Yearly Archives: 2023
SUICIDE OF THE HOUSE
Who was it who said of the Palestinians that they never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity? You could say the same of the Republican Party.
By rights, the Democrats should be in disarray. The Biden administration has been a disaster, as pretty much everyone knows, regardless of what some loyalists may tell a pollster. And yet it is the Republicans who can’t get their act together.
Once again, they have bailed out the Democrats with an idiotic vote to oust Kevin McCarthy as Speaker. Only eight Republicans voted for Matt Gaetz’s motion, but of course every Democrat voted to get rid of McCarthy. Whatever their faults, the Democrats have party loyalty, and they know their self-interest when they see it. Unlike many Republicans.
Because while Democrats may be evil, they are not stupid. Like Gaetz Republicans.
XI’S LEADERSHIP IS IN CRISIS: NOW IS THE TIME TO ACT
There is a growing body of evidence that indicates the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leadership is in freefall. If true, this makes Xi Jinping more dangerous as it increases the likelihood of an attack against Taiwan.
It also means Xi’s regime, the CCP, is extremely vulnerable to pressure from America, and the rest of the free world, to evict them from power.
Xi and the CCP face a deeper problem than the lasting economic downturn in China and myriad of social problems the Chinese regime confronts—problems that cannot be papered over by Xi’s prominence at the BRICS meeting or at any other international fora.
The Chinese regime’s problems are multiple and are the result of a fundamental cause—communism. As such, the Communist Chinese regime is illegitimate and is in a lasting and insuperable legitimation crisis.
The leadership is in crisis for two major reasons:
THE TREE OF JESSE
The Igreja de São Francisco (Church of St. Francisco) was built 800 years ago on a ledge overlooking the Douro River in Porto, Portugal. 500 years later in the early 1700s, the people of Porto devoted themselves to making its interior supremely magnificent.
Most breathtaking is the polychrome wood carving depicting The Tree of Jesse springing from the reclining body of Jesse of Bethlehem, the father of King David, and showing the genealogy of Jesus through the branches of the tree that are the Twelve Kings of Judah, ending with Joseph and above him the Virgin and Child. Above the Tree to the ceiling is intricately carved woodwork deeply covered with hundreds of pounds of gold leaf.
This masterpiece of baroque art is an awesome tribute to the importance of Christianity to Western Civilization. To experience the power of this masterpiece yourself, come with us on our next exploration of Portugal this coming March. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #234 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
IS THIS THE WORLD’S MOST BEAUTIFUL BEACH?
According to the many thousands of world travellers on TripAdvisor, it’s #1: Praia do Sancho on the Brazilian island of Fernando de Noronha. You’ll also find it on just about any list of most beautiful beaches, such as Condé Nast, Harper’s Bazaar, and Luxury Travel.
The whole island is gorgeous. Mention that you’ve been there to any Brazilian who hasn’t and their eyes get misty. Fernando de Noronha (no-rone-ya) is the dream honeymoon, the dream vacation that only comes true for few in Brazil, as it’s hard to get to and hardly any place to stay once you’re there.
You have to get to either Recife or Natal in the far northeast, then fly 220 miles out into the Atlantic. Then take a boat, or scamper down the rocks of a 250ft-high cliff to be on the sugar sand of this enchanting beach – which you’ll have almost to yourself.
For some reason, all those lists have the name wrong, calling it “Baia” or “Baio,” when it’s “Praia” (beach in Portuguese). As the welcome sign proudly announces above the cliff trail: “Praia do Sancho – A Mais Bonita do Mundo,” Sancho Beach – The Most Beautiful in the World. If you’re lucky to ever get here, you’ll surely agree. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #73 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
FREEDOM IN UKRAINE, CHATGPT, AND ME
Rebel and I are in with our son Jackson and his wife at their home in Bali . Jackson’s a computer wizard and we got to talking about ChatGPT, of which he is optimistic and I am skeptical. So he says, let’s try it! He gets on the ChatGPT app on his iPhone and gives it these instructions verbally (no typing):
“Write a short-form article on the subject of freedom for Ukraine in 2024, imitating the style of geopolitical commentator Dr. Jack Wheeler. If you don't know who Dr. Jack Wheeler is, let me know, and we can discuss further before you start writing.”
Instantly, he gets this written response:
“I'm familiar with Dr. Jack Wheeler and his style of geopolitical commentary. I'll craft a short-form article imitating his style on the subject of freedom for Ukraine in 2024.”
Within seconds, up pops this 500-word essay, title and all, that frankly blew me away. It is what I’d say as a short summation. I hope you find this as sobering as I do, and as thought-provoking. Let me know what you think on the Forum.
RUSSIAN ARCTIC REGIONS STRENGTHEN BONDS WITH BEIJING
Russia’s Regions on the Arctic Ocean
[Last week, 9/20, Paul Goble told us about China’s plans to separate the Middle Volga from Russia. We’ve long known about China’s plans to recapture Far Eastern Siberia. Now, as Paul explains this week, China may have plans to control Russia’s entire Arctic.]
Moscow has long declared that China’s role in the development of the Northern Sea Route (NSR) is a central part of their strategic cooperation. Despite this, the Kremlin cannot be entirely comfortable with the recent extent of Beijing’s expanding activities in the Arctic Sea.
Nor can Moscow be at ease with the Chinese government’s increasing ties with Russian regional governments in the Far North and along the coast of the Arctic Sea.
If any country other than China did the same, Moscow almost certainly would denounce such actions as neo-colonialism. If any country other than Russia did so anywhere else in the world, the Russian government would make the same pronouncement.
Given the international sanctions regime, Russia has little choice but to allow China to take these steps. Such actions carry the risk that the Russian-Chinese alliance may begin to collapse, with ever-more Russians concerned that Moscow is losing out to Beijing.
THE REVOLUTION WE NEED
The 2013 Federal Register (note the small stack on top)
[This Monday’s Archive was originally published on July 17, 2014. Please read it in tandem with the “First Amendment and Chevron” section in Skye’s Links last Thursday. We have a majority of Supremes that want to get rid of as much of the administrative state as they can. If we get the rulings we need, then their implementation by us is The Revolution We Need.]
TTP, July 17, 2014
The illegal, tyrannical, and unconstitutional acts of Zero’s Imperial Presidency are not the cause of America’s current crisis – they are the culmination of it. The crisis we face now is a cancer that has been growing slowly and steadily since the 1880s.
We need radical surgery to cure it, a Revolution, a legal one that attacks the crisis at its foundation. So – what is the target of the Revolution We Need? It is not Zero. It is what makes him and his Imperial Presidency possible. It is what is destroying any basis for Constitutional Government. Indeed, it is eating our Constitution alive. It is a medieval atavism in modern guise. It is…
The Administrative State.
THE WORLD’S MOST SACRED MOUNTAIN
This is the North Face of Mount Kailas (6,638 m/21,778 ft) in a remote region of far western Tibet inhabited only by Changpa nomads. For 22% of all people on Earth – 1.2 billion Hindus, 510 million Buddhists and many millions of others – it is the spiritual Center of the Universe, the Navel of All Creation.
Kailas and surrounding glaciers are considered the source of four of Asia’s great rivers radiating out from it: the Indus, Tsangpo-Bhramaputra, Sutlej, and Karnali-Ganges. As a sacred mountain it has never been climbed.
For thousands of years, people from all Asia have made the arduous pilgrimage to Kailas to perform the sacred act of circumambulating around the mountain – most clockwise, counterclockwise for others such as the Changpa adhering to the ancient Bön Tibetan religion.
It is not easy. Huffing over the high point of the pilgrimage route with TTPer Big John Perrot, our altimeter said we were as high as Kilimanjaro, over 19,000 feet. The highlight, however, is being among so many pilgrims from so many diverse cultures. This is one of our world’s thrilling adventures, and such a privilege to participate in. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #38 Photo ©Jack Wheeler)
BIDEN POLLS
FLASHBACK FRIDAY: RIDING A YAK AT RANGDUM
Rangdum Gompa, Zanskar, August 1993. Ever ridden a yak? Brandon did when was 10 at the Rangdum Tibetan Monastery or Gompa atop a small hill at 13,225 feet high in an extremely remote region of the Himalayas in India called Zanskar. It was part of our Indian Tibet expedition which will be repeating soon – and this time Brandon will be leading the expedition. I’ll just be along for the ride. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #161 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
HALF-FULL REPORT 09/29/23
Kangaroo Courts
Trump was handed a devastating summary judgment in New York today that seriously imperials the future of the Trump organization. The heart of the case involves whether the market or the courts determine the value of real estate assets. Asset prices go up and down, ultimately depending on what a buyer is willing to pay.
Not so in New York, says the court. The assets valued at the market peak must remain valued at the market peak, or fraud will occur if old values used on old contracts are no longer in line with current valuations. So sketchy is the court logic that Trump was denied a jury trial or the ability to raise a defense.
The Deep State fears Trump; they fear him as he teaches the public to question official narratives. All the feds have is widescale public acceptance of narratives. The government lacks a police force or military large enough to stop a massive general strike. Sure, they have germs, computer viruses, and the other tools of 21st-century governance, but they are losing the narrative war. Now, Trump is a martyr.
Dianne Feinstein is dead. She was a slow-moving poison on society as she advanced China’s interests at the expense of the United States. Her efforts to maintain the free movement of opiates into the United States have killed over 1 million Americans. This is a genocide. She discovered how to destroy urban centers as mayor of San Francisco and spread the misery to downtowns far and wide as a senator.
Labor is striking using tactics from Beautiful Trouble, which we pursue today in the HFR.
PENA PALACE
Built as the summer residence of the Portuguese Royal family almost 200 years ago, Pena Palace stands atop the highest hill of the Sintra mountains with stunning views of the Atlantic Ocean far below.
Today a museum showpiece and World Heritage Site, it is one of the most spectacular castles in all Europe. I was here with your fellow TTPers completing another marvelous exploration of the wondrous land of Portugal in October last year. We’ll be here again next Spring - hope you’ll be with us. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #231 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
SKYE’S LINKS 09/28/23
Ending the Kleptocracy
As Elon Musk leads the way toward Supreme Court challenges to the Administrative State, the era of federal tyranny and arbitrary rulings might end. The Chevron Deference results from a 1980s SCOTUS ruling that allows apparatchiks within federal agencies to make up rules and prosecute discretions with impunity. These departments and agencies maintain magistrates to hear their rules applied politically or for profit. Aggressive agencies never lose in their kangaroo courts. This tyranny costs the economy dearly.
Musk is challenging the government in several directions and is sailing into a favorable Supreme Court. His most important challenge is constitutional, as the administrative judges are far removed from the supervision of the President. They are silos of government unto themselves.
ESG is failing everywhere, as is most of the enviro movement. The memo went out earlier this month, and BlackRock is leading the rollback.
Disaster Capitalism is one of the dems get rich quick gimmicks, and Biden’s efforts might keep him from the ballot. Wouldn’t this be a turn of events?
All this and much more are at Today’s Skye’s Links.
THE CARRICK-A-REDE ROPE BRIDGE
One of the most dramatic sights along the Antrim Coast of Northern Ireland is the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge. Originally built in the 1660s by salmon fishermen to get to their nets on the tiny islet of Carrick, it spans 70 feet across and 100 feet above the ocean waters surging below. It’s still used by the fishermen to this day. And while it’s been sturdily reinforced since it was a simple rope bridge, it’s still an invigorating experience to negotiate – especially in the wind and rain when I was there. Don’t pass it up if you’re ever in Northern Ireland. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #232 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
TYSON’S TWADDLE – WOKEISM POSING AS SCIENCE
[Is there a more obnoxious jerk who epitomizes woke arrogant speaking-for-science fraudulence more than Neil DeGrasse Tyson? Read on how he was so masterfully exposed by two knowledgeable Brits.]
Bruce Thornton and others have usefully dubbed it “scientism”: “Dressing up ideological beliefs or even fads in the quantitative data and forbidding jargon of real sciences like physics or engineering.”
It allows progressives who actually know and care nothing about science to boast that they “believe in science” or “follow the science” whereas their reactionary opponents, presumably, do not.
For some years now, the premier prophet of scientism in America has been Neil DeGrasse Tyson, who since 1996 has been the director of the Hayden Planetarium in New York, and who, like his fellow astrophysicist Carl Sagan before him, has won fame as a promoter and popularizer of science.
Until, that is, he was exposed as a bloviating fraud last Saturday (9/23).
TATARSTAN CAPITALIZES ON CHINA’S EXPANDING ROLE IN MIDDLE VOLGA
[For some time now, TTP has been telling you about the independence movements in Russia’s Tatarstan and Bashkortostan, with Moslem Tatars and Bashkirs fighting in Ukraine against Russia, knowing Ukraine’s freedom will lead to theirs and start the breakup of Russia. With that, they know they can prosper for they have a lot of oil, easily extractable with no permafrost like in Siberia.
And TTP has been telling you for years about the long-range designs Chicom China has on eastern Siberia. Now, our friend Paul Goble tells us the latest: China’s campaign to separate the Middle Volga from Russia.]
Kazan, Tatarstan. Russians have become increasingly concerned with the expansion of Chinese influence in the Russian Far East, along the Northern Sea Route, and in some of the former Soviet republics of Central Asia and the South Caucasus.
Now, the Kremlin is confronted with a potentially more disturbing development: the rise of China as a major player not just along Russia’s periphery but near its core. Beijing has been increasing its investments and influence in Tatarstan and the Middle Volga.
THE WORLD’S MOST BEAUTIFUL BOOKSTORE
This is the Livraria Lello bookstore in Porto, Portugal where I am right now. Built in 1906, its Neo-Gothic/Art Noveau architecture and design make it the world’s most beautiful place to buy books. Not only was J.K. Rowling inspired to write her Harry Potter books here, but she based the dramatic staircase at Hogwarts on the work of art staircase at “The Lello” that you see above. Porto oozes with such beauty, charm, and entrancement. You deserve to experience it for yourself. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #230 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
IS THE LEFT HAPPY THEY GOT THEIR WISH?
America has been in a veritable cultural revolution since the 1960s. Nearly all our major institutions finally became woke—the administrative state, traditional and social media, universities, K-12, the corporate boardroom, entertainment, professional sports, and the foundations.
So the Obama and the Biden administrations finally seemed to have achieved their aims, in what the Obamas once boasted would be the “fundamental transformation” of America into something unrecognizable by its Founders.
But what they gave us was nihilism—the destruction of norms, laws, and customs. There is no border, no criminal justice system, no real president any more.
The citizen is a serf, the illegal alien the veritable citizen. The former needs a passport to reenter the country, the latter is waved on through. There is a slob in gym shorts and a hoodie establishing dress codes for the Senate, teen murderers bragging that they won’t spend a day in jail, and a would-be state legislator filming herself doing sexual gymnastics while begging for cash only to be upset over the invasion of her “privacy.”
So the Left got what it wanted and gave us our new America. And the result?
BIDEN CONDEMNS MENENDEZ FOR ROOKIE CORRUPTION
WASHINGTON, D.C. — With Democratic Senator Bob Menendez facing charges of bribery, President Biden weighed in this morning, condemning the Senator for accepting his bribes in bars of gold rather than fungible assets laundered through 20 shell companies.
"Gold? That's a real rookie move, Jack!" said Biden to reporters. "If you're gonna get rich off a bribe, you gotta have money wired to several different shell companies over the globe which will then launder the money and wire it to your son in exchange for a painting, who will then buy some expensive items, and give you your cut. Come on, man! This ain't rocket surgery! Don't they launder money in Mexico or wherever this Menendez guy is from?"
THE GOLDEN ELEPHANTS OF DZANGA BAI
Deep in the African rain forest where the Central African Republic, Cameroun, and the Congo come together, there is a swampy clearing of mineral and salt-rich mud where hundreds of elephants come to soak in the mud to absorb the minerals, turning their skin golden. Other forest animals congregate here as well – buffalo, sitatunga and bongo antelope. In the mountains nearby, there are an uncountable number of gorillas. The clearing is called Dzanga Bai by the native Ba’aka Pygmies who live in small encampments in the forest.
We conducted our Gorillas and Pygmies expedition here in 2012. It was an unforgettable experience, never to be repeated. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #278 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
MARSHMALLOWS, GREEN TEA, AND SUCCESS IN LIFE
[This Monday’s Archive was originally published on August 22, 2013. The cure for addiction to rewards-without-effort (government welfare) afflicting so many millions is needed more than ever today. Several TTPers have told me they consider this one of the most important articles ever in TTP.]
TTP August 22, 2013
It began in Trinidad. Walter Mischel, a Jewish kid from Vienna whose family escaped from the Nazis to Brooklyn, was doing field work on the Caribbean island for his Ph.D. in psychology. It was 1955, and he noticed the population was split between people whose families came from India and those from Africa.
The Indians thought the Africans were “impulsive hedonists” who lived for the moment and never cared for the future, while the Africans thought the Indians only cared about “stuffing money into their mattresses” and didn’t know how to have fun. He wondered what lay behind such assessments.
In 1966, when the Stanford Psych Department launched its Bing Nursery School to research child development, Walter thought back to his days in Trinidad and came up with an experiment that was to become famous as the Stanford Marshmallow Test.
HALF-FULL REPORT 09/22/23
It’s All About The Spectacle
It really is all about the spectacle according to the New Left, and whether critical systems can be disrupted such as city services or military avionics software.
We follow up on Skye’s Links from yesterday concerning the strange F-35 aircraft crash and what it means.
Ukraine’s survival might depend on gearing up the Arsenal of Democracy but the West no longer has a machine tools industry. These are the tools used to make the machines that produce goods. The problem needs urgent attention.
The fourth installment of leftist theory outlined in Beautiful Trouble, the modern replacement for Rules for Radicals, continues. The hand of Russian military doctrine in modern leftism becomes self-evident.
Please join us for this week’s HFR, and as always, your insights are greatly appreciated on the forum.
FLASHBACK FRIDAY – ON THE MATTERHORN SUMMIT AGAIN WITH MY SON
When my son Brandon turned 14, he asked me, “Dad, you climbed the Matterhorn at 14. Could we climb the Matterhorn together now that I’m 14?” It was 1998 and I was 54. I didn’t think I could do it, but his request meant more than the world to me, so I agreed. Each with our own bergführer guide, he breezed up, but it was a real struggle for me.
He made it, my guide didn’t think I could, so after summiting, Brandon came back down to get me. We climbed the last 500 feet together. Thus here we both are on the summit of the world’s most famous mountain. There are no words to come close to expressing what this means to each of us. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #35 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
OFF THE CLIFF
THE REGISTAN
The public square of The Registan, the center of the ancient Silk Road city oasis of Samarkand, is arguably the most magnificent sight in all Central Asia. The Ulugh Beg Madrasa (college or school) on the left was built in 1420 by The Sultan Astronomer, the Sher-Dor Madrasa (1636) on the right you learned about in The Tigers of Samarkand, and most recently, last Friday’s Glimpse was about the Golden Madrasa (1660) in the center.
Here are all three in the splendor of entire Registan illuminated at night. It took my breath away yet again to be here once more – and will do the same for you once you stand here to make this sight a part of your life. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #224 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
SKYE’S LINKS 09/21/23
The Great Decentralization
A battle is being fought over control of A.I.
Who will control the technology? The decentralized billions of people, or the few and powerful?
With control comes the power of the global narrative and the ability to separate right-think from wrong-think. Throughout human history, the good guys have seldom been the thought police.
Or, as many are beginning to realize:
The Right of the People to Keep and Deploy Computer Models Shall Not Be Infringed.
Information control runs far and deep. Something caused the computer on a Marine F-35B aircraft to eject the very surprised pilot while the plane was in level flight. The Marines are taking this very seriously. Did something malfunction? Is the software buggy, or did someone send a digital signal to the aircraft?
By this time next year, billions, or maybe tens of billions of election campaign messages will have been computer-generated and sent. Most messaging will be ephemeral, meaning it appears briefly and then vanishes without a trace. George Soros is investing much money into mass brainwashing via TikTok. Even the candidates will appear as computer-generated images, making fake and inflammatory statements.
Truth is under automated assault as the narrative reaches beyond hospitals killing grandma for fedbucks and global interests inventing a climate crisis. Just how deep is the deep state? It continues to fear Trump at all levels.
Economic conditions are concerning as the Federal Reserve is losing ground to inflation. If the A.I. technology behind the manipulation of the 2024 election is used to create a financial panic, we might experience Weimar Germany, Version 2.0.
The narrative is too powerful to be in the hands of a few.
WHERE AN ANCIENT WONDER ONCE WAS
This is where The Colossus of Rhodes once stood, at the entrance to the Old Harbor of Rhodes. Standing as high as today’s Statue of Liberty – 108 feet from feet to crown – it was of the Greek god of the Sun, Helios. Completed in 280 BC, travelers from all over the Mediterranean flocked to see it – as they did all Seven Wonders of their world.
They marveled at the Great Pyramid of Cheops and the Lighthouse of Pharos at the entrance to Alexandria, both in Ptolemaic Egypt; the massive Tomb of King Mausolus or Mausoleum at Halicarnassus and the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, on the Ionian (western) coast of present-day Turkey; the giant Temple of Zeus at Olympia in mainland Greece; and the Hanging Gardens of Babylon – in addition to The Colossus on the Greek island of Rhodes, now still Greek right off the coast of Turkey.
The Colossus only stood for sixty years, and was then toppled by a great earthquake. One by one, the others were destroyed by earthquakes, floods, fires and other disasters, until only one of the Seven is left – the Great Pyramid, already over 2,000 years old when the other six were built.
All seven sites where the wonders stood are worth visiting today. We’ll be organizing such an exploration soon. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #132 Photo ©Jack Wheeler)
DEADLY CONSEQUENCES OF BIDEN’S OPEN BORDERS POLICY
It’s hard to look at the photo of 1-year-old Nicholas Feliz-Dominici, who died from fentanyl exposure at a Bronx day care Friday. So handsome with his little suspenders and blue bow tie, his crisp white shirt and tiny sneakers, he looks directly into the camera with a purposeful air. You can tell, just by looking at him, that this was a well-loved child.
Just imagine his poor mother, packing his bag for the day, getting him dressed, dropping him off at the new day-care center, giving him a kiss and maybe feeling a little guilty as she heads off to work. It’s what working mothers do every day across this city.
Cops found a kilo of fentanyl and a kilo press in a room at the day-care center that belonged to a “new arrival” from the Dominican Republic, who was renting, and two people were held responsible for little Nicholas’ death.
But there is a wider culpability. President Biden’s open border kills.
It kills the poor souls seeking a better life who answer its siren call and make the hazardous journey from more than 150 countries to cross illegally into the United States.
It kills more than 100,000 Americans each year with drug overdoses from the fentanyl sent here by the Mexican drug cartels.
Joe Biden and the Democratic politicians who abet him have ensured New York is awash with fentanyl and overwhelmed with an influx of illegal migrants.
THE DEMOCRAT PARTY HATES AMERICA
Once again, Mark Levin has done a great service to the Republic by writing a fully documented, highly pointed book on a topic of vital national interest. Published today by the Threshold Editions imprint of Simon & Schuster, The Democrat Party Hates America is required reading for anyone who follows politics in America. That most assuredly includes those who identify as Democrats, though most will shun the book because it is too much of a challenge to their sense of self-worth and virtue.
For the few who have the courage to read it, the book will be a revelation. I make no secret that I was born into a family of active Democrats, and until reality intruded well into adulthood, I shared that political attachment. I have since regarded it as a mistaken affiliation, but after reading this book I now have a sense of shame.
If it is widely enough read, and I predict that it will be a runaway best-seller, the book will change the way the public understands one of our two major political parties, forever tainting the Democrats for the racism, hypocrisy, lack of principle, and sheer ruthless pursuit of power at any cost that have permeated their party throughout its history.
If you have family members, colleagues, associates, or friends who are vocal Democrats and who do not shy away from political discussions, The Democrat Party Hates America is a cornucopia of evidence that you can use to persuade them out of their delusion that they are supporting a worthwhile political movement.
A KYRGHIZ EAGLE HUNTER
A Kyrghiz eagle-hunter doesn’t hunt for eagles to eat. He hunts with an eagle he has trained from infancy to hunt food for his family.
Female eagles adapt to training the best and are fierce huntresses. Retrieved as a young chick from their mother’s nest when she’s out hunting, it takes one or two years to train them. The eagle the hunter is holding is age six. When they are too old to hunt at around age 20, they are released back into the wild, where they can live free for up to age 50.
That would be among the high rock outcroppings dotting the high grasslands of Kyrghizstan in Central Asia. That’s where the hunter’s assistant (usually his son) climbs up with the eagle gripping his forearm high enough to launch. Upon the hunter waves thee command on horseback, the hood is removed from the eagle’s head so he can see and is released.
Soaring high, the eagle searches for game like rabbits which are plentiful in the grasslands. Upon spotting one, the eagle swoops down to snare it on the run with her amazingly powerful talons. Allowing her to eat a bite or two as her reward, she’s re-hooded and the rabbit soon to be on the family dinner table. If you want to see this for yourself, come with us to Kyrghizstan on our next exploration of Central Asia. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #228 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
POST-POSTMODERN WOKE AMERICA
Woke Revolution depends on its advocates never having to experience firsthand any of the nonsense they inflict on others
When the progressive woke revolution took over traditional America, matters soon reached the level of the ridiculous.
Take the following examples of woke craziness and hypocrisy, perhaps last best witnessed during Mao Zedong’s Cultural Revolution.
The Biden administration from its outset wished to neuter immigration law. It sought to alter radically the demography of the U.S. by stopping the border wall and allowing into the United States anyone who could walk across the southern border.
Over seven million did just that. Meanwhile, Biden ignored the role of the Mexican cartels in causing nearly 100,000 ANNUAL American fentanyl deaths.
Then border states finally wised up.
They grasped that the entire open-borders, “new Democratic majority” leftwing braggadocio was predicated on its hypocritical architects staying as far away as possible from their new constituents.
So cash strapped border states started busing their illegal aliens to sanctuary blue-state jurisdictions.
THE DEM “DUMP JOE!” BANDWAGON IS ROLLING
A certain conventional wisdom about the 2024 presidential race has dominated political discourse for much of this year: Donald Trump is unstoppable when it comes to winning the Republican nomination but cannot hope to retake the White House come the general election.
What endears him to his party’s base repels the independent and moderate voters he needs to win the presidency. So, Joe Biden is clear favorite to be elected for a second term.
That conventional wisdom is now smashed to smithereens – and not in a good way, for those who don’t want to see Trump back in the Oval Office.
No, suddenly it’s Biden who’s perceived to be the loser with an increasing number of Democrats now fearing that if he runs again the likely outcome is the unthinkable – a Trump victory.
THE BARBARY APES OF GIBRALTAR
These are the only wild monkeys in the entire continent of Europe. Originally from the Atlas Mountains of Morocco and named for Moroccan Berbers, they stowed away on various ships of Portuguese, Spanish, and Arabs centuries ago and made themselves at home on the Rock of Gibraltar.
Although locally called apes as they are tailless, they are a kind of monkey called a macaque. There are some 300 living on the Upper Rock today in five “troops.” Originally looked after by the British Army under an Officer of the Apes, their health and population is now managed by the Gibraltar Veterinary Clinic.
They stay contentedly up on the Rock and are rarely seen down in the town below. You can approach them and seem to love to pose for photos, but don’t get too close. These are wild critters and may bite if alarmed. With that caution, you’ll have no problem, and enjoy being around them. One more thing that makes a visit to the Rock of Gibraltar so fascinating. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #245 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
“YOU’RE MEN, AIN’T YA?”
[This Monday’s Archive was originally published on December 22, 2017. It so deeply resonates today as the Democrats were allowed to steal Trump’s reelection in 2020 – frankly inconceivable to me back in 2017 – and are doing everything they can to prevent his reelection once again in 2024. And will attempt to steal 2024 no matter who the GOP nominee is. Thus the most important question of our time now is, “You’re Americans, ain’t ya? Will you be or won’t ya?”]
TTP, December 22, 2017
At the bar, a townsman says, “Shame what this town’s come to.” Costner responds, “You can do something about it.”
The townsman is frightened at the prospect, objecting, “We’re freighters, Ralph here’s a shopkeeper.”
Costner looks at him with disgust: “You’re men, ain’t ya?”
The townsman, defensively: “I didn’t raise my boys just to see ‘em killed.”
Costner: “Well, you may not know this, but there are things that gnaw on a man worse than dying.”
At the end of Open Range, Costner and Duvall alone face the kingpin and all his henchmen. Their courage in the ensuing gunfight inspires the townspeople to join the two grazers in gunning down the evil that had plagued them.
That is what Trump is doing for America. Politics is downstream of culture, so they say. Not for Trump. As uniquely befits him, Trump is going in reverse – changing our politics will change our culture.
FLASHBACK FRIDAY – THE MAGIC OF TASSILI
February, 2003. In the deepest hidden heart of the Sahara Desert where Algeria, Libya, and Niger come together, there is a high uninhabited plateau called the Tassili n’Ajjer. It is one of the most magical places on the planet – gigantic rock pillars and arches in spectacular abstract shapes, a forest of 2,000 year-old trees from when the Sahara was once green, the greatest profusion of prehistoric rock art on earth many thousand years old.
This is my son Jackson when we trekked and camped here at age 10. He’ll be guiding our next expedition here with me soon, for it is now safe and secure again. Come with us to have one of the most magically unforgettable experiences of your life. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #122 Photo ©Jack Wheeler)
WHITE HOUSE CLAIMS THERE IS NO DIRECT EVIDENCE THAT HUNTER BIDEN ACTUALLY EXISTS
WASHINGTON, DC — Amid a House impeachment inquiry and increasing questions about bribery and extortion involving Hunter Biden, the White House reminded the press that there's not any direct evidence that Hunter Biden actually exists.
"When you think about it, there's not really any conclusive proof that this 'Hunter' guy is even real," said historic, gay, black Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre to reporters. "Have any of you even seen him in person? Have you actually physically touched him? For all we know, Hunter is just a figment of the GOP's wild and fevered imaginations. It's sad, really."
The gathered journalists murmured and nodded in agreement at Jean-Pierre's excellent point.
"It's a shame we didn't start questioning the notion of this 'Hunter Biden' fiction a long time ago," said Meet The Press anchor Chuck Todd. "How could we have been so blind to the deep deception of the far-right? The whole thing was a hoax! This is an attack on democracy."
Journalists have begun to pull all their Hunter Biden stories pending further investigation into the matter. "Once we have investigated the GOP's deception around the existence of this alleged 'Hunter' character, we will update you on that story," said Jake Tapper. "Stay tuned for an update in 5 or 6 years."
At publishing time, new allegations related to Joe Biden's involvement in the corruption surfaced, leading the White House to denounce the existence of Joe Biden as a right-wing conspiracy theory.
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In Disney's upcoming reboot of 1937's Snow White, will the Prince kiss the sleeping princess? Or will he obtain her consent first?
HALF-FULL REPORT 09/15/23
New Lamps for Old
The New Left Wants Your Freedom
The Left feels good this week as we saw the New Mexico governor foolishly attempt to suspend the Second Amendment. As Skye pointed out in yesterday's links, nobody is in support, not even David Hogg.
Mitt Romney announced his retirement at the end of his current term. Now, there is a piece of work: Mitt was on the take for some serious bribes in Ukraine and attempted to cover his guilt by impeaching Trump. The good people in Utah hate the man now that he is rightly known as the worst kind of traitor. He did it for money, not some lofty moral purpose.
Bye, pal, hit the road.
The UAW is on strike, and they have been crafty in targeting choke points at the big three automakers. Their strategy will force auto plants to wind down and lay off workers. This means that relatively few strikers are paid from strike funds, but most workers in targeted plants will receive compensation and wages when laid off.
The UAW move shows Hamas, a concept that means controlled righteous anger in Arabic, and is one of the topics we cover in part three of Beautiful Trouble, an analysis of the New Left's approach to advancing modern leftism.
We cover the theology of the new Left and continue discussing their internal training materials, including the hows and whys of seizing freedom. Part four continues next week.
Please join us at the HFR; your forum comments on the Beautiful Trouble series have been very insightful and helpful. Thank you, and as always, your critique and insight are most appreciated this week.
THE DEAD MAN’S HAND
This is where Wild Bill Hickok was shot and killed by assassin Jack McCall on August 2, 1876 in Deadwood, South Dakota.
The No. 10 Saloon is where Hickok had been playing five card draw that day. He was uncomfortable with his back to the bar (the furthest chair in the photo) and asked another player, Charlie Rich, twice if he could switch seats so his back would be to the wall behind – and twice Rich refused (the chair on the left).
A miner who had lost at cards with Hickok so badly that Wild Bill gave him money to eat, Jack McCall, came in, walked to the bar behind Hickok seeming to ask for a drink, and suddenly without warning pulled his pistol shot Wild Bill in the back of the head, killing him instantly.
Four cards in Hickok’s hand were showing – two black aces and two black eights, forever to be known as The Dead Man’s Hand. (The fifth or hole card was down and is not known.)
McCall was hung for the murder, buried with the noose still around his neck. Hickok is reverentially interred at Deadwood’s Mount Moriah Cemetery with a large bronze monument immortalizing the single most renowned man for whom the Wild West was named – James Butler “Wild Bill” Hickok. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #227 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
SKYE’S LINKS 09/14/23
"If it is not right, do not do it; if it is not true, do not say it."
― Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
The truth, integrity, information security, and honest dealing appear to be unknown ideas.
In today's links, we discuss how your car spies on you to provide a lucrative cash stream for the manufacturer, how government agents routinely gain access to this data, and more. This includes the combination to your safe, thanks to installed back-doors.
Propaganda is now a central mission of the government as it seeks to control through emotional manipulation. One of its most potent tools is scientism, a sleight of hand that forces actions to adhere to theory instead of vice versa. Scientism is a stepping stone towards global socialism and the abandonment of the market economy.
The 1A and 2A endured major blows this week with the courts and sheriffs fighting back throughout the land. It would be easy to blame Biden, but increasingly, he seems to be approaching a vegetative state.
Inflation is awake and breaking free from its chains. Try as it might, the Federal Reserve cannot control this beast. The White House wants higher energy prices to drain money from the economy but risks accelerating stagflation.
Please join us over at Skyes's Links:
THE SNAKE WALLS OF KHIVA
The inner city of the ancient Silk Road oasis of Khiva has been unchanged for centuries. Surrounding 40ft-high snake walls that writhe around the city have protected it for centuries, enabling defenders to shoot, spear, and pour burning hot oil on attackers from three sides.
Khiva’s labyrinth of narrow lanes adorned with blue and aquamarine tile mosaics is a living museum for you to explore. On the Oxus or Amu Darya River in deepest Central Asia, Khiva was ancient when Alexander the Great seized it in 329 BC.
It survived the depredations of Arabs in the 8th century, Mongols in the 13th, Tamerlane in the 14th. The Khanate of Khiva continued to flourish on the Silk Road until conquered by the Russians in the 19th. Today in Uzbekistan, it remains as the best-preserved of the ancient oases of the Silk Road, yet unknown to the outside world.
It need not remain unknown to you, however. We were just here last year, and will be here again soon. Join us and make Khiva a part of your life.(Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #226 photo ©Jack Wheeler)