Purpose

Bullet Points:

** (right) US Army’s Dark Eagle hypersonic missile. – USNI

** (BRM Reports) Drug dealers have a huge financial incentive to get drugs into prisons, because security precautions make it much harder to get them to their customers.  Prices are thus often five to ten times higher than “on the street”, and sometimes, such as during a prolonged security lockdown, much more than that.

I had an informant doing time in a medium security federal prison (fat white white collar 40 year old criminal) whose attorney handed him one ounce of  90% pure heroin in prison every month, sealed in a tuna can. The guards didn’t open the sealed can and allowed it. Once he had it, he walked it to the head of the Mexican Mafia (La eMe) and handed it over. La eMe protected him while he was inside. Consider that a calculated 90% pure ounce is between $8,800 and $63,000, depending on the specific city market. X3 for the price inside prison. So the lawyer bought low (US border market) and, in effect, sold high (federal prison market).

** This bothers Old NFO. It bothers me too. You can read about it on his blog. I try not to hate people, but I scorn and despise those woke turds who seem to miss the flush (counterclockwise in Australia).

** In-Home Supportive Services or IHSS  – This $30 billion-a-year program is based on a laudable idea: that those who provide in-home care to an elderly or disabled person, even members of their own families, would benefit from some kind of stipend that enables them to do it. On the surface, IHSS presents itself as an instrument of compassion, directing billions of dollars to caregivers who help with cooking, personal care, laundry, and other daily needs in recipients’ homes. But a growing number of experts and critics argue that the program is rife with fraud, losing roughly $6 billion to $12 billion annually to scammers. In the meantime, California’s powerful home-care unions collect more than $149 million in membership dues every year, funneling money into the political network supporting Newsom and California Democrats. WHY ARE THEY FORCED TO JOIN A LABOR UNION?

** What happened to HMS Dragon, the only operational British destroyer? There have been reports of propulsion and powerplant failures. Other reports also cite a failure in its freshwater plant. It’s docked in the Eastern Med. The destroyer was deployed on March 10, 2026, to protect British air bases in Cyprus (RAF Akrotiri) following drone attacks during escalating regional tensions with Iran. That deployment didn’t last long. At least it made port for repairs. Now at a dock, the crew has access to fresh water again.

** Does the government have a role in ending inequality?

** Apr 9, 2026 Bloomberg) –Russia is seeking to leverage a global natural gas supply crunch to lure energy-starved South Asia into purchasing shipments from its US-sanctioned facilities, according to people familiar with the matter. The shipments were being offered at a 40% discount to spot prices last week via little-known intermediary companies based in China and Russia, said the people, who asked not to be named as they aren’t authorized to speak with the media. The sellers said they could provide paperwork to make it appear that the shipments originated from non-Russian sources, such as Oman or Nigeria, the people said.

General Housekeeping

** Substack – I’ve had a Substack account, but didn’t post anything until yesterday. https://substack.com/@virtualmirage  It’s nothing you haven’t read here on VM. I’m testing it out, discussing writing and novels, and we’ll see if there is much interest there. There may come a time when I decide to reduce my blogging footprint. Do I move to occasional Substack posts? Who knows what the future holds?

** Audible Books – Most of my books on Amazon.com are now available on Audible with AI-generated narration. For those that require a software upgrade to install narration, I will do so as I have time. The AI narration is the best that I can do at the moment.

FAFO

There are massive Iranian-funded tunnel complexes under whole villages in Lebanon. The Israelis are demolishing them with airpower. Here’s an example from about a year ago. Hezbollah built a massive tunnel complex beneath the village of Ramyeh in southern Lebanon. The tunnels were blown up, and the village above them is gone. Cry me a frigging river. Billions of dollars of Iranian money are being vaporized, and Lebanese civilians are paying the price for becoming Iran’s proxy.

It’s the same pattern as was present in Gaza. Trucks with rocket launchers (‘technicals’) drive into the tunnels after they’ve launched on Israel and re-arm. It’s a familiar pattern. It’s the day job of a lot of Lebanese who are on the ayatollah’s payroll. Israel is excising the cancer.

Lebanon, which has never recognized Israel and has no diplomatic relations with it, has asked to begin talks to disarm Hezbollah and the Twelvers.

Do I think that they’re sincere? Of course not, but it’s a sign that the pattern of dismantling decades of Iranian infrastructure is working. The Twelver DNA has to be expunged with extreme prejudice, or the beast will simply re-emerge once again. I don’t blame Israel for wanting to stamp it out. It’s not as elegant as handing out exploding pagers that destroy their courting tackle, but it’s effective.

NGOs

The pitch is that NGOs often work alongside governments to deliver services such as healthcare and education. The reality in America in 2026 is that they’re operated vehicles to launder funds back to the democrat party or to engage in fraudulent activities or both. As of October 2025, there are 121,042 501(c)(3) organizations registered with the NY State Attorney General’s Charities Bureau. Doesn’t that seem like a large number?  California houses around 200,000 NGOs in total, with government funding supporting sectors like housing, healthcare, and immigration services, with hundreds of millions recently awarded for homelessness programs. They all need to be audited.

In the Worker’s Paradise

China Faces $100 Billion Loss From Iranian Oil Shock.

Oil prices have already surged nearly 45% since the Iran conflict escalated, and the ripple effects are just getting started. When energy spikes this fast, it doesn’t just move markets, it squeezes entire economies. And the biggest pressure point right now is China.

China walked into this already weak, with soft consumption and fading external demand. Now add cost-push inflation on top, and you get the worst possible combination: rising costs with no real growth. Around a quarter of Chinese manufacturers are already losing money, so this shock lands right where margins are thinnest.

Chinese firms don’t have pricing power, so they absorb higher costs rather than passing them on, leading to layoffs, wage pressure, and even weaker domestic demand. That’s how a slow grind turns into a downward spiral. China’s export machine depends on cheap production. But when oil, raw materials, and logistics all become more expensive, that model starts to break down. Even a modest oil spike can shave growth and wipe out tens of billions.

The official Chinese unemployment numbers are 18%, but it’s likely higher, and the mood in the Worker’s Paradise is sullen.

Identify the Ships

1 & 2

You should be able to get the two in the foreground. Back when the British had a navy.

Identify the Aircraft

3

Parting Shot

Every day here in Arizona is a Jaguar Safari

End