I don't consider myself a religious person, although over the years I've taken on board some of the philosophy of Christianity, Islam and Sikhism. I'm also a Taoist in the sense that I draw inspiration from the Tao Te Ching, a book which always seems to have an appropriate passage for whatever situation confront us, present circumstances being no exception. So here are two chapters ( R.L. Wing translation) that I find most applicable to the present moment, and from which I draw inspiration and dare I say, hope.
69 - Neutralizing Escalation
The strategists have a saying:
"I dare not act as a host,
Yet I act as a guest,
I dare not advance an inch,
Yet I retreat a foot."
This is called
Travelling without moving,
Rising up without arms,
Projecting without resistance,
Capturing without strategies.
No misfortune is greater than underestimating resistance;
Underestimating resistance will destroy my Treasures.
Thus when mutually opposing strategies escalate,
The one who feels sorrow will triumph.
74 - Unnatural Authority
When people do not fear death,
How can they be threatened with death?
Suppose people fear death and still do not conform,
Who would dare seize them and put them to death?
There is always the Master Executioner who kills.
To substitute for the Master Executioner in killing
Is like substituting for the Master Carpenter who carves.
Whoever substitutes for the Master Carpenter in carving,
The 5 stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance.
Clearly the Left is stuck on anger and will never progress to acceptance. The 5 stages are useful however in analyzing the Right's response to the Trump victory. I think most are now past the denial and anger stage with respect to his appointments and have moved on to bargaining - basically trying to put the best positive spin on Trump's choices. That's the sense I get from the analysts I regularly follow, among them Larry Johnson.
I can't say I share their optimism. There's nothing in Trump's prior actions (or lack thereof) that tells me things will be any different than the last time. His choice of Zionists seems to confirm that, and if you look at the record, RFK jr. and Tulsi Gabbard are no exception.
One thing that stands out to me about the Right is how utterly naive most of them are. Trump and his MAGA shtick have all the hallmarks of a cult, so basically what you have is two opposing cults, neither of which are anchored in reality. Above them, and manipulating both, lies the so-called Deep State, which likewise has lost its moorings and is adrift in a world that changed too quickly for them to retain any semblance of control.
Behind all these factions lies actual reality - what you can and can't do with the means at hand - a position which only Russia, China and Iran seem to have recognized. As such, they will respond accordingly using the best means at their disposal, which while not unlimited, clearly exceed anything the West can muster in either economic, military or cultural terms.
This cake is baked already. There's simply too much water under the bridge to turn things around in a way that would restore the West's previous position in the world. I think some elements of the Deep State recognize that and have opted for a controlled demolition with Trump as the fall guy, which will rally a slightly less radical Left in 2028 while the disillusioned Right will sit on their hands, following the old adage 'once bitten twice shy' although in this instance it will take two bites to wake some of them up.
What follows will be consolidation of control, not over the world, but over what's left of US hegemony, where the attention of its keepers will be turned inwards, which is not good for people like us, who will undoubtedly be hounded to the point where we jump ship and move somewhere less oppressive. I've already scoped out Russia for that contingency and I'm keeping an eye on Georgia as well where recent events seem promising.
Regarding Tulsi, Larry thinks "She will make sure that Trump is getting accurate information. Secondly, she will have oversight of all covert actions/programs. She has good instincts and has the ability to speak directly to Trump and warn him about doing something stupid. No guarantee he will listen, but at least there will be one adult at the table."
Once more with feeling, She can make sure Trump gets accurate information, if she herself can get accurate information, if she knows how to ask for information and where information is hidden. And she can still pick and choose what information Trump gets, depending on her interests. She has free will.
I hope the old guys are not falling for a pretty face, the same as Pete Hegseth is a pretty face. Tanned, rested, and ready.
Israel is on the clock primarily due to economic distress and displaced residents from northern Israel still residing in temporary quarters further south. Add in civil/political turmoil and Netanyahoo needs a remedy sooner rather than later. He keeps picking fights everywhere he turns (now its Syria) in the hope of triggering a major war and forcing the US military into the melee. Iran will simply sit back and play tit-for-tat. If Israel attacks again, they will respond with hypersonic missiles that Israel cannot intercept and each cycle their targeting will do evermore damage. And no amount of verbose bellicosity by neocons is going to change that reality. The only thing that Netanyahoo has actually accomplished is to make his enemies stronger and more numerous. Trump is going to try and negotiate his way out the messes that Biden has left for him, but cannot succeed with Zelensky and Netanyahoo is power. Every solution starts there.
If you were a total optimist you could argue regarding the neo-zionist 'bad cops' that Trump will take the view that they are there to convey policy, not make it, and will not be disloyal and undermine any stated policy lines.
This is very optimistic indeed, naive you could say, and also that Trump has been there before.
“In other words, we’re looking at something like 2006 redux, only worse. “
The sad history of war - making the same mistakes as before and hoping for a different outcome. It’s the young men that had nothing to do with starting the war and they are the ones that do all the dying, to the cheerleading of the old guys who have lived their lives and raised their families. Is Israel any safer now than it was Oct 6 2023?
I don't consider myself a religious person, although over the years I've taken on board some of the philosophy of Christianity, Islam and Sikhism. I'm also a Taoist in the sense that I draw inspiration from the Tao Te Ching, a book which always seems to have an appropriate passage for whatever situation confront us, present circumstances being no exception. So here are two chapters ( R.L. Wing translation) that I find most applicable to the present moment, and from which I draw inspiration and dare I say, hope.
69 - Neutralizing Escalation
The strategists have a saying:
"I dare not act as a host,
Yet I act as a guest,
I dare not advance an inch,
Yet I retreat a foot."
This is called
Travelling without moving,
Rising up without arms,
Projecting without resistance,
Capturing without strategies.
No misfortune is greater than underestimating resistance;
Underestimating resistance will destroy my Treasures.
Thus when mutually opposing strategies escalate,
The one who feels sorrow will triumph.
74 - Unnatural Authority
When people do not fear death,
How can they be threatened with death?
Suppose people fear death and still do not conform,
Who would dare seize them and put them to death?
There is always the Master Executioner who kills.
To substitute for the Master Executioner in killing
Is like substituting for the Master Carpenter who carves.
Whoever substitutes for the Master Carpenter in carving,
Rarely escapes injury to his hands.
The 5 stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance.
Clearly the Left is stuck on anger and will never progress to acceptance. The 5 stages are useful however in analyzing the Right's response to the Trump victory. I think most are now past the denial and anger stage with respect to his appointments and have moved on to bargaining - basically trying to put the best positive spin on Trump's choices. That's the sense I get from the analysts I regularly follow, among them Larry Johnson.
I can't say I share their optimism. There's nothing in Trump's prior actions (or lack thereof) that tells me things will be any different than the last time. His choice of Zionists seems to confirm that, and if you look at the record, RFK jr. and Tulsi Gabbard are no exception.
One thing that stands out to me about the Right is how utterly naive most of them are. Trump and his MAGA shtick have all the hallmarks of a cult, so basically what you have is two opposing cults, neither of which are anchored in reality. Above them, and manipulating both, lies the so-called Deep State, which likewise has lost its moorings and is adrift in a world that changed too quickly for them to retain any semblance of control.
Behind all these factions lies actual reality - what you can and can't do with the means at hand - a position which only Russia, China and Iran seem to have recognized. As such, they will respond accordingly using the best means at their disposal, which while not unlimited, clearly exceed anything the West can muster in either economic, military or cultural terms.
This cake is baked already. There's simply too much water under the bridge to turn things around in a way that would restore the West's previous position in the world. I think some elements of the Deep State recognize that and have opted for a controlled demolition with Trump as the fall guy, which will rally a slightly less radical Left in 2028 while the disillusioned Right will sit on their hands, following the old adage 'once bitten twice shy' although in this instance it will take two bites to wake some of them up.
What follows will be consolidation of control, not over the world, but over what's left of US hegemony, where the attention of its keepers will be turned inwards, which is not good for people like us, who will undoubtedly be hounded to the point where we jump ship and move somewhere less oppressive. I've already scoped out Russia for that contingency and I'm keeping an eye on Georgia as well where recent events seem promising.
Regarding Tulsi, Larry thinks "She will make sure that Trump is getting accurate information. Secondly, she will have oversight of all covert actions/programs. She has good instincts and has the ability to speak directly to Trump and warn him about doing something stupid. No guarantee he will listen, but at least there will be one adult at the table."
Once more with feeling, She can make sure Trump gets accurate information, if she herself can get accurate information, if she knows how to ask for information and where information is hidden. And she can still pick and choose what information Trump gets, depending on her interests. She has free will.
I hope the old guys are not falling for a pretty face, the same as Pete Hegseth is a pretty face. Tanned, rested, and ready.
Israel is on the clock primarily due to economic distress and displaced residents from northern Israel still residing in temporary quarters further south. Add in civil/political turmoil and Netanyahoo needs a remedy sooner rather than later. He keeps picking fights everywhere he turns (now its Syria) in the hope of triggering a major war and forcing the US military into the melee. Iran will simply sit back and play tit-for-tat. If Israel attacks again, they will respond with hypersonic missiles that Israel cannot intercept and each cycle their targeting will do evermore damage. And no amount of verbose bellicosity by neocons is going to change that reality. The only thing that Netanyahoo has actually accomplished is to make his enemies stronger and more numerous. Trump is going to try and negotiate his way out the messes that Biden has left for him, but cannot succeed with Zelensky and Netanyahoo is power. Every solution starts there.
If you were a total optimist you could argue regarding the neo-zionist 'bad cops' that Trump will take the view that they are there to convey policy, not make it, and will not be disloyal and undermine any stated policy lines.
This is very optimistic indeed, naive you could say, and also that Trump has been there before.
You've had a lot of thought-provoking entries lately. I freely admit that foreign policy is not my strong suit.
Does Trump have a plan and these moves are feints? Or is Trump all smoke and mirrors?
I didn't vote for Trump with the expectation that we'd go to war; I thought he was the peace candidate.
Legit points.
“In other words, we’re looking at something like 2006 redux, only worse. “
The sad history of war - making the same mistakes as before and hoping for a different outcome. It’s the young men that had nothing to do with starting the war and they are the ones that do all the dying, to the cheerleading of the old guys who have lived their lives and raised their families. Is Israel any safer now than it was Oct 6 2023?