Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi meets with Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, political chief of Afghanistan’s Taliban, in Tianjin, China on July 28, 2021. (Li Ran/Xinhua via Reuters) Asia & Pacific

By Eva Fu August 17, 2021 Updated: August 18, 2021 biggersmallerPrint

The Taliban takeover of Afghanistan gave the Chinese regime a golden opportunity to attack the United States and attempt to widen its own influence. And it wasted no time to seize it.

State-run newspapers, broadcasters, and Chinese diplomats have launched a propaganda offensive not dissimilar to the regime’s ongoing efforts to deflect blame around the origins of the pandemic.

The propaganda includes touting the prospective Chinese friendship with the Taliban insurgents, who have taken over Afghanistan at a sweeping pace in the past week, mocking the U.S. “defeat,” and threatening Taiwan by questioning U.S. commitment in the Asian region.

Put together, the narrative put forward by the communist regime was: the United States has failed Afghanistan, and Beijing is ready to offer an olive branch.

“Wherever the U.S. sets foot in, be it Iraq, Syria, or Afghanistan, we see turbulence, division, broken families, deaths, and other scars in the mess it has left. The U.S. power and role is destructive rather than constructive,” said Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying in an Aug. 17 press briefing. She had told reporters a day prior that the changes in Afghanistan were a result of “the will and choice of the Afghan people.”

In late July, about a month before the scheduled U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Chinese regime was among the first countries to signal its support for the Islamist militants when Foreign Minister Wang Yi hosted a delegation of Taliban representatives in the port city of Tianjin.

‘The Enemy’s Enemy Is a Friend’

Images and videos showed thousands of Afghan civilians thronging Kabul airport in a desperate bid to escape the war-torn country, fearful of a revival of the past harsh practices—including public stoning, whipping, and hanging—under Islamic militants’ rule two decades ago. In the Taliban-captured cities, many residents have chosen to lie low and stay indoors, while shops, supermarkets, and government offices remain shuttered.

China and Russia are among a handful of countries that have chosen to keep their embassies open, as the United States and its allies evacuated diplomats by helicopter. Meanwhile, Chinese state media were painting a welcoming picture of the Taliban’s victory, with one article dated Aug. 17 headlined “normalcy returns to Afghan capital.”

State-run news agency Xinhua, in an Aug. 16 article, found similarity in the Talibans’ military strategy and how the Chinese Communist Party won the Chinese Civil War against the Kuomintang during the 1940s, calling the Taliban takeover a case of “the weak overcoming the strong” through rural guerrilla warfare.

It claimed that the “public sentiments in Afghanistan were very different from Western portrayals” and that Afghan cities were surrendering to the Taliban because the militants had “popular support.”

Hu Xijin, editor of the hawkish state-run tabloid Global Times, suggested on Twitter that “the power transition in Afghanistan is even more smooth than presidential transition in the U.S.,” adding, in a separate tweet, that the regime’s “principle of non-interference” has enabled it to “maintain the confidence that it need not close its embassy.”

“No matter who is in power, we’re ready to be Afghanistan’s friend,” he wrote on Aug. 15.

Feng Chongyi, a professor on China studies at the University of Technology Sydney, said the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) support for the Taliban was strategic.

The regime “supports the Taliban because they and the United States are on the opposite sides,” Feng told The Epoch Times.

“The CCP’s idea,” he said, “is that the enemy’s enemy is a friend.”

While ideologically, the atheist Chinese regime is not compatible with the Taliban, they could support the group and through this, “create trouble for America,” according to China affairs commentator Tang Jingyuan.

“By diverting U.S. attention, it would ease the CCP’s pressure in a direct confrontation,” he told The Epoch Times.

President Joe Biden said that by pulling out its forces from Afghanistan, the United States would be able to refocus its energy on China.

“Our true strategic competitors—China and Russia—would love nothing more than the United States to continue to funnel billions of dollars in resources and attention into stabilizing Afghanistan indefinitely,” he said at a press briefing on Monday.

Pressuring Taiwan

Besides mocking the United States with descriptors such as “humiliating,” “deleterious,” and “a death knell to the falling U.S. hegemony,” Chinese propaganda also capitalized on the U.S. troop withdrawal to undermine the United States’ reliability on the world stage.

Taking aim at Taiwan, a Global Times editorial on Monday claimed that the “Afghan abandonment” served a lesson for the democratically-ruled island, which has relied on U.S. support as it navigates the aggravating pressure from Beijing to reclaim the country as its own.

While Taiwan’s ruling administration has not weighed in on the Afghan situation, they “must have known better in secret that the U.S. is not reliable,” read the Global Times article.

The White House on Tuesday pushed back on the Chinese propaganda.

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan stressed that the U.S. commitment to Taiwan “remains as strong as it’s ever been,” telling reporters that, “when it comes to Taiwan, it is a fundamentally different question in a different context.”

Press Secretary Jen Psaki also rebuffed the Chinese claims that “the U.S. won’t come to help if war breaks out.”

“Our message is very clear: We stand by, as is outlined in the Taiwan Relations Agreement, individuals in Taiwan. We stand by partners around the world who are subject to this kind of propaganda that Russia and China are projecting, and we’re going to continue to deliver on those words with actions,” she said at the same press briefing.

The Chinese regime carried out assault drills near Taiwan on Tuesday, showing off warships and anti-submarine aircraft near the southwest and southeast of the island in response to what Beijing characterized as “provocations by Taiwan.”

Hoping to sow division between the United States and its Asian allies, the Chinese regime is trying to weaken the U.S.-centered freedom-loving world order and promote one of its own, said Tang.

From a geopolitical standpoint, he said, Washington could not afford to give up Taiwan.

Yu Tsung-chi, a former associate dean of the Political Warfare Cadres Academy at Taipei-based National Defense University, echoed Tang’s views.

The United States has been making efforts to strengthen ties with Taiwan, “not because Taiwan relies on America, rather, more because America needs Taiwan,” he told The Epoch Times.

A Chinese invasion of Taiwan would have a direct effect on Japan, South Korea, and even Australia, Yu said, adding that the need to prevent Taiwan’s advanced microchip manufacturing industry from being controlled by Beijing would compel the United States to step in if the regime makes military moves on the island.

Luo Ya contributed to this report. Eva FuChina Reporter Eva Fu is a New York-based writer for The Epoch Times focusing on U.S.-China, religious freedom, and human rights.

Undated photo showing a Black Hawk helicopter over Kabul in Afghanistan. (Dan Kitwood/AP) National Security

By Jack Phillips August 19, 2021 Updated: August 20, 2021 biggersmallerPrint

Likely billions of dollars of American weapons and vehicles are now in the hands of the Taliban extremist group after the collapse of the Afghan government and army, with numerous videos and photos surfacing online showing Taliban members seizing the equipment.

Photos have circulated of Taliban members holding American M-4 carbines and M-16 rifles rather than AK-47s or AKMs. Other images and videos showed the Taliban surrounding U.S. Black Hawk helicopters and A-29 Super Tucano attack aircraft.

On Wednesday, several GOP senators demanded the Department of Defense (DOD) provide full accounting over the weapons and equipment that were captured by the Taliban, considered by several agencies as a terrorist organization.

“As we watched the images coming out of Afghanistan as the Taliban retook the country, we were horrified to see U.S. equipment—including UH-60 Black Hawks—in the hands of the Taliban,” Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and two dozen other senators wrote to Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin this week.

“It is unconscionable that high-tech military equipment paid for by U.S. taxpayers has fallen into the hands of the Taliban and their terrorist allies,” the Republicans added. “Securing U.S. assets should have been among the top priorities for the U.S. Department of Defense prior to announcing the withdrawal from Afghanistan.”

Some experts said that the Taliban capture of U.S. hardware has more of a psychological impact—rather than a practical impact.

“When an armed group gets their hands on American-made weaponry, it’s sort of a status symbol. It’s a psychological win,” said Elias Yousif, deputy director of the Center for International Policy’s Security Assistance Monitor, according to The Hill.

Yousif said the development is problematic for a number of reasons.

“Clearly, this is an indictment of the U.S. security cooperation enterprise broadly,” he added. “It really should raise a lot of concerns about what is the wider enterprise that is going on every single day, whether that’s in the Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa, East Asia.”

The Office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, established by Congress in 2008, has said that about $83 billion was spent on developing and sustaining the Afghan police and army over two decades. Between 2003 and 2016, the United States transferred nearly 600,000 weapons, 76,000 vehicles, 163,000 communication devices, 208 aircraft, and surveillance and reconnaissance equipment to the Afghan forces, said a 2017 Government Accountability Office report.

Between 2017 and 2019, the United States provided Afghan army forces with 4,702 Humvees, 2,520 bombs, 1,394 grenade launchers, 20,040 hand grenades, and 7,035 machine guns, said the Office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction.

Yousif told The Hill that it’s likely the Taliban would be able to use advanced aircraft or weaponry but stressed they won’t be able to keep the aircraft in the air for long.

“They may be able to manage a flight or two or to operate them in some really limited capacity in the short term, but without long-term sustainment, maintenance, servicing, that sort of thing, it wouldn’t turn into a robust or useful military capability,” he said. “It took the Afghans and the United States a long time to develop an indigenous air capability, and even then, they were reliant on the United States to keep those planes in the sky.”

Small arms like M-16s, he said, are of more concern.

“They are easy to maintain, easy to learn how to use, easy to transport,” Yousif told the outlet. “The concern for all small arms is that they are durable goods and they can be transferred, sold. We’ve seen this before where a conflict ends and the arms that stay there make their way to all parts of the world.”

When pressed for comment, White House officials said that it’s not clear how many weapons or vehicles were seized.

“We don’t have a complete picture, obviously, of where every article of defense materials has gone, but certainly a fair amount of it has fallen into the hands of the Taliban,” White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters on Tuesday. “And obviously, we don’t have a sense that they are going to readily hand it over to us at the airport.”

And Sullivan made reference to the Black Hawk helicopters that were taken, blaming the Afghan army for not defending themselves.

“Those Black Hawks were not given to the Taliban,” he said. “They were given to the Afghan National Security Forces to be able to defend themselves at the specific request of [Afghan] President [Ashraf] Ghani, who came to the Oval Office and asked for additional air capability, among other things.” Jack PhillipsSenior Reporter Jack Phillips is a reporter at The Epoch Times based in New York.

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US Probing Deaths at Plane Takeoff in Kabul86 Share Now 882TelegramFacebookTweetEmailTellMeWeRedditCopy Link

A U.S. Chinook helicopter flies over the U.S. Embassy, in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Aug. 15, 2021. (Rahmat Gul/AP Photo) US Features

By Allan Stein August 17, 2021 Updated: August 17, 2021 biggersmallerPrint

Billy Vaughn of Florida is hesitant to say whether the war in Afghanistan was worth it or not, believing it’s not for him to pass judgment.

All the Gold Star father knows for certain is that his son, Aaron, died in that far-away conflict 10 years ago almost to the day, at the tender age of 30.

Each year, the family struggles with their loss.

“It’s always a difficult day,” Vaughn told The Epoch Times. “He was about as humble a boy as there ever could be.

“At the same time, he was a fierce protector and a fierce defender against injustice.”

Aaron was a proud member of Navy SEAL Team Six, who believed in the sacred trinity of flag, family, and faith.

In the end, “he gave up his life for that flag,” his father said.

Vaughn lost his son when his U.S. Army helicopter exploded over the Tangi Valley in Afghanistan on Aug. 6, 2011, killing all 30 aboard. It was the largest loss-of-life incident in the Afghanistan war.

Vaughn said that if his son were alive today, he’d be “sickened” by the sight of the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan after thousands of U.S. service members died defending the country against tyranny.

“I’ve never seen such a tragedy unfold in my lifetime,” Vaughn said. “It’s really inexplicable to describe in my mind how badly the Biden administration has handled [the crisis]. There is no reason for us to flee like dogs with our tails between our legs.”

At best, Vaughn sees it as a “replay on steroids” of the failed Middle East policy of the Obama–Biden administration.

“He [Biden] is full of insults for everybody else,” Vaughn said. “You just can’t hardly believe that people are that stupid. It makes you wonder if it wasn’t done on purpose.

“We lost a boy over there. What I will say is this: These men and women who fought and died did what they did because they loved this country and they wanted to help the people of Afghanistan. If my son were alive today, he’d do it all over again,” he added.

At VFW Post 1709 in Flagstaff, Arizona, former U.S. Marine Cpl. Gabriel Winse said he served two tours in Iraq, in 2005 and 2009, and lost friends and fellow soldiers in Afghanistan.

He questioned the leadership that led to the humiliating takeover of the country by the Taliban.

“I don’t know if [the war] was worth it,” Winse told The Epoch Times. “Honestly, I really don’t know. They told me it was a waste of time—all my buddies that are over there.

“My biggest thing is the families that have lost a father, son, or daughter,” he said.

He said U.S. service members either died for a cause, “or they died for nothing.”

Dr. Tony Brooks, a former member of the elite 75th Army Ranger Regiment who lives in Washington, served in Afghanistan in 2005 and in Iraq from 2006 to 2007 in support of the global war on terror.

He now questions whether any of it was worth it.

After watching the tragedy in Afghanistan unfold on television, “I’ve experienced literally every emotion during the past week,” he said—from happiness that U.S. troops will soon be coming home, to sadness and disappointment over the terrible fate of the Afghan people who believe in democracy.

At the same time, 10,000 Americans are waiting to be evacuated at Kabul International Airport in Afghanistan’s capital, he said.

“I know what this means. I know where this is going,” Brooks told The Epoch Times. “I went over there to fight. I don’t know what it was for at this point. It feels very much like a complete failure—Vietnam 2.0.”

In terms of lives and treasure lost, Brooks is appalled that nearly 2,450 U.S. service members have died and $2 trillion has been spent in the 20-year conflict in Afghanistan.

“I did not risk my life to watch women in Afghanistan turned into slaves. They will suffer the greatest setback in women’s rights that we’ve seen in our lifetime. We finally have women in Afghanistan that are adults who have lived under a regime where they’ve had rights. Now, the Taliban is taking those rights and enslaving them,” Brooks said.

Brooks is the author of “Leave No Man Behind: The Untold Story of the Rangers’ Unrelenting Search for Marcus Luttrell, the Navy SEAL Lone Survivor in Afghanistan.”

In the aftermath of the Taliban conquest of Afghanistan, Brooks said he doesn’t support a return of U.S. troops to the country.

“I think the answer is no. It’s too late. To put people in the lion’s den again—that is not OK. I don’t think the government has a clue.” Allan Stein Allan Stein is an Epoch Times reporter who covers the state of Arizona.

Thousands of Counterfeit COVID-19 Vaccination Cards From China Seized in Tennessee1137 Share Now 5TelegramFacebookTweetEmailTellMeWeRedditCopy Link

Counterfeit COVID-19 vaccination cards recently seized by Customs And Border Protection officers in Aug. 2021. (U.S. Customs And Border Protection) US News

By Jack Phillips August 20, 2021 Updated: August 20, 2021 biggersmallerPrint

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials seized more than 3,000 fake COVID-19 vaccination cards in Anchorage, Alaska, that came from China—the second such instance in about a week.

According to a news release from CBP, the fabricated Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cards from China were of “low quality” but still “closely resemble” real CDC vaccine cards provided by healthcare practitioners when administering the vaccine around the United States.

“Getting these fraudulent cards off the streets and out of the hands of those who would then sell them is important for the safety of the American public,” said Lance Robinson, Area Port Director of the Area Port of Anchorage, according to the release. “Looking out for the welfare of our fellow Alaskans is one of the many and varied responsibilities CBP is proud to take on.”

Last week, CBP officials in Memphis, Tennessee, said they obtained thousands of fake COVID-19 vaccine cards in Memphis, Tennessee, which were en route to New Orleans, Louisiana. Those cards were also manufactured in China.

“Recently, CBP has been seizing a high volume of counterfeit vaccination cards throughout the country,” the agency said this week, without elaborating.

In Illinois, the Department of Justice announced it arrested a Chicago pharmacist, Tangtang Zhao, for selling authentic vaccine cards over the internet. Zhao faces as many as 120 years in prison.

With the latest seizure, it appears likely that fake vaccine cards are increasingly in demand as various municipalities like New York City and San Francisco start to mandate vaccine passports for certain public activities.

Vaccine passport systems have been criticized by civil liberties groups for potentially creating a segregated society of those who received the vaccine and those who have not. Other critics have said that these systems could potentially imperil individuals’ right to privacy, and GOP governors and state legislatures, including in Texas and Florida, have moved to bar their use in recent months.

Nonetheless, top officials, including White House COVID-19 response coordinator Jeff Zeints, as well as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) in recent days have warned that buying and selling fake vaccine cards with the CDC seal is a crime.

Over the past weekend, Schumer called for a federal crackdown on fabricated CDC cards, claiming that “too many people are looking to buy them.”

“They are paying money for a fake card and risking prosecution,” the New York Democrat said during a press conference. “Who could be that dumb? Who could be that dumb? The vaccine is free, the vaccine is safe: Get the vaccine.” Jack PhillipsSenior Reporter Jack Phillips is a reporter at The Epoch Times based in New York.

White House Announces COVID-19 Travel Restrictions Will Remain261 Share Now TelegramFacebookTweetEmailTellMeWeRedditCopy Link

People cross the U.S.-Canadian border after Canada opened the border to vaccinated Americans in Blaine, Wash., on Aug. 9, 2021. (David Ryder/Reuters) US News

By Zachary Stieber August 20, 2021 Updated: August 20, 2021 biggersmallerPrint

The United States on Friday extended limits on travel deemed non-essential at its northern and southern land borders, even after Canada started accepting American tourists.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the 30-day extension, saying it was aimed at minimizing the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19.

“In coordination with public health and medical experts, DHS continues working closely with its partners across the United States and internationally to determine how to safely and sustainably resume normal travel,” the agency said in a statement.

COVID-19 is caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus.

The Delta variant of the virus in particular drove the extension, officials said.

The U.S. has kept land borders with Canada and Mexico closed since March 2020, repeatedly extending the closures during the COVID-19 pandemic even when COVID-19 metrics decreased significantly.

In recent weeks, COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths in the United States have risen sharply as vaccine effectiveness wanes.

Canada announced last month that U.S. tourists could begin visiting the country on Aug. 9, but only if they were fully vaccinated against the CCP virus.

Fully vaccinated means a person has received the two-dose Pfizer or Moderna series, or the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

So far, it does not include booster shots that were recently recommended for even healthy adults.

U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents can still return to the United States from Canada or Mexico, or any of the other countries from which America has restricted visitors.

The closures also don’t affect illegal immigration, which has skyrocketed under President Joe Biden, or the tens of thousands of Afghans being flown into the United States, not all of whom are being tested for COVID-19. Republicans have repeatedly hit the Biden administration over the border crisis, which shows no signs of slowing down.

Even some Democrats have expressed disappointment at the continued land border closures.

“The safety of NH’s families amid the Delta surge is my #1 priority, but this is disappointing news for border communities,” Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) said Friday on Twitter.

“NH businesses can’t fully conduct trade & tourism, and families across the border are still separated. We must reopen the border to those who are vaccinated,” she added.

A Spanish-language pamphlet published by the Red Cross titled “Messages of Self-Help for Migrants” was being carried by an illegal immigrant in Uvalde, Texas. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times) Immigration & Border Security

A Spanish-language flyer by the Red Cross provides detailed routes to the US southern border, shelter locations, and instructions on how to jump off a moving train safely By Charlotte Cuthbertson August 17, 2021 Updated: August 18, 2021 biggersmallerPrint

UVALDE, Texas—Rancher John Sewell recently picked up a pamphlet that had fallen from the backpack of an illegal immigrant who was trespassing on his property near Uvalde, Texas—about 50 miles from the U.S.–Mexico border.

On one side is a map that details transport routes from Panama to the United States. It pinpoints in great detail where migrants can find shelter or get medical help along the way. The other side is full of useful information, in Spanish, including how to more safely travel through forests and jungles, find shelter, get medical help, and deal with immigration authorities.

It was published by the Red Cross and is titled “Messages of Self-Help for Migrants.”

The pamphlet crosses a line beyond providing life-saving information to facilitating illegal immigration, according to Jessica Vaughan, director of policy studies at the Washington-based Center for Immigration Studies.

“It’s practically a road map or a TripTech for an illegal migrant,” she told The Epoch Times. “It’s one thing to give out water to migrants. It’s quite another thing to help them migrate illegally—and breach the sovereignty of a border.”

The pamphlet includes advice such as that “it’s always safer to travel in a group, especially for women,” and to stay in contact with relatives and friends, “especially before crossing the border.”

It warns against getting on or off a train when it’s moving or wet, but then advises: “If you do get off a train when it’s moving, keep running so that others don’t fall on top of you,” and “Try not to get on a train if you haven’t eaten or rested. You may fall off if you are sleepy.”

It goes on to say: “Don’t hide in vehicles or in small places where you might suffocate, drown, or get sick. Be sure you have enough space to breathe.”

In Uvalde, where Sewell obtained the pamphlet, Border Patrol has seen a 911 percent increase this year in stowaway illegal aliens on freight trains traveling from the border to San Antonio.

On Aug. 13, on one train inspected by Border Patrol, agents found 20 illegal aliens hiding in the beds of new pickup trucks being hauled in two different train cars. Several of the aliens had been apprehended the previous day by the same agent at the same location. All were single males from Mexico and Honduras.

The map also highlights Red Cross shelters in Mexico and other places that are run by religious organizations, such as the Good Samaritan House in Oaxaca, Mexico, and Catholic Charities in Tucson, Arizona.

Vaughan said that, rather than being a “benign underground railroad-type of exercise,” the pamphlet is “enticing criminal behavior that is also very, very dangerous and illegal.”

She said the Red Cross and other humanitarian organizations should be telling migrants not to come. She said most illegal immigrants entering the United States don’t meet the criteria for asylum and won’t be granted asylum status by an immigration judge. Many Central Americans, the largest population of illegal immigrants, don’t end up claiming asylum once they’re in the United States, and of those who do, less than 15 percent are granted relief.

A spokesperson for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said the organization doesn’t prevent or encourage migration.

“As an impartial, neutral and independent organization, our actions are focused on addressing the humanitarian needs of migrants to ensure they are treated with dignity, both in their countries of origin, transit and destination, and regardless of their immigration status,” the spokesperson told The Epoch Times via email.

The ICRC didn’t respond to a question asking where it makes the pamphlets available, but the Red Cross logos from seven countries are printed on the flyer, including the United States, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Costa Rica, and Panama.

The spokesperson said the organization provides humanitarian assistance at key points along the route.

“We also inform them of risks they’re undertaking while using the migration route,” the spokesperson said.

“It is essential to prevent the loss of lives and to promote a humanitarian approach. Addressing the needs of this vulnerable population is a shared responsibility, of the authorities in the countries of origin, transit and destination, and of the international community.”

The Geneva-based ICRC operated in 100 countries in 2019 and spent more than $2 billion, according to its latest annual report. It is funded mainly by voluntary donations from governments, and national Red Cross and Red Crescent societies, according to its website.

Vaughan said the United States should investigate how the flyer came to be published and with whose funding.

“They should be helping people in the countries where the migrants live, not aid and abet this illegal migration that is so dangerous and has created so many problems for all of the countries where it occurs,” she said. Charlotte CuthbertsonSenior Reporter Charlotte Cuthbertson is a senior reporter with The Epoch Times who primarily covers border security and the opioid crisis.

I don’t specifically recall in my life ever trying to gain body weight.  Lose weight? Sure, may times, but not gain.  Perhaps there was a time in high school for a sports requirement for a particular weight class for fair practice and/or competition – but again, I can’t say for sure.  Just wanted to qualify my statement due to that possibility in high school many years ago.   I did however once witness what can happen when mismatched weight classes clash on the mat.  Yup, right at the mat”s edge, less than two feet away, I not only visually witnessed the twig like snapping of a forearm but heard that unforgettable, cringe-producing “SNAP” accompanied by the instantaneous reconfiguration of an adolescent human limb into something science fiction worthy regarding radiated mutants.  A smooth fleshy exaggerated bump in the wrong place (not the elbow!) and a misdirected hand.  

Actually I had experienced the same sort of injury while roller skating years before as a preteen.  It was a beautiful fall day in the Central San Joaquin Valley, a bit chilly so I had a jacket, cap and gloves on and was racing down the sidewalk in front of our house as fast as I could but this time while making a fast turn caught that clean edged sidewalk-lawn boundary, and as my feet stopped my body was launched forward.  So what’s the instinctive thing to do ….(without other training of course – some Judo lessons later saved many such accidental injuries by teaching how to “fall properly”)  …  outstretch your arms with hands prepared to absorb the shock of the fall.  Yup, a muffled snap under the jacket.   I sat on the sidewalk for a bit doing a short inventory of any damage – another hole in my jeans – no biggie, they were “play clothes” not “school clothing”.  My left arm was tingling numb and there was some pain but not enough to prevent my  getting up and resuming the sidewalk skating, but within only a minute or two the tingling and pain was more noticeable.  I stopped, started to pull off the glove but observed my hand was pointing slightly in the wrong direction!  What?  How could this be?  I  pulled the glove completely off and pushed the jacket sleeve up a little to reveal more of my arm and PRESTO!

Think I went into shock or something and starting yelling for help – and fell on my ass.  (Lucky I didn’t break my tailbone with that unnecessary move.  Lol)   Rather funny actually.  Others were attempting to calm me down until they saw the “reconfigured limb” and even their speech and activity took on a more serious nature.  Something a child will pick up on immediately. Oh yeah, here’s a little something a young kid who is already freaked out with a new crooked arm doesn’t want to overhear while adults are assessing the situation – “Is there any blood? Is the bone sticking out?  lol (Nope – not a compound fracture just a clean break.) Blah, blah, blah….. but I digress.   

So I don’t recall ever trying to lose weight, yet here I am with a surprising 30lb plus weight drop without trying.  Sure, I might have dropped a few pounds working on a physically demanding project for a couple of months but it was gradual and not alarming in anyway, but on my first 5 day camping trip on the high desert I came back an additional 10 – 12 lbs lighter!  Then on the next 10 day excursion another 10-12lbs despite taking regular breaks and consuming much water and Gatorade.  (Adding more salt next time. Completely forgot about the customary salt tablet dispensers when living overseas where dehydration was a common ailment.) I even started loading up on particular vitamins a week or so earlier in preparation for what I knew was going to be another rather strenuous and physically demanding outing.  (By the way remember my blah blah blahs about muscle cramps and how annoying they were at night after a good days work?  (My GSD Liz was at first freaked out by my late night-early morning Frankenstein hip-hop dance and cursing around the bedroom but later (after several such performances) would only raise her heard in bored acknowledgment of the performance and just go back to sleep as I hobbled downstairs to slam some orange juice.   I started taking a Potassium vitamin supplement a couple of months back – and have not had a cramp since – almost, but not a full  blown, hopping around the bedroom and cursing in the dark cramp!  lol

Apparently I’ve been dealing with some heat exhaustion (not heat stroke) and although “thought” I was taking in enough fluids to offset the perspiration loss,  was not.  Sure, I’d get a little lightheaded when physically working in approximate 100 degree heat (with an elevation increase of 3,500’ or so) so I made a point of stopping and taking breaks.  Cool off and go back to work later.  Guess there is an accumulative aspect to heat exhaustion too.  So I reluctantly acknowledged the danger in trying to push on and complete the project (often in the comfort of a reclining chair while watching television I can plan some wonderful projects without the realistic evaluation of what I could actually accomplish (especially under very different circumstances), in other words, I sometimes “bite off more than I can chew”despite the will to do so.    Raw and slightly lacerated finger tips also assisted with this decision because EVERYTHING IS MORE DIFFICULT WHEN HANDS AND FINGERS ARE CAUSING ENOUGH PAIN to make simple chores like tying bootlaces difficult. So I packed things up and headed back.  No fooling, it’s taken about two weeks to feel semi-normal again – with most of the difficulty orbiting around just having an appetite again.  Hard to explain because mixed in all of this soreness and fading pain is an excitement and interest I have not experienced in years. 

Well, at least that’s what I believe and hope is going on…..sure it could be something else (can be rather disturbing when you research things sudden weight loss might signify or be linked too) but I am well acquainted with my body due to several decades of semi-unrestrained interest and enthusiasm for physically demanding activities and how they can negatively affect my health if not monitored carefully and moderated.  The age variable is something I must pay more attention to obviously.  (True with all of us yeah?  I can’t imagine all the classic injuries parents and grandparents likely suffer when over-doing it when interacting with the young ones…. play now-pay later yeah?)

Sure, anything is possible (never say never) and there’s always the possibility an individual could inadvertently slip into one of life’s “slow checkout lines” and be just too darn distracted and captivated with other activities at the moment to appreciate the seriousness and direction actually headed, (again, I certainly do not believe this the case) but even if so, I’m still going back for more because unquestionably, there is a “Desert Tug” in more ways than one. 

My best to you and yours, Lew

Same Old Solution – but greatly appreciated never-the-less. Yup, registration and tags are on their way but it is going to happen again next year. But again, this is also unfair to the DMV employees doing their job and I sure was lucky to get hold of two of them (original representative contact plus a supervisor) who could at least drop the Stanislaus District fee for this year.

That still leaves the rest of you – but then again, maybe the money or the principle doesn’t bother you like it does me. I didn’t owe that $22,m never have. Oh well, guess I’ll do tomorrow what I had planned on doing today. later

My best to you and yours, Lew

WHAT IS THIS?

Who guessed the CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLES?

BINGO! Yes, you’ve heard this story before and that’s beeeeecaaaaauuuse,…..IT HAPPENS MOST EVERY FUCKING YEAR WITHOUT CORRECTION OR ACCOUNTABILITY! How much money is the DMV wrongfully taking from this area?

My yearly frustration and anger with the DMV that obviously can not efficiently, much less correctly, process vehicle registrations for folks in the Lake Don Pedro area on the Mariposa side with the 95329 zip code. (Unless there is yet another DemoRat unethically inspired harassment program at work here? But what could be a possible reason?

REM THIS? LOL

Wonder if I’m on some sort of Gruesom Newsom counterattack/hate list where his army of worshiping little minions throughout government departments and divisions toil away in their cubicles dutifully (and gleefully) obstructing and sabotaging the traditional business of that government organization? HOW DARE HE SUPPORT THE RECALL OF CHAIRMAN KNEW SOME? You know, the ‘ol DEMO RAT GOTTCHA. Purpose? Perhaps to punish, frustrate and indeed anger, those conservative customers who don’t vote as the DMV suggests when the DMV was actively changing other political affiliations to Democrat. Some recruitment process for change yeah? lol

So here I go again……I LIVE IN MARIPOSA COUNTY AND AM NOT REQUIRED TO PAY THE STANISLAUS COUNTY DISTRICT SMOG FEE CHARGE OF $22! A DMV employee (after consultation with his “lead team”) advised me to fill out the Statement of Fact Form (once again), explain the situation in writing, deduct the $22 from the bill and send a check for the correct amount with the paperwork. OK, so I did: below.

Yes indeed, rather unloaded on them with a host of complaints regarding the same issue: individuals not performing their respective jobs according to established regulations and policies. Accompanying this was a check for the amount I owed for the registration fees: $226.00 DMV clearly received the check because (as you will see below) it was listed as “amount paid”.

Received the DMV letter yesterday (August 17 – approximately 37 days since it was mailed – but expired registration was on July 31. (GOSH! think they were also trying to push me over the July 31 expiration date? lol) Anyway, here was the response to my required FACTUAL STATEMENT FORM that I did not owe a Stanislaus County District Fee. (I was looking forward to how it would be explained since OBVIOUSLY WRONG for 8 years!) This was DMV’s understanding response:

1. A copy of my two page narrative but the Two pages of DMV STATEMENT OF FACT FORM (signed under penalty of perjury) HAD BEEN SEPARATED FROM my two page NARRATIVE. WHy? Is my narrative now conveniently filed away as just an unfounded complaint because there was no DMV Statement of Fact Form accompanying the narrative? (That would be a new twist.)

#2 REPORT OF DEPOSIT OF FEES –

#3 (BELOW) A DIFFERENT FEE FORM WHICH DOES NOT SHOW ALL FIVE FEES TOGETHER AND DISPLAYED AS THEY ARE ON THE REGISTRATION CARD AS COUNTY/DISTRICT FEES $22 (Perhaps this responding DMV employee thought I could not add the 5 figures together and successfully reach the total of $22? lol)

That’s it. No apology for the inconvenience and frustration for 8 years. No explanation, discussion, or questioning of my FACT STATEMENT. No suggestion I should move to Stanislaus County so as to make their DMV paperwork correct? lol Though moving sure is an option, it would never be within this Califusion!) This employee didn’t even have the confidence to identify themselves. Perhaps one of those weak little leftist loser obstructionists who wrongfully use their government position to (in their minds) fight the evil conservatives that don’t recognize the intelligence and greatness of Governor …..what’s his name?……No, not Larry Elders….at least not yet…… and what about these Califusion elections? Same as the stolen presidential election?

I can almost hear the pleasure this little piss ant obstructionist would spew…..

“FUCK YOU AND YOUR DMV STATEMENT OF FACT FORM AND YOUR CRY BABY 8 YEARS OF FRUSTRATION AND INCONVENIENCE ….Many others have it worse. PISS OFF YOU WORTHLESS CONSERVATIVE! SEND US THE $22 YOU DON’T OWE OR WE WILL KEEP THE TAGS YOU ALREADY LEGITIMATELY PAID FOR AND IN THE MEAN TIME WE SINCERELY HOPE YOU GET A BIG FAT TICKET FOR EXPIRED REGISTRATION AND IT MAKES YOU MAD ENOUGH TO HAVE A HEART ATTACK FOR HAVING THE GALL OF EVEN QUESTIONING THE GREAT AND POWERFUL AND NEVER EVER WRONG

CALIFUSION

MDV !”

My best to you and yours, Lew

PS: Almost forgot the 2017 admission by DMV that the charges are indeed incorrect:

There’s more to this, but I’m still recovering from the last desert excursion (lost 30lbs during and between the two trips.) Actually had another post almost ready until yesterday’s DMV response. Folks we are losing OUR COUNTRY to an orchestrated organization Anti-USA cheats and liars who do not believe in the RULE OF LAW and they are everywhere – local, state and federal. later.

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Find out for yourself – don’t listen to MSM which put us in this ANTI-AMERICAN NIGHTMARE!

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https://www.theepochtimes.com/c-larry-elder-with-epoch-times