The first book that I have read which really examines the contribution, militarily and politically of Russia to the defeat of Napoleon from the time of his invasion of Russia to his fall in 1814. An outstanding work which corrects many historical myths such as it was not Kutuzov who developed the strategy of retreating into Russia’s interior, but rather the Czar and Barclay de Tolly, and that the Czar while an autocrat sat on a very shaky throne.  He also points out the political intelligence of Czar Alexander I who welded together the alliance which defeated Napoleon, overcoming the reluctance of the Austrians and the fear of the Prussians.

Facts apparently do not matter to many politicians, leaders of special interest groups and much of the press, but talking points do. Repeat the talking points often and loudly and be sure to accuse anyone who questions them of ignorance, hatred, etc. It is a technique as old as Lenin and every other tyrant during our lifetime, so beware. The link below will take you to a site loaded with those nasty facts that upset the narrative of White on Asian crime. Read it if you dare. https://quillette.com/2021/03/25/race-and-false-hate-crime-narratives/

Finland managed to fight two wars with the Soviet Union during the 20^th century; once it was attacked, and in the second, it was the attacker, an ally of Nazi Germany.  There was never any doubt that Finland could win either war; the best Finland could do was to ride on the coattails of a Germany victory.  In fact, the Finnish offensive action during the second war was limited and basically was aimed at regaining the territory lost during the first war.

In Western societies, the military has been a central pillar of stability in times of stress, hopefully standing above politics. The recent attempts to interject critical race theory within the military as well as some military members openly commenting on political matters while in uniform is opening a dangerous path that has little if any upside. Those who attempt to use the military for social engineering strike at the very core of our nations survival. The legislation by Senator Cotton is to be applauded and watched; those who vote against it in Congress should be remembered during the next election cycle. https://www.city-journal.org/tom-cotton-senate-bill-on-critical-race-theory

I am not a fan of government subsidies, but I realize that in the real competitive world, there are many pressures which lead to subsidies in some start up industries, those involved in international trade, etc. Which raises the question of would you invest in a company that is breaking into a mature market but which requires a subsidy which was 48 times larger than its competition to compete? No? How about one that requires a subsidy 211 times that of its competitor to compete? That is the situation with wind and solar energy according to the Texas Public Policy Foundation. This raises several questions, such as 1) how long will all tax payers be willing to subsidize Tesla drivers and Elon Musk, 2) when the subsidies end, will the average American be able to pay the actual market price of wind and solar power, 3) could there be a better use for the subsidy monies and 4) when reality does descent on us, will those who have lead us along a prime rose path pay any price? I doubt it. This article should make you think about the real price of “free” energy. https://www.wsj.com/articles/texas-blackouts-blew-in-on-the-wind-11616192622?page=1

This excellent history would be my first recommendation for anyone who would like to understand the Russian experience during this period; it is solid, packed with information, excellent profiles of the key people and makes one wonder how the Russian army held out and together for such as long time in the face of command stupidity, poor planning, lack of food, weapons, and munitions.  The key to any positive found in the book, is due primarily due to the Russian peasant who made up over 90% of the population as well as the army.  Largely illiterate and use to generations of abuse and misuse, millions of men lived in conditions that were primitive and faced death with a steel determination that few modern armies could copy.

During the past Presidential election, the number of Latino men who voted for Trump increased from 32 to 36 percent. That was not suppose to happen according to Democratic strategists. Why the move? This excellent article from the New York Times explains that values do matter and are an important contributor to this move. The Republican Party is seen as more in line with Latino males regarding their self image as providers. Additionally, the Democratic Party is seen as the party of the poor (as opposed to the Republicans, the party of the rich) and Latino men don’t want to be poor. A continued move away from the Democratic Party of Latino men can upset the Democratic play book so it should be interesting to see how such a shift is handled by the party. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/05/us/politics/latino-voters-democrats.html?searchResultPosition=3

The author spent thirty years as an American diplomat in Washington, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, and the UAE, including working for fifteen years as the Consulates in Jeddah and Dhahran.  Fluent in Arabic.  He participated in Operation Desert Storm, the Saudi accession to the WTO and the defeat of the al-Qaeda terror campaign in Saudi Arabia.

“Liberty and property; how naturally those words tripped, as a unitary concept, from the tongues of America’s Founders.  These were men who had been shaped in the English tradition and they saw parliamentary government not as an expression of majority rule, but as a guarantor of individual freedom.  How different was the Continental tradition, born 13 years later with the French Revolution, which saw elected assemblies as the embodiment of what Rousseau called the “general will” of the people.”-Lord Denning

In that difference, we may perhaps discern explanation of why the Anglosphere resisted the chronic bouts of authoritarianism to which most other Western countries were prone.  We who speak this language have always seen the defense of freedom as the duty of our representatives and so, by implication, of those who elect them.  Liberty and democracy, in our tradition, are not balanced against each other; they are yoked together. 

Most other countries have fallen for, or at least fallen to, dictators.  Many, during the 20^th century, had popular communist parties or fascist parties or both.  The Anglosphere, unusually, retained a consensus behind liberal capitalism.

This is not because of any special property in our geography or our genes, but because of our constitutional arrangements….They work because, starting with Magna Carta, they have made the defense of freedom everyone’s responsibility.  Americans, like Britons, have inherited their freedoms from past generation and should not look to any external agent for their perpetuation.  The defense of liberty is your job and mine.  It is up to us to keep intact the freedoms we inherited from our parents and to pass them on securely to our children”

There are those who believe that we need a “living Constitution”, more open to changes based on the moods, whims and foibles of the lowest common denominator.  Let us hope that we do not overthrow our proven vehicle for untried and fashionable experimentation.

Anytime power flows to the center of government, individual liberty decreases; it seems to be a law of nature. One of the beauties of our nation is our Federalist system by which individual states are allowed to function in the what they see is the best way for their citizens. Sometimes they are correct, sometimes they are wrong but we have the opportunity to learn from states actions and determine for ourselves which answer is the best. If you live in New York, California, Connecticut, Illinois, etc., this article may be of interest to you. California and New York shut down, Florida did not. California and New York destroyed thousands of jobs, Florida did not. Yes, under the proposed $1.9 Trillion Covid relief bill, New York will receive twice as much money as Florida with over 90% going to non-Covid related groups. This is a good lesson in the danger of government overreach. https://www.wsj.com/articles/vindication-for-ron-desantis-11614986751?page=1