31 October 2021

AT&T Indoctrinating Workers with Hate: ‘White People, You Are the Problem’

Is racism still a major problem in the U.S. today? As long as companies like AT&T continue to tell their employees “white people, you are the problem,” the answer to that question is a definite yes.

The AT&T Corporation promoted this vile rhetoric as part of a company initiative called “Listen Understand Act,” which teaches far-left principles regarding race and equity.

Prominent CRT critic Christopher F. Rufo spoke to a senior employee at AT&T “who agreed to speak on condition of anonymity” and sifted through the “Listen Understand Act” program documents before publishing a report on the scandal in City Journal.

When the program first launched last year, AT&T CEO John Stankey admitted it was meant as an “obligation to engage on this issue of racial injustice” and push for “systemic reforms in police departments across the country.”

According to Rufo, the program “is based on the core principles of critical race theory, including ‘intersectionality,’ ‘systemic racism,’ ‘white privilege,’ and ‘white fragility.'”

Indeed, many of the figures responsible for these detestable ideas are featured heavily throughout.

According to the source documents obtained by Rufo, the program encourages employees to read books by race hustlers like Robin DiAngelo, Ibram X. Kendi, Ta-Nehisi Coates and Michael Eric Dyson, all of whom have promoted extremely racist ideas, including the notion that all white people are inherently racist.

The program itself doesn’t hide behind these authors, however. AT&T seems to have no problem telling its white employees how racist they are.

“On the first page of AT&T’s Listen Understand Act internal portal, the company encourages employees to study a resource called ‘White America, if you want to know who’s responsible for racism, look in the mirror,'” Rufo reported.

“The article claims that the United States is a ‘racist society’ and lays out its thesis plainly: ‘White people, you are the problem. Regardless of how much you say you detest racism, you are the sole reason it has flourished for centuries.'”

Furthermore, Rufo’s anonymous source added that managers at the company are required to participate in diversity programs based around such principles and “white employees” are “tacitly expected to confess their complicity in ‘white privilege’ and ‘systemic racism’ lest they be “penalized in their performance reviews.”

Employees must also sign a “loyalty pledge” to “keep pushing for change,” with the program suggesting such actions as “reading more about systemic racism” and “challenging others’ language that is hateful.”

“If you don’t do it,” the senior employee reportedly told City Journal, “you’re [considered] a racist.”

There are many names for the left’s new racist framework.

Critical race theory, diversity equity and inclusion, racial equity and social justice, to name a few examples.

All of these terms amount to the same idea — that skin color is essential to one’s identity and that there is no such thing as an individual; everyone is merely a mindless drone representing their race as a whole.

That’s what white supremacists and neo-Nazis believe. It’s what left-wing racial-justice protesters believe.

And now, apparently, it’s what the heads at AT&T believe.

https://flagandcross.com/att-indoctrinating-workers-with-hate-white-people-you-are-the-problem/

************************************************

Yet Another Afghan Refugee Has Been Charged with Rape

A month after Katie reported that two Afghan refugees were indicted on federal charges, including those to do with domestic violence and sex with a minor, another refugee is being charged with rape. According to Elizabeth Faddis with the Washington Examiner, Zabihullah Mohmand, 19, was charged by the state of Montana with having sexual intercourse without consent. His alleged victim is known as "Jane Doe," 18.

As explained in an affidavit filed on October 18 in the Justice Court of Record for the County of Missoula, Doe had been out drinking with friends and she, a female friend, Mohmand and two other unidentified men left for a house party. When it turned out that the house party did not exist, Mohmand asked Doe to go back to his hotel with her. She agreed to but repeatedly told him she didn't want anything to happen.

Doe disclosed that she went to sleep but woke up to Mohmand on top of her. "I just couldn't get him off me," she said, according to the filing. "I had sex with one of them. What was I supposed to do?" Her "neck had significant bruising and red marks on the sides of her neck," according to the court documents. "Doe disclosed that the defendant had also held her to the bed by placing his hand around her neck and using force to do so."

Ultimately, Doe got dressed and left when Mohmand was not looking, though he followed her out and tried to stop her from leaving. He also tried to repeatedly call her.

While Mohmand admits to having had sex with Doe, he said that it was consensual and that the marks were from him kissing her neck. According to the court documents, Mohmand "claimed Doe wanted him very badly and was coming on to him."

Mohmand did admit though that Doe was intoxicated. He described Doe as "very" drunk, according to the court documents, to the point where it impacted the victim's ability to walk. In Montana, intoxication can impact a person's ability to give consent. He also denied that Doe had left anything behind, but she claimed she had left her bra and socks at the hotel room, which were later recovered.

Reporting from Connor McCauley with NBC Montana included statements from the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services confirming Mohmand is in the country as part of the federal resettlement program:

Jon Ebelt with DPHHS says Zabihullah Mohmand, 19, “was placed in Montana as part of the federal Afghan Placement and Assistance Program.”

He told law enforcement he is on a worldwide trip from Afghanistan visiting Missoula.

DPHHS manages the Montana State Refugee Program. As such, this program is working with individuals arriving in Montana as part of the Afghan Placement and Assistance Program. As of today, 20 individuals (combination of adults and children) are in Montana (Missoula) as part of the Afghan Placement and Assistance Program. This is since late September. To be clear, federal agencies are responsible for the vetting process prior to their arrival,” Ebelt told KECI News in an email.

McCauley had also reported on comments from Montana lawmakers:

Gov. Greg Gianforte says Mohmand did not have a Special Immigrant Visa status.

The governor, along with U.S. Rep. Matt Rosendale, is calling for a re-evaluation of the vetting process before resettlement efforts can be continued in Montana.

“I called on the Biden administration to make sure that these refugees are fully vetted. It’s not clear to us what occurred in this situation, so we are asking the Biden administration to halt the placement of refugees here until they can assure us that the people that are being placed -- our allies have been fully vetted,” Gianforte said during a press conference Thursday.

“The simple fact that we just saw an assault -- a rape -- take place in Missoula this past weekend, and now we are getting reports that it was from a humanitarian parolee stresses the necessity that we have a better accounting of who is coming into our country,” Rosendale said in an interview Thursday.

U.S. Sen. Steve Daines has also commented on the case, saying in a statement that the response from the Biden administration has been insufficient.

Daines is demanding detailed information about Mohmand’s vetting and screening process prior to being placed in Montana.

U.S. Sen. Jon Tester said in a statement that the report is deeply disturbing and reaffirmed his belief that all Afghan refugees must be fully vetted.

Mohmand will be arraigned on November 1.

As Leah covered last month, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas revealed that of the 60,000 Afghan evacuees in the United States, only about 3 percent, or roughly 1,800, are Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) holders.

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/rebeccadowns/2021/10/23/yet-another-afghan-refugee-has-been-charged-with-rape-n2597930

**************************************

WOW! Hypocrite Squad Called to 'Defund Police' While Spending $100k On Private Security

The hypocrisy never seems to end with Democrats...does it??

Despite calling to "defund the police," the Squad reportedly spend $100,000 on private security. Imagine that. Private citizens don't deserve to have police officers and security but they do?

Fox News reports that “Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and other members of the far-left “Squad” collectively spent nearly $100,000 on private security in the third financial quarter despite promoting the defund the police movement."

“Ocasio-Cortez’s campaign spent over $10,000 on private policing with Cest Bond Collective, Three Bridges NY LLC and Tullis World Wide Protection, eclipsing Rep. Ayanna Pressley’s, D-Mass., personal security bill of almost $4,000 with Ware Security Consultants Inc., FEC records show,” the report added.

They also called out Reps. Ilhan Omar and Cori Bush as well:

“Omar’s FEC records revealed the defund law enforcement advocate has spent over $22,000 on private security with Aegis Logistics LLC and Lloyd Security Services while Bush took the cake by throwing down another $65,000 on private security,” Fox News added.

https://dailypatriotreport.com/wow-hypocrite-squad-called-to-defund-police-while-spending-100k-on-private-security/

**************************************

Poland votes to keep working on 'stop LGBT' law that would ban pride parades and gatherings that 'promote same sex relationships'

Poland's lawmakers voted Friday to continue work on legislation dubbed 'Stop LGBT,' which would ban pride parades and other public gatherings or actions deemed to 'promote' same-sex relationships.

Dominated by the right-wing ruling coalition, the lower house of parliament voted to send the proposed legislation to the interior affairs commission.

Opposition wanted to reject it the move, which is a citizen's legislative initiative submitted to parliament by conservative activists who collected some 140,000 signatures of support.

A small group of protesters gathered outside parliament at the time of the decision. At its initial reading Thursday, the proposal drew strong condemnation from opposition lawmakers.

If adopted, the legislation would outlaw annual LGBT parades in Warsaw and many other Polish cities. Participants in such parades in some smaller cities have in the past faced physical and verbal attacks from far-right and nationalist groups.

In a statement Thursday, the human rights group Amnesty International said that if adopted as law, the proposal would place the rights of LGBT people in Poland 'at greater risk than ever.'

It was not clear when the proposal would return for more debate by the full chamber of parliament.

It would also need approval from the Senate, where the opposition has a small minority capable of altering drafts, and from conservative President Andrzej Duda.

In recent years Polish right-wing ruling politicians and the president have lashed out at what they call 'LGBT ideology,' presenting it as a set of harmful ideas that prematurely sexualize young people and threaten the country's traditional Roman Catholic and family values.

Polish lawmakers held an emotional debate Thursday on the proposed legislation.

One of the activists who presented the bill, Krzysztof Kasprzak, opened his speech to lawmakers by describing the LGBT rights movement as a form of totalitarianism. He compared it to Nazism, and accused it of seeking 'to overthrow the natural order and introduce terror.'

A string of opposition lawmakers - on the left, center and even from a conservative group - denounced the proposed legislation as inhumane, homophobic or a violation of the right to assembly guaranteed in Poland's constitution.

It got the praise of lawmakers on the far right, while Piotr Kaleta, a lawmaker with the ruling right-wing conservative party, Law and Justice, held up photos allegedly showing scenes from pride parades that he described as shocking.

'We want normality in Poland,' Kaleta said. 'If you accuse us of being in the Middle Ages, then we want to be in these Middle Ages.'

Poland's right-wing nationalist government is already involved in a bitter dispute with the European Union over judicial independence and law primacy.

Under Polish law, citizens can submit legislative proposals to parliament if they get the signatures of at least 100,000 eligible voters. The Life and Family Foundation, which lobbied successfully for a recent restriction on abortion rights, gathered 140,000 signatures for its 'Stop LGBT' proposal.

In a statement Thursday, the human rights group Amnesty International said that if adopted as law, the proposal would place the rights of LGBT people in Poland 'at greater risk than ever.'

'We call on Polish (lawmakers) to recognize that love is love, and reject this hateful proposal which is discriminatory to its core,' said Amnesty's Nils Muiznieks.

'This initiative may not have originated with the Polish government, but let us be clear: the government's normalization of hateful rhetoric has created an environment in which people feel empowered to spew bigotry,' Muiznieks added.

In recent years Polish lawmakers, including the president, have lashed out at what they call 'LGBT ideology,' presenting it as something that prematurely sexualizes young people and threatens the country's traditional Roman Catholic values.

Most of the anti-LGBT rhetoric has come during election campaigns, though two years ago dozens of Polish communities passed resolutions declaring themselves to be free of 'LGBT ideology' or adopted family charters stressing that families are based on unions of men and women.

But recently, facing the threat of a loss of EU funding, some Polish regions have revoked the anti-LGBT resolutions.

The vote came after the European parliament sued the European Commission in a dispute over the rule of law, centred on Poland.

The lawsuit was submitted today against the Commission for its 'failure to apply the Conditionality Regulation to the Court of Justice'.

The regulation, adopted last year, allows the EU to suspend payments to countries where the rule of law is under threat, which is currently taking place in Poland.

The Commission has not used the regulation despite Poland sparking a crisis with the bloc, and fears of a 'Polexit', after the country's Supreme Court ruled their laws had legal primacy over EU diktats.

EU Parliament president Sassoli said after submitting the lawsuit: 'As requested in parliamentary resolutions, our legal service has brought an action against the European Commission for failure to apply the Conditionality Regulation to the Court of Justice today.

'We expect the European Commission to act in a consistent manner and live up to what President von der Leyen stated during our last plenary discussion on this subject. Words have to be turned into deeds.'

The Commission and Poland remain locked in a struggle over Warsaw's adherence to EU legal and democratic norms.

Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen has said the EU executive will use 'all instruments at our disposal' to force Poland to backtrack on decisions seen as rolling back democratic standards, particularly Warsaw's moves seen as undermining judicial independence.

After the EU threatened sanctions against Poland, Morawiecki responded earlier on Monday with comments that the bloc is starting World War III and 'putting a gun to our head'.

* When asked if Poland could use its veto power to block legislation in retaliation, Morawiecki told the Financial Times: 'If they start the third world war, we are going to defend our rights with any weapons which are at our disposal.' *

In dispute: Poland argues the way the law is being applied blocks the country from applying its own constitution and could force it to apply unconstitutional laws laid down by EU courts

What Poland's court said: The EU is acting outside of its remit by preventing the country from acting as a sovereign state, and that Polish law should take precedence

Court ruling: Judges found that, by interfering in the process of appointing judges, the EU is preventing Poland from acting as a sovereign nation and that the President's decision-making must take precedence

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki last week addressed the European Parliament to defend his government's stance, accusing the Commission of 'blackmail' and trampling member states' sovereignty.

The issue dominated an EU summit at the end of last week during which Germany and France tried to ease tensions by essentially kicking the issue down the road to the next summit in December.

The Commission meanwhile is holding back 36 billion euros ($42 billion) in coronavirus recovery grants and loans to Poland until it bends on the judicial row.

Earlier this week, Poland was ordered to pay a penalty of 1 million euros (£845,000) per day until it complies with the European Union's top court's order to scrap disciplinary rules for judges.

Deputy Justice Minister Sebastian Kaleta said the demand for 1 million euros was 'usurpation and blackmail' in comments posted on Twitter.

The move towards fines comes after Morawiecki accused the EU of 'starving' and 'punishing' his country by withholding £48billion in Covid relief money after Warsaw ruled that its constitution took precedence over European law.

Ultimately, at the heart of the row is the question of who should have the most power within the bloc - each individual nation over its citizens or the EU institutions over the member nations. It was the prime mover behind the exit of Britain from the EU, and it has stirred passions in several Eastern and Central European nations like Poland and Hungary.

The fine imposed Wednesday comes on top of a 500,000-euro daily fine the Court of Justice ordered Poland last month to pay for having ignored its injunction to close the Turow brown coal mine. The ruling came in a dispute between Poland and the Czech Republic.

Poland argues it cannot do without some 7% of its energy that the Turow power plant is generating. Morawiecki has indicated Poland is prepared to pay, and can afford it.

These additional burdens on the state budget come as there is a possibility Poland will not be getting some 36 billion euros in EU funds earmarked for recovery from the pandemic because of the rule of law despite with Brussels.

Poland and Hungary are bitterly opposed to agreements negotiated last year as the EU's £1.5trillion Covid recovery budget was agreed, which linked the funding to enforcing laws such as equality and human rights legislation.

Both countries are led by right-wing populist parties who have been involved in long-running spats with the EU over the independence of courts, freedom of the press, and LGBT rights.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10145671/Poland-votes-working-stop-LGBT-law-ban-pride-parades.html

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

29 October, 2021

Arizona electoral fraud

Maricopa County, Arizona, has been an important key to unearthing the truth behind the fraudulent 2020 Presidential Election. A forensic audit of the results from this critical piece to the puzzle has produced many alarming discoveries.

Nevertheless, there has been an overwhelming attempt to try to ignore anything that helps prove the obvious. Democrats stole the presidency from President Trump. Many are beginning to realize how it was done. Maricopa County isn’t the only evidence of “the steal”.

However, the radical leftist mainstream media refuses to discuss the obvious. In fact, the propaganda spewing bullhorns for the Democrat Party continue to insist that anyone who mentions voter fraud, as obvious as these facts are, is perpetrating the “big lie”.

The fake news mainstream media are the “big lie”. The more they try to B.S. the American public, the deeper the hole they dig for themselves. Dr. Shiva Ayyadurai, the man credited with email as we know it today, produced a live stream talking about these strange irregularities.

One key part of the four-hour discussion was about the more than 6,000 ballots that are mysteriously missing a corresponding image. Dr. Shiva insisted that these 6,545 ballots are a suspicious missing part of the report. No one is screaming about some crazed conspiracy.

All people are asking is an explanation of why these numbers do not match up. By not giving an answer at all, Maricopa County officials look even complicit in “the steal”, which they are. Liz Harrington is now the Chief Spokesperson for President Trump, beginning early in 2021. Harrington tweeted, “Why are there 6,545 more early voting ballots than the images?”

“That's a question.” She is not insinuating anything. She’s asking a logical question. Harrington just wants to know where these critical, election-changing ballots came from. Why can’t, or won’t, the officials from Maricopa County provide simple answers to a simple question

All they do is continue to hide behind their fake news accomplices to perpetrate the real “big lie”. Maricopa County officials have been exposed for deleting voter data ahead of an audit by Senators. Now they refuse to give answers to simple, straight-forward questions.

The liberal Democrats keep trying to label all questions about irregularities found during the 2020 Presidential election as “promoting the big lie”. It’s growing more and more undeniable what the “big lie” really is. The “big lie” is the 2020 Presidential Election. It was stolen, and with it one of the most cherished parts of democracy was snatched from every American citizen.

https://steadfastclash.com/the-latest/dr-shiva-ayyadurai-has-a-big-question-for-maricopa-county-officials-video/

************************************************

Biden Pick Becerra’s Indecent, Indefensible Legal Assault on Nuns, Human Life

Founded in France in 1839, the Little Sisters of the Poor is a Catholic order of nuns who operate 29 care homes across the United States. The nuns take vows of chastity, poverty, obedience, and hospitality, and they serve Christ by serving the elderly poor.

When the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (aka ACA or “Obamacare”) was enacted in March 2010, it required employers to offer health insurance plans that included contraceptives, abortifacients, and sterilizations—all of which violate the precepts of the Catholic Church.

Though the ACA exempted churches, it did not exempt faith-based ministries such as the Little Sisters of the Poor. These ministries were subject to fines if they did not comply—and the Little Sisters refused to comply.

St. Paul once wrote that all who will live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. The Obama administration was determined to make good on that biblical promise and proceeded to persecute the Little Sisters all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

In 2016, the Supreme Court directed the Obama administration to compromise with the Little Sisters and “arrive at an approach going forward” to end the standoff. The Obama administration failed to achieve that goal before leaving office.

In 2017, the Trump administration took over and structured an accommodation that resolved the Little Sisters’ problems with the ACA mandate. In October of that year, the Department of Health and Human Services issued an updated religious-exemption rule that protected religious nonprofit organizations such as the Little Sisters of the Poor.

Case closed, right? Wrong.

The next month, November 2017, attorneys general from several states, including Pennsylvania and California, ramped up the persecution of the Little Sisters. They went to court and obtained a nationwide injunction against the new HHS rule. Pennsylvania and California sued the federal government, asking the judges to force the Little Sisters to comply with the Obamacare mandate or face millions of dollars in penalties.

At that point, the Little Sisters asked the U.S. Supreme Court for a definitive ruling.

On July 8, 2020, the Supreme Court delivered a decisive 7 to 2 ruling in favor of the Little Sisters of the Poor. The court affirmed the religious liberty exemptions for faith-based organizations. The Little Sisters of the Poor would not have to pay for abortions under the Obamacare mandates.

After spending over a decade fighting federal and state governments in the courts, the Little Sisters could finally get back to serving the poor in peace.

The Little Sisters set an example for us all, refusing to back down in the face of government pressure. They were determined to serve the elderly poor without lending support or endorsement to abortion. They correctly understood that the assault on their freedom was an assault on the sanctity of human life.

Is this really why government exists? To harass and intimidate nuns who are simply living out their faith and serving the poor? It’s hard to believe, but there are people in government who get up in the morning and say, “I’m going to punish a Catholic ministry today! I’m going to scare nuns and force them to pay for abortions!”

I mean, such a person would have to be a mustache-twirling villain of the Snidely Whiplash variety, right?

Well, meet one of the persecutors of the Little Sisters of the Poor—namely, President Joe Biden’s secretary of health and human services, Xavier Becerra. In November 2017, after the Little Sisters had already prevailed once in the Supreme Court, it was Becerra [then the state attorney general] who made the decision for California to sue again in federal court to take away the nuns’ religious exemption. He lost that case in 2020—but the following year, Biden tapped Becerra to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, the very agency he had unsuccessfully sued in 2017.

In February, Becerra was in a Senate confirmation hearing for the Biden Cabinet post, trying to explain away his relentless pursuit of the Little Sisters of the Poor. Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., said to him, “It does seem like, as attorney general, you spent an inordinate amount of time and effort suing pro-life organizations, like Little Sisters of the Poor, or trying to ease restrictions or expand abortion.”

Apparently realizing how bad his pursuit of the Little Sisters looked, Becerra replied, “I have never sued the nuns, any nuns. I’ve never sued any affiliation of nuns, and my actions have always been directed at the federal agencies.”

It’s a flimsy alibi. Becerra did, in fact, sue to force a religious order of nuns to pay for Obamacare’s contraceptive and abortifacient mandates. Moreover, the case is named State of California v. Little Sisters of the Poor. It doesn’t get any plainer than that. Had Becerra won his case, the Little Sisters would have lost millions of dollars, along with their First Amendment rights. Becerra pursued the nuns in court for three years.

Despite his evasive testimony, Becerra did sue nuns, an act of cold-hearted villainy that would have done Snidely Whiplash proud. As Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., tweeted on Feb. 24, “Xavier Becerra is now claiming he didn’t sue nuns because he wants to get confirmed. But Becerra did sue nuns. He repeatedly harassed the Little Sisters of the Poor. That’s why he should be rejected by the Senate.”

In selecting Becerra to head HHS, Biden signaled his intention to move America to the extreme edge of pro-abortion policy. No American politician has ever demonstrated more enthusiasm for unrestricted abortion than Becerra.

https://www.dailysignal.com/2021/10/26/biden-pick-becerras-indecent-indefensible-legal-assault-on-nuns-human-life

************************************************

Why a South African cricketer refused to take a knee

South African cricket star Quinton de Kock pulled out of his side's eight-wicket Twenty20 World Cup win over the West Indies overnight.

The move was prompted by his opposition to an edict that the team was to kneel before the game in the widely understood and adopted gesture against racism.

Cricket South Africa announced the directive on Monday after the team was criticised for not having a uniform stance prior to the match on Saturday against Australia.

De Kock's move has drawn criticism, and despite the controversy the 28-year-old has received an offer of support from his captain.

But the saga is a reminder of sports' difficult history with racism in South Africa and beyond.

South Africa was up against the West Indies in its second match of the men's Twenty20 World Cup in the Middle East.

The Proteas lost their first game of the tournament to Australia, making the match against the defending champions from the Caribbean crucial.

But De Kock — wicketkeeper, star opening batsman and former captain — was not named in the team.

He had declined to take a knee in warm-up matches and his absence was initially explained as being for "personal reasons".

But shortly before the game, a statement from the country's cricket authority confirmed de Kock's opposition to the gesture was his motivation.

"Cricket South Africa (CSA) has noted the personal decision by South African wicket keeper Quinton de Kock not to 'take the knee' ahead of Tuesday's game against the West Indies," it read.

"All players had been required, in line with a directive of the CSA board on Monday evening, to 'take the knee' in a united and consistent stance against racism.

"After considering all relevant issues, including the freedom of choice of players, the Board had made it clear it was imperative for the team to be seen taking a stand against racism, especially given SA’s history.

"The Board’s view was that while diversity can and should find expression in many facets of daily lives, this did not apply when it came to taking a stand against racism."

South Africa ended up winning the match without de Kock, his replacement Reeza Hendricks hitting 39 off 30 balls as the side successfully chased down its target of 144.

South African cricket captain Temba Bavuma says he respects de Kock's decision.

"Quinton is an adult, he is a man in his own shoes, we respect his decision, we respect his convictions, and I know he'll be standing behind whatever decision he's taken."

The gesture of "taking a knee" grew from a protest against racial inequality in the USA by American football player Colin Kaepernick in 2016.

It has been adopted and accepted in the global sport community in the years since as a reminder of ongoing racial discrimination and a demand for improvement.

But some athletes have remained apathetic or resistant to the sentiment and have refused to take a knee, even as their teammates have.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-10-27/quinton-de-kock-taking-knee-racism-south-africa-t20-world-cup/100571494

*************************************

Illinois Supreme Court Rules Tax on Guns and Ammo is 'Unconstitutional'

In a huge win for the people on Tuesday, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled that Cook County's tax on guns and ammo is unconstitutional.

In 2012, the Cook County Board of Commissioners approved a $25 tax on the retail purchase of a firearm within the county. The county’s Firearm Tax Ordinance was enacted in April 2013.

A separate county tax was enacted in 2015, which added $0.05 per cartridge for centerfire ammunition and $0.01 per cartridge for rimfire ammunition. Americans who fail to pay those taxes are subject to a $1,000 fine for the first offense and a $2,000 fine for subsequent offenses.

Justice Mary Jane Theis ruled that the taxes “violate the state’s constitution because they affect law-abiding citizens’ Second Amendment right to acquire firearms for self-defense,” reasoning that “While the taxes do not directly burden a law-abiding citizen’s right to use a firearm for self-defense, they do directly burden a law-abiding citizen’s right to acquire a firearm and the necessary ammunition for self-defense.”

She also declared, “Under the plain language of the ordinances, the revenue generated from the firearm tax is not directed to any fund or program specifically related to curbing the cost of gun violence. Additionally, nothing in the ordinance indicates that the proceeds generated from the ammunition tax must be specifically directed to initiatives aimed at reducing gun violence.”

https://dailypatriotreport.com/illinois-supreme-court-rules-tax-on-guns-and-ammo-is-unconstitutional/

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

28 October, 2021

Junked food! Toxic compounds used to make industrial tubing and rubber gloves are found in 80% of McDonald's, Burger King and Pizza Hut food: Dangerous chemicals are linked to asthma, infertility and smaller testicles, study finds

Not the old phthalates scare again! This has been thoroughly debunked. The fact is that phthalates have all sorts of bad effects when fed in high doses to rats but have NO ill-effects in humans. See here for details

It's not just the cholesterol, calories and carbohydrates in fast food that people have to worry about: burgers, pizza and burritos are crawling with toxic 'forever chemicals,' according to a new study.

Researchers at George Washington University ordered dozens of items from McDonald's, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Domino's, Taco Bell and Chipotle.

According to their analysis, they found phthalates, which are used to make plastic pliable, in over 80 percent of the samples.

Phthalates are also known as plasticizers, and are used in hundreds of products, from vinyl flooring and plastic packaging to soaps and shampoos.

In addition, they have been linked to numerous health problems, including cancer, liver damage, infertility, thyroid disease, asthma and even smaller testicles, as well as learning disabilities, behavioral issues and attention-deficit disorders in children.

People are exposed to phthalates by ingesting foods and beverages that have contacted products containing phthalates or by breathing phthalate particles in the air directly, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Exposure is a particular risk for kids, the health agency said, because children crawl around touching things and put them in their mouths.

The researchers chose the restaurants and menu items — hamburgers, fries, chicken nuggets, chicken burritos and cheese pizza — based on market share and best-selling items.

Items made with meat had higher levels of phthalates, while French fries and cheese pizza had the lowest, according to their findings, published in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology.

Of the food they ordered, 81 percent contained a phthalate called DnBP, which has been linked to a heightened risk for asthma, and 70 percent contained DEHP, which has been tied to reduced fertility and other reproductive issues.

As concern over phthalates grows, alternative plasticizers have been developed, and the scientists found one such substitute, called DEHT, in 86 percent of the junk food.

The full health impact of these alternative plasticizers are not yet known, the researchers said.

The burgers, McNuggets and milkshakes could have come into contact with phthalates and replacement plasticizers anywhere along the food-supply chain, the researchers said, from processing and packaging equipment to the plastic gloves worn by employees.

The FDA doesn't set limits for phthalates in food, according to the Post, but the levels detected in the 64 fast-food items purchased from franchises around San Antonio, Texas, were all below the EPA's current acceptable thresholds.

Still, the FDA told the Post that it would review the George Washington study and consider its findings.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-10136675/Chemicals-used-make-plastics-soft-McDonalds-Chipotle-Pizza-Hut-food.html

******************************************

Two thirds of French people believe white Christians are 'threatened with extinction' by Muslim migration, new poll shows

Two thirds of French people think white, European, Christian populations are being 'threatened with extinction' by immigration from Muslim and African countries.

Sixty per cent of French people said such a scenario will 'definitely' or 'probably' play out in the country when asked by pollsters, who published the results last week.

The question was posed ahead of next year's election, where Emmanuel Macron is almost certain to face off against one of two right-wing candidates: Marine Le Pen or Eric Zemmour.

Central to Zemmour's ideology is the idea of 'The Great Replacement', a theory put forward by Renaud Camus that argues Christian civilisation is being intentionally replaced using Muslim immigration from Africa in a plot by global capitalists.

The poll, carried out by Harris Interactive, aimed to test whether or not voters believe in the concept - despite it being widely panned by experts.

The question voters were asked, based on Camus's definition, was: 'Some people speak of the "great replacement": That European, white and Christian populations are being threatened with extinction following Muslim immigration, coming from the Maghreb [northern Africa] and black Africa. Do you see such a phenomenon?'

It found that 61 per cent of French people believe the phenomenon could happen in France, with 27 per cent saying they are 'certain' it will take place. Just 39 per cent of people said it 'probably' or 'definitely' won't happen.

Of those who said it 'definitely' or 'probably' will happen, support for the idea was roughly evenly split across all age groups and across genders.

However, it varied widely depending on political affiliation. More than 90 per cent of supporters of Le Pen's RN party believed it was a likely scenario, while just 30 per cent of Green said the same. Perhaps worryingly for Macron, 52 per cent of his own party's supporters believed it was a likely scenario.

A follow-up question asked whether French people were 'worried' or 'not worried' about the idea of a 'Great Replacement'. This found even more people - 67 per cent - were worried about the idea, compared to just 33 per cent who were not.

Polls have suggested for years that Marine Le Pen will be the one to take on Emmanuel Macron for the French presidency, but Zemmour could now best her

The issue of migration and its impact on French identity is set to become a key theme of the upcoming election, as Zemmour - who has yet to declare his candidacy - threatens to usurp Le Pen for the chance to take on Macron.

Zemmour - a notorious figure in France for his anti-Islam and anti-migration views that he espouses in essays and on his TV new show - is now polling higher than Le Pen in some opinion polls ahead of voting in April next year.

Le Pen appears to be leaking support to Zemmour as she tries to move herself towards the centre-ground in an attempt to paint herself as a serious candidate - having lost out to Macron during the second round of voting last time

By contrast, Zemmour sits openly on the far-right - declaring that suburbs of Paris are being 'colonised' by Muslim migrants with large families that he says will make up the majority of the population by the middle of the century.

Statisticians say this argument is deeply flawed, but polls show that his arguments are cutting through with voters.

He also has two convictions for hate speech, including stating during a broadcast that that France is being 'invaded' by Muslims and must give them an ultimatum: 'Choose between Islam and France.'

France's swing to the political right comes after a string of terror attacks that has seen voters demand politicians take a tougher stance on extremism.

Teacher Samuel Paty was beheaded at a school near Paris last year after showing students a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed to students, just weeks before a second attack in Nice cathedral killed three.

In the wake of Paty's murder, Macron took a noticeably harder line on Islamic extremism - declaring that France would 'neve give up' expressing free speech including drawing Mohammed pictures.

That prompted mass demonstrations in many Muslim-majority nations, led by Turkey's President Erdogan who denounced the comments.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10135503/Two-thirds-French-believe-Muslim-migration-threat.html

**********************************************

Chile far-right candidate rides anti-migrant wave in presidential poll

Hopes for a more progressive Chile have been dealt a blow as a far-right candidate surges in opinion polls ahead of the first presidential election since massive demonstrations against inequality erupted in 2019.

A month before the vote, polling shows that the leftwing candidate – former student leader Gabriel Boric – has slipped behind (by one percentage point) José Antonio Kast, a supporter of the dictator Augusto Pinochet, who has suggested digging ditches along the country’s border to stop migrants.

After months of political unrest, voters chose by huge majority to replace the country’s Pinochet-era constitution, and then elected a broadly leftwing convention to complete that task.

But fears over migration, public security and shifting social values have boosted the far right, making the 21 November election a battle between starkly contrasting visions for Chile’s future.

The country has been on edge since September, when anti-migrant violence exploded in Iquique, a port on Chile’s arid northern coast.

After police cleared a camp of homeless Venezuelan families, a xenophobic march culminated with jeering, flag-waving crowds tossing migrants’ belongings on to a bonfire – including children’s toys, nappies and a pram.

“The far right have managed to weaponise migration in the run-up to the election,” says Romina Ramos, a sociologist at Arturo Prat University in Iquique.

“They are playing on fears of a threat to security and Chilean identity – and Kast has been able to present the arrivals as an invasion which must be fought off.”

But other elements are in the mix too: at subsequent demonstrations in Iquique, anti-vaccination banners were brandished alongside others rejecting globalization and the United Nations.

According to government statistics, the number of foreign-born citizens living in Chile more than tripled, to 1.5 million, between 2014 and the end of 2019, while migrants – many fleeing violence and poverty in Haiti and Venezuela – continue to arrive in the country.

Kast’s rise in the polls coincided with the Iquique marches, and he was quick to capitalise on the underlying sentiments with a Trump-like series of provocations.

In a visit to Colchane, a tiny town on the Bolivian border which has become a popular crossing point for migrants, Kast highlighted violence perpetrated by migrants.

He has also proposed creating a body within the investigative police force in the image of the US’s much-criticised Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) to “actively seek out illegal migrants”.

“Fundamentally, Kast defends free markets and traditional values, and favours the image of a monocultural Chile of European descent,” says Gilberto Aranda, an academic at the University of Chile who studies rightwing movements.

“His advance in the polls is a reaction to the simplistic narrative that everything that has happened over the last 30 years has been negative.”

Although he is likened to Jair Bolsonaro, Kast’s similarly vitriolic message is delivered with a more understated tone than that of the Brazilian president.

His programme focuses on conservative family values, moves against corruption and the strengthening of public security. He makes a point of criticising political correctness, inclusive language, identity politics and the perceived “abandonment” of Chilean traditions.

Analysts say that Kast draws support from a continuum of voters reaching to the peripheries of Chile’s far right.

Before the October 2020 referendum on rewriting the constitution, small marches in Santiago’s wealthiest neighbourhoods were adorned with US Confederate flags and “Make Chile Great Again” paraphernalia – as well as a handful of baton-wielding demonstrators clad in military helmets.

The government has been reluctant to condemn other worrying developments. In November last year, the undersecretary in the interior ministry described a cache of weaponry – including an Uzi submachine gun, body armour and Crusader-style shields – amassed by a far-right group as “unimportant utensils”.

Kast, meanwhile, has been positioning himself carefully as a radical alternative to Chile’s traditionally powerful rightwing parties.

In the lead-up to the 2017 election, in which he won nearly 8% of the vote as an independent candidate, he claimed that if Pinochet were alive, the former dictator would have voted for him.

The Pinochet dictatorship seized power in a bloody coup d’état in 1973 and left behind more than 40,000 recorded victims when it relinquished power in 1990 – as well as the neoliberal economic model protesters have rejected.

Some in Chile, including several prominent members of the government, continue to support the economic legacy of the regime. “Although Kast doesn’t openly espouse the dictatorship any more like some of his supporters, his programme embodies the elements that some believe made it a success,” explains Aranda.

In April this year, a candidate for councillor representing Kast’s party in Santiago openly stated her support for Pinochet, using the former dictator’s image in a photoshopped montage alongside the former UK prime minister Margaret Thatcher. Another of the party’s candidates in the coastal city of Viña del Mar used a similar tactic.

Neither was elected.

But a battle for Chile’s identity is afoot, and the debate over national symbols, the place of indigenous peoples and migrants in society, and the legacy of the Pinochet regime is reflected in the contrasting frontrunners.

“This is the most fluid election since the return to democracy,” said Cristóbal Bellolio, a political scientist at Adolfo Ibáñez University in Santiago.

“Chile’s identity is at stake amid one of the most turbulent periods in recent history – and we are set to find out just how much has changed.”

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/other/chile-far-right-candidate-rides-anti-migrant-wave-in-presidential-poll/ar-AAPMwOJ

***************************************

Conservative senator claims credit for Australia's planned voter ID laws

One Nation leader, Pauline Hanson, has claimed credit for the Coalition’s voter integrity bill, saying she made voter identification a condition for her support on another electoral bill.

Hanson told Guardian Australia on Thursday she had “had a gutful” of the Morrison government taking credit for her ideas and the voter ID bill “wouldn’t be happening without me”.

The comments come as the Centre Alliance party offered the Coalition a pathway to pass the controversial laws, with Senator Stirling Griff saying he is “generally supportive” of an ID requirement.

Griff told Guardian Australia that although his party hasn’t decided its position, he “understands the need for ID” but may seek some accommodation for Indigenous Australians and other groups for whom the bill could impose a hurdle to voting.

The voter integrity bill, which passed the Coalition party room on Tuesday, was introduced in the House of Representatives on Thursday.

It prompted fury from Labor leader, Anthony Albanese, who unsuccessfully moved a suspension of standing orders for a motion accusing the government of seeking to “undermine our strong democracy and deny Australians their basic democratic rights”.

Scott Morrison told reporters in Canberra on Thursday voter ID was “not an earth-shattering proposal” and is “standard practice in liberal democracies” around the world.

He noted the electoral committee had recommended it after the 2013, 2016 and 2019 elections. Morrison claimed “not one vote will be lost” due to the ability to cast a declaration vote.

Voter ID laws have been on the Coalition wishlist for the last three terms of parliament, but the government did not introduce a bill to give effect to the recommendation from the joint standing committee on electoral matters (Jscem). Hanson said they had been “bloody lazy”.

The Australian electoral commissioner, Tom Rogers, has said the evidence of multiple voting is “vanishingly small”.

After defeating a Labor motion to delay debate until 2023, the government will have two weeks to pass the proposal in the November sitting period before an election is expected to be called in early 2022.

Labor and the Greens have accused the Coalition of seeking to import US-style voter suppression.

Under the proposed voter integrity bill, a voter unable to produce ID can still vote if their identity can be verified by another voter, or by casting a declaration vote, which requires further details such as date of birth and a signature.

Given One Nation’s support for the laws, the government will need one vote out of the remaining crossbench senators – Griff, Rex Patrick and Jacqui Lambie – to pass the bill.

Griff told Guardian Australia his party had received the bill but is yet to be briefed by Morton or decide its position. “I’m generally supportive of having ID … I understand the need for ID,” he said.

Griff noted Rogers evidence about the rarity of multiple voting but said one “has to wonder” if the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) is detecting all instances of electoral fraud.

Griff cited his personal knowledge of one elderly person with dementia who “voted five times in a row” and received a “please explain” letter but no further action was taken.

He acknowledged that disfranchisement of Indigenous people was a “key issue” for those expressing concern about the bill, suggesting that there “might be issues we need to deal with for certain groups” to ensure a “positive solution for everyone”.

On Tuesday evening the finance minister, Simon Birmingham, defended the government’s proposal as a means to “further enhance integrity” and public confidence.

Birmingham told Senate estimates the bill would help eliminate “actual areas of risk and perceived areas of risk” such as multiple voting or fraudulent voting in the name of deceased people.

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/pauline-hanson-claims-credit-for-coalition-s-controversial-voter-id-laws/ar-AAQ1JOB

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

27 October, 2021

Federal Attorney General debunks Democrat insurrection claims about capitol riot

Hundreds of patriotic Americans showed up at the Capitol on January 6, 2020. The vast majority were there to exercise their constitutional God-given right to free speech. They were protesting what they believed to be a bogus and fraudulent presidential election.

Right or wrong in their viewpoint, many were swept up in the chaotic events created by a handful of individuals. Ever since Americans were forcibly removed from the “People’s House”, liberal Democrats have bludgeoned them slanderous names.

The one narrative that has caused the most controversy is the Democrat Party’s ignorant inclination to call them insurrectionists. They refer to the protest that led to the woefully unprepared Capitol Police being overrun by protestors as “the insurrection”.

But while testifying on Capitol Hill, the current Attorney for the United States of America, Merrick Garland, could not identify a single jailed person as being charged with insurrection. These people have been locked away since their arrest dates nearly a year ago.

The man in charge of approving federal charges of insurrection said, “I don’t believe so”, when asked if any of these so-called insurrectionists have been formally charged with insurrection. The strange vagueness of the AG’s answer is a topic for a whole different discussion.

But even so, the Democrat Party and their complicit gang of crooks in the fake news mainstream media continue to spin the “insurrection” narrative. Where are the charges of insurrection?

Texas Congressman Louie Gohmert finds this to be rather perplexing. Every radical liberal, including the deep state Department of Justice, continues to spout accusations of an insurrection. Republicans just want to know the names of the insurrectionists charged.

But over 10 months later, not a single solitary person has been charged with this federal crime. There isn’t even any evidence of an FBI investigation ahead of laying the groundwork for a charge of insurrection.

Insurrection is a specific crime. The legal language to be charged with insurrection is very definitive. United States 18 - Code 2383 says spells out what must happen to warrant charges for insurrection.

“Whoever incites, sets on foot, assists, or engages in any rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States or the laws thereof, or gives aid or comfort thereto shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States.”

Joe Biden talks tough, but rarely backs up his bravado. Most remember his bogus claim that he’d meet then presidential candidate Donald Trump behind the bar, and “beat the hell out of him”.

Joe Biden is now and always has been a blowhard. His cowardice is displayed fully by his own Department of Justice. Democrats and deep state operatives continue to call January 6, 2020 “the insurrection”.

However, no one at the DOJ has the courage to make formal charges of insurrection. Since legal experts appreciate how prosecutors caution against filing charges they cannot win, maybe there’s something more to this mystery. Biden’s DOJ may be smarter than we think.

They can continue to damage the good name of former President Donald Trump while they investigate a bogus insurrection. All the while, they know full well that no one involved in the January 6 protest will ever be charged with insurrection. They won’t because there never was an insurrection.

What happened on January 6, 2020, was an unfortunate materialization of misguided, angry protestors. The ineptitude of the Capitol Police is as much to blame as those individuals who were present. There have been zero charges leveled for insurrection, because there wasn’t one.

https://steadfastclash.com/the-latest/garland-debunks-democrat-insurrection-claims-about-capitol-riot/

********************************************

Putin Slams U.S. for Deleting Its History, Calls Transgenderism a 'Crime Against Humanity'

Russian President Vladimir Putin gave a speech this week calling out the United States and other western nations for their progressive ideology, particularly drawing attention to the issue of gender identity.

Putin said during his Thursday speech at the Valdai Discussion Club in Sochi that Russia should hold onto its "spiritual values and historical traditions." He added that "sociocultural disturbances" could be detrimental to the country.

Western nations in Europe and the United States, Putin warned, have allowed "the aggressive deletion of whole pages of their own history, reverse discrimination against the majority in the interests of minorities … constitute movement toward public renewal."

"It’s their right, but we are asking them to steer clear of our home," he continued. "We have a different viewpoint."

Putin also discussed how liberals in the West want to eliminate what he called "traditional interpretation of such basic values," which include designations such as "mother, father, family, and the distinction between sexes."

"The proponents of new approaches go so far as they want to eliminate the whole notions of men and women, and those who dare say that men and women exist and this is a biological fact, they are all but banished," he said. "Parent number one, parent number two, or the parent that has given birth, or instead of breast milk, you say human milk. And you say all of that, so the people who are not sure of their sexual agenda are not unhappy."

In an apparent knock against youth transgenderism, the Russian dictator said that children being taught that a "boy can become a girl" and vice versa is on "the verge of a crime against humanity."

"There are some monstrous things when from a very young age, you teach to children that the boy can easily become a girl and you impose on them this selection, this choice," Putin said. "You push the parents aside and make the child take these decisions that can destroy their lives."

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/landonmion/2021/10/23/putin-slams-us-for-deleting-its-history-calls-transgenderism-a-crime-against-humanity-n2597918

********************************************

Documents show the real number of illegal migrants Biden let into the U.S.

At least 160,000 illegal immigrants have been released by the Biden administration since March – along with a broad use of limited parole authorities to allow 30,000 to be eligible for work permits since August, Border Patrol documents show.

The documents give a glimpse into how the Biden administration has been releasing massive numbers of migrants into the U.S., often with little to no oversight, supervision, or imminent threat of deportation.

Since March 20, no less than 94,570 illegal immigrants have been released into the U.S. with Notices to Report. Individuals who receive a Notice to Report are instructed to check in with an ICE office when they arrive at their final destination – which could be anywhere in the country. Individuals who check-in are not deported or detained as their immigration proceedings move forward.

Since Aug 6th, the administration has released an estimated 32,000 immigrants into the U.S. by parole – which grants migrants a degree of legal status and the ability to apply for work permits.

Federal law says parole authority is meant to be used on a case-by-case basis for "urgent humanitarian purposes" and "significant public benefit." Generally, only a few parole cases are granted by officials, however, the Biden administration has been using it liberally, for example, its parole of tens of thousands of Afghans into the United States as part of Operation Allies Welcome.

Former Border Patrol Chief Rodney Scott, who served under President Biden, examined the documents and said that he believes the administration is abusing its parole authority, according to Fox News.

"By law and regulation, a parole shall only be granted on a case by case basis and only for significant humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit. Neither of these appear to apply to the current situation," he said, adding that the number of paroles brings into question the review and approval process.

"As a field chief, I don’t believe I ever approved more than 5 or 10 paroles in a year," he said. "When I did, I ensured that the alien was monitored continuously and was detained or removed as soon as the circumstances allowed."

The documents reveal that since Aug 6, the administration released an additional 40,000 illegal immigrants on their own recognizance. The documents also show that on one single day in the Del Rio sector, 128 single adult illegal immigrants were released into the U.S. without ATD – which usually entails tracking by an ankle monitor or phone.

A Customs and Border Protection (CBP) official said that mechanisms like paroling, the use of NTRs, and enrolling migrants in Alternatives to Detention (ATD) "provides mechanisms to require family units released from CBP custody to report to ICE within a specified time."

The official also cited data that shows that between 2014 and 2020, 81% of migrants released into the U.S. did report for their immigration proceedings.

The agency has not yet released the number of migrant encounters in September, however, in both July and August there were more than 200,000 migrant encounters, some of the highest numbers in twenty years. Since then, migrants have continued to come in droves. According to the documents, Rio Grande Valley encountered 5,900 migrants in one week, while Del Rio encountered more than 2,900 in that same week.

https://dfctoday.com/documents-show-the-real-number-of-illegal-migrants-biden-let-into-the-u-s/

*************************************************

The Reason for ‘Right Flight’

Dinesh D’Souza

There’s a great migration underway to red America from blue America, to Republican-controlled states such as Texas and Florida from Democratic-controlled states such as New York and California. I should know. I lived from 2000 to 2017 in Southern California, before leaving the state for Texas, where I live now.

I’m part of a larger movement that we could call “right flight,” the flight to right-leaning states from left-leaning ones.

Sure, I moved partly because I married a Texan, or perhaps I should say a Venezuelan who has spent her entire adult life in Texas. But she could have come my way to San Diego; instead, I chose to go her way to the Houston area. Many factors were involved, but let’s just say, I don’t mind my state income tax rate going to zero from around 10 percent.

My film company is still based in California, at least for now, and we have two members of our small team who still live there. Interestingly, one is in the process of moving his family to Florida, and I just heard the other guy has been checking out real estate in the Southwest. He says he’s “just looking,” but just looking is often the gateway to relocating. I predict that he’ll be calling a moving company soon.

Now, one explanation of what’s going on is that Americans are self-segregating as part of a great divide that has opened up between Republicans and Democrats, conservatives and liberals. I’m tempted to say that we’re moving toward the sort of ideological chasm that defined the period leading up to the Civil War. But then, I realize that, in many respects, America today is more divided than it was in 1860.

In 1860, only one issue divided America: the issue of slavery. This is a point made by Abraham Lincoln, on the eve of the Civil War, writing to his former Whig colleague Alexander Stephens, who became the vice president of the Confederacy. Essentially, Lincoln said that the secessionists believed slavery to be right, and wanted to see it expand, while the unionists believed slavery to be wrong, and wanted to see it contract. But this, Lincoln emphasized, was the only major difference between the two camps.

Today, by contrast, there’s so much that divides conservative Republicans from left-wing Democrats that it’s hard to think of a single issue that they agree on. Moreover, the two sides don’t even like each other very much. Each seeks to demonize the other, to get away from the other. Moreover, Democrats seem unwilling to live and let live; they seem intent on forcing their values on the rest of the country, through ideological indoctrination in schools, through imposed federal mandates, and through censorship enforced across digital platforms.

This process of ideological separation—let’s call it a secession within America—has been occurring for a couple of decades now. Initially, people sorted themselves within states, and so there were “red” pockets such as Orange County and the Central Valley in blue California, just as there are “blue” pockets such as Austin and the Rio Grande Valley in red Texas.

But now, people are actually leaving blue America to relocate to red America. Since this is a one-way trend—we don’t see Texans rushing to California, or Floridians heading up to New York—it can’t be interpreted simply as a process of ideological self-segregation. Something more must be going on, and that something seems to be that the red states are more appealing places to live than the blue states.

It’s sometimes said that “immigration is a form of flattery.” This applies, of course, to people coming to America. There must be something more attractive about America than their home countries. But the same principle applies to people who move from one place to another within America. There must be something more attractive to them about their new destinations than the places that they are leaving.

Consider Texas and California, which, at first glance, are quite similar in a number of respects. Both are large states, in terms of physical size and population. Both have substantial Hispanic populations. Historically, both were independent republics, even if for a brief time. Both were relatively unaffected by the Civil War, even though Texas, unlike California, was part of the Confederacy. Today, both have large industries such as agriculture, energy, biotech, and high-tech.

What differentiates the two states is just two things. California is a much more beautiful state and has, on the whole, much better weather. This should give California a natural advantage over Texas. Call it the sunshine plus. Texas, however, has conservative policies in both the economic and cultural realms. This seems to overcome the California advantage, since the movement is to Texas from California and not so much the other way.

Earlier, I mentioned state income taxes: Texas has none. Texas also has cheaper land values, so you can get more for your money when you buy a house. Everything from groceries to gas is markedly cheaper in Texas, which means that the family paycheck goes further. Texas is also a better-run state, which you can test by going to a DMV in California versus one in Texas. In California, you have to take the day off work because you could be there for hours; in Texas, you’re usually out with whatever you needed to get done within 30 minutes.

In La Jolla, California, I had a view of the ocean that I can’t replicate in Texas. But in Texas, I have a nice little mansion with a pool and waterfall in the backyard that reminds me of Hawaii. I don’t really miss the Pacific Ocean. It’s not just the economic benefits. Texans still have the spirit of the Alamo, the spirit of freedom, which gives daily life itself a more charged, vibrant quality.

California, by contrast, cultivates in its inhabitants today the spirit of dependency, the spirit of the leech and the parasite. California once had its own dream, the California dream, which was basically the California version of the American dream.

But increasingly, people living in blue America see their American dream passing away, and so they flee to red America, where they can live better and once again dream big dreams for themselves and their children.

https://www.theepochtimes.com/mkt_morningbrief/the-reason-for-right-flight_4061901.html

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

26 October 2021

Bedtime goes woke as books like 'Antiracist Baby', 'Daddy & Dada' and 'A is for Activist' are dominating the shelves with transgender tales and scary stories of police brutality meant to 'indoctrinate' toddlers

Once upon a time it was simple. Children went to sleep on a diet of bedtime stories that grew out of folklore, depended on magic or were just enchantingly simple: Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella and Goodnight Moon.

Not anymore, because these days bedtime is all about getting woke. Take a glance at the shelves of the children's department of any major bookstore.

Teach Your Dragon About Diversity, sits next to 'Daddy & Dada'. Glance a few books along and you'll find, Joey, not a heartwarming tale about a baby kangaroo, but an illustrated hagiography of Joe Biden written by, 'best-selling author,' Jill Biden.

And let's not forget, 'Kamala Harris: Rooted in Justice,' because what four -year-old doesn't want to hear about the Vice President's political rise?

There are books about transgender infants, queer families and dreamers, but the subject that dominates all others, bound up in the pages of child-friendly picture books, is race – that and a dollop of police brutality and activism.

The sales of books about race exploded across all age groups last summer as protests over the death of George Floyd tore across the world.

At the peak of the summer's disturbances seven out of Amazon's top ten titles and nine out of Barnes & Noble's took on the subject of race.

On June 1, Libro.fm, a company that partners with 1,200 bookstores in the US and Canada to sell audiobooks, reported that every book on its top ten sellers list was about race and that the titles had sold 500 per cent more than on May 1.

Sales of 'White Fragility' by Robin Diangelo jumped by 2000 per cent. Against this sales frenzy, Penguin Young Readers tripled their print-run of Ibram X Kendi's 'Antiracist Baby.' The book's initial print run was 50,000. Seeing the swell in demand and pre-orders the company ordered an additional 100,000.

Kendi's confrontationally titled book starts with the assertion, 'Antiracist baby is bred, not born' and proceeds to set down nine steps for parents eager to rear 'accountable' children.

Though his book is supposedly aimed at children aged 0-3, Kendi is not primarily a children's author. He is the controversial poster boy for critical race theory and author of 'Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You,' listed by the American Libraries Association as one of the most banned and challenged books of 2020.

Parents' challenges to school boards in districts whose reading lists featured the book included the argument that Kendi practiced, 'selective storytelling' and, 'does not encompass racism against all people.'

For his part Kendi – born Ibram Henry Rogers in Queens, the son of Methodist ministers Carol and Larry Rogers – makes no apology for preaching a discriminatory creed.

He has stated, 'The only remedy to racist discrimination is anti-racist discrimination. The only remedy to past discrimination is present discrimination. The only remedy to present discrimination is future discrimination.'

This, according to John Butcher, Will Skillman Education Fellow at the Heritage Foundation, is the worldview that informs all Kendi's work and has no place in the pages of children's books.

Speaking to DailyMail.com, Butcher, whose book 'Splintered: Critical Race Theory and The Progressive War on the Truth,' is out in February, explained, 'All of these books are meant to drive home the message to these young children that life is about struggle. But one of the main problems of critical race theory is what's the ultimate objective? What are we trying to do that makes the world a better place than when we started?

'With Kendi's work you never get to that place where there's some sort of policy, prescription or cultural healing. And what's significant about Kendi's stance is that he's saying discrimination is appropriate, right? We shouldn't be teaching our children that discrimination has any place ever.'

What's more, according to Butcher the notion of 'anti-racism,' promoted by Kendi is 'the perfect trap.' He said 'Everyone's a racist unless they're an anti-racist, it's not enough to say you think racism is evil, you're a racist unless you're an anti-racist. There's no way out. It's an infinite loop.'

In 'Woke Baby!' Mahogany L. Browne writes of a race struggle that starts in the crib. 'Woke Babies raise their fists in the air. Woke babies cry out for justice.'

The illustrations show a black baby wearing a onesie with a panther emblem on his chest.

The text alongside them reads, 'Look at your fists. Fingers curled into a panther's paw pointing up up up, reaching out for justice.'

And while un-woke babies presumably just learn to crawl, 'Woke Baby' takes a knee (or two) and rises, 'Up up up on each knee, bent like half-moons. Woke Baby, you are an awakened dream.'

Self-styled 'children's author' Browne is the Executive Director of JustMedia an organization that purports to push for 'Transformative Justice,' and leans heavily on the topic of police brutality.

The organization's website includes a 'learning companion' to Ava DuVernay's controversial Netflix drama about the Central Park Five, 'When They See Us.'

Former New York City prosecutor, Linda Fairstein, is currently suing over the depiction of her role in events surrounding the Central Park rape and subsequent prosecution of five young black men, and the drama has been branded willfully inaccurate and dangerous.

JustMedia's site also provides a link to, 'Incite! Women of Color Against Violence,' which offers an activists' 'resource and toolkit' for download. The 'kit' conflates 'police brutality and other forms of law enforcement violence,' with, 'policing and enforcing gender and sexual conformity along with power relations based on race, class, immigration status and ability.'

Dizzying concepts for many an adult never mind a child under the age of three.

According to Sharna Olfman, a psychology professor at Point Park University in Pittsburgh the truth is that most of the messages in this new wave of children's books will go over their target audience's heads.

Speaking in The Atlantic she explained that very young children can empathize with others' feelings, but it isn't until 'middle childhood' – ages 5 to 11 – that they can empathize with someone's circumstances, like coming from another country or not being able to speak a certain language fluently.

And only after the age of 11 can they grasp the finer points of a political philosophy. Until then, the chances are that any 'learning,' is simply, 'parroting the perspective of the author or the parent,' rather than understanding it.

This comes as no surprise to Christopher Rufo, Senior Fellow and Director of the Initiative on Critical Race Theory at the Manhattan Institute. Rufo points out that these are not children's books so much as missives aimed at their virtue-signaling parents.

He told DailyMail.com, 'Antiracist Baby and other books [like it] are not designed to teach basic literacy or character formation; they are designed to indoctrinate children into a specific ideology, using their parents as the mechanism of transmission.

'Kendi argues that babies exhibit racial bias by six months old and become fully fledged racists by three years old. This is patently ridiculous. It should go without saying: babies are not racist. They exhibit preferences for people who physically resemble their parents, but this isn't racism – it's a simple and effective survival mechanism.'

According to Rufo, Kendi and Browne are 'racial snake oil salesmen,' encouraging Americans to 'purge themselves of their 'internalized racism,' or 'implicit bias.'

But while Olfman suggests that the messages of racial injustice and struggle will simply be lost on their young audience, Walt Heyer is adamant that introducing the notion of transgender to young children is positively harmful.

Heyer, 80, author of Trans Life Survivors, spent 8 years as a woman before de-transitioning back to a man. He lost his job, his marriage and his children in the process and now devotes his life to supporting pre-transition young people struggling with their identity as well as those who, like him, suffer the bitter regret of a mistaken transition.

For Heyer books like, 'Call Me Max,' by Kyle Lukoff which tells the story of a child who identifies as a transgender boy or 'Julian is a Mermaid,' by Jessica Love, in which Julian identifies as queer and, with his abuela's encouragement, joins Coney Island's famous Mermaid parade, are not only misguided, but they are also dangerous.

Love's book is presented as a sweet tale of acceptance. But, according to Heyer, such books are not recognizing a child's 'truth' so much as foisting a damaging narrative upon them.

Speaking to DailyMail.com he explained, 'I am absolutely adamant about the fact that this is wrong. It's psychologically, emotionally and sexually very harmful. It's like showing a child pornography.

'If we're to be intellectually honest with ourselves, and there's an absence of that in all of this, then we have to accept that no-one ever transitions from one gender to another. The only thing you can do is change your persona and so many of the young people I work with never had gender dysmorphia – they're displaying something they've seen, or something their friends are doing, or they're suffering from body dysmorphia, or were sexually abused, or have mental health issues that a clinician has failed to realize.'

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10128499/Woke-childrens-books-dominating-shelves-titles-like-Antiracist-Baby.html

*****************************************

Biden Stopped Border Wall Construction But Will Get a New 'Security Fence' Around Delaware Home

President Joe Biden's home in Delaware is getting an upgrade thanks to the Department of Homeland Security spending nearly half a million dollars on "security fencing" in the aftermath of his administration halting wall construction along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The New York Post reports DHS awarded the contract for the fencing in September to be built around Biden's "Summer White House":

"In September, the department awarded a contract of $456,548 to Turnstone Holdings LLC for “PURCHASE AND INSTALLATION OF SECURITY FENCING AT 32 FARVIEW, REHOBOTH DELAWARE,” according to USAspending.gov, an online database tracking federal government spending.

"The contract started Sept. 21 and is expected to end Dec. 31. Construction of the fence is expected to end by that date.

"The DHS is listed as the main awarding and funding office of the contract while the US Secret Service is listed as the subagency."

While the security of any president is important, it is hard to square Biden's rhetoric about the effectiveness of walls to now accepting a wall of sorts to his summer home. During the 2020 campaign, Biden promised to not build "another foot" of the border wall.

The stopping of the border wall construction along the southern border has led to gaps where illegal immigrants and drug smugglers have an easier time entering the United States. Due to Border Patrol agents being overwhelmed with people willingly turning themselves in, the gaps in the wall are often left unguarded.

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/juliorosas/2021/10/25/biden-stopped-wall-construction-on-the-border-but-will-get-a-new-security-fence-around-delaware-home-n2597881

*************************************************

Can Poland Be Poland – and Stay in the EU?

"Let Poland be Poland!" That was the call of American conservatives, four decades ago, when the Solidarity movement of labor leader Lech Walesa arose in the port city of Gdansk to demand their freedom of the Communist system imposed upon Poland by the Soviet Union after World War II.

A decade later, Poland broke free of the Soviet Bloc and Warsaw Pact, and later joined the European Union and NATO.

The question that has arisen today also has to do with issues of Polish identity and independence.

Specifically, can Poland be Poland -- and still remain in the EU?

In recent years, the ruling Law and Justice Party has revised its governmental structures. The judiciary has been subordinated, brought under greater central supervision and control, and a disciplinary chamber has been established and empowered to remove judges.

Such action, says the EU Commission in Brussels, violates basic EU law, which applies to all member states and trumps national law.

Brussels wants the chamber abolished.

Moreover, on issues such as homosexuality, abortion and the media, the Polish government has taken stands more consistent with its Catholic traditions than with the social agenda of a secularized Europe.

The same holds true for the Hungary of Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Poland and Hungary are ostracized as "illiberal democracies."

At a rally of tens of thousands in Budapest Saturday, Orban told supporters that Washington, the EU in Brussels, and billionaire George Soros are using their money, media and networks to bring to power the Hungarian leftist opposition in next April's parliamentary elections.

"But what matters," said a defiant Orban, "is not what they in Brussels, in Washington and in the media, which is directed from abroad, want. It will be Hungarians deciding about their own fate.

"Our strength is in our unity ... We believe in the same values: family, nation and a strong and independent Hungary."

Let Hungary be Hungary.

In this social-cultural-moral clash inside the EU, outsider Vladimir Putin comes down on the side of the traditionalists and nationalists in countries where Christianity retains a hold against secularism.

This weekend, Moscow released excerpts of Putin's blistering attack on a woke West at last week's gathering of the Valdai Discussion Club in Sochi:

"We're surprised to see things happening in countries that see themselves as flagships of progress," said Putin. "The struggle for equality and against discrimination turns into aggressive dogmatism verging on absurdity.

"Opposing racism is a necessary and noble thing, but the new 'culture of abolition' turns into 'reverse discrimination' ... Here in Russia the absolute majority of our citizens don't care what color a person's skin is.

"People who dare to say that men and women still exist as a biological fact are almost ostracized ... not to mention the simply monstrous fact that children today are taught from a young age that a boy can easily become a girl and vice versa.

"Let's call a spade a spade: This simply verges on crimes against humanity under the banner of progress."

In the clash between Poland and the EU, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has urged that a solution be found acceptable to both, rather than engaging in a long and bitter battle that leaves one side victorious and the other estranged.

Yet, today, Poland is being threatened with economic sanctions, including a possible withholding of annual EU stipends and money set aside for EU nations to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

Responding to these threats, Prime Minster Mateusz Morawiecki is accusing the EU of "blackmailing" Poland and holding a "gun to our head."

"If you want to make Europe into a nation-less superstate," says Morawiecki, "first gain the consent of all European countries and societies for this."

Membership in the EU is popular in Poland, and the government has not threatened a walkout, a "Polexit," like the "Brexit" that British Tories voted for in 2016 and carried out.

Still, Brussels fears that successful Polish defiance of its demands could lead other EU nations to make demands, and the grand project of creating a European superstate, a One Europe whose member nations are accorded limited rights similar to those of the 50 states of the American Union, could collapse and fall apart.

National governments receive from membership in the EU not only the benefits of open markets, free trade and travel from one nation to another, but also, for nations like Poland and others in eastern and southern Europe, annual transfer of wealth from the EU.

The chokehold the EU has on its members is money. Brussels can cut off the funds transferred annually to Poland, as well as funds voted to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, together a goodly slice of Poland's GDP.

The questions raised by the rebellious Poles are fundamental: Which takes precedence, when they come into conflict, Poland's constitution and Poland's laws, or the laws of the European Union?

Conflict appears inevitable, and the Poles will ultimately have to decide whether their country and constitution transcend EU law, or the reverse is now true.

https://townhall.com/columnists/patbuchanan/2021/10/26/can-poland-be-poland--and-stay-in-the-eu-n2598005

**************************************************

Minneapolis Warns Rideshare Drivers After 12 Carjackings in 7 Days as City Considers Abolishing Police

In Minneapolis, Minnesota, the race riots and looting have largely subsided, but in the wake of the widely covered crime sprees as city blocks worth of small businesses burned, crime has not gone down. Like many other major cities, crime is spiking — especially carjackings.

Last week, after more than four dozen instances of rideshare drivers being held up since the end of the summer, Minneapolis decided to issue a "citywide crime alert" for Uber and Lyft drivers within Minneapolis: beware carjackers.

Local crime watchers say the citywide alert is too little, too late, amid an already reduced police department with fewer capabilities to advise the public — those responsibilities were seized by the anti-cop city council — and adequately patrol the city's streets.

The citywide crime alert warns rideshare drivers to stay alert and wary of delays, but doesn't say anything about what the city's leaders are doing to address the rising crime that continues to ravage Minneapolis streets.

The alert comes after a spate of attacks on rideshare drivers. According to the Twin Cities' CBS affiliate, "Police say since mid-August, more than 40 Uber and Lyft drive[r]s have been robbed or carjacked," with 12 happening in a recent seven-day span. In at least one incident, a Lyft driver took matters into her own hands to escape carjackers:

Lyft driver Tanika Tatum explained a scary situation she encountered Thursday night while dropping off a passenger in Minneapolis. Tatum said her car was pinned in by several vehicles, when a man abruptly approached her.

“A young Black man jumped out, opened my door, put a gun in my face and told me ‘get out of the car,'” Tatum said.

Tatum did not get out and instead drove through the cars. She and the passenger eventually got to a safe place.

“How do you protect yourself in that situation?” Tatum asked. “I hit the button on my Lyft app to say ‘hey send us help.’ It was slow getting help in that area. We sat and waited 20-30 minutes for police to come.”

A 20-30 minute police response time does not inspire confidence when there are bands of marauding carjackers active on the streets of Minneapolis. And the problem of inadequate policing is set to get much worse if radical leftists in Minneapolis get their way on a ballot question this November.

As Townhall covered previously, Minneapolis residents will vote on a ballot question asking whether the city should amend its charter to abolish the current police department and replace it with a nebulous "'Department of Public Safety' that 'employs a comprehensive public health approach.'

Scant details have so far been provided as to how a "reimagined" law enforcement agency would address rising crime, but an already gutted police department offers plenty of evidence — such as the growing number of carjackings — of what may lie ahead.

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/spencerbrown/2021/10/25/minneapolis-warns-rideshare-drivers-of-carjackings-as-city-consider-defunding-police-n2597974

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

25 October 2021

Biden loses more support than any other president since WWII: Approval ratings in his first nine months nosedive by 11% as independents abandon him and just 42% of Americans think he's doing a good job

Joe Biden has disappointed Americans more than any other president since World War II has at this point in their term, a new Gallup poll released Friday appears to show.

The newest data is from a survey taken from October 1 - 19 and compares Biden's average approval rating across the first three quarters of his term against every president since Dwight Eisenhower.

Biden lost a whopping 11. 3 percentage points from his first quarter approval of 56 percent to an average of 44.7 percent at the end of the three months spanning late July through October.

It comes after the White House was forced to walk back a number of remarks the president made at a CNN town hall on Thursday night, including comments on defending Taiwan from China and mobilizing the National Guard to help with the supply chain crisis.

His former boss Barack Obama saw the second-largest dip in average approval, losing 10.1 percent from his first through third quarters.

Donald Trump, the only post-WWII president whose approval rating is lower than Biden's at this point, saw a smaller drop of just 4.4 percent after having started with low expectations.

Independents appear to be driving down Biden's favorability the most, from 61 percent approval at the beginning of February to just 34 percent in October.

The historic drop is fueled by Biden's inability to shake off growing public dissatisfaction over his White House tenure as his month-to-month approval rating slips to a new low of 42 percent in October.

His approval was dealt a massive blow amid a border crisis that appears to be spiraling out of control and the US's hasty exit from Afghanistan at the end of summer.

And the recent supply chain crisis that's sent consumer prices soaring and left many grocery shelves empty has become a cudgel that Republican lawmakers have labeled 'Bidenflation.'

But in good news for the Democratic president, his dip in approval ratings appears to be leveling off.

In September he took a significant blow when his ratings went from 49 to 43 percent. The one point drop in October is modest by comparison.

Slightly fewer people disapprove of him as well, with Biden's disapproval rating lowering from 53 to 52 percent.

The party breakdown of Gallup's October survey reflects the hyper-partisan environment of today's politics.

Democrats are still firm in their support for Biden. His approval rating among his own party never dipped below 90 percent at any point in his term and even went up by two points this month.

Among Republicans, however, the president has hit a record low of just 4 percent approval.

The 88-point gap between GOP and Democrats is the largest Biden has seen in his presidency so far and comes amid multiple ideological clashes.

Normally apolitical, local settings such as public schoolboard meetings have become partisan battlegrounds as the number of violent outbursts caused by parents angry at critical race theory and mask guidelines lash out at education officials.

Republicans have accused Biden of unfairly targeting parents after his Justice Department directed federal law enforcement to help crack down on what it called a 'disturbing trend.'

Biden's administration has also waded into political battles with the president's sweeping vaccine order announced in September, affecting 100 million American workers.

A number of Republican governors, most recently Doug Ducey of Arizona, are mounting a resistance to the mandate.

Americans are also likely unhappy with Washington politicians in general, amid massive gridlock - particularly among Democrats themselves - in trying to pass Biden's ambitious Build Back Better agenda.

Earlier in his presidency Biden's approval ratings were dealt a blow by the US's chaotic Afghanistan exit and a humanitarian outcry over a record number of Haitian migrants coming to the southern border from Central and South America.

While both crises have mostly exited the news cycle, the president's approval hasn't rebounded the same way.

Overall, however, the situation at the southern border appears to be worsening. New data released from Customs and Border Protection shows that border arrests have hit the highest point since 1986 and 1.7 million migrants were detained in Fiscal Year 2021.

The highest first-October approval rating belongs to George W. Bush with 88 percent, at a time when he was experiencing unprecedented national and international support in the wake of the September 11 terror attacks.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10120941/Biden-loses-support-president-9-months-office-Approval-just-42.html

*********************************************

Biden dispersing migrant children across country using sneaky middle-of-the-night flights

Pictures and statistics do not lie. There have been an ever-increasing number of illegal border crossings every month since Biden took office. His border policy has been a total failure. Some believe it is not a policy blunder at all, but a targeted goal of this administration.

Joe Biden and his liberal cronies in the Democrat Party are trying to change the voting demographic of the United States. It is a corrupt ambition that is now becoming even more obvious. What better way to accomplish this goal than to allow millions of illegal migrants into the country.

Then, give them a bunch of free stuff and allow them to vote. Documented statistics and actual video footage uncover a sneaky plot being perpetrated on American citizens. Hundreds of illegal migrants are being flown into New York and Florida during the wee-hours.

The White House deflects from the obvious with a bogus excuse that these are unaccompanied minors being reunited with family members or vetted sponsors. Do all family members and supposedly vetted sponsors live in New York or Florida?

What kinds of places are other illegal migrants being dumped, cities and small towns, where hardworking journalists have not been able to uncover? There are also reports that not all these “late-night, early-flight” passengers are unaccompanied minors.

In true form, the White Press Secretary gave one of her trademark smug answers. Jen Psaki was asked about these “middle-of-the-night-flights”. Psaki spouted, “Well, here – we are talking about early flights – earlier than you might like to take a flight”.

Seriously, this is the White House’s reply after being busted by reporters for flooding our country with illegal migrants in the middle of the night? This, like the Biden border policy, is a sham. There are even more questions surrounding these mystery, late-night flights.

Are these supposed children all flying with masks on, or are they magically all COVID negative? If so, where are the test results for these children, since the Biden administration insists a vast majority of them are underage minors and could not have been vaccinated?

Two of the flights in question landed at the Westchester, New York airport at 2:12 a.m. and 4:29 a.m. Maybe the Biden administration is getting a traveler discount for packing these “earl-flights”. We think something else is afoot.

It’s clear that Joe Biden knows the American people will revolt at a policy to disperse thousands of illegal migrants into our communities. Americans believe in an immigration process, not a government-fueled wave of illegal entries.

It’s time Joe Biden is called to the carpet about his purposeful southern border policy. Our border is not closed. The southern U.S. border is wide open, and it’s by design. Sneaky, middle-of-the-night-flights prove it’s something Joe Biden is trying to hide.

https://steadfastclash.com/the-latest/biden-dispersing-migrant-children-across-country-using-sneaky-middle-of-the-night-flights/

*************************************************

German police stop far-right vigilantes patrolling Polish border

German police said on Sunday they had stopped more than 50 far-right vigilantes armed with pepper spray, a bayonet, a machete and batons who were trying to patrol the Polish border to stop migrants from entering the country.

The vigilantes were following a call by the Third Way, a far right-party with suspected links to neo-Nazi groups, for its members to stop illegal crossings near the town of Guben on the German-Polish border.

Police seized the weapons carried by the 50 suspects and made them leave the Guben area late on Saturday and in the early hours of Sunday, a spokesperson said. Some of the suspects had travelled to the Polish border from other parts of Germany.

On Saturday, dozens of people held a vigil in Guben to show their opposition to the planned far-right patrols.

Germany has stationed an extra 800 police officers on the Polish border to control the flow of migrants trying to enter the European Union from Belarus, the interior minister was quoted as saying on Sunday.

"Hundreds of officers are currently on duty there day and night. If necessary, I am prepared to reinforce them even further," Horst Seehofer told the Bild am Sonntag newspaper.

Seehofer said there had already been 6,162 unauthorised entries into Germany from Belarus and Poland this year.

Last week, Seehofer said Germany did not intend to close the border with Poland, but on Sunday he said the country might have to consider reintroducing controls.

"If the situation on the German-Polish border does not ease, we will also have to consider whether this step needs to be taken in coordination with Poland and the state of Brandenburg. This decision will come to the next government," he said.

The three German parties working to form a coalition government say they aim to wrap up talks by the end of November and elect Social Democrat Olaf Scholz chancellor in December.

Many EU states accuse Minsk of sending illegal migrants across the border into the EU to put pressure on the bloc, which imposed sanctions on Belarus after President Alexander Lukashenko's disputed re-election in August 2020.

Lukashenko denies this and has blamed the West for what he says is a looming humanitarian catastrophe this winter after migrants were left stranded on the Belarusian-Polish border.

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/german-police-stop-far-right-vigilantes-patrolling-polish-border-2021-10-24/

*****************************************

It’s Going to Take More Than Politics to Torpedo the Texas Boom

Tariq Lodhi considers himself to be socially progressive: anti-gun, pro-choice, an advocate for LGBTQ rights. For the last five years, he split his time as a tech engineer between the liberal enclaves of Boston and the Bay Area..Then, earlier this month, he moved to Texas, where Republican Governor Greg Abbott has been signing a flurry of conservative laws limiting abortion and voter rights, banning mask mandates and handicapping banks’ ability to do business in the state if they don’t support the firearms industry.

By the time Lodhi took the plunge, the decision was easy: The economic and professional opportunities outweighed the cultural warfare coming out of Austin. His new engineering job at Qorvo Inc. is a great fit, and the rapidly growing tech scene north of Dallas is exciting. Back in California, his $2.7 million “shed” in Cupertino was starting to feel cramped. In the Dallas suburbs, he can buy a mansion with a pool in a great school district for less than $1 million.

From outside the state, “it’s easy to buy into the stereotype of what you hear in politics,” Lodhi said in an interview. “I find the local population here very welcoming, very warm, friendly and hospitable.”

Lodhi joins a wave of newcomers that’s helped boost Texas’s population by more than 4 million over the past decade, part of a boom that created one of the fastest growing economies in the U.S. And despite the angst among businesses and economists worried that hard-right politics will make it harder to lure talent, the calculus for anyone considering a move is more nuanced than just focusing on red state versus blue state.

Corporate recruiters, chambers of commerce and many of the companies and people that have helped create the thriving economy suggest it’s going to take more than politics to kill the Texas boom. Low taxes, relatively affordable homes and plentiful jobs are luring new arrivals from across the political spectrum, even those ardently opposed to many of the social policies that Republicans lawmakers have prioritized in recent years.

Tesla, Goldman.Tesla Inc. said this month it will move its headquarters to Texas, following similar announcements by Oracle Corp., Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co. and real estate giant CBRE Group Inc. Finance firms including Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. have also expanded in the state, helping bolster the size of the Texas economy to $1.9 trillion, the ninth largest in the world if it were its own country.

Austin was the top destination in the U.S. for attracting new workers in the past 12 months, according to data from LinkedIn. The migration primarily came from the San Francisco area, Los Angeles and New York City. Dallas and Houston were also among the 10 U.S. cities for luring talent. Job boards showed almost 800,000 postings for Texas in the third quarter, almost double from a year earlier, according to a report from recruiting firm Robert Half.

Crypto trader Jake Ryan decided he’d had enough of the cost of living, horrible traffic and heart-breaking homelessness of Los Angeles. In 2017, he started hedge fund Tradecraft Capital to invest in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency assets, and quickly decided he wanted to find a place with a better quality of life for his family where the government wouldn’t get in the way of doing business. He’d gone to University of Texas in Austin, and always wanted to return to the city.

.Ryan says he doesn’t care for the conservative politics of the state -- especially when it comes to cultural and social policies such as the recently implemented laws regulating transgender kids’ participation in school sports. But Austin is a blue refuge in a red state, and he can live with it.

“I love it,” he said of Austin. “Things are looking up.”

Corporate recruiters in Texas say politics rarely comes up when talking to job candidates. “These issues pop up periodically -- whether it’s Covid or abortion -- but they don’t last,” said Carl Taylor, who owns an executive search firm in Dallas.

https://www.bloombergquint.com/technology/it-s-going-to-take-more-than-politics-to-torpedo-the-texas-boom

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

24 October 2021

More on Pru Goward, a prominent Australian conservative under attack

Her essay on the "underclass" has been widely condemned so I thought I might reproduce exactly what she said:

"As a shopkeeper’s daughter, I understood poor people; they obeyed the law, worked hard, sent their kids to the same primary schools I attended and were equally ambitious for their children. But the underclass, small as it then was, behaved differently"

So she was clearly NOT talking about the poor in general, only the dysfunctional segment of the poor. But all commentators that I have seen write as if the had condemned poor people in general, which she carefully said she did NOT do. But the Left chracteristically see only what they want to see so we should not be surprised by the response to Goward

She has not formally replied to her critics but The Guardian records a brief comment from her:

"Goward told Guardian Australia she was “deeply disappointed” that her column had been “so badly misunderstood”. But, she said, opinion pieces are “meant to provoke and I hope it’s helped the readers of the AFR think differently about those at the bottom of the socio-economic ladder”.

“I have applied a Marxist analysis which some might say is old fashioned but which explains to me why people judge others as unworthy,” she said.

Goward said Shoebridge was ignoring “all the wonderful things we did for vulnerable children” when she was a minister."

She is perfectly right. Marxists do define everything in terms of class and that is perfectly respectable among sociologists. There is a large literature on the "proletariat" or "underclass" so she is being perfectly routine in referring to that much-studied population segment. Her description was perfectly mainstream sociology. Coming from a Marxist it would pass without notice

***********************************************

A Quiet Attack on American Principles Is Going Unnoticed

The sanctity of American justice is predicated on the right to a fair trial. Trial by jury was one of the most important American principles at its founding, guaranteed in the body of the Constitution in Article III, Section 2, and in the Sixth Amendment. It was instituted as a protection of individuals against abuses by the government.

Earlier this year, police officer Derek Chauvin was convicted of the murder of George Floyd. Chauvin’s attorneys had hired highly experienced and respected retired forensic pathologist Dr. David Fowler as an expert witness. Fowler testified that Floyd died of “a sudden cardiac arrhythmia due to his [underlying] heart disease … during his restraint and subdual by the police” and not because of lack of oxygen. Despite Fowler’s testimony, the jury convicted Chauvin of murder.

Many trials end in decisions that seem wrong, and you may or may not agree with the conviction of Chauvin. But whether we agree with any particular decision or not, the American system of justice requires us to abide by it. Otherwise, the system falls apart.

The whittling away of the American justice system in this instance is not the government’s attempt to change a jury’s verdict; the government got the conviction that it wanted. In a dangerous precedent, the government is now attempting to ensure that future cases are more likely to result in the verdict it wants by making it clear that witnesses with whom it disagrees will be punished, ostracized, and have their careers destroyed.

Fowler, Chauvin’s expert witness, was Maryland’s chief medical examiner from 2002 to 2019. According to his resume on the website of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (pdf), Fowler was trained in forensic pathology at the University of Cape Town. He was an adjunct associate professor at the University of Maryland in the departments of pediatrics and pathology, and on the faculty at the National Study Center for Trauma and Emergency Medical Systems. Fowler is a past president of the National Association of Medical Examiners. He has authored numerous book chapters, scientific journal articles, and formal presentations. He currently serves as the National Association of Medical Examiners representative to the Forensic Science Standards Board.

Shortly after the trial, Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh “received a letter from D.C.’s former chief medical examiner Roger Mitchell, and signed by 431 doctors from around the country, saying Fowler’s conclusions were so far outside the bounds of accepted forensic practice that all his previous work could come into question,” according to the Associated Press. Within 24 hours, Frosch, in consultation with Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan’s chief legal counsel, announced an investigation into Fowler’s prior in-custody death examinations (pdf). In September, Frosch announced the members of the audit design team (pdf). This development is very troubling.

I work as an expert witness in technology cases. I’ve participated in over 240 cases over 25 years. I’ve seen unethical behavior by expert witnesses, a small number of whom can be paid to say almost anything to support their client’s position. I’ve written about this unethical behavior and about the need to set stricter standards for expert testimony and more significant consequences for those who purposely misrepresent facts, use unaccepted processes, change testimony, or participate in other unscrupulous behavior.

The key, though, is that I challenge expert results in court after I’ve seen all the evidence, produced my own rigorous analysis, and come to my own conclusions. Many times, another expert will examine the same evidence, produce an analysis, and come to different conclusions. There’s no crime in being wrong. The jury listens to the experts, guided by the lawyers, weighs the evidence, and comes to a decision. Our justice system is far from perfect, but for the system to work and be as fair as possible, we all must abide by the judicial outcomes.

If any of the armchair medical “experts” in the world are allowed to bring down the career of Fowler, then few people will ever have the courage to testify contrary to the government’s case or the public’s desires. There may be no stronger or more serious undermining of the American justice system than this one. For the American justice system to survive, people must be free to testify honestly and without outside pressure.

For the sake of basic American principles of justice, honest expert opinions must be given openly, without coercion, and without the belief that the government could destroy your reputation and career if you testify the “wrong” way. This is one more move by those on the left who are working against American principles and attempting to destroy the very basis of our society. We must all work to stop it, especially in its most subtle forms.

https://www.theepochtimes.com/mkt_morningbrief/a-quiet-attack-on-american-principles-is-going-unnoticed_4055981.html

******************************************

San Francisco shuts down In-N-Out restaurant after company 'refused to become vaccination police' and enforce mandate among customers

This is reminscent of Nazi Germany, where private employers had to do the Party's bidding

The popular burger chain In-N-Out is sizzling mad after San Francisco shut down its indoor dining for refusing to check customers' vaccination status.

The company's Fisherman's Wharf location - the only In-N-Out location in San Francisco - was temporarily shut by the Health Department on Thursday for declining to enforce the state's stringent coronavirus restrictions.

Authorities said the burger chain had refused to bar clients who couldn't show proof of vaccination to dine indoors, as required by a city-wide mandate that came into effect on August 20.

In-N-Out ignored repeated warnings to enforce the vaccination rule, the department said, calling the mandate a matter of public health to keep COVID-19 from spreading.

Meanwhile, In-N-Out's chief legal and business officer Arnie Wensinger declared: 'We refuse to become the vaccination police for any government.'

The location has since reopened but without indoor dining.

In-N-Out was the only San Francisco restaurant that was closed for violating the mandate.

Wensinger maintained that the burger joint had clearly communicated vaccine requirements to customers via signage, only refusing a direct instruction from local health officials for staff to actively perform spot checks on customers' vaccine passes.

'Our store properly and clearly posted signage to communicate local vaccination requirements.

'After closing our restaurant, local regulators informed us that our restaurant Associates must actively intervene by demanding proof of vaccination and photo identification from every Customer, then act as enforcement personnel by barring entry for any Customers without the proper documentation.

'It is unreasonable, invasive, and unsafe to force our restaurant Associates to segregate Customers into those who may be served and those who may not, whether based on the documentation they carry, or any other reason,' Wensinger said on behalf of the chain.

In-N-Out operates 358 locations across the western United States, but only has one location in San Francisco.

The burger chain has proved a hit among citizens of the west coast, with many of the restaurants experiencing wait times of several hours, leading to pop-up stores in London, as well as in Australia and sparking physical altercations among impatient customers.

The Fisherman's Wharf location is the only restaurant in San Francisco to be closed down by the city's Health Department for violating the vaccine enforcement protocols, a health official said.

'Vaccines remain our best tool to fight this disease and come out of the pandemic,' a Health Department spokesperson wrote. 'Vaccination is particularly important in a public indoor setting where groups of people are gathering and removing their masks, factors that make it easier for the virus to spread.'

But Wensinger criticized the Health Department's decision as 'intrusive governmental overreach'.

'We fiercely disagree with any government dictate that forces a private company to discriminate against customers who choose to patronize their business.

'This is clear governmental overreach and is intrusive, improper and offensive.'

San Francisco's 'Safer Return Together Health Order' came into effect in August and mandates that most businesses operating an indoor service such as restaurants, bars, gyms and entertainment venues, must obtain proof of vaccination before allowing customers inside.

The city has some of the most stringent Covid laws in a state which is among the most restrictive in its public health policies.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10112101/San-Francisco-shuts-N-company-refused-vaccination-police.html

******************************************

Australian supermodel Elle Macpherson raises eyebrows after deleting 'Aborigine' ancestry remarks in Vogue makeup tutorial

She obviously thinks she has some very remote Aboriginal ancestry but that is a very touchy topic

Australian supermodel Elle Macpherson has raised eyebrows for making a surprising remark about her ancestry.

According to The Sydney Morning Herald, the 57-year-old stated in a new beauty video tutorial for Vogue: 'My eyes are almost black, that’s the Aborigine in me.' 'Being seven generations Australian they don’t reflect light the same way blue eyes do,' she reportedly said in the clip.

According to the publication, the video was edited to remove those remarks when Macpherson was asked to clarify whether she was claiming to be Indigenous, or regretted using the term 'Aborigine'.

Born in Australia, Elle is the daughter of entrepreneur and sound engineer Peter Gow, and nurse Frances Gow. Her parents divorced when she was 10 years old. Elle later adopted her stepfather's last name, Macpherson.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-10124141/Elle-Macpherson-raises-eyebrows-deleting-Aborigine-ancestry-remarks-Vogue-makeup-tutorial.html

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

22 October, 2021

Supply-Chain Crisis Fuels Latest Retreat From Globalization

Nothing embodied the promise of globalization more than the humble supply chain. Thanks to the integration of production across and within borders, consumers have come to expect infinite variety, instantly available.

That is now under siege. The supply-chain crisis of 2021 is fueling the retreat from globalization, much as the global financial crisis of 2008 did.

Three big forces are driving this latest crisis: Covid-19, climate and geopolitics. All have played a part in the semiconductor shortage that has crippled automotive production world-wide. Covid-19-driven demand for consumer electronics diverted chips from car makers, and virus-control measures interrupted production in Malaysia. Extreme weather idled chip factories in Texas and threatened to do the same in Taiwan. And U.S. tariffs and export bans ran down chip inventories in the U.S. while prompting hoarding by Chinese buyers, according to Chad Bown of the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

Those forces also contributed to Britain’s energy crisis. Covid-19 and Brexit reduced the number of truckers available to deliver fuel while a lack of wind reduced renewable power at a time when natural-gas reserves were low. China’s economy has been tripped up by shutdowns intended to stamp out all Covid-19 outbreaks or meet carbon reduction goals, and coal shortages were aggravated by a punitive ban on imports from Australia for demanding an inquiry into Covid-19’s origins.

Two decades ago, investors and bankers took for granted that credit would always be available at some price and built entire businesses around that premise. The result was a tightly interconnected financial system with no margin for error that seized up in the face of a shock.

Similarly, the supply-chain crisis was made possible by how integrated and efficient global production had become. Businesses adopted outsourcing and offshoring, just-in-time inventories, and “capital-light” models that split design from production. The share of world trade accounted for by global value chains—in which a product crosses at least two borders—rose from 37% in 1970 to 52% in 2008, where it plateaued, according to the World Bank.

Today, companies and governments are waking up to the risks of dependence on far-flung suppliers and the absence of shock absorbers in vital links, from seaborne freight to electricity transmission. For example, there are more than 50 points in the global semiconductor supply chain ”where one region holds more than 65% of the global market share,” according to a report by Boston Consulting Group and the Semiconductor Industry Association. “These are potential single points of failure that could be disrupted by natural disasters, infrastructure shutdowns, or international conflicts.”

Covid-19 is the biggest shock to this system, shutting down production, closing borders and driving workers out of the labor force. A mutating virus, resistance to vaccine mandates and China’s zero-Covid-19 policy all mean Covid-19 remains a threat to the supply chain. But it should recede as natural immunity and vaccination reduce the virus’s lethality and governments outside China conclude restrictions and border closures are too costly a response to outbreaks.

Climate risks are likely to grow, because of both more frequent extreme weather and the transition to renewable energy, which lacks the capacity buffers of fossil fuels. The oil market is global: Supply in one place can meet demand in another. While oil’s price can gyrate, supply almost never disappears thanks to spare OPEC capacity, private inventories and government-maintained emergency reserves. Though less mobile than oil, natural gas can still be stored and, increasingly, exported in liquid form.

By contrast, solar and wind energy are generally consumed as they are generated, and can disappear altogether if wind or sun are absent. “No clean energy OPEC currently holds spare renewable energy capacity in reserve,” notes Kevin Book, research director of advisory ClearView Energy Partners LLC, in a recent report. This can only be solved through investment in transmission and battery storage, which lags far behind investment in generation, the International Energy Agency indicated last week, even as investment in fossil fuels flattens. “Something has to change quickly or global energy markets face a turbulent period ahead,” it warned.

Protectionism has been intruding on supply chains at least since 2008 when the Doha round of global trade talks collapsed. The U.S.-China trade war took those frictions to a new level. In its wake, the U.S., China and Europe are all pursuing self-sufficiency in key sectors such as semiconductors and batteries. Other threats loom, such as green tariffs on high-carbon imports.

Meanwhile, arbitrary import bans and detentions are now routine parts of China’s foreign-policy tool kit, as export controls are part of the U.S.’s. Former President Donald Trump’s regular threat of sanctions and tariffs to further domestic goals ended when he left office, but companies and trading partners must plan for his possible return in a few years.

Not all the pressures on supply chains are against globalization. Technology continues to increase the potential to outsource, especially in services. Nonetheless companies are likely to revisit practices they once took for granted such as holding minimal inventories and sourcing key components from politically risky places. In a report this week, Bank of America equity strategists found companies in the S&P 500 index had 2% more manufacturing locations in the U.S. in 2000 compared with 2018, but 5% fewer in Asia.

Just as the financial crisis drove banks and regulators to prioritize resilience over efficiency, the supply-chain crisis will likely result in production networks more resilient to surprises but less able to delight consumers with ever more choice at ever lower cost.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/supply-chain-crisis-fuels-latest-retreat-from-globalization-11634741616?mod=hp_major_pos3

************************************

'Free Speech' Media Allies with Transgender Tyranny

The left claims that their most urgent battle is to save democracy, but when it comes to any questioning of the LGBT lobby, they are the ones who sound like authoritarians. The overtones are unmistakable in the "news" coverage promoting "dozens" of employees walking out of Netflix in Los Angeles on Oct. 20 in protest. The target? A popular Dave Chappelle comedy special, "The Closer."

Tens of thousands of anti-abortion advocates can assemble and be ignored, but assemble two dozen transgender lobbyists and NBC and PBS will treat it as momentous.

Take NBC's story. Anchor Lester Holt began: "A battle raging inside Netflix for weeks boiled over today. Employees staging a walkout in terms of the streamer's latest Dave Chappelle special in which the comedian mocks transgender people."

Reporter Steve Patterson began: "Tonight, Netflix employees walking out of the company's Hollywood office after weeks of internal backlash." They didn't specify a number of protesters. But the story had all sound bites from one side: the LGBT side. That's unless you count them reading a quote from Netflix CEO/Obama money man Ted Sarandos apologizing profusely for "screwing up" with the outraged radical employees.

NBC featured two angry trans activist sound bites and two sound bites of openly gay Variety "reporter" Matt Donnelly, who acted more like a spokesman for the protesters. He said Sarandos originally "did not feel it was hate speech, which went down incredibly badly with Netflix's trans and LGBTQ-plus employees." NBC noted the in-house protesters made a list of demands, and Donnelly added, "I think that Netflix is going to have to put its money where its mouth is. This specific bloc of employees are galvanized to continue to hold them accountable."

For what? NBC's stilted story failed to offer one clip or quote or explanation of what Chappelle said that was offensive. We can guess it's because the comedian said "gender is a fact," and, "Every human being on Earth had to pass through the legs of a woman to be on Earth. That is a fact." Is that somehow too horrific for NBC to include?

NBC also shamelessly failed to report that there were counterprotesters sticking up for Chappelle right there at this walkout. In the video, you can briefly see a protester holding up a "Jokes Are Funny" sign, but otherwise, NBC couldn't offer one hint of dissent.

Over on the "PBS NewsHour," anchor Amna Nawaz displayed the taxpayer-funded network's allegiances by putting on trans woman Imara Jones of TransLash Media. No debate allowed. Nawaz attempted one question about free speech in comedy. "They just say comedy is supposed to be provocative. Shouldn't there be a space for that?"

Jones fiercely said there's no space for that. "Well, it's also supposed to be intelligent. And there's nothing intelligent about mocking trans people. There's nothing interesting or provocative about mocking trans people." She argued Chappelle offered "essentially hate speech disguised as jokes."

So, stating that human babies come out of women is "hate speech."

Right before her comedy question, Nawaz assisted Jones by offering gay-lobby estimates. "The data does speak volumes here. According to Human Rights Campaign, 2021 is set to be the most violent year on record for transgender and gender-nonconforming people." Make a joke and you're responsible for murder?

Jones concluded, "Netflix may become a stigma brand. That is to say, it may no longer be a place where you're proud to say that you work... Netflix could be in real trouble." And so our "free speech" media offers themselves as eager allies with trans tyranny over what kind of speech can be allowed.

https://townhall.com/columnists/timgraham/2021/10/22/free-speech-media-allies-with-transgender-tyranny-n2597846

******************************************

Royal Opera House to review classic works as it makes overture to Black Lives Matter

For centuries the spectacle of opera has transported audiences from Mozart’s Ottoman seraglios to Bizet’s Spanish bullrings.

But the Royal Opera House has now pledged to reexamine classic works to make sure future performances account for “cultural sensitivities”.

Operas in the repertoire will be assessed to ensure that they are “suitable” for modern audiences as part of a raft of reforms drafted in the wake of Black Lives Matter protests.

The staging, casting, and costumes of classic works will all be reviewed as the Royal Opera House (ROH) seeks to address what it has branded its own “flawed” history.

The home to both The Royal Opera and The Royal Ballet is now “taking a fresh look at much of our repertory, including productions which engage with different cultures historically”.

The ROH said: “Our repertory contains a raft of work both contemporary and historical.

“To ensure we present these stories in a way that is suitable and enjoyable for modern audiences, both our artistic companies consult widely to ensure that the Royal Opera House takes account of all cultural sensitivities in its staging, casting and presentation of much-loved historic works.”

Productions of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly and Verdi’s Aida by companies around the world have been criticized in the past for casting white performers in the roles of the Japanese geisha and Ethiopian princess respectively.

At present, the ROH does not require performers to share the ethnicity of the character they play, but the organisation has said in an “anti-racism pledge” that it will “further debate this approach with staff, artists and experts in the field”.

Currently, the ROH does “not use make-up to suggest or to mask ethnicity”.

The ROH has also pledged to ensure “culturally sensitive costuming, wigs, and make-up” by providing costumes and make-up suitable for performers from a range of backgrounds.

Black ballet dancers have long pointed out that traditional pink ballet shoes are made to match the skin of white dancers.

The visual staging of classic operas is also set to be reviewed, with the ROH pledging to extend diversity to production design.

The work is part of an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy first announced in May 2021, one year after the organisation pledged to take action in the wake of Black Lives Matter protests.

Introducing its plans, the ROH said: “It is important to recognise that our history is flawed and our record on diversity has been inconsistent.”

It is stated in the plan that the ROH, which has this week announced a programme to celebrate Black History Month, will work to “ensure our future artistic programming and other activities are rooted in cultural authenticity”.

Operas which could be reviewed© Provided by The Telegraph Operas which could be reviewed

For those behind the scenes, the ROH has also confirmed that it has now successfully rolled out compulsory anti-racism training for managers.

A spokesman for the ROH said that: “Since we implemented our new strategy in May 2021, equality, diversity and inclusion is now firmly prioritised as a leading pillar of work across all parts of the organisation.

“Compulsory anti-racism training has been rolled out for all managers.

“The anti-racism training… is focused on individuals’ experiences, resulting in practical actions.”

Other policies outlined in its strategy include “a target of at least 30 roles per season being taken by ethnically diverse singers and at least three to four of these lead or title roles,” in a bid to improve diversity in opera and ballet.

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/entertainment/music/royal-opera-house-to-review-classic-works-as-it-makes-overture-to-black-lives-matter/ar-AAPIsEe

*********************************************

Ten-year-old black schoolgirl arrested over ‘upsetting’ drawing

The Hawaii ACLU is demanding change from the state Department of Education and HPD following the arrest of a 10-year-old girl last year.

The incident happened last January at Honowai Elementary School in Waipahu.

The ACLU and an attorney for the family says the 10-year-old girl’s rights were violated when she was detained and questioned without her mom.

She was then handcuffed and brought to jail without being charged with a crime, the ACLU said.

“That’s just straight up wrong,” said ACLU of Hawaii Legal Director Wookie Kim. “And there’s nothing that condones or justifies that.”

In a letter to the DOE and HPD, the ACLU said the girl identified as “N.B.” — who has ADHD — participated in drawing an offensive sketch of another student in response to being bullied.

“The next day, a parent of one of the kids who received this drawing, was very upset and essentially demanded that they call the police,” said attorney Mateo Caballero, who is representing the student and her mother.

Hawaii News Now asked to see the drawing, but was denied.

“We don’t want it to be about the drawing,” said Cabellero. “This is about a 10-year-old Black girl who was arrested and there was no reason to believe that she was violent.”

“She didn’t bring any any weapons to school, she didn’t make any explicit threats to anyone.”

The ACLU said the school also detained the student’s mother, Tamara Taylor, in a room and would not let her see her daughter.

Taylor said officers told her that they were negotiating with a parent about the matter involving her daughter, and that she wasn’t allowed to speak with her.

“N.B. should have been allowed to be with her parent who was sequestered in another room in the same school at that very time as police officers were interrogating 10-year-old N.B.,” said Kim.

A few days after the incident, Taylor delivered a grievance letter to the school and Leeward District Complex Area Superintendent Keith Hui, which stated in part:

“Although I was at Honowai Elementary, I was not told that my daughter was removed from the premises, handcuffed in front of staff and her peers, placed into a squad car and taken away.”

“I was stripped of my rights as a parent and my daughter was stripped of her right to protection and representation as a minor. There was no understanding of diversity, African-American culture and the history of police involvement with African-American youth. My daughter and I are traumatized from these events and I’m disheartened to know that this day will live with my daughter forever.”

N.B. was released to her mother at the Pearl City Police Station.

“The HPD followed the proper protocol, but we must remember that the DOE is the complainant in this situation,” said retired federal agent Tommy Aiu. “They’re the ones that called HPD.”

“HPD must act on the complaint levied by the school and that’s why the child was taken into technical custody to the station then released to her parents.”

https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2021/10/19/aclu-10-year-old-girl-was-arrested-hawaii-public-school-drawing-picture-that-upset-parent/

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

21 October, 2021

UK: Priti Patel announces fines or jail for Travellers [Gypsies] who trespass

Long overdue

Travellers and trespassers who leave piles of rubbish, cause noise or generate smell from bonfires will face up to three months in prison under a government crackdown to be announced today.

Priti Patel, the home secretary, will announce additions to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, which MPs will debate.

The changes are aimed at those who set up camp illegally on private or public land. They will cover “excessive littering, noise or smell”, the Home Office said, including, for example, bonfire smoke. Individuals could also be prosecuted if they verbally abuse or intimidate local residents. Even if local residents “fear leaving their house to avoid walking past an encampment” it could land Travellers in trouble.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/priti-patel-announces-fines-or-jail-for-travellers-who-trespass-mt35twdvv

*****************************************

Liberal Anti-Semitism Strikes Again

Caroline writes here about how the progressive climate-activist group Sunrise DC just withdrew from speaking at a D.C. statehood rally over the participation of Jewish organizations:

The Washington, D.C., chapter of climate activist organization Sunrise movement canceled its speaking appearance at a rally for D.C. statehood and federal voting legislation over Zionist Jewish groups’ participation in the event.

Sunrise DC cited the Jewish Council on Public Affairs, the National Council of Jewish Women, and the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism as groups that support Zionism and the State of Israel in its withdrawal letter.

“Given our commitment to racial justice, self-governance, and indigenous sovereignty, we oppose Zionism and any state that enforces its ideology,” the statement read.

The organization then accused Israel, which it called a “colonial project,” of illegally occupying Palestine and engaging in “violent oppressive tactics that go against the values we advocate for as a hub.”

Sunrise DC also urged a sponsor of the march to revoke the groups’ membership in its coalition.

This reminds me of an incident over the summer when organizers of a Philadelphia food festival disinvited the cooks behind an Israeli food truck, apparently fearing protests over their presence.

In the fallout from this decision, the event, which was supposed to celebrate diversity, was canceled. An organizer also claimed they had to shut things down because a Palestinian food truck couldn’t also attend — creating a presumably unacceptable imbalance in what style of falafel people would chew.

The entire episode was idiotic and smacked of anti-Semitism. The same is true here.

Let’s look at the groups that Sunrise DC finds to be “incompatible.”

Jewish Council for Public Affairs: They support a two-state solution along with a strong U.S.–Israel relationship; they oppose the BDS movement; they speak out on behalf of climate justice and racial justice; they oppose policies like the Muslim travel ban.

National Council of Jewish Women: They seek to empower Israeli and American women; they advocate for abortion access; they fight “xenophobic, anti-immigrant, and anti-refugee policies.”

Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism: They advocate for racial justice, economic justice, and reform of the criminal-justice system . . . as well as “religious pluralism within Israel” and foreign aid for Israel’s security.

This is standard progressive-advocacy fare. The only areas out of alignment concern their focus on anti-Semitism and their open support for the existence of Israel and for its security (not necessarily for every action taken by the government of Israel), often balanced out with support for democracy, pluralism, and the peace process.

But that’s not enough. Groups such as Sunrise DC appear incapable of viewing Jewish-aligned groups — even chefs! — in America as distinct from the Israeli government and its policies. It’s the kind of generalizing they’re supposed to stand against. These outfits support Israel and its right to exist, without being in lockstep all the time; just this month, one organization affiliated with the Religious Action Center condemned attacks by West Bank settlers on Palestinians and pressured the Israeli government to investigate.

Surely, the many colors of the progressive rainbow could find room in their tent for such a group. Instead, they perpetuate a self-defeating and self-refuting cycle. Rigid enforcement of a narrowly defined doctrine of inclusivity and equality ends up excluding anyone holding even slightly differing views, in this case amounting to that one particular type of discrimination that just doesn’t rate these days.

https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/liberal-anti-semitism-strikes-again/

**********************************************

How "Prevent" became 'political correctness' battleground

The UK's flagship anti-terror strategy is being undermined by a politically correct emphasis on right-wing extremism over more dangerous Islamist radicalism, critics have said - as a review prepares to overhaul the 'broken' system.

Prevent has come under fresh scrutiny after it emerged Ali Harbi Ali, the suspected terrorist accused of murdering Tory MP David Amess, was referred to the programme but his case was not deemed enough of a risk to be passed on to MI5.

Prevent is said to be spending growing amounts of time and money combating other types of extremists, such as the far-Right, even though they make up a smaller proportion of the threat to national security.

In recent years, much of its resources have been diverted to tracking suspected right-wing extremists, the far-right made up 43% (302) of cases considered among the most serious last year compared to just 30% (210) concerning Islamism, official data shows.

By comparison, in 2015/16, 262 cases (69%) were for Muslim extremism and 98 (26%) for far right. The number of cases counted as serious far-right extremism has increased year on year since then, while Islamist ones have fluctuated.

Today, an intelligence source said that 'although some right-wing extremists are dangerous people... by and large they are hoodlums'.

'They do not present the same risk as Islamists by any distance, by a factor of four or five to one,' the source told the Telegraph. 'Everyone was trying very hard to be politically correct and not Islamophobic. But the whole process has become unbalanced.

'More time has been spent than appropriate on right-wing extremism and not Islamism. There needs to be some honest appraisal about where the threat is actually coming from.'

It comes amid fears of a growing threat from so-called 'bedroom radicals' who have soaked up extreme beliefs from the Internet over lockdown.

Intelligence agencies are struggling to monitor these people because of the difficulty of distinguishing between those spewing hate-filled propaganda and genuine terrorists, security sources told the Times.

Since 2015/16, there has been an 80% drop in the number of initial referrals over concerns of Islamic radicalisation and a steady increase in those concerning far-right beliefs +7

Since 2015/16, there has been an 80% drop in the number of initial referrals over concerns of Islamic radicalisation and a steady increase in those concerning far-right beliefs

Prevent places a duty on local public servants including teachers, doctors and social workers to flag concerns about an individual being radicalised or drawn into terrorism.

Since 2015/16, there has been an 80% drop in the number of initial referrals over concerns of Islamic radicalisation and a steady increase in those concerning far-right beliefs.

While alleged cases of Islamic extremism were slightly more common for initial Prevent referrals last year - at 24% (1,487 referrals) to 22% (1,387) for far-right cases - they were less common at the Channel phase.

At this point - after cases deemed to be less serious were filtered out - suspected right-wing extremists made up 43% (302) of cases versus just 30% (210) concerning Islamism, Home Office figures show.

The Henry Jackson Society argued that counter-extremism professionals had 'lost sight of their duty to prevent terrorism'.

'There has been an under-referral of Islamist cases and an over-referral of extreme Right-wing cases and we are now seeing the deadly consequences,' the think tank said.

'The Prevent review has been derailed by Left-wing groups trying to litigate every aspect of its work and yet a cold hard look at the number of cases in which Prevent has fallen short shows this is only the latest in a long line.'

A security source told the Times: 'Police and security-focused agencies are more likely to put people on to support programmes.

'The NHS, schools, local authorities and other agencies are often much weaker at intervention because they don't want to antagonise faith groups.'

Sources say the Prevent review, led by former Charity Commission chair William Shawcross, is also expected to recommend that 'inconsistent, disorganised and unstructured' panels of up to 20 people are slashed down to five.

Another likely recommendation will be to place suspected extremists on three-year deradicalisation programmes rather than the current one, it is claimed.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10106889/How-Prevent-political-correctness-battleground.html

***********************************************

Australia must fix a few problems before we can increase immigration

Abul Rizvi

In the past week we have seen NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet, federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry advocate for much higher levels of immigration.

State bureaucrats have pushed Perrottet to lobby for an increase in Australia’s net migration to an unprecedented 400,000 a year for five years. The ACCI is calling for the government to issue 200,000 skilled migrant visas annually. And Frydenberg says Australia needs to rethink its migration targets after losing almost 100,000 people last financial year.

Only once in our history has net migration been a little more than 300,000 and that was just before the global financial crisis. I am not suggesting immigration had anything to do with that crisis, but net migration fluctuates with economic conditions, particularly the labour market. While the labour market is weak right now, there are predictions it will bounce back next year.

When John Howard was prime minister, I was responsible for firstly managing Australia’s immigration intake down, and then increasing it again from about 2001. Oddly enough, I found increasing numbers was more difficult than cutting them.

One of the challenges was that while the smaller states and regional Australia wanted more immigration, the NSW government insisted Sydney was full and any increase in the intake had to be directed away from Sydney. Presumably, Perrottet does not have the same concerns.

Leaving aside “trivial” questions of whether our infrastructure and services such as health, education, housing and transport can be ramped up quickly enough to accommodate the proposed unprecedented increase in immigration, the immediate question is how the increase would be designed and delivered.

The crucial means by which we increased immigration from 2001 was through an increase in overseas students, with clear pathways to permanent residence. These pathways became far more opaque from about 2008-09, but overseas students still represented more than 44 per cent of net migration in 2018-19.

The decision to make the pathways to permanent residency less clear has left hundreds of thousands of overseas students and graduates who have moved on to temporary visas to develop their skills in immigration limbo.

Despite huge numbers of students completing accounting degrees and accounting firms saying they can’t find qualified accountants, these students are struggling to secure jobs using their qualifications, which makes it harder for them to stay in Australia.

This is the status quo in many occupations. The business sector and education providers must address this problem before we again boost student numbers. Education providers need to encourage students to enrol in courses that meet long-term demand in Australia. And they must ensure they are teaching content and skills employers need. Employers too must be prepared to give students the chance to develop their skills without exploiting them.

Even if these problems are addressed, returning to pre-pandemic international student levels will not be simple given our tensions with China – our largest student source country – and the fact the student visa policy was tightened in 2019 for students from India, Nepal and other major source countries.

Some increase in immigration could be achieved by fixing the problems Peter Dutton created as immigration minister, when he made employer-sponsored visas more expensive, more complex and more restricted, leading to a significant decline in their use. But this will not be nearly enough to deliver the numbers NSW and ACCI want.

To reach these figures, the federal government will need to make it easier for older people and people with more limited English and/or lower skill levels to migrate to Australia. This risks large numbers of new migrants finding it even harder to secure a job using their qualifications, and with no access to social support for four years, many would have to accept very low paying and highly exploitative jobs to avoid becoming destitute.

As a country, we need to ask ourselves if that is a consequence we are willing to accept.

https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/we-must-fix-a-few-problems-before-we-can-increase-immigration-20211020-p591qf.html

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

20 October, 2021

NY Officials Vote to Scrap City Hall's Thomas Jefferson Statue

A statue of Thomas Jefferson that has watched over the New York City Council in its chambers for more than a century will be removed after city leaders voted unanimously to get rid of the monument.

The vote means that the likeness of America's third president — one that's been in city council chambers since 1915 — will be relocated by the New York Historical Society to a museum where more "context" can be added to the display.

According to members of the council's Black, Latino, and Asian Caucus who'd pushed for the statue's removal, Jefferson's presence in the chamber was "a constant reminder of the injustices that have plagued communities of color since the inception of our country."

For these social justice warriors, statues of the men who created our revolutionary system of government are "disturbing images" and erasing their visages is the "right step" to take.

For his part, Democrat Mayor Bill de Blasio refused to defend the statue in the days before the vote and said he assumed that the statue would be removed by officials.

Rep. Nicole Malliotakis — a Republican who represents portions of New York City — called out New York's leaders for trying to remove not just the likeness of Jefferson from City Hall, but seeking to remove his values from city government.

The warning from Rep. Malliotakis follows a prescient prediction from then-President Donald Trump in 2017 who warned the left's erasure of history would not stop when the mob got to America's founders such as Thomas Jefferson and George Washington. Trump was widely mocked by the mainstream media at the time, but the New York City Council has again proven his worry over American history was justified.

Signe Nielsen, the individual overseeing statues and other art in properties owned by New York City added another warning in a hearing before the city council voted to remove the Jefferson statue: "There are 700 pieces of art under our jurisdiction, we cannot make a rash decision that will set a precedent for the other 699 pieces of artwork that may also have challenges from people or other groups of people."

For the woke New York City Council, it doesn't matter that Jefferson played a pivotal role in American — and world — history, nor that his belief in universal innate equality proved to be the intellectual root of the abolition of slavery in the United States. For them, as Malliotakis pointed out, removing founders' statues is about getting rid of touchstones that might evoke ideals of liberty.

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/spencerbrown/2021/10/19/nyc-votes-to-remove-city-halls-thomas-jefferson-statue-n2597670

**********************************************

Anti-Semitic DC Councilman Who Thought Jews Control the Weather Is Running for Mayor

I mean, this probably isn’t shocking. Washington DC has had its fair share of terrible people running for mayor. They’ve had terrible people occupying that office. The late Marion Barry was elected to the office, went to jail for smoking crack, got out, ran again—and won. So, when an anti-Semitic DC council member decided that he’s going to run for mayor—should we really be surprised? Trayon White was engulfed in controversy in 2018 for saying that Jewish people controlled the weather. He did some penance by attending a tour of the Holocaust Museum, but he reportedly left early. He survived this public relations fiasco of course—it’s DC. It’s the most Democratic of cities (via Fox News):

A D.C. Council member who made national headlines in 2018 after suggesting that Jewish financiers control the weather is now running for mayor in the district.

Ward 8 Council member Trayon White Sr., a Democrat, is throwing his hat in the ring to possibly unseat Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser, who has not yet announced whether she intends to seek another term.

"He has a tremendous amount of support coming his way because he is willing to speak out for and advocate for those who need the leadership the most," an adviser for White told local media Wednesday.

[…]

Trayon White sparked a firestorm in March of 2018 after he filmed himself driving through downtown Washington as snowflakes fell on his windshield and ranted about "climate manipulation."

"And D.C. keep talking about, ‘We’re a resilient city.’ And that’s a model based off the Rothschilds controlling the climate to create natural disasters they can pay for to own the cities, man," he said in the now-deleted video. "Be careful."

In any other situation, this would be a disqualifying incident. Actually, any other people would probably be forced to resign or be outright fired, but this is Washington DC. Say something stupid, act like you didn’t know what you said was horrible, and then bank on the media to not really care after a couple days.

The Rothschilds reference is a dead giveaway that he probably knew what he was saying was anti-Semitic and wrong. That’s a very specific swipe at this group of people. At any rate, anyone who gets elected or re-elected to this office is going to be garbage, so I’m just glad I don’t live in that hell hole.

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/mattvespa/2021/10/18/antisemitic-dc-councilman-who-thought-jews-control-the-weather-is-running-for-mayor-n2597608

***********************************************

'The World Has Gone Mad': Bari Weiss Tells Brian Stelter How CNN and MSM Perpetuate Cancel Culture

Substack writer Bari Weiss explained to CNN host Brian Stelter on Sunday how the mainstream media, like CNN, helps perpetuate the worst aspects of cancel culture.

Stelter asked why Weiss thinks the "world has gone mad."

“Well, you know, when you have the chief reporter on the beat of COVID for The New York Times talking about how questioning or pursuing the question of the lab leak is racist, the world has gone mad. When you’re not able to say out loud and in public that there are differences between men and women, the world has gone mad. When we’re not allowed to acknowledge that rioting is rioting, and it is bad, and that silence is not violence, but violence is violence, the world has gone mad," Weiss said.

"You say we’re not allowed, we’re not able. Who’s the people stopping the conversation? Who are they?" Stelter asked.

"People that work at networks, frankly, like the one I’m speaking on right now, who try and claim that you know, it was — it was racist to investigate the lab leak theory," Weiss replied.

"But I’m just saying though when you say allowed, I just think it’s a provocative thing you say —you say — you say we’re not allowed to talk about these things," Stelter said. "But they’re all over the Internet. I can Google them and I can find them everywhere. I’ve heard about every story you mentioned.”

Weiss noted many subjects have become "third rail" issues where even hinting at the notion of not believing what the vast majority believe can be detrimental to one's career or professional life. She used the example of Dorian Abbott, a geophysicist at the University of Chicago, who had a lecture canceled from MIT after an online mob voiced outrage over his argument "that people should be hired on the basis of their merit and their individual — you know, in their individuality, not based on their identity as a group."

"Now, you can say to me, 'Oh, that’s cherry-picking; oh, that’s a one-off.' What are the downstream effects of an example like that? Every other scientist, every other academic who’s watching that is saying, 'Wait, hold on. If he’s being canceled for that, what does that mean for me? I might as well shut up. I might as well practice double-think in the freest society in the history of the world,'" Weiss said.

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/juliorosas/2021/10/18/bari-weiss-cnns-brian-stelter-what-is-wrong-with-cancel-culture-n2597588

***************************************

Biden Called Trump’s Remain in Mexico Policy ‘Inhumane’; Now He’s Begging to Reinstate It

On the 2020 campaign trail, President Joe Biden repeatedly demonized then-President Donald Trump for his treatment of immigrants. Now that he is in office, Biden is realizing that securing the border is a lot harder than he predicted.

On Thursday, the Biden administration told courts it was planning to reinstate Trump’s “Remain in Mexico” policy, The Hill reported.

The policy, formally known as the Migrant Protection Protocols, required asylum-seekers to stay in Mexico while awaiting their case determinations instead of living in the United States.

It is the exact same policy Biden called “inhumane” and “dangerous” just a year and a half ago.

According to CNN, Biden initially kept his campaign promise and officially ended the policy on June 1 of this year.

Now, as record numbers of illegal immigrants flood the U.S. border, the Biden administration has been reduced to begging Mexico for the policy’s reinstatement.

In April, the states of Missouri and Texas sued the Department of Homeland Security for suspending the policy. They won the suit at the district court level, as wells as appeals to both the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court, Fox News reported.

If Mexico agrees to terms, the DHS must take action to reimplement the policy. But thanks to the Biden administration, that is a big “if.”

After the president ended the policy, Mexico apparently decided they were not so fond of it either.

DHS filings from Thursday said, “Mexico has made clear that it has concerns about aspects of how MPP was previously implemented, and that without certain improvements to the program, it will not decide to accept MPP enrollees.”

Since the individuals would be sent to their country, Mexico has a good bit of leverage in negotiations about the policy.

According to the filings, Mexico’s proposed changes to the policy include the U.S. promising to rule on all asylum cases in six months, as well as increased protections against sending “particularly vulnerable populations” to Mexico.

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt accused the DHS of dragging out the process in a statement obtained by Fox News.

“In April, we sued the Biden Administration over their cancellation of the ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy and won at the district court, 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, and at the United States Supreme Court, requiring the Biden Administration to reimplement the policy,” he said.

“Despite multiple courts ordering the Biden Administration to reimplement the policy, they have repeatedly slow-walked that reimplementation. The ‘Remain in Mexico’ Policy should be implemented today, especially as the crisis at the border continues to worsen every single day. We have taken concrete action to secure the border, it’s time for the Biden Administration to do the same.”

https://flagandcross.com/biden-called-trumps-remain-in-mexico-policy-inhumane-now-hes-begging-to-reinstate-it/

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

19 October, 2021

Rioters tore through Portland causing more than $500,000 worth of damage - but cops did NOTHING because woke new law stops them using pepper spray or tear gas

At least 100 self-proclaimed anarchists tore through Portland, setting dumpsters aflame, smashing windows and causing $500,000 in damage, but police stood idle because of a new state law that restricts how law enforcement can respond to riots.

The city just reached the 'grim' milestone of 1,000 shootings through 2021 in what has been a year of destructive protests, violent street clashes and a police staffing crisis.

Now police say a recently passed law ties their hands even further as it prohibits police from using crowd control techniques like pepper spray or tear gas. Instead, law enforcement agencies are told to rely on follow-up investigations to hold rioters accountable.

Portland's latest round of violence broke out after a memorial for Sean Kealiher, an Antifa activist who was struck and killed by an SUV in October 2019 after getting in a fight with the driver at a bar earlier that night.

Police have not made any arrests in connection to Kealiher's death, though his mother Laura believes they have identified the culprits, according to the Oregonian/Oregon Live. She organized last Tuesday's protest on Twitter, writing that it was 'not a peaceful event' and dubbing it 'a night of rage and anger.'

She delivered on her promise as police say 35 separate locations were targeted - including banks, retail stores, coffee shops, and government buildings.

Beginning at 10pm, the mob ran amok through the streets and shattered windows, setting fires, spraying graffiti messages like 'anarchy means attack,' 'riots work,' and 'breaking windows is good.'

'The reason that we did not intervene goes back to what we talked about last month with House Bill 2928 and the restrictions placed on us in a crowd control environment,' Portland Police Lt. Jake Jensen said in a Pearl District Neighborhood Association meeting, as reported by KOIN. 'That's the way the legislature said we need to operate in a crowd control environment so that's how we're going to act in a crowd control environment.'

House Bill 2928, whose chief sponsors are Democratic Representative Janelle Bynum and Republican Representative Ronald Noble, bans police from using force to respond to riots and charges any violations as second degree official misconduct.

Jensen said, 'The fact of the matter is without being able to use pepper spray, without being able to use our 40 millimeter less lethal devices in that kind of environment really prevents us from having access to the tools that we need in large part to keep us safe.'

Jensen added that the issue wouldn't be solved by adding officers, as many officers were at the scene of the riots last Tuesday and could not intervene.

Residents frustrated by the violence last Tuesday questioned whether that meant anything goes now in Portland.

'Does that mean we are now like a lawless city? Anybody could come in and just bash around and do all the damage that they want without any repercussions whatsoever?' Linda Witt asked during the meeting with police.

Jensen explained that rioters could only facer consequences retroactively and said, 'Well certainly not without any repercussions, the consequences are gonna come not on the night of, but through follow up investigation.'

He added that they're looking for ways around the issue like using shields.

'The law clearly allows Portland Police to use effective tools necessary to control violent crowds,' House Minority Leader Christine Drazan told The Associated Press on Friday. 'However, activist attorneys are deliberately misinterpreting legislation to prevent police from intervening. They have no business putting law enforcement and community safety at risk.'

The exception to the new law is when the circumstances constitute a riot and if the officer using the chemical incapacitant reasonably believes its use is necessary to stop and prevent more destructive behavior.

Portland Police Sgt. Kevin Allen told the Associated Press that officers have been made aware of the 'potential implications' of the legislation and that it´s being analyzed by the city attorney´s office.

'Until we have some clarity on the bill we have to follow the most restrictive interpretation of it,' Allen said.

Authorities say although police did not directly intervene, officers did give direction to disperse over a loudspeaker and a Mobile Field Force moved in, at which point the crowd splintered.

Portland has seen ongoing, often violent protests since the murder of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis. Some activists have complained that the police have been heavy handed in their response.

In August, Mayor Ted Wheeler ordered local police officers to not intervene unless civilians were seriously getting hurt or a 'life safety emergency' occurred.

This saw members aligned with the Proud Boys and Antifa fighting each other with paintball guns, bats and chemical sprays. One of the most intense of the frays centered on a conservative rally called the Summer of Love, where police ended up getting involved when the groups exchanged gunfire.

Just two months earlier, Portland's 50-person riot squad resigned in response to the indictment of member Corey Budworth for assault during an incident in which he allegedly struck photographer Teri Jacobs in the head during a riot in August 2020.

Jacobs says she was attacked despite carrying a press card. She was not charged with any crime, and received a $50,000 settlement from the City of Portland as a result of the baton strike. Cops have continued to insist she was part of a violent protest at the time in which rioters set a government building alight with a petrol bomb.

In December 2020, Portland was also home to an 'autonomous zone', known as the 'Red House occupation' due to its location in a red foreclosed home, that had been been built by Antifa activists and other criminal agitators in North Portland.

Similar to Seattle's 'Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone' (CHAZ), the Red House occupation scaled about two and a half blocks in which activists set up homemade booby traps, including spike strips, to keep police vehicles out from the area.

There were stockpiles of weapons, Portland Police reported, and strategically placed piles of rocks around the interior and exterior for activists to use as weapons should police make an attempt at entry. There were guards protecting the zone, a stocked kitchen serving two free meals a day, and a nearby coffee shop supportive of the movement providing free coffee, Fox News reported.

Numerous attempts from police to barge into the house proved to be unsuccessful, but the autonomous zone had been dismantled after Portland's mayor brokered a deal with protesters — and apologized to them.

Mayor Ted Wheeler’s office confirmed a deal had been struck, though it was not clear if the house was ever sold back to the Kinneys, the family that was evicted after defaulting on a second mortgage taken out to pay a relative’s legal fees in a criminal case, according to the Red House on Mississippi, a group of social justice activists.

Mayor Ted Wheeler did not publicly address Tuesday's violence.

Among the damaged buildings was locally-owned Elephants Delicatessen. Anne Weaver and her husband have owned the metro area's seven Elephants Deli locations for a couple of decades. Their location at SW 1st and Salmon opened just before the start of the 2020 riots and pandemic and had never been vandalized before now, according to KOIN.

Weaver told the news outlet, 'We always try to be the business for the force of good. We're a B Corp and we strongly believe in equity and social justice… We provide meals to shelters and homeless and partner with all kinds of organizations all the time, even through COVID.'

Weaver said one of their managers at the World Trade Center location told them Wednesday morning that five huge windows had been broken.

'Just immense sadness, you know, here we were thinking we had maybe turned the corner of this really, really arduous hard time we've all endured coming on two years now,' she said.

Weaver said the deli will close early starting this week and that, despite the damage, she still has hope the city can recover.

She said, 'I'm still optimistic that we're going to get this thing figured out and that they'll be some healing and growth and beautiful Portland again, I believe it in my soul. The cup's always half full with Elephants — we're always eternally optimistic.'

Chief Chuck Lovell told KOIN, 'I'm concerned about the brazen criminal acts that took place downtown last night. I want to assure those who were victimized that investigations are underway, and we will do whatever we can to identify and arrest those who were responsible. We ask that anyone with information please reach out to us. Thank you to all the officers who responded to a challenging situation.'

On Saturday, Lovell posted a series of tweets regarding the city's gun violence issues. His first read, 'This week we passed a grim milestone. @PortlandPolice has now documented over 1,000 shootings this year. Too many have prematurely ended lives and caused injury. But all shootings cause trauma to our community.'

He added, 'I'm happy to work with our partners addressing this terrible problem and do our part. The Enhanced Community Safety Team is working hard to investigate these cases, and I call on the community to share information with them so we can arrest those committing gun crimes.'

'We're also working hard at building the Focused Intervention Team, which has a goal to deescalate and lower the tensions in the community that are feeding the contagious gun violence crisis. I'm looking forward to making more announcements about that soon.'

'Thank you to our officers, sergeants, criminalists, and detectives who have responded to every one of these shootings, performing trauma first aid and comforting victims, and gathering critical evidence. This crisis affects you too and your efforts are deeply appreciated.'

Meanwhile, a Portland gun violence unit has been having trouble recruiting new officers after it was dismantled during last year's calls to defund the police and brought back when gun violence shot up this year.

Since May, only four people have applied to 14 spots on the Portland Police Department's new Focused Intervention Team.

The original Gun Violence Reduction Team was shut down after the Portland City Council voted to cut $15 million from the police budget and eliminate 84 sworn positions last June.

In August, Lovell told KPTV that he's not sure how he's going to fill the remaining positions on the new anti-gun violence team.

'I'm not 100 percent sure yet where those officers will come from,' Lovell said. 'We're to the point now, staffing-wise, where being able to do this means greatly impacting our ability to do something else.'

Last year's cuts included the gun violence team, which was singled out because 52 percent of its stops in 2019 were of Black people, who make up just 5.8 percent of the city's population, according to the Wall Street Journal

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10103603/Portland-hit-100-person-riot-police-dont-react-law-banning-crowd-control-techniques.html

******************************************

Sir Henry Morton Stanley statue subjected to vote on whether to toppled amid BLM protests

The bronze bust of Sir Henry Morton Stanley - who is best known for the famous line: "Dr Livingstone, I presume?" - has been stood for a decade in his Welsh town of Denbigh. However, in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests, the statue could be torn down.

Chairman of Denbigh town councillor Rhys Thomas said: "I need to keep neutral on all of this.

"I think it's been active on Facebook, but there we are. "It is something a few people are quite interested in on either side."

Councillor Glen Swingler said: "I think the feeling in town is very mixed. "I've noticed on social media over the last couple of days that those coming out against it, they've got a bit more vociferous. "It's not getting nasty. I wouldn't like to guess which way any sort of vote would go, but then again, I don't know how many people are actually going to go out and vote."

He added: "I will vote, yes. I've got my own opinions, but I will vote as it is my right."

https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1506065/sir-henry-morton-stanley-statue-black-lives-matter-victorian-explorer-wales-latest-news-up

****************************************

UK: Dominic Raab attacks 'nonsense' of Human Rights Act

Legal experts have responded with alarm to suggestions from justice secretary Dominic Raab that he will legislate to “correct” court judgments in human rights cases that go against the government.

The former head of the government’s legal service, Jonathan Jones, branded the deputy prime minister’s proposals “muddled”, while a professor of public law at Cambridge University said they were “deeply troubling” and that they threatened to undermine basic standards of good governance.

Mr Raab announced plans to “overhaul” the Human Rights Act to reduce the influence of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester earlier this month.

In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, he said that he was devising a mechanism to allow ministers to introduce ad hoc legislation to “correct” court judgments, whether passed by the ECHR in Strasbourg or by UK judges, which he regards as creating new law through “judicial legislation” rather than the decisions of elected politicians.

“We will get into the habit of legislating on a more periodic basis and thinking about the mechanism for that,” he said. “Where there have been judgments that – albeit properly and duly delivered by the courts – we think are wrong, the right thing is for parliament to legislate to correct them.”

Mr Raab said it was wrong for the European judges to “dictate” to the UK on how its armed forces, police, welfare system and health service should operate. “We want the Supreme Court to have a last word on interpreting the laws of the land, not the Strasbourg court,” he said.

“We also want to protect and preserve the prerogatives of parliament from being whittled away by judicial legislation, abroad or indeed at home.”

Human rights lawyer Jessica Simor QC, of Matrix Chambers, said that Mr Raab was peddling a “false narrative” that foreign judges were ruling over the UK court system, when in fact the Human Rights Act was introduced specifically to ensure that British people were able to have their rights upheld in a domestic court rather than having to go to the ECHR.

Watering down its provisions would simply mean more complaints going to Strasbourg and more rulings against the UK, unless the government intended to pull Britain out of the European Convention on Human Rights altogether, which would be “a step into a dark place for this country and the world”, warned Ms Simor.

Mr Jones – who quit as the government’s top lawyer in 2020 in protest at Boris Johnson’s plans to breach international law in the row over the post-Brexit Irish border – said there was “lots of muddle” in Mr Raab’s proposals.

As parliament is already able to legislate to correct flaws in the law, it appeared Mr Raab was trying to use a new mechanism to allow ministers to take this step without obtaining MPs’ approval, he said.

“We’ve had (Brexit minister) Lord Frost proposing a ‘tailored mechanism’ for accelerating changes to retained EU law,” said Mr Jones.

“Now Mr Raab suggests a mechanism for ‘correcting’ court judgments. What can such mechanisms mean other than more hasty policy, less scrutiny, a reduced role for parliament?”

Cambridge professor of public law Mark Elliott pointed to a recent Supreme Court ruling, saying that allowing a minister to overrule a decision of the judiciary simply because he did not agree with it would cut across “principles that are fundamental components of the rule of law”.

Mr Raab appeared to be suggesting changes that would give the government the power to correct court decisions through secondary legislation, which does not have to be subjected to scrutiny or votes in parliament.

“If that is what is in contemplation, then that is profoundly problematic,” said Prof Elliott. “Indeed it turns constitutional principle on its head.

“Ministerial power to do this would itself be deeply troubling. It would reassign a basic judicial role – interpreting the law – to ministers.

“Ultimately, this all strikes me as part of a project to enhance executive supremacy by treating courts, whether foreign or domestic, as unwelcome interlopers.

“And yet all of this masquerades as an attempt to protect parliament. The reality of this executive power project, as we might call it, is that it will be the executive that is the principal beneficiary of such changes, and the loser will be basic standards of good governance.”

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/dominic-raab-human-rights-act-b1939870.html

*******************************************

Chicago Mayor Creates Her Own Science, Proclaims Vaccinated People Cannot Carry COVID-19 Virus in Effort to Rebuke Police Officers

Remember the baseline: In order to retain their Marxist ideological objectives, radical leftists must always pretend not to know things. Part of the process of ‘not knowing’ is making up things that are exactly the opposite….

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot held a press conference today as hundreds of police officers will likely be fired effective tomorrow for not taking the mandated COVID vaccine. At the beginning of the video segment below, in an effort to explain her position, Mayor Lightfoot claims that vaccinated people in Chicago cannot carry and/or transmit the COVID-19 virus. WATCH (first two minutes):

The policy of the mayor is grounded in a claim that is totally and utterly refuted by all science. Vaccinated people carry, transmit and shed the SARS-CoV-2 virus just like non-vaccinated people. Actually, there is scientific evidence that vaccinated people who contract the virus (so called “breakthrough cases”) factually end up with a much higher viral load, and shed the virus at a much higher rate than non-vaccinated persons.

https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2021/10/18/chicago-mayor-creates-her-own-science-proclaims-vaccinated-people-cannot-carry-covid-19-virus-in-effort-to-rebuke-police-officers/

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

18 October, 2021

Jussie Smollett's Last-Ditch Effort to Dismiss Criminal Trial Ends in Failure as Judge Delivers a Reality Check

<Li>They tried to get him off lightly for his false racism claim but it won't wash

Jussie Smollett will finally face a trial for his 2019 stunt in which he claimed he was the victim of a racist, homophobic attack in Chicago.

On Friday, Judge James Linn rejected arguments from the actor’s lawyer that the charges against him should be dismissed, according to Fox News.

The claim being made was that under a deal with Cook County prosecutors in which charges were dropped without a trial taking place, Smollett performed community service and forfeited a $10,000 bond.

However, amid a firestorm of controversy over the deal, a special prosecutor was appointed who levied additional charges of lying to police against Smollett. On Friday, Smollett’s attorney sought to wriggle out from under those.

To have Smollett “hauled back into court again” would violate Smollett’s due process rights, attorney Nenye Uche said, according to USA Today. “It’s as clear as day – this case should be dismissed because of an immunity agreement,” Uche said. “A deal is a deal. That’s ancient principle.”

Sean Wieber, an attorney with the special prosecutor’s office, said the claim should be “summarily dismissed.”

“We have already dealt with this before,” he said. “Nothing we’ve heard today changes one iota (of the case). This can be comfortably denied.”

Linn said that he had heard it all before and dismissed those claims, saying he would not change now. “I’m denying the motion to dismiss,” he said.

In a July hearing, Linn explained his reasoning. “There was no trial in this case, there was no jury empaneled, no witnesses were sworn, no evidence was heard, no guilty pleas were ever entered … nothing like that [ever] happened,” Linn said of the case, according to WGN-TV. “There was no adjudication of this case,” he said then.

Smollett’s trial will begin on Nov. 29.

Smollett claimed two masked men approached him as he was walking home on Jan. 29, 2019, and “made racist and homophobic insults, beat him and looped a noose around his neck before fleeing,” Fox News reported. However, the account has since been discredited by the two men Smollett reportedly paid to conduct the “racist and homophobic” assault — Abel and Ola Osundario.

The two men alleged that Smollett transferred the sum of $3,500 to them in exchange for the jumping, hoping to “raise his profile,” according to Fox News.

The actor called the charges brought against him a “dog and pony show,” the outlet reported.

https://www.westernjournal.com/jussie-smolletts-last-ditch-effort-dismiss-criminal-trial-ends-failure-judge-delivers-reality-check/

**************************************

Biden Supreme Court commission opposes adding justices

The Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court released its first report Thursday, suggesting that an expansion of the court would be unlikely to achieve balance and instead recommending the rotation of justices.

"There are also reasons to doubt that Court expansion necessarily would produce benefits in terms of diversity of efficiency," the Commission said in the report. "There is no guarantee that a larger Court would be drawn from a more diverse group of individuals. And a larger court may be less efficient than the current complement of justices."

The report comes after some congressional Democrats earlier this year called for an expansion to the Supreme Court, arguing that Republicans had unfairly obtained a conservative majority after former President Donald Trump was able to fill three vacancies during his single term.

President Biden, who in the past had expressed opposition to the idea of expanding the court, responded to the calls by forming the commission to study court expansion and reform.

But the commission pointed to other risks to expanding the court, including recent polling that indicates the public does not favor court expansion, while noting that expanding the court could lead to a "continuous cycle of future expansions."

"To be sure, any Supreme Court Reform would likely require unified government," the report says. "Nevertheless, we believe it is important to recognize the risk. According to one [purportedly modest] estimate of the consequences of expansion as parties gain Senate majorities and add Justices, the Supreme Court could expand to twenty-three or twenty-nine Justices in the next fifty years, and thirty-nine or possibly sixty-three Justices over the next century."

One idea floated by the commission as an alternative to expansion is a rotation system, which would see judges rotate between service on the Supreme Court and in lower federal courts.

But the report also notes that such a reform could face a "constitutional obstacle," noting that Article III, Section 1, of the Constitution states that "the judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in such interior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish."

The report adds that there are also potential drawbacks to a rotation system even if they were deemed legal, including that such a system could "introduce inefficiencies into the court's work."

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/supreme-court-commission-floats-rotating-justices-as-alternative-to-growing-size-of-court

************************************

Christopher Columbus's Forgotten Crusade Against Jihad

Another Columbus Day has come and gone. Although it was “celebrated” with the usual denunciations and outraged wokeism concerning the Italian explorer’s alleged “genocide” against the natives, one influential voice came to Columbus’s defense: On October 11, Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a proclamation, an excerpt of which follows:

Columbus stands a singular figure in Western Civilization, who exemplified courage, risk-taking, and heroism in the face of enormous odds; as a visionary who saw the possibilities of exploration beyond Europe; and as a founding father who laid the foundation for what would one day become the United States of America, which would commemorate Columbus by naming its federal district after him.

While all this is true, Columbus stands for and is a reminder of something else that is now little known if not completely forgotten: He was, first and foremost, a crusader—an avowed enemy of the jihad; his expeditions were, first and foremost, about circumventing and ultimately retaliating against the Islamic sultanates surrounding and terrorizing Europe—not just finding spices.

When he was born, the then more than 800-year-old war with Islam—or rather defense against jihad—was at an all-time high. In 1453, when Columbus was 2-years-old, the Turks finally sacked Constantinople, an atrocity-laden event that rocked Christendom to its core.

Over the following years, the Muslims continued making inroads deep into the Balkans, leaving much death and destruction in their wake, with millions of Slavs enslaved. (Yes, the two words are etymologically connected, and for this very reason.)

In 1480, when he was 29, the Turks even managed to invade Columbus’s native Italy, where, in the city of Otranto, they ritually beheaded 800 Christians—and sawed their archbishop in half—for refusing to embrace Islam.

It was in this context that Spain’s monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella—themselves avowed crusaders, especially the queen, who concluded the centuries-long Reconquista of Spain by liberating Granada of Islam in 1492—took Columbus into their service.

They funded his ambitious voyage in an effort to launch, in the words of historian Louis Bertrand, “a final and definite Crusade against Islam by way of the Indies.” (It, of course, went awry and culminated in the incidental founding of the New World.)

Many Europeans were convinced that if only they could reach the peoples east of Islam—who if not Christian were at least “not as yet infected by the Mahometan plague,” to quote Pope Nicholas V (d.1455)—together they could crush Islam between them. (The plan was centuries old and connected to the legend of Prester John, a supposedly great Christian monarch reigning in the East who would one day march westward and avenge Christendom by destroying Islam.)

All this comes out clearly in Columbus’s own letters: In one he refers to Ferdinand and Isabella as “enemies of the wretched sect of Mohammet” who are “resolve[d] to send me to the regions of the Indies, to see [how the people thereof can help in the war effort].” In another written to the monarchs after he reached the New World, Columbus offers to raise an army “for the war and conquest of Jerusalem.”

Nor were Spain and Columbus the first to implement this strategy; once Portugal was cleared of Islam in 1249, its military orders launched into Muslim Africa. “The great and overriding motivation behind [Prince] Henry the Navigator’s [b. 1394] explosive energy and expansive intellect,” writes historian George Grant, “was the simple desire to take the cross—to carry the crusading sword over to Africa and thus to open a new chapter in Christendom’s holy war against Islam.” He launched all those discovery voyages because “he sought to know if there were in those parts any Christian princes,” who “would aid him against the enemies of the faith,” wrote a contemporary.

Does all this make Columbus and by extension Ferdinand and Isabella—not to mention the whole of Christendom—“Islamophobes,” as those few modern critics who mention the Islamic backdrop of Columbus’s voyage often accuse?

The answer is yes—but not in the way that word is used today. While the Greek word phobos has always meant “fear,” its usage today implies “irrational fear.” However, considering that for nearly a thousand years before Columbus, Islam had repeatedly attacked Christendom to the point of swallowing up three-quarters of its original territory, including for centuries Spain; that Islam’s latest iteration, in the guise of the Ottoman Turks, was during Columbus’s era devastating the Balkans and Mediterranean; and that, even centuries after Columbus, Islam was still terrorizing the West—marching onto Vienna with 200,000 jihadis in 1683 and provoking America into its first war as a nation—the very suggestion that historic Christian fears of Islam were “irrational” is itself the height of irrationalism.

https://pjmedia.com/columns/raymond-ibrahim/2021/10/14/christopher-columbuss-forgotten-crusade-against-jihad-n1523999

***************************************

Texas Senate passes bill requiring students to play on sports teams corresponding with biological sex

The Texas Senate passed legislation Friday that requires students to compete on school sports teams that correspond with the biological sex listed on their birth certificate.

House Bill 25, which passed the Texas House of Representatives by a vote of 76-54 on Thursday, was introduced by Republican state Rep. Valoree Swanson and heads next to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott's desk.

The only modified birth certificate allowed is that which has been amended "to correct a clerical error," according to the bill.

"This is all about girls and protecting them in our [University Interscholastic League] sports," Swanson said in support of her bill, according to CBS News. "I'm excited that we have the opportunity today to stand up for our daughters, granddaughters, and all our Texas girls."

Human Rights Campaign Texas State Director Rebecca Marques denounced the bill after the Texas House passed it, saying, "Texas legislators seem to take pride in passing discriminatory bills without any concern for the impact on Texans and the state’s growing negative national reputation."

"Transgender young people deserve the opportunity to play sports with their friends like any kid," Marques added, going on to allege that, "Texas legislators are putting the second-largest LGBTQ+ population in the country at significant health and safety risk.

"Radical policies like the anti-transgender sports ban bill that target children for no reason other than to score political points, making the state less safe and desirable for families to live and work, putting businesses in the state at a competitive disadvantage," Marques continued.

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/us/texas-senate-passes-bill-requiring-students-to-play-on-sports-teams-corresponding-with-biological-sex/ar-AAPAkG8?ocid=msedgntp

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

17 October, 2021

Former bishop converts to Catholicism after slating woke Church of England

The bishop has the misfortune to be a genuine believer -- rare in the church of England

THE FORMER Bishop of Rochester has converted to Catholicism, leaving behind the Anglican Church to join "a church where there is clear teaching for the faithful."

Dr Michael Nazir-Ali, who was the Bishop of Rochester from 1994 until 2009, said that he had considered making the switch “for some years.” Dr Nazir-Ali, 72, has previously accused the Church of England of “jumping onto every faddish bandwagon about identity politics, cultural correctness and mea culpas about Britain’s imperial past.”

During his time as Bishop of Rochester, Dr Nazir-Ali was one of the Anglican Church’s most high-profile bishops.

He is expected to be ordained to the Catholic priesthood for the Ordinariate. This may happen as early as next month, according to The Spectator.

However, because Dr Nazir-Ali is married, he cannot be ordained as a Catholic bishop.

The Catholic Ordinariate was established by Pope Benedict XVI ten years ago, with the aim of inducting Anglicans into the full communion of the Catholic Church.

Dr Nazir-Ali said: “I believe that the Anglican desire to adhere to apostolic, patristic and conciliar teaching can now best be maintained in the Ordinariate.

“Provisions there to safeguard legitimate Anglican patrimony are very encouraging and, I believe, that such patrimony in its Liturgy, approaches to biblical study, pastoral commitment to the community, methods of moral theology and much else besides has a great deal to offer the wider Church.

“I am looking forward to receiving from the riches of other parts of the Church, while perhaps making a modest contribution to the maintenance and enhancement of Anglican patrimony within the wider fellowship.

https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1506200/former-bishop-converts-catholicism-woke-anglican-church-uk-religion

***************************************

POLAND is planning to build a wall on its border with Belarus, defying warnings from Brussels not to engage in illegal pushbacks of migrants

The wall is expected to cost over 1.6 billion zlotys (£300 million), according to a draft bill Poland's MPs discussed yesterday. It is seen as a possible solution to stemming the flow of migrants trying to cross.

The announcement came as German police reported an upsurge in the number of migrants illegally entering Germany - the most popular final destination among asylum seekers - after first crossing the Belarus-Polish border and making their way westwards across Poland.

Poland began building a barbed wire fence along its border with Belarus in August to curb the illegal border crossings - despite criticism that some migrants were being treated inhumanely.

The new wall, equipped with a system of motion sensors and cameras, would further bolster border security.

Poland and fellow EU countries Lithuania and Latvia have reported sharp increases in migrants - from countries such as Afghanistan, Iran and Iraq - crossing their borders from Belarus.

"Despite the fact that the Polish-Belarusian section of the state border has been set up with barbed wire and a concertina-type wire fence, the number of attempts to cross the border is not decreasing, but is growing," said the justification of the bill posted on the parliament's website.

From the start of January until the end of September, it said, the Border Guard prevented 9,287 attempts to cross the frontier from Belarus into Poland, and of those around 8,000 took place in the last two months alone.

Poland, which is the EU's largest eastern member and has one of Europe's biggest border guard services, has for some time sought to invest in new technology to better monitor the border.

It has faced criticism for what many NGOs call illegal pushbacks when it comes to migrants entering Poland from Belarus and for not providing adequate shelter and support for those already in Poland.

https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1505872/Poland-news-build-wall-border-belarus-migrants-eu-commission

*******************************************

Marine Who Criticized Disastrous Afghanistan Exit Has Been Handed His Sentence

After pleading guilty to all six charges against him relating to his public criticism of top military leaders amid the Afghanistan withdrawal, Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller Jr. has been handed his sentence.

The judge issued a letter of reprimand and Scheller was ordered to forfeit $5,000 of one month’s pay, which would’ve been a two-month forfeiture of pay had he not already been in the brig for nine days for breaking a gag order.

The judge said he does not condone Scheller’s offenses, but noted his 17 year USMC career, saying that prior to his social media incident, he was an officer with an outstanding record – a record, he said, he weighed heavily.

The letter of reprimand was much less than what was recommended. The prosecution recommended a forfeiture of $5,000 of pay for 6 months and a letter of reprimand. The maximum penalty could have been forfeiture of 2/3 monthly pay for 12 months and a letter of reprimand. (Fox News)

Scheller first made waves when he posted a video in uniform the day of the Kabul terror attack that killed 13 U.S. service members and 170 Afghans.

“I’m not saying we’ve got to be in Afghanistan forever, but I am saying: Did any of you throw your rank on the table and say ‘hey, it’s a bad idea to evacuate Bagram Airfield, a strategic airbase, before we evacuate everyone,’” Scheller said in the video, which was posted on social media.

“Did anyone do that? And when you didn’t think to do that, did anyone raise their hand and say ‘we completely messed this up.’”

"I’m not saying we can take back what has been done. All I asked for was accountability, for people to comment on what I said and to say, ‘Yes. Mistakes were made,’ he added. “And had they done that I would've gone back into rank and file, submitted, and accomplished what I wanted."

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/leahbarkoukis/2021/10/15/scheller-sentenced-n2597513

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

16 October, 2021

It's great to see Jordan Peterson back in form

His illness really knocked him around but he now at last seems as sharp as ever. The episode below was recorded on September 9th.

Psychologist Dr. Jordan Peterson and John Anderson exchange ideas about individual freedom, lockdowns and mandatory vaccines in Australia. Dr. Jordan shares his experience with policies while Anderson discusses why Australians have accepted severe restrictions fairly willingly.

John Anderson is a sixth-generation farmer and grazier from New South Wales, who spent 19 years in the Australian Parliament, partly as a National Party deputy Prime Minister

Protest comes to Brisbane

See below: The Covid restrictions have long been very mild in Brisbane -- not remotely as severe as what the people of NSW and Victoria have had to suffer. So protests been muted so far. But, as Peterson and Anderson discuss in the video above, the instinct for freedom has not been suppressed among Australians. So it is heartening to see anti-lockdon protests rising up despite much official and Leftist opposition.

I have myself been vaccinated some time ago but I think compelled medical treatment of any sort stinks to high heaven. Governments have frequently got health policies wrong so they should never be allowed to enforce their ideas

A great example of that is the case of Jehovah's Witnesses who would not let their children have blood transfusions. So laws were passed to compel transfusions anong children. But a study of adult survival after heart surgery showed that no Jehovah's Witness died of it but many others did. They have certainly had the last laugh -- and in consequence blood transfusions are now much more sparingly prescribed than they once were. Transfusions are themselves stressors to the body

Conflicting beliefs on the Covid vaccine have attracted thousands of people into Brisbane’s CBD as pro-vaccine protesters gathered near an anti-vaccine World Wide Freedom Day rally.

The pro-vaccine group stood at the front of Brisbane Botanical Gardens wearing masks and chanting “pro vax, pro health, anti fascist” and “anti vaxxers you can’t hide, you’ve got Nazis on your side”.

Anti-vaccine protesters stood behind a barricade of police officers. One anti-vaccine protester yelled back at the opposing side “the government is the real disease”.

Around 1500 showed up to the anti-vaccine rally along with a strong police presence.

T-shirt stalls were set up around the rally selling merchandise with slogans like “realise, real eyes, real lies”.

Anti-vaccine group The People’s Revolution ran the rally.

The group marched from QUT gardens about 1.30pm, down George St through the city to eventually loop back. Streets in the CBD were temporarily shut down by police for the march.

https://www.couriermail.com.au/coronavirus/covid19-vaccine-protesters-face-off-in-brisbane-cbd/news-story/a5c0a7bc71cb9e099c70dae9d19c36c2

15 October 2021

BBC dubbed 'lazy and inaccurate' over French Jew accused of spying

This is an egregious departure from well-known historical fact. It is very likely antisemitism

In a description for a new BBC Four drama Paris Police 1900, the broadcaster referred to Captain Alfred Dreyfus – who became the centre of the Dreyfus Affair – in a way that “implies he was actually a spy when he wasn’t”, according to Jewish News web editor Jack Mendel.

The Dreyfus Affair was largely seen as a notable example of antisemitism and miscarriage of justice, as Captain Dreyfus was wrongly accused of selling military secrets to the Germans.

Writing on Twitter, Mr Mendel called it "lazy and inaccurate", and explained that a more accurate description of him would have been “the accused Jewish spy”.

Mr Mendel added that “from what I’ve heard, the series is excellent”, but that he felt like “this is clumsy, out-of-context language”.

“I really like the BBC, and think sometimes carelessness can be perceived as spite or deliberate attempts to offend,” he said. “This isn't that.”

https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1503988/bbc-fury-lazy-inaccurate-French-jew-accused-spying-Dreyfus-affair-paris-police-1900

***************************************

UK’s ‘strictest’ headteacher Katharine Birbalsingh made social mobility chief

The headteacher of a school dubbed the strictest in Britain who has attacked “woke culture” has been appointed as the government’s new Social Mobility Commissioner.

Katharine Birbalsingh rose to prominence at the Tory party conference in 2010 with a speech about Britain’s “broken” education system.

Birbalsingh was applauded for claiming that underachievement by black pupils was due partly to “the chaos of our classrooms, and, in part, to the accusation of racism [against teachers]”.

Following a political row after the speech, she lost her job. But in 2014, she founded the Michaela free school close to Wembley stadium in north-west London, which has a “no excuses” behaviour policy. Pupils were given demerits or detention for forgetting to bring a pencil or pen, or for talking in corridors between lessons. The school has been described as “outstanding” in all areas by Ofsted inspectors. In 2019, more than half of all GCSE grades were level 7 or above.

Boris Johnson’s senior advisers, the husband-and-wife team Dougie Smith and Munira Mirza, who are leading the Downing Street culture wars, have been reported to be fans of Birbalsingh, who describes herself as holding “small ‘c’ conservative values”.

When the government-commissioned Sewell report on race and ethnic disparities was widely criticised as divisive, inaccurate and having played down racism, Birbalsingh tweeted: “It is always acceptable in our woke culture of 2021 to mercilessly attack black conservatives. They have ‘betrayed’ their leftist masters by daring to think for themselves, when they should be grateful. THAT is institutionalised/cultural racism. And it is everywhere.”

The Social Mobility Commission has been led by the interim co-chairs Sandra Wallace and Steven Cooper since July 2020, after the resignation of the previous chair, Dame Martina Milburn.

Birbalsingh said she was looking forward to taking up the role when “improving social mobility is more vital than ever”. She added: “On the one hand, I want to inspire real action that will encourage people to seize the opportunities available to them and, on the other, I want to ensure that the government and other public bodies are delivering on their commitments to providing such opportunities, so that we really can ‘level up’ every region of the UK.”

Liz Truss, the minister for women and equalities, said she wanted Birbalsingh to focus on “education, enterprise and employment”.

Truss, who has herself criticised “woke orthdoxy”, said: “Our equality work will address the worries that keep people up at night – like having a good job and getting their child a good education – not tokenistic issues divorced from their everyday concerns.”

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/oct/10/uks-strictest-headteacher-katharine-birbalsingh-made-social-mobility-chief

***********************************************

LAPD Investigating Apparent Vandalism of Italian Catholic Church by Far-Left Activists

St. Peter’s Italian Catholic Church in Los Angeles was found vandalized on Monday, seemingly in protest of Columbus Day and the opening of the Americas to European colonization.

The vandalism is being investigated by officials as a “hate crime,” the Los Angeles Times reported.

Photographs show splotches of red paint on the front steps and facade of the church.

The words “Land Back” and “Stolen Land” were spray-painted on the sidewalk in front of the house of worship, according to the Times. A banner reading “Stop Colonizing Our Land” was also found outside the church.

“I think it’s all related to Columbus Day,” said Arturo Martinez, who said he noticed the vandalism on Monday morning.

“We know the history of Columbus, so they have taken a direct hit to Italy and what Columbus represents.”

“We pray for all the people who suffer discrimination and isolation, so that they can find peace in their hearts, and we can live in harmony and peace,” St. Peter’s said in a statement, according to KTLA-TV.

“Our parish is a home of prayer and encounter, where everyone is welcome to find GOD. We forgive and look forward to having the strength to do GOD’s will.”

“As a community of faith, we offer our prayers for those who felt compelled to express their concerns in this way,” Archdiocese of Los Angeles spokeswoman Carolina Guevara said. “We also pray for the parish community as they work to clean up the damage.”

Councilman Joe Buscaino condemned the vandalism in a post on Facebook.

“I am saddened by the act of vandalism today against St. Peter’s Italian Catholic Church near downtown LA,” Buscaino, who is running for mayor, said. “I am hopeful that those who committed these acts to a sacred place of worship will be found and prosecuted.”

“Today should be about celebrating our diversity and contributions to society, without the need for hatred or violence. We all need to work together, not breed division and hate with one another. I pray that our city can truly embrace and be proud of our diversity.”

Martinez echoed the sentiment, saying, “There’s a right way to make a protest, and this is not it, obviously.”

No suspects have yet been identified.

In 2017, the Los Angeles City Council and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted to replace Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples Day.

“This gesture of replacing Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples Day is a very small step in apologizing and in making amends,” Councilman Mike Bonin said at the time.

https://flagandcross.com/lapd-investigating-apparent-vandalism-of-italian-catholic-church-by-far-left-activists/

***********************************************

UK baker’s plight over ‘illegal sprinkles’ ban erupts online

If the stuff is OK in some foods, why not in all foods?

A small bakery in UK has become the centre of global attention after authorities banned its famous sprinkles, leaving many in disbelief.

Or more specifically, a baker who had his shop raided after someone tipped him off to authorities for using – wait for it – “illegal sprinkles”.

For the last 48 hours, a ticked-off baker’s plight for sprinkles-related justice from the English city of Leeds has gripped the UK.

And now it’s gone global after the “ridiculous” ban spilt online.

It all started when Get Baked’s boss Richard Myers was paid a visit by Trading Standards, a UK government body designed to investigate illegal sales activity, earlier this month.

“[The inspector] said they’d had reports of us using illegal sprinkles and I actually laughed by mistake, then realised he was being serious,” Mr Myers told the BBC.

Get Baked’s sprinkles are from the United States and used on several products, including the bakery’s best-selling raspberry glazed doughnut cookies and Birthday Bruce cake.

The sprinkles contained E127 food colouring, which is only approved for use in cocktail or candied cherries in the UK.

It has been linked to possible hyperactivity in children, while a study on rats found it increased the risk of thyroid cancer.

Mr Myers, who sourced the apparently illegal sprinkles from a UK wholesaler said he used the US sprinkles as they were better than local versions.

“British sprinkles are rubbish,” he told the BBC.

“They run and aren’t bake-stable. The colours aren’t vibrant and they just don’t look very good.”

Fuming over the situation, Mr Myers posted about the ban on Get Baked’s Facebook page several times.

“To whoever reported us to Trading Standards, (Dan?) all I have to say is, dear lord, what a sad little life Jane,” he said in one post.

“My daughter, who is now seven months, has to live with the fact that Daddy can’t take her to Disneyland, because man can’t sell any f***ing cookies.”

People were (understandably) outraged – as well as a little confused – that something as innocent as sprinkles could cause such a headache.

Some on Instagram asked if they could still have the “havoc-wreaking” sprinkles as long as they “sign a waiver”.

“Illegal sprinkles look much nicer than legal sprinkles,” one person commented.

“I’m losing sleep wondering how to get them now,” another said.

Mr Myers told The Sun the situation was a “total farce” which also had the potential to impact him financially.

“It’s ridiculous, given that kids are allowed to buy cans of Coca-Cola, which are full of caffeine,” he said.

“We’re just an independent business and this is going to affect our trade and my livelihood quite dramatically.”

But despite the social media uproar, authorities are holding strong over their decision to ban the sprinkles.

“We can confirm that we have advised the business concerned the use of E127 is not permitted in this type of confectionery item,” West Yorkshire Trading Standards said in a statement.

“We stand by this advice and would urge all food business operators, when seeking to use imported foods containing additives, to check that they are permitted for use in the UK.”

https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/real-life/news-life/uk-bakers-plight-over-illegal-sprinkles-ban-erupts-online/news-story/8bcee29a24c8f8a1ba87a488064799b5

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

14 October 2021

Tesla Announces Relocating Headquarters from ‘Fascist’ Democrat-Run California to Red TX

Elon Musk announced Friday that Tesla’s headquarters will move from California to Texas, where much of the electric car maker’s production has already been relocated.

Musk made waves when lashed out at lawmakers in the Golden State in April 2020. The Tesla CEO called them “fascist” over state and local COVID regulations. The company later relocated production to Austin, Texas. Musk himself also made the move to the Lone Star State after years of calling California home.

KXAN-TV reported that during an earnings call on Thursday with Tesla investors, the billionaire announced the company will now be headquartered in Austin, and no longer in Palo Alto, California. He clarified that a facility in Fremont, California, will remain open, and would actually increase production.

“I’m excited to announce we are moving our headquarters to Austin, Texas,” he said. “Our factory is five minutes from the airport, 15 minutes from downtown, and we’re going to create an ecological paradise, because we’re right on the Colorado River. It’s going to be great.”

“To be clear, we will be continuing to expand our activities in California,” Musk said on the call, CNBC reported. “Our intention is to increase output from Fremont and Giga Nevada by 50 percent. If you go to our Fremont factory it’s jammed.”

Speaking to CNBC, business attorney Domenic Romano said the move makes a lot of sense.

“From a legal perspective, there’s less of a regulatory burden in Texas,” he said. “It’s a more business- and employer-friendly state in many ways. You have to jump through far fewer hoops in Texas or Florida as an employer than you do in California in terms of reporting requirements and more.”

https://flagandcross.com/tesla-announces-it-will-relocate-headquarters-from-fascist-democrat-run-california-to-texas/

********************************************

How can it be TABOO to advise girls to plan to be mothers?

By DOROTHY BYRNE

Over more than 30 years as a television journalist, I have worked on countless controversial programmes; secretly filming MPs, going undercover to expose extremist preachers, examining Tony Blair’s finances.

But this week I caused controversy by saying something which many might imagine was not in the least contentious: that girls and young women should be given more information about fertility.

In my new role as President of Murray Edwards College, Cambridge, I wanted to remind female students not to lose sight of their fertility.

This has long been a taboo subject for some — but the vitriolic response on Twitter and in the media took me by surprise. Some called my comments reductive, saying that educated women should not be browbeaten about fertility. Others said there are more important issues to tackle first — maternity rights and childcare, for example. But I stand by my point that it’s perfectly reasonable to emphasise biological truths.

It’s my own experiences of very nearly missing out on motherhood that drive me to speak out. It was only when a relationship ended when I was 42 that I realised I’d forgotten to have a baby.

When I started to look into my fertility, I was surprised to discover that if I had embarked on the journey two or three years earlier, I would have had around double the statistical chances of falling pregnant.

Many young women may think they can fall back on IVF, but it’s not the silver bullet everyone seems to think it is — age very much determines success rate.

In 2018, according to the Human Fertilisation & Embryology Authority (HFEA), birth rates for patients younger than 35 were 31 per cent per embryo transferred, compared to below 5 per cent for patients aged 43 and above when using their own eggs.

I don’t believe that children are essential for happiness and quite a number of my friends never wanted children. But I have several friends who always just assumed they would have children one day and never did for a variety of reasons. Some are fine about it and some are sad. They succeeded in their jobs but feel they missed the joys of parenthood and, as we get older, miss having grandchildren.

All of us older adults should be encouraging young people we know to think not just about educational and professional success, but also about what they feel will make them happy in life. I wish someone had done that for me.

I moved blithely through my 30s and through an exciting career, travelling widely on the investigative ITV programme World In Action, where I became a producer, before being appointed editor of ITV’s The Big Story. I had relationships, but nothing that lasted. My job was all-consuming.

By the time I realised I wanted a child, I had to do it on my own, using a sperm donor. If it didn’t work, maybe I would adopt or foster, but I knew if I didn’t try I would always regret it.

I found out that I could have gone to my GP much earlier to have a basic test of my fertility, and that more complex tests were also available. Luckily, my fertility was pretty good for my age but it took two years to become pregnant. I didn’t have to use IVF but I needed expensive drugs to boost my fertility.

Aged nearly 45, I had a baby. And I was lucky — really lucky. By her mid-40s, a woman’s chances of falling pregnant stand at a mere 3 per cent to 4 per cent. I tried briefly to have another child but it was clear I had left it too late.

Of course, most people know the basic fact that fertility deteriorates with age and, indeed, some young women say they get annoyed by being bombarded with ominous warnings about their biological clocks.

However, there is a big difference between general understanding and specific knowledge on which a person can act. Many don’t realise there is a significant difference between trying to fall pregnant at 38 to 40 and between 41 and 42.

I would never urge anyone to have a test or even suggest it to them. What each person does is up to them and I am not going to start setting myself up as an expert in reproductive health. But giving people the opportunity to have the facts is important.

Young women have told me confidentially that they don’t dare to let their line managers know they are even thinking of having a baby because they are worried they will not be promoted. This is scandalous. Ultimately, society has to change. Employers have to become less prejudiced towards those who leave the workplace for a time to have children and towards those who want to return part-time or work flexibly.

When I was considering having a baby, I was a freelance editor of a television current affairs programme. The amount of statutory maternity pay I would have received would not have covered my mortgage. I worked out that the only way I could have a baby was to go back to work after six weeks.

I was lucky that the birth of my daughter was easy, so I was fit and well enough to do so. I could afford a live-in nanny. So, while leaving my daughter each day was a terrible wrench, I could manage physically and financially.

Some days, I missed her so overwhelmingly that I’d ask the nanny to bring her to the office. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.

That said, plenty of women I knew in television with less well-paid positions gave up on motherhood entirely. Today, about 10 per cent of British people say they are remaining childless because of the costs and lifestyle changes which would be involved in parenthood.

There is concern that the birth rate has fallen from 1.92 children per woman in England and Wales in 2011 to 1.53 this year. This is not the Soviet Union or communist Romania; it is not the personal duty of young women to populate our islands.

But if the Government wants to encourage women to have children, it needs to do a lot more to help them. It’s wrong that some women feel they have to choose between having children and a successful career. But it’s also important they understand the limits of their biology before they even reach that point.

I would hate for my daughter — or indeed any young woman — to miss out on motherhood through lack of information.

That is why I have always talked to her about fertility. Now 24, she works in television production and has a boyfriend. She is clear she doesn’t want to follow my example and wait until she’s 45 to have a baby.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-10089097/How-TABOO-advise-girls-plan-mothers-head-Cambridge-college.html

**************************************

Now moccasins are racist! Minnetonka APOLOGIZES for making the traditional shoes for 75 YEARS because it is NOT a Native American-owned business

A Minnesota-based shoe firm has apologized for making moccasins because it is not owned by Native Americans, who pioneered the design of the traditional footwear.

Popular brand Minnetonka issued a statement Monday admitting the company had made money through 'appropriation' of Native American culture over the last 75 years.

'We deeply and meaningfully apologize for having benefited from selling Native-inspired designs without directly honoring Native culture or communities,' the statement read.

Minnetonka, which has been making its popular shoes since 1964, timed the apology to coincide with Indigenous Peoples' Day.

CEO David Miller said was issuing the statement to acknowledge that the company is not a Native-owned business, and said he promised to do more to support Indigenous communities in the future.

Miller explained that the company first publicly conceded its use of Native culture in the summer of 2020, and added that he now wanted to make a public apology.

Cultural appropriation is the term used to describe when person or group adopts visual elements of an often-persecuted ethnicity's identity without acknowledging it. It has become a hot-button issue in recent years.

White people wearing traditionally-black hairstyles like cornrow braids, or people dressing in Native American headgear, or as Mexican Dia De Muertos figures for Halloween have all sparked anger.

Critics of that outrage say people accused of cultural appropriation are often 'appreciating' other aspects of a culture, and not mocking it.

'We first publicly acknowledged our appropriation in the summer of 2020, but it was long overdue,' Miller said in his apology. 'While Minnetonka has evolved beyond our original product set, moccasins remain a core part of our brand, and in 2020 we began to step up our commitment to the culture to which we owe so much. 'We are dedicated to honoring our commitment to Native American communities with our actions going forward.'

Minnetoka announced that it had also hired 'reconciliation advisor' Adrienne Benjamin to help with its outreach to Native American people. She is a Minnesotan, Anishinaabe, and a member of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe - a federally-recognized American Indian tribe based in east-central Minnesota.

The shoe firm went on to say that it is boosting its 'diversity, equity and inclusion' efforts in a bid to ensure minority groups are better represented.

And it says it plans to partner with Native American artists to try and bring a more authentic slants to future collections.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10088611/Moccasin-maker-apologizes-profiting-Native-culture.html

********************************************

Australia: Voluntary assisted dying [euthanasia] bill draws multiparty support across NSW Parliament

Twenty-eight MPs from across the NSW Parliament will support new legislation to legalise voluntary euthanasia, the highest number of co-sponsors to a bill in the history of any Australian parliament.

The Voluntary Assisted Dying Bill is the first major parliamentary test for new Premier Dominic Perrottet, who has promised to allow a conscience vote on the issue which is likely to be highly divisive within the Liberal Party.

Neither Mr Perrottet nor Labor Opposition Leader Chris Minns support the bill.

The proposed law, which has the support of government MPs, Labor, Greens and assorted members of the crossbench, will give terminally ill people the option to end their lives at a time and place of their choosing.

On Tuesday, the independent member for Sydney Alex Greenwich, who will introduce the bill this week, delivered a petition of more than 100,000 signatures to the State Parliament supporting the legislation.

“This year, we have all heard the calls from the community, that people with a terminal illness in NSW deserve the choice of having a peaceful end of life, rather than a cruel and painful one,” he said.

Mr Greenwich said he hoped the multi-partisan support would ensure respectful debate of the bill through the parliament by the end of the year.

“There will be members who are obviously going to be opposing this reform, and they will come from a really genuine position, a faith position, no doubt,” he said.

“I want to work with them and see if we can address any of their concerns... if a member does have a concern that they feel can be addressed through an amendment then that amendment will be seriously considered”.

Should the legislation pass, Mr Greenwich said it would not be enacted for 18 months, to ensure the right policy settings can be in place.

Liberal MPs Lee Evans, Felicity Wilson, Leslie Williams and Nationals MP Trevor Khan are among the 28 co-sponsors of the bill.

Labor MPs co-sponsoring the bill include Jo Haylen, Jenny Aitchison, David Meehan, Jodie Harrison, Trish Doyle, Sonia Hornery, Leisl Tesch, Kate Washington, Tim Crakanthorp, Adam Searle, John Graham and Anthony D’Adam.

The bill also has the support of Greens MPs David Shoebridge, Abigail Boyd, Jamie Parker, Cate Faerhmann, Jenny Leong and Tamara Smith.

Opposition leader Chris Minns on Tuesday said he would not support the bill, but added he believed his view was in the minority within the NSW Labor party.

“I don’t think that you can codify the risks for a vulnerable person who’s in the latter stages of their life who may feel that they’re a burden on their family or their loved ones,” Mr Minns said.

“I think that’s a real concern and I don’t think it can be dealt with as per the writing of the bill.”

Mr Minns said he hoped the passage of the bill would be smooth. “Look I’m not hoping for problems I’m hoping that it’s dealt with,” he said.

Mr Greenwich acknowledged the concerns raised by Mr Minns, but countered that the legislation would create criminal offences to target coercion and require doctors be specifically trained to identify if someone is under any pressure.

“NSW will be the last state to legislate for voluntary assisted dying. That means we have been able to learn from the legislation and every other jurisdiction to make sure that we have the strongest safeguards,” Mr Greenwich said.

Fellow independents Greg Piper and Justin Field will also co-sponsor the voluntary assisted dying bill, as will members of the Animal Justice Party and the Shooters, Fishers and Farmers.

https://www.smh.com.au/politics/nsw/voluntary-assisted-dying-bill-draws-multi-party-support-across-nsw-parliament-20211012-p58zba.html

****************************************

13 October, 2021

A TikToker has claimed that interracial relationships, particularly between white men and Asian women, are a by-product of American imperialism and the United States' roles in wars

This guy needs to get a grip. The reason why Asian women in Western countries often marry Western men has nothing to do with history. It is that, like all women, they like their men to be tall and well-built. And most such men in Western countries are Caucasian. There are plenty of Chinese men around but they are mostly physically slight.

And if the lady sets her sights on a Caucasian man, she often gets him. Why? Mainly because she is very obliging to him and does not spout feminist nonsense

The American TikToker, who goes by username @youngqim and is known as Young Kim on Instagram, argued women were not easily granted access to the US under strict immigration rules as the US didn't want 'Asian people to start families here'.

Young, who says he is a history student, said this changed in the 20th century when women were exempt from restrictions if they were married to an American soldier, which he said led to interracial relationships and Asian women being 'fetishized'.

He went on to claim that the Korean War and the Vietnam War then prolonged global conflicts, leading to more interracial relationships, when American soldiers married Asian women after serving on the frontlines and brought them back to the US.

His video started with a short clip from TikToker @virtualflop, also known as Elise, who mouthed to along to a voiceover about interracial relationships, which poster Elise said she had used as a 'joke'.

The voiceover said: 'Interracial relationships are not natural. 'Y'all are gonna [sic] hate me for this one, but I don't give a f**k. It's the truth.'

Alongside the comments, reads the caption: 'Writing my paper about how romantic relationships between yt [sic] males and Asian females wouldn't be as common in society if it weren't for US involvement in wars.'

Responding to the TikTok, Young says that he is going to 'elaborate' on Elise's claims by talking about federal laws that restricted immigration from Asian countries, which he claimed saw hardly any Asian women moving to the United States.

He claims: 'Throughout most of American history, immigration from Asia had been limited to exclusively men.

'The biggest reason for that was they didn't want Asian people to start families here. We were considered an "undesirable element".'

In the 1850s, young single men were recruited as laborers and the Chinese made up 20 per cent of California's labour force by 1870, but were only 0.002 per cent of the entire US population, according to Asia Society.

Young goes on to talk about the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, which was a federal law signed by President Chester Arthur barring the immigration of Chinese laborers to the United States

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10083817/TikToker-claims-white-men-date-Asian-women-product-American-imperialism.html

********************************************

There is nothing the woke Left won't regulate or try to control

The Woke crowd never rests. They are engaged in round-the-clock efforts to seize more and more control over our society, via a combination of bullying and governmental regulation. They count on scared silence from opponents, ruthlessly enforced through aggressive demonization tactics against anyone who speaks out – no matter how mainstream the objection may be. The radical few are strong-arming society in ways large and small. This has been a problem on college campuses for quite some time, and the worst excesses have been exported throughout American life. What happens in academic doesn't stay in academia. Not anymore.

For two examples, read these recent developments out of MIT and the University of Michigan, respectively:

Dorian Abbot: "On August 12, a colleague and I wrote an op-ed in Newsweek in which we argued that Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) as it currently is implemented on campus “violates the ethical and legal principle of equal treatment” and “treats persons as merely means to an end, giving primacy to a statistic over the individuality of a human being.” We proposed instead “an alternative framework called Merit, Fairness, and Equality (MFE) whereby university applicants are treated as individuals and evaluated through a rigorous and unbiased process based on their merit and qualifications alone.” We noted that this would mean an end to legacy and athletic admission advantages, which significantly favor white applicants.

Shortly thereafter, my detractors developed a new strategy to try to isolate me and intimidate everyone else into silence: They argued on Twitter that I should not be invited to give science seminars at other universities and coordinated replacement speakers. This is an effective and increasingly common way to ratchet up the cost of dissenting because disseminating new work to colleagues is an important part of the scientific endeavor. Sure enough, this strategy was employed when I was chosen to give the Carlson Lecture at MIT — a major honor in my field. It is an annual public talk given to a large audience and my topic was “climate and the potential for life on other planets.”

On September 22, a new Twitter mob, composed of a group of MIT students, postdocs, and recent alumni, demanded that I be uninvited. It worked. And quickly. On September 30 the department chair at MIT called to tell me that they would be cancelling the Carlson lecture this year in order to avoid controversy.

When Bright Sheng was a child in Mao's China, the Red Guard took away his piano. Nevertheless, he became a celebrated and award winning composer. What the University of Michigan has done to this great man is contemptible. Please read and share:

What was Sheng's transgression? He screened the 1965 version of Shakespeare's Othello in class as part of a lesson about how the play was adapted for the opera. This version stars Laurence Olivier, a white actor, who wore blackface to portray the protagonist Othello, a Moor...It's not clear whether Sheng, who was born and raised in China, understood blackface's specifically American legacy, and why such a portrayal is considered offensive. But he swiftly apologized for screening this version of the film. "I thought (that) in most cases, the casting principle was based on the music quality of the singers," Sheng told The Michigan Daily. "Of course, time (sic) has changed, and I made a mistake in showing this film. It was insensitive of me, and I am very sorry."

His apology ought to have been more than sufficient, but his students were not appeased. Indeed, they reacted as if they had been traumatized by the experience...Other students signed an open letter calling on Sheng to be removed from his teaching position for failing to "create a safe environment." ...A significant number of Sheng's students, former students, and colleagues have denounced him as a racist. And the administration is taking the matter seriously:

The music department released a statement saying that "Sheng's actions do not align with our School's commitment to anti-racist action, diversity, equity and inclusion." The university's Office of Equity, Civil Rights, and Title IX has received a complaint about the incident.

"Sheng has stepped down from teaching the class for the time being. He has apologized profusely for making his students feel wronged, though many have loudly rejected his apology," writes Robby Soave. Sheng "received a MacArthur "genius" Fellowship in 2001, and has twice been a runner-up for the Pulitzer Prize in music. His undergraduate students should certainly count themselves lucky to be able to learn from him. Instead, they are demanding the university fire him for rendering the classroom an unsafe space." And so it goes.

Meanwhile, here's what the government of California is up to. Forget the massive homelessness problem, the crime sprees, the unaffordability of housing, the out-flow of residents, etc. They've got their eyes on the prize:

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law Saturday a bill requiring large retailers to provide gender-neutral toy sections, per the Los Angeles Times. California is the first state to adopt such a law. LGBTQ advocates have pointed out that marketing methods using pink and blue hues "pressure children to conform to gender stereotypes," AP notes...The law states that retail stores with 500 or more workers must sell toys and child care products (excluding clothes) in a gender-neutral section that's "labeled at the discretion of the retailer ... regardless of whether they have been traditionally marketed for either girls or for boys." Companies that fail to comply with the new law could face a civil penalty of $250 for a first violation and $500 for any subsequent violations.

There is nothing they won't regulate or try to control – and the more woke and signaling the action, the better, especially because such endeavors serve as self-congratulatory and self-righteous distractions from the many real problems plaguing the state. Meanwhile, across the pond, we have this madness:

What percentage of British Airways passengers are cisgender? 98-99 percent? And what percentage of trans people would actually be offended by being referred to as a lady or gentleman, based on their own preferences? I'd wager very few. Institutions are making decisions to ban inoffensive words and phrases, and to alter the plain meaning of words, due to the ever-changing whims and demands of a remote fringe of activists. It's crazy.

As I've written before, we can be kind to people and do our best to accommodate people's identities without engaging in mass erasure of concepts like womanhood, and without taking a hatchet to our language. But as long as these tactics keep working, the fringe will keep exploiting fear and weakness – and they'll keep "winning." Are we willing to cede our society and culture to a relative handful of broken-brain weirdos like this?

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/guybenson/2021/10/12/woke-tales-california-now-mandating-genderneutral-toy-aisles-in-stores-n2597224

*************************************

‘Transgender’ Experts Silenced by Rainbow Mafia

The New York Times refused an op-ed from experts who don’t toe the line on gender dysphoric children.

“All the news that’s fit to print”? Hardly. Every conservative knows The New York Times doesn’t actually abide by its longtime motto, and we all have a good chuckle whenever reminded of it. The paper’s selective and activist journalism now includes having recently chosen to reject an op-ed written by two “transgender” experts, both doctors, who warned against the growing reckless use of puberty blockers on children. Will anyone stand against this growing fad of child abuse? Not the intrepid “journalists” at the Times.

The two doctors contend that “transgender” activism has essentially silenced any genuine examination of often-promoted claims that it is completely safe for children to go on puberty blockers in part because doing so is “fully reversible” should they decided against “transitioning.” Thou shalt not question The Narrative™.

Indeed, the Times’s decision seems only to further underscore this new leftist-created alternate reality. Abigail Shrier’s 2020 book Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters was temporarily banned by Amazon due to opposition from “transgender” activists, so she knows about this sort of censorship. She interviewed the doctors and observed, “For nearly a decade, the vanguard of the transgender-rights movement — doctors, activists, celebrities and transgender influencers — has defined the boundaries of the new orthodoxy surrounding transgender medical care: What’s true, what’s false, which questions can and cannot be asked.”

Meanwhile, the Times had no qualms regarding running a recent op-ed by a “transgender” runner, nor another article fully affirming a “transgender” person and lamenting the “discrimination, delays and systemic hurdles [that] prevent young trans people from reaching the care they need.” On the other hand, the findings, data, and professional opinions espoused by longtime experts in the same field is no good if it dares question the “transgender” dogma.

Dr. Marci Bowers, one of the article’s writers, observed something that happens far too often these days: “When you have a female-assigned person and she’s feeling dysphoric … and then they see you for one visit, and then they recommend testosterone — red flag!”

These doctors come from the very heart of this movement. Bowers’s op-ed partner is, Shrier explains, “Erica Anderson, a clinical psychologist at the University of California San Francisco’s Child and Adolescent Gender Clinic.” Bowers herself is “a world-renowned vaginoplasty specialist who operated on reality-television star Jazz Jennings,” a young boy who’s spent many years flaunting his “transition to female” before the whole world.

The story Bowers tells regarding the horrific abuse perpetrated on Jennings will turn your stomach, break your heart, and blow your mind.

Anyone should know that getting a second opinion, especially regarding a serious health-related issue, is recommended. Not all doctors see everything the same way or have all the answers. The notion that daring to question a child or teenager struggling with identity issues is to somehow do them harm is nonsense, and yet the Rainbow Mafia has so thoroughly succeeded in scaring doctors, scientists, and journalists that even to question a child’s gender dysphoric claim is to supposedly engage in hate and malfeasance. The tragic result of such thinking and fear is growing numbers of youth being subjected to medical abuse, doing permanent damage to their bodies and minds.

Anderson put it far too mildly, saying: “It is my considered opinion that due to some of the — let’s see, how to say it? what word to choose? — due to some of the, I’ll call it just ‘sloppy,’ sloppy healthcare work, that we’re going to have more young adults who will regret having gone through this process. And that is going to earn me a lot of criticism from some colleagues, but given what I see — and I’m sorry, but it’s my actual experience as a psychologist treating gender variant youth — I’m worried that decisions will be made that will later be regretted by those making them.”

That’s only the beginning of the societal consequences.

https://patriotpost.us/articles/83288-transgender-experts-silenced-by-rainbow-mafia-2021-10-08

************************************

Superman comes out as bisexual: DC Comics reveals woke superhero son of Clark Kent and Lois Lane will start a romance with a male best friend

How to lose a large part of your audience

Superman is set to come out as bisexual and begin a romantic relationship with his male best friend, DC Comics revealed on Monday - just two months after the company announced that iconic Batman sidekick Robin was dating a man.

The news marks what DC has branded a 'bold new direction' for the legendary superhero - a move that began in July, when the company debuted a woke new series of comics about the character, featuring Clark Kent and Lois Lane's son Jonathan, who inherited the role from his cape-wearing father.

In the months since the Superman: Son of Kal-El series made its debut, 17-year-old Jon has taken on several hot-button issues, including high school shootings, climate change, and the deportation of refugees - all of which are a world away from the sinister supervillains that the Man of Steel once fought.

The character will now take yet another big step to separate himself from the much-loved original Superman storyline by dating his close male friend - with the romance set to take center stage in an upcoming issue of the comic, due to be released on November 9.

However, the same-sex relationship was inspired by the iconic romance between Clark and Lois, with DC revealing that the new Superman's partner, refugee 'hacktivist' Jay Nakamura, is also a reporter - just like the young superhero's parents.

'Just like his father before him, Jon Kent has fallen for a reporter,' the company said in a press release.

However, series writer Tom Taylor said that this is where the similarities end - explaining that Jay will not play the same 'damsel role' to Jon as Lois did to Clark, but rather feature as something of a sidekick for the superhero.

'Jay has his own fight,' Taylor told IGN, revealing that Jay will also soon learn that he has his own set of superpowers. 'He’s obviously an effective journalist, and Lois Lane is his hero.

'But Jay is also a refugee from [the fictional island nation of] Gamorra, so his experience also reflects Clark’s. While this has fortunately changed over the years, historically, Lois has often fulfilled a damsel role. Jay Nakamura will never be that. He and Jon will tackle many things side-by-side.'

Although all of the details about Jon and Jay's relationship have not yet been revealed, DC did offer a sneak peek at how their romance began - explaining that the pair will begin dating after Superman suffers from 'mental and physical burn out'.

'After initially striking up a friendship with reporter Jay Nakamura, he and Jon become romantically involved,' the company said.

'Following a scene where Superman mentally and physically burns out from trying to save everyone that he can, Jay is there to care for the Man of Steel.'

It continues: 'Faster than fate. As powerful as hope. Able to lift us all. For all his great power, Jon Kent can’t save everyone, but that won’t stop him from trying. How much can Earth’s new Superman do before this Man of Steel buckles? And when he does, who swoops in to save Superman?'

Images from the upcoming comic, which is the fifth issue in the new series, show Jon and Jay kissing and embracing, with Superman clad in his iconic blue-and-red uniform, while his pink-haired partner is seen wearing an orange hoodie, white T-shirt and purple glasses.

Jay will also be introduced to Clark and Lois in the new issue of the comic - with a sneak peek revealing that the reporter is left dumbstruck with nerves upon meeting his partner's mother for the first time.

Speaking about the decision to give Superman an LGBTQ+ storyline, series writer Tom Taylor told the New York Times that he wanted the new version of the character to be relevant for a modern audience - insisting that it would have felt like a 'missed opportunity' to once again portray the superhero as a 'straight white savior'.

'The idea of replacing Clark Kent with another straight white savior felt like a missed opportunity,' Taylor said.

'[A] new Superman had to have new fights — real world problems — that he could stand up to as one of the most powerful people in the world.'

He added to IGN: 'I’ve always said everyone needs heroes and everyone deserves to see themselves in their heroes. Today, Superman, the strongest superhero on the planet, is coming out.'

This same thinking applies to the enemies that the modern-day Superman tackles, which have shifted from the traditional supervillain and now include societal issues like global warming, the border crisis, and gun control.

'The question for Jon (and for our creative team) is, what should a new Superman fight for today?' Taylor continued. 'Can a 17-year-old Superman battle giant robots while ignoring the climate crisis? Of course not. Can someone with super sight and super hearing ignore injustices beyond his borders? Can he ignore the plight of asylum seekers?'

The news about Superman's LGBTQ+ relationship comes just two months after DC Comics announced that another of its legendary characters - Batman sidekick Robin - was also set to come out as bisexual and begin a relationship with a man.

In August, the comic book company revealed that the Caped Crusader's longtime sidekick Robin, a.k.a Tim Drake, would accept a date with a male character called Bernard Dowd in a new issue of the series Batman: Urban Legends.

Robin was described as having a 'lightbulb moment' when fighting alongside Bernard during a brawl, eventually rescuing Bernard in the process.

Fans of the comic welcomed the revelation saying they suspected Drake may be bisexual or gay for years.

In March, Marvel revealed their first openly-gay Captain America character, Aaron Fischer, which is debuted during Pride Month this past year.

Fischer is a youth advocate that was included in the 'United States of Captain America' comic book miniseries which was released on June 2.

'Aaron is inspired by heroes of the queer community: activists, leaders, and everyday folks pushing for a better life,' creator Aaron Trujillo told Entertainment Weekly.

'He stands for the oppressed, and the forgotten,' Trujillo added. 'I hope his debut story resonates with readers, and helps inspire the next generation of heroes.'

In addition to Fischer, Ayo (Black Panther), Valkyrie (Thor: Ragnarok) and Harley Quinn are superhero characters apart of the LGBTQ community.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-10081005/Superman-comes-BISEXUAL-DC-Comics-reveals-son-Clark-Kent-dating-man.html

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

12 October, 2021

Happy Columbus Day, My Fellow Indigenous People

Today is Columbus Day or, to hear whiny leftists and thin-skinned losers tell it, it’s Indigenous People’s Day. I don’t really give a damn about the latter, it’s made up because liberals want to destroy the former. But reality is reality, and in 1492, Christopher Columbus solidified the belief that the world is round. Celebrate it, it’s a great thing. And recognize that you, too, if you were born here, are an indigenous person.

First off, we have to address the whining leftists who insist Columbus committed genocide. This is as lazy an argument as it is stupid. Did diseases that Indians didn’t have defenses for make their way across the Atlantic? Of course they did. As did diseases going in the other direction that Europeans didn’t have natural immunity against. So what?

Do Democrats really think no one would have ever noticed there was a whole other half of the planet? That Indians would’ve been saved from disease in perpetuity? That’s impossible. Whose fault is it that Europeans were significantly more developed in every conceivable way than the tribes in the Americas?

People existed in both places pretty much the whole time, one side created clothing, trade, and ships to travel the world, and the other side didn’t. We have no idea why, but we do know the why doesn’t matter. It just is.

Someone was going to cross the ocean sooner or later. Since it was unlikely to be in a canoe, things unfolded the only way things could have unfolded.

As for the “Columbus brought slavery” garbage, slavery existed here long before Chris ever showed up. So did brutality and war. Tribes fought each other, region fought each other. Just because they didn’t have cannons and swords doesn’t mean they were civilized peacemakers. That’s just a lie the left perpetrates to call Europeans savages, but invading neighboring towns to rape and pillage had pretty much gone away in Europe, which still thriving here.

Democrats would have you believe it was Utopia here until this day 529 years ago, but that would be as big of a lie as the declaration that Joe Biden’s trillions in spending have an actual cost of zero.

And none of this reality has even touched on the fact that if the Indians had developed travel and weaponry first, they would have done the same thing to every other part of the world. Asia has disease and slavery, Africa had disease and slavery, nowhere didn’t. You want to talk about a “big lie,” listen to a progressive Democrat talk about what this day is commemorating.

That brings us to the renaming of the day to “Indigenous People’s Day.” Is there a more condescending name for so-called holiday? “We’re celebrating you because you’re so special and valid and important,” said the rich white liberal lady, likely named Karen, divorced with two kids, Jayden and some new spelling of Megan she’ll spend the rest of her life correcting people over.

These people can’t leave anything alone because their lives are empty. They need something external to validate them, to give them purpose. It isn’t their kids, they just remind them of the “damage” we’re doing to the planet. They feel guilty for having them, so they turn them into pretentious little monsters and bury them in participation ribbons.

No, they need to impact society as a whole because nothing short of judging everyone else to be inferior gives them a sense of purpose. So you change Christmas to “holidays” and mourn on July 4th; you make Martin Luther King Jr Day a high holy day while working against everything the man stood for and said. And you fight to change the definition of words and destroy reality by declaring absurd things to be true, like gender isn’t real, and working tirelessly to destroy anyone who says differently.

Well, before they managed to change more words, know that Merriam-Webster (currently) defines indigenous as “produced, living, or existing naturally in a particular region or environment.” By that definition, you are an indigenous person to wherever you were born. However you want to look at it – city, state, country, hemisphere, planet – you are an indigenous persons.

Let the leftists choke on that as they try to further divide us and wipe history clean so they can grab more control and power. To hell with them, this is your day! Happy Indigenous Person’s Day, which just so happens to fall on Columbus Day. So you have two things to celebrate today.

https://townhall.com/columnists/derekhunter/2021/10/11/happy-columbus-day-my-fellow-indigenous-people-n2597221

******************************************

Newsom Signs Bill Requiring Gender-Neutral Toy Aisles for Large Retailers in California

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed a bill into law that mandates large retailers have a gender-neutral toy aisle.

The law, signed Saturday, requires stores with at least 500 employees to keep a gender-neutral section of children’s items and toys, regardless of whether those items have previously been marketed toward boys or girls. Children's clothes will be excluded from this mandate.

The legislation was introduced by Assemblyman Evan Low (D) and will not ban items that have traditionally been marketed for either boys or girls. Stores that violate the new law once it goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2024 will face a civil penalty of as much as $250 for the first violation and $500 for any subsequent violations.

Low said he was "incredibly grateful" that Newsom signed the bill. The state Legislature's previous attempts to pass similar legislation were unsuccessful in 2019 and 2020.

"We need to stop stigmatizing what’s acceptable for certain genders and just let kids be kids," Low told The Associated Press. "My hope is this bill encourages more businesses across California and the U.S. to avoid reinforcing harmful and outdated stereotypes."

But the law has drawn sharp criticism from conservatives, who say that the government should not dictate how parents shop for their children.

The initiative was the third time that Democrats in the state Legislature have tried to pass this law, with similar bills failing in 2019 and 2020.

California is the first state in the country to enact a law of this kind but some large department stores have already moved to more gender-neutral displays.

In 2015, Target Corp. announced that its 1,915 stores across the United States would no longer use some gender-based signs.

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/landonmion/2021/10/10/woke-retail-newsom-signs-bill-requiring-genderneutral-toy-aisles-for-large-retailers-in-california-n2597233

*****************************************

Are We Defining Black Deviancy Down?

In 1993, New York Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan coined the phrase “defining deviancy down” to describe our nation’s continual lowering of the bar for acceptable behavior.

The phrase can be found atop this report subtitled, “How We’ve Become Accustomed to Alarming Levels of Crime and Destructive Behavior.” Moynihan, a Democrat iconoclast if ever there was one, wrote the report in response to the sharp increase in violent crime during the early 1990s. Years earlier, in 1965, he’d written one of the bravest and most prescient pieces ever produced by a DC bureaucrat when, while a staffer in Lyndon Johnson’s Department of Labor, he issued a report titled, “The Negro Family: The Case for National Action.” Not surprisingly, he was demonized for his truth-telling, and weak-kneed politicians have been tip-toeing around the issue of race ever since.

Although he died in 2003, we can’t help but wonder what Moynihan would’ve thought of two stories this week: one out of Chicago, where two gangs opened fire on each other, in a neighborhood, in broad daylight, killing one; and another out of Texas, where a young man opened fire on and wounded multiple classmates before surrendering to police.

In both cases, arrests were made. And in both cases, just days after the arrests, the perpetrators, young black men, were set free. How is this possible? we can imagine a slack-jawed Moynihan wondering.

In Chicago, which has been a one-party town for decades and has become increasingly ungovernable — at least as long as the latest Democrat, Lori Lightfoot, is in office — we can chalk it up to wokeism and idiocy. There, more than 70 spent shells were recovered from the shootout, which was captured by a city camera. What’s more, a set of uniformed officers in a marked squad car arrived while the shooting was still ongoing. One combatant was killed and five others were arrested. But Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx inexplicably refused to press felony charges against the two surviving aggressors, despite the pleas of Mayor Lightfoot and five alderman.

Foxx’s statement read in part: “The detectives reached out to our office on Friday and acknowledged at the outset that given the chaotic nature at the scene they were unable to determine how the events unfolded. We reviewed the evidence that was presented to us in consultation with the detectives and they agreed we were unable to approve charges based on the evidence presented.”

Got that? The shootout was captured on videotape, and the cops were there to witness it. If charges can’t be filed under these conditions, when can they?

But what about Texas? There, it seems even more shocking. An 18-year-old Timberview High School student is accused of wounding multiple people at his school — three classmates, one of them critically wounded, and one teacher who tried to stop him — but has since been released from jail on bail.

“The student accused of injuring four people in a shooting in Arlington on Wednesday was released on bail from the Tarrant County Jail on Thursday,” The Star Telegram reported, adding that the suspect was charged “with three counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.”

How is this young man not behind bars? What must the parents of the wounded students be thinking, given that the would-be killer of their kids made bail?

The assailant’s family says he’d been bullied because of his wealth. “He was scared, he was afraid,” said a family spokesperson at a press conference outside the family’s home. “It wasn’t just one person that would attack him and bully him, taking his money, harassing him because he had more things than maybe others. … It could have been a situation where he took the other turn and decided to commit suicide.”

This is an awful story. The question, though, is whether we’re defining black deviancy down with respect to crime and punishment; whether “the soft bigotry of low expectations” that George W. Bush decried 21 years ago has spread from educational achievement to other aspects of life; and whether we’re simply so hell-bent on “equity,” as opposed to equality, that we’re holding blacks to a lower standard than every other racial group. Years before Black Lives Matter became a thing, our Mark Alexander called this phenomenon black privilege.

These are ugly, troubling questions. But that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be pondered. A system of justice that doesn’t hold criminals equally accountable isn’t a system of justice at all. It’s a system of injustice, and its victims are invariably the innocent.

https://patriotpost.us/articles/83313-are-we-defining-black-deviancy-down-2021-10-08

*******************************************

Whistleblower Claims Capitol Police Botched Jan. 6 Response and Lied to Congress About It

Over the course of the next several months, we are going to learn quite a bit about the events of January 6th, but not everything that we hear is going to be taken at face value.

This is due to the fact that the select committee investigating the attempted insurrection has been largely seen as a partisan affair after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi barred certain members of the Republican Party from participating, forcing the GOP to rescind all of their picks. Regardless of the merit of the endeavor, the phony left v. right paradigm is likely to taint the results.

But, outside of the committee’s work, there are truly worrisome revelations coming to light, and it could change the way that we view the event entirely.

A former high-ranking Capitol Police official with knowledge of the department’s response to the Jan. 6 attack has sent congressional leaders a scathing letter accusing two of its senior leaders of mishandling intelligence and failing to respond properly during the riot.

The accusations were heavy, to say the least.

The whistleblower, who requested anonymity for privacy reasons and left the force months after the attack, sent the 16-page letter late last month to the top members of both parties in the House and Senate. His missive makes scorching allegations against Sean Gallagher, the Capitol Police’s acting chief of uniformed operations, and Yogananda Pittman, its assistant chief of police for protective and intelligence operations — who also served as its former acting chief.

The whistleblower accuses Gallagher and Pittman of deliberately choosing not to help officers under attack on Jan. 6 and alleges that Pittman lied to Congress about an intelligence report Capitol Police received before that day’s riot. After a lengthy career in the department, the whistleblower was a senior official on duty on Jan. 6.

And that’s not all:

The whistleblower’s criticism went beyond Capitol Police leaders to Congress. Without naming specific lawmakers, his letter accuses congressional leaders of having “purposefully failed” to tell the truth about the department’s failures.

The January 6th select committee made other headlines this week as well, after seeing several of their subpoenas defied by former White House officials and Trump aides, with the former President instructing them to claim “executive privilege” in the matter.

https://flagandcross.com/whistleblower-claims-capitol-police-botched-jan-6-response-and-lied-to-congress-about-it/

*******************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

11 October 2021

BBC twists our history to smear decent people as stupid fascist dupes

The distortion of the past is getting out of control. The truth is available to only a privileged few with good memories or access to crumbling, forgotten archives. So you can say what you like.

The BBC’s new Sunday evening drama Ridley Road is a perfect example of this. At first sight it looks like a harmless paddle in the past, into the lost world of suspender belts and British- made cars.

But it is carefully designed to give viewers the impression that Britain in 1962 was menaced by a major Nazi-style movement, led by a man called Colin Jordan.

It begins with the on-screen claim that ‘public support across the country is on the rise’ for Jordan’s neo-Nazis.

Then the drama makes a deliberate effort to suggest that people living in the Britain of that time, who were distressed by major changes in their lives, were easy prey for Nazi recruiters from this movement.

Such people are portrayed as being rather dim and also as saying that they ‘want our country back’, in what looks to me like a crude and nasty attempt to make these fascist dupes sound like Leave voters of today.

As far as the makers of this series are concerned, if you’re at all conservative you’re really a Nazi.

There is lots of other rubbish in this programme. But the exaggeration of Jordan’s importance is ridiculous. He was a pathetic nobody and a national figure of fun, not a potential Fuhrer.

Newspapers of the time called his outfit ‘Britain’s tiny jackboot-and-swastika Nazi party’. His greatest moment of fame, portrayed but not properly explained in the programme, was a pro-Hitler demonstration in Trafalgar Square on Sunday, July 1, 1962. It attracted almost no support, but thousands of hostile counter-demonstrators.

The Times of July 2, 1962, reported: ‘Throughout the meeting the speakers, Mr Dennis Pirie, deputy secretary, Mr John Tyndall, national secretary and Mr Colin Jordan, leader of the movement, were continually shouted down and pelted with pennies, tomatoes and rotten eggs, by an overwhelmingly hostile crowd of some 2,000.

‘The few people who did raise their hands in an earnest Nazi salute looked distinctly nervous.’

The Daily Mail of the same date said: ‘Police struggled to keep the angry crowd, many of them Jews, away from the speakers. Hundreds of men and women chanted “Six millions! Six millions!”, a reference to the Jews who died under the Nazis.’

It is plain from the reports that Jordan had hardly any supporters then or later. In the end, one of his fellow Nazis was quite badly beaten, before the platform party fled in vans from the angry crowd. Jordan himself got away only because a phalanx of police protected him and blocked the entrance to the Underground while he escaped.

Eventually the High Court ruled that Jordan had broken the Public Order Act of 1936, by using insulting behaviour, which he undoubtedly had. By that time he was already in prison, making TV aerials, after being convicted of a ludicrous attempt to set up a private army. He had also lost his job as a teacher in a secondary modern school.

Later he embarked on a comic-opera marriage with the leather-clad madwoman Francoise Dior, niece of the great fashion designer. Francoise liked to wear a swastika pendant, even though this got her into difficulties with many London taxi drivers. One ripped it from her neck, and refused to ‘chauffeur a stinking Nazi’.

The pair held a ‘Nordic’ wedding at their unimpressive party HQ, not far from where Grenfell Tower now stands. While a crowd outside hurled bottles and eggs at the building, Jordan and his Nazi bride mingled dribbles of their blood in a grotesque ceremony, while listening to a record of the Horst Wessel song. It was not a happy or lasting union.

Not long afterwards Francoise denounced Jordan, saying: ‘I thought I was marrying a leader and a hero but found I had married a middle-class nobody.’ You can see why. Jordan, a dough-faced nondescript, lived with his mother Bertha in a suburban road in Coventry.

Nazism was not on the rise again in 1962. Jordan was not a major figure. British people, then as now, were sensible, level-headed and humorous. The law found plenty of ways of restraining Jordan and people like him. The whole basis of the BBC drama is rubbish. The blatant effort to link normal patriotic conservatives with bigots and Nazis in the public mind is low and dirty.

They tell these lies because they can and they want to use drama for propaganda. If the BBC will not stop doing this with public money, they do not deserve to survive.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-10075799/PETER-HITCHENS-BBC-twists-history-smear-decent-people-stupid-fascist-dupes.html

***************************************

Tesla ordered to pay $US137 million to ex-worker over racism in rare verdict

Absurd. May not survive appeal

Tesla lost a case against a black former elevator operator and must pay an unprecedented $US137 million ($188 million) in damages for having turned a blind eye to racial taunts and offensive graffiti the man endured at the electric carmaker’s auto plant in Fremont, California.

Owen Diaz, a former contract worker who was hired in 2015 via a staffing agency, was subjected to a racially hostile work environment, a federal jury in San Francisco decided on Monday (US time). The award is among the most significant verdicts of its kind.

“I believe that’s the largest verdict in an individual race discrimination in employment case,” said David Oppenheimer, a clinical professor of law at Berkeley Law. “Class actions are of course in a different category.”

Tesla’s vice president of people, Valerie Capers Workman, sent an internal email late on Monday that the company subsequently published in a blog post on its website titled “Regarding Today’s Jury Verdict.”

Workman wrote she was “at the defence table for Tesla every day during the trial because I wanted to hear firsthand what Mr. Diaz said happened to him.” The post said that “the Tesla of 2015 and 2016 (when Mr. Diaz worked in the Fremont factory) is not the same as the Tesla of today.”

Diaz’s case marks a rare instance in which Tesla, which typically uses mandatory arbitration to resolve employee disputes, had to defend itself in a public trial. The company almost never loses workplace arbitrations, though it was hit with a $USUS1 million award in May in a case brought by another ex-contract worker that was similar to Diaz’s.

The trial could embolden shareholder activists who have pushed Tesla’s board, so far without success, to adopt more transparency about its diversity goals and use of arbitration to resolve complaints regarding sexual harassment and racial discrimination. Tesla’s annual meeting is scheduled for October 7.

In court, Tesla argued that it never intended to disregard the rights and safety of African-American workers placed by the staffing agency at the plant and that all incidents reported by Mr Diaz were investigated and resolved.

In her closing arguments to the jury, Tesla attorney Tracey Kennedy said “Mr. Diaz’s story simply doesn’t make sense” in light of his encouragement to his son and daughter to take up jobs at the company. She also said Diaz’s claims weren’t supported by the evidence.

J. Bernard Alexander III, a lawyer for Diaz, told jurors that “as opposed to a zero-tolerance policy, Tesla had a zero-responsibility policy.”

The “n-word” was “pervasive and virtually everywhere,” Alexander said. He finished his closing remarks by citing some phrases from The Hill We Climb, a poem by Amanda Gorman, the 23-year-old poet who moved the nation at the inauguration of President Joe Biden in January. “Being American” is about stepping into the past and “how we repair it,” Alexander said. Diaz himself testified that be suffered “sleepless nights” and weight loss as he lost his appetite.

“Some days I would just sit on my stairs and cry,” he told the jury.

The jury’s award included $US6.9 million for emotional distress and $US130 million in punitive damages, according to Diaz’s other attorney, Larry Organ. Tesla is the world’s most valuable automaker with a market value of around $US783 billion.

Organ said he hopes the ruling encourages Tesla do so “some reevaluation” so none of its other black workers have to endure similar treatment. “The jury verdict sends a message to one of the wealthiest companies in the world that it must treat all its employees with dignity and respect,” he said.

Organ was also on the legal team representing Melvin Berry, a black former worker who won the $US1 million arbitration award over claims that the company failed to stop his supervisors at its Fremont plant from calling him the “n-word.”

Tesla faces yet another case making similar accusations that is proceeding as a class action in California state court in Oakland.

https://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace/tesla-ordered-to-pay-us137-million-to-ex-worker-over-racism-in-rare-verdict-20211006-p58xjl.html

****************************************

British Police chiefs continue to give officers 'nonsensical' unconscious bias training including lessons on 'white privilege'

Police chiefs have been lambasted over training officers in 'nonsensical' unconscious bias courses including lessons on 'white privilege' and how jokes can lead to genocide.

Officers across the country continue to be trained in unconscious bias despite government calls to scrap the courses after a review found that it was 'not associated with changes in behaviour'.

Last year it was announced the training would be phased out of government departments while ministers encouraged other 'public sector employers to do likewise'.

But police forces, led by the College of Policing, have vowed to continue with the training which is designed to help identify in-built biases affected by race, sexuality or gender.

Now a Freedom of Information request to forces by The Mail on Sunday has revealed the 'bizarre' training materials used to teach officers and staff about unconscious bias.

They include Merseyside and Cleveland Police where officers are taught the 1950s 'Allport's scale' of prejudice which describes how jokes can lead to genocide, originally designed to explain events leading up to the Holocaust.

Critics have argued police have at times adapted this theory to controversially persecute people for making jokes under hate crime guidance.

Meanwhile Merseyside's officers are taught that using words such as 'husband', 'wife', 'boyfriend' and 'girlfriend' in the workplace can leave colleagues feeling excluded if they are of a different sexual orientation.

Training materials from West Mercia Police, among other forces, show that officers are asked to consider the 'halo vs horns effect' which states people can unfairly form opinions about a person based on one distinctive character trait.

An example often cited as part of this bias training is judging a person is unsuitable for a job because their appearance is 'scruffy'.

They are also told to 'avoid taking part in workplace gossip' with colleagues, while remembering to 'find a common interest', 'keep a professional distance' but that 'banter can be bullying'.

At North Wales Police officers have been taught in media bias with slides on newspaper stories which even included a spoof Daily Mail front page featuring Joseph Goebbels and Prime Minister David Cameron with a Hitler moustache.

Conservative MP Tim Loughton, of the Home Affairs Committee, said: 'If the police were nearly as creative and energetic about catching criminals and keeping the public safe as they are with appearing woke and pursuing a politically correct agenda then people might feel police were doing the job they were paid for. They should be focusing on real threats.'

A senior Tory source said: 'Our police officers should be on the streets catching criminals, not spending hours in workshops led by clowns.'

Harry Miller, a former officer who won a High Court case against Humberside Police over his alleged 'transphobic' tweets and set up campaign group Fair Cop, said of the training: 'This needs to stop.

'It's totally bizarre and I don't know why they do it.

'They're seeking to separate us from one another by politicising every slight, insult, preference, joke, bit of banter, casual chat and turning it into something it's not.

'The police do this because it's easy, while failing to solve burglaries or knife crime - it's a smokescreen to distract from their pitiful record. 'We are calling for the closure of the College of Policing, because it's from there that all this nonsense flows.'

Fiona Eldridge, of the College of Policing, said: 'It is important police officers and staff are aware that bias, including unconscious bias, exists and as such, the subject will continue to form part of the national curriculum.

'We have developed the national policing curriculum which informs the training and development designed and delivered locally by forces and this includes references to bias, but always within an operational policing context rather than being covered as a subject in isolation.'

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10077835/Police-chiefs-continue-officers-nonsensical-unconscious-bias-training.html

********************************************

Australia: Immigrants will probably trust new conservative Premier - it’s inner-city folk whose values are "progressive"

The appointment of former NSW treasurer Dominic Perrottet to the role of Premier provoked an outcry this week. It was a deeply weird reaction. Perrottet’s assent has been described as “scary” and “troubling”. He makes one writer, who is “a woman and a supporter of LGBTQIA+ communities” particularly “nervous”. A social media activist was concerned that his conservative religious and family values drive “attitudes and often policies that may be severely at odds with the central demands of democracy”.

The idea that holding conservative, faith-based family values is aberrant is very weird. Weird in the sense coined by evolutionary psychologist Joseph Henrich in his book on “how the West became psychologically peculiar and particularly prosperous”. Henrich tracks how the rules laid down in European Christianity’s “marriage and family program” replaced intensive kin-based institutions with an institution that expanded trust relationships beyond the family. The universalism it fostered created the Western, Educated, Industrialised, Rich and Developed (WEIRD) world, Henrich argues.

Australians are individually among the WEIRDest. Whether or not we are now religious, our views have been shaped by the social structures our religious ancestors built, which encouraged individualism, independence, the notion that strangers have the same inherent human value as those related to us, non-conformity, resistance to tradition and a number of other characteristics which you might instantly recognise as positive, even aspirational, and which you probably believe you possess. Some of us are so non-conforming that we have talked ourselves out of religion entirely. We believe that you can be moral, spiritual and good without attending religious ceremonies or worshipping a higher being.

We are also open to other peoples and cultures and Australia’s immigration intake has made Australia the diverse, multicultural and multi-faith society it is today. Since the middle of last century, the overseas-born population has risen from one-tenth to one-third. This has increased the proportion of non-WEIRD to WEIRD people, as more people come to Australia from countries such as India, China, the Philippines, Malaysia and Sri Lanka.

These countries tend to be more religious, more family-oriented and less individualistic than societies which have been WEIRD for a very long time. The people from them bring their cultural dispositions with them and, Henrich has found, generally these values are also held by their descendants over a couple of generations. These communities are more socially conservative, family-oriented and religious than your inner-city WEIRDo.

These communities now hold quite a lot of electoral power. That is not, of course, why the new Premier holds the values he does. But Henrich reports that immigrants from different countries living in the same country show higher levels of trust in people of faith, even if it’s a faith different to their own. The Premier’s values make him more trustworthy among the less WEIRD new Australians.

In retail political speak, Perrottet can connect with voters from many religions because he shares their values. But then so can NSW Opposition Leader Chris Minns, who is also a family-oriented Catholic. Both men are focused on the needs and aspirations of non-WEIRD Western Sydney, in which the next state and federal elections could be decided.

By now the WEIRD people who are terrified of Perrottet should be waking up to a shocking discovery. Australian public life doesn’t revolve around their values. ABC Religion and Ethics presenter Andrew West wrote thoughtfully about the lessons of the 2019 federal election won by the Liberals, in which religious freedom played at least some part, observing that “Labor, and the broader left, need to understand that you cannot celebrate multiculturalism without supporting religious freedom”.

West points out that while no one expects politicians to adopt a fake religious identity, they do expect them to respect their rights “to believe, to manifest these beliefs in private and public, and to educate their children according to these beliefs”.

This means also respecting that people may have different views on social issues, such as same-sex marriage, abortion, gender and voluntary assisted dying. WEIRD people see these things as about individual choice. Less WEIRD people believe that individual choices affect the collective and so they may be more cautious about changing the social fabric. We should be able to disagree and debate such issues with respect, understanding that there are no objectively right or wrong answers on culture.

That might weird you out, but it is part of the tolerance that a multicultural society demands. Conservative governments have sometimes worried that such tolerance could go too far and have attempted to protect the progressive principles of our culture with a statement of Australian values. Progressives have often labelled these attempts as racist.

There could be another shock for the weirdos next week when the voluntary assisted dying bill is presented to NSW Parliament on Thursday. Minns opposes it. If he allows a conscience vote, many Labor MPs will also vote against the bill, including Hugh McDermott, the member for Prospect in western Sydney.

The inner-city WEIRDos have had the cultural power for a very long time. At least in NSW that might be changing. That is not “at odds with the central demands of democracy” but a WEIRD expression of it.

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/immigrants-will-likely-trust-dominic-perrottet-it-s-the-inner-city-folk-whose-values-are-weird-20211008-p58yco.html

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

10 October, 2021

Fake, woke & authoritarian: Why does Canada continue to take the insultingly insincere Justin Trudeau seriously?

I have always found Trudeau Jnr. nauseous but jouirnalist Eva Bartlett really goes to town on him below

Canada's pointless prime minister is a vacuous, self-aggrandising, borderline despot incapable of even keeping up the pretence he cares a jot about the people unfortunate enough to be governed by the privileged charlatan.

Just weeks post federal elections, the muppet PM of Canada, Justin Trudeau, has given up all pretense of being a serious politician and instead returned to his norm of idiocy, offensive gaffs, scandals, and increasing the authoritarianism Canadians have endured the past 18+ months (but which Trudeau and other leaders have flouted).

On September 30, the day of Canada's newly-established National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, instead of himself abiding by the words of his (clearly-scripted and hollow) statement, Trudeau skipped off West to hit the waves and walk on the beach with his wife and kids.

The statement included Trudeau inviting Canadians, “to reflect on the painful and lasting impacts of residential schools in Canada, and to honour survivors, their families, and their communities,” and, “to remember the many children who never returned home.”

This he did by ignoring requests of Indigenous communities to visit, instead opting for family fun time in Tofino, a holiday town on Vancouver Island.

This is hardly surprising, given he is merely the face of the government of Canada, the same government which has paid lip service to caring about Indigenous peoples, but continues to allow many communities to boil contaminated water rather than solving the dangerous health issue.

Trudeau's choice to go surfing on the very day of the first year of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, was, in my opinion, him revealing how little he cares for the issues he feigns concern over.

A week later, he donned his pretend-sincere face and uttered the empty words, “Travelling on the 30th was a mistake and I regret it.”

Nah. He doesn't regret it, he regrets getting caught. Or as a survivor of the genocidal ‘residential school’ system said, “this just shows us survivors that he doesn't actually want to meet with us. He's just hoping that we will just disappear into the sunset.”

Last July I wrote of the sudden media attention regarding the horrific issue of the Canada-wide ‘residential schools’, where starvation, torture, and sexual, physical and mental abuse were rife.

In a follow up article, I cited an interview I conducted with Roland Chrisjohn, a PhD-educated clinical psychologist and head of the Native Studies department at St. Thomas University in Fredericton, New Brunswick, who spoke of Canada's long history of covering up the crimes against Indigenous children imprisoned in the ‘schools’.

Trudeau's latest failure to show any semblance of genuine remorse over these crimes was noted in the backlash on social media, including in response to his virtue-signalling tweet after the fact.

More recently, Trudeau took to Twitter tweeting about “lighting candles to honour Indigenous women, girls,” and adding his own version of inclusivity, 2SLGBTQQIA, that left even the wokest confused, and many mocking his idiocy.

The 2SL of that Trudeauism apparently referred to ‘Two-spirit’, or “a person who identifies as having both a masculine and a feminine spirit and is used by some Indigenous North Americans to describe their sexual identity.”

Although Team Trudeau thought they were ahead of the woke game, he instead, once again, looked like an idiot in a suit pretending to be a leader. One whose Twitter settings should include parental guidance, for his own good.

Trudeau's authoritarianism

While the PM might garner a tad of sympathy from charitably-minded people who perhaps, mistakenly, think the guy has his heart in the right place but keeps mucking up with his idiotic gaffes, many Canadians are rightly pissed off by his, and Canada's, authoritarian streak over the past two years.

Ontario has had one of the longest and most brutal lockdowns in the world – though the tyranny in Australia has superseded that of Ontario.

Earlier this year, Canada decided to re-invent science and declare that natural immunity to Covid-19 isn't acceptable, only the fast-tracked Big Pharma jabs, meaning that many Canadians, myself-included, cannot return to Canada.

In the leadup to the rushed election, Trudeau said unvaccinated citizens should be banned from planes, trains & buses, and called on the populace to shame and condemn the anti-vaxxers as a “danger.”

This week, Trudeau announced Canadians aged 12 and up will be forced to be jabbed in order to travel.

And Trudeau's government will tighten the noose further, implementing prison-state rules about travel by the end of November: only fully vaccinated Canadians can travel.

This is unsurprising to those who have followed Canada's not so subtle slide towards tyranny. Nor is it surprising after over a year of Covid-19-related psychological operations against the Canadian people, with the intent of “shaping and exploiting” information, discouraging civil disobedience, and boosting confidence in the government's narratives on matters pandemic.

Although I believe that whoever the muppet leader of Canada is, the policies would largely be the same, the Trudeau brand is truly repugnant.

Canadians are doomed with years more fake, woke and authoritarian non-leadership, with no imminent solution in sight other than mass civil disobedience. But sadly, the combination of idiotic and distracting identity politics and the media fear mongering will ensure that this does not happen.

https://www.rt.com/op-ed/537015-fake-woke-authoritarian-justin-trudeau/

******************************************

And Jews Will Still Vote Democrat

Leftism blinds the mind to reality

Dennis Prager

There is almost nothing Democrats can do to damage America or Israel that would change most American Jews’ political leanings.

The latest example took place just last week. A college student speaking to Vice President Kamala Harris, a Democrat, condemned America for supporting Israel, and charged Israel with committing “ethnic genocide” against Palestinians.

Harris’ said, “Your voice, your perspective, your experience, your truth cannot be suppressed, and it must be heard.”

It was indeed the student’s truth, which means it was a lie. “Your truth” always means “a lie.” When a person says something that is true, people don’t say, “that is your truth.” They say, “that’s true.”

And indeed, what the girl said to Harris was a complete lie. Not a partial lie, a complete lie.

As a rule—except on the left with regard to Israel—groups that are victims of genocide decrease in number.

Yet, the Palestinians have had one of the highest population growth rates in the world. There were 2,783,084 Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza in 1991, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics. In 2021, there were 5,227,193. This number does not include another 2 million Palestinians who are Israeli citizens.

How many other national or ethnic groups have doubled in size over the last 30 years?

Yet, despite this revealing incident, it is hard to imagine that one American Jew will in any way rethink his or her commitment to Harris and President Joe Biden.

One reason is that few Jewish Democrats even know it occurred. I Googled “New York Times Kamala Harris George Mason University” and the following results came up (in this order): New York Post, Politico, Times of Israel, and Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Next came a 2020 article from The New York Times titled “Kamala Harris Makes History as First Woman and Woman of Color as Vice President.”

I could find nothing about the incident in the news sections of The Washington Post or Los Angeles Times either.

Some of the most powerful forces in the Democratic Party who are the reason for the $3.5 trillion spending bill are indistinguishable in their hatred for Israel from Hamas, Hezbollah and the Iranian regime. Does this disturb American Jewish Democrats?

Not nearly as much as former President Donald Trump disturbed them. Most American Jews loathed Trump even though he was the most pro-Israel president since Harry Truman; his daughter and grandchildren are religious Jews; and he engineered the Abraham Accords, a peace agreement between the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain and Israel, which was followed by normalization of relations between Sudan and Israel and between Morocco and Israel.

Most American Jews believe the Democratic Party is good and moral and that the Republican Party is immoral and perhaps even evil. This view is entirely emotional, which is why it is difficult to imagine it changing.

Most American Jews identify Republicans with the right. They assume “the right” means “fascist” or even “Nazi.” Most American Jews also identify Republicans with the rich and powerful and the Democratic Party with the poor and downtrodden, even though the rich and powerful are overwhelmingly Democrats.

Most American Jews identify the Democratic Party with secularism and the Republican Party with religion, specifically religious Christians and Orthodox Jews. They are as committed to secularism as Christians are to Christ.

Most American Jews have signed on to just about every secular substitute for Judeo-Christian religions including feminism, environmentalism, “anti-racism,” humanism, and socialism.

Jews, I have often noted, may well be the most religious people in the world, but for the great majority of them, Judaism is not their religion. And the Democratic Party is the party of all these secular religions.

This is a great tragedy not just for America, but especially for American Jews.

America has always been the best country where Jews have ever lived outside of Israel. That is why a Jew wrote “God Bless America” (and did so at a time when antisemitism was much more prevalent and accepted in American society than it is today).

That is why the most influential religious Jew of the 20th century, Chabad leader Rabbi Menachem Schneerson, described America as a medina shel chesed, a “country of kindness.” Coming from Europe, he did not compare America to Utopia but to all the other countries where Jews lived.

Yet, something happened to American Jews after World War II. They veered more to the left and able to support America-hating movements including the Black Panther Party. Leonard Bernstein and other prominent Jews in music and Broadway threw an infamous fundraiser for the Black Panther Party.

This happened because Jews became less and less committed to Judaism, substituted The New York Times for the Torah and went to college in greater proportions than any other ethnic or religious group in America. Colleges corrupt most students’ values. Jews are no exception.

That helps explain why a Democratic vice president could praise a student who just told her that Israel commits ethnic genocide—and have it mean nothing to most American Jews.

https://www.dailysignal.com/2021/10/05/and-jews-will-still-vote-democrat/

***************************************************

Expert Testifies That Shootings by Kyle Rittenhouse Were Justified

Kyle Rittenhouse shot three rioters in Kenosha, Wisc., last year. Today, an expert testified in a pre-trial hearing, echoing what most of us have long suspected: All three shootings were justified.

Rittenhouse, armed with one of those scary, semi-automatic rifles, shot three men who were attacking him, as rioters and arsonists sacked Kenosha over the police shooting of sexual assault suspect Jacob Blake. Blake, who is black, resisted arrest and was retrieving a knife from his car when Kenosha police shot him seven times. Blake survived but is now in a wheelchair.

FACT-O-RAMA! Kamala Harris told Jacob Blake she was proud of him. She didn’t explain whether she was proud of him for sexually assaulting his ex-girlfriend or for resisting arrest.

In the aftermath of the shootings, lefty news outlets, hiding the fact that Blake was a sexual assault suspect, tried to portray Rittenhouse as a bloodthirsty vigilante. He spent some time in a Kenosha jail for the shootings after he turned himself in to his hometown police in Antioch, Illinois.

Self-defense expert John Black testified, after watching videotapes of Rittenhouse being chased by an armed mob, that Rittenhouse, then 17 years old, was justified in all three shootings. “A citizen in that position, given those indicators, would it be reasonable for them to believe they were about to be assaulted? I would argue yes,” Black said.

The Kenosha riots were immortalized by CNN’s now-infamous “Fiery but mostly peaceful” coverage, where protestors rioters were also seen pelting police with projectiles.

Rittenhouse has taken heat, not just for shooting rioters who were swarming him, one of whom struck him with a skateboard, but because he is from out of state. Some believe he had no reason for being in Kenosha, though he insists he was there to help defend a friend’s place of business.

Also, there is some debate as to whether or not Rittenhouse, 17 at the time of the shootings, was allowed to have a semi-automatic rifle. His lawyers argue that, due to hunting laws, he was allowed to legally possess one.

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/kevindowneyjr/2021/10/06/expert-testifies-that-shootings-by-kyle-rittenhouse-were-justified-n1522218

*****************************************

Stunned holidaymakers say they have been branded racists by staff after complaining about Afghan child refugees 'running riot' at Scarborough's historic Grand Hotel

Coach-loads of migrant families fleeing the Taliban have been arriving at the iconic venue which was evacuated earlier this week in a bomb scare believed to be linked to their arrival.

Hotel guests say they have every sympathy with the 200 refugees staying there until they find permanent homes - but their children have disrupted their stay and caused havoc.

According to the complaints, unruly Afghan children are running in and out other people's rooms, screaming and shouting and setting off fire extinguishers,

The unsupervised youngsters were also said to be riding scooters all over the hotel, pressing all the buttons on lifts, causing damage, and 'intimidating' guests.

Visitors who complained to hotel workers about the disruption or requested an early checkout say they were stunned to be accused of racism by the staff.

Two women from Billingham who requested a cancellation of their £338 stay from booking agent National Holidays say they were warned they would not get a penny back.

One said: 'Our concern is about safety and leaving things in our room, because of what we read about theft and kids running wild. 'By no means are we racist - I've worked with refugees, and it is not their fault.

'I totally agree they should have got out the country, but my concern is the company didn't inform us what the Grand Hotel was doing.'

TripAdvisor for the Grand Hotel, a Grade II listed building which was once the largest hotel in Europe, has been deluged with complaints about alleged conditions at the hotel and the behaviour of the children.

One woman wrote that after queuing for an hour to check in she and her partner went to their room and were shocked by what they found.

She said: 'On the way I realised there were a lot of people just stood about while hundreds (or seemed like) of children raced around screaming and shouting.

'After plenty of "excuse me" etc we found the room. After squeezing past folk in we went. 'P**s up the walls and no quilt on the bed and these said children running in and out of the room!

'We decided we didn't want to stay there and headed back downstairs (same carry on as going up!).

'I overheard people talking angrily about the kids and people just stood about, they were refugees and more buses were just parking up.

'I didn't have a problem with this. I just felt we should have been made aware that the hotel would be this "hectic" then we could decide if the noise would be a problem for us.

'I spoke to the man on the desk and asked for a refund and explained why. He then started shouting at me calling me a racist! 'I am no racist - I booked the break when the school holidays had ended so it would be quieter!

'He flatly refused me a refund so we left. We went on to pay £150 to get a room for 1 night then left and went home a day early as we were both worn out.

'As I was at the desk getting insulted at least three others were demanding a refund for the same reasons.'

Another disgusted guest wrote: 'The place is full of uncontrolled refugee children, who are absolutely out of control and nobody is disciplining them.'

'The guest then said "I am paying to be here, so I have the right to complain" to which the employee said - "No, you don't".'

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10072227/Holidaymakers-branded-racists-complaining-refugees-Scarboroughs-Grand-Hotel.html

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

8 October, 2021

Judge Rules Kansas City’s Attempt to ‘Defund the Police’ Is Illegal

An attempt by Kansas City’s political leadership to strip its police department of millions of dollars in funding has been quashed by a judge who said the attempt to hobble the police broke the law.

Jackson County Judge Patrick Campbell said that under the law, the city cannot alter police funding without approval from the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners, according to WDAF-TV.

The lawsuit came about after Mayor Quinton Lucas pushed to cut $42.2 million from the police budget, and the City Council agreed. The mayor’s plan meant that about 18 percent of the department’s budget would then be reallocated to a Community Services and Prevention Fund, according to the Kansas City Star.

During the hearing, Kristine Reiter, budget manager for the police said the cuts would have meant the department ran out of money by December unless changes were made.

She said the department would need to lay off 1,000 officers and staff members to stay within budgetary limits. Lucas disagreed with that contention.

Campbell said his ruling is not a determination on the wisdom of defunding police.

“This judgment does not resolve whether citizens of Kansas City should exert direct political control over their law enforcement agency,” he wrote.

“It is not a referendum on the Chief of Police, the Mayor, or any other appointed or elected official. These are subjects of vigorous social debate and should be finally resolved by a healthy democracy. However, they are not legal issues pending before this Court,” he wrote.

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt, who had sided with the police against the city, released a statement, according to KMBC-TV.

“Today, a Jackson County Judge sided with the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners and the Attorney General’s Office and struck down Kansas City’s illegal attempt to defund the police. This is a huge win for the people of Kansas City and law enforcement officers who work every single day to keep their communities safe. I will always stand up for Missouri’s law enforcement and fight back against craven attempts to defund the police,” he said.

Lucas indicated that he and the council will not let the matter drop.

“I imagine the Council will set the expectation that any dollar received by the Department over statutory requirements must be negotiated and focused squarely on preventing violent crime in our community. Discussions about next year’s budget have already started,” he said.

“The City will weigh all options going forward, including appeal,” he continued.

Brad Lemon, president of the Kansas City Fraternal Order of Police, said the decision was a victory, but it “does little to repair the damage the City’s misguided decision has had on KCPD and our members’ morale,” according to WDAF-TV.

“KCPD has seen a record number of resignations and retirements in This year more than 100 officers have resigned or retired and 35 more will leave this year, numbers that represent nearly double the total number of resignations and retirements than any other year in KCPD history,” he said.

He said the city should not keep pushing to cut police funding.

“It is the FOP’s sincere hope the City and the BOPC can put this unfortunate situation behind them and focus their efforts, instead, on finding ways to recruit and retain officers. If we revisit this terrible situation again next year, the Department will not be able to withstand its effects and the results will be catastrophic for public safety in Kansas City,” he concluded.

https://flagandcross.com/judge-rules-kansas-citys-attempt-to-defund-the-police-is-illegal/

*****************************************

No Jen Psaki, Trump NEVER Told People To Inject Bleach

Team Biden always finds a way to distract the news away from their screw-ups with lies. Making things easy, they like to find ways to reuse lies about former president Trump that the MSM promoted when Trump was in office. Biden’s team reuses MSM lies even though they were already proven false. A popular one during the campaign was the disproven Charlottesville lie. That lie claimed the former President said the neo-Nazis were “fine people.” Most recently, team Biden switched to a new piece of media propaganda. The lie that President Trump told people to fight COVID by injecting bleach.

In August, Peter Doocy asked if Biden’s criticism of Trump’s Operation Warp Speed created some of the vaccine residency we are facing today:

As public approval of Joe Biden’s handling of the pandemic continues to sink, October 1st saw Jen Psaki repeat the lie again, claiming the current Biden fight against COVID would be further along if Trump hadn’t told people to inject bleach. “Title 42 is a public health requirement because we’re in the middle of a pandemic, which by the way, we would’ve made progress on had the former President addressed the pandemic and not suggest people inject bleach.”

The truth is that Trump did not say we should inject ourselves with bleach or a disinfectant. He said the opposite. But the MSM lied about what was said, and Lyin Biden’s team is using it as a weapon today.

During an April 2020 CoronaVirus Task Force press conference, Bill Bryan, who leads the DHS Science and Technology Group, revealed the findings of a scientific study they conducted. The study indicating that the virus is killed by solar light and disinfectants. The President asked if there were ways for that information to help humans, and many in the media went crazy, saying Trump suggested we inject ourselves with disinfectant. Actually, the President did not say we should inject ourselves with disinfectant. Per the transcript, after Bryan made his presentation Trump said:

TRUMP: Thank you very much. So I asked Bill a question that probably some of you are thinking of if you’re totally into that world, which I find to be very interesting. So, supposing we hit the body with a tremendous — whether it’s ultraviolet or just very powerful light — and I think you said that that hasn’t been checked, but you’re going to test it. And then I said, supposing you brought the light inside the body, which you can do either through the skin or in some other way, and I think you said you’re going to test that too. It sounds interesting.

BRYAN: We’ll get to the right folks who could.

TRUMP: Right. And then I see the disinfectant, where it knocks it out in a minute. One minute. And is there a way we can do something like that, by injection inside or almost a cleaning? Because you see it gets in the lungs and it does a tremendous number on the lungs. So it would be interesting to check that. So, that, you’re going to have to use medical doctors with. But it sounds — it sounds interesting to me.

Notice he didn’t say we should start injecting ourselves with disinfectant. He asked Bryan to check, “is there a way we can do something like that, by injection inside or almost a cleaning.” But later on, he says it even more clearly. When Trump was done, Jonathan Karl asked if there was any scenario where cleaners could be injected. After Mr. Bryan answered, President Trump, added that it wouldn’t be via injection but by cleaning an area.

KARL: Can I ask about — the President mentioned the idea of cleaners, like bleach and isopropyl alcohol you mentioned. There’s no scenario that could be injected into a person, is there? I mean —

BRYAN: No, I’m here to talk about the findings that we had in the study. We won’t do that within that lab and our lab. So —

TRUMP: It wouldn’t be through injection. We’re talking about through almost a cleaning, sterilization of an area. Maybe it works, maybe it doesn’t work. But it certainly has a big effect if it’s on a stationary object.

But the media didn’t care about the truth in April 2020, nor do they fact-check Jen Psaki when she lies today. This is just another way the media displays its bias for leftist Joe Biden and that former president Trump is living rent-free in their heads.

After a week where three different generals told us that Biden lied to America about Afghanistan, team Joe is unearthing old lies to distract Americans from his failing administration.

https://flagandcross.com/no-jen-psaki-trump-never-told-people-to-inject-bleach/

**********************************************

PIERS MORGAN: President Biden's attempt to criminalize complaining parents is a shameful attempt to silence dissent that's more worthy of North Korea than the supposed land of the free

'Children are the world's most valuable resource,' said President John F. Kennedy, 'and its best hope for the future.'

He was absolutely right. A society is only as good as the children it nurtures, educates and prepares for adulthood. A society is also only as good as the protection it affords children.

And the most important people at the heart of all this childcare are parents.

I've got no time for mothers and fathers who don't care about their kids. For me, they're the lowest of the low. If you don't want to care for your children, then don't have them.

But conversely, I have all the time in the world for parents who DO care about their kids – passionately, ferociously, unconditionally.

Above all, I will defend to the last drop of my blood the right of any parent to want to protect their child. In the end, isn't that the overriding job of a parent – to keep their children from harm's way until they'd old enough to look after themselves?

That doesn't mean I will always agree with what a parent wants for their child. In fact, many times I may vehemently disagree.

But I will always support their right to have an opinion on what is best for their child because nobody knows their own child better than a caring parent.

And the First Amendment of the US Constitution permits parents to express those opinions as vigorously as they want.

Yet in a stunning, and very sinister move, President Biden has apparently decided that they don't.

The Department of Justice has issued a directive that the FBI will now investigate parents after a 'disturbing spike in harassment, intimidation, and threats of violence' against school staff and administrators.

This comes in response to a letter to President Biden last week from the National Association of School Boards (NASB) asserting that 'America's public schools and its education leaders are under an immediate threat' due to 'attacks...for approving policies for masks'. The letter likened parents' objections to 'a form of domestic terrorism' and fuelled instant outrage.

Asra Nomani, a mom and the vice president of investigations and strategy at Parents Defending Education (PDE), tweeted: 'This is what a domestic terrorist looks like? You are criminalizing parenting, and you owe the people of America a swift apology.'

It was a view shared by many.

Now, let me be clear: I would never defend any violence or threat of violence against a teacher or school administrator, and there have undeniably been some ugly scenes at schools in recent weeks between angry parents and school boards over issues like covid masks, the teaching of critical race theory, and issues relating to transgenderism like access to bathrooms.

But there is a massive difference between violence and a parent expressing robust, even furious concern about a school policy.

And there are many US public school policies right now which demand parental attention and concern. Let's take covid.

My nine-year-old daughter caught the virus a few weeks ago and had what she described as a 'bad cold' for two days before bouncing back to normal. That, thankfully, appears to be the experience that most young kids have with covid and the death toll for children is incredibly low.

Does that justify masking them all day in their classrooms with all the possible side effects that might have on their physical and mental health?

I think the jury is very definitely out on that, and it's certainly something that all parents should be allowed to debate and have a view about, not least because so much is still unknown about covid, and even the country's top infectious disease scientist Dr Anthony Fauci has gone from saying masks are ineffective against covid to insisting they're very effective.

I am more forgiving of Fauci's change of mind than others, believing that new viruses can catch even the most brilliant medical minds by surprise. But given Fauci's U-turn on masks, why shouldn't parents of young children be concerned about whether their kids should now use them?

Similarly, when the DoJ insists there is no critical race theory being taught at US schools, that is palpable nonsense.

Back in June, an English teacher named Dana Sangel-Plowe resigned from a top New Jersey prep school because she said CRT was being used to create a 'hostile culture of conformity and fear' and was causing white and male students to believe they are 'oppressors.' Similar stories have been reported all over the country.

Just as there has been widespread incidence of transgender policies being forced on parents without proper debate.

Will it now be deemed domestic terrorism to express concern that trans women athletes should not be allowed to compete against women born to female biological bodies? Even when that is quite demonstrably a grotesque infringement of women's rights to equality?

Of course, there are limits to how far protest should go, and violence is never acceptable. But there are numerous current laws available to the police if they wish to deal with any actual incidents of violence or threats of violence against school staff.

And there seems to have been a very different approach to the civil unrest we saw last summer in the wake of George Floyd's horrific killing, which led to appalling arson, looting and destruction of property.

I don't remember the DoJ issuing directives then that such behaviour was 'domestic terrorism.'

So, Attorney-General Merrick Garland's announcement strikes me as massive overreach by a Biden administration determined to stamp down on dissent.

As Ian Prior, former Principal Deputy Director of Public Affairs at DOJ, told DailyMail.com: 'While legitimate threats of violence are of course unacceptable and should be handled by local law enforcement, the Department of Justice has engaged in a frightening escalation with this shot across the bow of passionate moms and dads in a blatant effort to chill their freedom of speech.'

There are many countries whose governments shut down such dissent. I'm thinking of brutal totalitarian regimes like China and North Korea.

But America is supposed to the land of the free, the very epicentre of free speech protected by a First Amendment that is the envy of the world.

This decision to weaponize parental concern is thus both deeply un-American and deeply worrying.

It's also deeply hypocritical. Where was the DoJ when a bunch of far-left woke activists followed female Democrat Senator Krysten Sinema into a bathroom at Arizona State University where she teaches and howled at her even while she was inside a private stall?

Senator Sinema was illegally filmed by people who had illegally broken onto campus, and she was clearly illegally harassed, yet the perpetrators haven't been described as domestic terrorists, nor has any edict been issued to target others who may consider doing the same.

The double standard is absurd.

If you pay taxes in America, you are paying for your child's education, and you're fully entitled to have your say in how your child is educated.

If parents are no longer allowed a say in how their children are educated, and indeed are to be categorised as domestic terrorists for doing so, then why should they continue paying taxes to pay for that education?

President Biden has declared war on America's parents and their right to free speech, and it's a shameful abuse of his power.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10065159/PIERS-MORGAN-Bidens-attempt-criminalize-parents-shameful-attempt-silence-dissent.html

***********************************************

To Comply, or Not to Comply with mandate: Virginia State Employee Chooses Termination Over Obedience

For Nancy Orr, the decision to make her own medical decisions came with a high price.

Getting fired in September from her executive assistant position at Richmond’s Library of Virginia wasn’t exactly a surprise, however, because, as she told The Epoch Times, she saw it coming.

“Like many people at the beginning of this, I wore a mask, and tried to honor what they were recommending,” Orr said.

In December 2020, she had contracted the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus, the pathogen that causes COVID-19.

Her physician, Leland Stillman, who has now moved his practice (Leland Stillman, MD) from Virginia to Orlando, Florida, had prescribed her ivermectin, which she said reduced her symptoms within hours.

Stillman told The Epoch Times that Orr was one of many patients he had prescribed ivermectin beginning last year, “with great results.”

“I still prescribe it to patients because I don’t see any downsides, and there are tremendous upsides,” Stillman said. “What kind of doctor doesn’t prescribe a therapy that he knows is effective, with documented efficacy in the literature, and is safer than Tylenol?”

Orr said she now has lab-verified immunity.

“But that’s not recognized under this executive order,” Orr said.

In August, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam enacted an executive order that requires state employees to show proof of vaccination or be tested weekly.

Orr said she stopped wearing the mask months prior because she said, in addition to having natural immunity, wearing the mask causes her respiratory distress, raising her heart rate, which leads to high blood pressure.

To Comply, Or Not To Comply

After having COVID-19, she considered the testing, mask, and vaccine unnecessary for her, but as government guidelines turned into mandates, the ominous choice loomed: to comply, or not to comply.

“I could not in good conscience participate in the process because I see it explicitly as a vaccine passport,” Orr said. “They don’t have the right to that information. They don’t have the right to segregate people based on their medical status, and it’s not based on anything scientific because we now know that the fully vaccinated can be infected and transmit the virus.”

Privileging people based on their medical status is discriminatory, Orr added.

“It’s immoral, unethical, illegal, and unconstitutional,” Orr said.

She considered the religious and medical exemption that was available due to her COVID-19-recovered status, but decided against it.

“I just realized that if I chose a medical exemption, I would be validating or even declaring participation by declaring my vaccine status, and it’s simply none of their damn business,” Orr said. “It’s private medical information, and just because someone issues an executive order, that doesn’t make it legal, and it certainly doesn’t make it moral or ethical.”

https://www.theepochtimes.com/mkt_morningbrief/to-comply-or-not-to-comply-virginia-state-employee-chooses-termination-over-obedience_4028360.html

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

7 October, 2021

Liberals have made me into a racist

Earlier this year I wrote about a job I’d had in a factory where I’d noticed they would only hire white people and how I’d tried to expose them. Racism has always disgusted me, as does any form of bigotry. That was pretty much a commonplace belief in politics, with people on both sides of the aisle rejecting bigotry for the reality of equality. My, how times have changed. Now Democrats have redefined racism to mean NOT treating someone differently because of their skin color. As such, I am now a racist, according to the left, and I’m perfectly fine with it.

There hasn’t been a bit of news framed through the lens of race in the past year that made me feel anything. When I was a kid, I was disgusted by those stories, now it’s of no interest. I’ve seen how the left manipulates, how the media lies, and how they all ignore stories inconvenient to a liberal narrative.

There’s no need to rehash what they ignore, nor is there a need to cover what they get wrong, we know it already. It’s what they do now that matters, and what earns my disgust.

Gordon Klein is a professor at UCLA. He was suspended this year and smeared as a racist by the school and students for refusing to grade black students differently, more loosely, than every other student.

How the hell does this happen? The professor, who has been cleared but is suing the school regardless for sullying his reputation and costing him consulting income (he should absolutely sue, and if justice still exists, he’ll win), reported the content of an email he received asking for leniency for black students. It read, in part, “We are writing to express our tremendous concern about the impact that this final exam and project will have on the mental and physical health of our Black classmates.”

What horrors have befallen these students? Nothing directly, just all the media-hyped, Democrat promoted garbage that has turned real cries of racism into indistinguishable crowd noise. “The unjust murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, the life-threatening actions of Amy Cooper and the violent conduct of the [University of California Police Department] have led to fear and anxiety which is further compounded by the disproportionate effect of COVID-19 on the Black community,” the email whines. “As we approach finals week, we recognize that these conditions place Black students at an unfair academic disadvantage due to traumatic circumstances out of their control.”

Finally, they get around to their belief that black people can’t function without help from liberals. “This is not a joint effort to get finals canceled for non-Black students, but rather an ask that you exercise compassion and leniency with Black students in our major,” the email asks.

Professor Klein responded rationally, though with a hint of disgust at this racist request (much nicer than I would’ve been). He wrote, “Are there any students that may be of mixed parentage, such as half black half-Asian? What do you suggest I do with respect to them? A full concession or just half? Also, do you have any idea if any students are from Minneapolis? I assume that they are probably especially devastated as well. I am thinking that a white student from there might possibly be even more devastated by this, especially because some might think that they’re racist even if they are not.”

This, needless to say, didn’t sit well with student or the school’s administration. The rest, as they say, is history. (Read the whole story, it’s maddening.)

This is what the left has become – a bunch of people insisting people who look different need saving, that they’re victims, and that white people are the perpetrators. No evidence is needed, if you’re white, you’re guilty.

White liberals seem to have the same reaction to being called a racist as a masochist has to being ball-gagged and whipped – they get off on it. Normal people have no time for it.

Since this mentality is dominant in media and pop culture, I’ve grown tired of hearing about what used to really bother me. Worse, I really don’t care anymore and have receded, frankly.

When I order food from a delivery app, some have “Support Black Owned Businesses” and a group of restaurants that are, presumably, black owned. I’ve never cared who owns anyplace I’ve ever shopped before, I just shopped where they had what I wanted or needed. Now I avoid them. If your skin color defines you, I’m out. I wouldn’t shop anywhere billing itself a “White Owned,” why would I do business with one using skin color as some sort of virtue?

I wouldn’t, and I won’t. I don’t watch movies or TV shows leftist critics insist are “important” because of the color of the actors in it. I don’t want to be preached to by leftists, and I don’t need to be “educated” on things I already know about or told how awful my skin color is because someone who shares it, and isn’t me, did something horrible a century before I was born. It’s even more annoying when it’s fiction because it shows a complete lack of creativity, simply slavery to a narrative.

As this was starting to happen and I found myself deliberately not watching movies I otherwise would have only a few years ago, it didn’t bother me. As I watched the Emmys and saw genuinely horrible shows nominated for what was likely the “diversity” of the cast (meaning they weren’t white), I felt justified in never having heard of them or having avoided them because they seemed stupid – “The Black Lady Sketch Show” might be the funniest show in the history of television, but I’m content to never know because the name and the clips I’ve seen are stupid.

Liberalism has made me into a racist. Not by any real unit of measure – a white person who like Chinese food, for example, is accused of “cultural appropriation” and denounced as a colonist, so consuming entertainment made by someone who doesn’t look like me is probably now some form of genocide. Either way, thanks to liberals, I don’t care enough to find out.

To hell with them all. I’ll stick to judging people on the content of their character and not the color of their skin, just like that “sell-out” Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. dreamt of. If that makes me a monster in the eyes of the most bigoted creatures in country today, I’m cool with that. To hell with them all.

https://townhall.com/columnists/derekhunter/2021/10/05/liberals-are-turning-me-into-a-racist-n2596945

**********************************************

Austin Police Announce They're No Longer Responding to Certain 911 Calls

Even prior to the vaccine mandates, police across the country were leaving the job or retiring early in droves, thanks in large part to the anti-police sentiment that swept the nation in the aftermath of George Floyd's death. To make matters worse, Democrats in major cities caved to defund-the-police demands and slashed law enforcement budgets, leaving the remaining officers with fewer resources to perform their duties. Adding Covid-19 mitigation protocols to the mix hasn't helped matters either.

In Austin, Texas, certain 911 calls are now going to go unanswered.

The Austin Police Department announced last week that it would no longer be responding to non-life threatening 911 calls, such as car accidents without injuries or burglaries where the suspect has already left the scene. Instead, residents can call a separate number to file a police report.

The staffing shortages and inability to respond to non-life threatening 911 calls is a direct result of the Austin City Council cutting $150 million of the department's budget, and other changes that were implemented affecting how the department operates.

"As a result of a recent review of APD’s patrol COVID mitigation protocols initiated in May 2020, recent staffing challenges and aligning with the Reimagining Public Safety Task Force patrol response recommendations, APD will change call routing and response for non-emergency calls for service effective October 1, 2021," she said.

Austin Police Association President Ken Casaday told Fox News that APD hasn’t been able to hire new officers because it hasn’t been able to have a police academy for nearly two years. As a result, there aren’t enough patrol officers to respond to non-emergency calls.

"Probably about 95% of the time our shifts don’t meet minimum staffing … and that is the reason they’ve started cutting back on what types of calls are answered," Casaday said. "It’s not optimal. It’s not providing a quality service to the community. But the community also needs to understand that we’re under a dire staffing crisis." (Tyler Morning Telegraph)

While the cadet classes have resumed, APD is wasting hundreds of thousands on a consulting firm to offer Critical Race Theory training, according to Tyler Morning Telegraph.

Activist group Save Austin Now is pushing back and was successful in getting a measure to restore police funding on the ballot in November.

"November 2nd, we get to vote on public safety: A massive bipartisan coalition of Austinites agree that it was a mistake to slash our public safety in 2019," the group said. "Since then, crime has skyrocketed and our most vulnerable neighbors suffer the most. Amidst record 13 minute 911 response times and a 185% increase in homicides, we simply must come together for a safe Austin and vote yes for Prop A."

Gov. Abbott also signed a number of laws in June that "create two new barriers to big cities that wish to reduce their law enforcement budgets," according to the Texas Tribune.

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/leahbarkoukis/2021/10/04/austin-police--nonemergencies-n2596901

****************************************

The Racial Hoax That’s Killing America

For the Black Lives Matter campaign to be able to launch its destructive attacks on American cities, raise hundreds of millions of dollars in the process, and gain the support of a major political party for its actions, is a remarkable — even unthinkable — achievement. It was possible only because the campaign was driven by a moral argument so powerful that it touched the hearts of all Americans and intimidated critics from stepping forward to challenge it. That moral argument was framed by a series of capital crimes allegedly committed by a justice system that was “systemically racist,” regularly targeting black Americans because of their skin color. The litany of victims from minority communities outraged a majority of Americans who had believed — or wanted to believe — that America had overcome its racial past and had put such legal lynchings behind it.

The overwhelmingly sympathetic response to the slogan “Black Lives Matter” contained an irony, however, that was widely ignored: if Americans of all hues, including white, responded so eagerly and so generously to this cry for social justice, how could the indictment be anywhere close to true?

Many of the martyrs of the BLM movement are unworthy, and their stories have been twisted so badly as to be untrue, as Horowitz recounts briefly. But there’s a bigger point:

Coming nearly sixty years after the passage of the Civil Rights Acts, and shortly after eight years of rule by a black president whose electoral victories were secured by white majorities among his supporters, the sweeping indictments of America’s attitudes toward its black citizens are hard to square with the reality of twenty-first-century America.

In fact:

The Black Lives Matter indictment also flies in the face of all the statistics that show that America is a more inclusive, tolerant, and egalitarian society than ever—or than any other society with large ethnic minorities. Never in the history of nations has a previously oppressed minority like black Americans been so integrated into the dominant culture of a nation.

Horowitz says one point of his book is to set the record straight on the aforementioned BLM martyrs, and that “the Black Lives Matter charges are reckless inventions unsupported by the facts.” He concludes:

Obviously, the ramifications of such a conclusion are grave: The worst civil insurrections in American history leading to billions of dollars in damages and scores of lost lives — both innocent and guilty — have been justified by a racial hoax. This hoax, as will become evident, has been perpetrated by anti-American radicals whose motives and goals have nothing to do with black lives’ mattering, or with racial equity or social justice.

https://patriotpost.us/articles/83218-in-brief-the-racial-hoax-thats-killing-america-2021-10-06

******************************************

Has CRT Worn Out Its Corporate Welcome?

If you’re currently employed by one of those virtue-signaling entities whose leadership thought it’d be a good idea to teach their employees to hate one another, help may — may — be on the way. Critical Race Theory, whose proponents prevailed on corporate America in the wake of the 2020 George Floyd riots, and whose ill effects have been felt ever since, may well have worn out its welcome.

And not a moment too soon. As most bad ideas do, CRT escaped from the academy, much like a virus might escape from a lab. From there, it was picked up and embraced by woke CEOs and their order-taking HR departments. And from there, it began to wreck the American workplace. When one considers the root meaning of CRT, this outcome seems inevitable. As researcher Christopher Rufo defines it:

Critical race theory is an academic discipline that holds that the United States is a nation founded on white supremacy and oppression, and that these forces are still at the root of our society. Critical race theorists believe that American institutions, such as the Constitution and legal system, preach freedom and equality, but are mere “camouflages” for naked racial domination. They believe that racism is a constant, universal condition: it simply becomes more subtle, sophisticated, and insidious over the course of history.

In simple terms, critical race theory reformulates the old Marxist dichotomy of oppressor and oppressed, replacing the class categories of bourgeoisie and proletariat with the identity categories of White and Black. But the basic conclusion is the same: in order to liberate man, society must be fundamentally transformed through moral, economic, and political revolution.

Further, CRT starts with a rotten, racist premise — a premise that we’re to be judged not by the content of our character but by the color of our skin. Specifically, all white people are racist, and they’ve created and maintained systems that perpetuate white supremacy. Or, as White Fragility author and CRT huckster Robin DiAngelo puts it, “White identity is inherently racist; white people do not exist outside the system of white supremacy.” Only through reeducation and reprograming can people with white skin be stopped from oppressing people with black skin. Or so the theory goes.

With those working premises, what could go wrong in Cubicle Nation? Plenty. The counterrevolution largely began organically, in homes and at school board meetings across the country. Even in traditionally progressive places like New York City and Northern Virginia’s Loudoun County, parents seemed to take offense at the notion that their children were little racists.

Said one father, Andrew Guttmann, in a letter to fellow parents at Manhattan’s $54,000-per-year Brearley School : “I cannot tolerate a school that not only judges my daughter by the color of her skin, but encourages and instructs her to prejudge others by theirs. By viewing every element of education, every aspect of history, and every facet of society through the lens of skin color and race, we are desecrating the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and utterly violating the movement for which such civil rights leaders believed, fought, and died.”

From there, the backlash began to hit corporate America. “HR departments,” writes the New York Post’s Charles Gasparino, “particularly on Wall Street, are worried that overly politicized and polarizing diversity training is among the most counterproductive fads in recent years if you want your workforce to get along.”

And, as it turns out, it’s bad for business — especially businesses that rely on teamwork and collaboration, as nearly all of them ultimately do. Indeed, the deeply misguided belief by corporate HR departments that employees would work better together when they’re divided along racial lines should be studied at business schools for years to come. But it won’t be.

Still, the corrosive nature of CRT has been exposed, and this realization is finally filtering its way back to the Diversity Industry. As Gasparino writes, “Workplace-inclusion consultants with whom I spoke say the trend away from this divisive training is happening because it’s both exhausting and idiotic to tell people they are inherently evil and expect them to work together.”

Soon, hopefully, the end of Critical Race Theory will be coming to a workplace near you.

https://patriotpost.us/articles/83193-has-crt-worn-out-its-corporate-welcome-2021-10-05

***************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

6 October, 2021

How whistleblower Frances Haugen left Mark Zuckerberg speechless

The woman behind Facebook’s most damning-ever leak of internal documents has a name: Frances Haugen.

On Monday (US time), ahead of Facebook’s worst site-wide outage for some time, details about Haugen emerged. She was a product manager on the company’s “civic integrity team,” where she systematically copied tens of thousands of internal documents to share with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, members of Congress and the Wall Street Journal before leaving in May. It could turn out to be the most important act in Facebook’s corporate history.

This was no rash act of impulsiveness. Haugen, 37, armed herself with lawyers and provided reams of documents for a WSJ series about Facebook’s harms. Giving her first television interview on Sunday (US time), she was succinct in explaining why Facebook’s algorithms were harmful. In another interview, with The Journal podcast, posted Monday, she gave clear prescriptions for what could be done: Don’t break up Facebook, but do hire more people to audit and guide the content that the company shows to more than 1.6 billion people every day.

Haugen no doubt has a tsunami of legal and corporate blowback headed her way. But Facebook is going to struggle to discredit someone who not only speaks well, but has a Harvard MBA and is so well-versed in how algorithms are made that she has patents under her name.

Haugen’s document dump revealed what many suspected but couldn’t prove: that Facebook created more lenient secret rules for elite users, that Instagram made body issues worse for one in three teen girls, and that Facebook knowingly amped up outrage on its main site through an algorithm change in 2018, potentially leading to the January 6 storming of the US Capitol building.

Regulators have been at a loss for how to deal with Facebook up to now, but Haugen’s cool-headed suggestions coupled with internal details on how Facebook’s systems are set up could provide a clearer way forward. She stresses that breaking up Facebook would be a mistake because that would starve the individual parts of the conglomerate of the resources needed to stem harmful content. Instead, the company needs far more people to audit and guide content across the platform.

While Facebook claims it’s putting real resources into just that policing, her account suggests the opposite. Her civic integrity unit, with 200 people, was woefully under-resourced and eventually dissolved by Facebook management, she says.

Haugen’s assertions that algorithms are underperforming is a well-rehearsed argument (including here), but she has an enormous cache of documentation to back it up. And these aren’t just Facebook’s problems, she notes, but problems with “engagement-based ranking” in general.

Her biggest wish, she says, is for real transparency. Imagine if Facebook published daily data feeds on its most viral content, she says. “You’d have YouTubers analysing this data and explaining it to people.” That point should add fuel to upcoming regulations like European Union’s AI law, designed to force companies to unpick the code underpinning their AI algorithms for regulators.

While the 2018 revelations about Cambridge Analytica resulted in a fine, regulators ultimately left the social media giant alone and its shares climbed steadily. This is likely to be different, not least because of the change in the White House and Congress since then. US lawmakers recently introduced five anti-trust bills targeting the outsized power of Big Tech. In addition to her trove of documents, Haugen offers lawmakers and regulators deep insider knowledge.

With Haugen speaking publicly, it is the silence from Facebook chief executive officer Mark Zuckerberg and chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg that rings loudest. They have left it to Clegg to try to explain Facebook’s side of things. That is all the more alarming for investors considering that Haugen has gone to the SEC with the claim that Facebook effectively lied to shareholders about the impact of its algorithms.

She describes herself as an algorithm-ranking specialist who, having worked at four social networks — including Alphabet’s Google and Pinterest — understands the intricacies of how computer code chooses what content people see. Her whistleblowing is more powerful both for her own background and the sober approach she took. Going first to a paper that takes an even-handed approach in its corporate reporting insulates her from charges that she’s on an ideological mission.

At Facebook, Haugen says she attended regular meetings where staff would share their struggles to stop viral posts that showed beheadings, or posts that compared certain ethic groups to insects. She ultimately concluded that underinvestment in safety was baked in at Facebook and virtually impossible to change.

Nick Clegg, Facebook’s head of communications and public policy, recently warned staff in an internal memo that they were “going to get questions from friends and family about these things.” That may be a British understatement.

What set Haugen apart was how she acted on that tension, says Carissa Veliz, author of Privacy is Power, a book about the surveillance economy which talks about whistleblowers as the moral canary in the coalmine for Big Tech. Veliz says that when whistleblowers realise they can’t fix wrongdoing at a company, the cognitive dissonance they experience is so violent that it’s unsustainable.

“Most people try to explain it away,” Veliz says. “But a whistleblower will decide that they just can’t go on like that. They will decide to make a huge sacrifice and come out with this information.”

The next step is surely terrifying. Whistleblowers often deal not only with recriminations from their employer, but threatening letters from lawyers. (What shouldn’t be lost in any future success for Haugen are the many whistleblowers who’ve been silenced by such threats.)

During the pandemic, Haugen left the Bay Area to go live with her parents. Her mother, who is also an Episcopal priest, told Haugen she should go public with her concerns if she believed that lives were on the line.

Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram suffer six-hour global outage

Zuckerberg appears to have his head in the sand. In recent weeks he has bizarrely published a series of lighthearted or jokey posts on his Facebook page about fencing, surfing and helping his children raise money for charity.

He may yet try to explain away the revelations. But, as Veliz says, his employees will increasingly struggle with the notion that they are working for a company that is toxic. More may be inclined to come forward as whistleblowers. That won’t be pretty.

https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/how-frances-haugen-left-mark-zuckerberg-speechless-20211005-p58x8n.html

********************************************

Far left Democrat introduces forced birth control legislation China would be proud of

If you think the creepy, science-fiction-like boasts of depopulation theories are reserved for computer software magnets like Bill Gates, think again. There are elected officials who think we need legislation to curb the number of children Americans can have.

A Pennsylvania Democrat has proposed legislation that would sterilize Pennsylvania women after the birth of their third child. I wonder where all the crazed Planned Parenthood, our body – our choice radicals are on this eye-popping piece of proposed legislation.

Oh, that’s right. Pennsylvania Democrat Christopher Rabb’s legislation goes after the male species. He insists it’s a necessary and noble public ambition to snip every male father after he’s conceived his third child.

Or, force all men to get a vasectomy on or before their 40th birthday. We are not kidding about this proposal. Rabb recently sent out a memorandum to all PA House members outlining his insane attempt to curb population growth.

Rabb also wants to pay a bounty-like reward to anyone who narks out a man who refuses to get snipped. The madness of this legislation doesn’t stop there. The radical leftist also insists that anyone who doesn’t prevent unwanted pregnancy during intercourse violates the law.

This Philadelphia legislator is added proof the radical progressive left agenda is akin to a runaway train barreling off the tracks. These radicals want to erase God from American culture and push America over the cliff into communism.

They kowtow to the Chinese Communist Party, not the American people they are elected to serve. Radical progressive Democrats want control of every aspect of people’s lives. Americans must vote these crazies out of office. We must save our nation before it’s too late.

Thankfully, some of Rabb’s colleagues find the idea behind the bill preposterous. They maintain the bill is cemented proof of the left’s aggressive assault on American medical freedom. Christopher Rabb’s sterilization legislation is more than that. The bill is an assault on sanity.

https://steadfastclash.com/the-latest/communist-democrat-introduces-forced-legislation-china-would-be-proud-of/

********************************************

Christian Flight Attendant: My Character Was Attacked, Job Taken Away for Questioning Woke Policy

A former Alaska Airlines flight attendant is fighting back after being fired for wanted to have a dialogue over the company’s support the pro-LGBT Equality Act.

Lacey Smith responded to a notice on an internal company message board in which the company expressed its support for the bill, according to First Liberty Institute, which is representing Smith.

“As a company, do you think it’s possible to regulate morality?” she wrote, according to First Liberty’s website.

“I was shocked that the airline I loved working for fired me for asking a question about something the airline asked us to support,” Smith said, according to Newsweek.

“I thought my question would receive the same level of respect that I give to others. It’s frightening to think that Americans can lose their jobs for simply asking questions about important issues,” she said.

According to Newsweek, the bill, also known as H.R. 5, “prohibits discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation and gender identity in areas including public accommodations and facilities, education, federal funding, employment housing, credit and the jury system. It more specifically defines and includes sex, sexual orientation and gender identity among prohibited categories of discrimination and segregation.”

It passed in the Democratic-controlled House in February by a vote of 224-206. Its fate in the Senate has yet to be determined.

In August, First Liberty filed a charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on behalf of Smith and another fired flight attendant, whose name was not released, according to Fox Business.

It announced the lawsuit in a Sept. 10 news release headlined “First Liberty Defends Christian Flight Attendant Fired for Questioning the Equality Act.”

In her EEO complaint, Smith said she was asking out of concern for how religious beliefs are treated in the workplace.

The airline, however, said her question was offensive and discriminatory by suggesting that gender orientation was a moral issue.

First Liberty noted that the issue is bigger than one employer.

“Lacey’s termination demonstrates the heavy hand woke corporate America wields over religious employees, as well as the devastating repercussions that can follow. The consequences for those who dare to violate the ‘acceptable’ speech codes set up by the corporate elite are extreme,” it wrote.

“This brave patriot has resolved to be the one to stand by her God-given rights to believe as her conscious and faith dictate, not the official ‘woke’ narrative from a corporation,” First Liberty wrote.

The second flight attendant, a woman who was otherwise unidentified in the complaint, went even further in her criticisms than Smith’s question. She said that the proposed law would end up endangering girls and women in places designed to ensure their safety.

“Does Alaska support: endangering the Church, encouraging suppression of religious freedom, obliterating women rights and parental rights? This act will force every American to agree with controversial government-imposed ideology or be treated as an outlaw,” the flight attendant wrote, according to the EOE complaint.

“The Equality act [Act] would affect everything from girls’ and women’s showers and locker rooms to women’s shelters and women’s prisons, endangering safety and diminishing privacy. Giving people blanket permission to enter private spaces for the opposite sex enables sexual predators to exploit the rules and gain easy access to victims. This is the Equality Act.”

She was immediately banned from the workplace and eventually fired, the complaint said.

“The corporate ‘canceling’ of our clients by Alaska Airlines makes a mockery of laws that protect religious Americans from employment discrimination,” David Hacker, director of litigation for First Liberty Institute, said Sept. 8, according to Fox Business.

“It is a blatant violation of state and federal civil rights laws to discriminate against someone in the workplace because of their religious beliefs and expression. Every American should be frightened if an employer can fire them for simply asking questions based on their religious beliefs about culturally important issues,” he said.

https://flagandcross.com/christian-flight-attendant-my-character-was-attacked-job-taken-away-for-questioning-woke-policy/

**********************************************

Salvation Army Imposes Racial Wokeness Within Church’s Ranks

The news is replete with examples of corporations and institutions going woke, from Google to Aunt Jemima. Unfortunately, now The Salvation Army is in danger of joining the ranks of Woke Inc.

In materials prepared for its more than 1.5 million members, The Salvation Army uses terms that echo both radical “anti-racism” jargon and the divisive teachings of critical race theory, which divides people into two camps: the oppressors and the oppressed.

And many of this trusted charitable organization’s donors and other supporters aren’t even aware of the change.

Despite being apolitical historically, The Salvation Army has begun to promote political and racial ideologies under the banner of its New York-based International Social Justice Commission since the protests and riots over George Floyd’s death in police custody began over a year ago.

The International Social Justice Commission works on issues involving human rights and justice, from human traffickers to asylum-seekers. But more recently, the commission, launched in 2007, is unhealthily mixing admirable human rights work with politically charged advocacy based in progressive politics.

As many Americans know, The Salvation Army, founded in London in 1865, is a church organized in an “army” structure encompassing “officers,” “soldiers,” and other volunteers. Collectively called Salvationists, they serve the organization and are inspired to perform good deeds on account of their Christian faith.

Early this year, Brian Peddle, general and international leader of The Salvation Army, announced an initiative called “Let’s Talk About Racism,” a curriculum with devotionals, videos, and other materials dedicated to helping Salvationists conduct “courageous conversations about racism.”

Peddle, who is Canadian, says in the video announcement Feb. 9 that the resource would help Salvationists “overcome the damage racism has inflicted upon the world, and yes, The Salvation Army.”

The brief video, however, makes no attempt to back up or explain the bold accusation that racism has damaged The Salvation Army at any significant level.

The Salvation Army has a long, storied history of meeting spiritual and physical needs around the world. Many Americans may interact with the church only around Christmastime, when its volunteers ring bells in front of grocery stores to attract cash contributions in red kettles. The organization also runs hundreds of thrift stores and shelters in over 100 countries.

Salvationists throughout the world attend church services on Sundays as part of their local chapter, and some shepherd these congregations. The first goal listed on the website of The Salvation Army International is “advancement of the Christian religion.”

Having met many Salvationists personally, I can attest to the depth of their faith and commitment to evangelism. In many ways, The Salvation Army is a prime example of what it looks like for the Christian church to be devout in both faith and deed.

But today, the Christian witness of this esteemed institution is under threat from within.

The “Let’s Talk About Racism” initiative, officially rolled out July 7, is described in five slides that outline the larger Christian church’s alleged complicity in racism and provide action plans to combat racism through what the initiative calls an “anti-racist” lens. (The resource page provides translations in Spanish and Portuguese.)

One Salvation Army captain told me that the leadership of the organization disseminated this curriculum via emails, videos, and other presentations through its four territorial commanders and down the hierarchy to field officers who serve poor communities across the United States.

In some aspects, the materials are indistinguishable from the “anti-racist” programs of any multinational corporation, or the expounding of critical race theory at a major university.

“Let’s Talk About Racism” accuses white Salvationists of being unable or unwilling to acknowledge their racism, just as Robin DiAngelo argues in her book “White Fragility” that whites are defensive about racism or race-related issues in general.

The Salvation Army initiative attacks “colorblindness” on race with the same argument used by Ibram X. Kendi, author of the book “How to Be an Antiracist,” which is to characterize it as a false neutrality that reveals a person’s inner racism.

Defining ‘Whiteness’

The initiative also includes definitions of institutional racism, systemic racism, and “Whiteness” that identify real or perceived differences in life outcomes (“inequities”) as attributable not to individual effort and other circumstances, but to discrimination.

As such, the materials starkly resemble the radical “anti-racist” programs such as Coca-Cola’s “Be Less White” program, or The Smithsonian Institution’s own “anti-racism” materials.

The Salvation Army’s materials include sections on police brutality, health care, and black unemployment that assign blame to “racism” and “racial inequity.” This race-based lens informs the curriculum’s explanation of related statistics, stating that disparities are evidence of deep-rooted structural racism while betraying Salvationists’ historical commitment to staying out of partisan politics.

One study question asks: “How would The Salvation Army at the corporate level be strengthened by taking an active stance for racial equity and unity?”

This question implies that the church so far has been passively complicit. And notice that it uses the word “equity” instead of “equality.”

The biggest attack on Salvationists, however, is an admonition that they “repent” and offer “a sincere apology” for racism. In Section Four—called “Describe and Plan: How Then Shall We Live?”—the authors tell members that “the need to receive a sincere apology is necessary.”

“Please take time to write out or think about how you can repent and apologize,” they write.

Another study questions ask: “Who are those who deserve an apology/those who need to give an apology?”

This lesson never outright says it, but everything else in the document suggests that non-black Salvationists need to apologize to blacks. The same section cites the “many things the Black community in America continues to grieve about and experience,” from “police brutality” to “discrimination in health care,” to “mass incarceration.”

The document’s authors cite zero primary evidence of any systemic failure on The Salvation Army’s part on the subject of race and racism. As the basis for this damning claim, they only quote one retired officer recalling that a fellow Salvation Army cadet “had a doll hanging in his room that he called by my name.”

Today’s so-called anti-racists like to gain power by goading and guilting white people into admitting shame for crimes they did not commit. Nikole Hannah-Jones, founder of The New York Times’ debunked 1619 Project, calls slavery America’s “original sin,” implying the need to repent. Some in the Black Lives Matter movement also have goaded whites into kneeling and asking for forgiveness from the black community for racism.

Self-styled anti-racists have seen some success with other Christian organizations by demanding “apologies” for racism. Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy recently asked his employees to “have an apologetic heart” on racism.

The Salvation Army is at risk of caving to the same grandstanding.

Yet in practice, The Salvation Army confronted racism aggressively long before the rest of America, and the church should be proud of it. In 1898, at least five decades before the U.S. civil rights movement, the organization’s Orders of Regulations for Social Officers stated clearly that “none shall be debarred from any of its benefits … because they are of any particular nationality, race or color.”

The Salvation Army has been a leader in appointing black Americans to national leadership positions. Among them was Israel Gaither, a former national commander who I suppose must have misspoken when he said that “the future is absolutely wide open to African-American Salvationists who would be available for God’s use as officer.”

The organization was a trailblazer on racial equality. Yet these documents, directed at members, at best misrepresent The Salvation Army as weak on confronting issues of race throughout its history. This misrepresentation only will inflame tensions, rather than offer hope for racial healing.

https://www.dailysignal.com/2021/10/03/salvation-army-imposes-racial-wokeness-within-churchs-ranks

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

5 October, 2021

The revolting scenes of Sen Sinema being abused in a ladies' room show that Democrat progressives have become as toxically intolerant as the Trump regime they despised

After four years of Trump have liberals succeeded in becoming the cliché of hating something so much they've become it their visceral, hysterical and sometimes irrational response to politics they oppose?

Don't get me wrong, the Trump years and Trump himself were awful, taxing, emotional and chaotic for all the reasons all of you already know. However the Left in this country in many ways has become a mirror version of Trump and Trumpism - the inverse of his mania and toxic divisiveness.

My Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema has gone viral this weekend in a series of videos taken at Arizona State University of a group of students protesters accosting her in a hallway, harassing her and then proceeding to follow her into the ladies bathroom.

They didn't stop as Senator Sinema entered the stall, they continued to film her as she used the facilities, washed her hands calmly and then exited.

The students proceeded to scream at her that they knocked on doors for her to help her get elected, yelled at her about holding back Biden's 'build back better agenda' and so forth.

I have seen the video 10 times at this point - from different angles. The more I watched it, the more horrified and disgusted I became. By the time I went to bed for the night, I was absolutely seething.

There are many things to unpack about this incident. First, how grotesque it is to follow a sitting Senator into a ladies bathroom and record her and then post it on the internet?

How disgusting have student protestors become not to see that harassing a woman entering a private space is inhumane, moronic and cruel - not to mention, a felony, under Arizona law.

The other thing I thought of was Congresswoman Maxine Watters infamously encouraging democrats during the Trump years to harass Trump administration officials in public.

The specific quote was 'Let's make sure we show up wherever we have to show up. And if you see anybody from that Cabinet in a restaurant, in a department store, at a gasoline station, you get out and you create a crowd. And you push back on them. And you tell them they're not welcome anymore, anywhere.'

I remember this clearly because I was concerned given that I am a public and controversial conservative woman and also that it showcased a paradigm shift in what was once considered civilized decorum.

Democrats calling for Republicans to be harassed in public was a new shift that we have not come back from.

Since then it's happened to a litany of conservatives; Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Tucker Carlson's wife – who had to barricade herself in their home in the pantry because of protestors storming their home and Senator Rand Paul – who was physically beaten so badly by his neighbor he punctured a lung.

The Left does not get to complain about Donald Trump's character and personality when they sit and remain silent about the intensely growing harassment against people who break rank from the beliefs of progressive left in the country.

What we haven't seen until now is Democrat on Democrat violence. This is what is new about Senator Sinema.

Now, in the eyes of the progressive left, it is not only evil to be a conservative in the country, it is evil to be a moderate Democrat.

Apparently the most dangerous thing a person can be in America is a free-thinker who doesn't bend the knee to progressives.

What has been bizarre to watch is the hysterical reaction to Senator Sinema this week on social media and among democrats themselves.

It has apparently not occurred to the progressives and the Democrat politicans who bend over backward to make sure they and their agenda is coddled that there are still moderates still within the Democratic party who aren't down with Biden's $3.5 trillion agenda to turn America into a welfare state and who deserve to be heard.

And if you're not on board with them, they attack you.

It must be an infuriating cold dose of reality for progressives to see that the most powerful politician in America today is a moderate Democrat from Arizona who doesn't care at all what the D.C. media, the Squad or Twitter think of her.

Senator Sinema is not Jeff Flake, she is not someone who will be intimidated by an angry crowd in a small space.

Why do I believe she is doing what she is doing right now in regards to the infrastructure and reconciliation bill?

Because she believes it. She is not doing this for personal political gain. I believe she believes what she is fighting for and she doesn't think Biden's drunken spending spree is good for the country.

She is not alone, part of the reason progressives are having such a hard time passing this bill is because it is so radical and half the country doesn't agree with it.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10057315/MEGHAN-MCCAIN-Sen-Sinema-abused-shows-progressives-toxically-intolerant-rump-regime.html

**********************************************

BLM Killed 2,000 Black People

Thanks to Black Lives Matter, the number of black murder victims rose 62% in one year.

The FBI recently released crime statistics for 2020, and the overall murder rate increased a record 29%. Keep in mind that was during a year that featured months-long lockdowns and social distancing. But also keep in mind it was the year of Black Lives Matter riots and violence.

Journalist Daniel Greenfield explains:

The worst one-year percentage jump in murders was a 12.7% increase in 1968 during a crime wave that led Democrats and Republicans to embrace tough on crime policies. 1968 was the year that LBJ signed the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act into law. But the opposite happened in 2020 as Democrats and some libertarian Republicans colluded to dismantle the criminal justice system, open up the jails, and endorse Black Lives Matter.

The pro-crimers have the blood of thousands on their hands.

The FBI’s numbers are in and they show that Black Lives Matter and its corporate backers killed more black people in one year than anything short of an African civil war.

3,595 black people were murdered in 2019. But in 2020, 5,839 black people were murdered.

That’s an additional 2,244 black people killed.

56% of the murder victims of 2020 were black.

While people of all races were more likely to be murdered in the year of Black Lives Matter, black people were disproportionately likely to be killed as a result of police defunding and the George Floyd Effect, as well as the pressure on the justice system to open up prisons, free criminals, and stop arresting new criminals in the name of fighting for the big lie of racial justice.

3,060 white and Latino people were killed in 2019, which rose to 4,167 in 2020. The 36% increase is devastating, but the number of black people murdered in 2020 shot up 62%.

The 62% increase in the murders of black people should be the headline in every single media outlet.

The media is, of course, focused on the relative few blacks killed by police — especially those who are “unarmed.” Yet there’s nary a peep about the bloody streets of Democrat urban centers.

If the 2,244 black people had been shot by white people, Asian people, or Republicans, we could talk about it. Indeed, the odds are that we would never talk about anything else. Ever.

But unfortunately it’s the devastating result of black-on-black crime.

Black perpetrators were responsible for 5,832 murders or approximately 50% of the murders despite making up only around 13% of the population.

Murder is “also the leading cause of death for black men from 20-44 years old at 27.6%.”

These are just statistics. These are just facts. Every American should be outraged at the murders happening in our country. And every American should be advocating for policies based on the fact that black lives actually do matter, not backing an organized Marxist group that’s little more than a front for the Democrat Party.

Greenfield lays out the bottom line: “The question is how many black people have to die until the big lie of systemic racism, the scam of anti-racism, and the criminal justice reform killing fields end.”

https://patriotpost.us/articles/83150-in-brief-blm-killed-2000-black-people-2021-10-04

******************************************

American Liberty Must Not Become Coronavirus Casualty

Mike Pence

When announcing his nationwide vaccine mandate, President Joe Biden declared, “This is not about freedom.” But for Americans who live outside the Beltway, it is absolutely about freedom, because America is about freedom.

Yes, the coronavirus is still with us. Yes, it is still potentially dangerous, particularly to vulnerable Americans. But the need long since has passed for extraordinary measures such as lockdowns, mask mandates, and other restrictions on American liberty.

In a country with competent leaders, all such measures—most especially the forced vaccinations for COVID-19 recently ordered by Biden—would be repealed, and Americans would be allowed to return to their normal lives.

Aggressive measures made sense in early 2020, when I served as chairman of the White House Coronavirus Task Force. Back then, scientists understood precious little about the virus and hospitals were rightly concerned about the possibility of running out of bed space for COVID-19 patients.

But 18 months later, we have three safe and effective vaccines thanks to the Trump-Pence administration’s Operation Warp Speed, and over 77% of American adults are at least partially vaccinated. I chose to get vaccinated, and so did my family. But that’s a choice that every American should be free to make for themselves.

The good news is, today we know a great deal about the coronavirus and the threat—or lack thereof—that it poses to American citizens.

Most importantly, we know that the virus does not affect populations equally, which is why one-size-fits-all mandates make absolutely no sense. For example, young, healthy people with no preexisting conditions typically experience only mild symptoms from the virus. In fact, nearly 98% of all COVID-19 deaths in the United States have occurred in those over 40.

Meanwhile, people who are obese or overweight face a much higher risk of severe symptoms and hospitalization. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 80% of patients hospitalized for COVID-19 were overweight or obese.

Yet, in his sweeping vaccine mandate on 80 million Americans, Biden and his public health bureaucrats make no distinction between groups based on age, overall health, or any other known risk factors.

Nor do they consider the 1 in 3 Americans who already have contracted and recovered from the virus, and thus have developed natural immunity—which multiple studies have shown is far more effective and longer lasting than the immunity achieved by vaccination.

Why should those who are naturally immune be penalized for refusing a vaccine that, for them, is probably medically unnecessary?

Likewise, thousands of American military personnel face a less-than-honorable discharge if they choose not to get vaccinated under Biden’s order. Our troops mostly are young and in excellent physical condition, and thus have weathered the pandemic better than almost any other group of human beings on the planet.

We have experienced just 26 known deaths out of more than 200,000 coronavirus cases in the U.S. armed forces. Why exactly does Biden want to fire thousands of our nation’s finest patriots simply for refusing a shot that all evidence suggests most of them do not need?

The president’s absurd, unscientific, unnecessary, and unlawful vaccine mandate is now being echoed by left-wing politicians across the nation.

In New York, after announcing that “God wants” people to get vaccinated, the new Democrat governor began firing nurses and health care workers who declined the vaccine. In what world does it make sense to fire nurses in the name of public health?

Likewise, the Biden administration is threatening to fire thousands of unvaccinated Border Patrol agents. On the other hand, the record number of illegal aliens streaming across the border are exempt from the tyrannical rules American citizens are forced to live under. In fact, the Biden administration knowingly has released thousands of COVID-19-positive illegal immigrants into American communities.

The president and other liberal politicians continue to move the goalposts every time someone has the audacity to ask when we can have our liberty back.

If Americans distrust the administration, it’s because of statements such as this by Dr. Anthony Fauci: “When polls said only about half of all Americans would take a vaccine, I was saying herd immunity would take 70 to 75%,” he said. “Then, when newer surveys said 60% or more would take it, I thought, ‘I can nudge this up a bit,’ so I went to 80, 85.”

If Biden and Democrats have their way, the pandemic-induced panic will never end. The coronavirus has given the radical left the perfect opportunity to create the utopia they have dreamed about for ages: a world of absolute conformity, where all dissenting opinions—and the people who hold them—are ostracized from polite society.

For the radical left, this is not even about the virus, or about public health. It’s about power, control, and forcing the American people to submit.

But the American people never have submitted to tyranny, and never will. Vaccinated and unvaccinated Americans, Republicans and Democrats, young and old, should stand together against Biden’s unlawful mandate and state-sponsored discrimination against those who choose to make their own health care decisions.

When Americans speak with one voice and demand the restoration of liberty, then and only then will the pandemic panic truly be over.

https://www.dailysignal.com/2021/10/04/pence-american-liberty-must-not-become-a-casualty-of-the-coronavirus

********************************************

Facebook Smeared Me With Its ‘Fact-Checking.’ Now, I’m Suing the Tech Giant

Chad Wolf

Chad Wolf, acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security during the Trump administration, is a visiting fellow in The Heritage Foundation’s Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy.

I was surprised to read The Washington Post’s recent editorial concluding that pro-choice protesters had crossed the line by demonstrating in front of the home of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

After all, The Washington Post is not exactly a conservative or rational voice on these types of issues. Almost all the points in the editorial made perfect and logical sense, including the concluding statement: “Leave spouses, children and homes out of it.”

As I finished reading the editorial, one overriding thought came to mind. Where was this logical point of view in 2020 when many Trump administration officials, including me, had to endure months of protests outside our homes for simply doing our jobs?

My experience started in the summer of 2020, shortly after civil unrest began around the country in the wake of George Floyd’s death in police custody. I was acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, which got involved because it has responsibility to protect over 7,000 federal properties, some of which were targeted by violent extremists.

For doing my job and exercising the authorities provided by Congress, my home was targeted by “professional” protesters who gathered out front week after week after week. Although I had seen other Trump administration officials endure this sort of behavior, seeing it outside your own home, on your street, gives you a different perspective.

The “protest” in front of my residence usually played out the same way. The protesters would organize roughly a quarter of a mile away and march through my neighborhood streets, holding up traffic, until they arrived in front of my house. There they remained for an hour or more to shout through loudspeakers, again while holding up traffic.

At no point did these protesters apply for a permit, which is required in the city of Alexandria. Even so, city officials allowed the illegal protests to continue.

Worse yet, a third-term member of the Alexandria City Council, John Chapman, actively participated on several occasions. His participation not only legitimized the illegal nature of the protest, but signaled that doing so at someone’s residence was valid.

From a security perspective, I knew my family and I were relatively safe because of the round-the-clock protection of the U.S. Secret Service. I knew that if any of the protesters decided to take their actions to another level, Secret Service agents were on the ready and always one step ahead.

Nevertheless, this unwelcomed activity put me on edge, since such “protests” can turn ugly quickly.

The situation also required my wife and I to have tough conversations with our two sons, who were both in middle school. We had to explain to them why people protest to express their views but why you should never do so in front of someone else’s home, where a family resides.

As a family, we altered our routines regularly. We were especially attentive to apparent strangers and newcomers to our neighborhood.

One of the most disappointing aspects was the response of some neighbors whom we had lived among for over 10 years. A few of them joined in with the protesters, who regularly mentioned my children’s names and where they went to school.

Instead of asking me about and seeking to understand my work at the Department of Homeland Security, these neighbors chose to disrespect me and my family on numerous occasions.

This was particularly difficult for my wife, who is active in our community (raising thousands of dollars for our public school, for instance) and goes out of her way to be nice and neighborly to almost everyone in our neighborhood.

Over time, the protests diminished and eventually stopped. I long have respected anyone’s right to peacefully protest, something I reiterated numerous times publicly as acting DHS secretary. But there is a time and place to protest.

Showing up at someone’s residence or at a restaurant where he is dining is not it. Such action, in my opinion, diminishes the cause that the protesters seek to elevate.

It’s unfortunate that protesting outside private homes has become part of the left’s playbook. Any conservative who lives near Washington, D.C., knows that he probably is in the minority among neighbors. But the lack of decorum and decency from some of those who live closest to us was something we had not planned on.

Fast-forward to the Biden presidency, and such neighborhood protests appear to be nonexistent despite the administration’s many difficulties on the southern border and elsewhere.

Whatever the reason for this discretion, I will be the first one to say it’s a good development and one that should endure. For the first time in a long time, I agree with The Washington Post: Leave spouses, children, and homes out of it.

https://www.dailysignal.com/2021/09/28/chad-wolf-my-home-family-were-targeted-by-protesters-this-must-stop/

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

4 October, 2021

TV Commercials That Intentionally Skew American Demographics

In viewing the list of companies and products below, do you discern any common denominator?

ADT, Amazon, American Express, Armorall, AT&T, Axe Ice Chill, Behr Ultra, Cadillac, Calvin Klein, Capital One, Carolina Keno, Celebrity Cruises, Chase, Cheerios, Choice Hotels, Clearblue, Coors Light, Corona Seltzer, Cricket, Dawn, DirecTV, Domino’s Pizza, Ecolab Science, Entresto, Entyvio, Expedia, Experian, Fidelity, Freshly.com GEICO, GlaxoSmithKline Trelegy, Glidden, Grammarly, Hagerty, Home Depot, Honey Maid, Humira2, Hyundai, Ingressa, JP Morgan, Keebler, Kohl’s, Liberty Mutual, LL Flooring, Macy’s, Marriott Bonvoy, McDonald’s, Michelob Golden Light, Miller Lite, Mountain Dew, NBA.com, and Nestle’s.

Also Nioxin, Nissan Versa, Notre Dame University, Old Navy, Otezla, Pepsi, Polident, Progressive Insurance, Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, Samsung Galaxy 21, Smile Direct Club, Sonic, Spectrum Originals, State Farm, Subway, T-Mobile, Tahoe South, Target, Terminex, TJ Maxx, Tide, Tommy John Underwear, TouchOfModern, Toyota, VacationsToGo, Vanda Pharmaceuticals, Visit Albuquerque, Vivint Smart Home Security, Walmart, Wayfare, WeBuyAnyCar, Wells Fargo, White Claw Hard Seltzer, Wimbeldon, Volkswagon, Vroom.com, and Zeluja

Give up? Every entity above features television commercials with a black male paired with a white female. Most couples appear to be married or part of a long-term relationship. In some cases, the pair appears to dating.

To be sure, the incidence of mixed race couples in society has been on the increase since the 1970s. Currently about one in six marriages are mixed race. However, as blacks represent less than 13% of the U.S. population and black men represent roughly 6% of the population, it is a statistical anomaly that so many TV commercials would have chosen to feature such a pairing – black man, white woman — with white males out of the picture.

Armorall, Progressive Insurance, Sonic, T-Mobile, and Toyota feature a variety of different TV commercials that pair a black man with a white woman and, in many cases, with white children in the back seat.

Samsung, Budweiser, Trojans, Grey Goose Vodka, and PNC Bank depict a more casual relationship between a black man and a white woman. In other cases, only fleeting glimpse of such couples are offered, as with Google, JCPenney, Nissan, and Busch Garden commercials.

Unlike Anything You’ve Ever Seen

In an Amazon TV commercial, a black man is brushing his teeth as a white woman sticks her head out of the shower and says, “That’s a low price,” as two children, one black and one white, are all in the bathroom with them at the same time.

Aleve features a white woman with a black child on her shoulders. Zeluja shows a gleeful grandmother accompanied by her two mixed-race grandchildren on a boat around the lake.

LL flooring features a couple lying on a hardwood floor. The white woman says, “I love you Steve” and then the black man says, “I love you Steve.” It turns out the flooring salesman is named Steve.

Unprecedented Scenarios

Obviously, anyone can fall in love with anyone, and anyone can be in a relationship with anyone. What is going on in corporate and ‘progressive’ America that requires over-accenting such couples? Hispanics and Asians are generally not part of this phenomena.

Amazingly, whenever a black man in a TV commercial is actually paired with a black woman, the black woman always has lighter skin. If a black man is featured with his apparent children, they always have much lighter skin, leading to the obvious conclusion that the mother is white.

With T-Mobile, a white woman wearing a wedding ring is resting her head in the lap of a black man. I’ve been watching television for the past 60 years and have never seen such poses depicted in any TV commercial with a white husband and wife, or a black husband and wife. For some reason, however, today’s corporate entities feel compelled to show us a black husband and a white wife in scenarios unprecedented over the last several decades.

Abroad and in Print

Ethnic Europeans, who comprise more than 90% of the continent, are completely puzzled by what they see as an anti-white propaganda campaign conveyed through television commercials. The promotion of mixed race relationships, in particular with a white woman and a black man, has become so commonplace that even the least observant among viewers have began to notice.

Magazine ads in the U.S. are no less vigilant. DiscoverTheForest.org, by the U.S. Forest Service pairs a black man and a white woman holding hands as they strolled through a forest with two mixed-race children preceding them. Fidelity Investments features a black man and a white woman leaning on a railing, staring at the horizon, in the planning for their retirement.

Do such companies believe that black/white pairings will help them with their sales? I’d be interested in seeing their data.

https://flagandcross.com/tv-commercials-that-intentionally-skew-american-demographic/

*******************************************

Major Gun Manufacturer Pulls the Trigger, Will Leave the State It Has Called Home Since 1852

When a state becomes too hostile to industry—whether by high taxes, through regulations, or other anti-business laws—the only rational option employers are left with is to leave.

We've seen this time and again in California. After analyzing the data between January 2018 and June 2021, researchers determined there were 265 headquarter relocations in The Golden State, Forbes reports, which averages six per month. California isn't alone, of course, and this week, a major gun manufacturer had to pull the trigger on moving out of Massachusetts.

Despite being in Springfield since 1852, Smith & Wesson announced Thursday that its headquarters and a "significant portion of operations" will be moved to Maryville, Tennessee, in 2023.

The decision came after proposed gun legislation that, if passed, would prevent the company from manufacturing a product that accounted for over 60 percent of its revenue last year.

"This has been an extremely difficult and emotional decision for us, but after an exhaustive and thorough analysis, for the continued health and strength of our iconic company, we feel that we have been left with no other alternative," CEO and President Mark Smith said in a statement.

"These bills would prevent Smith & Wesson from manufacturing firearms that are legal in almost every state in America and that are safely used by tens of millions of law-abiding citizens every day exercising their Constitutional 2nd Amendment rights, protecting themselves and their families, and enjoying the shooting sports," he continued. "While we are hopeful that this arbitrary and damaging legislation will be defeated in this session, these products made up over 60% of our revenue last year, and the unfortunate likelihood that such restrictions would be raised again led to a review of the best path forward for Smith & Wesson."

The company will also close its facilities in Connecticut and Missouri to consolidate at the new Maryville location, which was chosen due to the business-friendly environment, pro-Second Amendment values in the state, and quality of life factors for employees, among others other reasons.

"The strong support we have received from the State of Tennessee and the entire leadership of Blount County throughout this process, combined with the quality of life, outdoor lifestyle, and low cost of living in the Greater Knoxville area has left no doubt that Tennessee is the ideal location for Smith & Wesson's new headquarters," Smith said. "We would like to specifically thank Governor Lee for his decisive contributions and the entire state legislature for their unwavering support of the 2nd Amendment and for creating a welcoming, business friendly environment."

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/leahbarkoukis/2021/10/01/gun-manufacturer-calls-it-quits-on-ma-n2596785

*******************************************

Civilization Requires Deterrence

Deterrence is the ancient ability to scare somebody off from hurting you, your friends or your interests — without a major war.

Desire peace? Then be prepared for war. Or so the Romans believed.

It’s an easily understood concept in the abstract. But deterrence still remains a mystical quality in the concrete since it is only acquired with difficulty and yet easily forfeited.

The tired democracies of the 1930s learned that lesson when they kept acquiescing to Hitler’s serial aggressions.

Hitler’s Germany foolishly later attacked a far stronger Soviet Union in 1941, given Moscow’s lost deterrence after its lackluster performances in Poland and Finland, its pact with the Nazis, and its recent purges of its own officer corps.

Deterrence is omnipresent and also applies well beyond matters of war and peace. The current crime wave of murder and violent assault in our major cities is the wage of loud efforts to defund the police and contextualize crimes as somehow society’s rather than the criminal’s fault.

As a result, lawbreakers now believe there is a good chance that robbing people or hurting or killing them might result in monetary gain or at least bloody satisfaction. They no longer fear a likely sentence of 30 years in prison. So, they see little risk in hurting people. And innocents suffer.

With a border wall, an end to catch and release, and tough jawboning of the Mexican and Central American governments, a new American deterrent stance in 2019-20 discouraged once unstoppable waves of migrants.

Northern bound migrants knew that even if they reached and crossed the border, there was a good chance all such effort would be for naught, given quick apprehension and deportation.

So, in their rational calculations, migrants waited at home for less deterrent times. And they found them when Joe Biden stopped construction on the wall, renewed catch and release, and eased pressures on Mexico to interrupt caravans headed northward.

Abroad, Donald Trump restored the strategic deterrence lost by his predecessor.

Barack Obama had dismissed the murderous ISIS as “JVs” — and they thrived. He shrugged when China stole territory in the South China sea to build military bases. He dismantled missile defense in Europe to coax Vladimir Putin to behave during his own 2012 reelection campaign.

Obama loudly announced redlines in Syria while never intending to enforce them. He gave the Taliban back their incarcerated terrorist leaders in exchange for the return of the American deserter Bowe Bergdahl. And he sent the Iranians nocturnal cash to coax them to conclude an appeasing Iran deal. Aggression followed as U.S. deterrence eroded.

As an antidote to all that, Trump destroyed the ISIS “caliphate.” He obliterated an attack of Russian mercenaries in Syria. He took out terrorist masterminds like Iranian General Qasem Soleimani and the ISIS cutthroat Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

To dangerous actors, an unpredictable Trump appeared likely to strike back if provoked. As a result, America’s enemies become fearful of challenging the United States. And its friends and neutrals were more ready to join a power again deemed not just reliable, but willing to take reasonable risks to assist in their safety.

Key to deterrence is for all parties to know beforehand the relative power of each and the likelihood that it may be used. When strong powers unfortunately transmit signals of weakness, whether deliberately or inadvertently, then weak powers are confused and come to believe their rivals may not be so strong as their armed forces appear. Often, unnecessary wars are the unfortunate result.

These are quite dangerous times because Joe Biden has cut the defense budget. He withdrew recklessly from Afghanistan, leaving behind American citizens, our Afghan allies and friends, and tens of billions of dollars worth of modern weaponry and equipment.

He angered our NATO partners who were abandoned with some 8,000 troops, in a country that the United States had once implored them to enter. He has politicized the military into a caricature of an elite woke top brass at odds with traditionalist enlisted soldiers.

The result is that our enemies — Vladimir Putin’s Russia, the Chinese Communist apparat, the Iranian theocrats, the lunatic North Koreans — are now pondering whether Biden’s reckless laxity is an aberration. Or is it now characteristic of his administration? Or does it even signal a new weaker and confused America that offers enemies strategic openings?

Like the would-be felon, or the potential border crosser, our enemies know the United States has the power to deter unwanted behavior, given its vast military, huge economy, and global culture.

But they may have contempt that with such strength comes such perceived confusion. And thus, in the manner of an emboldened criminal, or migrant, they try something that they would otherwise not.

In sum, deterrence at home and abroad is now dangerously lost. And it will be even scarier trying to recover what was so rashly and foolishly thrown away.

https://patriotpost.us/opinion/82920-civilization-requires-deterrence-2021-09-23

*********************************************

Biden Slammed for Promising 'Consequences' for Border Patrol Agents in Whip Hoax

Leftist justice

On Saturday, former 2020 Democratic presidential candidate and Hawaii congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard slammed President Biden’s remarks that there would be consequences against the Border Patrol agents falsely accused of whipping illegal immigrants.

As Katie reported, last week several leftist media outlets claimed that Border Patrol agents on horseback were using whips to keep Haitian migrants from entering the southern border. As she and Spencer reported, these claims were incorrect.

Following the reports, “[t]he White House and the Department of Homeland Security announced on Thursday Border Patrol's horse unit will no longer be operating in Del Rio, Texas after they were falsely accused of using whips against Haitians who were illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border,” Julio reported last week. Furthermore, the agents at the center of the controversy were placed on administrative leave amid an investigation.

“I promise you, those people will pay. There will be an investigation, underway now, and there will be consequences. There will be consequences,” Biden said on Friday. “It's an embarrassment, but beyond an embarrassment, it is dangerous. It’s wrong, it sends the wrong message around the world, it sends the wrong message at home. It's simply not who we are."

On the Fox News segment “Watters World” on Saturday, Gabbard discussed the “scandal” and slammed Biden for acting as “judge, jury, and executioner,” against the Border Patrol agents accused of whipping migrants.

“He’s absolutely wrong. He needs to apologize to the American people for saying what he said, and here’s why. He’s somebody who's been very outspoken as being against autocrats, autocracies, dictators – but what he essentially did was act as judge, jury, and executioner for these customs and border control agents on horseback,” Gabbard said in the interview.

“When the president of the United States has already declared their guilt and that they will be punished. And the other bigger issue that this points to, which is one that we all need to be concerned about, is that if we are no longer a country of laws, if we are no longer a country where we know we will be presumed innocent unless proven guilty, then we don’t have a democracy,” Gabbard continued.

Last week, as Katie reported, Gabbard blasted Biden’s ongoing border crisis and urged him to revert to immigration policies implemented during the Trump presidency.

“The Biden/Harris open-door policy has been a disaster. It needs to end now. The main beneficiaries of open borders are the gangs, cartels, and human traffickers. The Trump policy of having people wait on the other side of the border worked and needs to be reinstated,” Gabbard said in a tweet. In another tweet, she said “@JoeBiden @KamalaHarris, the humanitarian and national security crisis on the southern border is the direct result of your open-border policy. As I said in my 2020 presidential campaign, we can’t have a secure nation if we don’t secure our borders.”

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/madelineleesman/2021/09/27/judge-jury-and-executioner-tulsi-gabbard-slams-biden-for-promising-consequen-n2596514

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

3 October 2021

Extreme police reaction to unvaccinated toddler

In Arizona, police are on high alert for some very dangerous people. However, these typical suspects are not armed with automatic rifles or knives or grenades – these people of interest are even more dangerous because they potentially carry a possible weapon that could wipe out millions of people – deadly diseases and viruses. As people around the United States watch in horror, babies and children continue to spread dangerous conditions that could easily have been wiped out if parents had gotten their little ones vaccinated.

However, police in Arizona might have taken things too far when they raided a family’s home with guns drawn as they remove an unvaccinated child. In the video, police are caught breaking into the home after the family doctor learned that the parents had refused to vaccinate the child.

The two-year-old child had spiked a 105-degree fever, but the parents still refused to take the child to the emergency room. However, when the fever went away, the parents decided that an inconvenient trip to the hospital was not necessary – but the doctor felt otherwise.

That’s when four heavily armed police officers with the Chandler Police Department raided the family’s apartment in the middle of the night – breaking down the front door and removed the child at gunpoint because the two-year-old had not been vaccinated.

“All because of a fever. A fever! It’s absolutely ridiculous,” the mother’s lawyer, Nicholas Boca, told ABC 15. “That type of kicking your door in, with guns drawn… it should be reserved for violent criminals.”

State Representative Kelly Townsend has a history of encouraging parents to skip vaccinations for their children. She once called vaccination a form of communism, because it forces people to do something.

Townsend wrote on Facebook: “The idea that we force someone to give up their liberty (with a vaccine) for the sake of the collective is not based on American values but rather, Communist.”

However, when the police busted through this family apartment in the name of vaccinations, the Republican quickly stepped up to criticize the police and their response to the doctor’s “misdiagnosis.”

“This mother is nearly 9 months pregnant, and her baby will be born soon,” Townsend said in a Facebook post. “I have great concern that DCS will also take this infant over a misdiagnosis by the Dr., who thought the child might have meningitis when actually he had (a respiratory virus). This would have led to an unnecessary and potentially dangerous spinal tap of a two-year-old child. The parents were correct, the doctor was wrong.”

Because the Chandler police used excessive force when dealing with this case, people in Arizona are questioning whether the law even protects children. Townsend has written new legislation that would require police to have a warrant before they can remove children from their families at gunpoint and the threat of death.

The DCS has not commented on the story.

Do you think the Chandler police overreacted? Or should the police departments take the threat of unvaccinated children as seriously as they would armed criminals?

https://dailyheadlines.net/what-these-police-did-to-an-unvaccinated-toddler-is-absolutely-horrific/

****************************************

What Arizona Audit Really Shows—and Why Election Officials Should Be Embarrassed

Critics of the forensic audit of Maricopa County, Arizona—including local election officials and many reporters—who are crowing that the audit confirms that President Joe Biden won the election in Arizona, either don’t understand the purpose of an audit or are trying to deliberately obscure the most worrying findings in the audit.

In fact, by concentrating on only one finding—that the hand recount essentially matched the machine count from last November—they are missing the forest for the trees. That is shown by misleading headlines such as that in The Washington Post: “Ariz. Ballot Report Affirms Biden Win and Lack of Fraud.”

No one doubts that the vote tabulation shows that Biden won the state. The fact, however, that the hand recount essentially matched the machine count from last November comes as no surprise to anyone with experience in election administration.

As a former county election official in two different states, I was involved in multiple recounts. Recounts almost always only show slight differences from the original ballot tabulation. The fact that the hand recount in Maricopa County matched the machine recount simply means that the computer scanners used to scan and tabulate paper ballots were working properly.

However, the key point all of the critics of the audit are missing is that a recount simply recounts the ballots that were cast—a recount does not investigate, examine, or review the legitimacy of those ballots.

A recount does not verify or check whether ballots were cast by registered voters who are actually deceased; who do not actually live where they claim to live; who cast multiple votes because they are registered more than once; or who are not entitled to vote even though they are registered because they are not U.S. citizens or are felons who have not yet had their right to vote restored.

A simple example illustrates this problem. If a homeowners’ association has an election and the new president wins with 51 out of 100 votes, a recount will no doubt confirm that she received 51 votes. But it will not reveal whether 10 of her 51 votes were cast by individuals who falsely claimed to live in the neighborhood when they actually live elsewhere.

Volume III of the Maricopa audit lists some disturbing findings. That includes 23,344 “mail-in ballots voted from a prior address”; 9,041 “more ballots returned by voter than received”; 5,295 “voters that potentially voted in multiple counties”; 2,592 “more duplicates than original ballots”; and 2,382 “in-person voters who had moved out of Maricopa County.”

Numerous other problems are listed, such as voters whose ballots were counted despite the fact that they registered to vote after the state deadline for registration had already passed.

These are serious potential problems that should be investigated by election officials with the involvement of law enforcement. For example, the individual voter files of the 5,295 “voters that potentially voted in multiple counties” should be pulled, and each voter should be investigated to determine if they have multiple registrations and, in fact, illegally cast more than one vote in the 2020 election.

In other words, all of the potential problems that the auditors found ought to be investigated to verify what actually happened in each case with each of these voters. That is the only way to determine whether there were 5,295 double votes cast in the election or whether some or none of these voters were, in fact, double registered. This claim might be found to be valid—on the other hand, an in-depth investigation might find that there is no validity to this claim or any of the other claims.

Contrary to what some seem to believe, the purpose of an audit is not to overturn an election. It is too late to do so. Every state has election laws that provide very short deadlines for a losing candidate to contest the outcome of an election. That deadline has long expired in Arizona and every other state.

Instead, audits are intended to determine whether voting machines worked properly; whether applicable state and federal laws and regulations were followed; whether the voter registration list was accurate and up-to-date and only allowed eligible individuals to vote; and whether all eligible voters were able to vote, that their vote was properly counted, and that their votes were not voided or nullified by fraud, mistakes, or errors.

The results of such an election audit can then be used to correct any compliance issues, to prosecute anyone who engaged in intentional misconduct that violates state or federal election laws, to change election administration procedures that led to errors and mistakes by election officials, and to provide legislators with the information they need to make needed amendments to election laws to make sure any problems that were found do not reoccur in future elections.

What is most disturbing about the reaction to the audit report is that so many seem to think that this is the end of the review process since the hand recount showed that Biden won and, thus, nothing else needs to be done. This attitude is especially disturbing in Maricopa County election officials, who from the very start have done everything they could to obstruct the audit and who are now claiming that since their “canvass” was accurate, they don’t need to do anything else.

That attitude is wrong. The audit seems to have revealed that sloppy, careless, and chaotic procedures were utilized in Maricopa County during the last election. Officials there have a duty to not only investigate all of the potential problems the audit found, such as potential multiple registrations by the same individual, but to correct their procedures and implement better training for their election workers to ensure that such problems, if confirmed, do not happen again.

Arizona law enforcement also has an obligation to investigate. Casting multiple ballots in the same election is a crime, as is registering and voting where you don’t actually reside. Failure of state election and law enforcement officials to fulfill their duties to investigate will reflect poorly on them.

Finally, opposing the conduct of election audits is unwise and unjustified. Audits are a routine occurrence in the business world for good reason. Conducting random or comprehensive audits after an election in every state should also be routine.

Contrary to the bizarre claim of election officials in Harris County, Texas, that audits are “an attack by officials on our communities’ trust in elections,” audits are a way of protecting voters, ensuring the security of the election process, and improving the confidence of the public in the integrity of elections.

https://www.dailysignal.com/2021/09/30/what-the-arizona-audit-really-shows-and-why-election-officials-should-be-embarrassed

***********************************************

The Symptoms of Our Insanity

Think for a minute. When did we become a nation of socialist AOCs wearing “Tax the Rich” dresses to $35,000-a-ticket celebrity galas, without mandatory masks, while being served by masked servants—a now tired script from the Obama birthday bash crowd to the grandees at the Emmys?

When did we discover that we must listen to oppressed billionaire Oprah from her $90 million Montecito estate commiserating with a billionaire Lebron or royal Meghan Markle about the racist white establishment? Is there anyone in the recent Washington intelligence and investigatory hierarchy who has not lied or feigned loss of memory under oath—a low bar that nevertheless excludes, among others, John Brennan, James Clapper, James Comey, Andrew McCabe, Robert Mueller, or Peter Strzok?

Did anyone just five years ago believe the following could possibly happen in America—and invoke almost no popular outrage from a somnolent public?

Item: The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, does not deny that: 1) he deliberately aborted the legal chain of operational command—that is, violated the law—by recalibrating established protocols for using nuclear weapons in times of crisis. And he says his interventions were based on his own diagnoses (after prompting from opposition leader, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi) that the commander-in-chief was crazy, and thus could be circumvented.

And 2), in freelancing style, Milley, on more than one occasion, called the top figure of the Chinese Communist People’s Liberation Army, General Li Zuocheng. He reportedly announced that his own country was currently in crisis (experiencing “messy” democracy), reassuring the Chinese that if he, Milley, the newfound autokrator, sensed there was any chance of hostile and aggressive action on the part of his own country, then on his own initiative he would tip off the Chinese in advance. And far from resigning or being fired for his Strangelovian efforts, Milley would then be hailed as a hero by the popular media and progressive civil libertarians. In other words, for the Left, it is as if Burt Lancaster’s movie character, Air Force General James Mattoon Scott, was the real hero of Seven Days in May.

Milley has also become the Zelig or Forrest Gump of our times. He turns up at almost all our recent military melodramas and disasters. Milley appears variously in the photo-op/federal troops/tear-gas spoof, the virtue-signaled rumored resignation, the talking referent in anonymously sourced books, puff-piece op-eds, and backgrounder quotes, the Inspector Javert of “white rage,” the student of How To Be An Antiracist, the Afghanistan progress reassurer, the “righteous” drone striker, the adjudicator between January 6 “coups” and 120 days of “penny packet protests” costing $2 billion-dollars in riot and arson destruction and 28 deaths, the Article 88 violator, the reductio ad Hitlerum promulgator, and the underappreciated but rumored polymath bibliophile.

To understand Milley’s gambit, imagine Admiral Ernest King, some time in November 1941 secretly contacting his Japanese imperial counterpart, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, to warn him and the Japanese high command that Admiral King felt President Roosevelt was both too trigger happy for a Pacific war, and was also increasingly infirm and unsteady.

And thus, King would step forward to promise Admiral Yamamoto and the Japanese military grandees that if he felt there was any possible aggressive or peremptory presidential order against Japan, King would tip him off first.

Note that critical contemporaries had complained both that Roosevelt was pining for a pretext for war with Japan and that his closed circle had hidden many of his serious health challenges from the public—and note also that the chances that a President Roosevelt or Trump would have ever staged a preemptive attack on a belligerent neutral were—absolutely zero.

Item: The United States military in the middle of the night abandoned the largest air base in Central Asia, after investing hundreds of millions of dollars in retrofitting the vast complex, as part of a hasty end to a 20-year presence in Afghanistan.

In the last few remaining hours of our withdrawal, Americans would skedaddle to the airport, lose 13 soldiers to a suicide bomber, while guarding our final escape route, retaliate for the killing by accidentally blowing up a civilian relief worker and killing 10 of his family and friends including 7 children, wait almost 2 weeks to disclose said disaster, abandon a $1 billion embassy, dismiss 8,000 NATO allied troops in Afghanistan to fend for themselves, leave behind for Taliban terrorists some $80 billion worth of weaponry and training investment in their usage, fly into the United States some 100,000 unvetted, unvaccinated Afghan refugees in the midst of a pandemic, while leaving behind among the Taliban thousands of Afghans loyal to the U.S. mission—and likely 100-200 Americans.

Is malleable General Milley in the chain of command when he wishes to interrupt operational protocols about nuclear weapons, or to call to warn the Chinese military, but then he is not when he mysteriously becomes only a Joint Chiefs “advisor” without any operation control of or responsibility for the greatest military defeat and humiliation of the last half century?

Item: In the fiscal year 2021-22, how could an anticipated two million illegal aliens simply swarm the border, illegally cross it, continue to reside in the United States illegally, and do so in a time of a pandemic without either a COVID-19 test or vaccination? Who has unilaterally decided that U.S. executive officials could forsake their oaths to enforce existing laws, and simply decide to nullify American immigration law?

Are we a neo-Confederacy in which the nullification of federal law is now normal, whether at the border or in some 550 sanctuary jurisdictions? Most of the hundreds of thousands of illegal aliens have headed northward in response to the wink-and-nod open borders advocacy of Joe Biden and his brag that he had stopped all construction of the supposedly impractical replacement and new sections of the border wall—whose current cessation point doubled as the start-off point of the current mass influx.

Item: The nominal head of the COVID-19 administration task force has been forced to admit under oath that he directed the U.S. government to route, through a close associate and third-party medical group, hundreds of thousands of dollars of American research funding to the Chinese Communist-controlled Wuhan virology lab, the likely ground zero of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Yet Dr. Anthony Fauci would strenuously deny under oath that such funding enhanced gain-of-function virology research, despite clear evidence and agreement in the scientific community that it did. Fauci, in addition, would concede that for over a year he has denied any connection between the pandemic and ongoing efforts at the Wuhan lab where the Chinese military played a prominent role in overseeing viral research.

At various times during the pandemic, Fauci would praise the role of the Chinese government in dealing with the plague, dismiss initially the need for a travel ban to prevent spread of the virus, urge Americans not to wear masks, to wear masks, and at times even to wear two masks. And at 80 years of age, he would become the revered COVID-19 icon who sought to protect us from the virus that likely originated in a top-security Wuhan virology lab, possibly the product of a human-engineered, gain-of-function experiment which was partly funded through likely advocacy of—Dr. Fauci himself.

Item: The U.S. government will mandate that all federal employees and soldiers must be vaccinated to retain their tenures even though such a requirement of U.S. citizens does not apply to the hundreds of thousands of aliens entering the country illegally. Moreover, after the “science” has finally established that naturally acquired immunity from prior COVID-19 infections is superior to protection offered by vaccination, it nonetheless still requires those with superior levels of immunity to be vaccinated.

The administration promised to release from the military and fire from the government any soldier or worker with natural immunity who refused to become vaccinated. If the government’s position is that naturally acquired immunity is superior to vaccinated immunity, but nonetheless it still requires additional vaccinated immunity, will such a mandatory, double-indemnity policy also require vaccinated Americans to get needed additional superior immunity through exposure to COVID-infection? Who is better protected from the virus—those who recovered from COVID-19 (according to the CDC, 1 in 3, or over 100 million Americans were infected) but are not vaccinated, or those vaccinated but who havenever had COVID?

Item: As the U.S. national debt edged toward $30 billion, as annual budgets continued to run over $1 trillion in the red annually, as annual inflation is headed toward a per annum increase of 6-8 percent, and as the U.S. economy faces historic shortages of workers, in part because of generous unemployment stipends, the Biden Administration unveiled the most dramatic growth in U.S. spending and expansions of social services in the last half-century.

Is the idea that raising taxes even higher to pay for some of the even more gargantuan spending means that it is not really spending because the government is nearing the limits of realistic borrowing, and now proposes to hike taxes to pay for a bit of the huge deficit agendas?

Item: The president of the United States now most often lectures the country on two themes: one, for the rich to “pay their fair share,” when he proposes huge new increases in taxes and spending; and two, “systemic racism” and the need to address white privilege by reparatory action.

How then can it be that he reportedly has used loopholes and then legal tax manipulation to have welched out on some $500,000 of prior income taxes to shield his past, vast multimillion-dollar income, no doubt some of it gained when, as the “big guy” of Hunter Biden’s emails, he purportedly received “10 percent” of his son’s multimillion-dollar chronic grifting?

And how can the president berate the affluent for using their privilege to warp the system when his own son is currently hocking bad, paint-by-numbers art to wannabe and mostly foreign lobbyists seeking favors from the well-known Biden, Inc. quid pro quo apparat?

If the president is convinced of the pathologies of white racism, might he first promise to cease and desist from his serially racialist language in which he calls one of his African-American subordinates “boy,” demeans black journalists with put-downs such as “you ain’t black” and “junkie,” has called the former president of the United States the first “clean” and “articulate” black presidential candidate in history, revved up audiences with his racist “Corn Pop” sagas in which mighty young Joe Biden took on inner-city thugs with his custom-made chain, and warned a group of black professionals that Mitt Romney would “put y’all back in chains”?

Was it from this font of such serial racism, that young Hunter Biden, familiar with the use of the N-word obscenity, agreed with his similarly racist procuress cousin (who warned the libidinous Hunter “I can’t give you f***ing Asian sorry. I’m not doing it”) that a “domesticated foreigner is fine. No yellow”?

Is the president simply warning others who are not racists and tax avoiders about the dangers of bias and not paying their fair share, since he knows from his and his family’s own first-hand trafficking in racism and tax avoidance that neither is good for the country?

What explains these insanities that are insults to the American people’s intelligence? Did Americans go mad because of the perfect storm of COVID-19, the quarantine, recession, riots, looting and arson of 2020, the wild November election, the post-election hysterias and riot, and the Biden-socialist Faustian bargain?

Or do these symptoms of long-standing illnesses arise from the media and university, where the twins of incompetence and ideology ruined the critical consciousness of an entire generation of young minds?

Or is the culprit the affluent, bicoastal woke professionals, who, as both narcissists and projectionists, feel the consequences of their own ideology should never apply to themselves, while fobbing off their own sins onto others as a way of squaring the circle of their own illiberality?

There is only one bright spot for the moment: perhaps the Chinese, Russians, North Koreas, and Iranians see us as so crazy, weird, and self-loathing that they have no idea what our best and brightest nihilists might do. And for now, they all are trying to determine the relative deterrence of a nuclear-armed, wacky social-justice nation led by a president who, by any past measure of what is required daily of the commander-in-chief, is not really president at all.

https://www.independent.org/news/article.asp?id=13779&omhide=true

*******************************************

'Facebook is a lie-disseminating instrument of civilizational collapse': Steve Jobs' widow's magazine accuses social media giant of being a 'hostile foreign power'

The Atlantic, the magazine and multi-platform publisher run by a company owned by Steve Jobs' widow, is heaping brutal criticism on Facebook, including calling it an 'instrument of civilizational collapse.'

The essay is making a rough week for the social media giant even worse.

Executive Editor Adrienne LaFrance referred to Facebook as a 'hostile foreign power' and was heavily critical of CEO Mark Zuckerberg in a column titled The Biggest Autocracy on Earth published Monday.

LaFrance cited 'its single-minded focus on its own expansion; its immunity to any sense of civic obligation; its record of facilitating the undermining of elections; its antipathy toward the free press; its rulers’ callousness and hubris; and its indifference to the endurance of American democracy.'

'Facebook is a lie-disseminating instrument of civilizational collapse,' she adds. 'It is designed for blunt-force emotional reaction, reducing human interaction to the clicking of buttons. The algorithm guides users inexorably toward less nuanced, more extreme material, because that’s what most efficiently elicits a reaction. Users are implicitly trained to seek reactions to what they post, which perpetuates the cycle.'

'Facebook executives have tolerated the promotion on their platform of propaganda, terrorist recruitment, and genocide. They point to democratic virtues like free speech to defend themselves, while dismantling democracy itself.'

Laurene Powell Jobs, the widow of Apple founder Steve Jobs who inherited his $21billion fortune, owns The Atlantic via her company The Emerson Collective. Emerson acquired a majority stake in The Atlantic in 2017.

Executive Editor Adrienne LaFrance (pictured referred to Facebook as a 'hostile foreign power' and was heavily critical of CEO Mark Zuckerberg in a column titled The Biggest Autocracy on Earth published Monday +4

LaFrance adds in the piece that as it develops a currency system based off blockchain payments, Facebook is close to achieving all of the things that represent nationhood: land, currency, a philosophy of governance, and people.

'Regulators and banks have feared' that Diem, the currency system Facebook is developing, 'could throw off the global economy and decimate the dollar.

LaFrance refers to Facebook users across the globe as 'a gigantic population of individuals who choose to live under Zuckerberg's rule.'

'Zuckerberg has always tried to get Facebook users to imagine themselves as part of a democracy,' she writes. 'That’s why he tilts toward the language of governance more than of corporate fiat.'

She adds that Facebook is looking into launching an oversight board that appears an awful lot like a legislative body.

This all leads her to define the company and its billions of users as 'a foreign state, populated by people without sovereignty, ruled by a leader with absolute power.'

Jobs, who was married to the Apple co-founder for 20 years before he died in 2011 from neuroendrocrine cancer, is the 35th-richest person in the world, according to Forbes.

Jobs invests and conducts philanthropic activities through Emerson Collective, while also advocating policies on education, immigration, climate, and cancer research and treatment.

The magazine is run day-to-day by editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg.

The column continues what's been a bad week of press for Facebook.

Earlier this week, the company announced that it will be scrapping its plans for a kid friendly version of Instagram after the company faced backlash for ignoring research that revealed the social media platform harmed the mental health of teenage girls.

Meanwhile, a whistleblower who released files that prove the social media giant knows it is toxic to its users is set to reveal her identity on CBS's 60 minutes on Sunday.

The former employee leaked the notorious 'Facebook Files' including tens of thousands of pages of internal company documents that revealed the firm was aware Instagram could be harmful to teenage girls.

They also show the social media giant, which has long had to answer to Congress on how its platform is used, continued to rollout additions to Instagram that propagated the harm, even though executives were aware of the issue.

Ultimately, LaFrance sees very little hope for toppling Facebook unless collective action is taken.

'Could enough people come together to bring down the empire? Probably not,' she writes. Even if Facebook lost 1 billion users, it would have another 2 billion left. But we need to recognize the danger we’re in. We need to shake the notion that Facebook is a normal company, or that its hegemony is inevitable.'

'Perhaps someday the world will congregate as one, in peace ... indivisible by the forces that have launched wars and collapsed civilizations since antiquity. But if that happens, if we can save ourselves, it certainly won’t be because of Facebook. It will be in spite of it.'

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10049803/Steve-Jobs-widows-mag-brutalizes-social-giant-accusing-hostile-foreign-power.html

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************

1 October 2021

London police chief Cressida Dick told to resign to restore women’s confidence in police

She was known to be incompetent long before she was parachuted into the top job. She was in charge of the operation which led to an <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooting_of_Jean_Charles_de_Menezes">innocent Brazilian electrician being shot and killed</a> on a tube train by London police

So why was she given such undeserved preference? She is an open lesbian and that puts her into a protected class

Cressida Dick must resign to restore women’s confidence in the Metropolitan Police, senior politicians said on Thursday after details emerged of the failures that led to an officer falsely arresting a woman to kidnap and murder her.

The chair of parliament’s women and equalities committee, Tory MP Caroline Nokes, joined former Labour justice secretary Harriet Harman and a chorus of others in calling for the commissioner to step down over Sarah Everard’s killing.

The Met chief was forced to admit the crimes of Wayne Couzens had broken the bond of trust between the public and police.

“There are no words that can express the fury and overwhelming sadness that we all feel about what happened to Sarah,” she said outside the Old Bailey where Couzens was given a whole life-sentence. “I am so sorry.”

Couzens, who murdered Ms Everard after kidnapping her in south London under the guise of an arrest, had been known by police colleagues as “the rapist” because of his behaviour – and had already been questioned about an alleged sex offence shortly before he killed his victim.

Five officers are reportedly under investigation for sharing offensive material with Couzens in a WhatsApp group before the killing.

The force also admitted on Thursday that a 2015 allegation of indecent exposure linked to Couzens was missed during his vetting process, and that investigations continue into whether he was responsible for other unsolved crimes.

It later took the extraordinary step of issuing safety advice to women who are suspicious of male officers, suggesting they “shout out to a passer-by, run into a house or wave a bus down” if in fear.

Ms Harman, who chairs parliament’s joint human rights committee, told the commissioner in a letter it was “not possible” for her to stay in post as “women’s confidence in the police has been shattered”.

Adding to the pressure, Ms Nokes told The Independent: “It is clear that change is needed in the Met, to make sure the confidence of women is restored. Rebuilding the trust that is needed will be an enormous challenge for Cressida Dick, and one I am not convinced she can meet.”

Yvette Cooper, who chairs parliament’s home affairs committee, said there should be a wide-ranging independent inquiry into the “deep failures in policing” that allowed Couzens to serve as an officer, as well as the wider culture in the service.

Explaining her call for Dame Cressida to quit, Ms Harman said: “There have been many warnings about perpetrators of male violence against women within the police force, which she has not acted on, and she has not heeded.

“It was on her watch that Wayne Couzens’ offences, that he’d carried out, sexual offences, a few days before, were swept under the carpet, by his colleagues and not investigated. So, she also responded by saying he was a ‘bad ’un’, like it was one bad apple. I think she showed that she is not the person to be the change that is necessary.”

Writing to home secretary Priti Patel, Ms Harman spelt out a seven-step plan to reform the police in the wake of the killing.

The MP said all serving police officers against whom there was an allegation of violence against women should be routinely suspended.

She said any officer who admitted or was found guilty of such an offence should be immediately dismissed from the force, that all recruits should be pre-screened for their attitudes towards women, and that officers who transfer between forces should face checks.

The Labour MP said: “I think the home secretary will ask herself: does she as home secretary need to make absolutely certain that that precious bond of trust between women in London, and the police is absolutely secure as home secretary, she is found to know that that is her responsibility.

“She’s bound to know that there needs to be dramatic, and immediate action and she will also know that she will not be able to rely on Cressida Dick to take these forward with determination. And therefore, I think that she will want to ask Cressida Dick to resign.”

Ms Patel was asked whether the Commissioner should resign, and replied: “There are important questions and questions that I’ve been asking, and challenges: we have to be honest about this in particular to this case, but also the conduct of that serving officer and conduct of policing more broadly.

“So, I will continue to work with the Metropolitan Police and the commissioner to hold them to account as everybody would expect me to do.”

Ms Harman's view is a break from her party line, as leader Sir Keir Starmer as repeatedly defended the commissioner and said she should not be replaced. He had told ITV’s Good Morning Britain programme earlier on Thursday: “I have worked with Cressida Dick over many years in relation to some very serious operations when I was director of public prosecutions. I was pleased that her contract was extended and I support her.”

But another senior police officer, former Met chief superintendent Parm Sandhu told Times Radio that “the buck stops with the boss and the boss is Cressida”.

She added: “This has happened on her watch. We need a new set of fresh eyes, somebody who’s going to be independent, who’s not going to be afraid of turning over those stones and finding those awful reptiles underneath it.”

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/sarah-everard-murder-cressida-dick-resign-b1930147.html

**********************************************

'What's up with white women?': American Booksellers Association is slammed for promoting anti-racist workshop with racist message

The American Booksellers Association was slammed by online critics after they promoted an anti-racist workshop called 'What's Up with White Women?'

The virtual event, subtitled 'Unpacking Sexism and White Privilege in Pursuit of Racial Justice is being held on October 21.'

Anti-racist coordinators Ilsa Govan and Tillman Smith are hosting the workshop which 'is open to all booksellers, regardless of how they identify, but will speak specifically to white cisgender women, trans women, and non-binary folks who have internalized feminine gender norms.'

Govan and Smith were asked to facilitate the event to look further into the behaviors and assumptions made by white women - but have been blasted over their plans online.

'As we strive toward racial justice, there's an opportunity for people who identify as white women to examine how they have navigated sexism and misogyny and internalized white superiority,' the event description read.

The workshop claims it will focus on creating authentic cross-cultural relationships by examining three types of behavior including control, perfectionism and effectiveness.

The announcement of the workshop was met with negative reaction by online Twitter users who slammed the idea as racist.

'I'm sorry, but this is incredibly racist,' Ian Miles Cheong of the Post Millennial commented.

'[Y]our anti racist book sounds kinda racist,' The Blaze's Jessica O'Donnell said.

'I don't think they understand what racism means...' radio host Larry O'Connor said.

ABA responded to the criticism on by deleting the original poster, but then insisting that the workshop was still running as planned. 'ABA's antiracism workshop is still scheduled,' the organization tweeted. 'However, in support of our community and out of concern for the security of the event, we have removed the post with registration details.

'ABA is committed to this work and will share new registration information with members directly.'

The organization was founded in 1900 as a non-profit trade association that promoted independent bookstores in the country.

Independent bookstores are said to 'serve a unique role in promoting the open exchange of ideas, enriching the cultural life of communities, and creating economically vibrant neighborhoods.

The anti-racism workshop is not the first controversial incident the ABA has encountered.

In July, the organization was slammed for mixing up the descriptions of books with the title Blackout. Blackout was both a romance anthology series and a Candace Owens book.

'It was a terrible mistake with terrible racist implications,' CEO Allison Hill said, according to Lit Hub. 'However...we have no reason to believe the action was malicious in intention.'

The company also distributed 750 copies of a controversial book called Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters.

The bestselling book is written by Wall Street Journalist Abigail Shrier, and focuses on claims that children who think they might be trans are being railroaded into potentially serious treatments.

An ABA spokesman issued a groveling statement branding its promotion of the title - which has infuriated some pro-trans activists - as 'violent.'

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10044199/American-Booksellers-Association-slammed-promoting-anti-racist-workshop.html

******************************************

FBI’s 2020 Crime Stats Show Massive Rise in Murder Rate in "Defund the Police" Cities

The FBI has released its 2020 crime statistics and the murder rate has soared, but unsurprisingly it has happened mostly in cities that have joined the defund the police movement.

According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report, the murder rate has increased nearly 30 percent. Per PJ Media:

The previous largest one-year change was a 12.7 percent increase back in 1968. The national rate of murders per 100,000, however, still remains about one-third below the rate in the early 1990s.

The FBI data show around 21,500 total murders last year, which is 5,000 more murders than in 2019. More than three-fourths of reported murders in 2020 were committed with a firearm, the highest rate ever reported.

Murder rose by 35 percent in cities with populations over 250,000, and also jumped more than 40 percent in cities with 100,000 to 250,000 residents. Even towns with under 25,000 people saw a roughly 25 percent increase in homicides.

Liberals have started claiming that the murder rate can be blamed on COVID. But Dan Bongino recently noted on Fox News’The Five that all the worst cities are run by Democrats.

The most recent numbers show that the top ten most dangerous cities are run by Democrats. Well, nine are officially run by leftist Democrats while the tenth is run by a so-called independent… who stopped identifying as a Democrat to run as an independent.

“One example, Philadelphia, now leads the country in murder rate-per-capita among large cities – with more than 300 people killed on its streets in 2021 through July,” Fox reported. “The birthplace of the United States has not had a Republican mayor since Bernard Samuel in 1952, while the late former Mayor Frank Rizzo – who left office in 1980, did become a Republican in his later years.”

Other shocking stats in the crime report include:

An estimated 1,277,696 violent crimes committed in 2020.

The estimated number of robberies fell nearly 10 percent, and the estimated rape offenses decreased 12 percent. However, the estimated number of aggravated assault offenses rose 12 percent.

There were an estimated 6,452,038 property crimes. Burglaries dropped 7.4 percent, larceny-thefts decreased 10.6 percent, while motor vehicle thefts rose nearly 12 percent.

COVID schmovid. The problem is liberals.

https://flagandcross.com/fbis-2020-crime-stats-show-massive-rise-in-murder-rate-in-defund-the-police-cities/

************************************************

Obama Takes Shot at Biden on Border

The nation was been keeping a keen eye on Joe Biden’s first 8 months in office, even though it has been hard to watch at times. The President has been largely negligent on the issue of border security, which is ludicrous knowing that every migrant eyeing the American border was bolstered by his election.

Things have gotten so bad, in fact, that a great majority of the punditry, (some who lean left, even), have suggested that the US border is essentially wide open at this moment.

Even Biden’s former boss, Barack Obama, is growing perturbed.

Former President Barack Obama said Tuesday that open border policies on the Southern border were “unsustainable” for the United States.

“We have borders,” Obama said in an interview with ABC News host Robin Roberts. “The idea that we can just have open borders is something that … as a practical matter, is unsustainable.”

The president acknowledged that President Joe Biden was still dealing with migrant emergencies on the Southern border, calling it a “painful reminder” that America had not fixed the broken immigration system.

The statement, while somewhat vague, belies the internal strife of the Democratic Party at this crucial juncture of the Biden administration, and has telegraphed what is perhaps a long road to recovery for the liberal left.

https://flagandcross.com/bromance-over-obama-takes-cheap-shot-at-biden-on-border/

****************************************

My other blogs. Main ones below:

http://dissectleft.blogspot.com (DISSECTING LEFTISM)

http://edwatch.blogspot.com (EDUCATION WATCH)

http://antigreen.blogspot.com (GREENIE WATCH)

http://australian-politics.blogspot.com (AUSTRALIAN POLITICS)

http://snorphty.blogspot.com/ (TONGUE-TIED)

*****************************************