An Intriguing Matchup

San Antonio will face the Knicks in a championship series that could be an instant classic. New York has been playing phenomenal defense. They have relatively balanced scoring and a superstar in Jalen Brunson. The Spurs have the dominant young center in the league, and likely the face of its future in Victor Wembanyama. I think the Spurs will ultimately prevail, but time will tell, and I have known to bet my heart rather than thinking through the contests. 

Absolute and Uncompromising

I really thought Trump might take any deal with Iran to clear the decks for the midterms, but he will not. The master negotiator is insisting on what amounts to unconditional surrender by the Islamic Republic. No "art of the deal" here but victory or death. 

Degree of Peace?

If the Islamic Republic remains essentially a theocracy after the conflict, the war achieved little. If the mullahs still have "nuclear dust" to weaponize, you have gained nothing. If Iran has operational centrifuges to construct atomic weapons, the attack by America was not worth the effort. At the end of the proverbial day, the Ayatollah may hold his grip on the People with weapon-making material and technology in place. 

Why Trust Iran?

The Islamic fanatics that enslaved the Persian People set up an order of succession where anyone who came to power following them shared the same beliefs, at least until the regime in its entirety is completely uprooted. If you could not make a deal with the original Ayatollah, what makes you believe that any agreement with his replacement or the one after him will be kept by the lunatic Shiite regime?  

Must Exercise Care

We should all be reminded that there are volatile substances in every community, if not in each house, and tragedies like the chemical explosion in Washington State could happen anywhere. When dealing with chemicals that might be dangerous or when mixed with another substance or even exposed to air might become so, caution must be taken. There are cleaners in our homes right now that if mixed together can kill us. 

Really the Worst

While Iran is a unique threat, North Korea, Red China, and Putin's Russia are quite bad as well. Myanmar is also a totalitarian nightmare. Only the Islamic Republic though commits evil acts as the will of Allah, while the other tyrannies are just out to preserve their own authority, without the Lord Himself demanding it. 

kill, Kill, KILL

What differentiates the Iran regime from the other tyrannies in the world is the fact that the mad mullahs believe the bloody oppression they inflict is divinely commanded. The murderers who run Red China and North Korea may be as bloodthirsty out of a desire to maintain power but not because their sincerely held belief that if they die in the service of Allah that they will be bestowed bevies of virgins as sexual playthings in service of bringing forth a long-hidden Messiah from a well. What separates the Ayatollah theocracy from other despots is not hypocrisy but fundamental reverence. Treaties with fanatics are never kept because whatever they sign does not erase their fanaticism. 

Modern Day Gladiator

Kyle Busch was more than just a great race driver. He was unbelievably dedicated to training and had often pushed through injuries or illnesses that would sideline ordinary people, if not put them in an emergency room. If I was heaven forbid anywhere near as sick as Busch obviously (in hindsight) was, I would have long since have been in intensive care, but Kyle was so preternaturally determined to push through that he had his strength of mind overcome a failing body to keep working toward victory. Tragically, ironically, it was his devotion to doing everything to be the best that kept him training hard when almost anyone else would have been so debilitated that they would have long since been under treatment in a clinical care setting that would likely have been life-saving for the vast majority of us who will never come close to approaching the super man status of champion that Busch outworked virtually everyone to maintain. 

Blackburn for Governor

I offer my full-throated endorsement of our great Senator to be our next Governor of Tennessee. She is a true conservative with MAGA thinking even before MAGA was articulated by Trump. Marsha will make our state even better! 

The Knicks Year?

It has been over half a century since New York secured a National Basketball Association title, but the way they are competing now, that long dry spell may finally come to an end. They play defense with gusto and have balanced scoring with Brunson as good as any player in the league. They are well-coached and disciplined. This could be the team that manages what the great Patrick Ewing could not. 

A Consumer Bubble?

2026 is not 1929 when your doorman was receiving a hot stock tip from the elevator operator and then mortgaging his house to go buy the shares. The bulk of inflation there is now is from the spike in oil prices caused by the war and the downstream rise in the cost of virtually everything because it is made with petroleum, grown with oil byproducts, and transported with diesel or gasoline. The primary reason interest rates should be raised is to curb "irrational exuberance", but there is little of that now, with the vast majority of Americans just struggling to make ends meet. I pray the Federal Reserve does not punish us further by raising the interest rate, when it was not us work-a-day folks who decided to embark on a war of choice that skyrocketed the burden we are already having to bear. 

For the Ages

The Knicks looked deader than Kelsey's ghost through almost four and a half quarters, trailing by 22 points with around seven minutes left. Then, it was as if the spirit of Willis Reed possessed the New Yorkers, and they came clawing back. They almost could not miss, and Cleveland started to play as if in a stupor. Somehow our Big Apple heroes stormed their way into an overtime session they simply dominated. Part of it must be said to be Cavalier collapse and that was brought about by an inexplicable attempt at reliance on James Harden, who seems to have proven he falls apart in the playoff clutch, a sad thing for an otherwise great player. 

An Amazing Performance

If Wemby stays healthy and maintains his desire to compete, he will be among the all-time greats. His more than forty points and twenty rebounds against the defending champs were the tip of what he can do. He has the softest shooting touch of any center I have seen. 

Training for Tomorrow

Let us hope somewhere Iranians are being trained and armed to overthrow their religious fanatic oppressors. Of course, those opposed to the mullahs would likely be doing this discreetly, but I fear it may not be being done at all. If the theocrats still control Iran at the conclusion of this battle, they will develop nuclear weapons and attack the world, no matter what they agree to in negotiations now. 

No Negotiating Partner

So long as there is an Islamo-Fascist dictatorship oppressing the Iranian People, America will find no arbiter in Tehran who advances peace. The purpose of the mullah regime is to bring forth the Twelfth Imam who has been hiding in a well for more than a thousand years; so the United States is not dealing with negotiators who are chock full of sanity, but rather religious fanatics impervious to reason and unconcerned with the welfare of Iranians or even their personal survival. 

A Numbers Game

Did the Unite the Kingdom rally draw two million as Tommy Robinson contends or only fifty thousand as others claim? That is no small disparity but a huge difference in the count. Is this a minor demonstration or an earth-shaking movement? I am not certain that Robinson's assessment is absolutely right, but I do not believe the British government, the controlled media, or Robinson's Leftist detractors. He is much more credible than all of them put together. 

A Successful Summit

It seems President Trump's China trip went well. We have trade agreements rather than nuclear missiles flying. I call that success. 

Stand with Tommy

If I were in London, I would soon be marching with Tommy Robinson. If you want to save the West, join with Unite the Kingdom. Too many who do not share our values have been admitted. Send them back to preserve our way of life. 

Our Very Existence

Muslims who believe the most fervently find living Jews intolerable. A shockingly large number of  Islamists, who for some reason are in Great Satan America, can't abide the notion of a synagogue in New York City and feel unencumbered enough to go out and menace that gathering place for prayer and the predominately Jewish neighborhood that hosts it. The Jewish community in New York must feel under siege in the mayoralty of the insouciant Marxist, who is of course himself a member of this "religion of peace". If I were unfortunate enough to be a resident of New York, I would either make aliyah or at least move to a different US state that wants to safeguard its Jews like Florida.  

High Stakes Summit

The two global superpowers are having a sit-down. Red China has supplanted Russia as America's arch-rival, as Moscow cannot even subdue Kyiv. Beijing has a massive population. They have natural resources. What the Chinese lack is freedom, and until the People there have that, they remain the most dangerous force confronting the United States. 

No, They Hate

A woman achieved some notoriety with a book claiming folks love dead Jews. As someone who has witnessed six decades of Jew hate, let me tell you that most people will not love us even after we are murdered. They revile and defame us when we are alive and providing jobs and cures for them, do nothing beyond lip-service to protect us (if even that), and are glad to take what we have created and accumulated after we are eliminated. Antisemitism may be irrational, but it is an insanity that grips BILLIONS of people, and there are only fifteen million of us to try to stave them off. 

In the Making?

Are the Thunder a dynasty in the making? They play hard, smart, and well together. Their coach does not defeat his own players. They have skilled depth. They do not have a high-flying Michael Jordan, but Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is certainly a top three two (shooting) guard in today's NBA. I am NOT rooting for Oklahoma City but acknowledge they are a very good basketball team. 

Enjoy the Game

Perhaps the referees in the National Basketball Association are doing some moonlighting in the same job in professional wrestling. Now, some officials are challenging coaches in full view of the world. The one thing I can tell you is that almost nobody ever bought a ticket to a game to watch refs work. The NBA ought to tell those they select to officiate games to put their egos aside because the audience is NOT there to cheer a referee on but in spite of them interfering with the free flow of some of the world's greatest athletes. 

Absolutely Catastrophic Obstructionism

You would expect DemocRATS to attempt to block the implementation of the Trump agenda. You might not think the supposedly politically unbiased Courts would do the same. You certainly would be shocked if the Republican-controlled US Senate would work to thwart the President from their own political party but that is precisely what has been happening. 

Iran Might Sign

The Islamic Republic may well sign a peace treaty, but that does NOT mean they will abide by its terms. The mad mullahs want attacks against them to cease but have no intentions of giving up their Islamist notions. In any cessation of hostilities against the theocratic tyrants, there must be no trust but plenty of verification. 

Peace with Iran

A lasting treaty to end hostiles between the United States and Tehran is possible. It is only possible though if the mad mullahs are removed from power. The Islamic Republic is an implacable opponent to America, but it is also an enemy to decent and reasonable Iranians. 

The Corrupt Ones

Putin is one of the wealthiest people to ever live, if not the richest. He has systematically looted Russia. This is bad, but what the leaders of the Ukraine have done is arguably worse. They diverted aid meant to save their country from an invasion by the Russians to become richer than Croesus themselves. Let us never delude ourselves into thinking there are good guys leading either side. 

Ultimately No Compromise

Religious zealots can't be bargained with, because they are not merely fighting for territory, wealth, or power, but because God (the Lord of their perception) commands them to do so. The United States was never going to be able to make a "deal" with the Islamic Republic, because the mullahs that oppress Iran are Islamist fanatics, who would rather see Iran wiped out than give up their ambition of a worldwide Shiite caliphate. 

Really Brutal Season

To play eighty-two regular season games is already taxing on the body. How about shortening the NBA playoff series down to best of five, except for the championship? I hated seeing Jason Tatum unavailable, and now even though Philadelphia advanced, Joel Embiid may be injured. We want to see the games, but yearn to have the star players well enough to participate. 

The Hawks Collapsed

Don't get me wrong, the New York Knicks are a good basketball team, but Atlanta just fell apart in the final game of the series. No pro team is naturally as dominant against other professionals as NY demonstrated. It was simply Atlanta giving up early in the game. Maybe the NBA should have a mercy rule when an embarrassing blowout like this starts to happen. 

Against the Odds

The Timberwolves were without their starting guards, and their third guard who has provided them dynamic athleticism coming off the bench. They were also missing a swingman and playing against the franchise that just a few short years back captured a championship. Minnesota losing Ant alone should have installed Denver as favorites, even though the Nuggets were playing on the road. Well, Minnesota played with teamwork and determination and prevailed over a team that while not fully healthy themselves was much more intact than the home team. All I can say now is "go Wolves!"