Urban Deserts

"Here is the irony. The Yellow Dog Democrats, who suffer the most under this mismanagement in the cities, end up voting for the same chumps over and over and over again. Is that not insanity?"

Back during the Floyd riots, when criminals burned down part of Minneapolis, they torched over 1,000 businesses. One of the stores they destroyed, was the Target Store in Uptown. That really hurt, as many of the local residents used that store. Who did this destructive protest really hurt? The people. It created another urban desert. And that practice continues today. Welcome to mayhem.

On the news as of late, are stories of more and more stores calling it quits in urban areas. Why? Here is an example. When I worked in manufacturing, we had a metric called "scrap and attrition". That number was baked into the price of a good. Over time, should you operate better than that scrap and attrition number, good on you. However, if you did not, your realized profit was smaller. Sometimes, you operated at a loss. The same is true for a retail store.

If a retail store has a loss percentage of 5% (loss being theft or pilferage), and over time that loss percentage goes up to 10%, the store has a difficult decision to make. Raise prices, eat the loss, or leave. Recently, in some cities (like Chicago and Portland), stores have lost so much money, they are throwing in the towel and leaving. Not just mom and pop stores - big stores like WalMart. And grocery stores. And drug stores.

Last weekend in Chicago, there was another example of feral youth, out at night way too late, destroying property, and harassing innocent people. A couple of folks were shot, and some were beaten. It was like a scene out of a dystopian movie. Since many Soros funded DAs have decided to look the other way to crime (except Donald Trump), the mayhem continues with little if any, arrest and prosecution.

What is happening to many big blue cities is this. Stores are leaving, and cops are resigning. Many cities are way below their authorized policing numbers, because fewer and fewer people want to take this once noble profession on as a career. Too much down side, and too little up side. Even if you risk your life to arrest a punk doing wrong, the DA will let that punk slide. And it becomes deja vu over and over and over again.

Here is the irony. The Yellow Dog Democrats, who suffer the most under this mismanagement in the cities, end up voting for the same chumps over and over and over again. Is that not insanity? Just asking. Meanwhile, the cities have become "no go" zones for those who do not want to get robbed, beaten or carjacked. 

Meanwhile, urban deserts will continue to grow. Why? We get the government we deserve. Just look at Minneapolis as Exhibit "A" for that axiom.     

Elon, Google and AI

"Stay tuned on this one folks. This will be a hot topic for years to come. In the meantime, be nice to your Alexa or Siri. Why? Some day we might be answering to them, instead of them answering to us!"   

I know I have recently addressed this AI issue. But holy smokes, is this ever front and center in the news as of late! Tucker Carlson has a special with Elon Musk to discuss status and future of AI, and then Sundar Pichai (the head of Google), was on 60 Minutes to discuss the same subject. It is like, all of a sudden, AI is the topic de jour to discuss with the AI Captains of Industry.

Not only that, but all of a sudden, my You Tube feed, and tech sites I follow, are full of recent articles concerning AI. All kind of new lingo is being thrown about. ChatGPT, GPT-3.5, GPT-4, and the soon to be announced, GPT-5. And examples of each are free to watch on different sites. It is unique and sometimes downright scary. Especially GPT-4, where all you need to do is say something (such as pink taxies on a downtown street), and poof!. All of a sudden the computer generates an image of pink taxies on a busy downtown street.

But GPT-5 will take this even further. It not only constructs an image based on some words you put in text, it will make those words into a video! I saw an example of this also, and it was simply amazing! All I could think about was if things are this advanced with GPT-5, what will GPT-6 hold? It boggles my mind just to think about it.

But the mic drop moment came from Sundar Pichai of Google, when asked an exact question on how this entire AI thing works. With a moment of true honesty, he relied, "We don't really understand how it works." All I could think about when I heard that, is Frankenstein's Monster. Once the monster was created, and was unleashed on the world, Dr. Frankenstein had no idea on how to control it. Why not? He did not really understand what he had just created. The rest of that story is history.

I have said this in my last article I wrote on this subject, and heard it again last night from an AI analyst - the horse is out of the barn on AI. Too much development is going on, my too many companies, in too many countries. The development of AI is not going to stop - it will continue. Too many future inventions and devices will be dependent on it. One expert said we need to put government "curbs" on the development, as to slow it down a bit. Good luck with that one! How can you "curb" something you don't really understand? 

Are we creating a Skynet, or a HAL from 2001, A Space Odyssey? Or will this be a tool for mankind which will allow us to create and invent the stuff that fantastic and fantasy are made of? Items with will allow us to take that next big, big leap in technology. Heck, maybe it will only just make gaming more fun. We simply don't know at this point in time. But the caution flags are out there. Put down by more than one technology expert.

Stay tuned on this one folks. This will be a hot topic for years to come. In the meantime, be nice to your Alexa or Siri. Why? Some day we might be answering to them, instead of them answering to us!   

    

"I've got a secret!"

"I am anxious to learn what happened in our security controls which would allow a 21 year old gamer to gain access to material so sensitive, in my time as a LCDR with a high level clearance, I would have never been 'read in' to have access to it."

Not to show my age, but when I was a lad, there was a family show my folks and I would watch every week. It was called "I've got a secret". It was on from the early 50's to 1967. That was quite a run for back then. So why bring this up? When watching this show as a boy, never did I think that I would be the one keeping secrets shortly after getting out of high school. But I was. And I did.

When I was 20, I was granted a high level clearance. One of the highest the government had. Even at that tender age, the significance of that did no escape me. I was entrusted with some of the highest secrets the Navy, and the country, had. I was proud of the fact my life's path had led me to this honor. Truthfully, I think my folks were as much shocked as they were proud!

Why bring up this ancient history? Because I still know a thing or two about guarding classified material. Earlier this year, I was shocked at the revelation that not only President Trump had classified information at his Mar-a-lago residence, but also Joe Biden had it stashed all over the place. Going back to when he was a senator (which would be a huge no-no). And then finding out the squeaky clean Mike Pence had some classified info at his residence. Regardless of who had highly classified information outside of a certified SCIF, it blew my mind. It violated everything I was trained to do in safeguarding classified information.

This young 21 year Airman, who is accused of taking and then revealing numerous documents of the highest classification, really was a jaw dropper for me. First off, when I was 21 and had a high level clearance, I had access to very little, if any, documents which I had the clearance to view. Why? Need to know. And if I had the need to know, protocols were in place to protect those documents. Even if someone with a clearance wanted to take a classified document, it would have been next to impossible. 

My last active duty, as a LCDR with a high level clearance, involved being at NSA doing a "lessons learned" from intel gathered during Desert Storm. My desk was out in the open, visible to many. Every time I needed to check out a classified document to use as reference, there were iron clad controls. How could I get access to the documents I needed? First off, I had the need to know. Next, NSA had iron clad security procedures. Finally, I had my own integrity. I finished the job, turned it in, and then checked out and left for home. Shortly thereafter, I was debriefed at the reserve center, surrendered by clearance, and then retired. My 21 year Navy career was then complete.

I am anxious to learn what happened in our security controls which would allow a 21 year old gamer to gain access to material so sensitive, in my time as a LCDR with a high level clearance, I would have never been "read in" to have access to it. But this E-3 did. And he might have upset the apple cart with our friends and foes alike. 

For him to disclose that NATO special forces (including ours), were on the ground in Ukraine, possibly engaging Russian troops, was a show stopper. That one piece of information, is so sensitive, it could have (or still might) trigger a much broader war. Plus - the fact that we disclosed what allies were doing, might have done immeasurable damage to their trust in us. All because of some gaming site? This young man has no clue how many years he will be imprisoned for this thoughtless act. He will be a pariah in this country for the rest of his natural life.

"I've got a secret". Really? If so, then keep it. Secrets are shared due to trust and integrity. Obviously, this young man had neither.  

The Great Reset, is starting to reset

"We are being played folks. Only the (dare I say this now?), the red pill folks realize it. The minions of blue pill folks have put their blinders on and have taken a huge swig of denial. When they wake up to what is really happening, it will be too late. Meanwhile, our great nation will be slipping into the dust bin of history."

My wife and I recently finished watching "The Chosen". All three seasons. It was a wonderful experience. Two of the memorable lines from the series were, "Normal is not coming back", and "Get used to different". Those lines referred to Jesus and His ministry of hope. Amen to that! But those lines also make me think of what is happening today.

When I first heard about the Great Reset, I thought it might have been another way for Glenn Beck to sell a book based on fear. I was dead wrong. The Great Reset is real, and might be happening right now, right in front of our eyes. Here are some thoughts/examples of the recently arrived Great Reset:

• What is happening to our food production? Last June in Wright County, we lost 200,000 hens to a fire. That egg factory was one of the largest in the country. And just recently, we lost 18,000 milk producing cows in Texas, also to a fire. Both received very little press coverage. And there has been others...
• Our land (big chunks of it), is being bought up by billionaires (like Bill Gates) and the Chinese government. Why? For spying? To idle the land so it can't be used for food production? What then? 
• Ever since the start of the year, we have had over 70 attacks on Christian houses of faith. Mostly evangelical Christians. And our President does not miss an opportunity to take a shot at other Christians. Especially the ones who are anti-abortion - like Evangelicals. Never mind what the Bible says...
• Another item which is getting very little coverage, is the diminution of our dollar, worldwide. Why? Our debt for one thing. Many countries who at one time saw our dollar as the rock to hold on to, are starting to look for other currency. Our dollar looks faux to many. How bad would it be for our country to lose the dollar as the world's standard? Unknown, but many financial experts think it would make us a much poorer country.
• War. We are very close to war with nuclear advisories. Anyone who thinks we are not, might be smoking some bad weed. With the massive disclosure of classified material recently, it appears that we are in more danger than we ever imagined. If you can believe anything you read or hear these days, Ukraine is losing, Egypt and China are helping the Russians, and NATO has special forces on the ground in Ukraine. Our government has lied to us, over and over again. If you have not prepped yet, now would be the time to start.
• And by the way, how in the world did a 21 year old, E-3 reservist get access to the most secret stuff from the CIA, NSA and DOD? Have things changed that much under Joe Biden? Or was this all a ruse? Like I say, you can't trust anything anymore.  
• Joe Biden's EPA has decided without asking any of us, we will have strict new emission standards for our internal combustion engines by early in 2030. So strict, that most internal combustion engines will not be able to qualify. But the EV's will be. The EPA's goal is to have over 60% EV in the 2030s. Never mind most will not be able to afford an EV. Never mind we won't have enough charging stations. Never mind that even if we did have enough charging stations, we don't have enough power to charge the stations. And never mind the batteries don't work well is colder climates.
• Yesterday, Joe Biden announced he will be giving all "Dreamers" access to state funded Medicare. Many border states are already bending under the strain of millions of illegals. The AG of Texas said this latest dictate of Biden will cause some states to go bankrupt.
• Our children in government schools are being sexualized. Some of the books they have access to have appeared online. It is pornography for kids. Many also want kids to witness drag queen events. Story time by drags. When parents have protested this debauchery, the DOJ has unleashed their goons on the parents.
• Transvestites, who are a minute minority in this country, are now being given enormous rights. The government is telling us it is okay for boys who dress as girls, to compete in girls sporting events. It is ruining women's sports. We are also being told that men can mensurate and also have babies.

There are more to this sordid list, but I think you get the picture. We are being played folks. Only the (dare I say this now?), the red pill folks realize it. The minions of blue pill folks have put their blinders on and have taken a huge swig of denial. When they wake up to what is really happening, it will be too late. Meanwhile, our great nation will be slipping into the dust bin of history.

The Great Reset. Many on the left think this is hogwash. Okay, I will bite. Then explain to me what in the world is going on? How in a bit over two years, we have gone from MAGA to a shit show.        

 

Tyranny, Inc.

"With only 6% of our population showing interest in buying an EV, Biden using his tyrannical powers, is going to force over half of us to buy and EV - in the next 10 year! But most don't want an EV. Tough toenails."

When I was a lad, studying history in school (back when schools taught real history), I remember learning about why our country fought its war of independence. Quite frankly, the early settlers did not want to live under tyranny from England. They wanted freedom. Liberty. After we won our war of independence, that all worked very well for many years. The "American Experiment" worked nicely. That is - up until recently.

I would hope now that our President is on his "busman's holiday" in the British Isles, he could get caught up on some of our history. Seems he forgot the part about freedom and liberty. Joe Biden, thinks he is channeling King George from yesteryear. Only King George seemed to understand a whole lot more about freedom and liberty than Slo Joe does. 

This dictate which came our earlier this week from the EPA is yet another example. With only 6% of our population showing interest in buying an EV, Biden using his tyrannical powers, is going to force over half of us to buy and EV - in the next 10 year! But most don't want an EV. Tough toenails.

The EPA will make emission standards so severe on regular cars and trucks, they will not be able to pass muster. EVs will be the only solution for many. Thus, when King Joe says jump, your response is how high and how far. Buy the EV you don't want and can't afford, and shut up.

Rumors are swirling that the EPA also has designs on our air conditions. And the push to get rid of gas stoves is still being kicked around. We have plenty of untapped energy in our country. Hundreds of years of it. It belongs to all of us. Who made Biden king of the hill, that he could mandate not using our own energy? Why can't we mine the Duluth Shield for much needed copper and nickel? And by the way, our own dictator Walz is the same way. Democrats are tyrants. From my viewpoint, they are all of them, petty dictators. And people who keep voting for them, are nothing more than fools.

One more thing about this EV nonsense. Did you know that if you drive though some deep water, and the battery gets wet, it could short out, and overheat to an extent where it would catch fire? How about that for a carbon footprint! Also, in northern states, during extreme winter weather, the EV batteries lose 40% of their charge. But who cares?

Biden has brought us sky high inflation, a looming recession (per the Fed), hyper dependence on China, inches from nuclear war, men who think they can have babies, and alienation from many of our friends and allies. Did I mention he is also corrupt to the core? He is a tyrant, a petty dictator, and a fraud.

The only reason the people are not clamoring for Biden's impeachment, is "Kackles" is in the on deck circle. Yes, things could actually get worse. Much worse. 

 

Hiding Biden, strikes again!

"The Democrats can try to make Trump into a boogie man as much as possible, but the real traitor is in Ireland right now, searching for his family roots. Let that thought marinate for a while."

Where is the world is Slo Joe now? Just in case you are wondering or interested, Rome (that would be us), is burning. And after yesterday, the burn went from only some hot embers, to a five alarm conflagration. But not to worry. With our country, and most of the world on fire right now, Slo Joe went to the world's most dangerous hot spot. Where is that? Ireland. Ireland? What the Sam Hill for? He and Hunter went over there (on Air Force One, paid by us), to search out their roots. Rumor has it Biden's great, great grandfather supplied the bricks to a castle, made to protect everyone from the great, great grandfather of Corn Pop.

Meanwhile, the greatest leak of highly classified information in the history of classified information, is now available for all to see. Classified information, ranging all the way from Confidential, to Super Fantastic. Some of the information is so damning, that it just might have put us one step closer to a boots on the ground to fight Russia.

For those of us who have handled mucho classified information in our military career, the question begs to be asked - how in the world could this have happened? What ever happened to chain of custody? SCIF protocol and safeguards? Anything? Or are things in the Biden circus that willy nilly? The chilling part of this story is not only do the wizards of smart in this administration not know how it happened, but they don't know if this is the end of it. There could be a lot more. Biden's crew simply does not know the answer as yet.

If Biden was only just inept, that would be bad enough. If Biden was only just corrupt, that would be bad enough. But to be corrupt and inept, is a nation wrecker. How bad are things right now? I don't know if Donald Trump became President again in 2024, and had 75% majorities in the House and Senate, if he could put Humpty Dumpty back together. Yes, things are broken that bad right now.

Plus the lies. The constant bald face lies. We now have empirical evidence that Biden and Hunter worked together on overseas business dealings when Slo Joe was Veep. Even though Joe swears he did not. And to find out now we have boots on the ground in Ukraine (albeit not many), when Biden swore we never would, is another lie.

Plus, we found out this week that Egypt and France have stabbed us in the back. France is a NATO ally. But Egypt is now working with the Russians (after we have given them billions), because as soon as Slo Joe took over from Trump, Joe walked away from the Abraham Accords. Why in the world would Joe doe that? Over something that historic and peace making? Because Trump did it. He crafted the agreements. And the visceral, seething HATE that Biden has for Trump, has guided much of Biden's misguided policies. 

As the putrid aroma of these intelligence leaks start to sink in all levels of Washington, expect to see dozens, maybe hundreds of Congressional investigations. The Democrats can try to make Trump into a boogie man as much as possible, but the real traitor is in Ireland right now, searching for his family roots. Let that thought marinate for a while.      

Biden's Tic Toc Brigade

"Good luck going forward folks. We will need luck for sure. Unless the Republicans learn how to fight this dark strategy of the Dems, we are finished. Not just my words - I have heard this from informed conservative pundits also. We either get smart and win, or we are finished. It is as simple as that."      

Well, the cat is now out of the bag. We know the strategy the Dems will be using in 2024. The scary thing is this - it might actually work. Is this a cogent strategy? Not really. But because of the lameness in many of today's voters, it might work. Heck, it worked in Arizona and Wisconsin.

Tic Toc. The evil software plant the ChiComs have unleashed on us. It has ability to send scads of information back to Mother China. Information about all who use Tic Toc. Wait - aren't we wise to this one? That we are thinking about banning Tic Toc? Think again. Our misguided youth will continue to use Tic Toc. It has become their "go to" program on their ubiquitous phones. And because it will be a tool of the DNC, there is no way on Planet Earth that Biden would sign up to get rid of Tic Toc. 

So what happened in Arizona and Wisconsin? How in the world did Arizona get a clunker like Katie Hobbs when Kari Lake was running against her? And how in the world did Wisconsin lose the Supreme Court seat? By a lot? Answer - "influencers" using Tic Toc. The Dems flooded the zone (so to speak) on college campuses in both Arizona and Wisconsin. One simple message went out on Tic Toc to the uninformed masses. "Republicans bad, Democrats good." That is all it took. The rest is history.

Biden's handlers are all over this right now. They are pulling together an army of misguided youth who are very adept at Tic Toc and sophism. Plus, they must be 30 or younger, and total robots. They are products of years of government propaganda, courtesy of our public school system. In any event, it is rumored that a special room will be supplied to them in the West Wing of the WH. The room will be used by the "influencers" and (hang on) - the son of George Soros.

What then is the strategy for 2024? More of the same. Flood the zones of all the cities which contain institutions of brainwashing (colleges and universities). Using Tic Toc, the Dems will construct an army of voters so vast, they will swamp any numbers the Republicans could muster. Our own kids, will aid in the destruction of this fine country. How could they be so cowed to do so? The "boiling frog" system. Start them early in Pre-K. Have the brainwashing begin small and innocuous. By the time they are in college, they will be full blown converts to the dark side.

Now we know. We know what we are up against. All of a sudden it hit me. This old man, the worst president in American history, could actually win again. And our country will end up looking like France - or worse. China will rule the world, Russia will continue to cause war and turmoil in Europe, and the United States will struggle to keep the lights on. All because of Tic Toc and hundreds of thousands of uninformed minions. 

Good luck going forward folks. We will need luck for sure. Unless the Republicans learn how to fight this dark strategy of the Dems, we are finished. Not just my words - I have heard this from informed conservative pundits also. We either get smart and win, or we are finished. It is as simple as that.