Checking In

Blog Post
Larry-Lambert

Caption: Are you tired of winning?

 

Bullet Points:

** Jet lag combines fatigue and other symptoms caused by traveling abruptly across different time zones. Another name for jet lag is ‘time zone change syndrome.’ The body is synchronized to night and day by the action of sunlight through brain chemicals or neurotransmitters, especially melatonin.

Taking care of business and working overtime?

I suspect that I’ll be in the air as you read this. For Al Kirk – I will spend the 35+ hours that I’ll be in the air bouncing around this week. I’ll spend some of that dead time finishing the short story book and the next novel. Ok, maybe not completing it, but working in that direction…

Qatar Business Class spares no expense with its impressive à la carte menu. Unlike other airlines, there’s no set mealtime. With their open dining plan, you can eat as much as you want, whenever you want, and eat your courses in any order you like.

For those who spend their lives in the air, it’s a pleasant departure from the norm. The dishes are beautifully presented, including little extras like freshly baked bread, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar. I’m obsessed with their itty-bitty salt and pepper grinders—it adds to the luxury of their in-flight dining experience.

I do have a lot of things to prep for, but If I spend my entire time working, it will melt my brain, and I won’t be able to sleep.

** Dogs are getting more assertive. I’m not sure why that is. Maybe WSF can answer it because Banner rules the house with an iron paw. The pup-cup is very popular.

** Researchers at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider. have identified the heaviest antimatter particle to date: antihyperhelium-4. This exotic particle is the antimatter equivalent of hyperhelium-4 and comprises two antiprotons, an antineutron and an antilambda.

The finding clarifies the severe conditions of the early cosmos and the baryon asymmetry problem, which asks why matter predominates in the universe even though matter and antimatter were created equally during the Big Bang. Machine learning was used to examine data from lead-ion collisions, confirming that matter and antimatter are formed equally. Upgrades to the LHC may result in additional advances in the study of antimatter.

** Does everyone who lives in South London smell like vomit?

 

Drug Cartels = Terrorist Organizations

President Donald Trump announced that he would designate cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. Speaking from the Capitol, Trump revealed that the executive orders will invoke the “Aliens Enemies Act of 1798,” allowing the government to use the “full and immense power of federal and state law enforcement” to combat what he described as “foreign gangs on US soil.”

The move is expected to dramatically escalate efforts to combat cartel violence and drug trafficking, marking a significant shift in the U.S. government’s approach to organized crime.  The US Military played a secondary or tertiary role against drug cartels in the past. With the invocation of the Aliens Enemies Act and bills that are making their way through Congress, the US Military will become the lead agency in striking terrorists “wherever they may be.” You can run, but you’ll only die tired.  What does this mean for narco-states such as Mexico, where drug cartels are standing in the shadows, pulling the levers of power?

As I’ve mentioned on this blog, the Central Intelligence Agency is, at its original heart, a non-uniformed military service. The National Intelligence Agency is a military service. How will this declaration reform the CIA under Director Ratcliff and Director of National Intelligence Gabbard? Stand by for that.

 

In Lebanon

(Strategypage) Claudio put me onto the referenced article, which doesn’t only focus on Lebanon (excerpt below). You should read the whole thing.

Lebanon is now a failed state with a name but no government or armed forces. The government went bankrupt, and the army was deserted because of a lack of pay. There isn’t even enough money for them to agree on a president. The army presently consists of paper soldiers and a few senior officers; the United States contributes cash to pretend Lebanon has a military and government. This also enriches a few people and serves whatever other CIA purposes are needed for covert cash.

Lebanese Christian and Sunni militias lack the money to mobilize for the extended effort required to eliminate Hezbollah’s militia forces, which the Israelis have not destroyed. Hezbollah is still a problem because unless Israeli forces extend the Israeli border north, Hezbollah’s remnant militias are still there with some undiscovered rockets and missiles.

Another option, which Israel last used decades ago, is for Israel or the Americans to provide money and heavy weapons to Lebanon’s Sunni and Christian militias. These revitalized forces will happily drive Lebanon’s Shia somewhere else. But right now, they can’t afford to mobilize for offensive operations and probably lack the heavy weapons. They didn’t have the money to pay those from the disbanding Lebanese army, so those went to Hezbollah. Money is so scarce in Lebanon, and the Sunni and Christian leaders would have more rewarding uses for the cash we offer them to destroy Hezbollah.]

There’s no nearby refuge for Hezbollah remnants, which has also lost access to its longtime patron, Iran. Often forgotten is the fact that Israel has made peace with some of its neighbors. Egypt and Jordan were the first in 1978 and 1994. Now, there are negotiations for peace with a reconstituted Lebanon and Syria. Turkey has long provided sanctuary for Islamic terrorists and other outlawed groups that were driven out of nearby nations. As long as these exiles caused no problems inside Turkey, they could plot and scheme everything they liked. Turkey also offered the exiles work as mercenaries to fight the Kurds in eastern Turkey, plus the Russians and pro-Western factions in Libya.

—

Turkey is less antagonistic toward the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) these days. The Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq completed a pipeline from the Taq Taq oil field through Khurmala (the northwest sector dome of the greater Kirkuk field) and Dahuk to Pesh Khabur (Fesh Khabur) on the Turkey-Iraq border, where it is connected to the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline. This 36-inch (910 mm) diameter pipeline has a capacity of 150,000 barrels per day (24,000 m3/d). It allows oil export from the Taq Taq and Tawke oil fields. There were closures due to arguing about the cost of transporting oil through the pipe, but it’s open again. Cash-strapped Turkey would rather have oil revenue than no revenue. Even though the Turkish Kurds are a semi-separate group from the KRG, they’re lightening up – a little. Oil has a perfume all its own.

 

Notes on ‘Slavery’

The snow-laden plains of Eastern Europe in the early medieval period were a theater of grim commerce, a stage where the human spirit was bartered for coin. Here, the Slavs—a proud and diverse people—were reduced to chattel by the inexorable tides of conquest and greed.

The word “slave,” now synonymous with human bondage, finds its roots in these dark transactions, for it was the Slavic peoples who bore the brunt of this burgeoning trade. From the ninth to the twelfth centuries, the rivers of the Danube, Dniester, and Volga became arteries of despair, carrying men, women, and children to markets as far as the sunlit coasts of the Mediterranean. “The body is a coin,” one Byzantine merchant wrote, marveling at the pliability of flesh when bent by profit. The Mediterranean powers—Byzantines, Venetians, and Muslim Caliphates—clamored for these captives, their labor fueling empires from Andalusia to Constantinople.

Behind this grim trade stood the Varangians, Norse warriors who had carved their way through the rivers of Rus, seeking plunder and power. They struck deep into the hinterlands, where villages crumbled beneath their swords and torches. Those who survived the carnage were marched westward, bound in chains, their destinies sold to the highest bidder. A Venetian chronicler, Enrico Dandolo, recorded these markets with chilling detachment: “They come pale as the moon, their faces shadowed by fear, their wrists bloodied by iron.” The Slavs were sought for their strength and resilience; they became laborers in Sicilian fields, concubines in North African harems, and even soldiers in the Abbasid armies. Thus, their very identity was linguistically shackled. From Slav to Sclavus and finally to Slave, the transformation was complete.

 

Identify the Aircraft

1

 

2

Not an F-86 – don’t believe your lying eyes.

 

3

 

4

 

Parting Shot

 

End

 

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41 thoughts on “Checking In”

  3. Identify the Aircraft:
    1. de Havilland Comet
    2. Canadair Sabre
    3. Canadair CP-107 Argus
    4. Embraer C-390

  4. Lebanon. So someone needs $ billions in US aid? How am I not surprised. Apparently all of Libya’s weapons stocks are no longer available so Lebanon’s have conveniently appeared on the market. To save Israel, defeat Iran, and bring peace to the Middle East. 9f course the handling charges and blowback won’t come our way. No, not at all.

  5. “What does this mean for narco-states such as Mexico, where drug cartels are standing in the shadows, pulling the levers of power?” I’ve long assumed that the cartels are pulling those levers of power on this side of the border, too. It just seems they get away with far too much for it to be simple happenstance. Corruption in the US? Clearly impossible!

    1. White-shoe law firms on this side of the border help the Cartels pull those “levers” of power SiG. Without them they cannot move product north and profits south.

  6. Thanks Larry for working on the books.
    *
    For those who wonder how the future Mexican cartel wars may go I suggest you read Larry’s books “Bloody Mexico” and the “Old Whore”. Be sure to read them in order by reading “Bloody Mexico” first. They are eye opening and you’ll be much better informed.
    *
    Your dinner on the plane looks delicious. Hopefully the food on the ground will be even better.
    *
    Please use care in your travels. Looking forward to your safe return.

  7. Looks like great in-flight service!
    *
    My understanding is; that picture right there is the only part of Qatar worth seeing…
    *
    Good travels!
    – Kle.

  8. I hope the people at CERN are being careful. The uncontrolled release of anti-matter is a serious violation of international law.

  9. “This exotic particle is the antimatter equivalent of hyperhelium-4 and comprises two antiprotons, an antineutron and an antilambda.” Let me know when they discover the antimoron aspect of hyperhelium-4. When they find that particle can we then move forward as we eradicate the morons of our society.

  10. Thanks for the update and the good news – so far.
    Saw an interesting question about the SJW noise currently going on: Where is “sputtering impotent tantrum” on the Kubler-Ross scale?

  11. ** Dogs are getting more assertive. I’m not sure why that is. Maybe WSF can answer it because Banner rules the house with an iron paw. The pup-cup is very popular.
    Dogs aren’t getting more assertive; people are becoming wimps. Banner knows all the hot spots as we travel and the fiends at the Keenesburg Shell give him a pup-cup. I cannot drive by the place without him singing the song of his people, without pause.

    1. Eh, is a husky. Never shut up is a breed trait. Even when loved with a firm hand, they will still talk back, argue, whine, and comment upon the entire world worse than a teenaged daughter.

      The one time I tried to call my Calmer Half from the Iditarod re-start line, he could not hear me for all the dogs singing the song of their people… mainly translated, no matter what PETA thinks, as “Me next! Me next! Wanna run! LET’S GOOOO!” (Rough estimate: 80+ decibels of impatient, eager commentary, interspersed with a few impatient barks)

  14. “Are you tired of winning?” – No. Nor am I tired of The Trump Team Firehose Effect running up the score, flattening the enemy within and without…like this smack down:
    —
    President Trump (via Truth Social) – “I was just informed that two repatriation flights from the United States, with a large number of Illegal Criminals, were not allowed to land in Colombia. This order was given by Colombia’s Socialist President Gustavo Petro, who is already very unpopular amongst his people. Petro’s denial of these flights has jeopardized the National Security and Public Safety of the United States, so I have directed my Administration to immediately take the following urgent and decisive retaliatory measures:
    -Emergency 25% tariffs on all goods coming into the United States. In one week, the 25% tariffs will be raised to 50%.
    -A Travel Ban and immediate Visa Revocations on the Colombian Government Officials, and all Allies and Supporters.
    -Visa Sanctions on all Party Members, Family Members, and Supporters of the Colombian Government.
    -Enhanced Customs and Border Protection Inspections of all Colombian Nationals and Cargo on national security grounds.
    -IEEPA Treasury, Banking and Financial Sanctions to be fully imposed.
    These measures are just the beginning. We will not allow the Colombian Government to violate its legal obligations with regard to the acceptance and return of the Criminals they forced into the United States!”
    SISU MAGA for the win!
    ***
    Pup Cup- When suburbanites have it easy this is the sort of thing they’ll spend $10 on at Starbucks…at least their wasn’t a line of 15 vehicles behind her waiting for their Double-Shot Soy Milk Latte with a Lemon Twist and Vegan Gluten Free Organic Cranberry Scone, otherwise we’d ‘have an incident’. I echo WSF’s “wimp” characterization. Geez Louise.

  15. Sidebar: Watched ‘On Call’ S1 (Prime)….yeah, drama…and unsure how tough a 120# gal would be in real life in that role…not saying some can do it, but so many woman in those TV roles makes me wonder what’s real and what is “for affect” to appease “Pup Cup” adherents
    The show was fair to midland, worth some popcorn…but left me thinking: “Why the hay would anyone live in a large Democrat/Marxist run city with such rampant unchecked crime?” Me, I’d rather take my chances out in the woods with its predators, at least if attacked I could defend myself whereas in the city if I [injured] some demented person bent on doing harm to my person I’d be run over by a rabid cop or DA “just doing their job under the law”. Half of us have no clue how many laws or regulations we “break” each day…which means there are too many designed by lawyers for lawyers to feed the “law” machine.

  16. In the states, the availability of nice air travel is a thing of the past. While never having had the opportunity to ride on Qatar, I did ride on Emirates a bit. Their cabin crews were outstanding and presented similar fantastic meals. The Emirates A-380s had a well stocked mid cabin open bar that attracted travelers on the long haul flights across Asia. Thai was also outstanding with service, food and nice seats. In Europe, even the turboprop or small jet KLM City Hoppers served a hot meal and drinks on their quick flights. Granted the meal was small and you couldn’t nurse your drink, but the airline’s effort and graciousness was there.

    Gulf Air, not so much.

      1. I don’t fly anymore, not until airlines start treating people less like sardines and more like humans…altho the pajama crowd don’t get that consideration until they too straighten up and get their personal act together, minimally travel not like they juat rolled out of bed.

        1. If the boss says “Fly there.” I will comply.
          Otherwise, a nice long drive is preferable.
          Flying to Nebraska for Scherie’s first surgery this afternoon.
          The pain would not let her endure an 11 hour drive.
          Sun Chips and coffee it is. :)

      2. Delta: SunChips, Diet Coke. Unfortunately, Delta now has Soniqua Martin-Green doing an inflight announcement on video. I have no idea if SMG is personally objectionable or not, but her character “Michael Burnham” on Star Trek: Discovery (fondly known as STD) was not inspiring, let’s say. Michael Burnham (homosexual writer Bryan Fuller likes to give his female characters male first names, for some reason) is Spock’s human adopted sister, who basically taught him how to be a proper Vulcan. Because Black Girls do everything better, including being a Vulcan. So the inflight thing is not a delightful start to the Delta experience.
        —
        Much as it pains me to say this, Amtrak treats its “premium” customers well. First Class on the Acela is not an entirely grubby experience, and even regular Acela (all Business class) is considerably more pleasant than most domestic air travel. The “Metropolitan Lounge” in Moynihan Hall (NYC Penn Station train hall) is clean, tasteful, and provides free food and (non-EtOH) drinks to first class ticket holders, as well as to “Select Plus” and “Select Executive” customers (basically frequent flyer premium levels), even if you’re travelling in the peasant class (as I do going home from Manhattan). The Metropolitan Lounge overlooks the main floor of Moynihan, so you can sit there on the balcony with your complimentary Bolyan’s soda and look down on the masses, thus answering the eternal question of “I wonder what the poor rabbits are doing this time of year?” The Lounge in Boston is not as nice. For one thing there is no hot food, and you get Coke (not Boylan) products out of a fridge yourself. There is an unfriendly sign warning you to not take more than one, with a video camera’s Gorgon Stare glaring down at you. I shall find out soon if the Lounge in WDC’s Union Station is more NYC or more Boston, if you take my meaning.
        —
        Red wine (how un-Islamic) AND a metal knife! Good for Qatar Airways. I figure you are still in the air. Walk around as possible. Unless you got your shot of Lovenox. That’s a long time to be sitting, even if it’s Business Class. I once had a patient present with a pulmonary embolus (PE, blood clot to the lungs, 3rd leading cause of cardiovascular death in the US; typically the clot forms in the lower leg, then migrates to the lung). Youngish guy, no coagulation disorders or cancer, nonsmoker (and not taking estrogen). Best we could figure, doing federal income tax did him in. He had an old-fashioned four legged wooden desk chair. He sat for around 10 hours in the chair, with his feet wrapped behind the two front legs as was his wont, working on his taxes. Between the immobility and him putting pressure on the back of his legs due to the hard seat and the feet-position thing, we think that little extra bit of venostasis pushed him over the edge. He got better, but it a PE is never a joke.
        —
        Slavs to slaves. Yes of course. But we all know that in the contemporary US, only one type of slavery matters, and only one genocide matters. The others are either “unimportant” or even “competing narratives”. Opinions may differ in other places, of course. I had a Romanian (expat, now a resident of Manhattan’s Lower East Side) tell me that only in Romania did the people suffer under communism. “We had it bad. Russia? Nothing! China? Pfff! Those were not cases of real suffering. Those were just different governments. But Romania? THERE the people suffered.” Looked at a certain way, that’s funny. From another perspective it’s infuriating. I’ve decided to be amused since nothing I can do will change this person anyway.

    2. Dave,
      I agree.
      I would add Etihad, though it’s been a while that i flew them.

      and fairly recently, Nippon was not far behind.

      how the world has changed!
      My first plane a WW2 “gooney bird”,
      to 747,
      Concorde,
      A380

      now, I am thankful to stay home and walk.
      the world no longer interests me.

      Juan

  18. 27 January 1939 – First flight of the Lockheed P-38 Lightning. The Lockheed P-38 Lightning was a World War II American fighter aircraft built by Lockheed. Developed to a United States Army Air Corps requirement, the P-38 had distinctive twin booms and a single, central nacelle containing the cockpit and armament. Named “fork-tailed devil” by the Luftwaffe and “two planes, one pilot” by the Japanese, the P-38 was used in a number of roles, including dive bombing, level bombing, ground-attack, night fighting, photo reconnaissance missions, and extensively as a long-range escort fighter when equipped with drop tanks under its wings.

    The P-38 was used most successfully in the Pacific Theater of Operations and the China-Burma-India Theater of Operations as the mount of America’s top aces, Richard Bong (40 victories) and Thomas McGuire (38 victories). In the South West Pacific theater, the P-38 was the primary long-range fighter of United States Army Air Forces until the appearance of large numbers of P-51D Mustangs toward the end of the war. The P-38 was the aircraft that, during “Operation Vengeance”, shot down the Japanese aircraft carrying and killing ADM Yamamoto, the architect of the Pearl Harbor attack, December 7, 1941. The P-38 was the only American fighter aircraft in production throughout American involvement in the war, from Pearl Harbor to Victory over Japan Day.

    1. ahhh
      thanks the reminder!
      it’s often overlooked.

      I saw one fly once at an air show in Houston.
      What a sweet sound!

      Juan

  19. Saw elsewhere that Schwartzenegger has issued an apology for his “screw your freedom” comment. I wonder if the apology is as sincere and heartfelt?

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