tablespoons GOOD SEASONS Asian Sesame with Ginger Dressing
1 egg, separated
32 square won ton wrappers
8 cups fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 cup thinly sliced shiitake mushrooms
1/2 cup thinly sliced water chestnuts
2 green onions, sliced
Instructions
Mix meat, mushrooms, water chestnuts, onions, dressing and egg yolk until well blended. Spoon evenly onto won ton wrappers, adding about 1 teaspoon of the meat mixture to each wrapper.
Beat egg white lightly. Brush onto edges of each wrapper; fold in half to form triangle. Press edges together to seal. Bring opposite corners of long edge of each triangle together, overlapping corners; brush with egg white to seal.
Combine chicken broth, mushrooms, water chestnuts and onions in large saucepan. Bring just to boil on medium heat. Carefully add won tons; simmer 4 minutes or until filling is cooked through, stirring occasionally.
Serve immediately.
Yield: 8 servings, about 1 1/4 cups each
Military Veterans React to Oliver Anthony – Rich Men North Of Richmond
2023 08 20 10 41
The Third Man (1949, Film-Noir) Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli | Full movie
HUNTED…By a thousand men! Haunted…By a lovely girl! Pulp novelist Holly Martins travels to shadowy, postwar Vienna, only to find himself investigating the mysterious death of an old friend, Harry Lime.
It is a GREAT MOVIE. Watch it if you have the time.
One of my first cars was an AMC Pacer. It was like driving in a large greenhouse. It had windows all around, and it rode pretty smooth. My particular vehicle was yellow; a nice 1970s yellow.
amc pacer
I used a lot of scrap shag carpet to line the floors at which my grandmother, and her girlfriends all thought that I had a great car to drive about in.
Man, that was a long time ago.
My friends drove other cars, of course. But I was forced to drive this after my GTO was lost while driving at speed along the dark curvy roads of wooded Pennsylvania.
GTO OIP
In those days, the price for gasoline was cheaper than today. But it was still high. It was 65 cents per gallon. So we would fill the tank and go a crusin’. Maybe stop at the local burger joint and grab a burger and drink some beer.
e40635876e97d579deeb190586da819b bob s nostalgia
Today, my life is very different.
Here we have to worry about psychos wanting to set the world on fire, instead of grooving and jamming to some tunes.
Sigh.
Gonzalo Lira Update and the Doom Loop Tour
So Gonzalo is alive. Yay!
Money
Large sums of money are a real HEADACHE. You do not want a large sum of money, and all those ideas that you might have about what you would do with it are just fantasies.
Hollywood is not reality. So get over it.
In today’s world, any amount of money over that which you can fit in your wallet is suspect. And if you are an American, it is subject to seizure as “potential criminal gains”. Which is, by the way, how this question was written. In the USA, the police really do not need a warrant, or an excuse to seize your money. They will just do it, so it’s really not in your best interests to have a lot of money on you.
But, I live in China, and the rules on money use, obtainment and storage are really strict. If you have a lot of money, then you will have a lot of headaches.
TRUE STORY TIME
I had an affirmation about getting a large; an enormous sum of money. And sure as shit it materialized, just not like I expected. I wrote about this event HERE.
in 2020 one of my clients approached me. And they had an interesting “project” that they wanted me to help them with.
Outside of Guangzhou were four warehouse complexes filled with 3.4 billion dollars in USD. These bills were in $100 denominations, counted and wrapped, and shrink wrapped on pallets. The owner of the bills, the warehouses, obtained the money over a span of many, many decades though various legal businesses, and just accumulated the money as he believed that the USD was a guaranteed hedge against the ups and downs of the Chinese political scene.
Well, things changed a lot since the 1980s.
He just kept on collecting the money, and not really using a bank to store the money. So the money was transparent to the Chinese government. Hidden really.
Around 2013, China started to crack down on this kind of activity, and so he registered the amount with a bank in Guangzhou. So now the money is recognized as his, and as legal tender. However, due to the laws inside of China, he can spend no more than $50,000/year of it inside of China. Nor can he take more than $50,000 out of China in any given year.
The warehouses are not really hidden, but non-descriptive and distressed, and patrolled by his security guards. He’s not worried about thieves. How would anyone haul away any of the money? Five million trips in a van?
Any kid could easily climb though the rusted chain link fence, and walk in and around the complexes. But they don’t. He has a very good reputation in the local area, and everyone knows him, respects him and loves him. He’s a very down to earth kind of fellow.
What he wanted me to do was figure out some legal way to use the cash (hard cold cash) to buy assets or something; like businesses, hotels, investments, minerals, etc. Without breaking any laws or rules. As for certainly, the government is now absolutely tracking his actions with his cash.
So, I and some of my staff met him at a hotel, had lunch and he drove us out in the countryside where he took use to one of the warehouse complexes.
The guard waved us in, and it was just a big complex of huge vine covered old warehouses and peeling paint. And he opened up the big sliding hanger doors and we went into the complex. It was stacks and stacks and stacks of shrink-wrapped pallets of cash one on top of the other as far as the eye could see.
And this was true for all of the warehouses. I have never seen so much paper in my life.
The owner told us that his biggest problem were local field mice and rats that liked to gnaw on the pallets and get into the money to eat it, as well as an occasional leak or two in the roof that might seep into the bundles of palletized cash.
He was tired of spending money to protect all this money that he could not spend, and he wanted an out.
We left, and went back and came up with some ideas and solutions. He was willing to pay us 10% on whatever we could “free up”. So for every 1 million that we can de-paper, he would give us $100,000 USD. Though, according to the law, it would have to occur over two years before we could get the money.
Of the various ideas that we came up with, none of them were acceptable to him. And so, after a few months of “wracking our brain” we gave up. Too much of a headache.
End of story
Now, that client is doing well. More money than he knows what to do with. Four girl-friends that he supports, plus a wife. And being older, in his 80s, I’m sure that the gals are more for company than for any “exercise”. But all this money is a big waste. He cannot spend it. He cannot give it away. The most he can do is give one person $50,000 that’s it. And he cannot move it.
It is the proverbial “white elephant”.
You do not want piles of cash. You do not want the hassles that come with it. You want freedom from worry, a roof over your head, and some delicious food and fun. But over and above that becomes more and more problematic as times moves on.
Same with fame. But that’s another story for another time.
Another idea
I’d amend Jon Mixon’s #1 to say “pay for some necessities and bills, then save the rest”. On paper, you’d just look like a very frugal person, but the savings would be essentially laundering the money very slowly.
If you’re living comfortably in a middle-class or professional job, maybe you’re saving $1–2k a month or more with this method. That’s $12–24k in a year, which you can easily turn around into small legitimate investments that can then enjoy compound interest.
People get away with embezzlement this way for decades at a time, and the only way they ever get caught is that an accountant *at the place they’re embezzling from* catches them. Since you’ve already got the $1,000,000 in hand, and no one’s looking for it, there’s relatively low risk of getting caught.
The trick is to spend your paycheck on everything that you’d use a credit card for: TVs, car note, gas and insurance, modest groceries, airline flights, etc. The practical rule is that “if it’s going to be sitting around your house when the IRS comes around, use your paycheck on it”.
Everything else? Use the dirty cash! Eating out, babysitters (already traditionally paid in cash!), subway tickets, beer money, and so on. If the IRS is too concerned with checking your bank records to make sure you DID buy that TV with a credit card, and that checks out, they won’t think you’re worth investigating how often you’ve been eating out.
One last thing.
I’d keep a storage unit, paid for out of a separate bank account in my name. Every month, like clockwork, I’d personally make a cash withdrawal from my paycheck, and a cash deposit in this bank account, in order to pay the storage fees.
And all I’d do is store my old junk in it. None of the $1M! The practical reason is, of course, very smart: if the IRS ever decides to audit you, you want something that *looks* suspicious on paper, maybe even borderline stupid in that way that most people get caught on “something very stupid”, but is an absolute nothingburger upon any closer inspection. It distracts people and makes them figure nothing else is wrong with you.
Plus, I’d just love to see that look on the IRS agent’s face when I rolled up the garage door and all he smelled was SOCKS.
Blinken’s accusation on China a disrespect of Tonga as sovereign state
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Upon arrival at Tonga’s capital Nuku’alofa on Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken wasted no time throwing mud at China.
This time, he called Beijing’s engagement in the region “problematic behavior” and Chinese investment “predatory” that would hurt the local economy.
Behind the China-bashing cliche, Blinken, the first U.S. state secretary to visit Tonga, was actually asking the island nation to take sides and making the region a new arena of rivalry, but he should understand that smearing others’ normal cooperation is a real problematic behavior. His accusation is not only an attack on China, but also unwise questioning of Tonga’s judgment on choosing partners as a sovereign country.
At a joint press conference after his meeting with Blinken on Wednesday, Tongan Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni told the U.S. guest that his country had no concerns about its relationship with China.
When Tonga was faced with multiple challenges, including volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, and the COVID-19 pandemic, China often rushed to its assistance. As facts have proven, China’s friendship has always been based on deeds rather than words, Tongan King Tupou VI has said.
In the broader Pacific islands, China has carried out a large number of assistance projects that meet the actual needs of the countries it tries to help. These projects have strongly promoted local economic development and improved people’s livelihood. While offering help, China always fully respects the sovereignty and independence, as well as the will and the cultural traditions of the countries assisted.
Based on its own development experience, China has conducted mutually beneficial cooperation with other developing countries by upholding justice and pursuing shared interests, and provided assistance without attaching any political strings.
Such cooperation has greatly promoted economic and social development as well as people’s livelihood in relevant countries. The Mombasa-Nairobi Railway financed and built by China has created nearly 50,000 jobs for Kenya. By the end of 2022, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor has brought 25.4 billion U.S. dollars in direct investment to Pakistan and created 236,000 jobs. The list goes on.
If Washington really cares about the development of the Pacific islands, it should first apologize and fully compensate for the damage caused by its over 60 nuclear tests in the region, address the islands’ pressing challenges of climate change with concrete actions, and focus on the real needs of local people, rather than sending senior officials to stage a runway-show-like diplomatic campaign.
And if the United States is truly committed to a better future and the well-being of the people in other parts of the world, it should stop slinging mud at China, and instead join hands with China to help countries in need.
A country that offers very little help, but tries very hard to obstruct other countries’ helping hands, and even pursues its own interests at the expense of others’, does not measure up to the image of a respectable major power.
Geopolitical INFERNO: Victoria Nuland’s South African Visit Sparks Fear and Fury!
Dive into the fiery world of geopolitics as we dissect Victoria Nuland’s enigmatic trip to South Africa. Uncover the deep-seated anxieties and justified fears that arise from her actions. Could her visit be a menacing threat to South Africa’s sovereignty? Is she secretly aiming to sabotage the BRICS’ new currency? Brace yourself for a no-holds-barred exploration that leaves no stone unturned!
“Amazing” is the buzzword in Chengdu, Sichuan province, the venue for the FISU World University Games.
Athletes and officials participating in the biennial Summer Universiade, which opened on Friday, said they are deeply impressed by the games facilities in the provincial capital, and underlined that Chengdu has set the bar high for future hosts.
The organizing committee of the games has taken recommendations from all sides into consideration and made sincere efforts to include them in the preparations, which has set a perfect stage for athletes to shine on, Leonz Eder, acting president of the International University Sports Federation, said in an interview with China Daily.
A total of 6,500 athletes from 113 countries and regions are competing in 269 events across 18 sports at the Chengdu games, which will run until Aug 8. Thirteen new venues have been built for the competitions, while 36 existing ones have been upgraded and renovated to meet international standards.
Athletes echoed the FISU acting president and said that they were also touched by the warm welcome accorded to them.
Elavenil Valarivan from India, who won the women’s 10-meter air rifle gold at Chengdu Shooting Sport School on Saturday, said the competition venue and its services are excellent. “What they have done here is so good, I mean, so much better than many of the places where I have competed before. … I’m really happy to be in Chengdu,” she said.
Brazilian basketball player Caio De Souza Pacheco said the smooth organization of the event is helping him focus on his game.
“I’m very happy to be here. We’re very excited. … What you guys have been doing in Chengdu, in China, has been amazing,” Pacheco said.
Jonathan Larsen, coach of the German badminton team, said that all athletes received a warm welcome at the Shuangliu Sports Center Gymnasium. “The venue looks absolutely amazing. And we are looking forward to competing in it,” Larsen said.
The badminton venue, which has a floor area of 14,626 square meters, boasts 14 courts and a warm-up area.
Sofus Rasmussen, head of the Norwegian delegation, said he is very impressed with how things have been organized. “From the moment we’ve arrived, we’ve been taken such good care of. … Things have been handled very efficiently. I think this organizing committee has set the bar really high for the next committee.”
Rasmussen said the opening ceremony on Friday was so splendid that it has been the most-discussed topic among athletes and officials over the weekend.
“It was incredible and nothing like (any ceremony) I’ve ever been to before. I was expecting it to be spectacular, but not on that level. And the audiences were fantastic. The athletes were so touched. For these young people, it was something they will never forget,” he added.
Mainly because China is a major challenge to the West and is the only Eastern Nation which is coming closest to pipping the West from its supremacy that was established nearly 400 years ago
So the smallest rainfall becomes a deluge ,a two man protest becomes a major massive million man protest and a minor confrontation at a bank ends up being a major run on banks
Likewise a normal cyclical economic problem where China should have been hailed for 6.3% growth despite all negative factors is being treated as a major economic crisis
Tomorrow if China convinces the West that it will allow western hegemony, purchase $250 Billion of US T Bonds and defunds it’s investments in AI and Defense and appoints someone like Hu Jintao as President and Secretary — then suddenly every media will be pro China and hail China as a modern miracle
India?
India is way way below anyone’s radar today
Zero core technology today
Heavy reliance on the West
Relatively low economic power
No major military threat to anyone
Parliamentary Democracy as per Western Norms
So why focus on India
They will instead focus on RRR & Leo & Diwali as a holiday & all the superficial stuff and rate India’s 7.2% growth as rocket like while China’s 6.3% in a six times larger economy as huge crisis
If India comes close to say 50% of Western GDP (US) and looks like it may be of some significance and a threat to Western Hegemony, then India will face its own share of horrors and fake stories
Within India?
That’s how Indians are most of the time
Always short term and Always burying problems under the carpet
Typical Democracy sadly !!!!!
Whatever wins votes will be what’s discussed
The Lowest Cost Airline You Can Imagine | The Carol Burnett Show
Look guys…. US is growing exponentially with whooping ONE POINT ONE PERCENT. It’s a lot you know? So awesome. America numba ONE. Best country in da world!
China is suffering horrific growth of mere 6.6%. So pathetic! China is going to collapse in 10 days!!
Another headline for this post is: ”Western media fail at math”.
I Visited a Chinese Factory…What I Saw Shocked Me!
This is what the Mars landing looked like from the perspective of the Perseverance rover about 10 km above the surface. We are in the middle of the descent phase into the atmosphere, and that disk in the center is the heat shield, just released, that protected the probe from the intense heat as it plummets toward the ground.
It’s all real! Human ingenuity is extraordinary!
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Mama’s Family – Don’t call Mama while she’s at work
Today, ‘John’ was bragging to me about how good he is with chess. He kept rambling on and on about how nobody he met in real life could beat him.
So to shut him up, I challenged him to an online game of chess.
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And I completely utterly thoroughly destroyed him, while taunting him in the chat at the same time.
I also made my moves super-fast, like within a few seconds after he finished his moves. More than once during the game, he exclaimed, “Wow Shanks, how do you play so quick?”
Unbeknown to him, during the game, I had another tab open where I was playing Chess against an AI set to ‘insane’ difficulty.
I played as Black against John, but white against the AI. This meant that John started first against me, while I started first against the AI.
All I did was mimic each of John’s move in the match against the AI and mimic the AI’s move against John. In other words, while it appeared that I was playing two chess matches at the same time, I wasn’t actually playing at all — John was playing the match against the ‘insane’ AI.
To top it off, I’ve only played like 5 chess matches my whole life. I barely know how to move the pieces!
Suffice to say, John wasn’t very pleased when I told him.
24 hours back in America from China | American China Expat’s Thoughts
24 hours back in the USA from China. What do I think about it here? What are my first impressions? Expectations?
In this case , these were orders placed by China before the so called Export Ban
There is no provision in the Export Ban asking for cancellation of existing orders and thus ASML happily exported $ 650 Million of Equipment to China
It’s no coincidence that before the ban, China placed almost $ 1.7 Billion of orders with Tokyo Electron and ASML for advanced semiconductor equipment and
NEITHER JAPAN NOR NETHERLANDS included any clause which called for cancelling existing orders in their legal notifications
Basically the Japanese and Dutch told their companies
Sell as much equipment as you guys want and we will turn a blind eye but before we pass the export ban
Experts estimate that Chinese plans for semiconductors will remain uninterrupted at least until January 2025 thanks to these small loopholes which I believe were deliberate
Meanwhile only one Moron blindly agreed to all the export bans and included cancellations of orders for the Chinese worth $ 1.46 Billion
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SAMSUNG & SOUTH KOREA!!!!!!!
Everyone else,even the Japanese used simple common sense
Sure they hate China but they like money and they know , nobody else will pay $ 1.7 Billion for that equipment
Ultimately it’s why Politics never succeeds against Economics
It’s why Donald Trump never suggested an Export Ban but an extra Tariff on Exports to China from Japan or Netherlands or S. Korea. A Tariff would have increased Chinese costs and made them uncompetitive
Trump said “Develop your AI but PAY THE PRICE FOR IT”
Luckily Bidens win has given China four years to combat the situation and hopefully before Trump comes to power, China would have made the preparations to battle the onslaught
Development to come up near JB-Singapore rail terminus
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Hong Kong will join Malaysia in developing an economic hub in southern Johor, near the Singapore border, as Malaysia looks to tap the land development potential near the site of an upcoming cross-border rail link.
signed a memorandum of understanding to develop a six-acre land for mixed use in Bukit Chagar on Friday, as part of Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee’s visit to Malaysia.
The development, worth 3 billion ringgit ($660 million), will come up less than one kilometer from the Malaysia-Singapore border. The location is also the site of the under-construction Bukit Chagar terminus station that’s part of the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System.
The intended mixed development is expected to transform the area into an attractive investor destination, for local and international investors.
The RTS project, which is expected to serve up to 10,000 commuters per hour in every direction, is due for completion in 2026. It is expected to ease traffic congestion at Malaysia and Singapore’s land border crossing, one of the world’s busiest. The four kilometer transit has two stations — Bukit Chagar in Johor and Woodlands in Singapore.
Nouriel Roubini in a talk said that China growing by 6.3% against the worst geopolitical and trade climate showed the strength and power of the country’s resilience
He also said China’s internal debt was something that could be infinitely restructured and be an ASSET to the Nation rather than a liability
He said their 2% inflation was also a huge positive against reeling inflation in the West
What Roubini says isn’t rocket science
Anyone who understands 101 of economics knows this
Still the West is rooted by SO MUCH PROPAGANDA that even something so basic , appears like some form of huge redemption for China
Not that the Chinese give a damn
They simply do their job and do their best for their country and people
The Best line of Dr Roubini was
Ten years from now, China would have moved on , solved it’s problems and be on its way as a developed economy
We (The US) would still be reeling with debt and inflation because we are so damn afraid of facing the truth and for once putting common interests over politics and ideology
My teenager went to a very diverse Chicago public high school. I knew she, as a white girl, was in the minority at her school. I didn’t realize just how much so until her graduation a few weeks ago.
I watched her and about 400 of her classmates walk across the stage. Between their names, skin tones, and outfits (about a dozen girls wore hijabs), I’d bet that there were at least 50 different nationalities/ethnicities/races represented in her graduating class. That type of diversity was intentional… it was an International Baccalaureate (IB) school. My daughter was one of just a handful of students that represented what is actually the majority demographic in most of the country: white, born in the U.S., Christian, and straight.
Naturally, the parents in the audience were just as diverse as the students on the stage. Except, most of us had something in common. It wasn’t our skin tone or the way we dressed or even the language we spoke… it was that most of us, the parents, were noticeably overweight.
I’m a really big guy. I don’t lie to myself about it. I notice when people are as tall as I am, because it is rare. I notice when people are as big as I am, because it is rare. Well, it used to be rare. Now it’s becoming common.
When I sat in my seat for the ceremony, I expected to be cramped and uncomfortable. When you’re my size, you just get used to that whenever there’s side-by-side seating. But I noticed that it wasn’t just me. Every single person in the row in front of me looked cramped. Everyone in the row in front of that one look cramped. A few people were standing on the sides, unable to fit in the seats at all.
There was nothing unusual about the seats. They were the regular size you might find at any stadium. But so many of the adults in the room barely fit in them, because so many of those adults were overweight.
And that’s my “only in the USA” moment: hundreds of people, representing dozens of demographics from all over the globe, gathered in one place to celebrate our children’s accomplishments and transitions into adulthood, and most of us carrying at least 50 extra pounds on us.
Have you heard of Arnold Abbott? He was a 90-year-old man with a big heart and an unwavering belief in helping those who were less fortunate. He lived in Florida, where there was a growing problem of homelessness and he was concerned about this issue and wanted to do something to help.
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So he decided to start feeding the homeless in his community. He set up a table in a public park and began serving food to anyone who was hungry. Soon it became a regular fixture in the park, and many homeless people came to rely on him for a hot meal.
However the city council of Fort Lauderdale had recently passed a law making it illegal to feed the homeless in public spaces. The law was intended to address the problem of homelessness in a different way, but it made it difficult for people like Abbott to provide much needed help to those in need.
Abbott was undeterred. He believed that it was his moral duty to help the homeless, and he continued to feed them despite the new law. Soon, other volunteers joined Abbott in his efforts to help the homeless. They set up tables in other public spaces and began serving food to those who were hungry.
The city of Fort Lauderdale was not happy about this. They began to issue citations and fines to Abbott and the other volunteers who were feeding the homeless. But he remained resolute in his belief that feeding the homeless was the right thing to do and many others agreed with him as well.
Despite the legal challenges, Abbott and the other volunteers continued to feed the homeless. Their actions inspired others to join them, and soon a movement was born. People all over the country began to speak out against the criminalization of acts of compassion, and many cities began to repeal their laws banning the feeding of the homeless!!
The case of Arnold Abbott raises the question of what is truly ethical and what is legal? In some cases laws may conflict with our sense of right and wrong. In such instances, it is up to individuals to decide whether to follow the law or follow their conscience.
China doesn’t just lend the money. It also builds the projects. Yes it gets its hands dirty in the actual work, and its Chinese architects and civil engineers and construction workers are right there on the sites working as well.
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(This, by the way, is another reason why the US “Build Back Better” project will fail. White Americans are not going to move to Africa and stay there for 5 years working alongside their ex-slaves. But I digress.)
The point is – Chinese construction companies always get involved in the construction, which means that they are making money out of the work they do, which also means that basically part of the Chinese loans are recouped as profits for the construction company.
Commentators are often so wrapped down in the politics that they forget the business side of things. Chinese construction companies are the best in the world – they have a tremendous amount of experience and expertise. When they go overseas and build things, they are just exporting their experience and expertise in the form of their construction work. It’s their business. Building things is how they make money.
Why The U.S. Gave Up On Public Transit
VIDEO: Ukraine Troops SURRENDER en-masse; WHITE FLAGS on Tanks
Hundreds of Ukrainian troops, displaying white flags on their tanks and infantry vehicles, surrendered en-masse to Russia today. More and more common as troops see with their own eyes, it is hopeless to continue fighting.
Video from the battlefield shows the mass surrender:
Star Trek Next Generation – Sentient Starship
China’s Chip Production Soars with Arrival of 6 Lithography Machines, US Blockade Falters!
In recent years, China has made tremendous breakthroughs in the chip field, while the United States, in order to maintain its dominant position in the chip industry, has attempted to curb China’s development in this field and use a series of measures to suppress China.
However their Impact is much lesser than what was expected by the West.
The West threw their entire financial might at Russia and the Sanctions against Russia are perhaps the worst Sanctions against any Nation ever.
Yet Russia stands , survives and even grows
Its like say the difference between blowing up a house with Dynamite and burning a house with a slow fuse and kerosene.
Russia stands to lose around 34% of its Export Volume and Revenue by 2023 which translates to 55,000 -75,000 Jobs
This in turn translates to around $ 34 Billion Contraction in GDP
Add to this Russia stands to lose around 14% Industrial Productivity due to Restriction of Spares by the West. This translates to around $ 44 Billion Contraction in GDP and around 45,000 – 60,000 Jobs
Add to this Russia stands to lose around 41% Service Industry temporarily for minimum 12–18 months. This translates to around $ 21 Billion Contraction in GDP and around 14,000 Jobs-21,000 Jobs
Adding we get around $ 99 Billion GDP Contraction or around 5.45% Contraction of GDP
Adding we get around 186,000 Jobs
This means we can add around 279,000 Auxiliary Jobs
So Yes. It Definitely isnt a Walk in the Park. It would require a lot of hands on work for Russia
However it could have been far worse
The West expected a far higher impact. Around 15% Contraction. Around 1.5–2 Million Jobs etc.
Russia can make this up by 2025 easily
Why did the Sanctions not make things as bad as the West expected?
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China primarily boosted the Russian Economy. They almost replaced 70% of all Car Parts , purchased Car Factories, Building Plants, Took over other financial projects – and you know the speed of the Chinese….they are very fast
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The Dragon may be the Elder brother but the Elephant India – too played a role here as Chota Bhai.
The Huge Orders of Oil, Coal, Diamonds and the Cooperation for Alternate Mechanisms and best of all indicating that the Hachet of Galwan can temporarily be buried by trading and purchasing Yuan for the FIRST TIME EVER.
Add to this China and India both refused to delist Russian Bonds and Russian Instruments and have accepted payment for these instruments in RMB & Rubles. Another big concession from India.
For example Indian Investors who were to get $ 15 Million in Interest can now get 750 Million Rubles paid by Russia into SBI Kathmandu who will in turn swap for Chinese Yuan and use the Yuan to buy more Coal and Oil and Gas.
So Russia is far better off than the West believed. It will Survive and Grow much Stronger.
Especially if the SINO-RUSSO-INDO-IRANIAN Alliance clicks off
Will Sanctions deter Putin from Continuing the War?
In March 2022 – there was a 50% Chance that Putin was looking for a Face Saving Off Ramp and was deeply worried about Economy and Militarily
Now – Not the Smallest Chance
The West had their shot. They could have forced Putin to the Table, forced much smaller concessions and ended with a Strong “Victory”
Now Putin calls the Shots
Star Trek Next Generation – Ancient Battle Cruiser
Trucking giant Yellow collapsed on Sunday, ceasing operations immediately and leaving some 30,000 workers without jobs.
The closure is the biggest in terms of jobs and revenue in the U.S. trucking industry.
The company, which received $700 million in federal COVID relief funds in 2020, is preparing to file for bankruptcy and is in talks to sell off all or parts of the business.
The nearly 100-year-old firm is known for its competitive pricing and has more than 12,000 trucks shipping freight across the US for brands including Walmart and Home Depot.
At this time, it __appears__ that all of Yellow’s subsidiaries may be GONE too:
YRC Freight reflects the Yellow Transportation (founded in 1924 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) purchase of and subsequent merger with Roadway (founded in 1930 in Akron, Ohio).
YRC Freight is the largest subsidiary of Yellow with corporate headquarters in Overland Park, Kan.
Other Yellow subsidiaries include Reddaway, Holland and New Penn.
HAL TURNER OPINION
I am just guessing, but given the sheer size of Yellow, ad some of its subsidiaries like Roadway and New Penn, this could trigger “supply-chain disruption” that would make COVID look like child’s play.
Think about this. Yellow is an LTL carrier. That stands for “Less-Than-Truckoad.” They handle things like skids (pallets) of shipments.
They have 12,000 trucks. Each day, each truck handles about ten pick-ups, and ten deliveries. (Average)
That means tomorrow, about 120,000 deliveries — won’t come. Another 120,000 pick-ups, won’t be made.
Stores won’t get products.
Factories won’t get raw materials or parts. They also won’t be able to ship finished products out.
Do the math. How long before this becomes an actual catastrophe in the supply chain?
Are there other truckers? Yes. Can they just step-in and take up the slack? NO!
Trucklines must carefully balance their equipment to their actual need. There simply isn’t enough capacity within the rest of the system to absorb a sudden change like this.
Moreover, certain truck lines only service certain geographic areas. In some places, where maybe YELLOW was the only carrier, shippers simply may not be able to get a trucker to come to them! No service. At all.
I cannot even begin to guess the impact this is going to have on the US economy and supply chain. And I suspect it will show itself within a matter of days.
Julius Caesar was once kidnapped by pirates, who would go on to regret that decision. In 75 BC, 25-year-old Caesar was traveling to the Island of Rhode’s to study oratory when he was captured by Cilician pirates, who infested the Mediterranean, but were usually left alone because they provided wealthy Romans with slaves.
Although this was about ten years before Caesar would start to make a name for himself, according to the biographer Plutarch, he didn’t act like he was a captive.
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When the pirates informed Caesar he was going to be ransomed for the some of 20 talents, he burst out laughing in their faces, telling them they clearly didn’t know who they had captured and should raise the sum to 50 talents.
Caesar only had a few friends in captivity and Cilician pirates were known to be particularly blood thirsty, but this didn’t stop him from sending his friends to tell the pirates to shut up because they were making too much noise as Caesar tried to sleep.
It’s also recorded that Caesar would recite poetry and speeches to the pirates and should they not be impressed he would openly call them illiterate savages and threatened to have them crucified.
Eventually, the ransom was paid and Caesar was released, probably to the relief of the Pirates, who were sick of him. However, the now free Caesar wasted no time in having the Pirates hunted down and crucified, which he over seen personally, making good on the promise he made when the pirates didn’t enjoy his poetry.
Sen. Feinstein’s Brain Melts Down DURING A VOTE!
By now everyone knows that 90-year-old California Senator Dianne Feinstein has no business holding public office — everyone except Dianne Feinstein, that is. Her most recent episode: attempting to pontificate about the importance of defense spending during a Senate vote when all that was required of her was to say “aye.” An aide came to her rescue but not before the awkward episode had made everyone in the room cringe.
When sperm whales need a nap, they take a deep breath, dive down about 45 feet and arrange themselves into perfectly-level, vertical patterns.
They sleep sound and still for up to two hours at a time between breaths, in pods of 5 or 6 whales, presumably for protection.
No one knew whales slept vertically until a 2008 study documented the behavior.
And no one captured really good photography of it in the wild until 2017. French photographer Stephane Granzotto was documenting sperm whales in the Mediterranean for his book on the creatures when he came across these sleeping whales…
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Factory Owner Reveals the Truth About Chinese Manufacturing
The world has trusted Chinese manufacturing for decades, but recently many politicians are stating Western countries must decouple from China. Will Chinese manufacturing continue to play a vital role in our global economy? Today I travel to Wuxi, China to visit a Chinese textile factory to see how Chinese factories make clothes.
Most American movies are written and produced by wealthier, trendier people who live in major cities. Thus, many of them are set in major cities. If all you knew of America was what you saw in movies, you may think things like:
Most young, single adult Americans live in nice apartments or condos in trendy areas of major cities and have “fun” jobs like museum curators or tour bus company owner/operators.
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In fact, very few young, single people live in places like that and have jobs like that. Most young, single people can’t afford that lifestyle, and work “regular” jobs which they may enjoy, but aren’t really “fun.”
While there are some major cities in the United States, and a lot of people live in them, the majority of people do not.* For the average American, a scene like this is something they will only experience while watching it on a screen themselves:
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Taking public transportation from your condo or apartment, then walking down a crowded city sidewalk on your way to your job in a high-rise office building? That’s the exception, not the rule for most Americans. For most of us, it’s leaving your single-family home and driving your own personal car to your job in a building that’s two or three stories tall, max. And you park your car in the parking lot next to the building.
I live in Chicago, which has a good public transit system, but I only know two people who actually use it to get to work. Everyone else just takes it on special occasions, like when they want to take their kids downtown to act like tourists for a day. Actually, that’s also one thing my out-of-town guests always want to do when they visit me in Chicago, too: ride the subway. Why? Because it’s so rare here… it’s something that most Americans only experience in movies.
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*A lot of people are commenting that the majority of Americans do, in fact, live in “urban” areas. “urban areas” and “trendy parts of major cities” are two different things. According to the Census, an “urban area” is any town with over 50,000 population. That includes literally tens of thousands of places most people would just call small towns.
Robot Chicken – Channel Flip Compilation Part Five
He sacked a colleague the day my colleague was leaving for a family holiday. My boss (and owner of the business), Paul, just liked to show people he had the power. He was often petty and a micromanaging control freak. He seemed to like me, so most of the time he left me to do my thing.
My colleague, Ian, had become a friend, and we’d hang out after work. He had been planning an overseas family trip for some time, and had been talking about it for a couple of months in advance of the date. He had requested leave, which was approved, before making the booking. He was a friendly, genuine guy, and most of us in the office shared his enthusiasm for his holiday. We could see he was looking forward to taking his family away.
He was due to fly out on a Saturday. On the Friday, Paul called Ian into his office and told him he had changed his mind, he was revoking the leave. Ian tried to argue that the tickets were non-refundable, everything was booked, his wife had taken leave, and they had permission to take their children out of school. Paul wasn’t swayed. He made it clear, cancel or be fired.
Ian asked what was so important that he needed to stay, Paul didn’t give a real answer. He just shrugged and said, “it’s my company, my call.”
Ian called his wife, and then decided to do the holiday. He didn’t want to lose the money or let his family down.
He came and told me just before lunch what had happened, and suggested we go for a farewell lunch.
I was incensed!
I immediately wrote a handwritten resignation, left it on Paul’s desk, packed my things, and went to lunch. I told Ian and some other colleagues at lunch that this was also MY farewell.
As lunch wrapped up, the others drifted back to the office, and it was just Ian and me, commiserating over a beer, when Paul came in, in a fluster.
I had never seen him in such a state (I later realized it was because he was no longer in control). Paul loudly tried to convince me to stay, offered me everything (other than more money!). I just said no, calmly. He left saying something like “you’ll be back when you can’t find another job.”
I called in on another friend on my way home, and had a job offer that afternoon.
Pepe Escobar: Russia-Africa Summit a GAME CHANGER as NATO Isolates Itself
Pepe Escobar discusses the significance of the Russia-Africa Summit and what it means for the ongoing move toward a multipolar world led by Russia and the Global South.
Heavenly Chicken Garlic Soup
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Ingredients
1 whole chicken, disjointed
2 carrots, minced
2 stalks celery, minced
1 large whole yellow onion
Chopped fresh parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
5 cloves garlic, chopped
4 tablespoons softened butter
2 tablespoons flour
Instructions
Make the chicken broth by simmering chicken, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, parsley, salt and pepper in enough water to cover. When the chicken is thoroughly cooked, remove it and skim the fat from broth.
Simmer broth, reducing it until it is very rich. Add the flour and butter to a small amount of broth and mix with a wire whisk until velvety. Pour this mixture into the remaining broth.
Tear chicken into bite-size pieces and add to the soup.
Assembling the car requires a complex number of steps where hundreds of parts are put together. Each part is worth very little on its own, but when everything is together, the finished product has amazing value.
This is how I pictured college:
All my years of education assembled together to come to this very moment.
I felt like the world was telling me, “Congratulations! You are a complete product.”
So, imagine that moment… yes, it called for a victory fist pump!
Well, my educational “assembly line” took soooo… sooooo… long that my expectations had built up.
I felt like a top-of-the-line fully equipped Tesla Model S!
I felt entitled.
I thought that by just getting out of the “assembly line” with my degree in hand made me valuable like the Model S pictured above.
“Hey world! I’m an Engineer!” I would say with arrogance and pride, “You want some of my knowledge? It’s going to COST you!!!”
Haha!
Please don’t laugh at me…
I felt that my time had value, so whatever work I did, I felt I deserved to get paid.
I WAS WRONG!
My father taught me this lesson the hard way.
After I had spent one week working at his office, I demanded a late Friday evening, “Pay me, Dad!”
“Son, you’re not entitled to a payment.”
“I’m an engineer, Dad! Pay me as an engineer!” I said with pride.
“I pay for results!” my father said.
“But I’m working hard on this project! I have invested hours into this. Pay me!” I angrily said.
“No results, no pay!” he said firmly.
You know what happened?
He eventually changed my mindset!
He helped me understand that in this world I’m NOT entitled to anything simply because of my credentials or for sitting at the office all day long.
He helped me understand that if I don’t deliver results to others, my fancy college degree hanging on the wall might look nice, but it won’t pay my bills.
So, to answer your question: What is one small thing that you can do differently to make your life better?
Learn this truth: Life pays only for results.
The world doesn’t care for your credentials, or how hard you work, all it cares is for how much value you DELIVER!
It’s in giving which makes us deserve something in exchange.
There’s no secret formula.
The only thing that works is work!
We do not deserve what we want, we only deserve what we do.
Embrace this small truth, and it will radically change your life.
You could ask this women. Caron McBride had no idea she was wanted for a felony for 21-years. She only found out when she went to update her married name at a Texas DMV, in April 2021 and they told her she was wanted for felony embezzlement.
She was charged after falling to return a VHS tape of Sabrina the Teenage Witch, from a Oklahoma video store, back in 1999. The shocking part is she had no memory of renting the tape or ever seeing the show. Its likely someone else rented the tape under her name, leaving her with a felony, that thankfully has been dismissed.
Cambodia’s Controversial Election: U.S. vs. Russia & China!
Cambodia is celebrating a new election of leader Hun Sen from the Cambodian People’s Party but the U.S. says: Not so fast. The U.S. says that it will announce punitive measures because it does not consider this to have been a “free and fair” election. They claim that the opposition was threatened and harrassed. But the U.S., E.U. and other Western countries did not send observers to the elections. Russia and China did. Is this U.S. posturing or something else?
Why is it the US’s business what happens in Cambodia?
“Your checking account is overdrawn. There’s a $35 NSF fee.”
When my ex-wife and I first started dating back in 1988, we got a bank account at a bank that no longer exists (after multiple mergers it’s now part of Bank of America) called Citizens & Southern.
So it turns out they hit on a great money-making idea. If you had money in your bank account, and write a check so that after it was cashed there would be less than $35 in your account, hit you with a $35 fee and say “See? Your account balance is negative!”)
Say you had $110 in your account and you wrote a $100 check. They’d hit you with a $35 NSF fee and say “See? You’re overdrawn by $25! Your balance is -$25! That’s why we charged the fee!”
You might think this is illegal, but…
…you’d totally be right.
Eventually someone hit them with a class action lawsuit for doing this, and years later they refunded us all the NSF fees they’d ever charged plus a couple hundred bucks on top.
Arizona teen missing for nearly 4 years shows up safe at Montana police station
An Arizona teenager who vanished without a trace nearly four years ago is safe after walking into a police station in Montana, authorities said Wednesday. Alicia Navarro, 18, of Glendale showed up alone this week in a small town about 40 miles from the Canadian border and identified herself, according to police in Glendale, a Phoenix suburb.
The worst nuclear disaster in North American history was discovered by accident. In 1983 a hospital in Juarez Mexico had a Radiotherapy unit dismantled and sold to a scrap yard for just nine dollars. However, the person responsible for getting rid of the waste spilled an un-marked cylinder of 6000 cobalt pellets contaminating the entire junk yard. The metal was than sent to two foundries that produced 6600 tons of rebar and 30,000 contaminated restaurant table legs.
It was only by chance that a truck transporting some of the metal took a wrong turn and drove passed the Los Alamos National Lab where the first atomic bomb was developed and their sensers detected the radiation. By that time the metal had already been shipped around Mexico and the U.S, hundreds of people were exposed to the radiation making it one of the worst Nuclear disasters in American History.
ALMOST UNWATCHABLE: Kennedy Will Not Stop Listing Reversals Of Judicial Nom’s Decisions To Her Face
At today’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) grilled Judge Karoline Mehalchick, nominee to be United States District Judge for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, about the several reversals of her decisions.
The average age of Congress is rising. That’s unlikely to change soon.
The current class of lawmakers is one of the oldest in history, with an overall median age of 59. The median age of senators is 65, the highest on record. In the House, the median age has hovered between 57 and 58 for the past decade, higher than in any year before that period.
AA1erLcJ
How is the experience of riding a subway in America Vs. China
Counter-Revolution – ‘Do You Know What Time It Is?’
Both the U.S. and Europe have stalked brazenly into traps of their own making, Alastair Crooke writes.
To be blunt, both the U.S. and Europe have stalked brazenly into traps of their own making. Caught in the lies and deceit woven around a claimed inheritance of superior cultural DNA, (vouchsafing, it is said, almost certain victory), the West is awakening to a fast-approaching disaster to which there are no easy solutions. Cultural exceptionalism, together with the prospect of a clear ‘win’ over Russia, are draining rapidly away – but exiting delusion is both slow and humiliating.
The coming devastation is not just centred around the failed Ukraine offensive and NATO’s weak showing. It comprises multiple vectors that have been building over the years, but which are reaching culmination synchronously.
In the U.S., the run-up to momentous elections is underway. The Democrats are in a fix: The party has long since turned its back on its old blue-collar constituency, engaging instead with an urban ‘creative class’ in an exalted, world-shaping ‘social engineering’ project of moral redress, in alliance with Silicon Valley and the Permanent Nomenklatura. But that experiment has run off into the weeds, becoming ever more extreme and absurd. Push-back is building.
Predictably enough, the Democratic campaign is not gaining traction. Team Biden has low, low approval ratings. But Biden family pressure insists that Biden must persevere with his candidature, and not yield to another. Either way – Biden staying or going – there is no ready solution to the Party’s conundrum of a non-performing, non-platform.
The electoral landscape is a mess. Heavy ‘lawfare’ artillery is intended to break the Trump defences and drive him off the field, whilst an attrition of disclosures of Biden family malfeasance are intended wear down and implode the Biden bubble. The Democratic Establishment is spooked too by the flanking manoeuvre of the R. F. Kennedy candidature, which is snowballing rapidly.
Put simply, the Democratic wokish ideology of historical redress is separating the U.S. into two nations living in one land. Divided not so much by ‘Red or Blue’, or class, but defined by irreconcilable ‘ways of being’. The old categories: Left, Right, Democrat or GOP are being dissolved by a Cultural War that respects no categories, crossing the boundaries of class and party affiliation. Indeed, even ethnic minorities have been alienated by the zealots wanting to sexualise children at age 5 years, and by the pushing of the trans agenda on to school children.
Ukraine has served as the solvent to the old order and has become the Albatross hanging around the neck of the Biden Admin: How to spin the looming Ukraine debacle as somehow ‘mission achieved’. Can that be done? Because the escape route of a ceasefire and a frozen line of contact is unacceptable to Moscow. In short, ‘Biden’s war’ cannot continue as it is, but nor can it do ‘other’ without facing humiliation. The myth of American power, NATO competence and the reputation of U.S. weaponry hangs in the balance.
The economic narrative (‘everything is fine’) is poised, for somewhat unconnected reasons, to turn sour too. Debt – finally – is becoming the sword suspended above the economy’s neck. Credit is being tightly squeezed. And next month, the BRICS-SCO bloc will take the first strategic steps to disentangle up to 40 countries from the dollar. Who then will buy Yellen’s $ 1.1 trillion Treasuries – now and in the future – that is needed to fund U.S. government expenditure?
These events ostensibly are disconnected, but in reality, they form a self-reinforcing loop. One leading to a ‘run on the political bank’ – that is to say, the U.S.’ credibility itself.
Faced with many questions – and no solutions – the mood amongst sectors of the electorate is driving a radical and increasingly iconoclastic mood. A counter-revolutionary spirit, perhaps. It is too early to say whether it will sweep a majority, but it may – for the radicalism is coming from the two wings: GOP grassroots and the Kennedy ‘camp’.
One strain of GOP voters separates conservative leaders into two camps: those who “know what time it is” and those who don’t. That is the catchphrase on the Right that has become increasingly important to a significant wing of the Party who see a country weakened and corrupted by ideology; who hold that there is almost nothing left to ‘conserve’. Overturning the existing post-American order, and re-establishing America’s ancient principles in practice, is advocated as a sort of counter-revolution – and the only road forward.
That aphorism for ‘knowing what time of day it is’ refers to an emerging sense of urgency and appetite for sweeping action, not dragging and dull academic debates among more populist-minded conservatives. “The premise is that the struggle against wokish cultural power is existential, and that extreme tactics that would shock an older generation of conservatives need to be the norm”.
In fact, if a leader is not shocking in his conduct and proposals, he or she probably “doesn’t know what time it is”.
The second key feature of this us-against-them mentality is that any policy consensus, ipso facto, triggers suspicion and becomes a focus of attack.
“When you realize this, what looks at first like a hodgepodge of different ideas seems more unified. Covid health policy, disgust about Jan. 6, the Pentagon budget, immigration, support for Ukraine, promoting racial diversity, trans rights — these are all issues that enjoy a measure of élite bipartisan consensus. But for the Tucker Carlson wing – Republicans who embrace these things simply – don’t know what time it is”, Politico explains.
What is salient in this formulation is that just as unreserved support for Covid regulatory practices was a ‘marker’ of ‘correct-think’ in pandemic time, so support for Ukraine is defined as ‘a marker’ of correct liberal-think (and being in the Team) in the in the post-pandemic era.
This suggests that – already and as the election nears – Ukraine will be no-longer bi-partisan in terms of support, but rather will become a sword used against the hated Uni-party establishment, and any hint of a major f*ck-up will become centre-piece in this counter revolutionary war.
The GOP’s sense that U.S. culture has gone off-track: Legislation was snarled in Congress earlier this month, when the formerly sacrosanct Pentagon Defence Bill became the target of culture-war amendments on abortion, diversity and gender that could scuttle its passage. Speaker McCarthy was forced to accept the far-right rebellion against the Defence budget bill and push it through, without the usual widespread bipartisan support.
The measures stripped funding for diversity initiatives in the military and added restrictions on abortion and transgender care for service members. GOP lawmakers said they acted because liberal ideology was weakening the military. But the amendments endanger the bill’s path in the Democratic-controlled Senate.
The heightened feelings on both sides are reflected in a poll that found that about 80% of Republicans believe that the Democratic agenda “if not stopped, will destroy America as we know it.” About the same share of Democrats had the same fear of the Republican ag.
Col Macgregor: NATO’s FRIGHTENING Plan For Russia
Absolutely. The United States is in the hands of someone who is mentally unstable.
https://youtu.be/k1TwoB1mGOk
What’s the most impressive thing you’ve ever seen a doctor do?
My daughter was 13 years of age and something was very wrong. She is a nonidentical twin. This information only matters because her illness is genetic and hopefully her twin will never have it.
We went to a new doctor at the practice we had been to before. He was just downright off in behavior. I had been a teacher about 20 years at this point and one of my Master degrees was in special education. I immediately saw him for what he was. Autistic.
I had twin daughters in the exam room. He could not function until we were all seated and all 6 feet flat on the floor. He paced silently in that tiny room until we were exactly as he felt we should be. He seemingly ignored all questions until he was leaving and would turn his head to the side and in a rapid fire voice, answer all questions. There were many more indicators but those were very telling. It was really odd but I saw it for what it was and shushed my daughters comments.
He took one look at her and gave a devastating diagnosis. A thirty year life span with a very low quality of life until then. I was not about to have that. Oh no.
I went home and Googled of course. Life became more grim. I realized she had all the classic physical signs. No doctor in our 200,000 population was taking a pediatric with her disease. The nearest was Dallas Texas which was a six hour drive each way.
As a working single Mother this seemed impossible.
Three days pass. I receive a phone call from a local specialist who is willing to take her at 6:30 am in the morning. She tells me that when one of her patients die, we can have their later slot.
She also tells me that the ONLY reason she is taking our case is because of the doctor who called her. The doctor who could not speak until we were all seated properly. The doctor who could not speak until he was leaving the room. This doctor meant so much to her that she was willing to take my daughters case.
As the next few years progress I learned many things. I learned that our autistic doctor was the doctor that all the other doctors, nurses and medical personnel went to. I also learned that this man saved my daughter’s life at this time and that she was very near a critical time in her disease. I learned that he gave her more quality and more meaning in the years ahead of her. When one of her many specialists were being hostile, he believed her. He LISTENED to her. He stayed with her through many trials in her health.
We continued to see him three times a year. He began to relax around us. My child held a special place in his heart and he began to joke and speak a bit differently. Not a great deal but enough for us to notice.
For those of us who have a loved one who is terminally ill, a doctor can be ambivalent, an asshole, or one such as this “A Jewel”.
This is impressive.
Italian Style Pot Roast Soup
leftover pot roast soup 500×750 1
Ingredients
1 (3 to 4 pound) chuck roast with bone, cut into pieces
1 (16 ounce) box acini de pepe (very small pasta)
8 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
2 large yellow onions, sliced
5 stalks celery, cut into pieces
3 -5 cloves garlic, chopped
2 (15 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
6 quarts water
Freshly grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
Place meat, vegetables, garlic tomatoes and tomato sauce in a large pot with the 6 quarts of water. Season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 2 to 3 hours until meat is tender.
Toward the last half hour cook the pasta until al dente. Drain pasta add a little bit of butter and set aside.
With a slotted spoon remove meat. Trim fat, remove bone and shred the meat. Place meat back into pot.
Place some pasta in a bowl and ladle in the soup. Top with lots of parmesan cheese.
The Chase (1946, Film-Noir)
Todays treat; full movie. Film Noir.
Hunted … Haunted … Hounded … Chuck Scott gets a job as chauffeur to tough guy Eddie Roman; but Chuck’s involvement with Eddie’s fearful wife becomes a nightmare.
In this article / post we will chat a little bit about extraterrestrials, and mysteries. Mainly by posting a few videos up, and some associated articles. The idea behind this post is to show some of what it “out there” in internet land, and to state that they tangentially touch on things that I have so painfully explained. Often they are just blind people in the dark trying to figure things out through disinformation…
So enjoy the videos and the articles. Do not get too caught up.
Now, at the end of the article is the “The Black Knight” mystery spacecraft. And the “reports” all take a few NASA images and “run with them”.
Totally oblivious to the fact that China is in space, has a huge space presence, and has also been filming and videoing these various objects.
Yes. China has been very active in filming UFOs and other strange things.
And I will be putting some of this stuff on MM in the future.
At the very end of this article / post, is my Chinese video taken of what The Black Knight” seemingly is. I am convinced that you all will find it very interesting.
Not available on any American or English Speaking websites, eh?
Imagine that.
Just the same old regurgitated bullshit, endlessly discussed, and theories bantered about, but with no new information of value.
Except here on MM.
Have fun guys…
First a daily dose of geo-political, and some other stuff…
His name is Duterte and he is the current president of the Philippines.
(A little background about the Philippines – The country of Philippines can be called ‘Mexico of Asia’. It is plagued by drug dealers. It is almost a normal occurrence in the Philippines for drug lords to kidnap citizens for ransom. Watch drugs in Philippines-2014 documentary Al Jezeera)
It is a normal custom for the president of the Philippines to issue Christmas greetings message to the citizens, every year. Duterte got elected in 2016. Following is his 2016 Christmas greetings message.
“I’m only human. So let me say ‘Merry Christmas’ to all the thieves, drug lords, drug pushers, corrupt and whoever made the life hard for Filipinos (People of Philippines). By the way, if you don’t cease and still continue your brutality, this will be your last Merry Christmas’
And this man ain’t kidding.
Within a few months of this message, two mayors who were caught in corruption were killed during the operation. 3600 drug lords were killed during the operation and 1.3 million drug addicts surrendered.
Duterte told his cops, ‘Go and hunt them. If possible arrest them. If he/she attacks you, just shoot him first.’
And all this happened in just 6 months after the message. In an interview with CNN, Duterte quoted, “We Filipinos are poor and our kids are our wealth. When we get old, we depend on our kids to pay for our medicine and even for burial. Drug lords and users, I warn you ‘Do not destroy the lives of young Filipinos with drugs. If you do so, I will surely kill you’.
The self-proclaimed moral consciences of the world (Read West) condemn Duterte for his ‘War on drugs’. President Obama condemned Duterte and Duterte had this following thing to say…
‘You bomb Syria and you kill thousands of innocent civilians, yet you have guts to call me? You bomb schools and hospitals and kill hundreds of innocent kids. You went to Iraq with an excuse of ‘Weapon of mass destruction’ and slaughtered thousands of innocent civilians, yet you found nothing. In your country, policeman shoots a handcuffed Black man for he is simply a Black. At least in my country, I shoot criminals. So Obama, _______ yourself’
And by the way, Duterte’s approval rating as of 2019 is 87%
Personally I don’t like him using ‘Colorful’ languages in public, cause he is seen as an inspiration by many young people, so it is good if he stops using those words, but this man really introduces a new unconventional political style.
Note; For those commenting, ‘Duterte jokes about rape’ and other bunch of crazy stuff you better come up with video evidence. After Duterte refused to be the American puppet, Western media has been spreading this propaganda and sadly many fell for it. Any comment accusing Duterte with out video proof will be deleted.
Note 2: WESTERN MEDIA HAS A HABIT OF TAKING DUTERTE’S QUOTE WAY OUT OF CONTEXT. IT IS EASY TO DO SO CAUSE DUTERTE SPEAKS MOSTLY IN HIS NATIVE LANGUAGE. Any comment accusing Duterte with out video proof will be deleted.
China is not USA or India or Russia. Try any tricks and we will castrate you
Ant Group has been playing with capitalism hard and fast
First is their following the US mode of creating monopolies and throttling smaller entities. Jack Ma had this bad habit of identifying any potential business and shackling it under Alibaba . Later suppliers and vendors were squeezed because Alibaba and Ant controlled their markets
Second is their brazen credit lending without actual substance or collateral. They would lend a lot of money belonging to banks with minimal compliance and without a tenth of the assets and collateral.
Third is their valuation models and their repeated ability to keep using investments to float value. The sort of thing Byjus does in India.
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China and the CPC in 2019 began to realize that if companies like Ant group were allowed to do things so rampantly ,China would be floating and bloating with paper values in a matter of years (Like India will be by 2025)
So they began squeezing on all the players including Ant Group
First they ended credit lending without a minimum 40% asset backing.
Next they ended the monopoly by providing a 120 day period to all suppliers and vendors to counter with their own price bid
Next they ensured that bloated valuations would have no role in China by linking valuation to technology development and profits
The Fine of $994 Million is just the culmination of all the excesses that Any Group has enjoyed all these years
China simply says “No Illusions and No fast bucks. You want to grow, grow the right way and benefit society and yourself. Develop Technology along the way”
The message is for all other Tech Companies and other companies in China
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Had this been 2017, Ant could have scoffed and shrugged and left China and gone to US or UK
Sadly this is 2023
Chinese Entities have no other way to go but into the Chinese economy and market which gives them more than two thirds of their revenues
So it’s a message at the end of the day
Do things right and we are always with you. Try to fool people and line your pockets at the expense of the Chinese people and we will destroy you
2023 07 08 19 0z1
Jack Ma for instance made the cardinal mistake of becoming too capitalist and putting his pocket above that of the people through ruthless monopolies and blind valuations
So he has been neutralized and the message has been very strong indeed
It’s why no other Tech CEO since 2020 violated the Tech Laws set in place by the Chinese Government
Always the message with the Chinese
They always deliver a message through such actions
The Moon Revealed: It’s a Hollow Spaceship, so who built it and why?
Ah, sort of.
But don’t get too caught up. I wrote about this earlier. Fun view, though. Enjoy.
so I decided to walk over to them and I asked her ” how was the meeting today darlin? ” she looked at me and said ” it was good, I’ll tell you more about it when we get home in a few “. I replied with ” wonderful I’ll pick up your favorite for dinner”.
The two guys left in a hurry and she told me ” you have no idea how much that meant to me …. thank you.” I said “you’re very welcome ma’am …. you can never be too careful. “
I made sure the guys left before I walked back to my car and as I was walking back all I could do was think ” I hope a man does that for my future daughter one day”.”
~ Cody Bret
City School Pizza
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Yield: 24 servings
Ingredients
French-Style Pizza Crust
2 packages dry or cake yeast
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
3 1/2 cups lukewarm water
9 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon salt
Topping
1 pound ground beef
1 tablespoon instant minced onion
1 (8 ounce) can tomatoes, drained and chopped
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
3/4 cup water
3/4 teaspoon oregano
Salt
3/4 teaspoon dried sweet basil
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
3/4 pound ground or chopped luncheon meat
1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
French-Style Pizza Crust
Dissolve yeast and sugar in water.
Add flour and salt. Knead until smooth.
Cover and let rise until doubled in bulk.
Cut into 2portions. Let rest 15 minutes.
Pat or roll to even thickness in 2 (15 1/2 x 10 1/2-inch) jellyroll pans. Set aside.
Topping
Brown ground beef and onion in a large skillet.
Add tomatoes, tomato paste, water, oregano, salt to taste, basil, garlic powder and luncheon meat. Sauté until mixture comes to a boil. Simmer for a few minutes.
Spread sauce on prepared French-Style Pizza Crust in pans. Sprinkle each crust with cheese.
Bake at 400 degrees F for 30 to 35 minutes or until cheese layer is bubbly and browned.
Do you think Corruption doesnt exist in China or Singapore or South Korea?
Of course it does. Corruption exists everywhere and wherever there is position of power.
It is when Corruption and Development become Mutually Exclusive that trouble starts.
Lets take the Chinese and Singaporean Example:-
The “Golden Rule” of Deng Xiaopeng (Later emanated by Lee Kuan Yew) was that Corruption is inevitable.
So Deng developed his golden rule.
The Rule was called the “Bridge on the Village River” rule – where Deng would instruct his ministers
I want a Bridge on the Village River. It should be strong and it should be durable for 20 years and should not break or develop any problems or issues. I estimate the budget to be 100000 Yuan (Purely arbitary number) so i will sanction 120000 Yuan – so that 20000 Yuan can be used for miscellaneous purposes. I dont care how this money is going to be spend or who gets what portion. I will turn a blind eye to it BUT if the bridge collapses due to shoddy construction – i will personally crush any and all persons who were responsible for it.
That is the BOVR rule followed by China or Korea or Singapore.
End Results are all that matter. This way – the Nation gets the best product and the Nation develops and moves forward. People get enriched but Chinese or SIngaporeans regard this as a sort of Service Charge rather than Corruption or Bribes or Graft.
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The Hong Kong police consisted of Chinese Nationals upto the rank of Sergeant and Britishers from the ranks of Inspector and above.
Every Chinese National would get at least 100% of his salary amount from Graft (Bribes) from Nightclub owners, Businessmen etc etc.
The Result – Hong Kong was almost completely crime free. The Triads did not touch common man. Not a single pistol could be brought into HK without consequences.
A Contractor who can get a superb building made within budget – takes a 10000 yuan commission will not be penalized until the building collapses in which case he is finished as are the party officials who chose him in the first place.
In Singapore – to ensure corruption does not exist – Lee Kuan Yew established measures like Huge Salaries to Ministers and Bonuses to Officials. A $ 100 Million contract into Singapore – would mean a bonus of $ 200000 for the Officials at the concerned ministry. With such incentives – why would anyone turn to corruption????
Check out the Chinese Ministers – Each one wears a $ 12000 – $25000 Suit – tailored in London or New York or by Expats living in Shanghai. They have Rolls or Bentleys and the big ministries have exclusive helicopters.
They earn between 70% to 450% higher than the Median Base Pay for College Graduates.
Conclusion:-
A. Corruption Exists in China or Korea – but the Corruption is regarded as a Service Charge as long as the End Result is not harmful to the public or is not defective or of poor quality – NOBODY CARES. Imagine a Agent who is able to bring a 100 Helicopter Deal to China – he takes a kickback of $ 1 Million. As long as the Helicopters are top notch – nobody in China will care.
B. These countries pay commissions, incentives and higher salaries (Like Singapore) to ensure that Corruption is kept out or at least minimized completely. Imagine you get $ 10 Million a year as Minister – would you be stupid enough to accept or coordinate a bribe?
Gifts like Rolex Watches, Works of Art, Jewelry are commonplace and wont generate a huge public controversy.
Now lets see India and Pakistan and Bangladesh
Thats where the Hypocrisy starts
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Our Leaders pretend to be simple people. They Wear Khadi in the peak of summer, the Gandhian Caps, They balk at gifts which exceed over Rs. 5000/- and our Newspapers go on and on about a Chief Minister who accepted a $ 10000 Watch (Siddaramaiah) as a gift and he has to prove that he gifted the watch to a museum.
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Yet 60% of the Politicians Ministers all have assets exceeding Rs. 50 Crores with allegations of exceeding Rs. 1000 or even Rs. 5000 Crores.
The Simplicity is a Deception on the People of India (Some people like Lal Bahadur Shastri were born simple but most of them are deceiving the people).
Poor Christian Michel gets thrown in Jail for bribery whereas the people on both sides are scot free.
CBI pursue a small time Havildar who took Rs. 1000/- bribe on Diwali
And we claim to be Tough on Corruption
And in our case – since unlike China or Singapore or South Korea – Our Leadership is Illiterate or Semi Literate in most cases – the Corruption affects our Quality very badly
Roads that get Potholes with 2 days of rain , Bridges that Collapse regularly, Structures that are rarely steady and would not receive certification by the blindest Quality Engineer anywhere outside India or Pakistan or Sri Lanka or Bangladesh, Poor Quality Manufactured goods etc.
The Gandhian Mentality is solely responsible for why our Leaders pretend to be simple yet why they become richer and richer while the country gets zero or near zero quality products or infrastructure.
Had we been China – we would have offered a 1.5% flat commission to the Officers who got us the Rafale Deal. This would have eliminated corruption since the bribe money would have come in the form of incentives and service charges.
Had we been Singapore or Korea – we would have ensured that Christian Michel would be regarded as nothing more than a Commission Agent and we would not have even glanced in his direction considering his “Payments” as nothing more than “Service Fees”
Instead our System is a Gigantic Hypocrisy – as is the case of Pakistan or Bangladesh or Sri Lanka.
Pretence, Pretence, Pretence
Punish the small fry and ignore the huge sharks and whales
Ensure that corruption has a direct and total impact on the quality of products
Ensure that Rhea Chakraborty is sent to jail with the whole nation clapping and cheering while Ministers who ordered Bridges to collapse or Contractors responsible for building roads which kill due to potholes – end up getting more contracts.
That is why – while the Asian Countries like China or SIngapore grow – India is doomed. It is the system that is corrupted completely and totally.
JRE: What Scientists Just Discovered At The Grand Canyon TERRIFIES The Whole World
Just a reminder that the “powers that be” control what you know and what you do not know.
This is a fun video.
However, why would Egyptians be in Arizona, or New Mexico without any Egyptian communities on the coasts for their ships to travel to? A lack of infrastructure is troubling.
So do not get too caught up.
The “missing pieces” might be trivial or alarming, but they are still MISSING.
China has the reserves and the procedure to extract the elements profitability and purify them profitably
China is able to deliver a processed product at lowest cost ($ 2400/PTK) and make a 17% Profit
It’s estimated the US can deliver the processed product at lowest cost of $ 8900/PTK and make a 35% Loss which needs subsidy
Thus instead of $ 2400/PTK with 17% profit , the raw material and base material now costs $ 8900/PTK and the US Govt or Taxpayer has to pay $ 3080/PTK as subsidy
That’s $2400 vs $11980
Unless US manages to import slaves again and manufacture the machinery on its own — US can’t lower costs
Because GUESS WHAT?
CHINA CONTROLS THE ENTIRE EXTRACTION MACHINERY FOR RARE EARTHS!!!!!!
You have a Lithium mine?
Without China, you can’t extract a nano gram of Lithium because the machinery is theirs and they control the market
Plus Environment is a big big thing here
The Green party will hate any processing foundry or extraction mine for Gallium or Germanium or Lithium in US due to pollution that is almost guaranteed
Solution?
Start making extraction machinery in India and Vietnam and ship them to US along with 100,000 migrant workers
And maybe in 20 years , US can take up around 30–40% of the market share of Gallium or Germanium
It’s a headache but US are idiots and that’s exactly what those stubborn fools will do
I got divorced 12 years ago. After that, I stayed single for almost 7 years. Well, 1. I was too busy, and 2. I was hurt.
After that, I decided to start dating again. Man, it was so difficult. I had a few first dates, and either they escaped from me or I escaped from them.
Then I saw him.
The way he smiled was like this:
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You know what I mean? The smile that makes you want to smile. The smile that makes you feel all the stresses you are carrying get lighter a little bit. I knew I wanted to be around him.
He asked me out, I told him I was busy and didn’t have much time. He said then we could date the busy way: he showed up at my lunchtime to have a sandwich that I prepared; sometimes just a small walk before bedtime late at night. He understood my priorities and supported me.
Sometimes, I got a text from him saying, “I know you have an important meeting today, try not to kill anybody.” Sometimes, I “escaped” from the office to go to a coffee shop with him next to me. We both worked on our laptops, didn’t talk to each other the whole time; we just enjoyed the feeling we were together.
I smile more and live fuller with him in it. I truly feel that the pain I had in me, turned into the memory, it’s not hurt anymore. Is he complementing my life? I think so. Because he healed me.
12 ALIEN CRAFT In US Custody, Per Intel
From “The Hill” which is a MAJOR political organization in Washington DC.
OK. Whoop! Whoop!
Now what?
Stupid Jackasses. At the end of the day, nothing will change. The reality of what is going on is far too dangerous to expose.
I remember this quote, I think from Neil Gaiman, about fairy tales and stories. It goes something like this. Fairy tales didn’t tell children there were dragons. We already knew dragons existed. Fairy tales tell children that dragons can be defeated.
Books don’t tell children sex or violence or gay people exist in the world. They already know. Books tell them how to deal with these complicated things. Books and stories allow them to explore uncomfortable ideas and situations in a safe environment. It helps them process their emotions.
My family didn’t believe in “age-appropriate” books. As long as I could read it, every book on the bookshelves was open for grabs. The community library right next to our house did not have special library cards for children. Everyone has the same type of cards and has access to the same collections of books. I was reading The Decameron in middle school. In case you didn’t know, it’s a collection of stories, including some pretty graphic sex scenes and gore.
You know what my grandma did? We talked.
I remember telling her about this story I read from Decameron, about this priest and bread and oven. It’s a sex joke. It took me quite some time to figure it out, and I talked to my grandma about it. We all laughed, not because of the sex innuendo but rather because of the hypocrisy of the whole situation. And that’s the whole point of the story, the hypocrisy of the catholic priests during the 14th century. I got that in middle school. Children aren’t stupid. They understand things if you take the time and help them figure it out.
I talked to her about the books I read, the parts I don’t understand, and/or make me uncomfortable. Whatever dysfunctions my family had, we could always get together and talk about books.
That’s what being a parent is about.
I always suspect parents who want to ban books don’t really want to “protect” their children, but rather, they don’t want to or don’t know how to have difficult conversations with their children about the books they read. Either they themselves do not read books and don’t understand how to discuss literature and narrative. They don’t know how to apply lessons learned in books to real life. They don’t understand the importance of stories. Or they simply don’t give a shit. They would rather put off these conversations and wait until the kids are old enough and have them figure it out themselves.
There’s no such thing as a dangerous book. Ideas do not “corrupt” children. Not if they have good parents to talk to. When children are “corrupted” by the internet or social media, or books, it’s not because the materials are dangerous. It is because they are isolated, they’re confused, and there are no adults in their lives they can rely on to guide them.
Banning books is never about “protecting children.” It is always about shitty parents who couldn’t be bothered to be proper parents.
I started to get conservative comments that defended the book ban, and I got a common theme from these comments that they seemed to believe that there are books in school libraries or public libraries that contain graphic depictions of extreme pornographic/fetish content.
One comment talks about how they don’t want their children to learn about sex fetishes that involve human feces from books in school libraries. Another comment says they don’t want their children to learn about blow jobs from books containing young boys giving each other blow jobs, other comments talk about “government teaching my son how to give a hand job.”
… like… I’m so confused. Like… have you been to a library?! What kind of books do you think they have?!
Seriously people, stop watching Fox News, and go visit a public library.
In 2016, Abdullahi Abdisalam Borleh was a suicide bomber with a laptop full of explosives who boarded a plane from Somalia, Daallo Airlines.
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He had embarked as a disabled person and claimed to be on a trip for a medical check-up.
Twenty minutes after takeoff from Mogadishu, Somalia at an altitude of 14,000 feet, an explosion occurred inside the aircraft. There were 74 passengers and 7 crew members on board.
The explosion created this opening.
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He was the only one to be sucked into the opening.
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His intention was to kill all the passengers of the plane but according to fate, he had to be the only one to die.
The plane’s controls were not affected by the explosion, allowing the pilot to return the plane to Mogadishu safely.
Karma sometimes works… as if by magic.
The evidence we are living in a Simulation is everywhere. All you have to do is look.
As on date China doesn’t see value in a Sino Indian Trade Alliance
China isn’t like US or UK , a nation that makes decisions in a hurry
China is evaluating India and has decided that as on date India is not valuable enough for China to seriously offer a trade alliance and make some serious concessions
China is more impressed with Vietnam which follows China’s own building strong bases, building a workforce and then slowly layering to the top
China isn’t impressed with India’s hotch potch ‘Cant manufacture a Ball point pen fully but sure let’s build 2 nm chips’ method
Today India’s entire manufacturing is because of the fact that Indian government says unless you manufacture in India, we won’t buy your product (or assemble)
That was never the Chinese model
The Chinese were always about “Manufacture in China, we will give you land and labor and you give us jobs and development”
So as on date this Make in India is a gimmick meant for elections and to impress gullible people into making them think India is heading to becoming a superpower
China knows too well the real state of India manufacturing
The real state of regressive taxation
The horrible political system
The atrocious labor laws
The greedy and inefficient manufacturing environment
China knows India hasn’t made 0.0001% effort to improve any of them
So China knows all this Indian manufacturing is just a gimmick like everything else for headlines and some random numbers
Simple example is Vietnam makes 11% of all Smartphones on earth and India makes around 17%
Yet scale and size wise India is around 6.65 times the trade scale of Vietnam
India needs to be making around 77% of its smartphones by now to be equivalent to Vietnam in manufacturing
Plus India assembles smartphones on a 69:31 basis
Vietnam does so on a 38:62 basis
It shows how much superior Vietnam is to India
And if Vietnam is like M.Sc first year then China is like five years post Doctorate
So frankly China isn’t impressed much with India
Sure it will make noise here and there but there is no serious view of India managing anything remotely significant in the next few years without serious reforms and serious changes in national policy towards manufacturing
The Day India is serious about manufacturing and we see laws changing and tax laws changing and separate jurisdictions and liberal policies and judicial reforms
Then China definitely will make offers to India including potential concessions on Arunachal or Ladakh
Until then it’s not worth it
A Sino Indian Trade Alliance with Today’s India in exchange for giving up claims on Ladakh or Arunachal is a bad bad deal for China
Today’s India is 90% Talk and 10% Actual Progress
When it’s 60% Talk and 40% Actual Progress, China will handle the issue differently
One recent example is a 34-year-old Japanese mathematics professor who decided to host his lectures on… Pornhub.
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His earnings of €250,000 per year stem from the fact that even though many may not be interested in the subject, they are nonetheless curious about his presence and attempt to watch the video, generating views.
A Buddhist monk seeking religious advice from a Taoist.
If it’s hard to understand how unusual this is, imagine a Catholic priest seeking religious teachings from an Islamic cleric or vise versa.
Chinese religions (Buddhism was localized after settled in China) are very tolerant to each other. It’s pretty hard for Chinese to understand why there could be centuries of hatred and violence just because of different beliefs.
Michio Kaku JUST LEAKED China’s SHOCKING Discovery On The Moon!
This is a fun and interesting video.
Keep in mind a date of 11,000 – 13,000 years ago. Notice that this date disagrees with my own beliefs, but please pay attention to their argument. Have a good time. Enjoy.
Cafeteria Cole Slaw
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Ingredients
1 head cabbage, chopped fine
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 or 3 tablespoons mayonnaise or salad dressing
Instructions
Mix all ingredients well until cabbage is completely coated.
Let one is about China’s moon project. China Lunar Exploration Project was announced in Feb 2004, and it was already in implementation stage. China was planning to have a moon orbiting satellite within 3 years, a soft-landing on the moon in 6 years, and have moon dirt sample taken back by a robot before 2020.
By the end of 2020, in December, Chang-e 5 returned with 1731 gram of moon dirt. China barely kept its words, due to delays caused by rocket making.
On the right, it was moon projects announced by the US, Russia, Japan, and India.
The US was going to land on the moon again in 2015, and establish an international moon base no later than 2020.
Russia was going to have a test launch of its latest moon landing ship.
India was going to launch its first unmanned moon ship Chandrayaan-1 in 2008.
Japan was going to eastablish its moon base in 2025, and send robots there.
Chinese newspaper reported moon projects from 5 countries in 2004.
So far, only China managed to keep on schedule.
So when China says that it’s people will land on the moon before 2030, it’s highly possible that it knows exactly where it is now, and how fast its moon project will go.
I’m a retired US citizen who moved to Uruguay in 2015 after spending my entire working career in “Corporate America”.
It’s entertaining to read discussions about the possibility of implementing Universal Healthcare in the United States.
It will NEVER happen. It’s 1000% impossible. The reason? Health insurance companies.
The concept of Universal Healthcare does not involve insurance companies. There is no need for a bloated middleman.
There are 563,366 Health & Medical Insurance Employees in the US, costing approximately $50 billion annually.
These companies would have to be closed, freeing up all this cash for actual medical care, instead of bloat.
The main problems with the US Healthcare system are listed below. None of these problems exist with Universal Healthcare.
a. Greedy Health insurance companies run by highly-paid executives.
b. High-paid pharmaceutical & insurance company lobbyists.
c. Greedy congressmen who take millions of dollars in bribes annually.
d. Expensive TV commercials pushing expensive drugs.
e. Doctors who earn outrageous salaries to pay for outrageously expensive college educations with insane education loans.
f. Outrageous malpractice lawsuit settlements, requiring doctors to carry outrageous liability insurance.
g. People with no medical knowledge make decisions about whether a patient can have a medical procedure, overruling the attending physician.
Now, with the outsourcing of call centers, people with no medical knowledge in Jamaica, India, and Pakistan make those decisions.
Here are some typical costs in Uruguay:
Office visit: US $8.00
ER visit: US $ 10.00
House call: US $12.00.
Electrolyte blood analysis: US $7.11.
Cerebral CT Scan: US $23.29
If you call an ambulance, it arrives with a full-fledged MD, not an EMT.
Before I turned 70 years of age, I paid around US $55 per month for health coverage.
Now I pay around US $70 per month. For that, I get totally free hospital stays and all costs are free, including hospital stay, surgery, medications, doctor care, and nursing care. When you check out, regardless of what was done or how long you were hospitalized, you pay nothing.
The monthly cost for my cancer medication is around US $2.50. The same medication in the US is around $500.00.
China just takes purchase orders and supplies, be it from a rich country or a poor one. You should rather ask this question to those countries, why they go to China to get cheaper things.
However, the point of “destroy” is interesting, indeed. Chinese cheap products have destroyed industries in the higher-income countries like Europe and America. And those developed countries deliberately did this to save cost, but eventually ended up at the cost of their own citizens’ unemployement. Surely they had a vision, though probably a wrong one. But they would know it better.
But China’s “cheap” products helped the poor countries a lot, particularly those who did not yet have industries. For example let’s talk about Bangladesh where the vast majority people are poor. They could not afford to buy Europe/Japan/America-made products even they were in a dire need. But they can manage to get the similar peoducts from China at their afforable price. Thus, life has become much easier and even safer when they got this products-support from China.
Takefew essential products for example:
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This mosquito killer racket helped save millions of lives from life-threatening Malaria and Dengue fever in Bangladesh.
energy-saving bulbs:
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These bulbs from China lit up millions of households in Bangladesh where electricity cost is rocket-high.
Then this:
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Thousands of commuters have benefitted from this cheap motorbike in Bangladesh where public transports are rare and nightmare.
Now, let’s talk about the other, even life-changing benefits gotten from these imported products. Bangladeshis acquired the technical knowhows, bought cheap machineries and raw materials back from China and now have started making them in their own country. Means, now they have established their own industries, providing employment to their own people and altogether contributing to the national economy. And gradually this country is climbing the ladder of self-industrialization. I think such transformation is taking place in many other poor countries as well.
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Bangladesh recently started making its own motorbikes
Then, how are you going to blame China? Or thanking China, instead?
Sunman-Dearborn School Chili
This very popular Sunman-Dearborn School Chili was always served with cornbread and butter on the side.
2023 07 09 08 58
Ingredients
1 pound ground beef
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2/3 cup ketchup
1/2 cup tomato paste (6 ounces)
4 ounces spaghetti, broken into thirds
3 tablespoons onion
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
2/3 cup tomato sauce (8 ounce can)
2/3 cup pinto beans (15 ounce can)
Instructions
Brown ground beef and onion. Drain off extra fat.
Add remaining ingredients, except spaghetti. Add one quart water. Bring chili to boil. Add spaghetti.
50 Cent gave her son’s mother $500,000 a year (about $40,000 a month) as child support, and she said it wasn’t enough.
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So, she turned to the family court to ask for an increase in maintenance. To his disappointment, the court said 50 cents would have to reduce the amount to just $6,700 a month.
Most of the money given before the court decision was used to maintain a lifestyle for the mother and not for the maintenance of the child.
Let’s say you grew up in Lander, Wyoming — a decent-sized town at about 7,500 people.
Unless you’re Catholic, there are no colleges in your town. So when you graduate high school, you can either:
Go into a trade
Get a minimum-wage job
Move to another town
In this case, you want to go to college so you move.
Fortunately, Wyoming has about 6 community colleges to choose from. You choose the second-largest town in Wyoming at 55,000 people, Casper. You do your two years and when you’re done, you realize you’ll need a Bachelor’s to further your career.
Now you have 4 options:
Give up on your degree and move back home
Move to Laramie to attend the University of Wyoming — the state’s only 4-year public institution
Stay in Casper and finish through the UW/CC program
Move to another state
As many kids find, the program you want isn’t even offered at UW (or what they do offer is really, really poor).
If you give up on your degree, you won’t have many job prospects, so you relocate again to Colorado where you can choose from ~14 4-year schools — actually, those are just the public ones. There are ~14 more private 4-year schools you could attend, too.
After graduating, you have a bunch of new job connections down in Colorado. You look online and see jobs in Boulder, Denver, Fort Collins, Colorado Springs, and elsewhere — so you can live virtually anywhere in the state you want. And, most of those cities are near smaller towns, so you can feel like you’re back home while reaping the benefits of city living.
Or, you can go back to Lander — population, 7,500 — which is a 4-hour drive to the nearest cities (both Fort Collins and Salt Lake City).
So your options are:
Stay in Colorado, where you have tons of work options
Move back to Lander, where the few local businesses might have job openings that might be in your industry, and you have no option to commute to larger cities if opportunities open up
You stay in Colorado. Because that’s where the work is.
This is what a lot of kids who grew up in rural Wyoming end up doing. They move for school — often to Laramie, which is right on the WY/CO border — then when they need to find a job they migrate where the work is: cities.
Brain drain is a huge problem and it’s one Wyoming, in some ways, is trying to combat. You can go to college for free at any community college and get cheap tuition at UW if you’re a Wyoming resident. They very, very actively promote the community colleges and UW to Wyoming high schoolers, hoping that if they go to college here, they’ll stay after they graduate.
But a lot of people are still flocking out of the state for college because of the opportunities. Because Wyoming has no major cities, the opportunities you get in cities are inaccessible to Wyoming residents.
It’s why I left. Why my whole family left. Because we like having job options, and going to concerts, and eating new foods (have you ever had Ethiopian? WOW). And while Wyoming is wonderful in many ways… it doesn’t have that.
One reason rural life is dying is that people want to do things. They want options.
And you don’t get that in rural areas.
Ancient Craft Watching us From Orbit | The Black Knight Satellite
This is fun.
Spending a little bit more time on this that what I normally do with these kinds of you-tube videos. It is important and holds some clues.
Keep in mind of a date of 11,000 years ago.
EPSILON BOÖTIS REVISITED.
by Duncan Lunan (Analog, 1998; revised August 2013).
In January 1974 Analog published my article ‘Space Probe from Epsilon Boötis?’1, which caused such a stir that I’m still asked about it every time I appear in the magazine. It was based on the mystery of long-delayed radio ‘echoes’ (LDEs), first reported in the 1920s.
Actually, the ‘echoes’ were much too powerful to be simple reflections of signals from Earth. Experimenters studying round-the-world propagation of radio waves found their outgoing pulses were being returned to them with a delay of three seconds, as if they were being amplified and returned by something at the distance of the Moon – but definitely not the Moon itself. In later experiments the delay times began to vary upwards from three seconds, in increasingly complicated sequences, but with no variation in intensity – still indicating a single source amplifying and returning the pulses.
Prof. Ron Bracewell of Stanford suggested in 1960 that the ‘echoes’ might have been rebroadcast by an unmanned probe from another civilisation, trying to attract our attention, and in 1972 I worked out a ‘translation’ of the 1920’s echo patterns. The variations of delay times appeared random; but Prof. Bracewell himself had suggested the first signal from such a probe might be a star map, and the stars are spaced at random in the sky. I tried plotting the delay times against the order in which the echoes were received (fig. 1(A)), and at only the second attempt I found what looked like a star map – in which it appeared that the probe had come from the double star Epsilon Boötis, in the constellation Boötes, the Herdsman (fig. 1(B)). Arcturus, the brightest star in the constellation, seemed to be out of place in the map; but on checking, was shown at its place about 13,000 years ago.
Other parts of the supposed message seemed to give the scale of their planetary system, orbiting Epsilon Boötis A, and seemed at first to make sense. Epsilon Boötis A is an orange giant star, and the translation indicated that the probe makers had evolved on its second planet, emigrating later to the sixth when their sun began to expand. But there was a problem: the companion star (Epsilon B) was bright blue, apparently a short-lived sun of spectral type A2. It emerged that the distance given for the star in most reference books was too low, and at the true distance of 203 light-years, Epsilon B really was an A2 star and the orange giant Epsilon A had been an AO, like Sirius – too massive and with too high a radiation output to sustain habitable planets, too short-lived for life to have evolved there. At the same time, more accurate 1920s records were located, and most of the ‘star map’ translations were ruled out – not the ‘Epsilon Boötis’ one, but it too had to be treated as suspect. I withdrew the entire translation,2 but now it seems I may have gone too far.
Dropping it didn’t rule out the space probe suggested by Prof. Bracewell (though he himself has abandoned the idea).3 James Strong suggested that the probe could be located in either the ‘Lagrange 4’ or ‘L5’ point, also called ‘Trojan’ or ‘Equilateral’ points, equidistant from the Earth and Moon.4 The dates and times of the 1920s LDEs showed that the L5 point was at least one source of the effect.5 Anthony Lawton of the British Interplanetary Society suggested that in ideal conditions the Trojan points could form temporary, stable ionospheres of their own which would generate LDE’s;6 it was reported that I accepted that, but scientists I consulted replied that such clouds would be disrupted by currents in the Earth’s magnetosphere, or at other times of the month by the Solar Wind, the constant outflow of charged particles from the Sun. In any case, as the Lagrange points have no gravitational fields of their own, a cloud of charged particles would be scattered by their mutual electrostatic repulsion – unless there was a powerful magnetic or electrostatic field to hold them in place. If this was produced by a spacecraft, I suggested, Lawton might have hit upon the method by which the Bracewell probe generated LDE’s – by accident!
Many books and articles said that Lawton conducted an active radio search for LDEs, but in reality he stopped after getting an initial ‘reply’, on the grounds that further transmissions “would constitute a biassed experiment”. Optical searches of the Lagrange points failed to find anything as large as the Skylab space station, or, in a later search, as large as the Pioneer 10 space probe.7 Meanwhile, however, Epsilon Boötis just would not lie down.
There are several real or suggested Zodiacal star maps, laid out on the ground, which centre on Boötes. That’s just because the constellation lies near the pole of the Ecliptic, perpendicular to the Earth’s orbital plane around the sun, so any Zodiacal map will be centred near it. But also, we are in Boötes as viewed from Tau Ceti, one of the nearest stars like our Sun, and at relativistic speeds, Epsilon Boötis would be a prime navigational reference on the journey here.8 And there was an even stranger development.
After my book “Man and the Stars” came out,9 I was contacted by Alan Evans, who was then a British Army Captain. He liked the analysis I’d made of Erich von Daniken’s claims, where I concluded that Earth had not been visited more than four times, at most. Alan suggested we jointly attempt something still more systematic: if the Earth had ever been visited, our aim would be to find proof. He stressed that his was purely a personal interest, which had to remain confidential, but as he’s since left the Army that no longer applies.
We tightened up my approach into four categories of possible evidence. Category A would be our objective, an artifact of unquestionably extraterrestrial origin. Category B would be optical or electromagnetic anomalies pinpointing such an object (like the Tycho monolith in 2001); Category D would be the ‘von Daniken material’ of legends, drawings etc. which were no use except in suggesting areas to search for other types of evidence. But Alan pressed me to include a new category, C, which would be anomalous astronomical alignments in man-made structures – anomalous because they revealed knowledge which the builders should not have had. For example, on high-resolution photographs of Stonehenge, he had identified markings which seemed to indicate galactic alignments.
I wasn’t impressed at first. I had studied megalithic astronomy under a leading expert, Prof. Archie Roy, and seen nothing unusual; there was no correlation even with Category D; and when I did the calculations, the markings Alan had found didn’t seem to be galactic. At the time when he put this to me, circa 1975, it was supposed that Stonehenge I was built in 1800 BC, near the end of the Stone Age in Britain (not many people realise that Stonehenge was one of the last megaliths), with Stonehenge III, the inner circle, still later in the Bronze Age. Soon afterwards, however, Archie Roy himself published an article from which we learned that the radiocarbon dating scale had been revised, pushing Stonehenge I back from 1800 BC to 2700 BC. Further revision made it c.2840 BC, and that radically changed the whole position.
Archaeoastronomy at Stonehenge.
Fig. 2A shows the celestial sphere as viewed by an observer in the northern hemisphere. The altitude of the pole above the northern horizon is equal to the observer’s latitude, and the heavenly bodies circle around it, parallel to the equator, with the daily rotation of the Earth. The altitude of a body above the horizon, and its azimuth measured along the horizon from the north point, change constantly as the Earth turns. Apart from the circumpolar stars, which are too near the pole to rise and set, everything else rises in the east and sets in the west at a position which is determined by the declination of the object, measured from the equator (Fig. 2B). Where the declination equals the observer’s latitude, the star passes overhead once a day.
Horizon positional astronomy was all the Stonehenge builders could do (Fig. 3). Stonehenge I incorporated the ditch, bank, Avenue, Heelstone and Station Stones; what most people think of as ‘Stonehenge’ are the great sarsen archways of the inner circle, Stonehenge III, erected in the early Bronze Age. It’s universally agreed that the Stonehenge Avenue and the later structure both mark the midsummer sunrise. But few archaeologists agree with Gerald S. Hawkins that the ‘Station Stones’ of Stonehenge I mark the extreme positions of the Moon’s 18.6 year cycle;10 and still fewer with Prof. Alexander Thom, that the megalith builders had a sophisticated programme of lunar observatories, spread over the British Isles.11 Personally, I’m convinced; I’ve even built a modern megalith, under the auspices of Glasgow Parks Dept., to compare its performance with the prehistoric sites, and demonstrated that high precision could have been achieved by naked-eye observations.12
When it comes to star alignments, the position is more complex. Because the Earth’s equatorial plane doesn’t coincide with the Ecliptic, nor with the orbit of the Moon, the combined pulls of the Sun and Moon on Earth’s equatorial bulge cause the Earth’s axis to ‘wobble’ around the Ecliptic Pole with a period of 26,000 years (Fig. 4). 13,000 years ago the north pole star was Vega in Lyra, and 5,000 years ago it was Thuban in Draco, at the time of Stonehenge I. The pull makes the equator move around the Ecliptic, constantly changing the position of the Vernal and Autumnal Equinoxes (Precession of the Equinoxes). As a result a star’s declination is constantly changing – likewise its Right Ascension, which is measured from the Vernal Equinox along the equator, in the same direction as the Sun’s motion on the Ecliptic shown by the arrows in Fig. 2(B).
Astronomers can partly get round the problem of coordinate change by giving star positions in Ecliptic Latitude, which remains constant, and Ecliptic Longitude, which changes smoothly with time. But for coordinates which are fixed over human time-spans, even the spans of civilisations, we have to use Galactic Latitude and Longitude, whose zero point is the Galactic Centre and whose pole lies on the perpendicular to the plane of the Milky Way (Fig. 5).
On the high-resolution photographs of Stonehenge Alan Evans pointed out a curious horseshoe-shaped marking on the northwest, cutting the bank and overlying Station Stone 93 (Fig. 3). It’s not on official plans and may not be significant: the photos were taken in 1966, eight years after one of the fallen trilithon archways was re-erected, and the ‘horseshoe’ coincides at least in part with the tracks of the heavy machinery used then. We have located a smaller version of it in a prewar aerial photo, but it’s still historically suspect. Still earlier photos, taken by balloon, show a similar but different pattern.10 But the relationship the horseshoe pointed out to us was real enough.
As Fig. 3 shows, the orientation of the horseshoe is to the rising point of the Galactic Centre, and of the Galactic Equator’s intersection with the Ecliptic, c.2840 BC. Even more extraordinarily, it turns out that the declination of the North Galactic Pole was then equal to the latitude of Stonehenge. Consequently, when the Galactic Centre was on the horizon, the Galactic Pole was in the zenith and the Galactic Equator coincided with the horizon (Fig. 6).
It would be remarkable if that was a coincidence, but if it’s not coincidence, it’s an extraordinary finding. The Galactic Centre is 27,000 light-years from us and hidden behind dense clouds of absorbing dust in the inner regions of the Milky Way, so its location cannot be pinpointed visually, only with a radiotelescope. Until you know exactly where the Centre is, you can’t determine the true plane of the Galactic Equator and the true positions of the Galactic Poles. At the Moscow General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union in 1958, new values for the positions of the poles and the Centre were officially adopted, based on the distribution of neutral hydrogen in the inner Milky Way and study of the radio source Sagittarius A. Previous optical studies had suggested the Centre was in Scorpius, so it was a big change. Maps using the old galactic coordinates were still on sale as late as 1963, with addenda giving corrections to the new system.13 Yet apparently the builders of Stonehenge knew exactly where the Galactic Centre was, or took their cue from something or somebody or who did.
In this context, why are galactic coordinates so important? Imagine a spacecraft travelling between the stars. Its attitude sensing platform might be oriented to its home world – its own Right Ascension and declination – or its home planetary system, its own Ecliptic coordinates. But neither will be relevant when it enters our Solar System: the only coordinate system common to its system and ours is the galactic one. In any manoeuvres or landings it made here, you would expect it to navigate in galactic coordinates; and if it chose a landing site on the declination of the galactic pole, then once a day the azimuth and altitude of any star, measured from the rising point of the Galactic Centre, would correspond to its galactic coordinates, like B’s in Fig.6. If the spacecraft’s attitude-sensing platform was fixed, built into its structure, it would still be correctly lined up with the sky once a day.
So if the horseshoe marking is modern, its ‘prehistoric’ alignment might be a curious coincidence. What looks more likely, on Fig. 3, is that there was something in the centre of Stonehenge I, which was gone by the building of Stonehenge II and III. In fact, after Stonehenge I was built, around 2700 BC the site was abandoned for over 200 years while the same neolithic people built the much larger complex of Avebury and Silbury Hill, due north of Stonehenge itself.14
What would annoy archaeologists, who don’t even admit most ‘conventional’ archaeoastronomy, is the suggestion that the Stonehenge orientation is galactic at all. I looked for an optical marker, something which would have let the builders create Stonehenge without knowing about galactic coordinates or even without a spacecraft necessarily being there. And I found one, but it didn’t exactly make the alignments less controversial. The star which had the same declination as the North Galactic Pole in 2840 BC, equal to the latitude of Stonehenge, was Epsilon Boötis itself.
It was so hard to believe, when I’d abandoned the Epsilon Boötis ‘translation’ of the radio patterns, that I arranged to see for myself, twice in the planetarium of the Jewel & Esk College in Musselburgh, then all over again at the much larger one in Armagh. It feels extraordinary to see such findings, worked out with long pages of calculations, simulated on the planetarium ‘sky’ overhead. With the date set for 2840 BC, at the Stonehenge latitude, the Milky Way really does line up with the horizon once a day and Epsilon Boötis really does go through the zenith as well, earlier each day.
The Ecliptic and the Pyramids.
But Alan Evans has a strong intuitive grasp of spatial relationships, and he had found another which he wanted me to verify. Projected north, the alignment of Station Stones 94-91, and 93-92, meets the Arctic Circle at a tangent (Fig. 7). As the Earth turns, when the Ecliptic Pole comes overhead at that tangential point, those stones mark the Ecliptic Meridian passing through Stonehenge. And when that line is projected south, it meets the equator due south of the Egyptian ‘Memphite Necropolis’, containing the great pyramids of Giza. Putting it another way, the Ecliptic meridian through Stonehenge meets the prime meridian of Giza at the equator. And Alan realised this created another extraordinary relationship: at midsummer sunrise at Stonehenge, the one alignment there which even the sceptics recognise, the Vernal Equinox was on the prime meridian at Giza.
That one can’t be verified optically in a planetarium with the same certainty, because the tilt of the Earth’s axis to the equator is not constant, varying between 22 and 24 degrees.15 In 2840 BC it was near maximum, and has since declined by over half a degree. None of the planetaria we’ve used could allow for that, but the relationship is extremely close, even today. I had my calculations confirmed by Paul Benson, then curator of Airdrie Observatory; and more recently Alan had it all done from scratch by Peter Tyler, (of the Positional Services Dept. of GECO-PRAKLA, Oslo, a leading international seismic survey company), who confirmed that around 2700 BC the alignment was close. In his calculations the margin of error was less than one-fifth of a degree; my own put it even closer.
The oldest features of all at Stonehenge lie over the brow of the hill, northwest from the circle. The ‘Car Park Post Holes’ held huge vertical tree trunks or totem poles, and radiocarbon dating has them as old as 8000 BC.16 Even that was a mystery: it was believed that the first mesolithic settlers reached Britain long after the Ice Age, around 6000 BC,17 but now we know that people returned to Britain as soon as the glaciers retreated. It’s possible that the weathering on the Bluestones of Stonehenge II, which were brought from the Prescelly Mountains in Wales, makes them older and perhaps once erected elsewhere; that could have been any time after they were first exposed to the atmosphere around 12,000 BC.18 The ice sheets never covered Stonehenge and Prescelly, even at their greatest extent in 20,000 BC.15
As Alan Evans pointed out, the Ecliptic Meridian passes through the line of Post Holes,19 on the line of stones 92-93 (fig. 3). If there really was a spacecraft, and its attitude sensing platform was relating our ecliptic and celestial co-ordinates to the galactic ones, then if galactic alignments determined the latitude of the touchdown site on Salisbury Plain, then the ecliptic ones show an intention to go to Egypt afterwards, which determined the longitude and brought it down at the future site of Stonehenge I – which raises the interesting speculation, were the Posts still standing at that time, as if to mark the landing place? Below, we’ll see some reason to think that might have been their intended purpose, at least.
The next question is, are any of the Stonehenge galactic alignments repeated at the Old Kingdom Egyptian pyramids? The Step Pyramid at Saqqara, whose longitude is one-tenth of a degree east of Giza’s, was the first stone building in the world, created around 2650 BC by the architect Imhotep for the pharaoh Djoser (Fig. 9). Imhotep changed the design several times during construction, and some archaeologists suggest that he filled in the steps with rubble and faced them with limestone, to give the illusion of a true pyramid.27 (The next two, intended to be true pyramids, were partial failures before the Great Pyramid’s builders got it right.)
And if the Step Pyramid was originally faced in that way, then as nearly as we can measure it, a perpendicular line up the north face met the prime meridian at the declination of the southern intercept between the galactic equator and the ecliptic, marked I2 in Fig. 3 – one of the same alignments we’d found at Stonehenge. But, extraordinary as all this was, we were still a long way from our goal; we knew what we wanted to do next, but it was beyond our financial means. So we withheld publication, until April 1996, when a whole new situation developed.
The Pyramids and the Sphinx.
Archaeoastronomers are in some ways remarkably conservative. Their own ideas about science in ancient society are rejected by many astronomers and most archaeologists; in consequence, they refuse to entertain any more controversial notions, such as a previously unknown civilisation on Earth, or extraterrestrial visitors. I suggested to the 1996 Edinburgh International Science Festival that we organise a seminar on ‘Heresies in Archaeoastronomy’, examining the ideas that were too controversial even for archaeoastronomers to consider. Prof. Archie Roy gallantly agreed to introduce it, and not surprisingly it drew a capacity audience. Naturally, Alan Evans was there to present his paper on the Ecliptic meridian.20
Another participant was Robert Bauval, whose book “The Orion Mystery”21 suggested that the three giant pyramids of Giza not only incorporated star alignments in their so-called ‘air-shafts’ (Fig. 8), but represented the stars of Orion’s Belt mapped on to the landscape. When Alan Evans checked their findings, he found that the same shaft which marked the meridian transit of Alnitak, the left-hand star of Orion’s Belt, also marked the transit of the Galactic Centre. So of the two galactic alignments marked at Stonehenge, one was incorporated into the Step Pyramid and the other into the Great one.
Robert had now collaborated with Graham Hancock on a new book, “Keeper of Genesis”, based on the possibly great age of the Sphinx. The apparent evidence of water erosion suggests that the Sphinx and its flanking temples were built as long ago as 10,500 BC, when Egypt last had a wet climate towards the end of the Ice Age.22 The Vernal Equinox was then in the constellation Leo, and Robert and Graham suggest that the Sphinx was built to face its counterpart in the sky. Furthermore, the orientation of the Belt stars to the Milky Way corresponds to the Pyramids’ in relation to the Nile – not when they themselves were built, but when the Sphinx was carved out 8000 years before.
In 10,500 BC, as far as we know, the Nile delta was inhabited only by hunter-gatherers, wholly lacking the technology to carve out the Sphinx and build the temples in 200-ton blocks. In a previous book Graham Hancock tried to get round this by suggesting a world-spanning civilisation, unknown to us, which lasted over 8000 years and was based on the coast of Antarctica.23 It used to be thought that the Antarctic coast was ice-free during the Ice Age in the northern hemisphere; however, that idea had been attacked by the early 1980’s15 and more recent Antarctic surveys continue to stack up evidence against it. And it’s very hard to believe that such a world-spanning, long-lasting civilisation would leave so little evidence behind.
Graham couldn’t attend the Edinburgh seminar, but he and Robert were both in Glasgow three weeks later and I was able to arrange a continuation, in which we went to the planetarium at the College of Nautical Studies. First I showed them what Alan Evans and I had discovered, and when they saw the galactic alignment at Stonehenge I, Robert Bauval made an extraordinary remark, which I’ll come back to in a moment.
Then, holding the date c.2700 BC, we shifted to the latitude of Giza, and verified Robert’s calculations for “The Orion Mystery”. It had never occurred to him to do so in this way, and he was as moved as I had been at seeing the layout of the ancient skies for himself – especially since everything he had calculated was confirmed. So too were the “Keeper” calculations for 10,500 BC, Leo, Orion and the Sphinx, when we moved the setting back to that date. When the Sun rose below Leo at the Vernal Equinox in 10,500 BC, Orion was on the meridian, and the orientation of the Belt stars to the Milky Way matched that of the Giza pyramids to the Nile 8,000 years later. Whatever its significance, that claim is true: we saw it with our own eyes, re-enacted.
But when I showed the galactic orientation of Stonehenge I, and explained what it might mean in terms of an ET landing, Robert’s show-stopping remark was, “It’s the same at Giza in 10,500 BC, we just didn’t know what it meant.” Now the time had come to verify that. Once again, if it was true at all, it would be true once a day, every day, at that latitude and date. So, just by letting the stars wheel on, we verified it at once. At Giza, in 10,500 BC, due to the effect of precession, the same galactic relationship existed as at Stonehenge c.2840. Once a day, the sky took up the same Fig. 6 configuration, with the galactic pole in the zenith and the plane of the Milky Way coinciding with the horizon. We saw it for ourselves: like a galactic ‘compass rose’ at each location, but separated by eight millennia in time.
But in that case, what was happening then at Stonehenge?
We kept the date at 10,500 BC, and the custodian took the planetarium ‘back up’ to the latitude of Stonehenge. Having no idea what to look for, once again we just let the stars wheel freely around, through a normal day. And Epsilon Boötis went through the zenith! It was doing that daily in 10,500 BC, when the galactic alignments were in force at Giza, and the effect of precession on it, over the next 8000 years, was to bring it back to the Stonehenge zenith, as an optical marker for the same galactic alignments at Stonehenge itself when Stonehenge I was created. Unless it’s all coincidence, it can only mean that the events of 2840-2500 BC represented a return to both sites. And the first, 10,500 BC date goes along with the ‘approximately 13,000 years ago’ given by Arcturus’s position in that first map of my 1973 ‘translation’, fig. 1(A). If that map meant anything, it would have to be as a time marker, not a navigational reference as I thought.
It still isn’t Category A evidence, the artefact of indisputably extraterrestrial origin, nor the Category B anomaly that leads us to it. In this context, Category C might stand for ‘circumstantial’. But I can’t believe that all those circumstances are coincidental; these multiple high-tech astronomical alignments are, in my opinion, the best evidence for Past Contact ever put forward. The synergistic combination of our research with Bauval and Hancock’s has convinced me that we’re on the track of something big.
It left two questions to answer:
1. What about the Green Children?
In the September 1996 Analog I suggested Past Contact in 12th century England. Is there a connection? There’s one I pointed out in that article. The latter half of the 12th century AD featured the most violent solar activity since the Bronze Age, indicated by aurorae, carbon-14 ratios, tree-rings etc.24 And that previous peak was a triple one, between 2700 and 1800 BC, covering the building of Avebury, the Pyramids, Stonehenge II and Stonehenge III. It may be coincidence; but it’s interesting that it was the case in both historical periods which I’d consider candidates for Contact events.
Even more remarkably, however, Alan Evans discovered that during the crucial years of the 12th century, between the Second Crusade and the fall of Jerusalem to Saladin, Jerusalem too had the same galactic alignment as Stonehenge I and Giza in 10,500 BC. At that point, the three enquiries – in the three very different areas of ancient positional astronomy, mediaeval history and the 1920s radio echoes – are actually three aspects of the same enquiry. It’s still circumstantial, all of it, but it looks as if it may add up to something very significant.
2. So what about the Space Probe?
Optical searches of the Lagrange points in the late 1970s found nothing. But in April 1995 Dr. Duncan Steel drew attention to the discovery, at Kitt Peak in Arizona, of a most unusual asteroid designated 1991 VG. In December 1991 it passed Earth at a distance of only 485,000 miles. Its diameter was estimated at 9-19 metres, assuming that it was made of one of the more common asteroidal rocks. However, observations at closest approach suggested “strong, rapid brightness variations which can be interpreted as transient specular reflections from the surfaces of a rotating spacecraft”.25
During the space age 1991 VG would have passed only twice before, in February-March 1975 and in mid-1958 – possibly 1959, if the 1975 approach altered the orbit. Nothing that big was launched in 1958-59, nor in 1975; the European Helios 1 was launched in December 1974, but its carrier’s upper stage did not escape from the Earth into orbit round the Sun. Perhaps, instead, 1991 VG was orbiting Earth then, until it was ‘discovered’ and moved away before anything more serious happened.
But when it comes backin 2017, let’s hope that a major attempt is made to look at it. The solar-sailing ‘Comet-chaser’ Gordon Ross and I suggested here would be ideal,26 but it can be done by conventional means: NEAR, the Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous, is to orbit the asteroid Eros shortly, and Europe’s Rosetta probe is to do the same with a short-period comet after 2000; NASA’s Deep Space 4 will reach Comet Tempel in 2006, and a Japanese probe will reach asteroid Nereus the same year. 1991 VG should be next on the list.
References.
1. Duncan Lunan, ‘Space Probe from Epsilon Boötis?’, Analog XCII, 5, 66-84, January 1974.
2. – , ‘Long-Delayed Echoes and the Extraterrestrial Hypothesis’, Journal of the Society of Electronic and Radio Technicians, 10, 8, 180-182, September 1976.
3. Ronald N. Bracewell, ‘Manifestations of Advanced Civilisations’, in John Billingham, ed., “Life in the Universe”, MIT Press, 1981.
4. James Strong, “Flight to the Stars”, Temple Press, 1965.
5. George Sassoon, ‘A Correlation of Long-Delay Radio Echoes and the Moon’s Orbit’, Spaceflight, 16, 7, 258-265, July 1974.
6. Anthony T. Lawton, Sydney J. Newton, ‘Long Delayed Echoes: the Search for a Solution’, Spaceflight 16, 5, 181-187, May 1974.
7. Robert A. Freitas, Jr., Francisco Valdes, ‘A Search for Natural or Artificial Objects Located at the Earth-Moon Libration Points’, Icarus 42, 442-447 (1980); ‘A Search for Objects near the Earth-Moon Lagrangian Points’, Icarus 53, 453-457 (1983).
8. James R. Wertz, ‘Interstellar Navigation’, Spaceflight, 14, 206-216, June 1972.
9. Duncan Lunan, “Man and the Stars”, Souvenir Press 1974; US editions “Interstellar Contact”, Henry Regnery Co., 1975, “The Mysterious Signals from Outer Space”, Bantam, 1977.
10. Gerald S. Hawkins, “Stonehenge Decoded”, Souvenir Press, 1966.
11. A.Thom, “Megalithic Sites in Britain”, Oxford University Press, 1967; “Megalithic Lunar Observatories”, OUP, 1971; (with A.S. Thom), “Megalithic Remains in Britain and Brittany”, OUP, 1978.
12. Duncan Lunan, ‘Solar Events at Sighthill’, Griffith Observer, 50, 6, 2-11, 20, June 1986.
13. J. Gall Inglis, Arthur P. Norton, “Star Atlas”, 14th edition, Gall & Inglis, 1959.
14. Dates for the various construction phases at Stonehenge remain in some dispute; Aubrey Burl, “Prehistoric Avebury”, Yale University Press, 1979, puts the earliest construction around 2800 BC, as do the Thoms (ref.19), with no further work until c.2150 BC. Some recent reports compress the building into one continuous process; yet there seems to be clear evidence for an interruption, during which the Stonehenge I ditch silted up, although its discoverer put the event strangely far back, dating it at 3100 BC, well before the starting dates given elsewhere. (Christopher Chippendale, ‘Life around Stonehenge’, New Scientist, 101, 1404, 12-17, 5 April 1984).
15. Fred Hoyle, “Ice”, Hutchinson, 1981.
16. Sean O’Neill, ‘Totem Poles Give Pointer to Siting of Stonehenge’, The Daily Telegraph, 28 June 1996.
17. Robert Dawson Scott, ‘Silent Power from a Time of the Ancients’, The Daily Telegraph, 10th January 1997.
18. Nigel Hawkes, ‘Stonehenge Dating Dispels Icesheet Theory’, The Times, 5 December 1994.
19. A. Thom, A.S. Thom and A. Thom, ‘Stonehenge’, Journal for the History of Astronomy, 5, 13, 71-90 (June 1974).
20. A.C. Evans, ‘The Three Dimensional Grid’, paper presented at ‘Heresies in Archaeoastronomy’, Edinburgh International Science Festival, 16th April 1995.
21. Robert Bauval & Adrian Gilbert, “The Orion Mystery”, Heinemann, 1994.
22. Robert Bauval & Graham Hancock, “Keeper of Genesis”, Heinemann, 1996.
23. Graham Hancock, “Fingerprints of the Gods”, Heinemann, 1995.
24. John A. Eddy, ‘The Case of the Missing Sunspots’, Scientific American, 236, 5, 80-88 & 92, May 1977; ‘The Maunder Minimum’, Science, 192, 4245, 1189-1202 (18th June, 1976.)
25. Duncan Steel, ‘SETA and 1991 VG’, The Observatory, April 1995; ‘Of Asteroids and Aliens’, The Skeptic, 15, 1, 9-10 (1995).
26. Duncan Lunan, ‘Keep Watching the Skies!’, Analog, CXIV, 12, 70-84, October 1994.
27. I.E.S. Edwards, “The Pyramids of Egypt”, Penguin, 1947.
In 2016, Kanye West had a $52 million debt and everyone turned their backs on him. His wife Kim created a game called Kimoji that generated 80 million dollars, with this transferred 52 million to her common account cleaning up her husband’s debts.
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Today Kanye, thanks to the sales of his Yeezy product line, has a fortune of more than almost 2 billion dollars.
A man also needs an intelligent and strong woman who will stand by his side, regardless of the situation at the time. What would Kanye be without his wife’s support?
Raw Feed of the Dark Knight from China
This is RAW feed from a Chinese satellite used for land surveying. The image is NOT captured by camera. Only the background is captured by the camera. Instead, the “collision avoidance radar” captured the 3D object in the foreground and rendered it in this clip. Thus you have a rendered 3D object overlay over the satellite camera background.
The clip is a Chinese commentator discussing the object and its features.
It is part of a much larger video clip which also includes other anomalous objects captured by an array of Chinese satellites.
The Black Night is the conventional name for this object that is believed to be an extraterrestrial vehicle in orbit around the earth for the last 11,000 years.
There are clearer photographs of this object in great detail, but they only show one singular side. This clip is unique as the entire shape is rendered and we can observe how it travels in orbit around the earth, though without the photographic clarity that the NASA photo has.
The other day, a “fan” wrote to me for some of the comments / articles that I have generated on other venues. He said that he was sure that “Communist China must love me”. Huh.
He meant it is a compliment. I am sure, but the truth is that China doesn’t really know be from a “hill of beans”. I’m just another foreigner in China. Nobody special.
Just like the United States chucked me out. Useless. Discarded; a nobody.
And whether we are useful, or just discarded rubbish… it means NOTHING. What matters is how YOU deal with your life, under your own situation.
Are you making the world a better place?
Are you participating?
Are you doing good things and contributing… in your very own and unique way? That’s what is important.
I love China.
But that is just me.
Each and everyone of us must carve out our own little place on this planet. Make the world around you a good and sustainable one. Share your prosperity with others with no concern for profit or benefit. Be the “good guy”. No matter what.
Sense of humor. I’ve never met a single guy who was very funny.
Strength. Either physical or emotional. Preferably both. Some girls like “gentle giants” though.
Intelligence. Most girls I know are super attracted to smart guys. And if the guy is really gorgeous but dumb as a door knob, the girls get over them quickly.
Kindness. Yes, some girls are attracted to jerks. But they’re a masochistic minority. Most prefer a guy who could be nice to their mom and puppies.
Good hygiene. That’s a given. No one wants to smell too much body odor and see hairs growing out of your nose. Please.
Loyalty. Most girls are turned off by players. We were all raised on the fairy tales where prince and princess lived happily ever after, not where he texted his side chick.
Courage. I know, guys are human too. You have your moments where you’re intimidated or unsure. But brave men are inherently attractive.
Attraction. A girl wants that the guy to be really into her. Sometimes if a guy is aloof and cold, you’ll have some masochist girls taking it as a challenge. But most girls will just be turned off.
A crystal clear piece penned by Hu Xijin of the Global Times, the mouthpiece of the CCP.
It’s with a dance in my heart and a blazing flame in my soul that I copy down each word of the ante-penultimate paragraph, which absolutely deserves to be quoted in its entirety :
" China's military power is primarily used for strategic deterrence against the US, making it so that although the US military has advantages, it dares not resort to military blackmail against China. In addition, our military power is used to defend core interests, especially when it comes to the resolution of the Taiwan question, WE MUST HAVE THE FINAL SAY. We adopt a defensive military strategy, but in the Taiwan Straits region, WE HAVE GRADUALLY FORMED A LOCAL ABSOLUTE MILITARY ADVANTAGE. We will not engage in military confrontation with the US in regions far away from China's core interests. However, if the US military comes to China's nearby waters, especially if it intervenes militarily in the Taiwan Straits and assists the "Taiwanese military" in a possible future Taiwan Straits war, the People's Liberation Army will not hesitate to "BEAT THE CRAP OUT OF" THOSE US TROOPS. We will always make our determination clear to the US.
The U.S wanted to strong-arm China by banning Chinese companies, however it never knew it could backfire. The U.S Secretary of Treasury Janet Yellen has already said that the U.S decoupling from China would be a disastrous mistake, that’s because she knows how China can make or break the U.S and its economy.
Just to show how essential China is for the U.S it canceled the 1.1 million tons of corn import order from the U.S but this should not be seen only from an escalating perspective, rather China wants to diversify countries so it can import grains at a better price but this has allowed the U.S to see how China can create shock waves and not only Tech but Agriculture and other sectors.
But how does this canceled order change things for not only the U.S and its Farmers but also the world’s grain prices.
According to the observatory of economic complexities (OEC) China is the world’s biggest exporter of goods and services, in other words China tops the list of producing and selling products to other countries and this allows China to generate excess revenues that could finance its phenomenal development.
However it appears that the U.S misunderstood it, it thought that if Chinese products were banned then China could be strong-armed, but this really backfired as the U.S forgot how much of the goods it exports to China, it also ignored the fact that if China stopped buying those products the U.S would struggle.
Then and now
2023 06 30 17 30
FIRST TIME HEARING Spacehog – In The Meantime REACTION
A short & PERFECT explanation of everything happening now on the World stage by Michael Hudson.
In a nutshell, the most clumsy behavior, coming from a staggering hubris, of the international bully aka US/KFC-AZAEL (Kakistocratic Feudal Conglomerate of the Anglo-Zio-American EstabLishment) triggered an awakening of the Global Majority (88% of the global population).
Using Hudson’s words appearing in this piece : ** What happened is a change in consciousness. **
The upshot will be civilizational in scope.
This time, the US/KFC-AZAEL doesn’t have as adversaries the usual downtrodden & disorganized Third World countries but the clear-minded coalition of the REAL international community together with the might of the last Three Sovereign Civilizational States : China, Russia, Iran.
Together, the people of the World will trigger the collapse of the Western World. This collapse doesn’t necessarily mean disorder and chaos in the streets of the Western nations.
That is a caricature more related to fear porn and definitely not going to the core essential.
The collapse of the Western World means the definitive & irreversible end of the Western global predatory system or using Hudson’s technical expression, the rent extraction system.
The collapse of the Western World also means the end of the Western overweening & laughable pretensions to superior morality & better understanding of reality.
That’s what I call the core meaning of the collapse of the Western World. Not wishing to appear too flippant nor too cynical, I still want to express my heartfelt gratitude to the neo-cons; their utter imbecilic decisions having certainly contributed a lot to this marvelous acceleration of Universal History. Whom the Gods want to destroy, they first made mad .. 再 见 ! Quan
Herodotus (History, Book 1.53) tells the story of Croesus, king of Lydia c. 585-546 BC in what is now Western Turkey and the Ionian shore of the Mediterranean. Croesus conquered Ephesus, Miletus and neighboring Greek-speaking realms, obtaining tribute and booty that made him one of the richest rulers of his time. But these victories and wealth led to arrogance and hubris. Croesus turned his eyes eastward, ambitious to conquer Persia, ruled by Cyrus the Great.
Having endowed the region’s cosmopolitan Temple of Delphi with substantial silver and gold, Croesus asked its Oracle whether he would be successful in the conquest that he had planned. The Pythia priestess answered: “If you go to war against Persia, you will destroy a great empire.”
Croesus therefore set out to attack Persia c. 547 BC. Marching eastward, he attacked Persia’s vassal-state Phrygia. Cyrus mounted a Special Military Operation to drive Croesus back, defeating Croesus’s army, capturing him and taking the opportunity to seize Lydia’s gold to introduce his own Persian gold coinage. So Croesus did indeed destroy a great empire, but it was his own.
Fast-forward to today’s drive by the Biden administration to extend American military power against Russia and, behind it, China. The president asked for advice from today’s analogue to antiquity’s Delphi oracle: the CIA and its allied think tanks. Instead of warning against hubris, they encouraged the neocon dream that attacking Russia and China would consolidate U.S. control of the world economy, achieving the End of History.
Having organized a coup d’état in Ukraine in 2014, the United States sent its NATO proxy army eastward, giving weapons to Ukraine to fight an ethnic war against its Russian-speaking population and turn Russia’s Crimean naval base into a NATO fortress. This Croesus-level ambition aimed at drawing Russia into combat and depleting its ability to defend itself, wrecking its economy in the process and destroying its ability to provide military support to China and other countries targeted for seeking self-dependency as an alternative to U.S. hegemony.
After eight years of provocation, a new military attack on Russian-speaking Ukrainians was conspicuously prepared, ready to drive toward the Russian border in February 2022. Russia protected its fellow Russian-speakers from further ethnic violence by mounting its own Special Military Operation. The United States and its NATO allies immediately seized Russia’s foreign-exchange reserves held in Europe and North America, and demanded that all countries impose sanctions against importing Russian energy and grain, hoping that this would crash the ruble’s exchange rate. The Delphic State Department expected that this would cause Russian consumers to revolt and overthrow Vladimir Putin’s government, enabling U.S. maneuvering to install a client oligarchy like the one it had nurtured in the 1990s under President Yeltsin.
A byproduct of this confrontation with Russia has been to lock in America’s control over its Western European satellites. The aim of this intra-NATO jockeying was to foreclose Europe’s dream of profiting from closer trade and investment relations with Russia by exchanging its industrial manufactures for Russian raw materials. The United States derailed that prospect by blowing up the Nord Stream gas pipelines, cutting off Germany and other countries from access to low-priced Russian gas. That left Europe’s leading economy dependent on higher-cost U.S. Liquified Natural Gas (LNG).
In addition to having to subsidize domestic European gas to prevent widespread insolvency, a large proportion of German Leopard tanks, U.S. Patriot missiles and other NATO “wonder weapons” are being destroyed in combat against the Russian army. It has become clear that the U.S. strategy is not simply to “fight to the last Ukrainian,” but to fight to the last tank, missile and other weapon being deleted from NATO stocks.
This depletion of NATO’s arms was expected to create a vast replacement market to enrich America’s military-industrial complex. Its NATO customers are being told to increase their military spending to 3 or even 4 percent of GDP. But the weak performance of U.S. and German arms on the Ukrainian battlefield may have crashed this dream, while Europe’s economies are sinking into depression. And with Germany’s industrial economy deranged by the severing of its trade with Russia, German Finance Minister Christian Lindner told the Die Welt newspaper on June 16, 2023 that his country cannot afford to pay more money into the European Union budget, to which it has long been the largest contributor.
Without German exports supporting the euro’s exchange rate, the currency will come under pressure against the dollar as Europe buys LNG and NATO replenishes its depleted weaponry stocks by buying new arms from America. A lower exchange rate will squeeze the purchasing power of European labor, while lowering social spending to pay for rearmament and provide gas subsidies is plunging the continent into a depression.
A nationalist reaction against U.S. dominance is rising throughout European politics, and instead of America locking in its control over European policy, the United States may end up losing – not only in Europe but most crucially throughout the Global South. Instead of turning Russia’s “ruble to rubble” as President Biden promised, Russia’s balance of trade has soared and its gold supply has increased. So have the gold holdings of other countries whose governments are now aiming to de-dollarize their economies.
It is American diplomacy that is driving Eurasia and the Global South out of the U.S. orbit. America’s hubristic drive for unipolar world dominance could only have been dismantled so rapidly from within. The Biden-Blinken-Nuland administration has done what neither Vladimir Putin nor Chinese President Xi could have hoped to achieve in so short a period. Neither was prepared to throw down the gauntlet and create an alternative to the U.S.-centered world order. But U.S. sanctions against Russia, Iran, Venezuela and China have had the effect of protective tariff barriers to force self-sufficiency in what EU diplomat Josep Borrell calls the world “jungle” outside of the US/NATO “garden.”
Although the Global South and other countries have been complaining about U.S. dominance ever since the Bandung Conference of Non-Aligned Nations in 1955, they have lacked a critical mass to create a viable alternative. But their attention has now been focused by the U.S. confiscation of Russia’s official dollar reserves in NATO countries. That dispelled the thought of the dollar as a safe vehicle in which to hold international savings. The Bank of England’s earlier seizure of Venezuela’s gold reserves kept in London – promising to donate them to whatever unelected opponents of its socialist regime U.S. diplomats designate – shows how sterling and the euro as well as the dollar have been weaponized. And by the way, what ever happened to Libya’s gold reserves?
American diplomats avoid thinking about this scenario. They rely on the one unique advantage the United States has to offer. It may refrain from bombing them, from staging a color revolution to “Pinochet” them by the National Endowment for Democracy, or install a new “Yeltsin” giving the economy away to a client oligarchy.
But refraining from such behavior is all that America can offer. It has de-industrialized its own economy, and its idea of foreign investment is to carve out monopoly-rent seeking opportunities by concentrating technological monopolies and control of oil and grain trade in U.S. hands, as if this is economic efficiency, not rent-seeking.
What has occurred is a change in consciousness. We are seeing the Global Majority trying to create an independent and peacefully negotiated choice as to just what kind of an international order they want. Their aim is not merely to create alternatives to the use of dollars, but an entire new set of institutional alternatives to the IMF and World Bank, the SWIFT bank clearing system, the International Criminal Court and the entire array of institutions that U.S. diplomats have hijacked from the United Nations.
The upshot will be civilizational in scope. We are seeing not the End of History but a fresh alternative to U.S.-centered neoliberal finance capitalism and its junk economics of privatization, class war against labor, and the idea that money and credit should be privatized in the hands of a narrow financial class instead of being a public utility to finance economic needs and rising living standards.
The irony is that America’s historical role has been that although it itself was not able to lead the world forward along these lines, its attempts to lock the world into an antithetical imperial system by conquering Russia on the plains of Ukraine and trying to isolate China’s technology from breaking the U.S. attempt at IT monopoly have been the great catalysts pushing the global majority along these lines.
Russian Reacts to THE CRANBERRIES – Zombie | MADE me CRY
American exports to China
2023 07 01 11 48
BabantheKidd FIRST TIME reacting to Bobby Brown – Every Little Step
A fun reaction video…
American exports to China
2023 07 01 11 49x
Oven-Fried Tex-Mex Onion Rings
2023 06 30 15 48
Ingredients
1/2 cup plain dry bread crumbs
1/3 cup yellow cornmeal
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon plus 1 1/2 teaspoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon water
2 medium onions (about 10 ounces), sliced 3/8 inch thick
2 egg whites
Instructions
Heat oven to 450 degrees F. Spray large nonstick baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.
Combine bread crumbs, cornmeal, chili powder, ground red pepper and salt in medium shallow dish; mix well. Stir in butter and water.
Separate onion slices into rings. Place egg whites in large bowl; beat lightly.
Add onions; toss lightly to coat evenly.
Transfer to bread crumb mixture; toss to coat evenly.
Place in single layer on prepared baking sheet.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until onions are tender and coating is crisp.
They are primarily responsible for almost all our Military Industrial and Space Development
Everystep we took was with their technical know how and machinery. They trained thousands of our Pilots and Engineers until we could develop our own 100% indigenous training.
They gave us our Rocketry base. They helped almost all our Launch programs until the Late 80s, they gave us our first Space launch Programs, computers and processors until 1994.
Tank Design, Aircraft Design, Tech Collaboration, Wind Tunnel Guidance, Aircraft Carrier Development, Submarine Technology, Naval Avionics – without the Russians we would be nowhere
Radar and Aero Engineering (Cranwell) were the only two areas where Britain has helped us.
They built our entire Foundation so that now we are slowly overlaying ourselves.
Like US to Israel
They taught us to lay our entire Intelligence Apparatus
RAW and IB were British Intelligence oriented
However Radio Surveillance, Radio Tracking, Interception were all taught to us by Russians
From 1955 to 1987, over 2400 Joint Monitoring Intelligence Apps were carried out with Egypt, Yugoslavia and India participating with Czechoslovakia overseen by USSR
During that period post ’62 – we had no intelligence failures especially in the ’65 War
They were our earliest Nuclear Program Helpers
They helped us hugely.
2023 07 01 15 22
Tarapore, Narora and now the latest in Kundakulam – all have their Roastom training and guidance
Of course France and canada played a role , a good role even by 1979–80
However it was Primarily Russian Collaboration from 1956–1974 upto Smiling Buddha
So we owe them almost everything.
And they did it without any Bullying strings whatsoever
They never demanded we join Military Alliances like US did of Pak
They never demanded we send troops to Afghanistan
They never demanded that we forcibly buy Oil from them at higher rates.
They were instrumental in avoiding a Two front War with Pak today thanks to their 1971 War counter to Nixon
Right or wrong, Russians are our Mentors and Friends
2023 07 01 15 23
Even God would smite us if we ever went against them
If the Ukraine conflict continues on its current trajectory, it will end in a total disaster for humanity
Dmitry Trenin is a research professor at the Higher School of Economics and a lead research fellow at the Institute of World Economy and International Relations. He is also a member of the Russian International Affairs Council.
Professor Sergey Karaganov’s “Tough-but-necessary decision” article
– which claims that by using its nuclear weapons, Russia could save humanity from a global catastrophe – has provoked plenty of reaction both at home and abroad. Partly because of the author’s status – he has been an advisor to both President Boris Yeltsin and President Vladimir Putin – and also due to the belief that his opinion may possibly be shared by some people in positions of power.
Dmitry Trenin, an extremely respected Russian expert who served in the Soviet military gives his response.
***
Professor Sergey Karaganov’s recent article brought into public focus the thorny issue of the use of nuclear weapons in the Ukraine conflict. Many reactions to the piece boil down to the well-known reasoning that there can be no winners in a nuclear war and thus it cannot be fought.
Against this background, President Vladimir Putin, responding to a question at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum, said that nuclear weapons are a deterrent and the conditions for their use is defined in a published doctrine. He explained that the theoretical possibility of using these weapons exists, but there is no need to use them now.
In principle, nuclear weapons have been “on the table” for Russia from the very beginning of the Ukrainian conflict precisely as a means of deterring the US and its allies from becoming directly involved. Nevertheless, repeated public reminders from Putin and other officials about Russia’s nuclear status have so far not prevented a growing escalation of NATO’s participation. As a result, it has become clear that nuclear deterrence, on which many in Moscow have relied as a credible means of securing the country’s vital interests, has proven to be a much more limited tool than they expected.
In fact, the US has now set itself the task – unthinkable during the Cold War – of trying to defeat another nuclear superpower in a strategically important region, without resorting to atomic weapons, but instead by arming and controlling a third country. The Americans are proceeding cautiously, testing Moscow’s responses and consistently pushing the boundaries of what is possible in terms of arms supplied to Kiev, as well as the choice of targets for them. From starting with anti-tank ‘Javelins,’ to eventually cajoling allies to send actual tanks, the US is now apparently pondering transferring F-16 fighter jets and long-range missiles.
It is likely that this US strategy is based on the belief that the Russian leadership would not dare use nuclear weapons in the current conflict, and that its references to the nuclear arsenal at its disposal are nothing more than a bluff. The Americans have even been calm – at least outwardly about the deployment of Russian non-strategic nuclear weapons in Belarus. Such “fearlessness” is a direct result of the geopolitical changes of the last three decades and the change of generations in power in the US and the West in general.
The fear of the atomic bomb, present in the second half of the twentieth century, has disappeared. Nuclear weapons have been taken out of the equation. The practical conclusion is clear: there is no need to be afraid of such a Russian response.
This is an extremely dangerous misconception. The trajectory of the Ukrainian war points to an escalation of the conflict both horizontally (by expanding the theater of military action) and vertically (by increasing the power of the weapons used and the intensity of their use). It must be soberly acknowledged that this momentum is heading towards a direct armed confrontation between Russia and NATO. If the accumulated inertia is not stopped, such a clash will take place, and in this case the war, having spread to Western Europe, will almost inevitably become nuclear. And after some time, a nuclear war in Europe will most likely lead to an exchange of blows between Russia and the US.
The Americans and their allies are truly playing Russian roulette. Yes, so far the Russian response to the bombing of Nord Stream, the drone attack on the strategic Engels airbase, the entry of Western-armed saboteurs into the Belgorod region and many other actions by the Washington-backed and controlled side has been relatively restrained.
As Putin recently made clear, there are good reasons for this restraint. Russia, the president said, is capable of destroying any building in Kiev, but will not stoop to the methods of terror used by the enemy. But Putin added that Russia was considering various options for destroying Western warplanes if they are based in NATO countries and directly take part in the war in Ukraine.
So far, Moscow’s strategy has been to allow the enemy to take the escalatory initiative. The West has taken advantage of this, trying to wear down Russia on the battlefield and undermine it from within. It makes no sense for the Kremlin to go along with this plan. On the contrary, it’s a better idea to clarify and modernize our nuclear deterrence strategy, taking into account the practical experience of the Ukrainian conflict. The existing doctrinal provisions were formulated not only before the start of the current military operation, but also apparently without a precise idea of what might happen in the course of such a situation.
Russia’s external strategy includes a basket of foreign diplomacy, information campaigns and other aspects – in addition to the military elements. The main adversary should be given an unambiguous signal that Moscow will not play by the rules set by the other side. Of course, this should be accompanied by a credible dialogue with both our strategic partners and neutral states, explaining the motives and objectives of our actions. The possibility of using nuclear weapons in the current conflict must not be concealed. This real, not just theoretical, prospect should be an incentive to limit and stop the escalation of the war and ultimately pave the way for a satisfactory strategic balance in Europe.
Regarding Russian nuclear strikes against NATO countries, as raised by Professor Karaganov: Hypothetically speaking, Washington would most likely not respond to such an attack with a nuclear response of its own against Russia – for fear of a Russian retaliatory launch against the US itself. This would dispel the mythology that has surrounded Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty for decades and lead to a profound crisis for NATO – possibly even the dissolution of the organization. It is possible that, in such circumstances, the Atlantic elites of NATO and the EU would panic and be swept aside by patriotic forces that would see for themselves that their security does not in fact depend on a non-existent US nuclear umbrella, but on building a balanced relationship with Russia. It is also possible that the Americans could decide to leave Russia alone.
It could well be that the calculation just described would ultimately be correct. But it is unlikely.
Yes, a US nuclear strike on Russia would probably not follow immediately. It is unlikely that the Americans would sacrifice Boston for Poznan, just as they were not going to sacrifice Chicago for Hamburg during the Cold War. But there will probably be some sort of response from Washington. Perhaps of the non-atomic type, which, without speculating too wildly, could be sensitive and painful for us. It is likely that with it, Washington would try to pursue a goal similar to ours: paralyzing the Russian leadership’s will to continue the war and creating panic in our society.
Moscow’s leadership is unlikely to capitulate after such a blow, since, at this stage, Russia’s very existence would be at stake. It is more likely that a retaliatory strike would follow, and this time, one can assume, against the main adversary rather than its satellites.
Let us pause before this point of no return and summarize our analysis tentatively.
Should the nuclear bullet be demonstrably inserted into the cylinder of the revolver that the US leadership is recklessly playing with today? To paraphrase a late American statesman: Why do we need nuclear weapons if we refuse to use them in the face of an existential threat?
On the other hand, there is no need to scare others with words. Instead, we have to prepare practically for any possible turn of events by carefully considering the options and their consequences.
The war in Ukraine has become protracted. As far as we can tell from the actions of the Russian leadership, it expects to achieve strategic success by relying on Russian resources, which are many times greater than those in Ukraine. It also relies on the fact that Moscow has much more at stake in this war than the West. This calculation is probably correct, but it should be taken into account that the opponent assesses Russia’s chances differently than we do and may take steps which could lead to a direct armed clash between Russia and the US/NATO.
We must be prepared for such a development. To avoid a general catastrophe, it is necessary to put fear of armageddon back into politics and the public consciousness.
In the nuclear age, it is the only guarantee of preserving humanity.
Nothing is cost-effective to the US military anymore. This DDG(X) program is mostly for cost-cutting by reducing quantity and making up by more advanced features. But US is clearly not the leader in this technological race. China already has 8 Type 055 in active service, plus more on the way (cooking dumplings). In any wars, preponderance in quantity is always the decisive factor. No exception. Same applies to the J-20 vs F-35 (with new ones stored pending final decision on revisions) and all munitions. This trend will continue to exacerbate the US disadvantage. The US is BROKE.
American exports to China
2023 07 01 12 16
Russia STRIKES US Soldiers In Ukrainian Pizza Restaurant
I was about 40 and on my way home from my pool league one night, I went home the back way. That’s why I came up over a hill at an intersection and was confronted with a police road block. There was no other way to go.
Of course I’d been drinking, not lots but some. I’d planned to drink more when I got home. Besides that, the case that my cues go in looks like a rifle case and was laying out on the back seat. On top of that, my new insurance card was still sitting home on the kitchen table.
The cop looked in my window and said into his radio, “Let this one through. It’s just an old lady.”
I smiled, thanked him and left and cussed him the whole rest of the way home.
American exports to China
2023 07 01 12 1ey6
MY MOM IS PISSED!! My Mom Reacts To Thomas Sowell – Facts About Slavery Never Mention In School
United Airlines Flight 232
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This to me was some of the most heroic yet tragic crash-landings I have ever witnessed in Aviation. This wasn’t done by one pilot, but an entire crew. Flight 232 from Denver to Chicago suffered a complete loss of hydraulics due to a tail engine explosion, causing the crew to divert to Sioux City. These pilots were flying a plane with zero flight controls.
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It had no wing flaps, it had no rudder, no elevators, no VS, no brakes for landing; the plane could not even deploy its wheels without manual deployment and gravity. They could not control the pitch, the orientation, direction or the altitude with their flight controls.
The pilots had to solely rely on their two remaining engines to control the entire plane.
As there was a loss of flight controls, the plane banked right and nearly became inverted. To combat this, the pilots increased power on the right engine to keep the plane horizontally stable.
The plane also tried to pitch down, for which the pilots increased engine power even more to stop it from diving. But this caused the plane to overshoot and pitch up, causing a stall, so the pilots repeatedly had to increase and decrease engine power to keep the plane from falling out of the sky while keeping the right engine at high power.
While calling an emergency, the pilots had to make a right turn to the nearest airport. Since the airplane wants to bank right, the pilots used precious minutes of their time to commit a full left turn circle formation by using maximum power on the right engine to make the move.
For about 30 minutes, against complete loss of flight controls and multiple dangers, the pilots managed to keep the plane steady solely using the wing engines. But as engine power was high, it was flying too fast and too high for a safe landing. These pilots now had another dilemma: they had to slow down the plane to decrease altitude and speed while keeping the plane fast enough to keep it stabilized.
Unfortunately, luck was not on their side. Even after deploying gears to slow the plane down and managing to get the plane to descend, it was going way too fast for the plane to touch down in one piece. And so, the plane shattered across the field in Sioux City Airport going 270 km/h faster than normal.
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It might not sound like a successful landing, but it turned out over 60% of the occupants of this flight, including all pilots, survived the crash. There were 52 children on this flight – only 11 died. For such extreme conditions this plane underwent, touching the runway at nearly 3 times over the maximum landing speed and dropping nearly 9 m/s, catching fire, it was a miracle that anyone survived such a trip.
Everybody on this plane was supposed to be dead, but these pilots managed to wrestle back 184 people lives from their fate. Those men, with remarkable decision-making, communication and teamwork under possibly one of the worst conditions a passenger airplane could experience managed to look death in the eye and beat him at his own game.
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Edit: Aye guys, thanks for the up-votes. I just wanted to say that this was really a time where people came together at the right time and everybody did their jobs to the most perfect ability that set a standard and changed flying for years to come.
So I want to give credit to everybody on the ground as well, specifically emergency services without whose help and timing, a lot more people would have died. I also want to give credit to the ATC for handling this flight as well as the rest of the airport staff that provided critical medical attention to the injured. Clear weather as well.
And lastly the flight attendants, who unfortunately took the heaviest brunt on that crash for not only getting passengers into crash position but also moving them out of the plane broken in pieces when they were wounded as well! A group effort indeed!
First thing is when you need a QUAD and AUKUS to counter you, that means you have to be congratulated for your growth and rising power
That’s huge FACE for Xi Jingping
That the Western World fears Chinas rise so much that they need so many Abbreviations
Next let’s see how Xi Jingping dealt with either?
With UTTER CONTEMPT
Let’s see the AUKUS first
Australia, UK and USA
Let’s see QUAD next
Japan, India, Australia and USA
First let’s neutralize India
Simplest thing. A Land invasion can pulverize the growing Indian economy and send it into Ukraine mode within a year and send Modi scrambling to the Negotiating Table
So India is neutralized by a simple land threat
That will be so for at least 20–25 years until India really achieve a minimum 60% indigenous mass equipment manufacturing for a full scale defense (India is at 9% as of 2023)
India needs at least $ 10 Trillion to stand upto China by which time China may stand to $ 30 Trillion
Next let’s Neutralize Japan
Japan’s entire Arsenal and manufacturing is 1/18 of China or around 5%
Japan was outproduced by USA in 1943 and today China beats that USA by almost 2.5 times
China’s land batteries can pulverize the entire Japanese shipping lines and blockade their access to Oil and Gas in a matter of minutes with Russia’s help.
That leaves UK and Australia
Lackey puppets whose military is zero
No way would they be the slightest threat to China
That leaves USA
Yes US is a serious adversary. Always was.
So that’s just US again no matter whatever form anything takes
China’s only real adversary is USA and everyone else is a second fiddle player with zero threat perception
South Korea is countered by North Korea
India is countered by a Two front crushing pincher plus a potential Indian Ocean lock in
Phillipines and Taiwan can be pulverized to pieces with mere land based launch attacks alone
Equivalent to Mexico and US
As they say, it’s childs play
The only time Xi would be terribly worried would be with a US — Russian alliance
That would worry Xi and give him sleepless nights
2023 06 30 16 59
Xis greatest piece of luck was Biden treating Putin as a pariah and cementing an alliance with Russia which now makes Chinas position 20 times stronger
There are Two Lions facing an Older Lion and a bunch of small dogs and vultures
My husband is a native Indonesian and a retired lawyer from the Indonesian consular section at the Indonesian Embassy abroad( KBRI). .𝗝𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀..In Bali, weed is also highly illegal. The possession, sale, and consumption of marijuana in Bali is punishable with 10 years in prison. Those caught trafficking weed in Bali can receive the death penalty. Weed laws in Bali are strictly enforced. Tourists caught smoking weed in public can sometimes manage to bribe their way out of a problematic situation.Using cannabis or weed in Indonesia can lead to a prison sentence of up to four years. Possession of marijuana, cannabis or weed incurs a maximum sentence of 12 years in prison and a maximum 8 billion rupiah in fines (around $560,000).
Producing, exporting, importing, or distributing any kind of drugs comes with a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a fine of 10 billion rupiah.
In some cases, the punishment for weed in Indonesia can be the death penalty. Such cases include the production, import, export, distribution, sales, purchase for dealing purposes, transport, and provision to others leading to permanent injury or death of cannabis in amounts of more than 1 kg or over five plants.
While rare, executions for drug smuggling do occur in Bali and Indonesia, even for tourists. In 2018 eventually nine travelers from Australia were convicted of smuggling cannabis out of Indonesia. Two were eventually sentenced to death and executed by a firing squad. Cannabis trafficking has incurred the death penalty in Indonesia. to death and executed by a firing squad. Cannabis trafficking has incurred the death penalty in Indonesia.
Nine Arrive at Indonesian Execution Island as Jokowi Spurns Clemency Pleas
Australian death-row prisoners Andrew Chan, center, and Myuran Sukumaran, left, are seen in a holding cell waiting to attend a review hearing in the District Court of Denpasar, on the Indonesian island of Bali, on Oct. 8, 2018
In the darkness of early morning hours Wednesday, Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran were woken by the Kerobokan prison guards in Bali. It took them 10 minutes to wash and dress for the transfer to Nusakambangan, the prison island in Central Java, where death-row prisoners are set to face the firing squads.
Chan and Sukumaran, sentenced to death in for drug trafficking, are among a group of 10 prisoners slated to be executed in Indonesia. Despite numerous and repeated pleas from across the globe to spare them — some of whom, like the two Australians, say they have reformed behind bars — Indonesian President Joko Widodo, popularly known as Jokowi, stands firm on his decision not to pardon drug convicts on death row.
BABYMETAL- HEADBANGER. Rock Singer’s FIRST TIME reaction
Oh there are so many things you could talk about beginning with the Democracy, Corruption, Rabble dominated elections, Inefficient Leadership, Disjointed Leadership, Poorer Quality of Education, Reservations etc etc. You could end up publishing a 700 Page Book on this.
To summarize why China is so ahead in everything however requires just two words – Decision Making & Accountability
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Source: Alamy Stock Photo
China is divided into provinces and each Province has a Provincial Committee.
This Committee controls activities like Commerce, Agriculture, Industry, Education, Water Supply for the entire province, the villages and even the Cities within them.
Each Committee has a Sub committee consisting of Specialists. The Education Sub committee has Teachers and Education Experts most of whom have Degrees from Australia or Singapore or US or UK. The Industrial Sub Committee have experts on Industrial Production etc. No Political Hacks in the Sub Committee (Only in the Committees)
And Sub Committees have extraordinary powers.
They can make decisions in hours. They can offer a subsidy of 30% on a crop in 4 hours after a single meeting if 2/3 of the Sub Committee members agree. Even the Main Committee cannot oppose a Sub Committee decision unless 100% of the Committee members are opposed (Even one single person saying OK will ensure that the decisions go through).
A Sub Committee in a Chinese Province took the decision to Liquidate 36000 Swine (Pigs) to prevent an outbreak of Swine Flu in 2015. The Decision was implemented in 3–4 hours and the Swine Farmers were compensated with Money or Stock Animals. All decided by the Sub committee. Beijing was informed of this only a few days later.
This is called Decision Making Power
A Sub Committee can decide to clear out a Village in 42 days to accommodate a Manufacturing Plant and the Local CCP officials have to comply (The Party Hacks). They cannot object or write to Xi Jingping (Unless Xi Modifies the Laws).
The Result is BRUTAL EFFICIENCY
Decisions get taken in a matter of days or hours compared to months and years.
A New Plant has to be opened. Industrial Sub Committee clears it in 3–4 weeks. No interference from the CCP or its hacks.
A New disease is infecting Chickens – the Sub Committee can authorize liquidation of 500000 Birds without a 10 second hesitation – even if 200000 of them belong to the CCP Head of the District.
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In India – the Opposite is true
There is No Decision making that can be done quickly.
You have State Ministers, Central Ministers, MPs, MLAs, Opposition Parties, Laborers, Sanghs, PILS that HC and SC will keep deciding on.
As a result – if there is a fear of a Crop Infection – the Farmer must cooperate – otherwise we have a Crop devastation in months. If some farmers who may not be literate enough ignore the blight even if a Zealous young agricultural officer (Assuming decent quality officers) points it out, the officer has to pass it to his boss to will toss it in the can and his boss and his boss and this minister and this community etc etc – until the Crop infection hits and destroys 50% of the crop leading to higher prices and more cribbing by the farmers.
If a Good Minister makes a decision that could improve life – BANG!!! A Nutcase goes to Supreme Court and files a PIL and delays it for months and months.
If a Decent Minister like Mr Goyal or Mr Gadkari implements a Traffic Fines and Violation Rule (Hasty in the short run since roads are so bad) – BANG!!! State Governments will destroy the plan. Fines on masks are an apt example.
This is one of the Biggest Reason why India fails even when compared to Democratic countries.
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This is a Former Railways Minister of China.
In 2011 – there was a Train Crash and 47 People Died and 472 were Injured.
The Chinese Government coughed up $ 3.785 Million Equivalent and conducted an Inquiry. In exactly 151 Days- the Committee presented the report.
A Single Signal Box had failed. A Young Engineer had sent 14 Memos to the Corresponding Officials who had ignored them. It would have cost $ 75000 equivalent to have modified the issue.
276 Officials were investigated and 251 were Acquitted or let off with a warning or fired with no further consequences.
25 Officials were found to be guilty and sentenced to terms between 15 months to Death Sentence for 4 People. The Railways Minister was sentenced to death. And not for his politics – as even the most liberal Chinese in US admitted.
The Best part was that in 151 Days or 5 months – the Issue was finished. 25 people were in Jail and new replacements had been hired and the boxes were modified.
Its called Accountability. A Single Signal Box fails because you did not modify it when you should have – Your fault – You are convicted of something called LOSS OF PUBLIC LIFE THROUGH CONSPIRACY OR NEGLIGENCE.
If Negligence is proven its a huge fine or 7 years jail.
If Conspiracy is proven – its a hail of bullets.
(The Man was reprieved and is serving a life sentence now)
Every Action in China is accountable. An Accident – Inquiries and the reason will always be detected and the wrong doers be punished. Brutally at times.
An Engineer who used a slightly inferior cement to finish his work faster on a bridge which collapsed ended up with a 1 year sentence and 100000 Yuan fine for Negligence. The Committee members were sentenced to between 4–7 years and Million Yuan fines for Negligence because They made the decision!!!!
An Abusive Cop was awarded 64 years Jail by the LEPPA courts for PUBLIC ABUSE (Commuted to 16 years in 2019). Policemen cannot beat up anyone (Unless for Political Reasons). A Policeman can beat you if you protest politically but if he beats you for any other reason – he will be roasted alive by the system.
Even in HK- Police have carte blanche to beat up and tear gas protestors but the same police beat someone for not paying interest for a loan shark – the policeman is boiled by the system and spends 1–7 years in Prison and a permanent spot on the blocklist.
Accountability keeps a country in check. Minimizes errors and ensures every decision better be as clean as possible.
In India – Engineers get 10 years in Jail while the Ministers and Officials who ordered him to do shoddy work end up with Crores of rupees and a handful of eyewash suspensions.
In China the floods caused a lot of trouble this year.
An Inquiry was set up and 198 people were examined. Ultimately it was found to be a Design error in the 1970s (They did not estimate so much rainfall).
A COVID 19 inquiry was set up and 750+ people were examined to examine the cause.
In India Demonetization destroyed the economy
Has a single inquiry been set up to examine?
We have had 10,000 decisions from 1947 to present which have all been horrible for the country. Millions of Accidents. Yet has a single inquiry resulted in massive change?
The Answer is NO. The Usual Arrest of Scapegoats, Eye Wash Suspensions but at the end of the day – Fearlessness among the Officials that the System is rigged in their favor and even if there is an Accident or public death – nothing is going to happen.
A Failed Giant Wheel in a UP Fair killed 8 people. The Giant Wheel Owner spent 5 1/2 months in Jail and faces a Case (For 21 years from 1999) but the Authorities who permitted the Giant Wheel, the Safety Inspector who issued the safety certificates and permits – all retired comfortably or are in promoted posts.
So China – Excellent Decision Making and Accountability
India – Zero Decision Making and Zero Accountability
In Every sphere this is the same.
Shri Narvane wants Blankets for his boys – he needs 100 permissions to get them sanctioned.
In China – a single call to the Office of the Procurer and in 10 hours – you have Blankets ready.
XYZ wants to build a Manufacturing plant for a Chemical in India – he needs the same license for safety from State and Centre which will take 9 months at the earliest and 24 months normally as every office in the State has to wet their beaks and every half wit will put in his thoughts.
XYZ wants to build the same Manufacturing Plant in Guangzhou. The Committee will conduct the inspections and issue a permit in 2 Weeks flat. No opposition from anywhere including Beijing.
By the time Indian permissions are still forthcoming – the Chinese factory will have imported their third batch of products.
However…..
In China – Manufacturers who produce shoddy products are hauled up and by law their entire shareholding can be taken by the Govt if they continue to produce inferior products
In India – Manufacturers have carte Blanche and can do what they like.
Thats the Long and Short of it.
As they say in Hindi “SAALA SYSTEM HI KHARAB HAIN”
Yes, actually I didn’t buy it. I got it for free……. It wasn’t a car, But an RV…. Yes an actual RV. It was a 2002, 26 foot class A RV. It was in perfect condition. Just didn’t run. Inside was perfect. The RV only had 16000 miles on it. Generator only has 30 hrs on It. The RV was practically new. The guy that owned it didn’t want it anymore. He was paying storage to park it. He said he didn’t want to pay storage anymore for an RV that didn’t work. I guess it wouldn’t start one day. He took it to a shop and they told him the engine was blown and he needed a new one. The cost would have been around $8,000. Crazy. So he just parked it. So this guy who I didn’t know came to my work wanting to dispose of the RV. I said I would take it. I got the RV to my Mechanic. He looked at it and replaced a $70 part on the fuel system…. RV started right up!!!!! Ran perfect. Took it to a smog shop and it passed in a few min. I couldn’t believe it. I got an $25000 (today’s value, new was over $100k) RV for free!!!! Best RV ever. I have driven that thing all up and down California. Amazing. What a find….
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The Truth Can Be Scary! Paul Harvey: If I Were The Devil…
The real risk of China’s presence in Cuba
China’s enhanced intelligence-gathering and new military presence in Cuba shows Beijing simply no longer cares what the US thinks
The Wall Street Journal reported this month that the People’s Republic of China has heavily invested in a cash-strapped Cuba in exchange for access to an electronic intelligence collection (ELINT) facility, and negotiated an agreement to train Chinese soldiers on the north side of the island.
These developments have been met with great concern in Washington, particularly due to the strategic threat that the PRC’s presence in the region poses.
China’s history of US intelligence collection through Cuba can be traced back to 1999 when Cuba granted the PRC access to facilities at Bejucal, a city just south of the capital, previously operated by the Soviet Union, to collect intelligence on the United States.
More recently, the Biden administration’s response to the WSJ’s report confirmed that the Chinese had indeed been operating an intelligence facility in Cuba for some time, and had only upgraded it in 2019. This ran counter to presidential spokesman John Kirby’s characterization of the reports of China’s “building” of the base.
However, the dialogue left unclear exactly how much money the PRC has invested towards the 2019 upgrade and whether or not it was included as part of the debt restructuring and investment credits awarded by the PRC to Cuba this past November.
By contrast, the possible rotation of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) military personnel through the island for training crosses a small, if important, threshold with respect to an enduring Chinese military presence close to the US mainland.
Regardless of the minutiae involved, both developments showcase an increased disposition by both Cuba and the PRC to take risks through explicitly US-focused military initiatives, in ways that suggest it’s willing to take similar risks in other areas as well.
This has significant implications for the United States, necessitating an appropriate, and carefully crafted response from Washington to both current and future events involving both parties.
In the case of Cuba, the government’s willingness to host military threats to the United States has remained consistent since the 1962 missile crisis.
That being said, the regime’s willingness to permit PRC military operations on the island, with the added risk that they might be discovered by US counterintelligence, more greatly highlights the regime’s current desperation for resources amid increasingly severe shortages of food, fuel and medicine – which have prompted a growing exodus of refugees from the island and inspired scattered protests that led the government to temporarily shut down the internet.
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Such desperation is consistent with Cuban government behavior surrounding shortages, such as offering Russian investors notable tax breaks, long-term land leases, and options to repatriate profits, in exchange for investments aimed at addressing deficiencies in the country’s petroleum supply, rum and food production.
As for the PRC, the willingness to host anti-US-focused military capabilities for both intelligence collection and training in proximity to the continental United States is a stark departure from the PRC’s otherwise restrained military engagements in the region.
Even if the PLA electronic intelligence presence in Cuba is not new, the 2019 upgrade suggests a decreased concern over alarming or upsetting the United States, which may be, in part, a move emboldened by Xi Jinping’s government’s growing military power and confidence as well as growing military tensions with the United States.
It suggests a growing PLA willingness to construct military operations against the United States in the Western Hemisphere, which will surely fuel a reassessment of the interpretation of its security, people-to-people and commercial activities in the region.
The presence of the PLA is ever-expanding. The intelligence operations at Bejucal are probably not a game-changer in terms of capabilities. However, they pose a dangerous complement to the expanding array of other PRC operations to act on and use against the United States in both peace and wartime.
PRC options to use against the United States also include the numerous Latin American military, police and other government officials who regularly travel to mainland China for “people-to-people diplomacy,” some of whom may be used to provide insights to the Chinese and be labeled by them as friends or “paid consultants.”
As seen by the practices of PRC “police stations,” other options include ethnic Chinese in the region who may be induced by the PRC to cooperate in the interest of familial ties. In addition, the PRC capabilities may also be supplemented by those of Cuban intelligence and those of other anti-US regimes, with personnel in both the United States and throughout the region.
Beyond its facilities and human intelligence capabilities and options, the PRC also has the ability to capture data relevant to US security in the region through its vast and expanding digital footprint there. This is because any Chinese company operating within the United States, under the 2017 PRC National Intelligence Law, is required to turn over any data that may be relevant to security to the PRC.
Some of these architectures, such as Huawei, ZTE, Xiaomi, Oppo and others in the region’s telecommunications infrastructure, can utilize exploitable sensitive data against Latin American government officials and political entities. For example, Huawei uses cloud computing, along with “Smart” and “Safe Cities,” which utilize surveillance technology. Didi Chuxing, a ride-hailing application, has been known to collect trip data on its users.
These are but a few examples of Chinese companies operating within the region that deal with sensitive data that can be subject to exploitation.
In the event of war between the United States and China over Taiwan, anti-US countries close to the United States like Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua would likely be too vulnerable for the PLA to base in them traditional forces such as aircraft and ships for attacks against the United States.
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Still, Cuba and other such countries could serve as key staging areas from which the Chinese could observe and disrupt US deployment and sustainment flows, along with other war-critical operations, which would put the United States and its allies at risk.
Both the presence of the Chinese-operated electronic intelligence facility and the development of a PLA training operation on the island will certainly help the PRC to create favorable conditions to counter the United States.
While it is true that the United States and other democratic states conduct international waters and airspace operations under the freedom of navigation principle (FONOPs), the United States cannot simply tolerate an intelligence collection facility 100 miles from its shore operated by its principal geopolitical rival, nor the rotations of PLA military personnel through the island. Such acts of espionage go beyond the simple characterization of “what rivals do” and should be met with a response.
Besides military strikes or other extreme measures that would ultimately be counterproductive for the relationship with the region, the United States most likely can neither persuade nor coerce Cuba and the PRC into abandoning their US-focused military cooperation.
However, this should not prevent the United States from exploiting all other available means to maintain pressure on, and isolate, the Cuban regime and China. Doing so helps limit the ability to extend both anti-US intelligence collection and other capabilities elsewhere.
It also strongly signals to others that the United States draws the line, and will extract a high price, for explicitly collaborating with extra-hemispheric rivals in ways that threaten US security.
Evan Ellis(r_evan_ellis@hotmail.com) is Latin America research professor with the US Army War College Strategic Studies Institute. The views expressed here are his own.
This Is So Accurate! Paul Harvey Freedom To Chains 1965 | REACTION
Pennsylvania Dutch Sour Cream Cabbage
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Ingredients
1 medium head cabbage, shredded
1/2 cup vegetable oil (for frying)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 pint (2 cups) sour cream
2 cups distilled white vinegar
Instructions
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
Add cabbage, salt and pepper and cook until tender, 15 to 20 minutes.
Mix sugar and flour together in a medium bowl, then add sour cream and mix well; finally stir in vinegar and mix well.
Add mixture to cabbage and simmer all together until desired consistency is reached.
Yield: 8 to 12 servings
“I Was Made In China” – Funniest EVER AGT Audition?! | Australia’s Got Talent 2022
This is from Michael Crichton’s 1969 novel, made into a film in 1971 by Robert Wise, who had directed West Side Story and the Sound of Music, and would go on to direct the first Star Trek movie. I would describe it as a science fiction medical procedural alien pandemic thriller.
It doesn’t mess with your mind or turn you into a zombie, it just kills you. Death isn’t painful or gruesome, nothing like that, it’s instantaneous. The original un-mutated form clots your blood into dry sand in a matter of seconds.
But… it has no DNA, RNA, amino acids, or common organic chemicals. It’s extraterrestrial, falling to earth on a satellite that was knocked out of orbit. It turns any energy you can throw at it into food, Godzilla style, so it can’t be killed. And it mutates quickly to becoming non-lethal, eating plastic, and escaping out into Earth’s upper atmosphere, where it keeps mutating.
It’s scary as existential dread, us alone in a cold, empty, hostile universe, where the first and only extraterrestrial life we find is a virus that defies our understanding.
There are plenty of real diseases as bad as anything in fiction, by the way.
AFRICAN GIRL FIRST TIME HEARING LUCIANO PAVAROTTI – NESSUN DORMA | THIS IS A MASTER CLASS
My very first professional job in an engineering firm about a million years ago lol.
Designing a concrete retaining wall to stop rubble falling down a hill and into a person’s backyard. A very simple design. Concrete block, reinforcement. I got the sketches from a senior engineer, PhD, always made sure to tell everyone. I drew them as given to me, made a blueprint, and added a note saying I seem to be missing any details for horizontal tie backs, long rods that are drilled into the hill to stop the wall from falling over.
Dick head rights a large angry response in red Sharpie on the drawing basically saying, how dare some scum like me without a PhD have the audacity to question his truly godlike and glorious level of knowledge. Do the fucking drawings as I’m told or quit.
Alrighty then asshole.
I mentioned this to one of my co-workers and he tells me, keep that drawing safe as if it is your firstborn child. Hide it somewhere. Hide it somewhere very good. Make a photocopy of his note. Hide that somewhere even better.
Quite some time passes and a bunch of rubble falls down the hill, and doesn’t the freaking wall fall over. All because there are absolutely no tie backs keeping it from falling over.
Later one evening as I’m about to go home I get called down to the CEO’s office. Inside are a couple of their lawyers, all of the senior staff, and little old me. Probably the youngest person in the entire company.
Lawyer proceeds to tell me I am fucked. I did not do this to PhDs specifications and they are going to screw me six ways of Sunday.
Like fuck I think. I say wait here, under a few protests I stomp out, down to my office, find the drawing, come back in unfold the part with his note on it. He does not look happy. The lawyer does not look happy. In fact no one looks happy except me.
I look up and say any other questions? The lawyer says no I think we’re done here kind of have that drawing please. Me: not a fucking chance. And I’m quite willing to physically fight anyone who tries to take it from me. There were no takers lol. So back to my office, grab my shit and went home. The next day told my boss, he laughed, my coworker laughed, bet the PhD didn’t laugh. And that was that. Not surprisingly, when my term of employment ended, they didn’t renew it. How dare I not become the fall guy!
MY FIRST TIME LISTENING THE CRANBERRIES – ZOMBIE REACTION (Quite Emotional For Me)
China will not be another Soviet Union, but forge its own path
The New York Times, citing a public opinion poll by the Roper Center, said Americans’ views of China are starting to resemble their views of the Soviet Union decades ago. This has reinforced the hardline China policy adopted by the US government, and vice versa. The NYT article also cited experts who claimed that China and the US “are really in a serious competition,” with escalation on one side leading to escalation on the other, and that they are in a cold war.
The US is moving toward a new cold war.
As the article said, a series of policies toward China since the Trump era, including the “competition” mentioned by US President Joe Biden, have increased the American public’s hostility toward China. However, I believe that China will never become another Soviet Union, participating in the “serious competition” led by the US, or a true Cold War. China will have the wisdom and the ability to increase the powerful variables into the historical trajectory and steer mankind toward a different future.
First, China indeed is not the Soviet Union.
Fundamentally speaking, China is an open country, while the Soviet Union was closed. China’s opening-up was a result of its own will, as well as the general environment. China operates as a market economy, with a prominent export-oriented nature, and there is a high degree of freedom in personnel and cultural exchanges with the outside world. In contrast, during the Soviet Union era, ordinary people of the Soviet Union and Eastern European countries were unable to travel to the West. These countries operated under a planned economy, where people earned the same no matter whether they worked hard or not. Additionally, there was no Internet or channel for the public to express their demands, and information was highly restricted.
Today’s Chinese society is completely different.
Chinese people’s views on the US are becoming more and more negative, and the “hostility” toward the US is increasing. However, this “hostility” is primarily directed at the US policy toward China and its hegemonism, rather than being “incompatible” with the US. Most Chinese people support, or do not oppose the idea of easing relations with the US.
As China is not the Soviet Union, the US will certainly miscalculate if it treats China as the Soviet Union. It will mess itself up, and its China policy will yield minimal results. For example, the idea of “decoupling” will not hinder China’s economic development, but will promote China’s independent technological innovation and damage the interests of leading American technology companies. While the US attempts to strategically encircle China, many of these efforts are merely superficial. Despite spending significant resources, the US will not be able to effectively contain China’s rise.
China needs to maintain strategic composure.
This composure, first and foremost, means that we are firmly aware that we are not the Soviet Union. At the same time, we are determined not to follow the Soviet Union’s path, but to forge our own unique strategic path. China will not engage in global military competition with the US; instead, we will pave the way globally through economic cooperation. In doing so, the win-win mechanism of China’s economic exchanges with other countries will mobilize more global forces to stand with China and dismantle the US strategy of containing China. The presence of US military bases and alliance systems around the world will become ineffective and will not be of much help to the US.
China’s military power is primarily used for strategic deterrence against the US, making it so that although the US has military advantages, it dares not resort to military blackmail against China. In addition, our military power is used to defend core interests, especially when it comes to the resolution of the Taiwan question, we must have the final say. We adopt a defensive military strategy, but in the Taiwan Straits region, we have gradually formed a local absolute military advantage. We will not engage in military confrontation with the US in regions far away from China’s core interests. However, if the US military comes to China’s nearby waters, especially if it intervenes militarily in the Taiwan Straits and assists the “Taiwanese military” in a possible future Taiwan Straits war, the People’s Liberation Army will not hesitate to “beat the crap out of” those US troops. We will always make our determination clear to the US.
China’s public opinion will inevitably form an opposition to that of the US. The more rampant the US side is, the more determined we become.
At the same time, as a whole, the Chinese people cannot be restrained by the political and opinion elites of the US. We must prevent ourselves from unconsciously approaching the role of the Soviet Union just because they treat China as such. This should be a long-term vigilance for us.
How the US describes and treats us is one thing, while it’s another crucial matter for us to adhere to China’s comprehensive self-development and maintain a big picture and pace. China’s development must be prioritized over struggle against the US. Self-development and self-strengthening must always be the focus of China.
In this way, the US’ containment strategy against China will ultimately end in shameful failure.
Therefore, I also believe that the most important thing is not how to label the current tension between China and the US, but rather, we need to have a different mindset and approach from the Cold War era. We must fully mobilize and utilize the enormous resources and advantages that the Soviet Union did not have, and draw a beautiful strategic curve for the Chinese people in the 21st century to break through the US containment.
PLA Has Capability, Confidence to Smash Taiwan Separatist Attempts, Foreign Interference: Spokesman
Make no mistake. The Ukraine war is United States driven.
American “news”…
Silly stuff
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Really silly.
China “acting” like a Global Power. Say what?
Chinese credit system
The social credit system in China is premised on an assumption that everyone starts equally … at zero.
From then on, it is the decisions that they make that increase or decrease their social credit scores, and consequences follow in the form of rewards, incentives, disincentives or punishments.
The system exists in China in the way it does because it presumes everyone from the President down has an equal interest in the social, financial and economic stability and security it aims to provide.
It has nothing to do with whatever physical attributes they are born with, and physical attributes are not a good criterion on which to base economic, social or legal equality, or access to goods and services whether public or private.
You’d deny a child the right to an education because that child is smaller than other children of the same age?
Equal opportunity is premised on the notion that people should have equal legal access to resources.
Access is not incumbent on their physical appearance or attributes (or lack of particular attributes) or on past social, economic or legal background or decision-making, depending on the context.
Hoobastank – The Reason (Official Music Video)
BULLETIN: UK To Send Depleted Uranium Ammunition to Ukraine
United Kingdom Deputy Minister of Defense Annabelle Goldie publicly stated today that the UK will supply Ukraine with Depleted Uranium (DU) Ammunition for some of the weapons systems supplied by NATO. Russia has previously warned the use of Depleted Uranium will be considered an attack by a “Dirty Nuke” and will result in a nuclear response.
Annabel MacNicoll Goldie, Baroness Goldie DL (born 27 February 1950) is a Scottish politician and life peer who served as Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party from 2005 to 2011 and has served as Minister of State for Defence since 2019. She was a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP), as one of the additional members for the West Scotland region, from 1999 to 2016.
DEPLETED URANIUM AMMUNITION
The use of DU in munitions is controversial because of long-term health effects. Normal functioning of the kidney, brain, liver, heart, and numerous other systems can be affected by exposure to uranium, a toxic metal. It is only weakly radioactive because of the long radioactive half-life of Uranium (4.468 × 109 or 4,468,000,000 years) and the low amounts of 234 U (half-life about 246,000 years) and 235 U (half-life 700 million years).
The biological half-life (the average time it takes for the human body to eliminate half the amount in the body) for uranium is about 15 days. The aerosol or spallation frangible powder produced by impact and combustion of depleted uranium munitions can potentially contaminate wide areas around the impact sites, leading to possible inhalation by human beings.
The actual level of acute and chronic toxicity of DU is also controversial. Several studies using cultured cells and laboratory rodents suggest the possibility of leukemogenic, genetic, reproductive, and neurological effects from chronic exposure. According to an article in Al Jazeera, DU from American artillery is suspected to be one of the major causes of an increase in the general mortality rate in Iraq since 1991.
A 2005 epidemiology review concluded: “In aggregate the human epidemiological evidence is consistent with increased risk of birth defects in offspring of persons exposed to DU.” A 2021 study concluded that DU from exploding munitions did not lead to Gulf War illness in American veterans deployed in the Gulf War. According to 2013 study, despite the use of DU by coalition forces in Fallujah, no DU has been found in soil samples taken from the city, although another study of 2011 had indicated elevated levels of uranium in tissues of the city inhabitants.
RUSSIA EXPLICITLY WARNED AGAINST THIS
On January 25, this web site reported that Konstantin Gavrilov, the head of the Russia Delegation to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has just publicly thrown down the nuclear gauntlet to the collective west, in an official statement:
Gavrilov said that he has been instructed by his government to announce “We know that the Leopard-2 tank, as well as the Bradley and Marder infantry fighting vehicles, are armed with uranium-core armor-piercing projectiles, the use of which leads to [radioactive] contamination of the area, as happened in Yugoslavia and Iraq.
If such shells are delivered to Kyiv, we will consider this as the use of dirty nuclear bombs against Russia, with all the ensuing consequences.” (Original Story HERE)
UPDATE 12:58 PM EDT — URGENT —
Russian President Putin stated today that Russia will “Directly Respond” to the U.K. if they decide to send Depleted Uranium Rounds to Ukraine. (i.e. If The UK sends Uranium over here, we will send Uranium over there.)
During a Joint Press Conference with Chinese President Xi Jinping, President Putin said “Russia will have to react accordingly, bearing in mind the collective west is already beginning use use weapons with a nuclear component.”
RUSSIAN DEFENCE MINISTER: THERE ARE FEWER AND FEWER STEPS LEFT TOWARDS A NUCLEAR COLLISION – TASS
UPDATE 2:10 PM EDT —
Russia and China issued a statement from Moscow: “There will be no winner if a nuclear war breaks out.”
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Baked Spaghetti Pie
Spaghetti Pie 9
Ingredients
2 pounds spaghetti
2 pounds ricotta cheese
1/2 cup whole milk
3 large eggs
1 pound ground beef
1 pound spicy Italian sausage
1/2 cup spaghetti sauce
1 pound Provolone cheese, sliced thin
1/2 cup Romano cheese, grated
Instructions
Heat oven to 475 degrees F.
In a large pan, boil spaghetti for 20 minutes; drain and set aside.
Mix ricotta, milk and eggs together in a small bowl; add to spaghetti and stir together.
Press into a 13 x 9-inch baking pan until compact and even.
Cook ground beef and sausage in a large skillet.
Drain fat, removing as much as possible.
Stir in spaghetti sauce. Spread evenly over spaghetti base in pan.
Layer slices of Provolone over meat mixture, then add the grated Romano on top of that.
In remarks prepared for the American Bankers Association, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says the U.S. banking system is “sound” but more rescue arrangements “could be warranted” if new failures at smaller institutions pose a risk to financial stability. here’s the “rub” . . .
Yellen’s small bank comments were released under embargo at 7am. Treasury wanted them out before markets opened, as Yellen speech isn’t until 10am.
That tells everyone that Yellen and company still see the ongoing Banking “crisis” as dangerous, and they are deliberately trying to calm markets.
Trouble is, Jerome Powell over at the Federal Reserve has a meeting this week about raiding interest rates again. His choice is now stark:
2023 03 23 10 38
Tucker: Zelenskyy is demanding you send your kids to war
Send Graham to the front lines in Ukraine immediately.
I am 61 years old today. Wow! Seems so weird even writing that. I don’t perceive myself to be 61; it’s like . . . . how did this happen? Where did all the years go? And how the heck did they go so fast?????
It’s like . . . . it all lasts only . . . . 5 minutes.
Yet here I am.
My son came up here to the Pennsylvania house last night. Arrived a little after 8:00.
He’s going to his job from here and will return here tonight after work.
I got a new Behringer MDX-2600 Audio expander/gate/compressor/peak limiter as a Birthday present from him and my wife, to replace the one that I’ve used since setting this house up as a backup broadcast facility after my mom died in November 2021.
The audio gear that I’ve been using seems to have suffered a strange but now recurring audio failure, causing audio levels to randomly change. Weird.
My son will install the new gear after work tonight.
It a little frustrating to be getting up in my years. There’s physical changes that I don’t like . . . at all.
For certain, the heart attack I suffered in April 2019, which forced me to get open heart surgery and quadruple bypasses for clogged heart arteries, was a big deal. But it was small compared to the SECOND heart attack I suffered seventeen months later, in October, 2020 after two of the four cardiac bypasses clogged with blood clots.
That second heart attack was very much worse than the first, and it was during that incident that I went into heart failure on the cardiac catheterization lab operating table, and felt myself dying.
I have told this story a number of times; I had never experienced “dying” before, yet the feeling is so utterly distinct, you KNOW IT when it’s happening. It’s not painful, or scary . . . it just . . . happens.
Thankfully, the Doc was able to fit a stent under my clogged left circumflex artery opening and restore blood flow. That artery had been bypassed but its bypass was one of the ones’ which had clogged with blood clots. So if he wasn’t able to get a stent to move arterial plaque away from the opening and restore blood flow, I would have been dead.
Fast forward to about a month ago, I felt the same types of “twinges” in my chest that I had felt before my first heart attack. I told the Doc, he scheduled me to go in for another cardiac catheterization and when they were in there, they saw that the walls of my left anterior descending artery were wilting inward and restricting blood flow. So they did angioplasty to open the artery, but when they removed the inflatable balloon, the artery walls just wilted closed again. So Doc said he had to Stent that, too.
So here I am, now having had two heart attacks, open heart surgery, and now two stents. WOW!
The leg from which they took veins to use for my bypass surgery, swells-up from time to time. Docs said the blood had to find a new way to get back to my heart after they took the vein, but for some reason, the leg swelled a little for a long time after the open heart surgery.
Then, my right knee (same leg) and right hip started deteriorating. It felt like the connective tissue that hold my muscles and ligaments to my bones, was just falling apart. So the right knee swells a lot almost every day now, and it makes it very uncomfortable to walk – especially if I have to do stairs. The hip hurts when I lay down. I don’t need this shit.
I’ve also noticed lately, I seem to be getting a bit forgetful. I’m having trouble instantly recalling proper nouns. I know the word I want to say, I just stop mid sentence to have to recall it. Weird.
Yes, I take vitamins, Co-enzyme Q-10, and Straus Heart Drops. No, I didn’t take the COVID Vax . . . and I won’t. Those so-called “vaccines” are clearly dangerous and worse, they don’t work. No one is putting that shit in me.
So with all that, I’ve attained 61 years on this planet. Not too shabby, I guess.
My marriage has changed a lot. After 31 years, it’s not so good anymore. That’s why I’m up in PA while the Mrs. is in NJ. I needed time away to figure out how to proceed.
The wife and I talk several times a day, but it’s just not good anymore.
I’m too old to bother coloring my hair to get rid of the gray, hit the gym and go out to stud. Been there, done that. It’s all “wrote” for me. Besides, my son tells me that women today, are all “nuts.”
I’ll take his word for it. The last thing I need is to go out to play the field and find myself with a psycho-slut-from-hell. Too many of them around nowadays.
Anyway, I just focus on my work and my show. Pay what few bills I have, and am doing my best to get right with God and enjoy the time I have left.
Given the way things are falling apart in our world, that may be a lot less time than any of us think!
And so it goes, this fifteenth day of March, 2023.
Orange-Rosemary Butter Glazed Pork Tenderloins
Enjoy this lean and delicious premium cut of pork drizzled with a sweet and savory citrus flavored butter. With only a handful of ingredients, it’s an uncomplicated dish that’s quick and simple to prepare and full of aromatic flavor.
2023 03 19 17 12
Ingredients
Orange-Rosemary Butter
1/2 cup (1 stick) Challenge European Style Butter
2 tablespoons frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
Orange-Rosemary Butter: In a small bowl, mix together the orange-rosemary butter ingredients. Use immediately or chill (bring to room temperature before using).
Tenderloins: Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
With a knife, make slits in tenderloins and alternately insert garlic and orange peel slivers.
In a large skillet over medium heat, melt 2 Tablespoons of the butter mixture and brown tenderloins evenly for 5-10 minutes.
Place tenderloins on rack in roasting pan. Spread a teaspoon of flavored butter over each tenderloin.
Add broth to skillet drippings and stir. Pour broth/drippings into the roasting pan and roast uncovered for 20 minutes.
Spread another teaspoon of flavored butter over each tenderloin and roast for an additional 15-20 minutes or until center of tenderloin registers 155 degrees F (use meat thermometer).
Transfer pork to serving platter and cover loosely with foil. Temperature of meat should increase to 160 degrees F while standing.
Pour liquid from roasting pan back into skillet and bring to a boil, cooking until reduced by half. Whisk remaining flavored butter into liquid and simmer about 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Season with salt and pepper.
BREAKING NEWS — UBS is reportedly engaged in meetings right now, SEEKING TO TERMINATE ITS DEAL TO ACQUIRE CREDIT SUISSE!
If UBS Backs out, then Credit Swiss will fail, enter Bankruptcy, and that will mean a Bulge-Bracket-Bank (a.k.a. “too big to fail”) has gone under.
The effects on the Global Financial System are, right now, incalculable. A Credit Suisse Default would trigger Credit Default Swaps, and would put the bank in DEFAULT on all its Derivative Contracts.
This could be a “Black Swan Event” that sets in motion a Domino effect, taking out BIG banks all over the world.
More details on tonight’s Hal Turner Radio Show from 9:00-11:00 PM eastern US time (GMT -0400)
China banned the export of 24 techs to the US. The more USA needs it, the less China will sell it.
The Worst Deal Ever – Australia To Pay U.S. For Nuclear Insecurity
The the last week’s review I mentioned the AUKUS deal. It was first announced in September 2021. Back then I wrote:
Yesterday the U.S., the UK and Australia announced that the latter one will buy nuclear powered submarines to do the U.S.' bidding against China.
...
This is a huge but short term win for the U.S. with an also-ran booby price for Britain and a strategic loss of sovereignty and budget control for Australia.
It is another U.S. slap into the face of France and the European Union. The deal will piss off New Zealand, Indonesia and of course China. It will upset the international nuclear non proliferation regime and may lead to the further military nuclearization of South Korea and Japan.
Australia currently has six conventional submarines. It had ordered new ones from France but scrapped that deal for AUKUS:
The price for the new submarines Australia will have to pay will be much higher that for the French ones.
Some $3 billion have already been sunk into the French contract.
France will rightfully demand additional compensation for cancelling it.
The new contract with the U.S. or UK will cost more than the French one but will only include 8 instead of 12 boats. As three boats are needed to keep one at sea (while the other two are training or in refit), the actual patrolling capacity for Australia's navy will sink from 4 to 2-3 concurrent submarines at sea.
The much higher price of the fewer more complicate boats will upset Australia's defense budget for decades to come.
I further suggested that blackmail may have played a role in the AUKUS deal.
A few day’s after the announcement there were new details publish which suggested that Australia would lease nuclear submarines from the U.S. because the new ones will take many years to build. It would upgrade Perth harbor to be able to handle nuclear propulsion boats:
Perth will thereby be build up into a base that is compatible with the likely permanent stationing of U.S. nuclear submarines.
These carry nuclear weapons.
The 'leased' boats, or at least their propulsion parts, would of course be still manned by U.S. or British sailors.
The Australians already have problems retaining crews for their existing submarines. The few that will be available for the 'leased' boats will not be enough to run them. The Australians would pay largely for the privilege of being guests on board of doubtlessly U.S. commanded submarines.
Australia’s overall position did not look well:
Australia's extraction boom fueled by China's rise is coming to an end. The country will have to cut its budget and will need to seek a new economic model.
But why did I call this a "huge but short term win" for the U.S.?
It is a win in that the U.S. has gained a submarine base in Australia and will get paid for using it. This looks well if the intent is to wage a cold war on China. It is doubtful that this is a necessary strategy and it is equally doubtful that it can be successful. The weapons manufacturers will of course still love it.
But it is a only a short term win in the sense that the U.S. will lose many of its current and potential future partners over it. It has degraded its QUAD partner India and Japan to second tier status. It has increased suspicion in Indonesia, Malaysia and even Singapore of eventual nefarious plans against them.
In May 2022 Australia elected a new parliament.
Labor replaced the Liberals in the government. It found that the new submarines and the whole deal was extremely expensive. That was the chance to bury it:
The answers are obvious. Ditch the whole AUKUS deal and buy the German U-boats.
The real reason for the deal might well have been the U.S. wish for a port and base in Australia from where it can send its own nuclear submarines to harass China.
The offer to Australia to buy nuclear submarines was likely only made to remove Australian public resistance to the stationing of nuclear submarines (with nuclear weapons) on the continent.
Australia will be better off without those.
But Anthony Albanese, the new prime minister, did not have the courage to push for ending the deal. Last week the three involved countries announced new details:
Australia’s nuclear submarine program will cost up to [AUS]$368 billion over the next three decades, with confirmation that the federal government will buy at least three American-manufactured nuclear submarines and contribute "significant additional resources" to US shipyards.
The Australian government will take three, potentially second-hand Virginia-class submarines early next decade, pending the approval of the US Congress.
There will also be an option to purchase another two under the landmark AUKUS defence and security pact, announced in San Diego this morning.
In the meantime, design and development work will continue on a brand new submarine, known as the SSN-AUKUS, "leveraging” work the British have already been doing to replace their Astute-class submarines.
That submarine — which will form the AUKUS class — would eventually be operated by both the UK and Australia, using American combat systems.
One submarine will be built every two years from the early 2040s through to the late 2050s, with five SSN-AUKUS boats delivered to the Royal Australian Navy by the middle of the 2050s.
Most curious is the buy of second hand Virgina class boats. A leasing agreement would have been much better. Nuclear driven submarines are extraordinary expensive to scarp. Their 60% enriched Uranium fuel will have to be guarded for a very long time. Australia has no experience with anything nuclear.
The former Australian prime minister Paul Keating has called the agreement the worst deal in history:
Paul Keating has labelled the $368bn Aukus nuclear submarine plan as the “worst deal in all history” and “the worst international decision” by a Labor government since Billy Hughes tried to introduce conscription.
The former Labor prime minister launched an extraordinary broadside against the Albanese government at the National Press Club on Wednesday, blasting the “incompetence” of Labor backing the decision to sign up to Aukus while in opposition and when it had “no mandate” to do so.
...
The $368bn being spent to acquire as few as eight nuclear submarines – Virginia class and next-generation SSN-Aukus submarines – was the “worst deal in all history”, he said, because it could buy 40 to 50 conventional submarines instead.
Keating also revealed that France, which lost a contract for conventional Attack class submarines in favour of Aukus, had offered “a new deal” for the “newest French nuclear submarines”.
These would require only “5% enriched uranium, not 95%, weapons grade” and came with a “firm delivery date” of 2034 at “fixed prices”, he said. The French received “no response”, Keating claimed.
James Acton, an expert a nuclear defense policy, commented on the deal:
(((James Acton))) @james_acton32 - 20:16 UTC · Mar 13, 2023
As @POTUS, @RishiSunak, and @AlboMP announce AUKUS submarine plan, here’s my assessment of the technical and proliferation risks.
BLUF: They’ve made serious efforts to mitigate those risks, but those that remain are real and significant.
Link to video of announcement
(1/n)
Here’s the plan (in brief):
1. 🇬🇧 & 🇺🇸 deploy SSNs* in🇦🇺(from 2027)
2. 🇦🇺deploys Virginia-class SSNs purchased from 🇺🇸 (from ~2032)
3. 🇦🇺deploys AUKUS SSNs, designed and produced with UK (starting in early 2040s)
*SSN=nuclear-powered attack sub.
(2/n)
...
Acton details the risks of the deal. They are huge.
Next to financial, technological and timing risks there are also the proliferation issues.
The deal is defying the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and should Australia get an exception for the deal from the IAEA others will make similar requests.
I responded Acton’s second tweet:
Moon of Alabama @MoonofA - 20:24 UTC · Mar 13, 2023
1. is what the U.S. wanted from AUKUS.
2. will be with mostly U.S. crew and under only nominal AUS command.
3. is way too costly for AUS and will never happen.
Australia will spend billions to upgrade naval base HMAS Stirling in Western Australia so the U.S. and UK can use it for their rotational stationing there. It will ‘invest’ more billions in nuclear shipyards in the U.S. and UK. It will pay billions for the Virginia class boats over which it will have little sovereignty.
Submarine designs are long complicate programs. It took 35 million labor hours design the first batch of Virginia-class boats and it took nine million labor hours to build the first one. The new SSN-AUKUS will have similar costs and issues. I for one expect that none will ever be build. Neither Australia nor the UK have the money for them.
Still – the political fallout will come from all sides.
With this deal Australia is essentially paying the U.S. an exorbitant price to confront Australia’s biggest customer, China. Its neighbors are unhappy. Indonesia is making noise about the proliferation risk as is Malaysia. Europe is miffed that Australia scrapped the deal with France and rejected the new French offer. The deal does not increase Australia’s security.
Posted by b on March 15, 2023 at 16:50 UTC | Permalink
Brine Cured Pork Roast
2023 03 19 17 10
Ingredients
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup kosher salt or sea salt
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
2 tablespoons fennel seeds
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 (4 to 6 pound or more) boneless pork loin tied with string
Instructions
Combine sugar and salt with 1 quart hot water and stir to dissolve.
Crack the peppercorns and fennel seeds in a mortar or on a cutting board, crushing them with the flat bottom of a heavy saucepan (or grind very, very briefly in spice grinder). Add to water along with thyme and red pepper flakes. Add 3 quarts cold water and the pork. Submerge the roast and refrigerate overnight or up to 2 days.
Remove from brine and dry off the pork.
If you have fresh herbs such as rosemary, tie them onto the top of the pork.
Put the meat on a rack in a shallow roasting pan.
Heat oven to 500 degrees F.
When the oven is hot, place the roast in it and lower the heat to 325 degrees F. Bake for 1 1/4 hours. Check the internal temperature to make sure it is at 160 degrees F. If the pork is cooked, remove it and let it stand 15 minutes before carving. If not, cook a few more minutes.
The U.S. pushing for WW3 using ANYTHING they can find
The US is preparing Australia to fight its war against China
The United States is not preparing to go to war against China. The United States is preparing Australia to go to war against China.
Thank you for inviting me to address the Salon. I am greatly honoured and somewhat daunted, given the long list of eminent scholars, analysts and writers who have preceded me.
I am not a “writer”, although I have written a lot during my thirty-year diplomatic career, much of it in relation to China. None of it published and most of it buried in government archives. All I can bring to the table is my personal interpretation of current developments regarding US and China, in the light of my past experience.
One of your previous speakers, Patrick Lawrence, advocated putting the main point first. So here goes:
The United States is not preparing to go to war against China.
The United States is preparing Australia to go to war against China.
The ANZUS Treaty
A look at the ANZUS Treaty and the way it has been manipulated over time will explain why I have come to this conclusion.
Originally defensive in concept, the ANZUS Treaty was seen by Australia from its very beginning as a means to “achieve the acceptance by the USA of responsibility in SE Asia” (Percy Spender) to shield Australia from perceived antagonistic forces in its region. It has, however, developed into an instrument for the furtherance of US ability to prosecute war globally – previously in Iraq and Afghanistan, currently against Russia and potentially against China.
The ANZUS Treaty, usually referred to in reverential tones as “The Alliance”, has been elevated to an almost religious article of faith, against which any demur is treated as heresy amounting to treachery. Out of anxiety to cement the US into protection of Australia, the Alliance has been invoked as justification for Australia’s participation in almost every American military adventure – or misadventure – since WW II.
Unlike NATO or the Defence Treaty with Japan, the ANZUS treaty actually provides no guarantee of protection, merely assurances to consult on appropriated means of support in the event that Australia should come under attack.
On the other hand, the Alliance has facilitated the steady growth of American presence in Australia, to the point that it pervades every aspect of Australian political, economic, financial, social and cultural life. Australians fret about China “buying up the country”, but American investment is ten times the size.
They are unaware or uncaring that almost every major Australian company across the resources, food, retail, mass media, entertainment, banking and finance sectors has majority American ownership. Right now US corporations eclipse everyone else in their ability to influence our politics through their investment in Australian stocks.
Screen Shot 2023 01 31 at 8.59.38 am
The transfer of Australian assets to American ownership has continued unabated: In the second half of 2021 then Treasurer Josh Frydenberg approved the transfer of $130 billion of Australian assets to foreign private equity funds, benefiting Goldman Sachs who facilitated the transactions, by multimillions of dollars. Josh Frydenberg now is employed by Goldman Sachs:
Sydney Airport – Macquarie Bank led by a NY investment banker
AusNet (electricity infrastructure) $18 billion takeover by Brookfield – NY via Canada
SparkInfrastructure (electricity) $5.2 billion takeover by American interests
AfterPay financial transaction system $39 billion takeover
Healthscope, second-biggest private hospitals group (72 Hospitals) taken over by Brookfield and now controlled in the Cayman Islands.
The USA and the UK between them represent nearly half of all foreign investment. China plus Hong Kong represents 4.2%. The 4 big “Aussie” banks are dependent on foreign capital which dictate local banks’ policies and operations.
Defence and military weapons manufacturing industries in Australia are now largely owned by US weapons corporations – Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, Boeing, Thales, NorthropGrumman. The deep integration of Australia’s defence industries and economy into the US military-industrial complex greatly influences Australia’s foreign/defence policies.
That, plus US capture of Australia’s intelligence and policy apparatus through the “Five Eyes” network and ASPI (which has lobbyists from American arms manufacturers on a Board headed by an operative trained by the CIA) means that the US is able to swing Australian policy to support America in almost all its endeavours.
Despite the fact that it contains no guarantee of US protection of Australia, the Treaty and further arrangements under its auspices, such as the 2014 Force Posture Agreement and now AUKUS, have greatly facilitated US war preparation in Australia. This has accelerated exponentially in the past few years. The US now describes Australia as the most important base for the projection of US power in the Indo-Pacific.
Indicators of war preparations
* 2,500 US marines stationed in Darwin practicing for war with the Australian Defence Forces, soon to include the Japanese Defence Forces
* Establishment of a regional HQ for the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command in Darwin
* Lengthening the RAAF aircraft runways in Northern Territory at our expense for servicing US fighters and bombers
* Proposed stationing of 6 nuclear weapons-capable B52 Bombers at RAAF Tindal in NT
* Construction of massive fuel and maintenance facilities in Darwin NT for US aircraft
* Proposed acquisition of eight nuclear-propelled submarines at the cost of $170 billion for hunter-killer operations in the Taiwan Strait
* Construction, at the cost of $10 billion, of a deep water port on Australia’s east coast for US and UK nuclear powered and nuclear missile-carrying submarines
* The long-established satellite communications station known as Pine Gap in central Australia has recently, and is still being, expanded and upgraded. It is key to the command and control of US forces in the Indo-Pacific (and even as far afield as Ukraine)
The Government and right wing anti-China analysts and commentators, whose opinions dominate main stream media, accept the Defence Minister’s contention that this militarisation enhances Australia’s sovereignty by strengthening the range and lethality of Australia’s high-end war-fighting capability to provide a credible deterrent to a potential aggressor.
Many analysts and commentators outside the governing elite, including myself, argue that these arrangements effectively cede Australian sovereignty to America. This is especially because of the provisions of the Force Posture Agreement of 2014, entered into under the auspices of ANZUS.
I understand that a paper has been circulated to the Committee, expounding the details of the FPA, so in summary, it gives unimpeded access, exclusive control and use of agreed facilities and areas to US personnel, aircraft, ships and vehicles and gives Australia absolutely no say at all in how, when where and why they are to be used.
All Australian analysts, whether sympathetic or antipathetic to China, agree on one point. That is, that if the US goes to war against China over the status of Taiwan, or any other issue of contention, Australia will inevitably be involved.
The Threat
All these preparations are justified by the false premise that China presents a military threat. China has not invaded anywhere. It has never proposed use of force against other countries. It has enshrined in its Constitution the ‘Three No’s – No military alliances; No military bases; No use, or threat to use, military force. China has, however, reserved the right to use force to prevent secession by Taiwan.
It has recently rapidly increased its defence capability in response to the fearsome US naval presence and war-fighting exercises just off its coastline. Its defence budget is one third that of the US and the bases that it has constructed in the South China Sea pale into insignificance compared to the hundreds of bases that the US has ranged all around China.
So, if China is not a military threat, why is it designated as the primary systemic threat of the collective West, led by the US? The answer lies in the word “systemic”. China has expressed a determination to revamp the global financial system to make it fairer for developing countries. Kissinger is reputed to have said: “If you control money, you control the world”. The US currently controls world finance and China (with Russia) is out to change that.
The US, which played the leading part in the establishment of the post-World War II institutions, has become a leading revisionist, abandoning the UN for “coalitions of the willing”. The US has declined to join important Conventions like those on the Law of the Sea and on Climate. It has refused to accept the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court, and has exempted itself from the Genocide Convention. It has played a leading part in the weakening of the World Trade Organisation by imposing trade restrictions on other countries, while not agreeing to new appointments to the WTO’s appellate tribunal, so preventing that body from functioning.
China is the second-largest (or by some calculations, the largest) economy in the world. It is the major trading partner of over 100 countries, mainly in the global south, but including Australia and a number of other Western countries. Hence China has the clout to undermine the “international rules-based order” set up by, and for the benefit of, the West.
China has already established an alternative to the Anglo-American international financial transaction system: – the Cross-border Interbank Payments System CIPS, (in which, ironically a number of Western banks are shareholders). In collaboration with Russia and within the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China & South Africa) China is creating an alternative to the almighty dollar as the preferred currency for trade and for national reserve holdings.
It seems that the US has concluded that, since it can’t constrain China economically, it will have to get it bogged down in a long-drawn-out war to hinder its economic growth and hamper its infrastructure development cooperation with other countries. On 25 March 2021 President Biden vowed to prevent China from overtaking the US as the most powerful country in the world – “not on my watch” he said.
Nevertheless, the latest CSIS computer modelling, like previous modelling by the Rand Corporation, indicates that all involved in a Sino-US war would lose.
Proxy War
All of these analyses overlook one significant point. US determination to pursue the Wolfowitz doctrine of preventing the rise of any power that could challenge US global supremacy (neither Russia, nor Europe, nor China) has not diminished, but has morphed into a strategy of fighting its adversaries by proxy.
This has been clearly demonstrated by the war in Ukraine. A White House press briefing on 25 January 2022, before the Russian intervention, stated that “the US, in concert with its European partners, will weaken Russia to the point where it can exercise no influence on the international stage”.
Political leaders from Biden, through Pelosi and on to Members of Congress have told Ukraine that “your war is our war and we are in it for as long as it takes”. Congressman Adam Schiff put it bluntly that “we support Ukraine… to fight Russia over there, so that we don’t have to fight it over here”.
In the case of China, defined in the NDS as the principal threat to the US, the proxy of choice is clearly Taiwan. The strategy envisages:
• a world-wide media campaign (going on for several years already) to portray China as the aggressor;
• goading China into taking military action to prevent Taiwan’s secession;
• leaving Taiwan to conduct its own defence, with constant resupply of arms and equipment from the US, at great profit to the military/industrial complex;
• sustaining Taiwan sufficiently to keep China ‘bogged down’, thus hampering its economic development and its infrastructure cooperation with other countries;
• avoiding direct military engagement, in order to maintain the full capacity of US forces, while China’s would be significantly depleted; Although Biden has publicly re-affirmed adherence to the ‘One China’ principle, the US has been goading China by;
• stationing the bulk its naval power off the coast of China;
• ‘freedom of navigation’ and combat exercises in the South China Sea and Taiwan Straits;
• visits by senior US officials using US military aircraft;
• creation of a putative ‘Air Defence Identification Zone’ (ADIZ) extending well over mainland territory and then alleging Chinese violation of it;
• secretly providing military training personnel (whilst denying it);
• including Taiwan in the Summit for Democracy (9-10 December 2021), implying it is a separate country;
Many Australian politicians, (although not the present government), joined in goading China, by encouraging Taiwan to consider the possibility of declaring independence, which would trigger military action by China.
If Australia were to make good on its promise to ‘save Taiwan’, it would be devastated:
• The Australian navy would be obliterated, given the disparity between China’s and Australia’s forces;
* command/control centres (and possibly cities) in Australia could be wiped out by Chinese missiles. Australia has no anti-missile defence;
• To preserve its own assets, and to forestall the descent into nuclear conflict, the US would not engage directly in defence of Australia;
• US ‘support’ would be through massive arms sales to replace our losses – just as in Ukraine – at further profit to the US military/industrial complex;
• ASEAN is unlikely to support Australia. It has renewed and up-graded its Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with China. Each member country has infrastructure projects under China’s BRI, which they would not want to jeopardise in a ‘no-win war’;
• Support from India is unlikely, despite its membership of the Quad – which is nothing more than a consultative dialogue. India has security commitments to China under the SCO and gets its arms from Russia, which has a “better than treaty” relationship with China.
• Australia relies heavily on China for many daily necessities. In a war, deliveries from China would be severely disrupted.
Australians generally are more than happy for the material benefits of a trading relationship with China, which constitutes more than one third of Australia’s export earnings. But, any attempt by China to improve Australians’ understanding of China’s historical, social, cultural and scientific achievements, let alone its political systems or foreign policy, are instantly feared as nefarious attempts to infiltrate Australian politics and undermine the ‘Australian way of life’.
The increasing size of China’s economic (and, by extension military) strength, to which Australia contributes important resources and from which it derives so much benefit, is portrayed as a threat to Australia’s security. This has Australia trapped in the absurd policy paradox of preparing to go to war against China to protect Australia’s trade with China.
Recent developments in Taiwan, particularly the county and municipal elections, which caused the President, Tsai Ingwen, to resign her leadership of the pro-Independence Party, suggest that Taiwan prefers the status quo and is unwilling to be the proxy of the US in a war with Beijing.
Australia thus becomes the potential proxy.
In the name of the Alliance, American service personnel (active and retired) are now embedded in Australian defence policy making institutions and in command and control positions within the ADF. All of the American military assets installed in Australia under the Alliance and the AUKUS deal, are now “interchangeable” with the ADF, making it possible to use them as putative Australian forces against China, while the US stands aside and maintains the same pretence of “no engagement”, as it is doing in Ukraine.
This is why I said at the beginning that the US is preparing to send Australia to war against China.
Whilst these are the dangers that the ANZUS Alliance poses for Australia if the US instigates a war against China, there are risks for the US also.
1. There would be crippling expense that further exacerbates the US wealth divide and related domestic political breakdown. Supplying the weaponry and everything else required for a proxy war with China would be a bigger drain on the US budget than the Ukraine conflict. The expenditure would flow back to the military industrial complex, constituting a further massive transfer of wealth from the ordinary taxpayer to the plutocrat billionaires. It would blow out the already unsustainable national debt, and either take away from expenditure on essential services and infrastructure, or, if they print money, further blow out inflation. The political and social breakdown that the US is already suffering as a consequence of its real economic decline and widening wealth gap could only intensify to breaking point.
2. The slide into a direct war would probably be inevitable. Planning a proxy war is all very well as an academic exercise, but sticking with those plans when the fighting starts will be very difficult. There are already lunatic politicians and “experts” in the US who think American can win a direct war, so when China starts bombing Australia, and good old Aussie “mates” are dying in massive numbers, the voices of those in the US advocating direct engagement will be amplified. Combined with the already extreme polarisation of US politics in which ONLY war is bipartisan, the risk that extremists will take the US into direct conflict, and a nuclear showdown with China, is very serious.
3. The folding in of Japan into the AUKUS arrangements will increase the risk that Japan would be obliged to assist Australia in any military conflict with China. The US, because of its Defence Treaty with Japan, would then be obliged to join in the fighting, vitiating its plan to avoid direct military engagement.
A point of historical irony:
I’ll wind up with a bit of historical irony, in which I was personally involved:
In the early 70’s, we had been kept completely in the dark about the secret Kissinger visits to China, until the plan for Nixon to visit was announced. Feeling blindsided by a momentous change in US policy towards China, we produced Policy Planning Paper QP11/71 of 21 July 1971.
It recognised.. “political disadvantage resulting from the manner in which the United States conducts its global policies” and argued that this would mean that. “The American alliance, in a changing power balance, will mean less to us than it has in the past.”
It went on:
“If anything, this argument has been strengthened by recent United States actions and America’s failure to consult us on issues of primary importance to Australia. Accordingly, we shall need, now more than ever, to formulate independent policies, based on Australian national interests and those of our near neighbours…”
This is even more true today than it was in the 1970’s. For example, Australia was not consulted in the precipitate US withdrawal from Afghanistan, despite our role as ‘loyal’ supporter of the US in that ill-advised conflict. Our indignant protestations were met with Biden’s statement that “America acts only in its own interests”.
Our present predicament is due largely to the failure of a succession of Australian Governments to take this analysis to heart and act upon it. Prime Minister Fraser, who replaced Whitlam, ironically came to a very similar view towards the end of his life, which he set forth in detail in his book ‘Dangerous Allies’, but too late to do anything about it. He identified the paradox that Australia needs the US for its defence, but it only needs defending because of the US.
A couple of pertinent quotes, first from the late Jim Molan:
“Our forces were not designed to have any significant independent strategic impact. They were purely designed to provide niche components of larger American missions.”
We were, in his view, abdicating our own defence and cultivating complete dependence on the Americans.
And from Chris Hedges:
“Finally, the neo-cons who have led the U.S. into the serial debacles of Afghanistan, Iraq, and now Ukraine, costing the country tens of trillions of dollars and even greater amounts of destroyed reputational capital, will claim their customary immunity from any accountability for their savage failures and cheerily move on to their next calamity. We need to be on the lookout for their next gambit to pillage the treasury and advance their own private interests above those of the nation. It will surely come.”
An (incomplete) list of some of the commentators from whom I have drawn:
Richard Tanter – military analyst, Nautilus Foundation
Brian Toohey – author (political and historical analysis)
Mike Scrafton was a senior Defence executive, and ministerial adviser to the minister for defence
Paul Keating was the prime minister of Australia from 1991 to 1996.
Geoff Raby AO was Australia’s ambassador to China (2007–11); He was awarded the Order of Australia for services to Australia–China relations and to international trade.
Gregory Clark began his diplomatic career with postings to Hong Kong and Moscow. He is emeritus president of Tama University in Tokyo and vice-president of the pioneering Akita International University.
Dr Mike Gilligan worked for 20 years in defence policy and evaluating military proposals for development, including time in the Pentagon on military balances in Asia.
Jocelyn Chey AM is Visiting Professor at the University of Sydney and Adjunct Professor at Western Sydney University and UTS. She formerly held diplomatic posts in China and Hong Kong. She is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of International Affairs.
Joseph Camilleri is Emeritus Professor at La Trobe University in Melbourne, a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Social Sciences, and President of Conversation at the Crossroads
David S G Goodman is the Director, China Studies Centre, University of Sydney.
Geoff Miller was Director-General, Office of National Assessments, deputy secretary, Department of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador to Japan and the Republic of Korea, and High Commissioner to New Zealand.
Cavan Hogue was Ambassador to USSR and Russia. He also worked at ANU and Macquarie universities.
Edited transcript of a speech to the Committee for the Republic, Salon, 18 January 2023
Why the Failure of Credit Suisse is such a big deal; It was a “Bulge Bracket Bank”
To average, everyday people, the failure of Credit Suisse is simply some news headline. They have no clue at all what this means: ALERT – Time’s up. Why? Because Credit Suisse was a “Bulge Bracket Bank.” You may know it better as “too big to fail.” But fail it has.
What is a bulge bracket bank?
A bulge bracket bank refers to a top-tier, multinational investment bank that has a leading role in the global financial markets. The term “bulge bracket” originally referred to the banks listed at the top of the “league tables” for securities underwriting, but it has since come to encompass a wider range of financial services.
Bulge bracket banks typically have a strong presence in both the domestic and international markets, providing a broad range of services such as underwriting, M&A advisory, equity and debt offerings, and sales and trading of securities. They also typically work with large, high-profile clients such as corporations, governments, and institutional investors.
Examples of bulge bracket banks include Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citigroup, and Deutsche Bank. These banks are known for their extensive resources, large-scale operations, and high-profile deals.
What banks are considered bulge bracket?
Some of the banks that are considered bulge bracket are:
JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.
Morgan Stanley
Bank of America Merrill Lynch
Citigroup, Inc.
Deutsche Bank AG
rclays PLC Credit Suisse Group AG In fact, UBS Group AG
Wells Fargo & Co.
These banks are considered bulge bracket because they typically have a leading role in the global financial markets and provide a wide range of financial services to large, high-profile clients such as corporations, governments, and institutional investors. They are also known for their extensive resources, large-scale operations, and high-profile deals.
What would happen if a bulge bracket bank failed?
If a bulge bracket bank were to fail, it could have serious repercussions on the global financial system and the broader economy. This is because these banks are deeply interconnected with other financial institutions and play a significant role in the global financial markets.
If a bulge bracket bank were to fail, it could trigger a domino effect that would lead to other financial institutions experiencing financial distress or failing. This could lead to a credit freeze, where access to credit is severely restricted, making it difficult for businesses and individuals to obtain financing. This, in turn, could lead to a slowdown in economic activity and a recession.
To prevent such a scenario, regulators have put in place various measures to monitor and regulate the activities of bulge bracket banks. For example, these banks are subject to more stringent capital and liquidity requirements, stress tests, and other regulations to ensure their financial stability and resilience. In the event of a failure, regulators may also intervene to stabilize the financial system and protect the broader economy from the fallout of a bank failure.
Credit Suisse Failed
Those measures do NOT seem to have worked. Reverberations from the Credit Suisse failure, and the utterly vicious zeroing of Credit Suisse “Tier A1” Bonds, is starting to spread.
As this story is written at 4:45 AM on 20 March 2023, Asian Stock Markets have almost completed their trading day. They’re all in the red:
AsianMarkets AllRed
Credit Suisse, $CS, was worth $10 billion a month ago and sold for pennies on the Dollar.
The government said $CS had “serious risk of bankruptcy.”
A shareholder vote was bypassed.
Regulators knew it was a matter of hours for bankruptcy.
This deal was made out of desperation.
In fact, the “rescue” was not a rescue. UBS could only work an equity trade, they themselves lacked the cash for a real buyout! That deal was total clown world.
Stock Markets know this. Stock Holders are learning of it now. The markets will begin to react TODAY.
Europe is opening shortly. That’s where we will see some of the Credit Suisse fallout.
In the Asian Markets HSBC & Standard Chartered both down 6%…. will be interesting to watch the European markets when they open.
US markets open in about 3.5 hours. As Europe goes, so will the US.
You see, those “Tier 1A “Bonds that were Zeroed for Credit Suisse . . . they totaled slightly over seventeen billion dollars. Somebody has now lost all that money. Well, a lot of somebody’s, actually.
That loss is going to have an impact. Maybe an impact on someone big. And that may take THEM out.
Moreover, the zeroing of Tier 1A Bonds just showed bondholders all over the world, that when it comes to BANKS, their “totally secure” Tier 1A bonds, aren’t nearly as secure as they were lead to believe! People are going to start dumping those bonds, because clearly, they’re now far riskier than anyone ever thought.
When you factor-in the reality that the Swiss government changed their law in real-time, to prevent Credit Suisse stockholders from having the Statutory 6 weeks to consider a merger or buyout offer, the bondholders (and Stock holders) now know they’re sitting ducks. They have NO PROTECTION of law. The “rules” went right out the window.
As these Bond holders (and maybe stock holders) run for the exits today – and this week – their selling is going to put the banks under even MORE pressure.
In the US, here’s how fragile the banks actually are:
Bank unrealized losses chart
At the far right of the chart is this year – right now. As you can see, the banks are stuck holding Bonds that are worth LESS than their face value. In the color gold, those bonds can be sold by the banks if the banks need to raise cash. Those gold-colored (sellable) bonds are worth three-hundred BILLION dollars LESS than their face value.
As long as the banks don’t have to sell them (to raise cash) the loss on the bond is “unrealized.” But as people begin to take more money out of the banks, because the general public sees the banks as untrustworthy, some banks are going to HAVE TO sell those bonds. And the moment they do, the loss becomes “realized” and the bank is in trouble.
This week may very well be historic. We just don’t know how it will turn out.
Politicians all over the world are screaming from the rooftops that “the banks are safe and secure.” Trouble is, the public long ago learned that when they tell you things are safe, that’s when you run!
Because politicians and government officials have shown themselves to be liars, over and over , and over again. Only the truly stupid believe them anymore.
With that reality, there’s no telling what will happen this week. However . . . Calamity . . . is on the menu.
This isn’t going away.
This is not your typical msm-driven race-baiting, class warfare, type of drivel designed to distract you from real problems.
This is a real problem. They’re going to try to keep your eyes – and mind – off of it with crap like North Korea nuclear threats, Trump’s impending arrest, etc. Expect some race-fueled incident to really throw everyone over the edge.
If they can keep us worked up over things like that, maybe we won’t notice all the banks failing and the economy literally crumbling around us. Maybe.
This isn’t something they can bury and hide for long, though, but they will try to keep us in the dark as long as possible. Many won’t notice until bank failures and sky-high inflation impacts them personally.
When they know you notice the real problem, like with the Credit Suisse-UBS merge, they’ll issue some statement about how all is well and good, the US dollar is strong and we shouldn’t worry. When they say this kind of nonsense is when you need to worry the most.
UPDATE 5:20 AM EDT —
European market:
UBS – 12%
Deutsche -10%
most others -8%
people do not believe their lies anymore . . . this is a bad omen for everything today . . . .
UPDATE 5:31 AM EDT —
They just talked on Bloomberg about “the possibility of UBS walking out of the deal.”
You’ve Gotta Be F**king Kidding Me
Russell is truth teller that is so needed in society- THANK YOU! It is truly unfathomable that Wasserman is given ANY time after her known corruption. The world is upside down…
Global Times editorial
Global Times has published a brutal editorial that damns everything about this event and deserves to be pasted in full:
The leaders of the US, Britain and Australia celebrated the unveiling of the AUKUS nuclear submarine plans with great fanfare at the Naval Base in San Diego, California, on Monday. It was a public humiliation to France, which was cheated by them, and a cover-up and deceit to the Australian people, and a kind of bravado to neighboring countries. It was also a blow to the already fragile international nuclear non-proliferation mechanism, and obviously a dangerous move for the entire international community.
According to the agreement, Australia will purchase up to five US nuclear-powered submarines in the next few years, which means that Australia will become the seventh country in the world to have nuclear submarines. The peace and stability of the Indian Ocean and Pacific region will expectedly bear the impact, pressure and risks brought about by this agreement for a long time. Some American media even called it a "milestone." This obvious misnomer has produced ironic effects, but the agreement may indeed become a boundary stone for the US, Britain and Australia to drag the Asia-Pacific region into a "new cold war." It is what everyone is worried about.
In order to obtain the US' nuclear-powered submarines, Australia may have to spend nearly $250 billion. Does Australia have too many mines and is too wealthy? Australia indeed has mines, but life in Australia is not rich for most, and the current economic situation is very bad, with a huge structural budget deficit. $250 billion is roughly equivalent to about two years of public healthcare expenditure of Australia. In order to pay for this huge sum of money, Australia is bound to squeeze social welfare. In other words, the 25 million Australians will eventually have to pay the bill through a certain degree of frugality.
Another question, is Australia in danger without US' nuclear-powered submarines? Can't it survive? Obviously not. Not only does Australia not need them, but it will definitely put itself at risk by buying them. Australia, which is isolated in South Pacific and far away from other hotspots in the region, has a relatively unique geographic advantage. No country will attack or even invade Australia for no reason. Australia has had the conditions to spend its main resources and energy on improving people's livelihood.
Australia's inexplicable sense of insecurity when facing China is basically the result of being spiritually controlled for many years by the US. Australia thinks that it is the "deputy sheriff" of the Asia-Pacific region under Washington, but not to mention that it has no salary, even its police uniforms and firearms have to be bought from the US at a high price. The AUKUS agreement is actually a big trick of the US on Australia. It is equivalent to asking Australia to build a nuclear submarine base to produce its own submarines, but more importantly, to maintain and ensure the nuclear submarines of the US and Britain, and hand them over to be commanded by the US Navy, moreover, the hundreds of billions of dollars need to be paid by Australia itself. The follow-up nuclear submarine equipment, maintenance, related personnel training are an even bigger bottomless hole. Australia is at best a cat's paw which helps the US to get chestnuts from the fire, and it can be regarded as one of the most representative chump in the history of international relations.
In the English context, "white elephant" usually refers to a useless but expensive and eccentric object. It could have been better if the nuclear submarines of the US were just white elephants, but they are also a big ill omen. Canberra bought them back with a huge sum of money and will turn Australia into a haunted house, bringing risk to the whole region and making the years of efforts of South Pacific Countries in building a South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone, which is protected by formal treaty, face the most serious impact. Not only China firmly opposes it, but Southeast Asian countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia are also very dissatisfied. New Zealand directly denies Australia's nuclear submarines' access to its waters. Otherwise, the Australian Defense Minister and Foreign Minister would not have been running around recently, trying to dispel people's concerns about nuclear non-proliferation issues.
On the same day as the three AUKUS countries gathered together, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute released a new report on global arms import and export. The report shows that the US share of global arms exports has increased from 33 percent to 40 percent, and imports to East Asia and certain states in other areas of high geopolitical tension rose sharply. All this is in Washington's calculations. Just look at what America is exporting: weapons to kill, crises of all kinds (the fallout from the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank is still brewing), and the most destructive of all is geopolitical malice, which America uses to spiritually control Australia. [My Emphasis]
Not too long ago China published a long list of Outlaw US Empire crimes and its hegemonic ways. This event will be added to it even if it’s eventually rejected by Australians who the Chinese rightfully say don’t need it whatsoever. It can be said that the Australian continent’s been invaded twice–first by the British and second by the Americans and both have partnered to chain Australians similar to their convict forebearers.
There’re a lot of good Aussies here at the bar; I’m very sorry my government has done what is has done.
If you color Russia the same as China, you‘ll get the #Dragonbear power projection in the #Arctic and #IndoPacific too. #India will be key to both geopolitical constellations.
2023 03 16 15 17
They are suggesting this…
2023 03 16 15 19
I think that the map should have a LOT of light RED nations to include North Korea, Iran, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Brazil, Turkey, and much of SE Asia.
The point being is that maps that originate out of the West also self-isolate China, when that is not at all a reflection of reality.
First Republic Bank Stock HALTED 7+ Times Today alone; Looks Like There’s No Saving it
Trading of the stock in First Republic Bank ($FRC) just got halted for its 7th time since the open today! Two weeks ago, the stock traded at $130. Today it is down to less than $10.
The Trading HALTS are wild; STOCK GOES LIVE AND IS GETTING HALTED WITHIN SECONDS. STOCK IS NOW DOWN 50% TODAY from its Friday Close.
We are on track to make a new record for most number of halts in a day. The regional bank system continues to lack a solution.
It appears to many observers that there’s no saving this bank. Investors are spooked and are leaving. Period. Full stop.
Over $20 BILLION in Market Capitalization has been wiped this month.
This is the Canary in the coal mine for the banking industry.
Other banks just gave $30 billion in deposits to the bank last week, to shore-it-up, and the Bank is borrowing a lot more from the Fed to stay solvent.
No business or individual with half a brain is going to keep more than 250k in their business or personal accounts in any non-mega banks for much longer. The risk of loss rises daily.
They will need to backstop all banks deposits soon or this thing is going to blow sky high.
In the time it took to write this story — FRC stock has been halted TWO MORE TIMES! Nine trading halts today alone.
We are on track to mark a record for most number of halts in a day.
You’re witnessing history.
Australia’s Defence Policy Explained
Utopia is criminally underrated.
China donated just $5.8m to assist Turkey, while the US pledged $185m and the UK $30m.
The after-effects of the tragic earthquake in southern Turkey and northern Syria are still being felt more than one month on, both literally and metaphorically. As a report mentions, global assistance has been provided – China donated just $5.8m to assist Turkey, while the US pledged $185m and the UK $30m.
A recent poll by Premise, a research technology and data company, asked 1,000 Turks from across the country for their views on the international relief effort, the contributions from various aid agencies and also for their views on causes of the catastrophic damage
The managing director of Premise, Arthur Soames, explained that “starkest finding in data is that China is perceived as being far and away the most valued country in providing disaster relief: 72% of our nationally representative sample had a positive or very positive impression of China’s contribution, while the US, despite providing more than 20 times as much cash, was perceived in a similar light by only 59% of the population.”
“Having invested historically in their relationship with Turkey, China has found it simple to project its influence as a high-profile presence in the disaster relief from the start. This has clearly struck a powerful chord with people. The US, on the other hand, has had to pay a vastly higher premium in return for credit from the Turkish people.”
2023 03 18 10 39
“Qatar is perhaps the most surprising outlier to have secured a powerful, positive impression amongst Turks: 26% believed that Qatar has provided the greatest support to the relief effort, the highest figure for any country.
“A lot of this must have been due to Qatar’s decision to donate 10,000 housing units to the affected area that were left over from last year’s World Cup.
“The donation received widespread coverage in the Turkish media and clearly had a powerful impact – proof that Qatar continues to receive international and diplomatic benefits from hosting the World Cup.”
2023 03 18 10 3f9
“Behind these two comes the EU. It came in third with 16% of people saying that it had provided the most support, while 11% thought it would be most capable of assisting in the rebuild.
“By contrast, the relief effort from the US and the UK does not appear to have been particularly recognised. Only 8% of the poll felt that the US had done the most. The UK falls much further behind, barely registering 1%.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday said Moscow has written off the debts of African states worth more than $20 billion.
Speaking at an international parliamentary conference titled “Russia-Africa in a Multipolar World,” Putin said the trade turnover between Russia and Africa countries is growing every year, reaching almost $18 billion in 2022.
“It is unlikely that such a figure can fully suit us, but we know that this is far from the limit,” he added.
Putin also said he believed that “the development of counter-commodity exchanges will be facilitated by a more energetic transition in financial settlements to national currencies, and the establishment of new transport and logistics chains.”
He further said: “Additional opportunities are opened up by the process of establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which began in 2021, which in the future will become a continental market with a total GDP of more than $3 trillion.”
Russia, he said, is in favor of establishing ties with AfCFTA both through the Eurasian Economic Union and on a bilateral level, adding that Africa will become one of the leaders of the multipolar world.
“The states of Africa are constantly increasing their weight and their role in world affairs, they are asserting themselves more and more confidently in politics and in the economy. We are convinced that Africa will become one of the leaders in the emerging new multipolar world order,” Putin added.
He said Russia and the countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America are against the neo-colonial ideology.
“Russia and African countries uphold moral norms and social principles traditional for our peoples, and oppose neo-colonial ideology imposed from outside,” he said. “Many states of Asia, the Middle East, Latin America adhere to similar positions, and together we make up the world majority.”
3 Doors Down – Here Without You (Official Music Video)
Steel barricades are being unloaded outside Manhattan criminal courthouse – TRUMP INDICTMENT?
Steel barricades are being unloaded outside Manhattan criminal courthouse as shown in the brief video below:
2023 03 23 10 41
Numerous metal barricades have arrived outside the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse, located at 100 Centre St. in Manhattan, New York City, ahead of a possible Indictment of former President Trump this week.
NYPD is reportedly mobilizing up to 700 Riot Cops, Ahead of potential unruly protest.
Italian Meatballs with Peppers
Chopped red and yellow bell peppers add color and texture to these savory meatballs seasoned with Italian herb mix and enriched with mushrooms.
2023 03 19 17 08
Ingredients
1 pound ground turkey
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon Italian herb seasoning
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon MAGGI Instant Chicken Flavor Bouillon
1 can (12 fl. oz.) NESTLÉ® CARNATION®
Evaporated Fat Free Milk, divided
4 teaspoons all-purpose flour
2 cups hot cooked rice
Chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
Combine turkey, onion, herb seasoning and salt in large bowl; form mixture into 24 one-inch meatballs.
Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add meatballs; cook, turning occasionally, for 3 to 4 minutes or until browned on all sides.
Reduce heat to low; cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes or until cooked through.
Remove meatballs from skillet; keep warm.
Add bell peppers, mushrooms, garlic and bouillon to skillet; cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 to 3 minutes.
Combine 1 tablespoon evaporated milk and flour in small bowl; add to skillet.
Gradually stir in remaining evaporated milk; cook, stirring frequently, for 5 to 8 minutes or until sauce is slightly thickened.
Add meatballs to skillet; stir to coat.
Serve over rice. Garnish with parsley.
Prep: 20 min | Cook: 25 min | Yield: 6 servings
Peace In Ukraine Is “Unacceptable” Says Biden Spokesman
2023 03 23 11 06
CHINA TO OFFICIALLY ARM RUSSIA IF KIEV REFUSES PEACE PLAN
China will officially join Iran to arm Russia, “if Kyiv does not accept the Chinese peace plan.”
That is the information coming directly from the China delegation accompanying President Xi Jinping during his ongoing state visit to Russia.
Xi is expected to call Ukraine President Zelensky later this week; perhaps FROM MOSCOW during Xi’s state visit!
Washington’s response was like lightning: The Free World officially rejects China peace plan for Ukraine: “China’s ceasefire initiative is an attempt to give Russia time to launch a new offensive.” – The White House.
More info as I get it. Check back
UPDATE 10:36 AM EDT —
The Pentagon may soon announce measures for the possible delivery of Abrams tanks to Ukraine earlier than expected, White House spokesman John Kirby said.
Putin and China just dealt a KNOCKOUT blow to the west with this move
This is a simple “stand alone” post regarding an important event. namely the November 2022 Shanghai “Anti-coronavirus” protests. This article discusses and summarizes what happened to the individuals that participated in the CIA / NED led protests.
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main qimg 1235df40da5477323283c144f4916bd4 lq
Let it be well understood that I covered (in great detail) what happened, and who was involved and why. As well as the final results and the various trends going on in China. However, this article summarizes the events related to the four participating groups. Now that China has secured them, arrested them, sentenced or sentencing them, and cleaning up the mess that they created;
The NED / CIA trained saboteurs.
The NED / CIA associated "news" reporters.
The local student Leaders.
The student pawns.
The trained saboteurs
These were the Taiwanese and Hong Kong “leaders” that directed the local leaders’ actions.
In Sichuan, Four Hongkongers who disclosed false information and bogus addresses, have already been charged with ‘Falsification for Entry’ which carries 3–10 years.
The sentencing will be next week.
Given the seriousness of their actions they will probably obtain a sentence on the “high side”. This is especially true if they are tied to any previous Hong Kong color revolution activity.
The student participants (Pawns)
Yesterday a total of 91 students apologized for their mistake with the protests.
Using AI obtained data, and 5G remote face scanning (though paper, and masks) the police compiled detailed photo evidence against everyone who was at the “protests”.
Using this photo evidence, every student who participated was visited by the police at their dorms and homes, and the leaders clearly identified.
They were made to sign an Oath that [1] they didn’t get any money and [2] that the protests were because of frustration that they could not go home for the CNY holidays (which now they can).
They also apologized [3] for sending the messages to Reuters & BBC.
The student leaders (Led the protests)
In addition, the leaders, have tougher penalties placed upon them.
There were 14 leaders, or “ring leaders”.
Those Students identified as leaders can no longer join the Civil Service. Which means that they cannot join the CPC, volunteer, or take the basic tests for advancement within Chinese society. They will never vote, or ever become a citizen inside of China.
They will require Security clearance level I for a passport (In short they are unlikely to ever leave China until maybe 2050).
All their social media accounts have been suspended for 3 years. Meaning their internet use is ZERO for the next three years.
No Wechat.
Unable to QR scan.
Unable to buy or purchase things via QR.
Unable to register APPs
No QQ
Unable to listen to music.
Unable to create and publish music.
Unable to use e-mail
No Douxing
Unable to play games
Unable to watch videos
Unable to create videos
The others will not be punished. They were warned and let off. They were visibly relieved.
Western Reporters (Choreographed and directed the protests)
8 Reporters were charged with Degree Three Incitement and Degree One Public Misinformation without evidence.These charges result in prison time.
Lucky for them that the charges were suspended pending deportation.
If they ever come back to China again, they face 6–14 years imprisonment and 200K Yuan fine
They have been deported
1 Reporter has been released on a 50K Yuan Bond. That he posted. I am sure that his every movement is recorded and watched as we walks the long slow path out of China.
Their Laptops, Phones are all in Security Service custody.
All lists and names, and addresses on the computers were obtained, and deep-deep-DEEP AI scanning of the electronic uncovered a “treasure trove” of information.
Let’s just simply say that any Chinese on any of those lists is finished
This so far was the Security Services… now some words about the dark-arm of China. The dreaded…
Political Corruption Police
Then the Political Corruption Police was involved and they made a number of stops which aren’t covered in any Chinese Daily. Nothing is reported about those events.
On Duoxing and Zhihu they say, many Taiwanese who were spotted have been detained and are questioned.
One must wonder how serious it must be for them as the Political Corruption Police handled their cases instead of the regular police.
They may be charged with spying in which case they may spend the next 20 years in a Chinese Cell. And it will be absolute. China does not have parole or negotiated settlements like in the West. Twenty years is twenty years to the second.
Or they may be killed. As is the historical norm.
Exactly.
Life over. Full stop.
By God the Crackdown was Swift
main qimg 8eec948a6fb6bb51d31837d509161988 lq
It’s like Machines and Robots
The Authorities knew who the brains were and who the unwitting pawns were in seconds.
The Pawns were mostly poor students who were let go with a warning.
The Pawns were a handful of people who didn’t even understand what they were protesting against. They came to protest against Covid 19 lockdowns and were aghast to know that the protests called for Xi Jing pings resignation and overthrow of the CPC.
They admitted to being paid (by the United States government) agents.
They were ordered between 60–200 hours community service and they were visibly relieved. Grateful, even.
The Western reporters were deported. No sense jailing them and causing a major diplomatic incident.
Maybe Mengs charges being dismissed was a quid pro quo?
However the perpetrators from HK and Taiwan are finished. They paid for protests where overthrow of Xi was mentioned. It’s far better for them to simply end their lives now.
Their own personal lives are going to be very dark.
About the student leaders…
The student leaders could face more serious charges if they find money was exchanged and even a Harvard or Yale admission is considered money exchange. So if a letter, or voice message promising easy entry into a Western university is obtained, they will be facing very serious charges.
Then instead of Yale, the poor guy faces 15 years prison
The Overthrow of CPC and Xi
That was the only thing that was regarded serious enough.
The Authorities once again demonstrating their brutal efficiency
Many pro-DPP Taiwanese in Taiwan may no longer dare visit the mainland. They would be picked up within ten seconds and likely never see the light of day again.
This video is one of the earlier Patrion videos. It was posted two months ago and is part of the daily Patrion videos articles and subjects regarding world-line travel, Domain, and all the good stuff that MM is known for. Here it is for free for those who are not paying patrions. I hope that it is beneficial to you.
Earth is a Prison Planet. There are systems within systems, within systems to control the inmates. It’s a big subject and I have covered it elsewhere. If you want to learn all the details, then you can browse around here on MM. But for now, I want to discuss one of the control mechanisms.
It’s the “forgive and forget” control mechanism.
I can tell you that criminals inside the United States use this method all the time to reduce their sentences, get away with crimes, and conduct “damage control” to lessen the impacts of their crimes to others.
I’ve explained this many, many times over.
If you can convince your victim to forgive you, then there is a great chance that they will not press charges or file a report on you. And thus you, as a criminal, can continue repeating your crimes over and over. All you need to do is follow the simple formula;
Hurt a person.
Have someone else convince them to “forgive you” and then “forget about the event”.
Repeat. And hurt a different person.
That is precisely why the police routinely look at first time offenders with an eye towards how many prior crimes they committed, but were not caught in.
It’s not just felony activity. It’s about everything. Thoughts, feelings and behaviors are all connected.
It’s a nice trite saying that is used to control you.
Learn this fact; children learn from their mistakes. A child that falls off a chair, then a ladder, then a table will stop accidentally falling down because it HURTS. But what if you mind-wipe the memories, and forget what it was like when you fell down? Well, the child would repeat again, and again, and again over and over.
If you are in a bad relationship, after a long string of bad relationships, you need to stop “forgiving and forgetting”; bone up. Grow a spine and learn from your mistakes.
And for the really brainwashed out there in internet land…
Do you want more?
I have more posts like this in my happiness index here…
I hope that you all are having a nice day. Today I wanted to do something a little bit different. Today I want to post some sexy images. Of course, I don’t mean sexy as in pornographic, but rather sexy as “appeals to the senses”. And to this end, I do hope that you will all agree that this is a nice way to start the day.
Start the day right
What ever you do, never, ever, ever, give up. Video.
Sensory Overload
There are numerous people on MM that are suddenly having experiences. My guess is that you have verbalized participation with The Domain or volunteered to be a Rufus. These experiences are very personal ones, and if you try to describe them, you will sound like a “mad man / woman”.
Can I respectfully suggest that everyone put their experiences here, but ALWAYS preference it with “things are happening” after I did XXXXXX, and this is what the craziness appears to be like.
From DM… 19SEP21.
This is a weird one, even for me. Last night I had fallen asleep without realising it. It was a false dream in that I thought I was still awake thinking about certain topics.
I suddenly remembered something to do with a particular thought I was having about certain experiences in lucidity. This thought equated to there being heavy time travel element in one of them. It was so startling I went to sit up in bed and turned to face Storme to tell her to remind me about it in the morning. But as I did, something caught me. i was instantly aware I was in sleep paralysis.
There was this weird vibration thing going on. It felt like when you have a guitar amplifier turned on but the jack not connected to the guitar. If you try and plug it in, miss and hit the metal part of the connector on the guitar, this is what it felt like. it was this very low and loud vibration sound that permeated through me.
It was like every time you hit the metal, my body would “click or switch in or out”. It felt like someone was welding something into my astral body. I could feel it coming from the wall right next to the bed on my side, like I was connected to it.
Like someone was scraping something along the wall. It felt like something was trying to tune my body for a broadcast; I am absolutely sure this is what it was. Although it was a very strange feeling, it wasn’t completely uncomfortable.
I am pretty sure whatever it was deleted the thought about my experiences being related to time travel. I have the time travel element but nothing else. it was a fucking intense experience. Something was definitely fucking with me whilst in sleep paralysis
I suppose that this short mini-video is sort of what last week was like with all the comm channels opened up with The Domain. Try to explain this video and you will see how difficult it is trying to explain your experiences.
Mini-video
Kitty love.
Not everyone will appreciate this picture. But PL will…
It does make someone like me - who never felt “complete” until my cat adopted me - feel like there is a piece we cannot obtain. But that cat - which grew into a marriage to the love of my life and a ton of farm animals - they give me a purpose. Maybe not anywhere near the cosmic connection as a child, but there is always a yin to a yang.
I posted this short mini video over a year ago, but it’s time for a nice refresher. Remember everyone, the rest of the world is doing just fine. Just fine. It’s all going well. Do not get too caught up.
Everyone has a dream. Sometimes you get the opportunity to live that dream, and when it happens, you give it all you’ve got. You go girrrl! Check out this short video clip.
Dancing her heart out.
Kitty playtime
Kitty playtime.
Hello there.
Hello there.
Low and behold!
His coming was foretold in the ancient scripts.
Kitty hugs
I miss my little guys.
Taking the dog out for a walk
Boxing Champ
Boxing Champ
Snow patrol
Snow Patrol.
Inspiration
Inspiration
Big Jumper
Big Jumper
Little kitten, big appetite…
Hungry kitty.
Conclusion
I hope that this article finds you all well. It’s a good day to start it off on a good frame of mind and in a good way. Be the Rufus… as in this video…
Be the Rufus.
Be the Rufus, and leave the rest of the world smiling and glad that you are there.
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.
Hum… Have you noticed that Americans are so very serious when compared to others from the rest of the world?
Well, I’ve been monitoring the Afghanistan situation in the “news”. It looks pretty calm and collected. Mostly it’s people going about their business, shops open, trade going on, food markets selling produce and the like. Apparently the new government has retained all the public servants and are not making any radical changes, instead trying to establish a solid and decent enough government.
Afghanistan.
But, Christ All-mighty! If you read what the “news” out of America and the UK has to say, it’s all screeching bat-shit crazy hysterics!
My Lordy!
Someone needs to give these folks some Quaaludes and get them strapped to a gurney and carted off to the rubber-padded room.
It seems and appears to me that most of the people in both the USA and the UK are way-way-way too “high strung”.
What’s going on?
Why are they so “out there” and “in orbit”?
Well, that’s what this article is all about.
Most Americans really need to calm down.
Don’t freak out folks. But this article is going to take you into uncomfortable spaces.
Lately a number of MM participants have commented that they seem to “feel” electrified or odd in regards to being inside the United States. (Let’s call this Observation “A”.) It is like there is a very uncomfortable “wave going through everyone” simultaneously with this feeling of impending doom.
Meanwhile, there’s observation “B”, where others have commented that maybe the debacle in Afghanistan was not a sign of collapse, but was actually an intentional event concocted by those that control the United States for Geo-political and domestic advantage. Bo Chen offered a compelling argument for this, and I will post it later on.
I cannot say one way of other other related to observations “A” and “B” above. However, I will like to release this article that (again) I am being “lightly” pestered to write and release.
“Lightly” pestered.
Not hysterically pestered like the Deagel article from last week. The mere fact that I am suddenly getting “pestered” tells me that “something is afoot“.
So let’s try to consider Observation A and B in light of this article.
Again. Take what you read in an easy relaxed format. Don't get too caught up in the information. I'm going to talk about something very uncomfortable for most people to grasp. Ok?
The use of electronic mechanisms to broadcast thoughts, influence actions, alter the operation of the human body, or interact with it remotely is mature technology.It’s well known, well used, with decades of experience and operation.
Just because it is not common knowledge, or dismissed as “tin foil hat” fringe conspiracy science is meaningless. Those that control nations and societies have been using this technology for decades.
The United States is (almost) wholly controlled using these kinds of technologies. Not only on the mass scale for the intentional herding of American society, but for the control of specific people, and the obtainment of specific social-economic and Geo-political objectives.
The MetallicMan Experience
I can personally vouch that multiple personalities came out from MM during my “retirement” within the secure ADC Pine Bluff facility.
I can tell you that I was unaware that I had these personalities, abilities, skills or behaviors. I lived with them, and they laid dormant for much of my career within MAJestic.
I can also tell you that when my brain was unlocked, they had to absolutely make sure that I was in a very secure “padded room” when I “un-wound”.
For those of you who haven't read my MAJestic Index, there are multiple instances in my narrative that included...
[1] Physical cranial implants of three specific types (EBP, ELF1, ELF2),
[2] a shut-down sequence of the ELF implants,
[3] activation of memories, skills and personalities that I was unaware of, and
[4] behavior variations that can only be associated by radiative induction.
The technologies that was used on me personally were developed and were quite mature in 1981.
For me, personally, the technologies were developed in the sub-project 119 of Project MKUltra.
There are a myriad of technologies that can do this, and there are all sorts of tangential sciences and operations regarding them.
This article will just cover a few that I personally consider to be “main-stream” in continuous daily operation by those with the ability and the interest in using them.
Behavioral Control Background
American interest in the hypnosis – EMR [electromagnetic radiation] interaction was still strong as of 1974, when a research plan was filed to develop useful techniques in human volunteers.
The experimenter, J.F. Schapitz, stated:
“In this investigation it will be shown that the spoken word of the hypnotist may also be conveyed by modulated electromagnetic energy directly into the subconscious parts of the human brain.
That is, without employing any technical devices for receiving or transcoding the messages.
And without the person exposed to such influence having a chance to control the information input consciously”.
Although our modern electronic age has been in existence only since the turn of this century, individuals have claimed that their minds were being remotely influenced and controlled by machines for at least two centuries.
Recorded way back in 1810 is the case of James Tilly Matthews, a London tea broker.
He claimed his mind was being controlled by a gang operating a machine he called an “Air Loom” which sent out invisible, magnetic rays from a London cellar.
Matthews believed machines like the Air Loom were also controlling the minds of members of the British Parliament.
He wrote letters to the MPs warning them about the machines and the conspiracy behind it.
This kind of information, was not taken seriously at all. Instead,it was treated as delusional. And Matthews was committed to Bethlem Hospital as being insane.
It might be easy to dismiss Matthews’ claims of a machine that can control one’s mind because of the early date. However, his is by no means an isolated case.
In 1994 Ronald K. Siegel, a Associate Research Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Bio-behavioral Sciences at UCLA, wrote “Whispers: The Voices of Paranoia.”
Whispers
Whispers is a collection of case histories of mind control, (or ‘paranoia’ as he calls it) that he studied and compiled.
One case concerned a man named Tolman.
He believed his mind was being controlled by computers via a satellite system named POSSE (Personal Orbiting Satellite for Surveillance and Enforcement).
Interestingly, author Dorothy Burdick, in her 1982 book Such Things Are Known described what she claimed was her mind control harassment by computers via satellites.
She names Siegel as being the inventor of a device named FOCUS (Flexible Optical Control Unit Simulator) which can project hallucinations directly onto the retina so the subjects can’t distinguish the images from reality.
In Siegel’s book Tolman claims images are being directly transmitted into his brain.
Siegel says,
“You mean to tell me that here are machines capable of sending visual images directly into the brain?”
In 1968 Siegel published a professional paper titled “A Device for Chronically Controlled Visual Input”. This paper was a very detailed description of a device he developed to project images directly into the brain. He developed the techniques and system on experimental animals via their optic nerves.
He suggests further experimentation be
“conducted on neonates (kittens) which have their total visual stimulation controlled from the time they open their eyes.”
Thirty years later a team of US scientists wired a computer to a cat’s brain and created videos of what the cat was seeing.
One of the scientists working on the project, Garret Stanley of Harvard University, predicted machines with brain interfaces. We can only imagine how far such technology has advanced in the secret research laboratories of the US government and the military/industrial complex.
Today there is a wealth of documentation confirming how government agencies and research centers have been developing these technologies and methods.
These technologies involve elements of psychology, hypnosis, political conspiracies, and even devices that emit “rays” to control the behavior of others without their knowledge or consent.
Project MKUltra
Project MKUltra is the code name given to a program of experiments on human subjects that were designed and undertaken by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, some of which were illegal.
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Experiments on humans were intended to develop procedures and identify drugs such as LSD to be used in interrogations in order to weaken the individual and force confessions through brainwashing and psychological torture.
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The project was organized through the Office of Scientific Intelligence of the CIA and coordinated with the United States Army Biological Warfare Laboratories. Other code names for drug-related experiments were Project Bluebird and Project Artichoke.
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MKULTRA, as well as projects BLUEBIRD, ARTI-CHOKE, CHATTER, CASTI-GATE, MKDELTA, MKNAOMI, THIRD CHANCE, MKSEARCH, MKOFTEN, etc., were covert CIA projects involving many prominent members and institutions of the medical and scientific communities to investigate and experiment with various forms of behavior modification and control using, in many cases, unwitting human subjects.
In was in operation from the late 1940’s until the early 1970’s, they delved into everything from drugs to hypnosis to electronics.
Then, when Congress began to investigate the activity, the head of the program (illegally) destroyed all records. He gathered up every single record, and burned all of them. He did this in direct defiance of the law. Obviously, there were some very damning things in those records that the public should never be exposed to.
And the few that remain are just minor evidence of the full extent of a very invasive program conducted without Congressional oversight against the American people.
Sigh.
Trying to bring up this subject in any forums would get your canned, scoffed at or perma-banned. It’s “tin foil hat” conspiracy shit. Don’t you know…
…And then, one day, a bunch of boxes of Project MKUltra documents were discovered…
Our recent discovery of seven boxes of documents related to Project MKULTRA, a closely held CIA project ... conducted from 1953-1964.
As you may recall, MKULTRA was an "umbrella project" under which certain ...
MKULTRA prepared by the Inspector General's- office in. 1963. Asa result of that report's ...
New Vistas
In 1996, the US Air Force Scientific Advisory Board published a 14-volume study of future developments in weapons called “New World Vistas.”
Tucked away on page 89 of an ancillary 15th volume are some hair-raising insights into the future ‘coupling’ of man and machine in a section dealing with ‘Biological Process Control’. The author refers to an ‘explosion’ of knowledge in the field of neuroscience, adding, ominously:
One can envision the development of electromagnetic energy sources, the output of which can be pulsed, shaped, and focused, that can couple with the human body in a fashion that will allow one to prevent voluntary muscular movements, control emotions (and thus actions), produce sleep, transmit suggestions, interfere with both short-term and long-term memory, produce an experience set, and delete an experience set.
Translating the words ‘experience set’ from military jargon into plain English, this means, simply, that they envisage the ability to erase your life’s memories and substitute a new, fictitious set.
Imagine that.
Oh, what fun.
By projecting such developments into the future, the authors of “New Vistas” are camouflaging present day capabilities.
The Revolution in Military Affairs and Conflict Short of War
A similar futuristic scenario with many references to mind manipulation is described in “The Revolution in Military Affairs and Conflict Short of War (US Army War College, 1994)”.
Authors Steven Metz and James Kievit declare:
“Behavior modification is a key component of peace enforcement”
and
“The advantage of [using] directed energy systems is deniability.”
The authors ask:
“Against whom is such deniability aimed?” The direct answer is “the American people”.
Set in the year 2010, Metz and Kievit write of “perception molding” and “advanced psycho-technologies” to avoid irksome public protest, but that is just the beginning.
The major obstacle, they believe, is that “traditional American ethics [are] a major hindrance.”
My goodness!
And thus they continue to point out that
“old-fashioned notions of personal privacy and national sovereignty [are to be] changed.”
The future presented by Metz and Kievit sounds like a mixture of George Orwell’s 1984 and the movie “The Matrix”.
Individuals unwilling to go along with the revolutionary changes are…
“identified using comprehensive inter-agency integrated databases.”
They will then be “categorized.”
And “sophisticated computerized personality simulations” will be used “to develop, tailor and focus psychological campaigns for each.”
Jeeze Louise!
Other techniques to be used in association with these new mind weapons include ‘morphing’, a present-day ability that controls the distortion of TV images.
So, if you are lucky enough not to have your brain electronically scrambled or erased, the electronic news media will be manipulated especially for you!
And such, it will be presenting convincing near-real-life visual images through your combined TV set-cum-internet interface. Woo! Woo!
Silent Sounds
The Silent Sound Spread Spectrum (SSSS) technology, also known as “S-quad”, was developed by Dr. Oliver Lowery of Georgia, USA, and is described in US Patent #5,159,703 as “Silent Subliminal Presentation System.”
The abstract for the patent reads:
A silent communications system in which nonaural carriers, in the very low or very high audio-frequency range or in the adjacent ultrasonic frequency spectrum are amplitude-or frequency-modulated with the desired intelligence and propagated acoustically or vibrationally, for inducement into the brain, typically through the use of loudspeakers, earphones, or piezoelectric transducers.
The modulated carriers may be transmitted directly in real time or may be conveniently recorded and stored on mechanical, magnetic or optical media for delayed or repeated transmission to the listener.
According to literature by Silent Sounds, Inc., it is now possible, using supercomputers, to analyze human emotional EEG patterns and replicate them.
Then store these“emotion signature clusters” on another computer.
Thus, afterwards, one can, at will,
“silently induce and change the emotional state in a human being.”
Judy Wall, writing in Nexus (October-November 1990, says
“Silent Sounds, Inc. states that it is interested only in positive emotions, but the military is not so limited. That this is a US Department of Defense project is obvious.”
Edward Tilton, President of Silent Sounds Inc., says this about S-quad in a letter dated 13 December, 1996:
All schematics, however,have been classified by the US Government and we are not allowed to reveal the exact details…
We make tapes and CDs for the German Government, even the former Soviet Union countries! All with the permission of the US State Department, of course…
The system was used throughout Operation Desert Storm (Iraq) quite successfully.
By using these computer-enhanced EEGs, scientists can identify and isolate the brain’s low-amplitude “emotion signature clusters”, synthesize them and store them on another computer.
In other words, by studying the subtle characteristic brainwave patterns that occur when a subject experiences a particular emotion, scientists have been able to identify the concomitant brainwave pattern and can now duplicate it.
“These clusters are then placed on the Silent Sound carrier frequencies and will silently trigger the occurrence of the same basic emotion in another human being!”
So, let’s suppose that you are holding your beloved pet and stoking them. You feel relaxed and content. Well, your brain could be imaged and a “snap shot” of your feelings can be recorded. This is known as an “emotion signature cluster”. And the United States have an entire library of these that they can identify, and impose on others.
Some examples…
Blind uncontrollable rage and anger.
Hunger.
Soothing comfort and calmness.
Love.
Attraction and interest.
Organism / ejaculation.
Infatuation with another.
OCD behaviors.
Stomach pain / bowel movements.
Being terribly horny and desiring of sex.
Missing something or someone.
Headache.
Loss and grief.
This technology was used on me during my MAJestic operations, and I can tell you that they were able to use it on me because my entire “emotion signature cluster” for me personally was imaged and recorded at NAMI at NAS, NASC Pensacola, Florida in 1981.
This technology could also be applied to the public at large, but I do not believe that to be the case. It wouldn’t be that effective for large groups of people.
Unless things have changed (and they actually could, don’t you know) there are better technologies to induce corralling of herds of humans via electromagnetic means.
This “Silent Sounds” technology is most useful for specifically targeted persons.
Now, there does seem to be elements of human crowd control taking place all over the United States. Instead of the Silent-Sounds technology, there are other, better suited candidates for these kinds of indiscriminate herding activities…
Synthetic Telepathy
Synthetic telepathy is a term used to describe the beaming of words, thoughts, or ideas into a person’s mind.
This is done by a type of electromagnetic transmitter, similar to a radio or television broadcast, operating in the microwave frequency band.
In recent years thousands of people have come forward claiming to be victims of this technology. However, the first officially reported scientific experiment documenting a case of synthetic telepathy cannot be found in any of the academic literature because of the highly secretive nature of the research.
In 1961 Allen Frey, a freelance biophysicist and engineering psychologist, reported that a human can hear microwaves.
However, this discovery was dismissed by most United States scientists as being the result of artifact (outside noise). The more technical description of the experiment is described by James C. Linn.
It turns out that Frey discovered that human subjects exposed to 1310 MHz and 2982 MHz microwaves at average power densities of 0.4 to 2 mW/cm2 perceived auditory sensations described as buzzing or knocking sounds (also described as clicks or chirps).
The peak power densities were on the order of 200 to 300 mW/cm2 and the pulse repetition frequencies varied from 200 to 400 Hz.
Frey referred to this auditory phenomenon as the RF (radio frequency) sound.
The sensation occurred instantaneously at average incident power densities well below that necessary for known biological damage and appeared to originate from within or near the back of the head.
Further testing revealed that two requirements were necessary for the subject to hear the microwave induced sound:
“...good bone conduction and the ability to hear acoustic energy above 5 kHz...”
By 1975 the introduction to a paper by A.W. Guy and others begins,
“One of the most widely observed and accepted biologic effects of low average power electromagnetic (EM) energy is the auditory sensation evoked in man when exposed to pulsed microwaves.”
Today, the US Government use of synthetic telepathy was described in the October-November 1994 issue of Nexus:
Directed-energy weapons currently being deployed include, for example, a micro-wave weapon manufactured by Lockheed-Sanders and used for a process known as ‘Voice Synthesis’ which is remote beaming of audio (i.e., voices or other audible signals) directly into the brain of any selected human target. This process is also known within the US Government as ‘Synthetic Telepathy’.
Microwave “Zapping”
Much of the work done with microwaves was developed by Project Pandora.
This project was put into place by the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) at the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research.
It was initially set up to study the effects of microwaves that were being beamed into the American Embassy in Moscow by the Soviet Union.
Some of the findings of the scientists involved with Pandora are quite disturbing.
Dr. Joseph C. Sharp and engineer Mark Grove were able to hear and distinguish one-syllable words by pulse-modulated microwaves.
Microwaves can also alter the permeability of the body’s blood-brain barrier. This characteristic can synergistically increase the effects of drugs.
“Using relatively low-level RFR, it may be possible to sensitize large military groups to extremely dispersed amounts of biological or chemical agents to which the unirradiated population would be immune.”
Sound can be transmitted even easier through the use of implants.
As fans of Rush Limbaugh can attest to, cochlear implants, implants that send electrical signals into the fluid of the inner ear can effectively transmit sounds.
Additionally implants that transmit sound vibrations via bone conduction, such as the cases of dental fillings picking up audible radio signals.
Implanted Stimoceiver
The stimoceiver, invented by Dr. Jose Delgado, consists of wires running from strategic points in the brain to a radio receiver/transmitter located entirely under the skin.
Through this device, Delgado was able to stimulate raw emotions such as sexual arousal, anxiety, and aggression with the turn of a knob.
Of course, secret research by the US Government into microwaves and synthetic telepathy has moved on considerably since the 1980’s.
McVeigh: Manchurian Candidate?
Among the many telemetry instruments being used today, are miniature radio transmitters that can be swallowed, carried externally, or surgically implanted.... They permit the simultaneous study of behavior and physiological functioning.
—Dr. Stuart Mackay, Bio-Medical Telemetry (textbook), 1968
While visiting friends in Decker, Michigan, Timothy McVeigh complained that the Army had implanted him with a microchip. He said that it was a miniature subcutaneous transponder, so that they could keep track of him.
He complained that it left an unexplained scar on his buttocks and was painful to sit on.
Of course, we all know that McVeigh was convicted of the 1995 bombing of a US Government building in Oklahoma City.
Miniaturized telemetrics have been part of an ongoing project by the military and the various intelligence agencies to test the effectiveness of tracking soldiers on the battlefield.
The miniature implantable telemetric device was declassified long ago.
According to Dr. Carl Sanders, the developer of the Intelligence Manned Interface (IMI) biochip,
“We used this with military personnel in the Iraq War where they were actually tracked using this particular type of device.”
It is also interesting to note that the Calspan Advanced Technology Center in Buffalo, NY (Calspan ATC), where McVeigh worked, is engaged in microscopic electronic engineering of the kind applicable to telemetrics.
Calspan was founded in 1946 as Cornell Aeronautical Laboratory.
And funded in part by the “Fund for the Study of Human Ecology,” a CIA financing conduit for mind control experiments.
This operation was set up by emigre Nazi scientists and others under the direction of CIA doctors Sidney Gottlieb, Ewen Cameron, and Louis Jolyn West.
According to mind control researcher Alex Constantine,
“Calspan places much research emphasis on bioengineering and artificial intelligence (Calspan pioneered the field in the 1950s).”
Human tracking and monitoring technology are well within Calspan’s sphere of pursuits.
The company is instrumental in REDCAP, an Air Force electronic warfare system that winds through every Department of Defense facility in the country.
A Pentagon release explains that REDCAP…
“is used to evaluate the effectiveness of electronic-combat hardware, techniques, tactics and concepts.”
The system …
“includes closed-loop radar and datalinks at RF manned data fusion and weapons control posts.”
One computer news board reported that a disembodied, rumbling, low-frequency hum had been heard across the country the week of the [Oklahoma] bombing.
Similiar hums in Taos, New Mexico, Eugene and Medford, Oregon, Timmons, Ontario and Bristol, England were most definitely (despite specious official denials) attuned to the brain’s auditory pathways.
The Air Force is among Calspan’s leading clients, and Eglin AFB has farmed key personnel to the company.
The grating irony (recalling McVeigh’s contention he’d been implanted with a telemetry chip) is that the Instrumentation Technology Branch of Eglin Air Force Base is currently engaged in the tracking of mammals with subminiature telemetry devices.
According to an Air Force press release, the biotelemetry chip transmits on the upper S-band (2318 to 2398 MHz), with up to 120 digital channels.
There is nothing secret about the biotelemetry chip.
Ads for commercial versions of the device have appeared in national publications. Time magazine ran an ad for an implantable pet transponder in its 26 June, 1995 issue—ironically enough—opposite an article about a militia leader who was warning about the coming New World Order.
While monitoring animals has been an unclassified scientific pursuit for decades, the monitoring of humans has been a highly classified project that is but a subset of the Pentagon’s “nonlethal” arsenal.
Future battles could be waged with genetically engineered organisms, such as rodents, whose minds are controlled by computer chips engineered with living brain cells….
The research, called Hippo-campal Neuron Patterning, grows live neurons on computer chips.
“This technology that alters neurons could potentially be used on people to create zombie armies,”
Lawrence Korb, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, said.
“It’s conceivable given the current state of the electronic mind control art, a biocybernetic Oz over the black budget rainbow, that McVeigh had been drawn into an experimental project, that the device was the real McCoy.”
Timothy McVeigh may have unknowningly been an Army/CIA guinea pig involved in a classified telemetric/mind-control project—a “Manchurian Candidate.”
Or not.
Whatever, the technology does exist, and it is mature. Only a fool would think that it is not being used.
But I don’t think that it is being used on a large scale.
If you wanted to do this on a large scale you would to alter one’s DNA or mRNA for person-to-person Hippo-campal neural patterning. But, again, unless large segments of the population are being injected with small mind-control devices, this technique isn’t very useful to corral large numbers of people
Other systems must be employed…
Soviet Research
A highly secretive battle was being waged behind the scenes during the Cold War in the area of EM weapons (sometimes described as psychotronics) to control and influence the minds of people.
It’s only now that some of this research has emerged, but much of it remains hidden and classified. In fact, we know more about Soviet research into this area because it was the Soviet Union that collapsed.
A 1975 issue of the Soviet publication International Life, discussing electronic mind control developments, stated that atmospheric electricity can be used “to suppress the mental activity” of large groups of people.
The Soviet journal said that a sonic generator, tuned to an infrasound (below the hearing level) frequency, could create “feelings of depression, fear, panic, terror, and despair.”
In 1977, the US Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) declassified a report describing how advances in Soviet psychotronic technology can create the ultimate big brother society.
The DIA stated that by using electronic mind control against populations to implant ideas and thoughts into the heads of unsuspecting victims:
“Sounds and possibly even words, which appear to be originating intracranially (within one’s own head), can be induced by signal modification at very low average power densities.”
The DIA report also said that the Soviets discovered that secret microwave radiation can be used to induce in unsuspecting victims:
“Headache, fatigue, perspiring, dizziness, menstrual disorders, irritability, agitation, tension, drowsiness, sleeplessness, depression, anxiety, forgetfulness, and the lack of concentration.”
After the collapse of the Soviet Union (in a maneuver identical to Operation Paperclip in World War II) Western intelligence agencies obtained all the Soviet research and recruited key personnel working in this sensitive area.
Russian research has now all but stopped due to economic crises.
A report in Defense Electronics in the early 1990s said that a Richmond, Virginia firm, Psychotechnologies (believed to be closely tied to the CIA and the FBI) purchased the American rights to Soviet mind control devices.
Defense Electronics described a spring, 1993 meeting between Clinton Administration officials and Soviet psychotronics experts, including Dr. Igor Smirnov.
Amongst the US agencies represented at the meetings with Smirnov were the FBI, the CIA, the Defense Intelligence Agency, and the Advance Research Projects Research Agency.
Clinton Administration officials wanted…
“...to determine whether psycho-correction... programs could be undertaken by the US Government. These devices could be used to affect judgment or opinion of decision-makers, key personnel or populaces.”
Clinton defense officials expressed interest that the psychotronic devices could be used “in non-violently” clearing areas of potential enemies, snipers, etc.
On the domestic front, psychotronic devices could be used to suppress political dissidents, and any other potential threats to the government.
Also meeting with the Soviet experts were officials from giant international corporations, such as General Motors, and researchers from the National Institute of Mental Health.
The 22 August, 1994 Newsweek magazine reported on a secret Arlington, Virginia meeting between experts from the FBI’s Counter-Terrorism Centre and Dr. Smirnov, whose work was described in the publication:
...Using electroencephalographs, Smirnov measures brain waves, then uses computers to create a map of the subconscious and various human impulses, such as anger or the sex drive.
Then through taped subliminal messages, he claims to physically alter the landscape with the power of suggestion.
Psychotronic Weapons Research
One man’s name has become synonymous with the field of non-lethal weapons development.
Col. John Alexander first became known to the public through his December, 1980 Military Review article titled, “The New Mental Battlefield.”
This article clearly describes the lethal nature of many of the so-called “non-lethal” weapons now being developed to control civilian populations.
Alexander noted:
Psychotronics may be described as the interaction of mind and matter… The possibility for employment as weaponry has been explored. To be more specific, there are weapons systems that operate on the power of the mind and whose lethal capacity has already been demonstrated.
Describing Soviet development of psychotronic weapons, Alexander stated:
“The ability to... cause death can be transmitted over distances, thus inducing illness or death for no apparent reason.”
These…
“weapons would be able to induce illness or death at little or no risk to the operator... The psychotronic weapon would be silent (and) difficult to detect...”
Powerful elite insiders have long known how electromagnetic weapons can be effectively utilized to wage mind control against the population, specifically targeting political dissidents and troublemakers.
What of the numerous political activists and investigative journalists who died under mysterious circumstances, many from rare forms of cancer?
Could they have been ‘taken out’ by psychotronic weapons? We can only imagine how advanced this technology is today.
President Lyndon Johnson’s Science Adviser, Dr. Gordon J.F. MacDonald wrote the 1968 book, “Unless Peace Comes, A Scientific Forecast Of New Weapons.”
MacDonald described how man-made changes in the electrical earth ionosphere can be used for mass behavior control.
He said that low frequency electromagnetic oscillations can attack the low frequency electromagnetic brain waves in human beings.
He stated,
“Perturbation of the environment (by geophysical warfare) can produce changes in behavioral patterns.”
In his 1970 book, Between Two Ages, Zbigniew Brezezinski (a long-time Establishment strategist) described “weather control” as a “new weapon” that is a “key element of strategy.”
He added:
Technology will make available, to leaders of major nations, a variety of techniques for conducting secret warfare, of which only a bare minimum of the security forces need to be appraised.
Brzezinski predicted the exact types of electromagnetic psychotronic weapons that the US Administration now has for the mass behavior control of citizens.
He stated:
It is possible—and tempting—to exploit, for strategic-political purposes, the fruits of research on the brain and on human behavior...
Accurately timed, artificially excited electronic strokes could lead to a pattern of oscillations that produce relatively high power levels over certain regions of the earth...
In this way, one could develop a system that would seriously impair the brain performance of a very large population in selected regions, over an extended period.
Available Electronic Harassment Technologies:
Five Available Electronic Harassment Technologies.
There are five older technologies capable of extreme destruction of the ability to earn a living, and the quality of life of a target, listed below.
None of these technologies require implants, and all can be transmitted silently, through walls, and leave no trace evidence.
All have been available for decades.
Since few targets will acquire the correct detection equipment, destruction of a target’s life even using these older technologies is a perfect crime under the American “justice system”.
Here is the list:
[1] Weaponized microwave oven weapon
A simple microwave oven, door removed, with the door interlock switch bypassed, and held against the bedroom wall of a target in an apartment building or semi-detached house. This device can cause a variety of disabling medical symptoms. (Google “Dr. Reinhard Munzert”.)
[2] Dr. James C. Lin’s pulsed microwave transmitter
Joseph Sharp’s voice to skull success was replicated with Dr. James C. Lin’s pulsed microwave transmitter.
This was publicly announced in 1974 at the University of Utah.
This device produces audible sound transmitted directly into a target’s skull, through a target’s wall.
Of course, this can drive the through-the-wall target crazy, and if the target complains, the target will be immediately diagnosed as mentally ill.
U.S. patent 6,587,729 was issued based on Dr. Joseph Sharp’s voice to skull success.
[3] Silent Sound
Lowery’s “Silent Sound,” patent 5,159,703, has been used for self-help subliminal hypnosis tapes and CDs.
It has also used by the U.S. Army in Gulf War One (1991).
It is currently used for shoplifting prevention in some countries.
Together with Sharp’s voice to skull technology, Silent Sound projected through a bedroom wall can hypnotize a target in their bed with the target being unaware.
Unaware hypnosis is CLEARLY extreme electronic harassment.
A target’s personality can be severely interfered with, and the target will not know why this is happening.
Concept diagram, combined voice to skull and Silent Sound
[4] Lida Signal
This is a half-century-old medical device, the Russian-built Lida machine, a pulsed 40 watt, 40 MHz radio transmitter.
Russian-built Lida machine.
It can be used to make a target exhausted on the job when pulsing at the rate consistent with sleep.
If you perform a pulse rate increase, it will deprive the target of sleep as well.
Certain ham radio transmitters can be configured so as to duplicate the Lida signal.
U.S. Patent 3,773,049 describes the Lida operating principle. And you can buy one here below…
[5] EPIC
Named EPIC, a through wall coordination/balance disruption weapon is an active technology being used today.
Electronic harassment targets have reported suddenly having their balance and coordination disrupted.
Here’s a quote from a May 21, 2007 article about the EPIC weapon:
http://www.myfoxhouston.com
Local Company Developing 'Less than Lethal' Weapon 'EPIC' by Invocon is being developed as a 'Less than Lethal' Weapon.
How do you disable bad guys in a crowd without killing them or causing permanent damage?
It’s a problem faced by troops in urban combat and by local law enforcement.
Now, a local company called Invocon may have the answer, and the solution may be a weapon code named "Epic."
The company is developing a weapon they hope someday will be able to shoot through a wall and stun people on the other side of the wall. ...
Conclusion
In the United States today, the official unemployment rate is supposed to be a wonderful 3.68%.
U.S. unemployment rate for 2019 was 3.68%, a 0.21% decline from 2018.
U.S. unemployment rate for 2018 was 3.90%, a 0.46% decline from 2017.
Declining every year. Getting better and better. Wonderful right?
How can [1] most Americans be working AND [2] being so poor that they are not being able to pay their taxes?
So? What the reasoning? If both numbers are correct, then what is going on is frightening. For either…
The American government has failed everyone on a grand scale.
The United States system of “exceptional democracy” has failed everyone on a grand scale.
Or, if one of figures is a fabrication or manipulation, then the government is lying to cover-up something very serious and very bad.
I argue that no matter how you look at this situation, something inside of the American society and the American government is severely “off the rails”.
Off the rails - IdiomIn an abnormal or malfunctioning condition, as in Her political campaign has been off the rails for months. The phrase occurs commonly with go, as in Once the superintendent resigned, the effort to reform the schoolsystem went off the rails .
This idiom alludes to the rails on which trains run; if a train goes off the rails, it stops or crashes.
The ONLY way that the government can control the situation is to control the people.
Which is why…
[1] American people and population is being irradiated constantly and covertly with narratives and control algorithms to corral their behaviors. This is non-stop all over America.
[2] Manipulation of Social Media and other avenues are used to herd the people into balkanized enclaves of thought; “echo chambers”.
[3] Vault 7 clearly states that Operating Systems out of the United States are designed to control the minds of those using it.
So if you feel that the world seems to be spinning out of control, and that there is a overriding feeling of dread and terror, perhaps it is the ongoing operation and a side effect for decades of intentional mind control. Rather than it “just being you”.
Air China plane.
I can tell you that once I left the United States, and got on board the Air China flight that I felt an absolute calmness and safety. Initially, I believed that it was that I was finally putting that nightmare of the last few decades behind me.
No more prison.
My “retirement” ended.
No more bullshit and reporting nonsense.
No more life as a slave in a gulag.
However, now (in hindsight) it appears that I (along with everyone else) was living inside an irradiated torture chamber, and it was only once I left that I could experience the kinds of freedom and feelings that I grew up with in the 1960’s.
And make no mistake…
…you can absolutely FEEL the calmness once you leave the United States.
What leaving the United States is like.
And I want to remind everyone that there are options out there; places that DO NOT irradiate you with radiation to control your thoughts, monitor your actions, and arrest you if you get out of line. You have REAL freedom. Not the kind of faux “freedom” that what most Americans suffer though.
The rest of the world is just great. Really, really great.
This article is about something that is very close and dear to me. It is about meeting our pals; our little buddies after we die and go to Heaven… or wherever we go. It’s a very neglected subject, yet I consider it to be a very important one.
Now, it’s going to get a bit obtuse, but hold on. I know all you who visit here are hurting. Don’t worry. I have some answers.
Where do I get this information?
Recognize that I relate from my background in MAJestic, and my readings of “Alien Interview”. If you do not know what I am referring to, then you will have to go to the About Me to discover what I mean about MAJestic. And to understand what I am talking about regarding “Alien Interview” you can go HERE. Additionally, I can confirm that much of what I relate is in accordance with the Geography of Heaven as described by Dr. Newton.
Recognize that [1] I was part of an organization, and that I had tasks and operations that had tangential associations with this subject. So, to put it another way, I’m the closest thing you are going to have to an “expert” on these matters.
And that [2] the discovery, reading, parsing of Alien Interview helped me to clarify some experiences that I was exposed to. It will be the elements from “Alien Interview” in this narrative that will help clarify some issues. As I think that it might clean up some issues.
Let’s begin with some basics…
There are different kinds of heavens.
A "Heaven" is a "Universe". There are many of them.
Our normal, day to day lives, is within a universe. We, not knowing any better, think that this universe is all that there is. It's not.
When we, or our pets, die we (as consciousness in wave form) float around. We can stay in this (physical) universe in the spirit form, or we can leave it. And if we leave it, we will go to a completely different universe.
Cats tend to go to a "Cat Universe". Also known as a "Cat Heaven".
Dogs tend to go to a "Dog Universe". Also known as a "Dog Heaven".
Horses tend to go to a "Horse Universe". Also known as a "Horse Heaven".
Humans tend to go to a "Human Universe". Also known as a "Human Heaven".
There is one thing that is in mutual agreement with my MAJestic “training” and the “Alien Interview” dialog is that there are many Heavens.
And Heavens are the same thing as Universes.We as humans have inherited these general words and phrases without understanding what they represent.
So when we talk about Heaven we must be specific. We cannot be general.
There is a “Human Heaven”. And there are Heavens for other species.
So…
There is a cat heaven. There is a dog heaven. There is a horse heaven. There is an eagle heaven. There is a parakeet heaven. And so on and so forth.
All this has to do with the idea that (way back, early on when the very first mega-universe was created), the other universes sublimatednaturally by specific quanta associated with the species that developed and came into being.
Or, in other words, there is one Heaven for each species, and this is a natural consequence of the nature of the overall “mega-universe”.
If you do not want to believe this you can leave.
There is NOT one singular Heaven where every single life exists in once you die. That is a fantasy based on ignorance of quantum physics.
Summary:
Within "all that exists" (which I refer to as a the mega-universe) are bubbles. These bubbles are universes.
Every life that exists is attuned, by it's quantum makeup, to one specific universe. This association is called "soul".
Thus, we are on this "physical-universe", and when we die our consciousness travels back to "soul" which exists within our species universe. We call this "going to Heaven".
But the Earth is unique…
Further, apparently, and I am now pretty convinced of it, is that there is a specific “Earth Human Heaven”.
Sounds OK, really.
Doesn’t it?
Or better stated, a Human Heaven that is geographically located that services the “Sentience Nurseries” (Prison planets) in this geographic section of the galaxy.
What this means is that there is an overall “Heaven” for all humans all over the universe. But also that there is a very “special” Heaven for humans that reside in the earth or in associated other “sentience nurseries”.
And you can refer to them as being “Prison Planet” if you like.
But I like to think of it as a “sentience nursery” for the purposes of reforming the “inmates” forced to live and exist int his environment.
Now, to be honest, I was unaware of this during the entire time that I was active in MAJestic. However, the narrative in Alien Interview has clarified so many points, and then when this issue came up, I achieved an “Ah ha” moment. And then so many other things feel into place.
Now, this idea that there is an “Earth Human Heaven” that is separate from a “General Human Heaven” is very profound. But we won’t get too bogged down in it here.
General Human Heaven
Specific “special” Earth Heaven.
Summary:
Humans have two "Human Universes". One is the "General Human Heaven", and the other is a special area. This other one is just for our physical geographic area only. So I refer to it as "Earth Human Heaven".
Most Earth Humans have a "soul" that is part of the "Earth Human Heaven".
OK.
Let’s stick to the issue at hand…
Humans need a guide to visit those other Heavens
According to everything that I have experienced and what I have read, we all need a guide or a person to help us to enter into different Heavens.
I refer to this guide as a “Mantid”, but other might known them as “guardian angels” or “angels”.
Basically, it is a non-human entity that helps you meet with your friends who might belong to a different species as you do.
Now, from what I understand from Alien Interview, this entity is utilized to assist in the meeting of two different species in a neutral environment. While it might appear that it is is in one heaven or the next the reality is that is is something else.
You see, different universes operate differently from a Human Universe, and the Physical Universe. And we need to be “configured” to visit there. It isn’t automatically easy. If you wanted to visit a “Cat Heaven” you would need to temporarily conform your consciousness to fit in a Cat Heaven.
Think of it like a key.
If you want to open a door, you have to have a key of the right shape.
But earth humans, we don’t even know how to do that, let alone what it is. So we get help from someone who does know. And we can refer to these entities as “guides”, “angels”, “assistants”, or what ever you want to refer to them as. In my experience they tend to be other humans in the spirit form. And / or Mantids (Angels).
However, knowing what I do know, most earth Humans do not have the memories, the skills or the abilities to perform these things. Maybe we once did. But now, today, the vast numbers of humans no longer can do this, and thus needs a “guide” or a person to help them.
Summary:
When a creature dies, is floats around in spirit form (wave form), and then migrates up to it's Heaven. This is natural.
Your pet will be in it's Heaven. And you will be elsewhere. Typically, you will be in your Heaven.
To visit each other, you will need a "guide", an "assistant" to help you two meet. This person will be able to "key you" to the kind of configuration that will allow you two to meet.
But according to Alien Interview you should not need a guide at all
The thing is that you should not need a guide to accompany you to visit your friends. Being consciousness that is all knowing and all capable, that you should (theoretically) be able to see and visit these other Heavens (universes) as you will.
Unfortunately, for a host of reasons, the ideal no longer exists.
Somehow, along the way, humans on the earth ended up getting their very own “special” Heaven. This Heaven is different from the normal Human Heaven that the rest of the universe has.
Alien Interview calls this area a “Prison Planet”.
MAJestic refers to this portion of space (and five other solar systems) as a “Sentience Nursery”.
What ever it is, and why it is, is a vast and huge subject. It’s covered elsewhere, and we will not dwell in it too much here. Instead we will just simplify things and say that if you are on the earth, then chances are that your Heaven is the “special” Heaven constructed for this region.
And those of us associated with this Heaven have erased skills, memories and abilities. And that is the way it is.
Summary:
Ideally, we should not need assistance to visit other universes. But most humans here in this geographical region of space is associated with a "special" Earth Human Heaven. This association is one with erased memories, skills and abilities. And thus we need help to perform most tasks.
This suggests that the “guide” is actually something else
Since we are associated with a soul with this “Earth Human Heaven”, and we need a “guide” or “expert” to accompany us when we exit our Heaven to go to another one, what does this tell you?
What is the closest analog in our physical reality universe?
Corrections officers escorting a prisoner outside of Jail.
Summary:
The easiest way to understand how Earth Human Heaven works is to imagine it as a big prison. This may or may not be true. However, the aspects of it that requires...
[1] Memory wipe to enter a physical body. (Parole)
[2] Escorts when you leave the Earth Human Heaven. (Jail transport)
...is strongly indicative, and most easily imagined, as a minimum security prison.
As far as I know, and from all of my experiences, only humans have these limitations. Other species do not have these limitations.
But, you know, it can’t be really bad…
The idea that we can get help to visit other Heavens, and the idea that we are supported to return back to Earth (abet with our memories erased), does indicate that there seems to be a freedom of movement in the non-physical Heavens. Though this freedom is monitored, and supervised, it does appear that there is a great degree of latitude of where you can go.
Certainly a Cat Heaven or a Dog Heaven is so unlike a Earth Human Heaven, and that we as consciousness can visit it, certainly says that there are some freedoms that we are permitted.
I wonder if we can visit the General Human Heaven?
Why are we earth (and the other local solar systems) segregated from this General Human Heaven? What is the problem? Do we have some kind on non-physical virus, sickness, bad behavior or anything like that?
For, and the reason why I mention this, is that (by all accounts) the General Human Heaven is substantially older, larger, involves far more souls than the Earth Human Heaven.
With this in mind, it must also have resources, places, abilities and functionality that our Earth Human Heaven does not have.
Summary:
There are two Heavens (two universes) for Humans. Maybe there are more. But in general there is a local, regional to this section of the galaxy that services the earth solar system, and five others that service other solar systems. This Heaven, known as the Earth Human Heaven, is much smaller (though quite enormous) and younger (while still old) compared to the General Human Heaven.
Were the consciousness, you for example, wanted to have unrestricted access to do anything, you would need to go to the General Human Heaven to do so. Otherwise, you would suffer through the realities and restrictions of the Earth Human Heaven.
Tunnel of Light
Everyone knows what the “tunnel of light” is. Right?
When you die, you are compelled or instructed to “follow the light” and enter in this nice long tunnel,
My experiences strongly supports the notion that this “Tunnel of Light” actually exists in the non-physical realms. And that it is not some kind of biological event that occurs when your body starts to shut down when you die.
Dr. Lakhmir Chawla, an associate professor of anesthesiology and critical care medicine at George Washington University, asserts that near-death experiences are simply caused by a surge of electrical activity as the brain runs out of oxygen before death. However, the oxygen-depletion theory is only one of many classical neurophysiological theories challenged by people who have undergone near-death experiences.
I argue that it is a real event that you may or may not experience.
This “Tunnel of Light” has nothing to do with your consciousness leaving your (now deceased) body, but rather that it is a secondary “step” that many human consciousnesses experience upon death.
First you leave the body.
Your consciousness remains in close proximity to the physical world, but being in wave form is unable to interact with it.
You can move about by thought.
You may encounter things, creatures and events that are not apparently present in the physical reality.
The world-line travel, as part of the MWI stops.
Your consciousness resides as part of your final egress world-line.
At some point in time, you might encounter “old family”, “former friends”, “guides”, or “Angels” that introduce you to this “Tunnel of Light”.
And 99.999% of Earth Humans enter this tunnel. They go to Earth Human Heaven, and exist in that place.
This does NOT happen to other animals that I know of. It only happens to Earth Humans.
…
What is the closest analog to a “Tunnel of Light” in the physical realms?
In prison is a very special room called a “Sally Port”. It is essentially a long hallway with a door at each end. You enter in the hallway, and line up. Then the door behind you is closed. The corrections officers then make sure that everything is in order, and the inmates are all secure. When everything is fine, you then proceed to the end of the hallway. There, that door will open up and you will be inside the prison proper.
Asally port is protected point of entry into a secure location, such as a prison or a military fortification. Often, a sally port consists of an enclosed area with a solitary gate on either side, only one of which can be opened at anygiven time.
-My Law
Here is a photo of a prison sally port…
A prison sally port.
Summary:
Cats, Dogs, Horses and other species do not appear to have a "Tunnel of Light" for them to enter their respective Heavens. Only earth Humans have one.
The closest earth analog to a Tunnel of Light is a Prison Sally Port.
Following the models laid out by the other species, it appears that it is a very natural and easy thing to move towards your species Heaven (Universe). Your quantum make up attracts you to it naturally.
You do not have to be "guided", "directed", "led" or "taught" to enter this tunnel. If left to our own designs, our consciousnesses would naturally move towards the General Human Heaven instead.
Thus, no matter how much love, beauty and attractiveness that you feel emulating from this "Tunnel of Light", if you allow yourself to migrate to the true nature of your species you would naturally move towards the General Human Heaven.
Hard Labor
There are many kinds of prisons. In the ADC they had…
Diagnostic Prisons.
Maximum security prisons.
Minimum security prisons.
Prisons for behavioral modification.
Prisons for Hard Labor Punishment.
Prisons for Boot Camp Punishment.
Work / Factory Prisons.
I spent time in both the behavioral modification prisons and in the Hard Labor Prisons.
In the Hard Labor Prison (East Arkansas Regional Unit at Brickeys) we would transit the Sally port four times a day. We would go to and from the prison to the fields where we would work on the “chain gang”. Better known as “Hoe Squad”. In Arkansas, prison is the “punishment” portion of the criminal sentence. While parole is the “rehabilitation” portion of the criminal sentence.
In a like way, Earth Human Heaven appears to work the same way.
You enter and leave the “Tunnel of Light” to transit between the locked-down security of Earth Human Heaven, and the Physical Earth MWI. In this analogy, the Physical Earth MWI appears to be the “Hard Labor Punishment” aspect of a prison sentence.
However…
The physical reality MWI is much larger than the Earth Human Heaven. And it has a great diversity of life, and species. There are plants, animals, creatures, and all manner of interactions. While the Earth Human Heaven is a specific Heaven that contains only two (as far as I can discern) species.
These are;
Human consciousnesses that comes from the Earth.
Mantids (Angels).
I can positively state, unequivocally, that I have never seen or encountered any other species in the Earth Human Heaven. That includes the Type-1 greys, dogs, cats or horses.
Summary:
Earth Human Heaven access of all species other than Earth Humans, and Mantids is prevented. The only way in and out of the Earth Human Heaven is via the "Tunnel of Light". It acts as a secure gateway to and from the MWI.
Earth Humans are issued a Pre-Birth World-Line Template upon birth. This is a set of instructions (like like those on parole have) that prevents them for straying too far off from their assigned pre-planned experiences.
Since the MWI and all the world-lines are jointly shared with all species, physical and non-physical, it serves as a great staging area for meeting up with our non-physical pets, and to move away from any "parole restrictions". The key is in Affirmation Prayer Campaigns that slides you off this pre-birth world-line template onto one that you can control.
So there are multiple ways to visit our friends
So you all need not despair. You will certainly be able to meet up with long lost friends, family and pals. And what’s more, there are different ways to do so. Now that you have a butter understanding of what Earth Human Heaven is, we can look at some of these methods.
Method [1] in the non-physical realms associated with the MWI
Once you die, your consciousness naturally stays in wave form. It’s impossible to return to particle form as your physical body no longer functions. And being in wave form, you are initially trapped on the final egress world-line that your body was on in the MWI.
You can move about, explore, and check out everything. It’s just that you are in spirit. You are in the wave form.
By using the power of thought, you can “will yourself” to a beloved pet. And you will appear next to it in what ever form or shape, or condition that it is in.
Dogs will know that you are there, but are unlikely to join you in wave form. They will try to interact with you in their physical form.
Cats, well they can enter and leave the physical body at will. They can join you in the non-physical form. And you and your bud can have many fun times and adventures together.
Depending on the consciousness components of the species, you ability to interact with them will vary. Dogs will differ from cats. And horses are a completely different “ball game”.
In any case, I can confirm that upon your death, it will be profoundly easy for you to visit your lost beloved pets.
Method [2] in their specific pet Heaven
Once you have migrated into wave form, you are free to go anywhere. For most casts, they tend to want to hang out on the MWI, while Dogs prefer to spend some periods of time in Dog Heaven. Depending on your time of death there may or may not be your beloved pet in the MWI with you. Instead their consciousness might reside in their particular Heaven.
The technique is a simple one. You must “will” yourself to that beloved friend. And you will go as far as you can. If you are unable to enter their particular Heaven due to your quantum alignments, then you must vocalize a request for help. Alternatively, you can wait them out, until they return back to the MWI.
Asking for help is a very effective mechanism to help you during this period while you are in wave form. However, you must be especially cautious on who is offering it.
In my opinion, I would suggest a Type-1 grey as a valid source of help. While a Mantid (Angel) would project love, care and concern to and would arrange to have your help and assistance realized. Only, you would have to Enter The Earth Human Heaven first.
Method [3] Via a guide from the Earth Human Heaven
What is well understood is that you will be able to meet your beloved pets while you go to the Earth Human Heaven. The local Mantid will arrange help and generate parole that will take you to the pet Heaven for your visit.
This is what you do if you want to visit your loved ones in Heaven
In all cases, to the best things to prepare for this kind of activity once you die is right now. I would add some specific affirmation prayers in your campaigns. Not much. Just one or two, that would manifest upon your death. Even if your death takes place fifty years from now, they will have actual potency upon your final death.
Might I suggest;
Upon my death, I will be able to meet with my beloved XXXXXXX.
My beloved XXXXXX will meet me and be near me when I die.
We are deeply concerned about the growing information circulating on Internet about avoiding at all costs the tunnel of light that many go into when their incarnation on Earth ends.
As we have explained, when that moment arrives, a number of events that leads a person to Heaven can occur.
Quite often, a loved one, a friend or a member of the family arrives to escort the newly liberated person to the Heavenly spheres.
Equally, the person may find himself, seconds before his demise, in this beautiful tunnel of light that will conduct him to the light.
This light is heaven and when he steps into this bright area he is met by a noble soul that is there to greet him and explain his change of status.
Now, for various reasons, people are spreading a message on social media that this is a trap and the person will be captured and sent back for another incarnation.
Equally, they say that if the person, who is coming to the end of his incarnation, is visited by loved ones, this also is a trap and those loved ones are in fact demons pretending to be loved ones and the object is, once again, to entrap the person dying and push him into incarnation again.
These are dangerous lies and one should not listen to them and, certainly, one should not try to avoid going to Heaven whether it be by the tunnel of light or by friends or family guiding them.
We cannot express too strongly that one should, at all costs, reject this dangerous mis-information.
The origin of the message is Archonic.
Some people promote this false information quite innocently, as they just quote “collective wisdom”, but others are under the influence of negative entities and promote these lies because of that influence controlling their speech and actions.
If a person avoids taking the path to Heaven he has to go somewhere when he is liberated from his physical body. So, he goes to a place called Limbo.
This is an area full of lost souls and, generally, the people there are deeply unhappy.
This unhappiness is food for the evil ones who thrive on unhappiness.
Therefore, we have this conflict going on that must be stopped as soon as possible.
On one hand we have evil or misguided people promoting this false idea of avoiding going to heaven and on the other hand we have the workers for salvation trying to educate the public to act in a loving, peaceful fashion to help the Ascension process.
So, people must choose.
Either to follow this evil, Archon based concept of avoiding the tunnel of light, or avoiding being taken to Heaven by loved ones in which case the person will end up in limbo, or to reject that Archon based information and accept our advice which is to go into the tunnel with the assurance that you will end up in Heaven or go with your loved ones who, also, will guide you to Heaven.
We repeat, you have a choice.
Either to reject the tunnel of light and reject the loved ones who come to assist, or to enter the tunnel, accept to be guided by loved ones, and be taken to your home in Heaven.
You have free will. What you decide to do will happen.
So, choose to be guided by our Archon information or choose to be guided by God’s angels.
Conclusion
I am sorry to spend so much time getting involved in some of the geographic aspects of the nature of Heaven and the mega-universe. But that understanding is necessary to flush out the true and real options available to us when we wish to meet up with our beloved pets.
I can positively and absolutely confirm that it will be absolutely possible for you and your beloved pets to be together upon your death. I sincerely tell you this. In any event, the bond between you and your beloved pet is a strong one and that bond will never disappear. It will still exist. Even when you die. So have hope. Good things will occur.
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.
The photo above reminds me so very much of the old Doc Savage paperbacks that I used to read when I was in Middle School. This is a promo image of Dwayne Johnson in one of his Jumanji movies.
Dwayne is an interesting person, but the thing is that few people hate him. He’s a kind soul, or at least tries to portray that image. And without that image, he’s just another smuck that went from weight-lifting to movies.
It’s difficult to keep your reputation. Certainly no one knows that better than myself who now has the ugly reputation of being a nasty filthy child predator now living inside the filthy evil communist Hell-hole.
And that’s the way it works, you know.
To destroy a person completely, you need only destroy his reputation so that no one wants to associate with him, employ him, listen to him, or be friends with him. Then alone, shunned, starving, and destitute he can die inside the hole you made for him to crawl into.
This is a great chapter by Robert Greene. Read it and learn from it.
LAW 5
SO MUCH DEPENDS ON REPUTATION—GUARD IT WITH YOUR LIFE
JUDGMENT
Reputation is the cornerstone of power. Through reputation alone you can intimidate and win; once it slips, however, you are vulnerable, and will be attacked on all sides. Make your reputation unassailable. Always be alert to potential attacks and thwart them before they happen. Meanwhile, learn to destroy your enemies by opening holes in their own reputations. Then stand aside and let public opinion hang them.
OBSERVANCE OF THE LAW I
During China’s War of the Three Kingdoms (A.D. 207-265), the great general Chuko Liang, leading the forces of the Shu Kingdom, dispatched his vast army to a distant camp while he rested in a small town with a handful of soldiers.
Suddenly sentinels hurried in with the alarming news that an enemy force of over 150,000 troops under Sima Yi was approaching.
With only a hundred men to defend him, Chuko Liang’s situation was hopeless.
The enemy would finally capture this renowned leader.
Without lamenting his fate, or wasting time trying to figure out how he had been caught, Liang ordered his troops to take down their flags, throw open the city gates, and hide.
He himself then took a seat on the most visible part of the city’s wall, wearing a Taoist robe.
He lit some incense, strummed his lute, and began to chant.
Minutes later he could see the vast enemy army approaching, an endless phalanx of soldiers.
Pretending not to notice them, he continued to sing and play the lute.
Soon the army stood at the town gates.
At its head was Sima Yi, who instantly recognized the man on the wall.
Even so, as his soldiers itched to enter the unguarded town through its open gates, Sima Yi hesitated, held them back, and studied Liang on the wall.
Then, he ordered an immediate and speedy retreat.
THE ANIMALS STRICKEN WITH THE PLAGUE
A frightful epidemic sent To earth by Heaven intent to vent Its fury on a sinful world, to call It by its rightful name, the pestilence, That Acheron- filling vial of virulence Had fallen on every animal.
Not all were dead, but all lay near to dying, And none was any longer trying To find new fuel to feed life’s flickering fires.
No foods excited their desires; No more did wolves and foxes rove In search of harmless, helpless prey; And dove would not consort with dove, For love and joy had flown away.
The Lion assumed the chair to say: “Dear friends, I doubt not it’s for heaven’s high ends That on us sinners woe must fall. Let him of us who’s sinned the most Fall victim to the avenging heavenly host, And may he win salvation for us all; For history teaches us that in these crises We must make sacrifices. Undeceived and stern-eyed, let’s inspect Our conscience. As I recollect, To put my greedy appetite to sleep, I’ve banqueted on many a sheep Who’d injured me in no respect, And even in my time been known to try Shepherd pie. If need be, then. I’ll die. Yet I suspect That others also ought to own their sins. It’s only fair that all should do their best To single out the guiltiest.”
“Sire, you’re too good a king,“the Fox begins; ”Such scruples are too delicate. My word, To eat sheep, that profane and vulgar herd. That’s sin? Nay. Sire, enough for such a crew To be devoured by such as you; While of the shepherds we may say That they deserved the worst they got. Theirs being the lot that over us beasts plot A flimsy dream-begotten sway.”
Thus spake the Fox, and toady cheers rose high, While none dared cast too cold an eye On Tiger‘s, Bear’s, and other eminences Most unpardonable offences.
Each, of never mind what currish breed, Was really a saint, they all agreed.
Then came the Ass, to say: ”I do recall How once I crossed an abbey-mead Where hunger, grass in plenty, and withal, I have no doubt, some imp of greed. Assailed me, and I shaved a tongue’s-breadth wide Where frankly I’d no right to any grass.”
All forthwith fell full cry upon the Ass: A Wolf of some book-learning testified That that curst beast must suffer their despite, That gallskinned author of their piteous plight.
They judged him fit for nought but gallows-bait: How vile, another’s grass to sequestrate! His death alone could expiate A crime so heinous, as full well he learns. The court, as you’re of great or poor estate, Will paint you either white or black by turns.
THE BEST FABLES OF LA FONTAINE, JEAN DE LA FONTAINE, 1621- 1695
Interpretation
Chuko Liang was commonly known as the “Sleeping Dragon.”
His exploits in the War of the Three Kingdoms were legendary.
Once a man claiming to be a disaffected enemy lieutenant came to his camp, offering help and information. Liang instantly recognized the situation as a setup; this man was a false deserter, and should be beheaded.
At the last minute, though, as the ax was about to fall, Liang stopped the execution and offered to spare the man’s life if he agreed to become a double agent.
Grateful and terrified, the man agreed, and began supplying false information to the enemy. Liang won battle after battle.
On another occasion Liang stole a military seal and created false documents dispatching his enemy’s troops to distant locations.
Once the troops had dispersed, he was able to capture three cities, so that he controlled an entire corridor of the enemy’s kingdom.
He also once tricked the enemy into believing one of its best generals was a traitor, forcing the man to escape and join forces with Liang.
The Sleeping Dragon carefully cultivated his reputation of being the cleverest man in China, one who always had a trick up his sleeve.
As powerful as any weapon, this reputation struck fear into his enemy.
Sima Yi had fought against Chuko Liang dozens of times and knew him well.
When he came on the empty city, with Liang praying on the wall, he was stunned.
The Taoist robes, the chanting, the incense—this had to be a game of intimidation.
The man was obviously taunting him, daring him to walk into a trap.
The game was so obvious that for one moment it crossed Yi’s mind that Liang actually was alone, and desperate.
But so great was his fear of Liang that he dared not risk finding out.
Such is the power of reputation.
It can put a vast army on the defensive, even force them into retreat, without a single arrow being fired.
For, as Cicero says, even those who argue against fame still want the books they write against it to bear their name in the title and hope to become famous for despising it. Everything else is subject to barter: we will let our friends have our goods and our lives if need be; but a case of sharing our fame and making someone else the gift of our reputation is hardly to be found.
Montaigne, 1533-1592
OBSERVANCE OF THE LAW II
In 1841 the young P. T. Barnum, trying to establish his reputation as America’s premier showman, decided to purchase the American Museum in Manhattan and turn it into a collection of curiosities that would secure his fame.
The problem was that he had no money.
The museum’s asking price was $15,000, but Barnum was able to put together a proposal that appealed to the institution’s owners even though it replaced cash up front with dozens of guarantees and references.
The owners came to a verbal agreement with Barnum, but at the last minute, the principal partner changed his mind, and the museum and its collection were sold to the directors of Peale’s Museum.
Barnum was infuriated, but the partner explained that business was business —the museum had been sold to Peale’s because Peale’s had a reputation and Barnum had none.
Barnum immediately decided that if he had no reputation to bank on, his only recourse was to ruin the reputation of Peale’s.
Accordingly he launched a letter-writing campaign in the newspapers, calling the owners a bunch of “broken-down bank directors” who had no idea how to run a museum or entertain people.
He warned the public against buying Peale’s stock, since the business’s purchase of another museum would invariably spread its resources thin.
The campaign was effective, the stock plummeted, and with no more confidence in Peale’s track record and reputation, the owners of the American Museum reneged on their deal and sold the whole thing to Barnum.
It took years for Peale’s to recover, and they never forgot what Barnum had done.
Mr. Peale himself decided to attack Barnum by building a reputation for “high-brow entertainment,” promoting his museum’s programs as more scientific than those of his vulgar competitor.
Mesmerism (hypnotism) was one of Peale’s “scientific” attractions, and for a while it drew big crowds and was quite successful. To fight back, Barnum decided to attack Peale’s reputation yet again.
Barnum organized a rival mesmeric performance in which he himself apparently put a little girl into a trance.
Once she seemed to have fallen deeply under, he tried to hypnotize members of the audience—but no matter how hard he tried, none of the spectators fell under his spell, and many of them began to laugh.
A frustrated Barnum finally announced that to prove the little girl’s trance was real, he would cut off one of her fingers without her noticing.
But as he sharpened the knife, the little girl’s eyes popped open and she ran away, to the audience’s delight.
He repeated this and other parodies for several weeks.
Soon no one could take Peale’s show seriously, and attendance went way down.
Within a few weeks, the show closed.
Over the next few years Barnum established a reputation for audacity and consummate showmanship that lasted his whole life.
Peale’s reputation, on the other hand, never recovered.
Interpretation
Barnum used two different tactics to ruin Peale’s reputation.
The first was simple: He sowed doubts about the museum’s stability and solvency. Doubt is a powerful weapon: Once you let it out of the bag with insidious rumors, your opponents are in a horrible dilemma. On the one hand they can deny the rumors, even prove that you have slandered them. But a layer of suspicion will remain: Why are they defending themselves so desperately?
Maybe the rumor has some truth to it? If, on the other hand, they take the high road and ignore you, the doubts, unrefuted, will be even stronger. If done correctly, the sowing of rumors can so infuriate and unsettle your rivals that in defending themselves they will make numerous mistakes. This is the perfect weapon for those who have no reputation of their own to work from.
Once Barnum did have a reputation of his own, he used the second, gentler tactic, the fake hypnotism demonstration: He ridiculed his rivals’ reputation.
This too was extremely successful.
Once you have a solid base of respect, ridiculing your opponent both puts him on the defensive and draws more attention to you, enhancing your own reputation.
Outright slander and insult are too strong at this point; they are ugly, and may hurt you more than help you.
But gentle barbs and mockery suggest that you have a strong enough sense of your own worth to enjoy a good laugh at your rival’s expense.
A humorous front can make you out as a harmless entertainer while poking holes in the reputation of your rival.
It is easier to cope with a bad conscience than with a bad reputation.
Friedrich Nietzsche, 1844-1900
KEYS TO POWER
The people around us, even our closest friends, will always to some extent remain mysterious and unfathomable.
Their characters have secret recesses that they never reveal.
The unknowableness of other people could prove disturbing if we thought about it long enough, since it would make it impossible for us really to judge other people.
So we prefer to ignore this fact, and to judge people on their appearances, on what is most visible to our eyes—clothes, gestures, words, actions. In the social realm, appearances are the barometer of almost all of our judgments, and you must never be mis led into believing otherwise.
One false slip, one awkward or sudden change in your appearance, can prove disastrous.
This is the reason for the supreme importance of making and maintaining a reputation that is of your own creation.
That reputation will protect you in the dangerous game of appearances, distracting the probing eyes of others from knowing what you are really like, and giving you a degree of control over how the world judges you—a powerful position to be in.
Reputation has a power like magic: With one stroke of its wand, it can double your strength.
It can also send people scurrying away from you.
Whether the exact same deeds appear brilliant or dreadful can depend entirely on the reputation of the doer.
In the ancient Chinese court of the Wei kingdom there was a man named Mi Tzu-hsia who had a reputation for supreme civility and graciousness.
He became the ruler’s favorite.
It was a law in Wei that “whoever rides secretly in the ruler’s coach shall have his feet cut off,” but when Mi Tzu-hsia’s mother fell ill, he used the royal coach to visit her, pretending that the ruler had given him permission.
When the ruler found out, he said, “How dutiful is Mi Tzu-hsia!
For his mother’s sake he even forgot that he was committing a crime making him liable to lose his feet!”
Another time the two of them took a stroll in an orchard.
Mi Tzu-hsia began eating a peach that he could not finish, and he gave the ruler the other half to eat.
The ruler remarked, “You love me so much that you would even forget your own saliva taste and let me eat the rest of the peach!”
Later, however, envious fellow courtiers, spreading word that Mi Tzu- hsia was actually devious and arrogant, succeeded in damaging his reputation; the ruler came to see his actions in a new light.
“This fellow once rode in my coach under pretense of my order,” he told the courtiers angrily, “and another time he gave me a half-eaten peach.”
For the same actions that had charmed the ruler when he was the favorite, Mi Tzu-hsia now had to suffer the penalties.
The fate of his feet depended solely on the strength of his reputation.
In the beginning, you must work to establish a reputation for one outstanding quality, whether generosity or honesty or cunning.
This quality sets you apart and gets other people to talk about you.
You then make your reputation known to as many people as possible (subtly, though; take care to build slowly, and with a firm foundation), and watch as it spreads like wildfire.
A solid reputation increases your presence and exaggerates your strengths without your having to spend much energy.
It can also create an aura around you that will instill respect, even fear. In the fighting in the North African desert during World War II, the German general Erwin Rommel had a reputation for cunning and for deceptive maneuvering that struck terror into everyone who faced him.
Even when his forces were depleted, and when British tanks outnumbered his by five to one, entire cities would be evacuated at the news of his approach.
As they say, your reputation inevitably precedes you, and if it inspires respect, a lot of your work is done for you before you arrive on the scene, or utter a single word.
Your success seems destined by your past triumphs.
Much of the success of Henry Kissinger’s shuttle diplomacy rested on his reputation for ironing out differences; no one wanted to be seen as so unreasonable that Kissinger could not sway him.
A peace treaty seemed a fait accompli as soon as Kissinger’s name became involved in the negotiations.
Make your reputation simple and base it on one sterling quality.
This single quality—efficiency, say, or seductiveness—becomes a kind of calling card that announces your presence and places others under a spell.
A reputation for honesty will allow you to practice all manner of deception.
Casanova used his reputation as a great seducer to pave the way for his future conquests; women who had heard of his powers became immensely curious, and wanted to discover for themselves what had made him so romantically successful.
Perhaps you have already stained your reputation, so that you are prevented from establishing a new one.
In such cases it is wise to associate with someone whose image counteracts your own, using their good name to whitewash and elevate yours.
It is hard, for example, to erase a reputation for dishonesty by yourself; but a paragon of honesty can help. When P. T. Barnum wanted to clean up a reputation for promoting vulgar entertainment, he brought the singer Jenny Lind over from Europe.
She had a stellar, high-class reputation, and the American tour Barnum sponsored for her greatly enhanced his own image.
Similarly the great robber barons of nineteenth-century America were long unable to rid themselves of a reputation for cruelty and mean-spiritedness.
Only when they began collecting art, so that the names of Morgan and Frick became permanently associated with those of da Vinci and Rembrandt, were they able to soften their unpleasant image.
Reputation is a treasure to be carefully collected and hoarded.
Especially when you are first establishing it, you must protect it strictly, anticipating all attacks on it.
Once it is solid, do not let yourself get angry or defensive at the slanderous comments of your enemies—that reveals insecurity, not confidence in your reputation.
Take the high road instead, and never appear desperate in your self-defense.
On the other hand, an attack on another man’s reputation is a potent weapon, particularly when you have less power than he does.
He has much more to lose in such a battle, and your own thus- far-small reputation gives him a small target when he tries to return your fire.
Barnum used such campaigns to great effect in his early career. But this tactic must be practiced with skill; you must not seem to engage in petty vengeance.
If you do not break your enemy’s reputation cleverly, you will inadvertently ruin your own.
Thomas Edison, considered the inventor who harnessed electricity, believed that a workable system would have to be based on direct current (DC).
When the Serbian scientist Nikola Tesla appeared to have succeeded in creating a system based on alternating current (AC), Edison was furious.
He determined to ruin Tesla’s reputation, by making the public believe that the AC system was inherently unsafe, and Tesla irresponsible in promoting it.
To this end he captured all kinds of household pets and electrocuted them to death with an AC current.
When this wasn’t enough, in 1890 he got New York State prison authorities to organize the world’s first execution by electrocution, using an AC current.
But Edison’s electrocution experiments had all been with small creatures; the charge was too weak, and the man was only half killed.
In perhaps the country’s cruelest state-authorized execution, the procedure had to be repeated. It was an awful spectacle.
Although, in the long run, it is Edison’s name that has survived, at the time his campaign damaged his own reputation more than Tesla’s.
He backed off.
The lesson is simple—never go too far in attacks like these, for that will draw more attention to your own vengefulness than to the person you are slandering.
When your own reputation is solid, use subtler tactics, such as satire and ridicule, to weaken your opponent while making you out as a charming rogue.
The mighty lion toys with the mouse that crosses his path—any other reaction would mar his fearsome reputation.
Image:
A Mine Full of Diamonds and Rubies.
You dug for it, you found it, and your wealth is now assured.
Guard it with your life. Robbers and thieves will appear from all sides. Never take your wealth
for granted, and constantly renew it—time will diminish the jewels’ luster,
and bury them from sight.
Authority:
Therefore I should wish our courtier to bolster up his inherent worth with skill and cunning, and ensure that whenever he has to go where he is a stranger, he is preceded by a good reputation.... For the fame which appears to rest on the opinions of many fosters a certain unshakable belief in a man’s worth which is then easily strengthened in minds already thus disposed and prepared.
(Baldassare Castiglione, 1478-1529)
REVERSAL
There is no possible Reversal.
Reputation is critical; there are no exceptions to this law.
Perhaps, not caring what others think of you, you gain a reputation for insolence and arrogance, but that can be a valuable image in itself—Oscar Wilde used it to great advantage.
Since we must live in society and must depend on the opinions of others, there is nothing to be gained by neglecting your reputation.
By not caring how you are perceived, you let others decide this for you.
Be the master of your fate, and also of your reputation.
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.
“We are fast approaching the stage of the ultimate inversion: the stage where the government is free to do anything it pleases, while the citizens may act only by permission; which is the stage of the darkest periods of human history, the stage of rule by brute force.”
— Ayn Rand
Rule by brute force.
That’s about as good a description as you’ll find for the sorry state of our nation.
SWAT teams crashing through doors. Militarized police shooting unarmed citizens. Traffic cops tasering old men and pregnant women for not complying fast enough with an order. Resource officers shackling children for acting like children. Homeowners finding their homes under siege by police out to confiscate lawfully-owned guns. Drivers having their cash seized under the pretext that they might have done something wrong.
The list of abuses being perpetrated against the American people by their government is growing rapidly.
We are approaching critical mass.
The groundwork has been laid for a new kind of government where it won’t matter if you’re innocent or guilty, whether you’re a threat to the nation, or even if you’re a citizen. What will matter is what the government—or whoever happens to be calling the shots at the time—thinks. And if the powers-that-be think you’re a threat to the nation and should be locked up, then you’ll be locked up with no access to the protections our Constitution provides.
In effect, you will disappear.
American Citizens are just “things” that the elites use
President Biden’s long list of executive orders, executive actions, proclamations and directives is just more of the same: rule by fiat.
Now the Biden Administration is setting its sights on gun control.
Mark my words: gun control legislation, especially in the form of red flag gun laws, which allow the police to remove guns from people “suspected” of being threats, will become yet another means by which to subvert the Constitution and sabotage the rights of the people.
In Radley Balko's study of police raids of the homes of civilians for the CATO Institute, he described the mayhem currently taking place at the hands of federal and state governments in the United States in the name of law enforcement:
"Americans have long maintained that a man's home is his castle and that he has the right to defend it from unlawful intruders. Unfortunately, that right may be disappearing. Over the last 25 years, America has seen a disturbing militarization of its civilian law enforcement, along with a dramatic and unsettling rise in the use of paramilitary police units (most commonly called Special Weapons and Tactics, or SWAT) for routine police work. The most common use of SWAT teams today is to serve narcotics warrants, usually with forced, unannounced entry into the home.
"These increasingly frequent raids, 40,000 per year by one estimate, are needlessly subjecting nonviolent drug offenders, bystanders, and wrongly targeted civilians to the terror of having their homes invaded while they're sleeping, usually by teams of heavily armed paramilitary units dressed not as police officers but as soldiers. These raids bring unnecessary violence and provocation to nonviolent drug offenders, many of whom were guilty of only misdemeanors. The raids terrorize innocents when police mistakenly target the wrong residence. And they have resulted in dozens of needless deaths and injuries, not only of drug offenders, but also of police officers, children, bystanders, and innocent suspects."
- from the Executive Summary of a research paper titled, Overkill: he Rise of Paramilitary Police Raids in America by Radley Balko, CATO Institute.
…
But you have already heard this spiel…
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
These “red flag” laws, growing in popularity as a legislative means by which to seize guns from individuals. They are an excuse. The excuse sounds so reasonable. People who are viewed as a danger to themselves or others, have their guns removed. Yes, this is yet another Trojan Horse, a stealth maneuver by the police state to gain greater power over an unsuspecting and largely gullible populace.
Nineteen states and Washington DC have red flag laws on their books.
That number is growing.
As The Washington Post reports, these laws “allow a family member, roommate, beau, law enforcement officer or any type of medical professional to file a petition [with a court] asking that a person’s home be temporarily cleared of firearms. It doesn’t require a mental-health diagnosis or an arrest.”
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
Sound familiar?
Someone in the neighborhood doesn’t like you…
… they claim that you are a witch…
…or you are a communist…
…or a child sex offender…
…or are a danger to yourself.
In the midst of what feels like an epidemic of mass shootings (the statistics suggest otherwise), these gun confiscation laws—extreme risk protection order (ERPO) laws—may appease the fears of those who believe that fewer guns in the hands of the general populace will make our society safer.
Of course, it doesn’t always work that way.
It’s just an excuse
SWAT team raids "The Garden of Eden" The beast is gaining more and more unbridled power to lash out as he did this week at "The Garden of Eden" - a small organic farm in Texas reported by a RT News. This is but one of many raids that take place on a daily basis throughout the U.S. In this case they held 6 adults at gunpoint and handcuffed them for 10 hours saying they were looking for marijuana. Throughout the day the police conducted their search, destroying parts of the farm in the process. However, the property owner Shelley Smith told the media, "They came here under the guise that we were doing a drug trafficking, marijuana growing operation. They destroyed everything.”
The residents believe the raid was only an excuse to allow them to change the farm's "unconventional appearance." Code enforcement cops came along with the SWAT team and Smith said that they had been issued a number of code violations recently including, “grass that was too tall, bushes growing too close to the street, a couch and piano in the yard, chopped wood that was not properly stacked, a piece of siding that was missing from the side of the house and generally unclean premises,” The cops found no drugs or criminal activity but arrested one of the members of the group for an unpaid parking ticket.
While in theory it appears perfectly reasonable to want to disarm individuals who are clearly suicidal and/or pose an “immediate danger” to themselves or others, where the problem arises is when you put the power to determine who is a potential danger in the hands of government agencies, the courts and the police.
Any excuse serves a tyrant
It took place in August, 2005 when a SWAT team killed an innocent man in his home while his wife and 4 year old son hid in a bedroom closet in Sunrise Florida. After killing the man, the police claimed they knocked on his door and announced they were police. But according to neighbors who watched the scene unfold from their window, the police in black masks did not identify themselves before smashing down his door and using a flash grenade expecting to find drugs and guns. The neighbors said that if the police had yelled, "POLICE!" - they would have heard it. The police claimed that 23 year old Anthony Diotaiuto (a two-time Iraq war veteran) fled from his bed into another room and "armed himself." Radley Balko (quoted above) reported that the police initially claimed that he fled to the bedroom for a handgun and pointed the gun at them. Later, the story changed with a spokesperson for the police saying that the "found the weapon next to his body" after they killed him.
Diotaiuto returned from his night shift at one of the two jobs he had to provide for his family. According to his friends, he had a shotgun and handgun which he kept for protection with a valid concealed weapons permit. Balko surmised that he rose from a deep sleep, disoriented by the crashing of his door and flash grenade and ran terrified into another room. After they killed him, the police claimed that they found 2 ounces of marijuana, some plastic baggies and a scale. But by the time the case went to a jury trial, that amount of marijuana was determined to be 16 grams, a little more than half an ounce. The Broward County medical examiner reported 10 bullet wounds in his head, chest, torso, and limbs.
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
We’ve been down this road before.
Remember, this is the same government that uses the words “anti-government,” “extremist” and “terrorist” interchangeably.
This is the same government whose agents are spinning a sticky spider-web of threat assessments, behavioral sensing warnings, flagged “words,” and “suspicious” activity reports using automated eyes and ears, social media, behavior sensing software, and citizen spies to identify potential threats.
This is the same government that keeps re-upping the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which allows the military to detain American citizens with no access to friends, family or the courts if the government believes them to be a threat.
This is the same government that has a growing list—shared with fusion centers and law enforcement agencies—of ideologies, behaviors, affiliations and other characteristics that could flag someone as suspicious and result in their being labeled potential enemies of the state.
For instance, if you believe in and exercise your rights under the Constitution ...
(namely, your right to speak freely, worship freely, associate with like-minded individuals who share your political views, criticize the government, own a weapon, demand a warrant before being questioned or searched, or any other activity viewed as potentially anti-government, racist, bigoted, anarchic or sovereign),
Radley Balko’s White Paper, Overkill: The Rise of Paramilitary Police Raids in America:
Balko said that botched raids such as this one are not 'isolated incidents.' Other examples of SWAT teams misused are the hundreds of raids conducted each year at a wrong address. Often the people targeted are completely innocent, unlike in the Diotaiuto tragedy. Further, the 'no-knock' and 'quick-knock' raids often rely on anonymous tips and 'dubious informants to obtain the search warrants.'
The raids are intended to terrify. The police generally break down the doors with a battering ram or blow them off with explosives. Sometimes police use a flash bang grenade. Once inside, police force the occupants to lie prone, generally at gunpoint...
Balko wrote in Overkill, 'The idea of sending battalions of men dressed, trained, and armed like soldiers to do civilian police work should give us great discomfort'.”
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
Now consider the ramifications of giving police that kind of authority: to preemptively raid homes in order to neutralize a potential threat.
It’s a powder keg waiting for a lit match.
Duncan Lemp
Under these red flag laws, what happened to Duncan Lemp—who was gunned down in his bedroom during an early morning, no-knock SWAT team raid on his family’s home—could very well happen to more people.
At 4:30 a.m. on March 12, 2020, in the midst of a COVID-19 pandemic that had most of the country under a partial lockdown and sheltering at home, a masked SWAT team—deployed to execute a “high risk” search warrant for unauthorized firearms—stormed the suburban house where 21-year-old Duncan, a software engineer and Second Amendment advocate, lived with his parents and 19-year-old brother.
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
No one in the house that morning, including Lemp, had a criminal record.
No one in the house that morning, including Lemp, was considered an “imminent threat” to law enforcement or the public, at least not according to the search warrant.
So what was so urgent that militarized police felt compelled to employ battlefield tactics in the pre-dawn hours of a day when most people are asleep in bed, not to mention stuck at home as part of a nationwide lockdown?
According to police, they were tipped off that Lemp was in possession of “firearms.”
Thus, rather than approaching the house by the front door at a reasonable hour in order to investigate this complaint—which is what the Fourth Amendment requires—police instead strapped on their guns, loaded up their flash bang grenades and acted like battle-crazed warriors.
In May, 2010 Joseph Weekley, a Detroit cop shot and killed Aiyana Stanley Jones, a seven-year-old girl when they raided a home during the early morning hours as she lay sleeping on a sofa in her home on Lillibridge Street in Detroit. Aiyana was shot in the head and neck. Assistant Police Chief Ralph Godbee said the heavily armed "Special Response Team" was executing a "no-knock" search warrant for a homicide suspect and they threw a flash grenade through an unopened window around 12:45 a.m. before charging in with guns drawn but they got the wrong house. It may have never gained international attention except that it was recorded by a reality TV crew, which was filming an episode of “The First 48,” a program like "Cops" and other racist TV shows that feed off the misery of victims in praise of the work of US police.
In June, 2013 Weekley went on trial for involuntary manslaughter with a possible sentence of 15 years in prison. The cop claimed that he had "physical contact" with the little girl's grandmother, Mertilla Jones, after entering the home. On June 18, the trial ended in a hung jury and he is now to be retried. In the trial, Grandmother Mertilla testified,
"I saw the light leave out of her eyes, and blood gushed out of her mouth. I knew she was dead.” After the first trial, Mertilla stated, "He admitted he shot and killed her. He's a dirty cop because he said I touched him. I never touched that man. ... I was never anywhere near Joseph Weekley. He's a lying [expletive] cop."
The Military patrol America today
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
This is what you get when you live inside a Military Empire.
This is the blowback from all that military weaponry flowing to domestic police departments.
This is what happens when you use SWAT teams to carry out routine search warrants.
Red Flag Laws
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
This is what happens when you adopt red flag gun laws, which Maryland did in 2018, painting anyone who might be in possession of a gun—legal or otherwise—as a threat that must be neutralized.
Therein lies the danger of these red flag laws, specifically, and pre-crime laws such as these generally where the burden of proof is reversed and you are guilty before you are given any chance to prove you are innocent.
Red flag gun laws merely push us that much closer towards a suspect society where everyone is potentially guilty of some crime or another and must be preemptively rendered harmless.
Where many Americans go wrong is in naively assuming that you have to be doing something illegal or harmful in order to be flagged and targeted for some form of intervention or detention.
The American Police State
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
In fact, U.S. police agencies have been working to identify and manage potential extremist “threats,” violent or otherwise, before they can become actual threats for some time now.
All you need to do these days to end up on a government watch list or be subjected to heightened scrutiny is use certain trigger words (like cloud, pork and pirates)…
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
Be warned: once you get on such a government watch list—whether it’s a terrorist watch list, a mental health watch list, a dissident watch list, or a red flag gun watch list—there’s no clear-cut way to get off, whether or not you should actually be on there.
You will be tracked wherever you go.
You will be flagged as a potential threat and dealt with accordingly.
This is pre-crime on an ideological scale and it’s been a long time coming.
The government has been building its pre-crime, surveillance network in concert with fusion centers (of which there are 78 nationwide, with partners in the private sector and globally), data collection agencies, behavioral scientists, corporations, social media, and community organizers and by relying on cutting-edge technology for surveillance, facial recognition, predictive policing, biometrics, and behavioral epigenetics (in which life experiences alter one’s genetic makeup).
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
It’s the American police state’s take on the dystopian terrors foreshadowed by George Orwell, Aldous Huxley and Phillip K. Dick all rolled up into one oppressive pre-crime and pre-thought crime package.
If you’re not scared yet, you should be.
It’s a Nightmare America
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
Connect the dots.
Start with the powers amassed by the government under the USA Patriot Act, note the government’s ever-broadening definition of what it considers to be an “extremist,” then add in the government’s detention powers under NDAA, the National Security Agency’s far-reaching surveillance networks, and fusion centers that collect and share surveillance data between local, state and federal police agencies.
To that, add tens of thousands of armed, surveillance drones that will soon blanket American skies, facial recognition technology that will identify and track you wherever you go and whatever you do. And then to complete the picture, toss in the real-time crime centers being deployed in cities across the country, which will be attempting to “predict” crimes and identify criminals before they happen based on widespread surveillance, complex mathematical algorithms and prognostication programs.
Hopefully you’re starting to understand how easy we’ve made it for the government to identify, label, target, defuse and detain anyone it views as a potential threat for a variety of reasons that run the gamut from mental illness to having a military background to challenging its authority to just being on the government’s list of persona non grata. Finally, add in the local police agencies and SWAT teams that are being “gifted” military-grade weaponry and equipment designed for the battlefield and trained in the tactics of war.
It all adds up to a terrifying package of brute force coupled with invasive technology and totalitarian tactics.
This brings me back to those red flag gun laws.
It’s the nail in the American Coffin
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
In the short term, these gun confiscation laws may serve to temporarily delay or discourage those wishing to inflict violence on others, but it will not resolve whatever madness or hate or instability therein that causes someone to pull a trigger or launch a bomb or unleash violence on another.
Indeed, those same individuals sick enough to walk into an elementary school or a movie theater and open fire using a gun can and do wreak just as much havoc with homemade bombs made out of pressure cookers and a handful of knives.
Nor will these laws save us from government-instigated and directed violence at the hands of the militarized police state or the blowback from the war-drenched, violence-imbued, profit-driven military industrial complex, both of which remain largely overlooked and underestimated pieces of the discussion on gun violence in America.
No matter how well-meaning the politicians make these encroachments on our rights appear, in the right (or wrong) hands, benevolent plans can easily be put to malevolent purposes. In this way, even the most well-intentioned government law or program can be—and has been—perverted, corrupted and used to advance illegitimate purposes once profit and power are added to the equation.
The war on terror, the war on drugs, the war on illegal immigration, asset forfeiture schemes, road safety schemes, school safety schemes, eminent domain: all of these programs started out as legitimate responses to pressing concerns and have since become weapons of compliance and control in the police state’s hands.
And what is next…
.
Well, it’s when the elites declare that they are a class that is up and above that of the American citizenry.
.
The following article is reprinted as found with limited editing to fit in this venue, and all credit to the original author. by Baruch Pletner,PhD,MBA
The Hi-Tech Traditionalist: A Revolution In Reverse: The Uprising Of The American Elites Against The American People
The great Bolshevik revolutions of the last century in Russia, in China, and in Cuba all followed a familiar pattern: a group of young, energetic, endlessly corruptible, but not yet corrupt outsiders take on, in the name of the people, a tired corrupt establishment.
A civil war ensues in which the people side with the revolutionaries because they (mistakenly) think that things can never be worse.
Revolutionaries win, slaughter the establishment elites, and proceed to rob and enslave the people in even more outrageous fashion.
In May, 2008, a SWAT team raided a home in Norwalk, Connecticut after a prostitute called the police telling them that the home contained drugs and weapons. She gave the police a false name and after the killing no weapons were found but the police killed Gonzalo Guizan and dragged the home owner, Ronald Terebesi out in handcuffs. In February, 2013 taxpayers from 5 Fairfield County towns were ordered to pay $3,500,000.00 resulting from the raid on the residence in Norwalk that left Guizan dead, Terebesi traumatized and heavy damage done to his house. Reporter Jonathan Turley expressed his view of the $3.5 million settlement:
"Now, Easton First Selectman Thomas Herrmann insists that the settlement does not reflect any negligence by his officers or those of the other towns: 'While the defendants, police departments and officers from Darien, Easton, Trumbull, Monroe and Wilton maintain they were not responsible for the unfortunate death of Mr. Guizan, the insurers for the defendants, who will bear the full cost of the settlement, believed that it was best to resolve the matter rather than incur further attorneys’ fees, which were anticipated to be significant. The defendants concurred, further believing it was important to facilitate the Guizan family being relieved of the combined burden of litigation.'
"That seems a rather belated concern for the Guizan family since you first launched a virtual military assault on a drug allegation, then killed the unarmed Guizan, and then fought their claim for damages until you had little practical alternative but to settle."
The only thing the police found were two smoking pipes and a tin with a minuscule amount of drugs. Jonathan Turley described the raid and this part of his original story has since been redacted,
"One would have thought this was the alleged bin Laden raid, as it looked like a military operation in a war zone. Heavily armed police and SWAT teams raided a home owned by Ronald Terebesi based on a tip from a local stripper that she had a “dispute” with Terebesi. This sounds pretty harmless so far, but SWAT team members dressed in armor bore down on this home with flash grenades, snipers surrounding the house, and a virtual tank supplied to this police department after the cover up of 9/11 by DHS.
"When all was said and done, one man, Gonzalo Guizan, was killed and Terebesi was dragged from his home. Both of these men were unarmed, and had done nothing to warrant this raid, and in fact were cowering in a corner when the spray of bullets were fired."
Soon enough the old guard revolutionaries become every bit as corrupt as the ones they have replaced if not more so and the cycle repeats itself.
In America, the situation is rather farcically backwards.
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
In America, the corrupt establishment elites have decided to stage a Bolshevik coup against the American people rather than the other way around.
A Tsar fully in command of his own kingdom staging a coup against his own people is a bizarre development to say the least, and yet, here we are in 2021 America.
Like always, there are reasons.
First and foremost among them is the sheer scope of the nepotism and corruption of the American elites in business, government, technology, and the intelligence services.
This scope has very likely far exceeded anything previously known in human history.
Had the dimensions of the robbery perpetrated by the American ruling classes against the American people become widely known earlier, America could well have experienced a more typical revolution, one by the people against the elites.
Well aware of the possibility if not probability of such an outcome, the people who run America put in place a plan to make it all but impossible.
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
The plan involved the gradually escalating erosion of the limits on government powers put in place by the Constitution with a parallel erosion in the God-given rights guaranteed every American by the same document.
This was a fully bipartisan effort, put in place immediately after president Reagan departed office.
It is sufficient to observe the exponential increase in government versus private sector employment in America from 1988 to 2019 to fully grasp this point.
Stopping immigration from countries that have (or at least used to have) a tradition of personal freedom and limited government while throwing open the spigots for immigration from countries that have neither was the second part of the same plan.
The destruction of family values and Christianity in America was the third.
On the whole, the plan was a spectacular success.
Americans proved easy targets for propaganda on pro-gay rights and every other kind of moral depravity and have learned to bite their tongues and bow low whenever they heard the phrase: “diversity is our strength”.
White Americans learned to internalize guilt for something they had no control over – the very color of their skin.
Americans allowed themselves to become squeezed out of well-paying jobs by the elites-induced trifecta of low and high-skilled immigration and automation, with nary a whisper in protest.
All was going well for the elites until they had a panic attack, a freakout of unheard of proportions when a non-establishment person, Donald Trump managed to get himself elected president.
The problem for the elites inherent in Trump’s election was simple: they have not done much, if anything, to cover the tracks of their massive robbery of the American people.
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
That meant that when Trump assumed office even their best efforts would likely not be good enough to stop him from perceiving at least a glimpse of the true scale of their crimes.
There is a certain irony in the fact that being criminals themselves, the American establishment has found, in Trump, the one true nemesis.
For he is a New York developer who cut his teeth dealing with the New York building trades, which are, of course, a criminal element in and of themselves.
Trying to pin on Trump their own sins of sexual corruption, nepotism, embezzlement, etc. has not been a well-thought out strategy on the part of the American power elites.
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
This is simply because it enabled him to begin educating the American public as to the breathtaking scope of their own criminality.
And that pretty much explains what happened during the election of 2020; a coup d’etat against the American people, the American Constitution, and the American Republic itself.
Since the elites still very much permeate every hall of power in America, this is a one-off deal in which the rulers of a country set out to violently overthrow the very political structure of the country they are ruling, but, as they say, it is what it is.
The cover may be different, but the playbook is the same, so we are already being exposed to the oldies but goodies of…
escalating agitprop (weaponized lies and propaganda),
suppression of unwanted elements (cancel culture),
and paid snitching (whistleblowing).
Now we are entering into a new phase, that of secret trials with a predetermined outcome.
Apparently congressional Democrats are going to hold impeachment hearings (read Bolshevik tribunal) at a secret location with no rights whatsoever being afforded to the accused.
America is a military empire, it’s police are military soldiers.
Unfortunately for all of us, however, the scope of their criminal acts is such that they cannot contemplate any due process without committing political and even non-political suicide.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said federal government programs that armed police “with the weapons and tactics of war” had led forces across the United States to become unnecessarily and dangerously militarized.
“The use of hyper-aggressive tools and tactics results in tragedy for civilians and police officers, escalates the risk of needless violence, destroys property and undermines individual liberties,” the ACLU said in a report.
It said police forces set up special weapons and tactics (SWAT) units initially to face emergencies such as hostage situations and active-shooter scenarios.
But after studying more than 800 SWAT deployments conducted by 20 law enforcement agencies between 2011-2012, it said the specialized teams had moved away from that original role and were increasingly used to search people’s homes for drugs.
It said the raids were often violent, involving 20 or more officers armed with assault rifles and stun grenades, breaking down doors and windows, and screaming at occupants to get on the floor. It said children were present on numerous occasions.
The ACLU said the militarization of policing was also evident in police training that it said encouraged officers to adopt a “warrior” mentality – something it said was reinforced by the use of equipment such as battering rams, flashbang grenades, and armored personnel carriers.
It said the shift in culture was partly driven by U.S. Supreme Court rulings that gave police increased authority to force their way into homes, often in narcotics probes.
All things are on the table right now, including things that now sound crazy like setting up a parallel Supreme Court having declared the Constitution illegitimate because it was written by white males some of whom supported slavery and ratified without African American and other minority votes.
Needless to say, such actions may well precipitate an armed conflict we know of as civil war, but that would not be an unexpected outcome for the elites.
We know now that the American intelligence services all work for the elites and not for the people.
They will fight on their side in the coming war. What we don’t know is to what degree the armed forces have been infiltrated, especially the mid-level officer corps.
The outcomes of such cataclysms are never possible to predict, but we know what we know.
American ruling classes have long since betrayed her and her people to make themselves fabulously, generationally rich and powerful.
They could have cut a power-sharing deal with the American people as represented by president Trump; his hand has always been open to them.
They didn’t take him up on it.
Massive anger is building up in America now and the battle lines are drawn: either the American republic overthrows her own criminal elites or they overthrow her.
Which shall it be? To quote the Commander in Chief of the forces of light: “we’ll see what happens.”
The MM Opinion
Nothing is going to happen domestically. People are getting ready, ready, ready but there isn’t any “trigger” that will enable the unleashing of holy terror internally.
If something is going to happen, then it will happen externally.
Which brings up all these “waltzes” and “dances” that the Biden administration is involved in regarding other nations. It’s very blatant and “in your face”. Here’s my terms, you lowly Chink.. you lowly scum Russki… you evil Iranian… accept them or we will squelch you like the vermin you are.
Is it intentional? Or is the leadership complete morons? It’s difficult to tell these days. So I must ask…
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i don't know that the usa has any type of long range strategy... and i don't think they care who dies, or what mess they make of other places on the planet either... it seems the usa is intent on serving the god of mammon only.. this certainly works for wall st and the military industrial complex... i really don't think concern for the welfare of other nations, or the planet for that matter, are any considerations washington gives at this point... and to have the same brand of neo cons in bidens gov't as the previous bunch, is not a positive sign either.. it is hard to appreciate the constant hate towards russia these people have.. i find it impossible to understand in fact..
It’s a nice day out. And maybe too nice to complain about the mess the United States is today. But that’s life, don’t you know. Human constructions, nations and people, come and go. But the weather, society, the birds and the bees continue oblivious to whatever the United States does.
Too nice a day to worry about the collapse of whatever the heck it is. But it’s happening whether we want to watch or not. Meanwhile it’s not only the “rank and file” citizenry; the “Joe Sixpack” in the “flyover states” discussing this, but also the “elites” in the posh enclaves inside the elite residential areas of the North east. And they so banter about…
Here we have a couple of elites chatting about what’s going on.
While (initially) laws might say that everyone is equal, what actually happens is that certain types of people (psychopaths) tend to gobble up all the “power” over time. Thus resulting in a society of “elites” who rule over the nation.
These elites are talking.
I found it interesting, not only for the way that they are approaching the current situation; all, but also for what they know, and what they are oblivious to. As people used to say in the hills “He might be smart, but he has shit for brains”…
These people talk about life inside of the Washington DC “beltway”, and the various “alphabet” agencies while they live in their nice plush estates, inside their gated communities. You cannot blame them. They are not oblivious to what is going on in America, and in the rest of the world on the international scene, instead, they view it from a set of “eyeglasses” that is alien to the rest of us. thus their discourse, and bantering about has value and is valuable to us.
It’s worth taking the time to absorb…
Here's a pretty good read about what America is, and who the "leaders" are. It came from Culture News, and I edited to fit this venue. the author wrote long expansive paragraph-long run-on sentences that was difficult to read. But aside from that, and my own artistic flourishes in this particular article, the content remains intact. It's a good read. All credit to the author.
Please note that I interjected quotes and comments from the “Joe Six-pack” audience at the start of each section, just to keep everyone grounded. They are in dialog boxes.
The Codevilla Tapes
The historian of American statecraft and spycraft and conservative political philosopher Angelo Codevilla talks about the ruling elite, Jonathan Pollard, and the rise of the techno-surveillance state—and the consequent demise of the American Empire.
That’s the terror and the beauty of American life in a nutshell.
It is the answer to the secret of how 300 million people from many different places can live together between two oceans, sharing a future-oriented outlook that methodically obliterates any ties to the past.
All prior lived experience is transformed into science fiction…
…or else into self-serving evidence of …
…the present-day moral, intellectual, and technological superiority of the brave imagineers…
…those who are fortunate enough to live here, in the “Now”, while all who came before them are cursed.
It’s out of control
Yes it is.
Thanks for pointing out the planning of US aggression. One hopes this is all brinksmanship on all sides.
If the plan is to take Crimea, then the USA has completely lost its mind and is hellbent on extinction rather than face collapse of 'the greatest country in the history of the world.'
It's understandable that those wanting to see the USA get its ears boxed are frustrated by Putin/Russia's strategy of repeatedly 'turning the other cheek.'
Rather than weakness, we can see now how Russia has consolidated its alliances, developed advanced weaponry, and consistently worked within International Law and not the Rules Based International Order of Might Makes Right.
The United States and its equally bankrupt allies/vassals face a three-front battlefield - Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. Obviously the supply chain is a problem.
So, dear friends, the question is: How batshit crazy are the folks pulling the strings?
No one can or does control such fantasy-driven machinery…
… which seems incapable of operating in any other way than it does, i.e., in a space with no beginning and no end…
… but trending always toward utopia perfection.
Learning to accept imperfection and failure may be an emotionally healthy way for adults to negotiate the terrors and absurdities of human existence, but it is not the highway to the perfectibility of man or woman-kind.
Because the large-scale explanations that Americans offer each other about how their country works, or doesn’t work, arise from working backwards from the expectation of some future storybook perfection…
…Americans tend to be either childishly conspiratorial or cartoonishly stupid…
…because those are the types of explanation that tend to win out…
…once you stipulate an ever-more-perfect-and-glorious future…
…as the inevitable outcome of whatever snake oil it is that you are pitching to the suckers.
The Snake Oil Addiction
To my mind, the most chilling sentence uttered in this whole affair was by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. He said "that any attempts to start a new military conflict in Ukraine’s war-torn east could end up destroying Ukraine".
Lavrov never speaks like this and the Russians do not bluff.
Zelensky signed a decree recently stating Ukraine's intent to take back the Donbass AND Crimea! This means if Ukraine attacks, Russia WILL intervene and destroy Ukraine as we know it. I think it means Russian tanks will roll on Kiev to stop this war forever.
Moves like recalling the US Ambassador are very ominous and usually prelude all out war between nations. Combined with Lavrov's warning, Russia is giving all possible signals it is ready for war with Ukraine AND the US.
In today’s America, these explanations come in the form of shallow and sweeping identitarian polemics (“white people” or “globalists” run “everything”)…
… indecipherable academese backed by graphed coefficients (people are motivated by “rational self-interest,” as calculated by academics)…
… or as appeals to a glorified and abstracted historical past (“the Founding Fathers,” “the melting pot”)…
…whose promises of future perfection may have seemed real enough to past generations, but must now grow ever more distant with every new iteration of Moore’s law.
Who is in control?
Martyanov is correct in the sense that the USA can only claim to be "universal" (empire) as long as it keeps the European Peninsula in its hold.
psychohistorian @ 4 states that the USA would still be the world empire even if it loses Europe because it has the financial system. But this financial system, including the dollar standard, would mean jack shit without Eurasia. The Americans would lose, by definition of the term, the petrodollar if it were to lose Eurasia, plus most of the world trade. The USD would have nothing to back it up as the world standard fiat currency; at most it would still be a strong, well-respected fiat currency (a la Swiss Franc, Pound Sterling, Euro, Yen and now the Renminbi) which would probably still be the currency used in Latin America and the Pacific region - but the power to enforce economic sanctions the USA has today would be instantly over.
Without its great foothold in the European Peninsula, the USA would certainly lose any serious claim to be a world empire. Maybe if it somehow would be able to keep the Middle East (through Israel and Saudi Arabia) - but that would probably be a Justinian version of the American Empire, not the Good Ol' American Empire of the times of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush.
If it were to lose the European Peninsula, the USA would just have Japan, South Korea, Australia and other Western Pacific islands as its last serious footholds in Eurasia. It would be what I called here sometimes a "Byzantine" USA - essentially a Western Empire, with some footholds in the Western Pacific, memories of a glorious long gone past. It would not mean the end of the American Empire by any stretch of the imagination (the true end of the American Empire can only be achieved by internal conflicts/contradictions, not external), but it would certainly mean the beginning of another era (a much less glorious one) of its history, for sure.
Which is not to say that America isn’t governed by an elite class, just like China, or Japan, or France is—only that the ability of that class to actually rule anything is even more constrained by the native culture.
The idea that an advanced technologically driven capitalist or socialist society of several hundred million people can be run by something other than an elite is silly or scary…
…the most obvious present-day alternative being a society run by ever-advancing forms of AI, which will no doubt have only the best interests of their flesh-and-blood creators at heart.
Yet it is possible to accept all of this, and to posit that the reason that the American ruling class seems so indisputably impotent and unmoored in the present…
…is that there is no such thing as America anymore.
In place of the America that is described in history books…
…, where Henry Clay forged his compromises, and Walt Whitman wrote poetry, and Herman Melville contemplated the whale, and Ida Tarbell did her muckraking, and Thomas Alva Edison invented movies and the light bulb, and so forth…
… has arisen something new and vast and yet distinctly un-American.
That for lack of a better term is often called the American Empire.
Which in turn calls to mind the division of Roman history (and the Roman character) into two parts: the Republican, and the Imperial.
The American Empire
I guess the Russians made clear they mean business:
"What happened and how this could be, that mighty Ukraine and her US handlers suddenly want to prioritize "political and diplomatic way". Well, here is some snippet of suddenly a much more peaceful mindset with a bit of explanation of this sudden (not really) change:
The United States on Thursday said it was discussing Russia’s military build-up near the Ukrainian border with Nato allies as fresh reports showed Russia deploying ballistic missiles to the area. Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, said that Washington was “increasingly concerned” about what has been described as Russia’s largest military manoeuvres in the area since the break-out of hostilities in eastern Ukraine in 2014. “Five Ukrainian soldiers have been killed this week alone. These are all deeply concerning signs,” Ms Psaki told reporters on Thursday."
And suddenly the Ukrainians become angels of peace: ""Liberation" of Donbass by power means will lead to mass loss of life among civilians and military personnel--this is unacceptable for Kiev, stated the Commander of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Ruslan Khomchak. "Being dedicated to universal human values and norms of humanitarian law (I am under the table trying to get up....), our state places the life of its citizens on the first place (I tried to get up, fell again...)",
While containing the ghosts of the American past, the American Empire is clearly a very different kind of entity than the American Republic was…
…starting with the fact that the vast majority of its inhabitants aren’t Americans.
Ancient American ideas about individual rights and liberties, the pursuit of happiness, and so forth, may still be inspiring to mainland American citizens or not…
… but they are foreign to the peoples that Americans conquered.
To those people, America is an empire, or the shadow of an empire, under which seemingly endless wars are fought…
… a symbol of their own continuing powerlessness and cultural failure.
Meanwhile, at home, the American ruling elites prattle on endlessly about their deeply held ideals…
….of whatever that must be applied to Hondurans today…
…and Kurds tomorrow…
…in fits of frantic-seeming generosity in between courses of farm-to-table fare.
Once the class bond has been firmly established, everyone can relax and exchange notes about their kids…
… who are off being credentialed at the same “meritocratic” but now hugely more expensive private schools that their parents attended…
… whose social purpose is no longer to teach basic math or a common history….
…but to indoctrinate teenagers in the cultish mumbo-jumbo that serves as a kind of in-group glue that binds ruling class initiates (she/he/they/ze) together…
…and usefully distinguishes them from townies during summer vacations by the seashore.
America is run by a class of people
A quick consideration on the MIC question.
It is patent that the USA, at this stage of its development, depends almost entirely on its defense industry - which is backed up and insulated from the law of capitalism by the State - on keeping its technological prowess.
We already know that, as the world's financial superpower, the USA is destined to deindustrialize (because that's the price of keeping the USD as the standard fiat currency without incurring the danger of hyperinflation). As it deindustrializes, another part of the world must industrialize - in this case, Asia (China in particular). That's the conditio sine qua non for the financial hegemony to exist without quickly self-destructing, i.e. another part of the world has to industrialize, you can't have a financial superpower without an industrial superpower, as the commodities are what back up money (as Marx once said, the use value is the Träger des Tauschwerts, the surface over which the house of cards can be erected).
By exclusion, the USA can only keep its status as the financial superpower as long as it keeps absolute control over the Seven Seas (most of trade still happens through the sea), which means a strong defense industry must be kept at the behest of the financial sector (Wall Street). The Defense industry is, therefore, the exception to the rule - alongside the electronics-communications system (which gives material form to the financial system, to the USD and the stock market) - over which the USA cannot escape. If it can keep recycling USDs through multi-billionaire defense contracts with other countries, the better, as it gives another life extension to the USD. This is what happen in the famous Petrodollar scheme, where Saudi Arabia denominates its oil in USDs by buying American T-bonds, but also American military weapons and systems, which keeps Saudi Arabia sovereign and intact to keep its oil reserves denominated in USDs, in a virtuous cycle.
That's why arms sales are so important to the USA: it keeps, at the same time, its domination of the Seven Seas and therefore of world trade thus keeping its financial system the dominant one, and decelerate its inevitable deindustrialization process.
The understanding of America as an empire is as foreign to most Americans as is the idea that the specific country that they live in is run by a class of people who may number themselves among the elect but weren’t in fact elected by anyone.
Under whatever professional job titles…
… the people who populate the institutions that exercise direct power over nearly all aspects of American life from birth to death are bureaucrats…
…university bureaucrats,
…corporate bureaucrats,
…local, state and federal bureaucrats,
…law enforcement bureaucrats,
…health bureaucrats,
…knowledge bureaucrats,
… spy agency bureaucrats.
At each layer of specific institutional authority, bureaucrats coordinate their understandings and practices…
…with bureaucrats in parallel institutions through lawyers.
They do so in language that is designed to be impenetrable, or nearly so, by outsiders.
Their authority is pervasive, undemocratic, and increasingly not susceptible in practice to legal checks and balances.
All those people together comprise a class.
For themselves, and only for themselves.
I’ve never commented before. I’m in South Africa, with family members in Palestine and family members who’ve lived through WWII.
I truly hope that Russia has a strategy to make the US Mainland (I also have many American friends I dearly love) carry some of the consequences of anglozionist adventures abroad.
The world is imploding/exploding under the weight of Western hegemony.
None of the people I love (including my dearest family and friends or myself) will probably survive consequences a conflagration of this type could unleash. But what option is there to responding to ongoing geopolitical abuse by the US-ZIO-EU? How sad! Five billion years of evolution and this is what it comes to?
Another thing that residents of the broad North American expanse between Canada and Mexico have noticed is…
…that the programs and remedies that this class has promoted, both at home and abroad…
… have greatly enriched and empowered a small number of people, namely themselves.
While the broader American population continues to decline in wealth, health, and education.
Meanwhile, the American Empire that the ruling elite administers is collapsing.
The popularity of such observations on both the left and the right is what accounts for the rise of Donald Trump, on one hand, and of Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren on the other hand…
… among an electorate that has not been historically distinguished by its embrace of radicalism.
Add those voter bases together, and perhaps 75% of Americans would seem to agree that their country, however you think of it, is in big trouble.
And that the fault lies with the country’s self-infatuated and apparently not-so-brilliant elite.
Why Empires Fall
Xerxes, Russia (or any other country) is unlikely to “make the US Mainland carry some of the consequences of anglozionist adventures abroad”. This could only happen in a “post-war/Nurenburg” type scenario, once the US has already been defeated. What they will do, and have been doing, is to separate from the US monetary system, work together with other resistance countries, and let the US isolate itself and fade as a result of this.
Fortunately the US empire has been weakening, and other countries developing and strengthening and working together under an ostensibly fairer paradigm. The worm has been turning against the empire. This is something to be happy and hopeful about.
Every student of history has their own theory about how and why empires fall.
My theory is this:
The wealth of any empire flows disproportionately to the capital, where it nourishes the growth, wealth, and power of the ruling elite.
As the elite grows richer and more powerful, the gulf between the rulers and the ruled widens…
… until the beliefs and manners of the elite bear little connection to those of their countrymen…
… whom they increasingly think of as their clients or subjects.
That distance creates resentment and friction.
In response to which the elite takes measures to protect itself.
The more wealth and power the elite controls, the more insulation it must purchase.
Disastrous mistakes are hailed as victories or are made to appear to have no consequences at all.
This is done in order to protect the aura of collective infallibility that protects ruling class power and privilege.
What happens next…
the US sociopaths want to do in Europe much the same as what they did in Iraq - but using different means/proxies:
Create a situation of much chaos in a chosen country, as a relatively modern state dissolves, and use that as a pretext both to inject themselves even more into that region's affairs, and also to spread the 'contagion' of 'chaos' to other surrounding states..... where the US sociopaths who run the Empire will try (again) for regime changes in the surrounding nations (from Serbia to Georgia to the other Black Sea states) and beyond.
that the puppet Zelensky has been off to Qatar and next Turkey is a sure sign that these mindless people in the US national security state are going to try once again using the psychopathic jihadists as one of their means to inject instability, terror and chaos into the region.
on top of all that, as many commentators have already pointed out, as soon as Russia intervenes in a big way (if it does go that route), the Nord-Stream project is over with, Germany is without its gas and gas hub plans - plus there's now no gas/oil going to Europe via the Ukraine.
So two birds with one stone: northern/central Europe is then even more dependent on the US for energy, as well as 'protection' from the big bad bear.
What happens next is pretty much inevitable in every time and place…
…Spain, France, Great Britain, Moghul India, you name it…
… Freed from the laws of gravity, the elite turns from the hard work of correct strategizing and wise policymaking…
…to the much less time-consuming and much more pleasant work of perpetuating its own privileges forever.
In the course of which endeavor the ruling elite is revealed to be a bunch of idiots and perverts who spend their time prancing around half naked while setting the territories they rule on fire.
The few remaining decent and competent people flee this revolting spectacle, while the elite compounds its mistakes in an orgy of failure.
The empire then collapses.
Sanity Check
Interesting to see the sudden back-peddling by the Kiev mouthpieces. I see a few different things going on here. First, and the biggest, is that I have come to believe that Russia (and China) has finally had enough, what with the constant pinpricks of the Trump years and now the absolute vitriol and diplomacy-killing antics of O'Biden, and have decided that everything else has been tried, the only way the US will listen is if it gets its nose bloodied, and bloodied good. Too many years of no consequences. So with this in mind, I believe Russia (and perhaps China) are actually looking for a good opportunity to inflict pain.
In the hopes of confirming or disproving my theory, I recently traveled out to a vineyard in Plymouth, Northern California. There I found Angelo Codevilla.
He, who along with Michael Walzer of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey, is one of the few American political philosophers who combines a deep sense of the Western moral and philosophical traditions with a hard-nosed sense of how the American political system actually works.
While I am naturally more inclined toward Walzer-ism, I thought it would be fair minded to give Codevilla a hearing, despite the fact that he identifies as a conservative Catholic rather than as a liberal Northeastern Jew.
As a sometime student of intelligence work, I will also admit to being an attentive reader of Codevilla’s book Informing Statecraft.
Which together with Norman Mailer’s novel Harlot’s Ghost offers a fair guide to the karmic evolution of the U.S. intelligence community.
Codevilla’s former boss in the U.S. Senate, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, had this to say about his protégé’s book:
Woodrow Wilson once spoke of the demands that would be made on Presidents in the age to come; demands of a kind that could only be met by “wise and prudent athletes, a small class.” Such is Angelo Codevilla; one of the small class of intelligence analysts who has actually been there. Read him; although I plead: Do not invariably agree!
What follows is an edited record of our conversation, which began when I arrived at the Codevilla vineyard in the evening and then continued the next morning, after the Codevillas invited me to spend the night at their house and then served me a delicious breakfast.
***
The Ruling Elite
David Samuels: In 2010, you wrote an article, which then became a book, in which you predicted the rise of someone like Donald Trump as well as the political chaos and stripping away of institutional authority that we’ve lived through since. Did you think your prediction would come true so quickly?
Angelo Codevilla: I didn’t predict anything. I described a situation which had already come into existence. Namely, that the United States has developed a ruling class that sees itself as distinct from the raw masses of the rest of America. That the distinction that they saw, and which had come to exist, between these classes, comprised tastes and habits as well as ideas. Above all, that it had to do with the relative attachment, or lack thereof, of each of these classes to government.
David Samuels: One of the things that struck me about your original piece was your portrait of the American elite as a single class that seamlessly spans both the Democratic and Republican parties.
Angelo Codevilla: Of course, yes. Not in exactly the same way, though; what I said was that the Democrats were the senior partners in the ruling class. The Republicans are the junior partners.
The reason being that the American ruling class was built by or under the Democratic Party. First, under Woodrow Wilson and then later under Franklin Roosevelt. It was a ruling class that prized above all its intellectual superiority over the ruled. And that saw itself as the natural carriers of scientific knowledge, as the class that was naturally best able to run society and was therefore entitled to run society.
The Republican members of the ruling class aspire to that sort of intellectual status or reputation. And they have shared a taste of this ruling class. But they are not part of the same party, and as such, are constantly trying to get closer to the senior partners. As the junior members of the ruling class, they are not nearly as tied to government as the Democrats are. And therefore, their elite prerogatives are not safe.
David Samuels: As a young person moving through American elite institutions, I was always struck by the marginal status of those other people you mention, Republicans. Clearly, they were not as bright as me and my friends were, which is why they were marginal, even if they had an easier path to some kind of dubious status as pseudo-intellectuals in their second- or third-rate party organs. That hardly mattered, though. The New York Times was the important newspaper, and it was a liberal newspaper. The New Yorker was an important magazine, and so it was a liberal magazine. Right-wing types might look instead to the Conservative Review of Books, published out of Mobile, Alabama, or the Jesuit review of something or another. But nobody was quaking in their boots about how such places might review your work. All the cultural capital was on the Democratic side of the ledger.
Angelo Codevilla: What a marvelous recitation of ruling class prejudice.
Of course, you would not have judged them to be nearly as intelligent as you folks were. And you probably didn’t imagine that others would think you less intelligent.
David Samuels: Let them rant and rave about their conspiracy theories and whatnot. They didn’t matter.
Angelo Codevilla: Well, they didn’t matter. Because of the power that you wielded, because of the institutions that you controlled.
Now let me give you an alternative. In France, with which you tell me you are acquainted, you have meritocracy in government and institutions. Meritocracy ensured by competitive exams. I, and a bunch of nonliberal democrats as myself, would be absolutely delighted if institutions like TheNew York Times, TheAtlantic, were to open their pages to people who bested others in competitive exams. But of course, they’re not thinking at all of doing that. As a matter of fact, the institutions of liberal America have been moving away from competitive exams as fast as they know how.
In living memory, and I’m an example of that, it was for a time possible for nonliberal Democrats to get into the American foreign service, and if they did as I did, and scored number one in their class, they would have their choice of assignments. But now, you have all sorts of new criteria for admission into the foreign service, which have supposedly ensured greater diversity. In fact, what they had done was to eliminate the possibility that the joint might be invaded by lesser beings of superior intelligence.
David Samuels: There is a curious mélange of dispensations under which people are escorted into the grand ballroom of the good and the great, right? Category one were with high test scores. Then there were the children of people who had gone to these institutions in previous generations, whose parents have money and might be named Cabot or Lowell. Then there were the admissions categories that cover you in the opposite direction—4.8% African Americans plus at least one white person who grew up without shoes in the mountains of West Virginia. These covering cases were useful because they could be trumpeted as proof of how far and wide the net was cast. All of which went to show that the most meritorious people were all gathered together in this place, and were therefore fit to rule everyone else.
Angelo Codevilla: Merit as defined by what?
David Samuels: I have no idea.
Angelo Codevilla: Merit as defined by the capacity to be attractive to those at the top of the heap. In other words what you have is rightly called not meritocracy, but co-option.
Now it is one of the fundamental truths of our co-option that it results in a negative selection of elites. That each group selects people who are just a smacking below themselves, so that generation after generation, the quality of those at the top deteriorates.
David Samuels: Are you suggesting that the all-white Christian male elites, who largely inherited their status from their parents, were more deserving of their elevated status than their more diverse counterparts, like the people who ran American foreign policy under President Barack Obama?
Angelo Codevilla: I don’t know that the statesmen of the 1920s and ’30s were any more meritorious than the folks under Barack Obama, because they themselves were not selected by any meritocratic criteria, as you suggest. However, I do know, having taught college for many years, that the amount of work that was done by college students 50 years ago or more was considerably greater than the amount of work that is done by college graduates today.
David Samuels: As a graduate of two elite American universities, I am entirely willing to grant that point.
Angelo Codevilla: Them that don’t work so much don’t learn so much, usually.
David Samuels: There is something funny to me about your description of these people as the “elite” or a “ruling class,” though. I picture grand country homes like in the Masterpiece Theatre production of Brideshead Revisited. But if you look at your American elite, you find earnest bureaucratic types living in collegiate apartments with Ikea furniture.
Angelo Codevilla: No. Not Ikea furniture.
David Samuels: You’re talking about a class of people who are academics or lawyer-bureaucrats living on federal government and NGO salaries.
Angelo Codevilla: They have far more money than people who don’t have similar government attachments. The fact is that proximity to government power has meant, and does mean, more money and greater possibility.
David Samuels: I think about the tech oligarchs who park their multibillion-dollar fortunes offshore.
Angelo Codevilla: I would dispute that.
David Samuels: Really? How many tens of billions of dollars has Apple parked offshore? How much money do Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer and Mark Zuckerberg pay in taxes?
Angelo Codevilla: Apple and Bill Gates have secured their money, not so much by relocating, but by having become the biggest lobbyists in the country. That is the source of their financial security.
The point of the ruling class is precisely the confusion of public and private power. This is, in fact, this is becoming in fact a corporate state. Which by the way was pioneered by one of my former countrymen by the name of Benito.
David Samuels: So, when you’re talking about the ruling class, you’re positing a continuum between the Silicon Valley oligarchs with their hundred-billion-dollar fortunes and these public employee and NGO types.
Angelo Codevilla: I am indeed. That is the meaning of the word party. The Democratic Party is in fact composed of the very people that you are talking about.
Parties are by nature coalitions, each part of which benefits from the other. But they share certain things in common. One of them is contempt for Americans who are outside of their ranks.
David Samuels: You call those contemptible people the “country party.”
Angelo Codevilla: Precisely. Here, I’m borrowing an 18th-century British term.
David Samuels: I thought it was a good term because it brings to mind country music.
Angelo Codevilla: That too. Have you ever been to Branson, Missouri? Do you even know what it is?
David Samuels: I gather it’s neither Aspen nor Hollywood.
Angelo Codevilla: Branson, Missouri, is an entertainment center, larger in every way than Hollywood. It is located in Branson, Missouri, in the Ozarks. It is one of the homes of country music stars and starlets. It’s a huge complex of every kind of family entertainment, from bass fishing to theater, music, museums, anything you can imagine. Now the fact that you have never heard of it typifies the limitations of the ruling class.
David Samuels: My oligarchical snobbery.
Angelo Codevilla: No, no, no. You haven’t even risen to that.
David Samuels: I’m a piker. I bet $5 on the trifecta at the dog track.
Angelo Codevilla: It typifies the limitations of the ruling class mind, not even to understand that over which you are lording it.
David Samuels: So, what role do the poor and disadvantaged people of America play in your scheme? As I’m sure you understand, the reason we members of the elite class accumulate so much money and power is to be good allies for those who are less fortunate than we are. At least that’s what they teach my children in these schools that cost $35,000 a year.
Angelo Codevilla: You certainly do teach them that. It is a youthful pretense. It is a pretense to which the Roman patricians did not stoop.
David Samuels: But eventually they did, right? Constantine got them. The nobles all made public displays of their Christian charity.
Angelo Codevilla: No, no, go back. The Roman patricians call these unfortunates clients. Their relationship with their clients is precisely your relationship with the unfortunate and the poor. They are your pawns, the people whose votes you take.
David Samuels: So, when I express my sincere concern about transgender rights, you would presumably accuse me of manufacturing a new category of clients—and at the same time, a new class of bigots for me to self-righteously oppose.
Angelo Codevilla: You are not manufacturing a class, or rather you are exploiting that class’ weakness to turn that class into clients.
Most of all, what you are giving them—which really in a sense they crave more than anything else—is a sense of grievance against the rest of America. Grievance is the handle by which you push these pawns into your cultural wars.
David Samuels: What an ungenerous way to describe my noble instinct to help the less fortunate. Do the less fortunate truly have nothing to be aggrieved about, here in America?
Angelo Codevilla: Whatever they have to be aggrieved about, that grievance serves your instrumental purpose. Their grievance is your happiness. If they didn’t have a grievance, you’d try to manufacture it. Their having a grievance is an occasion for you to, to sharpen it, to scratch it, and to make it more relevant to them than it otherwise would be.
David Samuels: So, what exactly does the authority of the beneficent class I am supposedly part of, and which you seem to abhor, rest upon? There is the inherent rightness of my views, of course, which is proven by science—
Angelo Codevilla: Well, no. It is founded upon your will to power.
David Samuels: But look at all the wonderful benefits we elitists have to offer, like Davos in the wintertime. Why shiver out in the cold, Angelo?
Angelo Codevilla: Let me crib my response to you. Verily, verily I say unto thee, they have their reward. Do people in your class know where that comes from?
David Samuels: I’m a Jew, so I get a mulligan on quotations from the New Testament.
Angelo Codevilla: I read the first part of the Bible as well as the second, so you ought to read the second as well as the first.
David Samuels: So people have insisted to the Jews throughout our history.
Now tell me: How does your eccentric description of the American elites square with what we know to be the American democratic system? Congress makes the laws. The president of the United States is in charge of the executive functions of government. And then there’s the Supreme Court, which makes sure everything’s constitutionally kosher.
What you are describing is a kind of semiconspiratorial extraconstitutional elite superstructure whose actions do not accord with American civics textbooks or what I read in the newspaper.
Angelo Codevilla: Thank you! Right over the plate.
You are describing, and the textbooks describe, what used to be the American system of government, which has not existed since the late 1930s. The last attempt to revive that system, to make it rise up out of the overlay of administrative agencies that the New Deal built, was the Supreme Court of Schechter Poultry vs. the United States, 1935, the essence of which decision was to say that a legislative power cannot be delegated. Were that maxim to be enforced, the FAA, the FCC, and on and on, all of these agencies would cease to exist because they are, quite literally, unconstitutional. Now the Supreme Court has held them to be constitutional under the fiction that they are in fact merely filling in the interstices of laws. However, your average law passed by Congress these days consists almost exclusively of grants to these agencies to do whatever it is they wish.
Which is why, when Nancy Pelosi said of Obamacare that we would only know what it contained after it was passed, she was entirely correct. She was describing the way the American government works, which is in fact, to use your words, a vast conspiracy between the best lawyers on the outside and the best lawyers on the inside of government. They call each other, both on the inside and the outside, stakeholders. And the rest of us are what, scumbags?
David Samuels: Deplorables.
Angelo Codevilla: Deplorables, yes. But we’re not stakeholders, we who are neither regulators nor regulated entities, but rather ordinary people. We are not parties to this covenant.
There’s a lecture given by James Wilson, the signer of the Declaration of Independence and the head of the first American law school, about the difference between American law and law everywhere else in the Western world. Elsewhere, law came from power. In America, positive law will be valid only if it was in accordance with the laws of nature and nature’s god.
David Samuels: But that’s not the basis of the revolt of the deplorables, or the country party, as you call it.
Angelo Codevilla: The basis of the revolt is simple. We realize that you hate us and therefore we hate you back. And we will take anybody, not that we found this man who fits our description, because Donald Trump didn’t fit anybody’s description of what they wanted. But we will take anybody who’ll take a swing at you.
Which is why I originally wrote at the back of that essay, that this revolution would be for the better or the worse. Because of the urgency that the country class felt. For getting out of all of this.
David Samuels: You seem to have had a marvelous life, though.
Angelo Codevilla: Fraught with all manner of difficulties. I had several job offers just as I was finishing my comps, and then I got drafted. By the time I came out of the service, there were no jobs to be had. And so first I worked at a jerkwater college in Pennsylvania. Too awful for words, I got out of there, but I couldn’t find anything else. So I did the only thing that I could do, which is to pass exams. I got into the foreign service. And then from there to the Hill and then to Stanford to the Hoover Institution and then to Boston. While I was on the Hill, I also taught ancient and modern political thought in Georgetown.
I probably would have done better for myself and my family if I stayed in the foreign service. Or, in the depths of my depression I got admitted to Berkeley Law school. But hey, you’re right. I have absolutely nothing to complain about.
David Samuels: You got to write. You got to think. You got to see the kinds of things that were going to feed your writing.
Angelo Codevilla: I got to teach a lot of students, several of them are teaching right now. And they’re doing good work. Books, we’ll see. I don’t think I’m going to write another book because the last one I wrote, hell of a good book, didn’t sell very much. But who knows. If I get some time off of the vineyard here, and I don’t get too many irrigation systems going wrong or things like that, I’ll write some more.
***
The Rise of the Surveillance State
David Samuels: You have some real knowledge of how the American intelligence community thinks and operates, from your days as a staffer working for Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan.
Angelo Codevilla: Senate staffer in control of the intelligence budget. My senator was the chairman of the Budget Subcommittee of the Intelligence Committee. Which means that the budgets came through him and therefore through me. And back then we had markups and we could punish those who were not forthright with us, and we did.
David Samuels: How do you understand the seemingly unchecked growth of this globe-spanning American surveillance apparatus, and how do you understand the danger of that apparatus being turned to domestic political purposes?
Angelo Codevilla: There’s always danger inherent in secrecy. And you know secrecy of course is central to intelligence operations. Secrecy most often is used not for the good of the operation, but to safeguard the reputations of those who are running the operations.
The agencies, like all bureaucracies, have always tried to aggrandize themselves, build their reputations, in order to make and spend more money. Get more high-ranking positions. Get more post-retirement positions for their people in the industries that support them. They’ve done exactly what bureaucrats in other agencies have done, neither more nor less.
But the business they’re in, which involves surveillance, is uniquely dangerous, because surveillance is inherently a political weapon. Inherently so. And there is never any lack of appetite for increasing the power of surveillance, and for increasing the reach of surveillance.
Fortunately, especially in my time on the Hill, we had pretty good resistance against bureaucratic attempts to increase the reach of government surveillance over the rest of the country.
Then along came 9/11, and congressmen, senators, who didn’t know any better, were rather easily persuaded, and for that matter Presidents—George W. Bush being exhibit number one—were very easily persuaded, that giving the agencies something close to carte blanche for electronic surveillance would help to keep the country safe. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act was amended in 2008 to accommodate the practices which had evolved extralegally under George Bush, which essentially allowed the agencies to wiretap at will, so long as they claimed that this was for foreign intelligence purposes. In this regard, they claimed that what they were doing was within the spirit, if not the letter, of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which stated that any warrantless collection of electronic intelligence, bugging and other means of collection in finding intelligence, could capture the communications of U.S. persons, only incidentally in the course of capturing the communications of foreign targets.
The 2008 amendments legalized this practice, and added the capacity of the agencies to compel communications companies to help upstream collection of emails etcetera, which would then be recorded. The act, rather the amendment, contains an even longer list of apparent restrictions on how these intercepts of Americans may be used. But these restrictions are basically for show because, essentially, once the foreign intelligence surveillance court authorized a particular operation the practical means of judicial review of what has happened, of how it is being carried out, are so complicated as to be unworkable. And besides, what the hell do judges know about the substance of these things?
Therefore, to get to the point of your question, this increased power and lax attitude conserving it posed a temptation to use these tools for the convenience of the administration in power, which was made much more likely by the increasing identification of the senior ranks of the intelligence community with your ruling class. To the point that these people, being ordinary sentient human beings, believe what the people at the top of their class are saying about the opposition.
David Samuels: We are good, and they are bad.
Angelo Codevilla: We are good and these opponents of ours, which mean to take over our positions, are bad people, they are dangerous to the country, and therefore why not look for every possible means of keeping them out of office?
David Samuels: You were directly involved in the drafting of the original FISA law in 1978.
Angelo Codevilla: That’s correct.
David Samuels: In the aftermath of the Church Committee revelations, yes?
Angelo Codevilla: Right. Now you use that term “the Church Committee” in the context that it was something that was antagonistic to the intelligence business. It was not. The Church Committee was a joint operation between, let’s call it “the left” inside the intelligence community, specifically the CIA, and their friends on the Hill. The result of it was that the left component of that bureaucracy has control of the CIA now.
The drafting of FISA was a cooperative enterprise between the Democratic majority, at that point, of Congress, the staffers being all Church Committee staffers, every one of them. And the ACLU. What I’m calling the establishment left. They were the drafters.
But the impetus of the drafting came from the FBI, primarily, and secondarily from the CIA, the NSA. The reason for their pressure was that the left had sued individual members of the FBI for having wiretapped them during the Vietnam War, in their communications with North Vietnam, communist Czechoslovakia, the KGB, and so on. Now they didn’t like that, and they wanted to make sure that nothing like that ever happened again.
So the point of FISA from the standpoint of the left was to keep that from happening again. The point of FISA from the standpoint of the FBI etcetera was never to be in a position to be sued again.
David Samuels: Right. A judge signed it. So now it’s legal.
Angelo Codevilla: Right. What the FBI etcetera demanded was preauthorization. We will not do any wiretapping unless it is preauthorized. Unless we are ipso facto clean.
Now the objections to FISA were primarily of a constitutional kind, mainly that wiretapping for national security was an inherent part of presidential power. The president is commander-in-chief of the armed forces. And that was a true objection.
I however made a different objection, although I agreed with the constitutional objection. I said that pre-authorization, pre-clearance of wiretapping, would be an unendurable temptation for people in the agencies to do whatever the hell they wanted. They would be exempt from the prudence that the fear of being sued would impose.
My objection caught the eye of the American Bar Association at the time, which organized a debate on that subject at the University of Chicago Law School, with me on one side, and a local law professor by the name of Antonin Scalia on the other.
Scalia took the position that the danger, which I described, which he found real, was minor compared to the need to get the agencies doing their job vigorously. We see how the future turned out.
I must note that Scalia is a southern Italian. And I am a northerner.
David Samuels: When you saw the Snowden revelations about Stellar Wind and these other collection programs which then were retroactively legalized—what was your response?
Angelo Codevilla: “What else is new?”
David Samuels: Along with the impetus of 9/11, do you feel that the technology itself fundamentally—
Angelo Codevilla: Sure. Technology itself increased the possibilities. And it would have taken real self-restraint for people to say, “No. We could do this, but we won’t.”
David Samuels: We fear the future threat to the constitutional order.
Angelo Codevilla: We ought not to have such powers.
David Samuels: Please remove me from temptation, said no one, ever.
Angelo Codevilla: Well as a matter of fact, Christians do “lead us not into temptation” all the time.
David Samuels: You do say “lead us not into temptation,” but I am not aware of the Christian prayer that says “please take away the chocolate cake while I’m in the middle of eating it.”
Angelo Codevilla: Well, St. Augustine said exactly that, you know, “Lord make me pure, but not yet.”
***
Are Assange and Snowden heroes or villains?
David Samuels: I was an early and avid supporter of Julian Assange, who is now the devil for both the Democratic and Republican elite factions and appears to have vanished into a dark hole. But I have always defended him, because I felt that at the heart of his project, and no one else’s project, was a fundamental insight into how information was controlled and moves in the modern surveillance state, and how to confront it using the actual tools that are now in play.
When people said, that’s not journalism, I have always looked at them and said, “Yeah, it is. Or at least, it’s more like journalism than most of what passes now for journalism. It is a method for making public the fundaments of how the country is actually being governed.” I don’t know how you’re supposed to have a democratic society without that kind of transparency into the bureaucracies that spy on us and lie about it—and have turned a supine press into these pathetic hand puppets.
If you look at the universe of government bureaucrats and contractors and all the rest, there are now well more than a million Americans with some form of top secret or higher security clearance. Now I can accept that something is properly a secret if only five people know it, or if 40 people know it, or even 400 people. But there is no such thing as a secret that is shared by 1 million people. That is an anti-democratic exercise of power by a bureaucracy.
Angelo Codevilla:I agree with everything you said, up until the time you got to numbers. Because military operations involve a lot of people. Some intelligence operations are essentially military operations which put people’s lives at risk. The line must be drawn where the military is involved.
However, every word you said concerning Julian Assange, I agree with. Every last word.
David Samuels: Did you understand Edward Snowden to be a knowing Russian agent? As someone who was used and manipulated by the Russians?
Angelo Codevilla: I do not know. What is fairly clear is that Snowden entered government service with the idea of doing something like what he did, which certainly removes him from the category of whistleblower. He is certainly no innocent.
But regardless of his motivation, I am glad that he existed. And I’m glad that he did what he did.
The United States does not suffer, and has never suffered, from a lack of knowledge about the rest of the world on the basis of which to make foreign and defense policy. OK? And that is a fundamental fact. And because of that, all the fancy arguments that you must sacrifice this and that for the sake of intelligence, I think are false.
David Samuels: One of the minor scandals that startled me in the late Obama/early Trump interregnum was the unmasking scandal, which struck me as much more significant than people seemed willing to credit at the time. I mean, the fact that someone leaked an intercept to David Ignatius may be a crime, but it was hardly news to me. I mean, people leak stuff all the time. That’s how Washington works.
What struck me as much more significant was the defense that “oh, actually most of these unmasking requests came from Samantha Power, in her job as U.N. ambassador.” And then it turned out it wasn’t her sitting at her desk all day long unmasking hundreds of names of U.S. citizens. It was someone she deputized in her office. She didn’t even know about these requests, or most of them, or so she claimed.
It was news to me that ordinary low-level bureaucrats and political appointees now sit at their desks all day reading raw intercepts targeting American civilians, collected under the pretext of gathering foreign intelligence. A 26-year-old assistant can sit there all day long reading your email, based on the three-hop rule. I don’t think that’s what—
Angelo Codevilla: What the authors of the FISA had in mind.
David Samuels: Authors of FISA, authors of the U.S. Constitution, you can pick your authors. Yet that has became normative reality, right?
Angelo Codevilla: Look. Most people who have a title in Washington don’t do their work. There’s always the chief assistant to the assistant chief, they’re the ones who do the work. And so yeah, they get deputized.
David Samuels: So now we have this surveillance apparatus that Snowden, James Risen, and others have detailed, which provides daytime reading material for bored 26-year-old assistants, which means that material can easily be repurposed for—
Angelo Codevilla: Any purpose under the sun.
David Samuels: That is a very powerful weapon for this bureaucracy to have.
Angelo Codevilla: That’s the point.
***
When Jeff Bezos Has Dinner With the CIA
David Samuels: The guys working in the White House whether under Obama or Trump aren’t writing the code for their surveillance systems. Neither are the nice people at the CIA. They’re all writing checks to Silicon Valley.
I saw the other day that Jeff Bezos, who’s one of the most dedicated champions of democracy and the free press in America, the guy who says that democracy dies in darkness, I saw that his company, Amazon, provides all the data storage for the CIA. Now as a reporter and as a citizen, that makes me confident—
Angelo Codevilla: Ha, ha.
David Samuels: —that Jeff Bezos’ newspaper, The Washington Post, is reporting without fear or favor every day on Jeff Bezos and all these CIA and DoD contracts with Amazon, because they have such a strong incentive to make sure that everything’s on the up and up. And by the way, Amazon is definitely not listening in on your private conversations through the listening devices—in the form of digital assistants like Alexa, Echo speakers, and doorbells with spy cameras in them—that it is installing by the millions in American homes.
Angelo Codevilla: May I give you a quick answer to your larger question?
David Samuels: Yes.
Angelo Codevilla: It depends on who goes to dinner with whom. That’s how Washington works.
David Samuels: That can’t be your answer, so let’s take it from the top. There is a company called Amazon, which now has monopolistic position A, in the field of books and all printed material distributed in America, and B, in a whole host of other industries ranging from diapers to blow-up pool toys. It looks like a classic monopoly trust. You have Google, which has a near-monopoly over the search function, the leading portal to most information on the internet, and holds a monopoly on search advertising. You have Facebook, which controls 78% of entries onto the internet now through their platform. So, you have these three monopolistic companies, right, one of which also owns the only major newspaper in Washington, D.C., and which control the movement of information throughout the entire society.
Now, another arm of Silicon Valley controls storage and access to the information that the government agencies gather on the society. And all of the money earned from both these pursuits flows back to these people, who are richer than any class of people in America since the robber barons. They got so rich by sucking out the life’s blood from five dozen different industries that employ people and destroying the 20th-century press, which played a key role in maintaining our democracy.
Now I look at that, and I say the power is out there. You look at it and you say no, my lad. It’s about who has dinner with who in Washington.
Angelo Codevilla: Oh no, no, no. You misunderstand me. The ruling class transcends Washington. Part of it is in Silicon Valley, it’s in every major university town in America. It’s in Sacramento. And then you ask, what is it that ties it together?
David Samuels: Right, the poor associate professor of gender studies with his or her little espresso machine.
Angelo Codevilla: The poor associate professor of gender studies, number one is not so poor. Number two, she gets her living from the same partisan connection that Jeff Bezos does. She is part of the same party as Jeff Bezos, who has God knows how many billions.
David Samuels: A large fortune.
Angelo Codevilla: But his power as you have pointed out substantially consists of his connection with government. Although I must say one thing contrary to an absolutist view of the ruling class. That the four major trusts that you mentioned are in large part—have in large part grown naturally, organically. They’re securing themselves by government power. But the government did not force anybody to shop with Amazon.
David Samuels: Ah! As a matter of fact, Google and Facebook secured their monopolies and their ability to commit massive and ongoing copyright violations thanks to a little-known provision of the Communications Decency Act, which was passed by Congress in 1996 in response to a series of moral panics that engulfed America at around that time. Those included the McMartin nursery school witchcraft case—
Angelo Codevilla: Oh ho ho ho ho. I remember that.
David Samuels: There was a generalized hysteria about pedophiles running nursery schools and satanic rituals involving small children. And this became part of a hysteria so significant that Congress had to pass a law. And the law specifically targeted this phenomenon which was almost entirely imaginary, even if in a few specific instances it might have also been real, as is always the case. Except for the Jews baking matzo with the blood of Christian children, of course. We didn’t actually do that.
Angelo Codevilla: You didn’t?
David Samuels: No. Matzo tastes bad enough as it is.
So the Communications Decency Act was set up to prevent pedophiles from sharing pictures of child sexual abuse over the newfangled internet. In response to which, two farsighted members of congress, Ron Wyden and Christopher Cox, who fancied themselves experts on the digital frontier, wrote into the Communications Decency Act a section stating that internet providers shall not be considered to be publishers and that if you provide internet service or platforms or hosting you are not subject to any of the liabilities that traditionally attach to publishing information.
Now, all of a sudden, thanks to the wisdom of the U.S. Congress, two classes of publishers were created. One class, traditional publishers, had to spend a lot of money on fact checkers, editors, lawyers, and other people because they could be held legally responsible for the information that they published in their newspapers. Another class of publishers, internet publishers, like Google at the time and Facebook as it emerged, were free from all of these potential torts. So Facebook or Google could put up any damn thing they wanted—
Angelo Codevilla: Yeah, except the fact that Google and Facebook supposedly exercise no control.
David Samuels: That’s clearly a lie, especially now. They are obviously not the telephone company.
Angelo Codevilla: Very interesting. At which point, one can challenge that exemption.
David Samuels: Except it’s now too late. They ate the 20th-century American press.
Angelo Codevilla: Let me give you the tiniest, tiniest glimmer from the margins, the very, very remote margins, of all of this, so you can understand my perspective. Q: There is a dream that unites progressives and bureaucrats and wealthy technologists. And where does that dream come from?
A: It’s a dream peculiar to this class. Other classes have been united by different dreams.
Q: Is it a substitute for religion? A: Yes.
When I started working for the Senate, some folks at the agency figured out that I wasn’t a run-of-the-mill staffer. So I was visited by one of the old boys who took me up to the director’s office—the director wasn’t there at the time. He took me up via the director’s elevator, he had a key. And showed me all around and was very, very clubby with me. Then they took me to his house, which is overlooking the Potomac, with these large wolfhounds sitting about. And essentially, he said the equivalent of “all this could be yours.”
David Samuels: My son, if you play the game.
Angelo Codevilla: If you play the game. I said to myself, “Hmmmm, what did the Lord say to all this?”
But it really is a matter of who has dinner with whom. I have worked in Washington long enough to know that people would sell their souls for invitations to be at certain tables. To be allowed to speak with this person or that. In the end, it’s all social.
And how do you become social? You express the same thoughts, you have the same tastes. You vacation in the same places. You love the same loves, you hate the same hates.
David Samuels: This is a very Italianate explanation.
Angelo Codevilla: No, it’s not. You have the wrong idea about Italy. I’m from Northern Italy. I believe this is a hardheaded explanation of a soft but powerful reality.
David Samuels: These are all people who are connected to the power of government.
Angelo Codevilla: Either physically, i.e. economically, or emotionally—power. The dream of sharing power. The gender studies professor not only gets her money eventually from government, but she dreams of being part of a world-transforming enterprise.
David Samuels: Here, I agree with you. There is a dream that unites progressives and bureaucrats and wealthy technologists. And where does that dream come from?
Angelo Codevilla: It’s a dream peculiar to this class. Other classes have been united by different dreams.
David Samuels: Is it a substitute for religion?
Angelo Codevilla: Yes.
David Samuels: Is that its primary emotional charge?
Angelo Codevilla: Well, I don’t know about primary. Look, the primary element is, as we Christians were taught, pride. That is the sin of sins. There is nothing that moves human beings quite so much as the desire to be on top of other human beings.
David Samuels: It’s interesting. I’m a Jew. But there are things that are lacking in our tradition, just as there are things that are very well developed in our tradition. You know, decent food can be lacking in our traditions.
Angelo Codevilla: However, not in Italy.
David Samuels: Oh, my God. The Jewish food in Italy is fantastic.
Angelo Codevilla: The Jewish food in Italy is fabulous.
David Samuels: I see that more as a reflection on Italy than the Jews.
***
Henry Kissinger Meets the Demon Emperor
David Samuels: Judaism as it has existed for the last 2,000 years is an exilic tradition. The religion took the place of both the rituals in the Temple and the state itself. It was all ritualized. So for a 2,000-year-old tradition that’s remarkably elaborated and rich and subtle in so many areas, you have remarkably little discussion of political power—including the sins related to power, the proper ways to exercise power, all that was outside the experience of these people because they were politically powerless. Religion took the place of statecraft.
Israel hasn’t necessarily helped. Why do Jews want political power? To keep themselves from being exterminated. Why does a Jewish state want a strong army? Because if you don’t have one, people are going to wipe you out. In the Middle East, that’s a pretty ironclad rule. These are not very subtle or complicated ideas.
Angelo Codevilla: But there are plenty of Jews in Europe who are very well acquainted with the theory and practice of exercising power.
David Samuels: Of course, but—
Angelo Codevilla: But these Jews were not real Jews. I mean, they were not religious Jews. They happened to be Jewish but they were primarily socialists or whatever.
David Samuels: Or Henry Kissinger.
Angelo Codevilla: What a fraud.
David Samuels: He is an egomaniac and he is highly manipulative and he is a flatterer and a courtier. But Henry Kissinger sure ain’t dumb.
Angelo Codevilla: Oh no. He’s very smart. Very smart.
David Samuels: And one has the sense, that if he had really spent the time working on a biography of Metternich, that it would have been fantastic, too.
Angelo Codevilla: Yes! Look, the man never had time to be a scholar. He was taken up immediately into the world of conferences and power. And he navigated it masterfully.
David Samuels: Plus, he had the emotional capacity to get down on his knees and pray to Jesus with Richard Nixon after five whiskeys. And you look at Trump and you’re like, that’s what’s needed here too. Right?
Angelo Codevilla: What would Kissinger do with Trump? Who knows. This man Trump is something else.
David Samuels: I have a name for Trump: The demon emperor. Because I feel like he’s like a figure that you’d find in some Chinese chronicle, right? There was a time of terrible chaos, social disintegration, and then a Mongol invasion. They breeched the Great Wall and did this and that. And in those moments, the Demon Emperor would arise and take power. He had the head of a pig and the body of man, and he was known for his vile excesses and the terrible rampages that he’d go on, and his desecrations of ancient scrolls. Everyone bemoaned him.
But there was a certain virtue, at times, in certain moments, to having the demon emperor around. Yes, he raped 150 virgins in surrounding villages and all their families were very upset and there’s no reason he should have done that, and he defiles the very ground he stands on, and indeed, no one of noble birth would consent to marry his daughter. At the same time, he defeated the Mongols.
So, the real question isn’t whether Trump is vile, but rather what has he actually done, aside from being vile?
Angelo Codevilla: Putting a parenthesis in the conversation, talking about Chinese epics. Are you familiar with the Romance of the Three Kingdoms?
David Samuels: No.
Angelo Codevilla: You should be. This is a book that describes the tradition between—or rather I should say the end of the Han Dynasty around 200 A.D. The book was written over maybe 200 years. And it is partly prose, partly poetry. And it’s considered one of the great classics of Chinese literature. The Chinese government a couple years ago did a—condensed it into 95, 45-minute TV episodes. Beautifully acted, with gorgeous costume. With English translations that read something between Shakespeare and Thucydides.
Captivating.
I started watching it, I couldn’t stop. I mean my poor wife was left alone. And it conveyed as deep an insight into Chinese character as I’ve ever seen. To get Westerners to empathize with Chinese characters takes some doing. And you can download it, it’s free. The Chinese government has made sure you can download it for free.
***
The Progressive High Church Mass
David Samuels: Where does the ethos of a class come from?
Angelo Codevilla: Here I speak with the prejudices of an academician. Because the ethos of the academy changed, evolved. And what drove the change was the growing contempt of professors for our civilization. And you Jews ought not to feel that you are any less the enemy of these people than we Christians.
I should say the defining feature of the ruling class is a certain attitude. And that attitude developed in the academy, and that attitude became uniform throughout the country because of the uniform academy. The uniformity of the academy transformed itself into the uniformity of the ruling class.
David Samuels: Because that was the institution that credentialed the otherwise uncultured American masses?
Angelo Codevilla: It credentialed the mind and the habits. The habits of the heart. It credentialed the habits of the heart. The habits of conversation. The habits of work. The habits of logic. The habits period.
Can you imagine a bright kid coming in contact with that kind of intellectual fraud? The smartest ones will say, “hey, I don’t want to be part of this.” He’ll do something else. He won’t be taken in. Which means that this class will continue to degrade itself.
David Samuels: Just as it would be wrong to understate the importance of who has dinner with whom in Washington, it would be wrong to understate the extent to which the class you dislike is moved by an idea: The rational scientific functioning of the bureaucratic state. That’s their God. I may find this attachment emotionally bizarre, but that doesn’t make it any less real.
Angelo Codevilla: You’re saying the same thing in two different ways. Why is it that they have dinner together? It is that they believe that they share something terribly important. And that is precisely what they believe to be their stewardship of all things good.
Once upon a time, thus moved, they believed that they were holier than thou. Now they simply believe that they’re trendier than thou. In other words, they share the most valuable thing, which is not devotion to God but devotion to their own corporate mission. Their own corporate status. Status and mission. Status being the priests of the salvific religion of science and progress.
David Samuels: Yeah, that’s right. There is a monkish sense of devotion.
Angelo Codevilla: You’re going far too far with using the word “monkish.”
David Samuels: They exist! These people exist.
Angelo Codevilla: Oh no, no, no. They exist but they’re very few.
I taught in Boston for many years. And believe it or not, I put my kids in the highest-ranking schools in Boston, and I had to go to a parent meetings and school celebrations. And these were, in fact, secular masses. With, including, believe it or not, the breaking of bread.
Bread! Simple bread, passing it around. There’s a kind of faux simplicity. You have fake Puritans too.
David Samuels: Now the idea of the worship of the corporate bureaucratic state, right? You have a religion that is capable of attracting, if not the adherence of the majority of the country, then maybe 40% of them.
Angelo Codevilla: No, no, no, no, no. Not 40%. This is an elite attraction. Which attracts people who naturally, very naturally, want to rise above others.
Again, as a kind of professor, I came across hundreds of young people who very naturally ask the question, how can I rise in life?
David Samuels: That is my job. I am young, I am supposed to rise.
Angelo Codevilla: I am supposed to rise in my life, how can I do that? And I in good conscience explain to them that the paths are there and the ladders are being provided. And they will take you to these places. You will, however, have to adapt yourself to the mindset of these folks.
Now, if you insist on being independent minded, don’t bother. But if you do insist on being independent minded, also realize that these ladders will not be available to you.
A lot of kids will come and tell me how much they enjoy my classes and how much they like the ancients, the way I taught the ancients. And I said to them: “Look. There is no future for you in following the likes of me. I cannot give you the kinds of internships and prospects for employment and writing that others can.”
David Samuels: But they also were successful it seems to me, in inculcating parts of their faith in what you would describe as their client base. Right?
Angelo Codevilla: No, no, no, no, no. Clients, certainly not.
David Samuels: They win elections in some places.
Angelo Codevilla: Sure, they win elections. Not through faith but through pure clientelism. And don’t forget, especially nowadays, more and more nowadays, by fostering hate, by fostering resentment against others. If you are on our side, you’re on the side of the good. But more important than that, on the other side are people who hate you.
This is especially true with regard to blacks. They want to put you back in chains! What utter nonsense.
David Samuels: Jews are subjected to the same kinds of disciplinary activity. Don’t you understand that the right wingers are all secret neo-Nazis who are planning to pack you off to the gas chambers? I’m an FDR-type liberal, but I find those attempts to trigger some fearful reflex to be incredibly demeaning and offensive.
Angelo Codevilla: People believe mistakenly that Jews are especially smart. American Jews have proven to be dumb, politically. What is political stupidity? Political stupidity means not knowing which side your bread is buttered on.
Jews have taken to believing the leftist propaganda that the Christians are somehow their enemies. Where in fact, there is no group that is friendlier to Jews in America.
The more Christian you are, the more let us say pro-Jewish we tend to be. And why? Well for this very simple reason. That if you read the Bible, you don’t grow up rooting for the Philistines.
David Samuels: American Jews come primarily from Poland and from Russia, where the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox churches often played a very nasty political role and also preached a pretty harsh supersessionist doctrine. They were not friendly to Jews. Now that’s very different from American Protestantism, and also American Catholicism.
Angelo Codevilla: The Christian faith has always been an outgrowth of Judaism. That’s not contention, that is a fact.
David Samuels: Any group that has a scar, you can press on the scar and profit.
Angelo Codevilla: Well, yeah. But Jews are supposed to be smart.
David Samuels: It’s embarrassing to be the object of this kind of primitive manipulation. And both sides do it. You know how they really talk about you, you know what they say behind your back. They’re gonna make your kids bow down to Jesus! Now vote for me.
Angelo Codevilla: Working on the Hill, I would see these Jewish lobbyists breaking their heads against the left. Whereas if they’d gone to conservatives, they would have been greeted with open arms and gotten exactly what they wanted.
***
The Cruxification of Jonathan Pollard
David Samuels: You were working on the Hill when Jonathan Pollard was thrown in jail for life to cover up the crimes of Aldrich Ames and others.
Angelo Codevilla: Oh, that’s a really big subject.
David Samuels: Would you say that the treatment of Pollard happened independently of the fact that he was a Jew?
Angelo Codevilla: Oh heavens, no. No, no, no. Since you’re asking this question to me, you obviously have read that I did what I could to champion his release. Having nothing to do with the fact that he was a Jew, and everything with the obvious falsehood of the accusations on the basis of which he was sentenced.
David Samuels: Right.
Angelo Codevilla: He certainly committed espionage. And rightly merited prison for a couple of years. Instead he got a life sentence. Which ended up to be 30-something years. Why? Certainly not on the basis of the indictment. I mean, he was accused and pleaded guilty to precisely what he did.
What I know, which a lot of other people did not know, is that given his clearances, he could not possibly have done the things on the basis of which he was sentenced. It was simply impossible for him to do that. And every time I pointed that out to people in intelligence, they would make an argument which was untenable. Mainly that the revelation of facts in reports is tantamount or can easily lead to the revelation of sources and methods.
Nonsense! The compartmentation of American intelligence is premised precisely on the notion that this is not possible. Or extremely difficult. And although it is theoretically possible, one would have to show precisely how it did happen. And nobody even tried to do that.
Furthermore, Pollard was sentenced on the basis of a memorandum, which is yet secret. For our judicial system, to sentence anyone on the basis of any secret proceeding is about as un-American as anything yet.
David Samuels: Have you read that memorandum?
Angelo Codevilla: Hell no!
David Samuels: Did anyone ever offer you a summary of its contents?
Angelo Codevilla: Well, sure! But it had been only in the most general terms, to which I would say, oh? Show me how that’s possible.
You know, if somebody says, well and by the way, the snowballs in hell were not melting. I’d say, what? How is that happening?
David Samuels: How do you understand his treatment?
Angelo Codevilla: Oh horrible, horrible.
David Samuels: No, I’m asking why.
Angelo Codevilla: Why? Well, OK. The CIA has all kinds of social-political prejudices. The first thing I learned that I did not expect to learn when I went to my job on the Hill was just how controlled and defined by certain social norms the CIA is. That it is a kind of club that secures itself through co-option. And that co-option involves the furtherance of a whole bunch of prejudices.
So, the straightforward political prejudices are, in no particular order: liberalism, prejudice in favor of the Arabs. You probably are not aware of the corporate prejudices that existed in the favor of the Soviet Union. And they were very, very powerful at CIA, as opposed to DIA or NSA.
To give you an example of these political, pro-Arab prejudices and how they work, when specifically relevant to the Pollard case: When Israel bombed Iraq, the CIA came to us and they formed this committee, and railed at the Israelis for having spoiled this wonderful relationship we had with this wonderful man, Saddam Hussein. I remember at the time sitting next to Pat Moynihan who gave me the elbow and chuckle.
I would say that the majority, by far, of the intelligence committee, laughed at—this is Bobby Ray Inman. And they were cheering on Israel. Hey, bomb more!
But CIA was coming to notify us that in fact they were cutting off the flow of certain intelligence to Israel. And they were doing so in great anger. Now these items of intelligence which were being cut off were precisely the items of intelligence that Jonathan Pollard supplied to them.
David Samuels: They were hurt!
Angelo Codevilla: They were hurt! They were hurt and they took it out on Pollard. How far did this attitude which I just described blend over into anti-Semitism? I don’t know.
David Samuels: Right.
Angelo Codevilla: But if I were a Jew, it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch for me to think that it did. And even though I’m not, I sure would have my suspicions.
So that’s the essence of my attitude, attitude and subsequent involvement, such as it was, in the Pollard case. I mean I saw number one, that the reason for the CIA’s anger was wrong. And in fact, the United States had every reason to cheer what the Israelis did. And most Americans did, as a matter of fact. And later on, the subsequent administration thanked the Israelis for having done precisely what they did.
So the CIA was wrong in that regard. And they were doubly wrong in convincing that imbecile, Caspar Weinberger, to write that un-American memorandum. And that judge should be damned by his profession for having paid attention to it. You don’t sentence people on the basis of a secret memorandum. You just don’t do that in America.
David Samuels: The basis for his sentencing is still classified. So who can say for sure if his sentence was unjust.
Angelo Codevilla: Well, no. We can say. It doesn’t matter that it’s classified, because it alleges something that couldn’t possibly have happened. You can classify it, but that doesn’t make it any truer or any likelier to be true. In fact, it makes it less likely to be so.
***
Secrecy and the Rule of Law
David Samuels: Now this opens up the last subject that I wanted to talk about at some length. Which is, what happens when secret intelligence becomes the basis for actions within the domestic sphere. This seems to me like a gathering storm cloud over this country and the freedoms that most of us still believe are ours.
Angelo Codevilla: Right, quite so. Two things happen. The first bad, the second worse.
The first is that policy or action made on the basis of information that is not generally available tends to be bad policy. Secret policy doesn’t get the kind of scrutiny that ordinary policy does. And the people who make it do not themselves feel the necessity to be as careful at all that they do as they otherwise would be. So you get sloppy policymaking. You get people riding hobby horses. Not thinking through what they’re doing. And you end up with unintended consequences.
The second is that policymaking on the basis of information not generally available allows one to cut out one’s opponent, allows one to make policy partisan. More partisan than it would otherwise be.
David Samuels: Would you say that the Iraq War was an example of that?
Angelo Codevilla: Yes, in the following way. And we’re talking of course about two Iraq wars and then the criticism applies to both in a different way.
The first Iraq War, that is the original invasion of Iraq, happened because the president was under entirely reasonable pressure to do something serious, something definitive, about terrorism. And he concluded in his heart of hearts that overthrowing the regime would have been most vocal in its advocacy of anti-Americanism, and anti-American terrorism, would eliminate one of the major sources of terrorism, and also send a healthy message to other regimes that were in their own ways fostering terrorism.
But, when the subject was moving about inside the highest levels of government, great resistance was encountered to this. And the Bush administration found itself searching for a rationale for that invasion that would minimize opposition from within the government and the ruling class in general. And they sent up a whole bunch of trial balloons in that regard, and the trial balloon that got the least resistance was the trope about the weapons of mass destruction. About which the evidence was always terribly sketchy. But they found that to be the most bureaucratically tenable explanation, and so they went ahead with it. That was a mistake made intramurally, which compromised the eventual support of the larger population.
So much for the first Iraq War. The second one, being the occupation, that was decided in an even less transparent manner. We know that there was intense lobbying on the part of CIA and State for the occupation. And lobbying by the Saudis for that same course. How all that interacted and how George W. Bush and Condoleezza Rice and friends soldiered all of that out and came to that particular decision, we still do not know. And they ain’t about to tell us.
And so, we ended up with an occupation which would ostensibly be for the purpose of democratization, but which number one, shied away from democracy because everyone involved realized that democracy meant that the Shia ruled. So as a fact, the day-to-day effort of the occupation, the one that cost so many American lives, had nothing to do with democratization. It had everything to do with preserving a role for the Sunnis.
The U.S. government never fought that war with the intention of crushing the Sunni opposition. They never fought that war with the intention of crushing the people who were shooting at Americans. And then ended up, in fact giving up on that war and paying those very people, in what was otherwise known as the Surge.
A whole bunch of idiots, Fox News conservatives count the Surge, the so-called Surge, as a great success. Great success in what?
Again here, this is as good an example as you will find of the wages of making policy in a nontransparent manner.
David Samuels: There was one quote, I forget who it came from, but it came out of an interaction of one of the reasonably high-up war planners in the Defense Department and a journalist for, I think it was, The Atlantic. And the quote was that power creates its own reality. So it doesn’t matter what we say, because even if it’s not true now, by the time we’re finished we will make it true. And therefore there is no real difference between statements that are true or false, as long as we make them.
Do you have the sense that a similar attempt to manufacture reality was at play in what at this point are the still-unknown interactions between the CIA, the FBI, and the Obama White House with regard to the surveillance of Donald Trump’s associates, and the attempt to suggest some vast Putin-Trump conspiracy to game American elections, and whatnot?
Angelo Codevilla: I don’t think that it went that far. Or I should say, I don’t think the people involved thought about it that deeply.
David Samuels: I would agree.
Angelo Codevilla:I think what you had was a small pooling of resources to tweak the news cycle with regard to the hacking of the Democratic National Committee, which then turned into something very major.
David Samuels: After the election.
Angelo Codevilla: After the election. It was, like Watergate, a minor attempt to gain marginal advantage. Which then, unintended by the people involved at the time, became something very big, which escaped everyone’s control.
I believe that there are a whole bunch of people in Washington right now who are quaking in their boots because the House Intelligence Committee has shaken loose some of the documents involved. Because in the long run there are no secrets in Washington. And one can then wonder about the quality of the people who imagined that the things they did could remain secret.
It really was a marvel. The idea was that if we all say it together long enough and we shout it loud so nothing else can be heard, then it will become the effective truth, Machiavelli’s verita effettuale. But I mean, there is a limit to this. I have some close personal friends who are more on the left, and I said to them: OK. Where’s the evidence? Who did what when to whom? Where are the quids and where are the quos? What’s going on here? And all they could say is, “Well, the investigation is going on.”
What is not clear is just how much of the reality will come into the public’s consciousness.
David Samuels: Whose fault is this?
Angelo Codevilla: The fault here is not of Democrats on the left. The fault here is of Donald Trump and his friends who have refused to enforce the most basic laws here. The most obvious one is Section 798, (18 U.S. Code), the simple comment statute. Now anybody in the intelligence business knows that this is the live wire of security law. It is a strict liability statute. It states that any revelation, regardless of circumstance or intent, any revelation period, of anything having to do with U.S. communications intelligence is punishable by the 10 and 10. Ten years in the slammer, and $10,000 fine. Per count.
Now the folks who went to The Washington Post and The New York Times in November and December of 2016 and peddled this story of the intelligence community’s conclusion that Trump and the Trump campaign had colluded with Russia, these people ipso facto violated §798.
Considering these matters are highly classified, and that the number of the people involved is necessarily very small, identifying them is child’s play. But no effort to do that has been made.
David Samuels: But doesn’t that failure in turn point to what is, to some extent, the root of this entire drama, which is that Donald Trump seems unfamiliar with and temperamentally at odds with the executive function that he has now assumed?
Angelo Codevilla: That’s certainly true. But you have to go beyond Donald Trump, to Republican power holders in general. These people far more than Donald Trump would be inclined to forbear for the sake of comity with the ruling class. And what kind of comity are we talking about? We’re talking about social comity. Because if you follow the law in this case, you end up putting former directors of CIA, FBI etcetera behind bars. They, and a whole bunch of their subordinates. Maybe a dozen people here would end up behind bars.
David Samuels: We’ve come to accept that certain classes of people are in fact above the law.
Angelo Codevilla: We have come to accept that.
The election of 2016 was precisely about whether anyone in America is above the law. The reason why so many people did not vote for Hillary Clinton is the feeling that she and her ilk were above the law, were acting as if they were above the law, which happened to be entirely true. Now the fact that the Trump administration is acting according to the same premise, i.e., that some people are above the law, is evidence that the revolution that the voters wanted in 2016 has only just begun.
***
Conclusion
It’s interesting to read the opinions of others. Especial if they come from the Washington “beltway”. It’s almost like they are a completely different “animal” than what the rest of us are. I suppose it goes along with my belief that the super elite have evolved into something other than what the rest of us are. They are another creature entirely. It’s not that they are clueless. For they indeed have intelligence. I just wonder if they have scruples and understanding. That’s all.
But that’s just me.
One thing is for certain, they think that they are better than you and I. They are driving the United States into a massive war that does not have an exit. It’s crazy, it’s dangerous, and while they might be intelligent, they sure are out of touch with man’s humanity.
And his humility.
That frightens me.
But they seem oblivious to it all. It’s like people coloring a coloring-book with crayons inside a large RV that is being driven by a drunk madman. These fools haven’t a clue as to what dangers are being toyed with. Sheech!
Do you want more?
I have more posts like this in my Oligarchy Index (which is part of my SHTF index) here…
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This is a continuation of part 1. It discusses what it was like for me to go through the decommissioning process.
When my group was “retired” it was very cold, calculating.
It was methodical and ruthless. I was targeted for “disable and discard”. A chick came into my life. Dragged me to Arkansas on the promise of a great job and a new life, poisoned the living shit out of me with heavy metals while having me sign away on multiple life insurance policies.
The neurological effects got to be pretty pronounced, and was noted by the hospital, and that is what triggered the “fall back” solution; retirement as a sex offender. Aside from the personal angst, it really was “click off the boxes”, “ram through the system”, and “discharge” into the arms of another agency that knows Jack-shit.
[#08] The promise of a new life
After proceeding through ten closure programs; ten figurines, I stood facing the frozen Asian girl figurine. Why was she important? What did she represent? Well, as I will explain here, she represented my closure and rewards. But how?
Can it be that these were the promises of what would happen once I completed my retirement?
It would make sense if that were the case. To promise me great rewards of an enviable life of promise, love and adventure in a far away and exotic land; a land of which occurred only in adventure yarns and romance novels. Was this the purpose of this subroutine? I believe that this was the case as well as the purpose. Yet… One must wonder. Truly, what good is a promise if it is empty? How could this promise be manifested? Certainly no public official, or MAJestic member would cut me a check; buy me a plane ticket and put me on a plane to the South Pacific, would they?
That lies and belies the entire sequence of importance that resides within the quantum mental state; thoughts create realities. Our thoughts (no matter how we obtain them) eventually create the reality that we experience in the physical.
And, if so, was it [1] because my thoughts control and create my future, or that [2] the extraterrestrial technology had the ability to dimensionally split me off to another reality? A reality, mind you, that they have created for me once I have successfully completed their tasks? This is truly heady stuff, guys.
I say this, because I am right now living the life that was promised to me by this program.
I thought about this while living in a beach house on the ocean on an island in Polynesia, being married to a very busty and attractive Asian, half my age, with a great set of legs. You know, I can’t help but wonder about this. This is not a life that one just suddenly stumbles into by accident. It is a life that is materialized and manifested through thought. And if one’s thoughts can be controlled by implanted probes, and those probes can have a program that directs thought… then the program can create the life that you will live. (This paragraph is perhaps the most important paragraph in this manuscript. Therefore it deserves a second read. Understand what I am saying.)
Let me begin by relating how I was able to access this program.
This retirement program ran all day long, and I was exhausted. I guess that perhaps six hours had transpired by the time I reached the frozen figurine of the Asian girl. Up until this time, I would spend it running fully ten other subprogram routines.
Each program would be accessed by going up to the frozen figurine and looking at it intently. As I would do so, I would become absorbed into it, and I would find myself in a different place and situation. Each situation revolved around the idea or concept embodied inside the figurine that stood before me.
These figurines represented a closure program.
At times I was reliving or running these individual programs. I was learning lessons, or reliving events. I was obtaining emotional satisfaction and closure on events and mysteries that were just now being presented to me.
It was all very complex and elaborate.
It was as if I was at the pinnacle of my life and learning the; who, where, and why of my significance. This was all about closure. This was all concerning my life and the impact that it has on others.
After I would run the program, I would exit it, and the figurine would remain.
But it would be a little different. It would have changed. After I ran the program, I felt a tremendous release, as if a burden had been released from my shoulders. The figurines reflected this.
After ten such programs, all that remained were two remaining figurines. They were the [1] Asian girl, and the [2] Marine warrior.
I stood in front of the Asian girl, and merged with the program.
In it; I found myself walking on a lush tropical beach with a wonderful azure blue sky and daylight filtering from the leaves of mango and durian trees. I could see the waves softly lapping on the wide expanses of sand, and the occasional sea shell or conch shell that had washed up upon the beach. I could see the green-blue water lapping upon my toes, and the curved beach ahead of me.
Before me walked the Polynesian / Asian beauty. Her long lush blueish black hair blew in the breeze. Dressed, as she was in a sarong and not much else. Her toes splayed out as she walked in the sand, and she held a tropical drink in her hand. (I know this sounds very corny and terribly stereotypical, but that is what I experienced. I was reliving a Harlequin Novel; no matter how nauseating it might seem to the reader. It is what happened.)
Harlequin Novel
The romance novel or romantic novel is a literary genre. Novels of this type of genre fiction place their primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and must have an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." There are many subgenres of the romance novel including fantasy, historical, science fiction and paranormal.
“You want this.”
Yes, I know it is corny, but this is what I experienced, as stereotypical as it is. This is exactly what I experienced. I wish it wasn’t so stereotypical or odd, but it is what it was. So I present it her in all it’s stereotypical and obscure glory.
The drink was a piña colada and it was inside a coconut shell with chunks of pineapple floating in it.
The piña colada is a sweet, rum-based cocktail made with rum, cream of coconut, and pineapple juice, usually served either blended or shaken with ice. It may be garnished with a pineapple wedge, a maraschino cherry or both.
It had a standard plastic straw of red color just sticking out of it with a 1960’s style tiny umbrella attached to it. She looked at me with the most amazing big dark eyes. She had unusually large and lush lips that were moist, open and inviting. She approached and got up really close to me. I could smell the sun on her skin, and the smell of the ocean and sand. I detected a faint whiff of some tropical perfume in her hair. She was much shorter than I was. Perhaps 5’2” tall.
Typically I could not experience smells when I was engaged in the ELF field. But I was able to in this sequence. I must wonder why.
I know.
I know, that all this is super corny.
But this is EXACTLY WHAT I EXPERIENCED, for good, bad or corniness.
The drink disappeared from her hand and with both hands she softly and lightly held my hands in hers. She looked at me intently. She whispered to me. It was a promise.
She said to me that I did not want wealth, nor did I want power.
She knew me, she said.
She looked at me with a serious expression. “You want this”, she said.
She placed my hand on her breast and turned around so that my arm was holding her chest and she pressed her back against my chest. And moved her hand out upon the expanse of Lush Ocean, and green tropical hills with beautiful clouds. “You want this”, she said again.
Then she turned around again to face me.
She continued to look into my eyes deeply. “You deserve this.” She said. “You need this. You earned this. This is yours. Take it. Accept it. Move on with your life.”
She then paused.
She softly put her head in my chest. And hugged me softly, and the sun rapidly set upon the vast tropical ocean. As it gradually got dimmer and dimmer, the words resonated in my mind.
I knew that she was giving me this life, this new state of life and being. But how could it possibly mature and transpire? I did not know. Yet, still the words echoed in the gathering darkness. The breeze increased and she held me closer. “This is your reward”, she cooed. “This is all yours. Thank you.” She kissed me, and the program ceased and I found myself back in the black nothingness room with the twelve frozen figurines.
Her words just echoed on my mind…
“You want this.” “You deserve this. You need this. You earned this. This is yours. Take it. Accept it. Move on with your life.”
+ + +
Look, I know this was a program. I knew what was going on. This was all about my retirement from a system that controlled my mind. As such, they could get into my mind. They could expose me to holographic events and movies in which I would be able to participate in.
While the previous ten figurines all had specific closure sequences. This one was different.
Instead of shutting down knowledge and experiences, this was about a future. A future in which I will be rewarded for my efforts in a way and manner that suits my personality profile. Not through the rewards of money or lavish expensive collections of possessions, but rather of a stress free life with a beautiful (and sexy) companion in a beautiful place.
But, still I had to wonder…
How would this come to be? How could this possibly transpire? I was facing five years ahead of me at hard labor and probation. My immediate future was hardly a paradise by any stretch of the imagination. It was a mystery that I would not even begin to contemplate to a full ten years afterwards. Because, exactly ten years later, this life actually and did completely manifest into reality.
This promise that was made to me that day, manifested into reality, ten years later.
This was no literary fiction. I actually ended up living on Tutuila island in the Samoan island chain. That is another story for another time.
But the idea that a software program associated with the ELF probes would direct my thoughts to manifest reality is a significant point that the reader must not discount.
We live in a multi-dimensional universe.
If we control our thoughts we can manifest our physical realities in the way that we prefer.
But if people, of evil or other intent, have the ability to do so, they can also mold and create the reality that we experience. That is why the manifestation of sentience is important to the <redacted>.
They do not want us to develop into service to self-sentience. If we did so, then the clutch of mankind evolutionary prospects would be minimized to the great detriment of the local federation.
+ + +
I was pretty tired from the events of the day so far. I had gone through eleven subprograms and I was exhausted. Yet one final program remained. This was the final program.
This program was the Marine program.
(In my mind.) I walked up to the frozen figuring and stood looking at myself as a battle hardened Marine. I looked up into its eyes. I knew what it was about. I knew what it represented. I understood what and why I had to make this final encounter.
[#12] The retirement of the spirit of a Marine
Upon merging with the image (computer sub-program) I found myself walking upon the ruins of a giant ship yard.
The image that I had was piles of wrecked and dissembled ships that lay bare upon a sea side. The metal and steel shone brightly and reflectively in the clear day. The sky was blue and trees could be seen in the distance. The impression that I had was that the site was huge, but containable, and that I was in a large naval scrap yard. It was near the sea or ocean and it was a bright and sunny day.
It was so sunny that the light glinting off the bare and exposed steel was painful to look at. yet the trees at the edge of the wrecking yard were beautiful florescent green upon a nice blue, blue, blue cloudless sky.
This yard was involved in the dismantling of boats, and ships of various sizes and ages. It was a bright and clear day. Maybe ten in the morning. The sky was pristine blue, and the colors of the distant trees and buildings were remarkably colorful. In particular, the trees were a bright lush green, and the sky was nearly cloudless.
Surrounding me were piles of shiny metal and the ruins of many a fine steel ship. Most of the piles were just collections of town ship parts. There would be a partial stern of a ship here, and a torn bulkhead there. Wires, sheet metal, and fixtures lay about everywhere.
As I walked about, I saw no one to greet me. This was quite unusual. As all the other program subroutines involved a persona or character that I would interact with. I could see tiny workers in the distance. One man, wearing a plaid red shirt, was inside a booth controlling a crane, and there were a few men in the distance walking along the tree line.
I found myself led, by curiosity or random activity (?), towards a pile of debris off to my right. As I approached it, I could see what it was.
It was a (fragment or a broken section of) bulkhead with an array of small boxes set into the wall.
They looked like little mail boxes. Each mail box had a number. I was curious and so I walked up to it to observe it closer. I reached my hand to brace myself as I got closer to peer at the boxes. I maneuvered myself to get closer, carefully avoiding the rough jagged sharp edges… As I touched the rough edge of the torn bulkhead…
+ + +
Everything was different. It was a different time and a different place. I was a deck hand. I was an immigrant to America. My name was (Sorry, but at the time of this writing I have discovered that I have forgotten the name. I just cannot remember the name), and I came from an eastern European country. I had black curly hair, and a black beard. I wore a watch cap of sorts, and period costume naval work clothes. I was in the merchant marine. The year was sometime in the 1880’s to 1900’s more or less. (Post American civil war, but before the turn of the century.)
Watch Cap
A knit cap, originally of wool (though now often of synthetic fibers) is designed to provide warmth in cold weather. Typically, the knit cap is of simple, tapering constructions, though many variants exist. Historically, the wool knit cap was an extremely common form of headgear for seamen, fishers, hunters and others spending their working day outdoors from the 18th century and forward, and is still commonly used for this purpose in Scandinavia and other cold regions of the world. Being found all over the world where climate demands a warm hat, the knit cap can be found under a multitude of local names.
In the blink of a nanosecond, I found myself at the bow of the ship, near the chain locker.
It was yet another reality.
It was an understanding, or a realization of my place; my role, or my life. I had a task. I had a chore to perform. Staring down the dark portal below I could see the deep bowls of the inner ship below. It was dark and dim, but I could barely make out the sides of the steel bulkheads below.
My job was to clean it, or to retrieve something that had fallen down inside of it. I do not know which.
Access hatch to the forward anchor chain locker.
.
I had to do my job, or perform my task. It was my role; my purpose. So I did as I was instructed. I went to another part of the ship and moved towards the bow. I entered the (chain) locker through a small hatch below decks. It was an access hatch; seldom used.
I opened the port, and stepped inside. I found myself standing there. I stood there looking around the dim chamber.
.
It was dim, but not entirely dark. It was smelly and smelled of mud, dirt, grime and oil. The chamber was hot, damp, humid and stifling. I started to look around the small chamber.
I was searching for something.
I had to climb up and around various rough edges and huge chain that occupied the entire deck of the chamber.
When suddenly I heard a sound above me.
I looked up. I saw the chain spilling down towards me.
As the anchor chain in the portal above me started to move, I started to move. But it was no use. The heavy steel links flowed down into the small chamber
The chain cascaded down into the chain locker. I watched it come towards me.
I watched it come towards me.
It hit me on the face.
It hit me.
The tons upon tons of heavy iron chain fell down and smashed me.
All became dark.
I was buried, dead, under a tons of steel chain.
.
(I died. I was in the bow chain locker and tons of anchor chain fell down upon me killing me instantly. I don’t really know the significance of this portrayal of the event at the time; though I would later. But for now the reader must understand that I experienced the death event of a Merchant Marine sailor in the late 1880’s.)
The next sequence of events was like participating in a documentary. Not watching a documentary, but rather participating in it.
I saw the ship sail on without the seaman. I saw how the seaman became part of the ship. How his soul became the very soul of the ship. He did not haunt the ship as a ghostly specter, but rather, became an integral part of the lifeblood of the ship. As we deal with possessions and things, our quanta entangles with it, and we become combined. This is the same with anything. Be it relationships, items, desires, thoughts. The seaman had become part of the ship. The thoughts and dreams, hopes and desires of the other sailors, through the years merged with the spirit of the dead merchant marine sailor.
The metal, of the ship, had a soul.
But as all things do, the ship became old and obsolete. Eventually, it too was retired. Much like I was. But a soul cannot be destroyed. Can’t you understand? A soul can be changed, and altered, but it still exits. The soul of this sailor still existed, even when the ship was torn up and shattered apart and sold for scrap. Every part of that ship was a soul of that sailor. And, his soul was the complete embodiment of all the hopes and dreams and experiences of all the men who sailed on that ship with him, and since that sailor died.
+ + +
It was as if shreds of this piece of metal were scattered throughout the world. Small pieces of shiny metal went everywhere. I could see the spirit of the dead crew-member leaving his body at the moment of impact and death. But it was not a linear progression of past, present and future. But instead it was the simultaneous expansion of all potential futures and presents. For as the seaman rose to join the rest of his quantum cloud, he simultaneously felt the expansion of a future where his soul would merge with the ship.
I lived his death sequence.
I felt his soul rise up following the chain that cascaded upon his smashed and lifeless body. It rose higher and higher. The brightness became magnificent. It rose above the deck of the ship and traveled up the mast of the ship. It grew brighter and more powerful. It became like a small star. I found myself shouting out loud (outside the program, and inside my cell);
May I be the shining light for all to see…So that others may follow me…And be the man who I was truly meant to be…
A buzzing noise reached a crescendo and I exploded into tiny fragments that cascaded down upon the twelve frozen figurines. Each piece was a small sliver of silver metal. (A sliver of metal that was in itself a small part of the ship that my soul had merged with.)
And each one floated to a position inside the tassel affixed to the swords that suddenly all the frozen figurines were holding.
To my surprise, I found myself standing in front of all the figurines again. But this time they were all holding up their swords to create an arch from which I would walk under.
Each sword had a tassel, and associated with that tassel was a little ball, or bead that dangled next to it.
Inside that bead was the soul of the ship.
It wasn’t just the soul of the ship, but the soul of every man and every sailor. It was their combined hopes and dreams and every one of the figurines carried this essence with them.
My goal was to walk under this protective canopy to release my soul to find a new life of greatness and meaning.
.
I began to walk forward. Each time as I passed a frozen figurine it dissolved and disappeared, and I became lighter, more powerful and stronger. I absorbed the essence and very being of each figurine that I walked past. They were all part of me, but of isolated connectivity. But when I walked by them, we connected. With each step this happened. I continued through to the end of the line. Each time, getting stronger and brighter and lighter.
Finally I reached the end of the line and I saw the Marine before me. He looked me sternly in the eyes and picking up his sword, snapped it in two on his knee. And when it snapped… when the event occurred, it was like a bolt of lightning struck me. Everything went white; a blazing and blinding white light.
+ + +
I found myself in a strange state. I was a disembodied white orb hovering over the former ship which killed the merchant marine sailor. I was both everywhere at once, and nowhere at all. It was an odd feeling. It was unlike anything that I can ever describe. It was a feeling totally unlike anything that a human can or will experience.
Shutting down of all my programs
At that time, one of my handlers at the ELF control booth, spoke up. “What is the code?” he asked. “Tell us the code”, my interlocutor ordered.
The imagery around me changed. I found myself standing outside the wreckage of the shipyard scrap heap. I was next to the bulkhead with the many small “mail boxes”. I walked closer to it and looked at the boxes. On each box was a number and a name of a seaman. The name of my patron seaman was on one of the boxes. The writing was in pencil and old fashioned script but still legible. I read the number on the box.
Four. Three. Seven.
I stated. There was no questioning it. That was the number on the box. The box still remained. It had a combination lock on it. This combination lock had two dials. Each dial pointed to a letter instead of a number.
Old style post office mail box with two dials instead of three.
.
The handler from the ELF control booth said “open the box”. And, without even thinking about it, or how I was able to do so, I moved the dials to the correct combination. I moved the dials to “H” and to “R”.
The box popped open.
“What is inside?” he asked.
I looked inside. There was a scrap of paper. It looked like the torn bottom from a letter. It was as if someone had torn away the bottom of a page of paper. On it, in pencil were words. But I couldn’t make them out. They were smudged and faint. Again, it looked like someone had written in script in the bottom margins of a book or paper.
“Read it.” The handler commanded.
The words became clear and took form. I could clearly make the words out and it took on a new meaning as I read the words. I now understood everything. It was clear to me. All of this, it was all clear to me now.
“What does it say?” the handler asked again.
I read the scrap of paper.
“I will wait for you. You belong in the islands with me. Our futures are entwined. I don’t know how or when you will return to me. But I will wait for you. When your labors are done, I will be ready and waiting for you. Come home, my love. Come home to me.”
And next to the slip of paper was an old faded black and white photo. It was one of those photos that required a person stand in front of an old style camera. One by which the photographer would stand under a dark cape to take. On it was a picture of the (now dead) merchant marine sailor standing next to his girlfriend. She was a cute girl of Polynesian / Asian descent. She was the splitting image of the frozen figurine that I had encountered earlier.
She was waiting for me. I knew it. When my adventures were complete, I could return to her. I had been away too long, and it was now time to hang up my gear and finish my labors. It was time to go home.
“Are you ready to go home?” the handler asked.
“Yes”, I paused. “Yes I am” I replied
I felt a warm wash of emotion flow through my body. It was a calming of expanse of mind. My heart expanded as did my mind. I felt my body get light and the sights around me grew lighter and brighter. I felt myself flying up, up higher… And higher
Higher.
Lighter and lighter.
“What are you?” He asked.
“I am the bright and shining star for all to see.”
I am a bright and shining star for all to see.
.
Completion
My vision returned and I was back inside my cell. I had been at this entire exercise all day, and I was totally and completely wet. My cell was hot, and I had been perspiring terribly. I got up to get some water at the sink, but it mustn’t have been well grounded, so every time I went near it I got a pretty nasty electric shock. (Pretty hard to accomplish with moist sweat covered palms.)
I sponge bathed myself and then laid down to sleep. I was exhausted. I didn’t eat all day, and I was famished. The entire exercise lasted from the morning after breakfast through to about six in the evening. I just simply closed my eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
I meet the former Commander from NAS NASC Pensacola
The next day I woke up and my cell door was opened. I was free to join the line with the rest of the inmates. Just so, and got in line with the rest of the inmates. By now, after over a week of evaluation (ten days), they were able to trust me somewhat, and I no longer had to be so sedated. Nor did I require guards to march me everywhere. I was almost completely finished with my deactivation, as well as the “official” purpose of the evaluation; to measure my threat to the community as a sex offender.
I was told to get out of my one-piece white coveralls and was issued some “state issue”. Which is a pair of pants (with a rope draw-string) and a top. Both white. And had my Prison identification number stenciled in big black letters over my left breast. We were all issued two sets.
I was issued, like everyone else, a faded outfit that looked like others had worn it. You can tell with their old identification numbers crossed out, and mine written over them.
After I received my “state issue”, I went back to the barracks. It was time to et, and you did not want to miss that.
As I waited in line, another “inmate” walked up to me. He was older than me, and came up to me in a very friendly way. He was wearing crisp brand-new ‘state issue” (prison uniform) with no lettering. (Which was curious, as all of us had our identification number stenciled upon our clothing.
He said “Hi”, and looked at me closely. And then, staring into my eyes, asked “Do you remember me?”. I looked back at him. Indeed he looked familiar. But I could not place him at all. So I told him that. I said “Well, you certainly look familiar, but I just can’t place you.” He smiled, and walked away. That was the first and the last time that I saw him there.
“Do you remember me?”
It wasn’t until later on, after I ate, and later on that night that I realized just who this person was. It was the Naval Commander. The exact one who I met so many years ago at NAS NASC Pensacola.
He was there to say good bye.
The reader should pay close attention. The base commander was there, dressed in inmate attire in GP, but he was NOT an inmate. He did not accompany us into the mess hall. He did not have an assigned cell in the barracks. He was dressed in the prison whites so that he could meet me up close, but he was not an inmate.
The last time that I saw him was when he dropped me off at the Chow Hall in 1981.
Accessing the Source Code for Deactivation
Things were winding down during this evaluation period. Overhearing the guards, I knew that the gentlemen from Washington would be leaving soon. That only could mean that the final stages of my decommission would occur shortly. I didn’t have to wait long. While I was standing up, I suddenly felt the familiar buzzing associated with centering on the feducials. And I knew what I had to do. I stood up and looked at the feducials and centered myself.
Suddenly there was the long forgotten, but familiar album art overlay in my visual field. I went to lay down and watched the operators modify the settings. I watched passively and let them do their tasks. It was pretty simple, really. They simply would lock a suppression command in place, and archive the transmittal abilities associated with the probes. They did this and then let me alone. I was decommissioned.
Conclusion of my Evaluation
With the conclusion of these mind-numbing sequence of events, I was finally deactivated. The “experts” who were present at the facility had packed up and left the prison complex. Everything was settling down into a normal prison routine. While the ELF field was still on, it was more or less, unused. My handlers were silent. The carrier waves associated with it was off, and the cadence beats were completely silent. For all practical purposes, I was near the end of my deactivation sequence.
I went to the psychiatric expert at the prison and he told me that they had concluded that I was no threat to the community. They labeled me a level 1 threat level and told me that I did not have to attend the reeducation program for sex offenders. This was good news, and he issued me a paper associated with it.
Arkansas, at that time, had four classification levels. That was different from the three level system that is federally mandated.
Upon handing me the paper, for some strange reason, my diagnostic screen again snapped on and it overlaid my field of vision. I could see that everything was shut down and locked into place. I felt calm and relaxed. It stayed in my field of vision for about four hours and then snapped off. I knew that my deactivation ordeal would soon be ending.
Or….
So I thought.
Lester has some Fun
Well, that is what we all thought. The gentlemen from Washington thought that their work was finished. I thought that I was decommissioned. And we both believed that everything was finished.
This is what we thought, but the ELF signals did not originate locally, their origination point is somewhere else. And, thus the field was still on. It would remain on for another three to four days until turned off. In the meantime, the local prison guards still had access to the local command booth in the diagnostic center. And one of the guards, a guard appropriately named Lester, thought it‘d be great fun to play with the controls.
It ended up being one of the most horrific events of my stint in the ADC.
For reasons; not entirely clear to me, the primary core kit of implant probes provided a base line or first-line of control (or defense) in memory retention and access by MAJestic or other branch operatives.
The ELF signal point of origination was often very far away from the targeted agent. The signal modulated thoughts and some basic memory functions, but the full spectrum and range of control (for some reason) required close (on site) supervision.
That is to say; there had to be someone near me, monitoring me and controlling the implants in some way.
That control had physical limitations in distance and range of control.
The secondary kit; which controlled the drones, obviously did not have this limitation. My retirement was predicated in the closure and security of my memory access. Thus it mandated that the core kit one probes be accessed in great detail. Thus the requirement for a physical retirement facility where I could be contained; restrained and eventually deactivated.
Oh, Lester was a funny fellow.
He started to adjust the knobs and buttons. He enjoyed me howling with pain. He could make my arm twitch, and could make me lose my bowel movements. He could make me ejaculate and give me tremendous headaches. He was having a great time doing this. There was nothing that I could do to stop it. Everything I tried; every plea I cried, and every action I took were inefficacious. I begged him to stop, but he wouldn’t. My body would start thrashing about and twisting. Yet he would not stop. Suddenly; somehow, he actuated the source code menu. I don’t think that he had any idea what he was up to. He just continued to play with the switches and dials. I do not think he knew, at all, what he was doing. (Then surprisingly; out of the blue, something amazing happened.) My source code control dialog menu filled my visual cortex.
And, even though he continued to play with all manner of switches in the control booth, and played at the control panel, I was able to now access my own brain software. I was no longer locked out. Oh, it is true, I continued to undergo this period of crazy torture, but all the time, now the access menu filled my cerebral cortex.
I took advantage of this situation.
The reader should know and realize that by using the codes that were still present on the source code display, I was able to retain my memories and reverse the suppression of the memories. I did not change anything else. I left the transmission ability of the ELF probes to be turned off, and pretty much left everything else in the same state. He did manage to alter some of the comfort settings, but I was able to reset them.
Eventually, the guard was relieved, and I was able to rest. While there were some minor events since that time, in general, my role as an ELF agent was decommissioned. But thanks to the wayward guard, I now had full and total recall of all my memories associated with the two ELF programs that I participated in. In fact; I had more memories than when I was first arrested. I remembered everything; everything that ever happened to me. This entire event released every single memory lock placed in my brain. Every single one was unlocked and I remembered the most amazing things; things that, I am sure, I was not intended to recall.
…
…not intended for me to recall.
I regain control of my software
Let’s chat about this for a little while, in more detail.
I might have made bad decisions. I most certainly was not in the situation that I wanted to be in, but I was not stupid. I knew what had transpired. That bozo of a guard messed up the settings that both my handlers and the “experts” had put in place. Like a spoiled child he had completely made a mess of the internal settings and lock-downs associated with my mind. Who knows what long term consequences that would have?
Bozo the Clown is a clown character very popular in the United States, peaking in the 1960s as a result of widespread franchising in early television. As slang the term “bozo” refers to a clownish and silly person who is known for stupidity and poor judgement.
Would I [1] get cancer? Could I become [2] sick, [3] mentally unstable? Would I have [4] memory loss, or [5] persistent nightmares? Anything could happen. Could I [6] accidentally get locked inside the drone with no drone pilot controlling it? It was a frightening proposal. I had to do something. And I took immediate steps to take action…
I knew what to do. It might have been decades ago, but I now had a complete memory recall. That included all of my training at NAS China Lake. I knew what was going on. I knew what was involved. I understood what controls were in place and why. I realized the entire situation and how everything fit together. There was no question of what I should do. And thus, I took control of the situation, as only I knew how to do.
I pulled up my diagnostic screen, and using my long unused skills, I removed all the terminal locks on the root core memories.
From my point of view it was similar to that of accessing an early version of Microsoft Windows 3.2 except instead of “windows” or boxes appearing, a page in a book would open up. (An icon of a hand would turn the pages, and on each page was a parameter that I could change with “check boxes” that I could set. ) I could flip through the pages with my mind. It was an interesting GUI; crude by the standards by which I was accustomed to when I was retired in 2005. But functional, never the less. The colors were all pastel. It consisted of pale greens, pale oranges, yellows and blues. Some moron chose pastels for all the GUI and brain functions whenever the brain was accessed. I guess that we “cool” in the 1980’s, but decidedly archaic in the year 2005.
I kept everything locked down, but retained the memories. I needed to do this, for that is the only way that I would be able to correct things if I accidentally made a mistake in resetting my programming. It didn’t take long, but I needed to do so.
It was a simple matter of checking or unchecking the “boxes” that resided on the GUI pages as they materialized. Truthfully, my training at NAS China Lake only covered about 60% of the functions of these boxes, so when there was a question concerning a given box or issue, I let it stay at the default, or safe setting whenever possible. You could see easily how this was manifested in the GUI.
I think that I would have preferred to reset everything into the exact condition that the “experts” left it in. But I did not know what that situation was. So I had to improvise. I don’t know if it was my fate, or I was supposed to do so, but I did the best that I could. I set up my (controllable) settings as best I could.
I locked out all outside ELF interference (The core routines, at least.), and returned everything back to “nominal” range. I left the access portals to my memories intact, but left the adjunct connections to the Core Core Kit #2 probes alone.
This was by design. I really did not understand the complexities of the secondary kit as well as the core kit. I did not want to really mess up my brain inadvertently, so I chose to be very conservative in my lockouts and restrictions.
Thus, after all of this, and thanks to Lester, I regained both full control of my memories and was able to lock out invasive ELF fields as well. I became fully empowered, and this empowerment is what enabled me to write upon Metallicman.
I wonder; was this all really “accidental”, or are there actually subroutines within subroutines? That is to say; schemes and plans within plans or great complexity? I wonder about this often.
Field turned off
(I place this here a little bit out of order to avoid reader confusion.) The ELF field stayed on for days after the “experts” left. The entire time it was on, I felt its effects. I could see cavitation everywhere, and I tended to be rather physically hot. I sweated; even when it was 40°F outside. My skin was hot and moist and I drank a lot of water. The high pitched ringing in my ears wasn’t so loud and painful, but still persisted at a much lower volume. But there was no communication with the handlers, and no cadence, nor were there any other effects that were always present when I was involved in an integrated operation.
Here, I would like to discuss what happened with the ELF field was turned off.
I wish I could tell you that it was a mind blowing experience, or that it was a relief. But it wasn’t anything like that. Perhaps it was because of how I reset my mind, or perhaps this is what happens after deactivation. But when the field was turned off it was, well…ordinary.
Have you ever switched off an old style vacuum-tube television? It “felt” like that. The screen shrunk in a second into a single dot. It collapsed into that dot, and then the dot faded away quietly.
Invented in about 1910, vacuum tubes were a basic component for electronics throughout the first half of the twentieth century, which saw the diffusion of radio, television, radar, sound reinforcement, sound recording and reproduction, large telephone networks, analog and digital computers, and industrial process control.
Although some applications had counterparts using earlier technologies such as the spark gap transmitter or mechanical computers, it was the invention of the vacuum tubes that made these technologies widespread and practical.
In the forties the invention of semiconductor devices made it possible to produce solid-state devices, which are smaller, more efficient, more reliable, more durable, and cheaper than tubes. Hence, in the '50s and '60s, solid-state devices such as transistors gradually replaced tubes.
The cathode-ray tube (CRT) remained the basis for televisions and video monitors until superseded in the 21st century. However there are still a few applications for which tubes are preferred to semiconductors; for example, the magnetron used in microwave ovens, and certain high frequency amplifiers.
For me; I felt like the ELF field just collapsed upon itself, and then the remaining signal just faded away quietly. It was not, however, as if I “saw” this occurring. No. Instead it was as if I “felt the field end” just like someone turning off an old vacuum tube oscilloscope or television set.
That was all there was to it.
To those who might be watching me on the prison cameras, they would see no changes what so ever. Everything that I experienced was experienced by only one person.
That was me, and me alone.
Aside from no longer ever being entangled with the drone and the drone pilot, my long steam of nightime dreams consisting of attending futuristic schools and sitting in classes all ended abruptly. It all ended. It was over, and I haven’t attended any schools (in my dreams) ever since.
I meet Sebastian at the Intake Facility
As we were lining up to exit the facility, we were each paired with another inmate to whom were chained. (In the ADC, we were all chained together with leg chains and connected handcuffs.) To my surprise, and amazement, he looked familiar. As I looked closely, he too recognized me. It was Sebastian! (Sebastian was [1] my former AOC from NAS NASC Pensacola, and who [2] also worked alongside me at NAS China Lake.) It had been a long time (30 years!), and he had aged somewhat, but he was still recognizable.
What were the odds? Not only were we at the same facility, in the same state, at the same time, but we were chained together. The last time that I saw him was at China Lake Naval Weapons Center in Ridgecrest, California. That was thirty years ago. It had to be more than just a coincidence. It had to be.
The reader can disagree with my appraisal.
He told me that he was arrested for possession of child porn, just like I was, but he had decided to take it to trial instead of pleading out. He did not fare too well, however. He felt that it was a setup, as did I, since we were both heterosexuals with absolutely normal, and even a little dated, feelings about female attractiveness.
But, it turned out he didn’t do too well in court. In the state were we were charged, they had a massive campaign about child porn as well as a very vocal and supportive religious organizations that were going on, it seemed, like weekly crusades against those who commit those crimes.
This in itself was curious. Who or what was behind all this orchestrated antagonism? Was it part of the process to retire all us agents, or was it just a massive coincidence?
I do not know.
What I do know, is that the American media is owned and controlled by the United States government. There is no question about that. So whether they actually controlled this media blitz is unknown. What is known is that the American government did have the ability to do so if they wanted to.
So when he had his trial, the evidence did not matter. It was an emotional hot button, and the jury of his peers turned out to be mostly uneducated, deep southern people with strong racial and cultural biases (Think of the character “Ricky” from the Television show “Trailer Park Boys”.).
Actually, the truth is that they were under-educated, or little experience outside of the country where they were born and raised.
Their life experiences were often colored by prejudice and local norms of behavior that were exclusionary in their totality.
Typically, they had a high school degree but forgot most of what they had learned in school, and they worked blue-collar or manual labor positions with little application of reason or understanding.
They based their decisions on emotion. Thus they were easily manipulated by anyone serving up a story comprised of emotional issues.
Trailer Park Boys is a Canadian mockumentary television series created and directed by Mike Clattenburg that focuses on the misadventures of a group of trailer park residents, some of whom are ex-convicts, living in the fictional Sunnyvale Trailer Park in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. The television series, a continuation of Clattenburg's 1999 film of the same name, premiered on Showcase in 2001. The planned final season ended in 2007, and the planned final episode, "Say Goodnight to the Bad Guys", premiered as a special on Showcase on December 7, 2008, ending the initial run of the series. There have been three films released in the series: The Big Dirty, released on October 6, 2006; Countdown to Liquor Day, released on September 25, 2009; and Don't Legalize It, released on April 18, 2014 after issues during production.
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In any issue; whether it is related to this manuscript or whether it is a fight with your spouse or a political argument, one must realize that humans have the strong tendency to accept the comfort of what they know and have seen. If they come across something different; strange or unusual, they will usually tend to argue against it. We, as humans, have to realize that we need to see things for all angles and all perspectives. That wisdom is a not just a laudable goal, but a necessity towards growth and expansion of the soul.
It didn’t matter that they couldn’t prove how he got the images, or even if they actually were under the legal age. It didn’t matter that medical doctors could find no evidence of abhorrent behavior or tendencies or predilections toward pedophilia. It didn’t matter that this was his first offense. In the eyes of the community, he was a “sick individual” who needed to be incarcerated for a long, long time. I believe that he was sentenced to sixty years at hard labor (60 years) on “the third”.
One third of the sentence must be at hard labor punishment (33%), the rest can be released to parole (66%) provided that he accepted the terms of parole and passed the Sex Offender reeducation program. For him, that meant that he had a minimum of ten years at hard labor before he could even consider to be released on parole.
We rode in the bus together to our destination prisons. He was slated to go to a different one than I was, but we both knew that it was not going to be pleasant. The prison that I was designated to attend was known as the “worst” prison in the entire (state) system.
There was a saying “There ain’t nothin’ good about Brickeys.” (Let me tell you; it is an accurate appraisal.)
This was the De Facto hard labor prison. It was a common destination for most reoffenders in the prison system, but not necessarily one of the prisons that you send a newbie to, especially one for a “soft” crime.
A “soft” crime is a victimless crime, which did not involve violence or any kind or theft of property. Crimes in this category include smoking an illegal substance alone, possession of banned books, or making a copy of music or movies.
There are those who insist that there is no such thing as a victimless crime; that for a law to be passed, someone had to be a victim.
That’s really an argument for “arm-chair” philosophers.
On a practical basis; a victim according to the founding fathers of the United States (read your Federalist Papers) is someone who was harmed or hurt or suffered directly and physically by (your) criminal activities.
A victim might be a person hit by a drunk driver, a person who suffered through a mugging, a spouse who was beaten up, someone who was swindled of their life’s saving or any other direct; provable physical damage.
The accused has the right to confront their accuser (this is encoded in the Constitution, as well as many state constitutions); and if the accuser is not a victim; then it is a “victimless crime”.
The term “victimless crime” is a recent addition to the American judicial lexicon. Before 1920, all crimes required a victim to be aggrieved.
He was to be shipped off to a labor/work prison. Here his skills would be used to provide free slave labor to other industries in the region. I believe that he became a logger and worked the local lumber industry there.
As a “rent-a-slave”. Here, prisoners are rented out to companies at a low rate. They work for free, and get “credit” towards their eventual release from prison.
As we rode the bus, we chatted a little bit and caught up on some things. He (politely and strongly) suggested that we don’t talk about our experiences and the true nature of who we were. No one would believe us anyways. He also warned me that since our brains were hardwired, they could do anything to us, so it was best for us to ride out the journey.
The term “hardwired” means to physically connect one thing to another. In a like way, something has to be cut or damaged to extract the said object. Thus in this case, our probes were functionally and physically installed in our brains. We could never remove them without risking brain damage.
He offered me some candy that he had bought from the commissary and we chatted about life in general and what fate will have in store for us when we finally reached our destination.
While there were many individuals tangentially involved in our operations and training, only three people (that I actively knew of) were actively involved in our little part of the program. This cell of people comprised myself, Sebastian, and the base Commander.
Everyone else performed tasks tangential to us. While we worked on <redacted>, we knew each other through our drones. We had no clue who the drone commander was underneath the outer shell of the drones that we worked alongside. While we were being trained on the NAS China Lake facility, we worked alongside many people, but no one really had a clue as to our real purpose and training there. In every event, throughout our entire existence, there was only three people –out little cell- who truly knew what was going on.
Our missions and activities were all terminated and concluded upon closure at prison. That is how it all ended. It ended by [1] shutting off our internal systems, [2] accusing us and imprisoning us as sex offenders for child related crimes (!), and [3] life time monitoring and observation.
Exit to Prison
The ride to the prison was long and tiring. It was a six hour drive, mostly on an unplanned route, and through many back rural roads. This route was taken for reasons of safety. Any inmate that wants to plan an escape would have a hard time determining where the transport vehicle would be.
We rode in a van with three bench seats. Nine inmates rode inside. We were all chained together to the inmate next to us. Up front, sat two guards; the driver and the squad leader. Both were armed with guns and even though they were nice and polite to us, they would have certainly shot us if we appeared to be a threat to them. The driver was an older white man in his late 60’s. He talked to the inmates along the way. Chatting about the soybean fields that we drove by. The squad leader was a black woman who was also very nice and professional. These were just people doing their job. They weren’t power hungry cops, or egotistical sadistic guards, but just plain, ordinary people doing a job. We rode in the van listening to the local radio station, which was, for the state where we were incarcerated in; Country Music.
ADC transport van.
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The van itself was a white plain van marked with the States department of corrections insignia on it. Covering the windows were long bars of metal so that it was impossible to exit the vehicle, even if it overturned in a mishap. Up front, in a wire cage directly behind the driver were the sole possessions of each inmate. All categorized and accounted for inside a brown paper bag, folded and stapled shut with our name and ID number on it.
At one point, the van turned down a rural road, and we saw squads of inmates working the fields. They were all either marching, or banging away at the ground in their “State Issue” uniforms.
Hard Labor at the former slave plantation of Brickey’s.
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Each squad was led by an armed corrections officer on horseback. He held one hand on the horses reign, and the other rested solidly on his powerful .44 magnum Smith & Wesson revolver. The guards all wore brown vests, a scarf, and a large white cowboy hat that shaded their face. Most wore sunglasses, but not all did. They all had on cowboy boots with spurs. We knew that we would arrive shortly.
Before us, sprawled in the hot fields like a Nazi concentration camp, lay our destination; ADC Brickeys.
Brickeys is also known as the “East Arkansas Regional Unit”. It is one of the most dangerous prisons in Arkansas. You can read about it here in the article “These 6 Deadly Prisons Can Only Be Found In Arkansas”. http://www.onlyinyourstate.com/arkansas/deadly-prisons-ar/
ADC Prison.
You can read the rest of my narrative…
This tires me, exhausts me, and disgusts me. I DO NOT WANT to relive this. I seriously do not want to think about it one single bit. But I am putting it all out there for posterity. Let the world know what is really going on. let everyone come to their own conclusions. That’s what is best.
Childish Gambino – Redbone
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The rest of my narrative and “adventure” is in the MAJestic 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.
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This is probably my worst article / post on MM. But it is something that I have to get off my system, and preserve. Thus I present it as is, all in it's own terrible ratty configuration.
If life gives you lemons, you make lemonade.
This post / article discusses what my deactivation procedure was like from my point of view. To an outside observer, I was either lying on the bed thrashing about, or just acting strangely. I will do my best to give the reader a full understanding and the full scope of the experience.
These fuckers had to be shut off. You just don’t deactivate a MAJestic operative without shutting them down. That’s a fact jack.
It’s a difficult thing to relate, and even harder to describe. It also tends to get rather strange at times. But this is what happened. And it is here, recorded for prosperity.
Time to change your switch to "off".
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My deactivation absolutely required that my probes be mothballed.
This was not an easy task, and it required that I be placed in a secure facility, and treated in a special manner .
This section discusses this procedure in the only way that I know how; from the point of view of the person being deactivated. Because of that, it is confusing and can be misunderstood easily. The reader is reminded that everything that happened is as described from my point of view.
To an outside observer, I was bat-shit crazy.
“Some are born mad, some achieve madness, and some have madness thrust upon 'em.” ― Emilie Autumn, The Asylum for Wayward Victorian Girls
From what I know now, this procedure is very straight forward from the point of view of an outside observer. As such, I will try my best to describe it as such. But in truth, it was anything but easy. This was my mind that they were dealing with. And my perceptions, thoughts, feelings, and memories were involved. Our experiences are colored by all these things, and thus when they are being tampered with, we have a tendency to become disoriented and confused.
Some basic clarification
I was implanted with three groups / clusters of probes.. As a reminder, I was injected with two (x2) “kits” of devices at NAS NASC Pensacola, Florida. And then afterwards I went through a dimensional portal to another place. It was another location and involved another species. That is where I obtained my EBP device.
In total;
EBP – Alien manufacture, and installation.
ELF Kit #1 – MAJestic “kit”. Basic.
ELF Kit #2 – MAJestic “kit”. Advanced with special functions.
Core Kit I probes activated
This process was akin to “waking me up from a long slumber”. Because while I was actively aware of my role during the operation of the Core Core Kit #2 probes, I had forgotten everything related to and concerning the Core Core Kit #1 probes.
I knew, but didn't know. My memories were all very remote and empty. It was like when you opened the door to your house two days before Easter ten years ago. You remember it, but it isn't an "active" memory
To shut me off, and deactivate me, the core Core Kit #1 probes had to be reactivated, and from there, shut down manually, once the Core #2 kit was reset.
There was no easy way to do it.
For over 30 years had passed since I was last active under the probes effects. The physical probes had naturally migrated out of their initial set locations, and I needed to be re-calibrated, and engaged for the new locations of the probes. (In other words, what was once located at the far left of the upper part of my brain, has now moved diagonally towards the back and a little bit to the mid-center.) How to do this was not clean or pleasant.
For me it was hell.
“She’ll be coming around the mountain when she comes…She’ll be coming around the mountain when she comes…She’ll be riding six white horses.She’ll be riding six white horses.When she comes…”-Old Susanna
It began at lights out.
It began with “lights out”.
The lights usually shut down at 11:00 pm, but for some reason, the lights out period started at 9:00 pm. And we all settled down to rest. I tried to rest. As I settled down, everything got still and quiet. I started to drift off to sleep. My brain waves went from Alpha waves, to beta waves. My mind started to quiet down. It was quiet, and peaceful. But just as I began to drift into sleep; into theta waves, I was suddenly jerked up wide awake.
Someone, another inmate perhaps, started singing. This singing was loud and garish. He sang one old song from the days of the California Gold Rush. He sang “Old Susanna”. He wouldn’t let up. After a full five minutes of this, I was wide awake. And, he mercifully stopped.
The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California.
"Oh! Susanna" is a minstrel song by Stephen Foster (1826–1864), first published in 1848. It is among the most popular American songs ever written.
I began to rest again.
And again, as soon as I started to rest and drift off into theta brain wave activity, I was suddenly shaken wide awake. It was the other man singing “Old Susanna”. Again this singing continued for about ten more minutes and then stopped. I was now wide awake. Tired. Grouchy, and irritable. I tried to go back to sleep.
I began to rest again.
And again, no sooner as I started to rest and drift off into theta brain wave activity, I was suddenly shaken wide awake. Again, I listened to the crisp old tune of “Old Susanna”. Again this singing continued for about ten more minutes and then stopped. I stayed wide awake. I stayed tired. I continued to be grouchy, and irritable. Yet, still, I tried to go back to sleep.
The entire night continued like this.
Each time, as the night wore on, I got angrier and angrier.
Now, what one must understand is that I was chosen for the program for my ability to control my emotions. Though my wife might disagree with this appraisal, it was true that I could take a large amount of abuse before I would lash out. So even though I was terribly tired and exhausted, I didn’t do anything about it. I just took the abuse in silence.
Until about at around 4:00 am something snapped.
I snapped into a “state”
I cannot relate the exact mechanics of what transpired.
It reached a point of emotional turmoil, and mental confusion through the accumulation of pressure and the lack of sleep. In any event, at some point in time, my body and mind just snapped. That is the best way that I can describe it.
A feeling of warmth came over me, and I became lucid. I was no longer sleepy, but alert, calm, and entirely pissed.
Pissed, as in "pissed off" and absolutely furiously angry.
I was frosty calm and pissed off in a way that defies description.
I did not at all have a full recall of my Core Core Kit #1 memories. But I did have a recall of specialized training that I picked up somewhere (?).
And that came out in a flood of reactive autonomous movements and gestures. I found myself exercising and limbering up. I immediately went into some old martial arts training that I had taken years ago, and I started to organize all my gear. I made a mental count of everything I owned and this inventory was used for an automatic survival, evasion and escape routine that somehow I had access to.
(How and where did I get this training? I do not recall.)
Now, in case the reader gets confused, it needs to be clearly pointed out that I did not have any kind of formalized military combat training aside from what I experienced in the Navy at NAS NASC Pensacola.
Well, mostly that is…
Aside from one or two specialized para-military training camps in Louisiana. But I put this information here as a full disclosure of my apparent skill sets.I was there because of a"project" that I was involved in. <redacted>
Just because I had cursory training as a “Swamp Rat” did not make me a professional military fighter or combat soldier. I only had the most rudimentary training in these fields.
I was a technical nerd who’s experiences, for the most part, were devoid of any such experiences.
This was a meager amount.
When you watch television and movies, the heroes all have a great deal of skill and experience with knife fighting, martial arts, weaponry and high duration endurance. That is fine for the movies, but I was not trained as a navy SEAL, or a member of DELTA team.
I was more or less a highly technical individual, who through an array of events ended up in this program. I was not, am not, nor will I ever be a combat fighter. Yet, for some reason, this persona; a persona of just such a swarthy fellow, took hold of my very being.
I became that person.
How, and why, I have no idea.
I started to act… peculiarly.
All of this was not my personality.
At least nothing that I would associate with myself for the last three decades.
What was most astounding was that I started yelling in Chinese. Now, today, my Chinese linguistic skills are much better than then. But one must understand that, at that time, I couldn’t tell the difference from between a pair of shoes from a carrot in Chinese. I possessed absolutely zero Chinese linguistic skill.
But yet, I found myself shouting in Chinese. I started to implore the guards for information. I started to ask them what was going on. I did so in Mandarin Chinese!
你为什么这样做呢？我在哪里？做了什么我做错了？
Not that anyone else knew what I was saying. But, for some reason, my automatic reaction; one that I am loathe to recall here, kicked in. It involved a number of automatic behaviors that I automatically started to adopt.
These included a [1] calm composure, [2] the ability to think and reason in certain defined patterns, [3] the ability to speak in Chinese, and [4] the knowledge of what to do and how to handle the circumstances that came before me. It was almost like I was programmed to react in a certain manner under a certain series of events or circumstances.
This concluded until about 6:00 am.
When I finally was able to rest. At that time, the staff surrounding my cell and barracks also shut down and left for home. As they gathered their papers, books and possessions, they commented about the night. They complained about the costs, but also commented as to how unique the experience was.
They were curious about me, and they wanted to find out more as to what I was involved in. They joked about the event, saying to the effect that that was certainly strange and weird. That it was unexpected that I would know and speak Chinese, but that proved that something that they were told was correct. They stated that they would keep me under special care and evaluation until the team arrived from Washington to finish the work.
For me, however, everything was different.
I turned into someone different.
Now, I was someone else. I was like a robot. In truth, I was in-between activation’s. Neither my core Core Kit #1 nor my Core Core Kit #2 probes were apparently activated. But somehow, through stress and situations they were able to induce upon me some kind of repressed reactive persona.
This was unexpected by everyone.
It was certainly unexpected by me.
I had no idea that this stuff was locked away inside my head. It was surprising to the staff at the prison as well. While the doctor and the authorities were apparently told that I would have to be handled in a certain special way, they didn’t believe that anything would actually, really occur. They thought that it would be just nonsense. But sure as the day is bright, the manuals were correct and I snapped into a secondary persona. One that was not to be trifled with.
At this point in time, I was in a “survival” and “protective” persona. (I found myself walking with “direct registering” and operating in a most observant manner. )
Direct Registering
Walking like a feline in a specific prescribed manner designed for silence and readiness. Felines walk in a stalking silent mode where their hind paws fall inside the place of their forepaws, minimizing noise and visible tracks, while ensuring more stable footing.
A different personality.
This was something that I was unaware I possessed, and the only way and place that I could of obtained these skills was during the week-long absence through the dimensional portal on the base years ago. In hindsight, I actually now possessed a total of four modes of operation.
They were;
Normal human
“Survival” and “Protective” Persona
Core Core Kit #1 Activation
Core Core Kit #2 Entanglement with the drone
Lord only knows how many personas I have locked away in my brain.
What did the fucking government do to me? Are there still other personas that are lying dormant ready to be released under a series of aggressive external stimuli? I do not know.
I simply do NOT know.
At this time, I was still quite confused as to what was going on. While I understood where I was and what I was doing there. All my subsequent history related to the US Navy was still a complete blank.
I had no idea about the connection between my incarceration and that of my involvement in the MAJestic USAP program. At that point, I was convinced that it was due to an overly zealous DA, and an unfortunate series of personal events on my behalf.
Turning on the probes
“Courage doesn’t happen when you have all the answers. It happens when you are ready to face the questions you have been avoiding your whole life.”― Shannon L. Alder
I spent the entire day in the cell.
.
I spent the entire day in the cell.
A fore-taste of things to come. Eh?
When it came time for me to eat, I was lead out of my cell by following a special procedure. In this procedure, six guards came to my cell, they opened the door with an elaborate call out procedure, and each one took up a special role. One would call out “Prepare to blow the door”, while another would say “On my count, blow the door”, and another would count “3, 2, 1”. Then they would unlock the door while saying “Blowing the door”. I think all of this was completely unnecessary. But they weren’t taking any chances. When the door was opened, two guards got on both sides of me and grabbed my arms and back collar. Then they led / carried me out of the cell.
They would line up on both sides of the port and formalize the egress procedure so that I would be more easily controlled when they took me from my cell.
.
While I told them this wasn’t necessary, they told me that this procedure was necessary for everyone’s safety and I had just get along with the program. So I shrugged my shoulders and said OK. And thus, I was led to chow hall this way, and returned back to my cell in this matter for reasons of safety for myself and for other inmates.
For most of my evaluation I was brought to mess hall and from it in this manner. But that is not all that was done.
When I arrived in the mess hall, I was placed at a table along the wall, and there, standing along the wall was about fifteen guards. I couldn’t do anything without them subduing me.
But of course, I did nothing. I was not crazy, unwise or stupid. I knew the odds, and why should I do anything anyways? There was no benefit for me. The wisest thing for me to do was to follow the program and track that was established for me to its conclusion.
They also heavily sedated me.
I alone, of all the inmates, was given a glass of orange juice. And that liquid was severely laced with a medicine known as Chlorpromazine.
Thioridazine (Mellaril (DE, BD, ET, ID, BR), Melleril.
It is used in the treatment of schizophrenia.
But it is also used to control people with behavioral problems because of the way it causes the body to react to external stimuli.
It works on a variety of receptors in the central nervous system, producing potent anticholinergic, antidopaminergic, antihistaminic, and antiadrenergic effects. Both the clinical indications and side effect profile of CPZ are determined by the broadness of its action: its anticholinergic properties cause constipation, sedation, and hypotension but also help relieve nausea.
It also has anxiolytic (anxiety-relieving) properties.
Its antidopaminergic properties can cause extrapyramidal symptoms, such as akathisia (restlessness, aka the 'Thorazine shuffle' where the patient walks almost constantly, despite having nowhere to go due to mandatory confinement, and takes small, shuffling steps) and dystonia.
From the moment I drank this orange juice to all subsequent servings, I knew exactly what was going on.
My speech became slurred, and while my mind remained sharp and clear, the ability for me to move my body was severely retarded. For instance, I would want to stand up, but the ability for me to move my legs was severely repressed. Instead, I would just sit there trying to move, but unable to do so.
Chlorpromazine
.
It was not at all a pleasant experience. But rather uncomfortable. I believe that they gave me a rather high dosage of this chemical, and they kept me sedated throughout my evaluation period.
Since I was under an ELF field, I could easily see the cavitation effects while laying on the bed in my cell.
This period of waiting while under the effects of the drug, and being sedated was short lived. After two days, the team of experts arrived from Washington, and my deactivation procedure began.
The truth is that I assumed that they were from Washington, D.C. They could have been from anywhere. What I did know was that they were not local to the state where I was, and thus they had to be flown in from out of state. Their names, and point of origin, as well as their backgrounds are all unknown to me.
Retirement Team flown in
"[UFOs are] considered top secret by intelligence officers of both the Army and the Air Forces." --From a declassified 1949 FBI document from the San Antonio FBI office, to J. Edgar Hoover.
I knew something was “afoot” when I was moved from my upper tier cell, to a (special) first floor cell.
This refers to the knowledge that something is occurring behind the observed scenery, which might directly affect someone or something.
This was cell number 7.
It was a “special” cell.
To an outside observer it was a cell like any other. But this one was quite different. For starters, the wall graffiti was different. In most cells, and wall graffiti involved curse words, stick figures showing genital areas and perhaps a statement about prison life. Like “I’ll be back!”, and “The food here blows”. However, this cell was different.
The graffiti in this cell was unique. Instead of curse words, there were words related to thoughts and actions. For instance, next to the rack was the phrase “Be careful what you say.” And, over the door, were the words that stated “Do nothing stupid.” And near the sink, and the air vent, and the foot of the bed were drawings of three triangles. The drawings showed the triangles lined up in a row.
Three triangles with a line drawn through them.
.
They had kept me heavily sedated on Chlorpromazine because I was apparently unpredictable and dangerous. It was a safety precaution, though I told them repeatedly that I wasn’t going to do anything. The purpose of this cell was to put me into a specially constructed cell that was functionally intended for the ELF decommissioning procedure.
The cell was on the first floor and it was a little different than the others.
One of the problems that I had while the ELF filed was turned on was the heat that was being generated by my body. So this cell had an extra high capacity fan that was used to exhaust the air quickly. It was also grounded as a kind of faraday cage. However, the sink was not properly grounded, and was disconnected from the metal supports due to corrosion. Therefore whenever I went near it I would get a most terrible shock.
Also in this cell were some graffiti and doodles that you would find in any cell. Except this cell had the three triangle nomenclature that I recognized so well. It also had graffiti specifically pointing the locations of the microphone and the closed circuit camera.
Though I didn’t need the graffiti to show me these items.
Perhaps the most notable thing about this particular cell was outside of it. Directly outside the cell was the three embedded triangular feducial markings. If I were to stand up straight at the door to the cell, I would be able to focus directly at the feducials.
When looking out of the door to my cell I could see two individuals discussing things with the Captain of the guards, and the head of the Prison System’s Psychiatric Unit. They were wearing suits and ties, which is quite different from that of most white color employees local to the region. Due to the heat, most local white collar employees tended to wear collared short sleeve polo shirts. I couldn’t hear what they were talking about, but they would occasionally look over my way and continue talking like I was a slab of beef or some other object of little importance.
I could talk directly to the ELF team
With my probes now fully engaged and my cell irradiated with ELF radiation everything that I would say was heard directly to the ELF control station (in Minnesota) I could talk and they would answer me. Not only that, but I could whisper and they would be able to talk back to me.
It’s all pretty odd. And no we did not get “chummy”.
For instance, I told the on-site staff at the prison facility to adjust the amplitude of the gain on the ELF waves, and I was able to tell them it’s “size” relative to my cell. They had the gain really high and I took it down about six steps and then one step up. (For personal comfort.)
The Deactivation Procedure
It was around 6:00pm when the deactivation procedure began. I had been given an extremely large dose of medication during dinner and it was just then beginning to affect me.
I was sitting on my rack, wanting to lie down, but being unable to do so easily. Eventually I was able to collapse onto the bed, but I did not lie down comfortably, but rather laid on my bed in a half-on, half-off manner. My legs were still in a sitting position, but my head was on the pillow. I laid on my side with my arm extended half off the bed.
I was in a near comatose state. The Thorazine was hitting me hard.
Cell #7 in the Evaluation Barracks.
.
I immediately knew that there was “something going on” whenever I felt an electric wave travel through my body and when I looked up at the ceiling, I “saw” cavitation effects.
Cavitation is the visual effect inside my visual cortex that indicates harmonics formed by the ELF waves in a confined space. In the test chamber at China Lake NWC I could see the effects though they were obscured by the confusing array of the grey triangles that dotted the walls.
But here in the white cinderblock cell, they were obvious. They appeared to me as waves and rows of grey worm like distortions.
While I still didn’t remember anything of my relevant past, it seemed quite familiar and strikingly disturbing. Losing control of one’s mind, and the observation of what could be hallucinations, is not something that you want to experience in prison.
That evening, as I relaxed on my rack, I suddenly saw the sudden bright flashes of light in my head. Just as quickly, in a short span of time, numbering in the milliseconds, a new vision flooded my visual cortex.
With it…
… came an awareness.
But it wasn’t long before I really and truly and completely knew what was truly going on.
For in a short period of time I lost all external vision and the ELF calibration screen flooded my visual cortex. And, while I am kind of ashamed to admit it, again I was intrigued by the red edges of the pastel landscape.
The ELF calibration screen filled my eyesight and consisted of "hills" and "valleys" upon an undulating terrain map that I would be able to navigate a reticle upon.
Without thinking too deeply about it, I started to look and peer intently into the imagery. Without thinking, I said out loud, “I wonder what those red cracks are”, and was equally surprised when a loud voice flooded my mind.
An unknown man sternly replied “Shut up! Concentrate on centering the reticle like you were trained to do!”
Ah, such reminders.
Unknown to my handler, this was an exact duplicate of the same event decades earlier. There, I also made inquiries of the reddish edges. And then, they also told me to ignore those colors and concentrate on the task before me.
All of this became evident. The true and actual awareness flooded my mind when the pastel map appeared. This is a map that I hadn’t seen for over 30 years. It was so long ago I forgot all about it. While the life with the interaction of the drone was known to me and understood, the life of the ELF core kit was forgotten.
The last time I had used it was for some minor tasks back in the 1990’s, when I was recalled for some domestic activities. At that time, I was temporarily tasked to <redacted>.
The reticle on the map was terribly out of place. It was way out to the left of where it should have been, and, I used the time to put it back where it belonged. As soon as the reticle went back in place, my normal eyesight returned. But, I could easily tell that I was in the presence of the ELF field. I knew, somewhat, what was going on. Indeed, I could see the cavitation effects in the cell all around me. And, to my amazement, but not without some concern, dolefully centered the reticle in the proper area. And the pastel map disappeared and I was back in my evaluation cell.
I looked up at the ceiling and saw the cavitation effects clearly. Now, the reader might think that I would have full and immediate recall of everything that I had ever experienced at this point. And that I would also understand what I was going through and why. But the truth was that I did not. I was confused, a bit scared, and completely in a quandary over this entire situation.
It truthfully took me at least two days to fully recall what was going on and why. In the meantime, I had a deactivation procedure to endure, and at this state, the hell was only just starting. As I recall, I was only finally to put all the pieces together when I looked outside the door to my cell. For there, directly opposite to my door, was the triangle shaped feducials embedded in the cinder-block wall of the intake facility!
What it sort of looked like.
.
Was I actually a Sex Offender?
“The greatest prison that people live in is the fear of what other people think.”—Unknown
Actually, the first task, once the deactivation team arrived, was to meet the qualifications and expectations of the facility itself. Those expectations were as I discussed earlier. It was, after all, why I signed the waiver of my Constitutional rights.
Our founders set up a brilliant system which has served the country well for over two centuries. What people seem to forget is our system of government wasn’t set up to create a new set of parental authority figures for the public.
The entire intent behind the Constitution was to create a series of checks and balances to restrain government from becoming too powerful and working against the interests of the public.
Government’s primary role in America is supposed to be to protect the Constitution and defend the cherished civil liberties defined within it.
Today, it does precisely opposite.
Our government isn’t just corrupt though. Indeed, the primary function of government at the moment is to protect status quo criminals from the public, not the other way around. This is why the rich and powerful are never held to account, which is in turn why it continues to get worse and worse.
Was a danger to the community as a Sexual Offender? Was I a [1] pedophile or a [2] predator that would prey on people or little children? Did I have a [3] secret history that others need to be told about? Have I [4] hurt someone in my deep, dark, remote past? They needed to know just how [5] licentious I actually was. These questions needed to be answered.
From the point of view of everyone there, with the exception of the two “experts” that were flowing in to supervise this procedure, no one knew the answer.
So they had to run the necessary tests to determine this. But, unlike many other inmates, this would be much easier for them to find out, because, here (in my case) they have a hard-wired conduit direct to my brain and they could actively monitor how my brain would react to thoughts, and images placed there.
Not to mention that the Navy, or the MAJestic arm of the Navy, had a complete record of everything that I did. From phone records for the last thirty years, candid photographs of me and my wife in hotel rooms (!) and in our house (!), a completely compiled dossier of my medical history and a listing of every (MAJestic) operation that I had ever participated in.
Though, I am sure that that dossier would not of been shared with anyone outside of the MAJestic organization.
MAJestic knew EVERYTHING about me.
But, the State where I was incarcerated did not.
The team had to follow the law, [1] determine how severe a “Sex Offender” I actually was, while at the same time [2] permitting MAJestic to “disable my lethalness” and render me “inoperable” as an agent.
Most people are not aware of this, but not all "sexual offenders" are the same. While everyone gets classified as a Sexual offender, they have a secondary rating that is used to determine their frequency of monitoring and their restrictions.
The scale goes from a 1, which is a minor level offender, up to a 3 / 4 (depending on the state where you live) as the worst of the worst.
While, I am sure, the State officials did not have the clearances to know everything that I was involved in, they did have the right to know my medical, mental and criminal histories as compiled by MAJestic. And that, it was certain, was enough to dispel any doubts about my threat level assessment. Though, since they did contact the MAJestic authorities (somehow, maybe they were notified by triggering an access query for my records), they realized that I was “somehow” connected to the US government in some high capacity level.
What they thought it was is anyone’s guess. However, they probably envisioned something that Hollywood would dream up.
CIA scene from one of the Jason Bourne movies.
.
That’s the way it works you know. We can only envision what we have been exposed to. For most unusual events, the exposure experience is “Hollywood”.
Again, while the procedure was complicated in actual implementation, the core basic theory behind it was quite simple. My visual cortex would be flooded with an image or series of images, or video movie routines. How my body reacted to those images would be noticed and recorded. If my penis would become erect that, for instance, would show the possible potential for interest in that picture or image.
Good luck with that. Once a man gets older, spontaneous erections are very rare. In fact, any kind of erection is a rare event.
Though in truth, they did not need to observe me get erections by. looking at pictures. All they needed to do is to monitor my brainwaves. The Thorazine reduced my body to “sluggish jello” while keeping my mind clear and focused. Yet at the same time, by emotions were all very calm. Thus, any reaction to images that I would see (and after all they had a complete pathway to my visual cortex through the ELF Kit #1 probes) could be observed by the monitoring of my brainwaves.
But since they now had the probes inside my head they could actually determine is the image was pleasurable or disgusting to me. And it was that by which they measured my interest.
There was no running away from it. They could tell, through the reactions in my brain, what interest that I had in sex, children, and images and whether or not I had any tendencies to harm, hurt or bother others in pursuit of said interests.
“If you would know a man, observe how he treats a cat.”-Robert Heinlein in The Door into Summer.
In hindsight, it is interesting that I was arrested for the unproven potential for having an image on a computer that I owned, but whether this was an indicator of my threat to society was another matter entirely.
Actually the mere presence of a file on a computer, by itself, does not mean that it was used or accessed by a person. That has to be determined by computer forensics. There, an IT professional can determine when the file was last accessed, what program accessed it, and for how long it was accessed. A longer period of forensic study can identify how the file got onto the computer, and when. But the mere presence of an illegal photo does not imply that the owner of the computer used, viewed or even knew that that file existed.
The same is true for a farmer who owns 1000 acres of land. The presence of two or three marijuana plants on this property does not imply that he was aware of them, cultivated them, or had any interest in growing them.
But it is easy for a Congressman to make a law saying that if a marijuana plant was on your property, you were De Facto a cultivator of that drug.
The criminal and legal systems must be specifically worded and carefully followed specifically with neutral intent towards obtainment of the truth, and whether true criminal intent was present.
But all that is meaningless.
A direct interpretation of the law simply states that if you possess an item that is illegal, you have broken the law. The old saying that “Intent is 9/10’s of the law” is an obsolete phrase that has no place in modern American law.
This entire theory is disgusting and disturbing to me. Does that mean that if I watched a movie about Hitler that I was a follower of his policies? Or that if someone flashed a picture to me in a mere fraction of a second that I would treasure that image and cultivate it in my mind over and over again, eventually becoming a dangerous maniac?
Most human brains operate at 4 Hz. Most computers operate at 3 GHz. Or in other words, flashing an image on the computer screen at 3Gz cannot be seen by the human brain.
The only way that it would be seen is if the picture froze in place for 4 x 1024,000,000 Hz. (1GHz = 1024 MHz). That is a real long time for a computer.
That is why computer forensics is so important. To watch and look at a picture, humans tend to look, or gawk at it for substantially longer than their brains work. Suppose it would take 30 seconds, or in this case 30x4x1024,000,000 computer cycles at least.
A true prosecutor should need to show that the image was OBSERVED rather than just a file on a computer. In any event, this is all academic. The law says one thing, and if you have a file on your computer, it doesn’t matter how it got there or whether you looked at it or not.
You become guilty.
Obviously the laws and the system behind them were more akin to a huge dragnet rather than a surgical investigative attack on dangerous community predators. But that is how the state dealt with these issues, and I was caught in the system. My place was not to wonder why, but rather to survive the ordeal as they “investigated” me.
This is an interesting subject, and one that I have spent many years considering. That is because the systems in place currently in the United States, on both the State and the Federal level seem to violate the core principles of common law.
In those principles, a law is something that protects the rights and privileges of another.
For instance, you can’t steal someone’s horse because it is a violation of another’s property ownership rights. Or you cannot kill someone because it is a violation of their God-given right of existence.
So, this being said, what property right, personal right, or sovereign right of a nation is being enforced by those laws related to possession of a banned substance or article?
As it stands, the law is contorted into something else entirely. In this convolution, it is the [1] premise of the potential for wrongdoing that is [2] evidenced by the suggestion of improper thought, through [3] possession of a banned object that is the driving force behind the laws as written.
Scene from “A Clockwork Orange”.
When a person is revolted, or shocked, or experiences emotion, the body chemistry changes. If you are in love, your body becomes filled with emotion. If you are in fear, your body is also filled with different chemicals. And dogs can sense this. With the proper equipment it can also be measured remotely.
.
In any event, a period of time was devoted to determining whether I was a threat to society based on my body’s reactions to injected visual imagery into my cerebral cortex.
Actually by measuring the activity in my anterior dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, a region that is involved in suppressing emotional responses, and the inferior frontal gyrus, an area responsible for evaluating social behavior and cooperation, the investigators could get a much better understanding of my individual motivations than only just relying on my more primitive cerebral functions. Luckily for me, I have over thirty years of ELF monitoring of this, but I don’t think that anyone told the medical staff at the diagnostic facility about that.
While I lay there on the rack, images started to flood my mind. Each image enveloped my entire visual cortex and paused there for five seconds. Apparently, it took from three to five seconds to determine how my body would react to these images.
It began easily enough with “soft” images. There were pictures of trees, plants, zoo animals, ocean scenes, fish, clouds and other nice and pleasant imagery. Then, they slowly started to insert pictures of girls. Some clothed, some in bathing suits, and some nude.
In short order the pictures started to diversify.
Some were pictures of thin girls, some were girls with large mammary breasts, and some were pictures of girls with long legs. Some pictures included children, while other pictures included animals.
Over a short period of time, the pictures became more diversified. There were pictures of piles of shit, urine and feces. There were pictures depicting torture, rotting things, and pictures of extreme violence.
There were totally repugnant pictures and pictures of absolute pleasantry. All of my reactions to each of these pictures were then assigned a series of values and were mapped out on a grid.
The grid was a graphical display of my overall sexual interests.
In it, various characteristics, regarding my heartbeat, electro-biological chemistry, and physical reactions were mapped and put down upon the display. For me, as I lay there listening in on the discussions surrounding me, was rather plain and boring. I had a sharp “drop off”, as most normal humans would, regarding death, violence, feces, and odd sexual acts.
I also had a normal transition of interest from beautiful, to cute, to attractive, to stimulating. This gradient needed to be present, for that defines discernment. This is a characteristic of a normal childhood, and thankfully I had a solid grounding in that area.
I had no sexual interest in children, but rather a kind of parental protectiveness seemed to emerge during the evaluation. I had no interest in pursuing anything or a desire to “still” or “hold” the image. This was indicative of a general apathy towards possession and possessiveness. That was certainly not a trait of a sexual predator.
I held strong emphatic reactions that clearly showed that I was not a sociopath, nor did I exhibit odd thinking or reasoning patterns in my brain that were indicative of mental instability in one form or the other. I was surprisingly normal, perhaps a little bit sexually conservative (maybe even embarrassingly puritan in some ways), but aside from that rather normal.
Anyways, that what they said, and I heard them say that. How would you like to be classified as “Puritan” in your sexual interests?
Furthermore, the graph most certainly showed areas in which I had a great deal of sexual attractiveness towards. Not every man is the same, and for me, it appeared, that I had a strong preference in curvy woman with large chests and long legs. I was also fond of wide shoulders (?) for some unknown reason.
My tests showed a predilection towards woman who would be able to have these physical features, which involved girls as young as in their early 20’s, and as old as I was. But there was a rather severe drop off as they approached the age that I would consider to be my daughter. At that point, a different series of emotions came into play with were of a parental protective nature.
All in all, my tests were normal.
In comparison with others who went through this evaluation with me, (apparently) my graph was smaller and more limiting. Others were not so disturbed by certain kinds of sexual positions, or actions. They also tended to be “more open minded” about same-sex fetishes than I was.
They said that I was “bland” and “boring”. How would you like to be considered to be “plan vanilla”, “bland and boring” regarding sex?
My graph was indicative of a rather defined line that separates repulsion, neutrality, and attraction. For me, my graph was indicative of “traditionally oriented sexual attractiveness”. In no way was there any hint of an interest in child porn, sex with a child, voyeurism, necrophilia, bondage, S &M, observing violent sexual fantasies, nor anything related to sex outside of a more or less male to female orientation. I was just conventional; plain and ordinary.
This test lasted approximately five hours. And the conclusions were final, and without question. I was [1] not a threat to society, nor was [2] I at all interested in any kind of sexual activity with a child. It also showed that [3] I was not violent or enjoyed violence in any way.
Upon conclusion of this part of the test, there was an apparent break, and I was able to lay back and relax. I just listen to them discuss my brain and interests. Apparently, somehow they were able to see the images that they placed in my visual cortex. And they commented on them. Some would say that the picture was funny, or disgusting, or really attractive. It was an interesting dialog, but I didn’t care. I was tired, as it took a lot of work to endure the test, and I was very tired, as well as very hot. During the test, the probes in my brain generate heat, and unless I am able to cool down, it could kill me. So I just laid back, and drifted off to sleep with my head buried into my soaking-wet pillow.
What did I recall?
Since it was now determined that I was not a danger to anyone, and thus the sole remaining procedure remaining was to retire my probes.
This should have been rather easy, you would think.
You would just turn the “on” switch to “off”. But that isn’t the way it worked, and for me, it was neither simple, nor easy.
In order to first shut down the probes, there had to be a [1] complete reawakening of brain, followed by a [2] downloading (of sorts) of what I knew and experienced, followed by a [3] re-compartmentalization of memories. This was to be conducted in a certain way, because if not done so properly, certain memories would persist, while others would be erased.
Thus a dangerous condition could inadvertently be created.
It could possibly create a person with patches of memories, and skill sets, all completely out of their proper context. And that is a dangerous precedent. Just like “Nomad” in the Star Trek series…
The Changeling (1968)
.
Ye Gods! I might relive the “The Changeling (1967)” episode from Star Trek. Where some memories that I should of forgotten be remembered, and others that I should of remembered be forgotten. The reality of a bastardized memory stack was a frightening possibility.
A malfunctioning space probe, Nomad, comes aboard the Enterprise, mistaking Kirk for its creator. The half-earth, half-alien probe thinks it has orders to sterilize imperfect life-forms, and the crew has to find a way to keep it under control before it kills them.
Its original orders were to find life-forms, but it had merged with another probe whose orders were to sterilize imperfect minerals.
When combined, and placed out of the proper context, a hybrid creature; Nomad, was created. Whose goal and objective was the perverted “Find life-forms, and sterilize all imperfect life-forms”.
-https://www.hulu.com/watch/283817
The second task took all day, and began right after breakfast the next day. Again, like I had been all week, I was provided a large dose of medication to control me, and I just went to my rack and lay down.
This was an important exercise, as all my core Core Kit #1 interlocks were removed, and all my memories were made accessible to me.
From an observer in the barracks, nothing at all was going on, but that was completely illusionary. To everyone else, I was alone, lying down on my rack. But in my mind a pure cascade of thoughts and images flooded my mind.
Not only that, but the activation protocol was engaged. That meant a full power ELF field, and a constant and steady background cadence was present to my ears.
A steady and constant cadence was played in my head. It was constant and it lasted for the ten days or so that I was being evaluated.
While I understood the purpose of the pastel map and the movement of the reticle, I still did not have any recollection of my memories about the ELF Core Kit. That would only come about once my memories were unlocked.
To unlock my memories a sequence of commands must be issued from the control booth external to my body. I cannot do that myself.
The diagnostic screen appeared briefly. In a flash I could see the screen overlaid in my field of sight. I watched as the icons were clicked and activated in quick succession. Whomever was doing this was quite skilled in doing so. This overlay and the resultant operation passed away quickly, perhaps under three minutes, and then the screen disappeared. Then everything went calm again.
And then, slowly, one by one, (all the rest of) my memories returned.
Unlike the memory retrieval at NAS China Lake, this was a much more arduous process. The reasons for this, perhaps, were many. For one, a much larger period of time had elapsed. When I was at China Lake, a period of around three years had elapsed.
But at this time, a far larger period of time had elapsed and this period of time was over thirty years.
As time wears on, the memories become embedded deeper and deeper in the records of one’s past. As such, it becomes comparatively more difficult to retrieve them. Additionally, other memories, not repressed, crowd out the significance of the repressed memories. Thus, a sorting and prioritizing technique must be employed by the agent to figure out exactly what was transpiring, what had transpired, and why. This was not easy, and as the pieces to the huge puzzle of my life started to come together, I was at times amazed, shocked, and disgusted as to the kind of life that I had lived.
Pieces fell into place. Connections were made, and mysteries that I wondered about (Like “why did I do that?) all started to make sense.
As these memories flooded my consciousness, somehow the operators were able to observe the snatches that would flutter by in my visual cortex. I was being monitored, and as these memories arose others would view them, and at times comment on them.
From my perspective
At this time, the world that I was involved is was quite unique and unusual. What I was experiencing; what I was seeing and hearing was oblivious to the outside world. I was trapped inside a world of my own.
My brain saw and heard sounds and visions that only I could see and experience.
In my mind, I could [1] hear the chatter from the ELF control staff. I could [2] listen to my handlers, the [3] program managers and the [4] operators at their stations. It was like I was on speaker-phone and I could (judging from the volume and the echoes in the room) determine their relative positions within the ELF control room.
I could also [5] overhear the local medical staff in the diagnostic facility talking about me to the [6] “experts” flown in to evaluate me.
I could also [7] hear the rest of the barracks, which was now just beginning to be repopulated with other inmates. All of this confusion passed through my senses with an [8] underlying “awakening” cadence that was put in place by my handlers.
Reactions of the others
Of course, to everyone else in the barracks I was a raving loon. I was talking to myself, conducting focusing exercises to center upon the feducials. I looked like a complete nut. But something else was also happening. Others were listening to me. The doctors and the guards were listening in on the chatter with my handlers. Some of the inmates were also listening in.
It was because of these alert few that directed the attention of the other inmates to what was going on and to whom I really was. In a short period of time, almost the entire barracks knew who I really was, and why I was truly and actually there.
This was absolutely unexpected. No, not everyone knew. But there was a significant number of both guards, and inmates that knew that I was a “special” inmate and that I had a “special” background.
They also knew that I was there for reasons other than why I was there “officially”.
To show their respect for me they would honor me. To be honest, the method of showing honor to me was alien to my experiences. They were obvious respectful gestures, but I had never experienced them before.
Respect and other strange observances
All through the day, various inmates, and guards as well, would come near to my cell. They would stand next to the door.
Everyone (in the barracks) knew what was going on. They all knew that I was being “retired” or in prison for some kind of special government operation. As such, they all showed me respect.
They wouldn’t salute or anything like that, but they would stand tall with their back straight. They would hold a small torn piece of paper in their palm. In that paper were three letters. The initials of the person honoring me. They then folded the small ½ inch long sized scrap of paper into a butterfly shape and softly blow it towards my cell.
This went on all day. And when I returned back from dinner at the chow hall, I found that someone had taken all the tiny slips of paper, now numbering 60 or 70 and put them in the grill vent in my cell. I can tell you that while it was certainly an uncomfortable experience being in prison, and getting accused like I was, to have this level of respect and support was meaningful and import to me.
It touched me.
(I do not know the origins of this ritual. I have never seen it before, and it was not part of my training in the Navy. But the standardization of it was suggestive of some kind of military ritual, of which I knew nothing of. To this day it remains a mystery to me. How could dozens of strangers all act uniformly towards me in this way? I do not know.)
During this entire time period, as long as the cadence was on, and they were reviewing my experiences, I tended to act, talk, and walk differently. It was as if I was still in training in the Navy. It was like I was a drill instructor or some other kind of military automation. I couldn’t help it. I automatically took on that persona, and that is who I was and what I was during this period of time.
Scrolling through my memories
I am sure that there were a lot of interesting memories tucked away inside my brain. After all, I not only operated as a normal human, but I also shared my experiences with an entangled drone.
All of my memories for the over thirty years that I was entangled are now shared experiences and shared memories.
But, what they wanted to do was look for specific memory sets, isolate them, and sever my access to them.
When the command to unlock it was received, the memories came back in a flood. Apparently, the longer the memories lie dormant within the brain the more painful they are to extract them.
Correction. It is not necessarily a painful experience, than it is a jarring one.
For with each memories comes with its own associated emotions. The memories of what it was like in flight school, as well as the time of being a newlywed at China Lake all flooded my body.
To handle this flood of memories the beat tempo was broadcast to my auditory center. This helped me to handle the memories and emotions. There were different kinds of tempos. This was a military march beat with underlining references towards the song that I selected as my favorite song back when I first signed up into the program.
This tempo caused me to maintain a military bearing just like I maintained it at NAS NASC Pensacola, Florida. Of course, the rest of the inmates thought that I was a little bonkers. But the team who was deprogramming me knew exactly what was going on at the time.
Reviewing the “Discovery” paperwork
In Law, “discovery” is the exchange of legal information and known facts of a case. Think of discovery as obtaining and disclosing the evidence and position of each side of a case so that all parties involved can decide what their best options are – move forward toward trial or negotiate an early settlement.
-What Is Discovery? – Legal Meaning
Critical to the identification of whether I was a criminal or not, was a reviewing of the “Discovery” documentation that was used by the DA and prosecutor to convict me.
Correction. They did not use it to convict me. They threatened me with 80 years in Prison that would be determined by a panel of Jurists from rural Arkansas.
They offered me a plea bargain of 6-9 months in home detention and my record expunged if I agreed to possession of two images. I did so. And the DA used sign language to raise the sentence with the Judge.
The purpose of the prosecutor is to prosecute and to win a conviction. He has no motivation or concern about the real truth or the causes of any given crime event.
His job and the ability to rise within his career is based solely in his ability to convict others.
A “Discovery” is a document listing the findings by the detective on the case.
Like the prosecutor, the detective has no real stake in finding out the relative truth in a crime. Their purpose is only to support the conviction by the prosecutor. The detective generates a document called a “Discovery” that lists the findings. My “Discovery” was about 60 pages long. In it was a boiler plate background on how most Child Predators were loners and who had antisocial tendencies, but could adequately fit into society.
My “discovery” consisted of two cover pages directly concerning my findings, and 58 pages of “boiler plate” data regarding sexual predatory behaviors. There was nothing about my mental history, or background at all in it.
Only the first two pages in the 60 page document listed anything directly relating to me. In that there were [1] the references to the two pictures that a doctor, working for the Arkansas Police, claimed was a person that could be under the age of 18. It also discussed [2] that I had thousands of porn pictures on the CDROMS in the storage box. But they were not illegal. They also (curiously) made note that I had [3] pictures of German military tanks and weapons from World War II, and that this was indicative of the possibility that I had neo-Nazi leaning tendencies.
Compared my known histories
They compared my known histories and reviewed my training. To my surprise I also had memory blackout of various paramilitary course, and education.
This was certainly curious. As even while I was entangled I had completely forgot about all subsequent training.
One was involved in the “Louisiana Swamp Rats”. This was, at one time, a hard-core para-military training center.
Others discussed my advanced education, and still others related some of the various minor tasks that I was called upon to do, that weren’t so minor after all. My favorite quote was when one of the observers said that I was part mountain man, part bear, and part Einstein. That comment, well, it made my day.
They made many such statements; but I am afraid that I cannot remember all of them.
Because of the inadequacies in the Discovery, the team went inside my memories to extract what I had actually done. This was an interesting experience, where they probed the innermost workings of my mind.
They compared my physical reactions to ELF generated pulses. Trying to trigger any sort of aggressive or antisocial tendencies. Of course, since I was previously vetted, none could be found, so my case was closed.
And I was assigned a low threat level.
I was assigned a level #1 threat level.
Running the software routines
“I'm lonely, he thought.Distantly he heard soft, high voices.He turned his eyes in upon a vision. There was a group of hills from which flowed a clear river, and in the shallows of that river, sending up spray, their faces shimmering, were the beautiful women. They played like children on the shore. And it came to Forester to know about them and their life. They were nomads, roaming the face of this world as was their desire. There were no highways or cities, there were only hills and plains and winds to carry them like white feathers where they wished. As Forester shaped the questions, some invisible answerer whispered the answers. There were no men. These women, alone, produced their race. The men had vanished fifty thousand years ago. And where were these women now? A mile down from the green forest, a mile over on the wine stream by the six white stones, and a third mile to the large river. There, in the shallows, were the women who would make fine wives, and raise beautiful children.Forester opened his eyes. The other men were sitting up."I had a dream."They had all dreamed."A mile flown from the green forest a mile over on the wine stream . . . ."". . . by the six white stones," said Koestler.". . . and a third mile to the large river," said Driscoll, sitting there.Nobody spoke again for at moment. They looked at the silver rocket standing there in the starlight"Do we walk or fly, Captain?"
Things were very weird for me.
I cannot express how unusual this situation was for me. Not only from the environment surrounding me, but also from what my mind and emotions were experiencing. It is hard to describe, but when a person’s mind, memories and thoughts are being accessed what one experiences (at that time) becomes “outside the normal”.
What happens, is that the mind tries to piece together, in a logical fashion, what is occurring. It does this even if what is occurring is illogical. The end result becomes a confused jumble of events, sequences of events, emotions, sensory impressions and memories that are all entangled in a huge mess of confusion.
I had amazingly vivid dreams, and a convoluted mixture of past memories, shared drone experiences, current events, and embedded program “movies” or “subroutines” all flooded my mind.
Trying to piece them all together was rather impossible and difficult.
I will not relate here what I experienced. For, as far as I am concerned, they are nothing less than visual hallucinations. And, thus have no useful purpose in this extracted dialog. Because of this, I will refrain from relating the fantastical impressions that I experienced during this time.
They serve no benefit to the reader.
That being stated, there are other aspects of this period that are truly significant. These are themselves worthy of discussion. What is interesting are a number of events that are special “retirement” programs.
These routines ran in my mind with [1] audio, [2] visual, and [3] tactile impressions.
The senses of taste and smell were absent from these experiences.
That means that I was living or reliving these experiences as if they were actually happening. When, I knew that they were not real at all, but rather programs that ran inside my brain.
So…
Once the “on” switch was set to “off”, a set number of closure routines rain inside my brain. These routines were amazing as it was as if I were experiencing them physically. Not that I was reliving a memory, or watching a television show.
I have speculated that these routines ran from a source outside of my human consciousness and that their operation was directed through the controllers at the ELF facility that was decommissioning me. But this is speculation only. I say this because I do not believe that the probes had any kind of software that met these stated capabilities.
There were a number of such programs.
I can recall about 12 in total. I will relate three of the most significant. One must keep in mind that these are the retirement events based upon what responses that I gave on the questionnaire before I entered the dimensional field. A person with different answers would of experienced different software programs.
Or, alternatively, the same program, but with different variables and emotional content. This is all speculation on my part.
The programs that I shall relate here are;
The gathering of the retirement programs
The promise of a new life awaits me upon retirement.
The retirement of the “spirit of a Marine” (within the hilt of a sword).
Needless to explain, all these experiences are extremely personal and private.
As such, it will be very difficult for me to relate the emotional impact running these confusing program events were to me. But I will do my best to relate them.
The names and titles that I provide here are my own.
Please understand that these programs are designed to evoke mental and emotional responses used to satiate the need for curiosity and to add full and complete closure to my experiences in a friendly and caring way.
Even though those Fuckers turned me into a sex offender and gave me five years at hard labor.
The closure subroutines are not meant to hurt, harm, or belittle me in any way. But rather, are intended to close out my role comfortably and with compassion, all the time meeting the overall goal of maintaining program secrecy.
The reader must keep in mind that someone had to write these programs that did these things. Someone had to conceive of them, and someone had to design and implement them. They did not just “pop up” out of nowhere.
Shutting off system access, memories, and communication links.
The gathering of the retirement programs
It was going to be a long night.
I knew it, you know. It was one of those feelings that one gets when they watch a darkness brewing out off in the ocean. It was eerie. It was a kind of gathering of clouds, metaphorically speaking. Soft but ultimately a foreboding of impending doom.
During this entire two week period the field was never turned off. It remained on, and I was under the constant onslaught of its effects. It affected me in various ways. But I could certainly tell when an individual program ran. This is because the implanted probes would switch on various parts of my brain and interact with them in clearly unnatural, and often uncomfortable, ways.
What is explained at this point might be a bit confusing. I describe what my visual cortex “saw” and how I felt during this period. To everyone else in the prison facility, I was lying alone on my rack in the tiny cell. (Mumbling, perhaps yelling… certainly trembling and sweating.) One needs to keep this in mind. As all the events that are now described happened only in my mind and were oblivious to everyone except those handlers who were monitoring my mind and watching the programs interact with my brain.
Thus, I knew that I was entering a program when suddenly my visual cortex switched on and my audio and tactile responses became noticeably different.
In this case, what would best be described as a lucid dream, with full auditory, tactile and visual stimulation flooded my mind.
It was, from my point of view, nearly indistinguishable from reality.
Nearly, does not mean totally, and to this end I want to convey to the reader that from my point of view it was like participating in a 6D movie. It was real enough, but easily distinguishable from reality.
The best way to describe this was as if I was inside a “holodeck” much like was in the Star-Trek series. It was just a large dark chamber that seemed real enough to me.
A holodeck, in the fictional Star Trek universe, is a simulated reality facility located on star-ships and star-bases. Most holodeck programs shown in the episodes run in first person "subjective mode", in which the user actively interacts with the program and its characters. The user may also employ third-person "objective mode", in which he or she is "apart" from the actual running of the program and does not interact with it.
A holodeck, in the fictional Star Trek universe, is a simulated reality facility located on star-ships and star-bases.
.
I found myself standing inside a large dark chamber.
I couldn’t see the extent of the chamber as everything was dark and black. Where I was standing was illuminated in some way and showed the presence of twelve individuals or life-size Figures.
These figures stood frozen without moving. Like large chess pieces.
Everything was in breath-taking full color and absolutely sparking clear and crisp. The twelve figures stood in two rows of six individuals. One row of six stood in mute silence facing the other row of six. I stood in the middle between both of the rows. I looked forward at them. The row to my right held six individuals and the row to my left held six individuals.
I was able to walk around them and look at them.
One was a Marine. He had my face, but stood taller than I did, and was stronger than I was. He had the wrinkles and scars of many a battle and of nights of restless vigilance. He reminded me a little bit of the gunnery sergeant (played by Clint Eastwood) from the movie “Heartbreak Ridge”.
Gunny Highway.
.
Across from him was a large Mantid. It was easily seven feet tall, and reminded me of the alien from the movie series Aliens. It was not (at all) representative of the Mantids that I worked with as a drone commander. This one was much larger and tended to be a bit more terrifying. It also had a larger caprice than what I was familiar with. It had a triangular head with two large eyes.
The Alien film franchise (also known as Aliens) is a science fiction horror film series consisting of four installments, focusing on Lieutenant Ellen Ripley (played by Sigourney Weaver) and her battles with an extraterrestrial life form, commonly referred to as the "Alien". Produced by 20th Century Fox, the series started with the 1979 film Alien, which led to three movie sequels, as well as numerous books, comics and video game spin-offs.
There was a naval officer in dress whites. He had my face, was clean shaven, and held the rank of Commander. He had an impressive array of ribbons, and had signs of greying at the temples. He seemed to be calm and quiet with an easy smile and friendly demeanor.
This version of “me” was different than the Marine version of “me”. They indicated different lives that they lead. And how they both turned out after living those lives.
The Dress White uniform consists of a stand-collar white tunic, white trousers, and white dress shoes. Rank for officers is displayed on shoulder boards for males and on the sleeve cuffs for females, while CPO rank insignia is worn on the collar for both sexes. Service dress white includes ribbons, whereas full dress white includes ribbons and medals. This uniform is informally called "Chokers", due to the stand-collar.
"Greying at the temples" means; had white hair around the front near the ears.
Well, he looked something like this. Only with a different rank.
.
There was a scientist / intellectual version of “me”. He wore a tattered button-down sweater with elbow patches, and pockets. He had bifocal wire-rim glasses on, and was balding. He had a white beard and stood there petting a large beautiful Maine-coon cat. Strangely, he wore a pair of slippers and was smoking a pipe.
I wonder if these characters were all composed of images that I have collected in my subconscious (such as Albert Einstein) and then juxtaposed into my image stream.
Frayed. Comfortably worn and a little frayed; as what one would expect from a favorite item of clothing that has been worn extensively.
Scientist.
.
There was an archaeologist version of myself. He was quite stereotypical; attired in a pith helmet, dirty khaki shirt and riding britches with a pair or brown long (horse riding) boots. He was thin, and looked a little gaunt. He was well tanned, and had a week’s stubble of hair on his chin.
An archaeologist wearing a pith helmet on a “dig”.
.
There was a Type-II gray drone. It was slightly transparent. And it looked like it was composed of <redacted>. Which were somewhat similar to the lines of futuristic code shown on the movie “The Matrix”. It was taller than I remembered it to be. The color was also a <redacted> complexion that I was accustomed to. (Odd. I do not know why this was so.)
This was the strangest figurine in the line-up.
There was a beautiful Asian girl. She was deeply tanned, and looked like Polynesian mix of part Polynesian and part Japanese. She was, perhaps, Indonesian or Malaysian in racial makeup. She was short with an hourglass shape, shapely legs and dark liquid eyes set deep with a cute nose and deep black hair. She wore a simple sarong with bare feet, and holding a basket of fruit. The fruit was of a tropical bent, being mostly durian, dragon fruit, pineapples, bananas, guava, and coconuts. She had a red passion flower in her hair.
(So stereotypical, but also so lovely….)
Yeah. She sort of looked a little like this lass.
.
I won’t go into the full range of figures that stood there before me. Each one represented a different series of memories and had a special role in my life.
While most of what we were involved in was related to closure and suppression of the memories, other programs served different functions and purposes. (They were but the representations of various programs. As such they maintained a purposeful stereotypical significance that somehow “plugged into” or connected to my sub-consciousness.)
You all will see the various roles that they held in part 2. Each special subroutine had a role and it was used to “condition” me properly so that I can exist MAJestic in a healthy way, and not be scared for life due to an abrupt and improperly conducted ELF shut-down sequence.
In truth, I endured the entire software routines. But, for purposes of simplification, as well as to avoid reliving the entire strenuous event, I have decided to limit recalling this event. Instead I am just going to relate only two of the twelve programs.
The first [1] is the program concerning the Asian female. I call this subroutine promise, the “promise of a new life after retirement”.
The second [2] is the complete closure ceremony. I call this the “retirement of the spirit of a Marine”.
I will ignore the other ten programs, as they would probably devote an entire book in their own right to relate.Maybe I’ll write another post on them later on. But for now, it’s way too much.
This is the end of part one
To see the rest of this section you need to go off to the MAJestic 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.
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Throughout history, nations rise when there is righteous leadership that cared for its citizens' welfare and do the greater good. When they are corrupt and self-serving, those nations fall. Learn from history because we live in a world governed by cause and effect. History will repeat itself.
-Tom Tan
But no one is addressing this enormous “elephant in the room”. They are all off in some la-la-land of finger pointing outside of America. The Liberal Democrats point their fingers at Russia and blame them for the mess that America is today. The Conservative Republicans point their fingers to China, and blame them. Looked from the outside inwards, you all look like crazed maniacs.
Republicans have been gushing hatred over China, especially since Trump lost the election.
Yes, there are the obvious reasons this board has mentioned many times but it seems even more deep seated. It's as if people like Laura Ingraham are addicted to their hatred. She's obsessed w/China and uses China like a Club to try to discredit anyone to the left of Adolf Hitler. I love it when she then screams about the 'Cancel Culture'.
I look at her twitter feed and she's totally unhinged. She talks about China like a deprived drug addict who finally found their stash. I feel like I'm missing something.
-Posted by: Christian J. Chuba | Feb 11 2021 20:04 utc | 8
Oh, but you all know all of that, don’t you?
Why is “democracy” so valuable?
It’s heavily promoted (don’t you know) that one-person, one-vote system is the pinnacle of “freedom” and “liberty” in the world. Which is rather strange as the founders of the United States said the absolute opposite.
And people are looking at these various systems of governance with a keen eye. Maybe there needs to be some changes they wonder…
Daniel Bell has put forward his views in favor of China's political meritocracy... against the one person one vote (Western Democracy model) as a mode of selection for political leaders.
He has done this in two books.
The China Model: Political Meritocracy and the Limits of Democracy
Princeton University Press, 2015. ISBN 9781400865505.Dean of the School of Political Science and Public Administration at Shandong University and professor at Tsinghua University (Schwarzman College and Department of Philosophy). He was born in Montreal, educated at McGill and Oxford, has taught in Singapore, Hong Kong and Shanghai, and has held research fellowships at Princeton's University Center for Human Values, Stanford's Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioural Sciences and Hebrew University's Department of Political Science.
Here:
https://youtu.be/e63ro_suARA
Crazy, Crazy Government
The war machine is still at full throttle and has been for more than two decades. Do you realize there are now adults who have never lived during a time when the United States was not at war with a Middle Eastern nation? We are at war with Eurasia, or is it Eastasia?
It’s both, and it projects to continue for decades.
When Bill Kristol watches Star Wars movies, he roots for the Galactic Empire. The leading neocon recently caused a social media disturbance in the Force when he tweeted this predilection for the Dark Side following the debut of the final trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Kristol sees the Empire as basically a galaxy-wide extrapolation of what he has long wanted the US to have over the Earth: what he has termed "benevolent global hegemony."
Kristol, founder and editor of neocon flagship magazine The Weekly Standard, responded to scandalized critics by linking to a 2002 essay from the Standard's blog that justifies even the worst of Darth Vader's atrocities. In "The Case for the Empire," Jonathan V. Last made a Kristolian argument that you can't make a "benevolent hegemony" omelet without breaking a few eggs.
-SOTT
The elected elites love war at home, too. They are fomenting war among the American people, and it is breaking out. As surely as class warfare is behind the riots in the Netherlands, it is on the cusp of erupting here. It’s a strategy of divide the people into little groups. Then have the groups fight each other.
Americans are intentionally divided into groups to attack each other.
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The elites play classes off one another. They denounce the rich as evil, and the media and the inured play along, hating all “billionaires,” as if Capitalism didn’t afford them the opportunity to have the very platforms upon which they complain.
The elites stealthily promote their lie in this way, lumping into a group both hard-working and innovative entrepreneurs who made it by the sweat of their brow and the crony capitalists they created themselves, and then call them all “rich” as if it’s an epithet.
Among the many misperceptions of the American Revolution and the resulting constitutional order is the belief that these admittedly monumental achievements created a self-sustaining system of governance. Even in times of chaos and upheaval such as those we are living through today, we have always at some level convinced ourselves that ours is a system that can withstand most any assault, foreign or domestic. We lean on a legend – that the bundle of constitutional rights guaranteed us and our revolutionary system of checks and balances will be enough by themselves to sustain liberty over the fullness of time.
It’s been said, regarding any memorable occurrence, that if there’s truth and legend, go with the legend because it’s always a better story. But the truth is, while we expect that our institutions will hold under duress, Thomas Jefferson himself – among others in the founding generation – was doubtful the great experiment in liberty attained through blood, sweat, and tears would last more than a generation. He was skeptical of the sustainability of a system in which 51% of the people may take away the rights of the other 49%. Jefferson was expanding on the sentiments of fellow founder Benjamin Franklin, who when asked what form of government the framers of the Constitution had settled on, famously replied, “a republic – if you can keep it.”
-Liberty Nation
They take an arbitrary monetary figure, pulled out of thin air, and set it as the Rubicon. Cross it and somehow you were luckier than most, got a break someone else never got. Yachts and airplanes are demonized, while the elected elites vacation on yachts bought by others and are ferried about in private jets paid for by others.
They accept “campaign contributions” from Wall Street, then, with a wink and nod, demonize Wall Street. Then, they print billions of dollars to prop up Wall Street; rewarding it for bringing down the economy. This keeps the contributions flowing and themselves in power.
And when people get angry about it, and march on Washington, an example is made of them. As an effigy and as a warning to others…
America 2021.
.
It’s all a racket.
They demonize Big Oil, Big Medicine, Big Pharma and Big Tobacco (which deserve to be demonized, surely) yet they enrich those industries with special subsidies and tax breaks and laws passed to their benefit. Their puppets in office who create those privileges are rewarded with more campaign cash and, when their time on Capitol Hill is done, cushy jobs lobbying their replacements.
Their policies destroy the middle class.
The middle class no longer exists.
.
They preach fairness and set their pawns up as the arbiters of fairness. They create a parasite class with an entitlement mentality. Then they work to grow the parasite class to keep themselves in power by taking more and more from the wages of the middle class.
Let’s look at America, the nation of an “untouchable” oligarchy that treats the American citizenry as the sheep that serve them. Let’s remind ourselves just what we wave our “red, white, and blue” flags up high for…
Lace the air with LSD
This article was contributed by Mike Jay. It is reprinted as found. All credit to the author, and note that any editing involved went towards fitting this into the MM format.
It was during the fallout from Watergate that the American public first heard of MK-Ultra, the most notorious of the secret mind control programmes that the CIA ran through the 1950s and 1960s.
After Nixon’s men were caught breaking into the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee in June 1972, Richard Helms, then director of the CIA, refused to help with the cover-up. In February 1973, after his re-election, Nixon fired Helms and replaced him with James Schlesinger. In an initiative to regain public trust as the crisis escalated, Schlesinger announced he was ‘determined that the law shall be respected’ and that anyone aware of illegal CIA activities was obliged to report them.
Nixon was finally forced to resign in August 1974. His successor, Gerald Ford, made Nelson Rockefeller, a reliable intelligence insider, his vice president, and asked him to produce a report on the CIA’s alleged historical abuses.
Rockefeller’s report was issued in June 1975. For the most part it was vague and non-incriminating, but it did conclude that the CIA had in the past conducted ‘plainly unlawful’ investigations, including the testing of ‘potentially dangerous drugs on unsuspecting United States citizens’.
There were references to secret sites and experiments on prison inmates, and some passages that begged explanation; in one incident, ‘an employee of the Department of the Army’ had crashed to his death through a 13th-storey hotel window after being dosed with LSD. But the commission had apparently reached a dead end. All records had been destroyed, and ‘all persons directly involved … were either out of the country and not available for interview or were deceased.’
Seymour Hersh, who had already written a front-page story for the New York Times about the CIA’s illegal domestic surveillance programme, determined that the man who had fallen from the window was Frank Olson, a chemist employed by the CIA. Hersh disclosed his findings to Olson’s family, who convened a press conference and announced that they would be suing the agency.
Ford’s chief of staff, Donald Rumsfeld, was alerted to the danger by his deputy, Dick Cheney. The Olsons received a settlement of $750,000 in exchange for dropping their legal action, and were invited to the White House, where Ford made them a public apology.
As the Rockefeller report foundered, a Senate commission under the Idaho member Frank Church dredged deeper in the CIA’s records. The files were heavily redacted but one name surfaced repeatedly: Sidney Gottlieb, who appeared to have been the director of a secret chemical division within the agency.
Gottlieb, it turned out, was now in India, where he and his wife were spending their retirement working as volunteers at a leprosy hospital. The Church Committee summoned him to testify, which he did in camera, under an alias and with a guarantee of legal immunity; the press was told that no photographs of him existed.
It was the Church Committee’s report in April 1976 that brought MK-Ultra to public attention. The programme, which ran from the early 1950s through to the mid-1960s, had investigated forms of mind control that might be deployed on civilian populations.
A particular interest had been taken in LSD, which was tested on such ‘expendable’ populations as prisoners and refugees, on the general public and, extensively, on the programme’s own agents.
Many of the subjects were dosed without their knowledge or consent – including Frank Olson, who had ‘leaped to his death’ in ‘what appeared to be a serious depression’ after his Cointreau was spiked with LSD at a CIA retreat. The Church Committee concluded that the full extent of MK-Ultra’s work, especially outside the US, would never be known, since records of it had been destroyed.
As it turned out, however, there was much more to come. In the late 1970s, John Marks, a journalist who specialised in intelligence matters, filed a Freedom of Information request that uncovered a trove of 16,000 documents, most of which hadn’t been sent for shredding because they were filed as financial records. In the course of examining thousands of invoices and bills of sale, Marks and his team of researchers unearthed some unexpected gems.
The diary of George Hunter White, a dead Federal Bureau of Narcotics agent, was particularly startling. White had worked as Gottlieb’s fixer in the underworlds of New York and San Francisco, conducting drug experiments on unknowing subjects in brothels or at parties he held in CIA safehouses.
In his diary, White wrote frankly about the corruption, drugs, sex and violence in which he happily participated: ‘Where else could a red-blooded American boy lie, cheat, rape and pillage with the sanction and blessing of the All Highest?’
This was not the CIA as the American public was encouraged to imagine it: a dapper Ivy League fraternity coolly dedicated to safeguarding the nation. The picture that emerged was of a game without rules, played recklessly and with impunity by, as Stephen Kinzer characterises it, a ‘cast of obsessed chemists, cold-hearted spymasters, grim torturers, hypnotists, electr0-shockers and Nazi doctors’.
With the publication in 1978 of Marks’s The Search for the Manchurian Candidate: The CIA and Mind Control, the story took up the position it has occupied ever since at the intersection of politics, conspiracy theory, psychology, drug culture, science fiction and espionage. Kinzer retells many of Marks’s stories, but organizes them around the fuller, though still partial, biographical picture of Gottlieb that has emerged since his death in 1999. The result is a bustling narrative that sets MK-Ultra in its institutional framework of federal government, the military and the intelligence services, swerving all the while between madcap farce and grim atrocity.
The story begins during the occupation of Germany at the end of the Second World War, when agents of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the forerunner to the CIA, discovered that the Nazis had been designing biological weapons such as anthrax bombs, and subjecting prisoners at Dachau and Buchenwald to experiments involving drugs, lethal pathogens, toxic gases and extremes of temperature. Some of this was exposed at the Nuremberg trials; OSS officers, meanwhile, were discreetly gathering research materials for their own purposes.
Nazi Party members were officially prohibited from entering the US, but arrangements were made under a secret programme codenamed Operation Paperclip to ‘bleach’ episodes involving slavery, torture and murder from the records of scientists who might be useful to US intelligence. More than seven hundred such scientists and engineers were quietly recruited to work at Camp Detrick, Maryland, headquarters of the US Army Biological Warfare Laboratories.
The OSS was abolished by Truman in 1945, the president having decided that the US didn’t need a secret intelligence agency in peacetime. But by 1947 he had changed his mind, and the CIA was formed.
The new agency began to undertake covert operations in Eastern Europe and paid close attention to the dramatic 1949 Soviet show trial of the Hungarian priest Cardinal József Mindszenty, in which Mindszenty confessed to absurd conspiracies such as attempting to steal the crown jewels and to re-establish the Austro-Hungarian empire, while swaying, staring blankly and reciting his testimony as if by rote. To those who knew him, it seemed as if Mindszenty had become a different person.
To the CIA, it was evidence that the Soviet Union had developed new techniques for personality modification and mind control. There were similar reports from China, where the Communist Party allegedly referred to such techniques as hsi nao, ‘washing the brain’.
In 1951, Allen Dulles, a former OSS officer, was appointed the CIA’s deputy director for plans. Dulles, who was convinced that the future would belong to the world power that could master the new ‘brainwashing’ technologies, was instrumental in shifting the agency’s research priorities from chemical and biological warfare to the inner battlefield of the mind. He had been one of the men responsible for drafting the National Security Act, the law that brought the CIA into being, permitting it to use ‘all appropriate methods’ in its operations. In 1950 the CIA had launched Project Bluebird to investigate the use of chemical and biological agents to control the minds of individuals.
When Dulles got hold of the programme, he renamed it Artichoke, and it was expanded to study the effects of exposure to gases, irradiation by infrared or ultraviolet light, high and low pressure environments, sonic torture, alteration of diet, electric shocks and a variety of psychological techniques, hypnosis chief among them.
The experiments were carried out on defectors, refugees and prisoners of war. These were the ‘expendables’ – people whose disappearance wouldn’t draw attention. The work was carried out at what would now be called ‘black sites’; it is in this period, as Kinzer points out, that the CIA began the habit of detaining people in other countries, beyond the reach of US law.
By early 1952 there were Artichoke teams in France, occupied Germany, Japan and South Korea; more were added later. Directives were issued specifying that interrogations be carried out in a ‘safe house or safe area’, with an adjoining room for recording equipment, and a bathroom, which might be found necessary thanks to the effects that ‘Artichoke techniques’ could have on subjects.
Kinzer tells the story of one site in particular, at Oberursel, a ‘sleepy German town’ north of Frankfurt. During the war the Nazis had used it as a transit camp for captured enemy pilots. The US army took it over in 1946, renamed it Camp King and used it for ‘special interrogations’, involving torture, beatings and drug injections, carried out by Counterintelligence Corps officers known as ‘rough boys’. The disposal of bodies was, one CIA officer recalled, ‘no problem’.
The ‘rough boys’ were too unrefined for Bluebird and Artichoke work. And the work was so secret that even Camp King wouldn’t do. In 1951 the CIA acquired a large house just a few miles away – Villa Schuster, named for the Jewish family that had lived there until the 1930s – and converted it for use by specialist teams flown over from the US to carry out their experiments without external supervision.
They did, however, benefit from the guidance of Camp King’s staff doctor, Walter Schreiber, the former surgeon general of the Nazi army, who had overseen research at concentration camps in which prisoners were frozen, injected with hallucinogens, and cut open to chart the progress of gangrene.
When he was given a contract to work in the US under Operation Paperclip (it didn’t work out, and after a scandal he ended up in Argentina), Schreiber was replaced at Camp King by another war criminal, Kurt Blome, the Nazis’ director of research into biological warfare, who had tested nerve gases and viruses on concentration camp inmates.
Sidney Gottlieb had been working for nearly ten years in government laboratories, and was a research chemist at Camp Detrick, when Dulles chose him to lead the CIA’s mind control research programme.
Gottlieb was born with a club foot, and had been rejected for war service; Kinzer writes that this had left him with a ‘store of pent-up patriotic fervour’. In other respects, he was a conspicuous outsider in the patrician ranks of the CIA: a Jewish immigrant from the Bronx who had made his way via City College, ‘the Harvard of the proletariat’, to a doctorate in biochemistry.
In private he was a nonconformist, living in a cabin in the Virginia backwoods with his wife, Margaret, who had grown up among Presbyterian missionaries.
As chief of the newly constituted Chemical Division of the Technical Services Staff, Gottlieb set about expanding and refining Dulles’s programme. The trials on ‘expendables’, in his estimation, had thus far produced nothing of value.
He set up new experiments to test the effects of electrical shocks, neurosurgery, sensory distortion and hypnosis, but his attention was increasingly taken up with mind-altering drugs.
His team tested cocaine on mental patients, heroin on students and cannabis on themselves; they also investigated amphetamines, mescaline, barbiturates and sodium pentothal, variously to disinhibit, disorientate, act as a ‘truth serum’, wipe memories or induce states of terror.
The experiments were carried out at Artichoke sites around the world. Kinzer quotes an earlier study which recorded Gottlieb’s trips to Tokyo, where four Japanese suspected of working for the Russians were injected with ‘a variety of depressants and stimulants’, then shot and dumped at sea; to Seoul, where 25 North Korean prisoners of war were given the same treatment; and to Munich, where ‘scores of “expendables”’ were given massive amounts of drugs in a series of failed experiments, after which they were ‘killed and their bodies burned’.
On becoming president in 1953, Eisenhower made Dulles director of the CIA. In a memo written at the time and since declassified, Dulles’s newly appointed chief of operations at the Directorate of Plans, Richard Helms, set out the terms of a new programme of research into ‘covert chemical and biological warfare’.
One aim in particular was singled out: ‘the development of a chemical material which causes a non-toxic aberrant mental state, the specific nature of which can be reasonably well predicted for each individual. This material could potentially aid in discrediting individuals, eliciting information, implanting suggestion and other forms of mental control.’ The programme was given a new codename: MK-Ultra.
Gottlieb’s budget was freed from the usual financial constraints, his research from external clearance or oversight. From time to time there were attempts to bring the CIA to heel. In 1953, for example, the US secretary of defence, Charles Wilson, issued a memo stating that all experiments involving volunteers required their consent, in compliance with the Nuremberg Code.
But this clearly wasn’t going to fly with the men in charge of finding ways to force individuals to provide information against their will, erase their memories or change their personalities.
In 1956 a proposal that Congress monitor CIA activities was firmly quashed by the White House. The assumption, as one CIA officer expressed it later, was: ‘We’re at war, so anything is justified. We’re smarter than most people, we operate in secret, we have access to intelligence, and we know what the real threats are. No one else does.’
From April 1953, when Dulles formally approved MK-Ultra, Gottlieb operated with impunity and on a much larger scale. Each of the programme’s many elements was called a ‘subproject’ and given a number.
Subproject 5 contracted a researcher at the University of Minnesota to test the use of hypnosis to induce anxiety, thwart lie detectors and increase cognitive capacity;
subproject 124 tested the use of carbon dioxide to induce trances;
subproject 63 studied the ‘use of alcohol as a social phenomenon’;
subproject 140, conducted at a hospital in San Francisco, tested the potential psychoactive effects of thyroid-related hormones. Scores of subprojects were devoted to investigating the use of drugs, alone or in combination with other techniques, to manipulate behaviour.
Kinzer has fun describing subproject 4: the use of a celebrity stage magician, John Mulholland, to teach CIA agents the techniques of misdirection and sleight of hand, the better to distract targets while drugging them. The manual Mulholland produced resurfaced in 2007, the ‘only full-length MK-Ultra document known to have survived intact’.
Artichoke work had been carried out in CIA safehouses abroad. Under MK-Ultra, the work was brought home. Two adjoining apartments were purchased at 81 Bedford Street in New York (subproject 3). George Hunter White was recruited by Gottlieb in June 1953 to trawl Greenwich Village posing ‘alternately as a merchant seaman or a bohemian artist’ and gathering up ‘drug users, petty criminals and others who could be relied on not to complain about what had happened to them’.
At one of the apartments in Bedford Street, White would serve his guests drinks surreptitiously laced with drugs, while in the other Gottlieb’s men filmed the effects through a mirror.
Two years later, in Operation Midnight Climax (subproject 42), White set up another safehouse in San Francisco, this time as a brothel, so that Gottlieb could gather evidence of ‘how people behave during and after sex’.
Gottlieb’s particular preoccupation was with a new psychoactive drug, LSD. (In 1951 he had asked Harold Abramson, a physician on his team, to supervise him in a self-experiment with the drug. Gottlieb reported ‘an out-of-bodyness … a sense of well-being and euphoria’.)
Some of his colleagues were interested in the potential effects of dispersing it on the battlefield, but Gottlieb believed LSD was the drug most likely, as Kinzer puts it, ‘to give initiates a way to control other human beings’ – a doomsday weapon in the new field of ‘brain warfare’. At first, there was a problem getting hold of it in sufficient quantities. A Swiss company, Sandoz, held the patent, and was said to be sitting on a stockpile of ten kilograms, a ‘fantastically large amount’.
In an attempt to corner the world’s supply of the drug, Dulles signed off on the $240,000 it would cost to buy everything Sandoz had, and sent two of his officers to Switzerland to bring it back. But when they arrived, it turned out the intelligence was wrong; the ten kilograms, they discovered, was actually ten grams. So Gottlieb still had a supply problem. He paid an American pharmaceutical company, Eli Lilly, to devise a way of synthesising LSD from scratch.
That was part of subproject 6.
It took longer than a year, but by the end of 1954 Eli Lilly was in a position to produce the drug in ‘tonnage quantities’. The CIA, Kinzer writes, ‘was its main customer’.
The research into the effects of LSD extended way beyond observations at 81 Bedford Street. Gottlieb found a willing partner in Harris Isbell, the director of research at the Addiction Research Centre in Lexington, Kentucky.
The hospital ‘functioned more like a prison’, Kinzer writes, with a cohort of mostly African American inmates – a new group of ‘expendables’ – on whom Isbell could experiment at will. Gottlieb was interested in how much LSD was needed to ‘shatter the mind …
…leaving a void into which new impulses or even a new personality could be implanted’.
Isbell’s patients were fed escalating doses, some of them for days and weeks on end. Another enthusiastic collaborator, Carl Pfeiffer at Emory University, as part of his work on subproject 47, administered LSD to twenty inmates of the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary nearly every day for 15 months. Robert Hyde at the Boston Psychopathic Hospital paid hundreds of students from Emerson, Harvard and MIT $15 each to drink a vial of liquid that might induce an ‘altered state’; in the aftermath, one of the subjects hanged herself in a clinic bathroom.
As well as these knowing allies – and thanks to sympathizers at the National Institute of Mental Health and a network of philanthropic foundations willing to act as fronts for the dispersal of agency money – Gottlieb was also able to recruit scientists who had no idea they were working for the CIA. Kinzer gives a list of more than thirty universities, institutes and hospitals, many of them among the most renowned in America, that received funding to carry out Gottlieb’s research programme.
In the late 1950s, MK-Ultra entered its most baroque phase, as Gottlieb was tasked with coming up with ways to dispose of foreign leaders. His Heath Robinson schemes included using an aerosol to lace the air with LSD in the Havana studio where Fidel Castro made his radio broadcasts, sprinkling Castro’s boots with thallium salts to make his beard fall out and contaminating his cigars with botulinum. At one point Gottlieb turned up in Congo with a poison kit, ready for use in a CIA plot to kill Patrice Lumumba. None of these plans came to fruition. They resembled the popular fiction with which they had always been in dialogue.
Kinzer points out that the CIA’s belief, in the late 1940s, that the communists had discovered the key to mind control, was conditioned by the ‘ubiquitous fantasy’ of this possibility in American popular culture, movies in particular, from film representations of Svengali, Dracula and Frankenstein, to George Cukor’s Gaslight (1944), the Sherlock Holmes movie The Woman in Green (1945) and Invasion of the Bodysnatchers (1956). The border between fiction and reality in the early years of the Cold War was blurred further as novelists began to mine the seam of science and skulduggery.
A pulp thriller from 1955, The Splintered Man, featured a CIA agent subjected to a nightmarish interrogation under LSD in East Berlin; it ended with an exhortation to US intelligence not to be left playing catch-up in the battle for the mind. The Bond movies led CIA officers to investigate the real-life feasibility of Q’s gadgets.
Richard Condon’s book The Manchurian Candidate (1959), in which a brainwashed sleeper agent is triggered by post-hypnotic suggestion to make an attempt on the life of an American presidential candidate, caught the zeitgeist best of all.
John Frankenheimer’s film adaptation came out in 1962; a year later it was seen as an eerie prefiguring of the Kennedy assassination. In fiction, the reality of covert mind control was taken for granted: if it wasn’t real, where was the story? Yet even as mind control technologies became a staple of popular culture in the 1960s, the faith of Gottlieb and his team in their potential was fading.
As the CIA psychologist John Gittinger later recalled, by 1963 ‘it was at least proven to my satisfaction that “brainwashing” so-called – as some kind of esoteric device where drugs or mind-altering kinds of conditions and so forth were used – did not exist … The Manchurian Candidate, as a movie, really set us back a long time, because it made something impossible look plausible.’
Privately, Gottlieb was at last coming to the same conclusion. He had abundantly demonstrated something that nobody had ever seriously doubted: that drugs, electroshock and other mental tortures could shatter minds and wipe memories. But he had been unable to put new personalities or memories in their place.
As Kinzer says, when Gottlieb started out on MK-Ultra, there were only two possibilities: ‘Either there is no such thing as a mind control drug or there is indeed such a thing and it is waiting to be discovered.’ The first was unthinkable: Gottlieb ‘had been hired to explore, not to give up’. So he pressed on through the 1950s with seemingly unshakeable conviction.
But ‘as of 1960,’ he later admitted in a memo, ‘no effective knockout pill, truth serum, aphrodisiac or recruitment pill was known to exist.’ Gottlieb’s master weapon, LSD, made subjects highly suggestible, but their beliefs and behaviors had proved impossible to control.
Yet his operations continued to expand. By the late 1960s he was running more behavioral laboratories than ever and his experiments were just as ambitious, not to say horrifying. In Saigon in 1968 a CIA team implanted electrodes in the brains of three Vietcong prisoners.
They were given knives and locked together in a room for a week, while the agents tried to rouse them to violence with radio signals from their remote-control handsets. They didn’t succeed. The team returned to Washington and, just as in Project Artichoke twenty years earlier, the prisoners were shot and burned.
Then came Watergate, the loss of Richard Helms’s protection, and John Schlesinger’s initiatives to detoxify the CIA. Before his departure in 1973, Helms ordered that all MK-Ultra’s records be destroyed. Gottlieb retired quietly later that year, first to his cabin in Virginia, then to India with Margaret to take up voluntary work. By 1977 the tide had turned decisively against him. During the Church Committee hearings the new director of the CIA, Stansfield Turner, assured Senator Edward Kennedy that ‘it is totally abhorrent to me to think of using a human being as a guinea pig …
I am not here to pass judgment on any of my predecessors, but I can assure you that this is totally beyond the pale.’ Summoned back to give evidence to the committee, Gottlieb testified that MK-Ultra had been a project ‘of the utmost urgency … to investigate whether and how it was possible to modify an individual’s behaviour by covert means’. Under cross-examination he displayed a vagueness that for some recalled Jozsef Mindszenty’s show trial, shot through with a streak of paranoia: ‘I feel victimised … My name is selectively left on released documents where all or most others are deleted.’
Gottlieb retreated to a large eco-home of his own design in the Blue Ridge mountains, where he died in 1999. He was harried by lawsuits to the end, and the cause of his death was never confirmed; many suspected suicide. There was no consensus about how, ultimately, he judged himself. To his neighbours, he seemed at peace: ‘an old hippie’, as one recalled, who rose early to meditate, wore sandals and cycled into town to collect his mail.
Others thought he must be in denial: it was as if he had ‘lost his former self’, the Washington Post reported, ‘walking backwards, sweeping his trail clean with a branch’. ‘Gottlieb was living as if he was in an ashram in India,’ wrote Seymour Hersh, who visited him in retirement. ‘He was trying to absolve himself, to expiate. If he’d been Catholic, he would have gone to a monastery.’ John Marks wasn’t so sure that Gottlieb was troubled by his conscience. ‘He was unquestionably a patriot,’ Marks told an obituarist. Gottlieb ‘never did what he did for inhumane reasons.
He thought he was doing exactly what was needed. And in the context of the time, who could argue?’ Kinzer wonders whether the contrast between his folksy lifestyle and his CIA work was as jarring as it seemed: both could be seen as expressions of a desire to live unconstrained by the usual rules and limits. Gottlieb, he concludes, ‘was not a sadist, but he might as well have been’.
Kinzer floats the argument, as others have before him, that MK-Ultra inadvertently gave rise to the psychedelic counterculture, as LSD ‘escaped from the CIA’s control’. The dots are there for all to join: Ken Kesey and Allen Ginsberg first took LSD in CIA-funded experiments; a covert CIA operative was present on the trip to Mexico in 1957 when Gordon Wasson encountered the ‘magic mushroom’; Gottlieb’s physician, Harold Abramson, became an early proponent of LSD psychotherapy. But there are other ways of telling the story that don’t involve the CIA at all. The most conspicuous influence on the emerging psychedelic culture was Aldous Huxley’s The Doors of Perception, published to great acclaim in 1954. Ginsberg, like many of his generation, had previously taken psychedelics on his own initiative.
From its base in Switzerland, Sandoz, as well as supplying the CIA with LSD, was at the same time giving it away free to interested psychiatrists; one such was the Hollywood therapist Oscar Janiger, whose celebrity clientele, including Cary Grant, Anaïs Nin and Jack Nicholson, spread the word enthusiastically in magazine interviews, essays and movie scripts. Timothy Leary was turned on to LSD by maverick enthusiasts who acquired the drug directly from Sandoz, as Leary himself did for his experiments at Harvard.
What seems remarkable today is not how much influence MK-Ultra had, but how little. The methods of coercive interrogation used more recently, such as those at Abu Ghraib or Bagram, haven’t owed much to the scientific techniques Gottlieb was investigating. Instead, they have more in common with what the ‘rough boys’ were up to at black sites in postwar Germany before Gottlieb’s men arrived.
MK-Ultra’s enduring influence is in popular fiction, where many of its ideas came from in the first place. Covert mind control programmes, usually run by the CIA, are a familiar plot device across the spectrum, from literary fiction (Thomas Pynchon, David Foster Wallace) to mass-market movies (The Ipcress File, The Parallax View, Jacob’s Ladder, the Bourne franchise) and TV (The X-Files, Stranger Things).
The story is always the same: mind control is real, and those who know its secrets operate with impunity. The second assumption reflects historical truth, and resonates still in a post-Watergate world. The first was a chimera, and by the time the Cold War reached its apex, Gottlieb and his colleagues no longer believed it themselves.
Some thoughts
Aren’t you proud to be an American!
Look here, if this is how the government treats the citizenry, and it’s “not really bad“, then what happens when things get bad?
Lacing the citizens with LSD and other mind altering chemicals are only the things that we KNOW ABOUT. What about the things that we don’t know?
You know, America IS GOING to pick a fight…
Whether it is Russia or China, most Americans haven’t an idea. But here, I will tell you all the “secret” that the American “news” is hiding from you; it’s BOTH simultaneously.
Thursday, February 04, 2021, 22:52
China, Russia stress adherence to non-interference
By Xinhua
China and Russia said Thursday that the principle of non-interference in other countries' internal affairs, one of the basic norms governing international relations, should be upheld.
In a phone conversation between Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the two sides also pledged to jointly preserve global and regional strategic stability.
...
The two heads of state have also agreed to celebrate this year the 20th anniversary of the signing of the China-Russia Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation, pointing out the direction for deepening the comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination between the two countries, Wang said.
Both sides should take this opportunity to add new dimensions to this important treaty and send a clear message to the world that the two countries will safeguard the security of themselves and along their peripheries, he added.
http://www.chinadailyhk.com/article/156995
-Posted by: Mao | Feb 11 2021 21:38 utc | 20
Yupper.
It’s not gonna be “goat herders” and “mud huts” getting blown up. It’s not going to be some American marines or SEAL’s taking HELO jumps into Chinese territory or an amphibious landing on one of the atolls surrounding China. It’s not going to be “US Navy sitting off the coast of China and launching cruse missile and plinking at targets”.
It’s gonna be on a completely different level. And if you all think that China is all blue-clad bicycle-riding peasants, you are going to be in for a big shock.
Chinese J-20 fighter. It is roughly equivalent to the F-22 Rapor fielded by the USA.
.
And, let’s have another look. You all aren’t gonna see these images on Rush Limbaugh, Hal Turner, Drudge Report, CNN, or FOX news. You will not see them on the BBC, the ABC, or on “60 minutes”.
Americans need to believe that they are invincible. They need to believe that they are the strongest, the best, and that no one would dare fight back.
That is the only way that the American citizenry won’t revolt at the prospect of another global war. Especially one that involved biological and nuclear weapons of mass destruction.
…don’t you know.
Chinese J-20 Jet Fighters.
Conclusion
Any nation that poisons it’s people with LSD or forces them to take chemical injections, while picking fights with very powerful, nuclear armed, nations is not a place where you want to live. And while the “news” make a lot of “noise” about all these people wanting to come to America for “freedom” and “democracy”, the ones that are actually coming are the illiterate, the destitute and the impoverished. In their minds, ANYTHING is better than the lives that they are leaving.
The illiterate arrive in America to help make it great.
.
I cannot predict the future.
However, the behaviors of the United States elite (the ruler class) are indicative of some severe faults. Faults, mind you, that are not easily corrected. And thus you all can expect some “fallout” to come your way from their failures in governance.
America is not a strong nation any longer. It is a “ripe” nation. It is a tree heavy with juicy fruit, and just waiting to be harvested.
This reminds me of the cities that thought that they could fight off Genghis Khan with their knights in shining armor. Nope. It’s did not work out good for them. And it worked out even worse for their families back in the cities. Women and children suffered a fate that no one should endure.
Rather than submit, the Abbasid caliph challenged the Mongols to attempt to storm his city, if they dared. The nomadic army from Asia—led by Hulagu Khan, one of Genghis Khan’s grandsons—did indeed dare.
Doing what they are most famous for, the Mongols thrashed Baghdad.
In 10 days of unremitting violence and destruction, Baghdad and its inhabitants were completely and utterly vanquished. Almost without exception, the population was either put to the sword or sold into slavery. The River Tigris ran red—to cite one of the most over-quoted, and overwrought phrases in history—with the blood of slaughtered men, women, and children.
After this, every building of note in Baghdad—including mosques, palaces, and markets—was utterly destroyed, among them the world-famous House of Wisdom. Hundreds of thousands of priceless manuscripts and books were tossed into the river, clogging the arterial waterway with so many texts, according to eyewitnesses, that soldiers could ride on horseback from one side to the other. Of course, the river turned from red to black with ink.
-Great courses daily
America and Americans have never suffered defeat. The closest was the Southern States during the “Reconstruction Period”. But even that, many still kept their language, were able to keep their records and heirlooms, and build up a life for themselves. They never suffered a complete SACK of their cities, their societies, their cultures and their identity. They do not realize what a real defeat looks like.
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The American Revolution was built on a foundation of booze, led by tavern addicted Founding Fathers who could drink any frat boy under the table.
Yes, and we will explain it right here.
Throughout history, nations rise when there is righteous leadership that cared for its citizens' welfare and do the greater good. When they are corrupt and self-serving, those nations fall. Learn from history because we live in a world governed by cause and effect. History will repeat itself.
-Tom Tan
I’ve discussed this all before. You need to have a responsible government. One that decides to work FOR the people it is supposed to represent. And then, once that government gets it’s internal affairs in order, it makes alignments and agreements with other nations to build up trust. And that meas no CIA-style, NED-style, or NID-style interference and American-style “color-revolutions”.
Don’t you know.
Thursday, February 04, 2021, 22:52
China, Russia stress adherence to non-interference
By Xinhua
China and Russia said Thursday that the principle of non-interference in other countries' internal affairs, one of the basic norms governing international relations, should be upheld.
In a phone conversation between Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the two sides also pledged to jointly preserve global and regional strategic stability.
...
The two heads of state have also agreed to celebrate this year the 20th anniversary of the signing of the China-Russia Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation, pointing out the direction for deepening the comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination between the two countries, Wang said.
Both sides should take this opportunity to add new dimensions to this important treaty and send a clear message to the world that the two countries will safeguard the security of themselves and along their peripheries, he added.
http://www.chinadailyhk.com/article/156995
-Posted by: Mao | Feb 11 2021 21:38 utc | 20
Indeed.
As a direct consequence of Donald Trump wanting to throw the entire world into an enormous bonfire (global nuclear winter), the rest of the world reacted…
New and strong alliances have formed.
America has become severely isolated.
People are questioning the value and worth of having a “democracy“
But America isn’t giving up. The neocons are (seriously and really) “foaming at the mouth for a fight with China, or Russia (as the fall-back” default). Phew! It makes me want to hurl.
Caught In The Act - New York Times "Selectively Misquotes" Scientists To Fit Its "Prescribed Narrative"
The New York Times continues Trump's anti-China campaign by claiming that China hindered a WHO investigation into the origins of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and is withholding data.
On W.H.O. Trip, China Refused to Hand Over Important DataThe information could be key to determining how and when the outbreak started, and to learning how to prevent future pandemics.
Chinese scientists refused to share raw data that might bring the world closer to understanding the origins of the coronavirus pandemic, independent investigators for the W.H.O. said on Friday. The investigators, who recently returned from a fact-finding trip to the Chinese city of Wuhan, said disagreements over patient records and other issues were so tense that they sometimes erupted into shouts among the typically mild-mannered scientists on both sides.
China’s continued resistance to revealing information about the early days of the coronavirus outbreak, the scientists say, makes it difficult for them to uncover important clues that could help stop future outbreaks of such dangerous diseases.
“If you are data focused, and if you are a professional,” said Thea Kølsen Fischer, a Danish epidemiologist on the team, then obtaining data is “like for a clinical doctor looking at the patient and seeing them by your own eyes.”
...
Peter Daszak, a member of the W.H.O. team and the president of EcoHealth Alliance in New York, said the trip was emotionally draining, as he and the team came to terms with the trauma of the early days of the pandemic. The team interviewed some of the first people to fall ill with Covid-19 in Wuhan, as well as medical workers.
“The world doesn’t realize, you know, that they were the first to get this thing,” Dr. Daszak said, “and they didn’t know how bad it was.”
While the Times claims that the Chinese have more data than they provided (they don't) and insinuates that they have something to hide, the researchers quoted in its piece reject both as nonsense.
Linking the NYT propaganda piece Peter Daszak refuted its basic tone:
Peter Daszak @PeterDaszak - 11:27 UTC · Feb 13, 2021 This was NOT my experience on @WHO mission. As lead of animal/environment working group I found trust & openness w/ my China counterparts. We DID get access to critical new data throughout. We DID increase our understanding of likely spillover pathways.
New data included env. & animal carcass testing, names of suppliers to Huanan Market, analyses of excess mortality in Hubei, range of covid-like symptoms for months prior, sequence data linked to early cases & site visits w/ unvetted live Q&A etc. All in report coming soon!
Quoting Daszak's tweet Thea Fischer pitched in:
Cont. reading: Caught In The Act - New York Times "Selectively Misquotes" Scientists To Fit Its "Prescribed Narrative"
Posted by b at 17:23 UTC | Comments (69)
The neocons are still living in their fantasy world, and the reality is starting to peer through the veil. America looks like a real ignorant, and stupid, piece of evil elephant shit.
The New York Times told blatant lies there including quoting Dominic Dywer whom they claimed was part of the WHO team.
Here Dwyer admits he was never on the team but part of a group of "independent experts".
"We go there as an international group and we're not part of the WHO, we're just independent experts."
https://amp.abc.net.au/article/13140456?__twitter_impression=true
Thea Fischer who was actually on the WHO covid origins team said the quoting of her out of context to convey a message exactly opposite to her experience was intentional (also known as lying).
NYT usually are subtle and crafty with their lies. With some countries like China they are bald faced liars.
Posted by: Doryphore | Feb 13 2021 20:20 utc | 29
It’s heavily promoted (don’t you know) that one-person, one-vote system is the pinnacle of “freedom” and “liberty” in the world. Which is rather strange as the founders of the United States said the absolute opposite.
And people are looking at these various systems of governance with a keen eye. Maybe there needs to be some changes they wonder…
Daniel Bell has put forward his views in favor of China's political meritocracy... against the one person one vote (Western Democracy model) as a mode of selection for political leaders. He has done this in two books.
The China Model: Political Meritocracy and the Limits of Democracy
Princeton University Press, 2015. ISBN 9781400865505.Dean of the School of Political Science and Public Administration at Shandong University and professor at Tsinghua University (Schwarzman College and Department of Philosophy). He was born in Montreal, educated at McGill and Oxford, has taught in Singapore, Hong Kong and Shanghai, and has held research fellowships at Princeton's University Center for Human Values, Stanford's Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioural Sciences and Hebrew University's Department of Political Science.
Here:
https://youtu.be/e63ro_suARA
Ah. The founders of America were terrified of democracies. They wanted the United States to be a Republic.
You must be swimming in that great delicious "democracy". How's it working out for ya?
The Founders explicitly stated that democracies are dangerous and they always devolve into oligarchies, and if they still don't collapse from the corruption within, they become military empire that all tend to be consumed in great wars that pretty much destroy the nation irrevocably. That's why they made the United States into a Republic. You know, like China is today.
But don't my word for it. Read the Federalist Papers. Read what they had to say in their own words. It's on-line and it's free. great stuff, too. It discusses in great detail things that are important.
https://guides.loc.gov/federalist-papers/full-text
Beer is necessary.
"The idiocy of believing supposed democracy meaning each individual vote is equal in an economy of staggering wealth inequality where politcal power ... blah blah"
Everyone's vote in U.S. democracy is absolutely equal, the same as every spectator's cheer is equal at a football match. It doesn't matter whether you're cheering for the home team or the visitors, everyone's voice in the stadium has equal validity and value. Of course, it doesn't determine the outcome of the game, but the crowd gets to feel it participated in the victory or defeat.
Maybe there's idiocy to be mined in conflating process with outcome.
John Rachel
Now for some perspective…
How did America move from a “freedom loving (and living) Republic” to a tyrannical military empire controlled by a minority of ultra-wealthy oligarchs? It all started off right. They were saying the right things, and drinking the right beverages…
Saying the right things and drinking the right beverages.
Images of our Colonial forefathers usually involve powdered wigs, petticoats, and the thrill of throwing tons of tea into the Boston Harbor.
Woo, woo!
Although we often think of their era as proper and civilized, it turns out that the people who led the American Revolution knew how to party.
They were party animals! You bet-ya.
Beer powered revolution.
.
In fact, the American Revolution was built on a foundation of booze, led by tavern addicted Founding Fathers who could drink any college frat boy under the table.
Now…
Don’t you all just LOVE history?
Beer saved the Mayflower
The first settlers brought with them the English tradition of beer drinking.
Even during the famous 1620 voyage of Pilgrims on board the Mayflower, beer saved the voyage. The water aboard ship reportedly become brackish and potentially deadly while the beer on board remained drinkable.
The latter part of the voyage kept sailors and passengers alike happy with a good supply of beer. We tend to think of the Pilgrims as sober-faced, upright people who avoided fun at all times, but they obviously packed a lot of beer on board before embarking on a lengthy trip aboard the very crowded 110-foot Mayflower.
The Pilgrims were planning to go to Virginia but ended up in Massachusetts, landing on a cold, snowy, wind-blown coast on December 19, 1620. A minor inconvenience, you’d think.
The change in plans apparently was caused by the lack of water and the dwindling supply of beer on board the ship. Captain Christopher Jones recognized the need to preserve the dwindling stocks for his sailors on the return journey (which would be far too dangerous to undertake until the following spring), and so the passengers were encouraged to land near the top of Cape Cod.
Everyone loves beer.
.
Jones knew that the fresh water found in Massachusetts would be insufficient for the return voyage. First, the water might go bad on the return voyage; secondly, he and his sailors were not accustomed to drinking water.
His crew were not accustomed to drinking... water.
These instructions to keep beer on board the Mayflower for the return trip did not go down well with the Pilgrims. William Bradford complained that he and his companions “were hastened ashore and made to drink water, that the seamen might have the more beer.”
Pilgrim William Wood complained that he did not dare drink the water in the wilderness, preferring beer.
He wrote his opinion of fresh water: “I dare not prefere it before good beere.” (Wellsprings: A Natural History of Bottled Spring Waters by Frank Chapelle).
Used to beer, the Pilgrims were quite upset that they had to drink water instead.
The Pilgrims in Massachusetts were not the first Europeans in North America to enjoy alcohol.
The Dutch also had a functioning brewery in what is now Lower Manhattan by 1613, beating the Mayflower immigrants, who would not have anything resembling a formal brewhouse until at least 1621. Even before that, the Roanoke colony tried brewing with corn as early as 1584 (obviously before going missing).
The Pilgrims’ first encounter was an order for beer
A Native American startled the Pilgrims on March 16, 1621, by walking into Plymouth Colony and greeting them in English.
His name was Samoset, and soon it became clear that he was just looking to fill his mug, specifically with beer.
"Hi dudes! My name is Sam, but you can call me Sam-o-set. Hey, I don't hope that you would mind having a few brewskies with me? I'm awfully tired and really thirsty."
Samoset knew European ways and the taste of a cold one because he was a sagamore (lower-level chief) hailing from an Eastern Abenaki tribe in Maine, where European fishermen had already established some trade routes.
He had picked up some English, as well as a hankering for the fishermen’s beer.
Everyone loves beer.
.
Native Americans produced their own alcoholic beverages before settlement, but these were often weaker drinks used mainly for ceremonial purposes.
And yes, Samoset was the guy that introduced the Pilgrims to Squanto, one of the primary translators who helped arrange the first Thanksgiving with the local chief.
Eight ounces a day
“Beer is living proof that God loves us and wants to see us happy.”
– Benjamin Franklin
Oh baby!
A look into the daily drinking habits of our forefathers will explain how integral alcohol was to our history. Consider this: it is estimated that there were more taverns per capita than any other business in colonial America. In fact, the Colonial Williamsburg web site says:
Colonial Americans, at least many of them, believed alcohol could cure the sick, strengthen the weak, enliven the aged, and generally make the world a better place. They tippled, toasted, sipped, slurped, quaffed, and guzzled from dawn to dark.
Many started the day with a pick-me-up and ended it with a put-me-down. Between those liquid milestones, they also might enjoy a midmorning whistle wetter, a luncheon libation, an afternoon accompaniment, and a supper snort. If circumstances allowed, they could ease the day with several rounds at a tavern.
Gals love beer.
Alcohol lubricated such social events as christenings, weddings, funerals, trials, and election-day gatherings, where aspiring candidates tempted voters with free drinks. Craftsmen drank at work, as did hired hands in the fields, shoppers in stores, sailors at sea, and soldiers in camp. Then, as now, college students enjoyed malted beverages, which explains why Harvard had its own brewery. In 1639, when the school did not supply sufficient beer, President Nathaniel Eaton lost his job.
Colonial Americans drank more alcohol that in any other era, and certainly more than the national average today. It is estimated that the average American at the time drank eight ounces of alcohol a day.
A typical day started with a few shots of rum — coined an “Antifogmatic”— which would combat the morning fog. Back-breaking physical labor was a daily reality for the working class citizens of Colonial America, and this often led to another shot of rum by mid-morning, which was called a “cooler.” A little before lunch, our ancestors would enjoy a hard cider or two, and this would continue until it was time to visit the local tavern.
.
Upon dinnertime, they would enjoy a hearty meal and some brews with friends; claret, ratafias (a fortified wine or a fruit-based beverage), creams, punches, and other concoctions were also standard.
Before they went to bed?
The day would not be complete without a glass of wine to ease hardworking Americans into blissful sleep.
It’s no wonder that the rest of the world looked upon America as “bright and shining star” to emulate.
The American Revolution was fueled by spirits
“Wine is necessary for life.”
– Thomas Jefferson
Although there were endless meetings and debates that paved the way for America during colonial times, our forefathers’ love for a good drink was just as vital. Indulging in a cold lager was not only embraced — it was pretty much expected.
Some of the most revered men of the American Revolution professed their love for a refreshing, relaxing beverage.
Thomas Jefferson planted vineyards at Monticello and encouraged others to take up the practice; he was also known to import thousands upon thousands of bottles of his favorite wine.
As for Washington, he operated his own whiskey distillery and it was said that he could dance the night away with four bottles of wine under his belt. His Revolutionary War personal expense account for alcohol from September 1775 to March 1776 amounted to over six thousand dollars (Washington & Kitman, 1970).
Franklin’s Return to Philadelphia, 1785, painted by Jean Leon Gerome Ferris (1863-1930) — with some, uh, later enhancements.
“My manner of living is plain…a glass of wine and a bit of mutton.”
– George Washington
Beer is good for you.
.
Not only did alcohol provide a good time, it also caused some serious controversy — to the point of a war breaking out.
Wine almost sank ships — the Liberty Affair
American patriot John Hancock caused quite the stir when he smuggled Portuguese Madeira into the American colonies and things didn’t go exactly as smoothly as he had intended. The seizure of his ship sparked a riot and the burning of a British customs boat.
Asked to name the key events that led to the American Revolution, many will bring up the Boston Massacre of 1770 or the Boston Tea Party of 1773. But another incident that proved to be just as critical in fostering the revolution was the Liberty Affair—an important turning point in American history during which Madeira played a central role.
Before John Hancock became famous for his signature, he was a Boston merchant and alleged smuggler who constantly thumbed his nose in the face of British tax collectors. On May 9, 1768 however, his sloop Liberty arrived with 25 pipes (large wooden barrels) of “the best sterling Madeira,” just one quarter of the vessel’s carrying capacity.
Believing that he had unloaded the rest without paying the required duties, the ship was seized and Hancock was charged with smuggling. This resulted in one of the worst riots in Boston’s history when colonists, already infuriated with the Royal Navy for impressing them [the taking of men into a military or naval force by compulsion], violently revolted in the defense of Hancock and his supposedly smuggled wine. Call it the Boston Madeira Party!
Cheers to that!
Conclusions
Did you know that America is trying to ban alcohol again? Yup it’s true.
I had to read that twice. Then what the fuck are you supposed to drink at bars? Coke-cola? Sometimes I just read the American “news” and just shake my head. Is this all that delicious “democracy” that I keep hearing about? Is this what “freedom” is all about?
Don’t even think about flying to PA or FL to have a good time. It ain’t gonna happen. No way. No how.
“Democracy” it’s finger lickin’ good!
Well, drinking white wine (I am drinking 53 degree hard grain right now (also known as “white wine”) makes me want to say “phooey” to all this stuff about “saving” America and recovering it to something worthwhile. As I drink I see the wisdom of the forefathers.
If it is working, you did good.
If it is broken, it is up to the people in-charge of running it, to fix it.
If that does NOT happen, then your system (that you put in place) is a failure. And you know what? You need to start again, all over.
I know, I know. Drinking is “taboo” in the United States.
But outside of it, it’s part of life. It makes and helps you see the insanity that the Untied States has become.
Doing things right.
.
The forefathers of the United States were smart.
Drunk, but smart.
But their wisdom is lost. It’s all off in dusty unread volumes in the back of old libraries. No one pays what they said, and give it any attention. For goodness gracious, people talk about how great “democracy” is!
That is so amazing. That is the LAST THING that they wanted to happen to the Untied States that they created. They warned about it. They pleaded. They wrote; “what ever you do… DON’T ever, ever establish a “democracy”. Because if you do you will create an oligarchy. And if you don’t stop it, it will evolve into a military empire and everyone’s lives will become “toast”.
Be toast - Idioms by The Free Dictionary
https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/be+toast
toast, to be. To be doomed or unworthy of further consideration. This slangy usage dates from the twentieth century. It can be applied to a person, a group, an idea, a project, and so on. It must be distinguished from being the toast of something, such as “the toast of the Academy Awards,” which means a person receiving much acclaim.
The “last thing”.
They also smoked weed” don’t you know…
…(have you) ever watched the movie “Dazed and Confused”?
.
Or maybe the MM audience are all too “high brow”.
But they were correct.
Do your best, and show the way. If others abuse it, it’s not your role to change them. Let them learn from their mistakes. Let them make them and suffer the consequences. And while all this is going on, you all just go off to your nice “safe place”, cavort with pretty girls (or guys if that is your desire), sing a few songs, try to dance a jig or two, and eat some delicious food with some fine, fine libations.
Oh…
And please, make sure that you have some pet pals (dogs, cats, and horses) would be really nice. Make sure that you have some treats on hand. And let those “fuck ups” that are running your nation into the ground… suffer the consequences of their ignorance.
It’s time for some cheese and crackers, and some nice frothy cold beer. (Hey! Doesn’t that green lamp base to the right look like a 1960’s style bong to you all?) Ah. Remember the days when couch end tables were filled with magazines… Oh, those were the days.
.
I’ll tell you what.
Go be with others that share your appraisal of the current state of “fuck up”, and just enjoy life. You all will be gone soon enough. Don’t you know…
Obama,love him or hate him, at least he drank beer.
And you know, the Chinese love to have fun too…
And yes they really do. Anyone that drinks beer and alcohol can’t be all bad. In fact, I argue that all of the disruption during 2020 was due to the non-drinking teetotalers of the American neocon administration. And that’s my strong opinion.
You all need to have a good time.
.
We all need to have a good time. It’s what humans do.
But there are people who have evolved past the basic needs of being human. Instead, they have become a different kind of creature. And I have discussed this at length elsewhere, don’t you know. We as humans need to get a little crazy and a little silly at times. I strongly believe this.
We as humans need to get a little crazy and a little silly at times. I strongly believe this.
.
But on a much more serious note. Take care of whom is running the nation. There are many, many psychopaths out there, and they all seem to evolve towards positions of power and control. You know, if you continue to let sociopaths and psychopaths run the United States Government, then this is what you all can look forward to…
Change the uniforms, and change the name of the targeted group. It’s coming to America you all. If you are port of the “undesirable group” this will be your fate. Sure as shit. Who’s gonna be the objects of this assault? Oh, you know. You know.
.
You know.
Don’t you?
Lately
Lately I have been researching my family history. Ah. It’s a long story. I’m West Prussian and Irish. A mutt. An American mutt living in China. But still, looking at my history shows some things that put a real smile on my face, and some perspective.
It also explains my love of beer, whiskey, and pretzels. Glorious, hot, fresh, steamy horseradish-covered pretzels.
Pretzel, hot, with mustard and horseradish. Yum!
.
Oh and don’t forget the kelbassa.
Kielbasa
Food
Kielbasa is any type of meat sausage from Poland, and a staple of Polish cuisine. In American English the word typically refers to a coarse, U-shaped smoked sausage of any kind of …Wikipedia
Oh, and I do love a good strudel, some fine Polish sausages, and some big-chested beer girls. Not to mention a tad bit of accordion music, and some jig dancing. Those Lederhosen also helps me get into the mood.
Lederhosen
Costume
Lederhosen are short or knee-length leather breeches that are worn as traditional garments in some regions of German-speaking countries. The longer ones are generally called Bundhosen or Kniebundhosen. Once common workwear across Central Europe, these clothes—or Tracht—are particularly associated with Bavaria and the Tyrol region.Wikipedia
Beer Girls. Germany.
.
And some Beer People.
Beer People. Germany.
.
Beer people having fun. Here’s some more beer girls.
More beer girls. Why do they all look like my sisters and cousins?
.
Beer.
This was a post about beer, and some nonsense about America thrown in for things to talk about while drinking beer. I hope that you enjoyed my daily rant.
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If you try to find information on the stratification of America on the Internet, you will discover that the vast bulk of them claim that there are really just three classes of social stratification. This is incorrect. There are nine. Here we will discuss these nine social classes. This post is a prelude to another article that discusses how the United States is migrating from a class system towards a caste system. Buckle up, it’s going to be a real surprise.
First off, why nine?
I argue that many “experts” in this matter overlook the obvious, and classify distinctly separate classes with one of the three common classes. Perhaps this is due to force of habit, as the classes all pre-date the 1960s. But perhaps it is to conditioning. People, most especially Americans, have been accustomed to a new “normal”; an “ever changing normal”. This makes people, who are otherwise quite intelligent, ignore trends that lay there right in front of their eyes.
The three classes are, of course, the…
The Upper Class
The Middle Class
The Low Class
Additionally, one must take into account the 13th amendment which formally established…
The Slave Class
What? You say! The 13th Amendment banned slavery, not granted it.
Uh. No it did not. Read the text of the amendment…
Thirteenth Amendment. The full text of the amendment is: Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.Thirteenth Amendment | United States Constitution ...
So yes, any one who is convicted of a crime, and becomes a felon becomes a member of the Slavery Class. And maybe that will help everyone understand why so many blacks and Negros were arrested after the American Civil War. It also explains the great saturation of laws in the 1920’s that banned the habits, and vices of the Negro population, turning many of them into felons.
So, yeah. There is a fourth class; the slavery class. And once you are in it, it is extremely difficult to leave it.
Ah, there’s another class as well…
The Untouchables class
This class is the “Sex Offender Class”, and it is even worse than the Slavery Class. Once you enter that class, you have very little rights, no freedoms, and pretty much will live in poverty for the rest of your life. You can describe this class by income, or demographics, but the reality is that this class is mandated by law.
It’s to take evil child molester “off the streets”. And everyone believes it. Though it’s been my experience that of those arrested and convicted only a very tiny number fit that public narrative. Most are thrown into that class for other reasons.
But wait! There’s more!
There’s the…
Gig class.
This class is a newly formed class where the workers float between Low Class and Middle Class. They use their skills, time and effort as opportunities come and go. Unlike the low class, they can periodically rise out of that class, but then sink right back down when their “gig” dries up. This class consists of Uber Drivers, and IoT designers.
Similarly there is the…
Per Diem Class
This is similar to the Gig Class except that the skill level is much higher, the monetary rewards are much higher, and the time period cycle between jobs is much longer. These workers are much in demand, and command high salary rates with supportive Per Diem costs covered by monthly bonuses.
And there is the exclusive class…
The Oligarchy class
This class is the territory of the super rich, the mega-billionaires. They are not only rich and powerful, but they control major segments of the governments as well. They are, in effect, the “untouchables”. These people, these families, are far more powerful, capable and “connected” than the upper class. They are in a group of their own, and it amazes me that modern day sociologists do not recognize this class at all.
Finally, we have the…
The undocumented class.
Which is much larger than anyone knows. It mostly concerns non-citizens who live within the United States, who often work and collect benefits, but do not officially exist. To ignore this enormous segment of the population is disingenuous.
Summary of the Classes
OK. So here is a summary…
The Oligarchy class
The Upper Class
The Per Diem Class
The Middle Class
The Gig Class
The Low Class
The Slave Class
The Untouchables
The Undocumented Class.
The basic rules
A “class” is similar to a caste. In that it is extremely difficult to move from one class to another. Movement can happen, it’s just that it is extremely rare.
The primary difference between “class” and “caste” is that a caste system keeps you locked into your caste. While in “class” downwards movement to a lower class is always possible. While upwards movement is outrageously difficult, and extremely rate.
My GOD! America is like an old game of “chutes and ladders”.
The game of chutes and ladders.
Introduction
Let’s get started.
Aaron grew up on a farm in rural Ohio, left home to serve in the Army, and returned a few years later to take over the family farm. He moved into the same house he had grown up in and soon married a young woman with whom he had attended high school. As they began to have children, they quickly realized that the income from the farm was no longer sufficient to meet their needs. Aaron, with little experience beyond the farm, accepted a job as a clerk at a local grocery store. It was there that his life and the lives of his wife and children were changed forever.
One of the managers at the store liked Aaron, his attitude, and his work ethic. He took Aaron under his wing and began to groom him for advancement at the store. Aaron rose through the ranks with ease. Then the manager encouraged him to take a few classes at a local college. This was the first time Aaron had seriously thought about college. Could he be successful, Aaron wondered? Could he actually be the first one in his family to earn a degree? Fortunately, his wife also believed in him and supported his decision to take his first class. Aaron asked his wife and his manager to keep his college enrollment a secret. He did not want others to know about it in case he failed.
Aaron was nervous on his first day of class. He was older than the other students, and he had never considered himself college material. Through hard work and determination, however, he did very well in the class. While he still doubted himself, he enrolled in another class. Again, he performed very well. As his doubt began to fade, he started to take more and more classes. Before he knew it, he was walking across the stage to receive a Bachelor’s degree with honors. The ceremony seemed surreal to Aaron. He couldn’t believe he had finished college, which once seemed like an impossible feat.
Shortly after graduation, Aaron was admitted into a graduate program at a well-respected university where he earned a Master’s degree. He had not only become the first from his family to attend college but also he had earned a graduate degree. Inspired by Aaron’s success, his wife enrolled at a technical college, obtained a degree in nursing, and became a registered nurse working in a local hospital’s labor and delivery department. Aaron and his wife both worked their way up the career ladder in their respective fields and became leaders in their organizations. They epitomized the American Dream—they worked hard and it paid off.
This story may sound familiar. After all, nearly one in three first-year college students is a first-generation degree candidate, and it is well documented that many are not as successful as Aaron.
According to the Center for Student Opportunity, a national nonprofit, 89 percent of first-generation students will not earn an undergraduate degree within six years of starting their studies. In fact, these students “drop out of college at four times the rate of peers whose parents have postsecondary degrees” (Center for Student Opportunity quoted in Huot 2014).
What is Social Stratification?
In the upper echelons of the working world, people with the most power reach the top. These people make the decisions and earn the most money. The majority of Americans will never see the view from the top.
Sociologists use the term social stratification to describe the system of social standing. Social stratification refers to a society’s categorization of its people into rankings of socioeconomic tiers based on factors like wealth, income, race, education, and power.
Social Stratification
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You may remember the word “stratification” from geology class. The distinct vertical layers found in rock, called stratification, are a good way to visualize social structure. Society’s layers are made of people, and society’s resources are distributed unevenly throughout the layers. The people who have more resources represent the top layer of the social structure of stratification. Other groups of people, with progressively fewer and fewer resources, represent the lower layers of our society.
In the United States, people like to believe everyone has an equal chance at success. It’s a hopeful narrative and a lively premise, but (for the most part) it is false.
To a certain extent, Aaron illustrates the belief that hard work and talent—not prejudicial treatment or societal values—determine social rank. This emphasis on self-effort perpetuates the belief that people control their own social standing. In fact, this narrative is played often and over in America. It creates the illusion that everyone can “pull themselves up by their bootstraps” and make a life for themselves in America.
It has become a political rallying cry.
But it is false.
The data is as plain as day. It is as damning as it is clear. The rate of upward movement in the American class system is negligible at best, and completely absent for the vast majority of American citizenry.
Sociologists recognize that social stratification is a society-wide system that makes inequalities apparent. While there are always inequalities between individuals, sociologists are interested in larger social patterns. Stratification is not about individual inequalities, but about systematic inequalities based on group membership, classes, and the like. No individual, rich or poor, can be blamed for social inequalities.
The structure of society affects a person’s social standing.
Although individuals may support or fight inequalities, social stratification is created and supported by society as a whole. In America the rich people want to associate with other wealthy individuals, and shun the rest. Anyone who has tried to pledge in certain fraternities or sororities can well see this in action.
Likewise, the same holds true for the lower class strata as well.
. In America there is a stigma about association with a “lower” class than what you belong to. I cannot help but think that Donald Trump or Joe Biden would be loathe to help this poor woman up as she struggles to purchase a six-pack of Pepsi.
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Factors that define stratification vary in different societies. In most societies, stratification is an economic system, based on wealth, the net value of money and assets a person has, and income, a person’s wages or investment dividends. While people are regularly categorized based on how rich or poor they are, other important factors influence social standing.
For example, in some cultures, wisdom and charisma are valued, and people who have them are revered more than those who don’t. In some cultures, the elderly are esteemed; in others, the elderly are disparaged or overlooked. Societies’ cultural beliefs often reinforce the inequalities of stratification.
One key determinant of social standing is the social standing of our parents.
Parents tend to pass their social position on to their children. People inherit not only social standing but also the cultural norms that accompany a certain lifestyle. They share these with a network of friends and family members. Social standing becomes a comfort zone, a familiar lifestyle, and an identity.
. People inherit not only social standing but also the cultural norms that accompany a certain lifestyle. They share these with a network of friends and family members. Social standing becomes a comfort zone, a familiar lifestyle, and an identity. Therefore it is desirable for the parents to push their children to attend college and excel.
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This is one of the reasons first-generation college students do not fare as well as other students.
Other determinants are found in a society’s occupational structure. Teachers, for example, often have high levels of education but receive relatively low pay. Many believe that teaching is a noble profession, so teachers should do their jobs for love of their profession and the good of their students—not for money. Yet no successful executive or entrepreneur would embrace that attitude in the business world, where profits are valued as a driving force. Cultural attitudes and beliefs like these support and perpetuate social inequalities.
Recent Economic Changes and U.S. Stratification
As a result of the Great Recession that rocked the United States economy in the last few years, many families and individuals found themselves struggling like never before. The nation fell into a period of prolonged and exceptionally high unemployment.
While no one was completely insulated from the recession, perhaps those in the lower classes felt the impact most profoundly.
The Working Poor.
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Before the 1990’s, many were living paycheck to paycheck or even had been living comfortably. As the recession hit, they were often among the first to lose their jobs. Unable to find replacement employment, they faced more than loss of income. Their homes were foreclosed, their cars were repossessed, and their ability to afford healthcare was taken away. This put many in the position of deciding whether to put food on the table or fill a needed prescription.
But the Great Recession, like the Great Depression, has changed social attitudes.
Where once it was important to demonstrate wealth by wearing expensive clothing items like Calvin Klein shirts and Louis Vuitton shoes, now there’s a new, thriftier way of thinking. In many circles, it has become hip to be frugal. It’s no longer about how much we spend, but about how much we don’t spend.
Systems of Stratification
Sociologists distinguish between two types of systems of stratification.
Closed systems accommodate little change in social position. They do not allow people to shift levels and do not permit social relationships between levels.
Open systems, which are based on achievement, allow movement and interaction between layers and classes.
Different systems reflect, emphasize, and foster certain cultural values and shape individual beliefs. Stratification systems include class systems and caste systems, as well as meritocracy.
The Caste System – India
India used to have a rigid caste system until it was banned. The people in the lowest caste suffered from extreme poverty and were shunned by society. Some aspects of India’s defunct caste system remain socially relevant.
Caste systems are closed stratification systems in which people can do little or nothing to change their social standing. A caste system is one in which people are born into their social standing and will remain in it their whole lives.
People are assigned occupations regardless of their talents, interests, or potential. There are virtually no opportunities to improve a person’s social position.
The Indian caste system.
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In the Hindu caste tradition, people were expected to work in the occupation of their caste and to enter into marriage according to their caste. Accepting this social standing was considered a moral duty. Cultural values reinforced the system. Caste systems promote beliefs in fate, destiny, and the will of a higher power, rather than promoting individual freedom as a value. A person who lived in a caste society was socialized to accept his or her social standing.
Although the caste system in India has been officially dismantled, its residual presence in Indian society is deeply embedded. It still exists. It’s just that the government refuses to acknowledge it’s existence and provides “lip service” to any evidence of it’s existence.
In rural areas, aspects of the tradition are more likely to remain, while urban centers show less evidence of this past. In India’s larger cities, people now have more opportunities to choose their own career paths and marriage partners. As a global center of employment, corporations have introduced merit-based hiring and employment to the nation.
The Class System – United States, the UK, Australia
A class system is based on money, social factors, individual achievement, politics and law.
A class consists of a set of people who share similar status with regard to factors like wealth, income, education, and occupation.
Unlike caste systems, class systems are open. People are free to gain a different level of education or employment than their parents. They can also socialize with and marry members of other classes, which allows people to move from one class to another.
. In the United States, the Oligarchy class, and the upper Class have no concern for the United States citizenry. They run the nation, and make the laws so that only their class benefits.
In a class system, occupation is not fixed at birth. Though family and other societal models help guide a person toward a career, personal choice plays a role.
In class systems, people have the option to form exogamous marriages, unions of spouses from different social categories.
Marriage in these circumstances is based on values such as love and compatibility rather than on social standing or economics. Though social conformities still exist that encourage people to choose partners within their own class, people are not as pressured to choose marriage partners based solely on those elements. Marriage to a partner from the same social background is an endogamous union.
Meritocracy – China
Meritocracy is an ideal system based on the belief that social stratification is the result of personal effort—or merit—that determines social standing.
High levels of effort will lead to a high social position, and vice versa. The concept of meritocracy is considered an ideal in the West. It is believed that it is unobtainable. That is because the Western societies simply cannot understand a society based on Confucian thought. Therefore, they argue that a society has never existed where social rank was based purely on merit.
Those in the West argue this because of the complex structure of societies, processes like socialization, and the realities of economic systems, social standing is influenced by multiple factors—not merit alone.
In the West, inheritance and pressure to conform to norms, for instance, and disrupts the notion of a pure meritocracy. Yet, China comes as realistically close to that ideal than any other nation in history.
The difference between an oligarchy class run government, and a meritocracy are stark.
Status Consistency
Social stratification systems determine social position based on factors like income, education, and occupation. Sociologists use the term status consistency to describe the consistency, or lack thereof, of an individual’s rank across these factors. Caste systems correlate with high status consistency, whereas the more flexible class system has lower status consistency.
To illustrate, let’s consider Susan.
Susan earned her high school degree but did not go to college. That factor is a trait of the lower-middle class.
She began doing landscaping work, which, as manual labor, is also a trait of lower-middle class or even lower class.
However, over time, Susan started her own company. She hired employees. She won larger contracts. She became a business owner and earned a lot of money.
Those traits represent the upper-middle class. There are inconsistencies between Susan’s educational level, her occupation, and her income.
In a class system, a person can work hard and have little education and still be in middle or upper class, whereas in a caste system that would not be possible. In a class system, low status consistency correlates with having more choices and opportunities.
Social Stratification and Mobility in the United States
Most sociologists define social class as a grouping based on similar social factors like wealth, income, education, and occupation. These factors affect how much power and prestige a person has. Social stratification reflects an unequal distribution of resources.
In most cases, having more money means having more power or more opportunities.
Stratification can also result from physical and intellectual traits. Categories that affect social standing include family ancestry, race, ethnicity, age, and gender. In the United States, standing can also be defined by characteristics such as IQ, athletic abilities, appearance, personal skills, and achievements.
Additionally, in America, there are legal stratifications. That is, forced class membership by law.
All Felons enter the Slave Class.
All Sex Offender Felons enter the Untouchables Class.
All undocumented, or non-citizens, are in the Undocumented Class.
Standard of Living
In the last century, the United States has seen a steady rise in its standard of living, the level of wealth available to a certain socioeconomic class in order to acquire the material necessities and comforts to maintain its lifestyle.
The standard of living is based on factors such as income, employment, class, poverty rates, and housing affordability. Because standard of living is closely related to quality of life, it can represent factors such as the ability to afford a home, own a car, and take vacations.
In the United States, a small portion of the population has the means to the highest standard of living.
. The Upper class are insulated from the realities of life in the other class segments. As time moves forward they become more and more insulated from reality, and live trapped in a bubble that represents a life that does not exist.
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A Federal Reserve Bank study shows that a mere one percent of the population holds one-third of our nation’s wealth (Kennickell 2009). Wealthy people receive the most schooling, have better health, and consume the most goods and services. Wealthy people also wield decision-making power.
Many people think of the United States as a “middle-class society.” They think a few people are rich, a few are poor, and most are fairly well off, existing in the middle of the social strata.
But as the study mentioned above indicates, there is NOT an even distribution of wealth.
Millions of women and men struggle to pay rent, buy food, find work, and afford basic medical care. Women who are single heads of household tend to have a lower income and lower standard of living than their married or male counterparts. This is a worldwide phenomenon known as the “feminization of poverty”—which acknowledges that women disproportionately make up the majority of individuals in poverty across the globe.
In the United States, as in most high-income nations, social stratifications and standards of living are in part based on occupation (Lin and Xie 1988).
Aside from the obvious impact that income has on someone’s standard of living, occupations also influence social standing through the relative levels of prestige they afford.
Employment in medicine, law, or engineering confers high status.
Teachers and police officers are generally respected, though not considered particularly prestigious.
At the other end of the scale, some of the lowest rankings apply to positions like waitress, janitor, and bus driver.
The most significant threat to the relatively high standard of living that everyone is accustomed to in the United States is the decline of the middle class. The size, income, and wealth of the middle class have all been declining since the 1970s. This is occurring at a time when corporate profits have increased more than 141 percent, and CEO pay has risen by more than 298 percent (Popken 2007).
. The decline in the American middle Class parallels the decline in union organizations.
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G. William Domhoff, of the University of California at Santa Cruz, reports that “In 2010, the top 1% of households (the upper class) owned 35.4% of all privately held wealth, and the next 19% (the managerial, professional, and small business stratum) had 53.5%, which means that just 20% of the people owned a remarkable 89%, leaving only 11% of the wealth for the bottom 80% (wage and salary workers)” (Domhoff 2013).
35.0% of wealth – Oligarchy Class.
53.5% of wealth – Upper Class
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89.0% of wealth – The top two classes
While several economic factors can be improved in the United States (inequitable distribution of income and wealth, feminization of poverty, stagnant wages for most workers while executive pay and profits soar, declining middle class), we are fortunate that the poverty experienced here is most often relative poverty and not absolute poverty.
Whereas absolute poverty is deprivation so severe that it puts survival in jeopardy, relative poverty is not having the means to live the lifestyle of the average person in your country.
Absolute poverty = Personal survival is difficult.
Relative poverty = Not having the means to live an average lifestyle.
As a wealthy developed country, the United States has the resources to provide the basic necessities to those in need through a series of federal and state social welfare programs. The best-known of these programs is likely the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which is administered by the United States Department of Agriculture. (This used to be known as the food stamp program.)
The program began in the Great Depression, when unmarketable or surplus food was distributed to the hungry. It was not until 1961 that President John F. Kennedy initiated a food stamp pilot program. His successor Lyndon B. Johnson was instrumental in the passage of the Food Stamp Act in 1964. In 1965, more than 500,000 individuals received food assistance. In March 2008, on the precipice of the Great Recession, participation hovered around 28 million people. During the recession, that number escalated to more than 40 million (USDA).
However, for all practical purposes, the United States distribution of such aid is insufficient, spotty and fraught with fraud. It’s a “dead horse”, and fraught with inefficiencies, corruption and abuse.
Urban Dictionary: dead horse
https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=dead horse
dead horse Military term for an issue that has been addressed over and over and over again. Comes from the expression ”You’re beating a dead horse.”, meaning that talking about the issue is not going to change anything so drop it.
What to do when you are stuck riding a “dead horse”.
Social Classes in the United States
Does a person’s appearance indicate class? Can you tell a man’s education level based on his clothing? Do you know a woman’s income by the car she drives?
For sociologists, categorizing class is a fluid science.
While I have identified nine classes in America, I am the outlier. Sociologists generally identify three levels of class in the United States: upper, middle, and lower class. Within each class, there are many subcategories. Wealth is the most significant way of distinguishing classes, because wealth can be transferred to one’s children and perpetuate the class structure.
One economist, J.D. Foster, defines the 20 percent of U.S. citizens’ highest earners as “upper income,” and the lower 20 percent as “lower income.” The remaining 60 percent of the population make up the middle class. But by that distinction, annual household incomes for the middle class range between $25,000 and $100,000 (Mason and Sullivan 2010).
One sociological perspective distinguishes the classes, in part, according to their relative power and control over their lives. The upper class not only have power and control over their own lives but also their social status gives them power and control over others’ lives. The middle class doesn’t generally control other strata of society, but its members do exert control over their own lives. In contrast, the lower class has little control over their work or lives. Below, we will explore the major divisions of U.S. social class and their key subcategories.
The Oligarchy Class
The upper class is considered the top, and only the powerful elite get to see the view from there. In the United States, people with extreme wealth make up 1 percent of the population, and they own one-third of the country’s wealth (Beeghley 2008).
. The Oligarchy class use their wealth to control the rest of society.
The richest 1% know the secrets to building wealth, and nothing makes that more evident than the statistics about how they stack up to the 99% that most of us belong to. Additionally, once they reach a certain stage of wealth and income, they tend to use it to control the government, and thus create a bubble of isolation around themselves for protection. The laws do not apply to them.
1. It takes an annual income of $421,926 to join the 1% in the U.S.
When we think of the 1%, we often think of people raking in seven figures a year, but it only takes the comparatively modest figure of $421,926 to join the 1% in the U.S., according to data from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). That’s an average of about $35,161 per month or about $1,156 per day.
Being in the 1% of your state may cost more or less than this, though. Connecticut residents will need to earn a whopping $700,800 per year to join this elite group while Mississippi residents can join the 1% with a mere $254,362 in annual income.
2. The richest 1% earn 26.3 times more than the bottom 99%.
The average one-percenter can expect to earn almost $1,317,000 per year, according to the EPI study. By contrast, the average 99-percenter brings home just $50,107 per year. That puts the average 1% income about 26.3 times higher than the average income for the rest of the country.
This ratio also varies by state. New York has the largest income inequality gap with the top 1% taking home 44.4 times what the bottom 99% earn in that state. Alaska has the lowest income inequality gap. Its 1% only earns 12.3 times what its bottom 99% earn.
3. The top 1% holds 42.5% of the national wealth.
The wealthiest 1% of U.S. residents — about 3.29 million people — hold 42.5% of our national wealth, while the remaining 325.7 million people share the remaining 57.5%, according to Inequality.org.
No other country in the world has so much wealth concentrated in the hands of the few. In the Netherlands, which had the next-largest income inequality gap according to the Inequality.org survey, the 1% only holds 28% of the country’s wealth.
And how this manifests…
And, make no mistake, the Oligarchy Class IS the DE FACTO United States today…
As a fan of old movies in general and Sunset Boulevard in particular, I keep coming back to how the psychological profile of Norma Desmond’s character seems so reminiscent of the United States right now – or more precisely the political class that dictates its policies and the narrative used to maintain the illusion. After the end of the Cold War, Washington was the grand dame on the world stage, at the peak of her powers economically and militarily. And she wielded her power without apology for years, becoming entitled to wield it – making demands and bossing others around whom she perceived to be lesser lights.
She’s declining now but doesn’t accept it – continuing to bomb other nations without remorse, assassinating foreign military leaders, sanctioning 1/3 of the world’s population, dotting every corner of the globe with military bases, and engaging in brinksmanship – all while continuing to proclaim her greatness, exceptionalism and indispensability. Other players on the world stage seem to see through the masquerade, but still feel the need to tiptoe around her.
Having a population whose life expectancy is decreasing, an infrastructure that rates a D+ from civil engineers, doesn’t manufacture much of its essential needs, and who can’t even competently handle a public health crisis doesn’t upset the story that America continues to tell herself. Rather than accept her declining stature and use whatever influence she still has to engineer a soft landing domestically and work with the rest of the world toward a multi-polar order that values peaceful co-existence, America seems to have chosen the Norma Desmond path: very entitled, very narcissistic, and dangerously deluded.
-Is the US the Norma Desmond of the world stage?
Norma Desmond.
Upper Class
Money provides not just access to material goods, but also access to a lot of power.
Range is $200,000 to $420,000 / year.
These people are the direct subordinates reporting to the owners; the oligarchy.
As corporate leaders, members of the upper class make decisions that affect the job status of millions of people.
As media owners, they influence the collective identity of the nation. They run the major network television stations, radio broadcasts, newspapers, magazines, publishing houses, and sports franchises.
As board members of the most influential colleges and universities, they influence cultural attitudes and values.
As philanthropists, they establish foundations to support social causes they believe in.
As campaign contributors, they sway politicians and fund campaigns, sometimes to protect their own economic interests.
. I used to hate cartoons like this. But I learned that this narrative is true. It is extraordinarily difficult to raise above and out of your social-economic class. While there are instances, from recent history of people who have climbed out, they are practically few, and far between. It is not as common as the “news” media wold lead you to believe.
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U.S. society has historically distinguished between “old money” (inherited wealth passed from one generation to the next) and “new money” (wealth you have earned and built yourself). While both types may have equal net worth, they have traditionally held different social standings.
People of old money, firmly situated in the upper class for generations, have held high prestige. Their families have socialized them to know the customs, norms, and expectations that come with wealth. Often, the very wealthy don’t work for wages. Some study business or become lawyers in order to manage the family fortune. Others, such as Paris Hilton and Kim Kardashian, capitalize on being a rich socialite and transform that into celebrity status, flaunting a wealthy lifestyle.
However, new-money members of the upper class are not oriented to the customs and mores of the elite. They haven’t gone to the most exclusive schools. They have not established old-money social ties. People with new money might flaunt their wealth, buying sports cars and mansions, but they might still exhibit behaviors attributed to the middle and lower classes.
The Per Diem Class
This is a relatively transient class, that came into being in the 1980’s. They flourished during the 2000’s and are now sliding into obscurity. The members mostly being replaced by gig class, and middle class technical workers on a rotating basis.
Per diem the noun, is an amount of money someone allots to you for daily expenditure, such as for business. Similarly, the adjective "per diem" means "daily" and is usually related to costs or expenses that happen on a daily basis. Lastly, "per diem" is also an adverb meaning literally "by the day." If you only work on days you are needed, you work "per diem."
This is a class of professionals that have both the skills, education and experience to perform highly specialized tasks for limited periods of time. They are often considered “rent a engineers” by industry.
It is often difficult to find the properly qualified expert in certain fields. This is most especially true in the United States.
As such, they are very specialized and thus often sit between job opportunities without bringing in any income. Then, when an opportunity arises, they can command enormous rates for short-term work. These people are employed in advanced defense technologies, on oil rigs and in difficult situations.
They “float” between having the income of Upper Class, and having no income at all.
Middle Class
Many people consider themselves middle class, but there are differing ideas about what that means.
People with annual incomes of $150,000 call themselves middle class, as do people who annually earn $30,000. That helps explain why, in the United States, the middle class is broken into upper and lower subcategories.
Upper middle class – $100, 000 to $200,000
Middle, middle class – $50,000 to $100,000
Lower Middle class – $25,000 to $50,000
Upper-middle-class people tend to hold bachelor’s and postgraduate degrees. They’ve studied subjects such as business, management, law, or medicine. Lower-middle-class members hold bachelor’s degrees from four-year colleges or associate’s degrees from two-year community or technical colleges.
Comfort is a key concept to the middle class.
Middle-class people work hard and live fairly comfortable lives. Uppermiddle- class people tend to pursue careers that earn comfortable incomes. They provide their families with large homes and nice cars. They may go skiing or boating on vacation. Their children receive high-quality education and healthcare (Gilbert 2010).
In fact, what you do with your one to two week vacation time pretty much is an indicator as to where you reside on the Middle Class scale.
Packaged vacations every year = Upper middle class.
One packaged vacation a decade = middle, middle class.
Vacation is a road trip to see relatives = Low middle class.
In the lower middle class, people hold jobs supervised by members of the upper middle class.
They fill technical, lower level management or administrative support positions. Compared to lower-class work, lower-middle-class jobs carry more prestige and come with slightly higher paychecks. With these incomes, people can afford a decent, mainstream lifestyle, but they struggle to maintain it. They generally don’t have enough income to build significant savings. In addition, their grip on class status is more precarious than in the upper tiers of the class system.
Conventional explorations of why the middle class is shrinking focus on economic issues such as the decline of unions and manufacturing, the increasing premiums paid to the highest-paid workers and the rising costs of higher education and healthcare.
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All of these factors have a role, but few comment on the non-economic factors, specifically the values that underpin the accumulation of capital that is the one essential project of middle class households.
"capitalism--and the culture it creates--harbors the seeds of its own downfall by creating a need among successful people for personal gratification--a need that corrodes the work ethic that led to their success in the first place."
I would phrase this in the language of values and capital: The primary cultural contradiction of the Great American Middle Class is the disconnect between the values needed to build capital and those of gratification via debt-based consumption.
Arrayed against these capital-accumulation-disciplined values are the consumerist values of instant gratification, short-term horizons, lack of long-term goals, self-indulgence, impulse buying, keeping up with the Joneses (i.e. competitive consumption), and an obsessive focus on the social/consumption pecking order of one’s peers, all of which incentivize debt-based consumption that spends future earnings today on non-essentials.
Which is true, if you sacrifice. Live in a van. Eat dumpster food while scrimping and saving every penny, and enjoying free soup kitchens, and making free iced tea from courtesy lemon packets in the fast food franchises.
I was astonished to read in $100,000 and up is not enough – even the ‘rich’ live paycheck to paycheck that busy couples spend $2,000 to $2,600 per month eating out. That’s roughly $30,000 a year, the equivalent of a brand-new vehicle plus a used car or one year of college–or a down payment on a rental home in a non-bubble locale.
The article contends that
"Many 'rich' people have problems accepting that they aren't really that wealthy and the money will not last forever."
This is an excellent summary of the consumerist mentality: income, wealth and financial security are all grossly over-estimated…
… while debt is under-estimated.
Conventional Americans may wonder how recent legal immigrants with modest-paying jobs buy homes and pay off the mortgage in a few years and then send their kids to university with zero student loans. In a conventional consumerist household earning two times as much annual gross income, this is viewed as “impossible.”
Perhaps if most American too, lived in multi-generational homes with thirty family members sharing the rent/mortgage and contributing to the collective they might do better.
But America is the land of the "Lone Wolf". You are kicked out on the street at 18 years old, and must fend for yourself. Unless you have strong supportive family...
Like the Oligarchy Class.
Like the Upper Class.
Like the Undocumented Class.
You will always be at a disadvantage. Especially in a nation that has comprised laws designed to keep you firmly planted in the role that it establishes for you.
The Gig Class
The term “gig economy” refers to a free market system in which traditional businesses hire independent contractors, freelancers, and short-term workers to perform individual tasks, assignments, or jobs. The term comes from the world of the performing arts in which musicians, comedians, etc. are paid for their individual appearances, called “gigs.”
In the gig economy, businesses hire independent contractors to perform individual jobs, called “gigs.”
Hired and assigned via internet and smartphone applications, gig employees work remotely.
While contract gig workers enjoy great scheduling flexibility and extra income, they suffer from relatively low pay, lack of benefits, and increased stress.
In 2018, about 57 million Americans—nearly 36% of the total U.S. workforce—were full or part-time gig workers.
While such temporary arrangements offer tremendous advantages, like freedom and flexibility, workers in the rapidly-evolving gig economy are finding they face an increased risk of financial hardship.
How?
Without any support structures such as medical, retirement, pension, and similar systems, they are off alone and are totally responsible for their own income and benefits.
Much like traditional jobs, gig economy jobs are great—until they’re not.
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In the “gig economy” or “freelance economy,” gig workers earn all or part of their incomes from short-term contracts under which they are paid for individual tasks, assignments, or jobs.
Typified by globally-recognized companies like Uber, and Lyft—which hire people to use their personal vehicles to provide taxi-like, on-demand ride services—gig economy companies use internet and smartphone-based applications to both hire and assign workers.
Each individual gig or assignment usually accounts for only a part of gig worker’s total income.
By combining several tasks for different companies, gig workers can realize cumulative earnings equal to those of conventional full-time jobs.
For example, some gig workers drive their cars for both Uber and Lyft, along with renting out rooms in their homes through Airbnb. Other people simply use gig jobs to supplement their regular income.
Another aspect of the gig economy involves so-called “digital earning platforms,” like eBay and Etsy, which allow people to earn money by selling their used items or personal creations, and online handyman services, like TaskRabbit.
In many ways, the gig economy reflects and facilitates the desire of millennial generation workers for greater flexibility in balancing their work-life demands, often changing jobs several times during their lifetimes. No matter what motives drive gig workers, the popularity of the internet, with its capability for remote work, has caused the gig economy to thrive.
But you all must be made aware... the idea that you can enter the Upper Class, or the Oligarchy Class from the Gig Class is a lie. It is not possible.
...You will NEVER become wealthy blogging.
...You cannot become a millionaire by posting sexy pictures in Instagram with 100 million followers.
...You are not going to enter the Upper class with an IoT invention.
All those ideas are fantastical lies promoted by the oligarchy class to keep the lower classes complaisant and content with their lot in life.
Lower Class
The lower class is also referred to as the working class. Just like the middle and upper classes, the lower class can be divided into subsets: the working class, the working poor, and the underclass.
Working Class
Working Poor
The Underclass
Compared to the lower middle class, lower class people have less of an educational background and earn smaller incomes. They work jobs that require little prior skill or experience and often do routine tasks under close supervision.
. Walter Williams advice is great, but terribly dated. It applies to China, Australia, Italy, Poland, Russia, but not to the United States. The best that this pre-1960’s advice can get you in the USA today is better placement within your social-economic class, nothing more.
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Working-class people, the highest subcategory of the lower class, often land decent jobs in fields like custodial or food service. The work is hands-on and often physically demanding, such as landscaping, cooking, cleaning, or building. Beneath the working class is the working poor. Like the working class, they have unskilled, low-paying employment.
However, their jobs rarely offer benefits such as healthcare or retirement planning, and their positions are often seasonal or temporary. They work as sharecroppers, migrant farm workers, house-cleaners, and day laborers. Some are high school dropouts. Some are illiterate, unable to read job ads.
How can people work full-time and still be poor?
Even working full-time, millions of the working poor earn incomes too meager to support a family. Minimum wage varies from state to state, but in many states it is approaching $8.00 per hour (Department of Labor 2014). At that rate, working 40 hours a week earns $320. That comes to $16,640 a year, before tax and deductions. Even for a single person, the pay is low. A married couple with children will have a hard time covering expenses.
Members of the underclass live mainly in inner cities. Many are unemployed or underemployed. Those who do hold jobs typically perform menial tasks for little pay. Some of the underclass are homeless. For many, welfare systems provide a much-needed support through food assistance, medical care, housing, and the like.
Many socialists confuse the Slave, destitute and undocumented classes due to the type of income producing work they can obtain.
Each class has it's own set of criteria that extends beyond income alone.
The Slave Class
This class is mandated by law.
The 13th amendment allowed slavery in the United States whenever someone is convicted of a felony. Thus, in the USA today, all Felons are members of the Slave Class.
As such, it is very difficult, if not impossible to get any employment outside the Low Class range, and this class distinction also places other Rights at risk. For instance owning a firearm, voting, or even boarding an airplane (with the no-fly list) can be impossible.
Professionals such as Doctors, and Engineers discover that they are forever barred from ever practicing their occupation. Whether it is through membership in a professional organization, or through the Human Resources department of a company, this class is persona non grata.
If you are arrested in America, you face entering the Slave Class.
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The only way out of this class is to have your felony expunged in a court of law. With a very small chance of this ever actually happening.
The Untouchable Class
This class is also mandated by law.
While the Slave Class has great hurtles, it is the untouchable class that lives within a real virtual prison. Every restriction possible by the local, state and federal governments apply. Where you live, where and how you travel, what you do, what you eat, and who you associate with are all regulated. Movement is redistricted if not curtailed, and all freedoms are absent.
Unable to work by law, and having housing restrictions, most end up trying to live in free-shelters or government housing. However new laws have made this impossible as any shelter that obtains federal funding is not permitted to accept members of this class.
The result is a destitute life.
It is extremely difficult to crawl out of the untouchable class.
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There is no exit from this class. In the United States, once you are on the “Sex Offender” list, you are on it for life.
The large number of illegal aliens can be attributed to a number of factors, including:
Unsecured borders.
An explosion in sanctuary jurisdictions throughout the United States, where local law enforcement authorities refuse to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The availability of jobs. Illegal aliens know they will find work because America has yet to put in place mandatory E-Verify for all employers.
The increasing number of social welfare programs, and other benefits, given to illegal aliens by states and local governments – including in-state college tuition and driver’s licenses.
Easily exploited asylum laws, flawed detention policies and a growing immigration court backlog that, for years, have allowed illegal aliens to obtain release from ICE custody and disappear into the interior of the United States.
The on-going promise of amnesty by members of Congress and powerful special interests.
These individuals are recognized by the government legally, why they are not recognized socially is a mystery to me. I guess that it is just laziness on the part of sociologists.
This class has become somewhat of a political “football” used for distraction purposes. This class isn’t really “stealing jobs” from Americans, though it is deleting and siphoning away from the health and human benefits organizations that the Low Class uses to live off of.
It is unrealistic to believe that this class will eventually disappear though legislation. It is in America permanently.
Social Mobility
Social mobility refers to the ability to change positions within a social stratification system. When people improve or diminish their economic status in a way that affects social class, they experience social mobility.
Social mobility. Like this, perhaps…
Social Mobility, American Style.
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Individuals can experience upward or downward social mobility for a variety of reasons. Upward mobility refers to an increase—or upward shift—in social class. In the United States, people applaud the rags-to-riches achievements of celebrities like Jennifer Lopez or Michael Jordan.
Bestselling author Stephen King worked as a janitor prior to being published. Oprah Winfrey grew up in poverty in rural Mississippi before becoming a powerful media personality. There are many stories of people rising from modest beginnings to fame and fortune.
But the truth is that relative to the overall population, the number of people who rise from poverty to wealth is very small.
Still, upward mobility is not only about becoming rich and famous. In the United States, people who earn a college degree, get a job promotion, or marry someone with a good income may move up socially. In contrast, downward mobility indicates a lowering of one’s social class. Some people move downward because of business setbacks, unemployment, marriage, or illness.
Dropping out of school, losing a job, or getting a divorce may result in a loss of income or status and, therefore, downward social mobility.
It is not uncommon for different generations of a family to belong to varying social classes. This is known as intergenerational mobility. For example, an upper-class executive may have parents who belonged to the middle class. In turn, those parents may have been raised in the lower class. Patterns of intergenerational mobility can reflect long-term societal changes.
Similarly, intragenerational mobility refers to changes in a person’s social mobility over the course of his or her lifetime. For example, the wealth and prestige experienced by one person may be quite different from that of his or her siblings. Structural mobility happens when societal changes enable a whole group of people to move up or down the social class ladder.
Structural mobility is attributable to changes in society as a whole, not individual changes. In the first half of the twentieth century, industrialization expanded the U.S. economy, raising the standard of living and leading to upward structural mobility. In today’s work economy, the recent recession and the outsourcing of jobs overseas have contributed to high unemployment rates. Many people have experienced economic setbacks, creating a wave of downward structural mobility.
When analyzing the trends and movements in social mobility, sociologists consider all modes of mobility. Scholars recognize that mobility is not as common or easy to achieve as many people think. In fact, some consider social mobility a myth.
Class Traits
Class traits, also called class markers, are the typical behaviors, customs, and norms that define each class. Class traits indicate the level of exposure a person has to a wide range of cultures. Class traits also indicate the amount of resources a person has to spend on items like hobbies, vacations, and leisure activities.
Class traits, also called class markers, are the typical behaviors, customs, and norms that define each class.
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People may associate the upper class with enjoyment of costly, refined, or highly cultivated tastes—expensive clothing, luxury cars, high-end fund-raisers, and opulent vacations.
People may also believe that the middle and lower classes are more likely to enjoy camping, fishing, or hunting, shopping at large retailers, and participating in community activities.
While these descriptions may identify class traits, they may also simply be stereotypes.
Moreover, just as class distinctions have blurred in recent decades, so too have class traits. A very wealthy person may enjoy bowling as much as opera. A factory worker could be a skilled French cook. A billionaire might dress in ripped jeans, and a low-income student might own designer shoes.
Eraser Head.
Models of Global Stratification
Various models of global stratification all have one thing in common: they rank countries according to their relative economic status, or gross national product (GNP).
Traditional Model
Traditional models, now considered outdated, used labels to describe the stratification of the different areas of the world.
Simply put, they were named “first world, “second world,” and “third world.” First and second world described industrialized nations, while third world referred to “undeveloped” countries (Henslin 2004).
When researching existing historical sources, you may still encounter these terms, and even today people still refer to some nations as the “third world.”
More vs Less Developed
Another model separates countries into two groups: more developed and less developed.
More-developed nations have higher wealth, such as Canada, Japan, and Australia.
Less-developed nations have less wealth to distribute among higher populations, including many countries in central Africa, South America, and some island nations.
GDP
Yet another system of global classification defines countries based on the per capita gross domestic product (GDP), a country’s average national wealth per person.
The GDP is calculated (usually annually) one of two ways: by totaling either the income of all citizens or the value of all goods and services produced in the country during the year. It also includes government spending. Because the GDP indicates a country’s productivity and performance, comparing GDP rates helps establish a country’s economic health in relation to other countries.
This method can be terribly skewed upwards by a wealthy oligarchy class, thus providing inaccurate comparative data.
But the thing is, the GDP is only a reflection of the general health of a nation as long as the wealth is shared in a linear manner through out the classes. When the oligarchy became super-wealthy and gobbled up all the wealth, they skewed the GDP into unrealistic and deceptive numbers.
GDP migration skewed by the enormous wealth of the oligarchy class.
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The solution to this problem, is to come up with a different way to determine the actual wealth of a nation. Thus we have the PPP.
Purchasing power parity (PPP)
GDP PPP refers to the GDP converted to US dollars using purchasing power parity rates and divided by total population. Purchasing power parity (PPP) is used to adjust the exchange rate differences among countries. This economic theory states that the exchange rate between two currencies is equal to the ratio of the currencies’ respective purchasing power. PPP provides an opportunity to compare countries that have different standards of living by recalculating the value of a country’s goods and services as if they were being sold at U.S. prices.
E.g. China and UK has a GDP of $200m and $175m respectively, where the GDP of China is more by $25m. Assuming a basket of goods cost $200 in China and $175 in the UK, 1 million baskets of goods can be purchased in China whereas 1.75 million baskets of goods can be purchased in the UK.
According to the above, a higher GDP does not necessarily make a country richer, the relative purchasing power is important. In order to make price comparisons across countries, a wide range of goods and services must be considered. This is a very exhausting exercise; however, this has been made convenient by the International Comparisons Program (ICP) founded by the United Nations and University of Pennsylvania. ICP generates purchasing power parity rates based on a worldwide price survey that compares the prices of hundreds of various goods. This information can be used to compare countries to arrive at GDP PPP.
What’s Next
Well, if America [1] doesn’t change internally, and there are [2] no (additional) external wars, we can expect a tenth social class to be added. That of Chinese-Americans…
Coming soon to America, if SHTF doesn’t happen. The new tenth class of stratification; Chinese-Americans.
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We can expect them to fit somewhere between the Slave Class and the Untouchables Class.
So what does this mean?
When you have a stratified class system, and…
When you have a small group of super wealthy people in control of most of the money, all of the government, and all of the services, media and policing actions you have a dictatorship by oligarchy.
When this organization is focused on external threats to the extent that wars are more desirable than repair of serious domestic emergencies, then you have an out-of-control military empire.
And with that, history has been very clear. They ALWAYS are destroyed catastrophically.
Summary
What Is Social Stratification?
Stratification systems are either closed, meaning they allow little change in social position, or open, meaning they allow movement and interaction between the layers.
A caste system is one in which social standing is based on ascribed status or birth.
Class systems are open, with achievement playing a role in social position. People fall into classes based on factors like wealth, income, education, and occupation.
A meritocracy is a system of social stratification that confers standing based on personal worth, rewarding effort.
Social Stratification and Mobility in the United States
There are nine main classes in the United States. Social mobility describes a shift from one social class to another. Class traits, also called class markers, are the typical behaviors, customs, and norms that define each class.
Conclusion
All this shit about stratification in the USA gives me a headache. You all don’t have to believe that it is stratified. You can believe that narrative that is being piped to you 24/7 by the “news” media… that anyone can become rich and wealthy and successful.
Just look at all those instagram models… for instance.
The truth is that the class that you inherited is pretty much the upper limit of where you will end up and retire into. All those articles about Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, and the Jeff Bezos are just fantasies. They only apply to the 0.00001% of the population, and if you believe that you are part of that elite group then go for it.
Just realize that the “deck of cards” is all stacked up against you. Not just socially, and culturally, but also mandated by law. You are fucked.
If I sound like a grouchy old geezer, who is a little long in the tooth and disgruntled, then maybe I am. But I have good reason to be. So listen to me…
…the ONLY way that you can exit your birth class, as an American, is to leave America. Other than that, you are locked in place, and upward mobility is pretty much closed to you. As we used to say in Pennsylvania, “it’s a closed country club, and you ain’t in it.”
Overall, 2020 has been a God-damn shitty year!
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It’s so very true. No one has yet to disagree. And with that being said, this all pretty much says it all…
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Yah, but let’s end this post on a high note…
The Saturday Night Joke
Very heartwarming....read to the end. It's worth the read.
Every morning, the CEO of a large bank in Manhattan walks to the corner where a shoe shine is always located.
He sits on the couch, examines the Wall Street Journal, and the shoe shine gives his shoes a shiny, excellent look.
One morning the shoeshine asks the Executive Director:
"What do you think about the situation in the stock market?"
The Director asks in turn arrogantly:
"Why are you so interested in that - that topic?"
"I have a million dollars in your bank," the shoeshine says, "and I'm considering investing some of the money in the capital market."
"What your name? –"Asks the Director.
"John Smith."
The Director arrives at the bank and asks the Manager of the Customer Department:
"Do we have a client named John Smith?"
"Certainly –"answers the Customer Service Manager–, "he is a highly esteemed customer. He has a million dollars in his account."
The Director comes out, approaches the shoeshine, and says:
"Mr. Smith, I ask you this coming Monday to be the guest of honor at our board meeting and tell us the story of your life. I am sure we will have something to learn from you."
At the board meeting, the Executive Director introduces him to the board members:
"We all know Mr. Smith, who makes our shoes shine in the corner; But Mr. Smith is also our esteemed customer with a million dollars in his account. I invited him to tell us the story of his life. I am sure we can learn from him."
Mr. Smith began his story:
"I came to this country fifty years ago as a young immigrant from Europe with an unpronounceable name. I got off the ship without a penny. The first thing I did was change my name to Smith. I was hungry and exhausted. I started wandering around looking for a job but to no avail. Suddenly I found a coin on the sidewalk. I bought an apple. I had two options: eat the apple and quench my hunger or start a business. I sold the apple for two dollars and bought two apples with the money. I also sold them and continued in business. When I started accumulating dollars, I was able to buy a set of used brushes and shoe polish and started polishing shoes. I didn't spend a penny on entertainment or clothing, I just bought bread and some cheese to survive. I saved penny by penny and after a while, I bought a new set of shoe brushes and ointments in different shades and expanded my clientele. I lived like a monk and saved penny by penny. After a while I was able to buy an armchair so that my clients could sit comfortably while cleaning their shoes, and that brought me more clients. I did not spend a penny on the joys of life. I kept saving every penny. A few years ago, when the previous shoe shine on the corner decided to retire, I had already saved enough money to buy his shoeshine location at this great place. Finally, three months ago, my sister, who was a whore in Chicago, passed away and left me a million dollars."
-From Busted Knuckles
(Bless that ornery old' coot.)
Ah.
That’s all fun and games, but now for the REAL STORY…
A janitor making $4/hour walked into a Fortune 500 company boardroom. Shaking, he took a seat opposite the CEO. "So I had an idea..." he nervously began.
Years later, that idea would become an iconic consumer brand and make him worth ~$20M.
Here's how that meeting went:
1) Richard Montañez grew up in Cucamonga Valley, California, sharing a one-room cinderblock hut with 14 family members. He dreaded school. Barely able to speak English, he’d cry to his mother as she was getting him ready for class.
2) When asked, all other students in class would eagerly shout out their dream job: Astronaut, Doctor, Racecar driver. Richard had nothing to say. “There was no dream where I came from.”
3) He dropped out of school in 4th grade and took odd jobs at farms and factories to help make ends meet.
Some years later in 1976, a neighbor let him know of a job opening for a factory janitor at the Frito-Lay plant down the road. The $4/hour pay was more than he'd ever made.
4) As he was getting ready for his first day of work, his grandfather pulled him aside and said: “Make sure that floor shines. And let them know that a Montañez mopped it.”
5) Richard made it his mission to be the best janitor Frito-Lay had ever seen. He spent his off-time learning about the company's products, manufacturing, marketing and more. He even asked salesmen to tag along and watch them sell.
6) In the mid-1980s Frito-Lay started to struggle. The CEO announced a new initiative to all 300,000 employees. “Act like an owner” Trying to empower them to work more creatively and efficiently. Montañez listened.
7) Then, he called the CEO.
“Mr. Enrico’s office. Who is this?”
“Richard Montañez, in California”
“You’re the VP overseeing CA?”
“No, I work at the Rancho Cucamonga plant.”
“Oh, so you’re the VP of Ops?”
“No, I work inside the plant.”
“You’re the manager?”
“No. I’m the janitor.”
8) The CEO got on the line. Loving the initiative, he told Richard to prepare a presentation, and he set a meeting in 2 weeks time. Stunned, Richard ran to the library and picked up a book on marketing strategies. Then, he started prepping.
9) 2 weeks later, he entered that boardroom. After taking a moment to catch his breath, he started telling them what he'd learned about Frito-Lay and the idea he'd been working on.
10) “I saw there was no product catering to Latinos.”. On the sales trips he shadowed he saw that in Latino neighborhoods Lays, Fritos, Ruffles, and Cheetos, were stocked right next to a shelf of Mexican spices. Frito-Lay had nothing spicy or hot.
11) The Latino market was ready to explode, Monteñez explained. Inspired by elote - a Mexican street corn covered in spices - Richard had created his own snack. He pulled out 100 plastic baggies. He had taken Cheetos from the factory and coated them in his own mix of spices.
12) He’d even sealed the bags with a clothing iron, and had hand drawn a logo on each one.
The room went silent.
After a few moments, the CEO spoke, “Put that mop away, you’re coming with us”.
13) Flamin’ Hot Cheetos became one of the most successful launches in Frito-Lay history. They went on to become a viral, pop-culture sensation.
Richard became a VP and amassed a $20M fortune.
Not bad for a boy from Cucamonga.
-From Busted Knuckles
(Bless that ornery old' coot.)
As he said with open honesty and pluck…
“I can say with confidence that Mr. Monteñez has done more to help the human race than a hundred soy boys with bachelor’s degrees in Botswanian Lesbian Feminist Interpretive Tap-Dancing Studies with tens of thousands of dollars in student loan debt who’ve graduated with nothing but an unwarranted sense of entitlement and a sour attitude.
I have nothing to add to this story, other than reading it was like a breath of fresh air, and why don’t we hear more stories like this? Then I recall the inclinations of the people who are running our media, and the answer is obvious.”
…
The United States might be segregated and stratified by class, and by law, but you still have two hands and a brain. Whether you have the spunk and pluck to climb to the top of the oligarchy class, or not. Whether you have sunk to the untouchable class or not, your life is in your hands.
Make your life special.
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This post is going to be a little bit different. Part of it, is in essence, a little bit about what it was like staying at Father Pete’s retreat. But the other part of it is about prayer, and intention campaigns. And some of it is about the non-physical reality that surrounds our physical reality. So it’s gonna be a big mish-mash of all kinds of stuff, that are all intrinsically connected, but to see the big picture and the over all relationships we need to look at the tiny bits and pieces.
Well, are you ready? Buckled up and all that?
Summer 2020
The Coronavirus is raging all over the globe. Industry has contracted. Many people live under lock down conditions, and the entire society all over the world is disrupted. Disruption of society…
…a perfect opportunity for the evil and maligned full of evil intent.
And as a result, bad people find opportunity.
And Metallicman was caught up in one of these evil snares. I was scammed. And I am still dealing with it, but that’s another story.
I own a house in Shenzhen. I bought it before I was retired, and thus I bought it very cheap. And while I was doing long time in Prison in Arkansas, my house was accruing in value. Each year, as Shenzhen grew in size, the value of the house grew as well. Then they put a subway under the house and it’s value sky-rocketed.
Shenzhen, China.
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I’ve been renting my house out.
It’s been a good source of income for us.
But then Coronavirus hit. And our tenants moved out. And we needed to find new ones. Well, what do you know! This company offered to take care of our house for us. We just pay them one months rent and they handle everything else. They get the tenant, and handle all problems or issues that arise.
Good deal!
When the COVID-19, coronavirus hit China, it caused work stoppages and factory closures. Our tenants moved to return to their home towns, leaving our apartment empty.
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So we paid the money and told them what our rent out requirements were. They agreed to manage everything. (Without getting involved in currency conversion and all that, let’s keep the numbers simple.)
Rent was $1000 / month. They agreed to it, and almost immediately said that they found someone. We signed the contract and that was that.
…oh, my goodness. So so quick.
One week later, we discovered that the company found tenants promising them a rent of $500 / month if they would pay two years up front. Now, naturally, that set alarm bells off, but the company paid us the first month rent of $1000. So we shrugged our shoulders and figured that who cares, as long as they paid us the agreed amount.
They agreed to it, and almost immediately said that they found someone. We signed the contract and that was that.
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One month came and went. They didn’t pay us the second rent.
So we went to the office. It was all closed up and boarded up. WTF?
Long story short…
This guy set up the company. Operated the company in around 30 cities. Got about one or two thousands others like us, and rented out our houses at basement prices for advance payments. Then he skipped town.
He took the money and skipped town.
…
(Tumbleweeds blowing in the street. Crickets chirping.)
…
It’s a criminal case and it is on-going. Our beef with the company is a civil case and we are suing them, but no action can occur until after the criminal case is resolved. And we are in the process of suing the current tenants to either pay us of leave. No squatters allowed.
Ok.
So what?
My Affirmation Campaign
I have not spent too much time on this particular bit of misfortune. I only added this line in my affirmation prayer campaign;
Those that have cheated and swindled me and my family this year has been identified and located. True and real justice upon these individuals is administered by those who have suffered from their activity. This justice is immediate and substantive.
Let’s talk about the non-physical reality
In this reality, thoughts create our reality. You think bad thoughts and bad things will happen. You think good thoughts, and good things will happen. If you don’t understand this, look up Quantum Physics 101.
Your thoughts create your reality.
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Now, what do you think that 2000 angry families are thinking about this guy? Not just swindled, but swindled for one, two or even three years in the future! They will not be happy, and in China, if you piss off the wrong person, they will hunt you down and slaughter your ass, sure as shit.
All those bad evil brain waves…
Have you ever had someone so pissed off at you that they just beamed the hate right at you. Like they are trying to laser beam you to death? Well, imagine that multiplied by four (people per family) and again by 2000 (families affected). All these negative waves…
This is reality. They will hunt this guy down, and torture and kill him. If not personally, they will hire someone. It costs 25,000 RMB to hire an attorney like we did. But only 15,000 RMB to hunt this guy down and bring him to you.
…
Well, we moved on.
It crippled our finances. Coronavirus reduced our family income by 50%, while everything else and prices rose. But we survived, and are still squeaking by. It’s life. That’s what it is. You deal with it and move on.
You adapt. You grit your teeth. You carry on.
Then, in the middle of November 2020, my “situation board” lit up.
Alert to my “situation board”
Yah. Some explanation is required as to what the Hell I am talking about.
What is a gut feeling?gut feeling. An intuition or instinct, as opposed to an opinion based on a logical analysis. Jennifer's mother had a gut feeling that something was wrong when her daughter wasn't home by 10 o'clock.
-Gut feeling - Idioms by The Free Dictionary
Women have “woman’s intuition”. Men have a “gut feeling”. I have a “situation board”. It’s a neural net of all our senses that combine to make an accurate appraisal of our situation at any given moment in time. By practicing and through alertness and discipline we can sharpen our senses, hone our abilities, so that our intuition, and feelings, or “situation board” becomes more accurate and useful.
David J. Schwartz once related a story in his book “The Magic of Thinking Big” about an event that he once experienced. He once secured a very, very large order with a big, big client. After he had dinner with the client and everyone shook hands and left, he remained and had a few drinks with his co-workers. All night they made fun of the new client. They made fun of his appearance, and of his dealings, of his company, and of his dress. They spent the entire night making fun of him.
It doesn’t make sense why they did, you would think that they would be happy and elated to secure such a big contract. But they did. I would well imagine that alcohol played a role in this event, but we don’t know for sure what happened.
The next day, while at work, he received a phone call from the client. He withdrew his offer. The client couldn’t give a good reason for doing so except to say “I have a very bad feeling about this”. Indeed.
I’m sure that he did.
Trust your instincts. Trust your gut feelings.
In the book 4,000 Days: My Life and Survival in a Bangkok Prison, the author relates what happened late at night just hours before the Thailand police busted into his hotel room and arrested him. He had this really awful feeling. He felt fearful and afraid and ugly. He wanted to ditch his illegal drugs right then and there, but he shrugged it off as his imagination.
It wasn’t.
Trust your instincts. Trust your gut feelings.
Before I was arrested for my heinous “crimes”, I too felt an awful, just awful dark icky feeling. It was like being dipped in molten hot dog shit, and it felt awful. I felt like gathering up everything and just bolting. Anywhere.
Looking back, maybe I should have…
Trusted my feelings.
Anyways, after that event, I decided that I would fully trust my “gut instincts” and be alert for the slightest change in my feelings and identify what is going on (to the best of my ability). I guess that it was easier for me as I have had years of world-line travel under my belt, and exposure to all sorts of strange things. So I pretty much knew what was going on. What I never thought about was honing my “gut feeling” abilities into a sense that I could rely upon.
I call this “practiced and cultivated skill” my “situation board”.
11 Signs Your Intuition Is Stronger Than Most People’s
My wife believes that my “situation board” is the same as every man’s “gut instinct”. Further she believes that “Woman’s intuition” is the same as a “man’s gut instinct”. I disagree. But many women can relate to this article below…
Reprinted from HERE. All credit to the original author. Edited to fit this venue.
You know the feeling. It starts somewhere in the gut. It usually blossoms from there when there is a decision to make. It could be a confrontation between two ice cream flavors or something bigger like what job offer to take. Often you might feel like you should fight it, battling it back down to the root. But, guys, you've heard your mothers and your grandmothers: follow your intuition. There are some signs your intuition is on point and reason to trust that gut feeling.
There are some times you feel like you just know something. You might also know that you're not a psychic and don't have the ability to tell people their fortune — but still, you know things. This is your intuition calling you. Maybe somebody's facial expression sparked a judgement in you telling you not to trust this person. There's some psychological science behind that ~feeling~. As Psychology Today explained on its site, "intuition is a mental matching game. The brain takes in a situation, does a very quick search of its files, and then finds its best analogue among the stored sprawl of memories and knowledge." From there, you're able to listen to intuition and develop a "hunch" about a certain situation.
You know when a question is asked in class, and you know the answer but you doubt yourself and don't raise your hand? Then, as it turns out, you were right? Your intuition is mostly likely always on point. It's just a matter of learning to trust it.
[1] You Have Vivid Dreams
Dreams and intuition are both from the same place. Your unconscious. If you have vivid dreams, there's a chance that your intuition is on point because you're getting a wave of information from your unconscious. It might be a little frightening at first, but, this wave of intuition can be helpful in your approach to waking life. Who do you need to get in touch with? Does someone close to you need to know that you love them? Keep a journal by your bedside!
[2] You Keep Catching The Clock At A Certain Time
You know when you go to look at the clock and everyday you seem to be catching the time at exactly 4:44 or another specific time? That could be your intuition as it relates to unconscious information your brain stores. "When a person catches a clock at a certain time, and you feel that perhaps a message is attached from a loved one who has passed, saying hello, or providing an answer to a question you have been pondering, then that 'knowing' is something inside yourself that you intuitively understand without needing to hash it out with another person," Licensed mental health counselor and wellness coach, Jill Sylvester tells Bustle. You just know when to look. And you know you have all the answers you're looking for within you.
[3] You're Empathetic
MindBodyGreen listed empathy as a sign of an intuitive person: "you're highly sensitive to what others are feeling." Everybody gives off a certain amount of energy — either negative or positive. If you're intuitive, you may have empathetic tendencies and actually be able to feel how someone else is feeling. And, if you're in tune to what people feel, you're more likely to pick up on how to act and how to handle certain situations.
[4] You Can See Through People
You might be out on a date or hanging out with new friends who seems charming, but your intuition is totally on point if you can see through the smiles and wit. Of course everybody deserves a chance, but maybe a snide remark registers and it'll make you feel like a person is performing as someone they're not. "Your intuition is strong when you might experience a negative or positive emotion, in the presence of someone or something that may not be healthy for you or may be exactly who and what you need at this time. It’s a sense. A feeling. A trusting," Sylvester, author of Trust Your Intuition, tells Bustle.
[5] You're In Tune With Your Body
Sometimes you just know when your body needs to rest. Maybe you haven't started even sniffling yet, but you can feel that your body is getting worn down. Listen to this! It's important to trust that you know when something is feeling off. Give yourself a break. "Intuition is strongest when you know something inside yourself without needing it to be validated by another person," Sylvester explains to Bustle. You should totally seek a medical opinion if you're not feeling well, but trust your gut when you know something is off and it's time to see the doctor.
[6] You Pick Up The Phone When Someone Is About To Call
You know when you're thinking of someone? And then you think about maybe calling them? And then you do? And they pick up and are like, "I was just going to call you!" Or maybe you're reaching for the phone when they call you? That is your intuition being totally ON POINT. Call it a connection between best friends, but something registered to pick up the phone and get on a call.
[7] You Analyze Your Safety
The one thing you should probably never doubt is the gut feeling that you aren't safe. On a recent night walk in a new city, my maps app directed me down a rather concerning path alongside a river that had no lights. As I began to walk, something in my gut — be it my mother or my intuition — screamed, "not today, no thank you." And I chose to listen. I made it safely to my destination, relieved I didn't advance further on the path. If you feel uncomfortable or unsafe, trust your gut and do not proceed.
[8] You Pick Activities Up
You know the saying: it's like riding a bike. You just know how to do something. As reported by Experience Life, an study by the University of Chicago showed, "while novice golfers did better when they thought carefully about their putts, the performance of more experienced golfers got much worse when they reflected on what they were doing." Basically, if you're an expert at something, you've developed instinct and muscle memory. Don't overthink it. Just trust your gut.
I bake pies. When I'm trying too hard to impress someone, I typically always burn the pie or undercook it by overanalyzing everything. But when I turn on a playlist and trust my instinct and intuition, they turn out just the way I wanted them.
[9] You Hire and Let Go Of The Right People
In an interview with Forbes, Shelley Row, the author of Think Less Live More: Lessons From A Recovering Over-Thinker, said, "Intuition plays an essential role for decision-making in rapidly changing environments; if there are contradictions in the data; ambiguity due to lack of data; or decisions that center on people (hiring, firing, or political decisions)." While in business you can make logical decisions based on data collected, when it comes to a changing environment and what's right for your team, that comes from the gut.
[10] You Show Up At Specific Times
Sometimes you just have that feeling that the train is going to be late or the friend you're meeting will arrive early. This goes back to the idea that the feeling in our gut is attached to information stored in our brain. "Experience is encoded in our brains as a web of fact and feeling. When a new experience calls up a similar pattern, it doesn't unleash just stored knowledge but also an emotional state of mind and a predisposition to respond in a certain way," Psychology Today wrote on its site.
You probably have registered that that specific train is always running 10 minutes late and your friend is always 15 minutes early. And so you show up to scheduled appointments and hang outs perfectly on time. Nevertheless, your cognition intuition is on point.
[11] You Predict Someone's Reaction
Sometimes you don't know how someone will react to finding out that you're moving or you got a new job or you can't make the party. But, because you most likely have had experiences with the people you're telling this to, you can probably predict how they'll react. Even, sometimes what they'll say. Ever caught yourself saying, "I knew you were going to say that!"? This is because the brain stores information that become a navigational point of emotional reference for the future. In other words, that's your intuition being on point.
I really don’t know how accurate these 11 points are.
I just cannot do any of them.
I think instead, it’s a measure of one’s EQ rather than any thing else. But, I discussed this with my wife, and she seems to believe that these are all great indicators of ability and that I should include them here.
So I have.
What seems clear to me is that there is a fundamental understanding in the differences between “woman’s intuition” and a “man’s gut feeling”. We need to account for those differences when reading my narrative.
So what is the difference between my “gut feeling” and a “woman’s intuition”?
From the article titled “7 Gut Instincts You Should NEVER Ignore”, by Mateo Sol. Copied as found without editing aside to fit this venue. All credit to the author.
In order to fulfill your spiritual purpose in this life, you’ve got to walk the path less traveled. And to walk the path less traveled, you have to embrace your inner wolf. It is your inner lone wolf that will guard, guide, and protect you with courage, integrity, and intelligence.
But here’s the thing:in order to embrace your inner wolf, you’ve got to listen to your gut instinct.
The problem is that our gut instincts are often polluted by fears, prejudice, and mental clutter. In this article, I want to share with you the seven gut instincts you should never ignore. You’ll also learn how to differentiate the voice of fear from the voice of primal wisdom.
What is the Gut Instinct?
Your gut instinct is the physical reaction you have to the world around and inside of you.
When you experience an overwhelming “gut feeling,” your body is carrying out a primal response to subconscious information. The ultimate purpose of your gut instinct is to protect you. As your gut instinct is the most ancient and primal “sixth sense” you have, it is the one you can rely upon the most.
One example of your gut instinct in action would be deciding to spontaneously avoid walking down a road at night because something “feels off.” That feeling is your gut instinct warning you that danger is afoot. You may then glimpse an intimidating gang of men down the street as you hurry by – your gut instinct has just saved you from potentially being robbed, beaten up, raped, or worse.
Put simply, your body is like the television screen on which your subconscious (the radio waves) transmits its information. When you can learn to read your body, you can learn to accurately tune in to your gut instinct.
We human beings like to believe ourselves to be separate from animals. Yes, we might be more sophisticated. But at our core, we are still animals – human animals. Our primal impulses and evolutionary origins don’t just disappear because we sit and read the newspaper each morning or wipe our asses with lavender-scented toilet paper.
As noted by anthropologist Clifford Geertz:
… man is an animal suspended in webs of significance he himself has spun.
Rather than get hoity-toity about the fact that we’re only really advanced animals, why not embrace it? By honoring the wisdom of the subconscious mind and its impact on the body to produce ‘gut instinct’ we can save ourselves from a lot of suffering. (This has been proven by the way.)
What’s the Difference Between Gut Instinct and Intuition?
Gut instinct and intuition are often used synonymously. And, yes, they are interconnected. But they aren’t quite the same.
So what’s the difference?
Put simply, gut instinct is your primal wisdom. Intuition is your spiritual wisdom. We need both if we are to walk our spiritual paths with courage and intelligence.
Intuition is very cerebral – it is a calm and clear sense of “knowing.” On the other hand, gut instinct is very visceral and physical – you feel it in your body.
Intuition can be expressed through the body, and the gut instinct can be expressed through intuitive knowing. But generally, both are clearly discernable and strikingly different in their experience. Also, gut instinct is much more emotional and reactive (as it is wired in the primal brain), whereas intuition is more neutral and calm.
Examples of Gut Instinct
Some call it a “hunch,” others an “inkling,” but in this article, we’ll refer to it as the gut instinct. Here are some examples that are taken from the animal kingdom and human (animal) behavior of gut instinct:
A herd of zebra sense danger while grazing. They cannot see the lions lurking in the surrounding savannah, but something is distinctly “off.” One zebra whinnies and the herd begins galloping away vigorously.
A herd of elephants meander through the deserts in search of water. Instinctively they know what direction to move in to find their sustenance.
A cat sits on the edge of a three-story house and wants to find a way down. She slinks over to the edge and stares at the ground apparently about to jump – but then changes her mind. She climbs down to the first story roof and then makes the jump, apparently aware on an instinctual level that jumping from any higher distance would injure her.
A person approaches you at a bar wanting to flirt with you. You start reciprocating, but something feels wrong. You sense a predatory quality about this person. You don’t trust them. You excuse yourself and leave.
Two hikers get lost on a trail within the mountains. Without a compass or any way to determine a direction back to camp, they sit silently and tune into the surrounding trees. Suddenly one of them points to the west, “I have a feeling that is the way back!” An hour later they have made it back to home base.
You’re driving down a highway at night. Suddenly, the impulse overtakes you to change lanes immediately. You obey the impulse, and a couple of seconds later miss a large spike of glass that could have punctured your tire and rendered you stranded on the side of the road.
A young woman is sitting in class at college. Out of the blue, she feels the strange impulse to return home. She ditches the class and catches a taxi, a pit of dread looming in her stomach. When she arrives home, she finds her mother on the floor having a heart attack. If she had ignored her gut instinct, her mother would have most likely died alone.
A man has two job offers. One of them pays less, and the other pays more. Logically he would choose the job that pays more, but he can’t shake the knot of dread that forms in his stomach every time he considers accepting the higher paying offer. He decides to choose the job that pays less. Two months later, he is relieved that he chose the right offer as the higher paying company went out of business due to a high profile lawsuit.
I hope you now have a good idea of how the gut instinct operates!
Signs You’ve Experienced a Gut Instinct
Pay attention to these signs:
A sudden feeling of dread or fear (that is out of context)
A strong urge to do something (feels like an inner nudge or pull)
Full-body chills, goosebumps or “tingles” up the spine
Nausea or physical uneasiness
Sudden hypervigilance (or being on “high alert”)
A clear and firm voice within you instructing you to do/not do something
You might experience all of these signs at once or only one or two of them.
Is it Fear? Or is it Your Gut Instinct?
Don’t get them confused!
But also, don’t worry if you have already. Chances are you were never taught about the difference between superficial mental fears and true gut instinct.
The mind can easily fool us, particularly when it comes to gut instinct. After all, we feel our emotions within our body. When you’re scared, you most likely get clammy hands, butterflies, and an increase in heart rate, right?
In a similar fashion, when we experience a gut instinct, we also receive physical sensations.
So how on earth can we distinguish between the two?
My response is to pay attention to your mind. What is the quality of your thoughts? Is your mind racing, frantic, or chaotic? If so, you are experiencing fear.
On the other hand, if your mind is relatively neutral, but your body is experiencing strong reactions (like a sense of impending doom for instance), you are experiencing a gut instinct.
In other words, when you need to distinguish between the voice of fear and your gut instincts, always turn your attention to your mind.
Why?
Gut instincts are spontaneous – they arise out of the blue. They don’t have time to build-up in the brain, therefore, the brain is relatively still and neutral. There is no “hmm, should I? Shouldn’t I?” going on. There is just an immediate DO THIS/DON’T DO THIS.
Fears, on the other hand, build-up. They are typically more vague, nagging, unclear, and tumultuous. If your mind is spinning, if your thoughts are everywhere, you are experiencing fear, not gut instinct.
7 Gut Instincts You Should NEVER Ignore
Obviously, you must be the judge. But there are some situations in life where your gut instincts shine the most.
While it’s easy to brush off most nagging sensations, please never ignore the following ones:
1. “I’m in danger”
Remember that your gut instincts reflect what your subconscious mind already knows. Although you may not be able to pinpoint what exactly the danger is, please listen to this inner warning. It could be the difference between life and death.
2. “They’re in danger”
Yes, you might sound like a lunatic. Yes, you might feel embarrassed or perplexed. But if you genuinely feel that someone is in danger, tell them. You have nothing to lose. You might just prevent the person from making a big mistake or endangering themselves.
3. “This isn’t the right choice”
If you get a strong and clear feeling that what you’re doing isn’t right, pay attention. Even if there is no moral or logical reason why you should be feeling that way, take heed.
4. “I need help”
Your gut instinct doesn’t only warn you of danger, it also helps to preserve your emotional well being. If you receive a strong sensation that you need help (whether physically, emotionally, mentally or spiritually), seek it out. Don’t linger.
5. “I need to help them”
At some point in our lives, the overwhelming desire to help someone will arise. There may not be any rational reason why. The other person may appear to be perfectly fine on the surface. But don’t let appearances deceive you. Have a conversation with the person. Ask them how they are. This might make you feel vulnerable or uncomfortable, but you will at the very least make the person feel special, and at the most potentially save their lives.
6. “Something feels off in my body”
Unless you’re a hypochondriac (which is unlikely), your gut instincts rarely lie about the state of your health. If a sudden strong and clear desire arises to see a medical professional, do it. Get a full health assessment, and even if nothing comes up, feel proud of yourself for practicing self-care.
7. “This is it!”
Often when the perfect life calling, spiritual path, job, house, decision, option, etc. comes along, your gut instinct will immediately notify you. If you receive a strong and clear feeling that practically screams “YES” don’t ignore it! This is one of the most important reasons why it’s essential to listen to your gut instinct. It could be the difference between making a life-fulfilling choice and a soul-starving decision.
Trust Your Gut
So long as you’re able to distinguish between the voice of fear and the spontaneous feelings of your gut instinct, it is safe to trust your gut.
Trusting your instincts is an invaluable life skill and one that will tremendously benefit you on the spiritual path. After all, this instinct is built into our very DNA, so why not make the most use out of it?
As a final recommendation, I suggest practicing mindfulness meditation if you struggle to trust your gut. Mindfulness meditation will help you to become aware of your thoughts and body sensations. The more awareness you can develop, the easier it will be to make the distinction – it will become second-nature to you.
How was I able to cultivate my latent and inherent ability?
After I left Prison, I was able to leave the Hard Labor Facility at ADC “Brickey’s” East Arkansas Regional Unit and stay with family on parole. Parole is the “rehabilitation” part of my five year sentence.
For reasons that are not really important right now at this point in my narrative, it become prudent for me to move to a monastery, or a “men’s retreat” to help stabilize my return to society. This was a suggestion by my parole officer, and he was right. I needed something that my biological family was unable to provide at that time.
This is important after enduring the “punishment” part of the Hard Labor sentence.
East Arkansas Regional Unit.
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The monastery, or a “men’s retreat”, was a great place to center myself and slow down…way down from all the changes over the last few years. It pretty much consisted of an arrangement of various small farms. Each one with a building set up to house around 20 to 30 men in small cubicles.
Each cubicle was a very small bedroom. It held a very lumpy bed, a easy chair to sit on. A small side table with a lamp, and a bible. It was really nice, if a bit primitive.
That’s me at the monastery in my bedroom. Photo was taken by my father before he passed on. The cat is the monastery mouser, and took a shine to me and a few others as long as we let him come and go as he pleased.
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We worked the farm. Took care of the plants, the livestock and worked together communally to fend for the needs of the community. Between the work tasks were long period of quiet meditation, prayer, and similar activities.
The first week was a shock. And it took me three weeks to get used to the really, really, really slow pace of life. But then, once I adjusted, it was really nice. I was able to calm down and do well.
The monastery, or a “men’s retreat”, was in an isolated area that was hilly and wooded.
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The farms were in the middle of no-where. You could spend days walking down the roads and see nothing except trees. Not even isolated farm houses. We were “in the sticks” most certainly. Isolated wasn’t even the word for it. There was zero television and radio reception. You couldn’t even get AM radio. That’s how isolated the place was.
Anyways…
There was plenty of time to contemplate life and mistakes. And I contemplated quite a bit. Part of what I did was totally revamp my prayer affirmation campaign styles and methodology. But another thing that I did was try to home my “gut instincts”, or as I call it my “situation board”.
The monastery, or a “men’s retreat”, was a great place to center myself and slow down…way down from all the changes over the last few years.
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I personally believe that everyone needs to do this. But you just cannot devote a few minutes here or there. You need bulk periods of free time. Free time as in zero interruptions, and distractions. Only you. And I was able to do it at “Father Pete’s”. And it was glorious.
What is the “situation board”
The big change in how I dealt with things was that I now recognize that the physical world is a trivial image of a much larger non-physical reality. And I am constantly alert for changes in my personal “feelings”. The slightest change and I start looking for reasons for the incident. Was it something physical? Something that I ate? Or something that I did? Or is is associated with something non-physical.
Situation board from a computer game.
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Since then I have been busy mapping out “flags” or “tell-tales” (to use a nautical term) to help me identify what non-physical things that I am sensing.
Sometimes I am very accurate. Eerily accurate. And other times, I am way off track. I am not that good identifying everything that is going on. My ability is dependent upon the strength of the effect and the feeling. So to simplify things, I classify how strongly I perceive the non-physical events with an accuracy reading.
Minor, light, unusual.
Buggy, nagging, pestering.
Abrupt, clear, and strong.
Very strong and powerful. Full body effect.
In my “situation board”, I view the minor things of no consequence and try to ignore them. They might mean that something is actually going on, but I really can’t tell what. So I just have to wait to see what will happen. My personal experience is that in three days something will manifest. And I’ll end up slapping my forehead saying “so THAT is what this is all about“.
Of course, I already related the Very Strong and powerful Full-Body effect that I felt prior to my arrest. That’s a great example. And luckily, it’s a preciously rare event for me to “feel”.
And abrupt, strong and clear “feeling”
It has been my experience that when I have an abrupt strong and clear “feeling” on my “situation board” that is is actually occurring. I can give and provide numerous examples, but you all should realize by now that this isn’t necessary. If I feel something, then I feel it.
Which brings me back to the story about my house in Shenzhen. Remember that?
Yeah and the guy who swindled me, and a few thousand others out of our rental income for years so that he could “run away” with our earnings.
And you know, he only thought about the physical. getting the money so that he can enjoy the physical life. he never gave a thought about the non-physical. All he thought about was himself in his little physical world. And never to the consequences of his actions.
Scene from the movie “Schrooged”. Here an Angel is showing Bill Murray (the tough asshole businessman executive) how his actions affect the world around him.
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In the middle of November, I was in my house (not in Shenzhen, my other house in Zhuhai) and I was in the study. Oh, getting some things, I don’t remember what I was doing specifically, when suddenly my “situation board” all lit up in blinding and bright colors…
I "felt" that there was a strange youngish man (late 20's to middle 30's) in my room with another entity. A guide, or a mentor, or a agent of some sort. This young man had a real "chip on his shoulder", a very bad and angry attitude, and was condescending of everything around him.
The entity was explaining to the young man something along the lines of "...and look at how your actions affected this family and the hardships that you imposed on them by your actions...".
And his response, was "oh, boo hoo. Too bad. So what's the deal..."
And then the image dissolved and I "felt" them move out and on-wards.
Just my feelings. Eh?
Yeah.
Maybe.
A ghost has Bill Murry confront his life, his past, present and future. Scene from the movie “Schrooged”.
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Don’t let anyone ever tell you that we (in the non-physical bodies) don’t ever learn, or review our life and the good and bad things that we have been involved in. Some people might call this being an angel with a ghost. To me, they are two non-physical beings…
This week
Welcome to this week. It’s the last week in November, and I am writing this on Thanksgiving. Which is an American holiday that celebrates… who knows what it actually celebrates anymore? Different cultures coming together? Family and friends? The end of a crappy-tastic year?
And on this Thanksgiving day, I lived my normal day to day life, and I didn’t even bother to celebrate it. Finding a turkey in China is damn near impossible. Though I was tempted to go to KFC for some fried chicken and mashed potatoes.
Anyways…
We decided to check in with our attorney. When we called the attorney that was dealing with our lawsuit against the company that swindled us, he told us that there has been a complication in the entire process.
The owner of the company that swindled us “had an event”. And will be unable to testify or resolve the issue(s) at hand.
As a result, other methods of restitution and other processes must now come into play regarding resolution of our legal issues.
…
The evil SOB that swindled us and thousands of other families had “an event”.
Conclusion
I strongly believe, in my very bones, that the physical world that we experience is just a vector of world-line travel.
Once we finish our path, our consciousness leaves the physical and enters the non-physical realm.
And in this realm is so much, much, much more than what we know of and realize about. I believe that it is important to keep this awareness alive and at the top of our minds always.
Always keep this reality at the top of your mind. Even when you are getting drunk, cavorting with pretty girls and eating all those fine, and delicious foods. Realize where you are.
An Angel has a real heart-to-heart understanding with Bill Murry.
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I also strongly believe that as long as we are true to our natural selves, and are not tricked or seduced by others towards a love of things, or abuse of vices…
… or get involved in any of the many, many sidetracks in this physical realm…
… that we will ride out our earth-side reality experiences and end up living a full and productive life.
It is a life with love, happiness, care, and shared experiences with others.
You don’t have to believe my experiences. For they are very personal and unique to myself. You, might have other experiences, and some might be very difficult to relate or strange for others to understand. But please just be the best you can be. Don’t try to trick, or hurt others, and be a good contributing member of your society. And everything will turn out just fine.
Be a good person. It’s not too late, and if you start now, today, you can erase decades of bad behavior through active efforts at resolution and perhaps personal restitution.
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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As I watch from afar, I see numerous “interests” cheering for radical change inside the USA. I can see their sentiment, and for certain there are agitators and people promoting this level of extreme change. But people(!), history tells us that there is unpleasant change, and then there is REALLY UNPLEASANT CHANGE. Please be careful what you are wishing for.
Let’s look at the French Revolution. For in many ways it mirrors what the USA is going through right now…
…in many ways.
The French Revolution changed everything. France’s kings were replaced almost overnight by the most radical government the world had ever seen. France was suddenly a beacon of freedom: “Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite” was the motto of the revolution.
Gosh. Really, it is still used to defend liberalism today.
But the revolution wasn’t all positive.
Thousands of innocent people lost their lives and the country was torn between different groups who used force to crush rebellion. It led France into dictatorship and, eventually, back to the days of kings and serfs…
Just like what might happen to modern contemporaneous America today.
The French Revolution (The Reign of Terror) 1789-1799
The story of the French Revolution is the story of a country collapsing in on itself.
It’s unfair to compare these events to the colonial uprising of the American Revolution. That is because that conflict did not take place at the center of power, and King George wasn’t exactly removed from the throne and decapitated.
… which is kinda how things went down in France in the 1790’s.
It was a time when the hostilities between the royalty and the common folk took on a real nasty tone.
Spoiler alert: things got ugly real fast.
Towards the end of the Eighteenth Century, France was dissected into three distinct classes / estates: the Nobility, the Clergy, and the smelly broke peasants who really didn’t count (aka everyone else).
At this time in France, people of the poorer classes were members of what was called the “Third Estate” in French legislature.
This is how things had been for longer than anyone could remember, and no one really second guessed it…
At least until a dangerous new idea came along…
The Third Estate: Other
The Enlightenment was a grass-roots movement that caused the underrepresented 99% to question EVERYTHING.
It was kinda like if Morpheus was going door to door with red pills and pamphlets about how the machines are harvesting our bodies as living batteries while we’re living our lives in virtual reality.
“No one can be told what <The Enlightenment> is, you have to see it for yourself.”
The Enlightenment, or Age of Reason, was an extension of the Italian Renaissance (meaning ‘Rebirth’), which brought new emphasis on discovery, and a search for truth and meaning through critical thinking, rather than just listening to what ‘they’ wanted you to think. This began an unprecedented drive for equality and individual rights which would ultimately challenge the hierarchy of the monarchy based government system.
The Catalysts of Change Chaos
Enter: the Bourbon King, Louis XVI (yes, that’s Louis the SIXTEENTH). Prince Louis (the 16th) was a reluctant ruler, with little to no interest in politics…
…then, suddenly he became the default king of France during the worst crisis of his country’s history in 1765.
The Bourbon monarchy reigned from the palace of Versailles.
This was Louis the 14th’s palatial estate. It was built 20 miles outside the districts of Paris, the nation’s capitol. Which was pretty handy. It was close enough for royal Kingly duties, yet far enough away from the stench of its open sewer system, and the complaints of the commoners.
This truly monstrous mansion would put every single house on MTV’s Cribs to shame.
Versailles: a 2,300 room, gold-plated, Sixty-Seven-THOUSAND-Square-Meter estate of PURE unadulterated EXCESS.
Versailles: Extravagance personified.
Not only did Louis get to be King, and live in a gigantic theme park dedicated to him…
…but he also married the young and beautiful, (albeit a little ditzy), Marie Antoinette, the Archduchess of Austria, in 1770. Louis XVI had won the lottery of arranged marriages and couldn’t really care either way.
Marie Antoinette: Madame Deficit
Meanwhile, back in the real world: France was simmering in a toxic mixture of hunger, and anger.
Enormous fiscal mismanagement
On July 11, 1789, finance minister Jacques Necker, who was already not in good standing with the King, was fired for suggesting that the royal family go on a budget to help conserve funds.
To make matters exponentially worse, the French lost against Great Britain during the Seven Years War in North America, effectively draining the bank as it were.
They took all the money in the Treasury and used it on wars, and the salaries of the military forces.
Much like how the United States has been draining the Treasury on an endless expanse of wars and military policing activities.
The French people were the ones who ultimately paid the price, starving in the streets while their privileged leaders partied around the clock like it was already 1999.
Then, when America rose up against France’s long term nemesis (they were still bitter about that whole Hundred Years War affair), Louis further bankrupted the country to send money and troops to help out the revolutionary colonists, an oversight that worked out rather well in America’s interest, but not so much for the French people.
All the while, Louis’s Queen (Marie Antoinette), ran up the credit card bills with her increasingly extravagant purchases to the point where she earned the title: Madame Deficit.
France had grown significantly in a short period of time, putting increased pressure on the government. Bakery raids, and riots swept the country. So between the food shortage, increased taxes, economic crisis, and political discourse, France was one gamma-inducing-accident away from Hulking out.
Maximilian Robespierre
That’s when a man named Maximilian Robespierre, leader of the Third Estate, came forth as the voice of the poor and disenfranchised.
You might want to consider the "Third Estate" to be the party of the "common man". It's closest equivalent would be the American Democrat Party.
Max reasonably demanded that the wealthy paid their fair share in taxes.
In his address, he blamed the royal court for their pile of problems, and essentially called Louis XVI a greedy jerk, which he definitely was.
Maximilian Robespierre
The Oligarchy refuses to listen
“A great revolution is never the fault of the people, but of the government.”
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
1789: During an appeal to the courts, the nobility and clergy completely ignored their pleas.
Since legal channels didn’t work, they decided to take a different route.
The representatives of the Third Estate got up during the meeting, and simply walked out.
Well, that didn’t sit well.
After being locked out of a meeting, the members of the Third Estate regrouped outside the court house in a tennis court (randomly), and announced an Oath against the King’s authority and formed The National Assembly.
The aptly named Tennis Court Oath was basically like a French version of the Declaration of Independence.
Perhaps some compromises might help…
King Louis, unsure of how to proceed, attempted to make both sides happy, which he failed to do, on both ends.
Then as a last step, he called in troops from abroad to ‘keep the peace’. Within days 30,000 troops surrounded Paris.
Sort of like how President Trump had called up the DHS and Border Patrol troops to seize people off the streets in Portland, Oregon.
In response, The People formed a guard to fight the power!
Sheer revolt had taken hold at long last. Paris erupted into violence as the people of Paris demanded retribution. Revolution had come at last, and things were about to get fugly…
The only problem? The make-shift militia had plenty of muskets…
…but not much in the way of ammo…
The solution: Raid the Armory!!!
The French Revolt!
Spurred on by these factors, on the morning of July 14, 1789, members of the Third Estate stormed the Bastille, a political prison in Paris, in search of gunpowder.
The Bastille, though only housing seven prisoners, was a symbol of government tyranny at the time. The assault on the Bastille is now considered a flashpoint of the Revolution, and is still celebrated today in France.
“Storm the Bastille!” they cried (in French, presumably).
And so the 99% marched towards the Bastille, ready to dish out some old school justice on some fools.
The Bastille was a literal fortress. It was a tall dark fortress with an enormous dungeon that symbolized the monarchy’s absolute power, and the citizens of Paris were about to tear it apart, quite literally brick by brick!
Storm the Bastille!
“Enough is enough!” – a French Revolutionary
The soldiers stationed at the Bastille crapped their collective pants as the entire population of Paris came down on them shouting ‘Vive La France!’
Those that were too stupid to abandon their posts met a gruesome death at the hands, knives, and pitchforks of the angry mob that swarmed the castle like a colony of killer bees!
Afterwards the amount of blood splashed on the walls and pooling on the floor become a symbol for the “revolution!”.
The mob reaches the palace.
Meanwhile, ¡Vive la Revolución! had reached the gates of Versailles.
The angry mob of mothers and bakers tore into the palace, pillaging the flour storage… and royal blood!
Accounts of the time claim that more than one of the palace guards was literally ripped limb from limb.
According to an urban myth of the time, when Marie Antoinette was approached by her servants about the starving, angry, people rioting outside, the Queen dismissively pointed to the leftovers from the party, and told her advisors, “Let them eat cake.”
As funny as that is, she never actually said it.
In reality Marie was shocked.
She had no idea just how bad things had gotten, from her sheltered lifestyle in the palace.
Some claim that as she was running for her life, she may have said something in panic, along the lines of “If they’re hungry, can’t we give them some Brioche?” not fully grasping the severity of the situation.
Surrender!
King Louis XVI looked out the window, saw the torches and pitchforks, and immediately set about dipping his quill in ink to sign their Declaration of the Rights of Man, relinquishing his power.
The King and Queen attempted to sneak away, but were captured, and marched unceremoniously back to Paris in a parade of revolutionaries waving red, white, blue…
… oh and the severed heads of the royal guards on pikes.
The National Assembly took control of the system, aristocracy was thrown out for democracy (by extreme means) and a Constitutional Monarchy was established by the people of France.
Now…
Now…
If you think that’s the happy end of our triumphant story you’re dead wrong.
Now, we get to the entire point of this.
It is now 2020. America is in a state of upheaval, and the ruling Oligarchy are oblivious. The actions taken are "half-measures" and doomed to fail. Soon, one way or the other, a successful change will come about, and when it does, there will be a period of readjustment.
Consider the readjustment that occurred during the French Revolution...
The REIGN OF TERROR Begins…
The Reign of Terror.
In 1791, the King and Queen attempted an escape to Austria, disguised as servants. Unfortunately they kinda sucked at acting. They were found out, arrested, and dragged back to Paris to await trial.
Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette kept their identities secret from the people of France, and only guests who stayed at Versailles really knew what they looked like. This came in handy during the Revolution as the pair tried to make their escape, but there was one flaw in the plan: the king’s face was stamped on all gold coinage. They made it as far as the border before being recognized.
All the while, Jon Paul Marat became the voice of the Revolution. As it turns out, Marat was a voice of insanity.
Jon Paul Marat
His solution to every problem was the rolling of heads.
In his newspaper (entitled, “The Friend of the People”), he claimed that betrayal was everywhere.
He was sort of the Alex Jones / Bill O Reilly of Eighteenth Century France.
Jon Paul Marat demanded the execution of hundreds, and when that wasn’t enough, he upped it to hundreds of thousands!!
As it turns out, people believed every angry word he put into his one-sided tabloid, and took up arms to carry out his will…
The September Massacre
1792: War breaks out between Prussia and Austria!
The Revolution back home in France takes a turn for the worse: The September Massacre – 1600 prisoners are slaughtered by crazed revolutionaries.
Many are given quick, biased show-trials before being hanged, or worse. Enemies of the revolution are made an example of. Criminals and aristocrats alike are killed without mercy.
A noble woman, Charlotte Corday, eventually got sick of all the death and destruction brought about by Jean-Paul Marat’s poisonous words.
So with a concealed knife she set about silencing him.
Charlotte shanked Marat (in the bathtub, mob-style) with hopes of bringing peace to her country.
Unfortunately, things didn’t work out that way…
… seeing as who he was, he suddenly become praised as a martyr…
…which only made things much, much worse.
Jon Paul Marat’s famous death.
Eat This: Guillotine Cuisine!
Speaking of bloodshed… There was A LOT of it going around, which was not only work, but (as you can imagine) created quite a mess.
The French janitors were tired of mopping up crimson streets.
Turns out, Dr. Joseph Ignace Guillotin had just the invention to streamline the whole mass execution process. His shiny new killing machine was christened, ‘The Guillotine’!
The Guillotine was created as a ‘humane’ form of decapitation. I can only imagine Doctor Guillotine giving a demonstration like a day time TV commercial, “It’s quick, efficient, (effortless), and ‘painless’!” CHOP! (Thud.)
The Guillotine was placed in the center of a town square in Paris, for all to see. This unsanitary death-dealing device soon became the bloody symbol of the French Revolution, with a name that evokes a cross between a pro-wrestler and a death-metal band: “The Nation’s Razor”!!
The Nations Razor.
Maximillian Robespierre, a former adversary of the death penalty, did a 360, flip flopping with the times, and became the Guillotine’s most outspoken supporter overnight.
Robespierre would help fulfill Marat’s blood lust as the people demanded it.
By the end of the century, 40,000 would lose their heads to the dreaded Guillotine!
Peasants looted and burned homes of tax collectors and landlords in what became known as “The Great Fear.” Many nobles fled France at this time, fearful of the rebellion. This inspired the end of feudalism, which was officially abolished on August 4, 1789.
Death of the King
1793: The King is tried as a traitor. He is declared guilty of treason.
The punishment: Death.
Both King Louis XVI and his wife Marie Antoinette were beheaded during the Revolution. The king was beheaded on January 12, 1793. Marie Antoinette followed her husband to “The National Razor” on October 16, 1793. Her last words were “I'm sorry”—not to the people, but to her executioner; she had accidentally stepped on his foot.
A few argued that the death of the former King would only excuse violence as a means to happiness. Those who spoke against it however were drowned out by the savage calls for his head.
King Louis, the 16th, was led to the maroon-stained scaffold.
He turned to his people in remorse and attempted to give a dignified final speech.
The crowd toned him out, booing and throwing rotten cabbage. They had come for blood (especially those in the splash zone).
Poor Marie Antoinette was also put on trial. When she was brought into the courtroom, she barely resembled her former self, as a list of made-up charges was rattled off. At 38 her hair had gone gray while awaiting her sentencing in a dungeon.
She too was led to the Guillotine.
“Whose next?”
It wasn’t all smooth sailing: the so-called “Reign of Terror” followed the initial revolutionary events, starting from around 1793 and ending with the fall of Robespierre in 1794. During the Reign of Terror, many political dissidents or perceived enemies of the Revolution were executed. Between June 1793 and July 1794, there were 16,594 official death sentences across France.
Britain takes advantage of the situation
Then, without warning, Britain began invading and panic filled the streets! (More so then before.)
An emergency government was put in place, the constitution suspended, and a police force of spies were institutionalized.
A revolutionary tribunal – a 12 men council – the ironically titled ‘the Committee of Public Safety’ was a collective dictatorship.
The government became extremely paranoid.
The Catholic Church was abolished, religious icons and statues were destroyed, thousands of priests drowned.
People were rounded up and sent to the guillotine on the most mundane of charges. Even a lack of enthusiasm could be seen as traitorous.
The Reign of Terror was in full swing.
France becomes a dictatorship
Maximillian Robespierre implemented dictatorial powers, declared himself the supreme ruler, and made lists upon lists of people to kill.
“Terror without Virtue is disastrous. But, Virtue without Terror is powerless!”
-Maximillian Robespierre spoke before his groupies.
In 1794, Robespierre helped sponsor a cult based on the Goddess of Reason in place of Christianity.
In his free time he established a new holiday: The Festival of the Supreme Being.
During the festivities, Maximillian Robespierre symbolically descended from atop a paper-machete mountain in the clouds, clad in robes.
This was seen as a thinly veiled attempt at making himself appear divine.
Though, in general, people were convinced that he’d lost his marbles, and began to get suspicious.
Robespierre chose this moment to deliver a speech of threats, with an all new list of enemies against the Republic.
The best way to tell what side a man was on was to check out his clothing. The French nobility wore knee-length silk breeches, whereas the lower class militiamen wore long trousers, short-skirted coats, clogs, and red caps that symbolized liberty.
This (of course) backfired in his face when the people flipped out and silenced him.
He was immediately arrested, and sentenced to death before he could finish reading off his latest hit list.
While in captivity, Robespierre attempted suicide. His advisors succeeded, but Max only managed to shoot off his jaw. The revolutionaries carted him off to the guillotine to finish the job for him.
As poetic justice would have it, Maximillian Robespierre was killed by his own revolution. FAIL
Maximillian Robespierre guillotined.
Enter… Napoleon
By 1804, a guy by the handle of Napoleon had risen through the ranks from General to Emperor.
On November 9, 1799 Bonaparte staged a coup d’état that abolished the Directory, the government in power at the time; he then pronounced himself as “first consul” of France. This event ended the French Revolution proper and began the Napoleonic era in France.
France had gone full circle, trading one monarchy for another.
After the rise and fall of Napoleon, the other European powers reestablished a constitutional monarchy in France.
King Louis XVIII (the 18th) was followed by Charles X (not to be confused with Professor Charles Xavier), and Emperor Napoleon III. During this time France would go on to have a few more Revolutionary movements.
The subsequent French Revolutions were minor in comparison to the first, and were by and large unsuccessful:
The July Revolution of 1830
The June Rebellion of 1832 (which was a complete disaster – as seen in the play / multiple movie adaptations of ‘Les Misérables’, by Victor Hugo)
The French Revolution of 1848.
The last of which established the Second Republic of France, which lasted until Napoleon the Third’s coup in 1851, effectively establishing the Second French Empire.
The Second French Empire eventually collapsed…
… and the Third Republic of France was established in 1870.
Everything was peachy until of course World War II when Hitler’s Nazi Party went around their massive defensive perimeter (the Maginot Line) to invade and temporarily conquer France (1940-1944).
The *FOURTH* Republic of France that followed ended up imploding in 1958 due to the Algerian Crisis (long story) to finally be replaced by the current administration:
The FIFTH (and Final?) Republic of France.
THE (first) French Revolution may have been a bloody mess that seemingly accomplished little, but it’s arguable that it had a greater impact on the world at large than the American Revolution, by challenging the old ways, and making way for the modern era.
In the end, the French Revolution would lead to a century full of instability, with two more Revolutions taking place. The country would be governed as a dictatorship, republic, constitutional monarchy, and two different empires before reaching equilibrium.
The Beheading Louis XVI
The beheading of Louis XVI and his wife Marie Antoinette was one of the biggest events of the French Revolution, but it didn’t have to happen.
Before he was king, Louis XVI was quiet, dedicated to his studies and painfully shy. It took him seven years to consummate his marriage to the beautiful and intimidating Hapsburg heiress.
When he became king he was cautious and indecisive, eager to be loved. In another age he would have been a great king, but he was entirely unsuited to the political crisis of the time.
People around him took advantage of his weakness to seize more power.
Louis was little more than a figurehead.
It was no surprise when the new government voted to abolish the monarchy shortly after.
Some revolutionaries argued against executing Louis, but the revolution was in full swing and the public hated him. Louis XVI was killed by guillotine in January 1793.
Louis XVIguillotined.
The move shocked many across the world since Louis had always been seen as a moderate king. His death enraged nearby European countries and led to a war that might have been avoided. He faced his death fearlessly: with his final breath, he forgave those who condemned him and hoped that no more blood would be spilled.
The Toppling Of Statues
Executing Louis wasn’t enough: later that year, the rebels decided to remove all trace of the old kings from the country.
They started with the tombs of St Denis, the traditional resting place of France’s royals.
To begin with, the masons were happy just to destroy the old Carolingian statues and other symbols of royalty.
Destruction of Statues in America in 2020.
But within a month they were hammering into the old vault that held the kings from the House of Bourbon.
When they were in, they started destroying the old coffins.
Some of the kingly remains were put on public display, while others were dumped into a large burial pit, to cries of joy from the crowd.
Many people came to watch—so many that the laborers struggled to do their work. According to eyewitnesses, members of the crowd grabbed at the bodies when they could, taking stray hairs, teeth and other things as personal mementos.
These acts were later condemned both within France and across the world, but by that time it was too late.
Destruction of Statues in America in 2020.
After the Bourbon Restoration, the kings were retrieved from the pit and moved to the crypt in the basilica, but the damage was already done: many of the kings were unrecognisable.
The Law of Suspects
The revolution started because the rebels wanted everyone to be free and equal.
After they won, though, their anger didn’t come to an end: instead, they started hunting down anyone who might be a threat.
This period is now known as the Reign of Terror, and it resulted in thousands of innocent deaths.
Reign of Terror
The Reign of Terror started with the Law of Suspects, which granted the government the power to accuse pretty much anyone of being a rebel.
They attacked the priests, who were driven underground—for a while, being Catholic was actually illegal. In the end, anyone who might have been connected to the old nobles could be imprisoned and executed.
Over two years around 500,000 people were accused—a huge number for the time.
So many were accused, in fact, that the prisons were too full and people had to be put under house arrest.
Though most were eventually allowed to walk free, around 16,000 people were killed—and many thousands more died in prison.
Under the law, anyone whose “conduct, relations or language [showed them to be] partisans of tyranny … and enemies of liberty” was arrested and put on trial.
The city of Lyon backed the moderate Girondins, a group who were part of the revolution but were not as bloodthirsty as the others.
The rebel leaders considered Lyon a centre of royalist support, so they laid siege to it in 1793.
Over the course of the fighting over 2,000 people were killed in Lyon and the city was conquered. The revolutionaries had won, but they had further plans for the city.
In October, the National Convention issued a decree calling for Lyon to be destroyed.
Everyone who lived in Lyon was to have their weapons taken away.
They would be given to revolutionaries.
Any building “inhabited by the wealthy” was to be torn down, leaving only the homes of the poor, factories, and some monuments.
They even planned to purge the city’s name from history.
The city’s name would be erased: Lyon would be called Liberated City (Ville Affranchie) instead. They planned to build a column with an inscription on it saying: “Lyon made war on Liberty; Lyon is no more.”
Fortunately, this project was never finished.
The Girondins Executed
France’s new government had two main groups: the Girondins and the Montagnards.
Girondins – Moderates
Montagnards – Extremists
The Girondins were moderates: they wanted to build a free, capitalist, democratic country where everyone had a say in how they were ruled—regardless of who they were.
They were supported across France but the people of Paris liked the Montagnards more.
They were extremists who “wanted everything leveled”.
Anyone seen as elite had to give up their status or be executed. The groups got along well to begin with, but fell out over Louis’s death. The Montagnards wanted to kill him, but the Girondins wanted the country to vote on it. The Montagnards said they were plotting to save the king and called them traitors.
Things boiled over on the streets of Paris.
A group of soldiers and citizens surrounded the government buildings and demanded the Girondins be kicked out of the government.
The Montagnards duly did so.
Some Girondins were able to escape, but a few months later, those who were left were rounded up and guillotined.
Many Girondins guillotined.
The Drownings at Nantes
The city of Nantes was a center of revolution, but much of the countryside surrounding it was royalist. The region rose up in rebellion, leading to the Battle of Nantes. After this, the new French government decided to purge the city of anyone who still supported the monarchy.
To do this, they sent Jean-Baptiste Carrier, one of their most committed supporters.
Jean-Baptiste Carrier.
Jean-Baptiste took his job very seriously. In around five months, between 12,000 and 15,000 people were killed by his order.
Nantes lies on the Loire, which Jean-Baptiste called “the national bathtub”.
He and his men built special boats called lighters which were specifically designed for drowning prisoners.
The captives would be shackled to each other, often naked, and herded onto the boats—which had trap doors on the bottom.
The boats were then sunk with the prisoners on board. The elderley, pregnant women and children were all drowned without distinction.
In the end Jean-Baptiste’s methods were too extreme even for the revolution: he was recalled to Paris by the Committee of Public Safety, put on trial and executed by guillotine.
Jean-Baptisteguillotined.
The Law of 22 Prairial
Over the course of the Reign of Terror, thousands of people were imprisoned, some for absurd reasons. By June 1794, the prisons of France—particularly Paris—were overcrowded, so action had to be taken.
Robespierre and his allies drafted a new law which would allow trials to be concluded much quicker: they pushed this law through the Convention and it was passed on 10 June 1794.
It meant that people could be put on trial for simple things like ‘spreading fake news’ or ‘seeking to inspire discouragement’.
Citizens were expected to confront or report their neighbors if they expressed any kind of opposition to the government.
When these people were put on trial, they weren’t treated fairly: the judges and jury only had three days to come to a conclusion, and they had to choose whether to allow the accused to go free or be put to death.
This new law marked the beginning of the Grand Terror.
Executions per day increased dramatically across France, and most of those killed were undoubtedly innocent. The Grand Terror came to an end after two months, but not because people were horrified by the killings.
No, the new law had also made it so members of the Convention could now be put on trial. Looking to preserve their own skins, the members of the Convention removed Robespierre and guillotined him, bringing an end to the killings.
Robespierre guillotined.
The Massacre in the Vendee
The revolution was supposed to be a movement that freed the French lower classes and gave them liberty and security.
But anyone who opposed the new government was harshly punished, even those who were lower class.
In the early days, the church was singled out for its wealth and excess.
The revolutionary government veered between atheism and a new state religion, the Cult of the Supreme Being, but they were united in their desire to destroy the old Catholic system.
In the Vendee, however, the people rose up to protect their priests and churches from the new revolutionary government.
When the government ordered them to form a conscript military unit, they rebelled, joining together in local militias which were collectively known as the Catholic and Royal Army. This alarmed the new government, who sent the army to tackle the problem. After a series of pitched battles, the Catholic and Royal Army was defeated.
But the government didn’t stop there.
Determined to prevent another such uprising, the government sent General Louis Marie Turreau with twelve columns of troops to destroy to Vendee. Farms, villages, supplies and forests were destroyed, and the soldiers killed without restriction.
When it was over, General Francois Joseph Westermann wrote a letter back to the government saying:
“There is no more Vendée… According to the orders that you gave me, I crushed the children under the feet of the horses, massacred the women who, at least for these, will not give birth to any more brigands. I do not have a prisoner to reproach me. I have exterminated all.”
“Scorched Earth” on the Vendee.
The Law of the Maximum
Unlike many other atrocities on this list, the Law of the Maximum was implemented with good intentions—though the government was forced to do it. One of the biggest reasons people joined the rebellion in the first place was because food was too expensive, but by 1793 even the basics were going back up in price.
The enrages, a collection of anti-elite protestors who might today be called Marxists, argued that the nobility had been replaced by greedy merchants. Action was needed to take away their wealth and help the poor.
The government passed the Law of the Maximum in response.
It set a maximum price for goods, from bread and wine to iron and shoes.
Merchants had to display a list of prices outside their stores and, if any of their prices were above the maximum, they would be fined. Instead of going to the government, the fine went to whoever informed the authorities about the illegal pricing, encouraging people to rat out merchants who ignored the law.
It had a disastrous impact on France.
While merchants did reduce their prices, it left them with almost no money.
The less honest shopkeepers began watering down their goods, disguising ash as ground pepper, starch as sugar and pear juice as wine.
Farmers in rural areas began hoarding their produce because they couldn’t get a good enough price in the cities, meaning that people in the cities starved.
The result was a black market where the rich could still buy the goods they needed, while the poor had no access to food at all.
These famines were fixed temporarily when the government sent soldiers to take food from the farmers and bring it to the city by force, but this only caused more unrest.
The September Massacres
Or, in other words, the whole-scale slaughtering of all the prisoners in all the jails and prisons throughout France…
After Louis was killed, the government fell into chaos. No-one knew who was in charge. In the meantime the Paris Commune, who were supported by the armed mob, had all the power. Chaos reigned as the new government fought over who should be in power, alongside issues like the economy, the army, and the justice system.
What dominated, however, was a fear of counter-revolutionary backlash.
The new movement had been denounced in Britain, Austria and Prussia, and war loomed on the horizon.
Meanwhile, French royalists were gathering support in other parts of the country.
The revolutionaries feared that, if a royalist army was to attack Paris, the new revolutionary government would fall.
In particular, they came to believe that the inmates of the city’s prisons would join with the counter-revolutionaries if given a chance. These fears were exacerbated when it came time for the new army to leave the city, with the people believing it would leave the city vulnerable to a prison break.
Between the 2nd and 6th of September 1792, the inmates were attacked by revolutionary mobs, with over 1000 being killed in the space of a single day.
Half the city’s entire prison population was massacred, with corpses left mutilated in the streets.
The revolutionary government sent letters to regional governments saying that conspirators in the city’s prisons had been executed. The act was repeated elsewhere: murders of prisoners took place in 75 of France’s 83 departments.
Conclusion
History can be interesting.
This is especially true if you are living through a time period that would most certainly be put into the history books.
This is 2020. A revolution has been brewing for some time, and (rightly so) many people are beginning to recognize the start of this period in America as 2008 when the banks fell, and massive financial fraud was committed. Now, the chain of events are starting to accelerate and it’s starting to look like elements of numerous historical catastrophes are starting to converge within America…
The Wall Street Crash.
The Fall of the Roman Empire.
The collapse of the Soviet Union.
…and…
The French Revolution.
Most certainly the elements are all there, and I cannot tell you what will happen. But I can paint some broad “brush strokes” for you all to ponder…
Do not expect any election to change anything substantially. It will only change form, but it will still keep moving in the same direction.
Things are going to get worse before they get better. We have not yet reached the peak.
When it appears that the old order has been toppled, and a new order is forming, that is when the REAL DANGERS will start to appear.
Expect some kind of foreign war or military action to distract attention. Expect a villainization of some nation, race or people. But note that it will not really work the way it is intended to.
The implementation of all the strife and chaos will not be uniform. It will be patchy, with some areas more dangerous than others.
Who survived the French Revolution?
Not the oligarchy, nor those that lead the revolution. Not those that were “moderate”. The survivors were those that lived outside the cities that also had strong connections with friends and families within their communities.
The American culture of “lone wolf” and “every man for himself” will be problematic at this time. I do not advise it. instead I strongly advise the formation of small tightly knit communities that share and work together.
I recommend the following…
Stay away from crowds.
Do not get involved in politics at any level.
Practice strong provisioning, and practice familial disciplines.
Be a member of your local community.
Offer your time, resources, and supplies to your community. Think of it as an extended family.
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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.
All the people writing about the intrusive nature of the NSA, and the collection of data through the cell-phones by back-door access has got it all wrong. It’s not about the collection of data. It’s about using your phone to control your mind.
All these “back doors” and secret embedded code within your electronics, your chips, and your cell-phones is not simply about collecting your personal information. That is the obvious purpose, but that is not the ultimate purpose.
The ultimate purpose is to enable the embedding of special algorithms and embedded code that allow the government to manipulate what you see, read and hear. These enormous (and hidden) embedded programs overlay instructions to your mind. They alter the selection of programs that you might want to use, they change the access and ease of access to websites. They alter the type, range and frequency of information on your feeds, and change what you would watch, see and listen to.
Have you ever been on your cell phone, and musing about something... thinking about a memory or an event... and then suddenly you see a link or an article related to a similar type of event?
No. It's not coincidence.
It's intentional.
You are being subconsciously manipulated to act, think, and behave as part of a herd of humans, that the oligarchy wants to shepherd into certain defined behaviors.
And the revelations by Wiki-leaks in Vault 7 proves this.
Vault 7
Whenever you mention the “power” that the United States has over the serfs citizens living there, you really need to mention “Vault 7”. “Vault 7” proves, beyond all and any shadow of a doubt, that the United States government has complete distain for the Bill of Rights, and everything that it stands for. Americans have no protections. ZERO. Americans exist at the mercy of their government.
Democrat Senator Feinstein trying to put limits on the the first amendment to the Bill of Rights.
Americans are just monitored cattle. They are monitored by their owners; those handful of Billionaires that fully control the government.
WikiLeaks has published what it claims is the largest-ever release of confidential documents on the CIA. It includes more than 8,000 documents as part of “Vault 7”, a series of leaks on the agency, which have allegedly emerged from the CIA’s Center For Cyber Intelligence in Langley, and which can be seen on the org chart below, which Wikileaks also released:
A total of 8,761 documents have been published[v] as part of “Year Zero”. This “Year Zero” is the first in a series of leaks the whistle-blower organization has been dubbed “Vault 7.” WikiLeaks said that “Year Zero” revealed details of the CIA’s “global covert hacking program,” including “weaponized exploits” used against company products including “Apple’s iPhone, Google’s Android and Microsoft’s Windows and even Samsung TVs, which are turned into covert microphones.”
WikiLeaks tweeted the leak, which it claims came from a network inside the CIA’s Center for Cyber Intelligence in Langley, Virginia.
Wikileaks released ORG Chart.
Among the more notable disclosures which, if confirmed, “would rock the technology world“, the CIA had managed to bypass encryption on popular phone and messaging services such as Signal, WhatsApp and Telegram. According to the statement from WikiLeaks, government hackers can penetrate Android phones and collect “audio and message traffic before encryption is applied.”
Another profound revelation is that the CIA can engage in “false flag” cyberattacks which portray Russia as the assailant. Discussing the CIA’s Remote Devices Branch’s UMBRAGE group, Wikileaks’ source notes that it “collects and maintains a substantial library of attack techniques ‘stolen’ from malware produced in other states including the Russian Federation.
“With UMBRAGE and related projects the CIA cannot only increase its total number of attack types but also misdirect attribution by leaving behind the “fingerprints” of the groups that the attack techniques were stolen from. UMBRAGE components cover keyloggers, password collection, webcam capture, data destruction, persistence, privilege escalation, stealth, anti-virus (PSP) avoidance and survey techniques.”
As Kim Dotcom summarizes this finding,
"CIA uses techniques to make cyber attacks look like they originated from enemy state. It turns DNC/Russia hack allegation by CIA into a JOKE"
— Kim Dotcom (@KimDotcom) March 7, 2017
But perhaps what is most notable is the purported emergence of another Snowden-type whistleblower: the source of the information told WikiLeaks in a statement that they wish to initiate a public debate about the “security, creation, use, proliferation and democratic control of cyberweapons.” Policy questions that should be debated in public include “whether the CIA’s hacking capabilities exceed its mandated powers and the problem of public oversight of the agency,” WikiLeaks claims the source said.
The FAQ section of the release, shown later, provides further details on the extent of the leak, which was “obtained recently and covers through 2016”. The time period covered in the latest leak is between the years 2013 and 2016, according to the CIA timestamps on the documents themselves. Secondly, WikiLeaks has asserted that it has not mined the entire leak and has only verified it, asking that journalists and activists do the leg work.
Weeping Angel
Among the various techniques profiled by WikiLeaks is “Weeping Angel”, developed by the CIA’s Embedded Devices Branch (EDB), which infests smart TVs, transforming them into covert microphones. After infestation, Weeping Angel places the target TV in a ‘Fake-Off’ mode, so that the owner falsely believes the TV is off when it is on. In ‘Fake-Off’ mode the TV operates as a bug, recording conversations in the room and sending them over the Internet to a covert CIA server.
Dotcom also added that “Obama accused Russia of cyberattacks while his CIA turned all internet enabled consumer electronics in Russia into listening devices. Wow!”
Obama accused Russia of cyberattacks while his CIA turned all internet enabled consumer electronics in Russia into listening devices. Wow!
— Kim Dotcom (@KimDotcom) March 7, 2017
Julian Assange, WikiLeaks editor stated that
“There is an extreme proliferation risk in the development of cyber ‘weapons’. Comparisons can be drawn between the uncontrolled proliferation of such ‘weapons’, which results from the inability to contain them combined with their high market value, and the global arms trade. But the significance of “Year Zero” goes well beyond the choice between cyberwar and cyberpeace. The disclosure is also exceptional from a political, legal and forensic perspective.”
Key Highlights
“Year Zero” introduces the scope and direction of the CIA’s global covert hacking program, its malware arsenal and dozens of “zero day” weaponized exploits against a wide range of U.S. and European company products, include Apple’s iPhone, Google’s Android and Microsoft’s Windows and even Samsung TVs, which are turned into covert microphones.
Wikileaks claims that the CIA lost control of the majority of its hacking arsenal including malware, viruses, trojans, weaponized “zero day” exploits, malware remote control systems and associated documentation. This extraordinary collection, which amounts to more than several hundred million lines of code, gives its possessor the entire hacking capacity of the CIA. The archive appears to have been circulated among former U.S. government hackers and contractors in an unauthorized manner, one of whom has provided WikiLeaks with portions of the archive.
By the end of 2016, the CIA’s hacking division, which formally falls under the agency’s Center for Cyber Intelligence (CCI), had over 5000 registered users and had produced more than a thousand hacking systems, trojans, viruses, and other “weaponized” malware. Such is the scale of the CIA’s undertaking that by 2016, its hackers had utilized more code than that used to run Facebook.
The CIA had created, in effect, its “own NSA” with even less accountability and without publicly answering the question as to whether such a massive budgetary spend on duplicating the capacities of a rival agency could be justified.
Once a single cyber ‘weapon’ is ‘loose’ it can spread around the world in seconds, to be used by rival states, cyber mafia and teenage hackers alike.
CIA targets iPhones, Androids, smart TVs:
CIA malware and hacking tools are built by EDG (Engineering Development Group), a software development group within CCI (Center for Cyber Intelligence), a department belonging to the CIA’s DDI (Directorate for Digital Innovation). The DDI is one of the five major directorates of the CIA (see this organizational chart of the CIA for more details).
The EDG is responsible for the development, testing and operational support of all backdoors, exploits, malicious payloads, trojans, viruses and any other kind of malware used by the CIA in its covert operations world-wide.
The increasing sophistication of surveillance techniques has drawn comparisons with George Orwell’s 1984, but “Weeping Angel”, developed by the CIA’s Embedded Devices Branch (EDB), which infests smart TVs, transforming them into covert microphones, is surely its most emblematic realization.
The attack against Samsung smart TVs was developed in cooperation with the United Kingdom’s MI5/BTSS. After infestation, Weeping Angel places the target TV in a ‘Fake-Off’ mode, so that the owner falsely believes the TV is off when it is on. In ‘Fake-Off’ mode the TV operates as a bug, recording conversations in the room and sending them over the Internet to a covert CIA server.
As of October 2014 the CIA was also looking at infecting the vehicle control systems used by modern cars and trucks. The purpose of such control is not specified, but it would permit the CIA to engage in nearly undetectable assassinations.
The CIA’s Mobile Devices Branch (MDB) developed numerous attacks to remotely hack and control popular smart phones. Infected phones can be instructed to send the CIA the user’s geolocation, audio and text communications as well as covertly activate the phone’s camera and microphone.
Despite iPhone’s minority share (14.5%) of the global smart phone market in 2016, a specialized unit in the CIA’s Mobile Development Branch produces malware to infest, control and exfiltrate data from iPhones and other Apple products running iOS, such as iPads. CIA’s arsenal includes numerous local and remote “zero days” developed by CIA or obtained from GCHQ, NSA, FBI or purchased from cyber arms contractors such as Baitshop. The disproportionate focus on iOS may be explained by the popularity of the iPhone among social, political, diplomatic and business elites.
A similar unit targets Google’s Android which is used to run the majority of the world’s smart phones (~85%) including Samsung, HTC and Sony. 1.15 billion Android powered phones were sold last year. “Year Zero” shows that as of 2016 the CIA had 24 “weaponized” Android “zero days” which it has developed itself and obtained from GCHQ, NSA and cyber arms contractors.
These techniques permit the CIA to bypass the encryption of WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram, Wiebo, Confide and Cloackman by hacking the “smart” phones that they run on and collecting audio and message traffic before encryption is applied.
Take aways…
CIA malware and hacking tools are built by EDG (Engineering Development Group), a software development group within CCI (Center for Cyber Intelligence), a department belonging to the CIA’s DDI (Directorate for Digital Innovation). The DDI is one of the five major directorates of the CIA (see this organizational chart of the CIA for more details).
The increasing sophistication of surveillance techniques has drawn comparisons with George Orwell’s 1984, but “Weeping Angel”, developed by the CIA’s Embedded Devices Branch (EDB), which infests smart TVs, transforming them into covert microphones, is surely its most emblematic realization.
Many of these infection efforts are pulled together by the CIA’s Automated Implant Branch (AIB), which has developed several attack systems for automated infestation and control of CIA malware, such as “Assassin” and “Medusa”.
The CIA has developed automated multi-platform malware attack and control systems covering Windows, Mac OS X, Solaris, Linux and more, such as EDB’s “HIVE” and the related “Cutthroat” and “Swindle” tools.
Also cars,
As of October 2014 the CIA was also looking at infecting the vehicle control systems used by modern cars and trucks.
The purpose of such control is not specified, but it would permit the CIA to engage in nearly undetectable assassinations.
This is quite suggestive of the CIA having a role in the death of Michael Hastings.
The CIA also runs a very substantial effort to infect and control Microsoft Windows users with its malware.
This includes multiple local and remote weaponized “zero days”, air gap jumping viruses such as “Hammer Drill” which infects software distributed on CD/DVDs, infectors for removable media such as USBs, systems to hide data in images or in covert disk areas ( “Brutal Kangaroo”) and to keep its malware infestations going.
Hoarding of Zero Day exploits:
In the wake of Edward Snowden’s leaks about the NSA, the U.S. technology industry secured a commitment from the Obama administration that the executive would disclose on an ongoing basis — rather than hoard — serious vulnerabilities, exploits, bugs or “zero days” to Apple, Google, Microsoft, and other US-based manufacturers.
Serious vulnerabilities not disclosed to the manufacturers places huge swathes of the population and critical infrastructure at risk to foreign intelligence or cyber criminals who independently discover or hear rumors of the vulnerability. If the CIA can discover such vulnerabilities so can others.
The U.S. government’s commitment to the Vulnerabilities Equities Process came after significant lobbying by US technology companies, who risk losing their share of the global market over real and perceived hidden vulnerabilities. The government stated that it would disclose all pervasive vulnerabilities discovered after 2010 on an ongoing basis.
“Year Zero” documents show that the CIA breached the Obama administration’s commitments. Many of the vulnerabilities used in the CIA’s cyber arsenal are pervasive and some may already have been found by rival intelligence agencies or cyber criminals.
As an example, specific CIA malware revealed in “Year Zero” is able to penetrate, infest and control both the Android phone and iPhone software that runs or has run presidential Twitter accounts. The CIA attacks this software by using undisclosed security vulnerabilities (“zero days”) possessed by the CIA but if the CIA can hack these phones then so can everyone else who has obtained or discovered the vulnerability. As long as the CIA keeps these vulnerabilities concealed from Apple and Google (who make the phones) they will not be fixed, and the phones will remain hackable.
The same vulnerabilities exist for the population at large, including the U.S. Cabinet, Congress, top CEOs, system administrators, security officers and engineers. By hiding these security flaws from manufacturers like Apple and Google the CIA ensures that it can hack everyone &mdsh; at the expense of leaving everyone hackable.
Take aways…
In the wake of Edward Snowden’s leaks about the NSA, the U.S. technology industry secured a commitment from the Obama administration that the executive would disclose on an ongoing basis — rather than hoard — serious vulnerabilities, exploits, bugs or “zero days” to Apple, Google, Microsoft, and other US-based manufacturers.
Serious vulnerabilities not disclosed to the manufacturers places huge swathes of the population and critical infrastructure at risk to foreign intelligence or cyber criminals who independently discover or hear rumors of the vulnerability. If the CIA can discover such vulnerabilities so can others.
Please see the table of contents for the full list of projects described by WikiLeaks’ “Year Zero”. (Over 500 and counting…)
Proliferation of leaked/hacked Cyberwar programs:
While nuclear proliferation has been restrained by the enormous costs and visible infrastructure involved in assembling enough fissile material to produce a critical nuclear mass, cyber ‘weapons’, once developed, are very hard to retain.
Cyber ‘weapons’ are in fact just computer programs which can be pirated like any other. Since they are entirely comprised of information they can be copied quickly with no marginal cost.
Over the last three years the United States intelligence sector, which consists of government agencies such as the CIA and NSA and their contractors, such as Booze Allan Hamilton, has been subject to unprecedented series of data exfiltrations by its own workers.
Once a single cyber ‘weapon’ is ‘loose’ it can spread around the world in seconds, to be used by peer states, cyber mafia and teenage hackers alike.
The U.S. Consulate in Frankfurt is a covert CIA hacker base
In addition to its operations in Langley, Virginia the CIA also uses the U.S. consulate in Frankfurt as a covert base for its hackers covering Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
CIA hackers operating out of the Frankfurt consulate ( “Center for Cyber Intelligence Europe” or CCIE) are given diplomatic (“black”) passports and State Department cover.
The instructions for incoming CIA hackers make Germany’s counter-intelligence efforts appear inconsequential: “Breeze through German Customs because you have your cover-for-action story down pat, and all they did was stamp your passport”
Examples of CIA projects
The CIA’s Engineering Development Group (EDG) management system contains around 500 different projects (only some of which are documented by “Year Zero”) each with their own sub-projects, malware and hacker tools. The majority of these projects relate to tools that are used for penetration, infestation (“implanting”), control, and exfiltration.
Umbrage: The CIA’s Remote Devices Branch’s UMBRAGE group collects and maintains a substantial library of attack techniques ‘stolen’ from malware produced in other states including the Russian Federation. With UMBRAGE and related projects the CIA cannot only increase its total number of attack types but also misdirect attribution by leaving behind the “fingerprints” of the groups that the attack techniques were stolen from.
Fine Dining: Fine Dining comes with a standardized questionnaire i.e menu that CIA case officers fill out. The questionnaire is used by the agency’s OSB (Operational Support Branch) to transform the requests of case officers into technical requirements for hacking attacks (typically “exfiltrating” information from computer systems) for specific operations. Among the list of possible targets of the collection are ‘Asset’, ‘Liason Asset’, ‘System Administrator’, ‘Foreign Information Operations’, ‘Foreign Intelligence Agencies’ and ‘Foreign Government Entities’. Notably absent is any reference to extremists or transnational criminals.
‘Improvise’; a toolset for configuration, post-processing, payload setup and execution vector selection for survey/exfiltration tools supporting all major operating systems like Windows (Bartender), MacOS (JukeBox) and Linux (DanceFloor).
HIVE: HIVE is a multi-platform CIA malware suite and its associated control software. The project provides customizable implants for Windows, Solaris, MikroTik (used in internet routers) and Linux platforms and a Listening Post (LP)/Command and Control (C2) infrastructure to communicate with these implants. The implants are configured to communicate via HTTPS with the webserver of a cover domain; each operation utilizing these implants has a separate cover domain and the infrastructure can handle any number of cover domains.
Evading forensics and anti-virus
A series of standards lay out CIA malware infestation patterns which are likely to assist forensic crime scene investigators as well as Apple, Microsoft, Google, Samsung, Nokia, Blackberry, Siemens and anti-virus companies attribute and defend against attacks.
“Tradecraft DO’s and DON’Ts” contains CIA rules on how its malware should be written to avoid fingerprints implicating the “CIA, US government, or its witting partner companies” in “forensic review”. Similar secret standards cover the use of encryption to hide CIA hacker and malware communication (pdf), describing targets & exfiltrated data (pdf) as well as executing payloads (pdf) and persisting (pdf) in the target’s machines over time.
CIA hackers developed successful attacks against most well known anti-virus programs.
CIA hackers discussed what the NSA’s “Equation Group” hackers did wrong and how the CIA’s malware makers could avoid similar exposure.
UMBRAGE
The CIA’s hand crafted hacking techniques pose a problem for the agency. Each technique it has created forms a “fingerprint” that can be used by forensic investigators to attribute multiple different attacks to the same entity.
This is analogous to finding the same distinctive knife wound on multiple separate murder victims. The unique wounding style creates suspicion that a single murderer is responsible. As soon one murder in the set is solved then the other murders also find likely attribution.
With UMBRAGE and related projects the CIA cannot only increase its total number of attack types but also misdirect attribution by leaving behind the “fingerprints” of the groups that the attack techniques were stolen from.
It’s easy to have the NSA place “digital fingerprints” on their hacking efforts using these tools, and then blame another nation.
UMBRAGE components cover keyloggers, password collection, webcam capture, data destruction, persistence, privilege escalation, stealth, anti-virus (PSP) avoidance and survey techniques.
Unless maintained, the Bill of Rights becomes useless and superannuated.
Fine Dining
Fine Dining comes with a standardized questionnaire i.e menu that CIA case officers fill out. The questionnaire is used by the agency’s OSB (Operational Support Branch) to transform the requests of case officers into technical requirements for hacking attacks (typically “exfiltrating” information from computer systems) for specific operations.
The questionnaire allows the OSB to identify how to adapt existing tools for the operation, and communicate this to CIA malware configuration staff. The OSB functions as the interface between CIA operational staff and the relevant technical support staff.
Among the list of possible targets of the collection are ‘Asset’, ‘Liason Asset’, ‘System Administrator’, ‘Foreign Information Operations’, ‘Foreign Intelligence Agencies’ and ‘Foreign Government Entities’. Notably absent is any reference to extremists or transnational criminals. The ‘Case Officer’ is also asked to specify the environment of the target like the type of computer, operating system used, Internet connectivity and installed anti-virus utilities (PSPs) as well as a list of file types to be exfiltrated like Office documents, audio, video, images or custom file types. The ‘menu’ also asks for information if recurring access to the target is possible and how long unobserved access to the computer can be maintained. This information is used by the CIA’s ‘JQJIMPROVISE’ software (see below) to configure a set of CIA malware suited to the specific needs of an operation.
Improvise (JQJIMPROVISE)
‘Improvise’ is a toolset for configuration, post-processing, payload setup and execution vector selection for survey/exfiltration tools supporting all major operating systems like Windows (Bartender), MacOS (JukeBox) and Linux (DanceFloor). Its configuration utilities like Margarita allows the NOC (Network Operation Center) to customize tools based on requirements from ‘Fine Dining’ questionairies.
HIVE
What is an "implant"?
It is the embedded code that instructs your brain what to do and how to behave when you are using electronics technology.
It is the software that has the back of your mind musing about certain things, issues of the day, or getting all emotionally upset about something.
HIVE is a multi-platform CIA malware suite and its associated control software. The project provides customizable implants for Windows, Solaris, MikroTik (used in internet routers) and Linux platforms and a Listening Post (LP)/Command and Control (C2) infrastructure to communicate with these implants.
The implants are configured to communicate via HTTPS with the webserver of a cover domain; each operation utilizing these implants has a separate cover domain and the infrastructure can handle any number of cover domains.
Each cover domain resolves to an IP address that is located at a commercial VPS (Virtual Private Server) provider. The public-facing server forwards all incoming traffic via a VPN to a ‘Blot’ server that handles actual connection requests from clients. It is setup for optional SSL client authentication: if a client sends a valid client certificate (only implants can do that), the connection is forwarded to the ‘Honeycomb’ toolserver that communicates with the implant; if a valid certificate is missing (which is the case if someone tries to open the cover domain website by accident), the traffic is forwarded to a cover server that delivers an unsuspicious looking website.
The Honeycomb toolserver receives exfiltrated information from the implant; an operator can also task the implant to execute jobs on the target computer, so the toolserver acts as a C2 (command and control) server for the implant.
Similar functionality (though limited to Windows) is provided by the RickBobby project.
“You could have all the crazy thoughts you wanted, as long as you smiled and kept them to yourself.”
― Mara Purnhagen, Past Midnight
99.9% of the articles (on the internet and in books) discuss how “unconstitutional” the collection of information, by the NSA, is. They argue (and rightfully so) that the United States government should not be doing this, that it is against the Constitution, the law, the purpose of government, and is a dangerous precedent. Ah. We all get this and understand it.
I argue something a little different.
The reason why the United States wants your reading, watching, listening, and Geo-location information (as well as your passwords, your friends, and your associations) is not so much to track your actions and behaviors. But instead, to be able to feed embedded algorithms into your phone.
These hidden and secretive signals direct your subconscious actions.
They control what you look at, what you listen to, and what you are exposed to.
Thus, they “box you in” to a particular “mind set”. And in so doing, they control you.
And the American PTB (Deep State) Oligarchy leadership are believing that this 2D manipulation of minds will guarantee their successful implementation of change; guarantee that they will remain in power forever, and guarantee that their goals and societal adjustments will occur without any opposition.
But the universe is far more complex than any 2D operation. It’s at a bare minimum, an 11D exercise. And pushing this controlling narratives into the minds of millions of Americans will have , or is having…
… unexpected, or unintended consequences.
It should be no surprise that the United States is now balkanized into violently radical warring factions. All of which are attuned to certain pre-defined narratives. Individual, independent thought no longer exists. You are either “A”, or “B” or “C”. And they have further classified you in to a direct subcategory all for the purposes of your control. “A-4”, or “B-7”.
Vault 7 exposes this.
Now a cursory look at the files might (indeed) give you the impression that it’s just advanced techniques for the collection and gathering of information. I urge the reader to think past that. Any nation that has an intimate knowledge of your “private papers” and “personal privacy” in real time has the ability to control you.
It’s all about control.
The control of what and how you think, by a very powerful government.
And this is why Donald Trump and Mike Pompeo are all up in arms about 5G, and Huawei. It's not that the technology is better, dangerous, or would have "back doors". It is that the stranglehold of the American government control over people would come to an end as less and less people use programs with these embedded algorithms.
If you want to protect yourself from being manipulated by hidden, invisible and secret manipulations, you need to start using phones, and software developed outside of the United States. Those products that are being “banned from American use” such as Huawei and Xiaomi are almost certainly devoid of NSA malware.
Though, perhaps the best thing might be to just move away from all electronic media and live a far simpler life.
A simpler life.
Do you want more?
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I hope that you found this post curious. Please take care. You can view other similar posts in my SHTF 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.
Well, America is in the middle of the COVID-19 viral emergency. Due to incompetence at all levels of the various American governments, there has been a complete failure of handling this event and it has manifested into an outright fiasco. With things as they stand today, and what we know about the corrupt American government, what is next?
Already States, and local governments are placing restrictions on liberty and behaviors. Stores are being ordered to close and assembly can get you arrested.
No one stated it better than Remus in the Woodpile Report…
These are your choices. They always were and they always will be.
Prepare when no one else is preparing.
Panic when everyone else is panicking.
Got food? Ammo? Meds?
It's too late now to prepare adequately for the pandemic much less the impending derailment of civilization itself. Preppers were calmly topping off their stashes in early January, at regular prices, in any quantity with lots-o'-choices. They saw the foreshadow of this emergency and acted appropriately. Prepping always looks crazy until the rug gets pulled. Paranoia is a survival tool, panic is not.
Systems are visibly collapsing.
The stock market is out-crashing the 1929 debacle in both speed and depth. "No Admittance" signs are posted at hospitals and needed surgeries are being cancelled. Police aren't responding to anything less then a murder in progress. Cities are opening the prison doors and chasing off the inmates. Food wholesalers were cleaned out in a fortnight and many can't restock enough to matter. Others have stopped answering their phones.
Guns and ammo are selling at a record rate.
Dealers say even anti-gun leftists are buying 'em. No one will say it, but it won't take much scarcity for the perpetual EBT Diversity to go where the food and supplies are. It's just there they'll meet real resistance for the first time in their lives. The suburbs have learned their family freezers are worth more than social posing. Unlike the stock market, price discovery will be utterly reliable when it comes to fried chicken and a six pack.
Emergency Rooms
Our Open Borders Diversities already clog the ER and get it all for free because you're paying their bills. Activists will choose the most deserving victims and it won't be the Deplorables. Compulsory charity can't be any other way. Tribal loyalty or redemption will be served. Either way, traditional Americans are a problem to be solved and inaction leaves no fingerprints.
The Center for Disease Control
The CDC had one job. Virology. Other countries had reliable test kits ready to go, in sufficient quantity to be useful. The technology is decades old yet the "renowned" CDC managed to botch it. The CDC distributed excuses and promises. N95 masks? Ventilators? Um, no. Maybe eventually, their Top Men are working on it. Somehow they always have plenty of everything to "fight the epidemic of obesity and racism" but not enough to perform their mandate. The CDC is useless and incompetent, an 11 billion dollar scam, benefiting no one except otherwise unemployable social activists.
Meanwhile, Russia is shipping nine planeloads of medics and surplus equipment and supplies to Italy, including ventilators.
Natural News reports:The battle for Los Angeles is lost. LA County announces no more testing for coronavirus, containment now impossible, 100,000+ may die in LA, prepare for chaos
The tipping point of containment has long since passed. That’s not even the goal anymore, and the number of infections being reported out of LA will no longer even come close to describing the real situation on the ground there...
Expect chaos. Expect looting and violence. It's LA, after all, and the gangs are barely kept in check even during good times.
America is right now in the midst of a full-scale SHTF event.
This is the thing that preppers have been readying for all these many, many years. And as all preppers know, there is a point in time when you are in the middle of “it”…
When you are in the middle of “it”.
With all this in mind, lets take a look at what will follow next…
A need for “violent” change.
For the oligarchy (PTB) have well prepared for this. And make no mistake, they will use this event to consolidate their power and implement sweeping changes to America… to your families and… your way of life.
Let’s dust off this document of horror…
The following is an article titled “The Next American Revolution? Anticipated Civil Unrest”By Larry Romanoff in Global Research, November 27, 2019. Edited to fit this venue and all credit tot he author.
The Next American Revolution? Anticipated Civil Unrest
Preparing For Civil War?
US authorities have for decades become increasingly prepared for mass civil disturbances resulting from government and corporate attacks on American society. We can recall that in the early 1980s the Hidden State launched its open war on the middle class by the savage FED-induced recession and the unilateral revocation of the social contract that had existed since 1946.At that time, the US government had already anticipated widespread public unrest, fully expecting mass protests and riots, and had made preparations to deal with them in the form of internment camps. In a real sense, the government had prepared for another civil war.
REX-84
Like most of the “Great Transformation”, it began during Reagan’s reign with what was called “Rex 84”, an abbreviation for Readiness Exercise 1984.
It is a plan by the US government to detain large numbers of American citizens in case of civil unrest.
This master plan involved the FBI, Department of Defense, the Emergency Measures group, the Secret Service, the CIA and altogether 34 government agencies.
It was presented as an exercise to test military assistance in civil defense in times of national emergency, but in fact the plan was anticipating civil disturbances, major demonstrations and labor strikes that would affect continuity of government.
The anticipated civil unrest from the FED-induced financial crisis that devastated the middle class was considered “subversive”.
And, REX-84 is an authorization for the US military to implement government-controlled movements of civilian populations at both state and regional levels. Including the arrest of many segments of the American population, and the imposition of martial law. (1) (2)
Federal Police in America have been training alongside the American military to best be able to deal with Americans within the individual states.
Initially, the Rex-84 program was created under the pretense of a possible mass exodus of illegal aliens attempting to cross into the US from Mexico.
However, when the program accidentally became public during the Iran-Contra Congressional hearings in 1987, it was revealed that it was in fact a secret federal government program…
“to suspend the Constitution, declare martial law, assign military commanders to take over state and local governments, and detain large numbers of American citizens determined by the government to be ‘national security threats’.”
Ah. That good ‘ol “National Security” reason.
An Actual Program.
This was part of a master contingency plan.
It is a plan for which the FBI today has a primary list of more than 100,000 Americans, and a secondary list ten times larger, who are targeted to be rounded up as subversives.
Scene from the 1980’s movie “Red Dawn”.
This list includes labor leaders, scholars and public figures. With the incarceration designed to isolate political dissidents and to contain civil unrest.
And these are prison camps, ringed with fences, barbed wire and armed
guards, not places from which escape would be likely, and they were
designed to hold Americans, not Mexicans. (3)
“Avenge Me” Scene from the 1980’s movie “Red Dawn”.
There is no question the US government is prepared for the possibility of widespread and uncontrollable domestic disorder.
This program in place and building for years was encouraged by fears of a massive public uprising in the wake of the 2008 banking fraud.
US Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia said some years ago that [1] concentration camps were a likely future reality for Americans and [2] that the Supreme Court would not do anything about the tyranny should the executive branch think it necessary.
“Avenge Me” Scene from the 1980’s movie “Red Dawn”.
He mentioned the World War II internment of Japanese in the US and said of these camps,
“you are kidding yourself if you think the same thing will not happen again”. (4) (5)
“Internment specialists”
In 2009, as the US financial crisis deepened and concern about public unrest was increasing, the US National Guard was posting job opportunities for “Internment/Resettlement Specialists” to work in “civilian internee camps”. These camps were within the United States. With Halliburton subsidiary KBR actively seeking subcontractors to staff “emergency environment” camps located in five regions of the US.
KBR, outsourced Americanized Gestapo forces.
Earlier, in 2006, KBR was contracted by Homeland Security to build detention centers designed to deal with “the rapid development of unspecified “new programs” that would require large numbers of people to be interned.” (6) (7)
The US has for many years been dangerously close to a situation where, if the American people take to the streets in protest, these internments can be easily carried out.
By 2004, there were more than 800 of these internment camps in the US, all empty, but all fully operational, staffed, and surrounded by full-time guards, ready to receive prisoners.
I have seen photos.
State of the art American patrol car.
As well, many military bases are slated to be closed down and used as extra civilian prisons if the need arises, all intended for the internment of dissidents and others deemed “potentially harmful to the state”.
Some camps can each hold 20,000 or more prisoners, a massive effort at civilian population control, and the program is still expanding.
America is at this point today.
The US is very near the point today where political dissidents questioning the actions of their government will risk being rounded up. And then forced into these prison camps,. This is essentially a government plan to forcibly suppress political dissent under the guise of rooting out domestic “terrorism”.
State of the art American patrol car.
The US government defines many Americans as having become “pre-revolutionary” from their outrage at the 2008 government-approved housing collapse. They have increasing concern that massive civil unrest would emerge from both the poverty-stricken lower classes and the eviscerated middle class. They believe that this would lead to what would become an internal civil war.
This is the reason that the FBI and DHS increasingly focus their “anti-terror” apparatus on white middle-class Americans like the Occupy Wall Street protestors who were categorized as “low-level terrorists”.
State of the art American patrol car.
“Domestic Security”
In 2008, the Washington Post reported government plans to station many tens of thousands of troops inside the country for purposes referred to as “domestic security”. They did this in the light of massive civil unrest that would follow an economic collapse or serious financial crisis, perhaps stemming from 2008.
According to the government document,
“Widespread civil violence inside the United States would force the defense establishment to reorient priorities in extremis to defend basic domestic order and human security”,
stating that the military may be needed to quell “purposeful domestic resistance”.
State of the art American patrol car.
To prepare for this quelling of resistance, the US has resorted to demonizing its own citizens.
A recent study funded by DHS conveniently identifying those Americans who are “suspicious of centralized federal authority” and who exhibit signs of being “reverent of individual liberty”, and re-categorizing them as “extreme right-wing” terrorists. (8) (9) (10)
The program is designed to “reduce and eliminate” all domestic resistance to the US government.
“Crowd control agents” will be used for this purpose, and government agencies will be involved in “gathering information on dissidents” to identify all those who have either “threatened or are creating disturbances”.
American police forces today.
Manuals and Policies.
The US military produced a manual on what it termed “Civil Disturbance Operations” that outlines how military assets will be used to “help local and state authorities to restore and maintain law and order” in the event of mass riots and civil unrest.
Military and other law-enforcement will be tasked with “breaking up unauthorized gatherings” and restoring order by
“presenting a show of force, establishing roadblocks, breaking up crowds, employing crowd control agents, and other operations as required”.
American police forces today.
The same government manual describes how prisoners will be processed through these internment camps, and outlines how these internees would be “re-educated” while detained in prison camps inside their own country by their own government.
FM 3-39.40 Internment and Resettlement Operations
A leaked military document titled ‘FM 3-39.40 Internment and Resettlement Operations’, outlined a program for “re-education camps” in the US which contained plans for “political activists” to be “pacified” by various psychological officers.
They would be re-programmed into “sympathizing” with the government and into “developing an appreciation of US policies” while detained in prison camps inside the US.
American police are fully equipped to suppress a well-controlled American populace.
The document was restricted to Department of Defense personnel but was been leaked and posted online.
It outlined policies for “processing detainees into internment camps” and made clear these operations would be used for domestic civilian situations. (11) (12) The full document is available here: (13)
“Once the detainees have been processed into the internment camp, the manual explains how they will be “indoctrinated”, with a particular focus on coercing political dissidents into expressing support for U.S. policies.”
The American police are trained to control, and suppress Americans who refuse to obey Federal laws.
Part of the stated role of the psychological officers would be to
identify political activists, political leaders, ‘malcontents’, and
other agitators, and to develop and execute appropriate
“indoctrination programs to reduce or remove antagonistic attitudes”.
However, their first task would be to “pacify and acclimate detainees
to accept the internment facility’s authority and regulations”.
Americans have become accustomed to the new face of Authoritarian government control.
Approved use of violence against Americans.
There are also disturbing insights into the government’s intention to use brutal force to violently quell any civil political unrest.
The manual includes a long list of weapons meant to be used against protesting American civilians, including anti-riot grenades.
All over America, from Hawaii to Alaska, from California to Maine, the police are armed with military weapons and equipment for use against American citizens.
Page 20 of the manual authorities the use of “deadly force” in confronting these peaceful political “dissidents”, the murderous intent made disturbingly clear with the directive that “Warning shots will not be fired” first.
Northcom itself, in a September 8, 2008 Army Times article, said the first wave of the deployment, which was put in place on October 1st at Fort Stewart and at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, would be aimed at tackling “civil unrest and crowd control”.
All sorts of high precision, and lethal weapons are deployed with American police and Federal police today.
In November of 2013, Forbes Magazine ran an article based on the AP newswire, detailing that DHS had been assembling a massive weapons arsenal since 2011 or 2012. (14)
The AP reported that Homeland Security had been stockpiling ammunition by buying more than 1.6 billion rounds of ammunition in addition to a prior purchase of 1.5 billion rounds, for a staggering total of more than three billion rounds.
Depending on the state and the local police force, all manner of high-technology and state-of-the-art weapons are issued to police forces. These weapons are not for the military to use against an enemy. They are for American police to use against American people.
This is more ammunition than the US military used collectively in all its wars in the last decade, and represents about ten shots for every man, woman and child in America.
There were also confirmed purchases by various government agencies, of hundreds of millions of hollow-point rounds to be delivered to dozens of locations around the US.
These bullets are so lethal they are banned for battlefield use during wars because they mushroom and fragment on impact, their only purpose being to cause the maximum possible damage to internal organs.
The reader must ask themselves why suppression firearms, like machine-guns, and grenade launchers are being issued to American police forces. The Constitution has been quite explicit and exact that standing armies are forbidden to exist upon American soil.
Also purchased were large numbers of magnum rounds with the power to penetrate walls, and a frightening hundreds of millions more rounds of specialty sniper ammunition.
Friendly Weapons
Even more, it was reported in early 2015 that DHS had placed orders for massive amounts of other kinds of anti-civilian weaponry termed “Less Lethal Specialty Munitions”, which were described as “an arsenal of specialized weaponry for training and deployment against crowds”.
Why are American regional police forces issued and trained to us the M134 GAU-17 Gatling Gun?
These included flash grenades, light bursts, gas and chemical grenades, riot rounds, rubber bullets, and much more.
These are all heavy-duty crowd control and civilian intimidation weapons.
They have no other purpose and, in the volume in which they are being purchased, it is clear the US government is expecting some very serious civil disturbances, possibly a revolution, and soon.
One such non-lethal weapon is the 500-vold shotgun.
As recently as 2018, Forbes was reporting more of the same, that these purchases have reached an astonishing ubiquity.
It isn’t only Homeland Security who is arming to the teeth. Thousands of agents at the IRS now have tactical assault rifles and heavy weaponry.
The Small Business Administration and the Department of Veterans Affairs have purchased thousands of Glock handguns.
The Health Services agencies purchased millions of dollars worth of Glock handguns – equipped with silencers.
The US Geological Survey, which is a weather bureau, purchased millions of dollars worth of Winchester Black Shadow shotguns with large bulk ammunition orders in addition to Glock handguns.
Even the Department of Education purchased millions of dollars worth of Glock handguns, shotguns and body armor.
I am unaware of any nation in the world where the income tax department or the departments of education and health care require huge amounts of military-grade weapons, much less body armor and gun silencers.
Non-lethal microwave cannon to use to fry the living daylights out of protesters and mobs.
Armed to the teeth
In June of 2016, RT reported that non-military federal agencies had more firepower than the entire US Marine Corps.
This including agencies like education, health and income tax. (15) RT documented, a new report where 67 non-military federal US agencies spent $1.50 billion purchasing guns, ammunition and military-style equipment.
Tazer pistols are quite common all over America and are used with far less restraint than normal pistols.
The details came from the Militarization of America: non-military federal agencies purchases of guns, ammo, and military-style equipment, published by the non-profit good government group OpentheBooks.com. (16) (17)
In addition to the massive purchase of ammunition, DHS was showing off its acquisition of heavily armored and mine-resistant personnel carriers.
Sticky foam is one such non-lethal weapon that is deployed inside America.
These have been seen on streets all across America and verified with photos and video.
Forbes noted that these vehicles are equipped with gun ports and are “designed to withstand IEDs, mine blasts and 50 caliber hits to bullet-proof glass”, and asked why they would be necessary on American streets.
The “Thunder Generator” was originally developed by Israeli farmers to scare away crop-eating birds. However, it has now grown to become a viable weapon against humans. In good conditions, the Thunder Generator can hurl a series of super-short shockwaves up to 100 meters (328 ft) away. In general, these shockwaves serve to only knock down and stun individuals. Any closer than 10 meters (33 ft), however, and the waves can result in permanent damage or death.
The DHS also purchased large amounts of riot gear and bullet-proof checkpoint booths, as well as a purchase of 7000 automatic rifles, and 2700 armored vehicles, and the deployment of drones with allowance for their use on US citizens.
The DHS is becoming a massive domestic army to handle domestic conflict. In the words of Ellen Brown,
“somebody in government is expecting some serious civil unrest …”
American police have taken a page out of the Communist Chinese civilian suppression manual and have adopted drones for surveillance, crowd control and suppression purposes.
False Claims of utility.
DHS chief Janet Napolitano claimed this was to prepare for a mass influx of immigrants into the United States that would require the “shelter and processing” of large numbers of people, but this is nonsense.
By whom will the US be attacked that Homeland Security would be responsible for defense, and from where would arise a mass of peaceful immigrants so large as to require more than three billion bullets to repel them?
America has spent millions of dollars, if not billions, on prisons and internment facilities to deal with emergencies and large scale unrest.
This is the same government that recently shut down many of its operations including most of the National Parks, for lack of funds, yet had sufficient money to purchase billions of bullets for a non-existent civilian army.
A spokesperson was quoted as justifying this massive purchase to “help the government get a low price for a big purchase”, and claimed DHS used “as many as 15 million rounds every year in training exercises”.
Someone should ask DHS to divide 3 billion by 15 million, which tells us the ammunition purchase will supply DHS needs for the next 200 years.
America has spent millions of dollars, if not billions, on prisons and internment facilities to deal with emergencies and large scale unrest.
The authorities naturally attribute criticism and hard questions to mentally-unbalanced ‘conspiracy theorists’, but this is one more instance where actions appear irrational and the official story is so full of holes that it makes no sense.
‘Unconventional’ paper targets.
Another DHS purchase that produced a firestorm of anger when its news went viral, was the supply of what we might call ‘unconventional’ paper targets which were used as practice shooting targets in ‘training exercises’.
This could very well be the future for many Americans who are not “with the program”.
These targets consisted of figures of American civilians in residential settings. They included small children. They include a young pregnant mother, and old women in robes. They include grandmothers and grandfathers in their kitchens and front yards. They include teenagers in parks, little girls and more.
Perhaps the most frightening part being that all these were termed “no hesitation targets”, meaning to fire without hesitation at the sight of these enemies.
American protestors are the exact type of people that these weapons are targeting.
What could possibly justify the supply of such targets to a military force, with such an instruction? The US fedbiz.op website took down the solicitation after Infowars broke the story, and eventually apologized publicly for creating these targets of small children.
A Fake City
In early 2014 it was reported that the US military had built a $100 million fake city of about 300 acres in Virginia, for use in training.
The Federal government has created these fake cities and towns from which to train warriors to fight American patriots on American soil with.
This was for the training of troops for the occupation of cities, complete with a sports stadium, bank, school, and an underground subway in order to train for future combat scenarios in American urban areas.
The subway carriages even carry the same logo as those in Washington DC. More disturbingly, it was reported that
“soldiers are being taught that Christians, Tea Party supporters and anti-abortion activists represent a radical terror threat, mirroring rhetoric backed by the Department of Homeland Security which frames “liberty lovers” as domestic extremists.”
The DHS is also building a 176-acre secure compound in the
lowest-income area of Washington, DC, which seems almost certainly a
preparation for civil war. (18) (19)
American soldiers, train alongside the DHS, in these American sized towns wearing full spectrum bio-warfare gear.
The Trigger Event
The trigger could be an economic collapse that causes angry Americans to flood the streets similar to the Occupy Wall Street and other scenes witnessed across both the US and Europe during the last FED-induced economic crisis.
Or it could be COVID-19.
It is worth noting that the Occupy Wall Street protest had the right idea but the wrong target.
A military urban training center, which is a mock 30-acre town located on Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, has been recently upgraded to look more American than the ‘international city’ it once did, adding a Baptist church, a police station and several farmhouses. Just last February we posted a story of another fake “American looking” city, equipped with our street signs, a church and an underground subway system nearly identical to one in Washington DC.
Wall Street is just an idea, and a bit player. The ultimate cause is the FED, and that should have been their focus. But the FED, the bankers and the FBI saw this coming and infiltrated and financed the protest groups as a way to take control and deflect them from any useful action or focus.
The “top secret” exercises
In the middle of 2013 several US local media reported the DHS was conducting widely public but still “top secret” exercises categorized as “full scale terrorism drills” across the entire nation.
All of this was with the stated purpose of making citizens “feel safe”, but which resulted in thousands of terrified people not knowing how to respond to what appeared as a domestic invasion by the US military.
The military has a very long history of training and using aerosols that they would spray over regions. They have done this for cloud seeding, insect control, and to practice germ and chemical warfare operations in simulated battle conditions.
People were capriciously apprehended and released after having their belongings searched, but nevertheless urged to celebrate their “independence” from tyranny.
These drills were presented as readiness training for potential terrorist incursions, though DHS failed to mention the New York Times observation that all the domestic terror plots in the United States over the last decade were “hatched by the FBI”.
One other worrying development …
One other worrying development was the appearance of US military C-130 cargo planes apparently spraying “mosquitoes” over various Florida cities at an altitude of less than 50 meters.
An American Air Force C-130 spraying pesticides over a target area.
Pest control is hardly a military duty, these events immediately reminding me of the US military spraying bacterial and other pathogens over many parts of the US in various CIA-related experiments on the domestic population.
These low-altitude overflights are almost certainly practice runs for potential crowd control in the future, for dispensing tear gas or other non-lethal (or lethal) material that would disperse or disorient protestors.
A spraying and aerosol mixing assembly system being installed and loaded into a C-130 cargo plane for undisclosed purposes.
I cannot imagine all the possibilities, but the US military most certainly is not going into the mosquito-spraying business. (19) (20)
US Major General Curry was quoted as stating,
“We have local police, backed up by each state’s National Guard, backed up by the Department of Defense. So in addition to all these forces why does Homeland Security need its own private army? Why do the SSA, NOAA and other government agencies need to create their own civilian security forces armed with hollow nose bullets?”
Some may want to dismiss this as just another conspiracy theory, but we might recall the words of Senator Daniel Inouye in 1987,
“There exists a shadowy Government with its own Air Force, its own Navy, its own fundraising mechanism, and the ability to pursue its own ideas of national interest, free from all checks and balances, and free from the law itself.”
The threats to civil liberties
The threats to civil liberties go much farther and are much more ominous than I’ve related so far.
Another factor is the spate of secret Executive Orders that Obama signed without Congressional approval, observers claiming those orders violated existing laws and were therefore illegal, but that the powers behind the White House considered themselves above all law.
Militarized police can go and conduct military operations, using the same sort of tactics, in America against Americans at will.
One of the most sinister was Executive Order 13603 which granted authorization to seize possession of every possible resource, including property and “all food storage facilities”.
One author wrote that…
“This extremist, maniacal edict is designed to enforce our submission, rendering us totally dependent on Big Brother government or face the obvious – starvation and extermination.”
What could possibly have instigated such an order, unless the government is preparing for an all-out war against the American people?
What possible excuse, during peace-time, would a “democratic” government have, for the initiation of a program to seize all the “food, water and food storage facilities” of a nation?
The various American government(s) at all levels have been training on how to control, herd and disarm normal American civilians.
If we add these to the internment camps and the bullets, what conclusions are possible?
Another Threat
Another ominous threat is that much of the NSA’s illegal intelligence-gathering activities were transferred to the Department of Homeland Security.
This is the same people with the 800 internment camps and the 3 billion bullets.
The apparent reason is that the NSA can collect information on domestic political dissidents but has no police powers to act on them, whereas DHS has legislative authority to gather, arrest and incarcerate anyone on their watch lists.
American police today more resembles a military army that operates on American soil, in complete defiance of the United States Constitution.
DHS is apparently creating a “graded list” of these targeted so-called “security threats”. Those at the top of this list assessed according to how widely disseminated are their anti-establishment views, the followers they appear to have. These will be the first to disappear into the internment maze.
This new policy gives Homeland Security full authority to effectively terrorize the American people under a pretense of controlling domestic terrorism. When we consider these two items, Executive Order 13603 and the new powers granted to DHS, the only possible response can be fear.
When the militarized police come into your communities they will first sweep it of guns, making absolutely sure that the civilians are disarmed properly and completely.
Secret Procedures
If all this isn’t enough, DHS was revealed to have a secret procedure for the instant shutting down of all private communications in America. This includes mobile phone networks. It is a program that was accidentally revealed when government officials in San Francisco disabled all mobile phone calls during a peaceful protest.
The administration insisted it had the legal authority to control these communications “during times of national crisis”, and “for the purpose of ensuring public safety”. It has also given DHS the power to actually “seize” all privately-owned communications facilities in order to prevent any civilian communications occurring.
It is quite common to find militarized police in America conducting “no knock” raids on innocent American civilians. People! Not even Communist China does this.
Some individuals applied to the courts for further information on these new procedures and policies, but DHS claimed it was “unable to locate or identify any records” in relation to the matter.
Nothing more to be said, but it’s difficult to avoid the conclusion that the US government is quickly becoming fully prepared for war against its civilian population.
No Fourth Amendment.
With the NSA revelations by Edward Snowdon, there is no longer any question that many US government agencies have been monitoring and gathering information on large numbers of known American political dissidents.
These many agencies include the NSA, FBI, CIA, DHS, various military groups and another 70 or 80 so-called “public-private fusion centers” scattered around the US.
Americans are monitored -, then they will be disarmed, as they are all on “lists” where the government will use to secure them into “camps” for their own safety.
Former NSA Technical Director William Binney claimed in an interview that the NSA had a list of 500,000 to one million people in the US who were closely watched and whose every communication and bit of personal data were recorded.
These are not terrorists in any sense, but potential leaders of political dissension and therefore potential suspects in the event of civil disturbances.
Americans are on “lists”…
There also exists a database known as “Main Core”, containing names of Americans who might be considered troublesome.
Knowledgeable sources claim these lists contains the names and communication information of more than eight million Americans who would be potential suspects of political activism.
“Political Activism” would include “national opposition to US military invasion abroad”.
It includes political dissidents, environmental and other activists, political and tax protesters, lawyers and professors, publishers and journalists, and many more who are most likely harmless, average people.
Average, everyday Americans, are the targets for the PTB; the oligarchy that plans to totally transform America into their vision of utopia.
The database apparently contains all to and from email addresses, all email content, all in and out phone numbers plus duration of calls, the amounts and locations of ATM withdrawals, all credit card purchases and much more.
It appears that this dissident surveillance program dates back to the early 1980s, the time of our Great Transformation.
When it was revealed that Oliver North, operating from a secure White House site, had been using a database called PROMIS which was part of the REX-84 plan, to track dissidents and potential troublemakers within the United States.
This database was meant to identify and immediately locate perceived “enemies of the state” if mass civil disturbances were to break out. (21) (22)
The perceived “enemies of the state” are average people like you and I, who might not agree with the % who rule America.
The Middle-Class Revolt
In late 2008 a leaked internal memo from Tom Fitzpatrick, Citibank’s chief technical strategist, contained ominous predictions for American civil society after the vicious financial crisis. He wrote,
“The world is not going back to normal ‘after the magnitude of what they have done'”.
Fitzpatrick claimed that [1] the massive destruction of the middle class, [2] the draining of all the wealth from the population, and [3] the QE money creation by the FED would either bring about a resurgence of inflation…
… or that the US would fall into “depression, civil disorder and possibly war”.
Occupy Wall Street protest.
He claimed that with the passing of each week and month there was a growing danger that could lead to political instability, a risk of domestic unrest because people were becoming increasingly disenfranchised and impoverished.
Lest we succumb to the temptation of accepting the 2008 financial
crisis and the resulting loss of homes as an accident of fate, it would
be wise to consider these quotes by Montagu Norman, Governor of The Bank
of England prior to the crash of 1929, addressing the United States
Bankers’ Association, New York, Idaho Leader, 26 August 1924.
“Capital must protect itself in every possible way, both by combination and legislation. Debts must be collected, mortgages foreclosed as rapidly as possible. When, through process of law, the common people lose their homes, they will become more docile and more easily governed through the strong arm of the government applied by a central power of wealth under leading financiers. These truths are well known among our principal men, who are now engaged in forming an imperialism to govern the world.”
And his thoughts on democracy:
“By dividing the voters through the political party system, we can get them to expend their energies in fighting for questions of no importance.”
“It is thus, by discrete action, we can secure for ourselves that which has been so well planned and so successfully accomplished.”
The US government has developed an increasing fear of its own middle class.
The PTB Oligarchy should not need to fear Average Americans unless…
Armed Citizens
A middle class that is wide awake to the protests and uprisings in other nations where governments have colluded with the international bankers.
And where large multi-nationals to gut their middle classes and effect the same transfer of wealth to the top 1% as occurred in America.
People in many Western societies have become disgruntled and bitter at the increasing evidence that their vaunted democracies have been usurped by the unrestrained capitalists, creating intolerable situations where the people are sacrificed for the increasing wealth of that same top 1%.
While the coronavirus continues to spread throughout the world some people are stockpiling toilet paper and food, while Americans are flocking to buy guns. Images and videos of people lining up outside gun stores in the United States are emerging on social media. Amelia Adams, the US correspondent for Nine News tweeted a video of people lining up outside a gun shop in Los Angeles, with the queue trailing some 10 meters from the shop’s door down the sidewalk.
At first, the US government exhibited a grim and rather reprehensible kind of satisfaction at watching the misery in other nations where the FED and IMF and the International Bankers had succeeded in their aims of wealth transference, but it also realized that the same boiling rage existed in America and perhaps much less controllable.
US citizens were protesting against a government that was no longer democratic in any sense…
… and was both unwilling and unable to repair a hopelessly corrupt and inefficient system.
They finally awoke en masse and objected to ingrained corruption, shoddy public services, high taxes, homelessness, unemployment, rising inflation, the development of a police state, and more.
Public Rage
It is public rage at the realization of having been betrayed by a “democratic” government that converts civil unrest into political activism and revolution…
… and it is this that lies at the heart of the FBI’s categorization of US political dissent as “domestic terrorism”.
The number of American militias form with each encroachment on freedom and liberty. Today, many such militias exist throughout the United States.
This terminology is important because the US, in all its hypocrisy for democracy, free speech and freedom of assembly, cannot face the world with open and apparent suppression of political dissent.
Therefore, US citizens protesting against their own government cannot be exercising free speech but rather anarchy and terrorism, thereby justifying the use of deadly force to control dissension.
The powers that control America (PTB) have no interest in fairy-tales of freedom. They are interested in wealth and control, and the people in any country are irrelevant – including those in the US.
The number of American militias form with each encroachment on freedom and liberty. Today, many such militias exist throughout the United States.
Americans have experienced first-hand the destruction of their quality of life; they see clearly the disappearance of future opportunity for their children, and they recognize better than most the loss of their freedom of expression which they have so valued.
And they know it is precisely the retraction of that expression that is necessary for their no-longer-democratic government to maintain control.
The number of American militias form with each encroachment on freedom and liberty. Today, many such militias exist throughout the United States.
This is where their economic and social dissatisfaction mutate into political activism – revolution, in fact – and it is this realization among the authorities that has spawned the internship camps, the billions of bullets purchased, and the “shoot to kill” orders.
Revolution – The Struggle for Class Power
Buried in the litany of troubles the US is facing today is the primary fact that the nation is engaged in a brutal class war, a struggle for class power that the bottom 99% are losing.
This war was declared in the late 1970s, gained great momentum in the 1980s and 1990s, and is still accelerating toward its final desperate conclusion.
There are few signs on the horizon that cause hope for a change in direction, and I fear it may be too late.
The number of American militias form with each encroachment on freedom and liberty. Today, many such militias exist throughout the United States.
There is still power with the people themselves, and indeed without the both active cooperation and silent complicity of the people, none of the pathological descent into despair would have been possible.
Probably the only force in America that can change what is happening is the combined force of labor.
This isn’t so easy today, since the government killed most labor organizations and there is now little if any leadership.
A total withdrawal of labor succeeded in forcing a new social contract in 1946 and may be the only power remaining today, but times have changed and tactics must change too. If all unions withdrew their services with the full cooperation of unorganized labor, change might be possible.
Socialist Antifa shock-troops lining u to overthrow the government in favor of a social utopia.
But realistically, there is no hope that such a mass protest could be organized even though it is the only possible way to get the attention of whatever remains of a conscientious government and force through a reversal of the tide.
In any case, taking to the streets is unlikely to produce pleasant results. If the police don’t have enough bodies to beat up and arrest everyone, DHS has its internment camps, its 3 billion bullets, its years of practice with “no-hesitation” human targets, and it will use all of them.
BLM – Black Lives Matter forces demanding “social and racial change”.
The only safe way for Americans to go on strike today is to stay at home. On this topic, one internet commenter wrote,
“Just don’t go to work. There is no need to picket in the streets to be on strike, and the factories and offices will be just as quiet and empty, and the profits just as non-existent. The police cannot possibly conduct home-by-home visits to beat up strikers one by one, and no military, even the DHS, is efficient when trying to blow up houses scattered all over the county, one by one. Strikers are probably safe if they stay at home and lock their door.”
Another wrote,
“Another tactic is for Americans to simply quit shopping. They don’t have the money anyway, and don’t need all that useless junk. Don’t buy anything you don’t actually need, and delay even those purchases as long as possible, especially the big-ticket items like cars and furniture. If at all possible, delay every purchase for at least one year. As much as is practicable, stop driving your car. Cancel your cable TV and read a book.” Your grandmother gave you advice 100 years ago that is still valid today: “Use it up, wear it out. Make it do. Do without.”
A third commenter gave this advice:
“One thing you can do to get their attention is to stop paying your bills. VISA and MasterCard can’t cancel 800 million credit cards at the same time, and no bank can process 100 million mortgage defaults. No system can cope with massive non-payment of debt. You are their only source of money and you can ensure they don’t get any of it. That will wake them up. Tell them you’ll begin paying when the overseas corporate tax holiday is over, when high income taxes are reinstated for the rich, when the individual bankers are in prison and when the lost jobs begin returning. This isn’t foolproof, but it’s the best I can do.”
And finally, a more ambitious poster offered these comments:
“Today, the US State Department, the CIA and the FBI pride themselves on their ability to use Twitter and Facebook to cause civil unrest, chaos, violence, and even revolutions, in other countries. It may not have occurred to them that the same tools they use against everyone else can be just as easily used against them. The CIA used Gene Sharp and his Einstein Institute to prepare the Otpor civil disobedience manuals that our government used as the gunpowder to destroy Jugoslavia, and as the template for a dozen other “color revolutions” of which it was so proud. Copies are freely available on the internet.”
William Blum again:
“As I’ve said before: Inasmuch as I can’t see violent revolution succeeding in the United States (something deep inside tells me that we couldn’t quite match the government’s firepower, not to mention its viciousness), I can offer no solution to stopping the imperial beast other than this: Educate yourself and as many others as you can, raising their political and ideological consciousness, providing them with the factual ammunition and arguments needed to sway others, increasing the number of those in the opposition until it raises the political price for those in power, until it reaches a critical mass, at which point … I can’t predict the form the explosion will take or what might be the trigger … But you have to have faith. And courage.”
Isn’t this exactly what is happening today?
Isn’t all these suggestions what is occurring today? People are staying inside. They are not buying anything. They are sheltering in place, and cowering in fear.
This translates into one of two things.
Advantage for the PTB to implement drastic change.
Advantage for the grassroots American citizenry to implement drastic change.
Both of which are truly frightening in the “powder keg” that America is today.
Author
Larry Romanoff is a
retired management consultant and businessman. He has held executive
positions in international consulting firms, and owned an international
import-export business. He lives in Shanghai and is currently writing a
series of ten books generally related to China and the West. He can be
contacted at: 2186604556@qq.com
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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.
Noharmwillcometome. TheAssemblyispreparedtotreatusleniently.
- Marie Antoinette
I’ve been musing about the direction that America is moving towards for some time now. In these musings I wonder what it must have been like for other oligarchies and their leadership when the torches and pitchforks came out. Let’s recall what happened in France to the wealthy living within their comfortable bubble of security.
Let’s look at what it was like for Marie Antoinette. One day, eating cake on fine china, surrounded by attendants in opulent attire, and the next day sitting in a dingy dungeon awaiting death.
In 1793, she was convicted by the Revolutionary Tribunal of high treason and was executed by guillotine on October 16, 1793.
The days preceding Marie Antoinette’s execution were excruciating. She was imprisoned, endured allegations of incest, and her hair went white overnight from shock. All the time, the entire nation loathed her, for she became the image of everything that was wrong with France at that time. She was the scapegoat.
True or not. Justified or not. It does not matter. She was used as the scapegoat, and suffered for her position and role within society.
The anti-Marie Antoinette propaganda was uniform and relentless. She couldn’t do anything right. If she wore lavish clothing, she was considered to be “out of touch”. When she wore “commoner clothing” she was considered to be “fake and insulting”.
It was a lose-lose proposition.
Much like the anti-China narrative going on now out of the American Media during the Trump Trade War.
Marie Antoinette – the final moments.
Marie Antoinette: the very name of the doomed queen of France, the last of the Ancien Régime, evokes power and fascination. Against the poverty of late 18th-century France, the five syllables evoke a cloud of pastel-colored indulgence, absurd fashions, and cruel frivolity, like a rococo painting sprung to life.
The real life, and death, of Marie Antoinette is certainly as fascinating. Falling from the Olympus-on-earth of Versailles to the humble cell of the Conciergerie and ultimately the executioner’s scaffold, the last days of the last real Queen of France were full of humiliation, degradation, and blood.
Life At The Conciergerie
Tucked away in its cavernous halls, Marie Antoinette’s life at the
Conciergerie couldn’t have been more divorced from her life of luxury in
Versailles. Formerly the seat of power for the French monarchy in the
Middle Ages, the imposing Gothic palace lorded over the Île de la Cité
in the center of Paris as part administrative center, part prison during
the reign of the Bourbons (her husband’s dynasty).
The final 11 weeks of her life were spent in a humble cell at the
Conciergerie, much of which she likely spent reflecting on the turns her
life — and France — took to bring her from the top of the world to the
guillotine’s blade.
Marie Antoinette being taken to the Conciergerie.
Marie Antoinette wasn’t even French. Born Maria Antonia in 1755
Vienna to Empress Maria of Austria, the young princess was chosen to
marry the dauphin of France, Louis Auguste, when her sister was found an
unsuitable match. In preparation to join the more formal French court, a
tutor instructed young Maria Antonia, finding her “more intelligent
than has been generally supposed,” yet also warned that “She is rather
lazy and extremely frivolous, she is hard to teach.”
The Years Preceding Marie Antoinette’s Death
Marie Antoinette embraced the frivolity that came so naturally to her
in a way that stood out even in Versailles. Four years after coming to
the heart of French political life, she and her husband became its
leaders when they were crowned king and queen in 1774.
She was only 18, and was frustrated by her and her husband’s polar
opposite personalities. “My tastes are not the same as the King’s, who
is only interested in hunting and his metal-working,” she wrote to a
friend in 1775.
As King and Queen they enjoyed different interests, different personalities and different habits. They were truly the “odd couple”.
Marie Antoinette threw herself into the spirit of the French court —
gambling, partying, and purchasing. These indulgences earned her the
nickname “Madame Déficit,” while the common people of France suffered
through a poor economy.
Madame Deficit
During her reign, Marie Antoinette became a hate symbol for those wishing to overthrow the privilege and power of the French Aristocracy. French society suffered from a deep class divide and she became known as Madame Deficit for her lavish spending. She was especially hated for the money she spent refurbishing the Palace of Versailles, particularly, her mini-estate, the Petit Trianon. Even though it had been built for the previous King’s mistress, it became associated with the Queen, and how out of touch with reality she was.
Yet, while reckless, she was also known for her good heart in personal matters, adopting several less fortunate children.
A lady-in-waiting and close friend even recalled: “She was so happy at doing good and hated to miss any opportunity of doing so.”
Smear Campaign
Prior to Louis XVI, the politically themed pornographic pamphlets and books that circulated through France would focus on the King’s mistresses, who were subject to ridicule, and considered promiscuous for their part in the King’s affairs. Louis had no mistresses, and therefore, critics unfairly turned their attention towards the Queen. Creating propaganda that portrayed the Queen as immoral was a way for revolutionaries to “prove” that the monarchy was corrupt, and they insinuated that she slept with several men and women, including her brother-in-law.
Whether deserved or not. The government running France for decades had plundered it. The wealthy elites treated the peasants as deplorable peasants not worthy of spitting upon. They considered them rabble.
Marie became the face for all the hate and anger.
The Monarchy And Revolution
However soft her heart was one-on-one, to the underclass of France
grew to consider her a scapegoat for all of France’s ills. People called
her L’Autrichienne (a play on her Austrian heritage and chienne, the French word for bitch).
The “diamond necklace affair”
made matters even worse, when a self-styled countess fooled a cardinal
into purchasing an exorbitantly expensive necklace on the queen’s behalf
— even though the queen had previously refused to buy it. When news got
out about the debacle in 1785, and people thought Marie Antoinette had
tried to get her hands on a 650-diamond necklace without paying for it,
her already shaky reputation was ruined.
Affair of the Diamond Necklace
In 1785, a scandal known as “The Affair of the Necklace” shocked the French court, and it would eventually be used as an example to discredit the French Monarchy. It began with the procurement of a diamond necklace worth 1,600,000 livres (about $10,000,000 USD) by the Comtesse de La Motte, supposedly for the Queen. In reality, it was for herself and her associates. Though the fraud was eventually exposed and the Queen proved innocent, the damage was done, and became one of the factors leading to the dissolution of the old order, and to the French Revolution.
Affair of the Diamond Necklace . A large and expensive necklace with a dark history was a PR disaster for the French monarchy
Inspired by the American Revolution — and the fact that King Louis XVI put France into an economic depression in part by paying to support the Americans — the French people were itching for a revolt.
And while it simmered for a spell. It eventually exploded into the open.
Madame Veto
With the country straining under the pressure of debt and a stagnating economy, Louis XVI proposed reforms to end the worst of the excesses, and to impose a more progressive taxation system. The reforms were blocked by clergymen and the nobility, but the press blamed Marie Antoinette, labeling her “Madame Veto.” There’s little evidence to prove whether or not she ever did veto the proposals.
Then came the summer of 1789. Parisians stormed the Bastille prison,
freeing political prisoners from the symbol of Ancien Régime power. In
October of that year, the people rioted over the exorbitant price of
bread, marching 12 miles from the capital to the golden gates of
Versailles.
The French Revolution had been simmering for decades, and finally it burst all over France in a glorious orgy of death and destruction.
Legend has it that a frightened Marie Antoinette charmed the
mostly-female mob from her balcony, bowing to them from above. The mob’s
threats of violence turned into shouts of “Long live the queen!”
But the queen wasn’t soothed. “They are going to force us to go to
Paris, the King and me,” she said, “preceded by the heads of our
bodyguards on pikes.”
She was prescient; members of the crowd, carrying pikes topped with
the heads of the royal guards, captured the royal family and took them
to Tuileries Palace in Paris.
The French Revolution had been simmering for decades, and finally it burst all over France in a glorious orgy of death and destruction.
The royal couple wasn’t officially arrested until the disastrous Flight to Varennes
in June 1791, in which the royal family’s mad-dash to freedom in the
Austria-controlled Netherlands crumbled thanks to poor timing and a
too-large (and too-conspicuous) horse-drawn coach.
The royal family was imprisoned in the Temple and on Sept. 21, 1792
the National Assembly officially declared France a republic. It was a
precipitous (albeit temporary) end to the French monarchy, which had ruled over Gaul for representing the fall of a nearly a millennium.
The French Revolution had been simmering for decades, and finally it burst all over France in a glorious orgy of death and destruction.
The Death Of Marie Antoinette
In January 1793, King Louis XVI was sentenced to death for conspiring
against the state. He was allowed to spend a few short hours with his
family until his execution before a crowd of 20,000.
Marie Antoinette, meanwhile, was still in limbo. In early August she
was transferred from the Temple to the Conciergerie, known as “the
antechamber to the guillotine,” and two months later she was put on
trial.
Death Of Marie Antoinette
She was only 37 years old, but her hair had already turned white, and
her skin was just as pale. Still, she was subjected to an excruciating
36-hour trial crammed into just two days. Prosecutor Antoine Quentin
Fouquier-Tinville aimed to denigrate her character so that any crime she
was accused of would seem more plausible.
Thus, the trial began with a bombshell:
According to Fouquier-Tinville, her eight-year-old son, Louis Charles,
claimed to have had sex with his mother and aunt. (In reality,
historians believe he made up the story after his jailer caught him
masturbating.)
Marie Antoinette replied that she had “no knowledge” of the charges,
and the prosecutor moved on. But minutes later a member of the jury
demanded a response to the question.
Surrounded by people who hated and loathed her, she found herself alone and stripped of all that she knew and loved.
“If I have not replied it is because Nature itself refuses to answer such a charge laid against a mother,” the former queen said. “I appeal to all mothers here present – is it true?”
Her composure in court may have ingratiated her with the audience,
but it didn’t save her from death: In the early hours of October 16, she
was found guilty of high treason, depletion of the national treasury,
and conspiracy against the security of the state. The first charge alone
would have been enough to send her to the guillotine.
Her sentence was inevitable. As historian Antonia Fraser put it,
“Marie Antoinette was deliberately targeted in order to bind the French
together in a kind of blood bond.”
In the early hours of October 16, Marie Antoinette was found guilty of high treason, depletion of the national treasury, and conspiracy against the security of the state.
Shortly before she met the guillotine, most of her snow-white locks were cut off.
At 12:15 p.m., she stepped on the scaffold to greet Charles-Henri Sanson, the notorious executioner who had just beheaded her husband 10 months earlier.
Though the man in the black mask was an early supporter of the
Guillotine machine, he probably never dreamed he’d have to employ it on
his former employer, the queen of France.
Marie Antoinette, clad in simple white so different from her signature powder-blue silks and satins, accidentally stepped on Sanson’s foot. She whispered to the man:
“Pardon me sir, I didn’t mean to.”
Those were her last words.
After the blade fell, Sanson held up her head to the roaring crowd, which shouted “Vive la République!”
Marie Antoinette’s remains were taken to a graveyard behind the
Church of Medeleine about half a mile north, but the gravediggers were
taking a lunch break. That gave Marie Grosholtz — later known as Madame
Tussaud — enough time to make a wax imprint of her face before she was
placed in an unmarked grave.
Some death masks of those executed during the French Revolution.
Decades later, in 1815, Louis XVI’s younger brother exhumed Marie Antoinette’s body and gave it a proper burial at the Basilica of Saint-Denis. All that remained of her, besides her bones and some of her white hair, were two garters in mint condition.
It Wasn’t Her Fault
Despite claims from sources such as Mary Wollstonecraft and Thomas Jefferson, Marie Antoinette’s excessive spending was not the true cause of the French Revolution. When she and Louis XVI took the throne, the country was already broke, and the treasuries were empty.
While her spending certainly didn’t help France’s economic problems, it didn’t break the proverbial bank. Louis’ unpopular and expensive decision to send troops to America to help with the American Revolution was a much bigger cost, but Marie Antoinette made an easy scapegoat.
Conclusion
When society is stratified, it historically collapses as the “have nots” kill (and in this case, decapitate) the wealthy “haves”.
If America somehow escapes this cycle of events, it will be a miracle. All and every tell-tale are screaming “ALARM! ALARM!” at what is right down the tracks. My own predictions place some near catastrophic events in the 2024 / 2025 time period. Let’s see what happens.
Keep in mind that history repeats. And no… America is NOT special. It is following the historical precedents.
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This is what we refer to as a "sanity check". It is where we, as engineers, perform a simplified calculation to determine if the calculations that we arrived at, are valid...
This is a reprint of the most excellent Ron Paul article. Modified and edited to fit this venue. In it, he argues that you don’t need to look at complicated “generational theories”, r/K or KaLa theories to explain what is happening to America today. You just need to look at what happens every one hundred years or so…
The great Austrian economist Ludwig Von Mises wrote:
"History is a struggle between two principles, the peaceful principle, which advances the development of trade, and the militarist-imperialist principle, which interprets human society not as a friendly division of labour but as the forcible repression of some of its members by others."
America was founded on the peaceful principle.
If you are peaceful, other people and nations will work with you on friendly terms, and your people will be happy.
The country’s first President, George Washington, said in his farewell address:
"It is our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliance with any portion of the foreign world".
Ah, that is all nice and good. However consider the practical applications and issues…
This policy, which can be packaged into the euphemism “America First” was the guiding policy for the first 100+ years of the country’s existence.
The guiding principle for the first one hundred years was to put Americans first in all national decisions and programs.
Indeed, America truly was independent.
America
This did not mean that America was “isolationist.” Far from it, of course. Thomas Jefferson explained at his inaugural that the policy was one of:
"Peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations - entangling alliances with none."
Do not laugh.
America, as founded, was a peaceful and positive and friendly life. It was a place where people formed communities and welcomed others and helped others.
Here was a land, the largest free-trade zone to ever exist, shielded by giant oceans, with a limited government that only had a few enumerated powers. The individual was master of his domain.
Consider…
The situation. The creation of “America”in a free-ranging (or apparently so) land, were Earth-shattering and life-changing — Prosperity, the likes of which have never existed before.
America was a prosperous and happy place. The government was run by people much like ourselves, and they held the same value and issues that we ourselves cherished..
But alas, after 100+ years passed, new generations with little to no connection (or care) for the ideas of Washington & Jefferson, decided to change course for the worse. The ‘Old World’ ideas of power and empire crept in through the back door…
Ideals were replaced by individual greed.
Roughly one hundred years after the founding, ideals were replaced by individual greed.
The new reality.
In this new embrace of the ‘Old World,’ the individual would no longer be the master of his domain. Government would be the master.
Sounds perfect, eh?
It is a parent-child relationship. One in which sociologists and psychiatrists consider to be very unhealthy for peer-to-peer interaction.
Big government only grows bigger. Eventually it takes and consumes everything and you, as a hapless civilian, gets trampled upon.
I know many Democrats believe that utopia is “just around the corner”. It’s just only if…
A new America…
Suddenly, in 1898, after much careful planning by those who had an insatiable lust for power, America would take on the role of conqueror.
And conquer it did.
In a single year, the United States took control of five far-flung nations, which contained 11 million people, all in one fell-swoop.
The military was no longer used for defensive and humanitarian missions to help American citizens. It became a money-making machine to serve the special interests of Washington neocon insiders.
Washington & Jefferson were tossed into the dust-bin.
Independence was cast aside. Intervention was the new game in town. In 1898, the slow death of “America First” was given its first real kick to the chops.
Of course, the original role of government would have to be transformed.
Transformed…
If America was to have an empire, it would have to take control of every American citizen’s earnings.
Once citizens no longer owned their earnings, and money. They became powerless. The people who had control of the money also had control over them. Americans became debt-serfs at the mercy of the government.
Enter President Wilson – Progressive Genius.
And so, in 1913, with the creation of the income tax, every American’s earnings would belong to the government first. The government would decide how much each person would be allowed to keep.
The government would decide.
President Wilson believed that the concepts of “Liberty” and “Freedom” were outdated and needed to be replaced with “modern” and “progressive” systems.
The government should decide what to do with people’s earnings.
Not the people.
Not the individual.
The government should decide.
American government today. It is far, far too powerful. This is the complete creation of President Wilson.
It’s all so progressive…
…
A nightmare!
What a drastic change for the worse!
The big enormous government takes and takes and takes. It threatens and puts the citizenry in a state of near constant fear, and what do they get in return? Nothing.
But an income tax would not be enough.
It wasn’t enough. Not for the people who thought that they were better then everyone else. Oh, no.
After all, government can only tax people up to a certain point before they decide to revolt. American politicians, of all people, knew that!
So an even more insidious institution would be created, also in 1913. It would be called The Federal Reserve. This central bank would be granted a monopoly on counterfeiting money.
Pure genius!
Take the blame out of the hand of the government and put it into an unaccountable entity. Such wonderful genius.
The Impact…
How much money?
As much money as the government needs in order to sprawl itself around the world. Every American would be forced to use this “money,” of course, even though its purchasing power would be constantly eroded. Legal Tender Laws would make sure that there was no way out.
It’s ok, though.
Americans voted for the people who decided to implement this system. You know…
… one hundred years ago.
And the people in charge allocated their responsibilities and veto power to other people…
…other people who turned it over to others…
…who allocated it to others…
… who decided to pass it on to others…
… who would work in the best interests to make the system work….
Sounds bad. Well, sorry, that’s the way it is.
And so, with an income tax and a printing press, the Land of The Free would morph, over the next 100+ years, into the biggest government to ever exist … the biggest military empire to ever exist … and the biggest welfare state to ever exist.
Aren’t you all happy?
American leadership knows just how to manipulate and cajole the American serf-cash-cows… erp, I mean citizens.
Freedom!
Washington & Jefferson would not recognize this at all. It’s literally the exact opposite of why the 13 colonies seceded from England.
It is.
Do not tell me that it is not the case.
This new era of empire would be dominated by “Bread and Circuses”. There would be plenty of food, and plenty of entertainment. What happens outside of America would remain out-of-sight and out-of-mind.
Yeah.
All political fighting inside of America would take place between two virtually indistinguishable factions. The gangs would passionately battle each other, but they would never battle the policy of empire.
Yeah.
Policy is the only thing that matters. But Americans would be flooded with a deluge of propaganda telling them that the ability to change politicians is a gift from the heavens. That, they would be told, is the only thing that matters.
Yeah.
And so, throughout this period, the politicians would certainly change, but the policy wouldn’t budge even a single inch. In other words, the politicians would change….but it wouldn’t matter!
And now…
So now we have two sets of 100 year periods in American history, each guided by completely opposite ideas.
The first produced liberty and prosperity in tremendous abundance. The second has produced a dependency, militancy and debauchery that has always been the lot of mankind living under the boot of power.
American today. This is what America is, it rules by force, and power.
The two one hundred year periods…
The first was underpinned by peace, trade, sound money, savings and investment.
The first one hundred years of America was one with solid and conservative values. It put the individual in full control of his domain, and kept the government small. People lived their lives as they deemed fit.
The second has been underpinned by war, sanctions, counterfeit money, taxes, and crushing debt.
The second hundred years has been nothing but war after war, after war. All funded with more and more, and more taxes. You know for “democracy”. Everything in this picture was destroyed with American bombs, and weapons, fired by American soldiers, and used by America to spread American “democracy”. This is the reality today.
And us, the American citizens…
Those who live are always presented with a choice — continue, or change?
America: CONTINUE or CHANGE?
For years…
Years…
Generations..
No one did any thing.
America. Americans live in a constant state of fear and are really too afraid to change anything. They are just content to yell about their “freedom” and the wonderful “democracy”, instead of doing things and fixing things.
Nothing.
Weaklings. Lazy. Slothful.
Our parents, grand parents, great-grand parents.
Change happens through individual choice. The ideas that we each individually embrace mean everything.
Real change can happen when we stop allowing the government to take over society. We need to throw away that connection. Because a corrupt government will corrupt society.
People!
A corrupt government will corrupt society.
Power lives and breathes on your belief in it. Why do you think you’re surrounded by propaganda at every turn?
For fun?
No! … It’s to keep you believing.
You do not need to live your life in fear. Prepping is well and good, but your government should be on your side. Not the other way around.
It’s to convince you that liberty is dead. And that government has the keys to your happiness. You just keep on following the media talking points. Nothing else matters.
Reality
However, if you change your belief, you change everything. You breathe life into the idea of liberty.
If you breathe life into the idea of liberty, you make America a much better place.
Washington left us with these wonderful words: “Liberty, when it begins to take root, is a plant of rapid growth.”
The choice is always yours…..continue, or change?
And that is it.
Thank you Ron Paul.
Many Americans mistakenly believe that “America is the greatest nation in the world”, simply based on the longevity of the nation. That’s just pure ignorance. The nation had changed governmental structure numerous times.
Founded as a Republic.
Changed to a Democracy with the 12th amendment.
Centralized Federal Democracy during the Civil War.
Progressive Social Democracy under President Wilson.
Military Oligarchy under President Lindon Johnson.
Corrupt Military Totalitarian Empire today.
If you believe that what is written makes sense than you have two choices of action. They are [1] take immediate action to protect you and your family, or [2] ignore it.
If you ignore it, then that if fine. Just listen to me and do not allow the American propaganda to force you to live within fear. The world is not a terrible and dark place. Good people are everywhere and the world outside the United States increasingly looks like a modern scene from the televisions show “Wally and the Beaver”.
Avoid the American “news”. In all of it’s forms…
What in the world is the American government up to? I thought that the ninth amendment states that Americans have more rights than just the enumerated ones.
If you don’t believe that this is the state of affairs, then you can can ignore this and read CNN, MSN and WaPo to tell you what to believe and how to act.
Do not live your life in fear. DO NOT LIVE YOUR LIFE IN FEAR!
It’s your choice.
American news is really just propaganda. It is designed to keep Americans into a state of control. While real events and real news is kept secret.
Commentary and Conclusion
Kinda of boring,eh?
Well, that’s the way it is. America has stratified, and it is the rich vs. the slaves and there is nothing that exists in the “dead-lands” between the two groups. This is the sum total of the “wonderful” progressive utopia implemented by President Wilson in the early part of the last century and engineered to perfection today.
You like it?
You’d better, because there ain’t no way that you can change it. You are fucked.
You are fucked.
Fucked.
Welcome to being an American.
Put a smile on your face. It’s your life.
Rah! Rah.
“freedom”. “liberty”, “democracy”! Rah. Rah!
Hope you keep all your receipts to give to the IRS in April. You don’t want to suffer the consequences for “non-compliance”, now don’t you? It’s all part of that big “freedom” package that comes with “democracy” don’t you know.
Friendly IRS making sure that you will not cheat your owners out of their money. You had best obey or else you and your family will be shot dead. It’s all so very progressive and modern, don’t you know!
I hope you enjoyed this little narrative. You can find more, and better, discussions on other SHTF posts, Accessed 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.
When your world is turned upside down, what is it like? Can you rush to the supermarket and stock up on groceries? Can you rely on the national guard to keep roving gangs at bay? Can you make sure that your home is heated and that you have running water? What is it like?
This is an interview with Selco when he first started posting on the internet. He says a lot of interesting things, and makes a number of points that I would like to underline.
TheSiegeofSarajevowasthelongestsiegeofacapitalcityinthehistoryofmodernwarfare. AfterbeinginitiallybesiegedbytheforcesoftheYugoslavPeople’sArmy, Sarajevo, thecapitalofBosniaandHerzegovina, wasbesiegedbytheArmyofRepublikaSrpskafrom 5 April 1992 to 29 February 1996 duringtheBosnianWar.
This article is from another article posted, titled ;”How I survived a year of SHTF in 90s Bosnia”. I think that is is pretty good. All credit to the author and the source. I did edit his grammar, for the most part. It makes for decent reading that way.
Introduction
Back in September of 2011, a user named Selco joined the forums at SurvivalistBoards.com and posted “my SHTF experience-wartime,” a thread that would since become legendary in survivalist communities and beyond (you frequently see people reference it to this day on sites such as 4chan and reddit).
In it, Selco details his experience of living in a besieged Bosnian town of 50 to 60k people during the Bosnian War (1992-1995). The siege took away everything modern humans take for granted and tested with extreme brutality Selco’s and his community’s ability to survive.
But what is so interesting about this war story is that it was told to a group of survivalists (preppers) who had questions — lots of questions.
How does barter work and which survival strategies are worthless bunk?
How were the social dynamics when everyone realized there was no law?
What really happens and what kind of tricks do people actually get up to to get by when faced with — essentially — the apocalypse?
Selco’s first post.
OK, i wanna share with you my own experience. (be patient with my English, I am from far away )
I am from Bosnia, and as some of you may know it was hell here from 92-95, anyway, for 1 whole year I lived and survived in a city of 50 000- 60 000 residents WITHOUT: electricity, fuel,running water, real food distribution, or distribution of any goods, or any kind of organized law or government. The city was surrounded for 1 year and in that city actually it was SHTF situation.
We did not have organized army or police force, there was groups of defenders, actually anybody who had a gun, fight for his own house and his own family.
Some of us was better prepared, but most of families had food for couple of days, some of us had pistol, few owned AK-47 when all started.
Anyway, after one month or two, gangs started with their nasty job, hospital looked like butchery, police force vanished, 80 percent of hospital staff gone home.
I was lucky, my family was big in that time (15 members in one big house, 5-6 pistols, 3 Kalashnikov s) so we lived and survived, most of us (that is).
I remember US Air force dropped MRE every 10 days (God bless USA for that) as help for surrounded city, it just was not enough. Some of houses had little gardens with some vegetables, most did not.
After three months rumors started about (the) first deaths from starvation, deaths from low temperatures, we stripped every door, window frame from abandoned houses for heating, I burned all my own furniture for heating, lot of people died from diseases, mostly from bad water (two of my family members), we used rain water for drinking, several times I ate pigeons, once I (even) ate rat.
Money did (was) not worth shit.
We traded things, (the) black market worked. A few examples: for 1 (can of) corned beef can you could have woman for couple of hours (sounds bad, but it was the reality). I remember, (that) most of that the women were just desperate mothers…
…candles, lighters, antibiotics, fuel, batteries, rifle ammo and of course food, we fight like animals for that.
In a situation like that, lot of things change, most of people turned into monsters, it was ugly.
Strength was in numbers, if you were alone in the house, you would have probably been robbed and killed, no matter how well armed (you were).
Anyway, war ended, again thanks to America (and again god bless USA for that). It is not important witch side was right in that war.
It was almost 20 years ago, but believe me, for me it was just like yesterday, I remember everything, and I think that I learned a lot (of things).
Me and my family are (all) prepared now, I am well armed, (well) stocked and (well) educated.
War is never pretty. Nor does it resemble what is portrayed by Hollywood. All is in ruin, and there are no clear friends, sides, or relationships.
It is not important does not matter what going to happen; earthquake, war, tsunami, aliens terrorists, important thing is that something is gonna (eventually happen).
And from my experience, you can not survive alone. Strength is in numbers. Be close with your family, prepare with them. Choose your friends wisely and prepare with them too.
And at the end, this is my first post, and my English is not so good, so don t judge me too hard. ”
Q: How did you get around safely?
Actually, the city was broken in something like a lot of street communities. In my street (15 or 20 houses) we organized patrols (5 armed man every night) to watch out for gangs or enemies.
Cities were death traps and your only hope for survival were your friends and family.
We traded things between people in that street. Five miles from my street there was one street with something (that looked) like organized traders, but it was to dangerous to go there. It worked only during the nighttime (during the day it was sniper alley) and (it was risky) you had a greater chance to be robbed there than to trade. I used that street only 2 times, and believe me, it was only when i really needed something (really) bad.
Selco didn’t want to specify the city, but based on his description it could be Livno, which had 40,600 residents in 1991 (now at 34k). Wikipedia: “After the end of World War II, Livno was a part of Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Yugoslavia. After its collapse in 1992 and during the Bosnian War, it was under control of Croat Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia.”
Q: What about wood? It looked like there are many forests around your city, why did you have to burn doors and furniture?
First, thank you for your questions, I did not expect this kind of interest in my post.
I ll be glad to share lot of things with you guys because i want to learn lot of things from you.
Anyway:
Bosnia does have a lot of woods and forests when you go and check the map, but I lived in city closer to the Croatian border, more to the South. I really don’t want to mention name of the city, but if you check the map, the southern part of my country closest to Croatia is all rocky.
Yes we had some trees in my city, parks, fruit trees, but most of the city was building and houses. But believe me…
… all the trees in the city are going to be burned very fast when you don’t have electricity for cooking and heating. After that all what you have is furniture, doors, wooden floors… (and believe me that stuff is burning up far too fast)
Death came swiftly from unexpected places and was often sudden and swift.
There was almost no car use in town. This is because: most of the roads were jammed with ruins, abandoned cars, destroyed houses stuff like that, and petrol was like gold (to us).
If i needed to go somewhere I almost always used night time. I never went alone but also I never went in big group either. (We traveled in smaller groups) (2-3 men maybe), always armed, very fast, always in shadows, through ruins, rarely ever openly on the street, actually… always hiding.
We did not have suburbs and farmers, in the suburbs were the enemy army. We were surrounded by the enemy army, and inside town… (well,) you did not know who is your enemy.
You can expect that all government organization to shut down, and the currency that you hoarded to be useless.
And yes, there were organized groups of gangs, 10-15 people, sometimes even 50. But also there were (a lot of) normal people like you and me, fathers, granddads, decent folks, who robbed and killed. There wasn’t too much good and bad guys (black and white), most of everyone was (some shade of) gray, ready for everything.
Q: Did you prep and what kind of skills did you need?
Of course you can ask.
We used what we had, we were not prepared for that situation. We did not know about prepping.
During a SHTF event, it will all be crazy. Currency, and money will be useless. There will be no water, and no electricity. There will be no wifi and no internet. Most furniture will be used for firewood, and people will trade anything to stay alive.
So you can imagine in some aspects we went back to stone age, actually in most (ways we did).
We just used everything what we had. One example, I had in my possession, a propane (or butane I am not sure which) large storage bottle; cylinder (i am not sure is that right word), but I did not use it for cooking or heating, it was too valuable. Instead, I managed to modify that bottle with my friend. I attached a hose and created some kind of refueling mechanism (sorry my English is going down here) so i can refill those disposable lighters, (they are not really disposable if you have know-how) those lighters were worth a small fortune.
During the war, the capital lay in ruins.
To make story short, somebody (would) bring an empty lighter to me and I would fill that lighter up with gas. Usually I took one can (of food) for that or (else) one candle or whatever he was able to offer me.
I hope you understand my example, my English is poor on some things.
One more example, I am a registered nurse, in any time like that, my knowledge was (a valuable thing) for trade.
And yes, be trained and educated, in times like that it worth a fortune if you know how to fix things. Eventually, all your goods are going to be exhausted one day. However, your specific knowledge can be your food.
Neighborhoods will be in ruins. Those with the best or the wealthiest homes will be repeatedly looted and attacked. Even if you do not appear to have a nice house, if your neighbors think that you might have storage and food, you will be looted.
I mean learn to fix things (shoes or people, whatever you can).
My neighbor used to know how to make some kind of oil for oil lamps (oil in glass, peace of rope – “kerosene camping lanterns”) and he was never hungry, he never did show me how he made that oil for the lamps. ”
I believe he used some tree behind his house and small amount of diesel fuel, i don’t know.
My point is to learn things, people always need somebody who knows how to fix things.
It was not survival movie, it was ugly, we did what we have to do to survive.
Nobody wins, we just survived, with a lot of bad dreams.
Q: Wasn’t it religious, the war?
Sorry man wrong info, that was not Cristian vs Muslim war, it was civil war, with lot of switching between sides.
And sorry I will not get into the politics involved, I really don’t care too much about that, I am not going into religious stories. I mean, I believe in God as a higher power, and I am trying to live by his laws, but I do not belong to any dogma, Muslim or Christian.
Q: Who was your support group?
My group was only my family. This was my blood (relatives like uncles, grandmother…), in my street. In my town trips I had some close friends, but my best friend(s) was my family. I never took a stranger into my close group.
Q: If you had three months to prepare today, what would you do?
If I have extra three months to prepare?
Hmmm, I’d probably run overseas …
<Joke>
OK, Now I am very well aware how things can go very bad in very short time, so (today) I have food, hygiene, energy etc. to supply me for 6 months. I now live in apartment with some improved security. I also have a house with shelter in a village some 5 miles from my apartment. In that house are also supplies for 6 months. The village there is a small community, and most of them are my relatives, (and now) most of them are prepared (they learned that from war). I have four kinds of (live) fire weapons with (at least) 2000 bullets for each (sorry, can not go in details, laws are different here for rifles).
I have big garden at that house and some good knowledge about gardening and farming.
I think i have knowledge now to smell trouble. You (do) know that when everybody is saying that everything is going to be fine you somehow know that is everything going to fall apart.
I think I have the strength necessary to do everything what it takes to keep me and my family alive, because when everything is going to shit…
…be sure, you are going to do some bad things to save your kid. You don t want to be hero, but you do want to survive with your family.
I am nurse, also I am paramedic (US standards)
And i am willing to learn from all of you.
One man survivor, no chance ( OK, it’s only my opinion).
No matter how well armed and prepared you are, at the end you are gonna die. I’ve seen that, many times. Family groups or closest friend with lot of preparing and lots of different knowledge (skill sets) will carry you through the SHTF event, I believe that is what is best.
Q: What items should we stockpile?
Thank you.
Well it depends, I guess if you stock only one thing you are not going to survive. (That is), unless you want to survive like robber, then you need only a gun and lot of ammo.
I believe, besides ammo, food hygiene and energy things (batteries etc.) are necessary. You need to focus on small things for trade. This would include pocket knives, lighters, and flints.
Also a LOT of alcohol, the kind that can store long. I mean stuff like whiskey and all that. It’s not not important what kind, you can have cheapest brand. It is a very good thing for trade in desperate times.
Also lack of hygiene things killed a lot of people, I’ve seen that.
You gonna need to have some simple things, like for example lot of garbage bags, I mean a lot, many uses for that, and a LOT of duct tape, many many uses for that (too).
In case of weapon keep it simple. I mean now i always carry a Glock 45 with me, because i like that gun, but it is not a usual gun and usual caliber here…
The G21 is the perfect answer to the gun owners who’re interested in owning a .45 ACP for defense purposes, but have remained loyal to the 9mm because of its capacity.
… so I also have two 7.62 mm TT Russian pistols hidden, because almost everybody has that gun here and a lot ammunition (is available).
Russian engineers decided to develop a round based on the German Mauser’s 7.63 mm ammo. So in the early 1930s, the Soviet was armed with the famous TT-30 pistol. Its construction was based on a simplified version the of Brauning pistol. The TT-30 received powerful 7.62 x 25 rounds that flew out of the gun at 420 meters per second.
I don t like Kalashnikov, but here there is that rifle on almost every 3rd house so…
AK-47.
Most of the time I collected my water from roof in 4 big barrels during the war, then boiled to disinfect it, we also had river in that town, but it was far too polluted but if you can’t choose…
I don t think I am an expert, I am here to learn.
I guess, it depends how far you going to go to survive with your actions, you need to be prepared to do some ugly things.
Oh yes… it changed my perspective on life.
I know now that bad things can happen, and one more important thing, actually I believe it is most important:
I no longer believe government and authority, not at all.
When they really doing their best to assure you that everything going to be fine, you can be sure that something bad is happening.
American politics.
Do not just believe, (do your own) research.
Q: What about the civil war…and the religious fighting? Did
gold and silver help much and how did you get the alcohol and other
supplies?
Hello to all. It is me again.
I believe in some point this discussion gone the wrong way, and no I am not offended, everybody have right for opinion, so here are few of my opinions:
It was a civil war, yes there was a great influence of religion, but somebody mentioned “what did you do with people of other religions?”
Well in my family there are people with different religious beliefs so what do you mean with that?
I’ll try to explain you simply; it was an attackers and defenders war. (There were a) lot of switching sides; a civil war.
The war ended without winners, it ended with a truce, thanks mostly to USA.
It was a wrong war, (all for the) wrong reasons.
I did not fight for religion or ethnicity, I fought to keep my family and myself alive.
For the last 15 years we have had peace. We live with people who used to be our enemies. I do not to want to have war and enemies again because ethnicity or religion or for any other reason.
Please do not try to generalize anything about that war, there was no good or bad side, we all suffered and (now) we all try to live together again.
And yes every side did bad things, and every side had both good and bad guys.
I am here for one and only reason- survival, I want to learn, and I can share some useful stuff with you. I don’t think (want to know) about your religious beliefs, your ethnicity or your politic opinions.
Few words about my city before war, it was the usual Bosnian town. (It had a) normal life, decent people, schools, theaters, and parks. (It had a) college, airport, crime rates were very low. (The) town was like most of the smaller towns in USA (I think). I was a young man, just like any of you are maybe.
Now very important think: I am not here to discuss about war reasons, or sides, religion or anything similar.
Thanks to the war, in my town was REAL SHTF situation, and we can discuss only about that, only that is important.
You have a lot internet pages, you can learn everything about that war, and you can choose side if you want. OK that’s it.
About survival.
I don t know about other people on this forum, but I have lot of alcohol stacked now.
At the beginning of the war a tank grenade smashed front wall of small distillery (alcohol factory) close to my house. (It opened up and we were able to access it) so we took something around 500 liters of rakia (it is something like Bosnian whiskey, I guess, it’s made from grapes, and very strong)
It was great stuff for trading, people used alcohol a lot, desperate times I think, we also used it for disinfection.
About hygiene, cups and plates, paper or plastic, your gonna need a LOT, I know, we did not have it at all.
My opinion is that hygiene things are more important maybe than food, you can easily shoot pigeon. If you have a grandmother she may know (about) some of the eatable plants on nearest small hill (my experience) but you can not shoot hand sanitizer
Water purifying pills, all kind of cleaning stuff, sanitizers, lot of soap, bleach, gloves, masks, all disposable. (All are important and needed.)
Here, I copy and edit this in the middle of the cornovirus event inside of China. And this advice is spot on, I'll tell you what.
Take very good care about (getting) first aid training. Learn how to treat smaller cuts, burns or even a gunshot wound. There will not be any hospital (available), even if you found a doctor somewhere he probably will not have any meds, or (perhaps) you won’t have stuff to pay him with.
Learn how and when to use antibiotics and have a lot of it on hand.
Believe me with (some) good knowledge and goodly amount of meds you are gonna be rich.
About gold and silver, yes, me personally gave all my gold for ammunition in that time, but it wasn’t worth too much.
About pets, i did not have any, I did not notice a lot pets in that time, did somebody ate them? I don’t know… probably.
About a small family, hmm, not good.
Usually a few smaller families would get together in the biggest house available and stay together, all relatives (my case).
A small family or a single man, (is) not good (an ideal arrangement) for survival in town (during a) SHTF event.
Maybe in the wilderness (but I don t have experience in that).
Even if you keep a low profile, hidden in your house with lots of food etc, sooner or later the mob will come. And you have maybe have one or two guns… (it’s going to be) very hard (to make it oout alive).
I agree with the low profile policy, it is very important not to attract people with anything. But when they come, (and they will come) you will need to have numbers, people and guns, your best people is your family.
About moving through the city: always move during night time as I mentioned earlier. Never alone. 2-3 man. Move very fast, never attract anything. Look like everybody else. If most folks look desperate, poor, and dirty you need to look the same. There is no need that everybody else knows that you have a good amount of food, ammo, clean clothes and everything else back at home. Look and act like everybody else. (Blend in. Be inconspicuous.)
When somebody attacks you or your family then (is when) you need to show them that you are very ready.
I never walked in big groups, in that time and that situation, (the only) big groups are gangs.
Now, this is all my experience, it was then. I made a lot of mistakes. I am no expert. I am here just like any of you, to learn and share.
For example i don t know too much about wilderness survival, I am here to check learn about it.
Oh yes, few things to the Sedoy: my wife is different ethnicity, and she is also a Catholic, I am not, and to answer you: no I am not going to shoot her.
Q: What happened to those who died? Where did people get firewood?
Well, who ever died or get killed in that period, did not get a proper funeral.
Folks used used every peace of free land, close to their house for burial. Sometimes even in the garden. 2-3 city parks turned to graveyards. After the war most of them are exhumed and properly buried.
There was not nothing like burning bodies or anything similar, as far as I know.
Oh one more interesting thing about fire. Some people used to travel a few miles during the night just to find fire somewhere so they can light a peace of wood and bring it home, and start a fire for cooking or heating. Lighters and matches were really precious, and most of the folks did not have enough firewood to keep a file or embers burning. For most of the people it was constant search for something, fire, wood, food, ammo…
Q: Was salt valuable?
It was valuable yes, but not too much, for example coffee or cigarettes were worth much more.
Q: What about cigarettes?
Hm, I had a lot of alcohol as I mentioned before. I traded almost everything without any problem, let me say it like this: consumption of alcohol was probably 10 times more than during normal times. Not to mention cleaning and disinfection.
On the other hand, you made a very good point, if you have money and time and you have a storage it is probably better to store cigarettes or candles and batteries for trade, or food.
I was not a “prepper” at that time, we did not have time to prepare. A few days right before the SHTF politicians on TV stated that everything is fine. Then, when the sky fell down we just take what you can.
Q: Tell us more about cooking and the foods you were able to
prepare. Were you concerned about the smell getting around and alerting
people that there was food over there?
About cooking, before the SHTF I used in my house electricity for both, cooking and heating. So when everything started I traded some stuff for some kind of old wood stove. I put it in the kitchen and fix exhaust pipe (right word?) through a hole in wall. I used that for both cooking and heating.
During the summer I cooked in my backyard (walled fence, brick, luckily).
Concerning the smell of the food, hum. I’ll try to (describe for you a) picture (of the) situation: no electricity, no running water, sewage off for months, dead bodies in ruined houses, grime and mess, believe me it was very difficult to smell something nice.
It was not like in movies, it was ugly, dirty, and smelly.
Yes I had a few problems because of cooking, only a few, but as I said before, enough people, properly armed and with the will to defend…
… and you can manage most of the problems with that.
Probably, the situation would be (quite) different in the wilderness.
I ate mostly some kind of pancakes with local herbs (it does not require cooking oil and too much firewood), and of course, everything what I could get and trade (we ate). Rice was good to eat, not too much firewood for that.
I think I had (a lot of) luck, only a few times (did) I eat funny things like pigeons.
I always had something to trade, I guess that saved me…
… and guns of course.
Downtown Grbavica, a suburb of Sarajevo, March of 1996. Sarajevo was also besieged and faced many of the issues described by Selco.
Q:
1. Why would the night be safer than daytime? Outside of the obvious of
being easier to hide at night, but were the gangs more out during the
days? Also, why only small groups of 2-3? What happened to larger
groups?
2. Why would you have to go out at night? For instance, where were you going and why?
3. How did you handle the mob situation when they came for you, or your family?
4. You mentioned trading for bullets, etc. How much shooting were you doing during that time and how much ammo did you have, or would like to have had?
5. How were you able to determine who was an enemy and who wasn’t? How did you manage to get out there trade with people and when/where?
6. What fortifications did you do to your home and what kind of guard, or protections did you have in place?
7. Finally, how did you avoid snipers? What precautions did people take against them?
Firstly, almost nobody went out during the day because of snipers, the line of defense was very close, so whatever you have to do, you do it during the night.
(You) trade something, look for firewood (I can’t express how much this was important (to us) in town, and hard), looking for anything, check somebody, to go to hear news (very very important, lot of people get killed because they go somewhere just to see what happening, or what’s new) remember, no news, no radio ,no TV, nothing, rumors fed lot of people.
Already (as I) explained, you can stay home and die of hunger and cold, or even by infection of some small wound or go out and risk your life, try to find – trade anything useful
I did have situations concerning my house only, there is no need (to get into) too many details, we had more fire power, and (a) brick wall.
Also we had something like a street watch, people from my street were well organized, in case of gangs, now there were a lot shootings.
There was pretty much shooting all over town, I did not have enough weapons at the beginning. (I had) one rifle and one pistol (old world war II vintage), maybe 100 bullets total. Later I traded some things for more rifles and ammo. I remember that I gave away a car battery for 2 rifles.
How much ammo ?
A LOT, as much as you can (get a hold of).
Most of the time you are not able to determine who is enemy or friend. Expect my family and few real friends. Everybody else is a potential enemy. When your friend must choose between his child’s death and your death guess who (he) is going to choose.
Rumors, somebody tells you that some old guy a few blocks away has some cans and he is looking for ammo or whatever. You go there, as I say you are always looking for something. Same some people would came to my street as traders, with some goods.
There was something like trade street during the night, actually it was in the big ruins of sport center. You can go over there and look for something or offer something. However, it was not controlled by anyone so it was too dangerous.
It was primitive pretty much, a brick wall around the house, bags of sand on windows and doors, over that bags we used whatever you can. (There were) big pieces of metal, stones, (everywhere). Inside the house we put all kinds of stuff on the windows, (leaving) only a small opening left for a rifle. (We had a rule) always 5 members of family ready for fight, one always outside on street hidden.
Stone age situation.
To avoid snipers, we would stay home during the day, there were not so many night snipers, even during the night we never walked openly on the streets if we can avoid that, always (using) shortcuts, trough ruins, fast and quiet.
Q: What was your bathroom situation? Where did you go? Did
you have anything to wipe with? Sorry ask such personal questions, but
this is something that I’ve wondered about in this type of situation.
We used shovels and any piece of land close to house, (yeah) it sounds dirty, and it is dirty; washing with collected rainwater, sometimes (we would) go to the river (most of the time that was too dangerous) Most of the time we did not have toilet paper, even if I had it, I (would) trade it.
It was a bad situation all the time.
If i can give some advice: first to prep is a weapon and ammo, then everything else.
I mean everything, depends how much money and space you have.
If you forget something no problem there is always somebody ready for trade, but if you forget guns and ammo then you may not be able to get to trading places.
I do not see big family or group of really (I mean really) good friends as more mouth to feed, I see them as more guns and strength, it is in people’s nature to adapt.
And keep it simple and use common sense. In the first period (of the war) the weak people vanished, others fought.
Go with small things, lighters, candles, flints.
It is great idea to have a fuel generator (electrical generating unit) but i think a better idea is to have 1000 BIC lighters. A fuel generator is great, but in a SHTF scenario in town it is going to attract a whole army. But, 1000 BIC lighters don’t take up too much space, (they’re) cheap, and you can always trade it for something.
Real SHTF scenario demands a complete change of the normal mindset, (it’s) hard to explain, I’ll try through examples.
Q: How easy/hard was it to get weapons AFTER the SHTF and what could you trade for weapon and ammunition (I remember you saying a car battery for a rifle) and where would I go to find the people who trade in weapons?
Hum, you re right, after the war every house here had a weapon from the war, and yes the police did take some action to take illegal weapons from the population. It depends from man to man I guess, a lot of people find ways to hide their weapons somewhere, just in case.
I also have legal weapon (license), and the authority here has some thing they refer as “temporary collecting”. It basically says something like: “in a case of unusual event (riots, unrest, etc) government has the right to temporary collect all legal weapons”. So I keep always in mind that fact. And I acted like some other people.
You know some people have legal weapon for everyday carry (I have a Glock 45 and Taurus 38) but some people with legal weapon also have illegal weapons hidden somewhere just in case SHTF and “temporary collecting”.
It is not hard to get weapon in SHTF if you have good stuff for trade,. However, the other thing is important. The very first days of SHTF is worst in terms of chaos and panic. So, maybe you’re not gonna have time to get a gun. And to be unarmed in chaos panic and riots is bad.
In my case, the man needed a car battery for a HAM radio I think, and he had some extra rifles, so we traded.
Q: What about medical care for people who were shot or became injured?
Wounds was mostly gunshot wounds of course, without specialists and everything else, if wounded manage to find a doctor somewhere he had like 30% chances to live.
Again it is not (like a) movie, mostly they died.
A lot of people died even from minor cuts infections, I had antibiotics maybe for 3-4 treatments. Of course for my family only.
Simple things killed people. Diarrhea can kill you in a few days without meds and re-hydration, (fluid therapy, IV) especially small kids. Lot of fungal skin diseases, and food poisoning, we could not do too much. Basically we treated diseases mostly with local herbs, and if you had a wound, put rakia (whiskey) on it and tried to find antibiotics somewhere.
So i was good at fixing wounds in term of emergency help, but longer procedure…
…bad prognosis.
What I learned? Hygiene again, and a lot of meds, especially antibiotics. You need to learn to treat lot of stuff, go online, finish some training, EMT maybe, first aid etc.
In SHTF things are different, learn how to open IV, when to use certain drugs, or antibiotics.
Get your self ANA TE (anti tetanus ) shot injections , snake poison kit, adrenaline kit (allergic reactions, different kinds) tick removal kit, (tick related illness can kill you, learn how to remove tick)…
Get in Supply your prepper storage some reanimation kit (simple one) like a small oxygen cylinder, a BVM mask etc. It is not really hard to learn to use all of these.
OK let’s be clear about something, of course you can not use anything of this in the “real world” unless you are certified and trained for that ( EMT, nurse, physician ).
But in SHTF nobody will ask you for your license, just learn and have it in your storage big part for medical things.
So to answer question how did I help and treat others? Most of the time everyone was very poor. I helped some with the resources that I had. I took food or something else for exchange, I was badly prepared for that, now I have what I need to have.
Q: Did your local currency/money still hold value? Were you still able to use money to purchase items from other people?
No, not really. I mean sometimes you can use foreign money if you had it to buy something, (dollars or German marks) but even in that rare occasion the rate was unbelievable. For example 1 can of beans for 30-40 dollars (normal value was maybe 0.50). I guess somebody had connections with outside world, black market you know, so he can earn a lot of money. But it was very rare. Trade was main thing to get something.
Local currency crashed very fast, in few weeks or month maybe.
Q: How much space should I keep for alcohol storage? What was security like?
About alcohol first, you are right but you are right in both ways, people needed alcohol more in desperate times then usual, so it is a kind of gambling I guess, it is very good item for trading. I never had problems with alcohol trading and having than problems with trading other things.
Also I am thinking about something else, maybe it is better to fill my storage with something less space consuming but still interesting for trade, like batteries, antibiotics etc.
Thing is I had all that alcohol for free, I did not buy it. I don t know about this.
In most of the situations people attacked me because they thought they are stronger, they did not know for sure what I really had.
About ammunition trade, it depends how much ammo you are going to have, sometimes I would trade ammo for food, and in few weeks again food for ammo. However, I never never conducted trade at my home, and never bigger amounts, very few people knew how much of anything I had in my house.
The point is to store as much of anything as you can store (space , money). (Then) later during the situation you ll see what is most popular. Correction – ammo and guns always gonna held first place for me, but who knows maybe number 2 for trading gonna be for example masks with filters.
About medical issue , I’ll write in my next post what do I have now in my medical part of storage
Defenses were very primitive, again we were not prepared. We use whatever we could, windows were broken, roofs mostly damaged from shelling, all windows were blocked with something, sand bags and rocks. Every night I blocked my yard gate with junk- rubble from the street and I used an old aluminum ladder to get over the (brick) wall, when I came back I called somebody from house to get me with that ladder so I can move back in.
A guy from my street barricaded his house completely. If he goes out at night, he used a hole that he made in one room that was connected with his neighbor’s house, and then go trough his (ruined and destroyed) house out. So, actually he had secret entrance.
It may look weird to say but most secured houses are gone first, of course we had some very nice houses in neighborhood, with walls, dogs, alarms, steel bars on windows, alarms. And you can guess what happened, mobs attacked those houses first, some were defended other not, depend how many guns and hands they had inside.
So i think security is great, but be sure that you keep it low profile. Forget about alarms, if you live in town and SHTF you gonna need simple looking non-interesting secured house, with a lot of guns and ammunition.
Just keep it low profile and not interesting.
On my apartment door now I have a steel door for security reasons, but only to keep me trough the first (brief) short period of chaos, then I am ready to move out to connect with a much bigger group of armed people (family and friends) in the country (I hope).
Well in my case migration did not happen because it happens very fast. The other army just closed up the city in a ring and that’s it. If you ask me where was that army and how we were unable to see them coming, the answer is simple. That army was an ally of the army of my side and people…
… one day we woke up and figured they are the enemy now and they are closing all the ways out. Politics. It is true, it’s one more side of civil war.
But I heard from others parts of country, and my friends who stayed in villages in the other parts in state, that they had much better situations. Their countryside had land, corn, wheat, fruit trees, farms etc. They had enough food, it was bad, but much better than in the city.
I know one thing if we had some way out from the town, we would use it, (unfortunately) we did not have it.
Q: What was the situation with banks and stores?
About banks, loans, credit cards. Complete monetary system died for about one year, so nothing works.
It is complex question in many ways, I’ll try it to answer it in some future posts, (I) need much more time and much much more space to describe it.
Even now, almost 20 years later, folks are in European court suing banks, because they don’t want to admit their savings in banks.
A lot of different things happened in that period. They changed money, I mean (the) monetary name, they changed it 2-3 times , hyperinflation occurred. (All manner of things were lost), lost (all the) paper trails about savings, loans … I remember some people use that situation to get rich, they are still rich.
So I’ll try to describe that in separate post.
There was a lot of problems with proving peoples property after everything. For example: my father had a nice apartment and because of the war he had to leave it. Now, after the war ended he was at court for about 4 years proving that the apartment was his.
Now, the reasons for that were different, because politics in that time, but also he did not have enough paper work to prove that apartment was his (he did not take papers from the apartment when he fled), he had more important things to care about.
On the other side during the worst period, people just moved in the empty house, and that’s it.
I mention rural areas in another post. As far as I remember it was better there.
In that period there wasn’t any running vehicles. Actually I remember a tank at the front line, and Lada Niva (check it on web) with cut off doors and roof and installed machine gun (I think it was an old m53) and those two only moved when they fired (they keep it hidden behind ruined houses).
Lada Niva
For let me call it “civilian population” there was no moving with
vehicles, streets were mostly under rubble and unusable and fuel was too
expensive.
Not to draw attention was a big thing, about clothing, there used to be some sort of town defense, it was not like a real military, mostly mixed civilian clothes with parts of uniforms, different types of weapons, so no rules.
But as soon as we start to go in to those things and try to talk about two armies, their strength, war crimes, politics I am not gonna like it any more, because people gonna start to choose sides, and I think it is not important for us here.
As I said before there wasn’t an organized army, but we all had been like soldiers, we had to, most of us carried weapon and tried to protect ourselves from the enemy army and robbers.
Inside the town you did not want to look fancy because somebody would shoot you and take all your good stuff, you did not want to have a fancy rifle, because probably you not gonna find ammo in that caliber and also you are drawing attention to yourself.
So let me try to put it this way: If SHTF tomorrow, I will try to look like most of the people outside, scared, desperate, confused and I’ll scream maybe, no fancy looking stuff, I’ll not go out in fancy new uniform and yell “I am here, you are finished now looters and robbers”.
I’ll stay low profile, heavily armed and well prepared waiting to see my options, even if I have to go out with all my gear to do things I’ll go out in the night, with my best friend or brother. Maybe it sounds ridiculous, but from my experience it works, be very well prepared, but let nobody outside your house know or see that.
No matter how good your house security is, how good your weapon is, if people see that they have good reason to rob you they probably rob you in town SHTF. It is only matter of time and number of guns.
Don’t ever give them reason to be interesting in robbing you. Stay uninteresting. Now this is my opinion, maybe is not working in different situation.
About robbing grocery store and gas stations; it happened very very fast, as soon as shooting started all valuable things were emptied. There was some effort of authority to keep it together but everything fell apart in the first few weeks.
Bernie Carr from ApartmentPrepper was fascinated with the story and had even more questions, and was able to reach Selco.
Q: On the forum where you described your experience of being
under siege, you mentioned that you had no electricity or running water.
How did you and your family handle the toilet (sanitary) conditions?
We had a small yard and dug holes for toilets, we thought it was temporary so the holes were small but later on we dug bigger ones because we realized this is long and world might have forgotten us. It was not nice but at least we did not do it in the house like many others did. Whole area started to smell bad anyway, stench from dead people is worse than a bit of poo.
Q: A lot of my readers are women and they would want to know what did the women, children and elderly members of your family do on a day to day basis during the time your city was under attack?
The roles were back to hundred years ago. Before war we were modern society, but as soon as SHTF the women, kids and elder stayed mostly at home. They wanted that, no questions. Happened automatically.
They did the washing, cooking, cleaning and taking care of sick people. Just sometimes when shelling was a bit less some women came along to gather herbs or MRE if food aid was coming that time. Not often. We always had some man protecting the home, women, children and elderly.
Q: From all the weapons that you used, what was your
preferred weapons for when you went out into the street OR when you were
staying at home and why?
Always had the same weapons, TeTe gun / some Russian gun and AK47. Simple choice, most ammo for these weapons. We had only a few of those so we exchanged them among us. Did a good job, very reliable weapons. AK47 has good stopping power, just not very good on fully auto. Can make a mess out of a human.
Q: A lot of apartment preppers will probably decide to stay
in their homes and this has raised a lot of discussions on the pros and
cons of staying in the city. Some people say that by staying in the
city, the infrastructure will be restored first, and that those living
in the countryside would be attacked by roving bandits. The other side
states that those living in the countryside have greater chances of
survival as they would be more self-reliant and not dependent on
resources from the city. Based on you and your family’s experience,
which would you prefer and why?
RUN! If you lucky yes, city might be better off but if not it is so much worse. Bug in for a few days until first madness settled and then bug out. Also depends on the weather. Might stay at home in winter and risk getting robbed / murdered instead of going out and freezing to death. Only run if you know where you run to.
Daisy Luther from The Organic Prepper
also contacted Selco for an interview. We highlight a couple of the
Q&As and you can go to her site if you’d like to read the rest (she
focuses on politics and the US situation).
Q: What parallels do you see with events in the US and Bosnia before the SHTF?
US and Yugoslavia (in 1990) on first look do not have
anything in common because people are going to say, “The USA cannot have
anything similar to any socialistic system.”
This is true but only on first look.
Yugoslavia had somewhere around 20-22 million citizens, six republics
(similar to states in the US), 3-4 main religions, and many national
groups (ethnicity).
The official state policy was to build Yugoslavian “nationality”
(from the end of WW1) and through different ways that effort was
successful until the 90s.
We were “something big, united through differences with a strong connection to make something big.”
And then those differences were used to make chaos.
In the late 80s and beginning of the 90s (when democracy came) the
problems started and ended up in series of wars and cases of complete
collapse.
Things that I experienced in my case prior to SHTF, and things that you might recognize:
Things that make differences between people are more and more problematic (race, religion, political opinion).
Polarization is getting obviously stronger.
People want to come to your country, but they do not want to
“assimilate” or contribute to the greater good. They want to preserve
their way of life which is often absolutely contradictory to the way
that your country (society) works.
The political way of solving those problems often fails, because, in
essence, those problems are hard to solve in a democratic way (in the
spirit of democracy).
Your freedoms are “shrinking” as a result of that.
Calls for “radical solutions“ for the problems are stronger and stronger.
The media is absolutely working a dirty job, and it is hard to find out what is the truth anymore.
Suddenly people and events from history are “brought back” so people
can judge and argue about it, to write history again, to build myths
sometimes.
Q: Anything else to add?
I have seen many people killed, a lot of women and children too, civilians. A huge number of people suffered, were hungry and cold and were terrified through that period.
But I can count on one hand the dead or hungry politicians in that time.
Things were good for them through that period. Some of them ended up even richer. A lot of them are still powerful in the same or different parties, and are still talking about “their people” or “ causes” or “fear from others”.
It is the way it works.
Conclusion
This is good stuff, don’t you think?
Take heed, SHTF can come in many forms. Like the biological warfare with the coronvirus here in China. (Just a second ago I stepped outside to check with the apartment complex police. We are still under lock-down. No one can come in or leave the complex.)
Make sure you have a tight group of friends and family.
Stockpile food.
Stockpile sanitary and anti-bacterial supplies.
Have skills or items to barter.
Be able to defend yourself with equipment that you know how to use well.
Lie low key, and hide.
If you enjoyed this post, please be sure to visit the rest of my blog 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.
Unless you have been living under a rock for the last few decades, you should be aware that most Americans are quite unhappy. The progressive liberals hate the nation, the country and what it stands for. They want it to burn, be destroyed and replaced with a social utopia. The conservatives hate what the nation has become. They want a full return to the original intended government, and a leadership that obeys it. Meanwhile, the wealthy and the powerful, in full control of the government, is playing both sides against each other.
A conflict is inevitable.
There should be no question at all that our nation is at an impasse. There is a serious question of direction. As in what direction should the nation follow?
Embrace a Marxist paradise with the genocide of deplorables.
Scrap all the progressive “improvements” and return the government back to the original intent.
The Conflict.
Basically, there are those who see America as a thing to be preserved and another who see it as a thing needing to be destroyed.
Patriots want a return to the original principles of the founding.
Progressives want everything torn down and replaced with a Marxist utopia.
The Marxist Plan.
It was said by a number of Marxist thinkers over the decades and most notably William Ayers, that for America to be destroyed, it was a thing to be destroyed first from within, then by getting help from the outside.
William Ayers.
And while Marxist and Anarchist apologists will be quick to minimize those statements through saying its simply from a man caught in the winds of his time, its incredibly important to note that this is the prevailing thought among higher-level academia. An academia which has groomed the brokers of power in all of our nation’s ruling agencies.
Ayers is but one man with a relatively small group, an incredibly high percentage of academics in this nation not only sided with him but not-so-quietly cheered such abhorrent actions on, shaping higher education for the decades to come.
Which brings us to the present day.
William Ayers was behind the Antifa riots in Berkley, California.
In every sociology program in America, undergrads are taught Max Weber’s theories on authority in a society and, perhaps more importantly, his theories on Bureaucracy. Normally juxtaposed to Gramsci’s theory of the superstructure, it is stressed in lectures that in order to control a society, control over the bureaucracy must first be established.
The American Government today.
Once that control is slowly implemented, there is no need for a sudden revolution. Control is already obtained. Crime becomes a tool of political power rather than a question of morality. Through this power the ability to define one’s enemies- and thus eliminate them- is simple.
Where we find ourselves today is the veil of objectivity in such a bureaucracy having been ripped away.
The corporate mass-media has recently discovered a “deep state” that they claim to be not some evil group of assassins who work for the super-rich owners of the country and murder their own president (JFK) and other unpatriotic dissidents (Malcom X, MLK, RK, among others) and undermine democracy home and abroad, but are now said to be just fine upstanding American citizens who work within the government bureaucracies and are patriotic believers in democracy intent on doing the right thing.
The ongoing impeachment farce has brought a vibrant highlight to that power wield upon anyone or anything they deem a worthy target. If the denizens of the ‘interagency group’, an unelected, unaccountable group of ring-knockers who apparently view themselves outside the authority of anyone but they, who decided to target the President for literally nothing at all, what will they do to you?
Indeed, all this political posturing is a war that is raging all around us.
When the dust clears, how will it affect you?
The Fourth Amendment.
I don’t believe its far-fetched to say the Fourth Amendment is finished.
There are no Fourth Amendment protections for Americans.
There is no such thing as privacy when so many freely chose to live their lives online. Where they are always volunteering an incredibly high amount of data on themselves. Which is a data set known as patterns of life in the intelligence world…
And when such a time occurs as say, a threatening of a mass disarmament and criminalization of firearms ownership and the right to organize and train under arms…
… that without protections against the machine, armed networks of potential guerrillas may very well be unknowingly compromised before such a thing can even get off the ground.
Revolt is fated to end before it’s even vocalized.
America is a full-on police state in the very definition of what a police state actually is.
The process behind this is known as the Target-Centric Intelligence Cycle.
It follows five steps.
Find
Fix
Finish
Exploit
Assess.
It begins with a target of interest. All data is collected on the potential target with the aim of creating a plan of attack. Finishing the target is the actions-on stage. The target is either apprehended or neutralized, depending on the desired result, giving way to exploitation and assessment- whatever effects were felt in the larger targeted community, while resetting the cycle based on new targets of interest.
Military Targeting Process.
With the tools at their disposal, this process can be done almost entirely remotely with the only physical surveillance necessary is to confirm the data on the targets, and usually just before conducting the actions-on raid of the cycle.
Think about that one for a second.
The interesting thing about collective action and social movements is
that once it gathers a fever pitch, its far too much of a risk for the
superstructure to wield collective force. Some would argue that the use
of force even reveals the waning influence of the superstructure. Right
or wrong, the optics of such a move are never good and in my personal
experience, only galvanizes a people against that power.
So the question remains then- what happens when a government decides on a dirty war against those it deems a threat?
They hate us.
We know without a doubt at this stage that the real power structure in this nation absolutely hates you and I.
By their own words they have nothing but contempt for us, for our points of view, for our way of life.
They hate us. They all have come from “privilege”, and have come to despise us common people.
Indoctrinated by the very same America-hating academics who serve on advisory committees…
… to the very agencies which created the powers for themselves…
… the communist revolution of gaining control of Gramsci’s superstructure has been applied to the principles of bureaucracy outlined by Weber.
Your future home – if you are lucky.
Now, with the tools they have at their disposal, how would such an organization commit itself to a dirty war- not risking overt action but rather simply eliminating voices of dissent quietly?
Simple implementation.
So-called ‘martial law’ doesn’t have to be declared nor would it be desirable. Ties between government agencies and elements of underground criminal organizations are very real- and will be used.
Rather than risk their own officers, target packets will be handed off to the local gang and a robbery gone wrong just might happen. Do not forget that they’ve imported millions of undocumented- and thus disposable- people for more than just votes.
And while all of this looks like a pattern to the folks who are awake, but being covert in nature, its an entirely deniable way to wage a war on anyone deemed a threat.
Maybe outright killing a target is too dramatic.
Maybe you’ll get caught on false charges and given a draconian sentence, while career offenders are released for ‘processing errors’.
You could be taken into custody for jay-walking, having a photo on your computer, or driving while talking on a cell-phone. Then, you could spend five or ten years in prison.
Maybe your bank accounts will get frozen or assets seized. Without hard proof (or even with it), naysayers are opening the door to lawsuits you can’t afford to fight while the rest continue their normalcy bias.
Thenormalcybias, ornormalitybias, isabeliefpeopleholdwhenthereisapossibilityofadisaster. Itcausespeopletounderestimateboththelikelihoodofadisasteranditspossibleeffects, becausepeoplebelievethatthingswillalwaysfunctionthewaythingsnormallyhavefunctioned. Thismayresultinsituationswherepeoplefailtoadequatelypreparethemselvesfordisasters, andonalargerscale, thefailureofgovernmentstoincludethepopulaceinitsdisasterpreparations. About 70% ofpeoplereportedlydisplaynormalcybiasindisasters.
- Normalcy bias - Wikipedia
They’ve been waging a dirty war, and its about to get even worse as more people wake up to the totality of the situation.
Break the Cycle.
Break the cycle. Its way more than just about firearms, the President, or your so-called rights.
Its a fight for survival.
The weight of an unaccountable class of people are bearing down on the rest of us, and its high time to shrug them off.
Recognize that we are an enemy to them. They are at war with you and I.
We are a threat to the “deep state” oligarchy and their “swamp”. This is a fact that will not go away. We can never coexist peacefully.
One thing is absolutely certain- they won’t back off any of this and they have no interest in stopping.
The bureaucracy which wholly serves the Leftist cause in the United States wants voices like ours gone and they’ve propagandized us as no longer being human.
And when they fail to yield to protests and non-violent demonstrations, you must be prepared for what comes next.
Genocide.
Conclusion & Takeways
What is the point of this aimless and wandering post?
Peaceful coexistence between Marxists and deplorables is impossible.
The oligarchy owns the “Deep State”.
The vast numbers of the “Deep State” are Marxists.
Therefore…
Deplorables are going to be silenced, firstly. (Already in process.)
Then they will be treated as second or third class citizens. (Also already in process.)
Then they will be disarmed. (Already in process.)
Finally they will be exterminated.
Gear up. You have to be an idiot not to see the “writing on the wall”.
If you enjoyed this little rant, you can read more here…
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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.
Here’s what to expect once the socialists register your firearms… outlaw them, disarm you, and take you to a “safe place”…
Know your history.
One of the common themes that I see from time to time from liberals, and the uneducated (could they be one and the same?), is that registration of firearms means nothing.
That no one will take your guns.
They actually pretend to believe it and say that mantra with authority. They say it with conviction.
But it’s a lie. Historically, guns are always seized after registration.
The left took “1984” not as a cautionary tale, but a guidebook; an erotic how-to tale leading to Utopia. They’re executing a thought-blitzkrieg to enact their agenda, hoping the bulk of Americans won't catch on.
- Democrats And The ‘Reeducation’ Of The American People
Further, the seizing of firearms almost always results in genocide against a minority population of some sort. Which then resorts in events such as described here.
Based on newly-discovered, secret documents from German archives, diaries and newspapers of the time, Gun Control in the Third Reich presents the definitive, yet hidden history of how the Nazi regime made use of gun control to disarm and repress its enemies and consolidate power. The countless books on the Third Reich and the Holocaust fail even to mention the laws restricting firearms ...
- Gun Control in the Third Reich: Disarming the Jews and ...
Here is an interesting biography by a German boy (now an old man) who entered a German “safe haven” once he and his family was disarmed. At that time, everyone thought that the German government had their best interests are heart and that they were going to be transported to “protected communities” to live.
They were, however, being sent to their deaths.
Read it, and remember that at that time Germany was the most advanced, socially advanced and technologically advanced nation in the world. They had the best machine, electronics, transportation and doctors.
During the earlier years, when did you realize that the Nazi regime was going to be a very, very big problem?
Well, in 1939, when the war broke out, I was only about 10 and a half years old. I didn’t know much about politics.
But in 1938, there was Kristallnacht in Germany, and… actually, we all know what happened with that, where Jewish people were not allowed to do this or that, all the Jewish shops in Germany and Austria were broken into, the breaking of the glass, the shopkeepers were pulled out, and many were beaten to death or sent to Dachau (at that time, it was just a prison)… and many Jewish homes were ransacked and they were burning Jewish temples, places of worship, many many Jewish temples in Austria were actually burned.
And it was not done by a bunch of gangs, wild…you know, hooligans. It
was government-owned. Government orders. And they actually ordered to
start fires in all these temples and places of worship. And firefighters
stood by, guarding the houses that are NEXT to these temples, so they
shouldn’t catch on fire, but the temples were burning.
So those things were happening when I was 9 and a half. And i had no
idea of these things. If my parents knew something, they wouldn’t tell
us.
Expert Tip: Do not try to “protect” your children from the truth.
I came from a wonderful loving home, a family of 7. And out of that family, only my older sister Lola and I survived.
Expert Tip: If you and your family are classified as a “deplorable” or “privileged”, you can expect most of your family to be killed by the government.
Lola was 5 years older than I was, and unfortunately she passed away a few months ago. She was a wonderful artist, lived in New York, and still her art is in many museums all over the world, including in Jerusalem… but anyway, to answer your question: did I know what was going on?
No. We had a pretty normal life. Until all hell broke loose, in September of 1939.
And the world broke out. And it didn’t take long. Right within days, we knew exactly what Nazi barbarism was.
What happened particularly in the train carts that transported you to the concentration camps? What do you remember of the transport inside the carts? Were you all crammed in with no food and water for days? How did people relieve their bowels? What of children or babies that there may have been present?
Okay, to answer your question about the cattle cars… they pushed us
in cattle cars. That was on the way to Auschwitz. And then with the
death-camp going to Dachau, the second time for me.
Expert Tip: Do not board the cattle cars, the trucks, the buses, or any kind of transport provided by the government.
To give you an idea – 80 people in a cattle car would be possible, if not for the fact that most people were told to bring along their valuables…
… because they were being told that they were being relocated in Germany, and these able-bodied people will be working…
… and the children will go to school, and the older parents will be taken care of…
…so they brought along all their valuables, all they could carry.
Expert Tip: You will NOT be told that you are going to a Concentration Camp. You will be told it is something else.
In collecting the disarmed civilians, they were told that they would be relocated to “safe areas”. So they brought all their belongings with them. Then they were segregated by gender.
So NOW, with all the bundles and valises they brought, if a person had to sit down, another person had to stand up.
The sanitary conditions – all they had were 2 buckets in the corner. They were full of water when we went in, and once the water was gone, there was nothing else left. So all we had were those 2 buckets for sanitary facilities.
So you can imagine 80 people using those 2 buckets.
Once these buckets got filled up – they kept spilling over on the
floor in the cattle car. If you can picture this, one day, two days,
three days… with all of that waste on the floor… at this point, we were
happy that we had bundles so we could sit on top of the bundles instead
of all the human waste on the floor.
Disarmed males, separated from their families, being instructed by the police that they are being taken into custody for “their own protection.
The conditions were unbelievable.
We had babies there. Pregnant mothers. We had older people. Sick people.
And they are screaming and yelling. It just went on…
…the conditions were unbelievable. Some people were dying, they just could not take it anymore, they gave up.
Expert Tip: Avoid crowds.
Day one, day two, day three – we finally arrived into Auschwitz, it
was called “Ausfhwenchiem” in Polish (it’s very hard to pronounce, I
know that).
Anyway, I don’t want to get into details, but to answer your
questions – the conditions were unbearable. After 3 days, they opened up
the gates, let some fresh air, and we came out.
But to answer your question – yes, it was inhumane. It was impossible to – I guess at the end of another day, half the people would’ve died. People were throwing up from the smell.
Just unbelievable.
It was completely inhumane. But they didn’t care. They took us to be killed anyway.
Expert Tip: No one will care.
How violent were the camps?
Well, the camps were not violent. The leaders of the camps were… they were very violent.
Expert Tip: The leadership is inherently violent and cruel.
In Auschwitz, for instance, they would make us stand at attention for an hour in the freezing cold in the morning, and an hour at night, and count you and count you and count you…
Actually, there was no purpose in that.
Children in the Nazi Concentration camps.
The only purpose they had was to weed out the strong from the weak.
And by making you stand at attention for an hour or two -so if you
started to lean a little bit, or your knee would buckle a little bit –
they would pull you out and either shoot you or send you to the hospital
where they sent you to the gas chambers or whatnot to get rid of you…
They only wanted people to stay there to work. To be able to work,
you have to be healthy and fed. But they didn’t care. They would always
get new people, fresh people. It was very hard. They had all kinds of torture methods.
For instance, in the camps in Auschwitz – I’ll go through it when I can, tell you about my camp experience – in Auschwitz they would make us stand in line in the freezing cold, and they had a little game – where they said “Take off your cap! in German.
So you had to stand at attention, take off your cap, and you had to hit your arm against your leg with the cap.
All they wanted was to hear one sound. If somebody was a second late,
they wanted to know who they were. And then they would pull them out,
and beat them to death, or give them lashes… and sometimes they would
pull people out just to make a point.
And then put the hats back on. Up and down, up and down… it was a
game. These capos, these people inside the camp who were guards, and
guarding us… they could do with us whatever they wished.
There was no accounting. If they had some kind of fetish or crazy idea, they played it out with people.
What did they care? Kill you, not kill you?
Once disarmed and entrapped within a “safe area”, the inmates are dehumanized in appearance and action.
What did you eat in the camps?
Okay… we ate very little. Whatever we can. Whatever they fed us. And believe me, whatever they fed us was not fit for human beings.
But daily, usually, we had a few slices – like maybe 3-4 slices of bread. And they gave us a little margarine. The bread was made from half-sawdust… not real wheat, or anything like that. It was half sawdust, but it was food we could digest. And a little margarine, they always… had a little liverwurst – I mean very little.
They gave you JUST ENOUGH to keep you alive, because they needed your work. And if you got sick, and you died – well, that’s what they planned anyway! But as long as you could work, they kept you alive.
Deplorable Jewish-Germans, demonized for their privilege, sent to “safe places” once disarmed by their government.
It’s strange, because a few years ago, when you had slaves in this world, you fed them well –
you wanted them to be fairly healthy and work hard. But the Nazis
barely fed us enough to keep a bird alive. And as long as you lived,
they used every ounce of strength from you to work.
Expert Tip: Genocidal slavery is far worse than historical slavery.
And if you died – well, it’s perfectly alright! Or they shot you, or beat you to death, who knows what they did.
So the food wasn’t very much. They gave us a little bit of what they
called coffee – it was made out of grain. But it was hot liquid. They
fed us once a day some soup, and you wouldn’t dare to find out what’s in
the soup, because if you found out, it would make you sick to your
stomach.
It was mostly liquid, but if the person dealing out the soup was a
friend of yours, or knew you, they went down with the ladle a little deeper to pick up something of substance.
It could sometimes be a rat, or a mouse. You would be surprised. They threw everything in there.
Deplorable Jewish-Germans, demonized for their privilege, sent to “safe places” once disarmed by their government.
Anyways, it wasn’t enough, and we were constantly, constantly, in hunger. Starving.
What was the most horrifying thing you personally witnessed?
The most horrifying thing I personally witnessed was the hanging of those 3 inmates that escaped and they caught them.
They put the noose on them, one at a time.
The last one that they hung was a young man, and he screamed out the prayers, the Jewish prayer before dying.
It’s only 5 or 6 letters.
But when they heard that, they kicked the stool out from under him, not even allowing him to finish 2 words of that prayer.
That was horrifying to me.
And the other thing that was even worse was when they first occupied
Poland, Krakow, within 5 days there was a truck pulling up to our
building, and Nazi soldiers jumped out of it, and all they wanted to
know was where the Jewish people lived. They asked the Super where the
Jewish people lived.
And he was quick to oblige.
Expert Tip: Socialist Marxists are very brutal once they confront an unarmed citizenry.
They came in, pistol-whipping us. They had sacks for us to throw in
all our valuables. They were beating up my father to open up the safe,
they cleaned everything out.
Famous Hitler Quote.
While this was going on, we heard horrible screams next door from the other Jewish family.
So my sister Lola, the one who survived, and I ran out through the back door to go into our neighbor’s through their back door to see what happened.
There was a young couple living there with 2 daughters, about my age. We used to play in the yard, after school. And the mother gave birth to an infant boy, about I guess 1 month earlier? or 3 weeks earlier? And we came in, we saw this monster holding the baby by its legs, and swinging it.
And screaming to the parents MAKE HIM SHUT UP!
And of course the parents and daughters were screaming Our baby, our baby, don’t hurt our baby!
And when we came in, we couldn’t believe what we saw. This monster had this smirk on his face, like he was enjoying what he was doing. And he smashed the baby’s head right into the doorpost, head first, killing it instantly.
That…That memory I will never forget. Seeing that baby scream, and
then the sudden silence. And the head opened up, and everything on the
floor. We all jumped on this monster, and started to beat him, and
scream – of course, we were all pistol-whipped by his buddies.
Expert Tip – Never allow Social Marxists to rule over you, disarm you, or control you in any way.
Anyways, it’s a long story, but all I can tell you is the mother died
within 2 weeks in the hospital, I don’t know if because of heartbreak,
or being beaten.
This was our first taste of Nazi brutality.
Virginia Governor, in 2020, demanded and legislated at Virginians be disarmed “for the children”.
In those dark days how did you find the strength to survive? Did you ever want to give up so the suffering would end?
Well, the answer to that question is simply that it’s human nature to
overcome most of the atrocities and difficulties that are thrown at
them.
But I didn’t think that I was any different than any other person.
Expert Tip: Democrats, no matter what they call themselves, are Socialist Marxists that given the change would go full-on Pol Pot on you and your family.
At least at that time, I didn’t give it any thought. I just wanted to survive – to get by every day, to stay out of the way, not to be as visible, because these – I don’t know what to call them – these monsters… just look for any kind of reason to pull someone out to kill them, to set an example.
Deplorable Jewish-Germans, demonized for their privilege, sent to “safe places” once disarmed by their government.
So you had to keep timid. And try to do everything that they ordered
you to do. And not to be outstanding, or visible, in such a way. So… if
you’re insignificant, they don’t look to pull you out, and show an
example.
This may be one of the reasons that I survived.
Expert Tip: The key to survival in a Social Marxist utopia is to be as hidden, and nonthreatening as possible. Use that time to leave it as silently and as quickly as possible.
And I was always very… don’t know how to say it? I was always very enthusiastic about life itself.
I hadn’t had a life, until that point, and whatever I did have, at this point, was sort’ve blocked out of my mind. I didn’t remember the good years any more.
So to me, life was very important, and I had to do everything humanly possible to survive, not to give them a reason or a cause to pull me out, and kill me.
What was one of the most uplifting things you witnessed during your imprisonment?
There were a lot of incidents like this, but few and far between.
Because missing one bit of food meant certain death. I remember one
inmate gave away his ration of food for a cigarette butt, and the guy
died that night.
The Nazis had figured out exactly what a person needed to live until
the following day, so very little of it went on where people were
generous by giving away their food – they couldn’t afford do, it meant
certain death.
But I did come across very generous and very good people in my life, who had saved Jewish people, and I called them “Righteous Gentiles.” I even had a head of the Gestapo who saved my sister, Lola, the one who survived – and saving her, she saved me and dozens of others people from a ghetto. And that enabled us to escape the ghetto and run away to Hungary, which was still a free country.
Now this head of Gestapo knew what he was doing was wrong, according to their laws, and eventually, he was executed by the Germans. But he saved many Jewish people, including myself and some others that i know survived the war thanks to him.
So not everyone was bad.
But of ALL people – we couldn’t believe the Head of Gestapo would do what that man did.
Expert Tip; There are “friends” in the most unlikeliest of places. But do not count on them. The odds of you encountering them is minuscule.
Who were your liberators and could you talk a little about when you first saw them and if you kept in touch with them over the years?
At first, you know, they looked like GODS to me.
I was liberated by the American soldiers. And every soldier that i saw looked like a God. I didn’t know how to thank them.
But I have met liberators – and until I started teaching about the
Holocaust, and speaking, and lecturing – actually, it’s in my book, and
it’s a long story to tell, but how in Tennessee, at the University of
Tennessee, I happened to accidentally meet the liberators of Dachau, 2
gentlemen who liberated me.
Virginia Governor, in 2020, demanded and legislated at Virginians be disarmed “for the children”. Those that will resist will need to confront the police and the national guard. He is even budgeting for special collection teams to go door to door to disarm the citizenry of Virginia.
And they were telling their stories about what they found in Dachau,
these atrocities, and I was a speaker immediately following them.
And sitting there, I couldn’t believe – I was on pins & needles – these people rescued my life! These people liberated me!
And then when it was my turn to speak, i walk over to them with
shaking knees, and I embrace them, and I say: “You two gentlemen gave me
my life. You liberated me. I wouldn’t be here without you.“
OF ALL PLACES. And they happened to be the soldiers who liberated
Dachau! And I was liberated there! How strange and coincidental that
were in the same stage, talking about the same thing. And when they
talked about liberating Dachau, and all these atrocities – I couldn’t
believe what I heard…
Yes, yes. Those are the only two gentlemen I met those many years later, and we keep in touch quite often.
What was the first thing you ate after being freed from the camp?
The first thing I ate, I remember, 2 GIs, American soldiers walked
up to us, and they opened up a can of Spam. And they handed it to me and
my cousin.
Well, it smelled so good that we made a mistake and we ate some of it.
Expert Tip; When starving, eat sparingly and carefully. Your body will not be able to handle the food.
And unfortunately, both of us came down with dysentery, I guess it
sped up, he would’ve probably died anyway, and my cousin died in my arms
the night after liberation. I got very sick too, and when they took him
away from me, I tried to follow.
I only weighed 65 pounds. I was a skeleton. Skin and bones.
So what can I tell you? The first food we ate was Spam.
I never ate that in my life before. I guess the Americans found it in
the German magazines, and they handed it out to the starving people.
They meant well, but our stomachs were not used to it.
A Jesuit priest picked me up, and took me to a field hospital in
Dachau, where I passed out, and I was out in a coma for over 2 months.
So what I ate afterwards, I have no idea. But it was good food, because I
came to myself, and surprising when I woke up after coma, I couldn’t
believe seeing myself – I looked pretty good! I had flesh on me.
I looked like a human being again.
What was your initial experience of America when you first arrived in 1947?
Well, when I was arrived, I was very, very overcome. I was impressed. It was just overwhelming to me.
Gun registration and control works. These experts clearly recommend it.
First, I arrived in New York harbor, and of course, the skyscrapers, the lifestyle… I made a sort of promise to myself then: This is going to be the first day of your life. From this day on, there is only ONE place to go: SUCCEED.
Expert Tip: When you flee a nation that has made gun ownership illegal, move to one where you can be free and own weapons.
I will build a family, I will do whatever I can in my power to succeed in this United States of America.
And this was my first impression. I liked what I seen. I met people who I thought were industrious, with businesses and families and love…there’s respect.
I loved what I saw in America.
I became American in my heart immediately.
So I adopted America, and I am glad America adopted me, and allowed me to be part of it, and become a citizen.
As a survivor, do you think you could ever forgive those who caused the Jewish race persecution? If so, what makes you forgive them, if not what would have to be done for it to be forgiven?
Okay, that’s a very good question. No, the answer is: I can’t forgive those people who were directly involved, the perpetrators of the Holocaust. Obviously, I can never forgive them.
And perhaps I feel that it’s not really up to me. It’s up to the victims. They have to forgive them. But I can’t forget. But the other answer is: I do not blame the son for his father’s sins.
Which means I have nothing against the people of Germany today.
They are not at fault for what happened. And to me, we are all part of the human race. So whether you’re German, or French, or American… whether you’re one religion, Catholic, Jewish, Protestant – it doesn’t matter.
We are all part of the human race.
And I respect every person.
As long as they prove themselves to not be racist or hateful people. As long as they don’t repeat the atrocities from the past – I respect them. And I tolerate them. I think it is beautiful that we are different.
So I hope this gave you the answer.
How hard is it to keep painful memories at the forefront of your mind as you do this? How do you find the motivation and inspiration to do so?
Well… I am thankful to God for the strength that I am healthy enough
to share my story. And I hope for many years that I can continue doing
this. Because it is something that needs to be done.
Gun registration and control works. Progressive Marxists clearly recommend it.
I started it over 20 years ago, approximately 25 years ago. It all started with my grand-son, who invited me to speak in one of the schools. Before I was silent, I kept it bottled up in me.
I thought Why subject our children, our grandchildren, to all these tragedies?
I wanted them to grow up as normal American kids.
Not to feel some kind of guilt-trip or something. So I didn’t talk much about it. But my grand-son asked me to come to school to talk about it.
Expert Tip; Do not hide Marxist atrocities. Do not allow anyone to hide the truths of social Marxism.
And from that date on, I came to Los Vegas Nevada, and I joined the Holocaust Survivor’s Group, and the speaker’s bureau, asked for volunteers. So I volunteered. And I haven’t stopped speaking since.
I felt I had to reach out.
I had to do much more than just speaking, exposing colleges. It has to be more wider-scale. So I started Zachor Holocaust Remembrance Foundation, hoping it would reach millions of people worldwide.
We have to keep this world from acquiring amnesia. But there are many other ways to reach out. And as time went on, I kept adding those ways.
Since I retired – actually, when I retired to Las Vegas, I felt I’ll take it easy for a while, I always felt that I was a very hard worker, but it turns out I’ve never worked so hard in my life as retirement!
So yes, I am grateful for this. I will do everything possible – because the world has to know. We have to do everything possible to keep the world from forgetting.
Have you or any other survivors you’ve met had to deal with PTSD or other mental health issues after the war ended? How were you able to go through it?
Post-traumatic stress, is that what you’re saying?
I didn’t have very much of that.
I knew… there were no surprises.
I knew exactly what was happening in the camps. I went through it every day.
So after liberation, I really did not have that much stress, because after going through hell, everything is paradise.
Expert Tip; After strife… It’s ALL good!
I knew I had to work hard in order to achieve my dream, to be
successful in this world, but to have post-traumatic stress… I didn’t. I
dunno. Maybe because i was too young, I didn’t realize. But to me,
every day was a gift from heaven.
So after going through what I went through – everything was easy. It was simple.
State police in Cambodia rounding up people who’s name were on gun registration lists. They then took them to “safe places”, that were “for their protection”.
To some people – things may look hard, like hard work, or digging
ditches, or who knows what you’re doing that’s hard. To me, it was a
pleasure, work. I’m doing this as a free man, a free person!
I never try to stay away from hard work. I knew that in order to
succeed, you have to work hard. And I did many things in this wonderful
America, in this country of ours, that wasn’t easy. But I don’t remember
post-traumatic stress. I really don’t have an answer for that.
You’ve obviously had an amazingly long life and experienced a lot of extreme things. What is the single moment in your life that stands out in your memory the strongest?
Well… the worst thing stands out in my life is memory, the memory
when we arrived into Auschwitz, and they said “Women and children to the
right, and men to the left” and I was holding onto my little brother
Tully, my older sister Goldie, and we were just… pulled apart.
Never to see each other again.
And when I found out where they went… and what happened to them, that was one of the worst nightmares of my life.
Expert Tip: Never allow yourself to be divided, separated, and segregated by your enemies.
I couldn’t believe when I was told that they were actually those
ashes that we see, those flames shooting out… those are our parents, our
mothers, our fathers, our sons and daughters, brothers and sisters… ashes.
This was a terrifying moment in my life. When I realized my sister,
my little bother, were just burned to death. Just… I couldn’t get over
it, for a long time.
And of course… other memories, there are many others.
Having my first daughter, my second daughter, my marriage to my lovely wife of 64 years…
There are a lot of wonderful, wonderful moments in my life. Besides the atrocities at the beginning
How frustrating is it that some people refuse to believe the Holocaust occurred?
I don’t believe that they don’t know better. They know better.
Expert Tip: Socialist Marxists lie. Everything they say is a lie.
They just believe that if a lie is told long enough, that some people will start believing in that lie. Because nothing in history was ever as documented as the Holocaust itself.
Eisenhower, when he came across these camps, instructed his soldiers, the fighting men to take pictures – all the pictures they could, from all they saw, these atrocities, “because someday there will be people denying that it ever happened.” That it ever happened.
So he was smart enough. And millions, and millions of pictures. It was documented in pictures, and films. So what’s the use of denying it?
Great Hitler Quote
They are preying on youngsters who don’t know better, or uneducated
people. This is why education is important. Because people who are in
countries who don’t have the chance to know the truth – they hope that
these people will believe it.
Those are anti-Semites. People who hate Jewish people.
What do you think about the status of Jews in Europe today?
About the status of Jews in the world today? It’s very grim. I read about it all the time. It seems like Anti-Semitism is taking over, all over again.
It’s not so… visible, openly.
Expert Tip; Nazi Germans were Democrat Socialists.
But what bothers me the most is in Germany itself, it’s become
fashionable among the elites in Germany to make jokes, and to sort’ve
blame things on the Jewish people. This is… what actually started the
whole thing.
Hitler, and the Nazis, did not begin by killing. This is not how it started.
Expert Tip: The killing did not start immediately. The disarming, and the name calling came first.
It all started with hate.
Propaganda.
And… this is happening again. Not to such an extent, as before, obviously. But I can see in my personal opinion that I have, if I am allowed to say this – I personally feel that there is only one race in the world, and that is the HUMAN race.
And we are all human.
So apparently, there is a little amount of evil that is lurking in
each one of us. We have to be very careful not to allow it to surface.
Because we are all the same people.
Progressive socialists are all the same. They give themselves different names. They promise to create a utopia. They have the registration of weapons, then seize them, and then kill specific “deplorable” segments of the population. All in the name of progressive, modern advancement.
I guess that the Nazis were not born monsters. They had lovely families. There were educated people.
So… people can be subverted in such an easy way. Simply by words from the mouth.
Hitler was a good orator. And he lashed out. And that’s how it started.
It’s beginning again. Little jokes, here and there about Jews. Little jokes about problems all the fault of a Jew… in a nice way. You know?
Expert Tip; Being called “deplorable” or accused of “privilege” is what Hitler did to the Jews. The Social Marxists use the exact same “playbook”.
And this is happening all over again in parts of the world. And it’s fashionable to make jokes about Jews. That bothers me. It bothers me a lot. And it’s happening. Of course, it is fueled by religion, and other sources… but WHY?
Why can’t we tolerate and respect each others’ religion? Why can’t we live side-by-side? And respect?
Great Pol Pot quote.
No matter what your religion is.
See the beauty in that part. And why do we have to try and convert others to be like them, or like us?
The beauty in this world is that we are different – we think different, we have different beliefs, we look different… can you imagine if we all looked the same, and if we all believed the same? Like Hitler wanted the Nazis to be?
It would be a dull, dull world. It would be like a bunch of ants following a leader.
So yes, I am very disturbed at what is happening.
Expert Tip; Survivors of Social Marxist re-engineering and utopias are alarmed at what is going on in the United States today.
And this is why I am doing MORE than I can do. Day and night, I have sleepless nights, I think of what I can do…to get the message out. To get to more people.
And this is why it’s so important to go to schools, why education is so important.
Deplorable Jewish-Germans, demonized for their privilege, sent to “safe places” once disarmed by their government.
Because hatred exists ONLY where people are ignorant.
So each one of us has to choose responsibility. To live lives that work against hatred.
Obviously – hatred is out there, even with bullying. Or political
campaigns. Reckless driving. All of these things contribute to an
environment of hatred.
And hatred can only exist where people are ignorant. So we must
constantly provide anti-hatred education. And in doing so, we can
contribute to the healing of others.
To respect. To heal the world. It has to be through
education. And it has to be through educators who are… known that they
believe in tolerance, and respect. So we have to be also very careful
who these educators are.
If you had the chance to go back in time and see your young self, what would you do and what would you tell him?
I would tell myself “Ben, you have to respect and love all people
in this world. Do not discriminate. Do whatever best you can in your
life to help others. In general, just be a person of love, instead of
hate. We have so much in this world, and I guess.. after going through
all this hatred, and atrocities, I would absolutely tell myself that
Ben, you cannot discriminate. We are all part of the human race. And
this is something that I feel starts – hatred begins in schools. I would
tell myself that.“
Deplorable Jewish-Germans, demonized for their privilege, sent to “safe places” once disarmed by their government.
It starts early as bullying. When you bully someone, you make an enemy for life. So why bully? Why hate?
This is something I have learned from living this life of mine, and
going through hell on earth… that we have to find a way to prevent this
from ever happening again.
So it has to start with me. I have to be the one. I have to be a loving person, instead of a hateful person.
And whatever you do – don’t ever be a bystander. If
you see someone else being hurt, or something being wrongfully done –
don’t be a bystander, the way the world was during World War II.
Expert Tip; Do not allow the Socialist Marxists to take control of government. Do not accept it. Fight back.
Speak up. Let your voice be heard.
Shout out. Let the world know. And this is what I am hoping I can
accomplish in my life. To get this world to shout out… for peaceful
purposes.
Shout out for love, for tolerance, against anti-Semitism, against
racism… we only get it through education, so if I had my chance of
reliving my life, this is what I would try to do. And this is what I am
trying to do, in the last 25-30 years of my life.
Deplorable Jewish-Germans, demonized for their privilege, sent to “safe places” once disarmed by their government.
What would you like every young person to know? What advice could you give them on how to live well?
The advice I can give every person… to live better…is “No matter – I want each person to know that life is a matter of choices.”
An individual can always CHOOSE what happens to them.
Idi Amin disarmed his nation, then declared war on them. Remember history.
Whether it’s a crisis, or a calamity, people can choose to either ruin their lives, or to learn from it, and move forward.
It’s essential to understand the consequences of personal choices.
It’s possible to let tragedy or trauma become a reason to stop living.
But it’s also possible to live through extreme circumstances like I did and commit to a life that has meaning. A life that matters.
If you strive – whatever profession you’re in – to be the BEST in
that profession – and if you work for a company, try to find out how you
can, or what you can do, to help this company succeed – then you will
be successful.
Don’t be a clock-watcher.
Just…see what you can do to possibly improve that company,
so they can make money, hire more people… if you have this outlook, be
the BEST in whatever you do… you have nothing to worry about in life.
You will have a wonderful life.
This is what I feel I succeeded in. Because i never thought about myself personally. I thought if my boss is going to be successful, I will be, automatically, awarded. That’s the best advice I can give you.
Absolutely never permit gun registration or disarmament. History clearly warns us of the consequences.
And it all started by gun registration.
Then disarmament.
Finally, his family being told to gather their belongings to be relocated to a “safe place” where they could live in peace.
And the rest, is history.
Do not allow your family, your loved ones, and your very existence to be turned into ashes and oily dust from furnace fires.
Expert Tip; Know your history and prepare for the worst. Pray that it does not happen, but be ready just in case it does.
If you enjoyed this post, you can view other posts of a similar nature 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.
Now that President Trump has released almost all of the documentation related to the President Kennedy murder, a full picture surfaces. It’s an ugly one, indeed. We now know in full detail how the President was assassinated, who the people were who participated in it, who covered it up, and the motivations behind it. It’s very interesting, but a very long study because it touches on a number of principles that Americans are uncomfortable with…
The wealthy guard their money and power ruthlessly.
They have complete control of the American media.
They have complete control of the American police.
They have complete control of the American military.
They treat Americans as farm animals (cash cows).
They kill anyone that stands in their way.
The following video is a long one, but is very complete. Watch it.
We can now see the entire state of affairs about what our nation is, what is actually stands for and how it actually operates. So when I speak about the “oligarchy”, it should be taken to mean…
Oligarchy = Secret American Government
And, as such… it has affected everything. From technology acquisition (MAJestic), to geopolitical interactions, to society. Our world, our nation, the life that we live is what has been created for us by this oligarchy.
Yupper.
Let that sink in.
There will be a reset of sorts within America, but how it will “play out” and evolve is anyone’s guess. What you can expect is that the oligarchy will not relinquish their control or power easily. That a return to a more democratic representative, or republican form of government is impossible without serious conflict. And, that there will be a period of discomfort during this adjustment period.
I do NOT know how it will evolve. Certainly there are both human and “other” elements that favor the status quo, and they will permit an enormous amount of strife, as long as they can control it’s outcome and utility.
Those that control the United States are far too powerful, too dangerous, and too ruthless for removal. As such, the individual must plan accordingly.
If you enjoyed this post, I have others that can be found in various links such as this…
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.
Here’s an on-going post that collects what amounts to “sign posts” to a second American civil war.
The gathering storm, so long denied, is now so strong as to be uncontainable. The quarter from which it will break is in doubt, that it will break is not. We'll discover who the real preppers are after the first hard blasts roll across the land. In war this is known as "first contact with the enemy", the violent unraveling of faulty imagining that exposes the viable core, if any. -The Woodpile Report 24DEC19
Oklahoma Republican state Sen. Jonathan Nichols was found dead Friday, making him the second GOP state senator to be shot to death in the last two days.
Police reportedly found Nichols, 53, dead by a gunshot wound in Norman, Oklahoma, Wednesday night. His death comes two days after police reportedly discovered former Arkansas Republican state Sen. Linda Collins-Smith dead from a gunshot wound and wrapped in some kind of blanket.
Republicans start to speculate…
Ya think?
Some people are suggesting that since everything is so polarized in
the USA today, that a conflict could break out any moment. Uh. Maybe.
It’s just that conflicts are NOT organic. They are planned.
They anticipated Nationwide gun confiscation by the second year into
her term. And, the start of genocide against their opposition in 2020 –
2021 time frame.
Hillary Clinton Elected in 2016.
Gun related Massacre in 2017 (Los Vegas)
Gun collection and restrictions 2018 through 2019.
Hillary Clinton Reelection 2020
Ramp up of “White Privilege” propaganda. 2020.
Round-ups of people 2021.
Genocide to begin 2021 through 2025.
I argue that the plans are still in play, simply because there is every evidence that the preparations are still in place.
The progressive socialists and their leadership; the oligarchy, are
just “biding their time” until they can obtain Obama-level control over
the government again.
Let’s see what happens, and please ignore the news as it’s just all
speculation. The situation is in flux and “our side” is losing.
Names like Comey, McCabe, Ohr, Brennan, Clapper, Rice, Yates, Strzok, Page, Clinton, Abedin, and Lynch have now been emblazoned in the minds of most Americans.
Not only because they are or were powerful, but because they are members of the ruling elites who have allegedly committed crimes for which none of them have been prosecuted.
-Townhall
Civil wars happen when the victimized are armed. Genocide happens when they are not. Take care. Know your history.
Conservatives start to realize that a hot war is in the making…
13AUG19
In
short, minions of Leftardia and Stupidia, you have blundered into a
minefield, on a pogo stick. Stop what you’re doing, tiptoe out, and pray
to whatever deity you think appropriate that you get away with your
skins.
Because if you insist on pushing your revolution, you’re going to get
the war of which you cannot grasp, and the results of which you cannot
even conjure in your wildest fever-swamp nightmares.
Mainstream conservatives start to arm up.
Which brings me to the main point of this piece. It’s imperative those of us who can see the bigger picture stay as focused and as humane as possible while things fall apart.
It’s possible to fight for what’s right without dehumanizing other people. We must resist all efforts by the media, pundits and even those around us to suck us into the collective insanity vortex infecting people across the political spectrum.
After all, if we don’t, who will?
Things falling apart is never fun or safe; it never has been. Something else will surely replace that which is going away, and the best we can do is try to ensure the world of the future builds upon the best of what came before, while discarding the destructive and unethical.
It means being honest about what’s good about the current system and what’s rotten to the core. It’s not all bad, but it wasn’t the end of history either.
Yes, we’re entering a period of increased turmoil on a global basis, but the future is still ours to make. Let’s make it a good one.
-Liberty Blitz
Conservatives Wake Up
The base is woke and the Establishment’s a joke. I speak to a lot of conservative groups of various types and flavors: hardcore tea partiers, patriotic vets, loyal radio listeners, besieged students, brass New Yorkers, even rich country club types who you would think were into Jeb! – you know, diversity. And lately, I’ve tended to start off my talks by posing this question:
“Okay, who here agrees with me that the left wants us enslaved or dead?”
Every hand goes up.
Every single one of them.
That’s our base.
Folks, our base is hella woke.
And they love Trump, because Trump has delivered the oven-fresh, piping hot conservatism they ordered.
- The GOP Base Is Done Tolerating RINO Collaboration With The Democrats
Most conservatives realize that a tipping point has been reached.
October 12, 2019
We Have Reached The Tipping Point
Posted on October 12, 2019
I’m just an average guy, seriously.
I’m no brilliant historian/scholar/military strategist/political guru.
Just a working stiff.
But I try to stay abreast of what is going on around me.
What I am noticing lately is a very clear departure from the views from the Right that I saw even a couple of years ago.
Even though I claim to be just another Joe Sixpack, I want you to stop and go read what I wrote over two years ago.
If I really wanted to do some digging, I could go back even farther and point to where I was telling people that we were already in the easily identifiable early stages of a Civil War.
People scoffed at my thoughts at the time.
That nervous laughter has evolved into mutterings and now open recognition of that state of affairs.
Some people are finally catching up.
As a matter of fact, over the time span from then to now, I am seeing more and more, that actual violence is being called for from those perpetual cheek turners who previously denied any such thing was even possible.
All in Self Defense of course. (Wink wink, nod nod)
This low level Cold Civil War is getting ready to go Hot people.
The Left has lost it’s collective fucking mind and thinks it actually has the stroke to win such an unimaginable horror.
The Right has finally figured out these cretins are dead serious.
The Right is now openly spreading the word to arm ourselves and prepare for battle in the streets and from the roof tops.
Just through my usual casual skimming of my Blogrolls I see post after post from Conservative authors spreading that message.
All it is going to take is a spark to light off an unstoppable slaughter of incomprehensible magnitude.
The Left has a handful of Bic lighters and are thumbing the wheels every day now.
What was not too long ago incomprehensible is now a reality.
These people are going to keep escalating until someone or something stops them dead in their tracks.
There will be no Gimme’s and no quarter.
There will be death and misery for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner until the conflagration runs out of fuel to burn.
It is too late to stop it now.
May God forgive us for what we are about to do.
May God forgive us for what we are about to do.
Conservatives get the message out, War is Coming.
Think of what they would do with real power…
Do you think that a leftist Supreme Court majority won’t construe the First Amendment to exclude protection for “hate speech,” by which I mean any thoughts you might wish to express that they object to?
Do you think they won’t turn the federal bureaucracy – including law enforcement – against their political enemies a thousand times harder than before, having been rewarded for the last decade of doing so?
Do you think they won’t start tossing dissenters into prison? They do in England. You can go to jail for a tweet there – and do you think the left thinks that’s a bad thing, or a creative European innovation that needs to be imported?
How about the Second Amendment? Are you kidding? The idea that our citizenry maintains the ultimate veto over tyranny drives them bonkers.
Do you think they won’t use violence to make you conform? Hell, Democrat presidential candidate Eric Swalwell is willing to nuke you for not giving up your guns. We know that because he said so.
It’s time to stop pretending that people who hate our guts don’t hate our guts, and that given the chance they won’t act exactly like people who hate our guts would act.
The time to stop them is now, while we still can peacefully, before they quit tweeting about killing and start doing it beyond the occasional Bernie Bro at a ball field. We need to purge the weakhearts and Fredocons from positions of authority in our movement and be all-in for victory in 2020. In the meantime, we need to aggressively push our campaign to remake the courts. And it sure would not hurt to follow the Founders‘ advice to exercise our Second Amendment rights to reinforce the deterrent to tyranny that is an armed citizenry.
- What Will It Take To Make You Understand And Accept That They Hate You?
Others start to notice and agree…
Thoughts On Our Collective Civil Insanity
Posted by El Borak | Oct 12, 2019 | Culture | 1 |
Every now and then, a nation goes crazy. For whatever reason – it might be collective humiliation or extreme poverty, it might be boredom or despair – an entire people becomes unmoored from reality. It says and does things that in any other time or place would be immediately dismissed as foolishness or even fever dreams. In its confusion and hunger, it turns upon itself, devours itself, rips itself to shreds.
Examples that immediately come to mind are the Weimar Republic in the 1920s and the various revolutionary governments in France in the 1790s. In reading accounts of the period, one will note that people outside of the insanity could scarcely believe what they heard coming from inside it*. One will also note how horribly the regular people caught inside the system suffered.
In both cases, increasing political turbulence led to political violence. Violence led to recrimination. The government, unable or often unwilling to stop it, fell upon itself in coup and intrigue. Men took to the streets. Regular people locked their doors and hid or fled the nation altogether.
Eventually the people had suffered enough and a reactionary strongman arose. The suffering endured by regular people in the interim led them to welcome both Napoleon and Hitler, if only to restore order. Both led them straight into more suffering.
Raise a child up in the way he should go…
There can be little doubt America has gone similarly insane. The highest court in our land is arguing in all seriousness whether a man who thinks he’s a woman deserves employment rather than a strait jacket. Our intelligence services and parts of our legislative branch persist in their extra-legal struggle to remove the sitting executive. Our press lies to us with impunity, and when caught, simply moves on to the next big lie. We print trillions of dollars from nothing to buy ourselves collective comfort. And the people are not horrified; rather most of us are entertained.**
It’s a bad road that goes to a bad place. While conservatives are powerless to even slow this clown car, millions of your fellow citizens are cheering our Progress into insanity. And there’s likely nothing you can do to change that.
That last sentence is a hard statement for most Americans to accept. We are a people made up of doers and problem solvers, entrepreneurs and go-getters. Surely there is something we can do.
There is something you can do: get the hell out of the way. Get your family and whomever else God has put under your authority the hell out of the way. Pray and prepare. Because this road leads to national suffering.
People like to throw the word “coup” around because it’s politically powerful. But they don’t believe that’s truly what we’re seeing. Or they don’t understand all it means. Because if they did, they would realize how many of the functions of modern life, how our financial markets and our web of gas stations and supermarkets, rely on a government that is able to keep peace. A government truly at war with itself cannot keep peace for long. A society that cannot define the word “woman” cannot perpetuate itself for long.
Whether the coup succeeds or not, we have reached a point at which the likelihood of America returning to domestic peace is small. With every university colloquium on the evils of whiteness, with every third world colony planted on our soil, those odds drop further. That means the insanity will grow until the people have suffered enough to bring an end to it by violence***. Be prepared.
* Ambassador Governeur Morris’ dispatches from Paris during the French Revolution are a good example. President Jefferson and his administration almost wholly disbelieved a “republican” government could act as the French one did.** Unless it’s our power that’s turned off. Then we drive from station to darkened station looking for gasoline.*** Those who subscribe to the Fourth Turning thesis (as I do), understand the options for this occurring are legion.
The Democrat Marxists openly drop the facade. They call for the open disarming of all Americans.
Gov. Ralph Northam confirms Virginia already 'working on' gun confiscation now that Democrats are in control ... Democratic Party controls Virginia's legislature, the governorship, lieutenant governorship, attorney general, and both U.S. Senate seats
-The Blaze
Open calls for the Genocide of White Conservative Males…
The progressives are signaling that if you are white and male very bad things are going to happen to you. The cuckservatives are starting to signal that if you are a Trump supporter, then when term limits remove Trump, or the next massively rigged election removes Trump, very bad things are going to happen to you. The cuckservatives hope that if they signal hard enough, it is only going to be white male Trump supporters.
Out of one side of their mouths cuckservatives say that it is absurd to suggest that progressives are proposing the extermination or expulsion of white males, and out of the other side of their mouths they say that if you are a Trump supporter, come the end of the Trump era, you are going to pay.
This is not necessarily a good way of removing Trump. Not in 2020, and not in 2024. In the impeachment vote, every Republican voted party line, which is an extraordinary and startling turn around. This is a vote that signals a hope that Democrats will never be allowed to return to power, and an expectation that such a return may well be prevented.
The Republicans, faced with increasingly dire threats from the enemy have united behind Trump. With the threat in front of them that from henceforth politics is going to played for keepsies, they are going with keeping. And Trumpism is increasingly moving to the position “screw the constitution, if we are ever removed from power, the constitution is dead anyway. Lets grab on to power and hang on for our dear lives.”
White males and white Christians cannot continue to win elections, and cannot afford to lose them.
- Politics played for keeps.
White culture and white history is being demonized and erased. Historically, demonizing a group is usually a prelude to attempting to physically exterminate the group, to physically erase them after culturally erasing them.
Progressives, or at least some progressives whose superior holiness is such that progressives, and even conservatives, are unable to criticize them, are now piously advocating the next step, in the august pages of the New York Times, among other places.
These calls for extermination are couched in ambiguous language. But when someone ambiguously tells you he means to kill you, and fails to clarify that ambiguity, he means to kill you.
If you don’t intend to kill someone, and it sounds like you do intend to kill someone, you are going to clarify. The New York Times and the rest are not clarifying.
The usual terrified cowardly cuckservatives piously tell us that these terrifying threats are “clearly” intended merely to advocate our erasure from the culture and from history, but it is not clear at all. Rather, what is clear is that these terrifying threats are deliberately ambiguous, like the “Liquidation of the kulaks as a class”
...
I read the article as calling for racial violence, but maybe it means something else. If it does mean something else, neither I nor the cuckservatives have any idea what that something else is. It does not say “Time to exterminate the white race” in so many words, but neither did Hitler say “Time to exterminate the Jews” in so many words. If the article is not saying “Time to exterminate the white race” it is profoundly unclear what it is saying. What the article does, however say clearly is that whites simply by existing unavoidably and incurably oppress other groups. What the author proposes to do about this problem is unclear, but she does seem to be implying the obvious solution and denying the possibility of other solutions.
Bronze Age Pervert lists a pile of exterminationist screeds.
The anti-male and anti-White rhetoric of the new left is extreme. The racial attacks on whites in particular approaches exterminationist propaganda seen only in, e.g., the Hutu against the Tutsi in 1990’s Rwanda.
The cuckservatives reply that these screeds are not calling for extermination. Well, they are certainly calling for something, though what they are calling for is not totally clear. If it is not extermination they are calling for, what are they calling for? Nobody calling for extermination ever says plainly what they mean. These sound mighty like past calls for extermination, and they surely do not sound like anything else. If it is not extermination they propose, what are they proposing? They are obviously proposing something. The lack of clarity is par for the course whenever monsters propose monstrous deeds. These are all calls to action. If the action is not “exterminate whitey”, what is it?
...
The Khmer Rouge were full of wrath at foreign educated intellectuals, notwithstanding the fact the Khmer Rouge cadre were composed of foreign educated intellectuals, and very rapidly the Khmer Rouge cadre wiped out the Khmer Rouge cadre. I expect that when Scott Aaronson is informed, somewhat to his surprise, that he is white, he will agree that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. If you are a progressive, and white genocide is on the table, then the way to postpone your execution is to be twice as enthusiastically in favor of it as everyone else. Observe the response of the cuckservatives.
- Genocide on the way.
As everyone who considers themselves to be a Patriot in this
country is very well aware of, the new State Government in Virginia went
Blue and then insane with power.
The Anti Gunners have dropped all pretense of being coy about their
lust for gun confiscation, registration and basically disarming the
general population completely, up to and including making even
practicing illegal if they decide there is intent to train for civil
disobedience.
Outlawing militias, hand to hand self defense training and all manner of insanity manifested via Lawfare.
Rumors of calling in the National Guard to facilitate disarming the population have flown around the internet.
I believe there are over seventy Virginia counties and towns now that
have declared themselves to be Second Amendment Sanctuaries.
Almost all passing unanimously.
Matt also passed on in the video that there is a massive rally
planned in the State Capitol of Richmond on January 20th, 2020 to
protest these new laws and to send a message to the wannabe tyrants in
office.
I found this in the comments under the video, Regarding the mass
rally in Richmond, Virginia January 20th, 2020 that Matt mentioned at
the 16:32 mark – The Virginia Citizens Defense League (https://www.vcdl.org)
will be holding their big Lobby Day Rally on Monday January 20th, 2020
(which also happens to be Martin Luther King Day). Mr. Bracken very
astutely pointed out that if these new laws go into effect and the
Governor feels froggy enough to try and send troops or police around to
implement confiscation, that there will be a bloodbath.
He compared our governments 18 year hubristic adventures in
Afghanistan to what would very likely happen in rural Virginia just to
make a point. What I can see happening is more of a nightmare for
these tyrannical cucks than even they could possibly imagine in their
worst fever dreams.
I can see God Fearing and completely fed up rural Virginians going on
the offense. As Bracken pointed out what we and they already know, they
don’t have enough people to accomplish this Confiscation wet dream. On
their best day.
Add all of the National Guard that Virginia and even possibly a few
other states could muster, all of the State and Local police, remember
most of the Sheriffs have already told them to go pound sand, plus any
Feds they might possibly be able to round up and then put that number
next to the population of seventy counties and towns full of heavily
armed and fighting mad Virginians and start doing some division on
paper.
If I was this dumbass Governor they got, I would be thinking real
hard about sitting the fuck down and shutting the fuck up while I was
ahead. All of these laws they rushed to pass violate the Constitution
without even a hint of legitimacy.
I do believe one of he best visual images I ran across that puts this into perspective is the one I saw over at A Nod To The Gods ,which I swiped fair and square for the purpose of making my point here.
People, this is the law.
So while this Rat Fucker of a Governor, Ralph Northam and his
equally reprehensible accomplices may think that they can just run amok
over peoples God Given rights to defend themselves, our Founding
Fathers were far sighted enough to see his ilk coming a couple hundred
years away and made arrangements to give We The People the ability to
reign that kind of shit in up front and from the back too if necessary.
Virginia is shaping up to be the ultimate test of those decisions
made way back in the late 1700’s. Because I can absolutely guarantee one
thing as sure as the Sun rises in the East, the majority of those
people in those seventy counties and towns are not going to surrender
their guns.
Period.
Whether Governor Ralphie thinks he has the balls to try and take
them remains to be seen but I would bet a weeks paycheck that if he ever
actually tried to force the issue with government guns and enforcers,
he wouldn’t be around to see how it ends.
Most of Virginia sets up enclaves to protect them from the Marxist government.
Tazewell County is taking this threat to the Second Amendment very
seriously. Not only did they pass a Second Amendment Sanctuary
resolution, but they’ve also officially begun to form a militia
With Michael Bloomberg’s help, the Democrats took over the Virginia state congress.
There’s an anti-paramilitary bill that would disallow armed people
to gather or teach others how to use firearms or any technique that
could cause injury or death.
There’s a bill that would make semi-automatic weapons illegal.
Nearly the entire state (aside from the highly populated areas that
elected these yahoos) has balked and formed Second Amendment
sanctuaries.
A legislator threatened the sanctuaries with the National Guard.
The sanctuaries responded by activating an organized militia.
The only real way to prevent bloodshed and save face for the congress and governor is for these bills not to pass.
That would be difficult, though, given the fact that Bloomberg dumped
millions of dollars into getting people elected who promised to pass
strict gun control bills. If they suddenly vote against the bill, they
will have to face their angry constituents and the wrath of Bloomberg.
Rural Virginians seem unlikely to back down and are willing to fight.
They have another month to get organized to defend their communities.
Marxists double down.
[1] Conservative news outlets reporting on the Virginia situation are being threatened and being warned to stop reporting;
“Your reporting about the growing numbers in the militia create a clear and present threat to America. As part of Congress, I’m giving you fair warning that this is the equivalent of shouting ‘fire’ in a movie theater. If your reporting incites violence, or can even be tied to it, we will make sure to charge your editors with felonies,” wrote the person.
[2] They are also being hit by cyber attacks designed to shut down their communication.
The first article we dropped about the growing militias was on Monday. Within two hours, we were hit with several massive cyber attacks. The same happened following articles on Tuesday and on Wednesday.
-Law Enforcement Today
Marxists in other states move forward on the disarming…
Virginia counties considering leaving the state. 16JAN19.
The West Virginia Senate adopted a resolution to remind Virginia residents from Frederick County that they have a standing invite — from 1862 — to become part of West Virginia.
West Virginia freedom fighters broke away from Virginia Democrat slave owners during the Civil War. This week West Virginia has once again invited persecuted Virginia pro 2-A counties to come join their state. LINK.
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There is a sizable majority of the American (and by extension, globalist) oligarchy believe that they will be able to “ride out” the coming “shit-storm” of societal upheaval slated for America. They have bought land, and established residences, and constructed mini-fortresses in far away lands for precisely this purpose. Well, I am going to be the first to lay out the truth; you all will not be able to avoid your comeuppance.
It’s coming.
It’s heading and barrelling right down upon all of us, and this time, the oligarchy will be not be spared.
The American second civil war will not be like Bosnia, Rhodesia, Rwanda, or any other revolutionary messes. You know the ones. Where the wealthy creates a situation, and then skedaddles off to a “safe haven” to wait out the societal reconstruction.
Take note. This time is different.
We are coming after you.
The world is connected. There’s a Burger King and Pizza Hut on Tutuila island, for goodness sakes! Internet is everywhere. We know where your “hidy holes” are, and who built them, and when, and what mechanical systems you utilize. We know which planes you fly, who pilots them, and where the pilots families reside.
We know a lot more than you think we know, and (drop the bullshit) you know that us “deplorables” are not at all the under-educated white racists that you so loudly proclaim. We are watching you all with seething anger.
I met Lloyd Blankfein at a Super Bowl. It was the New England Patriots and the New Jersey Giants. And Blankfein came up to me, “I know who you are, but you don’t know who I am.” And I said, “The hell I don’t! You run Goldman Sachs. I know who –” and he was stunned that I knew who he was. He said, “I know who you are,” like, “I know who you are. Ha-ha. I know what you’re up to, but you don’t know who I am.” “Oh, yes, I do.”
-Rush Limbaugh
We are chomping at the bit for an excuse to come after you all. It’s gonna be glorious.
Factory
workers, with their company name badges, in the parking lot of their
employer. Two dead and one dying with his legs shot off. He and his
co-workers had no idea that “world war III” would break out while they
were trying to clock in at work. When one group of people identify
another group, and target them with hate, and violence, it only
escalates. It gets worse. Eventually there is whole-scale blood shed. Do
not be under the illusion that it will never happen in America. There
are enormous groups of people just chomping at the bit to attack
conservatives and traditionalists. All in the name of a progressive
utopia.
See how easy it was to find this information, on just a three key-word search. Very easy.
But you know, escape anywhere will be fraught with problems. We, as humans, are all interconnected. He have histories, associations, and ties. And, it’s not all “black and white” internet data streams either. It’s personal. It’s visceral.
It's not going to be like you all think. With some kind of race genocide, on top of political machinations, with overtures of hicks riding around like some scene out of Mad Max.
There are going to be elements of WWIII, and WMD. There's going to be a great deal of political and sociological changes, and you are right to realize that "blue areas" in America will not be safe.
But you are wrong to think that you all can sneak away and go somewhere where you will be forgotten. You will NOT be forgotten.
Let that sink in.
And, it’s all going to come back and haunt you.
What? You think that you don’t have siblings, who are married with kids? You think that they are immune from the consequences of your evil machinations? You think that you are NOT on watch lists? You think that your behavior is not tracked? You think that your “connections” in whatever government entity will protect you?
Listen up.
The world is not a new “enlightened”, and “progressive” reality where wars are long behind us. Where citizens will turn in their weapons willingly to be serfs under a wise Kingly leader. Nope. Those are all imaginary fantasies that many of you all believe.
They are not true.
Most of human history has been fraught with terrible, terrible battles and conflicts. Where entire blood lines were executed. Where women, if they were lucky, were enslaved as sex slaves, while everyone else were killed. Know your history. Entire cities were decimated. Men, women, children, even the dogs and cats. All killed and the ground salted afterwards.
The time has come that you all must start to live like the Kings of old. With poison testers, thrice-tested body guards, and loyalty oaths that are rock solid. You will not be able to hole-up behind strong stone walls. You will not be able to escape to a land where you will be unknown and untraceable. You will not be able to escape the wrath of your fellow citizens who have spent decades watching you cart your weight around and lord over us.
We are coming for you.
Know your history. This is what really happens when a particular group comes to power and their enemies are disarmed. It is never pretty. Know your history.
You think that your accents, behaviors, and lifestyle won’t give you away. You think that being a flabby old white dude walking on the beach of Mahebourg on Mauritus will be overlooked? Is that what you think? Do you actually believe that an extensive underground lair in Dunedin will protect you? Hey! Am I being specific enough for you? Or, perhaps you think that you will be different…
We are coming for you.
No, you do not have to worry about one singular person. Personally, I not going to do Jack Shit. But what you will need to worry about is the consequences of your support… in all the myriad of ways… for the coming Shit Storm that is going to engulf the United States into a conflagration of an unparalleled magnitude.
Read your history books. You cannot simply take on a defensive posture and hole up like some hermit in a monastery while Rome burns, or the Huns sack your city, rape your women and torture everyone else.
The “bubble” of civility is coming to an abrupt end.
Graphic photograph of a capture and subsequent rape of a young girl by German soldiers. Know your history. This will be common. Know your history.
It had a good run. At least in America, it did. Eighty years. That’s long enough to assume that things will always be a certain way, and full danger is really only the stuff of nightmares. Well, it is ending.
In large part because of your actions.
As such, the historical “normal” is returning. Buckle up. You and yours are all in the cross hairs.
Greek authors rarely go into any detail when describing the fall of a city, so if we want to know what this really means, we are to some extent forced to use our imagination. However, it's clear from what little we hear that Xenophon's 'universal law' usually meant 3 things:
All movable property was taken
All adult men were killed
All women, children and elderly men were sold into slavery.
The first of these points is least well attested, but probably most widespread. Every warrior who was sent against an enemy settlement would hope to come away with a profit.
Homes could be stripped of furniture and metal objects; temples could be robbed of their dedications and temple treasuries emptied. If there was time, even the rooftiles and wooden fittings of houses could be torn off and carried away.
The simple fact that large amounts of ancient coinage and jewellry was preserved in its hiding place (buried, thrown into wells, etc.) shows that people were quite concerned to keep their valuables out of the hands of greedy invaders.
The second point is better known, because it was a matter of justice and pride. When a city was attacked, it could choose to surrender; if it did not, it forfeited any claim to mercy. Those who had decided to resist their enemies would get what they deserved. The most explicit example of this is the fate Agamemnon desired for Troy:
Not a single one of them must escape sheer destruction at our hands. Not even if a mother carries one in her belly and he is male, not even he should escape. All together they must be exterminated from Troy, their bodies untended and invisible.
-- Iliad 6.57-62
There are loads of examples from Greek history of sieges ending with the slaughter of all adult men. These massacres removed the defeated community's ability to fight and ensured that there would be no further resistance.
The third point arises from the fact that the Greeks seem to have considered it barbaric to kill captured women and children as well as men. The few examples of this in Greek history were condemned as savage. Once the needs of revenge had been satisfied, the remaining population was instead considered a potential source of profit:
When they were delivered to her by the Persians, Pheretime took the most guilty of the Barkaians and set them impaled around the top of the wall; the breasts of their women she cut off and planted around the wall in like manner. As for the rest of the Barkaians, she told the Persians to take them as plunder.
-- Herodotos 4.202
There was substantial money to be made from this, which is why commanders sometimes tried to restrain the bloodlust of their victorious troops. Even if it was just, as well as satisfying, to kill the defenders, it still amounted to the destruction of a source of income:
Dionysios' entire army burst into the city (...) and now every spot was a scene of mass slaughter; for the Sicilian Greeks, eager to return cruelty for cruelty, slew everyone they encountered, sparing without distinction not a child, not a woman, not an elder. Dionysios, wishing to sell the inhabitants into slavery for the money he could gather, at first attempted to restrain the soldiers from murdering the captives, but when no one paid any attention to him and he saw that the fury of the Sicilian Greeks was not to be controlled, he stationed heralds to cry aloud and tell the Motyans to take refuge in the temples which were revered by the Greeks. When this was done, the soldiers ceased their slaughter and turned to looting the property.
-- Diodoros of Sicily 14.53.1-3
The beginning of this passage is unique in actually describing a scene that must have been typical when a city fell to a Greek army. Most successful siege assaults were not the result of elaborate circumvallation, but of a surprise assault or betrayal.
As a result, rather than bottling up the helpless enemy from all sides, the attackers usually entered the city from one point and began their rampage from there.
Those left in the city therefore had two choices: either to resist or to flee. The former would result in the brutal fate sketched above - but the latter explains how Greek communities often seem to have survived a lost siege despite the genocidal intent of their attackers. It was often possible for a substantial part of the population to get away.
Their ultimate fate would then depend on what the victorious enemy intended to do with the settlement. Sometimes (especially in the Archaic period) their intent was to seize the territory for themselves; in these cases the town would be razed, and the fugitive population cast adrift. Fear of this outcome was supposed to keep the Spartans in the fight against the Messenians early in their history:
The most wretched of all things is for a man to leave his city and its fertile fields, reduced to the life of a beggar, wandering with his mother and aged father, his little children and wedded wife. Wherever he ends up, he will be as an enemy dwelling among them. He will succumb to need and detestable poverty, bring shame upon his family, disgrace his splendid looks. All forms of dishonour and misery will dog him. Since this is how it is and no one cares for or respects a wanderer or his offspring at all, let us fight hard for our land and die for our children without sparing our lives.
-- Tyrtaios fr. 10.3-14
If they had friends elsewhere, they might be able to obtain a temporary home, or even gain resident status and a home away from home, as the Plataians did at Athens when the Spartans razed their settlement in 427 BC.
In the Classical period, the intention was often rather to plant settlers on the conquered territory in order to expand the victorious city's number of land-owning citizens. This is what Athens did with the land of most of its defeated enemies from 506 BC onward. In such cases, the captured city might be reinhabited - at times by the new settlers along with the old population of women and children, whom they took as wives or slaves.
Alternatively, once due vengeance had been exacted, the remnants of the city's population could simply be allowed to return to it, often subjected to tribute and an imposed political regime. When the Athenians finally lost their fleet at Aigospotamoi in 405 BC, fear washed through the city, because the Athenians fully expected to meet the same fate that they had inflicted upon other Greeks throughout the decades of their Empire - the eradication of their community, the death of their men, and the sale of their women into slavery. However, for reasons that are still debated today, the Spartans decided to spare them. They got away with "only" a sack, the destruction of their walls, and the imposition of the tyrannical yoke of the Thirty.
- What actually happens when a city is sacked?
You should have paid attention to history class. The historical normal is one where no one is ever safe. It is always a short bubble of time, no more than one or two generations in length where people can live together in some sort of sanity.
But that bubble always pops, and the people living their nice safe lives are often overtaken by the shock and brutality of the reality that will overwhelm them.
We
know what will happen. It has been well documented. People will be
collected. They will be rounded up into urban areas, or centers. The men
will be separated out from the group. They will be led to an isolated
area, a cellar, a warehouse, a cluster of tree, an area behind a
bulldozer. They will then be held down by two people and shot dead.
We are coming for you.
It’s going to be historical. It will be Biblical, and it will consist of many elements that are not at all “enlightened” and “progressive”. It will be raw and unbridled.
Who are “we”?
We
have learned all about the great con game, and we are fed up. We know
know what is going on and we are pissed, and desire real, substantive
change. Now, for those of us who have awakened from the con, it is time
for a clean break – a refusal to accept that anything over the past 60
years was any good…a desire, that is, to move forward in an entirely
new way, unshackled to whatever we might have said or done in the past.
Like water, we are not one set person, but rather a very lose and amorphous collection of many well-educated people that will not allow instigators, and criminals to scurry away unscathed. It won’t be me, but I’m telling you that it will be others. And they won’t have any set plans, no set maps, no coordination. But they will see you all for what you actually are; big, plump, juicy, lush, targets to seize and use for purposes that you do not want to read about.
Yet…
Yet, there is still time. You can alter your future and atone for your sins. Your future does not need to be that of fertilizer spread out upon a glassed-over barren wasteland. You can change. You can start taking action to prevent the crisis that is barrelling straight down the Pike for us all. You can make a difference.
Yes, YOU!
Well… listen NOW.
But let’s speak frankly to each other. I’m not the smartest guy you’ve ever met, or the hardest-working. I was a mediocre student. I’m not technical at all—I can’t write a word of code. What sets me apart, I think, is a tolerance for risk and an intuition about what will happen in the future. Seeing where things are headed is the essence of entrepreneurship. And what do I see in our future now?I see pitchforks.
- On Friday Jun 27, 2014 at 12:04 pm Michael Krieger posted an article where he offered up a warning for thouse oligarchs about the coming shit-storm and what you can do about it.
He and others have warned you.
Once
a political ideology takes power, they are ruthless in their treatment
of opposition. They will kill you, and if you are a woman, they will
rape you and then kill you. There will not be any mercy. It is better to
die fighting when they come to your house, than to accept the lies that
they will put you into “protection” for your own best interests.
If we don’t do something to fix the glaring inequities in this economy, the pitchforks are going to come for us. No society can sustain this kind of rising inequality. In fact, there is no example in human history where wealth accumulated like this and the pitchforks didn’t eventually come out. You show me a highly unequal society, and I will show you a police state. Or an uprising.
There are no counterexamples. None. It’s not if, it’s when.
-From Nick Hanauer’s excellent Politico Op-Ed: The Pitchforks are Coming…For Us Plutocrats
The is something about money, wealth and power that corrupts. It corrupts everyone it touches, and no one is immune. If you are wealthy then you are corrupted. There are no exceptions.
You might not think that you are corrupted.
You might, somehow, think that you are different. “Just one of the guys that got lucky.” You are deluding yourself.
The “freedom from need” corrupts the soul. Thus, the individual finds other pursuits to occupy the void in their being.
"What I do care about is the kind of power that such money can buy, and how that power is then abused to purchase politicians and run roughshod over entire societies. I have also been disgusted with the fact that the 0.01% as a class seem self-absorbed, apathetic and delusional when it comes to the catastrophe the current economic and financial system is reaping upon the planet. So busy are they patting themselves on the back and scrambling to acquire that next billion to see what is rapidly unfolding beyond their moats."
- Michael Krieger
And that is where you are all.
You might consider yourselves smart, intelligent, lucky, fortunate, or whatever.
But you are not.
You have forgotten so much.
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.
You have forgotten, or maybe never had the experience of being a most valued employee; working 14 hour days for months in a row, earning the company millions of dollars and then you suddenly being let go on Christmas eve. Coming home to a shocked wife, with the baby screaming for food, and you being forced to go into your meager savings… savings that will be depleted in a week… to buy some day-old vegetables, and on-sale food-stuffs.
That’s America for the last fucking three decades you God damn son-of-a-bitches!
You think that we are going to turn the other cheek and not find a scapegoat to roast over some burning embers? Maybe you weren’t the the person who handing out the pink-slip, or the manager that approved it, or the VP that authorized it, or the President that demanded it. But all of you… EVERY… FUCKING… ONE… contributed.
We will never forget.
Your time is coming.
At the same time that people like you and me are thriving beyond the dreams of any plutocrats in history, the rest of the country—the 99.99 percent—is lagging far behind. The divide between the haves and have-nots is getting worse really, really fast. In 1980, the top 1 percent controlled about 8 percent of U.S. national income. The bottom 50 percent shared about 18 percent. Today the top 1 percent share about 20 percent; the bottom 50 percent, just 12 percent.
-From Nick Hanauer’s excellent Politico Op-Ed: The Pitchforks are Coming…For Us Plutocrats
Yes.
Inequality is one aspect of it. There are “haves” and “have nots”. But that’s not the point. Many of us watched our life fall apart before our very eyes, not because we were lazy while we toiled in the company, but rather instead to make the bottom-line look better to the investors of the companies where we were employed.
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.
This attitude… one of us being just a useful tool… like a broom or a toilet brush… has altered the emotional fabric of America. And, yes, part of the turmoil that you see all over America today is a direct result of this arrogant behavior.
But the problem isn’t that we have inequality. Some inequality is
intrinsic to any high-functioning capitalist economy. The problem is that inequality is at historically high levels and getting worse every day. Our country is rapidly becoming less a capitalist society and more a feudal society.
Unless our policies change dramatically, the middle class will
disappear, and we will be back to late 18th-century France. Before the revolution.And so I have a message for my fellow filthy rich, for all of us who live in our gated bubble worlds: Wake up, people. It won’t last.If we don’t do something to fix the glaring inequities in this economy, the pitchforks are going to come for us. No society can sustain this kind of rising inequality.
-From Nick Hanauer’s excellent Politico Op-Ed: The Pitchforks are Coming…For Us Plutocrats
Oh, do not be under the illusion that the situation and the contributors can all be quantified on some sort of chart. They cannot. Like the school kid relentlessly bullied by the school-hall bullies, an anger has been pent up for decades.
You do not want to be on the losing end of that stick.
During
these times and types of conflicts it is NORMAL for women, and girls to
be abducted, raped repeatedly and then killed. This is a historical
norm.
The only way that you avid this fate is to confront it.
Face on. Right now.
Do good works, and stay out of politics. Help people.
In fact, there is no example in human history where wealth accumulated like this and the pitchforks didn’t eventually come out. You show me a highly unequal society, and I will show you a police state. Or an uprising. There are no counterexamples. None. It’s not if, it’s when.Here’s what I say to you: You’re living in a dream world. What everyone wants to believe is that when things reach a tipping point and go from being merely crappy for the masses to dangerous and socially destabilizing, that we’re somehow going to know about that shift ahead of time. Any student of history knows that’s not the way it happens.
-From Nick Hanauer’s excellent Politico Op-Ed: The Pitchforks are Coming…For Us Plutocrats
You know that this is coming. Its not a surprise.
You all are not fools. Indeed, you all are investing in property, safeguards and insurance plans.
ISIS
sex slave at a slave auction in an occupied region of Syria. During
periods of change, the plight of women is always a dangerous one.
What I am saying is that clutching your bags of gold and scurrying off to your rat-hole in some remote location is not the answer. Historically it will not end up like you think. This will not be like a Hollywood movie.
Instead, it will (more) be like a barricaded city that tries to deal with an overwhelming and vicious Mongol horde.
Revolutions, like bankruptcies, come gradually, and then suddenly. One day, somebody sets himself on fire, then thousands of people are in the streets, and before you know it, the country is burning. And then there’s no time for us to get to the airport and jump on our Gulfstream Vs and fly to New Zealand. That’s the way it always happens. If inequality keeps rising as it has been, eventually it will happen. We will not be able to predict when, and it will be terrible—for everybody. But especially for us.
-From Nick Hanauer’s excellent Politico Op-Ed: The Pitchforks are Coming…For Us Plutocrats
Imagine that you and your family are living in one of those cities, one thousand years ago.
It’s a very large city for the time. With large stone walls that tower up many, many stories high. You have a great life, based on trade along the “silk road”. You are wealthy. You have a large spacious home. You have a beautiful family, servants, fine clothes and a home filled with fine arts, laughter and parties.
You are aware of the coming Mongols.
You have discussed this matter with your other wealthy friends. They all have strong political connections and everyone reassures you that there is nothing to worry about. Most of the Mongols are over-rated they say. Plus they have provided reassurances that our military, with the best fighters in the world are more than a match for them. They even took you on a tour of the military barracks and you saw first hand how well organized they were.
Rather than agree to the demands of the Mongols, the most intelligent in the city advised that the rulers confront the Mongols with their superior military.
And so a strong force of 20,000 of the best warriors in the city left the city gates and marched forward with trumpets blowing to confront the horde.
You don’t know what will happen. But you have been reassured that your military will be victorious. After all, they have never lost a battle for at least four decades.
Still you worry.
All you know is that the military went out one week ago and never returned. The King gave you every assurance that things are proceeding well, and that you need not worry. But the truth is that you feel very uneasy.
This is a joint suicide by a Burgermeister and his family upon news that the Americans were entering the town.
The wife says that people are beginning to talk and rumors are starting to fly about what happened at the battle last week.
You cannot put your finger on it, but there is this feeling of dread and gloom that you cannot shake. yet, the sky is blue. The birds are fluttering in the trees, and the boys are playing in the yard. Your daughter just bought a nice silk dress that she is going to wear to a religious celebration in two days. Yet, that dread persists.
“Maybe I should flee?” you ask yourself.
Maybe.
At Politicon 2019 in Nashville on Saturday, during a "conversation" with Never Trumper MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace, James Comey said, "Our leaders must reflect the glue that holds us together. They can’t be people who lie all the time. They just can’t. And I hope people see that’s true whether they are Republicans or Democrats.
Wallace then asked, "What if he wins again? Will you still believe that?"
Comey said, "I will be, from my new home in New Zeland, I will still believe in America."
-Townhall
Do you want to place a bet that what Comey says will come true? That he will be safe and forgotten in New Zealand?
Do
not think that in today’s “modern” and “enlightened” society that we
are beyond mass genocide against a particular race, or group of people.
Here are people who were seized out of their homes at the dead of night
by militarized police (the Federal Police), handcuffed with wire-ties
(behind his back) and then killed and dumped in a mass grave. Like this
poor fella. I am quite sure that the person putting the wire-ties on his
clasped wrists was very polite and nice about it. Cool and
professional, most certainly. Then he was handed over to others. Those
others then killed him like one would step on cockroach. And, with just
as much care. What? You think America can’t relive the Bosnia
experience?
Or do you think that he will be in chains before he can ever reach an airplane? Or, barring that, seized by the NZ authorities upon the direction of the American government?
All of you are delusional.
Raped and then killed. This is the fate for most targeted women from the ages of 10 to 40. Those outside will probably just be killed.
You keep on dancing near the fire, unaware that you are dowsed in kerosene and that a single spark can set you, and those around your alight.
Because here’s an odd thing. During the past three decades, compensation for CEOs grew 127 times faster than it did for workers. Since 1950, the CEO-to-worker pay ratio has increased 1,000 percent, and that is not a typo. CEOs used to earn 30 times the median wage; now they rake in 500 times. Yet no company I know of has eliminated its senior managers, or outsourced them to China or automated their jobs. Instead, we now have more CEOs and senior executives than ever before. So, too, for financial services workers and technology workers. These folks earn multiples of the median wage, yet we somehow have more and more of them.
-From Nick Hanauer’s excellent Politico Op-Ed: The Pitchforks are Coming…For Us Plutocrats
Grbavica where a huge complex was set up for the mass internment and rape of women. This is what it looked like at the tail end of the war. 1996.
People! You have jumped over the turnstiles, and gobbled up all the money that you can. Then you set up systems to keep it all for yourself. And somehow you think that the rest of us hasn’t noticed.
Well, we have, and we are royally pissed off over it.
Wal-Mart is our nation’s largest employer with some 1.4 million employees in the United States and more than $25 billion in pre-tax profit. So why are Wal-Mart employees the largest group of Medicaid recipients in many states? Wal-Mart could, say, pay each of its 1 million lowest-paid workers an extra $10,000 per year, raise them all out of poverty and enable them to, of all things, afford to shop at Wal-Mart. Not only would this also save us all the expense of the food stamps, Medicaid and rent assistance that they currently require, but Wal-Mart would still earn more than $15 billion pre-tax per year. Wal-Mart won’t (and shouldn’t) volunteer to pay its workers more than their competitors. In order for us to have an economy that works for everyone, we should compel all retailers to pay living wages—not just ask politely.
-From Nick Hanauer’s excellent Politico Op-Ed: The Pitchforks are Coming…For Us Plutocrats
All of you are fucking guilty.
And if you live in an upscale neighborhood, YOU WILL BE TARGETED.
There will be no avenues of escape. You are FUCKED.
While Donald Trump is undoing many terrible things, nothing is being done about the pre-genocidal conditions already put in place. Unless action is taken by the President or Congress, it is just a matter of time before they will be mobilized against YOU and your family. Take notice.
We rich people have been falsely persuaded by our schooling and
the affirmation of society, and have convinced ourselves, that we are the main job creators. It’s simply not true. There can never be enough super-rich Americans to power a great economy. I earn about 1,000 times the median American annually, but I don’t buy thousands of times more stuff. My family purchased three cars over the past few years, not 3,000. I buy a few pairs of pants and a few shirts a year, just like most American men. I bought two pairs of the fancy wool pants I am wearing as I write, what my partner Mike calls my “manager pants.” I guess I could have bought 1,000 pairs. But why would I? Instead, I sock my extra money away in savings, where it doesn’t do the country much good.
-From Nick Hanauer’s excellent Politico Op-Ed: The Pitchforks are Coming…For Us Plutocrats
Back to the wealthy man living in his villa in the upscale part of the city-state that he inhabits…
Last night over some chicken and some fine vintage wine, you discussed what was going on with a fellow trader friend of yours. He had entered the city and was planning on leaving in the morning. He said some worrisome things.
He said that he used to trade to numerous cities to the East. But he no longer trade with them any more. They no longer exist.
When we went to visit them, they were abandoned. Some still had the walls intact, but most of the homes were empty. Some wild dogs and a goat or two were all that remained. He said that most of the homes no longer had roofs and it looked like the entire city was sacked and set ablaze.
Some had piles of bones blowing in the sand and trapped under broken stone, bricks and walls. Farm fields of plants weren’t harvested and allowed to go fallow. The trees were ripe with apples, but no one collected them.
He couldn’t tell what happened.
All he said was that it looked like it came upon everyone suddenly and no one was spared. Even the churches were burned to the ground. What was not looted, was intentionally destroyed.
He said that he was going to leave in the morning and wanted the family to leave and accompany him.
960403-A-2407B-008
Photo of a suburb in Sarajevo Bosnia after the fighting that took place
between the Serbians and the Muslims,taken by Specialist Nadine Byrnside
from the 55th Signal Company Combat Camera team, in a place called
Grbavica on 3 April 1996.
In Conclusion.
I tip my hats off to Mr. Hanaeur and Mr. Krieger. I think you all should listen to them. But if you choose not to, that is fine. Then listen to me. Your fucking days are numbered, and if America burns, then do not rest easily, for you will be searched out. Located and slaughtered.
It will be historical.
Heed my words. There will be no place for you to hide.
I am talking about the annuals of history and the role that you will play in it. It will not be pretty. But there are things that you can still do about it. You can still make a difference. And running away to hide is not one of them.
This
is what happens to people who do not “go along” with the “new” way of
doing things. It is never pretty. You are rounded up. You are
handcuffed, and you are killed. That is the way it has been for
thousands of years. It never stopped. It will continue.
It is time to atone for your sins. Do not put it off.
Now, you are probably wondering what happened to the family that was awaiting the news of the battle between their city and the Mongol hordes…
Large Urban Cities…
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), one of the largest cities in the world.
Promised safety, the citizens surrendered and emerged from behind their walls. Tolui ‘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.
- Was Genghis Khan the cruellest man who ever lived?
Complete devastation…
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
The Women…
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
The Wealthy…
Genghis Khan was the most feared human of the 13th century, who could destroy dynasties just by moving his little finger. He created the Mongol Empire all by himself and earned his eternal spot in the history books.
However, a lot of people had to suffer for Genghis Khan to succeed. Oh yes, the Mongolians were known for their horrendous torturing techniques.
One of the most popular was pouring molten silver down the throat and ears of a victim. Genghis Khan also liked bending his enemy's back until the backbone snapped. If that sounds barbaric, skip this next part.
So, the Mongols once celebrated victory over Russians in a very bizarre way. They picked all the Russian survivors, dropped them on the ground and put a heavy wooden gate on top of them.
Then, Genghis Khan and the entire Mongol army had a huge banquet on that wooden gate. They ate, drank, and watched how Russians were dying one by one from the suffocation, pressure, and wounds.
-The Richest
A return to the old ways…
“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.
SHTF Related Index
This is a collection of my posts related to prepping, SHTF (Shit Hit The Fan), CWII (American Civil War 2), Fourth Turning (Strauss–Howe generational theory)
and other posts related to the very sad and sorry tatters that America
is today. Actually, I am a little stunned that I have written so much
about these matters. But America today is very ill and there are things
that really should be said.
Here are the posts.
SHTF and Related Index
Some prepper humor…
Articles & Links
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.
I believe that it is time for all Americans to take a serious re-look at what America stands for; our “democracy”, and our way of life as it exists today. Is it really all that great?
Is America living up to the grand ideals set forth in the “Great Experiment of 1776”?
Or, it is just going to be yet another big mistake heading towards the “great collapse” of society?
I think that a serious reappraisal of [1] what America is, [2] what notions it is founded upon, and [3] how it is structured needs to be re-thought out. It is time to take a good long hard look at [4] what America has become, and [5] how we got here. And [6] what needs to change once [7] corrective measures have been put in place.
I ask this.
Really, is democracy; “rule by popularity” ideal for Americans?
A typical American, inappropriately dressed (obviously), shopping at Wal-Mart. Really, is democracy; “rule by popularity” ideal for Americans? Or should America be run by talented people who earned their role through merit rather than popularity? Think about it.
Can the Constitution be protected from “well meaning”, or “the greedy”, or “evil” such as President Wilson, or FDR, or Obama from rewriting and re-interpreting it to fit their various nefarious ends?
Well, can it?
Because if we cannot, using the current governmental structure, then we must change it into something different.
Indeed, simply hoping that our progeny will be “ever vigilant” is just wishful thinking, and history has proven, for certain, that it does not work. And at that, we must well understand that it will NEVER WORK in the future.
Can the Constitution be protected from “well meaning”, or “the greedy”, or “evil” such as President Wilson, or FDR, or Obama from rewriting and re-interpreting it to fit their various nefarious ends?
What’s going to stop another Wilson, another FDR, another Obama, another Bush from rewriting the Constitution, or reinterpreting it to fit their nefarious ends? What’s it going to take?
What is it going to take?
But my thoughts are this matter are perhaps a little too harsh to the general American public. No one wants to hear that a democracy is flawed, or rather so flawed that America will collapse upon itself within a decade. No one wants to hear this.
Americans have a Pavlovian response to the phrase “freedom and democracy,” and it’s no surprise that so many of them are rooting for the protesters in Hong Kong.
-World Affairs Blog
Well, others, better word-smiths than myself have some things to say about this subject. One of the best comes from Mr. Noonan in his article titled “A Clean Break“. He wrote this article on 29 September 2019, and I personally think that it is brilliant. He isn’t so prone to offending people as I am.
For I earnestly believe that America has neither "democracy" nor "freedom". We just parrot the words without talking a good look around us at what America has devolved into.
Here I present it for your viewing pleasure.
This article is copied as written without much editing aside from some paragraph formatting and the fonts used in this template.
I added some "pull away" text for highlighting and maybe interjected on or two personal comments along the way (though you will be able to easily see that they are from your's truly.)
I have added my own pictures to help illustrate some of his fine points.
After reading the article, I would suggest the reader go to his original article and read some of his other works. This fellow is brilliant and a word-smith.
All credit to the author Mr. Noonan writing in Blogs for Victory.
As the last few weeks have played out in politics, it has forced me to do a complete re-assessment of how I’ve looked at the world for my entire adult life.
To be sure, this reconsideration has been ongoing for about a decade, or maybe a little more, but it has really crystalized out recently. It is time for a complete, clean break with what went before and to chart a new path forward.
As the last few weeks have played out in politics, it has forced me to do a complete re-assessment of how I’ve looked at the world for my entire adult life. It is time for a complete, clean break with what went before and to chart a new path forward. Maybe the American Constitution is flawed in some very serious ways, and it is up to use to seek out those flaws and eliminate them completely.
What Hunter Biden did is nothing new; it isn’t in the least remarkable.
He was merely the recipient of what people in his position routinely receive: a special deal which allows him to be very rich for little or no effort.
Hunter Biden was merely the recipient of what people in his position routinely receive: a special deal which allows him to be very rich for little or no effort.
This way his life can be devoted to what really matters: hanging around with other rich people, attending conferences and galas and generally having a swell time.
And if he decided to follow in Daddy’s political footsteps, the way would be cleared for him in some safe (Congressional) seat.
If you start looking into it – as Matt and I did in our 2007 book, Caucus of Corruption – you just see that it is everywhere. In that book, for political reasons, we concentrated on the Democrat side of the aisle (given that our goal was to show the absurdity of the Democrats 2006 campaign against a so-called “GOP culture of corruption”), but we could easily have written it about politics, in general.
If you start looking into it – as Matt and I did in our 2007 book, Caucus of Corruption – you just see that it is everywhere. In that book, for political reasons, we concentrated on the Democrat side of the aisle (given that our goal was to show the absurdity of the Democrats 2006 campaign against a so-called “GOP culture of corruption”), but we could easily have written it about politics, in general.
Corruption is everywhere in the United States.
What it really shows is that people who go into politics – with a few very rare exceptions – are in it for themselves.
The advent of legalized corruption launched by the Supreme Court empowers the superrich to fund their own presidential and congressional campaigns as pet projects, to foster pet policies, and to represent pet political enclaves. You have a billion, or even several hundred million, then purchase a candidate from the endless reserve bench of minor politicians and make him or her a star, a mouthpiece for any cause or purpose however questionable, and that candidate will mouth your script in endless political debates and through as many television spots as you are willing to pay for. All legal now.To compound the political felony, much, if not most, campaign financing is now carried out in secret, so that everyday citizens have a decreasing ability to determine to whom their elected officials are beholden and to whom they must now give special access. As recently as the 2014 election, the facts documented this government of influence by secrecy: “More than half of the general election advertising aired by outside groups in the battle for control of Congress,” according to the New York Times, “has come from organizations that disclose little or nothing about their donors, a flood of secret money that is now at the center of a debate over the line between free speech and corruption.”Of this handful, the largest by far is WPP (originally called Wire and Plastic Products; is there a metaphor here?), which has its headquarters in London and more than 150,000 employees in 2,500 offices spread around 107 countries. It, together with one or two conglomerating competitors, represents a fourth branch of government, vacuuming up former senators and House members and their spouses and families, key committee staff, former senior administration officials of both parties and several administrations, and ambassadors, diplomats, and retired senior military officers.WPP has swallowed giant public relations, advertising, and lobbying outfits such as Hill & Knowlton and BursonMarsteller, along with dozens of smaller members of the highly lucrative special interest and influence-manipulation world. Close behind WPP is the Orwellian-named Omnicom Group and another converger vaguely called the Interpublic Group of Companies. According to Mr. Edsall, WPP had billings last year of $72.3 billion, larger than the budgets of quite a number of countries.
– From the Gary Hart article, Gary Hart: America’s Founding Principles Are in Danger of Corruption
Corruption is part of democracy.
They want power and money and attention and fame and praise and so they go into politics – and almost invariably, if they are even modestly successful at winning office, wind up richer than they did when they started.
And it has been going on for a long time, folks; throughout all the Western democracies.
When you study the motivations of those in politics, you discover what drives them. They want power and money and attention and fame and praise and so they go into politics – and almost invariably, if they are even modestly successful at winning office, wind up richer than they did when they started. And it has been going on for a long time, folks; throughout all the Western democracies.
There are, I believe, some who still deny that England is governed by an oligarchy.
It is quite enough for me to know that a man might have gone to sleep some thirty years ago over the day’s newspaper and woke up last week over the later newspaper, and fancied he was reading about the same people.
In one paper he would have found a Lord Robert Cecil, a Mr. Gladstone, a Mr. Lyttleton, a Churchill, a Chamberlain, a Trevelyan, an Acland.
In the other paper he would find a Lord Robert Cecil, a Mr. Gladstone, a Mr. Lyttleton, a Churchill, a Chamberlain, a Trevelyan, an Acland.
If this is not being governed by families I cannot imagine what it is. I suppose it is being governed by extraordinary democratic coincidences.
…extraordinary democratic coincidences.
Funny, huh? How people from the same family can keep winding up on top. Either they are families of geniuses, or someone is making things happen.
What are the odds that the son of an American Senator would be just the person an oil company needs to pay $50,000.00 a month to?
But, it just keeps happening and happening because, well, that’s just the way it is. And it wouldn’t be so bad if they were at least any good at being an oligarchy!
But they aren’t.
After you study this issue, you discover that it just keeps happening and happening. And the reason why, is because, well, that’s just the way it is. And it wouldn’t be so bad if they were at least any good at being an oligarchy!
Back in Chesterton’s day, there was the cold, hard reality that Winston Churchill was at least as talented as his father, Randolph. There was something there – there was, that is, a justification for Winston getting a leg up (and he did) to enter politics based on his father’s previous efforts.
These days, you get to benefit even if the previous person in line was a complete, rotten failure. And rotten failure is all we’ve gotten – and I’m getting very ecumenical in that, by the way. I’m not excusing anyone on partisan grounds any longer.
To be sure, the Republicans I voted for in the past were at least better than the Democrats I voted against (with the exception of McCain: knowing that I’m the co-author of Worst President, please understand that I believe McCain would have been even worse than Obama proved to be).
But they were only better in degree, not in kind.
Republicans are corrupt.
I mean, let’s face some cold, hard facts here: President Bush the Younger was re-elected with 51% of the vote in 2004 and came into his second term with high approval ratings and a Republican Congress.
With all this, he couldn’t even manage to de-fund Planned Parenthood or NPR!
I mean, let’s face some cold, hard facts here: President Bush the Younger was re-elected with 51% of the vote in 2004 and came into his second term with high approval ratings and a Republican Congress. With all this, he couldn’t even manage to de-fund Planned Parenthood or NPR! He did not care for the conservative cause(s), he only campaigned on them to hood-wink all of us for voting for him. He knew which levers to push, and which buttons to push.
It could have been done, easily, in a budget reconciliation between House and Senate and there would have been nothing the Democrats could have done about it.
On a more personal level, how can public service be promoted as an ideal to young people when this sewer corrupts our Republic? At this point in early twenty-first-century America, the greatest service our nation’s young people could provide is to lead an army of outraged young Americans armed with brooms on a crusade to sweep out the rascals and rid our capital of the money changers, rent seekers, revolving door dancers, and special interest deal makers and power brokers and send them back home to make an honest living, that is, if they still remember how to do so.Our ancestors did not depart Europe and elsewhere to seek freedom and self-government alone. They came to these shores to escape social and political systems that were corrosive and corrupt. Two and a quarter centuries later, we are returning to those European practices. We are in danger of becoming a different kind of nation, one our founders would not recognize and would deplore.In addition to the rise of the national security state, and the concentration of wealth and power in America, no development in modern times sets us apart more from the nation originally bequeathed to us than the rise of the special interest state.There is a Gresham’s law related to the republican ideal. Bad politics drives out good politics. Legalized corruption drives men and women of stature, honor, and dignity out of the halls of government. Self-respecting individuals cannot long tolerate a system of election and reelection so dependent on cultivating the favor of those known to expect access in return. Such a system is corrosive to the soul.
– From the Gary Hart article, Gary Hart: America’s Founding Principles Are in Danger of Corruption
This was “better” than a President Kerry who probably would have increased PP funding, but not really better in that the taxes of pro-life Americans were still going to fund something they consider abhorrent…and which Bush and the entire GOP campaigned on getting rid of.
I know some will say that this is just our GOP screwing it’s base and that the Democrats don’t do that. But, they do.
Both the republicans and the democrats are corrupt to the core. They only care about themselves and their little tribe of corrupt underlings. No one else.
Democrats are corrupt.
Obama was elected in 2008 with 53% of the vote and came into office with a Democrat Congress and a filibuster-proof Senate majority…and he couldn’t even get the single payer health system Democrats say they want.
It would have been easy.
The GOP could have done nothing to stop it. Enact a 10% payroll tax to fund it and just start passing out the cash to people who need health care.
A former senator from Colorado, Gary Hart, has written an extremely powerful and accurate critique of the unfathomably corrupt and crony state of the U.S. government in 2015. It covers several very important angles, including how appalled and disgusted our founders would be at the current state of affairs. How a once great republic has devolved into a thieving oligarchy in which the pursuit of money at power at the expense of the public good has been elevated into something that’s not just tolerated, but actually celebrated and encouraged amongst an ethics deprived status quo.
-Liberty Blitzkreig
That you and I know it would have been a disaster is neither here nor there – our side had lost the election and the Democrats won all the power they could possibly need to make all Democrat dreams come true…and they couldn’t do something like that.
Once you are in politics, it’s all on for party-on good times. You swindle and funnel money left and right and no one gives a damn about the American people. This includes both sides of the Congress, and all their cronies from the war-mongering generals to the intellectuals pushing climate change, and radical social change down our collective throats.
They instead wound up with the abomination known as Obamacare which even if it had worked as planned would still have left millions out in the cold and cost like the devil – but they couldn’t even write something that worked!
Meanwhile, not only did Obama not end the wars they campaigned against in 2008, he started new one’s…
droning the living sh** out of every poor, brown skinned person they could target (well, those they weren’t letting in as unvetted refugees, that is).
A public works bonanza that didn’t create any public works.
A slew of new spending which improved nothing.
This is what the Democrat voters get for investing their time and effort? Yep – in other words, nothing: but lots and lots for whomever is the crony. Democrat cronies made out like bandits. But your average purple-haired Democrat wanting more safe spaces? Not much.
This is what the Democrat voters get for investing their time and effort? Yep – in other words, nothing: but lots and lots for whomever is the crony. Democrat cronies made out like bandits. But your average purple-haired Democrat wanting more safe spaces? Not much.
By that standard, can anyone seriously doubt that our republic, our government, is corrupt? There have been Teapot Domes and financial scandals of one kind or another throughout our nation’s history. There has never been a time, however, when the government of the United States was so perversely and systematically dedicated to special interests, earmarks, side deals, log-rolling, vote-trading, and sweetheart deals of one kind or another.What brought us to this? A sinister system combining staggering campaign costs, political contributions, political action committees, special interest payments for access, and, most of all, the rise of the lobbying class.Worst of all, the army of lobbyists that started relatively small in the mid-twentieth century has now grown to big battalions of law firms and lobbying firms of the right, left, and an amalgam of both. And that gargantuan, if not reptilian, industry now takes on board former members of the House and the Senate and their personal and committee staffs. And they are all getting fabulously rich.Frustrated, irate discussions of this legalized corruption are met in the Washington media with a shrug. So what? Didn’t we just have dinner with that lobbyist for the banking industry, or the teachers’ union, or the airline industry at that well-known journalist’s house only two nights ago? Fine lady, and she used to be the chairman of one of those powerful committees. I gather she is using her Rolodex rather skillfully on behalf of her new clients. Illegal? Not at all. Just smart . . . and so charming.There is little wonder that Americans of the right and many in the middle are apoplectic at their government and absolutely, and rightly, convinced that the game of government is rigged in favor of the elite and the powerful. Occupiers see even more wealth rising to the top at the expense of the poor and the middle class. And Tea Partiers believe their tax dollars are going to well-organized welfare parasites and government bureaucrats.
– From the Gary Hart article, Gary Hart: America’s Founding Principles Are in Danger of Corruption
And as far as the social disintegration we’ve seen over the past 60 years – we’ve been blinded by the Democrats pushing the disintegration that we haven’t noticed the Republicans letting them do it.
And when they have power to roll it back, doing nothing of the sort.
And as far as the social disintegration we’ve seen over the past 60 years – we’ve been blinded by the Democrats pushing the disintegration that we haven’t noticed the Republicans letting them do it. And when they have power to roll it back, doing nothing of the sort. They just smile for the cameras, enjoy their high-priced meals in fancy restaurants, free hookers, and retire for their closed “boys clubs”.
The Administrative state and its regulators, a creation of previous congress’s, have grown into a bureaucracy so entrenched that worker’s can’t even be fired. They lurk in the darkness of their own regulations and use their powers to punish those who fail to comply. Regulators are great for making and executing rules and regulations, and taxing, but not so good at designing those regulations to advance unproven political theories, that most often come undone.
The unrealized dangers of delegating rules and regulations making, is that Congress removes itself from accountability. Legislators govern by theory, proposing ideas that are then delegated to an agency charged to “make” it work. To ensure their schemes work, Congress politicized the Federal judicial benches, including the Supreme Court, to support their legislative agenda regardless of the unconstitutionality, through judicial activism. Judges don’t make laws!
- Why Should We Accept Corrupt Government?
Their actions are disgusting.
And now we see in the Epstein case the reason why it might have all been allowed to happen: Lord only knows how many of the high and mighty are caught in that web…
…but what better way to get out from under that rock than by making the rock legal?
Hey, Paul Ryan, you’re the guy in charge of the House. You’re the Speaker of the House. [1] You had half a decade to figure out what to REPLACE Obamacare with and you came up with … bupkis? [2]. Hey, Paul Ryan, you had more than a hundred days to fashion a piece of legislation after you knew President Trump won — even with all the “budget resolution”, three tranche, inside baseball baloney and it came as a surprise that the Freedom Caucus wasn’t on board? [Pro tip: Check with your own caucus first. OK, that’s better.] Hello, America, Paul, babe — that was your job. We gave you one stinking job — to fashion a clean repeal and replacement of Obamacare — and you were surprised the Freedom Caucus wasn’t genuflecting and kissing your ring? A week out, you tell the President you “have the votes” and the day of the vote you come to the White House and say, “Uhhh, maybe not. Maybe not, Mr. President. Poorly played, Paulie. Very poorly played. [3]. Hey, Paul Ryan, this shit is on you not the President. You suck at your job.
By making you, a normal person, the bad guy if you point out some of the disgusting actions?
Illegal immigration to provide votes for Democrats and cheap labor for Republicans.
Wars which don’t end in victory or defeat.
Enforcing immorality against popular wishes.
Providing government sinecures to anyone who will toe the line – and who won’t be got rid of no matter how corrupt or stupid they prove.
Accepting money from foreign entities who want the United States destroyed.
Will you fucking Republicans stop criticizing President Trump for following through on his campaign promises?
He ran on them. He told you what they were. He won on them. He is delivering on them and you snowflakes act like you just discovered them.
Both sides, all the time – and on top of being this stupidly destructive, raking it in for themselves, their families and their friends. It is time to bring an end to all that. By peaceful means if possible but, ultimately, by any means necessary.
Our peaceful means are “President Trump”.
President Trump is the hero of the common man.
Trump isn’t part of the system, you see.
Dimwits look at his billions and go, “he must be one of them”. But, the bottom line is that he’s not.
He’ll hang out with them. Be friends with them. But he never was of them. He made his own way and got his pile of money…and then looked around and saw, from the 1980’s, what was happening to his country and started to wonder why, and if there were anything he could do about it?
He essentially first let Bill Clinton have his chance.
Then Bush the Younger.
Then even Obama.
But he found out something – it didn’t matter who was in charge, they were all in on it, together. That is, regardless of stated political philosophy, the primary goal of nearly everyone in politics was personal enrichment and making sure no outsider pushed his or her way in.
Trump found out something – it didn’t matter who was in charge, they were all in on it, together. That is, regardless of stated political philosophy, the primary goal of nearly everyone in politics was personal enrichment and making sure no outsider pushed his or her way in.
Trump decided to push his way in.
And now he’s there – and outside of a precious few (Cruz, Paul…and, oddly, McConnell), he’s nearly alone fighting for one thing: us.
The United States of America.
We, the people.
And everyone inside is furious and terrified and so are lashing back as much as they can hoping that something, anything will turn up to get rid of Trump.
And, make no mistake about it, they are already planning on punishing us for electing Trump. They don’t propose to allow this sort of thing to happen again.
And, make no mistake about it, they are already planning on punishing us for electing Trump. They don’t propose to allow this sort of thing to happen again.
And everyone inside is furious and terrified and so are lashing back as much as they can hoping that something, anything will turn up to get rid of Trump. And, make no mistake about it, they are already planning on punishing us for electing Trump. They don’t propose to allow this sort of thing to happen again.
The “big con game” is up.
I’ve mostly stopped arguing with liberals these days – first off, it is pointless but, secondly, I’m starting to pity them; nearly as much as I pity that shrinking number on the right who still stand aloof from Trump: they simply can’t shake free from the line they’ve been fed.
And none of us can get high and mighty about that: to one degree or another, all of us were suckered at one time or another.
No other government is as corrupt as the United States government.
All of us believed in some aspect of the con being used to keep us confused, frightened and divided while the Ruling Class stays fat and happy.
All of us. Including myself.
But for those of us who have awakened from the con, it is time for a clean break – a refusal to accept that anything over the past 60 years was any good…a desire, that is, to move forward in an entirely new way, unshackled to whatever we might have said or done in the past.
We have learned all about the great con game, and we are fed up. We know know what is going on and we are pissed, and desire real, substantive change. Now, for those of us who have awakened from the con, it is time for a clean break – a refusal to accept that anything over the past 60 years was any good…a desire, that is, to move forward in an entirely new way, unshackled to whatever we might have said or done in the past.
We can see what happened; we can see what needs to be done – we can’t trip ourselves up (nor allow our opponents to slow us down) by fussing over what views we might have expressed previously.
Our desire is a Constitutional Republic of free people – our means of getting there must be “whatever works”, not adherence to a dogma which might, upon review, only have been a means whereby the con artists kept us in line in the past.
I, for one, will only defend what I find defensible and will attack whatever I see as wrong.
Republicans Are Terrified Because Their Candidates Are So Fucking Lazy. As a number of Democrats win high-profile special election victories in deep red districts, fewer and fewer safe Republican strongholds seem to be off limits.
We still have a magnificent window to win this thing and fix our nation – naturally, the first requirement is protecting President Trump.
We need a complete review of EVERYTHING and ask “is it good”
But the next step is just as important: a complete review of everything and asking the question, “Is this good?”.
We’ve already learned that so-called “Free Trade” wasn’t what many of us thought it was – take that as your template and ask yourself, “is this thing I’ve adhered to really in the interests of a free people? Or is it something which only serves the well-connected?”.
As Lincoln once said, it is time to think anew and act anew: not to create something different (nothing can be more magnificent than the United States, as far as human effort allows), but to recreate what we had, but even better than before.
It is time to think anew and act anew: not to create something different, but to recreate what we had, but even better than before.
And if that mission requires us to knock a few off their pedestals, then that’s just what will have to happen.
The problems of government are systemic. The reason for government should be a primary concern of anyone wanting a better government but this cannot be accomplished with people of socialist persuasion who scream, yell and interrupt other speakers in an effort to kill free speech.
Trump has thrown a wrench into the gears of socialisms advancement. Socialists are reeling in confusion but don’t count on them staying there. A revolution is coming. The question is, who’s going to lead it, them or us?
- Why Should We Accept Corrupt Government?
SHTF Related Index
This is a collection of my posts related to prepping, SHTF (Shit Hit The Fan), CWII (American Civil War 2), Fourth Turning (Strauss–Howe generational theory)
and other posts related to the very sad and sorry tatters that America
is today. Actually, I am a little stunned that I have written so much
about these matters. But America today is very ill and there are things
that really should be said.
Here are the posts.
SHTF and Related Index
Some prepper humor…
Articles & Links
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.
This article suggests that of the numerous forces tearing America apart, one such force is an out-of-control legal system. No, we are not talking about the US Prison system that incarcerates a full 25% of the inmates on the planet. Though, yes it is a problem. We are instead going to talk about laws and regulations in the United States and the damage to liberty that they have forged. This article argues that when the laws and regulations have become so numerous and complex, that the entire system devolved into lawlessness.
Now, of course, there are numerous forces that are tearing the United States apart, and eventually (sure as shit) it will crumble and die, and a New America will rise up from the ashes. What it will look like, no one knows.
Though, I have painted some pretty dark and gloomy pictures of what could happen in other posts. Don’t you know.
These forces are numerous and include such things as…
The socialists Marxist movement started 100 years ago by President Wilson.
The greedy oligarchy that is gobbling up everything that they can lay their hands on.
The upper middle class which is following the (winning) strategy of the oligarchy.
A collapsing culture and morals.
A decaying infrastructure.
A collapsed educational system churning out imbecile serfs ready to work on “the plantation”.
And, many more.
Here is an article that was written by Alec Orrell . I think that is is really very good. He mapped out how we devolved into orderly lawlessness. His article is titled Legitocracy in America, and it is worth the time to read.
This article is copied as written without much editing aside from some paragraph formatting and the fonts used in this template.
I added some "pull away" text for highlighting and maybe interjected on or two personal comments along the way (though you will be able to easily see that they are from your's truly.)
I have added my own pictures to help illustrate some of his fine points, but there are a couple of decorative "splash" pictures on his originally posted venue.
After reading the article, I would suggest the reader go to his original article and read some of his other works. This fellow is brilliant and a word-smith. (Though he tends to write on a university level, where I tend to be far more plebeian.)
All credit to the author Alec Orrell writing in Human Events.
The commentariat across the political spectrum have recently reveled
in predicting imminent authoritarianism and the “literal death of
democracy” unless sundry bugbears are stopped.
As Murray sees it, the United States’ hyper-complicated and outrageously voluminous law is much the same as no law at all for the ordinary citizen.
The catastrophizing is quaint.
Perhaps they are too terrified, distracted, or dissembling to utter the truth obvious under closer examination: the United States ceased to operate as a constitutional democratic republic at least 100 years ago. Democracy isn’t “in peril”—it’s dead and buried.
The United States ceased to operate as a constitutional democratic republic at least 100 years ago. Democracy isn’t “in peril”—it’s dead and buried.
How did we get here?
How did we get here? Social scientist Charles Murray (The Bell Curve) penned a fascinating but little-remarked book titled By The People in 2015. There, Murray argued the United States has become, in effect, a lawless society.
His assertion may strike some as odd, because lawless usually calls to mind a breakdown in order, like in Afghanistan or Somalia.
But countries maintain order without righteous law all the time.
Dictators the world over regularly keep the peace using suppression and intimidation. There’s no shooting in the streets, but there’s no sense of justice or predictability, either.
Dictators the world over regularly keep the peace using suppression and intimidation. There’s no shooting in the streets, but there’s no sense of justice or predictability, either.
LAWS, LAWS, AND MORE LAWS
As Murray sees it, the United States’ hyper-complicated and outrageously voluminous law is much the same as no law at all for the ordinary citizen. The oppressor isn’t a dictator but an incomprehensible and unpredictable justice system passed from one set of leaders’ hands to another, from one political party to another.
Murray writes:
[L]et’s talk about the legal system not as it looks from thirty thousand feet to law professors, where everything can be fit together and rationalized, but how it looks at ground level to ordinary law-abiding citizens …
I am reminded of science-fiction author Arthur C. Clarke’s famous observation that “any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”
From ground level, our encounters with today’s legal system as it actually functions are often indistinguishable from lawlessness.
Consider that, between federal, state, city, county, and judge-made
law—along with truckloads of regulations and codes by state and federal
agencies which carry the full force of law—an American today lives under something like 100 times as much law as his or her great-great-grandfather. That’s a chilling comparison.
An American today lives under something like 100 times as much law as his or her great-great-grandfather.
Further, consider that the average American thoroughly understands few or none of the laws governing him.
Sure, he possesses a vague sense of the basics and some traffic law, but that’s all.
Should the internal functions of the miraculous device go awry, the average citizen is helpless. He usually cannot afford skillful lawyers to interpret the laws or to defend him when he is forced to confront the legal system. A lawsuit or a criminal prosecution ruins him, regardless of his culpability.
Washington, D.C.; April 29, 2019: A study released today shows that the vast majority of Department of Health and Human Services regulations issued over a recent 17-year period are unconstitutional. The first-of-its-kind study reviewed 2,952 rules issued by HHS and found that 71% of final rules from 2001 through 2017 were issued by low-level officials and career employees who lack constitutional authority to do so.
Such rules are unconstitutional. The Constitution requires that significant government decisions must be made solely by “principal officers” appointed by the president after Senate confirmation. Issuing a regulation with the force of law is one of those actions that only principal officers can perform.
The majority of unconstitutional rules were issued by the Food and Drug Administration. Just 2% of FDA rules were issued by principal officers, while 1,860 rules were finalized and issued by career employees.
“In a democracy, those who make the rules need to be accountable to the people,” report co-author Thomas Berry, an attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation, explained. “That’s why the Framers included the Appointments Clause in the Constitution. Only properly-appointed officers in the executive branch may issue regulations that are binding on the public. This preserves democratic accountability for significant executive branch actions.”
One such rule is the controversial “Deeming Rule,” which classifies tobacco-free vaping products as tobacco products. The rule prohibits Steve Green, a California vape shop owner, from telling his customers his story about using vaping to stop smoking and recover from early signs of emphysema. PLF filed three lawsuits challenging the rule last year.
“Among the hundreds of illegal FDA rules, 25 rules were classified as significant because they had an impact on the American economy of at least $100 million or had other significant economic impacts,” said Angela Erickson, PLF’s strategic research director and co-author of the report. “Congress and the White House should ensure that this practice ends and agencies comply with the law.”
The full report is available at pacificlegal.org/HHSreport.
He usually cannot afford skillful lawyers to interpret the laws or to defend him when he is forced to confront the legal system. A lawsuit or a criminal prosecution ruins him, regardless of his culpability.
The law is like an iPhone: a miraculous device at which he glances all the time and uses for simple tasks without knowing the first thing about how the internal functions perform their magic.
Should the internal functions of the miraculous device go awry, the average citizen is helpless.
He usually cannot afford skillful lawyers to interpret the laws or to defend him when he is forced to confront the legal system. A lawsuit or a criminal prosecution ruins him, regardless of his culpability.
In the United States, Federal drug defendants who won’t plead guilty pay dearly, according to our new report, “An Offer You Can’t Refuse.” Prosecutors use their ability to vary the charges to seek longer mandatory sentences for people who turn down plea bargains. Defendants who go to trial receive sentences that, on average, are three times as long. Not surprisingly, 97 percent of drug defendants are convicted by pleas, not trial.
The wrongfully accused regularly plea bargain to avoid being crushed by the legal process.
The vast majority of criminal cases in the United States end not in courtroom trials but in negotiated agreements between prosecutors and defense lawyers. Plea bargaining dates to the 1800s and has often been controversial. Law-and-order advocates say the practice lets criminals get lower sentences, while some defense lawyers and civil libertarians say it coerces defendants to give up their legal rights. Most prosecutors, defense attorneys, and judges, however, say the practice helps produce justice while reducing strains on the court system. Defense lawyers last year cheered a court ruling that would have barred prosecutors from offering leniency in exchange for a defendant’s testimony against accomplices. But prosecutors celebrated last month when the ruling was overturned.
The citizen is told that ignorance of the law is no excuse for breaking it, but he cannot correct his ignorance himself nor pay to have others supplement it.
It will be of little avail to the people, that the laws are made by men of their own choice, if the laws be so voluminous that they cannot be read, or so incoherent that they cannot be understood; if they be repealed or revised before they are promulgated, or undergo such incessant changes that no man, who knows what the law is to-day, can guess what it will be to-morrow.
Law is defined to be a rule of action; but how can that be a rule, which is little known, and less fixed?
Madison’s sketch of run-amok law bears an uncanny resemblance to the United States today.
He highlights a fundamental truth Americans have forgotten amidst the partisan bickering over which byzantine laws to pass:
Representative lawmaking does not produce democracy when demos (“the people”) cannot grasp the laws, either to express their disagreement with them or to follow them.
In Madison’s view, such edicts aren’t real law, just dressed-up tyranny divorced from the ethos of a constitutional republic.
Taxation of Social Security benefits. The complicated formula and the 20 step worksheet used to determine the percentage of benefits (up to 85%) subject to tax aren’t new, but they are affecting more Americans as the number receiving Social Security grows. Here is the equation as i stood in 1997.
Were Madison alive to witness the present debacle, he might opine:
The United States possesses no authentic law, only enforced order.
A tyrant who inflicts his will with rifles and a legal priesthood who inflict their will with occult laws are functionally equivalent. In both cases, citizens lose all confidence in a coherent moral order of their own design underlying their day-to-day existence.
The United States possesses no authentic law, only enforced order.
RULE BY LAWYERS
The United States today might be better called a legitocracy—a government by the legal priesthood for the legal priesthood.
Judges, lawyers, prosecutors, regulators, law schools, bar associations, and legal-activism conglomerates like the ACLU and GLAAD use their specialized knowledge to function as gatekeepers of society’s rules, politics, and culture.
Nothing is accomplished without the involvement of the legal priesthood.
Judges, lawyers, prosecutors, regulators, law schools, bar associations, and legal-activism conglomerates like the ACLU and GLAAD use their specialized knowledge to function as gatekeepers of society’s rules, politics, and culture. Nothing is accomplished without the involvement of the legal priesthood.
Armies of lawyers draft the bills for elected lawmakers, who enact their recommendations with only a vague understanding of their mandates.
Then lawmakers turn the laws backover to prosecutors, regulators, and jurists for implementation and enforcement. More often than not, lawmakers come from the ranks of the law-schooled themselves.
Representative lawmaking does not produce democracy when demos (“the people”) cannot grasp the laws, either to express their disagreement with them or to follow them.
Thus the legal priesthood operates in a closed system, disconnected from the populace and unaccountable in practice to anyone but themselves.
Thus the legal priesthood operates in a closed system, disconnected from the populace and unaccountable in practice to anyone but themselves.
To be sure, the priesthood declaims with great eloquence about “democracy,” a “nation of laws,” and “the people”; but they amount to an insular social class—the card carriers in a one-party state.
The rest of us are merely along for the ride.
One is reminded of the famous maxim:
“Those who vote decide nothing. Those who count the votes decide everything.” In this case, one might say: “Those who enact the laws and vote for lawmakers decide nothing. Those who interpret and enforce the laws decide everything.”
Much like the aristocracies and theocracies of bygone days, the chieftains of the legitocratic class have fallen into warlording over which of them gets to make the rules that control the society and the state.
They bicker over bizarre ideologies and disrupt elected government at every turn with nuisance lawsuits and politically-motivated prosecutions. They divert political and cultural issues from legislatures and elections into courtrooms.
They divert issues away from legislatures and elections and into the courtrooms instead.
For example, Americans recently were treated to the groaning spectacle of a federal judge deciding how the President may operate his personal Twitter account, and whether biological men must be allowed in women’s locker rooms when they identify as women.
As in all warlordism, the resulting instability destroys the average citizen’s peace, predictability, and trust.
He may not be able to articulate the government’s devolution into feuding legitocracy; nevertheless, he senses that he lives in a failed state.
He sees no sacred or impartial justice emerging from the legal system anymore. Virtue and common sense have no place and no reward. All he sees are wizards in tailored suits hurling thunderbolts at one another and terrorizing his day-to-day existence with their staggering litigiousness and self-righteous culture crusades.
He senses that he lives in a failed state.
He sees no sacred or impartial justice emerging from the legal system anymore.
Virtue and common sense have no place and no reward.
All he sees are wizards in tailored suits hurling thunderbolts at one another and terrorizing his day-to-day existence with their staggering litigiousness and self-righteous culture crusades.
The average citizen hesitates to publicly speak his mind, defend his person, establish a business, worship openly, or seek redress for real injuries.
Should anyone bother to ask him, the citizen will declare that the words chiseled on the Supreme Court building (“Equal Justice Under Law”) have turned to bitter irony.
He watches with ballooning cynicism as the legal priesthood deploys word games to exonerate one another’s heinous manipulations, then turn and damn ordinary citizens like him to years of legal hell for standing up to their diktats.
He watches with ballooning cynicism as the legal priesthood deploys word games to exonerate one another’s heinous manipulations, then turn and damn ordinary citizens like him to years of legal hell for standing up to their diktats.
Justice is no longer a sacred right grounded in fear of God and His mystery. It is something you hire or receive as a reward for loyalty.
Justice is no longer a sacred right.
The legitocratic class has changed the motto of the United States from “In God, We Trust” to “There Is No God—Trust Us.”
Thus, the average citizen hesitates to publicly speak his mind, defend his person, establish a business, worship openly, or seek redress for real injuries.
He fears to resist the legal system’s incessant cultural bullying, lest he gets sucked into the vortex and land in Oz for years pursued by flying monkey lawyers.
Thus, the average citizen hesitates to publicly speak his mind, defend his person, establish a business, worship openly, or seek redress for real injuries. He fears to resist the legal system’s incessant cultural bullying, lest he gets sucked into the vortex and land in Oz for years pursued by flying monkey lawyers.
He can’t say how it happened, but the citizen knows he dwells at the bottom of a multi-tiered, politically corrupt, unchecked cabal of a legal system that cares nothing for his well-being.
Will the legal priesthood reform themselves?
Will activist judges voluntarily give up their arrogated and unconscionable power of nationwide injunction?
Will the Supreme Court allow voters and lawmakers to address questions of culture and politics through elections and legislation once again, rather than dictating both from the bench?
Will law schools cease to operate as seminaries of progressive social engineering, imperious elitism, state-enforced credentialism, relativism, nihilism, identity politics, and other ever-shifting philosophies?
Will the legal priesthood stop terrorizing the unanointed and favoring their own, demanding with one voice that the law revert to a form comprehensible and accessible to the average citizen?
Of course they will, right after unicorns fly out of Chief Justice John Roberts’ robes.
He can’t say how it happened, but the citizen knows he dwells at the bottom of a multi-tiered, politically corrupt, unchecked cabal of a legal system that cares nothing for his well-being. Happiness has been replaced by trinkets and freedom by tax rebates, and liberty… well, it just doesn’t exist.
Americans live in denial of their rationalized, systemic oppression.
Over the last five or so generations, legalistic authoritarianism has progressively choked the average citizen’s pursuit of happiness, like a slow garroting in a collar of recondite laws.
Americans live in denial of their rationalized, systemic oppression. Over the last five or so generations, legalistic authoritarianism has progressively choked the average citizen’s pursuit of happiness, like a slow garroting in a collar of recondite laws.
If one doubts this, it’s only because he hasn’t experienced the extremities of the legal system’s insanity himself yet—the Kafkaesque horror of an endless, politically motivated IRS audit, or a court telling a father he must call his 6-year-old son a girl. The law and government do not serve the will of the people; it’s the other way around now.
The law and government do not serve the will of the people; it’s the other way around now.
Where does that leave the citizen?
He is reduced to hoping the orderly lawlessness of the legal system remains confined to the courts and the government, that disorderly lawlessness does not erupt in public.
He is right to be concerned.
Americans are quarreling with one another in frustration. A growing number of individuals and groups misidentify the root of the tyranny and endanger public order, blaming vague and simplistic concepts like “white supremacy,” “fascism,” “the patriarchy,” “capitalism,” etc. for the oppression they sense.
Americans are quarreling with one another in frustration. A growing number of individuals and groups misidentify the root of the tyranny and endanger public order, blaming vague and simplistic concepts like “white supremacy,” “fascism,” “the patriarchy,” “capitalism,” etc. for the oppression they sense.
Meanwhile, disturbed young male shooters at the end of their tether scapegoat women and minority groups for the proliferation of politically correct rules under which they feel smothered.
Tracing their anxieties back reveals a common source: alienation from the rules that govern them.
Tracing their anxieties back reveals a common source: alienation from the rules that govern them.
Unsurprisingly, the legal priesthood plays both sides to lengthen their reach and tighten their grasp: The root problem is not that the people toil under mountains of legal minutiae and can’t even breathe without violating at least five laws.
No, according to them the problem is always too much freedom requiring (you guessed it!) more laws.
Laws restricting firearms.
Laws restricting hurtful speech.
Laws restricting plastic straws.
Laws, laws, laws.
A violent response.
Rooftop Koreans taking matters into their own hands when the government failed them.
A militia-like civil defense response from ordinary citizens akin to the Roof Koreans of the L.A. riots seems well within the realm of possibility these days.
Scene from the television series “The Walking Dead”. Americans are getting ready for the conflict that lies ahead. They are “prepping” and make no mistake, it will happen unless drastic action takes place immediately.
American citizens must be brought to understand that the struggle gripping the country does not fundamentally pit liberals against conservatives or Democrats against Republicans.
The struggle pits average citizens who want to live under clear, predictable, and widely understood laws against the legal priesthood’s empire of complication and confusion.
American citizens must be brought to understand that the struggle gripping the country does not fundamentally pit liberals against conservatives or Democrats against Republicans. The struggle pits average citizens who want to live under clear, predictable, and widely understood laws against the legal priesthood’s empire of complication and confusion.
And that is the way it is.
One of the first things that you notice when you move to another nation is just how simple it is.
If there is a tax, it's only one singular tax. There are no regulations, and the things that you can do, from driving without a seat-belt, to having your five year old buying a beer for you is astounding.
Here in communist China, I am afforded so many, many MANY freedoms that Americans haven't a clue to what they have lost. That's a fact Jack. Deal with it.
If the public can grasp that their system of government has slowly
changed without their consent, the legal priesthood’s magical powers
will evaporate and the U.S. legal system will be seen for what it is: a
recondite abomination propped up by platitudes. At that time, rescuing
the democratic republic back from the pit of legitocracy stands a
chance.
Until that time, the wizards will continue to rule, and may God help us all.
SHTF Related Index
This is a collection of my posts related to prepping, SHTF (Shit Hit The Fan), CWII (American Civil War 2), Fourth Turning (Strauss–Howe generational theory)
and other posts related to the very sad and sorry tatters that America
is today. Actually, I am a little stunned that I have written so much
about these matters. But America today is very ill and there are things
that really should be said.
Here are the posts.
SHTF and Related Index
Some prepper humor…
Articles & Links
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.
This article looks at the political term “Gaslighting” and what it means. It is used in context in reference to the elected officials and their cronies in Washington D.C. with examples. This this case, we use a most excellent, and caustic biting article, by Kurt Schlichter.
It can also be applied to inner-personal relationships;
It’s important to distinguish between regular lying and gaslighting. A lie is just a falsehood and it can be told for many reasons.
Gaslighting are lies told with the specific intent to make the other person question their sanity/reality.
It is a form of manipulation to make the other person doubt themselves so much that they no longer trust their perception of events. If you no longer trust yourself, then you begin to think you are the problem and the other person is then off the hook.
-What is gaslighting
The article is presented as published, and all credit to the author. I personally like Kirts writing style, and I would recommend that reader go visit his presence on the internet on townhall.com once you all finish reading this article.
Bad Gaslighting Epidemic Sweeps The Elite
There are three questions that our terrible, terrible ruling class raises whenever it opens its collective kale-hole to lecture us: 1) Does the elite think we are really, really stupid, or 2) Is the elite really, really stupid, or 3) Is the elite all of the above?
The last week has been eventful, even by Age O’ Trump standards, and the one enduring takeaway is just how bad these people are at gaslighting us with inept lies that demand we disbelieve what’s happening right in front of us.
But it should come as no surprise that our alleged betters are no good at gaslighting because they have proven themselves to be no good at anything.
Here’s a fun test: can you name something – anything – major in the last two decades that our best and brightest have not screwed up?
I’ll wait.
Gaslighting is their default move because gaslighting is all these losers have. It’s not like they can sit back and let you read their CV of achievements. Iraq, Obamacare, their annoying millennial kids…all disasters. The members of America’s current ruling class are King Midases of failure.
Everything they touch turns to suck.
So, because they have no other way to deal with the damning evidence of their utter incompetence, our elite instead tries to convince us that we are crazy for noticing just how lame they are.
What Gaslighting is.
That’s called “gaslighting,” the straight-faced denial of what’s happening right in front of you that tries to leverage your politeness and deference to convince you that it’s not the elite that’s rotten. You’re just crazy for noticing, you crazed crazy person of craziness.
Gaslighting is lying “straight to your face” when there is obvious physical evidence in front of everyone that you are telling a lie.
An example of gaslighting.
Take the Northern Syrian crisis – please. I generally side with the non-commie Kurds over the Turks, but facts are facts and facts mean something.
We keep hearing how we “betrayed our allies,” but who promised the Kurds that we would fight Turkey on their behalf?
It’s a big jump from “Let’s both fight ISIS” to “Take that, NATO ally.” But our garbage media, and our garbage politicians, sort of hand wave away the fact that you can’t “betray” someone by not doing what you never promised to do, especially when no reasonable person could ever expect you to do it.
A second example of gaslighting.
And then there’s the Kurdish monolith issue – all Kurds are not created equal.
There are different Kurd factions and different Kurd groups, and some Kurds are communists. In fact, we’ve designated the very Kurds Turkey says it’s going after (the PKK) as terrorists based on their actual terrorism.
Certainly, at the start of the story you probably couldn’t have expected our reporters and our politicians to tell Kurd X from Kurd Y without a program (in a better world, though, we’d expect them to zip it until they could), but when we’re a week-plus into what is allegedly the greatest atrocity ever was (because they think they can pin it on Trump) and they are still pretending that all Kurds are sweet n’ cuddly, they are lying to you.
A Washington DC example of gaslighting.
How about the response on Capitol Hill? We’ve got a bunch of politicians posing and posturing and prancing about over this border incursion half-way around the world and we’re sitting here wishing they would devote some of that wailing and teeth-gnashing to the incursions over our border.
But once again, they act like we can’t see the truth sitting right there.
As for the Democrats, well, how long would their support have lasted if Trump had used force against…our NATO ally?
“You’re helping Putin!” they would shriek. Of course, they are currently shrieking, “You’re helping Putin!” when Trump doesn’t use force against Turkey.
And then there are the Republicans who holler and cry, raging over this terrible situation as if there wasn’t some way for our pols to influence events by, oh, I dunno, offering a resolution declaring war.
That’s a thing in the Constitution, I hear.
But taking votes means taking stands, and virtue signaling is no fun if that signal is, “I
want you to send your sons and daughters to maybe die to sort out this
latest 2000-year-old brawl between this latest bunch of strangers,” and the voters you signal it to are sick of stupid wars that never seem to end.
Gaslighting by Hillary Clinton.
An example of phony outrage gaslighting.
And then there’s the phony outrage over some silly meme where fake Donald Trump fights fake logos of the fake news.
They insist that this year-old YouTube clip is going to spark terrifying violence against…I guess, CNN and MSNBC logos. Of course, these trademarks have remained unassaulted since this silly, fakey vid was created, but never mind that – this is the worst thing ever!
Also, you must ignore the fact that the original movie scene the meme was based upon featured the hero massacring a church full of conservative Christians in Kentucky.
Weird how that realistic cinematic bloodletting matched the seething hatred of traditional Americans we’ve come to expect from our poisonous popular culture, but the Blue Check Mafia has an explanation about why the Christian slaughter was A-OK.
See, in the movie, Beanie and Cecil had a magic crystal and the mind control lasers made it so Zippy and Zoopy were actually good guys and shooting a bunch of Jesus people actually means we love Christians and stuff and don’t you see that when they shoot a church full of Christians it doesn’t mean they are shooting Christians, and that if you think it does you are craaaaaazzzzzyyyyyyy?
Just don’t pay attention to the real violence outside Trump’s Minneapolis rally.
Gaslighting Summary
It’s bad enough that they lie to us, directly and by omission, all the time. But what makes it worse is how their lies are such glaringly obvious fabrications and/or dissimulations that the deepest insult is that they think we might believe them.
The article is presented as published, and all credit to the author. I personally like Kirts writing style, and I would recommend that reader go visit his presence on the internet on townhall.com once you all finish reading this article.
A good example of gaslighting is when your husband comes home late from work for the 10th time in a row. You ask him why he keeps coming home late. “What?” He says, in shock. “I haven’t been coming home late! Are you sure you aren’t just losing track of time?”
And you doubt yourself.
The next day it happens again, but you checked the time. “You’re late!” And he said “what? No I’m not. I always come home at this time.”
And you try to argue that it’s only been the last ten or even times he shows up at this time, he insists that you must have been confused, maybe in the past he got off work early once but he definitely always just comes home at this time.
You wonder if you’re really that unobservant. Honestly, that is so like you to be kinda airheaded. You’re not too smart, or you’d know for sure what time he gets home. The fact that you doubt it is not a good sign, he seems pretty sure that he always got home at this time. You shrug.
You move on.
He goes on screwing the secretary. Some day you find a pair of underwear in your laundry and it’s not yours. You ask him about it. He says he got you those two years ago for your anniversary, what the fuck, why don’t you remember? You apologize because you feel bad for being inconsiderate, forgetting something that mattered to him. You wear the women’s underwear to dinner as a make-up surprise.
It’s beyond simple lying, it’s lying that makes you doubt your reality and makes you docile, easy to control because you no longer trust which way is up, you have to depend on them to tell you which way is up.
-What is gaslighting
SHTF Related Index
This is a collection of my posts related to prepping, SHTF (Shit Hit The Fan), CWII (American Civil War 2), Fourth Turning (Strauss–Howe generational theory)
and other posts related to the very sad and sorry tatters that America
is today. Actually, I am a little stunned that I have written so much
about these matters. But America today is very ill and there are things
that really should be said.
Here are the posts.
SHTF and Related Index
Some prepper humor…
Articles & Links
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.
Here is a fantastic article that I discovered. It is written by Victor Davis Hanson, and he asks the most basic question. Why are we no longer able to build things like we used to? And he is absolutely right. America no longer has the ability to build, create, construct, reason or operate in any way like a normal functioning government.
This article discusses how America (and by extension, Americans) hold on to the title and respect that they inherited from their forefathers. America inherited being the world’s leader militarily, socially, economically, culturally, and spiritually.
However, those that took over, during the last 60 years, squandered what they were given. In many cases destroyed what was built up, created, and established. And replaced it with something else. (If you don’t know what I am talking about, look up “culture wars”.) As America crumbles, people naturally try to hold on to what is no longer healthy and viable. That is what we are witnessing today.
Thus this article.
His article is placed as written, and I added my own photographs for emphasis. As well as some links to related articles that I have written. These other articles open up in a separate tab for you viewing pleasure.
Many
of the stories about the gods and heroes of Greek mythology were
compiled during Greek Dark Ages. Impoverished tribes passed down oral
traditions that originated after the fall of the lost palatial
civilizations of the Mycenaean Greeks.
Dark Age Greeks tried to make sense of the massive ruins of their forgotten forbearers’ monumental palaces that were still standing around. As illiterates, they were curious about occasional clay tablets they plowed up in their fields with incomprehensible ancient Linear B inscriptions. Today, many of us find ourselves in the same situation.
Dark
Age Greeks tried to make sense of the massive ruins of their forgotten
forbearers’ monumental palaces that were still standing around. As
illiterates, they were curious about occasional clay tablets they plowed
up in their fields with incomprehensible ancient Linear B inscriptions.
We
of the 21st century are beginning to look back at our own lost epic
times and wonder about these now-nameless giants who left behind
monuments that we cannot replicate, but instead merely use or even mock.
We of the 21st century are beginning to look back at our own lost epic times and wonder about these now-nameless giants who left behind monuments that we cannot replicate, but instead merely use or even mock.
Does anyone believe that contemporary Americans could build another transcontinental railroad in six years?
Californians
tried to build a high-speed rail line. But after more than a decade of
government incompetence, lawsuits, cost overruns and constant
bureaucratic squabbling, they have all but given up. The result is a
half-built overpass over the skyline of Fresno — and not yet a foot of
track laid.
Californians tried to build a high-speed rail line. But after more than a decade of government incompetence, lawsuits, cost overruns and constant bureaucratic squabbling, they have all but given up. The result is a half-built overpass over the skyline of Fresno — and not yet a foot of track laid. Who were these people who built such magnificent structures, and gave them to us to husband? And why have we squandered their gift to us?
Who were those giants of the 1960s responsible for building our interstate highway system?
California’s
roads now are mostly the same as we inherited them, although the state
population has tripled. We have added little to our freeway network,
either because we forgot how to build good roads or would prefer to
spend the money on redistributive entitlements.
California’s roads now are mostly the same as we inherited them, although the state population has tripled. We have added little to our freeway network, either because we forgot how to build good roads or would prefer to spend the money on redistributive entitlements.
When California had to replace a quarter section of the earthquake-damaged San Francisco Bay Bridge, it turned into a near-disaster, with 11 years of acrimony, fighting, cost overruns — and a commentary on our decline into Dark Ages primitivism.
Yet 82 years ago, our ancestors built four times the length of our singe replacement span in less than four years. It took them just two years to design the entire Bay Bridge and award the contracts.
Yet 82 years ago, our ancestors built four times the length of our singe replacement span in less than four years. It took them just two years to design the entire Bay Bridge and award the contracts. Yet we are unable to do even a smidgen of effort on a similar modern structure, using the most modern technology and machinery at our fingertips. What went wrong?
Our
generation required five years just to plan to replace a single section.
In inflation-adjusted dollars, we spent six times the money on one
quarter of the length of the bridge and required 13 agencies to grant
approval. In 1936, just one agency oversaw the entire bridge project.
California has not
built a major dam in 40 years. Instead, officials squabble over the
water stored and distributed by our ancestors, who designed the
California State Water Project and Central Valley Project.
Contemporary
Californians would have little food or water without these massive
transfers, and yet they often ignore or damn the generation that built
the very system that saves us.
Contemporary Californians would have little food or water without these massive transfers, and yet they often ignore or damn the generation that built the very system that saves us.
America went to the moon in 1969 with supposedly primitive computers and backward engineering. Does anyone believe we could launch a similar moonshot today?
No American has set foot on the moon in the last 47 years, and it may not happen in the next 50 years.
America went to the moon in 1969 with supposedly primitive computers and backward engineering. Does anyone believe we could launch a similar moonshot today? Of course not. Our “advanced” spaceship; “The Orion”, is a near clone (carbon copy) of the Apollo crew module designed back in 1965. The only difference is that it now has LED screens instead of dials.
Hollywood
once gave us blockbuster epics, brilliant Westerns, great film noirs,
and classic comedies. Now it endlessly turns out comic-book superhero
films or pathetic remakes of prior classics.
Our writers, directors and actors have lost the skills of their ancestors.
But they are also cowardly, and in regimented fashion they simply parrot boring race, class and gender bromides that are neither interesting nor funny.
Does anyone believe that the Oscar ceremonies are more engaging and dignified than in the past?
Yes. America at one time was a place of greatness, where any thing could happen and a poor boy could become wealthy through hard labors. Not so today. We have squandered the legacy of our forefathers, and trampled upon it. Now, with the ignorance of a three year old, we trample and stomp on their precious presents as if we are deserving of that right to destroy.
We
have been fighting in Afghanistan without result for 18 years. Our
forefathers helped to win World War II and defeat the Axis Powers in
four years.
In terms of learning, does anyone believe that a college graduate in 2020 will know half the information of a 1950 graduate?
In
the 1940s, young people read William Faulkner, F. Scott Fitzgerald,
Pearl Buck and John Steinbeck. Are our current novelists turning out
anything comparable? Could today’s high-school graduate even finish “The
Good Earth” or “The Grapes of Wrath”?
We have lost our most important gift; the ability to build, to create and to enhance our life towards that of happiness. These buildings and structures were more than just functional. They were lovely and added to the atmosphere and the culture of the city. Instead, we wasted them, we destroyed them and replace them with bland parking lots.
True,
social media is impressive. The internet gives us instant access to
global knowledge. We are a more tolerant society, at least in theory.
But Facebook is not the Hoover Dam, and Twitter is not the Panama Canal.
Our
ancestors were builders and pioneers and mostly fearless. We are
regulators, auditors, bureaucrats, adjudicators, censors, critics,
plaintiffs, defendants, social media junkies and thin-skinned scolds. A
distant generation created; we mostly delay, idle and gripe.
Penn Station. Today all these railroad stations were town down and replaced with “progressive”, modern boxes that more resemble a all-night laundromat than any kind of public transit station. Not only that, but poor management, greed, and lack of maintenance has resulted in them all appearing to be decaying, run down and decrepit.
As we walk amid the refuse, needles and excrement of the sidewalks of our fetid cities; as we sit motionless on our jammed ancient freeways; and as we pout on Twitter and electronically whine in the porticos of our Ivy League campuses, will we ask: “Who were these people who left these strange monuments that we use but can neither emulate nor understand?“
In comparison to us, they now seem like gods.
All credit to the the author;
Victor Davis Hanson is a classicist and historian at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, and the author of "The Second World Wars: How the First Global Conflict Was Fought and Won," from Basic Books. You can reach him by e-mailing authorvdh@gmail.com.(C) 2019 TRIBUNE CONTENT AGENCY, LLC.
SHTF and Related Index
Some prepper humor…
Articles & Links
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.
America is no longer a nation. It might still be the remains of a once great empire, sort of like Rome was after the Vandals sacked it, but as a functioning nation, it is no longer.
When you cannot enforce a border, enforce laws, and prosecute criminals, you no longer have a nation.
History doesn’t like vacuums anymore than nature does, and what we’re facing is a vacuum of authority that the USA has never experienced before. That’s the final consequence of a society in which anything goes and nothing matters.
Better check what you believe and who you believe in the days ahead, and recalibrate accordingly. This ain’t no foolin’ around.
-Kunsler
Here is an article written by Gordon Wysong titled “Will we ever prosecute?”. He makes the point that if the worst criminals can walk free, then (regardless of all the lesser crimes that are prosecuted) the nation does not enforce laws. And if laws are not enforced, there is no nation. For a nation without laws is pure anarchy.
It is presented as written, with little editing aside from the blogger-template on word-press. Any photos and commentary are set apart so that the reader can realize that it is not part of the article but rather designed to supplement it.
Links to other related articles are embedded in the text. You can click on them and they will open up in a new tab. That way you will not need to interrupt your reading of this article.
Enjoy.
Imagine that the local cops know that a gang member, named William, broke into the pawn shop and stole guns, jewelry, and money.
William’s fingerprints, film image, and DNA add to the hard evidence log. The owner knows it; the prosecutor knows it; William’s gang associates know it. But he is not arrested.
Nearby shopkeepers and neighborhood mothers are asking why he is walking the street. No one explains it; mum’s the word.
Could it be there is a grand plan to take out the gang’s leaders? No one knows; mum’s the word.
Shopkeepers and residents are about to give up and start moving away from the area, and no one asks them to stay the course.
Fast forward to today.
Fast-forward to today’s still vocal Obama gang. Why no indictments? Mum’s the word. Can anyone hold to the faith in American justice? Those who support the rule of law feel like Charlie Brown trying to kick a football.
It’s coming — oh, wait, it’s coming…oh, wait…
Without doubt, a criminal cabal is an extraordinarily complex organization, and understanding who did what, why, when, and how is a challenge to the mental faculties of anyone. But, what happens if the full scope of activities is never clear?
Does everyone get off? Does complexity confer immunity?
Is our government that incompetent?
In engineering, there is no perfect answer to anything, so changes are made incrementally, addressing the problems as they are recognized. Each step brings a clearer view of remaining problems, which are then addressed, each in its turn.
The completed project is still flawed, but the solution is practical and productive.
So it should be with a grandiose scheme like the Russia Hoax. The ringleaders don’t have to be handled with kid gloves. They don’t even have to be handled at all. Just start with the low-hanging fruit, and get as far (up the tree) as possible.
Those
old enough to remember My Lai, Vietnam, know that Lt. Calley and Cpt.
Medina were not alone in their actions. However, their prosecution
forever changed the game of passing the buck on war crimes.
So, too, can rabid prosecution of bit players in the Russian Hoax forever change the landscape in plots involving treason.
Those who would participate at the lower levels must know they are subject to prosecution, so they remain circumspect in such a re-enactment of the coup attempt. This would be the Achilles heel of another cabal — those who are intimidated by the prospect of prison. Those who realize they don’t have sufficient rank to escape punishment will be loath to participate in such a scheme. Without them, there will be no operational viability to an unlawful coup.
Admittedly,
there are always problems in pursuing a criminal case. It must be so
under our Constitution, but it cannot be impossible!
Prosecution should not be impossible.
Prosecutors don’t get all the information, but at a certain point, for each criminal, evidence accumulates that there is a real and provable crime.
It may not include every transgression of that person, nor is it the magic revelation, untangling the Gordian knot of the conspirators. It is a simple criminal act.
It is what it appears, and it need not be put in the context of the big picture — it is as plain as the nose on your face.
That stage is the stimulus for a prosecutor. It is the time to move. If the DOJ acts, many of the sins can never be prosecuted, because the prosecution of their lesser crimes may foreclose pursuit of other crimes under double jeopardy protection.
However, failure to move puts evidence and witnesses at risk of being lost. This point has passed for so many of the coup conspirators that it seems there will be no justice for many of them, like Lois Lerner.
Why?
Why no action yet?
A full recounting of all that is already known would be tedious, and to expound on the criminal conduct yet again seems shrill. It is not necessary to understand the intertwining of all the crimes before simply bringing the charges that are facially obvious.
But the deferral of prosecution, for whatever reason it is done, allows many of the cabal to walk free when they shouldn’t.
In fact, the indication is that they are continuing the very conduct for which they should be prosecuted.
Why
has McCabe not been charged with lying to the FBI, lying under
oath? Nothing more is needed to start the dominos falling. Who will
step forward to exonerate him? No one can, and no one will. That
omission — of a vigorously supported defense — will send a message to
the others in the coup conspiracy.
Why
has Samantha Power not been indicted for violating national security
requirements in unmasking or transferring her unmasking authority to
others? It doesn’t pass the smell test that she is too important to be
prosecuted.
Why
is Huma Abedin strolling around, free as a bird? She forwarded
classified emails to Anthony Weiner’s laptop. What else is needed to
demonstrate a crime?
Did Strzok do anything? Did Page? Which one lied to Congress? Their contradictory accounts mean at least one is a perjurer. Sure, there is more “there” there, but it isn’t necessary to keelhaul them; just send them to jail, and send others a message.
Listing all the cabal members, who are quite obviously criminal, is not easy — in fact, it is not doable.
It need not be the aim. A public that finds this whole thing partisan or tedious will not be easily impressed if a 2,000-count indictment naming 43 people is suddenly dropped. Bringing along the public is certainly part of sending the message for future conspirators.
It probably is better done gradually.
Suggested Action
Removing the context and simply prosecuting crimes is the method to educate both today’s and tomorrow’s citizens.
Selecting
single actors, and naming obvious crimes, will have a chance to
convince even skeptical partisans that something is wrong. The lack of
support from other participants will indeed remove most doubt.
The
full scope of what has gone on will never be known, but the lessons for
future participants in such a scheme is essential. The next time, the
prosecution will be more severe, more certain, and more
expedient. Protecting the Constitution is more important than perfect
justice. Some miscreants will escape, but they will never sleep well
again. The lesson must be taught.
A
DOJ that fails to move loses its credibility and its honor. The
foundation of the Republic is placed at risk. Without the rule of law,
what do we have?
At some point, deferral of prosecution is dereliction or abetting. Has it reached that point?
I argue that it has.
Watergate prosecuted Nixon within months. The prosecution of the assassination of Lincoln, and Reagan took months.
It's almost four years and there are ZERO prosecutions. ZERO.
Therefore, I argue that the United States is no longer a nation. Forget about being a nation that follows the Constitution. Rather, I argue that it is not longer a nation in the crudest, simplest, and most primitive terms. What it is is up for debate. But, a nation... no it is not.
Comment by John Paul Roberts
Trump is so far over his head in Washington waters that he is incapable of realizing that the criminal George W. Bush and Obama regimes put powers in the hands of the president that enable him to destroy the plotters of the coup against him. Instead, Trump “distances himself from Giuliani.”
In other words, his enemies have Trump on the run. Has it ever occurred to Trump that every real whistle-blower, people protected by statutory federal law, was completely destroyed by the executive branch, and no one said a word? Yet, here is Trump twisting in the wind on the basis of an unknown CIA agent who orchestrated the whistleblower complaint with Democrat House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff. In US law there is no such thing as an unknown whistleblower, much less one that has more power than the president of the United States.
We are going to lose a president, who intended to mend America and restore peace, and our country along with him, because American peace and prosperity does not comply with the agendas of the elite who rule us.
The American people are so stupid, having demonstrated their unlimited capability for utter and total stupidity by buying in to the Gulf of Tonkin, 9/11, Saddam Hussein’s “weapons of mass destruction,” “Assad’s use of chemical weapons,” “Iranian nukes,” “Russian invasions,” “Russiagate,” ad infinitum, that the Deep State and their media whores take for granted that the dumbshit Americans will equally accept the latest lie.
America is already in the trash bin of history. Most other countries will say, “good riddance.”
- Trump Is History and So Is the USA
This is a collection of my posts related to prepping, SHTF (Shit Hit The Fan), CWII (American Civil War 2), Fourth Turning (Strauss–Howe generational theory)
and other posts related to the very sad and sorry tatters that America
is today. Actually, I am a little stunned that I have written so much
about these matters. But America today is very ill and there are things
that really should be said.
Here are the posts.
SHTF and Related Index
Some prepper humor…
Articles & Links
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.
This is the story of the Lady Juliana. This was a special ship designed to convey female convicts from England to Australia. The idea was that a boat load of female convicts would happily link up with a colony of convicts in Australia. Thus making everyone very, very happy, and reform the colony in New South Wales.
They were right.
And this motley crew of British women ultimately had a lasting impact on the history of Australia.
A little background information.
Great Britain began colonizing Australia in 1787 with the departure of the so-called “First Fleet” of ships. Aboard these ships were male and female prisoners, as well as officials whose goal was to establish a penal colony around modern-day Sydney. The Lady Juliana was part of the Second Fleet of ships meant to bring another round of convicts along with food and supplies for the young colony.
Seventeen years after Cook discovered Botany Bay, on May 13th, 1787, a fleet of eleven ships left England – the First Fleet which would begin the colonization of Australia. Under the command of Commodore Arthur Phillip, these ships carried 1530 people – 736 of whom were convicts.
The British government specifically commissioned the Lady Juliana to transport a group of no fewer than 200 female convicts to Australia.
Pulled from British prisons, these convicts were torn from their families and communities to undertake a lengthy sea voyage to the other side of the world. Though conditions aboard the Lady Juliana were better than they were on most male-convict ships, it was still a long, hard journey – the ship left England in July 1789 and didn’t reach its final destination until June 1790. That’s almost an entire year.
As the first exclusively female convict transport to Australia, the voyage of Lady Juliana is of great historical significance. Lady Juliana was also the first convict transport to arrive in Australia after the First Fleet and the only transport of the Second Fleet not to have been chartered by slave traders Camden, Calvert & King.
About the convicts…
Though they were prisoners being transported against their will, many of the women of the Lady Juliana ultimately made the most of their circumstances. This was both during and after the voyage. They were quite busy with side hustles in ports of call and their romantic bartering aboard the ship. Indeed, their journey has gone down in history books as one of the most legendary.
Some Of The Passengers Sold Themselves At Ports En Route To Australia. This was a common enough activity, and enabled the sailors to be happy and productive throughout the long year-long trip. During ports of call, the convicts were also permitted to perform some side-activity to enable them to come up with some side money.
The voyage to Australia lasted about 10 months, as the Lady Juliana voyaged from port to port in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. The ship’s stays in places like Rio de Janeiro and Cape Town could last several weeks. The convicts made the most of their global tour by selling their services in these ports.
As John Nicol, the ship’s steward, euphemistically remembered, “We did not restrain the people on shore from coming on board through the day. The captains and seamen, who were in port at the time, paid us many visits.” The women were very busy being in high demand at the ports of call.
British Home Under-Secretary Evan Nepean. Nepean decided that, in order for the new colony to prosper, it would need more than just increased provisions and supplies — it would need the stability created by more women, children, and families. To this end, Nepean ordered a shipment of female convicts to immediately be sent to Sydney Cove and “upon landing, promote a matrimonial connection to improve morals and secure settlement.”
The ladies kept at least part of their earnings. Some of the ship’s officers and sailors allegedly even got in on the business, and their involvement raises serious questions about the degree to which these captive women were coerced into their activities.
One, a Scottish girl, broke her heart and died in the river; she was buried at Dartford. Four were pardoned on account of his Majesty's recovery. The poor young Scottish girl I have never yet got out of my mind; she was young and beautiful, even in the convict dress, but pale as death, and her eyes red with weeping. She never spoke to any of the other women or came on deck. She was constantly seen sitting in the same corner from morning to night; even the time of meals roused her not. My heart bled for her, - she was a countrywoman in misfortune. I offered her consolation, but her hopes and heart had sunk. When I spoke she heeded me not, or only answered with sighs and tears; if I spoke of Scotland she would ring her hands an sob, until I thought her heart would burst. I endeavoured to get her sad story from her lips, but she was silent as the grave to which she hastened. I lent her my bible to comfort her, but she read it not; she laid it on her lap after kissing it, and only bedewed it with her tears. At length she sunk into the grave, of no disease, but a broken heart. After her death we had only two Scottish women on board, one of them a Shetlander.
-John Nicol
In response to Nepean’s command, 225 female thieves, prostitutes, con artists, and some five infants were rounded up from prisons in London and the English countryside to be shipped off to the failing Sydney Cove colony aboard the Lady Juliana. For the English government, the female convicts were to serve two purposes: to prevent the starving and isolated male colonists from engaging in “gross irregularities” and to act as a breeding stock for the troubled settlement.
Many Of The Ship’s Sailors Took The Convict Women As ‘Wives’.
Whether out of love, lust, coercion, or necessity, many of the women on board the ship became the “wives” of the ship’s officers and crew members. As the ship’s steward John Nicol recalled in his memoir of the voyage: “When we were fairly out at sea, every man on board took a wife from among the convicts, they nothing loath.”
'I went every day to the town to buy fresh provisions and other necessaries for them. As their friends were allowed to come on board to see them, they brought money, and numbers had it of their own, particularly a Mrs. Barnsley, a noted sharper and shoplifter. She herself told me her family for one hundred years back, had been swindlers and highwaymen. She had a brother a highwayman, who often came to see her, as well dressed and genteel in his appearance as any gentleman.
'Those from the country came all on board in irons; and I was paid half a crown a head by the country jailors, in many cases, for striking them off upon my anvil, as they were not locked but rivetted. There was a Mrs. Davis a noted swindler, who had obtained great quantities of goods under false names and other equally base means. We had one Mary Williams transported for receiving stolen goods. She and another eight had been a long time in Newgate where Lord George Gordon had supported them. I went once a week to him and got their allowance from his own hand all the time we lay in the river.
-John Nicol
While these marriages were not legal, they nonetheless served a practical purpose: taking a lover onboard the ship often meant better sleeping arrangements for the women.
The women slept in the orlop deck, just above the ship’s bilge, which contained the ship’s holding water, human waste, and remnants of food. Despite such hardships, the ship’s conditions may have seemed preferable to many of the women compared with those they had left behind in London’s prisons. For some of these women, the journey to Sydney Cove itself offered an opportunity for them to better their positions. Women who became “wives” of crewmembers aboard the ship could get access to better provisions and sleeping arrangements.
But at least one partnership was rooted in genuine feeling: Nicol seemed to have fallen in love with prisoner Sarah Whitlam. Though he intended to marry her once her term ended, the two never wed. Nicol had to go back to Britain, leaving Whitlam and their child behind in Australia. He attempted to reunite with her, but they never saw each other again.
We had on board a girl pretty well behaved, who was called, by her acquaintances a daughter of Pitt. She herself never contradicted it. She bore a most striking likeness to him in every feature, and could scarce be known from him as to looks. We left her at Port Jackson. Some of our convicts I have heard even to boast of the crimes and murders committed by them and their accomplices; but the far greater number were harmless unfortunate creatures, the victims of the basest seduction.
When we were fairly out at sea, every man on board took a wife from among the convicts, they nothing loath. The girl with whom I lived, for I was as bad in this point as the others, was named Sarah Whitelam. She was a native of Lincoln, a girl of modest reserved turn, as kind and true a creature as ever lived. I courted her for a week and upwards, and would have married her upon the spot, had there been a clergy man on board. She had been banished for a mantle she had borrowed from an acquaintance. Her friend prosecuted her for stealing it, and she was transported for seven years. I had fixed my fancy upon her from the moment I knocked the rivet out of her irons upon my anvil, and as firmly resolved to bring her back to England, when her time was out, my lawful wife, as ever I did intend anything in my life. She bore me a son in our voyage out. What is become of her, whether she is dead or alive, I know not. That I do not, is no fault of mine, as my narrative will show.
- Excerpt from The Life and Adventures of John Nicol, Mariner printed in the Spirit of the English Magazines
Not all partnerships were as affectionate as Nicol and Whitlam’s appears to have been. The lack of privacy for prisoners on convict ships meant that crew members had access to them, and their relations and interactions could be coercive. The age of consent in 18th-century Britain was 10 years old, so some crew members took teenage wives during the voyage.
Some women, like Elizabeth Barnsley — a wealthy and successful shoplifter convicted of theft — used their money and influence to procure better lodging and even to create business opportunities on the ship. Prostitution was not unusual in Georgian England or within the shipping industry, and the Lady Juliana soon became something of a “floating brothel.” Crewmembers and, possibly, some of the ship’s female cargo profited from the sex trade in various ports of call, and money earned from prostitution could in turn be used to gain influence on the ship or upon arrival at Sydney Cove.
Historian Pamela Horn identified 14-year-old Jane Forbes as one such young wife – she had a baby before reaching Australia.
Colonial Officials Wanted The Women To Prevent Men From Sleeping With Each Other.
Mary Wade and Jane Whiting were transported on the Lady Juliana......This day the sessions at the Old Bailey, which began on Wednesday last, ended, when 18 convicts received sentence of death......... Of all the criminals who received lenience, those most to be regretted were two young girls, the eldest only fourteen, the youngest eleven, in whom the seeds of wickedness had taken such deep root, as to have rendered them callous to all sense of shame or feeling. These two artful hussies, Jane Whiting, and Mary Wade, seeing a child between six and seven years old in the street alone, easily decoyed it into a privy, under the Treasury wall, where they stripped and then left it to perish, with cold. Fortunately its cries attracted the notice of people nearby by, who humanely conducted the child to its friends..
(Gentleman's Magazine)
There
was not an even distribution of men and women among the
convict-colonists in early British Australia. Of the 759 convicts sent
to Australia aboard the First Fleet, 568 were men while only 191 were women. As a result, officials worried about how all those men would find partners – some were concerned that they would turn to one another.
For their part, many of the women convicts experienced a newfound sense of freedom at Sydney Cove. Freed from the strictures of traditional society and class, these women saw their new home as a chance to create a new life for themselves — a life filled with unprecedented opportunities.
To correct what 18th-century Britain perceived to be “gross irregularities” in romantic partnerships in Australia, officials begged for more women. The Female Prisoners Were Expected To Civilize The Colony
The women of the Lady Juliana had a particular purpose: Colonial officials hoped that a shipload of women would help civilize the budding convict colony. According to one British official, the increased presence of women would “promote a matrimonial connection to improve morals and secure settlement.”
Mary Talbot was one of the women who was embarked on the Lady Juliana. Mary, with other female prisoners, managed with assistance of their families, to escape from the Lady Juliana while still in port. Mary Talbot was re-captured and eventually transported on the Mary Ann. Another of the escapees Mary Burgess managed to remain at large for 3 years. She had been found guilty of stealing in a dwelling house in October 1787 and received a sentence of death which was afterwards through the Royal mercy pardoned on condition of being transported for 7 years. She was put on board the Lady Juliana and after escaping was spotted by a police runner and apprehended at Christ Church. In her defense she claimed to have been very ill, fell over board, and was taken up by a fisherman. She was recommended to mercy because of her good conduct since and because no wilful escape was proved.
They were to marry male colonists, which would supposedly create and maintain respectable family life in the new colony. The women’s prison sentences aimed to transform them into moral vessels that would enable the re-creation of the British family unit abroad.
Most Of The Women Onboard The Ship Had Committed Petty Offenses
The women being transported to New South Wales on the Lady Juliana were
prisoners, but their lives were upended for infractions that appear
minor in the 21st century. Though some of the women aboard the Lady Juliana might have been ladies of the night, that’s not why they were sent to Australia – harlotry was not a transportable offense. Most of the women on the ship had been arrested and sentenced for various degrees of theft.
Their offenses ranged from highway robbery to shoplifting and pickpocketing. Mary Hook,
for example, was around 20 years old when the British court commuted
her punishment for stealing her employer’s money and goods from capital
punishment to a seven-year sentence in New South Wales.
On the ships to Australia, the prettiest were rumored to have been shared amongst the military officers. Upon arrival in Australia, the women were lined up like cattle to be selected as servants or wives. If they were not selected, a life of prostitution was their only real hope for survival.
As the ship prepared to depart, a small group managed to escape. Being sent to the other side of the world may have been preferable to more severe penalties, but it was nonetheless a terrifying experience for many women; some left England with heavy hearts as they were ripped away from friends and family. They worried about their uncertain future on a new continent.
Elizabeth Barnsley Became An Enterprising Madam Aboard The Ship
One of the most notable convicts on the ship was Elizabeth Barnsley. Her offense: stealing some cloth. She quickly became a leader during the voyage. As John Nicol, steward of the Lady Juliana, recalled, “She was very kind to her fellow convicts, who were poor. They were all anxious to serve her. She was as a queen among them.”
Female convicts were a varied bunch. They ranged in age from children to women in old age, but most were in their twenties or thirties. Many were single, but some were married and some were widowed. A small proportion brought children with them on their journey of transportation. Most left family behind in their homeland. Some were transported with family members, or family members had come before them, or came after them.
Barnsley made the most of her circumstances and turned her position into profits – she was instrumental in overseeing her fellow convicts’ economic activities at every port along the way.
Some Of The Women Might Have Been Sex Workers In England
Though they were not being transported to New South Wales for prostitution, many of the women aboard the Lady Juliana may have been ladies of the night.
A robust harlotry economy existed in 18th-century Britain, so it’s
reasonable to assume that some of the 200-plus convicts took part.
Many of the crimes for which they were transported are considered minor offenses by today’s standards. The most common crime was stealing—food, clothing, money, household items—nothing worth more than £5. Relatively few of the women were transported for a first offense. A few of the women even courted transportation—deliberately committing crimes such as arson in order to be transported. Perhaps a few were wrongly accused, but the majority, according to the laws of the day, deserved to be transported to the other side of the world, away from kith and kin.
Moreover, many of the passengers’ stories fell into the “fallen woman”
trope that had become popular in novels and plays. John Nicol believed
many of the women had been seduced at some point in their lives. He
wrote about how Sarah Dorset, for example, had “fallen” into a life of alleged folly and sin:
She had not been protected by the villain that ruined her above six weeks; then she was forced by want upon the streets, and taken up as a disorderly girl; then sent onboard to be transported.
The Lady Juliana Provided Better Living Conditions Than Other Convict Ships And British Prisons.
The women aboard the Lady Juliana came
from British prisons. Though a prison reform movement began to grow in
the late 18th century, the prison conditions they escaped were
deplorable. Prisons were overcrowded, and diseases spread swiftly.
It was still a prison ship, and most of the passenger-convicts slept
just above the ship’s garbage and sewage deck. But the women of the Lady Juliana had something that their land-imprisoned counterparts didn’t: consistent access to medical care. The ship had a surgeon and was kept relatively clean.
The meagre number of convict women brought with the First Fleet were ravaged by the men on their first night on land, Aboriginal women were sexually assaulted and soon one of the youngest colonists, an eight year old girl was raped by a marine. To save it from moral collapse, the settlement was in dire need of rescue.
Help would come from the most unlikely quarter. Welcome to the startling, shocking and stinking world of Georgian London! Meet some of the motley collection of street-girls, bagsnatchers and con-women who are plying their trade and turning their tricks… Rachel Hoddy is a mischievous prostitute who drags men back to her home not just to relieve them of their money …but also their clothes. Little Mary Wade, an eleven-year-old street urchin, is hardly the picture of innocence either. Ann Mash has been convicted for stealing just a bushel of wheat. And finally, there’s the doyenne of the London crime scene, Mrs. Elizabeth Barnsley.
Also, the women weren’t chained up like prisoners on other convict ships, and they could barter for improved conditions through various favors. John Nicol credited the ship’s captain with being “a humane man” who “did all in his power to make the convicts as comfortable as their circumstances would allow.”
Part of the reason the passengers on the Lady Juliana enjoyed better conditions was because the British government oversaw it, unlike the other ships in the Second Fleet. All the other vessels were operated by Camden, Calvert, and King, a notorious and prolific slave trading company. Only five women perished aboard the Lady Juliana, compared to the 267 deaths reported by the other ships.
About 1 In 5 Of The Passengers Was A Teenager
The vast majority of the women who embarked on the Lady Juliana were in their 20s and 30s. But no fewer than 51 of them
– or around 22% – were teenagers. Mary Wade was one of these. Though
scholars debate her exact age – recent research says she was 13, while
earlier records show she was only 11 – she was the youngest convict
on the ship.
Incarcerated for their ‘crimes’ and reprieved from death sentences these women are swept up in a government plot to rescue the starving colony at Sydney Cove. But these women will never be at the mercy of the bigwigs of the British Empire.
Aboard The Lady Juliana, they criss-cross the oceans and at each port of call the women show they have quite a head for enterprise. Turning the boardwalks into catwalks they convert the ship into a floating brothel, the sure means to feeding themselves and staying alive. These women are survivors and doing business is in their blood. Sydney Cove will get more than it bargained for when this lot arrive.
This is the rip-roaring tale of a boat-load of women who sailed to the ends of the earth to breath life into a dying colony. But together they would give Sydney and the nation of Australia something much more – a future.
As their descendents discover the story by unearthing diaries, court records and documents they begin to draw parallels with their own twenty-first century lives, and discover they have inherited more than just their genes – but also the incredible entrepreneurial spirit of their forebears.
Like many of her shipmates, Wade ultimately married and had a large number of children in Australia.
Drunkenness Was The Biggest Disciplinary Problem On The Ship
Though it took the Lady Juliana nearly
11 months to reach Australia, there were relatively few disciplinary
problems among the convicts on the ship. One notable issue did arise involving drunkenness leading to disorderly behavior.
To curb her so-called “rowdiness,” crew members made passenger Nance Ferrel wear a repurposed wooden barrel “jacket.” When that didn’t work, they resorted to flogging her 12 times.
On arrival, female convicts were sent directly to the Female Factory. Many only remained a day or so before they were assigned to settlers to work as domestic servants, and many were married soon after arrival. Any man wanting to marry one of the women could apply to the authorities for permission to do so. The women were then lined up at the Factory and the man would drop a scarf or handkerchief at the feet of the woman of his choice. If she picked it up, the marriage was virtually immediate.
Many Colonists Were Annoyed When The Ship Arrived Carrying Women Instead Of Provisions
The First Fleet of convict-colonists arrived in 1788. So by the time the Lady Juliana sailed
into Sydney in June 1790, the people already there were desperate to
replenish their severely dwindled supplies. Many of them were
disappointed to learn the Lady Juliana was a ship carrying people, not goods. One government official grumbled that the Lady Juliana carried “a cargo so unnecessary and so unprofitable as 222 females, instead of a cargo of provisions.”
Although some convict women were classed as depraved and prostitutes, others had been in domestic service in England and were transported for stealing from their employers or shops. After arrival, though, many had to take up prostitution to survive; and the system of selection of servants often meant that the gentry and officers would choose the young and the pretty amongst the women convicts.
Though the ship didn’t bring much in the way of food and goods, it did bring long-awaited news from home, such as dispatches that first alerted the colonists in Australia to the French Revolution that had erupted in 1789.
The Women On The Ship Had To Wear Convict Dresses
As prisoners, the women going to Australia on the Lady Juliana were expected to wear convict dresses. At least one fashionable prisoner protested this. According to the ship’s steward,
Elizabeth Barnsley actually “petitioned the government agent and
captain to be allowed to wear her own clothes” while the ship prepared
to sail. Her request was denied, but the crew allowed her to wear
whatever she wanted once the boat went to sea.
“Whore” and “prostitute”, in England during the Georgian era, were bandied about to serve the moral views of middle-class ideology. However, in the lower classes neither the male nor the female convicts thought it disgraceful, or even wrong, to live together out of wedlock. The sexism of English society was brought to Australia and then amplified by penal conditions. A convict woman needed unusual strength of character not to be crushed by its assumptions. Language itself confirmed her degradation, and some sense of this may be gleaned from the slang and cant words applied to women in those times—a brusque, stinging argot of appropriation and dismissal.
Since the convicts all wore issued dresses, the ship’s captain had the right to dispose of all the passengers’ clothing – but he didn’t, and instead held it for them. He reasoned that the garments “would be of use to the poor creatures when they arrived at Port Jackson.
Some Of The Women Brought Their Children, And Others Gave Birth On The Way
Some of the women aboard the Lady Juliana were already mothers before the ship departed England, and so they brought their children with them. Many of the convict-passengers became pregnant and even gave birth during the long voyage.
A woman was a bat, a crack, a buntel, a case for cattle, a mort, a burick, or a convenient. If she had a regular man, she was his natural or peculiar. If married, she was an autem mott; if blonde, a bleached mott; if a very young prostitute, almost a child, a kinchin mott; if beautiful, a rum blowen, a ewe, a flash piece of mutton. If she had gonorrhea, she was a queer mott. This language was the lower millstone; the upper was the pompous moral phraseology of the establishment, the good flogging Christians. The double-bind to which they were condemned was piercingly illustrated by the remark of one Scottish settler, Peter Murdoch—who had more than 6,000 acres in Van Diemen’s Land and had helped set up the penal station on Maria Island—to the 1838 Select Committee in London: “They are generally so bad,” he said, “that the settlers have no heart to treat them well.”
Historians generally believe five to seven babies were born on the ship, but steward John Nicol suggested no less than 20 had been born while the ship was in port at Rio. They were prepared for the births – the ship had received a small donation of baby linens before leaving England.
Life In Australia Brought New Freedoms And Opportunities For Some Of The Passengers
Unlike other convicts on prison ships, the women aboard the Lady Juliana were not chained together. They were even allowed to move freely around the boat.
And once they arrived in New South Wales, they quickly discovered they could enjoy new freedoms there that they couldn’t in England, even though they were prisoners with few rights who were put in difficult and often dangerous positions.
Instead of iron gangs, troublesome and hardened female prisoners were retained at the female factory. The first such factory was built at Parramatta in 1804 and initially consisted of a single long room with a fireplace at one end for the women to cook. Women and girls made rope and spun and carded wool. At night they slept on the piles of unspun wool.
Women arriving in Australia were free from certain British moral
codes, even while colonial officials expected them to be vessels of
morality. English laws that marked children of unwed mothers as
illegitimate, for example, were not enforced.
The rituals of courtship on Norfolk Island were, to put it mildly, brusque. We see the "bright intelligent" Kimberley pursuing a married convict woman named Mary Ginders with an axe, shouting that "if she did not come and live with him he would report her to the Major and have her placed in the cells." Major Foveaux got the woman of his choice, Ann Sherwin, away from one of his subordinate officers by throwing him in jail on a trumped-up charge "so that," claimed the Irish rebel leader Joseph Holt, a Norfolk prisoner at the time, "the poor fellow, seeing the danger he was in, thought it better to save his life, and lose his wife, than to lose both". At least their union lasted: Foveaux married Ann Sherwin in England in 1815.
In such a moral environment, although male convicts had some rights, however attenuated, the women had none except the right to be fed; they had to fend for themselves against both guards and male prisoners. "England for white slaves, why were they sent here," Jones scribbled in one of his outbursts of delayed guilt, while reflecting on the fate of three women sent to Norfolk Island for the "crime" of abortion, for crimes that required pity more than punishment. "Heaven forbid England if that is her way of populating her hellholes. What would our noble persons think of our virgin settlements and their white slaves. In every case the women treated as slaves, good stock to trade with and a convict having the good chance to possess one did not want much encouragement to do so."
-Convict Women
The women of the Lady Juliana were also
fortunate in that they avoided the fate that awaited future generations
of convict women bound for Australia – the notoriously brutal Parramatta Female Factory didn’t open until 1821, well after their sentences ended.
Life was quite difficult for convict women. Most were sentenced in England for minor crimes such as pickpocketing or theft. As punishment, not only were they exported from their country, many were forced to endure of a life of sexual exploitation. On the ships to Australia, the prettiest were rumoured to have been shared amongst the military officers. Upon arrival in Australia, the women were lined up like cattle to be selected as servants or wives. If they were not selected, a life of prostitution was their only real hope for survival.
Though being transported to a new colony to get married and propagate British family life was no doubt daunting, many women made the most of their circumstances in Australia.
Because the women carried a very negative stigma, morals crusaders often tried to educate them regarding the folly of their ways. Women who simply stood in an "immoral pose" risked having their heads shaved and being forced to wear a collar around their neck as a mark of disgrace. The most difficult women were sent to female factories, which were essentially forced labour camps. Here they continued to be educated about the virtues of morality.
At the Cascades Female Factory in 1838, the moralising became too much for the women and they decided to make a point. The governor of Van Diemen's Land visited the factory and attended a service in the chapel. Entertaining the governor was the Reverend William Bedford, a morals campaigner whose hypocrisy had elicited the ladies' scorn. Keen to impress the governor with a fine speech, Bedford addressed the women from an elevated dais and then: "The three hundred women turned right around and at one impulse pulled up their clothes showing their naked posteriors which they simultaneously smacked with their hands making a loud and not very musical noise. This was the work of a moment, and although constables, warders etc. were there in plenty, yet 300 women could not well be all arrested and tried for such an offence and when all did the same act the ringleaders could not be picked out."
This cheeky behaviour "horrified and astounded" the governor and the male members of the party. As for the ladies in the governor's party, it was said, in a rare moment of collusion with the convict women, "could not control their laughter".
-Convict Women
In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the Australian colonies were societies on the rise – and they created new opportunities. Some Lady Juliana passengers became upwardly mobile once their prison terms ended.
The Lady Juliana was the first convict ship to carry women. It had been “opened” on the ports on the way to Australia and had thus become known as “the floating brothel.” It arrived in Port Jackson in 1790. As the women were disembarked, a drunken orgy broke out. Sailors and convicts were in and around the women’s tents, some queuing for sex, others making love with women they had forged attachments with on the voyage. Perhaps the women were willing parties in the orgy, but if they weren’t, they probably didn’t have much choice other than to go along. Either way, the convict women became regarded as depraved and immoral. One witness to the orgy wrote, “The women, cooped up on the voyage and for another 10 hot and intolerable days outside Sydney Cove, had not too many chaste figures among them.”
While some returned to England, others remained in Australia to make their fortune. Ann Marsh, for one, found success after being abandoned by her ship husband. She started and ran a variety of businesses, including a liquor shop and a ferry company. These women had a lasting impact on the land, becoming the so-called “founding mothers of Australia.”
On another occasion, Reverend Bedford was crossing the courtyard of the Female House of Correction, when "some dozen or twenty women seized upon him, took off his trousers and deliberately endeavoured to deprive him of his manhood. They were, however, unable to effect their purpose in consequence of the opportune arrival of a few constables who seized the fair ladies and placed them in durance vile."
The brutalization of women in the colony had gone on so long that it was virtually a social reflex by the end of the 1830s. The first full account of it was given by Robert Jones, Major Foveaux's chief jailer on Norfolk Island in the early 1800's, who thought the lot of the women prisoners there "must surely have been greater than the male convicts.... Several have not recovered yet from their treatment at the hands of the Major." Passages in Jones's memoir show how absolute the chattel status of women was. "Ted Kimberley chief constable considered the convicts of Norfolk Island no better than heathens unfit to grace the earth. Women were in his estimation born for the convenience of men. He was a bright intelligent Irishman." Jones's sentiments are echoed in a fragmentary letter from a free settler on Norfolk Island, an ex-missionary turned trader named James Mitchell. "Surely no common mortal could demand treatment so brutal," he wrote around 1815. "Heaven give their weary footsteps their aching hearts to a better place of rest for here there is none. During governorship of Major Foveaux convicts both male and female were held as slaves. Poor female convicts were treated shamefully. Governor King being mainly responsible."
-Convict Women
A new start
The hardships endured by the women appeared to build a strong sense of female solidarity. The women sang songs, which were often labelled “very disgusting”. When matrons tried to separate agitators from the group, the entire group would sometimes chant “we are all alike, we are all alike.”
Not only did the actions protect individual women, they also made convict life a bit more bearable.
The True Colonist reported in 1837 that while the “horrors of the crime class” had shocked the inhabitants of Van Diemen’s Land, what was more disagreeable to evangelical moral sensibilities was the fact that many women prefer this class to the others, because it is more lively!
There is more fun there than in the others; and we have been informed, that some of the most sprightly of the ladies divert their companions by acting plays!”
As is often the case, out of something bad came something good.
The hardships endured by the convict women seemed to build an ethic to alleviate the hardships in others. Successful convict women such as Molly Morgan never forgot their own hardships earlier in life, and donated freely to establish schools, hospitals and even churches.
Free immigrants like Caroline Chisholm also decided to do something about the suffering they saw around them. She took some women into her house and traveled the colony to find employment for others.
Within two years she had found employment and accommodation for over a thousand women and girls. She then went on to found the Family Colonization Loan Society to help break the cycle of dependence and poverty.
Chisolm’s compassion always came with strings attached.
In her hostels, she employed a tough love approach in which she made it clear that guests should never get too comfortable because they should be out looking for a job.
Mother Mary McKillop was another whose compassion probably flowed from seeing the horrors of the day. Mary took a vow of personal poverty and always shared the hardships of the people she was trying to help.
She was able to personally survive largely because people helped her as well. A society that started off as one in which everyone looked out for themselves, evolved into one in which people started looking out for others.
A society that started off as one in which everyone looked out for themselves, evolved into one in which people started looking out for others.
America, take note.
Posts Regarding Life and Contentment
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Know your history. When you give up your right to self defense, and allow others the ability to take control of your life, the result is never pretty. Take heed.
A very emotional @BenLoyolaVA, born in Havana, talks about Castro’s rise, confiscation of firearms and murder of citizens in Cuba and how thankful he is that his parents were able to make it to America. pic.twitter.com/XODNIyKf9K
— Erik Soderstrom (@soderstrom) January 7, 2020
Here are some pictures of people who obeyed their government when they were ordered to turn in their weapons; the only means of self-defense, and what happened to them. After all, what is a picture without the proper context? Who do you think I am? CNN?
When a government takes away your means for self-defense, and then kills you it is called democide. It is a well-known, extensively studied, and well-documented principle. In general, once a government disarms it’s citizenry, the likelihood of mass genocide against selected minorities within that country increase exponentially.
DemocideisatermproposedbyR. J. Rummelsinceatleast 1994 whodefineditas "theintentionalkillingofanunarmedordisarmedpersonbygovernmentagentsactingintheirauthoritativecapacityandpursuanttogovernmentpolicyorhighcommand". Accordingtohim, thisdefinitioncoversawiderangeofdeaths, includingforcedlaborandconcentrationcampvictims; killingsby "unofficial" privategroups; extrajudicialsummarykillings; andmassdeathsduetothegovernmentalactsofcriminalomissionandneglect, suchasindeliberatefamines, aswellaskillingsbydefactogovernments, i.e. civilwarkillings. Thisdefinitioncoversanymurderofanynumberofpersonsbyanygovernment.
-Wikipedia
America
For the last fifty years, the mainstream American media has been on the “war path” about guns, gun control and the disarming of the American people. Every article, every incident, every excuse has been one step closer to the eventual disarmament of the American people. It is so rabid and so frenzied, that one has to wonder about their true motives.
Yes. Just WHY are they so besides themselves in having Americans disarmed?
Here is the first page news from MSN on 6AUG19. They are heavily involved in the progressive disarming of the citizenry.
To justify their rationale, they have used every technique at their disposal. This goes from falsified data, a re-interpretation of history and the Constitution, to radical fanatic liberals creating mass shooting events, to government sponsored false-flag events.
As a bonus, we even had notable Progressive Presidents shed a tear for the television cameras.
A crying Obama. His progressive liberal followers, and the ever fawning mainstream media attributed his tears for an “inability to implement total and complete gun control”. Conservatives however, saw this as his frustration in not being able to disarm and then exterminate conservatives and traditionalists.
They often point to how happy people are when they are disarmed. They use selective examples as “proof” that a true utopia would manifest were Americans to be disarmed. They point to the success in the UK, and use Australia as examples.
I, of course, remain skeptical about all these claims. I just cannot imagine a cat being happy that you de-fanged it, and removed it’s claws. I cannot imagine that everyone in Australia feels like they are living in a wonderful sunny progressive utopia now that they are disarmed. Indeed, these is evidence to the contrary.
This cartoon shows how us “normals” feel about America today. Why in the heck would we ever feel safer when only the government has weapons? It makes absolutely no sense. And you don’t even need to crack open a history book to know the reasons why.
Freedom in America today.
And, contrary to the media narrative, it appears that most New Zealanders did NOT turn in their weapons. This is in defiance and irregardless of the government proclamations.
In America, the progressive government points out the “success” of the disarming of people in the UK, in New Zealand, and in Australia. However, history clearly shows that they are the exception and not the rule.
They are the exceptions.
What they don’t do is use examples that are the RULE not the exception. Here we will do just that. Here we will look at what happens to a people when their government disarms them, and the resultant utopia that they find themselves in.
It’s funny because it is so very true. Girls and guns. So very funny.
Boys and girls, let me introduce you all to the concept of “death by government”, or democide. It’s quite common throughout history. It doesn’t matter what time period, what fashions were in style, what political party was in charge, or what technology was in use. Democide is a constant that ALWAYS comes attached to all governments.
The only difference is WHEN the government decides to implement democide.
Democide
Democide is the elimination of a targeted group of people by their government. And, here’s the little secret, it is always preceded by the disarming of the general populace.
Democide Meme. Democide is a common in human history as sex, birth of babies, taxes, and old age. To ignore it’s existence is to facilitate it’s implementation. First comes the disarmament. Then the collection. Then the sorting. Then the torture. Finally, the deaths. Know your history.
It is frighteningly common in human society. As a result there are numerous other terms that are often used. These other terms include genocide, politicide, and other forms of state-sponsored mass murder.
Genocide is intentional action to destroy a people in whole or in part. The hybrid word “genocide” is a combination of the Greek word γένος and the Latin suffix -caedo. The term genocide was coined by Raphael Lemkin in his 1944 book Axis Rule in Occupied Europe.
Politicide is the deliberate physical destruction or elimination of a group whose members share the main characteristic of belonging to a political movement. It is a type of political repression, and one means of the political cleansing of population, with another being forced migration. It may be compared to genocide or ethnic cleansing, which involve killing people based on membership in a racial or ethnic group rather than holding a political ideology.
The targeted group of people headed for extermination may be defined by religious, racial, political, class, cultural or other attributes.
Schindlers List Meme. Know your history. This will happen to you and to your family if you allow yourself to be disarmed. Historically, within two years after your weapon is collected by the government.
Between 200 and 260 million people were the victims of democide in the 20th century, several times more than were killed in all those international wars that occurred during that same time period.
Democide in Turkey
The first widely studied modern democide occurred in Turkey between 1915 and 1923, when the Turkish government decided to eliminate the country’s Christian minority. This group consisted primarily of ethnic Armenians and Greeks. These people were long duration citizens of Turkey, and had roots extending back to before the Islamic conquest.
Turkey absorbed Armenia, and the residents lived peacefully together for many years. Then, it was decided to kill all the Christians who were, of course, from Armenia. The result is the all-Muslim nation that Turkey is today.
In Turkey, “reasonable” gun control laws enacted in 1911 permitted the democide of two million Turkish Christians. It wasn’t long after either.
Of course, it was “for the children” and to create a more “prosperous” and “perfect” utopia. It was by a “stroke of a pen.” And suddenly article 166 in the Penal Code was the law of the land.
Then for three and a half years, the police went door to door collecting the weapons, and arresting those for non-compliance. You can well imagine what it was like. In the early morning, all day, going into late at night, a collection of armed police came to your door. They entered, and asked for you to hand your guns over. Then they searched your house to make sure that you weren’t hiding anything.
They did this for three and a half years.
Expert Tip – Never hand in your weapons to the government.
Four years after the bill became law, the disarmed Christians were all collected and rounded up by armed militia, soldiers and local police forces. They were collected in the schools, town centers, and formed into groups.
Then they were either killed outright, or sent on death marches into the hot barren desert.
Four years after the government passed the anti-gun ownership legislation, the Christians were all collected and rounded up by armed militia, soldiers and local police forces. They were collected in the schools, town centers, and formed into groups. Then they were either killed outright, or sent on death marches into the hot barren desert.
Two million Christians were murdered on forced marches into deserts without water or food. They were not told where they were going, when any one asked questions, they were beaten up, and then killed. The guards, of course, had food and water. But not the collected (and demonized) unarmed Christians.
Oh, you can well understand that many of the menfolk being marched off to die of thirst and starvation just wished that they still possessed their shotgun, long rifle or pistol. Heck! They would have been happy to just have a bayonet. But it was too late. Once disarmed, they were immediately earmarked to termination.
For just under a decade, the anti-gun legislation was enforced. Unarmed, with no legal recourse, the Christians were demonized. They became shunned, and two sets of laws were enacted. One for the Muslim majority and another for the Christian minority.
Over time, it became harder to go out in public, and attacks and beatings against Christians became common place. The police turned a “blind eye” to the events, and the Armenians held out for hope. A hope that some day, some how, things would go back to “normal”.
It didn’t.
Once the progressive Marxist philosophy of an “improved” utopia could be implemented, it’s all down-hill from there. No wishing, no hoping, and no political connections will save you.
Turkish military, and government officials proudly standing over the bodies of their dead countrymen and women that they killed. After a decade long period of demonization, the government had no problem treating the disarmed populace as nothing more than cockroaches that needed to be exterminated.
Of course, there were “hold outs”.
These were Christians who lived in isolated towns and rural areas. They still clutched their guns (today the popular term is “bitter clingers“, a term popularized by Hillary Clinton), and resisted the forced collection of their countryman.
They too, falsely hoped that they could “ride out” the “new utopia”, a Marxist Muslim nation, purged free of the dirty Christian influence. But they were wrong. The only thing that they could do was delay their collection and eventual death. They delayed their fate, but for what? Eventual assimilation? Escape via immigration to a neighboring nation?
Today, we would refer to them as “preppers“.
People! You can never win a war fought on the defense. You cannot hunker down and hide and hope to “ride things out” until a point in time when “society comes back to it’s senses”. You just cannot.
Today, Turkey is 99.9% Muslim. Where are all those preppers and their families now?
Don’t allow Muslims to disarm you if you are a Christian. The result will not be good. The pattern in the same throughout the Middle East. From Turkey to Saudi Arabia, to Syria, to Egypt. Christians are first disarmed, and then killed in mass. Do not allow that to happen to you and your family.
This democide occurred in view of Western reporters, who took photographs and posted contemporary wire reports. The fact that the democide was known outside Turkey did not deter the Turkish leaders. They did not care.
Map of Shiite Muslims in the middle east.
They knew that no one would dare risk a war to save a Christian minority. For they were surrounded by fellow Muslim nations.
Democide, as the name implies, does not happen in the dark of night without any awareness of it in the country where it occurs. It happens in the bright sunny daylight. And, everyone knows it is going on, and sits by and watches.
The picture of a gun-free paradise and utopia. This is what it looks like. Women, men and children tortured, brutally beaten up and then killed in the most horrible way. Their bodies left int he sun for vultures and scavengers to seize. For they are demonized to be nothing and not worthy of compassion. A true and real progressive utopia!
They collected the people in large groups in the public open spaces in towns and cities. Then as a group they walked and marched them to collection points and staging areas.
Expert Tip – Avoid large groups of people and crowds.
The Turks knew fully well that the Christians were being mass murdered. In fact they even have a name for it. The Turkish Genocide is often referred to as the “Armenian Genocide”.
The Armenian Genocide, as it has become known, was also widely known outside Turkey. This was the absolute elimination of Christians by the Turkish government. History has shown and proven that the majority Shiite Muslim population supported (or at least passively tolerated) the democide.
The Armenian Genocide, also known as the Armenian Holocaust, was the Ottoman government’s systematic extermination of 700,000 to 1.5 million Armenians, mostly citizens of the Ottoman Empire. The starting date is conventionally held to be 24 April 1915, the day that Ottoman authorities rounded up, arrested, and deported from Constantinople.
Indeed, it was impossible to miss the sight of thousands of Christians at a time being rounded up and force-marched through towns and into the burning deserts on one-way trips. Not to mention all the young nude Christian women nailed to the crosses at the side of the major roads and highways. You just couldn’t miss all the atrocities. It was everywhere.
Seriously. How you not notice something like this at the side of the highway…?
1915 Crucifixion Of Armenian Christian Girls. This is what a progressive “gun free” society looks like. This is what a progressive utopia looks like… “For the children”. The genocide of Armenian Christians by the Turkish Ottoman empire on the heels of a devastating defeat they suffered at the hands of Russia has been one of the most brutal and barbaric ever but most disturbingly one that the world has refused to acknowledge. The pic above is from a 1919 film depicting the cruelty metted upon a group of 19 teenage Armenian Christian girls who were gang raped by Muslim soldiers of the Ottoman state.
The movie did not however depict the gruesome killing as even for today’s desensitized world of Internet gore , the gruesome murder of these young girls by Muslim soldiers will make any die hard gore viewer turn away in appalling disgust. The actual narrative goes that these young girls after suffering the most debased form of sexual torture and rape at the hands of Turkish Muslim soldiers where later impaled on a cross and a spike driven into their private parts. Death came slowly but painfully with the Muslim soldiers gleefully laughing at them.
Stalin and Hitler both noticed the lack of world reaction to the democide of Turkish Christians and planned accordingly. For they realized then, that NO NATION would get involved in what they were doing to their very own people. And this, boys and girls, this lack of national intervention is what fed the fires to much greater acts of genocide elsewhere in the progressive 20th century.
The Armenian genocide happened four years after full gun confiscation by the government.
Women and babies were raped. Men were tortured and killed. Everyone eventually died long, slow horrible deaths. It all happened shortly after they were disarmed by the government.
The Armenian genocide happened four years after full gun confiscation by the government. It began as a safety measure to stop “senseless killings” and after a decade, almost all of the Christians in Turkey were killed.
One of the people who paid close attention to what was going on in Turkey was Joseph Stalin.
Russian Democide
It's very difficult to keep up with Stalin. He operated numerous genocides against numerous (and very large) groups of people. It's hard how he kept track of all the wars on civilians that he propagated.
But one thing is constant. He disarmed every single group right before he sent troops to slaughter them.
Most Americans, minus the progressive liberals (of course), know the comic-book outline of Russian Communism.
There is a direct link between gun collection and genocide. It is the historical norm. However, most people are ignorant of history, and others don’t care. They openly want genocide… against their neighbors. They never think that it could be used against them.
In the Soviet Union, Stalin’s henchmen purged millions of “kulaks” (farmers deemed to have too much wealth), intellectuals, businessmen, and anyone who had ever traveled outside the USSR or even had had contact with foreigners.
One day in the summer of 1933, in a village in Ukraine, then part of the Soviet Union, a little boy woke on top of the family stove. He was starving—not just hungry but genuinely starving. ‘Dad, I want to eat! Dad!’ he cried. But the house was cold and from his father there came no answer.
The boy went over to his father, who was apparently still asleep. There was ‘foam under his nose’, he remembered. ‘I touched his head. Cold.’
A little later, a cart arrived laden with bodies ‘lying like sheaves’. Two men came into the house, lifted his father’s body into a sack and threw it onto the cart. Then they were gone.
The boy left home after that. He wandered the empty fields, sleeping in stables, scrabbling for grains, ‘swollen and ragged’. But somehow he survived. Some four million of his fellow Ukrainians were not so lucky.
The famine that struck Ukraine in late 1932 and 1933 was one of the most lethal catastrophes in European history.
In the West, it is nowhere near as well-known as it should be.
In Ukraine itself, however, the Holodmor—literally, ‘hunger extermination’—is often seen as a gigantic, man-made operation to murder millions of people.
-Darkmoon
Mass murder of targeted regions, groups of people, or occupations were a favorite “hobby” of his.
For instance, Operation Vesna, which mainly was targeted to destroy strong Lithuanian farmers’ families, was implemented in the end of May- when all farmers’ works in the field were finished, (it means- colonists newcomers from Russia will get already prepared land) but it will be too late for deported Lithuanian farmers to garden anything in new, more northern regions, where they were sent.
Destinations for Lithuanians sent in operation Vesna- Krasnoyarsk Krai, Irkutsk Oblast, Buryat–Mongol ASSR Soviet deportations from Lithuania was a series of 35 mass deportations carried out in the Lithuanian SSR, an occupied republic (in 1940) of the Soviet Union, in 1941 and 1945–1952.
They key to killing millions of people is to disarm them first. That way they cannot fight back. Then you can do what you wish with them. Stalin had perfected this policy and his strategy worked so well that he operated numerous genocides. He did it so often and with such brazen ability that it seemed like a big game to him.
At least 130,000 people, 70% of them women and children, were
forcibly transported to labor camps and other forced settlements in
remote parts of the Soviet Union, particularly in the Irkutsk Oblast and Krasnoyarsk Krai.
These deportations do not include Lithuanian partisans or political
prisoners (approximately 150,000 people) deported to Gulags (labour / concentration camps, prisons)
The easiest way to kill off a people is to send them off to an isolated and barren area, and let them starve. This is what the Muslims did to the Christian Armenians, and what Stalin did to the Ukrainians.
A few people in the queue started crying. ‘Some are getting too sentimental around here,’ the shopkeeper said threateningly. ‘It is easy to spot enemies of the people.’
In another village, a little boy teased other children with jam and a loaf of bread that his family had managed to obtain. The other children began throwing stones at him; they only stopped when he was dead.
Sometimes families turned on themselves. One man was so enraged by the sound of his children crying for food that he smothered his baby in its cradle and killed two other children by smashing their heads against a wall.
In the province of Vinnytsia, a farmer tried to suffocate his starving children by lighting a fire and blocking the chimney. When they screamed for help, he strangled them with his bare hands.
-Darkmoon
Operation Vesna (Spring) was one of series of 35 mass deportations from Lithuania during occupation. Deported persons mainly came from Lithuanin farmlands. To follow principles of more effective elimination of non-Russian nations, repeatedly occupied by USSR different methods and “tools” were used. The most common method in all mass operations was short, sudden (in some hours) arresting phase of tens of thousand people throughout the selected non-Russian country and immediate (24-48h) transportation them in cattle wagons to different parts of USSR Such method was very effective due people had no possibility to organize any kind of resistance.
All of this is well documented.
It’s one of the things that Marxist love to do. They document, in detail, their victims and their actions. They use interviews, records, and photographs as part of their documentation efforts.
Expert Tip – When you hear that people are going to “police” interviews for information collection, then you know that genocide is in process.
Stalin’s international socialists deported their “class enemies” to Siberia, where they were put to work in Gulag slave-labor camps, with years of torture through cold, malnutrition and brutal working conditions preceding the release of eventual death.
The Ukrainians were too uppity, too different. They insisted on speaking their own language; their peasants were too conservative, holding onto their village traditions; they were insufficiently enthusiastic about the bright new Marxist future their Kremlin masters promised to build.
And then, at the end of the Twenties, came disaster. Determined to consolidate his rule after succeeding Lenin at the top of the Communist system, and increasingly impatient to break peasant resistance and move towards Utopia, Stalin ordered the collectivisation of the entire Soviet countryside.
The word ‘collectivisation’ sounds technical, a little dry, even boring. But the human consequences were profound and dramatic.
The principle was simple. Richer, more successful peasants had to be ‘liquidated’, by starvation, murder or exile. The rest would be herded into vast state-run farms where they would toil ceaselessly for the greater Soviet good, instead of for private profit.
-Darkmoon
Stalin also devised another means of democide when he ordered the forced starvation of the Ukrainians, and five million more innocent victims were added to his totals.
Holodomor: Stalin’s genocidal famine of 1932-1933 | Infographic 2015/09/15 – 23:02 • History, Infographics, Ukraine [Privacy Badger has replaced this Facebook Like button.] Holodomor (“death by hunger” in Ukrainian) refers to the starvation of at least four million Ukrainians in 1932–33 as a result of Soviet policies. The Holodomor can be seen as the culmination of an assault by the Communist Party and Soviet state on the Ukrainian peasantry, who resisted Soviet policies.
This assault occurred in the context of a campaign of intimidation and arrests of Ukrainian intellectuals, writers, artists, religious leaders, and political cadres, who were seen as a threat to Soviet ideological and state-building aspirations.
The Ukrainian peasants were given impossible high quotas of the amount of grain to submit to the Soviet state. Special teams were sent in to search homes and confiscate all produce to the last grain. A particularly brutal law called “5 ears of grain law” was passed, following which starving Ukrainians were shot on the spot for gathering grain that remained on the field after the harvest.
As a result, at least four million people starved to death in Ukraine. At the height of the Holodomor, 28,000 people were dying per day. This number does not include the ethnic Ukrainians outside the Ukrainians SSR who died, the half million people deported from Ukraine during collectivization or the thousands of religious, cultural and political leaders who were destroyed. The USSR attempted to cover up the Holodomor, and Russia continues to deny or diminish it to the very day.
There is no question that he was brutal about it. But, what exactly enabled him to subdue such a populous nation, filled with prideful and serious people armed with weapons? And make no mistake, the DID possess weapons. Many had shotguns, and long rifles. Maybe they weren’t as modern as the sub-machine guns and military rifles that Stalin equipped his policing forces with, but they were effective defensive weapons.
During
these times and types of conflicts it is NORMAL for women, and girls to
be abducted, raped repeatedly and then killed. This is a historical
norm.
This is what enabled him to do what he did. He disarmed the population. In 1929, he passed the full-on anti-gun legislation called code 182 of the Penal Code.
Expert Tip – Collect, store, and hide all firearms and weapons. Tell no one their location. Especially your children.
Once it was passed, the citizens were instructed to turn in their firearms, or face the “ultimate” consequences. The vast bulk of the population obeyed. Shortly afterwards, Stalin started to “cleanse” the nation. He loaded them up into train cars and shipped them far away from their homelands. Much like the American government did to the native American Indians two centuries ago.
He did this by gathering them up and shipping them to staging areas where they could be “processed”.
Expert tip- Do not board the railroad car.
The German-Russian Genocide:Remembrance in the 21st Century. Between 1930 and the beginning of 1937, the Russian Germans lost approximately 300,000 to 350,000 members, one-fourth of their entire group—one out of every four was therefore exterminated through deliberate starvation, deportation, or shooting.
- Germans from Russia Heritage Collection
Raped
and killed. You need to either prepare to fight, or flee. What ever you
do, do not get snared into a collection area for your own safety. It is
not going to be safe. As this young lass learned. Do not trust refugee
camps. Do not trust the government. Do not trust ANYONE. And, finally,
do not allow yourself or your family to be disarmed. Learn to fight both
with guns and blades. Hide and protect yourselves, and take special
note where the progressive liberals live in your neighborhood. They have
the lists that your name will be on.
Yeah, all those links are for genocides that took place in 1941, and it’s only about 20% down the list. To see the exhaustive list go HERE.
Once the Russian populace was disarmed in 1929, a policy of two decades of forced genocide was inflicted on targeted people, minorities, and classes of people.
The formula is a simple one. Disarm a section of the population. Then, use the military to round them up. Then take them to “safe areas”, where they can be utilized as you desire.
“Safe Areas” like this one…
The Russian Marxist utopia in the Ukraine once the people were disarmed, relocated, and permitted to die of starvation.
Even now, in an age when we are regularly assailed by images of
horror and suffering, the details of the Holodmor are heartbreaking.
Starving children, mass graves, vigilantes, even cannibalism: the famine
saw human nature stripped to the bone.
‘I was so frightened by what had happened that I could not talk for
several days,’ recalled one woman who escaped after her emaciated body
was mistakenly thrown into a mass grave. ‘I saw dead bodies in my
dreams. And I screamed a lot.’
Expert Tip – Genocide happens over an extended period of time. It might start after the citizenry is disarmed, or it might be delayed by a few years. In any event, expect a long-duration event; often many decades in duration.
German Democide
The German genocidal events are well known to most Americans over the age of 40. Not so well known to the younger generations. The Nazi Germans "purged" the German society of "undesirables" which included just about EVERYONE except the "chosen" Arian race.
Hitler gun ban meme.
In Germany, the “commonsense” 1928 gun control laws of the Weimar Republic preceded Hitler’s Holocaust by a decade. The Weimar politicians did not intend for their gun control laws to lead to the slaughter of millions of people, but it is an historical fact that those gun control laws permitted the Nazis to carry out their Holocaust.
How? By making it economically and militarily feasible to round up and mass murder entire towns without any significant resistance.
Germans rounding up civilians after being disarmed. Here it was for their “safety”, and they were being sent to “safe places”, and “safe camps” in the countryside for their “protection”.
In Germany and Nazi-occupied Europe, Hitler proceeded with his own “final solution to the Jewish problem.” Where the German national socialists simply eliminated Jews as quickly as possible in mass graves and gas chambers.
Here
is a picture that was taken during World War II. Location Germany.
Subject; Civilian German woman who were systematically stripped, raped,
and then killed. This is what happens when the Government loses control
of society. This is what big wealthy oligarchs want. They want to
“prune” the Human society for their own personal profit. It is not
pretty.
The Holocaust, the Nazi-German annihilation of European Jewry during World War II (1939–1945), is unarguably one of the most destructive and murderous events in the history of human civilization.
However, over the last 70 years, genocides and mass killing events have continued to occur and they are not diminishing in frequency. Bosnia, Rwanda, Darfur, Burundi, Syria, and Myanmar have all experienced large-scale murder operations in the last 25 years, some of which may have been preventable.
Developing a deeper understanding of genocides and mass killing events, including their causes, common characteristics, predictability, and mitigation, is thus considered by some as “the most important goal of social science”. In this respect, lessons learned from the Holocaust continue to play a vital role, and the topic remains as timely as ever.
-Science Advances
Once, the citizenry were disarmed, specific groups were demonized and targeted by a technique known as Symbolization. As an American, you might be aware of this technique. It is one where people are considered to be “deplorable”, have “white privilege”, are a “bitter clinger”, live in “fly-over country” and are considered to be “throw-backs”, racists, and Nazi’s.
Here’s an example of modern contemporaneous symbolization used by the progressive negro-American community;
Example of black hate leading to genocide in America.
Average Germans were fully aware of what was happening to the Jews between 1938 and 1945, and a large majority either actively supported or at least tolerated it. (I strongly recommend reading Hitler’s Willing Executioners: Ordinary Germans and the Holocaust, by Daniel Goldhagen, to fully appreciate the wholehearted German support for the Jewish democide.)
Expert Tip – When others claim that you have “white privilege”, they are setting you (and others like you) for genocide. It is a well documented process known as Genocidal Symbolization.
Operation Reinhard (1942–1943) was the largest single murder campaign of the Holocaust, during which some 1.7 million Jews from German-occupied Poland were murdered by the Nazis. Most perished in gas chambers at the death camps Belzec, Sobibor, and Treblinka.
In fact, the Nazis quickly learned that they needed only a hundred ordinary military policemen to exterminate towns of a thousand Polish Jews in a single day. All you need is to disarm them, and send in a few truck loads of armed military men with police badges.
Contrast that fact with the Warsaw Ghetto uprising. If the Jews had not first been disarmed, using previous gun registration lists as a map for confiscation, the Holocaust would not have been possible.
The National Firearms & Weapons Law of 1928 precipitated the disarming of the German people. Once disarmed, they were collected, rounded up and killed in “safety zones”, “labor farms” and other similar locations. This action is known as “The Holocaust “.
A German citizen rests inside an oven after being disarmed and processed by the government authorities.
Chinese Democide
In Communist China seventy million people were the victims of democide, murdered by overwork in slave-labor camps, by direct execution, and by regional forced starvation.
First came Penal Code 186-7, Article 9. Then the disarming. Finally the collection, and “processing”. Here, let this meme instruct you as to what “processing” means…
Mr Mao Meme on genocide. Genocide is very common and the formula works, and has been proven to work, for centuries. First you disarm the population, then you demonize them, then collect, process, and finally kill them.
Expert Tip – If you need more examples than this to show that there is a connection between disarming a population and killing them, then you are an idiot. The genocide is designed for YOU.
Democide is very common.
On April 5, 1992 war breaks out between on the one side Muslims and Bosnian Croats, who back independence from Yugoslavia, and on the other Bosnian Serbs. Bosnian Serb troops, armed by the Belgrade-controlled federal Yugoslav army, lay siege to the Bosnian capital and by May control two-thirds of the country.
— From April to August more than 6,000 people, mostly Muslims, are shut into detention camps at Omarska, Keraterm and Trnopolje, known as the “triangle of horror” from which many detainees never reappear.
In August, the first images of skeletal prisoners in these camps awaken the world to the campaign of ethnic cleaning carried out by Serb forces in Bosnia.
- Bosnia: from outbreak of war to Dayton peace accords
In the Soviet Union and in every other case, democide was preceded by “reasonable and commonsense” firearms registration. It was then followed eventually by gun confiscation and then ultimately by the extermination of a despised minority population.
Civil wars happen when the people are armed. Genocide and democide occurs when they are not.
Oh, it’s not just Russia, Germany and China that have been involved in genocide. Millions more were victims of democide in Pakistan, Cambodia, Rwanda, North Korea, and many other countries.
Man with his hands tied be hind his back found dead at the side of a road during the Bosnia genocide. During genocidal actions, never allow yourself to be handcuffed, or have your limbs immobilized. Typically it means that you are going to be slaughtered.
Here is the real reason why many American gun owners will NEVER turn in their weapons to the Government;
This is the Real Reason So Many Americans Don’t Want More Gun Control.
Plus, of course, we paid attention during history class.
Dead civilian during the Bosnia conflict with his hands tied up. Never allow yourself to have your limbs tied up or restricted. Never permit that to happen.
It’s a New Progressive Global Reality!
Today, we sometimes hear that the Second Amendment has outlived its usefulness, that it is a relic of our barbaric past and is no longer needed in the modern era. We are told that it is obsolete. That it is out-moded. That it is a relic. That we don’t need it in our modern progressive society.
The remains of a civilian who was killed during the Bosnian conflict. Animals have scavenged most of his body. All that remains are his trousers, socks and shoes.
Horrific mass shootings by deranged individuals are cited as the primary reason for Americans to surrender their weapons. Not just their most effective firearms, but ALL their weapons, and rely solely on a state monopoly of a domestic police force for their protection.
Hooks found in the ceiling rafters of a torture room within a former farm house garage converted into a militia barracks.
We are told that the true and actual just protection must originate from the government, and ONLY from the government. That we should trust the government, and allow them into our homes, into our lives and trust them. For they would only and absolutely work in our sole best interests.
This government-dependent attitude is shortsighted, historically ignorant, and extremely dangerous.
ISIS
sex slave at a slave auction in an occupied region of Syria. During
periods of change, the plight of women is always a dangerous one.
In each of the cases cited above, a necessary preliminary step on the road to democide was the confiscation of privately owned firearms. Nothing happens of significance until the people are disarmed. The risks to the police forces, and their political masters are far too great.
Passport found in the remains of a civilian who was trying to escape the genocide, but instead got caught up in a firefight and ended up getting shot and killed. Do not wait until the last minute.
And people, make no mistake on what happens when people are disarmed…
As millions began to die, human feeling perished with them. In one of countless dreadful anecdotes, Applebaum describes how a 15-year-old farm girl was begging beside the queue outside a Communist-run bread shop.
As each person passed, the girl asked for crumbs.
Finally, she asked the shopkeeper, who shouted at her and hit her so she fell to the ground. ‘Get up!’ the shopkeeper said, kicking her. ‘Go home and get to work!’ But she did not move; she was dead.
-Darkmoon
During the past two centuries, while America has avoided tyranny, Turkey, Germany, Russia and the other nations mentioned above haven’t. They embraced it.
Tyranny, coming soon to your home, and into your living rooms.
Shot up living room.
These other nations have spasmodically lurched between monarchs, democratically elected leaders, and often quite popular dictators. Each time, allowing them frequent opportunities to commit democide against their unwanted minorities.
To me, it seems that the kind of personality that a person has who wants to rule, who wants to be in politics, and who loves the fame and power is exactly the same kind of personality that would conduct genocide in his country.
Progressive
liberals in the community will report on all goings on. They will
create lists. They will single out people, and they will make the
necessary arrangements for the people to be handed over to the proper
authorities. Authorities that will rape and then torture and kill them.
Know your history. SHTF and CWII are a very real possibility.
The situation is fundamentally different in America, because we have a centuries-old tradition of private firearms ownership guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the Constitution. At least up until President Wilson became president and started to rewrite the Constitution in his perverted image of a modern progressive utopia.
The Second Amendment does not “grant” us this right; it puts into writing our God-given natural right to effective self-defense, including armed defense against tyranny.
Once
a political ideology takes power, they are ruthless in their treatment
of opposition. They will kill you, and if you are a woman, they will
rape you and then kill you. There will not be any mercy. It is better to
die fighting when they come to your house, than to accept the lies that
they will put you into “protection” for your own best interests.
Just as a refresher…
THE Conventions of a number of the States, having at the time of their adopting the Constitution, expressed a desire, in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of its powers, that further declaratory and restrictive clauses should be added: And as extending the ground of public confidence in the Government, will best ensure the beneficent ends of its institution.
-Preamble to the Bill of Rights
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
-The Second Amendment
People, when talking about the second amendment, you should ALWAYS associate it with the preamble to the Bill of Rights. For it clearly states that the amendments are there to prevent the abuse of Constitutional powers by the government.
Republic vs a Democracy
“Pure democracy” has been described as two wolves and a sheep voting on their dinner plans. The two wolves might see this election as an expression of their highest democratic values, but for the outnumbered sheep, pure democracy is highly problematic.
Raped
and then killed. This is the fate for most targeted women from the ages
of 10 to 40. Those outside will probably just be killed. Do not allow
yourself to be disarmed. Never allow yourself to be disarmed.
On the other hand, a republic has been described as two wolves and a well-armed sheep voting on dinner plans. The well-armed sheep can veto the outcome of the dinner election simply by brandishing its firearm.
About all she has left is her name, which she prefers to keep to herself, and the shocking memories of last July. That's when Serbian troops stormed the northwest Bosnian village of Rizvanovici, and S., a 20-year-old Muslim woman with a ponytail, was rounded up with 400 other women in the yard of a neighbor's house.
Two soldiers, wearing camouflage uniforms and Serbian crosses around their necks, picked S. and her friend I. out of the crowd. "They brought us to an empty house and there they did what they wanted to do," says S. dully. "First we had to excite them and then we had to satisfy them."
Afterward the Serbs traded partners. The girls had been virgins. "They were laughing at us," S. recalls. "They said we were pretty girls and [that] we saved ourselves for them."
Her ordeal didn't end there. After being raped and dumped at the yard, one of the soldiers came back to bring S. to his commander. "He told me to take off my clothes and to lie down on the bed," she says. "Then he did the same thing. He started to kiss and to caress me. He saw that I didn't feel anything.
I looked into his eyes and asked him if he had a wife. He said no. I asked him if he had a sister. He said he had one. Then I said, 'How would your sister feel if somebody did the same thing to her that you are doing to me?' Then he jumped up and told me to get dressed and leave."
S., who now lives in a refugee center in northern Croatia, is a survivor of what may be the most sadistic violence to haunt Europe since the Nazi campaigns: "ethnic cleansing."
Now, on top of documented cases of systematic torture and murder in Bosnia, come charges of a new Serb atrocity-mass rape. No one knows how many victims there are, though estimates range from 30,000 to 50,000 women, most of them Muslim.
In the last few months, a torrent of wrenching first-person testimonies from refugees has emerged, suggesting widespread sexual abuse by Serb forces.
They tell of repeated rapes of girls as young as 6 and 7; violations by neighbors and strangers alike; gang rapes so brutal their victims die; rape camps where Serbs routinely abused and murdered Muslim and Croat women; rapes of young girls performed in front of fathers, mothers, siblings and children; rapes committed explicitly to impregnate Muslim women and hold them captive until they give birth to wanted Serbian babies.
-Newsweek
You do not want to be an unarmed sheep.
“On December 14, we marched from the city to the banks of the Yangtze River … all we could see on the river’s 2,000 or more meter-wide surface was the bodies of men, women, and children, slowly floating like rafts. Looking upriver, more corpses, like mountains, moved toward us in what seemed an endless stream. There must have been at least 50,000. The Yangtze River had become a river of corpses.” This account was given by Japanese veteran Akahoshi Yoshio, from Weeping Yangtze River, a memoir collection by veterans published in Japan.
“In the square about 100 people sat, hands tied behind their backs. In front of them were two freshly dug pits, about five meters square and three meters deep… the soldiers carrying out the executions appeared agitated, their faces manically contorted.” Former military correspondent Sato Shinju so recounted in his book March as Military Correspondent.
-The Rape of Nanking, China Today
The sheep has inherent rights as a sovereign individual, including the right to self-defense, a right that cannot be stripped away by a simple majority vote.
In
Poland, once the Germans captured the areas, they rounded up the
population. They singled out the women, and raped those that they chose,
and killed the rest. The remains were often not buried. Just left above
the ground for the animals to scavenge.
Progressive Presidents in America
So, when a democratically elected American president speaks of “fundamentally transforming” his country, and of his need to act outside the constitutional framework, thepopulation should be on guard.
Obama trying to disarm Americans.
When that leader begins to push for strict new “commonsense and reasonable” gun control laws, including national firearms registration in the name of “public safety,” the citizenry should be on high alert.
“Abou Jihad” is a French Islamic State (or ISIL or ISIS) fighter in
Syria who is one of the main disseminators of IS materials in French.
He is stating openly what mainstream Western media outlets, the United
Nations, and the Islamic State itself have now confirmed, namely, that
the Islamic State is practicing the sexual enslavement of Yazidi and
other non-Muslim women and girls.
Once captured, they can be
raped repeatedly, and then sold off as slaves for sex and housework as
needed. “Abou Jihad: “350 dollars for the Yazidi girl in Mosul if
you want.” was the going rate as of 2014. Two years later, when
Donald Trump become president, and the ISIS lost their funding, support
and intelligence from the Obama Administration, the ISIS organization
collapsed. Need less to say, the progressive liberals view ISIS
activity in Syria to be a “dry run” for what is in store for the
United States.
Most men are killed. This is the historical norm. As is the systematic rape of women.
Serbian military policy has mandated the systematic gang-rape of Muslim and Croatian women and girls, their imprisonment in schools, factories, motels, arenas and concentration camps for ongoing serial rape, rape followed by murder, sexual torture and sexual slavery.
In addition to the estimated 90 concentration camps set up throughout Bosnia, there are more than 20 rape/death camps. Some hold 15 to 25 women and look like brothels; others hold more than 1,000. More than 7,000 women were held as prisoners in a Serbian-run prison-brothel near Brcko in northern Bosnia, and Muslim women are reportedly held in sexual slavery in the Sarajevo suburb of Grbavica. Young girls just reaching puberty appear to be specially designated targets for gang-rape.
-LA Times
The plight of the women and children was often years of rape, sexual
slavery and a life of servitude. Eventually leading to death.
Obama in a speech demanding that Americans be disarmed… “for the children.”
Can any glib politician, pundit or ivory tower academic give us an ironclad guarantee that tyranny will never arise in the United States? Can they? And even if they promised with their hand on their heart, with tears in their eyes, would we… should we… believe them?
Remains of a Bosnian farmer and his son found at the back of his farmhouse. They were shot and dragged into the back yard bushes together while others could enjoy their home, their kitchen and sleep in their beds. The whereabouts of his wife and two teenage daughters are unknown.
Not even a popular tyranny, like those of Ataturk, Stalin, Hitler or Mao? Can anyone assure us that today’s “commonsense” gun registration lists will not be used for future gun confiscation? Of course not.
Stripped nude. Raped, and then killed. This photo was taken the moment the officer shot the woman holding her child.
Gun Toting Citizens
The future may be unknowable, but history is well understood, and American gun owners know and understand the history of democide in the 20th century.
That is why they will never accede to what is currently portrayed in the predominantly left-wing mainstream media as “commonsense and reasonable” new gun control laws. There is NO SUCH THING as reasonable “gun control”. Disarming a person, a family, a people, is an affront to everything that a human being stands for. Do not allow it to happen to you.
The progressive Marxists have no idea what kind of a shit storm they are stirring up. We read the history books, and NO! We do not want to board the trains, and enter the ovens. We know all about the genocidal dreams of the urban progressives.
While American gun owners lament and regret the inescapable fact that deranged individuals in a free country may on rare occasions murder a dozen or a score of unarmed victims, they also understand that government democide murders by the million.
It’s always wholesale slaughter of a hated group of unarmed civilians. What ever you do, do not allow yourself to get caught up in conflicts related to this.
And in every case, tyrants can conduct these democides only after disarming their unwanted minorities, rendering them helpless to resist murderous government pogroms.
...But there does seem to be a widespread pattern of on-the-ground commanders encouraging-or even ordering-their men to rape. The testimonies of so many victims and witnesses, and of some captured Serb perpetrators, have a consistency that cannot be accidental.
"It's hard to believe that all these Serbian men, no matter how animalistic you think human nature is, would suddenly get it in their heads to find a 7-year-old girl and rape her," says the lead State Department researcher.
Rape is an integral part of ethnic cleansing, of eradicating entire areas of their historic Muslim populations through brutal intimidation, expulsion and outright murder. In such Bosnian towns as Brcko, Bjeljina, Kljuc, Sanski Most, Prijedor, Kotor Varos, Zvornik, leading citizens-anyone who owned a business, participated in the Party of Democratic Action, held a university degree-were hunted down and liquidated.
The rest of the male population was packed off to prison camps.
Rape clearly was the coup de grace delivered to tens of mortally wounded towns, a way of ensuring that women would never want to return to their homes.
For 12-year-old Vasvija, the terror began after she was evicted from her village of Jelec in August. During her first night in Partizan Hall, a Serb-run detention camp in the nearby eastern Bosnian town of Foca, two soldiers picked her from among the 70 detainees, all women, children and elderly civilians.
"They brought me to a flat, an empty flat," she says, a single tear running down an otherwise passive face. "They raped me." Both soldiers? "Both."
Over nine consecutive nights, Vasvija endured the same hideous treatment at the hands of different men. Once she was taken out with her mother and another inmate.
They were all raped by the same Serbian soldier. Exchanged on Sept. 17 for Serb prisoners, Vasvija, her siblings and her mother now live in a refugee center near Sarajevo. No one has heard from her father, who was beaten and dragged off to a different prison camp when the Serbs overran Jelec.
-Newsweek
All the unarmed civilians could do was hide, surrender, or run. (As a kind reminder, please take note. The civilian population were disarmed within a year of the Bosnian genocide. Once disarmed, there was nothing preventing the military and militia to do with the civilian population as they wished.)
American gun owners will never permit this historical pattern to be repeated in their country, because they understand that the government’s heavy hand will be kept in check only as long as they are armed.
Here
is an ISIS truck parading captured, and “handed over” females to be
either given to the soldiers, or sold off in the public square as
slaves. This is from Syria, and the girls were most likely handed over
to the “police” to spare their lives. The “police” then processed them
and set them off to the market for their future roles within the
community; sex slaves.
Ask yourself: Were the Armenians, the Jews or the kulaks treated better, or worse, after they were disarmed and rendered helpless by their oppressors, who thereafter held an absolute government monopoly on armed violence?
The answer is too obvious to require elaboration.
Children
rounded up in Syria by the occupation forces. The parents gave them up
because the new government promised to protect them and keep them out
of harm’s way while the war raged. As a result they were sold and
abused. Many died. The “new government” lied.
Low Information Citizens – Sheep
Naive utopians and other “low-information voters” might not understand the historical pattern, and we don’t expect them to bother to learn it. We no longer care about others think. The situation in the United States has become way too dire, and the situation is approaching survival-level seriousness.
The RINO and Washington DC folk, and the Marxists that saturate every governmental and corporate entity in the United States have absolutely no idea what kind of a shit storm will occur if they keep pushing forward on their progressive dream of disarming the “deplorables” in the hinterlands.
We know what happens. We study history.
The body of a Bosnian citizen found in the woods off a side country road. His hands were bound, there is evidence that he was tortured and beaten, and suffered through it all until he was killed.
As recently as ten years ago, the ISIS would employ foot soldiers to go house by house, room by room to collect the civilians for the ISIS to do with them as they pleased. And, they DID do what they pleased. This is what happens in every war, and most especially in every genocide.
...military leaders of the Bosnian Serbs-with low ranking henchmen like Borislav Herak. A 21-year-old Serb laborer from Sarajevo, Herak admits to raping seven Muslim women and to killing two of his victims in addition to the 18 murders to which he has already confessed.
"We were ordered to rape so that our morale would be higher," he says from a military prison in the Bosnian capital. "We were told we would fight better if we raped the women."
He claims that he and fellow soldiers frequented the Sonja Cafe-one of several alleged "rape camps" outside Sarajevo-which maintained a population of 70 Muslim women and girls; those who were killed were quickly replaced.
Entire villages, such as Miljevina in eastern Bosnia, may have been converted to rape camps.
About 100 people, "all young Muslim women and girls, were raped," says a 20-year-old named Aida. Her attacker was Dragan J., a Serb policeman and neighbor, who excused his behavior, she says, on the ground that "'It is war, you can't resist, there is no law and order'."
Rasema, a 33-year-old mother, offers a similar account. She claims that her assailants raped her in front of her two girls. When she resisted, they threatened, "We will cut out your teeth! Do you want us to slaughter your children, to watch us cutting them into pieces, piece after piece?" In his own defense, one attacker told Rasema, "I have to do it, otherwise they will kill me."
-Newsweek
They would search out specific people and took special note to those
which might be armed, or have a high risk of opposition. They would use
lists obtained, compiled and given to them by local people friendly to
their cause.
Usually educated people, business leaders, outspoken independent people, and people who were the victim of petty grudges would be on the list. There would be other, of course. People with a NRA sticker on their car, people who drive pickup trucks. Those whom wear MAGA hats. Those whom eat pork.
Imagine what the list would look like if a feminist millennial were
to compile the list of everyone in the local town where she lived. Who
would be on it? Would you?
American mainstream media telling us “normals” what they fully intend to do with us once they reacquire the reins of power.
Two young Serb deserters, Slobodan Panic and Cvijetin Maksimovic, now being held in a prison in Orasje, Bosnia, told NEWSWEEK they were ordered to rape and murder for the amusement of their commander in Brcko, in northeastern Bosnia, last May.
Panic says he balked when two battered women, each about 18, were brought to him in a room in a warehouse where 500 to 600 civilians were imprisoned. Serb soldiers "Said they'd kill me if I didn't" rape them, he recalls, insisting that he "only did a little" to his screaming victims, not consummating the act.
Three other women were dragged out for the same humiliating display. During these episodes, Panic says, soldiers stood around in a circle and laughed.
Then they hauled two badly beaten Muslim prisoners before Panic and handed him a gun. "I said, 'I can't, they've never done anything to me'," he remembers. "'You have to or else we'll kill you'," Panic says he was told. He shot each man in the chest. Two more male prisoners appeared.
A soldier handed Panic a knife. "Butcher them," he commanded. When Panic protested, the soldier replied, "I'll show you how it's done." Then, holding Panic's hand around the knife handle, he seized the man by the hair, jerked back his head and cut his throat.
Death, at least, brings an end to suffering. Rape victims who became pregnant relive their horror every day. Sofija, a 30-year-old Muslim, was released from a school turned prison camp in the village of Parzevic in mid-September, after being raped every night for six months by five or six different Serb soldiers.
Now she is hiding from her family in a cold Sarajevan hospital, tormented by the thought of the unwanted child growing inside her. "I do not want to see the baby," the mother of two says without emotion. "I will not feed it. I do not want anything to do with it."
Her roommate says that Sofija talks in her sleep every night, debating whether to kill the baby when it arrives in mid-January. Somewhere in Sarajevo are 12 other pregnant women and girls from the same village as Sofija who were similarly raped and held until long past the time for a safe abortion.
Earlier release doesn't guarantee relief: a 1978 Yugoslav law allows gynecologists to perform abortions only up to the 10th week of pregnancy; thereafter, cases are referred to a hospital ethics commission which, in Roman Catholic Croatia, home to 400,000 Bosnian refugees, may be more inclined to put the babies up for adoption.
Rape is the ultimate act in the Serbs' program of annihilation. They have robbed countless civilians of their possessions, their land, their lives and their dignity. Bosnia will be haunted by hundreds, if not thousands, of Serbian children forced on unwilling Muslim mothers.
-Newsweek
The Evil Progressive Cabal
Cynical and dishonest “progressives” who do understand the historical pattern cannot yet reveal their ultimate goal of creating a disarmed and helpless American citizenry.
Nevertheless, millions of Americans understand their hidden aim with crystal clarity, seeing through the false sincerity of power-hungry leftist politicians who are actually Marxist wolves dressed in Democrat sheep’s clothing – for now.
Ideologically
motivated progressive democrat Marxists, mostly from the urban areas
will be armed via prepared caches of weapons, and trained to terrorize
the surrounding communities; to create strife and discord. They will
continue to play “wack a mole” only with your life.
In August 1992 I went to Croatia, which was as close as I could get to Bosnia-Herzegovina. It was there that I met Mirsada, a sixteen year old girl who had been raped.
I will try to keep her in my mind, because I liked her from the moment I met her and I tried to help her, trying not to act pitifully towards her. She had been detained in a concentration camp near Teslic for 4 months with her mother and sister. She was raped approximately 80 times per day.
At the time I met her, she was heavily pregnant (in her sixth month). After she gave birth to a baby girl, she gave it up for adoption and left for Denmark. She never saw her daughter. I never asked her to talk to me about this as I was afraid my interest would appear disrespectful and that it might hurt her.
But once, when we were just sitting and talking, she told me that when she was in the concentration camp she was not allowed to sleep because the soldiers would constantly come for her, never giving her the time or space to sleep. This was the first time that the situation in which this girl and many other women found themselves really became clear and close to me.
-Biserinternational
Systematic
rapes. I guess that this would NEVER happen in the USA. After all,
there are elected representatives that have the best interests of
Americans at heart. </sarcasm> Listen to me. Really. Honestly.
Listen to me. Do not allow yourself to be disarmed. Never allow yourself
to be disarmed.
But unless and until these secret Stalinists and sundry other “progressives” can figure out a way to disarm Americans, they cannot execute their historically standard final solution to the “reactionaries-standing-in-the-way-of-utopia” problem.
Indeed, this is a thorny problem for them, because tens of millions of Americans, disbelieving their deceitful bromides, will stick to their guns no matter what.
Raped.
Killed, and chopped up. Do not allow yourself to be disarmed. Never
allow yourself to be disarmed. Please take notice that every one has
their hands tied behind their backs. Do not allow this to happen to you.
When America was first founded NO ONE allowed the British Red Coats and
their LOYALISTs to tie their hands behind their backs.
Unlike the Armenians, Jews, kulaks and other exterminated peoples, Americans who support the Second Amendment will never be disarmed quietly by government edict prior to meekly boarding a train to a socialist “reeducation” camp.
They will not be taken at government gunpoint on a one-way forced march into a desert or a Zyklon-B “delousing shower,” simply because they foolishly agreed to be disarmed by their future oppressors in the dubious name of “public safety.”
When
a progressive liberal socialist government takes control, one of the
first things that they do is silence all the opposition. They do so
permanently.
If American “progressives” truly intend to disarm the American people, they will have to do it the hard way, by taking their bullets first, one at a time.
We WILL NOT ALLOW YOU TO DISARM US. NEVER.
Because we know what you will do to us. You tell us this all the time. We are not asleep, we are listening, and we are taking your threats against us, our families, and our society very, very seriously.
Ever
see this image before? Why not? This is the face of war! And people,
America has been at war with a minimum of at least one nation per year.
Today it is fighting eight wars. Well, this is what happens during war.
It is not pretty. Do not allow yourself to be disarmed. Never allow
yourself to be disarmed.
What Can We Do To Stop Democide?
The most practical thing that we can each do is promote the importance of individual freedoms. Most importantly the Right of self-defense. In America this means the second amendment to the Constitution that is enshrined in the Bill of Rights.
"... The Conventions of a number of the States, having at the time of their adopting the Constitution expressed a desire in order to prevent misconstruction or abuse of its powers, that further declaratory and restrictive clauses should be added: And as extending the ground of public confidence in the Government will best ensure the beneficent ends of its institution. "
-Preamble to the Bill of Rights
"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."
-The 2nd Amendment to the Bill of Rights
When humans have rights that are associated with those freedoms, it begins to take the power and control away from the governments and put it into the hands of the people being governed.
As it was the original intention of the United States Constitution before it was “improved” by rich bankers, and idealistic progressives.
Not… not…
Anything resembling what the progressive Marxist socialists have planned… and which CLEARLY looks like it is heading our way now.
It is going to get a lot worse, and serious action steps must be taken to avoid the train wreck that is destined to occur.
Execution
of the last jew in a German city. Once the progressive socialists start
to demonize another group or people, they will not stop until EVERY ONE
IS DEAD. they will not stop. They will not stop. They will not stop.
They will not stop.
What if we disarm, what then?
Well… for one thing, don’t get caught up in the normalcy bias.
The normalcy bias, or normality bias, is a belief people hold when considering the possibility of a disaster. It causes people to underestimate both the likelihood of a disaster and its possible effects, because people believe that things will always function the way things normally have functioned.
This may result in situations where people fail to adequately prepare themselves for disasters, and on a larger scale, the failure of governments to include the populace in its disaster preparations. About 70% of people reportedly display normalcy bias in disasters.[1]
-Wikipedia
The very moment that Americans are disarmed will be the beginning of mass genocide of the White population.
After all, this is America. No one is going to initiate genocide in America. It’s a free land of happiness and contentment. Right?
Right?
We
know what will happen. It has been well documented. People will be
collected. They will be rounded up into urban areas, or centers. The men
will be separated out from the group. They will be led to an isolated
area, a cellar, a warehouse, a cluster of tree, an area behind a
bulldozer. They will then be held down by two people and shot dead.
Washington Post opinion writer Jennifer Rubin appeared on MSNBC's "AM Joy" Sunday and said that not only does Trump have to lose in 2020, but there must be a purging of "survivors" who still support the commander-in-chief.
"It's not only that Trump has to lose, but that all his enablers have to lose," she said. "We have to collectively, in essence, burn down the Republican Party."
"We have to level them because if there are survivors — if there are people who weather this storm, they will do it again."
- Nick Givas at Fox News, about the 2020 national election
Your freedom, if you wait, will be short lived.
Progressive Marxist plans for when they obtain the reins of power. Only this time, it will be forever.
This is a collection of my posts related to prepping, SHTF (Shit Hit The Fan), CWII (American Civil War 2), Fourth Turning (Strauss–Howe generational theory)
and other posts related to the very sad and sorry tatters that America
is today. Actually, I am a little stunned that I have written so much
about these matters. But America today is very ill and there are things
that really should be said.
Here are the posts.
SHTF and Related Index
Other Blogs that you all should visit.
These blogs and sites have better information than I every could
compile. These people are experts in personal survival and preparedness.
I recommend them wholeheartedly.
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.
Well, it’s been (almost) three solid years into the Donald Trump Presidency and not one treasonous criminal action has been punished. Not one. ZERO. Zilch. Na-da.
Take for example when Hillary Clinton literally laughed out loud at a question about her email investigation — had to wipe her eyes, she laughed so hard. She laughed at us, at America, for being so clueless as to think she’d ever answer to our laws.
And she’s still laughing, because she’s right: she’s untouchable. The consensus is that even though we know that the first email investigation was rigged by the FBI to clear Hillary, no one will reopen the case.
-Cold Fury at hold your breath.
Nope. All we (the people) have are promises. Promises that someday, at some time, all the 5d machinations of the DOJ will “get to the bottom” of things. They’re “experts” don’t ya know. Don’t ya know.
Promises.
You know, like all those promises that the government has given us year, after year. Year after year. Promising to make changes. Promising to fix potholes. Promising to do things. But doing nothing.
Promises.
Same old. Same old.
Watching FBI agent Peter Strzok battle with Congress, my initial reaction was pure anger.
His repeated, arrogant insistence that he had done nothing wrong despite tons of evidence to the contrary convinced me he deserved immediate firing — if not the firing squad.
Gradually, though, anger gave way to amazement as Strzok grew increasingly combative and condescending. Given his predicament, the sneering and smirking were stupid, and yet he persisted.
Who is this jerk, I wondered, and how in the hell did he get to be a big shot at the FBI? And why are taxpayers still paying for the privilege of his malignant presence on the FBI payroll?
My answers can be summarized in four names: James Comey, Jeff Sessions, Rod Rosenstein and Christopher Wray. They are chief culprits in the death of public trust in the Department of Justice.
-Michael Goodwin
Meanwhile, those who have committed the most blatant abuses of their offices in the history of the world, are walking free in their mansions, and enjoying the “good life”. They are still on the media networks. They are still cavorting with “our betters”. They are still eating expensive steaks and drinking high-end Chardonnay. They are still cavorting with the rich and famous. They are still behaving like they always have.
They are rubbing their privilege in our faces.
Real privilege is begin able to avoid getting arrested when you break laws. Real privilege is knowing that you are immune from the Justice system, and that you can do what ever you want in life and no one will lift a finger against you.
Blatantly.
Real privilege is killing a threat in public. While in Federal custody, and having all the guards asleep, the cameras turned off, and the documents erased.
Real privilege is doing it blatantly, in an "in your face" assault, with zero consequences.
The pure audacity and brazenness of these crimes are mind blowing and staggering in their audaciousness.
They are doing so because they know there isn’t a FU@KING THING that we can do about it. We are powerless, and our illustrious president; Donald Trump is actually powerless to stop them.
Real privilege is operating in the open, in public, where everyone knows that you have this privilege.
Powerless.
Full of hot air.
Every day, it seems more and more likely that Donald Trump is just a clown to entertain us "normal's" with the hope for change, when in all actuality, nothing substantive is getting resolved.
I give you my word!
Now, do not misunderstand.
Oh, for certain, he has done some good works. Yes he has. Yes, he is miles ahead of any other Republican President, including Ronald Reagan.
But…
But…
It’s all fun and games. The expression on all those “Holier than thou” smug (in your face) progressive Marxists is precious. And, yes, I do enjoy sitting down with a big bowl of popcorn and watch their heads explode.
But Trump is NOT doing the dirty and nasty work that he needs to do…
Getting us out of the eight wars (x8) that we are currently fighting. There is no reason at all for us to be fighting and dying in Yemen. None.
Elimination of those progressively-armed Federal Agencies; IRS, ATF, FDA, EPA, and for certain FBI and the DOJ. They are now armed military forces with their own law-making branches, their own judicial branches, and their own processes. All of which lie OUTSIDE our elected Congressional representatives. They police, and enforce, the two-tiered justice system.
Arresting and trials, with death sentences for treasonous activity…
It’s a treasonous bunch for certain, but nothing is getting done.
It appears, by all substantive measure, that AG Barr is just as ineffective as AG Sessions was. "Ineffective" is a polite word for "corrupt".
Ah. The Progressive globalist oligarch cabal.
Their crimes vary from committing outright treason, stealing and embezzling millions (if not billions) of dollars, and cover-ups at an extraordinary scale. All these people should have been left hanging from a scaffolding with back hoods over their heads.
Yet nothing has happened.
As much as I admire Trump for taking on the wild beast that the United States has become, the fact remains that serious action MUST occur to slay the lawless oligarchy that rules our nation. Unless that is taken cared of, everything will subside and revert back to the gallop of rampant progressive Marxism.
Our patience has worn thin. We are no longer the hopeful, wide eyed people we once were. We can see the evil straight up. We know the score, and no media spin, or RINO-conservative article is going to change our assessment.
Comey got the last laugh. He is above the law. He earned that by keeping the Clintons above the law.
- From Don Surber
How about greed for personal gain. How about treason for personal gain. How about murder for personal gain. How about coverup for personal gain.
One quibble: I met Randy Weaver at a Knob Creek Machine Gun Shoot one year, and spent about an hour hanging out and casually conversing with him. At NO point did he strike me as an “outspoken white separatist”; white separatist he may have been, which is not a crime (yet).
But he wasn’t an “outspoken” anything at all. He was instead very quiet and humble—almost diffident, really. The one thing that stood out most about him was how deeply he was still haunted by FBI scumwad Horiuchi’s wanton, vicious murder of his entire family.
Weaver’s grief over their execution by federal death-squad was still as raw and agonizing as if it had been fresh, several years after his own despotic government inflicted it on him.
I hadn’t known of Barr’s sordid history before, but it does clearly establish one thing: the very idea of him ever ensuring justice against Deep State coup d’état plotters is no better than wholly ludicrous.
That Barr would defend such an outrage against all decency and humanity as the FUSA government’s murder of unarmed and innocent civilians at Ruby Ridge—a youth shot in the back as he fled the monstrous agents of a monstrous tyranny; his dog killed for no purpose other than to terrorize him; his mother sniped from hiding as she committed the heinous crime of standing in the doorway of her own home with her infant child in her arms—puts paid to that nonsense.
-Cold Fury. Put no faith in the stalwart AG Barr. He's a deep swamp plant.
They should have been arrested, incarcerated, and hung until dead. That didn’t happen, and now it seems that Barr is just another Sessions. It’s all a dog-and-pony show,
This "investigation" into the treason of the Deep State is proving to be the equivalent of a 25-month pregnancy, and counting.
- From Col. B. Bunny at Liberty's Torch
It’s all a fraud
One of the features of the current year is the regular reminder that western style democracy is a complete fraud. According to the political class, democracy allows for public policy to reflect the will of the people. The parties put forward candidates offering various policy proposals and the public signals their preferences by voting for one or the other candidates. The winners then set about trying to implement the policies they proposed. That’s how we’re told representative democracy works.
In reality, nothing like this happens. Instead, the parties put on a show for the voters, rarely intending to actually do what they claim. Instead, they manufacture differences between one another, so they can pretend the choice before the voters is stark. Once the election is over, the politicians go back to living their lives of leisure, waiting for instructions from the people who actually run things. The politicians are like robot actors, brought out for elections, then put back in storage.
The obvious example of this is the most recent American presidential election in which Donald Trump scored a stunning upset on the promise to reduce immigration, crackdown in illegal immigration and address the gross inequality resulting from globalization. So far, none of that has been done. Instead, he spent most of his presidency fighting a seditious coup to get him out of office. In fact, Trump’s three years are pretty much what Jeb Bush promised when he was running in the 2016 primary.
-The Z man Blog
Before…
Russian oligarchy prior to the 1916 October revolution. Most, if not all, of the people in this photograph were killed, or fled the country to safe havens elsewhere.
After…
We
know what will happen. It has been well documented. People will be
collected. They will be rounded up into urban areas, or centers. The men
will be separated out from the group. They will be led to an isolated
area, a cellar, a warehouse, a cluster of tree, an area behind a
bulldozer. They will then be held down by two people and shot dead.
Well, were the criminals arrested?
But, that didn’t happen did it? Nope. Instead what did we get? We got a media onslaught of a “Russian Narrative”. We got trade wars that increased the prices of our purchases, and we got a promise with more wars “down the pipe”. The latest being with Iran.
Meanwhile in America, in the “heartland”, we are arrested and incarcerated for the slightest offense. It’s really sad and alarming to the most wide-eyed believer.
This is what is called a “two-tied” ,”unequal“, or “Medieval” Justice system. Hell would freeze over before the likes of Louis Learner would be arrested for anything resembling jaywalking.
The Joke Police are looking to strip Dave Chappelle of his speech rights, which once again proves we are coming to a decision point in this country. That’s what this whole godforsaken Woke Crusade boils down to — a choice, and the choice is this: Are we going to allow ourselves to become second class citizens in our own country? Are we going to allow far-left activists and their allies in the media, Silicon Valley, and Hollywood to bully us into creating a two-tiered class system?
- Great little slice of outrage from John Nolte.
Two-tiered Justice System.
Heck! Hillary Clinton could be filmed stabbing an illegal migrant to death in the town square with hundreds of onlookers, and the news media would report that Donald Trump did it.
What we get is “bread crumbs”. A monthly feed of hope…
Hope…
But, people… Hope is not actionable by itself.
People, a two tiered justice system is not sustainable.
Two Tiered Justice
If you have one set of laws for the members of the government and another set for everyone else, you are not being governed, you are being ruled.
- SteveF, comment at Daily Pundit, via Cold Fury
And this quote…
“How do I recognize that the SHTF is very close?”
One of as closest answers possible to give there is this: “You know it is close when people stop worrying about repercussions (punishment from the law and the system).”
-Organic Prepper
Yeah, and this…
Then as now, the pleasant skin of “Yay, democracy!” has been sloughed off to reveal the naked sinews of power and wealth and violence beneath. There’s no crisis like there was in 2008. The world isn’t ending like it was in 2008. But I’m telling you that it feels the same to me.
They’re. Not. Even. Pretending. Anymore.
-Epsilon Theory
Give him some time…
The conservative argument is always “give it some time”. “It’s a big mess and Donald Trump is only one lone man.”
Yes. I get that.
But we don’t have all day. We do not have an unlimited amount of time. We have THIS window. Maybe another four years. Maybe…
Maybe…
Yes, there are things that need to be put into place. I get that…
Prerequisites for draining the swamp.
The thing is that there just isn’t a lot of time.
There really isn’t.
You either do things NOW, or accept the fact that they will never get done.
Don’t believe me? Well then do some comparisons…
Obama implementation of ACA ObamaCARE … months.
Obama giving 7 billion dollars to South Africa … weeks.
Wilson in the formation of the Federal Reserve … months.
Arrest, trial, sentencing and execution for Lincoln’s death … months.
Meanwhile…
Arrest, trial, sentencing for contemporaneous treason … years
Don’t you all see that there is something seriously wrong here? Don’t you see that time IS AN ISSUE?
Don’t piss on my leg and tell me it is raining.
Lewis Powell Payne 2. A UNIQUE INSIGHT into the Civil War Confederates has been brought to light in the form of rare photographs that have been enriched with colour. The authentically colourised pictures depict the tragic circumstances of the war with two dead men lying on the ground in Maryland, USA; a confederate buried and a federal unburied. Other photos include a portrait of American confederate soldier and commander of the Confederates States of America, Robert Edward Lee, and Lewis Powell Payne, who conspired with John Wilkes Booth to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln, leaning against a wall. Further images expose the aftermath of the war with a confederate soldier in Petersburg, Virginia, lying lifelessly on the ground with blood on his face. The vintage photographs were carefully colourised by CEO, Mads Madsen (23), from Horsens, Denmark, who spent between 12 to 14 hours to colourise the pictures of the dead men at Dunker Church and Antietam alone. Mads Madsen / mediadrumworld.com
Meanwhile
Yeah. Meanwhile, it’s the same old. Same old.
It’s nearing the next election cycle. They know how to predict our behavior. They know how to manipulate us. They know what buttons to push.
They are following the same old tired formula. They are expecting us to react in the same old tired manner.
Who cares what conservatives do, say, or think anymore? They didn't conserve America. They didn't conserve the ladies room. They couldn't even conserve the two human sexes!
- Vox Day at Vox Popoli
They are expecting to move us “normals” to pull the lever to whomever they want us to.
You know strike at the curtain, not at the man behind the curtain. Fight and get all worked up with the political hot-button items of the day. From “Red Flag” laws, to “global warming”, to LGBT bathrooms.
Vote to make a difference.
No one, of course, no one is talking about the REAL issues.
That is the sustainability of an oligarchy under the guise of a democracy / partial republic. No one is talking about this. For they, the Kingly rulers, believe that they have sufficiently dumbed down the populace to a point where we are unaware of their crimes and their manipulations.
They are chomping at the bit, as all this has been in the works for a century at least and it is just about ready for fruition. All they need is to disarm a large enough segment of the population. If they can’t do it overtly, they will do it covertly though “red flag” laws, and when that happens, it will just be a matter of months before they can exert full dictatorial control.
As if they don't have it already.
People, if you can get arrested in your own yard for making and selling lemonade, you ARE living in a dictatorship. If you have to pee in a cup to get a job, you are living in a dictatorship. If you need to undress to your underwear to board a plane, take a train, or travel you are living in a dictatorship.
It’s just a matter of months.
Voting?
Elections provide the illusion of control.
However, every study conducted on this issue has proven that the issues that matter to the voting public are not what the fellows in Washington DC promote. They have a totally different agenda.
Americans in America today. Many on drugs. Many unemployed or underemployed. Many getting their information from questionable sources.
It is a globalist agenda and they follow the money path and directions from the global oligarchy.
Today, we are fighting PROXY wars in the Middle East. Not because mainstream Americans demand that we fight Yemen to protect our "interests", but rather because it is what the donors to our political class desire.
Sometimes, in a once in a century event, a candidate will be elected (like Donald Trump) that will try to do the “right thing”, and who will make the hard and the difficult choices.
But, what if all the people that he has to work with are corrupt? What if they do not answer to their constituents simply because they are not beholding to them. What if they don’t need to try?
What then?
Broken electoral system.
Knowledge is power
It should be clear enough for everyone that the “Deep State” is far larger and far more powerful than any citizen voted initiative, even when it is the President of the United States. There is nothing that we can do about it. We can only react to it. There are three options.
Except accept our fate, fight back, or flee.
We crossed the Rubicon.
We must now accept our fate. As well as how it will develop in the next few years, or…
We need to jump ship. Escape while it is still possible. Just like the multimillionaire software oligarchs are doing. Or…
We need to fight and take back what is ours.
Face the facts. Face it. Our nation is a full-on oligarchy, run like the most evil and corrupt mob organization ever conceived.
Meanwhile, us citizens are treated like dirt. We are the money-cows that have zero rights and are ear-marked for the gulag as soon as a Progressive Democrat gets control of the armed forces. You know this is true, or do I need to provide links and data to convince you all?
They have already nullified key sections of the Bill of Rights. Since when can any Congress make any law infringing upon any of the Rights within the Bill of Rights? Or, do you think that everything will magically reverse and go away?
Read this letter…
They have already nullified key sections of the Bill of Rights. Since when can any Congress make any law infringing upon any of the Rights within the Bill of Rights? Or, do you think that everything will magically reverse and go away? Negating the Bill of Rights.
Be Sensible
Here is my attempt to talk you, the reader, out of dangerous violent action.
Most conservatives are sitting tight and looking around trying to see what other conservatives are doing. Then, they plan to take action themselves. No one wants to make the first move. They are waiting on the mainstream American news media to somehow report on other traditional conservatives taking action…
The thing is that the American mainstream media controls information dissemination.
American mainstream media controls information dissemination.
There is no way to know positively if other conservatives are taking hard action. Thus, as a result you risk becoming the lone “gun man” who is disturbing the tranquility of “our republic”.
Listen to me.
War is ugly.
People die. Including you, your friends, your family and your loved ones.
It should be avoided at all costs.
People get tortured, and sadness abounds.
Dying ain’t much of a living.
If you are truly unhappy with the way things are today, then leave the United States.
If you are unhappy, but do not want to hurt anyone, just lie low and hunker down. Go with the flow. Do what everyone else is doing. Accept things as they are, and hope that your children will turn things around.
Violence is a last resort item that will probably get YOU KILLED. Heed my words.
…
Let’s take a breather and look at our options. There are three, and only three options.
[1] – Protect your own.
Option one. You can, if you wish, to accept servitude and slavery. There is no shame in that. As the saying goes in North Korea…
"It's better to be miserable than dead."
That’s fine. I’m sure that is your deep desire. Let it all blow over, and some day everything will change. Most (so called) Conservatives will accept this reality. My guess is that 94% will.
Pretend that some day it will all go away.
Think about other things. Think about your family. Think about your career. Think about your favorite sport team.
It was the summer of 1996, early June, and I was teaching a course at Simmons College in Boston to make some extra dough. Jennifer was clerking for a lawfirm down in Dallas, pregnant with our first child.
My dad called. He and my mom were in London, where they had rented a small flat for a month. Did I want to come over and stay for a few days?
As it happened, I had five days free, perfect for a long weekend trip. I walked down to a cheapo travel agency on Boylston (yes, a physical travel agency), and found a ticket for $600 or thereabouts.
Seemed like a lot. I could have afforded it, by which I mean there was room on my credit card to buy it, not that I could really afford it. $600 was a lot of money to me.
That said, I hadn’t seen my parents since Christmas, and my dad sounded so … happy. This was a special trip for them, a chance to LIVE in a city that my father LOVED, and this was my chance to share it with them. But $600. I dunno.
I called my father and told him that I just couldn’t swing it. He understood. He was a very practical guy. The call lasted all of 20 seconds. You know, international long distance being so expensive and all.
I never saw my father again. He died a few weeks after he and my mother got home.
You must make the choices in life that mean a lot to you.
My cat taught me this trick; “Life is hard. Then you nap.”
Up until now, this has been the status quo for most of America and most certainly for most Conservatives, and “normals”. We have accepted our lot. We don’t like it, but we accept it.
We pay our taxes.
We don’t protest when the government is out of control.
We accept the fact that we must undress to travel.
We shrug off the latest restrictions on our freedom.
We have adapted to the chains around our wrists, and the shackles on our legs.
The spunk is beaten out of us.
This is true though many do not want to admit it. Listen up! Here is the harsh truth…
Let me tell you that it’s only going to get worse. It’s going to get a whole lot worse. But maybe you can survive. Ride the waves, so to speak.
There are a lot of sick and perverse people around us. We are simply not seeing them. They are waiting for the SHTF.
- Selco at Organic Prepper
Ride the waves.
Accept your place in the world.
American mainstream media telling us “normals” what they fully intend to do with us once they reacquire the reins of power.
This is what the United States government wants you to do.
It is what the progressive liberals want you to do.
This is what the American mainstream media wants you to do.
This is what the “deep state” wants you to do.
This is what the “swamp in Washington DC” wants you to do.
This is also probably what your friends and family want you to do as well. It’s a female trait; safety over freedom. Even if that safety is probably going to be short lived.
Washington Post opinion writer Jennifer Rubin appeared on MSNBC's "AM Joy" Sunday and said that not only does Trump have to lose in 2020, but there must be a purging of "survivors" who still support the commander-in-chief.
"It's not only that Trump has to lose, but that all his enablers have to lose," she said. "We have to collectively, in essence, burn down the Republican Party."
"We have to level them because if there are survivors — if there are people who weather this storm, they will do it again."
- Nick Givas at Fox News, about the 2020 national election
Your freedom, if you wait, will be short lived.
Progressive Marxist plans for when they obtain the reins of power. Only this time, it will be forever.
Option two. Alternatively, you can do what I did. Leave. My guess that a small minority will join me, but you all had best consider this option. Time is fleeting and the window of opportunity is closing.
It’s not a comfortable option. You must discard most of your belongings. Move away from all you know and love. Lose your support network, your friends and your family.
You will need to embrace a new place, a new culture, a new society and a new way of doing things and living life. You might need to learn a new language, take up a new occupation, and live at a standard of life that you are not accustomed to. Are you up to it?
Yup.
That’s right. You can leave.
Leave America.
Doug Casey quote.
It’s no longer my business who gets rich and who suffers in the USA. It’s one big enormous cluster f@ck and I want no part of it. Not at all. I really do not want to get embroiled in any kind of spitting match between progressive and traditional nationalists.
Not.
My.
Problem.
When you get older in life, you learn that there are some things worth fighting for, and other things that are important to you. You learn to pick and choose your battles selectively. You know what is important, and what hasn’t a hope in Hell in occurring.
So you make decisions based on YOUR own personal circumstances.
In my case, for me, it’s one of moving to a freer nation. One where I can live life on my very own terms. And let others battle the mess that the United States is today.
Maybe I cannot get a bagel or an authentic NY Style slice of pizza, but I sure can get other things just as wonderful.
For those of you who would prefer to live to a grand old age, and have no desire to observe blood spilled, I would advise you to leave America. I would advise you all taking some immediate actions to secure a safe-haven and protect you and yours from the encroaching darkness.
Life is far too short to get killed, watch your family suffer through hardship or endure a life crippled.
Do what I did, and flee.
Spicoli telling it like it is. Wars and strife are for younger idealistic mean to deal with. Old grizzly coots like myself would rather stay far from all the strife and life the rest of our life in peace. While it is impossible to find the best island to hide upon, we can make reasonable choices and hunker down for the protracted shit-storm that is about to be unleashed.
That's what many Jews did in the 1930's when Hitler rose to power. Some made it to the USA, but only a few. Some made it to Shanghai, and there they huddled in their enclaves while the war waged around them. While others went next door to Poland. But that didn't help them at all.
Call me a coward, if you will.
While the USA goes through the “big reset”, I will be out here, minding my own business. I will not need to fight, or witness atrocities. And I will be safe.
The days of the United States fighting a three or four year long war are long over. Today, the United States fights long-duration decade-long wars that never end.
Instead of the second American Civil War (CWII) being over in a short period of time (like the first American Civil War), it might be prolonged for decades.
Decades, or even longer. Maybe something resembling the Palestine vs. Israel conflict. The "forever" war.
Are you willing to permit you and your family to endure that?
Instead, I will be surrounded by people who will not be affected by anything going on in the USA. Just like youse guys aren’t affected by anything going on in Lusaka, Zambia. Just like your family is not affected by what is going on in Spain right now. Or Singapore. Or Taipei.
When you live in another nation, it’s a different world, and I’m doing just fine, thank you.
Outside of the USA, everything is just fine.
Call me what ever names you want. I just do not want to be either a slave or embroiled in the SHTF CWII, Fourth Turning that is gathering momentum in America today.
And, make no mistake, it is gathering momentum.
While I had hope that the election of Donald Trump would reverse and undo the damage of progressive Marxism, he has not.
He has failed.
Hey! Instead of tweeting about buying Greenland, how about shutting down the ATF, or at least downsizing it... severely.
Outside the United States, everything is just fine.
Yes. Donald Trump.
He’s done some nice things, and he’s a hoot to listen to, but he’s not doing the real hard and uncomfortable things that need to be tasked.
It's as if the United States is a big car wreck. With broken windows, flat tires, a fire in the engine, with wounded and dying people inside. And Donald Trump, is well, washing the rear view mirror instead of tending to the damage and the destruction that urgently needs his attention.
A great example of that is former AG Jeff Sessions and his war on medical marijuana instead of prosecuting for treason. It's the same thing. Just different personalities.
Donald Trump has failed to reverse the century of Progressive ideology and oligarchy control. He has not undone the mistakes of Wilson, and FDR. Nor has he taken affirmative action to restore liberty crashed by Bush, Clinton and Obama. America is just treading water.
Realize that, and take appropriate action.
[3] – Go on the offensive.
Option three. The “into the black” option.
I’m not moping around waiting to die. I’m not lazing around eating bonbons. The present is for DOING. The present is FLEETING. I’ve got something to SAY before I go. I’ve got a future to SECURE for my children, because in them I can still see future’s promise and not just future’s threat.
-Epsilon Theory
Do not misunderstand. Just because I am quiet and kind, does not mean that I am incapable of being entirely and dangerously violent.
Disclaimer.
It is natural to fight for freedom and liberty. That being said, it is ugly, ugly business and should only be undertaken as a last resort. You should not go about it cavalierly. You need to plan and strike with maximum effectiveness at the root causes, the generals and the masterminds of those who are sealing your freedom.
You can, if you wish to stay, go on the offensive and fight back. (As the saying goes; Be a man gosh-darn it!) Though, you must realize that you are taking a big and dangerous risk. Be careful.
The Stoner 63. This was exactly the kinds of weapons that the founders intended the people to arm themselves with. Not single-shot .22 round BB pellets.
You are only a single person and the problems going on in America are far to large and deep for a single person to handle. You know this, right?
However…
However, regionally, YOU can make a difference.
Warning: If you are reading this then this warning is for you. Every word you read of this useless fine print is another second off your life. Don’t you have other things to do? Is your life so empty that you honestly can’t think of a better way to spend these moments? Or are you so impressed with authority that you give respect and credence to all that claim it? Do you read everything you’re supposed to read? Do you think everything you’re supposed to think? Buy what you’re told to want? Get out of your apartment. Meet a member of the opposite sex. Stop the excessive shopping and masturbation. Quit your job. Start a fight. Prove you’re alive. If you don’t claim your humanity you will become a statistic. You have been warned.
- Chuck Palahniuk, “Fight Club” (1996)
Regionally… locally… YOU can make a difference.
Regionally.
Locally.
Contrary to the Mainstream media narrative, conservatives, and traditional patriots do not strike out at innocents. We are not progressives who want to shoot up a elementary school, run down people on a sidewalk, or shoot up a Walmart. Nope.
No.
We only fight as a last resort.
However, when we fight, we aim at the target, and we do our best to hit that target. And we do not care how we do it.
You will know when real conservatives are taking action. It won’t be a school full of innocents shot up. No. It will be a counsel member, a congressman, or a labor leader strung up and lynched. It could be a university professor, a member of the mainstream media management, or a software mogul.
We study. We prepare. We plan. Then, we hit where it matters the most. When playing chess, we go after the King and The Queen. We don’t bother with the pawns.
We go after leadership.
Make sure that your entire family is properly trained in the use of firearms.
The progressive liberal cabal, and their RINO enablers, treat Americans as animals. Like cattle and that they can ratchet up the intensity of their progressive agenda slowly without worry of a backlash. They view this entire matter; the adjustment towards progressive Marxism as a giant rheostat.
However traditional conservatives do not look at things that way. We look at it as an on/off switch. We are petrified that it might go to on. But if it does, we will NOT have any mercy. It will be a real bloody nightmare.
The conservative populace will target the progressive leadership in precise surgical attacks. Avoid the innocent. Hit those singular individuals that run the oligarchy in your region. Do not waste your time on the little guys. Target those in charge. Then go down the list and hit their enablers.
Ai! And it’s certainly a target-rich environment.
Target Rich environment.
Operational Zone
In the map below you can easily identify where you live and what social-geographic region that you inhabit. That is your operational zone.
Select your operational zone.
Compile a target list.
Plan each one thoroughly.
America’s cultural enclaves. America is not a homogeneous society. It is a collection of social-economic regions. America’s cultural enclaves. (Image Source)
You need to [1] identify the progressives that live within that area, you need to [2] identify the enclaves of the wealthy and [3] their points of egress, such as small regional airports. You need to identify [4] bridges and [5] choke-points and [6] you need to target those enemies of Liberty…
The Marxist cabal.
Operational Plans
Go after the key and central figures that are running the Marxist plan and take them down. (One George Soros is equivalent to 10,000 social justice warriors. ) Do not waste your time on the enablers, and the vast bulk of society. Do not hurt innocents, or the misinformed. Protect where possible, but stick to your mission parameters.
A word of caution.
If this is your preferred avenue of approach, and I have been unable to talk you out of it, then take the necessary precautions.
1. Go "X-ray" leading up to any action. Zero internet. Zero cell phone. Zero electronics. Communicate face to face or not at all. There is an over-reliance on electronic communication monitoring systems. In war, you go full X-ray.
2. Tell no one what your plans are. No one. Not even your dog. Missions are secret, for a reason.
3. Leave no records, or justification of your actions. They should speak for themselves. You do not need to hope for death and leave some kind of manifesto to prove yourself. You are not some ego deprived, basket head-case. You do not need to justify your actions.
4. If you want to target a person, consider other means aside from (noisy and easy to trace) firearms. For "surgical" strikes, nothing beats poison, radiation or "accidents". Remember Antonin Scalia. It's worked great for the progressive cabal. Adopt their strategy.
5. Any target worth your effort will be protected. Either by personal surveillance, guards, or other means. If not, then they are just plain foolish in their arrogance.
6. Threaten no one. Avoid arguments. Be as low-key and innocuous as possible. Be the Scarlet Pimpernel.
With that understood by most of the readers here, I’m sure you can all see how these RFL (Red Flag Laws) may eventually become the confiscation we’ve been warned about all along. RFL allow the state to use almost any reason they desire to go to your home, enter it and take your firearms away from you. All they have to do is justify it to themselves.
Make an angry, politically-charged Facebook post? A RFL can be used to confiscate your guns. It has happened.
Make a Twitter post that “authorities” interpret as being Islamophohic? A RFL can be used to confiscate your guns. It has happened.
You get in an argument with your woman and piss her off? A RFL can be used to confiscate your guns. It has happened.
Spare me the talking points on the legal limits of RFL at the present time. All they needed to do for now is get the laws into place. Rest assured they will be administratively and bureaucratically tweaked and adjusted so that it gets EASIER for the boys wearing the Oakleys to kick your door in, and those bureaucratic and administrative tweaks will make it harder and more expensive for you to get your guns back. Assuming that you ever get them back at all.
RFL are the tool that willll be used to get guns away from anyone and everyone that those in charge don’t want to have them.
All the talk that’s been had in your group about being quiet about your guns… Put that into action now. Ditch the NRA stickers, stop the good old boys gun discussions down at the local watering hole, remove the vanity pics from Facebook (why do you still have FB?). No one needs to know about your guns if they don’t live in your house. It won’t be easy to change those habits, but it’s time now.
The legal framework for taking your guns away simply for being a wrong-thinker is in place. The local Kommissar has his eyes open and the police will follow their orders to knock on your door when they get the order.
-American Partisan
Study Materials
Anything worth doing is worth doing well. If you are going to sit and stay put and be passive, then put on the “neutral” camouflage and go with the flow. If you are going to flee, then prep and make the leap. And, of course, if you are going to strike against the progressive cabal study.
If you are desirous of taking matters into your own hands, be realistic about it. It will not be like any television show, or movie that you have watched. It will be up front and personal. It will NOT go the way you planned, and it will NOT be pleasant.
Think. Think very carefully if you really want to do this. Bugging out and high-tailing it to a foreign land is a much easier and less risky thing to do.
In the early stages of SHTF, the government will still be functional and they will have the resources to track you down and kill you dead. Realize this. They will protect their elite members and protected classes of people and will strike back harshly at you and yours… their inferiors.
Realize it, and take the appropriate measures.
Advantage lies in secrecy, surprise, planning, and backup plans. Trust no one. Plan on the worst possible outcome, and keep frosty and alert.
War is not like a video game. It is up front, in your face and personal. You had best steel yourself for this reality if you are even going to contemplate fighting and hurting others. It’s nasty, nasty business. It really is.
If you are not ready to kill someone with a knife, up close and personal, then you are not ready to do anything. Option three is not for you. You should reconsider options one or two.
Life isn’t fair. Deal with it.
When one anonymous phone call can cause police to descend on your house, seize your firearms, and shoot you if you resist, then you no longer live in a nation of laws.
- Staff at Amerika
I have a friend here in China named Ronald. He’s from South Africa.
He fled his home nation when the social Marxists came to power and started to implement their war on “white people”. (Within months of Barrack Obama giving 7 billion dollars to South Africa to “improve their energy grid”. Who’d have thought?)
He lost just about everything that he owned. But… he’s alive. He has a roof over his head and trying to make it at 65 years old in a strange land with strange customs.
But at least he doesn’t have to worry about gangs of black urban youth riding technicals, crashing through his doorway and abusing his family and friends.
His point of view is that while things are a real struggle for him at this time, it is far better for him now in China that were he to have stayed in South Africa. He’s a lucky man and has his nut.
The holy grail of nuts.
Conclusion
Don’t put too much faith in Donald Trump and the Republican crew to reverse centuries of progressive Marxism. They are floundering. They are not doing anything. It’s not that they don’t want to, it’s that they do not have that ability.
As a result all this is just leading youse guys along.
As Bill Barr slowly and efficiently covers up the seditious plot and other crimes committed by the FBI and DOJ during the Obama years, it is not unreasonable to wonder how far down the scale this moves the political center. Twenty-five years ago, most dissidents would have thought this level of corruption was improbable, if not entirely impossible. The typical normie was still sure the next election would bring reformers, who would chase off the crooks and clean up the system...
One thing we know is that dissident ranks are growing. Even the Left is admitting it. The popularity of dissident sites, podcasts and video shows are at record highs. More important, the general sense within dissident ranks is that reform is impossible...
Whatever you may think of Trump, the result of the last three years is proof that elections don’t matter. This shameless refusal by public officials to apply the law to Washington insiders makes a mockery of the rule of law. Throw in the stunning dishonesty of the mass media and the metastasizing surveillance state and it is impossible for even the most gullible to remain a civic nationalist.
-Z man blog via Remus
Do not be caught off guard. You are a man and have responsibilities.
Newsflash: Red Flag Laws are already being enforced across the country, even in some die hard Red States.
My advice to Armed Patriots is still the same:
DUMP ALL Social Media
Do NOT advertise anything about Firearms on your vehicle or person
Keep your Personal Business to yourself
NEVER willingly install Listening Devices in your House such as SIRI and ALEXA
Big Brother is listening and watching 24/7.
Stay Alert, Armed and Dangerous!
-The Tactical Hermit
Take your responsibilities seriously and make the hard and difficult choices.
Choose one of the following three options and go full blast at it. You do not have forever. Now is the time. You are the person. Be smart. Be frosty. Be serious.
Stay and accept a life as a serf in a two-tiered society.
Flee for greener pastures.
Fight the bastards, but be smart about it.
The BIG GAME is coming.
" this past weekend i was at the local having a pint. out of no where there was a commotion by the pool tables behind me. i looked and there stood a kid 17-18ish, yelling at a guy standing with his hair in a ponytail.
he had a slight smirk on his face. he never said a word, he just stood staring back with a shit eating grin.
eventually the manager walked over, and ended up kicking the kid out.
the manager came back sat next to me and the bartender walked over. i looked at the manager and said, “that kid was gonna get pounded if it went to blows.” the bartender (an Irish guy and former hell raiser) nodded and the manager quickly agreed. “OH YEAH!!!!” manager spent a year in prison for involuntary man slaughter. guy pulled a gun on him, he took the gun and he shot the man in the face, point blank.
when he told me the story he did it in the most chilling voice i’d ever heard from his mouth.
guys that fight, NEVER talk shit. there’s a disagreement and either a fight begins or does not. when a fist lands on your face, that’s the primary sign you are in a fight. there’s a certain way i fight if i KNOW it’s gonna down. don’t ask, i ain’t telling.
“when you are short on everything but the enemy, you are in combat.” -murphey’s laws of combat.
guy ended up coming up to the bar to get a drink. i looked over at him and said, “god dammit i was hoping you were gonna unload on him.” he smiled and said, “nah, i only fight men.” i told the bartender i was covering his beer. he shook my hand, thanked me and i asked his name.
“Mike, you.”
i answered, “Danny. nice to meet you. stay the fuck up Dude.”
he turned and walked back to his game of pool.
stay up.
- ITLR: The Barking Doggy
“… if Barr & Durham fail to deliver a bale of indictments, they will be putting a bullet in the head of this republic. There will be no hope of restoring trust in the system …” There’s more.
“What is most perilous for our country now, would be to journey through
a second epic crisis of authority in recent times without anybody
facing the consequences of crimes they might have committed. The result
will be a people turned utterly cynical, with no faith in their
institutions or the rule of law, and no way to imagine a restoration of
their lost faith within the bounds of law”.
The first epic crisis was the finance debacle of 2008,
“… fraudsters and swindlers in that orgy of banking malfeasance were never marched into a courtroom, never had to answer for their depredations, and remained at their desks in the C-suites collecting extravagant bonuses”.
The FBI, the Department of Justice, the CIA, the FISA
Court, the Department of State, et al, originated and assisted this
clunky coup attempt and continue to cover up the misdeeds of their
participants. Piles of actionable evidence have been part of the public
record for some time now, yet we still await reason to believe the Barr
and Durham investigations are being conducted in good faith. Given
events thus far an objective observer would bet the other way.
As Mr. Kunstler points out, trust, perhaps
legitimacy itself, is slipping away from DC. Consider their serial
crimes, not merely unpunished but flouted as insider jokes. Consider
the malicious partisanship and sponsored assaults by DC’s core agencies,
openly applauded in DC as brave and heroic. Consider past and ongoing
“legislating from the bench” specifically intended to undo the express
will of the people. The emerging message is plain enough now to be
unmistakable. Our votes don’t count. Because we don’t count.
Bonus
Most SHTF and Prepper articles concentrate on self-preservation. Now, Self-preservation is important, but it will not take our Republic back. Always remember that. Fighting a Defensive war is a losing proposition.
NO ONE ever wins a war fought on the Defensive.
Highlights from Part one. Staple this to your Brain.
1) Government identification records are the clerical basis for mass murder and other atrocities: No, not every government ID scheme leads to genocide and expatriation. But for the collectivists of both the German Reich and the USSR, each victim’s identity card was both part of the initial targeting and the final “production record”.
2) Get to the forest early if you want to live: If you think they will be coming for you, you are probably right. Plan not to be where they know you work and live. Act early if you want to maximize your chances. You and your family will die if you are at your government-approved address.
3) The Bad People will have lots of help from your neighbors:The most disturbing moment for me in the KGB museum was not in the execution or interrogation/torture cells. It was realizing, while moving through the excellent exhibits on the mass deportations of Lithuanians after “liberation” by the Soviets in 1944, that most of the deportees (many of whom were subsequently executed or starved or died of exposure and disease) had been betrayed to the NKVD/KGB by their neighbors.
4) “Fascism” is not the only mortal enemy of freedom and life; the real enemy is collectivism in any form: At each of the memorials, one could tell the provenance of any signage by its reference to “fascism”. Mostly, such markings were from the Soviet era, during which — not coincidentally — many more millions of innocent human beings were killed by the “enlightened” Communists than had been slaughtered by the Hitlerites and their collaborators. While it is too much to expect the Soviets to acknowledge these facts, it is essential that freedom-minded folks grok that collectivism, in any form, can and usually does lead to the mass grave.
5) Never report en masse when ordered to do so: Nothing good ever happens to folks who do.
6) Food and ammunition will be the vital shortages you must address in order to live: Empty weapons and bellies a successful resistance does not make.
7) The Bad People will torture and kill those who help you: Get used to the idea. Retribution killing is a standard totalitarian play. Try to avoid jeopardizing your allies to the extent possible, but know that they too will be swept into the whirlwind.
8) The Bad People will torture and kill your family
members:Sippenhaft ain’t just a chapter in Vanderboegh’s long-awaited novel. The KGB museum was filled with execution orders with notations indicating that not only had the subject been killed per order of the Party, but that “special measures” had or would be taken against the victim’s family.
9) You must be prepared to fight until victory or death: Once you go to the woods, you are there for the duration. The Baltic “forest brothers”stayed out until they were killed or captured. More on them in the next part of this report.
10) If you think it can’t happen here, you are wrong. The Polish and Lithuanian Jews who were ground into dust by the Einsatzgruppenthought the same thing. So did the Lithuanians who couldn’t believe that the Communists under Stalin and subsequent regimes would hold their passionate patriotism against them.
Almost all of those folks who believed “it couldn’t happen” died.
A few survived by running into the woods, or by bearing up under the brutal realities of the Gulag, year after year after year.
Each of them knows the single biggest lesson from Lithuania: naked, brute force can and does triumph over kindness, love of kin and country, and simple human decency — often for decades or more.
Lose your illusions.
While there is still time.
Stay Alert, Armed and Dangerous!
SHTF Related Index
This is a collection of my posts related to SHTF (Shit Hit The Fan), CWII (American Civil War 2), Fourth Turning (Strauss–Howe generational theory)
and other posts related to the very sad and sorry tatters that America
is today. Actually, I am a little stunned that I have written so much
about these matters. But America today is very ill and there are things
that really should be said.
Here are the posts.
SHTF and Related Index
Articles & Links
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.
Computer security should be a top concern to every American these days. Do not be under the impression that you cannot get arrested if you are doing nothing wrong. Anything found on your computer, even if you did not view the file, makes you a potential criminal. Be alert. Be wary.
Introduction
When it came time for my retirement from MAJestic it was a total surprise. I opened my front door, as I did a thousand times before, and four armored vehicles drove up onto my lawn. The police came to my house in SWAT vehicles, armored vests and carried military-grade fully-automatic weapons.
A female detective, dressed in military black wearing a Kevlar vest and a holstered Glock strapped to her side showed me some documents that gave them full authority to search my home for anything even remotely illegal. They poured through the door like water released from a dam, and started rampaging though my house.
The DHS is well armed with military grade vehicles, and armor. They are trained to fight on American soil. The Obama administration has been setting up the stages for an armed conflict of Americans against Americans.
A computer expert, obvious due to his excessive weight and bright suspenders, started to unload various suitcases onto the kitchen counters in my house. He, as employed by the state, got my computer and plugged it into this device that he removed out of a ribbed metal suitcase. He plugged my laptop into the device and had full access to my computer. They didn’t even bother to ask me what my password was. They didn’t need it. They had full control of my “personal papers” and completely bypassed my passwords.
They were able to bypass all my security.
Over the years, I have often wondered about this. This event, as disturbing as it was, also pointed to something much more sinister. There are zero fourth amendment protections if you use most commonly available software.
In the old days, of course, I would have a huge safe with my personal papers in it. The police would have to come to the house with a warrant specifying and delineating everything that the police has the authority to seize and investigate. Not so today. They can take what they want and your Rights be damned.
Here are the people who operate the enormous bureaucracy in the United States. You know, the ones that say one things and do the other. John Brennan. James Clapper, and their ilk.
You know, today everything is electronic. If the government can do that with laptop that had a pretty strong password, they can do anything. I used numbers, a mix of capital letters, and special characters.
I think most passwords are helpful against non-governmental agencies, but are useless against a strongly funded and financed governmental force. They are especially useless against the United States government. If Uncle Sam wants something, they just come and get it.
Peter Stzrok, as senior level management of the FBI, is a smug arrogant son of a bitch. What a major asshole. He texted that he did not care what President the American people elected. He would be able to undo the election and thwart every action the President tried because HE and HIS FRIENDS knew better.
Indeed, if someone in the United States government wants something of yours, they will simply come and take it. They have the military. They have the weapons. They have the money. They have the numbers. They have the law. What is yours is theirs…
Now, I will never forget what that computer expert said to the detective when he was going through my computer. He said “I’m glad he used windows and not Linux. We’d have to call in XXXXXXX.“
Maybe I should have been using the Linux OS…
Well, for certain, it would have delayed the scouring of my laptop for unspecified criminal activity and / or intent. However it would not have prevented it. It would only add some additional steps and delays.
After much thought, it came to me that if I used an unusual OS that the state would have a dickens of a time trying to figure it out. Sure they could find a handful of people who were able to hack into Microsoft, and maybe one or two that could do so with Linux. But, what about something truly obscure…
And, what if it was coded in something other than English. Now that would make things truly interesting and difficult…
Just don’t say anything. Let them try to guess and figure out what kind of OS that you use. That might take a few years. Then, let them take a crack at breaking your encryption.
Other Operating Systems
People, you might be surprised to learn that there are more operating systems (OS) than Microsoft Windows, the various shades of Linux, or the Apple OS. There are. Here, let’s talk about this, shall we.
The reader should understand that even though the United States government, and others have created a very powerful and formidable surveillance network, there are options available to the creative user.
There are other operating systems out there and available for use. The reader is not stuck to using Windows, Apple OS, or UNIX. You can use truly obscure operating systems if you are computer savvy enough.
The benefit in doing this is that anyone wanting to access your computer will have a very difficult time finding a talented computer expert to do so. They are so difficult to find, and once found will be extremely pricey to use. Thus, the mere thought of so doing might just wreck the budget of the investigative agency. So ripping into the computer of concern would have to be completely justified. This also includes the NSA-provided deep dredging software that would troll your PC for what ever they might want to find. Let’s face it, everyone wants the “low hanging fruit”. Don’t make it easy for them.
Low Hanging Fruit. An American idiom that means a thing or person that can be won, obtained, or persuaded with little effort.
Concerning the alternative operating systems, I am not referring to the various flavors of UNIX. They are available, but not really that obscure and uncommon. This includes Ubuntu, Linux Mint, Chrome OS, Remix OS, Kubuntu. No, these and other Linux versions are more or less common enough. If someone wants to dredge your computer on these systems it is still possible. However, it won’t be automatic. They will need an expert, and some specialist software. Further, they might need to do so manually.
What I am discussing here are truly obscure operating systems where there might be 20 to 30 people on the entire planet who knows how to navigate their way around these systems. Let me present 37 obscure operating systems for the reader’s pleasure and consideration.
AROS– Based on the Commodore Amiga. Let them try to crack this.
Eye OS– eyeOS is a virtual web desktop that can uniquely serve any Windows and Linux application in a browser and integrate, at the same time, SaaS or local web services. It’s a nice option for certain.
Haiku– Based on BeOS. You might need to pull out a 70 year old engineer out of retirement to hack a computer using this. Haiku is an open source project aimed at recreating and continuing the development of the BeOS operating system (which Palm Inc. bought and then discontinued). Haiku was initially known as OpenBeOS but changed its name in 2004.
Kolibri OS– KolibriOS is a small open source x86 operating system written completely in assembly. It was forked off from MenuetOS in 2004 and has run under independent development since. In a review piece on alternative operating systems (2009), Tech Radar called it “tremendously impressive” noting its performance and streamlined code-base.
Visopsys– This is a one-man hobby project by programmer Andy McLaughlin. The development began in 1997 and the OS is both open source and free. Visopsys stands for VISual Operating SYStem. Kind of cool to have only one person on planet earth with the skills to be able to hack into your computer.
Plan 9– This is an OS from Bell Labs which is a distributed operating system, originally developed by the Computing Sciences Research Center at Bell Labs between the mid-1980s and 2002. It takes some of the principles of Unix, developed in the same research group, but extends these to a networked environment with graphics terminals.
Syllable OS– This is a free and open source operating system for Pentium and compatible processors. Its purpose is to create an easy-to-use desktop operating system for the home and small office user. It was forked from the stagnant AtheOS in July 2002. It has a native web browser (Webster which is WebKit-based), email client (Whisper), media player, IDE, and many more applications. Another version of Syllable OS is the Syllable Server, which is based on Linux core.
menuetos– An OS written entirely in Assembler! MenuetOS, also known as MeOS, is an operating system written entirely in assembly language which makes it very small and fast. Even though it includes a graphical desktop, networking and many other features it still fits on a single 1.44 MB floppy disk.
TempleOS – Made by former atheist with former mental health issues who found God when he was hospitalised…. It has a biblical theme. One aspect of it that I find interesting is that everything is available and hackable. You have all the source code available right there and you can update it almost on the fly. Everything is written in a “HolyC” with hyperlinks and images.
QNX– Is an “old” OS with a GUI and desktop environment called Photon – and the company behind it tried to artificially form a community around it that never took off. In 2010, Blackberry bought QNX and closed off everything. However, if you can get ahold of the OS, it would be nearly unhackable being so obscure.
MINIX 3– This is a free, open-source, operating system designed to be highly reliable, flexible, and secure. It is based on a tiny microkernel running in kernel mode with the rest of the operating system running as a number of isolated, protected, processes in user mode.
OS/2– Had IBM not gotten into an argument with Microsoft over Win3.1, we might all be using this today. ATMS were/are still using this up until recently. It was a good running system and then was killed off. However, fans of the system resurrected it and it is now available, it can still be easily hacked to run windows programs. An interesting article on this system can be found HERE.
DexOS– It is an open source operating system designed to work like the minimalistic ones on gaming consoles, but for PCs. Its user interface is inspired by video game consoles and the system itself is very small (supposedly this one also fits on a floppy disk, like MenuetOS) and the OS can be booted from several different devices. Its creators have tried to make it as fast as possible.
AtheOS– Amiga OS clone that was an experiment that lead to other Amiga clones.
FreeDOS– A ridiculous amount of business software relies on MS-DOS, even to this day. We’re still seeing bespoke, newly-developed text-mode apps that run directly from the shell, probably because the complexity and potential for disaster that graphical interfaces add to the mix is not worth the risk in situations that demand 100% uptime. That business-critical software may rely on MS-DOS, but it doesn’t have to know you’re actually running FreeDOS. It’s an entirely compatible but completely free and open source remake of DOS that can handle just about everything its predecessor can do. That does, of course, means no multitasking, no protected mode, no GUI, but it’ll run your games and can even manage Windows 3.1 as long as you’re running it in standard mode.
Oberon– The Oberon System is a modular single user single process multitasking operating system developed in the late 1980s at ETH Zürich using the Oberon programming language. It has an unconventional visual text-based user interface for activating commands, which was very innovative at that time.
LoseThos OS– LoseThos is a 64-bit MultiCore PC Operating System that runs on a standard 64-bit PC, nothing exotic. It comes with a 64-bit compiler, libraries and all source code. It is not a UNIX — it’s brand new in all respects, written entirely from scratch. It’s perfect if you really want a mystery OS that others cannot hack into.
ReactOS– A free and open-source operating system for x86/x64 personal computers intended to be binary-compatible with computer programs and device drivers made for Windows Server 2003. A good article on this OS can be found HERE and HERE. “Imagine running your favorite Windows applications and drivers in an open-source environment you can trust. That’s ReactOS. Not just an Open but also a Free operating system.” ReactOS is an operating system designed to be compatible with Microsoft Windows software. The project started in 1998 and today it can run many Windows programs well. The ReactOS kernel has been written from scratch but the OS makes use of Wine to be able to run Windows applications.
Coyotos– This is considered by its creators to be an “evolutionary step” beyond the Extremely Reliable Operating System (EROS) operating system, which in turn was derived from KeyKOS, itself coming from Great New Operating System In the Sky (GNOSIS). The primary developer of EROS was Jonathan S. Shapiro, who is also a driving force behind Coyotos and the programming language BitC.
BSD family– Pretty similar to Linux, not hard to cross over between them. BSD/OS (originally called BSD/386 and sometimes known as BSDi) was a proprietary version of the BSD operating system developed by Berkeley Software Design, Inc. (BSDi). BSD/OS had a reputation for reliability in server roles; the renowned Unix programmer and author W. Richard Stevens used it for his own personal web server for this reason. Also try this BSD version at http://pcbsd.org/ or this other version at https://www.openbsd.org/ (see below).
PearPC– Was an emulator that allowed you to run MacOSX on a PC before Apple switched to Intel and we got the Hackintosh. Read about it HERE.
CapROS– CapROS (“Capability-based Reliable Operating System”) is an open source operating system. It is a pure capability-based system that features automatic persistence of data and processes, even across system reboots. Capability systems naturally support the principle of least authority, which improves security and fault tolerance.CapROS is an evolution of the EROS system. While EROS was purely a research system, CapROS is intended to be a stable system of commercial quality. CapROS currently runs on Intel IA-32 and ARM microprocessors. CapROS is being developed by Strawberry Development Group with funding from DARPA and others. The primary developer is Charles Landau.
Squeak OS– This is NOT an operating system. It is a specialized programming language that operates in an existing OS environment. This can be windows, UNIX, or even one of these other obscure OS systems. The Squeak programming language is a dialect of Smalltalk. It is object-oriented, class-based, and reflective. It was derived directly from Smalltalk-80 by a group at Apple Computer that included some of the original Smalltalk-80 developers. Its development was continued by the same group at Walt Disney Imagineering, where it was intended for use in internal Disney projects. Later on the group moved on to be supported by HP labs, SAP Labs and most recently Y Combinator.
VMS– The name VMS is derived from virtual memory system, according to one of its principal architectural features. OpenVMS also runs on the Itanium-based families of computers. OpenVMS is a proprietary operating system (though the source code is available for purchase). Thus, it is not considered open-source software.
RISC OS– RISC OS /rɪskoʊˈɛs/ is a computer operating system originally designed by Acorn Computers Ltd in Cambridge, England. First released in 1987, it was specifically designed to run on the ARM chipset, which Acorn had designed concurrently for use in its new line of Archimedes personal computers. RISC OS takes its name from the RISC (reduced instruction set computing) architecture supported. Read about it HERE.
AmigaOS– AmigaOS 4, (abbreviated as OS4 or AOS4), is a line of Amiga operating systems which runs on PowerPC microprocessors. Although AmigaOS is a veteran in the field (many have fond memories of the original Amiga computer), its current version is a fully modern OS.
SkyOS– This is a closed source project written by Robert Szeleney and volunteers. It originally started as an experiment in OS design. It’s intended to be an easy-to-use desktop OS for average computer users. Well-known applications such as Firefox have been ported to run on SkyOS.
MorphOS– This is a lightweight, media-centric OS build to run on PowerPC processors. It is inspired by AmigaOS and also includes emulation to be able to run Amiga applications.
GNU Hurd– This is the multiserver microkernel written as part of GNU. It has been under development since 1990 by the GNU Project of the Free Software Foundation, designed as a replacement for the Unix kernel, and released as free software under the GNU General Public License. While the Linux kernel soon proved to be a more viable solution, development of GNU Hurd continued, albeit at a slow pace.
V2_OS– V2_OS is a open source operating system, created by V2_Lab, International Lab for the Unstable Media, Rotterdam, Netherlands. Since V2_Lab released the source code to the kernel and modules, a lot of developers from all over the world are working with it, and help to make V2_OS grow. V2_OS is the fastest operating system available for the 386+ PC. Everything in this system is focused on speed: the architecture, the file system, its avoidance of virtualization… and of course, the choice of development language: V2_OS is written in 100% pure 32 bit assembler.
Bare Metal OS. BareMetal is an exokernel-based single address space operating system (OS) created by Return Infinity. It is written in assembly to achieve high-performance computing with minimal footprint with a Just Enough Operating System (JeOS) approach. The operating system is primarily targeted towards virtualized environments for cloud computing, or HPCs due to its design as a lightweight kernel (LWK). It could be used as a unikernel. It was inspired by another OS written in assembly, MikeOS, and it is a current-day example of an operating system that is not written in C or C++, nor based on Unix-like kernels.
AuroraUX OSProject. AuroraUX is an operating system distribution based on the OpenSolaris kernel source base. The goal of the AuroraUX project is to create a high reliability core operating system using the US Department of Defense-developed Ada programming language.
HelenOs. HelenOS is a portable microkernel-based multiserver operating system designed and implemented from scratch. It decomposes key operating system functionality such as file systems, networking, device drivers and graphical user interface into a collection of fine-grained user space components that interact with each other via message passing.
BeTROS. This is the source code of BeRTOS operating system. It’s pretty darn obscure.
PureDarwin. Darwin is the Open Source operating system from Apple that forms the basis for macOS, and PureDarwin is a community project to make Darwin more usable (some people think of it as the informal successor to OpenDarwin).
Multics(Source Available). Multics (Multiplexed Information and Computing Service) was a mainframe timesharing operating system begun in 1965 and used until 2000. Multics began as a research project and was an important influence on operating system development. The system became a commercial product sold by Honeywell to education, government, and industry.
Slax is a modern, live, pocket operating system based on Slackware Linux. Despite its small size of 220MB, it contains essential apps for basic computing, and you can extend its functionality using modules. Users can open a module (out of hundreds available e.g. Firefox, Libre Office) and the software will installed automatically.
OpenBSD. This is an OS that is flying under the radar screen and is kind of a stealth effort. It is based on privacy and security. It is certainly worth the look. This is part of the BSD family mentioned above. Besides, any logo that is wearing a tin-foil-hat has my approval!
Last Minute Additions – Linux DistrOS
There are hundreds of Linux distros out there. For those of you laymen out there like myself, a distros is a modified Linux OS for special purposes. Often the reasons for this is simply for fun and amusement. The vast majority of them float around the internet in relative obscurity. Some are absolutely beautiful and stunning. many of them operate like MS Windows and it is easy to adapt to them quickly.
Tails. Tails is a Linux distribution based on Debian. Tails stands for The Amnesic Incognito Live System, and can be run (without installation) from portable mediums such as optical disks and flash drives. As it is run entirely in the computer’s RAM, all files and browsing history is automatically erased once the system is turned off (amnesic). Aimed at preserving your privacy and anonymity while browsing, Tails implements many security tools, including the Tor anonymity network, and cryptographic tools to encrypt and secure your files, email, and instant messages to protect your private information, including your identity (incognito).
Qubes OS is based on Xen, X Window System and Linux. Qubes provide hardened security using the security-by-isolation approach, creating many security domains, which are implemented as lightweight Virtual Machines (VMs). These domains have their own set of security restrictions, isolating one domain from the next. So if you separate your browser from your sensitive work data, a hacker or malware would not be able to access your information even if it has compromised your browser, thanks to the isolated domains and strategic compartmentalization. That’s the beauty of the security implementation of Qubes OS.
I would suggest Tails, or Qubes as the OS of choice.
That’s a pretty strong endorsement from Mr. Snowden. I would heed his recommendation if at all possible.
Tails is also a good option. Tails, like Qubes, have been designed with privacy and security in mind.
Tails seems to hold great promise as a means of maintaining privacy and security.
Conclusions
When the United States was first formed, it was considered extremely important that the private papers and matters of a citizen be protected from others. If the government had a need to view these most sacred private matters, they would have to go to a judge and show reason to obtain them.
They would have to [1] document a reason, and [2] show that there was a victim or an aggrieved party.
As at that time, America followed British Common Law. They wrote the fourth Amendment to protect Americans from unreasonable search and seizure of a person’s private and personal papers and records. Only when there was a victim or harmed party, would a Judge issue a warrant to search; and specifically state what is to be searched for.
Amendment 4
Protection from Unreasonable Searches and Seizures
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized.
Today the fourth amendment no longer exists as anything other than a joke. It is functionally nonexistent.
Today, it is just as easy to obtain (what has been referred to as) “no knock” search warrants.
The police just show up unannounced without a search warrant and “hunt” for evidence indicative of illegal activity.
Furthermore, if the NSA wants to remotely make someone look like a criminal all they need to do is hijack their computer. See the post on Disinformation Campaigns, and the software programs of POISONARROW and QUANTUMHAND.
Today, a secret court, with an appointed judge can order your fourth amendment protections be ignored for any reason what so ever.
There does not have to be a victim.
There does not need to be any evidence.
There does not need to be proof. Only an accusation by a person who can remain secret in defiance of the Sixth amendment.
Amendment 6
Rights of Accused Persons in Criminal Cases
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury of the state and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor; and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense.
It’s a difficult world that we live in today. If you cannot have privacy, then you functionally have no freedom. For the right to privacy is the bedrock from which all other liberties arise from.
The United States government has spent enormous sums of money making it easy for them to access your personal records and private papers. This is particularly true when everything is electronic.
And, do not expect some organization like the ACLU to come to your rescue. They have become co-opted by liberal progressive interests and today functions as a political army, rather than what they were initially set up to be. Read what Alan Dershowitz via The Gatestone Institute, has to say. Other link HERE.
If you want to regain your fourth amendment freedoms back, then you need to stop relying on elected politicians to to something about it. You need to take care of the matter yourself.
I suggest that you utilize an obscure operating system on your personal records and strongly encrypt it. Do not tell anyone your password, and what operating system that you use. That way, your computer becomes as hack-able as a river rock, and your personal papers and privacy is maintained.
Take Aways
Having privacy is an important human need.
Privacy used to be protected by the United States Constitution.
It is rare for actual paper documents to be generated today, they are mostly in an electronic format.
The politicians in the United States government have made it easy to access all personal papers in an electronic format.
To keep your personal records private you need to encrypt your electronic records.
My experiences have demonstrated that the encryption techniques most often discussed on the internet fail when confronted by the United States government.
The best form of encryption is an obscure OS with a very comprehensive and strong password.
FAQ
Q: Are these the only obscure operating systems available? A: No. Not at all. In fact, I would suggest a non-American OS. Maybe something out of Russia, China, Australia, South Africa, or maybe Poland. It’s hard enough trying to hack into a operating system when you have no common frame of reference, just image if it is in a language that you cannot understand.
Ubuntu Kylin. It is not surprising that China has its own operating system Ubuntu Kylin. As the name suggests Kylin is based on Ubuntu with extensive support for the Chinese language. Kylin was not always based on Ubuntu though. Initially, it was based on FreeBSD but later it was relaunched as Ubuntu Kylin in the year 2013.
Nova 2015. Like China’s Kylin, Cuba’s national OS Nova is also based on Ubuntu. Latest version Nova 2015 aims to be lightweight in order to replace Windows XP on older hardware and hence it will be using LXDE desktop environment.
Red Star OS. North Korea has its own national OS based on Linux and it goes by the name of Red Star OS. It is being developed since year 2002. There are hardly any details about this operating system because there is no website of Red Star OS. And since North Korea is almost cut off from the rest of the world, no other information is available about it except that it uses KDE.
IGOS Nusantra Linux. In Indonesia, IGOS Nusantra Linux to promote Linux in Indonesia. It iss constantly being developed together with the community and has several variants including exclusive support for IoT (Internet of Things).
Pardus Linux. Turkish Government launched Pardus Linux back in 2005. It is developed by Turkish National Research Institute of Electronics and Cryptology in collaboration with Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey. Pardus was appreciated for introducing PiSi package management system. It is based on Debian and uses KDE.
Deepin Linux. Deepin Linux is an open source, Chinese Linux distribution that aims to offer a clean and visually appealing interface to Linux users. Deepin Linux, one the prettiest Linux distros around, also comes with Hot Corners and Gestures that make your Linux desktop experience refreshing. Another striking feature of Deepin is its pleasing installer that makes sure that your experience isn’t sub-par at any stage. It comes with Deepin Store that provides lots of applications that aren’t available in Ubuntu Store.
Q: Why does this matter? I am doing nothing wrong. A: You do not need to do anything wrong to be accused of something. Look at what happened to Brett Kavanaugh. He worked hard, and was a good honest man, yet he went through Hell. Remember? Hey! I’ve got news for you. That could just as well have been you, or your father. It could have been your brother. It could have been your child.
Sixty-five women say that they knew Brett Kavanaugh well enough to vouch for his character while he was in high school. This is a remarkable number since Kavanaugh went to an all-boys Catholic high school. He socialized with girls at local all-girls high schools, but the class sizes at these schools seem to have been small. It is hard to imagine that Kavanaugh could have known more than a couple hundred similarly young women, so it took a remarkable turnout rate to get 65 signatures.
-Daily Caller
Do not forget that most Americans commit three felonies every day without even realizing it. The laws are so numerous and vague that if someone wanted to arrest you and throw you into prison, they can do it.
If you are an average American, then you are a repeat felon. In his stunning book, Three Felonies a Day: How the Feds Target the Innocent (2009), civil-liberties attorney Harvey A. Silverglate estimates that the average person unknowingly breaks at least three criminal laws each and every day.
Federal statutes and regulations have become so voluminous and vague that over-reaching prosecutors can target anyone at any time. They may think you are guilty, they could want leverage to force your co-operation, they may be vengeful, or they could be building their own careers; the motives are secondary. What’s primary is the clout and, in this, the federal bureaucracy of the United States now rivals the Soviet Union at the zenith of its power.
Even if you are ultimately proven innocent, the ‘vindication’ will come after years of abusive prosecution during which your assets will be frozen, your family interrogated and, perhaps, threatened, your reputation smeared, your life left in shambles.
How did this happen in the Land of the Free? How did America drift so far from common law roots that preserved peace and property?
-Wendy Mcelroy
Q: What advice do you suggest if I implement your suggestion? A: Use TOR or some other means to obtain the OS software. The United States government can track your browsing history by Google, the NSA or your ISP (Thank you Barrack Obama.). Therefore, they can figure out which OS you are using. Don’t permit that. If you do not have the means to do any of these things, download all of them, and just let them guess which one you are using.
Q: Is there a stronger solution that what is suggested herein? A: Yes. If you are reasonably proficient in coding. Write your own OS. Take an obscure OS and rewrite it as only you know how. Now, in doing so, there will be but one person on this entire planet who can hack into your computer. No one else will be able.
Posts Regarding Life and Contentment
Here are some other similar posts on this venue. If you enjoyed this post, you might like these posts as well. These posts tend to discuss growing up in America. Often, I like to compare my life in America with the society within communist China. As there are some really stark differences between the two.
More Posts about Life
I have broken apart some other posts. They can best be classified about ones actions as they contribute to happiness and life. They are a little different, in subtle ways.
Stories that Inspired Me
Here are reprints in full text of stories that inspired me, but that are nearly impossible to find in China. I place them here as sort of a personal library that I can use for inspiration. The reader is welcome to come and enjoy a read or two as well.
It is a requirement that all MAJestic members be placed in a monitoring program upon retirement. The only legal monitoring program in the United States is the Sex Offender Registry. So, when a person finishes up 30 years in the MAJestic waived, unacknowledged special access program, they are arrested and incarcerated as a Sex Offender. There are no exceptions.
There are NO exceptions.
In order to facilitate entry into the sex offender-monitoring program, all agents have to do time in prison. This section and chapter deals with the experiences during this time. It discusses what prison was like and what I experienced as part of it. It is an autobiographical narrative of my prison experience.
Introduction
Poor kitty. There are all kinds of reasons why people go to prison. However it is an illusion that people go to prison because the commit crimes. If this was the case, then Hillary Clinton would be half-way through a life-sentence. If this was the case then Nelson Mandela would never have gone to prison. The fact is, prisons are used for other reasons that what is publicly disclosed.
"An investigator for the Air Force stated that three so-called flying saucers had been recovered in New Mexico. They were described as being circular in shape with raised centers. Approximately 50 feet in diameter. Each one was occupied by three bodies of human shape but only 3 feet tall. Dressed in metallic cloth of a very fine texture. Each body was bandaged in a manner similar to the blackout suits used by speed flyers and test pilots." --From a March 22, 1950 memo to J. Edgar Hoover from the Washington FBI Office, released in 1976 under the freedom of information act.
Unlike the rest of the country, the state that I was incarcerated in has some of the most (I considered to be) medieval prison conditions in the world. While it in no way resembled a medieval dungeon, it was never the less a harsh place compared to prisons elsewhere in the country.
In Arkansas, the philosophy behind sentencing of a convicted criminal was that of a duality of purpose. The criminal sentence involved two aspects. These aspects were that of [1] punishment and of [2] rehabilitation. Prison was thus the punishment component. Rehabilitation was administered by the community parole officers.
My experiences may not reflect those of the vast bulk of retired SAP agents. It is only my experiences. Other experiences might vary given the nature of the American condition. I relate them here as a curious narrative.
I do not want to spend too much time dwelling on this period in my life. The reader should take note that while everyone was filling my mind full of the horrors that awaited me, the reality was far different. This was no “picnic”, but neither was it the horror that everyone advertised it to be.
This is my story of the prison sequence that I had to complete after I was retired from the MAJestic W(U)-SAP that I joined in 1981.
“You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks.”- Winston S. Churchill
Quick Background Links
If the reader is a tad confused as to WHY I ended up going to prison as a Sex Offender, then you can read these sections first…
Entering Prison
“That was how it was, sometimes. You put yourself in front of the thing and waited for whatever was going to happen and that was all. It scared you and it didn't matter. You stood and faced it. There was no outwitting anything. When Almondine had been playful, she had been playful in the face of that knowledge, as defiant as before the rabid thing. Sometimes you looked the thing in the eye and it turned away. Sometimes it didn't.”― David Wroblewski, The Story of Edgar Sawtelle
My first exposure to Prison was the infamous Brickeys Prison (East Arkansas Regional Unit in Brickey, Arkansas.) at the ADC (Arkansas Department of Corrections).
Brickeys was (at that time) the most severe of the hard labor prisons in the Arkansas Department of Corrections. It is a rather huge maximum security facility that is known to house the worst offenders as well as repeat offenders. It is known for its rowdy and dangerous inmate population, tough guards and difficult working conditions.
The reader might want to listen to “See it on your side” by Dinosaur Jr. Entering prison was an emotional event, and words cannot describe the feelings and experiences of that time. The reader must be aware that I was a highly educated, and clandestinely trained individual accustomed to international travel and an urban environment, suddenly thrown into a harsh prison setting populated with rural criminals. I couldn’t understand their English, and they couldn’t understand what I was saying either. It was more than just ugly. It was harsh.
During the time I was there, I personally witnessed three killings in my own barracks. One was killed in his sleep next to me. One was stabbed with a “shank” while taking a shit in the toilet, and another was killed while going to chow (he was just standing in line).
It was a large complex, but not the largest. It was surrounded by multiple fence lines that isolated a deadly lethal electric fence. Guard towers were everywhere. All were painted white. It sat there, sprawled out on the hot cotton field Mississippi delta and was surrounded by soybean , and cotton fields as far as the eye could see. It was a sprawling white complex of towers and long, low flat buildings that fried under the hot relentless Arkansas sun.
“The first night's the toughest, no doubt about it. They march you in naked as the day you were born, skin burning and half blind from that delousing shit they throw on you, and when they put you in that cell... and those bars slam home...that's when you know it's for real.A whole life blown away in the blink of an eye. Nothing left but all the time in the world to think about it.”-The Shawshank Redemption
After we were driven the prison we were unloaded at the Sally Port, and proceeded down into the bowels of the prison itself. After going through about three layers of gates, we were finally directed to our orientation barracks. And it was there where we first were introduced to prison life.
The primary modern meaning for sally port is a secure, controlled entryway, as of a fortification or a prison. The entrance is usually protected by some means, such as with a fixed wall blocking the door which must be circumvented before entering, but which prevents direct enemy fire from a distance. It may include the use of two doors such as with an airlock.
As we (first) walked down through the main hallway, groups of inmates, long hard core felons lined up against their barracks windows. There they masturbated to us as we walked down the hall. I am not at all exaggerating. There were multiple groups of around five to seven inmates. Their paints down to their knees and they were right there masturbating to us as we walked down the hallway carrying our gear. Of course there was the loud shouting, pointing and obscene gestures. This yelling and jeering was completely expected, though the masturbation part came as a complete surprise.
The laws and rules were later changed in such a way that any kind of masturbation or obscene gestures would result in additional time added to ones’ sentence. That greatly helped to eliminate the kind of experiences that we were first exposed to when we entered the facility. However, the practice still lingered, only much more surreptitiously.
The movie “Felon” is perhaps the most accurate portrayal of the prison system today that I have ever seen. It is a world of white walls, white clothes. It is a world of harsh and tough individuals and glorious tattoos. While the story line involved a corrupted guard, it was my experience that most guards were pretty decent. I would say that only about one out of 20 were really bad. You would only have one or two in the entire prison. Most guards were fairly decent people. Photo is a screen capture from the movie. The only difference between the movie, aside from the plot line, and that of Arkansas is that felons had to keep their faces shaved at all times and their hair must be kept short. So the concept of having beards and mustaches was alien to us and would get you thrown into the hole. We all looked like “skin-heads” with really really… really, bad teeth.
The inmates, man, they were ugly.
I don’t think I have ever seen such an uglier group of people in my life. Some looked the brothers of Igor on a bad day, while others were the splitting image of Frankenstein’s monster. I saw evidence of what might have been genetic experimentation, or in-breeding. Some of the inmates seemed to have some kind of physical deformities, while others were just covered completely from head to toe with tattoos. Most were toothless, or had one or two teeth brazenly standing tall and proud in their mouths. All had short hair. Most were either bald or had crew-cuts. There were no mustaches or beards at all.
Arkansas ADC did not provide dental services to the inmates except in two ways. The first was extraction. Teeth were removed without painkillers or anesthetics. The second was the creation of dentures for those inmates without teeth. But to qualify for a full set of dentures, you had to have most of your teeth removed first. Which obviously led to some interesting situations to the inmates there at the facility.
Most were toothless… it is true.
In the ADC, there was no dental coverage or treatment except for but one procedure; extraction. The result was that most long term felons became toothless over time. Long term felons with life sentences eventually lost all their teeth. After all, the “free” toothpaste was ineffective as a dental aide, and unless you had family that would “put money on your books”, that was all you had to work with.
We all worked at the ADC. But we were never paid for our labors. Thus, unless one had friends or family outside the prison walls, one would be forced to subsist only on the few offerings provided by the state.
Prison hallways all have walking lanes. You must walk between the yellow line and the wall. Only the guards are permitted to walk outside the lines. Scene looks like the ADC.
Food
“Courage is not something that you already have that makes you brave when the tough times start. Courage is what you earn when you’ve been through the tough times and you discover they aren’t so tough after all.” -Malcolm Gladwell, David and Goliath
Food was not like you would get in prisons up North. Pennsylvania, for instance, gave each inmate a piece of fruit with each meal. You would also get a dessert that can include ice cream. They would eat such things as pizza and chicken wings. Salads, store-purchased bread; tureens of Campbell’s soups were all representative normal fare for consumption. Nevertheless, all of that was unheard of in Arkansas.
I spent six months in a Pennsylvania prison awaiting for my paperwork to clear after a parole violation. (I had a broken cell phone, and an unopened bottle of wine.) They ate so well. They had fruit.
I am not kidding. They had fruit with every meal and you could even TAKE IT TO YOUR CELL! The fruit consisted of bananas, apples, oranges, and pears. My gosh. We NEVER had fruit in the ADC.
Other foods included ice cream (Ice Cream! We never had ice cream.) and pizza. My goodness, the inmates in PA had absolutely no idea how great they had it. Not to mention you could get a television in your cell, you were paid for working, and could smoke in your cells as they all had a built in lighter in the wall. Heck, in the ADC we had none of this.
Arkansas was a “punishment” state, and they served us gruel.
Remember the Star Trek episode where Kirk and his men were trapped on a planet that represented Rome in the 1960’s with gladiatorial battles? Yes, it was like that. No, we didn’t eat “gruel” as of the 1720’s style. We ate the modern day equivalent. It was called Global, and was packaged for easy prep and serving to inmates.
The Star Trek episode was called “Bread and Circuses” and can be found here.
Global
In “the ADC” (the state that I was incarcerated in) we were fed mostly an artificial food called “Global” and lots and lots of beans.
The name “Global” is a brand name given to a nutritional powder that is fed to inmates in the ADC prison system. This powder is mixed with water and cooked under low heat to make a kind of wet dog food that is editable by humans. The taste is barely flavorful, but it is not enjoyable and generates quite a bit of stomach gas. When pigs are fed this substance, they are unable to expel the generated gasses and eventually die.
Global is a (so advertised to the inmates) nutritious brand of food. It is like wet dog food for humans. There were initially many flavors. (Five back in 2004.) Rumor had it that it was developed for military troops overseas, and was bought in bulk at a great discount by the ADC. I do not know if it was true or not.
While I was there; there were initially five kinds of flavors, but eventually it was reduced to only the three “most popular” flavors. “Sweet and sour”, “looks like chicken”, and “could be beef”. All tasted terrible and gave off tremendous amounts of gas within hours upon ingestion.
As a person who has since spent a number of years in China, I can tell the reader that there are many ways that tofu can be prepared, but the way this “global” was prepared was wholly marginally unpalatable.
It arrived in a bag of clumpy dust. The kitchen workers would simply pour a measured amount into a tureen (which looked like a large stainless steel cement mixer), and add water using a lawn hose. Then it would be heated to the desired temperature.
I like tofu, but this stuff was not at all editable. And this comment, you must know, comes from a person who has adapted to eating fish heads and rice, who enjoys eating snails and odd seafood, and drinks snake wine without concern.
A significant portion of the food provided to us in the ADC consisted of Global. Global is a synthetic food product that is made from tofu. It is cheap and supposedly nutritious. I was like wet dog food for humans.
Why they couldn’t of simply served us Ma Po Tou Fu (麻婆豆腐)? It was cheap and delicious tasting.
I was told, when I worked in the kitchen that “another” ADC facility (which one I don’t know, maybe ADC Cummins) fed left over global to the pigs on the farm. However, the pigs were unable to pass all the gas that was internally generated and they “blew up” and died. I don’t know if this story was true or not, but after seeing the effect that global had on our stomachs, I wouldn’t be too surprised.
“They do get a lot of watermelon when the season is in but almost all of the food they fix is really high in starches.Most of the time the eggs are powdered and sometimes green as is the salami it is not unusual for rats to have there babies in the middle of the flour sacks that the guys cook from and they just get the flour around them, on holidays while we get our three meals a day they get two and staff usually steals the turkeys and the guys eat little pieces of canned chicken in rice.Breakfast is at 3.00 in the morning, lunch starts around 10.30 and dinner around 3.30.”-Behind the walls
Beans
"Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference."- Winston Churchill
We did get to eat a lot of beans.
We had beans all the time. Black beans, pinto beans, red beans and Lima beans were the most popular beans that we ate. They were cooked and boiled and served plain. Sometimes, salt was added to them. They would fill you up and were nutritious. But you soon grew tired of them, and they caused you to get a lot of intestinal gas. That was not good in a multi-felon dormitory; where the release of farts could be construed as a violent insult. (Most especially true with the young urban African-Americans.)
Rough Bread
We always had rough bread. The bread was made of a mixture of 50% white flour and 50% horse feed. Make no mistake here. I am not exaggerating.
Bread in the ADC looked a little something like this. It was made from a mixture of normal flour and horse feed.
While it is possible that this was done to save money, I would actually guess that it was done to create a “tough” environment inside the prison. Actually, how much money can you possibly save by buying horse feed instead of flour? Therefore, I am convinced that it was done intentionally to create a very harsh environment to make prison as uncomfortable as possible. After all, when Bill Clinton (D) was Governor he set up the “Punishment” rules that that ADC now implements.
The bread was made from horse feed and whole-wheat flour. I know. I worked in the kitchen. It was written on the sacks that the feed came in. It said (in all bold letters, in Arial font) “NOT FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION”. The result was tough crunchy bread that belonged on Beowulf’s table. I laugh now, but the bags of food in the kitchen all were marked “not for human consumption” on them. I am sure that the prison officials would argue that this was not the case, but I can tell you that this is EXACTLY what we ate. I did work in the kitchen and I can attest to this fact. In life, what is supposed to happen, and what actually happens are often diametrically opposed.
Just because something is not supposed to occur, does not prevent it from happening.
The bread was hardly tasty, and we only ate it as a last resort. Some inmates would take the bread and put it in their cup and fill it with milk. Then by adding something sweet like stewed tomatoes, or crushed up candy they would be able to eat it as a kind of poor man’s dessert. We would never get fruit, ice cream, puddings or Jell-O. Those were truly luxury items for us.
Other felons have repeatedly told me that they were able to get fruit, cakes, sugar, pizza, and even salads at other prisons. I know that some jails would serve these items, though at a severely reduced caloric content, but at the ADC, all these things were banned. We did not eat anything like that. PERIOD. This is non-negotiable. We simply did not get to eat such things.
Horses would have loved the bread that we ate. At least 50% of the flour was mixed with horse feed. It created a tough barely edible bread like object.
The guards that worked the kitchen were generally humane, and understood that they couldn’t always serve us gruel. After all, if they continued to do so, riots or worse might occur. Life in prison was always a balance between how much punishment they could dish out before we would revolt. Thus they tended to break up the meals so that every day or so there would be biscuits made of real bread, or real meat, or a decent vegetables as a side.
It wasn’t always so horrible. (For instance, sometime we got raw onions that we could mix with the beans. That was always a treat. Or at other times, we would get a hamburger and there might be a pickle or ketchup on the side so that we could make a sandwich. Ah. Good times. Good times!)
Additionally, the ADC always gave us a good great meal for Thanksgiving and Christmas. The same was true for the 4th of July. Truly, the guards were pretty decent folk.
However, aside from the major holidays, some days were truly a waste of time marching down to the mess hall. We would grab the tray and just deposit it into the cleaning booth without even trying it.
Okra
In season, we would also eat boiled okra. It looked like green snot, with uncooked kernels of corn inside.
There are different ways to cook okra. The preferred method at the ADC was to boil it into a gooey paste. This green snot-appearing paste would have small hard seeds inside of it. That reminded me of uncooked baby corn. I never cared for okra, and I hope never to eat it again. Also in season we would eat corn, which wasn’t so bad, and turnips. (I well remember the “Bill, the galatic hero”, and his comments on okra.)
“Bowb!” Bill, the Galactic Hero is a satirical science fiction novel by Harry Harrison, first published in 1965. Six sequels were published, from 1989 to 1992.
Turnips
I was never a big fan of turnips and I hope never to eat them again. Their taste never appealed to me. I wasn’t raised with that style of southern cooking. The way they were prepared was also unique. They would boil the turnips in a huge vat, then they would be mashed in a machine with some milk powder. The result was a kind of turnip mashed potatoes. Yuck!
Actually, I have to ask, does anyone actually eat this vegetable in this manner? Truthfully.
The ADC would serve us boiled and mashed turnips in season. I am not a fan. Though the other inmates found it delicious and scarfed it up every opportunity that they had to get it.
Stewed Tomatoes & other vegetables
Other vegetables would include stewed tomatoes (a personal favorite), raw onions (great with black beans), canned peas, boiled collard greens (meh), boiled spinach (also pretty good), mashed potatoes (always welcome), mashed Lima beans (why? In God’s name, why?), and rhubarb (some people do eat it, but not me). Occasionally we would also be served carrots, corn (especially in the summer), zucchini (not so bad), and pickles.
About once or twice a week we would eat a piece of chicken, hot dog or a hamburger.
On special days we would even get a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. You can’t mess up cooking these things, and so it wasn’t all that bad. Though the portions tended to be very small. Sometimes, certain prisoners would cycle back in line to eat a second time. When that happened they ran the risk of getting caught. If caught they risked going to “Jail”. Which was the “hole”. Not a place you want to spend a few weeks in. Especially for a second peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
We all enjoyed the occasional peanut butter and jelly sandwich. If we were lucky, we might get a sandwich every four or five months or so. You wouldn’t want to miss chow-hall then. No. Not in the least.
Powdered Egg Breakfast
Breakfasts were not that bad, though they tended to be served at 3am in the morning (Seriously!). They consisted of real eggs, or fake egg powder with grits, beans and biscuits. On the weekends we would always be treated special and actually get pancakes.
Depending on the prison you attended you would find yourself eating powdered eggs more than the real eggs. This was a real surprise to me because the ADC prison system had a complete chicken farm that was very productive. We could have been eating eggs for morning, lunch and supper and still have eggs left over. But, like everything else, the eggs were sold at a profit to support other state funding initiatives (read: corruption). Us inmates had to endure the lower cost alternative; powdered eggs.
Powdered eggs are useful when making things that required eggs as an ingredient. They are not really suitable as a “stand alone” food item. That is because they really don’t taste that good.
There are those in prison who have told me that they can actually taste good if you know how to prepare them. It involves a specific amount of water, added at the right temperature and a special mixing procedure. However, that would not really be possible in prison, where we would simply dump the powder in a big tureen and add water from a water hose, and then cook on a flat plate.
Brickeys used powdered eggs almost exclusively. Other prisons in the ADC used them far more sparingly.
Powdered eggs on the left, real eggs on the right. They do not taste the same, as anyone in the military can attest.
Hard labor
“There are all these moments you think you won’t survive. And then you survive.”— David Levithan
If you are sentenced for prison time in Arkansas you will do hard labor. Everyone does hard labor, and no one is exempt. Men 70 years old will struggle alongside 18 year old men. You work hard, long days in the hot and humid sun of the southern United States. (Rumor had it that the cut off age for working in the fields was 45 years old. But that was only a rumor. If you were sentenced to hard labor, you did hard labor. If you died, well…)
“While I agree some hoe hoe squads like PB unit can be quite easy at times Varner and Brickey's hoe squad are no jokes and yes they do have broke down guys out there.There have been heat strokes, broken bones, heart attacks and even death. So while you make light of the situation and say that it is no big deal, you are WRONG!I was there and I know of NO ONE who wanted that job. And if you think that calling the warden on a hoe squad rider will work once again you are wrong. Because what happens then is that he will get written up lose his class sent to the hole and guess where he goes then? Thats correct, hoe squad, of course he will get a new rider but I am quite sure they will know who he is.Your comments are academic not real world. Unless you have spent 60 plus days in the heat with a 18 pound hoe standing side by side with 20 plus men trying to keep up and called all manner of degrading names you should not speak on the subject.”- FinallyFree
Hard labor was difficult.
There is no other way to describe it. It was intentionally designed to be that way, and at the end of the long hot day you would often find huge grown men crying or passed out on their racks. I have seen it. It was very hard and very; very difficult.
“Only a man who knows what it is like to be defeated can reach down to the bottom of his soul and come up with the extra ounce of power it takes to win when the match is even. “–Muhammad Ali
How it was Conducted
After shaving off all our hair, they marched us off to the cotton field to hoe and till the soil manually. This was hard labor in the hot humidity of Arkansas. It was brutal. The guards rode alongside us on horses. They all wore a vest and a cowboy hat. They carried a 44 caliber Smith and Wesson pistol. Sometimes they would have another guard with a shotgun (loaded with buckshot) that rode in a white pickup truck nearby.
They did shoot on sight if anyone failed to follow orders.
Shots were fired. While I was there, one of the guards fired his pistol at an inmate, and the horse bucked up and he fired again. Luckily no one was hurt. But the guard was thrown from the horse and ended up with a broken arm.
“(Talking about the ADC hoe squad)… He said they will talk about your momma, wife/fiance/girlfriend and kids just to try to get you to do something that will get you in trouble. Very horrible degrading things that I wont even repeat.And I KNOW he is not telling me everything just to make sure my worry is kept to a minimum.My fiance has a bad back and a lot of pain that he deals with and none of that mattered a bit. He had to do everything everyone else did and just suffer through it. And trying to get a CO in trouble is the worst thing you can do because it will come back on the inmate 100 fold.I make damn sure during my visits that I am above respectful to them so that nothing comes back on him. Even when they are a**holes. The hoe squad rides are the worst during visitation and I'm sure to the inmates too. I dealt with one just last weekend.”-sadgrl
To work the fields we had to get up at the crack of dawn during “tropical season” and work “tropical hours”. That meant start work before 6 am. Here, we would march out to the courtyard and form into work squads. Each squad had from 15 to 20 people.
We would stand in lines in the still morning darkness, while we were being reviewed by a corrections officer on horseback. After making sure that everyone was in place and accounted for, we would be marched out to the fields to work. Arriving on site just when the sky was getting light.
The photo comes from the Internet and while it does not specifically state where it was taken, it could very well have been taken in Arkansas. The uniforms are ADC state issue. The guard could very well be a corrections officer except that he is not wearing a vest and boots. Other than that, it really looks like the ADC. The uniforms are ADC state issue.
Sometimes we were marched to buses which would cart us off to an even more remote field off in the distance. In any event, we would pile out of the bus, grab our tools and march out to our work site.
This often meant going to an embankment or overgrown edge of field where we would proceed to remove every single blade of grass and plant from it with mechanical precision.
There was no cadence called, but the guard would direct us where to dig and how to do so; whether it was our left side or our right side. He would tell us to stop the dig or to start a new line. We always formed a line and attacked the ground fiercely with ruthless precision.
The most common way to retire MAJestic agents is to accuse them as Sex Offenders, sentence them to Hard Labor, and then a lifetime of monitoring as part of the Sex Offender registry. That way, MAJestic no longer needs to worry about the agents, instead, they are being watched and observed by the state government and paid for out of the state budgets.
You need cadence to work as a team. If so, we could have worked together as a team. Instead we would move forward at our own pace, with those as the ends of the line setting the pace. They tended to be animals who worked at a frenzied pace. It’s hard for us 50 year old men to keep up with a muscled, body building 20 year old. They would generally go at a pace of one strike a second. It was like trying to follow a robot.
Water Run
Every two hours a tractor would pull a water trailer over and we would line up and get hydrated. This consisted of an army surplus water tank towed by a farm tractor. At the end of the water tank was a spigot, and next to it was a dispenser of paper cups of the cone shaped variety. There were no limits on the amount of water we could consume, but the guards would make sure that we weren’t milking the time at the trailer. Then we would continue our feverish pace.
One Arm Script
If you were lucky you could obtain a “one arm script”. This was a prescription that limited your activity to only using one arm. It was for people who were sick, ill, old, infirm or had a broken arm (hence the term). Those with the script would “putts around” on the outer fringe of the squad while the rest of the squad was banging away together on the rock hard soil.
Lunch
At the close of the shift, we would be marched back to chow hall. Since everyone wanted to get back to the barracks, we would often find the squad jogging and then running back to the gates. There, we would kick off our muddy boots where we would hand them to another guard who would kick the mud off of them and hand them back to us. Of course we would then strip and take a group shower to wash all the sweat and crud off. Then it was off to chow hall. We would eat our “global”, wash it down with kool-aide (or milk), and then return back to the barracks to collapse on the bed in complete and utter exhaustion.
Hoe squad was no joke. It was serious business and terribly difficult.
Hoe squad was extremely trying and difficult.
Duration
Everyone had to do a minimum of two months of hard labor. But if you weren’t working hard enough, or even looked the wrong way, the guards on horse-back would mark you down in their vest pocket book. That would result in additional time being added to your two months at hard labor.
When you are sentenced to “hard labor” in Arkansas you are assigned to work the “hoe squad”. This is a rite of passage for all felons in Arkansas. Everyone must work at hard labor and live in transitional barracks until they can graduate to a “regular” job in the prison. Hard labor is a solid eight hour day toiling in the hot Arkansas sun.
Typically, I would say that most inmates had additional time added on. I would hazard a guess that it would be from two to six extra months. The real and true troublemakers were destined to forever be constrained to do hard labor. For them, this would continue on season to season, until their souls were constructively pacified.
This was a real shame, as most of us desired to finish our hard time labors as soon as possible. But, eventually, all of us would “graduate”. And upon graduation, we would be able to obtain the benefits of completing the hard labor phase of our existence.
“Here in the Arkansas Department of Correction (ADC), us kaptives are forced to do arbitrary strenuous field labor known as "hoe squad" with no pay and under the threat of punitive-isolation for refusing to work.The work done on hoe squad is arbitrary and serves absolutely no purpose other than to physically exert us kaptives and so the pigs can try and get one of us to fall out from exhaustion so they can lock us up in isolation.On hoe squad we are forced to stand nuts to butts in a line, each with a hoe, and chop the ground as we move the line backwards, peeling the grass back as we go, creating a "wind-row" of grass and mud/dirt/rocks/etc. Then we have to pull back as we chop, rather than hitting it and letting it lay. This is very physically exerting as the wind-row gets extremely heavy. This sometimes causes you to miss some grass because you have to stay with the line and you are struggling to pull the wind-row back, which is most difficult for the kaptives in the middle of the line due to shifting.If you miss grass two or three times the pigs "call the truck" on you, meaning a pig in a truck pulls up, cuffs you, and takes you to isolation, even though your clothes are drenched in sweat, your hands are covered with blisters, and it is nearly quitting time for the day.ADC spokesperson Dina Tyler advises the public that this work is voluntary and not forced, and that a kaptive who refuses to work will just not earn meritorious good time credits. But in order for a kaptive to not earn meritorious good time credits he/she must have h classification status reduced (class busted), and to have your class busted you must be convicted of a disciplinary report. Meritorious good time does not take time off of a sentence, it only makes a kaptive eligible for parole consideration sooner. Spokesperson Dina Tyler would also have the public believe us ADC kaptives are paid for our labor, but the only money we get is six dollars a year near Christmas time, with a deposit that reads "Happy Holidays."- by an Arkansas prisoner August 2015
Completion of Hard Labor
Once you completed the hard labor phase of your tour, the rewards of GP (general population) became available to you.
First off , you were able to be reassigned a better barracks to live in. The hard labor barracks were awful. The inmates there all had trouble conforming to the rules. It was always terribly noisy, with fighting, stealing, and provocation commonplace. While prison is, by nature noisy, this environment was beyond compare. Youthful urban blacks would be screaming at the top of their lungs all night, and there was always someone trying to trick you or steal from you.
Assholes abound everywhere, but in Arkansas, I found that most people treated me ok. The only problem was the unstructured African-American youth. They had no parental figures and pretty much acted like feral animals. Some were really bad.
Just imagine two feral dogs fighting over a piece of trash. That was exactly how it was. Apparently, most grow out of this phase, through the experiences of life. However, in prison, the young and old are mixed together, and you have to endure a bad side of the African-American experience.
Cultural Differences
Incidentally, there is a true and real cultural difference between different races that were incarcerated with me. There were many reasons for this, but I am not going to avoid the obvious for free-speech limiting “political correctness” Truth be told, the African-American prison population tended to be loud, boisterous, unruly, energetic, emotional, and contentious.
They had older men, which generally stood around on the sideline and kept order when everything got a little too rowdy.
Spanish-Americans, we called them “SA”, were very peaceful and quiet. They were all generally friendly and surprisingly very devoutly religious, even the most criminal and evil of the bunch.
I only saw two Asian-Americans in prison. One came from Korea (he was tall and stood over 6’2”) and the other from Vietnam.
White Americans also tended to be much quieter. They were just doing their time. For the most part, they kept peaceful and did what they were told. Overall, it was as if the African-Americans treated prison as a big game or kind of summer camp, while the whites and the SA’s considered it to be actual punishment. They were both quiet and kept to themselves. That might sound racist, but it really wasn’t. It was cultural. That’s just the way it was.)
Political Correctness Intermission
This was exactly what it was like for me. I did “Hard Time” in Arkansas. This was what was necessary to put me in a monitoring program that would track my actions, where I lived and what I would do. This is how MAJestic agents are retired. It is not pretty.
Political Correctness – By its very nature, politically correct thinking is most often disingenuous, if not altogether intellectually dishonest. Politically correct thinking replaces individuality and authentic opinions with socially acceptable rhetoric and watered-down behavioral tendencies.
I actually miss the days when most conversations consisted of unpredictable, highly charged, and stimulating discourse – you know the ones, where people were encouraged to openly share their true thoughts and opinions.
The irony of politically correct thinking is that a society void of individual thought actually creates the opposite of diversity. It is, in fact, politically correct thinking that results in a brainwashed group of sheep that completely lack diversity as a result of a generification of thoughts and actions. The dark secret behind politically correct thinking is that it slowly dulls your senses, and neuters your innate ability to be discerning.
I don’t know about the reader, but I don’t want to hear what you think I want you to say, or what you think you should say, but rather I want to hear what you’re really thinking.
Have you ever sat in a meeting where all parties sit around the table with a deer in the headlights look trying to figure out how to dance around an issue rather than address it head-on? It is this type of issue that pollutes our culture, stifles innovation, undermines our productivity, and sentences those who embrace politically correct thinking to a life of mediocrity.
This is a blanket term that today is used to demonize and isolate. It prevents a person from saying what they truly think. History is full of reminders in how to use terminology like this. The dehumanization and objectification of political adversaries as preparation and justification for mass murder came into sharp focus as an effective weapon during the French Revolution.
The specific insults morph to fit the circumstances and the times, but each insult is designed to have the same effect — to dehumanize and to objectify a group of people in opposition to the dominant group that has seized power and the legal mechanisms of the State.
Here is a partial list of the defamatory names of condemnation as utilized by tyrannical regimes as well as the fate meted out to people branded as such:
1793, France
Enemies of the people
Enemies of the revolution
Girondists
Indulgents
Aristocrats
Criminal Clergy
Criminals against Liberty
Mass executions by guillotine in Paris and cities across France.
Genocide against the Catholic clergy, nuns and laity of La Vendee.
1917, Russia
Bourgeois
Capitalists
Counter-Revolutionaries
Reactionaries
Political deviants
Kulaks
Czarists
Trotskyites
Mental defectives
Mass executions by firing squad, mass graves. Imprisonment and torture in Lubuanka and Leforto prisons. Millions starved to death. Others sentenced to hard labor in Siberia.
1966, China
Class enemies
Landlords
Bad elements
Rightists
Rich peasants
Impure elements
Revisionists
Re-education camps, sanctioned mass murder by Red Guards, torture, imprisonment, starvation
2016, USA
Deplorables
Racists
Sexists
Homophobes
Xenophobes
Islamophobes
Irredeemables
What could possibly happen?
What makes these derogatory blanket terms salient and potentially dangerous is that they were intentionally uttered publicly in front of an audience of admirers in 2016 by Hillary Clinton, , in possession of all the levers of State power, and that she knowingly used these defamatory, inflammatory, dehumanizing terms to describe en masse tens of millions of American citizens.
As students of history we’ve seen this before. I avoided including Adolf Hitler’s dehumanizing remarks against Jews, Gypsies, Communists and others because there are still survivors of the Holocaust among us and wounds so deep never heal. But the atrocities and genocide of 1941-45 also started with words — dehumanizing words used against entire groups of people.
There is a vast difference between what an anonymous individual says and what the State says. The examples above are grim reminders of what can happen when those in power, or those who seek it, are celebrated, promoted and legitimized In their attempts to destroy their political enemies.
In a lifetime of enduring the tyranny of the arbitrarily condemned and surviving to write about it, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn provides stark witness for us all. What he learned in the strife of decades is that no human is irredeemable, neither the jailor nor the prisoner. And that to think otherwise is to condemn us all.
To which I include;
“Gradually it was revealed to me that the line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties. If only it were all so simple! If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessary only to separate them from the rest of us and to destroy them. But the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being.”– Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, The Gulag Archipelago
Returning from the fields into the showers. Hoe squad was very strenuous. Then we were subjected to humiliation and awful, awful language and treatment.
Job Assignment
Another benefit to joining GP was that we would be assigned a job. Everyone worked in prisons, though my state did not pay anyone for their labors. Other states are known to provide a low salary rate for taking on work, but that was not the case in Arkansas. You must work, and you do the work for free.
That is slavery.
But that is what happens when you are incarcerated. You become a slave. Literally. According to the Constitution, only non-felons have equal rights under the law. Think of the consequences of that for a second.
If you were fortunate, you could be assigned postings where got to live in the “kitchen barracks” which was often much quieter. Plus, you could often get access to some food that other inmates didn’t have access to. (For instance we might get extra sized portions of collard greens or turnips. Also during the summer months we could volunteer to husk corn at night. If we did that we could get a evening snack of leftover food from dinner.)
While some inmates devised a system of theft of food, most of us were just content to work there and enjoy extra-large portions of the chow that we can provide for ourselves.
Some would eat three to five portions. I however, chose only to eat what I was provided. Part of the reason was that I believed that everything balanced out… If you take a little more, life will cut you a little less. Karma, but also I wanted to be thin and lean when I got released from prison. I was. I looked good for an old man.
Inmate Uniforms
In Arkansas the inmates wore white uniforms. Everything was white. Underwear, socks, tops and pants were all white. We were also issued with French Foreign Legion-type hat that had a flap of cloth on the back to prevent the hot sun from blistering our necks. We didn’t use belts, instead the pants had drawn-strings to gather them around our waists. We had one pocket in the front to hold things, but it was rarely used.
This matched the rest of the prison itself. The sheets, beds, walls, and showers were white. Everything was white. Depending on what unit (prison complex) that one attended, the alternating contrast color varied from forest green to battle ship grey.
The prison uniform was designed in the 1950’s – 1960’s and was a legacy of that time. The pocket was initially designed to hold cigarettes that the inmates were permitted to obtain and smoke at that time. But sometime in the 1990’s, a general ban on smoking at prisons in the ADC was enforced, thus rendering the pocket superannuated. It was rarely used while I was there.
The shirt was a long sleeve cotton pullover with a collared V-neck. It was the same cut as the old style wool Navy “undress uniform” of the enlisted crew. (Only without the flap in the back.) On the right breast your name was stamped in black letters.
On the back of the clothes was an identification number that was used by the laundry crew to determine who owned the clothes.
Shoes were flat, cheap canvas covered flat deck shoes. (Though, many inmates could purchase white tennis shoes in the commissary. I never did. Many inmates however, chose to purchase the shoes, as it was a rare item of comfort. See the photo below.)
Bible study ministry in the ADC Wrightsville Unit. When the inmates met someone from “outside” we would be issued fresh and clean clothing. This would differ from our dirty and grimy normal prison attire. This is a typical scene. It could be at any of the units.
We were also issued other clothing for the hard-labor in the field. This would include brogan shoes, and if it is cold out, a coat and knitted cap. Everything was white, but got easily soiled in the hot dusty hard fields. Additionally, we could buy gloves at the commissary store to prevent our hands from blistering up.
Brogan a term generally applied to any heavy, ankle-high shoe or boot. More specifically, a Brogan is any such boot worn by a soldier in at least the American Revolutionary War and the American Civil War. In the American revolution, the British soldiers wore brogans that were straight-last, meaning that they were interchangeable with the left or right foot, supposedly allowing for even wear on the boots.
The Commissary is a store for inmates. In the United States armed forces and prisons, as well as the United Nations, it has the derived meaning of a store for provisions, with the original military meaning referring to an officer or official responsible for food, stores, or transport for a body of soldiers. Commissaries sell primarily grocery articles; other items can be purchased at special promotions.
All uniforms have three numbers associated with them. The first number [1] was the inmate number. This was a six digit number.
There was also a laundry number [2]. This number told the person assigned to laundry duty which inmate in the barracks got which laundry. It was typically a three digit number.
Finally, there was a barracks assignment number [3]. This number defined the barracks that you were assigned to and the rack that you slept in. An example would be “16-6” which would mean barracks #16, and rack #6. This number was of the designation of a two digit number separated by a hyphen and another two digit number. All items of clothing had these numbers on them in various ways
Fashion
Believe it or not, fashion trends persist no matter where you live. Prison is no exception. I am not talking about the wild barracks fashions of the homosexual crowd, but rather the conventional fashions of the general population. These fashions varied from time to time. One of the most recognizable ones was the shining of shoes.
Those of us that were issued with the brogans for work in the fields would take the time and put them in a high state of shine. These were brown boots, but they would be shined in such a way that at the outer tips were shined to a high gloss black color, and the remaining brown sides were left in the natural brown color. Cleaned but not as shiny. This was a point of pride for a number of the inmates, especially those from the urban areas.
Other issues of fashion and style is to wear pristine, white, well creased inmate uniforms. This might not sound like a big deal to the reader, but in a world where every aspect of your life is controlled, and individuality is suppressed, being able to dress in style takes on a new meaning.
To obtain such pristine clothes, the inmates would pay other inmates to wash, fold and press the clothes. In so doing, a small cottage industry would spring up providing laundry services for the most well-heeled of the incarcerated.
At the time I was incarcerated, the going rate was 25 cents per item of clothing (negotiable). Other arrangements included, one cigarette for one week free laundry, and two ramen noodles for washing a shirt. Because the prison was a hard labor camp, the uniforms all tended to be dirty and dusty. Even after returning back from the prison laundry. So, in order to get pristine white clothes, hand wash laundry was the only solution available.
Ingenuity (radios, headset, shower heads)
Inmates were constantly modifying, innovating, adapting and creating all kinds of solutions to improve their lives. We never had access to the things in other prisons. I heard that other state prisons would allow you to have MP3 players and television sets.
Not for me.
I was at a hard labor prison in a “punishment state”. (Not every prison is like this. For instance, in liberal states such as New York, they are very generous with providing inmates with alternative punishments. For instance, all inmates in NYS prisons are able to get free electronic tablets.)
For a brief period of time, I and a number of other inmates, spend a few months in another state prison system. Thus giving us the exposure of comparative evaluation. This was a prison in one of the Northern states. They ate real food, not fake “pretend” food, and it was plain but good.
They had pizza, fruit, ice cream, and even chicken wings on Superball Sunday! They could buy typewriters, radios, television sets with cable access, and MP3 players with downloadable music selections. All of these things were unheard of where I was incarcerated. Such was the differences in philosophy between the two individual states comparatively.
Not where we were. We were severely limited in what we could possess. So, as a result, we would modify food, boxes, pens, and whatever else we could obtain into various implements and appliances.
Head Set Speakers
We did have access to a small hand held radio. This was battery powered, and we could purchase the batteries in the commissary store. It was small, about the size of the palm of your hand, and was transparent. So you could see inside of it. It had no speaker, however. To listen to the radio you had to use a set of ear buds, or headset.
There are no wall plugs in prison. At least not where I was. If you wanted electricity you bought a battery. And we tried all kinds of ingenious ways to keep them alive, including throwing them on the floor to shock them back into life. Other prison systems not only had a plug, but a wall lighter for cigarette smoking in your cell. It looked like a car lighter of sorts.
One of the innovative work-arounds by the inmates involved taking a toilet paper cardboard roll, and modifying it. The roll would have a hole cut in the middle of it, and the headphones would slip over the ends. The result was a nice small speaker of medium loudness. This was not a common modification as the use of overt loud displays was dangerous. Not everyone wanted to listen to Country & Western music, or Urban Rap. So it only seemed to be prevalent in more or less friendlier dorms. The more dangerous dorms, i.e. “punishment” or “newbie” dorms were too animalistic to allow this kind of activity.
DIY prison speakers. A set of speakers can be made out of a cardboard roll that comes with a roll of toilet tissue. You just need to cut out a hold int he middle of it.
Interestingly, I find it amazing how such simple changes can result in an amazing set of solutions. Necessity is the mother of solutions, and I can certainly attest to that fact.
Shower Heads
Showers were a necessity, but the way that the water exited the pipes wasn’t the best. For the most part it was like a fine mist that got a person damp, but didn’t clean you.
In order to get clean, often times an inmate would devise an improved shower head that would fit over the state supplied one affixed to the wall.
These heads all worked the same way. What they did was collect the mist and forced it to fall down in a trickle. It is certainly not as great as what you would find at Home Depot® but they worked well enough to get us clean.
The easiest and most common fix is to take a bottle of shampoo, they were tiny bottles, and cut the bottom out. Then place the bottle over the shower head. The water stream changes as the plastic gets hot and it tends to make a little whining sound, but other than that it seemed to work out just fine.
Adaptability was the watchword in prison. One must adapt to a given situation; endure what is uncomfortable, be humble when needed and adapt as situations arise.
DIY prison shower head. It is used to make the water spray out in a way that gets you clean, instead of a spray that gets you wet.
Soldering kit
While not permitted, there were a number of electronic technicians who were imprisoned and who maintained a small portable electronics lab. By scavenging the electronics of old radios, and other devices (as few as they were) they were able to assemble a small kit of tools and parts.
This kit was used to create modifications of exiting radios to improve amplification of volume, improve range, or other benefits. They also were able to create tools for the creation of tattoos, and other more or less functional devices.
None of these tools were used for the purposes of escape or as weapons.
To solder, typically a wick was made out of toilet paper wrapped around tightly. It would look like a yard long paper snake. This would be lit through use of a spark created by using wires connected to a battery.
The resultant fire was small and long lasting, and was just barely hot enough to heat up an improvised soldering iron. This was nothing less than a spoon or fork that was converted into an improvised solder item. The iron would be placed in the fire and then back onto the PCB until the solder would melt. It was a time consuming process, but did work.
Like anything else, if you modified a radio, there would be trade-offs. If you increased the volume, you would obtain distortion of the audio stream. If you increased the receiving range of a radio, you would get drift effects and lose the ability to lock on to a given station. These were the consequences of living in the environment where we lived.
Tattoo machine
I don’t have tattoos, and never really wanted any. But I am from a different generation.
In any event, they are very popular today, and most inmates obtained tattoos. Some of them were really great. As there were people of all kinds of levels of skill and ability there.
Typically, the process of tattooing was rather simple. Essentially, you make a small hole and fill it in with ink. A series of holes, thus can create a picture. If you did this by hand, it would take a very long period of time. So in order to speed up the process, a machine was devised that would work like a miniature sewing machine. Instead of a needle pushing thread through a piece of fabric, the machine would consist of a motorized needle that would rapidly make a series of holes and push the ink through the holes.
The motor would be scavenged from some other electric device, made or constructed by hand, or even smuggled in somehow. The needle would be made from a nail or a small sharpened screw, and the ink would be collected from the pens that we were allowed to purchase from the commissary store.
Washroom
Each barracks had its own bathroom. In the ADC there was no privacy. While other states permitted privacy curtains for their inmates, ours was all open.
Not that it matters any more. A “free” American has no privacy. When people talk about privacy, they mistakenly assume it protects only that which is hidden behind a wall or under one’s clothing.
The courts have fostered this misunderstanding with their constantly shifting delineation of what constitutes an “expectation of privacy.” And technology has furthered muddied the waters.
However, privacy is so much more than what you do or say behind locked doors. It is a way of living one’s life firm in the belief that you are the master of your life, and barring any immediate danger to another person (which is far different from the carefully crafted threats to national security the government uses to justify its actions), it’s no one’s business what you read, what you say, where you go, whom you spend your time with, and how you spend your money.
Unfortunately, privacy as we once knew it is dead.
Our washroom consisted of a single white painted cinder-block room. Commodes without lids lined one side. There were typically six commodes. All were stainless steel. They sat close to each other without partitions.
When you sat down your thighs and arms would tend to touch the guy next to you.
So typically, we rarely sat next to each other. Instead we would prefer to wait until a toilet was available to use. Sometimes, for the purposes of privacy, we would place a trash can on the commode to give us some degree of privacy. Like everything in life, over time you adjust to the conditions that you experience.
What was shocking to me initially soon became commonplace.
Toilet paper was issued each Sunday at 8pm. We would be issued one roll of toilet paper, two disposable razors, and a bar of soap. We would then secure these items in our lockers inside our racks. If you failed to secure your items, they could get stolen by other inmates.
Everyone eventually gets things stolen. I’ve had my things stolen numerous times. It is the way things are in prison.
Kites
One common activity, regardless of where one is incarcerated, is known as “flying a kite”. (Though I don’t know what it is called now.)
This activity is restricted to areas where one is locked up in their cell, either through punishment or isolation, and is used as a way by which one inmate can chat with another. Otherwise all one can do is sing to themselves to keep from going nuts. In this activity, the inmate tears off a thread from their blanket or uniform, and makes a long string out of it. Then then attach a small piece of paper where the inmates can write or scratch a note on it.
The inmate then throws the “kite” out from under the door. The inmate tries to throw it over and over; out far away from his cell door. It looks like he is fishing. It is a method that is hoped, that the note would eventually make its way to another inmates cell. This is done in the hope that their “fishing exercise” would eventually connect with another line and they can reel in a message from another inmate.
Showers
In a barracks of 90 inmates, we had three shower heads. Showers were available to us from 6pm until 9pm. In the resulting three hours, 90 men were supposed to be able to get clean. That is 6 minutes, per inmate in theory.
The problem is that the shower heads were too close together.
If three men took showers they would have to be physically touching each other. The showers were not stalls, but simply the wall at the end of the bathroom area. In use, the three showers were divided so that the middle shower head was not used, and only the two outer shower heads were utilized.
Depending on the units, or the prison, that you were in, some showers were left on all the time during this period. They were controlled by the guard station.
Other prisons, however, had an individual control for the showers. It consisted of a button. You press the button, and you get ten seconds of shower. To take a shower, you had to continually press the button for the duration of the shower. For a five minute shower, you would have to press the button 30 times while you showered.
I don’t know if this was to conserve water, prevent abuse, or just a sadistic attempt to help drive everyone crazy.
The above is a photo by the author of a prison shower timer control. This is typically what is installed in Prisons in the United States and its territories. This device sets the duration or shower length of the water so that the inmate would not over use the water. (Needed because there are assholes who would try to flood the barracks. Seriously!) The timer controls a pump and valve mechanism shown. Notice that the length or duration of shower can be set by the prison guards from a short 1 second burst up to a maximum shower duration of 9 minutes. The default setting is one second. Photo by the author. (After prison, I was involved in constructing a holding facility where these items were utilized.)
Because of the large number of people, and the difficulty in securing a shower, a system of order was generally introduced. The result was that we had to wash quickly and establish a kind of order in line. Therefore, many barracks established a pecking line that one would join.
For instance, Robert always took a shower after Tom. And Tom always took a shower after Dave.
If organized correctly, we would get in, take a quick shower and leave. Most inmates took a ten to fifteen minute shower, but there were always exceptions. A number of the younger urban youth would like to spend hours in the shower and wanted to not share it at all with the others. They were always intent on using it to masturbate in. That was fine, as long as everyone else had already finished their shower, but that wasn’t always the case.
OK, forget political correctness. These were young negro African-Americans who came from an impoverished inner city environment. Typical ages included 18 years up to the middle 20’s. Color did not matter. Some were darker in skin color than others. Some were lighter. The common thread between all these individuals was social. They are were raised in a social environment that identified themselves as “African-American”.
There were two types of showers. In the barracks we had showers that lined up against one wall. This consisted of three shower heads in a line. In the shower area next to the sally port, there were shower columns. These devises would enable a person to quickly come on in, take a quick shower to wash all the dirt off, and change without having to wait in line.
This is pretty much what the showers looked like in the ADC. The only difference was that they were a little better maintained. I really don’t recall the rust stains on the wall.
Sinks
Across from the toilets were a row of sinks. Each sink had a stainless steel “mirror” above it. It offered a poor degree of reflection because there was always some asshole who felt the need to punch dents into it. These actions tended to render all the mirrors useless.
Instead, we would choose to use a small plastic mirror that we could buy from the Commissary (the small store that sells sundries to the inmates).
Each sink had no drain plug. Instead it would have an open drain. If we wanted to hold a basin of water, we would need to plug the hole up with a cloth. One of the problems that we had was that we had no hot water.
Only the showers had hot water. However, there was a hot water faucet that we could use to get hot water for coffee and washing. We would go to the faucet and then collect the water and bring it back to the sink to wash in with.
It’s supposedly very good for you, don’t you know. From an article titled “Drinking Three to Four Cups of Coffee a Day More Healthy than Harmful”, written by Kate Kelland. Some gems from the article;
“Coffee drinking appears safe within usual patterns of consumption,” Pool’s team concluded in their research, published in the BMJ British medical journal late on Wednesday.Drinking coffee was consistently linked with a lower risk of death from all causes and from heart disease. The largest reduction in relative risk of premature death is seen in people consuming three cups a day, compared with non-coffee drinkers. Drinking more than three cups a day was not linked to harm, but the beneficial effects were less pronounced.Coffee was also associated with a lower risk of several cancers, including prostate, endometrial, skin and liver cancer, as well as type 2 diabetes, gallstones and gout, the researchers said. The greatest benefit was seen for liver conditions such as cirrhosis of the liver.”
However, some enterprising inmates run a sort of “Chinese laundry” service for other inmates. They hand wash their clothes for one “favor” an item. While there is a laundry service at the prison, it does not really get the clothes clean. All the new white prison “state issue’ eventually turns a reddish grey tint.
Therefore, many inmates wash their own clothes, or employ another to provide them with a cleaning service. When this happens, those washing the clothes may be very inconsiderate and take up all the sinks with laundry.
Thus creating a condition where the others in the barracks are unable to wash their faces and brush their teeth. To prevent this from occurring many sinks have been damaged. Huge holes as punched in the drains of the sinks allowing the drink to drain directly into the water collection basin below the sinks. This does enable ready access to the sink, but at the cost of the inability to self-wash the clothes.
A favor could be anything from a cigarette to some Ramen noodles. Of course sexual activities and other kinds of tasks could be traded or bartered for at will.
Homosexuals
The homosexual community was the most colorful and interesting group of people in the prison system. They were the most upbeat, and happiest of everyone. They pretty much kept to themselves, and that was fine for all of us. If you got between a “lovers quarrel” you could get killed or worse.
They always seemed to have money and they were always involved an all kinds of activities in the barracks.
Clothing
At the barracks some would dress up in “homemade” fashion clothing. They would parade around in them in the barracks, and at times even put on elaborate skits or plays that they would compose themselves.
The clothing was mostly old discarded uniforms or painstakingly disassembled fabric where thread was extracted from and re-stitched into something different.
They would take coffee and use it to die clothing, or ink from pens to design colorful patterns. They would, if they had access to an Art Supply prescription, purchase colored pens for this purpose as well.They would make their own halters and try to die them different colors. They had an active DIY side industry going on that included small key chains and belts that they would sell to inmates or family friends for a few dollars.
Makeup
They would make their own makeup out of food stuff and Vaseline. They would take colored beads and grind them into small dust, mix them with Vaseline and use them as rouge, or lipstick.
The use of food items such as cherry flavored drink mix was always a great base for their purposes. They would make mascara out of ink and Vaseline or underarm detergent. They would also make eye shadow out of powdered drink mix and chap-stick.
Character from the movie “Con air” is very typical. This is a homosexual who finds themselves incarcerated.
They were, to put it mildly very colorful individuals. But, they could not wear these items outside of the barracks as they would get into a great deal of trouble for violation of the dress code.
Inmate gangs
By watching television and movies you get the impression that the gangs in prison controlled everything. That was not true at all. The guards controlled everything. The gangs were a kind of support group for individuals whom needed to belong to something.
Most gangs formed from outside the prison system and then they entered the gang in prison as a continual process.
For people like me, gangs left us alone. We were older, mature, and best left to our own designs. We didn’t bother anyone and no one bothered us. While there was an occasional individual who would try to pull a trick on us, most of the gangs left us alone and let us be.
It was better that way. As long as we kept to ourselves, and did not let our egos cause us any grief, we survived. Gangs were most interested in the younger men, those between the ages of 18 and 30.
In fact, the hardest thing to tame in prison is the ego.
You learn quickly that you are nothing, and you deal with it. You survive how best you can and get on with life. You take every day by itself and do not let anyone get your goat or trick you into a fight. That is difficult. Many times you would have to take abuse and other crimes against your ego that was intolerable.
However, as long as you were friendly and could make friends, you were ok.
There were many gangs in prison. My exposure to them was very small. Of course there was the “Arian Brotherhood”, the “Crypts”, and the “Bloods”. There was the dangerous “13” group and various small groupings of Mexican gangs. But, like I stated earlier, my exposure to all of them was quite minimal.
The truth was that I pretty much got along with most everyone.
Recreation
Even though the prison was a hard labor facility, people need recreation. If you did not have any means for emotional outlets the facility would become an explosive “powder keg”. There were various methods of emotional release that were metered out to the inmates in minuscule doses. Some were organized events, while some were simple games that could be purchased at the commissary.
Dominoes
The ADC did not permit cigarettes and anything that could be used for gambling. That included cards and dice. But it did permit the game of dominoes. This game was quite a serious game in prison. The African-American contingent took this game to new emotional heights with cheering, yelling, and vocal and aggressive displays of emotion. It was actually pretty funny to watch them all getting all worked up at the domino table.
Each barracks had three metal tables each with four metal seats firmly affixed into the cement. To play a game, one of the inmates would take their grey colored state-issued wool blanket and place it on the table, thus making a gaming table. They then would form teams and play various games of dominoes. Often times they would bet on the outcome of the games. Needless to say, the games could get awfully loud at times. Typically, most games ran from around dinner time up until lights-out. Weekend games could last all day.
Chess
The game of chess was available to all inmates along with its sister; checkers. Many inmates played chess and some were amazingly good at it. With a lot of time on ones hands and little else to do, the game of chess became the only form of mental stimulation that one would have. The chess games available to inmates in jail were the large board format size that is often seen in toy and hobby stores. However, the one available to prisoners was much smaller due to the size limitations of the inmates locker. This chess game was best considered to be a fold-up portable version.
Cards
Cards were available to inmates in Jail and county jails, but they were not available to us inmates in prison in Arkansas. Unlike other prisons in other states, we did not have access to cards of any kind. Sometimes an inmate might try to make up their own deck of cards, and they would play with it for a week or two, but eventually they would get caught with it. The end result would be some time in the hole and a confiscation of the cards.
Gambling
Gambling is highly illegal in prison, but it occurred anyways.
Typically homemade dice was constructed our of a bar of soap and tested through use to determine how variable it would be. Most gambling occurred after or during commissary day when inmates would get to go to the commissary for food and supplies. Thus they could try their luck at getting more or losing what they had purchased.
Sometimes innovation played a role with raceways constructed and piece counters that represented horses and a kind of race would be constructed. Bingo was also a potential game, but I only saw it played a few times. Homemade cards did make their appearance from time to time, but their use was always limited.
One always had to be careful in gambling in prison, because one could be manipulated an “played”. If one was not careful one could lose everything and be in debt to another inmate. When this happens, one could easily become an indentured slave that would be obligated to provide whatever services the “owner” expected of him. These services could be anything, and often did include various sexual acts.
Softball
In prisons with a big enough yard, the game of softball was often played. Of course, given the climate it was either in the morning or at dusk. The day time heat was often rather harsh. The pace of the game was well suited to the prison environment and it helped to unite the various barracks and other members. Many of us remembered spending time with our fathers and uncles going to baseball games and watching them on television. It became a bonding event that was relived during our times in the yard.
Football
The game of “touch” or “tag” (American) football was often played. Teams would form up and they would play an abbreviated game of sorts. This was quite different from baseball, as in baseball we played full innings and obeyed the rules. While in football, it was more a fun sport, not taken as seriously.
Child Molesters
Cho-Mo is the term that is given to anyone in prison for a sexual offense. I was given that label, because I was accused of having child porn on my computer. The prison system is flooded with people being punished for these crimes. But only a very rare few were actually real child molesters.
Some were rapists, and some were involved in sexual deviance of one type or the other. But most were there because of “borderline” sexual crimes.
For instance, I once shared a cell with an inmate who was doing 15 years for producing child pornography. What he did was to have pictures of his three year old taking a bath in the tub. He admitted to taking the pictures during a divorce proceeding and got slapped with the charges. He is now doing 15 years at hard labor.
I once spent time in a cell with another who was doing five years for raping a girl. They went on a date, and after the date he led her to a motel. They had sex. Then afterwards she accused him of rape.
Another took pictures of his children while they were taking baths. During the divorce proceedings the pictures were entered as evidence that he was a deviant. So he is now doing seven years.
The media might give the reader the impression that each and every person arrested for child pornography was arrested because they really had some sexual deviance problems, and that they were a predator with predatory tendencies. But that was not true. Only a rare handful of people fit that profile.
There was a young man of 21 years old in prison because his girlfriend (now his wife) was under 18 when she was pregnant with his child. Her father turned him in to the police, and he was arrested while in community college. He was serving seven years.
They came after him in a armored vehicle! WTF? Militarization of police. What a horrible subject. It’s only going to get worse. Despite his gun control rhetoric, President Obama arms federal civilian agencies more than ever. 5JUL16. Go HERE.
There was a man who ran a prostitution / massage ring that employed a girl who was 14. This was child trafficking, indeed. But the reader must understand that things are never black and white. Each person and their circumstances need to be investigated fully to judge whether or not they need to be punished appropriately. In the case with the pimp, the girl said that she was 18 years old. (And signed the necessary papers that stated so. But, a 14 year old is not capable of signing anything. So the document did not protect him nor his company.) He failed to verify her age. Yes, he was wrong and guilty. But I don’t think that it merits 25 years imprisonment, because the girl came to him to get work, and he employed her.
Now, all that being said…
I actually DID meet a number of real true and EVIL sex offenders there in prison. Do not get the impression that the drag net and the associated systems have not been effective in catching the real bad guys. They have. Though, please keep in mind that that was NOT the primary INTENDED FUNCTION of the program. The purpose of the program is to retire MAJestic members who were W(U)-SAP actuated.
I met a man who would kidnap women and chain them down in his van. It was outfitted as a sexual attack machine. Yet in prison, he was nice and personable. He’s probably still in prison. His parole hearing kept coming up, and kept being denied. I feel sorry for him, but then again, I really do not know what actions he did when he was free outside. So I must keep my feelings reserved.
One man, who I once shared a cell with, was furious with his girlfriend when he found her with another man outside of a club. So In public he put a pistol to her head and raped her on the sidewalk in front of everyone at the club. He was doing a long sentence. Not life, but might as well be. He was a decent enough African-American fella. He let his passions get hold of him.
There were many illegals from Mexico that were in for raping little girls, often their own daughters. I met so many of them. Maybe at least ten. Seriously. I came away with the impression that it was a cultural thing with them.
I met another older white man, in a counseling class (all sexual offenders have to take behavioral classes) who gave specifics on how he groomed little boys and girls so that he could lead them to his home and molest them. He was a professor of some type. I was horrified with the things, the planning, and what he admitted to. It has disgusting. I wanted to do evil things to him. I’ll tell you what.
Yes. These sickos actually do exist. But the sheer numbers of them are not at all what is portrayed in the American media.
MAJestic Members in Prison
I only know of a precious few MAJestic W(U)-SAP members in prison.
Of course I know of the three in my cell (MAJestic organization structure. A cell is a group of three members that we each know of.) I met two others from various MAJestic cells who found out about me though my decommission ritual in Pine Bluff. (You can read about it elsewhere in the blog.)
They got in contact with me. We chatted briefly when we could.
I also met three others who were part of various SAP programs but who were not part of MAJestic. (Interesting fellows. However, their experiences were far more exciting than mine.)
All were imprisoned as Sex Offenders. All were doing time for “soft” sex offenses, which involved electronic media in one way or the other.
The Internet and television gives the reader the impression that Cho-Mo’s are treated horribly in prison. They could be, and there is always those who want to hurt and harm others. But mostly other inmates treated us with deference. We were all doing our time. Period.
No one really cared all that much why we were in prison. (For the most part. There were exceptions, of course.) As long as we did our time and left other inmates alone, we were also left alone in peace. I did not experience all the horrid retributions that you read about on the Internet, hear others talk about in jail, and watch on the colorful television shows.
Movies & Television & Radio
Prisons in other states provide access to radios, televisions, typewriters and MP3 players to the inmates. But not in the ADC. We could purchase, through the commissary, a small radio that enabled us to listen to some music.
Television was pretty much limited to the group television that was shared in the barracks. It was totally enclosed in a heavy gauge wire cage to prevent damage. To change channels we would have to fabricate some kind of long rod made out of newspapers. Imagine a one yard long (1 meter) rolled rod that one would use to change the channels with.
Typically both the televisions and radio channels were limited. We lived in a prison that was situated far from any nearby city. So we typically only could get three television channels of varying quality and radio stations that would pop into existence depending on the weather and time of day.
Weekends we were treated to movies that were rented by the prison staff. So we were able to watch various movies on the weekends. Some were good, and some were poor. To listen to them, we would use our radios and tune into the prison broadcast channel and would be able to listen in to the movies. Of course we watched mostly American-centrist movies and whatever was popular at the time.
The most popular movies were ones that dealt with nature, animations and crime.
As an aside, jail is different from prison. Before I went to prison, I had to wait in Jail until a bed space was available for me. In jail, we would watch WWF wrestling at night.
It was quite the interesting crowd with all the good old’ boy white trash and the urban gang bangers getting all excited, hot, and bothered over this stupid television show. It was one of the rare times when the black inmates and the white inmates would watch shows together.
The other times were for movies and television news (“…hey that’s John, didn’t he just leave jail Saturday?...) In jail, at least in the Northern Little Rock jail there were two television sets, one at each end of the open common area.
The blacks would be all rowdy and crazy at one television set. They’d be carrying on and acting crazy. Meanwhile at the other television set, the white guys would sit there in quiet silence watching the show.
That’s just the way it is.
The Hole
I spent time in “the Hole”. This is sort of like a jail for wayward prisoners. After all, what do you do with inmates who fail to follow the rules? You “arrest them”, ‘limit their privileges” and put them in a high security facility for them to be punished.
Isolation cell layout in the ADC. This one is modeled after the cells in Bricky’s. It consists of a bare cinder-block wall.
In my case, I was working on the “chain gang” and doing hard labor when I had a heart attack. (I was, after all, over 50 years old. Not used to working in the hot humid Arkansas heat, manually breaking the hard ground along side 20-something African-American youth.) It is tough difficult work for a 20 year old young man. Imagine how it must have been for me, a 50+ year old (pot bellied) white collar office worker. So, I had a heart-attack. The guards picked me up and sent me to the infirmary.
In his famous speech Citizenship in a Republic, Theodore Roosevelt spoke of that man…a man whose face was “marred by dust and sweat and blood” and who will never share his place with “those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
The image is striking.
It is an image that I treasure because the reality was truly pathetic. Hollywood could make the situation heroic and glamorous, but it was not.
It was a dirty, sweaty, and grimy situation where I suddenly found an invisible hand tugging large strings attached to my heart, and where I collapsed onto the rock hard ground.
The prison doctor looked me over. Measured my respiration, pulse and general health. He gave me two aspirins, and told me so rest on Saturday and Sunday, and then go back to work on Monday.
Take two aspirins and then go back to work.
The thing is, I was not at all ready to go back out there the next day or so. I refused. Because I refused to go out to the yard and work at hard labor, they put me in the hole as punishment.
Because I did not do any violence, theft, or hurt anyone else, my decision to not follow the rules was evidence of either stubbornness or insanity. I told them that if I went out there again, and if I had a heart attack again, I might die. Therefore I would not be going out there again.
They viewed this as insanity. Their reasoning was that I had to be locked up to protect me from getting hurt. Exactly. However, being locked up to protect one from getting hurt was only addressed in the ADC manual as attempted suicide.
So I was placed in the hole to protect me.
They stripped me. Put a paper gown on me. Chained me to a cinder-block bed inside a small cinder-block room with a toilet next to it, and closed the inner bars door, and then the outer solid door. I spent two months locked up like that.
The mind. It was all I had to play with. It was all I had to exercise with.
Noise
It is very noisy in prison.
No matter where you are at; it’s loud and deafening. A typical barracks will have guys yelling, shouting, or having loud shouting conversations sometimes many cells away from each other. (Most of the noise came from the African-American youth under 30 years old. They were like out-of-control puppies.)
Other guys are singing or just making screeching noises.
The CO’s (Correction Officers) are constantly shouting out names, orders and whatever else. It is difficult to chat on the phones. Which is unfortunate as they are so expensive to use. When you are chatting the person on the other end can’t hear you and I have to shout too (also because the phones sucked so bad!).
Some barracks, mostly occupied by older inmates are quieter. But the entry barracks are often terrible.
No matter how you look at it, prison is, if anything, very, very noisy. Some people make home-made ear plugs. They put wet tissue or toilet paper in the corner of a plastic bag, cinch the ends, and there you have it. In federal prisons I believe they sell ear plugs. But I don’t know to what extent they work. No matter where you are noise is inescapable.
As a side note, I went on the Internet and looked up noise in prison. What I found was all kinds of opinions and comments from “very quiet” to “insane loud”. So all that I can say is this. Noise between jails and prisons are different. As are noise levels between federal prisons and state prisons. In the ADC we had different barracks. The “worst” barracks were the hard labor barracks and they were very, very noisy. However, everything got real quiet, real quick when the lights went out. At the ADC, yes it was very loud.
“My boyfriend says it's loud and deafening in Osborn with guys yelling, shouting, or having loud shouting conversations sometimes many cells away from each other. Other guys are singing or just making screeching noises. The CO's are constantly shouting out names, orders and whatever else. When we're on the phone sometimes he can't hear me and I have to shout too (also because the phones suck so bad!). He says it's like that all the time and gives him a headache.A very knowledgeable member here told me that prison is, if anything, very, very noisy. I have read here that some people make home-made ear plugs. They put wet tissue or toilet paper in the corner of a plastic bag, cinch the ends, and there you have it. In federal prisons I believe they sell ear plugs. But I don't know to what extent they work. I've seen some prisons on 'Lockup' where it seems the noise is inescapable. Hope that helps, just passing on some things I learned and read about here.A friend of mine was released from prison after spending over a decade inside (later proved innocent by DNA, by that's off subject)...anyway, after marveling at cellphones, etc., the number one thing that he marveled at was the silence at night. He didn't sleep for an entire week because it was "too quiet". (Oh, and also, "too dark", since apparently the lights are on most of the time.)”
-PrisonTalk
The first thing that one experiences when leaving prison is the silence. In fact, the number one thing that I marveled at when I was released was the silence at night. I couldn’t sleep for an entire week because it was “too quiet”.
Television & Stadium benches
We had two television sets in the day room. Each set was connected to an antenna that permitted reception via the TV antenna to about three other nearby stations. The television sets were encased inside a metal mesh box preventing anyone from removing and damaging the television. To change channels, the inmates fashioned a kind of stick with old toothbrush parts and used it to change channels on the buttons in the front of the set.
FILE – In this Aug. 10, 2009, file photo, an Arkansas Department of Correction officer patrols a cell block at the agency’s Cummins Unit near Varner, Ark. A legislative subcommittee on Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2015, approved Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s request to tap $7.4 million in reserve funds to open more prison beds in the state. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston, File)
On weekends we had access to movies, and typically the staff would play movies all week for our enjoyment and “control”. Most of the movies were pretty decent.
They would pick the DVD’s out from the local DVD store and rent them for our use. The cost to do so was charged to the state. Sometimes the staff would bring in their own videos from their own video collections to show. They weren’t all assholes, you know.
To watch the movies we would have access to flat hard steel metal benches. Some barracks had a back rest, while others had no back rest. We would sit on the benches or stand up as need be to watch the movies.
Weight Lifting
Contrary to what you see on the media. There just wasn’t any kind of free weights or bench presses in the ADC. At best, we had a set of bars that could be used to do pull-ups or pushups. While I do not know the reason for this lack of exercise equipment, I suspect that it might be due to legislation passed by No Frills Prison Act that amended the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994.
“No Frills Prison Act - Amends the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to require a State, to be eligible for truth in sentencing incentive grants, to demonstrate that it:
(1) provides living conditions and opportunities within its prisons that are not more luxurious than those that the average prisoner would have experienced if not incarcerated;
(2) does not provide to any such prisoner specified benefits or privileges, including earned good time credits, less than 40 hours a week of work that either offsets or reduces the expenses of keeping the prisoner or provides resources toward restitution of victims, unmonitored phone calls (with exceptions), in-cell television viewing, possession of pornographic materials, instruction or training equipment for any martial art or bodybuilding or weightlifting equipment, or dress or hygiene other than as is uniform or standard in the prison; and
(3) does not provide, for a prisoner serving a sentence for a crime of violence which resulted in serious bodily injury to another, housing other than in separate cell blocks intended for violent prisoners, less than nine hours a day of physical labor (with exceptions), any release from the prison for any purpose unless under physical or mechanical restraint, any viewing of television, any inter-prison travel for competitive sports, more than one hour a day spent in sports or exercise, or possession of personal property exceeding 75 pounds in total weight or that cannot be stowed in a standard size U.S. military issue duffel bag.”
-Strength Tech
Yard Call
We were permitted to leave the inside of the prison and go outside to the prison yard. This was called “Yard Call”. We generally got one yard call a day; typically on days without rain. This was for from one to two hours.
The best time to have yard call was at dusk when there was still light out but the temperatures were going down and things were cooling off. There wasn’t much to do during yard call. Instead we generally used the time to walk and talk. Many inmates made many, many loops around the yard.
Once after spending weeks in “the hole”, I was released and I well remember my first yard call. It was a cool late afternoon, and it was just the beginnings of dusk. The sky was clear and the shade was just then forming under the trees in the distance. In the grass were one or two dandelions. I remember how fine it was to see the colors; the greens and blues, and the yellow petals of the dandelions. I will never forget the smell of the flower to my sensory deprived nose….
Yard call was important to us.
Sometimes the coach would be there and he would organize football, or baseball events. He was an important member of the prison system and greatly managed to control the tempers and passions of the inmates so incarcerated. He would not only help us play organized games, but enabled volleyball, basketball, and exercise efforts as well.
Books & Library
In the ADC there was very little in the way of reading materials. Yet, reading was the sole educational and recreational outlet for the mind in that mind-numbing place. The books were often old, and donated after an old library closed. There were rarely any new books, unless an inmate donated one that they had obtained by mail. The end result was a slew of barely readable books of marginal interest.
There were some books, of course, that a person could read with a feeling of interest. There were some classics like “Moby Dick”, Murder Mysteries and Westerns. There were also some books on history that were interesting. But the vast bulk of the books in the library where I was imprisoned were of low interest, antiquated, and obsolete. Most were not appropriate for the audience imprisoned.
In hindsight, I do not know if this was a form of torture in a Hard Labor prison, or it was the result of ignorance or indifference. The books that remained, culled from the racks of the bland and uninteresting, were sometimes interesting. I was, for example, able to read many classics that I never really had time to read when outside the prison environment. Those books that were uninteresting to me are now funny when I think back on my time there.
Examples of the book selections that we had included;
An economic study of Memphis Tennessee from 1932 to 1935.
Hair styling guide for the “Modern Housewife of 1964”.
A history of the chicken.
A 1947 Vacuum Tube selection guide.
Cookbook for traditional Polish Food.
Diarrhea, their causes and cures.
How to prepare for Y2K.
Home decorating techniques.
How to prepare for the Global Ice Age (1967).
Care and feeding of your emu.
Learn Swahili in only 30 days!
Keith Partridge fan guide with locker stickers!
Learn PASCAL, with exam.
Cure cancer with mind-control.
DOS 4.0 handbook.
Dress making patterns for the groovy year of 1966.
None of these books, as you can plainly see, were really appropriate for the imprisoned audience. Contrary to what one might assume, many people in prison came from a diverse background. There were many uneducated people, but there were also many well educated people as well.
Books related to women, or women’s interest really had no place in an all-male facility. The only inmates that found these books interesting were the homosexual crowd. Many books were outdated and had no relevance in our current or future lives outside of prison. This included books on obsolete technologies (dial up modems, dot matrix computers, obsolete software programs, etc.), political philosophies, and fads (global warming, global freezing, Y2K, pet rock, and others.) and fashions of a bygone time.
Making and cooking food
Unlike prisons in the north, we had no electrical outlets or means of making our own food. All we had as a tap with an endless stream of hot water. We used that hot water to shave with, to clean our things, and to cook. It took a while, but the idea was relatively simple. If we placed a sock in the stream of water, it could be used to hold a plastic bag containing food. If you let the hot water pour over it, the food in the bag would cook.
All barracks had one tap of hot water.
Prison guard tower in the ADC. For the guards, it was considered a punishment or an undesirable post. Where you sit for hours on end with a mini-14 on your lap.
We would use this method to cook essentially two kinds of food. We could cook ramen noodles, and we could make Burritos. By far the most common community food in the barracks were burritos.
Here, we would purchase soft burrito shells from the commissary and stuff it with a mixture of whatever food we had. That food mostly consisting of commissary items, pilfered kitchen or dinner leftovers, and a wild onion or leaves found while working the hard labor squad.
The most fundamental item would be ramen noodles that would serve the bulk of the contents inside the burrito. To that we would add beans, some cheese, some meat, and whatever else we could get. Usually it also included a tube of ketchup and maybe some hot sauce.
I know that it sounds rather crude, but the process of making the burrito and cooking it, along with the necessitated coffee was a bonding adventure that helped us endure the time in the facility together.
Education (back to elementary school)
Of course, bureaucracy being what it is, one cannot believe that any government agency would take the time to fully research my background. No one cared.
Even during the judicial proceedings, they did not care. The job of the detective was to support the DA and proscute me. No one; not one single person was trying to find out the truth.
The detective evaluated my case to determine how strongly they could proscute me; the stronger the better politically. My attorney was tasked with thwarting the DA efforts. No one wanted the truth.
The collection of information on me was for the sole purpose of convicting me, and had no purpose what so ever related to the real truth. Therefore my actual and real records were never obtained.
All my school records were decades old and many of the schools that I attended while a child no longer existed. My college transcripts were meaningless, as they were often obfuscated in support of my operational tasks. So where did that leave me?
According to my records, I had no education. None. No multiple university degrees. No military training. No high school attendance. No elementary school. Nothing.
Yet, according to the federal or state programs, there was a need to reduce the risk of re-offending through education. The concept behind this was that a felon would not re-offend if they had an high-school education. The idea was that having an education made a person employable.
Thus, the belief goes; if a person has a job, they will not turn to crime to obtain money. As only those with a predisposition towards theft would continue to commit crimes while they were gainfully employed. (I also agree with this belief structure.) It was a nice concept, but wholly imaginary. It wasn’t that it truly mattered…
Once a felon, you are un-hirable. It is all moot.
No one hires felons. McDonalds doesn’t, neither does any of the fortune 500 companies. If they, on the slight chance that they might, they would not hire them for a white collar position. Felons are regulated servitude class for the rest of their lives. But that fact seems to have escaped the law makers and they have rules in place to educate all incarcerated felons.
So, as one would expect, as a person with no verifiable educational history, I had to go to school. You do not need to be able to read in order to pick up trash, sweep up vomit, or work dangerous jobs in lethal chemical plants. It is all just nonsense. Such is the America of today.
Correction, some Mcdonalds will hire felons while others will not. This is depended on what state you are applying in and whether you are applying at a franchise or corporate Mcdonald’s restaurant. Mcdonald’s in not really a company, it is a franchise.
Most Mcdonald’s restaurants operate as a franchise, this is very common among other restaurants also. This means each Mcdonald’s restaurant is individually owned and operated by people that live in your home town.
Corporate restaurants are actually owned by the corporation Mcdonald’s. This complicates the question of whether Mcdonald’s hires felons or not. However, corporate offices, those that have an HR department will not hire felons for “white collar” positions. Though the possibility of janitor, and labor work might still be possible.
I had to get an education. Without proof that I had one, I had to start from scratch. I started in elementary school.
I started at grade one. And for months since then I had to reestablish myself through going to the elementary school in the prison. Of course, I did quite well, and eventually passed and obtained my GED diploma certificate. But that simplistic explanation of my situation belays the horrible reality of what I had to go through.
Nothing is more degrading than being an Astrophysicist / Aerospace Engineer going through elementary school all over again. To endure the mindless lessons on how to add, subtract and multiply all over again; to learn how to write sentences and paragraphs all over again.
To do it, and not feel insulted, was the biggest challenge of all.
Get together events
While we lived in a barracks, many people would form small groups of guys in clusters to chat and talk. Sometimes people would gamble, or have a “coffee party” that might involve a kind of homemade burrito made out of ramen noodles, and whatever people could scrounge up.
These gatherings were important. Whether one was playing chess, or just chatting, or even repairing clothes these events were important. The ability to meet with others, talk and share experiences was and is a fundamental need.
Sometimes, especially after mail call, or commissary call there would be large and loud parties. Here the inmates would share a coffee, or cigarette if they had any. Then they would chat, play games, and chat.
If the mail had magazines they would share the magazines, in which every single letter was read and absorbed for whatever content it contained. If the mail had newspapers they too would be read most veraciously, especially the grocery store advertisements. The inmates liked to gather around and talk about what they would do if they had those vegetables and muse about what they missed in the “free world”.
Usually pets, children and vegetables.
Prison Rape
Rape in prison happens. Usually it is cohersed sex where someone is tricked into debt. Often payment of the debt involves sexual favors. Sometimes sex is part of a gang initiation. Here is where a person reluctantly provides sexual favors to obtain protection of advantage in prison. Occasionally, predators will drug a younger member of the prison society and take advantage of them. It happens. I never experienced it, but know of the practice.
When I first came to prison we were marched past the fencing and razor wire into a room to watch an orientation film about prison rape.
This movie included helpful suggestions like not to take a Snickers bar if someone offers it to you because you may be required to provide sexual favors in exchange. I think this was a standardized film that is shown in all the prisons, not just in Arkansas. As such, returnees to the prison would make comments during the file.
Yet, It did actually happen to me.
Someone actually left a candy bar on my rack. Not a Snickers bar. But, I knew better than to eat it. Later on, I met the individual who tried to manipulate me into owing him favors. But, I had no intention of doing that. However, I did suggest to him that we might be able to open up a “dialog” in the future for various transactions that might be beneficial to all involved. He was cool with that, and that was how I diffused that particular situation.
Beds
We were all assigned our own individual rack in a huge barracks often holding 80 to 100 inmates. The rack consisted of a metal frame with a welded box on the end of the bed. To access it, you lift up the mattress and open the box in that manner. Each box had a lock to keep other inmates from stealing the objects inside.
The mattress was a standard prison-grade flat open foam rectangle covered with a polyvinyl covering. They tended to be tan in color. Each rack was issued with a set of sheets which was a top sheet and a bottom sheet and a pillow case. We did get issued a small pillow to sleep with. It was approximately 14 inches by 10 inches square, as I recall.
We were issued a wool blanket with was grey in color. These were military grade surplus blankets. They were being phased out in favor of a much cheaper alternative. The new blankets were not woven, but rather pressed fiber. They looked and acted like sleeping under a car floor mat. They were not at all easy to sleep under. Their main problem was that they tended to crumble apart with use and would thus have huge gaping holes in it that would require periodic repair once or twice a year.
This is an actual picture of what the barracks looked like in the ADC. Everything was white. The beds were off-white or light beige. In the bottom of each rack was a metal box. That was the inmates locker where he could store possessions and commissary. Everyone eventually gets theirs broken into. Even the author. Sigh.
Coffee
There was one “drug” that inmates were permitted to have. That was coffee. And we all treasured it. We could get coffee from the canteen in the morning, but that was “state issue” coffee and tended to be like watery tar. But we could and would purchase coffee out of the commissary. We could purchase a plastic cup and then mix up a fine blend of stout coffee and drink it in the barracks. It was a great way to make friends and break the ice.
No one is going to hassle the man who gives you free coffee.
We would often use it for after or pre-dinner get togethers. There we would sit around and chat, while drinking coffee. If we had extra money to spend we would buy non-dairy creamer (powder) and artificial sweetener to mix in it. Real sugar was not available to us.
As coffee went, it was really not bad. As the only recreational drug available, some inmates would make a routine or ritual in which every day at a certain time they would drink this beverage. This ritual was their little way of maintaining sanity. Other inmates would take the powder and add it to the milk that they would get in chow hall. The smell of the coffee evoked far away memories of better times, and because of that, many inmates treasured their times drinking coffee.
Cigarettes
The ADC did not permit smoking or gambling, or even fruit to the inmates. These were considered to be dangerous vices, or in the case of fresh fruit, lead to dangerous vices though the manufacture of “moonshine”. So possession of these items was illegal, dangerous and risky.
I remember once having a discussion with a fellow inmate who missed eating a banana. He could picture eating a banana, he remembered how it looked, tasted and smelled, but he longed to eat the banana. It had been over seventeen years (17 years) since he had a banana. He would opine about his loss of freedom to eat that banana for hours. It was, truly, sad. (Arkansas; the ADC, never gave us fruit. EVER!)
You could obtain these items, of course, but they were prohibitively expensive. A cigarette ran you between $2 and $5 depending on who you were and what brand was available. Cigars were unheard of. I once heard about some inmates smoking a pipe, but I never saw it. I also once saw someone chewing tobacco that his girlfriend smuggled in through her rectum. Again, other states permit inmates to smoke, and eat fruit. As does many federal prisons. But the ADC tended to be rather medieval in their imprisonment philosophy.
Drugs were easier to smuggle in because of their small size, but were very expensive. Most of the rank and file inmates in General Population rarely if ever used drugs, smoke or drank. I certainly never did. It was prohibitively expensive and risky. Getting involved in such activity tended to be dangerous.
That was because it caused one to get indebted to another inmate. Usually the only way to repay that debt was through sexual favors or other, usually gruesome, tasks. Besides, if you got caught not only would you spend a considerable amount of time in “the hole”, but you would get additional charges added to you sentence. That meant that additional years could and would be added to your sentence. It was not worth it at all.
Usually, those whom were able to participate in these pleasures were members of gangs, long time incarcerated felons, and homosexuals. The gangs usually had a deep seated and well organized network in place to supply these articles, while the homosexual crowd often provided sexual pleasures and favors to the general population for a price. They always had funds, money and stash available to them. Providing sexual favors is nothing less than a cottage industry for the imprisoned homosexual community.
Gambling
Gambling occurs frequently and it can never be eradicated. The inmates made their own dice, or their own playing cards. They even devised homemade games that they would bet on. When that would not work, they bet on Dominos. Gambling was dangerous because one could literally become an indentured slave if one was not careful. I never partook in that particular vice, but I know of many who did.
Homemade dice was constructed from soap. Sometimes bingo cards were made, as well as a deck of playing cards. For a while, there was even a race track where captured cockroaches were raced for profit.
Fights & Killings
“In the era before gunpowder, all killing was of necessity done hand to hand. For a Greek or Roman warrior to slay his enemy, he had to get so close that there was an equal chance that the enemy’s sword or spear would kill him. This produced an ideal of manly virtue – andreia, in Greek – that prized valor and honor as highly as victory.”-Steven Pressfield ( The Warrior Ethos) The reader should note that Andreia meant that judgment was based on actions taken — not on outcomes. Society understood that the outcome was, at least in part, in the hands of the gods. What was in a man’s control was how he acted.
People get killed in prison. Everyone knows this. But it is one thing reading about it in the paper, and yet all together a different thing when the person sleeping next to you is killed while he slept. While I was there, I physically watched three killings take place, or the aftermath of them. In all cases they involved petty disputes between one inmate and another.
Whether competing for food, fighting hand to hand, or challenging each other in the sporting arena, mastery of one’s own physical abilities is an important part of being a man. The most primitive, yet still one of the most prominent traits, a man’s physical capability affects everything from self-preservation to mating preferences. The health and virility of a male make him an appealing candidate for partnership with the opposite sex, while his strength and stature still prove to be influential factors in both the social and business world.
1
As I mentioned above, the inmate sleeping on the rack next to me was killed in his sleep. When we got up to go to chow hall for breakfast he just stayed on his rack. Then he stayed in bed while everyone left to work the fields. It wasn’t until the inmate in charge of sweeping the floor noted that there was some blood that had dripped from his neck on to the floor. Why there wasn’t more blood is unknown. But to the rest of us we just didn’t really pay too much attention. If an inmate wanted to be left alone on his rack, we let him be. It was his “space”.
2
Another time, one of the inmates was stabbed as he was going to eat chow. Apparently the fight was over a love triangle between two gay men. He was stabbed in the back repeatedly and while the guards tried to maintain order and control, it just didn’t help much. He died of multiple stab wounds to his back. Blood was everywhere. I just happened to be marched down the hall when it happened. The guards all had us turn around and face the wall while they secured the inmates involved.
3
The third killing involved a gang dispute of something or the other. I don’t know much about it except to say that one inmate went to the bathroom, and he was followed by about six other inmates. They pretty much beat him to death. There was blood everywhere. In prison, you don’t have time or the luxury of taking your time. From the moment that the first conflict was noticed by the guards until lock-down, perhaps three minutes transpired. That was all that was needed to kill the guy.
Perhaps the most accurate portrayal of what a killing looks like in American media can be found in the AMC television series “Breaking Bad”. There in the series was a scene where multiple inmakes were murdered upon order in Jail and prison. That is pretty much what it was like. Accurate. It is eerily accurate.
In jail inmates work scrub-like clothing. In Arkansas, there were three major colors of scrubs. White, orange, blue, and yellow. While it might be different now, the colors at the time of my incarceration was orange for “regular” inmates who have not yet been to sentencing, or who have non-felonious charges. White if you were charged as a felon and were waiting in jail until a bed was available in prison. Blue was for new jail inmates who might only be there for a few days or so. And, yellow, which was reserved for inmates who were long duration and who were assigned jobs within the jail.
Exiting Prison
One might think that exiting prison would be a great watershed moment for me. It was certainly a day of bitter-sweet happiness for me. Indeed, it was, in a way.
However the truth was that my real problems were only just beginning.
Forget that preconceived notions that you might have regarding post-prison life, if any. Once one leaves the place where they lived for years, and enter the general populace, they go into shock.
In fact it is common knowledge that the person exiting prison, whether totally free or on parole, will spend at least three days to two weeks simply being in shock. This is especially true if you did your time in a hard labor prison; one with no colors, no soft surfaces, and bland food.
"I feel that the Air Force has not been giving out all the available information on the Unidentified Flying Objects. You cannot disregard so many unimpeachable sources."-John W. McCormack, Former Speaker of the House, January 1965
Everything is just so different. You will sit on chairs with cushions. You will see electrical plugs in the walls, and will be able to turn lights on and off at will. The former-inmate can go into a store, browse around and actually buy something. They can watch television when they want, and what they want. These are big; big changes if you haven’t been able to do so for the last few years. But that is not the biggest issue that faces a released felon…
The truth is a bleak one. With all your money, bank accounts, and possessions seized by the government, friends, and family there is little chance that you would have much of anything when you leave prison. I, like others before me, held all of my possessions in a brown paper bag. That’s it, a simple brown paper bag, stapled shut; a debit card with $100 and a bus ticket to a relative or family member.
Government
Officially, the government is not supposed to seize anything. Yet, in my case, they seized all my papers, electronics and held some of my bank accounts. They offered to give some of my records back. But every time that I went to the office to get them back from the detective, they were [1] busy, [2] not available, or [3] couldn’t help me. After about five years, I got the message, and gave up. Everything was gone. I never could recover any of my money, any of my personal papers, and any of my personal documentation.
Friends
My friends took all of my furniture and personal belongings. They told me that they would hold on to them and keep them in storage for me. When I exited prison, my friend had died and his family took possession of my belongings, the rest was taken and collected by other “friends”. Most were sold for pennies on the dollar to strangers and pawn shops. I never was able to recover them.
Family
My family did some awfully stupid things concerning disposition of my larger belongings. My father gave my car away, because in his words “you can buy a new one when you get out”(!). My brothers and sisters took my furnishings for the most part, and kept them without remorse. (I used to paint figurative art in oils, and was reasonably good. Each painting cost me at least $60 in materials, and I painted on plywood that cost at least $40. So one could say that my art, whether attractive or junk, was at least worth the cost of the materials. Heck, a buyer could have purchased the painting, sanded off the paint and reused the $40 board. He sold each one for $1. Such is the bane when one is imprisoned, and nincompoops (Nincompoop is a another word for a fool.) control the distribution of your estate.)
The ADC gave me $100 to start my life all over. $100 does not buy much in America these days. I bought a big Mac meal, and a cheap hotel room with it. Leaving a handful of change.
Keeping it secret from other inmates
When a person is about to leave prison, the first cardinal rule is to tell no one. There are many kinds of people in prison, and that includes hard-core criminals and jealous convicts that do not want to see others being granted their freedom. This is a common enough problem that all inmates and guards know about. All of us know of others who would get involved in a knife fight or other problem on the same day that they are exiting the facility. It is important to keep things confidential and secret from others.
While the exiting inmate might get killed, it is far more common to be involved in some crime that would result in additional time being placed and added to their sentence. I knew of one inmate that had an additional seven years added to his sentence, on the day that he was scheduled to leave. This was because another inmate “set him up” with a stash of contraband narcotics. You must be careful in prison.
Turning in your state issue
Inmates don’t have much belongings, but they do have a mattress and pillow, a pair of shoes, and a handful of toiletries. While the inmate can keep their personal possessions, they must return the rest of their belongings to the state. This generally means the mattress, pillow, wool blanket, sheets, towel, wash cloth and shoes. The inmates can keep their socks and underwear.
Typically the inmate is marched down the hall to the laundry room, and he turns in the items. Typically, the inmate carries his mattress on his shoulders, and his clothing wrapped inside the bed sheet. One hauls it to the laundry office and turns it in. It’s pretty simple. The clerk records what is being turned in, and then the inmate returns back to their barracks.
Saying goodbye
"I feel that the Air Force has not been giving out all the available information on the Unidentified Flying Objects. You cannot disregard so many unimpeachable sources."-John W. McCormack, Former Speaker of the House, January 1965
Like anything else, you make friends in prison. Contrary to popular belief, prison is not full of horrible people. Yes, there were some really bad people. Yes, there were some people who did bad things. Yes, there were people who were predisposed to commit crimes; but not everyone in prison fit this stereotype.
Many of the people in prison were there because of a series of mistake or error of judgment. Some were just because they ran afoul of some of the many laws in the United States. All in all, even the most law-abiding American will inadvertently break a minimum of three laws a day if they live in the United States.
2/5/15 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/STEPHEN B. THORNTON An inmate holds a class book along a window sill as he waits with others to be released from their living area for classes in the Prison Fellowship program Thursday at the Arkansas Department of Correction’s Wrightsville Unit.
Some people committed horrible, just horrible crimes, but were personable and nice in person. Others were just regular guys who happened to kill someone while in a car accident. Many were there for smoking illegal drugs, or writing bad checks, or downloading MP3’s or movies on the Internet without paying for them. Some were just kids. Some were remorseful felons who did a terrible crime decades ago and are just trying to live that down. There were bad people, yes. But not everyone was horrible.
Some were just men who married the wrong woman. She, using all of her abilities, and a agreeable court system enabled the enactment of harsh penalties for male indiscretions.
You make friends there. And when it is time to go, many will miss you. I had a number of friends who are facing a lengthy spell behind bars, and saying good-bye was rather difficult. When it was time to go, we exchanged addresses, passed on some of my belongings, and had a last cup of coffee together. No matter where you are, no matter where you go, there will be people and you will make friends. Even in prison.
Getting Street Clothes
The first step that occurs when a person leaves prison is to get new clothes. For years we were living in our “state issue” prison uniform. But, we certainly couldn’t wear that out on the street. So we eventually are directed to the wardrobe room where we are issued or fitted out with more conventional “street” attire. This “room” is typically just a large closet with piles of old used clothes that have been, thankfully, pre-washed and folded for our use.
I wish that I could state that we were given a cheap suit and some oxfords to look for a job, but that wasn’t the case at all. The days are long gone when the state tries to help the felon obtain work. No, instead we were directed towards a large closet filled with donated used clothing. For reasons related to availability of clothing, the most popular clothes have already been taken, and when I went to the clothes closet, all that was left were the dregs.
In fact, it is common knowledge that the HR organizations will not hire felons for any white collar work. And, at that, most will even refuse to hire felons for most work except for the lowest paid menial labor positions. All fortune 500 companies, with a handful of notable exceptions, refuse to hire felons. That includes McDonalds and Starbucks. It is their choice, of course, but the days of being able to reenter the job market for felons is long gone.
Especially in America. Once a felon in the USA, always a felon. The USA is one of the few rare countries to do this. For instance, in China, your records are automatically expunged after three years. USA, not the case.
In the age of the Internet, felons are unemployable.
As a poignant reminder of this, my first cousin, with whom I grew up with, was the HR manager of a large international organization that employed engineers in the fields that I specialized in. Not only that, but they had openings for people with my background. But when I asked her about work she “poured cold water” on my dreams. She said that her firm had strong rules about hiring felons, and that it was absolutely forbidden, and no exceptions were ever granted.
This was my first cousin! We played together as children. We grew up together. She knew me better than my wife in some ways. Yet she would not help me get a job. I was a felon. That was it. End of story.
All the clothes either had huge torn holes or lost buttons, or were garishly decorated t-shirts with dated sayings like “”Dyn-o-mite!”. , or “Groovy”. I would have been happy with a collared polo shirt, but the only ones remaining were either too small for me, lady-boy pink color, or (even) an old McDonald’s uniform top. Sigh.
So, I ended up putting on a pair of polyester pants with what we used to call “elephant bells”, where they found this forty year old pair of superannuated and antiquated throw-back God only knows. Perhaps it was sitting in the closet for decades, overlooked and avoided.
I topped it off with an equally dated t-shirt. It was a bright yellow shirt with the words “I’m with stupid” and a hand that pointed to my groin area. For shoes I got to wear a pair of real cheap, and slightly worn, “earth shoes”. I looked like a clown, but I figured that I could get more acceptable clothes once I left the prison facility, so I wasn’t too concerned.
Dyn-o-mite!
The character J.J. on the show "Good Times" had the catch phrase "Dyn-o-mite!". It spawned an entire series of promotional materials including lunch boxes, hats, and T-shirts. Good Times is an American sitcom that originally aired from February 8, 1974, until August 1, 1979, on CBS. It was created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans, and developed by Norman Lear, the series' primary executive producer. Good Times is a spin-off of Maude, which is itself a spin-off of All in the Family. I was released from prison in 2011, so the clothes that I was released to society with were fashionable over 30 years earlier.
Groovy
Groovy (or, less commonly, "Groovie" or "Groovey") is a slang colloquialism popular during the 1960s and 1970s. It is roughly synonymous with words such as "cool," "excellent," "fashionable," or "amazing," depending on context.
Earth Shoes
Earth shoes (also known as Kalso Earth Shoes) were an unconventional style of shoe invented in the 1970s in Scandinavia by Danish shoe designer Anna Kalsø.[1] Unlike most other shoes, the soles were thick and the heels were thin (Negative Heel Technology), so wearing them one walked heel-downward. The shoes were introduced in the United States in New York City on April 1, 1970, three weeks before the first Earth Day. The shoes surged in popularity and were prominently featured on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and TIME Magazine. Unable to keep up with demand, franchise owners pursued litigation against the United States distributor of Kalso Earth Shoes, and the brand discontinued being sold at retail by the late 1970s.
After “dress out” I was led to the Infirmary where I got my finger pricked. This is a mandatory blood sample and DNA extraction. The blood sample is to see if I had contracted AIDS while I was incarcerated. If I did, then they might have other procedures that I would have to endure. But, of course, I was clean. I also had to give a sample of my DNA. All felons in the United States, or at least in the state where I was incarcerated, have to provide a DNA sample to go into a state DNA repository.
I then proceed to the Wardens office. I where I got my [1] release papers which included a [2] “Diploma of completion of my prison sentence”, and my [3] latest sex registration information. I was given a multi-page list of things that I could not do as a released sex offender (within the state that I was released from), which included substantial reporting information and limitations on where I could live.
BTW (By The Way) in the United States, the emancipation of slaves only applied to non-felons. If you are a felon, you CAN ( and in some instance WILL be) be treated as a slave and have a large number of restrictions placed upon you. I thus, entered the ranks of being a second or even as a third class citizen. A restriction on a right, no longer qualifies you to live “free”.
As I walked out of the fenced compound, I did so with no handcuffs on. I wasn’t wearing ankle-chains. I was wearing civilian clothes and I clutched my brown paper bag in my hand.
The sun was shining, and one of the girl officers standing guard in one of the watch towers put down her rifle and gave me a big goodbye wave. She said “Goodby XXXXXX, I don’t want to see you back here again. You stay home. You hear me?” I told her goodbye and not to worry. My plans involved growing tomato plants, and being good.
I was given a debit card with $us100 in it, and driven to a Greyhound bus station, where I was given a ticket to my destination of choice. As I got ready to board, the guard who took me to the bus station wished me the best of luck and told me that he didn’t want to ever see me again, because I was better than the fate that waited for me in prison. He was right. He gave me a nice friendly handshake and I boarded the bus.
He wasn’t the only guard who wished me the best. A number of them did. At least five guards really cared about my well-being and earnestly wished me well. I was always respectful and treated others decently while I was incarcerated. I pretty much obeyed the rules and did my time.
In fact, during my final stay, I would say that most of the guards were pretty decent folk.
I left prison as a completely changed person. Not only was I “retired” from MAJestic and my probes were put in a mothball state, and not only that my connection to and their MWI was intact, but prison had changed me. I was reborn into something different. You know, there is a song by “Fall Out Boy” called Champion. There is a lyric that says “If I can live through this, I can do anything”. Truthfully, “it’s ALL good”.
Conclusion
When I joined MAJestic I was unaware that I would be retired by the prison system. I was told that I would be in it for life. No one said anything about retirement. Yet agents are retired when they are too expensive to maintain or they have lost their usefulness. I was retired after thirty years and then decommissioned at ADC Pine Bluff.
We have a massive problem with incarceration and re-entry in America. One in three Americans have a criminal record, and 60% of those are unemployed one year after being released. Getting a job with a criminal record is almost impossible.
Decommissioning took ten days for me. A team of individuals were sent to the facility and they decommissioned my seven ELF probes. They were unable to disable the EBP, however, and thus I am still entangled. I am currently entangled with <redacted> and still have (retarded) MWI access and egress ability.
The purpose of the entire retirement exercise was to put me in a monitoring program. The only legal monitoring program in the United States is the Sex Offender Registry, and they only way that you can get placed on it is through being sentenced as a felon.
Monitoring is necessary because NO ONE knows anything about my role within MAJestic. We are organized into cells, with dissemination of information handled by an aggregator. The only way that an agent can be retired safely is to put them into a monitoring program. Else, no one knows what we are capable of. No one.
The problem with top secret programs like MAJestic and other waived, unacknowledged special access programs is that no one knows your role in it. No one knows what you did. No one knows, or believes what you have done, know, experienced, or the skills you have. Thus you must be observed and monitored. No one dares take a chance. That is why agents must be put into monitoring programs.
This is my narrative as to what it was like for me. I hope that the reader finds this interesting.
Summary
If you have a loved one in the ADC do not worry. Chances are that they will be fine. It’s not a great life by any means, but it is not the horrible nightmare that one expects. We, as humans, eventually adjust to the circumstances that we find ourselves in.
Believe me, I sincerely wish you and your loved ones the best.
Take Aways
MAJestic retires members after thirty years of service.
Retirement comes in many forms, but the most common demands monitoring.
The only way to monitor a former MAJestic agent is through the Sex Offender registry.
Many MAJestic agents enter the monitoring program through the ADC.
When in the ADC we share the prison environment with others who have varying levels of innocence and criminal intent.
FAQ
Q: What is the most common thing that felons say to each other?
A: I don’t belong here. I was only doing XXXXX. Everyone else was doing it. The DA was against me. I should not be here in Prison. I do not belong here.
Q: What is the most common thing that non-felons say?
A: You were stupid. I would never be sent to prison like you were.
Q: What do you think about prison?
A: I can only view prison from the prism of my own experiences. Just like you, the reader, can only view it from your own experiences.
For me, I see now that I had to be put into a monitoring program. This is simply because no one knew what I was involved with. It was way, way beyond the technology that we humans have. I think that for the most part they think that my involvement and capabilities are benign. However, it is in the best interests of everyone that I be monitored.
On a personal level, I needed the experience of prison to slam-shut one door of life, and to open a new door. This new door is one where I am a better and superior person. I have already shed much of the baggage that shacked my behaviors and life in the past.
Q: What advice do you have for someone entering the ADC?
A: It is not going to be as bad as you fear. Fear is the worst thing about anything. Stop fear in it’s tracks. Most things are NEVER as bad as you fear them to be.
Q: Do you think that you were placed in prison under false pretenses?
A: Most certainly. But that does not matter.
As a MAJestic agent, let me tell you, the reader, a few secrets. Prisons are NOT used to put criminals away from honest, law-abiding, citizens. They are used for a range of other purposes and functions. This runs the gambit from politics, to business advantage, to various secret organizations and clandestine purposes to everything else under the sun. Yes, prisons are used to help “punish” criminals to prevent them from doing bad acts, but that is not their “real” purpose.
If it was, there would be many, many, many others would would be in prison long before I ever went there.
Lock her up by Ben Garrison at Grr Graphics. All credit to the artist. Hillary Clinton sure has managed to get away with a lot. This is a characteristic of a third world banana republic. It is not the characteristic of a functioning Republic.
I was in a secret program that involved <redacted>. No one knew what I was doing, what my capabilities were, and my purpose. It was too expensive to keep my handlers active. So I was retired. I needed to be put into a legal monitoring program. It’s really that simple.
My Final Say
The problem with being in a waived, unacknowledged, special access program is that it is so secret. The secrecy is complete and there might be one other person on the entire planet who knows your role and the full extent of your training and what you are capable of. This causes problems. Firstly, the secrecy necessitates a need for monitoring. Who knows what an agent is capable of? Secondly, it causes problems with the agent who often does not like being classified as a bad and dangerous person.
MAJestic Related Posts – Training
These are posts and articles that revolve around how I was recruited for MAJestic and my training. Also discussed is the nature of secret programs. I really do not know why the organization was kept so secret. It really wasn’t because of any kind of military concern, and the technologies were way too involved for any kind of information transfer. The only conclusion that I can come to is that we were obligated to maintain secrecy at the behalf of our extraterrestrial benefactors.
Posts Regarding Life and Contentment
Here are some other similar posts on this venue. If you enjoyed this post, you might like these posts as well. These posts tend to discuss growing up in America. Often, I like to compare my life in America with the society within communist China. As there are some really stark differences between the two.
More Posts about Life
I have broken apart some other posts. They can best be classified about ones actions as they contribute to happiness and life. They are a little different, in subtle ways.
MAJestic Related Posts – Our Universe
These particular posts are concerned about the universe that we are all part of. Being entangled as I was, and involved in the crazy things that I was, I was given some insight. This insight wasn’t anything super special. Rather it offered me perception along with advantage. Here, I try to impart some of that knowledge through discussion.
Enjoy.
MAJestic Related Posts – World-Line Travel
These posts are related to “reality slides”. Other more common terms are “world-line travel”, or the MWI. What people fail to grasp is that when a person has the ability to slide into a different reality (pass into a different world-line), they are able to “touch” Heaven to some extent. Here are posts that cover this topic.
Buddies.
