The CIA assassination attempt on Slovakia's duly elected Prime Minister calls for retaliation

https://www.yahoo.com/news/slovakian-leader-stable-serious-condition-070509313.html How much longer will the world tolerate the vicious rampages of the CIA against democracy worldwide? How much longer can the world survive the madness of this organization that threatens the survival of humanity itself? The martyrdom of a truly saintly man, Robert Fico, by these insane thugs shows just how dangerous the CIA is to the peace of the world, and, quite possibly, the survival of the planet. How can we deal with these ravenous beasts in the CIA, who will exterminate any and all political opposition, by fair means, or foul, at every opportunity they find? How can one deal with mad, rabid dogs, like those in the CIA, other than by putting them down? What choice does the world have now, but to defend itself by any means necessary, against CIA insanity, that could kill us all? I think everyone knows the true answer to this question, in their hearts. Sure, it's called a "lone wolf" assassination attempt, but, we know better, don't we? Who gains by this -- the CIA. Who would have the means to program its agents to do such a thing -- the CIA. Who has habitually threatened the safety of the entire planet, to further its own imperialistic agendas, wherever possible -- the CIA. The world must rise up and vanquish this beast, this animal that threatens the survival of us all. Don't wait! Tomorrow may be too late.

Why was nothing done about the relationship between Don Johnson the actor, 22, with Melanie Griffith when she was 14 and James Webb the songwriter, 22, with Patsy Sullivan when she was 13?

https://www.quora.com/Why-was-nothing-done-about-the-relationship-between-Don-Johnson-the-actor-22-with-Melanie-Griffith-when-she-was-14-and-James-Webb-the-songwriter-22-with-Patsy-Sullivan-when-she-was-13 Fact is, in the not too distant past, the attitudes to sexuality were much, much more tolerant, and flexible. To give a very high profile example, when Roman Polanski was convicted of statutory rape of a 13 year old, in the mid-1970’s, he was offered no jail time, and community service, as punishment. When it looked like the judge might change his mind, Polanski simply hopped on a plane, and left for France, where he had citizenship. It’s only in the last twenty years or so that the U.S. Justice Department has “weaponized” all sexuality and "sex crime" in the U.S.

Can you explain the differences and similarities between scientists, engineers, and doctors?

https://www.quora.com/unanswered/Can-you-explain-the-differences-and-similarities-between-scientists-engineers-and-doctors?show_editor=True Interesting question. The most obvious similarity, is that they are all in high profile, publicity sensitive professions. Thus, they must all be skillful at managing people, and public relations, regarding their activities. In general, they cannot readily admit error, because admitting error could get them in very serious trouble — most obviously doctors, who are dealing with life and death issues on a regular, daily basis. Engineers can also get in trouble, if their designs don’t work well, but, in general, this is more likely simply to get them fired, than to get them sued or put in prison. As for scientists, they rarely get into trouble no matter how useless they are, although they may tend to be ignored, or have trouble finding employment, since their work tends to be rather abstract, and without immediate application.

The Legend of Mi Yue, first dowager empress of China

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzz5GMJjtF0 https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hans/%E8%8A%88%E6%9C%88%E4%BC%A0 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Legend_of_Mi_Yue This is a stunningly beautiful, 81 episode series on the first dowager empress of China, who may have lived to be ninety years of age, and laid the foundations of the Qin Empire, the first united empire in Chinese history. It gives a perspective on the complex political situation leading up to the end of the period of Warring States, and the commencement of the Qin Dynasty, that, although short-lived, laid the foundations for over 2000 years of relatively stable imperial rule in China. What we see here is the Chinese obsession with political stability and unity, and its costs, and benefits, in personal terms, to the people of China, even at the highest levels. Well worth dipping into, I think!

The Russians are starting to blow up facilities in Britain implicated in supporting the Ukrainian war effort

https://www.yahoo.com/news/ukraine-war-ripping-special-relationship-040000616.html Hey, if the Brits want to play rough, the Russians don't mind at all. While continually bragging about their open support of Zelensky's regime, the Brits probably didn't realize that the Russians would quite happily target relevant British citizens and buildings, in Britain itself, using their highly skilled intelligence operatives. Apparently, Britain still feels that the English Channel still protects them from the "land bound" Russians. I guess not, eh? And, the Biden administration is taking notice. Not wanting to get into a shooting war with Russian operatives on U.S. territory, the American government is, rather wisely, putting some very tight restrictions on what their rather over-enthusiastic CIA operatives would like to do in Ukraine. And, this is a very, very good idea, in terms of maintaining the safety of Americans, and America itself!

The GPS correction codes are classified. No one knows what's actually in them. So, why does everyone say they prove Einstein's theory of relativity is true?

I've noticed a strong tendency in dealing with the theory of relativity, and Einstein in general, to simply assume that it must always be true. And, all the evidence in favor of it, takes this form. This evidence proves the theory of relativity, because it must prove the theory of relativity, because the theory of relativity must be true. This is, actually, a classical logical fallacy according to Aristotle -- Tautology -- saying something must be true, quite simply, because it must be true. It is commonplace for everyone to claim these days -- but, most particularly, physicists and engineers -- that the GPS locater only works because of Einstein's theory of relativity, even though none of these people actually have the slightest idea how the GPS locater actually works, because the coding for it is highly classified information. And, indeed, if you point this out to these people, they see no problem with this at all! They will simply claim they "know" that it incorporates Einstein's theory, because, it has to! Does the absurdity of the Cult of Albert Einstein know no bounds, at all???

Is Russia, in reality, "The Borg"?

In noting the systematic advance of Russia through Ukraine these days, there seems a certain familiarity about it all. They're in no rush at all, their advance is extremely slow, but systematic, and, kind of inevitable. Their primary intention is to destroy any and all possible opposition in the form of Ukrainian infantry in their way, and any possible fortifications. They don't seem to have the slightest interest in rapid advance or conquest of territory, but, rather, the total and systematic absorption of territory, its colonization with Russian citizens, and the building of road and railway links to the Mother Country, Russia itself. The message is quite clear -- "We are the Russians, resistance is futile." Apparently, Russia is "The Borg". Really. I guess Vladimir Putin was a big fan of "Star Trek : The Next Generation", back in the 1980's when he was an up and coming KGB agent in the Soviet Union. And, the concept of "The Borg" made quite an impression on him. Now, it's quite common, I've noticed, to compare the Russians to the "Orcs", from Lord of the Rings, these days, in the Western media. And, indeed, I'm by no means sure that J.R.R. Tolkien did not indeed have Stalin in mind with Sauron, and that Mordor was not the Soviet Union, in the mind of the creator of the Lord of the Rings. However, I think in Vladimir Putin's mind, and in reality, the comparison to "The Borg", from "Star Trek: the Next Generation" would be much more apt. The Borg are a hive mind. They are not evil, but, actually, highly functional. It is a perfectly legitimate conception of society, although it sublimates the individual to the greater whole -- a conception that is anathema to the Western mindset. Of course, Westerners will submit to higher authority, if need be, for a time. However, they do so reluctantly. In contrast, in traditional China, in the Mongol Empire, and, in Russia, which learned so much from the Mongols, the conception of the hive mind is much more familiar, and much more acceptable. We really should bear this in mind, don't you think?

Erwin's song

I Whilst twilight shifts the blackened shore, To distant, wandering, sun-drenched gore, And hellish songs bestrew the wind, Within visions of goblins and demons and sin, I wandered along through evil and strife, And plunged myself into all that was rife With that wretched cadaver -- Mankind and his life! II He lied, he stole, he killed, he raped, His eyes aflame, his jaws agape, And all the while, his victims could see, His childlike face alight with glee! III 'Tis Erwin's song, we see, and hear! It's all we know, it's all we fear, Our lives are lived, we're all in thrall, We sing the song, we heed the call. For Erwin are our lives so long, It's all to hearken to Erwin's song. IV For Erwin loves the knives that sheen, He loves the blade, the bullet, he's mean! Erwin sees the bloodied forms, Exploding out of blackened dorms, When sugar-sweet Semtex sprays their charms, For terrorists' glorious grand alarums! V The date is set for all to see, When all are bound by Erwin's fee, To pay to Erwin what is due, In pain and suffering, yet, it's true, You can't escape your fate my friend, Erwin owns you in the end!

What's the real reason students are rioting on American University campuses? I don't really think it's Israel.

I've been puzzling over the reason students are rioting on American University campuses these days. Now, if these were mostly Muslim students, I suppose it might make some sense, in terms of Israel killing large numbers of their coreligionists in the Gaza Strip, lately. It might be over Israel, then. However, I don't believe these are mostly Muslim students. So, what exactly is the issue, or are the issues, here? Let's try to compare the situation to the riots in the 1960's, supposedly over the Vietnam War. It is significant that the rioting ceased completely in 1971, when the draft of young men for the Vietnam War ended, while the Vietnam War continued for another four years. So, really, the rioting wasn't over the Vietnam War, per se, it was over the possibility of being drafted for the Vietnam War, and of suffering, being wounded and dying in Vietnam, for no good reason that anyone could understand, at all. These are, of course, very practical issues. So, what exactly, are the practical issues that students might be rioting over today? 1. Abortion rights. Women in the Red States, mostly in the conventional American South, cannot get access to abortions anymore, since the overturning of Roe v. Wade. This is very, very threatening for young women, many of whom are in college. So, to some extent, some of the students may be rioting over this important right -- the right to having abortion on demand. 2. Transsexual Rights. The notion that everyone has the right to choose their own gender is a very recent concept, but, among a very large group of young people it's become a very important concept. Precisely what this right comprises is open to debate, and, indeed, is being debated all the time. At times, it appears that transsexuals are demanding the right to impose themselves sexually on anyone of either gender! 3. Black compensation for slavery. Many legislators throughout the U.S., but, particularly in California, have put forward legislation mandating compensation on the order of millions, or tens of millions of dollars for every single black person born in the U.S, forever. The notion is that black slavery from two centuries ago has put them at a permanent disadvantage, so, some tens of millions of dollars will be required for each black man, woman and child, for the indefinite future, so that each of them can "get back on their feet", as it were. Nice work if you can get it! 4. The "Me Too" movement, also known as the "I want some money too!" movement. All women and children now are very actively encouraged to make criminal accusations against any and everyone at the drop of a hat, for "sexual impropriety", which, these days, can mean, quite literally, looking at someone the wrong way. Supposedly, being "touched inappropriately" induces long term psychological trauma, that can be passed on through multiple generations of families, indefinitely, and forever. So, there's a huge industry now in terms of lawsuits against wealthy individuals, schools, institutions and even governments in the United States. Basically, a credible accusation of sexual assault of any type is the best route to fame and fortune in these, our great United States! So, many of these rioting students may feel they deserve a piece of the sexual misconduct pie, as it were. 5. These students are often paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for utterly worthless training from professors who are little more than professional, pathological liars. They realize they're simply wasting their time and money, and, they're frustrated about this. Wouldn't you riot, too?

How stupid art thee?

How stupid art thee? Let me count the ways. Thou art stupid to the depth and breadth and height Thy soul can reach, when feeling out of sight For the ends of being and ideal grace. Thou art stupid to the level of every day’s Most quiet need, by sun and candle-light. Thou art stupid freely, as men strive for right. Thou art stupid purely, as they turn from praise. Thou art stupid with the passion put to use In thy old griefs, and with thy childhood’s faith. Thou art stupid with a stupidity thou seemed to lose With thy lost saints. Thou art stupid with the breath, Smiles, tears, of all thy life; and, if God choose, Thou shalt but be stupider after death.

Russians are looking forward to a "Khrushchev Thaw", after Vladimir Putin retires

I was listening to Russian radio yesterday evening, Radio Svoboda, Freedom Radio, their "Archive Project", which every weekday evening presents historical analyses related to society and world culture. I was surprised to hear that the entire hour was devoted Nikita Khrushchev, and, in particular his visit to America in 1957. Now, there are certain rulers in Russia's past that are quite regularly dealt with in the Russian media -- Ivan the Terrible, Peter the Great, Stalin. These were the great "Iron Men" of Russian history, who ruled for a long time, and accomplished great things. Khrushchev was not one of these. He was only in charge for about eight years, and, he was ignominiously shuffled off to exile in Siberia, largely because of his nearly cataclysmically disastrous miscalculations during the Cuban Missile Crisis. In general, when he is portrayed at all in Russian films, it is as a crude buffoon and a clown, who has no idea how ridiculous he appears. However, in this particular radio program yesterday evening, he was portrayed rather positively, as a liberal reformer, who improved relations with the U.S., and made life easier and freer for the average Russian. Which, of course, in general, he certainly did. You see, it now appears virtually certain that Vladimir Putin will achieve his objectives in Ukraine. This latest rather large assistance package from the U.S. does not include any offensive weapons at all, it will not give the Ukrainian military any ability to actually retake even an inch of territory, and it is quite clear even President Zelensky does not anticipate any Ukrainian military offensives in future. Why is this, exactly? Well, you see, the fact is, the Ukrainians are out of manpower. The Russians have successfully exterminated the entire Ukrainian military force, although President Zelensky will never admit this, of course. This is notable in the ability of the Russians to now advance unopposed for miles at a time, there's simply no one around to fill the gaps in the Ukrainian front line of defense in their own country. So, the American and Ukrainian governments are claiming that all they need, now that the U.S. Congress has made available a large support package, is to conscript another 400,000 or so young Ukrainian men for the military. Unfortunately, there aren't any left in Ukraine itself, so, they were thinking that, perhaps, some 400,000 Ukrainian men of military age who have fled to Poland might like to lend a hand. How likely is this, exactly? I mean, they've already fled the fighting when people thought they had a pretty good chance of winning, why would they want to go back to face certain death against the Russians, now that they know that they're going to lose, anyway? That doesn't really make a lot of sense, does it? So, the Polish government is saying they are considering "deporting" them, back to Ukraine. The problem with this particular idea is, that these Ukrainian men might well prefer ending up in a Polish prison, to going back to face certain death against the Russians in Ukraine. Or, they might be very tempted indeed by the prospect of being on the winning side, and fighting for the Russians, instead. Or, if he's really clever, and he usually is, you know, Vladimir Putin might simply offer all those 400,000 Ukrainian men in Poland some nice, good paying factory work in Russia, to help with the Russian labor shortage. Lots of options, all, much, much better than fighting for Mr. Zelensky, you see. So, it appears fairly certain that Mr. Zelensky will not be getting his 400,000 conscripts. And, even he admits that without them, it won't be possible to "stabilize" the situation in Ukraine -- that is, prevent the Russians from totally overwhelming the country, at will. In other words, within a year or two, Ukraine will, once more, effectively be a province of Russia, virtually in its entirety, and will never, ever be joining NATO, which, actually is what this war was really all about. So, Russians are looking forward to a period of peace, prosperity and development for their nation, in possession of new resources and security from control of Ukraine, in its entirety. And, with Mr. Putin's retirement, in a few years, they may well have a "liberal leader" in place, who can ease international relations and tensions, and give them a freedom of speech perhaps even comparable to that of the U.S., for a time. Remember, it was under Nikita Khruschev that Alexander Solzhenitsyn -- who eventually wrote the Gulag Archipelago -- was released from prison, first became a writer, and, his first book, "Life with Marya", wasn't even censored by the Soviets, and had a good run at the bookstores. Khruschev even made something of a hit in his visit to the U.S., engaging in mock-aggressive debates with then Vice-President Richard Nixon about the comparative merits of communism and capitalism. So, while Americans are contemplating civil war on their University campuses and the possibility of an elected President having to run the country from a prison cell, the Russians are rather looking forward to a new Golden Age for Holy Mother Russia!

At this point, the U.S. government is spending 10% of its military budget just to keep its hand in, in Ukraine.

I'm old enough to remember the end of the Vietnam War, and the obsession of the Pentagon to achieving "Peace, with Honor." The original idea of South Vietnam, had been that Ho Chi Minh would be satisfied with the North, and would leave the South alone. By the early nineteen-sixties, it was quite clear that this was not the case, and the U.S. was becoming more and more involved, ultimately having more than half a million troops trying to hold the line in South Vietnam. They were able to do it, but, at terrific, and unsustainable cost. So, by the 1970's, the agenda had shifted somewhat. Instead of expecting the South to manage on their own, the hope was that expensive U.S. weapons and regular bombings of North Vietnam would be sufficient to control the situation, without the need for U.S. troops on the ground. This would be "Peace, with Honor." Of course, that didn't work either, and in April 1975 we saw the helicopters jammed with refugees taking off from the U.S. Embassy, as the South Vietnamese troops were routed by the Viet Cong. I've been comparing the U.S. intervention in South Vietnam, with the current U.S. intervention in Ukraine, for a couple of years now. And, again, as in South Vietnam, there have been stages and changes in the U.S. attitude. At first, the U.S. thought the Russians would be perfectly happy with the Ukrainians joining NATO, or, in any case, couldn't do anything about it. Then, when the Russians invaded, basically to defend their own space in the world, the U.S. thought they could overwhelm the Russians with their "superior" NATO weapons. This stage culminated last year, in 2023, when over 100 billion dollars were provided to Ukraine, much of it in the form of so-called "advanced", that is, incredibly expensive, offensive NATO weapons, like state of the art tanks. The idea was that these superb, invincible NATO tanks would quickly crash though the inferior Russian defenses, and rush to the Black Sea in a Blitzkrieg that would make the Crimea indefensible, and would force the Russians to realize that they were no match for the brilliant NATO scientists and engineers who designed them. Of course, we now know what actually happened. The NATO tanks were all scrap within weeks, hundreds of them, untold Ukrainians died for nothing, and the Ukrainians scarcely advanced an inch. In response to this abysmal failure, there has now been a major "paradigm shift", in terms of the American approach in Ukraine. Instead of seeking victory over the Russians, the entire theme, instead, is to emphasize that the Ukrainians are in immediate danger of being overwhelmingly defeated, and the U.S. must provide the Ukrainians the means to avert this supposed disaster -- again, as in the early 1970's, the U.S. is seeking "Peace, with Honor". There are no offensive weapons as part of the current 60 billion dollar support package to Ukraine -- just artillery, ammunition, training, intelligence and missiles. The Ukrainians cannot advance, and, indeed, they aren't even attempting to do so, anymore. Rather, supposedly, this should, at the very least, "slow the Russians down". What for, exactly? Well, quite frankly, I don't think anyone really knows. In a very general sense, the U.S. seems to want to stay involved to a significant degree, even if the only effect, as it has been so far, is to make the Russian military and the Russian economy much stronger, and to kill enormous numbers of Ukrainians. The U.S. just wants to keep its hand in, because, that's what the U.S. does!

What if Universities had retained their independence from the secular authority, as defined by their original charters in the Middle Ages?

The vast majority of universities originally founded in Europe, in the Middle Ages, actually had a very special exemption explicit in their charters which actually gave them independence and immunity from the secular authority in the States in which they were located, to some extent in the same way the Church had. They had a kind of "benefit of clergy", and this applied to all students and faculty, to the extent that many honest citizens tended to steer clear of University districts for fear of being raped, robbed and murdered with total impunity by the students, and even the faculty, therein. We can see this in the ribald behavior of students in Chaucer's Canterbury tales. We can see this in the behavior of the fifteenth century poet-scholar Francois Villon, perhaps France's greatest poet, author of Ou sont les neiges d'antan "Where are the snows of yesteryear". Villon was certainly a robber, rapist and murderer, as well as being a brilliant poet and scholar, but, as a student he was able to get away with it! As an adult, however, he was forced into banishment on pain of death! On a more positive note, this independence gave the University students and faculty a freedom of speech, thought, action and experiment that probably was quite helpful in terms of fostering independent thought and creativity, of a type that could be quite useful to the state. We can see this in the early genius of Roger Bacon, in England, or Thomas Acquinas, in France. These days, of course, Universities are the ultimate bastions of the status quo, serving the state, and submitting to the state. To a large extent, Universities have become precisely the opposite of what they once were, and, what they were originally intended to be -- bastions of independent thought and action. We can see this in the "zero tolerance" to sexual harassment rules on college campuses, resulting in the dismissal and humiliation of tenured professors merely for an off-color remark in class. Tenure used to be iron-clad, it was virtually impossible to fire a tenured professor, the idea being that tried and true scholars should have freedom and security. Not so, these days -- political correctness rules! Of course, one could argue that total social conformity means no social progress, creativity or originality at all, and, many futurists these days are complaining that we aren't getting any progress of real value in science or technology, to some extent because universities and colleges aren't doing their job -- producing new and original ideas. So, what if we'd never departed from the independence of universities? What if students and faculty at universities could still rape, murder steal at will, as well as saying and thinking whatever they wanted, and not having to be politically correct? Wouldn't they be more productive and creative, and would science and technology be much farther along than it is now? Interestingly, I think we have an echo of this Middle Age University ideal in the classic National Lampoon comedy Animal House (1978). Perhaps the most controversial sub-plot in this film involves a nerdy freshman who is trying to "get laid", and finds a cashier in a grocery store who likes him. He gets her drunk, but, he's too nice a guy to take her while she's dead drunk. So, he finally sleeps with her, and, she announces "I'm 13!" This got a huge laugh back in 1978, of course. But, in a way, this does hearken back to the Middle Ages, and the true original conception of the University -- total freedom! Obviously, Animal House couldn't possibly be made today! But, are we paying a price, in terms of social, scientific and technological progress, because of this?

There's a wonderful, new, unlimited source of men for the Russan military -- American Sex Offenders!

https://www.yahoo.com/news/twist-case-ex-guardsman-fled-004430431.html Isn't is wonderful how the worm turns? All those men and women on the sex offender registries -- they are more than welcome in Russia! And, they can get Russian citizenship, and get clean records there. They can certainly join the Russian military, and probably work all kinds of other jobs there. Who knows, they might hire them as Russian schoolteachers! Because, you see, the Russians really don't give a damn about all the feminist anti-heterosexual nonsense in the U.S., and unless you're actually doing a lot of physical damage, they don't really see sex as a problem, at all. Unlike in the U.S. currently, where "sex crime" is, currently , the control strategy du jour, the means of terrorizing the population into total submission. It's not about protecting women and children of course, it's about control and power, it always is, with the law. So, we can see the Russian military expanding, and the Russian population increasing all thanks to the brilliant American sex crime laws. It's a beautiful thing. Long live Russia! Long live Vladimir Putin!

Punching women in the face is a terrific idea!

https://www.yahoo.com/news/men-punching-random-women-nyc-100005215.html There's a new craze sweeping New York these days -- punching women in the face! All kinds of men are doing it, and, who can blame them, really? After all, just trying to kiss a woman these days can get you ten years in prison or more as "sexual assault". You can't mess with women sexually, at all, it's the worst crime conceivable. But, just punching a woman, without doing serious damage? It's just common assault, a few months in jail, tops, even for a repeat offender. You might not get any time at all probably! And, there's absolutely nothing the feminist courts can do about it, either! Because, we can't really be wasting the police' and the courts' time simply for a simple common assault, can we? Doesn't make any sense with all kinds of murders and serious physical assaults going on. So, this is actually a way men can mess with women, and get away with it. Over, and over again! Isn't that great? At last, men have a way of fighting back against feminists. Just punch them in the face! They're asking for it, aren't they? Sure they are! Isn't it wonderful how men can adapt to female oppression, and find ways of fighting back? And, this is with total strangers, of course, so, it's not even domestic violence. No way of escalating the charges here. How very ingenious men are. Well done guys, you've finally figured it out! It's not even a hate crime, there's no indication they had any particular hostility to the particular woman, or women in general. They just felt like punching someone, and a woman happened to be there. Way to go, guys! Way to go!

Apparently, you can't even refer to pedophilic scenes in old films without being censored these days

https://www.quora.com/Did-National-Lampoons-Animal-House-break-any-barriers-when-it-came-out-in-1978/answer/Jerry-Kraus-9 I was responding to a question on Quora about the film "Animal House", about whether it broke any barriers, and said no, not particularly. However there were scenes that wouldn't go over too well these days. Like the scene in which one of the nerdy Animal House freshman has sex with a thirteen year old girl he met at the supermarket. These days, he'd go to prison for life. It was just treated as a joke in the film. Quora immediately censored the response, something they rarely do. Is merely referring, accurately, to a detail in a film that implies pedophilia unacceptable these days? Is that kind of weird? Have they edited that scene out of Animal House, these days?

Russia isn't invading or conquering Ukraine. Russia is devouring and absorbing Ukraine.

Much is made in the West about the fact that what was supposed to be a "three day war" in Ukraine is still going on. Well, that's a fair point. Why can't Russia "defeat" Ukraine more quickly? Well, fact is, Russia was never really trying to "defeat" Ukraine. Russia's initial intention was simply to stage a kind of lightning coup against the Zelensky government, and replace it with a more Russia friendly regime. As it happened, the NATO airlift of weapons forestalled this option. Instead, Russia has settled down to the process of systematically absorbing all the best parts of Ukraine, and, they may get around to the rest of the country, as well. Compare this to Napoleon's rather rapid conquest of European Russia -- in just five months -- and its disastrous aftermath. Or, pretty much the same deal for Adolf Hitler, over a century later. Sure, they conquered a lot of territory quickly, but, they couldn't hold any of it, and were ultimately crushed themselves. In contrast, Russia is solidifying its position, importing hundreds of thousands of Russian colonists into Crimea and Mariupol, among other territories. They're building bridges, railways, roads all linking these new territories to the rest of Russia. Sure, Ukrainian terrorists are trying to blow them up, with mixed success, but, Russia is turning these provinces back into Russian territories, in all senses of the word, very quickly indeed! Sure, Russian soldiers are dying in Ukraine. But, so are a lot of Ukrainians, and, it's Russia that's on the move, taking hundreds of square miles of Ukrainian territory daily. What NATO still doesn't quite get, is that all they're doing by "helping" Ukraine, is hurting the Ukrainian people, and hurting themselves, and their own economies. NATO is trying to teach Russia a lesson, and, they're doing it. NATO is impotent, incompetent, and corrupt, and the Russians can take whatever they want, and do whatever they want, and there's nothing whatsoever that NATO can do about it.

Elon Musk's big lie about Starship launch costs

If there's one thing the great deceiver Elon Musk knows about, it's highly creative, fantasy accounting. And, it's a great way to sell products. So, while spending 2 billion dollars a year to launch two Starships a year, he is claiming actual "launch costs" are mere millions. That's a discrepancy of three orders of magnitude! So, where on earth is he getting his figures from? Well, all he's counting is the fuel costs, and the immediate ground crew costs on the day of the launch. No preparation, refurbishment, development or maintenance costs, at all. So, basically, nothing! So, why do so many people believe him? Well, I guess people have to believe in something, don't they? That's why they say his falcon rockets are reusable, when they're not. They're actually just partially salvageable, not fully reusable, like your car, for example. They have to be massively restructured and refurbished, every time they're supposedly "reused". Actually, it costs a full 2/3 as much to "reuse" the falcon rockets as to build them from scratch. That's a good savings, of course, but, hardly spectacular. However, with so much money riding on Elon Musk's total technological incompetence, and systematic deception, there are an awful lot of people, investors in Tesla, for example, who don't want to believe that his inventions actually do not work, at all. Or, cost a thousand times more than he says they do! Is Elon Musk "too big to fail"? Well, probably not. And, it may be in the U.S.' best interests to recognize that fact, sooner rather than later. Rather than have the entire nation collapse, along with Elon Musk, and his drug-induced fantasies of "technological genius".

Canadian Government authorizes lifetime imprisonment for those "advocating genocide".

https://news.yahoo.com/canadian-law-endorsed-trudeau-government-015837943.html Isn't it time for the U.S. to have another go at invading Canada? I mean, just for the benefit of Canadians. This is a country that euthanizes the mentally ill, and wants to imprison people for life who "advocate hatred". Ummmm...say what? I mean, does Justin Trudeau want to imprison himself for life? Or, does he think he should be euthanized? The Canadian government's policies are so self-contradictory, irrational, and self-destructive, that, it really sounds like they're asking for help from the U.S. Like, "we're totally insane, stop us before we kill again!" So, maybe the U.S. government, and the U.S. military should do just that?

Ukraine is manufacturing and controlling its drone boats from civilian apartment buildings in Odessa

You've probably noticed that Russia is launching a great many missiles at Odessa lately, including one that came within half a kilometer of President Zelensky's motorcade in which the President of Greece was also travelling. It destroyed a civilian apartment building, and killed five people. Zelensky's comment was "they don't care who they kill." Well, maybe, and maybe not. Russians online are claiming that, with the intelligence assistance of Russian sympathizers in Ukraine, Russian missiles are specifically targeting drone boat factories and drone boat controllers located in civilian apartment buildings in Odessa. In other words, the Ukrainians are using Ukrainian civilians, in very large numbers, as human shields for their drone boat activities against the Russian navy. If you think about it, where else could these drone boat factories, and drone boat controllers, really be? If they were out in the open, the Russians would have annihilated them long ago. Where else could they be but Odessa, hidden amongst the civilian population, since the rest of the Black Sea Coast, and all other ports where the drone boats could be readily and systematically released from in the large numbers required, are occupied by Russia? So, effectively, once again, the Ukrainians are reduced to Hamas-like terrorist activities against the Russians, all heavily subsidized by Europe and America. Is this really the kind of war we should be supporting? Should we be sacrificing the needs of our own citizens for pure terrorist destruction of this type? Why, exactly?

Translation of Vilya song from Franz Lehar's "The Merry Widow" Operetta

Come, all ye gathered here, Let's sing together loud and clear, Of a good fairy, you've all heard, Sure her name's Vilya, that's the word! Vilya's a pretty maid of the wood, A hunter espied her by the cliff where she stood, The poor boy was stricken, He shouted out loud, With a terrible shudder He sighed to the clouds -- "Vilya, O Vilya, my wood nymph divine! Embrace me forever Your true love is mine. Vilya, O Vilya my life's in your hands, I'm dying for love's gentle balm." The Wood nymph lent him Her soft, sweet hand, And showed him to her stony home. The poor boy nearly lost his mind! So lovingly kissed No child of Earth Evermore.

Why don't female teachers accused of "inappropriate relationships" with male students simply cry "rape"?

I mean, I've never heard of a single case of a female teacher accused of an inappropriate sexual relationship with a male student simply saying that they were assaulted, and that it wasn't consensual. Why not, exactly? Surely, it would be perfectly possible, even rather likely, for a sixteen year old boy to physically force a 24 year old lady teacher. And, who could possibly prove that this isn't exactly what actually happened? So, why aren't these lady teachers simply crying "rape" to defend themselves in cases of accusations from male students?

What if the Athenian Sicilian Campaign , 415 -- 413 B.C. , had been successful, during the Peloponnesian War?

There were two great and devastating disasters that are particularly credited for Athens' loss to Sparta during the great Peloponnesian War, 431-404 B.C. The first was the Great Plague of Athens, striking just one year into the war, that wiped out 25% of the population of Athens. The second was Athens' devastating defeat during the Sicilian Campaign, some fifteen years later. The purpose of this extremely ambitious campaign was, apparently, to establish an overwhelming and invincible Athenian overseas empire stretching over perhaps a thousand miles of land and sea, and the control of the extremely rich land of Sicily, and the great city of Syracuse. In principle, control of all of this territory might have made Athens virtually invincible, and might even have led, eventually, to Athenian control over the city of Carthage, and the Carthaginian Empire. Given this level of power, would Rome have ever even have arisen to become a great power? Would we have the prospect of a Greater Athens stretching over most of Eurasia, larger even than Alexander's Empire? How durable could such an Empire have been, given the nature of Athenian democracy? The campaign itself was crushed, eventually, with massive loss of men, ships and military power, and it was this defeat that clearly led to the ultimate defeat of Athens some ten years later. Nevertheless, it's by no means clear that the Athenians couldn't have won. They won many battles, and took much territory. So, let's suppose they did succeed in taking full control of Sicily. What happens, historically?

What if Pol Pot had become leader of Communist China?

I don't think this is quite as impossible/implausible as many people might think. Pol Pot was, I believe, attempting to reunite Indochina with China again. And, if Mao Zedong had lived a few years longer, or if Maoist policies had still been in place and Deng Xiaoping hadn't moved China to a more centrist approach quite quickly, he might well have achieved his goals. Almost certainly, Mao Zedong would not have given up his invasion of Vietnam after just a month the way Deng did, in 1979. That really wasn't Mao's style, at all, when he did things. Mao did not do things by halves! Mao would have pursued his invasion of Vietnam to the end, even if it cost millions of Chinese casualties, and, he would have totally conquered Vietnam. And, the USSR would not have started a war over it, if only because the U.S. had a limited alliance with China at the time, to counterbalance the USSR. So, Indochina would have been reunited with China again, and Pol Pot, as the instigator of this achievement, would have almost certainly been the Chinese lieutenant in charge of Indochinese integration into the greater communist Chinese commonwealth. And, no doubt, as the "hero" responsible for this great achievement, within five or ten years, Pol Pot might well have found himself as leader of China as a whole. So, we have an enormous Maoist communist China running from the Siberian wastes to Indonesia, all under the control of our very good friend, Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot, by 1985 or so. What happens next? First of all, the USSR is definitely NOT going to appoint a bureaucratic windbag like Mikhail Gorbachev to run their nation under these circumstances. They'd be much, much too scared of China! More likely, the USSR goes neo-Stalinist. And there are indeed "reforms" in the USSR, but not in terms of liberalization. Instead, the USSR becomes more centralized and controlled. And, needless to say, communism does NOT fall in the Soviet Union. Thoughts?

What if Civilization hadn't developed some 2,000 years later in China than it did in the West?

One of the points fairly well accepted by most historians about early civilization, but not much discussed, is the fact that civilization actually developed in Sumeria and Egypt about 3600 B.C., but did not fully flourish in China until about 2,000 years later, under the Shang Dynasty, around 1600 B.C.. Now the reasons for this are almost certainly geographical. China is rather isolated from the rest of the world, and probably more importantly, there simply weren't any locations in China comparable to the Nile Valley or the region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in terms of their suitability for the intense early agricultural cultivation necessary to sustain civilization, with minimal technology or social organization. The river valleys in China are simply more difficult to manage in terms of irrigation, flooding etc. than were those of the early centers of civilization in Egypt and Sumeria. So, it took a very long time for people to adapt and develop the means necessary to exploit them in China. What have been the consequences of this, exactly? Almost everyone would agree that civilization in China is rather different from the West. But, is civilization in China in advance of the West, or, is civilization in China behind the West? Or, is it both, in particular ways? So, in China, civilization developed later, but, special skills were necessary to sustain it which probably were not necessary in the West. So, let's suppose that China did, indeed, have something like a Nile Valley or the fertile plain between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. How would history be different, both for China, and for the world as a whole?

If you're wondering whether the advancing Russian troops in Ukraine will inflict reprisals on the Ukrainian population -- they certainly will!

This series on criminal activity and collaboration with the Nazis during WWII, and its consequences for those involved decades later in the USSR, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUm0BzsD5WM "The Exteriminator/Rat-Catcher" current this year, 2024 in Russia, makes clear that the Ukrainians in Ukraine will certainly pay a price for their rebellion against the Russians. Now that it appears fairly clear that NATO has tired of full scale support for the Ukrainians, the Russians know that they are going to win in Ukraine. They are advancing on all fronts, relatively unopposed, and are taking villages and towns relativity easily. There are no "game-changing" weapons good enough in the NATO arsenal to alter this self-evident fact. Fact is, NATO never had the slightest intention of engaging in a "war of attrition" against Russia for Ukraine. That would involve devoting most of their entire economies to this war, something their populations would never support in a million years. NATO was simply hoping that their engineers and scientists were so much better than the Russians, that for one or two percent of their GDP's they could defeat the Russians. Ain't a gonna happen! NATO scientists and engineers are simply con artists who couldn't design their way out of a paper bag, and the NATO weapons are no better than WWII era Soviet weapons. So, what are the Russians going to do with the rebellious Ukrainians whose populations they annex as they systematically advance in Ukraine? Now, Josef Stalin would have taken a very simple and direct approach. He would simply "liquidate" all the police officers, all the senior civil servants and all the military officers. Nyet chelovek nyet problema -- no man, no problem! Kill all the potential leaders, no revolt is possible. This was his approach in Poland and the Baltics, for example. And, it really works! Now, the fact is, it isn't really necessary to go this far, and, Vladimir Putin, being a reasonable man, certainly knows this. He doesn't need to exterminate 5% or more of the remaining Ukrainian population to get them under control. He probably does need to kill the actual leaders of militant Ukrainian groups responsible for terrorist activities -- i.e. "freedom fighting" -- within Russian territories, and, he will. He also is likely to systematically torture -- with no permanent debilitating effects -- the lower level members of these groups, to intimidate them into submission to Russian authority. So, lots of fingernails getting pulled out and electroshock torture for the men, lots of rapes of the ladies involved in actual fighting and killing. The same will likely apply to most of the actual members of the Ukrainian military, male or female. So, on the whole, those involved in Ukraine in this rebellion against Russia do have a fair amount to fear from the advancing Russians. They probably won't be killed, in most cases, but, they have a pretty good chance of being tortured, I'd say, unless they were totally uninvolved in the opposition to the Russians. If I were Ukrainian and anti-Russian, at this stage, I'd get the Hell out of Ukraine, while I could. Just a suggestion, of course!

What if Josef Stalin's mother hadn't brought him up to believe he was anointed by God to save the Russian people?

Now, how, you ask, do I know she did this? What historical documents am I referring to, I hear you mutter to yourself. Well, let's take a look at this poem Stalin wrote when he was 15 years old, and was studying at a seminary to be a Russian Orthodox Priest. The Wanderer He knew all their homes Spurned from their doors His old balalaika Strumming its tones His song -- As pure as the rays of the sun! A subtle truth A silent dream And, of a sudden Their stony hearts Beat in time! Their minds Immured in darkness. No greater glory For the people of his land "Here's your bowl of Hemlock," they said, "You are damned, Drink deep, Your song, we know not, And your truth, is NOT!" Now, clearly the writer of this poem has one Hell of a Messianic Complex for a 15 year old boy, even one studying to be a Priest! There's some persecution mania there too, of course. If you think you're Jesus Christ, there are likely to be a lot of people who don't quite agree, and you're going to find yourself rejected a fair amount. But, where is this coming from? Well, let's consider Stalin's situation. A five foot three inch tall ethnic Georgian with webbed feet and a useless left arm, whose wastrel father had deserted the family and been killed in a drunken brawl. Stalin is supported by his devoted mother doing odd jobs to keep them alive. What is Stalin's mother going to tell her son? "Josef, you are special. You will be a priest and save our people. That's why God has made you as you are. You are bearing your Cross, to bring God's truth and light to the world, Josef. You will endure and survive, Josef, to save the Russian people. That is your quest and purpose, my dear Josef." And, thus, we have Stalin's career, personality, and life, in a nutshell. As expressed in his own poetry. Thoughts?

The Wanderer -- A translation of a poem written by the 15 year old Josef Stalin

He knew all their homes Spurned from their doors His old balalaika Strumming its tones His song -- As pure as the rays of the sun! A subtle truth A silent dream And, of a sudden Their stony hearts Beat in time! Their minds Immured in darkness. No greater glory For the people of his land "Here's your bowl of Hemlock," they said, "You are damned, Drink deep, Your song, we know not, And your truth, is NOT!"

Stalin poems for translation

Ходил он от дома к дому, Стучась у чужих дверей, Со старым дубовым пандури, С нехитрою песней своей. А в песне его, а в песне – Как солнечный блеск чиста, Звучала великая правда, Возвышенная мечта. Сердца, превращенные в камень, Заставить биться сумел, У многих будил он разум, Дремавший в глубокой тьме. Но вместо величья славы Люди его земли Отверженному отраву В чаше преподнесли. Сказали ему: “Проклятый, Пей, осуши до дна... И песня твоя чужда нам, И правда твоя не нужна!” ЛУНЕ Плыви, как прежде, неустанно Над скрытой тучами землей, Своим серебряным сияньем Развей тумана мрак густой. К земле, раскинувшейся сонно, С улыбкой нежною склонись, Пой колыбельную Казбеку, Чьи льды к тебе стремятся ввысь. Но твердо знай, кто был однажды Повергнут в прах и угнетен, Еще сравняется с Мтацминдой, Своей надеждой окрылен. Сияй на темном небосводе, Лучами бледными играй И, как бывало, ровным светом Ты озари мне отчий край. Я грудь свою тебе раскрою, Навстречу руку протяну И снова с трепетом душевным Увижу светлую луну. Иверия. 1895. № 123 (на груз. языке). Иосиф Сталин. Стихи. М., 1997. С. 1. Примечание Мтацминда – горный массив. [c.1] Поэту, певцу крестьянского труда, князю Рафаэлу Эристави Когда крестьянской горькой долей, Певец, ты тронут был до слез, С тех пор немало жгучей боли Тебе увидеть привелось. Когда ты ликовал, взволнован Величием своей страны, Твои звучали песни, словно Лились с небесной вышины. Когда, Отчизной вдохновленный, Заветных струн касался ты, То, словно юноша влюбленный, Ей посвящал свои мечты. С тех пор с народом воедино Ты связан узами любви, И в сердце каждого грузина Ты памятник воздвиг себе. Певца Отчизны труд упорный Награда увенчать должна: Уже пустило семя корни, Теперь ты жатву пожинай. Не зря народ тебя прославил, Перешагнешь ты грань веков, И пусть подобных Эристави Страна моя растит сынов. Иверия. 1895. № 203 (на груз. языке). Иосиф Сталин. Стихи. С. 3. [c.2] * * * Ходил он от дома к дому, Стучась у чужих дверей, Со старым дубовым пандури, С нехитрою песней своей. А в песне его, а в песне – Как солнечный блеск чиста, Звучала великая правда, Возвышенная мечта. Сердца, превращенные в камень, Заставить биться сумел, У многих будил он разум, Дремавший в глубокой тьме. Но вместо величья славы Люди его земли Отверженному отраву В чаше преподнесли. Сказали ему: “Проклятый, Пей, осуши до дна... И песня твоя чужда нам, И правда твоя не нужна!” Иверия. 1895. № 218 (на груз. языке). Иосиф Сталин. Стихи. С. 6. Примечание Пандури – трехструнный щипковый музыкальный инструмент. Известен другой перевод этого стихотворения, принадлежащий Ф.И. Чуеву (См.: Чуев Ф. Молотов: Полудержавный властелин. М., 2002. С. 314): Он бродил от дома к дому, словно демон отрешенный, и в задумчивом напеве правду вещую берег. Многим разум осенила эта песня золотая, и оттаивали люди, благодарствуя певца. Но очнулись, пошатнулись, переполнились испугом, чашу, ядом налитую, приподняли над землей и сказали: – Пей, проклятый, неразбавленную участь, не хотим небесной правды, легче нам земная ложь. [c.3] * * * Когда луна своим сияньем Вдруг озаряет мир земной И свет ее над дальней гранью Играет бледной синевой, Когда над рощею в лазури Рокочут трели соловья И нежный голос саламури Звучит свободно, не таясь, Когда, утихнув на мгновенье, Вновь зазвенят в горах ключи И ветра нежным дуновеньем Разбужен темный лес в ночи, Когда беглец, врагом гонимый, Вновь попадет в свой скорбный край, Когда, кромешной тьмой томимый, Увидит солнце невзначай, – Тогда гнетущей душу тучи Развеют сумрачный покров, Надежда голосом могучим Мне сердце пробуждает вновь. Стремится ввысь душа поэта, И сердце бьется неспроста: Я знаю, что надежда эта Благословенна и чиста! Иверия. 1895. № 234 (на груз. языке). Иосиф Сталин. Стихи. С. 4. Примечание Саламури – грузинский духовой музыкальный инструмент, род свистковой флейты. [c.4] УТРО Раскрылся розовый бутон, Прильнул к фиалке голубой, И, легким ветром пробужден, Склонился ландыш над травой. Пел жаворонок в синеве, Взлетая выше облаков, И сладкозвучный соловей Пел детям песню из кустов: “Цвети, о Грузия моя! Пусть мир царит в родном краю! А вы учебою, друзья, Прославьте Родину свою!” Иверия. 1995. № 280 (на груз. языке). Иосиф Сталин. Стихи. С. 2. Примечание Известен другой перевод этого стихотворения: Рядом с фиалкой-сестрой Алая роза раскрылась. Лилия тоже проснулась И ветерку поклонилась. В небе высоко звенели Жаворонка переливы, И соловей на опушке Пел вдохновенно, счастливо: “Грузия, милая, здравствуй! Вечной цвети нам отрадой! Друг мой, учись и Отчизну Знаньем укрась и обрадуй”. (Громов Е.С. Сталин: искусство и власть. М., 2003, С. 27; РГАСПИ, Ф. 558, Д. 669, Л. 46-47). [c.5] * * * Постарел наш друг Ниника, Сломлен злою сединой. Плечи мощные поникли, Стал беспомощным герой. Вот беда! Когда, бывало, Он с неистовым серпом Проходил по полю шквалом – Сноп валился за снопом. По жнивью шагал он прямо, Отирая пот с лица, И тогда веселья пламя Озаряло молодца. А теперь не ходят ноги – Злая старость не щадит… Все лежит старик убогий, Внукам сказки говорит. А когда услышит с нивы Песню вольного труда, Сердце, крепкое на диво, Встрепенется, как всегда. На костыль свой опираясь, Приподнимется старик И, ребятам улыбаясь, Загорается на миг. Квали. 1896. № 32 (на груз. языке). Иосиф Сталин. Стихи. С. 5.

What if Ted Kennedy hadn't gotten Mary Jo Kopechne killed at Chappaquiddick in 1969?

Times have certainly changed since 1969, and, if Ted Kennedy had done today what he did to Mary Jo Kopechne in 1969, he would certainly have gone to prison, quite possibly for murder, and quite possibly for life. However, as it was, her death resulted in scarcely a pause in his career. He remained a powerful and influential Senator for decades, and, in 1980, he almost took the Democratic presidential nomination from incumbent Democratic President Jimmy Carter. What if Ted Kennedy hadn't killed anyone? I suspect, absent Chappaquiddick, Ted Kennedy would, almost inevitably have been the Democratic Presidential candidate on one or more occasions in the 1970's or 1980's. Despite his obvious limitations, he actually was a very, very good politician, probably as good as his older brothers were. Also, let's face it, Teddy had terrific survival skills! Mary Jo may have drowned in 1969, but, not Teddy. How many drunken guys can crash their cars into a river in the middle of the night and swim to safety without getting a scratch? I could be wrong, but, I really don't think if he had been elected President, Teddy would have suffered from the Kennedy curse. No assassination for him, he would have been too careful! So, when exactly would Teddy have run for President, and would he have won? I would say, he had a very, very good chance of winning, but, when, exactly -- 1972, 1976, 1980, 1984, 1988? Would he have knocked off Richard Nixon? Do Jimmy Carter or Ronald Reagan even enter the picture absent Chappaquiddick? What kinds of policies would President Teddy Kennedy have pursued, and what effects would those have had on the American economy, and the international scene? How is the world different today, if we had had Ted Kennedy as President of the United States, and not someone else who actually was President OTL?