From Hope and Audacity to the Absurd

I have been waiting for this for some time and now the time has come.

You know, America is on the verge. Here is an article that I inserted in a recent Post:

http://thefederalist.com/2015/07/20/europe-is-partying-like-its-1939/

Read it. Then you sit down calmly and insert America in the place of Europe in the link.

Then you put the last two paragraphs in here. OK, OK I shall do it for you.

“Human nature hasn’t changed one iota. Thugs like Vladimir Putin and Islamofascists like ISIS understand the bloody mathematics of power in the way the espresso-sippers refuse to. Ukraine will fall. The Baltics will fall. Turkey will fall. The Balkans will fall. Europe will fall.

This is the fiesta before the storm, and America is busy partying like it’s 1939. These are the New Wilderness Years, except this time the bad guys are going to win.”

There you are. I put them in for you; please note that I have deleted Europe and inserted America in its place.

Now ignore the first one that I inserted. I have put it in italics for you; it’s nonsense, not going to happen that way.

Now you give the incumbent Kenindonesian his third term. More than half of American voters are crazy enough to do it; go ahead and let them have it.

Now you send some American emissaries with some brains left to see Putin in Russia and President Xi Jinping in China. Put your hands out to them and make friends; don’t mess this up. They are not your enemies.

While your emissaries are there let them close down your military bases in Vietnam and Korea, and move your NATO forces out as well; send them home. You will need them there; your new and real friends in Russia and China will keep Iran at bay; don’t fret; Turkey will work with them. Just leave it all to Russia and China; it is their domain and they will do the right thing.

When you have done that, get home to American soil as fast as you can; you have big trouble there and you have little time left if you want to contain it.

In the final instance, cease your sanctions against Russia. You are going to have to pay a heavy price for that stupidity. Just stop the nonsense before it takes you down.

Ike Jakson

In Americus GA saka Americoon

ikejakson@gmail.com

 

History Part 2

My first Post in this series simply called HISTORY was always going to be Part One but I thought about it and dropped the Part One words from the Headline because I wasn’t sure when I was going to do the next one and how many there will be.

This is it now and I can say that I expect the series to go up to Part 6 or thereabouts.

This one is also like the first One different from what will follow in the Parts to come and I want to establish certain principles of history that is quite obviously unknown or not generally understood. Maybe they are only my opinions but I shall leave every reader deciding on his/her own conclusions.

The first point is that though it should not be so any opinion of recorded history largely depends on who wrote the book and/or who reads it. AND [kindly note the capitals] unfortunately it also depends on when it was written and when it is read.

In my own reading career I once read Memoirs of General Grivas on the Cyprus wars between Greeks and Turks. I couldn’t make up my mind who to support. When I read the book again 20 years later I still could not take sides between Grivas and Makarios and be honest with myself.

In the early sixties I read Glimpses of World History by Jawaharlal Nehru and was impressed. Thirty years later I was even more impressed by the great Man when I read the book again. I put him above Gandhi on the World scales of measurement of greatness. The strange anomaly in our country is that many people remember Gandhi [some despise him and some adore him; personally I don’t see him as any great figure in History] but very few ever read anything on Nehru.

My third and last example on the point should suffice.

Having been an adult life long supporter of a multi racial but united South Africa [classified as an extreme Liberal which I was not, though I was a Paton admirer and Fan] I could hardly wait to buy my personal copy of Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela.

I tried to read the book; put it aside several times and tried again and again but something didn’t gel; it became obvious that it was not Mandela’s own writing though it was enthusiastically promoted as the words of the “Great Icon.” I put the book aside for a number of years and re-read it after his attack on America with the warning about Gadaffi that “your enemies are not our enemies,” and after he had informed his successor, a wimp of a man called Thabo Mbeki, to give the prisoners the vote in M’Beki’s election to the Presidency in 1999. That time I managed to get through it with a feeling of despair for our country growing in my mind. The book was nothing more than a personal song of praise to an enormous ego in a large vacuum of utter emptiness.

I have learned to read all history as the opinion of one person. This is therefore, the way you can and should, read this. It is an opinion and I would like to hear from you before I go onto a very important Part Three about parallels and repetition of history.

You may read this Post in the meantime:

http://thefederalist.com/2015/07/20/europe-is-partying-like-its-1939/

 Ike Jakson

In Americus GA saka Americoon

ikejakson@gmail.com

 

History with a short glance at Greece today

J.F Kennedy ran for and won the American Presidential Election in the year I had turned 20.

The youth of the time were not as bright as the young ones of today; we didn’t yet know everything but we did speak a lot about how much we knew.

A disease named VD scared most of us but not everyone; in my time though, only one friend collected the dubious distinction; most of us married the first girl he got to know.

Some years later as the youth got to know more somebody announced the discovery of a more serious affliction than VD and they called it Herpes. As young ones became cleverer and soon knew everything they also discovered Aids but that was long after our time.

Some wise crack in his mid twenties came out with the rather comical joke during the Herpes period.

Question: What is the difference between Love and Herpes?

Answer: Herpes lasts forever.

Now that everyone knows everything when he/she is 18, even has the vote [heck in our time we had to wait for 21]; heck, I wonder who can solve this riddle.

Question: What is the difference between Greece and the EU?

Ah well, I am old enough now and Greece is very old; let me give you the answer:

What is the difference? Answer: Greece will last forever.

http://www.fin24.com/Markets/Currencies/Euro-edges-up-in-Asia-as-concerns-ease-over-Greece-20150724

Rest my case.

 Ike Jakson

In Americus GA saka Americoon

ikejakson@gmail.com

 

In Memorial to Eric Goodall

One of the finest sons of Old England would have been 86 today; he was a great man and he was my friend.

 I have never forgotten you, Eric.  As you can see I always kept your birthday and I saw it coming up on my computer diary this day.  Don’t know and can’t explain why I didn’t think about doing this before but here it is.

 Your dear and pretty wife, Elyshia, and you played a massive role in the successes I made and were always there when I was down.  Your lovely daughter, Sally, when we last spoke about ten year ago was married and living in Germany; young Jason was doing England proud in South Africa but all my efforts to try locating him failed.  Why have I forgotten your first son’s name?  Was it David or Andrew?

 I am sure where you are now my two brothers who are also there would have liked to meet you if they could find you.

 I was looking forward so much to meet you when you came out here again that year; must have been about 2005 and you fell ill while you were here in Cape Town so we couldn’t meet, and then I changed email address more than once but always wrote you to the one I had of you until I had to realize that you had probably moved on.

 Any one of your family may email me any time they wish.

 Happy birthday, old Friend.  My keyboard has just recorded the new day down our way, Friday, July 24, 2015.  This year about the same time of the year as today we have known each other 44 years.  It was in 1971 when we met; you remember?  In Old Johannesburg, but Old African Life that you helped build has changed and is no more.  Our daughter is now a citizen on your old shores.  The South Africa you helped build is no more.

 Jeff Francis passed on I heard.  The man of old Ireland, Fiacre O’Hanrahan has also gone I suppose.

 Let one of your young ones email me.  I would like to talk to them.  I will be 75 on the 3^rd of next month, you remember?  Your god-daughter has worked and added three specialist degrees behind her name.  I so wished she could learn to get to know you but it was not to be.

 Rest well, my friend.  You always were and still are a very special man.

 Ike Jakson

In Americus GA saka Americoon

ikejakson@gmail.com

American Cartooning

The Billary Kitchen Set.  

Compliments to Iowa Jim.

 

Ike Jakson

In Americus GA saka Americoon

ikejakson@gmail.com

History

This one word headline should be the one word that should be universally accepted without any complications or misunderstanding and should thus be generally acceptable to all situations and in all discussions, but is, quite regrettably not the case.  It has been used and abused so much by so many that it attracts more controversy and disagreement than space age science, the latter which should of course be a misnomer.

Let’s get off that and look at history.

It is not written or made in a day.  Hillary Clinton called it Living History and pointed to all the cracks in the glass ceiling; the silly woman is a nut case.  Her philandering husband concentrated all his efforts on getting gays in the army when he was not chasing skirt around the White House.

I always marvel at the serious history buff going back to events of 1 000 years ago; they quote old battles between city Kingdoms and Magna Carta but I don’t see or cannot find the relevance of any of that in what faces the World right now.

What lies ahead of us for the half century from 2010 tom 2060 will be determined by what has been recorded in the past two centuries from 1810 to 2010.  In fact it will largely be decided by what we have done to the world in the recent fifty years of 1960 to 2010.  You can wipe the rest of the table.  We have a New World out there.

We will have to get out of Space; there is absolutely nothing up there that we can use to solve the problems on Earth.

Spread the flat earth map out on the table or use the round Globe if you wish and think for a moment.

Look at the Great Continents and try figure out how many we have.  The numbers are in dispute but whatever they are you will find Russia and China close to each other way up North East; way round to the West you will locate Northern America and Canada; south of that you will find south America with Brazil and Mexico.  In between these two extremes you will find Europe in the North and Africa in the south with, thank heavens Australia down south almost exactly below or on the side away from Africa.

You can go on and try to find the EU nations in Western Europe and all the little islands scattered around the seven seas but that is not going to change the picture.

Do you as the reader know how much of all this existed in 1810?  The simple answer is all of it exactly like now but for one important difference that started in 1960 or thereabouts.

World populations have started migrating again; in waves of them hither and dither in search of the Heavens know what but we are at loggerheads with each other again.

 And we have a new problem.  Some will say that it has always been there and I will grant the point, but it has become a lot worse than before.  Yes, we had poverty in the old Worlds and lots of hardship that came with that but poverty levels have escalated while we are messing around with Cyber Space with our eyes and heads in the Skies.

 People are starving while we busy ourselves with a renewed arms race.  Underneath all that, so unobtrusive that it shouts at the heavens, trade and the control of money has been handed to the few [the 1% of 1% of the World population] that are manipulating it on the Internet and call it Forex.

 We have no money left.  I see an enormous catastrophe looming before we reach 2020.

 But there is some hope; just yesterday a feller [big guy at the annual Davos horse and pony show] published this in his daily Newsletter:

 {Start of fun}

 “Yesterday a friend of many years introduced me to E-Smart Foods, a South African invention he’s involved with. Using lettuce as an example, he explained the test unit of their business is generating an annual 500 kg/sq of food. By comparison, conventional farming delivers around 7.5 kg and the best hydroponic systems up to 80 kg.

 The plants are grown in interlocking vertical pipes in greenhouses. The smart bit is in the design which makes water more efficient in delivering nutrients to the plant’s root system, dramatically
accelerating growth. Funding was provided by a wealthy Singaporian entrepreneur who is now building similar greenhouses in East Asia and intends listing the company on his local stock exchange.

 Earlier in the week another pal had me fascinated with his story about a group of former Pelindaba nuclear physicists whose business is proving Thorium as a cheap, safe alternative to uranium. Like E-Smart Foods, their idea also has the potential to change the world. It’s good to see that although many of South Africa’s brightest have taken their talents elsewhere, there’s still plenty of brainpower left here.

 {end of fun}

 Ike Jakson

In Americus GA saka Americoon

ikejakson@gmail.com

 

Aristotle Socrates Onassis of Greece

Can anyone be more Greek than the names in the Headline?

If you have not read Greek Philosophy in the past read this now that Greece is in the news every day.

The great man once [it was close on fifty years ago] took delivery of three new oil tankers in one transaction with a consortium of banks and an ignoramus of a Western News rag asked him about the cost.

“And why three tankers at the same time,” he asked Onassis, adding “that must have cost you quite a penny.”

“Young man,” said Onassis, “let me explain to you how money works at the banks.”

“The banks, Sir, Mister Onassis,” the young reporter asked.

“Yes, young man,” said Onassis,” I don’t own the new vessels yet. The banks advanced me the money to buy them and I must now make sure that they earn the money for me to pay the banks.”

“But what happens if you can’t pay the money?”

“Let me explain, young man,” said Onassis, “when I asked the bank for 100 million [that was the cost of one tanker at the time] they offered me 300 million so I can buy three tankers. I accepted their offer; the attorneys completed the forms and the banks and I signed, and you have now seen my three new tankers.”

“But Sir, Mister Onassis, what happens if you can’t pay the money back?”

“Young man,” said Onassis, “I can now see why you are only a small reporter for a small Ragazine. Allow me asking you a question?”

That pleased the young reporter. “Sure Sir, fire ahead.”

“OK,” the wise old guy said, “tell me what will happen if you owe the bank 1 000 and you can’t repay it?”

“I shall be in trouble, Sir.”

And if you owe the bank 3 000 and can’t pay?”

“I shall be in big trouble, Sir, Mister Onassis. But I don’t understand your line of questioning. I can’t even buy a small boat with a mini engine for 1 000.”

”Son,’ Onassis said, “that I can understand but you have to understand banks and big money. What do you think will happen if I bought only one tanker for 100 million and can’t pay?”

“I guess you will be in trouble, beg your pardon for saying so, Sir.”

“No, young man, that’s not how banks work. I shall explain it to you in short. If I owed them 100 million for one tanker and can’t pay they will be in trouble. With 300 million on three tankers if I can’t pay they will be in big trouble. That’s also the reason I borrow the money from a consortium of foreign banks for the safety of Greece. They are literally willing to throw us as much money as we ask for.

This comes to you with compliments and acknowledgement for the story to Readers Digest.

In the EU at this time Frau Merkel is in big trouble.

 Ike Jakson

In Americus GA saka Americoon

ikejakson@gmail.com

 

The common predicament Greece shares with America

The entire World Media is focused on Greece and Grexit from the EU right now but I shall only give you two links of the past few days with two entirely different viewpoints by two equally well qualified experts on the subject: 

1. from the UK Guardian: 

http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/jun/16/greek-exit-prospect-eurozone-athens-tsipras-eu-imf?CMP=EMCNEWEML6619I2 

2. from Fin24 South Africa: 

http://www.fin24.com/Opinion/Greece-flying-too-high-20150709

Our country trade with America and Europe; thus we should know.

It’s become a riddle to many but the answer is really very simple.

It’s the inevitable result of the melting pot theory. In the beginning America chucked everything into the pot and it worked for a while but eventually needed buyers to trade with; sitting out there on the other side of the pond made it somewhat difficult.

Europe in the meantime would have nothing of this melting pot business though Russia had tried it for a while. China would have nothing of it whatsoever and America decided Europe was a good place to sell their excess production of armaments to willing European buyers. Ah, said some crazy European, we have to stop the Americans; let us start are own melting pot and keep America at a distance.

Meantime Russia and China made friends with each other; with India and some others in their part of their hemispheres and would not touch melting pots with bargepoles. They worked at it with Australia and pretty soon became self-sufficient; then they moved into Africa in a big way and now virtually control all trade in the eastern Hemisphere.

Melting pots don’t work in modern trade; two many cooks spoil the broth.

To crown it all, right there in the middle of Europe sits an independent Switzerland with their hands firmly on Forex and the money; Scandinavia is not going to be dictated by the EU; Turkey will side with Turkey and where they can get the best deals; Portugal has got Brazil; India owns half of the UK and the American East Coast, or all the parts not owned by China. Come on folks the end of the EU is nigh.

My prediction in a nutshell:

Frau Merkel is trying her best but much too hard; she will soon make a mistake and find her allies leaving her.

Greece will survive.

The EU will disband. We will have a Brexit to start with. Then the EU will go Poof, to quote President George W Bush.

And just on the side; what are the Americans think they will achieve with their military bases in Korea and Vietnam except trying to annoy the Russians and China. It’s high time for America to bring their troops home.

 Ike Jakson

In Americus GA saka Americoon

ikejakson@gmail.com

 

The Education level of the Internet

Try changing the font display size in Google Chrome; double dare you. You will find the answer to the Headline question; have your pick:

Zero

Zilch

Nil

Nothing

Minus sub Zero

Destroying all brain functions

Etc. Repeat one million times.

Then you wonder why kids just out of high school don’t know how far China is from Russia? Ask any number in your town and photograph the blank stares in the eyes nine out of ten times, if not all ten. But they will all walk around with tablets and laptops or smart phones.

Then add two and two together and let your mind roam about the fact that they all have the vote! What is this World coming to?

 Ike Jakson

Saka Americoon in Americus GA USA

ikejakson@gmail.com

 

South African English

I have a Blogging buddy and very good friend in Upper New York State.  He lived in NOLA once but says he was blown out of there by Katrina and eventually landed in Billary’s adopted State when they moved there on her first phase of getting into the White House.

 This dear friend always enquired about my Dutch Origins because he is interested in linguistics; he is actually very sharp in it; heck, he can quote French and Italian in English.

 Now, if you know linguistics you will know that Afrikaans is the South African derivation of Dutch, but there is a lot more to it.  Dutch, Flemish, Danish, and also German and a host of others are part of the family known as the Germanic languages.  I explained it to him in reply to an email.  He is my favorite emailer buddy.  For your convenience I place my email reply in Italics:

 The Danes and Netherlands have a lot in common, more so than the German side, and then the Flemish is even closer than the Dutch in certain words and expressions to Afrikaans, the latter having the original Dutch settler base but rapidly mixed, first with the lingo franca of the French settlers plus all the others as they stepped ashore in the Deepest South on the Globe over more than one century following the first Dutch.  The country was for a while a similar melting pot of languages much like you have in the States.

 However, and that is the difference with your current situation; whereas the Brit followed right on the heels of the Dutch and the others soon afterwards, all[except the French] readily switched to form an African English, the new Caucasian settlers [yes, believe it or not] for a while outnumbered the blacks in Sub-Galagharri [that’s the new PC for pure Afrikaans Kalahari [a desert part in our North West] which in the entire mix forced the blacks to learn some of the language patterns of whatever the white man brought with him; the white man in turn had to adjust his language of origin to the blacks who came down from the north in search of food or protection from the other blacks that were chasing them to steal their cattle and their wives; men were killed, no prisoners taken.

 Out of all that [you figure it] Afrikaans was born.  The puritan white Afrikaner won’t admit it and a good few may secretly want to kill any other whitey for the admission that many of the words in our new language were adapted from whatever the white guy understood from his conversations with the black guy and what the latter was saying.  And of course, some natural biological activities“ across the color line” occurred at an early stage; probably during the same time George Washington was spreading his genetics around a bit.

 Who knows what I am; you tell me.

 I am developing a theory and it is well grounded in research though it is most Non PC to express it that the somewhat larger early white mix stopped the extinction or complete annihilation of the black tribes in Sub-Galaghari [whatever the darn name is].  “What was left of the SA Black tribes today except the black skin is in reality as African as much as you are one”, I said to my email friend.

 A very good example but one that is not openly discussed is the different English spoken by Black Zimbabwe just north of us in black South Africa.  You can argue your head off but you will find only one reason for it; the English missionary in Uncle Robert’s Zimbabwe spoke the Queen or King’s English to her subjects and they just had to damn well learn it.  Our blacks never mastered English and still can’t speak it but they are trying to introduce home language education in our schools.  White South Africans just raise their eyebrows and ask “Which one of the eleven black SA languages do you want to use in teaching maths?”

 You must look at the size of the continent; consider how many Indian tribes you had killing each other and try work out what would have been today if you did not protect the black slaves from the Indian warriors.  It’s not all that cynical as it may sound to some.

 Then you elected Obama?  Our Black population had been in power for more than 14 years at the time and had not made a single effort to learn how to speak English.  In fact, they had started burning down the Afrikaans and Dutch schools since 1976 and you should remember who was running for President in your Country at that time.

 I could never understand why President Nixon even bothered to burglar Watergate [unless he wanted to prevent another Chicago 1968] but it was even more difficult to even begin to comprehend why you wanted to get the right President for the time out of the way [that was an awfully BEEG mistake], and thus leaving the door open for Jimmy.

 Lordy …. Lordy?!  What did you expect?”

 Email quote done; rest my case.

 

Ike Jakson

Saka Americoon in Americus GA

ikejakson@gmail.com