2023 Prediction Wrap Up

I only made one major Prediction to bring in 2023, and it looks like I got that wrong.

As I noted last year:

But the truth is that both nations are exhausting themselves in this war, but Ukraine is the one far closer to the edge, and mere aid isn’t going to be enough to replace manpower and an economy.  So, it’s either NATO enters the war directly, or the Russians and Ukrainians are going to have to meet at the table and start the painful process of negotiations.

And that’s my prediction: By the end of the year, Russia and Ukraine will have begun the process of a cease fire and talks to end the war.

Or NATO enters the war and we get World War III!

Luckily we didn’t get World War III although unfortunately that still seems to be on the table, now more than ever. 

However I did come close…

“WASHINGTON — U.S. and European officials have begun quietly talking to the Ukrainian government about what possible peace negotiations with Russia might entail to end the war, according to one current senior U.S. official and one former senior U.S. official familiar with the discussions.

The conversations have included very broad outlines of what Ukraine might need to give up to reach a deal, the officials said. Some of the talks, which officials described as delicate, took place last month during a meeting of representatives from more than 50 nations supporting Ukraine, including NATO members, known as the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, the officials said.

The discussions are an acknowledgment of the dynamics militarily on the ground in Ukraine and politically in the U.S. and Europe, officials said.”

So, talks are being started about having talks.  This prediction could happen this year, or the next.  Reality is starting to penetrate the thick heads of the Western elites who have been cheerleading this war from the beginning, however “the dynamics militarily on the ground” are now obvious enough that even an American general can see there is no winning this one.

Enemy of the State not just a Movie

Since I declared traditional American democracy dead back in August, the government has gone out of its way to prove my point.

Exclusive: Donald Trump Followers Targeted by FBI as 2024 Election Nears

The federal government believes that the threat of violence and major civil disturbances around the 2024 U.S. presidential election is so great that it has quietly created a new category of extremists that it seeks to track and counter: Donald Trump’s army of MAGA followers.

The challenge for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the primary federal agency charged with law enforcement, is to pursue and prevent what it calls domestic terrorism without direct reference to political parties or affiliations—even though the vast majority of its current “anti-government” investigations are of Trump supporters, according to classified data obtained by Newsweek.

Just a couple of observations on that.  You need a brand-new category of extremist?  The old ones weren’t cutting it anymore?  See that sounds almost like you are making it up.

But given that, I’m not surprised that the most anti-government investigations are on Trump supporters.  I grew up in a time when leftists were fighting The Man, the establishment, and multiple varieties of isms.  Now, leftists are The Man and the establishment. So, who do you rebel against now?  Why the people who are NOT The Man and the establishment.

Continuing…

Right after January 6, the FBI co-authored a restricted report (“Domestic Violent Extremists Emboldened in Aftermath of Capitol Breach, Elevated Domestic Terrorism Threat of Violence Likely Amid Political Transitions and Beyond”) in which it shifted the definition of AGAAVE (“anti-government, anti-authority violent extremism”) from “furtherance of ideological agendas” to “furtherance of political and/or social agendas.” For the first time, such groups could be so labeled because of their politics.

This seems to boil down to, if you don’t think Joe Biden is the bestest President ever, then you are a dangerous extremist and need to be watched by the government.

Of course, the recent attacks on Trump’s eligibility to run in various States have extended.

Democrats Want Over 130 Republicans Banned From Holding Office

More than 130 Republicans have faced challenges to their eligibility to serve in office based on their alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in recent years.

Critics also say those involved in the riot should be barred from holding office, citing Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. It states that those who took an oath to defend the Constitution and went on to engage in “insurrection or rebellion” should not be permitted to hold “any office, civil or military, under the United States.”

Since the 2020 election, at least 134 Republicans, including Trump, have faced legal challenges questioning whether they are qualified to hold office. None of these challenges have been successful.

Putin must be so jealous! 

Meanwhile our system is trying to institute its own version of a one-party oligarchy; gradually, and then suddenly as Hemingway might say.  I’m not going to bother making too much in the way of predictions for this coming year since the wild swings that our political system is taking are getting wilder and crazier.  I feel confident though in saying that Trump won’t be President, no matter how the “election” goes.  Nor do I think the House has much chance to remain with the Republicans.  But who wins what office is almost a minor consideration at this point.  One thing that I’m confident predicting is that the one-party oligarchy is likely to win.