Yaaaaaaawnnnnnn

A rainy Thursday morn, Stroock's Books reader(s). Which is fine. Once more, New Jersey needs rain as evidenced by this chart on regional water supply indicators and this chart showing reservoir levels. [What is it with you and New Jersey reservoir stats?-Ed] Meh, it's something to follow. Actually if one looks at the combined Round Valley-Spruce Run reservoir chart (our reservoirs) we're fine.

The campaign against Iran continues...the Israelis are hammering Hezbollah. You know, we're on the verge of becoming bored with this whole thing. At this point Operation Epic Fury feels like the air war stage of Desert Storm, lo those 35 years ago. 

Okay, so the Americans and Israelis are destroying tons of regime infrastructure, but how many regime personnel are they actually killing? Does it matter? And what's the end game here? And what happened to the Kurdish thing that was happening last night? 

This blog admits all trends look positive. Nevertheless, beware of victory disease. 

DOGE report.

Same. This chapter ends with an IRA Active Service Unit attacking the British recon force. It probably starts with those guys being introduced, though readers will have seen their leader in World War 1990: Ireland.

Sales of World War 1990: Ireland are chugging along. As of this morning Ireland is ranked number 82. No reviews or ratings yet. Actually, let's check in on Amazon UK...Phew. Nothing yet. The Brits n Micks are going to hate Ireland [Brits n Micks. Really? - Ed]. Came up with that meself just now. [Don't be fooled, folks. Several times he's tried to 'convert to Irish' - Ed].

Related...rest in peace Lou Holtz.

We paid the formatters yesterday. We should make the expense back in under a month. We'll see. 

Reminder, after Ireland our four most popular books are The Great Nuclear War of 1975 series. We should really get back to that, yo. 

You Sank my Battleship

Baaah...after being up late the night before we had trouble getting to sleep last night and overslept by about an hour this morning. No big deal really, but our schedule is disrupted. We swipe at the air and drink our coffee. 

It seems the Israelis are refocusing on Hezbollah. They've ordered a mass evacuation of Lebanon south of the Litani. This is a big deal. 

Holy Hyman Rickover! A US Navy submarine torpedoed an Iranian ship in the Indian Ocean.

The greatest aerial campaign since Operation Desert Storm, it seems. But how much stuff can one bomb? And what's the endgame here? What can one say? Always trust Trump. Never bet against Trump. And don't get sick of winning. Right? [Right!-Ed]. Also, beware Victory Disease. 

Thirty years on....In 1996 we were attending a non-Jesuit University in Washington DC, and part of a friend group that included recent college grads, all friends because of the College Republicans. At least three had jobs on Capitol Hill, doing scut work in a congressional office for $19,000 a year. We were young, and dumb, and generally without a care. We'd drink on our apartment balconies or the M-Street Fridays, and hang out at the Jefferson Memorial. Heavy T's, we called it. Well, the wife of one of those friends just won the Republican nomination for Texas (08). Congrats Jessica Steinmann. Brandon looks exactly the same. We've all come a long way. 

DOGE report.

Same really. Working on the World War 1990: Thatcher's War recon force chapter, in which a company of Land Rovers are met by hostile and hilariously profane Irish civilians. This includes nuns, school girls, sanitation workers, and the West Dundalk Women's Peace Collective.  The chapter will be completed by Friday. 

When we started we looked at google Earth and saw American interstate-like highways and bypasses around major cities...they're there, but weren't there in 1990. Reminder, in 1990 Ireland was a Third World country with Third World infrastructure. Fixing this hasn't been as big a problem as we thought. 

World War 1990: Ireland is moving and slowly gaining steam. At last check it's 275th in Amazon's alternate history category. Yesterday Ireland was 500 something. Oh look, it's 86th in Amazon UK. We approach this fact with [Great fear and trepidation?-Ed] great fear and trepidation. 

Anyway, keep on rolling. Exit question, when should we enroll Ireland in Kindle Select? We cannot answer this question till we have more coffee. 

Tuesday Grog n Slog

Yaaaaar....up late last night with a sick child. Even teenagers need their parents sometimes. We are tired and groggy. And with a doctor's appointment in the offing, our workday will be heavily disrupted. 

Bla-bla Iran, bla-bla stuff's blowing up. 

From reports it sounds like the US dispatched a whole lot of B-52s to the Middle East. Arclight strikes await? 

Iran is taking on everyone in the Middle East. This is fine. Attacking the Gulf Arabs makes enemies of them, and it means fewer missiles and drones aimed at Israel. As they say, bold strategy, Cotton. 

We watched Benjamin Netanyahu on Sean Hannity last night. Meh. We will say the prime minister has lost a lot of weight since 10/7.

Israel conducted an as yet unspecified commando raid in Iran. Cool.

Israel is hammering Hezbollah in Lebanon and has sent elements of 91 Division across the border. 

Hot Air says, 'George Will Bows to the Inevitable: Trump Was Right...' Geroge Will has certainly been no fan of Trump's and he's been writing Constitutional bromides while Barry Soetoro and the Biden Regency shredded the Constitution. For a long time, Will hasn't known the time. He still writes for the Washington Post, afterall. Will is certainly out of fashion with the MAGA hats. But we are a lot less hostile to Will than the author of the above article. before times Will was the most important conservative writer/pundit out there. Will was a huge influence on us. We'll write more about that at the time of his (ahem), demise. The man is 85 years old, so...So don't be a fool, when the end comes, Geroge Will will be missed.

Other important political influences on Young Will include...

PJ O'Rourke, who's Give War a Chance we picked up (by chance heh) in August of 1992. This is a collection of articles from the end of the Cold War/Desert Storm era. O'Rourke was the first to challenge our conventional center/center left ideas. Also, Give War a Chance is hilarious. 

Rush Limbaugh, introduced to him in the fall of 1992 by a new friend in college, still a dear friend. We'd listen to Rush while playing Madden '93. We were still a Conservative Democrat and Bill Clinton fan. And while Rush bashed Bill, he also bashed the Looney Left. Rush influenced a lot of our political thinking. And in the spring of 1996, he had an open caller forum where people talked about pulling themselves up, restarting their lives, taking risks, etc, etc. That broadcast has always stuck with and sustained us. 

DOGE report.

We moved some copies of World War 1990: Ireland yesterday. KU will come in due time, but for now readers have to buy the Kindle or the paperback. We've sold copies in the US, UK, men's Olympic hockey silver medal nation, and....the Netherlands. We've only announced publication here and on FB. Substack is next. Probably tomorrow. 

We spent yesterday revising the Thatcher's War opening invasion chapter, making events farcical, even comic, like Ireland. We shall do more of the same today.

We also did a little work on our 5th nuke novel cosmonaut story. Why? We'd been down on the project. But looking at sales numbers, there's every reason to crank out books in the Great Nuclear War of 1975 series. We need other ideas. 

How do you Say 'FAFO' in Urdu?

Purim Sameach, everyone. They tried to kill us. They failed. Let’s drink. For an explanation of Purim, which is basically a Hebrew drinking game, click here. Ironic, no?

Middle East...too much is going on. Reader(s) will get no recap from us. Though it looks like Hezbollah has decided it wants Israel to kick its ass, again. Okay, boys. The Israelis have hit weapons storage facilities, political and military leadership. Looks like Iron Beam is in action. 

In Karachi, inbred Pakistani morons stormed the US consulate...and ran into the Marine security contingent, 22 dead. Note to Pakistani fuckwits: Jimmy Carter is not the president. Barry Soetoro is not the president. Joe Biden is not the president. In the age of Trump, attack the US, and you will max out your FAFO score. 

Reminder, four Americans and nine Israelis are dead. And beware Victory Disease. 

Yesterday was the 14th anniversary of Andrew Breitbart's death. He was 44, we were 39, and not entirely positive we'd outlive him. And so we have. Anyway, here's what we had to say on the tenth anniversary of Andrew's death. Oh, dear lord. In that 10th anniversary retrospective one of the panelists is....Charlie Kirk. Dear Dems, if you could please stop trying to kill us, that'd be great. 

DOGE report: we worked yesterday on the Thatcher's War opening invasion chapter, which is mostly just Brit recon guys running into pissed off and jocular Irish civies. Lots of good doings are transpiring. This scene is both tragic and farcical. Like Ireland.  

World War 1990: Ireland is out!

World War 1990: Ireland

The Third World War is over and the West has won

But the world is not at peace.

From Yugoslavia to Iraq dictators plot their moves in the post war world.

A communist insurgency rages in Cuba.

In Moscow, the new and uncertain premier struggles to hold the fraying Soviet Union together.

An exhausted President Bush ponders his political future while members of the administration battle to be his successor.

When a rogue IRA agent makes an attempt on Prime Minister Thatcher’s life, chaos engulfs Northern Ireland and threatens the Republic. While Washington urges restraint, Whitehall prepares for war.

Will's Good Idea for the Week of 3/1/26

A good Sunday morn, you brave reader(s) of Stroock's Books. You brave few. 

February is gone. In the northeast, March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb, they say. We're ready for spring, but as we write this some sort of light muck is coming down. 

February 2025 had a lot less black History Month obnoxiousness than normal. February 2026 had less still. What's up with that? Trump effect?

What can one say? Saturday was an exhilarating day. It was an exhausting day. Well done. 

This was a decapitation strike. Decapitate it did - with extreme prejudice. Most impressive. 

Iranian rhetoric is bellicose and downright apocalyptic. The more bellicose the Persian's rhetoric, the more impotent is the Persian. Just like the Arab, whom the Iranians have royally pissed off. Excellent strategery there, guys.  

Beware victory disease. Six (now eight) people were killed in an Iranian missile strike on Beit Shemesh. 

Now follows the slog where the US and Israel bomb Iranian targets and the Iranians launch drones and missiles and the Israelis fly around looking for missile launchers....and what else?

Reader(s) would be wise to follow Open Source Intel  and Israel Radar. And buy 'em a coffee. We did. 

Will's Good Idea for the Week of 3/1//26...

We've spent a lot of time dealing with the World War 1990: Thatcher's War Belfast problem. That is, how do we show Belfast riots promised in World War 1990: Ireland? And where in the story do the Belfast riots go? We're probably over thinking, and having had a decent enough week with the MS, we should probably walk away this week.

Also, we've the actual land invasion and Battle of Ardee chapters to deal with. Both need major revisions. For starters, in 1990 Ireland was basically a Third World country with Third World infrastructure. And the great motorways one sees on Google Earth today weren't there in 1990. Oops. So the Brits would be advancing down pleasant (and narrow) country ways, not motoring on the M1 like Kris Kristofferson [You just lost everyone under 40-Ed]. 

Looking over sales data last night, we were reminded of the enduring strength of The Great Nuclear War of 1975 series. Which means we should probably work on the 5th nuke novel. Exit question...with three novels essentially half done, is it possible to release them all this year?

Oh....Last night our Fellow North American (enjoy your silver medal for men's hockey) remarked that he didn't have anything to read and asked us when we were going to stop acting like a nervous old woman and publish World War 1990: Ireland. It's published. Click on over. Click it!

Saturday Updates (Kaboom Edition)

And so begun has Operation Epic Fury/Rising Lion. 

We woke up this morning, got our coffee, went to the NY Post and, 'Whoa...'

There followed messages on FB from several friends in Europe, one of them thanking us because he bet on today for the war to begin. 'What's our percentage?' we asked. 

We've no insights. Follow Israel Radar and Open Source Intel.

Over there....over there....

The Things.

We spent all week with World War 1990: Thatcher's War working on the RAF chapter. We think we have things where we want them to be. 

World War 1990: Ireland is done, finished, fin, with both paperback and kindle manuscripts uploaded, priced and ready. [So why haven't you hit PUBLISH?-Ed] We don't know. 

Friday Fook n Fek

Good morning, Stroock's Books Kibbutzim and shabbat shalom. 

We awoke to see that the US and Israel have not attacked Iran. Given news reports, it sounds like one morning we'll awake to see the US and Israel have attacked Iran. 

So Pakistan and Afghanistan are fighting. That's a shame. Not that we care.  Incidentally, do not underestimate the Pakistani army, probably the best armed and trained in the Muslim world. 

Here in New Jersey, Devil's fans booed Governor Mikie Sherrill. Sorry, New Jersey. We had the chance to elect the perfectly reasonable Jack Ciattarelli and chose Sherrill. We blew it, New Jersey. 

DOGE report. 

The formatters sent the World War 1990: Ireland Kindle file.

We had a good day with the World War 1990: Thatcher's War RAF chapter. It's really coming together. How many pithy, somewhat farcical scenes do we need? The RAF hits Casement Aerodrome, Curragh Camp, Charles Haughey's yacht....We made our point, no? 

Despite some marketing efforts on our parts, no one bought or KDP's A Line Through the Desert. You can advertise New Coke all you want. People still won't think it tastes good.