Sunday Reflection - Discipleship

 

As Jesus sets his face towards Jerusalem he calls a man to follow him: 

And to another he said, “Follow me.” But he replied, “[Lord,] let me go first and bury my father.” But he answered him, “Let the dead bury their dead. But you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:59-60)

 

Christ's words sound callous at first glance, but surely it's the business of those whose home is the world and walk according to the flesh, who are spiritually dead, to attend to the end of their condition. The disciple on the other hand is to proclaim the Kingdom of God, life itself,  a proclamation which demands total "assent to Jesus' summons" to follow him as Lord and Savior.

Benedict XVI comments:

What is made clear to us here is that assent to Jesus' summons has priority and demands totality.  That means it takes precedence and demands the totality of our being.  One cannot simply offer a piece of oneself, a portion of one's time and one's will.  In that case one has not answered this summons that is so great that it really demands and fills a whole life, but only fills it if it is offered totally.

This also means that there is a moment of Jesus Christ which one cannot put off and calculate and say: "Yes, I want to all right, but at the moment it is still too risky for me.  At the moment I still want to do this and that."

One can miss the moment of one's life, and with prudence gamble away the real worth of one's life never again to be able to recover it.  There is the time of being called in which the decision is present, and it is more important than what we have thought out for ourselves and what is in itself quite reasonable.  The reason of Jesus and his summons have precedence: they come first.  This courage to defer what seems so reasonable to us in favor of the greater thing that he is, is decisive not only in the first moment but continually on all parts of the way.  It is only in this way that we really come close to him.

 

This courage to defer what seems so reasonable to us in favor of the greater thing that he is, is decisive not only in the first moment but continually on all parts of the way.  It is only in this way that we really come close to him. Amen to that.

May God grant us such courage,

LSP

On The Way

 

One of the crew ended up in hospital the other day with a heart condition, but by the grace of God he survived and one pacemaker later was back in his newbuilt home today, recovering. I drove out to see him, and I tell you, it felt good to be out in the country. There it is, lying there in the searing heat, Texas. Good too to find my friend in good spirits and recovering, though weak. We prayed for a full recovery.

In other news, the Russkies had a good week, capturing Sverdonetsk along with neighboring territory and look set to capture Lisyshansk (across the river from Sverdonetsk) shortly. Smart UKR troops made it out of the encirclement, on foot?, and fell back to the Bakmut/Kramatorsk defense line. Expect RF forces to move West to test this after securing their rear. Or not. Here's a map from Rybar:

It's similar, when you think of it, to a mini version of Operation Bagration, but at a company and battalion level as opposed to divisional, and both sides seem to be operating on something like the 1944 playbook. Mini or not, it's no joke when it's your kid who dies in the fury of thing. And die they have, to the tune of tens of thousands. 

This is hideous, unlike Blue's new friend who's cute as all get out. But here's the thing. No cats in the house and this one's going to a different home after being rescued from ghetto street life by a soldier. 

He calls it "Bobby," which is sweet, but "Bobby" is not taking up residence, plaintive, sentimental, unrealistic, pugnacious protests notwithstanding.

Your Pal,

LSP

SCOTUS Rules For Life

 

So they actually did it, SCOTUS overturned Roe v. Wade this morning by a 5-4 majority, ruling that abortion's not a constitutional right but falls under the legislative authority of the states. At the time of writing two states, Missouri and Texas, have declared abortion illegal.

Wow, what a victory for life and what a blow to the satanic death industry and its cult. Now watch the Left erupt with demonic rage; who knows, maybe they'll set some cities on fire in time for the mid terms. That in mind, it's surely a good thing SCOTUS ruled in favor of the 2nd amendment right to open carry earlier this week. I wasn't expecting that one either.

Cheers,

LSP

Operation Bagration

 

Everyone who knows any history, you know, the subject which isn't taught anymore in US schools, knows about Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of Russia. Fewer still have heard of Operation Bagration, launched on June 22, 1940 by the Soviet Army against German Army Group Center, Heeresgruppe Mitte, which held a significant salient stretching East and North from Belarussia.

The German force consisted of some 849,000 troops including support personnel, 3,236 artillery pieces, 495 operational tanks and assault guns and 602 operational aircraft. Against them, the Russians assembled a force of over 1.5 million men (2.5?), 32,718 artillery pieces and mortars, 5,818 tanks and assault guns and 7,799 aircraft. 

The Soviet assault on entrenched German positions began at 5 am on the morning of June 22 with a massive rolling artillery barrage, the most intense of the war to that point. Within weeks the German front line had collapsed, leaving the way open for the Red Army to advance on Poland and Prussia.

Bagration was a catastrophic defeat for the Germans, who suffered an estimated 400,000 casualties, including over 2000 tanks and 800 aircraft. 31 of 47 German divisional or corps commanders were killed or captured. 57,000 captured Germans were paraded through Moscow on July 15, 1944. The column took a full 90 minutes to pass.

Here's an infographic, giving an idea of the sheer scale of the Russian offensive:

The Germans, most certainly from Bagration on, would pay dearly for Barbarossa. That in mind, you'd think the demented clowns who nominally run what used to be the Free World, to say nothing of their handlers, would look closely to history. Russia might want to do the same.

Cheers,

LSP

BARBAROSSA

 

Today's the anniversary of Operation Barbarossa, when the Reich invaded Russia/USSR with over 3 million men. They reached Moscow and I'll stop there, what a hideous conflict. Millions died.

As did the Reich. What an utter, no holds barred catastrophe. 

Respect to the fallen,

LSP

Mad Dogs And Englishmen

 

Mad dogs and Englishmen, what do they do? They go out in the noonday sun, or so it's claimed. To test this theory I loaded up the rig with a couple of rods and headed for the lake in the pyramid peak intensity of the Texan sun.

Were there any mad dogs at Soldiers Bluff? Yes there were, doing mad dog stuff on the opposite bank. Was there anyone else? No, there was not, only me, and it was starting to look like the old adage was true. Even the fish, our piscine adversary were lying low.

To test the theory further, I headed over to the other side of the dam, you know, follow the science. And guess what? It was deserted, no one was there, not even a mad dog, they were on the other side of the dam, crazily frolicking in the hot water.

No, there was just one Englishman with a US passport, some frozen shad, a few rods and the ovenlike heat of Texas in the midst of a regular day in June. Hot, so hot your eyelids are sweating while the fish, heatshocked, hang deep in cooler water.

It's a challenge and a good one. You've proved the old noonday axiom, LSP, I thought to myself, grimly tying on a #6 hook, will you get a fish? Serious question, and a seriously bad time to try your luck against our finned friends. You see, they just don't want to know, too busy sensibly sleeping out the heat.

Undeterred, I cast off with shad and worm. But where? Into the shade of the spillway's fishing pier, get the science? And lo and behold, reeled in Black Drum and Perch variants. What does this mean.

That no, fish as well as mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the noonday sun, at least in Texas. Science has shown us this. Also, it may be hot as a preheating oven but get out there in the country and fish. Good for mind, body and soul.

Tight Lines,

LSP

War Leader

 

Right Up There in Kookville

Well here we are on the brink of World War III, so thank Gaia we've got an Administration that's serious about warfighting leadership. You see, readers, going trans from the admiralty on down increases force lethality, go right ahead and ask 4 Star Rachel Levine.

If we haven't reached peak insanity we're very surely near.

Riders of the Rainbow,

LSP

Rule Britannia

 

Great Britain's newly appointed Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Patrick Sanders, has issued a challenge to the country's armed forces. These along with their allies must be "capable of... defeating Russia."

"The world has changed since the 24th February and there is now a burning imperative to forge an Army capable of fighting alongside our allies and defeating Russia in battle," stated Sanders in a June 16 message to civil servants and all ranks.

With total respect to General Sanders, what a tall order. After several decades of cuts and the decimation of once proud regiments, such as the Glorious Gloucesters, the British Army amounts to some 76,000 men and women. But not to worry, it has a whopping 227 tanks, 5015 AFVs, 89 self-propelled guns, 89 towed guns and 126 rocket systems. 

Like what, 178 guns? 200 tanks? Wow, at least there's some rockets. But what does this mean. That by 2025, according to the UK's Army, the Sceptered Isle has one, yes one and only one combat ready battle group of maybe  25,000 troops. There you have it, and to put it another way, a meaningless force without US heavy firepower. And by way of context, several months fighting has cost belligerents in the Ukraine more casualties than UKLF has members.

More on this and the Western European gamble of never having to fight another major, industrial war again (read the link, not long) anon. But I'd argue Sir. Patrick Sanders has a lot on his plate right now, as in rebuilding the British Army. Good luck to him. 

Rule Britannia,

LSP

BEAR DANCE

 

Bears are remarkable creatures and this Bear Dance wards off evil spirits. I suggest, to the few remotely interested, that we're fighting against and conjuring with something we don't understand. Stay well clear.

That's my advice and I'm sticking to it.

Ursine,

LSP

Women Soldiers - Ukraine Edition

 

Totally Not a Nazi

Are women soldiers good or bad? That probably depends on the woman herself and I'm reminded of Raven's comment, some time ago, that the Russians fielded notoriously effective female troops in the Great Patriotic War. 

Brave women, you can imagine the consequence of being captured by, say, the Dirlewanger Brigade. Caveat in mind, both sides of the war in the Ukraine feature women soldiers.

Get home safe, Annushka.

Note awesome mascot and enormous knife.

This somehow reminds me of Israel.

Don't mess with her, fool.

Or you'll end up dead.

Be careful out there kids,

LSP

Fish You Fool

 

Boy With Fish

Elements of USARMY were asking, tragically, plaintively, "What shall we do?" Quick as a flash Command issued orders, "Go fishing." And so they did, putting rods and tackle into a Chevy Z71 which headed for the lake in search of fish.

Boy With Fish

Were they successful? Sure they were, fishing with light rods, circle hooks, frozen Shad and catching Gar, Flathead, young Striper and Black Drum. Well done, boys. 

Your Old Pal

Senior officers, on the other hand, stayed home, sorting out the admin of this irregular unit. Yes, this must change, we pride ourselves on leading from the front.

Fish On,

LSP

Just Get Out And Shoot

Just a typical Texan range scene at a pal's ranch.  30 meters and have at it with assorted weaponry, .45s in this case. And what big fun, just you, the guns and the country under the big sky of the Lone Star State. Freedom.

Accuracy? Center mass on. Enjoyment? X Ring. Which means, as I survey this photo and others like it, shoot more, more often. Kudos btw to TC, who shot well on the day, a few years ago, and later moved to Ireland. He shoots well there too, favoring, I think, a German SxS. Nice.

Message to market, get out there in the country and shoot. Good for mind, body and soul.

#2A,

LSP