2022, the Year in Review

   2022 is just about over, so there are the inevitable compilations of what has happened in the last year. I'm still wondering about what was said at the end of last year. I've been reviewing the "Year in Review" articles from 2021, and very few of them say what a bad year it was. Most of them say things like "Biden is facing challenges," instead of his policies are total failures, which is common knowledge, now. I find this interesting, because it points toward  a bigger point. The leftist media has covered up for Biden's leftward policies for so long, they have no choice but to continue. 

   There have been some exceptions, notably on inflation. At the end of 2021, there were many people warning about it, myself included. Not to inflate my own importance, I can cite Larry Summers, who was Secretary of the Treasury under Pres. Obama. I only noticed that the chair set we bought at the beginning of the year was double the price by the end of 2021. It wasn't until well into 2022 that the Biden administration, the Federal Reserve, and the media finally admitted that this historic level of inflation was not "transitory," but a very real destructive tax on everyone, whether they paid formal taxes or not.

   It was very bizzarre, when some in the media tried to spin inflation as "a good thing," or a "rich person's problem," when the people hit hardest by it are the ones who have the least disposable income. All of that went out the window in 2022. In fact, the Democrats passed the ironically-titled "Inflation Reduction Act," which actually fed fuel to inflation, without a Republican vote. Before claiming the GOP as the party against fanning inflationary spending, they had to blow up that image, spectacularly.

   At the end of 2022, a "lame duck" Congress, composed of a Democratic House majority, and a Senate that will be one less Republican after the new year, passed a disgraceful "omnibus" spending bill, that will not only tie the new 2023 Congress' hands, but make structural legislative changes that will be very hard to reverse, in long-term spending. Now, when inflation continues to be a problem, Republicans are just as much to blame. On a side note, I have also correctly placed some of the blame for the current inflation on Pres. Trump's final "stimulus" bill, in 2020. At that point, the economy was recovering, and it looked to me as if he was just trying to buy votes.

   Back to 2022. Pres. Trump continued to be the focus of the Democrats, through the "Jan. 6th Committee." It actually served them well, because it made Pres. Trump relevant in electoral politics. The DoJ raid on Mar a Lago was another political stroke of genius, in the same vein. Voters overwhelmingly supported Republicans that distanced themselves from Pres. Trump, and Democrats beat the candidates that followed his "stop the steal" line.

   It was a very strange outcome, but very clear, if you look at the details. In New York, a deep Blue state, there was a Red wave, but it didn't include the Gubenatorial candidate, who was a Trump supporter, and 2020 election denialist. I'm betting that Rob Astorino, a former Westchester County executive, could've had the same coattails, and beat Gov. Hochul. We'll never know, but Trump is especially unpopular in NY, and Mr. Astorino has been elected in a county that is just North of NYC.

   Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. Why did they wait so long? Did they think Trump might seize back the presidency, in 2021? Or maybe it was the way that the Biden administration abandoned Afghanistan, after a 20 year committment. It's interesting, that Russia acted against Ukraine when Obama was president, and caught on an open mic saying "Tell Vladimir I'll be more flexible after my reelection," and again after Joe Biden was elected. So 2022 has been a very interesting year in international relations. Also, Finland and Sweden have joined NATO, which bring us to Russia's doorstep, regardless of what happens in Ukraine.

   Speaking of which, I have to tip my hat to Speaker Pelosi, for her visit to Taiwan. I have criticized her on international affairs in the past, but she showed true patriotism, and support for freedom in the American tradition by ignoring the Chinese Communist threats. I also am concerned with the Republican opposition to aiding Ukraine in their war against Russia. I have read some good justifications for opposing support, but even those are worth debate. Most of my friends who oppose supporting Ukraine are asking for "accountability," and saying that Ukraine is another corrupt oligarchy. The facts on the ground appear that Russia is losing. They, and most of the world, assumed that they would overwhelm Ukraine in a short time. Now, Russia is losing ground, seven months later. The question now is what will happen between Russia and Ukraine in 2023?

   That "Red Wave" that happened in a few states was tied to two things: Schools and crime. In New York, Lee Zeldin focused on crime, which has been surging, across the state, and across demographics. It wasn't enough to get him elected, but it did sweep a wave of Republicans into office, at all levels of government. As I mentioned above, Zeldin's support of Trump may have cost him, but the facts on the ground in minority communities contributed to higher minority votes for "down ballot" GOP candidates.

   In Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis had coattails that swept a huge amount of Republicans into office, even in counties that were historically Democratic. In this case, it really was because of education policy, and especially bringing race and sexuality into the classroom for younger children. It turned out that most people, even Democrats, whether parents or not, don't think it's a good thing for schools to engage in these topics with young children, especially under 10 year olds. This is part of a national trend, that was evident with Glen Youngkin's election as Governor in Virginia last year. It's gone down to the school board level, and become a very personal battle, more than political.

   2022 has widely been called "the year that we lost faith in experts," and rightly so. Nobodyy should believe anything the government, or any other bureaucracy says "Ssettled, or consensus," ever again! 2022 has proved them ALL to be FULL OF SHIT! The CDC, the NIH, the FDA, the FBI, the CIA, and every other alphabet soup government agency, as well as their appointed leaders have ALL been exposed as prevaricators that were serving a political end, not a public good. Dr. Fauci is example #1!

   The dissolution of the US Sothern border is an ongoing crisis, and it's getting worse every day. This one is totally on the Biden administration, and they are still refusing to accept the blame. The media are halfway blaming them, but supporting the Biden solution of "legalizing" all of these illegal immigrants. Democrats from the border states that are directly affected are finally calling it what it is, and Democrats in Northern "sanctuary" cities, who are finding their budgets challenged by a paltry amount of these immigrants at their doorsteps "political pawns." 

   It's ironic, because these cities and localities, such as Martha's Vineyard made such a big deal about being "open to all immigrants, legal or not," but when Gov. DeSantis sent just 50 illegal immigrants to the Vineyard, the state sent in the National Guard to remove them, within 24 hours. How the Hell do these liberals expect anyone to take them at their word, seriously, after that?

   Oh, and let's not forget COVID-19. By 2022, even Pres. Biden admitted "it's over," but not really. This goes back to my earlier paragraphs about losing faith in "experts." I lived in Brooklyn, during the first weeks of COVID, and remember thinking that the "two weeks to flatten the curve" was a bunch of BS. First of all, I understood that "flattening the curve" would only make it last longer, and I'm sure I posted that, on fb. We all know now that it just became an excuse for government to exercise authoritarian government, instead of representative democracy.

   It's kind of crazy that Gov. Cuomo was exiled from office for something that had nothing to do with his abuse of power, regarding the thousands of seniors that died because of his policies. Gov. Whitmer was innoculated by what turned out to be a plot by the government to lure some disgruntled citizens into a phony attempt to kidnap her, as she destroyed her state's economy. The list of government malefactors that prospered, and some that continue to prosper, because of the pandemic "emergency" is very long.

   Dr. Fauci, who first told us that "masks don't protect us," because he wanted to save the supplies of masks for medical personnell, and then said "wearing two, or three masks" adds protection,  is still considered an "expert" by some dumb ass people. Anyone who gives him an ounce of credibility in 2023 is a mindless husk, to quote an old friend. Seriously, almost everything that Dr. Fauci has said has been disproven. His last stand is that COVID wasn't leaked from a lab in Wuhan, and that the NIH funded "gain of function" research that may have created it. If he's wrong, that means that the US funded Chinese bioweapon research that killed millions of people...

   2022 had quite a few other things happening, especially crime. 21 states have made stealing less than $900.00 worth of goods a misdemeanor, so there is now a national criminal syndicate that targets retail stores, and resells their goods online, or to local retailers. The numbers are off the charts, and affecting the bottom line of large chain stores. It's actually not new, but because it's been growing, it now has become a factor in pricing, and insurance. Unfortunately, "woke" District Attorneys aren't interested in pursuing "BIG CRIME,' as much as punishing "Big Business."

   2022 has been an interesting year, and very scary for too many of us. I have hope that the domestic political pendulum has swung too far leftward, and now it wil be swinging back. There is evidence of this, but there is also evidence of Democrats solidifying authoritarian control over some states. Illinois is now owned by the unions. New York, and many other "Blue" states are, as well, and yet they occasionally break out of the "one party rule" cycle. I still have hope, for 2023.

   Internationally, the biggest challenge for the US is China, and whether they will invade Taiwan. I have read some columns from people that claim to be US military strategists, who say we will lose a direct conflict with China, especially over the next few years. They may be right, but I have reservations. From all I've read about the run up to WW II, the US was woefully unprepared. I'm not that well read about WW I, but I'll bet it was a similar situation. Russia's attack on Ukraine has shown their military to be incompetent to degree beyond what I suspect our "woke" forces may be.

   About China: While they have a bunch of HUGE advantages, on paper, I'm not sure that those will translate on the ground. Let's say that they take out some of our best assets, quickly. Sooner or later, there will come a point where the will to win matters more, and while China seems to have the edge, they are not a free country. Taiwan is, and Japan, Australia, South Korea, and hopefully the US has it's back. That's a formidable alliance, and I don't think that the isolationist wing of the GOP will stand up, if push comes to shove in the South Pacific.