Kaspars Īviņš

Dievs un Esmes jēga - dzīves virzītājs. Klavieres, literatūra un foto dzīvespriekam.

[J.K. Rowling @jk_rowling]

But it couldn’t be social contagion, folks. It’s just that young people, especially autistic, gay and mentally ill ones, are finally free to be their authentic selves.

The sudden explosion of young women who want to cut off their healthy breasts and take testosterone? Well, it’s absolutely not the newest form of self-harm, to which troubled adolescent girls are provably prone, ok? It’s not a consequence of the commonplace fear of becoming an adult woman, with all that that entails. No, there’s nothing to worry about there.

The possibility of regret? Naturally, we don’t let minors get tattoos or own guns or vote, because that would be ridiculous, but if they want irreversible surgeries and drug treatments, they must be given them, and everyone around them must immediately agree they are now the opposite sex. That’s called being kind.

And the mounting numbers of detransitioners? They were never trans, obviously, and should be mercilessly attacked, especially if they now say they were vulnerable and in a friendship group, online or off, dominated by trans identities, where transitioning was presented as a way to resolve all their social and emotional difficulties. (I have the emails).

No, there’s nothing whatsoever to see here. Keep justifying it, keep cheering it on, keep insisting that the doctors and drug companies making serious money out of it all are acting with the purest of motives. Answer every reasonable question with an accusation of hatred and bigotry. Dispel every qualm of conscience with an activist-approved talking point. Reassure yourself that everyone on your dinner party circuit agrees with you.

And when, in years to come, we’re all looking back on graphs like this, be proud that you did your bit to monster whistleblowers, parrot unevidenced claims and create the climate of fear that allowed the worst medical scandal in a century to take place.

[Tony Castricone @Castricone]

A 2-star QB scrambling for potentially the national-championship-winning touchdown on 4th down in his hometown against his hometown team after winning the Heisman for the most losing program of all time while his mother with MS screams for joy from her seat is possibly the limit of how good sports can get

[Jerry Thornton @jerrythornton]

This is going to stick with me forever

[The Biblical Man @Biblicalman]

Christmas night I asked my family a question.

"What verse meant something to you this year?"

My daughter-in-law's answer broke the room.

Christie wrote about it on Substack. But here's the short version.

For every man running on fumes right now.

[Konstantin Kisin @KonstantinKisin]

"When you tear out a man's tongue, you are not proving him a liar, you're only telling the world that you fear what he might say".

My thoughts are with Charlie Kirk's family.

[Andis Kudors @AndisKudors]

Charlie Kirk bija ne tikai politiskais aktīvists, bet kristietis, kurš publiski sludināja Kristu kā Kungu un Glābēju. Mediji šo svarīgo Čārlija identitātes un motivācijas faktoru pārsvarā gadījumu noklusē. Līdzīgi bija ar Martinu Luteru Kingu.

[Alex at Hallow @alexathallow]

Prayer works. It is not a waste of time. It is not a self-help tool. It is not a therapy device. It is not something we say to make ourselves feel better.

One story: a couple years ago my friend went missing. His parents searched everywhere for him. They were terrified. They were frantic. They reached out to the police. The FBI got involved. And ultimately they had nothing left to do. It’d been days. No one could find him. So in a final act of desperation they sent out an email to everyone they could asking for prayers.

My wife and I read the email, sat down and prayed a rosary.

I kid you not, a few minutes later - halfway across the country from my friends home…a man was driving to work on a state highway…he said he couldn’t explain it but he felt a nudge, what He said felt like the Holy Spirit, that he had to turn down a side street. It wasn’t on his way. It didn’t make any sense. But he did.

He drove about 100 yards and found a car pulled over on the side of the road. In that car was my friend…preparing to end his life.

The man pulled over. Got out of the car. And saved his life. He got him back home to his parents.

Prayer works. Pray the rosary. The world needs it.

[Alex at Hallow @alexathallow]

I can’t remember the last time I cried, but I’m crying today.

Ah Lord, I know You’re here. I don’t understand. I’m angry. I’m heartbroken.

But I trust in You.

[Artis Šlosbergs ◇ Schlossberg @tikums]

Austrijā līdz pat 70% no ikdienas darījumiem norit izmantojot skaidru naudu. Vācijā tie ir apmēram 60%. Dēļ augstās maksājuma karšu izplatības, Latvija ir šī eirozonas valstu saraksta lejas galā. Kurš liek aktualizēt šo pseidoproblēmu, sevišķi ņemot vērā ģeopolitisko situāciju?

[Melissa Chen @MsMelChen]

I agree but it also works the other way:

It’s easy to advocate for a ceasefire if you don’t have to live the consequences.

One could just as well make the argument that all the people who support a peace deal should get sent to the frontlines if Russia breaks the agreement again.

All this is to say: the emotional valence of asking for skin in the game for keyboard warriors can and should be applied both ways.

Just the thought exercise above makes you think twice, right? How sure are you that Russia will keep its word?

[Konstantin Kisin @KonstantinKisin]

Attributing bad faith to people is the wrong heuristic for processing disagreement.

Yes, some people are paid by the Kremlin to spread propaganda as we know from the Tenet Media revelations. But not everyone who disagrees with us over Ukraine is a Putin shill.

Likewise, some pro-Ukraine people are only of that view because they hate Trump or love Biden. But most people who are pro-Ukraine are pro-Ukraine for very good reasons.

There are retards on both sides of every argument. But most people aren't retards.

[Artis Pabriks @Pabriks]

Nezinu kāda pieredze ir citiem, bet ja cīņa ar birokrātiju un viedā digitalizācija nozīmē to, ka, lai izlasītu vienkāršu vēstuli no valsts iestādes ir jāautorizējas un jāveic kādas 10 darbības tā vietā, lai, kā agrāk, atvērtu e-pastu, tad varbūt tādu modernu sistēmu nevajag?

[Claire Lehmann @clairlemon]

The Right misunderstand Putin like the Left misunderstand Hamas.

[Johannes Hartl @DrJohannesHartl]

Im Kongo wurden 70 Christen durch Islamisten enthauptet. Eine Nachricht, die sprachlos macht. Eine Szene, die man sich kaum ausmalen kann...

"Wenn die Welt euch haßt, so wißt, daß sie mich vor euch gehaßt hat." (Joh 15,18)

https://t.co/cR2aJPMr9U

[Mike Pence @Mike_Pence]

Mr. President, Ukraine did not “start” this war. Russia launched an unprovoked and brutal invasion claiming hundreds of thousands of lives. The Road to Peace must be built on the Truth.🇺🇸🇺🇦

“Russia Invades Ukraine in Largest European Attack Since WWII” @FoxNews (February 24, 2022) https://t.co/ra8R9PI9oj

[Andrew A. Michta @andrewmichta]

🧵May I say a few word to my European friends who now berate the US for allegedly “cozying up to Russia” and “abandoning Europe”? I’m sorry, but what was NordStream 1/2 about? What was the “Minsk process” after Russia invaded Georgia and seized Crimea? Where were you then? 1/5

[Mateusz Morawiecki @MorawieckiM]

The following post will be longer, but it concerns a fundamental issue. I hope you enjoy reading it with a cup of hot tea! ☕

➡️Recent statements by representatives of the new US administration have prompted left-wing liberal commentators in Poland to level accusations against Donald Trump's administration, ranging from favouring Russia to outright betrayal of the Euro-Atlantic alliance.
It is hard to avoid the impression that the statements of both Vice President Vance and Secretary of Defense Hegseth are being assessed and commented on by some circles in Poland in a shallow and selective way, subordinated to one goal.
This goal is to show Donald Trump's administration in a bad light and at the same time accuse Law and Justice of naivety towards the new administration.
To rationally assess what is happening, one must look broader than the ‘experts’ from Gazeta Wyborcza or Onet.

❓So what is the truth and what does the statement of the US administration mean for Poland? Below are 5 key issues.

1️⃣ We are portrayed by the new US Secretary of Defence and President Trump as the EU country that has long - unlike many wealthier ones - fulfilled the obligation to allocate a minimum of 2% of GDP to defence.

In fact, Poland spends more than 4% of its GDP on defence, and this was initiated by the Law and Justice government.
This was possible thanks to the recovery of public finances and the recovery of billions of zlotys for the state budget, which under our predecessors from 2008-2015 ended up in tax havens and in the pockets of the VAT mafia.
Poland also had the highest economic growth in the EU between 2016 and 2023, with the exception of Cyprus and Ireland (we all know what tax methods these countries use).

The Americans appreciate Poland's efforts, but at the same time point out that the richest EU countries and NATO members cannot shirk their responsibilities. This mainly concerns Germany and the Benelux countries, but there are more free riders. Instead of spending on defence, they have been financing other expenses, including social ones, for years, taking advantage (practically for free) of the American defence umbrella.

Is it any wonder that the US criticises this, when Donald Trump pointed this out during his first term in office?

Do you remember his words to Chancellor Merkel in the context of NS1 and NS2? ‘We are supposed to protect Germany, and they pay Russia billions of dollars.’

2️⃣The new US administration is facing the greatest challenge of the 21st century: the rise of China. Russia is already considered to be highly dependent on China. If China and Russia make Europe dependent, Poland will suffer.

China, Russia and a subservient Europe form an economic and demographic alliance that is much stronger than the USA. We may therefore wake up in a new world with terrible political realities.

The Middle Kingdom is challenging the entire Western civilisation, democratic political culture, the entire free world. It has resources, it has political power, it has economic power and technologies, it has growing military power, it has cultural and social cohesion, and finally it has a great resentment associated with the ‘age of humiliation’. All of this together constitutes an extremely dangerous mix of possibilities.

It is in the interest of the free world, under the actual leadership of the USA, to contain or at least counterbalance the rise of China's power.
Donald Trump is right to make Europe aware, and not for the first time, that it should understand these geopolitical dependencies. He is also making it clear that it is necessary to stabilise the situation in the Pacific region, which is ‘make or break’ for the free world.
For this reason, taking into account the limited nature of American resources and the relative increase in Chinese power, the United States must gradually shift its armed forces, economic and financial forces to the Asian theatre of operations, as American experts and politicians from both sides of the political spectrum have been writing and speaking about for years.

Hence President Trump's long-announced intention to reduce the presence of his troops in Europe in order to focus attention and resources on the Pacific. Hence, too, the long-articulated demand that Western Europe take its affairs into its own hands and not benefit for free from the ‘Pax Americana’ - the American defence umbrella.
Of course, it is also in the interest of the USA (fortunately) that transatlantic unity remains a fact. But looking through the prism of American interests, it is hardly surprising that President Trump wants to force European countries to participate fairly in NATO defence policy.

Why should the American taxpayer pay for European security?

Why should an American soldier die for Europe, while the Europeans are ‘enjoying life’ and drinking wine in Barcelona, eating French cheese and drinking beer in Munich?

Most of us would probably like the USA to continue to be the centre of the world for another 35 years and for Europe to be able to continue to focus on its own ‘world’. But that world is over. We are living in a new era.

That is why I have joined the discussion about the challenges we face today. I am trying to engage in debate with various decision-makers so that Europe can rethink its economic and social model and set the right priorities. I am also trying to show where the money for the new challenges will come from and why a departure from the European Green Deal is urgently needed. As the head of the European Conservatives and Reformists, I will emphasise in the forum of the European Union, at the world's most important universities and during my next visit to the USA that Europe will either wake up or it will be in trouble.

Do Donald Trump's announcements about limiting the US military presence also apply to Poland?

Nothing like that has been said so far. However, it is an urgent task for the current Polish government to ensure that the Americans not only stay in Poland but increase their presence if they decide to move their forces around in Europe.

❓Is that possible?
➡️During our time in office, the American presence in Poland increased, and this was also the case during Donald Trump's first term as president. Now, the ball is in Donald Tusk's court. He has all the tools, and above all, the nearly 5% of GDP for armaments inherited from my government – this is the strongest card in the current European deal (Western Europe barely reaches 2% of GDP).

For a start, we need to stop our ministers from making stupid comments about US policy and its leaders. Why did the current prime minister cancel the EU-US summit scheduled for March this year?

This summit, which we agreed upon with President Andrzej Duda during our time in office, was an important moment for the EU and the US to align their positions.

Why did the government sign a joint position with Western European countries calling on the US to return to its previous policy?

Does the government really not understand that there is no going back to the world of absurdities and misplaced priorities of the European Commission?

Does D. Tusk not see that his policy is leading us to a wall, that the current actions of the government put Poland in a worse negotiating position?

I have no doubt that Western Europe will sacrifice Poland if necessary and allow us to be pushed into Russia's orbit.

Either we play President Trump's new game as a subject player, or we expose ourselves to the potential loss of subjectivity and the possibility of decisions being made over our heads. The Polish government must not capitulate now, when a new division of power and spheres of influence is taking shape. May the current ruling coalition wake up quickly, because it has been a long time since so many black clouds have gathered over our homeland.
The current government is acting like it has been hit by a sledgehammer. It does not seem to understand where our existential interest lies. Who our independence depends on.
They seem to think that Germany, France or the Netherlands can help us maintain our freedom, independence and prosperity.
They have not learnt their lesson from Ukraine. And you only need to look to the east to realise all too clearly that without the help of the USA, but also without the immediate reaction of Poland, Ukraine would be Russia, and Russian troops would be stationed in Przemyśl, Zamość and Chełm.
If the fate of Central Europe is to be negotiated, we may become an appetiser or a main course on the ‘menu’ of Berlin, Brussels and Paris.
In other words: these countries, knowing their weaknesses, may want to negotiate the future balance of power at our expense. At the expense of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, the Czech Republic or Slovakia. And that's exactly what Putin is after. To conquer Ukraine, enslave Central Europe and make Western Europe economically dependent.

To prevent this, we need a close alliance with the USA. The lazy and self-absorbed European Union, immersed in left-wing and neoliberal dogmas, constantly refuses to accept that the world has completely changed.

There is no going back to the world of yesterday. The EU elites have long since missed the boat. They are preoccupied with their own Excel spreadsheets, left-wing revolutions and gagging their opponents, instead of pursuing Europe's interests in a global game that is heating up – geopolitically, economically and socially.

This was pointed out in Munich by US Vice President J.D. Vance, who also indicated that hunting down political opponents and trying to put them in prison is the most extreme manifestation of an attack on democracy and freedom.

Europe has no military capability, no generational replacement, no competitiveness, no heavy industry, no defence industry because it got rid of it itself, and in the decadent melting pot in which it operates today, it has no future.

Europe has no leaders capable of bearing the burden of the new era. The European Union, on the other hand, has politicians who do not understand the modern world, the threats, but also the problems of its citizens. They have remained in a previous era and are mentally unable to leave their narrow world of EU decarbonisation indicators.

3️⃣Americans expect European NATO members to take greater responsibility for the security of the continent.

This has also been repeatedly announced and should come as no surprise to anyone. However, European leaders prefer to implement the Migration Pact (which comes into force in 2026!), they prefer to throw around slogans of strategic autonomy without following them up with any action, but they do pay a lot of attention to reducing CO2 emissions by one percentage point, which has no or negligible impact on the climate, but looks good in EU documents. European leaders are also inconsistent and incoherent. When they formulate the slogan of strategic autonomy, they do nothing to achieve it.
Strategic autonomy can be achieved with a strong army, combat capabilities, an armaments industry and high public morale. However, giving up all of these things is what is pushing Europe into a peripheral position and vulnerability to the games of the superpowers, both global and local.
Instead of wasting energy on making appeals to American allies that are irrelevant to ‘not abandoning (old) Europe’, we should show the Americans that we can be an integrator of the security system in our part of Europe - from Scandinavia and the Baltic States to Romania.

We can fight for the idea of the Intermarium. We can be a key partner of the USA in our region. This is a great opportunity, but we can only realise it if we convince Washington of this value. If we convince them that it can be the barbican of NATO's eastern flank.

We also need to build an alliance within the EU of countries that will support the reform of fiscal rules and the exclusion of defence spending from debt. I was the first prime minister who, even before the Russian aggression, started to discuss the exclusion of defence spending from deficit calculations. This was also adopted by Ecofin at the end of our government.

Ukraine's experience has shown the importance of having one's own defence capabilities, i.e. a strong army that is well equipped and numerous. And we have started to build up these defence capabilities. The current government must continue and strengthen them.

The USA helps to defend those who defend themselves. This is logical and obvious. There is no point in sending equipment and dollars where no one will fight, where there is no combat capability.

Either we manage to build an independent position, in close alliance with the USA, or we will have no subjectivity in geopolitics. And then the spectre of losing independence will be very real.

4️⃣All this means that Poland faces new challenges, but also new opportunities. We must understand that we live in new times, and these times require a new approach and new decisions.

Article 5 NATO does not automatically protect. The mythical ‘NATO system’ turns out to be a cliché in the face of the particular interests of nation states.

Thanks to close cooperation with the USA, including significant purchases of state-of-the-art American equipment such as F-35 5th generation fighter jets, AH-64 Apache helicopters, Abrams tanks and many others planned for the coming years, Poland can become a regional leader in cooperation with the USA within NATO.

Our role can grow if we make good use of the changing geopolitical poles. However, this requires determination from the Polish government, which should take this task seriously and not hide behind Berlin, Paris or Brussels.

5️���The rich and prosperous Western Europe still does not want to accept that the ‘Balthazar feast’ is over. That the words of warning are written on the walls of our European building. The nominal GDP of the European Union, which was higher than that of the USA 25 years ago, is now more than 35 percent lower.

It is necessary to wake up from the sweet dream in which European societies have been immersed for years. Only they can make a change and elect leaders who will be able to find their place in the new geopolitical reality.

[angry by default @ieva_w]

bet visfantastiskākais visā šajā stāstā ir ES. uz austrumu robežas krievi, no iekšpuses Eiropu nīcina musulmaņi, bet viņi gadu desmitiem spriedelē,kā pēc 100 gadiem pazemināt gaisa temperatūru par 1 grādu, cik un kādi ir dzimumi, un kā pareizi saskaitīt sievietes uzņēmumus valdēs

[Jeremy Wayne Tate @JeremyTate41]

Vance is electric and will win in a landslide in four years. He delivered the most courageous speech imaginable by quoting Saint John Paul II.

[Konstantin Kisin @KonstantinKisin]

I love the fact that JD Vance criticised European leaders for abandoning free speech and the response was a German politician standing up and saying "Das ist unacceptable!" 🤣🤣🤣