Yes!

NATO members are actively planning a military confrontation with US forces in the event of a Greenland operation. I am indifferent to adding Greenland to US territories.

This isn’t without historical precedent. Greece and Turkey have nearly come to blows on several occasions, most notably when Turkey invaded majority-Greek Cyprus in 1974, proceeded to occupy nearly 40 percent of the island, and expelled Greek Cypriots from that territory. The occupation continues to this day.

The Royal Air Force has 8x C17A and 22x Airbus A400M air-frames. Using the one third rule for readiness and availability. They have ten effective transport aircraft available at any time. This is unsustainable to transport more than a brigade minus.

The UK is a Turd World country with a teetering First World city in London.

They are huffing and bluffing with very limited military projection capacity.

The French are stretched to the limit to support the deployment of a B[n[CT minus. The French Air Force has 14x C130 and 24x Airbus A400M air-frames. Hence a one third readiness rate of approx 14 minus.

The NATO midgets are a clown posse.

Another note of interest: The US can already “occupy” Greenland under existing agreements [see SOFA/ Defense Agreement].

US out of NATO.

The EU/SSR is an unreliable ally.

In a paper for the influential Bruegel think tank, Moreno Bertoldi and Marco Buti argued that EU governments should “proactively protect Greenland from US expansionism”, adding: “The EU has a rapid deployment capacity and it should be activated.”

In agreement with Copenhagen and Nuuk, they said, European troops should be deployed on the island “as a signal of Europe’s commitment to Greenland’s territorial integrity”. While that would not prevent US annexation, it would render it far more complicated.

“While there would be no need for an armed confrontation, the spectacle of the US taking prisoner the troops of its closest allies would ruin US credibility, tarnish its international reputation and strongly influence the US public and Congress,” they argued.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/12/what-can-the-eu-and-nato-do-to-stop-trump-from-trying-to-claim-greenland

if you are interested in some fascinating Cold War lore, check out the recent discovery of Operation Iceworm in Greenland.

In April 2024, a NASA team conducting research over Greenland stumbled upon an unexpected find. Using radar technology designed to detect hidden structures, they identified what appeared to be an unusual formation beneath the ice. Upon further investigation, the site was confirmed to be Camp Century, a Cold War-era U.S. military base. This base, buried under 100 feet of ice, had been forgotten over the decades. The rediscovery of Camp Century highlights the enduring legacy of Cold War ambitions and the secrets that the ice has preserved.

Camp Century was built between 1959 and 1960 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. It consisted of 21 underground tunnels stretching nearly 9,800 feet. The base was initially established as a scientific research center. However, its true purpose was far more strategic. It was intended as a front for a nuclear weapons program known as “Project Iceworm.” This ambitious plan aimed to house ballistic missiles beneath the ice, with the potential to launch them from this remote location.

“They Just Found a Hidden Nuclear Base”: NASA Uncovers America’s Secret Cold War Project Buried Beneath Greenland’s Melting Ice (And It’s Leaking Danger)

He sat back into his seat, in his man cave. It had been a long day. He held the whisky. It bit when he sipped. Eyes open ahead as he gulped it down. The glass empty. He poured another. He was still in his uniform. The day had been long.

“Are you in there Daddy?” his ten year old asked from the door.

“Yes, go to your mother.”

She walked down the hallway. They knew to leave him alone. His hand still hurt from the last time he had to remind his wife. He closed his eyes and thought about the day.

Some bitch. He clenched his fists as he remembered the face of the woman. She spoke back. Dumb lefty whore. He was doing his job. She should obey him. He was the one who was in the right. Always right. Dumb fucking bitch.

He filled another glass.

“She should have fucking listened,” he grumbled to the bottle.

It his twenty years on the job. He had only shot five people. Killed one. Tonight, it was almost kill number two.

He downed the whisky, dumb bitch.

Sure, he was a little heavy handed on the scumbag he was arresting, Maybe, it was unwise to kick him the face three times while he was cuffed. So what. He was a criminal. The audacity of that bitch to touch him. To stop him from doing his job.

He thought about the woman, in her thirties, blonde. She was fuckable even, just a dumb bitch. She grabbed him by the sleave, pulled him back, Stopped him from hitting the crim…again. Her lefty fingers nearly smeared their pinko piss across his badge.

“Back up,“ he barked.

“You can’t keep hitting that man,” she screamed.

“I can do what I want!” he reminded her.

So, he kicked the crim again. This time in the leg. The bitch pulled him, so he pushed her back. A tussle ensued, he wrestled with her. She was half his weight. But determined. His pistol fired. She fell back. He blew a hole through her shoulder. His partner and a crowd rushed to see.

“Stupid bitch,” he said as she hit the pavement. Blood around her. He picked the criminal up and took him to the car. The dumb bitch was not his problem. The ambulance crew was on her, by the time he had reached the station.

“Why did you not render first aid?” he was asked.

“I was in shock, and had to get the criminal back,” he replied.

“Fair enough.”

The body cam did show her touch him first, it did show her pull him while he was in the process of enforcing the law.

“Actions have consequences,” someone said about her to him.

It had been recorded. He was in the right, his social media feed assured him. But still, there will always be cop hating lefties who will blame the officer during any shooting. Fuck them!

The kid was asleep. He could hear his wife leave the shower. It was getting late. He climbed the stares, whisky and pride perfumed his brain. He stripped down while she dried her hair. She did not say anything, she could tell he’d had a bad day. She knew he was in a mood.

“Come here,” he slurred.

“Not while you’re like this.”

“You will show me some fucking respect,” he spat.

She went to leave. She’d slept in her daughters room often.

“Not tonight,” he growled as he pulled her back. Throwing her to the bed, “no” she begged.

“You will show me respect,” he drooled with rage. His fist found her cheek. She was stunned, tears stinging. He kissed them away, whisky burning her face as he did so. With rough thrusts he re-kindled the marriage in his own mind. His putrid breath puffed their wedding vowels at her while his loins poisoned her with pain. She closed her eyes and left her mind. Once he was done, he rolled over heaving. Then snoring.

She cleaned up and slept alongside her daughter.

The following day, was another morning. Breakfast was made. He was on his way. At the station he was welcomed, “your a good cop. Twenty years on the job, this sort of thing will always happen.”

Some more paperwork, an interview. He was on the road. Everyone agreed with him. Actions have consequences!

That weekend, he was invited to a ball. His wife would also attend. It’s amazing what make up can cover over. And if it didn’t most don’t see what they don’t care to find. His back was patted, hand shook, he was a good man. He knew it. Respect was shown. A good cop. He would enforce all and any laws. He protects and serves. Chaos would reign without men like him. He went back home to his castle where his wife and child slept in fear, again.

The Gods help them in this very silly selection by the Swiss armed forces.

ND is a negligent discharge where the pistol fires when you haven’t asked it to. Most inconvenient.

So the Swiss are buying a gun that technically failed the evaluation just to keep the jobs/tech in the country.

The Swiss adopt a Sig that is plagued with significant problems and issues in their new P75 pistol otherwise known as a Sig P320 in America which has been plagued by issues.The SIG actually failed one of the requirements and wasn’t initially even rated as “troop suitable” (Truppentauglich). But they picked it anyway because of “political and economic advantages.” Basically, SIG promised to build a factory line in Switzerland and offered the lowest price over a 30-year lifecycle. So thre are buying a gun that technically failed the evaluation just to keep the jobs/tech in Switzerland. I get the economic argument, but if you follow any US gun news, you know the P320 has a massive cloud over it regarding drop safety and uncommanded discharges.

That worked great, right up until people noticed that their guns keep having uncommanded discharges and stopped being willing to blame holsters or ammo on every incident.

In the US alone, they’ve secured the military contracts for:

• handguns (M17 and M18—trials suspiciously cut short)
• handgun ammunition
• battle rifle (M7 SPEAR)
• light machine gun (M250)
• battle rifle/light machine gun ammunition (6.8 x 51mm)

It’s odd and a bit concerning that basically any gun or gun-related piece of kit came to be provided by one company over a ~5 year period.

I am going to geek out but here is my theory on the accidental discharges:

The Sig manufacturers devloped a striker fired pistol from a non striker fired platform. The trigger bar coming back is what engages the strikers safety plunger and the P320 trigger has very little take up. All triggers wear and will have some give and take to them. Once this happens, that striker plunger can be engaged even without a trigger pull or without putting much pressure on the trigger. Sear catches are a poor design as well, then they make the tolerances for the slides quite low. Once these slides are loose on the frame you can put a little pressure on the trigger so if you push down on the front of the slide and rock it back and forth you can get the striker to engage which already has a “load” on it.  There are also issues with the sear face + tolerance stacking + cheap parts from India (MIM for good measure).

If you read the reports from the American 2017 MHS trials its a similar story. Glock was much better on all fronts except price. Sig is willing to sell the guns at cost for marketing purposes. Sig’s bid for the US military was $100 million lower the Glocks.

I have been using Glocks since 1991 and they are my go-to, I would never touch a Sig P320.

I cover mostly military topics here at the LI Blog per my charter but on occasion I cover other topics.

The Washington State ferry system is in tatters.

It continues to get worse barely a week into the new year:

Washington State Ferries needs 17 boats to operate at full capacity, but only 14 are currently in service, forcing reduced schedules on three critical routes as the aging fleet faces mounting mechanical problems.

The troubled start to 2026 began New Year’s Day when a propeller blade broke off the 57-year-old Walla Walla during a Seattle-Bremerton crossing.

The problems continued through the first week of January. On Jan. 2, the Kittitas was pulled from the Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth route after employees discovered damage to an oil seal in the vessel’s engine room. The following day, the Tacoma was taken off the Seattle-Bainbridge run due to an oil tube issue causing high shaft bearing temperatures.

As a professional engineer, the “green energy” crusade has set scientific civilization back by generations due to the reproducibility crisis, rise of scientism and the pursuit of concurrent technology which is the creation of sophisticated vehicles without having the final and tested technology complete. The battery-driven utopitards have done this with vehicles of every kind. We’re most familiar with cars but the disease vector has also affected maritime shipping.

The state of Washington has been on the verge of fiscal implosion thanks to the woketopia cargo cult dominating the cities and the ferry crisis is part and parcel of the nonsense starting to influence ship building. The genius’ at the top of the Democratic dominated Evergreen (how appropriate) state have deferred maintenance on all state ferries and the inevitability of more expensive maintenance as a result of not doing the necessary preventative outfitting is coming home to roost with seven ferries deadlined.

According to the Seattle Times, seven of Washington State Ferries’ 21 vessels are currently out of service, leaving commuters with canceled sailings, reduced schedules, and pandemic-era service levels on critical routes. This crisis was built—slowly, expensively, and predictably—by Democratic leaders who prioritized performative climate signaling and futuristic press releases over the boring but essential work of maintaining and replacing ships that actually run.

For years, Democrats obsessed over battery-powered and hybrid-electric ferries, pouring time and money into experimental conversions while the existing fleet aged into disrepair. The state’s ferries average more than 40 years old. Propellers sheared off, shafts overheated and engines failed. None of this is shocking when hundreds of millions of dollars in maintenance were deferred while politicians chased a green legacy.

Washington State Ferries (WSF) recently experienced issues with its first hybrid-electric ferry, the
M/V Wenatchee, shortly after its conversion, with a temporary motor shutdown in August 2025 linked to unstable control system communication wires, though crews worked to resolve it, and it returned to service in November 2025 after further fixes for a different minor switch issue, highlighting challenges in integrating new electric systems while maintaining reliable service

The Wenatchee conversion is a perfect symbol of the dysfunction. What was pitched as a roughly $50 million, one-year project ballooned to $86 million and dragged on for nearly two years, according to the Seattle Times’ reporting. During that time, the state lost capacity it couldn’t afford to lose. Even now, that hybrid vessel has already spent significant time out of service.

Governors Jay Inslee and Bob Ferguson insist electrification remains the future, with a projected $6.2 billion price tag by 2040. That might be a worthy long-term conversation. But it’s irrelevant when today’s ferries can’t reliably make it across Puget Sound.

So double the time and nearly twice the cost, no one took into account several items: loiter time for recharging the batteries, the seaworthiness and safety of battery technology in salt- and brackish water.

Rantz: Democrats chased green ferries while a third of its fleet fell apart

A president is kidnapped, the government remains, and we’re told it isn’t regime change. We pull back the curtain on what our guest calls “regime changeover,” a strategy that uses spectacle and lawfare to force leverage without admitting occupation. From sanctions that harden national unity to a reworked indictment against Nicolás Maduro that quietly retreats from early cartel claims, we dissect how narratives are built, sold, and then reshaped when facts don’t fit the script.

We get specific about why Venezuela resists the usual playbook. The Bolivarian civil-military structure blunts elite-driven coups, and a hybrid economy makes redistribution politics both urgent and volatile. When sanctions stall, pressure shifts to the shadows: covert action, destabilization, and the threat of a managed civil war. But force carries a heavy price. Without the will to occupy, Washington risks isolating itself across Latin America and the Global South while strengthening alternative alliances. That’s where heavy crude and strategic minerals enter the story—these aren’t just commodities; they’re logistical lifelines for militaries and power systems in a world edging toward multipolar confrontation.

The regional map matters. Cutting fuel flows to Cuba raises the stakes, inviting Russian or Iranian lifelines and reviving Cold War optics—tankers instead of missiles. Meanwhile, the financial track turns sanctions into profit centers, enabling distressed-asset deals and court-enabled seizures that move wealth under the veneer of legality. At home, executive overreach and headline diplomacy make lasting agreements harder, not easier. Durable deals rely on predictability and trust; tweets and tariffs deliver neither. We close with a clear takeaway: if the policy toolkit is limited to pressure and spectacle, the outcome is shrinking leverage, hardened resistance, and a region looking elsewhere for partners.

If this perspective challenges how you’ve seen Venezuela, Cuba, and U.S. foreign policy, share the episode, leave a review, and subscribe so you never miss future deep dives. Your feedback shapes what we dig into next.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

The easiest solution to this is stand the entire military industrial complex down until they fix this.

But that is far too responsible.

The fraud you are seeing in MN, WA and MA is large but the financial mismanagement in the Pentagon is hundeds of billions of dollars and no one ever lose their job or goes to jail. and

The Government Accountability Office conducted the report to assist the Pentagon in meeting its timeline for a clean audit by 2028. DOD has failed every audit since it was legally required to submit to one each year beginning in 2018. In fact, the Pentagon is the only one of 24 federal agencies that has not been able to pass an unmodified financial audit since the Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990.

The Pentagon has been skating past accountability for decades.

Examples of more egregious cases of fraud and abuse at the Pentagon — like the $52,000 trash can or the $7,600 coffee maker — have been well-documented over the years. But others are a bit more granular. The new GAO report noted that the Pentagon purchased a machine gun bipod component with subpar manufacturing standards because a vendor fraudulently edited paperwork to reflect a higher manufacturing score. Luckily, engineers caught the deficiency before the bipods entered the battlefield, but the incident could have placed soldiers in harm’s way.

https://responsiblestatecraft.org/venezuela-oil/