We are united in a desire to avoid conflict but divided on how to do it. I can’t find anything in the news about what would drive that kid in Texas to murder. It just is so devastating and unimaginable in our world. That is partly because of lost potential, loss of hope. We old folks have less of that, and what there is of it is not wide open like the future of a child.

On the world stage I’m frustrated with this war thing, Uvalde, Texas writ large. Our country was founded partly by Thomas Jefferson who said, “Peace, commerce and honest friendship with all nations; entangling alliances with none.” That always seemed like a good way to relate whether as a country or a person; so simple, so peaceful. Mutually beneficial.

The tragedy in Uvalde, has taken over the headlines as we are so curious as to why. But in the big picture Jefferson’s idea needs to be considered. I wrote to our two senators and our congressman pleading with them to follow the Constitution they swore to uphold, to let Americans keep their $40 billion instead of choosing a side in somebody else’s war… again, to prove how much they care. They care so much that they are willing to send $54 billion so far, getting pretty close to Russia’s $56 billion total military budget. To make war without a congressional declaration is plainly dishonest.

The replies I received were form letters (encouraging, as maybe I was not alone) extolling the virtues of their caring hearts defending Ukraine from the devil Putin. They seemed confident that word had not gotten out as to the lack of purity on the Ukrainian side.

The patriotic thing to do is to call them out on this. It may be too late, but we need to reconsider Jefferson’s plea. Look at the world we’ve been living in. Countries all around us have been producing valuable goods that we get at bargain prices. What do we produce? Very little that raises living standards; mostly military hardware. Our relationship with the rest of the world is mostly threats and sanctions, and freezing assets as we puff out our chests claiming to be morally superior. Who would invest in a country that steals the investments when they are seen as contrary to our values. And… look at what “our” values have become.

Europe had a good and growing peaceful relationship with Russia and China. But this nonsense of U.S. superiority wouldn’t let that growth continue. Now Europe will be facing a winter of frozen pipes because infrastructure can never be built fast enough to export gas there from our once sustainable supplies.

The us versus them mindset will destroy us. Like the welfare state, where its biggest proponents are blatantly advocating theft disguised as their own compassion; the source of all this funding is assumed to come from some magical place. But the need is so dire it doesn’t matter to our betters in DC.

But it does matter. Europe will go broke without raw materials to fuel its industry. Hungry people will get desperate. Multiples of lawlessness. It will spread to the U.S. as all confidence will be lost in the dollar. The value of the Russian ruble has rebounded to levels higher than before the war. India is buying oil with rubles. Previously international trade was in dollars.

I realize our representatives need to stay in the conversation in Washington. I understand they will be dismissed as traitors if they tell the truth and act with virtue regarding their representation of our interests. But out of the thousands of possibilities are they really the best we can do? They are insulting our intelligence telling us money grows on trees and bad people are good. They must know better.

…That guy is ruled by those guys.

We finally got to Belmond to the bakery I wrote about a while ago and found that their girls (and the dad) are taking piano lessons. So I had to turn them on to Mose.

Show this to those students in Ankeny who walked out of class to protest for the legalization of murder.