Uncategorized

Balloons

SIOP- The Single Integrated Operations Plan. It’s a war plan for the strategic assets of the US military. This plan, covering thousands of pages, is one of the most classified documents that the military has. It details targets, timing, and routes for the nation’s armed forces in the event of a nuclear war. The plan outlines where each cruise missile, land based ICBM, and bomber will strike, what paths they will take, and how they will be supported- tankers, fighter support, and more. The plan is meticulously timed so that no two weapons interfere with each other. A cruise missile might take out a SAM site, then an aircraft out of a European base might fly through the gap created to strike an airbase that allows other forces to reach a missile field. A bomber that is too close to a cruise missile detonation becomes useless when it’s downed by fratricide, so timing is important. SIOP gets updated constantly.

The US Air Force operates a wing of RC-135s whose mission is electronic reconnaissance. They map every single radio and radar transmitter that puts out more power than a toaster for hundreds of miles on each side of its flight path. For radars, it isn’t just location. The plane records the frequency, power, pulse width, and repetition rate of every radar. For radio, they record conversations, frequency, and other facts to determine whether or not those radios belong to command posts, air traffic controller sites, or other defense functions.

How does this tie in to the Chinese balloons? It’s very possible that the Chinese are preparing for a war. Yes, a nuclear one. It’s my feeling that, before invading Taiwan, the Chinese are updating their own version of SIOP. Any invasion of Taiwan has a possibility of involving the United States, and any nation that takes on the US military has to consider the possibility that the conflict will eventually involve a nuclear exchange. PLAN would not be doing their jobs if they did not have an updated picture of the capabilities of NORAD.

These drones, balloons, whatever they are, are mapping the defenses of this nation for a reason. Why now? Why so many? Why risk it? The risk is high, so the reward must be equally as high.

By Divemedic, ago

Dying Breed

When I first got out of the military, there was this old WW2 vet who used to come into the place where I worked. Guy used to tell us stories about how he was a pilot during the war, and was shot down. I think he said he was shot down over Malta, but I’m not sure. This was more than 3 decades ago, so I may have the details wrong.

He told me that he was in a POW camp that was separated from one of the concentration camps by a fence. He came by nearly every morning, just to talk and tell us stories about his life. Nice guy.

Anyhow, he told great stories. The generation that fought the war is dying off at a rapid pace. The youngest of them is 93 years old. I’m a member of a Veteran’s organization, and we don’t charge dues to WW2 vets, and they don’t EVER pay for drinks in that club. Hear their stories now, before they are lost forever. We owe them. They built the nation that their boomer kids have plundered (and continue to plunder).

By Divemedic, ago

FL Population Shifts Will Change 2024 Election

I ran across an article that Pasco county is considering a ‘tent city’ to handle the large number of homeless in that county, because things have gotten so bad. I think the article is a bit misleading. The only reference as to whom is considering this tent city is a quote from the head of “Pasco County Continuum of Care.” That organization is not a part of any government. It is a nonprofit that is dedicated to serving the homeless. (Community Organizing) So it isn’t Pasco county that’s considering it, it’s a charity organization that is considering it.

This is where my post today goes from facts to largely being speculation on my part. Some of what you are about to read is anecdotal, and some based upon fact. We are seeing some interesting shifts in the Sunshine-Gunshine State.

I think that if there really are more homeless in Pasco county, that it’s a reflection on population shifts that we have seen here since 2020. Since the COVID lockdowns, there has been a huge influx of people of all economic levels from the northern states.

I know it’s anecdotal, but there seem to be many more people here than normal. There are many more “off color” license plates here than normal, and they aren’t leaving. This isn’t like our normal snowbird migrations. I keep seeing younger and younger people running around here, getting into cars with out of state plates while carrying golf clubs, looking as though they are retired. The grocery stores, restaurants, and other facilities are packed with out of state people. My theory is that we are being overrun by people who came here to escape their home states’ lockdowns, and many of them never left.

A few that I have been able to speak to tell me that they are “working from home” as they chuckle about how they moved here and got an apartment for far less money than they pay “up north” while they are collecting northern city wages. This is having a huge effect on the Florida economy, and is causing severe disruptions down here.

Home prices and rental rates are skyrocketing. Homes that were worth $250,000 in 2019 are now seeing their values topping $400,000. Rental rates in the state are continuing to climb at double digit rates, even as rents in other states decline. The statewide median sale price in Florida for single-family homes in 2022 was $402,500, up 15.7% year-over-year. For condo-townhouse units, it was $306,500, up 21.6% year-over-year. It isn’t a bubble in the classic sense- no one is panic buying. Prices are climbing, even though sales are falling.

As all of you know, we have been looking for a new home. Talking to real estate people, they say that sales are still strong. One agent I spoke with told me that he normally closes one or two homes a month, but has gotten contracts on two homes in the first six days of February already.

People are fleeing Florida’s cities for its smaller towns. The hottest markets right now are:

  • Marco Island: A community where a million dollar home is on the poor side of town and a condo will cost you $700k. Condos are reaching $600 a square foot!
  • Venice: This is where a house will cost you between $600k and a million, and mobile homes go for $150k. Can you imagine paying $150 a square foot for a trailer?
  • Dunedin: Another expensive beach town where condos sell for more than $200 a square foot.

So all of this is putting pressure on the people at the low to mid end of the economic spectrum. Housing prices are skyrocketing. That is why IMO, there is a huge push for people getting out of the Democrat controlled cities and into smaller towns.

The huge influx of people from liberal northern states and the shift of more conservative locals into small towns is going to change Florida’s electoral landscape in 2024. What it will do is anyone’s guess. I’m guessing that the liberal cities will become larger and more spread out, which will make the liberal areas expand, while the smaller towns will see less of an impact. Still, Floridians tend to be a funny lot. Time will tell.

By Divemedic, ago