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Featured Editorials

The Weekly Watch

Out with the Old, and In with the New?

Open Thread image.jpg

I started this piece early last week as a gardening reference, but as the week has progressed I've begun to think about the odd juxtaposition of the collapse of the Texas power grid (Houston we have a problem) with achievement of landing a rover on Mars....old and new indeed. Like much of the country we had some cold weather (teens) this week. None the less, we kept a few crops growing mostly under covers. Many folks (even locals) are amazed that we keep a garden going most of the year. This year of COVID has particularly focused our attention on the garden and homestead. It has been nice to have a productive project during these odd times. Thought I would include some photos of the old (soon to be harvested) and new (soon to be planted) crops. We'll also look at the weeks news and see what we can find of interest. Jump in below the fold and add anything on your mind in the comments.

NATO: Finally Crossing the Rubicon?


zelensky and stoltenberg

First: ‘NATO’s Road To Perdition With Ukraine’, editorial staff, strategic-culture.org, Feb. 12, 2021  (CC w/ attrib.)

The US-led NATO military alliance is moving ever closer to accepting Ukraine as a new member. This is an incredibly incendiary step towards war that could escalate into a nuclear conflagration.

Despite repeated and long-standing warnings by Russia, the US-led NATO military alliance has indicated it is moving ever closer to accepting Ukraine as a new member. This is an incredibly incendiary step towards war that could escalate into a nuclear conflagration. And, risibly, this reckless initiative is being driven by an alliance which proclaims to be about upholding peace and security.

Welcome to Saturday's Potluck

Main dish for this week is pizza. The worlds most popular fusion food. An evolution of historical Mediterranean flatbreads, adding mozzarella made from a water buffalo herd imported from India in the 7th century and the fruit of a poisonous plant from the Americas. In 1879 a pizza with the three colors of the Italian flat red (tomato), green (basil) and white (mozzarella) was selected by Queen Margherita as her favorite pizza. The classic cheese pizza was born and publicized

What's Wrong with America?

Well it's quite simple, when your plumber, and your electrician, are one in the same. This is what "saving money" looks like. (snark)

[video:https://youtu.be/8V0IPPSgBcs]

Well as you can see a water pipe burst. This was easily understandable. It's a water pipe in a exterior wall, with no insulation. They tore out the entire sink area last night and there was no insulation, at all, for anything.

Mars Perseverance Lands Successfully

Well, the Perseverance rover has landed successfully on Mars, and now begins the multi-day activating of systems, upgrading the software on the rover from its "traveling in space and landing" software to the actual surface operations software, and testing things out. This will take the next 10 days or so.

NASA has some very nice images of the landing event. Here is where the rover actually landed in the delta:

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