Bravery in war is if not always achieved, at least expected. Bravery while a prisoner of war, when one is far from home, ill-fed and brutalized is even more difficult. This tale of bravery in the face of a regime that was nothing short of barbaric should make us all thank our veterans who have done so much for us. I hope it inspires you in your everyday life. https://quillette.com/2020/11/11/on-remembrance-day-celebrating-two-canadian-prisoners-who-took-down-an-entire-shipyard/

This excellent article published in Imprimis (you can receive their monthly articles at no charge at www.Imprimis.com) reminds us that the Communist Chinese Party is a real threat to international order. Their treatment of the Uyghurs (racial genocide, human organ harvesting, etc.), targeting of their Christian believers (ten of millions), crack down on Hong Kong, etc., is outlined here and worth a few minutes of your time. In the years ahead, we cannot let down our guard as Communist China attempts to intimidate other nations both near and far. Given the costly and in some aspects failure of their Belt and Road initiative, the setback given to Huawei, etc., Chairman Xi Jiping will be looking to show that his vision of the future can still be achieved. Enjoy the read! https://imprimis.hillsdale.edu/facing-china-threat/

Vicious Indian Fighter, Slave trader and owner, duelist, adulterer, devoted husband (to the woman he stole from another), General, Andrew Jackson had all of the traits to make him one of the most disliked and by many, respected Presidents of our country.  He was, a man of his time and location; born in what was the frontier, his drive and energy, plus his sense of honor drove him to fight a duel on the slightest pretext, but often over the defense of a woman’s honor. Despised by the East Coast elite who had run the nation since it’s founding, he represented a challenge too that elite and also represented the fact that the United States was going to grow outside of the ideals of the old elite.

We have seen this happening for many years; in Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, etc. from the Kennedy-Nixon election to today. If you don’t believe it is done and is going on today then I am sorry for you as this is reality. And, it hurts us all; it destroys our faith in our system and in our leaders. Can you even imagine one official, high or low being held accountable for vote theft? Sad isn’t it? Being a politician in government means never have to be held accountable. https://americanmind.org/post/game-on-for-the-coup/

I cannot imagine sitting through a course like this without spending half of the time either debating the instructors or laughing. Normality is constantly being dropped to the lowest common denominator so that there are no longer any standards for behavior, actions, etc. An interesting and I am sure, shocking article from Quillette. https://quillette.com/2020/10/31/i-signed-up-to-study-sexual-health-what-i-got-was-gender-ideology-fetishism-and-porn/

This was the first Glasnost biography to come out of the then Soviet Union using many new resources and archives.  The author, the son of an agrarian specialist who was purged in 1937, went on, despite his questionable background, to become a Colonel General of the Soviet Army. Dedicated to his profession, he was shocked by the 1956 denunciation of Stalin by Khrushchev and began to gather material for this book at this time.  In addition to early access to archives, the author also was able to speak to many individuals who were associated with Stalin; although Stalin did not have any close relationships after the suicide of his second wife, these individuals were able to provide tidbits of information about Stalin’s habits, techniques, etc.

When you pick up this cigar, you know you are handling a cigar! Box pressed, the 6×50 is firm and meaty with a beautiful dark and oily texture. With Ecuadorian filler wrapped in a Mexican San Andres Binder, this is rated a medium to full smoke but I recommend that you smoke this puppy after you have eaten as you could be zoned out smoking this on an empty stomach. Enjoy your favorite liquid refreshment and settle in for a solid hour of smoking that has hints of chocolate and coffee. Plumes of beautiful smoke and a firm ash keep a cooler smoking experience. The cost is about $11.00 via on-line sources. Enjoy!

Although I enjoyed this novel, it was not up to the standard of some of his other works (When Nietzsche Wept, etc.).  Addressing the philosophy of Schopenhauer, who is often called the “pessimistic German” in the form of a novel is difficult, for unlike other philosophers, it would be difficult to apply Schopenhauer’s view of life and do anything other than commit suicide (in my view).  Schopenhauer’s outlook on life reflected his life experience; brilliant, yet rude, self-centered, dogmatic and ill at ease in society and rejected by the two “loves” of his life, he lived a life alone, unloved and unloving.  Any attempt by anyone to reach out to him was viewed with the utmost suspicion and mistrust, even to the point of rejecting the advice of his publicist who suggested his changing the overly long and non-descript title of his works.  It was not until late in his life that he was “discovered” and when that happened, financial security was his for the first time in his life.  As often happens, that security did impact his life and he became moderately more sociable, etc.  He strongly influenced European intellectual thought, unfortunately not for the best.

Most readers know Ernst Junger (1895-1998) through Storm of Steel, his memoir of his service in the trenches during World War I. Yet Junger was a prolific writer and many of his works were serious philosophical works centered on the individual and his relationship to the State and society. Wooed by the Nazi’s who saw him for propaganda purposes as a great warrior who would inspire German youth, he resisted their efforts but remained in Germany serving in the Wehrmacht during the occupation of France. In this article, Russell Berman uses Junger’s 1939 novel On the Marble Cliffs as a foil for our time. The book was widely popular even in German at the time as some thought that it made light of the Nazi’s and especially Reich Marshall Goring; others thought that Stalin was the intended target. In today’s highly political atmosphere, where everything from science to math, language to art, race to culture is being politicalized, can we learn from the past, or will we close our eyes hoping for the best, or worse yet, believe that we are much more intelligent than those who went before us and believe that we can not make the same errors. Can we defeat the forces of chaos by using Junger’s tactic of logical thinking and clarity of mind? A long read but timely and helpful.

https://www.firstthings.com/article/2020/11/standing-against-tyranny

Mr. Bradley has written a number of excellent histories, including Flyboys and Flags of our Fathers.  This volume covers the interesting history between the United States and China, from the time of the Yankee Clippers through the “opening of China” by President Nixon.  In this book he unveils many interesting facts such as:

• That much of the money of the Eastern Establishment was made selling opium to the Chinese.  In fact, the fortune that propelled Franklin Delano Roosevelt to the White House was based on the illegal trade of opium.
• The fabled “China Lobby” which helped to guide our Asia policy was based on an idealized vision of the average Chinese peasant wanting to be an American, believing in democracy and wanting to have a nice house with a beautiful lawn, etc.
• That due to the “China Lobby”, the U.S. spent billions to prop up the corrupt regime of Chiang Kai-shek and that he and his circle were responsible for the theft of hundreds of millions of dollars while not contributing to the war against Japan
• Finally, that U.S. Presidents, from Teddy Roosevelt to FDR to Truman were fooled by the Chinese, the “China Lobby” and their own ignorance of the world into believing that they could remake China into a western democracy.