DIE DEI!!
A few days ago, Google announced that it had abandoned its target of “diversity, equity, and inclusion” in its workforce.
Here is the February 5 New York Times article covering the announcement.
According to the Times, Google attributed the change of policy to its need “as a federal contractor . . . to comply with President Trump’s executive orders opposing diversity, equity and inclusion policies.”
Google’s announcement came about a month after Facebook parent Meta had (formally) made the same policy change. (See CNBC’s January 10 piece covering the Meta announcement here.).
Google and Facebook are now two leaders in what has become a full-on parade of corporate giants making the exact sudden 180-degree reversal of what was previously broadcast as fundamental corporate policy.
This group includes Amazon, Goldman Sachs, McDonald’s, and even Disney.
Was Corporate America’s, particularly the tech giants’, commitment to DEI so shallow that they would all reverse course entirely, suddenly, in unison, and without a peep of objection? The truth is that these companies are all breathing a huge sigh of relief at finally being released from the DEI shackles.
Their DEI promises were always a ludicrous fantasy.
They were all quickly running into an impossible situation: their promises could not be kept.
Meanwhile, DEI had become an increasingly militant and desperate racial spoils regime.
As further progress toward its goals became increasingly impossible, maintaining the regime inevitably required ever more enforced agreement and silencing of dissent.
The end of this mess is something we should all welcome.
And I do welcome its end, which I certainly hope is permanent.
But I can’t let the whole thing go as if it had never happened.
We have all been subjected to a decade and more of insufferable moral preening from these people claiming to be our betters.
Before moving on, it is appropriate to remind ourselves — and them — of some of the endless sanctimony and hypocrisy it covered.”
Looking at the Indo-Pacific
As the United States navigates a pivotal leadership transition, the Indo-Pacific region stands at the forefront of global strategic interests. The area is home to an uncertain mix of political disquiet, military peril, and economic potential, with issues like North Korea’s nuclear ambitions, China’s assertive territorial claims, and the delicate balance of power involving Taiwan shaping the narrative. All this makes the Indo-Pacific a crucial arena for U.S. foreign policy and the alliances and partnerships that will influence global trade and security frameworks moving forward.
What do experts say?
- Jeffrey Hornung highlights Japan’s focus on maintaining U.S. commitments amid regional security concerns.
- Miyeon Oh discusses the Korean Peninsula’s security challenges, balancing U.S. alliances with economic ties to China.
- Samuel Charap addresses Russia’s shifting priorities post–Ukrainian conflict, emphasizing its ties with China.
- Raymond Kuo outlines Taiwan’s goals to enhance U.S. relations and defense capabilities.
- Jude Blanchette examines China’s strategic maneuvers and its hopes for an enduring “honeymoon” in U.S.-China relations.
Through objective research and expert analyses, RAND contributes to better understanding of the Indo-Pacific’s geopolitical landscape, offering invaluable guidance during this critical period of U.S. leadership transition.
Japan
Jeffrey Hornung is the Japan Lead for the RAND National Security Research Division and a senior political scientist at RAND.
Issues
“The main priority for Tokyo likely will be to maintain U.S. commitments to Japan and ensure that Japan remains a vital part of U.S. strategy. Toward that end, I suspect officials will often remind Washington of the alignment of their strategic interests and the critical role Japan plays in supporting the United States regionally and globally.”
Objectives
“The primary strategic objective of Japan for U.S. policy is to ensure Washington’s commitment to the peace and security of the region and to ensure that Washington recognizes Japan’s key role in that engagement. This includes keeping the U.S. presence in Japan. A key means to do that is to remind Washington of their mutual interests in China, North Korea, and Russia. However, one lingering and often unspoken concern for Japan is the possibility of Washington cutting deals with authoritarian leaders in North Korea or China that could ignore the interests of regional states. The biggest unknown, and arguably the biggest source of uncertainty for Tokyo, is whether Washington will demand any major changes in their defense ties.”
Outlook
“During the last Trump administration, Washington put a lot of pressure on Tokyo to increase its defense spending and money spent on hosting U.S. forces, something the Biden administration did not do. Even though Tokyo has delivered on both and is spending at historic levels, many in Tokyo are bracing themselves for possible requests for further increases that may be difficult to meet.”
Tokyo’s main priority will likely be maintaining U.S. commitments to Japan and ensuring that Japan remains a vital part of U.S. strategy.
The Korean Peninsula
Miyeon Oh is Distinguished Korea Policy Chair and a senior security and defense researcher at RAND.
Issues
“The security environment on and around the Peninsula faces a series of structural changes, driven by multiple factors, including enhanced nuclear threats from North Korea, its strong military ties with Russia, and the emerging informal alliance among China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran. If there’s a different approach toward the goal of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula by the Trump 2.0 administration, it would require a major policy change and redesign of South Korea’s national security strategy.”
Objectives
“Trade and economic measures, aligned with the bipartisan consensus on U.S.-China competition, are expected to continue in the areas such as semiconductor export controls under the Trump 2.0, along with expected major changes including imposing tariffs and possible revocation of U.S. government subsidies that the Biden administration granted Korean chip, battery, and electric vehicle makers. South Korea earned a record-high surplus of $55.7 billion in trade with the United States in 2024, which makes the country vulnerable in negotiating with President Trump, given his emphasis on the U.S. trade deficits.”
Outlook
“If the Trump administration wants to initiate negotiations with North Korea in year one, it will make it difficult for South Korea to be actively involved as a key player, given the current political crisis and leadership vacuum in Seoul. In designing a successful strategy to renegotiate with Kim Jong-un, especially in the current security environment surrounding the Korean Peninsula that is far more complex than that of his first term, however, the United States and South Korea must share the same goals and a policy road map through close coordination.”
Russia
Issues
“Its war in Ukraine has transformed Russia’s priorities in the Indo-Pacific. The Kremlin wants to ensure that its relationships in Asia—now even more important because of severing its ties with the West—are maintained and deepened with its key partners, particularly China and India but also Vietnam, Pakistan, Indonesia, and others.”
Objectives
“For U.S. policy, mitigating the challenges posed by Russia’s close relationship with China will continue to be a priority. Additionally, Russia can complicate other U.S. regional goals quite capably; North Korea is a recent case in point. Addressing those threats to U.S. interests will be an ongoing concern. Any possibility of stability, let alone cooperation, appears a long-term proposition at best.”
Outlook
“The United States faces a key question about what to do with its post-2022 surge in force posture in Europe that was taken in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. What it does in Europe could affect the availability of resources for Asia. In addition, the February 2026 expiration of the New START treaty—and the possibility of no replacement being in force before it expires—could directly affect China’s calculus in its nuclear buildup. Even though Russia is a member of most Asia-Pacific regional organizations and a major military power in the region, the United States largely views it as a European challenge. But it will be important to remember that Russia has often demonstrated its ability to undermine U.S. initiatives in Asia.”
Taiwan
Raymond Kuo is the director of the Taiwan Policy Initiative and a senior political scientist at RAND.
Issues
“Taiwan has two key priorities for the United States during the second Trump administration. The first is enhancing the bilateral economic relationship. The United States and Taiwan have also been working towards agreements on taxes and trade. The second is bolstering Taiwan’s ability to defend itself against Chinese coercion. Taiwan is interested in acquiring further defensive equipment, but opposition parties have engaged in a constitutional and legislative hardball, significantly cutting Taiwan’s defense budget.”
Objectives
“From Taiwan’s perspective, the top priority is shoring up U.S. support for Taiwan, particularly among skeptics within the administration. Preventing a U.S.-China deal (or in Beijing’s parlance, a “New Type of Great Power Relations”) that improves relations between Washington and Beijing without attention to the interests of Taiwan is a goal.”
Outlook
“I would expect Taiwan to further emphasize its importance to U.S. security and economic interests, particularly by increasing its integration into American supply chains and defense calculations. So, I wouldn’t expect breaks with the past so much as attempts to intensify the current relationship.”
From Taiwan’s perspective, the top priority is strengthening U.S. support for Taiwan, particularly among administration skeptics.
China
Jude Blanchette is the Distinguished Tang Chair in China Research and the inaugural director of the RAND China Research Center.
Issues
“For now, Beijing is attempting to sustain momentum on the current “honeymoon” in U.S.-China relations, initiated by President Trump this summer with a series of comments that signaled he was looking to break with the highly competitive approach of the Biden administration. Yet the Chinese leadership no doubt remembers that the first Trump administration moved from an initially courteous tone to threats of tariffs and, eventually, the launching of a full-blown trade war in the summer of 2018.”
Objectives
“The Xi administration is communicating that while it doesn’t want a trade war with the United States, this time around, it has developed a toolkit that it feels better positions it to inflict asymmetric pain on the U.S. economy. Instead of a tit-for-tat on tariffs, which characterized Beijing’s approach in 2018–19, they will now seek to put pressure on supply chain chokepoints, over which they have ample leverage.”
Outlook
“As Beijing watches with an anxious and uncertain optimism as the new Trump administration takes shape, Beijing will continue to push forward on its strategic objectives, with squeezing Taiwan’s diplomatic and strategic space remaining a top priority.”
American Greatness
The indispensable Victor Victor Davis Hanson
“The Democratic Party is polling about 31 percent approval, a near-historic low.
Despite enjoying a huge lead in fundraising, legacy media favoritism, and incumbency, Democrats lost the White House to Donald Trump in the 2024 election.
Ever since they have offered nothing new, no novel agenda, no innovative policies—nothing other than screaming that they are loudly against everything and anything the president is for.
In the past, what did they accomplish by following their prior two impeachments with attempts to de-ballot Trump?
Who thought sending an FBI swat team to raid Trump’s home or waging five lawfare civil and criminal suits and issuing 91 felony indictments against him would win over the public?
Was conducting a media barrage of Hitler-Trump invectives or lowering the bar of demonization that likely led to two assassination attempts on Trump a good way to win an election?
Not, given the Democrats have now lost the presidency, the House, and the Senate. (more at American Greatness)
Bullet Points:
** Boron will have to look for a job since DOGE is canceling Social Security payments for all payees over the age of 150.
** Who would have thought that shoving marbles up cat’s asses and then shocking them would be an appropriate use of taxpayer dollars. I could see Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) doing it recreationally. I don’t know whether or not she was personally involved.
** $50 million to the Palestinian initiative to fight the weather. CANCELED – The Palestinians will have to take the climate as it comes, much like the rest of us, without $50 million from the US Treasury to build “sounding rockets” to shoot into the atmosphere.
** They can’t pass an audit. It leads to five shots in the back of the head – ruled a suicide. Epstein hung himself…
** I’ve been rich in Monopoly – they called me Mr. Moneybags. Then I put the box away.
** I drove up to the window of a hamburger joint in the inner city and paid with a crisp new $20 bill. She set it on the counter, whipped out a marker, and swiped it.
** When you’re this close to finding out.
** Which weighs more? A pound of feathers or a pound of gold? Check out Joe Rogan for the correct answer. Did you get it right?
On the topic of China claiming everything —
“Officials have revealed the encounter occurred on Tuesday 11 February during daylight hours, when the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) J-16 released flares within 30 metres of the RAAF P-8 Poseidon.”
DID NOT win any friends at a veterans and current service dinner last night. Several RAAF people there. The only good point is they didn’t drop chaff as has happened previously which can block the engines.
And yes, the point is that the Chinese (as Celestials) are entitled to whatever they want.
If China wants a good honeymoon they’ll have to quit using roofies.
Drive up hamburger; This is NOT a blonde joke. M. and I have been meeting for Saturday morning coffee ever since the plannedemic scam began. Prior years it was just every once in a while. We were trying to get 20/20 clear vision of what was really going on. We had to meet at a drive up and sit in our rig out in the parking lot. ( in the people’s republic of what was Oregon)
F.F. we’re still meeting at McD’s we both moved to Texas. 1/2 the time they can’t get our orders right. Over the last few years I’ve observed services failing to deliver in EVERY field, and stocked merch hit and miss.
A real blonde joke; This week code enforcement showed up. The school bus we used to move with is in the back yard. I showed ” her” that the back storage and the front half is my office. 2 benches with a table in between, printer, and a bed. I explained to her that is where I do eyelid inspections. Takes 20-30 minutes and I’m looking for holes. She’s bewildered. I said, it works really good, I’ve never found any. 3.5 seconds later the light went on. She said, “I’m a blonde! My reply? “I didn’t say the “B” word!”
😄
I’m impressed with Trump’s contained anger toward those that persecuted him for years, slandered him with the help of the media, and shot him in the ear. Then again, who knows who he’s called from the military, gave them a demand for an action, and told them to make it look like a suicide. We’ll probably never know, but for those involved that get arrested, they probably should insure their final wishes are documented before they go to prison.
I haven’t heard of reports from the mainstream media claiming that the Trump persecutors have been shooting themselves in the back of the head five times or hacking themselves to death with axes in what could only be described as suicides.
Give it time.
** The “historians” claim Tomás de Torquemada died back in 1498, but I’ve been advised there are still quite a few USAID people to be questioned: Social Security payments are only for (elderly) retired people.
** I hate got be “Gross”, but…
I think most people equated DEI as an unwanted intrustion being pushed by agressive homosexuals raping the general public
they were shoving it up our — noses – and nobody (normal) wants to be raped.
** It’s not as though I don’t turn to your (I hate to call it a) blog first thing every day (or as soon as I get the chance)
(BTW: I don’t get remuneration for making that statement)
but (I have to say) this is the first time that I’m going to spend a week (or more; most likely several) reading/examing/digesting “Looking at the Indo-Pacific”
it appears that the referenced geopolitical material may/will probably cause me to revise my investment considerations in that area
** Feather merchant!
** There could be no question, even with all the cheating, that The Donald won; the gubbmint under Joe Biden was coming after a pound of Antonio’s flesh as well as his pound of gold.
I could bloviate in my response to your response but I’ll only say, “yes” and leave it at that.
The extent and depth of espionage operations conducted by China on the United States during the Biden administration remain unknown. However, it is believed that the Trump administration acted at a much faster pace in the last three weeks than the Chinese anticipated, rendering most of the intelligence gathered ineffective. Nonetheless, the U.S. intelligence community will still need to play catch-up when it comes to securing our allies and interests in the Indo-Pacific and beyond. Thanks, Pedo Joe and the Ho! I thought that Camila would at least have enough training to give a reach around.
Pres. Trump moved faster than anticipated, and because the world (including the USA) can’t keep up with the news cycle, it’s paralyzing as they try to forecast the content of the next daily news content. In Gaza, Pres. Trump changed the time scale for hostage releases. Hamas shot rounds in the air and then sullenly declared that they’d be released – to the Russians. Meanwhile, the Russians are re-evaluating their situation with the Chinese. The US makes better friends than the Chinese do.
–
I do have liberal friends. Good friends of very long standing with whom I disagree but we’re still friends. They’re terrified by what they’ve seen and find it difficult to self-identify as democrats because that puts them on the side of freaks and pedophiles. Interesting.
I believe there are some really decent people that embraced the Democratic Party that believed the propaganda they were bombarded with for decades. If they still follow the legacy media, I can see where their fear is justified.
I have friends that did this and are terrified of President Trump cutting the flow of government cheese to the trough. At the same time, you have to look at what is being cut and why. They democrats might not be able to agree on some things (particularly the recipients of laundered funds) but the waste that is crashing the system destroys everyone.
I, too, have liberal acquaintances (there are only two people I call friends, both constitutionalists) and many relatives: both my side and my wife’s, far left of center.
I have/feel such deep rachmones for these people who, despite being given so much evidence that they’ve been played, still believe.
i want to give them my spectacles that might help reduce their myopia; I want to prescribe an eyewash for them that’ll wash away the leftist/Marxist dust that’s still clouding their vision.
I realize that it might be dangerous for me to disabuse them of their extremely deeply-held religious fervor (and I have to call it fervor versus belief).
but I’m a coward; I don’t want to “lose” (otherwise) intelligent people with whom I discuss many other topics; probably vice versa as well so we steer well clear of “current events”
I agree with you on the US forming better alliances with Russia rather than China. I’ve always thought that China will eventually want to use all the leverage they have on Russia and eventually take over completely, like a bear and dragon situation. As for your liberal friends, I have a few of those too. And I can call them true friends despite any political disagreements; we can still get along discussing various topics. To be honest, their silence is deafening and it’s hard not to feel bad for them since they were so deep in their political convictions and misled by the past regime leadership. However, I can’t help but feel a sense of satisfaction. Trump is burning down the Pedo regime and pissing on the ashes. I believe these reciprocal tariffs may cause short-term discomfort, but they present an effective strategy for compelling all parties to renegotiate trade agreements and address security concerns. Especially with China… Thoughts?
I view China as an enemy of the United States of America at every level and believe that we need to treat them like an enemy state until THEIR approach changes. Cooperation with China is desirable, but the defacto state of war that exists and has existed forces us down a different path.
No! China loves Trump. China loves Musk!
{Musk is delicious with soy sauce and some grated ginger.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IskUCoxucM4
No one who follows current affairs, and is willing to dig around for unbiased information, can be surprised at the contents of the RAND report. This state of affairs has been building up for the past three decades, and the last four years have merely accelerated things.
Be careful what you wish for is on the table with Trump’s trimming the federal workforce. Not all those folks are incompetent/redundant. Some are the only ones who know how to keep the lights on. What he is doing is needed. Is the right tool a weed-eater?
Best guess is that the really important ones are relatively well known in their circles. Also, the approach used so far in letting people go is carefully planned and highly selective, aimed at paralyzing organizations until trusted nominees can take over. Things will become very different, very fast if anything untoward is uncovered.
I hope you are right.
+1
Funny how we’re no longer wishing for that asteroid to hit DC since Trump arrived :)
We need an iron dome system to protect Pres Trump
The angels seem to have a grip on it 😄
Off topic: I heard a funny story from an ex-California cop who moved to Texas “I didn’t realize the Texas laws on pot possession were different from California “ Tom
I made an arrest many years ago now of a lady in possession of over 100,000 ecstasy tablets. There were no evidentiary issues. She spent 3 months in custody. A month later I arrested a man in Texas in possession of ten ecstasy tablets and he did six years in custody.
“so shallow”
Precisely.
Too bad your Benjamins didn’t pass muster. Launder through a corner store?
I know which corner store you have in mind…the one run by Laotians in Hill Country (Texas, not the Plain of Jars).
The tax use fraud is beyond the pale…maybe take a year or two…or 50…hiatus on Federal taxation; starve the criminal outfits and they will disappear faster than DEI.
***
DEI compliance…same as the Covid psy-op crappola…was to maintain these companies influence and money train funneled thru DC; it disappearing 2-3 weeks with a proper leader who cares a wit about these companies politics other than to defund their grift, proves they are in bed with the likes of McConnell and his ilk, of which they are quickly distancing themselves in order to appear they are playing nice with PDJT and Team.
***
I swear people in the 1950’s…heck, the 1750’s…were smarter about life than most in modern society: “Don’t leave the southern border open or there will be a problem” seems pretty obvious but people actually argue against it. “Give your newborn 2 dozen” so-called vaccines. Really mom’s?…what could possibly go wrong? Half the kids nowadays can’t eat a PB&J due to weird allergies. I lived on them.
– You’d think we would be progressing more intelligently in society, but so many Americans have regressed to the point they need an instruction to not to eat Tide Pods…right on the package. Have people becomes so stupid due to indoctrination (or pure laziness) that common sense now needs to be run thru government PSA’s, like make sure to wear a coat when it’s cold outside? Or go out and buy a garage full of TP for a [manipulated] cold virus because some idiot on the news said so. Reliance on government is never a good thing, and many are proving the point everyday. Doesn’t bode well for a society that has lost its mind on the simple things…but boy, don’t get their mocha soy latte’ order wrong or they go ballistic.
I don’t have an account to check but I seem to remember that gold has 12 oz per pound (something like 32 grams per oz) and feathers would be 16 oz per pound (29 grams per oz) so feathers!