timon_phocas's Profile

NationalInterest: Royal Thai AF vs PLAAF, Gripen vs J-11. 2005. [nationalinterest.org]

KCSantiago comments on Feb 29, 2020:

Interesting. I would have thought China would have a much better force.

timon_phocas replies on Feb 29, 2020:

Howdy @KCSantiago, their last air-to-air combat was in Korea and over the Straits of Taiwan in the 1950s. So they haven't had the urgency of combat to drive their training. The Gripen is a very capable aircraft, with the kind of data sharing that gives our F-35 such an advantage.

NRO: VDH podcast 3. Old Mike Bloomberg had a farm. Doo hah, Doo dah... [nationalreview.com]

Jurecki comments on Feb 24, 2020:

Hi Tim, intriguing title. I can’t seem to find the link. Thanks, Beth

timon_phocas replies on Feb 25, 2020:

Ouch, thought it was there. Updated the post so it should be there now

CSMonitor: 'Arms and Farms' Virginia looks at secession from urban Virginia.

Bay0Wulf comments on Feb 22, 2020:

West Virginia seceded from Virginia during the War Between the States. It was a politically shrewd and reasonable move at the time though, given its location and terrain, its always been the poorer for it. Virginia is now experiencing what New York State has been going through for decades which ...

timon_phocas replies on Feb 22, 2020:

Howdy @Bay0Wulf, We call it Californication here in Corado, where it's in full swing.

Conservative Intersectionality

Lt-JW comments on Feb 21, 2020:

What does intersectionalism even mean?

timon_phocas replies on Feb 21, 2020:

Howdy @Lt-JW, Intersectionality is a leftist matrix of victimhood. If you are non-white, one box checked. If you are not male, that is another. If you are non-heterosexual, yet another box. And so on. If you fit in one or more of these indices of victim status, you are assumed to be part of the leftist coalition and you are avidly marketed to. If you are a white, male heterosexual (as, alas, I am) you are the scum of the earth. A ready object of scorn and derision by the cognoscenti.

TruNews Has Been Banned (subsequent to Trump signing the "Anti-Semitic" paper?)idental Dissent

timon_phocas comments on Feb 20, 2020:

I've never heard of TruNews before your post. I do not believe in the "perfidy of Jews." I do believe the universe was created by the God described in Jewish scriptures. I believe that God established the Jewish people to transmit this revelation through the centuries. I believe that God sent a ...

timon_phocas replies on Feb 20, 2020:

Howdy @Naomi, I took a fast path thru the site. They sound like kind of hard edged evangelicals. I haven't seen evidence of anti-Semitism in the fast pass. They wouldn't be the first group to be slandered by YouTube.

How Powerful Is This Right-Wing Shadow Network?

timon_phocas comments on Feb 19, 2020:

Howdy @WilyRickWiles, Is there a network of conservative, politically active billionaires? Probably. Are they any less entitled than, say, Michael Bloomberg or Tom Steyer or George Soros to support their favorite causes with their money?

timon_phocas replies on Feb 19, 2020:

Howdy @WilyRickWiles , Are they less entitled than Bill Gates, Warren Buffett or Jeff Bezos to spend their money on political causes? Or are you saying that conservative billionaires are uniquely, deviously organised? Do you think it's genetic?

WashExaminer: Greater Idaho?

Xtra comments on Feb 19, 2020:

I saw this on the local news. Californians have toyed with a similar idea for years and it's gotten nowhere. Do you think this will get any traction?

timon_phocas replies on Feb 19, 2020:

Howdy @Xtra, You're right. In the late thirties the far north of Cali started a movement to secede and form the state of Jefferson. Unfortunately it peaked in a series of roadblocks and bonfires on December 7, 1941. The news was rivited on Pearl Harbor. No traction. Southern Cali gets its water, its hydroelectric and it's pot from the north. They'd never approve a secession.

Elon Musk News,&Quotes: interesting article & video. [evannex.com]

The_Q comments on Feb 18, 2020:

Not really an article, Its an advert for Tesla cars. But the man is interesting - Annoying but at least he's actually doing something that adds value of some form, but theres a lot of madness with the method.

timon_phocas replies on Feb 18, 2020:

Howdy @The_Q The article is something of a puff piece. The video has more info. He revolutionized orbital access. Nobody thought reusable rockets were possible. Not only that, but he's but he's in the process of building a spaceship factory. The stuff of sci-fi dreams. I didn't think he could invent his way out of the Tesla model 3 manufacturing bottleneck. He did. He is an amazing man. A Verderbilt, a Carnagie, a Rockefeller for our time.

RedState: What's going on with McCabe? [redstate.com]

Xtra comments on Feb 17, 2020:

Do you think he'll ever be charged with anything?

timon_phocas replies on Feb 17, 2020:

Howdy @Xtra, The article says he still faces legal jepardy because of his role in FISA Court abuses. So that jury's still out. If the article is correct, Barr let the FBI sanctions stand because because they are more severe than he receive as a "first time offender." I am very angry, nonetheless, because this is criminal behavior striking the very heart of our republic. Maybe Strozk was right to smirk if this is all we can do to people who plot a coup.

SoFMag: DHS reports on border wall construction progress. [sofmag.com]

Bay0Wulf comments on Feb 16, 2020:

Strategic Building is the key phrase. A lot of people point out ... say ... the problem will simply push further down the line or will buy ladders or ... However, the further people have to go to get to the “ends” of the wall, the more obvious they become and dragging around 30+ feet of ...

timon_phocas replies on Feb 16, 2020:

Howdy @Bay0Wulf, Another thing I like about the wall is it channels smuggling into narrower, and more predictable, corridors. Easier to police.

Interesting, no?

Naomi comments on Feb 12, 2020:

Someone commented on the relationship between secularisation and economic development as follows: *Maybe the pertinent questions are: “If I stop going to church will I get more money?” and “If I take up religion will I become poorer?”* *I think that those who are deeply religious in a ...

timon_phocas replies on Feb 12, 2020:

Howdy @Naomi, A famous quote from John Wesley goes, "make as much money as you can, give as much money as you can."

dailywire.

timon_phocas comments on Feb 9, 2020:

He's like Obama in this way. He uses positive phrases and lets audiences project their moderation on him. When he actually discusses issues, however, you see the hard edges of his radicalism.

timon_phocas replies on Feb 11, 2020:

Howdy @ddu11 They all say they're for Medicare for all. They all say they're for the Green New Deal. They all say they're for radical changes. When you ask Buttigieg hard questions he he glides around the hard edges of his leftist positions.

The 1619 Project. "The Truth Can Change How We See the World."[twitter.com] [youtu.be]

timon_phocas comments on Feb 10, 2020:

Vile propagandistic lies. And bad history to boot. The first slave ship to arrive in Virginia carried Irish children. The one carrying Africans came later.

timon_phocas replies on Feb 11, 2020:

Howdy @ddu11 Here are some sources. http://www.africaresource.com/rasta/sesostris-the-great-the-egyptian-hercules/the-irish-slave-trade-forgotten-white-slaves/ https://www.historynet.com/were-the-irish-slaves.htm There's a quibble about whether they were shipped as indentured servants or slaves. If it's involuntary, and as children it can only be involuntary, wouldn't matter if it was indentured.

ImaginativeConservative: WWMD bracelets honor Mitt Romney's wobbling moral compass.

RobBlair comments on Feb 7, 2020:

Romney's (and all the Democrat Senators') specific moral failures: Ex Post Facto (not even post) - He is holding Trump accountable for an unpublished legal criteria. Abuse of power is not defined and leaves both parties with the freedom or fear of enforcing a vague accusation. Although I believe ...

timon_phocas replies on Feb 7, 2020:

Howdy @RobBlair, Mitt was staunchly Pro-Chouce when he ran for Governor of Massachusetts. He switched to moderately Pro-Life when he ran for President. Then switched to staunchly Pro-Life when he ran for Senator from Utah. His moral compass seems more like a weather vane. Reverting to type, I guess.

Federalist: the president's acquittal is real, and it's spectacular [thefederalist.com]

Xtra comments on Jan 31, 2020:

The Washington Post is already making excuses for Congress. It would be nice to get a clean win for once

timon_phocas replies on Jan 31, 2020:

Howdy @Xtra, Tass and Pravda were the flagship press of the Soviet Union. Their names meant, "truth" and "news." The old Russian joke in those times was, "there's no truth in the news and no news in the truth." That's the sad position we find ourselves in the US today. They are dedicated propaganda outlets.

CompleteColorado: Is the celebrity activist bubble ready to pop? [pagetwo.completecolorado.com]

BikerPetehall70 comments on Jan 29, 2020:

The one they live in or the one we're trying to escape??

timon_phocas replies on Jan 29, 2020:

Howdy @BikerPetehall70, Both?

Why is fascism so hard to define? What Is Fascism? | Live Science

timon_phocas comments on Jan 22, 2020:

I think we're struggling because there's a confusion between tools, techniques and philosophy. I have found no "fascist philosophy" as such in my readings. Totalitarian statism was defined in Russia under Lenin. It was implemented in Italy by Mussolini and then in Germany under Hitler. State ...

timon_phocas replies on Jan 22, 2020:

Howdy @Naomi, "The Anatomy of Fascism" is a history of fascist movements and regimes. It's not philosophically dense. I like reading history, so it was right up my alley. It gives a nice overview of their starting points in the upheavals following WWI. It was on a Kindle my son gave me, so it's available in E-book firm.

Why is fascism so hard to define? What Is Fascism? | Live Science

timon_phocas comments on Jan 22, 2020:

I think we're struggling because there's a confusion between tools, techniques and philosophy. I have found no "fascist philosophy" as such in my readings. Totalitarian statism was defined in Russia under Lenin. It was implemented in Italy by Mussolini and then in Germany under Hitler. State ...

timon_phocas replies on Jan 22, 2020:

Howdy @Naomi, I read the article. I've read "Anatomy of Fascism" by Paxton and he struggled with its definition as well. I think he's right that it is an artifact of post WWI social environment instead of a philosophy.

OilPrice: China strikes oil &Gas in Xinjiang. [oilprice.com]

Xtra comments on Jan 20, 2020:

Well that's going to keep some analysts up late.

timon_phocas replies on Jan 20, 2020:

Howdy @Xtra, Any substantial oil & gas finds in China will cause them to put increasing pressure on Russia. I wonder where that that will lead?

MEForum: Turkey is creating a Syrian Mercenary force to fight in Libya. [meforum.org]

Xtra comments on Jan 18, 2020:

Not found.

timon_phocas replies on Jan 19, 2020:

Howdy @Xtra, Thanks, fixed the link, seems to work now

How Seriously Should Trump Take North Korea's 13,000 Artillery Pieces? [news.yahoo.com]

Facci comments on Jan 15, 2020:

How many minutes do you think it would take for America to reduce North Koreas pieces of artillery to zero?

timon_phocas replies on Jan 15, 2020:

Howdy @Facci, One to two days, depending on how long it takes to suppress air defenses.

Mindful Christianity

Boris-the-Spider comments on Jan 14, 2020:

Mindful Christianity? It ain't mindful and it ain't Christian more like Hindu or Buddhist. New age pap.

timon_phocas replies on Jan 14, 2020:

Howdy @Boris-the-Spider, I believe Soren Kierkegaard was/is a Christian believer. I won't know for sure until the Lord calls me home, of course.

Nice image of the ISS

CuriousFury comments on Jan 12, 2020:

so how much longer until the astronauts die up there?

timon_phocas replies on Jan 13, 2020:

Howdy @CuriousFury, The latest SpaceX cargo capsule just splashed down last week. It carried 7,500 pounds of cargo to the station and about 3,500 pounds back to Earth.

Were the killing crimes of Soleimani made clearly public?

RobBlair comments on Jan 13, 2020:

I think it's safe to say that if our Iraqi embassy wasn't attacked, and if an American contractor wasn't recently killed on December 27th missile strike by Iran, that Soleimani would still be alive. I'm currently interested in hearing the regional fallout due to his timely death (and his ...

timon_phocas replies on Jan 13, 2020:

Howdy @RobBlair, I read reports of another Hellfire attack killing another Iran-backed mitia leader. I heard yet another report of an Iran-backed militia leader killed in a pistol attack by unknown assailants (this was on "Dark Secret Place" podcast). Suits interviewed an Intel specialist who said covert operations in Iraq had gotten a lot smarter in the last three years.

Nice image of the ISS

CuriousFury comments on Jan 12, 2020:

so how much longer until the astronauts die up there?

timon_phocas replies on Jan 12, 2020:

Howdy @CuriousFury, Many explorers died throughout history. They wouldn't be the first.

THE INVERSE TRUMP EFFECT IN ACTION President Donald Trump (and still not President Hillary ...

timon_phocas comments on Jan 12, 2020:

John Kerry served in Viet Nam? I thought he just made home movies there!

timon_phocas replies on Jan 12, 2020:

Howdy @Rick-A , Just a valid as his combat record

SoFMag: Iran admits it shot down the Ukrainian airliner. No taqiyya today, please [sofmag.com]

WayneHawthorne comments on Jan 11, 2020:

Iranians shooting down Iranians? What is the word to describe that?

timon_phocas replies on Jan 11, 2020:

Howdy @WayneHawthorne, Incompetence.The same kind of incompetence that caused USS Vincennes to shoot down an Iranian airliner in the middle of a tense battle space.

Space: Fast Radio Bursts (FRB) puzzling radio astronomy. [space.com]

Boardwine comments on Jan 10, 2020:

Some very strange things out there to be sure. Do you think we are alone in the universe?

timon_phocas replies on Jan 10, 2020:

Howdy @Boardwine, If the evolutionists are right, then I believe we are indeed alone. If God wants to spend a few billion years tinkering with DNA, however, who knows? I am convinced we know far less about our universe than we think we do. Every probe has scientists saying they had no idea, or that it wholly undercuts current understandings.

NationalInterest: USAF B-21 debut about a year away. [nationalinterest.org]

Boardwine comments on Jan 9, 2020:

It's amazing what you buy with $600+ billion a year

timon_phocas replies on Jan 9, 2020:

Howdy @Boardwine, And just imagine how many $500 hammers are included in that price... 😆

CoffeeOrDie: Iranian soldiers talk about their training. [coffeeordie.com]

BikerPetehall70 comments on Jan 7, 2020:

Sounds like Saddam's Republican guard

timon_phocas replies on Jan 7, 2020:

Howdy @BikerPetehall70, Salute to your family's proud tradition. I served in our Marine Reconnaissance. Back then it was as close as we come to Royal Marine SBS. Royal Marine Commandos defined special operations in WWII. The rest of us just copied the Royal Marines.

CoffeeOrDie: Iranian soldiers talk about their training. [coffeeordie.com]

BikerPetehall70 comments on Jan 7, 2020:

Sounds like Saddam's Republican guard

timon_phocas replies on Jan 7, 2020:

Howdy @BikerPetehall70, I think I'd compare Iran's regular army units to Saddam's regular army units. Saddam's Republican Guard parallel in Iran is the Iranian Republican Guard Corps. The IRGC is about half of Iran's armed forces. It gets better equipment. It has its own network of stores, hospitals, schools for members and their families. I assume the IRGC gets better training, but I've not read that. I've also read/heard that the IRGC gets the pick of the draftees. Saddam's Republican Guard was more professional than standard Iraqi Army units (I've read many reports of that). Not as operationally competent, or as flexible, as US Army or Marine units, but better.

CompleteColorado: Oil exec says Colorado has become a 'no investment' state.

RobBlair comments on Jan 7, 2020:

At least it's a 'dry' no investment state.

timon_phocas replies on Jan 7, 2020:

Howdy @RobBlair, We voted down the radical anti-drilling referendum by large margins. The radical Dems passed other ways to make it prohibitively expensive to drill anyway. They're on a mission from Gaia.

Home Plate is seventeen inches. [m.facebook.com]

BikerPetehall70 comments on Jan 6, 2020:

This means nothing outside the US

timon_phocas replies on Jan 6, 2020:

Howdy @BikerPetehall70, I admit that it wouldn't communicate as well outside the baseball universe. But the general theme of a game's rules as metaphor for standards for society does. It works well for baseball because it is a game with hoary traditions. The distances of pitchers mound to home base, between bases, and all sorts of arcane rules are memorized by generations of players. It's almost like they came down Mt. Sinai with Moses. I suppose an article like this could be written about cricket, another game with hoary traditions. It wouldn't communicate outside the Commonwealth, but that's ok.

NRO: How will Iran respond? [nationalreview.com]

EricJohnson comments on Jan 5, 2020:

They were already hostile, hostility is a boolean value.

timon_phocas replies on Jan 5, 2020:

Howdy @Eric_Johnson, Iran's rulers have considered themselves at war with us for 40 year now. It's about time we responded in kind.

Have you ever come across this expression?

timon_phocas comments on Jan 4, 2020:

"Democracy is the tyranny of the uninformed" I am reminded of a quote from Neville Chamberlain about a "faraway country, ... of which we know nothing..." He was not some anonymous workman. He had been in Parliament and government for decades. He was part of Britain's elite and yet he was ...

timon_phocas replies on Jan 4, 2020:

Howdy @Naomi, I think, whether it's Alcibiades or LBJ, the flaw of democracy tends to be hubris. Athens and the US were at the flood tides of their power. The Athenians and the US thought they could accomplish anything with that power. Lincoln and Churchill both failed many times. So they knew they were fallible and they knew they could learn from both advice and mistakes. This is the polar opposite of hubris. There's an old saying over here. "It ain't what you don't know that scares me. It's what you do know that ain't so." And that speaks to both problems of being uninformed and hubris.

Breitbart: United Methodist Church agrees to split. [breitbart.com]

drptree comments on Jan 4, 2020:

This just seems dumb to me. Two same churches but quite different. One is evil. Good grief.

timon_phocas replies on Jan 4, 2020:

Howdy @drptree, I think it's intriguing that the United Methodist heirarchy is basically paying the conservatives to go away. They can't win the argument and this is a tacit admission of that.

Government science marches on!

RobBlair comments on Jan 2, 2020:

But wait! There's more - https://www.dailywire.com/news/here-are-the-most-wasteful-government-projects-in-2019

timon_phocas replies on Jan 2, 2020:

Whoa!

[pjmedia.

damo9f comments on Jan 1, 2020:

Why do people read crap like pjmedia? It is, as usual completely false and misleading. Mueller did not clear Trump of Obstruction. The report clearly states in the conclusion: "If we had confidence after a thorough investigation of the facts that the President clearly did not commit ...

timon_phocas replies on Jan 1, 2020:

Howdy @damo9f, "If we had confidence after a thorough investigation of the facts that the President clearly did not commit obstruction of justice, we would so state. Based on the facts and the applicable legal standards, however, we are unable to reach that judgment.” It seems they're saying they cannot disprove a negative. That's not the purpose of a grand jury investigation. Their purpose is to establish whether they could make a case Trump obstructed Justice, and they couldn't.

Campus Reform.

GaryWitt comments on Jan 1, 2020:

Huh. Apparently I’ve been radicalized. I guess I’m OK with that. You see, the fact is I never moved to the right. The rest of the world stupidly moved to the left. And I’m simply calling it.

timon_phocas replies on Jan 1, 2020:

Howdy @GaryWitt, I would demur at, "the rest of the world" moving left. I would say the the media-academic bubble moved left and the rest of us are believing what we always did.

And this how even "conservative" Americans are talked into giving up their liberty.

timon_phocas comments on Dec 30, 2019:

We're wrestling with the fallout from Colorado's "red flag" law. It's all about confiscating firearms, and nothing about owners' rights. Most county sheriffs say they won't enforce it. It will trigger avalanches of lawsuits.

timon_phocas replies on Dec 30, 2019:

@KCSantiago Howdy again. I'm in Colorado. The Democrats rammed through a red flag law with with no protections for the accused gun owners. It goes into effect on 1 Jan. Can't wait to see that circus start.

Creepy Joe and are about to experience the backlash from the ill advised impeachment hearing.

Bay0Wulf comments on Dec 28, 2019:

I don’t see where this article really refers to any of that but ... I expect to see the Bidens take a substantial hit sooner or later I’m simply not sure how much later. Personally I’d like to see some heads roll ... seriously roll ... So far we’ve got a guy in the FBI who tampered with ...

timon_phocas replies on Dec 28, 2019:

Howdy @Bay0Wulf, But the backlash at his Golf Club could be severe. They could reduce his handicap. Oh the shame...

Pennsylvania AG unilaterally redefines when a gun is a gun- [bearingarms.com]

KCSantiago comments on Dec 18, 2019:

This dink claims this will close "loop holes" that allow criminals who are already disallowed weapons by law from getting the weapons they are already illegally getting. SO if these laws actually worked ona nyone other than law abiding citizens why would they possibly need any more of these ...

timon_phocas replies on Dec 18, 2019:

Howdy @KCSantiago, This is something like the "gun show loophole" so demonized by the left wing. It's something they can harp on all the time. A useful tool for useful idiots.

OneAmerica: President Xi expresses support for Carrie Lam. [oann.com]

Xtra comments on Dec 17, 2019:

I don't see how this can end well.

timon_phocas replies on Dec 17, 2019:

Howdy @Xtra, Agree. It's something of a slow motion train wreck. Xi has spent the last decade building the most pervasive police state since Mao. Hong Kong demanding human rights in the face of that is heartbreakingly courageous.

The Horowitz IG report and subsequent hearings are having a telling effect.

DDots67 comments on Dec 16, 2019:

As it should! COMEY was always the weak link. I hope and pray this whole coup is exposed!

timon_phocas replies on Dec 16, 2019:

Howdy @DDots67, Comey and his smarmy, self-righteous, oh-so-noble patriotism repelled me when I heard him in the Congressional hearings. It was like Torquemada impersonating Mr. Rogers.

The only reason Goldman Sachs Is interested in the environment is because it created a 22 billion ...

Kravman2 comments on Dec 16, 2019:

The carbon credits system is ludicrous. It’s a way of claiming something has been done without actually doing it.

timon_phocas replies on Dec 16, 2019:

Howdy @Kravman2, And make money, don't forget that. It's like raising taxes without having to pass an incriminating bill.

TownHall: Iraqi Protests, do not look away. [townhall.com]

DDots67 comments on Dec 14, 2019:

"Invading, he said, "was a big mistake," "but it was a tragedy when [U.S. troops] left." this is typical. Dammed if you do and dammed if you don't. Protect diversity but don't intervene. Stupid people.

timon_phocas replies on Dec 14, 2019:

Howdy @DDots67 I think the US erred in invading Iraq. Saddam was a gold plated SOB, but he kept the sectarian stife under control. We spent treasure, and the more precious blood of our soldiers, in retrieving that error. We won a significant, dearly bought victory. And then Obama abandoned it. He flung open the door for ISIS. The Iraqis paid for his fecklessness, boy did they pay.

There's a difference between kvetching and contributing.

RobBlair comments on Dec 13, 2019:

Those damn engineers... TED talk - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROW9F-c0kIQ Rogan - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J145vnEZX6w

timon_phocas replies on Dec 14, 2019:

Howdy @RobBlair, I listened to the talks. Good information. Thanks

SoFMag: The Afghanistan Papers. The Afghan War Is Unwinnable [sofmag.com]

DrN1 comments on Dec 12, 2019:

Many imperial endeavours have foundered in Afghanistan, the British ,the Soviets, and the American, the Afghani people as far as I am aware have never engaged in military expansion beyond their border. Its a tribal land that should be left in peace or at least to fight amongst themselves not used ...

timon_phocas replies on Dec 12, 2019:

Howdy @ DrN1, A different historical perspective is that the Pashtun people have repeatedly invaded and pillaged the Punjab. This no longer applies because the Pakistani Army, largely Punjabi, is far stronger than Pashtun tribal fighters. The memory lingers, however. Lowell Thomas was a maker of movie travelogues from the earliest days of cinema into the television age. He popularized Lawrence of Arabia in WWI. His autobiography relates he was in northern India in the early 1920s, ready to film the Khyber Pass. They couldn't go there because the local tribes had "gone ghazi" and were on the rampage again. So these large scale looting raids were happening well into in 20th century.

2020...How Republicans are feeling...

cRaZyTMG comments on Dec 12, 2019:

But I don't feel either of those, I'm more like...

timon_phocas replies on Dec 12, 2019:

Howdy @cRaZyTMG, Love the quote from Vaclav Klaus. Thanks.

PopularScience: Feral Pigs are a serious problem. Hunting doesn't help much [popsci.com]

purdyday comments on Dec 11, 2019:

"The USDA has a plan to contain them" ??? If this didn't send a chill up your spine as it did mine, maybe you missed the info contained in a paragraph; *Though not in use yet, scientists are developing contraceptives and toxins that would target the pigs. The challenge is ensuring that these ...

timon_phocas replies on Dec 11, 2019:

Howdy @purdyday, I agree.

New take on fur babies

camerakid61 comments on Dec 11, 2019:

Now, is that a Douglas Fir?

timon_phocas replies on Dec 11, 2019:

Howdy @camerakid61, Coniferous, species-specific racism?

DailySignal: 6 takeaways from the IG report [dailysignal.com]

purdyday comments on Dec 11, 2019:

#4 - slippery excuses, considering a Dem president was commander in chief.

timon_phocas replies on Dec 11, 2019:

Howy @purdyday Yes. Facile.

Reading the Horowitz report, you almost have to feel a little sorry for the choice Comey faces.

RobBlair comments on Dec 10, 2019:

I wonder how well plausible deniability will hold up - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2U5qMdHMGY

timon_phocas replies on Dec 11, 2019:

Howdy @RobBlair, Wow, Comey is smarmy and self justifying to the end.

France24: Ukraine-Russia peace talks [france24.com]

DrN1 comments on Dec 10, 2019:

Ukraine and Russia need to find some peaceful accomodation, their histories and geography are too closely linked to do otherwise. Putin will not last forever, though he will be around longer than his Trumpy puppet.

timon_phocas replies on Dec 10, 2019:

Howdy @DrN1, I think Russia is trying to reconstruct it's tsarist borders. It finds itself with too small a population to compete in the top tier of world powers. Reattaching its 'near abroad' neighbors is something like a prime strategic goal for them. This campaign has captured Crimea, Luhhansk, and Donetz (guaranteeing land access to the Crimean peninsula). Ukraine's resistance stiffened, however, and swallowing the whole country may cost too much. Right now, anyway.

Another understated hero

MarieBabik comments on Dec 8, 2019:

A hero my ass..he is a fool that died for Israels agenda, via the American War machine. I personally find Military men and women, ,stupid with patriotism, government bitches, used to implement government agendas is all they are...expendable and no matter how much the Military highlights the fact ...

timon_phocas replies on Dec 8, 2019:

Howdy @MarieBabik, "the shady fucks, the criminals, those of dubious characters would not have the upper hand " I've read a lot of history, and the Nazi bosses were shady criminals of dubious character. Goering, head of economic planning, looted businesses from Jews, Austria and Czechoslovakia, Goebbels ran all media in Germany, and sucked bribes and sexual favors from anybody wanting access. Hitler copyrighted his likeness and then put his profile in every stamp, so people were paying him royalties every time they mailed something. Then he made "Mein Kampf" into a required textbook, so every child bought one. Of course, it was required for every civil marriage registration, too. And let's not bring up looting the whole continent of Europe. I have no truck with pious con men of any ideology. But defending Nazis as better than democratically elected politicians is weirdly irrational.

NYPost: Iran in flames, and none of the 'experts' predicted it. [nypost.com]

DerekHow comments on Dec 7, 2019:

... well then .. the 'experts' are inept .. or are bought ... Which one is it?

timon_phocas replies on Dec 7, 2019:

Howdy @DerekHow, Maybe both? And if both, talk about a waste of money

NRO: IG report says the FBI did not inform the FISA Court the 'Steele Dossier' was unreliable.

Bay0Wulf comments on Dec 5, 2019:

Uhm ... Am I the only person who “got” this part? “The Justice Department’s inspector general has concluded that .... Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz’s yet unpublished draft report found...” I know it’s a difficult concept but ... what is the article ...

timon_phocas replies on Dec 6, 2019:

Howdy @Bay0Wulf, There was a lot of leaking just before the Mueller Report was released. I don't know if it's deliberate policy to prepare public opinion for the IG report's general release or affected people leaking their bits to make themselves look better.

TheWarHorse: America is entangled in Yemen's civil war. [thewarhorse.org]

MarieBabik comments on Dec 5, 2019:

America sticks its nose in everyone elses civil wars all the time, ..Vietnam anyone ??

timon_phocas replies on Dec 5, 2019:

But we had SO much fun with ours, how can we resist?

Merry Christmas! Hundreds of Thousands Are Losing Access to Food Stamps

timon_phocas comments on Dec 5, 2019:

I worked as a cashier at a big box membership store. 19 to 22 percent of any day's business was SNAP sales. So from my personal perspective it's really a subsidy to supermarket chains and that's why it's survived for fifty years. The real objection to reducing SNAP expenditures will be from WalMart ...

timon_phocas replies on Dec 5, 2019:

@WilyRickWiles Howdy again. You are making unsubstantiated assertions about my personal history, which you have no idea of. I have known poverty and violence and despair. I have a better idea than most what they mean.

Educational Progress

criminey359 comments on Dec 5, 2019:

Meh, I'm pretty sure programming languages are more important these days than Latin and Greek. And let's be honest, if you don't know basic English, C++ and HTML becomes a lot harder to learn. Also why aren't proper American languages taught in school, like Navajo or Apache, rather than that cobbled...

timon_phocas replies on Dec 5, 2019:

Howdy @criminey359, I think learning languages, like musical instruction, is helpful in learning to program. It makes you more aware of Grammer and syntax. But I think the point of the post is that we've lost rigor in schools.

Road&Track: new Cannonball Run record, 27 hours from NYC to LA.

gungasnake comments on Dec 3, 2019:

You may have a 3 where you need a 2, I think it was 27 hours.

timon_phocas replies on Dec 3, 2019:

Howdy @gungasnake, Oops, thanks

FoxNews: another shootout between cartelistas and the Mexican Army [foxnews.com]

WayneHawthorne comments on Dec 2, 2019:

Bring on the Vigilantes. This is what could happen in the US and Canada if the government fails to protect us against ILLEGALS.

timon_phocas replies on Dec 2, 2019:

Howdy @WayneHawthorne, I agree this is the logical answer. But Mexico has had many revolutions, so they severely restrict firearms. Here you in the States, it would work out like Northfield MN and Coffeyville KS. The town's people would shoot the sh-t out of them.

HotAir: Prominent historians deride Project 1619 as biased and anti-historical [hotair.com]

RobBlair comments on Dec 2, 2019:

My second question would be - why do you read the New York Times, a former newspaper?

timon_phocas replies on Dec 2, 2019:

Howdy @RobBlair, I am afraid their propagandistic lies will become the history textbooks in the coming years.

NBC: This is typical of what Trump's opposition writes about him.

Bay0Wulf comments on Dec 2, 2019:

Before I read it ... Why is it important that I “read their viewpoints”? Has anything changed in the last couple years that I probably haven’t read a dozen or so times? Reading the Left is tedious ... reading NBC is bang my head against wall until it stops painful.

timon_phocas replies on Dec 2, 2019:

@Bay0Wulf Howdy again. Communists, fascists and Japanese Bushido warriors all held bizarre views, but those views motivated them. So the views had a certain importance even though they didn't reflect reality. It is that way with our political opponents as well.

It might be true

David42 comments on Dec 2, 2019:

Simper Phi

timon_phocas replies on Dec 2, 2019:

Howdy @David42, Or, alternatively, Semper Inebrius, hic

PopularScience: the fascinating Siberian unicorn [popsci.com]

BikerPetehall70 comments on Dec 1, 2019:

Eh?

timon_phocas replies on Dec 1, 2019:

Howdy @BikerPetehall70, The Siberian Unicorn is an extinct animal from the pleistocene era. Rather like a rhinoserous. Not political in any way, just interesting.

TheVerge: GAO agrees with Blue Origin protest for Air Force launch service contract.

Judah80 comments on Nov 29, 2019:

"The Air Force is planning to make its final selections sometime in the middle of next year." Um, Blue Origin, the airforce will not select a company that has never put a payload into orbit. You better start flying soon lol

timon_phocas replies on Nov 29, 2019:

Howdy @Judah80, That was my immediate reaction as well. But I guess you can't cavalierly reject the wealthiest man in America (and the owner of WaPost). When they actually get New Glenn's up and running, they'll have something to back up their bids.

The NHS in the UK is rather horrific: [naturalnews.com] [forbes.com] [dailywire.com]

purdyday comments on Nov 28, 2019:

And God help you if you are elderly! I seriously think they gave my mum an overdose of morphine to clear out the hospital bed. Im not even joking. I hate those NHS bastards!

timon_phocas replies on Nov 28, 2019:

Howdy @purdyday, I remember Mark Steyn talking about his mother. She had a long term problem with pain attacks. The NHS in the UK just gave her a generic Tylenol, patted her hand and sent her home. Steyn's mother visited New Hampshire for Christmas. She had one of her pain attacks. Mark took her to the local "no account medical center." They promptly ran tests an determined she had gout. One perscription later and her gout was being treated effectively. We've had tests, and drug treatments, for gout since the 1960s. This has been simple medicine for over forty years. But not in the NHS it would seem

I am firmly of the belief that the “Mueller Investigation” was suddenly shut down NOT because ...

DDots67 comments on Nov 28, 2019:

I really have a problem with Dems on both the Mueller investigation and this fake inquiry. During the Mueller investigation information came out about who paid for the fake dossier. It was totally ignored both by Dems and the media. It also came out the FISA warrants were issued irregularly and ...

timon_phocas replies on Nov 28, 2019:

Howdy @DDots67, Why are there no consequences? Well, first of all, the Mueller "Investigation" wasn't about investigating anything. The Justice and State departments and intelligence agencies were caught with their pants down (aiding Hillary's campaign). The "investigation" was used to deflect attention and bludgeon Trump. Secondly, the deep state establishment is furiously trying obfuscate their network of special privileges and perquisites. Hunter Biden isn't the only scion of a connected family to profit. And the more highly connected you are, the more profitable the perks.

Surprising Testimony

Rosary_Trace comments on Nov 26, 2019:

POP.....goes the weasel!

timon_phocas replies on Nov 26, 2019:

That's funny, the cartoon didn't mention Schiff

Russ Mallard is probably being bribed by proceeds from saudi oil sold in Canada.

pbuck0145 comments on Nov 22, 2019:

Halal and Kosher slaughter are unnecessarily cruel and sadistic. Those practices need to be banned.

timon_phocas replies on Nov 23, 2019:

@pbuck0145 Howdy again. I'm not saying it's painless. I'm saying kosher slaughter is not significantly more cruel or painful than non-kosher.

Russ Mallard is probably being bribed by proceeds from saudi oil sold in Canada.

pbuck0145 comments on Nov 22, 2019:

Halal and Kosher slaughter are unnecessarily cruel and sadistic. Those practices need to be banned.

timon_phocas replies on Nov 22, 2019:

@pbuck0145 Howdy again, Blood loss from the brain, I think. Brains also "shut off" when they recognize catastrophic injury. The cow's hindquarters are also lifted up to accelerate blood loss. I was a programmer and the closest plant was about a mile away. It kills 5,000 head a day in 2 8-hour shifts; a little over 300/hour.

Russ Mallard is probably being bribed by proceeds from saudi oil sold in Canada.

pbuck0145 comments on Nov 22, 2019:

Halal and Kosher slaughter are unnecessarily cruel and sadistic. Those practices need to be banned.

timon_phocas replies on Nov 22, 2019:

Howdy @pbuck0145, I worked in the beef industry from 1992 to 2002. In non-kosher slaughter to cow's head is placed in a harness, a pneumatic punch hammers the cow in the center of the skull. This stuns the cow. The cow's throat is cut and it bleeds to death. I've read accounts of Roman slaughter, and the only difference is they used a wooden mallet. In kosher slaughter they do not stun the cow. There must be no question that cow was killed by the blade. The cow dies in 2 - 4 seconds. I did not observe any extra apparent discomfort/pain in the cows being slaughtered.

DailySignal: Six highlights from day five of the impeachment hearings [dailysignal.com]

Bloodsyckleraven comments on Nov 22, 2019:

It was just another day of conjecture. No substance.

timon_phocas replies on Nov 22, 2019:

Howdy @Bloodsyckleraven, I see a lot of shadow boxing and no punches landed. They're reporting it like it was the 'Rumble in da Jungle'

TRUMP WAS RIGHT: Head of Burisma Holdings Arrested in Ukraine! Claims Hunter Biden and Partners Paid...

timon_phocas comments on Nov 21, 2019:

Russia Collusion accusations were to cover up Intel Community crimes Ukrainian Corruption accusations are to cover up similar crimes. Same play book, same hatred, same sense of entitlement

timon_phocas replies on Nov 21, 2019:

@warminster100 Howdy again. Consider them a Venn Diagram of crooked influence. The Russian Collusion hoax had people from the FBI, Department of Justice, Department of State, & the Intelligence Community. Because there was a formal counter intelligence operation against American citizens, people in the Obama White House had to know, and it's likely Obama knew. In fact, it's unlikely he didn't know. There's a similar cast of characters in the Ukraine corruption hoax.

VDH: Food fight with Max Boot!! [amgreatness.com]

Jurecki comments on Nov 20, 2019:

Not enough introduction timon_phocas. Sorry bro. Please, next time you post about his publications, please give us a reason to want to open his article and this one in particular. Please don’t get me wrong I really love and appreciate everything you post. Prof. Hanson is at the top of his form. ...

timon_phocas replies on Nov 20, 2019:

Howdy @Jurecki, Evidently, Max Boot and David French wrote articles attacking Professor Hanson. His article responded to their attacks. I thought of it as an intellectual food fight. But, taking your suggestion, I will try a more substantial introduction from now on.

RealClearScience: problems with "WalMart" insulin [realclearscience.com]

timon_phocas comments on Nov 19, 2019:

Drug companies have close relationships with politicians. Politicians have close relationships with drug regulators. Profitable drugs are kept under patent protection rather than released for cheaper generics. Drug companies maximize profits. Patients either pay for better drug treatments or are ...

timon_phocas replies on Nov 19, 2019:

@BikerPetehall70 For a price...

NRO: "Impeachment!" show looks like Schiff's latest flop [nationalreview.com]

Diegovizc comments on Nov 16, 2019:

"Torquemada" Schiff is digging his own grave

timon_phocas replies on Nov 16, 2019:

Howdy @Diegovizc, Well, I guess the good news for Schiff is that he already doesn't have any credibility to lose.

DiscoverMag: Have astronomers found missing mass? [discovermagazine.com]

AndrewInVail comments on Nov 16, 2019:

I've been seeing a lot of articles about this lately. It is not clear to me from reading these articles so far though, do these new findings have anything to do with addressing the question of dark matter?

timon_phocas replies on Nov 16, 2019:

Howdy @AndrewinVail, No, the article only mentions comparing old photographic surveys and new telescopic surveys to get a better inventory of visible matter.

VDH: what happened to California Republicans? [dailysignal.com]

Jurecki comments on Nov 15, 2019:

This is a very depressing article, but spot on. California as we know it is just a memory now; future generations will pay the price.

timon_phocas replies on Nov 15, 2019:

Howdy @Jurecki My family has lived in California since 1871. I lived there until 1985. It is sad to see the decline and coming collapse of that wonderful state. VDH has trenchant arguments, but I point to three other triggering events in the decline. The first was the decision to go to a full time legislature with substantial pay. This made the legislature a profitable career choice. The "output" of laws skyrocketed. The next event was a Supreme Court decision. The California Constitution made a legislature like the US Congress. Assemblymen were elected by population districts like the US House. Senators were elected by counties. Big urban areas ran the Assembly and rural areas countered in the Senate. So if LA wanted something, they had to persuade senators in places like Tehama and Modoc and Inyo counties. But the Warren court eliminated these checks and balances. Urban California has no need to compromise with 80% of the rest of the state. The last event was from Jerry Brown in his first term as governor. He legalized public employee unions. This created the incestuous system where unions finance friendly politicians who vote on union pay and benefits.

Presidential Authority There is a story about Abraham Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation.

Edgework comments on Nov 13, 2019:

He had the bad manners to win the Republican nomination. He was too stupid to realize that it was Hillary’s turn. He refused to resign, when nice boys like Jeb or Mitt would have eagerly done so. And then he did the unthinkable: he fought back. And now, he will crush his enemies; he will see them ...

timon_phocas replies on Nov 13, 2019:

Howdy @Edgework Trump as Conan the Destroyer!

My Great Grandfather's letter to the returning Soldiers from WW1 - 26th February 1919 In a ...

timon_phocas comments on Nov 11, 2019:

Canadians were the best paid, best trained, and most effective of the British Empire's troops on the Western Front. They also had the highest STD rate. Some people debate whether that was due to their higher pay or a natural superiority in their studliness. There's no question in my mind that ...

timon_phocas replies on Nov 11, 2019:

@RobBlair Howdy again. Lloyd George said if the war had continued into 1919, he intended to replace Haig with Currie. Any family gossip on that?

DailyMail: Modified cowpox virus used as anti-cancer treatment [dailymail.co.uk]

pbuck0145 comments on Nov 9, 2019:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7664927/Breakthrough-scientists-create-new-cowpox-style-virus-kill-type-cancer.html

timon_phocas replies on Nov 9, 2019:

Oops... Sorry

[youtu.be] Boot Camp For Marine Corps Recruits.

JimbobNE comments on Nov 8, 2019:

I always wanted to be a Marine but health problems blocked that for me. Seeing this video makes me shake my head and curse my genetic problems. I would have loved to have spent a career as a Marine. Making your body and mind able to handle those kinds of pressures and obstacles just appealed to me ...

timon_phocas replies on Nov 9, 2019:

Howdy @JimbobNE, It's OK. I saw a lot of people in the Corps who were superannuated teenagers. They were wonderful in the field and utter failures at everything else in life. They never really reached adulthood because the Corps isn't what makes you a man. Realizing that you have to pay your own rent, and that's the way you want it, makes you into a man. When I was young I thought my satisfaction would come from mountains I climbed, patrols I led, ranks I achieved. Now that I'm looking back, it's my wife and family, the beauty I see in life, the deepening of faith, that have been most rewarding.

Trump's "abandonment" of Syrian Kurds.

RobBlair comments on Nov 8, 2019:

Lesson from history - "It is an extraordinary thing that the British civil administration should have succeeded in such a short time in alienating the whole country to such an extent that the Arabs have laid aside the blood feuds that they have nursed for centuries and that the Sunni and Shiah ...

timon_phocas replies on Nov 8, 2019:

Howdy @RobBlair, Iraqi Kurdistan was not administered as an Ottoman provence. It was administered as part of metropolitan Turkey. In a kind of backhand complement, Kurds were referred to as "Mountain Turks" by Ottoman authorities. It was only added to Iraq because of the discovery of oil deposits. Churchill did not want the remnant of Turkey to have strategically important oil.

‘Journalism is dead’: L.

iThink comments on Nov 6, 2019:

Can't help wondering why that Mormon family was in Mexico. How long had they been there and what were their plans - were they planning on staying in Mexico permanently?

timon_phocas replies on Nov 7, 2019:

Howdy @iThink, They belong to a schizmatic group within Mormanism that's been in Mexico for about a century. I haven't heard about them for a long time. Whether or not there has been violence in the past, they're gringos, they're prosperous, and they're heretics. They also oppose drug trafficing. In other words, perfect targets.

Our kids gave us 23-and-Me kits.

Naomi comments on Nov 4, 2019:

Wow... seriously?

timon_phocas replies on Nov 4, 2019:

Howdy @Naomi, Well, since Prester John was the mythical medieval king of Ethiopia and Edward the Confessor was celibate, I'd say my claims about my ancestry are about as substantial as Elizabeth Warren's ;;-)

USNI: Integrating the Corps and Navy missions [usni.org]

RobBlair comments on Nov 1, 2019:

This will probably be sacrilegious but I am on the outside looking in and (clearly) speak from ignorance. I've always seen the Marines as a transitional force. They are a transition between the Navy and the Army. And, they cover the transitional war zone between oceans and land. If its an ...