They Can See It Coming

 

August 21, 2026

 

I don’t know where Vince Flynn and Kyle Mills got/get their ideas for Mitch Rapp novels, but they sure can hit the mark.

 

In a previous post, I wrote about Kyle Mills giving a step-by-step scenario of how a pandemic would play out, before the 2020 COVID pandemic.

 

In Protect and Defend, written by Vince Flynn and published in 2007, Iran threatens to close the Strait of Hormuz. The idea is seen as laughable in the book, and yet, here we are.

 

I hope that other negative scenarios that they envision don’t play out.

 

Maybe It Can Give Me Wardrobe Advice

 

August 21, 2026

 

We’re getting a new washer. The old one would have cost a bundle to repair, so we went with new.

 

It turns out that the new one has some sort of AI feature that can tell what your clothes need in the way of rinsing, spinning, etc. I thought that previous models had sensors that could do the same thing, but technology marches on.

 

So, now I’m wondering what else the AI will do. Will it somehow be able to tell the makeup of my wardrobe? “Let’s see—Walmart, Loft, Penney’s, Macy’s…” Will it arrange to have some other AI entity let me know when things that I normally buy are on sale? Maybe send me flyers or send messages to my inbox?

 

Maybe it can even tailor the sales advice to cover only items that would look good on me. “Nope, don’t tell her about that. But make sure she knows about this one.”

 

The possibilities are intriguing.

 

Just Say It

 

August 4, 2026

 

 

Charges against all the alleged vandals of DC’s Reflecting Pool were dropped. Investigation determined that it was errors by contractors, not vandalism, that caused the damage.

 

 

President Trump, displeased at having his responsibility-shuffling claims disproved, excoriated Jeanine Pirro, the US Attorney, saying she “choked”. “I don’t know what she was thinking,” he proclaimed.

 

 

Pirro did not respond. Probably for the best, if she was thinking what anyone else would have thought at the time.

 

 

But here’s what she could have said, and didn’t: “I did what was right.”

 

 

The fact that she didn’t makes me nervous. Will she cave to the next demand that she prosecute innocent people, just to make the president feel better?

 

 

You’re in the right, here, Ms. Pirro. Just stand tall and say it.

 

 

“I did what was right.”

 

Stop the Steal

 

July 29, 2026

 

I mentioned before that cutting off President Trump’s funding for frivolities might be the only way to get his attention and end the Iran war. I specified his Arch, but there’s also his ballroom, his Kennedy Center name change, the military parades and other self-aggrandizing moves that are costing the U.S. millions.

 

Now he wants a sign in front of the Smithsonian, warning of “inaccurate” history.

 

Setting aside the legality of lying about the exhibits, those installations aren’t cheap.

 

I’m serious. Congress should say, “No more spending on crap, Mr. President. We have a country to run while you’re trying to bankrupt it.” (I would mention the citizens, who are negatively affected in their everyday lives, but Congress hasn’t demonstrated too much concern, so that idea is a non-starter.)

 

Tighten his belt, Congress.