Sliding into another "forever war"?

"Wars and rumors of wars. Sounds familiar? Wonder why our DOW (formerly DOD) ask if for $1.5 T this next fiscal year? War cost money and it costs lives. Many times, the juice in not worth the squeeze. Really? Just ask Putin how his day is going."  

If you stop and take a deep breath, you can almost smell Iraq instead of Iran. Iraq, the "shock and awe" war that G.W. Bush led us into to make quick work of getting rid of Saddam and restoring Iraq to democracy - became a quagmire. The "shock and awe" portion of the war was not too bad, but the years of insurgency following, on was very painful for the USA. And just like that, as we start out the new millennium, we were knee deep in messy "boots on the ground" wars in both Afghanistan and Iraq. Once we finally extracted ourselves from both wars, the clamor went up from the masses saying - NEVER AGAIN! 

I am reminded of that old saying - wars are easy to start and very hard to finish. Don't think so? Try asking Vladimir Putin on how his four-day military action in Ukraine is going. The four-days have somehow turned into years, with Russia losing 1.5 million men. Right now, Russia is stuck in another "forever war" in which they could never have foreseen. But there they are - spending national blood and treasure for what? To eventually lose?

But were are too smart to fall into that kind of a trap. We were going to teach the IRGC as hard and fast lesson. One and done, in there and out of there. A clean, easy-peasy type of war. So, we thought. But for some reason, Iran had another idea. And now, with a good part of our fleet sitting off the coast of Iran, the "in and out" war is turning into a "forever war". And as much as we all hate to hear these words, to really cut out the cancer in Iran, to get rid of the IRGC and let peace return to the shire - it will take some boots on the ground. And with boots on the ground will come more misery and death for America.

It would have helped if we could have built a "coalition of the willing" like Bush 41 did before the first Gulf War. With that kind of help, the "shock and awe" war made mincemeat of the Saddam predicted "Mother of all wars". It was over in just a few days, with victory for the good guys being almost sanitary. But that was then, and this is now. Those easy days are over. To truly vanquish this foe in Iran, we really need to put the pedal to the metal. Total commitment. Air, sea and land. But if we do that, there will be a cost to pay. Blood and treasure. Right now, I am getting that spider tingling that we might be stuck. Either cut and run, fight to the death, or fight another "forever war" of attrition. 

Do I blame Donald Trump for getting us into this mess? Not really - a nuclear Iran would be unacceptable to Israel, the United States, the Arab neighborhood, and even Europe. Also, a regime who guns down tens of thousands of its own citizens has no right to exist. If we had a viable United Nations, maybe they could have done something about that issue. No - Iran needs to change, needs to de-nuke, and once again the toilet cleaning job falls on the US military (with a strong assist from the IDF).

Wars and rumors of wars. Sounds familiar? Wonder why our DOW (formerly DOD) ask if for $1.5 T this next fiscal year? War cost money and it costs lives. Many times, the juice in not worth the squeeze. Really? Just ask Putin how his day is going.  

And then there is, once again - crazy

 

"We need more NORMAL people to run for office. I know they are out there - they just need to make themselves known. I like people who love this country and are as American as apple pie. Does that make me a 'Nationalist'? Maybe - but in my book, that makes me an American before anything else."   

Ladies and gentlemen - meet Ashley Webb. He/she/it/they are (is) running to be a UNITED STATES SENATOR from the state of Maine. Let that marinate for just a minute. The great state of Maine, a state I called home for almost two years of my life, has finally rejected having a man with a Nazi tattoo on his chest, and is now auditioning for a more normal replacement for him. Normal? Have you seen or listened to Miss/Mr. Webb? What in the world has happened to Maine? I know it is not the water, as I drank plenty of it while living there.

All of a sudden, nationwide, the jar of fruits and nuts seems to have been shaken, stirred and then poured out. From seeing the collage of oddities who were running for governor of California as well as the mayor of LA, to the oddballs running for senate in Michigan, all I can say is WOW! It is like normal has taken a coffee break, and average looks a bit too radical these days. The name of the game is the stranger the better. And - as a plus up - hating America as it stands is a huge new value for the crazies. 

Just thirty years ago, if some of these "candidates" made it onto the public stage, the American public would have thought it was a skit from Saturday Night Live, or some other comedy show. But today, we are expected to look at this loony bin and accept them as serious. In what world could that happen? Not the world I live in. We have enough oddballs in Congress right now, without adding to the mixture. Like whom, you might ask? Rose DeLauro. Enough said.

America - what in the world is happening here? I know we are a diverse country, but now we have gone way, way over the edge by running Commies for office, as well as fruits and nuts who have fallen off the turnip truck. I fear to see what comes out of the next election. I fear even more what will come out of the Presidential election in 2028. With the trajectory of the new left, I could see Hunter Biden making a run for the White House, with AOC as his running mate. 

We need more NORMAL people to run for office. I know they are out there - they just need to make themselves known. I like people who love this country and are as American as apple pie. Does that make me a "nationalist"? Maybe - but in my book, that makes me an American before anything else.   

He is back, and the useful idiots are very happy

 

"Pay attention folks. This threat is for real. They are coming for what you have. For what you have worked for. Is that fair? Depends on whose definition of fair you use. Our definition is much different than their definition."  

The Democrat Socialists of America. Or, as POTUS puts it - Communists. Where did all of this come from? I thought Socialism (or Communism) was a failed economic (and tyrannical and authoritarian system) whose time had come and gone. But all of a sudden, in the United States of America, the land which fought the spread of Communism in the Korean Conflict, fought the spread of Communism in the Viet Nam Conflict, is now having Socialism spreading like wildfire on our home turf.

Not only are they here in the form of the Democrat Socialists of America, but they have also reached into their loony bin for an agenda to run on. It is not bad, if you don't mind the unraveling of everything American. And who is standing in the gap to protect our mushy head liberals from falling for this BS? Traditional Democrats. At something slightly slower than the speed of light, traditional Democrats are watching their once storied party go the way of the Dodo Bird.

I have my own theory on how this nonsense got started. This is just my opinion based not on fact, just on a hunch. The publishing of CEO salaries. Every year the local paper would publish CEO salaries for local businesses. Some were quite amazing. In one year, a CEO could make more money than an entire family could make in a lifetime. That allowed that one troublesome word to enter the lexicon - fair. Is it fair that one person could make so much, while so many could have so little? Never mind most CEOs had to work and sacrifice their tails off to get to that perch. But once fairness became a talking point, the foothold then became a stronghold.

Those of us (still the majority) who think our way of life is the best of the best, now have to address all the nutty things these wannabes working class heroes are spouting off. As a retired guys and a retired veteran, the chore of schooling these folks who should have learned this lesson years ago, is a curious task. Like - were you drifting off during Civics classes? Did you bother to study World History? Are you really that stupid, or just that naive?

Well, buckle up Earthlings, as this fight is just beginning. It is hard to believe when the good guys have history and logic on their side, this might still end up being a fight to the finish. The finish? Yes, if the Democrat Socialists win, and the good guys need to change or leave. But if we leave, where will we go? America is the last and best bastion of freedom and liberty. To lose all of that in exchange for the chains of Socialism or Communism, is like jumping off the cliff into an abyss.

Pay attention folks. This threat is for real. They are coming for what you have. For what you have worked for. Is that fair? Depends on whose definition of fair you use. Our definition is much different than their definition.  

 

World champs! At last!

"Today is a better day for air quality. That is a good thing. Still hotter than heck today, with high humidity. But next week - back to July normal. Was this week our new normal in Minnesota? I sure hope not."

It sure took a while, but we can finally lay claim to being number one in the world. Wait - what? I thought our soccer team was eliminated. It was - I am not talking about soccer. I am talking about something which we should want no part of. But we have it. This week, we hit the milestone. Worst air in the nation. My mistake, not the nation - the world. Whereas an AQI (Air Quality Index) of in the 300's puts you in the awful category, we managed to hit in the 500's for a short period of time. In fact, West Duluth hit an unofficial 600. That is air so thick you could have it for lunch.

I did not really know how to address this issue, but a longtime social media friend of mine (who recently moved out of this hellscape of a state) summed it up nicely. Because he is about my age, what he said really made sense. He was wondering why this spate of bad air has become common and terrible. Whereas when we were growing up in this state, bad air was either non-existent or best case - rare.

Something is making these fires grow more common. Please - please - don't constipate my feed with global warming bs. It was hot and humid when I was growing up just like it is now. And this year, we have had plenty of rain, thank you. No - it is something else. Something different that Canada is doing as well as the greenies in Minnesota. And right now, the main culprit seems to be forest management (or lack thereof).

Back to the world's worst air this week. We are a First World country. Every year, the number of pollutants we put into the atmosphere goes down. Why? Our knowledge on how to have cleaner effluents goes up. This week we had dirtier air than China. Then India. Then any of the Third World countries you could think of. Us - the number one innovator in the world, has the worst air. It was shameful and regrettable.

Two more things on this most sad and embarrassing issue. First, there is some thought that we might have eclipsed and AQI of 1,000 some places in the Arrowhead. To say that boggles my mind would be an understatement. Second, some liberal greenie posted on Facebook this morning that these smoke events were the fault of Donald Trump and Pete Stauber. Here is the problem with that false claim. These smoke events started a couple decades ago. Long before Trump's first term. And long before the seven years that Pete Stauber has been in Congress.

Today is a better day for air quality. That is a good thing. Still hotter than heck today, with high humidity. But next week - back to July normal. Was this week our new normal in Minnesota? I sure hope not.  

The mess in the BWCA (and Canada)

"Pretty soon the climate alarmists will be out blaming the Ford 150 pickup trucks for these fires. It is not the trucks - it is the way we manage our forests. Well, it is too late now for a big chunk of the BWCA. Nature has just managed it for us. And left a trail of smoke, soot, and damage in the aftermath."  

Welcome to the hellscape frequently referred to as Minnesota. And how did we get this way? Mining in the BWCA? Motorboats in the BWCA? The answer is no and no. And yet, walking outside this morning, the air is so thick with smoke that you can almost taste it. The air (if you want to call it as such), is not fit for man nor beast. And what happened? Sabotage by evil people? Careless campers? What? Probably dry lightning - and a mismanaged forest.

I love the purists in the area who defend the no-logging laws we have in the BWCA. The same goes for parts of Canada. "We don't need to manage our forests. Nature will take care of that." And nature does take care of it. By letting it burn. And with the conditions on the ground in the BWCA, this mismanaged forest floor is ripe with fuel for a rip-roaring forest fire. And that is what we have this morning.

60,000 acres of pristine forest have now been burned in the BWCA and the Superior National Forest. That is nature doing her recycling and restoration. The smaller fires in the BWCA have merged into a much bigger fire. How bad is it? One of the fire chiefs said the fire has "gotten into the ground" and we will still have remnants of this fire until the snow falls. BTW - the fire chief also said this 60,000-acre fire is still burning like crazy. And the main fire is still 0% contained at the time of this article.

Is there a lesson to be learned from this mess? Like maybe don't locate YMCA camps in this potential fire zones? Don't allow camping in an area so remote that should it catch fire, getting to safety could be a real problem? How about - just allow reasonable and sensible logging in the BWCA and Superior National Forrest. Or is it better just to lose some of that valuable timber to the vicissitudes of nature. If my vote counted (which it does not), I would choose better forest management practices.

But as we know, there is another side to this issue here. The smoke and ash. According to one of the local weather geeks, last night in Blaine, a new AQI record was set. Unbelievable 535! What can you safely do with an air quality like that? Nothing - no matter how healthy you are. The health experts are telling us to stay inside and do nothing. Thus, all week, with the heat and smoke, we lose a week of summer. Gone. And it is not just here - the smoke goes all the way to New England.

Pretty soon the climate alarmists will be out blaming the Ford 150 pickup trucks for these fires. It is not the trucks - it is the way we manage our forests. Well, it is too late now for a big chunk of the BWCA. Nature has just managed it for us. And left a trail of smoke, soot, and damage in the aftermath.  

Whither - Social Security?

"Many have wondered - how do we fix it? Just when all avenues to fix this gaping hole in Social Security looked way too convoluted, an answer drops right in our laps. Thanks in large part to Taxing Timmy Walz, we found out about fraud."

Ever since I was much younger and in the work a day world, some panic merchant in Washington would be ringing the alarm about Social Security. That is, one group of panic merchants would be running around the Capitol with their hair on fire, and another group would be trying to mollify the masses by lying to them about the solvency of Social Security. Meanwhile, I as well as millions of other workers, went to work, day by day, and had a percentage of our wages withheld and stuffed into this mysterious hole called FICA. 

Some have called Social Security a Ponzi Scheme. Others have called it a lifeline for seniors who have little else to retire on. Now a new group of either truth tellers or panic merchants are sounding the alarm bell (again). If we don't fix Social Security quickly, seniors will have their benefits cut by 20 or 30 percent in 2032. For some seniors, that will be a major inconvenience. For other seniors - it will be a killer.

Mostly due to my age, I have met many seniors over the past few years. Sometimes the issue of retirement money comes up. I have talked to many who are doing just fine, thank you. But I have also talked to others, that based on what they did for a living, Social Security is most of what they get every month. To eliminate it, or even reduce it, would be dangerous and maybe even deadly. 

Here is the long and the short of it (as far as I am concerned). I am tired of every few years hearing about the demise of Social Security. If it is truly broken and running out of money so fast that beneficiaries will soon take a decrement in monthly checks - FIX IT! If it is not running out of money (remember the SS "Strong Box?") then shut up already! Nobody, not even seniors who no longer work, need additional stress by worrying about future benefits.

Many have wondered - how do we fix it? Just when all avenues to fix this "gaping hole" in Social Security looked way too convoluted, an answer drops right in our laps. Thanks in large part to Taxing Timmy Walz, we found out about fraud. With all the fraud we have in Minnesota and beyond, we can reclaim (or claw back) so much money, we can fix that gaping hole. Heck - we might even have enough to give seniors a decent raise in benefits.  

Is this whole UFO for real? Or what?

"Okay - I know this all the mumbo jumbo that we have all been hearing for a long, long time. We need answers. The fact that we have somethings zipping around (over) our sovereign territory, that even our F-22 jets can't even keep up with, is disconcerting. And why are they drawn to our nuclear plants or military bases? Does that mean they are really Russian or Chinese? And all those drones last winter, over many of our skies. What was that all about?"

Did you hear? Another tranche of UFO files has recently been released. Did I see some of them? I did, as did many others. Okay - I will say it. So far, these have been a big fat nothing burger. The UFOs doing the ariel dance over our Capitol in 1952 were more stunning than what has been released. Here is what I thought this entire disclosure thing was going to be about. Proof of an alien. Not some dead thing which could have been put together by a special effects artist. A live alien, landing on the White House lawn, and saying something like - "We are here." So far - no luck.

Wait - what? What about all those decades of people (some very reputable) seeing "somethings" in our skies? What about all these "things" that our astronauts have seen from space capsules or while serving on the ISS? What did Hamlet tell Horatio? "There are more things in heaven and earth". And ergo, Shakespeare might have hit upon the answer to some or all of these "things" we have all been seeing. Maybe they are fallen angels or demons. Or maybe they are us, time traveling back from the future. Or if you really want to go out on a limb - interdimensional beings.

Okay - I know this all the mumbo jumbo that we have all been hearing for a long, long time. We need answers. The fact that we have somethings zipping around (over) our sovereign territory, that even our F-22 jets can't even keep up with, is disconcerting. And why are they drawn to our nuclear plants or military bases? Does that mean they are really Russian or Chinese? And all those drones last winter, over many of our skies. What was that all about?

Some think that maybe the answer lies in our oceans. That hidden within the 70% water we have on this planet, is another species. "Something" is down there and has been tracked at speeds approaching 200mph. Again, it is not us, as our best subs can only go a fraction of that speed.

My final thought on this matter is simply this (and this is for our government) - put up or shut up. If you don't know anything, just tell us so. However, if you do have immutable proof of aliens - show us. We CAN handle the truth. Until that happens, as the old expression goes, "I am not going to pay it no never mind!"