J.E. Dyer

J.E. Dyer is a retired Naval Intelligence officer who lives in Southern California, blogging as The Optimistic Conservative for domestic tranquility and world peace. Her articles have appeared at Hot Air, Commentary’s Contentions, Patheos, The Daily Caller, The Jewish Press, and The Weekly Standard.

Law and Government

J.E. DyerJanuary 14, 2014
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Covered California the culprit, again

Covered California pants: still on fire.
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Economy

J.E. DyerJanuary 14, 2014
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Poverty moves into the ‘burbs

Poverty patterns, trending.
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerJanuary 13, 2014
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Great news: China preparing to seize Philippines-claimed island

Even more interesting times.
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerJanuary 13, 2014
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Japanese comeback proceeding apace

Interesting times.
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerJanuary 12, 2014
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Preemptive ‘agreement’ by Iran spikes U.S. Senate?

Peace in our time.
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerJanuary 12, 2014
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Ariel Sharon: Warrior

Legacy.
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Economy

J.E. DyerJanuary 11, 2014
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It’s good news if America has gone Galt

We are John Galt?
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerJanuary 11, 2014
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Euphrates corridor: Jihadis, and territorial gains, metastasizing

Geographizing the fight.
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Quick Takes

J.E. DyerJanuary 11, 2014
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Weird Russian navy: Carrier buzzing the Brits

Red Star rising.
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Quick Takes

J.E. DyerJanuary 10, 2014
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Weather-shaming: The wussification of America?

One always risks the Earnest Brigade weighing in on these things, pointing out that There Were A Record Number Of…
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerJanuary 9, 2014
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Fleeing the Gulf, aligning with Hezbollah and Iran

You thought Jimmy Carter was bad? Carter at least continued decades-old American policies – if on a sort of “less…
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Economy

J.E. DyerJanuary 8, 2014
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Welfare as ‘transitional living’ … at Disney World

Sheila Jackson Lee, as noted earlier today by our LU Staff, wants to change the term “welfare” to “transitional living…
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerJanuary 7, 2014
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Chinese power move in South China Sea: This is big

Mariners and the specialty mariner press know it’s big. But mariners can’t fix this. It will take national policies to…
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerJanuary 6, 2014
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Great news: Maritime lawlessness back in the Med

The Libyan navy reportedly fired on Sunday at a tanker that tried to enter a militia-held port in Eastern Libya…
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Law and Government

J.E. DyerJanuary 6, 2014
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Alt v. EPA: Score one for the good guys

This case is a few months old, but its outcome just came to my attention. It’s a case brought by…
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Law and Government

J.E. DyerJanuary 6, 2014
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Palin’s New Year’s resolutions: One base short of a grand slam?

When I saw Sarah Palin announcing her New Year’s resolution to “make government as irrelevant as possible” in people’s lives,…
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Law and Government

J.E. DyerJanuary 5, 2014
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Little Sisters in Gulag Nation: ‘Just sign the form’

What an interesting moment we have arrived at with the Obamacare contraception mandate. The Catholic order Little Sisters of the…
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Science and Technology

J.E. DyerJanuary 4, 2014
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Antarctic expedition icebound: Human stasis, not climate change

In one of those codas you can’t make up, the indispensable Watts Up With That site posted the real scoop,…
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerJanuary 4, 2014
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Chinese warship arrives off Syria

How many warships does it take to remove chemical weapons from Syria? One more this week than it took last…
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerJanuary 3, 2014
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Missiles for Hezbollah; a dilemma for U.S., Saudis, Israel?

An interesting juncture is shaping up for three national policies: a juncture that will see its interactions played out on…
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Law and Government

J.E. DyerJanuary 2, 2014
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Why the light bulb ban is evil

The light bulb ban is evil because it treats people as if we are, in the aggregate, a “system” to…
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerDecember 31, 2013
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The crown in the gutter: Saudis, Lebanon, and Middle Eastern realignment

The end of the year is a hard time to write about developing trends. There’s a lot to say, long-term…
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Law and Government

J.E. DyerDecember 30, 2013
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Courts on same-sex marriage: Adieu, rule of law

Adam Smith famously said there’s a lot of ruin in a nation. America today is testing just how much there…
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Law and Government

J.E. DyerDecember 29, 2013
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California: The Obamacare success story

Mere hours ago, California was once again touted as an example of success for Obamacare, an island of completed sign-ups…
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Law and Government

J.E. DyerDecember 28, 2013
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Man, the state, and surveillance

We’ve now had federal judges come down two different ways on the question of NSA surveillance of U.S. citizens. In…
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerDecember 27, 2013
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Taqiyya and Hudaybiyyah: The non-deal Iran ‘deal,’ Week 5

When we left our story last time, Iran hadn’t agreed to anything except further negotiation (if she felt like it),…
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Law and Government

J.E. DyerDecember 26, 2013
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VA abuses American veterans: Denies delivery of Christmas cards

Children can’t deliver handmade Christmas cards to veterans in a VA hospital in Dallas, if the cards say “Merry Christmas”…
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Media

J.E. DyerDecember 25, 2013
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A light in the darkness

Christmas is a day of the year, so historical things are bound sometimes to happen on that day, or just…
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Sports and Culture

J.E. DyerDecember 23, 2013
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Holidays 2013: The ochre-toned movie edition

I’ve felt for some years as if something weird is going on. Thanksgiving hits, and all these dark, depressing, ochre-hued…
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerDecember 22, 2013
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Shocker: South Sudanese faction that shot at U.S. aircraft supplied by Iran, China

Three U.S. Osprey aircraft were hit by rebel fire in South Sudan on Saturday during an evacuation operation for American…
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerDecember 21, 2013
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Israeli security: ‘War war’ returns to the Middle East

One of the peculiar features of the Obama administration has been its apparent belief that it can maneuver against America’s…
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Economy

J.E. DyerDecember 20, 2013
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Five things Americans may be learning

Are Americans learning anything from our protracted moment of twisting in the wind under the Obama administration? That’s a good…
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Education

J.E. DyerDecember 19, 2013
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How to divide 90 by 18 in 108 steps

… and other wonders of Common Core A mother speaking to the Arkansas Board of Education on 16 December is…
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerDecember 18, 2013
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So, what they’re saying is: We skeptics were right about the Iran ‘deal’

A fresh lament has emerged in the languid saga of the non-deal Iran “deal.” Suddenly the spin is off the…
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Foreign Affairs

J.E. DyerDecember 16, 2013
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Peace in our time: Belarus, missiles, and the revenge of the ‘Reset’

For whatever reason, peace is not busting out at all over. After months of coyness and denials from Belarusian president…
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Media

J.E. DyerDecember 16, 2013
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Parody site ‘National Report’

We’ll keep it short here, folks. Don’t be fooled by posts at this website. I’m in several online forums in…
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J.E. Dyer

Great news: China preparing to seize Philippines-claimed island

Japanese comeback proceeding apace

Preemptive ‘agreement’ by Iran spikes U.S. Senate?

Ariel Sharon: Warrior

It’s good news if America has gone Galt

Euphrates corridor: Jihadis, and territorial gains, metastasizing

Weird Russian navy: Carrier buzzing the Brits

Weather-shaming: The wussification of America?

Fleeing the Gulf, aligning with Hezbollah and Iran

Chinese power move in South China Sea: This is big

Great news: Maritime lawlessness back in the Med

Alt v. EPA: Score one for the good guys

Palin’s New Year’s resolutions: One base short of a grand slam?

Antarctic expedition icebound: Human stasis, not climate change

Chinese warship arrives off Syria

Missiles for Hezbollah; a dilemma for U.S., Saudis, Israel?

The crown in the gutter: Saudis, Lebanon, and Middle Eastern realignment

Taqiyya and Hudaybiyyah: The non-deal Iran ‘deal,’ Week 5

A light in the darkness

Holidays 2013: The ochre-toned movie edition

Shocker: South Sudanese faction that shot at U.S. aircraft supplied by Iran, China

Israeli security: ‘War war’ returns to the Middle East

So, what they’re saying is: We skeptics were right about the Iran ‘deal’

Peace in our time: Belarus, missiles, and the revenge of the ‘Reset’

Parody site ‘National Report’

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