The Shambling Mound's Twelfth and Thirteenth Weeks
Even observers of The Shambling Mound are entitled to a break, and that's exactly what I did last week thank you very much. A quick visit to one of the more isolated spots of New Zealand was thoroughly enjoyable although it did seem strangely appropriate to catch the tail-end of a hurricane and undergo a short blackout.
After the previous week's bombshell on Syria the far-right of Lord Dampnut's fan club suddenly deserted him, whereas others adopted a more conspiratorial tone (when the same argument is offered on Breitbart and Global Research you can tell it's time to get the popcorn out), whereas Spicer came out with the amazing Holocaust gaffe concerning Hitler, sensitively conducted on the Passover. With a new found interest in foreign policy, and with a well-known level of diplomatic nous, North Korea became the next target for sabre-ratting.
If one beats the drums of war overseas one may as well do it at home as well, as Jeff Sessions, suggested it would be a good time to re-introduce the 'War of Drugs', something which should delight the new Supreme Court appointee, Neil Gorsuch, who may very well get the opportunity to test all sorts of variations to constitutional amendments.
The following week was back to military endeavours, as Trump follows a time-honoured strategy of using war as a means to acquire popularity with the "mother of all bombs" in Afghanistan. "What happened to restraint". the foreign policy analysts painfully asked. Political pundits of course know that whilst peace may be good, chest-thumping can be popular. Sometimes however the hyperbole can get quite ludicrous - such as a slight difference in shipping routes.
As the thirteenth week came to a close, and one takes stock of all the castle intrigues, Napoleonic maneuvers, and extremely high risk behaviour, has anyone noticed what legislation has actually been passed? I thought so.
After the previous week's bombshell on Syria the far-right of Lord Dampnut's fan club suddenly deserted him, whereas others adopted a more conspiratorial tone (when the same argument is offered on Breitbart and Global Research you can tell it's time to get the popcorn out), whereas Spicer came out with the amazing Holocaust gaffe concerning Hitler, sensitively conducted on the Passover. With a new found interest in foreign policy, and with a well-known level of diplomatic nous, North Korea became the next target for sabre-ratting.
If one beats the drums of war overseas one may as well do it at home as well, as Jeff Sessions, suggested it would be a good time to re-introduce the 'War of Drugs', something which should delight the new Supreme Court appointee, Neil Gorsuch, who may very well get the opportunity to test all sorts of variations to constitutional amendments.
The following week was back to military endeavours, as Trump follows a time-honoured strategy of using war as a means to acquire popularity with the "mother of all bombs" in Afghanistan. "What happened to restraint". the foreign policy analysts painfully asked. Political pundits of course know that whilst peace may be good, chest-thumping can be popular. Sometimes however the hyperbole can get quite ludicrous - such as a slight difference in shipping routes.
As the thirteenth week came to a close, and one takes stock of all the castle intrigues, Napoleonic maneuvers, and extremely high risk behaviour, has anyone noticed what legislation has actually been passed? I thought so.