Category: Current Events
Posted on July 28, 2024
Violence Is the Last Refuge of the Incompetent
I am fond of a saying Isaac Asimov coined in his Foundation series: violence is the last refuge of the incompetent. It’s used as an insult towards those who jump to violence because they cannot—or will not—work through …
Posted on October 8, 2023
We Have No Songs for Great Halls and Evil Times
The past few weeks have been heartbreaking. Russia continues its unjust invasion of Ukraine, purposefully targeting civilians in an effort to break the Ukrainian’s spirit. Azerbaijan launched another attack against Armenia. And just last night, Hamas crossed from …
Posted on July 30, 2023
Spirit and Letter: Israel in Crisis
“Israel in Crisis” has led many headlines over the years. Rarely, though, has it been so self-inflicted. I spent a considerable amount of time in Israel across a dozen-plus trips over four years. My Israeli counterparts and I …
Posted on July 2, 2023
Big Trouble in Little Moscow: Wagner, Prigozhin, and Putin
In one of the more mindboggling turns of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, I get to write the following sentence: a former caterer-turned-mercenary-warlord led an armed insurrection against the Russian government. His Wagner forces got within a few hundred …
Posted on March 26, 2023
Terms and Conditions Apply
I took a big step this week and bought a new TV for the first time in ten years. I could talk to how wonderful it is to have in-depth technical reviews of almost any product imaginable available …
Updated on February 5, 2023
ChatGPT, So Hot Right Now
“A wise man can get more use from his enemies than a fool from his friends.” – Baltasar Gracian They’ve done it. They went and ruined my writing career before it ever had a chance, and they …
Posted on November 6, 2022
Russia, Iran, and Autocratic Friendship Circles
I live my life by a simple set of rules. Rule Number One? Don’t go to jail. It’s not relevant to today’s Wandering, but it always bears repeating. Rules Number Two and Three, however, are germane: read, and …
Posted on October 24, 2022
Xi Jinping and China’s Downhill Sprint
‘90s rap is a trove of wisdom and quips. Coolio coined the phrase “Ain’t no party like a West Coast party / ‘Cause a West Coast party don’t stop” back in 1995. In homage to Professor Coolio and …
Posted on July 31, 2022
Individualism versus Community
As an American, I was raised on a steady diet of individualism and what it brings to the world. At the same time, my upbringing in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints highlighted how community …
Posted on July 18, 2022
Cybersecurity and the Infinite Game
Cyberspace. The infinite game. Sounds like a pitch meeting for the next Tron meeting. Alas, it’s just another ham-fisted attempt to glean Sec+ CEUs via blogpost. Today’s stretched metaphor will crib from Simon Sinek’s book The Infinite Game …
