Trump and Zelensky

MAGA no longer craves civil war

Just before Donald Trump was elected for the second time, and just after, there was much talk of civil war in the United States, between those who opposed his MAGA policies, and those who supported his MAGA policies. Both sides expressed confidence of their ability to win such a civil war, and enthusiasm for pursuing one. And, up to a point anyway, one could claim we have indeed had a small scale kind of simmering civil war in the US over the last couple of years or so. We've had Tesla dealerships burned, we've had rioting and casualties between ICE and demonstrators opposing them. In particular, we had an armed standoff between Minnesota National Guardsmen and ICE in Minneapolis, when Governor Timmy Walz activated the National Guard under his command, to "maintain order", specifically after ICE had murdered a couple of Minnessotans in cold blood. And, then, Donald Trump put national guards in some red states on standby, to actively intervene against the Minnesota National Guard, in case they did open fire on ICE agents, or vica-versa. And, then, the entire US military started laughing, and said to Mr. Trump "No way, Jose, buddy! You think we're conservatives, so we're going to shoot up our liberal buddies in the Minnesota NG just for you, Donny boy. Go to bloody hell!" You know, I was once talking to former Oklahoma governor Frank Keating, and he said about Donald Trump, "Sometimes he shoots, before he aims." Another way of putting this, is that Donald Trump has a tendency to, shall we say, overplay his hand. He overplayed his hand with ICE, in Minnesota, allowing ICE to murder several innocent demonstrators, and that has had serious consequences for him. Then, of course, Trump decided it would be a really good idea to murder the Iranian Supreme Leader, just to prove that there was absolutely nothing the Iranians could do about it! And, this time, Trump overplaying his hand has had rather serious consequences for everyone. You see, the Iranians hold grudges, in case you hadn't noticed. Ask the Shah, or Saddam Hussein, or Jimmy Carter. Oh, oops, they're all dead! So, as oil prices continue to rise, as the economy stagnates, and as the entire Middle East becomes a free fire zone, and Iranian agents pursue attacks around the world, Trump's popularity has rather cratered a bit, along with the popularity of the entire Republican Party. Democrats are expected to take House and Senate, possibly by substantial margins. And, that's according to the polls, which have consistently underestimated democrat support. This could well be a 20 point wipeout for the Republicans, not just a 10 point hammering, as the polls are suggesting. So, now that only about 10% of Americans strongly support Trump, and about 60% of Americans strongly oppose Trump, you really can hardly hear a peep from MAGA diehards about wanting to stage a "civil war". Seems they don't like those six to one odds against, in terms of sheer numbers. Instead, we hear MAGA whining about "communists, islamo-communists, socialists" etc. Hey guys, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em! #civilwar #ushistory #uscivilwar #civilunrest #politics #uspolitics #republicans #democrats #uscongress #uselections #philosophyofhistory #socialconflict #classwar #classwarfare #donaldtrump #maga #conservatives #liberals #conservatism #liberalism #ice #minnesota #minneapolis #geopolitics #philosophyofhistory #usmilitary #iran #economics

Technology is Evil

Mormonism and Polygamy

A truly Russian Sherlock Holmes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8oHBS4Da6rI&pp=0gcJCTUMAYcqIYzv

MAGA doesn't relish a civil war anymore

The French Left is winning

Deng Xiao Ping

Anarchy

Lili Marleen

Aus dem stillen Raume, Aus der Erde Grund Hebt mich wie im Traume Dein verliebter Mund Wenn sich die späten Nebel drehn Werd' ich bei der Laterne steh'n Wie einst Lili Marleen. From eternal Heaven From my Earthen Home Your beloved voice Calls me like a dream Through the swirling mists of time I'm standing by the lantern Just like Lili Marleen. This is my translation of the last stanza of the fabulously popular WWII song, Lili Marleen, originally developed by the Nazis, rediscovered and made eternally popular to all sides in the war, and ultimately in 1944 sung in English by Marlene Dietrich, and becoming something of an anthem of victory for the allied forces, rather ironically. Now, this was never really described as a "war song", let alone a victory song, there are no battles, just a pair of lovers spooning and talking by a lantern in the street, and missing each other when they are not. However, the original writer of the poem, a German soldier in WWI, realizes that after missing him, Lili Marleen will forget him eventually, probably already has some time ago. He knows he may well die, and wonders if some other will join her by the lampost. Now, my translation of the last stanza is fairly literal, but, perhaps written to emphasize an aspect of the poem/song that I think is insufficiently emphasized, and perhaps somewhat suppressed in the English translations. This is definitely not a war song in any normal sense of the term. However, it's not exactly a love song either. Love songs are about romance, or failed romance, in general. This is neither. It is about something else, entirely. It is about death. Death, and resurrection. In other words, Lili Marleen isn't really a traditional popular song at all. Lili Marleen is, rather a hymn, or a prayer. It is a hymn and a prayer for resurrection after death. And Lilli Marleen is conceptualized as a Heavenly Angel, who can save a soldier from death. And, this explains the incredible and timeless popularity of this very unusual poem/song. You see, it has tapped into a fundamental aspect of human experience, the religious experience, which is actually hard-wired in the human brain biologically. There are certain issues like life and death, and the survival of the species that have profound instinctive implications and our brain responds to them with a unique and profound attachment and excitement. These are the fundamental aspects of all major religions, and they create an emotional resonance that is very powerful. Lili Marleen taps into these. #wwi #wwii #religion #marlenedietrich #sociology #biology #neuroscience #music #classicsongs #songs #christianity #judaism #islam #hinduism #buddhism #lillimarleen #germanhistory #german #germany #psychology #psychoanalysis #sociobiology #afterlife #resurrection #heaven #sociology #history #philosophyofhistory #poetry

Republican lip service

As you may have noticed, as the lead in the generic polls for the Democrats approaches double digits in the elections upcoming in mere weeks now, the Republicans are engaging in frantic lip service to try to hold onto their jobs, without actually doing anything, and in particular, without actually doing anything to defy Donald Trump. Republicans are vehemently stating their opposition to the war with Iran, without actually attempting to do anything whatsoever to stop it. Republicans are expressing their opposition in no uncertain terms to AI data centers, without actually attempting to shut them down, or prevent their further development. Republicans are violently denouncing Donald Trump's intention to live stream the public execution of the perpetrator of the Fort Hood shooting, as barbaric and unacceptable, without taking any steps whatsoever to prevent it. Republicans are expressing their clear and unequivocal disapproval of Donald Trump and his family taking huge bribes from foreign businessmen, engaging in clear insider trading, and profiting in the billions from government contracts funded directly with taxpayer money, without actually making the slightest effort to limit them. Even in areas in which their extremist right-wing ideology, and those of their core supporters, actually won't permit them to express lip service directly -- like, by saying, "Yes we will raise taxes on the rich and corporations to shore up essential social services, no problem, guys!" -- they are attempting to wheedle their way back into the hearts of voters with begging and whining. Take JD Vance saying "Give us another chance". Now, why would we want to do that exactly? Can JD Vance explain that? Has he even tried to explain that? Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me, JD. Or, take those charming Republicans whining that all Democrats are "Islamo-Communists", and that "I can't see why this is even close, we all know that socialism never works." Please, take them! And, guys, it's not even close, the Democrats are going to wipe the floor with the GOP in a few weeks, this election is going to be an historic disaster for the Republicans. Fact is nothing works. Not that well, anyway. Communism doesn't work, capitalism doesn't work, socialism doesn't work. So, we keep trying things out , experimenting if you like, to see what helps the most, and does the least damage, at any given time and place. Obviously, Donald Trump is making a total mess of things, as Richard Nixon was making a total mess of things, which is precisely why he was forced out of office, Watergate was just a convenient legal pretest and excuse, merely a single clear example of Nixon's illegality, paranoia and total incompetence. As the Republicans will find out as a group, in a few weeks, and as Donald Trump will find out next year. #uselections #donaldtrump #republicans #democrats #usgovernment #politics #uspolitics #sociology #politicalscience #capitalism #socialism #communism #hypocrisy #funny #corruption #barrontrump #ivanktrump #erictrump #barrontrump #jdvance #taxes #taxation #economics #finance #metaphysics #philosophy #philosophyofhistory #richardnixon #impeachment #history #ushistory

Self deception

Mao Zedong

Rimskey_Korsakov -- the poet-philosopher of music

The nature of the greatness of Elizabeth I of England

Valor is the better part of discretion

Prince Harry's pathological hatred of the media

The war after the war -- 2009

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8cwFtiwKrM

How the two year election cycle defines the American character

The Left-Right divide in politics

Richard Nixon was impeached for incompetence

It is a myth, but, an extremely well propagated myth, that Richard Nixon was impeached, and forced to resign,  because of the Watergate break-in fiasco.  This is, actually, absolute and total nonsense.  To grasp just how total this nonsense is, all you have to do is realize that the Watergate break-in was reported and condemned in July 1972, and Nixon went on to defeat the Democratic candidate by a 20 point landslide in the popular vote, and win 49 of 50 states in November, 1972. Now, sure, additional details did come in during subsequent investigations, but, actually, everybody knew more or less what had happened, but no one particularly cared.  In fact, it was said that it wasn't the break-in so much that destroyed Nixon, as the subsequent attempts at covering it up.   But, actually, that wasn't really the problem either, at all. You see, in 1972, Nixon seemed to be doing a very good job.  The stock market was doing well, the economy was doing well, Nixon had pulled American troops out of Vietnam, and South Vietnam seemed to be holding up pretty well.  Nixon appeared to have achieved that long sought for American dream of "peace with honor", to bring the long nightmare of Vietnam to an end.   So, Nixon won the elections overwhelmingly, who cared if he had broken into Democratic headquarters, he would have won big anyway, right, what difference did it really make? Now let's fast forward two years.  Now, rather suddenly, everything is falling apart.  South Vietnam is being overwhelmed by North Vietnamese troops, and is clearly going to fall soon.  Israel has only won with great difficulty a hard fought war against the Arab world, one it would probably have lost without massive American aid authorized by Richard Nixon.  In direct retaliation, an Arab oil embargo has been declared, that has totally trashed the entire US economy.  Inflation is at 11%, the nation is deep in recession, the stock market has lost much of its value.   Now, suddenly, Watergate looms as the greatest and most significant crime in world history!  Hysterical, right? What we really see with Watergate, is how law is used to rationalize the broader agendas of society as a whole, right or wrong.  You see, the US Constitution requires "high crimes and misdemeanors" to justify removing the President of the United States.  Now, it was clearly seen as absolutely essential to remove Nixon, because he was making such a total mess of everything, so, by God, some high crimes and misdemeanors had to be manufactured! Now, to be sure, the Watergate break-in was certainly an illustration of Nixon's paranoia, obsessiveness, and incompetence, but, it was only a very small part of a much bigger picture, and it was that much bigger picture that was the real problem, not Watergate. #nixon #richardnixon #watergate #impeachment #nixonresignation #usconsitution #republicans #democrats #uselections #uscongress #history #ushistory #usconstitution #law #uslaw #philosophyoflaw #philosophyofhistory #revisionism #revisionisthistory #historicalrevisionism #socialanthropology #sociology #moralphilosophy #vietnam #vietnamwar #israel #yomkippurwar #araboilembargo #opec #useconomy #economics #uspresidents

Trump is finished

While there is currently some uncertainty over whether the Democrats will get the 4 seats necessary to take full control of the Senate -- odds are now about 2:1 in favor of the Democrats -- there is no such uncertainty about the House. With betting odds of more than 10:1, this is as close to certainty as betting odds ever get. The Democrats will take the House. However, although the odds of taking the Senate are only 2:1, the odds of taking at least 3 or more seats -- making the Senate a 50-50 tie -- also are now approaching 10:1 for the Democrats. So, at least a tied up Senate is also a lock. Democrats will at least tie up the Senate. Of course, it's possible for Vice-President JD Vance to break the tie, if he's available. However, that's assuming there are no Republican defections, which is highly unlikely given Republicans like Rand Paul, and Lisa Murkowski. Also, given Trump's very low approval ratings, that are still dropping, any Republicans in vulnerable seats will think twice about supporting unpopular policies, for fear for their own political careers. So, it appears certain, now, that Trump will be the lamest of lame ducks next year. No power to get anything through Congress, at all, ever, at any level. No power to appoint anyone, at all, ever. And, the Democrats should have little difficulty gathering sufficient Republican support to reverse most, if not all Trump policies, given Trump's unpopularity. It's clear now, the party is over for Donald Trump. He is finished. #politics #uspolitics #uselections #geopolitics #democrats #republicans #ushouse #ussenate #usgovernment #donaldtrump #jdvance #randpaul #lisamurkowski

The strange case of Louis Ferdinand Celine

Witchcraft

Special Relativity and GPS

The Apocalypse

DOA movie, about 1950, with Edmund O'brien

Isaac Bashevis Singer -- The Dead Fiddler

The writer Isaac Bashevis Singer liked to play games with surrealism, using this technique to dramatize antisocial or asocial behaviors in supernatural terms. So, anyone violating conventional social norms, and somehow getting away with it, is perceived as a kind of ghost, demon or warlock. And, I suppose, in a sense this is true, and has always really been true, in a way. After all, where do you think all those medieval and ancient ghosts, demons and warlocks came from anyway? And why not conceptualize people acting outside of social norms on a regular basis as ghosts, demons and warlocks, occupying some transcendental plane of existence? Isn't that effectively what they are actually doing, really? While most normal adults are locked into traditional roles of husband, wife, employee, businessman, laborer, civil servant, religious leader, doctor, lawyer etc., there are a significant minority who don't seem to fit well into any conventional social behavior patterns, without exactly being dangerous criminals. So, what are they, exactly? Isaac Bashevis Singer's answer is that they are supernatural beings. I actually don't find Isaac Singer's stories at all "macabre", it's perfectly obvious what he's doing. He's examinging the confusing grey areas of human social behavior in ways that emphasize the powers and limitations of those outside of normal social controls. These are the eccentrics, the loners, the preternaturally independent, the marginalized, the homeless, the creative and independent poor. They generally are not wealthy, but they are by no means necessarily destitute, they can be materially reasonably comfortable. However, they do not follow the rules, and to some extent, the creators of the rules must bend their normal rules to accomodate them, and dance to the tune of these "supernatural beings". This is a rather interesting way of conceptualizing the strong-willed and effective eccentrics of this world. They follow their own rules, and have their own communities, at times, totally outside of conventional social structures. Why can't they be controlled, exactly? Well, probably because conventional social controls don't really work that well, and have no very clear purpose, much of the time. They don't represent any kind of real ideal for progress and social utility, they just happen to be the way things are usually done. And, they can be done many other ways, that work just as well, much of the time, anyway. And, these other ways of doing things may, actually, sometimes work much better than conventional approaches, these "supernatural" approaches may ulimately lead to a better society, and themselves become the norms themselves, in time. Or, perhaps not. For the most part, these supernatural eccentrics do not represent a generally higher plane of existence, just an alternative one, often a somewhat worse way of doing things. A somehwat degenerate approach, that offers no material advantage, but, on the other hand, is much more independent, and offers rather more freedom. Or, it may simply be a marginalized existence that individuals were forced into through bad luck or lack of better opportunities. But, they are still a disruptive influence, almost despite themselves. Because, they still have free will, but, now, a free will operating outside of the normal realms of social behavior. Ultimately, these supernatural beings, highlight the failures of society and its weakness and vulnerabilities. Otherwise, why would they exist, how could they exist? So, effectively, the ghosts, demons and warlocks force the whole of society to self-scrutinize, and perhaps to improve. Which, ultimately confirms their use. #literature #writing #isaacsinger #jewishliterature #judaism #jewishculture #sociology #culture #philosophyofhistory #philosophy #surrealism #mysticism #reality #socialprogress #socialnorms #deviantbehavior #sociopathology #witchcraft #supernatural #metaphysics

"Felony voting"

Mrs. Woodrow Wilson's 18 month administration

You know, people say that the US has never had a woman President, and maybe never will, but, nothing could possibly be further from the truth. In fact, the United States had a woman President even before women even had the right to vote in the US. Really! After Woodrow Wilson was sidelined by a massive stroke in 1919, his wife Edith completely took over the functions of Presidency of the United States, officially referred to as her "Stewardship" for eighteen months. She completely controlled the executive branch of the US government, effectively making all executive decisions, only referring to her extremely sick husband issues of her choosing. And, if you're wondering why the United States has never had a woman President since, and may never have one again, it's because Edith Wilson, the First Lady and Presidential Steward, actually has a great deal to answer for! The period of Edith Wilson's "Stewardship" was perhaps the most disastrous period of total mismanagement of government in all of US history. There was terrible post-war inflation, the country was paralyzed by massive strike action, and farm prices collapsed, leading to mass bankruptcies among farmers, and contributing to the Great Depression, some ten years later. In particular, this was the period in which the League of Nations was being negotiated, and Edit Wilson's total incompetence and ignorance absolutely guaranteed that the US would not be a member, that the League of Nations would be toothless, and that the world would within just a decade already be plummeting dizzily towards another World War. This was also the period of the "red scare" and the "Palmer raids", in which the young J. Edgar Hoover ran amok arresting and deporting anyone and everyone he chose, -- Edith Wilson had no capacity or inclination to stop him -- and fabricating cases against innocent men, like Sacco and Vanzetti, who were ultimately executed for a murder they did not commit. This inevitably led to anarchist reprisals against the government, such as the massive New York City bombing of 1920, which caused 38 deaths, in front of the JP Morgan bank building. Ultimately, the judge who presided over the Sacco and Vanzetti case had his home bombed. When Henry James wrote "The Bostonians", in the 1880's, he was satirizing the intellectual elitist culture of high-brow feminists centered around Harvard University at the time. These starry-eyed lady idealists were quite certain that all we had to do was give women the right to vote, and all the world's problems would instantly be solved. Really! Actually, Henry James found this just as hysterically funny then, as we do now! Clever fellow, Henry. #revisionisthistory #historicalrevisionism #revisionism #wwi #wwii #ushistory #history #leagueofnations #redscare #palmerraids #greatdepression #henryjames #thebostonians #philosophyofhistory #jedgarhoover #feminism #feminists #harvarduniversity #woodrowwilson #uspresidents #edithwilson