Tea at Trianon: Zelensky's Tragic Mistake

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Tuesday, March 4, 2025

Zelensky's Tragic Mistake

From Amuse on X:

Zelensky’s administration, by imposing legal mandates forcing parishes to either renounce their spiritual lineage or face forced closure, has effectively dismantled thousands of religious communities across Ukraine. This relentless persecution has plunged millions of devout Ukrainians into a profound spiritual crisis, isolating them from the very essence of their faith. The government’s invasive measures have not only stripped away religious freedom but have also desecrated deeply held spiritual traditions, substituting a historically and spiritually authentic institution with a politically expedient counterfeit.
In practical terms, Zelensky has criminalized the traditional expression of Orthodox Christianity, labeling authentic believers as enemies of the state. Priests who dared resist this coercive assimilation into the OCU found their churches confiscated, their congregations dispersed, and their sacred rites disrupted. For the vast majority of Ukraine’s faithful, these brutal actions represent an undeniable assault on their religious identity and spiritual heritage. (Read more.)

From The Rand Paul Review:

She’s not a neocon, either. And neither is President Trump. That could be one of the reasons Trump chose Gabbard to be Director of National Intelligence. The DNI position oversees all U.S. intelligence agencies, including the CIA and the FBI.
That scares the hell out of the neo-con establishment that’s embedded itself in the federal government like the Viet Cong in the jungles of Vietnam.
Fear breeds anger, especially among the government elites on Capitol Hill. Anger causes people to lash out. Gabbard isn’t easily intimidated.
Most of the neocons on the Republican side–due to Trump’s reelection and popularity–are biting their tongues to hold their anger in check. Not the Democrats.
In her opening statement during her Senate confirmation hearings, Gabbard set the stage. She took a reasoned yet defiant tone to those who would sink her aspirations to become DNI, arguably one of the most powerful positions in a president’s cabinet.
Colin Rugg of Trending Politics posted on X, “Tulsi Gabbard unleashes on the deep state, the 51 intelligence officials, Hillary Clinton, and the Democratic Party in her opening statement.”
“One of the best opening statements I’ve seen,” Rugg continued. (Read more.)