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Military and Irregular (IW): The importance and the necessity of "thinking out of the box"

Firing Range at Camp Swezey 1943 All Chinese American Unit US Army Airborne and "Flying Tigers" 14 Air Force The military world is changing and has been on the path of movement from large ground troop invasions to highly specialized force incursions. As we are updating and changing our military into a Digital Era warfare system we must keep in mind that similar trends of adjustment will occur on low cost militaries ( and large scale ) that don't have access to emerging technologies ( As one strategy/resource adjusts other militaries adjust to find a competitive position. Large armies have formal hierarchy with designated resources while non-traditional irregular armies {i.e. ISIS, Taliban approach, mercenaries, insurgents, amebic groups, etc.} will utilize low cost with amebic structures to their advantage .) We created the Irregular Warfare Functional Center (IWFC) with the passage of the Mac Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act of 2021 . One of the goals is to

Spending Time in Big Bear: I Still Think of Mountaineering and Climbing. (The Outdoor Industry)

Purchase Digital in Gallery  HERE Big Bear CA is one of those places where people love to have weekend getaways and downhill ski, hike, fishing or hang out on the lake. It is also a place where you will really enjoy the outdoors. Its about 7,000 feet above sea level so its not way up there but you could notice a little climate change and a a touch of thinness of air. Mostly it is just a place to vacation and live nestled into a mountain surrounded by nature. Residents remind me of people who live in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. They are a little isolated, surrounded by nature, and everything is very clean ( You can read about an analysis I'm currently doing on how to attract businesses and outdoor recreation to Delta County Michigan. HERE . ) When your in eclectic places like this I often start to think about climbing and mountaineering. I started a little on that path about 5 years ago and was thinking of maybe training to climb Everest ( I still sort of think of it but time a

The Difference Between Active, Passive and Indifference to Hate and Its Systemic Risks to Democracy

Most of you know my family and I have been targeted by a group of people whom I have no issue with but who owe blind loyalty to certain members of their social networks ( They became an easily exploitable tool because they already held preexisting bias that could be radicalized. A small minority of members with corroded values could influence a much larger group to become supporters on one level or another. It isn't unique because its my family but it is unique because its a good example of how things might sort of work on a real granular level within our American communities. If it is true and common it creates system risks to democracy. )There are things I learned beyond the awareness of how quick you can spread rumors and act against "worthy" targets ( Think back to when we did this at other times in history . ie. Tulsa massacre, Nazi regimes, Rwanda, Bosnia, Confederate south, etc..,   There are lots of them. Its called scapegoating and its dangerous and immoral. Its

Do-it-Yourself Market Growth Expected to be Worth 1,278 Billion by 2030 (Boat Example)

On the docks. Unfortunately, it was taken with cell. Professional camera didn't save the pictures. There are some people who like to work with their hands do things themselves because they enjoy the process of creating and fixing things. We have tinkered with our environment since the beginning of our species and it has led to some interesting discoveries and societal advancements. In recent history we have become more inclined to hire expensive technicians with specialized training versus tinkering to our own solutions. For some that trend is reversing and Do-it-Yourself market is growing rapidly. Let me tell you why through a story of my boat. Do-It-Yourself Market Size: First let us understand that the annual growth rate of Do-It-Yourself market is 38% and it is expected to reach 1,278.00 billion dollars by 2030. You can read more about that HERE . The market is imperfectly defined leaning heavily in housing repair as one of the most common do-it-yourself expenses. ( It says the

Threats To Democracy: Hometown Hate and National Decision Making

American democracy was born based on the necessity of having a place on earth that one could live freely without the suppression of old Europe and the old way of thinking. The people who stepped off of the first boats built a nation that allowed them to have free lives where they could worship and raise their families in peace. Bouncing forward a few hundred years we find ourselves in the very same struggles for the soul of what we represent as a nation ( Our need to be self reflective doesn't change ).  The U.S. has two fundamental rights within the Constitution and those include the freedom of religion and the freedom of speech. One is to allow men ( as a general mankind term ) to live free and the other to allow such men to talk about how to keep their nation free ( freedom of speech is a mechanism to overcome wrong just like it is in this case. ).  Moving 400 years into the future and we find that hometown hate, with its preexisting judgements on which religions and people are

Cut River Bridge in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan

You may enjoy this picture of a bridge. Very cleanly painted green with the colors in the background. It is an interesting one taken a few weeks ago in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. If you don't know the area it is pristine with small villages and lots of Great Lakes coastal access. Communities like Escanaba, about 2 hours west of this picture, are ripe for investment and have been receiving increased interest. The economy relies heavily on tourism but there are other industries starting to grow and develop as well.  You may purchase as a digital print in the gallery HERE .

Two PRC Intelligence Officers Arrested and 13 Charged in Trying to Influence Global Telecommunications Case

We are in a somewhat complex world where all types of things are happening all the time and some of those activities are subversive by nature. Two nations have grown into super powers. Each with unique and shared supply networks. Trade conflicts have increased in recent years and there is a level of sizing, flexing and pacing to determine influence. I would suspect as competition rises so will the reliance on espionage and other hacking/digital methods increase. Ideas, science, inventions and development are worth a lot in todays world where such information is no longer being loosely spewed into the market in any old haphazard way ( i.e. allowing for it to be collected for a long long time with no controls. We are now adjusting our data networks, increasing security and becoming smart on bringing back manufacturing. ).  I'm sort of looking at the case and wondering how $61K is enough to sell out one's country? However, I would suspect if you were leaning already in that direct