Serious Business

En lieu of anything remotely serious from me, here's the inimitable Armchair Warlord on last night's raid into the Strip:

Update: Israeli troops withdrew after some skirmishing.  It's unclear whether they ever actually entered Gaza proper or engaged from beyond the fence, or how well the respective sides came off.

The fundamental problem the IDF and the Israeli government in general faces right now is that to accomplish their stated goal of destroying Hamas, bombing, shelling and armored incursions into open areas of the Gaza Strip (which they had restricted themselves to in previous rounds of fighting) will not do the job.  At some point Israeli APCs are going to have to roll up to the first line of shattered concrete housing blocks, drop ramps and dismount infantry.  And those infantrymen are going to have to get behind their assault rifles and go to work.  Block by block, building by building, room by room, through an army of enemies and an ocean of civilians, until the job is done.

I think at this point Netanyahu has placed an order with the butcher for a bloodbath and now he doesn't want to pay the bill.

 

I won't comment but will repeat: 

At some point Israeli APCs are going to have to roll up to the first line of shattered concrete housing blocks, drop ramps and dismount infantry.  And those infantrymen are going to have to get behind their assault rifles and go to work.  Block by block, building by building, room by room, through an army of enemies and an ocean of civilians, until the job is done.

 

Serious business. 

Pax et Bonum,

LSP

Flotsam And Jetsam

Jetsam, noun, unwanted material or goods that have been thrown overboard from a ship and washed ashore, especially material that has been discarded to lighten the vessel.

Flotsam and jetsam, floating wreckage and unwanted goods thrown off the vessel of modern life. There's a lot of it about, in no particular order:

Harvard, Satan's Vatican

Madonna, Queen of Pop

Justsin Welby, titular head of WANC (Worldwide Anglican Non-Communion)

The sheer genius of Yoko

And liturgical dance, which is so very loved by all

Don't get me wrong, this isn't an exhaustive list, just a snapshot. Feel free to chime in.

Cheers,

LSP

APOCALYSPSE

 

There we were, on the back porch of the Compound about to say Evening Prayer when I looked up and lo and behold, hundreds of buzzards were flying overhead. Wow, there they were, gliding overhead into the West.

"Is this the Apocalypse," I texted a pal who's doing some kind of concert series in Europe, all very 41 musicians on stage with accompanying noise and smoke, Kyrie Eleison. Then I looked up and there was another wave of big birds, filling the air, like some kind of bomber wing.

"Is this," I thought in wonder, "the Eschaton?" No fooling, I've never seen such a thing here, and yet there they were. Harbingers of apocalyptic doom. Perhaps. That in mind, it's all going on everywhere and you can Gaza read about it on the Information Superhighway.

Typical Haruspex scene

Has this, dear readers, all eight of you, made us more or less informed. As we reflect on this, consider the omen witnessed in the expansive blue skies of the North Central Texan Free State this evening. Terrifying, eh? 

In totally different yet related news, can any of you recommend a luxury, old skool, sleeper train ride.

Seriously, a luxury, old skool train and sleeper to boot, preferably with an outdoor observation deck and windows must open, which I think counts out our appalling Amtrak. Totally open to suggestions.

Haruspex,

LSP

The Problem With Socialism

 

A friend of mine in England complained that the police force in their beautiful market town didn't really exist. So, if there was a crime it'd take about an hour or so to drive in from the nearest megacity. She was against firearms ownership, naturally, being a Brit.

I asked her, "So, some guy turns up at your castle with a baseball bat to rape you and kill your kids and you call the cops, right? Two hours later they turn up. Yet another reason for the 2nd Amendment."

 

Here's the thing, these people live in a dreamworld of unicorns, fairies and rainbow surgery, of unreality. Israel had a dose of that the other week and now the bombs are falling. Why, for a second, do you think the countries of the West are somehow exempt?

Thanks for the infographic, LL,

LSP

A Curious Thing

 

A curious thing happened today. All the people from Mission #2 who like to go the increasingly popular Shooky's of a Thursday evening turned up at Mass first, without any prompting. That's right, with not a word from me, not even an annoyingly jocular clerical bribe, "Hey, there's a 10% discount if you go to Mass first," ha, ha, sorta thing. No, they just turned up.

Well done, team, and it makes sense. Our communion with one another flows from communion with God in the Mystical Body of Christ, nourished, vivified and deepened at the Altar. Get that right and the other follows naturally.

You know, I recall a priest in DC who told me, "We're at the point where the people here don't even think of doing a parish event without going to Mass first." Right on, worship, giving ourselves in love to God, comes first, always. 

It's what we're created for, and we saw a little bit of that North Central Texas this evening.

Stella Maris,

LSP

Here We Go Now

 

Just some random space rock, Lord of Light. Happens of the seventh year and what's wrong with the juke box!

Your Old Pal,

LSP

Please Make Him Pope

 

That is all,

LSP

Spooky

 

Spooky? Yes indeed, and that's just the yard ornaments in this bucolic north central Texan farming community. Then there's carrier groups getting into position for what could be the next Big One, associated pre-deployment warning orders, ongoing slaughter in Ukraine, accelerating debt which can never be paid back, an abhorrent, corrupt, malfeasant, self-serving clown show inside the Beltway, and on.

Scary as you like and then some. That in mind, do you remember TDS, Trump Derangement Syndrome, in which crazed Leftists, our beloved Uniparty, and pretty much everyone in the UK shrieked that evil plutocrat, Nazi, Russian spy, tyrant Trump would crash the economy and start World War III. Remember that?

Sure you do and my, how that worm's turned, not that Queers For Palestine will notice until they're drafted or thrown off tall buildings by the nearest Trans Hamas Theater Collective. But speaking of conscription and going full kinetic, how long would it take for the US to ramp up manufacturing to supply an industrial war? Serious question. 

Europe, obviously, isn't in the game, its countries barely have armed forces capable of the kind of action seen in the Ukraine for more than a couple of weeks. Welfare for votes + no factories = no tanks, no ammo, to put it simply. They've been gambling, rainbow foolishly, on never, ever having to fight another major war ever again. Looks to me like that hand's about to fold. But hey, go ahead and ask the Monkey.

The US? We're still the real deal, I think; US = NATO, and if you can tell me what it means I'll join. But still, imagine ChiCom/Russkie/Iranian hypersonics sink a couple of our carriers. Pearl Harbor level disaster. Now, how long would it take us to recreate our shipbuilding capability to replace them? Good question. China, meanwhile, has an estimated shipbuilding capacity 200 times greater than ours. Maybe our Beloved Rulers decide to go nuclear at that point and evac to the nearest private island.

And so we're back where we started, spooky. My advice, for what it's worth, is this. Get right with God and make it a matter of personal urgency.

Your Pal,

LSP

You Wicked Old Fraud

 

Old fake mountebank

Demented and senile fool

Systemic racism

Enough,

LSP

In Paradisum

 

What can we say? Faure forever.

In Paradisum,

LSP

Sunday Poetry Slam

 

Wow. You no sooner throw down a Haiku Challenge than the commentariat replies with verve and talent. Check this out, sheer awesomeness from Wild:

I eat the donuts

Glazed and chocolate ones too

Sometimes blueberry

Welfare music plays

Taxpayers buy them for me

Meanwhile, I snarf more

Help me Joe Biden

My welfare is running out

Feed me more donuts

Whoa, well done Wild, that's a veritable ode. Then there's Red, going free-form and evocative. Here:

Fireflies in the maple

Deep dark woods

Hot tea on the porch

Not to be outdone, Anon Mike_C offers us this gem:

Front windows rolled down.

Why, when fifty-two degrees?

Nigerian Uber

Not shabby, eh? And Paul gets down to it, in homage to Red's inimitable verse:

Chaos sown every day

Are you not entertained

Have a donut

What can I say.  Sorry, Kerouac, we got you beat. But who am I to judge, this one's for LL and perhaps it'll resonate with you too:

 

A sharp bayonet

Dark prints in the forest snow

Moonlight gleams on ice

Keep 'em coming.

Your Old Friend,

LSP

Haiku Time

 

Yes, it's that moment we've all been waiting for, Haiku Time. And here it is:

Why am I so fat

Said the girl at the bus stop

Donut in the rain

Your turn,

LSP