Well, the roommate has moved out, leaving the tenant whose name is on the lease as the sole occupant of the Oval Office at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. And, from all reports, it wasn’t an amicable parting.

It doesn’t appear that any of the presidential china, or any of the golden gewgaws on the mantle and the Resolute desk, were thrown or otherwise damaged. And there have been no reports of physical altercations, or arguments over custody of the Tesla. But at the end of the 130-day cohabitation, it took less than a week for the name-calling to begin.

I am, of course, referring to Elon Musk’s rapid about-face in his analysis of Donald Trump’s “big beautiful bill” — the one approved by the House of Representatives last month, and now facing scrutiny in the Senate. You know . . . the one that would add nearly $3 trillion to the national debt within the next decade, or an average of almost $300 billion per year. The same bill that is being touted by Trump as saving the American taxpayers gobs of money.

That bill.

Musk hasn’t — not publicly, at least — lobbed any insults at Trump personally. His animus is directed solely at the 1,000+ pages . . . nearly as long as, and even more soporific than, Tolstoy’s “War and Peace” . . . of statistics, calculations, and rationalizations that he describes as a “disgusting abomination,” and says he “can’t stand . . . anymore.”

“Shame on those who voted for it,” he said, adding, “You know you did wrong.” [Anthony Zurcher, BBC, June 4, 2025.]

Then he carried his criticism on, writing on X:

“Bankrupting America is not OK! KILL the BILL.”

Musk does seem to have absorbed some of Trump’s style of communication during his four months in the White House. Stressing that the legislation would add to the U.S. budget deficit that he was initially charged with reducing, he threatened those Republicans who supported or are planning to support it:

“ . . . we [will] fire all the politicians who betrayed the American people” come next year’s midterm elections. [Id.]

Considering that all but three Republican representatives voted for the bill, which only passed by a single vote, that threat — coming from someone who has no qualms about throwing hundreds of millions of dollars into the campaigns of his choice — is likely to carry substantial weight.

At the very least, it should keep a lot of members of both Houses of Congress scrambling to do damage control for quite a while.

There has been no response from Trump as yet . . . just the usual drivel from White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, who claimed that Trump “already knows” Musk’s views on the bill, and added :

“This is one big, beautiful bill, and he’s sticking to it.” [Id.]

Well . . . unless the Senate wakes up and does its job, that is.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
6/5/25

Two days ago, following Ukraine’s brilliant attacks on Russia’s bomber fleet, I contemplated what Vladimir Putin’s likely response might be, and offered the following thoughts:

“Of course, there is the question of what will happen when the Kremlin has had time to fully process these developments. In the best-case scenario, Putin — always unpredictable — could react rationally, realize that his position has been somewhat weakened, and finally begin to negotiate in earnest. Or he could do what he and every autocrat throughout history have always done: let his megalomania and his temper get the upper hand, and escalate the fight.”

While hoping for the best, I feared that Putin’s evil twin would win the struggle . . . and unfortunately, my fears have been justified.

Today, Donald Trump revealed in a social media post that he had had an hour-long phone conversation with Putin, in which ”President Putin did say, and very strongly, that he will have to respond to the recent attack on the airfields.” [Bernd Debusmann, Jr., BBC News, June 4, 2025.]

But then Trump added that they had also “exchanged views on the prospects for restoring cooperation between the countries, which has enormous potential.” [Id.]

If, by “restoring cooperation” you mean acceding to Putin’s demands while he continues blasting the hell out of Ukraine until there is nothing left to defend, then I suppose there might be some potential for a solution. But that’s not a road to peace; it’s a direct route to Ukraine’s total surrender.

For his part, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has challenged Putin to sign an immediate ceasefire and to arrange a face-to-face meeting to work out mutually agreeable peace terms. He said that such a meeting could include both Trump and Turkish President Erdogan, ruling out any further talks between lower-level delegations:

“We are ready for exchanges but to continue diplomatic meetings in Istanbul at a level that does not solve anything further, I think, is pointless. My proposal, which I believe our partners can support, is that we propose to Russians a cease-fire until the leaders meet. . . . We are ready for such a meeting any day.” [RFE/RL, June 4, 2025.]

But Putin was having none of it. Once more going on the offensive, he claimed that Ukraine would “use” the pause to rearm and mobilize more military forces — the precise tactic that he himself has been using for years.

He also pointed to the destruction on May 31 and June 1 of two bridges in Russian regions bordering Ukraine and Belarus, rhetorically asking: “How can we negotiate with those who rely on terror?” [Id.]

Apparently, the man who blithely invaded a sovereign nation without cause — and has spent more than three years terrorizing, kidnapping, torturing, raping and murdering its civilian citizens while also decimating the country’s infrastructure — is incapable of seeing the irony in his own words.

And if Donald Trump really believes that there is “enormous potential” at this point for the restoration of cooperation between Russia and Ukraine, then he is equally blind to the truth, and is once again playing the cards that Putin has dealt him.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
6/4/25

You’ll notice that I said “if I had to” . . . not “if I could.” Because living a billionaire’s lifestyle would be one of the last things in this world I would choose to do.

I mean, who needs that kind of stress? People always after your money and your favors; the press following you everywhere; houses full of antiques and servants; the public appearances, formal dinners, having to smile constantly . . . feh!

Don’t get me wrong — a couple of million wouldn’t hurt my feelings. But — as with liquor, salt, and even chocolate — you can have too much of a good thing.

Still, if I were forced, for some unimaginable reason, to choose a billionaire with whom to share my life, who would it be? That’s a really tough question, because most of them are such greedy, unfeeling, self-serving, narcissistic jerks, I couldn’t bear to be in the same room with them. Except, possibly, one:

Bill Gates.

Oh, I’m quite sure he has his annoying little personality quirks (don’t we all?). And anyone who has achieved his level of success has to be a dedicated, even obsessive, workaholic. But he has one big thing going for him that the others — Musk, Bezos, Zuckerberg, and the rest — all seem to lack, and that is: humanity.

Gates estimates that his fortune should be worth around $200 billion by the year 2045, by which time his charitable foundation will be brought to a close, and 99 percent of his wealth will have been given away. He plans to direct most of that (approximately) $198 billion toward aid to Africa — an area where the U.S. government has recently cut assistance, including its former programs to help fight the continent’s devastating AIDS epidemic.

With around $2 billion remaining, he won’t have to worry about the cost of food or medicine in his old age. But, with Warren Buffett and other philanthropists as his inspiration, Gates has a goal quite different from those of most of his financial equals. As he explained it in a blog post:

“People will say a lot of things about me when I die, but I am determined that ‘he died rich’ will not be one of them.” [Farouk Chothia, BBC News, June 2, 2025.]

Of course, the word “rich” means different things to different people. Even one percent of Gates’ fortune is an unfathomable amount of money to most of us.

Yet a “mere” $2 billion must seem like pocket change to someone like Elon Musk, whose big dream is to colonize Mars, or to Jeff Bezos, another “space race” advocate. But Gates has addressed that issue as well, saying that he would rather pay for vaccines than travel into space:

“It’s actually quite expensive to go to Mars. You can buy measles vaccines and save lives for $1,000 per life saved. And so [that] just kind of grounds you, as in — don’t go to Mars.” [Amol Rajan, BBC, February 3, 2023.]

And there you have him: a humanitarian, a billionaire who doesn’t spend his wealth to buy elections, or build rockets that explode and fall back to Earth, or hire women to bear his multitude of children. You have a man who cares about people, about the health of the world’s children, about the environment, and about the future of humanity.

So yes, of all of the uber-rich men in this world, I would choose Bill Gates . . . quirks and all.

If I had to . . .

. . . and if he’d have me.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
6/4/25

Keeping track of the seemingly symbiotic working relationship between Donald Trump and Elon Musk has, over the past six months or so, become one of the world’s favorite pastimes. But seismic cracks have recently become too obvious to ignore. Musk has withdrawn from his beloved DOGE, and is said to be devoting full time to putting the pieces of his neglected (and publicly trashed) businesses back together.

The rift brings to mind a few historic pairings that once seemed inseparable, yet ended in disaster: Cain and Abel . . . Romulus and Remus . . . Samson and Delilah . . . Martin and Lewis . . . and those star-crossed lovers of popular song, Frankie and Johnny.*

[* Frankie and Johnny, Hughie Cannon, copyright 1904]

And in an odd moment of whimsy, with that tune firmly stuck in my head, I couldn’t resist borrowing the melody and offering these lyrics to today’s favorite couple. I bring you:

*. *. *

DONNIE and ELON

Donnie and Elon were brothers.
O, Lordy, how they would laugh.
They swore to be true to each other,
And cut the government in half.

They were so strong,
Then something really went wrong.

They brought their chainsaws to D.C.,
Firing folks left and right.
Slashing the jobs seemed so easy,
‘Til there was no one left in sight.

They had such fun,
But they were both Number One.

Elon spent mucho dinero
So Donnie could be president.
Thought he was being a hero,
’Til the relationship got bent.

What went awry,
To send Elon on the fly?

When they were each other’s besties,
No one knew what they were doin’.
Everything done on the q.t.,
But clearly somethin’ bad was brewin’.

Now Elon is gone.
So who was doing whom wrong?

Since both are as rich as old Croesus,
Status is likely to blame.
Donnie thinks he’s the new Jesus,
And doesn’t like to share the fame.

But Elon’s much richer,
And had to be in the picture.

E’s days in the White House were numbered,
His job temporary at best.
Through D.C.’s departments he lumbered,
Cutting costs with joy and zest.

But D’s “Big Beautiful Bill,”
E said was nothing but swill.

Most partnerships don’t last forever,
Sometimes even brothers must part.
Had Donnie and Elon been clever,
They would have seen it from the start:

They were doomed to fail.
Now they could both land in jail.

So what’s to become of the brothers
Who, though not related by blood,
Once sworn to be true to each other,
Are now reduced to slinging mud?

I guess that we
Will have to just wait and see.

They were so strong,
‘Til something went very wrong.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
6/3/25

Mount Etna erupted this morning.

Don’t ever underestimate Mother Nature.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka

6/3/25

Today is National Simp Day in the United States.

Today is National Simp Day in the United States.

(It’s also Repeat Day, so I felt I should do something to acknowledge that as well. And it’s National Egg Day, but the price of eggs being what it is, I’ll skip the omelets this year.)

But back to National Simp Day. I had never heard of it, and had to look it up. Merriam-Webster defines “simp” as, first, a foolish or stupid person, as in “simpleton.” A secondary definition is “someone (especially a man) who shows excessive concern, attention, or deference toward a romantic partner or love interest.” In other words, every independent woman’s worst nightmare.

However, the definitions continue. “Simp” can also be a verb, meaning “to show excessive devotion to or longing for someone or something.” And as an example of the use of the verb in this sense, the Merriam-Webster dictionary offers this quote by one John James:

“A Brazilian influencer has taken simping for the richest man on earth to a new level by getting Elon Musk’s name … tattooed across his forehead.”

Yeah . . . I’d say that fits.

But why stop there? I would like to proclaim Simp Day an official national holiday, and dedicate it to all of those members of the U.S. Cabinet, Senate, House of Representatives, Supreme Court, and every other government official, billionaire, and ordinary private citizen eager to sell their souls for an invitation to Mar-a-Lago.

And if all those Middle Eastern potentates throwing money, precious metals, and the occasional luxury jet plane at Donald Trump would like to join in the celebration being held, somewhat belatedly, on June 14th, they are more than welcome. I’m sure our visa restrictions would be waived for them . . . for the right price.

It should be quite a bash, with a military parade down Pennsylvania Avenue, fireworks, and plenty of opportunity to pledge allegiance to the birthday boy.

Personally, I’ll pass. And if you’re not into simping, you may want to join me in celebrating our traditional national holiday — Independence Day — on July 4th. Ours will be a casual affair, probably featuring burgers and barbecued chicken on the grill, corn on the cob, and plenty of lemonade and beer to wash it down. And we’ll be celebrating the founding of our great country . . . the one that doesn’t need to be made great again . . . with our neighbors at the annual local fireworks display.

That’s my kind of simp-licity.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
6/3/25

It’s been a bad couple of days in Russia.

First came two bridge collapses in the western part of the country, not far from the borders with Ukraine and Belarus. The first bridge — in the Bryansk region — together with the vehicles that had been crossing it, collapsed onto a train passing below, killing at least eight people en route to Moscow on May 31st. Initial reports said that the collapse was caused by “illegal interference,” but offered no further details.

In the second incident — in the Kursk region, just 90 km. from Bryansk — a railway bridge collapsed as a freight train was crossing it around 3:00 a.m. on June 1st.

And then came Ukraine’s massive drone attack, knocking out about a third of Russia’s fleet of strategic long-range bombers.

And all of it on the heels of a failed negotiation in Istanbul on May 16th and a fruitless two-hour phone call between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump on May 19th. Putin “offered” another meeting to be held in Istanbul today, June 2nd, and said he would submit a “memorandum” of issues to be discussed at that meeting . . .

. . . to which Trump, ever compliant to Putin’s wishes, agreed.

*. *. *

Well, the two weeks have passed; no presentation has been forthcoming from Moscow; and delegations from Russia and Ukraine met today in Istanbul as scheduled.

First, the good news: Another major prisoner exchange was agreed, involving “at least 1,000” from each side, according to Russia’s delegation leader, Vladimir Medinsky. His Ukrainian counterpart, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, said the two sides had agreed to “exchange all-for-all seriously wounded and seriously sick prisoners of war. The second category is young soldiers who are from 18 to 25 years old — all-for-all.” [RFE/RL, June 2, 2025.]

But what about peace talks, or at least ceasefire negotiations?

In a meeting that lasted just over an hour, with talking points being provided by each side only in the last moments before the meeting, it was not surprising to hear from Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Oncu Keceli:

“The meeting is over. It didn’t end negatively.” [Id.]

But it didn’t end positively, either. Following yesterday’s massive attacks on Russia’s airfields, one might have expected Putin’s delegation to show at least a hint of humility, perhaps even an indication that they might be considering some concessions. On the other hand, the magnitude and the unexpected nature of those attacks will have taken Kremlin officials completely by surprise, giving them no time to assess the damage, much less to formulate a response.

The U.S. State Department has said that, on the day before the meeting — the day of the drone attacks in Russia — Secretary of State Marco Rubio had spoken by phone with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov . . . at Lavrov’s request.

The nature of their discussion has not been reported. But if I were a betting woman, I might be willing to wager that some agreement was reached between them to put further negotiations on hold until Moscow could catch its collective breath . . . thus explaining the brevity of the meeting and its ending in a very positive prisoner swap agreement, but nothing more.

Of course, there is the question of what will happen when the Kremlin has had time to fully process these developments. In the best-case scenario, Putin — always unpredictable — could react rationally, realize that his position has been somewhat weakened, and finally begin to negotiate in earnest. Or he could do what he and every autocrat throughout history have always done: let his megalomania and his temper get the upper hand, and escalate the fight.

This is also the moment for the U.S. and European leaders to consider — and perhaps reconsider — their next moves.

All of which reinforces my decision, made many years ago, not to go into show business, politics, or diplomacy. It’s much more comfortable out here in the audience.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
6/2/25

Never underestimate the underdog.

And never . . . EVER . . . underestimate the people of Ukraine!

For the past three years and three months — and particularly during the four months of the current U.S. administration — Vladimir Putin has been leading the world on a merry chase, proclaiming his desire to end the “special military operation” against Ukraine while carrying on an unceasing barrage of bombs, missiles, drones and ground forces, killing and maiming hundreds of thousands of military troops and civilians on both sides of the conflict.

And Donald Trump has continued to make excuses for his “friend” in the Kremlin, swallowing whole the platitudes, the side-eyed flattery, and the outright lies. He has even aided Putin by pressing Ukraine to make concessions that Trump himself would never consider making to an aggressor.

Worse, Trump humiliated Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelensky, in the Oval Office in front of the world’s media, calling him down for wearing his country’s military-style shirt instead of a business suit, and for not saying “Thank you, O Great and Powerful Benefactor” often enough — or obsequiously enough — to satisfy Trump’s bloated ego.

But now — on the eve of a scheduled meeting in Istanbul between Russian and Ukrainian delegations — Ukraine has proven to Putin, to Trump, and to the world that it is not a weakling to be taken advantage of, but a nation of strong and capable people determined and able to fight back on Russia’s own terms.

What they did yesterday was so brilliantly conceived, so intricately planned, and so audaciously carried out that it almost defies description. According to early reports, over a period of 18 months, scores of small drones have been smuggled into Russia, stored in special compartments on freight trucks, driven to four or more separate locations thousands of miles apart, and finally — and successfully — launched remotely toward nearby air bases.

As Ukrainian defense analyst Serhii Kuzan told Ukrainian TV: “No intelligence operation in the world has done anything like this before. These strategic bombers are capable of launching long-range strikes against us. There are only 120 of them and we struck 40. That’s an incredible figure.” [Paul Adams, BBC, June 1, 2025.]

The bombers to which Kuzan referred included strategic missile-carrying aircraft that are no longer in production, and will be difficult or impossible for Russia to replace. Ukrainian military blogger Oleksandr Kovalenko, describing the impact as “enormous,” wrote on Telegram:

“The extent of the damage is such that the Russian military-industrial complex, in its current state, is unlikely to be able to restore them in the near future. Today, the Russian Aerospace Forces lost not just two of their rarest aircraft, but truly two unicorns in the herd.” [Id.]

While the extent of the physical and monetary loss has not yet been verified, the psychological effect of the operation cannot be understated. One BBC journalist, Svyatoslav Khomenko, was recently told by a Ukrainian official:

“The biggest problem is that the Americans have convinced themselves we’ve already lost the war. And from that assumption everything else follows.” [Id.]

In addition, Ukrainian defense journalist Illia Ponomarenko had this to say on X, obviously referring to that disgraceful Oval Office performance:

“This is what happens when a proud nation under attack doesn’t listen to all those: ‘Ukraine has only six months left.’ ‘You have no cards.’ ‘Just surrender for peace, Russia cannot lose.’” [Id.]

And a tweet from the journal Business Ukraine offered this comment:

“It turns out Ukraine does have some cards after all. Today Zelensky played the King of Drones.” [Id.]

Svyatoslav Khomenko’s unnamed Ukrainian official summed it up rather nicely:

“[The Americans] begin acting as if their role is to negotiate for us the softest possible terms of surrender. And then they’re offended when we don’t thank them. But of course we don’t — because we don’t believe we’ve been defeated.” [Id.]

Vladimir Putin wanted this war; he started it on February 24, 2022; and he has kept it going despite offers of peace talks and negotiations. But now it has hit home . . . and hard. Someone should have warned him to be careful what he wished for.

Well done, Ukraine! I look forward to seeing what happens in Istanbul today . . . but with trepidation, because how Putin will react is anyone’s guess.

As of this writing, the Russian delegation is said to have already arrived in Istanbul; and Kyiv has reported that its delegation will be headed by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, backed by at least a dozen other officials. [RFE/RL, June 2, 2025.]

Stay tuned.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
6/2/25

Well, not literally . . . I’m not Buddha, after all.

But while down with a 48-hour bug earlier this week — garbed in pajamas and a bathrobe, and without sufficient energy to do more than change the TV channel — I had ample time to contemplate a number of things. While most of those thoughts don’t bear repeating (in fact, they didn’t warrant much consideration the first time around), I did have one realization about my life in retirement that I thought I might share with you: the importance of comfort.

I was always one who subscribed to the “dress to impress” philosophy. Working in Washington, D.C., law firms in the years of business suits, girdles and panty hose, I accumulated a fairly substantial professional wardrobe. Weekends were more casual, of course; but in those days, going out to dinner or a party meant dressing up. Does anyone else remember cocktail dresses?

At the time, there was a woman living in my apartment building who was my role model. I recall her bragging when she reached her 92nd birthday; yet I had thought she couldn’t be more than 80, if that. She was a beautiful woman, vibrant and always impeccably dressed as though she might be headed for a board meeting, or lunch at an elegant restaurant. And I decided that that’s how I wanted to enjoy my golden years.

Yeah . . . right.

To begin with, I didn’t take into consideration the fact that everyone ages differently. That beautiful nonagenarian was obviously genetically blessed; me . . . not so much. I hadn’t counted on the aches and pains of advancing years, or the possibility that I might have inherited a few ailments from my father’s side.

I also didn’t foresee leaving the craziness of Washington for the quietude of the southern countryside, where “dressing up” means wearing jeans without rips and a tee shirt without a logo.

So I’ve adapted. No, that doesn’t mean I regularly hang out in PJs or sweats. But now that I spend more time at home than going out, I’ve come to realize that the dog doesn’t give a damn what I look like, so I may as well relax. I’ve decided that age must have its compensations, so that comfort has finally become more important than fashion.

And since I tend to reduce most of my thoughts to writing, I’ve even dedicated a little verse to my newfound philosophy. I call it, brilliantly, “Comfort,” and I herewith inflict it upon you as your reward for having read this far:

*. *. *

COMFORT

I cannot bear
A bra to wear
While sitting ‘round the house.

And shoes, I claim,
Are much the same …
It’s comfort I espouse.

Though jewelry
Adds revelry
When on the town I roam,

Those rings and things
Discomfort bring
Whilst hanging out at home.

And ‘round my waist
I have no taste
For anything that’s fitted.

To wear a belt,
Or jeans so svelte,
I’d have to be dim-witted.

Elastic waists
Are more my taste,
And slippers for my toes.

Loose clothes, I find,
Don’t squeeze or bind,
Avoiding further woes.

I still admire
Couture attire,
On movie stars and others.

But as for me,
I do not see
Their worth for us grandmothers.

We’ve had our years
Of joys and tears,
Careers and raising kiddies.

We’ve earned the right
To some delight,
Now that we’re all old biddies.

Now is the time,
While in our prime,
To say goodbye to vanity,

To seek instead
A calmer head,
And things that bring us sanity.

To find repose
In looser clothes,
Sans jewels, belts or makeup,

To comfort find,
And peace of mind,
Avoiding mental breakup.

It’s comfort here,
And comfort there,
And comfort all around.

It’s what I need,
My soul to feed …
Before I’m in the ground.

*. *. *

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
6/1/25

This week’s message of moral support to Putin’s political hostages is offered in the shadow of yet another Russia-Ukraine ceasefire negotiation, optimistically scheduled for tomorrow, June 2nd, in Istanbul.

But neither the urgency of the effort to end Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, nor any of the other ongoing crises capturing each day’s headlines, should detract from the continuing plight of those individuals being unjustly held by the Putin regime.

So once again we remember:

The People of Ukraine
The Azov 12
David Barnes
Ales Bialiatski (in Belarus)
Gordon Black
Andrei Chapiuk (in Belarus)
Antonina Favorskaya
Konstantin Gabov
Robert Gilman
Stephen James Hubbard
Sergey Karelin
Ihar Karney (in Belarus) on
Vadim Kobzev
Darya Kozyreva
Artyom Kriger
Uladzimir Labkovich (in Belarus)
Michael Travis Leake
Aleksei Liptser
Ihar Losik (in Belarus)
Mikita Losik (in Belarus)
Daniel Martindale
Farid Mehralizada (in Azerbaijan)
Nika Novak
Marfa Rabkova (in Belarus)
Igor Sergunin
Dmitry Shatresov
Robert Shonov
Eugene Spector
Valiantsin Stafanovic (in Belarus)
Siarhei Tsikhanouski (in Belarus)
Laurent Vinatier
Robert Romanov Woodland
Vladislav Yesypenko (in Crimea)
Yuras Zyankovich (in Belarus)

. . . and any others I may have missed.

Know that you are not forgotten, and that efforts toward your homecoming continue.

Please stay strong.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
6/1/25