Ukraine and Georgia EU membership: Cynical desperation.

 NOT LIKELY ANYTIME SOON

RUSSIA WILL FIND THIS HUMOROUS

The EU's latest attempt at relevancy is there attempt to signal that they are considering allowing Ukraine and Georgia to become EU members. One must wonder what the motive is behind such an unlikely possibility.

There several reasons why this is not a serious declaration. One is Ukraine is in the middle of a war, I believe that immediately disqualifies them from membership.  Then it is hardly believable that the nationalist government in Ukraine will accept the immigration policies of the EU. They already have resistance from current members Hungary and Poland.  Finally, Ukraine is an economic basket case and will remain so for decades, even after any conclusion of his conflict.  It is doubtful EU members want to take over the support of the government of Ukraine for an undefined future.

Georgia has similar problems, they will not qualify for EU membership for decades.

So, why this offer now? Maybe the U.S. prompted this hoping it could shift support for Ukraine to the EU. Maybe they believe this is a bargaining chip with Russia over ending this conflict. Why no mention of NATO membership?  Russia was not opposed to Ukraine membership in the EU as long as it did not forbid trade with Russia, now they may no longer even care about trade with Ukraine or the EU and will be glad to let the burden be placed on the EU.

Of course, any future for Ukraine will be a substantially smaller nation and the tendency of these eastern European nations has been for their brightest to immediately immigrate to other western nations. This reality will be another obstacle to EU membership.

Then of course there is always the possibility of replacing this lost talent with several million Palestinian refugees and thereby solve 2 problems at once.

N.Y. attorney general, Democrat hero and social media star.

 A REAL EXAMPLE OF CORRUPT LEGAL SYSTEM

AMERICA NEEDS A SOUL SEARCHING AND MORAL REVIVAL

The big news it seems is the show trial ongoing in New York, A celebration of the hatred and unbridled length that democrat operatives will go in their quest to retain power. It is a perfect example of why they should never be in a position of power. These show trials based on no legal precedent or law, a civil action brought by an admitted biased Attorney General, whose whole career has been defined by persecuting Donald Trump and his family and business.

She has now stooped so low as to spend every day on social media proclaiming how she is not being intimidated by Donald Trump, how she is now the hero of the left. She is a disgrace to anything that should insinuate to be a legal process. This blatant power hungry individual should be a warning to all in this country of what may lay ahead. Show trials and persecution of the political opposition is just a first step in where such people would go.

We have already seen the extreme sentences, incarceration without trial and over the top handling of the people who were at the Jan.6 rally that got out of control. The sentences were extreme for most all these people and a real contradiction as to how the burning and looting and violence of democrat operatives like Black lives matter and Antifia were handled. We see all these trials taking place in large democrat districts where a fair trial is now impossible.

If these type of legal injustices are allowed to be condoned and continued, can mass oppression of the opposition by more outrageous legal action be far behind. It is the pattern that has been witnessed by oppressive governments forever. 

We already see an erosion of the trust of the American people in the institutions of government from the FBI, Intelligence service, media, election system and the legal system. It should be understood that these actions are all a warning to anyone who would challenge their power as to what they will do to retain that power.

While ultimately they may very well succeed, if they have not already, they will rule over a weaker, less prosperous and far less important country on the world stage. A country to be despised rather than admired.

Delusional attempt to sanitize war.

 WAR WITH RULES IS AN ILLUSION

WITHOUT DEFINITE CONCLUSION, THERE IS NO PEACE

We continuously hear accusations of war crimes and the breaking of the rules of war. During and after WW 1 there was an attempt to sanitize war by enacting rules that should be followed in war. This may make people feel better and give people in suits behind desks the feeling of righteousness and fairness, but to those who are laying in the mud next to their dead comrades, rules are indeed an illusion that is only enforced by the winner of a war. On the battlefield, survival is all that is relevant and it is by any means available.

We hear that it is unlawful to target schools, hospitals and churches, so any enemy considering surviving will attempt to hide in such places and then attack his enemy hoping he may not respond. 

When a combatant is losing he will hope for a ceasefire, and armistice or some other opportunity to rearm, enlist recruits, or persuade allies to come to his rescue.

Germany was persuaded to sign an armistice in WW1 with a proposed peace plan, then after a year the terms were changed and directly led to the WW2. The result was far worse than WW1.

Recently several nations arranged the Minx accords to stop the conflict in Ukraine and then intentionally used the time to arm Ukraine to fight with Russia.

We see attempts to end war without real conclusions, no winner, no loser, no change of circumstances. It seems it just postpones the inevitable conclusion to some time in the future. It is beginning to appear that those times maybe a thing of the past.

The Israeli/Palestinian conflict has been ongoing for 70 years. The partition of Korea another 70 years. The cold war with Russia seems to be very lucrative and still ongoing. Conclusions have been either unobtainable or have been intentionally abstained from for political or economic reasons.There is no conclusion in sight.

WW2 was the last conflict that was concluded, there were winners and losers, very clearly. Peace followed for the next 70 years. In history, war has always been horrific, always lots of suffering, usually until that generation has been exhausted and had enough bloodletting and misery. Eventually the next generation or maybe 2, forget and find war more acceptable, especially if they can make rules to make it less horrific. 

If the wars that are simmering on the horizon become reality, there will very likely be no rules. There is even the possibility of no winners, just losers. One must wonder if we are about to enter the era of conclusions to the long build up of economic, political and social strife. 

 

Weak, divided America can not rule the world.

 A STRONG, UNITED, SELF SUFFICIENT AMERICA IS ITS STRENGTH

30 YEARS OF OVEREXTENSION AND DIVISION 

We see conflict and an increasingly dangerous world. The United States is directly involved in most every dispute and conflict in the world. The belief that we can and should control the direction of the world is the root cause of were the world is today.

The United States became the greatest nation in worlds history, because it was a rich in natural resources, it was isolated geographically by two great oceans from most all its potential enemies and it had a unified belief of the population in the promise of the country being a land of laws and opportunity. It was truly a light upon the hill and an example to the rest of the world.

We watched as the Soviet Union's experiment in socialism and central control of the economy eventually collapsed by its inevitable conflict with basic human nature. We then preceded to emulate its failed policies by increasingly adopting those failed policies. We can say the same for Western Europe, while both are still alive and functioning, they are but a shadow of their former selves in their self reliance, work ethic, legal system and the move to control every aspect of life from Washington and Brussels. 

At the same time, both have sought to manage the affairs and control events around the world. It is becoming clear, that its ability to control the direction of the world is coming to an end. The western world is over extended, its economies are over extended in debt, its social adhesion is fragmenting and chaos is becoming the norm rather than the exception. 

While not yet vulnerable to existential failure, the need for a change of direction and policy is now eminent before that becomes the new reality. Denial is always the biggest crutch of those who are in trouble. Just believe it is not so and the problems will go away. 

Sadly, human history has a view of an empires demise, and it is not a positive picture. Like human tragedy, they usually have to hit the point of desperation before they feel the need to change direction.

Are modern middle-east leaders more pragmatic?

 MAJOR ISLAMIC COUNTRIES DO NOT WANT WAR

MANY UNANSWERED QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS CRISIS

It is now 4 weeks since the devastating attack on Israel. While public opinion has shifted in some ways to be opposed to the Israeli response, we still do not see any appetite for war in the region.

One must wonder about a few things, number 1 is the fact that this attack was not detected by Israel. Israel has the most sophisticated surveillance and intelligence in the world, yet this attack came as a complete surprise. Several thousand participants with hang gliders, drones and other preparations, it is a big question.

For months the division in Israel has been unprecedented. Some believe that the country was on the verge of civil war. One must wonder if the government calculated that an attack would end this division and unite the country in a common purpose. No one could believe that they anticipated such a horrendous brutal attack, but maybe they thought it could just be a wake up call to the compacent population, that was far more brutal than anticipated.

As for Hamas, it is clear that they saw the positive negotiations between Israel and Saudi Arabia as a threat to their future as a representative of the Palestine cause. They intentionally wanted to make sure that the Israeli response would be dramatic and devastating in the hope that they could rally the Islamic world to their rescue. While it appears on the surface that this has worked, the reality may be far more complex. 

Israel on the other hand, would very much like to diminish the ability of Iran to wage war on them, they cannot do that on their own and a wider war could drag the U.S. into such a war. So far, it seems that even Iran does not want war. 

Many anticipate that the negotiations with Israel and Saudi Arabia and the Abraham accords are dead, but that may not be the case. It seems the appetite for a positive economic future for the gulf countries, Egypt and even Iran are possibly overriding any appetite for war. Even Hezbollah, which is the political governing body of Lebanon may believe the risks of war outway the risks to their long term economic future. Of course this is speculation, but we have not seen any real move to intervene in this crisis. 

One must wonder if there has been a calculation that it is time for Hamas to go and then some serious attempt at a settlement of this Palestinian issue. A calculation that has been in the works for those in the region. 

Both China and Russia have some influence on all involved and they are looking to a seperate world economic system that will protect them from the economic power of the west. This arrangement is also appealing to Egypt, Iran and Saudi Arabia and possibly even Israel. War would possibly disrupt that looming reality and a real settlement of the Israel/Palestine issue is important for that to succeed. Hamas must go, as they are not interested in any settlement than allows Israel to exist. 

The neighboring countries in the region could see the possibility of cooperation with the expertise and technology of Israel to bring a economic boom to everyone in this region. 

We will see in the coming months, if everyone can get past this interruption and move to a more positive hope for everyone in the middle-east.

Electric vehicle sales hit wall, most production suspended.

 THE RISKS OF GOVERNMENT CONTROLLED ECONOMIES

WITHOUT SUBSIDES AND EXTORTION EVS WOULD HAVE BEEN MARKET BASED

In the last few weeks every major car manufacture has suspended production of their electric vehicles. Ford, VW, GM, Honda, Toyota all have a backlog of unsold EVS with near 100 days of vehicles on lots. Some believe that the sale of all electric vehicles are in trouble, while hybrids and tradition sales are sound.

When something new comes on the market, there is always the rush by the more impulsive and trend setters to try it out, that rush may have now been satisfied and others are now more reluctant to take the plunge.

Most manufacturers admit that EV's may be premature as there is not the necessary infrastructure to make them acceptable. They are not viable for those who engage in long trips or extended driving. No one want tp stop every 4 hours and wait several hours to recharge their vehicles.

Tesla, has of course continued production, but admits sales have slowed, there again is probably a satisfying of demand for those who can use an electric vehicle. If much of your driving is near home and you have a charging ability at your home, it is probably a viable option.

Manufacturers have testified that they have been under tremendous government pressure to go to all electric vehicles. They now believe there will be a market for these vehicles, but the idea of going all electric will face huge market resistance. Some believe the goal should be the lesser production of carbon emissions and that the companies are exploring other fuels and other approaches that will be more market based.

Whenever government makes decisions that are not based on what people want or accept, there will be problems, this is a perfect example. Hopefully the result will not be a domestic auto manufacturer crisis that will then need a government bailout to rescue them from these government decisions.

Electric vehicles do have a place in the transportation market, but consumers need to make these decisions based on their own preferences and needs.

U.S. peacekeepers a very bad idea.

 U.S. NEEDS TO STAY FAR AWAY FROM GAZA

ONLY UN PEACEKEEPERS ACCEPTABLE

The Israeli/Hamas conflict is now entering its 3rd week.  Not much has changed, Israel is going to continue until it is satisficed that Hamas is no longer a serious threat to Israel. It seems that Israel has decided that it is not going to be persuaded to relent even as threats of retaliation from Turkey, Iran and other groups threaten to intervene. While this is understandable, Israel also has to consider alternatives that give this displaced population some alternative to the present situation.

So far, no one has voiced any serious plan to remedy this 70 year conflict. A two state solution, with a Palestinian state on the border of Israel, is no solution at all. Giving this population the legitimacy of a country will not change the dynamics of this conflict. In fact, Gaza and the West bank have had opportunities to grow these areas into independent viable economic entities, but then voted to choose  Hamas, whose charter calls for the elimination of Israel, as the governing body. That just indicates to Israel that these populations are united in their desire to eliminate Israel.

Indications are that Israel has decided that the present situation is to end now. No more rockets fired into Israel, no more terrorist acts and if it brings the rest of the world into global conflict, so be it. It is yet another dilemma with Israel at the center. 

Coupled with this is the view by some in the Israeli community, by some in the Iranian and Islamic community and some Christians that the messiah will only come when the world is on the brink of total destruction. There is the possibility that they will get their wish.

The U.S. has proposed U.S. peacekeepers to go to Gaza. They would just be targets that would threaten to escalate the conflict. The U.S. is not a neutral entity, they need to stay out of this. A U. N. peacekeeper force with some Arab participation would be a much better option. It needs to be very temporary and the large countries in the region need to start debating a permanent solution, other than the elimination of Israel. A homeland separate from the borders of Israel. I suspect that many Palestinians are ready for a different hope for the future. 

It will take some real diplomats and a serious commitment from all in the region to make this happen. It is past time to end this dispute, the alternative is certainty no longer acceptable.