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JUNE 5,  2021

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT:

TRUMP RETURNS – FROM THE NEW YORK POST:   Former President Donald Trump returned to the political stage on Saturday with a speech at the North Carolina Republican Convention, where he railed against his successor and predicted the GOP would triumph in the 2022 midterm elections.  After a nearly four-month break from public speaking, Trump took the stage as “God Bless the USA” by Lee Greenwood blared from speakers, praising local and federal officials and candidates — and blasting “radical Democrats.”  “As we gather tonight, our country is being destroyed before our very own eyes. Crime is exploding, police departments are being ripped apart and defunded,” he told his devotees in the city of Greenville.  “Drugs are pouring in, gas prices are soaring, our industries are being pillaged by foreign cyberattacks.  “That’s a lack of respect for our country and our leaders.”  Trump, 74, struck a more subdued tone than the one that marked his more than five years of political rallies, though he still went after the country’s current leadership, assailing rising inflation rates, the cancellation of the Keystone pipeline and foreign relations.  “America’s being demeaned and humiliated on the world stage, our freedom is being overtaken by toxic cancel culture.  Our border is wide open, illegal immigration is skyrocketing at a level that we’ve never seen before,” the former president said.  Clearly, the number one question in American politics is whether Trump will run for the presidency again in 2024.  You may rest assured that he's doing extensive polling already. 

LATEST ROYAL NOTES THAT YOU MUST HAVE TO LIVE – FROM FOX:  Royal expert Angela Levin has spoken out on Twitter about the strained relationship between the Duke of Sussex and his family. She revealed that the royal family is quite concerned about Prince Harry’s mental state, which leads her to believe they won’t be "slamming the door" in his face any time soon.  "My view is that Harry’s family in London are very worried about his mental health," Levin tweeted in response to another user commenting on whether or not it was "too late" to bring Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, back into the fold.  Levin added, "[They] think slamming the royal door in his face could have devastating consequences."  Levin’s insight on the royal family comes just days after it was revealed Prince Harry would "absolutely" be invited to Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee. The event, which is set to take place over the course of four days, will honor the queen’s 70 years on the throne.  To add to that, another royal family member revealed that Kate Middleton is playing "mediator" between her husband, Prince William, and his brother, Prince Harry. How could you have gone another day without knowing these things?  But why are we so interested in a loser of a prince? 

June 5, 2021       Permalink

FOCUSING THE SPOTLIGHT – OVERNIGHT:  If there's one hotspot that might flash into armed conflict, it's Taiwan.  Some call it "Free China."  Its formal name is "The Republic of China."  It is a large island off the coast of red China, and red China wants it.  Now a Senate delegation is about to visit Taiwan, and the mainland Chinese government will not be pleased.  From Fox:

Three top U.S. senators will visit Taiwan to meet with its top leaders Sunday amid a period of tense relations between the United States and China.

Sens. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., Chris Coons, D-Del., and Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, are making the visit as part of a broader trip to Asia, according to the American Institute in Taiwan, which announced the visit Saturday.

"The bipartisan congressional delegation will meet with senior Taiwan leaders to discuss U.S.-Taiwan relations, regional security, and other significant issues of mutual interest," the organization said in a statement.

The move will likely anger China, since that country was upset when President Biden asked former Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., and other former State Department officials to visit Taiwan earlier this year. The U.S. also moved to relax guidelines around communication between U.S. officials and Taiwan. The Chinese government said the U.S. should "stop immediately all official interactions with the Taiwan region."

U.S.-China ties remain strained over issues ranging from the independence of Taiwan and Hong Kong to the Chinese persecution of Uighur Muslims to China's broad military and economic claims in the South China sea.

China claims Taiwan, which functions as a democracy under an elected government, as its own territory. The United States does not have official diplomatic ties to Taiwan but still engages with Taiwan commercially and through unofficial diplomatic channels. And members of Congress regularly visit the island as a way to show their support for its democracy and demonstrate strength against China.

The Trump administration moved to increase relations with Taiwan and according to Council on Foreign Relations fellow David Sacks, "The Biden administration has signaled that it will largely pick up where the Trump administration left off."

In his confirmation hearing, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the "bipartisan commitment to Taiwan" and "making sure that Taiwan has the ability to defend itself… will absolutely endure in a Biden administration."

"Our support for Taiwan is rock solid," a State Department spokesperson told Fox News earlier this year. "We are committed to deepening our ties with Taiwan – a leading democracy and a critical economic and security partner."

China has also recently sent fighter jets and nuclear-capable bombers to fly over Taiwan and the U.S. has flexed its military muscles in the region too.

COMMENT:  Please note the last paragraph.  There are constant provocations involving Taiwan.  China would consider it a decisive victory over the United States if it took Taiwan, which can only be done militarily.

Given America's current weakness, internal turmoil, and a hostility to national defense in the governing party, a Chinese general might well calculate that this is a good time to strike Taiwan, and pass that recommendation on to his country's president.  Miscalculation is a serious possibility when dealing with the Taiwan issue.  So is the clear chance that we could lose a clash with China, resulting in our Asian allies losing confidence in our pledge to stand at their side.

June 5, 2021       Permalink 

JUNE 4,  2021

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT:

BREAKTHROUGH? – FROM REDSTATE:   A person believed to be among the highest-ranking defectors ever to the United States from the People’s Republic of China has been working with the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) for months, sources inside the intelligence community have told RedState on condition of anonymity. The defector has direct knowledge of special weapons programs in China, including bioweapons programs, those sources say.  The information provided to RedState corroborates and clarifies Thursday evening’s reporting by journalist Adam Housley:  "Being told the increased pressure on China in recent days is due to a defector with intimate knowledge. In fact, Wray didn’t know right away because they wanted to make sure they got all they needed before telling him."  RedState’s sources say that’s partially true. FBI Director Christopher Wray was “ambushed” with the information, they say, and CIA was also unaware. Sources say DIA leadership kept the defector within their Clandestine Services network to prevent CIA and the State Department from accessing the person, whose existence was kept from other agencies because DIA leadership believes there are Chinese spies or sources inside the FBI, CIA, and several other federal agencies. Please note that last sentence.  In fact , the infiltration of our government by China is one of the most important stories of our time, but a woke press has little interest in it.  Xenophobia you know.

BUT WE KNEW THIS AS KIDS – FROM STUDYFINDS:  TUCSON, Ariz. — In news that’s sure to start plenty of new conversations between people and “man’s best friend,” a new study finds puppies are born with “human-like” social skills. Simply put, scientists say these adorable canines are able to communicate with people from birth.  Generally, dogs need little-to-no training in order to follow directions thanks to their innate genes which have been developing for centuries. In fact, researchers at the University of Arizona say more than 40 percent of the variation in a puppy’s ability to follow a human’s finger-pointing is due to their inherited genes.  “We found that there’s definitely a strong genetic component, and they’re definitely doing it from the get-go,” says study co-author Evan MacLean in a university release. And remember, no dog ever lied to you.

June 4, 2021       Permalink

Recalling this day in 1944, when allied troops liberated Rome.  It was a major event in the storied history the city, but overshadowed two days later by the D-Day landings in northern France.

THIS IS GETTING SERIOUS – OVERNIGHT:  Cyber warfare, that is.  Since it occurs quietly, and possesses no warships, planes, or tanks, cyber warfare doesn't get that much notice.  But it's starting to affect this nation in very dangerous ways.  Potentially, deadly ways.  From The Wall Street Journal:

FBI Director Christopher Wray said the agency was investigating about 100 different types of ransomware, many tracing back to hackers in Russia, and compared the current spate of cyberattacks with the challenge posed by the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

“There are a lot of parallels, there’s a lot of importance, and a lot of focus by us on disruption and prevention,” Mr. Wray said in an interview Thursday. “There’s a shared responsibility, not just across government agencies but across the private sector and even the average American.”

Mr. Wray’s comments—among his first publicly since two recent ransomware attacks gripped the U.S. meat and oil-and-gas industries—come as senior Biden administration officials have characterized ransomware as an urgent national-security threat and said they are looking at ways to disrupt the criminal ecosystem that supports the booming industry. Each of the 100 different malicious software variants are responsible for multiple ransomware attacks in the U.S., Mr. Wray said.

Ransomware is a type of malicious computer code that locks up a victim network’s files that hackers use to demand payment for their release, typically with digital currency such as bitcoin.

This week, hackers held hostage the world’s largest meat processor, just weeks after the operator of an essential pipeline bringing gasoline to parts of the East Coast paid about $4.4 million to regain control of its operations and restore service.

Senior officials at the Federal Bureau of Investigation for years have likened the need to confront rising cyber threats to the post-9/11 scramble against international terrorism. But Mr. Wray said the wave of recent ransomware attacks had spotlighted the toll cyberattacks can have on all Americans.

“Now realizing it can affect them when they’re buying gas at the pump or buying a hamburger—I think there’s a growing awareness now of just how much we’re all in this fight together,” Mr. Wray said.

COMMENT:  It goes well beyond economic loss or inconvenience.  Future atacks, using new technology, could paralyze hospitals, or airliners in flight.   And a cyberattack can be joined by a classic terrorist attack to create chaos and fear.

Anyone with a computer is involved in this. 

June 4, 2021       Permalink