On the midnight train to Nairobi I met a red haired English girl, Bright blue eyes and fair of face, She gave my heart a whirl. We dined on sole and a fine white wine, To the clicking of the rail’s refrains, Bathed in brilliant Moonlight, As we rolled across Africa’s plains. She talked about […]

One of the questions that keeps popping up in editorials, at least in the last month or two, is whether or not the folks in the White House want Ukraine to win the war with Russia. There are, of course, two obvious answers to that question – yes and no. But I have an unpleasant […]

Author’s Note: Rains came through during the day, the dogs joined me in the office, I got down to give them belly rubs… things evolved from there… – Arrias Persian Carpets On the floor next to Porter, Huddled close, she keeps me warm, Listening to the Brandenburg concertos, Outside brews a winter storm. What is […]

Author’s Note: I forget – is it the last log entry of the year or the first log entry of the new year??? – Arrias 2023 In Ukraine the war grinds on Bakhmut, Marinka, et al, Soldiers died by the thousands Buildings pounded into rubble Where will it end, this nasty war, Everyone’s really beginning […]

We all know that NORAD (The North American Air Defense Command) traces Santa every year. But, here at the Special Compartmented Operations and Tracking Center Hypo (SCOTCH) we have been working a special program, (known locally as “Project Single Malt”) to develop a better idea of what we are really looking at when we consider […]

How much trade is carried by ship? Perhaps as much as $20 trillions worth as it turns out. On any given day there is more than $100 billion worth of international trade moving on the world’s oceans. In 2021, the last year with complete figures, 11 billion tons of goods, 80% of all world trade […]

Author’s Note: He was just sitting up there in the tree this morning – 2nd morning appearance this week. But before I went out he was hooting quite a bit – I looked it up – definitely a Great Horned Owl’s call…ArriasInline image Early morning, a dense, warm fog, The sky still black as pitch, […]

Author’s Note: It just seems to me we could get so much more done if we had folks who paid attention… – Arrias One of the marvelous scenes in the movie Man For All Seasons has Thomas More talking to his friend the Duke of Norfolk, about More’s refusal to endorse the King’s divorce of […]

In an early version of his 2nd Inaugural Address, Abraham Lincoln wrote of the Civil War that that: “…each party claims to act in accordance with the will of God. Both may be, and one must be wrong.” In his eloquent, spare style Lincoln reduced Just War theory down to a single line. There are […]

Author’s Note: Cold and gray here – winter in the Tidewater – the dogs are looking for warm spots… Cold and gray, a north wind blows, Dry leaves tumble across the yard, A line of gold marks the dawn, But brown and dead the sward. Turn my back to the wind, It’s cold, and hard […]