A Lot of Bull

I had to read this headline a few times before I was sure I was seeing it right:

150 feral cattle to be shot from sky in New Mexico national forest as US Forest Service issues kill order

Seriously? Where's PETA?

Organizing an aerial cattle-shoot instead of finding a more useful, less wasteful solution to the issue of "feral cattle" (who knew?) does fit in with the current destructive activities of our federal government. According to the article, the cattle began free ranging in the 1970s. Suddenly, after 50 years, they've become a threat to "public safety." Other concerns mentioned in the article fall under the "bull" heading, in my estimation.

The doomed cattle are roaming, for the next couple of days at least, in Gila Wilderness. It's described as a "protected backcountry area in New Mexico." If they could, the cattle might argue that it's not quite so protected.

Cruelty, laziness, and stupidity are always a terrible combination. Unfortunately, our national officials seem to have that triple play down to a science.

At the Edge

But you tell me over and over and over again my friend 
Ah, you don't believe we're on the eve of destruction

~ Barry McGuire

Eve of Destruction was a hit song when I was a teeny-bopper. It was a protest song, primarily against the Vietnam war. In that, singer/songwriter Barry McGuire was far from alone.

The 1960s are now sixty years ago. If we were on the eve of destruction back then, we're closer to midnight today. We live in a much more frightening world than anyone in the mid-'60s could imagine. In the 1960s, the US Constitution was the law of the land. There was no question about that among everyday citizens. That is no longer true.

We in America--formerly famous for being a free country--find that the First Amendment has been rendered largely meaningless. We labor under growing restrictions on free speech, freedom of religion, freedom of association, and endless attacks on the Second Amendment--our right to bear arms. Many of the impediments to our freedoms emanate from unelected Federal bureaucrats. There is often no legal recourse. Legitimate cases are dismissed by district attorneys and judges that care more about criminal rights than those of taxpaying citizens.

In the past 60 years, the United States has withstood the turbulence and tragedy of several wars. We united and rebuilt after September 11, 2001. We have recovered from severe economic hardships--inflation and sky-high interest rates in the 1980s, the dotcom market bubble burst around Y2K, the financial reverses of 2008's Great Recession. In all my years, I've never worried about the USA surviving any trial.

Until now. Now, we are so fractured and degraded as a society, our government is so corrupted and incompetent, that I worry we are at the very edge of a national disaster that can never be remedied. It has happened to every great civilization in history. The Roman Empire fell for reasons disturbingly similar to conditions in America today. Among those reasons were border collapse, economic crisis, and government corruption. Rome lasted for a thousand years. But if the USA can't begin to turn the tide of chaos within our country, I think we're on a much more rapid path to self-destruction.

YouTube Video

Up in the Air

Whoa, it came out of the sky
Landed just a little south of Moline

~ Creedence Clearwater Revival

Well, I'm not sure where the landing spot would be. But if I were in charge, that Chinese balloon would be in a zillion pieces. It would be the "flying machine in pieces on the ground," to quote further from classic rock tunes. If I were running the show, the Chinese Communists would definitely see fire and rain on their computer screens instead of US secret sites.

Sure, it's a "weather balloon" that just happens to be drifting over U.S military bases and nuclear silos. Does anyone in this country actually believe a single word that comes out of either the Biden administration OR China? Pardon the rhetorical question. It beats cursing and swearing.

The current "president" has parked our national security in a continuous state of suspended animation. From the border, to illegal immigration, to crime, to fentanyl, to sucking up to China and other enemies, Biden has left any action to protect or benefit the US up in the air. Biden has consistently demonstrated that he is not interested in what American citizens want or need. He owes too much to too many shady players.

In his weak and timid response to the aerial invasion of our country by a belligerent China, Biden acts as though his first allegiance is to Beijing. Allowing China to leisurely spy across the continental USA makes me wonder--is Biden's first loyalty to China?

Is that a rhetorical question? I'll leave that up in the air.

New Year, New Name

Until recently the "Lunar" New Year was always called "Chinese New Year." Heaven forfend that in these enlightened "woke" times we recognize nearly forty centuries worth of history that is celebrated by the majority of the world's population. No, now it sounds like it's simply the Moon that's celebrating a new year. No basis in historical fact is necessary, as is customary these days with the Woke crowd.

Nevertheless, it's always fun to look up your Chinese (Lunar?) zodiac sign and see what the description tells you. I was born at the tail end of the Year of the Rabbit; I missed being a Dragon by about 72 hours. So 2023 is my year once again. Predictions seem a bit tentative for Rabbits in 2023. Oh well, whatever transpires, I'm sure I've lived through worse.

Even the Chinese people are annoyed at the effort to change the name of their ancient holiday. So, as they say in Mandarin, Xin Nian Kuai Le ~ Happy New Year. 

Go ahead, Wokesters. Translate that into Lunarspeak.

Ready to Rumble

About a year ago, when I was trying to find a way to stream "forbidden" Internet content, I happened upon Rumble.com. Ever since then, my "Rumble stumble" has paid off brilliantly. I'm rumbling nearly every day to find what I have an impossible time finding elsewhere.

From Dennis Prager videos to commercial-free Fox News shows, if you can't find it on YouTube you can probably find it on Rumble. I happened to chance upon a Tucker Carlson Today show on Rumble last week and decided to watch it "for a few minutes." I was captivated for the entire hour.

The show is an in-depth interview with Rumble's founder and CEO, Chris Pavlovski. He is young, calm, thoughtful and measured in his comments, and incredibly smart. In this interview, Pavlovski details how he built his company literally by hand, and how he ensured that it will be impervious to the controlling talons of Big Tech.

Unlike the unfortunate social media startup, Parler, Rumble is not dependent on outside servers. Pavlovski and his team built an independent platform, a cloud-based service that allows those Internet contributors whose content has been censored and banished to have a safe haven to speak freely. That includes President Donald Trump's Truth Social site. 

"Fair and honest" is how Pavlovski describes Rumble's way of doing business to Tucker Carlson. In a year's worth of viewing shows and other content on Rumble, I have found that to be true.

Rumble's success proves it's true that one person can make a difference. I can't help but feel a rumble of hope for the future.

Enough to Make You Sick

I started reading What Really Happened in Wuhan last August. Written by Australian journalist Sharri Markson, it's a thorough investigation and history of the Covid-19 virus beginnings, outbreak, cover-ups, censorship, and conspiracies. The early chapters read like a spy thriller novel; the book is a gripping page-turner.

As the untold history of the Covid pandemic's murky beginnings began to unfold, the detailed scientific explanations slowed me down but held my interest. Markson has uncovered so much information about the virus that has been concealed or buried by multiple cooperating entities--the United States included.

The last two chapters took me many weeks to complete, not because they were dull (quite the contrary), but because the level of US culpability and complicity revealed and documented made me feel ill. I couldn't read more than a few pages at a sitting without groaning aloud and shutting the cover in disgust. I forced myself to finish the book on New Year's Eve, so that I could begin 2023 with the sickening history of Covid behind me.

I'm angry that China will never be made to answer for Covid-19, because the US is involved in its genesis. The whole alphabet soup of administrative agencies on both sides of the world are implicated. WHO, CDC, NIH, and many others, along with the Chinese CCP, PLA and Wuhan's Institute of Virology--WIV--all played their parts in the run-up to the Covid pandemic and in the sweeping destruction left in its aftermath.

What's worse is that this could easily happen again. In fact, it most likely will. Markson's in-depth investigation shows that China is intent on continuing research in how to make viruses more deadly to humans, and they are doing so with impunity. So unfortunately for humanity, there is no happy ending to this story.

The book is a shocking education in previously unknown facts. Markson interviewed many key public figures and behing-the-scenes individuals who worked together throughout this global catastrophe. In addition to many international scientists and Australian officials, her American sources include former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and former National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien.

Reading What Really Happened in Wuhan is an eye-opening, if nauseating, experience. If you want to learn what actually happened to us in 2020, I recommend you read it. But do so only if you have strong stomach.

God on the Web

There's a new "Godcast" popping up in the number one Apple podcasts slot. It's The Catechism in a Year (CIY) with Father Mike Schmitz.

I'm not surprised. Although it was not a 2022 resolution, I did finish The Bible in a Year (BIY) during New Year's weekend. In listening, I discovered the depths of my ignorance about the Bible, especially the Old Testament. So when Fr. Mike began mentioning the upcoming CIY podcast in the fall, I knew I'd subscribe.

As of Day 5, I'm very glad I did. This journey promises to be perhaps even more edifying than BIY. Not only will Catholics learn about their faith in more depth, the podcast will certainly help to dispel many misconceptions about the Catholic religion among non-Catholics--who are listening in untold thousands.

CIY is packed with content, so reading along is recommended. Fortunately I bought a Catechism about a dozen years ago. Aside from being pulled down occasionally for brief references (especially during my mother's end-of-life care), it's been patiently waiting in my bookshelves. Now it's on my bedside table and getting a daily workout.

We hear and read so much today about the "Nones," people who are agnostic, atheistic, or disinterested in religion. The success and popularity of Fr. Mike's podcasts speaks otherwise. It seems that people are aware that we don't have it all figured out for ourselves. There appears to be a deep hunger for something transcendent, something beyond human beings to help guide us through our troubled times. 

Considering all the damage the Internet has wrought in modern society, maybe these podcasts are God's way of throwing us a bone, so to speak. Check Romans 8:28.

See? You can't help but learn. I think you should give CIY a try.

Accountability Crisis

 …It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.

Macbeth 5:5

I’ve decided that the most overused and meaningless word of 2022 is: “Accountable.”

According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, “accountable” means “1. subject to giving an account: ANSWERABLE <held accountable for the damage> 2. capable of being accounted for: EXPLAINABLE syn see RESPONSIBLE”

The definition indicates that someone specific must be held responsible for a particular outcome. Do you see this happening with any of the ongoing crises for which the word “accountable” is so ubiquitously tossed around? Neither do I.

It's difficult to keep track of how many times this hotair balloon of a word pops up in articles, interviews, and broadcasts. Biden must be held “accountable” for the southern border crisis. Congress must be held “accountable” for overspending. Big Tech should be held "accountable" for censoring news items. Local governments must be held “accountable” for election irregularities. The FBI must be held “accountable” for monitoring parents as domestic terrorists. The CDC must be held “accountable” for lockdown damage, China must be held “accountable” for the Covid pandemic.

Those are merely random samples. On and on the demand for "accountability" continues, ad nauseam, and no one ever seems to answer for anything, anywhere, at any time.

The word “accountable” in today’s parlance now means “blared by the media for a few days until we move on to the next headline.” The overarching strategy seems to be, call for accountability until the pack forgets and/or tires of the issue. "Accountable" has devolved into a chest-beating term intended to sound intimidating, but it's actually devoid of meaning.

For the thorough trashing of a perfectly serviceable word, someone should be held accountable.

 

Resolution and Tradition

It's that time again; it's New Year's Eve, that nostalgic moment poised on the brink of a new year that hovers ever-hopeful before us. It's often a time of introspection, evaluation, and resolve. Almost everyone seems to be turning over a new leaf, and not just on the calendar. (Yes, I still use paper calendars.)

New Year's resolutions are often broken quickly; "the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak," as The Lord put it. I think part of the issue with abandoned resolutions is that sometimes they are either unrealistic, e.g. "lose 50 lbs. by Easter" or too numerous--"start running, stop drinking, read a book a month, take a cruise, organize the photos, clean the garage." As experience has taught me, if we ask too much of ourselves, we can become discouraged quickly. 

Last year I had five cross-country trips scheduled and one international journey. I made a single, double-sided resolution for 2022--to enjoy all my travels to the full and to not worry about Covid. I succeeded, and I managed to do so in continuing good health. I don't know if my resolution was fulfilled by positive thinking, a hearty constitution, providence, blind luck, or a combination of all. I'm just grateful that it worked out.

What's my resolution for 2023? I'm not sure yet, and I have another day to contemplate my decision. I do know that there will be just one resolution, and that it will be something I'm reasonably confident I can achieve.

In my ongoing determination to keep what's good from the past, I'll handwrite my 2023 goal on my kitchen's paper calendar. That calendar is a traditional gift from my adult children, compiled with dozens of photos of my grandkids throughout the outgoing year.

I'll never give up that wall calendar. Some resolutions are easy to keep.

Leaving 2022 behind

Not In the Cards

Christmas cards—that’s what I call them, please deal with it—used to be a prominent and fun part of this season. Beginning as early as Thanksgiving weekend, my mailbox would begin to deliver happy greetings from family and friends near and far. There were often several cards arriving each day, many in colorful envelopes festooned with holiday stickers. Sometimes there would be a newsy letter enclosed, recapping significant personal events in the year gone by. Often there would be handwritten notes on the inside or a photo print (remember those?) enclosed.

In those days, by Christmas Eve, dozens of Christmas cards would be taped all over my doorways. It was not so long ago, as recently as five years past. But those days, sadly, are vanishing like snow in the sunlight. Writing and sending Christmas cards takes a chunk of time, extra effort, and money—all items in short supply in most people’s lives today. Postage rate hikes have not been kind to the greeting card custom. It is considerably more expensive to mail cards today than it was in years past.

I suppose we should feel lucky to receive even a “holiday” text, at this point. At least, we know we are remembered. And there is always the occasional “e-card” in my email's Inbox. But for me, a text or e-card can never generate that small thrill of seeing a Christmas card peeking out from my mailbox. I would always save the daily cache of cards to open last, a special treat after all the other mundane mail was disposed of. Receiving cards was a part of the Christmas magic that today is devolving into yet another “once upon a time” tale for the grandkids.

It is less than four days before Christmas Eve, and I have received nine cards. I’m grateful for every one of them. But each year their numbers are fewer. The piano used to be where I started standing up the cards, moving them onto doorways by mid-December as their numbers grew. But there’s no more taping cards on doorways; all the Christmas cards now fit easily atop my piano.

I, for one, will not let the treasured tradition of sending Christmas cards go gently into that goodnight. I’ll keep writing my annual newsletter as long as I can, too. So, to all my Christmas correspondents, it’s in the cards that you’ll have at least one old-fashioned Christmas greeting in your mailbox. My hope for you is that my card will have lots of company.

Merry Christmas!