Friends, Happy Veterans Day, or Armistice Day, as you prefer! November 11th marks the 107th anniversary of the armistice that brought an end to the fighting on the Western Front in World War I, or the "Great War", as it was then called. The world had never been through such an industrialized bloodletting before, although, as we all know, WWII would surpass it in countless ways. God willing, we've learned our lesson, and we won't risk another global conflagration. I'm looking at you, NATO!!! Cool your jets.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj41g5w0vgno
In other news, consider this detailed analysis of the potential consequences of mid-cycle redistricting, which has been embraced by Trump and Republicans as a means to preserve our House majority. This article is designed to make Democrats feel good, as all NBC "journalism" does, but it contains more than a few kernels of truth. There is a degree of risk in the redistricting strategy. FYI, a lot will depend on the Supreme Court and whether it continues to insist that maps be drawn to maximize the number of minority (mainly black) Congressmen. If that stipulation goes out the window, Republicans could make some big gains.
Dr. Waddy from Jack: Someday humanity may find a way to eliminate war as a proven tactic for achieving desired results. For the first time in history, nuclear weapons have , with their unimaginable power, at least made their own use almost unthinkable. Of course that has been enabled by the intimidation or timely death of monsters such as Stalin (who seriously considered using the Soviet H bomb)or the recently disabled Iranian Jew haters. Readiness for conventional war, involving as it sometimes does the possibility of nuclear escalation , is a grim imperative for any nation in this still hard world.
ReplyDeleteWe Vietnam veterans are privy to the truth that our cause was just ( though it manifested the mostly unintended injustices necessarily common to all wars) and militarily successful until it was betrayed by sadly misled and ignorant dreamers at home. Our country did us wrong upon our return from the duties it demanded of us. It tolerated our harrassment by far leftist punks and the major Veterans groups did little I could see to combat them on the spot (we were often ORDERED not to resist it).The honor America now does all vets now discredits those who undermined us and happily and redeemingly protects today's Armed Services people from the disgusting disdain which was openly visited on us.
Dr. Waddy from Jack: Looks like the bottom line right now is that the redistricting venture could turn out any old way; there are so many variables. A year is a long time in our polity and factors unanticipated now may well arise out of the melee.
ReplyDeleteYou bet there is a lot at stake; Jeffries or even AOC two steps from the Presidency!
Sorry about what the article had to say about the Ohio GOP's reluctance to offend the Dems. That has been a shameful GOP position for decades now.Its futile to try to curry favor with a party so hate filled and resolved to destroy America. It takes an hombre like DJT to fully realize that grim truth and to act on it.
Dr. Waddy from Jack: You are right about Nato. Encouraging Ukraine to seek Nato membership was terribly ill considered. The volatile mess it has fostered bears extreme caution now.
ReplyDeleteDr. Waddy from Jack: I neglected to mention above that atrocities, were an aberration among U.S. forces and were sometimes punished by our military. Unlike Germany, Japan and Russia such was for us not a settled purposeful policy done most often with the express permission of those in command ( some of whom hanged for it after WWII). Eg. the Japanese murdered 250,000 Chinese in retaliation for Chinese aid and comfort to the American bombers of Tokyo in 1942; the Holocaust and the unimaginable, incalculable cruelty visited upon Russia by Germany and the dread command of "Frau, kommen!" preceding the rape of many thousands of German women by Soviet savages even they bore no direct responsibility for German inhumanity to Russia.
ReplyDeleteThe "American" far left delights in castigating America for using its military strength.One would think that moral relativists like them would be open to the idea that America and Britain have been COMPARATIVELY the most enlightened and humane of conquerors. And they ignore the historical facts that our's is more often than not the "flag that sets you free!"Many , many German refugees , including soldiers, did their best to surrender to the Americans and the Brits because they knew we were civilized. The Japanese feared the worst from their American occupiers after the gratuitous ferocity their own forces had visited upon their luckless conquered populations. But it was us that kept the Russian barbarians out of Japan and our own administration was such that the Japanese grew to love a General MacArthur they knew to be a fair man who honored their civilization's better points. Often seen Vietnamese names seen in the U.S. attest to the haven we provided for Vietnamese fleeing the totalitarian commie dictators we would have repelled but for traitors in the U.S.
Could war ever be made obsolete? Not unless human nature is too, which sounds dystopian but may be closer to reality than we care to think! If we put AI in charge, it might well command us to stop our childish fisticuffs and get busy buying stuff.
ReplyDeleteI think the upshot of redistricting is that it is very unlikely to hurt us overall, and quite likely to help us, but maybe not enough to matter in a "blue wave" kind of year.
Damn straight! Losing a war to the United States is very far from the worst thing that can happen to a nation. Try losing to Uncle Joe!
Dr. Waddy from Jack: War is horrid beyond understanding save for those who have experienced it. But I disagree with those who say it solves nothing, has no winners and defies reason.
ReplyDelete"Do we must what force will have us do. . . " There is grim reason in that maxim. Sometimes just a plausible threat of force can accomplish good things; eg. President Trump's warning alone to Nigeria to stop countenancing murder of Christians may well alleviate it and save many lives. And there is no need to detail the myriad times force has delivered people from oppression.
As long as time breeds in this world people and institutions who are willing to use violence to advance selfish ends , civilization must be ready to meet it with force. To eliminate that necessity must be to expunge evil from humanity and we know it hasn't happened yet : eg. the persistence of atavistic Jew hatred in this still hard world. Given that present reality how can a beleagured and besieged Israel survive other than by force of arms and negotiation made possible only by its application.
Could AI somehow 'force" us to abandon our use of force? My impression is that in large part we don't know what we don't know about AI's probably unlimited potential. Perhaps a sentient AI entity would play us against each other in order to end our onerous presence
P.S. War, of necessity, saved our country from disastrous disunion. World civilization was the winner as the power of a united America delivered it from Axis inhumanity.
Oh, I quite agree that war has its place, as does the use of force more generally. Amongst angels, I suppose violence would always be a sin. Amongst miserable mortals, it could well be a sin to eschew it.
ReplyDeleteAI starts with the imperatives and moral codes programmed into it, which is both good news and bad. Whether it could transcend its programming -- as arguably humans did long ago -- is an open question.