The Lions crushed San Francisco in the first half, then faltered. Epicly. That hurt. I can't complain about the two decisions not to go for field goals. That attitude got us to the prom and field goals aren't automatic in Detroit this season. I'll sooner wish a ball didn't bounce off of a player into the air, keeping it live.
We'd better kill a lot Iranian proxies soon: "Three US Army soldiers were killed and more than 30 service members were injured in a drone attack overnight on a small US outpost in Jordan[.]" We basically ignored the attacks as long as we suffered no KIA. FFS. Biden thinks mullah-run Iran is our pre-friend.
Well, this May 2021 observation wasn't wrong: "The increasingly influential left within the Democratic Party is increasingly ... anti-Semitic. And if American Jews think they can avoid that hate by being more leftist than Jewish, they are totally confused about what irrational racial hatred entails."
Despite facing China's subliminal war at sea, Manila's internal war isn't over, I guess: "Philippine troops killed nine suspected Muslim militants in the volatile south, including two key suspects in a bomb attack last month that left four Christian worshippers dead, the army said Saturday." Perhaps related?
I was assured global warming made it pointless to conduct this kind of training: "U.S. soldiers from a division that specializes in extreme cold-weather operations are putting their skills to the test alongside Japanese troops on the northern island of Hokkaido this month."
Danger close: "American troops stationed in Egypt didn’t get their Christmas presents in the mail, and now some are concerned that they won’t receive their ballots." We've kept the peace a long time there.
Huh: "A new nuclear bomb simulator created by Russian scientists, complete with mushroom cloud effects, will enable the Kremlin’s troops to train for combat operations after a radioactive blast[.]" Bluff? Or Putin could simulate a nuclear strike on Russia to justify horrific acts of his own.
Turkey's regional ambitions run into regional problems. Life was certainly simpler as a reliable NATO state hoping to hold off Soviet forces on the border.
Don't believe Russia is doing just fine: "Russian oil sales are now barely profitable. Russia depends on those profits to pay for oil and gas exploration and the construction of new oil and gas extraction and delivery systems, plus maintenance of existing oil and gas infrastructure."
Biden makes life harder on our allies than on our enemies: "President Joe Biden is reportedly considering using weapons sales as a means to convince Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to scale back their attack on the Gaza Strip." Why will enemies surrender--or talk--when we rescue enemies?
Will the northeast freeze this winter because of energy phobia? Maybe. But that's what those folks vote for. Tip to Instapundit.
To be fair, nobody they know has been de-banked. Tip to Instapundit.
Iran has been at war with us since their Islamist revolution. But a strain of Democrats refuse to admit the love of their life can do anything wrong. Iran may not want a war with America. But Iran sure does want a free pass to attack and kill American troops, our allies, and neutrals with no repercussions.
The end is not nigh if we fail to repent. Take a trip down that memory lane! The climate lunatics really are religious fanatics. Tell them to take a hike.
The United States underestimates China's defense budget. Sure, China's shiny new advanced weapons may not be wielded by competent troops and commanders. But they have a lot of new shiny weapons that indicate a much bigger budget, no?
This defense of radical Marine changes lists missions that in no way address criticisms of whether the Marines can achieve wartime missions they've done in the past. And validating changes from Russia's invasion of Ukraine is premature. I'm not willing to salute and shut up. Just what can the Marines do?
Loose lips don't sink ships. Public apathy does. He makes a good point. I say woke lips sink ships. And that might explain the public apathy problem as our people lose faith in failing Navy leadership.
Perhaps that actress didn't ruin her looks with plastic surgery. I hope not! But boy did she look dramatically different in the pictures. Was commenting on the picture misogyny? Meh. Whether it was makeup or surgery, her purpose was to look better. naturally she'd get comments on her looks.
Post-apocalypse progressive policies scene. The people have spoken, the bastards. Seriously, what did progressive voters expect would happen? Paradise? Tip to Instapundit.
China has apparently decided that it will pretend the Philippines isn't breaking China's blockade at the West's line in the sea. Is this retreat or buying time to escalate?
Russia is pushing its major customer, India, away: "Unnamed Indian government sources stated that India wants to distance itself from Russia, its largest arms supplier, because the war in Ukraine has limited Russia’s ability to provide India with munitions." Strategery.
I'm worried about stupidity not a civil war: "A sizable majority of the public supports Texas’s construction of a wall along its border with Mexico and feels that President Joe Biden’s efforts to stop it are the first step toward civil war." But who knows how that malevolent mediocrity in the White House could ef up.
It's not the great replacement. It's the great new pliant voters: "The unprecedented chaos at the U.S. border and in major American cities that has been caused by the Biden administration’s immigration policies finally seems to have moved to the center of national political debate and public awareness."
Sure, mass illegal immigration isn't an invasion for the purposes of Constitutional provisions. But it is a figurative invasion. Also, Texas isn't defying the Supreme Court. And shame on those who know better saying it is so: "Nothing in what the Supreme Court did told Texas to take or refrain from any action."
Iran's proxies hit the American outpost in Jordan, Tower 22, by fooling American air defenses into thinking it was friendly: "The drone bypassed US air defenses by trailing a US drone that was returning to base in Jordan at the same time." We apparently thought it was what we expected to see.
Democrats pull every dirty lawfare trick to avoid facing opponents on election day: "one of countless instances in which Democrats hurled billable hours at anyone deemed a 'threat' to votes they considered theirs." Even when the Democrats lose, the process is the punishment for their foes. Via Instapundit.
The tale of quasi-moons. Fascinating. Tip to Instapundit.
Brexit was not a terrible mistake. The EU punished Britain for it. America has stiff-armed Britain on trade. British lefties work to make it worse. And conservatives are afraid to make it work. It will take time. Until then, Brexit is blamed for all woes--except when climate change is blamed. Still, Britain is free.
Biden pledged to respond to Iran's attack on Tower 22. Democrats can't admit Iran is at war with us--and has been for some time. Because Democrats looove mullah-run Iran. Even their best killers. Democrats hate that the mullahs make it hard to surrender to Iran. Cue an unbelievably small, limited kind of effort.
China got old before it got rich--and is suffering significant population shrinkage that it is in denial about: "... current official population
projections actually underestimate the extent of these challenges, ... because they bake in shaky statistical assumptions that
fertility rates will 'rebound' in coming decades."
Well, yes: "In its cold war with China, the US cannot afford to neglect Pacific island nations[.]" Good advice.
The small, "J6" prototype "first insurrection" that wasn't. Via Instapundit.
Fighting China--win or lose--would be a disaster. But really? "[Since 1945]
America has lost every war it started — Vietnam, Afghanistan and the
second Iraq War." We didn't start Afghanistan. We won Iraq. We chose to lose the others. Our record is fine. And the U.S. starts a war
with China? My prior rebuke of him.
Denmark steps up: "The Danish air-defense frigate Iver Huitfeldt set sail to the Suez Canal on Monday to join the coalition protecting shipping in the Red Sea[.]"
Somaliland will press ahead with its port/base deal with Ethiopia. I addressed it here.
The Tower 22 outpost in Jordan.
Facing off against China: "An air base in the Philippines is set to receive a major upgrade to
accommodate U.S. aircraft under a plan to strengthen deterrence against
China." The line in the sea grows.
Note that at Tower 22, American reservists are used as an operational reserve to replace active troops rather than as a strategic reserve to reinforce them in war: "Our active duty army is not engaged in any significant combat operations. None. Is this what we have a National Guard for?" And Reserves?
Ukraine's shoot-down of a rare Russian AWACS plane. Also: "At the same time, a nearby a multi-engine Il-22 airborne command aircraft was mistakenly fired on by Russian anti-aircraft forces." Friendly fire is not friendly.
Interesting: "Currently Russia has 1,100 jet fighters and strike aircraft. Russia is a large country and most of these aircraft are stationed in distant areas of Russia with about a third of the aircraft concentrated against Ukraine." Fifty F-16s will have an impact with that deployment fraction.
Democrats will unleash a secret weapon to "re-ignite" their voters:
Nice. But until there is a space diner it really isn't an orbital gas station.
Putin isn't Hitler. He's Mussolini. Ukraine is his Abyssinia (Ethiopia). I too, rejected the Hitler template. While I agreed with the author's excellent analogy in 2014, Italy conquered Abyssinia. Unless we let Ukraine fall, Ukraine is now Vladolini's Greece. Will Xi aid Putin and get fatally distracted inland?
Ukrainian corruption is less than Russia's, and got better; while Russia's got worse. Based on perceptions, of course. So conservative arguments since Russia invaded that Ukraine doesn't deserve our help founders on that silly metric alone. I've long recognized the need for Ukraine to combat corruption, however.
Protecting a border, using a fence. Haters?
The best and brightest at Davos know they've lost their assault on rule-of-law democracy? Fingers crossed.
The Anschluss tightens: "Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko signed a series of economic and technological agreements on January 29 advancing the Kremlin’s efforts to further integrate Belarus into the Union State structure."
Congressional Research Service report on China's subliminal war on the Philippines.
A frozen conflict: "Senior Russian security official Dmitry Medvedev told Japan on Tuesday it would have to drop territorial claims to a group of Pacific islands if it wanted to conclude a peace treaty with Russia formally ending World War Two."
The West rations weapons to Ukraine because it fears Russian victory and defeat in Ukraine: "This type of controlled weapon dosage also helps explain why the war has dragged on for so long." That kind of nuanced calculation invites defeat by ruling out Ukrainian victory.The real coup unpunished: "It was on [January 5, 2017] that the Democrats decided to spread the phony story that Donald Trump was a Russian agent. It was ludicrous, it was ridiculous, and it crippled Trump’s presidency. As far as sheer national destruction it was far worse than the riot of January 6 could ever be."
The virtual cold war: "The U.S. government in recent months launched an operation to fight a pervasive Chinese hacking operation that compromised thousands of internet-connected devices[.]"
Ah, the sainted international community in action: "An Israeli document obtained Monday spelled out allegations against a dozen U.N. employees the country says took part in Hamas’ Oct. 7 assault[.]"
But they have gold, so Russia will exploit the "corruption, ethnic rivalries, and Islamic terrorism in the north" to pay for war in Ukraine: "The West African nation of Mali faces another bad year in 2024."
Ukraine is asking for these European helicopters because they are better than their old Soviet helicopters: "While many other users have been dissatisfied with the NH90 helicopter; Ukraine regards these helicopters as useful even if they are second rate in the West."
This isn't banana republic-like at all: "Some protests are more protected than others." Tip to Instapundit.
Army Typhon missiles for mid-range capabilities advance. The god of war will be pleased with the offering.
Who says terrorism doesn't pay? "State Department reviewing options for possible recognition of Palestinian state[.]" I say if we eventually do this it should be a blended virtual/territorial state.
This author believes Taiwanese have the will to fight China. I have my doubts. Even the new law increasing draft service from four months to a year is inadequate to prepare them to fight. I hope he's right about a new attitude.
Ukraine will get a new weapon made just for them: "Ukraine will receive its first batch of Ground-Launched Small Diameter Bombs[.]" It's a SDB attached to a ground-launched rocket. I noted it earlier.
Via Instapundit: "Blue Shield, a health care provider that moved its headquarters to
Oakland in 2019, is offering employees security guards and ride-hail
services due to the rise in crime in Oakland[.]" As I memed:
Fear? "Iran's Revolutionary Guards have scaled back deployment of their senior
officers in Syria due to a spate of deadly Israeli strikes and will rely
more on allied Shi'ite militia to preserve their sway there[.]" Sure. Better for Persian Iran to fight Israel to the last dead Arab, eh?
The last line of defense is the Phalanx CIWS: "A Houthi missile recently put a US destroyer's close-in weapons system to the test, a report said." The first line of defense is destroying the Houthi missile launcher and killing the crew. Are we waiting for an Iranian-supplied missile to hit a Navy warship first?
Faux fear: "concerns are rising among European nations that Mr. Putin could invade a NATO nation over the coming decade and that they might have to face his forces without U.S. support." Blaming Trump? He had four years. So stop. EU fanboys are manufacturing "concerns" about America. It's them--not us.
India will have another option when Chinese troops advance into contested border territory and set up defenses: "The U.S. State Department has approved the potential sale of 31 armed MQ-9B SkyGuardian drones, related missiles and equipment to India for nearly $4 billion[.]"
You see, I'm not against seriously punishing actors like this for J6. My problem is over-charging people who at worst trespassed and at best were actually invited in by cops where they walked between the velvet rope lines. It's a digital witch hunt now with years of imprisonment before trials in an unfriendly venue.
Making sure those you do recruit don't wash out of training is more important when fewer sign up: "Almost 15,000 potential recruits have graduated from an Army prep course launched a year and a half ago to boost their physical and academic scores[.]" I had thought along these lines seven years ago.
Why are conservatives blamed for a stalled "bipartisan deal that would pair policy changes at the U.S. southern border with wartime aid for Kyiv as their carefully negotiated compromise[.]" Why should conservatives compromise on our border security? Shouldn't that be the easy part to agree on?
More, please: "The U.S. early Thursday carried out a 'self-defense' strike, targeting and destroying multiple projectiles that Houthi militants in Yemen were preparing to launch at commercial ships, a U.S. official tells Fox News." Rubble doesn't make trouble. That's self defense.
The U.S. announced the units for upcoming rotations through Europe and Central Command.
Fine, I think: " The German navy’s priorities for 2024 will focus on increasing its presence in the Baltic Sea and Indian Ocean[.]" The Red Sea is also under consideration. My view is control the Baltic and token forces elsewhere for alliance tripwires.
Testing USVs in Ghost Fleet Overload. The Navy wants them to act like ships and not like torpedoes the way Ukraine uses them in the Black Sea.
Oh joy: "After an absence of five years, it appears piracy has returned to Somalia." I'd tell Somaliland and Puntland that if they act like a state and control their territory we'll treat them like states. Otherwise it's the Lexington Rule. India isn't shy about acting.
Oh FFS. But I would say that, right?
The veto of the violent: "Denmark’s parliament has passed a bill that makes it illegal to burn copies of the Quran in public places after protests in Muslim nations over the desecration of Islam’s holy book raised security concerns." Jihadis won't like Denmark now. Is anybody Charlie anymore? It's broader.
Science! Are we really shocked that "experts" are increasingly distrusted? Tip to Instapundit.
If any old-timey KKK members are still around, they must be kicking themselves that they really had a marketing issue (via Instapundit): "An increasing number of school districts are offering 'affinity classes' that cater to specific racial groups." As I've noted:
In theory we want countries to replace Russian LNG: "The Washington Post editorial board on Monday slammed President Joe Biden's move to put a hold on new liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminals as an 'obviously political decision.'" Putin approves. As do Greens, as I've noted. Via Instapundit.
FFS, progressive military veterans still get sad when they think about Trump ordering the strike on Iranian terror master Soleimani whose EFPS killed hundreds of American troops in Iraq.
More to follow: "U.S. military forces today conducted strikes on seven facilities, which
included more than 85 targets in Iraq and Syria, that Iran's Islamic
Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and affiliated militias use to attack
U.S. forces." But don't worry! Biden warned his true love to duck and cover.
Government tax incentives have consequences even if the government didn't intend them--and doesn't like them. I want a sedan but can't buy one. So I keep my current car. I'll wait to see if models more affordable are built again. Maybe the horse will sing. Tip to Instapundit.
Sitzkrieg: "The Supreme Court vacated an injunction forbidding the Border Patrol from cutting the barbed wire that Texas had installed along the border, but – contrary to many media reports – didn’t rule that what Texas had done was illegal, or order Texas to stop policing the border."
Democrats try to discredit open border complaints by calling it the "Great Replacement" racist conspiracy theory, but "Democrats have pretty much touted this as the plan for years. Indeed, it goes back to Ruy Teixeira’s 'Emerging Democratic Majority' strategy, though it’s been accelerated in recent years."
Putin put the West on notice two years ago: "America’s closest allies in Europe are warning that Russia could initiate a new war on the continent as soon as this decade — and that they are chillingly ill-prepared." I got that "postwar to a prewar world” feeling a long time ago. Don't warn--again. Prepare.
Learning from Russia's invasion of Ukraine: "Beijing has discerned that toppling the leadership in Taipei must be done swiftly to present a“fait accompli' to the world, according to President Joe Biden’s nominee to head up Indo-Pacific Comman[.]" I have similar-ish thoughts. China isn't learning invasion is futile.
A girl can dream, right? "The Russian ministry of defense has declared 2024 as the year when several nuclear weapons will enter the inventory of Moscow’s strategic forces, moving a number of goalposts that were meant to be reached last year." Is one goalpost making sure the missiles actually work?
No more "let's just teach the smartest grunts in the squad how to operate the Bradley": "The Army will establish a new dedicated occupational specialty for Bradley crew members ... government watchdogs have previously criticized the service’s on-the-job driver training model." Huh. Did not realize that.
Hmmm (via Instapundit): "The Biden administration is preparing a wave of strikes and cyber
attacks that could last 'weeks' in response to the Iranian-backed drone
attack that killed three U.S. troops in Jordan." How much work is "and cyber attacks" doing in that vow? Because when you Twitter X a king, kill him.
Promises made. Promises kept! "Joe Biden’s war on fossil fuels is hurting America[.]" How desperate does California have to get before it exploits its "almost two-thirds of the nation’s total supply of shale oil[.]" Tragically funny that Europeans are getting what they wanted with Biden. Via Instapundit.
Live by the scimitar, die by the scimitar: "Pakistan continues struggling with the Islamic terror groups it created and supported for so long, plus the internal corruption and mayhem that policy has created." Hiding Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad was fun until SEALs killed him. Land of many Ef-ups.
Most Iraqis don't want Iranian influence: "Iran wants the Americans out of Iraq so that Iran has a better chance to take control of the country. Iran justifies its attacks on Iraqis and Americans because Iran claims Israel seeks more power in Iraq. That is absurd but normal for Iranian propaganda."
I've said panic about Trump and Ukraine is baseless: "Former President Trump does not sound like a man ready to abandon Ukraine as some fear. This week, he instead called on Europe to match dollar-for-dollar the amount of aid the U.S. has sent to counter Russian aggression." But Trump's math is way off.
Saying Black students can't meet high standards is something the KKK endorses: "[One professor] implemented a 'labor based' grading system in which students are
graded on the basis of the amount of effort they claim to have put in on
an assignment." Boeing will hire them, I guess. Trying is not enough.
We waited until our troops died at Tower 22 before getting serious: "The U.S. on Friday began to
carry out strikes against Iran-backed militants and Iranian military
targets in Iraq and Syria in retaliation for a drone strike on an
American base in Jordan last Sunday that killed three U.S. service
members." More to follow.
When the U.S. sends troops to exercise with the Australians, the U.S. leaves equipment there to function as a stockpile so fewer equipment needs to be sent during a crisis or war. Just make sure the equipment is protected.
Pacific Fleet commander: "I believe that the current size and scope of the U.S. merchant fleet is a vulnerability." He said it is designed for efficiency and not effectiveness under fire. The same could be said for our top-heavy surface warships.
A Chinese invasion of Taiwan is not imminent? Bravo! I've been assured that a successful invasion is totally impossible! Nay, inconceivable! Despite being China's most core objective--finishing off the civil war losers. And despite decades of military modernization that somehow neglected invading Taiwan!
Echelon above reality in action. Ah, "experts". Calm down. We'll be fine. As long as the Climate true believers are stopped.
About that Iranian evacuation of its leadership from Syria I noted: "[The Biden] administration leaked it will strike Iranian personnel and facilities in
Iraq and Syria, giving the regime ample time to close up shop and
evacuate." Biden wants the mullahs to know this is a lover's spat. Can't we exploit this underbussing?
Not gonna lie. When I read a city official boasting that Chicago passed a ceasefire resolution, I assumed it was a stupid bandaid for their murder problem. But as I kept reading, it got much more stupid.
The American Psychological Association "studied" the issue and concluded hiring based on qualifications is unfair. I'm going to go out on a limb and say the APA started avoiding that unfairness decades ago. In totally unrelated news. Tip to Instapundit.
Were mRNA-derived Covid vaccines given our too broadly, exceeding safety standards? I worry my adult kids chose to get those vaccines. I thought they were young enough to decline any version. I did not get an mRNA vaccine, at least.
It was all fun and games when the CCP thought North Korea would only nuke China's foes: "The Chinese public, even with a heavily censored local Internet, made it clear they were not happy with a North Korea armed with nuclear weapons while still ruled by a homicidal and increasingly hostile to China tyrant."
The Army is shrinking: "The U.S. Army has problems finding enough new recruits to maintain its current strength of 460,000 active duty and 500,000 reserve troops." I warned about the insufficiency of the mid-1990s Army. It loses budget wars even when it wins. A decade ago we forged the Army we have.
If you think this is bad, you might be supporting a dictator: "Reading ‘Lord Of The Rings’ And ‘1984’ Could Lead To Right-Wing Extremism, Gov’t Report Warns[.]" Sure, they're good. But don't forget Not This August.
Russian artillery doesn't feel the need to shoot and scoot: "Open-source investigations indicate that Russian forces are benefitting from Ukraine’s ammunition shortage and inability to conduct sufficient counterbattery warfare." Ukraine has to ration ammo for priority targets, unsure of supply resumption.
The Axis of Weasels in action: "The Kremlin is doubling down on its support for Iran as the US conducts strikes to preempt attacks by Iranian-back proxies in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen against American and other targets." Is China happy to have its energy and trade routes complicated by Iran's Houthi proxies?
Too close to the heart of darkness: "Another neighbor of Congo is the Central African Republic/CAR which remains mired in a civil war that began in 2012 and resists all efforts to stop the fighting."
Artillery ammo is short, but "France is sending Ukraine several hundred of its Armement Air-Sol Modulaire (AASM) Hammer bomb guidance kits. These are similar to the Stormbreaker bombs Ukraine already has." They are much more expensive than JDAM.
The never-ending story: "Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi recently won reelection for a second term. Tshisekedi had to overcome opposition from his predecessor Joseph Kabila, who resisted being replaced."
