Some sun this morning after snow overnight. It is cold now and not expected to rise above 32F.

We watched the Chicago news this morning. As I have mentioned before Chicago is as close to local as we can get on TV. It is a relief from the repetition of the nationally oriented news we watch during the week. Then continued with the pre-game show for the Premier League soccer. The game should start shortly. At the same time I got the salmon patties made up and in the refrigerator ready to fry later. I am resting before fixing our breakfast.

The Hill has a long article about the latest looming budget deadline in D.C. The House is supposed to return, after a couple of weeks in their districts or somewhere, on Monday with the shutdown scheduled for March 1. I keep wondering why we are paying those guys a six figure salary for doing not much at all, except preening before cameras.

Responsible Statecraft posted this article this morning. The headline claims that Biden wants to put the U.S. on a "permanent war footing." After reading it I don't see the U.S. being put on a permanent war footing, rather just the defense industry. Worse I don't think the nebulous goals listed will do move us away from the system we have where the military is "getting less for more." And, in a continuation of George W.'s pronouncements after 9/11, that most of us should support his War on Terror by going shopping.

The New Eastern Outlook has an interesting analysis of our defense industry and expounds on some "fatal flaws" in the system as it is now organized. I haven't read much of this journal so I decided to look up more info. Wikipedia and other sources trace its ancestry back to a Soviet era academic institute specializing in Asia. They say that it is one major conduit for Russian misinformation and propaganda. I didn't see much in the article that got my skepticism antennae moving from normal to extreme. But it is a site to read carefully and skeptically.