When will Biden allow Ukraine to establish air supremacy over its own airspace?

Without Air Supremacy, Ukraine can accomplish little on offense.

Biden's real fear is that a global oil price shock will delay or cancel his Green New Screw Deal agenda.  He doesn't care how much Americans have to pay for energy.

Updated May 15, 2024 -
Politics & Policy
Army gets four drone zappers in rush to defend troops
 
 
The U.S. Army has received four drone-frying prototype weapons from defense contractor Epirus, as part of a $66 million deal through a rapid acquisition effort to boost defenses against unmanned aerial systems.

Why it matters: The Pentagon is increasingly concerned about the threat posed by UAS, particularly after seeing their use in Ukraine and their proliferation in the Greater Middle East, where three U.S. troops were killed in January.

The Epirus system, dubbed Leonidas, pumps out powerful waves of energy that overwhelm electronics and send smaller aircraft plummeting to the ground.

The company's tech can be installed on manned and unmanned machinery, including on the back of a Stryker combat vehicle or on the belly of a drone.

https://www.axios.com/2024/05/15/drone-defense-us-military-epirus

Is America Under Attack?
By Darin Gaub
April 1, 2024
 
Darin Gaub, a retired US Army Lieutenant Colonel, first enlisted in 1991. He served as an Army Aviation Officer flying Blackhawk helicopters, earning three bronze stars across deployments in South Korea, North Africa, Afghanistan, and Europe. After retiring in 2019 with two master's degrees, he took on roles as Montana State Coordinator for Army Military Funeral Honors and later, Director/Spokesperson for Restore Liberty, a nonprofit committed to strengthening American communities. As chairman of Kootenai Stability Resilience Group (KSRG) in North Idaho, our two groups are collaborating to restore our republic to the vision established by our Founding Fathers.

MA: Can you break down intel reports suggesting we may soon have coordinated terrorist attacks in the US?

DG: First, this isn't a new concern. It's something many of us have anticipated for at least two decades, if not more. Originating from a playbook crafted in China, it’s being implemented globally, not just in our own country. I work with the Global Veterans Coalition. It’s reporting on the severity of what I term the "immigration invasion," especially across Europe, where it's more pronounced.

These reports come from a network of trusted individuals, offering insights from their locales, stretching from the Darien Gap in Panama to our southern border, where I have connections monitoring the deteriorating situation. This intelligence is gathered directly from the people and organizations I work with. The FBI, CIA, and all those different agencies may be getting some of these reports too. Unfortunately, these days, many people don’t trust those agencies. What we're observing now aligns with a larger, deadlier anticipated plan of attack.

MA: What are those intel reports saying about this moment?
 
https://armedforces.press/is-america-under-attack/

ocial Security trustees want to steal from the disabled to stave off retirement program’s insolvency
By
Tiana Lowe Doescher
May 17, 2024 4:00 am
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If you only read the corporate media coverage, you might mistake the annual Social Security Trustees Report for good news. The ostensibly objective reporters at the New York Times celebrated that a “strong labor market steadied Social Security and Medicare Funds.” While CBS News boasted that “the federal retirement program said Monday it may not need to cut benefits until 2035, one year later than previously forecast, because of stronger performance by the U.S.”

“On the projected depletion date, 83% of benefits will be payable if Congress does not act sooner to prevent that shortfall,” reported CNBC, which again attributed the “slightly improved outlook” to a supposedly “strong economy.”

There’s just one problem: None of this is true.

Contrary to the intentional conflations by the media, the federal retirement portion of Social Security is still projected to go broke in 2033, as the trustees projected in last year’s report. Upon reaching insolvency in nine years, Social Security will only be able to pay out 79% of scheduled benefits, equivalent to the 21% across-the-board benefit cut fiscal hawks have forewarned for years now.

But the media and President Joe Biden‘s administration want to raid the Disability Insurance Trust Fund to stave off the impending bankruptcy of Social Security’s retirement program by another two years, something that is currently illegal.

more
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/magazine-business/3002987/social-security-trustees-want-to-steal-from-the-disabled-to-stave-off-retirement-programs-insolvency/

Classic Rock Album of the Day- Bruce Hornsby and the Range- The Way it Is (1986)  ** 1/2

I haven't really been much of a fan through the years on soft easy listening rock.  There were a few exceptions though.  Today's review is one that has a nice easy vibe, but does have just that nice mix of hook, and melodic prowess to hit the target.  It also has some very nice keyboard work, that eases into the music instead of dominating it.  Hornsby is really good in this area.   

It also doesn't hurt that Hornsby enlisted Huey Lewis' help.  Lewis was in a mid 1980's creative zone, and a lot that he touched turned to gold.  Incluing some of his production values on this particular CD.   This musical space was also shared with Chrisotpher Cross who also made a fine album near the same time.  In fact, I might cover this one in the near future. 

A lot of folks my age at the time were liking this, because, if might be honest,  a lot of us did not like the Hard Rock Hair Band era.  There was little or no redeeming value to the Quiet Riot's, Poisons, of the timeframe.  This was somewhat of a respite.  Though it could be countered by some that the Grunge stuff coming in a few years really wasn't any better.

Hornsby, kind of qualifes as a one LP hit wonder. (Yes he did win the New Artist Grammy with this)   He did have "Valley Road" on the second album, but that pretty much is the extent of this career.  Seems the talent tap went dry.  Since 1993, he has been in solo artist mode, but doesn't seem to be generating much interest.

So, without much more to add, this really isn't an album worthy of much analysis.  To me, it is nice smooth piano-rock, kind in the same vein of Joel, but a little more contemporary.  Just take the ride back to the mid 1980's and relax.

Fun Fact:  At the end of his Range career he was in full collaborative mode with the Grateful Dead.   Strange bedfellows, to say the least.

Track No.
-------------

1. On the Western Skyline-  Album starts in a almost old Celtic like tone and mode.  Very pleasant, and a strong start.  5

2. Every Little Kiss- Released as a single, but didn't seem to chart well.  But not for me.  This is the sleeper on the CD.  This has some of the best guitar/keyboard mixing and fusion on it. Hornsby didn't do many bang the keyboard tunes, but his one really hits the heart with strong lyrical value.  I was married by the time of this CD, but I know it would have been a "date" tape in the day.  3

3. Mandolin Rain-  More of the excellence in the trenches of well crafted well written, and produced soft rock.  This one has some of Hornsby's best vocal effort.   2

4. The Long Race-  More of the same, in meter and style.  Songwriting just isn't at the same level of the prior 2. 6


5. The Way it is- This beautiful tune is why I think Hornsby won his Grammy. He somehow configured his piano in a way that I don't how.  Hard to explain, but it is something akin to what a piano would sound like analogously to a 12 string guitar.  Hornsby does a nice almost improv like piano solo that runs in 3rds, syncs, skips, and still somehow remains between the lines of the music.  Excellent 1

6. Down the Road Tonight- If this kind of sounds like a Huey Lewis song, it might be because not only did Lewis  help produce, but he has a harmonica and back up vocal part in it.  And thus, it is the 2nd most rocking tune on a non-rocking album. 4

7. The Wild Frontier-   The most rocking one, forced sounding and awkward.  BH should have stuck with the formula.  9

8. The River Runs Low-  Like in many works, some artists allow fill to permeate at the end of the LP/CD.  Bruce does his best Barry Manilow on this one.  8

9. The Red Plains- Rehash.  Same meter/licks, melodic line with a heavy chorus.  Nope. 7


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cO5ibMTwZ8g