Caption: It’s Mother’s Day in the USA. I hope you’ve sent her a card and flowers and intend to call her if she’s still alive. If not, do something nice for another lady somewhere.
This is the obligatory photo of my mother and me when I returned from the Middle East a few years ago (right). It’s been on the blog before. I don’t see her often, but she’s still alive, and my sister and her husband live with her.
Your soul is in your keeping alone. When you stand before God, you cannot say, “But I was told by others to do thus.” Or that, “Virtue was not convenient at the time.” This will not suffice. Remember that. (The Kingdom of Heaven)
It’s time for another sermonette. Below, one hell of a deal.
The NASA Logo Controversy
Because it’s Sunday, I thought this might be a place to start. There are a lot of ridiculous conspiracy theories out there about Satan, but one that keeps popping up that baffles me is related to NASA. It starts with NASA’s logo, which includes a wavy red chevron that is supposed to resemble wings and represent aeronautics. However, some seem to think it resembles an elongated serpent’s tongue. But that’s only the beginning of the ridiculousness. A TikTok creator began one video by announcing that “Satan is using NASA to deceive everyone!
He insisted that the acronym NASA, which stands for National Aeronautics and Space Administration, is a Hebrew word that means “to deceive.” He supported this claim with an appeal to James Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, which offers “to deceive” as one of the senses of a verbal root it transliterates as nāšā’. The first red flag here is using Strong’s Concordance. This nineteenth-century publication is outdated, was never even intended to be a formal lexicon in the first place, and is superseded by far better resources today. People only use it today because it’s freely accessible online. When someone cites Strong’s Concordance, it’s a dead giveaway that they have no training in Greek or Hebrew and don’t have the first clue what they’re talking about.
The most glaring problem with the argument is that this root is not pronounced nasa; it’s pronounced nasha. He doesn’t know how to read transliterated Hebrew. Even more problematic is that the root doesn’t mean “to deceive” unless conjugated in the Hiphil stem, which means the root letters and the consonants in between them are altered. In this case, the consonant he is added at the beginning, and the vowel between the nun and the shin drops out, creating a consonant cluster that results in the nun being assimilated to the shin and disappearing. Then, the vowel changes after the shin to an i-quality vowel. In short, when this verb means “deceive,” it bears no relationship to the acronym NASA. These conspiracy theories aren’t going away anytime soon, and Satan continues to be a big draw in social media circles.
In Illinois
While we’re on the subject of satanic bullscat, let’s talk about Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker.
The Illinois 2025 budget reveals a notable retreat from progressive ambitions. Despite his past advocacy for expansive government programs and robust social spending, Pritzker proposes neither substantial tax increases nor significant new initiatives. Most conspicuously absent from his accompanying budget speech was any mention that the state would no longer fund free health care for illegal aliens aged 42 to 64. Extending coverage to that age cohort had been one of his recent progressive efforts, introduced with fanfare. The governor abandoned it after costs surged 286 percent beyond original projections, producing hundreds of millions of dollars in budgetary shortfalls.
The ample white billionaire (inherited – Hyatt Hotel Chain) governor, growing out of his suits yet again, obscured these fiscal realities with rhetorical theatrics. Instead of openly addressing the tough decisions demanded by economic constraints, Pritzker embraced provocative political symbolism, invoking comparisons between Donald Trump, the MAGA movement, and Nazi Germany. His polarizing peroration sparked enthusiastic applause from Democratic legislators and walkouts from Republicans, effectively drowning out substantive budget discourse with partisan conflict, which dominated the ensuing media coverage.
This reliance on extreme rhetoric logically follows the structural dilemma facing contemporary progressivism. Illinois cannot afford expansive liberal policies, and tax revenues have stagnated amid demographic decline. Illinois has lost population so far this decade. According to a poll of CEOs by Chief Executive, its business climate ranks 48th out of 50 states, further discouraging the economic growth needed to support more taxes and spending. What business would want to move to Illinois, with a shrinking pool of potential employees and the high taxes required to sustain its notoriously underfunded public-pension obligations?
Pritzker is in a political vise, particularly acute for someone contemplating a run at the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028. He must satisfy constituencies demanding expansive programs, but Illinois lacks the fiscal resources to deliver. Raising taxes, meanwhile, has proved politically infeasible.
Even Democratic voters are skeptical of providing more resources to a government burdened by fiscal imprudence and union-driven debt. In 2020, a good electoral year for Democrats, voters rejected amending the state’s constitutional requirement that income taxes be flat despite Pritzker spending millions of his fortune to support it. Last year, Chicagoans voted down a proposal championed by its leftist mayor, Brandon Johnson, to impose a special tax on sales of “mansions.” Thus, Pritzker’s only tax move was to eliminate an already-tiny grocery sales tax. This reduction didn’t cost the government much but reflected a modest attempt to respond to antitax sentiment that finally reached Illinois.
******
Also in Illinois, the billion-dollar Obama Presidential Library & Monument is hopelessly stalled mid-construction. On May 8, President Donald Trump offered to assist the former US president and his husband in finishing the edifice. “He’s building his library in Chicago. It’s a disaster,” Trump said. “He said, ‘I only want DEI. I only want woke.’ He wants woke people to build it. Well, he got woke people, and they have massive cost overruns. The job is stopped.”
ISW and Ukraine/Russia War
(Institute for the Study of War) US officials acknowledged Russia’s continued intransigence toward any ceasefire agreement in Ukraine while reiterating that Ukraine remains committed to US President Donald Trump’s proposed comprehensive 30-day ceasefire.
US Special Envoy to Ukraine General Keith Kellogg stated on May 6 that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s refusal to agree to a 30-day ceasefire is the main impediment to establishing peace in Ukraine and that Russia will be hurt if the parties do not agree to a comprehensive ceasefire, as “Russia is not winning the war.”
Kellogg noted Russia’s failure to secure positions on the west (right) bank of the Dnipro River in Kherson Oblast, its inability to reach Kyiv and Odesa cities, and Russian forces’ high attrition rates — all in line with ISW’s assessment that Russia’s battlefield situation has deteriorated since 2022.
US Vice President JD Vance stated on May 7 that Russia is “asking for a certain set of requirements” and “concessions to end the conflict,” but that the United States thinks that Russia is “asking for too much.”
Kellogg reiterated that Ukraine has agreed to a renewable comprehensive sea, air, and land ceasefire for a minimum of 30 days and that Ukraine is willing to sign the agreement immediately.
Kellogg stated that Ukraine is prepared to accept a “ceasefire in place” requiring Russia and Ukraine to withdraw 15 kilometers from the current frontline and establish a 30-kilometer demilitarized zone that could fall under an unspecified monitoring mechanism.
Kellogg stated that the UK—and French-led Coalition of the Willing members are willing to deploy a “ceasefire force” west of the Dnipro River to patrol and reinforce the comprehensive ceasefire.
Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov responded to Kellogg’s statement on May 7, claiming that Russia has not received any Ukrainian proposals to establish a demilitarized zone.
Russia is likely attempting to prolong and delay discussions about a comprehensive ceasefire to obfuscate its continued rejection of the United States’ ceasefire proposals. ISW continues to assess that Russia likely remains opposed to any enforcement or monitoring mechanisms, as Russia would likely weaponize the absence of such mechanisms to flood the information space with unsubstantiated claims of Ukrainian ceasefire violations, as it has done before.”
***
Bullet Points:
** Is regulation your national superpower? Let’s compare Europe and the USA. (right)
** Chinese spy rings on American university campuses.
** (Reuters) The United States and Israel have discussed the possibility of Washington leading a temporary post-war administration of Gaza, according to five people familiar with the matter. The “high-level” consultations have centered around a transitional government headed by a U.S. official overseeing Gaza until it had been demilitarized and stabilized, and a viable Palestinian administration had emerged. The five sources said the discussions, which remain preliminary, would not establish a fixed timeline for the duration of such a U.S.-led administration, which would depend on the situation on the ground. The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to discuss the talks publicly, compared the proposal to the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq that Washington established in 2003, shortly after the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein.
** The Antarctic Ice Sheet experienced a record-breaking mass gain between 2021 and 2023, reversing a decades-long mass loss trend.
***
Identify the Aircraft – with women in the picture – it’s Mother’s Day
1
2
D. A. Avery
3
D. Olsen
***
Parting Shot
Joe Biden Approves of the Times Square Statue in his salute to mothers.
End
Identify the Aircraft:
1. North American B-25 Mitchell
2. Fairchild PT-19
3. Lockheed P-38 Lightning
Well done. Thanks, Surly.
Refusing to agree to a ceasefire is the main impediment to peace. Sharp as a tack, that boy is :)
Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there.
Now – meaning right now – Russia has committed to taking all of Ukraine by force because they feel that eventually then can grind it out and that Old Europe doesn’t have the will to do anything about it and even if the US stays in the armament game (fighting them to the last Ukrainian), they can win – if it takes a decade and another million Russian kids.
If I were hanged on the highest hill,
Mother o’ mine, O mother o’ mine!
I know whose love would follow me still,
Mother o’ mine, O mother o’ mine!
If I were drowned in the deepest sea,
Mother o’ mine, O mother o’ mine!
I know whose tears would come down to me,
Mother o’ mine, O mother o’ mine!
If I were damned of body and soul,
I know whose prayers would make me whole,
Mother o’ mine, O mother o’ mine!
X2
Whilst my squid Father was off “enjoying” a government sponsored tour of the Sunny South Pacific, Mother stayed home and worked in an ammunition plant. That’s right, my Mommy built bombs. At first, they had her pouring liquid TNT into shell casings, but the fumes gave her bronchitis that she fought her entire life – and nearly killed her a time or two – so they put her on the hand grenade line, screwing fuse assemblies into the frag bodies. Quizzed about the training she received for that task, she essentially said it was “sit here” and righty-tightie. I once asked her if they taught her the lefty-loosie thing and she said no. Thus was her youth squandered. R.I.P. Bobbie, see you over on the other side.
Peace In The Ukraine: Russian leaders may be criticized for not wanting a month long cease fire; but one may also not blame them for being suspicious. Those who actually read the Non-Proliferation Treaty, the Flank Treaty, the Minsk Accords and the other agreements by the US or European nations understand the Russians reluctance to give the Ukrainians and NATO another chance to bolster their defenses and ability to attack. This is especially true when the remarks from European leaders clearly stated that the Minsk Accords were to give the Ukraine time to arm themselves for a fight with Russia. Now European leaders are asking the EU to take on Russia without using the Ukraine as a proxy but to drive straight to Moscow.
-Without the US bucks, targeting and intelligence information, the Ukraine is unable to continue the shooting war. Yes, the UK is providing targeting and intelligence information also, but how much being shared is actually coming from US primary data sources? How many of the strategic strikes are actually set up by US forces with a Ukrainian releasing the weapon. Does anyone remember the US general saying that he was in the room when one of the severe attacks was made but didn’t give the order or actually fire the missile? This shooting match is a giant tar baby with both sides, including the US/NATO involvement, in the wrong.
-I find all this extremely difficult to comprehend as the collective news and blogging resources forgot how may times the US agreed to cease fires in Vietnam allowing both the NVA and the Viet Cong to resupply, regroup and reattack in force. Once again it appears that the US is not really negotiating for a cease fire but for a rearmament period.
“not really negotiating for a cease fire but for a rearmament period.”
Well, yeah. From my (admittedly amateur) perspective, US foreign policy isn’t just about “is it good for the MIC” and our other beloved corporate overlords, it’s about how can “we” use the economic, cultural, and military power of the US to undermine, overthrow, and above all, humiliate those on “our” enemy list. For values of our and we. In other words: “Yes, but does it give ‘Toria Nuland the special tingles?”
no argument with either of above.
I’m just curious about/waiting for Pope Leo’s comments re this “problem.”
IMHO Vladimir Vladimirovich truly loves “Mother Russia” and his subjects far more than Volodymyr Oleksandrovych loves his $$
We’re (the US) truly in the stew; I think we should be looking for ways to extricate ourselves, as well as ways to loosen our bonds with/ties to the UK (as well as the UN) who are no longer our allies
Given Zelensky’s actions at this 0oint one could make the case he’s now getting bribed by the Russians. Otherwise they would have to break the ceasefire to move on Odessa. As it stands they can grind down another 100,000 Ukrainians before they make the push.
From my point of view, those that are “woke” lack the mental acuity to build anything, much less a President’s library. It’s like herding cattle into a pen, throwing in some tools, and expecting a new barn.
Love that visual of the absurd.
Half of society is weak and weak-minded, they have little life beyond their devices, which does not bode well for the rest of us who are proactive in life and do not expect the euphemistic “someone else” to solve their problems or “build a new barn”.
Seems like if Satan were in charge of NASA, it would almost
have to be doing a better job than it has of late (barring the JPL
contingent).
– Kle.
Barack’s monument die to woke is probably also suffering from a USAID style funding problem. I wonder how much he and Big Mike siphoned off?
Happy Mother’s Day. Here are some aviatrix comix in keeping with the blog theme of the day.
http://www.harkavagrant.com/index.php?id=374
—
“The ample white billionaire (inherited – Hyatt Hotel Chain) governor…”
I dunno. I think we should ASK Gov. Pritzker if he’s white. After all, whiteness is inherently tied up with privilege, and I’m not sure that JBP has ANY privilege. Sure, he has money, but that’s not the same thing, you know.
—
I had zero idea about James Strong (and am not sure I am glad to have learned a little about him) but some current-day idiot going on about “NASA as coded Hebrew Satanism”? Bozhemoi. There’s plenty of reasons to criticize NASA, but this nonsense isn’t even in the top fifty of the ranked list. (Besides, the “cultural” stuff is where the government-funded Satanism obviously is at work, not NASA. FFS.) As far as the word for “deception” goes, flippant reference to Eskimos and snow redacted.
—
I was (atypically) in Times Square earlier in the week and walked by that abomination of a statue. It was early-ish in the morning, and there were relatively few people about. Even the squatty Latinos/Latinas in Disney costumes that haunt Times Square were sparse [1]; there were only two out. I had been unaware of “Grounded in the Stars” and I was simultaneously revolted and delighted to see it. Somewhat to my surprise, no one else was even really looking at the damned thing; eyes just slid off of it, or so it seemed to me. But I stopped and took photos because “documenting the death of America” as CederQ’s co-blogger Phil says. That said, when it comes to big bronze fat females in NYC public spaces, I prefer Bjorn Skaarup’s work.
—
[1] These short, mean-looking people go about Times Square in Minnie Mouse, etc costumes and try to get tourists to pose for photos with them. They then demand money for the privilege post facto, and are quite nasty about it. Those costumes are HOT, so these people often go about with the headpiece tilted back. It’s a weird sight to see this sweaty Squatemalan face scowling at you from essentially the middle of Minnie’s neck. Between the African (not African-American, African) tour-bus touts handing you flyers, the mean Minnies, and just the crowds in general, I really really try to stay out of Times Square. But I was with a person who very much excited “to see Times Square”. I thought it was her first time visiting, so “of course we can walk through Times Square”. Later I learned she has been there dozens of times. Sigh.
Bjorn Skaarup’s “Hippo Ballerina” in all her glory. I saw this (plus his male Harlequin Rhino bronze) in front of an office building in midtown East 50’s last year. The statues move around.
https://www.cavaliergalleries.com/exhibition/113/
They didn’t move the Wall Street Bull did they?
Not that I’m aware of, but I don’t get down to Wall Street much, if at all. Closest I’ve got was Delancey St MTA on the Lower East Side in Feb.
(Lissen to me t’walking loik I’m a Noo Yorka. #hangsheadinshame. Also, I realize that is a mashed-up pastiche of horrid NY/NJ oi-bun accents and not particularly New York.)
Do you have a special set of clothes that you wear when you ride the subway? When I worked there for a short time, I bought a leather jacket, a belt with a big brass buckle for fighting, boots for stomping, sap gloves, things like that.
No need for special clothes. I look crazier and dirtier than the average bum so I’m generally left alone. That said, I do commute with a full bladder, so I can escalate the “you don’t want to touch this” factor by wetting myself if necessary. (Remember those “anti-rape” tutorials they used to give about peeing or crapping yourself to avoid being raped? Always seemed to me that the Reverse Mozambique — two to the chest followed by one in the junk — was a far more effective rape deterrent. But what do I, lacking even a single social work certification, know?)
unfortunately, these cancers are no longer being excised (they’re protected: raycist, y’know) and are spreading throughout Manhattan
I understand that store-owners have begun to complain to admin; I’ve got a p(o)opcorn stand
More bad news for Obama….
https://youtu.be/BXjfwJ1spus?si=TU2K4lYCp_kAZ40f
Hmm, The MrsO seems rather…husky…as compared to the other three.
Big Mike has the bone structure of a field hand. He looks like more of a match for Gov. Pritzger than for skinny Barack.
We knew who wore the pants in that tribe. Oy vey.
☹️
that “damned” dot (left or right) has produced more problems: שׁ vs. שׂ shin vs. sin; these are two entirely different letters in Hebrew leading, when employed, to entirely different words
https://judaism.stackexchange.com/questions/4291/why-shin-and-sin
As I understand it: there have been many tomes written about the mis-copying of the Talmud – and hand-copied it was – in limited daylight and by candlelight – on sheepskin.
Only one of the many reasons I left orthodox Judaism while still a youngster – I just didn’t have the patience to listen to/try to understand the minutiae
and James Strong is only trying to find one more reason to implicate Jews/Judaism in …
Obama Presidential Library & Monument
Defines his Presidency. What does it say about sweet home Chicago? About the organization ability of a community organizer?
That city runs on grease, and Barack wants people to grease it for him, which he could do back when he was relevant. Now he’s not.
MomPaulM…one of a kind, strong yet seriously good, loved by dad (who once said without equivocation, “I couldn’t have done any of this if it weren’t for your mother and her support.” Best mom a young man in the making could have, allowed me to explore being me in my own way. 5th Grade teacher chats with her one day about ‘yours truly’ getting disruptive in class…
M: ”Is he getting his work done?”
T: Yes, before anyone else.”
M: “Give him extra projects, he’s bored., and he loves extra projects.”
Problem solved. (Never knew that until I was 30…a revelation)
Mom drove me to every baseball practice and attended every game, even when dad was working. ‘Supportive’ isn’t a word enough.
Yeah, the best. Major hat tip Mom…we “boys” miss you.
strong men typically have supportive parents; two supportive parents: a mother and a father
Savage did a recent podcast rerun, “Meanest Moms”…enlightening, especially in our era when doctors were prescribing all manner of diet concoctions that turned some woman into psycho’s. Thankfully my mom didn’t do such things, she was busy enough with four of us and mostly chasing me around so I wouldn’t go headlong into something.
I wish my mom had told the nuns that. On the other hand they kind of figured it out.
Scary how well she knew us kids.
Most SEALs I’ve known were the product of broken homes.
Interesting…Savage discusses that impetus with some callers. We all have something that drives us.
Ye ghods… There is always ‘somebody’ that’s going to tie Satan into ‘something’ this administration is doing… And you are correct, the translation is NOT direct or accepted…
If you want some real fun look up Michael Heiser and the unseen realm.
I need to rewatch that Ed, really very well done and thought provoking. Cannot dismiss the spiritual realm, and all that portends, which is also a portion of our being, as Imago Dei suggests we are the physical, the soul, and the spirit, keeping those in balance maintains the whole person.
Regarding Chinese students as agents in place, I may have told this story before but I’ll say it again.
I was waiting in line at the range and the guys ahead of me were asked by the guy behind the counter how the two guys did. They told the guy behind the counter that for a couple of guys that never shot an AR-15 before they did excellently well with the one they rented.
I asked who they were talking about and they explained to me that these two Chinese students had wanted to see what it was like to shoot firearms. And that they did exceptionally well with the coaching they were given.
That’s when I ask them if it ever occurred to them that they were Chinese military and very well versed in firearms. The look on their faces….
That’s what it sounds like to me.
“But that’s only the beginning of the ridiculousness”
NASA doesn’t need help with ridiculousness