The John Batchelor Show

Episodes

• 1037: Aggregating talk of POTUS Biden's "Uncivil War." @anewcivilwar Clifford Humprey Juan Davalos @JHUWorldCrisis

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  Jan 23 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1916. The remains of the Dublin Bread Company at 6-7 Lower Sackville Street (now O'Connell Street) after the Easter Rising in 1916...Date: Definitely May 1916, if not the very end of April..NLI Ref.: KE 115 ( http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000030311 ) http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowAggregating talk of POTUS Biden's "Uncivil War."  @anewcivilwar Clifford Humprey Juan Davalos @JHUWorldCrisishttps://www.anewcivilwar.com ...more

  Episode

• 1037: Blinken signs on to Pompeo's condemnation of the PRC for the Uyghur "genocide." @JoshRogin @WashingtonPost

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  Jan 23 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1893. Pakistan from "Where Three Empires Meet: a narrative of recent travel in Kashmir, Western Tibet, Gilgit, and the adjoining countries ... With a map and 54 illustrations"  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowBlinken signs on to Pompeo's condemnation of the PRC for the Uyghur "genocide."  @JoshRogin @WashingtonPosthttps://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/china-threw-down-the-gauntlet-to-the-biden-team-on-day-one/2021/01/21/2e5a84a8-5c24-11eb-a976-bad6431e03e2_story.html ...more

  Episode

• 1037: Biden cancels three Trump regulations directed at Executive employees. @FROSEDC @WJLA

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  Jan 23 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1922. Striking Seamen naps as mates picket Commerce Department. Washington, D.C. Jan. 18. Tired and weary this striking seaman found the running board of a nearby auto a comfortable place to sleep as his mates picketed the Commerce Department today as a protest against provisions of the Copeland Safety-At-Sea Act  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowBiden cancels three Trump regulations directed at Executive employees. @FROSEDC @WJLAhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/biden-trump-federal-employees/2021/01/22/41078848-5cca-11eb-8bcf-3877871c819d_story.html One of three orders issued by President Donald Trump on the same day in 2018, though, said that negotiations “often make it harder for agencies to reward high performers, hold low-performers accountable, or flexibly respond to operational needs.”...more

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• 1037: Big government is mostly a vaccine-miss in Big Blue States such as NY, CA, IL. @DanHenninger @WSJOpinion

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  Jan 23 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1940.Under the elevated tracks. Chicago, Illinois  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowBig government is mostly a vaccine-miss in Big Blue States such as NY, CA, IL. @DanHenninger @WSJOpinionhttps://www.wsj.com/articles/joe-bidens-super-state-https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#search/jeff.bliss1%40gmail.com/WhctKJWJLhPtDVjssDstpxCzkJvbwXXbWVtqFHdBVJQqVVJdbrGcxPsVTLjbhNMThGdgFRb11611183563https://www.chicagotribune.com/coronavirus/ct-illinois-nursing-home-vaccination-delay-20210123-dz7lvyqt5vhuzh2jrzudevhlwu-story.html. ...more

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• 1040: 4/8 Sicily '43: The First Assault on Fortress Europe, by James Holland

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  Jan 23 2021

  Image:  Aerican crew checks their Sherman tank after landing at Red Beach 2, Sicily, 10 July.  Sicily '43: The First Assault on Fortress Europe,by James HollandOn July 10, 1943, the largest amphibious invasion ever mounted took place, larger even than the Normandy invasion eleven months later: 160,000 American, British, and Canadian troops came ashore or were parachuted onto Sicily, signaling the start of the campaign to defeat Nazi Germany on European soil. Operation HUSKY, as it was known, was enormously complex, involving dramatic battles on land, in the air, and at sea. Yet, despite its paramount importance to ultimate Allied victory, and its drama, very little has been written about the 38-day Battle for Sicily.Based on his own battlefield studies in Sicily and on much new research, James Holland’s Sicily ’43 offers a vital new perspective on a major turning point in World War II and a chronicle of a multi-pronged campaign in a uniquely diverse and contained geographical location. The characters involved―Generals George Patton and Bernard Montgomery among many―were as colorful as the air and naval battles and the fighting on the ground across the scorching plains and mountaintop of Sicily were brutal. But among Holland’s great skills is incorporating the experience of on-the-ground participants on all sides―from American privates Tom and Dee Bowles and the Tuskegee fighter pilot Charlie Dryden to the British major Hedley Verity and Canadian lieutenant Farley Mowat (later a celebrated author), to German and Italian participants such as Wilhelm Schmalz, brigade commander in the Hermann Göring Division, or Luftwaffe fighter pilot major Johannes “Macky” Steinhoff and to Italian combatants, civilians and mafiosi alike―which gives readers an intimate sense of what occurred in July and August 1943.       Emphasizing the significance of Allied air superiority, Holland overturns conventional narratives that have criticized the Sicily campaign for the vacillations over the plan, the slowness of the Allied advance and that so many German and Italian soldiers escaped to the mainland; rather, he shows that clearing the island in 38 days against geographical challenges and fierce resistance was an impressive achievement. A powerful and dramatic account by a master military historian, Sicily ’43 fills a major gap in the narrative history of World War II....more

  Episode

• 1040: 3/8 Sicily '43: The First Assault on Fortress Europe, by James Holland

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  Jan 23 2021

  Image: British airborne troops wait to board an American WACO CG4A glider.  Sicily '43: The First Assault on Fortress Europe,by James HollandOn July 10, 1943, the largest amphibious invasion ever mounted took place, larger even than the Normandy invasion eleven months later: 160,000 American, British, and Canadian troops came ashore or were parachuted onto Sicily, signaling the start of the campaign to defeat Nazi Germany on European soil. Operation HUSKY, as it was known, was enormously complex, involving dramatic battles on land, in the air, and at sea. Yet, despite its paramount importance to ultimate Allied victory, and its drama, very little has been written about the 38-day Battle for Sicily.Based on his own battlefield studies in Sicily and on much new research, James Holland’s Sicily ’43 offers a vital new perspective on a major turning point in World War II and a chronicle of a multi-pronged campaign in a uniquely diverse and contained geographical location. The characters involved―Generals George Patton and Bernard Montgomery among many―were as colorful as the air and naval battles and the fighting on the ground across the scorching plains and mountaintop of Sicily were brutal. But among Holland’s great skills is incorporating the experience of on-the-ground participants on all sides―from American privates Tom and Dee Bowles and the Tuskegee fighter pilot Charlie Dryden to the British major Hedley Verity and Canadian lieutenant Farley Mowat (later a celebrated author), to German and Italian participants such as Wilhelm Schmalz, brigade commander in the Hermann Göring Division, or Luftwaffe fighter pilot major Johannes “Macky” Steinhoff and to Italian combatants, civilians and mafiosi alike―which gives readers an intimate sense of what occurred in July and August 1943.       Emphasizing the significance of Allied air superiority, Holland overturns conventional narratives that have criticized the Sicily campaign for the vacillations over the plan, the slowness of the Allied advance and that so many German and Italian soldiers escaped to the mainland; rather, he shows that clearing the island in 38 days against geographical challenges and fierce resistance was an impressive achievement. A powerful and dramatic account by a master military historian, Sicily ’43 fills a major gap in the narrative history of World War II....more

  Episode

• 1040: 2/8 Sicily '43: The First Assault on Fortress Europe, by James Hollan

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  Jan 23 2021

  Image:    Allied leaders in the Sicilian campaign. General Dwight D. Eisenhower meets in North Africa with (foreground, left to right): Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Tedder, General Sir Harold Alexander, Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham, and (top row): Mr. Harold Macmillan, Major General Walter Bedell Smith, and unidentified British officers.  Sicily '43: The First Assault on Fortress Europe,by James HollandOn July 10, 1943, the largest amphibious invasion ever mounted took place, larger even than the Normandy invasion eleven months later: 160,000 American, British, and Canadian troops came ashore or were parachuted onto Sicily, signaling the start of the campaign to defeat Nazi Germany on European soil. Operation HUSKY, as it was known, was enormously complex, involving dramatic battles on land, in the air, and at sea. Yet, despite its paramount importance to ultimate Allied victory, and its drama, very little has been written about the 38-day Battle for Sicily.Based on his own battlefield studies in Sicily and on much new research, James Holland’s Sicily ’43 offers a vital new perspective on a major turning point in World War II and a chronicle of a multi-pronged campaign in a uniquely diverse and contained geographical location. The characters involved―Generals George Patton and Bernard Montgomery among many―were as colorful as the air and naval battles and the fighting on the ground across the scorching plains and mountaintop of Sicily were brutal. But among Holland’s great skills is incorporating the experience of on-the-ground participants on all sides―from American privates Tom and Dee Bowles and the Tuskegee fighter pilot Charlie Dryden to the British major Hedley Verity and Canadian lieutenant Farley Mowat (later a celebrated author), to German and Italian participants such as Wilhelm Schmalz, brigade commander in the Hermann Göring Division, or Luftwaffe fighter pilot major Johannes “Macky” Steinhoff and to Italian combatants, civilians and mafiosi alike―which gives readers an intimate sense of what occurred in July and August 1943.       Emphasizing the significance of Allied air superiority, Holland overturns conventional narratives that have criticized the Sicily campaign for the vacillations over the plan, the slowness of the Allied advance and that so many German and Italian soldiers escaped to the mainland; rather, he shows that clearing the island in 38 days against geographical challenges and fierce resistance was an impressive achievement. A powerful and dramatic account by a master military historian, Sicily ’43 fills a major gap in the narrative history of World War II....more

  Episode

• 1040: 1/8 Sicily '43: The First Assault on Fortress Europe, by James Holland

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  Jan 23 2021

  Image:   Map, Operation Husky landing.  Sicily '43: The First Assault on Fortress Europe,by James HollandOn July 10, 1943, the largest amphibious invasion ever mounted took place, larger even than the Normandy invasion eleven months later: 160,000 American, British, and Canadian troops came ashore or were parachuted onto Sicily, signaling the start of the campaign to defeat Nazi Germany on European soil. Operation HUSKY, as it was known, was enormously complex, involving dramatic battles on land, in the air, and at sea. Yet, despite its paramount importance to ultimate Allied victory, and its drama, very little has been written about the 38-day Battle for Sicily.Based on his own battlefield studies in Sicily and on much new research, James Holland’s Sicily ’43 offers a vital new perspective on a major turning point in World War II and a chronicle of a multi-pronged campaign in a uniquely diverse and contained geographical location. The characters involved―Generals George Patton and Bernard Montgomery among many―were as colorful as the air and naval battles and the fighting on the ground across the scorching plains and mountaintop of Sicily were brutal. But among Holland’s great skills is incorporating the experience of on-the-ground participants on all sides―from American privates Tom and Dee Bowles and the Tuskegee fighter pilot Charlie Dryden to the British major Hedley Verity and Canadian lieutenant Farley Mowat (later a celebrated author), to German and Italian participants such as Wilhelm Schmalz, brigade commander in the Hermann Göring Division, or Luftwaffe fighter pilot major Johannes “Macky” Steinhoff and to Italian combatants, civilians and mafiosi alike―which gives readers an intimate sense of what occurred in July and August 1943.       Emphasizing the significance of Allied air superiority, Holland overturns conventional narratives that have criticized the Sicily campaign for the vacillations over the plan, the slowness of the Allied advance and that so many German and Italian soldiers escaped to the mainland; rather, he shows that clearing the island in 38 days against geographical challenges and fierce resistance was an impressive achievement. A powerful and dramatic account by a master military historian, Sicily ’43 fills a major gap in the narrative history of World War II....more

  Episode

• 1039: Turn off Zoom and save carbon emissions (not from the Babylon Bee). @genemarks @Guardian #SmallBusinessAmerica

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  Jan 23 2021

  Image:  Video telephony predicted to be in use by the year 2000, as envisioned in 1910 (artist's conception) Gene Marks,  @genemarks @Guardian  #SmallBusinessAmerica @Guardian, Philadelphia Inquirer, and at TheHill; in re:  Napa and Sonoma: vintners suing the Cali governor holding they’ve been kept closed arbitrarily.  New York City : outdoor dining, parallel.  Paycheck protection loans: if you build an outdoor dining area, you can be forgiven the cost by govt.   DeBlasio has made outdoor dining permanent. Other cities considering doing the same. Gavin Newsom.  A new president. One theme is green.  Carbon emissions.  Zoom calls: Purdue study: if anyone turns off video, can cut carbon emission by 96%. 2020 was a great year for some rich people, esp venture capitalists. An all-time top year, have invested $130 billion.  Huge number of start-ups.  Microhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/jan/10/coronavirus-covid-outdoor-dining-restaurants https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/article/50-Bay-Area-restaurants-wineries-sue-Gavin-15881810.php https://www.euronews.com/living/amp/2021/01/18/turning-off-your-camera-in-video-calls-could-cut-carbon-emissions-by-96 https://www.axios.com/venture-capital-record-2020-e719bc9c-2ee4-435b-999a-e2771e083e4e.html https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dollar-general-employees-covid-19-vaccine/  ...more

  Episode

• 1039: #SmallBusinessAmerica: Looking up for 2021. @genemarks @Guardian #SmallBusinessAmerica

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  Jan 23 2021

  Image:  In the U.S., one trillion is written as the number "1" followed by 12 zeros. On trillion sends equals  31,546 years.   Here:  The obverse of the 2009 Zimbabwe $100 trillion banknote. Gene Marks,  @genemarks @Guardian  #SmallBusinessAmerica @Guardian, Philadelphia Inquirer, and at TheHill; in re: Small busnesses are hunkering down, looking forward to a significantly stronger second half, considering pent-up demand. Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus plan. Yellow lights:  could just become more public debt—all right when interests rates stay this low; but if they rise, would make it much more expensive.   The $15/hr minimum wage is quite different in Seattle and Tennessee.  Higher costs will send business owners to technology, robots, automatic mfrg. Mandating paid time off will be a headache for small-business owners.   Coming: an unprecedented tax season.  Tips: The Employee Retention Tax Credit—up to $7,000 per employee per quarter.  Also, the Work Opportunity Tax Credit: you can get from $1,200-9,600 per employee.   Macros https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2021/01/20/chase-study-2021-small-business.html   https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2021/jan/20/bidens-stimulus-plan-is-mostly-bad-news-for-small-/ https://fusion.inquirer.com/business/small-business/stimulus-bill-tax-tips-small-business-file-covid-virus-20210121.html ...more

  Episode

• 1038: Private enterprise innovates. @johntamny

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  Jan 23 2021

  Image:  Factories and corporations are considered private property John Tamny, @johntamny, RealClearPolitics, author, When Politicians Panic;  in re: Hewrote that Trump sensed voters felt weak in face of global elite with unimaginable power. Bezos spends tens of billion a year to find new ideas.  Google employees wrote to the firm’s president objecting to Google’s doing business with the Pentagon.  You can't afford to offend your employees—the power is too ephemeral.  AOL is now a laughline.  FAANG CEOs know exactly how ephemeral their power is.      Bitcoin (which a friend has called “tulipmania without tulips”): Money is just a measure, like one foot or one cupful.   Real currency’s value is unchanging.  Gold will always speak its mine.    Bitcoin’s volatility magnifies the dollar’s worst qualities. ..Gerard Baker writes that Donald Trump "succeeded in large part because he spoke to the frustrations of so many Americans who have been disdained and discarded by a global elite that enjoys unimaginable power and privilege." The routinely excellent Baker missed it there. The "global elite" he was plainly referring to are the technology giants that supposedly disdain Trump's base, but Baker forgets that absent Facebook and Twitter, Trump arguably isn't president to begin with. Their size is the surest evidence of how little they disdain the everyman, at which point it's worth pointing out that no "Big Tech" company CEO thinks his company has unimaginable power. They invest tens of billions each year in new ways of meeting the needs of their users precisely because market power is ephemeral. If you have a problem with "Big Tech," cheer their success. High achievement begets the very investment that will result in those at the top being replaced. The opinion piece can be found here. As always, no one buys or sells with money, they're not paid in it, nor do they borrow or lend with it. Underlying all monetary transactions is the movement of real resources. Money is a low-entropy measure, as in an agreement about value that moves real things around. That's why Bitcoin is a speculation as opposed to its being money. As evidenced by the private money's extraordinary volatility that magnifies the dollar's worst qualities many times over, transactions with Bitcoin as the referee would result in aggrieved winners and losers nearly every time; meaning Bitcoin's present, heavily discussed existence is a sign that it's not money. Real money is quiet precisely because its value is stable. The opinion piece can be found here. ...more

  Episode

• 1038: The march to regulating Big Tech. @johntamny

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  Jan 23 2021

  Image:  Technology of yesteryear.  A treasure trove of almost 12,000 detailed engravings, The Complete Encyclopedia of Illustration is a marvel of a collection culled from the worlds of science, history, geography, mythology, art, architecture, and more John Tamny, @johntamny, RealClearPolitics, author, When Politicians Panic;in re: Government always seeks to limit, constrain. Best to let people just do what they want with their innovation. I have free speech where I live but not necessarily at your house.  As for the platforms—twitter, amazon, parler, et al.—the govt sees a chance to tax. Our new president is worried about rich people.  The rich have gained $1.5 trillion in the pandemic. Alert: the economy cannot progress without the rich as they have unspent wealth.  What stimulates economic growth is investment in new ideas. NYT: a man moved his operation from California to Texas; after the first year, he found his taxes were zero. Blue billionaires have given more to Joe Biden than red billionaires have given to GOP. There’s winking going on: four of the five richest companies in the world are still based in California...Property rights used to be fundamental to conservatism. Not anymore. Now conservatives want government to "do something" about Amazon, Apple, Twitter and others doing what they wish with their property. They should be careful what they wish for. Furthermore, the growing conservative embrace of victimhood vis-a-vis "Big Tech" has them trampling over another one of their once deeply held (and correct) beliefs: people, and by extension commerce, are not static. In a dynamic economy, tomorrow routinely makes today look primitive by comparison. This rates a lot of discussion as conservatives lose it over Parler's shutdown, and their alleged loss of free speech. Gag. As commercial history has made clear over and over again, the businesses and processes that will vanquish today's "few powerful gatekeepers" are almost certainly unknown right now, or haven't even been founded. Without defending Parler's treatment, to focus on it as the source of their victimhood is for conservatives to completely miss the point. The opinion piece can be found here. . . .  Joe Biden babbled in downcast fashion last week about how "since this pandemic began, the wealth of the top 1 percent has grown by roughly $1. 5 trillion.” He then naively proposed $2 trillion more in spending to stimulate the economy. Biden's astrologists have convinced him that double-counting is the same as economic growth. Back to reality, Treasury is only able to extract yet another $2 trillion from the U.S. economy as a consequence of 1 percenter production that's already happened. Translated, Biden is promising to create growth with growth that already occurred. Only economists and enabling journalists could believe what's so ludicrous. In reality, investment is the sole driver of economic advance. The Biden plain would shrink investment by $2 trillion so that the latter can be allocated in politicized fashion by Congress on the way to consumption. Meaning the Biden plan will subtract from recovery. The backwards number that is GDP continues to lead the mystics in the economics profession astray. The opinion piece can be found here. ...more

  Episode

• 1037: Hank Aaron, 1934-2021, hit 715 home runs; and I listened to the Phillies game in 1964 when 44's line drive into the left field stands broke the empty seat.

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  Jan 23 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.The fence at Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium over which Hank Aaron hit his 715th career home run still exists.User Jorfer on en.wikipedia - From en.wikipedia; description page is (was) here I took this picture using a camera phone outside of Turner Field. 20:34, 25 February 2007 . . Jorfer . . 480×640 (85,903 bytes)  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowHank Aaron, 1934-2021, hit 715 home runs; and I listened to the Phillies game in 1964 when 44's line drive into the left field stands broke the empty seat.https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2021/01/22/hank-aaron-home-run-record-game/ ...more

  Episode

• 1036: #TheScalaReport: Measuring the EU talk of regulating Big Tech; measuring the US Congress talk of the same. Chris Riegel: @scala, @STRATACACHE

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  Jan 23 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.Brussels http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#TheScalaReport:  Measuring the EU talk of regulating Big Tech; measuring the US Congress talk of the same.   Chris Riegel: @scala, @STRATACACHEhttps://www.ft.com/content/2bd619a2-dee0-492a-b397-73a0ba00e369Margrethe Vestager has warned that Big Tech companies will face a flurry of countries passing laws to curb their power if they do not support the EU’s approach to regulation.  ...more

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• 1036: #PacificWatch: California +65 vs California equity & What is to be done? Jeff

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  Jan 23 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1940.Threshing crew. Box Elder County, Utah  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#PacificWatch: California +65 vs California equity & What is to be done? Jeff https://www.kqed.org/news/11856356/california-considers-prioritizing-speed-over-equity-in-vaccine-distribution-plan

  Episode

• 1036: #NewAmericaCivilWar: Biden retires to his comfortable Tiberius role as the "uncivil war" smolders.

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  Jan 23 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.2006. Remnants of Tiberius' villa at Sperlonga, on the coast midway between Rome and Naples MM - self-made digital photo Sperlonga (Italia, Lazio, provincia di Latina). I resti della villa di Tiberio, dalla strada per Itri. Public Domain File:SperlongaVillaTiberio.jpg Created: 1 August 2006  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#NewAmericaCivilWar: Biden retires to his comfortable  Tiberius role as the "uncivil war" smolders.https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-biden-inauguration/biden-arrives-at-u-s-capitol-to-assume-presidency-after-trump-departs-white-house-idUSKBN29P0HG ...more

  Episode

• 1036: The certain, predictable and ordinary fail of the Biden stimulus gimmicks. @VerodeRugy @Mercatus

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  Jan 23 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1871.Alcide Segoni's The Discovery of the Body of Catiline (1871). In the Gallery of Modern Art, Florence. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe certain, predictable and ordinary fail of the Biden stimulus gimmicks. @VerodeRugy @Mercatus https://www.discoursemagazine.com/economics/2021/01/19/bidens-stimulus-plans-will-create-unacceptable-debt/

  Episode

• 1035: 9/12: Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 23 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow9/12: Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan https://www.amazon.com/Their-Last-Full-Measure-Final/dp/0306824531  As the Confederacy crumbled under the Union army's relentless "hammering," Federal armies marched on the Rebels' remaining bastions in Alabama, the Carolinas, and Virginia. General William T. Sherman's battle-hardened army conducted a punitive campaign against the seat of the Rebellion, South Carolina, while General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant sought to break the months-long siege at Petersburg, defended by Robert E. Lee's starving Army of Northern Virginia.        In Richmond, the Confederate President Jefferson Davis struggled to hold together his unraveling nation while simultaneously sanctioning diplomatic overtures to bid for peace. Meanwhile, President Abraham Lincoln took steps to end slavery in the United States forever.       Their Last Full Measure relates these thrilling events, which followed one on the heels of another, from the battles ending the Petersburg siege and forcing Lee's surrender at Appomattox to the destruction of South Carolina's capital, the assassination of Lincoln, and the intensive manhunt for his killer. The fast-paced narrative braids the disparate events into a compelling account that includes powerful armies; leaders civil and military, flawed and splendid; and ordinary people, black and white, struggling to survive in the war's wreckage.  ...more

  Episode

• 1035: 12/12: Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 23 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow12/12: Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan https://www.amazon.com/Their-Last-Full-Measure-Final/dp/0306824531  As the Confederacy crumbled under the Union army's relentless "hammering," Federal armies marched on the Rebels' remaining bastions in Alabama, the Carolinas, and Virginia. General William T. Sherman's battle-hardened army conducted a punitive campaign against the seat of the Rebellion, South Carolina, while General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant sought to break the months-long siege at Petersburg, defended by Robert E. Lee's starving Army of Northern Virginia.        In Richmond, the Confederate President Jefferson Davis struggled to hold together his unraveling nation while simultaneously sanctioning diplomatic overtures to bid for peace. Meanwhile, President Abraham Lincoln took steps to end slavery in the United States forever.       Their Last Full Measure relates these thrilling events, which followed one on the heels of another, from the battles ending the Petersburg siege and forcing Lee's surrender at Appomattox to the destruction of South Carolina's capital, the assassination of Lincoln, and the intensive manhunt for his killer. The fast-paced narrative braids the disparate events into a compelling account that includes powerful armies; leaders civil and military, flawed and splendid; and ordinary people, black and white, struggling to survive in the war's wreckage.  ...more

  Episode

• 1035: 11/12: Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 23 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow11/12: Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan https://www.amazon.com/Their-Last-Full-Measure-Final/dp/0306824531  As the Confederacy crumbled under the Union army's relentless "hammering," Federal armies marched on the Rebels' remaining bastions in Alabama, the Carolinas, and Virginia. General William T. Sherman's battle-hardened army conducted a punitive campaign against the seat of the Rebellion, South Carolina, while General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant sought to break the months-long siege at Petersburg, defended by Robert E. Lee's starving Army of Northern Virginia.        In Richmond, the Confederate President Jefferson Davis struggled to hold together his unraveling nation while simultaneously sanctioning diplomatic overtures to bid for peace. Meanwhile, President Abraham Lincoln took steps to end slavery in the United States forever.       Their Last Full Measure relates these thrilling events, which followed one on the heels of another, from the battles ending the Petersburg siege and forcing Lee's surrender at Appomattox to the destruction of South Carolina's capital, the assassination of Lincoln, and the intensive manhunt for his killer. The fast-paced narrative braids the disparate events into a compelling account that includes powerful armies; leaders civil and military, flawed and splendid; and ordinary people, black and white, struggling to survive in the war's wreckage.  ...more

  Episode

• 1035: 10/12: Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 23 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow10/12: Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan https://www.amazon.com/Their-Last-Full-Measure-Final/dp/0306824531  As the Confederacy crumbled under the Union army's relentless "hammering," Federal armies marched on the Rebels' remaining bastions in Alabama, the Carolinas, and Virginia. General William T. Sherman's battle-hardened army conducted a punitive campaign against the seat of the Rebellion, South Carolina, while General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant sought to break the months-long siege at Petersburg, defended by Robert E. Lee's starving Army of Northern Virginia.        In Richmond, the Confederate President Jefferson Davis struggled to hold together his unraveling nation while simultaneously sanctioning diplomatic overtures to bid for peace. Meanwhile, President Abraham Lincoln took steps to end slavery in the United States forever.       Their Last Full Measure relates these thrilling events, which followed one on the heels of another, from the battles ending the Petersburg siege and forcing Lee's surrender at Appomattox to the destruction of South Carolina's capital, the assassination of Lincoln, and the intensive manhunt for his killer. The fast-paced narrative braids the disparate events into a compelling account that includes powerful armies; leaders civil and military, flawed and splendid; and ordinary people, black and white, struggling to survive in the war's wreckage.  ...more

  Episode

• 1033: The Oceans of Mars: 2of2: Kevin Cannon, @Nature. 2017

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  Jan 22 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.NASA Curiosity http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe Oceans of Mars: 2of2: Kevin Cannon, @Nature. 2017https://www.nature.com/articles/nature24657 On Mars, clay minerals are widespread in terrains that date back to the Noachian period (4.1 billion to 3.7 billion years ago)1,2,3,4,5. It is thought that the Martian basaltic crust reacted with liquid water during this time to form hydrated clay minerals3,6. Here we propose, however, that a substantial proportion of these clays was formed when Mars’ primary crust reacted with a dense steam or supercritical atmosphere of water and carbon dioxide that was outgassed during magma ocean cooling7,8,9. We present experimental evidence that shows rapid clay formation under conditions that would have been present at the base of such an atmosphere and also deeper in the porous crust. Furthermore, we explore the fate of a primordial clay-rich layer with the help of a parameterized crustal evolution model; we find that the primordial clay is locally disrupted by impacts and buried by impact-ejected material and by erupted volcanic material, but that it survives as a mostly coherent layer at depth, with limited surface exposures. These exposures are similar to those observed in remotely sensed orbital data from Mars1,2,3,4,5. Our results can explain the present distribution of many clays on Mars, and the anomalously low density of the Martian crust in comparison with expectations. ...more

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• 1033: The Oceans of Mars: 1of2: Kevin Cannon, @Nature. 2017

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  Jan 22 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.NASA Curiosity http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe Oceans of Mars: 1of2: Kevin Cannon, @Nature. 2017https://www.nature.com/articles/nature24657 On Mars, clay minerals are widespread in terrains that date back to the Noachian period (4.1 billion to 3.7 billion years ago)1,2,3,4,5. It is thought that the Martian basaltic crust reacted with liquid water during this time to form hydrated clay minerals3,6. Here we propose, however, that a substantial proportion of these clays was formed when Mars’ primary crust reacted with a dense steam or supercritical atmosphere of water and carbon dioxide that was outgassed during magma ocean cooling7,8,9. We present experimental evidence that shows rapid clay formation under conditions that would have been present at the base of such an atmosphere and also deeper in the porous crust. Furthermore, we explore the fate of a primordial clay-rich layer with the help of a parameterized crustal evolution model; we find that the primordial clay is locally disrupted by impacts and buried by impact-ejected material and by erupted volcanic material, but that it survives as a mostly coherent layer at depth, with limited surface exposures. These exposures are similar to those observed in remotely sensed orbital data from Mars1,2,3,4,5. Our results can explain the present distribution of many clays on Mars, and the anomalously low density of the Martian crust in comparison with expectations. ...more

  Episode

• 1034: Biden committed to continuing, smooth relations with Israel and the Arab states. Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres,

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  Jan 22 2021

  Image:  Jerusalem (al-Kouds). Jerusalem from the southwest / American Colony, Jerusalem Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re: Tony Blinken testifying before Congress: we learned a lot about the US being a long way from rejoining the JCPOA, and recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Also, the two-state solution, concern about prospects; denied that Israel is a racist nation. Enduring commitment to Israel’s security.  “Realistically.”  Will engage with Israel and the Gulf allies:  “on the take-off, not just the landing.” Rouhani today said, “Trump is dead and the Iran deal is still alive.” Iran wants the deal back, with no conditions, to get rid of the economic sanctions—defensive and covers for reality. Fordow and the heavy-water plant and Natanz.   France says it wants the US to take stronger positions against Islamic extremism—with Iran being the center of that. My mother’s people are always in the bazaar, always looking for a deal.  Iran needs to see that it's not in the catbird seat. Iran is occupying fortresses in Syria. A five-way chess game.  Russia wants to reduce Iran’s role. Israel wants Hezbollah and the militias out. Too much smoke [to see the fire]. Dahlan, a former Palestinian leader who moved to Jordan then the UE out of fear of Abbas assassinating him, accuses Abbas of stealing $2 million. Others’:  “Abbas’s mafia conduct.”  Today is the anniversary when the daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella  --  demand by Spain that Jews be expelled by Portugal, but they were converted pro forma as Christians, then for centuries were Marranos, secret Jews....more

  Episode

• 1034: Palestinian corruption rules. @GhAlOmari, Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres

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  Jan 22 2021

  Image:  A tank protects the British Compound in Beirut during the ongoing confrontation between Israeli forces and the Palestine Liberation Organization Ghaith al-Omari, @GhAlOmari, and Washington Institute, and Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re:Palestinian Authority elections & the Abraham Accords. Bad actors, like the Muslim Brotherhood . . .  UAE will provide incentives for Israel to move forward, to consolidate regional peace. I’m skeptical that Palestinian elections will take place. Both Hamas and the PA have shown no interested in giving up power. Each has a lot to lose and very little to gain.  Qatar and Turkey not interested in seeing the remaining Muslim Brotherhood regimes leave power.  Europeans sceptical the elections would create a meaningful breakthrough.  The main actor to have influence would be Jordan, which is coordinating closely with Egypt and Saudis. Its interest is stability. Focus on more practical and predictable steps.  The Abbas dos very well with large telephone contracts. Corruption.  We will condition our aid on reform. They’ll start reforming only if hey have a very clear message from the intl community, led by the US.  Eighty per cent of Palestinians believe that their government is corrupt. Ghaith al-Omari, a senior Fellow in The Washington Institute's Irwin Levy Family Program on the U.S.-Israel Strategic Relationship, is the former executive director of the American Task Force on Palestine. He served as advisor to the negotiating team during the 1999–2001 permanent-status talks in addition to holding various other positions within the Palestinian Authority. https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20201220-in-refugee-camps-palestinians-prepare-for-post-abbas-power-struggle https://palwatch.org/page/18508 https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/normalization-can-inject-new-life-arab-peace-initiative https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/risks-palestinian-authoritys-outreach-qatar-and-turkey ...more

  Episode

• 1034: Hesitation as Riyadh meets with Doha. @HaisamHassanei1, @WashInstitute, Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres,

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  Jan 22 2021

  Image:  Al Bidda (Arabic: البدع‎) is a neighborhood of Doha, Qatar.  Here: Trigonometrical plan of the harbour of El Biddah on the Arabian side of the Persian Gulf. By Lieuts. J. M. Guy and G. B. Brucks, H. C. Marine. Drawn by Lieut. M. Houghton Depths shown by soundings with grid added in pencil. Includes inset: ‘View from the anchorage’ in the upper left-hand side of sheet. Haisam Hassanein, @HaisamHassanei1, @WashInstitute,  Washington Institute,  and Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re:Muslim Brotherhood, Qatar, Abraham Accords. The emir of Qatar visited the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia.  The matter is not wholly solved yet.  The boycott against Qatar.  Turkey. From the Saudi perspective, the Muslim Brotherhood [and other matters] are still a problem.  Is the blockade against Qatar over?   Yes, flights between each other. UAE, Abu Dhabi.  Two new Gulf countries emerge, Abu Dhabi and Doha; Palestinians are no longer the center of the discussion. The nations are in agreement anent Iran, the Muslim Brotherhood.  The people of Egypt: a famous Egyptian actor in a bar in Doha met a famous Israeli actor; they took pictures together.  It was a big deal, but no longer is.  Decades of hatred-filled propaganda is slowly being overridden. The MB is very strong abroad.  Haisam Hassanein was the 2016–2017 Glazer Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, where he focussed on economic relations between Israel and Arab states. His current research focusses on commercial diplomacy in the Middle East. https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/egypt-endorses-gulf-reconciliation-remains-skeptical https://www.timesofisrael.com/egypt-uprising-inevitable-due-to-sissis-oppression-say-muslim-brothers/ https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/cairos-concerns -about-biden-presidency https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/half-egyptians-value-us-ties-few-want-normalization-israel  ...more

  Episode

• 1034: Anti-Semitism and the Millennials. @RitchieTorres

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  Jan 22 2021

  Image:  President Jimmy Carter in the South Bronx, 1977. Ritchie Torres, @RitchieTorres, Congressman, New York's 15th congressional district (South Bronx) , and Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re:Anti-Semitism, BDS, objectives in office. “Ritchie has been a heroic figure”   He’s a pro-Israel progressive We all have the obligation to condemn anti-Semitism, esp anti-Zionism..  First, defend Israel’s right to defend itself, and the Israeli-US alliance, and fight anti-Semitism in all its forms. I’m concerned that there are hard-left Americans comparable to Jeremy Corbyn in the US . . . In public, I finds a fear of the pro-BDS crew.  There’s a clear pattern of singling out Israel for condemnation, in the UN, on college campuses, in travel bans, I explain to audience that these are an insidious for of  anti-Semitism.  I’ve been appointed to Financial Services and Homeland Security committees. I worry that Millennials and Gen Z are being radicalized against Israel. DSOC/Democratic Socialists of America opposed you in your election; they’re a powerful force. Membership is now around 50,000; I was the sole survivor of its bloodbath. They’re now aiming at the New York City Council.  A member of the Democratic Party, Ritchie Torres is the U.S. Representative for New York's 15th congressional district. Previously, Torres served as the New York City Councilmember for the 15th district elected in 2013. Torres was the first openly gay candidate to be elected to legislative office in the Bronx, and the youngest member of the city council. He served as the chair of the Committee on Public Housing, and was a deputy majority leader. https://jewishinsider.com/2019/12/ritchie-torres-i-am-the-embodiment-of-a-pro-israel-progressive/ https://jewishjournal.com/featured/320922/nyc-city-councilmember-denounces-bds-as-anti-semitic-at-its-core/ https://jewishinsider.com/2020/06/how-ritchie-torres-built-a-fan-base-in-the-jewish-community/ https://jewishinsider.com/2021/01/ritchie-torres-llp-podcast/ ...more

  Episode

• 1032: Yankees's Brian Cashman worries about the "scrambling" "negative" "untested" starting starting rotation after Cole and Kluber.

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  Jan 22 2021

  Photo: Yankee Stadium opening day, 4/18/1923 http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowYankee's Brian Cashman worries about the "scrambling" "negative" "untested" starting starting rotation after Cole and Kluber. https://www.nj.com/yankees/2021/01/mlb-rumors-yankees-sign-ex-orioles-starting-pitcher.html

  Episode

• 1032: Imagining the damage of the Senate trial of Donald Trump, 2021. @ConradMBlack

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  Jan 22 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1868. Men and women in gallery of the Senate, during the impeachment trial of Andrew Johnson.Illus. in: Harper's weekly, v. 12, 1868 April 18, p. 248. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowImagining the damage of the Senate trial of Donald Trump, 2021. @ConradMBlackhttps://amgreatness.com/2021/01/21/joe-bidens-free-shave/

  Episode

• 1032: Welcome home from Pandemic Crisis Management. @TresurySpox @MonicaCrowley

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  Jan 22 2021

  Photo: Demonstration at the Red Cross Emergency Ambulance Station in Washington, D.C., during the influenza pandemic of 1918 http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowWelcome home from Pandemic Crisis Management. @TresurySpox @MonicaCrowley

  Episode

• 1032: Beijing and Moscow will test Biden. @SebGorka #AmericaFirst

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  Jan 22 2021

  Photo: A scene on the Amur River, the Russia-China border http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowBeijing and Moscow will test Biden. @SebGorka #AmericaFirsthttps://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/biden-administration-to-approach-russia-about-nuclear-treaty-extension/ar-BB1cYuro

  Episode

• 1032: The Nancy Pelosi possessed pursuit of Donald Trump. @SebGorka

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  Jan 22 2021

  Photo: Hector brought back to Troy, from a Roman sarcophagus, c. 180–200 AD http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe Nancy Pelosi possessed pursuit of Donald Trump. @SebGorka #AmericaFirsthttps://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2021/01/21/nancy-pelosi-send-trump-impeachment-senate-soon-trial/6656415002/

  Episode

• 1031: The worn wheels of Curiosity. Robert Zimmerman, BehindtheBlack.com

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  Jan 22 2021

  Image:  Curiosity Mars Rover Drilling into Its Second Rock Robert Zimmerman, BehindtheBlack.com; in re:   Mars: Curiosity’s damaged wheels as it ascends a Mount Sharp.   The camera aimed at all the wheels, took pictures. I compare treads; no real change.   A good sign.   . . . The happy-face crater, on dry ice that’s slowly going away, and is not seasonal.  https://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/curiosity-checks-out-its-wheels/

  Episode

• 1030: Static fire success for Starship 9. Robert Zimmerman, BehindtheBlack.com

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  Jan 22 2021

  Image:  1 & 2) conventional fixed platforms; 3) compliant tower; 4, 5) vertically moored tension leg and mini-tension leg platform; 6) spar; 7, 8) semi-submersibles; 9) floating production, storage, and offloading facility; 10) sub-sea completion and tie-back to host facility. Robert Zimmerman, BehindtheBlack.com; in re:   SpaceX Starship serial number 9.  Aborted static fire test, Boca Chica.  The hop could occur any time in the coming days.  A very big booster.  NASA is using old shuttle engines in the SLS because Congress wanted to save money.   Elon Musk: even intra-Earth transport, taking off from the ocean.  Bought two ocean oil rigs, named them Phobos and Deimos after the moons of Mars.  Looking for employees, especially welders and people who are good with their hands. SLS. China: a commercial space entity that isn't. Pseudo-private companies allowed to raise private capital, despite being very much under the government (and thus the PLA).     Interstellar Glory Space, developing a liquid fuel rocket (probably using stolen technology).  Are these firms useful as cut-outs for espionage?https://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/three-aborted-static-fire-tests-yesterday-for-starship-prototype-9/...more

  Episode

• 1029: Cancelling 1776. @VDHanson; @HooverInst

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  Jan 22 2021

  Image:  Frederick Douglass Victor Davis Hanson: @VDHanson; @HooverInst,  Hoover Institution, and The Case for Trump,in re:  The country did not start in 1619; it started in 1776 with the Declaration of Independence. We issued a report: slavery, terrible—but from Frederick Douglass to Martin Luther King, they never rejected the Constitution; they said that [non-Blacks] needed to live up to the Constitution. The New York Times cooked up the 1619 Project, but couldn’t defend it even to its own fact-checkers.  The left simply calls people names.    Cancel culture. They’re very afraid: no confidence that their ideas are persuasive, nor that on election day they can win over more than 50% of the voters. Everybody knows that you can't have a country without borders; and that you can't trust the Iranians, and what the Chinese are up to.   1776: cancelled.  https://www.nationalreview.com/2021/01/thoughts-on-the-1776-commission-and-its-report/#slide-1 ...more

  Episode

• 1028: Fear of Trump beyond the White House. @VDHanson; @HooverInst,

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  Jan 22 2021

  Image:  The combat of Hector and Achilles, and Achilles dragging the body of Hector around the walls of Troy Victor Davis Hanson: @VDHanson; @HooverInst,  Hoover Institution, and The Case for Trump,in re:  Hector at Troy. What’s happening in Washington: the stabbing of Hector’s corpse. Vindictiveness: Pelosi to try in the Senate a man who’s a private citizen.  Using her power against the court. An ancient ceremony; will not make them happy.  Achilles grows up, has common cause with Hector’s father. Today’s press: they can't leave Trump alone; they're obsessed.  Also nihilist? Vengeful? This will redound to the disadvantage of the Never-Trumpers. He’sn longer the president whom they condemned; do they know this?   No. They went after the Logan Act, the emoluments clause, the females, the Russians—everything.  They finally got 100 million people not to vote on Election Day. They’re afraid of him, and he’s not one of them.  Cliff May says that they think that I [John Batchelor] need to be deprogrammed. Pelosi says that politicians who made remarks on 6 Jan need to be condemned, perhaps evicted. When fascism comes:  it's always someone who’s “worries about the people who’s mellifluous and educated.”  Stanley McChrystal left the military, was fired, is now a multimillionaire in a corporation, said that Trump reminds him of al Qaeda. https://amgreatness.com/2021/01/20/stabbing-hectors-corpse/ ...more

  Episode

• 1027: 8/12 Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 22 2021

  Image:   The war in Virginia - the 18th Army Corps storming a fort on the right of the Rebel line before Petersburg, June 15 / sketched by our special artist, E. Forbes.  Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War,  by Joseph Wheelan  As the Confederacy crumbled under the Union army's relentless "hammering," Federal armies marched on the Rebels' remaining bastions in Alabama, the Carolinas, and Virginia. General William T. Sherman's battle-hardened army conducted a punitive campaign against the seat of the Rebellion, South Carolina, while General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant sought to break the months-long siege at Petersburg, defended by Robert E. Lee's starving Army of Northern Virginia.        In Richmond, the Confederate President Jefferson Davis struggled to hold together his unraveling nation while simultaneously sanctioning diplomatic overtures to bid for peace. Meanwhile, President Abraham Lincoln took steps to end slavery in the United States forever.       Their Last Full Measure relates these thrilling events, which followed one on the heels of another, from the battles ending the Petersburg siege and forcing Lee's surrender at Appomattox to the destruction of South Carolina's capital, the assassination of Lincoln, and the intensive manhunt for his killer. The fast-paced narrative braids the disparate events into a compelling account that includes powerful armies; leaders civil and military, flawed and splendid; and ordinary people, black and white, struggling to survive in the war's wreckage.  https://www.amazon.com/Their-Last-Full-Measure-Final/dp/0306824531...more

  Episode

• 1027: 7/12 Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 22 2021

  Image:  Slavery. Freedom.  "Two contrasted scenes divided by a huge cask in which stands, full-face, an obese and repulsive preacher with a heavy jowl, pig's eyes, and a thatch of hair over a low forehead..." (Source: George)  Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War,  by Joseph Wheelan  As the Confederacy crumbled under the Union army's relentless "hammering," Federal armies marched on the Rebels' remaining bastions in Alabama, the Carolinas, and Virginia. General William T. Sherman's battle-hardened army conducted a punitive campaign against the seat of the Rebellion, South Carolina, while General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant sought to break the months-long siege at Petersburg, defended by Robert E. Lee's starving Army of Northern Virginia.        In Richmond, the Confederate President Jefferson Davis struggled to hold together his unraveling nation while simultaneously sanctioning diplomatic overtures to bid for peace. Meanwhile, President Abraham Lincoln took steps to end slavery in the United States forever.       Their Last Full Measure relates these thrilling events, which followed one on the heels of another, from the battles ending the Petersburg siege and forcing Lee's surrender at Appomattox to the destruction of South Carolina's capital, the assassination of Lincoln, and the intensive manhunt for his killer. The fast-paced narrative braids the disparate events into a compelling account that includes powerful armies; leaders civil and military, flawed and splendid; and ordinary people, black and white, struggling to survive in the war's wreckage.  https://www.amazon.com/Their-Last-Full-Measure-Final/dp/0306824531 ...more

  Episode

• 1027: 6/12 Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 22 2021

  Image:  Confederacy march  Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War,  by Joseph Wheelan  As the Confederacy crumbled under the Union army's relentless "hammering," Federal armies marched on the Rebels' remaining bastions in Alabama, the Carolinas, and Virginia. General William T. Sherman's battle-hardened army conducted a punitive campaign against the seat of the Rebellion, South Carolina, while General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant sought to break the months-long siege at Petersburg, defended by Robert E. Lee's starving Army of Northern Virginia.        In Richmond, the Confederate President Jefferson Davis struggled to hold together his unraveling nation while simultaneously sanctioning diplomatic overtures to bid for peace. Meanwhile, President Abraham Lincoln took steps to end slavery in the United States forever.       Their Last Full Measure relates these thrilling events, which followed one on the heels of another, from the battles ending the Petersburg siege and forcing Lee's surrender at Appomattox to the destruction of South Carolina's capital, the assassination of Lincoln, and the intensive manhunt for his killer. The fast-paced narrative braids the disparate events into a compelling account that includes powerful armies; leaders civil and military, flawed and splendid; and ordinary people, black and white, struggling to survive in the war's wreckage.  ...more

  Episode

• 1027: 5/12 Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 22 2021

  Image:   Boys’s Orphan Asylum, Richmond, Virginia  Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War,  by Joseph Wheelan  As the Confederacy crumbled under the Union army's relentless "hammering," Federal armies marched on the Rebels' remaining bastions in Alabama, the Carolinas, and Virginia. General William T. Sherman's battle-hardened army conducted a punitive campaign against the seat of the Rebellion, South Carolina, while General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant sought to break the months-long siege at Petersburg, defended by Robert E. Lee's starving Army of Northern Virginia.        In Richmond, the Confederate President Jefferson Davis struggled to hold together his unraveling nation while simultaneously sanctioning diplomatic overtures to bid for peace. Meanwhile, President Abraham Lincoln took steps to end slavery in the United States forever.       Their Last Full Measure relates these thrilling events, which followed one on the heels of another, from the battles ending the Petersburg siege and forcing Lee's surrender at Appomattox to the destruction of South Carolina's capital, the assassination of Lincoln, and the intensive manhunt for his killer. The fast-paced narrative braids the disparate events into a compelling account that includes powerful armies; leaders civil and military, flawed and splendid; and ordinary people, black and white, struggling to survive in the war's wreckage.  https://www.amazon.com/Their-Last-Full-Measure-Final/dp/0306824531...more

  Episode

• 1026: Are morning glory seeds evidence of intergalactic voyagers? Host.

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  Jan 21 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication. Utamaro II (Japanese (died 1831?))Edo period (1615–1868) http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowAre morning glory seeds evidence of intergalactic voyagers? Host.http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/05/morning-glory-seeds-are-tough-enough-interplanetary-trip"...scientists wanted to see just how much abuse a seed could withstand. In a follow-on experiment in the laboratory, Tepfer and Leach exposed three types of seeds—morning glory, tobacco, and A. thaliana—to high doses of UV light. Tepfer and Leach thought morning glory seeds might do well based on their large size, tough seed coats, and ability to survive for more than 50 years in soil. They found that only morning glory seeds germinated after being exposed to light roughly 6 million times the dose typically used to sterilize drinking water, conditions that killed the much smaller tobacco and A. thaliana seeds. The team suggests a protective coating containing flavonoids, compounds commonly found in wine and tea that act as natural sunscreens, might be responsible for the seeds’ robustness..." ....more

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• 1026: #MLBReport: The modest Toronto Blue Jays steal a march on the almighty Yankees. Host.

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  Jan 21 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1914. Photograph shows Canadian soldiers drilling at the armory, Toronto, Canada, during World War I. (Source: Flickr Commons project, 2011)  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#MLBReport: The modest Toronto Blue Jays steal a march on the almighty Yankees.  Host.https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/george-springer-gives-blue-jays-hope-e2-80-93-and-one-of-mlbs-best-lineups-e2-80-93-for-years-to-come/ar-BB1cVXzi ...more

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• 1026: China is winning the Moon race. Rick Fisher, @GordonGChang

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  Jan 21 2021

  Image:  View of crescent Moon taken by the STS-133 crew Rick Fisher, senior Fellow, International Assessment & Strategy Center, and Gordon Chang: @GordonGChang, Daily Beast; in re:  Quickening of China’s intention to control [all] low-Earth orbit. The space economy: China is much aware of this, working to control the gateways to the space economy.  By 2039, it’ll launch [enormous] space stations.  China will acknowledge, and violate, the international regime.  Japan, France, Kenya, Peru: assembling a cheering section for China. China’s space station is technology stolen from Russia.  China is winning the race like tortoise: keeping a constant speed.https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202101/1212843.shtml...more

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• 1026: PRC persecution of Uyghurs is genocide @nuryturkel, @GordonGChang

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  Jan 21 2021

  Image:   Uyghur princesses. Bezeklik, Cave 9, wall painting, ca. 9th/10th century AD Nury Turkel, @nuryturkel, co-founder of the Uyghur Human Rights Project and a commissioner of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, and Gordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re:  PRC persecution of Uyghurs: a Reuters report—Anthony Blinken said he believed Trump was right in taking a tougher stand toward China, and agreed that China is committing genocide.      The cruelty by the Chinese conquerors to Uyghurs. Nearly a half-million Uyghur children have been taken by the Chinese state and put in orphanages. Atrocities. Genocide.  Beijing is enraged — showing that the statement is having a good effect in the world. The [world community] has been silent; unconscionable—especially those in Europe who survived genocide and the Holocaust. The UN has miserably failed to fulfill its mandate to protect human rights.   Not a syllable from Guterres.   Particularly those in the UN human rights council should convene an emergency session. The UN seems to be compromised by China. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-biden-state-china/u-s-secretary-of-state-nominee-blinken-sees-strong-foundation-for-bipartisan-china-policy-idUSKBN29O2GB...more

  Episode

• 1025: Will the courts slow Biden 46 orders? @AndrewCMcCarthy, @ThadMcCotter

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  Jan 21 2021

  Image:   The Two Elders before the Judge Andrew C McCarthy, @AndrewCMcCarthy, Ball of Collusion; and Thaddeus McCotter, @ThadMcCotter, American Greatness, in re: Climate/Paris Accords. Pipelines.  So contentious they’ll disrupt the 100-day honeymoon?  Trump instituted administrative procedures making it difficult for Biden to unwind them. How far we’ve strayed from our Constitutional system.  Congress by simple majority can undo any last-minute regulations.  Willful progressive judges refused to follow Trump’s regulations, necessitating taking the cases through courts, one into the Supreme Court. Tedious and slow.  Progressives tried to implement left-wing policies Conservative judges hold a philosophy of the judicial role, will not reverse on ideological grounds. Biden didn’t denounce cancel culture or censorship. No evidence of anything but his intention to garner submission.   ...more

  Episode

• 1025: Regretting the Trump pardon power and praising the Trump judgeships. @AndrewCMcCarthy, @ThadMcCotter,

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  Jan 21 2021

  Image:  Justitia Andrew C McCarthy, @AndrewCMcCarthy, Ball of Collusion; and Thaddeus McCotter, @ThadMcCotter, American Greatness, in re:  The remains of the 45thpresidency. Pardon power:  Pres Trump has pardoned people, esp Steve Bannon. Nothing irregular about this. Pardons and commutations.  Bill Clinton gave a commutation  to someone who participated in the bombing of the Capitol: Susan Rosenberg.   Also pardoned some of the FALN terrorists.  A seamy side to the power.       Trump’s success with the judiciary: three Justices.  ...more

  Episode

• 1023: NASA InSight probe on the surface of Mars disappoints. Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.com

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  Jan 21 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.This image shows that the Mars Pathfinder airbags have been successfully retracted, allowing safe deployment of the rover ramps. The Sojourner rover, still in its deployed position, is at center image, and rocks are visible in the background. Mars Pathfinder landed successfully on the surface of Mars today at 10:07 a.m. PDT.  http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA00617NASA/JPL/University of Arizona http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowNASA InSight probe on the surface of Mars disappoints. Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.comhttps://behindtheblack.com/?s=inSight ...more

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• 1023: Tale of two space launch systems. Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.com

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  Jan 21 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1914.[Mexican War, 1914: refugees crossing (Rio Grande?) river by horse]  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowTale of two space launch systems.  Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.comhttps://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/hints-that-nasa-will-redo-the-sls-static-fire-test/

  Episode

• 1024: China wants the DPRK to be a threat. @GregScarlatoiu, @GordonGChang

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  Jan 21 2021

  Image:  Soldier of the Royal Guard. Ancient dress not yet entirely obsolete - Coat & helmet are lined with a mail of hard leather - & studded with iron buttons Greg Scarlatoiu, @GregScarlatoiu, Executive Director of the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea; and Gordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re:   North Korea, ballistic missiles.  It's a post-Communist, post-industrial dynastic [tyranny]. Nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction, at the expense of human rights and security of its own people, where people starve and freeze.  China supports DPRK and has for decades.   NK  SLBMs replicate China’s, showing a close military alliance.  China wants DPRK to be a threat.         Sanctions do work—unless they’re on paper, only; they work if they’re properly implemented.   NK has instituted draconian measures to protect the country from covid—kicked out foreigners and sealed borders; then claims that there’s no covid case in the county.  Seoul has tried appeasement, with no success. Will Mr Biden try engagement or appeasement? Maximum pressure may come first;  I doubt we’ll see  resumption of summit engagement, which Trump tried—no one ever had before—and it didn’t especially work....more

  Episode

• 1023: West Virginia solves the vaccine the old-fashioned way. @SalenaZito @DCExaminer

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  Jan 21 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.Haystacks. Mineral County, West Virginia  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowWest Virginia solves the vaccine the old-fashioned way.  @SalenaZito @DCExaminerhttps://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/justice-west-virginia-vaccination-success

  Episode

• 1024: Canada most vulnerable to hostage drama. Charles Burton, @cburton001; @GordonGChang,

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  Jan 21 2021

  Image:  Police often train to recover hostages taken by force, as in this exercise Charles Burton: @cburton001, blogs at RealityChek; and senior Fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, Centre for Advancing Canada's Interests Abroad; and Gordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re:  The two Michaels still imprisoned in China, picked up arbitrarily and jailed on false charges in order to force Canada to release Meng.   Trudeau Junior will mind his manners with China rather than offend it.  Hostage diplomacy—China’s violations of the norms, also of reciprocal d___, is seen in Australia, Japan.  China hopes to destroy the rules-based international order in order to have a world ruled by one nation, China, using the Belt and Road Initiative.              Canadians are appalled, esp when it came out that Canada had made special exemptions to the covid regulations when her family visited, and endangering her Liongate security team.  The Chinese govt sent an airliner to take her home when it thought she could be [grabbed back], a 777 plane that seats 300 people.  Life for Canada under Mr Biden will be more challenging than it was under Mr Trump, esp as Biden cancels the Keystone Pipeline. If the Conservatives come in to power and avoid the blandishments of rich corporations that want close relations with China for profit . . .  Justin Trudeau is engaging in a policy of appeasement of China. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/the_americas/meng-wanzhou-canada-bail/2021/01/15/3281d48c-56c0-11eb-a08b-f1381ef3d207_story.htmlhttps://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/14/china-imprisoned-canadians-phone-families-christmas-michael-kovrig-michael-spavor...more

  Episode

• 1023: State of the City, the State, the Union: Biden 46 enters as New York exhausts its vaccine and Cuomo demands a Biden bail-out of the State budget. Catsimatidis @JCats2013 @CatsRoundtable @JohnCats

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  Jan 21 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication. Hun House, 149 Washington Avenue, Albany, Albany County, NY http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowState of the City, the State, the Union: Biden 46 enters as New York City exhausts its vaccine and Cuomo demands a Biden bail-out of the State budget. John Catsimatidis @JCats2013 @CatsRoundtable @JohnCats https://www.cbsnews.com/news/covid-vaccine-new-york-run-out-thursday/ https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/cuomo-vaccine-rollout-depends-on-how-fast-hospitals-use-up-doses/ar-BB1cRwtJ...more

  Episode

• 1023: Biden speaks softly and orders bluntly. @RichardAEpstein @HooverInst

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  Jan 21 2021

  Image:  Theodore Roosevelt Papers: Series 5: Speeches and Executive Orders, 1899-1918; Subseries 5A: Speeches and Executive Orders, 1899-1918; 1902, Aug. 22-1904, July 27 Richard Epstein: @RichardAEpstein, Chicago Law, NYU Law, Hoover Defining Ideas, in re:   The ambitions of the 46thpresident with 53 Executive Orders, most intended to overturn Trump policies.  No correspondence between Biden’s inaugural speech and the substance of what he’s doing with these order.  Unilateral Executive Orders on areas where there’s deep contention will send exactly the wrong message: crisis is the language pols use in order to arrogate greater power. Trump didn’t subsidize vaccine research; he said, “I’ll pay you for performance.”  . . .  The Paris Accord: treaties need to be confirmed by the Senate.   . . .  In Mr Trump’s Executive Orders: many had to be [approved] by the courts.  Immigration bans.  The Trump administration: its bark was worse than its bite; I fear the Biden administration will be the opposite....more

  Episode

• 1023: Wrong trial, wrong direction. @RichardAEpstein @HooverInst

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  Jan 21 2021

  Image:  U. S. Senate Impeachment of the President. Admit the bearer. April 24th 1868. Gallery. [signed] Geo. T. Brown, Sergeant-at-Arms. Washington, D. C., 1868. Richard Epstein: @RichardAEpstein, Chicago Law, NYU Law, Hoover Defining Ideas, in re:    An impeachment trial requires an enormous amount of preparation. Mrs Pelosi decided to run this thing through before giving anyone a chance to prepare.  The dissidents need to have the same amount of time.  Parity and confidentiality issues.   The time of the speech didn't match the time of the violence; all sorts of problems to bring up.  In the end, this will create an enormous amount of friction Biden’s speech repeatedly invoked unity.  “Six hours in the Capitol? I’ll speak of sixty days of violence in Portland.” Pelosi did threaten Pence.  At the end of the ninth century, a pope wanted to dig up a previous pope, condemn him. (St Stephen then performed miracles after he was re-drowned.)  ...more

  Episode

• 1022: 4/12 Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 21 2021

  Image:  Surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia to the Army of the Potomac  Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War,  by Joseph Wheelan  As the Confederacy crumbled under the Union army's relentless "hammering," Federal armies marched on the Rebels' remaining bastions in Alabama, the Carolinas, and Virginia. General William T. Sherman's battle-hardened army conducted a punitive campaign against the seat of the Rebellion, South Carolina, while General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant sought to break the months-long siege at Petersburg, defended by Robert E. Lee's starving Army of Northern Virginia.        In Richmond, the Confederate President Jefferson Davis struggled to hold together his unraveling nation while simultaneously sanctioning diplomatic overtures to bid for peace. Meanwhile, President Abraham Lincoln took steps to end slavery in the United States forever.       Their Last Full Measure relates these thrilling events, which followed one on the heels of another, from the battles ending the Petersburg siege and forcing Lee's surrender at Appomattox to the destruction of South Carolina's capital, the assassination of Lincoln, and the intensive manhunt for his killer. The fast-paced narrative braids the disparate events into a compelling account that includes powerful armies; leaders civil and military, flawed and splendid; and ordinary people, black and white, struggling to survive in the war's wreckage.  https://www.amazon.com/Their-Last-Full-Measure-Final/dp/0306824531...more

  Episode

• 1022: 3/12 Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 21 2021

  Image:  Lieut. Genl. Ulysses S. Grant Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War,  by Joseph Wheelan  As the Confederacy crumbled under the Union army's relentless "hammering," Federal armies marched on the Rebels' remaining bastions in Alabama, the Carolinas, and Virginia. General William T. Sherman's battle-hardened army conducted a punitive campaign against the seat of the Rebellion, South Carolina, while General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant sought to break the months-long siege at Petersburg, defended by Robert E. Lee's starving Army of Northern Virginia.        In Richmond, the Confederate President Jefferson Davis struggled to hold together his unraveling nation while simultaneously sanctioning diplomatic overtures to bid for peace. Meanwhile, President Abraham Lincoln took steps to end slavery in the United States forever.       Their Last Full Measure relates these thrilling events, which followed one on the heels of another, from the battles ending the Petersburg siege and forcing Lee's surrender at Appomattox to the destruction of South Carolina's capital, the assassination of Lincoln, and the intensive manhunt for his killer. The fast-paced narrative braids the disparate events into a compelling account that includes powerful armies; leaders civil and military, flawed and splendid; and ordinary people, black and white, struggling to survive in the war's wreckage.  https://www.amazon.com/Their-Last-Full-Measure-Final/dp/0306824531...more

  Episode

• 1022: 2/12 Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 21 2021

  Image:  Jefferson Davis and his cabinet   Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War,  by Joseph Wheelan  As the Confederacy crumbled under the Union army's relentless "hammering," Federal armies marched on the Rebels' remaining bastions in Alabama, the Carolinas, and Virginia. General William T. Sherman's battle-hardened army conducted a punitive campaign against the seat of the Rebellion, South Carolina, while General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant sought to break the months-long siege at Petersburg, defended by Robert E. Lee's starving Army of Northern Virginia.        In Richmond, the Confederate President Jefferson Davis struggled to hold together his unraveling nation while simultaneously sanctioning diplomatic overtures to bid for peace. Meanwhile, President Abraham Lincoln took steps to end slavery in the United States forever.       Their Last Full Measure relates these thrilling events, which followed one on the heels of another, from the battles ending the Petersburg siege and forcing Lee's surrender at Appomattox to the destruction of South Carolina's capital, the assassination of Lincoln, and the intensive manhunt for his killer. The fast-paced narrative braids the disparate events into a compelling account that includes powerful armies; leaders civil and military, flawed and splendid; and ordinary people, black and white, struggling to survive in the war's wreckage.  https://www.amazon.com/Their-Last-Full-Measure-Final/dp/0306824531...more

  Episode

• 1022: 1/12 Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 21 2021

  Image:  General Sherman's advance - Buzzard's Roost Pass, Georgia  Their Last Full Measure: The Final Days of the Civil War,  by Joseph Wheelan  As the Confederacy crumbled under the Union army's relentless "hammering," Federal armies marched on the Rebels' remaining bastions in Alabama, the Carolinas, and Virginia. General William T. Sherman's battle-hardened army conducted a punitive campaign against the seat of the Rebellion, South Carolina, while General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant sought to break the months-long siege at Petersburg, defended by Robert E. Lee's starving Army of Northern Virginia.        In Richmond, the Confederate President Jefferson Davis struggled to hold together his unraveling nation while simultaneously sanctioning diplomatic overtures to bid for peace. Meanwhile, President Abraham Lincoln took steps to end slavery in the United States forever.       Their Last Full Measure relates these thrilling events, which followed one on the heels of another, from the battles ending the Petersburg siege and forcing Lee's surrender at Appomattox to the destruction of South Carolina's capital, the assassination of Lincoln, and the intensive manhunt for his killer. The fast-paced narrative braids the disparate events into a compelling account that includes powerful armies; leaders civil and military, flawed and splendid; and ordinary people, black and white, struggling to survive in the war's wreckage. https://www.amazon.com/Their-Last-Full-Measure-Final/dp/0306824531...more

  Episode

• 1020: Mets owner Steve Cohen jettisons his month-old GM, for cause, and will start Spring Training without. Host

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  Jan 20 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1911. National Baseball League officials  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowMets owner Steve Cohen jettisons his month-old GM, for cause, and will start Spring Training without.  Hosthttps://www.cbsnews.com/news/jared-porter-mets-gm-fired-explicit-texts-female-reporter/

  Episode

• 1021: The 2020 effort to cut off free speech destroys US prestige. Gregory R Copley: Defense and Foreign Affairs

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  Jan 20 2021

  Image:  Book burning in Chile following the 1973 coup that installed the Pinochet regime. Gregory R Copley: Defense and Foreign Affairs; Gregory R Copley, The New Total War of the Twenty-first Century and the Trigger of the Fear Pandemic, in re:Xi Jinping, president for life of China, total state control vs prosperity and innovation—yet he’s applied both. China is a military dictatorship and an economic power. The US may never recover the power that Trump was creating and [aiming for]. Since Reagan, the US has progressively been moving down the scale of global prestige;  in a sense, it became doctrinaire, was telling others what to do. In 2020, a manic effort to limit free speech.  Absent prestige, a nation has no power.  Elimination of free speech, debate, logic and erudition, or global comprehension.  The euro today has no backing by sovereign nations. China is not only economically disintegrating; it doesn’t have enough money to sustain itself, is proportionately the biggest importer of food since Rome; hasn’t enough water to serve the big cities.  Its medium-term solution is to reduce the population (down to about a billion people). It will become extremely aggressive under the CCP: the party can survive only if it cracks down on the populations and takes massive risks in international affairs....more

  Episode

• 1021: If Biden abandons the UK, its only choice will be CANZUK. Gregory R Copley: Defense and Foreign Affairs

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  Jan 20 2021

  Image:  CANZUK is an acronym for a theoretical cultural, political, and economic community comprising Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Here:   Imperial Federation, showing the British Empire in 1886 (before expansion in Africa) Gregory R Copley: Defense and Foreign Affairs; Gregory R Copley, The New Total War of the Twenty-first Century and the Trigger of the Fear Pandemic, in re:Does the special relationship between the UK and the US survive?  Obama said that the UK would have to “get to the end of the queue” if it accepted Brexit.  Brexit did not disrupt the Black Friday agreement. If Biden follows that and punishes the UK, it could rupture relations.  If the UK is forced even briefly to move away from the US, its main option is fully to develop the CANZUK alliance (4/5 of the Five Eyes—who have common forms of govt, defense practices, and the like).  Would have the fourth-largest economy in the world; be the only sovereign to have full reach into the Arctic and the Antarctic. If Biden turns his back on the UK, it’d be foolhardy and dangerous.  Obama’s threats toward the UK, unconscionable in Britons’s eyes. Taiwan:  Biden is not about to pull back from the strengthened ties that Trump created with Taiwan.   Pompeo freed the Pentagon to speak with Taiwanese officials in an unfettered manner. Japan, India and Australian are also strengthening their ties to Taiwan.  Taiwan and Japan: two islands off the Eurasian landmass.  Heartland powers and maritime powers generally compete with each other. US is maritime; needs to have the ability to reach right up to the coasts.  Without Britain, the US could not successfully have entered the war in 1942. India has been forced to become a maritime power, having been cut off from land connections; is now part of the Quad (India, Australia, Japan, US).  ...more

  Episode

• 1021: The sudden limits of the UK lockdown. @josephsternberg, @WSJOpinion

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  Jan 20 2021

  Image:  The signal flag "Quebec", also called the "Yellow Jack", is a simple yellow flag that was historically used to signal quarantine (it stands for Q), but in modern use indicates the opposite, as a signal of a ship free of disease that requests boarding and inspection. Joseph Sternberg:  @josephsternberg, @WSJOpinion; Political Economics column; WSJ editorial board;  in re:In the UK, the continuing lockdown seems to be causing mental health issues. “Exit strategy: ‘Ease lockdown by March 8,’ say Tory MPs.”   Some MPs who were sceptics before now are worried about the new variant.  Britain is successful in its vaccine distribution; we all thought that it would get us out of the lockdown. The Nudge Unit.  Only 44% said they’d follow the [required behaviors—masks, distancing, no travel] after vaccination.  Chancellor of the Exchequer wants to tax more to deal with the alarming deficit. People aren't even at work.  His will further alienate conservative members of parliament, whom Boris is trying to [keep in the fold].  Rules are preposterously confusing. and which is a rule and which is a suggestion?  Very difficult for humans. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2021/01/19/pressure-grows-boris-johnson-agree-plan-start-easing-lockdown/ https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/widespread-coronavirus-vaccination-risks-day-before-armistice-wave-of-infections-experts-warn-x3xsfwkbt https://www.ft.com/content/ef8d075a-17b4-45cd-bda3-aab5e59062dc https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/schools-in-london-and-southeast-could-reopen-first-b2df2l63g https://www.ft.com/content/a5442a8b-aafe-44ba-ae6e-ef5cc6dbfb99 ...more

  Episode

• 1021: The founders and the aim of impeachment from the 18th century. @josephsternberg, @WSJOpinion

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  Jan 20 2021

  Image:  The so-called "Togatus Barberini", a statue depicting a Roman senator holding the imagines (effigies) of deceased ancestors in his hands; marble, late 1st century BC; head (not belonging): mid 1st century BC. Joseph Sternberg:  @josephsternberg, @WSJOpinion; Political Economics column; WSJ editorial board;  in re:  Heavy firepower in Washington and even New York’s Grand Central Terminal in anticipation of the inauguration. The pending impeachment trial:   McConnell is one of the few having a strong sense of he institutions, has put the Constitution front and center. This wasn’t a normal mob, and Trump didn’t speak normally—was trying to stir up the populace. Concern lest the Executive use force to harass or intimidate the legislature; founding fathers were keenly aware of the 1640s in England. Will a trial create more problems than it will solve? They want to prevent Trump from ever running for the presidency again; disenfranchise him.    A good argument to that kind of gesture.  The Democrats did not help their case throughout the four years.    Important institutional concern here: Congress protecting itself.https://www.wsj.com/articles/what-legislative-powers-are-left-for-impeachment-to-defend-11610647230 ...more

  Episode

• 1020: Biden inherits the unsolved New START treaty and rejected INF treaty & What is to be done? @AmbJohnB

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  Jan 20 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1917.RUSSIA WAR PICTURES. WOMEN http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowBiden inherits the unsolved New START treaty and rejected INF treaty & What is to be done? @AmbJohnBhttps://www.wsj.com/articles/joe-bidens-early-test-from-moscow-and-beijing-11610920129

  Episode

• 1020: Escape from Hong Kong! Jillian Kay Melchior @jilliankaym @WSJOpinion

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  Jan 20 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1910. Mr Julius Knight in "The Scarlet Pimpernel" http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowEscape from Hong Kong! Jillian Kay Melchior @jilliankaym @WSJOpinionhttps://www.wsj.com/articles/a-hong-kong-dissidents-daring-escape-11610494379?mod=hp_opin_pos_1

  Episode

• 1020: Does NBC know that LA is not funny, 2021? @HooverWhalen

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  Jan 20 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.Los Angeles Aqueduct, Crowley Lake Dam, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, CA  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowDoes NBC know that LA is not funny, 2021? @HooverWhalenhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/01/14/mr-mayor-los-angeles/

  Episode

• 1020: Cubans hope for a Biden relief offering.@JMHumire @MariaFdaCabal

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  Jan 20 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1910.Havana - U.S. Sailors in Palace Sq.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#NewWorld: Cubans hope for a Biden relief offering.@JMHumire @MariaFdaCabal https://www.columbian.com/news/2021/jan/19/biden-has-set-sky-high-expectations-can-he-meet-them/ 

  Episode

• 1020: #NewWorld: The Caravans begin again. @jmhumire @mariaFdaCabal

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  Jan 20 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1940. Rubber plantation in Guatemala  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#NewWorld: The Caravans begin again. @jmhumire @mariaFdaCabalhttps://www.vice.com/en/article/akdyw8/a-new-caravan-from-central-america-hopes-for-asylum-under-president-biden

  Episode

• 1020: MoConnell condemns POTUS for January 6 & What is to be done? @LizPeek @FoxNews

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  Jan 20 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1927. Elga Daniels, group at Senate ofc., [2/27]  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowMoConnell condemns POTUS for January 6 & What is to be done? @LizPeek @FoxNewshttps://apnews.com/article/mcconnell-trump-fed-lies-to-mob-36871d68df56a10be1c46ed364ad6de6

  Episode

• 1020: Treasury nominee Janet Yellen aims to go big on pushing cash into the pandemic recovery. @LizPeek @FoxNews

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  Jan 20 2021

  Photo: Yellen delivers her farewell speech to Federal Reserve staff in 2018 http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowTreasury nominee Janet Yellen aims to go big on pushing cash into the pandemic recovery. @LizPeek @FoxNewshttps://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-biden-yellen/act-big-on-stimulus-bidens-treasury-nominee-yellen-tells-lawmakers-idINKBN29O1WX

  Episode

• 1019: Managing impulsive behavior. Dr. Casey Halpern, Stanford Medical Center.

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  Jan 20 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1916.Shackleton's expedition to the Antarctic lost party on Elephant Island saved at last.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowManaging impulsive behavior. Dr. Casey Halpern, Stanford Medical Center. http://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2017/12/brain-zap-saps-destructive-urges.html“Impulses are normal and absolutely necessary for survival,” Halpern said. “They convert our feelings about what’s rewarding into concrete action to obtain food, sex, sleep and defenses against rivals or predators.”  ...more

  Episode

• 1019: The Roof at the Bottom of the World:2of2: Discovering the Transantarctic MountainsHardcover – Illustrated, November 15, 2011.by Edmund Stump (Author)

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  Jan 20 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1922.Photograph shows a man on a dogsled in the foreground and a castle-shaped mountain of ice in the background, during the British Antarctic Expedition.J181333 U.S. Copyright Office.Title from item.Alternate title from: The Great White South... / by Herbert G. Ponting, F.R.G.S. New York : Robert M. McBride & Co., 1922, opp. p. 171.Copyright 1913 May 12, by Herbert G. Ponting.Published in: The Great White South... / by Herbert G. Ponting, F.R.G.S. New York : Robert M. McBride & Co., 1922. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Roof at the Bottom of the World:2of2:  Discovering the Transantarctic MountainsHardcover – Illustrated, November 15, 2011.by Edmund Stump  (Author)https://www.amazon.com/Roof-Bottom-World-Discovering-Transantarctic/dp/0300171978 The Transantarctic Mountains are the most remote mountain belt on Earth, an utterly pristine wilderness of ice and rock rising to majestic heights and extending for 1,500 miles. In this book, Edmund Stump is the first to show us this continental-scale mountain system in all its stunning beauty and desolation, and the first to provide a comprehensive, fully illustrated history of the region's discovery and exploration. The author not only has conducted extensive research in the Transantarctic Mountains during his forty-year career as a geologist but has also systematically photographed the entire region. Selecting the best of the best of his more than 8,000 photographs, he presents nothing less than the first atlas of these mountains. In addition, he examines the original firsthand accounts of the heroic Antarctic explorations of James Clark Ross (who discovered the mountain range in the early 1840s), Robert Falcon Scott, Ernest Shackleton, Roald Amundsen, Richard Byrd, and scientists participating in the International Geophysical Year (1957–1958). From these records, Stump is now able to trace the actual routes of the early explorers with unprecedented accuracy. With maps old and new, stunning photographs never before published, and tales of intrepid explorers, this book takes the armchair traveler on an expedition to the Antarctic wilderness that few have ever seen....more

  Episode

• 1019: The Roof at the Bottom of the World:1of2: Discovering the Transantarctic MountainsHardcover – Illustrated, November 15, 2011.by Edmund Stump (Author)

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  Jan 20 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1916. Shackleton's expedition to the Antarctic a titanic upheaval.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Roof at the Bottom of the World:1of2:  Discovering the Transantarctic MountainsHardcover – Illustrated, November 15, 2011.by Edmund Stump  (Author)https://www.amazon.com/Roof-Bottom-World-Discovering-Transantarctic/dp/0300171978 The Transantarctic Mountains are the most remote mountain belt on Earth, an utterly pristine wilderness of ice and rock rising to majestic heights and extending for 1,500 miles. In this book, Edmund Stump is the first to show us this continental-scale mountain system in all its stunning beauty and desolation, and the first to provide a comprehensive, fully illustrated history of the region's discovery and exploration. The author not only has conducted extensive research in the Transantarctic Mountains during his forty-year career as a geologist but has also systematically photographed the entire region. Selecting the best of the best of his more than 8,000 photographs, he presents nothing less than the first atlas of these mountains. In addition, he examines the original firsthand accounts of the heroic Antarctic explorations of James Clark Ross (who discovered the mountain range in the early 1840s), Robert Falcon Scott, Ernest Shackleton, Roald Amundsen, Richard Byrd, and scientists participating in the International Geophysical Year (1957–1958). From these records, Stump is now able to trace the actual routes of the early explorers with unprecedented accuracy. With maps old and new, stunning photographs never before published, and tales of intrepid explorers, this book takes the armchair traveler on an expedition to the Antarctic wilderness that few have ever seen....more

  Episode

• 1018: Italy's regions—South Tyrol and Lombardy—chafe at the lockdown mandates. Lorenzo Fiori, Ansaldo Foundation.

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  Jan 20 2021

  Photo: Row of Lombardy poplars..http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowItaly's regions - South Tyrol and Lombardy - chafe at the lockdown mandates. Lorenzo Fiori, Ansaldo Foundation.https://www.krqe.com/news/world/italys-south-tyrol-again-flouts-rome-over-virus-closures/

  Episode

• 1018: Federal, State and City regulations cost lives. James Broughel @Mercatus

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  Jan 20 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1918. Colleges and Universities - Tulane University - Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana, Students Army Training Corps, Section B. Auto-mechanics section  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowFederal, State and City regulations cost lives. James Broughel @Mercatushttps://www.nationalreview.com/2021/01/how-joe-biden-can-stop-deadly-regulations-in-their-tracks/

  Episode

• 1015: Income inequality 11,000 BCE: 2of2: Timothy A. Kohler, Michael E. Smith. @Nature

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  Jan 19 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.Piramide van Gaius Cestius  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowIncome inequality 11,000 BCE: 2of2:  Timothy A. Kohler, Michael E. Smith. @Nature Greater post-Neolithic wealth disparities in Eurasia than in North America and Mesoamerica Timothy A. Kohler, Michael E. Smith https://www.nature.com/articles/nature24646 Abstract: How wealth is distributed among households provides insight into the fundamental characters of societies and the opportunities they afford for social mobility1,2. However, economic inequality has been hard to study in ancient societies for which we do not have written records3,4, which adds to the challenge of placing current wealth disparities into a long-term perspective. Although various archaeological proxies for wealth, such as burial goods5,6 or exotic or expensive-to-manufacture goods in household assemblages7, have been proposed, the first is not clearly connected with households, and the second is confounded by abandonment mode and other factors. As a result, numerous questions remain concerning the growth of wealth disparities, including their connection to the development of domesticated plants and animals and to increases in sociopolitical scale8. Here we show that wealth disparities generally increased with the domestication of plants and animals and with increased sociopolitical scale, using Gini coefficients computed over the single consistent proxy of house-size distributions. However, unexpected differences in the responses of societies to these factors in North America and Mesoamerica, and in Eurasia, became evident after the end of the Neolithic period. We argue that the generally higher wealth disparities identified in post-Neolithic Eurasia were initially due to the greater availability of large mammals that could be domesticated, because they allowed more profitable agricultural extensification9, and also eventually led to the development of a mounted warrior elite able to expand polities (political units that cohere via identity, ability to mobilize resources, or governance) to sizes that were not possible in North America and Mesoamerica before the arrival of Europeans10,11. We anticipate that this analysis will stimulate other work to enlarge this sample to include societies in South America, Africa, South Asia and Oceania that were under-sampled or not included in this study. https://www.nature.com/articles/nature24646 ...more

  Episode

• 1015: Income inequality 11,000 BCE: 1of2: Timothy A. Kohler, Michael E. Smith. @Nature

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  Jan 19 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1860. Cairo. Great Pyramid of Cheops  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowIncome inequality 11,000 BCE: 1of2:  Timothy A. Kohler, Michael E. Smith. @Nature Greater post-Neolithic wealth disparities in Eurasia than in North America and Mesoamerica Timothy A. Kohler, Michael E. Smith https://www.nature.com/articles/nature24646 Abstract: How wealth is distributed among households provides insight into the fundamental characters of societies and the opportunities they afford for social mobility1,2. However, economic inequality has been hard to study in ancient societies for which we do not have written records3,4, which adds to the challenge of placing current wealth disparities into a long-term perspective. Although various archaeological proxies for wealth, such as burial goods5,6 or exotic or expensive-to-manufacture goods in household assemblages7, have been proposed, the first is not clearly connected with households, and the second is confounded by abandonment mode and other factors. As a result, numerous questions remain concerning the growth of wealth disparities, including their connection to the development of domesticated plants and animals and to increases in sociopolitical scale8. Here we show that wealth disparities generally increased with the domestication of plants and animals and with increased sociopolitical scale, using Gini coefficients computed over the single consistent proxy of house-size distributions. However, unexpected differences in the responses of societies to these factors in North America and Mesoamerica, and in Eurasia, became evident after the end of the Neolithic period. We argue that the generally higher wealth disparities identified in post-Neolithic Eurasia were initially due to the greater availability of large mammals that could be domesticated, because they allowed more profitable agricultural extensification9, and also eventually led to the development of a mounted warrior elite able to expand polities (political units that cohere via identity, ability to mobilize resources, or governance) to sizes that were not possible in North America and Mesoamerica before the arrival of Europeans10,11. We anticipate that this analysis will stimulate other work to enlarge this sample to include societies in South America, Africa, South Asia and Oceania that were under-sampled or not included in this study. https://www.nature.com/articles/nature24646...more

  Episode

• 1017: "Indiana" Hoenlein and the Lost Bonsai Trees of King Herod. Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres

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  Jan 19 2021

  Image: Bonsai.   Here:  Multispecies saikei named Roan Mountain contains Shimpaku juniper and Zakura azalea. Indiana Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re: Bonsai trees were in the lavish court of Herod.  Archaeologists found pollen of bonsai, cypress, cedars.   Can reconstruct the gardens of that era.  Can you see the the palace from the road to Jericho? No.  The only full-size trees were date palms.   Canaanite jars 3,300 years old: ports replaced the city of Ugarit (a Hittite city)—a calamitous event?—much trade among Tyre, Byblos, Cyprus. Greece   . . . The Sea Peoples.  https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/king-herods-history-of-biblical-massacres-and-bonsai-trees-g6f5rwgnx ...more

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• 1017: Iran fires missiles in the direction of the Nimitz Strike Group. Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres

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  Jan 19 2021

  Image: US carrier strike group Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re:  The goal of the Iranian military exercises was to hit carriers and ships with low-speed and long-range missiles.   On Friday, used long-range bombers.  Fatal blows to mock bases, combination of drones and missiles. Iran has been advancing its non-nuclear weaponry.   This is a credible threat.  Missies fired in the Indian Ocean came near US merchant ships and also within twenty miles of the Nimitz Strike Group. Iran knows that Biden has spoken favorably of Iran. Zarif spoke of wiping out the Jews. Europeans.  Iran is laying down as many markers as it can.  Iran moves eqpt through Syria and Iraq; has put most of its materiel to residential neighborhoods, also in tunnels. Has its minions in false uniforms. Israel to be moved from European Command to CENTCOM; will help Israeli-Arab cooperation. The PA election announced today in Cairo.    Abbas in his 17thyear in office (he’s 85).   . .  . PA uses children’s textbooks and chalkboards that promote hatred of Jews, Israelis.   ...more

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• 1015: #ClassicTerryAnderson, 2 of 2: Another opportunity to free and enrich Indian Country. @HooverInst

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  Jan 19 2021

  Photo: A wilderness of sand--miles from human habitations, Painted Desert of Arizona  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#ClassicTerryAnderson: 2of2: Another opportunity to free and enrich Indian Country. @HooverInsthttps://www.hoover.org/research/restoring-tribal-economies Indian Country is anything but healthy and prosperous. In the United States, 20 percent of reservation households make less than $5,000 annually, and Native Americans are more likely than non-Natives to be assaulted, incarcerated, or to commit suicide. As one of us, Terry Anderson, outlined in testimony before the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights last year, the disparities between Native Americans and other Americans are the result of an institutional gap—a lack of property rights, clearly defined jurisdictions, and effective governance structures on Indian reservations. Most Native Americans lack title to their lands, because much of Indian Country is held in trust by the federal government. Without title or decision-making authority, tribal governments must endure lengthy federal approval processes before developing their land or allocating natural resources. This dependency on the federal government has eroded traditional indigenous community structures… ...more

  Episode

• 1015: #ClassicTerryAnderson: 1of2: Another opportunity to free and enrich Indian Country. @HooverInst

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  Jan 19 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1926. Petrified Trees and Painted Desert, Arizona  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#ClassicTerryAnderson: 1of2: Another opportunity to free and enrich Indian Country. @HooverInsthttps://www.hoover.org/research/restoring-tribal-economies Indian Country is anything but healthy and prosperous. In the United States, 20 percent of reservation households make less than $5,000 annually, and Native Americans are more likely than non-Natives to be assaulted, incarcerated, or to commit suicide. As one of us, Terry Anderson, outlined in testimony before the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights last year, the disparities between Native Americans and other Americans are the result of an institutional gap—a lack of property rights, clearly defined jurisdictions, and effective governance structures on Indian reservations. Most Native Americans lack title to their lands, because much of Indian Country is held in trust by the federal government. Without title or decision-making authority, tribal governments must endure lengthy federal approval processes before developing their land or allocating natural resources. This dependency on the federal government has eroded traditional indigenous community structures…...more

  Episode

• 1016: Joe Biden's version of a pen and a phone. @johnfund

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  Jan 19 2021

  Image: Sharpening a quillJohn Fund, @johnfund, NRO, in re:   Joe Biden's version of a pen and a phone.   Will Biden rule with executive orders? Is that what Obama did? What Trump did?   This is done increasingly by presidents. A caravan from Honduras approaching Mexico. Biden is said to have said, “This isn’t the right time.” He’ll allow all possible arrivals to enter, but wants to do so [less obviously].  Reconciliation can be done for budgetary items, only; Biden will stuff as much as he can in the budget.   “Moderates” are institutionalists, don't subscribe to radical change. They all come from red states in the past, still lean red.  Trump appointed 30-odd percent of federal judges.  Biden can’t possibly move as far to the left as that branch of his party wants.   Impeachment: Biden didn’t interfere with Pelosi; does she outrank him? Ultimately, no. That was an act purely of spite as she knew [it couldn’t come to fruition].   https://www.nationalreview.com/2021/01/will-biden-govern-more-through-legislation-or-executive-orders/?itm_campaign=headline-testing-will-biden-govern-more-through-legislation-or-executive-orders&itm_medium=headline&itm_source=nationalreview&itm_content=Biden’s%20Executive-Order%20Temptation&itm_term=Biden’s%20Executive-Order%20Temptation...more

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• 1016: Three strong-minded GOP women for 2022 and 2024. @DavidMDrucker

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  Jan 19 2021

  Image: Three courtesans David Drucker: @DavidMDrucker, Washington Examiner; in re:  Who’s Liz Cheney’s opponent – she’s the number three-ranking in the conference?  One third of the GOP conference thinks Cheney should be replaced because she voted in favor of impeaching Trump; Kevin McCarthy is trying to prevent a meeting airing all sorts of grievances.  On the biggest vote of the day, Cheney went against the leadership. Cheney has some fences to mend, some ’splaining to do. For the future of the GOP, have to figure out how [central] Trump is, and all the other matters.   Cheney, and South Dakota Governor, and Nikki Haley, all are strong female candidates for 2024. Haley tweeted about a Texas food pantry set up like a grocery store so the young people don't feel embarrassed.  Haley quoted Milton Freidman: “No such thing as a free lunch” [TANSTAAFL].https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/kristi-noem-nikki-haley-prelude-2024https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/politics/kevin-mccarthy-opposes-ousting-liz-cheney...more

  Episode

• 1015: Can Joe Biden unite a nation that is riven by politics and pandemic? @CliffMay @FDD

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  Jan 19 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1904.Quincy Market, Boston, Mass.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowCan Joe Biden unite a nation that is riven by politics and pandemic? @CliffMay @FDD https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2021/jan/12/biden-must-heal-the-nation-and-show-adversaries-a-/ https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/18/politics/inaugural-address-biden/index.html

  Episode

• 1016: Searching for the origins of Covid-19 in China. @WeTheBrandon; @GordonGChang,

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  Jan 19 2021

  Image:1903.CHINA. SOLDIERS Brandon Weichert, @WeTheBrandon; author, Winning Space, How America Remains a Superpower;andGordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re:    We need to find the origin of this virus. Not only does Beijing refuse to let in qualified investigators—it’s spinning that the virus began in the US.   We need samples; to learn how it came about, propagated, what’s generating all the mutations.    China is at much at risk as the rest of us are. China is blaming everyone else; I think the Chinese authorities don't know how this is transmitted. In autumn 2019, staff at the Wuhan Institute of Virology fell ill with the flu.   A friend of mine who's a big investor in China moved back to the US PDQ in late 2019. A stop on all gain-of-function research specifically with a covid-like disease. Bill Gertz:  Chapel Hill transferred all relevant research from the US to China, where the restrictions are much [flimsier].  People were getting sick long before China acknowledged the disease.  This could be the biological Pearl Harbor we were all most worried about.   If the US government declassifies what it knows about the Wuhan Institute of Virology, we’ll learn what we need to know. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/pompeo-wuhan-lab-illnesses-beijing ...more

  Episode

• 1015: The FBI tasked Stefan Halper to spy on the Trump campaign and smear Flynn and Svetlana Lokhova. @RealSLokhova @SvetlanaLokhova

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  Jan 19 2021

  Photo: Perfidy:  The Calumny of Apelles The figures are either personifications of vices or virtues, or in the case of the king and victim, of the roles of the powerful and the powerless. From left to right, they represent (with alternative names): Truth, nude and pointing upwards to Heaven; Repentance in black; Perfidy (Conspiracy) in red and yellow, over the innocent half-naked victim on the floor, who is being pulled forward by the hair by Calumny (Slander), in white and blue and holding a flaming torch. Fraud, behind, arranges Calumny's hair. Rancour (Envy), a bearded and hooded man in black, holds his hand towards the king's eyes to obscure their view. On the throne, the king has the donkey's ears of King Midas, and Ignorance on his far side and Suspicion on the near side grasp these as they speak into them. The king extends his hand towards Calumny, but his eyes look down so that he cannot see the scene.Perfidy constitutes a breach of the laws of war and so is a war crime, http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe FBI tasked Stefan Haler to spy on the Trump campaign and smear Flynn and Sverlana Lokhova. @SventlanaLokhovahttps://patriotpost.us/articles/77071-declassified-docs-shed-light-on-real-collusion-2021-01-18 ...more

  Episode

• 1015: The Democrats aim to decapitate the GOP & What is to be done @AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatness

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  Jan 19 2021

  Photo: Decapitation: an Ethiopian Emperor executing people, 18th century http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe Democrats aim to decapitate the GOP & What is to be done @AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatnesshttps://amgreatness.com/2021/01/15/the-democrats-decapitation-strategy/

  Episode

• 1015: POTUS readies his defense for the trial by the Senate Democratic majority. @AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatness

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  Jan 19 2021

  Photo: Senae chamber. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowPOTUS readies his defense for the trial by the Senate Democratic majority. @AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatnesshttps://www.nationalreview.com/2021/01/the-trump-impeachment-is-deeply-flawed-but-he-deserves-conviction/

  Episode

• 1016: Hong Kongers must sign the loyalty oath or face ruin. @Michael_Yon, @GordonGChang,

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  Jan 19 2021

  Image:1908.Peddu St., Hong Kong  Michael Yon: @Michael_Yon, war correspondent; and Gordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re:   180,000 Hong Kong civil servants have four weeks to pledge allegiance to the Chinese Communist Party.  Over 100,000 have done so. CCP is going after not only the youth but also their parents.   If anyone fails to pledge, the CCP can grab them move them in to a Mainland court.   Hong Kong courage is extremely high, but they’re pragmatic people and now pressed against a wall. The penalty is a lifetime ruined.  Today, it’s not too difficult to leave the city, although Mainland can lock the place down if it wants to.   This is a forest fire engulfing Hong Kong.  The best thing we can do is undermine the CCP’s power base. In January 2022, Hong Kong will look like the rest of the Mainland. There’s nothing Beijing won't do. They kidnap people out of Thailand and elsewhere.  Message to Hong Kongers: if you can get out, we’ll do all we can to help you get in to the US. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-hongkong-security/hong-kong-civil-servants-given-four-weeks-to-pledge-loyalty-to-the-government-idUSKBN29K1HY ...more

  Episode

• 1015: The market beats Jim Simons as he retires in favor of Peter Brown. @GregoryZuckerman @WSJ

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  Jan 19 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1890.[Horse-drawn wagons in front of the Center Market, Washington, D.C.]  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe market beats Jim Simons as he retires in favor of Peter Brown. @GregoryZuckerman @WSJhttps://www.wsj.com/articles/james-simons-steps-down-as-chairman-ofrenaissance-technologies-11610637320?mod=hp_lead_pos11

  Episode

• 1016: How will the Biden Administration confront Iran? @thomasjoscelyn, @billroggio

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  Jan 19 2021

  Image:  Joe Biden Tom Joscelyn, @thomasjoscelyn, Long War Journal and FDD; and Bill Roggio, @billroggio, Long War Journal and FDD; in re: Al Qaeda: refuge and operations in Iran. Al Q Leadership is a shadow of its former self, even as it's growing overall because of its refuge in Iran. For political reasons, Pompeo will talk up al Q in Iran while playing down its presence in Afghanistan Biden desperately wants an nuclear deal with Iran, will ignore facts that are inconvenient for his policy preferences. “Small US footprint” in all the conflict zones: is that viable?  Not in Afghanistan.  https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2021/01/ep-40-al-qaeda-in-iran-and-afghanistan.php ...more

  Episode

• 1016: Pompeo says Iran and Al Qaeda are partners. @thomasjoscelyn, @billroggio

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  Jan 19 2021

  Image:  Shiraz, from Travels in Assyria, Media, and Persia, etc.  Tom Joscelyn, @thomasjoscelyn, Long War Journal and FDD; and Bill Roggio, @billroggio, Long War Journal and FDD; in re:   Secretary Pompeo:  Iran.  Trump put great pressure on Iran with sanctions; Mr Biden has said he’ll reverse that.  Generation Jihad: Al Qaeda in Iran, the major base of operation for al Q.  Pompeo spoke up plainly; one might wonder why he did so this late in the game. The facts are: we can identify senior al Q persons in Iran, esp al Mahgrebi, a Moroccan, “a rising star.”  He’s the organization’s general manager, a sort of traffic cop; very important.  Press coverage is scant [and inadequate].  The reason al Q left Afghanistan was because of he intense US pressure after October 2001; it became uncomfortable, so they moved to Pakistan and Iran. If the US leaves Afghanistan, al Qaeda is likely to move back in.  https://www.state.gov/the-iran-al-qaida-axis/ https://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2021/01/ep-40-al-qaeda-in-iran-and-afghanistan.php  ...more

  Episode

• 1015: Putin jails the extremely vulnerable Navalny. @PaulR_Gregory. @Hooverinst

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  Jan 19 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1716. Spiegelgevecht op het IJ ter ere van de Russische tsarina, 1716  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowPutin jails the extremely vulnerable Navalny. @PaulR_Gregory. @Hooverinsthttps://www.reuters.com/article/russia-politics-navalny/update-7-kremlin-foe-alexei-navalny-calls-for-street-protests-after-being-jailed-idUSL1N2JT0N3

  Episode

• 1011: #ClassicMaxHolland: Explaining "Deep Throat" as the "White Rat" 2of2: @WashingtonDecoded.

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  Jan 18 2021

  Photo: The Watergate complex. The Kennedy Center is visible in the background. The boxy building at middle left is the former Howard Johnson's Motor Lodge, used during the 1972 Watergate burglaries to monitor the break-ins and wiretaps across the street. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#ClassicMaxHolland: Explaining "Deep Throat" as the "White Rat" 2of2:  @WashingtonDecoded.http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/09/10/watergate-deep-throat-myth-mark-felt-215591 “…Nixon’s surprise appointment of a dark-horse outsider, Assistant Attorney General L. Patrick Gray, to be acting director within hours stands as one of the most far-reaching personnel decisions ever taken by a president inadvertently. His attention consumed by the upcoming election, geopolitical strategy and the effort to withdraw U.S. ground troops from Vietnam, Nixon was anxious to avoid having Hoover’s FBI become an issue in 1972. For the first time, a director was going to have to win Senate confirmation, and Nixon was leery of giving Democrats on the Judiciary Committee the opportunity to work over a nominee in an election year, possibly even block his confirmation. The president considered the appointment equal to nominating a chief justice to the Supreme Court. Nixon wanted a vigorous man who would occupy the post long after his second term ended. Gray’s acting appointment was roundly criticized on the grounds that he was a Nixon crony. But he otherwise aroused little opposition because he was as colorless as his name. Gray wasn’t promised the permanent appointment, only that he would be considered for the post if he did a creditable job. Yet the message behind Gray’s interim status—that Nixon was intent on bringing in someone from outside the bureau—was an unmistakable signal to several executives angling for the job, and they decided to retire. The ambitious Felt saw the acting designation, however, as a small opening. It still left six months in which to persuade Nixon to “see the light” by nominating an insider, as Felt wrote in his 1979 memoir….” ...more

  Episode

• 1011: #ClassicMaxHolland: Explaining "Deep Throat" as the "White Rat" 1of2: @WashingtonDecoded.

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  Jan 18 2021

  Photo: Mark Felt, known by the pseudonym "Deep Throat" http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#ClassicMaxHolland: Explaining "Deep Throat" as the "White Rat" 1of2:  @WashingtonDecoded.http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/09/10/watergate-deep-throat-myth-mark-felt-215591 “…Nixon’s surprise appointment of a dark-horse outsider, Assistant Attorney General L. Patrick Gray, to be acting director within hours stands as one of the most far-reaching personnel decisions ever taken by a president inadvertently. His attention consumed by the upcoming election, geopolitical strategy and the effort to withdraw U.S. ground troops from Vietnam, Nixon was anxious to avoid having Hoover’s FBI become an issue in 1972. For the first time, a director was going to have to win Senate confirmation, and Nixon was leery of giving Democrats on the Judiciary Committee the opportunity to work over a nominee in an election year, possibly even block his confirmation. The president considered the appointment equal to nominating a chief justice to the Supreme Court. Nixon wanted a vigorous man who would occupy the post long after his second term ended. Gray’s acting appointment was roundly criticized on the grounds that he was a Nixon crony. But he otherwise aroused little opposition because he was as colorless as his name. Gray wasn’t promised the permanent appointment, only that he would be considered for the post if he did a creditable job. Yet the message behind Gray’s interim status—that Nixon was intent on bringing in someone from outside the bureau—was an unmistakable signal to several executives angling for the job, and they decided to retire. The ambitious Felt saw the acting designation, however, as a small opening. It still left six months in which to persuade Nixon to “see the light” by nominating an insider, as Felt wrote in his 1979 memoir….” ...more

  Episode

• 1011: #ClassicTerryAnderson: Bears Ears corrected, January 2018. 2of2. Terry Anderson @HooverInst

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  Jan 18 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.Valley of the Gods, an area outside the redefined monument boundaries of December 2017 US Bureau of Land Management - http://mypubliclands.tumblr.com/ Aerial shot of the Valley of the Gods in Bears Ears National Monument Public Domain File:Valley of the Gods - Aerial.jpg Created: 2016-08-11 05:48:44  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#ClassicTerryAnderson: Bears Ears National Monument corrected, January 2018. 2of2. Terry Anderson @HooverInsthttps://www.hoover.org/research/trumps-environmental-federal "In 1906, Congress passed and President Theodore Roosevelt signed the Antiquities Act, granting the executive the authority to establish national monuments without congressional approval. The stated purpose of the law was to protect “historic landmarks, historic and prehistoric structures, and other objects of historic or scientific interest.” There are now 129 national monuments, of which Roosevelt created 18. Since 1906, 15 presidents have created national monuments, and only Nixon, Reagan, and George H.W. Bush created none. Two big differences stand out in recent designations. First, they tend to be larger. Second, locking up large acreages without input from local residents has evoked the ire of those who live in the area and whose livelihoods depend on multiple uses of that land such as for grazing and energy development…" ...more

  Episode

• 1011: #ClassicTerryAnderson: Bears Ears corrected, January 2018. 1of2. Terry Anderson @HooverInst

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  Jan 18 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#ClassicTerryAnderson: Bears Ears National Monument corrected, January 2018. 1of2. Terry Anderson @HooverInsthttps://www.hoover.org/research/trumps-environmental-federal "In 1906, Congress passed and President Theodore Roosevelt signed the Antiquities Act, granting the executive the authority to establish national monuments without congressional approval. The stated purpose of the law was to protect “historic landmarks, historic and prehistoric structures, and other objects of historic or scientific interest.” There are now 129 national monuments, of which Roosevelt created 18. Since 1906, 15 presidents have created national monuments, and only Nixon, Reagan, and George H.W. Bush created none. Two big differences stand out in recent designations. First, they tend to be larger. Second, locking up large acreages without input from local residents has evoked the ire of those who live in the area and whose livelihoods depend on multiple uses of that land such as for grazing and energy development…" ...more

  Episode

• 1014: 4/4 Human Game: The True Story of the 'Great Escape' Murders and the Hunt for the Gestapo Gunmen, by Simon Read

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  Jan 18 2021

  Image:  The path of the tunnel “Harry”  Human Game: The True Story of the 'Great Escape' Murders and the Hunt for the Gestapo Gunmen,by Simon Read   The mass breakout of seventy-six Allied airmen from the infamous Stalag Luft III became one of the greatest tales of World War II, immortalized in the film The Great Escape. But where Hollywood’s depiction fades to black, another amazing story begins . . .       Not long after the escape, fifty of the recaptured airmen were taken to desolate killing fields throughout Germany and shot on the direct orders of Hitler. When the nature of these killings came to light, Churchill’s government swore to pursue justice at any cost. A revolving team of military police, led by the squadron leader Francis P. McKenna, was dispatched to Germany seventeen months after the killings to pick up a trail long gone cold.      Amid the chaos of postwar Germany, divided between American, British, French, and Russian occupiers, McKenna and his men brought twenty-one Gestapo killers to justice in a hunt that spanned three years and took them into the darkest realms of Nazi fanaticism.       In Human Game, Simon Read tells this harrowing story as never before. Beginning inside Stalag Luft III and the Nazi High Command, through the grueling three-year manhunt, and into the final close of the case more than two decades later, Read delivers a clear-eyed and meticulously researched account of this often-overlooked saga of hard-won justice.  https://www.amazon.com/Human-Game-Escape-Murders-Gestapo-ebook/dp/B008EXNXLI/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Human+Game%3A+The+True+Story+of+the+%27Great+Escape%27+Murders+and+the+Hunt+for+the+Gestapo+Gunmen+by+Simon+Read&qid=1610932018&s=books&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 1014: 3/4 Human Game: The True Story of the 'Great Escape' Murders and the Hunt for the Gestapo Gunmen, by Simon Read

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  Jan 18 2021

  Image: Nazi fanatics:  here, Kommandant Friedrich Wilhelm von Lindeiner-Wildau, Kommandant of Stalag Luft III.   Human Game: The True Story of the 'Great Escape' Murders and the Hunt for the Gestapo Gunmen,by Simon Read   The mass breakout of seventy-six Allied airmen from the infamous Stalag Luft III became one of the greatest tales of World War II, immortalized in the film The Great Escape. But where Hollywood’s depiction fades to black, another amazing story begins . . .       Not long after the escape, fifty of the recaptured airmen were taken to desolate killing fields throughout Germany and shot on the direct orders of Hitler. When the nature of these killings came to light, Churchill’s government swore to pursue justice at any cost. A revolving team of military police, led by the squadron leader Francis P. McKenna, was dispatched to Germany seventeen months after the killings to pick up a trail long gone cold.      Amid the chaos of postwar Germany, divided between American, British, French, and Russian occupiers, McKenna and his men brought twenty-one Gestapo killers to justice in a hunt that spanned three years and took them into the darkest realms of Nazi fanaticism.       In Human Game, Simon Read tells this harrowing story as never before. Beginning inside Stalag Luft III and the Nazi High Command, through the grueling three-year manhunt, and into the final close of the case more than two decades later, Read delivers a clear-eyed and meticulously researched account of this often-overlooked saga of hard-won justice.  https://www.amazon.com/Human-Game-Escape-Murders-Gestapo-ebook/dp/B008EXNXLI/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Human+Game%3A+The+True+Story+of+the+%27Great+Escape%27+Murders+and+the+Hunt+for+the+Gestapo+Gunmen+by+Simon+Read&qid=1610932018&s=books&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 1014: 2/4 Human Game: The True Story of the 'Great Escape' Murders and the Hunt for the Gestapo Gunmen, by Simon Read

  Listen

  Jan 18 2021

  Image:  Memorial to "The Fifty" down the road toward Żagań.  Human Game: The True Story of the 'Great Escape' Murders and the Hunt for the Gestapo Gunmen,by Simon Read   The mass breakout of seventy-six Allied airmen from the infamous Stalag Luft III became one of the greatest tales of World War II, immortalized in the film The Great Escape. But where Hollywood’s depiction fades to black, another amazing story begins . . .      Not long after the escape, fifty of the recaptured airmen were taken to desolate killing fields throughout Germany and shot on the direct orders of Hitler. When the nature of these killings came to light, Churchill’s government swore to pursue justice at any cost. A revolving team of military police, led by the squadron leader Francis P. McKenna, was dispatched to Germany seventeen months after the killings to pick up a trail long gone cold.      Amid the chaos of postwar Germany, divided between American, British, French, and Russian occupiers, McKenna and his men brought twenty-one Gestapo killers to justice in a hunt that spanned three years and took them into the darkest realms of Nazi fanaticism.       In Human Game, Simon Read tells this harrowing story as never before. Beginning inside Stalag Luft III and the Nazi High Command, through the grueling three-year manhunt, and into the final close of the case more than two decades later, Read delivers a clear-eyed and meticulously researched account of this often-overlooked saga of hard-won justice.  https://www.amazon.com/Human-Game-Escape-Murders-Gestapo-ebook/dp/B008EXNXLI/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Human+Game%3A+The+True+Story+of+the+%27Great+Escape%27+Murders+and+the+Hunt+for+the+Gestapo+Gunmen+by+Simon+Read&qid=1610932018&s=books&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 1014: 1/4 Human Game: The True Story of the 'Great Escape' Murders and the Hunt for the Gestapo Gunmen, by Simon Read

  Listen

  Jan 18 2021

  Image:  In the camp (re-enactment) . Screen grab.  Human Game: The True Story of the 'Great Escape' Murders and the Hunt for the Gestapo Gunmen,by Simon Read   The mass breakout of seventy-six Allied airmen from the infamous Stalag Luft III became one of the greatest tales of World War II, immortalized in the film The Great Escape. But where Hollywood’s depiction fades to black, another amazing story begins . . .       Not long after the escape, fifty of the recaptured airmen were taken to desolate killing fields throughout Germany and shot on the direct orders of Hitler. When the nature of these killings came to light, Churchill’s government swore to pursue justice at any cost. A revolving team of military police, led by the squadron leader Francis P. McKenna, was dispatched to Germany seventeen months after the killings to pick up a trail long gone cold.      Amid the chaos of postwar Germany, divided between American, British, French, and Russian occupiers, McKenna and his men brought twenty-one Gestapo killers to justice in a hunt that spanned three years and took them into the darkest realms of Nazi fanaticism.       In Human Game, Simon Read tells this harrowing story as never before. Beginning inside Stalag Luft III and the Nazi High Command, through the grueling three-year manhunt, and into the final close of the case more than two decades later, Read delivers a clear-eyed and meticulously researched account of this often-overlooked saga of hard-won justice.  https://www.amazon.com/Human-Game-Escape-Murders-Gestapo-ebook/dp/B008EXNXLI/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Human+Game%3A+The+True+Story+of+the+%27Great+Escape%27+Murders+and+the+Hunt+for+the+Gestapo+Gunmen+by+Simon+Read&qid=1610932018&s=books&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 1013: 4/4 Voices of the Pacific: Untold Stories from the Marine Heroes of World War II, by Adam Makos and Marcus Brotherton

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  Jan 18 2021

  Image:   Marines rest in the field on Guadalcanal  Voices of the Pacific: Untold Stories from the Marine Heroes of World War II, by Adam Makos  and Marcus Brotherton   Kindle Edition From the New York Times bestselling author of Spearheadand A Higher Call comes an unflinching, brutal, and relentless firsthand chronicle of United States Marine Corps’ actions in the Pacific during World War II.       Following fifteen Marines from the Pearl Harbor attack through battles with the Japanese, to their return home after V-J Day, Adam Makos and Marcus Brotherton have compiled an oral history of the Pacific War in the words of the men who fought on the front lines. With unflinching honesty, these Marines reveal harrowing accounts of combat with an implacable enemy, the friendships and camaraderie they found—and lost—and the aftermath of the war’s impact on their lives.       With unprecedented access to the veterans, rare photographs, and unpublished memoirs, Voices of the Pacific presents true stories of heroism as told by such World War II veterans as Sid Phillips, R. V. Burgin, and Chuck Tatum—whose exploits were featured in the HBO® miniseries, The Pacific—and their Marine buddies from the legendary 1st Marine Division.       https://www.amazon.com/Voices-Pacific-Untold-Stories-Marine/dp/0425257835/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Voices+of+the+Pacific%3A+Untold+Stories+from+the+Marine+Heroes+of+World+War+II&qid=1610934926&s=books&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 1013: 3/4 Voices of the Pacific: Untold Stories from the Marine Heroes of World War II, by Adam Makos and Marcus Brotherton

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  Jan 18 2021

  Image:   The Eagle, Globe and Anchor along with the U.S. flag, the Marine Corps flag and the Commandant's flag  Voices of the Pacific: Untold Stories from the Marine Heroes of World War II, by Adam Makos  and Marcus Brotherton   Kindle Edition From the New York Times bestselling author of Spearheadand A Higher Call comes an unflinching, brutal, and relentless firsthand chronicle of United States Marine Corps’ actions in the Pacific during World War II.       Following fifteen Marines from the Pearl Harbor attack through battles with the Japanese, to their return home after V-J Day, Adam Makos and Marcus Brotherton have compiled an oral history of the Pacific War in the words of the men who fought on the front lines. With unflinching honesty, these Marines reveal harrowing accounts of combat with an implacable enemy, the friendships and camaraderie they found—and lost—and the aftermath of the war’s impact on their lives.       With unprecedented access to the veterans, rare photographs, and unpublished memoirs, Voices of the Pacific presents true stories of heroism as told by such World War II veterans as Sid Phillips, R. V. Burgin, and Chuck Tatum—whose exploits were featured in the HBO® miniseries, The Pacific—and their Marine buddies from the legendary 1st Marine Division.       https://www.amazon.com/Voices-Pacific-Untold-Stories-Marine/dp/0425257835/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Voices+of+the+Pacific%3A+Untold+Stories+from+the+Marine+Heroes+of+World+War+II&qid=1610934926&s=books&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 1013: 2/4 Voices of the Pacific: Untold Stories from the Marine Heroes of World War II, by Adam Makos and Marcus Brotherton

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  Jan 18 2021

  Image:  The Battle of Iwo Jima was a major battle in which the United States Marine Corps and Navy landed on and eventually captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II.  Here:  Battle of Iwo Jima,U.S. Marines raising the American flag over Mount Suribachi, Iwo Jima, in February 1945.  Voices of the Pacific: Untold Stories from the Marine Heroes of World War II, by Adam Makos  and Marcus Brotherton   Kindle Edition From the New York Times bestselling author of Spearheadand A Higher Call comes an unflinching, brutal, and relentless firsthand chronicle of United States Marine Corps’ actions in the Pacific during World War II.       Following fifteen Marines from the Pearl Harbor attack through battles with the Japanese, to their return home after V-J Day, Adam Makos and Marcus Brotherton have compiled an oral history of the Pacific War in the words of the men who fought on the front lines. With unflinching honesty, these Marines reveal harrowing accounts of combat with an implacable enemy, the friendships and camaraderie they found—and lost—and the aftermath of the war’s impact on their lives.       With unprecedented access to the veterans, rare photographs, and unpublished memoirs, Voices of the Pacific presents true stories of heroism as told by such World War II veterans as Sid Phillips, R. V. Burgin, and Chuck Tatum—whose exploits were featured in the HBO® miniseries, The Pacific—and their Marine buddies from the legendary 1st Marine Division.       https://www.amazon.com/Voices-Pacific-Untold-Stories-Marine/dp/0425257835/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Voices+of+the+Pacific%3A+Untold+Stories+from+the+Marine+Heroes+of+World+War+II&qid=1610934926&s=books&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 1013: 1/4 Voices of the Pacific: Untold Stories from the Marine Heroes of World War II, by Adam Makos and Marcus Brotherton

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  Jan 18 2021

  Image:  Continental Marines landing at New Providence in March 1776 during the Battle of Nassau, the first amphibious landing of the Marine Corps, during the American Revolutionary War  Voices of the Pacific: Untold Stories from the Marine Heroes of World War II, by Adam Makos  and Marcus Brotherton   Kindle Edition From the New York Times bestselling author of Spearheadand A Higher Call comes an unflinching, brutal, and relentless firsthand chronicle of United States Marine Corps’ actions in the Pacific during World War II.       Following fifteen Marines from the Pearl Harbor attack through battles with the Japanese, to their return home after V-J Day, Adam Makos and Marcus Brotherton have compiled an oral history of the Pacific War in the words of the men who fought on the front lines. With unflinching honesty, these Marines reveal harrowing accounts of combat with an implacable enemy, the friendships and camaraderie they found—and lost—and the aftermath of the war’s impact on their lives.       With unprecedented access to the veterans, rare photographs, and unpublished memoirs, Voices of the Pacific presents true stories of heroism as told by such World War II veterans as Sid Phillips, R. V. Burgin, and Chuck Tatum—whose exploits were featured in the HBO® miniseries, The Pacific—and their Marine buddies from the legendary 1st Marine Division.       https://www.amazon.com/Voices-Pacific-Untold-Stories-Marine/dp/0425257835/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Voices+of+the+Pacific%3A+Untold+Stories+from+the+Marine+Heroes+of+World+War+II&qid=1610934926&s=books&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 1012: 2/2 Recalling the geopolitical chaos of the Watergate Scandal, 1974. Gregory Copley, Defense & Foreign Affairs, 2017

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  Jan 18 2021

  Image:   A photo of the Watergate complex taken from a DC-9-80 inbound to Washington National Airport on January 8, 2006. Recalling the geopolitical chaos of the Watergate Scandal, 1974. Gregory Copley, Defense & Foreign Affairs, 2017. Reflections Caused by Demonic Visitations.   “When in the chronicle of wasted time I see descriptions of the fairest wights, And beauty making beautiful old rhyme In praise of ladies dead and lovely knights, Then, in the blazon of sweet beauty’s best, Of hand, of foot, of lip, of eye, of brow, I see their antique pen would have express’d Even such a beauty as you master now. So all their praises are but prophecies Of this our time, all you prefiguring; And, for they look’d but with divining eyes, They had not skill enough your worth to sing: For we, which now behold these present days, Have eyes to wonder, but lack tongues to praise. — " William Shakespeare’s sonnet to the “Chronicle of Wasted Time”. Analysis. By Gregory R. Copley, Editor, GIS/Defense & Foreign Affairs. Demons visit old men in the darkness of early morning when stillness and quiet are absolute. They mean no harm. It is only at this time that the honesty of those they visit cannot be alloyed with excuses, or distracted by the optimism of dawn. Old men can then see laid before them the chronicles of their wasted time and wasted opportunities; the pettinesses and vanities which forever marred their characters along the paths of early life; and the futility of the self-deception which marks the daylight hours and damns — and dams — the path to something greater. The breaking dawn relieves the siege of demons, restoring optimism and the vision of earthly beauty.        Yet it is the shapes which old men see in the black which are real, and it is the colors of day which are the cloak. It is in darkness and privacy that demons can exert uncompromising truth in full measure. They come only to the most fortunate, and even there they find few with energy still left to welcome them. They offer a chance to waste time no more; to restore fire to the blood that it might resist the obsessive greed of those younger and those still immortal. They offer redemption for those who will take it. In the Chronicle of Wasted Time and wasted opportunities of my own knowing it is possible to see how societies have betrayed themselves through those vanities and ambitions to satisfy immediate lusts, when the larger skein went unseen. And we, which now behold these present days, “have eyes to see, . . .  but lack the tongues” to warn. When personal ambition, greed, and vanity are put ahead of the greatness of society — when immediate and personal gratification and material, visceral self-regard outweigh the deeper identity of the individual with kin and land — then the paths of history are distorted and curtailed.        I was fresh to the United States when I saw what seemed the incomprehensible and disproportionate venom of the Watergate scandal break in 1972. It allowed the ambitious to advance their careers at the cost of the West’s strategic position. The Soviets used that event to strengthen their own position — postponing the revival of the Russian people — but those in the US who made Watergate the launch of their careers, regardless of the damage to their country, showed how history can be distracted from its path by the teeming insatiability of ants. Most of humanity is unconcerned with the larger framework of history. Theirs is a pattern of behavior to ensure individual survival and happiness. Most react rather than initiate; follow rather than lead. Thinking only what others have thought for them. Follow an instinctive path of work, consumption, sleep, reproduction, and death. And this life is either secure or insecure, happy or not: dependent on the level of trust they have in the hierarchical structures of their society and geopolitical entity. But others, who aspire differently, seek either society . . .    ...more

  Episode

• 1012: 1/2 Recalling the geopolitical chaos of the Watergate Scandal, 1974. Gregory Copley, Defense & Foreign Affairs, 2017.

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  Jan 18 2021

  Image:  Title page of Shakespeare's Sonnets (1609)Recalling the geopolitical chaos of the Watergate Scandal, 1974. Gregory Copley, Defense & Foreign Affairs, 2017. Reflections Caused by Demonic Visitations.   "When in the chronicle of wasted time I see descriptions of the fairest wights, And beauty making beautiful old rhyme In praise of ladies dead and lovely knights, Then, in the blazon of sweet beauty’s best, Of hand, of foot, of lip, of eye, of brow, I see their antique pen would have express’d Even such a beauty as you master now. So all their praises are but prophecies Of this our time, all you prefiguring; And, for they look’d but with divining eyes, They had not skill enough your worth to sing: For we, which now behold these present days, Have eyes to wonder, but lack tongues to praise. — " William Shakespeare’s sonnet to the “Chronicle of Wasted Time”. Analysis. By Gregory R. Copley, Editor, GIS/Defense & Foreign Affairs. Demons visit old men in the darkness of early morning when stillness and quiet are absolute. They mean no harm. It is only at this time that the honesty of those they visit cannot be alloyed with excuses, or distracted by the optimism of dawn. Old men can then see laid before them the chronicles of their wasted time and wasted opportunities; the pettinesses and vanities which forever marred their characters along the paths of early life; and the futility of the self-deception which marks the daylight hours and damns — and dams — the path to something greater. The breaking dawn relieves the siege of demons, restoring optimism and the vision of earthly beauty.        Yet it is the shapes which old men see in the black which are real, and it is the colors of day which are the cloak. It is in darkness and privacy that demons can exert uncompromising truth in full measure. They come only to the most fortunate, and even there they find few with energy still left to welcome them. They offer a chance to waste time no more; to restore fire to the blood that it might resist the obsessive greed of those younger and those still immortal. They offer redemption for those who will take it. In the Chronicle of Wasted Time and wasted opportunities of my own knowing it is possible to see how societies have betrayed themselves through those vanities and ambitions to satisfy immediate lusts, when the larger skein went unseen. And we, which now behold these present days, “have eyes to see, . . .  but lack the tongues” to warn. When personal ambition, greed, and vanity are put ahead of the greatness of society — when immediate and personal gratification and material, visceral self-regard outweigh the deeper identity of the individual with kin and land — then the paths of history are distorted and curtailed.        I was fresh to the United States when I saw what seemed the incomprehensible and disproportionate venom of the Watergate scandal break in 1972. It allowed the ambitious to advance their careers at the cost of the West’s strategic position. The Soviets used that event to strengthen their own position — postponing the revival of the Russian people — but those in the US who made Watergate the launch of their careers, regardless of the damage to their country, showed how history can be distracted from its path by the teeming insatiability of ants. Most of humanity is unconcerned with the larger framework of history. Theirs is a pattern of behavior to ensure individual survival and happiness. Most react rather than initiate; follow rather than lead. Thinking only what others have thought for them. Follow an instinctive path of work, consumption, sleep, reproduction, and death. And this life is either secure or insecure, happy or not: dependent on the level of trust they have in the hierarchical structures of their society and geopolitical entity. But others, who aspire differently, seek either society . . .     ...more

  Episode

• 1011: 2/2 The Golden Lad: The Haunting Story of Quentin and Theodore Roosevelt, by Eric Burns

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  Jan 18 2021

  Image:  Page from album showing a photograph of Quentin Roosevelt standing next to his airplane, facing front; with newspaper clippings, "Lieut. Quentin Roosevelt. Fallen in air fight", "Confirm Quentin's death - German airmen drop note saying that he was killed", and "Quentin Roosevelt, scorning odds, died fighting to last"  The Golden Lad: The Haunting Story of Quentin and TheodoreRoosevelt,by Eric Burns   Theodore Roosevelt is one of the most fascinating and written-about presidents in American history—yet the most poignant tale about this larger-than-life man has never been told.More than a century has passed since Theodore Roosevelt was in the White House, but he still continues to fascinate. Never has a more exuberant man been our nation's leader. He became a war hero, reformed the NYPD, busted the largest railroad and oil trusts, passed the Pure Food and Drug Act, created national parks and forests, won the Nobel Peace Prize, and built the Panama Canal—to name just a few.Yet it was the cause he championed the hardest—America's entry in to WWI—that would ultimately divide and destroy him. His youngest son, Quentin, his favorite, would die in an air fight. How does looking at Theodore's relationship with his son, and understanding him as a father, tell us something new about this larger-than-life man? Does it reveal a more human side? A more hypocritical side? Or simply, if tragically, a nature so surprisingly sensitive, despite the bluster, that he would die of a broken heart?Roosevelt's own history of boyhood illnesses made him so aware of what it was like to be a child in pain, that he could not bear the thought of his own children suffering. The Roosevelts were a family of pillow-fights, pranks, and "scary bear." And it was the baby, Quentin—the frailest—who worried his father the most. Yet, in the end, it was he who would display, in his brief life, the most intellect and courage of all. https://www.amazon.com/Golden-Lad-Haunting-Theodore-Roosevelt/dp/1605989517/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=golden+lad+quentin+roosevelt&qid=1610927865&s=books&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 1011: 1/2 The Golden Lad: The Haunting Story of Quentin and Theodore Roosevelt, by Eric Burns

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  Jan 18 2021

  Image:  Quentin Roosevelt  The Golden Lad: The Haunting Story of Quentin and TheodoreRoosevelt,by Eric Burns   Theodore Roosevelt is one of the most fascinating and written-about presidents in American history—yet the most poignant tale about this larger-than-life man has never been told.More than a century has passed since Theodore Roosevelt was in the White House, but he still continues to fascinate. Never has a more exuberant man been our nation's leader. He became a war hero, reformed the NYPD, busted the largest railroad and oil trusts, passed the Pure Food and Drug Act, created national parks and forests, won the Nobel Peace Prize, and built the Panama Canal—to name just a few.Yet it was the cause he championed the hardest—America's entry in to WWI—that would ultimately divide and destroy him. His youngest son, Quentin, his favorite, would die in an air fight. How does looking at Theodore's relationship with his son, and understanding him as a father, tell us something new about this larger-than-life man? Does it reveal a more human side? A more hypocritical side? Or simply, if tragically, a nature so surprisingly sensitive, despite the bluster, that he would die of a broken heart?Roosevelt's own history of boyhood illnesses made him so aware of what it was like to be a child in pain, that he could not bear the thought of his own children suffering. The Roosevelts were a family of pillow-fights, pranks, and "scary bear." And it was the baby, Quentin—the frailest—who worried his father the most. Yet, in the end, it was he who would display, in his brief life, the most intellect and courage of all. https://www.amazon.com/Golden-Lad-Haunting-Theodore-Roosevelt/dp/1605989517/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=golden+lad+quentin+roosevelt&qid=1610927865&s=books&sr=1-1   ...more

  Episode

• 1010: 2/2 On an Irish Island, by Robert Kanigel

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  Jan 18 2021

  Image:  Thomas O'Criothan, author, Great Blasket.  Tomás O'Críothán wrote in longhand, using the old Irish script with the various accents and letter forms in use at the time.  On an Irish Island,by Robert Kanigel   Kindle Edition  On an Irish Island is a love letter to a vanished way of life, in which Robert Kanigel, the highly praised author of The Man Who Knew Infinity and The One Best Way, tells the story of the Great Blasket, a wildly beautiful island off the west coast of Ireland, renowned during the early twentieth century for the rich communal life of its residents and the unadulterated Irish they spoke. With the Irish language vanishing all through the rest of Ireland, the Great Blasket became a magnet for scholars and writers drawn there during the Gaelic renaissance—and the scene for a memorable clash of cultures between modern life and an older, sometimes sweeter world slipping away. Kanigel introduces us to the playwright John Millington Synge, some of whose characters in The Playboy of the Western Worldwere inspired by his time on the island; Carl Marstrander, a Norwegian linguist who gave his place on Norway’s Olympic team for a summer on the Blasket; Marie-Louise Sjoestedt, a Celtic studies scholar fresh from the Sorbonne; and, central to the story, George Thomson, a British classicist whose involvement with the island and its people we follow from his first visit as a twenty-year-old to the end of his life. On the island, they met a colorful coterie of men and women with whom they formed lifelong and life-changing friendships. There’s Tomás O’Crohan, a stoic fisherman, one of the few islanders who could read and write Irish, who tutored many of the incomers in the language’s formidable intricacies and became the Blasket’s first published writer; Maurice O’Sullivan, a good-natured prankster and teller of stories, whose memoir, Twenty Years A-Growing, became an Irish classic; and Peig Sayers, whose endless repertoire of earthy tales left listeners spellbound. As we get to know these men and women, we become immersed in the vivid culture of the islanders, their hard lives of fishing and farming matched by their love of singing, dancing, and talk. Yet, sadly, we watch them leave the island, the village becoming uninhabited by 1953. The story of the Great Blasket is one of struggle—between the call of modernity and the tug of Ireland’s ancient ways, between the promise of emigration and the peculiar warmth of island life amid its physical isolation. Ultimately, it is a tribute to the strength and beauty of a people who, tucked away from the rest of civilization, kept alive a nation’s past, and to the newcomers and islanders alike who brought the island’s remarkable story to the larger world.https://www.amazon.com/Irish-Island-Robert-Kanigel-ebook/dp/B0050DIWFW/ref=sr_1_11?dchild=1&keywords=Blasket&qid=1610927694&s=digital-text&sr=1-11 ...more

  Episode

• 1010: 1/2 On an Irish Island, by Robert Kanigel

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  Jan 18 2021

  Image: Great Blasket Island, screen grab.On an Irish Island,by Robert Kanigel   Kindle Edition  On an Irish Island is a love letter to a vanished way of life, in which Robert Kanigel, the highly praised author of The Man Who Knew Infinity and The One Best Way, tells the story of the Great Blasket, a wildly beautiful island off the west coast of Ireland, renowned during the early twentieth century for the rich communal life of its residents and the unadulterated Irish they spoke. With the Irish language vanishing all through the rest of Ireland, the Great Blasket became a magnet for scholars and writers drawn there during the Gaelic renaissance—and the scene for a memorable clash of cultures between modern life and an older, sometimes sweeter world slipping away. Kanigel introduces us to the playwright John Millington Synge, some of whose characters in The Playboy of the Western Worldwere inspired by his time on the island; Carl Marstrander, a Norwegian linguist who gave his place on Norway’s Olympic team for a summer on the Blasket; Marie-Louise Sjoestedt, a Celtic studies scholar fresh from the Sorbonne; and, central to the story, George Thomson, a British classicist whose involvement with the island and its people we follow from his first visit as a twenty-year-old to the end of his life. On the island, they met a colorful coterie of men and women with whom they formed lifelong and life-changing friendships. There’s Tomás O’Crohan, a stoic fisherman, one of the few islanders who could read and write Irish, who tutored many of the incomers in the language’s formidable intricacies and became the Blasket’s first published writer; Maurice O’Sullivan, a good-natured prankster and teller of stories, whose memoir, Twenty Years A-Growing, became an Irish classic; and Peig Sayers, whose endless repertoire of earthy tales left listeners spellbound. As we get to know these men and women, we become immersed in the vivid culture of the islanders, their hard lives of fishing and farming matched by their love of singing, dancing, and talk. Yet, sadly, we watch them leave the island, the village becoming uninhabited by 1953. The story of the Great Blasket is one of struggle—between the call of modernity and the tug of Ireland’s ancient ways, between the promise of emigration and the peculiar warmth of island life amid its physical isolation. Ultimately, it is a tribute to the strength and beauty of a people who, tucked away from the rest of civilization, kept alive a nation’s past, and to the newcomers and islanders alike who brought the island’s remarkable story to the larger world.https://www.amazon.com/Irish-Island-Robert-Kanigel-ebook/dp/B0050DIWFW/ref=sr_1_11?dchild=1&keywords=Blasket&qid=1610927694&s=digital-text&sr=1-11  ...more

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• 1009: Twenty-first century arms race on the lunar colonies. @PappalardoJoe @PopularMechanics

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo: Artist's concept of a NASA lunar colony, 1986 http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowrTwenty-first century arms race on the Lunar colonies. @PappalardoJoe @PopularMechanicshttps://www.popularmechanics.com/space/satellites/a15884747/no-treaty-will-stop-space-weapons/https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/moon-mars/a28364235/nasa-moonbase/

  Episode

• 1007: Edgar Allan Poe: 4of4: The Fever Called Living (Icons), by Paul Collins ( Kindle Edition

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo: Poe at age 26 obtained a license in 1835 to marry his cousin Virginia Clemm then 13. They were married for 11 years until her death, which may have inspired some of his writing. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Edgar Allan Poe: 4of4: The Fever Called Living (Icons) Kindle Edition. by Paul Collins  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Edgar-Allan-Poe-Called-Living-ebook/dp/B00JPOEC10/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Paul+Collins+Poe&qid=1610845665&s=books&sr=1-1Looming large in the popular imagination as a serious poet and lively drunk who died in penury, Edgar Allan Poe was also the most celebrated and notorious writer of his day. He died broke and alone at the age of forty, but not before he had written some of the greatest works in the English language, from the chilling “The Tell-Tale Heart” to “The Murders in the Rue Morgue”—the first modern detective story—to the iconic poem “The Raven.” Poe’s life was one of unremitting hardship. His father abandoned the family, and his mother died when he was three. Poe was thrown out of West Point, and married his beloved thirteen-year-old cousin, who died of tuberculosis at twenty-four. He was so poor that he burned furniture to stay warm. He was a scourge to other poets, but more so to himself. In the hands of Paul Collins, one of our liveliest historians, this mysteriously conflicted figure emerges as a genius both driven and undone by his artistic ambitions. Collins illuminates Poe’s huge successes and greatest flop (a 143-page prose poem titled Eureka), and even tracks down what may be Poe’s first published fiction, long hidden under an enigmatic byline. Clear-eyed and sympathetic, Edgar Allan Poe is a spellbinding story about the man once hailed as “the Shakespeare of America.”...more

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• 1007: Edgar Allan Poe: 3of4: The Fever Called Living (Icons), by Paul Collins Kindle Edition

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo: A raven.  Color engraving by R. Havell, after drawing by John J. Audubon.Illus. in: The birds of America / John James Audubon. 4 vols. London, 1827-1838, http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Edgar Allan Poe: 3of4: The Fever Called Living (Icons) Kindle Edition. by Paul Collins  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Edgar-Allan-Poe-Called-Living-ebook/dp/B00JPOEC10/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Paul+Collins+Poe&qid=1610845665&s=books&sr=1-1Looming large in the popular imagination as a serious poet and lively drunk who died in penury, Edgar Allan Poe was also the most celebrated and notorious writer of his day. He died broke and alone at the age of forty, but not before he had written some of the greatest works in the English language, from the chilling “The Tell-Tale Heart” to “The Murders in the Rue Morgue”—the first modern detective story—to the iconic poem “The Raven.” Poe’s life was one of unremitting hardship. His father abandoned the family, and his mother died when he was three. Poe was thrown out of West Point, and married his beloved thirteen-year-old cousin, who died of tuberculosis at twenty-four. He was so poor that he burned furniture to stay warm. He was a scourge to other poets, but more so to himself. In the hands of Paul Collins, one of our liveliest historians, this mysteriously conflicted figure emerges as a genius both driven and undone by his artistic ambitions. Collins illuminates Poe’s huge successes and greatest flop (a 143-page prose poem titled Eureka), and even tracks down what may be Poe’s first published fiction, long hidden under an enigmatic byline. Clear-eyed and sympathetic, Edgar Allan Poe is a spellbinding story about the man once hailed as “the Shakespeare of America.”...more

  Episode

• 1007: Edgar Allan Poe: 2of4: The Fever Called Living (Icons), by Paul Collins Kindle Edition

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo:  Home of Edgar Allen Poe in Poe Park, New York City.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Edgar Allan Poe: 2of4: The Fever Called Living (Icons) Kindle Edition. by Paul Collins  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Edgar-Allan-Poe-Called-Living-ebook/dp/B00JPOEC10/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Paul+Collins+Poe&qid=1610845665&s=books&sr=1-1Looming large in the popular imagination as a serious poet and lively drunk who died in penury, Edgar Allan Poe was also the most celebrated and notorious writer of his day. He died broke and alone at the age of forty, but not before he had written some of the greatest works in the English language, from the chilling “The Tell-Tale Heart” to “The Murders in the Rue Morgue”—the first modern detective story—to the iconic poem “The Raven.” Poe’s life was one of unremitting hardship. His father abandoned the family, and his mother died when he was three. Poe was thrown out of West Point, and married his beloved thirteen-year-old cousin, who died of tuberculosis at twenty-four. He was so poor that he burned furniture to stay warm. He was a scourge to other poets, but more so to himself. In the hands of Paul Collins, one of our liveliest historians, this mysteriously conflicted figure emerges as a genius both driven and undone by his artistic ambitions. Collins illuminates Poe’s huge successes and greatest flop (a 143-page prose poem titled Eureka), and even tracks down what may be Poe’s first published fiction, long hidden under an enigmatic byline. Clear-eyed and sympathetic, Edgar Allan Poe is a spellbinding story about the man once hailed as “the Shakespeare of America.”...more

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• 1007: Edgar Allan Poe: 1of4: The Fever Called Living (Icons). by Paul Collins Kindle Edition

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo: Edgar Allen Poe  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Edgar Allan Poe: 1of4: The Fever Called Living (Icons) Kindle Edition. by Paul Collins  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Edgar-Allan-Poe-Called-Living-ebook/dp/B00JPOEC10/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Paul+Collins+Poe&qid=1610845665&s=books&sr=1-1Looming large in the popular imagination as a serious poet and lively drunk who died in penury, Edgar Allan Poe was also the most celebrated and notorious writer of his day. He died broke and alone at the age of forty, but not before he had written some of the greatest works in the English language, from the chilling “The Tell-Tale Heart” to “The Murders in the Rue Morgue”—the first modern detective story—to the iconic poem “The Raven.” Poe’s life was one of unremitting hardship. His father abandoned the family, and his mother died when he was three. Poe was thrown out of West Point, and married his beloved thirteen-year-old cousin, who died of tuberculosis at twenty-four. He was so poor that he burned furniture to stay warm. He was a scourge to other poets, but more so to himself. In the hands of Paul Collins, one of our liveliest historians, this mysteriously conflicted figure emerges as a genius both driven and undone by his artistic ambitions. Collins illuminates Poe’s huge successes and greatest flop (a 143-page prose poem entitled Eureka), and even tracks down what may be Poe’s first published fiction, long hidden under an enigmatic byline. Clear-eyed and sympathetic, Edgar Allan Poe is a spellbinding story about the man once hailed as “the Shakespeare of America.”...more

  Episode

• 1008: Dancing with the Devil: 3of4: The Perils of Engaging Rogue Regimes, by Michael Rubin Kindle Edition

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo:  Portrait of Muhammad Shah Qajar and his vizier Haj Mirza Aghasi  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowBecause the Iran Deal is back on the table: 3of4: Dancing with the Devil: 3of4: The Perils of Engaging Rogue Regimes Kindle Edition.by Michael Rubin  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition, 2015 https://www.amazon.com/Dancing-Devil-Perils-Engaging-Regimes-ebook/dp/B00THFMDDQ/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610846141&sr=1-1The world has seldom been as dangerous as it is now. Rogue regimes—governments and groups that eschew diplomatic normality, sponsor terrorism, and proliferate nuclear weapons—threaten the United States around the globe. Because sanctions and military action are so costly, the American strategy of first resort is dialogue, on the theory that “it never hurts to talk to enemies.” Seldom is conventional wisdom so wrong. Engagement with rogue regimes is not cost-free, as Michael Rubin demonstrates by tracing the history of American diplomacy with North Korea, Iran, Iraq, Libya, the Taliban’s Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Further challenges to traditional diplomacy have come from terrorist groups, such as the PLO in the 1970s and 1980s, or Hamas and Hezbollah in the last two decades. The argument in favor of negotiation with terrorists is suffused with moral equivalence, the idea that one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter. Rarely does the actual record of talking to terrorists come under serious examination. While soldiers spend weeks developing lessons learned after every exercise, diplomats generally do not reflect on why their strategy toward rogues has failed, or consider whether their basic assumptions have been faulty. Rubin’s analysis finds that rogue regimes all have one thing in common: they pretend to be aggrieved in order to put Western diplomats on the defensive. Whether in Pyongyang, Tehran, or Islamabad, rogue leaders understand that the West rewards bluster with incentives and that the U.S. State Department too often values process more than results....more

  Episode

• 1008: Because the Iran Deal is back on the table: 4of4: Dancing with the Devil: 4of4: The Perils of Engaging Rogue Regimes, by Michael Rubin Kindle Edition, 2015

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  Jan 17 2021

  Image:  Scene of the Battle of Gaugamela (also called Arbela), near Duhok in days Kurdistan in Iraq.  By skill, talent and extremely hard work, at this decisive battle Alexander and his troops defeated Cyrus III and the Achaemenid empire. "Though heavily outnumbered, Alexander emerged victorious due to his army's superior tactics and his deft employment of light infantry."  The battle is still studied in military schools worldwide. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowBecause the Iran Deal is back on the table: 4of4: Dancing with the Devil: 4of4: The Perils of Engaging Rogue Regimes Kindle Edition.by Michael Rubin  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition, 2015 https://www.amazon.com/Dancing-Devil-Perils-Engaging-Regimes-ebook/dp/B00THFMDDQ/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610846141&sr=1-1The world has seldom been as dangerous as it is now. Rogue regimes—governments and groups that eschew diplomatic normality, sponsor terrorism, and proliferate nuclear weapons—threaten the United States around the globe. Because sanctions and military action are so costly, the American strategy of first resort is dialogue, on the theory that “it never hurts to talk to enemies.” Seldom is conventional wisdom so wrong. Engagement with rogue regimes is not cost-free, as Michael Rubin demonstrates by tracing the history of American diplomacy with North Korea, Iran, Iraq, Libya, the Taliban’s Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Further challenges to traditional diplomacy have come from terrorist groups, such as the PLO in the 1970s and 1980s, or Hamas and Hezbollah in the last two decades. The argument in favor of negotiation with terrorists is suffused with moral equivalence, the idea that one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter. Rarely does the actual record of talking to terrorists come under serious examination. While soldiers spend weeks developing lessons learned after every exercise, diplomats generally do not reflect on why their strategy toward rogues has failed, or consider whether their basic assumptions have been faulty. Rubin’s analysis finds that rogue regimes all have one thing in common: they pretend to be aggrieved in order to put Western diplomats on the defensive. Whether in Pyongyang, Tehran, or Islamabad, rogue leaders understand that the West rewards bluster with incentives and that the U.S. State Department too often values process more than results....more

  Episode

• 1008: Because the Iran Deal is back on the table: 2of4: Dancing with the Devil: 2of4: The Perils of Engaging Rogue Regimes, by Michael Rubin Kindle Edition, 2015

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo:  Among Iran's neighbors justifiably afraid of the irrationality and lust for power of the ayatollahs are the Persian Gulf states.http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Because the Iran Deal is back on the table: 2of4: Dancing with the Devil: 2of4: The Perils of Engaging Rogue Regimes, by Michael Rubin   Kindle Edition, 2015 https://www.amazon.com/Dancing-Devil-Perils-Engaging-Regimes-ebook/dp/B00THFMDDQ/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610846141&sr=1-1The world has seldom been as dangerous as it is now. Rogue regimes—governments and groups that eschew diplomatic normality, sponsor terrorism, and proliferate nuclear weapons—threaten the United States around the globe. Because sanctions and military action are so costly, the American strategy of first resort is dialogue, on the theory that “it never hurts to talk to enemies.” Seldom is conventional wisdom so wrong. Engagement with rogue regimes is not cost-free, as Michael Rubin demonstrates by tracing the history of American diplomacy with North Korea, Iran, Iraq, Libya, the Taliban’s Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Further challenges to traditional diplomacy have come from terrorist groups, such as the PLO in the 1970s and 1980s, or Hamas and Hezbollah in the last two decades. The argument in favor of negotiation with terrorists is suffused with moral equivalence, the idea that one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter. Rarely does the actual record of talking to terrorists come under serious examination. While soldiers spend weeks developing lessons learned after every exercise, diplomats generally do not reflect on why their strategy toward rogues has failed, or consider whether their basic assumptions have been faulty. Rubin’s analysis finds that rogue regimes all have one thing in common: they pretend to be aggrieved in order to put Western diplomats on the defensive. Whether in Pyongyang, Tehran, or Islamabad, rogue leaders understand that the West rewards bluster with incentives and that the U.S. State Department too often values process more than results....more

  Episode

• 1008: Because the Iran Deal is back on the table: 1of4: Dancing with the Devil: 1of4: The Perils of Engaging Rogue Regimes, by Michael Rubin Kindle Edition, 2015

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo:  Tissaphernes* (Ancient Greek: Τισσαφέρνης; Old Persian Čiθrafarnah > Mod. Persian Čehrfar) (445 BC – 395 BC) was a Persian soldier and statesman, Satrap of Lydia.  Through a long military and diplomatic career, he's remembered most for his perjury and perfidy. Here: Cyrus the Great, a prominent player in the complex events of Tissaphernes's betrayals. * Chithrafarna (čiθra + farnah) "Shining Fortune": čiθra is from the Proto-Indo-European adjective (s)koitrós 'bright'; farnah is equivalent to Avestan xvarənah' fortune', 'glory', which appears as 'luminous'. čiθra means nature, specifically the animate nature. Hence, the phrase čihr-farn means 'of glorious or splendid nature', or (if translated literally) 'of radiant appearance'.http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Because the Iran Deal is back on the table: 1of4: Dancing with the Devil: 1of4: The Perils of Engaging Rogue Regimes Kindle Edition.by Michael Rubin  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition, 2015 https://www.amazon.com/Dancing-Devil-Perils-Engaging-Regimes-ebook/dp/B00THFMDDQ/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610846141&sr=1-1The world has seldom been as dangerous as it is now. Rogue regimes—governments and groups that eschew diplomatic normality, sponsor terrorism, and proliferate nuclear weapons—threaten the United States around the globe. Because sanctions and military action are so costly, the American strategy of first resort is dialogue, on the theory that “it never hurts to talk to enemies.” Seldom is conventional wisdom so wrong. Engagement with rogue regimes is not cost-free, as Michael Rubin demonstrates by tracing the history of American diplomacy with North Korea, Iran, Iraq, Libya, the Taliban’s Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Further challenges to traditional diplomacy have come from terrorist groups, such as the PLO in the 1970s and 1980s, or Hamas and Hezbollah in the last two decades. The argument in favor of negotiation with terrorists is suffused with moral equivalence, the idea that one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter. Rarely does the actual record of talking to terrorists come under serious examination. While soldiers spend weeks developing lessons learned after every exercise, diplomats generally do not reflect on why their strategy toward rogues has failed, or consider whether their basic assumptions have been faulty. Rubin’s analysis finds that rogue regimes all have one thing in common: they pretend to be aggrieved in order to put Western diplomats on the defensive. Whether in Pyongyang, Tehran, or Islamabad, rogue leaders understand that the West rewards bluster with incentives and that the U.S. State Department too often values process more than results....more

  Episode

• 1006: #ClassicTerryAnderson: Economic freedom for the Blackfeet Nation & What is to be done? @Hooverinst July 2017.

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  Jan 17 2021

  Image:  Many Horns, Blackfeet Sioux http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#ClassicTerryAnderson: Economic freedom for the Blackfeet Nation & What is to be done? @Hooverinst July 2017.https://www.hoover.org/research/wealth-indian-nations-1

  Episode

• 1005: Last Hope Island: 4of4: Britain, Occupied Europe, and the Brotherhood That Helped Turn the Tide of War, by Lynne Olson Kindle Edition

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo: General Charles de Gaulle, 1942 http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowLast Hope Island: 4of4: Britain, Occupied Europe, and the Brotherhood That Helped Turn the Tide of War Kindle Edition. by Lynne Olson  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Last-Hope-Island-Occupied-Brotherhood-ebook/dp/B01GYPY87K/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610841892&sr=1-1When the Nazi blitzkrieg rolled over continental Europe in the early days of World War II, the city of London became a refuge for the governments and armed forces of six occupied nations who escaped there to continue the fight. So, too, did General Charles de Gaulle, the self-appointed representative of free France.     As the only European democracy still holding out against Hitler, Britain became known to occupied countries as “Last Hope Island.” Getting there, one young emigré declared, was “like getting to heaven.”In this epic, character-driven narrative, acclaimed historian Lynne Olson takes us back to those perilous days when the British and their European guests joined forces to combat the mightiest military force in history. Here we meet the courageous King Haakon of Norway, whose distinctive “H7” monogram became a symbol of his country’s resistance to Nazi rule, and his fiery Dutch counterpart, Queen Wilhelmina, whose antifascist radio broadcasts rallied the spirits of her defeated people. Here, too, is the Earl of Suffolk, a swashbuckling British aristocrat whose rescue of two nuclear physicists from France helped make the Manhattan Project possible.Last Hope Island also recounts some of the Europeans’ heretofore unsung exploits that helped tilt the balance against the Axis: the crucial efforts of Polish pilots during the Battle of Britain; the vital role played by French and Polish code breakers in cracking the Germans’ reputedly indecipherable Enigma code; and the flood of top-secret intelligence about German operations—gathered by spies throughout occupied Europe—that helped ensure the success of the 1944 Allied invasion.   A fascinating companion to Citizens of London, Olson’s bestselling chronicle of the Anglo-American alliance, Last Hope Island recalls with vivid humanity that brief moment in time when the peoples of Europe stood together in their effort to roll back the tide of conquest and restore order to a broken continent....more

  Episode

• 1005: Last Hope Island: 3of4: Britain, Occupied Europe, and the Brotherhood That Helped Turn the Tide of War Kindle Edition. by Lynne Olson Kindle Edition

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo:  Portrait of Lord Suffolk.   Charles Henry George Howard, 20th Earl of Suffolk, 13th Earl of Berkshire, GC FRS (March 2, 1906 – May 12, 1941) was an English bomb disposal expert who was also an earl in the Peerage of England, belonging to the ancient Howard family. He was styled Viscount Andover until 1917. He is most famous for being responsible for rescuing a team of French nuclear scientists and the entire existing stockpile of heavy water that existed in the world at the time from France to England in the face of the imminent French defeat in 1940. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowLast Hope Island: 3of4: Britain, Occupied Europe, and the Brotherhood That Helped Turn the Tide of War Kindle Edition. by Lynne Olson  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Last-Hope-Island-Occupied-Brotherhood-ebook/dp/B01GYPY87K/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610841892&sr=1-1When the Nazi blitzkrieg rolled over continental Europe in the early days of World War II, the city of London became a refuge for the governments and armed forces of six occupied nations who escaped there to continue the fight. So, too, did General Charles de Gaulle, the self-appointed representative of free France.     As the only European democracy still holding out against Hitler, Britain became known to occupied countries as “Last Hope Island.” Getting there, one young emigré declared, was “like getting to heaven.”In this epic, character-driven narrative, acclaimed historian Lynne Olson takes us back to those perilous days when the British and their European guests joined forces to combat the mightiest military force in history. Here we meet the courageous King Haakon of Norway, whose distinctive “H7” monogram became a symbol of his country’s resistance to Nazi rule, and his fiery Dutch counterpart, Queen Wilhelmina, whose antifascist radio broadcasts rallied the spirits of her defeated people. Here, too, is the Earl of Suffolk, a swashbuckling British aristocrat whose rescue of two nuclear physicists from France helped make the Manhattan Project possible.Last Hope Island also recounts some of the Europeans’ heretofore unsung exploits that helped tilt the balance against the Axis: the crucial efforts of Polish pilots during the Battle of Britain; the vital role played by French and Polish code breakers in cracking the Germans’ reputedly indecipherable Enigma code; and the flood of top-secret intelligence about German operations—gathered by spies throughout occupied Europe—that helped ensure the success of the 1944 Allied invasion.   A fascinating companion to Citizens of London, Olson’s bestselling chronicle of the Anglo-American alliance, Last Hope Island recalls with vivid humanity that brief moment in time when the peoples of Europe stood together in their effort to roll back the tide of conquest and restore order to a broken continent....more

  Episode

• 1005: Last Hope Island: 2of4: Britain, Occupied Europe, and the Brotherhood That Helped Turn the Tide of War Kindle Edition. by Lynne Olson (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo:  Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands.   United Nations Information Office, New York. Transfer; United States. Office of War Information. Overseas Picture Division. Washington Division; 1944. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowLast Hope Island: 2of4: Britain, Occupied Europe, and the Brotherhood That Helped Turn the Tide of War Kindle Edition. by Lynne Olson  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Last-Hope-Island-Occupied-Brotherhood-ebook/dp/B01GYPY87K/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610841892&sr=1-1When the Nazi blitzkrieg rolled over continental Europe in the early days of World War II, the city of London became a refuge for the governments and armed forces of six occupied nations who escaped there to continue the fight. So, too, did General Charles de Gaulle, the self-appointed representative of free France.     As the only European democracy still holding out against Hitler, Britain became known to occupied countries as “Last Hope Island.” Getting there, one young emigré declared, was “like getting to heaven.”In this epic, character-driven narrative, acclaimed historian Lynne Olson takes us back to those perilous days when the British and their European guests joined forces to combat the mightiest military force in history. Here we meet the courageous King Haakon of Norway, whose distinctive “H7” monogram became a symbol of his country’s resistance to Nazi rule, and his fiery Dutch counterpart, Queen Wilhelmina, whose antifascist radio broadcasts rallied the spirits of her defeated people. Here, too, is the Earl of Suffolk, a swashbuckling British aristocrat whose rescue of two nuclear physicists from France helped make the Manhattan Project possible.Last Hope Island also recounts some of the Europeans’ heretofore unsung exploits that helped tilt the balance against the Axis: the crucial efforts of Polish pilots during the Battle of Britain; the vital role played by French and Polish code breakers in cracking the Germans’ reputedly indecipherable Enigma code; and the flood of top-secret intelligence about German operations—gathered by spies throughout occupied Europe—that helped ensure the success of the 1944 Allied invasion.   A fascinating companion to Citizens of London, Olson’s bestselling chronicle of the Anglo-American alliance, Last Hope Island recalls with vivid humanity that brief moment in time when the peoples of Europe stood together in their effort to roll back the tide of conquest and restore order to a broken continent....more

  Episode

• 1005: Last Hope Island: 1of4: Britain, Occupied Europe, and the Brotherhood That Helped Turn the Tide of War, by Lynne Olson Kindle Edition

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo: Dronning Maud (1869-1938) og Kong Haakon VII (1872-1957) / Queen Maud and King Haakon VII.Dato / Date: 1906.Fotograf / Photographer: Peder O. Aune (Trondhjem) http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Last Hope Island: 1of4: Britain, Occupied Europe, and the Brotherhood That Helped Turn the Tide of War, by Lynne Olson  Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Last-Hope-Island-Occupied-Brotherhood-ebook/dp/B01GYPY87K/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610841892&sr=1-1When the Nazi blitzkrieg rolled over continental Europe in the early days of World War II, the city of London became a refuge for the governments and armed forces of six occupied nations who escaped there to continue the fight. So, too, did General Charles de Gaulle, the self-appointed representative of free France.     As the only European democracy still holding out against Hitler, Britain became known to occupied countries as “Last Hope Island.” Getting there, one young emigré declared, was “like getting to heaven.”In this epic, character-driven narrative, the acclaimed historian Lynne Olson takes us back to those perilous days when the British and their European guests joined forces to combat the mightiest military force in history. Here we meet the courageous King Haakon of Norway, whose distinctive “H7” monogram became a symbol of his country’s resistance to Nazi rule, and his fiery Dutch counterpart, Queen Wilhelmina, whose antifascist radio broadcasts rallied the spirits of her defeated people. Here, too, is the Earl of Suffolk, a swashbuckling British aristocrat whose rescue of two nuclear physicists from France helped make the Manhattan Project possible.Last Hope Island also recounts some of the Europeans’ heretofore unsung exploits that helped tilt the balance against the Axis: the crucial efforts of Polish pilots during the Battle of Britain; the vital role played by French and Polish code breakers in cracking the Germans’ reputedly indecipherable Enigma code; and the flood of top-secret intelligence about German operations—gathered by spies throughout occupied Europe—that helped ensure the success of the 1944 Allied invasion.   A fascinating companion to Citizens of London, Olson’s bestselling chronicle of the Anglo-American alliance, Last Hope Island recalls with vivid humanity that brief moment in time when the peoples of Europe stood together in their effort to roll back the tide of conquest and restore order to a broken continent....more

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• 1005: #ClassicIndianaHoenlein: Napoleon's plan to found a Jewish State after conquering Acre, 1799. Malcolm Hoenlein @Conf_of_pres@ThadMcCotter @theamgreatness

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1840.Napoleon in Egypte, ca. 1800  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#ClassicIndianaHoenlein: Napoleon's plan to found a Jewish State after conquering Acre, 1799. Malcolm Hoenlein @Conf_of_pres@ThadMcCotter @theamgreatnesshttps://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/MAGAZINE-mass-graves-found-in-jaffa-date-to-napoleon-conquest-1.5473879

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• 1005: #ClassicRichardEpstein: 2of2: The magical thinking of single-payer healthcare insurance. @RichardAEpstein @HooverInst, September 2017

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo:  "Anatomical Man" (also "Zodiacal Man"), Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry (Ms.65, f.14v, early 15th century) http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#ClassicRichardEpstein: 2of2: The magical thinking of Single-Payer healthcare insurance. @RichardAEpstein @HooverInst, September 2017.https://www.hoover.org/research/fatal-allure-single-payerhttps://www.hoover.org/research/fatal-allure-single-payer

  Episode

• 1005: #ClassicRichardEpstein: 1of2: The magical thinking of single-payer healthcare insurance. @RichardAEpstein @HooverInst, September 2017

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  Jan 17 2021

  Photo:    Hirudo medicinalis, the European medicinal leech, is one of several species of leeches used as "medicinal leeches."  Here: a cousin, Haemadipsa zeylanica, a terrestrial leech.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#ClassicRichardEpstein: 1of2: The magical thinking of Single-Payer healthcare insurance. @RichardAEpstein @HooverInst, September 2017.https://www.hoover.org/research/fatal-allure-single-payerhttps://www.hoover.org/research/fatal-allure-single-payer ...more

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• 999: #NewAmericaCivilWar: Blue Inquisitors prepare the auto-de-fe of the exiled Red King. Michael Vlahos Johns Hopkins @JHUWorldCrisis

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  Jan 16 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.Jefferson Davis: Jefferson Davis and his cabinet  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#NewAmericaCivilWar: Blue Inquisitors prepare the auto-de-fe of the exiled Red King. Michael Vlahos Johns Hopkins @JHUWorldCrisishttps://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-15/rioters-sought-to-capture-and-assassinate-officials-u-s-says?sref=5g4GmFHo

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• 1004: Civil Wars: 4of4: A History in Ideas Audible Audiobook – Unabridged. David Armitage (Author), Derek Perkins (Narrator), & 1 more

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  Jan 16 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1678.Ponte Molle te Rome   http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Civil Wars: 4of4: A History in Ideas  Audible Audiobook – Unabridged. David Armitage (Author), Derek Perkins (Narrator), & 1 more https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N6XSN2S/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taud_p1_i0A highly original history, tracing the least understood and most intractable form of organized human aggression from ancient Rome to the present day.  We think we know civil war when we see it. Yet ideas of what it is and what it isn't have a long and contested history, from its fraught origins in republican Rome to debates in early modern Europe to our present day. Defining the term is acutely political, for ideas about what makes a war "civil" often depend on whether one is a ruler or a rebel, victor or vanquished, sufferer or outsider. Calling a conflict a civil war can shape its outcome by determining whether outside powers choose to get involved or stand aside: From the American Revolution to the war in Iraq, pivotal decisions have depended on such shifts of perspective.  The age of civil war in the West may be over, but elsewhere in the last two decades it has exploded - from the Balkans to Rwanda, Burundi, Somalia, and Sri Lanka, and most recently Syria. And the language of civil war has burgeoned as democratic politics has become more violently fought. This book's unique perspective on the roots and dynamics of civil war, and on its shaping force in our conflict-ridden world, will be essential to the ongoing effort to grapple with this seemingly interminable problem....more

  Episode

• 1004: Civil Wars: 3of4: A History in Ideas Audible Audiobook – Unabridged. David Armitage (Author), Derek Perkins (Narrator), & 1 more

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  Jan 16 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1729.Forum Romanum te Rome  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Civil Wars: 3of4: A History in Ideas  Audible Audiobook – Unabridged. David Armitage (Author), Derek Perkins (Narrator), & 1 more https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N6XSN2S/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taud_p1_i0A highly original history, tracing the least understood and most intractable form of organized human aggression from ancient Rome to the present day.  We think we know civil war when we see it. Yet ideas of what it is and what it isn't have a long and contested history, from its fraught origins in republican Rome to debates in early modern Europe to our present day. Defining the term is acutely political, for ideas about what makes a war "civil" often depend on whether one is a ruler or a rebel, victor or vanquished, sufferer or outsider. Calling a conflict a civil war can shape its outcome by determining whether outside powers choose to get involved or stand aside: From the American Revolution to the war in Iraq, pivotal decisions have depended on such shifts of perspective.  The age of civil war in the West may be over, but elsewhere in the last two decades it has exploded - from the Balkans to Rwanda, Burundi, Somalia, and Sri Lanka, and most recently Syria. And the language of civil war has burgeoned as democratic politics has become more violently fought. This book's unique perspective on the roots and dynamics of civil war, and on its shaping force in our conflict-ridden world, will be essential to the ongoing effort to grapple with this seemingly interminable problem....more

  Episode

• 1004: Civil Wars: 2of4: A History in Ideas Audible Audiobook – Unabridged. David Armitage (Author), Derek Perkins (Narrator), & 1 more

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  Jan 16 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1551. Derde gezicht op het Colosseum te Rome  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Civil Wars: 2of4: A History in Ideas  Audible Audiobook – Unabridged. David Armitage (Author), Derek Perkins (Narrator), & 1 more https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N6XSN2S/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taud_p1_i0A highly original history, tracing the least understood and most intractable form of organized human aggression from ancient Rome to the present day.  We think we know civil war when we see it. Yet ideas of what it is and what it isn't have a long and contested history, from its fraught origins in republican Rome to debates in early modern Europe to our present day. Defining the term is acutely political, for ideas about what makes a war "civil" often depend on whether one is a ruler or a rebel, victor or vanquished, sufferer or outsider. Calling a conflict a civil war can shape its outcome by determining whether outside powers choose to get involved or stand aside: From the American Revolution to the war in Iraq, pivotal decisions have depended on such shifts of perspective.  The age of civil war in the West may be over, but elsewhere in the last two decades it has exploded - from the Balkans to Rwanda, Burundi, Somalia, and Sri Lanka, and most recently Syria. And the language of civil war has burgeoned as democratic politics has become more violently fought. This book's unique perspective on the roots and dynamics of civil war, and on its shaping force in our conflict-ridden world, will be essential to the ongoing effort to grapple with this seemingly interminable problem....more

  Episode

• 1004: Civil Wars: 1of4: A History in Ideas Audible Audiobook – Unabridged. David Armitage (Author), Derek Perkins (Narrator), & 1 more

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  Jan 16 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1583.Trajanus tussen de stad Rome en Victoria  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Civil Wars: 1of4: A History in Ideas  Audible Audiobook – Unabridged. David Armitage (Author), Derek Perkins (Narrator), & 1 more https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N6XSN2S/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taud_p1_i0A highly original history, tracing the least understood and most intractable form of organized human aggression from ancient Rome to the present day.  We think we know civil war when we see it. Yet ideas of what it is and what it isn't have a long and contested history, from its fraught origins in republican Rome to debates in early modern Europe to our present day. Defining the term is acutely political, for ideas about what makes a war "civil" often depend on whether one is a ruler or a rebel, victor or vanquished, sufferer or outsider. Calling a conflict a civil war can shape its outcome by determining whether outside powers choose to get involved or stand aside: From the American Revolution to the war in Iraq, pivotal decisions have depended on such shifts of perspective.  The age of civil war in the West may be over, but elsewhere in the last two decades it has exploded - from the Balkans to Rwanda, Burundi, Somalia, and Sri Lanka, and most recently Syria. And the language of civil war has burgeoned as democratic politics has become more violently fought. This book's unique perspective on the roots and dynamics of civil war, and on its shaping force in our conflict-ridden world, will be essential to the ongoing effort to grapple with this seemingly interminable problem....more

  Episode

• 1003: Pandemic lessons not learned so far by government workers. @VerodeRugy @Mercatus

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  Jan 16 2021

  Image:  Video game box cover scan: bureaucracy often stultifies progress. Veronique de Rugy, @veroderugy, @Mercatus,  Mercatus Center, in re:  Schools closed  have created a catastrophe. They need to reopen schools, have schooling five days a week with precautions. For all the vaccines to teachers here in Virginia, no talk of opening schools.  Keeping children online doesn't reduce the spread of the virus.  We keep them online because of the teachers. There are no student athletes, and they can never recover.  Effectively, school ended in March; almost a year with no sports, no instruction. It's tragic.  Congress passed almost a trillion-dollar stimulus bill; now we learn of another $2 trillion.   This is all debt. Deficit spending comes from the real economy.  There’s no free lunch. Today’s young people will grow up to inherit the debt. Up to a certain level of debt, it slows down the economy. They'll have reduced economic prospects, higher taxes, a weak economy. In New York, the bureaucratic questionnaire needed to get a vaccine was 51 questions—and in Virginia  you have to prove it all. Anyone who still has faith left in government . . .   When the govt got out the way, we had the fastest vaccine development in history. It needs to get out of the way again. Amazon delivers [a zillion] packages a day; let the private sector deliver the vaccine.   https://www.creators.com/read/veronique-de-rugy/01/21/even-governments-can-make-new-years-resolutions  ...more

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• 1003: 1950s participatory democracy on January 6. @MaryAnastasiaOG; @WSJOpinion

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  Jan 16 2021

  Image: Occupy Wall Street, screen grab Mary Anastasia O’Grady: @MaryAnastasiaOG; @WSJOpinion;WSJ editorial board; The Americas column; in re: Participatory democracy: people taking to direct action to influence political decisions.   . . . The Port Huron statement*. Equality, consensus, and face-to-face discussions.  The violence on Wednesday, and the summer with its violence, I spoke with a Latin American friend—“It looks like home.”  Go to the streets and get what you want.  I’m surprised and dismayed to see it happen in the US.   It breaks down when intimidation is [a factor]. Just  because you have 51% of the votes, don't mow down the other side; we subscribe to reason and compromises.   . . .  Justifying violence. Colectivosride around on motorcycles and enforce Chavismo.   https://www.wzb.eu/en/research/dynamics-of-political-systems/democracy-and-democratization/projects/latinno  * The Port Huron Statement is a 1962 political manifesto of the American student activist movement Students for a Democratic Society (SDS). It was written by SDS members, and completed on June 15, 1962, at a United Auto Workers (UAW) retreat outside of Port Huron, Michigan (now part of Lakeport State Park), for the group's first national convention. Under Walter Reuther's leadership, the UAW paid for a range of expenses for the 1962 convention, including use of the UAW summer retreat in Port Huron....more

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• 1003: The UK mutation is a genuine new peril; and what is to be done? @HenryIMiller @PacificResearch

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  Jan 16 2021

  Image: Mutations.  Ceres quaerens filiam se irridentem in stellionem mutat:CERES, seeking a marriage for their mocking changes in the lizards* Henry Miller, @HenryIMiller @PacificResearch HenryMillerMD.org, Human Events, Pacific Research Institute [HenryMillerMD.org], in re: People over 65 might do better with Pfizer.   Vaccines for livestock.  Moderna and Pfizer use a new technology: messenger RNA injected; it directs the synthesis in a person’s cells of the spike protein, which elicits the immune response.  Merck, Recombivax. The UK version: more infectious but not more virulent. Severe lockdown in London. Talk  of food security. See:  Henry I. Miller, Human Events, January 11, 2021   http://www.henrymillermd.org/24994/critical-but-little-known-facts-about-the-covid  * The Mocking of Ceres shows Ceres, the goddess of the earth and agriculture, taking a drink. She has been searching the world for her daughter Persephone, who was abducted by Pluto, the ruler of the underworld. Coming upon a small cottage, she asks an old woman for some water. Because Ceres is drinking quickly, a little boy mocks her for her greediness. Angry, Ceres throws her drink at the boy and turns him into a lizard.....more

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• 999: Global view from Dubai, UAE: January 2021. @MishalKanoo kanoogroup.com

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  Jan 16 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1992. Description: Photographic documentation showing STS-42 earth observations. United Arab Emirates.Subject Terms: EARTH OBSERVATIONS (FROM SPACE)  STS-42Date Taken: 1/28/1992Categories: Earth ObservationsInterior_Exterior: ExteriorGround_Orbit: On-orbitOriginal: Film - 70MM CTPreservation File Format: TIFFgeon: UNITED ARAB EMIRATESfeat: CLOUDS,CARGO B.,ABU ZABY http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowGlobal view from Dubai, UAE: January 2021. @MishalKanoo kanoogroup.comhttps://www.msn.com/en-ae/news/other/new-covid-strain-uae-uk-travellers-issued-fresh-guidelines/ar-BB1cMlK1 ...more

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• 1002: Governor Gavin Newsom recall is moving along quickly. Eating gâteau at the French Laundry. @JCBliss, #PacificWatch

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  Jan 16 2021

  Image:  Restaurant du Boeuf  à la Mode Jeff Bliss: @JCBliss, #PacificWatch, in re: A recall of Governor Gavin Newsom. Signatures gathering; need 1.5 million signatures, hope to get 1.8 million by mid-March. The derision is state-wide: the economy, the fumbling vaccine roll-out, the “Let them eat cake” moment at the French Laundry. Half again as many drug addicts on SF streets as high-school children. Instead, attention to not hurting anyone’s feelings rather than crime mental illness, behavior problems.  Danger across the city.  Big tech is leaving for Texas, Florida, Arizona, Idaho.   Sacramento has noticed, but . . .  It's the richer people leaving.  In LA: one in three either is or has been covid-positive....more

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• 1001: Pelosi cannot let Trump go. @DanHenninger, @WSJOpinion

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  Jan 16 2021

  Image:  House Minority Leader grabs hurried lunch. Washington D.C. Aug 21. House Minority Leader Bertrabd Snell of New York, hurried his lunch in order not to miss the action on theHouse floor as 75th Congress prepares to adjourn Dan Henninger: @DanHenninger, @WSJOpinion; editorial board and Wonder Land column; in re:  Mrs Pelosi’s impeachment:  if she delivers it to McConnell before noon or Schumer after noon . . .   Joe Biden plans billions in new spending.  Pelosi is a child of political machines; she knows that even with the Sturm und Drang,it's all eventually settled by a new election—the question being: who turns out more voters?  She’s a relentless fundraiser  Has recently raised huge funds because of animosity toward Donald Trump. Her goal is to keep this agitation alive as long as possible, so impeachment is an effluent of that, “her bloodless strategy.” She’s also animated by Trump Derangement Syndrome.  Chinese, Russians, North Koreans, must be calculation how much clout Biden has. Were he to pardon Trump, he’d be seen as the controlling figure. Mrs Pelosi and the Democrats have begun to overplay their hand.  Some Senate GOP may argue that this is [unhealthy] and thereby gain more support. https://www.wsj.com/articles/is-nancy-pelosi-a-mad-genius-11610579537 ...more

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• 1000: Working remotely works, and sushi-making robots answer the $15 minimum wage mandate. @GENE MARKS

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  Jan 16 2021

  Image:  Sushi (vinegared fish and rice) food MICROThe 13 Biggest Small Business Technology Stories of 2020.   https://www.forbes.com/sites/quickerbettertech/2021/01/03/the-13-biggest-small-business-technology-stories-of-2020/?sh=369ed51b4145  Gene Marks,  @genemarks @Guardian  #SmallBusinessAmerica @Guardian, Philadelphia Inquirer, and at TheHill; in re: Microsoft engineer stole $10 million. When you look at one of the largest tech companies having enormous resources—the thieves will always be smarter.  People need to take vacations so you can see if they’ve been stealing.    . . .   Hololens. Technology derived from google glass. A machine that can make a sushi roll – automatic sushi, pizza, other. One of the pushbacks on minimum wage will be robotics, removing paid jobs.   ...more

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• 1000: Here comes Payroll Protection Program 3.0. @GENE MARKS

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  Jan 16 2021

  Image:  Cuneiform tablet: account of wage payments, Ebabbar archive MACROPPP reopens its doors this week. Here are 8 things small businesses need to know.   https://fusion.inquirer.com/news/ppp-loans-small-business-covid-new-round-rules-how-to-apply-20210111.html  Besides PPP, there’s another forgivable loan program for small businesses thanks to the new stimulus bill   https://fusion.inquirer.com/business/small-business/stimulus-ppp-loan-sba-debt-savings-restaurants-hotels-20210105.html Nearly half of America’s states are increasing their minimum wage in 2021   https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2021/01/05/nearly-half-of-americas-states-are-increasing-their-minimum-wage-in-2021  Gene Marks,  @genemarks @Guardian  #SmallBusinessAmerica @Guardian, Philadelphia Inquirer, and at TheHill; in re: The first PPP did not use up all available funds; leftovers were returned to the Treasury.      PPP returns, more targetted: have to prove you’ve been impacted by Covid—suffered a 25% loss of revenue in any quarter compared to that quarter in 2019. Have expanded definitions of forgivable expenses, now can include operational expenses—accounting, IT, technology; supplier contracts. Restaurants have quite a panoply. You can almost be automatically forgiven if your loan is less than $150.000.  If you have fewer than 500 employees, can get a loan up to $5 million; principal and interest are forgiven if you get the loan before September 2021.      The $15 minimum wage.  The federal minimum is $7.50/hour. This all depends on where the wage is paid; argues against a federal minimum wage.     ...more

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• 999: #TheScalaReport: Not Inflation but Reflation, 2021, and what it means for global business & What is to be done?. Chris Riegel: @scala, @STRATACACHE

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  Jan 16 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1923. Commerce Secretary Herbert Hoover. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#TheScalaReport:  Not Inflation but Reflation, 2021, and what it means for global business & What is to be done?.   Chris Riegel: @scala, @STRATACACHEhttps://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2021-01-14/the-alphabet-soup-of-recoveries-adds-r-and-i?sref=5g4GmFHo

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• 999: Perseverance due on Mars February 18 in a spectacular landing site. Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.com

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  Jan 16 2021

  Photo: Perseverance rewarded http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowPerseverance due on Mars February 18 in a spectacular landing site. Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.comhttps://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/the-target-landing-ellipse-on-mars-for-perseverance/

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• 999: Colorado battles Alabama for the Space Force HQ. Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.com

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  Jan 16 2021

  Photo: An exterior view of the headquarters building of the 1ST Wing of the Space Command  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowColorado battles Alabama for the Space Force HQ. Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.comhttps://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/space-force-picks-alabama-for-its-future-headquarters/

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• 994: 1781: 2of2: The Decisive Year of the Revolutionary War Kindle Edition.by Robert L. Tonsetic (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 16 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1862Moore House, Yorktown, Virginia  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow 1781: 2of2: The Decisive Year of the Revolutionary War Kindle Edition.by Robert L. Tonsetic (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/1781-Decisive-Year-Revolutionary-War-ebook/dp/B005ZUSQ92The Treaty of Paris in 1783 formally ended the American Revolutionary War, but it was the pivotal campaigns and battles of 1781 that decided the final outcome. 1781 was one of those rare years in American history when the future of the nation hung by a thread, and only the fortitude, determination, and sacrifice of its leaders and citizenry ensured its survival. By 1781, America had been at war with the world's strongest empire for six years with no end in sight. British troops occupied key coastal cities, from New York to Savannah, and the Royal Navy prowled the waters off the American coast. The remaining Patriot forces hunkered down in the hinterland, giving battle only at opportunities when British columns ventured near. But after several harsh winters, and the failure of the nascent government to adequately supply the troops, the American army was fast approaching the breaking point. The number of Continental soldiers had shrunk to less than 10,000, and the three-year enlistments of many of those remaining were about to expire. Mutinies began to emerge in Continental Army's ranks, and it was only the arrival of French troops that provided a ray of hope for the American cause.In a shift of strategy given the stalemate between New York and Philadelphia, the British began to prioritize the south. After shattering the American army under Horatio Gates at Camden, South Carolina, the British army under Lord Cornwallis appeared unstoppable, and was poised to regain the Carolinas, Georgia, and Virginia for the Crown. However, when General Nathaniel Greene arrived to take command of Patriot forces in the south, he was able to gradually turn the tables. By dividing his own forces, he forced the British to divide theirs, dissipating their juggernaut and forcing Cornwallis to confront a veritable hydra of resistance.1781 was a year of battles, as the Patriot Morgan defeated the notorious Tarleton and his Loyal legion at Cowpens. Then Greene suffered defeat at Guilford Courthouse, only to rally his forces and continue to fight on, assisted by such luminaries as Francis Marion, the "Swamp Fox," and "Light Horse Harry" Lee. While luring Cornwallis north, Greene was able to gather new strength and launch a counterattack, until it was Cornwallis who felt compelled to seek succor in Virginia. He marched his main army to Yorktown on the Peninsula, upon which the the combined American and French armies under the command of General Washington, and Admiral DeGrasse's French fleet all converged. On October 19, 1781, Cornwallis surrendered his weary and bloodied army.In this book, Robert Tonsetic provides a detailed analysis of the key battles and campaigns of 1781, supported by numerous eyewitness accounts from privates to generals in the American, French, and British armies. He also describes the diplomatic efforts underway in Europe during 1781, as well as the Continental Congress's actions to resolve the immense financial, supply, and personnel problems involved in maintaining an effective fighting army in the field. With its focus on the climactic year of the war, 1781 is a valuable addition to the literature on the American Revolution, providing readers with a clearer understanding of how America, just barely, with fortitude and courage, retrieved its independence in the face of great odds....more

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• 994: 1781: 1of2: The Decisive Year of the Revolutionary War Kindle Edition.by Robert L. Tonsetic (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 16 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1941. Soldiers watching the bathing crowds at Yorktown, Virginia  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow 1781: 1of2: The Decisive Year of the Revolutionary War Kindle Edition.by Robert L. Tonsetic (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/1781-Decisive-Year-Revolutionary-War-ebook/dp/B005ZUSQ92The Treaty of Paris in 1783 formally ended the American Revolutionary War, but it was the pivotal campaigns and battles of 1781 that decided the final outcome. 1781 was one of those rare years in American history when the future of the nation hung by a thread, and only the fortitude, determination, and sacrifice of its leaders and citizenry ensured its survival. By 1781, America had been at war with the world's strongest empire for six years with no end in sight. British troops occupied key coastal cities, from New York to Savannah, and the Royal Navy prowled the waters off the American coast. The remaining Patriot forces hunkered down in the hinterland, giving battle only at opportunities when British columns ventured near. But after several harsh winters, and the failure of the nascent government to adequately supply the troops, the American army was fast approaching the breaking point. The number of Continental soldiers had shrunk to less than 10,000, and the three-year enlistments of many of those remaining were about to expire. Mutinies began to emerge in Continental Army's ranks, and it was only the arrival of French troops that provided a ray of hope for the American cause.In a shift of strategy given the stalemate between New York and Philadelphia, the British began to prioritize the south. After shattering the American army under Horatio Gates at Camden, South Carolina, the British army under Lord Cornwallis appeared unstoppable, and was poised to regain the Carolinas, Georgia, and Virginia for the Crown. However, when General Nathaniel Greene arrived to take command of Patriot forces in the south, he was able to gradually turn the tables. By dividing his own forces, he forced the British to divide theirs, dissipating their juggernaut and forcing Cornwallis to confront a veritable hydra of resistance.1781 was a year of battles, as the Patriot Morgan defeated the notorious Tarleton and his Loyal legion at Cowpens. Then Greene suffered defeat at Guilford Courthouse, only to rally his forces and continue to fight on, assisted by such luminaries as Francis Marion, the "Swamp Fox," and "Light Horse Harry" Lee. While luring Cornwallis north, Greene was able to gather new strength and launch a counterattack, until it was Cornwallis who felt compelled to seek succor in Virginia. He marched his main army to Yorktown on the Peninsula, upon which the the combined American and French armies under the command of General Washington, and Admiral DeGrasse's French fleet all converged. On October 19, 1781, Cornwallis surrendered his weary and bloodied army.In this book, Robert Tonsetic provides a detailed analysis of the key battles and campaigns of 1781, supported by numerous eyewitness accounts from privates to generals in the American, French, and British armies. He also describes the diplomatic efforts underway in Europe during 1781, as well as the Continental Congress's actions to resolve the immense financial, supply, and personnel problems involved in maintaining an effective fighting army in the field. With its focus on the climactic year of the war, 1781 is a valuable addition to the literature on the American Revolution, providing readers with a clearer understanding of how America, just barely, with fortitude and courage, retrieved its independence in the face of great odds....more

  Episode

• 998: Al Qaeda at home in Iran. Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres,

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  Jan 15 2021

  Image:   Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re: Secretary Pompeo: the new al Qaeda HQ is Iran.   It continues to pose a serious threat to the US.   Leaders of the al Q Kurdish battalions.   Iran using Shahid 136 killer drones, esp out of Yemen. Prepositioning them to strike not only Israel but many [neighbors].  Looking to escalate their presence to create a new circumstance. Deployed their largest military ship and a submarine. Have sent warships into the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea.  Egypt, Saudi, Sudan—everybody depends on these waters.  Iranians are recruiting transnational terrorists by social media. Twitter has removed that.    UNRWA publishes anti-Semitic material, It was created to serve Palestinian refugees, of whom there are almost none now (more UNRWA employees than Palestinian refugees). Print blatantly anti-Jewish material.  Paid for by UN; reaches 500,000 children.  ...more

  Episode

• 997: Turkey Rising in the Great Game Revived. Blaise Misztal, @BlaiseMisztal; and Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres,

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  Jan 15 2021

  Image: The Turkish President Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (right) with Reza Pahlavi I, the Shah of Iran (left) in Ankara, 1934 Blaise Misztal, @BlaiseMisztal; and Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re: Turkey & Iran: Turkey Rising in the Great Game Revived. Turkey’s incursion into the Nagorno-Karabakh war—the fourth or fifth conflict in which it’s intervened; been involved in Syria, Libya, against the Kurds in Turkey and Iraq; a lot of Turkish aggression, which Erdogan always portrays as a fight against western imperialism/colonialism. Currently is fighting against Russian-backed forces in many places. Geopolitical actors. Biden has called Erdogan an autocrat.  This is the Great Game of the nineteenth century. Turkey, Iran, Saudis: all competing in Western and Eastern Africa; growing ever more far-flung.  . . .  Everything the US asks Iran to do will be costly.  Blaise Misztal is the Vice President for Policy at JINSA. His research interests include Iran and its nuclear program, U.S.-Turkey relations, countering extremism, and strategic competition. https://jinsa.org/negotiations-cannot-solve-americas-iranian-nuclear-troubles/ ...more

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• 996: The Iran deal reawakens; & What is to be done? Ron Dermer @AmbDermer; and Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres,

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  Jan 15 2021

  Image:  The Israelites Battling the Amalekites, from 'The Battles of the Old Testament' Ron Dermer @AmbDermer, Ambassador of Israel to the United States; and Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re: The Iran deal reawakens; & What is to be done?  The unknowns:   the Biden administration is speaking of it, wont have discussions with foreign officials till 20 Jan. However to revive the deal would be a very bad idea: it does not block Iran’s path to nuclear weapons. No country has more to gain from a [favorable] deal than does Israel; all the Iran deal did was put certain restrictions for several years, after which Iran wouldn’t have to petition to join the nuclear club but would [waltz] in.  The Brits, French and Germans don’t see it that way—but they don't live in the Middle East.   The next ambassador: continue to reach out on both sides of the aisle to explain Israel’s positions.   Ambassador Ron Dermer was born and raised in Miami Beach, Florida. He earned a degree in Finance and Management from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania and a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) from Oxford University. For three years, he was a columnist for the Jerusalem Post.  https://breakingdefense.com/2021/01/mossad-head-briefs-biden-admin-on-iranian-nukes-missiles/ ...more

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• 994: Bloody Spring: 4of4: Forty Days that Sealed the Confederacy's Fate by Joseph Wheelan.

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  Jan 15 2021

  Image:   Confederate dead on the battlefield http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowBloody Spring: 4of4:  Forty Days that Sealed the Confederacy's Fate by Joseph Wheelan.https://www.amazon.com/Bloody-Spring-Forty-Sealed-Confederacys-ebook/dp/B00GL9TPF0/ref=laB001JS06YM1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1499789387&sr=1-5 In the spring of 1864, Robert E. Lee faced a new adversary: Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant. Named commander of all Union armies in March, Grant quickly went on the offensive against Lee in Virginia. On May 4, Grant's army struck hard across the Rapidan River into north-central Virginia, with Lee's army contesting every mile. They fought for forty days until, finally, the Union army crossed the James River and began the siege of Petersburg. The campaign cost 90,000 men—the largest loss the war had seen. While Grant lost nearly twice as many men as Lee did, he could replace them. Lee could not and would never again mount another major offensive. Lee's surrender at Appomattox less than a year later was the denouement of the drama begun in those crucial forty days. ...more

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• 994: Bloody Spring: 3of4: Forty Days that Sealed the Confederacy's Fate by Joseph Wheelan.

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  Jan 15 2021

  Image: Old house on the battlefield of Spottsylvania [sic] http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowBloody Spring: 3of4:  Forty Days that Sealed the Confederacy's Fate by Joseph Wheelan.https://www.amazon.com/Bloody-Spring-Forty-Sealed-Confederacys-ebook/dp/B00GL9TPF0/ref=laB001JS06YM1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1499789387&sr=1-5 In the spring of 1864, Robert E. Lee faced a new adversary: Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant. Named commander of all Union armies in March, Grant quickly went on the offensive against Lee in Virginia. On May 4, Grant's army struck hard across the Rapidan River into north-central Virginia, with Lee's army contesting every mile. They fought for forty days until, finally, the Union army crossed the James River and began the siege of Petersburg. The campaign cost 90,000 men—the largest loss the war had seen. While Grant lost nearly twice as many men as Lee did, he could replace them. Lee could not and would never again mount another major offensive. Lee's surrender at Appomattox less than a year later was the denouement of the drama begun in those crucial forty days. ...more

  Episode

• 994: Bloody Spring: 2of4: Forty Days that Sealed the Confederacy's Fate by Joseph Wheelan.

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  Jan 15 2021

  Photo: Battle of Spottsylvania [sic] / Thulstrup. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowBloody Spring: 2of4:  Forty Days that Sealed the Confederacy's Fate by Joseph Wheelan.https://www.amazon.com/Bloody-Spring-Forty-Sealed-Confederacys-ebook/dp/B00GL9TPF0/ref=laB001JS06YM1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1499789387&sr=1-5 In the spring of 1864, Robert E. Lee faced a new adversary: Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant. Named commander of all Union armies in March, Grant quickly went on the offensive against Lee in Virginia. On May 4, Grant's army struck hard across the Rapidan River into north-central Virginia, with Lee's army contesting every mile. They fought for forty days until, finally, the Union army crossed the James River and began the siege of Petersburg. The campaign cost 90,000 men—the largest loss the war had seen. While Grant lost nearly twice as many men as Lee did, he could replace them. Lee could not and would never again mount another major offensive. Lee's surrender at Appomattox less than a year later was the denouement of the drama begun in those crucial forty days. ...more

  Episode

• 994: Bloody Spring: 1of4: Forty Days that Sealed the Confederacy's Fate by Joseph Wheelan.

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  Jan 15 2021

  Image:  The Dis-United States. Or the Southern Confederacy. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowBloody Spring: 1of4:  Forty Days that Sealed the Confederacy's Fate by Joseph Wheelan.https://www.amazon.com/Bloody-Spring-Forty-Sealed-Confederacys-ebook/dp/B00GL9TPF0/ref=laB001JS06YM1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1499789387&sr=1-5 In the spring of 1864, Robert E. Lee faced a new adversary: Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant. Named commander of all Union armies in March, Grant quickly went on the offensive against Lee in Virginia. On May 4, Grant's army struck hard across the Rapidan River into north-central Virginia, with Lee's army contesting every mile. They fought for forty days until, finally, the Union army crossed the James River and began the siege of Petersburg. The campaign cost 90,000 men—the largest loss the war had seen. While Grant lost nearly twice as many men as Lee did, he could replace them. Lee could not and would never again mount another major offensive. Lee's surrender at Appomattox less than a year later was the denouement of the drama begun in those crucial forty days. ...more

  Episode

• 995: What is the status of Israel-US relations? Ron Dermer @AmbDermer; and Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres,

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  Jan 15 2021

  Image:  Wm. Hole's paintings, Old Testament: The passage of the Red Sea Ron Dermer @AmbDermer, Ambassador of Israel to the United States; and Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re: What is the status of Israel-US relations?  Current relations are stronger than they've ever been. We can get lost in policy discussions when what’s more relevant is that the two nations have grow together in the last decade:  Security and technology pull the two nations together, not just regionally but globally. Consider the [projects] on which the two have worked together.  The only equally close security partner is Great Britain; but in technology, there’s no better partner in the world—especially in cyber (US, Russia, China, and Israel are at the top).   The Abraham Accords. Sunni and Shi’a radical movements.  US is reducing its military footprint in the Middle East: this amplifies Israel’s position vis-à-vis the US.   Ambassador Ron Dermer was born and raised in Miami Beach, Florida. He earned a degree in finance and management from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania and a degree in philosophy, politics and economics (PPE) from Oxford University. For three years, he was a columnist for the Jerusalem Post....more

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• 992: Trial by Democratic Majority Senate when, how, why? @AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatness

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  Jan 15 2021

  Photo:  An executive session of the Senate http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowTrial by Democratic Majority Senate when, how, why? @AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatnesshttps://www.wsj.com/articles/busy-senate-to-juggle-trump-impeachment-trial-biden-agenda-11610645139?mod=hp_lead_pos2

  Episode

• 992: Not "incitement" and not "insurrection" and other errors of the impeachment bill. @AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatness

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  Jan 15 2021

  Photo: Philippine insurrection: Burial of the enemy http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowNot "incitement" and not "insurrection" and other errors of the impeachment bill.  @AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatnesshttps://www.nationalreview.com/corner/another-problem-with-incitement-in-the-impeachment-article/

  Episode

• 993: A first draft of the successes of the Trump Administration. @ConradMBlack

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  Jan 15 2021

  Image:  President in the stand Conrad Black, @ConradMBlack, publisher, littérateur, biographer, commentator; the National Post; in re:  He is a very amusing man when he wants to be; but there was here an element of people who thought the president should be more sober, polite; confine himself to matters of policy.  He was destined to be reelected till the virus hit.  The Democrats had 95% of the media on Trump’s back so Biden didn’t have to campaign; many other benefits, but Trump almost pulled it out.   I was appalled that the three Justices [nominated by Trump] didn’t join Alito; the Supreme Court abdicated and the judicial branch momentarily ceased to be a co-equal branch.  Ginsburg said the first two of the three [those whom she knew to have been confirmed] were talented and capable.       The success of Trump’s moving the embassy to Jerusalem; the Palestinian organizations that refused to accept the right of Israel to have a state—something that Arafat promised to do in the Oslo Accords but never did—it was impossible to build on that.  Trump saw they were overplaying their hand.       Once the ancient foes Turkey and Iran began to encroach on the Arab world, the Arab powers decided it was better to align with Israel. Trump saw the [opportunity] and built on it; enormous movement forward.   https://www.nationalreview.com/2021/01/ave-atque-vale-trump/ ...more

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• 993: After impeachment, what now for the Democrats? @ConradMBlack

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  Jan 15 2021

  Image:  Sulzer impeachment committee Conrad Black, @ConradMBlack, National Review Online; publisher, littérateur, biographer, commentator; the National Post; in re:  Pending a trial n the Senate, with the about-to-be Senate leader Charles Schumer. He intends juggling a health agenda with a new trial. Sole charge is “incitement to insurrection.” For Pelosi, a desire to strike while the iron is hot (public outrage at the events of 6 Jan). But she can't have addressed this in a serious legal manner. It was forced entry, assault, and ultimately perhaps unintentional homicide, but it cannot be laid at the door of the president.  We have the almost unimaginably stupid [situation] of removing from office someone who’s left the office on grounds of an offense that does not exist and he did not commit. Fatuous.      In the Civil War, 750,000 Americans died—that was an insurrection.  Today, we have violent, evil mischief.  Thugs.  It wasn’t an insurrection and it was the last thing in the world that the president wanted. Pandemic of Trump-hate.  The fellow who waved the Stars and Bars in the Capitol was arrested today.  https://www.nationalreview.com/2021/01/ave-atque-vale-trump/ ...more

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• 993: The Social Media Gargantuans; & What is to be done? @VDHanson @HooverIn @HooverInst

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  Jan 15 2021

  Image:  SixDegrees, launched in 1997, is often regarded as the first social media site. Victor Davis Hanson: @VDHanson; Hoover Institution, and The Case for Trump,in re:  Social media platforms have outgrown their writs. This excising, throwing major political figures out the window . . . Will bring a call to break up the monopolies, as in the nineteenth century. Google has 90% of all searches on the planet.  They've closed people out for no visible reason other than political. Gave huge donations to their leftist friends.  Over a century ago, railroads said, “Ride a horse if you don't like our railroad.” Hah.  They’re using public utilities/spaces.  Apple, Twitter, Google together have $4 trillion.        Are we dealing with young people who have [inadequate education]?  . . . in the sense of giving a ten-year-old a revolver.   Yes, they’re young, ignorant and arrogant, but . . .  Look at the government radio stations, e.g., PBS:  their lawyer said that people who don’t agree with him should be put in re-education camps.  Expect a backlash. Do Democrats know that what goes around comes around?  No, they feel that they’re morally superior; have universities, Hollywood, the media, social media—they’ll go pedal to the metal till they hit a brick wall.   https://www.nationalreview.com/2021/01/assault-on-the-capitol-has-let-loose-the-electronic-octopus/ ...more

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• 992: How do our adversaries and allies see the threat of trial of a former president? @SebGorka #AmericaFirst

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  Jan 15 2021

  Photo: Thomas Jefferson, William Blount, January 1799, Impeachment Notes http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowHow duo our adversaries and allies see the threat of trial of a former president? @SebGorka #AmericaFirsthttps://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/01/14/poll-fewer-1-5-republicans-back-removing-donald-trump-office/

  Episode

• 993: The Senate Democrats intend a trial after Trump leaves office. @VDHanson, @HooverInst

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  Jan 15 2021

  Image: Senate Chamber Victor Davis Hanson: @VDHanson; Hoover Institution, and The Case for Trump,in re:   I guess they think they can break new legal ground in impeaching a president after he’s become a private citizen.  Nothing in the Constitution suggests this is possible. Chuck Schumer intends to put it on the Senate calendar—he who screamed on the Supreme Court steps: “Gorsuch, Kavenaugh, you’ll reap the whirlwind and won't know what hit you.”  President Trump no longer has twitter to communicate. The Democrats had him as a piñata; hatred of him was almost all that held the party together.  We’ll see one of the most radical periods in American history.      Democrats say: We’ll want to move faster than last year’s process; “not weeks.” They’re planning more than a retrial—an auto-da-fe. They’re looking like inquisitors to prove they're right by tormenting their victims. In the Iliad,people killed the corpse of Hector, kept stabbing the dead corpse. This will backfire. Donald Trump remains very popular among Republicans.https://www.wsj.com/articles/busy-senate-to-juggle-trump-impeachment-trial-biden-agenda-11610645139?mod=hp_lead_pos2...more

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• 992: Why the Democratic rush to judgment? @SebGorka #AmericaFirst

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  Jan 15 2021

  Photo: DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowWhy the Democratic rush to judgment?  @SebGorka #AmericaFirsthttps://www.wsj.com/articles/busy-senate-to-juggle-trump-impeachment-trial-biden-agenda-11610645139?mod=hp_lead_pos2

  Episode

• 991: 2of2 - George Washington's Great Gamble: and the Sea Battle that Won the American Revolution, 1st Edition, Kindle Edition. by James L. Nelson

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  Jan 15 2021

  Photo:  Battle of Virginia Capes http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow George Washington's Great Gamble: 2of2:  And the Sea Battle That Won the American Revolution1st Edition, Kindle Edition. by James L. Nelson  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/George-Washingtons-Great-Gamble-Revolution-ebook-dp-B003MEIHJ2/dp/B003MEIHJ2/ref=mt_other?_encoding=UTF8&me=&qid=In the opening months of 1781, General George Washington feared his army would fail to survive another campaign season. The spring and summer only served to reinforce his despair, but in late summer the changing circumstances of war presented a once-in-a-war opportunity for a French armada to hold off the mighty British navy while his own troops with French reinforcements drove Lord Cornwallis's forces to the Chesapeake. The Battle of the Capes would prove the only time the French ever fought the Royal Navy to a draw, and for the British army it was a catastrophe. Cornwallis confidently retreated to Yorktown, expecting to be evacuated by a British fleet that never arrived. In the end he had no choice but to surrender. Although the war sputtered on another two years, its outcome was never in doubt after Yorktown. General Washington's Great Gamble is the story of the greatest naval engagement of the American Revolution. It is also a study in leadership, good and bad, political machinations and the wild, unpredictable circumstances that led to the extraordinary confluence of military and naval resources at that time and place. ...more

  Episode

• 991: George Washington's Great Gamble: 1of2: And the Sea Battle That Won the American Revolution1st Edition, Kindle Edition. by James L. Nelson (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 15 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1974.An aerial view of Cape Henry and Fort Story  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow George Washington's Great Gamble: 1of2:  And the Sea Battle That Won the American Revolution1st Edition, Kindle Edition. by James L. Nelson  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/George-Washingtons-Great-Gamble-Revolution-ebook-dp-B003MEIHJ2/dp/B003MEIHJ2/ref=mt_other?_encoding=UTF8&me=&qid=In the opening months of 1781, General George Washington feared his army would fail to survive another campaign season. The spring and summer only served to reinforce his despair, but in late summer the changing circumstances of war presented a once-in-a-war opportunity for a French armada to hold off the mighty British navy while his own troops with French reinforcements drove Lord Cornwallis's forces to the Chesapeake. The Battle of the Capes would prove the only time the French ever fought the Royal Navy to a draw, and for the British army it was a catastrophe. Cornwallis confidently retreated to Yorktown, expecting to be evacuated by a British fleet that never arrived. In the end he had no choice but to surrender. Although the war sputtered on another two years, its outcome was never in doubt after Yorktown. General Washington's Great Gamble is the story of the greatest naval engagement of the American Revolution. It is also a study in leadership, good and bad, political machinations and the wild, unpredictable circumstances that led to the extraordinary confluence of military and naval resources at that time and place....more

  Episode

• 990: First draft of the Trump Administration success and not success: foreign and domestic. @RichardAEpstein @HooverInst

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  Jan 14 2021

  Photo: White House; from, Presidential inaugurations from George Washington 1789 to Grover Cleveland 1893. With inaugural addresses, etc.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowFirst draft of the Trump Administration success and not success: foreign and domestic. @RichardAEpstein @HooverInsthttps://www.hoover.org/research/trumps-bitter-denouement 

  Episode

• 990: Impeachment is both deliberately provocative and empty. @RichardEpstein @HooverInst

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  Jan 14 2021

  Photo: Daily Press and Times. Extra. Saturday May 16, 1868. Impeachment. The vote on the 11th articles. The President found not guilty.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowImpeachment is both deliberately provocative and empty. @RichardEpstein @HooverInsthttps://www.hoover.org/research/trumps-bitter-denouement 

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• 990: Where in the world is Jack Ma? Charles Ortel, On the Money with Charles Ortel.

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  Jan 14 2021

  Photo: jack Ma at Davos.  Video grab. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowWhere in the world is Jack Ma? Charles Ortel, On the Money with Charles Ortel.Charles Ortel of the On the Money with Charles Ortel podcast on these:https://finance.yahoo.com/news/primavera-chairman-believes-ma-safe-131330676.html https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/16932/jack-uncle-horse-ma-is-a-bad-bet https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2021/01/10/business/xi-jinping-jack-ma-china/ ...more

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• 990: WHO again searches futilely for the virus origin in Wuhan & What is to be done? Sean Lin; @GordonGChang

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  Jan 14 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1914.Hankow view.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowWHO again searches futilely for the virus origin in Wuhan & What is to be done? Sean Lin; @GordonGChangSean Lin, former lab director of the viral disease branch of the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, on these:https://apnews.com/article/pandemics-coronavirus-pandemic-wuhan-china-united-nations-82f38100db0fa1462ec3ae74fc74cf09https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9106951/Lab-leak-credible-source-coronavirus-outbreak-says-government-official.html ...more

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• 989: Will the Biden Administration continue pressure on the PRC for its abuse of the Uyghur people? @nuryturkel, @GordonGChang

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  Jan 14 2021

  Image:  Uyghur princes wearing robes and headgear. Bezeklik, Cave 9Will the Biden Administration continue pressure on the PRC for its abuse of the Uyghur people?     @nuryturkel, @GordonGChang Nury Turkel, @nuryturkel, co-founder of the Uyghur Human Rights Project and a commissioner of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, and Gordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re: Uyghurs in concentration camps, having forced abortions, being abused. Breaking news from London:  The UK govt has condemned Chinese treatment of Uyghurs as barbarous; internment camps, political re-education, forced abortions,   Campbell soups, cotton products, many items from China, are from slave labor in Xinjiang , Jake Sullivan calls on Europeans to “think twice” before entering into agreements with China.   Sometimes calling matters out is as important as policy responses.  Stark contrast to EU: the just-signed investment agreement [thanks to Angela Merkel]. Euros seem not to grasp the threat, to understand products made by Uyghur slaves.   They know exactly how it is when a regime targets an ethnic religious minority; Germany not being clear on this is mind-boggling. Uyghur women being “emancipated” by the Chinese abuse.  It’s preposterous, even letting China speak in such an ugly way about Uyghur women’s reproduction.   Hugely offensive.  China sees them as “baby-making machines.”   Beijing thinks it can get away with this; the intl community does nothing.  UK and Australia have taken positions on this. Tony Blinken should spend a little time on this.  https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-55608089https://news.sky.com/story/uighur-muslims-new-measures-by-uk-to-tackle-china-human-rights-violations-12185976...more

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• 988: Matt Pottinger’s brilliant document is declassified: India, China, the Indo-Pacific. @CleoPaskal, @GordonGChang,

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  Jan 14 2021

  Image:  India: aristocrat and porter  Cleo Paskal, @CleoPaskal, non-resident senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, and Gordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re:   Matt Pottinger wrote a recently-declassified document on a major component of State’s China policy.  Page 5: India and South Asia. Accelerate India’s rise  [for security; with a strong military able to collaborate with the US].  Some very smart people figuring out entry point, reinforcement point, leverage point. It shows what needs to be accomplished and how to do it. Kurt Campbell will lead on Indo-Pacific for Biden. Confrontation in Ladakh. about nine months of Chinese soldiers below the Line of Actual Control.   India is well aware of multiple dangers.   . . .  real-time sat images to India, not from the US.   Pacific islands and China.  For the first time in a long time, under Trump the US was starting to focus on the region; inter al., helping India diversify its energy supplies, which was critical. SE Asian neighbors have seen a changed town; much hope that it will continue, and this help is desperately needed—Australia, Korea, Vietnam. Everybody’s under assault from China; must work together. https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2021/1/13/us-unveils-plans-to-counter-chinas-rise-in-asiahttps://www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/2021/jan/11/the-million-dollar-question-what-will-china-do-hereafter-2248353.htmlhttps://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/china-pulls-back-10-000-troops-from-ladakh-theatre-101610382216148.html...more

  Episode

• 988: Pakistan falls farther behind the times as a PRC client state. @dhume, @AEI, @wsj

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  Jan 14 2021

  Image: PakistanPakistan falls farther behind the times as a PRC client state.   @dhume, @AEI, @wsj Sadanand Dhume, @dhume, @AEI, @wsj; AEI & WSJ; in re:   UAE, Bahrain, Sudan, all normalizing relations with Israel. Pakistan has been tying to ignore it. Opposition to Israel has been bedrock to Pakistani foreign policy—those who created Pakistan were fanatically oppose to a  Jewish state even as they were trying to form a Muslim state.  Khan is somewhat secularized since he once was a most famous cricket player; but his nickname is _____.  His first wife was a Jewish British heiress; his third wife is entirely covered except eyes. The military and clerics fiercely oppose recognizing Israel.  Income is $1,300 per capita.  The former East Pakistan, now Bangladesh, was poorer, but now is richer, having controlled its birth rate [and having better economic policies].  “If religious freedom is so important to you, why have you nothing to say about the extreme oppression of the Uyghurs in Xinjiang?” No response, as Pakistan is now a satellite of China. In Pakistan, radical elements have traditionally found succor, especially on the border with Afghanistan....more

  Episode

• 988: The drug-darkened streets of a helpless San Francisco; & What is to be done?. @lee_ohanian,

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  Jan 14 2021

  Image: The drug-darkened streets of a helpless San Francisco & What is to be done?.  @lee_ohanian, Lee E. Ohanian,  @lee_ohanian, @HooverInst, UCLA economics; Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution; in re: The drug addled streets of SF & What is to be done? https://www.hoover.org/research/san-franciscos-progressive-drug-policies-kill-hundreds-annually San Francisco's "Progressive" Drug Policies Kill Hundreds Annually, by Lee Ohanian via California on Your MindLast year, 621 people died of drug overdoses in San Francisco. To put this in perspective, 173 people died from COVID-19, which is identified as the primary public health crisis in the Bay Area. San Francisco enables dug users with free needles, ignores massive dealing,  The city has become a pusher, pushing people over the edge. People shooting up all over town.   Heroin and fentanyl.  Over 600 overdose deaths in 2020, with 170 from covid.  This will end only when San Francisco starts prosecuting drug sales.  Chesa Boudin, child of 1960s Weathermen, is district attorney. Opioids depress the respiratory system. Governor Newsom began his career in SF. He hasn't said one word about this pandemic, about the human misery. ...more

  Episode

• 987: Declassifying the NSC policy toward the PRC during the Trump Administration & What is to be done? @JoshRogin @WashingtonPost

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  Jan 14 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1922. Street scene, Bombay, India  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowDeclassifying the NSC policy toward the PRC during the Trump Administration & What is to be done? @JoshRogin @WashingtonPosthttps://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/IPS-Final-Declass.pdf

  Episode

• 987: The Biden Administration names a veteran China hand as the Indo-Pacific Coordinator. @JoshRogin @WashingtonPost

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  Jan 14 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1939.Public Health Service Investigation Commission to the China-Burma highway, Chefang, China. Washing in the stream, at the family's regular washing place. The strong soap rinsed from the clothes keeps the stream free of mosquitoes for about 100 yards  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe Biden Administration names a veteran China hand as the Indo-Pacific Coordinator. @JoshRogin @WashingtonPost https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/01/13/kurt-campbell-biden-china-asia-nsc/ ...more

  Episode

• 987: JAXA Hayabusa-2 starts an extended mission to the asteroids 2001 CC21; 1998 KY26. Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.com.

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  Jan 14 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.2007.Asteroid Belt  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowJAXA Hayabusa-2 starts an extended mission to the asteroids 2001 CC21; 1998 KY26. Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.com....to the roughly 2,300-foot-wide (700 meters) asteroid (98943) 2001 CC21, which the probe will fly by at high speed in 2026, if all goes according to plan. A more in-depth rendezvous with yet another space rock, 1998 KY26, is scheduled to follow in 2031.https://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/hayabusa-2-begins-journey-to-two-asteroids/ ...more

  Episode

• 986: Europa Clipper 2024 launch for Jupiter's watery moon no longer waits for the troubled SLS booster. Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.com

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  Jan 14 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1979.PLANET JUPITER SHOWING THE GIANT RED SPOT - JUPITER MOON IO  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowEuropa Clipper 2024 launch for Jupiter's watery moon no longer waits for the troubled SLS booster.  Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.comhttps://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/congress-frees-europa-clipper-from-sls/

  Episode

• 986: State of the City, the State, the Union: With the vaccine in distribution, Governor Cuomo acknowledges the NYC economy must reopen soonest. John Catsimatidis @JCats2013 @CatsRoundtable @JohnCats

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  Jan 14 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1873. New York City directory, 1873/74 http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow State of the City, the State, the Union: With the vaccine in distribution, Governor Cuomo acknowledges the NYC economy must reopen soonest.  John Catsimatidis @JCats2013 @CatsRoundtable @JohnCatshttps://cnycentral.com/news/local/watch-gov-cuomo-delivers-day-2-of-2021-state-of-the-state-address

  Episode

• 986: Pelosi demonstrates that the House majority can impeach a ham sandwich. John Yoo @HooverInst

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  Jan 14 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1910. Congress http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowPelosi demonstrates that the House majority can impeach a ham sandwich. John Yoo @HooverInsthttps://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-to-face-impeachment-vote-over-capitol-riot-11610543781

  Episode

• 985: Edward Bancroft: 2of2: Kindle Edition. by Thomas J. Schaeper (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 14 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1799.Boy Sketching Ruins  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Edward Bancroft: 2of2:  Kindle Edition. by Thomas J. Schaeper  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Edward-Bancroft-Scientist-Author-Spy-ebook/dp/B004SAODXI/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=A man of as many names as motives, Edward Bancroft is a singular figure in the history of Revolutionary America. Born in Massachusetts in 1745, Bancroft moved to England as a young man in the 1760s and began building a respectable résumé as both a scientist and a man of letters. In recognition of his works in natural history, Bancroft was unanimously elected to the Royal Society, and while working to secure French aid for the American Revolution, he became a close associate of such luminaries as Benjamin Franklin, Silas Deane, and John Adams. Though lauded in his time as a staunch American patriot, when the British diplomatic archives were opened in the late nineteenth century, it was revealed that Bancroft led a secret life as a British agent acting against French and American interests. In this book, the first complete biography of Bancroft, historian Thomas J. Schaeper reveals the full extent of the agent's deception during the crucial years of the American Revolution. Operating under aliases, working in ciphers, and leaving coded messages in the trees of Paris's Tuileries Gardens, Bancroft filtered information from unsuspecting figures including Franklin and Deane back to his contacts in Britain, navigating a complicated web of political allegiances. Through Schaeper's keen analysis of Bancroft's correspondence and diplomatic records, this biography reveals whether Bancroft should ultimately be considered a traitor to America or a patriot to Britain....more

  Episode

• 985: Edward Bancroft: 1of2: Kindle Edition. by Thomas J. Schaeper (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 14 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Edward Bancroft: 1of2:  Kindle Edition. by Thomas J. Schaeper  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Edward-Bancroft-Scientist-Author-Spy-ebook/dp/B004SAODXI/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=A man of as many names as motives, Edward Bancroft is a singular figure in the history of Revolutionary America. Born in Massachusetts in 1745, Bancroft moved to England as a young man in the 1760s and began building a respectable résumé as both a scientist and a man of letters. In recognition of his works in natural history, Bancroft was unanimously elected to the Royal Society, and while working to secure French aid for the American Revolution, he became a close associate of such luminaries as Benjamin Franklin, Silas Deane, and John Adams. Though lauded in his time as a staunch American patriot, when the British diplomatic archives were opened in the late nineteenth century, it was revealed that Bancroft led a secret life as a British agent acting against French and American interests. In this book, the first complete biography of Bancroft, historian Thomas J. Schaeper reveals the full extent of the agent's deception during the crucial years of the American Revolution. Operating under aliases, working in ciphers, and leaving coded messages in the trees of Paris's Tuileries Gardens, Bancroft filtered information from unsuspecting figures including Franklin and Deane back to his contacts in Britain, navigating a complicated web of political allegiances. Through Schaeper's keen analysis of Bancroft's correspondence and diplomatic records, this biography reveals whether Bancroft should ultimately be considered a traitor to America or a patriot to Britain....more

  Episode

• 984: Putin's underwear assassins mocked by all Russia. @Paul_RGregory. @HooverInst

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  Jan 13 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.Moscow. A view looking across the Moscow River at the Grand Kremlin Palace (Supreme Soviet of the U.S.S.R.) inside the Kremlin Wall. To the right of the palace the cathedral of the Annunciation, with its nine gilded domes, is visible  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowPutin's underwear assassins mocked by all Russia. @Paul_RGregory. @HooverInsthttps://thehill.com/opinion/international/532730-the-kremlin-fsb-and-the-berlin-patients-underpants ...more

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• 984: What are the roadblocks for Washington working with Europe? Russell Berman @HooverInst

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  Jan 13 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1879. Paris in Winter http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowWhat are the roadblocks for Washington working with Europe? Russell Berman @HooverInsthttps://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/trans-atlantic-relations-are-two-way-street-176137

  Episode

• 983: Commercial intimidatiion of speech & What is to be done? @LizPeek @FoxNews

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  Jan 13 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1908. American Newspaper Publishers Assn.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowCommercial intimidatiion of speech & What is to be done? @LizPeek @FoxNews

  Episode

• 983: The Big Blue State December mandates retarded the recovery & What is to be done? @LizPeek @FoxNews

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  Jan 13 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1890.[New York State Library, New York State Capitol, Albany, N.Y.]  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe Big Blue State December mandates retarded the recovery & What is to be done? @LizPeek @FoxNewshttps://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-job-postings-end-2020-well-below-pre-pandemic-levels-11610447401

  Episode

• 983: The failure of Civics education contributed to the January 6 tragedy. David Davenport @HooverInst

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  Jan 13 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.New England school-house  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe failure of Civics education contributed to the January 6 tragedy. David Davenport @HooverInsthttps://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/the-best-path-forward-is-bipartisan-statesmanship-not-the-25th-amendment-or-impeachment 

  Episode

• 983: The House GOP Caucus turns to the process of deciding impeachment, censure, or resignation. @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatness

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  Jan 13 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.2016.Winter-day scene in rugged and remote Sweetwater County, Wyoming  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe House GOP Caucus turns to the process of deciding impeachment, censure, or resignation. @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatnesshttps://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-12/senior-house-republican-cheney-says-she-ll-vote-to-impeach-trump?sref=5g4GmFHo

  Episode

• 983: Love and Capital: 2of2: Karl and Jenny Marx and the Birth of a Revolution Paperback – Illustrated, November 13, 2012.by Mary Gabriel (Author)

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  Jan 13 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1890.[Holborn Viaduct, London, England]  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Love and Capital: 2of2: Karl and Jenny Marx and the Birth of a Revolution Paperback – Illustrated, November 13, 2012.by Mary Gabriel  (Author) https://www.amazon.com/Love-Capital-Jenny-Birth-Revolution/dp/0316066125Drawing upon previously unpublished material, acclaimed biographer Mary Gabriel tells the story of Karl and Jenny Marx's marriage. Through it, we see Karl as never before: a devoted father and husband, a prankster who loved a party, a dreadful procrastinator, freeloader, and man of wild enthusiasms -- one of which would almost destroy his marriage. Through years of desperate struggle, Jenny's love for Karl would be tested again and again as she waited for him to finish his masterpiece, Capital.An epic narrative that stretches over decades to recount Karl and Jenny's story against the backdrop of Europe's Nineteenth Century, Love and Capital is a surprising and magisterial account of romance and revolution -- and of one of the great love stories of all time....more

  Episode

• 983: Love and Capital: 1of2: Karl and Jenny Marx and the Birth of a Revolution Paperback – Illustrated, November 13, 2012.by Mary Gabriel (Author)

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  Jan 13 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1886 Trafalgar Square, London, 1886.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Love and Capital: 1of2: Karl and Jenny Marx and the Birth of a Revolution Paperback – Illustrated, November 13, 2012.by Mary Gabriel  (Author) https://www.amazon.com/Love-Capital-Jenny-Birth-Revolution/dp/0316066125Drawing upon previously unpublished material, acclaimed biographer Mary Gabriel tells the story of Karl and Jenny Marx's marriage. Through it, we see Karl as never before: a devoted father and husband, a prankster who loved a party, a dreadful procrastinator, freeloader, and man of wild enthusiasms -- one of which would almost destroy his marriage. Through years of desperate struggle, Jenny's love for Karl would be tested again and again as she waited for him to finish his masterpiece, Capital.An epic narrative that stretches over decades to recount Karl and Jenny's story against the backdrop of Europe's Nineteenth Century, Love and Capital is a surprising and magisterial account of romance and revolution -- and of one of the great love stories of all time....more

  Episode

• 983: Despite peace talks in Moscow, Armenia provokes in Nagorno-Karabakh & What is to be done? @ProfBShaffer @FDD

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  Jan 13 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1920.Moskou-Nikolskaja  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowDespite peace talks in Moscow, Armenia provokes in Nagorno-Karabakh & What is to be done? @ProfBShaffer @FDDhttps://www.wsj.com/articles/armenia-azerbaijan-agree-to-develop-war-ravaged-nagorno-karabakh-11610395797

  Episode

• 985: Barbados and East Caribbean tourism wiped out by the virus. @jmhumire, @securefreesoc, @MariaFdaCabal

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  Jan 13 2021

  Image:  Roseau, Dominica / drawn by Lieut. Caddy, Royl. Artilly. ; engraved by J. Harris. Tragically, Dominica, one of the most beautiful islands in the world, is now deeply compromised by Chinese bribery and corruption.  New World Report.Joseph Humire @jmhumire, @securefreesoc, and Senator Maria Fernanda Cabal @MariaFdaCabal, in re: Barbados and East Caribbean tourism is wiped out by the virus.     £3,000 fine for escaping Barbados’s covid laws.  Cali is partly closed; Mexico is largely closed. Not enough emergency beds—Peru, Bolivia, everywhere, including in the East Caribbean. The Dominican Republic closes down at 5 PM.  In 2019, Hurricane Dorian caused $3.4 billion in damage; the no recovery in 2020.   The Interamerican Dvpt Bank can help the economies a little. It’s a large tragedy.  Haiti is the poorest. China and Russia are working to gain strong footholds across the Caribbean....more

  Episode

• 983: The rioters of January 6 attacked the "Thin Blue Line." @HarrySiegel @NYDailyNews

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  Jan 13 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe rioters of January 6 attacked the "Thin Blue Line." @HarrySiegel @NYDailyNewshttps://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/ny-oped-doth-america-protest-too-much-20210110-633ycwhhhjflfkedjbu5zv6kni-story.html

  Episode

• 983: The other half of the HRC-denounced "basket of deplorables." @WJMcGurn

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  Jan 13 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe other half of the HRC-denounced "basket of deplorables."  @WJMcGurnhttps://www.wsj.com/articles/all-donald-trumps-deplorables-11610406826

  Episode

• 983: Situation reports on the risks for Taiwan, for Cuba and for Ethiopia. Gregory Copley, Defense & Foreign Affairs

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  Jan 13 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1923.H.S. [i.e., Haile Selassie] in robe  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowSituation reports on the risks for Taiwan, for Cuba and for Ethiopia.  Gregory Copley, Defense & Foreign Affairs

  Episode

• 984: US declares Cuba a state sponsor of terrorism. @jmhumire, @securefreesoc, @MariaFdaCabal

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  Jan 13 2021

  Image:  Courtyard of a Cuban school, Santiago de CubaNew World Report. Joseph Humire @jmhumire, @securefreesoc, and Senator Maria Fernanda Cabal @MariaFdaCabal, in re:  Cuba was a host of a major negotiation with the FARC, and the current Colombian government wants to maintain smooth relations with Havana.  Venezuela: The Maduro regime has entirely taken over the national assembly.  Guaido.

  Episode

• 983: Global leadership and international law failing the more in 2021. Gregory Copley, Defense & Foreign Affairs

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  Jan 13 2021

  Photo:   Bartolus de Saxoferrato was a fourteenth-century Italian law professor and early progenitor of international law.   http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowGlobal Leadership and international law failing the more in 2021. Gregory Copley, Defense & Foreign Affairs

  Episode

• 984: How does London see the January 6 assault on the Capitol? @josephsternberg, @WSJOpinion;

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  Jan 13 2021

  Image:  CAPITOL, U.S. VISITORS, ETC., CROWD Joseph Sternberg:  @josephsternberg, @WSJOpinion; Political Economics column; WSJ editorial board;  in re: Europeans count on clear communications with US, are much concerned about apparent instability in Washington. Travel between UK an US is still light.

  Episode

• 984: London threatens severe lockdowns, with police powers. @josephsternberg, @WSJOpinion

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  Jan 13 2021

  Image:  London Town nursery rhyme Joseph Sternberg:  @josephsternberg, @WSJOpinion; Political Economics column; WSJ editorial board;  in re: Public is weary of virus restrictions.  Government told you how many miles you may travel for exercise; then gave up and issued “guidance.”  Police are thrown off base, not sure what to enforce. Boris is in serious political danger: assured everyone that if the NHS were protected till the vaccine arrived all would  be well. It's not turning out that way.  First February, then March, then April; then “early fall.”   Britain as been a success story in the vaccine;  but BoJo and his government keep tripping over their feet....more

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• 983: January 6 is a severe blow to America & What is to be done? Richard Fontaine @CNASDC @RHFontaine

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  Jan 13 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowhttps://thehill.com/opinion/national-security/533348-america-must-show-unity-for-the-sake-of-national-security

  Episode

• 982: The censors overstep. @AndrewCMcCarthy, @ThadMcCotter

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  Jan 12 2021

  Image:  The Board of Censors Moves Out Andrew C McCarthy, @AndrewCMcCarthy, Ball of Collusion; and Thaddeus McCotter, @ThadMcCotter, American Greatness, in re: VP refuses to use the 25thungainly); Biden’s strong team of veterans: Burns at CIA, Garland at Justice. Hard to predict: Parler is accused of not editing enough. Harley and Cruz and six others : Citibank refuses to accept political donations for these.  Citi drank in federal funds when it could.  “Venal. Sucking up to the Democratic committees.” On the road to crony socialism.  Zuckerberg, Bezos, Apple. Looks panicky.   This is just the beginning of a purge.  This kind of suppression . .  . smacks of antitrust violations, will increase the ardor for Section 230 reform. Opening a can of worms.  Debate: regulation of private enterprises, esp Facebook? Yes; both left and right actually agree, albeit for different reasons.   Dangerous legal environment for big tech. Some ideologues.  No more monopolies.  ...more

  Episode

• 982: Impeachment in haste. @AndrewCMcCarthy, @ThadMcCotter

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  Jan 12 2021

  Image:   Impeachment in a horn.  Caricatures of the impeachment of Andrew Johnson. This record contains unverified, old data from caption card. Andrew C McCarthy, @AndrewCMcCarthy, Ball of Collusion; and Thaddeus McCotter, @ThadMcCotter, American Greatness, in re: this isn't a real impeachment because “incitement to an insurrection” is highly problematic.  Also a causation issue: what the president said may be reprehensible, but not clearly an incitement.  A politicized rush to judgment, and it took them a week even to act on it. When Pelosi thinks the timing is propitious—in months? – she may act on this.  Censure? Nah, it's all about preventing him from running again.   It’s a naked political exercise.  Can impeach Trump [much later].   If it’s an impeachment, treat it that way. Goal to put the Republicans in a pickle? Yes. She wants no hearing or debate on the substance of the allegations; write a single article, and give the GOP a take-it-or-leave-it vote. Bring the country together not by doing a gratuitous impeachment hours before a president will be gone, anyway. Cabinet Secretaries left and leaving.  ...more

  Episode

• 982: Indiana Hoenlein and the search for more Dead Sea Scrolls. Indiana Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres,

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  Jan 12 2021

  Image:  Jericho and Dead Sea area and River Jordan. Qumran, caves where Dead Sea scrolls were found. Dead Sea in distance. IndianaHoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re: Chapeau, bullwhip.  Negev tombstone:  Sixth or Seventh Century, a park worker stumbled on a cemetery. Sta Catarina (on Mount Sinai).   Maresha city,  in the foothills of the Judaean Mountains: a thousand underground rooms; room 69 held a thousand seals.   Dead Sea Scrolls: found a lid that had been contaminated, but it was sedge (papyrus);  the jar probably fell, scrolls decomposed, but there may be more Qumran caves in other locations and caves not yet discovered....more

  Episode

• 982: Iran deal back on the table. Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres

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  Jan 12 2021

  Image:  U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry shakes hands with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif after the P5+1 and Iran concluded negotiations about Iran's nuclear capabilities on November 24, 2013 Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re: General Gantz, co-prime minister, says he regrets ever having shaken Bibi’s hand. Lots of inside baseball.  Gen Ya’alom. Iran enriching uranium to 20%, which is 90% of the way to bomb-ready. Installed very fast centrifuges; working on ballistic missiles, threatening to throw out all IAEA inspectors. Underground missile facility developed by the IRGC.  Held a naval parade in the Persian Gulf with at least hundreds of vessels; anniversary of 2016 when Iran seized American sailors.  Still holding the North Korean tanker. Drone-only drill. Biden, Burn, Blinken are all back; so are the Europeans. Are we in 1994?  Euros had been left out, as all they’d contributed were obstacles; now trying to re-insert themselves in the game.  No sign of change, or that they’re ready for serious negotiations.   Iran, which is laid low by the virus, refuses vaccine from Israel; looking at India, China, Russia for source. US rich people offered to pay for Pfizer, but that was stopped.  US is still holding some money fro Iran; but they have to live up to their JCPOA commitments, which Iran declines to do at all.   Iran exploded bombs in Iraq, is mocking the suffering of US troops. On the Egyptian side of the Gaza border, Hamas destroyed family homes in an effort to expand the border crossing.  ...more

  Episode

• 981: Speaker Pelosi sets the impeachment vote Wednesday 13 January. @DavidMDrucker @JohnFund @ThadMcCotter

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  Jan 12 2021

  Image:  The impeachment, or "The father of the gang turned Kings evidence."Print shows Edmund Burke standing behind and with his hands on the heads of Richard B. Sheridan and Charles James Fox who bow before him over a railing, perhaps before Parliament. Burke says, "Behold the abettors of Revolutions, see the authors of Plots & conspiracies, & take cognizance of the enemies of both Church & State . . . who are aiming at the Overthrow of the British Constitution." http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowSpeaker Pelosi sets the impeachment vote Wednesday 13 January. @DavidMDrucker @JohnFund @ThadMcCotterhttps://www.politico.com/news/2021/01/11/house-trump-impeachment-457440 ...more

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• 981: GOP House members fret Trump supporters and primaries in 2022. George GOP flops. @DavidMDrucker @JohnFund

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  Jan 12 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1922. Navy - Georgia Tech game, 10/21/22  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowGOP House members fret Trump supporters and primaries in 2022. George GOP flops. @DavidMDrucker @JohnFund https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/house-republicans-worry-about-trump-primary-threats-despite-capitol-siege-fallouthttps://www.nationalreview.com/2021/01/what-caused-the-gops-georgia-train-wreck/ ...more

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• 981: Bitcoin is Tulip Mania without Tulips. @BrtettArends @Marketwatch

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  Jan 12 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1681. Two Tulips with Insects  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowBitcoin is Tulip Mania without Tulips. @BrtettArends @Marketwatchhttps://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/bitcoin-prices-plunge-more-than-20-in-three-days-its-now-in-a-bear-market/ar-BB1cEKyJ

  Episode

• 981: As Italy struggles, it discovers Covid 19 in the population as early as November 2019. Lorenzo Fiori

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  Jan 12 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1955>The Milan Cathedral, Milan, Italy  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowAs Italy struggles, it discovers Covid 19 in the population as early as November 2019. Lorenzo Fiorihttps://www.ansa.it/english/news/general_news/2021/01/11/covid-new-patient-1-discovered-in-nov-2019_d7d7bca9-c51f-4559-addf-0aca2ae81dff.html

  Episode

• 981: All the Great Prizes:4of4: The Life of John Hay, from Lincoln to Roosevelt Paperback – May 27, 2014. by John Taliaferro (Author)

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  Jan 12 2021

  Photo: Hay signs the Treaty of Paris, 1899 http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow All the Great Prizes:4of4:  The Life of John Hay, from Lincoln to Roosevelt Paperback – May 27, 2014. by John Taliaferro  (Author) https://www.amazon.com/All-Great-Prizes-Lincoln-Roosevelt/dp/1416597344

  Episode

• 981: All the Great Prizes: 3of4: The Life of John Hay, from Lincoln to Roosevelt Paperback – May 27, 2014. by John Taliaferro (Author)

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  Jan 12 2021

  engraving:  Col. Theodore Roosevelt U.S.V. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow All the Great Prizes: 3of4: The Life of John Hay, from Lincoln to Roosevelt Paperback – May 27, 2014. by John Taliaferro  (Author) https://www.amazon.com/All-Great-Prizes-Lincoln-Roosevelt/dp/1416597344

  Episode

• 981: All the Great Prizes: 2of4: The Life of John Hay, from Lincoln to Roosevelt Paperback – May 27, 2014. by John Taliaferro (Author)

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  Jan 12 2021

  Drawing: Abraham Lincoln. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow All the Great Prizes: 2of4:Z The Life of John Hay, from Lincoln to Roosevelt Paperback – May 27, 2014. by John Taliaferro  (Author) https://www.amazon.com/All-Great-Prizes-Lincoln-Roosevelt/dp/1416597344

  Episode

• 981: All the Great Prizes: 1of4: The Life of John Hay, from Lincoln to Roosevelt Paperback – May 27, 2014. by John Taliaferro (Author)

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  Jan 12 2021

  Photo:  Lincoln and his secretaries. Hay is on the right. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow All the Great Prizes: 1of4:  The Life of John Hay, from Lincoln to Roosevelt Paperback – May 27, 2014. by John Taliaferro  (Author) https://www.amazon.com/All-Great-Prizes-Lincoln-Roosevelt/dp/1416597344

  Episode

• 981: Taiwan, a reliable ally, may be left bereft by Biden. @ChristianWhiton, @GordonGChang

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  Jan 12 2021

  Image: Fort Zeelandia op Taiwan, 1632 Christian Whiton:  @ChristianWhiton, Center for the National Interest; and Gordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re:  Pompeo in Taiwan: how does Taiwan see this?  He’s just been telling the truth. Formerly, I could meet with North Korea and all sorts of [regrettable] groups, but to meet Taiwanese I had to sneak around. A major diplomat insult. It’s not even part of the one-China policy.  There’s no need to treat Taiwan, a reliable ally, this way. Flag officers weren’t even allowed to travel to Taiwan—a reckless policy. Significance of  UN Ambassador’s Kelly Craft’svisit to Taipei: pretty important. Anyone who visits Taiwan immediately sees that this is a free society; we let China get away with threatening war because of Craft’s visit. If Biden reverses this important advance, we’ll [have a lot to pay].   Biden has a mixed reputation; favored [damaging] Radio Free Asia. These guys will want all the trappings of dipl engagement, which China will accord, but not for free.  Trump is now trying to elevate this to a degree such that Biden would have to do a visible climb-down to change it.  Some of Taiwan’s islands are just a few miles from Mainland; China may steal some of them and dare the rest of the world to do anything. ...more

  Episode

• 981: Beijing agitprop says tyranny is more efficient. @Michael_Yon, @GordonGChang,

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  Jan 12 2021

  Image:  Sic semper tyrannis - 22th Regt. U.S. Colored Troops Michael Yon: @Michael_Yon, war correspondent;andGordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re:  Currently in Washington, D.C.; in July, Hong Kong resistance observed the occupation of Legco.  On Jan 6 saw people entering the Capitol.  The Chinese CCP is making much of that event; Beijing is trying to draw equivalence.  Tarring Pelosi, saying she called the breaking-in to Legco “a beautiful sight,” which she did not. Zimbabwe is mocking the US.  Michael has seen both break-ins:  The people who did both seemed to feel they were fighting against tyranny; in HK, can be hauled of like Uyghurs or Tibetans.   Beijing agitprop, saying, “This is a model of government that doesn't work” How do we refute that?  In general, in the short term, need to eliminate the points of contact—eliminate trade, et al., which seems like a desperate move but we're under serious [attack] from Beijing right now.        I agree with Gordon that the US needs to cut all ties with the CCP.   The young people in HK: many have already left, some are staying, which much be extremely stressful.  They need to be self-protective; make sure they’re well and safe.”   https://time.com/5928446/china-reaction-capitol-hong-kong-legco/ ...more

  Episode

• 981: New CIA head speaks Arabic and Russian, but will follow Biden policy (global warming ahead of all else?). @thomasjoscelyn, @billroggio

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  Jan 12 2021

  Image:  Average global temperatures from 2010 to 2019 compared to a baseline average from 1951 to 1978. Source: NASA. Tom Joscelyn, @thomasjoscelyn, Long War Journal and FDD; and Bill Roggio, @billroggio, Long War Journal and FDD; in re:  William Burns as head of CIA, who speaks Arabic and Russian, was US ambassador to Moscow.   “The enemy gets a vote.”  The 2019 Pensacola attack; DoJ announced Shabaab was planning an attack.  Does putting a career dip in CIA change the flavor of things?  He was involved in negotiations with Iran; question his desire to take a hard line vs[jihadis] in Pakistan, Iran, et al.  Will follow the policy prescriptions of the Biden administration.   Trump NSA launched strikes in Idlib in Syria. Former head of MI6: Bill will bring fresh leadership to the CIA, which has been marginalized in the past years.” Marginalized how?  . . .  The shadow war of al Qaeda globally....more

  Episode

• 981: In Afghanistan, a fractured state, Taliban demand zero American presence. @thomasjoscelyn, @billroggio

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  Jan 12 2021

  Image:  Members of the Anti-Taliban Forces (ATF) scan the area, around a Soviet surface-to-air missile (SAM) site destroyed by coalition air sorties, in order to locate unexploded munitions. This site is near their observation post, near the Kandahar International Airport, Kandahar, Afghanistan, during OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM Tom Joscelyn, @thomasjoscelyn, Long War Journal and FDD; and Bill Roggio, @billroggio, Long War Journal and FDD; in re: The Biden administration and the vast landscape of the jihad. Afghanistan:  Taliban demand every single American be gone.  Taliban and ISIS are enemies, but al Qaeda and Taliban are hand in glove.        Forget a power-sharing arrangement between Taliban and the Afghan government. Biden may not be able to thread this needle.   US embassy security is to keep perimeters from being breached; could not stop a real attack.  This is down to: can the US keep even a small deployment force in Afghanistan, Iraq, or elsewhere?  Afghanistan is a fractured state. ...more

  Episode

• 976: My Sister, Guard Your Veil; My Brother, Guard Your Eyes: Uncensored Iranian Voices Kindle Edition. by Azar Nafisi (Author), Marjane Satrapi (Author), Abbas Kiarostami (Author), Shirin Neshat (Author), Shohreh Aghdashloo (Author), Lila Azam Zanganeh (Edito

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  Jan 11 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1830.This image has been taken from scan 000557 from volume 01 of "[Travels in Assyria, Media, and Persia, etc.]". The title and subject terms of this image have been generated from tags, created by users of the British Library's flickr photostream http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow My Sister, Guard Your Veil; My Brother, Guard Your Eyes: Uncensored Iranian Voices Kindle Edition. by Azar Nafisi (Author), Marjane Satrapi (Author), Abbas Kiarostami (Author), Shirin Neshat (Author), Shohreh Aghdashloo (Author), Lila Azam Zanganeh (Editor)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Sister-Guard-Your-Veil-Brother-ebook-dp-B001QPHNJ4/dp/B001QPHNJ4/ref=mt_other?_encoding=UTF8&me=&qid=1459038003This collection showcases the real scope and complexity of Iran through the work of a stellar group of contributors-including Azar Nafisi and with original art by Marjane Satrapi. Their collective goal is to counter the many existing cultural and political clichés about Iran. Some of the pieces concern feminism, sexuality, or eroticism under the Islamic Republic; others are unorthodox political testimonies or about race and religion. Almost all these contributors have broken artistic and cultural taboos in their work.Journalist Reza Aslan, author of No God But God, explains why Iran is not a theocracy but, rather, a "mullahcracy." Mehrangiz Kar, a lawyer and human rights activist who was jailed in Iran and is currently a fellow at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, argues that the Iranian Revolution actually engendered the birth of feminism in Iran. Journalist Azadeh Moaveni reveals the underground parties and sex culture in Tehran, while Gelareh Asayesh, author of Saffron Sky, writes poignantly on why Iranians are not considered white in America, even though they think they are. Poet and writer Naghmeh Zarbafian expounds on the surreal experience of reading censored books in Iran, while Roya Hakakian, author of Journey from the Land of No: A Girlhood Caught in Revolutionary Iran, recalls the happy days of Iranian Jews. With a sharp, incisive introduction by Lila Azam Zanganeh, this diverse collection will alter what you thought you knew about Iran. "My Sister, Guard Your Veil; My Brother, Guard Your Eyes aims to corrode fixed ideas and turns cultural and political clichés on their heads . . . Iranians themselves live in a complex and schizophrenic reality, at a surreal crossroads between political Islam and satellite television, massive national oil revenues, and searing social inequalities."--From the Introduction by Lila Azam ZanganehContributors include: Azar Nafisi, author of the best-selling Reading Lolita in Tehran, Marjane Satrapi, author of Persepolis, Shirin Neshat, internationally acclaimed visual artist, Abbas Kiarostami, award-winning filmmaker of Taste of Cherry, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Oscar nominee for House of Sand and Fog, Azadeh Moaveni, author of Lipstick Jihad ...more

  Episode

• 976: Ethan Allen: 2of2: His Life and Times Kindle Edition. by Willard Sterne Randall (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 11 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1900.North at Cuttingsville, Green Mountains  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Ethan Allen: 2of2: His Life and Times Kindle Edition. by Willard Sterne Randall  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Ethan-Allen-His-Life-Times-ebook/dp/B005F0LLX0/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610323651&sr=1-1On May 10, 1775, in the storm-tossed hours after midnight, Ethan Allen, the Revolutionary firebrand, was poised for attack. With only two boatloads of his scraggly band of Vermont volunteers having made it across the wind-whipped waters of Lake Champlain, he was waiting for the rest of his Green Mountain boys to arrive. But with the protective darkness quickly fading, Allen determined that he hold off no longer.While Ethan Allen, a canonical hero of the American Revolution, has always been defined by his daring, predawn attack on the British-controlled Fort Ticonderoga, Willard Sterne Randall, the author of Benedict Arnold, now challenges our conventional understanding of this largely unexamined Founding Father. Widening the scope of his inquiry beyond the Revolutionary War, Randall traces Allen’s beginning back to his modest origins in Connecticut, where he was born in 1738. Largely self-educated, emerging from a relatively impoverished background, Allen demonstrated his deeply rebellious nature early on through his attraction to Deism, his dramatic defense of smallpox vaccinations, and his early support of separation of church and state.Chronicling Allen’s upward struggle from precocious, if not unruly, adolescent to commander of the largest American paramilitary force on the eve of the Revolution, Randall unlocks a trove of new source material, particularly evident in his gripping portrait of Allen as a British prisoner-of-war. While the biography reacquaints readers with the familiar details of Allen’s life—his capture during the aborted American invasion of Canada, his philosophical works that influenced Thomas Paine, his seminal role in gaining Vermont statehood, his stirring funeral in 1789—Randall documents that so much of what we know of Allen is mere myth, historical folklore that people have handed down, as if Allen were Paul Bunyan.As Randall reveals, Ethan Allen, a so-called Robin Hood in the eyes of his dispossessed Green Mountain settlers, aggrandized, and unabashedly so, the holdings of his own family, a fact that is glossed over in previous accounts, embellishing his own best-selling prisoner-of-war narrative as well. He emerges not only as a public-spirited leader but as a self-interested individual, often no less rapacious than his archenemies, the New York land barons of the Hudson and Mohawk Valleys.As John E. Ferling comments, “Randall has stripped away the myths to provide as accurate an account of Allen’s life as will ever be written.” The keen insights that he produces shed new light, not only on this most enigmatic of Founding Fathers, but on today’s descendants of the Green Mountain Boys, whose own political disenfranchisement resonates now more than ever. ...more

  Episode

• 976: Ethan Allen: 1of2: His Life and Times Kindle Edition. by Willard Sterne Randall (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 11 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1900.Belden's Falls, Green Mountains  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Ethan Allen: 1of2: His Life and Times Kindle Edition. by Willard Sterne Randall  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Ethan-Allen-His-Life-Times-ebook/dp/B005F0LLX0/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610323651&sr=1-1On May 10, 1775, in the storm-tossed hours after midnight, Ethan Allen, the Revolutionary firebrand, was poised for attack. With only two boatloads of his scraggly band of Vermont volunteers having made it across the wind-whipped waters of Lake Champlain, he was waiting for the rest of his Green Mountain boys to arrive. But with the protective darkness quickly fading, Allen determined that he hold off no longer.While Ethan Allen, a canonical hero of the American Revolution, has always been defined by his daring, predawn attack on the British-controlled Fort Ticonderoga, Willard Sterne Randall, the author of Benedict Arnold, now challenges our conventional understanding of this largely unexamined Founding Father. Widening the scope of his inquiry beyond the Revolutionary War, Randall traces Allen’s beginning back to his modest origins in Connecticut, where he was born in 1738. Largely self-educated, emerging from a relatively impoverished background, Allen demonstrated his deeply rebellious nature early on through his attraction to Deism, his dramatic defense of smallpox vaccinations, and his early support of separation of church and state.Chronicling Allen’s upward struggle from precocious, if not unruly, adolescent to commander of the largest American paramilitary force on the eve of the Revolution, Randall unlocks a trove of new source material, particularly evident in his gripping portrait of Allen as a British prisoner-of-war. While the biography reacquaints readers with the familiar details of Allen’s life—his capture during the aborted American invasion of Canada, his philosophical works that influenced Thomas Paine, his seminal role in gaining Vermont statehood, his stirring funeral in 1789—Randall documents that so much of what we know of Allen is mere myth, historical folklore that people have handed down, as if Allen were Paul Bunyan.As Randall reveals, Ethan Allen, a so-called Robin Hood in the eyes of his dispossessed Green Mountain settlers, aggrandized, and unabashedly so, the holdings of his own family, a fact that is glossed over in previous accounts, embellishing his own best-selling prisoner-of-war narrative as well. He emerges not only as a public-spirited leader but as a self-interested individual, often no less rapacious than his archenemies, the New York land barons of the Hudson and Mohawk Valleys.As John E. Ferling comments, “Randall has stripped away the myths to provide as accurate an account of Allen’s life as will ever be written.” The keen insights that he produces shed new light, not only on this most enigmatic of Founding Fathers, but on today’s descendants of the Green Mountain Boys, whose own political disenfranchisement resonates now more than ever. ...more

  Episode

• 980: 4/4 Terrible Swift Sword: The Life of General Philip H. Sheridan, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 11 2021

  Image:  Yellowstone Lake, Mt. Sheridan  Terrible Swift Sword: The Life of General Philip H. Sheridan,by Joseph Wheelan Alongside Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman, Philip H. Sheridan is the least known of the triumvirate of generals most responsible for winning the Civil War. Yet, before Sherman's famous march through Georgia, it was General Sheridan who introduced scorched-earth warfare to the South, and it was his Cavalry Corps that compelled Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox Courthouse. Sheridan's innovative cavalry tactics and "total war" strategy became staples of twentieth-century warfare.After the war, Sheridan ruthlessly suppressed the raiding Plains Indians much as he had the Confederates, by killing warriors and burning villages, but he also defended reservation Indians from corrupt agents and contractors. Sheridan, an enthusiastic hunter and conservationist, later ordered the US cavalry to occupy and operate Yellowstone National Park to safeguard it from commercial exploitation.https://www.amazon.com/Terrible-Swift-Sword-General-Sheridan-ebook/dp/B0080K3F86/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610322486&sr=1-1...more

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• 980: 3/4 Terrible Swift Sword: The Life of General Philip H. Sheridan, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 11 2021

  Image:  Lee's surrender Terrible Swift Sword: The Life of General Philip H. Sheridan,by Joseph Wheelan Alongside Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman, Philip H. Sheridan is the least known of the triumvirate of generals most responsible for winning the Civil War. Yet, before Sherman's famous march through Georgia, it was General Sheridan who introduced scorched-earth warfare to the South, and it was his Cavalry Corps that compelled Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox Courthouse. Sheridan's innovative cavalry tactics and "total war" strategy became staples of twentieth-century warfare.After the war, Sheridan ruthlessly suppressed the raiding Plains Indians much as he had the Confederates, by killing warriors and burning villages, but he also defended reservation Indians from corrupt agents and contractors. Sheridan, an enthusiastic hunter and conservationist, later ordered the US cavalry to occupy and operate Yellowstone National Park to safeguard it from commercial exploitation.https://www.amazon.com/Terrible-Swift-Sword-General-Sheridan-ebook/dp/B0080K3F86/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610322486&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 980: 2/4 Terrible Swift Sword: The Life of General Philip H. Sheridan, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 11 2021

  Image:  Contrabands accompanying the line of Sherman's march through Georgia / from a sketch by our special artist. 1865.   Terrible Swift Sword: The Life of General Philip H. Sheridan,by Joseph Wheelan Alongside Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman, Philip H. Sheridan is the least known of the triumvirate of generals most responsible for winning the Civil War. Yet, before Sherman's famous march through Georgia, it was General Sheridan who introduced scorched-earth warfare to the South, and it was his Cavalry Corps that compelled Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox Courthouse. Sheridan's innovative cavalry tactics and "total war" strategy became staples of twentieth-century warfare.After the war, Sheridan ruthlessly suppressed the raiding Plains Indians much as he had the Confederates, by killing warriors and burning villages, but he also defended reservation Indians from corrupt agents and contractors. Sheridan, an enthusiastic hunter and conservationist, later ordered the US cavalry to occupy and operate Yellowstone National Park to safeguard it from commercial exploitation.https://www.amazon.com/Terrible-Swift-Sword-General-Sheridan-ebook/dp/B0080K3F86/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610322486&sr=1-1...more

  Episode

• 980: 1/4 Terrible Swift Sword: The Life of General Philip H. Sheridan, by Joseph Wheelan

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  Jan 11 2021

  Image:  Lieut. Gen. Philip H. Sheridan, U.S.A. / Photo by Brady ; Engd. by J.C. Buttre.  Terrible Swift Sword: The Life of General Philip H. Sheridan,by Joseph Wheelan Alongside Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman, Philip H. Sheridan is the least known of the triumvirate of generals most responsible for winning the Civil War. Yet, before Sherman's famous march through Georgia, it was General Sheridan who introduced scorched-earth warfare to the South, and it was his Cavalry Corps that compelled Robert E. Lee's surrender at Appomattox Courthouse. Sheridan's innovative cavalry tactics and "total war" strategy became staples of twentieth-century warfare.After the war, Sheridan ruthlessly suppressed the raiding Plains Indians much as he had the Confederates, by killing warriors and burning villages, but he also defended reservation Indians from corrupt agents and contractors. Sheridan, an enthusiastic hunter and conservationist, later ordered the US cavalry to occupy and operate Yellowstone National Park to safeguard it from commercial exploitation.https://www.amazon.com/Terrible-Swift-Sword-General-Sheridan-ebook/dp/B0080K3F86/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610322486&sr=1-1 ,,...more

  Episode

• 979: 4/4 The Lost Bank: The Story of Washington Mutual—The Biggest Bank Failure in American History, by Kirsten Grind with Traber Burns as narrator

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  Jan 11 2021

  Image:   Former Dime Savings Bank branch in Brooklyn, New York  The Lost Bank: The Story of Washington Mutua—The Biggest Bank Failure in American History,by Kirsten Grind with Traber Burnsas narrator.During the most dizzying days of the financial crisis, Washington Mutual, a bank with hundreds of billions of dollars in its coffers, suffered a crippling bank run. The story of its final, brutal collapse in the autumn of 2008, and its controversial sale to JPMorgan Chase, is an astonishing account of how one bank lost itself to greed and mismanagement, and how the entire financial industry—and even the entire country— lost its way as well. Kirsten Grind’s The Lost Bank is a magisterial and gripping account of these events, tracing the cultural shifts, the cockamamie financial engineering, and the hubris and avarice that made this incredible story possible. The men and women who become the central players in this tragedy— the regulators and the bankers, the home buyers and the lenders, the number crunchers and the shareholders—are heroes and villains, perpetrators and victims, often switching roles with one another as the drama unfolds. As a reporter at the time for the Puget Sound Business Journal, Grind covered a story set far from the epicenters of finance and media. It happened largely in places such as the suburban homes of central California and the office buildings of Seattle, but Grind covered the story from the beginning, and the clarity and persistence of her reporting earned her many awards, including being named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the Gerald Loeb Award. She takes readers into boardrooms and bedrooms, revealing the power struggles that pitted regulators at the Office of Thrift Supervision and the FDIC against one another and the predatory negotiations of investment bankers and lawyers who enriched themselves during the bank’s rise and then devoured the obliterated bank in its final days. Written as compellingly as the finest fiction, The Lost Bank makes it clear that the collapse of Washington Mutual was not just the largest bank failure in American history. It is a story of talismanic qualities, reflecting the astounding rise and the precipitous collapse of not only an institution but of trust, fortunes, and the marketplaces for risk across the world.https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0061NVR8E/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i0 ...more

  Episode

• 978: 3/4 The Lost Bank: The Story of Washington Mutual—The Biggest Bank Failure in American History, by Kirsten Grind with Traber Burns as narrator

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  Jan 11 2021

  Image:  The Lost Bank: The Story of Washington Mutual—The Biggest Bank Failure in American History,by Kirsten Grind with Traber Burnsas narrator.During the most dizzying days of the financial crisis, Washington Mutual, a bank with hundreds of billions of dollars in its coffers, suffered a crippling bank run. The story of its final, brutal collapse in the autumn of 2008, and its controversial sale to JPMorgan Chase, is an astonishing account of how one bank lost itself to greed and mismanagement, and how the entire financial industry—and even the entire country— lost its way as well. Kirsten Grind’s The Lost Bank is a magisterial and gripping account of these events, tracing the cultural shifts, the cockamamie financial engineering, and the hubris and avarice that made this incredible story possible. The men and women who become the central players in this tragedy— the regulators and the bankers, the home buyers and the lenders, the number crunchers and the shareholders—are heroes and villains, perpetrators and victims, often switching roles with one another as the drama unfolds. As a reporter at the time for the Puget Sound Business Journal, Grind covered a story set far from the epicenters of finance and media. It happened largely in places such as the suburban homes of central California and the office buildings of Seattle, but Grind covered the story from the beginning, and the clarity and persistence of her reporting earned her many awards, including being named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the Gerald Loeb Award. She takes readers into boardrooms and bedrooms, revealing the power struggles that pitted regulators at the Office of Thrift Supervision and the FDIC against one another and the predatory negotiations of investment bankers and lawyers who enriched themselves during the bank’s rise and then devoured the obliterated bank in its final days. Written as compellingly as the finest fiction, The Lost Bank makes it clear that the collapse of Washington Mutual was not just the largest bank failure in American history. It is a story of talismanic qualities, reflecting the astounding rise and the precipitous collapse of not only an institution but of trust, fortunes, and the marketplaces for risk across the world.https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0061NVR8E/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i0...more

  Episode

• 978: 2/4 The Lost Bank: The Story of Washington Mutual—The Biggest Bank Failure in American History, by Kirsten Grind with Traber Burns as narrator

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  Jan 11 2021

  Image:  An old bank that failed in Kansas  The Lost Bank: The Story of Washington Mutua—The Biggest Bank Failure in American History,by Kirsten Grind with Traber Burnsas narrator.During the most dizzying days of the financial crisis, Washington Mutual, a bank with hundreds of billions of dollars in its coffers, suffered a crippling bank run. The story of its final, brutal collapse in the autumn of 2008, and its controversial sale to JPMorgan Chase, is an astonishing account of how one bank lost itself to greed and mismanagement, and how the entire financial industry—and even the entire country— lost its way as well. Kirsten Grind’s The Lost Bank is a magisterial and gripping account of these events, tracing the cultural shifts, the cockamamie financial engineering, and the hubris and avarice that made this incredible story possible. The men and women who become the central players in this tragedy— the regulators and the bankers, the home buyers and the lenders, the number crunchers and the shareholders—are heroes and villains, perpetrators and victims, often switching roles with one another as the drama unfolds. As a reporter at the time for the Puget Sound Business Journal, Grind covered a story set far from the epicenters of finance and media. It happened largely in places such as the suburban homes of central California and the office buildings of Seattle, but Grind covered the story from the beginning, and the clarity and persistence of her reporting earned her many awards, including being named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the Gerald Loeb Award. She takes readers into boardrooms and bedrooms, revealing the power struggles that pitted regulators at the Office of Thrift Supervision and the FDIC against one another and the predatory negotiations of investment bankers and lawyers who enriched themselves during the bank’s rise and then devoured the obliterated bank in its final days. Written as compellingly as the finest fiction, The Lost Bank makes it clear that the collapse of Washington Mutual was not just the largest bank failure in American history. It is a story of talismanic qualities, reflecting the astounding rise and the precipitous collapse of not only an institution but of trust, fortunes, and the marketplaces for risk across the world.https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0061NVR8E/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i0...more

  Episode

• 978: 1/4 The Lost Bank: The Story of Washington Mutual—The Biggest Bank Failure in American History, by Kirsten Grind with Traber Burns as narrator

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  Jan 11 2021

  Image:  The WaMu Tower at 1201 Third Avenue in Seattle, Washington    The Lost Bank: The Story of Washington Mutua—The Biggest Bank Failure in American History,by Kirsten Grind with Traber Burnsas narrator.During the most dizzying days of the financial crisis, Washington Mutual, a bank with hundreds of billions of dollars in its coffers, suffered a crippling bank run. The story of its final, brutal collapse in the autumn of 2008, and its controversial sale to JPMorgan Chase, is an astonishing account of how one bank lost itself to greed and mismanagement, and how the entire financial industry—and even the entire country— lost its way as well. Kirsten Grind’s The Lost Bank is a magisterial and gripping account of these events, tracing the cultural shifts, the cockamamie financial engineering, and the hubris and avarice that made this incredible story possible. The men and women who become the central players in this tragedy— the regulators and the bankers, the home buyers and the lenders, the number crunchers and the shareholders—are heroes and villains, perpetrators and victims, often switching roles with one another as the drama unfolds. As a reporter at the time for the Puget Sound Business Journal, Grind covered a story set far from the epicenters of finance and media. It happened largely in places such as the suburban homes of central California and the office buildings of Seattle, but Grind covered the story from the beginning, and the clarity and persistence of her reporting earned her many awards, including being named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the Gerald Loeb Award. She takes readers into boardrooms and bedrooms, revealing the power struggles that pitted regulators at the Office of Thrift Supervision and the FDIC against one another and the predatory negotiations of investment bankers and lawyers who enriched themselves during the bank’s rise and then devoured the obliterated bank in its final days. Written as compellingly as the finest fiction, The Lost Bank makes it clear that the collapse of Washington Mutual was not just the largest bank failure in American history. It is a story of talismanic qualities, reflecting the astounding rise and the precipitous collapse of not only an institution but of trust, fortunes, and the marketplaces for risk across the world. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0061NVR8E/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i0 ...more

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• 977: 4/4 Ike's Bluff: President Eisenhower's Secret Battle to Save the World, by Evan Thomas

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  Jan 11 2021

  Image:  Eisenhower and members of his Cabinet inspect the YB-52 prototype of the B-52, c.1954  Ike's Bluff: President Eisenhower's Secret Battle to Save the World,by Evan Thomas  Evan Thomas's startling account of how the underrated Dwight Eisenhower saved the world from nuclear holocaust. Upon assuming the presidency in 1953, Dwight Eisenhower set about to make good on his campaign promise to end the Korean War. Yet while Eisenhower was quickly viewed by many as a doddering lightweight, behind the bland smile and simple speech was a master tactician. To end the hostilities, Eisenhower would take a colossal risk by bluffing that he might use nuclear weapons against the Communist Chinese, while at the same time restraining his generals and advisors who favored the strikes. Ike's gamble was of such magnitude that there could be but two outcomes: thousands of lives saved, or millions of lives lost. A tense, vivid and revisionist account of a president who was then, and still is today, underestimated, Ike's Bluff is history at its most provocative and thrilling.  https://www.amazon.com/Ikes-Bluff-President-Eisenhowers-Secret/dp/0316091030 ...more

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• 977: 3/4 Ike's Bluff: President Eisenhower's Secret Battle to Save the World, by Evan Thomas

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  Jan 11 2021

  Image:  US Military Advisory Group Headquarters, South Korea, c. 1950  Ike's Bluff: President Eisenhower's Secret Battle to Save the World,by Evan Thomas  Evan Thomas's startling account of how the underrated Dwight Eisenhower saved the world from nuclear holocaust. Upon assuming the presidency in 1953, Dwight Eisenhower set about to make good on his campaign promise to end the Korean War. Yet while Eisenhower was quickly viewed by many as a doddering lightweight, behind the bland smile and simple speech was a master tactician. To end the hostilities, Eisenhower would take a colossal risk by bluffing that he might use nuclear weapons against the Communist Chinese, while at the same time restraining his generals and advisors who favored the strikes. Ike's gamble was of such magnitude that there could be but two outcomes: thousands of lives saved, or millions of lives lost. A tense, vivid and revisionist account of a president who was then, and still is today, underestimated, Ike's Bluff is history at its most provocative and thrilling.  https://www.amazon.com/Ikes-Bluff-President-Eisenhowers-Secret/dp/0316091030...more

  Episode

• 977: 2/4 Ike's Bluff: President Eisenhower's Secret Battle to Save the World, by Evan Thomas

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  Jan 11 2021

  Image:  Korean refugees in front of an American M-26 tank  Ike's Bluff: President Eisenhower's Secret Battle to Save the World,by Evan Thomas  Evan Thomas's startling account of how the underrated Dwight Eisenhower saved the world from nuclear holocaust. Upon assuming the presidency in 1953, Dwight Eisenhower set about to make good on his campaign promise to end the Korean War. Yet while Eisenhower was quickly viewed by many as a doddering lightweight, behind the bland smile and simple speech was a master tactician. To end the hostilities, Eisenhower would take a colossal risk by bluffing that he might use nuclear weapons against the Communist Chinese, while at the same time restraining his generals and advisors who favored the strikes. Ike's gamble was of such magnitude that there could be but two outcomes: thousands of lives saved, or millions of lives lost. A tense, vivid and revisionist account of a president who was then, and still is today, underestimated, Ike's Bluff is history at its most provocative and thrilling.  https://www.amazon.com/Ikes-Bluff-President-Eisenhowers-Secret/dp/0316091030...more

  Episode

• 977: 1/4 Ike's Bluff: President Eisenhower's Secret Battle to Save the World, by Evan Thomas

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  Jan 11 2021

  Image:    "Atoms for Peace" 3 cent U. S. stamp presentation with President Eisenhower in 1956  Ike's Bluff: President Eisenhower's Secret Battle to Save the World,by Evan Thomas  Evan Thomas's startling account of how the underrated Dwight Eisenhower saved the world from nuclear holocaust. Upon assuming the presidency in 1953, Dwight Eisenhower set about to make good on his campaign promise to end the Korean War. Yet while Eisenhower was quickly viewed by many as a doddering lightweight, behind the bland smile and simple speech was a master tactician. To end the hostilities, Eisenhower would take a colossal risk by bluffing that he might use nuclear weapons against the Communist Chinese, while at the same time restraining his generals and advisors who favored the strikes. Ike's gamble was of such magnitude that there could be but two outcomes: thousands of lives saved, or millions of lives lost. A tense, vivid and revisionist account of a president who was then, and still is today, underestimated, Ike's Bluff is history at its most provocative and thrilling.  https://www.amazon.com/Ikes-Bluff-President-Eisenhowers-Secret/dp/0316091030 ...more

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• 976: Mightier than the Sword: 2of2: Uncle Tom's Cabin and the Battle for America Kindle Edition.by David S. Reynolds (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 11 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1905.Harriet Beecher Stowe's residence, Hartford, Ct.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Mightier than the Sword: 2of2: Uncle Tom's Cabin and the Battle for America Kindle Edition.by David S. Reynolds  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Mightier-than-Sword-Battle-America-ebook/dp/B00540Y9X0/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610323114&sr=1-1In this wide-ranging, brilliantly researched work, David S. Reynolds traces the factors that made Uncle Tom’s Cabin the most influential novel ever written by an American. Upon its 1852 publication, the novel’s vivid depiction of slavery polarized its American readership, ultimately widening the rift that led to the Civil War. Reynolds also charts the novel’s afterlife—including its adaptation into plays, films, and consumer goods—revealing its lasting impact on American entertainment, advertising, and race relations....more

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• 976: Mightier than the Sword: 1of2: Uncle Tom's Cabin and the Battle for America Kindle Edition.by David S. Reynolds (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 11 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1853.Harriet Beecher Stowe  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Mightier than the Sword: 1of2: Uncle Tom's Cabin and the Battle for America Kindle Edition.by David S. Reynolds  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Mightier-than-Sword-Battle-America-ebook/dp/B00540Y9X0/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610323114&sr=1-1In this wide-ranging, brilliantly researched work, David S. Reynolds traces the factors that made Uncle Tom’s Cabin the most influential novel ever written by an American. Upon its 1852 publication, the novel’s vivid depiction of slavery polarized its American readership, ultimately widening the rift that led to the Civil War. Reynolds also charts the novel’s afterlife—including its adaptation into plays, films, and consumer goods—revealing its lasting impact on American entertainment, advertising, and race relations....more

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• 971: The Man Who Knew Too Much: Alan Turing and the Invention of the Computer (Great Discoveries) Kindle Edition.by David Leavitt (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 10 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1903. Princeton University http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Man Who Knew Too Much: Alan Turing and the Invention of the Computer (Great Discoveries) Kindle Edition.by David Leavitt  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Man-Who-Knew-Too-Much-ebook/dp/B00AJ3DWDU/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610259557&sr=1-1To solve one of the great mathematical problems of his day, Alan Turing proposed an imaginary computer. Then, attempting to break a Nazi code during World War II, he successfully designed and built one, thus ensuring the Allied victory. Turing became a champion of artificial intelligence, but his work was cut short. As an openly gay man at a time when homosexuality was illegal in England, he was convicted and forced to undergo a humiliating "treatment" that may have led to his suicide.With a novelist's sensitivity, David Leavitt portrays Turing in all his humanity—his eccentricities, his brilliance, his fatal candor—and elegantly explains his work and its implications....more

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• 971: The Jasons: 1of1: The Secret History of Science's Postwar Elite Kindle Edition. by Ann Finkbeiner (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 10 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1967. Vietnam War Protesters, Wichita, Kansas  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowhttps://www.amazon.com/Jasons-Secret-History-Sciences-Postwar-ebook/dp/B000PC0S8M/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610244789&sr=1-1 The Jasons: 1of1: The Secret History of Science's Postwar Elite Kindle Edition. by Ann Finkbeiner (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition The Jasons are a well-guarded group of world-class scientists, briefly outed in the Pentagon Papers during the Vietnam War, who have been meeting every summer since 1960 to tackle classified problems that the Defense Department cannot solve. Among many stunning innovations, they helped invent our electronic battlefield and Star Wars missile defense technology, and are now looking into ways to improve our intelligence gathering. Recounting the unknown story of these brilliant, stubbornly independent thinkers, Ann Finkbeiner takes advantage of her unprecedented access to this elite group to explore the uncertain bargains between science and politics. It is a story older than Faust and as timely as tomorrow’s headlines....more

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• 971: On My Way": 2of2: The Untold Story of Rouben Mamoulian, George Gershwin, and Porgy and Bess Kindle Edition. by Joseph Horowitz (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 10 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1915.Broadway  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow On My Way": 2of2: The Untold Story of Rouben Mamoulian, George Gershwin, and Porgy and Bess Kindle Edition. by Joseph Horowitz  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/My-Way-Untold-Mamoulian-Gershwin-ebook/dp/B00AR354H4/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=Joseph+Horowitz+my+way&qid=1610244376&s=digital-text&sr=1-2"Bring my goat!" Porgy exclaims in the final scene of Gershwin’s opera Porgy and Bess. Bess, whom he loves, has left for New York City, and he’s determined to find her. When his request is met with astonishment—New York is a great distance from South Carolina’s Catfish Row—Porgy remains undaunted. He mounts his goat-cart and leads the community in an ecstatic finale, "Oh Lawd, I’m on my way."Stephen Sondheim has called "Bring my goat!" "one of the most moving moments in musical theater history." For years it was assumed that DuBose Heyward—the author of the seminal novella and subsequent play, Porgy, and later the librettist for the opera Porgy and Bess—penned this historic line. In fact, both it and "Oh Lawd, I'm on my way" were added to the play eight years earlier by that production’s unheralded architect: Rouben Mamoulian. Porgy and Bess as we know it would not exist without the contributions of this master director. Culling new information from the recently opened Mamoulian Archives at the Library of Congress, award-winning author Joseph Horowitz shows that, more than anyone else, Mamoulian took Heyward's vignette of a regional African-American subculture and transformed it into an epic theater work, a universal parable of suffering and redemption. Part biography, part revelatory history, "On My Way" re-creates Mamoulian's visionary style on stage and screen, his collaboration with George Gershwin, and the genesis of the opera that changed the face of American musical life....more

  Episode

• 971: On My Way": 1of2: The Untold Story of Rouben Mamoulian, George Gershwin, and Porgy and Bess Kindle Edition. by Joseph Horowitz (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 10 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1920.Crowds, Metropolitan Theater  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow On My Way": 1of2: The Untold Story of Rouben Mamoulian, George Gershwin, and Porgy and Bess Kindle Edition. by Joseph Horowitz  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/My-Way-Untold-Mamoulian-Gershwin-ebook/dp/B00AR354H4/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=Joseph+Horowitz+my+way&qid=1610244376&s=digital-text&sr=1-2"Bring my goat!" Porgy exclaims in the final scene of Gershwin’s opera Porgy and Bess. Bess, whom he loves, has left for New York City, and he’s determined to find her. When his request is met with astonishment—New York is a great distance from South Carolina’s Catfish Row—Porgy remains undaunted. He mounts his goat-cart and leads the community in an ecstatic finale, "Oh Lawd, I’m on my way."Stephen Sondheim has called "Bring my goat!" "one of the most moving moments in musical theater history." For years it was assumed that DuBose Heyward—the author of the seminal novella and subsequent play, Porgy, and later the librettist for the opera Porgy and Bess—penned this historic line. In fact, both it and "Oh Lawd, I'm on my way" were added to the play eight years earlier by that production’s unheralded architect: Rouben Mamoulian. Porgy and Bess as we know it would not exist without the contributions of this master director. Culling new information from the recently opened Mamoulian Archives at the Library of Congress, award-winning author Joseph Horowitz shows that, more than anyone else, Mamoulian took Heyward's vignette of a regional African-American subculture and transformed it into an epic theater work, a universal parable of suffering and redemption. Part biography, part revelatory history, "On My Way" re-creates Mamoulian's visionary style on stage and screen, his collaboration with George Gershwin, and the genesis of the opera that changed the face of American musical life....more

  Episode

• 975: 4/4 Project Azorian: The CIA and the Raising of the K-129, by Norman Polmar and Michael White

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  Jan 10 2021

  Image:     Color photo of the USNS Glomar Explorer(T-AG-193)  Project Azorian: The CIA and the Raising of the K-129, by Norman Polmar  and Michael White In early August 1974, despite extraordinary risks and after six years of secret preparations, the CIA attempted to salvage the sunken Soviet ballistic missile submarine K-129 from the depths of the North Pacific Ocean. The audacious effort was undertaken with the cover of an undersea mining operation sponsored by the eccentric billionaire Howard Hughes.        "Azorian"--incorrectly identified as Project Jennifer by the press--was the most ambitious ocean engineering endeavor attempted by Man. Following the accidental sinking of a Soviet missile submarine in March 1968, U.S. intelligence agencies were able to determine the precise location and to develop a means of raising the submarine from a depth of 16,400 feet. The remarkable salvage effort of the K-129, which contained nuclear-armed torpedoes and one nuclear-tipped missile as well as crypto equipment, was conducted with Soviet naval ships a few hundred yards from the lift ship, the Hughes Glomar Explorer.       The book is based, in part, on the research for Michael White's documentary film Azorian: The Raising of the K-129, released in late 2009. The research for the book and the documentary forced the CIA to issue a brief report on Project Azorian in early 2010, with one-third of the document redacted. https://www.amazon.com/Project-Azorian-CIA-Raising-K-129/dp/1591146682/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Azorian&qid=1610237878&s=books&sr=1-1 .....more

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• 975: 3/4 Project Azorian: The CIA and the Raising of the K-129, by Norman Polmar and Michael White

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  Jan 10 2021

  Image:   Project 629A (NATO reporting name Golf-II class) diesel-electric Soviet ballistic missile submarine K-129, hull number 722  Project Azorian: The CIA and the Raising of the K-129, by Norman Polmar  and Michael White In early August 1974, despite extraordinary risks and after six years of secret preparations, the CIA attempted to salvage the sunken Soviet ballistic missile submarine K-129 from the depths of the North Pacific Ocean. The audacious effort was undertaken with the cover of an undersea mining operation sponsored by the eccentric billionaire Howard Hughes.        "Azorian"--incorrectly identified as Project Jennifer by the press--was the most ambitious ocean engineering endeavor attempted by Man. Following the accidental sinking of a Soviet missile submarine in March 1968, U.S. intelligence agencies were able to determine the precise location and to develop a means of raising the submarine from a depth of 16,400 feet. The remarkable salvage effort of the K-129, which contained nuclear-armed torpedoes and one nuclear-tipped missile as well as crypto equipment, was conducted with Soviet naval ships a few hundred yards from the lift ship, the Hughes Glomar Explorer.       The book is based, in part, on the research for Michael White's documentary film Azorian: The Raising of the K-129, released in late 2009. The research for the book and the documentary forced the CIA to issue a brief report on Project Azorian in early 2010, with one-third of the document redacted. https://www.amazon.com/Project-Azorian-CIA-Raising-K-129/dp/1591146682/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Azorian&qid=1610237878&s=books&sr=1-1 .....more

  Episode

• 974: 2/4 Project Azorian: The CIA and the Raising of the K-129, by Norman Polmar and Michael White

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  Jan 10 2021

  Image:  Video of the Soviet sailors being buried at sea  Project Azorian: The CIA and the Raising of the K-129, by Norman Polmar  and Michael White In early August 1974, despite extraordinary risks and after six years of secret preparations, the CIA attempted to salvage the sunken Soviet ballistic missile submarine K-129 from the depths of the North Pacific Ocean. The audacious effort was undertaken with the cover of an undersea mining operation sponsored by the eccentric billionaire Howard Hughes.        "Azorian"--incorrectly identified as Project Jennifer by the press--was the most ambitious ocean engineering endeavor attempted by Man. Following the accidental sinking of a Soviet missile submarine in March 1968, U.S. intelligence agencies were able to determine the precise location and to develop a means of raising the submarine from a depth of 16,400 feet. The remarkable salvage effort of the K-129, which contained nuclear-armed torpedoes and one nuclear-tipped missile as well as crypto equipment, was conducted with Soviet naval ships a few hundred yards from the lift ship, the Hughes Glomar Explorer.       The book is based, in part, on the research for Michael White's documentary film Azorian: The Raising of the K-129, released in late 2009. The research for the book and the documentary forced the CIA to issue a brief report on Project Azorian in early 2010, with one-third of the document redacted. https://www.amazon.com/Project-Azorian-CIA-Raising-K-129/dp/1591146682/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Azorian&qid=1610237878&s=books&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 974: 1/4 Project Azorian: The CIA and the Raising of the K-129, by Norman Polmar and Michael White

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  Jan 10 2021

  Image:   The recovery site of К-129 based on the intersection of three circles marking the distances to Long Beach, CA; Pearl Harbor, HI; and Petropavlovsk, Kamchatka.  Project Azorian: The CIA and the Raising of the K-129, by Norman Polmar  and Michael White In early August 1974, despite extraordinary risks and after six years of secret preparations, the CIA attempted to salvage the sunken Soviet ballistic missile submarine K-129 from the depths of the North Pacific Ocean. The audacious effort was undertaken with the cover of an undersea mining operation sponsored by the eccentric billionaire Howard Hughes.        "Azorian"--incorrectly identified as Project Jennifer by the press--was the most ambitious ocean engineering endeavor attempted by Man. Following the accidental sinking of a Soviet missile submarine in March 1968, U.S. intelligence agencies were able to determine the precise location and to develop a means of raising the submarine from a depth of 16,400 feet. The remarkable salvage effort of the K-129, which contained nuclear-armed torpedoes and one nuclear-tipped missile as well as crypto equipment, was conducted with Soviet naval ships a few hundred yards from the lift ship, the Hughes Glomar Explorer.       The book is based, in part, on the research for Michael White's documentary film Azorian: The Raising of the K-129, released in late 2009. The research for the book and the documentary forced the CIA to issue a brief report on Project Azorian in early 2010, with one-third of the document redacted. https://www.amazon.com/Project-Azorian-CIA-Raising-K-129/dp/1591146682/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Azorian&qid=1610237878&s=books&sr=1-1 .....more

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• 973: 4/4 Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President, by Candice Millard

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  Jan 10 2021

  Image:  Memorial services for Garfield in Seattle, Washington's Occidental Square September 27, 1881, in front of the Occidental Hotel  Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President, by Candice Millard   James A. Garfield was one of the most extraordinary men ever elected president. Born into abject poverty, he rose to become a wunderkind scholar, a Civil War hero, and a renowned and admired reformist congressman. Nominated for president against his will, he engaged in a fierce battle with the corrupt political establishment. But four months after his inauguration, a deranged office seeker tracked Garfield down and shot him in the back. But the shot didn’t kill Garfield. The drama of what hap­pened subsequently is a powerful story of a nation in tur­moil. The unhinged assassin’s half-delivered strike shattered the fragile national mood of a country so recently fractured by civil war, and left the wounded president as the object of a bitter, behind-the-scenes struggle for power—over his administration, over the nation’s future and, hauntingly, over his medical care. A team of physicians administered shockingly archaic treatments, to disastrous effect. As his con­dition worsened, Garfield received help: Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, worked around the clock to invent a new device capable of finding the bullet. Meticulously researched, epic in scope, and pulsating with an intimate human focus and high-velocity narrative drive, The Destiny of the Republic will stand alongside The Devil in the White City and The Professor and the Madman as a classic of narrative history.  https://www.amazon.com/Destiny-Republic-Madness-Medicine-President-ebook/dp/B004J4X33O/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=candice+millard&qid=1610237644&s=digital-text&sr=1-2  .....more

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• 973: 3/4 Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President, by Candice Millard

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  Jan 10 2021

  Image:  An engraving of James A. Garfield's assassination, published in Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper. The caption reads "Washington, D.C.—The attack on the President's life—Scene in the ladies' room of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad depot—The arrest of the assassin / from sketches by our special artist's [sic] A. Berghaus and C. Upham." President Garfield is at center right, leaning after being shot. He is supported by Secretary of State James G. Blaine, who wears a light-colored top hat. To left, h assassin Charles Guiteau is restrained by members of the crowd, one of whom is about to strike him with a cane.   Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President, by Candice Millard   James A. Garfield was one of the most extraordinary men ever elected president. Born into abject poverty, he rose to become a wunderkind scholar, a Civil War hero, and a renowned and admired reformist congressman. Nominated for president against his will, he engaged in a fierce battle with the corrupt political establishment. But four months after his inauguration, a deranged office seeker tracked Garfield down and shot him in the back. But the shot didn’t kill Garfield. The drama of what hap­pened subsequently is a powerful story of a nation in tur­moil. The unhinged assassin’s half-delivered strike shattered the fragile national mood of a country so recently fractured by civil war, and left the wounded president as the object of a bitter, behind-the-scenes struggle for power—over his administration, over the nation’s future and, hauntingly, over his medical care. A team of physicians administered shockingly archaic treatments, to disastrous effect. As his con­dition worsened, Garfield received help: Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, worked around the clock to invent a new device capable of finding the bullet. Meticulously researched, epic in scope, and pulsating with an intimate human focus and high-velocity narrative drive, The Destiny of the Republic will stand alongside The Devil in the White City and The Professor and the Madman as a classic of narrative history.  https://www.amazon.com/Destiny-Republic-Madness-Medicine-President-ebook/dp/B004J4X33O/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=candice+millard&qid=1610237644&s=digital-text&sr=1-2  ...more

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• 973: 2/4 Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President, by Candice Millard

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  Jan 10 2021

  Image:  Following Grant's defeat for the nomination Puck magazine satirized Robert E. Lee's surrender to him at Appomattox by depicting Grant's giving up his sword to Garfield.  Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President, by Candice Millard   James A. Garfield was one of the most extraordinary men ever elected president. Born into abject poverty, he rose to become a wunderkind scholar, a Civil War hero, and a renowned and admired reformist congressman. Nominated for president against his will, he engaged in a fierce battle with the corrupt political establishment. But four months after his inauguration, a deranged office seeker tracked Garfield down and shot him in the back. But the shot didn’t kill Garfield. The drama of what hap­pened subsequently is a powerful story of a nation in tur­moil. The unhinged assassin’s half-delivered strike shattered the fragile national mood of a country so recently fractured by civil war, and left the wounded president as the object of a bitter, behind-the-scenes struggle for power—over his administration, over the nation’s future and, hauntingly, over his medical care. A team of physicians administered shockingly archaic treatments, to disastrous effect. As his con­dition worsened, Garfield received help: Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, worked around the clock to invent a new device capable of finding the bullet. Meticulously researched, epic in scope, and pulsating with an intimate human focus and high-velocity narrative drive, The Destiny of the Republic will stand alongside The Devil in the White City and The Professor and the Madman as a classic of narrative history.  https://www.amazon.com/Destiny-Republic-Madness-Medicine-President-ebook/dp/B004J4X33O/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=candice+millard&qid=1610237644&s=digital-text&sr=1-2  ...more

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• 973: 1/4 Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President, by Candice Millard

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  Jan 10 2021

  Image:  Replica of the log cabin in Moreland Hills, Ohio, where Garfield was born  Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President, by Candice Millard   James A. Garfield was one of the most extraordinary men ever elected president. Born into abject poverty, he rose to become a wunderkind scholar, a Civil War hero, and a renowned and admired reformist congressman. Nominated for president against his will, he engaged in a fierce battle with the corrupt political establishment. But four months after his inauguration, a deranged office seeker tracked Garfield down and shot him in the back. But the shot didn’t kill Garfield. The drama of what hap­pened subsequently is a powerful story of a nation in tur­moil. The unhinged assassin’s half-delivered strike shattered the fragile national mood of a country so recently fractured by civil war, and left the wounded president as the object of a bitter, behind-the-scenes struggle for power—over his administration, over the nation’s future and, hauntingly, over his medical care. A team of physicians administered shockingly archaic treatments, to disastrous effect. As his con­dition worsened, Garfield received help: Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, worked around the clock to invent a new device capable of finding the bullet. Meticulously researched, epic in scope, and pulsating with an intimate human focus and high-velocity narrative drive, The Destiny of the Republic will stand alongside The Devil in the White City and The Professor and the Madman as a classic of narrative history.  https://www.amazon.com/Destiny-Republic-Madness-Medicine-President-ebook/dp/B004J4X33O/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=candice+millard&qid=1610237644&s=digital-text&sr=1-2 ...more

  Episode

• 972: 4/4 A Disease in the Public Mind: A New Understanding of Why We Fought the Civil War, by Thomas Fleming

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  Jan 10 2021

  Image:  Civil War battle  A Disease in the Public Mind: A New Understanding of Why We Fought the Civil War, by Thomas Fleming       By the time John Brown hung from the gallows for his crimes at Harper's Ferry, Northern abolitionists had made him a “holy martyr” in their campaign against Southern slave owners. This Northern hatred for Southerners long predated their objections to slavery. They were convinced that New England, whose spokesmen had begun the American Revolution, should have been the leader of the new nation. Instead, they had been displaced by Southern “slavocrats” like Thomas Jefferson. This malevolent envy exacerbated the South's greatest fear: a race war. Jefferson's cry, “We are truly to be pitied,” summed up their dread. For decades, extremists in both regions flung insults and threats, creating intractable enmities. By 1861, only a civil war that would kill a million men could save the Union.   https://www.amazon.com/Disease-Public-Mind-Understanding-Fought-ebook/dp/B00B3M3W7M/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610237539&sr=1-1 …...more

  Episode

• 972: 3/4 A Disease in the Public Mind: A New Understanding of Why We Fought the Civil War, by Thomas Fleming

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  Jan 10 2021

  3/4    A Disease in the Public Mind: A New Understanding of Why We Fought the Civil War, by Thomas Fleming  Image:  Isaac Jefferson, 1847, was an enslaved blacksmith at Monticello   A Disease in the Public Mind: A New Understanding of Why We Fought the Civil War, by Thomas Fleming       By the time John Brown hung from the gallows for his crimes at Harper's Ferry, Northern abolitionists had made him a “holy martyr” in their campaign against Southern slave owners. This Northern hatred for Southerners long predated their objections to slavery. They were convinced that New England, whose spokesmen had begun the American Revolution, should have been the leader of the new nation. Instead, they had been displaced by Southern “slavocrats” like Thomas Jefferson. This malevolent envy exacerbated the South's greatest fear: a race war. Jefferson's cry, “We are truly to be pitied,” summed up their dread. For decades, extremists in both regions flung insults and threats, creating intractable enmities. By 1861, only a civil war that would kill a million men could save the Union.   https://www.amazon.com/Disease-Public-Mind-Understanding-Fought-ebook/dp/B00B3M3W7M/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610237539&sr=1-1 …...more

  Episode

• 972: 2/4 A Disease in the Public Mind: A New Understanding of Why We Fought the Civil War, by Thomas Fleming

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  Jan 10 2021

  Image:  Slaves  A Disease in the Public Mind: A New Understanding of Why We Fought the Civil War, by Thomas Fleming       By the time John Brown hung from te gallows for his crimes at Harper's Ferry, Northern abolitionists had made him a “holy martyr” in their campaign against Southern slave owners. This Northern hatred for Southerners long predated their objections to slavery. They were convinced that New England, whose spokesmen had begun the American Revolution, should have been the leader of the new nation. Instead, they had been displaced by Southern “slavocrats” like Thomas Jefferson. This malevolent envy exacerbated the South's greatest fear: a race war. Jefferson's cry, “We are truly to be pitied,” summed up their dread. For decades, extremists in both regions flung insults and threats, creating intractable enmities. By 1861, only a civil war that would kill a million men could save the Union.   https://www.amazon.com/Disease-Public-Mind-Understanding-Fought-ebook/dp/B00B3M3W7M/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610237539&sr=1-1 …...more

  Episode

• 972: 1/4 A Disease in the Public Mind: A New Understanding of Why We Fought the Civil War, by Thomas Fleming

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  Jan 10 2021

  Image:  John Brown's Grave at North Elba, N.Y.North Elba is in the Adirondacks near Lake Placid.  After his execution, Brown's wife returned his body to the farm for burial. The tombstone of Brown's ancestor, also named Capt. John Brown was inscribed with his name, as well as those of his sons who died at Harper's Ferry. Little else was added to the grave site for many years later. In later years the graves of twelve of Brown's men were relocated to the site, a picket fence was erected, and still later the high iron fence that stands at present. The boulder was subsequently (around 1900) inscribed with Brown's name and the years of his birth and death. Plaques were added, memorializing Brown and his men, and the women of the Brown family, for their sacrifices in the cause of freedom.  A Disease in the Public Mind: A New Understanding of Why We Fought the Civil War, by Thomas Fleming       By the time John Brown hung from the gallows for his crimes at Harper's Ferry, Northern abolitionists had made him a “holy martyr” in their campaign against Southern slave owners. This Northern hatred for Southerners long predated their objections to slavery. They were convinced that New England, whose spokesmen had begun the American Revolution, should have been the leader of the new nation. Instead, they had been displaced by Southern “slavocrats” like Thomas Jefferson. This malevolent envy exacerbated the South's greatest fear: a race war. Jefferson's cry, “We are truly to be pitied,” summed up their dread. For decades, extremists in both regions flung insults and threats, creating intractable enmities. By 1861, only a civil war that would kill a million men could save the Union.   https://www.amazon.com/Disease-Public-Mind-Understanding-Fought-ebook/dp/B00B3M3W7M/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610237539&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 971: Allah's Angels: 2of2: Chechen Women in WarKindle Edition. by Paul J. Murphy (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 10 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1910. Volga. Allah's Angels: 2of2: Chechen Women in WarKindle Edition. by Paul J. Murphy  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowAllah's Angels: 2of2: Chechen Women in WarKindle Edition. by Paul J. Murphy  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Allahs-Angels-Chechen-Women-Within-ebook/dp/B004OC00A0/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610243293&sr=1-1In this comprehensive portrait of the women of Chechnya in modern war, Paul Murphy argues that they are the principal victims of the 1994 and 1999 wars with Russia and the present conflict with Islamic jihadists. War forced Chechen women to venture far beyond their traditional roles and advance their human rights, but the current movement championing traditional Islam is taking those rights away. The book challenges conventional thinking on why women fight and are willing to kill themselves in the name of Allah. Drawing on personal interviews, insider resources, and other materials, Murphy presents powerful portrayals of women who fight in the Chechen jihad, including snipers and the mysterious Black Widow suicide bombers, as well as women who collect intelligence, hide arms, and perform other noncombatant roles....more

  Episode

• 971: Allah's Angels: 1of2: Chechen Women in WarKindle Edition. by Paul J. Murphy (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 10 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1910. Volga http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowAllah's Angels: 1of2: Chechen Women in WarKindle Edition. by Paul J. Murphy  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Allahs-Angels-Chechen-Women-Within-ebook/dp/B004OC00A0/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1610243293&sr=1-1In this comprehensive portrait of the women of Chechnya in modern war, Paul Murphy argues that they are the principal victims of the 1994 and 1999 wars with Russia and the present conflict with Islamic jihadists. War forced Chechen women to venture far beyond their traditional roles and advance their human rights, but the current movement championing traditional Islam is taking those rights away. The book challenges conventional thinking on why women fight and are willing to kill themselves in the name of Allah. Drawing on personal interviews, insider resources, and other materials, Murphy presents powerful portrayals of women who fight in the Chechen jihad, including snipers and the mysterious Black Widow suicide bombers, as well as women who collect intelligence, hide arms, and perform other noncombatant roles....more

  Episode

• 970: Insectopedia: 2of2: Publisher: Pantheon; 1 edition Hardcover – January 1, 2010. by Hugh Raffles (Author)

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  Jan 09 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.Locusta V.2 a  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Insectopedia: 2of2: Publisher: Pantheon; 1 edition Hardcover – January 1, 2010. by Hugh Raffles (Author) https://www.amazon.com/Insectopedia-Hugh-Raffles/dp/1400096960/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=insectopedia+raffles&qid=1610181429&sr=8-1A stunningly original exploration of the ties that bind us to the beautiful, ancient, astoundingly accomplished, largely unknown, and unfathomably different species with whom we share the world. For as long as humans have existed, insects have been our constant companions. Yet we hardly know them, not even the ones we’re closest to: those that eat our food, share our beds, and live in our homes. Organizing his book alphabetically, Hugh Raffles weaves together brief vignettes, meditations, and extended essays, taking the reader on a mesmerizing exploration of history and science, anthropology and travel, economics, philosophy, and popular culture. Insectopedia shows us how insects have triggered our obsessions, stirred our passions, and beguiled our imaginations....more

  Episode

• 970: Insectopedia: 1of2: Publisher: Pantheon; 1 edition Hardcover – January 1, 2010. by Hugh Raffles (Author)

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  Jan 09 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication. Mygale  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Insectopedia: 1of2: Publisher: Pantheon; 1 edition Hardcover – January 1, 2010. by Hugh Raffles (Author) https://www.amazon.com/Insectopedia-Hugh-Raffles/dp/1400096960/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=insectopedia+raffles&qid=1610181429&sr=8-1A stunningly original exploration of the ties that bind us to the beautiful, ancient, astoundingly accomplished, largely unknown, and unfathomably different species with whom we share the world.For as long as humans have existed, insects have been our constant companions. Yet we hardly know them, not even the ones we’re closest to: those that eat our food, share our beds, and live in our homes. Organizing his book alphabetically, Hugh Raffles weaves together brief vignettes, meditations, and extended essays, taking the reader on a mesmerizing exploration of history and science, anthropology and travel, economics, philosophy, and popular culture. Insectopedia shows us how insects have triggered our obsessions, stirred our passions, and beguiled our imaginations....more

  Episode

• 969: To Provide and Maintain a Navy: 4of4: Why Naval Primacy Is America's First, Best Strategy.by Henry J Hendrix | Dec 19, 2020

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  Jan 09 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1990.3 carriers repairs NI 1990s  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowTo Provide and Maintain a Navy: 4of4: Why Naval Primacy Is America's First, Best Strategy.by Henry J Hendrix | Dec 19, 2020The national conversation regarding the United States Navy has, for far too long, been focused on the popular question of how many ships does the service need? "To Provide and Maintain a Navy," a succinct but encompassing treatise on sea power by Dr. Henry J "Jerry" Hendrix, goes beyond the numbers to reveal the crucial importance of Mare Liberum (Free Sea) to the development of the Western thought and the rules based order that presently governs the global commons that is the high seas. Proceeding from this philosophical basis, Hendrix explores how a "free sea" gave way to free trade and the central role sea borne commercial trade has played in the overall rise in global living standards. This is followed by analysis of how the relative naval balance of power has played out in terms of naval battles and wars over the centuries and how the dominance of the United States Navy following World War II has resulted in seven decades of unprecedented peace on the world's oceans. He further considers how, in the years that followed the demise of the Soviet Union, both China and Russia began laying the groundwork to challenge the United States maritime leadership and upend five centuries of naval precedents in order to establish a new approach to sovereignty over the world's seas. It is only at this point that Dr. Hendrix approaches the question of the number of ships required for the United States Navy, the industrial base required to build them, and the importance of once again aligning the nation's strategic outlook to that of a "seapower" in order to effectively and efficiently address the rising threat. "To Provide and Maintain a Navy" is brief enough to be read in a weekend but deep enough to inform the reader as to the numerous complexities surrounding what promises to be the most important strategic conversation facing the United States as it enters a new age of great power competition with not one, but two nations who seek nothing less than to close and control the world's seas...more

  Episode

• 969: To Provide and Maintain a Navy: 3of4: Why Naval Primacy Is America's First, Best Strategy.by Henry J Hendrix | Dec 19, 2020

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  Jan 09 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication. pictionid57118809 - catalognorth island image - titlearray - filenamebd nas sd cv 1 1933.jpg-Many of these images are from the Historical Archives at North Island. l-----Please Tag these images so that the information can be permanently stored with the digital file.---Repository: San Diego Air and Space Museum  ( http://www.sandiegoairandspace.org/library/stillimages.html )  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowTo Provide and Maintain a Navy: 3of4: Why Naval Primacy Is America's First, Best Strategy.by Henry J Hendrix | Dec 19, 2020The national conversation regarding the United States Navy has, for far too long, been focused on the popular question of how many ships does the service need? "To Provide and Maintain a Navy," a succinct but encompassing treatise on sea power by Dr. Henry J "Jerry" Hendrix, goes beyond the numbers to reveal the crucial importance of Mare Liberum (Free Sea) to the development of the Western thought and the rules based order that presently governs the global commons that is the high seas. Proceeding from this philosophical basis, Hendrix explores how a "free sea" gave way to free trade and the central role sea borne commercial trade has played in the overall rise in global living standards. This is followed by analysis of how the relative naval balance of power has played out in terms of naval battles and wars over the centuries and how the dominance of the United States Navy following World War II has resulted in seven decades of unprecedented peace on the world's oceans. He further considers how, in the years that followed the demise of the Soviet Union, both China and Russia began laying the groundwork to challenge the United States maritime leadership and upend five centuries of naval precedents in order to establish a new approach to sovereignty over the world's seas. It is only at this point that Dr. Hendrix approaches the question of the number of ships required for the United States Navy, the industrial base required to build them, and the importance of once again aligning the nation's strategic outlook to that of a "seapower" in order to effectively and efficiently address the rising threat. "To Provide and Maintain a Navy" is brief enough to be read in a weekend but deep enough to inform the reader as to the numerous complexities surrounding what promises to be the most important strategic conversation facing the United States as it enters a new age of great power competition with not one, but two nations who seek nothing less than to close and control the world's seas...more

  Episode

• 969: To Provide and Maintain a Navy: 2of4: Why Naval Primacy Is America's First, Best Strategy.by Henry J Hendrix | Dec 19, 2020

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  Jan 09 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1908.The "Great White Fleet" visits Australia - 1908  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowTo Provide and Maintain a Navy: 2of4: Why Naval Primacy Is America's First, Best Strategy.by Henry J Hendrix | Dec 19, 2020The national conversation regarding the United States Navy has, for far too long, been focused on the popular question of how many ships does the service need? "To Provide and Maintain a Navy," a succinct but encompassing treatise on sea power by Dr. Henry J "Jerry" Hendrix, goes beyond the numbers to reveal the crucial importance of Mare Liberum (Free Sea) to the development of the Western thought and the rules based order that presently governs the global commons that is the high seas. Proceeding from this philosophical basis, Hendrix explores how a "free sea" gave way to free trade and the central role sea borne commercial trade has played in the overall rise in global living standards. This is followed by analysis of how the relative naval balance of power has played out in terms of naval battles and wars over the centuries and how the dominance of the United States Navy following World War II has resulted in seven decades of unprecedented peace on the world's oceans. He further considers how, in the years that followed the demise of the Soviet Union, both China and Russia began laying the groundwork to challenge the United States maritime leadership and upend five centuries of naval precedents in order to establish a new approach to sovereignty over the world's seas. It is only at this point that Dr. Hendrix approaches the question of the number of ships required for the United States Navy, the industrial base required to build them, and the importance of once again aligning the nation's strategic outlook to that of a "seapower" in order to effectively and efficiently address the rising threat. "To Provide and Maintain a Navy" is brief enough to be read in a weekend but deep enough to inform the reader as to the numerous complexities surrounding what promises to be the most important strategic conversation facing the United States as it enters a new age of great power competition with not one, but two nations who seek nothing less than to close and control the world's seas...more

  Episode

• 969: To Provide and Maintain a Navy: 1of4: Why Naval Primacy Is America's First, Best Strategy.by Henry J Hendrix | Dec 19, 2020

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  Jan 09 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1907.The Great White Fleet was the popular nickname for the United States Navy battle fleet that completed a circumnavigation of the globe from December 16, 1907, to February 22, 1909, by order of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt...It consisted of 16 battleships divided into two squadrons, along with various escorts. Roosevelt sought to demonstrate growing American military power and blue-water navy capability. Hoping to enforce treaties and protect overseas holdings, the U.S. Congress appropriated funds to build American sea power. Beginning with just 90 small ships, over one-third of them wooden, the navy quickly grew to include new modern steel fighting vessels. The hulls of these ships were painted a stark white, giving the armada the nickname "Great White Fleet". http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowTo Provide and Maintain a Navy: 1of4: Why Naval Primacy Is America's First, Best Strategy.by Henry J Hendrix | Dec 19, 2020The national conversation regarding the United States Navy has, for far too long, been focused on the popular question of how many ships does the service need? "To Provide and Maintain a Navy," a succinct but encompassing treatise on sea power by Dr. Henry J "Jerry" Hendrix, goes beyond the numbers to reveal the crucial importance of Mare Liberum (Free Sea) to the development of the Western thought and the rules based order that presently governs the global commons that is the high seas. Proceeding from this philosophical basis, Hendrix explores how a "free sea" gave way to free trade and the central role sea borne commercial trade has played in the overall rise in global living standards. This is followed by analysis of how the relative naval balance of power has played out in terms of naval battles and wars over the centuries and how the dominance of the United States Navy following World War II has resulted in seven decades of unprecedented peace on the world's oceans. He further considers how, in the years that followed the demise of the Soviet Union, both China and Russia began laying the groundwork to challenge the United States maritime leadership and upend five centuries of naval precedents in order to establish a new approach to sovereignty over the world's seas. It is only at this point that Dr. Hendrix approaches the question of the number of ships required for the United States Navy, the industrial base required to build them, and the importance of once again aligning the nation's strategic outlook to that of a "seapower" in order to effectively and efficiently address the rising threat. "To Provide and Maintain a Navy" is brief enough to be read in a weekend but deep enough to inform the reader as to the numerous complexities surrounding what promises to be the most important strategic conversation facing the United States as it enters a new age of great power competition with not one, but two nations who seek nothing less than to close and control the world's seas...more

  Episode

• 968: Pelosi and Nadler aim at impeachment in order to disenfranchise Trump. @AndrewCMcCarthy, @ThadMcCotter

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  Jan 09 2021

  Image:  The ladies' gallery of the Senate during the impeachment trial / W.S.L. Lewett. Andrew C McCarthy, @AndrewCMcCarthy, Ball of Collusion; and Thaddeus McCotter, @ThadMcCotter, American Greatness, in re: The 25th Amendment, spoken of by Schumer and Pelosi, and Pompeo and Mnuchin. The 25th is an option if they're willing to abuse it, as it wasn’t designed for this purpose. Could only run the clock. If it’s for punishment, that’s what impeachment is for, and definitely will not lower the temperature. In a sub rosa way, preventing Trump from ever holding public office again might help the GOP.  His running in 2024 frightens them.  To unite Republicans and baseline MAGA supporters, just impeach Trump. Self-pardoning:  Best option is for Trump to resign and be pardoned by Pence, with the Gerald Ford–Richard Nixon precedent.  No good—you can be impeached without a crime.        A bumpy ride, and we have seatbelts for it....more

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• 968: Matt Pottinger has built a China policy for 2021. @joshrogin

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  Jan 09 2021

  Image:  Matthew Pottinger in 2011. Matt Pottinger has built a China policy for 2021.  @joshrogin Josh Rogin: @joshrogin, in re: Matt Pottinger wasn’t a likely Trump Admin official, but after Trump bumbled the China issue with a call from Tsai Ing-wen, president of Taiwan, Matt was brought in and slowly worked with govt officials to rework its approach to China for the first time in generations. A massive awakening to China’s influence and interference in American academe, commerce, mfrg.  He rose to be deputy national security advisor, and was here when the Chinese virus stuck.       Hawks and hardliners vs appeasers and engagers. Hawks: favor decoupling from China; Matt and others don’t want to blow up the relations but to reset it after years of neglect.   Matt, reading Chinese, was first in the govt to announce the virus. Mulvaney and others fought tooth and nail—opposed closing down travel from there, although that policy was the wisest to be promoted. Problem: Chinese money inside politics. Think Hunter and family—peddling power to enrich themselves with the help of shady Chinese businessmen; Bush Foundation is the same.        China buying institutions, pension funds, Silicon Valley corporations.     Uyghurs, Tibetans, Mongolians; but CCP also wants to direct how we think, using money from US investors. ...more

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• 967: Recovery delayed by the lockdown of hospitality and travel. @Mctaguej

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  Jan 09 2021

  Image: Isolating a village in Romania whose inhabitants believe that doctors poison those suspected of cholera (1911) Jim McTague: @Mctaguej; in re:  The federal jobs report: seven months of growth is halted!  Attributed to virus resurgence.  “Driven by a sharp decline in leisure and hospitality industries.” Eighteen of those jobs were in cafes I patronized until they recently closed.  This was engineered because we don't know how to deal with a pandemic, although we have a vaccine on our doorstep.  Joe Biden can’t to a lot worse than Donald Trump. As recently as December, the markets [were optimistic] about 2021.  Markets have been buoyant for the last days; warranted?  Investors are way ahead of the technology. Biden is willing to pick winners and losers in the energy industry; recall Solyndra, which went belly-up. He’ll pour billions into that sector.  NY NJ MA IL CA: the creatively-financed states.   Democrats buy votes by bailing out the fiscally-challenged blue states.  It’ll be stimulative in the short run because tax revenues are so weak.  The blue states will jack up taxes, risk strangling the economy—to a recession?  Bitcoin: favored by financial industry survivalists....more

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• 967: #NewAmericanCivilWar: January 6 and the revenge cycle. Michael E Vlahos: @JHUWorldCrisis; #newamericancivilwar

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  Jan 09 2021

  Image:  Engraving by Gustave Doré illustrating the Erinyes, chthonic deities of vengeance and death.#NewAmericanCivilWar: January 6 and the revenge cycle.   Michael E Vlahos: @JHUWorldCrisis; #newamericancivilwar Michael E Vlahos: @JHUWorldCrisis; Johns Hopkins; in re: Londinium. Tiberius elevated one of his servants, then feared that he’d try to succeed the emperor, so “erased” him. A revenge cycle is an inescapable snare, cannot be disentangled or escaped. The desire for revenge lays down unimpeachable authority, is too irresistible an affirmation of one’s own power to be foregone.   Here: Blue has appealed to our better spirits, yet proposes to achieve reconciliation via massive public displays of punishment. Blue’s goal has been to overthrow the president since day one, which has caused much anger among his supporters. The rage has finally bubbled over, is now met with a desire to inflame it.   Within one country: alienation, submission and punishment creates a revenge cycle. The women’s march on Versailles. Expect more moments of calm but easily followed by more violence.  Today, violence threatened; at some point, violence threatened becomes actual violence. ...more

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• 966: The Capitol building is not secure until it’s swept for surveillance devices or sabotage. @FRoseDC, @GovMattersTV, @ ABC7News

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  Jan 09 2021

  Image:  U.S. Capitol Dome Statue completion Francis Rose,@FRoseDC, Host of @GovMattersTV @ ABC7News & WJLA 24/7 News; Washington D.C., in re:   The greatest damage wouldn't be a bomb, but a thumb drive left by a foreign agent in a laptop. And a laptop was stolen. Lots of different kinds of federal agents entered the building by Wednesday evening, all working to secure the assets of the federal government. Can they sweep the building and make it secure?        I was deeply offended to see the Stars and Bars were paraded inside the Capitol building—the very building that erased the Confederacy.  All the videos: no one’s face is covered, so facial-recognition tech makes it easier to round up the malefactors. We don't know what we don’t know.  So far, not clear that Chinese intell hasn't penetrated....more

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• 965: No likelihood of resignation; minimal likelihood of VPOTUS using the 25th. @RichardAEpstein

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  Jan 09 2021

  Image:  Alexander Hamilton's plan of a constitution for America Richard Epstein: @RichardAEpstein, Chicago Law, NYU Law, Hoover Defining Ideas, in re:   Trump has exasperated everybody [except for 80 million citizens].  A tragic situation.   He should get out, or be quarantined in the White House. How to neutralize him.  Zimbabwe is denouncing the US as a fake democracy.  The Constitutional process wasn't designed for this.  Invoking unused legal processes is [unwise].  Schumer and Pelosi on the 25h Amendment: designed for a president who’s been incapacitated, not [disliked].  There’s no way to litigate this.  Pelosi and Nadler: can begin impeachment next Monday, and perhaps disenfranchise the president for the rest of his life.   All terra incognita.  After he leaves office could entertain criminal prosecution.  Can he do a self-pardon?  Does not prevent you from being punished in state court. Trump is obstreperous.  So we just muddle through?  We’re there whether we like it or not. Shut down his account on twitter, Facebook, everywhere....more

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• 965: Triage in LA. @JCBliss, #PacificWatch

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  Jan 09 2021

  Image:1920.Team-work against the "Flu." Beverly, Mass. Influenza broke out in February of this year, with dreadful weather conditions prevailing, but preparations to fight an epidemic of this sort had been made in advance by the cooperation of the Board of Health, the Public Health Dispensary, the Health Center, and the Red Cross. When the visitiation came, all was in readiness to combat it. Volunteers were notified to register at the Public Health Dispensary; food was to be at the Health Center, while supplies of linen, blankets, and clothing were to be given out and transportation arranged for at the Red Cross office. The picture above shows a party of helpers starting from Red Cross headquarters with blankets and other supplies for the sick Jeff Bliss: @JCBliss, #PacificWatch; in re:   Triage in Los Angeles hospitals: ORs, ERS, tent areas, doctors’s offices, are all stretched to breaking. Ergo, they’ve started treating only the people they think they can save.  Notice out to police ambulances, fire departments. Every day with a new record of deaths is hampering Garcetti’s future career. LA losing its entire hospitality industry – may survive for weeks.   Half the restaurants are gone—and losing all the vendors who supply them. A nail in the coffin. The atmosphere is so dark that there are a million signatures on a recall petition of Governor Newsom.      San Diego, San Francisco, Chesa Boudin: Were it not for the rich, none of these downtrodden would be in this predicament.  Btw, they’re drug dealers, not users.  Tommy LaSorda....more

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• 965: Resignation, 25th Amendment: impeachment, or muddle? @DanHenninger, @WSJOpinion

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  Jan 09 2021

  Image:  The Senate as a court of impeachment for the trial of Andrew Johnson / sketched by Theodore R. Davis. Dan Henninger: @DanHenninger, @WSJOpinion; editorial board and Wonder Land column; in re:  The Wall Street Journal recommends that President Trump resign rather than suffer a second impeachment.   This would give him “agency” over his situation.  Our political system is damaged, contributed to by many  people.   Invoking the 25thAmendment would deepen the damage.   Starting impeachment proceedings can begin after Jan 20.   Mr Trump will never get more than 50% of the votes again. Nancy Pelosi has continued hyperpartisanship; Pelosi an Schumer have all but killed [comity].     No resignation, no impeachment, no 25th, no self-pardon; next twelve days?  President Trump will prepare to depart. ...more

  Episode

• 963: Έλληνας, Ἕλληνες: “The hallmark was how you govern your life.” Bruce Thornton @fpmag

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  Jan 09 2021

  Image:  Arete (Ἀρετή) means virtue, excellence, and moral virtue. For a number of Hellenists, cultivating Arete is considered one of the highest things to cultivate and focus on for modern Hellenists and cultivating it will lead to a good life. Here: Acropolis, Parthenon, east side, Athens, Greece. Bruce Thornton, @fpmag, Hoover, Front Page magazine; in re: Greeks venerated culture, conducting affairs with honor. Hellenes.   The parochial boundaries of your tribe or city-state are not the whole boundaries of your being. Barbarians – not so. It's about the way you live; and critically: how did you live politically—autonomous and free, took control of your life? That was the hallmark of being a Greek.   How you govern your life.  In the rural San Joaquin Valley, 80% Mexican-American: that’s where it first hit me that I can’t look at one of these kids whom I don’t know and have any opinion based on who his or her parents were.  All different.  “If you’re Black, come back; if you're brown, stick around; if you're white, take a hike.” Today, Hispanicmeans only “Hispanophone.”   Intermarriage among “races” will diminish our absurd attention to appearance.  Once upon a time, it really mattered if you were civilized....more

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• 963: The American fisc under Biden. @veroderugy

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  Jan 09 2021

  Image:  In 1837, there was an economic crisis, especially in the state of New York. This image tries to illustrate what the situation was like with regard to fiscal policy.   Veronique de Rugy, @veroderugy, Mercatus Center, in re: The fact that President Biden looks with great favor on stimulus packages.  “An everything bailout bill.”— David Stockman.   Will the bill grow or shrink? One was passed, but the only thing that didn't make it in was the $2,000 check that President Trump wanted for people stuck without income because of the pandemic.   It has bailouts for the Kennedy Center, Pakistani gender studies, everything. Also for fiscally creative states such as New Jersey and New York.  The GOP remembers fiscal responsibility when it’s not in power. Expect a lot more debt and deficits. ...more

  Episode

• 963: ISS progeny in a decade. @jeff_foust, Space News

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  Jan 09 2021

  Image:  The NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy spent time on maintenance and upkeep in preparation for the arrival of additional crew members at the end of the month. Credit: NASA   Thursday 7 January 2021 / Hour 4, Block B:  Hotel Mars, episode n.   Jeff Foust, @jeff_foust, Space News; in re:  What’s to be done with the ISS under Biden?  Note cracks in Zvezda.  It’s to go till 2024. Older space station will need more repairs; what might replace it?  Likely efforts to create commercial space stations.   ...more

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• 963: Argentina failing again and what it means for the Biden Administration in the Americas. @MaryAnastasiaOG; @WSJOpinion;

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  Jan 09 2021

  Image:  Plaza de Mayo, Buenos Aires Mary Anastasia O’Grady: @MaryAnastasiaOG; @WSJOpinion;WSJ editorial board; The Americas column; in re: Argentina has debt and no way to solve it. The union problem is acute there right now. You could take the same column for the 80s, 90s, late 200s, and all the fiscal and monetary problems are the same: they print pesos to pay bills, get inflation, default on their debt, do the cycle again. When they have to import things, basically priced in dollars, they pay more. https://www.wsj.com/articles/argentinas-credibility-crisis-11609709871 ...more

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• 964: The failure of American higher education to educate tomorrow. @VDHanson

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  Jan 08 2021

  Image:  Plato's academy, mosaic from Pompeii Victor Davis Hanson: @VDHanson; Hoover Institution, and The Case for Trump,in re:  Students at Hillsdale are aware that [something is wrong]; Stanford students are not. Students are getting married much later, can't buy a house: the cost of university at $30,000 a year is preventing that.  A curriculum that creates ignorant but arrogant students.  University says, “We’re not responsible for helping you get a job.”  It all leads back to university, which has become corrupt, needs an audit and transparency.  A Medieval society: a bunch of very rich administrators and full professors, all subsidized by part-time teachers making  fraction of that with no benefits—with a progressive, egalitarian patina.  The Animal Farm pigs don’t want to be attacked by animals— “I’m beyond reproach, am tenured.”    They usually pick on some part-time teacher who has no tenure. Peasants outside the castle with the faculty living up in the keep.  Alumni donate huge endowments that inexplicably are not taxable.   https://amgreatness.com/2021/01/03/defenders-of-civilization/ ...more

  Episode

• 962: Hacking Hezbollah. Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents

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  Jan 08 2021

  Image:  Jebel el-Druze & Hauran. Kanawat. Druze maidens & children on Roman pavement Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re:  The Iranian majlis is making threat threats against Israel; is much more than noise in light of weaponization and nukes. Have to take the threats of dictators seriously, incl the destruction of Israel by 2040. Also calls for the destruction of the US, get all US forces out of the Middle East.   Europe also should take this seriously. Hacking: documents from a cyberattack that will make it harder for Hezbollah to manage its govt. Masked man in a distorted voice on computer—Aoun, Nabih Berry, behind him. Revenge by fellow Lebanese, not outsiders, who are extorting of the Lebanese: 200, 000 names revealed with accounts in Lebanon and Europe.       The false claim that Israel is withholding vaccine from Palestinians: an absolute lie. Palestinians and Israelis are vaccinated at exactly the same rate; the PA runs a healthcare system that not only is inefficient but has refused vaccine from Israel.  Hamas raises funds: 60% are invested by the Moslem Brotherhood, 30% go to Hamas. Huge billi0ns.   Missiles flown over the Golan Heights. Syrian mil defectors report on activities. People killed and injured. Iran transferring weapons in Eastern and Southern Syria.  Israel sent in rockets to protect itself; Russia doesn’t activate its antimissile system because it also doesn't want to see Iran build up its missile [supply] there. ...more

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• 962: Israel aims to vaccinate its whole population by spring. Ariel Kahana, @ arik3000, Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents

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  Jan 08 2021

  Image:  Arabic manuscript, Anatomy of the Eye, by al-Mutadibih, 1200 CE Ariel Kahana, @ arik3000, Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re:  Israel aims to vaccinate its whole population by the end of March; may be the first nation in the world to end the pandemic.  Turkey is cousining up to Israel: trustworthy?  We did have formal ties before, as well as continuing commercial ties. Problem is that Turkey is hosting Hamas; we couldn’t normalize ties with Ankara while that obtains. Upcoming Israeli elections.  End of the pandemic is close to the 23 March election; will have an effect.  Sudan normalizing ties with Israel: excellent news.  Only four years ago, [looked impossible].  Need to follow the [discussions] step by step, is complicated. The Qatari-Saudi [alliance] is something I’m [not sure I can comment on].  Ariel Kahana is Israel Hayom'ssenior diplomatic correspondent. https://www.israelhayom.com/2020/12/27/570301/ https://www.israelhayom.com/2021/01/05/breakthrough-reached-in-gulf-dispute-with-qatar/  Sudan officially normalizes ties with Israel - www.israelhayom.com   ...more

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• 962: What is the breakout for Iran nukes? David Albright, @thegoodisis, Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents

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  Jan 08 2021

  Image:  Bevatron building interior construction. Photograph taken April 22, 1950 David Albright, @thegoodisis, Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re:Iran enrichment, South Korean vessel, Biden Administration.  The decision to go up to 20% is serious, being 90% of weapons-grade.    Could do a breakout in 45 days, have enough uranium for a bomb. The interesting twist is: they’re now using a thousand centrifuges.  Right now, we're still at the three-month point.  This shouldn't motivate a rush to return to a nuclear deal.  Still have many months to go. They’ll probably go for a nuclear test before actually using a bomb, likely in six to nine months.  Rushing back to this deal is probably the worst thing you could do.  Assassination of Fakhrizadeh:  how does his departure affect the nuclear program?  He was almost invisible till he was killed.  He brought critical managerial skills; Iran has a shortage of people who can pull it all together. Meeting of five people: three have been killed, one almost was, and the fifth may have had an assassination attempt against him.  David Albright, a physicist, is founder and president of the nonprofit Institute for Science and International Security in Washington, D.C. He directs the project work of the Institute, heads its fundraising efforts, and chairs its board of directors. In addition, he regularly publishes and conducts scientific research. He has written numerous assessments on secret nuclear weapons programs throughout the world. https://www.wsj.com/articles/iran-begins-enriching-uranium-to-20-purity-11609760613 https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/at-max-speed-new-iran-enrichment-could-cut-nuke-breakout-to-6-weeks-654237 https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1346137343481286657.html https://apnews.com/article/iran-underground-nuclear-facility-d9809b8a61f71f87dff31da6ff784687  ...more

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• 962: Do Iran threats dignify? Mickey Segall & Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres

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  Jan 08 2021

  Image:  Cityscape, Kazrin, Iran IDF Lt.-Col. (ret.) Michael (Mickey) Segall, and Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re: Iran is a bigger threat now than before because there are so many more targets the US must account for. The Supreme Leader within hours of the targetting of the nuclear scientist issued a claim that he’d been martyred and more threats.  Said Israel would be destroyed within 25 years; thus have never given up their nuclear development, are enriching to 20%.   Houthis, Saudi oil regions, Iraq—using proxies, moving toward a future retaliation against Israel.  Iranian Ministry of Intelligence is undergoing changes. Natanz —although no one knows exactly  . . . Iran represents a constant threat; but they talk big and the threat is the [future] weapon.  Their main testing ground for Cruise missiles is [proxy states]. Watch Yemen, which is becoming the main testing ground for precise weapons, incl drones with weapons, boats loaded with explosives.  Also piracy in Strait of Hormuz.   They avoid using their own borders; so Lebanon, Gaza, Yemen, Iraq, Syria.   South American cartels, drugs, assassinations. Scandinavia, Europe. The drug routes start in Afghanistan, go through Turkey into Europe.  IDF Lt.-Col. (ret.) Michael (Mickey) Segall, an expert on strategic issues with a focus on Iran, terrorism, and the Middle East, is a senior analyst at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs.  https://jcpa.org/iranian-security-officials-admit-intelligence-failures-and-call-for-cleaning-house/ https://www.jpost.com/opinion/follow-the-money-hunting-terrorists-and-their-state-sponsors-opinion-653918 https://www.israelhayom.com/2020/12/07/plagued-by-intelligence-failures-iranian-security-apparatuses-aims-to-clean-house/ ...more

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• 961: Starship No. 9 ready for the big hop. Robert Zimmerman, BehindtheBlack.com

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  Jan 08 2021

  Image:  The Orbital ATK Pegasus XL rocket carrying NASA's Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System, or CYGNSS, spacecraft is released and the first stage ignites Robert Zimmerman, BehindtheBlack.com; in re:  Starship in Boca Chica, Texas — The 500,00o-foot hop to test the rocket and its fins; to control its return so it can land vertically and be ready  to launch again in an hour. Cube sats: the payload release mechanism accidentally released early.  No comment from SpaceX or NASA.  SLS: a full eight minutes. On Jan 17, the full test... ..  ..  ..  ...more

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• 961: Mars Rovers update on sandy soil. Robert Zimmerman, BehindtheBlack.com

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  Jan 08 2021

  Image:  Payload for NASA Mars 2020 Rover Robert Zimmerman, BehindtheBlack.com; in re: The Mars Rover: the wheel and drill – covering the same area as one I’d posted previously, and nothing had changed.    Overview map and an oblique view on BehindtheBlack.com “Curiosity on the shore of a sand sea.” Dark green area, Sea of ____.  . . . A glacier-filled canyon on Mars. Buttes and mesas.   Mars is not the Sahara; it's more like Antarctica. 

  Episode

• 960: #TheScalaReport: Why is Silicon Valley moving to Texas & What is to be done? Chris Riegel: @scala, @STRATACACHE

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  Jan 08 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1939.Lange, Dorothea, photographer. Amarillo, Texas http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#TheScalaReport: Why is Silicon Valley moving to Texas & What is to be done?   Chris Riegel: @scala, @STRATACACHEhttps://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2020-12-29/businesses-are-fleeing-california-blame-bad-government

  Episode

• 961: Modi's not so good very bad pandemic, recession year @Sadanand Dhume @dhume, @AEI, @wsj

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  Jan 08 2021

  Image:  The Embassy of the East Indian Companies ... Sinesische Keizer (Jacob Moeurs) 1666 Sadanand Dhume, @dhume, @AEI, @wsj; AEI & WSJ; in re: Modi's not so good very bad pandemic, recession year @Sadanand Dhume https://www.wsj.com/articles/whats-worse-than-2020-in-america-11609196039?mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiTlRZeVpETXlOek0zWmprMSIsInQiOiJXZ2Fud3d4ZGVoV3dcLzVZR2dBZHM1STZtZFpRMExXOVpHaVJNbmE3VzYzV3hZWGdXMmw5c3phbzdoZVN0RlpLM3Y5WmN1cXRaTXNJTmN4d3AwakxaTFI3Yk50WFpNM0p4aHJCQ0tXUWppZHcyN1JESlJDRlwvK2ZEMHlra2pHQTRpIn0%3D...more

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• 961: Biden and the Koreas. @AmbJohnBolton @Korus

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  Jan 08 2021

  Image:  Korea.   Posts along road which were carved to prevent devils from passing   John Bolton,@AmbJohnBolton, American Foundation for Security and Freedom (fasfreedom.com); in re:   Even so, what can we predict for U.S. relations with the two Koreas over the next four years?  Possible answers can be found in Biden’s long involvement in American foreign and defense policy;  his eight years serving as Barack Obama’s Vice President;  and the political state-of-play within the Democratic and Republican parties and the broader American body politic, including the few mentions of Korea during the campaign.First, while a Senator, Biden was a conventional Democratic politician on national-security issues.  He rarely broken new intellectual ground, contenting himself, publicly at least, with staying well within the bounds of his party’s positions.  For example, like most Democrats, Biden waffled assiduously in 2002-03 on whether he favored using force to oust Iraq’s Saddam Hussein.  He ultimately supported using force, while repeatedly urging that President George W. Bush not actually do so.  —Biden foreign policy; North Korea; China. After decades, is North Korea still enjoying the upper hand? Four administrations have failed to deal adequately – economic sanctions, pressure, diplomatic negotiations; all not working.  Pres Moon in the Blue House: heir to the Sunshine policy, a most naïve view of North Korea. Rests on the premise that DPRK would be a reliable partner in a prospective reunification.  Moon Jae-in has another year. Biden intends to restore the JCPOA. DPRK seems to count on Iranian missile tests for the moment. Dangerous situation.  For decades, it’s been clear that Beijing is not an honest broker: DPRK threatens the entire region, giving China leverage while [acting as though it’s not involved].  Kerry’s single mission on climate change rests on his saying that he moved China into a better position. All foreign policy initiatives risk being set aside in favor of Biden’s creating [more amiable] relations with China. ...more

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• 960: Biden and Nato's aimless future. @ConradMBlack @TheAmGreatness

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  Jan 08 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1900. Opening of Brussels Exposition  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowBiden and Nato's aimless future. @ConradMBlack @TheAmGreatness https://amgreatness.com/2020/12/24/nato-needs-a-revamped-purpose/

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• 960: Anticipating Biden's appeasing foreign policy from East Asia to Eastern Europe. @SebGorka #AmericaFirst

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  Jan 08 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1910. Czar and Kaiser  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowAnticipating Biden's appeasing foreign policy from East Asia to Eastern Europe. @SebGorka #AmericaFirst https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/biden-state-department-nominations-nsc/2021/01/05/553fc560-4f9f-11eb-b2e8-3339e73d9da2_story.html

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• 960: The disorder at the Capitol and High Noon. @VDHanson

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  Jan 08 2021

  Image:1930. Above: Stuart Erwin, Eugene Pallette, Clive Brook, Kay Francis, Garry Cooper [i.e. Gary Cooper, film star], Jack Oakie, "Skeets" Gallagher, William Boyde, Richard Arlen, Carole Lombard, Wynne Gibson, Rosetta Moreno, Norman Foster, Sylvia Sidney, Lilyan Tashman, Mitzi Green, Jackie Searl ..Format: Photograph. .Notes: Find more detailed information about this photograph: acms.sl.nsw.gov.au/item/itemDetailPaged.aspx?itemID=52721 ( http://acms.sl.nsw.gov.au/item/itemDetailPaged.aspx?itemID=52721 ) ..Search for more great images in the State Library's collections: acms.sl.nsw.gov.au/search/SimpleSearch.aspx ( http://acms.sl.nsw.gov.au/search/SimpleSearch.aspx ) . .From the collection of the State Library of New South Wales www.sl.nsw.gov.au ( http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au ) Victor Davis Hanson, @VDHanson; Hoover Institution, and The Case for Trump,in re:  Yesterday’s disturbance in the Capital, and the Georgia vote.  Seeing only what the camera showed, it looked a lot like what we saw at the White House last summer and nowhere near as crazed as what we saw in Seattle. The difference was that the Congress was in session; and the Capitol police didn't expect violence so the splinter group surprised them. Today, a feast of Schadenfreude.  I did not like seeing a young man with a Confederacy flag.  That building is about defeating the Stars and Bars.  Same with BLM: they may have credentials, but they're not educated. Mrs Pelosi, like the Eveready bunny, just keeps going.  She’s ready to impeach Trump again as a ploy to [console] AOC and Sanders.  So desperate to reach he 25thAmendment that they got Ron Rosenstein to wear a wire; and Trump aced a Montreal Cognitive Test.  Unlikely that Joe Biden could do that. Weaponizing situations.  Dems are supposedly forbidden to give money to anyone who offered to challenge the electoral appointments.  Salem witch trials. Mattis was fired by Obama; Bolton was hated.  When they left govt with Trump  . . . . everyone has to calm down; can’t have a republic if the Speaker tears up a State of the Union speech.  High Noonand Shane.   Trump brought in a lot of skills to break the logjam – the economy, the Middle East, China; but the people around him hate him....more

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• 960: Pelosi and Schumer call for the removal of POTUS despite only 13 days in the term. @SebGorka #AmericaFirst

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  Jan 08 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1933. A Capitol Hill May Day Parade  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowPelosi and Schumer call for the removal of POTUS despite only 13 days in the term.  @SebGorka #AmericaFirst https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/pelosi-schumer-call-trumps-removal-threaten-impeachment/story?id=75111588

  Episode

• 959: Combat operators trust robots they help design. @DefTechPat @DefenseOne

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  Jan 08 2021

  Image:  The Surrogate robot Surge, built at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA., is being developed in order to extend humanity reach into hazardous environments to perform tasks such as using environmental test equipment.  NASA/JPL-Caltech Patrick Tucker, Sci-Tech editor for @DefenseOne, @DefTechPat, in re:  Artificial skin, individual heat signatures, incl nonstate adversaries who have night goggles.   Off-the-shelf gaming headset used for pilot training. Doug Masters has to rehearse [flying].  New headsets are smaller, cheaper, more effective than any written test.  The U2 is still flying!   Environmental conditions similar to those in space.  https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2020/12/ai-reshaping-us-approach-gray-zone-ops/170621/ https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2020/11/soldiers-dont-trust-robot-battle-buddies-can-virtual-training-fix/170378/ https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2020/12/artificial-skin-may-one-day-make-troops-invisible-even-heat-sensors/170523/...more

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• 959: The famous U-2 welcomes R2D2 as navigator. @DefTechPat @DefenseOne

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  Jan 08 2021

  Image:  On May 1, 1960, the U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers was shot down by the Soviets over Sverdlovsk. He spent 21 months in a Russian prison. In 1962, Powers was exchanged for the Soviet intelligence officer Col. Rudolf Abel. Abel had been arrested in New York in 1957. This is one of two U-2 models crafted for Powers. CIA model makers made this for his March 1962 Senate Armed Services Committee testimony about the downing of his aircraft. The wings and tail are detachable to show the aircraft's breakup after the shootdown.  . . .  For more information on CIA history and this artifact please visit www.cia.gov (http://www.cia.gov ) Patrick Tucker, Sci-Tech editor for @DefenseOne, @DefTechPat, in re: Training robots for the military. Similar to training canines? https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2020/12/future-flight-training-gamer-headset-watches-you-play/170630/ https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2020/12/air-force-used-ai-operate-radar-u-2-spy-plane/170813/ https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2020/12/europe-us-air-force-brings-back-cold-war-mobility-concept/171007/  ...more

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• 958: Hong Kong persecuted and tormented by CCP; but even Mao’s history shows this won't work. @GordonGChang, Daily Beast

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  Jan 07 2021

  Image:  Chinese prisoners Gordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re:  CCP in Hong Kong: 53 pro-democracy activists arrested by 1,000 security officers; persecuted and tormented.  China has not adopted a strategy that will serve it well.  Those arrested were not intimidated. The business community is opposed to these arrests and is starting to speak out – they could be next. Note Jack Ma’s imprisonment.   US social media platforms have good information and the US Congress is alert to that.  Xi Jinping, “I am the president for life,” recognizes that it’s not all working. Chinese military taking over civilian powers; a lot of events simultaneously, which is [meaningful].  Following the Versailles Treaty, Mao got his start in protests similar to the ones now. Clearly, The CCP is worried about the May 4thMovement.  It's dealing with forces that are zealous, whereas the Party no longer has its funding spirit.  There’ll be many more arrests and more resistance.   The Party will fail; does it read history?  Xi will not acknowledge failure.  https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/05/asia/hong-kong-national-security-law-intl-hnk/index.html ...more

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• 958: Canada is most vulnerable to PRC influence, espionage, sabotage. @CleoPaskal, @GordonGChang

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  Jan 07 2021

  Image:  A replica of Goddess of Democracy outside of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Cleo Paskal, @CleoPaskal, non-resident senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, & the Guardian; and Gordon Chang, @GordonGChang,Daily Beast, in re: Vancouver.  The Canadian government is using Chinese expats to cooperate with Chinese crime.  The Canadian foreign policy establishment fears annoying Beijing.   One:  CCP activities in the Chinese community (note also the Sikh community in Canada, which organizes and funds Sikh activities); and . . .    activists will fundraise, coerce, corral.      Canada is one of he Five Eyes. With China [dug in to Canada], what does this bode for the rest of the alliance?  Pierre Trudeau visited China in 19465, and again in 1960. He met Mao and Chou En-lai; recognized China in 1970 before the UN did. The US intell community has been tracking this for a long time, but it’s difficult to determine how [dangerous] it is. Political and commercial communities want easy ties so they can make money; intelligence and security communities are rightly worried.  Given the evidence that China is a bad actor, does Justin Trudeau explain? Not really; he expresses admiration.  The Canadian public.  Watch the Canada-China Business Council, the Grand Central Station of the ties. Discussion of the two Michaels [kidnapped by the CCP]: a dead silence.  Discussion of the two Michaels [kidnapped by the CCP]: a dead silence. ...more

  Episode

• 955: State of the City, the State, the Union:Alarming Disorder in DC; Lawless Discouragement in NYC. John Catsimatidis @JCats2013 @CatsRoundtable @JohnCats

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  Jan 07 2021

  Photo: .1859.  Corinthian capital, U.S. CapitolPhotograph of maquette showing a Corinthian capital upon a stand, in front of a barn-like structure.In album: Benjamin Brown French "Photographs," p. 98.Title from item.Reference copy in LOT 12251, v. 1.Original in PR 12 LOT 12251. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow State of the City, the State, the Union:Alarming Disorder in DC; Lawless Discouragement in NYC.  John Catsimatidis @JCats2013 @CatsRoundtable @JohnCats https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9120749/Cabinet-members-talking-using-25th-Amendment-REMOVE-Donald-Trump.html?ito=email-22582275&utm_source=overlay_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=cc_newsflash&utm_content=newsJohn Catsimatidis,  @JCats2013, @CatsRoundtable, Red Apple Media & Cats Roundtable radio, in re:The fog of war. Disturbing : guns drawn in the halls of Congress.  The Vice-president’s letter explaining that his role is ministerial, ceremonial, not to make decisions.   Ninety-nine per cent of the demonstrators were peaceful, Trump demonstrators. When Trump said to go home, they went home  They were infiltrated by Antifa and Black Lives Matter. Who are they? Where does their money come from? The people who broke into the Capitol were also seen in Arizona [in similar behavior]. The woman who was shot in the neck has died. Why guns—why not a taser?  We’re entitled to the truth.  The vaccine will be solved in 90 days; it's the crime and mentally-ill problem in New York. Man in a car with his mother, surrounded by demonstrators who broke the windscreen. Terrifying; it's he so-called “bail-reform” law, which is simply lawlessness.   Cuomo and DeBlasio. We’re killing our city—everything’s closed: theater, restaurants, hotels.  New York’s closure is hurting the whole country. Joe Biden needs the US economy to recover. Buffalo Bills in the finals; Cuomo asked for a certain number of fans to attend but the Bills are miffed by previous Cuomo conduct. ...more

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• 955: Can Merrick Garland, 68, shoulder the simultaneous DOJ weight of Russiagate, the Bidens, the border, the Capitol terrorism? @RichardAEpstein @HooverInst

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  Jan 07 2021

  Photo: Department of Justice. New Department of Justice http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowCan Merrick Garland, 68, shoulder the simultaneous DOJ weight of Russiagate, the Bidens, the border, the Capital terrorism? @RichardAEpstein @HooverInst

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• 957: Xi concentrates civilian mobilization in the military. @cburton001, @GordonGChang

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  Jan 07 2021

  Image:  Chinese troops gathered on a T-34/85 or a Type 58 medium tank leaving North Korea in 1958, 5 years after the Korean War ended with an armistice (a ceasefire) in 1953. The banner in the background of the picture bears a slogan (in Chinese) which declares "The Friendship and Unity of the North Korean and Chinese Peoples Are Always Steadfast and Strong!" Charles Burton: @cburton001, blogs at RealityChek; and senior Fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, Centre for Advancing Canada's Interests Abroad; and Gordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re:  Canada is most vulnerable to PRC influence, espionage, sabotage.Charles Burton: @cburton001, blogs at RealityChek; and senior Fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, Centre for Advancing Canada's Interests Abroad; and Gordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re:  Xi concentrates civilian mobilization in the military.   Giving the military too much power doesn't always bode well, incl for Xi now. Worrisome. Is little-bitty Hong Kong a threat to Xi? Yes, could threaten his Western relations.  Xinjiang, Tibet. China is becoming a military state. Geostrategic goals to the Belt and Road Initiative.   https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3115988/chinas-military-takes-charge-war-powers-new-defence-law      How has extended deterrence changed since the end of the Cold War and how should those changes impact US space policies and investments?     Biggest anti-satellite threats the US and its allies face.     Should we rely on Arms Control understandings and the commercial space sector, which is deploying massive numbers of low-Earth orbit systems that our military could use, to deter military adventurism against us or our allies?     Must the US secure immediate space dominance or superiority to deter military or commercial harm being inflicted to it and its allies?  Or is insisting on immediately achieving this a mistake?     To what extent should the US and its allies cooperate with China and Russia on space activities?...more

  Episode

• 956: “China is becoming a military state.” Henry Sokolowski and @GordonGChang

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  Jan 07 2021

  Image:   Test of the LG-118A Peacekeeper missile, each one of which could carry 10 independently targeted nuclear warheads along trajectories outside of the Earth's atmosphere  Henry Sokolowski, executive director of the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center & Hoover Institution; and Gordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re:  All Against All. Ballistic weapons, nuclear weapons, and space policy.  Russia, China, the US.      We’re trading a lot, at least with China; quite unlike the Cold War.  Another complication is that our ideological opposition to what's going on in China and Russia is a lot less than the fear and loathing were during the Cold War. Finally, our allies have reason to want to do business with them.  China’s and Russia’s militaries work hand in glove with each other. A change is that many people know the malice of China in intentionally releasing the virus, with over 300,000 deaths.  However, many of China’s trading partners want nothing to do with China’s strategic cooperation.      South Korea wants to rejoin with the North; not fully [aligned] with Japan. India and Australia.  A lot of other stuff needs attending to beneath that. It's a lot more complicated than formerly.  Space:  does this moot the success of strategic arms treaties of the last century?  No.  . . . an upcoming period of US vulnerability is space. Deterrence: a different meaning form during h Cold War; no longer based in seas, air, ground, but on eyes, ears, voice from space. Absent these, a sort of lobotomy.  ...more

  Episode

• 955: Sunspots spike into the 2025 Solar Maximum cycle. Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.com

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  Jan 07 2021

  Photo: Sol. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowSunspots spike into the 2025 Solar Maximum cycle. Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.comhttps://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/essays-and-commentaries/sunspot-update-december-sunspot-activity-once-again-higher-than-predicted/

  Episode

• 955: ISS Russian module Zvezda continues leaking & What is to be done? Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.com

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  Jan 07 2021

  Photo: Zvezda, taken during initial approach by the STS-97. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowISS Russian module Zvezda continues leaking & What is to be done? Bob Zimmerman BehindtheBlack.comhttps://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/air-leak-in-russian-section-of-iss-continues/

  Episode

• 956: Human nature resists the vaccine rollouts at nursing homes; & What is to be done? @HenryIMiller @PacificResearch

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  Jan 07 2021

  Image: Staff at a Norwegian nursing home Human nature resists the vaccine rollouts at nursing homes; & What is to be done?Henry Miller, @HenryIMiller @PacificResearch  Institute [HenryMillerMD.org], Pacific Research Institute [HenryMillerMD.org], in re:  May nursing-home workers don't ant to be vaccinates.  Except for special circumstances, “they ought not be allowed to endanger all the patients.” The psychotic medical worker who left vaccine out overnight is a terrorist. In West Virginia, the wrong fluid was injected intramuscularly; an incomprehensible mistake.  The EU cleared Moderna’s vaccine.https://www.wsj.com/articles/covid-19-vaccine-rollout-by-cvs-at-nursing-homes-off-to-a-slow-start-11609945775...more

  Episode

• 955: Merrick Garland nomination for AG is solid and trustworthy.@AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatness

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  Jan 07 2021

  Photo: First US Attorney-General, Edmund Randolph http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowMerrick Garland nomination for AG is solid and trustworthy.@AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatnesshttps://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/merrick-garland-biden-attorney-general/2021/01/06/071053ce-2dd4-11eb-bae0-50bb17126614_story.html

  Episode

• 955: VPOTUS Pence writes a letter confirming his formal duty to open the Electoral College ballots. @AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatness

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  Jan 07 2021

  Photo:  Vice-president Morton and wife http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow VPOTUS Pence writes a letter confirming his formal duty to open the Electoral College ballots. @AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatnesshttps://www.nationalreview.com/2021/01/neither-pence-nor-congress-has-the-power-to-reject-state-electoral-votes/

  Episode

• 954: Covid 19 mutates to become much more transmissible worldwide @HenryIMiller @PacificResearch

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  Jan 07 2021

  Image:  Satellite Tobacco Mosaic Virus (STMV), one of the smallest viruses known. Covid 19 mutates to become much more transmissible worldwide. @HenryIMiller @PacificResearch Instithenrymillermd.org

  Episode

• 953: 8/8 Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll

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  Jan 07 2021

  Image:  Tribal Afghans on horses in Badghis Province See:  Taliban Control in Afghanistan / https://www.longwarjournal.org/mapping-taliban-control-in-afghanistan   Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll   From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Ghost Wars, the epic and enthralling story of America's intelligence, military, and diplomatic efforts to defeat Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan since 9/11Prior to 9/11, the United States had been carrying out small-scale covert operations in Afghanistan, ostensibly in cooperation, although often in direct opposition, with I.S.I., the Pakistani intelligence agency. While the US was trying to quell extremists, a highly secretive and compartmentalized wing of I.S.I. known as "Directorate S" was covertly training, arming, and seeking to legitimize the Taliban, in order to enlarge Pakistan's sphere of influence. After 9/11, when fifty-nine countries, led by the U. S., deployed troops or provided aid to Afghanistan in an effort to flush out the Taliban and Al Qaeda, the U.S. was set on an invisible slow-motion collision course with Pakistan.Today we know that the war in Afghanistan would falter badly because of military hubris at the highest levels of the Pentagon, the drain on resources and provocation in the Muslim world caused by the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, and corruption. But more than anything, as Coll makes painfully clear, the war in Afghanistan was doomed because of the failure of the United States to apprehend the motivations and intentions of I.S.I.'s "Directorate S". This was a swirling and shadowy struggle of historic proportions, which endured over a decade and across both the Bush and Obama administrations, involving multiple secret intelligence agencies, a litany of incongruous strategies and tactics, and dozens of players, including some of the most prominent military and political figures. A sprawling American tragedy, the war was an open clash of arms but also a covert melee of ideas, secrets, and subterranean violence. Coll excavates this grand battle, which took place away from the gaze of the American public. With unsurpassed expertise, original research, and attention to detail, he brings to life a narrative at once vast and intricate, local and global, propulsive and painstaking. This is the definitive explanation of how America came to be so badly ensnared in an elaborate, factional, and seemingly interminable conflict in South Asia. Nothing less than a forensic examination of the personal and political forces that shape world history, Directorate S is a complete masterpiece of both investigative and narrative journalism....more

  Episode

• 953: 7/8 Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll

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  Jan 07 2021

  Image:  Hamid Karzai, culpable, speaking before the U.S. Congress in June 2004  Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll   From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Ghost Wars, the epic and enthralling story of America's intelligence, military, and diplomatic efforts to defeat Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan since 9/11Prior to 9/11, the United States had been carrying out small-scale covert operations in Afghanistan, ostensibly in cooperation, although often in direct opposition, with I.S.I., the Pakistani intelligence agency. While the US was trying to quell extremists, a highly secretive and compartmentalized wing of I.S.I. known as "Directorate S" was covertly training, arming, and seeking to legitimize the Taliban, in order to enlarge Pakistan's sphere of influence. After 9/11, when fifty-nine countries, led by the U. S., deployed troops or provided aid to Afghanistan in an effort to flush out the Taliban and Al Qaeda, the U.S. was set on an invisible slow-motion collision course with Pakistan.Today we know that the war in Afghanistan would falter badly because of military hubris at the highest levels of the Pentagon, the drain on resources and provocation in the Muslim world caused by the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, and corruption. But more than anything, as Coll makes painfully clear, the war in Afghanistan was doomed because of the failure of the United States to apprehend the motivations and intentions of I.S.I.'s "Directorate S". This was a swirling and shadowy struggle of historic proportions, which endured over a decade and across both the Bush and Obama administrations, involving multiple secret intelligence agencies, a litany of incongruous strategies and tactics, and dozens of players, including some of the most prominent military and political figures. A sprawling American tragedy, the war was an open clash of arms but also a covert melee of ideas, secrets, and subterranean violence. Coll excavates this grand battle, which took place away from the gaze of the American public. With unsurpassed expertise, original research, and attention to detail, he brings to life a narrative at once vast and intricate, local and global, propulsive and painstaking. This is the definitive explanation of how America came to be so badly ensnared in an elaborate, factional, and seemingly interminable conflict in South Asia. Nothing less than a forensic examination of the personal and political forces that shape world history, Directorate S is a complete masterpiece of both investigative and narrative journalism. ...more

  Episode

• 953: 6/8 Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll

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  Jan 07 2021

  Image:   Critics assert that funding the Afghan mujahideen (Operation Cyclone) played a role in causing the September 11 attacks.  Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll   From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Ghost Wars, the epic and enthralling story of America's intelligence, military, and diplomatic efforts to defeat Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan since 9/11Prior to 9/11, the United States had been carrying out small-scale covert operations in Afghanistan, ostensibly in cooperation, although often in direct opposition, with I.S.I., the Pakistani intelligence agency. While the US was trying to quell extremists, a highly secretive and compartmentalized wing of I.S.I. known as "Directorate S" was covertly training, arming, and seeking to legitimize the Taliban, in order to enlarge Pakistan's sphere of influence. After 9/11, when fifty-nine countries, led by the U. S., deployed troops or provided aid to Afghanistan in an effort to flush out the Taliban and Al Qaeda, the U.S. was set on an invisible slow-motion collision course with Pakistan.Today we know that the war in Afghanistan would falter badly because of military hubris at the highest levels of the Pentagon, the drain on resources and provocation in the Muslim world caused by the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, and corruption. But more than anything, as Coll makes painfully clear, the war in Afghanistan was doomed because of the failure of the United States to apprehend the motivations and intentions of I.S.I.'s "Directorate S". This was a swirling and shadowy struggle of historic proportions, which endured over a decade and across both the Bush and Obama administrations, involving multiple secret intelligence agencies, a litany of incongruous strategies and tactics, and dozens of players, including some of the most prominent military and political figures. A sprawling American tragedy, the war was an open clash of arms but also a covert melee of ideas, secrets, and subterranean violence. Coll excavates this grand battle, which took place away from the gaze of the American public. With unsurpassed expertise, original research, and attention to detail, he brings to life a narrative at once vast and intricate, local and global, propulsive and painstaking. This is the definitive explanation of how America came to be so badly ensnared in an elaborate, factional, and seemingly interminable conflict in South Asia. Nothing less than a forensic examination of the personal and political forces that shape world history, Directorate S is a complete masterpiece of both investigative and narrative journalism. ...more

  Episode

• 953: 5/8 Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll

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  Jan 07 2021

  Image:  Pashtuns, historically known as Afghans, are an Iranian ethnic group native to Central and South Asia. The native language of the Pashtuns is Pashto, an Iranian language on the Indo-Iranian branch, itself a branch of the larger Indo-European language family.  Here: Pashtun tribal and religious leaders gather following a shura held by Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Kandahar. The meeting highlighted the need for support of NATO-led forces in order to stabilize parts of the province. (U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Mark O’Donald/Released)  Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll   From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Ghost Wars, the epic and enthralling story of America's intelligence, military, and diplomatic efforts to defeat Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan since 9/11Prior to 9/11, the United States had been carrying out small-scale covert operations in Afghanistan, ostensibly in cooperation, although often in direct opposition, with I.S.I., the Pakistani intelligence agency. While the US was trying to quell extremists, a highly secretive and compartmentalized wing of I.S.I. known as "Directorate S" was covertly training, arming, and seeking to legitimize the Taliban, in order to enlarge Pakistan's sphere of influence. After 9/11, when fifty-nine countries, led by the U. S., deployed troops or provided aid to Afghanistan in an effort to flush out the Taliban and Al Qaeda, the U.S. was set on an invisible slow-motion collision course with Pakistan.Today we know that the war in Afghanistan would falter badly because of military hubris at the highest levels of the Pentagon, the drain on resources and provocation in the Muslim world caused by the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, and corruption. But more than anything, as Coll makes painfully clear, the war in Afghanistan was doomed because of the failure of the United States to apprehend the motivations and intentions of I.S.I.'s "Directorate S". This was a swirling and shadowy struggle of historic proportions, which endured over a decade and across both the Bush and Obama administrations, involving multiple secret intelligence agencies, a litany of incongruous strategies and tactics, and dozens of players, including some of the most prominent military and political figures. A sprawling American tragedy, the war was an open clash of arms but also a covert melee of ideas, secrets, and subterranean violence. Coll excavates this grand battle, which took place away from the gaze of the American public. With unsurpassed expertise, original research, and attention to detail, he brings to life a narrative at once vast and intricate, local and global, propulsive and painstaking. This is the definitive explanation of how America came to be so badly ensnared in an elaborate, factional, and seemingly interminable conflict in South Asia. Nothing less than a forensic examination of the personal and political forces that shape world history, Directorate S is a complete masterpiece of both investigative and narrative journalism....more

  Episode

• 953: 4/8 Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll

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  Jan 07 2021

  Image:  Hibatullah Akhundzada, a religious scholar, is former head of the Taliban courts. Photo: screen grab.  Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll   From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Ghost Wars, the epic and enthralling story of America's intelligence, military, and diplomatic efforts to defeat Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan since 9/11Prior to 9/11, the United States had been carrying out small-scale covert operations in Afghanistan, ostensibly in cooperation, although often in direct opposition, with I.S.I., the Pakistani intelligence agency. While the US was trying to quell extremists, a highly secretive and compartmentalized wing of I.S.I. known as "Directorate S" was covertly training, arming, and seeking to legitimize the Taliban, in order to enlarge Pakistan's sphere of influence. After 9/11, when fifty-nine countries, led by the U. S., deployed troops or provided aid to Afghanistan in an effort to flush out the Taliban and Al Qaeda, the U.S. was set on an invisible slow-motion collision course with Pakistan.Today we know that the war in Afghanistan would falter badly because of military hubris at the highest levels of the Pentagon, the drain on resources and provocation in the Muslim world caused by the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, and corruption. But more than anything, as Coll makes painfully clear, the war in Afghanistan was doomed because of the failure of the United States to apprehend the motivations and intentions of I.S.I.'s "Directorate S". This was a swirling and shadowy struggle of historic proportions, which endured over a decade and across both the Bush and Obama administrations, involving multiple secret intelligence agencies, a litany of incongruous strategies and tactics, and dozens of players, including some of the most prominent military and political figures. A sprawling American tragedy, the war was an open clash of arms but also a covert melee of ideas, secrets, and subterranean violence. Coll excavates this grand battle, which took place away from the gaze of the American public. With unsurpassed expertise, original research, and attention to detail, he brings to life a narrative at once vast and intricate, local and global, propulsive and painstaking. This is the definitive explanation of how America came to be so badly ensnared in an elaborate, factional, and seemingly interminable conflict in South Asia. Nothing less than a forensic examination of the personal and political forces that shape world history, Directorate S is a complete masterpiece of both investigative and narrative journalism. ...more

  Episode

• 953: 3/8 Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll

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  Jan 07 2021

  Image:  The Taliban (translation: the students) emerged in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar around September 1994.  Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll   From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Ghost Wars, the epic and enthralling story of America's intelligence, military, and diplomatic efforts to defeat Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan since 9/11Prior to 9/11, the United States had been carrying out small-scale covert operations in Afghanistan, ostensibly in cooperation, although often in direct opposition, with I.S.I., the Pakistani intelligence agency. While the US was trying to quell extremists, a highly secretive and compartmentalized wing of I.S.I. known as "Directorate S" was covertly training, arming, and seeking to legitimize the Taliban, in order to enlarge Pakistan's sphere of influence. After 9/11, when fifty-nine countries, led by the U. S., deployed troops or provided aid to Afghanistan in an effort to flush out the Taliban and Al Qaeda, the U.S. was set on an invisible slow-motion collision course with Pakistan.Today we know that the war in Afghanistan would falter badly because of military hubris at the highest levels of the Pentagon, the drain on resources and provocation in the Muslim world caused by the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, and corruption. But more than anything, as Coll makes painfully clear, the war in Afghanistan was doomed because of the failure of the United States to apprehend the motivations and intentions of I.S.I.'s "Directorate S". This was a swirling and shadowy struggle of historic proportions, which endured over a decade and across both the Bush and Obama administrations, involving multiple secret intelligence agencies, a litany of incongruous strategies and tactics, and dozens of players, including some of the most prominent military and political figures. A sprawling American tragedy, the war was an open clash of arms but also a covert melee of ideas, secrets, and subterranean violence. Coll excavates this grand battle, which took place away from the gaze of the American public. With unsurpassed expertise, original research, and attention to detail, he brings to life a narrative at once vast and intricate, local and global, propulsive and painstaking. This is the definitive explanation of how America came to be so badly ensnared in an elaborate, factional, and seemingly interminable conflict in South Asia. Nothing less than a forensic examination of the personal and political forces that shape world history, Directorate S is a complete masterpiece of both investigative and narrative journalism....more

  Episode

• 953: 2/8 Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll

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  Jan 07 2021

  Image:  Logo of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence organization. It depicts Pakistan's national animal, Markhor, eating a snake. See also:  https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Afghan_Muja_crossing_from_Saohol_Sar_pass_in_Durand_border_region_of_Pakistan,_August_1985.png    Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll   From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Ghost Wars, the epic and enthralling story of America's intelligence, military, and diplomatic efforts to defeat Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan since 9/11Prior to 9/11, the United States had been carrying out small-scale covert operations in Afghanistan, ostensibly in cooperation, although often in direct opposition, with I.S.I., the Pakistani intelligence agency. While the US was trying to quell extremists, a highly secretive and compartmentalized wing of I.S.I. known as "Directorate S" was covertly training, arming, and seeking to legitimize the Taliban, in order to enlarge Pakistan's sphere of influence. After 9/11, when fifty-nine countries, led by the U. S., deployed troops or provided aid to Afghanistan in an effort to flush out the Taliban and Al Qaeda, the U.S. was set on an invisible slow-motion collision course with Pakistan.Today we know that the war in Afghanistan would falter badly because of military hubris at the highest levels of the Pentagon, the drain on resources and provocation in the Muslim world caused by the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, and corruption. But more than anything, as Coll makes painfully clear, the war in Afghanistan was doomed because of the failure of the United States to apprehend the motivations and intentions of I.S.I.'s "Directorate S". This was a swirling and shadowy struggle of historic proportions, which endured over a decade and across both the Bush and Obama administrations, involving multiple secret intelligence agencies, a litany of incongruous strategies and tactics, and dozens of players, including some of the most prominent military and political figures. A sprawling American tragedy, the war was an open clash of arms but also a covert melee of ideas, secrets, and subterranean violence. Coll excavates this grand battle, which took place away from the gaze of the American public. With unsurpassed expertise, original research, and attention to detail, he brings to life a narrative at once vast and intricate, local and global, propulsive and painstaking. This is the definitive explanation of how America came to be so badly ensnared in an elaborate, factional, and seemingly interminable conflict in South Asia. Nothing less than a forensic examination of the personal and political forces that shape world history, Directorate S is a complete masterpiece of both investigative and narrative journalism....more

  Episode

• 953: 1/8 Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll

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  Jan 07 2021

  Image:  Snow-covered Hindu Kush mountains in Afghanistan  Directorate S: The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, by Steve Coll   From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Ghost Wars, the epic and enthralling story of America's intelligence, military, and diplomatic efforts to defeat Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan since 9/11Prior to 9/11, the United States had been carrying out small-scale covert operations in Afghanistan, ostensibly in cooperation, although often in direct opposition, with I.S.I., the Pakistani intelligence agency. While the US was trying to quell extremists, a highly secretive and compartmentalized wing of I.S.I. known as "Directorate S" was covertly training, arming, and seeking to legitimize the Taliban, in order to enlarge Pakistan's sphere of influence. After 9/11, when fifty-nine countries, led by the U. S., deployed troops or provided aid to Afghanistan in an effort to flush out the Taliban and Al Qaeda, the U.S. was set on an invisible slow-motion collision course with Pakistan.Today we know that the war in Afghanistan would falter badly because of military hubris at the highest levels of the Pentagon, the drain on resources and provocation in the Muslim world caused by the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, and corruption. But more than anything, as Coll makes painfully clear, the war in Afghanistan was doomed because of the failure of the United States to apprehend the motivations and intentions of I.S.I.'s "Directorate S". This was a swirling and shadowy struggle of historic proportions, which endured over a decade and across both the Bush and Obama administrations, involving multiple secret intelligence agencies, a litany of incongruous strategies and tactics, and dozens of players, including some of the most prominent military and political figures. A sprawling American tragedy, the war was an open clash of arms but also a covert melee of ideas, secrets, and subterranean violence. Coll excavates this grand battle, which took place away from the gaze of the American public. With unsurpassed expertise, original research, and attention to detail, he brings to life a narrative at once vast and intricate, local and global, propulsive and painstaking. This is the definitive explanation of how America came to be so badly ensnared in an elaborate, factional, and seemingly interminable conflict in South Asia. Nothing less than a forensic examination of the personal and political forces that shape world history, Directorate S is a complete masterpiece of both investigative and narrative journalism....more

  Episode

• 950: The Border caravans will restart and Mexico will return to narco-terrorism during the Biden Administration. @MariaFdaCabal & @jmhumire

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  Jan 06 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1915.MEXICO. FOOD SUPPLY STATION  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe Border caravans will restart and Mexico will return to narco-terrorism during the Biden Administration. @MariaFdaCabal & @jmhumire https://www.nationalreview.com/news/u-s-facing-another-potential-southwest-border-crisis-as-biden-takes-office/

  Episode

• 952: Why does Pelosi want to hold on? @LizPeek

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  Jan 06 2021

  Image:  Elizabeth I, Queen of England, 1533-1603 Elizabeth Peek, @LizPeek, Fox News and TheHill; in re: Why does Pelosi want to hold on?..  .. 

  Episode

• 952: Recovery delayed by Blue State lockdowns. @LizPeek

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  Jan 06 2021

  Image:  Charlotte Amalie, Saint Thomas Island, Virgin Islands. The solitary confinement dungeon in the old fort Elizabeth Peek, @LizPeek, Fox News and TheHill; in re:   Recovery delayed by Blue State lockdowns.

  Episode

• 951: “Beyond the Pale” takes on a fresh meaning. @josephsternberg, @WSJOpinion

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  Jan 06 2021

  Image:  The Pale was a strip of land, centred on Dublin, that became the base of English rule in Ireland. Here:  Security fence along the South Africa–Mozambique border. Joseph Sternberg:  @josephsternberg, @WSJOpinion; Political Economics column; WSJ editorial board; in re: Scotland. No travel between Scotland and the rest of Britain. Is this driven by the “new variants”? What’s frightening policy makers is theprospect that, while it's not more deadly, it spreads more quickly, and the NHS will be overwhelmed. We’re in a twilight phase where the vaccine is about to be distributed just as the virus takes a turn for the worse. Matt Hancock, Minister of Health.  Still debating rolling out the vaccine for care homes? . . .  Press lords tell scary stories:  a Christmas party at a medical facility where a caregiver dressed up as a Christmas tree, which had a tiny fan inside that wound up spreading the virus to the whole room.  The right is annoyed at the slow rollout of the vaccine; the left is blasé about the slow distribution and approves the bureaucracy.   ...more

  Episode

• 951: “Johnson joins Blair and Thatcher as significant post-imperial leaders.” @josephsternberg, @WSJOpinion

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  Jan 06 2021

  Image:  His Majesty’s dominions, on which the sun never sets.” – John Wilson.  Here:  Fort St George, Madras, the first English fortress in India“Johnson joins Blair and Thatcher as significant post-imperial leaders.”  @josephsternberg, @WSJOpinion Joseph Sternberg:  @josephsternberg, @WSJOpinion; Political Economics column; WSJ editorial board; in re:  UK, Brexit: Lockdowns have generated extraordinary problems and results. The ceremony of finally convincing all the players  [to achieve Brexit].   Sturm und Drang.   All sides claim victory.  Conflict on the border between Spain and Gibraltar. Biden can’t do much about UK-European relations.   Walter Russell Meade: “Johnson and Thatcher are post-imperial leaders.” Being the British PM is always a thankless task. ...more

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• 951: Politicians wield lockdown power; expect a bad outcome. @johntamny

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  Jan 06 2021

  Image: King Jie of Xia holding a Ji polearm, representing oppression, and sitting on two ladies, symbolizing his abuse of power John Tamny, @johntamny, RealClearPolitics, author, When Politicians Panic;  in re:  Jeffrey Tucker:Pols said, limit the movement of people across borders to fight the virus. In fact, the path to immunity can be from a vaccine, or else to let people get the virus and recover, thus achieving immunity. Recall the flu of 1918; pols have simply ignored how that was resolved. There’s still no vaccine to the Spanish flu.  When a small number of people make decisions for hundred of millions, there’s always a bad outcome. The virus doesn't just get bored and go away.   In Eagle, Idaho, snow-tubing: go down hills fast.  Teenagers were running the operation ...more

  Episode

• 951: Tom Cruise and the (almost) impossible mission of keeping film crews in masks. @johntamny

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  Jan 06 2021

  Image: 1942 Hollywood, California. Shoppers John Tamny, @johntamny, RealClearPolitics; author, When Politicians Panic;  in re:  Tom Cruise yelled at his film crew of Mission: Impossible 7for failing to wear masks responsibly.  Why? He’s actually running a business; needs to keep his operation insured and his investors content. Robert Downey is the highest-paid actor in Hollywood; was formerly unable to get hired because of a substance abuse problem. The lockdowns, the protocols, have been remarkably unsuccessful, vide:New York, New Jersey, California.  The politicians keep closing businesses, destroying lives, still refuse to acknowledge that they erred. With the same population as New York, Florida is doing much better.  If we hadn’t had the benefit of the spectacular economic success that obtained until February 2020, we couldn't have survived the [strangulation] of business that’s occurred in the last ten months. ...more

  Episode

• 950: Russia is more involved in New World bad-acting now than in the Cold War. @MariaFdaCabal & @jmhumire

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  Jan 06 2021

  Image:  Russian knight http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowRussia is more involved in New World bad-acting now than in the Cold War. @MariaFdaCabal & @jmhumire https://112.international/politics/colombia-expels-two-russian-diplomats-57574.html

  Episode

• 950: The populous, well-armed and resource-rich Nigeria fractures & What is to be done? Gregory Copley, Defense & Foreign Affairs

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  Jan 06 2021

  Photo: Inside Kano, In Nigeria http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe populous, well-armed and resource-rich Nigeria fractures & What is to be done? Gregory Copley, Defense & Foreign Affairs

  Episode

• 950: The Ethiopian civil war, the BBC disdain, & What is to be done? Gregory Copley, Defense and Foreign Affairs.

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  Jan 06 2021

  Photo:  The Temple of Soleb, Ethiopia http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe Ethiopia civil war, the BBC disdain & What is to be done? Gregory Copley, Defense and Foreign Affairs.https://www.bbc.com/news/amp/world-africa-55530355

  Episode

• 950: Will the Biden Administration continue the emphasis on religious freedom of the Trump Administration? Susan Crabtree @RealClearPolitics

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  Jan 06 2021

  Photo:   Yezidis of Jabal [mountain] of Sinjar at the Iraqi-Syrian border. The Yezidi Kurds [note: Yazidis are not Kurds] started settling in the mountain beginning in the 13th. century following the severe persecution by the Zengid Atabeg of Mosul, Badr al-Din Lulu. and later by the frequent Ottoman campaigns against the Sheikhan Yezidis north of Mosul. The mountain was a stronghold of the Nestorian Christians, whose Diocese ceased to exist after the 17th. century. The first of many campaigns by the Ottoman Turks against the Yezidis of the Mountain, called by the Turks "THE SACLI DAGH", the mountain of the "HAIRY ONES", was carried by Melek Ahmad Pasha, the Vali of Diyarbekir [1640]; the second by the Ottoman Firari Mustapha; the last occupation was in 1918, and directed against Hamu Sharu, the Sheikh of the Fuqara Yezidis, who refused to hand in the Christian refugees who sought shelter in the mountain from S.E. Turkey. Postcard by Sarrafian brothers of Beirut http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowWill the Biden Administration continue the emphasis on Religious Freedom of the Trump Administration? Susan Crabtree @RealClearPoliticshttps://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2020/12/10/religious_freedom_will_us_emphasis_continue_under_biden_144817.html ...more

  Episode

• 949: Predicting Man and Woman of the Year for 2021. @HooverWhalen

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  Jan 06 2021

  Photo:  The aviator Charles A. Lindbergh on Time cover 1928. Note that Lucky Lindy supported the Hitlerites. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowPredicting Man and Woman of the Year for 2021. @HooverWhalen https://www.forbes.com/sites/billwhalen/2021/12/28/a-2021-new-years-quiz/?sh=157b1202e874

  Episode

• 948: Fortunate Sons: The 120 Chinese Boys Who Came to America, Went to School, and Revolutionized an Ancient Civilization 1st Edition, Kindle Edition. by Liel Leibovitz (Author), Matthew Miller (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 06 2021

  Photo: Chinese school children and teacher [standing on steps] at the American Board of Missions, Peking, China http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Fortunate Sons: The 120 Chinese Boys Who Came to America, Went to School, and Revolutionized an Ancient Civilization 1st Edition, Kindle Edition. by Liel Leibovitz  (Author), Matthew Miller (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Fortunate-Sons-Chinese-Revolutionized-Civilization-ebook/dp/B004HW6A7O/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&keywords=Fortunate+son&qid=1609896418&s=digital-text&sr=1-5In 1872, China—ravaged by poverty, population growth, and aggressive European armies—sent 120 boys to America to learn the secrets of Western innovation. They studied at New England’s finest schools and were driven by a desire for progress and reform. When anti-Chinese fervor forced them back home, the young men had to overcome a suspicious imperial court and a country deeply resistant to change in technology and culture. Fortunate Sons tells a remarkable story, weaving together the dramas of personal lives with the fascinating tale of a nation’s endeavor to become a world power....more

  Episode

• 948: Death in the Haymarket: A Story of Chicago, the First Labor Movement and the Bombing that Divided Gilded Age America Kindle Edition. by James Green (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 06 2021

  Photo:  The Anarchist Riot in Chicago - A Dynamite Bomb exploding among the police [McCormick Strike, Haymarket Square]http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Death in the Haymarket: A Story of Chicago, the First Labor Movement and the Bombing that Divided Gilded Age America Kindle Edition. by James Green (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Death-Haymarket-Chicago-Movement-Bombing-ebook/dp/B000XUAEQC/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Haymarket+Riot+green&qid=1609896328&s=digital-text&sr=1-1On May 4, 1886, a bomb exploded at a Chicago labor rally, wounding dozens of policemen, seven of whom eventually died. A wave of mass hysteria swept the country, leading to a sensational trial, that culminated in four controversial executions, and dealt a blow to the labor movement from which it would take decades to recover. Historian James Green recounts the rise of the first great labor movement in the wake of the Civil War and brings to life an epic twenty-year struggle for the eight-hour workday. Blending a gripping narrative, outsized characters and a panoramic portrait of a major social movement, Death in the Haymarket is an important addition to the history of American capitalism and a moving story about the class tensions at the heart of Gilded Age America....more

  Episode

• 948: Ghost on the Throne: 2of2: The Death of Alexander the Great and the Bloody Fight for His Empire Kindle Edition.by James S. Romm (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 06 2021

  Photo: "The Deeds of Alexander" http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Ghost on the Throne: 2of2: The Death of Alexander the Great and the Bloody Fight for His Empire Kindle Edition.by James S. Romm  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Throne-Alexander-Bloody-Empire-ebook/dp/B004KPM1BW/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=Alexander the Great, perhaps the most commanding leader in history, united his empire and his army by the titanic force of his will. His death at the age of thirty-two spelled the end of that unity.The story of Alexander’s conquest of the Persian empire is known to many readers, but the dramatic and consequential saga of the empire’s collapse remains virtually untold. It is a tale of loss that begins with the greatest loss of all, the death of the Macedonian king who had held the empire together. With his demise, it was as if the sun had disappeared from the solar system, as if planets and moons began to spin crazily in new directions, crashing into one another with unimaginable force.Alexander bequeathed his power, legend has it, “to the strongest,” leaving behind a mentally damaged half brother and a posthumously born son as his only heirs. In a strange compromise, both figures—Philip III and Alexander IV—were elevated to the kingship, quickly becoming prizes, pawns, fought over by a half-dozen Macedonian generals. Each successor could confer legitimacy on whichever general controlled him.At the book’s center is the monarch’s most vigorous defender; Alexander’s former Greek secretary, now transformed into a general himself. He was a man both fascinating and entertaining, a man full of tricks and connivances, like the enthroned ghost of Alexander that gives the book its title, and becomes the determining factor in the precarious fortunes of the royal family.James Romm, brilliant classicist and storyteller, tells the galvanizing saga of the men who followed Alexander and found themselves incapable of preserving his empire. The result was the undoing of a world, formerly united in a single empire, now ripped apart into a nightmare of warring nation-states struggling for domination, the template of our own times....more

  Episode

• 948: Ghost on the Throne: 1of2: The Death of Alexander the Great and the Bloody Fight for His Empire Kindle Edition.by James S. Romm (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 06 2021

  Photo: Alexander the Great riding Bucephalus http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Ghost on the Throne: 1of2: The Death of Alexander the Great and the Bloody Fight for His Empire Kindle Edition.by James S. Romm  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Throne-Alexander-Bloody-Empire-ebook/dp/B004KPM1BW/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=Alexander the Great, perhaps the most commanding leader in history, united his empire and his army by the titanic force of his will. His death at the age of thirty-two spelled the end of that unity.The story of Alexander’s conquest of the Persian empire is known to many readers, but the dramatic and consequential saga of the empire’s collapse remains virtually untold. It is a tale of loss that begins with the greatest loss of all, the death of the Macedonian king who had held the empire together. With his demise, it was as if the sun had disappeared from the solar system, as if planets and moons began to spin crazily in new directions, crashing into one another with unimaginable force.Alexander bequeathed his power, legend has it, “to the strongest,” leaving behind a mentally damaged half brother and a posthumously born son as his only heirs. In a strange compromise, both figures—Philip III and Alexander IV—were elevated to the kingship, quickly becoming prizes, pawns, fought over by a half-dozen Macedonian generals. Each successor could confer legitimacy on whichever general controlled him.At the book’s center is the monarch’s most vigorous defender; Alexander’s former Greek secretary, now transformed into a general himself. He was a man both fascinating and entertaining, a man full of tricks and connivances, like the enthroned ghost of Alexander that gives the book its title, and becomes the determining factor in the precarious fortunes of the royal family.James Romm, brilliant classicist and storyteller, tells the galvanizing saga of the men who followed Alexander and found themselves incapable of preserving his empire. The result was the undoing of a world, formerly united in a single empire, now ripped apart into a nightmare of warring nation-states struggling for domination, the template of our own times....more

  Episode

• 947: In praise of Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient Devin Nunes for relentless courage to uncover the Russiagate hoax. @AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatness

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  Jan 05 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowIn praise of Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient Devin Nunes for relentless courage to uncover the Russiagate hoax.  @AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatness

  Episode

• 946: Ancient Ashkelon gives rise to today’s seaside city. Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, @ThadMcCotter

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  Jan 05 2021

  Image: Battle of Ashkelon between the Crusaders and the Saracens.Indiana Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, in re:  An attack on Ashkelon eight centuries ago created a rampart against the city walls; it was abandoned, and prevented the desert from taking over the town, permitting the Ashkelon we stand in today.

  Episode

• 945: What killed the dinosaurs in the Madagascar mass grave 70 million years ago? Host

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  Jan 05 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1706.A new draught of the Island of MADAGASCAR ats St. LORENZO with Augustin Bay and the Island of Mombass at Large  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowWhat killed the dinosaurs in the Madagascar mass grave 70 million years ago? Hosthttps://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/08/did-tiny-algae-fell-mighty-dinosaurs

  Episode

• 945: "Indiana" Hoenlein and the Lost Rampart of Ashkelon. Malcolm Hoenlein @Conf_of_pres @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatness

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  Jan 05 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.Excavations. Tell Jemmeh (Gerar). Tell Jemmeh. Excavated area of Gerar. On southern end of mound  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow"Indiana" Hoenlein and the Lost Rampart of Ashkelon. Malcolm Hoenlein @Conf_of_pres @ThadMcCotter @theamgreatnesshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashkelon

  Episode

• 945: The Election of 1876 & What is to be done on January 6, 2020? @AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @theamgreatness

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  Jan 05 2021

  Photo: Hayes/Wheeler campaign poster. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe Election of 1876 & What is to be done on January 6, 2020? @AndrewCMcCarthy @NRO @theamgreatness

  Episode

• 945: Iran observes the new Biden Administration. Malcolm Hoenlein @Conf_of_pres

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  Jan 05 2021

  Photo:  A mullah http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowIran observes the new Biden Administration. Malcolm Hoenlein @Conf_of_pres.Malcolm Hoenlein, @conf_of_pres, Conference of Presidents, and Thaddeus McCotter, @ThadMcCotter, American Greatness, in re:in re: Iran announces its intention to enrich uranium to 20%; from 20% to 90% is purely technical. Biden has a “sliver” of time ot persuade Iran to revert to the JCPOA.  Provocations on may fronts: a ship in the Persian Gulf was found to have a limpet mine attached to it. An Iranian terrorist cell in Abu Dhabi, apparently intended to target Jews visiting the UAE. Qatar, Iran, Turkey: defending Soleimani.  Much as retaliation against the death of Soleimani. A Korean chemical ship attacked by IRGC, arrested by Iran as “polluting the Gulf.”  Bogus.  South Korea much displeased. This weekend, protests n Teheran and elsewhere against Soleimani’s death. Nasrallah says he has missiles pointed at Israel. However, Iranians have torn down posters of Soleimani.   Hezbollah says it’s making PGMs, targeted Israel’s oil patch; has put its missiles in civilian homes.     Daniel Pearl, Wall Street Journal journalist, murdered in 2002 by a gang in Pakistan.   The killers now just released in Pakistan by a provincial court. US says it's ready to try them in the US. Has the US lost focus on terrorism?  Intensity of the global network, incl in South America, close to the US. So many aspects coming to the fore. Egypt:  Soleimani used to hand out suitcases filled with cash, multiple millions therein.  Turkey still trying to “reach out” to Israel, despite his fondness for aspects of Nazi Germany and other [regrettable] propensities.  Ergdogan has stashed his cash in walk-in vaults in the basement of his villa in Turkey....more

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• 945: Italy bends at the rush of the second wave.Lorenzo Fiori, Ansaldo Foundation.

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  Jan 05 2021

  Photo: Historic Italian physician:  Bartolommeo Eustachi http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowItaly bends at the rush of the second wave.Lorenzo Fiori, Ansaldo Foundation. 

  Episode

• 945: What are the risks to VPOTUS on January 6? @DavidMDrucker @JohnFund

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  Jan 05 2021

  Photo:  1888 illustration of John Tyler receiving the news of President William Henry Harrison's death from Chief Clerk of the State Department Fletcher Webster http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowWhat are the risks to VPOTUS on January 6? @DavidMDrucker @JohnFundhttps://www.nationalreview.com/2021/01/wednesdays-electoral-college-debate-all-eyes-on-pence/?itm_campaign=headline-testing-wednesdays-electoral-college-debate-all-eyes-on-pence&itm_medium=headline&itm_source=nationalreview&itm_content=Wednesday’s%20Electoral%20College%20Debate%3A%20All%20Eyes%20on%20Pence&itm_term=Wednesday’s%20Electoral%20College%20Debate%3A%20All%20Eyes%20on%20Pence ...more

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• 945: The Biden Administration inherits cyber security failure and Iran bad-acting.

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  Jan 05 2021

  Photo: Iranian cyberpolice. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe Biden Administration inherits cyber security failure and Iran bad-acting.Jed Babbinhttps://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2021/jan/1/solarwinds-cyberattack-demands-us-enact-a-long-ove/

  Episode

• 945: The US Senate Tea Party Class of 2010 & What is to done? @DavidMDrucker @JohnFund @ThadMcCotter

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  Jan 05 2021

  Photo:  Two ships in a harbor, one in the distance. On board, men stripped to the waist and wearing feathers in their hair throw crates of tea overboard. A large crowd, mostly men, stands on the dock, waving hats and cheering. A few people wave their hats from windows in a nearby building.This iconic 1846 lithograph by Nathaniel Currier was entitled "The Destruction of Tea at Boston Harbor"; the phrase "Boston Tea Party" had not yet become standard. Contrary to Currier's depiction, few of the men dumping the tea were actually disguised as Native Americans http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShowThe US Senate Tea Party Class of 2010 & What is to done? @DavidMDrucker @JohnFund @ThadMcCotterTen Years AFTER!https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/tea-party-senate-2010-where-what-now ...more

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• 944: Kidnapped, imprisoned, tortured: ChinaDem.org protects the innocent @cburton001, @GordonGChang

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  Jan 05 2021

  Image: Freedom of speech in ancient Greece:   In 399 BC, Socrates went on trial and was subsequently found guilty of both corrupting the minds of the youth of Athens and of impiety (asebeia,"not believing in the gods of the state"). As punishment, he was sentenced to death: the drinking of a mixture containing poison hemlock.  Here:  The Death of Socrates, by Jacques-Louis David (1787) Charles Burton: @cburton001, blogs at RealityChek; and senior Fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, Centre for Advancing Canada's Interests Abroad; and Gordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re:  “U.S. and EU Condemn Jailing of Lawyer Who Reported on Coronavirus in Wuhan.  She was a lawyer. But when the coronavirus began raging in Wuhan, China, Zhang Zhan started reporting as a citizen journalist — offering a candid look at the situation on the ground. Then, after months of sharing videos and text updates on WeChat, Twitter and YouTube — the 37-year-old's social media feeds went dark in May. Authorities detained her, claiming she was spreading lies, according to The New York Times. And on Monday, she was sentenced to four years in prison. One of Zhang's attorneys said she was convicted of "picking quarrels and provoking trouble," according to The Associated Press. On Tuesday, the EU, U.K. and U.S. all expressed outrage at her imprisonment. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo demanded Zhang be released.” There’s growing evidence that the evolution of the virus is not entirely natural.  A lot of factors suggest that the notion of an animal producing the virus is increasingly less credible. Central leadership still refuses to let outsiders into the lab.  Chinese regime is using lawfare to [quash] dissidents.  Dozens of journalists in China have been detained as they investigated the origin of the virus.  They’re not intimidated, nor is the scientific community. ChinaDem.org    Clearinghouse of information on journalists’s being persecuted in China. Also could use donations. https://www.npr.org/2020/12/29/951258654/u-s-and-eu-condemn-jailing-of-lawyer-who-reported-on-coronavirus-in-wuhanhttps://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3115988/chinas-military-takes-charge-war-powers-new-defence-law ...more

  Episode

• 944: Jimmy Lai also buys ink by the barrel. @Michael_Yon, @GordonGChang,

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  Jan 05 2021

  Image: The distinguished publisher Jimmy Lai meeting with US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on the topic of Hong Kong's pro-democracy protest. October 2019. Michael Yon: @Michael_Yon, war correspondent;andGordon Chang, @GordonGChang, Daily Beast, in re:  Extreme aggression by the Mainland CCP government toward Hong Kong. Jimmy Lai, the most distinguished Hong Kong publisher, thrown in jail on invented charges.  Beijing doesn't want him talking; it’s a signal that anyone can be terrorized by the CCP. They kidnap people out of Thailand, do anything they want. Agnes Chao, 24 years old, is in a top security prison in solitary confinement, for “illegal assembly” in 2019. She’s threatened and brutalized for participating in one protest of June 2020. The CCP facial recognition technology and interception of communications.  “They're going full Tibet in Hong Kong.”  Xi Jinping thinks he can intimidate anyone. This insurrection may melt away momentarily but will return.  Jimmy Lai spoke out against Beijing when he had a lot to lose.  They cannot silence him; they can even kill him, but he will never [cave in].  The CCP knows it can't win a kinetic war in HK, so will widen the fight to Washington and other capitals. During the Biden campaign, they said they’d address human rights matters with China, incl Hong Kong. The HK insurrection have serious doubts about Biden.        In Portland, I visited the demonstrators in their [space]; they were visibly, heavily drugged.  https://www.foxnews.com/world/hong-kong-media-tycoon-jimmy-lais-bail-revoked https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/hongkong-agneschow-01012021125427.html...more

  Episode

• 944: Biden praises Austin’s withdrawal from Iraq. @thomasjoscelyn, @billroggio,

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  Jan 05 2021

  Image:  Iraqi Security Forces patrol the streets of Fallujah in a combined effort with US Marine Corps (USMC) Marines. US Marines engaged in Security and Stabilization Operations (SASO) during Operation IRAQI FREEDOM are currently training the Iraqi Security Forces to independently deter and detect insurgency throughout Iraq Tom Joscelyn, @thomasjoscelyn, Long War Journal and FDD; and Bill Roggio, @billroggio, Long War Journal and FDD;  podcast: Generation Jihad;   in re:  Senior al Q members in Iran. At the behest of the US, al Masri, the sub-emir of al Q, was killed by Israel. Obviously, al Qaeda has major operatives in Iran. Why does the US completely fail to see this?  Basic facts.     General Lloyd Austin, nominated to Secretary of Defense. Biden praises him for beginning the retreat from Iraq.   Military need to wait seven years before being appointed to a civilian post. Get rid of the waiver. ...more

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• 944: Even definitions of physical danger, such as Islamism, are forbidden. @thomasjoscelyn, @billroggio,

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  Jan 05 2021

  Image: Censorship, 1955.  Gift; Harris & Ewing, Inc. 1955. Tom Joscelyn, @thomasjoscelyn, Long War Journal and FDD; and Bill Roggio, @billroggio, Long War Journal and FDD; in re: Robin Simcox, director of the London-based Counter Extremism Group, on the ongoing jihadist threat in Europe and efforts to combat extremism in the U.K. and elsewhere.   Even the definition of “Islamism” and many other relevant words hasn't been accomplished.        Setting one group against another: US thinks it can use the Taliban to fight al Qaeda.  [Nutty.]  Secretary Pompeo in February 2020, said, “Taliban would destroy al Qaeda”!  From the beginning, the US never figured out what it was looking at.  Brits checked out of Afghanistan long ago....more

  Episode

• 943: 4/4 A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico, by Amy S. Greenberg

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  Jan 05 2021

  Image:  Mrs. James Knox Polk, half-length portrait, facing front. Currier & Ives : a catalogue raisonné / compiled by Gale Research. Detroit, MI : Gale Research, c1983, no. 3470.Lithograph after daguerreotype by John Plumbe.   A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico, by Amy S. Greenberg   Often forgotten and overlooked, the U.S.-Mexican War featured false starts, atrocities, and daring back-channel negotiations as it divided the nation, paved the way for the Civil War a generation later, and launched the career of Abraham Lincoln. Amy S. Greenberg’s skilled storytelling and rigorous scholarship bring this American war for empire to life with memorable characters, plotlines, and legacies.          When President James K. Polk compelled a divided Congress to support his war with Mexico, it was the first time that the young American nation would engage another republic in battle. Caught up in the conflict and the political furor surrounding it were Abraham Lincoln, then a new congressman; Polk, the dour president committed to territorial expansion at any cost; and Henry Clay, the aging statesman whose presidential hopes had been frustrated once again, but who still harbored influence and had one last great speech up his sleeve. Beyond these illustrious figures, A Wicked War follows several fascinating and long-neglected characters: Lincoln’s archrival John Hardin, whose death opened the door to Lincoln’s rise; Nicholas Trist, gentleman diplomat and secret negotiator, who broke with his president to negotiate a fair peace; and Polk’s wife, Sarah, whose shrewd politicking was crucial in the Oval Office.       This definitive history of the 1846 conflict paints an intimate portrait of the major players and their world. It is a story of Indian fights, Manifest Destiny, secret military maneuvers, gunshot wounds, and political spin. Along the way it captures a young Lincoln mismatching his clothes, the lasting influence of the Founding Fathers, the birth of the Daughters of the American Revolution, and America’s first national antiwar movement. A key chapter in the creation of the United States, it is the story of a burgeoning nation and an unforgettable conflict that has shaped American history.  https://www.amazon.com/Wicked-War-Lincoln-Invasion-Mexico-ebook/dp/B0082XLYX4/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=amy+greenberg&qid=1609809345&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 ...more

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• 943: 3/4 A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico, by Amy S. Greenberg

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  Jan 05 2021

  3/4   A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico, by Amy S. Greenberg   Image:   Henry Clay  A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico, by Amy S. Greenberg   Often forgotten and overlooked, the U.S.-Mexican War featured false starts, atrocities, and daring back-channel negotiations as it divided the nation, paved the way for the Civil War a generation later, and launched the career of Abraham Lincoln. Amy S. Greenberg’s skilled storytelling and rigorous scholarship bring this American war for empire to life with memorable characters, plotlines, and legacies.          When President James K. Polk compelled a divided Congress to support his war with Mexico, it was the first time that the young American nation would engage another republic in battle. Caught up in the conflict and the political furor surrounding it were Abraham Lincoln, then a new congressman; Polk, the dour president committed to territorial expansion at any cost; and Henry Clay, the aging statesman whose presidential hopes had been frustrated once again, but who still harbored influence and had one last great speech up his sleeve. Beyond these illustrious figures, A Wicked War follows several fascinating and long-neglected characters: Lincoln’s archrival John Hardin, whose death opened the door to Lincoln’s rise; Nicholas Trist, gentleman diplomat and secret negotiator, who broke with his president to negotiate a fair peace; and Polk’s wife, Sarah, whose shrewd politicking was crucial in the Oval Office.       This definitive history of the 1846 conflict paints an intimate portrait of the major players and their world. It is a story of Indian fights, Manifest Destiny, secret military maneuvers, gunshot wounds, and political spin. Along the way it captures a young Lincoln mismatching his clothes, the lasting influence of the Founding Fathers, the birth of the Daughters of the American Revolution, and America’s first national antiwar movement. A key chapter in the creation of the United States, it is the story of a burgeoning nation and an unforgettable conflict that has shaped American history.  https://www.amazon.com/Wicked-War-Lincoln-Invasion-Mexico-ebook/dp/B0082XLYX4/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=amy+greenberg&qid=1609809345&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 ..  .. ..  ...more

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• 942: 2/4 A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico, by Amy S. Greenberg

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  Jan 05 2021

  Image:  View of crowd with umbrellas, in front of platform on east portico of U.S. Capitol, where Chief Justice Roger B. Taney administers the oath of office to James K. Polk.Illus. in: The illustrated London news, v. 6, 1845 April 19, p. 244, bottom.  A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico, by Amy S. Greenberg   Often forgotten and overlooked, the U.S.-Mexican War featured false starts, atrocities, and daring back-channel negotiations as it divided the nation, paved the way for the Civil War a generation later, and launched the career of Abraham Lincoln. Amy S. Greenberg’s skilled storytelling and rigorous scholarship bring this American war for empire to life with memorable characters, plotlines, and legacies.          When President James K. Polk compelled a divided Congress to support his war with Mexico, it was the first time that the young American nation would engage another republic in battle. Caught up in the conflict and the political furor surrounding it were Abraham Lincoln, then a new congressman; Polk, the dour president committed to territorial expansion at any cost; and Henry Clay, the aging statesman whose presidential hopes had been frustrated once again, but who still harbored influence and had one last great speech up his sleeve. Beyond these illustrious figures, A Wicked War follows several fascinating and long-neglected characters: Lincoln’s archrival John Hardin, whose death opened the door to Lincoln’s rise; Nicholas Trist, gentleman diplomat and secret negotiator, who broke with his president to negotiate a fair peace; and Polk’s wife, Sarah, whose shrewd politicking was crucial in the Oval Office.       This definitive history of the 1846 conflict paints an intimate portrait of the major players and their world. It is a story of Indian fights, Manifest Destiny, secret military maneuvers, gunshot wounds, and political spin. Along the way it captures a young Lincoln mismatching his clothes, the lasting influence of the Founding Fathers, the birth of the Daughters of the American Revolution, and America’s first national antiwar movement. A key chapter in the creation of the United States, it is the story of a burgeoning nation and an unforgettable conflict that has shaped American history.  https://www.amazon.com/Wicked-War-Lincoln-Invasion-Mexico-ebook/dp/B0082XLYX4/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=amy+greenberg&qid=1609809345&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 ..  .. ..  ...more

  Episode

• 941: 1/4 A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico, by Amy S. Greenberg

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  Jan 05 2021

  Image:   Map shewing the movements of the U.S. Army now engaged in the conquest of Mexico : exhibiting the probable routes of the army from its departure from Comargo to Monterey, Satillo &c. ... /  A Wicked War: Polk, Clay, Lincoln, and the 1846 U.S. Invasion of Mexico, by Amy S. Greenberg   Often forgotten and overlooked, the U.S.-Mexican War featured false starts, atrocities, and daring back-channel negotiations as it divided the nation, paved the way for the Civil War a generation later, and launched the career of Abraham Lincoln. Amy S. Greenberg’s skilled storytelling and rigorous scholarship bring this American war for empire to life with memorable characters, plotlines, and legacies.          When President James K. Polk compelled a divided Congress to support his war with Mexico, it was the first time that the young American nation would engage another republic in battle. Caught up in the conflict and the political furor surrounding it were Abraham Lincoln, then a new congressman; Polk, the dour president committed to territorial expansion at any cost; and Henry Clay, the aging statesman whose presidential hopes had been frustrated once again, but who still harbored influence and had one last great speech up his sleeve. Beyond these illustrious figures, A Wicked War follows several fascinating and long-neglected characters: Lincoln’s archrival John Hardin, whose death opened the door to Lincoln’s rise; Nicholas Trist, gentleman diplomat and secret negotiator, who broke with his president to negotiate a fair peace; and Polk’s wife, Sarah, whose shrewd politicking was crucial in the Oval Office.       This definitive history of the 1846 conflict paints an intimate portrait of the major players and their world. It is a story of Indian fights, Manifest Destiny, secret military maneuvers, gunshot wounds, and political spin. Along the way it captures a young Lincoln mismatching his clothes, the lasting influence of the Founding Fathers, the birth of the Daughters of the American Revolution, and America’s first national antiwar movement. A key chapter in the creation of the United States, it is the story of a burgeoning nation and an unforgettable conflict that has shaped American history.  https://www.amazon.com/Wicked-War-Lincoln-Invasion-Mexico-ebook/dp/B0082XLYX4/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=amy+greenberg&qid=1609809345&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 ..  .. ..  ...more

  Episode

• 939: Soccer Men: 2of2: Profiles of the Rogues, Geniuses, and Neurotics Who Dominate the World's Most Popular Sport Kindle Edition. by Simon Kuper (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo:  Brazil's first match at home against Exeter City in 1914. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Soccer Men: 2of2: Profiles of the Rogues, Geniuses, and Neurotics Who Dominate the World's Most Popular Sport Kindle Edition. by Simon Kuper  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Soccer-Men-Profiles-Geniuses-Neurotics-ebook/dp/B00HTQ322G/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=simon+kuper+soccer+men&qid=1609724282&s=digital-text&sr=1-1Simon Kuper's New York Times bestseller Soccernomics pioneered a new way of looking at soccer through meticulous empirical analysis and incisive -- and witty -- commentary. Kuper now leaves the numbers and data behind to explore the heart and soul of the world's most popular sport in the new, extraordinarily revealing Soccer Men.Soccer Men goes behind the scenes with soccer's greatest players and coaches. Inquiring into the genius and hubris of the modern game, Kuper details the lives of giants such as Arsÿ Wenger, Jose Mourinho, Jorge Valdano, Lionel Messi, Kakáand Didier Drogba, describing their upbringings, the soccer cultures they grew up in, the way they play, and the baggage they bring to their relationships at work.From one of the great sportswriters of our time, Soccer Men is a penetrating and surprising anatomy of the figures that define modern soccer....more

  Episode

• 939: Soccer Men: 1of2: Profiles of the Rogues, Geniuses, and Neurotics Who Dominate the World's Most Popular Sport Kindle Edition. by Simon Kuper (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo: Hong Kong football (soccer) team http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Soccer Men: 1of2: Profiles of the Rogues, Geniuses, and Neurotics Who Dominate the World's Most Popular Sport Kindle Edition. by Simon Kuper  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Soccer-Men-Profiles-Geniuses-Neurotics-ebook/dp/B00HTQ322G/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=simon+kuper+soccer+men&qid=1609724282&s=digital-text&sr=1-1Simon Kuper's New York Times bestseller Soccernomics pioneered a new way of looking at soccer through meticulous empirical analysis and incisive -- and witty -- commentary. Kuper now leaves the numbers and data behind to explore the heart and soul of the world's most popular sport in the new, extraordinarily revealing Soccer Men.Soccer Men goes behind the scenes with soccer's greatest players and coaches. Inquiring into the genius and hubris of the modern game, Kuper details the lives of giants such as Arsÿ Wenger, Jose Mourinho, Jorge Valdano, Lionel Messi, Kakáand Didier Drogba, describing their upbringings, the soccer cultures they grew up in, the way they play, and the baggage they bring to their relationships at work.From one of the great sportswriters of our time, Soccer Men is a penetrating and surprising anatomy of the figures that define modern soccer....more

  Episode

• 938: Spies Against Armageddon: 2of2: -- Inside Israel's Secret Wars: Updated & Revised 2nd Edition, Kindle Edition.by Dan Raviv (Author), Yossi Melman (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo: Return of the Spies, 1860 woodcut by Julius Schnorr von KarolsfeldAccording to Numbers 13, Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, was one of the twelve spies sent by Moses into Canaan. Their task, over a period of 40 days,[3] was to explore the Negev and surrounding area, and to make an assessment of the geographical features of the land, the strength and numbers of the population, the agricultural potential and actual performance of the land, settlement patterns (whether their cities were like camps or strongholds), and forestry onditions.. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Spies Against Armageddon: 2of2: -- Inside Israel's Secret Wars: Updated & Revised 2nd Edition, Kindle Edition.by Dan Raviv  (Author), Yossi Melman  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Against-Armageddon-Inside-Israels-Secret-ebook/dp/B00ISCGZRY/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=armageddon+dan+raviv&qid=1609717242&s=digital-text&sr=1-1Shedding light on tumultuous events in Syria, Iran, and the entire Middle East, SPIES AGAINST ARMAGEDDON: INSIDE ISRAEL'S SECRET WARS covers more ground than any other book about modern-day Israel. Its 25 action-packed chapters and detailed endnotes are filled with colorful characters, who risk their lives and reputations in the secret service of their nation. This is a history of Israel's espionage and security network from 1948 until the present day, written by the best selling authors of EVERY SPY A PRINCE: THE COMPLETE HISTORY OF ISRAEL'S INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY. This book takes you inside the Middle East crises of today, analyzing Iran's nuclear program and challenges for the United States. The authors also examined U.S.-Israeli relations in FRIENDS IN DEED. Dan Raviv is a TV correspondent in Washington for i24NEWS after reporting overseas for CBS News, and Yossi Melman is an award-winning Israeli reporter and columnist based in Tel Aviv. They have a global reputation for being fair and balanced, without exaggeration about Israel's covert achievements -- and some flaws -- in the defense of a nation that always sees itself as embattled. Chapter 1 of SPIES AGAINST ARMAGEDDON is titled "Stopping Iran," then come chapters with exclusive and carefully considered history -- showing how the behavior and lessons learned in wars and adventures affect the decisions Israel must make today. Later chapters focus on the secret bombing of a nuclear reactor in Syria, the murder by a Mossad team in a Dubai hotel (Was it a mistake?), and blasting the Steven Spielberg movie "Munich" for making it look like Mossad hit men suffered frustration and regrets. SPIES AGAINST ARMAGEDDON is well researched, balanced, and a remarkably enjoyable read....more

  Episode

• 938: Spies Against Armageddon: 1of2: -- Inside Israel's Secret Wars: Updated & Revised 2nd Edition, Kindle Edition.by Dan Raviv (Author), Yossi Melman (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo: The Grapes of Canaan by James Tissot. Although the spies brought back a cluster of grapes so large that it took two men to carry it (Numbers 13:23), only two of the twelve brought back a good report of the land. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Spies Against Armageddon: 1of2: -- Inside Israel's Secret Wars: Updated & Revised 2nd Edition, Kindle Edition.by Dan Raviv  (Author), Yossi Melman  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Against-Armageddon-Inside-Israels-Secret-ebook/dp/B00ISCGZRY/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=armageddon+dan+raviv&qid=1609717242&s=digital-text&sr=1-1Shedding light on tumultuous events in Syria, Iran, and the entire Middle East, SPIES AGAINST ARMAGEDDON: INSIDE ISRAEL'S SECRET WARS covers more ground than any other book about modern-day Israel. Its 25 action-packed chapters and detailed endnotes are filled with colorful characters, who risk their lives and reputations in the secret service of their nation. This is a history of Israel's espionage and security network from 1948 until the present day, written by the best selling authors of EVERY SPY A PRINCE: THE COMPLETE HISTORY OF ISRAEL'S INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY. This book takes you inside the Middle East crises of today, analyzing Iran's nuclear program and challenges for the United States. The authors also examined U.S.-Israeli relations in FRIENDS IN DEED. Dan Raviv is a TV correspondent in Washington for i24NEWS after reporting overseas for CBS News, and Yossi Melman is an award-winning Israeli reporter and columnist based in Tel Aviv. They have a global reputation for being fair and balanced, without exaggeration about Israel's covert achievements -- and some flaws -- in the defense of a nation that always sees itself as embattled. Chapter 1 of SPIES AGAINST ARMAGEDDON is titled "Stopping Iran," then come chapters with exclusive and carefully considered history -- showing how the behavior and lessons learned in wars and adventures affect the decisions Israel must make today. Later chapters focus on the secret bombing of a nuclear reactor in Syria, the murder by a Mossad team in a Dubai hotel (Was it a mistake?), and blasting the Steven Spielberg movie "Munich" for making it look like Mossad hit men suffered frustration and regrets. SPIES AGAINST ARMAGEDDON is well researched, balanced, and a remarkably enjoyable read....more

  Episode

• 938: Future Tense: 2of2: The Lessons of Culture in an Age of Upheaval Kindle Edition. by Roger Kimball (Author, Editor) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo: The golden age of Greek cultural history http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Future Tense: 2of2: The Lessons of Culture in an Age of Upheaval Kindle Edition. by Roger Kimball  (Author, Editor)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Future-Tense-Lessons-Culture-Upheaval-ebook/dp/B00A2X9HGI/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=roger+kimball+future+tense&qid=1609716936&s=digital-text&sr=1-1We are living in an age of unprecedented upheaval. The future of Western culture is uncertain. America’s economic and political vitality are more fragile than ever. The preservation of tradition is far from guaranteed.Many have observed that we are living through a world historical moment of which Hegel spoke: a time when many of the traditional assumptions about the shape and future of culture are suddenly in play. As The New Criterion embarks on its fourth decade of publication, the magazine commemorates its commitment to the civilizing values of informed criticism with the publication of Future Tense: The Lessons of Culture in an Age of Upheaval.Compiling the writings of some of the greatest essayists of our time, Future Tense examines this pivotal period through a variety of lenses. Beginning with a meditation on memorials after the 9/11 attacks (Michael J. Lewis), the essays address patriotism in relation to Pericles (Victor Davis Hanson), twenty-first century American pride and leadership (Andrew Roberts), the future of religion in America (David Bentley Hart), and the unwinding of the welfare state (Kevin D. Williamson). Continuing this arc, pieces examine self-knowledge and modern technology (Anthony Daniels), the cultural capital of museums (James Panero), and the difficulties of making law in the modern world (Andrew C. McCarthy). In its penultimate essay, the book explores the possibility of a forthcoming political revolution (James Piereson), then closes with a reflection of culture’s role in the economy of life and the fragility of civilization (Roger Kimball)....more

  Episode

• 938: Future Tense: 1of2: The Lessons of Culture in an Age of Upheaval Kindle Edition. by Roger Kimball (Author, Editor) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo:  Friedrich Hegel http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Future Tense: 1of2: The Lessons of Culture in an Age of Upheaval Kindle Edition. by Roger Kimball  (Author, Editor)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Future-Tense-Lessons-Culture-Upheaval-ebook/dp/B00A2X9HGI/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=roger+kimball+future+tense&qid=1609716936&s=digital-text&sr=1-1We are living in an age of unprecedented upheaval. The future of Western culture is uncertain. America’s economic and political vitality are more fragile than ever. The preservation of tradition is far from guaranteed.Many have observed that we are living through a world historical moment of which Hegel spoke: a time when many of the traditional assumptions about the shape and future of culture are suddenly in play. As The New Criterion embarks on its fourth decade of publication, the magazine commemorates its commitment to the civilizing values of informed criticism with the publication of Future Tense: The Lessons of Culture in an Age of Upheaval.Compiling the writings of some of the greatest essayists of our time, Future Tense examines this pivotal period through a variety of lenses. Beginning with a meditation on memorials after the 9/11 attacks (Michael J. Lewis), the essays address patriotism in relation to Pericles (Victor Davis Hanson), twenty-first century American pride and leadership (Andrew Roberts), the future of religion in America (David Bentley Hart), and the unwinding of the welfare state (Kevin D. Williamson). Continuing this arc, pieces examine self-knowledge and modern technology (Anthony Daniels), the cultural capital of museums (James Panero), and the difficulties of making law in the modern world (Andrew C. McCarthy). In its penultimate essay, the book explores the possibility of a forthcoming political revolution (James Piereson), then closes with a reflection of culture’s role in the economy of life and the fragility of civilization (Roger Kimball)....more

  Episode

• 937: The Fourteenth Day: 4of4: JFK and the Aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis: Based on the Secret White House Tapes,n. by David Coleman. Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo: The Day After.   Cuban Missile Crisis: The Aftermath, also known as The Day After: Fight for Promised Land and known in Russia as Caribbean Crisis (Russian: Карибский кризис), is a real-time tactics computer game published by 1C Company in Russia, Black Bean in Europe and Strategy First in United States. It was made using Nival Interactive's Enigma engine and is similar to Blitzkrieg. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Fourteenth Day: 4of4: JFK and the Aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis: Based on the Secret White House TapesKindle Edition. by David Coleman (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Fourteenth-Day-Aftermath-Missile-Crisis-ebook/dp/B0097MB4CK/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=David+Coleman+the+fourteenth+day&qid=1609715817&s=digital-text&sr=1-1Popular history marks October 28, 1962, as the end of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Yet as JFK’s secretly recorded White House tapes reveal, the aftermath of the crisis was a political and diplomatic minefield. The president had to push hard to get Khrushchev to remove Soviet weaponry from Cuba without reigniting the volatile situation, while also tackling midterm elections and press controversy. With a new preface that highlights recently declassified information, historian David G. Coleman puts readers in the Oval Office during the turning point of Kennedy’s presidency and the watershed of the Cold War....more

  Episode

• 937: The Fourteenth Day: 3of4: JFK and the Aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis: Based on the Secret White House Tapes. by David Coleman. Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo: More than 100 US-built missiles having the capability to strike Moscow with nuclear warheads were deployed in Italy and Turkey in 1961 http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Fourteenth Day: 3of4: JFK and the Aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis: Based on the Secret White House TapesKindle Edition. by David Coleman (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Fourteenth-Day-Aftermath-Missile-Crisis-ebook/dp/B0097MB4CK/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=David+Coleman+the+fourteenth+day&qid=1609715817&s=digital-text&sr=1-1Popular history marks October 28, 1962, as the end of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Yet as JFK’s secretly recorded White House tapes reveal, the aftermath of the crisis was a political and diplomatic minefield. The president had to push hard to get Khrushchev to remove Soviet weaponry from Cuba without reigniting the volatile situation, while also tackling midterm elections and press controversy. With a new preface that highlights recently declassified information, historian David G. Coleman puts readers in the Oval Office during the turning point of Kennedy’s presidency and the watershed of the Cold War....more

  Episode

• 937: The Fourteenth Day: 2of4: JFK and the Aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis: Based on the Secret White House Tapes. by David Coleman. Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo:  A US Navy P-2H Neptune of VP-18 flying over a Soviet cargo ship with crated Il-28s on deck during the Cuban Crisis. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Fourteenth Day: 2of4: JFK and the Aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis: Based on the Secret White House TapesKindle Edition. by David Coleman (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Fourteenth-Day-Aftermath-Missile-Crisis-ebook/dp/B0097MB4CK/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=David+Coleman+the+fourteenth+day&qid=1609715817&s=digital-text&sr=1-1Popular history marks October 28, 1962, as the end of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Yet as JFK’s secretly recorded White House tapes reveal, the aftermath of the crisis was a political and diplomatic minefield. The president had to push hard to get Khrushchev to remove Soviet weaponry from Cuba without reigniting the volatile situation, while also tackling midterm elections and press controversy. With a new preface that highlights recently declassified information, historian David G. Coleman puts readers in the Oval Office during the turning point of Kennedy’s presidency and the watershed of the Cold War....more

  Episode

• 940: The Fourteenth Day: 1of4: JFK and the Aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis: Based on the Secret White House Tapes, by David Coleman.: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo:  CIA reference photograph of Soviet medium-range ballistic missile (SS-4 in U.S. documents, R-12 in Soviet documents) in Red Square, Moscow. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Fourteenth Day: 1of4: JFK and the Aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis: Based on the Secret White House TapesKindle Edition. by David Coleman (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Fourteenth-Day-Aftermath-Missile-Crisis-ebook/dp/B0097MB4CK/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=David+Coleman+the+fourteenth+day&qid=1609715817&s=digital-text&sr=1-1Popular history marks October 28, 1962, as the end of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Yet as JFK’s secretly recorded White House tapes reveal, the aftermath of the crisis was a political and diplomatic minefield. The president had to push hard to get Khrushchev to remove Soviet weaponry from Cuba without reigniting the volatile situation, while also tackling midterm elections and press controversy. With a new preface that highlights recently declassified information, historian David G. Coleman puts readers in the Oval Office during the turning point of Kennedy’s presidency and the watershed of the Cold War....more

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• 937: The Last Days of Kim Jong-il: 4of4: Kindle Edition. by Bruce Bechtol (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo:   Dr Norbert Vollertsen is a German physician and human rights activist who practiced medicine in North Korea from 1999 to 2001 with the Cap Anamur Committee, a non-governmental cooperation organization.  In August 1999, he and Francois Large, another aid worker, donated their skin to Pak Jong Thae, a tractor factory worker in Haeju, South Hwanghae, who had suffered burns over three-quarters of his body and underwent three skin grafting operations. In recognition of his contribution, Vollertsen received the official Democratic People's Republic of Korea's Friendship Medal for his humanitarian assistance later that same month, in a ceremony attended by Supreme People's Assembly vice-president Yang Hyong Sop. He was also given a pass that allowed him to travel through the country freely, which was very unusual—almost unique—for a foreigner.       As he traveled in his capacity as an emergency physician, tending to the illnesses and injuries of common North Koreans in the countryside, he struggled with a nearly non-existent healthcare system, abject poverty and growing proof of a network of political prisons in North Korea that enforced the flow of wealth from the citizenry to the Pyongyang-based Korean People's Army and the Workers' Party of Korea which was then headed by Kim Jong-il. Using smuggled cameras, he obtained photos and films of flagrant, large-scale human rights violations in North Korea. In particular, mass starvation was used as a tool of political control. He began collecting evidence of abuses, which he passed to a visiting United States Congress man, an act for which he was put under surveillance. Despite this Vollertsen continued to speak out against the North Korean government, which soon lost patience and forced him to leave North Korea in January 2001. Soon after returning home, he gave an interview about his experiences in North Korea, which the North Korean government denounced. He now is followed worldwide by DPRK security, who have made clear that they intend to kill him. He usually stays no more than one night in any abode; is basically on the run. Has sworn to spend the rest of his life publicizing the terrifying nature of the North Korean regime. Here: in the early 2000s, on one of his rare visits to New York, near the UN.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Last Days of Kim Jong-il: 4of4:  Kindle Edition. by Bruce Bechtol (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Last-Days-Kim-Jong-ebook/dp/B00DIFHVMY/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=the+last+days+of+kim+jong+il&qid=1609716563&s=digital-text&sr=1-1North Korea has remained a thorn in the side of the United States ever since its creation in the aftermath of the Korean conflict of 1950û1953. Crafting a foreign policy that effectively deals with North Korea, while still ensuring stability and security on the Korean Peninsulaùand in Northeast Asia as a wholeùhas proved very challenging for successive American administrations. In the wake of ruler Kim Jong-ilÆs death in December 2011, analysts and policymakers continue to speculate about the effect his last years as leader will have on the future of North Korea. Bruce Bechtol, Jr. contends that Kim Jong-ilÆs regime (1994û2011) exacerbated the threats that North Korea posed, and still poses, to the world. Bechtol explains how North Korea presents important challenges on five key fronts: its evolving conventional military threat, its strategy in the Northern Limit Line (NLL) area, its nuclear capabilities, its support for terrorism, and its handling of the succession process. BechtolÆs analysis clears up the persistent mystery of how Kim Jong-ilÆs dysfunctional government in its final years was able to persist in power while both presenting a grave danger to its neighbors and setting the stage for the current government. This work addresses issues important for policymakers and academics who must deal with those in power in North Korea....more

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• 937: The Last Days of Kim Jong-il: 3of4: Kindle Edition. by Bruce Bechtol (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo: South Korean aid convoy entering North Korea through the Demilitarized Zone, 1998.  Regrettably, much foreign aid is immediately stolen by the tiny elite and sold for profit domestically or internationally. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Last Days of Kim Jong-il: 3of4:  Kindle Edition. by Bruce Bechtol (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Last-Days-Kim-Jong-ebook/dp/B00DIFHVMY/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=the+last+days+of+kim+jong+il&qid=1609716563&s=digital-text&sr=1-1North Korea has remained a thorn in the side of the United States ever since its creation in the aftermath of the Korean conflict of 1950û1953. Crafting a foreign policy that effectively deals with North Korea, while still ensuring stability and security on the Korean Peninsulaùand in Northeast Asia as a wholeùhas proved very challenging for successive American administrations. In the wake of ruler Kim Jong-ilÆs death in December 2011, analysts and policymakers continue to speculate about the effect his last years as leader will have on the future of North Korea. Bruce Bechtol, Jr. contends that Kim Jong-ilÆs regime (1994û2011) exacerbated the threats that North Korea posed, and still poses, to the world. Bechtol explains how North Korea presents important challenges on five key fronts: its evolving conventional military threat, its strategy in the Northern Limit Line (NLL) area, its nuclear capabilities, its support for terrorism, and its handling of the succession process. BechtolÆs analysis clears up the persistent mystery of how Kim Jong-ilÆs dysfunctional government in its final years was able to persist in power while both presenting a grave danger to its neighbors and setting the stage for the current government. This work addresses issues important for policymakers and academics who must deal with those in power in North Korea....more

  Episode

• 937: The Last Days of Kim Jong-il: 2of4: Kindle Edition. by Bruce Bechtol (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo: Shoulder boards for the rank of taewŏnsu. Grand Marshal http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Last Days of Kim Jong-il: 2of4:  Kindle Edition. by Bruce Bechtol (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Last-Days-Kim-Jong-ebook/dp/B00DIFHVMY/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=the+last+days+of+kim+jong+il&qid=1609716563&s=digital-text&sr=1-1North Korea has remained a thorn in the side of the United States ever since its creation in the aftermath of the Korean conflict of 1950û1953. Crafting a foreign policy that effectively deals with North Korea, while still ensuring stability and security on the Korean Peninsulaùand in Northeast Asia as a wholeùhas proved very challenging for successive American administrations. In the wake of ruler Kim Jong-ilÆs death in December 2011, analysts and policymakers continue to speculate about the effect his last years as leader will have on the future of North Korea. Bruce Bechtol, Jr. contends that Kim Jong-ilÆs regime (1994û2011) exacerbated the threats that North Korea posed, and still poses, to the world. Bechtol explains how North Korea presents important challenges on five key fronts: its evolving conventional military threat, its strategy in the Northern Limit Line (NLL) area, its nuclear capabilities, its support for terrorism, and its handling of the succession process. BechtolÆs analysis clears up the persistent mystery of how Kim Jong-ilÆs dysfunctional government in its final years was able to persist in power while both presenting a grave danger to its neighbors and setting the stage for the current government. This work addresses issues important for policymakers and academics who must deal with those in power in North Korea....more

  Episode

• 937: The Last Days of Kim Jong-il: 1of4: Kindle Edition. by Bruce Bechtol (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

  Listen

  Jan 04 2021

  Photo: Kim Jong-il, official photograph. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Last Days of Kim Jong-il: 1of4:  Kindle Edition. by Bruce Bechtol (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Last-Days-Kim-Jong-ebook/dp/B00DIFHVMY/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=the+last+days+of+kim+jong+il&qid=1609716563&s=digital-text&sr=1-1North Korea has remained a thorn in the side of the United States ever since its creation in the aftermath of the Korean conflict of 1950û1953. Crafting a foreign policy that effectively deals with North Korea, while still ensuring stability and security on the Korean Peninsulaùand in Northeast Asia as a wholeùhas proved very challenging for successive American administrations. In the wake of ruler Kim Jong-ilÆs death in December 2011, analysts and policymakers continue to speculate about the effect his last years as leader will have on the future of North Korea. Bruce Bechtol, Jr. contends that Kim Jong-ilÆs regime (1994û2011) exacerbated the threats that North Korea posed, and still poses, to the world. Bechtol explains how North Korea presents important challenges on five key fronts: its evolving conventional military threat, its strategy in the Northern Limit Line (NLL) area, its nuclear capabilities, its support for terrorism, and its handling of the succession process. BechtolÆs analysis clears up the persistent mystery of how Kim Jong-ilÆs dysfunctional government in its final years was able to persist in power while both presenting a grave danger to its neighbors and setting the stage for the current government. This work addresses issues important for policymakers and academics who must deal with those in power in North Korea....more

  Episode

• 937: The Fiddler on Pantico Run: 4of4: An African Warrior, His White Descendants, A Search for Family Kindle Edition.by Joe Mozingo (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo: Xhosha is one of the Bantu languages,   Here:  Combatants of the 8th Xhosa war defending a position in the Water Kloof during the second year of the war, 1851. Xhosa, Kat River Khoi-khoi and some army deserters are depicted.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Fiddler on Pantico Run: 4of4: An African Warrior, His White Descendants, A Search for Family Kindle Edition.by Joe Mozingo  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Fiddler-Pantico-Run-African-Descendants-ebook/dp/B007EDOT6M/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=pantico+run&qid=1609716322&s=digital-text&sr=1-1“My dad’s family was a mystery,” writes journalist Joe Mozingo, having grown up with only rumors about where his father’s family was from—Italy, France, the Basque Country. But when a college professor told the blue-eyed Californian that his family name may have come from sub-Saharan Africa, Mozingo set out on an epic journey to uncover the truth. He soon discovered that all Mozingos in America, including his father’s line, appeared to have descended from a black man named Edward Mozingo who was brought to America as a slave in 1644 and, after winning his freedom twenty-eight years later, became a tenant tobacco farmer, married a white woman, and fathered one of the country’s earliest mixed-race family lineages.Tugging at the buried thread of his origins, Joe Mozingo has unearthed a saga that encompasses the full sweep of America’s history and lays bare the country’s tortured and paradoxical experience with race. Haunting and beautiful, Mozingo’s memoir paints a world where the lines based on color are both illusory and life altering. He traces his family line from the ravages of the slave trade to the mixed-race society of colonial Virginia and through the brutal imposition of racial laws....more

  Episode

• 937: The Fiddler on Pantico Run: 3of4: An African Warrior, His White Descendants, A Search for Family Kindle Edition.by Joe Mozingo (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo: 1.    Bill Hensley, Mountain Fiddler, Asheville, North Carolinahttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Fiddler on Pantico Run: 3of4: An African Warrior, His White Descendants, A Search for Family Kindle Edition.by Joe Mozingo  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Fiddler-Pantico-Run-African-Descendants-ebook/dp/B007EDOT6M/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=pantico+run&qid=1609716322&s=digital-text&sr=1-1“My dad’s family was a mystery,” writes journalist Joe Mozingo, having grown up with only rumors about where his father’s family was from—Italy, France, the Basque Country. But when a college professor told the blue-eyed Californian that his family name may have come from sub-Saharan Africa, Mozingo set out on an epic journey to uncover the truth. He soon discovered that all Mozingos in America, including his father’s line, appeared to have descended from a black man named Edward Mozingo who was brought to America as a slave in 1644 and, after winning his freedom twenty-eight years later, became a tenant tobacco farmer, married a white woman, and fathered one of the country’s earliest mixed-race family lineages.Tugging at the buried thread of his origins, Joe Mozingo has unearthed a saga that encompasses the full sweep of America’s history and lays bare the country’s tortured and paradoxical experience with race. Haunting and beautiful, Mozingo’s memoir paints a world where the lines based on color are both illusory and life altering. He traces his family line from the ravages of the slave trade to the mixed-race society of colonial Virginia and through the brutal imposition of racial laws....more

  Episode

• 937: The Fiddler on Pantico Run: 2of4: An African Warrior, His White Descendants, A Search for Family Kindle Edition.by Joe Mozingo (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

  Listen

  Jan 04 2021

  Photo:  View of the Rappahannock River in Virginia, at sunset. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Fiddler on Pantico Run: 2of4: An African Warrior, His White Descendants, A Search for Family Kindle Edition.by Joe Mozingo  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Fiddler-Pantico-Run-African-Descendants-ebook/dp/B007EDOT6M/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=pantico+run&qid=1609716322&s=digital-text&sr=1-1“My dad’s family was a mystery,” writes journalist Joe Mozingo, having grown up with only rumors about where his father’s family was from—Italy, France, the Basque Country. But when a college professor told the blue-eyed Californian that his family name may have come from sub-Saharan Africa, Mozingo set out on an epic journey to uncover the truth. He soon discovered that all Mozingos in America, including his father’s line, appeared to have descended from a black man named Edward Mozingo who was brought to America as a slave in 1644 and, after winning his freedom twenty-eight years later, became a tenant tobacco farmer, married a white woman, and fathered one of the country’s earliest mixed-race family lineages.Tugging at the buried thread of his origins, Joe Mozingo has unearthed a saga that encompasses the full sweep of America’s history and lays bare the country’s tortured and paradoxical experience with race. Haunting and beautiful, Mozingo’s memoir paints a world where the lines based on color are both illusory and life altering. He traces his family line from the ravages of the slave trade to the mixed-race society of colonial Virginia and through the brutal imposition of racial laws....more

  Episode

• 937: The Fiddler on Pantico Run: 1of4: An African Warrior, His White Descendants, A Search for Family Kindle Edition.by Joe Mozingo (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

  Listen

  Jan 04 2021

  Photo:   Joe Mozingo tweets:  “No surviving this.” http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Fiddler on Pantico Run: 1of4: An African Warrior, His White Descendants, A Search for Family Kindle Edition.by Joe Mozingo  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Fiddler-Pantico-Run-African-Descendants-ebook/dp/B007EDOT6M/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=pantico+run&qid=1609716322&s=digital-text&sr=1-1“My dad’s family was a mystery,” writes journalist Joe Mozingo, having grown up with only rumors about where his father’s family was from—Italy, France, the Basque Country. But when a college professor told the blue-eyed Californian that his family name may have come from sub-Saharan Africa, Mozingo set out on an epic journey to uncover the truth. He soon discovered that all Mozingos in America, including his father’s line, appeared to have descended from a black man named Edward Mozingo who was brought to America as a slave in 1644 and, after winning his freedom twenty-eight years later, became a tenant tobacco farmer, married a white woman, and fathered one of the country’s earliest mixed-race family lineages.Tugging at the buried thread of his origins, Joe Mozingo has unearthed a saga that encompasses the full sweep of America’s history and lays bare the country’s tortured and paradoxical experience with race. Haunting and beautiful, Mozingo’s memoir paints a world where the lines based on color are both illusory and life altering. He traces his family line from the ravages of the slave trade to the mixed-race society of colonial Virginia and through the brutal imposition of racial laws....more

  Episode

• 939: Six Essential Elements of Leadership: 4of4: A Marine Corps Wisdom of a Medal of Honor Recipient (Leatherneck Original)Kindle Edition.by Wesley L. Fox (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 04 2021

  Photo:   Continental Marines land at New Providence during the Battle of Nassau. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Six Essential Elements of Leadership: 4of4: A Marine Corps Wisdom of a Medal of Honor Recipient (Leatherneck Original)Kindle Edition.by Wesley L. Fox  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Six-Essential-Elements-Leadership-Leatherneck-ebook/dp/B005N93G54/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=wesley+fox+marine+corps&qid=1609716036&s=digital-text&sr=1-2Col. Wesley Fox is a Medal of Honor recipient who wrote two widely respected accounts of his wartime experiences in the Marine Corps. His books, Marine Rifleman: Forty-Three Years in the Corps and Courage and Fear: A Primer, are both considered classic war memoirs.Drawing on over four decades of leadership experience, both during two wars and peacetime, Fox insists that a good leader must focus on building an organization based on the bonds of comradeship. Successful leaders are those who are actively concerned with the health, happiness, and daily lives of those who follow them. He contends that those who have such leaders will be better prepared to cope with any challenge because they are part of a group built on loyalty and trust.Fox defines the six essential elements of successful leadership as care, personality, knowledge, motivation, commitment, and communication. He presents a chapter on each element, recounts how his views of leadership were forged, and offers impressive examples of leadership displayed by his fellow Marines. While drawn directly from his military experience, Fox contends that these six elements apply to all who want to pursue effective leadership. His book is certain to inspire and motivate both civilians and members of the military....more

  Episode

• 939: Six Essential Elements of Leadership: 3of4: A Marine Corps Wisdom of a Medal of Honor Recipient (Leatherneck Original) Kindle Editio, by Wesley L. Fox.

  Listen

  Jan 04 2021

  Photo:  A US Marine Sergeant-Major. Top of the line military.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Six Essential Elements of Leadership: 3of4: A Marine Corps Wisdom of a Medal of Honor Recipient (Leatherneck Original)Kindle Edition.by Wesley L. Fox  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Six-Essential-Elements-Leadership-Leatherneck-ebook/dp/B005N93G54/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=wesley+fox+marine+corps&qid=1609716036&s=digital-text&sr=1-2Col. Wesley Fox is a Medal of Honor recipient who wrote two widely respected accounts of his wartime experiences in the Marine Corps. His books, Marine Rifleman: Forty-Three Years in the Corps and Courage and Fear: A Primer, are both considered classic war memoirs.Drawing on over four decades of leadership experience, both during two wars and peacetime, Fox insists that a good leader must focus on building an organization based on the bonds of comradeship. Successful leaders are those who are actively concerned with the health, happiness, and daily lives of those who follow them. He contends that those who have such leaders will be better prepared to cope with any challenge because they are part of a group built on loyalty and trust.Fox defines the six essential elements of successful leadership as care, personality, knowledge, motivation, commitment, and communication. He presents a chapter on each element, recounts how his views of leadership were forged, and offers impressive examples of leadership displayed by his fellow Marines. While drawn directly from his military experience, Fox contends that these six elements apply to all who want to pursue effective leadership. His book is certain to inspire and motivate both civilians and members of the military....more

  Episode

• 937: Six Essential Elements of Leadership: 2of4: A Marine Corps Wisdom of a Medal of Honor Recipient (Leatherneck Original)Kindle Edition.by Wesley L. Fox (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

  Listen

  Jan 04 2021

  Photo:   Lieutenant Presley O'Bannon at Derna, April 1805 http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Six Essential Elements of Leadership: 2of4: A Marine Corps Wisdom of a Medal of Honor Recipient (Leatherneck Original)Kindle Edition.by Wesley L. Fox  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Six-Essential-Elements-Leadership-Leatherneck-ebook/dp/B005N93G54/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=wesley+fox+marine+corps&qid=1609716036&s=digital-text&sr=1-2Col. Wesley Fox is a Medal of Honor recipient who wrote two widely respected accounts of his wartime experiences in the Marine Corps. His books, Marine Rifleman: Forty-Three Years in the Corps and Courage and Fear: A Primer, are both considered classic war memoirs.Drawing on over four decades of leadership experience, both during two wars and peacetime, Fox insists that a good leader must focus on building an organization based on the bonds of comradeship. Successful leaders are those who are actively concerned with the health, happiness, and daily lives of those who follow them. He contends that those who have such leaders will be better prepared to cope with any challenge because they are part of a group built on loyalty and trust.Fox defines the six essential elements of successful leadership as care, personality, knowledge, motivation, commitment, and communication. He presents a chapter on each element, recounts how his views of leadership were forged, and offers impressive examples of leadership displayed by his fellow Marines. While drawn directly from his military experience, Fox contends that these six elements apply to all who want to pursue effective leadership. His book is certain to inspire and motivate both civilians and members of the military....more

  Episode

• 937: Six Essential Elements of Leadership: 1of4: A Marine Corps Wisdom of a Medal of Honor Recipient (Leatherneck Original)Kindle Edition.by Wesley L. Fox (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

  Listen

  Jan 04 2021

  Photo: Medal of Honor recipient First Lieutenant Baldomero Lopez leading his men over the seawall at Inchon on the day of his death. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Six Essential Elements of Leadership: 1of4: A Marine Corps Wisdom of a Medal of Honor Recipient (Leatherneck Original)Kindle Edition.by Wesley L. Fox  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Six-Essential-Elements-Leadership-Leatherneck-ebook/dp/B005N93G54/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=wesley+fox+marine+corps&qid=1609716036&s=digital-text&sr=1-2Col. Wesley Fox is a Medal of Honor recipient who wrote two widely respected accounts of his wartime experiences in the Marine Corps. His books, Marine Rifleman: Forty-Three Years in the Corps and Courage and Fear: A Primer, are both considered classic war memoirs.Drawing on over four decades of leadership experience, both during two wars and peacetime, Fox insists that a good leader must focus on building an organization based on the bonds of comradeship. Successful leaders are those who are actively concerned with the health, happiness, and daily lives of those who follow them. He contends that those who have such leaders will be better prepared to cope with any challenge because they are part of a group built on loyalty and trust.Fox defines the six essential elements of successful leadership as care, personality, knowledge, motivation, commitment, and communication. He presents a chapter on each element, recounts how his views of leadership were forged, and offers impressive examples of leadership displayed by his fellow Marines. While drawn directly from his military experience, Fox contends that these six elements apply to all who want to pursue effective leadership. His book is certain to inspire and motivate both civilians and members of the military....more

  Episode

• 936: Scatter, Adapt, and Remember: 2of2: How Humans Will Survive a Mass Extinction Kindle Edition. by Annalee Newitz (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo:  Underground habitation in Cappadocia, Turkey.  Room for a full city of over 10,000 people to live; cut from volcanic rock. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Scatter, Adapt, and Remember: 2of2: How Humans Will Survive a Mass Extinction Kindle Edition. by Annalee Newitz  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Scatter-Adapt-Remember-Survive-Extinction-ebook/dp/B00A9ET57Q/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Newitz+scatter&qid=1609635025&s=digital-text&sr=1-1As a species, Homo sapiens is at a crossroads. Study of our planet’s turbulent past suggests that we are overdue for a catastrophic disaster, whether caused by nature or by human interference.It’s a frightening prospect, as each of the Earth’s past major disasters—from meteor strikes to bombardment by cosmic radiation—resulted in a mass extinction, where more than 75 percent of the planet’s species died out. But in Scatter, Adapt, and Remember, Annalee Newitz, science journalist and editor of the science Web site io9.com explains that although global disaster is all but inevitable, our chances of long-term species survival are better than ever. Life on Earth has come close to annihilation—humans have, more than once, narrowly avoided extinction just during the last million years—but every single time a few creatures survived, evolving to adapt to the harshest of conditions.      This brilliantly speculative work of popular science focuses on humanity’s long history of dodging the bullet, as well as on new threats that we may face in years to come. Most important, it explores how scientific breakthroughs today will help us avoid disasters tomorrow. From simulating tsunamis to studying central Turkey’s ancient underground cities; from cultivating cyanobacteria for “living cities” to designing space elevators to make space colonies cost-effective; from using math to stop pandemics to studying the remarkable survival strategies of gray whales, scientists and researchers the world over are discovering the keys to long-term resilience and learning how humans can choose life over death.     Newitz’s remarkable and fascinating journey through the science of mass extinctions is a powerful argument about human ingenuity and our ability to change. In a world populated by doomsday preppers and media commentators obsessively forecasting our demise, Scatter, Adapt, and Remember is a compelling voice of hope. It leads us away from apocalyptic thinking into a future where we live to build a better world—on this planet and perhaps on others. Readers of this book will be equipped scientifically, intellectually, and emotionally to face whatever the future holds....more

  Episode

• 936: Scatter, Adapt, and Remember: 1of2: How Humans Will Survive a Mass Extinction Kindle Edition. by Annalee Newitz (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

  Listen

  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: The key concept of the space elevator appeared in 1895 when the brilliant Russian scientist Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky was inspired by the Eiffel Tower in Paris. He considered a similar tower that reached all the way into space and was built from the ground up to the altitude of 35,786 kilometers, the height of geostationary orbit.[8] He noted that the top of such a tower would be circling Earth as in a geostationary orbit. Objects would acquire horizontal velocity due to the Earth's rotation as they rode up the tower, and an object released at the tower's top would have enough horizontal velocity to remain there in geostationary orbit. Tsiolkovsky's conceptual tower was a compression structure, while modern concepts call for a tensile structure (or "tether").   http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Scatter, Adapt, and Remember: 1of2: How Humans Will Survive a Mass Extinction Kindle Edition. by Annalee Newitz  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Scatter-Adapt-Remember-Survive-Extinction-ebook/dp/B00A9ET57Q/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Newitz+scatter&qid=1609635025&s=digital-text&sr=1-1As a species, Homo sapiens is at a crossroads. Study of our planet’s turbulent past suggests that we are overdue for a catastrophic disaster, whether caused by nature or by human interference.It’s a frightening prospect, as each of the Earth’s past major disasters—from meteor strikes to bombardment by cosmic radiation—resulted in a mass extinction, where more than 75 percent of the planet’s species died out. But in Scatter, Adapt, and Remember, Annalee Newitz, science journalist and editor of the science Web site io9.com explains that although global disaster is all but inevitable, our chances of long-term species survival are better than ever. Life on Earth has come close to annihilation—humans have, more than once, narrowly avoided extinction just during the last million years—but every single time a few creatures survived, evolving to adapt to the harshest of conditions.      This brilliantly speculative work of popular science focuses on humanity’s long history of dodging the bullet, as well as on new threats that we may face in years to come. Most important, it explores how scientific breakthroughs today will help us avoid disasters tomorrow. From simulating tsunamis to studying central Turkey’s ancient underground cities; from cultivating cyanobacteria for “living cities” to designing space elevators to make space colonies cost-effective; from using math to stop pandemics to studying the remarkable survival strategies of gray whales, scientists and researchers the world over are discovering the keys to long-term resilience and learning how humans can choose life over death.     Newitz’s remarkable and fascinating journey through the science of mass extinctions is a powerful argument about human ingenuity and our ability to change. In a world populated by doomsday preppers and media commentators obsessively forecasting our demise, Scatter, Adapt, and Remember is a compelling voice of hope. It leads us away from apocalyptic thinking into a future where we live to build a better world—on this planet and perhaps on others. Readers of this book will be equipped scientifically, intellectually, and emotionally to face whatever the future holds....more

  Episode

• 936: Masters of Command: 4of4: Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar, and the Genius of Leadership Kindle Edition.by Barry Strauss (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: Caesar pauses before crossing the Rubicon. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Masters of Command: 4of4: Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar, and the Genius of Leadership Kindle Edition.by Barry Strauss  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Masters-Command-Alexander-Hannibal-Leadership-ebook/dp/B005GG0JPO/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Barry+Strauss+Masters+of+command&qid=1609630390&s=digital-text&sr=1-1In Masters of Command, Barry Strauss compares the way the three greatest generals of the ancient world—Alexander, Hannibal, and Caesar—waged war and draws lessons from their experiences that apply on and off the battlefield. Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar—each was a master of war. Each had to look beyond the battlefield to decide whom to fight, when, and why; to know what victory was and when to end the war; to determine how to bring stability to the lands he conquered. Each general had to be a battlefield tactician and more: a statesman, a strategist, a leader. Tactics change, weapons change, but war itself remains much the same throughout the centuries, and a great warrior must know how to define success. Understanding where each of these three great (but flawed) commanders succeeded and failed can serve anyone who wants to think strategically or has to demonstrate leadership. In Masters of Command, Barry Strauss explains the qualities these great generals shared, the keys to their success, from ambition and judgment to leadership itself. The result of years of research, Masters of Command is based on surviving written documents and archeological evidence as well as the author’s travels in Italy, France, Greece, Turkey, and Tunisia in the footsteps of Alexander, Hannibal, and Caesar....more

  Episode

• 936: Masters of Command: 3of4: Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar, and the Genius of Leadership Kindle Edition.by Barry Strauss (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: Hannibal's crossing of the Alps in 218 BC was one of the major events of the Second Punic War, and one of the most celebrated achievements of any military force in ancient warfare.  Here: War elephants depicted in Hannibal Barca crossing the Rhône, by Henri Motte, 1878 http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Masters of Command: 3of4: Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar, and the Genius of Leadership Kindle Edition.by Barry Strauss  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Masters-Command-Alexander-Hannibal-Leadership-ebook/dp/B005GG0JPO/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Barry+Strauss+Masters+of+command&qid=1609630390&s=digital-text&sr=1-1In Masters of Command, Barry Strauss compares the way the three greatest generals of the ancient world—Alexander, Hannibal, and Caesar—waged war and draws lessons from their experiences that apply on and off the battlefield. Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar—each was a master of war. Each had to look beyond the battlefield to decide whom to fight, when, and why; to know what victory was and when to end the war; to determine how to bring stability to the lands he conquered. Each general had to be a battlefield tactician and more: a statesman, a strategist, a leader. Tactics change, weapons change, but war itself remains much the same throughout the centuries, and a great warrior must know how to define success. Understanding where each of these three great (but flawed) commanders succeeded and failed can serve anyone who wants to think strategically or has to demonstrate leadership. In Masters of Command, Barry Strauss explains the qualities these great generals shared, the keys to their success, from ambition and judgment to leadership itself. The result of years of research, Masters of Command is based on surviving written documents and archeological evidence as well as the author’s travels in Italy, France, Greece, Turkey, and Tunisia in the footsteps of Alexander, Hannibal, and Caesar....more

  Episode

• 936: Masters of Command: 2of4: Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar, and the Genius of Leadership Kindle Edition.by Barry Strauss (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: The Battle of Gaugamela, also called the Battle of Arbela, was the decisive battle of Alexander the Great's invasion of the Persian Achaemenid Empire. In 331 BC Alexander's army of the Hellenic League met the Persian army of Darius III near Gaugamela, close to the modern city of Dohuk in Iraqi Kurdistan. Here:  The Battle of Gaugamela, Jan Brueghel the Elder, 1602.  This glorious painting is rich in imagination, as the actual site is flat, in the  Nineveh Plain, http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Masters of Command: 2of4: Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar, and the Genius of Leadership Kindle Edition.by Barry Strauss  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Masters-Command-Alexander-Hannibal-Leadership-ebook/dp/B005GG0JPO/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Barry+Strauss+Masters+of+command&qid=1609630390&s=digital-text&sr=1-1In Masters of Command, Barry Strauss compares the way the three greatest generals of the ancient world—Alexander, Hannibal, and Caesar—waged war and draws lessons from their experiences that apply on and off the battlefield. Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar—each was a master of war. Each had to look beyond the battlefield to decide whom to fight, when, and why; to know what victory was and when to end the war; to determine how to bring stability to the lands he conquered. Each general had to be a battlefield tactician and more: a statesman, a strategist, a leader. Tactics change, weapons change, but war itself remains much the same throughout the centuries, and a great warrior must know how to define success. Understanding where each of these three great (but flawed) commanders succeeded and failed can serve anyone who wants to think strategically or has to demonstrate leadership. In Masters of Command, Barry Strauss explains the qualities these great generals shared, the keys to their success, from ambition and judgment to leadership itself. The result of years of research, Masters of Command is based on surviving written documents and archeological evidence as well as the author’s travels in Italy, France, Greece, Turkey, and Tunisia in the footsteps of Alexander, Hannibal, and Caesar....more

  Episode

• 936: Masters of Command: 1of4: Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar, and the Genius of Leadership, .by Barry Strauss Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo:  Alexander Mosaic (detail), House of the Faun, Pompeii http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Masters of Command: 1of4: Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar, and the Genius of Leadership Kindle Edition.by Barry Strauss  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Masters-Command-Alexander-Hannibal-Leadership-ebook/dp/B005GG0JPO/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Barry+Strauss+Masters+of+command&qid=1609630390&;s=digital-text&sr=1-1In Masters of Command, Barry Strauss compares the way the three greatest generals of the ancient world—Alexander, Hannibal, and Caesar—waged war and draws lessons from their experiences that apply on and off the battlefield. Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar—each was a master of war. Each had to look beyond the battlefield to decide whom to fight, when, and why; to know what victory was and when to end the war; to determine how to bring stability to the lands he conquered. Each general had to be a battlefield tactician and more: a statesman, a strategist, a leader. Tactics change, weapons change, but war itself remains much the same throughout the centuries, and a great warrior must know how to define success. Understanding where each of these three great (but flawed) commanders succeeded and failed can serve anyone who wants to think strategically or has to demonstrate leadership. In Masters of Command, Barry Strauss explains the qualities these great generals shared, the keys to their success, from ambition and judgment to leadership itself. The result of years of research, Masters of Command is based on surviving written documents and archeological evidence as well as the author’s travels in Italy, France, Greece, Turkey, and Tunisia in the footsteps of Alexander, Hannibal, and Caesar....more

  Episode

• 936: The Zimmermann Telegram: 4of4: Intelligence, Diplomacy, and America's Entry into World War I Kindle Edition. by Thomas Boghardt (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: Bletchley Park, home to the brilliant decoding http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Zimmermann Telegram: 4of4: Intelligence, Diplomacy, and America's Entry into World War I Kindle Edition. by Thomas Boghardt  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Zimmermann-Telegram-Intelligence-Diplomacy-Americas-ebook/dp/B009UXSKR8/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1609630048&sr=1-2By the winter of 1916/17, World War I had reached a deadlock. While the Allies commanded greater resources and fielded more soldiers than the Central Powers, German armies had penetrated deep into Russia and France, and tenaciously held on to their conquered empire. Hoping to break the stalemate on the western front, the exhausted Allies sought to bring the neutral United States into the conflict.A golden opportunity to force American intervention seemed at hand when British naval intelligence intercepted a secret telegram detailing a German alliance offer to Mexico. In it, Berlin’s foreign secretary, Arthur Zimmermann, offered his country’s support to Mexico for re-conquering “the lost territory in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona” in exchange for a Mexican attack on the United States, should the latter enter the war on the side of the Allies. The British handed a copy of the Telegram to the American government, which in turn leaked it to the press. On March 1, 1917, the Telegram made headline news across the United States, and five weeks later, America entered World War I.Based on an examination of virtually all available German, British, and U.S. government records, this book presents the definitive account of the Telegram and questions many traditional views on the origins, cryptanalysis, and impact of the German alliance scheme. While the Telegram has often been described as the final step in a carefully planned German strategy to gain a foothold in the western hemisphere, this book argues that the scheme was a spontaneous initiative by a minor German foreign office official, which gained traction only because of a lack of supervision and coordination at the top echelon of the German government. On the other hand, the book argues, American and British secret services had collaborated closely since 1915 to bring the United States into the war, and the Telegram’s interception and disclosure represented the crowning achievement of this clandestine Anglo-American intelligence alliance. Moreover, the book explicitly challenges the widely accepted notion that the Telegram’s publication in the U.S. press rallied Americans for war. Instead, it contends that the Telegram divided the public by poisoning the debate over intervention, and by failing to offer peace-minded Americans a convincing rationale for supporting the war. The book also examines the Telegram’s effect on the memory of World War I through the twentieth century and beyond....more

  Episode

• 936: The Zimmermann Telegram: 3of4: Intelligence, Diplomacy, and America's Entry into World War I Kindle Edition. by Thomas Boghardt (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: The Telegram, completely decrypted and translated.The decryption was described as the most significant intelligence triumph for Britain during World War I,[2] and one of the earliest occasions on which a piece of signal intelligence influenced world events.  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Zimmermann Telegram: 3of4: Intelligence, Diplomacy, and America's Entry into World War I Kindle Edition. by Thomas Boghardt  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Zimmermann-Telegram-Intelligence-Diplomacy-Americas-ebook/dp/B009UXSKR8/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1609630048&sr=1-2By the winter of 1916/17, World War I had reached a deadlock. While the Allies commanded greater resources and fielded more soldiers than the Central Powers, German armies had penetrated deep into Russia and France, and tenaciously held on to their conquered empire. Hoping to break the stalemate on the western front, the exhausted Allies sought to bring the neutral United States into the conflict.A golden opportunity to force American intervention seemed at hand when British naval intelligence intercepted a secret telegram detailing a German alliance offer to Mexico. In it, Berlin’s foreign secretary, Arthur Zimmermann, offered his country’s support to Mexico for re-conquering “the lost territory in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona” in exchange for a Mexican attack on the United States, should the latter enter the war on the side of the Allies. The British handed a copy of the Telegram to the American government, which in turn leaked it to the press. On March 1, 1917, the Telegram made headline news across the United States, and five weeks later, America entered World War I.Based on an examination of virtually all available German, British, and U.S. government records, this book presents the definitive account of the Telegram and questions many traditional views on the origins, cryptanalysis, and impact of the German alliance scheme. While the Telegram has often been described as the final step in a carefully planned German strategy to gain a foothold in the western hemisphere, this book argues that the scheme was a spontaneous initiative by a minor German foreign office official, which gained traction only because of a lack of supervision and coordination at the top echelon of the German government. On the other hand, the book argues, American and British secret services had collaborated closely since 1915 to bring the United States into the war, and the Telegram’s interception and disclosure represented the crowning achievement of this clandestine Anglo-American intelligence alliance. Moreover, the book explicitly challenges the widely accepted notion that the Telegram’s publication in the U.S. press rallied Americans for war. Instead, it contends that the Telegram divided the public by poisoning the debate over intervention, and by failing to offer peace-minded Americans a convincing rationale for supporting the war. The book also examines the Telegram’s effect on the memory of World War I through the twentieth century and beyond....more

  Episode

• 936: The Zimmermann Telegram: 2of4: Intelligence, Diplomacy, and America's Entry into World War I Kindle Edition. by Thomas Boghardt (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: 1917 political cartoon about the Zimmermann Telegram http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Zimmermann Telegram: 2of4: Intelligence, Diplomacy, and America's Entry into World War I Kindle Edition. by Thomas Boghardt  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Zimmermann-Telegram-Intelligence-Diplomacy-Americas-ebook/dp/B009UXSKR8/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1609630048&sr=1-2By the winter of 1916/17, World War I had reached a deadlock. While the Allies commanded greater resources and fielded more soldiers than the Central Powers, German armies had penetrated deep into Russia and France, and tenaciously held on to their conquered empire. Hoping to break the stalemate on the western front, the exhausted Allies sought to bring the neutral United States into the conflict.A golden opportunity to force American intervention seemed at hand when British naval intelligence intercepted a secret telegram detailing a German alliance offer to Mexico. In it, Berlin’s foreign secretary, Arthur Zimmermann, offered his country’s support to Mexico for re-conquering “the lost territory in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona” in exchange for a Mexican attack on the United States, should the latter enter the war on the side of the Allies. The British handed a copy of the Telegram to the American government, which in turn leaked it to the press. On March 1, 1917, the Telegram made headline news across the United States, and five weeks later, America entered World War I.Based on an examination of virtually all available German, British, and U.S. government records, this book presents the definitive account of the Telegram and questions many traditional views on the origins, cryptanalysis, and impact of the German alliance scheme. While the Telegram has often been described as the final step in a carefully planned German strategy to gain a foothold in the western hemisphere, this book argues that the scheme was a spontaneous initiative by a minor German foreign office official, which gained traction only because of a lack of supervision and coordination at the top echelon of the German government. On the other hand, the book argues, American and British secret services had collaborated closely since 1915 to bring the United States into the war, and the Telegram’s interception and disclosure represented the crowning achievement of this clandestine Anglo-American intelligence alliance. Moreover, the book explicitly challenges the widely accepted notion that the Telegram’s publication in the U.S. press rallied Americans for war. Instead, it contends that the Telegram divided the public by poisoning the debate over intervention, and by failing to offer peace-minded Americans a convincing rationale for supporting the war. The book also examines the Telegram’s effect on the memory of World War I through the twentieth century and beyond....more

  Episode

• 936: The Zimmermann Telegram: 1of4: Intelligence, Diplomacy, and America's Entry into World War I Kindle Edition. by Thomas Boghardt (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo:  The Zimmermann Telegram was a secret diplomatic communication issued from the German Foreign Office in January 1917 that proposed a military alliance between Germany and Mexico. If the United States entered World War I against Germany, Mexico would recover Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico. Here: the original telegram.http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Zimmermann Telegram: 1of4: Intelligence, Diplomacy, and America's Entry into World War I Kindle Edition. by Thomas Boghardt  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Zimmermann-Telegram-Intelligence-Diplomacy-Americas-ebook/dp/B009UXSKR8/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1609630048&sr=1-2By the winter of 1916/17, World War I had reached a deadlock. While the Allies commanded greater resources and fielded more soldiers than the Central Powers, German armies had penetrated deep into Russia and France, and tenaciously held on to their conquered empire. Hoping to break the stalemate on the western front, the exhausted Allies sought to bring the neutral United States into the conflict.A golden opportunity to force American intervention seemed at hand when British naval intelligence intercepted a secret telegram detailing a German alliance offer to Mexico. In it, Berlin’s foreign secretary, Arthur Zimmermann, offered his country’s support to Mexico for re-conquering “the lost territory in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona” in exchange for a Mexican attack on the United States, should the latter enter the war on the side of the Allies. The British handed a copy of the Telegram to the American government, which in turn leaked it to the press. On March 1, 1917, the Telegram made headline news across the United States, and five weeks later, America entered World War I.Based on an examination of virtually all available German, British, and U.S. government records, this book presents the definitive account of the Telegram and questions many traditional views on the origins, cryptanalysis, and impact of the German alliance scheme. While the Telegram has often been described as the final step in a carefully planned German strategy to gain a foothold in the western hemisphere, this book argues that the scheme was a spontaneous initiative by a minor German foreign office official, which gained traction only because of a lack of supervision and coordination at the top echelon of the German government. On the other hand, the book argues, American and British secret services had collaborated closely since 1915 to bring the United States into the war, and the Telegram’s interception and disclosure represented the crowning achievement of this clandestine Anglo-American intelligence alliance. Moreover, the book explicitly challenges the widely accepted notion that the Telegram’s publication in the U.S. press rallied Americans for war. Instead, it contends that the Telegram divided the public by poisoning the debate over intervention, and by failing to offer peace-minded Americans a convincing rationale for supporting the war. The book also examines the Telegram’s effect on the memory of World War I through the twentieth century and beyond....more

  Episode

• 936: The Last Viking: 4of4: The Life of Roald Amundsen (A Merloyd Lawrence Book)Kindle Edition. by Stephen R. Bown (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: Roald Amundsen, Helmer Hanssen, Sverre Hassel and Oscar Wisting (l–r) at "Polheim", the tent erected at the South Pole on 16 December 1911. The top flag is the Flag of Norway; the bottom is marked "Fram". Photograph by Olav Bjaaland. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Last Viking: 4of4:  The Life of Roald Amundsen (A Merloyd Lawrence Book)Kindle Edition. by Stephen R. Bown  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Last-Viking-Amundsen-Merloyd-Lawrence-ebook/dp/B008EMEHWI/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=BOWN+AMUNDSEN&qid=1609629464&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 The Last Viking unravels the life of the man who stands head and shoulders above all those who raced to map the last corners of the world. In 1900, the four great geographical mysteries--the Northwest Passage, the Northeast Passage, the South Pole, and the North Pole--remained blank spots on the globe. Within twenty years Roald Amundsen would claim all four prizes. Renowned for his determination and technical skills, both feared and beloved by his men, Amundsen is a legend of the heroic age of exploration, which shortly thereafter would be tamed by technology, commerce, and publicity. Féd in his lifetime as an international celebrity, pursued by women and creditors, he died in the Arctic on a rescue mission for an inept rival explorer.Stephen R. Bown has unearthed archival material to give Amundsen's life the grim immediacy of Apsley Cherry-Garrard's The Worst Journey in the World, the exciting detail of The Endurance, and the suspense of a Jon Krakauer tale. The Last Viking is both a thrilling literary biography and a cracking good story....more

  Episode

• 936: The Last Viking: 3of4: The Life of Roald Amundsen (A Merloyd Lawrence Book)Kindle Edition. by Stephen R. Bown (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: Men and dogs at the 85° South depot, on the way to the pole, 15 November 1911 http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Last Viking: 3of4:  The Life of Roald Amundsen (A Merloyd Lawrence Book)Kindle Edition. by Stephen R. Bown  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Last-Viking-Amundsen-Merloyd-Lawrence-ebook/dp/B008EMEHWI/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=BOWN+AMUNDSEN&qid=1609629464&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 The Last Viking unravels the life of the man who stands head and shoulders above all those who raced to map the last corners of the world. In 1900, the four great geographical mysteries--the Northwest Passage, the Northeast Passage, the South Pole, and the North Pole--remained blank spots on the globe. Within twenty years Roald Amundsen would claim all four prizes. Renowned for his determination and technical skills, both feared and beloved by his men, Amundsen is a legend of the heroic age of exploration, which shortly thereafter would be tamed by technology, commerce, and publicity. Féd in his lifetime as an international celebrity, pursued by women and creditors, he died in the Arctic on a rescue mission for an inept rival explorer.Stephen R. Bown has unearthed archival material to give Amundsen's life the grim immediacy of Apsley Cherry-Garrard's The Worst Journey in the World, the exciting detail of The Endurance, and the suspense of a Jon Krakauer tale. The Last Viking is both a thrilling literary biography and a cracking good story....more

  Episode

• 936: The Last Viking: 2of4: The Life of Roald Amundsen (A Merloyd Lawrence Book)Kindle Edition. by Stephen R. Bown (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: Sverre Hassel in the oil store at Framheim during the winter of 1911. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Last Viking: 2of4:  The Life of Roald Amundsen (A Merloyd Lawrence Book)Kindle Edition. by Stephen R. Bown  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Last-Viking-Amundsen-Merloyd-Lawrence-ebook/dp/B008EMEHWI/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=BOWN+AMUNDSEN&qid=1609629464&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 The Last Viking unravels the life of the man who stands head and shoulders above all those who raced to map the last corners of the world. In 1900, the four great geographical mysteries--the Northwest Passage, the Northeast Passage, the South Pole, and the North Pole--remained blank spots on the globe. Within twenty years Roald Amundsen would claim all four prizes. Renowned for his determination and technical skills, both feared and beloved by his men, Amundsen is a legend of the heroic age of exploration, which shortly thereafter would be tamed by technology, commerce, and publicity. Féd in his lifetime as an international celebrity, pursued by women and creditors, he died in the Arctic on a rescue mission for an inept rival explorer.Stephen R. Bown has unearthed archival material to give Amundsen's life the grim immediacy of Apsley Cherry-Garrard's The Worst Journey in the World, the exciting detail of The Endurance, and the suspense of a Jon Krakauer tale. The Last Viking is both a thrilling literary biography and a cracking good story....more

  Episode

• 936: The Last Viking: 1of4: The Life of Roald Amundsen (A Merloyd Lawrence Book)Kindle Edition. by Stephen R. Bown (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: Fram under sail http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow The Last Viking: 1of4:  The Life of Roald Amundsen (A Merloyd Lawrence Book)Kindle Edition. by Stephen R. Bown  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Last-Viking-Amundsen-Merloyd-Lawrence-ebook/dp/B008EMEHWI/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=BOWN+AMUNDSEN&qid=1609629464&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 The Last Viking unravels the life of the man who stands head and shoulders above all those who raced to map the last corners of the world. In 1900, the four great geographical mysteries--the Northwest Passage, the Northeast Passage, the South Pole, and the North Pole--remained blank spots on the globe. Within twenty years Roald Amundsen would claim all four prizes. Renowned for his determination and technical skills, both feared and beloved by his men, Amundsen is a legend of the heroic age of exploration, which shortly thereafter would be tamed by technology, commerce, and publicity. Féd in his lifetime as an international celebrity, pursued by women and creditors, he died in the Arctic on a rescue mission for an inept rival explorer.Stephen R. Bown has unearthed archival material to give Amundsen's life the grim immediacy of Apsley Cherry-Garrard's The Worst Journey in the World, the exciting detail of The Endurance, and the suspense of a Jon Krakauer tale. The Last Viking is both a thrilling literary biography and a cracking good story....more

  Episode

• 936: Under Fire: 4 of 4: Kindle Edition. by Fred Burton and Samuel M. Katz. Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: Portion of an FBI wanted poster seeking information on the attacks in Benghazi.   http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Under Fire: 4of4:  Kindle Edition. by Fred Burton  (Author), Samuel M. Katz  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Under-Fire-Fred-Burton-ebook/dp/B00LSV7TXQ/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=Benghazi, Libya. 9/11/2012. Just over a year after the fall of Gaddafi, and on the eleventh anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, a group of heavily armed Islamic terrorists had their sights set on the U.S. diplomatic and intelligence presence in the city.In the prolonged attack, four Americans died, including the American ambassador to Libya, Christopher Stevens, the Information Officer Sean Smith, and two former Navy SEALs, Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty, working for the Central Intelligence Agency.Based on confidential eyewitness sources within the intelligence, diplomatic, and military communities, Under Fire is the terrifying account of that night, and of a desperate last stand amid the chaos of rebellion....more

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• 936: Under Fire: 3of4. by Fred Burton and Samuel M. Katz. Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: Photograph released through a FOIA request showing (post-attack) spray paint graffiti of militant Islamist slogans on the ransacked consulate building http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Under Fire: 3of4:  Kindle Edition. by Fred Burton  (Author), Samuel M. Katz  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Under-Fire-Fred-Burton-ebook/dp/B00LSV7TXQ/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=Benghazi, Libya. 9/11/2012. Just over a year after the fall of Gaddafi, and on the eleventh anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, a group of heavily armed Islamic terrorists had their sights set on the U.S. diplomatic and intelligence presence in the city.In the prolonged attack, four Americans died, including the American ambassador to Libya, Christopher Stevens, the Information Officer Sean Smith, and two former Navy SEALs, Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty, working for the Central Intelligence Agency.Based on confidential eyewitness sources within the intelligence, diplomatic, and military communities, Under Fire is the terrifying account of that night, and of a desperate last stand amid the chaos of rebellion....more

  Episode

• 936: Under Fire: 2of4: Kindle Edition. by Fred Burton (Author), Samuel M. Katz (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: J. Christopher Stevens — United States ambassador to Libya from June 7, 2012 until killed in an attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, on September 12, 2012.http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Under Fire: 2of4:  Kindle Edition. by Fred Burton  (Author), Samuel M. Katz  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Under-Fire-Fred-Burton-ebook/dp/B00LSV7TXQ/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&;sr=Benghazi, Libya. 9/11/2012. Just over a year after the fall of Gaddafi, and on the eleventh anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, a group of heavily armed Islamic terrorists had their sights set on the U.S. diplomatic and intelligence presence in the city.In the prolonged attack, four Americans died, including the American ambassador to Libya, Christopher Stevens, the Information Officer Sean Smith, and two former Navy SEALs, Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty, working for the Central Intelligence Agency.Based on confidential eyewitness sources within the intelligence, diplomatic, and military communities, Under Fire is the terrifying account of that night, and of a desperate last stand amid the chaos of rebellion....more

  Episode

• 936: Under Fire: 1 of 4. by Fred Burton and Samuel M. Katz . Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: Piazza Cagni, now called Maydan al Shajara, in 1938 Italian Benghazi http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Under Fire: 1 of 4:  Kindle Edition. by Fred Burton  (Author), Samuel M. Katz  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Under-Fire-Fred-Burton-ebook/dp/B00LSV7TXQ/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=Benghazi, Libya. 9/11/2012. Just over a year after the fall of Gaddafi, and on the eleventh anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, a group of heavily armed Islamic terrorists had their sights set on the U.S. diplomatic and intelligence presence in the city.In the prolonged attack, four Americans died, including the American ambassador to Libya, Christopher Stevens, the Information Officer Sean Smith, and two former Navy SEALs, Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty, working for the Central Intelligence Agency.Based on confidential eyewitness sources within the intelligence, diplomatic, and military communities, Under Fire is the terrifying account of that night, and of a desperate last stand amid the chaos of rebellion....more

  Episode

• 936: 1781: 2 of 2: The Decisive Year of the Revolutionary War. by Robert L. Tonsetic

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: The Battle of Yorktown.. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow 1781: 2of2: The Decisive Year of the Revolutionary War Kindle Edition. by Robert L. Tonsetic (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/1781-Decisive-Year-Revolutionary-War-ebook/dp/B005ZUSQ92/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Tonsetic+1781&qid=1609634713&s=digital-text&sr=1-1The Treaty of Paris in 1783 formally ended the American Revolutionary War, but it was the pivotal campaigns and battles of 1781 that decided the final outcome. 1781 was one of those rare years in American history when the future of the nation hung by a thread, and only the fortitude, determination, and sacrifice of its leaders and citizenry ensured its survival. By 1781, America had been at war with the world's strongest empire for six years with no end in sight. British troops occupied key coastal cities, from New York to Savannah, and the Royal Navy prowled the waters off the American coast. The remaining Patriot forces hunkered down in the hinterland, giving battle only at opportunities when British columns ventured near. But after several harsh winters, and the failure of the nascent government to adequately supply the troops, the American army was fast approaching the breaking point. The number of Continental soldiers had shrunk to less than 10,000, and the three-year enlistments of many of those remaining were about to expire. Mutinies began to emerge in Continental Army's ranks, and it was only the arrival of French troops that provided a ray of hope for the American cause.In a shift of strategy given the stalemate between New York and Philadelphia, the British began to prioritize the south. After shattering the American army under Horatio Gates at Camden, South Carolina, the British army under Lord Cornwallis appeared unstoppable, and was poised to regain the Carolinas, Georgia, and Virginia for the Crown. However, when General Nathaniel Greene arrived to take command of Patriot forces in the south, he was able to gradually turn the tables. By dividing his own forces, he forced the British to divide theirs, dissipating their juggernaut and forcing Cornwallis to confront a veritable hydra of resistance.1781 was a year of battles, as the Patriot Morgan defeated the notorious Tarleton and his Loyal legion at Cowpens. Then Greene suffered defeat at Guilford Courthouse, only to rally his forces and continue to fight on, assisted by such luminaries as Francis Marion, the "Swamp Fox," and "Light Horse Harry" Lee. While luring Cornwallis north, Greene was able to gather new strength and launch a counterattack, until it was Cornwallis who felt compelled to seek succor in Virginia. He marched his main army to Yorktown on the Peninsula, upon which the the combined American and French armies under the command of General Washington, and Admiral DeGrasse's French fleet all converged. On October 19, 1781, Cornwallis surrendered his weary and bloodied army.In this book, Robert Tonsetic provides a detailed analysis of the key battles and campaigns of 1781, supported by numerous eyewitness accounts from privates to generals in the American, French, and British armies. He also describes the diplomatic efforts underway in Europe during 1781, as well as the Continental Congress's actions to resolve the immense financial, supply, and personnel problems involved in maintaining an effective fighting army in the field. With its focus on the climactic year of the war, 1781 is a valuable addition to the literature on the American Revolution, providing readers with a clearer understanding of how America, just barely, with fortitude and courage, retrieved its independence in the face of great odds....more

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• 936: 1781: 1 o f2: The Decisive Year of the Revolutionary War. by Robert L. Tonsetic ; Kindle Edition

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  Jan 03 2021

  Photo: In Virginia, on the Yorktown peninsula, Cornwallis found himself cornered by the combined forces of Washington's Continental Army and the French army and French fleet. These forces began seige operations against the British troops isolated at Yorktown. On October 17, 1781, Cornwallis sought terms of surrender. Here: surrender of Cornwallis. http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow 1781: 1of2: The Decisive Year of the Revolutionary War Kindle Edition. by Robert L. Tonsetic (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/1781-Decisive-Year-Revolutionary-War-ebook/dp/B005ZUSQ92/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Tonsetic+1781&qid=1609634713&s=digital-text&sr=1-1The Treaty of Paris in 1783 formally ended the American Revolutionary War, but it was the pivotal campaigns and battles of 1781 that decided the final outcome. 1781 was one of those rare years in American history when the future of the nation hung by a thread, and only the fortitude, determination, and sacrifice of its leaders and citizenry ensured its survival. By 1781, America had been at war with the world's strongest empire for six years with no end in sight. British troops occupied key coastal cities, from New York to Savannah, and the Royal Navy prowled the waters off the American coast. The remaining Patriot forces hunkered down in the hinterland, giving battle only at opportunities when British columns ventured near. But after several harsh winters, and the failure of the nascent government to adequately supply the troops, the American army was fast approaching the breaking point. The number of Continental soldiers had shrunk to less than 10,000, and the three-year enlistments of many of those remaining were about to expire. Mutinies began to emerge in Continental Army's ranks, and it was only the arrival of French troops that provided a ray of hope for the American cause.In a shift of strategy given the stalemate between New York and Philadelphia, the British began to prioritize the south. After shattering the American army under Horatio Gates at Camden, South Carolina, the British army under Lord Cornwallis appeared unstoppable, and was poised to regain the Carolinas, Georgia, and Virginia for the Crown. However, when General Nathaniel Greene arrived to take command of Patriot forces in the south, he was able to gradually turn the tables. By dividing his own forces, he forced the British to divide theirs, dissipating their juggernaut and forcing Cornwallis to confront a veritable hydra of resistance.1781 was a year of battles, as the Patriot Morgan defeated the notorious Tarleton and his Loyal legion at Cowpens. Then Greene suffered defeat at Guilford Courthouse, only to rally his forces and continue to fight on, assisted by such luminaries as Francis Marion, the "Swamp Fox," and "Light Horse Harry" Lee. While luring Cornwallis north, Greene was able to gather new strength and launch a counterattack, until it was Cornwallis who felt compelled to seek succor in Virginia. He marched his main army to Yorktown on the Peninsula, upon which the the combined American and French armies under the command of General Washington, and Admiral DeGrasse's French fleet all converged. On October 19, 1781, Cornwallis surrendered his weary and bloodied army.In this book, Robert Tonsetic provides a detailed analysis of the key battles and campaigns of 1781, supported by numerous eyewitness accounts from privates to generals in the American, French, and British armies. He also describes the diplomatic efforts underway in Europe during 1781, as well as the Continental Congress's actions to resolve the immense financial, supply, and personnel problems involved in maintaining an effective fighting army in the field. With its focus on the climactic year of the war, 1781 is a valuable addition to the literature on the American Revolution, providing readers with a clearer understanding of how America, just barely, with fortitude and courage, retrieved its independence in the face of great odds....more

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• 932: #ClassicSidPerkins: The Snails of Ireland and Spain. Sid Perkins. Science Magazine.

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  Jan 02 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1888. Creator: R. Welch (Photographer)..Date: c.1888..Original Format: Photographic Print..Description: Giants Chimney Tops & Amphitheatre..PRONI Ref: D1403_1~049~A..Copying and copyright:.Please see www.proni.gov.uk/index/research_and_records_held/copying_... ( http://www.proni.gov.uk/index/research_and_records_held/copying_and_copyright.htm ) ..For Copy Orders, contact:.Email: proni@dcalni.gov.uk.For fees and charges see: www.proni.gov.uk/index/about_proni/are_there_any_fees_and... ( http://www.proni.gov.uk/index/about_proni/are_there_any_fees_and_charges.htm ) MORE: IRISH SCENES AND COUNTRY LIFE 1888-1914  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow#ClassicSidPerkins: The Snails of Ireland and Spain. Sid Perkins.  Science Magazine.https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-22952707"It's consistent with the idea that almost everything we have in Ireland, that can't swim or fly, was brought here on a boat."...more

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• 932: Dying Every Day: 4of4: Seneca at the Court of Nero Kindle Edition. by James S. Romm (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 02 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.Buste van Seneca  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Dying Every Day: 4of4: Seneca at the Court of Nero Kindle Edition. by James S. Romm  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Dying-Every-Day-Seneca-Court-ebook/dp/B00F8F7OZQ/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Dying+every+day+romm&qid=1609545231&s=digital-text&sr=1-1At the center, the tumultuous life of Seneca, ancient Rome’s preeminent writer and philosopher, beginning with banishment in his fifties and subsequent appointment as tutor to twelve-year-old Nero, future emperor of Rome. Controlling them both, Nero’s mother, Julia Agrippina the Younger, Roman empress, great-granddaughter of the Emperor Augustus, sister of the Emperor Caligula, niece and fourth wife of Emperor Claudius.            James Romm seamlessly weaves together the life and written words, the moral struggles, political intrigue, and bloody vengeance that enmeshed Seneca the Younger in the twisted imperial family and the perverse, paranoid regime of Emperor Nero, despot and madman.Romm writes that Seneca watched over Nero as teacher, moral guide, and surrogate father, and, at seventeen, when Nero abruptly ascended to become emperor of Rome, Seneca, a man never avid for political power became, with Nero, the ruler of the Roman Empire. We see how Seneca was able to control his young student, how, under Seneca’s influence, Nero ruled with intelligence and moderation, banned capital punishment, reduced taxes, gave slaves the right to file complaints against their owners, pardoned prisoners arrested for sedition. But with time, as Nero grew vain and disillusioned, Seneca was unable to hold sway over the emperor, and between Nero’s mother, Agrippina—thought to have poisoned her second husband, and her third, who was her uncle (Claudius), and rumored to have entered into an incestuous relationship with her son—and Nero’s father, described by Suetonius as a murderer and cheat charged with treason, adultery, and incest, how long could the young Nero have been contained?            Dying Every Day is a portrait of Seneca’s moral struggle in the midst of madness and excess. In his treatises, Seneca preached a rigorous ethical creed, exalting heroes who defied danger to do what was right or embrace a noble death. As Nero’s adviser, Seneca was presented with a more complex set of choices, as the only man capable of summoning the better aspect of Nero’s nature, yet, remaining at Nero’s side and colluding in the evil regime he created.Dying Every Day is the first book to tell the compelling and nightmarish story of the philosopher-poet who was almost a king, tied to a tyrant—as Seneca, the paragon of reason, watched his student spiral into madness and whose descent saw five family murders, the Fire of Rome, and a savage purge that destroyed the supreme minds of the Senate’s golden age....more

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• 932: Dying Every Day: 3of4: Seneca at the Court of Nero Kindle Edition. by James S. Romm (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 02 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1750.Seneca, Lucius Annaeus  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Dying Every Day: 3of4: Seneca at the Court of Nero Kindle Edition. by James S. Romm  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Dying-Every-Day-Seneca-Court-ebook/dp/B00F8F7OZQ/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Dying+every+day+romm&qid=1609545231&s=digital-text&sr=1-1At the center, the tumultuous life of Seneca, ancient Rome’s preeminent writer and philosopher, beginning with banishment in his fifties and subsequent appointment as tutor to twelve-year-old Nero, future emperor of Rome. Controlling them both, Nero’s mother, Julia Agrippina the Younger, Roman empress, great-granddaughter of the Emperor Augustus, sister of the Emperor Caligula, niece and fourth wife of Emperor Claudius.            James Romm seamlessly weaves together the life and written words, the moral struggles, political intrigue, and bloody vengeance that enmeshed Seneca the Younger in the twisted imperial family and the perverse, paranoid regime of Emperor Nero, despot and madman.Romm writes that Seneca watched over Nero as teacher, moral guide, and surrogate father, and, at seventeen, when Nero abruptly ascended to become emperor of Rome, Seneca, a man never avid for political power became, with Nero, the ruler of the Roman Empire. We see how Seneca was able to control his young student, how, under Seneca’s influence, Nero ruled with intelligence and moderation, banned capital punishment, reduced taxes, gave slaves the right to file complaints against their owners, pardoned prisoners arrested for sedition. But with time, as Nero grew vain and disillusioned, Seneca was unable to hold sway over the emperor, and between Nero’s mother, Agrippina—thought to have poisoned her second husband, and her third, who was her uncle (Claudius), and rumored to have entered into an incestuous relationship with her son—and Nero’s father, described by Suetonius as a murderer and cheat charged with treason, adultery, and incest, how long could the young Nero have been contained?            Dying Every Day is a portrait of Seneca’s moral struggle in the midst of madness and excess. In his treatises, Seneca preached a rigorous ethical creed, exalting heroes who defied danger to do what was right or embrace a noble death. As Nero’s adviser, Seneca was presented with a more complex set of choices, as the only man capable of summoning the better aspect of Nero’s nature, yet, remaining at Nero’s side and colluding in the evil regime he created.Dying Every Day is the first book to tell the compelling and nightmarish story of the philosopher-poet who was almost a king, tied to a tyrant—as Seneca, the paragon of reason, watched his student spiral into madness and whose descent saw five family murders, the Fire of Rome, and a savage purge that destroyed the supreme minds of the Senate’s golden age....more

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• 932: Dying Every Day: 2of4: Seneca at the Court of Nero Kindle Edition. by James S. Romm (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 02 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.1694.Virgilius, Cicero en Seneca bij Grammatica met leerlingen  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Dying Every Day: 2of4: Seneca at the Court of Nero Kindle Edition. by James S. Romm  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Dying-Every-Day-Seneca-Court-ebook/dp/B00F8F7OZQ/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Dying+every+day+romm&qid=1609545231&s=digital-text&sr=1-1At the center, the tumultuous life of Seneca, ancient Rome’s preeminent writer and philosopher, beginning with banishment in his fifties and subsequent appointment as tutor to twelve-year-old Nero, future emperor of Rome. Controlling them both, Nero’s mother, Julia Agrippina the Younger, Roman empress, great-granddaughter of the Emperor Augustus, sister of the Emperor Caligula, niece and fourth wife of Emperor Claudius.            James Romm seamlessly weaves together the life and written words, the moral struggles, political intrigue, and bloody vengeance that enmeshed Seneca the Younger in the twisted imperial family and the perverse, paranoid regime of Emperor Nero, despot and madman.Romm writes that Seneca watched over Nero as teacher, moral guide, and surrogate father, and, at seventeen, when Nero abruptly ascended to become emperor of Rome, Seneca, a man never avid for political power became, with Nero, the ruler of the Roman Empire. We see how Seneca was able to control his young student, how, under Seneca’s influence, Nero ruled with intelligence and moderation, banned capital punishment, reduced taxes, gave slaves the right to file complaints against their owners, pardoned prisoners arrested for sedition. But with time, as Nero grew vain and disillusioned, Seneca was unable to hold sway over the emperor, and between Nero’s mother, Agrippina—thought to have poisoned her second husband, and her third, who was her uncle (Claudius), and rumored to have entered into an incestuous relationship with her son—and Nero’s father, described by Suetonius as a murderer and cheat charged with treason, adultery, and incest, how long could the young Nero have been contained?            Dying Every Day is a portrait of Seneca’s moral struggle in the midst of madness and excess. In his treatises, Seneca preached a rigorous ethical creed, exalting heroes who defied danger to do what was right or embrace a noble death. As Nero’s adviser, Seneca was presented with a more complex set of choices, as the only man capable of summoning the better aspect of Nero’s nature, yet, remaining at Nero’s side and colluding in the evil regime he created.Dying Every Day is the first book to tell the compelling and nightmarish story of the philosopher-poet who was almost a king, tied to a tyrant—as Seneca, the paragon of reason, watched his student spiral into madness and whose descent saw five family murders, the Fire of Rome, and a savage purge that destroyed the supreme minds of the Senate’s golden age....more

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• 932: Dying Every Day: 1of4: Seneca at the Court of Nero Kindle Edition. by James S. Romm (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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  Jan 02 2021

  Photo: No known restrictions on publication.Bustes van Lucius Annaeus Seneca en Paul Scarron  http://JohnBatchelorShow.com/contacthttp://JohnBatchelorShow.com/schedulesParler & Twitter: @BatchelorShow Dying Every Day: 1of4: Seneca at the Court of Nero Kindle Edition. by James S. Romm  (Author)  Format: Kindle Edition https://www.amazon.com/Dying-Every-Day-Seneca-Court-ebook/dp/B00F8F7OZQ/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Dying+every+day+romm&qid=1609545231&s=digital-text&sr=1-1At the center, the tumultuous life of Seneca, ancient Rome’s preeminent writer and philosopher, beginning with banishment in his fifties and subsequent appointment as tutor to twelve-year-old Nero, future emperor of Rome. Controlling them both, Nero’s mother, Julia Agrippina the Younger, Roman empress, great-granddaughter of the Emperor Augustus, sister of the Emperor Caligula, niece and fourth wife of Emperor Claudius.            James Romm seamlessly weaves together the life and written words, the moral struggles, political intrigue, and bloody vengeance that enmeshed Seneca the Younger in the twisted imperial family and the perverse, paranoid regime of Emperor Nero, despot and madman.Romm writes that Seneca watched over Nero as teacher, moral guide, and surrogate father, and, at seventeen, when Nero abruptly ascended to become emperor of Rome, Seneca, a man never avid for political power became, with Nero, the ruler of the Roman Empire. We see how Seneca was able to control his young student, how, under Seneca’s influence, Nero ruled with intelligence and moderation, banned capital punishment, reduced taxes, gave slaves the right to file complaints against their owners, pardoned prisoners arrested for sedition. But with time, as Nero grew vain and disillusioned, Seneca was unable to hold sway over the emperor, and between Nero’s mother, Agrippina—thought to have poisoned her second husband, and her third, who was her uncle (Claudius), and rumored to have entered into an incestuous relationship with her son—and Nero’s father, described by Suetonius as a murderer and cheat charged with treason, adultery, and incest, how long could the young Nero have been contained?            Dying Every Day is a portrait of Seneca’s moral struggle in the midst of madness and excess. In his treatises, Seneca preached a rigorous ethical creed, exalting heroes who defied danger to do what was right or embrace a noble death. As Nero’s adviser, Seneca was presented with a more complex set of choices, as the only man capable of summoning the better aspect of Nero’s nature, yet, remaining at Nero’s side and colluding in the evil regime he created.Dying Every Day is the first book to tell the compelling and nightmarish story of the philosopher-poet who was almost a king, tied to a tyrant—as Seneca, the paragon of reason, watched his student spiral into madness and whose descent saw five family murders, the Fire of Rome, and a savage purge that destroyed the supreme minds of the Senate’s golden age....more

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• 935: 8/8 The Romanovs: 1613-1918, by Simon Sebag Montefiore

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image:   Emperor Nicholas II of Russia with his physically similar cousin, King George V of the United Kingdom (right), wearing German military uniforms in Berlin before the war; 1913  The Romanovs: 1613-1918,by Simon Sebag Montefiore  This is the intimate story of twenty tsars and tsarinas, some touched by genius, some by madness, but all inspired by holy autocracy and imperial ambition. Simon Sebag Montefiore’s gripping chronicle reveals their secret world of unlimited power and ruthless empire-building, overshadowed by palace conspiracy, family rivalries, sexual decadence and wild extravagance, with a global cast of adventurers, courtesans, revolutionaries and poets, from Ivan the Terrible to Tolstoy and Pushkin, to Bismarck, Lincoln, Queen Victoria and Lenin.       To rule Russia was both imperial-sacred mission and poisoned chalice: six of the last twelve tsars were murdered. Peter the Great tortured his own son to death while making Russia an empire, and dominated his court with a dining club notable for compulsory drunkenness, naked dwarfs and fancy dress. Catherine the Great overthrew her own husband (who was murdered soon afterward), enjoyed affairs with a series of young male favorites, conquered Ukraine and fascinated Europe. Paul I was strangled by courtiers backed by his own son, Alexander I, who in turn faced Napoleon’s invasion and the burning of Moscow, then went on to take Paris. Alexander II liberated the serfs, survived five assassination attempts and wrote perhaps the most explicit love letters ever composed by a ruler. The Romanovs climaxes with a fresh, unforgettable portrayal of Nicholas II and Alexandra, the rise and murder of Rasputin, war and revolution—and the harrowing massacre of the entire family.       Dazzlingly entertaining and beautifully written from start to finish, The Romanovs brings these monarchs—male and female, great and flawed, their families and courts—blazingly to life. Drawing on new archival research, Montefiore delivers an enthralling epic of triumph and tragedy, love and murder, encompassing the seminal years 1812, 1914 and 1917, that is both a universal study of power and a portrait of empire that helps define Russia today.  https://www.amazon.com/Romanovs-1613-1918-Simon-Sebag-Montefiore-ebook/dp/B013ZNNX5W/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=montefiore+romanov&qid=1609543660&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 ...more

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• 935: 7/8 The Romanovs: 1613-1918, by Simon Sebag Montefiore

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image:   1899 portrait of Pushkin by Vasily Mate  The Romanovs: 1613-1918,by Simon Sebag Montefiore  This is the intimate story of twenty tsars and tsarinas, some touched by genius, some by madness, but all inspired by holy autocracy and imperial ambition. Simon Sebag Montefiore’s gripping chronicle reveals their secret world of unlimited power and ruthless empire-building, overshadowed by palace conspiracy, family rivalries, sexual decadence and wild extravagance, with a global cast of adventurers, courtesans, revolutionaries and poets, from Ivan the Terrible to Tolstoy and Pushkin, to Bismarck, Lincoln, Queen Victoria and Lenin.       To rule Russia was both imperial-sacred mission and poisoned chalice: six of the last twelve tsars were murdered. Peter the Great tortured his own son to death while making Russia an empire, and dominated his court with a dining club notable for compulsory drunkenness, naked dwarfs and fancy dress. Catherine the Great overthrew her own husband (who was murdered soon afterward), enjoyed affairs with a series of young male favorites, conquered Ukraine and fascinated Europe. Paul I was strangled by courtiers backed by his own son, Alexander I, who in turn faced Napoleon’s invasion and the burning of Moscow, then went on to take Paris. Alexander II liberated the serfs, survived five assassination attempts and wrote perhaps the most explicit love letters ever composed by a ruler. The Romanovs climaxes with a fresh, unforgettable portrayal of Nicholas II and Alexandra, the rise and murder of Rasputin, war and revolution—and the harrowing massacre of the entire family.       Dazzlingly entertaining and beautifully written from start to finish, The Romanovs brings these monarchs—male and female, great and flawed, their families and courts—blazingly to life. Drawing on new archival research, Montefiore delivers an enthralling epic of triumph and tragedy, love and murder, encompassing the seminal years 1812, 1914 and 1917, that is both a universal study of power and a portrait of empire that helps define Russia today.  https://www.amazon.com/Romanovs-1613-1918-Simon-Sebag-Montefiore-ebook/dp/B013ZNNX5W/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=montefiore+romanov&qid=1609543660&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 ...more

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• 935: 6/8 The Romanovs: 1613-1918, by Simon Sebag Montefiore

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image:  Nicholas II and Alexandra  The Romanovs: 1613-1918,by Simon Sebag Montefiore  This is the intimate story of twenty tsars and tsarinas, some touched by genius, some by madness, but all inspired by holy autocracy and imperial ambition. Simon Sebag Montefiore’s gripping chronicle reveals their secret world of unlimited power and ruthless empire-building, overshadowed by palace conspiracy, family rivalries, sexual decadence and wild extravagance, with a global cast of adventurers, courtesans, revolutionaries and poets, from Ivan the Terrible to Tolstoy and Pushkin, to Bismarck, Lincoln, Queen Victoria and Lenin.       To rule Russia was both imperial-sacred mission and poisoned chalice: six of the last twelve tsars were murdered. Peter the Great tortured his own son to death while making Russia an empire, and dominated his court with a dining club notable for compulsory drunkenness, naked dwarfs and fancy dress. Catherine the Great overthrew her own husband (who was murdered soon afterward), enjoyed affairs with a series of young male favorites, conquered Ukraine and fascinated Europe. Paul I was strangled by courtiers backed by his own son, Alexander I, who in turn faced Napoleon’s invasion and the burning of Moscow, then went on to take Paris. Alexander II liberated the serfs, survived five assassination attempts and wrote perhaps the most explicit love letters ever composed by a ruler. The Romanovs climaxes with a fresh, unforgettable portrayal of Nicholas II and Alexandra, the rise and murder of Rasputin, war and revolution—and the harrowing massacre of the entire family.       Dazzlingly entertaining and beautifully written from start to finish, The Romanovs brings these monarchs—male and female, great and flawed, their families and courts—blazingly to life. Drawing on new archival research, Montefiore delivers an enthralling epic of triumph and tragedy, love and murder, encompassing the seminal years 1812, 1914 and 1917, that is both a universal study of power and a portrait of empire that helps define Russia today.  https://www.amazon.com/Romanovs-1613-1918-Simon-Sebag-Montefiore-ebook/dp/B013ZNNX5W/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=montefiore+romanov&qid=1609543660&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 ...more

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• 935: 5/8 The Romanovs: 1613-1918, by Simon Sebag Montefiore

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  Jan 02 2021

  5/8    The Romanovs: 1613-1918,by Simon Sebag Montefiore   Image:  Military from History of the Russian Empire from its foundation by Ruric the Pirate to the accession of the Emperor Alexander II ... With ... engravings   The Romanovs: 1613-1918,by Simon Sebag Montefiore  This is the intimate story of twenty tsars and tsarinas, some touched by genius, some by madness, but all inspired by holy autocracy and imperial ambition. Simon Sebag Montefiore’s gripping chronicle reveals their secret world of unlimited power and ruthless empire-building, overshadowed by palace conspiracy, family rivalries, sexual decadence and wild extravagance, with a global cast of adventurers, courtesans, revolutionaries and poets, from Ivan the Terrible to Tolstoy and Pushkin, to Bismarck, Lincoln, Queen Victoria and Lenin.       To rule Russia was both imperial-sacred mission and poisoned chalice: six of the last twelve tsars were murdered. Peter the Great tortured his own son to death while making Russia an empire, and dominated his court with a dining club notable for compulsory drunkenness, naked dwarfs and fancy dress. Catherine the Great overthrew her own husband (who was murdered soon afterward), enjoyed affairs with a series of young male favorites, conquered Ukraine and fascinated Europe. Paul I was strangled by courtiers backed by his own son, Alexander I, who in turn faced Napoleon’s invasion and the burning of Moscow, then went on to take Paris. Alexander II liberated the serfs, survived five assassination attempts and wrote perhaps the most explicit love letters ever composed by a ruler. The Romanovs climaxes with a fresh, unforgettable portrayal of Nicholas II and Alexandra, the rise and murder of Rasputin, war and revolution—and the harrowing massacre of the entire family.       Dazzlingly entertaining and beautifully written from start to finish, The Romanovs brings these monarchs—male and female, great and flawed, their families and courts—blazingly to life. Drawing on new archival research, Montefiore delivers an enthralling epic of triumph and tragedy, love and murder, encompassing the seminal years 1812, 1914 and 1917, that is both a universal study of power and a portrait of empire that helps define Russia today.  https://www.amazon.com/Romanovs-1613-1918-Simon-Sebag-Montefiore-ebook/dp/B013ZNNX5W/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=montefiore+romanov&qid=1609543660&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 ...more

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• 935: 4/8 The Romanovs: 1613-1918, by Simon Sebag Montefiore

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image: Leo Tolstoy, 1887  The Romanovs: 1613-1918,by Simon Sebag Montefiore  This is the intimate story of twenty tsars and tsarinas, some touched by genius, some by madness, but all inspired by holy autocracy and imperial ambition. Simon Sebag Montefiore’s gripping chronicle reveals their secret world of unlimited power and ruthless empire-building, overshadowed by palace conspiracy, family rivalries, sexual decadence and wild extravagance, with a global cast of adventurers, courtesans, revolutionaries and poets, from Ivan the Terrible to Tolstoy and Pushkin, to Bismarck, Lincoln, Queen Victoria and Lenin.       To rule Russia was both imperial-sacred mission and poisoned chalice: six of the last twelve tsars were murdered. Peter the Great tortured his own son to death while making Russia an empire, and dominated his court with a dining club notable for compulsory drunkenness, naked dwarfs and fancy dress. Catherine the Great overthrew her own husband (who was murdered soon afterward), enjoyed affairs with a series of young male favorites, conquered Ukraine and fascinated Europe. Paul I was strangled by courtiers backed by his own son, Alexander I, who in turn faced Napoleon’s invasion and the burning of Moscow, then went on to take Paris. Alexander II liberated the serfs, survived five assassination attempts and wrote perhaps the most explicit love letters ever composed by a ruler. The Romanovs climaxes with a fresh, unforgettable portrayal of Nicholas II and Alexandra, the rise and murder of Rasputin, war and revolution—and the harrowing massacre of the entire family.       Dazzlingly entertaining and beautifully written from start to finish, The Romanovs brings these monarchs—male and female, great and flawed, their families and courts—blazingly to life. Drawing on new archival research, Montefiore delivers an enthralling epic of triumph and tragedy, love and murder, encompassing the seminal years 1812, 1914 and 1917, that is both a universal study of power and a portrait of empire that helps define Russia today.  https://www.amazon.com/Romanovs-1613-1918-Simon-Sebag-Montefiore-ebook/dp/B013ZNNX5W/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=montefiore+romanov&qid=1609543660&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 ...more

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• 935: 3/8 The Romanovs: 1613-1918, by Simon Sebag Montefiore

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image:   Caption— Rulers of Russia, past and present: Ivan the Terrible to Nicholas II.  Created and "copyright 1895 by The Strobridge Lith Co, Cinti N.Y."  Sidney R. Ellis, manager.   The Romanovs: 1613-1918,by Simon Sebag Montefiore  This is the intimate story of twenty tsars and tsarinas, some touched by genius, some by madness, but all inspired by holy autocracy and imperial ambition. Simon Sebag Montefiore’s gripping chronicle reveals their secret world of unlimited power and ruthless empire-building, overshadowed by palace conspiracy, family rivalries, sexual decadence and wild extravagance, with a global cast of adventurers, courtesans, revolutionaries and poets, from Ivan the Terrible to Tolstoy and Pushkin, to Bismarck, Lincoln, Queen Victoria and Lenin.       To rule Russia was both imperial-sacred mission and poisoned chalice: six of the last twelve tsars were murdered. Peter the Great tortured his own son to death while making Russia an empire, and dominated his court with a dining club notable for compulsory drunkenness, naked dwarfs and fancy dress. Catherine the Great overthrew her own husband (who was murdered soon afterward), enjoyed affairs with a series of young male favorites, conquered Ukraine and fascinated Europe. Paul I was strangled by courtiers backed by his own son, Alexander I, who in turn faced Napoleon’s invasion and the burning of Moscow, then went on to take Paris. Alexander II liberated the serfs, survived five assassination attempts and wrote perhaps the most explicit love letters ever composed by a ruler. The Romanovs climaxes with a fresh, unforgettable portrayal of Nicholas II and Alexandra, the rise and murder of Rasputin, war and revolution—and the harrowing massacre of the entire family.       Dazzlingly entertaining and beautifully written from start to finish, The Romanovs brings these monarchs—male and female, great and flawed, their families and courts—blazingly to life. Drawing on new archival research, Montefiore delivers an enthralling epic of triumph and tragedy, love and murder, encompassing the seminal years 1812, 1914 and 1917, that is both a universal study of power and a portrait of empire that helps define Russia today.  https://www.amazon.com/Romanovs-1613-1918-Simon-Sebag-Montefiore-ebook/dp/B013ZNNX5W/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=montefiore+romanov&qid=1609543660&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 935: 2/8 The Romanovs: 1613-1918, by Simon Sebag Montefiore

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image:   Catherine II of Russia  The Romanovs: 1613-1918,by Simon Sebag Montefiore  This is the intimate story of twenty tsars and tsarinas, some touched by genius, some by madness, but all inspired by holy autocracy and imperial ambition. Simon Sebag Montefiore’s gripping chronicle reveals their secret world of unlimited power and ruthless empire-building, overshadowed by palace conspiracy, family rivalries, sexual decadence and wild extravagance, with a global cast of adventurers, courtesans, revolutionaries and poets, from Ivan the Terrible to Tolstoy and Pushkin, to Bismarck, Lincoln, Queen Victoria and Lenin.       To rule Russia was both imperial-sacred mission and poisoned chalice: six of the last twelve tsars were murdered. Peter the Great tortured his own son to death while making Russia an empire, and dominated his court with a dining club notable for compulsory drunkenness, naked dwarfs and fancy dress. Catherine the Great overthrew her own husband (who was murdered soon afterward), enjoyed affairs with a series of young male favorites, conquered Ukraine and fascinated Europe. Paul I was strangled by courtiers backed by his own son, Alexander I, who in turn faced Napoleon’s invasion and the burning of Moscow, then went on to take Paris. Alexander II liberated the serfs, survived five assassination attempts and wrote perhaps the most explicit love letters ever composed by a ruler. The Romanovs climaxes with a fresh, unforgettable portrayal of Nicholas II and Alexandra, the rise and murder of Rasputin, war and revolution—and the harrowing massacre of the entire family.       Dazzlingly entertaining and beautifully written from start to finish, The Romanovs brings these monarchs—male and female, great and flawed, their families and courts—blazingly to life. Drawing on new archival research, Montefiore delivers an enthralling epic of triumph and tragedy, love and murder, encompassing the seminal years 1812, 1914 and 1917, that is both a universal study of power and a portrait of empire that helps define Russia today.  https://www.amazon.com/Romanovs-1613-1918-Simon-Sebag-Montefiore-ebook/dp/B013ZNNX5W/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=montefiore+romanov&qid=1609543660&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 935: 1/8 The Romanovs: 1613-1918, by Simon Sebag Montefiore

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image:    Peter the Great, portrait d'après J.-M. Nattier; at the Hermitage   The Romanovs: 1613-1918,by Simon Sebag Montefiore  This is the intimate story of twenty tsars and tsarinas, some touched by genius, some by madness, but all inspired by holy autocracy and imperial ambition. Simon Sebag Montefiore’s gripping chronicle reveals their secret world of unlimited power and ruthless empire-building, overshadowed by palace conspiracy, family rivalries, sexual decadence and wild extravagance, with a global cast of adventurers, courtesans, revolutionaries and poets, from Ivan the Terrible to Tolstoy and Pushkin, to Bismarck, Lincoln, Queen Victoria and Lenin.       To rule Russia was both imperial-sacred mission and poisoned chalice: six of the last twelve tsars were murdered. Peter the Great tortured his own son to death while making Russia an empire, and dominated his court with a dining club notable for compulsory drunkenness, naked dwarfs and fancy dress. Catherine the Great overthrew her own husband (who was murdered soon afterward), enjoyed affairs with a series of young male favorites, conquered Ukraine and fascinated Europe. Paul I was strangled by courtiers backed by his own son, Alexander I, who in turn faced Napoleon’s invasion and the burning of Moscow, then went on to take Paris. Alexander II liberated the serfs, survived five assassination attempts and wrote perhaps the most explicit love letters ever composed by a ruler. The Romanovs climaxes with a fresh, unforgettable portrayal of Nicholas II and Alexandra, the rise and murder of Rasputin, war and revolution—and the harrowing massacre of the entire family.       Dazzlingly entertaining and beautifully written from start to finish, The Romanovs brings these monarchs—male and female, great and flawed, their families and courts—blazingly to life. Drawing on new archival research, Montefiore delivers an enthralling epic of triumph and tragedy, love and murder, encompassing the seminal years 1812, 1914 and 1917, that is both a universal study of power and a portrait of empire that helps define Russia today.  https://www.amazon.com/Romanovs-1613-1918-Simon-Sebag-Montefiore-ebook/dp/B013ZNNX5W/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=montefiore+romanov&qid=1609543660&s=digital-text&sr=1-1 ...more

  Episode

• 934: 8/8 July 1914: Countdown to War, by Sean McMeekin

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image:   Grave implications of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand were immediately recognized, as in this 29 June article with subtitles "War Sequel?" and "War May Result,"  and stating the assassination was "engineered by persons having a more mature organizing ability than that of the youthful assassins."  July 1914: Countdown to War,by Sean McMeekin  When a Serbian-backed assassin gunned down Archduke Franz Ferdinand in late June 1914, the world seemed unmoved. Even Ferdinand's own uncle, Franz Josef I, was notably ambivalent about the death of the Hapsburg heir, saying simply, "It is God's will." Certainly, there was nothing to suggest that the episode would lead to conflict—much less a world war of such massive and horrific proportions that it would fundamentally reshape the course of human events.       As the acclaimed historian Sean McMeekin reveals in July 1914, World War I might have been avoided entirely had it not been for a small group of statesmen who, in the month after the assassination, plotted to use Ferdinand's murder as the trigger for a long-awaited showdown in Europe. The primary culprits, moreover, have long escaped blame. While most accounts of the war's outbreak place the bulk of responsibility on German and Austro-Hungarian militarism, McMeekin draws on surprising new evidence from archives across Europe to show that the worst offenders were actually to be found in Russia and France, whose belligerence and duplicity ensured that war was inevitable.        Whether they plotted for war or rode the whirlwind nearly blind, each of the men involved—from the Austrian Foreign Minister Leopold von Berchtold and the German Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg to the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Sazonov and the French president Raymond Poincaré—sought to capitalize on the fallout from Ferdinand's murder, unwittingly leading Europe toward the greatest cataclysm it had ever seen.       A revolutionary account of the genesis of World War I, July 1914 tells the gripping story of Europe's countdown to war from the bloody opening act on June 28 to Britain's final plunge on August 4, showing how a single month, and a handful of men, changed the course of the twentieth century.  https://www.amazon.com/July-1914-Countdown-Sean-McMeekin-ebook/dp/B00HTQ31FY/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=McMeekin&qid=1609542497&s=digital-text&sr=1-3 ...more

  Episode

• 934: 7/8 July 1914: Countdown to War, by Sean McMeekin

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image:    British sailors watch the German cruiser SMS Mainz sink during the Battle of Heligoland Bight.  July 1914: Countdown to War,by Sean McMeekin  When a Serbian-backed assassin gunned down Archduke Franz Ferdinand in late June 1914, the world seemed unmoved. Even Ferdinand's own uncle, Franz Josef I, was notably ambivalent about the death of the Hapsburg heir, saying simply, "It is God's will." Certainly, there was nothing to suggest that the episode would lead to conflict—much less a world war of such massive and horrific proportions that it would fundamentally reshape the course of human events.       As the acclaimed historian Sean McMeekin reveals in July 1914, World War I might have been avoided entirely had it not been for a small group of statesmen who, in the month after the assassination, plotted to use Ferdinand's murder as the trigger for a long-awaited showdown in Europe. The primary culprits, moreover, have long escaped blame. While most accounts of the war's outbreak place the bulk of responsibility on German and Austro-Hungarian militarism, McMeekin draws on surprising new evidence from archives across Europe to show that the worst offenders were actually to be found in Russia and France, whose belligerence and duplicity ensured that war was inevitable.        Whether they plotted for war or rode the whirlwind nearly blind, each of the men involved—from the Austrian Foreign Minister Leopold von Berchtold and the German Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg to the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Sazonov and the French president Raymond Poincaré—sought to capitalize on the fallout from Ferdinand's murder, unwittingly leading Europe toward the greatest cataclysm it had ever seen.       A revolutionary account of the genesis of World War I, July 1914 tells the gripping story of Europe's countdown to war from the bloody opening act on June 28 to Britain's final plunge on August 4, showing how a single month, and a handful of men, changed the course of the twentieth century.  https://www.amazon.com/July-1914-Countdown-Sean-McMeekin-ebook/dp/B00HTQ31FY/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=McMeekin&qid=1609542497&s=digital-text&sr=1-3 ...more

  Episode

• 934: 6/8 July 1914: Countdown to War, by Sean McMeekin

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image:  Le Petit Journal announces the election of Poincaré (1913).  July 1914: Countdown to War,by Sean McMeekin  When a Serbian-backed assassin gunned down Archduke Franz Ferdinand in late June 1914, the world seemed unmoved. Even Ferdinand's own uncle, Franz Josef I, was notably ambivalent about the death of the Hapsburg heir, saying simply, "It is God's will." Certainly, there was nothing to suggest that the episode would lead to conflict—much less a world war of such massive and horrific proportions that it would fundamentally reshape the course of human events.       As the acclaimed historian Sean McMeekin reveals in July 1914, World War I might have been avoided entirely had it not been for a small group of statesmen who, in the month after the assassination, plotted to use Ferdinand's murder as the trigger for a long-awaited showdown in Europe. The primary culprits, moreover, have long escaped blame. While most accounts of the war's outbreak place the bulk of responsibility on German and Austro-Hungarian militarism, McMeekin draws on surprising new evidence from archives across Europe to show that the worst offenders were actually to be found in Russia and France, whose belligerence and duplicity ensured that war was inevitable.        Whether they plotted for war or rode the whirlwind nearly blind, each of the men involved—from the Austrian Foreign Minister Leopold von Berchtold and the German Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg to the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Sazonov and the French president Raymond Poincaré—sought to capitalize on the fallout from Ferdinand's murder, unwittingly leading Europe toward the greatest cataclysm it had ever seen.       A revolutionary account of the genesis of World War I, July 1914 tells the gripping story of Europe's countdown to war from the bloody opening act on June 28 to Britain's final plunge on August 4, showing how a single month, and a handful of men, changed the course of the twentieth century.   https://www.amazon.com/July-1914-Countdown-Sean-McMeekin-ebook/dp/B00HTQ31FY/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=McMeekin&qid=1609542497&s=digital-text&sr=1-3 ...more

  Episode

• 934: 5/8 July 1914: Countdown to War, by Sean McMeekin

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image:     The Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Sazonov  July 1914: Countdown to War,by Sean McMeekin  When a Serbian-backed assassin gunned down Archduke Franz Ferdinand in late June 1914, the world seemed unmoved. Even Ferdinand's own uncle, Franz Josef I, was notably ambivalent about the death of the Hapsburg heir, saying simply, "It is God's will." Certainly, there was nothing to suggest that the episode would lead to conflict—much less a world war of such massive and horrific proportions that it would fundamentally reshape the course of human events.       As the acclaimed historian Sean McMeekin reveals in July 1914, World War I might have been avoided entirely had it not been for a small group of statesmen who, in the month after the assassination, plotted to use Ferdinand's murder as the trigger for a long-awaited showdown in Europe. The primary culprits, moreover, have long escaped blame. While most accounts of the war's outbreak place the bulk of responsibility on German and Austro-Hungarian militarism, McMeekin draws on surprising new evidence from archives across Europe to show that the worst offenders were actually to be found in Russia and France, whose belligerence and duplicity ensured that war was inevitable.        Whether they plotted for war or rode the whirlwind nearly blind, each of the men involved—from the Austrian Foreign Minister Leopold von Berchtold and the German Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg to the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Sazonov and the French president Raymond Poincaré—sought to capitalize on the fallout from Ferdinand's murder, unwittingly leading Europe toward the greatest cataclysm it had ever seen.       A revolutionary account of the genesis of World War I, July 1914 tells the gripping story of Europe's countdown to war from the bloody opening act on June 28 to Britain's final plunge on August 4, showing how a single month, and a handful of men, changed the course of the twentieth century.  https://www.amazon.com/July-1914-Countdown-Sean-McMeekin-ebook/dp/B00HTQ31FY/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=McMeekin&qid=1609542497&s=digital-text&sr=1-3 ...more

  Episode

• 934: 4/8 July 1914: Countdown to War, by Sean McMeekin

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image:  Der König von Bayern; Ludwig III., besucht das Heeresgruppenkommando in Sighișoara (Schässburg, Segesvar), 7.11.1916, gemeinsame Fahrt mit dem früheren Außenminister Graf Leopold Berchtold  July 1914: Countdown to War,by Sean McMeekin  When a Serbian-backed assassin gunned down Archduke Franz Ferdinand in late June 1914, the world seemed unmoved. Even Ferdinand's own uncle, Franz Josef I, was notably ambivalent about the death of the Hapsburg heir, saying simply, "It is God's will." Certainly, there was nothing to suggest that the episode would lead to conflict—much less a world war of such massive and horrific proportions that it would fundamentally reshape the course of human events.       As the acclaimed historian Sean McMeekin reveals in July 1914, World War I might have been avoided entirely had it not been for a small group of statesmen who, in the month after the assassination, plotted to use Ferdinand's murder as the trigger for a long-awaited showdown in Europe. The primary culprits, moreover, have long escaped blame. While most accounts of the war's outbreak place the bulk of responsibility on German and Austro-Hungarian militarism, McMeekin draws on surprising new evidence from archives across Europe to show that the worst offenders were actually to be found in Russia and France, whose belligerence and duplicity ensured that war was inevitable.        Whether they plotted for war or rode the whirlwind nearly blind, each of the men involved—from the Austrian Foreign Minister Leopold von Berchtold and the German Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg to the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Sazonov and the French president Raymond Poincaré—sought to capitalize on the fallout from Ferdinand's murder, unwittingly leading Europe toward the greatest cataclysm it had ever seen.       A revolutionary account of the genesis of World War I, July 1914 tells the gripping story of Europe's countdown to war from the bloody opening act on June 28 to Britain's final plunge on August 4, showing how a single month, and a handful of men, changed the course of the twentieth century.  https://www.amazon.com/July-1914-Countdown-Sean-McMeekin-ebook/dp/B00HTQ31FY/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=McMeekin&qid=1609542497&s=digital-text&sr=1-3 ...more

  Episode

• 934: 3/8 July 1914: Countdown to War, by Sean McMeekin

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image:  The painting depicts the family of Franz Joseph gathered in prayer, 1839  July 1914: Countdown to War,by Sean McMeekin  When a Serbian-backed assassin gunned down Archduke Franz Ferdinand in late June 1914, the world seemed unmoved. Even Ferdinand's own uncle, Franz Josef I, was notably ambivalent about the death of the Hapsburg heir, saying simply, "It is God's will." Certainly, there was nothing to suggest that the episode would lead to conflict—much less a world war of such massive and horrific proportions that it would fundamentally reshape the course of human events.       As the acclaimed historian Sean McMeekin reveals in July 1914, World War I might have been avoided entirely had it not been for a small group of statesmen who, in the month after the assassination, plotted to use Ferdinand's murder as the trigger for a long-awaited showdown in Europe. The primary culprits, moreover, have long escaped blame. While most accounts of the war's outbreak place the bulk of responsibility on German and Austro-Hungarian militarism, McMeekin draws on surprising new evidence from archives across Europe to show that the worst offenders were actually to be found in Russia and France, whose belligerence and duplicity ensured that war was inevitable.        Whether they plotted for war or rode the whirlwind nearly blind, each of the men involved—from the Austrian Foreign Minister Leopold von Berchtold and the German Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg to the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Sazonov and the French president Raymond Poincaré—sought to capitalize on the fallout from Ferdinand's murder, unwittingly leading Europe toward the greatest cataclysm it had ever seen.       A revolutionary account of the genesis of World War I, July 1914 tells the gripping story of Europe's countdown to war from the bloody opening act on June 28 to Britain's final plunge on August 4, showing how a single month, and a handful of men, changed the course of the twentieth century.  https://www.amazon.com/July-1914-Countdown-Sean-McMeekin-ebook/dp/B00HTQ31FY/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=McMeekin&qid=1609542497&s=digital-text&sr=1-3 ...more

  Episode

• 934: 2/8 July 1914: Countdown to War, by Sean McMeekin

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image:  Emperor Franz Josef of Austria, in uniform, 1903. Credit: Library of Congress of the USA.  July 1914: Countdown to War,by Sean McMeekin  When a Serbian-backed assassin gunned down Archduke Franz Ferdinand in late June 1914, the world seemed unmoved. Even Ferdinand's own uncle, Franz Josef I, was notably ambivalent about the death of the Hapsburg heir, saying simply, "It is God's will." Certainly, there was nothing to suggest that the episode would lead to conflict—much less a world war of such massive and horrific proportions that it would fundamentally reshape the course of human events.       As the acclaimed historian Sean McMeekin reveals in July 1914, World War I might have been avoided entirely had it not been for a small group of statesmen who, in the month after the assassination, plotted to use Ferdinand's murder as the trigger for a long-awaited showdown in Europe. The primary culprits, moreover, have long escaped blame. While most accounts of the war's outbreak place the bulk of responsibility on German and Austro-Hungarian militarism, McMeekin draws on surprising new evidence from archives across Europe to show that the worst offenders were actually to be found in Russia and France, whose belligerence and duplicity ensured that war was inevitable.        Whether they plotted for war or rode the whirlwind nearly blind, each of the men involved—from the Austrian Foreign Minister Leopold von Berchtold and the German Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg to the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Sazonov and the French president Raymond Poincaré—sought to capitalize on the fallout from Ferdinand's murder, unwittingly leading Europe toward the greatest cataclysm it had ever seen.       A revolutionary account of the genesis of World War I, July 1914 tells the gripping story of Europe's countdown to war from the bloody opening act on June 28 to Britain's final plunge on August 4, showing how a single month, and a handful of men, changed the course of the twentieth century.  https://www.amazon.com/July-1914-Countdown-Sean-McMeekin-ebook/dp/B00HTQ31FY/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=McMeekin&qid=1609542497&s=digital-text&sr=1-3 ...more

  Episode

• 933: 1/8 July 1914: Countdown to War, by Sean McMeekin

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  Jan 02 2021

  Image:   Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria (1863-1914) with his wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg (1868-1914) and their children.  July 1914: Countdown to War,by Sean McMeekin  When a Serbian-backed assassin gunned down Archduke Franz Ferdinand in late June 1914, the world seemed unmoved. Even Ferdinand's own uncle, Franz Josef I, was notably ambivalent about the death of the Hapsburg heir, saying simply, "It is God's will." Certainly, there was nothing to suggest that the episode would lead to conflict—much less a world war of such massive and horrific proportions that it would fundamentally reshape the course of human events.       As the acclaimed historian Sean McMeekin reveals in July 1914, World War I might have been avoided entirely had it not been for a small group of statesmen who, in the month after the assassination, plotted to use Ferdinand's murder as the trigger for a long-awaited showdown in Europe. The primary culprits, moreover, have long escaped blame. While most accounts of the war's outbreak place the bulk of responsibility on German and Austro-Hungarian militarism, McMeekin draws on surprising new evidence from archives across Europe to show that the worst offenders were actually to be found in Russia and France, whose belligerence and duplicity ensured that war was inevitable.        Whether they plotted for war or rode the whirlwind nearly blind, each of the men involved—from the Austrian Foreign Minister Leopold von Berchtold and the German Chancellor Bethmann Hollweg to the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Sazonov and the French president Raymond Poincaré—sought to capitalize on the fallout from Ferdinand's murder, unwittingly leading Europe toward the greatest cataclysm it had ever seen.       A revolutionary account of the genesis of World War I, July 1914 tells the gripping story of Europe's countdown to war from the bloody opening act on June 28 to Britain's final plunge on August 4, showing how a single month, and a handful of men, changed the course of the twentieth century.   https://www.amazon.com/July-1914-Countdown-Sean-McMeekin-ebook/dp/B00HTQ31FY/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=McMeekin&qid=1609542497&s=digital-text&sr=1-3 ...more

  Episode