THE CAMEL MEAT MARKET IN THE FEZ BAZAAR
Sometimes you run across something that no matter how it grosses you out, you have to take a picture of it. The thousand year-old medina or walled city of Fez is a World Heritage Site as the spiritual and cultural capital of Morocco. Uniquely epitomizing this is the stall of the camel butcher in the medina’s vast bazaar. To garner the attention of ladies shopping for their family’s dinner, he proudly displays the head of the camel whose fresh meat is on sale. Traveling in Morocco is always an adventure. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #188 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
TRUMP SHOULD WAGE NUCLEAR LAWFARE ON THE CORPORATE MEDIA
Former President Donald Trump has the unique ability to launch a lawfare offensive against the media that could be so effective it would force a media transformation, an essential step to turning the country around.
Trump can prove the media knowingly engaged in spreading lies about collusion between Russia and his 2016 presidential campaign and so much more. It seems malice would be awfully easy to prove as the evidence is in clear view. It would also be easy to show that all of the slander and libel caused material damage to Trump companies.
I tweeted about this last week as one of my most fervent dreams. And to my delight, a few days later, Trump Media and Technology Group, which owns Truth Social, filed a $3.78 billion lawsuit against the Washington Post in a Florida state court in Sarasota County, where Truth Social is based.
This is a pathway Trump companies can pursue whether he were to become president again or not. Trump is in the unique position to upend the media in a way that might radically reform how it functions in America.
Will it work? Put me in the camp of let’s find out.
THE GREAT UNDERESTIMATION OF DESANTIS STARTS TO UNRAVEL
This past weekend, Governor Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) reminded voters, and a skeptical press that has spent an inordinate amount of time writing his political obituary before he even launched his candidacy, that he not only possesses the promise and nimbleness needed to be a candidate for president but that he also has the staff and network needed to pull off just the right move to strike a blow against his rival, former President Donald Trump.
People underestimate DeSantis only at their own peril.
DeSantis and Trump were scheduled on Saturday (5/20) to be in Iowa, the state with the first-in-the-country contest for 2024, but Trump’s team canceled the event after the threat of a tornado warning. DeSantis took full advantage of his absence with an impromptu stop in the same area Trump was supposed to be, thus casting shade on the former president, who has spent months maligning DeSantis’s character.
“My better half and I have been able to be all over Iowa today, but before we went back to Florida, we wanted to come by and say hi to the people of Des Moines,” DeSantis said to a cheering and surprised crowd at the barbecue as he and his wife Casey stood on a picnic table outside. “So thank you all for coming out. It’s a beautiful night. It’s been a great day for us.”
DeSantis’ unscheduled stop speaks to the scope of the organization he already has in Iowa and its competency. Several Iowa Republicans said they were surprised that when Trump decided to cancel the rally, he didn’t try to do something else, even if it were on a smaller scale.
DARK HEDGES
You’ve seen this spooky place called King’s Road in HBO’s The Games of Thrones – but where is it and what is it really? It’s in Country Antrim in Northern Ireland near the town of Armoy. Originally it was the driveway to a mansion built in 1775 by James Stuart, descendant of King James I of England (1566-1625), who lined either side with beech trees. Now almost 250 years old, their branches intertwine eerily, giving rise to its name of “Dark Hedges,” and legends of ghosts haunting it like the “Grey Lady.”
Northern Ireland has had its terrible Troubles as we all know, but that’s history now. It’s a place of stunning scenery and natural wonders like the Devil’s Causeway and Marble Arch Caves, and those man-made in addition to Dark Hedges, such as Dunluce Castle and Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge. Then there’s the Victorian opulence of the Crown Liquor Saloon in Belfast. All in all, Northern Ireland is a marvelous place to visit. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #43 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
THE TYRANNY OF CHINA’S HISTORY
[Welcome to this Monday’s edition of TTP Archives, to reprise a TTP article of years ago and to ask what you think how it applies to today on the Forum. ‘The Tyranny of China’s History’ was originally published on December 1, 2004. It’s now almost 20 years later, and sure enough, Chicom is still stuck in the past – not just of two decades ago, but twenty two centuries ago. Yes, it’s that goofy, spooky and crazy dangerously so. As always, the TTP is anxious to know what you think about this, especially this week’s TTP archive. See you on the Forum.]
TTP, December 1, 2004
Chinese, written and spoken, is my candidate for the weirdest major language on earth.
At the Monterey Institute, where US diplomats are taught foreign languages, it takes on average 600 hours of instruction to be fluent in a European language such as French or German, 1200 for Arabic – and 2400 in Chinese.
(This means, of course, that for China and the world to communicate, Chinese must speak English, as the world will never speak Chinese).
Beyond the technical difficulties lie far deeper problems, resulting in a grossly myopic view of China’s history and future. The one buried most deeply is the way Chinese grammar reverses time: the past, in Chinese, is in front of or before you, while the future is behind you.
Chinese culture is oriented towards the past, reading Chinese history through a distorted lens, and stubbornly attempting to apply illusory lessons to the present.
This is precisely what China’s military and government leaders are doing with their strategy towards America today.
THE NAGAS OF LUANG PRABANG
Nagas are multi-headed dragons who rise up to protect the former royal capital of Laos, Luang Prabang. The city along the Mekong River has been the center of Lao culture since the 600s. The Kingdom of Laos, “Land of a Million Elephants,” had to struggle for centuries to avoid being absorbed by the empires of Siam and Khmer (Cambodia). It was the French who wrested Laos from Siam (Thailand) in the 1890s, giving it independence in 1953.
For centuries, devout Buddhists have been building beautifully ornate shrines and temples called Wats here in Luang Prabang. Every day at dawn, hundreds of red-robed monks living in the Wats parade through the city streets for donations. Since the Pathet Lao seizure of power in 1975, moving the capital to Vientiane, Luang Prabang is free of politics, preserved as a religious haven and treasure house of Laotian culture.
A few days here is not to be missed. As you enjoy a glass of good French wine at a riverbank café watching the sunset over the Mekong, give thanks to the Nagas who are still protecting this sanctuary city. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #24, photo ©Jack Wheeler)
FLASHBACK FRIDAY — AFGHANISTAN 1984
I showed this picture to my mother after my latest sojourn with the Afghan Mujahaddin fighting the Soviet Union and she didn’t see anything unusual. She didn’t recognize her own son standing in the middle. Good thing – if I had been caught by the KGB or Spetsnaz, it would have been, ahh… unpleasant. I was there with the “Muj” at least a dozen times until they defeated the Soviet Red Army in early 1989 – which led to the Fall of the Berlin Wall eight months later and the extinction of the Soviet Union itself by the end of 1991. It was one of the most thrilling – and consequential – adventures of modern times. ( Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #80 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
BIDEN FINALLY DRAWS LARGER CROWD THAN TRUMP
EL PASO, TX — The mainstream media has been heaping praise on President Biden for finally drawing a larger crowd than former President Trump. According to reports, hundreds of thousands are gathering in El Paso and it's all because of President Biden.
"These are truly historic numbers we are seeing! Trump could never get this many people even at his biggest rallies," gushed CNN anchor Anderson Cooper. "This is an incredible moment for President Biden. He's clearly resonating with the American people -- well, people, anyway -- and it's clear that his policies are making a real difference."
Upon seeing the massive crowds, MSNBC's Rachel Maddow added, "This just goes to show that people are hungry for real leadership and real strength. President Biden is clearly delivering on that front."
Many news sites praised the crowd for its youthfulness and diversity. "Just look at how young of a crowd Biden pulls!" exclaimed Anderson Cooper. "All those unaccompanied minors — I mean democrat voters and it's all thanks to Biden."
HALF-FULL REPORT 05/19/23
Porto, Portugal. Prince Henry the Navigator (1394-1460) is famous for launching for launching Europe’s Age of Discovery. Here in this city where he was born, he is revered for more than that. He is immortalized in this gigantic painting of over a thousand azulejo tiles at the city’s São Bento train station for, at age 21, his conquest of Ceuta in Morocco.
Ceuta on the African side of the Strait of Gibraltar was a Moslem pirate haven notorious for conducting slave raids on the Portuguese coast to enslave Christians in the name of Allah. Here Henry is shown in victory over the Moslem slavers who are surrendering their swords and bowing in submission to him.
Portugal remains proud and confidant of its history as tragically America is no longer. Today, America has been overrun by a ruling fascist elite intent on enslaving us. Today, Americans are in desperate need of a Prince Henry or a large number of them to rid our country of their menace. Who might that be?
ANOTHER WORLD OF AWE
Reading Joel’s beautiful Keeping Your Sanity with a Sense of Awe posted on October 4th 2021, with its mention of the sun reflecting off the kelp beds of Monterey Bay, I couldn’t help thinking of a similar experience I had.
I learned how to scuba dive off the California coast, particularly in the waters off Catalina Island. Kelp plants grow to spread their leaves on the ocean surface, but it’s underwater you experience their true beauty. They rise from the bottom rocks of the shallow ocean floor near the coast as a forest, and when the sun’s rays shine through them, it is a magical sight to see them turn the color of gold.
The first time I saw this on a dive off Catalina I was transfixed in a true moment of absolute awe, in a transport of appreciation of the Creation in which we are privileged to exist.
The photo you see is not mine as I did not have an underwater camera, I could only take a picture with my mind’s eye which I have never forgotten. So the photo is an approximation of what I saw, yet it brings back that memorable moment of awe I had years ago. Thanks, Joel. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #162)