I have an economist friend that isn't huge fan of Dr. Goss. But, I'll put that aside since I frankly can't break down his models any better than your average junior high school student. He took a look at marijuana legalization and noted large economic growth and a corresponding increase in crime. I'd like to note that both of these cross over political interests of mine, namely loosening of American restrictions on contraband and an end to the American police state. You can follow the link to Goss's blog below.
http://economictrends.blogspot.com/
Tuesday, November 27, 2018
Saturday, July 21, 2018
Political Voyuerism and American Apartheid
Before you read this please know:
1) I am still working on this
2) links to citations are highlighted in the text and can be followed to sourcing material
I am a committed political spectator, and, I do love to watch otherwise hard working and intelligent people behave foolishly and sully their good names in pursuit of power, but even so, watching the first year and a half of the Trump administration has been difficult for me. The absurdity of our political dance has reached new heights, and as an American, I find my national leaders to be a source of shame as often as they are a source of pride.
Now, this has many reasons of course. Men and women who achieve at a high enough level to lead a nation of 325 million people simply do not have the luxury of stupidity. So, when a political leader appears to be acting erratically, yes, there are isolated incidents of senility and mental illness, but usually there's a good reason.
National, and even state, municipal and county leaders are all accountable to an almost infinite number of stakeholders all seeking to influence the office holder. What often looks to be a lasting judgement, is more often the effect of decades of work coming to fruition. The largest conglomeration of these stakeholders in American politics today are the political parties, and the coming to fruition of their decades old plans is beginning to become a problem.
The really tough choice American's sometime in their future are going to have to face is, can large a large democratic nation exist for long with only two major parties. India appears to be the closest comparions,
but I ran out of time for research [Mark In Edit]
That's not to say that political parties are by their very nature problematic to Democracy, is to say that would be to say a broken arm is problematic to the body. The arm is not problematic, the fact that the arm is broken is. Removing parties would be akin to removing the arm, and that's not a good solution at all.
Partisanship is an inherently divided and subversive way of thinking, and in the past that's worked to our advantage. That's why our founding fathers, with an eye towards British hegemony over American governance decided to engage in it. It is a tool for seizing and maintaining power, and with a hostile super power eyeing our young nation with contempt and avarice, it was necessary for someone capable to do just that.
Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton, the ten dollar bill and the nickle respectively, were both preeminent architects of our democracy and partisan prototypes. They sniped at each other and spread baseless rumors to confound the Internet's most devious provocateurs today. They were also men of great political genius with competing visions for the evolution of their young nation. They spread hatred and division throughout the land, and in the process laid the groundwork for our American civilization.
The parallel to our current state is both comforting and alarming. Yes, this is the way things have always been done in our country. But, yes, we do tend to end up in bloody and terrifying conflicts because of it. Our civil war has direct parallels to the conflict between Jefferson's states rights ideology and Hamilton's vision of a strong central government.
Throughout American history, the country has been plagued by division after division and crisis after crisis, and has thus far survived them all. That's not a given though, and the country must continue to evolve if it is going to survive in the new multi polar political environment that has evolved after the fall of the soviet union.
The union has traditionally evolved by continually expanding suffrage and economic opportunity as it has grown and must continue to do so, lest it parish. Citizens have the right to engage with their government, and even run for office should they choose, but the current state of affairs makes it nearly impossible for a person who is not born into the political cast or at least born to wealth and power to ascend to lasting political power and influence. This has left our democracy in a polarized state, where large swaths of the population are underrepresented in politics and undeserved or oppressed by their government.
That is not to say that our nation's disenfranchised majority would be better off under another form of government or in another place. While no competent student of history will ever assert that democracy is a fair and just form of government, most who approach the subject objectively are forced to acknowledge that it is the most fair and just of multiple alternate tyrannies.
As subjects of one form of evolutionary tyranny, it's easy for us citizens of the United States of America to take for granted that we live under the yoke of our masters the same as everyone else. This is not the case. Our yoke is much lighter, and Americans should be cognizant of this if they wish to truly understand the world the inhabit in context.
Despite a legal system that requires natural gifts, years of education, and hundreds of thousands of dollars to understand and effectively utilize, we live in the most free, most fair, and most just society in the world. The question is, do we wish it to continue. Should the past inequities damn our nation to purgatory? Or can we, as we have done in the past confront our failings and stumble on towards their amelioration.
American Slavery and its aftermath is one of many examples of American folly followed by a long and stilted path towards redemption. There are many others. The conquest of and disenfranchisement of Native Americans, South American imperialism and Japanese internment spring to mind easily.
And while American apartheid has never been called as such, due to our economic and military preeminence, it nevertheless did occur to our everlasting shame. But to understand what happened, why it happened and to put it into context, a person has to look outside their own personal experience and place the events of our nation's past in the scope of a wider world.
When that is done, one can see a world where slavery, institutionalized cruelty, terror and apartheid are still rampant. The United States may be an imperfect union, but because of our quasi-enshrined freedoms, citizens are allowed to confront the evils that plague our world far more effectively than it's been possible to do in other places and times. It's ok to be angry about past injustice, but to allow that anger to tear down the very system that allowed it to be addressed is foolish indeed.
This country still serves as a beacon of hope around the globe. And while, like any nation, it's past is checkered with the sins of its forefathers, it must never be mistaken for anything but the great hope of all free people. With that in mind the citizenry must be vigilant in its defense. As long as freedom, or some facsimile thereof exists, tyrants will fear and seek to undermine it and to focus on reform or even revolution while discounting American security places that freedom at risk. Aggressors abound. Currently Russia, China, Iran and North Korea are the biggest threats to American liberty. But, assuming this nation survives, which is not a given, that can and will change over time. The need to be vigilant will not. Liberties which ought be the natural right of all human beings are under assault and we as Americans ought damned well stand up and fight for them when necessary.
Whether democrat or republican, black or white or even Trumpian or Clintonite, it is necessary for Americans to engage one another with mutual respect and civility. Without that the nation will tear itself apart and we will watch the liberties this nation has bled to establish and defend slip away. That is why the current state of affairs saddens me so much. One simply can't try to address a problem in today's climate. Someone then has to take offense and become combative so that winning involves subjugating alternate points of view rather than incorporating them. I personally think it's time for a multi party democracy, so that opposing sides must build coalitions to govern and the grip of the partisan grandees over American political thought can be broken. But that's just my opinion, I'd be happy to hear yours, just please, be civil about it.
1) I am still working on this
2) links to citations are highlighted in the text and can be followed to sourcing material
I am a committed political spectator, and, I do love to watch otherwise hard working and intelligent people behave foolishly and sully their good names in pursuit of power, but even so, watching the first year and a half of the Trump administration has been difficult for me. The absurdity of our political dance has reached new heights, and as an American, I find my national leaders to be a source of shame as often as they are a source of pride.
Now, this has many reasons of course. Men and women who achieve at a high enough level to lead a nation of 325 million people simply do not have the luxury of stupidity. So, when a political leader appears to be acting erratically, yes, there are isolated incidents of senility and mental illness, but usually there's a good reason.
National, and even state, municipal and county leaders are all accountable to an almost infinite number of stakeholders all seeking to influence the office holder. What often looks to be a lasting judgement, is more often the effect of decades of work coming to fruition. The largest conglomeration of these stakeholders in American politics today are the political parties, and the coming to fruition of their decades old plans is beginning to become a problem.
The really tough choice American's sometime in their future are going to have to face is, can large a large democratic nation exist for long with only two major parties. India appears to be the closest comparions,
but I ran out of time for research [Mark In Edit]
That's not to say that political parties are by their very nature problematic to Democracy, is to say that would be to say a broken arm is problematic to the body. The arm is not problematic, the fact that the arm is broken is. Removing parties would be akin to removing the arm, and that's not a good solution at all.
Partisanship is an inherently divided and subversive way of thinking, and in the past that's worked to our advantage. That's why our founding fathers, with an eye towards British hegemony over American governance decided to engage in it. It is a tool for seizing and maintaining power, and with a hostile super power eyeing our young nation with contempt and avarice, it was necessary for someone capable to do just that.
Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton, the ten dollar bill and the nickle respectively, were both preeminent architects of our democracy and partisan prototypes. They sniped at each other and spread baseless rumors to confound the Internet's most devious provocateurs today. They were also men of great political genius with competing visions for the evolution of their young nation. They spread hatred and division throughout the land, and in the process laid the groundwork for our American civilization.
The parallel to our current state is both comforting and alarming. Yes, this is the way things have always been done in our country. But, yes, we do tend to end up in bloody and terrifying conflicts because of it. Our civil war has direct parallels to the conflict between Jefferson's states rights ideology and Hamilton's vision of a strong central government.
Throughout American history, the country has been plagued by division after division and crisis after crisis, and has thus far survived them all. That's not a given though, and the country must continue to evolve if it is going to survive in the new multi polar political environment that has evolved after the fall of the soviet union.
The union has traditionally evolved by continually expanding suffrage and economic opportunity as it has grown and must continue to do so, lest it parish. Citizens have the right to engage with their government, and even run for office should they choose, but the current state of affairs makes it nearly impossible for a person who is not born into the political cast or at least born to wealth and power to ascend to lasting political power and influence. This has left our democracy in a polarized state, where large swaths of the population are underrepresented in politics and undeserved or oppressed by their government.
That is not to say that our nation's disenfranchised majority would be better off under another form of government or in another place. While no competent student of history will ever assert that democracy is a fair and just form of government, most who approach the subject objectively are forced to acknowledge that it is the most fair and just of multiple alternate tyrannies.
As subjects of one form of evolutionary tyranny, it's easy for us citizens of the United States of America to take for granted that we live under the yoke of our masters the same as everyone else. This is not the case. Our yoke is much lighter, and Americans should be cognizant of this if they wish to truly understand the world the inhabit in context.
Despite a legal system that requires natural gifts, years of education, and hundreds of thousands of dollars to understand and effectively utilize, we live in the most free, most fair, and most just society in the world. The question is, do we wish it to continue. Should the past inequities damn our nation to purgatory? Or can we, as we have done in the past confront our failings and stumble on towards their amelioration.
American Slavery and its aftermath is one of many examples of American folly followed by a long and stilted path towards redemption. There are many others. The conquest of and disenfranchisement of Native Americans, South American imperialism and Japanese internment spring to mind easily.
And while American apartheid has never been called as such, due to our economic and military preeminence, it nevertheless did occur to our everlasting shame. But to understand what happened, why it happened and to put it into context, a person has to look outside their own personal experience and place the events of our nation's past in the scope of a wider world.
When that is done, one can see a world where slavery, institutionalized cruelty, terror and apartheid are still rampant. The United States may be an imperfect union, but because of our quasi-enshrined freedoms, citizens are allowed to confront the evils that plague our world far more effectively than it's been possible to do in other places and times. It's ok to be angry about past injustice, but to allow that anger to tear down the very system that allowed it to be addressed is foolish indeed.
This country still serves as a beacon of hope around the globe. And while, like any nation, it's past is checkered with the sins of its forefathers, it must never be mistaken for anything but the great hope of all free people. With that in mind the citizenry must be vigilant in its defense. As long as freedom, or some facsimile thereof exists, tyrants will fear and seek to undermine it and to focus on reform or even revolution while discounting American security places that freedom at risk. Aggressors abound. Currently Russia, China, Iran and North Korea are the biggest threats to American liberty. But, assuming this nation survives, which is not a given, that can and will change over time. The need to be vigilant will not. Liberties which ought be the natural right of all human beings are under assault and we as Americans ought damned well stand up and fight for them when necessary.
Whether democrat or republican, black or white or even Trumpian or Clintonite, it is necessary for Americans to engage one another with mutual respect and civility. Without that the nation will tear itself apart and we will watch the liberties this nation has bled to establish and defend slip away. That is why the current state of affairs saddens me so much. One simply can't try to address a problem in today's climate. Someone then has to take offense and become combative so that winning involves subjugating alternate points of view rather than incorporating them. I personally think it's time for a multi party democracy, so that opposing sides must build coalitions to govern and the grip of the partisan grandees over American political thought can be broken. But that's just my opinion, I'd be happy to hear yours, just please, be civil about it.
Sunday, December 4, 2016
Smashing Donald Trump's Cell phone
Well, it's almost been a month now since a stereotypical sleazy 80's business man crawled out of the past and seized the American Presidency by promising the moon to anyone gullible enough to trust him. I'm not despondent of course. The beauty of the American system is that checks and balances exist to keep over reaching executives from tearing down the nation too quickly. I am however, very nervous about our soon to be commander-in-chief's pernicious cell phone habits.
Friday, November 18, 2016
Trump, Democracy, Nukes, China, Russia, Japan, South Korea, North Korea, South Africa and mother fucking America man
So, I think this is officially the most ambitious title I'm ever posted. First off, Donald Trump worries me. But, as elections and media reporting are generally pretty heavily colored by the times and places they're written in. While I find his antics, especially his threats to muzzle the free press and anti-trade rhetoric concerning to say the least. But, I'm gonna give the man a chance.
See, I believe the reporters get caught up in the times around them and it colors their reporting in a way that influences the perceived truth of their work. And though, in the end, US reporting standards and the US press are still the best in the world, any reporter worth a damned will tell you there is no removing bias. We need to remember that even venerable institutions can release opinion pieces as hard news the same as the partisan networks of MSNBC and FOX.
Just remember people, the only safe news source is all of them. Just preliminarily though, my observations are that Donald Trump seems like a very low character gentlemen, with a lot of money and dodgy finances, but I'm gonna give him a chance.
I was ideologically opposed to Clinton based on the abortion/reproductive rights issue though, so what's the difference between possible economic and nuclear annihilation and the sanctioned mass murder of children? Even though I highly suspect El-Trumpo is lying about his pro-life stance, that's one of the few things I take cold comfort in.
Perhaps Trump, who has so skillfully used bankruptcy law before, spies another opportunity to fuck over a bunch of creditors we don't like. Who can say?
I will say this, our republic worked and worked well. I just fucking hate its piss poor results and wish it were a direct democracy.
But lets get to some of the results I fucking hate. Trump has stated that he will substantially grow the military while substantially cutting taxes, he also pledges to start a trillion, yeah with a "T" infrastructure plan.
My opinion as a real, non-fake ass grin your teeth and get fucked up the ass Trump republican, is that he's talking about a massive unfunded budget increase and we're already sitting on an $20 trillion dollar debt. Paul Ryan is going to need to grow some big boy balls this year if he wants to save the nation cause it's about to get real.
If money does rain from the sky like mana from heaven though and all president Trump's hopes and dreams come true, here are a couple of nightmare scenarios I predict.
1) Brinkmanship up to and including nuclear war with China. Rudy Giuliani, member of Trump's team and widely expected to win a spot on his cabinet, has said that Trump wants to expand the size of the US Navy, by a lot.
He wants to do this tough and incredibly expensive move to present China with overwhelming force before China's military is more powerful than our own, as it will inevitably be. This will hopefully counter Chinese aggression in the Yellow Sea.
If this move can check China's open flouting of international law in their seizure of territory from other countries (and American allies,) it will have been worth it. But Trumpo's menacing of his allies with threats to pay more of the bill or he'll leave them defenseless might lose us our two strongest allies in the region in Japan and South Korea.
If that happens the US will still have a superior naval force but two of the most prosperous nations in the world will now be less cooperative in vital economic and supplemental support to our Navy. In short, we'll have the ships but not the supplies, cause Trump doesn't value continued business relationships enough.
We'll lose to China in the Pacific if we're not supported by our allies. If they're scared into China's orbit and Trump tries to intimidate the lot of them ... well, he might nuke shitty little North Korea.
It's always been a mouthy little country that's loved running shit it can't back up, so why not give em' a good back hand pimp slap to get them to shut the hell up. Nuke Pyongyang and send those little fucks an unmistakable message. The Chinese' ears mike perk up a little too right? Riiiiiiigggghhht?
Sweet Jesus I hope so, because if Trump continues to antagonize our allies we might lose them, and, if we're not properly supported, China might be willing to take acceptable losses and make a run at the Yankees. Now, you know 'Merica aint about to sit around and take it if some Chinese soldiers are coming to our shores to tell us what's what.
I'm talking Armageddon man, end of days, end of the world, numberless soldiers invade, nukes fly, small pox is released and the blessed sarin nerve gas sets us free ... but, like I said I'm going to give him a chance.
2) Generational depression. Our debts at what, 20 trillion dollars now right? Well, congress is worthless, thus it would not surprise anyone if it gave Goldenhair Spendy-McGee rubber stamp spending. Donald Trump spends trillion and congress gleefully spends our lives away until American credit is no good anymore. The debt has swollen to 50 Trillion and we genuinely can't afford to service our debt anymore. America declares bankruptcy, and fuck it, peace; Trump out.
America has now been robbed of the gift of Alexander Hamilton and is without credit. Want a house? Sure lets go get a mortgage, nope. Or worse, sure but 40% interest. Want a car? Nope, same deal. Credit freezes and banks start to fail, banks that are ensured by the full faith and credit of the us government right? Oh shit !?!?!? The government's bankrupt. That's right bro, your money is gone. You just got Trumped.
A default in US credit would literally ruin us. Roads would decay, education would become a scarce commodity for the ultra wealthy and police would protect only where people could afford to pay them. Welcome to third world America. Don't worry we'll move out of mom's basement in 70 years but we just went bankrupt so we need some time to figure shit out.
Runner up catastrophic futures were:
1) dogs suddenly revolt to avoid a Trump presidency and proceed to start a world wide dog revolution that subjugates humanity.
2) The Clinton Foundation is militarized and fills the void ISIS leaves behind as we systematically pursue and destroy them.
3)You saw your parents having sex that night ... yeah, can't unsee that. You should get some counseling.
So, right. Now everything could go right too. Congress could grow a spine. Trump could back China off. Russia could realize it doesn't matter. Japan could militarize and South Korea could apply for annexation and mother fucking America could triumph uber allus! But Donald Trump would have still promised conservative American's everything they wanted even though we knew there was no way we could have it all and I would still be depressed. Cause I just got Trumped.
Thursday, October 20, 2016
An Ally Lost
America lost a key Southeast Asian Ally today as the Philippines have officially allied with China. Hopefully this will be a good move for the Philippine people, because it's certainly bad news for the Americans.
Wednesday, October 19, 2016
A good movie plot
Movies, if they're good, leave you in constant suspense throughout their course. They mimic the true reality that each of us experiences, that which requires all of our attention. But when hardship comes, luxury and fantasies melt away, and one is left with the cold reality that A=A. We are a nation deep in debt facing two powerful and warlike nations in Russia and China.
We are at the same time being confronted by dozens of commercial challenges. How do we survive and prosper? On a long enough time scale, the math doesn't add up. But, luckily, humans live short lives. It is my hope that the current set of sparring Illuminati don't kill us all. They probably won't, that's the whole point of the illuminati, er, Jackson Hole golf club, or whatever ... after all. Justice is a luxury enabled by survival.
The nature of survival is peace, and I think for the moment, peace remains.
We are at the same time being confronted by dozens of commercial challenges. How do we survive and prosper? On a long enough time scale, the math doesn't add up. But, luckily, humans live short lives. It is my hope that the current set of sparring Illuminati don't kill us all. They probably won't, that's the whole point of the illuminati, er, Jackson Hole golf club, or whatever ... after all. Justice is a luxury enabled by survival.
The nature of survival is peace, and I think for the moment, peace remains.
cows
I'm probably going to hell because I assume cows are conscious and I eat them anyway ... they're delicious.
Wednesday, April 9, 2014
The death of American Freedom
photo by Torben Hansen snipped from wikipedia
I had an interesting conversation with an Afghanistan war veteran today. He told me everyone should be drug tested for every job. I disagreed, saying instead that jobs should be performance based, not based on some superficial moral judgement. Eventually my friend and I agreed to disagree. So, I lost one convert. Let me try to win some more. My thoughts are essentially this, nobody has the right to search me, (a drug test is essentially a search of my blood or urine.) unreasonably.
It's fair to say that many Americans have been desensitized to the fact that their fourth amendment protection against unreasonable searches has been trampled upon to the point where they are no longer applicable. The vast majority of the population that cannot defend themselves from bullying by those in authority. People without a solid education on the law, their rights, and a nice chunk of cash to back it up don't stand a chance against people armed with those very things. In American law, might makes right. Doesn't sound much like the American dream does it?
Drug testing in the work place is one example. In jobs where a person's impairment could cause harm to the interests of both the company, and the community in general, it is commonly accepted practice to screen employees and applicants for use of illegal drugs. This, in the words of Supreme Court Justice Anton Scalia constitutes an unreasonable search.
“The impairment of
individual liberties cannot be the means of making a point" Scalia wrote. "Symbolism, even
symbolism for so worthy a cause as the abolition of unlawful drugs, cannot
validate an otherwise unreasonable search.”
Scalia wrote these words as part of a dissenting opinion at the conclusion of the Nationial Treasury Employees v. Von Raab case back in 1989. He felt that drug testing was being used as a symbol of social and corporate responsibility among firms. I use his quote because he agrees with my opinion that drug testing constitutes an unreasonable search, but it seems as though the idea of drug testing goes beyond symbolism though, it goes more to the point of control. Employers want control of their employees personal lives, something they're not supposed to have.
Now, this post stemmed from one conversation about drug testing in the work place. But the freedom Americans are supposed to enjoy from unreasonable search and seizure isn't the only protection to be subjected to what I view as a sinister demand for "the public good." Gun ownership and the right to self defense in general spring to mind. I just wonder how many people really think they are free in this country. I certainly don't feel that way.
With that said, it also must be said that America, with all its warts, still offers one of the freest and fairest systems in the world to live under and I fully understand what a privileged it is to live there.
Now, this post stemmed from one conversation about drug testing in the work place. But the freedom Americans are supposed to enjoy from unreasonable search and seizure isn't the only protection to be subjected to what I view as a sinister demand for "the public good." Gun ownership and the right to self defense in general spring to mind. I just wonder how many people really think they are free in this country. I certainly don't feel that way.
With that said, it also must be said that America, with all its warts, still offers one of the freest and fairest systems in the world to live under and I fully understand what a privileged it is to live there.
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Links of the week!
The Obama administration is hinting at giving Israel back one of its spies. So, I haaad thought Israel was an American ally. Why is it again that we've imprisoned this intelligence agent of theirs for almost 30 years?
Healthcare! Well, I didn't sign up for it ... Now if I could just get one of those Obamaphones, then I would be interested!
Huge graft scandal developing in the Chinese military? Impossible, the fact that China's president has a fortune ranging in the hundreds of millions and its prime minister is a billionaire have nothing to do with abuse of power ... nope ... this is certainly an isolated incident. . Now, nobody pay attention to the insider trading in the U.S. Congress though, because then Americans would be hypocrites.
Hey! It's Ebola! Thanks for brightening my day as usual Drudge! I didn't ever want to go to Africa anyway.
Now for the non-story link of the week! Constitutional protections have never applied when it comes to governments spying on their citizens. Also, breathing oxygen is good for your health, and picking fights with police officers is bad for it.
The dirty south has its own small time "bishop of bling."
Finally, here's some April Fool's pranks from The Mirror.
Hope you enjoyed the links.
I'll try to find something decent to write about for the next post.
Saturday, March 29, 2014
The apocalypse cometh?
One Serbian Assassination of a world leader and a vengeful German Kaiser later, it happened. The result was tens of millions of dead people, and world forever traumatized by a senseless and brutal conflict. Since then there have been many more senseless and brutal conflicts, and it looks as though another one might be about ready to pop off in Eastern Europe.
Once again we have a world separating itself into different armed camps, and a disbelieving public that thinks the nuclear, biological and chemical weapons that Russia possesses are so terrifying that no one will dare to stop them if Russian aggression against Ukraine continues.
Vladimir Putin has seen fit to reclaim another chunk of the old Soviet Empire by sending Russian soldiers into the Crimean Peninsula. Mr. Putin's justification, that Russia needed to annex the Crimea to protect the interests of the ethnic Russians living there, is major problem for other world powers though. It allows Russia to intervene in any country where Russian speakers are present. This in turn allows Russia to aggressively expand it's territory in old Soviet Block countries at will.
Naturally this will stoke tensions across the globe should Russia decide that oil producing states on its borders or states that posses other desirable economic or strategic resources are also abusing their native Russian speakers and that the country must intervene to protect them.
Russian forces are now massing on the Ukrainian border. To this biased observer it looks very much like they are readying for another push, possibly to secure a land route to their new Crimean spoils. Estimates range from 30,000 - 100,000, but by all accounts a huge and capable force is at the ready.
Economic and political sanctions have already been put into place against Russia, but they have been ineffective. Russia's military has rebuilt itself with revenues from the country's vast oil reserves, now it's ready to flex its considerable muscles, can anyone stop them? Clearly vladimir Putin's respect for the sovereignty of former Soviet states quickly disappears when a chance to add them back to the Russian Federation arises. Should Western powers move to intervene? Can they? That is a question that only history can answer.
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
The arab world isn't the only place where democratic citizens are fighting for their rights.
Ukrainians are turning out in huge numbers in Kiev. Check out these photos of the 200,000 strong protests in Kiev against a government shift east. The realities of being dependent on Russian oil and gas are often over looked in generalized coverage, as is Kiev's historic place as the cradle of Russian civilization, but it seems clear that whether the Ukranian people want to trade more with the west than the east. They do not want a Russian style autocratic state cloaked in the trappings of democracy. They damn sure don't appreciate Russia's manipulation of their political process, economic bullying and criminality.
The current heavy weight champion of the world in boxing has announced he will run. If he can live long enough to finish out the election, maybe he can bring the rule of law and of the will of the people back to Ukrainian democracy
The current heavy weight champion of the world in boxing has announced he will run. If he can live long enough to finish out the election, maybe he can bring the rule of law and of the will of the people back to Ukrainian democracy
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
China err ... North Korea did a little antagonizing of the Japanese
The Duffle Bag is like The onion for the military. It's hilarious, snarky and damn perceptive. Follow this link and see what I mean.
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
Chinese power politics
Holy shit China. Yes I get that you and the Philippines both claim some of the same territorial waters. So do you and every other Southeast Asian country. But snubbing disaster relief just makes you look like an international asshole. Well on behalf of America, welcome to the club.
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Ethonal Deathwatch
More rumblings out of Washington about the end of ethanol subsidies. For those of you living in cornbelt states please get comfortable and calmly watch the bursting of the ethanol bubble and the beginning of a new American agricultural recession.
Monday, November 11, 2013
Stone Cold Lead Pipe Geopolitical Locks of the Future!!!!!
I've got some contacts in Thailand, so I watch the country pretty closely. The trend of China replacing the U.S. as the dominent economic force in the region is well under way. This report on the origins of visiting tourists from China is a good example. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2013-11/10/c_132875557.htm
Sunday, November 10, 2013
Cool, Newest installment of links o' the week ... er month, whatever, without further ado.
Pope Francis is the slickest political operator that I can name without being arrested when i visit their country. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/10/pope-francis-philippines-_n_4251243.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003
The radar photo of Super Typhoon Haiyan, gives a pretty good image of what the fist of god looked like when it hit the Phillipins. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/10/pope-francis-philippines-_n_4251243.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003
Here's a great group the people who aren't reading this might like ... America rap went pop a long time ago, you gotta head out of the states to find most of the really real stuff. Calle 13 is legit, learn spanish you monkey. http://www.lacalle13.com/multiviral/
Mily Sirus smokes a joint while taking some irrelevant award. ... http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/10/miley-cyrus-smokes-joint-emas_n_4251632.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003 "heheh, she's an unabashed whore."
Bet you don't know who this guy is ... hint ... he's a Soviet area political dissident who's genius was hijacked for the "third option," that is, nuclear war ... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrei_Sakharov
Boom! http://www.economist.com/blogs/americasview/2013/11/farc-colombia?fsrc=scn/tw/te/bl/makepoliticsnotwar and FARC goes down!! Special thanks to Alvaro Uribe for all of the horrifying and incidius war-crimes that led to this moment!!!
The guy who made Ren and Stimpy put on an artshow. A lot of nostalgia, but the last print is inspired art. You are a fucking wierdo to the end John K. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/08/john-k-cartoon_n_4234201.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003
Pope Francis is the slickest political operator that I can name without being arrested when i visit their country. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/10/pope-francis-philippines-_n_4251243.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003
The radar photo of Super Typhoon Haiyan, gives a pretty good image of what the fist of god looked like when it hit the Phillipins. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/10/pope-francis-philippines-_n_4251243.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003
Here's a great group the people who aren't reading this might like ... America rap went pop a long time ago, you gotta head out of the states to find most of the really real stuff. Calle 13 is legit, learn spanish you monkey. http://www.lacalle13.com/multiviral/
Mily Sirus smokes a joint while taking some irrelevant award. ... http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/10/miley-cyrus-smokes-joint-emas_n_4251632.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003 "heheh, she's an unabashed whore."
Bet you don't know who this guy is ... hint ... he's a Soviet area political dissident who's genius was hijacked for the "third option," that is, nuclear war ... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrei_Sakharov
Boom! http://www.economist.com/blogs/americasview/2013/11/farc-colombia?fsrc=scn/tw/te/bl/makepoliticsnotwar and FARC goes down!! Special thanks to Alvaro Uribe for all of the horrifying and incidius war-crimes that led to this moment!!!
The guy who made Ren and Stimpy put on an artshow. A lot of nostalgia, but the last print is inspired art. You are a fucking wierdo to the end John K. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/08/john-k-cartoon_n_4234201.html?ncid=edlinkusaolp00000003
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
Links of the week
I decided to restart the blog now that I have the hateful failed reporter juice out of my system. I'm going to start posting the links that interest me the most throughout the week. If I can do that regularly, well, we'll see where this thing goes from there. So, chirping crickets one and all, I give you the links of the week.
This week's links of the week contains: Proof that Europeans are more racist than Americans,
This week's links of the week contains: Proof that Europeans are more racist than Americans,
Rectified Spirit kills in India
Ever want to know what it's like to drink paint thinner mixed with alcohol? These guys in Uttar Pradesh will never have to wonder again according to the Times of India.
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
Oi' Fuckers!
So,
Here's the thing. Fuck you. I was a journalist, and a great one. But that's not the job requirement of great journalists anymore. You gotta be a kissass anymore. So, eat my shit. You want my soul, not for sale. Israel, as far as the violation of the original UN vote, is certainly a clear violation of international law, political wrangling aside. And like all judgments in all things, US foreign policy is wrong at LEAST 50% of the time. So now you know. Go drill teeth, or whatever it is you faggots do. Want to know more about geopolitics than you already do? Email me. I'll open your stupid shitty ignorant eyes. Children die while you drill your teeth, and tap your kegs, and whatever mundane bullshit it is that I know you don't do. Fuck off, I'm not mad, I just know I'm part of something dangerous and brutal. It hurts to be evil, I suppose being ignorant is painless.
Here's the thing. Fuck you. I was a journalist, and a great one. But that's not the job requirement of great journalists anymore. You gotta be a kissass anymore. So, eat my shit. You want my soul, not for sale. Israel, as far as the violation of the original UN vote, is certainly a clear violation of international law, political wrangling aside. And like all judgments in all things, US foreign policy is wrong at LEAST 50% of the time. So now you know. Go drill teeth, or whatever it is you faggots do. Want to know more about geopolitics than you already do? Email me. I'll open your stupid shitty ignorant eyes. Children die while you drill your teeth, and tap your kegs, and whatever mundane bullshit it is that I know you don't do. Fuck off, I'm not mad, I just know I'm part of something dangerous and brutal. It hurts to be evil, I suppose being ignorant is painless.
Friday, December 30, 2011
Is the Public Service Bubble Bursting?
So here's the thing chirping crickets, Public sector employees have in many cases negotiated some pretty impressive salaries. The book, "boomerang," cites SanJose as an example of a city that is going broke paying for it's police and firemen. The phenomena of "pay spiking" often leads to Salaries of hundreds of thousands of dollars being cashed out during the last year of a public servants career. I'm busy so I'm not going to get to this write away, but this is pretty much just a reminder that I'm going to do it. Salud! Also I'm just going to leave the typos in until I actually get to writing the post, if a random grammar nazi somehow finds this posts and annoys me, I will find them, and send them a package bomb. Hey! I think a Just scored a new CIA follower! Epic win!
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