The Two State Solution that will Never Be

Folks, the ceasefire is already cracking, is anyone really surprised? 

William did a great job with his blog and thoughts, and I wanted to add a couple of my own. 

  1.   The term “terrorist” is an arbitrary term that really could be anyone.  Let’s think about it for a second.  Just like what we did in Iraq and Afghanistan that term could apply to any man or woman between the ages of 18-65.  There is no “army or military” in Gaza just folks who are terrorists, there is no way to tell them apart from people who are not.
  2. Some/most? People in Gaza are probably really good folks, who are just stuck and trapped.  They cannot leave.  Jordan and Egypt do not allow them or want them, and Israel isn’t taking them, so they must live among terrorists.  See above.
  3. Netanyahu is a war criminal.  Yes, I will admit it.  We have some in the USA as well who are always itching to go to war.  Trust me John Bolton and Dick Cheney would be bombing Russia if they were in power.  Netanyahu wants all of Gaza, it will likely happen, the “truce or ceasefire” is just to appease his Arab neighbors. 
  4. Israel’s neighbors hate them.  Trust me Jordan and Egypt cooperate only because the USA supports Israel, more on that next.  Syria, Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Yemen, Oman, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia want them to quit.  But again, look at point 5 below.
  5. The USA is and has always been and always will be in their back pocket.  The USA has the world’s strongest military, it’s a fact.  Maybe China could make an argument but let’s be honest, Russia is struggling against a rag tag army in Ukraine.  The US is always behind Israel; we even moved in a massive Navy unit when they went on an offensive just to make sure none of our NATO or Arab allies would retaliate.  Think I/we are wrong?  Israel dropped a bomb killing 3-4 Hamas negotiators in Qatar. We, the USA and Qatar, claimed we had no idea that was happening.  So, none of our air defense nor Qatar’s could pick up Israeli fighter jets? You don’t need to be too good in math to figure it out?  I call BS.  Oh, by the way, we have a massive base in Qatar. I think it’s called Al Udid or something look it up.
  6. Turkey has seen enough.  Turkey’s President, Tayyip Erdogan, has the fourth biggest/best army in NATO (to be clear I rank US #1, Finland #2, Sweden #3) only because the other two were unaffiliated prior to joining NATO recently.  Turkey armed the rebels who overthrew Syria’s government (a good thing btw) and armed Azerbaijan when they took back land from Russia backed Armenia.  If the USA wasn’t all in on Israel, it wouldn’t exist.  Call me a stooge but Turkey has an army that would go through Israel like a hot knife through butter.

Are you convinced yet?  There will be no peace or solution. 

The Chief

    Mamdani = Trump …. No Seriously hear me out

    For those of you paying attention or not, Zohran Mamdani is running to be the next Mayor of New York City.  If you believe the polls, he is going to win.  The current Mayor Eric Adams is running but had to be pardoned by Trump and is deeply unpopular.  Former Governor Andrew Cuomo is running, but again he is pretty unpopular.  A token whacko Republican, Curtis Sliwa (founder of the Guardian Angels), is running, (I say whacko because he is running as a Trump disciple in an area where Trump is very unpopular). 

    Mamdani is a full out socialist, actually I would even say he is bordering on being a communist.  Some of the things he supports are fare-free city buses, city owned grocery stores, $30 an hour minimum wage, free public child care, massive increase in affordable housing units, public safety reform (aka decriminalization), and a tax increase on corporations and those earning more than 1 million annually.

    So how is he like Trump?

    Isn’t it obvious?  The democrats are undergoing their own “MAGA” transformation.  Sure, Mamdani’s ideas are wild and crazy, and without much of a doubt I can say they will not work/be put into place.  However, what makes him similar to Trump is he is speaking directly to a growing base of people in this country…. The left behind.

    Trump did this same exact thing. He ran an unorthodox campaign, speaking while wearing a red hat saying “Make America Great Again.”  It was simply an acronym MAGA but he was speaking directly to a group of people as well … ones who believe they are subsidizing other people’s lazy, drug/alcohol, criminal, and homeless lives.  It worked, as he was nominated by a major party from a pool of what seemed like 20 really good candidates. 

    When I say unorthodox, I really mean it. He is a populist not a conservative by any means.  He has no issue with the spending/debt levels in this country. He wants tariffs on all other countries, no tax on tips, ending all global conflicts, removing all illegals, and bringing factory jobs back just to name a few.  Please tell me what political box he fits into?  The answer is none. 

    In the opinion of this blogger, Mamdani is doing something similar.  While it is a whacky agenda, he is very likely to win election next month.  First, to stop him, Cuomo or Adams must have dropped out already. In essence they are splitting the liberal vote with Mamdani 3 ways.  Then factor in Sliwa taking the conservative/center right vote and Mamdani only needs about 29% or so to guarantee victory.  This parallels Trump’s victory in the primaries in 2016.  When neither Ted Cruz nor John Kasich refused to drop out, all Donald needed was 34% to keep winning primaries.  Cruz and Kasich and their supporters never understood this and as a result Trump was the nominee. 

    Negative campaigning and attacking his socialist agenda is well and good, but at this point in the campaign, Mamdani’s supporters aren’t going to switch allegiances.  Again, similar to Trump.

    I know some folks on the Right are beaming with glee. They are happy to see New York City suffer.  This is their Superbowl or World Series win.  Do not be so sure.  Folks, while his policies may not win, and yes New York City may well go into a spiral, the folks who can leave will leave.  They will re-locate just like many “California Conservatives” have over the years.  It’s a bad thing because CA has gotten bluer and bluer while the surrounding states have somehow gotten bluer and bluer as well.  Do not fool yourselves, this is not a good outcome.  Seeing people suffer is never good. 

    Mamdani is not a person, he is a way of life we do not need in this country.  He is a modern-day Santa Claus. His followers all figure there “has to be something in that bag for me.”  The words “free”, and “government run” are what he knows, how will he pay for it?  That isn’t for him to answer, he will be on to the next office by then.  Leaving the taxpayers holding the bag.

    Just remember back a few years.  It was claimed that Trump was running in the wrong primary, he was a liberal plant, he can’t win.  His policies make no sense. He wears a stupid red hat.  One by one, other candidates dropped out, then he got nominated.  But he still wasn’t to be taken seriously.  Hillary barely engaged with him, kind of half-assed debated him. No one really gave him much of a chance.  He won.  Shocked the establishment.  Then 8 years later he won again, pulling off in my opinion a bigger shocker.

    My point?  If Trump can win the presidency, Mamdani can win the mayorship of New York City.  If Mamdani can win the mayorship … Gavin Newsom can win the presidency as well.  Say what you want but if I told you 25 years ago Donald Trump would be president, you would have thought I was insane. 

    Ignore the New York City results at your own peril Republicans.  Fear not, AOC will be only a 1-term congressman, you said. Gavin will never be governor, you said. Mamdani can never win the New York Mayor primary, you said.  Crazier things can happen.

    The Chief

    Joe Rogan Might be Surprised … I am not

    So, I came across this opinion article that quoted the Joe Rogan Program about the “Left’s response to the Charlie Kirk Murder.”

    “The fact that they were cheering when he died, normal people — housewives, moms, f–king people working at banks, in various industries, celebrating a man getting shot in front of his kids, in front of the whole world. What the f–k is wrong with us?”

    Those remarks came during his discussion this week with The Red Clay Straws, a country band. Rogan went on to clarify that he was talking specifically about the left’s response. “People on the Left, they’re supposed to be ‘progressive.’ These are supposed to be the kind, compassionate inclusive people that are celebrating gun violence, like public execution — that’s insane.”

    Don’t get me wrong, Rogan is not wrong about that take in the slightest.  There were many a person on the Left in all careers of life cheering or applauding the death of Charlie Kirk.  However, there are many on the Right who would have a similar reaction if it was a Left leaning person or Democrat killed as well.  Don’t even attempt to argue that point with me.  I watched Jorge Riley spew absolute hateful BS at CRA and Sac County GOP meetings unchallenged.  I received an email from Tony Andrade (rip) after Barack Obama got elected showing a watermelon garden and Kool-Aid in front of the White House.  Again, unchallenged by the so called Right.  A former CRA member about my age called for the firebombing of Planned Parenthood.  A colleague of mine had an ear-to-ear grin when I asked “what if it were AOC instead of Charlie Kirk?”  Trust me, the whack jobs are on both sides.

    What the F**k is wrong with us is not the wrong take, it’s the correct one.  But it applies to both sides.

    To attack the Democrats, use this logic on them.  They viewed Kirk as a Hitler, check out who they mourned….

    Rogan speaks for a great many people who are just plain gobsmacked by the left’s capacity to excuse violence, which was evident this week after the death of Assata Shakur, a well-known leftist radical and convicted cop killer whose poetry was praised by those mourning her passing. Kirk, on the other hand, is not being remembered fondly by the left, which is of course their right—but when you have kinder things to say about an actual killer than you do about someone who merely used provocative language, it communicates something about your priorities.

    Yikes.  But again, check out similar martyrs; George Floyd, Michael Brown, and Daniel Abrego Garcia.  That’s who you are going with?

    Folks before you say Rogan is far right, he actually is fairly middle of the road, just like Bill Maher is not far left, he is an old school liberal.

    The mainstream is starting to take notice of both sides veering further away from “the middle.”  For example, there is a growing belief Israel is going too far and the US is allowing them to bring instability to the Middle East.  Another is the rise of drug abuse, homelessness, and crime in our large cities making them uninhabitable.  How about college campuses being allowed to have anti-Israel protestors take over entire lecture halls?  All while the “leadership looks the other way or joins them.”  How about allowing BLM/Antifa to take over a couple city blocks in Seattle or “Chaz/Chop” and allowing them to burn down businesses in the name of “outrage or feelings.”  How about BLM rioters destroying city blocks because again feelings. 

    I am intrigued by what the future holds politically for both parties.  While some will point to AOC or Gavin Newsom being the future of the Left, or DeSantis or JD Vance being the future on the Right, what about a person like Sen John Fetterman, a Democrat who supports Israel?  Or Sen Rand Paul of Kentucky who is more of an old school conservative/libertarian type?  It’s odd to think about because the way we are going politically seems to be inching further and further apart as opposed to closer to the center in terms of positive change.

    The Chief

    PS at my High School (Jesuit High) we had a speaker about a year after 9/11 address the student body, he called President George W Bush a war criminal, and in the same sentence called Saddam Hussein a humanitarian.  In college in Marin County, the department chair for the Business School, upon seeing my Bush/Cheney 04 shirt said she wanted me “sent to Iraq and have my head blown off.”  The incident, caught on video, was sent to the Dean of the business school, he claimed it was a violation of school policy for recording her without her permission.  So, we sent it to the President of the University. He claimed it was freedom of speech.  Folks, in both cases, they were wrong.  The setting was public so the idea of being illegally recorded with an open camera doesn’t apply.  Second, the First Amendment does not cover hate speech.  This crap has been allowed at college campus’ forever.  I will say it was nice seeing a sea change. Too bad it took the murder of Charlie Kirk for this to happen.  But I too share the views of Joe Rogan.  What the F**k is wrong with people.

    Thoughts on Charlie Kirk

    Charlie Kirk was killed the other day. It was coincidence that I was in Utah when it happened. It does seem weird that shortly after I drove thought metro Salt Lake City that my brother in Christ was murdered.

    Shortly after the Fox News alert, I got a text from “The Chief” informing me that it was a fatal shot. Chief stated that anyone viewing the video knew Kirk was dead. He told me the delay in announcing the death was to inform next of kin. As usual, my staff is Really Right.

    Charlie Kirk was doing what he loved, arguing presuppositional apologetics with young skulls full of mush. Charlie was effective in removing the blinders from the minds of young people. He was quick on his feet and gentle in his rebukes to followers of the failed philosophies of our age. His mission was to turn the hearts of our youth toward the reality of God.

    I find it remarkable that this unapologetic Christian has been praised by Protestants, Roman Catholics, and even Jewish folks of all stripes. In the wake of his death, people have been spontaneously doing what Charlie advocated, taking back our institutions. People praising his murder on social media are finding themselves unemployed and outcasts. People are seeing a chance to fight back via peaceful means and taking it. Chief was right that Charlie was just a guy with a microphone and a message that is older than our civilization.

    Charlie’s methodology of discourse follows in the footsteps of folks you probably haven’t hear of like Cornelious Van Til, Rousas John Rushdoony, and Greg Bahnsen. Charlie Kirk argued that you need to stay consistent with your worldview assumptions. This, in essence, is using a presuppositional apologetic. Bahnsen called it “pushing the antithesis”. Don’t let folks borrow capital from a Christian worldview to prop up their failed philosophy. Look on YouTube for some videos of actor Kirt Cameron doing the same thing long before Charlie Kirk was old enough to shave.

    Charlie Kirk touched the lives of many people and his reach on social media will allow his message to reach people long after he is laid to rest. Charlie’s message is eternal because the God that he knew is eternal. Charlie was able to communicate that love with boldness. Charlie will be missed. “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.” This has always been the truth.  

    Charlie, thanks for fighting the good fight. Well done thou good and faithful servant. Enter into God’s rest. (see Matthew 25:23)

    Charlie Kirk RIP

    Those calling for blood in the streets got what they wanted today.  Charlie Kirk (he was a Republican, but affiliation doesn’t matter here) was killed today while speaking at Utah Valley University.  Ironically reports/video show he was fielding a question about deaths from mass shootings when the fatal bullet was shot.  Do not watch the video footage, it is gruesome.  It pierced his main artery in his neck, his body went limp, and a literal river of blood shot out.  It looked as like something from a horror/sci-fi/war movie.  I texted the Blog Father “no chance he lived.” 

    Kirk leaves behind a wife, and a 1- and 3-year-old.  Also, online footage of his death will be circulated/still on the interwebs likely into eternity.  Imagine when those kids grow up, they can view the video of their father shot and killed.  Oh, also the ensuing comments celebrating his death.

    But this blog is not to memorialize Charlie Kirk or attack the left.  It’s to make a point that we live in the equivalent of a Banana Republic or third world country. 

    Folks, just in the past roughly 12 months we have had; 2 attempts to kill Donald Trump, 2 Minnesota State electeds shot, 1 fatally, a judge murdered by a Sheriff in Kentucky, The United Health CEO murdered, and an arson at the house of PA Gov Josh Shapiro.  The violence is condemned, thoughts and prayers are offered up, pro-gun vs anti-gun happens, then right back to where we started.  Oh, prior to these events, Gabby Giffords was nearly killed, and Steve Scalise likely would have been killed had the secret service and Sen Rand Paul not been present at the scene of that shooting. 

    I guess it’s now ok to kill folks you don’t agree with politically?  That seems to be the message sent on all forms of media, electronic and televised. 

    Trust me when I say this, it’s not representative of all Americans, it’s a growing fringe on both left and right…. Yeah, even the right.

    When at the gym, I will occasionally have the news on in front of me, granted subtitles skew the content a little bit, but both sides are playing to the extreme.  Online media is the same exact way, who cares about being righ,t its more important to be first. 

    The root causes of this issue are as follows; we have so many shootings in this country we have become numb to it under the guise of “violence happens” in that part of town.  Check out the local news at night.  We allow violent video games, I know, I know, research shows no correlation but there has to be something there, our young people are the trigger pullers in most cases now, and violent video games were a thing in my youth, and still are to this day.  This de-sensitizes you to death, oh, and in some of these games, you are the “bad guy” shooting at the police…. Where have we seen that before?  Political nonsense being spewed on tv and electronic media is another form. Now imagine consuming many hours of this garbage and thinking it’s gospel.  Again, I’m talking left and right.  This is the straw that stirs the drink. 

    I overheard a fellow Republican at a CRA meeting say “The DNC is a great spot for a terror attack… think of how great it would be with that scum gone.”  I objected and was told by another member to “shut up.”  Yep.  Again, CRA is a “right leaning organization.”  I do not think many sane people advocate blowing up a mass of the population unless they have multiple screws loose.

    Similar statements, but not political in nature.  I work with someone who has never missed early morning and prime time tv. They had this one several years ago;  Russia had been massing troops at the Ukraine border at the time.  “Come on Putin, move in and fire a bullet, I want the stock market to go down and have people panic sell so I can buy on the cheap.”  Yeah, he wanted a war and people dying in large numbers so he could buy a stock cheap.  Digest that for a minute.  Innocent people…. Dying.  Or this great hit from the same guy regarding Chipotle’s e-coli outbreak a decade ago.  It is was caused by an investor who is short (betting the stock goes down) the stock.  So let me get this straight, some guy somehow instructed a huge storefront operation to get high numbers of people sick…. On purpose, mind you.  This is tin-foil hat right/left wing BS.  It also shows a big disconnect from reality.

    Fear not, the left does it as well, but what scares me is the right is now starting to have more and more fringe actors like the ones mentioned above. This creates a scary situation.  For example, Sean Hannity. I caught his opening monologue yesterday and boy I wish I hadn’t.  He has been lost since Rush Limbaugh died and it shows.  He dedicated the beginning to not Charlie Kirk but going off about how deranged and mad the left is.  Sean, we know this.  A deranged, Palestinian supporting leftist attempted arson on Democrat Josh Shapiro’s home.  Shapiro is Jewish.  Monologues like this do not help, they actually hurt.  It stirs up folks who have no view of humanity.

    A final word comes courtesy of Alexandria O’Casio Cortez. 

    “From the moment I was elected, I have felt that I accept a certain level of risk in doing this job,” Ocasio-Cortez told reporters. But she added that security protocols for members of Congress are “for a bygone time. … They’re not designed for a digital threat environment era.”

    AOC and several other members of Congress have cancelled outdoor events and are thinking of hiring private security.  The type of thing yesterday should scare lots of people, but not for the reasons you think.  Charlie Kirk is really a “JAG” (Just a guy) if you think about it.  He is a relative unknown outside of the political spectrum.  He isn’t elected.  Has no voting record outside of “he voted.”  He was murdered.  In front of his family.  A sniper from long distance, in what appears to be a long thought-out and planned attack.

    How do we stop this?

    We really can’t.  Political rhetoric, especially on the podcast fringe from both sides.  Some of what I think is the solution is the same as Brian Kohberger.  When this perp is arrested simply declare you caught the guy.  Do not name him or put out any info.  Try him after you have an airtight open and closed case that not even the public defender’s office even really wants to touch.  No plea bargain.  Federal terrorism/hate crime charges.  Death penalty!  Upon conviction, again as an unknown to the world population, make it clear any appeals are expedited to a judge immediately.  The goal here is a needle/electric chair/firing squad within 5-7 years of conviction.  This may not stop the shooting, but it helps to remove the scum and the attention they want from this earth.  As opposed to Kohberger who like I mentioned will be around awhile to continue to seek out attention for what he did.

    The Chief

    PS Matthew Dowd formerly of MSNBC fame, I’m coming directly for you next week in this space.

    Trump/DC/Epstein Part 2: Electric Boogaloo

    Why Epstein?  Why is this still being talked about in the news media?  I’m talking mainstream, far left, far right, and all over the internet.

    None of this makes sense honestly.

    Whose fault is it?  Trump’s.  Yep, go ahead CRA folks, throw your insults and other things my way.  Your newfound BFF, Trump, is solely to blame for this.  It was easily handled, but he chose to pull a “Covid Donald” as I call it.  Playing to both sides of his MAGA base.  If there is one thing Trump is very, very bad at its controlling a situation.

    1/3 of the problem is Trump’s MAGA Base.  Who are MAGA you may ask?  I will define them for you.  MAGA are not representative of the Republican Party.  MAGA includes conspiracy theorists, new found “conservatives”, vaccine deniers, and a slew of 1 issues candidates that could careless about Party.

    How is this Trump’s fault? He should know his MAGA folks better than most.  These conspiracy theorists and election deniers are something else.  They play in all far left/right corners of the internet. Also he has 1 in his cabinet, Dan Bongino of Fox News fame.  Bongino has been pushing the hardest to make the files public.  Vaccine deniers fit in this group as well, I’m not talking Covid, I’m talking these folks who are ok with Florida doing away with mandatory vaccinations.  Read what Measles can do to a young child, polio, etc.  Oh, RFK jJ. is in his cabinet spouting this BS by the way.  The newfound conservatives comment refers mostly to CRA types who hated Trump calling ,him a Democrat etc. who suddenly turned once he became popular as president.  The one issue people began coming out of the woodwork eight years ago. They love some of Trump’s policies but they really don’t know why.

    2/3 of the problem is the far left.  They hate Donald with a vengeance, and will do anything to get him gone.  The rumor started by Musk that Donald is “in the Epstein files” was liquid gold for them.  They picked it up and ran with it.  Now they are getting right-wing whackos to support releasing the files via congressional vote.  Margorie Taylor Green and Thomas Massie being 2 of them.

    3/3 of the problem is Trump himself.  Trump has been odd and erratic sense Covid.  Really, he has been all over the place on things.  He was all about releasing the files, Pam Bondi claimed they were all on her desk, then they weren’t.  Then they released the video with a minute or so missing, and basically claimed a judge was holding up releasing the files. Then Trump declared “If you are a supporter of mine and you want the files released; I do not want your support anymore.”  Yep, smart play to the base by releasing an obviously doctored video, then say you are done with them.  He is now calling it a “Democrat hoax.” 

    “The confused and badly failing Democrat Party did nothing about Jeffrey Epstein while he was alive except befriend him, socialize with him, travel to his Island, and take his money!” Trump posted. “They knew everything there was to know about Epstein, but now, years after his death, they, out of nowhere, are seeming to show such love and heartfelt concern for his victims. Does anybody really believe that?

    “The now dying (after the DOJ gave thousands of pages of documents in full compliance with a very comprehensive and exacting Subpoena from Congress!) Epstein case was only brought back to life by the Radical Left Democrats because they are doing so poorly, with the lowest poll numbers in the history of the Party (16%), while the Republicans are doing so well, among the highest approval numbers the Party has ever had!” Trump added.

    The president asserted that the DOJ “has done its job, they have given everything requested of them. It’s time to end the Democrat Epstein Hoax, and give the Republicans credit for the great, even legendary, job that they are doing.”

    I call that a steaming pile of BS!  If it’s a hoax, why was Epstein convicted and sentenced?  Why is Ghislaine Maxwell rotting in prison?  Why was she convicted?  Seems like an easy pardon case here.

    Just to be clear here. I do not think it was a hoax.  I do think this whole thing is true.  I do think we are seeing a coverup by a President who ran on transparency and breaking up the Swamp.  Just to be clear, I do not think Trump’s name appears in anything bad.  I do think he ran in some of those social circles, so his name is likely there.  I do believe there are a number of very powerful folks on that list, not just government folks.  I’m talking financiers, CEO’s, etc.  Someone powerful got to Trump, and he flipped.

    Trump has handled this whole thing wrong; it’s a damn shame too.  Look at all his momentum in his first 4-5 months.  Best President of all time?  Could have been!  Then he decided to play in this and the tariff stuff.  He blunted his momentum bigtime.  Congress is fighting him because he flipped. 

    Trump, release the files.  Do it.  Take a gigantic straw to the Swamp and have Stormy Daniels assist with draining it.  Watch the swamp rats run, and your base go nuts.  There is still time.

    The Chief

    What the Texas Flooding can Teach us about Government

    Sad, tragic, unthinkable, the horror of sending your daughter to church camp only for them to be swept away by a massive once in a forever flooding event.  Or to have your entire house washed away, or watching in horror as family members/friends/acquaintances are swept away by the flooding knowing you cannot do anything about it.  It’s awful and I shudder to even try to imagine how those families feel. 

    Now the blame game has begun.  The cable TV watchers and hosts are eager to find a scape goat to blame this on.  It was actually part amusing, it’s on at my gym so I would watch about a segment or two a day.  God I’m glad I don’t pay for that at my house.  First you had the psychotic Margarie Taylor Green saying it’s cloud seeding that was done to change weather patterns.  Yeah.  A grown adult said that.  Then you had a flurry of Democrats saying Texas turned down money for a better emergency warning system, that would have warned about the flooding.  Yep, you lost a loved one, damn those Republicans in Texas, and damn the “cloud seeding group.”  Yikes.  That’s how far we have fallen as a country. We now politicize children/people dying.

    Blaming the other party, or a government organization, or a hair on fire conspiracy theory when people are dying/dead/missing makes you the lowest of the low.  It’s not the fault of a political party or any person for the deaths that occurred. 

    Whose fault is it then?

    It’s the collective whose fault.  Why was the camp allowed to be built in a “long dried up creek?”  I think that is a fair question. It was approved by a planning commission and a zoning commission. Did anyone think to ask about “what if a once in a lifetime event happens?”  Or maybe a step further in saying “this used to be a creek, we should modify this to flood proof it?”  Everything is bigger in Texas, including the flooding.

    What about the lack of a flash flood warning?

    This is crazy to even ask.  It’s almost as bad as the Republicans I know saying “if only the fire hydrants worked during the Pacific Palisades fire!”  That is delusional thinking. A flash flood warning may appear on your TV should you be watching it as a weather alert, it may appear via text message on your phone (if you have service, the part of Texas we are talking about is very, very rural.) service likely didn’t exist. A flood siren going off?  Is it tested?  Would it work?  It was also very early in the morning while folks were sleeping, it likely would have been ignored.  It’s easy to be a Monday morning quarterback, everyone can say a day later what they woulda/coulda/shoulda done the day before. 

    If you are relying on the government to keep you safe or give you an early warning then rethink your priorities.  In my area, Oroville dam had its spillway take major damage. We were told nothing was wrong, even though it was obvious the spillway was deteriorating by the hour.  Simultaneously with the government assuring that there was no threat to public safety, downstream of the dam, the government removed the baby salmon from the fish hatchery and PG&E took down the powerlines nearby (I’m actually thankful for this, as that company tends to kill about as many innocent civilians as Netanyahu does in each conflict).  I was told by a 90-day loving co-worker that there was nothing to worry about, as he had yet to see a TV segment or report on this. Well, a couple days later I got a text while he was in the office about the dam was going to fail and massive flooding was imminent.  He got a phone call from his wife, to which after hanging up, he decided he needed to leave right away, but that all was well.  His master plan?  Head for higher ground in an automobile with no 4-wheel drive.  First issue with his plan…. The higher ground was actually in the direction of said dam.  Secondly, when you are in a car, you are at the mercy of a large wave of rising flood waters.  I prefer my chances inside a building or at the very least on foot to be able to maneuver tough terrain quicker and easier than trying to find a passable roadway.

    Two days later

    He came into work buzzing about how the “roads were crowded, and the store shelves were vacant.”  Sound like the plandemic boys and girls?  Please do not hoard toilet paper?  Please don’t hoard groceries/staples etc.?  Keep in mind where we work is a solid 3 hours plus from that dam.  Additionally, with the farm land, designated flood zones and the ability to blast the levee further north, we were never in any danger of seeing standing water period, let alone some sort of Texas style flooding.  Me?  I worked my day, went to the gym, went home and if this tidal wave were to come, I would simply climb into my attic, bust a whole in the roof and fly my American flag simply letting folks know someone is here.  Of course he had an insult to call my plan.

    Here is my comeback to his “plan”

    Thou fool (William’s term which I love btw).  You watch more TV in a single morning than I do in a month.  Rather than thinking for yourself, you rely on a talking head reporting from a studio to tell you what to do.  Did it not occur to you, the smart folks like your co-workers, were unfazed and didn’t leave?  You had the genius idea to stop at a store looking for essentials… for what purpose exactly?  You tried to get gasoline; the lines were a mile long… I wonder why?  What was your plan?  Oh, wait you left the house because a talking head said go… you never had one.  Just like a lemming walking toward a cliff, you aren’t smart enough to figure out the next move and over the cliff you go.  Yet you think you were the smart one that day.  Both parties rely on people just like him, they don’t take a stand on any issue and always do as instructed by the propaganda network.

    In closing I will say this.  Let me repeat if you are thinking a government run emergency alert system is the answer, check yourself into a clinic.  Think for yourself and please turn the tv off.  I cut the cable about 9 years ago.  I do not miss it.  I think for myself and always have a plan, one criticism I have of the older generation is they make the same mistakes over and over again, repetitively because they never learn a lesson.  My hypothesis is that they run their lives like a tv show, the next episode is on tomorrow and yesterday’s is in the past.

    The Chief

    “I’m from the government and I’m here to help” used to be a statement people feared, now it’s embraced.  I’m scared for the country’s future…. I really am.  And I didn’t walk uphill in the snow to school both ways like the scared generation did.

    Epstein Didn’t Kill Himself …. Or Did He?

    A pox on Jonnie Does, Chief, and Jake the Snake’s houses!  I had told them Epstein didn’t kill himself and the government was covering it all up!  They better be smearing Chick-fil-A sauce over their doors each night!  They have been warned!  They all tried to get the editorial board to block this blog.  I get the last hurrah!

    I can appreciate a good conspiracy, NBA draft lottery being rigged, games being fixed, the Clinton Crime Family, People “falling out of 2nd story windows in Russia, and planes “disappearing over Malaysia.”  But these four things I know are true; we have never been to the moon, the earth is flat, covid was a hoax, and Jeffrey Epstein didn’t kill himself.”  Trust me, the first 3 have already been proven true, I will now show you positive proof of the last one.

    We were all told Epstein killed himself in his jail cell, he had no help.  Jeffrey Epstein, if you are not aware, is the guy accused of “allegedly” sex trafficking girls as young as 14 for wealthy clients/friends/celebrities/politicians/etc. to have sex with.  Also arrested and jailed was his accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell.  Maxwell “allegedly” recruited these girls, again, as young as age 14, for this operation.

    For years we were left to wonder who was listed on the “client” list, rumors of; Prince Andrew, Alan Dershowitz, Bill Richardson to name a few.  He was also running in the same circles with this list; Epstein was a longtime acquaintance of Prince Andrew and Tom Barrack, and attended parties with many prominent people, including Bill ClintonGeorge StephanopoulosMark ZuckerbergDonald TrumpKatie CouricWoody AllenJeff BezosSergey BrinNaomi CampbellStephen Hawking, and Harvey Weinstein. Contacts listed in his printed phone directory included Rupert MurdochMichael BloombergAndrew CuomoJohn KerryRichard BransonAlec BaldwinDavid Koch and Michael Jackson. The “black book” also included Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak, British prime minister Tony Blair, and Saudi Arabian crown prince Mohammed bin Salman.  This is quite a diverse list of clients and friends.  Several as you can see were either accused of or rumored to engage in this type of behavior.  Bloggers note: Due to me naming Clinton as a client, expect me to “commit suicide by 4 shots to the back of my head by a gun I do not own.”

    So where is the conspiracy?  Well look at that list of clients. Maybe look a couple more times. Those are wealthy and powerful folks who do not want their reputation clobbered and destroyed.  Hell, look at Weinstein on that list, he is done.  Well, while in jail Epstein died.  Yep, in a cell with a live video feed strictly to watch for suicide, he died.  It was ruled suicide.  He was with a cell mate, kind of odd when you are “that” kind of prisoner.  His cell mate was a former New York corrections officer… again kind of weird, huh.  Of all the folks to share a cell with, it’s the one occupation that could do the deed and maybe not get noticed or know how to stage it. 

    Here is a full accounting of his “stay” at jail. Also notice the lack of protocol followed.

    When Epstein was placed in the special housing unit, the jail informed the Justice Department that he would have a cellmate, and that a guard would look into the cell every thirty minutes. These procedures were not followed on the night of his death. On August 9, 2019, Epstein’s cellmate was transferred out, but no one took his place. Later in the evening, contrary to the jail’s normal procedure, Epstein was not checked every thirty minutes. The two guards who were assigned to check his jail unit that night fell asleep and did not check on him for about three hours; the guards falsified related records. Two cameras in front of Epstein’s cell also malfunctioned that night.

    Epstein was found dead in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center (MCC) in New York City at 6:30 a.m. EDT on August 10, 2019. The Bureau of Prisons said lifesaving measures were initiated immediately upon the discovery of Epstein’s body. Emergency responders were called and he was taken to a hospital. On August 10, 2019, the Bureau of Prisons and U.S. Attorney General William Barr called the death an apparent suicide, although no final determination had been made. The United States Department of Justice‘s Inspector General’s investigation report released on June 27, 2023, criticized jail officials for repeated “negligence, misconduct, and outright job performance failures” in connection with Epstein’s incarceration and death. It also denied the suggestion that what happened was anything other than a suicide. In May 2025, the FBI announced plans to release surveillance footage from the night of Jeffrey Epstein’s death, aiming to address ongoing conspiracy theories. Deputy Director Dan Bongino stated that the video clearly shows Epstein alone in his cell, with no evidence of outside involvement, reaffirming the official ruling of suicide.

    Here is the autopsy, again notice the wild inconsistences.

    On August 11, 2019, an autopsy was performed. It appeared likely that Epstein had thrown himself violently off the cell’s top bunk, which would explain the damage he suffered, other than strangulation. The preliminary result of the autopsy found that Epstein sustained multiple breaks in his neck bones. Among the bones broken in Epstein’s neck was the hyoid bone. Such breaks of the hyoid bone can occur from those who hang themselves from some substantial height, e.g. jumping from a chair into the rope, but they are more common in victims of homicide by strangulation. A 2010 study found broken hyoids in twenty-five percent of cases of hangings. A larger study conducted from 2010 to 2016 found hyoid damage in just 16 of 264, or six percent, of cases of hangings. Hyoid bone breaks become more common with age, as the bones become more brittle. Forensic pathologist Cyril Wecht noted that hanging by leaning forward would not result in broken cervical bones.

    On August 16, 2019, Barbara Sampson, the New York City medical examiner, ruled Epstein’s death a suicide by hanging. The medical examiner, according to Epstein’s defense counsel, only saw nine minutes of footage from one security camera to help her arrive at her conclusion. Epstein’s defense lawyers were not satisfied with the conclusion of the medical examiner and were conducting their own independent investigation into the cause of Epstein’s death, including taking legal action, if necessary, to view the pivotal camera footage near his cell during the night of his death. Epstein’s lawyers said that the evidence concerning Epstein’s death was “far more consistent” with murder than suicide. Michael Baden, an independent pathologist hired by the Epstein estate, observed the autopsy. In October 2019, Baden said that Epstein had experienced a number of injuries—among them a broken bone in his neck—that “are extremely unusual in suicidal hangings and could occur much more commonly in homicidal strangulation”. Baden stated that he thinks that the evidence points to homicide rather than suicide.

    So, you see all that info right?  Seems suspicious, maybe conspiratorial right?  You know what the easiest way to debunk a conspiracy or myth is?  The truth. It isn’t that hard.  Pam Bondi claimed she had the documents and was going to release them.  Including the client list.  Also, there was video to be released, I believe circa 8 whole hours.  Bondi and Kash Patel seem competent, so I believed it was the case. Epstein didn’t kill himself; they said it as well.  They released the documents and footage.  BIG PROBLEM.  There is a minute of video unaccounted for. Oh by the way, it was between 11:59pm and 12:00 am.  Yeah, no conspiracy there right?  Wild time for the video footage to be spliced together, but yeah, no way he was murdered. Oh, and the client list?  There is/was no list.

    So, answer me this. If there is/was never a client list, where was the crime?  Why is Maxwell still in prison?  Why was Epstein in prison?

    Sorry, but I’m now a believer that this story was covered up in a bi-partisan way.  Too many rich and powerful on that list, things were leaking out and action was needed.  Epstein was offed in prison, Maxwell continues rotting there today, and all files gone, including one minute of camera footage from an 8-hour recording.  You had 1 job, you said it never happened. I thought this conspiracy would die out, but nope, you re-opened it and made more believers that he didn’t kill himself.

    Final serious thought.  It’s a troll blog so it’s satirical in nature, but I do believe the alleged crimes were committed, I also believe the powerful came together to squash this issue.  Donald Trump seems to love shining light in every corner to watch the cockroaches scramble futilely, but in this case he failed.  Patel and Bondi, as mentioned above, seem pretty sharp, and this was the equivalent of a wet fart they dropped on us.  Next thing you know, they will say they have proof 2020 election was rigged, then say well actually it wasn’t.  I will say this; the world is a better place without Epstein, it will be a better place without Maxwell, sorry but it’s true. These crimes are the lowest of the low.  Trump, you better figure some things out, because you are starting to look like the deep state you claim to be fighting.  I guess if you live long enough you see yourself go from hero to villain. 

    The “Trump/Musk Bromance” Was Always going to end like this

    It was a match that was never going to work out.  Didn’t it seem odd at the time, here is Elon Musk liberal darling who all of a sudden took a right turn.  He became the darling of the right wing, kind of like a born-again Christian.  They love to espouse how much they love the faith, but it’s obvious they have never actually read/listened or practiced it.

    Why though?

    What many in the far left and right are not able to comprehend is that many a wealthy folk/heads of corporations want to be friends with the group in power.  Harris lost, it was time to circle back to Trump.  Now in the case of Musk, he is actually more of a libertarian in a sense of wanting freedom of speech (he bought X) and legalizing all drugs.  Zuckerberg and others donated/flocked to Trump’s inauguration, many writing big checks.  Not because they agree with Trump, it’s essentially a bribe to make it so his DOJ won’t break up their monopoly in tech.

    But they got along so well?

    Well in a sense yes.  Musk saw Trump as a conduit, not a friend.  It’s the opinion of this blogger that Musk wanted to parlay DOGE into being head of NASA or some other department that can help his companies out financially.  Musk read and played Trump like a fiddle, Trump has loyalty to no one in DC and hates the culture.  Look no further than Trump’s cabinet picks this go round. It’s a who-who of Fox News hosts/contributors, and politicians from certain states/areas who are loyalists to him.  Qualifications be damned.  Musk knew he likely could not get confirmed by the Senate since he angered the left helping Trump, and a lot on the right, like me, view him skeptically.  So, DOGE was created.

    Then what?

    Well DOGE was somewhat successful in the eyes of some but likely in the eyes of Trump it failed.  Trump wanted to find several trillion in savings… Musk could not deliver.  Sure, DOGE did some good things, but it’s hard to find waste to cut.  Waste to you is someone else’s pet project/grift.  Also, Musk hurt himself by coming up with conspiracies that were flat out debunked; army of zombie 150-year-olds getting Social Security benefits anyone?  I think Elon at that point realized the easy cuts were done, and he was looking for an off ramp to be rewarded for his work at DOGE.  (As a side bar, the DOGE cuts never went through Congress as far as we know, so they will likely be revived under a different presidency.)

    What was next?

    To repeat, I think Musk was eyeing being NASA director, or somewhere there because he didn’t seem to want to be re-appointed to DOGE.  Then came the Big Beautiful Bill (BBB) and its circa, 4 trillion dollars in new debt, price tag.  Musk called Trump on the carpet about the debt and the debt ceiling parts of the bill.  Trump hated it.  Trump didn’t realize Musk is actually just like him politically, they are populists. I know the MAGA wing won’t like that description but it’s true.  Tell me where Trump or Musk stand on something?  It’s a shifting scale that slides depending on how it affects them and/or their poling numbers.

    The marriage gets annulled

    The fallout was wild to watch, kind of like an Enron executive’s fall from grace. The war of words on social media between the two was literally out of some reality tv type show.  Allegations of Elon being on drugs on the campaign trail and not able to pass a drug screen to Trump being on the Epstein client list.  It was bizarre. (Oh, wait there is no client list? WTF)

    What really went down?

    In one corner you have the richest man in the world, he blew a couple hundred million on Trump’s election and that is vapor to him.  Musk has done very well for himself.  In the other corner you have the most powerful man in the world in Donald Trump. Neither of these men like hearing “no.”  They are also both extremely petty… kind of like someone I used to associate with.  You go against them just once and they set out to ruin your life/isolate you.  Musk is now starting a third party; Trump wants to deport him.  Musk is threatening primaries against folks who supported the BBB, Trump will primary those who did not support his BBB. 

    Trump now wants to cut all of Musk’s green energy benefits….?

    Bingo, we have a winner.  Folks Elon Musk has made his fortune on the backs of taxpayers.  Green energy credits, interest free government loans, cap and trade credits, government grants and subsidies, all for his green energy empire.  Folks, Musk was a died in the wool liberal as far as California goes.  Tesla was going to be forced on everyone, and in some parts of the Bay Area, it seems like it was.  Solar was also a field Musk was in on.  His SpaceX company is another that does a lot of business with the government among his other affairs.  Cut those out, and Musk’s empire goes pop.  Hence the reason he is raging out right now.  Liberals have stopped buying his vehicles and conservatives have never wanted them.  Dirty little secret … Musk’s subsidies likely never survive even if DOGE found trillions in cuts.  I would not be stunned to see the subsidies darn near eliminated on a federal basis.

    The next chapter will be fun to watch.

    The Chief

    Stop Misinterpreting Isolationist Policies

    Editor’s Note: I was sent this blog post just before it was announced that Trump authorized bombing Iranian nuclear sites.

    In wake of the Ukraine/Russia war and Isreal/Iran war, a lot has been made of “far left and far right” isolationism.  Most of the media talking heads are shoveling a lot of bull shoot about this new ever-increasing policy.  I want to clarify for the media and others who are uneducated about this policy and what it actually means.

    Lately Bill O’Reilly, Chris Cuomo and several other talking heads have appeared in my “YouTube recommended videos.”  On rare occasions, I will view these only to remind myself of why I made the smart move dropping cable.  I watched both videos, they were about 20 minutes in length, and they are terribly misinformed.  Isolationism does not mean that we pass on everything that is occurring outside the US.  They both make a very bad take that “Iran cannot have a nuke … you guys think that’s ok?”  The straw man argument is we need to join the war because the Ayatollah and mullahs are bad, and the world is better off without them.  They are correct, Putin and the Ayatollah are very bad people, but where does the argument end?  Kim in North Korea is bad too; so we should kill him off?  The other comments are we are “safer” with these folks gone and de-nuclearized.  Again, it’s a correct take, but how do we accomplish that?

    Regarding isolationism and the Russia/Ukraine war, it’s actually easy to see why many are agreeing with that policy.  Ukraine is not in NATO; they are not in the EU.  Russia gave many indicators they were going to full scale attack, Ukraine ignored all of those.  However, Ukraine has not been bashful about telling us and other NATO countries to pony up to help them defend.  Why should we get involved here again? 

    Let’s just say we do get involved… Putin bad right? How many NATO allies are going in with us?  Don’t answer that question, just think about it.  If we go in, we better beat back Russia really quickly as we do not have the numbers to match them.  Russia is old school grind-out the war foot-by-foot.  They have disposable humans, we do not.  Do not kid yourselves, Ukraine doesn’t want our weapons, Zelenskyy wants our boots on the ground.  For a war we are not and should not be a party to.

    The Iran/Israel war is similar.  Sure, Israel is an ally, at least I think so.  But how are we a party to this war?  Iran did not directly attack us, sure they have proxies who have fired at our ships in the area, but never a direct attack.  This is no different than Russia’s Wagner Group or even the USA’s Blackwater group from the Iraq war.  They are third parties that keep themselves an arm’s length to avoid being a direct party to the attack. If Iran fired a missile at a base or ship of ours … it’s on.  That’s not isolationism. 

    Israel has now decided they need our large bunker buster bomb to finish off the nuclear production in Iran.  Again, I ask why are we needed here?  Israel should have known about this before they attacked.  This isn’t some WWE tag team match where they decide it’s our turn to enter the ring.  Also how are they so sure we only need to drop a couple of these bombs?  How will we know the uranium enrichment is really destroyed?  Do these talking heads honestly think there are no air/ground defenses around this thing?  It’s the Iranian crown jewel; they just leave it vulnerable to attack.  Even after we do as O’Reilly says and “just drop a couple bombs” how do we know its totally destroyed …. Boots on the ground.  Likely ours.  Again, a forever war started because we had to remove someone.

    Do not get it twisted, we have the world’s number 1 or 1b most powerful military, but we do not need to use it to show the force we have.  We have much bigger issues to deal with.  Again, why should our young people be sent to die in vain for wars we are not a party too?

    Need more proof?  Spain just said the quiet part out loud as to why NATO has many countries not hitting their defense spending target.

    Yep.  Spain doesn’t want to spend more on defense because they want to waste it on social programs and green energy.  Fear not, if needed, they got the USA’s phone number.  We will bail them out with our military.  Many other NATO countries feel the same way.  Do not get it twisted as I said earlier, we will enter a war we are a party to, but shouldn’t other countries be pulling their weight?  The Ukraine/Russia and Iran/Israel wars just seem like proxy wars to me. 

    We can sit it out.  Doing so doesn’t make anyone pro-Kremlin or pro-Iran, that’s a retarded take.  I can personally guarantee the war mongers in the media such as O’Reilly, Sean Hannity, and the war mongers in congress; Lindsay Graham (r) and Richard Blumenthal (d) wont be offering to lead the charge on foot.  However, they will dutifully send in your kids or grandkids to get the job done.  All to stop a nuke that our own Intelligence chief claims Iran does not possess nor are they wanting to possess. 

    The Chief