Peter

I got to thinking about kindergarten kids in a submarine, and Charley Harper's, kid's song from the TV show "Two and a Half Men" came to mind: Who cut the cheese, who cut the cheese??

EU countries agree on a new package of Russia sanctions over the war in Ukraine Yesterday 10:27 AM European Union countries Wednesday agreed on a new package of sanctions on Russia for its war against Ukraine. Sweden, which currently holds the rotating EU presidency, said that the package includes individuals to be penalized and measures aimed at countering sanctions-circumvention. Details of the measures will be unveiled later this week when the sanctions are officially adopted by written procedure. The EU has previously imposed 10 rounds of sanctions on Russia since President Vladimir Putin ordered his forces into Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022. Banks, companies and markets have been hit, as well as parts of the sensitive energy sector. More than 1,000 officials are subject to asset freezes and travel bans. Much work has involved closing loopholes so that goods vital to Putin’s war effort don't get through. From Huff Post England. Vladimir Finally Admits What We've Always Known About His Ukraine Invasion Story by Kate Nicholson • Yesterday 8:25 AM . . . . It was widely thought that Putin was trying to avoid mobilising the general public for battle by describing his invasion of Ukraine as a “special military operation” – – so the brutality of the battlefield would remain far away from the lives of the regular Russians. A “special military operation” also suggested that it would be an easily won offensive, needing just specialised soldiers. He also claimed Russia was acting defensively against the expansion of NATO and made the baseless allegation that Kyiv needed liberating from the “Nazis” running the government . . . .

That is an interesting theory. From an Alt News source, America is supporting Nazi’s and bio labs. Harrumph! Be sure to read number 4. I know, I know, Ukraine somehow initiated the force used against themselves. How quaint. Remember that Kingston Trio hit, “Where have all the flowers and rational thinkers, gone?” From a Roger Bissell letter: Later, in 1962, in her column "Introducing Objectivism," Rand gave "the briefest summary" of her philosophy: 1. Reality exists as an objective absolute--facts are facts, independent of man's feelings, wishes, hopes or fears. 2. Reason (the faculty which identifies and integrates the material provided by man's senses) is man's only means of perceiving reality, his only source of knowledge, his only guide to action, and his basic means of survival. 3. Man--every man--is an end in himself, not the means t the ends of others. He must exist for his own sake, neither sacrificing himself to others nor sacrificing others to himself. The pursuit of his own ~rational~ self-interest and of his own happiness is the highest moral purpose of his life. 4. The ideal political-economic system is ~laissez-faire~ capitalism. It is a system where men deal with one another, not as victims and executioners, nor as masters and slaves, but as ~traders~, by free, voluntary exchange to mutual benefit. it is a system where no man may obtain any values from others by resorting to physical force, and ~no man may initiate the use of physical force against others~. The government acts only as a policeman that protects man's rights; it uses physical force ~only~ in retaliation and ~only~ against those who initiate its use, such as criminals or foreign invaders. In a system of full capitalism, there should be (but, historically, has not yet been) a complete separation of state and economics, in the same way and for the same reasons as the separation of state and church.

You shot my neighbor. You shot my wife. You shot me, Russia . . . Soooo. Ukraine is the villain?

I looked for any of my old references concerning “grudges” or “holding a grudge.” Why do we hold a grudge? I couldn’t find much or anything “deep.” But how many times in your life have you considered something like, “Hah! Now’s my chance to get even.” Peter Years ago, I wrote to a now vanished site: However, why is anyone on Atlantis? To be with like-minded people, to not be alone, to gossip, to fuss with people and to settle old grudges, to learn, to contribute to every Objectivist's general knowledge, and to contribute to Consensus Objectivist Positions (If there can be such a thing.) I wrote to Rush Limbaugh about a Presidential primary race: The voting booth is such a private place. It’s a place where grudges can be settled. It’s a place where a woman can be as powerful as a man. It’s a place a woman can change the world for the better. McCain has the man’s vote. The women’s vote will decide the race. From: Hllw To: objectivism . . . . Palestinians demonstrated against Egypt and Israel under similar circumstances. The Egyptians showed up with trucks, opened machine guns, and massacred the demonstrators. The Israelis tried to understand their grievances. The Palestinians harbored no ill will toward the Egyptians, but complained bitterly about the insufficient concessions granted by the Israelis. (Similarly, the Palestinians harbored no grudge against the Jordanians for the massacre of Black September.) If you were a Palestinian, who would you demonstrate against and condemn? I wrote about then candidate Donald Trump: . . . I think Nathaniel Brandon termed it *psychologizing,* and like *profiling* it is not an exact science but only a guessing tool. What kind of a person is Donald Trump? He is a builder. He accumulates wealth. He likes the limelight and being larger than life. He uses people. Sometimes he admits to his faults, displays his true virtues, or exaggerates his virtues. He is not articulate about political philosophy. He vilifies anyone who opposes him and he carries a grudge.

Strictly Logical quoted “whether genuine, rhetorical, Socratic, or Sarcastic, "Russia is evil for invading Ukraine,” That is my un-sarcastic stance. Russia initiated force, even though there are some bad citizens of Ukraine. I think we should give some moral or material support for the victim, even if it is NOT with our military. Some background for that view? Peter 2004/ Liberty & Power: Group Blog Peter Schwartz and the Abandonment of Rand’s Radical Legacy, Part I Introduction. For several years now, I’ve been engaged in a critique of the foreign policy writings of various Objectivists, who, I believe, have abandoned Ayn Rand’s radical insights on the nature of U.S. politics. For those who are not Ayn Rand fans or who don’t care one iota what Objectivists have to say on U.S. foreign policy, this week’s five-part series (which begins today) might not provide the requisite excitement. But for those readers who are classical liberals and libertarians, and who see, on a daily basis, the erosion of the noninterventionist tradition of liberalism, this series will have some merit. Suffice it to say: In fighting for Rand’s radical legacy, I’m fighting simultaneously for that noninterventionist tradition that stands opposed to the welfare-warfare state, while seeking to comprehend the inextricable relationship between the “welfare” and the “warfare” part of that equation. “Man’s Rights,” The Virtue of Selfishness, 96. . . . Any undertaking that involves more than one man, requires the voluntary consent of every participant. Every one of them has the right to make his own decision, but none has the right to force his decision on the others. end quote In Rand’s article, "The Left: Old and New" in The New Left: The Anti-Industrial Revolution, [p. 89] Ayn Rand wrote: In regard to the political principle involved: if a man creates a physical danger or harm to others, which extends beyond the line of his own property, such as unsanitary conditions or even loud noise, and if this is *proved*, the law can and does hold him responsible. If the condition is collective, such as in an overcrowded city, appropriate and *objective* laws can be defined, protecting the rights of all those involved -- as was done in the case of oil rights, air-space rights, etc." end quote In “What Is Capitalism?” Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal Ayn Rand wrote: The institution of private property, in the full, legal meaning of the term, was brought into existence only by capitalism. In the pre-capitalist eras, private property existed de facto, but not de jure, i.e., by custom and sufferance, not by right or by law. end quote From Rand’s address to West point’s graduating class: , , , , You have chosen to risk your lives for the defense of this country. I will not insult you by saying that you dedicated to selfless service - it is not a virtue in my morality. In my morality, the defense of one's country means that a man is personally unwilling to live as the conquered slave of any enemy, foreign or domestic. THIS is an enormous virtue. Some of you may not be consciously aware of it. I want to help you to realize it. The army of a free country has a great responsibility: the right to use force, but not as an instrument of compulsion and brute conquest - as the army of other countries has done their histories - only as an instrument of a free nation's self-defense, which means: the defense of a man's individual rights. The principle of using force only in retaliation against those who initiate its use, is the principle of subordinating might to right. The highest integrity and sense of honor are required for such a task. No other army in the world has achieved it. You have. West Point has given America a long line of heroes, known and unknown. You, this years graduates, have a glorious tradition to carry on - which I admire profoundly, not because it is a tradition, but because it IS glorious. Since I came from a country guilty of the worst tyranny on earth, I am particularly able to appreciate the meaning, the greatness and the supreme value of that which you are defending. So, in my own name and in the name of many people who think as I do, I want to say, to all the men of West Point, past, present, and future: Thank you. end quote

I think Nazi’s or anyone who wants to do away with America and the U.S. Constitution are traitors. I am still dwelling on the idea that Russia is evil for invading Ukraine, and correspondingly, Ukraine is evil for being invaded. Here are a few off the wall, thoughts I jotted down years ago and I think I posted them on Objectivist Living. Peter Setting someone off. Telling someone something horribly true or even fictitious, in the expectation that they will become violent. Or convincing someone to act in a violent manner, or to harm themselves. Setting an evil plot into motion that will not conclude until after you are dead. Philosophically Rand stated that Kant was evil, though, his “plot” came to fruition after his death. What if you fired a ‘slow bullet’ that would not kill until after you were dead? Is it the thought that counts? People who ACT ON, or promote wrong ideas are very wrong and / or evil in a moral sense, to varying degrees of severity. I think the idea of a sliding scale of wrongness or evilness is important, because of the way we should treat these people. A simple advocacy of a wrong position could be considered evil. The initiation of force is always evil. People who ACT ON ideas that do not correspond to the facts of reality are very wrong and/or evil in a moral sense, to a much greater degree, if they violate the rights of others through the initiation of force or acts of coercion.

Thanks Michael. This site is working just fine again.

Maybe for an ABBA reunion. I saw they were going to have an ABBA tribute band locally, but I probably won't go. My wife and family recently saw a Marty Stuart show, but I doubt anyone in Canada knows who he is, plus you spell favorite with a "u." joke.

Not I. Not me. I don't think that laddie. At least OL hasn't been hacked by Russians. I think.

Weird logic? Putin is wrong for invading Ukraine, but some Ukrainians have done some bad things, therefor they ALL deserve to be invaded and murdered. Putin is justified in killing Ukrainians and in committing war crimes because that is the way of the world. And don’t forget about “original sin.” All Ukrainians should be punished for every wrong they ever did going back to World War 2, therefor Vlad is justified in giving them their ‘comeuppance.” Putin is wrong for invading Ukraine, but Ukraine is equally wrong for being invaded.

Ah. Somebody embezzled, so they and all the innocents around them must die: Vlad the Impaler Putin: “They made me do it. I had to initiate force and kill them, but I call it retaliation, because they were so mean. And now to all of you fans of genocide I sing to you: Having my baby What a lovely way of saying How much you love me Having my baby What a lovely way of saying What you're thinking of me I can see it Face is glowing I can see in your eyes I'm happy you know it

William wrote, long ago, "It's not the iPad's fault." OL was behaving erratically and slowly for me, until a couple of hours ago. When I shut all other portals up on my machine like "files" suddenly OL started working at its usual speed. On an unrelated note, Powerball's take home after taxes, now exceeds 100 million dollars.

Maybe President Trump could flip the following story? From GREAT AMERICAN DAILY: The campaign-in-waiting scheduled two successful visits to Iowa and New Hampshire — home of the first two nominating contests — that received positive media coverage. And DeSantis’s allies sought to present the image of an inevitable nominee by floating the idea of picking Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders as his vice-presidential running mate.

I quote from Eyal Mozes’ critique of The Structure of Liberty: Justice and the Rule of Law, by Randy E. Barnett. But granted ethics and rights are two distinct issues, what is the relation between them? Objectivist value theory approaches the question of rights by establishing the importance of rationality, independence, and productivity. Specifically, it demonstrates that to live man must guide his actions by his independent, rational thinking, using it to produce the resources he needs to survive. The basic social requirement of man's survival, therefore, is that other people not prevent him from acting rationally, independently, and productively. Fundamentally, the only danger to man's ability to act in this way is the possibility that some other person will initiate physical force against him. Rights are therefore justified as the principles on which society must be organized to fulfill the basic social requirement: to preserve man's ability to act rationally, independently, and productively by protecting him from the initiation of force. Thus, in the logical structure of Objectivism, rights come later than ethics and are based on it. In the words of Ayn Rand, rights are "the concept that preserves and protects individual morality in a social context-the link between the moral code of a man and the legal code of a society, between ethics and politics." (Ayn Rand, "Man's Rights," The Virtue of Selfishness, paperback edition, p. 92.) end quote So, I agree with the following. “Fundamentally, the only danger to man's ability to act in this way is the possibility that some other person will initiate physical force against him.” In Ukraine, who or what entity ‘initiated force?” Who or what entity is continuing to “initiate force?” Peter

The 2024 Republican Presidential Nomination from Real Clear Politics. Trump 53 percent. DeSantis 17. Pence 6. Scott 4. Hailey 3. Ramaswamy 2. Christie 2. Youngkin and Hutchinson 1. Bergum 0. Aaaand, Elder, less than zero. Miami Mayor Suarez, less than zero. Joke. I suppose they could be running for Veep. Quote. “We’re not going to let all this power accumulate in Washington, we’re going to break up these agencies,” DeSantis said during a private strategy session over the weekend, excerpts of which were obtained exclusively by RCP. He vowed in that call to order “some of the problematic components of the DOJ” be uprooted, reorganized, and then promptly “shipped to other parts of the country.” end quote Maybe DeSantis can ship it a U.S. territory? From Wikipedia: The U.S. has five permanently inhabited territories: Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands in the Caribbean Sea, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands in the North Pacific Ocean, and American Samoa in the South Pacific Ocean. end quote Where would you send the corrupt DOJ?

Kellyanne Conway: There is no vaccine for Trump Derangement Syndrome.

This is not good. Putin is screwing up badly and he needs a diversion. But any diversion with America could cost him his life. He would be one of the first targets if we nuke and destroy Russia in retaliation. Peter Air Force F-22s Head to Middle East Amid Spike in Russian 'Unprofessional Behavior' Thomas Novelly Wed, June 14, 2023 at 3:40 PM EDT The Air Force is deploying F-22 Raptors to U.S. Central Command's area of responsibility -- ranging from the Middle East to central and south Asia -- as Russian continues to provoke American jets as well as allies and partners in the area. Deployment of the F-22s from the 94th Fighter Squadron out of Langley Air Force Base in Virginia was announced in a Central Command press release Wednesday. Officials said it is in direct response to "increasingly unsafe and unprofessional behavior by Russian aircraft" in the area. The number of F-22s being sent to the region was not announced. "Russian Forces' unsafe and unprofessional behavior is not what we expect from a professional air force," Gen. Erik Kurilla, head of U.S. Central Command, said in the release. "Their regular violation of agreed-upon airspace deconfliction measures increases the risk of escalation or miscalculation."

I was exaggerating, but the totaled jail time was 400 years, or was it 40, in one news story? I thought that was so outrageous I threw in the idiocy of the death penalty as an outcome. I also agree with Michael about Trump and MAGA being stronger than ever and to some extent it is because of the persecution of President Trump.

I haven’t watched a John Wayne movie in a while, but I remember it was better the second time around. And he was one of Rand’s favorite stars. I looked for any of my references to The Duke and I only found two. Peter I wrote about a Lee Child “Jack Reacher” movie: Tom Cruise is an odd choice to play him because his physical presence is such a necessary part of his character. The script would need to start by showing Tom Cruise as a person who is overwhelmingly deadly, not from a kung foo, Jackie Chan way, but with a “John Wayne” incident where he physically overcomes a large, villainous person, preferably a man and not Janet Napolitano. I also wrote about my life as a Navy Brat: Our Naval Captain Bulkeley, who wrote the book "They Were Expendable”, (made into a movie starring John Wayne) which was about his exploits as a PT Boat Captain during WWII outranked Colonel Samuelson by two days and did not like the marines meddling into the Navy's business . . . .

I am not sad but darn, this is a sad song. I condensed it so some lyrics are missing. Peter Eddy Arnold. Make the world go away And get it off my shoulders Say the things you used to say And make the world go away Do you remember when you loved me Before the world took me astray? If you do, then forgive me And make the world go away . . . I'm sorry if I hurt you I'll make it up day by day Just say you love me like you used to And make the world go away . . . Say the things you used to say And make the world go away

This was definitely not your regular Tom Hanks movie, but I enjoyed it. From Wikipedia: News of the World is a 2020 American Western film co-written and directed by Paul Greengrass, based on the 2016 novel of the same name by Paulette Jiles, and starring Tom Hanks and Helena Zengel. The film follows an aging Civil War veteran who must return a young girl who was taken in by the Kiowa, and raised as one of them, to her last remaining family. She has lost both her birth and Kiowa families.

I wonder if the Florida governor will take up the MAGA movement? I just got this from Ron DeSantis: . . . I believe in this American Greatness, FNAME. I’ve spent my life fighting for it. Long before I was elected governor, I served our nation in Iraq as a JAG officer in support of SEAL Team 1. Having seen what the attacks of September 11th did to our country, I felt a responsibility to do my part to help at a time of struggle. So I served. end quote Wow. I didn’t know he was in the Navy. Any ideas on what FNAME means? Apparently, Biden is trying to outdo Chairman Mao. Former President Trump could receive 400 years in prison, but they’ve taken the death penalty off the table.

Marc also wrote: Now if they can only count them correctly, would'nt you agree Peter as you have always stated that we should focus on 2024. One big question I have is, why are so many Republicans running against President Trump? Maybe they had more than a hint about what was coming from the DOJ, or maybe some are running for VP? These charges are either bogus or real. And now as an added bonus about one of Canada’s products, syrup. Charlie Waffles theme song. Charlie [singing]: I drink from a sippy cup, sippy cup, sippy cup, I drink from a sippy cup 'cause I'm a big kid now, Bye-bye boobies, bye-bye boobies bye-bye boobies 'cause I'm a big kid now! TV commercial: Call now and you'll also receive a bonus Charlie Waffles scratch and sniff poster! It smells just like maple syrup!

It’s been a bad week with the wild fires from up north. I can barely step outside and come back in . . . and then I sneeze and wheeze. Peter. Who’s at fault? Robin Williams - Blame Canada (Live at The Oscars 1999) Time's have changed Our kids are getting worse They won't obey their parents They just want to fart and curse Should we blame the government? Or blame society? Or should we blame the images on TV? No, blame Canada, blame Canada With all their beady little eyes And flappin' heads so full of lies Blame Canada, blame Canada We need to form a full assault It's Canada's fault