#5
I'm obviously not a wine connoisseur, but what's the great deal about wines?
They're all fermented grape juices! (There's other fruits and plants used as well. "Boone's Farm" comes to mind)
As far as I can tell, there's five main types of wines:
White wines (including "bubbling wines)
Red wines (meant to be drunk at room tempurtures and has various 'phoo phoo' names for what's basically the same stuff and is to me generally undrinkable!)
Blended wines (including White Zinfandel, which is really
pinkish in color and actually a pleasure to drink!)
Brandies (Which as far as I can tell are "reduced" wines and often blended to become rather powerful drinks, often one or two fingers is enough to knock one out for the night, so I've been told!)
Fortified wines, (Mostly cheap wines with added alcohol added, it seems.)
There's also Concord Grape wine, not sure but it seems to be a religion thing with this kind of wine)
I've been to wine tasting parties and as far as I can tell, there's no difference between them, some taste good, other taste horrible.
I did learn what a "corked wine" taste like! And I learned that 'screw top' bottles of wines are better than bottles that's sealed with cork as apparently the quality of corks as degraded over the past century or so, something to do with over harvesting of cork bark or some such.
I also learned that 'boxed' wines is actually good because oxygen does not ever touch the wine until it's poured!
#6
Not an expert, though I know a few. As far as I’m concerned, the key is to know what you like and dislike, whatever they are. Everything else is merely for the pleasure of knowing why, if you care to. Also, as one moves from childhood through adulthood, the ability to taste changes, and therefore what tastes good and bad. I used to enjoy a great deal more sweetness than I do now, which is normal.
At least one aspect of preference for sweet wines is location: in Eastern Europe they like their wines sweet, whereas in Western Europe the preferences run much dryer. Beyond that, often enough inexpensive wines are sweeter, which may play into what churches buy for their ceremonies.
BREAKING: 600k illegals have been deported from the interior of our country in less than 365 days, with another 1.9 million self-deporting, totaling over 2.5 million illegals gone. A monumental achievement!
[PJMedia] More than half a million illegal aliens have been deported and more than two million altogether have left the country since Donald Trump ...They hit him with slander, they impeached him twice. Nancy Pelosi tore up his State of the Union address on national TV. They stole an election and put his adherents in jail. They vilified him. They couldn't crucify him, so they shot him. Still, they can't keep him down... took office.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published the latest deportation numbers for this year, which include 600,000 illegal aliens deported and nearly 2,000,000 who agreed to the generous federal government deal for self-deportation.
While there is plenty more work to do, considering we have close to 30 million illegal aliens in the United States — around 7 million or more thanks to the Biden administration alone — this is an excellent start for Trump’s first year in office. ICE and Border Patrol deserve a vast amount of credit for the dangerous work they do.
Their work is particularly dangerous right now, as there has been a 1,153% increase in assaults on ICE officers, fueled by Democrat rhetoric and sanctuary policies. In some cases, illegal aliens are attacking federal immigration officers, while at other times, leftist activists — often in mobs — are doing so.
For example, in Tucson, Ariz., last week, a mob of activists attacked ICE vehicles and injured two federal officers. The mob included Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.), who screamed in officers’ faces and afterwards lied about what had happened. Tucson Mayor Regina Romero (D) soon afterwards doxed ICE officers in a Facebook post, encouraging activists to protest and film the officers. Interfering with federal immigration operations or attempting to shield illegal aliens is against federal law.
DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin spoke to Fox News about the new deportation numbers. "Illegal aliens are hearing our message to leave now. They know that if they don’t, we will find them, we will arrest them, and they will never return," she said.
DHS highlighted the fact that local job markets have seen a boost for many Americans thanks to deportations of illegals, as some companies that preferred to pay lower wages to foreigners will now have to hire American workers. The lie that Americans won’t perform many jobs was masking a crisis of blue-collar unemployment as job gains went to immigrants colonists under the Biden administration.
Under the Trump administration, the opposite occurred. The employment of foreign workers decreased, while the employment of American-born workers increased.
The Trump-Turner Department of Housing and Urban Development also revealed last month that immigrants colonists, which means largely illegal immigrants colonists, drove two-thirds of the rental demand increase across America under the Biden administration, and in some areas, they drove 100% of the increase.
#2
There are fifteen US States, three territories and the District of Columbia that each have populations less than 2.5 million. So, yes, quite a change.
#6
I saw somewhere recently that seven million or more had come across the border just during the Biden years. So we’ll have to shift at least that much before starting to make a difference.
On the other hand, 2.5 million since the end of January, and presumably at an accelerating pace as new systems settle into place, suggests that the goal is achievable by the end of President Trump’s second term, even if the pace slows once the low hanging fruit are plucked. Especially if citizenship is revoked from those who should never have got it in the first place.
And keeping all the other balls dancing ever faster in the air. That’s what I voted for, anyway.
The M23 rebel group in eastern #DRC🇨🇩 took control of the strategic city of Uvira in eastern Congo on Wednesday afternoon, after intense night of gunfire that forced the Congolese army troops and allied forces to flee.
The M23 rebel group in eastern #DRC🇨🇩 took control of the strategic city of Uvira in eastern Congo on Wednesday afternoon, after intense night of gunfire that forced the Congolese army troops and allied forces to flee.
Uvira is an important port city on the northern tip of Lake Tanganyika and is directly across from neighboring Burundi’s largest city, Bujumbura.
Rumors circulated that the governor of South Kivu, the province where Uvira is located, had fled in the night, which the governor denied.
The fighting had intensified in South Kivu, despite the deal signed in Washington with U.S. President Donald Trump in attendance.
Earlier this year, M23 seized Goma and Bukavu, two key cities in eastern Congo, in a major escalation of the yearslong conflict.
Kinshasa regime vs M23/AFC:
Uvira—While M23/AFC is reassuring people to go back in their daily activities, and refugees to go back home. Yesterday, Burundi and DRC high command officials finalized offensive plans to retake Uvira.
Uvira—While M23/AFC is reassuring people to go back in their daily activities, and refugees to go back home. Yesterday, Burundi and DRC high command officials finalized offensive plans to retake Uvira.
During a meeting held in Bujumbura, Burundi, the host country agreed to ensure coordination of these operations. Burundi is already hosting more than 30 thousands heavily armed militiamen who fled the fighting in South Kivu. Among them are members of the FDLR genocidal forces, Imbonerakure, Burundian soldiers, DRC soldiers, and Mai-Mai.
Burundi, unaware that the mosquito has landed on its testicles, as the saying goes, remains stubbornly faithful to its genocidal ideology no matter the cost. Sources within the DRC and the Burundian army confirm that these attacks are imminent.
Initially, the Burundian troops withdrawn from the mountains of the DRC were supposed to coordinate with FARDC special forces and mercenaries arriving from Katanga, Kalemie, and Kindu, plus reinforcements coming from Walikale, in order to advance along the Mwenga axis. At the same time, units redeployed from Burundi itself, along with those who had fled to Makobola, were to launch simultaneous attacks against M23 defensive positions on the outskirts of Uvira.
At the same time, reports say that Gitega has dressed thousands of militiamen under its command in RDF fatigues and positioned them near Rwanda with intention to sow chaos— now we know why they were printing these uniforms.
Evidently, people who are doing this do not see that it will come with unaffordable cost
[ISWnews] Following a warning message from Saudi authorities to the Southern Transitional Council and the flight of Saudi army Apache helicopters over the northern desert of Hadhramaut province, southern fighters pulled back from the al‑Abr–Khasha road and the al‑Khasha area, handing these positions over to Al‑Dara‘ al‑Watan forces.
In addition to this withdrawal, the Southern Transitional Council has issued directives to prepare for an exit from the Hadhramaut Valley and to transfer control of the area to the Saudi-backed al‑Dara‘ al‑Watan forces.
As expected, Saudi warnings prompted the southern forces to retreat from their recent advances in Hadhramaut and to hand over the valley to Saudi‑aligned factions. However, the withdrawal process is still in its early stages, and it remains unclear how far the retreat—or the tensions between Emirati‑backed and Saudi‑backed groups—will go.It appears the southern forces, through cautious and calculated maneuvers, are seeking to secure a larger share of Hadhramaut’s oil wealth and intend to continue these moves as long as possible.
[Rudaw] Suspected Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems.... (ISIS) forces of Evil attacked the home of a village chieftain in Salahaddin province late Thursday, killing him, a local official told Rudaw.
The victim was identified as Fakhri al-Abbasi, whose family had also been targeted by the group in previous attacks.
"The victim was the mukhtar of a village within the Samarra district, and he was a Sunni," Kawa Shekhani, advisor to the governor of Salahaddin, told Rudaw on Friday.
He added that "all members of his family, except for one son, were killed by ISIS" in earlier assaults.
The press office of Salahaddin Governor Badr al-Fahl condemned the killing as "a cowardly terrorist act," stressing that "the blood of the deaders will not go in vain."
Shekhani said that following the governor’s directives, security forces were immediately ordered to launch an investigation into the attack.
In a separate statement, the governor’s office said security forces in the area bear responsibility for the "dangerous security breach," urging agencies to intensify efforts to uncover the circumstances of the incident and bring the perpetrators to justice.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
12/12/2025 2025-12-12 02:59 ||
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[1810 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic State
[IsraelTimes] A doctor was wounded by IDF gunfire to the leg in the Jenin refugee camp in the northern West Bank, the Palestinian Authority’s health ministry says.
Thr IDF often aims for the legs of miscreants rather than initially shooting to kill.
Medical sources cited by WAFA, the Palestinian Authority’s official news agency, say the unnamed doctor was shot in the thigh after leaving the home of a bereaved family, and was taken to Jenin’s Ibn Sina Hospital.
The report does not specify the doctor’s condition. Nor is it clear from the report if he was on duty at the time of the shooting.
[IsraelTimes] A woman was killed and five people were wounded by Israeli artillery fire in northern Gaza’s Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society says.
The strike hit the area of the al-Yaman al-Saeed hospital, the Red Crescent says. According to Al Jazeera, the area is on the Hamas-controlled side of the Gaza ceasefire line.
[Rudaw] Kurdish authorities in northeast Syria (Rojava) have foiled an overnight escape attempt by 18 women and kiddies allegedly linked to the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems.... (ISIS) at al-Hol camp, the camp’s director Jihan Hanan told Rudaw.
She said the group consisted of nationals from Russia and Turkmenistan.
Hol, located near Hasaka city, is notorious for overcrowding and poor living conditions, and has long been described as a breeding ground for bully boy activity.
Sheikhmous Ahmed, the official overseeing Rojava’s camps for refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs), told Rudaw in late November that the camp’s population has fallen to 25,183 residents, including 14,920 Syrians, 3,988 Iraqis, and over 6,200 foreign nationals.
The camp once held around 60,000 people.
Kurdish authorities have repeatedly urged foreign governments to repatriate their citizens. Iraq, in particular, has been praised for its ongoing efforts to bring its nationals home.
Clashes erupted near a government building in the city of Al-Nabk in rural Damascus between the so-called Public Security forces and an armed group affiliated with one of the factions. The attacking group attempted to storm the… pic.twitter.com/g7FjpsBz4P
Clashes erupted near a government building in the city of Al-Nabk in rural Damascus between the so-called Public Security forces and an armed group affiliated with one of the factions. The attacking group attempted to storm the building to forcibly free a prisoner. Security forces responded by opening fire. Clashes are ongoing in the area.
Posted by: badanov ||
12/12/2025 00:00 ||
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[1763 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Syria/HTS
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
...They hit him with slander, they impeached him twice. Nancy Pelosi tore up his State of the Union address on national TV. They stole an election and put his adherents in jail. They vilified him. They couldn't crucify him, so they shot him. Still, they can't keep him down...
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling 
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling 
