Open thread 12/3/2024
I haven’t followed ice skating for quite a few years, although I used to. Seems like it’s become a lot more daring and acrobatic – at least, this event has. I have no idea who these people are:
The New Neo
A blog about political change, among other things
What in the helll is going on?
South Korea enters martial law. Israel undergoing a slow motion coup d’etat. Biden criminal gangsters meet Democrat approval in the US. Syrian civil war restarts with a whirling vengeance. Norks fighting in Kursk. Russians bugging out of Tartus. Australian antisemitism flowing off the charts. Britain arresting people for voicing their opinions on social media. Comms cables cut in the Baltic.
Jeebus, the globe has gone nutso.
South Korea’s president has just declared martial law. The country’s politics have always been both authoritarian and chaotic, but this step is extraordinary. Martial law was last declared in 1979, after an attempted coup, during which the president was killed.
I lived and worked in Korea for about two years, and I enjoyed my time there, but that’s been more than twenty years ago, so I’ve lost track of the intricacies of Korean politics. From what I’ve just read, the president leads a “big tent” conservative party that’s generally pro-US, anti-North Korea, and pragmatic towards China. He’s taken some unpopular positions in domestic politics, and his approval rate has fallen. The main opposition party controls the legislature, and the country has become completely deadlocked over a number of issues, including the national budget. Even so, that kind of thing has happened before, without even whispers of martial law.
This comes as a complete shock, and I have no idea what the consequences will be.
In addition to the multiple calamities listed by sdferr-
My grandson is a 3rd grader in one of the large Texas school districts. They are participating in the Scripps National Spelling Bee. I helped him drill for the Bee using the official word list.
Most of the words are standard spelling, but some have acceptable alternative spellings.
Among the words with acceptable alternative spelling is the word, “women.”
“Womyn” is acceptable.
To quote sdferr, “Jeebus, the globe has gone nutso.”
Heh, WestTx: with gynocracy we get womyn!
Well, that ended quickly. Turns out people weren’t too thrilled with a deeply unpopular president declaring martial law out of the blue and the parliament rejected it.
Latest quote at my Worth Pondering series:
“The envious man seeks not his own gain, But the fall of another, And in his malice, loses his soul, For the gods despise such hearts. ”
–Plutarch
https://chicagoboyz.net/archives/72532.html
Nonapod:
Confusion in Korea, but I’m not sure that martial law is over. According to the BBC, both major parties have voted to block the president’s declaration. What happens next? Impeachment of the president? Troops in the street to enforce martial law? Arrest of legislative leadership? I have no idea.
Many of you probably saw the 30 sec. video that Kamala released last week. Some pundits conjectured she was somewhat inebriated in the video.
Well, the full unedited video, nearly 10 min. long, found it’s way onto X. It’s the first video in this article:
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2024/12/the_absurdity_continues_as_kamala_thrusts_another_bizarre_video_upon_the_innocent_public.html
On the one hand, there’s nothing terribly revealing in it. On the other hand, she does definitely seem to be intoxicated in some way, and there’s something else. I get the impression that her life has been immersed in a kind continual blather, duplicity, and nonsense. Maybe for her, it’s not an act but just her normal day-to-day functioning.
As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve met lots of new people in the last couple years. Some of them are clear headed rational people who tend to cut through the nonsense and speak and act in a direct way. Their numbers are not rare, but more like a modest minority. In others, I can sometimes see the Kamala mindset. Of course, I do live in California, don’t I?
Cornflour:
I have no idea what constitutional remedies the South Korean government may have for such a situation, but it seems as if the 190-0 parliamentary vote plus what appears to be the general will of the people against him, I don’t imagine Yoon Suk Yeol’s attempt to essentially seize ultimate power will withstand all that.
@TommyJay – Group delusion is truly a powerful force that can affect otherwise intelligent people in interesting ways. An individual might not be able to maintain such a delusion on their own for very long when faced with a hard reality, but when a delusion is reinforced by a group it can be more difficult to resist.
Just hope the NORKS don’t see this as a moment of opportunity.
For huxley: I ultimately went with the Epi Les Paul std 60. For just playing for myself I couldn’t justify the additional $300 or so. I did have them switch out the 10 strings to 9s before I brought it home. I like the lighter strings much more.
https://www.bbc.com/news/live/cn38321180et
14:34
President Yoon Suk Yeol says he will lift martial law after parliament voted to block it, Yonhap news reports.
(Yonhap is the official state news agency.)
physicsguy-
NORKS very likely see the next 47 days as a window of opportunity; as you note, this is a moment of opportunity for them.
At the risk of sounding like our current Vice President, why would they not seize a moment of opportunity that occurs in a window of opportunity? It would be an opportunity to lift a burden, no?
Dr michael k passed on october 25th according to his son
RIP.
I have absolutely no trust or faith in any New York City jury. That said, I am going to predict that Daniel Penny is going to be found NOT GUILTY (perhaps a hung jury—since it is in New York). Reason follows in closing arguments:
Daniel Penny prosecutors show shocking evidence to jury before they begin deliberations – as former Marine stands accused of killing homeless man Jordan Neely
Who in their right mind would want to ride a Subway train with Jordan Neely?!? Assistant DA Yoran just reminded the jury of that fact…
Yes, RIP Dr. Michael K. We’ve lost a good one.
miguel cervantes:
If you could email me with more information, I’ll put up a post on Mike K. I’m not 100% sure of his last name, for example. I’m sorry to hear he’s gone. His last comment here was 10/16.
Michael K’s last name was Kennedy. He was from the South Shore neighborhood on Chicago’s Southside. He was Chicago Irish to the core except that he was a conservative Republican, a real anomaly in his milieu. I think he attended medical school on the west coast and lived there until quite recently when he moved to Arizona. He was a contributing writer to the Chicago Boyz blog. He wrote several books about his experiences as a physician and he was an avid sailor who sailed the oceans. I searched for notice of his death on Chicago Boyz, finding nothing. Ditto an obituary. Hoping miguel can/will contact his son for more information. Over the years I had many pleasant exchanges with him on various blogs, notably Belmont Club, Althouse, and Right Wing Squatters (on Discord).
He was a good guy, very intelligent, steady, and good-natured. Sadly he didn’t make it to Trump’s election, but I’m sure he knows about it now. He will be missed.
”Dr michael k passed on october 25th according to his son”
Oh no!
”He was from the South Shore neighborhood on Chicago’s Southside…He wrote several books about his experiences as a physician and he was an avid sailor who sailed the oceans.”
Maybe not THE most interesting man in the world but right up there. RIP!
This is terribly sad. Anytime I saw his name at the top of a comment I knew I was going to read something thoughtful, intelligent, and well-informed. His kind heartedness came through so clearly in his posts.
https://www.vitals.com/doctors/Dr_Michael_T_Kennedy_2.html
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Here is a relict vitals page on his practice.
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https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25742382-war-stories
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Here’s one of his books.
I’m not finding Legacy entries or any pages from undertakers in Tucson.
He decided not to do a funeral but be cremated, so his son told me,
Re Michael K, I especially enjoyed reminiscing with him about Chicago in the “rare old times,” and discussing military history.
He decided not to do a funeral but be cremated
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Shouldn’t preclude an obituary.
Dr K had a blog which he kept active from Nov of 2007 to August of 2023: https://abriefhistory.org/?page_id=2 The story of how he made it to medical school is recounted here: https://abriefhistory.org/?p=2489
It also includes lists of his favorite books, quotes and poetry.
Art Deco; miguel cervantes:
Thanks. I will write something tomorrow.
Dr. Michael Kennedy. RIP. Always enjoyed his posts. From all I know about him, his was a life well lived.
One thing that was impressive about him was the amount of living he got done. Five children, two careers, sporting hobbies, reading across a range of subjects, publishing. Haven’t done a PubMed search on his professional publications.
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He was also a reminder of a time when the professional-managerial stratum did not have a tribal ideology.
Very sorry to see the news about Michael Kennedy. He was a frequent and valued contributor at Chicago Boyz as well as many other blogs.
He wrote at least one book: A Brief History of Disease, Science, and Medicine
https://www.amazon.com/Brief-History-Disease-Science-Medicine/dp/0974946656/ref=sr_1_1?crid=VSM7WRDX5HXE&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.MO46xn46VQlD7g4CRdUwUiVR-XWYbyEmt4zpqVqxil7E8Yg7cfMVpwy6R6HAaz30KQO262xnYcQkiwkrnboFNosH9jCGjNyoinZl4QQwJAzttxONfYTOzTqHE4C_MRjhWz6W831rtlj4xw1KNXMIN6e6yXjrvzpEb6DU6YLUr4j-hlJ76TgMXwva0DHIMtqPhsUhbLkJ6FbHcEm04E7T-Tze79fZSL_GE7WjvgGReHk.VTpjFVRBuhJhzaZBOWKGHBilrWcjiuUTZpFDEGhFNZg&dib_tag=se&keywords=a+brief+history+michael+kennedy&qid=1733276298&s=books&sprefix=a+brief+history+michael+kennedy%2Cstripbooks%2C83&sr=1-1
There’s a review of Dr Kennedy’s book here:
https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/1/article/183578/pdf
R.I.P. Dr. Michael Kennedy. I enjoyed his comments here and elsewhere. He was truly “A Man In Full.” There’s lots of interesting material on his website: https://abriefhistory.org/
Sad news to end the day with.
Mike’s comments were always worth reading and pondering.
He had a wealth of experience and wisdom to share.
May his memory be a blessing, as his presence was.