They huddled in their basements, The cannons pounded away, Through the day, through the night, And when dusk gave way to day. Thousands of people, families and friends, Each loved by someone afar, Sharing in the fear, and the anger, Trapped in this dark world, evil, bizarre. A city of poets and painters, A city […]

The war is on in Ukraine, the Russians are advancing, sometimes well, mostly not so well. They are taking some ground but also taking losses. It’s fair to say that they are winning the conventional aspects of this war, but not nearly as well as they thought they would. Mainly, what they have over the […]

Author’s Note: “My Muse is angry, I think…” – Arrias Ordinary Heroes Heroes can often be found in the damnedest places, In a cockpit, in a trench, in all sorts of cases. Fact is you never know who will be dealt the cards, Could in fact be anyone, even thirteen border guards. Border guards not […]

Editor’s Note: A war in Europe is unfolding. The crowd at Refuge Farm is uneasy, memories of old times of great sadness rising under gray skies. In keeping, Arrias finds his Muse to be in a harsh mood on a morning filled with the number “2.” – Vic For the Children Comes in many shapes […]

Editor’s Note: The matter in question that Arrias addresses below is summarized in this chart from long ago: – Vic 54-40 or Fight The Olympics are over. And the first round of the real “world games” may be about to kick off in Ukraine. Perhaps they’ve already begun by the time you read this; there […]

A pale, ghostly sky, cold Artemis slowly sets, To the east Venus… and dire threats. Cold again, the grass is hard, war looms ahead, The dogs hurry, wish to eat and get back to bed. As quiet and as still as the grave, Is Death about, and are we knaves? Ships have sailed, whole world […]

Editor’s Note: Internet issues at The Farm. This corrected version includes the conclusion. Sorry! -Vic Deterrence 21 Or How We Should Learn To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb How should we respond to a Russian invasion of Ukraine in the coming weeks? Economic sanctions and political sanctions will be imposed. Though it will be […]

Author’s Note: This goes with sunset, not sunrise, but My Muse doesn’t seem to care what time it is… – Arrias My Dancer The sun was slowly setting, when she began to dance, Alone, on the pier, eyes closed, as if in a trance. Her arms up over her head, her hips slowly swayed, To […]

They want us all to know they are the smartest of all, The most perceptive and clever, and with powerful recall. They have at their fingertips a cornucopia of facts, And options to cover everything, no matter how Putin acts. They understand China even better than Master Xi, After all they went to some Ivy […]

Russia has a long history of being invaded. Scythians, Huns, Mongols – the land has changed hands again and again and again. In large part that’s because it has so few obstacles. From the Urals to the plains of Eastern Europe there a number of large rivers, but all can be forded. To the west […]