Month: March 2022

In general when dealing with things that are changing, often there is a point at which the change becomes no longer sustainable. For instance if a landlord continues to raise the rent monthly on an apartment that is occupied by someone on a fixed income, at some point the occupant can no longer pay the rent on this apartment. When this occurs the occupant has reached his/her tipping point. The final increase does not need to be dramatic, but just enough to push the occupant of the apartment over the edge … off the cliff … into the abyss. (This example is not meant to imply that the increases were or were not necessary, but merely to point out that in many everyday situations there can be a tipping point.)

The following headline is from a CNBC article on 2/17/22:

“Despite rising wages, 61% of Americans are still living paycheck to paycheck, report finds”

“At the end of 2021, 61% of the U.S. population was living paycheck to paycheck, down slightly from a high of 65% in 2020, according to a recent LendingClub report.”

What this means is that almost 2/3 of Americans are not able to sustain a major disruption to their income stream or a major increase in their expenses. If either of these occurs a tipping point is reached. Note that this article was published back before the major spike in gas prices.

Inflation is costing families nearly $300 a month, according to a recent report by Moody’s Analytics, and look for this to continue to increase as gas prices continue to skyrocket … that is unless you are less than fifty and can walk or bike to work. So from my perspective, when is the tipping point going to be reached for the 61% of families that are living paycheck to paycheck? At what point will Biden’s 7% inflation and skyrocketing gas prices affect the health and well being of these families? 

Again from the CNBC article: “Even among those earning six figures, 42% said they were living paycheck to paycheck, the survey of more than 3,000 adults found.”

Knowing that inflation and rising gas prices disproportionately affect those with lesser incomes, which income group will have its tipping point first? If you guessed that income group that does not own and cannot afford to buy an electric car, you would be spot on.

Thank you, JB!

3/21/22

Today is Sunday, so again the blog will be a bit different. As has become a custom, it will still be on an individual that we can look up to. However, today that individual will be unnamed.

From Military.com:

“A federal judge in Florida has ruled that the Navy cannot do anything to remove a commander of a destroyer, despite testimony that he has flouted the service’s rules for COVID-19 mitigation while seeking a religious exemption from the vaccine.

The order is part of a case that aims to be a class-action lawsuit on the military’s vaccine mandate; it was filed by more than 30 unnamed officers and enlisted personnel from all the military branches in November 2021. On Feb. 2, for the sake of “preservation of the status quo” while the case is being decided, Judge Steven Merryday forbade the Navy from reassigning or demoting the commander. A second order, reaffirming and lengthening the term of the injunction, followed Feb. 18.

The stays reflected his view that the Navy is likely unable to prove that it was considering religious exemptions on a case-by-case basis, as required by the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA).

The officer at the heart of this dispute is a commander, unnamed like the other plaintiffs, who joined the Navy in 2004 and now has “nearly 18 years in the service,” according to the lawsuit. Other documents filed by the Navy show that the destroyer he commands is based in Norfolk, Virginia, and belongs to Destroyer Squadron 26.

According to the complaint, the commander filed his religious accommodation request on Sept. 13, 2021. It was denied in late October, and he appealed in November.”

From the Epoch Times:

“The officer’s exemption request was rejected, and an appeal of the rejection turned town, despite the finding that his “religious beliefs are sincere and would be substantially burdened,” according to court documents. The military alleged granting the exemption would have a “detrimental effect” on military readiness.”

Now while I usually agree that discipline is essential to the military, the Covid pandemic is on its way out, and the Biden mandates everywhere else are for the most part unconstitutional. This Naval officer is willing to risk his pension (18 years active duty) for principle. 

“Aye, aye, bully for you, sir!”

3/20/22

Throughout this Covid pandemic multiple individuals had a feeling of power and some abused it. All along I wondered if some of these overbearing individuals would eventually receive a comeuppance for their haughty behavior. Hopefully the arrogant school board members will be the first. But this feeling of power was not limited to school board members, and in many situations, those in authority overstepped. Hopefully those individuals who were overwhelmed by their own feeling of power will receive a comeuppance at a cost … a cost to themselves and to those entities that supported them.

It would be nice if the following situation was just the first of many.

On 5/1/21 Mr. Chad Hummel was arrested and charged with criminal trespassing for refusing to wear a mask at his son’s outdoor baseball game.

From Blazemedia:

“The Trespass charge arose from an incident where Hummel was standing alone in a field, hundreds of feet from anyone, maskless, when he was approached by security guard employed by the Irondequoit Chief of Police, Alan Laird‘s private security company in Town,” the statement recounted. “The plain–clothes guard ordered Hummel to leave his son‘s baseball game despite the Executive Order at the time that did not require outdoor masking. There was even a sign on the Stadium entrance that stated masks were optional when 6 feet apart. Mr. Hummel stood his ground and the police arrived, handcuffed him and took him to jail.”

“Days after the arrest, the school district sent a letter signed by Superintendent Mary Grow to Hummel informing him that he was “prohibited from entering or remaining anywhere on East Irondequoit Central School District property or attending school district events from May 3, 2021 until June 30, 2021.

The ban period extended past the date of his son’s graduation ceremony, which he could not attend.

Last week he was acquitted of criminal trespassing charges after a four-hour bench trial before Judge Joseph J. Valentino, the Daily Wire reports.

Now that he has been cleared of all charges, he  plans to sue the school district.

In previous statements to the Daily Wire, Hummel had demanded a public apology from the school district and the resignations of several officials, including the superintendent. But it appears he’s changed his mind since being acquitted of the criminal charges.”

Go for it, Chad! Sue their ass off. All of them! Sue the superintendent; Sue the school district; and finally sue the Irondequoit Police Department for false arrest.

Hopefully this will be just the first in a series of stories about well deserved comeuppances.

3/18/22

Our esteemed President has a a chance to do what has never been done before. It had been said that JB was inexperienced in foreign policy, but who could have predicted the potential for a trifecta? … three disastrous foreign policy decisions, and potentially all in the course of less than eight months.

Initially at the end of August there was the debacle of his Afghanistan withdrawal. What in God’s name was he thinking? Pulling out of Bagram Airfield-BAF also known as Bagram Air Base before the evacuation of civilians was a stroke of pure genius. Who could have possibly predicted that chaos would then ensue?! … Duh! just about anybody! Rumor has it that this same question was asked to a bunch of first graders, and all except little Karen correctly predicted catastrophe … although, for the sake of honesty, “catastrophe” was a word that only very few of them could come close to pronouncing correctly.

Next came JB’s muddled thinking on Ukraine. Starting close to the beginning of JB’s presidency, Putin had been amassing approximately 100,000 troops on Russia’s side of the Russia-Ukraine border. Who could have possibly predicted that Putin would choose to invade Ukraine and disaster would ensue? Think about it for a second! … Right … all but little Karen! 

Perhaps Sen John Kennedy (R,LA) pinpointed JB’s Ukraine policy most succinctly when he said on 3/16/22, “I think that sometimes, not always, but sometimes — particularly in this instance — President Biden has a wishbone where his backbone ought to be,” 

Now having scored a daily-double, how can JB achieve a trifecta? At this point even little Karen is considering that JB’s best chance is going to involve China and Taiwan. However, here I beg to differ, as I think that JB’s next bonehead decision will involve Iran. I agree with former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who warned the United States against entering into a new nuclear deal with Iran.

For background, the Biden administration joined negotiations last year to re-establish the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, also known as the “Iran nuclear deal,” after then-President Donald Trump withdrew the U.S. from the accord in 2018.

Two weeks ago, the State Department said a new deal was imminent. However, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has complicated the negotiation process, and now the deal could fall through. Russia has been a lead negotiator on the new deal. 

What could possibly go wrong with Russia being a lead negotiator? I wonder what Karen thinks!

Earlier this week, Iran fired missiles in the vicinity of the American consulate in Iraq. This was obviously a test to see how JB would respond. Thus far, no response. To me, his no response was a predictable response. It seems that he is on his way to the dreaded trifecta.

3/17/22

As most of you by now are aware, I am a big Stephen King fan. Right now I am just finishing ‘Salem’sLot, which is short for Jerusalem’s Lot, the small Maine town in which the story occurs. Early on in this King novel is a bit about the new kid in town, Mark Petrie, who is quickly faced with how to deal with the school bully, Richie Boddin. The bully has been at bullying for years. He is big and threatening, in contrast to Mark Petrie who is of slight frame and new to town. Without ruining the story, let’s just say that the new kid realizes that he is faced with a tough decision. He either has to kowtow to the bully or …

This morning I was reminded of this Mark Petrie-Richie Boddin encounter when I read a 3/13/22 article from the liberal newsletter, Politico. The title of the article is “Pentagon push to send more trainers to Ukraine was scrapped in December amid White House fears of provoking Russia”

From the Politico article:

“In December 2021, senior U.S. military officials told lawmakers that they wanted to send a “few hundred” additional special operations personnel to Ukraine to provide military advice and training on unconventional warfare. At the time, Russia had amassed roughly 100,000 troops on the border with Ukraine, and concerns were growing in Washington and Europe about a broadening invasion.

“Senior military officials told the Hill they wanted to train Ukrainians on unconventional warfare tactics. But the idea was stopped cold over the administration’s worries about escalation. A senior military official told House lawmakers that the White House was concerned that sending the troops would escalate the already tense situation with Russia. A third congressional official told POLITICO that a Pentagon official briefed the Senate Armed Services Committee that plans had been scrapped due to those concerns. The Biden administration hoped diplomacy might still work, and feared an influx of U.S. troops could scuttle those efforts.”

To be frank, ‘Salem’s Lot has a weird story line even for Stephen King. Nonetheless, Mark Petrie turns out to be a brave teenager with a backbone, whereas the featured guy in the Politico story … not so much!

3/16/22

Months ago there was Bill Maher who has had some change in his overtly liberal thinking. Was this the initial sign that the liberal Main Stream Media’s dam had a crack in it? Now, let’s be clear, I do not watch his HBO show, and likewise I do not watch CNN nor was I familiar with Trevor Noah or the Daily Show. However, like Bill Maher, CNN’s Fareed Zaharia and Trevor Noah both spoke out.

First from BlazeMedia, CNN host Fareed Zakaria on 3/13/22 observed that under the leadership of President Joe Biden, the era of global American dominance is over. According to Zakaria, Russia’s war in Ukraine marks a new era of world history and in particular highlights evidence of America’s diminishing influence on the global stage.

To prove his thesis, Zakaria cited the the Wall StreetJournal report about Saudi Arabia and UAE refusing to take Biden’s calls, and Biden’s failure to lead a coalition of world powers against Russia.”

Another apparent crack in the liberal dam?

(FYI: Fared Zaharia’s CNN monologue from 3/13/22 is well worth watching on YouTube.)

Still from BlazeMedia:

“Comedian Trevor Noah, host of ‘The Daily Show,’ made a similar argument last week. In fact, Noah said Saudi Arabia and the UAE would not have snubbed Donald Trump as they allegedly did Biden.

‘That must have been really embarrassing for Biden. Can you imagine? He phones them and they don’t pick up?’ Noah said.

“Now, according to the White House, this story is totally untrue. They deny it, which I would, too. But either way, man, there is no denying that Saudi Arabia isn’t playing ball with Joe Biden,” Noah added. “And you know what? You can say what you want, but this would have never happened to Donald Trump. Never.”

Does that sound like another crack? 

Crack crack, crack !

3/15/22

For those who might not recognize the name, Rahm Emanuel, he is a Democrat big-wig dating all the way back to the Bill Clinton days. Presently he is the United States Ambassador to Japan since 2022. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 55th Mayor of Chicago from 2011 to 2019 and the 23rd White House Chief of Staff from 2009 to 2010, and as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Illinois between 2003 and 2009.

Why bring him up at this point in time with the war in Ukraine and Joe Biden seemingly cowering more and more in Delaware? … Actually, that is exactly why I mention Rahm Emanuel … Let me explain.

Back in 2008 Rahm Emanuel said,

“You never let a serious crisis go to waste. And what I mean by that is it’s an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before.”

From The Epoch Times:

“Ukraine’s NATO membership was never ‘imminent’ and will not be on the agenda in the near future, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on 3/11/22.

‘It has been clear for a long time that membership for Ukraine was not something that was imminent, not something which is relevant in the near future,’ he said at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum.”

Perhaps, just one man’s opinion? Apparently not likely as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on March 4 that Ukraine’s NATO membership “will not take place.”

“I also made it clear in Moscow and in my visit that this option [Ukraine’s membership of NATO] is not on the table and will not take place,” he said during an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF.

“I said publicly that we all know that Ukraine’s NATO membership is not on the alliance’s agenda today,” he added. “That was understood by the American president, that [was] also understood by the French president.”

Scholz said he shares Russian President Vladimir Putin’s security concern and clarified to Putin that Ukraine will not be allowed to join NATO.”

So we have both the German Chancellor and the NATO Secretary-General both saying basically the same thing that was apparently ‘understood by both the French and the U.S. … So why now?

I have read multiple conjectures by multiple sources as to ‘why now?’ 

In my opinion, Putin was very cognizant of Rahm Emanuel’s quote, as well as similar axioms by others in the past. He recognized the profound weakness emanating from Washington, and could not let this opportunity go to waste. Consequently the ‘coincidence’ of the gathering en masse of Russian troops on the Ukrainian border, and the beginning Joe Biden’s presidency was ‘no coincidence.’ Putin saw an opportunity to do things he could not do before, and could not let that opportunity go to waste!

3/14/22

From BlazeMedia:

Transgender advocates believe Rowling is an enemy of their movement because the “Harry Potter” author affirms the biological structure of sex and gender and believes that transgender ideology delegitimizes women.

Rowling has repeated her beliefs several times in recent years, and, just last November, she vowed never to stop defending biological women’s sex-based rights.

Rowling has been critically outspoken in recent days about Scotland’s Gender Recognition Reform Bill, which would further codify progressive transgender ideology in Scottish society. Specifically, Rowling believes the legislation “will harm the most vulnerable women in society.”

“Multiple women’s groups have presented well-sourced evidence to [First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon’s] government about the likely negative consequences of this legislation for women and girls, especially the most vulnerable. All has been ignored,” Rowling said.

Then, in response to someone who challenged Rowling by commenting, “Do you really want your legacy to die on this hill?” … Rowling responded, 

‘Yes, sweetheart. I’m staying right here on this hill, defending the right of women and girls to talk about themselves, their bodies and their lives in any way they damn well please. You worry about your legacy, I’ll worry about mine.’”

Wow, someone who is standing up to the “woke crowd,” and is not afraid of cancel culture. Someone who stands on principle. Certainly someone we can all look up to … especially all women and girls.

3/13/22

Let’s play a little game of “what if?” 

For instance, what if when then President Clinton had the chance to take out Osama bin Ladin, he gave the okay? How many American lives would have been saved if bin Ladin was already dead on that infamous day in September in 2001?

What if German army Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg had been successful in his attempt to kill Adolf Hitler in 1944? How many lives would have been saved?

What if Florida State trooper, Toni Shuck, did not place her own life in danger when she positioned her SUV between a speeding suspected DUI motorist and throngs of unsuspecting runners participating in the Skyway 10K on 3/6/22. By using her initiative to stop the evil drunk driver, she saved dozens upon dozens of lives and saved even more people from serious bodily harm injury. Are the throngs of people that were saved by Trooper Shuck any more important than the hundreds of Ukrainian civilians who have lost their lives? What about the millions of Ukrainians who have been forced to flee and take refuge in a foreign country, all because of the evil Vladimir Putin.

Recently, Lindsey Graham said the only way Russia’s invasion of Ukraine ends is “for somebody in Russia to take this guy out”.

In a statement on Twitter, the outspoken Republican asks if the Russian president has a “Brutus” who can take out Mr Putin and end the war.

Sen. Graham was vilified by a number of his colleagues, but was he ‘right on?’ The more I think about how this Ukraine war is likely to end, the more prescient I think Sen. Graham was.

These examples of “what if,” bring up a more basic question … “Should the getting rid of evil be encouraged? … Should the silencing for good of an obviously evil person, like Hitler or bin Ladin have been encouraged?Likewise should the killing of Putin be encouraged?Is  there any doubt that he is evil? What if Putin were assassinated tomorrow … how many innocent lives would be saved?

3/12/22

As Charles H. Spurgeon noted in his 1887 compendium of proverbs, The Salt-Cellars: “A hog in a silk waistcoat is still a hog,” meaning, “Circumstances do not alter a man’s nature, nor even his manners.”

Much later Barack Obama, in 2008, told a crowd at a campaign event, “You can put lipstick on a pig, but it’s still a pig,” Little did we know at that time that B.O. was prescient, and was in fact, speaking of his then running mate, Joseph Robinette Biden Jr.

Apparently back then, B.O. knew that J.B. just could not make a decision based purely on principle … he had to first check the way the wind was blowing, and even then … well, the wind could change! 

Rumor has it that while still in grade school in Scranton, J.B. could not standup to the 4th grade bully, and as we all know, a zebra does not change its stripes, even when the zebra moves to Delaware, and later to D.C.

Not standing up to bullies is part of his nature, and circumstances do not change a man’s nature. Twice, in last couple of days, the pig basically has said, “oink, oink!”

First:

Members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) have been plotting to assassinate John Bolton, former national-security adviser in the Trump administration, says a Justice Department official with direct knowledge of the government’s investigation of the suspected plot. That is according to Tom Rogan, who reported the development in the Washington Examiner on Monday,3/7/22.

The DOJ source told Rogan that prosecutors have enough evidence to indict two Iranians attached to the IRGC’s Quds force, but that the Biden administration has resisted filing public charges for fear that it could derail their ongoing effort to strike a nuclear deal with Tehran.

It seems like the piggy, although no longer in Scranton, still cannot stand up to the bully. 

Then the headline:

“Biden Changes Tune on Helping Ukraine with Fighter Jets”

But why? From the Wall Street Journal editorial board: What happened between Mr. Blinken’s endorsement and the Pentagon’s rejection? It’s hard not to conclude that the White House blinked for fear of provoking Mr. Putin, who is demanding that the West stop arming Ukraine. But NATO countries are already sending all sorts of weapons into Ukraine. Is a Polish MiG with a Ukrainian pilot somehow more provocative than a Turkish drone or an American antitank missile? Transferring planes isn’t the same as NATO aviators directly shooting down Russian jets (WSJ). 

Poland which shares a border with Ukraine was all ready to go, but then “wee, wee, wee, all the way home!”

3/11/22