Best of BeeLine-2022

Here is a Top 10 List for the Best of BeeLine for 2022. The first five are the most popular posts I wrote during the year based on the number of views. The second five are a few of my personal favorites out of the 139 blog posts I wrote during the year. 

We started the year with Covid again dominating the headlines and my blog posts about the pandemic  continued to be some of the most popular with my readers. The popularity of my posts on the subject indicate that there were a lot of people looking for honest, data-driven information to put the subject in perspective.

However, for the first time in a couple of years I saw other topics begin to gain more attention with readers. Only two Covid blog posts ended up in the top five for views. That is a welcome trend and let's hope it continues into the new year. That being said, I am sure Covid will be a topic in these pages in 2023 for the simple reason that the data so often simply does not support the narrative. I will continue to point out the inconsistencies where it is warranted so you have the facts to make informed decisions for yourself.

If you missed reading these "Best of BeeLine" posts the first time around, here's another opportunity to get to "the shortest route to what you need to know" to start 2023 off right. 

You might also consider forwarding this post to friends who might appreciate a blog that tries to put some of the complicated issues of the day in context informed with data and facts. I enjoy writing BeeLine but it is a lot easier to sit down, research and write when I know more are reading what I write. I don't promote or advertise this blog. New readers almost always come from one of you passing it along to someone else.

If you want to make sure you don't miss a post, consider putting yourself on the BeeLine email list. You will receive an email of the blog whenever I put up another post. 

You can sign up in the upper right hand corner on the web page (Link to web home page is here). You need to be viewing the web version to do this as this feature does not show up on your phone. You will receive a follow-up email (from Follow.it) that you will need to confirm to begin delivery. 

The Best of BeeLine-2022 list is below with pull quotes from each of the posts to give you a better idea about what is contained therein.

Thank you to all my loyal BeeLine readers and a Happy New Year to each one of you!

The Best of BeeLine-2022

Most Popular Based on Views

Geert Vanden Bossche Update   January 24, 2022

"It should be clear by now that all that you have been told over the last two years has not proven to be true.

Perhaps it is time to consider listening to a broader range of opinions as you attempt to evaluate what is best for you, your family and loved ones....and our society as a whole...as we move forward.

You might want to consider keeping the name Geert Vanden Bossche in mind as you do that. Just knowing his name puts you in an elite group of  0.1%."

Your Fair Share   April 18, 2022

"It's tax day in the United States.

An estimated 179 million income tax returns are required to be filed by today for the 2021 tax year.

It is projected that  57% of those returns will not owe any federal income tax.

In 2020, thanks to Covid relief and reduced incomes due to the lockdowns, 62% did not have to pay one cent of federal income tax."

What Is Going On With Deaths?    January 5, 2022

"Deaths for those age 65+ are up 19% in both 2020 and 2021 compared to the pre-pandemic year of 2019.

However, deaths for those under age 65 are up 35% in 2021 compared to the 2019 level. Deaths were up 22% in these ages between 2019 and 2020.

When in human history has there ever been an effective vaccine introduced in which deaths went up?

This is particularly true for those under age 65 comparing 2021 vs. 2020.

Covid deaths in this age group almost doubled despite vaccines being available in 2021?"

Improper, Wicked or Both?   August 20, 2022

"What were three leading examples of "Improper and Wicked Projects" according to James Madison?

A rage for the abolition of debts 

A rage for paper money 

A rage for an equal division (or redistribution) of property 

Cancelling student loans would seem to be a trifecta involving all three.

You have the rage for the abolition of the student debt.

You have the rage for the redistribution of property to a few (the student loan borrowers) from everyone else.

You have the rage for the creation of even more paper money by the Federal Reserve to pay for the cancelled debt to balance the federal government's books.

It does not get more improper... or wicked than that according to Madison."

33 Years of Misinformation   February 8, 2022

"The Cincinnati Bengals are in the Super Bowl for the first time since 1989.

That is a long time ago.

What hasn't changed since 1989?

We are hearing the same dire warnings about climate change in 2022 that we did in 1989.

Environmental officials at the United Nations were warning us in 1989 that entire nations could be wiped off the face of the earth by rising sea levels if the global warming trend was not reversed in the next decade.

Does anyone else think it is curious that in 2020 the top expert at the United Nations was saying the exact same thing that was being said in 1989?"

A Few Personal Favorites

Remaining Sane In A World Gone Insane   February 18, 2022

"How does one remain sane in a world gone insane?

It is a question I ask myself more each day.

A few examples taken from recent headlines."

What Emergency?   June 20, 2022

"This past week the FDA authorized emergency use of the Pfizer and Moderna Covid vaccines for children as young as 6 months of age.

Since the authority is being given you might want to know what the emergency is?

According to the CDC, there have been 143 deaths of children ages 1-4 from Covid since January 1, 2020. 

Over that same span of almost 2-1/2 years, there have been 382 deaths from the flu and pneumonia.

Does this look like an emergency?"

Will The LIV Golf Tour Live?   July 27, 2022

"LIV may get some type of monetary settlement from the PGA Tour in the end.

Perhaps a couple of LIV events will be incorporated into the PGA Tour when this is all over.

The PGA Tour may lose its tax-exempt status due to the scrutiny it will be under.

The charities that the PGA Tour supports may end up with less.

However, I will be shocked if an independent LIV Golf Tour exists in three years time.

It is also difficult to see when it is all over that professional golfers in general, the charities supported by the PGA Tour and the overall game of golf will be better.

I am not betting on LIV living long term."

Treason is Fine, Just Don't Violate HIPAA   October 5, 2022

"An Army major and his wife committing treason?

It was actually a gay couple who were conspiring to give U.S. military medical information to the Russians.

The Army doctor had a secret security clearance at Fort Bragg.

The wife worked at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore.

The Army doctor was actually transgender having the distinction of being the first Army officer to come out as such in 2015.

There used to be a time when it would have been impossible for someone with the background of Major Jamie Lee Henry to get any type of security clearance.

That clearly is not the case today.

What I found particularly interesting in the details of the case was that Major Henry did not seem to have great concerns about passing classified information to the Russians but was concerned about violating HIPAA.  His? Her? wife had no such concerns. She told the FBI undercover agent he? she? was a "coward" but she would bring him? her? around.

What type of moral compass does one have to possess in order to have no qualms in passing classified information to the Russians but have reservations about violating HIPAA?

Do you think something is askew somewhere?"

Fastening Chains To Their Own Ankles?   November 14, 2022

"We were told during the Trump years we were becoming an authoritarian state.

We were told in the run up to last week's election that democracy was at stake.

On college campuses we are told how important it is to have diversity for the strength of our society.

Contrast these statements with the vote totals in the midterms on two college campuses that I have seen  reported.

At the University of Michigan reports are that 94% of students voted for Democrat Gretchen Whitmer.

At Arizona State University, 96% of the students voted for Democrat Katie Hobbs.

The fact is that the votes on these college campuses are not far from the 100% vote totals for the Communists (there is no other choice) in China, North Korea and Cuba.

However, these young voters did not have a gun to their heads.

There was no national police in place to intimidate them.

They did not risk being imprisoned for their views.

All of this is apparently the result of an education system, mainstream and social media that have aligned with messaging that is equal to the best propaganda techniques."

BeeLine in Pictures-2022

As the year winds down I have traditionally posted some of the best pictures I have taken with my iPhone during the year.

In the past this included pictures I took on my travels around the world.

There are no pictures from Santorini, Shanghai, Sydney or Stonehenge this year as in the past.

Nor photos from Bora Bora. Bermuda or even Batavia, Ohio.

However, I was still able to capture a few memorable images to document the year.

Below are a few of the sights that I found in scrolling through the photos on my phone.

We still are bombarded with a lot of disheartening and discouraging news almost every day but we are also blessed to live in a beautiful and beguiling world if we stop and look around.

A few examples that underscore that point.

Sunrise, Miramar Beach, Florida

Sunset, Miramar Beach, Florida

Rosemary Beach, Florida

Seaside, Florida

Chattahoochee River, Georgia

Cyclorama, The Battle of Atlanta
Atlanta, Georgia History Center

The Grand Slam Trophies of Bobby Jones
Atlanta, Georgia History Center

The Greenbrier
West Virginia

Stream at The Homestead
Hot Springs, Virginia

Falling Springs Falls
Virginia

Indian Tunnel Cave
Craters of the Moon National Monument 
Arco, Idaho

Indian Tunnel Cave
Craters of the Moon National Monument 
Arco, Idaho

Soldier Mountain
Fairfield, Idaho

Winter Sunset Looking Out From The BeeLine Command Center
Cincinnati, Ohio 

Random Ramblings

A few random ramblings to take you into the holidays.

Omnibus Spending Bill 

The Congress looks like it is going to pass a $1.7 trillion spending bill just days before the House of Representatives is going to become Republican controlled.

I am at a loss as to why Senate Republican leader Mitch MeConnell would agree to this bill when the leverage and negotiating power of Republicans will go up substantially in a little over a week's time when they take control in the House.

Even more difficult to understand is McConnell's defense of the compromise legislation he has been hammering out with Democrats Schumer and Pelosi.

He claimed that it was important to support the bill because of increased defense spending and the additional support it provides to Ukraine in its war with Russia.

In fact, McConnell stated that most Republicans believed that arming Ukraine was the number one priority for the United States right now.

The bill increases the amount the United States has provided to Ukraine over the last year to more than $100 billion.

Seriously, Mitch?

More important than the economy, inflation, out of control government spending, immigration or collusion between the FBI and other government agencies to interfere in elections and curtail free speech?

Of course, McConnell is not alone. He got 17 other GOP Senators to support moving the legislation forward on the final vote. It now goes to the Democrat-controlled House where passage is assured. Democrats never break ranks on important votes.

Do you think the Democrats in the Senate would do anything similar if the roles were reversed?

Not a chance.

Trump's Tax Returns

The Democrats finally got their long-awaited wish and were able to disclose Donald Trump's tax returns,

The returns for 2015-2020 were released this week.

They showed Trump had adjusted gross income of -$53 million cumulatively for the six years.

He paid $1.8 million in taxes.

Source: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/12/21/us/politics/trump-tax-return-numbers.html?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_nn_20221222&instance_id=80837&nl=the-morning&regi_id=73336580&segment_id=120535&te=1&user_id=2e6cdf0ad8819ff86cda51e914c3d036

Most of the losses were associated with real estate and other businesses.

All of the years have been audited by the IRS or are currently under examination.

So Trump had negative income of over $50 million,  paid $1.8 million in taxes and the Democrats think he did not pay enough?

You lose millions of dollars, still pay a couple million in taxes and you should have paid more?

That is an interesting take since all of the deductions, credits etc. that he might have taken on those returns were put in the Internal Revenue Code by people in Washington that were not named Trump. Most were passed with a majority of Democrat votes since they were in control of Congress for most of the past 80 years.

They were put into the law to incentivize entrepreneurs like Trump to take risks in order to create jobs for workers.

Trump did not even take office until 2019.

Source: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/12/21/us/politics/trump-tax-return-numbers.html?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_nn_20221222&instance_id=80837&nl=the-morning&regi_id=73336580&segment_id=120535&te=1&user_id=2e6cdf0ad8819ff86cda51e914c3d036

Democrats are also complaining that the IRS did not begin auditing Trump's 2017 and later returns as required of all Presidents until after he left office. However, in my experience as a tax attorney dealing with the IRS over the years, it was the general rule that most large returns (especially those with carryover issues from prior years) would not be be audited until several years after the tax year had concluded. I see nothing unusual in what the IRS did in this case. It was standard practice.

The fact is that almost all taxpayers would rather have an audit take place as close to the tax year as possible. It is easier to collect records, etc. The IRS is almost always the one that delays audits.

Perhaps the new 87,000 IRS employees coming on board over the next few years will speed things up.

Covid 

A couple of weeks ago I posted data showing that New York and Florida were currently admitting seeing more daily hospital admissions for Covid this year than they did at the same time last year.

This is also true looking in the United States at large for those age 70+ at the current time.

This hospitalization rate was 12.2/100,000 on December 21, 2021. It is 13.6 now for this age group.

This is a group in which 93% are fully vaccinated and 67% are boosted.

It is at odds with everything we have been told.

A recent study from The Cleveland Clinic in which it followed all of its 50,000 employees to determine the effectiveness of the new Bivalent booster provides some interesting data that might explain what is going on.

It is without question that the age 70+ group is the most at risk from Covid and most likely to be hospitalized.

It is also the age group most likely to be fully vaccinated and have gotten the latest boosters.

The Cleveland Clinic study actually found that the more vaccines doses that an individual had the more likely they would be infected with Covid over the period of the study.

In fact, those who were not vaccinated were least likely to get Covid. Those who had received more than three doses were most likely to be infected. There was a direct correlation between the number of doses received and the rate of infection in those studied.

(Black line- 0 doses). (Orange line- 4 or more doses).

Source: https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.12.17.22283625v1.full.pdf

This data suggests that there might be something to the theories of Geert Vanden Bossche who has argued that the vaccines may make someone may vulnerable to future infection.

Is this the reason we are seeing more age 70+ people in the hospital right now than last year?

We can only hope that we are seeing an earlier peak in cases than last year. If we were to follow last year's trajectory of hospital admissions we are in deep, deep trouble.

Another interesting fact I found in the study was that 59% of Cleveland Clinic employees reported that they had never been infected with Covid almost three years into the pandemic. This is despite working in a healthcare setting.

Could this be due to the vaccines? It might.

However, less than 10% of all employees reported that they had been infected before the vaccines rolled out widely in January, 2021. Three times as many reported being infected after the vaccines were in use. 27% of employees were infected with Omicron after the boosters had been deployed.

Could it be that the vaccines might not be everything Dr. Fauci says they are? That might be true as well.

In fact, the Cleveland Clinic contains this statement in its conclusion.

“We still have a lot to learn about protection from COVID-19 vaccination, and in addition to a vaccine’s effectiveness it is important to examine whether multiple vaccine doses given over time may not be having the beneficial effect that is generally assumed.”

Why Work? 

Many employers continue to struggle to find enough employees willing to work.

It is a problem that has building for years and is the result of several factors including declining numbers of those of working age due to retirements of Baby Boomers and fewer younger people entering the labor force.

The problem has been exacerbated over the years due to the safety net of benefits that are provided to those who are not working or who are on some form of welfare program.

Unemployment benefits are taxable income but most welfare benefits are not.

As a result, it takes higher and higher wages to induce people to work to compete with tax-free government benefits.

The system makes it more profitable to collect government benefits than work for a wage.

I wrote about this problem ten years ago in these pages in a blog post titled, "Why Work?"

One big factor in why the welfare recipient makes out so well is the tax-free nature of welfare benefits and the refundable tax credits that are built into the Internal Revenue Code.  Tax loopholes are not just for the rich any more.

Providing housing assistance, food stamps (EBT), welfare, Medicaid, child care assistance and Obamaphones in after-tax dollars provides a significant income advantage to the welfare recipient compared to a middle-class worker.

Consider a cell phone.  If a private sector worker and taxpayer wants a $50 monthly cell phone plan they need to earn about $65 to pay for the cell phone.  They need to pay income taxes (15%), FICA (7.65%) and state taxes before they have the money to spend on the cell phone.  People on welfare are just given the cell phone.

I am all for helping people who need a helping hand. However, this is clearly not a sustainable path. It also clearly shows that the incentives in the system are not properly aligned to get us the results we should be getting. 

Consider this fact about a single mother in Pennsylvania with two children.

The single mom is better off earning $29,000 with gross income from working combined with welfare assistance that provides $57,327 in net income and benefits than to earn gross income of $69,000 solely from working that nets out to income and benefits of $57,045.

In other words, earning more than $29,000 from work actually starts to reduce the single mom's household income. There is no incentive to earn more. It is more profitable to stay home and collect welfare.

 

I was reminded of this subject as I saw this New York Post opinion article last week.

The authors calculated the income and hourly wage equivalent in every state for a family with two unemployed adults and two children from unemployment and welfare benefits.

The numbers are mind boggling.

In several states a family of four can make the equivalent of six figures in household income by not working!

It was far worse than this when we had Covid supplemental unemployment benefits on top of these amounts.

Is it any wonder that millions of workers disappeared into thin air?

If we incentivize people not to work what result do we expect?

I believe we know the answer. 

Happy holidays to all!

This and That---December 19, 2022 Edition

A few random observations, charts and factoids to provide some context on what is going on in the world.

Inflation

Inflation appears to be moderating. The CPI report for November came in at a 7.1% rate for all items over the last 12 months.

However, energy was still up 13.1% and food was up 10.6%.

If eggs and orange juice are your breakfast of choice inflation is taking a much bigger chunk out of your wallet. It is going to get worse based on current commodity prices.

Credit: https://www.loveandlemons.com/scrambled-eggs-recipe/

The average price of a dozen eggs in commodity markets is now $4.65/dozen. This is almost triple the price one year ago. The CPI number for November only reflects a 49.1% increase over the last 12 months.

Eggs were as low as $1.10/dozen last January.

Source: https://tradingeconomics.com/commodity/eggs-us

The price of orange juice is up 50% in commodity markets since the beginning of 2022.

Source: https://tradingeconomics.com/commodity/orange-juice

It is going to be interesting to see where inflation and the economy go in 2023.

Retail Sales

Retail sales in November registered their smallest increase since December, 2020 when Covid was dampening consumer demand.

This is even more significant when it is considered that November includes the traditionally large consumer spending days of Black Friday and Cyber Monday.

If these numbers were inflation-adjusted they would most likely represent a real reduction in retail sales.

Source: https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/retail-sales-annual

Retail sales between October and November actually went down -.6% despite the holiday sales in November.

Source: https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/retail-sales

My casual observations when I have visited the shopping mall recently is that there seems to be a lot of inventory in the stores. The supply chain issues are clearly better than they were. However, are there enough buyers for the merchandise?

For example, this is a picture I took last week of the Apple Store at a mall in Cincinnati. A year ago there would be a long line outside the store waiting to get in due to capacity controls. That is no longer the case.

There were more Apple employees than customers at about noon on a day about two weeks before Christmas.

One other data point on retail.

This is a chart showing inventory levels for the women's workout clothing retailer Lululemon.

It is showing almost $1.8 billion in inventories which is about $1 billion more in goods than it was carrying a year ago.

That is a lot of yoga pants and leggings at $100 a pair or more.

That is especially true when household budgets are being squeezed paying for essentials like food, gasoline and home heating costs.

How essential are $118 yoga pants?

We may found out soon.

Yes, it is going to be interesting to see where the economy goes in 2023.

Covid Update

The United States is on track in 2022 to have the lowest number of deaths associated with Covid since the pandemic began in 2020.

This is due in large part to the fact that deaths in the United States have been remarkably stable for the last eight months.

Source: The New York Times

However, the news is not as good in other parts of the world.

What is interesting is that many of these countries are among the most vaccinated in the world.

Each of the following nations have much higher vaccination and booster uptakes than the United States.

You certainly don't hear about this on the evening news and the data does not conform to the narrative about the effectiveness of the vaccines in preventing severe illness and death.

The most interesting fact to me is that our northern neighbor in Canada, which initiated authoritarian measures the likes of which I thought would be impossible in a free democratic society, is looking at its highest level of deaths from Covid yet in the current year. 

Canada will finish 2022 with more deaths than pre-vaccine 2020 or 2021.

The same is true in Australia which almost looked like the Chinese were in control for much of the pandemic considering the harshness of its Covid public health measures and vaccine policies.

South Korea was not as authoritarian. The population was much more willing to take the vaccines on the recommendation of the governing authorities based on cooperative culture of its society.

However, the results are hard to explain based on the narrative about the vaccines.

"Safe, effective and will prevent severe disease, hospitalization and death."

Tiny, isolated Iceland was also not able to avoid a surge in Covid deaths in 2022 

This is despite Iceland having one of the highest levels of vaccine status across all ages of any other country in the world.

Vaccination Doses by Age in Iceland
Source: https://www.covid.is/statistical-information-on-vaccination

The same is true in Taiwan. It had almost no Covid deaths until 2022 when it started administering booster doses. 

It does not appear to have had the desired effect.

In fact, you have to wonder if it did not have the opposite effect when you look at the data.

Another interesting Covid factoid is contained in looking at the wastewater monitoring data for Covid in  Santa Clara County in California.

Santa Clara County has one of the highest levels of Covid vaccinations in the United States. 89% of every man, woman and child is vaccinated. 60% are boosted.

Vaccination Status in Santa Clara County, California
Source' The New York Times

However, Santa Clara has recently shown the highest levels of Covid in its wastewater samples since the beginning of the pandemic.

The highest levels (green line) have been in the Palo Alto Sewershed which undoubtedly has the highest vaccine uptake in the county being the home of Stanford University and the epicenter of Silicon Valley.

How do you explain it?

I can't.

I just report the data.

Beware The Illusions Of Truth

I think most people now understand that the mainstream media does not present objective news or analysis.

There is a slant or bias in everything it does based on the political views of the people who run the networks and those who cover the news.

The pervasive effects of this bias are difficult to overstate.

However, very few understand how pernicious this bias is in shaping the attitudes and views of our society.

Repetition is the first lesson of propaganda. 

The drumbeat of repetition engages the "illusory truth effect" in humans. Simply stated, the more often we hear something the more likely we are to believe that it is true---even if it is a complete fabrication.

One of the key principles in any successful attempt to influence is lots of repetition by repeating your points over and over again to engage the "illusory truth effect" in us.

The substance of what this means is that mainstream media have become propaganda factories.

I wrote about this in 2019 in pointing out the astounding number of stories The New York Times had written involving President Trump his first two years in office.

Look at this comparison of the percentage of articles in the entire paper that mentioned Trump compared to his predecessors.

It is almost as if there was no other news that was "fit to print."

Of course, 90%+ of those articles were negative.

It was the same with the major network news outlets.

Trump bad. Trump bad. Trump bad. Trump bad. Trump bad. Trump bad. Trump bad.

Credit: https://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/rich-noyes/2019/01/15/networks-trashed-trump-90-negative-spin-2018-did-it-matter

If you recall, a good portion of the negative coverage of Trump involved constant reporting about "Russian Collusion."

Of course, we know now that this was a story that was entirely fabricated.

It did not matter. 

It became "the truth" as it was repeated over and over.

Many still believe the story is true today although innumerable credible sources have completely debunked the Russian Collusion narrative

We are now finding out as well about the massive role that social media companies have also had in shaping the attitudes and views of the public.

We are discovering that Twitter was not much more than a haven for left-wing activist employees that considered it to be their mission in life to amplify views that they agreed with and censor views and people they disagreed with.

In a sane and objective world the Twitter disclosures that have been made since Elon Musk bought the company should be capturing every news media outlet.

In particular, the lengths Twitter personnel took to bury the Hunter Biden story before the election, the efforts to ban Trump from the platform and the censorship of any dissenting opinions by doctors and others that questioned the Covid policies pertaining to lockdowns, school closures and vaccine mandates.

To that point, look at this analysis of how much time the major mainstream media outlets have spent covering the disclosures regarding the Twitter files.

These are the number of mentions of the story per an analysis by Grabien Media over the 11 day period after the disclosures were first made.

Source: https://twitter.com/tomselliott/status/1603029824934649856

Source: https://twitter.com/tomselliott/status/1603029824934649856

Source: https://twitter.com/tomselliott/status/1603029824934649856

Source: https://twitter.com/tomselliott/status/1603029824934649856

Source: https://twitter.com/tomselliott/status/1603029824934649856

Compare to the mentions by Fox News and Newsmax.

Source: https://twitter.com/tomselliott/status/1603029824934649856

Source: https://twitter.com/tomselliott/status/1603029824934649856

Are people really getting "the news" from the mainstream media outlets?

I thought this chart from Grabien was also interesting in comparing the number of mentions by CNN relating to various threats to society that they have reported on---climate change (blue line), Covid (red ), Democracy/Trump (yellow), January 6th insurrection (green) and Ukraine (orange).

This is for the period January, 2019 to the November, 2020.

Source: https://twitter.com/tomselliott/status/1602782333723189249/photo/1

We tend to think we were inundated with Covid news for most of 2020 and 2021.

However, CNN viewers heard much more about Trump and/or the threat he was to democracy (even when he was no longer President) than they ever heard about Covid.

What I found even more remarkable is the number of mentions about Ukraine that dominated the news of CNN in 2022. Those mentions outnumbered anything regarding Covid even compared to the height of Covid craziness in 2020.

You wonder why you saw Ukraine flags everywhere in 2022?

My favorite was what used to be a Russian market near my house. A Ukraine flag in the lower right window and tape crossing out "Russian" that captured in this photo last April indicated the owners were no longer identifying their store as having anything to do with Russia.

( Postscript--the store now has a new sign that refers to it as an Eastern European food store. The sign is (you guessed it) blue and yellow.

That huge spike in stories occurred in March/April and has continued at a higher level the remainder of the year than Covid ever did did.

What followed?

Do you think this reaction was all a coincidence?

Source: https://www.fox21news.com/news/businesses-deal-with-high-demand-for-ukrainian-flags/

Source: https://www.fox13news.com/video/1057401

Source: https://specialtyfabricsreview.com/2022/05/01/ukrainian-flags-in-demand-after-russian-invasion/

Yes, we know Vladimir Putin is a bad actor.

We know Russian had no business in invading Ukraine.

However, do we really know what kind of actor Zelensky is?

Do we know where the $100 billion taxpayer dollars we have sent this year to Ukraine has gone?  For context, that is about twice the total annual Russian military budget.

Are there facts we are missing in all of this?

Are we getting the full story?

The lesson here is to be wary of any story or narrative that is repeated endlessly.

Beware the illusory truth effect.

The truth in most things does not require someone else to report it to you.

Your own observations, analysis and critical thinking should suffice.

This is an especially important lesson to teach our children and grandchildren.

They are particularly vulnerable to propaganda which dictators and authoritarian leaders have understood for centuries.

Truth is not hard to discern if facts are not hidden and there is a free exchange of opinions and views where dissent is not censored or silenced.

Unfortunately, that is not the world we are living in today.

Understand it and adjust your thinking accordingly.