I had a convertible. It was fun.
But…
We never drove with the top down.
Huh? You might ask…why?
Let me tell you, when you ride in that car, a womans’ hair blows all over the place, and it gets really messed up. A woman will spend hours getting her hair and make up just right, and then it is all undone in 15 seconds.
Oh sure, the car is fun and looks great.
But the SECRET fact is, men and women who KNOW, will never buy a convertible. As it destroys a woman’s’ fine; well done hair, and makeup.
Truth and reality.
…
Convertible… brings them in, but in real life…. not practical.
Same is true with a penthouse apartment. But, youse guys all know my story on THAT, eh?
…
Stuff you only read about on MM.
Today…
Did Canada live up to your expectations, or are you disappointed?
Canada did not live up to my expectations, but I am also not disappointed.
I arrived as a teenager, from western Europe, and expected it to top that. Well, that was wrong of me. It’s a very different place from Europe, and cannot be measured by European standards, because it is not trying to be Europe, and doesn’t have to. It was me silly bunny who expected the world to be like Europe.
Over the years, I learned things in Canada I never could have learned in Europe:
- how to be nice to strangers; the Canadians are the absolute world champions in that, and my years in Canada have given me the behavioural tools to act the same way. That easy friendliness of the Canadians is worth gold in professional life.
- that we are all the same, if given a chance; life in Canada is the same for everybody. You can be black, white, blue, or rainbow coloured, but you will be using the same Honeywell thermostats, fill up at Petro Canada, grab a thingy in the morning from Tim Hortons, wear boots, and do a lot of windscreen scraping.
- speaking English properly; you may not have noticed yet, but Canadian English is wonderful. It has a North American touch, but it is clear and well-formulated. If you speak like a Canadian, you will be understood by all English speakers world wide.
- living well without spending a fortune; when you live in Canada, your lifestyle is high by world standards. As a student, I lived in an apartment with skyline views (the rent was 600 dollars), drove a big old car with a V8 engine I had bought for 800 dollars, and ate breakfast specials for 2.99 in restaurants almost every day. Now, maybe that was simply Alberta in the 90s, and these things were cheap to do. It taught me that you can have a great life cheaply if you aren’t expecting too much. You just need to know what should be on your list, and how to appreciate its items. Canada gave me that list, and I still drive cheap, big old cars, and am very good at appreciating things to this day.
- civilisation is a marvel; you wouldn’t think so in crowded places elsewhere, but when you’ve driven across the prairies in minus forty degrees for a day straight and pull into a truckstop, you think it’s the most amazing thing that we humans can put up a brightly lit, straight-edged structure like that, where it’s warm inside, and you can eat poutine, or bacon and eggs, in that sea of snow covered land.
- civilisation is an attitude, not luck, or history, or lots of resources and money. Canada shows you what we humans can be if we pull ourselves together and apply some sense and civility.
- severe winters are fantastic. The clean air that goes down your airways as if you’d just eaten mints; the brightness of the snow, the huge, blue sky… how could one not love winter.
- nature is awesome. We Europeans don’t know nature. If nature is sea life, Europe’s version of it is a goldfish in a glass, whereas Canada’s is a swarm of wild tuna to the horizon. There is more awesomeness to standing in a field next to a grain elevator than there is in Europe’s most officially precious nature reserves.
I left Canada after a few years in search of career options that didn’t exist there then (and found them), but deep down, I have never left Canada.
It’s still inside me.
I think my astral body is wearing boots and a work shirt from Canadian Tire, and says “eh” at the end of sentences. And it’s driving a Pontiac Parisienne (made in Ontario) – which I still have, almost 30 years later, here in Sweden.
There Will NEVER Be War With China For This ONE Reason Alone
Yup.
What is the most savage revenge you’ve seen a renter get on a sleazy landlord?
My girlfriend and her sons rented a house briefly, before her and I moved in together. Slumlord ran a restaurant next door to the place. About a week after they moved in the landlord provided refrigerator went out- of course, two days after they spent $350 stocking up everything. She walked next door and told him, he said he would get one over there. Two days later, all the food is bad. No refrigerator. This time I walk over- she’s the nice guy, me not so much. I told him that now he needed a refrigerator and to replace all the food that went bad. He gets pissed and starts arguing with me. Actually picks up a billy club and comes out from behind the counter, which definitely didn’t have the intended effect. I told him I’d beat him to death with it if he tried to hit me, and now I was going to call Land Use on him about the refrigerator and other issues. Went down the next day, we filed a complaint, the day after that the inspector was there. Landlord replaced the refrigerator, all the electrical outlets, loose drywall in both bedrooms, all the carpet and got his restaurant closed down for numerous violations. Worst of all for him, he had ‘replaced the door and windows’ on his restaurant without a permit, which would have been fine- except the new door and windows were 6 feet farther out, enclosing what had been an awning in the parking lot. Replacing existing stuff is fine, adding hundreds of square feet without a building permit or inspection in a commercial structure? That’s a 10000 dollar fine and guaranteed inspections monthly afterwards. The most expensive refrigerator I ever saw.
The respect threshold
Easy Meatball Soup
This easy-to-make Meatball Soup recipe is filled with tender meatballs, hearty beans, and a warm tomato broth. It’s a tasty and comforting weeknight dinner perfect for a chilly day! Plus it has plenty of protein and nutrients for a healthy dinner.
If your family loves meatballs, this Meatball and white bean Soup will become their next favorite dinner. Tender ground beef meatballs are simmered in a rich broth with tomatoes, beans, and plenty of seasonings. Top with parmesan cheese for an easy Italian soup that everyone will love.
Why you’ll love this soup
- Flavorful! This soup is made with garlic, tomatoes, Italian seasonings, and Parmesan cheese for a simple but delicious flavor.
- Easy to make. This soup is easy to make and great for prepping ahead or freezing for later.
- Nutritious and filling. This soup is protein-rich, full of fiber, and packed with veggies for extra nutrients. It’s hearty and healthy all at the same time.
Ingredients you will need
This is just a list of ingredients you will need to make this Italian Meatball Soup recipe. Full measurements are listed further below.
- Whole wheat breadcrumbs: you may also use Panco bread crumbs or mash potato flakes.
- Milk: any milk of your choice
- Olive oil: or any other oil of your choice
- Egg: used as a binder for the meatballs to make it extra tender and juicy.
- Parmesan cheese: or you can also use the rinds
- Fresh parsley leaves and fresh thyme: give flavor, among other herbs you may add
- Kosher salt and Black pepper
- Lean ground beef: use lean beef, if you prefer to use ground turkey you can.
- Beef broth: this is prefered, if you prefer using vegetable broth or chicken broth that’s fine.
- Cannellini beans: or any other white beans of your choice. Great northern works just fine.
- Crushed tomatoes: we used canned but you can make your own from fresh tomatoes.
- Garlic: Do use fresh garlic instead of garlic powder.
- Italian Seasoning
How to make meatball soup recipe from scratch
- Prep oven: Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Soak breadcrumbs: In a small bowl combine the breadcrumbs and milk and allow it to soak for a bit.
- Make meatballs: In a large-mixing bowl, add all the remaining meatball ingredients. Add in the soaked breadcrumbs and use your clean hands to thoroughly mix.
- Form meatballs: Next, take a spoonful of mixture and roll it to form a 1.5-inch diameter meatball. Place on the prepared sheet pan, then repeat with the remaining meat mixture.
- Cook: Bake at 400F for about 12-15 minutes.
- Boil broth: Once the meatballs are almost done, place the broth in a large soup pot or dutch oven, and bring it to a boil.
- Finish soup: Add in the cooked meatballs, beans, tomatoes, garlic, and seasonings. Simmer over medium-low heat for about 18-20 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.
- Garnish: Serve soup hot and topped with shredded parmesan and fresh thyme. Enjoy!
Tips and substitutions
- Breadcrumbs: We use whole wheat breadcrumbs, but you can use regular or a gluten-free substitutes as well.
- Ground beef: Use lean ground beef for a low-fat, high-protein meal. Another meat option would be to use ground turkey.
- Beans: Cannellini beans can be substituted with great northern or navy beans.
- Broth: Use canned broth or beef bouillon and hot water. Vegetable broth also works
- Italian seasonings: We used an Italian Seasoning mix, but you can substitute it with another or a homemade mix.
- For tender meatballs, be careful not to overmix the meat mixture. That will make the meat tough.
- To avoid overcooking, simmer the soup gently instead of boiling it.
- You may cook the meatballs on the stovetop instead of baking them in the oven.
- Top the soup with some more fresh herbs and a sprinkle of lemon juice.
Tips and substitutions
- Breadcrumbs: We use whole wheat breadcrumbs, but you can use regular or a gluten-free substitutes as well.
- Ground beef: Use lean ground beef for a low-fat, high-protein meal. Another meat option would be to use ground turkey.
- Beans: Cannellini beans can be substituted with great northern or navy beans.
- Broth: Use canned broth or beef bouillon and hot water. Vegetable broth also works
- Italian seasonings: We used an Italian Seasoning mix, but you can substitute it with another or a homemade mix.
- For tender meatballs, be careful not to overmix the meat mixture. That will make the meat tough.
- To avoid overcooking, simmer the soup gently instead of boiling it.
- You may cook the meatballs on the stovetop instead of baking them in the oven.
- Top the soup with some more fresh herbs and a sprinkle of lemon juice.
Malaysia Proposes Taming America’s Veto Voting Powers At The United Nations
Wow! Long over due.
What do you think of David Chang and Momofuku’s attempt to trademark “Chile crunch” and “chili crunch”?
This is a perfect example of what socialists call the “tyranny of copyright”.
In David Chang’s case, what he tried to do was make an entire category of spicy condiments – perfected and enjoyed by generations of people from Asian (particularly Chinese) cultures – his own private domain.
He took inspiration from the world renowned Lao Gan Ma chilli crisp (a wonderful, addictive mixture of chilli oil and peanuts), made his own version of the sauce, then tried to trademark the concept of chilli crisp itself – to be more precise, he tried to trademark the word “chilli crunch”, which is actually a synonym of the more commonly used “chilli crisp”.
John Cena seal of approval.
If Chang had his way, then all the other businesses that have been making the same product for generations would be sued for copyright infringement, and be forced to pay him a huge sum of money. And that’s exactly what he tried to do by the way – his company, Momofuku, was already threatening a whole bunch of mom-and-pop stores by sending them cease-and-desist letters, just because they were calling their own products “chilli crunch”.
It is noteworthy that Lao Gan Ma – China’s favourite chilli sauce brand – has been successful and competitive without having to bully other businesses. Nor has it ever felt the need to prevent others from making the same product.
In the US, all Lao Gan Ma did was patent the words, letters and numbers on its logo. It didn’t even trademark the iconic picture of the auntie on the logo itself.
In case you were wondering, she’s the Chinese entrepreneur and Communist Party member Tao Huabi, founder of Lao Gan Ma. She’s a goddess, and a legend in her own right.
While Asian Americans are some of the most self-hating, passive and disunited people in the country, they have one bottom line you should never cross – their money, and their food.
Chang’s actions predictably caused a huge uproar among the Asian diasporas, leading to him withdrawing his patent application and issuing an apology letter, in which he tried to weasel his way out of the controversy by making the issue about “chilli crunch” vs “chilli crisp” – which, as explained before, mean the same thing.
This sort of thing happens all the time, unfortunately. Just last year, Dior promoted a new line of skirts that was clearly a copy of the mamianqun (a traditional Chinese garment whose design dates back to the Ming Dynasty), and yet claimed it was an original design.
Several years ago, when Disney made the movie “Coco”, they initially named it after the centuries-old Mexican holiday of Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), which would have been fine had they not also attempted to trademark the name of the holiday itself.
Culture rightfully belongs not to any private individual or entity, but to the people who created it, and those it is shared with. That’s why it is called the “public domain”. But that’s not how capitalists view the public domain. They see it as something to be conquered and rented out in small pieces to the public.
It is a very dehumanising and destructive way of thinking. This is why the conversation shouldn’t stop at David Chang and Momofuku. The system that favours that kind of behaviour and mindset must also be addressed.
Be the Rufus!
What, as a Canadian, could you not believe you had to explain to an American?
In my line of work, I interact with a fair number of Americans, but to be clear, I’m generally dealing with Executives who are very well educated.
In terms of those interactions about Canada, all I generally have to deal with is fairly minor misunderstandings of a more nuanced nature, such as an expectation that I must speak French…which I only speak very poorly!
But occasionally, I deal with folks “further down the ladder” and that has lead to some interesting conversations, and in fact just had one this week.
My wife is currently in Cuba with her bestie. I can not stand the heat down there, so she does a yearly girl’s trip.
During a conference call this week, we were talking about what we were going to do on the weekend; I mentioned the wife is in Cuba, so I also took the week off for a staycation, and I’m going to spend it with rum and Taco Bell, eating like I’m 20 again.
That got a laugh from most folks on the call, but one of the SysAdmins pipped up, and asked how it is my wife was allowed to go to Cuba. It took me a minute to understand what he meant, and then I remembered that Americans are not generally permitted to go to Cuba…at least directly.
I explained that the American restrictions on visiting Cuba only applied, to well, Americans. Canadians are free to travel to Cuba anytime they wish.
The SysAdmin was clearly confused, said as much, and for a moment, the call got uncomfortable. I cracked a joke on how it is that American laws do not apply to Canadians in Canada, and one of the Executives from the company joined in saying he would explain it later.
As far as I can tell, this SysAdmin seemed to honestly believe because there were American laws about traveling to Cuba, they must apply to everyone on the planet.
But again, in my experience, this sort of interaction is pretty rare.
Inflation killed the American dream
Yes. The American Dream is dead. These are valid points.
What is the most condescending advice you received from someone who assumed you were poorer or less educated than them?
I’m a “techie” and always have been. Middle management is a very rich breeding ground for condescending advice if you know your stuff and rarely wear a suit.
I was meeting in a consultancy role troubleshooting a product issue. Most meetings of more than four people are a waste of time so I generally wait for the vocal contingent to get their two cents in before participating.
So, I didn’t speak much, and worse, was in jeans, whereas this new middle manager spoke a lot, and wore a suit. He was obviously better than me so he felt free to disagree: I “hadn’t done my homework”, and advised that I should “actually look at the documentation” before venturing an opinion.
I’m normally happy to be wrong and so learn, in fact I’m known for it, so it was fully in character to ask that he show me the relevant documentation and so be educated. Sadly he had misremembered it, failed to bluster his way out, and I got to use my favourite line:
“That’s what I thought I wrote.”
In fact the company existed solely so that I could concentrate on producing the software they marketed and supported. I owned 60% of it, but I didn’t wear a suit!
Obviously poor and uneducated!
Regarding Taiwan
It is very easy for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army to liberate Taiwan by force, but no matter how precise the strike is, it will always cause Taiwanese casualties, which is something mainland China does not want to see.
Whether Taiwan’s future will be peaceful liberation or liberation by force depends entirely on the ideas of Taiwan’s rulers.
The truth hurts
Iran’s retaliatory strikes against Israel were not conducted alone. Strategic partners Russia and China have Tehran’s back, and their role in West Asia’s conflict will only grow if the US doesn’t keep Israel in check.
By Pe.pe Esc.obar
APR 15, 2024
A little over 48 hours before Iran’s aerial message to Israel across the skies of West Asia, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov confirmed , on the record, what so far had been, at best, hush-hush diplomatic talk :
The Russian side keeps in contact with Iranian partners on the situation in the Middle East after the Israeli strike on the Iranian consulate in Syria.
Ryabkov added, “We stay in constant touch [with Iran]. New in-depth discussions on the whole range of issues related to the Middle East are also expected in the near future in BRICS.”
He then sketched The Big Picture:
Connivance with Israeli actions in the Middle East, which are at the core of Washington’s policy, is in many ways becoming the root cause of new tragedies.
Here, concisely, we had Russia’s top diplomatic coordinator with BRICS – in the year of the multipolar organization’s Russian presidency – indirectly messaging that Russia has Iran’s back. Iran, it should be noted, just became a full-fledged BRICS+ member in January.
Iran is a BRICS+ member! -MM
Iran’s aerial message this weekend confirmed this in practice: their missile guidance systems used the Chinese Beidou satellite navigation system as well as the Russian GLONASS system.
This is Russia–China intel leading from behind and a graphic example of BRICS+ on the move.
Ryabkov’s “we stay in constant touch” plus the satellite navigation intel confirms the deeply interlocked cooperation between the Russia–China strategic partnership and their mutual strategic partner Iran. Based on vast experience in Ukraine, Moscow knew that the biblical psychopathic genocidal entity would keep escalating if Iran only continued to exercise “strategic patience.”
The morphing of “strategic patience” into a new strategic balance had to take some time – including high-level exchanges with the Russian side. After all, the risk remained that the Israeli attack against the Iranian consulate/ambassador’s residence in Damascus could well prove to be the 2024 remix of the killing of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
And don’t forget the Strait of Hormuz
Tehran did manage to upend the massive Western psychological operations aimed at pushing it into a strategic misstep.
Iran started with a misdirecting masterstroke. As US–Israeli fear porn went off the charts, fueled by dodgy western “intel,” the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) made a quick sideways move, seizing an Israeli-owned container ship near the Strait of Hormuz.
That was an eminently elegant manoeuvre – reminding the collective west of Tehran’s hold on the Strait of Hormuz, a fact immeasurably more dangerous to the whole western economic house of cards than any limited strike on their “aircraft carrier” in West Asia. That did happen anyway.
And once again, with a degree of elegance. Unlike that ‘moral’ army specialized in killing women, children, and the elderly and bombing hospitals, mosques, schools, universities, and humanitarian convoys, the Iranian attack targeted key Israeli military sites such as the Nevatim and Ramon airbases in the Negev and an intel center in the occupied Golan Heights – the three centers used by Tel Aviv in its strike on Iran’s Damascus consulate.
This was a highly choreographed show.
Multiple early warning signs gifted Tel Aviv with plenty of time to profit from US intel and evacuate fighter jets and personnel, which was duly followed by a plethora of US military radars coordinating the defense strategy.
It was American firepower that smashed the bulk of what may have been a swarm of 185 Shahed-136 drones – using everything from ship-mounted air defense to fighter jets. The rest was shot down over Jordan by The Little King’s military – the Arab street will never forget his treachery – and then by dozens of Israeli jets.
Israel’s defenses were de facto saturated by the suicide drone-ballistic missile combo. On the ballistic missile front, several pierced the dense maze of Israel’s air defenses, with Israel officially claiming nine successful hits – interestingly enough, all of them hitting super relevant military targets.
The whole show had the budget of a mega blockbuster. For Israel – without even counting the price of US, UK, and Israeli jets – just the multi-layered interception system set it back at least $1.35 billion , according to an Israeli official. Iranian military sources tally the cost of their drone and missile salvos at only $35 million – 2.5 percent of Tel Aviv’s expenditure – made with full indigenous technology.
A new West Asian chessboard
It took only a few hours for Iran to finally metastasize strategic patience into serious deterrence, sending an extremely powerful and multi-layered message to its adversaries and masterfully changing the game across the whole West Asian chessboard.
Were the biblical psychopaths to engage in a real Hot War against Iran, there’s no chance in hell Tel Aviv can intercept hundreds of Iranian missiles – the state-of-the-art ones excluded from the current show – without an early warning mechanism spread over several days. Without the Pentagon’s umbrella of weaponry and funds, Israeli defense is unsustainable.
It will be fascinating to see what lessons Moscow will glean from this profusion of lights in the West Asian sky, its sly eyes taking in the frantic Israeli, political, and military scene as the heat continues to rise on the slowly boiling – and now screaming – frog.
As for the US, a West Asian war – one it hasn’t scripted itself – does not suit its immediate interests, as an old-school Deep State stalwart confirmed by email:
That could permanently end the area as an oil-producing region and astronomically raise the oil price to levels that will crash the world financial structure. It is conceivable that the United States banking system could similarly collapse if the oil price rises to $900 a barrel should Middle East oil be cut off or destroyed.
It’s no wonder that the Biden combo, days before the Iranian response, was frantically begging Beijing, Riyadh, and Ankara, among others, to hold Tehran back. The Iranians might have even agreed – had the UN Security Council imposed a permanent ceasefire in Gaza to calm the regional storm. Washington was mute.
The question now is whether it will remain mute. Mohammad Bagheri, chief of the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, went straight to the point:
We have conveyed a message to America through the Swiss Embassy that American bases will become a military target if they are used in future aggressive actions of the Zionist regime. We will consider this as aggression and will act accordingly.
The US dilemma is confirmed by former Pentagon analyst Michael Maloof:
We have got some 35 bases that surround Iran, and they thereby become vulnerable. They were meant to be a deterrence. Clearly, deterrence is no longer on the table here. Now they become the American’ Achilles heel’ because of their vulnerabilities to attack.
All bets are off on how the US–Israel combo will adapt to the new Iranian-crafted deterrence reality. What remains, for the historic moment, is the pregnant-with-meaning aerial show of Muslim Iran singlehandedly unleashing hundreds of drones and missiles on Israel, a feat feted all across the lands of Islam. And especially by the battered Arab street, subjugated by decrepit monarchies that keep doing business with Israel over the dead bodies of the Palestinians of Gaza.
A good mans worst fear
What is the most amazing thing you overheard because people didn’t think you understood their language?
Not me but my brother. In 1975 we were living in Papua New Guinea a large island [the size of France] in the South Pacific. My brother was the commissioner of taxation. Papua New Guinea got independence in 1975 and as commissioner his job was to set up dual tax treaties with other countries. His first of course was Australia but then he took a team to Germany. About 10 Papua New Guineans and himself the only white face there. During the meetings which lasted for more than 2 weeks he spoke only English with the Germans and both English and pidgin [a local language which is made up of a mix of several languages and is not broken English as many assume] with his very bright teammates who had been clued in and played their part perfectly. The Germans spoke English with them but also discussed what they would offer amongst themselves in German saying things like “well we always give developing nations this but let’s swap it for something” etc. anyway after about 2 weeks with the talks practically completed the Germans came to him and said that his counterpart the head of German tax would like to have dinner with him but there was a problem, unusually for Germans he did not speak English but they could provide a translator, my brother who spoke 5 languages fluently answered “no problem I speak perfect German” all their faces fell and not a word of German was spoken again during the last few days of the conference. The dinner was excellent.
Half-Wit Foreigner BANGS OUT Mindanao
This guy just backpacks in the Philippines. He checks out small towns, back roads and stuff, and it is BEAUTIFUL. It reminds me of Pago Pago. Fun escapist video.
Oh… the babe on the splash image is just eye-candy. This is a real adventure video. Not a sex video. LOL. Take the time to appreciate those third world “cesspools” that the United States says is so poor and poverty ridden.
What is the most badass thing your parent has ever done?
My parents split when I was 9. Fast forward to age 11, and my dad was supposed to pick my sister and me up and drive us from Pennsylvania to Florida in June 1979 for a court-ordered child visitation.
A few days before we were supposed to leave, I awakened with a fever and some stomach pain in the morning. I’d felt fine the night before. Mom, who was now of course a single mother, had to go to work, and left me in bed with orders to call her if I got worse. My discomfort slowly grew throughout the day, but seemed to be subsiding when my worried mother got home in the afternoon. “How do you feel?” she asked.
“It still hurts, but only if I straighten out my legs,” I remember replying as I lay in bed.
“Dear Lord, you have appendicitis.” This was stated as a fact, and not a question. I could barely walk from the pain, so my mother carried most of my 120 pounds downstairs, out to the car, and into the emergency room at the local hospital. I was soon on a gurney and receiving x-rays, which showed nothing, but my fever and distress merited an exploratory abdominal surgery to see what was wrong, and I remember the doctor saying they’d take out my appendix while they were in there. My fever was climbing, and there was no time to waste. “It’s his appendix, Dr. Peguero! You’ll see!” I remember her telling the doctor shortly before I went under anesthesia.
Mom refused to leave the hospital until the surgery was done. It was, indeed, my appendix, which was about a foot long, gangrenous, and curled up behind my pelvis, which is why radiographs didn’t show it. It was minutes or hours from perforating, and was likely already leaking a small amount of infected fluid into my abdomen. My body temperature post-operation had climbed to 105 degrees Fahrenheit, and I was given an alcohol bath in a room where the nurses opened the windows to let in the 47-degree June Pocono Mountain night air. I was kept in the hospital for nine days, a very long time for an appendectomy, because the fever was reluctant to subside completely.
Mom diagnosed me, and literally carried me to the car and into the ER. The doctor saw no reason why I shouldn’t be allowed to ride in my father’s non-air-conditioned 1979 Renault LeCar all the way down I-95 a week or so after my discharge, to which my mother replied, “Doctor, if anything happens to him on that trip, I’ll sue you and this hospital for everything I can get.”
“In that case, there’s no way in hell he’s going to Florida,” was the doctor’s reply, and he immediately wrote an official opinion that the court accepted to keep me from making the trip that year.
Yeah, my mom’s still a badass when she needs to be.
Ah, the BACKROOMS
This is insane
16 of the top 20 top selling EV cars are Chinese.
As a female, what is the dating scene like after 50?
From the clowns I have to deal with, it’s an absolute circus.
Bachelor Number One is a small businessman making his fortune in the sales and marketing industry as a vendor of reduced-price luxury brand alternatives, available in a fine car trunk near you. He is in high demand by three exes and the county child support office.
Bachelor Number Two is a man of traditional values whose hobbies include guns, beer and how to combine the two. His apartment consists of a daybed, a black velvet painting of Jesus hugging a confederate flag, and a TV permaglued to One America News.
Bachelor Number Three isn’t a bachelor, but his wife gave him permission to behave like one after learning I’m back on the market.
Dating after 50 runs the gamut from crapshoot to shitshow. On the one hand, I’m probably getting propositioned more now than I did in my 30s or even in my 20s. On the other hand, a lot of those propositions are coming from guys who sell fake Gucci out of their cars or are uncomfortably nostalgic for 1952. And there’s no shortage of bored men looking for a side piece or a fling to spice things up, because older guys are more likely to still be married than the young professional rising in his field.
I’ve learned that I don’t so much have to lower my standards as to change them. Starting over has forced me to reevaluate my own relationship goals, and I’ve learned to look well beyond aesthetics. I’ve also grown far more wary; the guys who message me on dating sites who look like George Clooney at a Mediterranean resort are far more likely to look like someone in an offshore catfish gulag.
If I’ve learned anything, it’s that I don’t have any obligation to put up with nonsense or abject stupidity. 20-something Elizabeth would have sat through a bad date with a frozen smile and a vague hope that the man’s redeeming qualities could eventually break through the clouds. 50-something Elizabeth will happily walk out in the middle of a date if the man turns out to be ignorant and poorly mannered. I’m just as capable of taking myself out to a nice dinner, and I certainly wouldn’t object to the company; I’m smart and cute, after all.
Some AI generated images…
From the ‘Battle of Dignity’ to the shield of shame: How Jordan has fallen
Amman’s collaboration with Tel Aviv peaked last Saturday with its shocking defense of Israeli territory from Iranian drones and missiles, a move that may prove fateful for the future of the Hashemite Kingdom.
By Khalil Harb
APR 16, 2024
The most dangerous development during Iran’s massive 13 April retaliatory strike against Israel last weekend was the defensive military alliance – comprising the US, Britain, Jordan, and France – that coalesced to defend the occupation state.
Jordan has jumped to Israel’s full defense at a time when Arabs have never been more collectively outraged by its crimes.
Particularly notable was Jordan’s role in thwarting Iran’s incoming drones and missiles. The Hashemite Kingdom was the only Arab or Muslim state to act as Israel’s “firewall,” providing direct military protection for Tel Aviv within a multilateral, regional military framework.
Despite Amman’s long-standing pro-Israel stance, this sudden reassertion of its position is indicative of some broader shifts in military strategies across West Asia.
Despite Amman’s long-standing pro-Israel stance, this sudden reassertion of its position is indicative of some broader shifts in military strategies across West Asia.
Patterns and calculations of confrontations across West Asia will be readjusted to adapt to this new equation and others that have emerged in the region as alliances shift to and away from the west.
That includes the Axis of Resistance, which will likely reassess the expected range of responses in a future confrontation, given that western anti-missile capabilities are well spread throughout strategic locations – strategic sites from the Ain al-Assad base in Anbar, Iraq, to the Al-Tanf base at the Syrian–Jordanian–Iraqi border and from the Mashabim base in the Negev desert to the King Faisal base in northwestern Jordan.
Strategic shifts
Over the years, the Jordanian government has dramatically shrunk its commitments to the Palestinian cause and “Arabism.”
This can be traced from its 1968 “Battle of Dignity ” against Israel to 5 November, when King Abdullah II boasted of his country’s “success” in airdropping medical aid to the Jordanian field hospital in the Gaza Strip, and now, quite stunningly, employing its air force to protect Israel’s security from retaliatory Iranian strikes.
This shift is not merely a reactionary measure but the culmination of years of extensive security and military coordination with the occupation state, as highlighted by a Jordanian opposition activist speaking to The Cradle. This deep-seated integration into anti-missile and drone operations reflects a strategic evolution rather than a spontaneous response.
Eyewitness reports from multiple sources to The Cradle describe the audible presence of warplanes over the Amman region, followed by the sound of explosions hours later when overhead projectiles were intercepted and downed.
One Jordanian witness relays that the suburb of Marj al-Hamam saw the most interceptions against Iranian drones and missiles, with debris reported across the area.
Jordanian writer and journalist Rania Jabari informs The Cradle that “citizens in Jordan have felt jammed on the GPS for about two weeks,” that is, since after the Israeli airstrike on Iran’s consulate in Damascus.
Amid rising concerns about a swift Iranian counterattack through drone incursions, Israel reportedly initiated GPS jamming operations across several regional countries, including Jordan.
Jabari suggests that this electronic interference might have precipitated the Jordanian Air Force’s readiness to intercept any unauthorized aerial objects in its airspace, given the potential risks to national security from mistakenly guiding Iranian drones into Jordanian territory.
However, the Jordanian opposition activist casts doubt on the capability of Jordan’s Air Force – equipped with only about 60 older F-16 and F-5 aircraft – to single-handedly manage the response against hundreds of Iranian drones and missiles destined for Israel.
Regional repercussions
Supporting these suspicions, Israeli Channel 12 reported that Israeli fighter jets had intercepted drones launched by Iran in the airspace of Jordan and Syria.
The day after the Iranian Operation True Promise, the Jordanian government issued a vague statement, only saying that “some unidentified flying objects that entered our airspace last night were dealt with and intercepted to prevent endangering the safety of our citizens and inhabited areas.”
The statement conspicuously omitted any mention of the scale of involvement of the Israeli Air Force or the nature and role of US fighter jets participating in the operation.
Given the limitations of Jordan’s aerial fleet and the extensive geographic area these planes need to cover – a “firewall” stretching approximately 1,500 kilometers from western Iran to the occupied territories of Palestine – the involvement of international forces seems credible.
Additionally, Iraqi sources inform The Cradle that coalition forces had shot down about 30 drones and missiles over Iraq, with explosions heard in regions like Erbil, Najaf, Wasit, and Anbar. This indicates that a significant number of the drones and missiles traversed Jordanian skies, where they were intercepted before reaching their intended targets in Israel.
The role of the Jordanian Air Force is so significant that the Iranian Mehr news agency quoted an Iranian military source as saying, “Iran will monitor Jordanian movements, and if they cooperate with Israel, Jordan will be our next target.”
The source is said to have “warned Jordan and other countries in the region before the start of the attack against cooperating with the occupying entity.”
This statement seems to have aroused the ire of the Jordanian government. On Sunday, authorities summoned the Iranian ambassador in Amman to warn against Tehran’s “questioning of Jordan’s position.”
Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi also issued a statement saying that his government would “intercept any drone or missile that breaches our airspace, whether Iranian or Israeli.”
However, the Jordanian oppositionist questions the accuracy of Safadi’s statement, especially about his country’s readiness to confront a similar threat coming from Tel Aviv, noting numerous occasions when Israeli fighter jets infiltrated Jordanian airspace to carry out raids on Syria.
A history of betraying Palestine
Jordan’s historical antagonism towards Palestinian resistance dates back to the “Black September” massacres of 1970, aimed at expelling the PLO from the country – allegedly with the support of former King Hussein bin Talal, who reportedly received backing from Israel and the US.
During the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel’s Air Force shot down and destroyed dozens of Jordanian aircraft. Following the 1994 Amman–Tel Aviv peace agreement, the two states have struck multiple defense deals, including Israel supplying Jordan with F-16 jets and Cobra helicopters.
Since the 1970s, when Israel supported Jordan during the Palestinian revolt against King Hussein, the two air forces have not engaged in combat. Israeli belligerence persists despite this. On the eve of the 1991 Gulf War, when asked about potential opposition from the Jordanian Air Force should Israel strike Iraq, then-retired Air Force Commander Avihu Ben-Nun boldly stated , “There would be no more Jordanian Air Force.”
It is very likely, moreover, that the western militaries involved in Israel’s defense last weekend utilized Jordanian bases. For example, US troops are stationed at the Mashabim air base in the Negev desert, supporting operations like the Iron Dome system.
Similarly, UK and French military forces are present at multiple strategic locations within Jordan, including the King Faisal Air Base in Al-Jafr and the Humaymah base near Aqaba, where they play roles in regional defense and run intelligence operations.
There are also French troops at King Faisal Air Base, known as Al-Ruwaished Base, which is close to Al-Tanf. From this base, activities involving espionage operations in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, and Iran are carried out through a state-of-the-art reconnaissance center, and its airport is believed to be used by both Israeli and US drones.
Sacrificing Jordan’s stability for Israel’s security
But Jordan’s relations and collaboration with Tel Aviv remain deeply unpopular among the country’s citizenry, with protestors amassing for weeks near the Israeli embassy in Amman – many of them subsequently subjected to repression and tight security restrictions by Jordanian authorities.
Adding to the pressure on Amman, the Iraqi resistance faction, Kataib Hezbollah, announced earlier this month its readiness to arm “12,000 fighters with light and medium weapons, anti-armor launchers, tactical missiles, millions of bullets and tons of explosives, so that we can be united to defend our Palestinian brothers,” adding that it would seek to “cut off the [Jordan] land route that reaches the Zionist entity.”
By participating in the interception of Iranian drones, Jordan has made a significant contribution to alleviating some pressure off Israel, but one that comes with a much more significant domestic consequence for the stability of the kingdom.
Will Amman’s blatant alignment with Tel Aviv in this context prove to be politically detrimental for its monarch? In years to come, this decision may be viewed as a strategic error of gargantuan proportions. For now, Jordan’s political future and its position in regional politics remain uncertain – certainly as Tel Aviv and Tehran gear up for further confrontations.
King Abdallah can jump into the fray as he did last weekend and suffer through further waves of domestic and Arab outrage, or he can resolve to stay neutral and quiet – as many larger, more powerful neighbors chose to do – and let Iranians and Israelis adversaries fight their own battles
Backpacking trip in the Philippines
Take a vacation.
Has a cop ever said something to you which was completely unexpected?
During college, a very good male friend and I decided to take a road-trip from Minneapolis, where we both studied, to Boston, during Spring Break.
One of our stops was in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
We had parked our car and were walking around the downtown area when we stood at a crosswalk and waited for the light to turn green so we could get to the other side of the street.
Once green, we began crossing (we were the only ones on the street at the time), when we see a police car drive up on our left, to the crosswalk and stop while we are crossing it.
The driver, a uniformed police officer, and the only one in the car, began yelling at us asking why are we crossing the street.
I told him that we were going to check out the restaurant across the way (I didn’t understand why he asked that and answered innocently).
He began to yell loudly that we are crossing at a red light and are behaving recklessly.
My friend and I, not wanting to be rude to an officer in uniform, simply stood there in shock and pointed at the green light that was in front of us.
The officer didn’t bother looking and kept yelling at us that perhaps we were being rude because he was in an unmarked car and we didn’t realize he is a police officer.
As mentiobed, this man was in uniform, sitting in a very noticeable police car, nothing unmarked about it.
My friend and I were standing there, in the middle of the crosswalk, not able to come up with anything to say in exchange because it was so ridiculous.
My friend began yelling back that we had a green light, and that he had the red light, but before finishing, I nudged him to stop and told the officer that we are really sorry, and kept apologizing.
The officer seemed to calm down and we continued to cross the street while the officer waited for his light to turn green.
It was truly bizarre.
My friend and I began dating shortly after that, and have now been married around 20 years, and we still laugh at that weird exchange, though we did not think it was funny at the time.
What is the most badass thing your parent has ever done?
My dad was putting gas in the car.
I was standing on the opposite side of it.
I went to throw trash away at the trash can across from me.
Out of nowhere, a car came barreling off the road and into the gas station faster than any car should ever drive in that tight of a space.
I froze.
I felt the car fly past me within what may have been a foot or two feet from me, but it felt like inches …
That’s when I see an otherwise placid dad turn from human to enraged Silverback Gorilla.
He picked up a rock and threw it as hard as he could and started running after them.
Suddenly, the car was engulfed by multiple police cars that apparently were chasing it.
When we got back in the car, I asked him why he threw a rock at their car.
He said:
“I wanted them to come back and fight me! They almost hit my kid driving like an idiot! I was not going to let them get away with it!”
You could hear the indignation in his voice and see the fire in his eyes.
Someone messed with his little boy, and he was ready to go to war to protect him.
That little boy was me.
I never felt so safe and secure as I did in that moment with him.
My father’s act of impulsive, selfless love for his child was the most badass thing my parent has ever done.
Green Garlic Chili
Ingredients
- 3 pounds fresh pork, cubed in small pieces or coarsely ground
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 3 cloves fresh garlic
- Salt and white pepper to taste
- 1 large onion
- 6 to 8 fresh New Mexico green chiles or 2 to 4 small cans whole green chiles, chopped
- 3 large fresh, home grown green tomatoes
Instructions
- Heat oil in heavy Dutch oven or stainless pot. Cook pork until it is white and braised on all sides.
- Remove pork from pot.
- Sauté whole, peeled cloves of garlic and onion in oil until onion is clear.
- Chop tomatoes and green chiles; add them to the onion-garlic mix. Sauté . Put pork back into the pot. Add enough water to cover and simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until pork is done and chili is thick. You may need to add more water during the cooking process. Stir to prevent sticking.
- Serve in flour tortillas with plenty of picante sauce.
Appreciation matters
Have you ever successfully bribed someone?
My daughter. She was 20 and a serious smoker.
She was on her way to Florence for her junior semester abroad. We were at the departure gate at JFK, and I offered her money to quit smoking. A hundred bucks a week. Don’t tell your mother.
She said, “Dad, I’m going to be living in Italy. I can’t quit now.”
She flew off to Florence. Smoked. Fit right in.
Cut to six months later. She’s back in the states. “Hey Dad, are you still willing to pay me to quit smoking?”
“Yes. Here’s the deal. I’ll put $5000 in the bank for you every year, and if you’re still not smoking in five years, you can have the $25,000. Or you can let it ride, and we’ll go another five years, another $25,000. Don’t tell your mother.”
The backup bribe was because I was afraid she’d take the 25 Grand and go back to smoking. The “Don’t tell your mother” was partly because I didn’t think my wife would approve, and partly because bribes by their very nature are most effective when they’re shrouded in secrecy.
My daughter quit smoking on April 1, 1996. On April 1, 2001 she claimed the $25,000. She needed it to pay off her credit card habit. But it’s been 20 plus years, and she never picked up another cigarette.
Moral: Teach your children well. If they can’t learn, bribe them. It works.
Women aren’t wives today
What are some mind-blowing psychological facts about males?
1. Men have higher rates of death from suicide and homicides than women, with the highest risk among younger men.
2. Male emotions are different than female emotions, but just as complex and powerful.
3. Studies suggest men may have better self-control than women.
4. Men generally experience stronger gender role pressure, particularly around achievement
and ambition.
5. Men’s cortisol levels tend to increase in competitive and hierarchical situations, allowing them to react quicker to danger or pressure.
6. Male brain cells tend to be larger than female brain cells.
7. Men often talk less than women, yet make up 75% of political speeches worldwide.
8. Studies suggest that men are more susceptible to memory-loss with age.
9. Men experience greater impairment from the effects of alcohol than women.
10. Men have a stronger desire for physical stimulation than women.
From these psychological facts, we can conclude that males have unique physical, psychological, and emotional characteristics. These aspects make them who they are and can be both positive and challenging at times. Although, they can still provide us with a better understanding of the human experience.
A lot of money
Has Mao Zedong been the victim of superficial propaganda that vilified him excessively?
Has Mao Zedong been the victim of superficial propaganda that vilified him excessively?
This question is too big. I can only show you a tiny little corner of Mao’s work.
In 1947, LIFE magazine employed a young American reporter, Jack Birns
, to Shanghai to report on China’s civil war. Shanghai, at that time, was like a heaven: this one city is far, far, richer than the rest of China. It had 4 million residents and consumed half of the total electricity generated in China. Half. And the expats were indeed having a reasonably good time in Shanghai, as photographed by Jack Birns. Here is a photo of an expat with Chinese girls.
And not far away, here is a city sanitary worker picking up trash. Also photographed by Jack Birns.
Yes, that was a dead child you see there. Starved to death. And here is a newspaper article on Oct. 27, 1940, reporting that the night temperature dropped to 39.9 degrees fahrenheit, which was about 4.5 degrees celsius, which resulted in 74 people frozen to death in one of the Shanghai districts. Just one of the districts. Half of China is north of Shanghai.
And here is the photograph Jack Birns took, of the execution of suspected communist sympathizers. The photograph was never published, of course, because the owner of the LIFE magazine, Henry Luce, was a devoted anti-communist and did not want to show the KMT government committing atrocities.
You think this is bad? NOOOOO, this was what heaven looked like in China in 1947, in the richest city, the one tiny spot of China that consumed half of the total electricity generation in China. On only 4 million residents. What about the other 500 million Chinese?
The head of the International Famine Relief Commission estimated that 3 – 7 million Chinese die of famine every year. The Northwest China famine, 1928-1930 Driven by starvation, people resorted to cannibalism. China’s population grew from 430 million in 1850 to 580 million in 1953. China’s Demographic Evolution 1850-1953 Reconsidered
That’s an annual population growth rate of < 0.3% a year, in an age with no contraception and everybody was having 6+ kids. (BTW, by the time Mao died in 1976, China’s population had reached 930 million, grew by 350 million in 21 years, that’s a growth rate of ~ 3%. Compare this with the previous 100 years, and you’ll get the real total death rate of the previous century in China, which would be around 15 million a year.)
You think this is bad? NOOOOO, if you go to China’s countryside, you will often see something like this
I ran across this photo on the internet. It’s a tombstone issued by the government in praise of a young girl’s good virtue. Her name was not on the tombstone, because girls didn’t have names. Her fiance died before the wedding, so her family carried her to her fiance’s house, had her stood on top of his coffin, strangled her, and put her inside the coffin, to be buried with her fiance, the man she had never seen, never met, never known in life. On the back of the tombstone are the names of the male relatives of her family and her fiance’s family, etched in stone as a perpetual sign of great virtue.
How does this compare with Afghanistan? with Pakistan? With Saudi Arabia?
This was the China that Mao took over. 80% illiterate. 35 years of average life expectancy, and GDP per capita was $52 in 1952. Historical GDP of China
And if the men got a bit of money, the first thing they’d want to do was to open his own opium den and go buy himself a 12-year-old concubine.
Mao changed all that in a most profound way, despite 21 years of the most comprehensive Western embargo. 400 categories of products, including medicine, farming, and fishing equipment, were under embargo from 1950 to 1971. Without the fertilizers, Chinese farm yield was abysmally low. Without the medicine, the Chinese was under constant threat of small pox, malaria, and the plague. U.S. Ends Ban on China Trade
This was what Mao had in his hands. He started with clearing the country of bandits and opium, trained peasants on basic healthcare, and implemented universal, compulsory education. The government has the obligation to educate, and all children, boy or girl, have the obligation to learn, period.
This is the first set of China’s currency issued in 1960, featuring the first woman tractor driver.
Today China has women astronauts,
fighter jet pilots,
SWAT teams,
billionaires, China is home to two-thirds of the world’s self-made female billionaires
construction workers,
and Nobel Prize winners.
Generals, admirals, politicians, CEOs, firefighters. There is literally no job in China that people think women can’t do. This is the same people that a mere 70 years ago bound women’s feet and refused to let women go outside of their homes, wouldn’t even bother giving girls their own names. Foot binding
Mao didn’t just change the country. He changed the people.
But these individual examples are not as important as the overall statistics here: China has one of the highest women labor participation rate, and one of the highest rate of education for women.
So this is the way Mao understood Women’s Liberation: It’s not about clothes, not about sex, not about additional protection, not about some guy opening doors for ladies, but about strength – the strength of knowledge, of professional careers, of independence, of character, so that a woman can run her own life, and tell even the Pope himself to go f*ck off if she so desires. This, is Liberation.
And here is the thing about Mao: a lot of the stuff he did, nobody else has been able to do, even today, 40 years after he died. What I wrote here, is just a tiny little corner of his work. So you think you can do what Mao did easily? Well congratulations, we have just the right little problem for you to solve. Afghanistan is 100 times richer and the people healthier and more educated than China was in 1950. The country has only 30 million people, instead of 600 million. There is no embargo. Instead, there is a lot of financial aid. You want to go try your hands? NATO has been there for 15 years, what do they have to show for it? War is still going on. Opium production is at all-time high. Women walk around in tents. And little boys are still being f*cked in the arse. Bacha bazi
So go. Go there and make it into another China. Show us what you can do. Show us you can do what Mao did without the loss of a single life. Show us you can do better. Or try Iraq. Or South Sudan. Or Yemen. All of these countries are hundreds of times better than China was in 1950.
So going back to the original question, is Mao vilified excessively. I can only say this: he had done great things, and he had done quite a few things wrong. He did not do many favors to the West, but he was very straight forward and truthful about it. He didn’t lie about it. He didn’t steal. He didn’t pretend friendship. He didn’t kiss ass. Neither did he intend to harm any people or any other country. He intended to modernize China, and even more, modernize the Chinese people. He wanted to do those things that would benefit the Chinese people for the next hundreds of generations. He would have laughed at any vilification from foreigners, and thought he must be doing something right. He would not have liked the vilification from the Chinese people, but he would have ground his teeth and trudged on, if he were convinced that this was what China needed for the next 1,000 years.
PS: I want to reply to some of the comments regarding Mao’s faults. He had a lot of those too, the most glaring being a weakness for pseudoscience and sycophancy. But that’s not the question being asked here. And I doubt anybody can write a comprehensive review of Mao on Quora. It’ll be too big.
But the point I want to make is not about Mao. It’s about the fact that some aspect of “tradition” or “culture” or “religion” is harmful, and people who espouse those are just plain wrong, and most of the current crop of political leaders are pussyfooting about it, unwilling to deal with the fact that in certain places, it’s the PEOPLE themselves that need to be modernized. Any tradition or culture or religion the keep 50% of a country’s productivity off the table, or keep 50% of the brain power off the grid, can not possibly compete with other countries. Mao and the CCP were willing to deal with it and re-shape the culture to the right path. The other politicians today are willing to put up with medieval culture as long as it’s called “tradition” or “culture” or religion”, and this is going to keep the society down for the next millennium. Some things benefit the society if they live in a museum, and harm the society if they live in real life.
Wholesome Daughter
From a Canadian
Well boys, I’m required to get back to Canada very soon, and I will. But I gotta be perfectly honest with you. I have zero desire to go back — absolute zero. I want to live in China forever.
I feel like I’ve visited not another country, but another planet. Planet China. The next level of human civilization.
And the quality of life, especially in terms of social life and cultural and aesthetic surroundings? No comparison.
Now a couple of decades ago, any Westerner could’ve come to China and been regarded as a top asset. There were no standards back then, anyone foreign was good. That’s no longer the case. Today China is hyper-developed. It’s just plain superior to us. This is no tankie stuff, I can look anyone in the eye and state this as a fact. I spent two weeks in one of China’s lowest-GDP provinces, coming from what is supposed to be one of the best countries in the world. And I am honestly intimidated by all the massive wealth, almost alien technology, absolutely stunning architecture and ubiquitous beauty, and brilliant administration I’ve witnessed.
I’ve seen so many things that don’t exist in Canada, nor in any other Western country to the best of my knowledge. And I have no special skills that the central government or prestigious employers would want. I’m practically a backpacker.
But not all of China is hyper-developed. I got a warm welcome from local authorities in small cities I visited. They told me if I finish a degree and get a visa, they’d be glad to give me a job. They even said China needs me and I’d be loved here.