Beyond Govt Power

Without the vaccines the world would be in a bad place. The monster didn’t go away as we hid in the basement, it just made itself at home in the kitchen. The only way out is to shoot it with drugs.

Until a few months ago the authorities weren’t really sure the vaccines would work. Perhaps “two weeeks to flatten the curve” was a psychologically necessary device to mitigate our fears.

You can give it away, but can you invent it? It wasn’t govt that ultimately rode to the rescue, but human capital.

Biden says nothing can change the trajectory of Covid pandemic over the next several months

Biden warned on Friday that as the outbreak continues, “there’s nothing we can do to change the trajectory of the pandemic in the next several months.” The president has repeatedly warned that the situation is likely to worsen before it improves.

From the Epilogue, HG Well’s War of the Worlds:

At any rate, whether we expect another invasion or not, our views of the human future must be greatly modified by these events. We have learned now that we cannot regard this planet as being fenced in and a secure abiding place for Man; we can never anticipate the unseen good or evil that may come upon us suddenly out of space. It may be that in the larger design of the universe this invasion from Mars is not without its ultimate benefit for men; it has robbed us of that serene confidence in the future which is the most fruitful source of decadence.

The big danger is the elites have learned nothing but that they must build back better and control more .

Puny Governments

‘It’s a reality:’ Google threatens to stop search in Australia due to media code
The owner of Australia’s most popular search engine says it is prepared to shut the service down rather than pay media organisations for news content.

The $1.8 trillion search giant’s local managing director Melanie Silva told a Senate committee hearing on Friday that Google would shut off search in Australia if the government’s proposed media bargaining code becomes law. Experts said the threat is not idle, with Google likely fearful the code could set a global precedent.

Their statements need to be broadcast in full reverb.

You you you will will will obey obey obey.

Or else fall into the Pit of Oblivion.

Joe Biden Removes Churchill Bust

Setting the tone.

Fury as Joe Biden removes bust of Winston Churchill from Oval Office
Downing Street today insisted it is up to Joe Biden how he decorates the Oval Office after the new US President removed a bust of Sir Winston Churchill, prompting fury from critics.
Reaction to Churchill bust removal muted for Biden after outrage for Obama
It had once been a transatlantic art scandal — or at least various actors of questionable intent would have you believe it was.

China Bans It’s Foes

“You can always judge a man by the quality of his enemies.”
— Oscar Wilde

China Slaps Sanctions On 28 Trump Administration Officials, Including Mike Pompeo
In a statement released just minutes after President Biden took office, China’s foreign ministry said it was sanctioning those “who have seriously violated China’s sovereignty.”

In a statement released just minutes after President Biden took office, China’s foreign ministry said it had decided to sanction those “who have seriously violated China’s sovereignty and who have been mainly responsible for such U.S. moves on China-related issues.”

The list of names features former Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar; former White House trade adviser Peter Navarro; former national security adviser Robert O’Brien; Kelly Craft, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations; and Matthew Pottinger, who recently resigned as deputy national security adviser. Former national security adviser John Bolton and former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon were also included.

The Race Goes On

New data shows that the Covid-19 vaccines currently on the market may not be as effective in guarding against new, more contagious strains of the coronavirus, giving “all the more reason” to vaccinate people faster, White House health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Thursday.

Dr. Fauci says new data shows Covid vaccines appear to be less effective against some new strains
Even if the vaccines are less effective against new variants, they’ll still likely provide enough protection to make them worth getting, Dr. Anthony Fauci said.
Boris Johnson says some evidence new Covid variant in the UK may be more deadly
There is “some evidence” a new Covid variant first identified in the U.K. could be more deadly than the original strain, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Friday.

Hurry Up and Wait

Removed to garage after photo op.

‘We feel incredibly betrayed’: Thousands of Guardsmen forced to vacate Capitol
Guardsmen were later let back into facilities after an outry from lawmakers.

One unit, which had been resting in the Dirksen Senate Office building, was abruptly told to vacate the facility on Thursday, according to one Guardsman. The group was forced to rest in a nearby parking garage without internet reception, with just one electrical outlet, and one bathroom with two stalls for 5,000 troops, the person said. Temperatures in Washington were in the low 40s by nightfall.

“Yesterday dozens of senators and congressmen walked down our lines taking photos, shaking our hands and thanking us for our service. Within 24 hours, they had no further use for us and banished us to the corner of a parking garage. We feel incredibly betrayed,” the Guardsman said.

Photos of National Guard camping in parking garage spark anger as soldiers prepare to head home following inauguration
More than 15,000 National Guard members are preparing to leave Washington, D.C., and head home.

Thousands of Guard troops from all across the country poured into D.C. by the planeload and busload late last week, in response to escalating security threats and fears of more rioting. Military aircraft crowded the runways at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, carrying Guard members into the region in the wake of the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

Guard in DC forced to sleep in garages, sparking outcry
WASHINGTON (AP) — Images of National Guard soldiers camped in a cold parking garage after being sent to protect Washington sparked new calls Friday for investigations of the U.S. Capitol Police,…

Coronavirus Vaccinations – Statistics- Our World in Data

Normalcy in US projected by second quarter — if no new mutations arise.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Vaccinations – Statistics and Research
In our Data Explorer you can see our COVID-19 vaccination data — you can also visualize the latest data on confirmed cases, deaths, and testing.
When will the COVID-19 pandemic end?
McKinsey’s evolving perspectives on when will the COVID-19 pandemic end in the United States updated to examine how timing will vary around the world.

Transition toward normalcy in the United States remains most likely in the second quarter of 2021 and herd immunity in the third and fourth quarters, but the emergence of new strains and a slow start to vaccine rollout raise real risks to both timelines.

Deserted inauguration

There’s information in these scenes but what is it? That we’ve turned the corner, are not in Kansas any more, or is this the new normal? I wrote on January 12 that: “I suspect significantly fewer are going to tune in, if not in America then at least in the rest of the world, not in protest or partisan pique but because the magic’s gone from Washington DC.”

Washington deserted after inauguration despite widespread fears of more violent riots
Joe Biden took the oath of office in the backdrop of an empty city, with Washington void of the crowds that usually flock to the capital on Inauguration Day.

Joe Biden became the 46th US president on Wednesday in a barricaded city, guarded by more than 25,000 troops and emptied of the spectators who usually throng to the quadrennial ritual.

The security precautions, along with a coronavirus pandemic that has prompted many to avoid public gatherings, left city streets largely empty.

“It’s, frankly, painful to see this, the whole city shut down,” former Republican Senator Jeff Flake told reporters as he arrived at the Capitol.

Biden promised a return to ‘normalcy,’ but it’s clear that’s not happening anytime soon.
Joe Biden ran for president as the moderate Democrat, the familiar face who wasn’t going to defund the police or steer the country headlong into socialism.
Suppose They Held an Inauguration and Nobody Came?
Commentary The increasingly fascistic American left is setting a trap for the rest of their fellow citizens—often termed …

The Quest for Unity

Whenever a politician issues a call for unity two serious questions immediately arise:

  1. unity in exchange for what?
  2. who are the parties to the agreement?

Where existing political parties represent the great majority of the public “unity” can be achieved by coalition government, bipartisan agreement or other similar consensus mechanisms. However where parties have been abandoned by the general public, either a new party or a rebel alliance must be brought into the negotiations for discussions to proceed.

In an insurgency one of the principle obstacles to “unity” talks is the inchoate nature of the parties. Recall that many WW2 resistance groups were badly fragmented and remained so for years. Even governments can be badly divided. The Axis never formed a cohesive strategic or political front. The Allies did but only because opposition to Hitler held it together. Once Germany collapsed the Alliance fell apart.

Beside “who” there is the paramount question of “what”. Unity requires concession, horse trading and the deferment of irreconcilable differences. Without concessions the call for unity is a demand for surrender

But the price of unity is inevitably too high for the activists on both sides because while they pay lip service to unity what they really want is subjugation. As a practical matter unity is impossible when ideologues rule. In the immortal words of the Batman movie:

Alfred Pennyworth : You crossed the line first, sir. You squeezed them, you hammered them to the point of desperation. And in their desperation, they turned to a man they didn’t fully understand.

Bruce Wayne : Criminals aren’t complicated, Alfred. Just have to figure out what he’s after.

Alfred Pennyworth : With respect Master Wayne, perhaps this is a man that you don’t fully understand, either. A long time ago, I was in Burma. My friends and I were working for the local government. They were trying to buy the loyalty of tribal leaders by bribing them with precious stones. But their caravans were being raided in a forest north of Rangoon by a bandit. So, we went looking for the stones. But in six months, we never met anybody who traded with him. One day, I saw a child playing with a ruby the size of a tangerine. The bandit had been throwing them away.

Bruce Wayne : So why steal them?

Alfred Pennyworth : Well, because he thought it was good sport. Because some men aren’t looking for anything logical, like money. They can’t be bought, bullied, reasoned, or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn.

Listening to a Team of Wordsmiths

The script returns to its central place in governance as Biden’s speeches are written by committee. But is he speaking through the committee or vice versa? Is it Milli Vanilli or Cyrano de Bergerac?

Writing a speech for Biden can be hell. And that was before the inaugural.
There is a heightened urgency to Biden’s inaugural speech, as he confronts multiple crises and seeks to bridge a deep political divide.

Biden has grown comfortable with chief speech writer Vinay Reddy and senior adviser Mike Donilon, who have helped him thread his narratives in a simple, grounded way. The president-elect has also leaned on Tony Blinken, his secretary of state designate, to help with the speech writing process. Incoming chief of staff Ron Klain is in the mix as well….

For his speeches, Biden receives advice — solicited and unsolicited — from a wide cast of luminaries, which in the past has included historian Jon Meacham. It was not entirely clear among aides if Meacham contributed to the drafting of the inauguration speech, though a source familiar with the process said he had consulted on the process.

On some speechwriter’s tomb the words may be inscribed. “How obvious it is now–the gift you gave him. All those letters, they were you… All those beautiful powerful words, they were you!.. The voice from the shadows, that was you…” Roxanne”

Cyrano’s ‘to be your own man speech’.

The Doomed WHO China Probe

A finding that Covid was caused by a lab accident would be devastating to the health bureaucracy and pharma.

The World Needs a Real Investigation Into the Origins of Covid-19
A team of WHO researchers has arrived in China but won’t investigate the possibility that the coronavirus originated in a lab.

The world needs an inquiry that considers not just natural origins but the possibility that SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19, escaped from a laboratory. The WHO team, however, plans to build on reports by Chinese scientists rather than mount an independent investigation.

US Scientist Who Led Charge Against COVID Lab Leak Theory Admits He Was Trying To Protect Chinese Scientists
The U.S. scientist behind an effort to stymie debate on the possibility that COVID-19 accidentally escaped a lab said he did so to protect Chinese scientists.

Dr. Peter Daszak, the president of the New York-based EcoHealth Alliance, orchestrated a statement published in The Lancet medical journal in February, prior to any serious research on the origins of COVID-19, condemning “conspiracy theories” that suggest the virus doesn’t have a natural origin.

The possibility cannot be entertained. From a strategic point of view a lab accident would be similar to an accidental nuclear strike during the Cold War, a scenario explored in the 1964 movie Fail Safe. The priority would be containment.

If someone — hypothetically — had definite proof Covid resulted from a researcher’s error it would be a biotech Chernobyl.

Guard Screened

2 Guard members made extremist statements about inauguration
WASHINGTON (AP) — Twelve U.S. National Guard members have been removed from securing President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration after vetting by the FBI, including two who made extremist statements…

Two other U.S. officials told The Associated Press that all 12 were found to have ties with right-wing militia groups or posted extremist views online. The officials, a senior intelligence official and an Army official briefed on the matter, did not say which fringe groups the Guard members belonged to or what unit they served in. The officials were not authorized to speak publicly and spoke to The AP on condition of anonymity. The officials told the AP they had all been removed because of “security liabilities.”

Panel finds world not prepared for COVID-19; China, WHO acted too slowly – UPI.com

The Global World got away from the 5 Year Planners. Don’t worry. They’ll “build back better”. Instead of being chastened the lesson they seemed to have learned is their power did not extend far enough. By planning to extend their sphere into biotechnology, social networks and climate engineering all will be fixed.

Panel finds world not prepared for COVID-19; China, WHO acted too slowly
The world was not prepared to battle the coronavirus, an independent World Health Organization panel said in an interim report that details failures made by the international community in its fight against the disease.

Our Special Historical Moment

There are two, possibly three themes in this thoughtful email from a friend, who because of his public character, I’ve reproduced anonymously though with his permission. The email’s main points are:

  1. The world is in the midst of a paradigm shift comparable to the industrial or perhaps agricultural revolution;
  2. America and perhaps the West is in a crisis of political liberty that has resulted in a ‘house divided’ situation.
  3. These issues have to be resolved politically or the current order risks collapse.

While I am glad that at least some people in wider public life are willing to think outside conventional platitudes I cannot help but agree with the closing sentence: “My sense is that our current politicians and elites are more Robespierre than Ben Franklin.” If America is truly headed for a civil war it does so without any obvious Lincolns.

For most of human history the organizational construct of society was a small elite ruling people as chattel. At the time of Founding Fathers 70% of humanity was either serfs or slaves. The organizational principle of the American republic was based on two principles, individual liberty and government legitimacy based on the consent of the governed, as Lincoln said of the people, by the people and for the people. This idea proved highly popular and delivered economic prosperity, social mobility, human rights and stability, obviously not perfectly but better then any other society had or has ever done.

Whenever the natural tendency of power concentration raised its head in our history, we have found a way to resist it and stay true to our founding principles. The Founding Fathers gave the world, and America is a microcosm of the world, a wonderful gift. Are we up to the task of keeping it and passing it on to future generations or will it end with us.

As far as I’m concerned the jury is out.

We can’t underestimate the threat. In a world of robotics and AI what role will limited educated people play? Are they really needed? At a minimum they can be warehoused in their smart city homes, paid a basic income stipend, amused by Netflix and Play-station, and have their meatless food delivered to them. We’re potentially going back to the age of the Pharos with a small elite and masses of laborers and slaves. With technology to enable it. Today we’re closer to 1984 than any other time in our history. And in which direction are we further moving? Dark Winter anybody?

I do believe if the American Republic falls we will turn the world into many competing feudal states under local warlords, not a unified utopian global government. Without a global policeman to enforce accepted rules, it’s every group for itself. There is no stability without either consensus or coercion.

The key question to me is not so much what is to come but rather what do we do to get our civilization back on the right track for individual liberty and prosperity.

Here’s my position on the current US political situation:

A nation divided cannot stand. History teaches us that unresolved internal divisions lead to disaster. There are two ways to get to a national consensus. One is through debate, reason and compromise, the Founding Father way. The other is orthodoxy enforced by coercion, the Jacobin and Bolshevik Soviet method. My sense is that our current politicians and elites are more Robespierre than Ben Franklin.

Pentagon Accelerates Efforts to Root Out Far-Right Extremism in the Ranks

A world that’s been locked down, surveilled, censored, deplatformed and purged must be wondering how much more progress it can stand. A whole lot more probably. People have no idea how defective they are deemed to be. If you didn’t know how virtuous it was you might get the wrong idea.

Pentagon Accelerates Efforts to Root Out Far-Right Extremism in the Ranks
The nation’s military has a history of downplaying white nationalism and right-wing activism, but the siege of the Capitol has created a new urgency for dealing with them.

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon is intensifying efforts to identify and combat white supremacy and other far-right extremism in its ranks as federal investigators seek to determine how many military personnel and veterans joined the violent assault on the Capitol. …

The F.B.I. investigation into the Capitol siege, still in its very early stages, has identified at least six suspects with military links out of the more than 100 people who have been taken into federal custody or the larger number still under investigation.

Insider Attacks Feared

FBI vetting Guard troops in DC amid fears of insider attack
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. defense officials say they are worried about an insider attack or other threat from service members involved in securing President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, prompting…

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. defense officials say they are worried about an insider attack or other threat from service members involved in securing President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, prompting the FBI to vet all of the 25,000 National Guard troops coming into Washington for the event.

Related: How Will Biden’s Pentagon Handle Extreme Right-Wing Media?

How Will Biden’s Pentagon Handle Extreme Right-Wing Media?
The Capitol riot was just the latest tell for propaganda outlets masquerading as newsrooms.

More specifically, the Biden administration’s communications teams will have to decide whether employees of extreme right-wing media outlets should be welcomed as journalists into the U.S. military’s massive headquarters. Should these actors receive credentialled press badges granting 24/7 access to the building, seats in its briefing room, desks to work at in the resident press bullpen, coveted seats on the defense secretary’s plane in the traveling press corps to visit troops at military bases worldwide, and interviews with service secretaries and the Joint Chiefs of Staff?

“This is exactly the kind of question that needs to be asked right now,” said one former Obama administration spokesperson, who could only speak on background due to their current employer’s restrictions. “I do believe that incoming communicators need to have a conversation among themselves about how they’re going to operate in this new landscape.”