We should definitely trust the same war-cheering "experts" given their superb track record in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya & Syria.

Fighting a War isn't like "Fighting" Colon Cancer or Breast Cancer...

Just sayin.

Lotsa folks lose their lives in those fights too.

#NeverForget

Poland is Ballsy...

Stupid but ballsy.

If they are gonna open up their country to serve as Ukraine's air base, Putin ought to target them too.

I can't imagine what Eastern Europe is thinking in escalating this invasion...

Who exactly is getting promised what to lead us back into the Dark Ages and to destroy everything good about Western Civilization that we built before the American war machine kicked in and realized how much "fun!" destroying the planet could be?

Give it one week and see how many cheerleaders lose interest in the fun.  The ladies don't commit for long.  And truth be told?  They don't give a shit for Ukraine, Poland or anyplace they might have to actually sacrifice and die for.

Somebody else's sons will do that.  Always have.  Party on, ladies!  Woot

All these Christian Media Ladies Cheering War Against Pooty Poot. (heh)

I wonder if they realize how low their stock as women drops if they can't shoot, fight or bear children.

War is a Man's World, baby.  Sometimes cheerleaders get killed too.

Twirl for us, cheering girls?  And put your skirts back on before you return us all to the Dark Ages.

Pizza, free!, tomorrow at 10am if ya support Ukraine. Lolol.

His Last Supper?

 

"No One Gets Out of Here Alive."

 IF it weren't so deadly a cost to innocents, I'd be laughing at the American media cheering this war on as if it were another sporting event.  Lighting up our buildings and bridges in "our" team colors!  Declaring victory and celebrating the foes' mistakes so early in the game...

Friends, you do understand this is the Russian Army, right?

Backing Putin into a corner -- as we are doing by crippling Russia's economy and pitting her people against the world -- is a costly way to bring "peace".

Who's gonna pay to clean up Ukraine?  When will Zelensky die?  He very well can't leave Kiev now, with everyone touting his bravery and willingness to die with his troops.

The city is encircled.  The Russians are marching on, and the map is getting redder by the minute.

I don't have a dog in this fight, nor does America.  Biden has a distraction, but in the end, March Madness will hit, baseball will open up again, and America will look away.  We're not committed to freeing Ukraine, and most of us don't have business interests there.

As prices continue rising here at home, it's not likely Americans will willingly "sacrifice" for our Ukranian brothers and sisters, or cheer the deaths of Russian soldiers.  I don't think Biden is stupid enough to back Putin into a corner where he'd use nukes, but I don't expect him to die a Ghaddafy death at American hands either.

They likely wouldn't nuke Chicago, or a Midwestern city as we are too close to feeding the nation.  New York or DC is where Russia would want to attack to shut down American finance and business the way we are choosing to leave Russian no options but to fight on, using all of their military resources.

"I have not yet begun to fight..." Mother Russia is telling us.

We are so stupid, our military leadership and the media pundits who get so excited about participating in another world war (flashback to what... 1914?  Yay, how exciting, war!)  But America lacks commitment, always has.

Nobody here supports Russia invading Ukraine, but despite the propaganda you're seeing, nobody here is going to be following this once Spring hits here, our sports teams are back in action, and our lives go on being lived.  

Once personal sacrifice is called for, and the Ukrainians start admitting their losses, America will lose interest in backing the brave little country that could...

It's a shame we do this to people across the globe. Someday, they'll learn not to put their faith in America to protect them.  We can't even care for our own anymore.

Let's Prolong the Suffering, and keep the War Going as long as we can from America though?

 USA, USA, USA!  We never did get to cheer for us at the Olympics this year, did we?

Jonah Goldberg

@JonahDispatch

·

1h

Ukraine’s resistance has been heroic and inspiring. It will likely be heroic and inspiring this week as well. Alas, it seems equally likely that Russia’s brutality will be far greater in response to the resistance and probably more successful as well.

Ocean Mall, Singer Island.

Mal and I met here, on the barrier island north of Palm Beach, back in 1991.  We later lived and worked on the island too.  He in condo maintenance especially enjoying taking care of the pools, me at the front-desk at Embassy Suites, checking in/welcoming escapees from the East Coast snowstorms...

Boy they came down crabby!  Always stole the desk pens when they learned there was a $20 daily fee tacked on to park their rental cars in the lot, that hadn't been calculated into their quoted price... That I remember.  So easy, when young and pretty, to send them up to their rooms happy though with an efficient check in, some kind words for their children, and a non-combative attitude that de-escalated them.  

They were here!  In South Florida.  On the beach.  For a few days at least, their troubles were on hold.  Their rooms were ready, and they escaped the city and the storms...  You sell some of yourself in those customer service jobs, of course, but when you're young, your cup overfloweth with kindness and pity too for those living lesser lifestyles who needed the peace of the place we lived in to find balance.

The teardrop traveller sends pictures of Ocean Mall and the looming condos today.  Be well, everyone!  The whole world is not warring, and God help those need this extreme excitement to arouse themselves.  It's a war we cannot contemplate, nor I hope, will we ever have to, where I live...

We have to stop electing leaders who put us in these situations, again and again and again.  The planet, and the peoples of the planet, absorb these losses while the American people -- who didn't have much to cheer for this year at the Olympics -- move on quickly after "helping" devestate other people's homelands with our mighty mighty military (advisors, technology, and weaponry only, of course.  No troops needed, for now.)

"Pray for Peace, people everywhere?"  You can't cling to violence and keep pushing people past their comfort zones then shriek in terror when they respond in kind.  This I know.

Grace.

Lord, there may be many homes that are larger than mine. There may be tables groaning with food and drink in abundance. There may be riches in supplies and appointments. There may be conveniences on every hand and there may be physical assurance that tomorrow will bring still more. But, Lord, You have been with me unto this and supplied my necessary requirements. On that assurance I rest my belief that you will bless my efforts, if I apply them to the best of my ability, to carry on. I AM CONTENT.

Amen

He's Got the Whole World in His Hands.

He's got the little bittie babies in his hands... 

He's got the whole world in His hands.

He's got you and me brother, in his hands... 

He's got the whole world in His hands.

He's got the whole wide world, in his hands... 

He's got the whole world in His hands.

Isaiah 41:13 For I am the LORD your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.

Let's not blow up His World?

Look Out for Me...

[Jim and Huck]
So look out for me, 

oh muddy water.
Your mysteries are deep and wide.

And I got a need for going someplace...

And I got a need to climb upon your back and ride.

~Roger Miller, Big River

President Romney Would Be a Good Leader Now...

but he got shot down by the "me-so-silly!" voters who thought his stupid compassion in trying to take the family dog along in a pet carrier on the top of the crowded station wagon was a disqualifying act...

When you get comfortable, you don't take things seriously I don't think, to the nation's detriment.

#LifeIsRealSoReal...

------------

Hot Space Bonus Track:  Las Palabras De Amor

What foolish world... so many songs

Senselessly heard through the neverending cold.

And all for fear, and all for greed...

Speak any tongue but for God's sake we need...

Las Palabras De Amor... let me hear the words of love 

Related Lyrics from Pere Ubu:

[Verse 1]

Here it comes, here it comes, here it comes again
Here it comes, the ice cream truck
People flyin' out their doors, runnin' up the street
They really love that music
Man, it's just my luck

[Chorus]
Baby! Baby! Baby! Come here quick
The melody's about to make me sick
Baby! Baby! Baby! Shut that door
I don't think I can stand anymore

There's too much music in the land, you hear it everywhere
Everybody's in a band, I can't get enough of it...

[Bridge]

It's not the sugar
It's not the sticky sludge
People wanna eat that stuff, I don't hold a grudge
It's that music
There's too much of it
I wish some of 'em had the guts to quit...

[Chorus]
Baby! Baby! Baby! Come here quick
The melody's about to make me sick
Baby! Baby! Baby! Shut that door
I don't think I can stand anymore.. 

 cloudland

 bonus track:

Waiting... for Mary:

Welcome to Mars (it's open all hours!)

What are we doing here? ...

I oughta know, but my memory's going...

What are we doing here?

Bill's in the back and Fred's on the phone, sayin'

What are we doing here?

Waiting for Mary. Waiting for Mary... Oh.

As bad as it seems, maybe we're dreaming.  What are we doing here?

Don't mind the stares -- we've paid for these chairs! What are we doing here?  Waiting for Mary, Waiting for Mary, Waiting for Mary... Oh.

What do ya know, it had to be snowing!  What are we doing here?

Keep up that smile, it might be awhile...

Waiting for Mary. Waiting for Mary. Oh.

ADDED: Live Version, with friends on Night Music back in the 80s ...

All in a line, or one at a time...

Don't mind the chairs, we've paid for these stares! 

What are we doing here?

Waiting for Mary. Waitin for Mary.

Oh

 

Georgetown Pride.

Not lost on me is the nomination of the first Black Woman Supreme Court justice, whose husband is a White doctor, the chief of general surgery at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington.  

I don't see how Ilya Shapiro keeps his job -- administrator and adjunct instructor at Georgetown Law's constitutional center.  It's personal now, isn't it?

Who's the lesser, Mr. Shapiro?  

Somebody will hire Mr. Shapiro. He's got a lot of friends who think the way he does out there in the legal field.  

But her husband is chief of surgery, and a Boston Brahim to boot.

Trumped.

Don't Go Chasing Waterfalls...

Listen to the rivers and the lakes that you're used to...

I know that you're gonna have it your way or nothing at all, 

but I think you're moving too fast...

Gentle Woman. Quiet Light.

Morning star, so strong and bright,

gentle Mother, peaceful dove,
teach us wisdom; teach us love.

You were chosen by the Father;
you were chosen for the Son.
You were chosen from all women
and for woman, shining one.

Blessed are you among women,
blest in turn all women, too.
Blessed they with peaceful spirits.
Blessed they with gentle hearts.

Gentle woman, quiet light,
morning star, so strong and bright,
gentle Mother, peaceful dove,
teach us wisdom; teach us love.

We Gonna LOVE all our enemies.

 'Til the chameleon falls off the wall.

We gonna rock him. We gonna roll him.

We gonna teach him that love will make him tall...

That's cool!  'Cuz one day every day be Judgement Day!

(so let's) Play in the Sunshine!  

~Prince.

--------------------

Romans 12

A Living Sacrifice

12 I appeal to you therefore, brothers,[a] by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.[b] 2 Do not be conformed to this world,[c] but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.[d]

Gifts of Grace

3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. 4 For as in one body we have many members,[e] and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. 6 Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; 7 if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads,[f] with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.

Marks of the True Christian

9 Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. 10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. 11 Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit,[g] serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.

14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly.[h] Never be wise in your own sight. 17 Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. 19 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it[i] to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” 20 To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Love... is not an easy thing.

The only baggage you can bring...

is all that you can't leave behind.

-----------

War is different for women.  Choose LIFE !

Matthew 5:38-40

New International Version

Eye for Eye

38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’[a] 39 But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. 40 And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well.

43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor[i] and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Raise Your Hand if You Think President Carter was Wise to take in the Shah of Iran...

 

U.S. stands ready to evacuate Zelensky, Russia’s ‘target No. 1’

History, friends.

Know it.  And don't be selective in your memories either...

In 1977, however, the U.S. and Iran enjoyed a friendly diplomatic relationship. Carter and Pahlavi’s official discussions centered on peace prospects for the Middle East as well as ways to combat the energy crisis that had hit the U.S. and other Western nations in the early 1970s. At the time, Carter hoped to enlist Iran’s help in reconvening peace talks between Israel and Egypt and to secure Iran’s help in supporting nuclear non-proliferation talks with the Soviet Union. At a press conference that day, Carter and Pahlavi affirmed their desire to collaborate on alternative energy production and oil conservation. That evening, the Carters hosted a state dinner for the shah and his wife. The visit also included casual moments spent with the Carter family, during which the empress was photographed holding and cooing over the Carters’ grandson, Jimmy.

The visit ended on a positive note and, the next month, Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter traveled to Tehran, where Carter toasted the shah as “an island of stability” in the Middle East. That stability was rocked when Pahlavi was deposed by Islamic fundamentalists in January 1979 and replaced by a regime led by Ayatollah Khomeini. In October, the exiled shah came to the United States for cancer treatment. Carter’s hospitality toward the shah enraged a group of radical Iranian students, who stormed the U.S. embassy in Tehran on November 4, 1979, and took 66 Americans hostage. The hostage crisis lasted 444 days and Carter’s inability to secure their release contributed to his defeat by Ronald Reagan in the 1980 election.

What You Don't Know and Don't Learn in this "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" News Reporting Day...

 Did you know that the alleged bigot Greg McMichael, convicted of a hate crime for chasing down a black "jogger" in his white neighborhood, had been involved in an earlier  criminal prosecution of Ahmaud Arbery and likely recognized the man he was chasing?

A suspect in the killing of Ahmaud Arbery was involved in a previous investigation of him, recused prosecutor says

By Dakin Andone, Angela Barajas and Jason Morris, CNN

Updated 7:18 AM ET, Sat May 9, 2020

Glynn County, Georgia (CNN)One of the men accused in the fatal shooting of Ahmaud Arbery was involved in a previous prosecution of Arbery, according to a letter written by a prosecutor who has since recused himself from the case.

In an April 7 letter, Waycross Judicial Circuit District Attorney George Barnhill wrote that his son and the suspect, Gregory McMichael, helped with an earlier prosecution of Arbery when they both worked for the Brunswick Judicial Circuit District Attorney's Office.

------------

Maybe the White judge was lying? ;-)  He white, so he a bigot too? lol

Say, did you know Derek Chauvin and George Floyd both worked security at the same club back when Floyd was new to town and still clean and sober?  They likely both recognized each other the day of Floyd's killing too.

I wonder why those facts aren't reported in the media?  Also, Dante Wright allegedly shot a young man and crippled him for life, and a young woman reported to police he had pulled a gun on her and demanded her rent money, after she and a friend let him sleep on her floor after hanging out when he had no ride home.

They are all angels in heaven now, but here on earth, not so much...  RIP.

 Life is Beautiful That Way...

Though Death and Darkness Gather All Around Us...

Read more »

The Federal Trial Continues for the Officers Involved in George Floyd's Death.

 Thread here.

11:30 a.m.

Former Minneapolis police officer Thomas Lane took the stand after one of his former colleagues testified early Monday morning. Lane is currently facing a federal charge of depriving George Floyd of medical aid. He is not charged with willfully failing to intervene.

During questioning, defense attorney Early Gray made it clear that it was only Lane's fourth day with MPD when he received the call to respond Cup Foods.

When walking up to George Floyd's car, Lane testified that "it was just alarm bells." Lane said that he pulled out his gun and escalated the situation "to let [Floyd] know how serious I thought it was."

...

Lou Raguse

@LouRaguse

·

34m

Cross examination is beginning with Samantha Trepel questioning. She is with the civil rights division of the Department of Justice in Washington DC and is prosecuting the case with the assistant US Attorneys from Minneapolis.

...

Trepel is beginning by establishing that Officer Lane was a fully trained officer on the date in question. And that Derek Chauvin was not Lane's personal FTO and was not a higher rank than him.