Rogue Elements (2024)

In Estonia, a CIA team attempts to extract an informant.  The operation is compromised, and the team is either killed or captured.  Volkov, who is in charge of the Russian forces, suddenly finds himself targeted by an unseen sniper.  He escapes though not all of his men survive.  A video showing the interrogation and execution of the captured CIA agents was sent to Langley.  Volkov was most interested in discovering who rescued Maras from a Siberian prison; Ryan Drake's name was offered.  The CIA director is not happy.  Ryan Drake is sent to recover the informant, which will probably end up being a trap.  His teammates are less than eager.  Drake and Frost - who is the computer whiz of the group - infiltrate the warehouse while Deitrich - who is fluent in Russian - provides a distraction at the front gate.  Things go mostly smoothly until Frost realized there are Rogue Elements involved.  The mysterious sniper from the opening returns to finish the job.

The story takes place sometime after the events in Redemption.  Anya, AKA Maras, was tortured by Volkov and she intends to settle that score.  She owes Drake a debt for her extraction but she's not going to let him get in the way of her vengeance.

Drake and his team come across as only moderately competent.  The same is true of the Russians.  The original CIA team was clearly incompetent to have been so easily surprised and taken down.  Even Anya, who has the most experience, makes some boneheaded blunders.  Most surprising was how the female characters repeatedly stood toe to toe with larger men while brawling.  Sorry, not going to happen.  The idea of Frost holding the knife away from her neck while a man twice her size is shoving down with his weight is just unbelievable.  Clearly, the makers knew that which is why the villain says, "I'm not even trying."  Yeah, okay.

In his Critical Drinker persona, I doubt Will Jordon would speak favorably of this.  It's a run-of-the-mill espionage story with a predictable plot and uninspiring characters.  Given the time constraints - it is only 40 minutes, there isn't much room to develop the characters or have an intricate plot.  Of course, this is basically a pilot, an effort to get something more going for his Drake series (9 books so far).  I would watch episode 2, which makes this a success.

Why Write an Essay?

I have spent years writing on a variety of topics and posting that here or my previous blog.  Mostly, this is for my own edification; I have limited readership.  With that in mind, has it just been a waste of my time?  Could I have spent all those hours doing something more productive?  Then again, this YouTuber argues that I'm using the best learning tool in history.

Yes, it is a great way to learn.  I have found that my recall on the subjects where I have written is much better than those where I have not.  From experience, I'd have to say that Python Programmer is absolutely correct.  Write essays to learn.  Recommended. 

Greta admits Climate Crisis is a Hoax?

I ran into this YouTube video where Greta Thunberg says, "Since the climate crisis doesn’t exist, how can we expect people to want climate action?"  Freudian slip?  Has she just given up the game, admitting that she has been playing us for fools all along?  No, this is just another of those deceptive selective edits.  Donald Trump has often been on the receiving end of such deceptive editing (e.g., fine people hoax, drinking bleach hoax, etc.) but now it is Greta's turn.  Maybe those who accepted the misreporting on what Trump said will have their eyes opened by this obvious misreporting of Greta.  Probably not, but one can hope.

Checkmate, Lincolnites!

Atun-Shei Films delves into a variety of historical subjects, including the Civil War, King Philip's War, Vikings in North America, and sundry other topics.  The one that attracts the most attention is the Checkmate, Lincolnites! where Andrew Rakich debates the Civil War, especially the Lost Cause Myth that arose after the South's defeat.  The format has Andrew portraying both Billy Yank and Johnny Reb as they debate the issue of the day.  He hams it up with Johnny Reb, making the character something of a goofball.  However, many of Johnny Reb's lines are provided from the comment section from earlier videos.  The videos are quite good with a professional look and excellent research.  Though I was on Billy Yank's side from the first episode, I found that I was drawn even further to his side.  Yes, the war was about slavery.  Not taxes.  Not states' rights.

Entertaining, educational, and recommended.

Pearl

H. Pearl Davis has burst upon the scene, a YouTuber who has exploded in popularity in recent months.  She has picked up the complaints of MGTOW (Men Going Their Own Way) channels and added her observations to them.  She states that modern women would be regarded very poorly (I dare not use her descriptions here) by standards of an earlier era.  Where men were supposed to be providers and offer protection, she states that women would bring purity and youth.  That does go back quite a way, certainly before the sexual revolution.  This is hardly the most controversial thing she says.  Recently, she adopted the idea that women shouldn't vote!  She regularly states that men are better at everything than women.  Men are smarter than women and men are less gullible.  It is hardly surprising that she is viewed as a misogynist by her critics.

According to Pearl, men get a raw deal in marriage.  A woman who comes to a marriage as a virgin is 80% likely to stay with her husband.  However, one who has had 5 or more partners, is only 20% likely to stay.  If the woman does leave, she will take the kids, half the household value, and continue to cost her ex-husband through either alimony or child support.

Her rocket-like rise reminds me of Milo Yiannopoulus, who was suddenly everywhere in 2014.  Here was this new personality that was inexplicably everywhere and remained so for several years.  Then there was his collapse in 2017.  Is Pearl just the latest personality to rise to the top and destined to crash into oblivion?  A flash in the pan?  How likely is it that she can resurrect the taboos and mores of an earlier era?

Professor Nestor Jackdaws

Jim Meskimen is one of the best impressionists on the internet.  I've watched him on and off for several years.  He can switch from voice to voice in a flash, adopting mannerisms and ticks to match.  Really impressive stuff.  However, he has one unique character that is both a goofy caricature of an English professor and also a serious advocate for the arts.  Professor Nestor Jackdaws of Oxmouth College speaks on all facets of art, sometimes giving a review of art, but always encouraging the artist in everyone.  Though an artist himself - he has displayed his paintings and drawings in some videos, Meskimen has created his alter ego to evangelize for art.  It is a strange thing to say that I like the Nestor Jackdaws videos more than his celebrity impressions.  If you liked watching Bob Ross paint, Nestor Jackdaws is just the fellow for you.

The Angry Astronaut

I watch a lot of YouTube videos that cover spaceflight, whether that be about the history of the Apollo Program, the shuttle, or the current advancements of SpaceX, Virgin Galactic, or Blue Origin.  On that account, The Angry Astronaut appeared in my feed.  Though not an astronaut, he is angry.  Initially, I was turned off by his angry shtick and ditched out of the first video I watched.  However, he kept showing in my queue and some of the topics were not covered by other vloggers.  I gave him another shot.  It turns out that he has an encyclopedic knowledge of space-related topics.  He is the biggest cheerleader for a Mars colony with the exception of Elon Musk.  His channel covers every idea you can imagine about space exploration, from spacesuits and nuclear engines to possible life on Venus, Mars, or beyond the Solar system.  He is often pissed off by great ideas that were considered in the 1960s but never implemented.

If you are following the current space race, The Angry Astronaut provides great insight into almost every facet of it.  Highly recommended.

Tim Pool

I've been watching a lot of Tim Pool lately.  Though Tim is on the left in political views, he is open about it and makes considerable efforts to play the news straight.  He has an analysis channel where he just reports news - mostly - and a second channel where he often vents.  What is interesting about Tim is that, though disposed to be a Democrat, he is annoyed by the tactics the Democrats have been using of late.  He has repeatedly reported that the amount of left on right violence far exceeds any right on left violence.  His videos tend to be 10 to 15 minutes long providing a lot of depth to the topic with multiple sources; he often reads a news story verbatim.

 

Tim is open about his political views so the viewer can factor in any bias.  This makes him dramatically more trustworthy than many journalists who present themselves as objective and unbiased despite always spinning stories in an anti-Republican or pro-Democrat narrative.  Tim doesn't do that.  Tim is what a journalist should be.

 

Highly recommended.  Check it out:

 

Timcast on YouTube