I will not take lessons in freedom from Europeans. Trump gave a good Fourth of July speech at Mount Rushmore on American traditions. There have been times when I cringed at things Trump has said. This was not one of those times. I was honestly shocked at left-wing (and now European leftist) reaction, as I mentioned in the last data dump, that completely twisted the speech. The idea that Trump is divisive by resisting the rioters after accepting the idea that the death of George Floyd requires changes is outrageous. The left simply refused to take yes for an answer. At this point, a "unifying" speech would involve abandoning American tradition in a futile effort to appease the unhinged leftists who resist any semblance of national unity based on our traditions. Such unity used to allow us to debate political questions under that tradition of individual liberty and tolerance. The left has abandoned that tradition and liberals need to purge their ranks of such authoritarian loons rather than let the loons set the terms of the debate that destroys our traditions, as the CHAZ fiasco represents. If you heard racist, divisive dog whistles in that speech, you are the racist, divisive dog. And as I've said, Europeans are not the ones to give America lessons on freedom. Nothing is wrong with America that our traditions can't fix.
Interesting vehicles. But if their purpose is to escort tanks in cities to kill enemy infantry trying to kill your tanks, why not leave the tanks out of the fight and just use those interesting vehicles to kill the enemy infantry?
In this August 2019 post I mention that Trump should not pull troops from Germany to put them in Poland. The link in that post is still good and shows that Trump is right that the issue of American troops in Germany given German defense spending shortfalls has been under discussion for a while. My basic view hasn't changed much. I still want to defend Europe and make sure Germany can act as a springboard for power projection. If drawing down some troops in Germany don't undermine those two objectives, I'm open to a reduction in Germany even if I'd prefer to add troops to Europe.
If the Xi Jinping Flu can be transmitted in the air is ways thus far our scientists don't think is possible, we're kind of hosed. Is that transmission claim true?
Apparently you have to break a few eggs to make that lovely BLM omelet. Of course Black lives matter. But don't pretend the actual hard-left BLM organization is trying to ensure that, which our actual Declaration of Independence and Constitution insist on.
Last week I mentioned that the rising Xi Jinping Flu coronavirus cases in America is disturbing compared to the European slow decline and much lower level. Yet somehow the "feel" of our country doesn't make it seem like the bad news the graph showed. Perhaps we really are screwing up how we are interpreting the statistics here.
If you are defending the situation in Somalia to attack Trump, you just might have TDS.
Trump said 99% of Xi Jinping Flu cases are benign and AP's "fact check" says he is wrong to dismiss the severity of the virus. Of course the latter part is just mind reading. Saying that 99% don't have bad effects does not in any way say that those who do suffer aren't suffering from it. And the actual death rate is likely no more than 0.26%--which by any known math means that 99.74% of people who get the virus don't die. And even if the rate is higher it is unlikely to be higher than 1%. Remember, too, that we don't actually know the denominator because obviously a lot of people had or have the virus without knowing it because they weren't tested and didn't have significant or any symptoms. But yes, some percent who don't die suffer from lingering complications. But what is that percentage? I don't know. But not many die, that's for sure, if you don't have complicating factors. If Trump was a president the media liked--or God forbid, worshiped--the fact check would have confirmed his statement as basically true. To Hell with these people.
How should we measure Russia's Poseidon long-range strategic nuclear torpedo? As bullshit.
North Korea's conventional military is rotting away. I didn't need to get past the firewall to know that.
The X-37B likes to push the PRAM a lot.
China has succeeded in convincing a clear majority of Taiwanese to want immediate or eventual formal independence. Which is a good sign addressing my worry about whether the Taiwanese will fight hard if China invades them. The more people there want to be free of China the harder they will fight.
The world has noticed China's worrisome rise in power before China is capable of pushing over that worried resistance with China's power. I'm worried that Chinese rulers don't realize that their power doesn't match their ambitions.
Pakistan's China lifeline. Which relies on China and India not going to war. Given China's slow-motion invasion of India, at what point does India either do the same to Chinese territory; or treat one Chinese takeover of territory as a Kargil scenario?
Freedom of the seas.
Another entry into the persistent surveillance game.
I don't know if Putin himself is a weak or strong ruler, but I do know that Russia is weak and that Putin is effing up royally. It's one big Potemkin Village of sham success that only Putin's continued rule can keep from being exposed. #WhyRussiaCan'tHaveNiceThings
Wake Island. Yeah, I've mentioned its value for holding the line in the western Pacific before. And its 10,000-foot runway is long enough for any plane America has. But it is hardly the most important American base in the Pacific. Given that broad claim I don't know if that would be Guam, Hawaii, or something in Japan or on the American west coast. Still, it is underappreciated. We really do need more backup for Guam. China's air and missile reach keeps expanding. There was a time when Okinawa was a secure base for operations against China. Honestly, though, I almost never read The National Interest. It is just omnipresent click bait of overstated headlines for ordinary things. I feel soiled when a link tempts me.
Backlash: "Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s ruling party has adopted a resolution urging the government cancel a visit to Japan by Chinese President Xi Jinping following the implementation of a new national security law for Hong Kong." I see China's policy of making friends and influencing people is going splendidly these days. Couldn't happen to a nicer group of dangerous communist thugs, if you ask me.
Your occasional reminder that the "news" media sucks. I'd say that it sucks at its basic job, but that job has long been acting as Democratic Party operatives rather than reporting the news. I suspect that their history of sucking at their old job will eventually transfer to sucking at their new job as the media forgets that it needs to at least pretend it still has its old job. Screw them. They are horrible, horrible people and their profession should die after the mortal wound its members inflicted on it. I mentioned I am dropping my YouTubeTV subscription and was looking for a replacement. If I do that, one thing I won't do is use the Sling plan that has lots of news. Maybe I'll get the sports package. But even that is at risk with sports going woke. I might just walk away from the whole mess and see what happens.
Huh, an actual Russia scandal involving social media. Nazis wear shoes and drink coffee, too, I guess. Funny that this is the first I've heard of it. Funny, too, that this isn't a huge scandal in Russia considering their experience with actual Nazis from 1941-1945. Russia did just have a big 75th anniversary parade for defeating the originals. Tip to Instapundit.
Well, you know the saying, if it ain't broke
Public health officials have abused the public's trust in their status as experts. And the media largely went along for the ride without pointing out the problems. Tip to Instapundit.
Social media and tech players in America seem to be doing the right thing over China's oppression of Hong Kong.
I really don't like to talk about "Black-on-Black" crime. I prefer to talk about "criminal-on-victim" crime.
Criminals can use home security signals intelligence to know if you are home without seeing the video itself. Ironic.
The Xi Jinping Flu seems to have mutated into a more contagious virus--although not more deadly. Sadly not less deadly, though. Is it possible that China really has contained the virus there if the virus didn't mutate until after China shut itself off? What is the role of the mutated virus in the recent increase in infection rates in America? Still, the death rate is getting so low that the virus may soon lose its "epidemic" status under CDS definitions. If trends continue, of course.
People in our government should be forbidden from working for any entities tied to countries that aren't formal allies. Too many opportunities for enemies to corrupt our elites--in both parties, sad to say. Although not in this case. She was our worst secretary of state in living memory until Kerry snatched the pebble from her hand. Via Instapundit.
I always suspected as much. To Hell with him. Tip to Instapundit.
America provided notice of withdrawing from WHO next year. This gives WHO a chance to reform and not be Xi Jinping's hand puppet to prevent our withdrawal. This is caused leverage. Although Democrats are undermining the leverage. So don't expect any WHO reforms if Trump loses his reelection bid. If that happens, WHO knows it will be business as usual.
With the support of a military and national police force that served the country and not the ruler, Malawi revoked a rigged election and assured rule of law won. It's nice when the good guys win.
Years ago, I bought a small couch. I could have bought a matching ottoman but thought that this was just upselling me and I don't need it. I could also buy it later, right? No. Not when the store stopped selling furniture. Last month after months of lockdown and increased TV watching, I thought I want an ottoman. I'm tired of propping up my feet with a desk chair dragged over. I just wanted something close in color to the couch. But then--miracle of miracles--I found an ottoman online that was "buckwheat." Wait. What? Hey! That's my couch color! But when it arrives this last week, it is noticeably lighter than my couch. Huh? Look. I'm a man. I use the 8-crayon box. You have brown and everything else on that spectrum is in relation to that. Light brown. Dark brown. Maybe combine a couple basic colors--reddish brown. Heck, "tan" is a fancy color that should be described as light brown, right? But the "experts" insist on fine gradations of colors so you have names for every conceivable color allowing a 256-crayon box of crayons if you want. Yet something that needed its own name "buckwheat" does not match my old "buckwheat." Seriously? Why have fine gradations in color if you have no freaking standards for those colors??!! Okay, I'm better now. My feet are up and I can no longer care about the different colors.
I didn't care what they thought when they were still in the royal family. But if Harry and Meghan want to apologize to America for Britain holding us as colonies and fighting to prevent our independence, I guess I'm big-hearted enough to hear them out. Briefly. If they bring beer.
Send her to prison for a long time. Sucks to be her. Republicans will of course want to throw the book at her for espionage. Democrats could expect to be more nuanced and understanding about her actions--except RUSSIA! since 2016, of course.
In my opinion everything started going downhill when we got Human Resources departments instead of one person in accounting to had the employee records. In related news I would laugh very hard if people started self identifying (because that's the only kind that matters!) themselves as "slightly off-white" for race to avoid confession and reeducation sessions. Nobody wants racial discrimination. But the insanity over it has gone on way too long.
It looks like the Israelis are behind the explosions at sensitive nuclear missile-related facilities in Iran. I'm not sure if more than two are actual attacks. Although other "accidents" could be at secret sensitive nuclear missile-related sites. Remember, the rule of chance, coincidence, or enemy action holds only in the absence of evidence confirming attacks.
Wait, isn't the scandal that the NFL player posting the quote thought it was from Hitler and not that it was a fake Hitler quote? Rest assured, cancel culture will pass over him for that.
Interesting times in China?
At the intersection of Hatred and Stupidity.
Explain to me again why Merkel is the leader of the West in defending our democracy?
The definition of chutzpah: "Hezbollah stepped up criticism of U.S. ambassador Dorothy Shea on Tuesday, accusing her of blatant interference in Lebanese affairs."
The UN Secretary-General says foreign interference in Libya has reached "“unprecedented levels.” Thank God Obama learned the lesson of Iraq and just knocked off the dictator in 2011 while staying out to let locals settle their differences peacefully without America's horrible impact. Not that I wanted to get involved in Libya like that. I'm just noting that the lesson was stupid. And on cue, an article on how the world gets without America with Libya as the example.
An Iranian hand puppet militia in Iraq outside of the control of the Iraqi state threatens dire consequences if the Iraqi government continues to try to rein the militias in. All the more reason to shut down the militias and arrest or kill-while-resisting-arrest the militia leaders.
Optimist that I am, I am encouraged that there aren't enough hate crimes in America to raise a stink about hate without making a hate crime up.
From college I remember a joke about American and Soviet media style. The American press release said: "At a party at the Swedish embassy the American and Russian ambassadors had a foot race, and the American ambassador won." The Russian press release: "At the Swedish embassy the American and Russian ambassadors participated in a foot race. The Russian ambassador finished second while the American ambassador finished just ahead of the last-place runner." The American media has adopted the Russian style to prop up the Democratic Party. You wonder why I mistrust them?
Russia is on the surface aligned with China in what seems to me a Russian policy of appeasing China and obscuring it with pointless hostility to the West. Russia remains close to India, which is hostile to China and increasingly close to the West and America, in particular. Those don't mesh well unless you consider India Russia's lifeline to the West for when Russia feels strong enough to openly resist China.
When do the statue activists insist on the destruction of the Egyptian Pyramids and the Great Wall of China over the means of construction by slaves and conscripted workers who died in huge numbers? Jihadis in Afghanistan and Syria who destroyed ancient construction certainly didn't have a statute of limitation for their grievances.
Actual Resistance to tyranny. Funny, I thought Putin won the referendum on his presidency for near-life handily. I guess not.
Whatever mistakes China's rulers have made in dealing with the world, a Biden win in November would fix a lot of the errors. I assume the Chinese Communist Party knows that and will act accordingly.
Trouble in 1% paradise.
I'm so old I remember when science! was supposed to guide policy. Via Instapundit.
Anti-aircraft guns are still around--and if there are no helicopters, drones, or low-flying slow planes to shoot at, there are always ground targets.
Given rising Chinese power, not to mention psycho North Korea's nuclear missile ambitions, Japan may build Aegis Ashore missile defenses after all. Although Strategypage says that it is unlikely in the face of local opposition, and that less effective ships will be chosen instead. Sigh.
This is supposed to be satire but it is more accurate news than much of the media provides us: "Representative Ilhan Omar called on the nation to dismantle the oppressive, racist system that allowed a Somalian refugee to become a citizen and get elected to the highest legislative body in the land." It certainly doesn't make me laugh. What is her major malfunction?
It makes sense for Iran to help Syria improve their air defenses given that Israeli strikes in Syria are focused on Iranian targets. But how bad are Syrian air defenses if Iran can improve them?
Russia wants to make sure that humanitarian aid can only be used as a weapon to reward Assad's supporters and deny that aid to Assad's enemies. Not that there isn't logic to that position. But when the Saudis try to keep humanitarian aid from being the enemy logistics network the international community condemns the Saudis.
Science! Tip to Instapundit.
Good grief, of course China's naval militia is a lawful target during war time. Heck, I think they should be treated as pirates during peace time.
Japan wants to build their own stealth air superiority fighter. I have no doubt that the Japanese can do this and experience with operating the F-35 will pave the way for the new plane in the Japanese force structure.
Belarus' Lukashenko tries to be nobody's son of a bitch. How much longer will he survive? What happens when he falls? And will Russia try to move in to take over when he goes?
China pretends that there is no growing reaction to China's heavy handed foreign policy and China's exploitation of trade reliance exacerbated by the Xi Jinping Flu pandemic. Do the Chinese rulers really believe this?
The Netherlands is suing Russia for shooting down Flight MH17 over Ukraine's Donbas, which Russia invaded in 2014. Aside from the horror of that shoot down and Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Russians demonstrate why they are also annoying a-holes: "Russia has stubbornly denied any role in supporting the rebels with troops or weapons." Of course, Russia has made progress by even getting reporters to call Russia's hand puppets "rebels."
Islamic State jihadis scored a big victory killing-wise against a Nigerian convoy, with 35 dead and 30 missing.
The CENTCOM commander thinks Iranian decision making is in "disarrary" since American forces killed their terror and imperial commander Soleimani early in the year.
Ahh, so that's what happened. Hiftar's retreat to Sirte was caused by Russia's temporary withdrawal of support in the face of GNA advances. What angered Russia was that Hiftar's LNA let the GNA capture Russian air defense and electronic warfare vehicles supporting the LNA--and then sold the Pantsir and Krasukha systems to America. This is why I've said that I would never sell the F-35 to Taiwan until Taiwan spends a whole lot more on their military to hold off China. I don't want China capturing F-35s engaged in a futile defense of Taiwan. And of course this is why I would never sell the F-35 to Erdogan's Turkey.
Lovely little country you got there. It would be a shame if something happened to it. Sometimes that theory seems plausible to me.
History is complicated and inconvenient for the narrative. Tip to Instapundit.
Please memory hole your previous views:
I'm so old I remember when a fawning reporter asked then-candidate Obama if he'd like to be up there, too.
We should all be relieved that leftist-controlled universities aren't the cesspools of racism that leftists claim universities are today. The supply of racists continues to exceed demand. Tip to Instapundit.
Too true, sadly:
Never mind. God, the media sucks. Why would Trump suppress the media like some tyrant (he STILL hasn't moved to tyranny rather than rely on so-called "dog whistles?") when the media is wrecking itself?
One more for fun:
Actual whistleblower in fear of her life. She's safe in America now. Why everyone doesn't hate communists is beyond me.
The new Iraqi prime minister visited the border and pledged to end corruption there that deprives Iraq's government of tariff revenue. Be still my heart if he can start building rule of law in Iraq. Not that I'll get my hopes up.
Xi Jinping Flu death tolls are going up in the United States. I keep hearing the US has screwed up but is that true? Out of my lanes, as I've said. I don't see that screw up when compared to actual countries as opposed to a fictional perfect response, but maybe I just don't know enough. What I do know is that the media doesn't have the knowledge or credibility to rely on. Also, who said at the beginning we had to shut down until the pandemic passed? Nobody. Some risks have to be taken. I'm willing to say that the opening up went too far with bars and whatnot. But revise the rules and keep moving forward with as much open as possible to meet changing circumstances. Just how would we afford to stay shut down for a couple years, anyway? Work the problem.
Thank goodness for police body cameras in Detroit. But we'll need a lot more than that to undo the damage the ongoing anti-police hysteria has inflicted on crime-ridden neighborhoods. The ambush of two Texas cops responding to a call for help will lead to more arms sales as people recognize that we are on our own because cops will naturally have to be more careful and reticent about protecting us from criminals. Don't let the criminals, con artists, and communists convince you that Blue lives don't matter--for us in addition to the police and their families. Tips to Instapundit.
If we don't "fight the virus" isn't the massive spending the government and Congress are engaged in just using the Xi Jingping Flu as an excuse to spend on what they want? Tip to Instapundit.
A Russian Oscar II nuclear-powered cruise missile submarine entered the Baltic Sea. The boat arrived for a pageant. There is a reason that nuclear boats don't normally operate in such constricted waters--non-nuclear boats are much quieter in that environment. So yawn rather than worry that this boat shifts the balance in the Baltic Sea. Shore-based missiles are much more of a threat.
I wonder what the American statement this coming week on the South China Sea will be? China unlawfully claims over 80% of the international waters there.The statement is apparently prompted by Chinese exercises around the Paracel Islands.
Research published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology concluded that "psychopathic, manipulative, and narcissistic people are more frequent signalers of 'virtuous victimhood.'" No! Way! Tip to Instapundit.
This twisted media "fact check" is so awful that I can barely believe it. Let me repeat my PSA from last week on this farce of an accusation:
"The following is a TDR PSA: When you see a Trump reelection design that consists of an American eagle clutching a circle with an American flag in it, it is okay. I know you think it looks scarily similar to a Nazi design of an eagle clutching a circle with a swastika in it, but it is not a "dog whistle." What makes the Nazi symbol a symbol of Nazism is not the eagle. It is the swastika. Get a grip people. And a clue."
You may recall that I've said that it is a crime against the English language to treat "liberal minded" as a synonym for "open minded." So, yeah, not a shock.
This is long but worth your time if you want background on the woke bully morons putting our country through Hell these days.
