Day: February 20, 2024

Are Nukes In Space a Real Threat?

The blogosphere is a light with news and opinions on a new ‘threat’.

Recently a report came out the we had a ‘serious national security threat’….and of course I had to write and give my opinion….

Just a subtle reminder….

“A Serious National Security Threat”

I think it was a GOP ploy to game the system….but a smarter person than me had a different take on the news….

Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson said he is “skeptical” of the threat posed by the development of a Russian anti-satellite capability in a recent interview on CNN.

“[I]n terms of destroying another satellite, like I said, there [are] already ways to do that. There are these… what they call kinetic kills, where you can take a missile, no explosives necessary at all, because the satellite’s already moving 18,000 miles an hour,” Tyson said in the interview with CNN’s Abby Phillip.

“All you have to do is get in its way, and the thing explodes,” Tyson continued. “Russia’s done it, China’s done it, we’ve done it, India has done it. So… and then you can target the satellite at will. If you’re stuck in orbit, you might not be near a satellite that you wanna take out. You have to wait until the orbits line up… just seems so inefficient. So, I’m just skeptical of how dangerous this thing can be, relative to everyone’s emotions attached to it.”

White House national security communications adviser John Kirby also said Thursday that the anti-satellite capability wasn’t “active” or deployed yet, but called Russia’s pursuit of it “troubling.”

“We’re not talking about a weapon that can be used to attack human beings or cause physical destruction here on Earth,” Kirby said. 

(thehill.com)

While Tyson is correct I still like my opinion better (of course I would) the timing of the announcement was suspect to aid in the passing of the multi-million dollar aid package for Ukraine (and Israel and Taiwan).

These slugs in Congress will try anything to con people into following their lead.

I’m finished now…..but I may return if news warrants more of my opinionated stuff.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Is ISIS A Threat?

Think back about 5 years ago when the news and the blogosphere was awash in the dire predictions of ISIS…..from hidden among immigrants on the border to a conspiracy to eliminate everyone that is different…..these predictions were everywhere.

But that was years ago and the country has moved on to other ‘impending doom’ to try and capitalize on moving forward.

Things like nukes in space or HAMAS hidden among immigrants on the border (that one seems to persist no matter the problem) to the upcoming doom of 2024 elections to what Taylor Swift was wearing at the Grammys…..like I said real important stuff.

A new report seems to tell the tale of a dying ‘movement’……

ISIS attacks in Iraq and Syria remain at all-time lows despite fears that Middle East tensions related to the war in Gaza could lead to a resurgence of the group, according to a new report by independent U.S. government watchdogs.

In 2020, ISIS carried out as many as 200 attacks each month in Iraq and Syria. It now claims fewer than 40 monthly strikes. Despite calls by ISIS leaders to target Israeli and Western interests, the watchdogs report that the group now likely lacks the “intent and capability to direct attacks against the U.S. homeland.”

The report paints a dismal picture of the once-powerful militant group’s operations in Iraq and Syria, where it controlled huge swathes of territory in the mid-2010s. “ISIS’s capacity to conduct insurgent activities remained severely degraded in Iraq and Syria,” the watchdogs note, adding that the group now carries out fewer attacks near cities.

The group’s operations now appear more akin to a failing crime syndicate than a powerful terror group. Crackdowns on ISIS finances have left the organization unable to consistently pay its fighters, according to the report. Even ISIS leaders are paid only “sporadically” with funds drawn from buried caches of money hidden in locations across Iraq and Syria.

The inspectors general of the State Department, Defense Department, and USAID authored the report, which is part of a congressionally mandated series of updates on Operation Inherent Resolve, America’s campaign to defeat ISIS.

https://responsiblestatecraft.org/isis-syria/

Is that one less thing to worry about?

You decide.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”