Thank you, Canada—for standing firm against the new Nazism, for this victory of reason, and for honouring my great-uncle’s sacrifice

Carney leads the Liberals to victory: a triumph of sanity—and a resounding rejection of Trumpism. {AP 29 April} 

Canada holds profound significance for my family—from sheltering Loyalist ancestors (17th-century Puritan stock) post-Revolution, to my Yorkshire-bred 5th great-grandfather fleeing industrial upheaval in early 1800s England. It also protected a portion of my German forebears (most of my Germanic ancestry comes through my paternal grandmother—God rest her soul—who was fully German and Danish. Yet my grandfather's lineage proves equally fascinating—originating from the same region of modern Baden-Württemberg as my great-grandfather, my grandmother's father who settled in New Jersey with his family as a young boy in the 1890s; somehow, I doubt my grandparents ever knew this, a strange twist of fate).

Canada is in my blood. Though I've only visited Quebec and Ontario, I pray to someday muster the energy and wherewithal for that ten-hour drive to Prince Edward Island—to finally walk my ancestors' homeland, that is if average Americans will even be permitted to visit Canada going forward. Not a given, but I digress.

My great-grandfather, Oswald, born in 1903 near Dundas, Kings County, PEI, left for Boston in 1920—joining family and countrymen who'd settled in Lower Mills since the 1870s. Thus explains my now-unfortunate residence behind enemy lines in these former United States. From all accounts I ever heard, Oswald died a miserable and probably abusive drunk in 1965 (and his son, my grandfather, the same in 1989). I knew his widow, my dear great-grandmother Caroline, d.1988, and the primary source of my Puritan/Loyalist lineage, God rest her soul. But it would be Oswald’s younger brother—whom he'd only known as an infant and likely never recalled—that gave his blood for Canada. The family's profoundly unsentimental nature—the whole lot were/are bipolar, myself included—meant I uncovered my great-uncle's wartime deeds through research, not relatives. Precious few survive today, and neither knew nor cared—nor ever will.

My great-uncle Sidney Ulysses (b.1918, Kings County, PEI; pictured above, full name withheld for privacy), a lieutenant corporal, fell on Normandy's shores with the North Nova Scotia Highlanders, 9th Infantry Brigade, in the fight against Nazism on 7 June 1944 (click here for an excellent documentation of the unit’s actions on 6 June, and of their specific mission in the massive invasion). He rests at Reviers Canadian War Cemetery, having given his life for our freedom.

Any embrace of right-wing totalitarianism anywhere dishonours his sacrifice. Thank you, Canada, for honouring his memory and rejecting Fascism's resurgence from across your southern border.

Arthur Newhook, 29 April 2025, Massachusetts Bay Colony.

P.S. Go Maple Leafs, Go Oilers. First all Canadian Cup final in 36 years, this is the year to make it happen. The Bruins are not in the playoffs, and #Murica does not deserve a Stanley Cup this year.

Copyright 2025, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 on X-Twitter, and at the same handle on FACEBOOK. BLUESKY - @arthurnewhook.bsky.social. DONATIONS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED at https://tinyurl.com/ArthurNewhook.

Headline from Politico—and I shan’t even dignify it with a link: Musk tells Germans to get over ‘past guilt.’

What the living f**k!? My predominant heritage from England—which is to say, an Anglo-Saxon and Celtic mutt, the former being Germanic in origin and also long-dominant in the UK, and the latter absorbing at least traces of Germanic influence over the centuries—alongside my notable and relatively recent ancestral ties to Germany and Denmark via grand-grandparents (and a grandmother from Ireland on my maternal side, but that and some Scottish lineage just mixes in within my inherent Celtic influence via England. My majority blood and my soul are Anglo-Saxon, and I most identify with England and Germany). So, that long-winded introduction aside, I am unquestionably well-positioned to comment as someone of predominantly Germanic descent. Our people, as a collective, committed an unforgivable atrocity against humanity during the 1930s and 1940s, an offence so grievous that it cannot and should not be forgotten.

In the broader expanse of history, those decades were but moments ago—mere blinks in the eye of time. “Get over ‘past guilt’”? We’ve scarcely even begun to atone for the immeasurable wrongs inflicted upon the Jewish people. That was no ordinary crime; it was an act of calculated, incomprehensible hatred—one that demands a reckoning far beyond what has yet been achieved.

You, sir, who dismiss this history with such cavalier arrogance, demonstrate an unforgivable ignorance of the weight of these events. The world has long been teetering on the brink of chaos, but now the descent appears inexorable. World War III looms perilously close, and yet such callousness persists. It is utterly maddening, to put it mildly. - Arthur Newhook, 27 January 2025

Copyright 2025, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 on X, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, BLUESKY - @arthurnewhook.bsky.social. DONATIONS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED at https://tinyurl.com/ArthurNewhook.

Jens Stoltenberg, the NATO Secretary General, visits Ukraine to pledge continued support

Efrem Lukatsky/AP

Declares that Ukraine’s ‘rightful place’ is as a future member of NATO, while Denmark and the Netherlands provide more tanks. {AP 4/20}

Copyright 2023, Arthur Newhook. @Sunking278 and @FloydEtcetera on TWITTER, and at the same handles on FACEBOOK. MASTODON - @ArthurNewhook@mastodon.world, and POST - @arthurnewhook.

If only the British had maintained control of the colonies. 4th of July #Murica 2022: Mass shooting at parade in Illinois, the Supreme Court continues its assault on sanity, Russia claims control of key Ukrainian province, and COVID rises again

Another night of idiots who can't hear us over the sound of them exercising their 'freedom.' Bombs going off everywhere, the dog was about to have a heart attack. Upon many years of experience, reflection, and logical examination, this is a really stupid country on so many levels. This is a country for Darwinian bullies and psychopaths. Sorry, just not feeling this whole #Murica thing anymore.

Lynn Sweet/Chicago Sun-Times/AP

Mass shooting at 4th of July parade in Highland Park, Illinois - Turn out the lights and end this s**t show already. (AP 7/04)

Lowlife scum identified as the person of interest in the Highland Park shooting ‘left a long trail of tributes to mass shootings and public killings on social media platforms’ - A real winner here. Performed as a white-boy rapper under the alias ‘Awake,’ and is the son of a failed mayoral candidate. (NBC News 7/04)

AP/Salon

GOP gubernatorial candidate in Illinois, not even hours after the mass shooting that has devastated his state and the nation: Let’s move on and celebrate - How do we ever reconcile with people of this mindset, which represents a good percentage of the country? We’re f**ked. Sorry, folks, we’re f**ked. {And I am sorry, I know the Raw Story site loads like crap and slows down any device one is using, I'm just too pissed to even try to find a better source at the moment. F**king bulls**t to all Hades.} (Raw Story 7/04)

Going back to Nixon’s ‘Southern Strategy,’ and accelerating greatly during Barack Obama’s presidency and the rise of Donald Trump, Republicans have appealed to confirmation biases to hoodwink millions of (mostly white, ‘working-class’) Americans into supporting their nation-killing, undemocratic policies. The Republican Party must now die; not in the way innocent victims of mass gun violence have, because we know that isn’t happening and the rest of us are not barbarians. No, because their individual consciences finally catch up with them. But, who are we kidding? They are going to sweep the mid-terms and win the presidency in 2024. We all know it, we all know most of our fellow citizens are awful people who would laugh while watching their neighbors being dragged off to death camps. We know the Democratic Party must really suck to have allowed things to progress to this dire stage, where attending a 4th of July parade - or, literally, any event or any place at all, even being in one’s own home - means risks being shot to death, and nobody is allowed to complain about it because ‘freedom.’

Very funny that #Cult45 proclaims to be so anti-socialist, yet they worship Trump with the same fervor as if he were Joseph Stalin, demanding the same of the rest of us. And they worship the United States itself as if it were the very (perverted) ideal the Soviet Union spent 70 years trying to impose upon its citizens. So, screw ‘em, because they’ve ruined the idea of patriotism in America. The flag has become nothing more than a fashion statement, courtesy of those jackasses who never stop bellowing about their ostensible love of country while s**ting on everything it is supposed to stand for. The Founding Fathers would never have fought had they known it would come to this (and, yes, I asked them.) #Murica

‘What accounts for the blithe dismissal of potentially cataclysmic threats?’ Sen. Mitt Romney calls out the American people for being in denial about the pathetic state of the republic - Says a return to Trump ‘would feed the sickness, probably rendering it incurable.’ Agreed, but he and the few remaining sane Republicans need to disavow themselves of any illusion that the GOP can be saved - or is worth saving - and declare themselves independents. (Mediate 7/04)

Fascist outlet Patriot Front demonstrates in Boston on Saturday, and there is violence - One {African-American} man is injured in an altercation with these white supremacist goons. (WCVB 7/03)

Supreme Court issues ruling limiting the EPA’s authority to regulate climate standards at power plants - For the longest time, I didn’t buy into climate change. Until, as with a lot of crap I used to believe, the reality couldn’t be denied any longer. Even now it’s not my area of expertise. Considering that this court is apparently trying to destroy the nation as it currently stands, what would be a few more carbon emissions into the environment? Once the right of women to drive is rescinded and two-thirds of the population have either been eliminated or have fled the country, there will be fewer cars on the road. Christofascists and their allies tend to hate cities, so destroying those should also help clean the air. Hmmm, perhaps the extreme right are onto something after all, and are not the anti-environmentalists they’re often mistaken for. Just as they defend freedom of speech by constantly belittling and threatening anyone with differing points of view. Just as how they support science by rejecting vaccines and facemasks in the middle of the largest global pandemic in over a century. Really, not too surprising that Fascists would love Mother Earth, in their own unique way. Hitler was quite the environmentalist by the standards of his time. (John Sutter, CNN 6/30)

Russia claims control over Luhansk province, Ukrainian forces withdraw from the pivotal city of Lysychansk - God willing, Ukraine will restore authority over its territory, and liberate the residents of these regions from Russian aggression. A setback, not a defeat. (AP 7/03)

Several people dead in mass shooting at Copenhagen shopping mall - America’s sickness is spreading. (AP 7/03)

‘Two Omicron subvariants are now causing more than half of new coronavirus infections in the United States—and both are very good at dodging antibodies in people who have been vaccinated and boosted, as well as in people who had a previous COVID-19 infection.’ (National Geographic 7/01)

Ohio: 14-year-old tiger dies at Columbus Zoo from pneumonia caused by COVID-19 - Rest in Peace, Jupiter. (WLWT 6/30)

USC and UCLA to the Big Ten? - What the f**k!? Geographically this is stupid, obviously, but at the highest levels of college sports geography is simply no longer a concern. No conspiracy theories needed: The SEC, Big Ten, and their broadcast partners (chiefly, ESPN) are boldly and deliberately consolidating their power and ensuring no other schools or conferences will ever again be competitive with them, on the field and off. The few remaining major powers outside those two conferences will be absorbed within the next few years, and we’ll never see even an ACC, Big 12, or Pac 12 school win another national championship.  Or if they do, it’ll be at a new level between FBS and FCS, as those three conferences and the five current mid-majors will be entirely frozen out of FBS (now only consisting of the SEC and Big Ten) and compelled to form their own, secondary division. We may even see FBS split into three, with ACC/Big 12/Pac 12 being the second division, and the current mid-majors being third division. FCS would now be Division IV, the current Division II becomes Division V, and the current Division III will become Division VI. All of this is so bloody ridiculous, and it’s part of what is slowly killing my interest in this sport. Even the pretense of these players being student-athletes is disappearing, (FanNation 6/30)

A little history on how musicians were routinely pressed into service by municipalities as first responders in medieval Europe. (Ted Gioia 7/02)

Copyright 2022, Sunking278. Stay up-to-date: Twitter – @Sunking278 and Facebook – click here. DONATIONS - click here.

Germany continues to prove it is the leader of the free world, while the horrors of the Bucha massacre have yet to settle in; also, a call for Tucker Carlson to move to Russia

Heidi Levine/Washington Post

If the greatest people on earth, the Germans, could have fallen victim to madness as they did in the Nazi era, then any nation or people can and will do so. And Germany – yes, I am biased, being so overwhelmingly but not exclusively of Germanic blood – redeemed itself like no nation has ever done in all of history. America, warts and hypocrites all, once embodied fairness and humanity better than any other nation the world had ever seen. No longer. Not even by a long shot. We have no idea how far we have fallen, ever since 9/11. The ones who secured all of this prosperity for us are mostly gone now. Russia has been mostly terrible since day one, with only tiny weapons of opportunity for change. Ukraine now fights the battle for mankind, and I make no bones and have no shame in saying I am a massive fan. I support them, from afar, by drawing awareness to their cause, day and night. I praise God for this wonderful Internet to be able to reach people and undertake this duty. Such a thing was never imaginable to me as a child back in ancient, literal Soviet times when I was merely a lad. #StopPutin #StandWithUkraine Слава Україні

Germany expels Russian diplomats following the Bucha massacre - Once again, proving themselves to be the most responsible nation on earth. (Deutsche Welle 4/04)

WARNING: Graphic imagery, but don’t turn away. The massacre at Bucha in pictures - Do not allow the world to ever forget what happened here. Never allow anyone to say this isn’t genocide. Genocide. And the same sort of people who continue to deny the Holocaust are the ones saying the war in Ukraine is being fabricated. You know, so 'they' can gain 'control' over us. (Washington Post 4/03)

Satellite images show dead bodies lying in the streets of Bucha for weeks, rebutting Moscow’s claims - The lies and propaganda are only going to become more audacious and bold, and those wanting to believe their lies will double down. But the evidence is there for those who are brave enough to see the truth. It is genocide. (AFP 4/04)

President Biden says ‘you saw what happened in Bucha, declares Putin a war criminal and calls for evidence to be gathered - That's right, we all saw the massacre in Bucha. Except those choosing not to see, or choosing to see something other than what it is (vintage Russian barbarism.) Thank you, Mr. President, for not appeasing this brutal dictator as #Murica seems to believe you should do. (Sky News 4/04)

Seriously, can we please all move on from this juvenile idea of everything being 'staged?' Can everybody stop pretending they're so enlightened and are saving humanity because they're a sucker for every conspiracy theory and piece of Russian disinfo they come across? I've so had it with this crap. Tucker Carlson, move to Russia if you love it so much. I say to all those 'just asking questions' while giving implicit approval to Putin, go live under him if he's such a great hero of mankind. They can’t even stop attacking everything around them for a few moments to acknowledge there is a genocide unfolding in Europe. Can’t believe how disheartened and angry I am with these people. Any excuse to hate, and usually done so in the name of God. God help us. Real men don't turn to Fascism, real men do not see suffering and point the finger at the oppressed, real men do not hide behind tyrannical murderers like Putin or shameless conmen like Trump. Real men do not start fights, they end them. Go, and leave the rest of us alone with your populist, nation-destroying, tinfoil-hat-wearing gaga.

I find value in watching foreign language TV news. Especially Ukraine 24, of late. Always, even with the language barrier, I come away with a better understanding. For Ukraine, I understand they are the toughest, most Cossack people. A stunning contrast to their cousins in Russia. Ukrainian women are also incredibly beautiful, but I digress.

Ukrainian refugee Olga Reznikova brings us into her new life in Denmark - Another of my ancestral homelands, and in recent vintage at that. My paternal great-grandmother, who died when my grandmother was very young, and her family emigrated from Copenhagen. In fact, yours truly met the woman’s brother as a very young child. Circa 1982, our Great Uncle Julius (well into his 90s by then) stayed with my family a night or two, and he was a great man who helped provide for my father’s family while he was growing up just outside of Newark, NJ. When I see nations such as Denmark and Germany stepping up to help these people, it just makes me all the more proud of my Germanic heritage. Olga’s channel is well worth subscribing to, and I’m rooting for her. (Also check out her recently posted video entitled ‘Russian propaganda tricks you don’t know about.’)

Copyright 2022, Sunking278. Stay up-to-date: Twitter – @Sunking278 and Facebook – click here. DONATIONS - click here.