tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51816163715211388142024-03-24T00:11:05.823-07:00Nexus of ThoughtWritings on History, Science, Reason, Classical Liberalism, the Alternative Future and the Philosophy of Life. Enjoy!!
Most of the posts here will largely focus on my Quora Answers as well as the Western History posts that I am working through in sequential fashion.
Please feel free to comment.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger979125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-33465340712267920852024-03-15T08:37:00.000-07:002024-03-17T16:34:27.369-07:0015 Ways that Media corrupts distorts public perception and shackles the truth - Decline #2<p>1. It sentationalizes events that have gut appeal to the population. Outrage is cultivated.</p><p>2. The Narrative is favoured over the facts. Media blurs the distinction between the two in favour of the former.</p><p>3. It reports on partisan lines with deliberate recourse to confirmation bias. Inconvenient details and context are downplayed.</p><p>4. It misleads the reader with headings that don't reflect the essence of the story. Many people very rarely read past the headings so that obfuscation predominates.</p><p>5. It uses visual imagery (decontextualized) selectively. This resonates with many people.A picture is worth a 1000 words or so they say.</p><p>6. In a rush to publish first inaccuracy is sacrificed to swifness of scoop. Apologies for errors arrive much later after the damage has been done.</p><p>7. It plays loosely with the term 'expert' to give credence to its intended narrative.This creates the necessary Echo Chamber.</p><p>8. Statistics presented often lack nuance and the assumptions that they are predicated on are conveniently sidelined.</p><p>9. It grants far too much air time to celebrity opinion that is not relevant to the issue at hand but drives up clicks and likes.</p><p>10. It promotes logical fallacies eg. If x people agree on a point compared to y people and x is greater than y than x must be correct. The Truth is not a popularity contest.</p><p>11. It creates false dichotomies of victim v victimizer as this has a visceral impact for so many.</p><p>12. Much media reporting reporting is not original but is based on rechurned reports. This inevitably distorts the details. </p><p>13. Social media algorithms and search engine priorities favours certain media outlets over others. Thereby biasing the feed stream. Shadow banning and full on cancellation further augments perceptions.</p><p>14. Media embedded in nations that have limited freedom of speech often self censure their reports. Thereby weakening our understanding of what really is happening.</p><p>15. Media News rooms have an overhelming partisan bias. In the West this largely leans toward the globalist left and drives the narrative.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-63462106263509618272024-03-12T12:54:00.000-07:002024-03-17T16:33:45.399-07:0013 Ways that Modern Education is failing in the West - Decline #1<p> 1. Decline of rigour in favour of 'kindness' driven education. You need both but the balance has shifted away from the former. Students should not be pushed through a course to make them feel better or improve school statistics.</p><p>2. Destreaming of subjects. This results in an overall lowering of standards. Excellence at the high end is being shortshifted.</p><p>3. Political Ideology finding its way in the classroom. Most of this is of the Green/Red/Wokeist type. However any ideology (regardless of Axis position) should not be promoted to a captive audience.</p><p>4. Grade Inflation.</p><p>5. An increasing emphasis on project based assignments that can be easily compromised using plagarism and artificial intelligence adjuncts.</p><p>6. Teachers Union protecting teachers whose job performamce is far from optimum.</p><p>7. Growing administration budgets at the school boards that create endless micro-managing and wasteful interference.</p><p>8. Lack of consistent standards by schools in the absence of standardized testing.</p><p>9. Political initiatives that treat students differently based on their ethnicity. This is anti-Liberal and fosters resentment.</p><p>10. A declining numbers of male teachers and role models in the school system. Boys are ideed falling behind.</p><p>11. Down grading of the history of Western Civilization (plus the classics) in school curricula. This results in a lack of awareness of the giants who shoulders we stand on.</p><p>12. Too much emphasis on technology as a fix-it-all for various problems.</p><p>13. Lack of discipline and consequence for bad behavior.</p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-13267995583390790982024-03-02T05:44:00.000-08:002024-03-13T07:01:54.880-07:00The West is in obvious decline.<p> This off the top of my head...</p><div class="xdj266r x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">These are either the symptoms or drivers (or both) for the decline.</div></div><div class="x11i5rnm xat24cr x1mh8g0r x1vvkbs xtlvy1s x126k92a" style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">1. Fall in Education standards</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">2. Extreme Media Bias, Frivolity and Twisted Narratives</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">3. Scientific Fraud</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">4. <span style="font-family: inherit;"><a style="color: #385898; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit;" tabindex="-1"></a></span>Post Truth in Academia </div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">5. Historical rewriting</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">6. DEI obsession/Critical Race Theory</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">7. Decline of the Arts</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">8. Threats to open debate/Cancel culture</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">9. Cults of Victimhood, Self Flagellation, Entitlement and unearned respect</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">10. Deteriorating values</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">11. Cultural Relativism. Erosion of the concept of common values.</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">12. Institutional Corruption/Poor Leadership, Owned Leadership and Grifting</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">13. Aggression of Islamism</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">14. Illegal Immigration</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">15. Corporate hijack of Grassroots Capitalism</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">16. Overzealous state intrusion, Selective Policing</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">17. Growing Cycles of Debt (Personal and Private)</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">18. Gender Identity Post-structuralism</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">19. Expansion of the State enterprise</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">20. Middle Class Alienation and the heavy tax burden</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">21. Collapse of the family and the social hierachy.</div><div dir="auto" style="font-family: inherit;">22. The demise of Christianity.</div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-41036501360142311792024-02-18T12:55:00.000-08:002024-03-13T07:01:39.763-07:00<p>Sabine Hossenfelder looks at the fraud that is driving a retraction crisis in the science. She points a finger at the 'Special Issues' craze that has allowed the literature to become littered with published papers that are fundamentally flawed (deliberately or not). AI is partly to blame but like most critiques she avoids going deeper into a proposed solution. </p><p>In addition she carefully avoids the politically motivated topic of Anthropegenic Climate Change that has for all intent of purpose become the poster child for groupthink, scientism and shoddy science. </p><p> Publish or Perish and competitive grant money have not helped the process but if science cannot extricate itself from the politics that skews its bias it runs the risk of crashing in on itself. Nobody will benefit from that. The success of Western Civilization is grounded in a solid science. This involves a science that incorporates rationalism and empiricism and places the truth at the apex of all investigation quests. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6wN8B1pruJg" width="320" youtube-src-id="6wN8B1pruJg"></iframe></div><br /><p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-35187817792163132422024-02-18T12:42:00.000-08:002024-02-18T12:42:43.835-08:00An updateSince my book Navigating the Chaos was published in March of last year I have been somewhat lax in my personal writing. While I have answered questions on Quora I have largerly resisted the urge to write more on a substantive level. <div><br /><div>The decay all around me has moved me in the direction of a negativity that I have found to be stifling of personal aspiration. I need to push on in my marketing of the book but I can't help but ponder the futility of all that there is.</div></div><div><br /></div><div>The attack on Israel cut me to the soul and the rapid rise of obvious antisemitism has not helped with this onset of such an existential angst. It truly is frightening. </div><div><br /></div><div>However I am not one to marinate in self pity. I need to move on with my writing and this includes a motivated intent to outline, analyze and dissect the decline. This will now serve as the purpose of this blog.</div><div><br /></div><div>It is my recourse to a continued sanity and I will follow through with it.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-84261443875926494452024-01-27T07:05:00.000-08:002024-01-27T07:05:49.144-08:00More Answers to Quick Quora Questions II<p><b>Did Britain refuse to support Anti-Bolshevik forces in the Russia before World War II?</b></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">No. In fact between 1918 and 1920 The British together with France, the United States, Japan and Czechoslovakia actively backed the anti-Bolshevik White Movement in the Russian Civil War. Almost a thousand Brits died in this conflict.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--inline qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; display: inline; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">Check out: Kinvig, Clifford (2006). </span><span style="background: none; font-style: italic;">Churchill's Crusade: The British Invasion of Russia 1918–1920</span><span style="background: none;">. London</span></p><div><p class="q-text qu-display--inline qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; display: inline; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;"><br /></span></p></div><div><p class="q-text qu-display--inline qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; display: inline; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;"><b>Can totalitarianism exist in a liberal form?</b></span></p></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;">No. The key unit in Liberalism is the individual with the prime focus being its sovereignty. Any totalitarian system biases the collective over the individual and therefore ceases to be liberal. Progressivism is not liberal.<span> </span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><span><b>Can Nuclear fusion be stopped or reversed if accidently started?</b></span></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><span><br /></span></span></div><div><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">I assume you mean in a lab or power planet. The answer is yes. Nuclear Fission Processes are shutdown using the SCRAM procedure (safety control rod axe man - the term was coined by Enrico Fermi). In light reactors (water cooled) this done by inserting a control rod that absorbs neutrons. For CANDU reactors a neutron poison is injected via the EPIS system (Emergency Poison Injection system).</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">In Nuclear Fusion the process is stopped by releasing the pressure on the plasma/fuel mix. Worth thinking about is that a fusion reaction is easier to control as it is not a chain reaction.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;"><br /></span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;"><b>When did the meaning of Liberalism change from its classical roots?</b></span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">It didn’t. Liberalism is the authentic classic version. In the United States Progressive groups co-opted the name in the early to mid 20th century as a way of polishing their progressive image which had become increasingly tarnished over time. The re-brand unfortunately stuck with the details lost to history. In Europe and Australia, Liberal Party Parties are closer to the original definition in political philosophy (although not always in action) than those who go by the same mantra in North America.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;"><b><br /></b></span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;"><b>Why did Germany betray Austria and not provide assistance during World War I?</b></span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;"><br /></span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">The Germans were fighting the French/British Empires on one front and the Russians on the other. The fight against the Russians relieved some of the pressure on the Austrian/Hungarian forces who could concentrate more of their efforts against the Italians and the Serbs. Anymore German assistance was unlikely as the nations was under naval blockade and was stretched to the limits on both the Western and Eastern Fronts for most of the war. While there was some relief to Germany when Russia pulled out of the war this did not last long as the Allied forces were bolstered on the West by the entry of the United States.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;"><br /></span></p></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-62136056898344968622024-01-27T06:59:00.000-08:002024-02-18T12:57:24.185-08:00When did the Canadian Liberal Party become left wing?<p> My answer in Quora.</p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">The shift started with the outsize influence of Pierre Trudeau (Prime Minister from 1968–1979 then 1980 to 1984) and his strong pro-labor, Federalist and social democratic stance. Trudeau enjoyed close ties with the CCF (the forerunner of the left wing New Democratic Party) and was essentially a man of the left for most of his life. Big government economists Joseph Schumpeter and Kenneth Galbraith both influenced his economic outlook.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">He was actually was a latecomer to Liberal politics only joining the party in 1965 (well into his 40s) and was described by a former Cabinet Minister, Judy LaMarsh, as not being ‘a liberal’. She was correct. Trudeau never left his social democratic roots.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">In office Trudeau greatly expanded Canada’s social welfare system, ran large budget deficits throughout his term in first rem in office (with the slight exception of 1969), implemented wage and price controls, forced the Western Canadian provinces to freeze oil prices and eventually created a nationalized oil company.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">He was also a strong friend of Fidel Castro, an opponent of gun ownership, a champion of high capital gains taxes, and a Federalist whose top down approach alienated both Western Canada and Quebec,</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">Supporters credit him though with Canada’s policy of official bilingualism, the abolition of the death penalty, multiculturalism, expansion of unemployment insurance, the Criminal Law Amendment Act and the Patriation of the Constitution. The latter led to the Constitution Act of 1982 and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-35351099472647758762024-01-13T10:38:00.000-08:002024-01-13T10:38:34.446-08:00Some Positive News<p>1. Democratic Progressive Party win Taiwanese election defeating pro-Beijing KMT.</p><p>2. Conservatives in Canada open up a <a href="https://abacusdata.ca/conservative-lead-by-17-over-liberals-abacus-data/">17 point </a>lead over the Liberals. Lets hope this holds over time.</p><p>3. US and UK take necessary action against <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67967233">Houthis</a> who are threatening the Bab al-Mandab chokepoint between the Arabian peninsula and the Horm of Africa. It took a while but this proxy force of Iran cannot be allowed to threaten such a key area.</p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-84361018223110504312023-12-31T15:23:00.000-08:002023-12-31T15:46:13.244-08:00Goodbye 2023<p>2023 has been a tough year for the world and indeed all those who value freedom and liberty. Inflation still remains high and despite some manicured data the recovery has been relatively sluggish. Illegal immigration is destroying America.</p><p>The Hamas attack on Israel that resulted in the killing of over 1200 Israelis has earned the noteriety of being the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. At present Israel is focused on rooting out Hamas, saving whatever hostages are still alive and defeating the Islamist insurgency centered on Gaza. It is a daunting task especially in a world where the global media appears indifferent to the country's need to defend itself and defeat those, whose sole motivation is the eradication of the Jewish state.</p><p>Our Institutions continue to show obvious signs of being broken. The pathos of the presidents of Harvard, Penn and MIT provided evidence of the word games that each would subscribe to, in selectively handling the threat to Jewish students on their campuses. A diabolical moral equivalency has been applied that would certainly found no home in the halls of academy if another victimized minority were in the cross-hairs of a group rage.</p><p>In Nigeria we saw the massacre of Christians as radical Islamists continue their hostile demonstrations in many of the Western cities ,with the knowledge that the rule of law has been compromised by a groupthink of guilt-ridden toleration that has rendered common sense obsolete.</p><p>2024 will hopefully be better however that may just be my own wishful thinking. Elections will colour the political land scape of the United States and the UK (plus others) and these will likely bring out the worst elements of deceit, obfuscation and double talk. There will be more of the nasty.</p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-51962792569841441742023-12-31T15:03:00.000-08:002023-12-31T15:03:27.302-08:00Greatest Naval Battles of All-Time<p> My Thoughts</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ijqv1RSely8" width="320" youtube-src-id="ijqv1RSely8"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-69989151030965041822023-12-31T15:01:00.000-08:002023-12-31T15:02:03.361-08:00My Book Navigating the Chaos<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/XOwk-er_Ksk" width="320" youtube-src-id="XOwk-er_Ksk"></iframe></div><br /> <p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-30356587570158376962023-12-31T14:59:00.000-08:002023-12-31T14:59:33.562-08:00My Answers to quick Quora questions?<p><b> Why has China been unable to diversify its economy away from exports?</b></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;">It still has too much top down control of the economy which reflects a reluctance to fully trust the market. Entrenched business interests working in tandem with the government have not embraced the broader mechanism of market feedback. Such continued thinking weakens economic diversification and innovation.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Why couldn't Feudalism continue after the Industrial Revolution?</b></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;">The Industrial Revolution brought about a mass movement directed towards urbanization. It also created a more flexible labour market. In short it reduced the domination of the Agrarian economy and the entrenched population base that were necessary for Feudalism to continue. In a further sense it helped spread the ideas of economic liberalism and the individual liberty that are anathema to the rigidity of Feudalism.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>If Canada and the US stopped trading between each other what would happen?</b></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;">It would devastate the economies of both. The US in particular relies on Canada for raw material. Canada would be crushed by the lack of revenue as the US makes up 75% of the countries import and export market. In addition Canada is the US’s 2nd biggest trading partner (just behind China). If trade broke down between these North American nations the US would likely have to rely on imports from far less reliable global sources. Inflation would wreak havoc with the country as supply lines would be stretched and greatly reduced in efficiency. The environmental effect would also be negatively impacted.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><b>Do you think South Africa's genocide case against Israel has merit?</b></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;">No. Its just a ploy by the ANC brass to ingratiate themselves with various elements of the Arab world, some of its BRICS partners and the radicals in its own party and the EFF. That way they can take pressure off themselves for their mishandling of both the South African economy and its electrical power system. Cyril Ramaphosa is running a government that is riddled in corruption and failing the bulk of the population.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-89306565988341931472023-12-31T14:55:00.000-08:002023-12-31T14:55:26.306-08:00What were the key factors leading to the collapse of the Roman Empire?<p> My answer in Quora.</p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">There were a number of factors (not just one). These include the devaluation of the currency, the outsourcing of security to third party mercenaries (barbarian troops who extracted large sums of money and land payments for their services), migration of foreign tribes westward into the Empire (Visigoths, Huns, Franks, Vandals etc), a falling work ethic, poor leadership, the splitting of the Empire into the wealthy East and the poor West, internal strife, the dilution of the notion of the responsible citizen, and conflicting ideological/theological struggles as Christianity replaced paganism.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">It is worth noting that the Western Empire collapsed almost a millennium before that of the East Byzantine Empire (476 vs 1453 AD). Many of these factors listed above are more relevant to the West. The East was weakened by the Arab invasion, conflicts with the Crusaders and ultimately the rise of first the Seljuks then Ottoman Turks. There was also considerable infighting between the various Byzantine royals.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">If you see any of these analogous trends in today’s contemporary world, Be concerned. Very concerned.</span></p><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-56956704343040554852023-12-28T09:01:00.000-08:002023-12-28T09:05:46.883-08:00My Podcast with Tammy PetersonThank you very much Tammy Peterson. I really enjoyed this.<div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DB__j96Hq28" width="320" youtube-src-id="DB__j96Hq28"></iframe></div><br /><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-66555319060044539202023-10-21T16:36:00.003-07:002023-10-21T16:36:30.082-07:00Hamas' terror is part of the Armed Jihad<div><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold;"><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; font-weight: 400; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">Supporters of the Armed Jihad plus the myriad of fellow travelers will never condemn attacks on the Jews. In fact they rejoice in it. For them the attackers are doing the work of Allah with Jews and other non-believers being seen as less than human.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; font-weight: 400; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">Hear it in their own words.</span></p></span></div><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-weight: bold;">“ O brother believers, the criminals, the terrorists - are the Jews… They are the ones who must be butchered and killed, as Allah the Almighty said: 'Fight them: Allah will torture them at your hands, and will humiliate them and will help you to overcome them… The Jews are like a [gas] pedal - as long as you step on it with your foot, it doesn't move, but if you lift your foot from it, it hurts you and punishes you. This is the case of the Jews."</span><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"> Dr. Ahmed Abi Halabiya.</span><div><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: none; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><span style="background-color: white;">Quote source: October 13, 2000, Dr. Ahmad Abu Halabiya, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al-Nahyan Mosque in Gaza, PA Television.</span></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-20525598837551179272023-10-21T16:27:00.005-07:002023-10-21T16:27:55.391-07:00Its getting worse...<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #050505; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; white-space: pre-wrap;">As a Jew right now I am really concerned with our community's safety. The rhetoric being deployed against Israel has clearly morphed into an extremely toxic anti-semitism. The media isn't helping by its false equivalencies and advancement of unsubstantiated stories, that in time are revealed to be downright lies.</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-76064658125315721442023-09-02T09:56:00.002-07:002023-09-02T09:56:34.787-07:00Video 2 Why do the Russians like their Strongmen?<p> A few words on the topic by moi.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2yCbcW_d0ek" width="320" youtube-src-id="2yCbcW_d0ek"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-24730586918339431862023-09-02T09:53:00.003-07:002023-09-02T09:54:17.274-07:00Video 1 Why is Physics so difficult?<p> My take as a teacher.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sk4JVcDLMW0" width="320" youtube-src-id="sk4JVcDLMW0"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-35574236194526328502023-08-26T12:24:00.003-07:002023-08-26T12:24:18.962-07:00Could Napoleon have won if he attacked Moscow instead of retreating?<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;">Napoleon actually reached Moscow and indeed occupied it. However it was a Pyrrhic victory. The Russians had burnt much of the city to the ground denying the Corsican the spoils of war. However this was only part of the problem. As the cliche goes an Army marches on its stomach and the Russian scorched Earth policy had seen to it that the Grand Army’s supply lines were not sustainable. Faced with hunger, General Winter and effective Cossack hit and run strategies he had no option but to retreat. What defeated Napoleon wasn’t Russian military prowess but Mother Nature’s icy hand holding down the scale on the necessities for life.</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-8820925751432177152023-08-26T12:22:00.005-07:002023-08-26T12:22:57.335-07:00How did the Soviet Union manage to feed itself?<p> (My answer on Quora)</p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">When it was not encumbered by collectivist mismanagement, poor planning, bad harvests and deliberate forced famines it is important to remember the Soviet Union was one of the biggest wheat producers on the planet. Shortfalls in 1971 and 1972 forced the Soviets to import grains from elsewhere .</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">The US in fact supplied them with subsidized wheat and corn in 1973. At the time the Americans were under the impression that the purchases would go toward the Soviet livestock feed (in reality the Soviet Union was facing a huge wheat shortfall) that they tried to keep secret for propaganda reasons (well done Central planning…).</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">Later on it was discovered that Global wheat stocks were low and by subsidizing the Soviet purchases the price of domestic food in the US skyrocketed. The entire debacle was described by Scoop Jackson as the Great Grain Robbery.</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-90260008289714797432023-08-26T12:21:00.007-07:002023-08-26T12:21:46.871-07:00How did Germany become so technologically advanced after WWI?<p> (My Answer on Quora)</p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #282829; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px;">They had a strong industrial base to begin with that goes back well into the 19th century. Both the Diesel and the regular Internal Combustion engines were either developed or improved on by pre-war German engineers. Their academies and engineering schools were some of the best in the world and their production ingenuity had been supercharged by the necessity of war and the need for innovation (especially when skirting around the Allied Sea blockades).</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-78943498392351603712023-08-26T12:19:00.005-07:002023-08-26T12:19:50.202-07:00Why did the United States beat the Soviets to the moon?<p>Asked on Quora</p><p>(my answer)</p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">The Soviets actually had the first moon landing, however it was a non-manned hard landing in 1959 by Luna 2. The Americans replicated this feat in 1962 with Ranger 4. The Soviets also had the first soft moon landing in 1966 with Luna 9.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">The manned moon landing project was more of a PR coup than anything else. JFK needed a project that would energize the public and throw the bulk of public sentiment behind the space initiative. It worked.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">The Soviet space program under Sergey Korolev, had a manned moon landing component to it. However after the premature death of Korolev in 1966 (at age 59) and the Soyuz failure in 1967 it fell by the wayside. Instead the Soviets chose to focus their endeavors on the development of space stations instead.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">It is worth noting that at one point both the US and the USSR were eager to follow through on a joint Apollo-Soyuz moon project but this collapsed after the assassination of Kennedy</span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-19231951934376073832023-07-27T11:29:00.003-07:002023-07-27T11:30:16.420-07:00In the News III<p>Hunter Biden's Plea deal <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-66314934">falls apart</a>...as it should. However two tiered legal system still remains. Imagine if Hunter were an ordinary person. The IRS case alone would sink him.Even Wesley Snipes couldn't dodge it,.</p><p>It is about time that we learn't nore about the mass killing in the <a href="https://www.frontpagemag.com/transifa-terror-on-the-rise/">Nashville attack.</a> The identity of the killer is inconvenient to the Establishment narrative.</p><p>I don't agree with RFK Jrs anti-vaccine stance but he is doing a stellar job of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jul/26/rfk-jr-robert-kennedy-antisemitism-accusations-new-york">exposing the establishment</a> and their disdain of free speech. Good for him. For the record he is not an anti-semite. </p><p>Climate change (really Anthropgenic Global Warming) is a tremendous get out of jail free card. You can use it to explain anything. You can also confuse <a href="https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/4123167-as-the-country-scorches-biden-calls-climate-change-undeniable/">weather and climate</a> with one another if it suits you and if you are on the 'correct' side of the aisle you may even be praised.</p><p><a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/cabinet-shuffle-trudeau-1.6916367">Trudeau shuffles his cabinet.</a> He is worried about the election but its difficult to fix a rotten administration. This is likely more showboating.</p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-74654025653457785492023-07-15T12:33:00.005-07:002023-07-15T12:39:18.397-07:00My new website<p><br /> I am setting up a website to market my book - <a href="https://www.amazon.ca/Navigating-Chaos-Clarity-Belief-Persistent/dp/B0BYBH2Q85">Navigating the Chaos.</a> The website is located at <a href="http://www.gavinkanowitz.com.">www.gavinkanowitz.com.</a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWARbtwa1NymRZwaZUWQP9rxNamML6PkityBtC9FLADZ262LLhy_CqUDI5Xv4H26qBJQEW_hEVK3igGlKnIsG3SvdEL0EJP6ozE2v5R1ogcV1Y-iiCMXlm-z7iDgCfJujz7eehJKjyhUinyzfj5f-fQQqE-VPUrO3tHPKVBZlGdS-5tBGKLA8sQTYAgA/s1500/Navigating%20the%20Chaos%20Picture.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWARbtwa1NymRZwaZUWQP9rxNamML6PkityBtC9FLADZ262LLhy_CqUDI5Xv4H26qBJQEW_hEVK3igGlKnIsG3SvdEL0EJP6ozE2v5R1ogcV1Y-iiCMXlm-z7iDgCfJujz7eehJKjyhUinyzfj5f-fQQqE-VPUrO3tHPKVBZlGdS-5tBGKLA8sQTYAgA/s320/Navigating%20the%20Chaos%20Picture.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><p></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5181616371521138814.post-68649032811198924132023-06-25T05:47:00.003-07:002023-06-25T05:48:16.121-07:00Snappy Answers to History Questions VII<div class="q-click-wrapper qu-display--block qu-tapHighlight--white qu-cursor--pointer qu-hover--textDecoration--underline ClickWrapper___StyledClickWrapperBox-zoqi4f-0 iyYUZT" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.6); box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; cursor: pointer; display: inline; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-align: inherit;" tabindex="0"><div class="q-flex qu-flexDirection--row" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; flex-direction: row;"><div class="q-inline qu-flexWrap--wrap" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; flex-wrap: wrap; max-width: 100%;"><div class="q-text qu-truncateLines--5 puppeteer_test_question_title" style="-webkit-box-orient: vertical; -webkit-line-clamp: 5; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis;"><span class="q-box qu-userSelect--text" style="box-sizing: border-box; user-select: text;"><span style="background: none;"><b>Why didn't the crusaders invade Egypt?</b></span></span></div></div></div></div><div><br /><div class="q-click-wrapper qu-display--block qu-tapHighlight--none ClickWrapper___StyledClickWrapperBox-zoqi4f-0 iyYUZT" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: initial; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: inherit; width: 572px;" tabindex="-1" width="100%"><div class="q-box spacing_log_answer_content puppeteer_test_answer_content" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="q-text" style="box-sizing: border-box; max-width: 100%;"><span class="CssComponent__CssInlineComponent-sc-1oskqb9-1 UserSelectableText___StyledCssInlineComponent-lsmoq4-0"><span class="q-box qu-userSelect--text" style="box-sizing: border-box; user-select: text;"><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">They actually did. The Fifth, Baron’s and Seventh Crusades each had a significant Egyptian component to them. The Baron’s Crusade in fact was defeated by the Ayyubid Egyptians at the Battle of Gaza in 1239. The Earlier Fifth Crusade (1217–1221) proved to be a failure and the Seventh (the first of Louis IX’s two Crusades) saw the Crusaders routed by the Egyptians at Mansurah and Fariskur (both in 1250).</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;"><br /></span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><b style="color: inherit; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; text-align: inherit;">Why was John Hus convicted of heresy?</b></p><div class="q-click-wrapper qu-display--block qu-tapHighlight--none ClickWrapper___StyledClickWrapperBox-zoqi4f-0 iyYUZT" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: initial; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-align: inherit; width: 572px;" tabindex="-1" width="100%"><div class="q-box spacing_log_answer_content puppeteer_test_answer_content" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="q-text" style="box-sizing: border-box; max-width: 100%;"><span class="CssComponent__CssInlineComponent-sc-1oskqb9-1 UserSelectableText___StyledCssInlineComponent-lsmoq4-0"><span class="q-box qu-userSelect--text" style="box-sizing: border-box; user-select: text;"><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">The Czech Jan Hus was one of the early church theologians who was associated with the Bohemian Reformation and the Hussite Movement (named after him). He lived between 1372 and 1415 and was the predecessor to later Protestant reformers - Luther, Calvin and Zwingli.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">His main heresy from the perspective of Rome was that he spoke out against Pope Alexander V and the Antipope John XXIII over the selling of indulgences. For his troubles he was excommunicated, exiled, then asked to recant (which he refused), imprisoned and then burnt at the stake. His famous line was "I would not for a chapel of gold retreat from the truth!".</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px 0px 1em; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">After his death pro and anti-Hussite factions (largely championed by the Catholic Church) would clash in what became known as the Hussite Wars (1420–1431) with the followers of Huss eventually growing to become a majority in Bohemia and Moravia.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #282829; direction: ltr; font-family: -apple-system, system-ui, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Oxygen-Sans, Ubuntu, Cantarell, "Helvetica Neue", sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><span style="background: none;">Hus was also critical of other aspects of the Catholic church including ecclesiology and the Eucharist.</span></p><p class="q-text qu-display--block qu-wordBreak--break-word qu-textAlign--start" style="box-sizing: border-box; direction: ltr; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: anywhere; padding: 0px; word-break: break-word;"><b></b></p></span></span></div></div></div></span></span></div></div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0