There is an old stereotype of a typical Southern Senator; he is a bit loose in his dressing, has a southern accent with a definite drawl and a mind like a steel trap. Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana fills the bill perfectly. One of the most enjoyable ways to take a break during the day is to go to You Tube and view him questioning judicial nominees. He shuffles through papers pulling up quotes or writings of the nominees and he has a way of reading them that often makes the nominee look as foolish as possible. Try it.

His writes a book of stories; him growing up in a small village, his first political job, the step-by-step advancement and even the fact that it was only on his third run for the United States Senate that he achieved his goal. Then came the hard part: learning the real job of being a politician when you work in an atmosphere where many of your ninety-nine compatriots each believe that they are the burning bush before Moses. He learns but has a problem in that he, for some strange reason, seems to believe that honesty is the best policy. How quaint!

This short book of just over two hundred pages gives us a glimpse behind the curtain of life in the Senate. In the last chapter, “Speed Round,” he lays out clearly, with facts and logic his core set of political views. Transgenderism and women’s sports, China, crime, the media, and more are covered and it would be such fun to have an individual who disagrees with him, read and answer his beliefs on a one to one, face to face discussion.

This is a quick, easy to read book, but I believe you will come away respecting an individual who may not share your view or ideas of the world; that is if you can put up with honesty.

During the sixth century B.C., exiles from the island of Samos traveled to Sparta looking for aid. As was the custom in Greece, they made a long and flowery speech justifying their need. They then waited for the Spartans to rule on their request, but one Spartan said that he did not remember the first half of the speech and did not understand the second half. The exiles stood there for a moment and then left to plan their next step.

The next day, they came back again carrying an empty grain sack. They said, “The sack needs grain.”  The chief Spartan said, “There was no need to say, “the sack.” and gave them grain.

That is why the word Laconic is brought to us from the Spartans.

Source: Impossible Histories by Hal Johnson

King Richard the Lion-Hearted insulted Duke Leopard during the Third Crusade by not allowing the duke’s banner to fly at the same level as Richard’s (who was of course a King and not a mere Duke).  Later, on Richard’s journey home, he was captured and held for ransom, which totaled thirty tons of silver.  After the ransom was paid, the duke received one-third of the ransom which he used to build walls around Vienna as protection against Ottoman raids.

Those walls were still there in 1529 when the Ottoman’s decided to besiege Vienna after capturing Hungary and most of the Balkans. The Ottoman’s defied the terrible rains and brought their siege cannons all the way from Istanbul to the walls of Vienna but were exhausted by the effort.  The Ottomans needed a quick and easy siege, but the walls were too strong and after a final attempt, the Ottomans retreated, defeated by those walls.  The Ottomans were to return in 1683 and were again defeated by those walls and the relieving Polish army led by King John Sobieski.

That ransom paid for the walls and if there had not been the walls, Vienna would have fallen to the Turks.  If it had fallen, Vienna would have been a Muslim city and Back, Mozart, Beethoven, Hegel, Nietzsche, and others would not have created the music, philosophy and science that they did.

When you throw a stone into a lake, the ripples move out and so it is with life; you never know what the results of your actions will be so act wisely.

Did you ever wonder how your life could have been different? What if you did not get that one break in your career where you were at the right place at the right time? Or you had an accident because you left the house five minutes later than normal and were in a hurry? Perhaps if you had not blown that entrance exam, you might have gotten that key grant that would have eliminated that college debt that eats at your life?

Now take those “what ifs” and look at key points in the history of humanity and think of how our lives today could have been so different. We might all be speaking Greek, or Turkish, or we might not exist as one of our grandparents died in a car accident instead of only suffering a broken leg. Few alternative histories are either beautifully written or present the reader with the “what ifs” of any particular scenario. Virtual History by Niall Ferguson is one of the few that stand out. Another is Impossible Histories by Hal Johnson. Publish in 2023, he takes us on a tour of twenty key pivots points in history and presents us with alternatives such as Alexander the Great who successful creates an empire that lasts a thousand years, the First World War which never happens because the Kaiser answered his phone before he went for a horse ride, a United States with a  President Wallace instead of Truman in which the Atomic bomb is not used and the result is a Soviet occupation of parts of Japan and most of Europe is controlled by the Soviet Union, the Third Crusade fails with the result that the Turks take Vienna in 1683 and all of Europe ends up like the Balkans, or Jimmy Carter starts a nuclear war. You cannot imagine the other alternatives.

What makes this alternative history so much better is that it does not stop with a different end to a war or siege but delves into the next step and the step after that to the point where our world is entirely different. How is that possible? It is like when you drop a stone into water and the waves continue to move out, continuing to disrupt the stillness. Exhibiting a wonderful knowledge of history and excellent insight into human nature, the author takes the reader on voyages which are both exciting and at times disturbing. Nietzsche wrote that each action we take impacts us for the rest of our lives and Johnson applies that to the entire scope of humanity.

This is a fun book that should leave you thinking not only about his subjects but also encouraging you to apply his concept to your life. Read it and enjoy!

If you are concerned about the value of your US citizenship,or if you are concerned about your son or daughters knowledge of the history of the US, please read the attached press release. This series based on a book by the noted historian, Victor Davis Hanson will educate and enthuse anyone who spends the time to listen. There is no charge and it makes an excellent companion if you are out walking, bicycling, etc.

If you are not a citizen of the U.S., I believe you will enjoy this free course and better understand my nation. I hope you will take the time to give it a try. Thank you.

https://www.hillsdale.edu/news-and-media/press-releases/hillsdale-college-to-launch-new-online-course-on-american-citizenship

The Constitution of India is the world’s longest.  It consists of 145,000 words (the U.S. Constitution has 4,000), has 488 articles, 8 schedules and 22 parts.  It guarantees 1,109 castes and 775 aboriginal tribes’ representation by allotting them twenty-five percent of the seats in the national parliament as well as granting them twenty-five percent of the government jobs. It honors the various religions to the extent that Muslims may have multiple wives, but Hindus may not.  Complex but at the same time, it is “less intrusive than the American one with its litigation-fueled undermining of meritocracy in the private sector”.

While such numbers are interesting, the recent article by Christopher Caldwell in the Claremont Review of Books takes us behind the numbers and examines the political forces which have propelled India since unification and independence.  At independence India was for all practical purposes a one-party state but dynasties rise and fall and the tale of each successive dynasty is laid out in a manner that is easy to understand. Today India is led by Narendra Modi, the son of railroad tea seller.  He is a member of a “backward” caste and like Trump, despised by the nations traditional political elite.  Called a demagogue, populist or reactionary, he does not care for the rights of gays or women and is charged with fanning the emotions of the majority Hindu populations who can be compared to the white, heterosexual males of the U.S..  Yet for someone who has been in power nine years, his positive rating is about 78%.

This article is a must for anyone seeking to understand the nation of India.  Traditionally neutral, India has no problem buying fuel from Putin at a cheap rate.  At the same time, India shares a 2,100 mile border with China and a 2,065 mile border with Pakistan, both nuclear powers who see India as a potential and real enemy. Despite these challenges, India is moving in a way that seeks to maintain the best of its culture while picking and choosing from the West. 

India can become a major power, but it faces challenges on many fronts.  This article will help the reader better understand the forces that are in play in the world’s most populist nation.

https://claremontreviewofbooks.com/indias-uprising/

In 1941, the BBC adopted the 5th symphony’s introduction as the theme introducing all of it’s WWII broadcasts. Why? The opening of the symphony, “bum bum bum BUM” equated to the letter V in Morse Code (dot dot dot dash) which was Winston Churchill’s silent sign to win the war. The symphony became known as the “Victory Symphony”.

It has been said that the parable of the three sieves by Socrates is but a myth, but be that it may, it is still worth repeating: 

One day, when Socrates had just left the place where he used to interact with young people about their way of conceiving life, he met a man he knew who told him, in a confidential tone:

Listen, Socrates, there is among your listeners a disreputable young man, unworthy of your trust. When I tell you what he’s doing, I think you’ll ban him from your group.

I am ready to listen to you, replied Socrates, and to take the necessary measures. But let me first look closely at what you are about to tell me. Have you passed your words through the three sieves?

The three sieves, questioned the man, what is it?

The first is the sieve of Truth. Are you sure that what you are going to tell me is true? Have you heard it yourself or watched with your own eyes?

To tell the truth, said the man, after a moment of hesitation, I just overheard it.

The test of the first sieve is not successful, says Socrates. Let’s examine the second: the sieve of Goodness. Will you tell me something good or positive about this man?

On the contrary, said the other, I was going to say bad things about him.

Your words do not pass the second sieve, says Socrates. Let’s use the last sieve. Is it necessary to tell me what you’re so excited about?

No not necessary, the man says.

Well, Socrates says with a smile, if the story you’re about to tell me isn’t true, good or necessary, just forget it and don’t bother me with it.

As much of the world is finding out, “green” energy is expensive. Electricity rates in Germany are 3-4 times higher than in the U.S., in California they are 2-3 times higher than in the rest of the U.S., the list goes on and on. Added to this is the fact that it is unreliable and even if all noble targets were reached, the world would still get 75% of it’s energy from fossil fuels.

But the numbers are even worse than we think, for the rates do not include the subsidies which we all pay for delivery for unreliable service. In 2017, the Department of Energy found that subsidies to the “green” sector were running ten times higher than to fossil fuels. This does not include the problem yet unsolved, of disposal of wind turbine blades (mostly buried in some remote location), recycling of solar panels and batteries which have outlived their efficiency, etc.

The promise of efficient, clean, and dependable “green” energy is a myth. The cost of “green” energy has not gone down, the cost of electric autos continues to climb, and we face the fact that lower- and middle-income families are subsidizing electric cars for the wealthier; this is a transfer of wealth from the poorest to the richest. Robin Hood in reverse.

The article below has the nerve to include all the costs involved in going “green.”  The energy czar still flies on his private jet, not one auto in the President’s garage has gone electric but you are paying more for the privilege of going to work, buying food, and simply trying to make a better life. How long will this be allowed to go on?

Joseph Kennedy, the father of JFK, was a rumrunner and a womanizer who used his money to become Ambassador to the United Kingdom during the presidency of FDR. Known for his anti-semitism and pro-Nazi views, his tenure as Ambassador was a trail for FDR, but he needed the financial support and Kennedy’s connections with the underworld and unions to win an election.

Kennedy was in London at the start of the Blitz but quickly moved his office away from the official Embassy to his home in the suburbs of London. Within the Foreign Office, the joke of the day was: “I always thought my daffodils were yellow until I met Joe Kennedy.”   The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson, pp 194