Our national sacrifice of paying for high gas prices

Here is the bottom line. We need to finish the job. Rather than blow the rest of Iran into kingdom come, Trump decided to allow simple economics to run its course. Even if Iran capitulates, it will take a long, long time for things to return to normal in Iran. For us? Normal will come in a few weeks or a couple of months.

Ever play a game of chicken when you were younger? The who is going to blink first game. Yes, I know. Many times, it was a foolish game in which somebody could have gotten hurt - maybe hurt bad. But that was then and this is now. We don't play chicken anymore - or do we?

Don't look now, but our war with Iran has turned into a global war of chicken. In other words, who is going to squeal first. Iran, who is about to lose their entire oil industry, or the western world (including us) who are getting smacked with Biden style high gas prices. All because Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz and the US has led a blockade of Iranian ports. But here is the rub - Iran's wells are still pumping and the ability to store that oil is running short. When everything in Iran is filled up, the Iranian wells will stop pumping. And that could ruin them for future production.

BTW - Iran knows that. They know they are gambling with their future. Their hope is that the price of oil will blow past $120/barrel, and race towards $200/barrel. Then the west (particularly the Americans) will squeal like stuck pigs and demand that we stop this war and accept Iran's terms for peace. That would mean allowing Iran to continue on with their nuclear research. That would mean, maybe Iran gets a nuclear bomb sooner rather than later. That would mean, another North Korea type of nuclear power in the world. Not good.

Also, it goes without too much saying, that Iran's entire economy is on the robes. Not just in one metric, but in all of them. On the other hand, in America, the land of "first world" problems, many are starting to squeal like pigs over gas prices being in the $4/gal and up region. Even knowing that in a couple of weeks Iran might bend to the pressure of losing their oil production and give up their enriched uranium. But we are pansies. We are not like the sacrificial Americans from World War II. We want our low gas prices back to we can play with our jet skis and pull our RVs.

Here is the bottom line. We need to finish the job. Rather than blow the rest of Iran into kingdom come, Trump decided to allow simple economics to run its course. Even if Iran capitulates, it will take a long, long time for things to return to normal in Iran. For us? Normal will come in a few weeks or a couple of months. Then our gas prices will be back where we want them, and Iran will have ridded themselves of the menace of the IRGC. If we can just tough it out for a bit longer, it will be a happy ending for all.   

  

The Minneapolis flag

 

"It is amazing on how much Minneapolis has changed in the past two decades. It really went into hyper-change during the Floyd debacle. That is when lawlessness replaced the lawful as the new group norm. Their battle flag? The new blue goo flag, of course."

One of the Minneapolis minions wrote an editorial in the local fish wrap paper this morning. About the "clueless" rural types who are dragging this state into a "two flag" environment. This liberal was very huffy about this issue. (In his words) - "This is settled law, so get used to it!" Actually, it is not settled law, as I did not vote for it. My vote was nullified. Since I have been told at least 100,000 times that we now live in a democracy, I get to vote on every issue, every time. That is after all, what a democracy is.

Anyhow, enough about this squabbling about why we now have this Somali flag. I have a better idea. Since the out-state folks hate it, and the minions in Minneapolis love it, just make it the Minneapolis flag. The folks who live in Minneapolis have no time for the liberty loving patriots who live out-state, so they can just ignore us. Let us keep the former "racist" flag. I always have been fine with our former real flag, and the new one (called the blue goo flag) is good for only fish wrap (or worse).

I have said this before, flags are symbols. When I see our former flag, it reminds me of how Minnesota used to be before the minions in the Twin Cities drank the progressive and socialist Kool aide. When I look at the new blue goo flag, all I can see is the theft and graft the "newcomers" have visited upon our land - as well as Tim Walz and Jacob Frey who let them. Truthfully, this new flag makes me feel like I am going to wretch. As much as I love our national flag, is exactly how much I detest this blue goo flag which now flies over the city of Minneapolis.

It is amazing on how much Minneapolis has changed in the past two decades. It really went into hyper-change during the Floyd debacle. That is when lawlessness replaced the lawful as the new group norm. Their battle flag? The new blue goo flag, of course. Every time there is a riot in the streets of Minneapolis over the federal government trying (without a speck of help from the local LEOs), to get rid of lawbreakers, out come the rioters, hoisting their new blue goo battle flags. Makes me sick.

Some in Minneapolis are not satisfied with having a bifurcated state. Nope - not good enough. They want their own country. Wait - what? Yep - the country of Minneapolis. There Walz can rule as a dictator for years on end. And the rule of law in this new country? Nada. There will be none. Soon, no more businesses either. Just a bunch of lawless progressives. Ta-ta kiddos. Have fun in your new country!

   

Eye (on the) Robot

 

"Starting in July, it will either be I Robot (like the movie), or eye (on the) robot, as Optimus comes off the assembly line one after another. Wondering about the future? It is now here. Get ready to start seeing robots all over the place. As soon as I find out they can either make an omelette or clean toilets, I am buying one for the house!"  

Earlier this year, Tesla finished stripping down and repurposing two Tesla automobile assembly lines. In other words, the models of Tesla cars made on these lines will no longer be made. Instead, starting in July of this year, full production will start of the Optimus, Generation III robot. No more talking about it - no more second guessing - it will happen. This will be the "launch" year, and in 2027, it will be full out production, all year long.

Tesla and Elon have been betting the farm on many things as of late, and Optimus is only one of them. His goal always has been to make a humanoid robot with state-of-the-art mobility and dexterity, yet affordable. He wants them ready to go for companies who want cheap and reliable labor, as well as households who would like somebody (or something) who could help with inside and outside chores.

How much does Elon think robots will find a niche in America as well as other places in the world? Enough so that this year, he is planning on building 10,000 of them by the end of the year. But next year - hold on to your hats. Elon is planning on making 10,000,000 Optimus Gen III robots! And by the way, Telsa will not be the only company joining the fray next year. Boston Dynamics as well as some other American companies will be in the chase. Oh - and don't forget China. They are also in the hunt.

My question when I heard the 10,000,000 number for Optimus units in 2027, was simply this - is there enough demand? Or will there soon be a fire sale on robots as so many are stacked up in inventory. Actually, knowing how much technology has been incorporated into these robots, I am amazed you can buy one for under $50,000. They have batteries which will go for 12 hours, tons of AI, and hands which almost mimic the dexterity of human hands.

I think I might have told this story before. While at FMC, I worked in the technology group for a while. One project I was on was to build a robotic hand which imitated human dexterity. FMC was teamed up with General Atomics, a company in Utah and Stanford. The complexity of this hand which was under development was awe inspiring. That was back in the early 1990's. The fact we are now building the entire robot, is not surprising at all to me. 

Starting in July, it will either be I Robot (like the movie), or "eye (on the) robot", as Optimus comes off the assembly line one after another. Wondering about the future? It is now here. Get ready to start seeing robots all over the place. As soon as I find out they can either make an omelette or clean toilets, I am buying one for the house!  

Water from nowhere, needs to go everywhere

 

"It seems a shame that living on a water planet such as ours, we should still suffer droughts. We have the expertise, we have the resources, we have the will to fix this. But we are still living in yesterday." 

Don't look now, but slightly over half of the country is in some kind of water shortage. How could that happen? Welcome to the age where potable water is becoming more valuable than oil or gold. Wait - we have plenty of water here. Just look at the Great Lakes. Yes, we can look at the Great Lakes, who have enormous amounts of water remaining. But that water is finite. Just like the water in our great aquifers. Finite and going down. Between industry and personal use, we use a whole lot of water. Too much, actually.

But hold on - are we not considered to be the water planet? Sure, we are. But most of the water on this big, blue marble is non-potable. There are major metro cities in the desert southwest who are living in the brink. The Colorado River, which has been our lifeline to the desert southwest for just about forever - is dying. And as it dies, do does Lake Powell. So does Lake Meade. And there is no "plan B" - when the water runs out from Lake Meade, right now there is no other place for Las Vegas, Pheonix and Tucson to get water. And Lake Meade is just feet away from "dead pool".

But there is hope. Not right now, but in the near future if we chase it. For example, Israel who has arid and desert land has decided to try and do something good with their Negev Desert. In the desert, they drilled deep, very deep, until they hit some prehistoric water. Because it was so deep, the water was warm to hot due to its geothermal nature. It also was salty. Too warm and salty to be potable - too warm and salty to use on vegetation. But they did find out it was perfect for raising certain types of tropical fish. Thus, Israel is now raising and harvesting tropical fish to eat and to sell to Europe.

But we need water for our crops. We need water to drink. Our ground water is shrinking, and our rivers and streams are iffy at best these days. Currently, scientists at MIT have come up with screens and filters which even in very dry climates, can harvest some water just by using air. Not much - maybe a gallon a day for a small set up. But it is a start.

We also need to capture more rain runoff, rather than just let it go. We have the technology to capture it, and we should. It is fresh water, so it would not need to be desalinated like ocean water. And speaking of which, we are way behind the curve in getting more desalination plants built. We have thousands of miles of coastline in which to build them.

It seems a shame that living on a water planet such as ours, we should still suffer droughts. We have the expertise, we have the resources, we have the will to fix this. Rainfall is only one way to get needed moisture. But we need to stop living in yesterday. Rather than farmers using drip irrigation, we are still using massive sprinkling systems in the heat of the day. Not smart. We can do better. We need to do better. We are running out of time.  

And they teach our children...

 

"Remember this when you vote for your local school board. This is the genesis. It is where it all starts. We need to be careful of not only what is taught, but also who is being hired to teach it." 

As most all of us know by now, assassination attempt number three happened last night. And of all places, the WH correspondent dinner. And who was the perp this time? A 31-year-old teacher from California, who still lives at home. Was he a registered Democrat? That is what is being reported. And to make matters ever worse about this guy, he recently won a "teacher of the year" award in California.

Over the recent years, we have seen some simply awful examples of government schoolteachers teaching the wrong things. Setting the wrong example. In fact, what I have heard over and over again, is critical thinking is out the window. Education has been replaced with indoctrination. Many things which are aberrant or un-American are taught as fact. Kids graduate dazed and confused, as some have been taught it is right to hate on America. Then if or when they get to college, the indoctrination goes into hyper speed.

It is only by the grace of God and the acumen of law enforcement and Trump's security detail that this awful plan was thwarted. What could have been a bad, bad night, turned into just another close call. But already, some of the sharper minds are asking, "why". Like what would inspire a young man with a profession to hop on a plan, fly across country, check into the hotel where the WHCD was being held, and then attempt to kill. How about the rhetoric coming from elected representatives on Capitol Hill? Trump bad, Trump nazi, Trump this or that. After a while, some of the softer minds and gullible minions take that as truth. Kind of like brainwashing.

Have we set the bar at a new low with this president? Will the next president, regardless of party, be nothing but a sitting duck for some deranged person? Are we becoming like a Banana Republic, where if we don't like the outcome of an election, we just shoot the joint up? And why is it mostly Democrats who are the perps? I thought they were the anti-gun crowd.

Remember this when you vote for your local school board. This is the genesis. It is where it all starts. We need to be careful of not only what is taught, but also who is being hired to teach it. Many of our schools today are nothing more than cesspools. Kids get a social graduation, instead of an earned one. Bottom line? At many schools, the kids who graduate don't know a Dit from a DUH.

And most importantly, keep an eye on activist teachers. They may look harmless to many, but they are far from that. In fact, many are toxic to our youth. And that is our tax dollars at work.

  

What side of the storm are we on?

"Those in the faith, those who pray, continue to pray for peace. Regardless of what happens this year and beyond, we must first seek peace yet prepare for the coming wars and rumors of wars. The trumpets might be sounding soon. We must be ready. Spiritually ready."   

What side of the storm are we on? First off, let me define this storm to be world peace or world war. Currently, are we peace makers or war mongers? Basically, it depends on whom you ask. But we need to look much deeper for the answer to that question. Jesus is quoted as saying the following in Matthew 24:6 when asked when the end of the age will be - "You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come."

My gosh, does that not ring true for today? As much as Donald Trump has tried to broker peace throughout the world, even if it means having armed conflict in Iran, wars and rumors of wars still prevail. Many still wonder why we must we kill our fellow man over land or ideas. Why is that? Because we are carnal. We have all been born that way. Why are so many people shot to death in Chicago each weekend? Carnality. War, murder, torture, trafficking - these are all products of living in a broken world. And if Jesus said that the end of the age will be recognized by wars and rumors of wars - count on that to happen.

Which side of the storm will we be on? Is it worth chasing peace when in the final days wars and rumors of wars might just be a certainty? When I look to the west to see how close China and Taiwan are to engaging in a huge war, I cringe. If war does break out in the Indo-Pacific, it will be much, much bigger than what recently happened in Venezuela or currently in Iran. A war by (or over) Taiwan could involve, China, Japan, the PI, Australia, India and maybe the US and Russia. That could easily hit the trip wire into WW III. 

But if that did happen, and many analysts who study China think it could happen in 2027, what should our posture be? Peacemakers? Or are we going to be one of the superpowers who fight it out? This storm will be massive, and it could herald the beginning of the end of this age.

Those in the faith, those who pray, continue to pray for peace. Regardless of what happens this year and beyond, we must first seek peace, yet prepare for any coming wars and rumors of wars. The trumpets might be sounding soon. We must be ready. Spiritually ready.   

 

Bad Math

"Hopefully Pete Hegseth and his new Navy Secretary can get this thing going. We need ships and need them now. History is not going to wait for us. We need to restock our ammo supply and build more ships. And no more fuzzy math please! From now on, we need math which makes sense."   

Okay - it is time this morning to do some math. The United States, with the best Navy in the world, is slipping. Why? It needs ships and needs them fast. China is galloping way ahead of us right now in navy shipbuilding. Okay - many of their ships are crap, but numbers do count. What are we doing to catch up? Peddling as fast as we can. Currently, this once great shipbuilding country, can only produce five to ten ships a year - and that is both military and commercial. Sad!

Here is where the fuzzy math comes in. As I said, we can produce less than a dozen ships per year. Why? Two reasons really - first, we seem to have lost the recipe on how to build good ships fast. Second, due to outsourcing and globalization, we have given up much of our skills and facilities to build ships. But South Korea? Different story. That country is the king of shipbuilding these days. How so? They build 155 ships per year (military and commercial). Little South Korea, a country which is much smaller than the US, a country which is still technically at war with North Korea, leaves us in the dust when it comes to building good quality ships - and lots of them.

Why not have South Korea build ships for us? We have a fly in the ointment with that solution. For reasons which totally escape me, Congress has passed a law (10 USA 8679) which prohibits a foreign country from manufacturing Navy ships outside of CONUS. Huh? What sense does that make, when we can only manufacture five to ten a year? No sense whatsoever. Currently, we are working to have that law nullified or amended so South Korea can set up shop in this country, or have ships built in South Korea.

Meanwhile, the shipbuilding blitz continues on in China. Now here is the good news. There is actually a world power who is in deeper weeds than we are for building new ships. Russia. In fact, their Black Sea fleet has taken quite a beating from Ukraine during this needless Russian war. So much so, that ships which have been damaged or sunk are now almost irreplaceable. Why? Many were built during the Soviet era, when shipbuilding in Russia flourished. Now - not so much.

Hopefully Pete Hegseth and his new Navy Secretary can get this thing going. We need ships and need them now. History is not going to wait for us. We need to restock our ammo supply and build more ships. And no more fuzzy math please! From now on, we need math which makes sense.