22 Saturday Oct 2016
Posted in Other Columns
≈ Comments Off on Top Shelf Fall Festival
Tags
If you weren’t there, you missed one heck of a party.
Food, fun, and smokes. Even blocked a handicapped spot.
A lively gathering.
Football inside, football outside. And Dominos.
Matt caught between the battle ‘o the reps.
Our Cuban connection.
Russell did act up a bit.
Slim Daddy behaved himself.
The legend, Chris Harper.
I will see you next year.*
*Actually, I’ll probably be with you tomorrow.
22 Saturday Oct 2016
Posted in News and Notes, Uncategorized
≈ Comments Off on Dawn of the Ice Age?
Tags
Let’s hope so.
While demented communists propose taxing us into poverty, then out of existence, over their global warming hoax, real scientists predict a 97% chance of a new ice age starting in around 6 years.
Washington, D.C., 2042 A.D. PBS.
I’m all for it. To stay warm, we of the ice set can burn politicians, banksters, and climate hoaxers.
***
Now, I’m off for a little “get with Jesus” meeting with my heavy bag stand-ins. Then! It’s the great Fall Festival at Top Shelf Cigars. Perdomo, Ashton, Gurkha and Olivia reps and much more. I may have pictures. Drop by, if you can.
21 Friday Oct 2016
Posted in Other Columns
≈ Comments Off on Fitness Friday
Americans, by and large, are by and LARGE. 70% or so are overweight or obese. That’s a problem. And it even extends into the military. Military Times reported yesterday that the number of overweight troops (all branches) is up fourfold from 2001.
Recent military health data shows that about 7.8 percent of the force — or about one in every 13 troops — is clinically overweight, defined by a body mass index greater than 25.
That figure has roughly doubled during the past five years and is up fourfold since 2001, when about 1.6 percent of troops were diagnosed as clinically overweight.
Top Pentagon officials are rewriting the forcewide guidelines for body composition standards and the methods for officially evaluating it. For individual troops, a diagnosis of obesity can stall a career or lead to involuntary separation, making these policies are central to military life.
Some Pentagon officials worry that overweight troops pose a threat to combat readiness because they may not be able to move as quickly in ground combat and if they are wounded, it is more difficult for their buddies to pull them to safety.
In the military some of the overweight, maybe most, are individuals who are muscle-heavy. BMI is a dumb number that does not differentiate between fat and muscle. Still, many soldiers, sailors, and airmen are tubby. Jarheads are safe. The trend is growing like that in the general population.
Not going to beat the Russians … or the mortality odds. Web Ecoist.
I sat down with a segment of that broader population yesterday afternoon. I was at one of America’s better cigar shops (what’s new?). There, I pounded through my review of The Nine Laws. As I did so I listened to and vaguely participated in three or four conversations.
A crazed Scottish biker raved about drunkenly dodging his armed and angry wife the night before. (Stereotypes exist for a reason, folks…). The rest of the topics concerned personal health. The lack thereof, rather. These men are my friends or at least pleasant acquaintances. They’re middle-aged to older and better off financially and socially than most. They’re also, as a group, a bit on the round side.
Some talked about their recent visits to the doctor. Others were headed to the doctor. One was recently released from the hospital. Blood pressure up. Weight up. Cholesterol up. Medication doses up. Insurance rates up. Etc. Good meals were a frequent side topic. Good Scotch and Bourbon was consumed generously right then and there.
I generally ignored the mildly depressing announcements of ailment and woe.
Then Big Brian walked in. Something was immediately and noticeably different. Big Brian ain’t so big as he used to be. Once somewhere in the 330-350 lb. neighborhood he’s now down to around 270.
His doctor told him to lose weight or die. It scared him into action. And action he took. Drastic action. He adjusted his diet and lifestyle and the pounds began to flee.
He sat down and immediately directed questions at me, the house fitness nut. At 270 he’s ready to start phase two: working out.
This conversation I actively participated in. I recommended one of the best gyms in the Southeast. Work permitting, he’ll sign up next week. I estimate, with steady work, he’ll be down to 220 in 6 months. That’s over 100 pounds dropped in less than a year. That’s amazing.
I say “Big Brian” because that’s his name and because he’s a large man. Probably 6’3″ or 6’4″. He can carry 220 or so in healthy fashion.
Of course, he has choices to make. Given his age, intelligence, and size, he could easily and rapidly convert into a powerlifter or a bodybuilder. It’s possible that in 6 months he might still weigh 270, though of a totally different composition.
I think he’ll opt to go slim and lean. However, it’s nice to have options.
If he can do it, you can do it. The soldiers can do it. 70% of America can too. Become a loser and be a winner.
As for yours truly, I’m doing fine this week. Nothing serious to report. My back has fully recovered from the dead-lifting fiasco last week. I even did a light test set the other day. Things are great, except…
I’m supposed to take a murder of middle school preteen / teen girls to a large amusement park next week. It’s Howl-o-Scream or run Daddy into the ground night or something. I’m sure they’ll have a blast. I ‘d prefer to throw my back again. Prayers, please…
21 Friday Oct 2016
Posted in Legal/Political Columns
≈ Comments Off on Why I Read Fred
Tags
Fred Reed, archetypal curmudgeon, probably has the greatest wit, wisdom, and brutal honesty of any commentator today. His latest to consider, concerning the failing election in the failed country:
Hillary’s attitude toward America has for years been implicit in our ruling class in New York. Having little in common with the rest of the country, they speak of most of it as Flyover Land, a realm of intellectual darkness and barbarism separating Manhattan and Hollywood. So far as I know, this is the first time the elites have had the confidence, if not necessarily the judgement, to say it plainly.
Let’s not delude ourselves. America is ruled by the Five Cities, Boston, New York, Washington, Tel Aviv, and Hollywood. The rest of us just pay taxes. The heart of the beast is New York, the Ivies being its nursery and Washington its storefront.
…
But America is more fragile than it looks. Its people cannot feed themselves. The economy really can collapse. If civil unrest broke the link from farm to cities, in two weeks New Yorkers would be eating each other. Soft white urbanites eeeeking and squealing about guns cannot defend themselves.
There is a certain comfort in the uncomfortable. Knowledge is power or, at least, humor.
El Jefe.
20 Thursday Oct 2016
Posted in Other Columns
Tags
Alright. I promised this a week or so ago. I have just concluded my first read through of Ivan Throne’s The Nine Laws (Castalia House, October 4, 2016). I also promised Ivan, a.k.a. the Dark Triad Man, a full review. Here goes:
At the outset, here and now, I must qualify this review. First, I don’t normally review books beyond mere recommendation. Thus, in keeping with my usual ways, I HIGHLY recommend you buy The Nine Laws (click here now – $9.99 Kindle from Amazon). However, I must forewarn that the book is not for everyone. In fact, sadly, it’s not for most.
This excellent work is a self-help manual for a select few. Potential readers are:
In Ivan’s words his ideal reader must become a “warrior-priest”. He imparts a message which he obviously takes seriously; it is a Shin-den (Japanese for “sacred”) expression. Ivan is a ninja by training, the methodical and relentless nature of which comes through clearly in his words.
Others, say of stronger minds but weaker resolve, might enjoy the book though they will likely find little use for the teachings. The weak and timid need not delve deeper than the cover.
Ivan Throne / Castalia House.
All of this takes place in what is known as the dark world.
For many there is great fear and anxiety in response to words that are spoken or written to invoke the image of power. Words that declare ferocity. Words that speak of the dread reality of this dark world and the necessity of blood, steel, incandescent flung iron and detonations of dust and thunder as the voice of deciding finality between individuals and armies, ideologies and civilizations.
Your fear and anxiety are real, but nonetheless irrelevant to the impersonal nature of creation.
Any desire that things be other than they are, is not even perceived by the universe.
Illusions of safety are not rewarded…
– Chapter 13, The Dark World
This world is real. It is not, in and of itself, evil. However, it is plagued with evil both spiritual and incarnate. You didn’t really need my explanation there nor Ivan’s. The nightly news is sufficient proof. So is your daily life. The world is hard. To master one’s place in it requires a man be hard. That is the nature of the nine laws.
These guideposts are presented, defined, and exemplified with great care and precision.
Most “similar” works fail miserably for two reasons. First they either deny or foolishly explain away the nature of the world. Ivan’s assessment is cold, brutal and honest. Second, so many “ways of living” books attempt to reassure the reader, coddling the those who should instead be fortified. Delusion is potentially fatal. Ivan fortifies with virtual steel. His approach is born of genuine concern and an apparent desire for others to thrive.
The first thing that grabbed my attention and held it was Ivan’s utter lack of equivocation. This is not simply a testament to good and clear style. It is, rather, evidence of strong presence of mind and sound devotion to the craft of living. His observations were honed by humbling experience, tactfully ingrained in the text.
And ideal living is what it is all about. Most people shuffle blindly through life. Theirs may not necessarily be a waste of opportunity. It is certainly not fulfillment.
God created the world, even the dark world. We are reminded that His Spirit, though in us, does not rule the world. Someone else does. Hence the observable evil. Stephen Hawking once noted that God set the world and its laws in motion and then stepped back – a hands off approach. We, the living, are tasked with daily adherence to the law or with existing otherwise. This accords with the fallen nature of man and his endless pursuit of Natural Law among other ideals. Ivan understands these concepts.
His expert lessons serve as a chart for purposeful navigation through the world. I find this beats the shuffling manner of the masses and the weak illusions of the gurus. Life should be lived with purpose, with reverence to loftier ideals and for a higher Power.
Getting there, by Ivan’s plan, requires serious self-assessment and the permanent adoption of personality and thinking popularly misconstrued by the shufflers. Would you consider psychopathy a positive trait? Necessary? Buy the book. Read the book.
I have one contention with whole of The Nine Laws. Ivan admonishes to never self-deprecate. This issue of mine is likely semantic in nature. My readers know I frequently lace my commentary with self-deprecating remarks. Almost as sure as my shooting at the political trash.
Considered in pari materia my joking is a form of concealment (the Second Law). And concealment may not mean what one thinks. Read the book.
My favorite of the laws is number nine: no laws. My life has become a study of this phenomenon. Again, the definition and explanation may challenge one’s preconceived notions.
There are multiple parts that I look forward to rereading. Once is probably not enough. This book offers not only opportunity of understanding but a blueprint for action. The program is designed to be used.
The Nine Laws may not change the world but it could change you. A change for the better. So it is that I recommend without hesitation (beyond my initial qualification) this fine literary contribution to the world of men.
Congratulations and thank you to Ivan Throne.
*One will also note that The Beggar is spared the presence of Death, the two already being partially acquainted by circumstance.
20 Thursday Oct 2016
Posted in Legal/Political Columns
≈ Comments Off on The European Reconquista Picks Up Steam
Tags
Following the encouraging success of BREXIT, pro-European parties are poised to make enormous gains if not take control in upcoming elections. Imagine that, pro-European Europeans.
As Europeans assess the fallout from the U.K.’s Brexit referendum, they face a series of elections that could equally shake the political establishment. In the coming 12 months, four of Europe’s five largest economies have votes that will almost certainly mean serious gains for right-wing populists and nationalists. Once seen as fringe groups, France’s National Front, Italy’s Five Star Movement, and the Freedom Party in the Netherlands have attracted legions of followers by tapping discontent over immigration, terrorism, and feeble economic performance. “The Netherlands should again become a country of and for the Dutch people,” says Evert Davelaar, a Freedom Party backer who says immigrants don’t share “Western and Christian values.”
Even Europe’s most powerful politician, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, is under assault. The anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has drained support from Mrs Merkel’s Christian Democrats in recent state and local elections, capitalizing on discontent over Germany’s refugee crisis. In Austria the far-right Freedom Party has a shot at winning the presidency in balloting set for Dec. 4, after an election in May that the Freedom Party narrowly lost was annulled because of irregularities in vote counting. The populists are deeply skeptical of European integration, and those in France and the Netherlands want to follow Britain’s lead and quit the European Union. “Political risk in Europe is now far more significant than in the United States,” says Ajay Rajadhyaksha, head of macro research at Barclays.
It’s worse in Europe than in America, that’s the significant risk. The solutions will be significant too. And it’s coming, hopefully sooner than later. Peaceful repatriation of the invaders would be best. Historically though people tend towards more extreme measures – understandable given the extreme dangers they face now in this case. Tours 2.0 may be in the cards, appropriate or not.
It’s time for these people to go:
Muslim lowlife says, “white girls … are just sl*gs.” Daily Mail (UK).
Either back where they belong or to hell, it doesn’t matter. In prouder times, this gang of savages would currently be displayed, in pieces, all around London.
After the invaders are expelled or destroyed the great nations must turn their attentions to those within their own ranks who facilitated the invasion. No repatriation option for them leaves the gallows.
It’ll probably have to get a little worse in America before the good news spreads here. It will eventually.
20 Thursday Oct 2016
Posted in Legal/Political Columns
≈ Comments Off on The Election Defection Connection
I am really getting tired of this election. This political theater. In fact, I’m getting tired of American politics, period.
The problem with practical politics is similar to that of higher education (in America) – it has nothing substantive to offer to the honest citizen.
That show and spectacle from Las Vegas last night was pitiful. There are so many deadly serious issues out there. Hillary and Donald are aware of them and they dance around them. Talking points only. It’s all an effort to be seen – not to do anything productive.
Imagine a book, let’s say A Brief History of Time. There are some heavy ideas in that little book. Now, drop it into a goldfish tank. The fish will swim around it, shimmering as they twist and turn. The fish are in close proximity to the heavy ideas but attention is only drawn to their shiny movement. And their movement is their only concern. It’s a show about nothing.
By the way, this was only an example. I in no way wish to demean goldfish by comparing them to politicians. The fish have value and real purpose, however slight.
Wikileaks came up last night. Hillary again said it’s the Russians. She said U.S. Intel says it’s the Russians. It is not the Russians. Regardless, Drudge and the Alt-Media made hay last night of another Podesta email from Wiki. They claim the Dems want illegals to vote. They do. Remember, I spent years in the system; I know these people. They want illegals, felons, pets, the dead, and the fictitious to vote – for their guys and gals. They wanted this 20 years ago – nothing new.
But the particular email cited only concerns illegals by implication. Its subject is ease of voter registration primarily for citizens. One could argue that some of the ideas tossed around in the chain could lead to illegal non-citizen voting. However, what they were concerned with is the 50 million American citizens who are not registered to vote.
One of the participants pointed out that it really isn’t that good of an issue. 50 million are not registered; 180 million are. If 78% of people can figure it out, what’s the problem?
My take is that, like college dropouts, the unregistered may exist because the system isn’t worth participating in. Sure, some want to vote but miss deadlines, etc. But these numbers are not static – they cross multiple elections and years. If one misses the last election, one would make sure to register in time for the next. If it were really important. It’s not. Enter the goldfish and the book.
Daily Dot.
Anyway, it will be nice when December (not November) comes and goes and takes this clown show with it. Then we can move on to the next war, the next recession, the next issue in the book the goldfish can’t read.
19 Wednesday Oct 2016
Posted in Legal/Political Columns, Uncategorized
≈ Comments Off on Debate Update: I Had To Bail [And a Crazy Idea!]
Wow. Could not finish that one.
Hillary did get to the debt bomb first, I think. Yes, yes, Bill was just about to start bringing down the debt – GAAP be damned. That’s a problem in Washington; even if you set up a plan that would work, the next president can easily undue it all.
Anyway, this debate was pointless.
I did however, right in the middle of the madness, get slapped in the face by a mental reminder from the ancient world. I have no plan, no theory. Yet. Not a suggestion, just a mere thought. Just an idea that jumped up while I was agonizing over the split screen images of the two candidates.
The Roman Republic didn’t have a presidency. Rather, the chief executive office was split between not one, but two Consuls. They were elected together and served ONE YEAR terms. They alternated who was actually in charge, or who had final say, monthly. **After the advent of the Empire, neither Consult had any real power.
Tully in 2016!
How about we stick both these clowns in the White House under such an arrangement! Could it really be any worse than it already is?
Well, yeah … maybe.
Good night America and may God help us all!
19 Wednesday Oct 2016
Posted in Legal/Political Columns
≈ Comments Off on A Tiny Debt Problem
Tags
The (on-books) federal debt increased $236,991,525,500.74 between the first Trump/Clinton debate and yesterday. That’s 22 days and nearly a quarter-Trillion dollars.
I don’t recall either candidate addressing this problem. I also can’t seem remember hearing either propose the cuts necessary to halt the growth, let alone reverse it.
We’ll see what tonight brings. Speaking of that, I have to dig out my boots and find the shovel.
19 Wednesday Oct 2016
Posted in News and Notes
The following story came across my LinkedIn feed: The Biggest Crisis in Higher Ed Isn’t Student Debt, It’s Students Who Don’t Graduate. It’s an op-ed by Michael Crow, President of Arizona State University.
There is a lot of talk these days about student debt and the challenges that families face managing this burden. Rightfully so, particularly at a time when too many families are struggling with flat wages and rising costs. But the discussion of a debt crisis often fails to address what I would argue is the greater crisis: the fact that more than half of those who start college fail to finish.
Think about it: Tens of millions of people in the US are saddled with student debt and have no degree to help pay it off. They won’t get the substantial return on their investment—graduates with a bachelor’s degree earn about $1 million more in additional income over their lifetime than those with only a high school diploma—and they typically have not developed the adaptive learning skills that will help them prosper in a rapidly changing economy.
In too many cases, they may never recover, leaving them feeling frustrated and bitter, disenfranchised and unable to find a way to better jobs and greater opportunity. Too many, saddled with debt and lacking a degree, feel trapped.
According to US Department of Education data, the ability to repay college loans depends more on whether a student graduated than on how much debt they are carrying. The research also found that students who don’t graduate are three times more likely to default on their loans than those who do.
Adding to this sobering picture is the reality that only 15 percent of the bottom half of the US population (based on family income) have earned a college degree and only 9 percent among the bottom quarter. At a time when the majority of new jobs require post-secondary education, this is a national shame. Not only does it limit individual socioeconomic advancement, it minimizes the country’s capacity to make the most of talent that exists at every level and in every neighborhood.
This completion crisis is alarming, but it is fixable.
First, the $1 Million more in salary is a myth. James Altucher, among others, blew that to pieces. If you have kids looking at college, don’t let them be deluded. The myth was partly true a long time ago. It no longer makes any sense.
Even less sense is made from the unGodly debts students pile up in pursuit of an education that really isn’t. There’s a profound reason why the debt is such a concern. It isn’t worth it. College isn’t worth the money.
And those who drop out without finishing their degrees testify to the lack of value. Why stay for something with a low or non-existent return on investment? Why go so deeply in debt for it.
So, these problems are inter-connected and they are all worth considering; they are important. But I disagree with Crow on the graduation rate itself being the main problem.
His solution at ASU is a program that partners corporate employers with schools to cover costs and facilitate continued enrollment. I see that as a scheme to keep more students paying. Yes, more will graduate. But what do they get for their efforts?
By and large, college education in America is a hoax. Colleges long ago threw academic standards and actual learning under the school bus. Now the schools wage a war on men. Students are told that “to me a man” is terrible. They’re told manly fitness is toxic. There’s a war on European-Americans too. Students are told that just to be white is to be racist.
This isn’t education. This is bullsh!t. It’s indoctrination into a failed and useless culture of wimps and communists. Who needs it? Who needs four years of it? Who needs $200,000 in debt for it?
Outside of a few technical and professional fields, there is simply no valid reason to waste time pursuing the college experience. It’s an empty experience where most learning is self-induced and incidental. Real, liberal, classical education is easily obtained via independent study.
And college, the industry’s money-based lies aside, is not for everyone. Maybe 10% should be in higher education. Those who seek honest academic progress should only go if they can go for free or next to free. Even the best education isn’t worth a penny of debt.
Colleges and universities sell a product that most cannot afford and do not need. And the prospective customers are far better off without the debased social justice warrior lunacy. like this:
WTH?? Worse than worthless. ImageFlip.
From an institutional perspective I suppose declining graduation rates would be second in concern only to decreasing overall enrollment. Both mean less money for the schools. The problem for the rest of us is that those schools now peddle expensive dribble that hurts the culture and crushes the individual soul. They are the drug dealers of the Ivory Tower.
PERRIN LOVETT 
You must be logged in to post a comment.