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statsman

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  1. Yeah. I thought about mentioning names, but decided against it. Was it an accident or a murder? I knew the guy, and I don’t feel strongly one way or the other. I know the police were suspicious- they’ll tell you that a ridiculous percentage of single shot accidental discharges are fatal (we all know that an accidental firing that just hits sheetrock or windows never get reported. What is missing is the expected number of accidental shots that hit an extremity). Watching Dateline, I have learned that you really need to be careful who you marry- that is the person most likely to kill you! I laugh at the elaborate machinations and intricate plots and stagings some killers go through. I know from the above example- a really simple plan probably works best.
  2. In the early ‘90s, I was in a Young Single Adults Sunday School Class. The Sungle Adults minister was married, with a young child. His wife was pregnant. One Sunday night, I was at my fiancée’s apartment and we got a call. The wife was dead. Her husband, the minister, was cleaning a shotgun in the living room while watching TV. She was asleep on the couch. He thought the gun wasn’t loaded. It was, and went off, and hit her in the head. The local police suspected it was murder. If it was, it was the perfect crime- “I shot her, with this gun, on accident, and I am so sorry”. they had nothing to charge him with. There was a huge memorial service, and she was buried a hundred miles away in her family’s plot in a part of a cemetery. Within a year he was remarried to a girl who was in the single adult ministry. His ministerial career stalled out; he just couldn’t shake the whispers. He put his pastoral skills to work as a speaker and salesman. I check on him occasionally by googling- about twenty years ago he actually did write a book about dealing with grief.
  3. https://www.wsj.com/articles/putin-condemns-western-support-for-ukraine-as-russias-battlefield-losses-mount-2c09554f?st=u8guhari6r8s2ul&reflink=mobilewebshare_permalink Putin doesn’t get it. The biggest gift from the west, to undermine Russia, is liberal democracy, consent of the governed, inalienable rights and transparent markets. The genie isn’t going back into the bottle.
  4. Nothing says inclusiveness like allowing subjects of all backgrounds to kneel to you. Most of what I know, I got from watching “The Crown”. the House of Windsor makes a lot more sense when you realize they are a corollary for the Clampetts. Hear me out- They are both slightly inbred. They are both poorly educated, and those that have some education (Jethro, Charles) believe themselves to be smarter than they really are. Both are fabulously wealthy, and have no idea how or why. Both like to go hunting in the back yards. Both have firearms at the ready, all the time. Both enjoy opportunities to put on fancy colorful costumes. Granny and the Queen Mother are direct corollaries, especially with their love of corn squeezings. Elizabeth and Ellie Mae both love their critters. Miss Hathaway represents all the personal secretaries. Mr. Drysdale could be any of the Prime Ministers.
  5. Video from Ukrainian troops' helmets capture the intense attacks and daily moments of tragedy and victory in the destroyed city of Bakhmut.https://www.wsj.com/articles/ukraine-russia-war-bakhmut-video-6c986b18?st=n9mu2yqx3olgrva&reflink=share_mobilewebshare
  6. If App State had Saban and Belichek helping with the gameplan, helping with in game adjustments, and offered five players on offense and defense from the Tide and Patriots.
  7. The WSJ article above- about MacGyveres AD (their word)- is revealing about how the war unfolded. We start all offensives by establishing air superiority. We use AWACS and others to identify locations of enemy air defense, and take them out first thing. Russia couldn’t do that a year ago, February, because we advised Ukraine to move their air defense around, and not turn its radar on until we told them to (we used out Comms superiority and satellite surveillance to know).
  8. I was right! https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-allies-patch-together-ukraines-defenses-against-russian-warplanes-missiles-32bb104?st=s7u50u3xkydwjb0&reflink=mobilewebshare_permalink
  9. The roster that Herman left for 2021- too few OL, too many WR (with too few that could play), not a single LB that knew how to play the position. For once, Texas got ahead of the collapse.
  10. Where I am on the gamers’ leaks: It is probably true that Ukraine is/was close to running out of AD missiles. It was bad that this info was revealed to Russia by the leak. It may be a positive, in that the leak exposed the weakness to citizens of the west, who expect their governments to address such problems. Hopefully the exposure of the leak will ensure that work-arounds (Quicker Patriot set up, more Buk missiles, maybe more MANPADS?) are instituted. CYA.
  11. When my brother died (in Texas), with no will, his bank released his (low four figures) funds to me with a death certificate, largely because the same bank held my mortgage. If you or your brother in law bank with them, you could give that a try. This is a good example of why our parents should have one of their kids on their bank accounts. Unless they don’t have one that can be trusted. Good luck! I know (I really know) what a PITA this is.
  12. The Doolittle raid accomplished very little materially, but absolutely embarrassed the Imperial Japanese military. Doolittle hit Tokyo while the emperor was there! So, the Hapanese responded by killing 100,000 Chinese civilians (because China helped the raid team after their “landings”). Chiang Kai Shek wrote to FDR, “Please don’t do that again”.
  13. Kremlin hit by drones. Putin is pissed. They promise retaliation. I hope this causes them to re-allocate their (diminishing) missile usage.
  14. Observation- a lot of the players that, as HSers, wanted to stay away from big programs and/or big cities, are more willing as junior or senior transfers to appreciate the big program and city. It’s like it’s not even a factor. You don’t hear a portal entrant say, “It wasn’t working out for me here. I want to try a different situation, but…I prefer to find a school with that ‘small town’ feel”. At this point, the guys aren’t shy about bigger ponds and are just looking for the best competitive situation. Hell, the big city may even be a plus.
  15. The Russian trolls are beating the drums hard. The WSJ comments are 90% Russians today. They openly complain about WSJ reporting being slanted to Ukraine. I generally reply that Russia would get a fairer shake if it didn’t arrest journalists on fake charges. This forum paints a picture that, in my opinion, leans too optimistic, but that could be just me. I think it’s pretty close to the reality.
  16. No CR: Ukraine support is bipartisan. From McCarthy’s Jerusalem press conference, where he took a question from a Russian- The reporter's question: "We know that you don't support the current unlimited and uncontrolled supply of weaponry and aid to Ukraine, so can you comment? Is it possible in the near future the U.S. policy of sending weaponry to Ukraine will change? “I vote for aid for Ukraine. I support aid for Ukraine,” McCarthy said, responding to a question from a Russian reporter. “I do not support what your country has done to Ukraine, I do not support your killing of the children either,” McCarthy told the Russian reporter, adding. “You should pull out.” “We will continue to support — because the rest of the world sees it just as it is.”
  17. I’m beating the drum that we should have dramatically ramped up defense spending a year ago (as if we were on a war time footing) and that we should still ramp up defense spending- more munitions, more systems, etc. I’m talking about a severe spike in spending, for just a couple of years Disclaimer- I work for a defense contractor. That said, nothing would be better for my employer’s long term sales than for Ukraine to lose. The subsequent years of humanitarian disasters and atrocities, all in the west’s face, will be great for sales. I still prefer not to see that, and want Ukraine to win.
  18. On the ground? Nothing. Going forward? I think it reinforces Russia’s new status as a rogue nation, with lots of economic implications.
  19. Fair. How about this? “A” is the amount of aid the west can supply to Ukraine. “B” is the aid they need to win. If A > B, we don’t have a problem. If B > A, we do have a problem. In that case, what’s the solution?
  20. Thoughts: -Wow, Patriot really works. However, Ukraine doesn’t have enough batteries (it’s a big country) and I don’t know how they get more. They really are running out of Buks and need a replacement -The hit on Pahvlorad (sp?) is no bueno. Again, more air defense needed. Like Zelensky was asking for six months before Patriot was approved. -It’s not all on the US. Europe needs to take a good look in the mirror and ask themselves what they’re willing to do to keep the bear farther east. Everybody wants Uncle Sam to step in and make things right, but counting on your big brother to show up for the fight is an imperfect strategy. -Still, the US very publicly announced an alliance with Ukraine. The way to lose this war is to parse out support, just enough to keep Ukraine from being overrun (it has to be repeated- Ukraine has no armament production, on its own, without western help). The way to win it is to give Ukraine an abundance of weapons. William F. Buckley famously said of defense spending, and the proper amount of defense spending - “enough to keep us out of a war, and not one dollar more”. Right now, with stores depleting, an ally in an active shooting war, and Taiwan threatened- that’s a really big number and any plan to spend less is based on hopes and chance.
  21. No. They keep the drumbeat of lies up, because the truth is not on their side. They will exaggerate the Ukrainian casualties, multiply the cost of US aid by several times, and call Zelensky a corrup oligarch ceaselessly. it is incredibly annoying.
  22. I don’t know. I think the story is- young Jeff Epstein learns that rich and powerful people can do things for you. You don’t want to work for them- they see you as a servant. You want them to like you. He started probing the seedy underbelly of powerful men’s illicit desires (which- oh, happy day!- aligned with his) and parlayed some big favors into a higher strata in the tower. And he kept doing that until he was arrested and imprisoned. When he got out, he started trying to develop a new network, and perhaps tried to use charm and wealth (although he still had the underage -I’m uncomfortable with overuse of the euphemisms- sex slaves). Jeff Epstein, himself, isn’t that interesting. Like with Jay Gatsby, the real story is about America and how it works. I have faith in America, though, and take comfort in knowing that despite how wealthy and connected Epstein was, his victims were able to hold him accountable. (Did he kill himself or was he murdered? I’m wary with conspiracies, but I could see it either way)
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