Since the 1970’s, Justices for the Supreme Court have for the most part come from Ivy-League, East Coast law schools.  Justice Barrett breaks that trend ( being a native of New Orleans) and as a result, her clear writing, legal and teaching experience provides us with a clear and clean understanding of some of the key factors used in her decision making process. Her book is written in a manner that goes against the grain of the ivy league schools in that it is concise, takes on real issues and discusses the procedure, forces and philosophies which guide the decision-making process of the Court. While she provides personal background information on her life, unlike some Justices, she makes the reader understand that her rationale to reach a conclusion is not based or tainted by her personal views, but rather by understanding what the words of the Constitution mean.

It is refreshing to read her book as she clearly discusses the pros and cons of a number of issues, not only legal issues before the Court, but also the political questions facing the Court, such as the concept of Court packing, lifetime tenure, etc.  We see the actors behind the scenes such as the law clerks, the traditions of the Court that have evolved over the years, which are designed to maintain a balance of civility and professionalism even among the Justices.  Her discussions on areas such as textualism and originalism include their history and forces behind each so that everyone can understand the dynamics of each concept.

The Justice is obviously a serious scholar of the law but one which can clarify a subject in a few words where others will need much more room or confuse the issue by inserting their personal views and bias. Her love for the law and the Constitution is clear. 

During her confirmation, she withstood the slings and arrows of several Senators who attacked her over their concerns regarding health care, abortion rights, her religion and her judicial philosophy (Originalist). She withstood the fire, never once reaching or referring to any notes. The fact that she is an Originalist and would therefore not let her personal feelings impact her duties seemed to both some Senators who seem to favor an more “progressive)” attitude toward law.

 Give this read a try, especially if you wish to gain a higher regard for the Court and the Justices.

For ten generations (since 1630) the Elie Ferrand family has produced excellent Cognacs. The eldest son in each generation is named Elie to commemorate the founder, and the latest “Elie” has decided to start his reign by producing “10 Generations”.

It is a blend of Cognacs, each aged 5 to 25 years with 20% being aged in Santernes barrels as opposed to traditional oak barrels. Additionally, it is higher proof which denotates that it is not aimed at the mass market, but rather the higher end. This shows that the company is not aiming at the Big 4 (Hennessy, Martel, Courvoisier, Remy Martin) but rather at a niche of its own choosing.

It is definitely a “city girl” cognac (as opposed to a “country girl” calvados), with a smooth start that continues as you enjoy. The flavor is complex with raisons, brown sugar and others that make you want to really sip and enjoy each taste. Although one review thought the end was a bit muddied, the finish was quite smooth.

The cost is $50-70 a bottle and a very solid option as opposed to one the Big Four’s price of $100+.

Grab on before they are gone!

In his new book, My Fight for Canadian Health Care: A Thirty-Year Battle to Put Patients First by Dr. Brian Day, we can see the weaknesses and misdirection of a Socialized health care system that is touted as being “free.”  Of course, no rational person believes that anything that the government is involved in is “free,” especially when you realize that the average Canadian earns less than his or her counterpart in Louisiana and pays more in taxes.

Like so many other ideas, a single payer health care system sounds great in theory, but it rapidly falls apart when reality hits. Today, unless you are one of the chosen special groups (Canadian Armed Forces, RCMP, federal employees police officers and yes, prisoners), you are doomed to extended waiting periods if you need health care.

There are numerous reasons for the delays that the average Canadian faces, and here are a few as dictated by the CHA (Canadian Health Act) of 1984:

• Hospitals cannot exceed their government-stipulated budgets.
• As a result, between 1981 and 1995, surgeons at the UBC Hospital in Vancouver saw their surgical hours cut from twenty-five hours a week to five; any surgeon who exceeded those hours risked various threats including losing their “surgical privileges.”
• Medical schools have dropped admissions between 11 and 30% as it was believed that a “surplus” of doctors would increase wait times due to more individuals seeking help.

The average Canadian faced a median wait for care from a specialist of 30 weeks, and that was on top of waiting to see their primary doctor which was necessary in order to authorize seeing a specialist. In Dr. Day’s specialty, the median wait time was 57 weeks. In 2024, Canadians were on the waiting list for a total of 1.5 million procedures.

Obamacare was sold on the basis of several major lies and has warped our health care system. There is no doubt that it needs to be amended, improved, etc. but if any politician even dares to mention a single care system as an alternative, they must be tied to a chair and this book read to them at least twice.

https://claremontreviewofbooks.com/where-health-care-went-to-die

I am not one who believes that we have to learn things the hard way, so with that in mind, the attached link will help the novice cigar smoker learn a bit of the etiquette of enjoying a smoke in a cigar lounge. On your first visit to a lounge, you may feel a bit intimidated; all eyes are on you, can I go right into the humidor room, which seat will be the best so I can watch the room or watch the game, etc. This is especially true if you are visiting a new city or town and you already feel like an outsider. Plus, if you are a man, you know that every other man in the room is sizing you up as males always do to one another.

These tips will make your experience go smoother and will make you feel more at home. So read, remember, and enjoy!

Cigar Lounge Etiquette | Cigora

Every twelve to eighteen months, we go down to New Orleans (specifically the French Quarter) to indulge in a day of a unique lifestyle. You see the worst of what a city can be with its homeless and those who are totally lost, but you also find yourself shoulder to shoulder with Southerners who live by and represent the best of Southern manners and style. New Orleans is a place where you can spend hours at Crescent City Books or Beckham’s bookshop browsing row after row of used books which offer you the opportunity to find a treasure which will expand your mind and life. New Orleans is also a wonderful place from which to take day trips into the interior of Louisiana, where you will find small towns which seem to freeze in time, and which offer a lifestyle far removed from the craziness of their larger cousins. Quiet, neat streets, free of litter, where local civic pride is clearly evident and where the hellos and welcomes are truly meant.

With the above in mind, I thought I might share a few minor, hopefully helpful and/or interesting observations should you ever venture to New Orleans. Such points as:

• New Orleans is well known for numerous specialty drinks such as the Hurricane, the Pimm’s Cup, and others, but not being an umbrella sort of male and preferring a more solid type of drink, I enjoy a good Sazerac made with a fine rye base. It is great fund to sit at the revolving bar at the Monteleone hotel and slowly sip a very nicely made sazerac amongst a lively crowd, or to wander over to the Roosevelt hotel bar for a quieter environment in the middle of the day for a refreshing sazerac, but there is a price to be paid; namely a drink that is about fifty percent more expensive than can be found at other fun locations. Be sure to visit the Monteleone Hotel, but do not be afraid to ask for a sazerac at the Chart House or any other place of refreshment. In reality, it is hard to screw up making a sazerac and the cost savings will help to erase any guilt over the ending bill.
• Café du Monde has several locations where you can enjoy a cup or coffee or hot chocolate with a wonderful serving (usually three in number) of beignets, those tasty, powdered sugar-coated pasties which are a wonderful way to start the day. The original location near the old French market is interesting as if you visit the city over the course of a couple of years, you will get to know who the latest batch of immigrants is as the servers seem to come from that group. It is a place where the lean and hungry who are learning the American way can get their start and begin their climb up the opportunity ladder of our country. Other locations can be glitzier, but the original location is the most interesting. Unfortunately, they are not open 24/7 any longer, but they are open from 7:15 until 11 or 12 in the evening, depending on the day. The old hours might be at times, a bit too exciting.
• Cigars: the Big Muddy still retains some of its old-time courtesies including smoking cigars in public. There are a number of cigar shops in and around the French Quarter so you might want to get a current list of them from the internet and scope them out. Don Leoncio Cigar Bar on Canal Street has a nice inventory as well as a selection of liquid refreshments to match the cigar of your choice (please do not be so rude and low class as to smoke your own cigar in such an establishment). The prices are fully retail (which is a drawback in my mind, but they do have to keep the doors open). If you are new to cigars, you might enjoy the Cigar Factory on Decatur St where they make their own cigars. It is interesting to watch, and they are particularly good at working with the novice smoker in picking a blend for your taste. The cigars are also less expensive (about 50%) so that is a bit easier if you are just starting out.
• If you have an extra day, you might enjoy a ride up to the state capital, Baton Rouge, or some of the smaller towns like Lafayette. Both are between 2-3 hours north and you will pass by Lake Pontchartrain and see the natural beauty Louisiana. After the craziness of New Orleans, a visit to the rural towns in the state will be a nice contrast to the big city. The towns are neat, well-tended and reflect a much slower pace of life.

New Orleans has much to offer; a lively sports spirit, excellent museums, wonderful food and other, shall we say, types of entertainment. It is a city with it’s own flavor and pace and I am sure that after one visit, you shall be back again and again. Enjoy!

You have probably not heard of John O’Sullivan, but since the 1990’s, he has been studying, writing about, and warning about the growing movement on the Left toward what we now call “wokeness”. His newest book, Sleepwalking into Wokeness: How We Got Here is reviewed by Steven F. Hayward in the latest issue of the Claremont Review of Books.

O’Sullivan has been observing and writing about the growing movement which is a combination of the Frankfurt School, the movements of the 1960’s and nihilism. He has pointed out that believers in the current movement have and will be unhappy and angry as they view the world through the exact opposite of rose-colored glasses. Traditional Liberals could, occasionally take pride in their victories before they found a new cause which could take some of their energy. The “woke” movement goes a step further down a dark path in that there can never be any victories to celebrate as each battle only goes to expose another sub-subgroup that seeks acknowledgement and which claims to be the martyr de jour.

The review by Steven F. Hayward is crisp and an easy read. If you want to better understand how we got to this point, click on the link below. It will be worth your time, and you will understand the negative forces that create such noise in our society.

https://claremontreviewofbooks.com/ahead-of-the-curve

Originally published almost fifty-years ago, this book is considered a classic history of the first war in which an Asian power defeated a European power. The authors do a wonderful job of putting the war in context, firstly by providing a thorough review of the Japanese response to the “opening of Japan” by the Americans and surprisingly, the Russians. They review the various strong warrior clans in a developing Japan and how the politics between those clans colored the strategy and conduct of the war.

They also provide a good overview of Russia which was as always, seeking to absorb more lands. Holding together the vast Russian empire was the trans-Siberian railroad. A single tracked ribbon of steel stretching nearly 9300 kilometers (about 5800 miles), was built poorly and with minimum safety. Entire sections of the track would shift and fall apart every year as they were laid directly on the permafrost, which could melt just enough to make sections subject to disintegration. To make communications, travel, and supply movements more difficult, the track stopped at Lake Baikal, the world’s seventh largest lake. Everything on the trains would have to be unloaded and shipped across the lake during the warmer months of the year. Trying to supply an army using this one-track railway extended the war and led to poor discipline within the army as munitions and food were slow in arriving.

The two nations clashed over several areas, including Korea, Manchuria, and China. China, having suffered defeats by the Japanese and force infringements by Russia, lay all but helpless as Russia and Japan moved to seize and hold what land they could. Land and resources were seized, railroads built to the distress of the Chinese and Chinese officials were corrupted even more than was standard practice within the Chinese government.

The siege of Port Arthur and the great naval battle of Tsushima of course are the main parts of the history. Both opponents faced difficulties which ended up limiting the length of the war. For the Russians, the main problem was the huge distance between Moscow and Port Arthur. Communications were poor, providing munitions to the slowly transported army was daunting, along with an officer corps that had few professional skills made any moves by the field army difficult, slow, and usually always a bit late. The Japanese were like the Russians, willing to throw manpower at any problem. But manpower was not enough so Japan’s limited technological base and lack of capital meant that the Japanese had to seek a quick victory as time could favor the Russians.

Eventually Port Arthur fell to the Japanese but one great test was still ahead for the waring powers; could the Russians said a fleet from the Baltic to fight the Japanese and could the Japanese navy which had suffered telling losses to the Russians, defeat the approaching Russian ships. The fact that the Russian fleet completed the voyage is amazing as they had to put up with poor food, an revolutionary undercurrent between the officers and men, numerous mechanical failures and the fact that every extra inch was occupied by bags of coal which were not only dirty, but hindered the efficiency of the ships. In the end, although the Japanese defeated their foe, it was not a battle loaded with brilliance, but rather a battle determined by luck and poor shooting on the part of the Russians.

Wars eventually come to an end and the mediation of Theodore Roosevelt took two exhausted nations and provided them with at least a modem of national honor. But, as no good deed does not go unpunished, in the end both Japan and Russia viewed the American effort as decidedly negative, thus tainting relations between the three nations for decades to come.

This is a fine book, professionally researched and footnoted, professionally written and showing a grasp not just of the top of history, but the real forces that move events. My only regret was that it took me almost fifty-years to reread it.

I have posted a number of articles and thoughts on how governments around the world are failing their citizens. One is Germany, where between the failed green movement which is driving companies and factories out of the country to the never-ending quest for money, so they are competing with illegal drug cartels to sell the worse poisons to its’ citizens. Another is France, which has allowed over seven hundred no go zones to spread throughout the land while jailing the governments’ main political opponent. Of course, we cannot forget Sweden suffering more bombings than any other country and the government allowing their country to become the rape capital of Europe. My recent posts on the car theft rings in Canada dominated by Hamas and the lack of enforcement against the Communist Chinese drug trade and money laundering are truly disturbing.

The latest insult to one’s citizens is the appointment to the position of Home Secretary, a Pakistani Muslim woman who has declared her hatred of white men, especially those who proudly wave the British flag. She is in charge of national and public security and has made it plain that any mention of “grooming gangs of Muslims,” speech about the violent history of Islam or any negative referral to Mohammed will be severely punished. It is already a crime to pray silently in set areas in the U.K. and there is no right of self-defense or anything like the U.S. First Amendment.

She talks a good talk, claiming to seek faster deportations of illegal immigrants, especially those who have committed crimes. She has said all the right things (meaning she speaks in support of the Party leader), but there do not seem to be many individuals asking her to explain her bigoted comments against whites in the past.

I have visited the U.K. numerous times over the years, and during the past ten-years I have noticed the old ways, customs and pride slipping away. I do not know if the U.K. can be saved, it certainly is not going in a positive direction. The addition of the new Home Secretary certainly does not seem to be any indication of national revival. It is too bad; it used to be a wonderful place.

The link below will provide your with the disturbing facts.

UK Gets a Muslim Terrorist Counterterrorism Minister :: Gatestone Institute

This is the second half of Muir’s biography of Wellington and despite its size (664 pages including notes), and obscure (to most) references to the politicians and policies of England at the time, it is if anything better than his first volume which was excellent.

We think of Wellington as the haughty imperious general who defeated Napoleon at Waterloo, but this volume shows that he was much more; a skilled diplomat who played a major part at the peace settlement after Waterloo, who successfully balanced the foibles of French politics and then went onto become Premier of the U.K..  Even when he was not directly in the spotlight, his work at the Horse Guards (which controlled the Army) and behind the scenes reflected a mind that was able to adjust and understand several sides of any political problem.

By nature and breeding, he sided with the landed gentry and was loyal to the King (even though a couple of the Kings at that time were weak and often foolish), yet he saw himself as a liberal conservative, willing to break out of traditional structures (such as the Catholic question, etc.) in an effort to create a more equitable and mobile society.  He disliked the radicals of the time and did his best to channel government policies into directions that would profit the nation while maintaining the standards which had created the Empire.

Criticized historically as being ultra conservative regarding the military (only Gentlemen should be officers), he none the less did open the officer ranks to members of the rising middle class, sought to upgrade and modernize tactics and weapons and sought to create an army that would be able to deal with the responsibilities of policing an Empire while facing traditional threats (it must be remembered that even after Napoleon there was a real threat of an invasion and war with France).

A complex man, given to a temper, he none the less was well respected by all sides and was often perceived as a voice of reason to the point that he could raise questions about his loyalty even from his own political allies.

An excellent book which brings many politicians and issues of the day to life in an interesting and colorful way.  I highly recommend both volumes.

From Drugs to Cars, from Real Estate to Politicians, the drug cartels and international terrorists like Hezbollah see Canada as the land of opportunity. Is it corruption or a tactical alliance designed to keep Canada out of terrorist’s sights? But then, this is nothing new as we know that national leaders willingly make decisions everyday that are counter to the best interests of their population.

From the German decision to allow in millions of individuals whose views are diametrically opposed to the values of their citizens, to joining in a downward race to provide more powerful and destructive drugs all in the name of additional income, to the once proud home of freedom of speech, Great Britain where you cannot even pray in your own house if you are too close to an abortion clinic, to Turkey where corruption is common and acceptable until the poorly constructed buildings disintegrate during an earthquake. Somehow, we expected better of Canada, the land of “nice people,” but then maybe it is only the common man and woman who are nice while their national leaders are shallow or worse. Or our governments have just gotten too big to operate as we all hope. Maybe there are just too many forces at work, and we have lost the ability to control the behemoth we have created.

The link below takes you to an article on how Canada has become the playground of the worse of humanity.

2025 Risk Report Confirms Hezbollah Crime Networks in Canada, Echoing U.S. Warnings Ottawa Ignored: Op-Ed