Tag Archives: Russia

Flyers or Faggots?

Another good one from my friend and our fellow Marine brother, Greg who certainly has a way with words. Amazing that it takes a Russian to remind us who were are and what we stand for.  Surely the Philadelphia Flyers of the NHL don’t know who they are or what they are supposed to stand for as role models.  Maybe they should change their name to the  Philadelphia Faggots – the pride of the city of Brotherly Love. I wonder what their attendance record is for home games?

The DIE penalty box
By: G. Maresca

On a recent mild January evening in the City of Brotherly Love, the affection of one home team NHL player was anything but mild. A firestorm of disgruntled wrath erupted upon Ivan Provorov, a Russian native and a defenseman for the Philadelphia Flyers, compliments of the LGTBQ+ agenda and their woke confederates of the diversity, inclusion and equity crowd (DIE).

It reminded me of the old standby: I went to a hockey game and a boxing match broke out.  However, this fight underscores how secular humanism is attacking religiosity for the cultural soul of the American nation.

Provorov, a Russian Orthodox Christian, refused to wear a “Gay Pride Night” jersey with the rainbow flag or use a rainbow-taped hockey stick during warm-ups before the game. “I respect everybody, and I respect everybody’s choices,” Provorov said following the game. “My choice is to stay true to myself and my religion.” It is the gay lobby and their media allies who couldn’t help themselves in falling over each other making a huge issue over why one player decided not to conform and prostrate himself to the LGTBQ+ agenda.

Provorov is not making a stand saying gay pride night should not be held. He is merely exercising his right to decide and be left alone. Being compelled to support the tenets of a faith other than his own is as un-American as it gets – until now. No one should have to be a billboard for another’s political, social, or religious beliefs.

Symbols of faith, freedom, and courage are rare in contemporary American society and yet it is a Russian, no less, who is the model of strength and conviction in this torrid era of national wokedom.  This is why many supported him on several websites by selling out his jersey.

Provorov takes all the risk as standing tall against the leftist mob takes plenty of puck. Most would rather not jeopardize being maligned and browbeaten. Provorov spoke for others without the courage of their convictions, while expressing one of the basic dogmas of Christianity: “love the sinner, hate the sin.”

Since inclusivity is the goal, perhaps the Flyers will host a “Christian night” where players will wear jerseys saying: “Jesus Saves?”  What about “MAGA hat night,” too?

A truly free society does not mandate that their citizens conform to any agenda that forsakes their own believes and traditions. Such hollow virtue signaling only serves to chip away and rust our liberty. The fact that so many are unable to differentiate between honoring one’s country and applauding who people sleep with says much about how distorted our values have become.

First comes the demand for tolerance, then comes acceptance, followed by celebration, and finally mandated participation.  The perpetually aggrieved and offended are never satisfied, provided they do not get their way they move on to the next outrage and repeat the process over again.

As a nation we are consumed in a protracted episode of the Twilight Zone, where it is heroic to disrespect and protest the American flag, while hoisting and paying homage to the gay pride colors is not only expected but unquestioned.

The LGTBQ+ movement is not merely about acceptance of certain sexual proclivities and gender identity with preferred pronouns; rather it is a wholesale secular religion that must be acknowledged over one’s own religious and conscientious beliefs. The great marketing ploy that LGTBQ+ is about “love” is a canard in the first degree. Although they preach tolerance and acceptance, they embody the exact opposite provided you dare to disagree.

The harassment of Provorov violates our Constitutional rights. These are the same rights that leftists shove in your face when convenient for them. Provorov understands America better than the many who thrive on victimization and outrage. With his Russian roots, he knows all too well about Marxism’s groupthink.

Provorov deserves respect, not ridicule.

It has never been about tolerance, diversity, or equity.  Rather, it is about submission and conformity. If it were about inclusion, the left would acclaim Clarence Thomas, Amy Coney Barrett and Thomas Sowell.

They don’t.

They disparage them.

Sadly, we have devolved into what we once condemned and fought against, and it has taken a Russian to remind us.

I certainly have not forgotten what I abhor and am against, and I surely do not need a Russian to remind me – do you?

Originally posted 2023-01-28 16:25:43.

The NYT

While the news of the day seems to be the 22 generals who have come out from under their rocks and spoke out against King Berger’s changes to my Corps. I’m sick of it. Yeah, I know they had to try diplomacy first and when Berger continued to march, they finally had to say something. Only three spoke out in favor of my “Open Letter to CMC Berger”; which to date has garnered >6,ooo hits and still going strong. The plea now is to write your elected criminals, as most are, and mirror their comments Hmm, I did that several months ago. Now even the liberal; Jim Webb spoke out; I was waiting for that one. It was a good, concise, on the mark article. Maybe some of his liberal friends in Congress will now pay attention since one of their own has spoke out. But I digress as that’s not what this post is about.

Once again, my friend and Marine brother hits the mark concerning this scumbag we all love to hate – Hunter Biden, and of course his beloved father. Both of whom are criminals and deserve to be in jail serving life. I fear once again that nothing, absolutely nothing will come about from the newest and greatest investigation. It’s a laugh. Our justice system is a system catered to the guilty, not you and me.

How about the latest nomination for the Supreme Court who was unable to define a woman when questioned by a Congresswoman.

I’m amazed that the infamous NYT is still publishing a newspaper. Who the hell buys it, do you? I love Greg’s comment about “All the news that fits.” LOL And how about Twitter and  Facebook? Does anyone still have accounts with those communist, socialist social medias? I do have a FB page where I only go to in order to add my posts; I’m amazed they have yet to censor me. And I sure as hell do not have a Twitter account, albeit they “think” I do as I get emails from them, which I reply to telling them where to go. In sum we are feed nothing but BS from the media, including the social media. I love Greg’s closing comment about the comparisons between Russia’s and our medias. Read and enjoy if you can.

Hunter’s Pandora’s Laptop

By: G. Maresca

The New York Times’ time-honored maxim: “All the news that is fit to print” finally conceded that Hunter Biden’s laptop’s emails are newsworthy as first reported by the New York Post in October 2020 – 16 months after the presidential election.

The conservative New York Post founded by Alexander Hamilton deserved a Pulitzer but will never see it.

The Times has relished their bloated reputation for decades while perfecting the art of falsehood and being left-wing. Some 90 years ago, their Moscow correspondent was Walter Duranty. While Stalin was executing his political opponents and starving millions of Ukrainians, Duranty’s dispatches rendered Stalin’s homeland a worker’s paradise. Duranty was double-dipping collecting from the Times and Stalin, who bribed him with money, booze, drugs, and prostitutes while being awarded a Pulitzer Prize in 1932.

Sounds like Duranty was Hunter Biden’s prototype.

When it was finally revealed that Duranty had lied, the Times refused to surrender the Pulitzer.

In Laurel Leff’s 2005 book: “Buried by The Times,” during World War II “the paper of record” suppressed news of Nazi atrocities against Jews because publisher Arthur Sulzberger was a Jewish assimilationist. The paper referred to the Jews as “refugees” to assuage how the Nazis were targeting a pogrom of European Jewry.

The difference between a conspiracy theory and the truth is nearly a year and a half provided you consider the Times an arbiter of truth. The Times must believe Biden is toast giving the paper nearly three years to bolster the next Democrat nominee.

If that wasn’t enough and despite no evidence, 50 government sleuths claimed that Hunter’s laptop was part of a Russian disinformation plot published in a Times op-ed piece. What remains unanswered is do these fabulous 50 maintain their employment and security clearances? You bet your bippy nothing will happen to these scum.

All the Times offered was an unconvincing admission buried deep inside their broadsheet. The Times did not just conceal the facts about Hunter Biden’s illicit dealings and his father’s 10% kickback, they bungled, beat, and buried the story with Jimmy Hoffa.

Hunter’s emails underscored how he was profiting from his father’s connections including being a board member of a Ukrainian gas company. According to the Wall Street Journal, Biden’s former business partner admitted the laptop’s contents had Biden profiting from a Shanghai company directly tied to the Chinese communists.

The Times was living their true creed: “All the news that fits – their agenda.” Twitter jumped on the suppression train by censoring their New York Post account, while Facebook algorithmically did their leftist duty in killing the story as Hunter’s laptop conveniently met the journalistic abyss on the cusp of Election Day. Censorship and abject lying are the core tenets of the left’s strategy, as there is no substance to their socialist agenda.

Rather than investigate, the mainstream media dismissed it or claimed Hunter Biden’s debauched escapades were fake news – case closed – until now.

A post-election survey of Biden voters said 10% would not have voted for him provided they aware of the illicit dealings of his son. Imagine what the Times would publish provided one of Donald Trump’s sons had impregnated a stripper like Hunter? How many articles about Joe’s grand baby in Arkansas have you read?

The news’ profession is infiltrated with plenty of bias editors who have no issue about using deliberate omission as suppression. News and its ensuing opinion pieces are affected as much by what is omitted as by what is covered. This column is just one example. And provided it disappears for a week or two, you know the deal.

When will the IRS investigate the Biden’s dealings? Indictments would open a Pandora’s box exposing Biden as the corrupt, incompetent lifetime politico he is. Biden is compromised, while his son possesses no shame after being captured on video snorting cocaine naked with a prostitute.

The complicit media was promoting false narratives to take down a sitting president, in Donald Trump, is the biggest story.

Corrupt politicians and their mainstream media cohorts are the rust corroding our liberties. The difference between the state media in Russia and what passes for news in the U.S. is the eight-hour time difference between the two nations.

If these stories don’t grow legs, the nation’s fourth estate is failing everyone.

I just have to post the following pictures about how far our military has gone in order to “positively impact diversity, equity, and inclusion.” –  both from our combat ready Air Farce.

Oh, and don’t forget about our Corps’ endeavor to impact the goals as well.

Isn’t this a great country or what? 

Originally posted 2022-03-26 14:50:48.

Finally!

FINALLY!  Generals from all services are beginning to speak out against what CMC is doing to the Marine Corps. Many have met with him, but state, he took notes, asked no questions, and changed nothing. This first article is from a Marine I know very well. I was his Company GySgt for a short while, until I was commissioned and  stayed in the same company; he was a Capt at the time. I served with him again when he was a Colonel and  G-1 of the 2d Marine Division. Then again when I had 2/6 and was going to become 2/8, he was my regimental CO. Then yet again when he was a fresh caught  BG at LFTCLant. So, I know him fairly well.

I and several others pegged him as a future general when he was nothing but a captain at 8th & I. The smartest, most capable Marine officer I ever met throughout my career. When he made four star he was assigned as  Supreme Allied Commander, Atlantic and Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Command. Consider the significance of that assignment. The first time ever that a non-naval officer was assigned to that billet. He controlled all the  forces, including the navy ships throughout the Atlantic!

General Jack knows his stuff, so I am heartened by the fact he has finally come to life. Someone had  best listen to him, specifically another four star named Berger!

Wasteful Spending, a Shrinking Force and the Marine Corps’s Big Bet

The Marines may be “the only branch adapting fast for the future” (“U.S. Defense After Ukraine,” Review & Outlook, March 8), but what future and how wisely? The military’s poor record of predicting the next war urges maintaining flexibility. This has long been a strength of the Marine Corps, which maintained itself for decades as a combined-arms force in readiness, rapidly deployable, balanced and able to organize for any mission. This has proved its worth to the nation at all levels of crisis and conflict.

Yet today the Marine Corps is betting all on a conflict with China in the Western Pacific, to the neglect of other contingencies, creating littoral regiments to be scattered in small units across island chains to engage Chinese ships with missiles as part of a campaign for sea control. To pay the bill for this new vision of war, the Marine Corps has already got rid of all its tanks. It is reducing cannon artillery from 21 to five active batteries, eliminating three infantry battalions and reducing those remaining by a third in manpower, and reducing air power and other combat support commensurately. The war in Ukraine shows the folly of this. Or should someone tell the Russians and Ukrainians these systems are all obsolete?

These initiatives risk turning the Marine Corps into a niche force optimized for one conflict that is unlikely to occur, while hobbling its ability to meet security challenges that are certain. This is not what the nation needs or expects from its Marine Corps.

Gen. J.J. (Jack) Sheehan, USMC (Ret.)

Alexandria, Va.

Mr. Sheehan was NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic (1994-97). How dare the WSJ refer to this Marine as “Mr.”

Another general speaks out in the same WSJ article.

The editorial board has been right on its defense analysis for months. Now it is correct about our defense-budget outlook, especially the relationship between the creeping inefficiencies that have plagued the Pentagon and our need to modernize.

If Vladimir Putin is successful, he will not stop at Ukraine. Nor will Xi Jinping stop at Taiwan. America must be ready to combat these threats and adjust to the end of the post-Cold War order. That will require more defense spending—a reality that our NATO allies are coming to grasp as well. But if we don’t get more bang for the buck, these spending increases won’t yield the capabilities we need to defend our freedoms, which are at risk.

Though we spend more today in constant dollars than we did at the peak of the Reagan buildup, we have a smaller force by all measures. The largest drivers of this ever-shrinking fighting force are a broken acquisition system that costs more, takes longer and produces less; the excessive amount of money tied up in the Pentagon’s massive, layered overhead and support functions; and the fully burdened and life-cycle costs of the all-volunteer force, with its outdated personnel management, compensation and retirement programs.

Without reforms, we will not improve our capabilities in either the quality or quantity necessary. The Pentagon and Congress need to establish performance goals that ensure we are better, faster and cheaper than our adversaries. The focus needs to be on outputs, not only inputs.

Congress should also fund the government through a regular process instead of the insanity of never-ending continuing resolutions, which already cost the Defense Department close to $40 billion in purchasing power in this fiscal year. The Pentagon and defense-industrial base need steady, predictable funding. Budget chaos is no way to deter our adversaries.

Maj. Gen. Arnold Punaro, USMC (Ret.)

McLean, Va.

Mr. Punaro is author of “The Ever-Shrinking Fighting Force.”

Your editorial observes that President Jimmy Carter “did a 180-degree turn . . . and began a defense buildup.” This is a bit generous. Alarmed by the enormous Soviet military program and the overthrow of the shah, NATO countries agreed to each undertake a 3% increase in real defense spending. Yet when Mr. Carter offered his budget for fiscal year 1980, his defense numbers were closer to half that, which his spokesmen rationalized with the fatuous claim that the part relevant to NATO had met the target.

In the face of this foot-dragging, two “defense Democrats,” Sens. Ernest Hollings and Sam Nunn, took matters into their own hands, introducing an amendment to raise the overall number by 3%, as pledged, and by 5% the next year. The Carter administration lobbied strenuously against this, yet it passed 55-42. This began the buildup that was carried much further by the Reagan administration, contributing to victory in the Cold War.

Joshua Muravchik

Wheaton, Md.

Mr. Muravchik was executive director of the Coalition for a Democratic Majority (1977-79).

STRENGTH    RESPECTS    STRENGTH. Always has, always will, Amen

Originally posted 2022-03-12 10:09:43.

Is it NATO or ATO?

Another informative and thought provoking treatise from my good friend and our Marine Brother. Thank you Greg.

Holding the bag.

By Greg Maresca

While many Americans would have trouble finding Utah on a map, let alone Ukraine, they would equally struggle with the acronym, NATO, that if we are being truthful means: Not Able To Operate (without the U.S.). They need to drop the “N” and make it ATO – American Treaty Organization, a synonym for American expeditionary forces.

NATO was established in 1949 to defend Western Europe from the Soviet Union. Its mission according to the alliance’s first Secretary General, Lord Hastings Ismay, “to keep the Russians out, the Americans in and the Germans down.”

The post-Soviet Union Russia retained its formidable military that includes thousands of nuclear warheads, so disbanding NATO was out of the question. Besides, alliances, like government bureaucracies, rarely disappear. More importantly, peace through strength is no cliché. Tyrants will always exploit weaknesses and it’s naïve to believe otherwise.

In his historic 1796 Farewell Address, George Washington made it clear how he opposed alliances. Defense treaties always work to the advantage of one country and to the disadvantage of another.

The other always being the United States and as the most powerful member we will continue to pay for ensuring its effectiveness.

NATO protects Europeans from having to provide for their own defense. It is a lot easier to let the American taxpayer pick up the tab, while also keeping the sea lanes free and open. Granted, it’s in my interest if my neighbor’s house doesn’t go up in flames. However, that doesn’t mean I must pay his house insurance.

The well-intended but fossilized NATO is more bark than bite when it comes to any support that is not American in origin. Our southern border is under siege but do not count on any NATO member to come to our aid. We can’t even count on some NATO members to vote with us at the United Nations, where we also pay the majority of the U.N.’s bill.

NATO’s first supreme commander, Gen. Eisenhower, said if U.S. troops were still in Europe in 10 years, NATO would be a failure.

Article V of the NATO treaty says any attack on a NATO member will be treated as an attack on all. NATO’s sole Article V intervention was in 2001 in Afghanistan – a long way from Europe and the North Atlantic and its founding objective.

Any member that fails to meet their obligations betrays the alliance by being strategically and ethically negligent and by escalating their dependence on Russian gas and oil only magnifies their irresponsibility.

NATO members prefer to invest in the socialist welfare state than in the necessities of defense where allegiance to the alliance and to one another is debatable. Regarding military contingency, NATO would rather conduct summits where the English would make the reservations, the Germans the strudel and the French hors d’oeuvres. All the while, Uncle Sam does the heavy lifting with the troops, tanks, planes, and ships.

During a Bold Guard/Northern Wedding NATO exercise, the only NATO trooper I interacted with was a drunk Dane who approached our armory of which I was one of two sentries. It is sobering to behold what a sliding bolt can do for the language barrier. I suppose the Carlsberg beer that was three for a dollar was just too good to pass up. The Danes did provide a hot meal in one of their air bases’ chow halls that the salty grunts of the 4th Marine Amphibious Brigade promptly cleaned out to the dismay of our hosts. Without a doubt, Uncle Sam was billed accordingly.

Lack of accountability has bred imprudence like unionized troops throughout NATO. One Air Force captain told of a NATO exercise where he was walking with a couple of Dutch officers when they passed two generals. The Americans saluted, while the Dutch, who were wearing hair nets to cover their shaggy hairdos, waved. The Dutch explained how their union claimed saluting was humiliating.

Yet, historians still debate why it took the Nazi’s four days to eliminate the Dutch from World War II.

If our NATO allies took their defense seriously, they would be a formidable neutralizer to Russia and assuage their reliance upon the U.S., while saving Uncle Sam plenty of money and headaches.

 

Originally posted 2022-03-10 17:04:48.

How Do You Spell Olympics?

Well, are they over? Who won the most gold? Anyone maimed, kidnapped, or killed? No? Shucks. I have no idea as I did not watch one episode, game, or advertisement, which I hear there were very many of them. I did hear something about not knowing who was going to represent who?  Did NBC make any money? I hope not. I watched Netflix and Amazon Prime, they have great movies as well as series. If you haven’t watched Reacher, Ozarks, or 1883, you need to. Anyway, Greg provides somewhat of a recap of the games — should we really be calling them games anymore? Hmm, good question for my watchers. 

 

The indifferent games

By: G. Maresca

 

The television audience for the 2022 Beijing Olympic Winter Games resembled a Joe Biden rally. This is no surprise as the Tokyo Summer Olympic Games made for the worst ratings since NBC first began broadcasting them in 1988.

Running counter to the Olympic spirit, the games have been politically hijacked. The Olympics lost its way after the 1972 Summer Games in Munich, West Germany with the Israeli massacre. The governing body is corruption personified, while half the competing countries use their doped-up athletes as nothing more than public relations fodder.

The latest version provided an international stage for the unholy tripartite of NBC, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and China’s Communist Party (CCP). NBC is a left-wing political subdivision of the Democrat Party. The IOC followed the playbook of the World Health Organization that refused to hold the CCP accountable in the COVID pandemic by allowing them to host the games and ignore their competition rules.

U.S. citizens Eileen Gu and those 16 Americans who played hockey for China is such a violation. Americans competing for any country other than the U.S. is patriotic sacrilege. Perhaps they all need to live the rest of their lives in the Middle Kingdom.

Then there is the 15-year-old Russian skater Kamila Valieva, who was permitted to compete after she failed a drug test. How much was the IOC bribed to award China the games?

China is about slave labor, authoritarian rule, who gave the world COVID-19, while they lied, covered up, and blocked any investigation of the pandemic. Not to mention their repugnant disregard for human rights and international law, while being the foundation of the Biden family fortune. This malfeasance runs counter to good ratings.

Lousy television, debauched politics, cheating in events you have never heard of where officials judge on politics rather than athletic ability sounds like a new Netflix series?

What’s not to like?

The opposite of love is not necessarily hate but indifference. Such indifference was reflected in a poll conducted by the News-Item when nearly two-thirds said they didn’t watch any of the games.

Once upon a time in America, the Olympics were a must watch event where compelling amateurs battled for patriotic glory like in 1980, when the U.S. hockey team prevailed over the Soviets at the height of the Cold War.

Today, multimillion-dollar pro athletes and corporate sponsorships rule the games that are immersed in politics and propaganda and are no longer a welcomed distraction, but a blatant manifestation of them.

Without American broadcast revenue and commercial investment there are no Olympics. All those American woke companies and their media allies dismissed China’s ongoing ethnic genocide.

Moreover, given the assorted internet platforms, it is easier to watch the games piecemeal and at your convenience. That is, if you really care. One friend who actually watched some summarized the games saying, “NBC: Nothing But Commercials.” He also said there was no truth about the U.S. bobsled team naming their sled “Biden” as nothing has gone downhill faster. He admitted that there is only so much curling, skiing and team skating that resembles a roller derby that one can watch that included more than its share of political messaging.

Seeking political direction from athletes and Hollywood is like panning for gold in a dumpster. They need to stay in their lane and entertain and cease the lecturing.

Tonya Harding encouraging our Olympians to “break a leg” was in poor taste but what did you expect? The most telling quote belonged to another skater in 17-year-old Russian Alexandra Trusova, who won silver saying: “I hate this sport!”

She should be awarded gold for most honest.

Why not give the next winter games to Russia who could host them in Siberia where the skiers could do their thing between the gulags. What about having the Mexican drug cartels host? At least, the cartels’ body count is less than the CCP and they have more money.

It is long past time for the Olympics to find a permanent site for the summer and winter games where random and independent supervised drug testing is the norm.

Until then, you can continue to spell Olympics: C-O-R-R-U-P-T.

Originally posted 2022-02-24 10:39:20.