Reverse Santa

Keen-eyed readers of this incisive foreign policy blog will have noticed that empire building's gone out of fashion, unless you're Chinese. 

Their little method goes like this, we call it Reverse Santa:

Lend Africans vast sums of money, with assets like airports, railways, energy companies and ports as security.

Africans remarkably fail to pay back the loans.

Chinese take all the Africans' stuff.

Beef Chow Mein all 'round!

LSP

First Lady and Big Mike

Here at the Compound we hope you find this infographic as educational and helpful as we do.

Your Friend,

LSP

A Fine Vintage

One of the best things about Christmas is that you get to drink great wine. It's just part of the feast.

Cheers!

LSP

Victory!

After visiting the sick I braved the Christmas day death trap that is I35N to Dallas.

Typical

The table was laid, a turkey was resting, champagne was flowing.

Presents

There were presents around the tree.

Gaol

Blue Predator was relegated to the back hall so he couldn't eat the presents.

Rabble Rousers

And everyone feasted.

Fireworks

Victory!

LSP

Merry Christmas!

St. John Chrysostom puts it well:

Come, then, let us observe the Feast. Truly wondrous is the whole chronicle of the Nativity. For this day the ancient slavery is ended, the devil confounded, the demons take to flight, the power of death is broken, paradise is unlocked, the curse is taken away, sin is removed from us, error driven out, truth has been brought back, the speech of kindliness diffused, and spreads on every side, a heavenly way of life has been planted on the earth, angels communicate with men without fear, and men now hold speech with angels. 

Why is this? Because God is now on earth, and man in heaven; on every side all things commingle. He became Flesh. He did not become God. He was God. Wherefore He became flesh, so that He Whom heaven did not contain, a manger would this day receive... and the heavens give glory, as the Lord is revealed by a star.

Wishing you all the merriest Christmas,

LSP

Magnificat

If you follow the strange new modernistic lectionary you'll have heard the Magnificat this morning at Mass, Mary's exultant hymn of praise to God. My soul doth magnify the Lord, sings the Virgin to Elizabeth.

Consider the depth and power of the canticle and while we're at it, here's an Advent carol from the Cambridge crew.

Some argue that the West won't defeat the twin jihad of Secularism and Mohammedanism until its people recover their faith, which is the ancient, unconquerable Faith of the Church. 

It takes Spirit to defeat spirit or to put it another way, Charles Martel didn't forge his hammer in a vacuum. 

Magnificat anima mea,

LSP

This & That

Things get kind of hectic in the lead up to Christmas, even in the laid back rural wonderland of the Compound. Problem being that by tradition I drive to the metrosprawl a few days before Christmas to get presents.

Devolution?

I broke with unholy tradition this year by doing all the shopping right here in town, within view of the hangin' trees on the Square. Boom. Done. This freed up space and time to visit the flock, deliver Christmas gifts to the Fire Department and local LE, and visit the mighty Brazos.

The Mighty Brazos

No one was catching anything but it was good to see the river and plot against the piscine adversary. Recce patrol, sort of thing. Then Walmart got a look-in. I tell you, that's where the church should be because that's where the people are, in all their glory and everything else in between. 

A Beautiful Unicorn

Dwarves, unicorns, elves, all the flotsam and jetsam of Middle Earth in abundance, right here in North Central Texas; no kidding, like the court of kings. 

The Halls of Moria

Resisting the urge to set up in the midst of the action, I went about my business, got the job done and headed back to base in that sweet sunny southern weather.

Ride on

As I type this exciting letter home from the southern front of the War on Weather, pheasant's boiling in the pot along with assorted veg. It'll become a pie, a victory pie in the ongoing battle for or against global warming.

Take that, vast international readership, as you will.

Gun rights,

LSP

The Feast of St. Thomas - A Helpful Meditation

It's the Feast of St. Thomas today. He doubted, like the Church of England itself but unlike the Episcopal Church, came to great faith.

Thomas scorned liturgical dance

And hated bad vestments

He was against wimmyn bishops, note Gloucester's teeth. And...

He stood for the Faith.

Here's the collect.

ALMIGHTY and everliving God, who, for the greater confirmation of the faith, didst suffer thy holy Apostle Thomas to be doubtful in thy Son's resurrection; Grant us so perfectly, and without all doubt, to believe in thy Son Jesus Christ, that our faith in thy sight may never be reproved. Hear us, O Lord, through the same Jesus Christ, to whom, with thee and the Holy Ghost, be all honour and glory, now and for evermore. 

Amen.

LSP 

Peace is Flowing

Do you recall Gulf War I, 1990-91? When Bush the Elder launched against Saddam? You may have forgotten but I remember because I called up several pals in the UK at the onset of hostilities and asked if they'd had their "call-up papers." It went like this.

"Hey man, you had your papers yet?"
"What?"
"You know, call-up papers. They're drafting anyone under the age of 40 with military service."
"You gotta be kidding."
"No I'm not. I got mine yesterday, have to report to Depot Lichfield next week. It's really serious."
"What the..."
"Hey, kiddng!"

Imagine several people's relief. But seriously, the pathetic comsymp Independent predicted 45,000 allied soldier deaths and all-out Armageddon, along with the rest of the leftist media. Point being, they were pacifists and I scorned that. Fast forward to today.

Syria

America's been in a state of war for nearly 30 years, fighting continuously in the Middle East and elsewhere. The cost, in terms of lives and money has been horrendous, to say nothing of failed states and the movement of radicalized Muslims into the West.

Military age males?

With that in mind, you'd think the leftist media would applaud Trump making good on his promise to end our involvement in seemingly endless wars. You'd imagine they'd be pleased that we're bringing soldiers home from Syria and Afghanistan. But no, they're not.

Iraq

The left, which used to be the party of peace, is howling with outrage along with their friends in the GOP. And my question is this.

Since when and why did the, ahem, peace party reinvent itself into a nest of transsexual jingo hawks? I can speculate but I'd welcome your thoughts. 

Going home

In the meanwhile, well done Mr. President for making good on another campaign promise. Check out LL here for a great Syria briefing.

Peace is flowing like a river,

LSP

Hunt 'Em Up!

Some of the Birds and a Couple of 20s

There's a method to it. Three pointers surge and bound through the long grass ahead of you, followed by an equally bounding spaniel. They're excited to be on the hunt for birds and so are you, shotgun in hand.

First point. Two dogs stand stand stock still on either side of a patch of cover and the spaniel leaps forward. "Hunt 'em up!" urges the guide and that's just what the dog does, going into the grass after the bird which erupts into the air like a rocket. Shoot! And it's bird down, good shot, CB.

Bishop Exultant

This repeated itself for the rest of the morning, pheasant, partridge and quail rising bravely into the 20 gauge flak storm. I wasn't desperately impressed with my shooting but connected with the avian adversary well enough. 

To be honest, I was wary of shooting a dog (!, some do...) and pretty rusty. CB did better and it goes to show the value of a good warm up on clays the day before. We probably should've shot twice the mixed bag we did but regardless, huge fun.

A Typical Scene at the Lodge. Note Keepers Tweed

Afterwards we fell back to the lodge which was all go with returning hunting parties, guides, ATVs, dogs and general magnificence. Then, on the heels of a short exeat in asset stripped Ranger, we went out again, for an exotic spot and stalk. Aoudad, Impala, Axis, Blackbuck, Gemsbok, Oryx and more; big fun and it gets the adrenaline up. Good training for the real thing.

The evening was spent around the fires of  Greystone Castle and the talk was on Mazarin, Richelieu, the repellent Macron, but mostly 15thC Florentine power politics and hermeticism. 

Hermetic

CB, who knows the arcana, tells me that Hermes Trismegistus is a Persian forgery as opposed to a translation from the Egyptian. If so, it still throws light on magic in antiquity at around the time of Christ, and it was burgeoning. 

That in mind, Origen Contra Celsus makes the point that since Christ the magic doesn't work anymore. A common feature of Christian apologetic at the time and one which, as far as I know, wasn't disputed by the pagans. The demons were vanquished. 

The Illuminati Demons Struck This Town

Will they return? St. John the Divine, the Apostle, and Jesus Himself seem to suggest they will and I'd argue we're beginning to see the resurgence. Time, of course, will tell.

The other hunters were intrigued by the conversation, har har, but became respectful when they discovered CB had shot a 193" buck the day before. Not shabby at all. I saved face, massively, by coming from Hillsboro, which is hardcore by anyone's standards.

Out in the Field

The next day dawned all too soon and it was time for me to head back to Hill County and then Dallas to fix lights on the tree, and CB to fly off to Connecticut and the world of Old Masters. And I have to say, what  a lot of fun.

Outstanding enjoyment at every level and a cooler full of bird to boot; I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat. Big thanks to our guide, Hans, who was excellent, and most of all to CB for the invite. Great result. 

Greystone Castle, in Texas

If you can, check out Greystone Castle. I tell you without reservation, you will enjoy it.

Hunt 'em up!

LSP

Lights

If you use the New Skool Lectionary (NSL) you're probably just recovering from John the Baptist's brood of vipers, so here's a few Christmas lights to uplift the spirit, even though it's not Christmas yet. But so what, they look good in our barbarous machine age.

Here we see the Holy Family threatened by a Green Santa Demon. Nearly a third of Americans want Santa to be gender neutral or "trans," apparently.

I like this glowing Snowman, busy holding down the brick fort.

This one sings at you as you walk by, I like that, sweet.

Her decorations don't change from year to year and we'd always exchange a sunny hello as I walked Blue Advent to the Pick 'n Steal. But she doesn't come out on the porch anymore, better check on that, pastor.

I call this bury me in southern ground and don't tread on me. I love this house and the person who lives there and stands up for the Faith. And that's that, a quick tour around the Christmas lights of this small farming community in Texas.

God bless,

LSP

Church of England Gets Trans Baptism Ritual

As all the world knows, the venerable if shrinking CofE's finally stepped up to the plate and decided to celebrate, bless and affirm transsexuals in a special new naming ritual taken from the Affirmation of Baptismal Faith (ABF).

The new trans worship ceremony's like a Baptism that isn't a Baptism and includes, if High Church desired, anointing with oil, a splash of water and, of course, prayers and a blessing. 

Point being, don't feel like a blasphemous parody of a man or a women. Instead, celebrate your new identity; choice of personal pronoun? Rigorously observed. Such is freedom from tyranny in the 21st Century.

Imagine, just like women's ordination, how this prophetic stance will fill the pews. Until it doesn't. And we have to ask, how many "thought leaders" in the Promethean attempt to overthrow the chains of DNA, Chromosomes and biology itself are ritual occultists? 

To what extent is the decision making body of the Church of England given over to the Adversary. Does that sound extreme, do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law?

To help you formulate an answer, here's a picture of Bruce Jenner. If you want to read about the Church of England's new Strategy For Mission, go here.

All means all,

LSP