Putin on the Rideau - 26 February 2022 - Plague Journal Day 716

Micah 6:8
1 Kings 12:6-15
Yes, your life matters.

Some of you are still sheltering in place, but fear not: I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

As he moves to rescind his clearly illegal Emergency power grab, PM Justin "Poutine" Trudeau no doubt has mixed emotions about the war in the Ukraine. I do believe his statements condemning Putin's invasion; however, I'm fairly certain he's also relieved to have a real big-time power mad autocrat take centre stage for a while, drawing attention away from his hopefully only very temporary "l'état, c'est moi" period. I used to think he was just a joke, but his horrific handling of the truckers' protest in Ottawa exposed him for the autocrat wannabe that he really is. His first reaction was to hide, hoping they'd go away. When they didn't, his vindictive nature took over and he decided he had to crush the opposition, forgetting that these are the very people who put him in office. The Labour Party is supposed to be the party of labour - it doesn't get much more labour union-y than truck drivers / teamsters, does it?

I was never a huge fan of his father, but I can only assume Pierre is spinning in his grave these days. Justin, it's time to grow up. It's also time to leave - let an adult run things for a while.

Today's freewrite prompt word is Crush.
I took the liberty of using it above, but it also puts me in mind of orange pop (soda to those of a certain persuasion).

My go-to meal at National Coney Island used to be two on one, light onions, and an orange pop. I don't know if they used Orange Crush or not, but that made me think of it. It also made me remember a great Nesbitt's Orange commercial with a catchy jingle and surreal, almost Rube Goldberg-esque animation.

Keep Calm and Don't Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our insane lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

Evil is Afoot - 25 February 2022 - Plague Journal Day 715

Micah 6:8
Joel 3:9-16  Matthew 24:4-8 
Yes, your life matters.

Some of you are still sheltering in place, but fear not: I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Wow, what a crazy world we live in. Is there anyone so foolish as to say there is not evil abroad in the world? Surely not.

However - because there is evil is no reason to disbelieve in good - in Good. Without the standard of good (as defined by God, for otherwise it's not a standard, it's a shifting metric that matches the momentary zeitgeist) there could be no objective judgment of any action as being evil. Read the scene in Silverlock by John Myers Myers where Silverlock is judged by the three judges of the underworld for an excellent exploration of this idea.

As a youth I came to believe that Socialism is stupid, but Communism is evil. I still believe that. Socialism can't work because people are fallen and won't work together "just because they should" as socialism prescribes. Communism is evil because the only way it can work is to take away the humanity of the people in whose names it generally pretends to rule.

Today's freewrite prompt word is Trade

Somehow, president Biden seems to think that putting sanctions on small parts of Russia's trade with the rest of the world will halt Putin's imperial goals. That's pure folly - especially the 'small parts' portion of that. Were he (and our European allies) to halt the purchase of Russian oil and gas, replacing it with US-sourced (and Canadian?) oil and gas, Russia would be bankrupt in a short time.
It appears the time has come to trade cautious, feckless inaction for something bold. In a month or so there may not be a Ukraine to try to protect.

Keep Calm and Don't Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our insane lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

Russian Invasion? That's Nothing New - 24 February 2022 - Plague Journal Day 714

Micah 6:8
Daniel 11:15-19
Yes, your life matters.

Some of you are still sheltering in place, but fear not: I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Today is National Toast Day in the UK, and today's freewrite prompt word is Rumor. 

This reminded me of a story I had read back at the beginning of this century, probably in July of 2002.
Rumor had it that toasters were speaking Russian in Hooke, in the county of Dorset, England. The "explanation" at the time was that the toasters (and other electrical appliances) were picking up the signals from a nearby transmitter where the BBC broadcast programmes in various languages - sort of a Radio Free Europe idea.
Of course, there's little reason to believe that. If it were true, why wouldn't they have been receiving those signals all along? Clearly there was something else going on. Russian programming from the BBC? I know they're a bunch of bleeding lefties, but they didn't come out and say it quite that clearly back in 2002. More likely they were receiving broadcasts from Russia meant for their agents or sleeper cells in the Midlands or the Southwest of England. That's a much more believable explanation than the bland pseudo-scientific garble issued by the BBC at the time.

 Keep Calm and Don't Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our insane lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.