Michael Yon on Afghanistan – and a deadly forecast for Taiwan

  Michael Yon has built a stellar reputation as an independent journalist who goes the extra mile, at his own expense and at the risk of his life, to get the story.  He’s become legendary among US and British troops for the way he reported the war in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Now he focuses on… Continue reading Michael Yon on Afghanistan – and a deadly forecast for Taiwan

Pray for those trapped in Afghanistan

  A friend of mine is trapped in Afghanistan at present, a couple of hundred miles from the airport in Kabul.  He can’t get there from where he is.  His only way out of the country is to reach one of its borders, on foot or by vehicle, through Taliban roadblocks and patrols looking for… Continue reading Pray for those trapped in Afghanistan

*SIGH* . . . Why am I not surprised???

  The Catholic Church hierarchy continues to shoot itself in its collective foot (or should that be feet?) on a regular basis. Pope Francis accepted the resignation of the Bishop of São José do Rio Preto on Wednesday, five days after a sexually explicit video of the bishop was shared on the internet. . .… Continue reading *SIGH* . . . Why am I not surprised???

The searing anger of those who know the truth about Afghanistan

  Combat Flipflops is a company started by military veterans who wanted to make a difference in the world’s combat zones.  They use their profits to help educate women, de-mine areas infested with minefields, and generally try to help rebuild societies that have been shattered by violence.  My wife is one of their customers. In… Continue reading The searing anger of those who know the truth about Afghanistan

President Biden owns the Afghanistan debacle, and history will blame him for it

  I’m too sick for words to see the images streaming out of Afghanistan as the Taliban complete their conquest of that country, and complete America’s humiliation there.  It need not have happened.  All it needed was a modicum of spine in our President, to withdraw the right way and ensure that he left behind… Continue reading President Biden owns the Afghanistan debacle, and history will blame him for it

Afghanistan defeats America

  I’m obliged to blogger ASM826, writing at Borepatch’s place, for putting the end (?) of our Afghanistan involvement in financial perspective. The United States spent two trillion dollars in Afghanistan between 2001 and 2019. Troop strength estimates rose and fell. At one point there [were] more than 100,000 troops and an undocumented number of… Continue reading Afghanistan defeats America

Don’t get shot by police if you’re the good guy!

  I’m sure many of my readers remember the recent tragic death of Johnny Hurley, who stopped an active shooter, but was then killed by responding police officers because he had picked up the shooter’s rifle, and was assumed by them to be the guilty party. Greg Ellifritz, whom we’ve met in these pages before,… Continue reading Don’t get shot by police if you’re the good guy!

Chickens come home to roost in South Africa

  The current rioting and unrest in South Africa was sparked by the imprisonment of former President Zuma, but its roots go back much, much further.  Zuma was merely the spark that lit a fuse long laid and prepared.  The BBC reports: The death toll in South Africa has risen to 72 as violence continues… Continue reading Chickens come home to roost in South Africa

When technology kills

  There’s a very sad report out of Canada, one that might have repercussions in America as well.  It’s an analysis of what caused the crash of a Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone helicopter last year, killing everyone aboard. As a pilot guided one of Canada’s navy helicopters up into a tight turn, neither his training nor… Continue reading When technology kills

The numbers boggle the mind

  Regular readers will recall that last year, I put up several articles about the collapse in freight shipping across the Pacific from Asia to America.  This year, the story has been all about the sudden, overwhelming reversal of that situation, to the point that costs have increased many times over and there’s a desperate… Continue reading The numbers boggle the mind