RSS- “What the coalition of the willing has agreed for Ukraine’s ceasefire”
- CENTCOM Forces Kill ISIS Chief of Global Operations Who Also Served as ISIS #2
- Doing the hokey pokey
- The Trump administration tries to stay below the federal debt limit and get to March 14 or September 30, 2025
- Kurdish-led SDF agrees to integrate with Syrian government forces
- “The Vanishing Commissar”
- U.S. pauses sharing the intelligence Ukraine uses for strikes on Russia
- SpaceX Starship megarocket upper stage lost again during 8th test flight; booster catch is successful
- Open Thread – 5 March 2025
- (Actually) Russia is at it’s Most Fragile, Right Now
A quodverum user has published a thread that analyzes Chinese naval movements. His final conclusion is likely to be highly controversial:
When you look at the sum total of our actions with regard to China over the past few months, NONE of it adds up to Biden being in charge of ANYTHING we’re doing in East Asia.
Today, a JSTARS aircraft was hovering around the east coast of Florida. As I’m typing this, at 7 pm EST, I can track three P-8s zipping around Florida–aircraft that can communicate with subs.
I don’t think any of the military aircraft activity since August has been a coincidence.
20)
Everything I’m seeing looks the way I would expect it to look if Trump was still in charge, not Biden.
We’re still seeing sanctions levied against Chinese officials.
China is still unable to produce modern microchips. They’re running out of runway, there.
I’m seeing increasingly universal acceptance of the idea that the PLA has been running a bioweapons lab in Wuhan, and that we have the CCP to thank for plunging the world into a health and economic crisis.
21)
I don’t think the use of surveillance aircraft over CONUS is a coincidence, not when we know that BLM and Antifa have been burning cities near you courtesy of (and funded by) the CCP. Joshua Phillipp has explored this topic with his usual thoroughness and accuracy.
Meanwhile, patriots like Sidney Powell and Jovan Pulitzer are steadily chipping away at the mainstream media narrative/bald-faced lie that Joe Biden won the 2020 election fair and square.
Many things are going to come to a head soon, I think. BLM and Antifa will drive the nail into their own coffin when Derek Chauvin is acquitted for the death of George Floyd.
The CCP is not going to be able to maintain its charade that it isn’t conducting dangerous research in Wuhan, with devastating consequences.
Biden is going to fail in some spectacular manner that is going to leave even the dumbest leftist with no doubt that he doesn’t have the mental capabilities to lead.
The CCP will try to play all this off to its own people in the best light possible, and some will buy it, of course, just like they bought the whole Alaskan Noodle Story.
But I don’t think they will be able to maintain the lie forever. The left’s lies are slowly crumbling, and stories flagged as “conspiracy theories” a year ago look more and more like hard, cold truth.
I don’t know exactly how the CCP will attempt to take out Taiwan, other than to try to blame it on US provocation.
Whether or not you believe that Donald Trump and/or Trump loyalists are in charge, I think it’s easy to see that things don’t look the way you’d expect if China Joe or his loyalists were in charge.
So I’m keeping a watchful eye on things, but I’m not worried as of now. I think between our allies, our people, and our tech, we’ve got this. The CCP has never won a shooting war, and I don’t think they’re going to start now.
https://social.quodverum.com/@justanothercorvid/106015452163908331
It would be a great relief to me if I knew that the US military were refusing to recognize Sleepy Joe as CinC. Because I want to believe it, I fear that I am not an objective judge of evidence in this regard.
What´s your opinion on this, pilgrim turcopoles, and what “values” do you think this DA is defending in the Ukraine?
https://twitter.com/TamrikoT/status/1380542432983539716
https://twitter.com/elenaevdokimov7/status/1380509536415453184
Is this the definitive proof on that Right Sektor is not but another death squad battalion funded and trained by NATO forces to spread terror amongst dissenting populations and officials, as it has been proven was the case of Afghani Mujahedeen and ISIS?
Also, some more, if more were needed, on that the so called FSA ( Free Syrian Army ) is compossed by transnational mercenaries ( of go to know which nationality…)with no national goal whatsoever, the least on any freedom or democracy for Syria…
https://twitter.com/KevorkAlmassian/status/1381199610694221824
This is my comment from Horace Book II Ode 1. In it he addresses his friend Polio, who is writing a history of the Roman Civil Wars. That is a potentially dangerous occupation. The ode has what is perhaps the greatest single concentrated description of what war really is, especially in stanzas 1~2 and 8~9 in the climax. And Horace knew war from his own first-hand experience of it. Later I’ll post a complete translation, but this is perhaps my personal favorite of all the Carmina.
Motum ex Metello consule civicum
bellique causas et vitia et modos
ludumque Fortunae gravisque
principum amicitias et arma
nondum expiatis uncta cruoribus,
periculosae plenum opus aleae,
tractas et incedis per ignis
suppositos cineri doloso.
paulum severae musa tragoediae
desit theatris: mox ubi publicas
res ordinaris, grande munus
Cecropio repetes cothurno,
insigne maestis praesidium reis
et consulenti, Pollio, curiae,
cui laurus aeternos honores
Delmatico peperit triumpho.
iam nunc minaci murmure cornuum
perstringis auris, iam litui strepunt,
iam fulgor armorum fugacis
terret equos equitumque voltus.
audire magnos iam videor duces,
non indecoro pulvere sordidos
et cuncta terrarum subacta
praeter atrocem animum Catonis.
Iuno et deorum quisquis amicior
Afris inulta cesserat inpotens
tellure victorum nepotes
rettulit inferias Iugurthae.
quis non Latino sanguine pinguior
campus sepulcris inpia proelia
testatur auditumque Medis
Hesperiae sonitum ruinae?
qui gurges aut quae flumina lugubris
ignara belli? quod mare Dauniae
non decoloravere caedes?
quae caret ora cruore nostro?
sed ne relictis, Musa procax, iocis
Ceae retractes munera neniae,
mecum Dionaeo sub antro
quaere modos leviore plectro.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centurion
Is the vitus foreshadowing of discipling to come? On second thought I should get working on that post…..
Fauci Fact Fascists go after popular, and now former, EPOCH times broadcaster Liz Wheeler: https://www.factcheck.org/2021/02/scicheck-video-wrong-about-fauci-covid-19/
Makes one wonder what they will do after Trump just declared “Fauci was full of crap”; which of course is literally true and simply reflecting a normal aspect of human physiology.
No inflation says Fed.
https://twitter.com/albertedwards99/status/1381312619391377414?s=21
Drove through campus of college (well known liberal arts) a ways from me this afternoon.
People (likely students) walking down the street – no one around – all wearing masks.
“You need to jump off that cliff.”
Typical American:
“Do I need to wear a mask?”
https://twitter.com/brianroemmele/status/1380968936498286592?s=21
The American economy over the past several decades has become mostly financial speculation. What happens in the event of a war with those that produce the components that are in all our military gear? Most electronics components are manufactured in Asia.
I listened to the video twice. Jobs made observations about the most expensive components being made overseas, that we should bring them back and not further hollow out the computer industry. Then the video stopped. He did not give any explicit warnings about the consequences of sticking with or expanding the offshoring path. I wish he had.
The History Channel had some Band of Brothers episodes on yesterday. I am always awed by them. The thought occurred to me maybe a dozen years that I will never understand how we managed to do all we did during WWII. It just doesn’t seem possible.
Another, related realization is that we could not do the same thing again today. There are various reasons for that. One is that we wouldn’t fight an infantry war with other developed countries for years. We wouldn’t have time to train multiple waves of men and ship them around by the millions. But another reason is that we could never produce enough military equipment and supplies for ourselves, much less supply many of our allies’ needs like we did in WWII.
What is the plan if we were cut off from Chinese and other Asian electronic goods? I have no idea. There isn’t another alternative that I can think of. In the midst of increased Chinese aggressiveness and military buildup, we are still teaching Chinese graduate STEM students all we know and allowing them to work here. We also allow the Chinese elite to establish themselves here and throughout the West while we launder their dirty money and give them green cards and even citizenship. If the Chinese are becoming our enemy, why are we still doing this? Americans from the WWII era never would have been that stupid.
https://www.world-grain.com/articles/14802-grain-trade-flows-shifting.
Ukraine again.Always check the military and grain together.side by side.A poem on recent festivities
Pass the over
Just pass over the parsley
It will give it some taste
It tastes so ghastly
Don’t want it to go to waste
This flat white stuff
That clogs the passage
I have had enough
Get the message
Just try and spread the butter
As it cracks beneath the knife
Makes for a surly mutter
Causes strife with the wife
Anyway the ship got stuck
In the suez I read
Up to it’s bow in muck
Just pass over the bread
https://thediplomat.com/2016/03/why-china-is-interested-in-ukraine/
In this article russian moves in crimea ended Chinese investment
I wonder how long Consul Blinken would have survived in the Roman army. It is reported that he warned Russia today about consequences (https://www.zerohedge.com/political/blinken-warns-consequences-if-russia-acts-aggressively-ukraine ):
As we speak right now,” Blinken told Todd, “I have to tell you I have real concerns about Russia’s actions on the borders of Ukraine. There are more Russian forces massed on those borders than at any time since 2014 when Russia first invaded. That’s why we’re in very close contact, in close coordination, with our allies and partners in Europe.”
He added: “President Biden’s been very clear about this. If Russia acts recklessly, or aggressively, there will be costs, there will be consequences.”
I am sure Valery Gerasimov and Sergei Shoigu are very, very, scared.
Ishmael Zechariah
P.S: Here is a link to Kipling’s “A Centurion of the Thirtieth” https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~rgs/puck-THIRTIETH.html
Ishmael Zechariah,
Thank you for the link to A Centurion of the Thirtiest. I have already read two chapters, and am now in it all the way to the end.
My wife met a friend during her time working at the main library at the University of Pennsylvania who was also employed at the University who had done some scholarly work on Hadrian’s Wall. She, a great fosterer of rescued dogs, helped us find our two border collies through a rescue shelter, both of whom are reclined next to me as I write. This friend went on to other studies, and has fallen out of touch, but I think we will try to resume contact, and send her the link to this story; perhaps she might find it diverting, too.
JerseyJeffersonian,
Long long time ago I hiked part of Hadrian’s Wall. Very nice country, good people, excellent pubs. I had hoped to go back and finish it all, but could never make the time.
Border Collies are truly amazing. Vey intelligent animals. Not many in Turkey, never had one. Our Anatolian Shepherds are BIG dogs with a different kind of intelligence. They do not cut sheep but they protect our children, livestock and property against all kinds of predators. Discerning, loyal, patient, hard working…
I am glad you enjoyed Kipling.
Ishmael Zechariah
All
A Roman Legion of the later republic had about 5,000 men. The same was true of the early empire. the legions generally had about a quarter of a million men and then there were “auxiliary cohorts” of something under 1,000 men each. The auxiliary cohorts also had about 250,000 men and were commanded by a military tribune who was a Roman. These auxiliary cohorts were made up of non-citizens but trained and equipped to the same standard as the legions. The leaders of both kinds of troops were citizens. These were “legates” and “military tribunes.” These were aristocrats of the upper classes pursuing the mixed civilian government and military careers normal to such people. The troops were all volunteers and enlisted for 20 years. On retirement they were often settled in various “colonia” (settlement towns). Soldiers from the auxiliary cohorts were given citizenship, a pension and land on retirement. It was common for the sons of retired legionaries or auxiliaries to follow their fathers into the legions. Centurions had come up from the ranks and were the backbone of the legions.
…and needless to say, absolutely proven top-drawer bad asses. Captain and First Sergeant rolled up into one. Dummies need not apply.
I read that at retirement such men became eligible to become lictors, and from there the cream of the crop could go on to become Praetorian Guard. Seems small wonder such men would become the empire itself during the barracks Emperor phase. Low-BS threshold.
10 Radical New Rules for Post-America. Victor Davis Hansen lays them all out, soberly and simply: https://redstate.com/mike_miller/2021/04/11/victor-davis-hanson-10-radical-rules-for-post-america-most-americans-now-publicly-accept-n358919
Winkin, Blinken and Nod – Biden SOS promises “assistance” in Taiwan’s defense, per long-standing treaty agreement:
https://www.oann.com/secy-of-state-vows-to-defend-taiwan-against-chinese-invasion/
Biden’s Red Line, or another line in Biden’s shifting sands?
Read this over at Naked Capitalism. I thing that it has quite a bit of merit
https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2021/04/the-war-nerd-taiwan-the-thucydides-trapper-who-cried-woof.html
Ah yes, it is budget season: Sabre-rattling to beef up military-industrial complex pay-outs and pay-offs to the defense industry employee unions.
Thanks for the blast of cold water reminder – and the FY budget cycle for government programs.
It appears this guy has turned into a China propagandist.
“the US attack on the Iraqi Army in Kuwait in the 1991 Gulf War”
That army was there because they invaded Kuwait. He’s similarly egregious throughout, like here:
“the PLA launched its uncharacteristically gentle takeover of Tibet in 1950”
“Plaintiff Kieran Ravi Bhattacharya filed an amended four-count complaint against various individuals at the University of Virginia in relation to his suspension and dismissal from the University of Virginia School of Medicine.
“Bhattacharya seeks injunctive relief and damages pursuant to 42 U.S.C. } 1983 for retaliation in violation of his First Amendment right of free speech (Count I) and for deprivation of his Fourteenth Amendment right of due process (Count II) from various individuals at the University of Virginia and its medical school.”
This is the beginning of the Memorandum Opinion of Judge Norman K. Moon, of the United States District Court in the Western District of Virginia, Charlottesville Divison, filed on 03/31/21 regarding KIERAN RAVI BHATTACHARYA, Plaintiff, v. JAMES B. MURRAY , JR. et al., Defendants. The case is Case No. 3:19-cv-00054, a federal civil lawsuit.
http://www.vawd.uscourts.gov/OPINIONS/MOON/ bhattacharyavmurray.pdf
There is an article about this matter on Reason.com by Robby Soave on 4/7/21 titled “A Medical Student Questioned Microaggressions, UVA Branded Him a Threat and Banished Him from Campus.”
https://reason.com/2021/04/07/ microaggressions-uva-student-kieran-bhattacharya-threat/
I think this case is going to be big. It might just save Mr. Jefferson’s University…
Tidewater,
Thanks for bringing attention to this case. It is remarkable how illiberal the liberals have become. Universities and tenure was to ensure dissent and diversity of opinions and thought.
I’d be curious to see what discovery will bring to this case. What were the communications among the university administrators and the decision making to effectively expel this student who it appears only questioned the contradiction in the presentation.
https://youtu.be/UGgvgKE0n8o – Russell Brand on vaccine passports. We’ve had both “conservatives” and “liberals” for their own reasons and pet causes promote authoritarianism with surveillance and interventions by big corporations and big government for decades. The notion of individual liberty being sacrosanct has been eroded for a good long time.
The most important thing here to me is what happens to his medical career. Will they take him back or will another school take him? I have my doubts. Whatever happens with his court case won’t make up for what this school’s employees did if his medical career is derailed.
I feel so sorry for the medical student. The whole incident never should have happened and was totally not his fault.
It looks like I was unable to link to Judge Moon’s opinion. But it’s there by way of Google and worth having a look at, as we are just at the beginning.
“Federal Judge Rules First Amendment Case Against University of Virginia may proceed” is the title of Breitbart’s article of 10 April 2021 about Bhattacharya v. Murray.
https: ///www.breitbart.com/ politics/ 2021/04/10/ federal-judge-rules-first-amendme-nt-case-university -virgi…
Hope this link is OK. If not, please check Google for Breitbart.
“Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility was targeted in an act of “nuclear terrorism” on Sunday, the country’s nuclear chief, Ali Akbar Salehi, has confirmed. Iranian media reports cited the spokesperson for Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization (AEOI) as saying that a problem with the electrical distribution grid of the Natanz site had caused an incident.”
Hmmm? Will the Centurions of the future be Boss Nerds? Wonkmasters?
The Robby Soave article on reason.com that I managed to get linked to, also, itself, has some very interesting links within. You can get to Judge Moon’s opinion and some other interesting articles thanks to Soave’s thoroughness. 🙂
[If not already posted”]
Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told President Joe Biden: “This morning, three Brazilian people died from the Covid-19 immunization.”
The blood drained from the president’s face and, to everyone’s amazement, Biden collapsed on the floor.
A minute passed and to everyone’s relief, he got up and slowly sat well back in his chair. His staff was stunned, watching this display of emotion from the Commander in Chief, as he sat there, head in hands.
Finally, Joe looked up, and with a shaky quivering voice, asked Dr. Fauci, “How many is a Brazilian”?
Answer: one tenth of an uber-gadzillion that your “covid relief” will cost us.
All
BTW, the circular disks on his armor are award decorations as are the torques.
Introducing regretably unrecognized People´s Hero Abdullah Abdul-Gawad, who worked more than 20 hours a day, every day, to free a container ship mired in the Suez Canal with his excavator and who liberated a vital way for global commerce, especially energy….
The man still has not seen a pence of what is owned to him for his extra hours…
https://twitter.com/elenaevdokimov7/status/1381603423271837700
“Tess”: I don’t trust you, or your comments, which are not necessarily wrong.
Just so you know.
Carey in Los Osos CA
Adding: Trust will prove to be all-important, and soon enough..
Digitalia is inherently deceptive, it seems to me.
Don’t take my opinion as truth, though: decide for yourself.
A recommended movie: ‘Masked [timely!] and Anonymous’.
John Goodman carries the thing, but so much wheat there
amongst the chaff..
Mickey Rourke’s perfunctory role in it is worth scrutiny, I think.
Colonel, Correspondants,
A link to an article from Col. Douglas Macgregor assessing the dangers of being drawn into war with Russia if the Ukraininans ill-advisedly bait the Bear by attacking in the Donbass, and expecting to have the US and NATO (hah) back their play.
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/facing-the-facts-of-war-with-russia/
I first saw this linked at Andrei Martyanov’s site, smoothieX12, and then later at antiwar.com
To make the whole thing more farcical, we now learn of this:
https://theconservativetreehouse.com/2021/04/12/biden-administration-withhold-150-million-of-ukraine-aid-until-ukraine-government-reform-exact-process-democrats-impeached-trump-for/
In other words (in my interpreration of this), if you Ukies are hoping for help from me, The Big Guy, Joe Biden, you need to make sure that any evidence of criminality by my “genius son”, Hunter, or the children of other big cheeses in my “administration” in your corrupt shithole of a country, needs to be disappeared. Otherwise, bupkus.
I’d like to read Patrick Armstrong’s analysis of events taking place now at the Ukrainian border.
Hear, hear
Fakebot, James Treleaven,
Well, not a full answer to your wish, but here is Mr. Armstrong’s blog, his most recent entry at the top. Although not an analysis of the border situation, it has its merits, as it frames the recent years of US/Russia “relations” quite well, and any detailed readout of where things now stand vis a vis the border is well served by this thorough backgrounding.
https://patrickarmstrong.ca/
With Putin, Shoigu, Lavrov, and other stout souls too numerous to mention, standing ward against harm coming to Russia as Horatius did likewise for Rome when fighting off the Etruscan League at the bridge over the Tiber, the neocons and their allies will fail in their devices.
J recently posted some very interesting links, one of which documented remarks by Putin and Shoigu assessing the state of Russia’s military preparedness, which is considerable already, and is forging ahead. But more importantly, this document gave insight into their seriousness, and the resolve with which they face difficulties arising from yet another aggression from the West. Our so called “leaders” ignore this at their – and our – peril.
Well it does say “open thread”..
Davey Miller backdooring Pipeline on the North Shore of Oahu at age 61:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CNYVUp7nUBD/https://www.instagram.com/p/CNYVUp7nUBD/
To have seen this guy surf in Our Youth was a wonder of the world..
Style-Master and Stud (oops, bad word in our PC-dictatorship)
In college some guys from Southern Calif dragged a few us to a rented upstairs room in SF to see this homemade movie “Endless Summer”. Thus it began.
Seems that link didn’t work. Maybe this one will:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CNYVUp7nUBD
I was a mediocre-to-bad surfer, depending on the The Day; Miller was not. I’m about six-foot, he’s a lot bigger; you do the math. 😉
https://twitter.com/biancoresearch/status/1382025236456046600?s=21
Trump and now Biden are spending big. Where’s all this “money” going? Of course it’s mostly financed with more debt, that reduces growth. It hasn’t mattered in years, when it matters it will be a doozy.
Late to this Open Thread, but I just learned of this today.
Nancy Pelosi’s husband recently purchased large blocks of stocks, strangely enough just prior to the announcement of the awarding of a huge government contract to the companies whose stock he purchased. Geez, how did that happen? Read all about it…
https://www.thestreet.com/mishtalk/economics/nancy-pelosis-husband-uses-call-options-to-buy-microsoft-ahead-of-big-govt-contract
I’ll just bet that hubby didn’t get his head start from reading about a RFP in the Federal Register. Is that too cynical of me?
And people wonder how politicians wind up getting filthy rich during their times in office. Well, wonder no more. There’s an app for that! It’s a perk of belonging to The Big Club, to which we hoi polloi emphatically do not belong.
No Drama Obama, or Drama Queen Plea Bargains? Intelligence asset claims there was far more than a “smidgen of corruption” going on during the eight year Obama-Biden reign:
https://justthenews.com/government/security/obama-bundler-files-extraordinary-complaint-against-cia-alleging-widespread