Author: Vic Socotra

Arrias & His Muse: Siege of Mariupol

They huddled in their basements, The cannons pounded away, Through the day, through the night, And when dusk gave way to day. Thousands of people, families and friends, Each loved by someone afar, Sharing in the fear, and the anger, Trapped in this dark world, evil, bizarre. A city of poets and painters, A city […]

Mac Showers Returns in “Cocktails with the Admiral!”

Editor’s Note: We are confronted with international developments that have the potential to burst into the use of nuclear weapons. Normally that is pretty big news. Splash rushed into the Bunk House yesterday, thinking the “chyron” high-light ribbon across the bottom of the screen on his phone meant NATO had imposed a “no-fly” zone over […]

The Power of Nudge

(Cass Sunstein and wife Samantha Powers). The Refuge Farm Writer’s Section, contains a cadre of old militarist members of the Intelligence Community. They have been joined by former professors of Economics, and strong women who have been mothers, raised families and all the while successful in the world of commerce. They occasionally provide a burst […]

Changing the Charter

The Very Small Group- the one a little smaller than the entire Writer’s Section at The Farm- was talking about life and change this morning. Buck is the newest member of the group, and he is accustomed to the changing terms of reference in our common tongue. “Changing the Charter” was the subject of his […]

Life & Island Times: Ah, sotu

Editor’s Note: We had a vigorous discussion at The Farm about whether to stay up for the President’s first State of the Union message last night. We did not, though we did review his remarks first thing. We reserve comment, of course, since the Young Attorney is watching us carefully. We may talk about it […]

Weather Report: SITREP Ukraine

“We are going to be OK.” – President Joe Biden in his SOTU remarks last night. We had the morning production meeting early. Yesterday, we were concerned by the emergence of the term “Throw Weight.” It had an ominous tenor intended to keep the West at bay. We had read the text of the President’s […]

Life & Island Times: Dancing in a Ukrainian Bar

Author’s Note: While I’m thinking about the change March’s coming will soon bring to the Empire, this is for Vlad and his hommies. Drink and hip hop it up, boys. -Marlow ——​ Well, Vald was dancing at Moscow club one Friday night And that nightclub bar was a little too uptight Yeah, Vlad was dancing […]

Throw Weight

It was cold this morning and Splash was up early, hurling some logs toward the shy mass in the Fire Ring. He was clearly a couple cups of Chock Full o’ Nuts ahead of the rest of us. Our dawn’s early light brought the first conscious thoughts of the first morning of a bright and […]

The Ukrainians Are Coming…

We have adopted a new tradition in the Piedmont that is slowly coming alive after the howls of winter. We hold a Sunday Soiree at the Farm. It is a delightful amalgamation of traditions in this place that has been undifferentiated indigeonous territory, a British Colony, a founding member of a successful Republic, an occupied […]