Turmoil in the DOJ

I’m disturbed to see conflict among the leaders of the DOJ. It appears certain that Pan Bondi, AG, and Dan Bongino, assistant chief of the FBI, had a major confrontation about the Epstein matter. I have no knowledge of the details, but I’m convinced that Bondi used very poor judgement in the way she released […]

INFERNO THREE

WINNING THE WAR, LOSING THE PEACE 1914-1939 After the Battle of the Marne ended on September 9, 1914, the Allied and German armies attempted to outflank each other. Failing this, they entrenched and faced off over a no-man’s land. The trenches stretched from the Swiss alps to the English Channel. From time to time each […]

INFERNO TWO

THE SCHLIEFFEN PLAN 1914 On the afternoon of August 3, 1914, two days after declaring war on Russia, Germany declared war on France and began implementing a long-held strategy conceived by the former chief of staff of the German army, Alfred von Schlieffen.  The objective was to achieve the total defeat of France in six […]

Who Knows?

Trump triumphed. The Big Beautiful Bill has become law. Now what? Trump and his team say that the legislation will propel us on our way to unparalled prosperity. There will be a rebirth of American industry accompanied by plenteous jobs and entrepreneurial opportunities. They describe it as America’s golden age. Democrat nay-sayers predict the opposite. […]

INFERNO ONE

1850-1914 EUROPE STARTS ON THE PATH TOWARD DESTRUCTION Europe had been totally transformed by the French Revolution and the Napoleonic wars.  Following the final defeat of Napoleon in 1815, the continent entered an era during which armed conflicts were usually of limited scope and conducted by small, often professional armies. Total national involvement was rare. […]

Inferno, an Introduction

Some time ago I published a series of articles about the series of wars, beginning with the Franco-Prussian war of 1870, that dealt a near death blow to Western civilization.  Europe has never fully recovered, and all us in the West continue to experience its unfortunate aftereffects. Over the next few weeks I intend to […]

The Big Beautiful Bill

The big, beautiful bill is now being voted on in the Senate.  If approved, it will then be sent back to the House.  If the House accepts the Senate’s changes, it may be on the President’s desk for signature by July 4. If not, it will go to a House-Senate conference committee and may be […]

Beyond the Horizon

This afternoonI began to thinking about life, death, infinity, and all those mysterious things that remain beyond our understanding. Here I sit on this relatively small, wobbling planet spinning around a minor star on the edge of one of a billion galaxies, each composed of billions of stars. These thoughts make me feel very small. […]

Rushmore?

In my last post I wrote that by striking Iranian nuclear sites Trump had engaged in a bold gambit.  He was trying to shock Iran into agreeing to peace terms without protracting the air war or putting American troops on the ground.  At this moment, the gambit appears to have worked.  Iran and Israel have […]

The Strike

On Saturday, June 21, 2025, shortly before 7 p.m. New York time, American fighters, bombers, and missiles struck Iranian nuclear facilities. The intent was to end Iran’s nuclear threat, and the attack appears to have been highly successful in achieving that aim. Trump urges Iran not to respond by attacking American assets and personnel, and […]