The “Squad”

The “Squad”

The “squad” of four controversial and seemingly anti-American “women of color”, are American citizens and also elected members of congress.  They can express their opinions under the first amendment, just like any American citizen, and they have the forum of notoriety to make their views more widely known than most of us. 

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and perhaps less so, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, have become identified as socialist, anti-American, anti-Semitic radicals, expressing views that have sometimes bordered on treason and sedition, and that have turned a good part of the country against them.  AOC’s recent poll numbers show a 22% approval rating, and Omar’s show a 9% rating.

We cannot deny the “squad’s” right to tear down and denigrate America and lie about its abuses, any more than we can deny Kaepernick, Rapinoe and some NFL players the right to disrespect the American flag and national anthem under the first amendment.  That doesn’t mean we have to like it, and to condone and accept such anti-American behavior, and most of us, apparently including President Trump, will not just passively accept it.

If the perpetrators of any controversial actions have any tinge of color, the object of their disrespect is forgotten, and cries of “RACISM” are taken up, as were many criticisms of the Obama administration while he was president.  Trump has done more to enhance the economic well-being of minorities than Obama or most other presidents have done.  Still he is called “RACIST” whenever he criticizes anything controversial perpetrated by anyone with a tinge of color.  Of course, to be honest, tact is not his forte when tweeting his opinions, and he is often misunderstood as “RACIST”.

Trump’s latest tweet war seems to be aimed at highlighting just how socialist, radical and out of the mainstream the democrat party has become.  By supporting and identifying with the radical “squad” in a public forum, the whole country can see for themselves how hypocritical the democrats are, and how far toward radicalism, socialism and communism they have turned.  Trump could have been more tactful and presidential about it, but as we have seen many times before, he is Trump.

Ray Gruszecki

July 17, 2019

Ouroboros

Ouroboros

First a few seemingly unrelated items:

1.)    The Ouroboros is an ancient symbol depicting a serpent or dragon eating its own tail.

 

2.)    Democratic Primary, June, 2018

Candidate	Vote	Pct.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez	15,897	57.5%
Joseph Crowley*	11,761	42.5%

            Margin of victory –                           4,136          votes

3.)    An anonymous Democratic group leaked an internal poll to Axios on Sunday that shows "swing voters" deeply dislike prominent progressive lawmakers, deepening a public rift within the party.

The poll found that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez had a 22% approval rating and Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota had a 9% approval rating among 1,003 "likely general-election voters who are white and have two years or less of college education" and knew of the two outspoken lawmakers.

"If all voters hear about is AOC, it could put the [House] majority at risk," a Democrat involved in the 2020 congressional races told Axios. "She's getting all the news and defining everyone else's races."

Why did Trump choose to take on and attack rhetorically, the “squad”, comprising of four “congresswomen of color”- all outspoken, all socialist and from their rhetoric, all decidedly anti-American, anti-Israeli, anti law and order, pro Al Queda, and on and on and on.  To most of us, these four are not a very good example of what a responsible congressperson should be.  And to most of us, Trump’s twitter attacks also seem irresponsible.  Of course the left and their media backers shout “RACISM”, as they do about just about anything else that Trump does.

We can join a lot of the hub-bub and say that Trump is being petulant if not overtly racist.  But  perhaps we should ask, maybe he is as dumb as a sly old fox, causing the democrats to eat their own tail like the Ouroboros.  Some people say that Trump’s attack on “the squad” caused the democrats to band together and heal the rift being caused by their socialist left.  I have to ask who was up there representing the democrats and loudly advertising extremist positions while acting the “women of color” victim card?  Has not Trump caused the democrats to shift publicly even more to the extreme left by supporting this outlier “squad”?  He has called out these four congresswomen for being against America, not because of their race.

I really think that Trump has been around long enough to know exactly what he is doing.  He has countless times seemed wrong or way off base, only to be ultimately vindicated.  Of course he is rarely, if ever given credit by the left and their media minions.

Ray Gruszecki

July 16, 2019

The Duality of Our Laws and Practices

The Duality of Our Laws and Practices

One has to ask the question – “why are prominent democrats still in power while comparable republicans have been drummed out of office by the rabid left wing and biased mainstream media?”.

What comes immediately to mind on the democrat’s side are Governor Ralph Northam, Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax and Attorney General Mark Herring, all of Virginia; and Kim Foxx, Cook County Illinois States’ Attorney in the Jussie Smollett case.

From “Real Clear Politics” – “A picture of a man in blackface on Northam’s medical school yearbook page surfaced, and during a press conference, Northam insisted he was not in the yearbook photo but admitted he had once worn blackface. Virginia’s Attorney General, Mark Herring, said, “It is no longer possible for Gov. Northam to lead our Commonwealth.”  The Democrat who would succeed Northam, Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, then was accused by a detailed statement released by a woman who accused him of sexually assaulting her 15 years ago.  Later Herring, the Democrat who would succeed Fairfax, admitted he had worn blackface while in college”.  All three of these men are still in power in Virginia.  If they were republicans, the unwavering left-wing press would have drummed them out long ago.

Kim Foxx arbitrarily dismissed all charges against Jussie Smollett after alleged conversations with Clinton and Obama contacts.  She is embroiled in a special prosecutor investigation, but still wields power in Cook County.

On the republican side, numerous officials have resigned or been fired after only hints of impropriety.  The latest is Alex Acosta, Labor Secretary, who was involved in a past plea deal involving the “villain of the hour”, Jeffrey Epstein.  Associates of Epstein, like Bill Clinton, are given a free pass.

Other notable republicans who were forced out or “doxed” out by the overactive, leftist oriented mainstream media were Rob porter and Pat Shanahan due to hints of domestic impropriety.  The most egregious situation is that of Mike Flynn, for talking to Russians and falling into an FBI perjury trap.

It is increasingly evident that separate levels of laws and justice have evolved as common usage, depending on whether one is democrat or republican in this country.  The left wing ignores and derides our laws, and characterizes any attempt to apply many duly passed laws as “racist” or “homophobic” or “misogynist”.  Examples abound, and the most egregious are the lies and innuendos being spread by activist leftists about child abuse at the border, “sanctuary cities and states”, leftist antifa thugs wreaking violence on our streets, and permissiveness toward squatters that effectively promotes medieval filth and disease in leftist run cities.  Letting left wing bad actors skate is just an outgrowth of the democrat/socialist mantra.

We must get a handle on these inequities in our society. The Trump administration tries, most times in face of an obstructionist congress.  But the cultural pressure from the preponderance of mainstream media, coastal and urban elitists, Hollywood demigods and biased circuit courts, can be overwhelming.  Not to say that everything that Trump proposes is right, but at least he seems to be trying to preserve American values and law and order.

By analogy, if we do not bring some balance to our country from outlandish socialist practices and proposals, we risk following poor Venezuela down the path to socialist and politically correct ruin.

Ray Gruszecki

July 13, 2019

Donald Trump – Patriot or Demon?

Donald Trump – Patriot or Demon?

To hear the leftists, or liberals, or progressives, or democrats, or socialists, say it, Donald Trump is literally the embodiment of evil.  He is the devil incarnate.  He should be impeached and imprisoned.  Why, you ask?  Well, while his enemies obfuscate the real answer, and cite myriad sins and moral peccadilloes dating from Trump’s age five, the real reason they hate him so much is because he beat them in the 2016 presidential election and continues to rub their noses in their defeat.

This brash, outspoken, “in your face” billionaire New Yorker is not your normal politician.  He is part businessman, part showman, part populist demagogue, who has harnessed the populist and patriotic currents of mainstream America into a viable political movement, and replaced traditional republicanism with an active, right wing populism.  For every derogatory editorial by the New York Times or the Washington Post, or by the Krugmans or Reichs or Blows of the left, there is a counter-swell of patriotism and pro-Americanism at one of Trump’s rallies, broadcast by Fox News to over half of the real country, and not only to the coastal and urban elites that the pro-left mainstream media targets.

To those of us Burkean, Smithian, Kirkian Buckley conservatives/libertarians, Donald Trump is an enigma and difficult for some to follow, as evidenced by the sizable number of anti-Trumpeans in the conservative community.  Many of us, however, dismiss his overtly roughshod personality, and concentrate on the truly beneficial results for our country that he and his administration have instituted.

It has to be obvious to any rational and honest observer, that Trump’s removal of overly restrictive regulations on business and industry is the main reason for the booming economy we now have in this country.  Leftists will tell us that the recovery started under Obama, (and it would have continued at a 1 ½ % rate under Obama’s regulations, not the nearly 4% under Trump).

The left will continue to disparage and denigrate anything beneficial that the Trump presidency has done or will do.  They continue to try to convince all of us that he is truly evil, and is destroying America.  In fact, by coaching himself in the red, white and blue mantle of patriotism, law and order, and conservative values, Trump has slowed the leftist rush of radical cultural identity politics, and preserved a little of our historical and cultural past.  That does not mean that the cultural war has been won, but it does mean that the headlong rush to outrageous and radical ideas has been slowed a little.

It’s obvious that Trump is no saint.  But it is also obvious to anyone who is truly honest, that he is not the selfish, racist bigot that he has been painted by the hypocritical left.  The left cite megalomania and narcissism as the reasons that Trump left his billionaire lifestyle to become president, and to be reviled and have himself and his family dragged through the mud by his leftist detractors.  That is a bit of a far reach.  It is much more likely that Trump has a true streak of patriotism to go with his overly large personality, and that he really wants to redress the abuses and ills he sees in our country.

I personally worked in New York City during Trump’s rise to wealth and to public prominence in the 1960-80’s.  I must admit that I was not a fan, since I am not particularly attracted to Trump’s brand of public display.  Having said that, and remembering recent Washington politics, anything is better than the do-nothing governments of both of our conventional political parties.  IMHO, let Trump and his brand of populism have their chance.

Ray Gruszecki

July 10, 2019

Conservatism, Socialism and Where We’re Heading

Conservatism, Socialism and Where We’re Heading

My roots are blue collar FDR democrat out of Western Massachusetts.  Being Polish Yankees (an oxymoron) from the Berkshires hill country, my folks (particularly my father), although they were members of the democrat party, did not swallow the democrat party line whole.  There was disagreement with the democrats’ social programs, even then.  My people were hardy and self-reliant, and did not look to government for support, even during the depression of the 1930’s.  My dad termed Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration and Civilian Conservation Corps “We Poke Around”, and preferred cutting logs or trees for paper pulp in the forests on his own, to raking leaves in state parks.

I find it appalling that politics has become so diametrically polarized in our country.  Rather than meaningful and cogent opposition political parties, we have a hatred fueled socialism from the left, and a personality-fueled populism from the right.  The days of meaningful dialogue in the House and Senate are things of the past, and have been replaced by obstructionism and rank party politics. 

This is certainly not the first time that political discord has led to major divisions in our country.  I am old enough to remember the race and anti-war strife and riots of the 1960’s that we thought would truly rip the country apart.  And, of course, the granddaddy of all disagreements, - the states’ rights and slavery issues that led to civil war in the mid-19^th century, and to the death of nearly three quarters of a million Americans.  Our current political strife, fueled basically by a strong hatred of the president, pales by comparison.

Through education, experience and a long life, I am basically a republican, a Burkean & John Adams and Kirkian conservative, and I have some libertarian leanings a la Buckley.  Having said that, I am an open- minded debater of issues of interest, with nowhere near a closed conservative mind on these issues.  I have voted for viable opposition democrats and independents in the past through the years, though not a great number of times. 

I typically watch Fox News and read the Wall Street Journal and National Review, because frankly, the other cable channels and the rest of the mainstream media are so left wing oriented, that they are nauseating to me.  They are essentially propaganda outlets for the leftists and are extremely biased.  The right and center news media I frequent seem much more honest and open to meaningful debate and dialogue.

The democrats are really shooting themselves in the foot with what seems a headlong rush into socialism.  Consider their platform – obvious Marxist socialism and/or communism, late term abortions bordering on infanticide, open borders with enfranchisement and free health care for illegal aliens, defund the military, repeal the second amendment and confiscate firearms, restrictive controls on the economy in the name of climate control, suppress free speech on college campuses and lawful public assemblies by violence as necessary, reparations for 160 years past slavery, remove electoral college, increase taxes for all Americans, wealth redistribution targeting the wealthy and successful.

If this is not enough, democrats would have impressionable young people question their sex and gender and which bathroom to use.  Democrats would identify subgroups and treat people differently depending on what sub group they belonged to, rather than treating all Americans equally, no matter what their skin color or origins or sexual orientation.  This is democrat “metoo” and “woke” and identity politics in action.  Seemingly, next come thought police and incarceration of dissidents to the algorithmic views of the democrats and their tech giant allies, who slant our very research on the internet.

This is a dystopian picture.  What can be done?  The 30-40% of the country who resist this leftist bullshit need to ensure that we elect republicans and conservatives to the congress.  We can’t allow our young people to be coerced by the siren song of socialist “free stuff” being pushed by slick talking democrats, the mainstream media and the Hollywood and coastal elitists.  The democrats are no longer a viable opposition political party.  They surely do hate Trump and hide behind this hatred, but they have become socialists, cut from the same cloth as Marx, Engels, Lenin and Stalin.  They will truly destroy our country in their present configuration.   They are no longer mainstream.  They need to become mainstream again if we are to consider any of their proposals as realistic for America.

So we need to stay republican and conservation (and libertarian).  Conservatism is not staying stuck in some euphoric past.  Conservatism is remembering the past (and the moral and ethical principles that define us), and applying those lessons to our present.  Conservatism is not forgetting that the various forms of socialism being proposed again for our country, resulted in the deaths of nearly 120 million human beings in the twentieth century.  Conservatives like Edmund Burke and John Adams opposed the French Jacobin mobs that were beheading people in the 18^th century.  Modern conservatism opposes the antifa thugs who are violently accosting law-abiding citizens in Portland, Oregon, and the “politically correct” leftists who would strip rational civilization from our society.

Ray Gruszecki

July 3, 2019

Cultural Issues, Socialism, and the Democrats

                                  Cultural Issues, Socialism, and the Democrats

Anyone who loves this country and follows what is happening to it cannot fail to be alarmed.

President Trump, for all his unique personality, egotism, buffoonery and braggadociousnesss, has done, and is trying to do right for the country.  Other than the raw tweets and rhetoric, Trump seems to a reasonably well balanced and moderating chief executive.  He is hated by the more and more leftist/democrat-socialist opposition for his uncompromising and “in your face” personality.  His main accomplishments relate to the economy, where lifting a tangle of restrictions by executive order have resulted in robust economic and stock market growth.  Obstructionists in congress shouting “resistance” (as if they were in Vichy France), have hampered much positive legislative action, even relating to the increasingly dire immigration and southern border situation.

The democrats want socialism for the country, apparently forgetting that this brand has failed miserably wherever it has been implemented, and has resulted in over 100 million human deaths in the 20^th century.  Leftists cite socialist Scandinavia in the 1970’s, rather than fully capitalist modern Scandinavia, as the model for what they reference as “successful” socialism.  Socialism, as defined by Marx and Engels has never been successful.  It has always failed wherever it was attempted.  Cuba, North Korea and Venezuela are current examples of failed states due to socialism.  There is no doubt whatever, that socialism will not only fail here.  It will go a long way toward ruining this country.

And we have failed cities, wherever leftist regimes govern.  Large parts of major cities on the West Coast are littered with garbage and human excrement and urine.  They are breeding grounds for disease not seen since the 14^th century.  Chicago is literally a war zone as far as shooting deaths go. Parts of NYC has been taken over by rats.  These are democrat and socialist politics in action.  These cities defy the federal government in apprehending and deporting criminal aliens from all over the world.  Parts of these cities have literally become cesspools under democrat administrations.

The cultural war that is tearing at the fabric of American society is bad enough.  The continual attack on the moral and ethical values that made, and continue to make this country great erode the very foundations of the country.  It seems insufficient to say that every American citizen, regardless of ethnic background, skin color, etc. has equal rights under the law in this country, and can speak their mind in lawful assembly.  The so called “politically correct” leftist neo-fascists would have us denigrate “toxic males”, people with non-leftist opinions and anyone else not in line with the group-think of the mob, - and they would elevate “marginalized” groups, including aliens here illegally, and others as defined by the leftist mob.

It seems that the anti-Trump hatred of the left have driven the normal opposition democrats into a leftist socialist frenzy, inspired by young, inexperienced congresswomen, with seemingly no perspective of history.  Democrats seem to be outdoing themselves as to how far toward Marxist socialism they will go.  They have mixed hatred of Trump, cultural and environmental issues and Marxist socialism into a dangerous and destructive political brew that can’t fail to do real harm to our country.

Ray Gruszecki
June 25, 2019

Stuxnet and Ramifications

Stuxnet and Ramifications

I just finished reading “Countdown to Zero Day: Stuxnet and the Launch of the World's First Digital Weapon” by Kim Zetter, about the Stuxnet cyber worm and variants, that succeeded in setting back the Iranian nuclear program by several years.

Stuxnet is a malicious computer worm, first uncovered in 2010, that targets SCADA systems and is believed to be responsible for causing substantial damage to Iran's nuclear program. Although neither country has openly admitted responsibility, the worm is believed to be a jointly built American/Israeli cyberweapon.

Stuxnet specifically targets programmable logic controllers (PLCs), which allow the automation of electromechanical processes such as those used to control machinery and industrial processes including centrifuges for separating nuclear material. Stuxnet functions by targeting machines using the Microsoft Windows operating system and networks, then seeking out Siemens Step7 software. Stuxnet reportedly compromised Iranian PLCs, collecting information on industrial systems and causing the fast-spinning centrifuges to either tear themselves apart, or spin irregularly and fail sooner than normal. Stuxnet Has really opened up a can of worms (sic), since it could be tailored as a platform for attacking any modern supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) and PLC systems (e.g., in factory assembly lines or power plants), the majority of which reside in Europe, Japan and the US.

Stuxnet reportedly ruined almost one fifth of Iran's nuclear centrifuges. Targeting industrial control systems, the worm infected over 200,000 computers and caused 1,000 machines to physically degrade.

Stuxnet has three modules: a worm that executes all routines related to the main payload of the attack; a link file that automatically executes the propagated copies of the worm; and a rootkit component responsible for hiding all malicious files and processes, preventing detection of the presence of Stuxnet. Versions of Stuxnet incorporated up to four or five “zero day” exploits and several stolen, digitally signed certificates for device drivers, both unheard of in the normal “hacktivist” world.  It is typically introduced to the target environment via an infected USB flash drive, thereby crossing any air gap. The worm then propagates across the local or wider network, scanning for Siemens Step7 software on computers controlling a PLC. In the absence of either criterion, Stuxnet becomes dormant inside the computer. If both the conditions are fulfilled, Stuxnet introduces the infected rootkit onto the PLC and Step7 software, modifying the code and giving unexpected commands to the PLC while returning a loop of normal operations system values feedback to the users.

Kim Zetter’s book traces the discovery of a version of Stuxnet in an Iranian personal computer by Sergey Ulasen, of VirusBlokAda a small security company in Belarus, to unpacking and reverse engineering Stuxnet and variants by the Symantec and Kaspersky security groups over a number of years.  She also discusses the ramifications of what amounts to a cyber-attack by one nation-state against another, and the fact that this technology is now available in the wild for possible further use.

Ray Gruszecki

May 8, 2019