The Spoils of War.

 It's seems that the Wagner paramilitary group has turned on their masters.  Two generals have been nipping at each other's heals about differences in leadership, lacking ammunition, no reinforcement, and many other shared atrocities.  Wagner has turned and bit back, and are pushing on to Moscow.  Will they get there?  Only time will tell.  Apparently the regular Russian army isn't doing as well against the Wagner group as they bragged they would.  Russian military practices include many versions of the same lie to cover up what is actually happening behind the lines.  

War crimes are interesting, generally the spoils go to the victors.  In the past if a government was guilty of evil doings, if that government came out on top of the war then there are no more war crimes.  However today the rest of the world is watching and judging.  Both entities, the Russian regulars, and Wagner, are guilty of executing some pretty heinous crimes upon the Ukrainian people.  It will be interesting to see how this works out towards the end of the war.  

In the meantime we will continue to pray for Ukraine and hope that they get the aid needed to be victorious in this struggle, and that they will come out of it stronger and a better unified nation than they already are.  Possibly even as members of NATO, in this way unified we stand and Evil will never prevail.

80 years ago a very similar war was being played out.  The Allies were victorious and overcame the Nazi horde.  Today we have Vladimir Putin and his re-emergence of Soviet ideals and a new Evil has emerged.  Those that ignore the lessons of the past will suffer the pains of their ignorance.  How many times must the world fight this war before we learn?

Peace and Balance,

John 

Oscar Who?

 

Who is this Oscar fellow anyways?  Once every year a large academy of high ranking Thespians get together, drink a prescribed amount of adult frosty beverage, eat chips and popcorn, and watch a ton load of movies.  Presumably all the films being scrutinized are from the current year, however there have been historical accounts where circumstances have precluded prompt viewing and the Awards where pushed forward.  One of these was during WWII. 

Any how, who is Oscar?  Was there an actual person that the award is named after?  Betty Davis claimed that the Oscar's likeness to her husband, Harmon Oscar Nelson, was to coincidental.  Due to the claims by Miss Davis that the Oscar was indeed the likeness of her husband columnist, Sidney Skolsky, nick named the statue as Oscar and it seems the moniker has stuck ever since.  

In hind sight I wouldn't have stayed up and watched the Academy Awards on Television last night.   Today I am dragging butt.  My tired's got the tireds.  However there where some interesting winners.  Jamie Lee Curtis, daughter of Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh, both nominated Oscar winners, finely won an Oscar for her supporting role in the Movie, "Everything Everywhere All At Once."  

I saw that film on HBO/MAX.  It was fantastic.  It called out to my teenage self and my love of the superhero.  That and the fact I am a huge Michelle Yeoh fan.  "Everything Everywhere All At Once" swept the Oscars winning 7 out of the 11 nominations that it got.  I was pleased.

What I wasn't so pleased about was that Angela Bassett did not get her Oscar for her supporting role as Queen Ramonda.  She lost to Jamie Lee Curtis.  So many really good movies with really good actors this year must have been a nightmare of choosing for the Academy.  

I must keep in mind we are talking about Hollywood.  Historically Hollywood has been one of the most political and possibly corrupt, "Governments" on the face of the planet, and we really don't know what goes into choosing a winner.  

So, who is this fellow anyways.  The individual that society has diafied and personified into the golden image of the modern god of entertainment.  It could be Harmon Oscar Nelson, we may never know.  Betty Davis could be chuckling from the beyond.  There is also the possibility that Oscar is just another alien in disguise.  Faceless and stoic.  

Peace and Balance,

John

Who are the Aliens?

 

 A couple thousand years ago human beings thought intelligence's from other places, our first impressions, where either considered gods, or angels.  For millennia we worshiped these beings as our creators and the teachers that were supposed to be leading us to a better place, Heaven or Hell. 

As our understandings of these intelligences grow so do our thoughts and pictures about the nature of these beings.  Our Angels and gods became visitors from other worldly places, and the craft they travel in changed from the Chariots of the Gods, to the space craft that Aliens use to travel from one place to another.   Our Angels have become our Aliens.  

For those of us who have not let go of old ideas about the nature of other worldly beings, Religions have been developed based on old ideas of gods and angels.  Human beings have created ideas of all seeing benevolent overlords with our best interest at heart.  It is our job to worship these beings blindly and follow all instructions given to us on our paths to Heaven.  Now, there are old stories of a war in heaven.  The Winners, the kind and benevolent ones, have given us a directive, "Do what we say."  So, we do, should we?

It is said that the spoils go to the victors.  How do we know that the victors in this war were actually the good guys?  Because we are told to believe, have faith, worship?  A couple hundred years ago, even up to today, I would be and am considered a Heretic.   Then I would have been hanged, burned, drowned, and possibly quartered.  Today I am condemned to a fiery Hell by those who, "Know" the Lord.  I have my doubts that these Godly people really know what it is they speak.  I guess ignorance is bliss. 

Today we are in the throws of yet another change in understanding.  Our Aliens are reverting back into us by way of time.  Human understanding of unknown creatures visiting us are either, Us traveling back in time, or what have been called, "The Visitors" traveling through time and space to meet us.  We then are possibly the Creator in the first place.  We created Ourselves.  Convoluted...

The smarter we get, the more confused we are about the nature of, "Heaven and Hell."  Through this all, we still hold on to God.  However, the Guru in us would say, "If you want to talk with God, look into a mirror and start speaking."  So, they tell me I'm going to Hell. These Godly people. 

For me, I just speak, or think, or talk to my friends.  God is everywhere is it not?

A long time ago we had our gods and angels.  There was a war.  Someone won that war.  What was the war over?  Possibly We are the prize, and the war is a huge identity crisis.  

Who were the winners, and who were the losers?  An answer to both questions, Us.  As our understandings grow, I am not afraid to look into the reflection of a pond and declare, "I AM God." 

Who are You?

Peace and Balance,

John