Caption: Not everyone wants to go out during the summer monsoon.
Bullet Points:
** The old Soviet Union used the phrase “Enemy of the People” to mean “Enemy of the State.” They’re not always the same thing; in fact, the more government you have, the more the two disassociate.
** Pentagon says they’ve identified Biden-era Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall as being the leaker behind the security capabilities of the new Air Force One.
** View of toxic masculinity from Prager-U. You see the same people at the Nuke a gay whale rally as you do at the various Pride parades and the Scrotes for Palestine marches. They’re never big on Labor Day because none of them hold jobs, preferring to eat other men’s/women’s bread.
** More people left Austin for San Francisco than the other way around. This is somewhat surprising because the headquarters for X is located in the Austin suburbs. I thought they were hiring a lot of people. Maybe they moved to the burbs?
** While regular general Army enlisted basic training does not mandate a swim test, West Point cadets must complete water survival training and pass designated tests to graduate. This includes water entry from an elevated platform (high dive). I’ve heard pushback on this lately. REALLY? The cadet corps is afraid to jump?
It’s time to double down, Army. Put EVERY West Point cadet through jump school during their summer training course. Will they need it in their careers? Most of the Army is not combat arms, but officers lead the way, and it’s a good confidence builder. Rig it and ride it, Army. We need warriors. I would also share that they should go through the basic infantry school at Ft. Benning (or whatever they call the fort these days). If they’re not up to that, maybe they should find a different profession.
** Sack up, Montana. Don’t go full California/Oregon on us. Drill baby, drill. I am an environmentalist who lives in the mountains. I think that preserving a sage grouse environment is important, but refusing to allow oil exploration is more of the same stupid behavior that kept places like California and Oregon from thinning forests – so they burned.
** (h/t Claudio) Poland remembers. Last time nobody came to help them. Germany and Russia divided the spoils – then came the Russian boot. “If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face — forever.” -Orwell Russians, Red Chinese, Nazis, no difference. Ask Ukraine. “World War One meets Star Wars” – Taylor Sheridan
** In space nobody can hear you scream.
** You want to know what the goals of Sharia-supremists/ Radical Islamists are? Are you ambivalent as to their ultimate motives? This is from the horse’s mouth. “Islam is a declaration of the freedom of man from servitude to other men. Thus it strives from the beginning to abolish all those systems and governments which are based on the rule of man over men…It is the nature of Islam to dominate, not to be dominated, to impose its law on all nations, and to extend its power to the entire planet.” –Sayyid Qutb, Founder, Muslim Brotherhood
** A war gaming exercise held by US officials last year examined how the country’s aluminum supply chain would fare in the event of a large global conflict. High-purity aluminum, the kind used to make fighter jets and other defense equipment, “emerged as a critical vulnerability,” according to Bloomberg, noting that almost 90% of that metal comes from the UAE. Aluminum plants in Bahrain and the UAE have been hit in Iranian strikes this year, causing prices to surge. Emirates Global Aluminum has restarted its plant but is not expected to return to full capacity until the end of the year. EGA is building capacity in the US and is the majority owner of a $4 billion Oklahoma aluminum smelter project, which is due to start production by the end of the decade. The facility, which would be the first of its kind built in the US since 1980, could help ease Washington’s concerns about access to the metal, and gives EGA a break from tariffs on its exports to the US.
** Stop mumbling and smile. I hate it when you do that.
** Rural hospitals cannot compete on cost; I am aware that many of the people who most need affordable care are the least able to travel great distances to get to it. It’s hard to travel when there is no public transit, and you are not medically able to drive.
No Taxpayer Money Involved
President Trump shared an aerial photo of the construction underway at the White House’s East Wing, and the scope of it is bigger than a ballroom. He called it a military complex. The ballroom will sit beneath an elevated drone port – part of the structure. I’m not sure what the drone port will be and what function it will serve, but there will be one there at the White House.
The bomb resistant basement goes down at least five stories and will be used for military purposes. The details are classified as they should be. I have gone into the East Wing for functions at least three times and was always amazed how small the area was. The ballroom is needed, as is the expansion area for meeting rooms and offices. The haters are only angry because President Trump is involved. My answer to their howls is that they need to grow up.
I asked AI where Vice President Vance was – what’s he doing today? He’s been under the radar lately. Answer: Vice President JD Vance is continuing his official White House duties and supporting administration initiatives, following recent efforts focusing on government waste reduction and the White House Fraud Task Force. In case you wondered. We have an answer, so it can’t be the question of the day.
The Kurds are Not Amused
The US is pulling the last of the troops out of Iraqi Kurdistan, and the Kurds feel betrayed by President Trump. They overplayed their hand, and while all is not lost for them, their response will tell a lot about where the Kurdish movement is going from here. The Iraqi Kurds gave the US Government unqualified and overwhelming support for the past 40 years, and well before that, during World War II, they came down on the side of the Allies. When a choice had to be made between supporting them or lending weight to Iraq and Turkey, Iraq and Turkey won out. The Kurds (Old Assyrian Empire) aren’t going anywhere, but if they want to do anything right, they need to find rapprochement in their own ranks rather than squabbling internally. I realize that there are different interests among different groups. The Iranian Kurds’ cash crop is opium, and the Talibani faction of Iraqi Kurds shares their business interests.
To some extent, the pressure and disappointment that the Kurdish Regional Government feels can be laid at the feet of the CIA. I will not go into details here, but completely trusting a US intelligence agency with its own agenda can lead to results that you may not be prepared for.
In the Future
(h/t Frank)
The Bamboo Curtain
No, China is not the Hotel California. But the message is clear. (h/t Ken) “Why should we let you leave?” Xi Is Rebuilding the Wall. This Time to Keep Chinese People In. China’s “opening up” began when ordinary people regained the ability to leave the country. A new regulation suggests the CCP is now rebuilding the gate.
Starting September 15, immigration authorities may question a traveler’s purpose and demand documents, records, or electronic data to verify it. Officials may discourage travel to designated high-risk destinations. What constitutes “high-risk” is vague. Authorities may also bar people accused of threatening “industrial security” or “technological security”, elastic concepts in a system where the state writes the rule, interprets it, and controls the appeal.
The crucial shift is philosophical: leaving China is moving from a matter of having valid documents toward satisfying the government that your reason is “true” and “lawful.” A passport begins to look less like proof of citizenship and more like a permission slip. The political purpose is obvious: monitor dissidents, sensitive employees, officials, and anyone whose overseas activity displeases the Party. But the economic motive may be just as important.
China is short of confidence, tax revenue, and foreign exchange. The CCP is already scrutinizing overseas assets and pursuing taxes on offshore investment gains. Middle-class families also send money abroad through tourism, education, migration, and asset diversification. If capital cannot be fully stopped at the bank, it can be slowed at the border.
Identify the Submarine
1
2
3
I think I’ve had this photo on before…sigh, running out of new material.
Parting Shot
End
“** Pentagon says they’ve identified Biden-era Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall”
And removed his security clearances.
That shouldn’t even had to be said.
When I leave a job, they disable my card and delete my email account.
We need to begin hanging traitors again.
On that note: It is a shame we have all of these light poles everywhere and not a single politician hanging from any of them.
The ravens should have picked all their eyes out by now…hang them there alive on gibbets.
The law says “cruel and unusual” not “cruel or unusual”.
Make it usual.
If they’re alive in the cage, hoisted high, they serve as an example to all. Lashing them to tide stakes brings about a quick end.
All sorts of hangings, from long-drop to short-drop to pulled-up, were commonly used at the time of the writing of the US Constitution and Bill of Rights. So were tar-and-feathering, both hot-tar and cold-tar. And pillarying. Stocks and whippings.
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So bring back hangings and pillorying and whipping/scourging.
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After all, it’s what our founding fathers believed in.
Test.
tees.
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Now combine them….
😂
Identify the Submarine
1. German SM UB-14
2. German Type XXI U-boat U-3008
3. Russian Severodvinsk Yasen-class
Outstanding.
The UAE does not mine bauxite to make aluminum, that is done primarily in Guinea, which is on the other side of Africa. Amazing how all those supply chains begin in former European colonies and route to others and then collect the $$$ from good ole USA, keeping all the ‘value add’ profits. Its almost like a colonial extraction model still in service just with ‘freedom’ for the former colonies.
Recent war gaming exercise … almost all of our military grade aluminum for aircraft now comes from UAE. Which happens to need the Straight of Hormuz to ship ore in and finished product out.
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Guinea a former French colony is also a large iron ore producer. China in their ever helpful capacity is building a special rail line to move the bauxite and iron ore to port to send to China. It seems everywhere abundant natural resources can be found, you’ll find China. Coincidentally of course.
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The kitty cats on the porch at least haven’t moved in. Just staying dry. But they may take a liking to their nice dry porch. Best to toss a firecracker out a window to move them along.
The kitty-cats on the porch? Small chance that porch pirates would strike that house.
Primary Sources of U.S. Bauxite
Jamaica: Historically the leading provider of crude bauxite via close shipping routes to the Gulf Coast.
Brazil: Major South American supplier of metallurgical-grade bauxite ore.
Guinea: Major West African contributor holding a massive share of global bauxite reserves.
Turkey: A consistent supplementary exporter for specific non-metallurgical or specialty grade shipments.
Great info Ed. Took a quick look to see what China might be doing. Jamaica and Brazil was interesting. Right in our backyard.
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https://www.alcircle.com/news/middle-east-conflict-revives-pentagon-concerns-over-us-high-purity-aluminium-supply-120668?srsltid=AfmBOoqXL6exvw3Oj1RxbKzIGTRyvNnYu2_6cDITskM_RWQDozsimHxb
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https://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/news/20260707/china-we-will-protect-our-assets-jamaica
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https://www.alcircle.com/news/china-accounts-for-nearly-25-of-brazil-s-aluminium-scrap-exports-rising-590-since-2022-tightening-brazils-domestic-supply-120683?srsltid=AfmBOopBNdlfBPCaZ3a_4vWAdiMmPkAD4Yh1-97tXTtF5y3CoKvYy1j8
“The Kurds are Not Amused”
Before transitioning to other crops (should they want to), there must be so many other uses that involve the molecular structures of the components of opium, both the phenanthrene and the benzylisoquinoline alkaloids.
Be willing to bet, a little bit of mineral exploration might turn up many useful metals in that area.
If only they could find a single, uniting leader: then again, we might rue the result.
**
So the EU (or Europolis or Brussels – whatever) is preparing to go on the offensive with bear spears, IOW to start WWIII or GWI.
Bet they’ll invoke some part of the NATO documents just as soon as The Donald’s term is up – unless they can get their people in at mid-term.
Did the Kurds intercept arms that were to be provided to an Iranian uprising?
Did this irk Trump?
No. The weapons never reached the Kurds. Turkey was concerned they’d be repurposed there.
Identify the Submarine:
1. German World War 1 UC 1 minelayer
2. German World War 2 Type XXI
3. Russian Yasen-class
Excellent!
As for the WNBA, see Old NFO’s post today. Reality hits cartoonitry.
sorta, somehow, reminds me of kid’s soccer when one of the 7th grade coaches (the coaches were all parents) tried to sneak an older brother, a smaller 9th grader, onto the field. good thing a barrel of tar wasn’t immediately available.
https://oldnfo.org/2026/08/08/snerk-67/
I copied this from the comments under a YouTube video of U-3008 and thought it iteresting.
“U-3008, surrendered and was brought to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (NH). It was thoroughly evaluated, and as the USN had not yet seen a XXI, they decided to take it to waters off Key West to test it against USN destroyer sonar technology. In absolutely every scenario, U-3008 successfully evaded the destroyers, and totally frustrating Navy command. Ultimately, it was sent to the bottom off Ft. Jefferson, and today is a popular dive site. How do I know this? A former USN torpedoman, just celebrating his 96th birthday a couple of weeks ago, was assigned chief torpedoman aboard U-3008 after she was dispatched to Florida waters. He can relate every engineering design of that boat, and conveys endless stories about her performance and stealthful techniques. He is a regular staff member at the Heritage Museum on the Shipyard, and you can come interview him any Thursday.”
They were remarkable boats, particularly for their time – along the lines of the V-2 in terms of being well ahead of anyone else. The Nazis went with Heisenberg, who was a genius, but they should have gone with uranium instead of heavy water.
And so it goes with the march of technology. I recall reading about the first time USS Nautilus (SSN-571) engaged in war games. By the time opposing destroyers arrived at her reported location to simulate a depth charge attack, she was long gone, setting up her next attack run.
Gulf War 1 – the anti-aircraft fire in Baghdad began after the bombs impacted…
While Bob said nothing was happening :)
They were always preparing to unleash the mother of all wars.
And CNN was covering for the Iraqi dirtbags.
The SSN San Juan was decommissioned August 6th. That was my son’s second ride. It launched the first cruise missiles in the Iraq war. I’ve got the Periscope video somewhere.
The former secretary should be in custody pending trial
If any or you, or I had released any such classified information obtained while we held clearance, we would have various three letter agency “operatives” forcing entry at 0 dark thirty.
As they say “No one is above the law”
I wonder what his financials look like
Any interesting contacts?
👍👍👍
I think there was a DOJ referral. Would he be given bail pending trial? Would he pull a Snowden and flee to Russia, Red China, or Norkland?
Where he runs to will tell us all who he was in the pay of.
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And you left Iran out of the collection of world evils. Don’t forget, they’ve had lots of Obamacash to play with.
War gaming. Discussed here–
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZKefHuiiOo
More Jeff Baxter.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xN0hmNS_IU&list=RD6xN0hmNS_IU&start_radio=1
Mr. Baxter is what I call ‘quietly brilliant’.
Yes, he’s a pretty cool guy. From Musician to Defense Analyst. Polymath?
Ballroom: A good review here as well as yours: https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2026/08/appellate-court-orders-halt-to-ballroom-construction.php#google_vignette
Comments are great…here’s mine in a reply to this ‘the court is correct because Congress has to approve’ baloney:
“Nobody except lawyers, judges, and jealous whiners care about the statute or slicing and dicing language as lawyers love to do in order to muddy the waters, especially one funded with private money…so let’s just keep an ugly hole in the ground and partial construction halted with TDS stall tactics.
Bottom line is We The People approve of the much needed Ballroom (plus whatever ‘items’ they conceal underneath), and want the damn thing finished so America can have State functions in a secure place that showcases respect to guests that only America can do…instead of what the clowns want; in a tent with Port-A-Potty’s on the WH lawn, or in an unsecured hotel conference room so some lunatic can take potshots at Our President.
‘The People’ have had it with snake-oil selling lawyers and scumbag judges trying to one-up a duly elected President, who happens to be running at warp speed to fix the mess those same ‘geniuses’ have created, especially on a project that solely uses private monies, and one that builds something that honors the past while allowing a beautiful venue for nice events. Note the operative word: ‘beautiful’…Dems hate beauty. Look at the O’s monstrosity.
Incidentally, this is exactly why WTP can have nothing nice, or easy for that matter…there’s always some self-loathing ninny PITA goofball trying to stop good progress…unless, of course, it’s the Morlock Hell Tower in Chicago where suncontractors have yet to be paid by The Great Obama, with some going out of business. To that…crickets. But actual needed big beautiful construction…howls of hubris and wailing and gnashing of teeth by The Demented Few.
We The People have had it with this grandstanding Bravo Sierra…as afar most are concerned PDJT and Team need to ignore this subversive judge and continue un-phased…what can happen, arrest him or slap a red tag violation on the place? Love to see the ‘code enforcement’ dude (who believe they are immune to trespassing rules) try that on hallowed secure grounds without getting taken out.”
My mini-rant.
This TDS baloney…while Congress itself has been silent on the matter…is getting old.
👍
Opening Pic: Those two ‘watchdogs’ are exponentially better than a Ring Camera to thwart entitled porch pirate criminals, doubtful Ms. purple hair or Mr. ‘I want what’s yours’ would even try.
I’d say that the package is safe.
The package is safe from theft because it won’t ever make it TO the porch. The Amazon or UPS guy is gonna see those cats and not even get out of the van.
Heh, my thought was, ‘Seems UPS/FedEx got the delivery done just in time since we don’t see the truck.
Parting Shot: A freakishly hulking WHITE male pretending to be a woman in order to get into the WNBA? Please, wigga. The WNBA is full of lesbian negresses. And almost certainly at least one “black” male pretending to be a woman. (It should have been left in Russia.)
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>almost 90% of [high-purity aluminum] comes from the UAE
Why is that? Are we technologically incapable of that in the continental US? Or is it because energy inputs are close by UAE therefore dramatically reducing transport costs? Or is it mainly because of regulatory (e.g. “environmental” laws) making it impossible in the US. Those questions were 90% rhetorical, but I’d be interested to actually know.
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O/T I went to the Newton Center (Massachusetts) shopping area today to pick up some luggage from a repair place. Pulling out of the big parking lot, I saw about a couple dozen people with hand-lettered signs protesting Trump, and ICE, and hailing Sacred Diversity; plus more were walking up from side streets clutching their signs. ALL of these people were white and old. All white hairs at any rate. Demographically Newton is overwhelmingly white (including 20-30% being Jewish, many of whom jokingly call their city “Jewton”) and East Asian. You almost never see blacks, or even Latinos/as. The median household income is around $200k. In short, Newton is a very rich town full of pale-skinned people with both money and power, and also cultural influence (many Harvard, Boston University, Boston College, etc faculty; also lots of writers and high-level govt people), who live among other pale, rich people. And this is where you have the Sacred Diversity street demonstrations. I noticed exactly the same thing in 91% white Saratoga Springs, NY (median household income ~$160k) last summer. A good friend who lives in Scarsdale, NY (<2% black; overwhelmingly white and Asian; also very Jewish — in short much like Newton, only vastly wealthier [1 reports it's like that in her town too. Friend and her husband are both cardiologists, and they are NOT considered well off [2] by Scarsdale standards. Scarsdale is full of Finance [lizard]people who work in The City a mere 45-60 minutes away by Metro-North Rail. Anyway, the point of this diatribe is that these old, very white people against ICE and virtue signaling that they are pro-diversity clearly have no interest in themselves living with Sacred Diversity. I despise hypocrites.
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[1] census stats for median household income caps at $250k per annum, so all we can say for Scarsdale that median is above $250k. However, the mean (“average”) household income is around $600k in Scarsdale.
[2] another friend (think a combination of Joey from “Friends” — only very smart, and Barney Stinson from “How I Met Your Mother”) lived in a Manhattan highrise during his bachelor days. When he moved in, his neighbors asked what he did. “You’re a cardiologist? Like a medical doctor? How can you possibly afford to live in our building then?” His neighbors were overwhelmingly Finance people. And so it goes.
**lizards? you mean lawyers?
**
Scarsdale (pronounced Scahsdale) – used to be ZIP 10583 can be divided in several areas: there are the –
White Plains, Harrison, Mamaroneck, Eastchester, Greenville, and Hartsdale sections, to name some.
My folks moved out of the West Bronx when I was 7 and I grew up (1948-58) in the village of Scarsdale, but town of Eastchester.
The old joke about what was the first profession:
The engineer said that God created the universe out of chaos, and building things is engineering.
The architect said God had everything planned out ahead of time, and that is architecture.
At this point a lawyer stepped in and said “And who do you think created the chaos?”
I am very surprised there is not unit survival swim training required in all the military branches. I did it in Boy Scouts at age 13. We learned how to make a life preserver out of you pants by tying off the legs and blowing air into the legs and pockets to stay afloat. I think the requirements were one hour with home made floats and 30 minutes dead float. It was an attitude changer as much as anything. You learned to survive on your own and just push on through. It was a skill that kept me alive in the hospital and on 100 mile bicycle rides. I guess that is why they do not teach it.
Yep.
The Strait of Hormuz becoming irrelevant, as discussed previously:
“Saudi Arabia is expanding its East-West pipeline. The UAE has already built out Fujairah as a bypass. Iraq is revisiting overland export corridors.”
They cut off their nose to spite their face.
as found in an article by Sundance in the TCTH
and all the Houthis are going to do is increase the number of air cargo tonnage.
90% of the time there’s another way around the problem
During my time in the Army (1960’s) every combat engineer officer went through a course at Ft Belevoir that was the same as enlisted. That is, they built bridges, strung barbed wire, used explosives, etc. That fostered respect from the enlisted swine as we knew butter ball had humped the bridge sections he was ordering us to hump.
I leave it to you who were/are officers if your think respect is more important than just following orders.
If you never learn to take orders, you’ll never be able to give them.
Reference Jump Training: I graduated from jump school in July 1974. My dad ( WW II, Korea, Vietnam) said that he saw a marked difference in me. I couldn’t tell it then but in later years, it became apparent, even to an Air Force pilot, that being able to run one more mile, take one more step, do just one more pushup made the mental difference between superior work along with doing whatever needed to be done without being told to do it.
-Brag, Pure Brag: Being in the Air Force while going to jump training was a blast. If someone was taking too much heat from the Black Hats, we would holler Air Force instead of Airborne to spread the wealth around. The Black Hats knew what we were doing, but they also wanted a platoon to stick together. Tower Week Monday morning, we were running to the PT pit and from afar, I saw an NCO climb on the demonstration stand where he started doing pushups. I thought he was just warming up. Instead when PT started, another NCO climbed up along side the one doing pushups and led us through a long (because guys were not paying attention to commands) PT session. The NCO doing pushups didn’t stop at all and just kept doing pushups the entire time. I didn’t get to shake his hand because of how we exited PT.
-The tower malfunctioned while three of us were waiting to be dropped. So, we stayed at the top until the tower malfunction was cleared. Hanging in our harnesses at the top of the tower was amazing fun as was the view.
-At the time, the chow hall was a company mess chow hall rather than the base chow hall and the food was great.
-Yes, every USMA or USMC officer candidate should attend the basic airborne infantry school. Set the standard high. The Air Force wasn’t keen on airborne training and didn’t want guys in the pilot channel to do infantry work but it would have been a foundational school too.
Double down? Right on.
Rain here, thank God.