Another Sedona Photo.
And:
Dorian update: http://www.enkiops.org/blog/20
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Israel wants to avoid war with Hezbollah but not at all cost and therefore, is also prepared to eliminate their ability to attack. (See 1 and 1a below.)
And:
Secret mole was involved in Stuxnet operation. (See 1b below.)
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I have long maintained a solid public education teaching students to reason is the strongest foundation on which to build and keep our Republic safe and thriving.
Because we have destroyed our education system, because we have allowed PC'ism to dictate our societal direction and have lowered our guard in a variety of ways it is little wonder we have begun to flounder as a united nation.
In time, Sharia Law may even be allowed to corrupt our legal system, open borders and illegal immigration will destroy our unity and entitlements and forgiving legal obligations could become common place.
This is what those in the ranks of the Democrat Party are selling because the radicals, who have taken over the party, want to destroy America and, in the process, bring chaos to the world.
There are many ways to accomplish these nefarious goals. Disconnecting from a higher being, demeaning everything that has served us well, attacking our Constitution are simply paths toward self-destruction.
There are many ways to accomplish these nefarious goals. Disconnecting from a higher being, demeaning everything that has served us well, attacking our Constitution are simply paths toward self-destruction.
Yes, a dour message but also explains why resistance to Trump's desire to rectify wrong trade policies is being resisted among other efforts. China remains the greatest external threat to our nation as well as all world democracies. American's growing inability/unwillingness to recognize the benefits of our system will destroy us from within.
Consequently, Trump's re-election is critical. Not because he is presidential in an orthodox sense, not because of his disturbing personal attributes but simply because he understands the threats, is willing to act and is not driven by politics but by a clear vision of the threats we face that predecessors were willing to overlook.
Is my somber outlook justified? You decide.
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Is my somber outlook justified? You decide.
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Commentary from other fellow memo readers:
gee note :interesting that my democrat friends appear to have no fear of who the eventual candidate may be. they hate trump and would vote for a platypus. (See 2 below.)
And:
And:
"Dick, excellent summary on economy & market. I have one other thought on that. At one extreme we have Unicorns funded by VC that are rushing to come
public before the gate closes.......some of these are good businesses, others are not. The valuations are generally quite high, and Silicon Valley optimism,
at least for now, remains bullish. At the other extreme, surveys indicate the typical individual investor is actually cautious/gloomy, and mutual fund flows are awful,
as they have been for some time. I think the pessimism by individual investors is because many stocks in industries like retailing, finance, energy, and
materials have been and continue to be in very severe bear markets. In many cases the valuations of these stocks are compelling even thought the overall
market indices remain near recent highs. So, this is similar to the situation in 1999. A recession would clear the air, push highly valued stocks down, and reset
the clock for a strong market wherein all stocks would participate. That said, we don't "need" to have a recession, but we could get one simply by continuing to
yak, yak, yak about it. Kind of like getting a cold because you have convinced yourself you feel sick.
Access Islam is a travesty. Your Bible, the Old Testament, says there is only one true God. And He created the universe and everything in it. So my suggestion,
as a practicing Christian, is why don't we have a program called "Access God"? Answer: separation of church & state. Well, if we promote Islam, then the separation
is being violated and we are simply being manipulated by these forces of Evil. This cannot come to a good end, as Sodom & Gomorrah learned. By the way, as you
probably know, they have done archeaological work at those sites and determined they were in fact destroyed by fire which came down vertically on the towns.
Probably something like a volcanic eruption. And it was, IMO, caused by God, not by "Mother Nature" as the Weather Channel calls her.
Which leads me to close with this hope: Hope you all stay very safe from Dorian, just saw the mayor of Savannah on TV and he said don't take it lightly.
- B--"
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Good news from Ordman and Israel. (See 3 edited below.)
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Our plan is to leave this evening or tomorrow morning and wait out Dorian in Savannah at Lynn's cousin's condo. Be safe.
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Dick
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Good news from Ordman and Israel. (See 3 edited below.)
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Our plan is to leave this evening or tomorrow morning and wait out Dorian in Savannah at Lynn's cousin's condo. Be safe.
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Dick
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1) Israel called off devastating strike on Hezbollah, says IDF source
Israeli planes had reportedly already taken flight and were prepared to crush Hezbollah’s missile program, but the strike was called off when the terror group’s attack on Sunday caused no casualties.
By World Israel News Staff
One day after Hezbollah fired anti-tank missiles at Israeli positions near the Lebanese border, the Israeli military revealed that it was ready to deliver a decisive blow to the terror group’s missile program, according to report by a Channel 12 News.
The IDF sources that relayed the information to Channel 12 claimed that IAF fighter jets had taken flight on Sunday to initiate the counter-strike, but were sent back to Israeli territory when Hezbollah’s attack on Israel failed to cause any casualties.
According to Israeli officials, the terror group’s inability to inflict damage on Israeli positions “saved” Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah from Israel “crushing Hezbollah’s rocket project.” According to the quoted officials, the Israeli jets were armed and ready to strike Hezbollah facilities in Lebanon.
On Monday, Israeli officials also announced that Lebanese Prime Minisiter Saad Hariri contacted France, Egypt and the United States after the confrontation on Israel’s border to communicate that Hezbollah sought to avoid any further escalation.
Hariri took action after Israel launched around 100 shells at targets in Lebanon in retaliation for Hezbollah’s strike.
“The bottom line is that Hezbollah sent us messages to hold our fire,” said an Israeli official quoted by Times of Israel.
According to the Times, the same official implicitly took credit on Israel’s behalf for recent strikes in Iraq, Lebanon, and Syria that had been pinned on Israel.
All of these strikes involved factions and proxies backed by Iran.
“We were in simultaneous attack mode in multiple places,” the official stated.
On Monday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a video statement, directly referencing Hezbollah terror chief Nasrallah, stating, “The man in the bunker in Beirut knows exactly why he is in a bunker.”
“We will continue to do everything necessary to keep Israel safe — at sea, on the ground and in the air — and we will continue to confront the threat of precision missiles,” Netanyahu added.
1a) Netanyahu: Nasrallah knows exactly why he's in the bunker
Israel will continue to take action against the threat of precision-guided missiles, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warns Hezbollah leader.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed on Monday Hezbollah's anti-tank missile attack on Israeli forces near Avivim on the northern border, and said that Israel was determined to take action against anything that threatened it.
In a short video, Netanyahu warned Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah that Israel had "operated with determination and responsibility. We protected the safety of our citizens and the lives of our soldiers. The man in the bunker in Beirut knows exactly why he's in a bunker."
"We will continue to do what we need to do to protect Israel's security – at sea, on land, and in the air, and we will also continue to take action against the threat of precision-guided missiles," Netanyahu added.
Nasrallah himself was expected to speak about Sunday's events in an address Monday evening. Earlier Monday, Lebanese media outlets reported that Hezbollah was claiming it had footage that disproved Israel's reports that no Israeli soldiers or civilians had been wounded in the missile attack.
The Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Manar television station reported that a Hezbollah official had informed them that the footage would be made public "at the appropriate time."
Reports in Israel said that as part of Sunday's clash on the border, the IDF had staged an evacuation to make Hezbollah think that soldiers had been wounded. On Monday, an Israeli security official said that deceptive tactics were part of warfare, and that it was impossible for Israel to keep reports of wounded secret in events when they occur.
1b)Secret Dutch mole aided Stuxnet attack on Iran's nuke program – report
Later rounds of cyberattacks on Iran's nuclear program did not require the operative's physical presence in Natantz, but his initial intelligence and physical presence provided the basis for Stuxnet's success.++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
2)
3)
1b)Secret Dutch mole aided Stuxnet attack on Iran's nuke program – report
By YONAH JEREMY BOB
An Iranian mole recruited by Dutch intelligence was the US and Israel's (according to foreign sources) key to installing the Stuxnet virus on Iran's nuclear centrifuges in Natantz, according to a report Monday by Yahoo News.
The Stuxnet virus ruined around 2,000 Iranian centrifuges, delaying its uranium enrichment plans by as many as a couple of years according to analysts.
Many say that this additional time bought by multiple rounds of sabotage in the 2008-2010 time frame provided pressure and space to get the Iranians to negotiate over their nuclear program, eventually resulting in the 2015 nuclear deal.
The report said that according to multiple sources, the courier behind the intrusion into Natanz, whose existence and role had not been previously reported, was a mole recruited by Dutch intelligence agents at the behest of the CIA and the Mossad.
An Iranian engineer recruited by Dutch intelligence agency AIVD, noted four intelligence sources in the report, provided critical data that helped the US developers target their cyberattack code to the systems at Natantz.
That mole then either inserted a USB flash drive with the virus into Iranian systems (since the systems were not connected to the internet) or manipulated another person working at Natanz into doing so.
The report said that two of the three participating countries along with the central players – the US and Israel – were the Netherlands and Germany. It said that the third is believed to be France, although UK intelligence also allegedly played a role.
It has been previously reported that Germany contributed technical specifications and knowledge about the industrial control systems made by the German firm Siemens, which were used in the Iranian plant to control the spinning centrifuges. The report said that France is believed to have provided similar intelligence.
But, the Dutch, according to the report, were in a unique position to deliver key intelligence about Iran’s activities to procure equipment from Europe for its illicit nuclear program and about the centrifuges themselves.
This was because the centrifuges at Natantz were based on designs stolen from a Dutch company in the 1970s by Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan, who used them for Pakistan’s nuclear program, and in order to help Iran and Libya.
Over the course of years of negotiations, the CIA and the Mossad convinced the Dutch and their operative to cooperate and be their man in Natantz as they developed the cyber weapon that would make history.
The Stuxnet virus ruined around 2,000 Iranian centrifuges, delaying its uranium enrichment plans by as many as a couple of years according to analysts.
Many say that this additional time bought by multiple rounds of sabotage in the 2008-2010 time frame provided pressure and space to get the Iranians to negotiate over their nuclear program, eventually resulting in the 2015 nuclear deal.
The report said that according to multiple sources, the courier behind the intrusion into Natanz, whose existence and role had not been previously reported, was a mole recruited by Dutch intelligence agents at the behest of the CIA and the Mossad.
An Iranian engineer recruited by Dutch intelligence agency AIVD, noted four intelligence sources in the report, provided critical data that helped the US developers target their cyberattack code to the systems at Natantz.
That mole then either inserted a USB flash drive with the virus into Iranian systems (since the systems were not connected to the internet) or manipulated another person working at Natanz into doing so.
The report said that two of the three participating countries along with the central players – the US and Israel – were the Netherlands and Germany. It said that the third is believed to be France, although UK intelligence also allegedly played a role.
It has been previously reported that Germany contributed technical specifications and knowledge about the industrial control systems made by the German firm Siemens, which were used in the Iranian plant to control the spinning centrifuges. The report said that France is believed to have provided similar intelligence.
But, the Dutch, according to the report, were in a unique position to deliver key intelligence about Iran’s activities to procure equipment from Europe for its illicit nuclear program and about the centrifuges themselves.
This was because the centrifuges at Natantz were based on designs stolen from a Dutch company in the 1970s by Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan, who used them for Pakistan’s nuclear program, and in order to help Iran and Libya.
Over the course of years of negotiations, the CIA and the Mossad convinced the Dutch and their operative to cooperate and be their man in Natantz as they developed the cyber weapon that would make history.
2)
Socialist Scenario May Pose Risk For Democrats
By IRA STOLL, Special to The SunCall it the socialist scenario — the risk that Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren could combine forces to defeat Joseph Biden in the Democratic primary.
The RealClearPolitics polling averages have Biden leading Sanders and Warren nationally and in the early-voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire. These same polls, though, show the “not Biden” vote represented by Senators Sanders and Warren to be larger than the level of support for Vice President Biden.
If that vote were combined rather than split, the socialist scenario suggests, it could result in a Democratic presidential nominee who is either openly socialist, like Senator Sanders, or an ideological ally of Mr. Sanders, like Mrs. Warren, who says she is a capitalist but who is campaigning with a call for an annual wealth tax and for what she calls “big, structural change.”
The possibility is generating concern from Americans who are more cautious about “big, structural change.” The concern is heightened because Mr. Biden is old enoughthat he can seem vulnerable rather than inevitable.
As is often the case with socialism, however, the fantasy is some distance from reality. The primary campaigns of the previous presidential cycle are familiar precedents and somewhat reassuring ones, at least for those who aren’t enthusiasts of either Mr. Sanders or Mrs. Warren.
On the Republican side in 2016, the fact that there were more “not Trump” voters than Trump voters wasn’t ever enough to stop Mr. Trump; the “not Trump” vote was fractured among a variety of candidates such as Governor Jeb Bush and Senators Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, just as the “not Biden” vote is currently split. The way these contests are structured, with a large field of candidates, you don’t really need a majority, just a strong plurality, at least until the nominating convention.
On the Democratic side in 2016, Mr. Sanders drew a lot of votes in 2016, too — 43%, by one incomplete count cited by Wikipedia. Yet in 2016, the socialist opposition wasn’t enough to defeat the establishment front-runner, who in 2016 was not Vice President Biden but Secretary of State Clinton. It’s not clear that the Democratic primary electorate has moved so far left since 2016 that re-running a similar experiment with Mr. Sanders in 2020 will produce appreciably different results than it did in 2016.
It is hard to imagine Mr. Sanders endorsing Mrs. Warren until and unless Mrs. Warren defeats him consistently and by a significant margin in several early states. Similarly, it’s difficult to see what Mrs. Warren would get from throwing her support to Mr. Sanders.Even if Mrs. Warren were promised the vice presidency on a Sanders-Warren ticket, Democratic voters who are excited by her might be dismayed to see a woman of color — if you credit Warren’s claim to Native American ancestry — stepping aside to play a merely supporting role. Mrs. Warren herself might resist the idea and prefer to persist in the quest to make history as the first woman president.
Even if Mr. Sanders or Mrs. Warren somehow managed to win the Democratic nomination, they’d have to defeat President Trump actually to make it to the presidency. That wouldn’t be easy. An incumbent president running for reelection hasn’t been defeated since Bill Clinton beat George H.W. Bush in 1992. Trump will seize the opportunity to define his opponents: “crazy Bernie,” “Pocahontas.”
Even if Senators Sanders or Warren somehow did manage to defeat Mr. Trump and win election as president of America, the former Burlington, Vermont, mayor or the former Harvard law professor would have a hard time fully implementing a socialist or “big structural change” program in a system that requires 60 Senate votes for a lot of legislation.
President Trump ran promising to build a border wall and repeal ObamaCare. He has done neither, despite having Republican control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate for his first two years. Not that Mr. Trump hasn’t accomplished anything at all. He has done a lot. Senators Sanders or Warren would probably do a lot, too, if either one became president. It’s just that Washington has a way of stalling ambitious plans.That reality may, paradoxically, account for some of the support out there for Senators Warren and Sanders. If voters really thought these candidates were going to implement their programs fully, the voters might be more hesitant. By the time Sanders-style socialism or Mrs. Warren’s “big, structural change” finally make it through the Washington compromise meat-grinder, they might eventually wind up looking less revolutionary and more incremental.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++It’s not a risk I’m eager to take. It may not be a risk that the majority of the Democratic Party is willing to take. Trump sympathizers may be consoled that some of the same factors — Congress, the “deep state” bureaucracy, entrenched special interests — that have hampered President Trump could provide some brakes or guardrails if the socialist scenario comes to pass and Mr. Sanders or Mrs. Warren wind up in the Oval Office.
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