Light/Breezes

Light/Breezes
SUNRISE AT DEATH VALLEY-Photo by Tom Cochrun

Wednesday, March 17, 2021

Wishing you....

 

Wishing you a life that is green...

...a comfy spot...


...a good story...


...a place to quench a thirst...


...friends...


...music...


...a timeless mystery...


...something to love...


...spirit and commitment...


...something to believe ....


...memories...


...friends with which to share...


...wit and wisdom and the soul of a poet....


...and a life that breathes an ageless story.

Slainte'

See you down the trail.


Wednesday, March 10, 2021

Peeking at Normal

 

Oak trees shadow the moonrise over the Santa Lucia Mountains in Cambria  


        The dawning success of getting jabs into enough arms so the vaccinated can now socialize, inside, sans mask, will awaken distant memories of how great it used to be.

        Another tell is what we are talking about. The "royals" have grabbed headlines after talking to our Queen of media, Oprah.


        Our local King, ruler of the polydactyls, is pleased his ridge top savanna is green again.  Hemingway shows more dignity than those in the palace who have driven yet another young woman  to the edge of despair, and displayed tone deaf racism in the process. 

        It seems if the appalling anachronism of "royalty" is to continue, they need to use CRSPR to design princesses to endure the silliness of such as thinking someone must be bowed to. Oh but we love The Crown and the cheap pleasure of royal gossip and intrigue. These people used to lop of heads and got away with it. So, you don't think history convicts us?



    New direction in Washington is helping lower American blood pressure levels. The Biden Covid Relief plan offers assistance the US needs to recover from the disaster; the disease's devastation of life, economy, normalcy and the malignant incompetence of the Trump-McConnell reign. 
    The Biden plan is a bi-partisan success, favored by a majority of US citizens, both Republicans and Democrats. It is etching itself into Presidential History. It may prove to be a  significant legislative remedy on the scale of FDR.
    The House and Senate Republicans are hopelessly trapped in a psychotic death cult where truth is a sin. Isn't it cute, that right on cue the party of run-away spending and economic recessions is putting on their budget deficit faces again, though a majority of their voters await the Biden relief.
    
    

        Overhanging the way forward is the need for a national nonpartisan investigation into the causes and facts of 1/6. This is something Republicans would like to forget. 
        Another overhang, and one where the bill is coming due is the costly undoing of the Iran nuclear deal JCPOA. Since the mistake of quitting the agreement, Iran has enriched more uranium, is using advanced centrifuges and restricting international inspections. Thank you Mr. Trump.*
        And because horror stories need a teasing ending, I hope you've watched the knife attack the Trump organization has directed to his chump party mates. Only he can raise money using his name. His political fundraising may be his best scam and con yet. 


       * The change of scenery or personnell at the State Department and White House will have impact on the looming Iran fight.
         Ali Akbar Salehi, one of Iran's Supreme Leader's most trusted advisors and the head of the Atomic Association of Iran said this week, a deal is a deal and the US walked away.
        Intelligence analysts tell us the first phase of reengaging the JCPOA will be a kind of dance and war of nerves to see who blinks first. They tell us Biden has sent his first message, letting it sink in with the Iranian people, as they face their own inner turmoil and economic trouble.

        An early Biden test is how his humanitarian instincts and the reality of refugees flooding the border will resolve. His critics are looking closely.
        


        And finally, a sailing story. This little single masted craft


has an interesting history. It was a piece of drift wood, apparently bark of some sort, found by our grand daughter Addie, who professed "this will float."
    It lead to looking up sail boat designs and making a sketch.
Nana then helped cut a sail and set the mast. It was time for a test.
    
   It proved its sea worthiness in several tide pools and was the source of pride and glee. Lessons learned, and something proven it was time to return the slightly altered bark to nature.


        When last seen it was moored in a channel between a couple of tide pools awaiting the return of the high tide. Maybe there is a sea shanty in this, but not from this writer. There is a little lass however who found her first trip down to the sea, a great adventure.

        Now, don't we all feel better these days, with hope and a new normal on the rising tide?

        Stay well. 
        See you down the trail.


                                   


Sunday, February 28, 2021

The Virus in the Shadows


          Stability at home and strength of US leadership in the world is threatened by more than the virus we know. Another wasting disease casts shadows on the future. 

        Detailed here, from briefings, interviews, and conversations, are assessments and judgement of men and women who have advised and informed the policies of Presidents, Prime Ministers and their governments. I've participated in these sessions in recent months. These are the assessments of realists.                                                                                            
        Topics have included China, Russia, Iran, the Middle East region, terrorism, cyber warfare, counter intelligence, weapons systems, technology, defense procurement, the changing nature of spying, alliances, hot spots, nuclear weapons and threats to America's democratic republic. 
        This post examines the present danger and damage of  deliberate deception, and the anti democracy fascism that fogs our constitutional principles and aspirations.


        "For 70 years foreign policy was not a partisan issue in Washington, but now it is," says John Sawer, who was Chief of the Secret Intelligence Service in Britain, MI6.
        "So, friends and hostile nations will have trouble in thinking in terms of American strategy in periods of decades, because it might change every four years."

From The Radio Historian


        MI6 was founded in 1909. It is the senior intelligence service in the world and helped nurture the birth of the US CIA,  assisting the OSS (Office of Strategic Service) during World War II. They are an ally who knows us well.
        Sawer says both the UK and US have been through political upheaval, a kind of residual reaction to the crash of 08. 
        "The best plan forward is to put our own homes and systems in order. In the UK that is absorb the cost of Brexit. In the US it is to somehow not just relaunch the economy and get control of COVID, but to find a way to develop a polity, a consistency and a durability to America's role in the world, or American will be in decline. The decline is certain if it just swings back and forth every four years."

        The Biden administration declared "America is back," and he has begun to shore up alliances, and return a respectability to our foreign policy, but our standing in the world is damaged. We are no longer seen as the strong force, the leader of the free world, a beacon of democracy.
        "There is some concern about whether the US word and commitment will be reliable, especially since Trump is in the background as a force in US politics," says John Brennan former director of the CIA. He worked for 6 US Presidents.
        "Trump as laid waste to our credibility and reliability. It will take time to restore confidence that commitments will outlive changes in the White House. This is something to confront, because in the last 4 years, many years of trust in the US word and commitment is challenged."


        The malignancy of Trump was apparent in the view of Homeland Security, Cyber Security and Infrastructure officers and veterans when we discussed the US election campaign, social media influence, and the cascading affect of the big lie.
        Belief in and the credibility our system has been and is being eroded by intentional deception, and behavior that condones it. 
    
        A former CIA chief of station, with over 30 years of distinguished service including in the former Soviet Union, Europe and war zones in the Middle East and South Asia offers a harsh truth. Donald Trump enabled Russia in it's efforts to undermine and disparage our democratic process.
      "That is the first thing they're focused on, trying to portray our process as inherently unstable and in conflict with our supposed democratic values. It doesn't matter that they're an autocracy. They don't want their people to see us as an inspiration to those Russians striving for democracy."
        I withhold his name because he is still active. But he is emphatic in his assessment of how Trump was used for anti American purposes.
       "Putin is very active in public propaganda and information warfare. Through his propaganda arm he does not want the US to be a beacon of hope. He needs to continue to emphasize the US is unstable."
        Trump's prolonged attack on US media, the undermining of the election and judicial process were powerful weapons. Russia's interests were seen early. 
        "That Trump Tower meeting was meant to be discovered. Don Jr. took the cheese from Putin's mousetrap," he said, citing it as one of many public relations victories and instances where Trump was outplayed by a wily intelligence officer, Putin.


            The path to an improved image and renewed strength of leadership is challenged by the Republican party's turn to fascism and authoritarianism. Unless his mounting legal woes disable him, Trump wields power. Republicans running for office can either bend to the boss and his world of lies and deception or be run out by the mob of racists, zealots and lunatics who are taking over state parties, driven by Trump's nationalistic fantasies. 
           The Republican party is at war with itself and betting is on the fascist wing and those disconnected from reality, fed by the far right media. 
         Analysts say Republicans have become the party of deception, at the federal and state level. It is there tactic in a winner all view of the world. Recent examples being cited is the McConnell flip flop flip on Trump, Texas Governor Abbott's deceit about the role of wind power in the recent power grid crash, McCarthy on the Covid bail out package, Cruz, Jordan, Hawley and Johnson on the Capitol insurrection. And it goes on. 


       A common theme of the briefings was domestic terrorism and the rise of armed militias. The Oath Keepers, Proud Boys, Boogaloo and others were part of the Capitol invasion. Local, state and federal authorities are warned to be vigilant and prepared for other acts;  attempted kidnapping of a officials, State House invasions, bombings, and shootings. There is  concern over security of the State of the Union address when most of the government is assembled in the Capitol.
        The danger is underscored by what investigators are learning about inside influence in planning the attempted coup. 
       Of concern at home it sends signals to the world. As long as members of the Senate and House continue to placate Trump, perpetuate his lies, and enable the fascist and thug control of the Republican party, they play into division, deception, enable our adversaries and enemies, and undercut the nation's authority.
 

        The breeding of instability at home, weakens us, makes us less secure and contributes to a dangerous change in the balance of power abroad.                                                                                                                                        
         While this post examines the legacy of the inner turmoil on ourselves and our position in the world, a linked topic is the rise of China.
          General David Petraeus and Christian Brose spoke to China's influence as we have been weakened in the eyes of the world.
        "For 25 years China has tried to disrupt our military development and research. They are very competitive and they play by different objectives." Petraeus
        "We need to rethink what we are strategizing in that region. What does national security look like in the absence of our dominance?" Brose
        Petraeus is former Director of the CIA and is a retired US Army General with 37 years in uniform.
        Christian Brose was staff director of the Senate Armed Services Committee, a senior policy adviser to Senator John McCain and adviser to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

        While rogues and fascism destroy the party Brose served, US is weakened. It happens as China is on a trajectory to become the dominant military force in the world. 
        "This requires changes in systems, postures and at home. I am concerned at damage done to alliances and strategic partnership, especially at a time when we need to rely on them more."  Brose

        In decades of reporting I've worked with intelligence officers, analysts and national security people. They are skilled at getting to the point. They are capable, thoughtful and engaged in facts, finding them and analyzing them. They deal with complexity, distant horizons, multiplicity of patterns, input, motivations, intent and they make sense of it.  They can be the very opposite of the public officials and politicians who task or review them and who use their product. 
        

      China benefits as we continue to handicap ourselves. But it is the former KGB officer in the gilded offices in the Kremlin who looks to America, sees what the last four years did to his adversary, and watches as one of America's parties devolves to a gang and mob, and he smiles. One of his intelligence services in the meantime has invaded American cyber systems, manipulated elections, driven social media deception, and he smiles even more.

     Biden's priority has been to attack Covid and its impact on people and the nation as a whole. 
     He has also signaled the America First nationalism of Trump has been trashed. Trump still breaths however, given life by a Republican party that has become a threat to the nation by enforcing the power of the mad mob boss from Mar a Lago. 
    As long as Trump lurks as a shadow influence, he remains a petulant virus in American culture and politics. Variants of Trump are already jockeying for position, and his state party apparatus have begun efforts to suppress and limit voting. 

     Le Carre', Clancy, Ludlum, Forysth, Greene, and Fleming could not have written such a plot.

        What do the realists conclude? We are in trouble and there is thrashing and winnowing to do, to save our future. Truth, an adherence and devotion to it, is a good start. As children we were taught it is wrong to lie. This nation needs to live into that.

        From time to time subsequently, I'll offer more from my notes as we continue our briefings and decipher the times. 

        Stay well.
        See you down the trail.
        
        

Saturday, February 20, 2021

Accountability and Hope

 


     Nature, life's portal, like human hope, springs anew. Poetic that spring follows the season of dark. It has been a long season.

    The world reeling from pandemic, brutality instead of reason, and nature's recent hostility renders us weary, wounded and in need of lifted spirits. 

    We offer these:

  •  frames of spring 2021, early as it is in California 
  • and the word that is the elixir for all that plagues us, Perseverance, as in Percy.

    This elegant flight machine, a Great Blue Heron that graced our ridge top this week is a thing of beauty, grace and wonder. So is this...

NASA 
Perseverance on Mars 

      As bad as it can be on planet earth, the best of our huddled masses has put us in the heavens, again, and with selfies.

    Our technological offspring, a global darling, will rove and produce science exploration and contribute mightily to the intelligence of humankind. 
NASA Illustration

       Out west we can still see footprints of our pioneering spirt and long suffering endurance. Humankind is capable of the stars if we remember the foundational basics and lead with our intellect and act with character, listening to our hearts, where we know right from wrong.  

        We are sorry for the recent misery in the Texas Republic. They could have, should have, been prepared. Many places on this planet routinely handle winter's blast, but Texas thinks of itself as bigger, badder, and tougher. Texas is the home of the Lone Ranger. 
        A commission has been launched. Before it lifts a hand we know why the state was so hammered. Poor planning, no accounting for climate change, maximized profits, cheaper construction techniques, the "we've got ours, you get yours" attitude, a belligerent sense of energy independence and money, inequitably deployed along the spectrum.
        Ted Cruz, his other qualities not withstanding, is the poster boy for the attitude in possession of some Texans in authority. But there is also Willie Rios
Photo by St. John Barned-Smith  Houston Chronicle 

        The South Houston Councilman, who is a tradesman, led herculean efforts to get sewage treatment plants operating and water running. The councilman worked around the clock tending to the needs of his district.
Rios on the right with constituent   
Photo Yi-Chinn Lee Houston Chronicle

    We see the model of public service in Willie Rios and his kind, the ideal "politician," there to meet the needs of neighbors. Theirs is not to set blame or to steal away to the beach, but to fix, and serve. It is good to see acting on principle instead of political careerism. Elected office at it's nexus is about the constituent.

    Accountability matters. As one who called for a national inquiry as early as January 6, it is my sense it should be under the Department of Justice. A congressional inquiry could get at the truth, but history, and you and I are served if it is far from a political landscape. 
    Perhaps because I know and for decades covered co-Chairman Lee Hamilton, I have a bound volume of the 9/11 Commission and have pulled it from the shelf a surprising number of times over the years. A good commission report is necessary for understanding and it can be curative. We need that now. It too can be a tonic, a springtime for the soul of America.




       When the trees bloom on the California central coast, spring for the rest of America is not far off. The vaccine is being distributed, good and decent people are in control again, and investigative efforts are underway. 


    
    One more look at the Great Blue Heron. I was busy in my study when daughter Kristin called to alert us it was next door.
    Usually I see them only from a distance, unable to capture the texture of their feathers. In this case she or he was busy apparently stalking gophers. That too strikes me as justice at work.

    Where spring is always at the right time, it seems also Providential the most complicated space landing happens as we confront climate, disease, lies and division. It reminds of a human skill and also our destiny, to persevere.

    Stay safe and stay well.

    See you down the trail.

Sunday, February 14, 2021

Moral Bankruptcy

 


        As certain as sky meets the sea and sea meets the land there are immutable principles and forces at work, laws of nature. 

    Human life is bound by canons, history measures with the cold calculus of principle, that too is immutable. Character is rendered, judgement revealed. Human history is made of these. It is the log of our evolution, and it is indelible. 

    The Republican party set the nadir of moral bankruptcy and cowardice. Deplorable and despicable were their actions and now their reputations. Mitch McConnell's wile, his post acquittal statement, is like the man, fraudulent. After his time on the national stage he fears the inevitable searing truth of the historian's ledger. He will not have it both ways. Four years he enabled a destructive invasion of the republic and has again allowed a pernicious evil to go unchecked. It will be his votes, his record of complicity that history will recall. Generations will revile Trump, his mob of insurrectionists, his seditious accomplices and his hypocrites like McConnell.


    I needed fresh air and a long view after the acquittal. Though the outcome was expected, I hoped late information, the McCarthy and Tuberville phone calls, proving presidential inaction and cooperative complicity with those in the Capitol and seeking to harm his vice president and others, would land a shred of decency in a few of the cowardly republicans. 
    

     The free ranging cattle have more moral conviction than 43 republican senators. I was struck by the irony of 10 grazing animals, as the vote for the good fell 10 short. 
      The republican party is at war with itself. At this juncture the spineless, deceptive, and crooked are beholden to the ignorant fans of authoritarianism. Nikki Haley's recent ploy signals there could be some life yet in those who want to run away from Trump and are willing to say it out loud, though late as it is.

        History will recall the warnings sounded by arguments in the first impeachment, that acquittal would only embolden the rogue president. Proven in short order. He began the incitement when he cultivated the militias, Q crazies, insurrectionist cells and the core racists. He started the movements violent turn when he began to undermine the credibility of the election early in the year. His claim the election would be fair only if he won should have been a warning enough. His relentless pursuit of overturning the election, lies, fraud, crazy theories, were all part of the incitement. 
        I'm sorry the Impeachment was not framed more widely to include all of that, and his lack of intervention but Republicans were there, they had to flee the threat of killing mobs who were in Washington only to "Stop the Steal." They know who was the architect. History will record their knowledge, their complicity and their cowardice. It is time to for both the House and Senate to begin actions to purge the anti American  pro authoritarian Republicans. They are the enemies of the people.
        
        There's a patch of woods I sometimes retreat to and on my last walk I spotted trees that I took pleasure in seeing as symbols of the character of the republican party.


the hawley
the cruz
the graham

    Our experiment in a democratic republic requires the give and take of checking and balancing views. The nation has been at its best when bipartisanship was in season. My previous post tracked the genesis and evolution of the death spiral that made Trump a republican inevitability. We can only hope that traditional republicans will regain control of the party. 
    Trump and his kind, and the poor suckers who believed him are still here. When the gutless, craven, poltroons did not drive a stake through his heart, they made it possible for a vile and evil force to continue to menace not only them, but the future of the nation.

        Over the last few months I've been a part of conversations, interviews and briefs with intelligence and national security people. Their view on this moral bankruptcy in a once great nation will be the subject of a future post. 

shout out to Lana
                                            
            We've reached valentine's days and we are still eating fresh tomatoes. This plate is the last of this year's crop. They were picked, when green, before she pulled the plants. They have continued to ripen. For a guy who grew up in the tomato growing calendar of Indiana, having our own fresh crop at this time is amazing!

     Stay well, stay safe.
     See you down the trail.