Take the stick away

I'm a former military wife. Does that make me a tactical genius? No, but maybe I'm overestimating how "common knowledge" it is that letting your enemy choose the field of battle and terms of engagement is an excellent way to hand them your head on a platter.

I get told a lot I'm victim blaming for trying to suggest crazy ideas like women could think about their own safety instead of whining and crying about how men should be more protective. 

I mean if you tell someone "It's a dangerous neighborhood. Make sure to lock your car." no one acts like you are blaming the victim.

Does that guarantee safety? No, someone could still smash your window and grab stuff from the seat because you left it out in the open where they could see it. But it's easier and safer to take your stuff if you helpfully also leave the door unlocked.

But make it about so-called Rape Culture and everyone acts like only men can do anything about that and if you tell women "Most date rape involves alcohol." or "Alcohol gets called the number one date rape drug." and suggest she could avoid or limit alcohol and walk away if he's knocking them back like there's no tomorrow, that's crazy talk and you're a misogynistic troll. 

What's next? Suggesting she cover up the cleavage? You evil evil person you.

I don't really care how you dress. We have lots and lots of studies saying that's not why sexual assault happens.

But alcohol actually matters to the equation.

Hi Cuba.

You aren't the only country with inadequate domestic oil supply. France has the same problem and when the 1970s oil crisis got painful for them, they went nuclear:

Although France’s first commercial nuclear reactor came online in the 1960s, the country began the large-scale plan to build its nuclear power fleet in the mid-1970s, following the 1973 oil crisis. At the time of the oil crisis, oil-burning power plants generated a significant share of France’s electricity.

I don't know what your problem is. I don't follow politics. I basically know that, like Iran, Cuba has had friction with the US for so many decades it's kind of like a feud where no one remembers why our grandaddies started it but BY GOD we are going to keep fighting because THEY are our enemy.

I know that Cuba and Russia are FWENDS with each other and both hate US. Why? maybe because they both have some foreign language that isn't English. 

(MERIKANS: Spanish and Russian sound so much alike! They probably understand each other. My story. Sticking to it.)

Anyway, I have absolutely no idea why Cuba and MERIKA began fighting and no idea what our beef with you is.

And I'm ALSO baffled as to why YOU are eagerly agreeing to be our bitch after decades of this bullshit. That's like actively looking for a job working for your high school bully so he can continue to make you miserable instead of leaving town after you grow up.

There are other options for taking care of your people and if you began doubling down on solutions the latest POTUS can't readily screw with -- passive solar, solar electric, wind farms, electric trams, electric buses -- and some jerk got pissed off and attacked you unprovoked, the international community might go "I don't think so, Uncle Sam, you abusive jerk." 

Does that readily fix your problem? Oh, absolutely not, no. 

But it probably gets you a better life than you currently have. And may lead to solutions where the US is eventually pressured to quit bullying you.

Footnote 

Title is from some episode of Kung Fu where a peacenik tries to justify letting bad people beat him up because he refuses to do violence against them, so he has no choice but to accept the abuse and Caine tells him "You could take the stick away."