First You Say You Will and Then You Don't

 I know there has been colossal blowback about the amount of money this President has asked for military aid for Ukraine. We need the money for our own problems.  I understand that.  Really, I do.

On the other hand, Ukraine is a sovereign nation invaded by a much larger and better equipped Russia. It is by no means a fair fight and the world should be helping Ukraine with the weaponry they need. 

It's tough.  I know that but what happens if Russia succeeds in destroying Ukraine? Who will be next? Even more important, at least to me, doesn't the world have a moral obligation to do the best they can without putting their own military into Ukrainian territory?  Like supply the arms Ukraine asked for?

Biden has pussy footed around this issue since the invasion. Then it seemed like he finally got some guts and now he has reneged. Heaven forbid the Ukrainians should have weapons capable of getting into Russian territory. Isn't the point making it possible for them to defeat the aggressors?

I don't know.  This is just an old lady trying to sort it out.  It seems to me though, that this reversal by Biden is just one more nail in the coffin of American trustworthiness. We don't have their back. We won't give them what we promised. 

Putin is weakened by illness.  It has been reported he has about three years to live.  Will this encourage him to double down? Probably. Wouldn't it be prudent to help the country now engaged in battle with him to win?  To beat him back?  To make it abundantly clear this is unacceptable behavior? 

One last thought.  Should we need some help at some point, who would be there? Your guess is as good as mine.

It Didn't Have to Come to This!

 My, the Kremlin has been busy today. Let's go back a few days though.  Sweden and Finland are both tidying up their internal business so they can join NATO.  Probably a wise decision since Putin has now declared that World War 3 has begun.

Then the Ukrainians blew up a Russian ship.  First Russia denied it, then turned around and admitted it. Uh oh.  This is not good.  Never mind that the ship was in Ukrainian waters and shelling Ukrainian territory. I suppose to Putin's way of thinking, blowing up his ship was an escalation of the war. Whatever he thinks, this was an embarrassing loss for the Russians.

Now he's threatening the use of nuclear weapons. It's anyone's guess who will be on the receiving end, but you can be sure the first will be Ukraine. After all, people are escalating the war he started!

The bluster is now in high dudgeon. Putin has warned Sweden and Finland against joining NATO. He has told us to stop supplying weapons, and who knows what else since I turned off the news a while ago.

Will Biden get a backbone or will he cave to Putin's demands? This could have been avoided if we had given the Ukrainians what they needed in anticipation of the invasion.  I mean, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know something evil was afoot when the Russians were amassing forces on the Ukrainian border. A training exercise?  In a country the size of Russia, they hardly had to go to the border of a neighboring country to hold exercises.

Who knows where this is going to go and how fast.  I still wonder about two things.  One, how did Putin get inside the head of our President that in essence paralyzed him from doing what was right. Especially since there isn't much in his head, to begin with. It isn't his fault. I know that, but to think he has his finger inches away from our own nuclear button scares the hell out of me!

Two, if Putin didn't get in Joe's head, what does he have on Joe and/or his family? I've wondered about that on this blog before. Whichever, it does not bode well for the world.

I suppose the agonizing over which of our high-level officials is going to be sent to Ukraine to show that we can play like the big boys like Boris Johnson. I heard speculation it might be Kamala Harris. It may be more shrewd than I think. They could let their guard down while listening to her laugh about the death and destruction that will surround her. Or, they could lose their concentration while waiting for her to string together enough words to make a cognizant sentence.

This is not a happy post for Good Friday. It is made even sadder to think the Ukranians will not be decorating their spectacular Easter eggs this season. I can only hope they know that the American people are behind them even if our government isn't.

Where You WON'T See Biden!

 Hooray for BoJo! It's nice to see some unadulterated courage from a Western leader. Boris Johnson walking down a street in Kyiv with Ukraine's Zelensky. Never mind that Joe can barely walk on a White House sidewalk.

Hopefully, some other western nations will take a page from Johnson's book and start supplying the Ukranians with what they really need to stave off the Russians.

I think Biden and the rest of them are whistling past the graveyard in their entire approach. I don't see Putin as one to withdraw and pout. I see him as one who will become more and more inhumane the more he is backed into a corner and it will overflow into nearby countries like Poland sooner rather than later.

Why is it the west is so worried about the very appearance of escalation while that's all Putin's actions have been?  The escalation of war against a sovereign nation.

Easter Sunday is rapidly approaching. The day the son of the Christian God rose from the dead. Wouldn't it be wonderful if it signified the day Ukraine began to rise again? Unfortunately, that great power has yet to smile upon them. A sign would help.  Any sign.  Maybe the weapons they need in a timely manner? At the very least, weapons without missing parts?

The one thing they can be sure won't be there for them is the United States. I never thought I could see a darker hour than the Afghanistan withdrawal in our current day and age, but I have.  We can't be accused of abandoning them in their darkest hour when we haven't even acknowledged it exists. 

This administration should be ashamed, but alas, it is not. And we, the citizens, are all paying dearly for it. Not as dearly as the Ukranians, to be sure, but dearly, never-the-less.

If Ever There Was An Empty Word It Would Be "Sanctions"

We continue talking about more sanctions while people are still dying.  What's wrong with this picture?  Janet Yellen even stated we'd apply sanctions on China should they invade Taiwan!

Well, we all know how well that works! And now we're sanctioning Putin's daughters and the wife of his foreign minister.  What does that mean?  They can't run off to Paris to do their shopping? Please!

Financially, the Ruble is almost as strong as it was prior to the beginning of the sanctions.  Why? Because the world is still buying Russian oil.  Why?  Because we can't supply it because we're so obsessed with going green we won't lift the sanctions on our own production to make up the slack. Please!

Okay, I understand the politics of it - to an extent.  Biden is afraid of the far left and they are the green weenies. Therefore he won't lift the sanctions on domestic production. He's apparently also afraid of Putin.  I've asked before, why?  Putin's military is severely weakened and he really doesn't want a nuclear confrontation any more than anyone else because he, too, will be destroyed.  I've harped on this before, I know.

Yesterday I watched with a mix of sadness and horror at a lost old man wandering around a reception room at the White House after remarks by himself and former President Obama. He was totally ignored while the attendees swarmed around Obama.  Even he ignored Biden. This old man, lost and alone, is our President. Talk about sadness and horror. 

It just irritates me that all these suits, his minions, sit around talking while people are dying. From my perspective, and it's a pessimistic one to be sure, there will be no World War 3 because the suits will just roll over. They wouldn't want to make Putin mad.  Putin is one man! How can the whole world be so afraid of him that no one will stand up to him? 

Let's face it.  What wins wars? Superior weaponry or at least an even playing field and the will to win. And maybe, just maybe, being on the right side of the fight.  In the case of Ukraine, which side are we on?

Biden's and the World's Bloody Hands

Moral indignation, my foot! How can anyone, even a politician, claim to have moral indignation yet turn a blind eye to the atrocities happening in Ukraine by the Russians?  And how in the world, can we be using Russia to negotiate a nuclear deal with Iran?  This whole administration needs a sanity check.

Actually, Biden isn't alone.  For some reason, this mentally feeble old man seems to have the entire free world cowed when it comes to giving the necessary weapons to Ukraine.  Why is that?  There but for the grace of God is all of them! They will be there if Ukraine loses. In the name of God, give the Ukrainians the MIGs! 

Oh, how I wish at least one of the six or so people who read this blog had the ear of someone with a degree of sanity along with some power in this administration. Could he possibly, really want Putin to win?

When Biden stated Putin should be removed, well, so should he.  Unfortunately, the two in immediate succession are as bad as he is.  Have you ever heard Kamala Harris utter a comprehensible sentence?  Have you heard a coherent utterance from Nancy Pelosi of late? It's downright frightening and depressing that these are the leaders of our country.  Elected by us, no less.

In case you think my argument about age-related acuity is blowing smoke, let me suggest this. Seek out someone 80 years of age plus or minus a year or so. Sit down and have a chat with them.  Look for how many times they have to stop and search for a word or a name.  It will happen. Watch to see if while you're speaking or looking at something on your phone or computer together, they nod off.  It will happen. If you ask them about it, they'll deny it. Guaranteed. Watch what time of day their energy begins to fade and what time they retire.  It's part of the aging process.

People like this have no business trying to run a country.  They forget things if they even comprehended them in the first place.  Don't be fooled by the likes of Trump.  He may look like the Energizer Bunny next to Biden, but I guarantee you he will be suffering from the same lapses. Pair that with his ego, his bent for revenge and his being a lame duck from the get-go if re-elected, what would we be getting? No improvement, that's for sure.

It's time for the rest of the world, someone somewhere, to step forward and take control of the armament of Ukraine. Bear in mind that no weapon is a weapon of aggression when your homeland has been invaded. Remember, too, if you want to look at it this way, Ukraine is the only landmass that stands between eastern Europe and the Russians. If it falls, guess who will have tanks on their border waiting for the signal.

Don't forget the innocent civilians - the women who have been raped in front of their children and the children who have been slain, the men found dead with their hands taped behind them, dogs wantonly shot - for target practice? Civilians.

Putin has nothing to lose. He's finished in the eyes of the world. The rest of the 'free' world, including us, could be finished too if they/we don't stand up to him now. Or let the Ukranians do the job, they are at least willing, but for God's sake - give them the MIGs!

The Wicked and the Weak

 Don't trust either of these two men. Ever. 

One, Putin, is pure evil. I feel bad for the Russian people even though they have allowed him to hold power so long he's nearly impossible to remove.  Besides, as the saying goes, be careful what you wish for.  Whoever takes his place may be even worse though it's hard to imagine.

The second, of course, is our current President. A man so ensconced in corruption for the past 50 years it's hard to imagine why the people of Delaware kept returning him to the Senate. Now he is President. Another big why. His mental faculties are diminished at best, but as his Vice President recently said, we got what we voted for.

Wake up, people! For now, however, we are stuck. We're stuck with his utterances.  I do understand he could have been genuinely outraged by what Putin is doing to Ukraine. Somehow, though, due to his previous performances, I'm inclined to think it was off the cuff theater. Putting a voice to it could and should have been more politic, but with diminished capacity that's a lot to expect.

So we suffered through a lot of weak explanations and walk backs and the war rages on.  It was suggested today that this administration really doesn't want Russia to lose.  If true, why not? Is it a conspiracy theory that Putin has so much on Biden, Biden dares not push too hard? I think that is within the realm of possibility.

Otherwise, why are we still dithering over military aid to the Ukrainians and why don't we give them the planes they so desperately need? We're still urging Ukraine to make a settlement just as things have shifted slightly in their favor. Such actions do exactly instill confidence that the U.S. has their back. We don't and never have.

I'm wondering who would have our back if we needed it.  It will take years to rebuild the trust that has been squandered - if ever.  We've become so driven by hatred of the opposing party that every action of the presiding administration is to destroy everything the preceding one did whether or not it was good for the country.

This has to stop. The politicians aren't going to be the ones to do it.  We the people will have to step up to the plate and get it done. The politicians who hedge their bets, in both parties, lest they antagonize their campaign contributors, need to be removed from office.  Bye, bye. Retire.  Smell the roses.

The Democrats are mean-spirited and power-hungry and totally absurd.  The Republicans go along to get along and are afraid of their own shadow. It's losing those campaign funds that do trickle in even though they do little to deserve them.

Neither side has done much to help our country.  Biden has one of the most amateurish and incapable Cabinets I've ever seen. Trump had some outstanding people in this Cabinet but they tired of his mercurial moods and methods and left.

Both Biden and Trump have indicated they would like to run. Both would be lame-duck presidents.  Get some new, younger blood in there!

And Putin? If he wins this one, he'll still be lurking around the edges waiting for an opening.  He'll be licking his wounds, but they'll heal and he'll be ready to resume his initial and only goal - to re-create Mother Russia.

If that happens the carnage will not stop. For the love of decency and humanity, give Ukraine the planes and the weapons they need. They aren't asking anyone else to do the fighting for them, they're just asking for what is needed to get it done. Defeat Putin.

What Exactly is a War Crime?

 Ever since Russia invaded Ukraine there has been a lot of terminologies tossed about, much of which has little meaning.

Now that Biden is in Brussels for some face-to-face encounters, I'm wondering if there will be any meat to the rhetoric that will emerge.

I doubt it. I'm convinced that Russia, China, and Ukraine all have something on Joe he does not want to be revealed.  To find out what I guess you'd have to ask Hunter.  Or actually investigate what is on his laptop.

That's the reason I've come up with to explain Biden's reluctance to give more help to the Ukranians. One of the terms bandied about quite a bit is that "it may lead to world war three" or another favorite, "It might be considered escalatory".  This is why we've been slow to provide the aid needed and have stopped members of NATO from picking up the slack. I do wonder why Biden has veto power over the other member nations, or are they just hiding behind his reluctance so they don't have to act? Who knows. War makes strange bedfellows.

I see all of the finger-wagging and foot-dragging as war crimes too. Think about it.  The Ukrainian people did nothing to invite the demolition of their country.  Is not sitting by and letting it happen not a war crime?

The most recent term is that Putin has committed war crimes by targeting civilians, civilian structures, and aid routes.  What do you think? Of course, he has.  But, wasn't the invasion of a sovereign nation also a war crime?

Words and finger-wagging while innocent people are being annihilated is a war crime. Period.  Full stop. The only innocents in this atrocity are the Ukrainian people.

What Price Escalatory?

 

An item on the news last evening made me laugh before sending a chill down my spine. A Russian official has demanded we return Alaska; no matter that it was bought and paid for. Return Alaska?? Really?

It made me think. What if Russia invaded Alaska to destroy our oil reserves, say. And we were having a hard time because we didn't have what was needed to drive them back. We asked Canada for help - munitions, guns, food, sanctuary for Alaskan residents, and maybe even planes no longer in use. Canada drags its feet while Alaska is being decimated because any help they might give could be considered escalatory and would bring upon them the possibility of World War III.

Sound ridiculous? Maybe.

This morning I watched an interview with a very frustrated man asking if writing a check for aid wasn't just as escalatory only on a different scale? His conclusion was that it should be considered such. Is the fact that we're sending Ukraine weaponry not as escalatory as allowing planes to be delivered by other than the U.S.? World War III is most likely not in Putin's game plan because he, too, would be destroyed and his mission of resuscitating the old Soviet Union would be gone forever. He would have failed.  He'd not like that to be his legacy.

So what else could be happening? Why is Biden, the weakest link in NATO, holding up aircraft that Ukrainian pilots are perfectly capable of flying? Why does he toss "escalatory" around with abandon while Ukraine is being destroyed?  Never mind why the other countries are bowing to him.  That's another subject for another day.

I'm going to put on my conspiracy theory hat and suggest this.  We know that the Bidens had deep ties with both Ukraine and Russia when Ukraine was under a Russian puppet government.  We know Biden's brother and son, Hunter, held undue influence and received obscene amounts of money in return for access to Biden while he was Vice President.

My question is this. Just what does Putin have on Biden that we don't know? Is it, heaven forbid, possible Biden wants Ukraine destroyed so that any evidence that might remain in that country is destroyed? Destroyed so that Putin cannot resurrect it to use against Biden?

Oh, my, this has been an exercise in what-ifs. Or could there be a modicum of truth in the suggestion?

Benjamin Hall vs. Greg Gutfeld

 Benjamin Hall lays in a hospital in Ukraine where he was wounded and his cameraman and producer were killed while covering the war.

Gutfeld sits safely in New York City putting together his late-night comedy show - or what he thinks passes for comedy.

Hall had become a fixture on FOX News reporting on the war in Ukraine from Ukraine. How could Gutfeld state that the media is manipulating the news in order to generate a profit?

His point is they are using clips over and over again, making things look worse than they are in order to evoke an emotional response. If you begin watching coverage when you first arise and watch until you retire some 14+/- hours later, yes, you are going to see redundancy in the footage. Getting what they do show is harrowing, and as Ben Hall will tell you, not without danger to life and limb.

Does that repetition diminish the horror that's taking place? Not to me. We're seeing, often in real-time, offices, apartments, hospitals, and schools being leveled. Dead citizens in the streets which are full of bullet-ridden, burned-out cars. Streams of people are flooding pathways, highways, and railroad stations in an effort to get out. Many are women with toddlers in tow.

Hall and his colleagues, from all the news outlets, are there as the warning sirens wail in the background, to keep us informed as to just what is happening. 

Perhaps Mr. Gutfeld would like to take Mr. Hall's place and report on the media excesses in real-time. Let him get a crew together and visit the action. Hopefully, he wouldn't suffer the same fate.  I'd not wish anyone to be injured. I would like to see him rethink his glib observations and ground his sophomoric humor long enough to apologize to Benjamin Hall.

You might get the idea I'm not a fan of Greg Gutfeld. You would be correct. I don't have much time for anyone who designates themselves an arbiter of truth when they've been nowhere near the source of their suppositions.

The Measure of a People

President Zelenskyy was not the most popular of Presidents when the Russian invasion of Ukraine began. That turned instantaneously when asked if he needed a ride to safety and his reply was he didn't need a ride, he needed ammunition.

That, my friends, is the measure of a leader. He has done nothing but enhance his image ever since.

Now, what about the Ukrainian people? Right or wrong, I often judge people by how they treat animals in general and pets in particular. If they don't like animals I doubt I'm going to like them.

The news clips I can't escape have shown hundreds and hundreds of Ukrainians fleeing their country with little more than a backpack and, yes, their pets. Everyone from the tiniest of children to the elderly. 

Pair that with both the men and women who have stayed to fight and you have a people worthy of the admiration, and yes, the staunchest of support, from the world. Why are they not getting it?

Well, take a look around at the hand wringing of the world's leadership.  Heaven forbid we should irritate Putin. It might escalate the war. I don't think the Ukranians want to hear it.  They're losing the country they love chunk by bloody chunk with every day that passes. 

Do our leaders really believe Putin will stop with Ukraine? One thing he is known for is telegraphing his intentions. We knew this is coming.  We also know the Baltics are next. And NATO. 

If I were a young man and able, I think I would probably join the Ukrainian cause. Even if in reality it would be tilting at windmills. Putin's wars have to stop. If our leaders don't have the moral courage to do so, may the people have the strength. 

If someone doesn't come forward, and soon, we too shall be hit one way or another.  All because we're afraid of one man.  What's wrong with us?

Nickle and Diming Putin

 This is pretty much how I feel after having watched the evening news reports on the war in Ukraine. I know, I've been harping on it for a while now and I still don't get it.

Get what? Why do the U.S. and NATO continue the threat of the WWIII narrative?  I, of course, don't know for sure, but here's my take.

Putin will not go into his nuclear arsenal to attack us.  He knows full well that if he does, he too will be attacked and we would all be obliterated.  This is not his game plan.  He cannot rebuild the old Soviet Union if he is dead.

He may unleash chemical weapons on the Ukranians if the war continues to go against him.  Should that happen I can't help but wonder if we will hide behind even more sanctions that seem to be hurting us more than him while at the same time turning his people against us.

Why can't we quit huffing and puffing and step up to the plate? Determine what the Ukranians need to give them an advantage and get it to them.  Get them the planes they need. Get them the ammunition they need and the arms. And quit blaming others for our lack of action.

How can our leadership sit by and watch this carnage and do little more than posture?  And lie. Yes. Lie. They seem to forget that we are watching this war unfold in real-time.  We're watching the shelling destroy homes.  We're seeing the bodies lying dead in the streets. We're watching millions of people trying to flee.

This is a war that didn't have to happen. I just wonder what more is in it for our leadership than what Hunter Biden and his Uncle have already brought home for family and friends. 

It disgraces the United States of America and us.  You.  Me. We deserve better and so does the world. 

November can't get here soon enough. And remember, both parties need to purge their leadership and start over again. This should be a bipartisan effort because neither side deserves the following they have so far duped.

Yes. I'm old and I'm tired.  Tired of war to be sure. And even more tired of politics as usual.

Think About It

 I've been thinking a lot lately.  Mostly about questions for which I have no answers.  It is very frustrating.

One subject that is at the forefront of the current dialog.  If we create a  no-fly zone over Ukraine we will start World War III. This seems to mean that Putin will unleash his arsenal of nuclear bombs on the western world.

Would he really do that?  Would it not mean instant retaliation?  And, if we lose wouldn't he? Therefore, why would he do it? Or is it weak rational the west for doing nothing?

Two. If we open up drilling again it would delay our march toward ending fossil fuels. Well, let's look at this.  First of all, clean energy just isn't ready for prime time and until it is - well,  government dictates are what's hurting the American people. Plus, just because there are a lot of oil leases out there, they may well have been explored and found to be non-productive.

Three. If we lived in a fossil-free world, would it really prevent bad actors from attacking whomever they please? I'm thinking not. First, all those battery-powered vehicles will need to be charged. What do you charge them with? Electricity.  How do you get electricity? Even if it's generated with green energy, sophisticated hackers are more than capable of shutting down the grids - not to mention old Mother Nature.

I don't know.  I've got an appointment so I'm putting my thoughts on hold for a while. Something else to think about while I'm gone, however. What can we do to stop this madness NOW? There are things but world leaders just don't want to take any chances. "Tsk. Tsk. We can't do that. It may anger Putin."

Tough. I'm already paying the price I'm told is coming.  I can't afford groceries or gas to get out and get them. 

Think about it.

An Elephant in the Room

There is an elephant in the room and it's not a Republican. It's a nation. Ukraine.

I would have thought, at one time, the United States would have been the last country in the world to not stand by the Ukrainian people. That hasn't been true for longer than I care to remember.

We seem to always be the last ones to arrive at the party if we show up at all. I won't bother going all the way back in history. Let's just go back to Chechnya when the Russians were making short order of them.

We did nothing. Or maybe more in recent memory, Syria, when Russia was dropping chemicals on civilians. We did nothing.  Or most recently in Afghanistan where hundreds if not thousands of Americans and our allies were deserted behind enemy lines. We did nothing. 

 So here we are watching the slaughter of Ukrainian civilians.  What are we doing? Little more than nothing.  Well, we are wringing our hands, fearing we might offend Putin and that might lead to an even bigger and bloodier war.  How much more bloody can it get?

Yes.  I am an angry, disgusted, old lady who has been listening to those cursed sound bites again. But there is truth to a great many of them.

About that elephant. It's said elephants never forget. I don't know if that's true or not, but let's assume for the sake of argument that it is. Our government is not the elephant, or if it is, it's the poorest excuse for one there could be. No. The ones who will never forget the U.S. wasn't there for them this time are the Ukrainians. Maybe, too, the reason why the lion of peace in Europe, NATO, hasn't been instilled with courage from the Wizard is that they have no faith we would be there for them, either, should the need arise.

They're good at hand ringing, we're good at hand wringing and we're all in the same room.  Right there with that elephant. 

Somehow I don't see our stellar Vice President going to Poland bolstering their confidence in the United States at all. I'd consider it an insult that the U.S. would send someone so feckless.

Elephants are a herd animal. They have family units that warm your heart, they're exploited by the stronger and more sinister among us - they're very much like we, the people. An awful lot of us are in that room with the Ukranians and we will not forget. At least I hope we won't. I know I won't.

The Ball and Chain of Fear

 Which of these figures best reflects the United States of America. The one on the right if you're considering the people.  The one on the left if you're considering our leadership.

I don't know how our leaders can look themselves in the mirror and feel the virtue they spout while millions are dying in Ukraine. I am so tired of hearing we can't do more for fear of starting WW III. What sort of world do we have now when political self-interest trumps doing what's right. I've been witness to too many wars since instant transmission of images has become the norm.  No tape delay.  Live-action, happening now.

Most recently was Afghanistan. Now it's Ukraine. If I hear a pundit telling a Ukrainian  that a no-fly zone can't be set up because it could lead to WWIII one more time I think I'll scream. First, it's not for a pundit to say.  Plus, I think "could" is the keyword here. Does Russia really want to deal with the aftermath of a nuclear war?  Or China? I should think no more so than we or the rest of the world.

Do we so lack confidence in our ability to prevail that we're willing to let Russia annihilate one more country on his March to the Atlantic? Why do we allow faulty policy justify continuing to buy oil from Russia as the war in Ukraine rages? Why do we insist on funding Russia's war effort?

What kind of people are these who supposedly run the free world? We know the kind who run Russia and China.  I never thought I'd equate ours with them.

I live, as do most of us, in a world of sound bites.  We hear that Ukraine is a corrupt nation. It was at one time to be sure.  Just look at Hunter Biden's dealings with them and the enrichment of the Biden family that followed. Is it still true? Perhaps to a degree.  I don't know. They do have a different president.  One who is standing with his people. To the people of Ukraine he is their rallying point and a reflection of their resolve. 

On that point, finger pointing would be like the pot calling the kettle black. There is way too much corruption in today's politics. No matter where. But it's the people who suffer through no fault of their own other than country of birth. Especially in the grasp of dictatorships where they have no say in government.

It isn't supposed to be like that here.  We do bear a great deal of responsibility for what happens because we put these people into their positions of power. 

The Ukrarian people don't have a lot of time to overcome without substantial help from the rest of the world. We do. We have elections coming up in a few short months.  We can't throw all the bums out in one fell swoop, but we sure as heck can start. Lest we find ourselves at the mercy of cruel dictators on our own soil, let's hope we do.

Hapless Measures - Are We Really Expected to be Proud?

 I don't know how much of the State of the Union I will be able to bear this evening. I do not like Joe Biden.  Not as a man nor as a politician.

He and his administration has done more to undo this country in one year than anyone I can remember - he even beats Jimmy Carter. 

Funny.  I didn't dislike Jimmy Carter. He was and is a good and decent man - though brother Billy didn't quite live up to the standard. He just wasn't a strong president.

I'm getting off-topic. What I'm hearing in advance of the big speech is a lot of mixed messaging. We cannot support a no-fly zone for Ukraine because Putin is a nuclear power.  This really bothers me.  I don't have an answer other than to give the Ukrainians some of our excess aircraft that are sitting mothballed in the middle of the desert.  They are perfectly capable of flying them. At least it would help even the odds.

What worries me more is that we're allowing independent countries to be destroyed because we're afraid of one mad man with nukes. That's a legitimate fear but should it be the case? I think not. Surely he must know if he'd use such weaponry he'd be on the receiving end of exactly what he's using as a threat to alliances around the world.  He'd be the one being annihilated. It would be horrible for the Russian people, just as what he is doing, even without nukes, to the Ukrainian people.

I hate war.  I have no respect for those who wage it.  I have even less respect for those who take half measures in full throat defending a hapless effort to thwart aggression. Save the banks that process the funding of the oil we're still buying from Russia. Sanction the others. Keep your back turned on our own abilities to produce not only the energy we need but enough for a large part of the world, especially our allies.  Such as they are. At least they're not wringing their hands waiting for us to re-emerge as a leader. I applaud them.

Hapless does not make for strong alliances.  No matter who is involved. We'll see what shakes out after tonight.  In the meantime, Ukraine, stay strong.

War. Why?

 This is one heck of a time to return to my blog. 

Just as I was allowing myself to think things in the world were getting better, with the downward trend of Covid and the politics beginning to bite those who put those politics above our collective well-being,  we are watching a brutal and senseless war.

If there was ever a time to think new generations of leadership are called for, it should be now. Especially in this country where those who hold the most power are my age or older.  I'd like to think I'm still pretty able and that my mind is relatively intact.  That being said, I still find myself wondering why I opened the pantry or where I left my car keys. I am rash enough to know that if I had ever had the mental acuity to run a country, I no longer do.  Nor do those who are currently in power. I'm sorry, but there comes a time when one should gracefully retire from the headiness of power and go enjoy your grandkids. Of course, it's not the nature of such a beast.

Then we look at Mr. Putin.  He's 69, so he's getting up there.  It seems he's living in a different age.  War is abhorrent to most of the world. Especially a shooting war such as he has now undertaken in Ukraine.  There are so many more sophisticated ways to bend wills this day and age other than to destroy an entire population who wanted no part of it to begin with.

So where are we in this conflict?  Granted, there is a lot I don't know, but it would appear we're sitting on the sideline while the rest of the world is making an effort to stop this bloodshed before it worsens. Where once we would be leading, we're not even following.  At least not with much vigor.

There are exceptions to the youth as leadership rules of course.  Justin Trudeau is a good example of this. I see the same fault lines with the far left progressives in this country who aren't even old enough to be president dictating much of the narrative.

I don't know how much this concerns friends who are my peers.  I don't really discuss it.  I try to spend my time pursuing things that make me happy.  Slobbers and his stories.  Photography. The simple things I enjoy that make life worth living. Then I turn on the news and there is nothing but doom and gloom of one type or another. Our own border issues, rampaging drug issues, inflation, and the unnecessary causes of it. It's depressing, to say the least.

I had hoped shooting wars were pretty much a thing of the past after our dismally conducted departure from Afghanistan, but of course, I was wrong. There will always be those who think the sword is mightier than the pen. 

I for one, however, will always choose the pen. Until I'm canceled. With a bit of luck, if that should happen, I hope it's by a power mightier than social media.

If a Picture is Worth a Thousand Words...

 I remember back when George H.W. Bush looked at his watch during a presidential debate.  It was noticed.  He was roundly criticized and never really recovered from it. 

Will Biden recover from the watch watching in the photo below? Combined with all the other images coming out of Afghanistan of late, I'm sure it's the least of his worries.  It is, however, visually telling.  

So are the photos of dogs being left behind to fend for themselves and the Taliban parading about in U.S. Military uniforms. 

Now, can any of you help me get my blood to quit boiling?

A Not-So-Civil War A-Brewin'?

If you think the skirmishes we're a part of in the Middle East are messy you haven't seen anything yet!  If it comes to fruition as many expect it will be more bloody than anything we've seen.  You see, those folks don't fight nice.

The war will be a continuation of the religious one that has been going on for centuries.  Shia versus Sunni. It's all about who the rightful successor of Mohammad. The Shia belief the Prophet designated his son-in-law as his successor, the Sunni do not.

Here's the problem.  Saudi is Sunni, Iran is Shia and they hate each other.  So Saudi executes an esteemed Shiite cleric along with 46 other "terrorists". Oops!  Not to mention the rather callous method of execution, beheading, carried out in public in a place known as Chop Chop Square. And we worry about condemned prisoner in this country being excited by lethal injection!  I can't say I'm crazy about that either, but that's another post.

Needless to say Shia Iran is furious. Everyone is re-calling their diplomats and unrest is escalating.  The problem is even though technically individual countries, both sects reside in most.  This makes war more complicated than usual.  Iran is helping Iraq against ISIS because they are Sunni and actually want the same thing, to be the power in the region.

Saudi fears a Shiite crescent that could run from Iran through Syria to the sea giving the strongest of them vast territory and power.

Okay, nice history lesson - of sorts.  The problem is two fold.  One, the relinquishing of our power has left our allies in the lurch.  Those who, however imperfect they may be, were staunch are no more. More important I fear that we are in a most untenable position for having made the nuclear "agreement" with Iran who will be getting billions of dollars to put to whatever use they so desire.  It won't be helping the poor nor cleaning up their version of Chop Chop Square!

With all of this going on, somehow I feel the name calling and sparring among candidates wanting Obama's job to be childish and non-productive.  I also fear that having a President as self-serving as Hillary would be totally ineffectual with these patriarchal countries who think of women more as property than people.

So the game has begun in earnest.  Just remember while the candidates are worrying about how many women Bill Clinton has had his way with questionable consent, there are those caught between Shia and Sunni who are being tortured and killed for the most odious of reasons.   This is the real war on women!

It is not our fight? It shouldn't be but a Republican set the stage and a Democrat dropped the curtain before the drama had the chance to play out. This whole fiasco needs a rewrite and since we started it we had best finish it.

That won't happen by playing the two sides against one another and hoping the audience (us) doesn't notice.

Why Only One Raid?

I can't help but wonder why we haven't employed the skills of units like Delta Force more often.  If they can make a strike deep in Syria and take out a major ISIS leader and capture his wife and a servant I wonder why we couldn't have save those Americans who were beheaded.

We didn't have the intelligence.  So they say.  Who gave us the where abouts of the ISIS oil minister? And why is such intelligence so inconsistent. Could it be we don't have the necessary personnel in key places? And if not why not?

It's because we don't have a strategy, just piece meal operations.  It's no way to fight a war. But then we know that.

It just makes me wonder if we had done the things suggested by military and intelligence personnel at the outset of the escalation of unrest we could have stopped it and saved untold lives that were lost under horrible circumstances.  Like the young Jordanian pilot among many others who were burned alive or crucified or worse or beheaded. I get queasy just thinking about the suffering of those poor souls.

Now that ISIS is resurging and retaking territory lost it looks like the fighting, such as it is with the Iraqi forces in retreat, will continue and civilians will continue to bear the brunt of it.  If we had a President with an ounce of compassion he would do what is necessary to stop it as quickly as possible be it sending arms to those willing to fight or sending our troops if more force is necessary.

It will fall, however, to the next President.  The slaughter will continue and my queasiness will get worse.  I want it addressed in the campaign.  I want it laid out strategically as to how it will play out.
It's vital for not only the Middle East but for the world.

It's obvious no one else is ready for the leadership role. No one its to blame.  We happen to be the country with the most advanced military and capability. I think it's a crime against humanity we don't use it just as much as what ISIS is doing to those it captures.

The World Waits And Watches

Not a day goes by any more without word of new atrocities enacted by ISIS.  The Jordanians stepped it up when one of their pilots was burned alive.  The Egyptians are now stepping it up since the mass beheading of 21 of its Christian citizens yet it isn't enough to dissuade the ever growing ranks of the terrorists.

The truce in Ukraine has already been broken. A dirty little war being allowed because it's not ours. Forget treaties and obligations and broken promises.

People are being slaughtered throughout the world in the most heinous of ways yet for the most part every one is watching and waiting.  Why?  Mostly politics.  And if anything could give politics a bad name I should think this would be it.

The ability to understand has long ago passed me by.  How any country or its leadership can sit back and watch what's happening and pass on acting is beyond me.  Don't tell me it's because we're war weary that the President won't authorize boots on the ground.  I cannot believe the American people are willing to let this massacre continue because no one wants boots on the ground.  If it's true I really can't get my head around it.

More likely it's political.  Our President has chosen to give the barbarians a pass.  Others follow suit because they don't know how to take the lead.  Since we've always taken it before I think we have a moral obligation to humanity to take it now.  But we won't.

Other efforts will be marginal because we aren't there. I think we're guilty of crimes against humanity just as much as the Russian aggressors and the Islamic extremists.  We're doing nothing even though we have the ability to wipe them off the face of the earth.  Those in the region should help.  Yes. But they have neither the man power nor the expertise to do it themselves. They look to us and we aren't there.  So everyone sits and waits.

What atrocity will hit the headlines next?  The group of Kurds who have been captured and are being kept in cages like the Jordanian pilot? Will they be burned to death as threatened?  Would that be enough?  Or will we sit and wait for even worse though what could be worse is beyond my imagination.

It is not a proud moment in the history of the world.  It is not a proud moment for America for we offer no leadership.  Even worse, we have none to offer.  What a sad state of affairs.