My thesaurus lists the following synonyms for “self-contradictory”:

“absurd,” “false,” “groundless,” “implausible,” “inconsistent,” “incorrect,” “irrational,” “irrelevant,” “preposterous,” “senseless,” “unreasonable,” “unscientific,” “untenable.”

And those are just the strongest matches. I actually prefer — in describing today’s comments from the Kremlin — some of the “weaker” matches:

“cockeyed,” “incongruous,” “nutty,” “off the wall,” “screwy,” and “wacky” . . . among others.

What led me on this rather silly semantic search was a statement made to reporters today by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov in advance of the planned meeting between U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York:

“For now, there are no prerequisites for moving onto a peaceful negotiating track, although we, as the Russian side, remain open to peace talks.” [Dmitry Antonov, Reuters, September 23, 2026.]

I beg your pardon?

On Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had reiterated his readiness to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin at a trilateral meeting to include U.S. President Donald Trump. But Peskov — while acknowledging that Putin remains ready to meet one-on-one with Trump “if both leaders deemed such a meeting necessary” — said that Putin’s stance on an in-person meeting with Zelensky has not changed: Zelensky would have to come to Moscow. [Id.]

Yeah . . . right. Zelensky is not stupid. He has continued to insist that any meeting with Putin should take place on neutral territory. In his place, that is what any sane person would do.

But, venue aside, it’s a moot point for the time being, considering Peskov’s additional statement:

“Generally speaking, in any other circumstances, it would be inappropriate to hold a summit meeting before the groundwork has been laid at expert level, as this would be a waste of time.” [Id.]

Well, that was much more definitive, thank you. But I wonder what he means by “expert” level. Certainly not this:

So you tell me: Who is really preventing this war from ending? Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump would have us believe it is Volodymyr Zelensky — Trump having gone so far as to plead with Zelensky to cease his attacks on strategic Russian facilities.

But what about the four and a half years of attacks on Ukraine’s civilian population and infrastructure? Where is his plea to Putin — who consistently ignores the fact that it was he who started the war on February 24, 2022 — to put away the missiles and drones?

It has been pointed out that, if Russia were to cease its attacks on Ukraine, the war would end immediately. But if Ukraine ended its counterattacks, it would be left totally vulnerable to the loss of its sovereignty, its history, and its very existence to the rapacious Putin regime.

On second thought, Peskov’s seemingly contradictory statement isn’t cockeyed or wacky after all; it is, in fact, a perfect example of Kremlin double-speak, honed to perfection over centuries of autocratic rule and intended to confuse, deflect, and provide deniability.

How this war will ultimately end, I wouldn’t dream of trying to predict. But at the rate it’s going — and with the Russian Parliamentary elections having just handed Putin’s party a resounding victory — it’s looking, at the very least, like another grim winter ahead for Ukraine.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/23/26

Over the past weekend, Donald Trump issued the following statement:

“BREAKING NEWS: I am pleased to announce that the United States of America has entered into an Agreement with The Kingdom of Denmark, and Greenland, that gives the United States permanent control over security, and all other needs, in Greenland, completely addressing ALL of our many U.S. concerns. There will be NO COST to the United States!”

But wait. Before you add Greenland to the list of U.S. territories, check out what the agreement that was signed yesterday actually says.

It does allow the U.S. to establish new military defense installations in Greenland. It also grants the U.S. permanent basing, overflight, and structural access rights with no expiration — even if Greenland were to achieve independence from Denmark in the future.

But guess what? Under the 1951 Defense of Greenland Agreement, those rights already exist.

One of Trump’s stated goals in seeking hegemony over Greenland has been to protect it against any potential incursions by Russia and/or China. But, as also set out in the 1951 Agreement, non-NATO countries are already banned from establishing military installations or conducting sensitive investments in Greenland that might threaten U.S. security. [Reddit, September 22, 2026.] So, again, a non-issue.

And, most importantly, the 2026 Agreement dashes any hope Trump had of actually exercising “permanent control over security, and all other needs, in Greenland.” Conversely, it explicitly recognizes Danish sovereignty, territorial integrity, and Greenland’s right to self-determination. [Wall Street Journal, September 22, 2026.]

Sorry, old boy. You lose again.

As for his claim that our “new” relationship with Greenland will be at “NO COST to the United States,” one has to wonder who he thinks is going to pay for all of those new military installations. Greenland? The way Mexico paid for his border wall, I suppose.

By the way, it also seems to have escaped his attention that the exclusion of non-NATO nations under the Agreement also makes it impossible for him to withdraw the U.S. from NATO membership, as he has frequently threatened to do, without sacrificing our own contractual rights in Greenland.

Checkmate.

In short, once again the hype has turned out to be just that. No doubt he will tout the agreement as a great victory, when in fact he has been outsmarted yet again by a much smaller country with much smarter leaders.

You would think he’d have learned something from a lifetime of mistakes and failures. But that would require two attributes he simply does not possess: intelligence and humility. And as long as he remains in office, that is our cross to bear.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/23/26

You would have been 31 today: beautiful, brilliant, and determined to save the world, or at least make it a better place.

You weren’t able to save the entire world — no one could — but you did indeed make it a far better place simply by being in it.

Your brilliance, your humor, your compassion shone like the brightest star in the firmament for a too-brief 26 years. When that star was extinguished, a huge piece of my heart darkened with it.

But the memories will never fade. I miss you every day, and often think about the years of watching you grow and learn, as you fought through the pain with unimaginable courage and perseverance. And each victory — the “ordinary” things like learning to eat and to walk, and the extraordinary things, like the flood of college acceptances and scholarship offers and awards — joys that you shared with me . . . those are moments I cherish to this day.

Rest well, my angel. No, you could not save the world; but you gave it your best shot.

All my love, always . . .
Nana
9/23/26

Donald Trump must live in a wonderful world, where everyone loves him, his days are filled with wondrous feats of derring-do, and his fairy godmother grants his every wish with a touch of her magic wand. At least, that is what one would be tempted to believe from his reports.

A few examples:

Over the weekend, Trump posted on social media:

“BREAKING NEWS: I am pleased to announce that the United States of America has entered into an Agreement with The Kingdom of Denmark, and Greenland, that gives the United States permanent control over security, and all other needs, in Greenland, completely addressing ALL of our many U.S. concerns. There will be NO COST to the United States!”

But what really happened? Well . . .

“Denmark and Greenland have rejected Donald Trump’s claim that a new U.S. security deal would give Washington ‘permanent control’ over Greenland. The proposed agreement would expand U.S. military access while restricting Russian and Chinese military or sensitive economic activity, but Copenhagen and Nuuk say it will respect Greenland’s sovereignty and existing status. The deal follows months of tensions over U.S. interest in greater control of the strategically important Arctic territory.” [The Modern Press, September 19, 2026.]

*. *. *

Then there’s the potash caper. When Canada refused to cave under the weight of Trump’s new tariffs, he decided that the potash normally sourced from our good neighbors to the north could be obtained more cheaply from the corrupt, Putin-backed government of Belarus — apparently as a quid pro quo for their agreement to release a few more political prisoners.

Unfortunately, Trump seems to have forgotten to check with Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko before making his announcement. Because on Monday, Lukashenko said:

“Even if we wanted to supply [potash] to other, Western markets, we simply do not have those volumes — everything is contracted.” [The Hill, September 21, 2026.]

Oops! That’s not going to make all of those American farmers who rely on potash for fertilizer very happy . . . not to mention the rest of us, when our food prices continue to rise.

*. *. *

Of course, there are also the numerous times Trump has claimed victory over Iran, alleging that their military capability has been totally destroyed . . . only to have them launch yet another attack with their supposedly non-existent missiles. And his claims that he has reopened the Strait of Hormuz, which turns out to be shut tighter than a medieval virgin’s chastity belt.

The man lives in a dream world — one in which his life is an endless series of glorious victories. He longs to be a superhero, when in reality he is the 21st century’s Walter Mitty.

I can hardly wait to see what he comes up with during this week’s U.N. General Assembly.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/22/26

Aleksandr Mikhailovich Ovechkin — often referred to by his American nickname “Ovi” — is a citizen and full-time resident of Russia. But he spends each hockey season living in Washington, D.C., under a valid P-1A athlete work visa, where he is famous as the standout star of the Washington Capitals hockey team.

First drafted by the Capitals in 2004, Ovi has spent the past 22 years enjoying the hospitality of the U.S. government and the perks of living in the United States where professional sports pay very well. In fact, he just signed a one-year extension on his contract in the amount of $4,250,000; his current net worth is estimated at $80 million. Not too shabby for a kid from a “crumbling neighborhood” in Moscow. [Source: Wikipedia biography.]

That’s all well and good. At 41, he is still inarguably an incredible athlete; he is in the country legally; and as far as I know, he hasn’t committed any crimes. But . . .

Ovi is not a stupid man. He is undoubtedly well aware that his native country — Russia — and his part-time adopted country — the United States — are at odds over Russia’s war in Ukraine. He must also know that his president, Vladimir Putin, is under sanctions from the U.S. and other countries, as well as being the subject of an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for war crimes.

One would think that this would place him in a difficult position, torn between two loyalties. Yet he didn’t seem the least bit uncomfortable when he stood behind Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in a political campaign video last week, where the participants gathered to show their support of Putin’s United Russia party — the party that then went on to sweep the Parliamentary elections.

When asked for a comment, Ovechkin told reporters in Arlington, Virginia, on Thursday:

“The thing about video, I’m Russian. As soon as I’m done playing hockey, I’m probably going to stay there. I’m going to live there. My kids going live there [sic]. Family. So I’m for peace and love and I hope everything’s going to be OK. My home is Russia. D.C. is my second home.” [David K. Li, NBC News, September 16, 2026.]

I get it: he loves his native country. That’s natural. And he has tried to keep sports separate from politics, which is also fine.

But how does he justify accepting the benefits of life in an adversarial country for 22 years, only to suddenly break the “no politics” rule by openly backing the party of a president who has carried on a brutal war of attrition against a sovereign nation for nearly five years . . . the same man who arrests, imprisons, tortures, and sometimes kills anyone who openly speaks against him; who carries on a hybrid war against NATO-member countries; and who kidnaps children for “re-education” in Russia?

And more importantly, how does the United States allow him to continue living and working here, raking in millions of U.S. dollars, while clearly supporting Putin’s totalitarian regime?

In the meantime, the Trump administration deports thousands of decent, honest, hard-working immigrants with ordinary jobs and no criminal records, tearing them from their families — knowing that they haven’t the means to fight the system.

If Trump and his ICE goons are looking for someone who has overstayed their welcome, why don’t they look at people like Alex Ovechkin, who clearly aren’t here permanently to build a better life for themselves and their families, and whose only attachment to this country is the opportunity for fame and fortune?

Ovi is far from the only one who fits into this category; but he stood out this week because of his appearance with Sergey Lavrov. If U.S. immigration officials are looking for people to deport, perhaps they’re not looking in the right places.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/22/26

Today is Yom Kippur — the highest of the Jewish High Holidays. It is a day of atonement for our own transgressions; but it is also a day of forgiveness, which was the focus of the service I attended last evening. And as I contemplate the Rabbi’s words today, my thoughts turn to the most unforgiving — and unforgivable — person I could ever imagine: Donald Trump.

Right now, I should probably be asking for forgiveness for the uncharitable thoughts running through my mind at the very mention of his name. But his spitefulness, vengefulness, and cruel acts of retribution are well known. And, far from ever considering anything resembling repentance, he firmly believes that these are signs of his overall strength.

But he is wrong. And you needn’t take my word for it; rather, consider this from no less a personage than Mahatma Gandhi:

“The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.”

Perhaps that explains Trump a little more clearly: his inability to forgive others, to the extent of carrying a grudge for decades, may be a simple weakness, rather than true evil.

Maybe.

But I can never forgive him for what he has done to this country. His basic lack of empathy, his overwhelming greed, dishonesty, corruption, and cruelty, are far deeper and more despicable character flaws than mere weakness, and they have caused him to do irreparable harm to millions of good people.

I suppose this is an indication of my own weakness of character, but I can’t help it. With apologies to Gandhi, I believe — regretfully — that there are some people who simply do not deserve our compassion.

I’ll try to work on that . . . but don’t expect a miracle.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/21/26

As I write this on Sunday night, September 20th (EDT), the three-day Parliamentary elections in Russia have ended. With some 58 percent of the precincts counted, according to Russia’s Central Election Commission, well over half of the votes for the 225 party-aligned seats have gone to . . . drumroll, please . . . Putin’s United Russia party.

The remaining 225 deputies will be chosen in single-seat races, and . . .

Oh, let’s just skip the drumroll this time. We know what’s going to happen to those votes as well.

Reports are that the turnout was a little under 57% of the 111 million eligible voters. [Associated Press, September 20, 2026.] And the “eligible” list this year included people from the Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine — a controversial move, at best.

Also working in favor of United Russia was the earlier disqualification of the liberal Yabloko party — the only serious opposition — by Russia’s Supreme Court.

No one is ever surprised at the outcome of elections in Russia; this is the way they’ve always been run, with the possible exception of a few years following the breakup of the Soviet Union.

Things operate differently here in the United States — much to the chagrin of Donald Trump and his radical right-wing followers. Their attempts at fixing the vote in their favor in the upcoming midterms have been hampered by the courts; so it appears that they’ll have to resort instead to a replay of 2020’s post-election shenanigans to try to have the results reversed if Democrats succeed in winning a majority in the House of Representatives and/or the Senate.

And have no doubt — they will try every dirty trick they can think of.

Trump fervently wishes he could be a strongman — a dictator — like Putin. Unfortunately — for him — he can only play one on social media.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/21/26

First it was the alleged need for a bunker beneath his new White House ballroom . . . despite the fact that one already existed before he demolished the East Wing. At this rate, it’s not likely to be finished while he’s still in residence.

Now he says we need a scary sniper’s nest and ammo dump at his proposed triumphal arch, presumably positioned to protect you as you cross the Memorial Bridge on your daily commute between D.C. and Northern Virginia.

I’m surprised he hasn’t yet conjured up a “security” excuse for the takeover of the Kennedy Center. Perhaps a missile silo to protect the wealthy residents of the adjoining Watergate complex? Safe houses for his Cabinet members where the Democrats won’t be able to reach them after the November elections? Storage for all of the gold doodads he’ll be removing as he exits the White House?

It’s his usual m.o.: If you can’t sell it as what it is — a flat-out ego trip — just label it “essential for national security,” and hope nobody figures it out.

Is there no limit to the insanity?!!

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/20/26

Paul Stookey — of Peter, Paul and Mary fame — wrote a beautiful wedding song for his friend Peter Yarrow’s wedding, which became known more popularly as “There Is Love.” In it, he repeats the refrain:

“Whenever two or more of you are gathered in His name, there is love.”

That song popped up as I was scrolling through YouTube the other day, and it reminded me — at this season of the Jewish High Holidays — of a Yom Kippur many years ago, when those lyrics proved true.

I was in my late teens, or perhaps 20-ish. My family had moved several years earlier from Manchester, New Hampshire, to the Washington, D.C. area; but I still had friends in Manchester, and we would visit back and forth from time to time.

On the year in question, I had decided to travel north to enjoy my favorite season — fall — with friends in the land of beautiful foliage and crisp autumn air. Marlene, the friend with whom I was staying, was (and still is) a devout Episcopalian, and invited me to join her at church on Sunday.

In all candor, her main purpose was to introduce me to her minister, fondly known to his parishioners as Father Bill, whom she described as “too cute to be true.” Now, how does one turn down an invitation like that?

So off we went, Marlene for her regular Sunday service, and I for a bit of religious education in another faith — not to mention a glimpse of the famous Father Bill.

And yes, he was every bit as adorable — both in looks and personality — as I had been led to believe. To make the day even more memorable, after a lovely service Father Bill accepted an invitation to lunch at Marlene’s parents’ home.

That would ordinarily have been the end of a pleasant, but not particularly interesting, story. But the next day, I phoned my mother in D.C. to let her know when I would be returning home, and she asked me if I had remembered that the previous day had been Yom Kippur.

Oops!

In fact, in all the hubbub of travel and getting together with my old friends, I had indeed forgotten. But I thought quickly, and fudged my answer by saying, “Yes, I know.” And she then asked, “I don’t suppose you went to services?”

Well, she didn’t say what services. So I was able to answer truthfully, “As a matter of fact, I did.”

She was surprised, to say the least, and couldn’t let it drop, asking where I had attended.

Busted!

So I replied honestly, “Grace Episcopal Church, with Marlene.”

Silence.

A little more silence.

And then, to my great surprise, she finally said, “Well, I guess any service is better than no service at all.”

It was many years later that Paul Stookey wrote his immortal lyrics, declaring that it doesn’t matter what edifice you’re in, or what language is being spoken.

“Whenever two or more of you are gathered in His name . . .”

My mother beat him to it; but he added the poetry and music.

*. *. *

This evening, for the first time in years, I will be attending Yom Kippur services at a local synagogue with my daughter. It is also the 35th anniversary of my mother’s passing, on Yom Kippur 1991 (September 18th that year).

She would still be surprised . . . but I know she would approve.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/20/26

More than 50 years ago — on September 18, 1973 — then Governor of Georgia Jimmy Carter filed a report with the International UFO Bureau stating that he, along with about a dozen other people, had seen an unidentified flying object (UFO) some four years earlier in Leary, Georgia. He called it “the darndest [sic] thing I’ve ever seen . . . very bright [with] changing colors and about the size of the moon.” He said that “the object hovered about 30 degrees above the horizon and moved in toward the earth and away before disappearing into the distance.” [“This Day in History,” History.com, September 18, 2026.]

During his presidential campaign in 1976, Carter promised that, if elected, he would encourage the government to release “every piece of [available] information” to the public.

We’re still waiting.

On September 21, 2023, I offered some thoughts on the subject in a post titled “UFOs: Friends or Foes?” This was followed up by about a half dozen later articles, including one on May 9th of this year, following Donald Trump’s sudden and inexplicable direction to the Pentagon to release certain “never-before-seen files” on its investigations over the past several decades.

That was hardly the first reported sighting of a UFO; the Roswell, New Mexico incident in 1947 had touched off a frenzy of such reports. But it was unusual, to say the least, to hear it from such a well-known, reliable source. And while interest seemed to wane over the ensuing decades, numerous alleged sightings have been reported during the last few years, leading to renewed speculation as to what, if anything, the government has been hiding from the public.

To this day, I wonder why the subject was raised in the first place, whether there actually are files we haven’t seen, and why the matter once again seems to have been dropped. Here again, as a reminder, is my article from June 4th of this year:

*. *. *

6/4/26: ABOUT THOSE ALIEN ENCOUNTERS

On May 9th, I wrote about the U.S. government’s sudden willingness to grant public access to the long-hidden files on UFOs — which are now called UAPs, or Unidentified Aerial Phenomena. At that time, the Defense Department posted on X:

“The American people can now access the federal government’s declassified UAP files instantly. The latest UAP videos, photos, and original source documents from across the entire United States government are all in one place — no clearance rqeuired.” [Kaanita Iyer, Michael Williams and Marshall Cohen, CNN, May 8, 2026.]

Note that they specified “declassified” files. We have no way of knowing what may still be classified.

Then they went on to say that the DoD would be “releasing new materials on a rolling basis as they are discovered and declassified, with tranches posted every few weeks.” [Id.]

But they added disclaimers that the “descriptive and estimative language . . . [reflected the] subjective interpretation” of the person who wrote the report, and therefore “should not be interpreted as a conclusive indication” of actual events. [Id.]

In other words, we should be aware that what they were feeding us was most likely just a pile of

So what ever happened to those forthcoming tranches to be posted every few weeks? Well, last week the new website — Aliens.gov — debuted. I didn’t see any fanfare, or even an announcement of its launch. But luckily, CNN did. And here is what they have to say about it.

It started with: a big, neon green header:

“THEY WALK AMONG US”

Then a text scroll began:

“For 60 years, the U.S. government has kept a closely guarded secret. Aliens have been walking among us, living in our neighborhoods, and interacting with us in our daily lives.” [Harmeet Kaur, CNN, June 3, 2026.]

Wait . . . it sounds like they’re talking about Russian spies. But no, because the CNN report continues:

“Along with fake ‘declassified’ labels and a clunky reference to ‘The X-Files,’ the website also features an interactive map tracking ‘alien encounters,’ or purported arrests of immigrants and asks users to report ‘suspicious aliens.’” [Id.]

And there was this AI-generated animation, showing an immigrant earthling — not an outer-space “alien” — being beamed up over the southern U.S. border wall:

So the DoD seems to be conflating extraterrestrial “aliens” with the more down-to-earth definition, which is — according to Black’s Law Dictionary — “a person who resides within the borders of a country but is not a citizen or subject of that country.” [Id.]

Use of the term “alien” to describe migrants goes back to Colonial times, whereas the science-fiction version dates to around the 1930s. As explained by historian Mai Ngai, author of “Impossible Subjects: Illegal Aliens and the Making of Modern America”:

“When people spoke of beings from outer space, they likened them to foreigners. It’s not like people saw an immigrant and said they look like they’re from outer space. They saw an image of a being from outer space and said they look like a foreigner.” [Id.]

But, as Ngai goes on to say:

“What the White House did was an ultimate association of immigrants with not being human. To say that they came from a spaceship means they’re not human beings.” [Id.]

Attempts have been made over the years to differentiate between a migrant and an extraterrestrial, including President Joe Biden’s directive that the country’s immigration enforcement agencies use the terms “non-citizen” and “migrant” in place of “alien” and “illegal aliens.”

But the Trump White House says otherwise. According to spokeswoman Abigail Jackson:

“Identifying an individual as an ‘illegal alien,’ is not demeaning, it’s factual. The Trump Administration will continue deporting illegal aliens without apology.” [Id.]

So it would seem as though the whole “let’s release the UFO files” thing was nothing but another attempt to attack our immigrant population — and an incredibly infantile one at that.

What . . . you expected something different?

*. *. *

So the questions remain: Is this just the product of Trump’s overactive imagination? Did he confuse the term “aliens,” as sometimes applied to immigrants, with visitors from outer space?

Or was it yet another attempted distraction from those other files they’ve been promising us forever? Perhaps, with the greater diversions of a war-that-isn’t-really-a-war in Iran, the threatened destruction of the Kennedy Center, the attempts to take possession of Greenland, and Trump’s sons playing footsie with Russian oligarchs and the Tate brothers . . . well, the UFO/UAP thing just wasn’t needed any longer.

What do you think? Is it all still about Epstein?

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/20/26