Today’s…

"...For Confucian societies that value the family and the community more than the individual, people will be more willing to suffer a little bit to save the lives of the old and the weak. Whereas, for societies that value the individual rights and their freedoms, they will not care about the underprivileged that are more likely to die, and that is their freedom of choice. They must have their freedom and their economy. They have a million deaths yet they laugh at China with five thousand, in total. It is their freedom to be stupid and delusional." 

I guess you could classify 2023 as a settling down, begrudgingly by some, of new Geo-political realities. Things are shaking out. It will be choppy, but good!

Remember High School pizza?

City School Pizza

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

1. Dissolve yeast and sugar in water.
2. Add flour and salt. Knead until smooth.
3. Cover and let rise until doubled in bulk.
4. Cut into 2portions. Let rest 15 minutes.
5. Pat or roll to even thickness in 2 (15 1/2 x 10 1/2-inch) jellyroll pans. Set aside.

Topping

1. Brown ground beef and onion in a large skillet.
2. 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.
3. Spread sauce on prepared French-Style Pizza Crust in pans. Sprinkle each crust with cheese.
4. Bake at 400 degrees F for 30 to 35 minutes or until cheese layer is bubbly and browned.

Notes

Source: Los Angeles Times – 9/23/82

Marine Corps reactivates base on Guam

The U.S. Marine Corps reactivated a new base on Guam in a ceremony, Jan. 26, honoring the long-shared history of the Marine Corps and Guam and establishing a forward presence in the Indo-Pacific that will endure into the future.

USMC press release

Marine Corps Base (MCB) Camp Blaz is the first newly constructed Marine Corps base in 70 years and serves as a testament to the U.S.-Japan alliance. Guam was chosen as the location for the new base during the 2012 Bilateral Agreement between the U.S and Japanese governments, under the Defense Policy Review Initiative, which set the framework for the relocation of Marines from Okinawa to Guam. The base is named in honor of Brigadier General Vicente Tomas “Ben” Garrido Blaz, the first CHamorro Marine to attain the rank of general officer.

“Today is an important day that marks the future of the Marines on Guam, and it is also a day to reflect on the century-long history of the Marine Corps in this beautiful place we call home,” said Col. Christopher Bopp, Commanding Officer, MCB Camp Blaz. “On this island Marines and their CHamoru brethren have lived in peace and fought in war together and we are proud to carry on this legacy of honor and courage.”

Guam’s history is marked by the enduring partnership between the U.S. military and the people of Guam. Since the establishment of Marine Barracks Guam in 1899, the Marine Corps has had a nearly continuous presence on Guam. The Marine Barracks was reactivated after World War II and deactivated November 10, 1992.

During the ceremony at War in the Pacific National Historical Park, honors were rendered to the Honorable Lou Leon Guerrero, Governor of Guam; Commandant of the Marine Corps; U.S. Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy, Installations and Environmental; Japanese Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Defense and Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs provided remarks. The ceremony ended with a traditional pass and review.

From HERE

The West Has Lost Already

Gotta love this dude. Lives in a literal true warzone, was interrogated and held hostage by SBU and just brushed it like nothing, had bike accident, AGAIN BRUSHED IT LIKE NOTHING AT ALL, and just went full "anyyyyyway, look at those fools!" and started dropping truth-bombs like it's nothing, another day in our mundane lives.

Japanese Illustrator Suzusiro Puts Maids On Skateboards And We Can’t Complain

If you’re a fan of Japanese manga and anime, you may have seen skateboarding characters before (Misaka Yata in K comes to mind), and there’s a very strong probability that you’ve seen maid characters before (Roberta from Black Lagoon, Ram and Rem from Re:Zero Beginning Life In Another World, etc.), but unless you’re a fan of Japanese illustrator Suzusiro, you’ve probably never ever seen the two of them combined!

Bialys

What is a bialy? It’s a disk of dough with slight depressions in the center and topped with onions. These are as popular as the bagel is in the northeast. They are a great snack which tastes great with some cream cheese.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups warm water ( 105 to 115 degrees F)
• 5 teaspoons rapid rise yeast
• 5 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 5 to 5 1/2 cups unbleached bread flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 cup dehydrated minced onion*
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 tablespoons poppy seeds (optional)
• 1 tablespoon coarse kosher salt for sprinkling (optional)
• 1/4 cup cornmeal for baking sheet
• 1 egg beaten with 2 tablespoons water for wash

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 450 degrees F.
2. Whisk together warm water, yeast and sugar in a large bowl, stir in one cup of flour and salt. Add most of the remaining flour and stir with a wooden spoon to make a soft mass. To your mixer, attach the dough hook and mix 8 to 10 minutes or you can knead by hand.
3. Cover the dough and allow to rest for about 45 to 60 minutes. Line 2 large baking sheets with baking parchment paper and lightly sprinkle with cornmeal.
4. Place dehydrated onions in a bowl and add hot water and allow the onions to soak for 15 minutes. Drain the onions well, place in a bowl and add the oil and poppy seeds if using. Set aside.
5. Punch down the dough and divide into two. Divide each half of dough into six equal pieces. Allow dough to rest 10 minutes.
6. Roll of stretch each portion into a 4- or 5-inch oval or circle, being careful not to overwork the dough. Place bialys on prepared baking sheets, with your fingers make indentations in the center( do not go through the dough). Lightly brush the outer perimeter with the egg wash. Spoon about 2 teaspoons of prepared onion topping and a little sprinkle of salt, if using. Cover with a floured tea towel and allow to rise 30 to 40 minutes or until puffy.
7. Bake until golden brown, approximately 25 to 30 minutes. (If the bialys are browning too fast, reduce heat to 425 degrees F).

Notes

* or you may substitute 1 cup finely chopped fresh onion, the dehydrated onions will stick better to the raw dough

If you like a thicker bialy (which is great for sandwiches) let the dough rise longer. For thin bialys, reduce the rising time.

Have you ever wondered what would happen if you didn’t boil a bagel before baking it? Have you ever wondered why bagels have a hole in the middle instead of more bagel? Have you ever wished that bagels contained more onions, were slightly more tender and weren’t the size of manhole covers? Guys, this unicorn exists, and it’s called a bialy.

The bialy is like the bagel’s older, less famous cousin who gets more handsome the longer you look at him. If you live outside of New York City, LA or a few very select spots in Chicago and Florida, you might have never even heard of bialys, but that should definitely change. Bialys show up anywhere there is a significant Jewish population — they’re Polish, by origin (from Bialystok!), but have been adopted by American Jews for just about as long as there have been American Jews. Here are a few reasons why bialys will always be better than bagels.

You’ll never have to unhinge your jaw to eat one. You’ll also never have to have jaws made of steel to chew them. You can eat one with your breakfast and you won’t feel so full you are going to die.

Biden Admin May Regret Shunning China’s FM as Ambassador

Shut him out for 500 days when he was “just” an Ambassador

Phelim Kine 5 Jan 23

Source: Politico

The Biden administration shut out outgoing Chinese ambassador Qin Gang for much of his more than 500-day tenure in Washington, D.C. But that all changed last week when Chinese leader Xi Jinping appointed Qin as the country’s new foreign minister, creating a headache for the administration at a time of high tension between Washington and Beijing. The problems will be front and center in the coming weeks when Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits China as the countries clash over trade, Chinese military intimidation of Taiwan and access to technology.

“I think that there are probably those within the administration that feel chagrined that they did not extend the courtesies [to Qin] that normally would be extended to an ambassador,” said Craig Allen, president of the U.S.-China Business Council.

Qin didn’t get all of the meetings he requested with senior administration officials over the past 17 months, although the administration did relax its restrictions on Qin’s access in the run-up to former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s controversial trip to Taiwan in August. But he returns to Beijing this week to helm China’s foreign ministry stung by failed efforts to connect with the Biden administration.

Qin’s promotion confirms he has Xi’s trust, something the president signaled in October by appointing Qin to the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee. Qin replaced Wang Yi, whom Xi appointed to lead the Office of the Central Foreign Affairs Commission last week. Beijing will name Qin’s successor “after completing due procedures,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Tuesday.

Months after arriving in Washington, D.C., in July 2021, Qin was limited to meetings with just a handful of U.S. officials, according to two people with knowledge of the interactions. That narrow access came despite repeated requests to meet with more senior administration officials, said those people, who were granted anonymity to share private conversations.

The White House rejects this characterization. “Senior White House officials — along with senior officials from across the administration — have engaged regularly with Ambassador Qin since his arrival in Washington,” spokesperson Adrienne Watson said in a written statement. The statement included a list of eight senior officials, including Blinken, Indo-Pacific Coordinator Kurt Campbell and U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, who had met with Qin while he was ambassador.

The Chinese embassy didn’t respond to a request for comment regarding Qin’s access to U.S. officials during his tenure.

Qin responded to the restrictions on high-level access by relying on lower-level interactions with other foreign ambassadors and state and municipal-level officials. He even hung out with the NBA’s Washington Wizards.

That experience may work to his advantage as foreign minister. Qin’s “broad exposure to the United States outside the Beltway … will give him an appreciation of the broader forces informing America’s foreign policy,” said Ryan Hass, former director for China, Taiwan and Mongolia at the National Security Council.

If Qin resented his treatment in Washington, his farewell messages didn’t show it. He expressed “sincere gratitude” for the “great support and assistance from all sectors of the American people” in a tweet thread published on Monday.

The test of Qin’s sincerity will be his management of Blinken’s trip to China. “Our understanding is that Secretary Blinken will be traveling to Beijing in February right after the Chinese New Year,” said USCBC president Allen. If Qin is still nursing a bruised ego — and if the visit occurs after a promised trip to Taiwan by GOP leader Kevin McCarthy — Blinken may hit a diplomatic brick wall in Beijing.

Blinken has yet to release an agenda for that trip. But he’ll need Qin’s help to address a growing list of issues including counternarcotics cooperation and China’s growing nuclear weapons arsenal. Qin has signaled such cooperation is possible. In a tweet published on Sunday, Qin thanked Blinken for “constructive meetings” and said he looks forward to “continuing close relations” with Blinken.

Blinken marked Qin’s promotion with a tweet that confirmed the two men discussed “maintaining opening lines of communication” in a farewell phone conversation on Sunday. Blinken “expects to continue a productive working relationship with Foreign Minister Qin in his new role,” a State Department spokesperson unauthorized to speak on the record told POLITICO in a statement.

Qin’s history of bare-knuckled pushback of foreign criticism of China may have worked against his success in D.C. In his public debut in September 2021, he reinforced his reputation as a prickly avatar of Chinese diplomacy with a speech that excoriated U.S. “wrong beliefs” and cautioned against violating Beijing’s “red line” of core interests in areas including the South China Sea, Taiwan and Xinjiang. He spiked those comments with an ominous reference to China’s nuclear weapons capability and warned of “disastrous consequences” if the U.S. seeks to suppress China using a “Cold War playbook.”

Time didn’t dull those sharp edges. A year later, Qin used a near-90-minute press briefing to decry perceived U.S. transgressions against Chinese sovereignty. He also expressed frustration that his best efforts to engage with the Biden administration had failed to prevent Pelosi’s Taiwan trip. But the structure of China’s diplomatic corps may limit Qin’s influence on bilateral relations.

“Through Fire And Water”: The Superb Concept Artworks Of Ross Tran

Ross Tran is a concept artist and illustrator who attended the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. Ross has worked for companies such as Walt Disney Studios, Psyop and Tyler West Studio.

The USA is pretending it is not bankrupt.
Slowly, then suddenly as the observation attests.

If you can’t finance your trillions, with what medium of exchange will the goodies for military be paid?

Keep an eye on the trajectory of U$D. USG relies on its hegemony -the dollar as the global reserve currency -to finance its budget and trade deficits.

As the dollar is shunned…….Paul Craig Roberts former Assistant Sec. of U.S. Treasury, commenting on KSA’s recent announcement to accept other currencies in payment for oil…wrote

Article HERE

In recent years Washington has so abused the dollar’s reserve currency role with sanctions and asset seizes that many countries desire to settle their trade imbalances in their own currencies in order to escape Washington’s ability to threaten and punish them for serving their own interests rather than Washington’s. If Saudi Arabia abandons the petrodollar, the demand for dollars and the dollar’s value will fall.[.]

This is a major threat to Washington’s power and to the financial power of American banks[.]

Prime example of self-harm unfolding. Within hours of Blinkie’s (US Sec of State) departure:-

Egyptian parliament approves agreement to join the BRICS bank

Cairo, Jan 30 (Prensa Latina) The Egyptian Parliament approved an agreement adopted by the Government that allows the country to join the New Development Bank of the BRICS group, the Al-Ahram diary reported.
The vice-president of the Economic Committee of the House of Representatives, Mohamed Abdel-Hamid, affirmed that joining the institution benefits the country.

“We will benefit from the Bank’s financial and technical assistance in areas such as sustainable development, health, infrastructure, transportation, water, and telecommunications,” he said. “It represents a step in the fight against the dollarization phenomenon and opens up new markets for Egypt’s agricultural and industrial products,” he said.

Legislator Mervat Mattar, stated that “the BRICS group is an important forum that can divert the course of the international economy from US and dollar dominance.” He also welcomed the Russian central bank’s decision a week ago to add the Egyptian pound to its list of foreign currencies exchangeable for rubles.

Last December, the Egyptian Council of Ministers announced its decision to join the BRICS, after a proposal by President Abdel Fatah El-Sissi.

The addition of Egypt will also relieve the state budget of the pressure to find dollars to meet imports because members of that bank can use their national currencies in bilateral trade, he said.[.] (emphasis added)

LINK

BRICS founding members: Brazil Russia India China South Africa

Have you read the list of countries applying for BRICS membership?

Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Morocco, Mexico, Iran, Argentina, Uruquay are among some 22 countries named to date.

Chicken with Olives and Feta Cheese

 Ingredients

• 2 pounds chicken thighs with skin and bones
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 2 large garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 (14 1/2) ounce can diced tomatoes in juice
• 3/4 cup Kalamata olives or other brine cured black olives, pitted, sliced
• 1/2 cup dry red wine
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano or 2 teaspoons dried
• 2/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

Instructions

1. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken and sauté until brown, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to plate. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons drippings from skillet. Add onion to drippings in skillet.
2. Sauté over medium heat 3 minutes. Add garlic and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add tomatoes with juices, olives, wine and oregano.
3. Return chicken and any accumulated juices to sauce; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer until chicken is tender and cooked through, about 25 minutes.
4. Transfer chicken and sauce to platter. Sprinkle with feta cheese and serve.

Yield: 6 servings