Signal chat-gate--adding a leftist editor by mistake

Recently I was added by mistake to a chat group of relatives discussing the next family reunion. Except I wasn't part of the clan, nor could I figure out how or why I was added. Not all names are readable, and some people use nicknames, or a collection of letters. I finally figured out the person was the wife of a step cousin, and I'd never met her. Probably she added contacts to her phone from her husband's phone and to my knowledge he and I had only met once years ago and I never saw him again. It may have been at the wedding that made us shirt tail cousins. My name has probably been shared through "reply all" to set up the next reunion.

Someone asks, if you realize you've been mistakenly added to a chat group, when would you mention it. Especially if it involved a sensitive matter, like war. Yes, let's put the responsibility on the Editor Jeffrey Goldberg of Atlantic. Would he be ethical enough to delete himself from the group, or would he use it against the man he hates? Obviously, he'll side with hate. He didn't speak out to my knowledge or object to having a man with dementia running the war effort in the last administration, and every enemy of the U.S. saw that daily on the TV. In fact, two wars were started and thousands have died because Biden showed the world what was wrong with him.

Goldberg not commenting on relationship with Mike Waltz after Signal chat leak

Salmon P. Chase Center for Civics, Culture, and Society at The Ohio State University

Here in Columbus, Ohio, at The Ohio State University we now have the Salmon P. Chase Center for Civics, Culture, and Society. The new center was funded as part of a $24 million allocation for intellectual diversity centers in Ohio Senate Bill 117. I sincerely hope it can balance the DEI ideology with intellectual diversity. Today the Columbus Dispatch (Democrat controlled) contained an article about the first event on March 25. The co-sponsors were The Center for Ethics and Human Values, the Institute for Democratic Engagement and Accountability and the John Glenn College of Public Affairs. Four other Ohio universities have these centers, but I'm not sure they all have the Chase name.

The article states that confidence in higher education in America has slumped in recent years. It's my personal opinion that the Obama and Biden administrations (12 years) has contributed to this,
"A Gallup poll published in July 2024 found that Americans are nearly equally divided on their confidence levels in higher education. Those who have a lot of confidence in higher education, about 36%, just barely outweigh those who have some confidence (32%) and those with little or no confidence (32%) in higher education. That is in stark contrast to when Gallup first measured confidence in higher education in 2015, when 57% had a great deal or quite a lot of confidence and only 10% had little or none."

And one of those reasons for the falling confidence was not in the article but in the advertisement that popped up in the middle of the digital version. Maybe the Dispatch and Ohio State had no control over the LGBTQ ad for transition and affirmative care to change the physical appearance of those with gender dysphoria at Cleveland's University Hospital. I scrolled through it and in the small print it said it's for over 18 (that's still high school), but I'm sure that is a soft landing and there are many "farm clubs" contributing to its customer base. Another reason for low confidence is the funding all universities accept to "educate" foreign students. We're seeing that play out now with Trump trying to deport a professional trouble maker.

The Johns Hopkins president was concerned about the "drift to authoritarianism" and a number of students led a protest and wanted OSU President Carter to join them.

 
And we're off to the races to turn this Center to the Left. That's what has happened to so many foundations and NGO's funded by conservatives and patriots.

I used to blog about Lily and her treatment

 I loved reading this story about Lily and Lily's Garden.  She's now 23, and I blogged about her childhood cancer and her relapse years ago because I met her grandparents and aunt when I began blogging in 2003. 

https://issuu.com/vanderbilt-ingram/docs/vicc_momentum_winter_2025/s/66101244?

Collecting My Thoughts: Lily’s Leukemia battle

Collecting My Thoughts: Larisa’s report on Lily’s Leukemia

Collecting My Thoughts: Update from Larisa on Lily’s leukemia

Collecting My Thoughts: An update on Lily, Leukemia survivor, from her mother

Collecting My Thoughts: Childhood cancer--a grandmother's guest blog

Who was the first president of the United States?

Have you ever listened to the spring break interviews on civics or history? Jesse Watters on Fox has a side kick named Johnny, and I think that's how he started when he worked with Bill O'Reilly. He asks the questions of the man on the street, or on the beach. They would be hilarious if they weren't so scary. My hope is they ask a thousand intelligent students before they find dumb and dumber ones to show on TV. If they don't know who the first president of the U.S.* was or what country we defeated in the Revolutionary War, why should they understand what a tariff is? Or what Elon Musk is doing to keep their future safe? It's so scary to think the Democrats will recruit them to vote but refuse to educate them.

*Before we were the United States we had a Continental Congress and it had a President, Peyton Randolph, so technically you could call him first. But there were others, even though the office was very different then.  The 14 Men Who Were President Before George Washington.  Other sources say there were 6 and since some served more than once they don't get counted twice.

Almond flour pie crusts and other recipies

 Easy Low Carb Diabetic Almond Flour Crust - The Naked Diabetic

"Extra Fine Ground Almond Flour – This type of almond flour works best for recipes calling for sifting. When you want a more packed crust, always choose the finest grind available. Extra Finely ground almond flour is ideal for pie crusts and crusts that you want to cover the sides of a pie plate. The finest grinds also work better in cake and bar recipes,."

20 Best Low Carb Almond flour recipes for diabetics

"Living with diabetes doesn’t mean giving up delicious foods. With the right ingredients and recipes, you can still enjoy mouthwatering meals while managing your blood sugar levels. Almond flour is one such diabetic-friendly ingredient. In this article, we’ll explore 20 of my favourite almond flour recipes all crafted with diabetes management in mind. . . 

Almond flour or almond meal and ground almonds, is rich in healthy fats, protein, essential nutrients and fibre. Unlike refined white all purpose flour, almond flour has a lower glycemic index, meaning it doesn’t cause spikes in blood sugar levels. Making almond flour a great option for those watching their carbohydrate intake."

The lonely letter c

I did it again. I was looking at a dictionary and my eyes found the page no one ever reads--the list of how to pronounce English. There were 10 selections for "a" (although it didn't list Aaron) and none for "c" which has no sound of its own. It showed K and S and sh (-cion). It's why English has about a million words--the sun never set on the Union Jack. And this was an American list--probably if the editors had tossed in Canada, India, Ireland, Scotland, New Zealand and Australia they would have needed a few pages for "a"; but still nothing for "c".

Ashley Mason and sleep routines

After I experienced sleep/back problems yesterday I opened the podcast by Peter Attia and it was advice about sleep hygiene. "In this episode, Ashley Mason provides a masterclass on cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I), detailing techniques like time in bed restriction, stimulus control, and cognitive restructuring to improve sleep. She explains how to manage racing thoughts and anxiety, optimize sleep environments, and use practical tools like sleep diaries to track progress. She also offers detailed guidance on sleep hygiene, explores the impact of temperature regulation, blue light exposure, and bedtime routines." We learned a lot and refreshed our memories on things we knew but weren't doing, 

The Peter Attia Drive: #341 - Overcoming insomnia: improving sleep hygiene and treating disordered sleep with cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia | Ashley Mason, Ph.D.

One thing she mentioned was don't listen to podcasts in bed--oops! (or watch TV or read a book or read e-mail) Last night we stayed up until 11 and finished watching Chip and Joanna redecorate a hotel before going to bed.

Apricot pastry bites

I think it's been about 10 years since I "gave up" anything for Lent, but this year I did think I could be sugar free. About 2 weeks after Ash Wednesday I was sort of hankering for something sweet, and a friend brought over a wonderful pie. I resisted (mostly, except for a sliver). But then I made a pastry bite--I like pies more than cookies or cake. I made the crust, cut it out with grandma's pastry cutter, and after baking it, I put a dollop of "Simply Fruit" jam on it. Tasted pretty good. Next time I'll make the crust thicker and maybe larger (comes in a set of 3) because I make a flaky crust, and it was hard to handle. Notice from the photo I had to eat a few to make sure they were OK. Apricot.

 

Harold Ford, Jr. on Fox News

Although I've never met him, I just love Harold Ford, Jr. He seems to be the only Democrat who has common sense, compassion and calmness. He's never said he likes Trump, but he did say he's the most powerful president of his lifetime. He is an African American who is one of the "liberals" on the Fox panel at 5 p.m., The Five. He now lives in New York but for years was a representative from Tennessee, as was his father. But I noticed today as he was interviewed about Schumer that reasonable Democrats do sound like fence sitters or maybe passive aggressive. What do you think? Do you like him too?

Happy Birthday, Dad

Happy Birthday to my dad--he would be 112 today, died in 2002. I don't have a lot of mushy, gushy remembrances like some of my FBF or blogging friends, but I do laugh at some of the stories I remember. He was really sappy with the grandchildren, but with his own kids--well, there was that thing called the Great Depression and WWII and trying to get his life back on track, and put all that behind him. My favorite story is the day he went to the court house to get his birth record for Social Security and was told he was registered as "baby boy." (I've seen the ledger book in calligraphic handwriting of 1913.) When asked could anyone vouch for his identity, he said, "Yes, my mother and father." We all got a good laugh, but Grandma sure wasn't happy about it. She'd had his name picked out a long time, and the doctor just forgot to register it (born at home).

Visiting the National Archives on-line

I stopped at the National Archives site today just because I looked at one of the pdf records from the JFK files. But from there I got lost in all the interesting stuff in the Archives, and stopped to look at the military records, something I'd done about 15 years ago when I was doing genealogy. I'm not going to register (well, I did for just one newsletter) to be a citizen volunteer or get a login so I can answer other's questions, but it was interesting to read through "how can I find out about my uncle's WWII service" or something like that. I clicked on it because I had made similar inquiries years ago. And when someone reported she couldn't get a form to work, some helpful non-employee responded it was probably Trump's Doge program. Yikes, get real. Government forms fail all the time, and even years ago it might take weeks to get a reply--but when you do, those government archivists really know their stuff. Then I looked around at the educational programs for schools. I saw a lot of material on women and minorities just in case some media source has told you falsely that's all been scrubbed. If the writer has insulted or demeaned a group intentionally, I suppose it could have been removed.

You could spend years poking around the National Archives. It's an exciting place to visit on-line--or maybe it's just fun for retired librarians.

What is an Official Military Personnel File (OMPF)? | National Archives

Distance Learning Programs | National Archives

History Hub

Do Democrats have any plan but to destroy Trump?

"Fight, fight, fight." Donald Trump said after being almost assassinated in Butler, PA. So now the Dems think that's the magic. Yell fight, fight. That's the trick. Put on matching t-shirts paid for by Soros, cover your faces like the KKK and yell. But the only thing they know how to fight is Donald Trump. They don't fight the drug cartels, they don't fight the human trafficking, they don't fight Big Pharm or Big Farm. They don't know how to fight entrenched bureaucracy, they don't know how to fight for better food, or how to not kill the next generation. What kind of a fight are Democrats offering? Only chaos, my dear.

The War in Ukraine

Perhaps there will be a cease fire in Ukraine. Perhaps the killing will pause or stop. For now. But there's over a thousand years of enmity, hate and killing, and then the more deadly 20th century, to tell us it won't last. Please find a history book written before the 21st century and read it. Be prepared.

My Ukrainian supervisor at the University of Illinois Library in the mid-60s told me he'd gone to high school in 4 countries, but his family hadn't moved.

We are blessed to be a blessing

Buffalo Grove, IL : "Tesla car owners, dealerships and charging stations have been targeted nationwide by protesters and vandals because of CEO Elon Musk's involvement with the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which aims to slash wasteful spending and fraud within the federal government."

Shocking. This story was about a suburban woman. The Left used to admire electric cars and tackling government waste and fraud. Obama and Clinton lauded it. Now we know that was all scripted by Soros and others who were drinking from the Government corruption hose. Our own citizens are having their brains warped and wounded by Trump Derangement Syndrome. They now hate what Democrats used to stand for.

 
I still want care for the environment. We forgot that in the "Green New Deal." Reduce waste and clean up after yourself. If we had a cabinet member for that we could all breath fresh air and not look at trash along every intersection. I want fair tariffs and honest government workers, and grants that go for worthwhile research instead of building academic empires. How did we end up with so much graft? The lower and mid-income in our country are the biggest, most generous (in percentage) and the two biggest corporate giants, Buffett and Musk , are the most generous in amounts. Rich or ordinary--we have been blessed to be a blessing. Let's get back to that value system.

Cook County woman allegedly vandalized Tesla service center in suburb | FOX 32 Chicago

Warren Buffett Tops List of Biggest Donations - Business Insider

Elon Musk: The Donations of the World’s Richest Individual Focus on Education and Innovation - CEOWORLD magazine

Do Democrats know what their party supports?

Democrats have decided to support

Anti-Semitism
Hamas
Terrorism by South American gangs
Open borders
Property destruction
Anti-women in sports and safe spaces
Racist DEI policies
Bloated and corrupt government departments
Late term abortion
Rogue judges
Mutilation of children

rs

Sirach or Ben Sira--it's all interesting and inspiring

Today's reading was in Sirach 10. I just love this book of the Bible, because as a Protestant, I'd never heard it or read it until a few years ago--probably didn't know it existed. The Catholic, Orthodox, Syriac and African canons have it, so well over half of all Christians have an opportunity to hear or read its wisdom, at least in a church service during certain seasons or festivals. It's like the book of Proverbs, but much more in depth and more topics. Chapter 10 concerns governments and rulers. So true for today and regardless of your political leanings, it can comfort you. God is in control. See verse 4.

Chapter 10
A wise magistrate educates his people,
and the rule of an intelligent person is well ordered.
2 As the people’s judge is, so are his officials;
as the ruler of the city is, so are all its inhabitants.
3 An undisciplined king ruins his people,
but a city becomes fit to live in through the understanding of its rulers.
4 The government of the earth is in the hand of the Lord,
and over it he will raise up the right leader for the time.
5 Human success is in the hand of the Lord,
and it is he who confers honor upon the lawgiver. [a]

The book of Ben Sira was collected around 130 B.C and was used by Greek speaking Jews, and the early Christians. Jesus himself probably knew this book. However, in 1896 the Hebrew manuscripts from 180 B.C. were found by 2 British sisters. (see The sisters of Sinai by Janet Soskice which our book club read). That's what got me really interested. Since joining Academia.edu web site I've found hundreds of scholarly papers on this fascinating book.
https://www.bensira.org/introduction.html

Dax--Nigerian Canadian rapper

"To be a man" is what is called country-adjacent cross over music and the singer is Dax, a Nigerian-Canadian rapper. https://youtu.be/tHxip2x-PLc?si=sJp5Rlfbn-cDEUH0 Now, it's not something I would ordinarily listen to, but I had put a link to some popular 1950s music in an earlier post, and a song about abortion from a guy's point of view by Dax came up. At first I thought it was an ad, but it was listed along with the others like Frank Sinatra and Elvis! It was definitely NOT a 50s popular song, so I don't know how it got on this play list. Maybe it's a new way to market YouTube singles? It worked, because I then looked Dax up and played a few of his songs/poems. This is not his most recent, and he seems to be a very hard worker and loves to experiment with his style. I think this one is very good.

Sports drinks compared

Now with MAHA and Bobby Kennedy Jr rattling our cages, what are you doing about guzzling water and sports drinks? The microplastics have been an issue for a while; microplastics are smaller than a sesame seed and nanoplastics are even smaller, small enough to enter the body’s cells. Look at the drink aisles in the grocery stores that look like a painter's pallet. I'm not sure anyone is paying attention--plastics + dyes.

I'm not athletic, don't sweat unless it's 90 degrees, but I am a "senior" (aka elderly) and when people get older they lose the protection of feeling thirsty, even if they need liquid. So, I've been looking--plastic free, dye free, sugar free with electrolytes. They are all expensive, in my mind, compared to water, and most come in plastic bottles.

Here's what I'm drinking today. Sugar free, clear (watermelon, berry flavors) Propel. I move it to a glass quart bottle and drink it in a wine glass! The watermelon flavor is mild; the berry is a little sharp, so I water it down. I compared it to Zero Gatorade. For sodium, G is 160 and P is 210; for potassium G is 45 and P is 70; for Vit. C, G is zero and P is 25. There are numerous vitamins and minerals but those are the biggies. You can buy packets of the electrolyte mix and avoid plastic all together. Here's some additional sources from Medline Plus with additional links: https://medlineplus.gov/fluidandelectrolytebalance.html?

Democrats look for purpose

As I watch the Democrats go crazy over tariffs, closed borders, the fight to clean up government graft and greed, negotiations for peace, and how they rail about Trump's care for the "little people" I'm reminded of something I heard, but didn't catch who said it. Paraphrase: Trump (and MAGA) is the Democrat our parents (i.e. citizens of the 30s and 40s) voted for. Rich, connected and powerful person who cares about the little guy. A true patriot. [clarification--I personally do not see FDR that way, but my parents did]. Democrats are now the wealthy party, the snobs, looking down at the blue collar family, soldiers, farmers, police --and it's awfully hard to give back what you've stolen.

 
And Dems are almost as hateful toward JD Vance who pulled himself out of a difficult, low income situation in the rust belt of America that the corporations had abandoned for greener profits abroad. There's a fentanyl pipeline from Mexico to Southern Ohio. The Ohio Trump wants to restore to its former glory. The Northwest Territory that invented the Bill of Rights. Life is hard right now for Democrats with no one to look up to, but movie stars and leftist academics. Their big hope seems to be to abort the next generation and finance a proxy war.

I was listening to the "All-In" podcast yesterday. Three of the four venture capitalists who gather to discuss politics, technology, culture, finances and poke fun at each other are immigrants. Some started really poor, were picked on at school, had difficult family situations, etc. Do you know they learned as teen-agers with really grubby jobs the importance of compound interest? They began investing their tiny wages as teen-agers! I didn't have a retirement account until I was in my mid-forties!!! Although they didn't start out as Republicans, they all support Trump now.

David Sacks, one of the four, is now less active.  He's now in the Trump administration David O. Sacks: Silicon Valley Visionary Blazing New Trails - History Tools as cryptocurrency czar.

 
My hope for Trump is that he not try to pay back the Democrats for their crimes against him personally. Retribution and revenge are not good policies in the long run even if deserved. We've seen Democrats use non-profits and political office to get around free speech, and Lawfare to destroy justice. It's not pretty especially when it works.

The war that never was--Argentina and Chile

First let me say I know more about northern Ilinois (Ogle and Lee counties) where I haven't lived since I was 17 than all of South America, especially Argentina. I know well the statue and history of Blackhawk on the Rock River but knew nothing about the statue of Christ in the Andes mountains except what I'd seen in a few tourist brochures. Until today.

Christ the Redeemer of the Andes (on the border with Chile and Argentina) was the topic in my reading in Magnificat for today. It is commemorated on March 13 for celebrating the war that didn't happened between Chile and Argentina in 1904. Although Chile and Argentina have the same ethnicity, language and religion, greed and self interest have no boundaries, and the two countries had been squabbling about some very rich territory in the mountains between them back into the 19th century. History will report the resolution in different ways, but this account credited some Catholic women who organized for peace. Women suffer greatly in wars. Led by Señora Angela de Oliveira Cézar de Costa they got the bishops and Pope involved and the other leaders to talk, and so the issue was brought to arbitration and negotiation led by a third country, Great Britain. Three Christian nations and a disputed region.

The war never happened and the statue on the highest pass on the border celebrates that. There are two plaques on the base of the 60 ft tall statue. "He is our peace who has made us one" and "Sooner shall these mountains crumble into dust than Argentinians and Chileans break the peace sworn at the feet of Christ the Redeemer." (Magnificat, March 2025, p. 206-210, by Anthony Esolen) also, https://christianhistoryinstitute.org/dailystory/permalink/christ-of-the-andes-stands-for-peace