Arthur thinks maybe the Atlantic is being used to pass along some information about our attitude toward Europe and the NATO alliance. Check it out and see what you think.
Category: Current Events
Cleaning Out the Augean Stables
When John Kennedy was assassinated in November, 1963, I was six years old. I think I was in kindergarten at the time. I remember the day because the nuns were all crying. So, there hasn’t been a day in my life that I can remember that I wasn’t aware of Kennedy’s assassination. And after the initial shock wore off my family members, it receded into my mind until his brother was assassinated a few years later. At that point, talk about conspiracies finally became loud enough and I was old enough to have it impinge on my thoughts.
But I wasn’t receptive to these ideas. I just believed what the official version stated. Lone gunmen were responsible and that was all there was to it.
I was watching a podcast that had a JFK conspiracy advocate on. After the initial obvious question (“Is there a smoking gun in the new document dump?”) was answered with a, “Whoa, whoa! I’m on page 3 of 60,000,” the expert explained that what he’s looking for isn’t a smoking gun but rather a pattern of facts that steers the explanation toward one of the likelier causes.
And here, there is a lot of information that tells us more about what was going on between JFK and his intelligence agencies. And none of it makes the CIA look less guilty. The CIA had been following Oswald around for the four years before the assassination and they knew exactly where he lived and worked and how close he would be to Kennedy that day. And there has never been a doubt that Jack Ruby was a mob-controlled stooge who did what he was told. And there is no doubt that the CIA had connections to the mob and that the mob hated the Kennedys. And JFK had been talking to some of the top staff in his administration about busting up the CIA for what happened in Cuba. This “conspiracy theorist” doesn’t come right out and say that the CIA had Kennedy killed. But that’s what he’s pointing to.
Somehow that still shocks me. Now, looking at what happened to Trump last year in Pennsylvania should make it seem obvious that the Deep State is completely ruthless and unconcerned with consequences. But as intellectually simple as that situation is to see, it’s still horrifying to me. Sure, I’ve known for decades now that our government isn’t the white hat good guys that I thought they were when I was younger. Iraq taught me that politicians of both parties use Americans as pawns whenever it’s convenient. We have psychopaths running many of our agencies. Just look at the FBI and the Justice Department. Guilt and innocence are the least important aspects of people they target for “justice.”
But the shock tells me that probably the most important work Donald Trump can do before he retires to Mar a Lago in three and half years is to empty out the CIA and the FBI. I think of these two agencies as threats a hundred times more dangerous to this country than China and Russia combined. We have a very expensive and on balance, formidable military machine. Even after eighty years, the nuclear deterrence of our arsenal is still potent. I don’t think the benefits we gain from the intelligence and judgement of these intelligence agencies compensate us for the malice and deception that they seem to display as their defining characteristics. They are a threat to the elected leaders of this country and they represent a potent force preventing the very information which our leaders need from reaching them. Instead of facts they provide a narrative that is convenient for their interests but often is confusing and destructive. I wish Donald Trump all the best luck in tackling these rogue agencies. And I hope he breaks them permanently.
Well, that’s what I thought about today.
To Serve Man. We Need a New Cookbook
All this Heinlein stuff has me thinking about science fiction. And that’s fine by me. The current political theater between the Trump administration and the various judges trying to block his orders isn’t something I want to provide a blow-by-blow description of. Either Trump figures out a way around these obstacles or he fails. Either way I’ll wait till I can see the outcome.
But science fiction is interesting to me. From my way of looking at it, science fiction is the dominant form of storytelling in American society and has been for well over a century. Now this isn’t what literary types believe. But genre fiction is the dominant form of fiction in this country and science fiction is what fueled the imaginations of young people for most of the twentieth century and still does even in these times of moral rot in the arts.
So, this gives me a chance to talk about my ideas about where science fiction should and will go. And I think the current direction of technological progress will provide the impetus for where the stories will go. Currently I don’t think space travel and advances in biology are the topics that garner our attention. Not to say those things won’t continue to interest people. But currently the real impact of technology on our lives is artificial intelligence. But more than just how far AI will go in replacing humans in various aspects of commerce is what this will do to our society. And more specifically how will humans push back on the people running industry who don’t see this as a problem or at least don’t see it as a problem for them.
Because let’s be clear. Automation of all kinds has been changing our world for hundreds of years. An iron foundry displaces ten thousand village blacksmiths. An automobile factory and a gas station in every village eliminates the need for train stations across the country and all the people who worked on them. Every innovation in technology displaces the human beings who supported the previous version of “how things are done.” But this latest innovation wants to replace the most important attribute of a human being; his ability to think. His ability to create intellectual property.
And that’s a revolution. And I think, that’s what science fiction will want to talk about. Of course it’s been talking about that for decades. On the hackiest level, that’s what the Terminator movies are all about. The machines are going to get rid of us. So are the Matrix movies.
But I think more nuanced portrayals of how AI will affect humanity and how humanity can affect the roll out of AI are what is needed and what will be interesting to people. Now far be it from me to denigrate the fine work that Arnold Schwarzenegger and Keanu Reeves have done to enlighten the human population to their imminent danger at the hands of sentient machines. I know that I’m always on the lookout for Austrian bodybuilders sporting gatling guns or déjà vu black cats crossing my path.
But what seems to me to be needed is a way to make AI healthy. Currently, everything about our on-line existence is harmful to us. It’s some combination of anti-social, irritating and stultifying. It’s making our lives worse. And that doesn’t seem to be accidental. It seems to be a feature of the algorithm. It almost seems like an anesthetic meant to keep us groggy and confused.
I think science fiction should be focused on rethinking how this ultimate technology has to be forced to work for the benefit of humans instead of as a rat poison to finish us off. So that’s what I think.
The Juvenile Novels of Robert A Heinlein – A Short Discussion
I had so much fun with the Heinlein short stories that I’m rolling into the Heinlein juveniles. I think many people understandably feel that the juvenile novels may be Heinlein’s best work. I confess I’m of two minds about that. They have different properties and leave room for adult novels to show their quality in a different way.
But let’s see where we can go with these stories. I think I’ll rank them best to worst according to my incredibly sensitive literary faculty.
Have Space Suit—Will Travel (1958)
The Rolling Stones (1952)
Farmer in the Sky (1950)
Starman Jones (1953)
Citizen of the Galaxy (1957)
Tunnel in the Sky (1955)
Red Planet (1949)
The Star Beast (1954)
Space Cadet (1948)
Time for the Stars (1956)
Between Planets (1951)
Rocket Ship Galileo (1947)
I’ve left out Starship Troopers (1959) because although Heinlein included it in his juvenile series. I think it’s actually one of his adult stories.
Now my order is obviously idiosyncratic and to be perfectly honest most of the stories are fairly equally good so it’s a very rough sorting. I did put Rocket Ship Galileo last because now, space nazis do seem a bit silly to me. But at the time the story seemed just fine to adolescent me. Maybe depending on the day “Tunnel in the Sky” and “Citizen of the Galaxy” could switch places on the list. And maybe a few other ones too. But let’s go with this.
The only story that I think I can objectively hold up as accurately ranked is my first choice, “Have Space Suit—Will Travel.” I think Heinlein did excel his usual juvenile story here. The protagonist, characters and plot devices are especially enjoyable and I can say even now, a sequel or two in this universe might be a fun read. Who knows, maybe one day I’ll contact the Heinlein estate to find out if they have any provisions for making that part of his intellectual property available to “respectful” collaborators.
I gave copies of all these books to my grandsons as soon as they were old enough to read. I consider them excellent company for growing boys. Just looking at that list of names makes me think of picking up “Starman Jones” or “The Rolling Stones” just to relive the feeling of reading them for the first time. They are each a touchstone to a very happy time in my life when the local library had a whole shelf of these Heinlein stories just waiting for me to read them and move onto the next one.
One other word on these books. Of all the books, I think “Between Planets” was the only one I never reread. I remember it took place on a Venus that was tropical in climate. There was a Venusian named Sir Isaac Newton, I believe, but I don’t remember very much else about the plot other than some kind of interplanetary political intrigue.
So, what is your order of excellence? And what is your rationale? And where exactly do you stand on the “Starship Troopers” question? And what is your opinion on space nazis. Leave your comments in the comments section below.
The Green Energy “Transition”
Here’s an excellent article that takes an objective approach to energy policy. It looks at energy sources as an historical phenomenon. One of my favorite quotes is, “We find a useful referee in this war of words with the recently released Eye on the Market 15th Annual Energy Paper by Michael Cembalest, J. P. Morgan’s chairman of market and investment strategy. As this 70-slide, deep-dive report pointedly notes, “after $9 trillion globally over the last decade spent on wind, solar, electric vehicles, energy storage, electrified heat and power grids, the renewable transition is still a linear one; the renewable share of final energy consumption is slowly advancing at 0.3%–0.6% per year [emphasis added].” One does not need a mathematics degree to understand that such anemic growth rates are not the hallmarks of an “unstoppable” juggernaut. Hence, Cembalest’s bottom line: “Growth in fossil fuel consumption is slowing but no clear sign of a peak on a global basis.” That is to say, no “energy transition” is in sight.”
I like a business analyst that has a rye sense of humor; “an unstoppable juggernaut.” The Germans being the hyper-obedient victims of their past behavior have gone down the green road with both feet. They shut down their nuclear power plants and without Russian gas their economy has been crushed. They don’t have enough heating energy for their homes and they can’t run their heavy industries like auto manufacturing and chemical synthesis without fossil fuels. I wonder if they were smart enough to leave the nuke plants intact just in case they came to their senses. Nah, they’re too smart to have left themselves a emergency exit. I’ll bet they knocked them down.
The gist of the essay is that there’s never a transition from one energy source to the next. The old one keeps on at the same lever or even increases. Eventually an even more productive successor just step changes itself into prominence. Human muscle didn’t disappear when animals were domesticated. Wind power didn’t eliminate oxen. Neither did steam. And steam still powers many applications even though fossil fuels became predominant. And one day oil and gas will be overshadowed by nuclear or geothermal or whatever larger source is engineered. We want more power not less. That’s the lesson.
Guest Contributor – Milo Mindbender – 23MAR2025 – The Vote
I am of the belief that voting is one of only two times the government actually asks for your opinion, the other being jury duty. If you don’t vote you shouldn’t bitch about what the government does, since you chose not to express any of your ideas.
I also do not believe that the franchise should be free to all. If you are not a taxpayer, but are voting you are asking the public to cash checks you have no financial standing in. By limiting the franchise to tax payers you reduce the influence of those who do not contribute. I can hear the gnashing of dentures now “What about the retirees?”, they earned the franchise during their working years and should retain it in their “Golden Years”, maybe establish something similar to the 40 quarters to be eligible for SSI, require 3 years of being a net tax payer in order to establish the franchise right. Make everyone “Get some skin in the game” to quote a former President.
Bridging the Generations (Part 3)
Sorry I was missing from the site most of the day but today was a grandson visiting day here at the Compound. Tertius (the third) is currently twelve years old. And that works out because I can still keep up with him in a baseball catch and shooting pool without looking too feeble. Against all odds (the recent weather forecast) the sun was out and it was about fifty degrees. And after two half-hour catches, I can proudly say my right shoulder and elbow are both reasonably intact.
Camera Girl provided the requested bill of fare (spaghetti and meatballs, cookies and cream ice cream, lemonade) and I provided the requested cinematic presentation (extended version of “The Two Towers). The conversation was limited to an in depth discussion of how Elrond and Aragorn could be related, his current progress in school band (baritone horn) and the trade-off between a lot of snow (which he likes) and not getting out of school until late June (which he is against). I tried introducing the question of dark matter but I didn’t seem to spark his imagination with it. Probably needs some background in physics first. I guess seventh grade science isn’t that advanced.
I’m happy to find that we have maintained good relations and I recognize several of my traits in him (the poor kid) and am highly pleased that we both enjoy a baseball catch as a good way to pass time and get a little exercise. Now, if he were sixteen, I’d probably be too old. And come to think of it sixteen-year-olds have other interests than playing sports with old fogeys. But currently I can throw it far enough and fast enough to keep him interested in the game. And it’s actually good exercise for me too.
And at 6:30 pm I drove him home to his parents and told Camera Girl that all is right with the world and we must have done something right to have such nice grandkids. To be honest, she probably did something right. I’m just born lucky and hang around with the right people.
So, I checked the news to see what I missed today and so far, I don’t see anything new. Trump, blah, blah, blah. Musk, blah, blah, blah. Resist, resist, resist. Rinse, repeat.
I was glad to see there was a fair amount of interest in the Heinlein post. I figure a lot of folks from our generation were fans back in the day of RAH. I’ll say that reading his stories gave me an interest in space and when the time came to think of engineering as a profession, his stories made it seem more interesting than it might have without his influence. Of course, he didn’t warn me enough about how stupid everyone in the executive suite would be. But maybe it was a different time.
So now we have to prepare for our visit from Quartus (the fourth) in the next couple of weeks. We have to nail down the menu. I already know his choice in movies. He’s going to demand at least a triple feature of Godzilla movies (Lord help me). As far as sports it may be something esoteric. Sometimes the kids have toys like tops or yo-yos or other less recognizable geegaws. But now is the time to go through the research stage so that the actual event goes smoothly. Who knows? Maybe bowling or laser tag will be on the agenda. Well, I better rest up.
Prancing Hippies Found Liable for $667 Million to Pipeline Company
Greenpeace that ever annoying coalition of environmental dunderheads and nihilists has been found liable for their part in fomenting violent, destructive activities associated with a pipeline that was being constructed in North Dakota.
Add this enormous fine on top of the disruption to access to taxpayer money that DOGE is currently providing and it sounds to me that a lot of grimy, smelly hippies will be quite a bit poorer and disorganized for the foreseeable future.
Whales, polar bears and penguins, better start watching your backs. You’re on your own. The eco-terrorists have lost their piggybank.
To Be or Not to Be a Barbarian
Just when I think Leftists can’t get any more un-American they say, “Hold my soy latte” and show us just how miserably wretched they truly are. Up here in New England one of the states (it doesn’t matter which one) is debating a bill to mandate 100% voting turnout for all elections.
Now I don’t know the details. I don’t know how they’ll guarantee that the dying and the late-stage dementia patients are forced to vote. I’m guessing if you don’t show up the ballot gets filled out for you by the Secretary of State. I think they’re calling it the 100% Democracy Bill or something brilliant like that.
This sounds like a joke from our side; just a way to make fun of the leftist tendency to dictate behavior for “people’s own good” but this is actual legislation that’s currently under debate. Actual politicians in this part of the country think this is consistent with the American constitution. Well, all I can say is these people are insane.
But they’re also running the show up here. The insanity is baked deep into everything they think and do. They don’t realize how this looks to people on the outside. This is so close to North Korea and Sadaam’s Iraq where “free elections” end up with the dear leaders garnishing >99% of the vote every single time.
Well, that’s enough about that.
I was thinking today about the definition of literary science fiction. I guess it’s any science fiction that has enough character development and enough verisimilitude to the way real people act and talk and feel to convince “serious” literary critics that your story is literature and not entertainment. I guess it has to be in some sense “real.”
Unfortunately, I understand that what it’s mostly become is racial and sexual grievance screeds very unconvincingly disguised as science fiction. So outside of a specific population of people primarily dedicated to reading such stuff it’s not going to very interesting to most of the human race.
But putting this political sub-genre aside what is the difference between genre fiction like science fiction and fantasy and actual literary fiction?
Well, I think that’s still quite subjective but I get the point of some of the criticism of some genre fiction. The story can be so stereotyped that the action feels cartoonish, the characters are one dimensional and the dialog is completely predictable. I can think of some pulp stuff that seems that way now. But by the same token, there are literary “masterpieces” that have long stretches of boring plot where nothing much happens. And even the most widely hailed protagonists can have whole chapters where the story drags and the dialog is meh.
So, what’s the calculation? Can a pulp story have 95% of the story composed of space opera and still be “literature” if the author gives the hero a scene full of heartbreaking humanity and emotional conflict? Sure, we’re not expecting Conan the Barbarian to break into a Shakespearian soliloquy when one of his comrades is skewered by a neolithic monster. But if you write a story that has an interesting plot surely there is no shame in trying to make, some of the characters at least, recognizably and honestly human.
Now, I’m not thinking about Hamlet showing up in any of my stories. But Macbeth might as well be a medieval urban fantasy story. It has witches and magic and ghosts. Just because it’s in iambic pentameter and has “thou” and “thee” scattered around in it doesn’t make it any less a crime drama. So, who’s to say that a genre novel can’t be legitimate literature?
Just something I was thinking about.
Soak in the Sunshine
Meriam Webster defines, “bellwether” as:
- one that takes the lead or initiative
- leader
- an indicator of trends
Later on, they explain etymologically and for historical perspective, that wether means sheep and the original meaning of bellwether is the sheep that wears a bell and is the leader of the flock. But nowadays the last meaning dominates. A bellwether is an indicator of trends.
And so today I have declared Camera Girl as an American economic bellwether. Today she told me that eggs are now priced less than five dollars a dozen and officially back within her budget again. And later she told me that gasoline had fallen below three dollars a gallon.
Not one to waste such a moment I informed her that she needs to credit Donald Trump for these improvements. And with a minimum of eye-rolling she unironically credited the forty seventh President of the United States with this economic turn of events. Thank you, Camera Girl.
Alright I’ve banged the drum and declared victory over inflation based an a pretty small sample of prices. But you have to remember people who go grocery shopping look at the world precisely from that angle. When a dozen eggs costs eight dollars the sticker shock is visceral. When gas goes from two dollars to three seventy-five a gallon that’s an outrage to motorists. Especially if you don’t happen to have a six-figure salary.
So, what’s my point? Well, for the last couple of months I’ve been reading the Democrats talking points and the most consistent advice is for the Democrats and the media to flood the field with the fact that inflation is not decreasing but increasing. Okay, that’s a pretty potent strategy since inflation is primarily what got Biden and Harris bounced out of the race for the White House. Allowing inflation to go unchecked for even two years would be suicidal for the Republicans.
So it is with great satisfaction that I note that at least some of the most noticeable and irritating consumer prices have headed in the right direction. Now I can’t say exactly why this is happening. Is it Trumps policies already making an impact? Is it just the beauty of karma kicking the Democrats in the teeth and then patting Donald Trump on the shoulder like an old friend? Maybe. But whatever it is the guys at the Wednesday zoom call were kind of giddy about some of it.
So, I don’t know how long this will continue. But every week that it does seems to take its toll on the mental health of Chuck Schumer, Hakim Jeffries and AOC. All three seem to be close to a paranoid nervous breakdown. I saw a little bit of Schumer on a show (maybe the View) and he was gesticulating with his arms and rattling on in a high-pitched whine as if he might be working up to a seizure or a stroke. This is definitely where we want the Democrats. When their heads look like they might explode I don’t think we have to worry about them convincing the American people of much of anything at all. Well, maybe they might convince viewers that they’re unhinged. That they might do.
So, am I laying it on a little thick? Yeah, probably. But it’s not every day or even every year that our enemies look so flustered and tongue-tied. It’s a moment worth savoring.