CRIMEA RIVER

 

(Russia formally annexed Crimea on March 18, but the UN says it’s still part of Ukraine)

 

So far these are the ‘conspiracy theories’ I’ve heard about the war in the Ukraine:

1.     It’s about freeing some of the eight million children that go missing each year and destroying the ‘bad guys’ who do it.

2.     It’s about destroying the evidence of Biden misdeeds.

3.     It’s to destroy the covert bio and chemical weapons that have been created and are stored there (some have been hidden in the nuclear plants, that’s why they are targeted.)

4.     It’s all just to distract us from the mess that Joe Biden and the Dems in Congress have made of the country.

 

Honestly, I don’t care which one you pick, those of you who believe that Putin is really a ‘white hat’ or even a ‘gray hat’ don’t know who and what he is. Putin only acts in Putin’s self interest and nothing more. He may very well be doing one of the above, but only if it is advantageous to him in some way. Let’s start with Putin’s real background.

 

Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin started his career as an intelligence office with the KGB in Soviet Russia. In July 1998 Pres. Boris Yeltsin made Putin director of the Federal Security Service which was the successor to the KGB after the Soviet Union fell. Putin was an unknown until he launched a major operation against the secessionist rebels in Chechnya. After that, his popularity soared. On December 31, 1999, Yeltsin unexpectedly announced his resignation and named Putin acting president.

 

That last should be the REAL grist for conspiracy theorists. What would make Yeltsin resign like that, hmmm?

 

Now consider, almost all of the former KGB officers didn’t just evaporate. What they did, was go into an occupation that allowed them to utilize the skills that they had honed for so long. They became the infamous Russian Mafia. Do you believe that Putin was unaware of what his long-time associates and friends were doing? Do you think he didn’t give his tacit approval?

 

Vladimir Putin is and always has been a ruthless thug bent on obtaining power over others. The KGB maintained power through fear, pain, and murder. How many times have we heard about Putin having his rivals jailed or killed? I don’t care how many times he has protested his innocence, where there’s smoke, there’s fire. So, I ask you conspiracy theorists, why would you believe that this thug is anything but what he has always proven himself to be?

 

Do I believe that the government of the Ukraine is a guilt-free bunch of innocents who stand for all that’s right in the world? Nope. They are as corrupt as any government (including our own) that has ever existed in Europe, and worse than most. This is why I won’t take sides in this war.

 

I do sympathize with those who are really innocent, the common people who are caught up in a conflict that can be blamed on both sides AND foreign interference. The men, women, and children that are being maimed and dying.

 

Do I believe that Putin would go nuclear? There is only one reason I can think of that he would do such a thing. If he were dying, I believe that Mr. Putin would have no qualms about taking the rest of the world with him. Do I believe the Mr. Biden is a coward and unable to stand up to this international bully? Absolutely, I do. If Biden wants to see Putin back down, all he has to do is order our readiness stance to Defense Condition Two. Mr. Putin’s spies here will tell him within minutes that the U.S. is warming up its silos. You can put money on it that there would suddenly be a flurry of nice, calm political negotiations between our two countries.

 

As for the Ukraine, they can drive the invader out. They just need a decent leader that understands both strategy and tactics and isn’t depending on others to bail them out. Someone please loan them The Book of Five Rings and The Art of War.

 

Oh, and for the 62% of Democrats that would flee our country if we were invaded, please leave now. The only thing you are good for is cannon fodder anyway.

 

If you are living in fear of what comes next, don’t. Tomorrow will be here, and the next day after that.

 

KM

A CASE OF TREASON?

 

Treason against the United States of America is defined as, “ Treason against the United States, shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort. No Person shall be convicted of Treason unless on the testimony of two Witnesses to the same overt Act, or on Confession in open Court.” We usually state the last part as giving aid and comfort to the enemy. The interesting part of the definition is it states Enemies. So, who are the enemies of the USA?

 

Are countries where the leaders promote their people chanting “death to America” enemies of the US? How about countries that help flood poison in the form of drugs? What about countries that purposely provoke responses from our military in territorial or international waters or lands? Internally, are those who want to eliminate portions of the Constitution or The Bill of Rights enemies of the US?

 

I find it fascinating that in our country’s young history (comparatively speaking) we have seen enemies become allies, become enemies, become allies again, become enemies again. Politics and types of government dictate the actions of countries and their leaders. For instance, Russia is nominally a Democracy now but in fact it has become a dictatorship with one man who will never be replaced as its leader. I have to wonder how this is different than Russia under Stalin?

 

In the Senses Novels I write briefly about ‘the traitor President.’ Who could that be? Is it someone that exists today or a future leader? If you have read the books, you may have noticed that they seem prophetic on some level. Who are our enemies? Has a President given aid and comfort to any of them? Is one about to? Is that still to come? What would constitute aid and comfort in a case like this?

 

Right now, Russia and the United States seem to be ready to square off in Eastern Europe. Exactly how far are they willing to take this confrontation? Putin is not Nikita Khrushchev. Putin was a KGB thug and still thinks like a KGB thug. He’s a bully and terrorizer and rarely backs down.

 

In Asia, China seems to be preparing to invade Taiwan. Are we ready to actually defend a nation that we consider our friend? Xi Jinping is not the type of leader who is willing to ‘lose face.’ He considers Taiwan a ‘break-away province’ and, if Hong Kong is any indicator, may be willing to go to extremes to bring it into China.

 

On our own Southern border, criminals stand on one side of the Rio Grand and shoot into the US, laughing and jeering at us the whole time. It would appear that Mexico is unable or unwilling to do anything about it. We know that criminals and persons from countries we consider ‘terrorist havens’ are filtering into the country because we catch some very few of them. It looks as though nothing is really being done about it by this administration. Is it that they don’t care? Is it a part of some agenda that isn’t fully clear to us?

 

So, do we have a case of treason being committed by the leadership of this country?

 

Through all of this remember that God is in control.

 

KM

CONTINUOUS GLUCOSE MONITORS, THE LIBRE 2, THE iPHONE, THE APPLE WATCH, AND THE HEARING IMPAIRED

 

That is a pretty long title, I know but this is an important subject to the millions of people who are both diabetic and hearing impaired. This is only a portion of an article that I am currently writing comparing the CGMs that are on the market for the Abbott Laboratories FreeStyle Libre 2 glucose monitoring sensor. One of the reasons for this particular article is that I am extremely hard of hearing (legally deaf according to my audiologist) and a Type II diabetic.

 

Here are some of the basics that you will need to understand the entirety of this article. The Libre 2 is one of the glucose monitoring systems that Abbott Labs produces. They also make the Libre 1, the Libre 14 day, and the Libre 3. The Libre 3 is not currently available in the United States or Canada. The primary difference between the Libre 1 and the Libre 2 is that the Libre 2 has alarms for critical blood sugar levels (too high or too low.) It also has an alarm range that you can set yourself if you are so inclined. Interestingly, you can shut off all of the alarms except the critical low, that remains a fixed point of 55 mg/dL in the Libre 2 and cannot be altered. To be fair, 55 mg/dL IS pretty low.

 

The Libre 2 requires that you scan the sensor with either your phone or a scanner (that is usually one of the first things provided in your prescription, and Abbott does require that you get a prescription to obtain the sensors) in order to get a reading. While you need to scan, the reality is, your sensor is actually monitoring and sending information every minute in order to ensure that you are within the alarm parameters. With the Libre 1 you were able to use both an app on your phone and the scanner; with the Libre 2 you have to choose one or the other when you start a sensor.

 

Abbott Labs makes two primary versions of the Libre 2. One is for the U.S./Canadian/Australian market (abbreviated US from here on out) and the other is for the rest of the world. The one for the US is encrypted which limits its usefulness with the third-party Continuous Glucose Monitors (herein after referred to as CGM) out there. While the Libre 2 is an FDA approved medical device, NONE of the CGMs that attach to it are FDA approved or approved for use by Abbott Laboratories.

 

My criteria for selecting CGMs to use with the Libre 2 was actually simple. It had to specifically state that it worked with the Libre 2 US version, it had to have alarms, and it had to work with iPhone, and the Apple Watch. The last is critical for the hearing impaired. I do not use Android, but I have both an iPhone and an Apple Watch. The reason for the Apple Watch is when I take my hearing aids out, it is impossible for me to hear the audible alarm when my glucose level goes critical. The Apple Watch can be set to vibrate when there is an alarm which WILL wake me.

 

There were three (3) CGMs that I looked at:

·      The Bubble Smart Reader

·      The MiaoMiao

·      The Ambrosia Systems BluCon NightRider

 

Unfortunately, NONE of these systems is great and NONE of them live up to their hype. For instance, while the Bubble Smart Reader states that it works with the iPhone, there is no app for it. You have to use an application that is essentially a test or sandbox through the TestFlight app. And, on their website, the ‘test’ is full. That means if you buy the Bubble Smart Reader, you either wait for them to get an approved app, or you find someone who has a ‘home brewed’ version of the TestFlight version that you can use (there are a lot of issues with this as well.) Run, don’t walk, away from the Bubble Smart Reader if you are an iPhone user.

 

The MiaoMiao, for the US Libre 2 iPhone user means you have one option as far as applications on the App Store goes; you must use something called the Tomato App. This application disconnects more than it connects. That is hyperbola, that is a simple fact. Trying to get any kind of customer service assistance is next to impossible. The unit is made in China and they operate on Chinese time (anywhere from 12 to 16 hours different than US time.) You can leave a message on their Chat on their webpage, but my experience is that they never get back to you.

 

The Ambrosia System NightRider was the best of the lot. While they have a dedicated application for their system (LinkBluCon,) it has a many, many problems. The primary issue is that the device disconnects from Bluetooth randomly meaning that you can go for very long stretches of time before you get a reading (their documentation states that it reads every five minutes, I would get periods where it wouldn’t read for almost an hour.) The worst part of this issue is that there seems to be some kind of conflict between the LinkBluCon app and the FreeStyle 2 app that causes the FreeStyle app to go into ‘Alarms Not Available’ mode and ‘Unable to Scan, please try in 10 minutes’ (yes, I know that this can happen without the NightRider attached, but I never had the problem before, and it went away once the NightRider was removed.) This can last for hours. If you are disconnected from the BluCon app and stuck in the ‘Unable to Scan’ mode at the same time (which happens frequently) during a critical period, you have to go back to finger sticks for simple monitoring.

 

I sent a series of suggestions and complaints to Ambrosia about these and other problems. They would normally respond in a fairly timely manner, but at some point this slowed to no response for several days. When I vented my frustration with them, they were willing to refund my money on the unit, which I consider quite honorable of them.

 

At this point in time, I am forced to say that there are no addon CGMs for the Libre 2 (and iPhone) that I would consider reliable. This is not to say that they will not improve in the future. A point to consider is, the Libre 3 is supposed to be true CGM sending data every minute, but it does not have Apple Watch capability. My contact with Abbott Labs on this indicated that it isn’t even on their radar.

 

I will let you all know when my article is finished and where you will be able to read it in its entirety. In the meantime, if you want to stay at least somewhat informed about the state of the units I’ve mentioned here, I recommend joining a couple of the Facebook groups that are specifically for the devices.

 

Stay healthy!

 

KM

CONSPIRACY THEORY

 

There are thousands upon thousands of conspiracy theories floating around. Some (very few) are based on actual events, most are pure fiction. As I have reviewed these ‘theories’ from multiple sources, there is one question I always ask, “Who benefits from this?” I am asking not so much who gains from the outcome of the theory as I am who benefits from the theory itself?

 

Conspiracy theories are probably as old as the first time three people got together to have a conversation. After looking at as many of these theories as I could, I have categorized them in a way slightly different than most:

·      Theories that are based on racism

·      Theories that are based on generating fear of something specific (not necessarily exclusive of racism)

·      Theories that are based on actual events, but the facts have been confused or twisted

 

If you read through this list you will see that they all have one thing in common. The theories are meant to somehow control a segment of a population to motivate them to do something or believe something. I am not going to go into every conspiracy theory since you can find most of them in books or on the Internet. I am going to touch on a couple.

 

Who killed JFK? On Friday, November 22, 1963, at 12:30 p.m. John F. Kennedy, the 35^th President of the United States of America was shot multiple times while riding in his open limousine in Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas. He was later pronounced dead at Parkland Hospital in Dallas, Texas. Those are the bare facts. From here on is where the conspiracy theories begin. According to the Warren Commission, the official investigative body into the assassination, JFK was killed by a lone assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald. There have been multiple theories that the President was actually killed by bullets fired from various places in and around Dealey Plaza. But that isn’t the core of most of the conspiracy theories.

 

The core of these theories is, who conspired to have JFK killed? There is no end to the list of suspects for this. It seems that everyone from Vice President Johnson (at the time) to Fidel Castro wanted JFK dead. Again, I am not going to list every organization and suspect, that is a book all its own. The point is the theories themselves. Who benefits? If we say it was Lyndon B. Johnson we sow seeds of discontent with our own government. If we point to Fidel Castro, we generate a positive basis for those advocating a takeover of Cuba.

 

There is no doubt that Johnson benefited from the assassination of JFK. He and his cohorts in the oil and gas industry got to keep the war in Vietnam going and even expanded it. There are other links to Johnson that speak to the possibility here (frankly, Johnson hated Kennedy and it is highly probable that Johnson wasn’t going to be JFK’s running mate in the upcoming election.) But that is only one possibility with who could have benefited. If you look into the other possibilities and trace back the motives, you will find that behind each is a benefit, real or imagined.

 

The Protocols of the Elders of Zion is another that has enflamed a number of conspiracy theories. Supposedly, the Protocols detail how a cabal of Jewish leaders are going to take over and control the world. This antisemitic piece of garbage was actually a forgery. The hoax was plagiarized from several earlier sources. It was first published in Russia in 1903, translated into multiple languages, and disseminated internationally in the early part of the 20th century. It played a key part in popularizing belief in an international Jewish conspiracy. It was taught as fact in Nazi Germany and has been used by neo-Nazi groups around the world ever since.

 

One of the ‘proofs’ that are often used to support the Protocols are the possible link to the Rothschild’s with the French Revolution. This is because the French Revolution brought some positive changes to the standing of Jews. Prior to the Revolution, Jews were second class citizens in France. After the Revolution the Jews gained full emancipation. So, where do the Rothschilds fit in? According to Wikipedia (not the most reliable of sources,) “In 1806, Napoleon I ordered the convening of a "Grand Sanhedrin" in Paris and in 1808 he organized the "Consistoire central des Israélites de France", the administrative agency for all French Jews. The consistorial system made Judaism a recognized religion and placed it under government control. This Consistoire has been a functioning body ever since, except under the Nazi occupation of France during World War II. By tradition, the Central Consistoire has had a member of the Rothschild family as its president.” I’m not sure the placing a religion under government control actually elevates the Jews out of the realm of second class or is somehow helping the Jews become masters of the world.

 

Supposedly, one percent (1%) of the world’s population is to control the rest of the world. There are roughly eight billion people in the world today that’s 8,000,000,000. One percent of eight billion is eighty million, that’s 80,000,000. Rationally, does anyone really think that you can get eighty million people to agree on anything let alone how the world should be run? Add to this that there are only about fifteen million (15,000,000) Jews in the world or 12% of the eighty million, how are they in control of anything?

 

The point here is that document like The Protocols of Zion have one purpose, to control a segment of the population into the belief that the Jews are evil and therefore it is okay to purge them and take their possessions. That’s who benefits and why. And, just for the Christians out there, I will remind you that Jesus, Peter, Paul, and the rest of the disciples were ALL Jews. I suppose you could say that THEY eventually took over a large portion of the world.

 

I don’t expect people to stop believing in the myriad of conspiracy theories out there. The Internet makes it too easy to spread the theories and even back them up with selected facts and photos. People WANT to believe in these theories and that’s okay, but I am going to continue to ask the question, who benefits. One last thing for my Christian brethren, Jesus told us not to be led astray, so be careful, be critical when looking at conspiracy theories.

 

Stay safe, stay blessed.

 

KM

Christmas Special!

 

***SPECIAL***

 

From now through Christmas the Senses Novels eBook Box set is back. For only $4.95 USD, you can get ALL SIX VOLUMES of the series. This offer is only through Christmas 2021 and then it goes away again. On Amazon.