I’m taking the day off from writing in order to devote my time and my thoughts to my favorite holiday . . . and to wish everyone out there a day of peace, love, and safe travels. Wherever you are, whomever you’re spending the day with, and whatever traditions you bring to the table . . . enjoy!

See you on Friday.

Brendochka
11/23/23

[NOTE: The following is not a statement of my political views. I am neither Democrat nor Republican; neither liberal nor conservative; neither left-leaning nor right-leaning. I believe in moderation in all things (or nearly all things, chocolate and kindness to others excepted). This is simply a commentary on one individual who scares the hell out of me, and a statement of the reasons I feel as I do. I know there are those of you out there who will disagree with me, some perhaps vehemently. That is your absolute right — it’s what our First Amendment is all about — and I respect that. But be aware that I will not be responding to comments, pro or con. I do not engage in pissing contests. If you still want to read on, I invite you to do so, and I thank you.
- Brendochka]

*. *. *

I rarely dabble in U.S. politics, at least not publicly. But an article by CNN’s Stephen Collinson on November 14, 2023, had such disturbing domestic and international implications, I simply could not ignore it.

I don’t know the history of the poster shown above (which I found online), but it perfectly depicts my thoughts and fears concerning the current U.S. presidential campaign.

In a perfect world, the blond guy on the right would not be in that lineup. He’s not a deceased European dictator; we all know the atrocities committed during the early to mid-20th Century by Josef Stalin, Adolph Hitler, and Benito Mussolini, and surely he’s not in that category. No, Donald Trump is an American, a former President of the United States, a would-be second-term President, and not a mass murderer. By all rights, he should never appear in a picture with those other three.

But . . .

But he is also an American who is currently defending 91 charges within four criminal cases in the U.S. Courts. Ninety-one charges that, if he were to be found guilty of all of them, could bring him combined maximum sentences of up to 712 years in prison, or so I have read. Not even Methuselah could still run a campaign after that much hard time!

But wait . . . there’s more. Donald Trump idolizes strongmen; Vladimir Putin comes immediately to mind. We’ve all known about that little bromance for some time now. And Trump believed when he was in the White House — and still believes, despite having been proven wrong time after time — that as President he possessed, and would again possess if he were to be re-elected, absolute power. He still operates under the illusion — or delusion — that he would be above the authority of all laws, including the U.S. Constitution, the U.S. Department of Justice, rulings of the U.S. Supreme Court . . . and probably God Himself. Because he is Donald Trump. And in his parallel universe, Donald Trump reigns supreme.

And he doesn’t hesitate to say so . . . loudly, clearly, and repeatedly. And he does so in a rhetoric that daily becomes more and more frightening to those of us Americans who value our hard-won freedoms. On Saturday, November 11th — Veterans Day — he spoke at a rally in the small town of Claremont, New Hampshire, where he offered up the following promise to his potential constituents:

“We will root out the communists, Marxists, fascists and the radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country.”

“Root out”?!! . . . “Thugs”?!! . . . “Vermin”??!!! . . . From which of Hitler’s speeches did he plagiarize that sentence? And he went on, further warning that “the real threat is not from the radical right. The real threat is from the radical left, and it’s growing every day.” Personally, I feel threatened by the “radical” anything, but apparently he’s okay with the ones from his side.

With wars continuing to rage in Ukraine and the Middle East, and with Russia and China joining forces to establish a “new world order” of their own imagining, Trump — rather than focusing on unity at home — instead chose to push his favorite theme: divisiveness. In his words, “The threat from outside forces is far less sinister, dangerous and grave than the threat from within.” He sounds as though he’ll be satisfied with nothing less than another all-out civil war. Way to go, Donnie — that’ll sure solve all our troubles!

I don’t mean to minimize our internal problems; we do have plenty, and they do need to be dealt with. He’s right about that. But not his way. He would have us forget Russia; forget China; forget North Korea; forget Hamas and Hezbollah and Iran and . . . oh, what the hell — let’s just forget them all. And while we’re at it, let’s drop out of NATO, thus ridding ourselves of the need ever again to worry about our allies, because we wouldn’t freakin’ have any allies left! He would have us believe we just need to focus on getting rid of the liberal left — and anyone who opposes Donald Trump’s beliefs — in our own country, and all will be well, forever and ever, amen. The triumph of 21st-Century American isolationism: The Gospel According to Trump.

*. *. *

Donald Trump has also continued to zero in on “outsiders” and immigrants as juicy targets for his proposed feast of vengeance and — well, let’s just call it what it is — ethnic cleansing. He told the right-leaning National Pulse website that undocumented immigrants are “poisoning the blood of our country. It’s so bad, and people are coming in with disease.” Another idea borrowed right out of Der Fuhrer’s playbook . . . remember that episode called “the Holocaust”?

I seem to recall Trump’s similar statement, either during his 2016 campaign or early in his presidency, to the effect that the “Mexicans” (his all-inclusive term for Latin American immigrants entering the U.S. across our southwestern borders) were “. . . bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.” Wow . . . how magnanimous of him!

*. *. *

Luckily for my nervous system, Mr. Collinson’s article goes on to point out the differences between the world of the 1930s and ‘40s and the world of today, as well as the protections existing in our U.S. legal system that would hold Donald Trump in check if he were to be elected to a second term. But imagine, if you can, the cost in terms of time and money, and the inattention to domestic and world affairs that would result from our need to be focused constantly on his every spoken and tweeted word.

(Off the subject for just a moment: can we still “tweet” when “Twitter” is gone? Don’t we have to “X-pel” or something? Just a thought.)

But back on topic: Another four years of that sort of nightmare scenario would, I fear, do us in, individually and as a nation. And what would the domino effect be like throughout the rest of the world? To paraphrase the irrepressible Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, I can only say . . .

“Quelle nightmare!”

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
11/19/23

[Again, credit and thanks to Stephen Collinson of CNN, for his article of Nov. 14, 2023, which saved me the time and trouble of searching elsewhere for the Trump quotations.]

Apropos of today’s earlier post: We may never have the answer to this one, but add it to the growing list of “suspicious” deaths. They’re dropping like flies over there.

*. *. *

“Lieutenant General Vladimir Sviridov, former commander of the 6th Air Force and Air Defense Forces Army of the Russian Federation, has been found dead in his home in the Stavropol Krai. Source: Latvia-based Russian media outlet Meduza, citing Baza Telegram channel; Kremlin-aligned news agency RIA Novosti and Kommersant media Details: A source of RIA Novosti says that the body of a woman was found next to Sviridov, her identity is being determined.”
— Read on news.yahoo.com/russias-6th-air-force-army-130553067.html

I cannot imagine a more horrifying headline. But that is what’s happening today in Russia: Josef Stalin is back.

Stalin. “Man of Steel.” The chosen name of the tough little Georgian with the shrunken arm who would come to terrorize, not only his own vast country, but the rest of the world as well, for some 29 years. A tyrant, a sadist, a mass murderer, whose own death in 1953 was a relief to the entire world.

Yet he is still revered by many in Russia as the man who saw them through a world war, fought off the Nazi onslaught, and maintained order and prosperity in their beloved, beleaguered, bedraggled motherland. And, though dead these 70 long years, he is staging a comeback — but not without help, of course. (He is, after all, dead.) Rather, his comeback is taking place with a gigantic push from a man born just months before Stalin’s demise: Vladimir Putin, who — had he been born six months later — might well have been assumed to be the reincarnation of the little Georgian.

Two men, from different locations but similarly poor backgrounds; both small in stature (Stalin a bit larger), but both with gigantic egos born of deeply ingrained inferiority complexes; both fighters, determined to prove to the world that they were more than just what showed on the outside. And on the inside . . . each the personification of evil.

And now, the one currently in charge — Putin — is not only emulating his long-gone hero; he is actually succeeding in restoring Russia’s nostalgia for the “good old days” of order, security, and . . . what? Let’s see now . . . oh, yes . . . fear. Fear of everything. Of saying the wrong thing. Of someone reporting you for saying the wrong thing. Of that banging on the door in the middle of the night. Of the mock trial, the inevitable conviction, and the endless train ride to the endless term in the GULAG.

[Note: GULAG is an acronym for Main Administration of Prison Camps: Glavnoye Upravleniye Lagerei.]

It’s all coming back now, except (so far) the GULAGs. For now they’re just using regular prisons. But consider this:

— Alexei Navalny and Vladimir Kara-Murza, guilty of nothing more than speaking out against the current regime, a right held dear in the free world, but no longer permitted in Russia . . . rotting in prison on false charges of corruption and parole violation (Navalny) and spreading “false information” about the Russian military (Kara-Murza).

— Boris Nemtsov, Aleksandr Litvinenko, Anna Politkovskaya, and numerous others . . . dead, for the same or similar reasons.

— Countless business, industrial, and government leaders suddenly falling out of windows or suffering “heart attacks”. . . dead, for the same or similar reasons.

— Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder and head of the Wagner Group of mercenaries and close friend and confidant of Putin, along with several high-ranking members of the Wagner Group, suddenly falling out of the sky in an airplane . . . obviously dead, for protesting the military’s handling of the war in Ukraine.

And then there’s this. Over the past decade, memorial plaques — about 700 or more — have been put up in Russia and elsewhere to commemorate the final residences of the victims of Stalin’s purges in the 1930s. But according to the plaque project known as Posledniy Adres (“last address”), dozens of the plaques have disappeared throughout Russia. And the disappearances are not being investigated by police, despite the growing numbers. Oksana Matievskaya of Posledniy Adres has said: “The memory of the Soviet terror challenges the concept of the state always being right and is, therefore, inconvenient for the Russian authorities. Especially following the invasion of Ukraine.” [As reported by Sandro Gvindadze, BBC Monitoring, Nov. 13, 2023.] In other words, criticizing the former Soviet state is now as verboten as criticizing Vladimir Putin and the current regime.

In addition, no fewer than 18 monuments to victims of repression, as well as foreign soldiers who fought in World War II — most of them Polish nationals — have been reported stolen or vandalized just in the past year and a half. Recently, in the city of Vladimir, a brick memorial to a prominent Polish priest was torn down and destroyed. And a concrete cross in the Komi Republic, memorializing Polish prisoners, was demolished; police blamed “bad weather” for that one, and refused to undertake criminal proceedings.

Hundreds of thousands of those Poles were executed, and nearly two million deported to GULAG camps in Siberia and Kazakhstan, after 1939. The noted civil rights group Memorial “believes the damage [to the monuments] was ordered or carried out by authorities because Moscow wants the Soviet Union to be perceived as a powerhouse rather than an oppressive state. The authorities try to erase the memory of the crimes of that empire to cover up or justify the crimes of this one.” [Alexandra Polivanova, Memorial, as reported by BBC Monitoring, Nov. 13, 2023.]

Recent polling has suggested that 63% of Russians now have a “favourable attitude” toward Stalin. And there are 110 Stalin statues still standing — 95 erected during Vladimir Putin’s rule, at least four of them since the invasion of Ukraine. One such, in the town of Velikiye Luki, is cast in bronze and stands eight meters (just over 26 feet) high. Go big or go home, I guess. And to cap off the occasion of the dedication, a Russian Orthodox priest scattered holy water over the base of the monument, intoning “Christ is risen!” — as the dozens of onlookers responded, in accordance with orthodox tradition, “Risen, indeed.”

Christ? I thought it was Stalin!

*. *. *

So what is behind this sudden “rehabilitation” of one of the world’s foremost monsters? Why, Vladimir Putin, of course. None of this would have been allowed if he hadn’t been behind it, or at least in favor of it. He needs the example of the strength and power of the Soviet state, even as far back as the 1930s, to legitimize his own similar actions today . . . particularly, of course, his invasion of Ukraine. He has stated that, to him, the greatest tragedy of the 20th Century was the collapse of the Soviet Union. And he has set about rectifying that “tragedy,” not merely by instituting and enforcing new and ever more repressive laws, but now also engaging in the same sort of mind-control tactics so familiar to those of us who remember the days of Josef Stalin and Adolf Hitler.

And, not content with controlling his own country, he seeks to bring back into the fold former republics of the Soviet Union, beginning with Belarus (with the all-too-willing consent of its leader, Aleksandr Lukashenko), and Ukraine (by brute force — a war of attrition that he ingenuously calls a “special military operation”). And who knows who’s next?

Are we to sit by and watch this happen again, once more ignoring the signs as the world did until Hitler and Stalin marched into Poland in 1939? Or until Japan bombed the hell out of Pearl Harbor in 1941? Have we forgotten that little disturbance known as World War II?

Please tell me we’re not that stupid.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
11/16/23

Exciting news! Remember Laverna, the mischievous surfboard-stealing otter from Monterey, California’s coastal area? The one the authorities have been trying to capture and re-home because she’s been annoying the human surfers who have . . . let’s be honest . . . been impinging on what is rightly her home, not theirs? The same one who has been evading them for months now, and who has the following comment for those humans:

There’s been no word of her for a while, and I’ve been worried about her. Well, at last there’s been news . . . and great news at that. Laverna was spotted recently, and with her was her brand-new pup! That’s right — Laverna is a Mom. And the so-called experts who thought she was just an incorrigible little thief now admit that her behavior was simply the natural instinct of an expectant mammalian mama protecting her baby’s habitat. In other words, she was hormonal.

Now, we women have fought tirelessly against those males who persist in blaming everything we say or do on our hormonal “problems.” But in this case, it turns out to be true . . . and the result for Laverna and her little one couldn’t be more favorable: they will not be re-homed, and will be able to live peacefully in Monterey Bay for as long as they like. Justice has prevailed.

Now I look forward to details about the little pup. Male or female? Does it have a name yet, other than just a number? Any readers have suggestions? I’m thinking about “Justice” (it’s shorter than “Retribution”). I’d love to hear your ideas.

It’s a happy day at Blog HQ . . . “Justice” has indeed been served.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
11/14/23

Can’t help it . . . reading (and commenting on) the news is a hard habit to break, and I didn’t say I was going cold turkey.

This is just a quick pat on the back to one of my favorite people in the whole world: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who was heard on Friday to tell Russia, in effect:

“You cut our power, we kneecap your biggest economic driver [oil and gas infrastructure].” [Ben Lefebvre, Politico, Nov. 10, 2023.]

Go, Volodya! No bullies in your schoolyard.

*. *. *

My apologies . . . I know that’s no way to address a President, but you are my hero, sir.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
11/13/23

All good things must come to an end. How many times during our lives do we hear that? Unfortunately, it’s true. And today marks another end: the end of my daily blog. It is with a heavy heart that I tell you — my very few readers — that I am giving it a rest . . . at least partially.

No, it is not due to illness. But it seems that publishing every day may have been overdoing it. Even reading Shakespeare — okay, especially reading Shakespeare! — can get tiresome after awhile, and I regret to say that my readership has dropped off to almost nothing on many days.

I’ve kept going for the sheer pleasure of writing — I really love doing it. But these little presentations take time and effort. Before my fingers ever touch the keyboard, there’s reading (mostly of the daily news), background research, thought, analysis . . . and only then, searching for my own words. It’s a joyous process, and I shall miss it, and I suspect that I shall direct it elsewhere before long.

But writing for oneself is a lonely undertaking. Maybe I’ve chosen the wrong subject matters; or perhaps a blog just isn’t the right venue. Anyway, it’s time to cut back. But . . .

Yes, there is always a “but.” But I will probably be popping up once or twice a week, as inspiration strikes. And all those old blog posts are still there for the reading. So it’s not goodbye . . . just “see ya.”

Much love,
Brendochka
11/11/23

Back in the early 1970s, I was a working, single mom whose two young children were attending a local day camp during the summer months in the Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C. It was a great place, where they had earlier been year-round pre-school students. Now that they were a little bigger — ages 8 and 10 — they were able to enjoy the many summer activities, including swimming lessons, horseback riding lessons, and the occasional field trip.

In 1972, then-President and Mrs. Richard Nixon were enjoying dinner in Beijing, China, with Premier Zhou Enlai, when the subject of two newly-captured pandas came up, and Mrs. Nixon commented that she was very fond of the big, cuddly-looking animals. Impulsively, Premier Zhou is said to have offered, “I’ll give you some” . . . and thus began 50 years of “fostering” of China’s most adorable wild denizens, one pair at a time, at the National Zoo in Washington. The first couple — Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing — lived happily in their new home until 1992 and 1999, respectively, and were the Zoo’s main attraction throughout their lives.

Of course, a field trip to the Zoo was a must for the day camp children and their counselors, and so off they went one bright, hot summer day. It started out wonderfully, with the kids enjoying the beautiful park and the variety of exotic animals as they made their way to the Panda House — a large area with both an indoor space and an outdoor garden reminiscent of the pandas’ native China. Because of the heat of the day, Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing were being kept indoors, where their air-conditioned “house,” liberally planted with bamboo, was enclosed behind glass for easy viewing by the visitors. In addition, there was a long metal railing in front of the window, set back a few feet, where visitors were required to stand in order to keep them from tapping on the glass or otherwise disturbing the residents.

Let me explain here a little bit about my daughter. A bright, energetic, happy child, with an insatiable curiosity about everything, she somehow managed to be the unwitting target of any trouble that might be lurking within easy range. And Zoo day was no exception. Standing behind the metal railing with her friends, exactly where they belonged, she did what the others were doing — rested her hands on the railing. But for whatever reason, she moved her hands to the underside of the railing . . . and literally got the shock of her life.

In some way, for some reason, and by someone unknown — none of which were ever explained to me — underneath that railing and extending its full length was a live, exposed electrical wire. And when her hands touched it, the shock was great enough that her hands stuck to the railing and the charge went through her entire body. One of the female counselors — putting herself in danger — grabbed her to try to pull her away, and was herself stuck to my daughter and unable to let go. A second counselor — a young man with considerable strength — then grabbed the first counselor, and was finally able to pull them both away from the railing and the wire.

Needless to say, the field trip was cut short. The two counselors were all right, but my daughter had received burns to the palms and fingers of both hands . . . and no one knew what else at that point. What worried her most of all, though, was that she had wet her pants; and at eight years of age, that’s really, really bad.

The bottom line is that, other than the burns, she was all right. They rushed her to the zoo’s on-site clinic, where her burns were treated and her hands wrapped. Then everyone piled back onto the school bus and headed back to school, where the principal called me at work . . . there were no cell phones in those days. I made it from downtown D.C. to the school, about eleven miles away in Virginia, weaving through city traffic and running a few red lights, in a record seven minutes . . . and never saw a police car the whole way there.

When I arrived, she was sitting there, in her embarrassingly wet panties and shorts, rather enjoying all the attention, as her brother sat worriedly nearby. After profusely thanking the two counselors who had saved my daughter’s life, I hustled both kids into the car and headed for the nearest hospital emergency room, where they tried to keep me out of the treatment area because, they said, some parents tended to faint. I told them I wasn’t going to do anything that ridiculous, and that I would gladly sign a release and sit in a corner, but no army was going to separate me from my little girl at that point. As they unwrapped her hands, I could see that the burns were actually not as bad as I had imagined, and I was able to relax a bit. And my daughter — did I mention she’s a Leo, and a bit of a drama queen? — once again stole the show when she turned her big blue eyes toward the doctor and said, “I’m just so glad this happened to me, and not my brother.”

That’s my girl.

End of story: The Panda House was closed to the public for a while, during which time the indoor viewing space was completely redesigned. My daughter is still alive and kicking. And the pandas were blissfully unaware that anything unusual had happened.

*. *. *

I’ve gone through this whole long tale simply to point out the reason that the panda program at the National Zoo has special, sentimental meaning to me. I visited Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing many times after that day, as well as their successors, Mei Xiang and Tian-Tian. The entire country holds them very dear, and none more so than the people of Washington, who received that first pair. Zoos in San Diego, Memphis and Atlanta have been similarly blessed; and now, they’ve all gone home (except Atlanta’s, who will follow shortly). They have been, for five decades, a symbol of friendship between two powerful nations that otherwise have more than their share of contentious issues.

And now, even that link is in danger of being severed. The current program was scheduled to end on December 7th of this year anyway. As has happened at each expiration date in the past, it was expected to be renewed again; but this time, there has been no indication from the Chinese officials as to when — or if — that will happen. I have a sinking feeling it won’t, at least not right away. And if not, the pandas would effectively be held hostage, their travel privileges and their panda passports revoked and held by the Chinese Panda Police; America would feel the loss, as though of our own children; and there would be one more bone of contention between our two countries — the very last thing this world needs right now.

*. *. *

Message to President Xi: “What is it . . . spite? Some new sort of panda diplomacy? Pardon my language, sir, but this really sucks. Regardless of political differences, certain things in this world should remain inviolate: humanitarian aid, the Olympics, and the Panda Program, for starters. We Americans, in general, are a sentimental lot. We love our children and our animals. We know the pandas really belong to China, but we cherish them as though they were our own. We’ve taken first-rate care of them for 50 years, delivered their babies, and mourned them when their time ran out. So I will try to remain hopeful that the program may be renewed without interference from political issues. Anything less would be just plain mean.”

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
11/11/23

No, they’re not twins, separated at birth or otherwise. They’re not “brothers by another mother.” They’re not, as far as anyone knows, related at all. But their life ambitions, their political and humanistic views, and their projected personae are so disturbingly similar as to make one wonder what serendipitous tricks of fate brought them together at this point in their lives . . . and how their relationship will ultimately turn out.

On October 17th, I wrote about Vladimir Putin’s and Xi Jinping’s plans — no longer a mere dream — for a “New World Order” to replace what they term “Western dominance.” And yesterday, using Hong Kong as an example, I delved further into the sort of patient, long-term planning required to execute such a scheme.

Along the same lines, there’s also news this week about the progress of Xi’s ten-year (thus far) “Belt and Road Initiative,” supposedly designed by him to demonstrate China’s intention and ability to assist the poorer nations of the world in rebuilding their economies and infrastructures. What generosity! What nobility! What altruism!

What a crock!

Originally conceived in 2013 by Xi as a program of development and investment initiatives designed to link East Asia and Europe by means of physical infrastructure, it has since been expanded to include a dozen or more countries throughout the world, including Pakistan, Kenya, Zambia, Laos, Mongolia, Afghanistan, and the five (former Soviet) Central Asian nations of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. And we are expected to believe that the more than a trillion dollars thus far invested by China in this massive undertaking was given solely for the benefit of the recipients.

Seriously?

To begin with, nothing was “given,” except loans. Some of the world’s poorest nations have been plunged so deeply into debt, they are now in imminent danger of complete economic collapse; those loans are coming due, and default is a very strong possibility, even a likelihood in many cases. Then what? That, of course, depends largely upon the terms of the loans — and whatever else Xi may have in mind — and remains to be seen.

But for ten years, Xi has been gaining dominance over those countries, as well as an image of the benevolent uncle, always ready with a helping hand — and an open wallet — whenever and wherever help is needed. That takes time . . . and infinite patience.

As for the other twin — Vladimir Putin — it comes as no surprise, in looking back on his two decades as president of Russia, to realize that he has, in his own way, been maneuvering himself into similar positions in Africa, the Middle East, Cuba, etc., offering food, munitions, technology, training, military support, and the like. And in some mineral- or gemstone-rich regions, he has actually been receiving payment in precious materials, such as diamonds. Lots and lots of diamonds. Not too shabby.

So there we have the fraternal “twins,” each doing what he does best and working toward a common goal: world domination. Not simply dominance; I said domination. The difference is subtle, and more than a little significant. And they both know it.

*. *. *

And what happened to Romulus and Remus? Well, after a somewhat bumpy childhood, as young men they set out to build a city together. But they fell out over the best location for it, and Remus made the mistake of insulting Romulus’ ideas for their plan. A fatal mistake, at that; he was killed, either by Romulus himself or one of his minions. And Romulus then went on to build the city-state of Rome according to his own vision. Problem solved.

So . . . Cain and Abel; Romulus and Remus; Hitler and Stalin . . . Putin and Xi? As always, we — the non-involved public — can only wait and see what shakes out of the trees, and then prepare to live with the bruised fruit. In the case of Messrs. Putin and Xi, I am breathless with anticipation . . . and a fair measure of sarcasm.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
11/10/23

When my son was still an infant, I noticed that he always seemed to be a little late in entering a new phase of physical development, whether it was rolling over, sitting up, crawling, or standing. But I also noticed that, rather than spending days or weeks simply trying to do something, one day he would just do it, and would actually be pretty much on schedule after all, according to the “experts.” It took me a while — because he turned out to be a pretty clever little kid — but I finally figured it out.

He had been taking his afternoon nap in his room one day, and I went to check on him to see whether he was awake yet. I peered around the corner of his doorway and found him wide awake, kneeling and holding onto the bars of his crib, trying ferociously to pull himself up to a standing position. I waited quietly out of sight, mentally struggling with him, as he made little grunting sounds and pulled, and pulled, and pulled. And then . . . he did it! He was standing, all by himself, holding on to the top of the crib rail. And I was so excited, I burst into his room, shouted “You did it!” . . . and scared the bejeezus out of the poor baby. Startled, he let go of the rail, lost his balance, and plopped down on his fanny. Of course, he was fine; I picked him up, smothered him with hugs and kisses, and told him what an amazing, wonderful baby he was.

And I learned an important lesson about my little genius: He didn’t want to be seen trying and failing; he wanted to surprise and impress us by doing it right, seemingly for the first time. So he would practice when no one was looking, no matter how long it took, until he mastered whatever it was. He’s still like that.

Just like China.

*. *. *

It would be foolish to underestimate the intelligence and skill — and the patience — of a people who could create a traversable wall, snaking more than 13,000 miles through the mountains of their vast, isolated country, that would be visible from space some 2,000 years later . . . and complete it way back in the year 220 B.C.E. How many years, and how many lives, must that have taken?

And around the same time, to have been capable of creating a collection of more than 8,000 lifelike terracotta sculptures depicting the army of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, including warriors, chariots and horses — each with unique features — to be buried with the Emperor upon his death as protection in the afterlife. And to preserve them in such a way that they would be discovered, almost twenty centuries later, in nearly pristine condition.

Yet that may be just what we have done. We may have underestimated — not the technical or artistic skills of the Chinese people — but the quiet political skills of their current leader, Xi Jinping, now just months into his third five-year term as President of China.

Oh, we’re well aware of his hard-line method of ruling his nation of nearly 1.5 billion people, spread out over 3.7 million square miles. And we’ve seen his gradual tightening of control over Hong Kong. We’re all too well aware of his designs on Taiwan; and he’s made no secret of his recent weapons testing and technological advances.

But what of this “New World Order” that he and his most recent best friend, Vladimir Putin, have been cooking up for an unknown length of time and have only recently begun to tout openly and loudly? You know, the one in which the United States and the rest of “the West” are relegated to second place, and the world is dominated by their vision of peace and control? Have they been perfecting that while no one was looking, only to spring it on the world when it’s already a done deal?

A perfect example of the implementation of Xi’s Utopian vision is Hong Kong. In 1997, when Jiang Zemin was at the helm of the government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Hong Kong had been a colony of the United Kingdom for more than 150 years under the terms of a treaty with China originally signed in 1842 and extended in 1898 for an additional 99 years. Looking ahead to 1997, the Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984, together with Hong Kong’s Basic Law (the city’s constitutional document), dictated that Hong Kong would retain a “capitalist system and way of life,” and “a high degree of autonomy,” to include executive, legislative, and independent judicial powers for 50 years, until 2047. Under those terms, Hong Kong reached theretofore unprecedented levels of prosperity, and its citizens enjoyed freedoms unknown on the Chinese mainland . . .

. . . and a very active night life.

Xi clearly realized the benefits to be reaped from Hong Kong’s economic success, and few changes were instituted during the early years of his rule. But all of that began to change a few years ago; since then, “Beijing has taken increasingly brazen steps to encroach on Hong Kong’s political system and crack down on dissent. In 2020, Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law on Hong Kong. Since then, authorities have arrested dozens of pro-democracy activists, lawmakers, and journalists; curbed voting rights; and limited freedoms of the press and speech. These moves have not only drawn international condemnation but have also raised questions about Hong Kong’s status as a global financial hub and dimmed hopes that the city will ever become a full-fledged democracy.” [Lindsay Maizland, Council on Foreign Relations, last updated May 19, 2022.]

The creation of a “new world order” does not happen overnight. It takes time, thought, planning . . . and patience. The sort of patience that China has shown in its treatment of Hong Kong since 1997. Is it a coincidence that this new vision is being presented to the world at the same time the reins are being tightened on Hong Kong? Or when the free world is being stretched nearly to the breaking point by two disastrous wars? Or when China and Russia are once more best friends, each offering to step in to “fix things”?

Was it coincidence, all those years ago, that my baby boy finally reached each new level of accomplishment when someone just happened to be watching?

Really?

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
11/9/23