Occupation of Independence

Hegseth et al. must be thinking: Can you believe these nambie-pambies and their "stupid rules of engagements?"  Americans seem resistant to Trump's desire to impose IDF ( Israel Defense Forces) methods across America.   If he succeeds, it will be the ultimate triumph for Netanyahu and Israel.  IDF methods won't even be considered news if they become normalized.  The genocide in Gaza will magically disappear: how can it be a genocide if they are just using 'normal' law enforcement methods. After the entire population of Gaza has been exterminated, Congress can pass the " Gaza Freedom and Democracy Reconstruction Act ."  It will offer government-guaranteed 1% loans to build casinos and hotels along the Trump Riviera. I wonder how fast the grass is growing in Greenland ?

 What a great wildflower season there should be this March, in the desert.  Of course, a snowbird may leave before the wildflower season in order to escape the heat.  But the wildflowers can be impressive.  A couple years ago I wallowed in desert poppies at a well-known place near Tucson : The long-suffering reader knows that I am prone to anti-tourist snobbery.  But still, who won't admit that standard tourist-industry memes at well-known locations feels too much like 'consumption' rather than 'experience?'  And does it really do you any good to see 10 million identical specimens of a certain flower or tree? What happened yesterday was at the opposite end of the numerical spectrum.  In perfect -- that is, mildly chilly -- weather, my little dog and I were biking along, on a dirt two-track .  We were climbing.  We were huffing and puffing.  And I wasn't exactly sure it was the correct route.  Then this surprised me: It was the firs...

 When you forget about the usual (visual) orientation of human visitors to the desert, and look at it from the viewpoint of shoes and tires and dog paws, you might appreciate the importance of different types of texture.  Eskimos are supposed to have many different words for snow .  And we have the same need in the desert for all the different forms of texture: round (alluvial) gravel , sharp volcanic rocks , coarse and packed sand in arroyos, powdery dust, hardpacked desert pavement , good or bad traction, and cholla segments . I saw a new form of texture yesterday that I never thought of before, in the desert.  It was a deja vu experience.  Way back when, I ran across the advertisements for some kind of landscaping service, called " Barefoot Lawn ."  What wonderful, nostalgic images that brought to mind!  It makes a person think of running across the lawn when you were a child, on summer vacation. That is what this image brought to mind: My little d...

Several times on this blog, I have quoted Samuel Johnson 's "...as I have gotten older, I have come to call a man a good man on easier terms than before." (not an exact quote.) A corollary is to have humbler expectations of the human condition.  And that approach certainly works with You Tube .  AI rubbish is ruining You Tube.  But what can a person do about it? It has helped me to focus on some of You Tube's successes, such as musical performances .  Although it really makes no sense to make a video of instrumental music or singing, it is still a good and free way to become acquainted with music you didn't know about.  And for opera , a video does make sense. Thanks to a few seconds of opera in a movie I was rewatching, the "noooo more Rice Krispies , they're all gone, the Riiiiice Kriiiiispies!" song was brought to my attention.  You Tube had several versions of the song available.  They are all wonderful.  My favorite  "Vesti la Giubba...

The wild burros -- maybe we should call them feral -- are entertaining me this winter.  The 'grass' is so green and thick, you'd think they would be getting fat.  Maybe it would be worth reading up on the burro lifestyle , but I am usually disappointed when I look something up on Wikipedia . Anyway, I am camped in a new area and the burros are back.  I hear them braying at night.  When do they sleep?  But none have walked up to my screen door to panhandle.

  I got an email from a financial website on Substack, entitled Pivot and Flow (J.L. Bernstein).  At first I was inclined to delete it, but held up for some reason.  Then the story hit me like a punch in the gut. "She Bought a Burrito on an Interest-Free Installment Plan She's 28, sitting in her car in the Chipotle parking lot, her thumb hovering over 'Pay in 4.' It's a $34 order.  Two burritos, chips, a drink.  Her son's inside with her mom.  He's seven and he asked for Chipotle because his friend's family gets Chipotle and he wanted to know what it tastes like. She knows she shouldn't.  But her checking account has $47 until Friday.  Rent took everything.  The light bill ate the rest.  She picked up an extra shift but that won't hit until next week.  She clicks 'Pay in 4.' Here's what we built: a system so elegant that a mother can finance her son's first burrito with no human interaction at all.  No bank teller to look her i...

 There certainly are real news events happening everyday that are worth paying attention to.  But from another point of view, specific events are not strategic.  The over-arching strategy of the Adelson-Trump-Netanyahu regime is to get Americans used to the idea that militarized goons working for Washington DC are entitled to use IDF (Israeli Defense Force) tactics and methods both outside and inside America. Once IDF methods come to be seen as normal law enforcement methods, then the genocide in Gaza will not even be news anymore.  That would be  the Promised Land  for Adelson-Trump-Netanyahu. In the meantime I need to think about something pleasant, like the wettest winter in years, in the Arizona desert: Here is a nice scene in central Utah that has nothing to do with this post:

 When following the news it is natural to become angry or discouraged.  There is nothing wrong in looking for comfort.  Human beings are not infinitely strong.  Once again I ran to the Battle of Midway as a way to keep from spiraling down into despair because of current news.      This is not an endorsement for permanent escapism.  Yes, the Battle of Midway.  You can find books, movies, and documentaries, sometimes for free on You Tube if you use the Brave browser . What would be a good visual representation of what I am saying above?  In Arizona , it would be winter rain and grass carpeting the desert : Or it might be clouds and shadows :

 Should I buy a weedwhacker or lawnmower?  The southwestern desert is filling in with so much green grass-like vegetation!  There is supposed to be a secondary rainy season in the desert southwest, but you don't get it every year. But we are getting it this year.  The wild burros must be fattening up and feeling their animal spirits, if you know what I mean.  The gestation period for a burro is about 12 months, so next winter there should be quite a baby-boom of little burritos. My skin just feels so good with the moister air.  There is a challenge with all this greenery: letting it impress the hell out of you, despite it not being spectacular tourist scenery. It is almost humorous to me to imagine the dissatisfaction that Canadian (and Puget Sound) snowbirds must be feeling right now.  They don't understand what I am ranting about.  They came here to sit in a folding chair, and to wear their shorts and sandals, with the sun hitting their face! (...