KH4

Sometimes I feel people just aren't taking Donald Trump's Space Force seriously. They're our first, last and only line of defence. Sure, as far as we know we're the worst scum in the universe, but they still do important work. I'm intrigued and dismayed in equal measure at the idea that we're such an insignificant cosmic speck of insect s*** that any intelligent being would nudge our miserable planet out the way to get somewhere more interesting. I'm at least open to the possibility that they'd have some degree of interest in our planet, if not us. If the bumpy forehead creatures landed in Times Square and bought "I LOVE NY" T Shirts it would be the most significant event in human history. I think there may be some alternative to the notion that finding us would be the equivalent of picking an old scratchcard up off the ground and then throwing it away in disappointment because it's not a winner. Maybe they are jaded by the incessant grind of discovery, and scrubs like us are ten a penny. They'd at least want to refill their cisterns with all our lovely contaminated drinking water though, wouldn't they?

I'll take my chances. I may semi inadvertently antagonise the occasional free loving, herbal tea drinking democrat online but it's far less interesting when everyone takes a rigid anti Trump stance. If I was a staunch democrat in America id be anxious about the prospect of a second Trump presidency as well, especially given he may be motivated to use all levers at his disposal to settle some scores. In 2016 he appeared to quite quickly step back from the campaign "lock her up" stuff but this time around I'm not convinced it would just be rhetoric. My only real interest in the election is continued US support for Ukraine and NATO, so despite my best efforts at remaining balanced, id probably back the candidate that offered the most reassurance on that front. If the democratic will of the American people is to be less supportive of the war and NATO in general then I'd have to respect that, but my hope is that most of the talk is just brinkmanship with the aim of making sure everyone pays their share, especially those with a bigger stake in the conflict. It's not unreasonable to expect US taxpayers to get a fair deal, but it's the least opportune time for any rhetoric or action that undermines NATO unity. I will agree that at some events, particularly smaller crowds like this evening in New Hampshire, the overall atmosphere and reaction from the crowd has been occasionally lukewarm. That doesn't necessarily reflect a downturn in Trumps performance as a speaker, as I said earlier it's more or less the same tune played to the same rhythm as before. My feeling is that for most this won't be their first (or second) Trump show, and there will be an element of "been there, done that" which naturally diminishes the excitement somewhat. Theres also the fact that the entire energy of the thing is completely different now. Whilst there's always a lot at stake whenever the "leader of the free world" is being decided, I can't recall any instances when there's been so much personal jeopardy involved for one of the participants. The crowd have got the leader of the movement standing before them with everything on the line. He can thank the "wonderful" local republican representatives, and give the local police chief a pat on the bum by calling him a great guy, but amidst the glad handing, smiles and comical nicknames their man is in the s*** and it's getting deeper with every passing week. That's going to bring the tone and energy down a bit, and that's before you consider that unlike in 2016 and 2020 Teflon Don has a big fat loss in the defeats column (howls of election fraud notwithstanding).

I don't have any colours. If I found myself in the unenviable position of having to vote for either of these two roasters I'd climb Trumps big, beautiful wall in the other direction. It is however interesting that using a nickname one of the candidates dreamed up is evidence of a person's political leanings. If I'd called him Crooked Joe of the Biden Crime Family I could see where you're coming from, but he is sleepy isn't he? I'm happy to disagree agreeably on how his speeches are landing. I have been watching his speeches, otherwise I wouldn't have said it. I'd consider myself to take a fairly objective view on American politics and from where I'm sitting, his performances on the stump are much the same as they've always been. That's not to say I think his performances are particular good. His meandering tactic of mixing the pre-prepared autocue speech with his random ad-lib flourishes have never been particularly polished, but that's his style. Occasionally he'll say something funny but for the most part it's all over the place. It was ever thus with Trump though, and I don't expect many Republicans are worried about Trump going into the debates having lost a step. With regards to the "decline" being a myth, youll see that I qualified my statement with "perceived" and the indication that it wasn't as bad as people think. I don't think it's possible to entirely dismiss the issue with the very broad suggestion that it was ignored though. Again, this is another area where we're not going to agree but my prediction is that this is going to be an issue at the election and I believe that it will cut through. I'll put it this way, it's on my radar and I live 5000 miles away, and it isn't on my radar because I've been watching Trump speeches on YouTube. The issues might well be localised but this could effectively be deployed as a national issue. The Democrats aren't going to lose any of the west coast States, but I wouldn't be too quick to dismiss the "coming to a town near you" factor. You might be heading to the ballot box with the firm understanding that it's all down to the "favourable climate", but I'd strongly urge President Biden not to use that line in any of the debates.

Trump really is a heavyweight in a division full of Glass Joe's when it comes to the Republican party. Last time round there were some candidates who could have easily gone on to win the nomination in any other year but Trump systematically dismantled them, and he made it look easy. 6 months before a votes been cast for the Republican nomination it's already a no contest. After a half baked launch Ron is scrambling for relevance while Trump hoovers up attention and sets the agenda. He'll be a distant second at best and the rest of the field are just wasting other people's money. That leaves Sleepy Joe against Trump, and whilst the smart money's on a Biden victory nobody should be counting any chickens. Trump is as sharp a performer as he's always been, he's motivated and has a lot more experience. The presidential debates are going to be an absolute minefield for the democrats, Trump has nothing to lose while Joe needs to convince America he's still got some of his marbles. He's usually able to turn it on when it matters, but if he falls apart at the seams and tries to wander off mid debate, it's a problem. Despite the polarization of American politics there's still a sizeable constituency that could go either way. Aside from personal sideshows like Trump going to prison and Hunter Biden, one of the big issues will be the perceived decline in big American cities. There's a sense among some Americans that control has been completely lost, and videos of swarms of crack zombies plaguing places like San Francisco are becoming a bit of an issue for Democrats. I know some New Yorkers who told me that in the late 80s places like Times Square, Port Authority and most subway stations were hell holes. It was old Waxhair Rudy who's credited with sorting that out and before he became a crank, he had built a solid reputation for himself. Whether American streets are as bad as people think they are I'm not so sure, but many are looking for someone to take out the trash. Given Joe's in the chair just now, you have to imagine for most people that'll be Trump. I genuinely wouldn't be surprised if he manages to ride this issue all the way to the Whitehouse.

I don't believe the recent developments have done much to advance the discussion, other than the fact that it's not insignificant that it's being addressed publicly at that level. There are a few different questions here, the main one being whether we're alone in the universe. I don't believe anyone can answer that question either way, although based on what we know about the universe it's far more likely that there's some form of life out there than not. Anyone that definitively states that there's no life beyond earth is as daft as someone giving specifics about aliens IMO. The truth is we just don't know. The rare earth hypothesis is interesting, but given the unimaginable scale of the universe, even something exceptionally rare could happen countless times. It can happen, it's already happened so it's entirely possible that it could happen elsewhere at least more than once. Then there's the question of how advanced any life forms are. Planets were forming billions of years before there was any sign of life on ours. Then again, in terms of time we're closer to the age of the T Rex than the T Rex is to the Stegosaurus, so you could have Millions/Billions of years where there's no technological advancement even if there is life. The other question is whether there's anything within our immediate neighbourhood. Again, based on what we know about the universe I don't believe that's likely, but a lack of evidence isn't tremendously meaningful. If there is something there, they're significantly more advanced than us, possibly by millions of years if not more. If something has been able to negotiate the seemingly impossible barrier of interstellar travel, how likely is it that we would be able to successfully gather evidence of its presence if it didn't want to be found? You're not going to get the Alien in a fishtank or a crashed spaceship, it's just never going to happen. That's my pragmatic analysis, but there are theories I find interesting. The Fermi Paradox and some of the answers to it are a good place to start for anyone looking looking for something a little less tinfoilish. Essentially, the gist of it is given the high probability of life elsewhere in the universe, why is there so little evidence of it? There are a multitude of answers for this, ranging from the suggestion that no civilisation has developed interstellar travel to the possibility that any sensible civilisation knows enough to know that it's better to remain hidden. Hidden from what I don't know, but there have been suggestions that our own SETI shouldnt be sending signals out to god knows what. Until Trump's Space Force is capable of mustering even the most rudimentary defence, I'd probably be inclined to agree.

Nice one squire. As I mentioned earlier the result on Saturday was significant due to how Montrose have performed in recent seasons. Their progress has often been overlooked but it's worth remembering that prior to 2018, theyve been playing in the bottom tier since the 90s, and in 2015 they finished rock bottom. They've demonstrated that clubs of a certain size can get a foothold in League One, and it's not always easy when resources are limited. Supporters of clubs playing at a higher level often believe that the only difference between League One and League Two is the occasional appearance of club like Raith Rovers, Falkirk or Dunfermline. They reality is that for the most part we've got 4 distinct levels of quality with each division being stronger than the one below.

I'll always maintain we had the quality to perform much better last season, in terms of the football we were playing, the results and our overall league position. Potter had some very good players at his disposal, and it's a classic example of individual talent just not coming together. It wasn't a disaster and I don't want to be too hard on the guy, but it can be really difficult to fix a situation like that. A complete departure from where we were and almost starting again isn't the worst thing that could have happened. There were instances last season where I just didn't see us getting a result, when we visited East End Park the 0-0 draw felt like a win. There will be many games this season where we come up against a well organised unit who have the quality to outplay us. Looking at this team though, I think the ability is there to strike back with an effective counter attacking threat even if we're on the ropes. From what I've seen so far we're able to get forward quickly with enough numbers to have a go, and there's a bit of pace in there as well. We'll certainly come unstuck, and I'd still expect Accies to get the result on Saturday. The key thing is though that even against the better sides in the Division, I don't think we'll need to rely on luck for goals and we're capable of giving any defence in the League problems.

There's genuine quality for this level throughout the team. In all the years I've been watching football this has been one of the most impressive rebuilds I've seen, especially considering our starting position. It's not just the standard of player that's stood out for me, the way this team has been able to gel in such a short space of time is also notable. My other team is Nottingham Forest and whilst the Premier League is a world away from where Kelty are, last season they found themselves in a similar position. They won promotion after a freak run of incredible results with a team consisting mostly of loan signings and players who were Championship level at best. A handful of the promotion winning team stayed on, but they spent millions on new players and broke the record for the most signings in a transfer window, it was a necessity to field a competitive team. The result was a bit of a car crash for the first few months. The quality was there, but there were many failures before the manager figured out his best 11 and even then it took a long time for it to come together. It was grim viewing to begin with. Tidser doesn't need to worry about finding his best 11, that's more or less settled for him. He has however had to get a tune out of all these new faces, and he's done it immediately. What's taken me by surprise is not only the standard of players we've brought in, but how together the team looks in such a short space of time. There's an understanding and fluidity there that you'd expect from a team that's been playing competitively for months.

That was an important result today. When I saw that Keltys first league game was against Montrose, my sense was that it would prove to be a bit of a bellwether for the season ahead. Since winning promotion in 2018, Montrose have done very well under Petrie to establish themselves as a solid League One club. They've finished in the playoff places in 4 of the 5 seasons they've been in the league, and Montrose are one of the sides we'd want to perform well against if we're looking to improve on last season. I'd consider it success if Kelty were able to emulate Montrose, as they are more or less where I'd want Kelty to be. A club that could be at League Two level but who've performed well enough to stay well clear of it but aren't quite able to push on towards the Championship. If we were able to cement our place in League One and enjoy the end of season excitement the playoffs bring, I'd be perfectly content with that. To get the result against them away from home is an excellent way to leave the starting blocks, and will only add to the growing confidence we've built over the past few weeks.

That had occurred to me as well. Until the seasons well underway I'll feel inclined to qualify everything I say with regards to Kelty. Despite performing exceptionally well in the Cup it's too early to draw any conclusions etc. Daramola has caught a LOT of attention, and deservedly so. I've seen a lot of chatter among supporters of other, larger clubs who wouldn't mind seeing Daramola turning out for them. If he keeps performing at this level I fear his stay with us will be brief, and if he's still with us at the end of this season id be delighted. You're right about Tidser though. Everything I've seen has been impressive. The squad he's built, the results, the performances, the style of football and the entertainment factor, the way he's carried himself, even the way the players talk about him in interviews. I would not be surprised if Tidser is managing at a much higher level before long.

That's an encouraging development. Everyone wants to see young players break into the first team, and there's every chance Shearer makes it at this level, but being used in the way Potter used him towards the end of last season was a little bit early for me. The game at East End Park stood out, where he replaced Fash quite early on and got some decent minutes under his belt. It was telling that even when not running at anywhere near full steam, Fash offered more up front for even the basics like winning challenges off long balls and closing down defenders to create a bit of pressure. You'd expect that, and it was a tough situation in which to try and make an impression, but it was clear then that perhaps we'd need to go a different route. A run of competitive first team football at a level a wee bit further down the pyramid is exactly the direction I'd have wanted the club to go in. There's potential there, and I'm pleased it's being developed in a way that seems to me to give him the best chance. At the end of last season I was a bit concerned that we'd find ourselves over reliant on young players who werent quite ready to step up. I've said it before but things are looking much healthier than I could have imagined.

I really enjoyed the game this evening. You're rarely going to get a faultless performance and it's still very early days but there were positives throughout the team tonight. Irrespective of whether we progress in the cup or not this competition has been just what we've needed ahead of the new season. After the changes weve seen over the past few months it has been a real confidence builder. From what I've seen so far, this new look side has been entertaining, exciting and we've played some decent football. Even when playing the ball long there's more often than not been someone on the end of it, and the player on the recieving end hasn't looked short of options. There hasn't been much of this running towards the corner flag with the head down because there's nobody else there. When we have got forward we've done so quickly and in numbers, it looks as though Tidser is really getting a tune out of this side. As I said it's early days and I don't want to get carried away, but it's an encouraging start.

New Central Park is one of these grounds where on a quiet afternoon against a team that doesn't bring a large travelling support you can hear things said on the park you wouldn't otherwise hear elsewhere. There are some players you become more familiar with than others, and whilst as a supporter I'm happy to have players like OWare in a Kelty defence, I'm not sure I'd be able to enjoy myself if he was in my five-a-side team. I'll leave it at that.

Felt that Morton brought a decent crowd with them on Saturday, and probably one of the more vocal supports we've had at New Central Park since we've been in the League. I'm guessing OWare left under a bit of a cloud? If that news did reach these parts it must have passed me by at the time. I assume it was a little more than a former player having a face you'd never tire of skelping?

Really encouraged by what I seen on Saturday. We all know the changes at the end of last season we're seismic, and whilst many of us saw the benefits of moving to a new model I will admit to some degree of trepidation. Losing experience from three key positions off the park, as well as being left with barely enough players for a five a side game would be a challenge for anyone tasked with steadying the ship. To have a team looking as impressive as they did against a side that finished 6 points behind the Champions least season is nothing short of incredible. The result didn't go out way, but we played some excellent football on the deck and we really had Morton on the ropes at points. Things tailed off towards the end, and there were some defensive mistakes will give Tidser plenty to work on, but I seen enough to allay any fears I had moving into the new season. It's early days, but there's some real quality in that side and a balance that was largely absent last year. I also like the way the club have went about their business, there's been a calm, level headed approach and all the communications I've seen have struck exactly the right tone. Like every other club in the land there's always a risk of a disappointing outcome to the season ahead, but whatever happens I can't fault the steps taken up to this point to give us the best possible chance.