Ehlana and Ethan:
Happy 42nd Birthday, Uncle Mark!
The birthday dinner and game night at the Inn were the entertainment highlights of our day; we had some after school biking fun too; and helped with next-gen kids during that meal while the adults were busy with the birthday roasting and other entertainment. The rest of our day was good too, but uneventful; and we’ve had a quiet night since getting home – if you don’t include the sound of the thunder that has come along with the storms that will be in the area for half the night before moving out of the area. Mom didn’t want us to do any work in the office tonight after getting home from the Inn, but we did deal with some chores before the bath or Jacuzzi time; and now we’re taking care of the usual twin chat and computer checks.
Cassie and Michael spent their day working in and around Philadelphia with a mix of business meetings, charity-related meals, and two site visits. They are still on the road as we’re writing this with one of their longest evening drives as they head to Pittsburgh next; and they are going to be tired by the time they get to their hotel. They will also only have time for a nap before getting back to work, but they also want to get a lot done at every stop between there and when they’ll be home in time for the holiday weekend.
The top world news today was the visit between the American and Chinese Presidents. The reports have been surprisingly-quiet; so we’re hoping that President Trump didn’t do anything to insult the Chinese leaders. The few claims that have come out seem insubstantial, and if a two-hundred jet purchase order for Boeing is the best they could do for that level of meetings; then the entire trip was pointless. There were statements about China ‘helping’ with the Strait of Hormuz, but there were no specifics; and we doubt that China will offer to do anything that would actually help with our goals for the Middle East; and President Trump won’t actually want the kind of help that China would like to provide that would require serious concessions on ‘our’ side of the conflict.
On the Ukraine war front, Russia is resuming and expanding their attacks on Ukraine; and Kiev and Odessa are definitely in the cross-hairs now while the fighting on the frontlines are ramping up too as Russian forces push to take full control of the Donbass region. We expect that they will push on beyond those borders; and the Ukrainian leaders should be worried about a total collapse of their armed forces. There is no way for outsiders to know when that will happen, but then the bigger question ought to be whether there will be anything left of Ukraine before or after that happens. Western leaders continue to talk tough and send more money and weapons to Ukraine; and that just proves that they are delusional. A story we saw today about a proposal for a Ukraine war tax on NATO countries to pay for those expenses is more proof of that stupidity, and the Pope apparently agrees with us; since he has stated that the European plans to build up their militaries are a very bad idea and that diplomacy is the answer to bringing peace to the region again.
Finally, we want to mention that worldwide draws on strategic petroleum reserves are continuing, and that affects oil prices, but some countries are already closing in on limits for being able to do that; and we are closing in on the point where those drawdowns will need to stop; and then the problem won’t be price – it will be supply shortages that will lead to economic slowdowns. World leaders can continue to pretend otherwise, but economic output has a direct relationship with energy use whatever the price, so if we get to a point where the supply in down ten or fifteen percent; world output will decline by that amount too. No, that doesn’t mean that the decline will be constant across the world, and poorest countries will be hit hardest, but we should all care about all people; and we do not want to see millions of people moving down from insecurity to desperation. There are some stories about new rounds of migration toward Europe and elsewhere; and that is sure to get worse if our leaders don’t get serious about solving the biggest problems right now.
To bring this part of our update around to that Presidential meeting in China; there weren’t any signs that the two most-powerful leaders in the world made any progress in solving those problems; and we are very sure that two-hundred new jets will not make a difference – unless the plan is to use them for daily flights for desperate migrants needing to relocate to anywhere they might have a chance to survive the consequences that are coming from all of the worst political decisions of the past few decades.
That’s enough for tonight. We’re ready to get some sleep; so we’re going to get started on that right now.
Until next time, live with love, fellow Magi of the Light!
