Defense Secretary Jim Mattis Resigns -- Who Needs Democrats? -- Chinese Hackers Think Big --

The departure of Mattis is likely to be greeted with mixed feelings among some in uniform, many of whom revered him as a straight-talking commander with deep knowledge of military affairs. Still, service members are prohibited from speaking negatively of Trump or other senior leaders.

by Paul Sonne, Josh Dawsey, and Missy Ryan for the Washington Post

Soldiers do not question why;

theirs is but to do or die.

Now that Mattis is kaput,

warriors must all stand moot;

should they contemplate a coup,

they might find a willing crew.

***************************

And he suggested that Senate rules should be changed if necessary so that Republicans could pass the bill without any Democratic support.

by John Wagner & Damian Paletta for the Washington Post

In Roman times that are antique

the Senate shrank to a pipsqueak;

it dithered so that tyrants found

it easy to be kingly crowned.

Could Romans see our plight today,

they'd rip their togas, shout: "Oy vey!"

****************************

Since a military reorganization and a shifting of responsibility for industrial cyber espionage to the Ministry of State Security in late 2015, China’s hackers have been attacking less frequently but with greater impact . . .

by Josh Chin for the WSJ

The Chinese hacker serves the state

by stealing info at a rate

that leaves the Western hacker back

at starting line, just talking smack.

************************************

“The cost of living, especially housing, is what stops the whole world from moving to California,”    from Margot Roosevelt for the LATimes

The beaches and mountains are best,
with flora and fauna so blessed.
But renting a shack
will set you so back
that three squares a day is a jest.


********************************