News of the Week for Sept. 25^th, 2022

• Election 2022
• Gun Rights
• Hide the Decline
• Obamacare
• War & Terror
• National News
• Economy & Taxes
• International News
• Opinion

 

Election 2022

 

House Republicans plan to investigate Chamber of Commerce if htye take the majority
Today’s GOP war on the U.S. Chamber of Commerce represents a stunning turnaround from just a few years ago.

Ranked-Choice Voting Open to Confusion, Mistakes
The misnamed Better Voting Nevada Initiative has a number of flaws, including advancing a concept that would fiddle with how Nevadans vote.

Trafalgar polls Minnesota
Polls conducted by Robert Cahaly’s Trafalgar Group are the ones to which I pay most attention. While other polls have become a recurring joke, Trafalgar’s have established an impressive record in recent years. Trafalgar, for example, was one of the only pollsters to predict President Trump’s 2016 victory and was the second most accurate pollster in 2020.

Albany DA Investigating Alleged Duplicate Signatures on NY GOP Gubernatorial Nominee Lee Zeldin’s Petitions
Politically motivated? The election is less than a month away.

Conveniently timed ‘inflation relief’ checks set to go out in California
What a coincidence. The checks for California’s “Middle Class Tax Refund” will start hitting mailboxes in early October. Just before the Nov. 8 election.

The Pollster Who Thinks It’s Happening Again for Republicans
Robert Cahaly of Trafalgar explains why his polls show Republicans competitive even in some of the bluest places.

Joey Gilbert sanctioned over failed election contest, must pay attorneys fees to Lombardo
A Carson City District Court judge granted an order for sanctions against former Republican governor hopeful Joey Gilbert late Wednesday, awarding Clark County Sheriff and GOP governor nominee Joe Lombardo nearly $88,000 in costs over Gilbert’s legal challenge of the primary results.

Fourth poll in the past week shows Adam Laxalt leading Nevada Senate race
Last week there was a report at NBC News that Republicans were starting to believe the Senate seat in Nevada held by Catherine Cortez Masto was their best chance for a pick-up this cycle.

Russia’s Nuclear Blackmail: Thinking through the Unthinkable
No American — not the hawks nor the doves; not the NatCons nor the Neocons nor the Neoliberal interventionists — wants to get into a nuclear exchange with Russia over Ukraine.

Kari Lake facing criticism after bombshell revelation about rival proved untrue
Kari Lake, Arizona’s GOP gubernatorial nominee, is facing criticism after promising a jaw-dropping revelation about her Democratic opponent that fell flat. Lake had hyped up the alleged dirt she had on Katie Hobbs, claiming it would shock voters about Hobbs’s past and future intentions if she is elected in November.

WaPo/ABC poll: GOP holds +5 edge on generic ballot — and wide leads on top issues
Has the cancellation of the red wave been … canceled? The Washington Post/ABC Poll series has hardly been friendly to the GOP — and in fact, its previous iteration had Democrats up a point. That survey sample in April was of registered voters, however, and even then was an outlier in a sea of Republican leads.

 

Gun Rights

 

Judge strikes down gun ban for felony defendants
A federal law prohibiting people who have been indicted on felony charges from purchasing firearms may be on the way to the dustbin of history. A U.S. District Court in Texas ruled yesterday that the law is unconstitutional while noting the “legitimate concerns” for public safety that are associated with the ruling. The judge cited as precedent several of the Supreme Court’s major decisions over the past decade or more that supported the Second Amendment. The case in question involved a suspect in a burglary who had been indicted on the charge and attempted to purchase a firearm while he was still awaiting trial. Because of that, he was hit with an additional federal charge. This decision dismissed the federal charge against him. While the ruling may be disturbing to some who are worried about felons legally being able to purchase guns, the judge’s rationale is pretty hard to argue against.

 

Hide the Decline

Environment &“Green Energy”

 

The Navajo Nation Takes a Hit for Biden’s Climate Policies
Yes, oil prices are slightly down, but that is only because Joe Biden continues to dip into the dwindling supply in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. So you can expect the average price at the pump, which even as it now stands is still much higher than you paid before Biden’s ascent, to spike again.

Up Next: Green Starvation
As has often been noted, environmentalism is, for many, a religion. It now appears that it is a religion that demands human sacrifice.

The European Disaster Yet to Come
Germany has long led the “green” parade, touting its alleged transition to wind and solar energy and encouraging other nations to follow in its footsteps. The “green” pretense has always been exaggerated if not downright fraudulent, as Germany has never managed to meet more than a small percentage of its energy needs with wind and solar.

Decomposing HUMAN remains can legally be used as compost from 2027 thanks to new California law aimed at tackling climate change
A California law makes it legal to turn human remains into compost. The process involves placing the body inside a reusable container along with wood chips and aerating it to allow microbes and bacteria to do their thing

Switzerland Could Be the First Country to Ban Factory Farming
By many measures, Ueli Stauffacher’s poultry farm is exemplary. Located about 30 minutes southwest of Zurich, the chickens it raises for meat (called broilers in agricultural parlance) are housed in two spacious, well-kept barns. One of those barns is outfitted with heated floors that keep the birds’ bedding dry and a state-of-the-art filtering system that strips away the overpowering smell of ammonia that typically characterizes chicken farms, leaving the air inside remarkably sweet and clean. Solar panels on the roof generate enough electricity to power the whole farm renewably. Stauffacher and his wife even host playgroups at the farm, complete with a brightly-decorated break room where children can watch the chickens through a window as they color and enjoy snacks.

De-ESG or Keep Paying the ESG Tax
ESG acts as a carbon tax on the West, with the ‘revenue’ going to China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and others.

‘Road to Hell for America’: JP Morgan CEO Rejects Rep. Tlaib’s Demand to Stop Funding Fossil Fuels
Get off your high horse, Tlaib.

The Chevy Camaro Dies in 2024, Will Be Replaced by Electric Sedan
Will the Camaro go the way of the original Dodge Charger?

 

Obamacare

Government in Healthcare

 

Disciplinary Hearing for BC Nurse Endorsing Sex-Based Rights Raises Concerns of ‘Policing Speech’: JCCF
A B.C. nurse is facing a disciplinary hearing after the province’s regulator for nurses and midwives alleged that her remarks about “sex-based rights” were “discriminatory” to transgender people.

 

War & Terror

 

Homeland security has been secretly copying phones for nearly 2 decades
Entering the US illegally and without scrutiny has become as easy as a short walk across the border. But legally entering the country means that your basic constitutional rights are circumscribed. That legal loophole is what allows the Customs and Border Protection service to elude 4th Amendment protections against illegal searches and seizures.

Extinguishing Taiwan’s Democracy Is Not China’s Only Goal, Warns Taiwanese President
Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen delivered a videotaped address to an audience at the Concordia Summit, an unofficial conference that is taking place in New York on the sidelines of this week’s U.N. General Assembly’s high-level meeting. Her remarks were also in defiance of the Chinese Communist Party’s campaign to isolate Taiwan on the global stage. Extinguishing Taiwan’s democracy is not Beijing’s only goal, she warned, citing China’s broader military intimidation efforts and its international political-interference work.

Confirmed: Venezuela Sending Violent Prisoners Across Our Southern Border
Good news for the thugs pushing our nation’s record crime streak. They can take a much-needed break because Biden is bringing in fresh reinforcements.

Russia moves to formally annex swathes of Ukraine
Russia on Tuesday paved the way for the formal annexation of swathes of Ukrainian territory, backing referendum plans in areas of Ukraine its soldiers control in a direct challenge to the West that could sharply escalate the war.

‘Its Not a Bluff’: Putin Threatens the West With Nuclear Weapons, Announces Partial Mobilization in Ukraine
“To those who allow themselves to make such statements about Russia, I would like to remind you that our country also has various means of destruction…”

Ukraine Forces Cross Oskil River, Advancing Toward Svatove, Kreminna
Getting accurate and timely information about the war in Ukraine remains difficult, and it may be a few days before the tactical picture becomes clear, but (a) Ukraine now claims to control the east bank of the Oskril River across from Kupiansk, and (b) it has been confirmed that Ukrainian forces have taken Yarova, about 10 miles west of Lyman. While the Russians are reportedly trying to organize a defense at Svatove, their southern flank is jeopardized by the Ukrainian forces at Yarova and Lyman. It’s not clear if the Ukrainians are also across the Oskril River north of Kupiansk, although the Russians claim to have destroyed a pontoon crossing at Dvorichne, about 15 miles north of Kupiansk.

B-21 Raider Will Be Rolled Out In Early December
Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics Andrew Hunter has disclosed that one of the Pentagon’s most ambitious and critical projects in years, the B-21 Raider stealth bomber, will be rolled out before the end of the year. Northrop Grumman has now confirmed that this is the case and says this will be an invitation-only event at its facility at Plant 42 in Palmdale, California.

Nothing Is Working for Russia
In his newsletter today, Matthew Yglesias digs down into how Russia isn’t achieving anything it wants geopolitically.

What Would a Russian Mobilization Look Like?
The news that the Kremlin is moving to hold sham referenda in the occupied regions of Ukraine on joining the Russian Federation — beginning as soon as this Friday! — as well as the rumblings that Russia may be inching towards a declaration of war and a partial or full mobilization, has been met with understandable alarm.

Senate GOPers Will Propose Labeling Drug Cartels ‘Foreign Terrorist Organizations’
Republican Sens. Roger Marshall of Kansas and Rick Scott of Florida will introduce legislation on Thursday designating four Mexican drug cartels foreign terrorist organizations.

(DAILY CALLER OBTAINED) — … by Henry Rodgers

From Russia with Good and Bad News
To parry the nuclear saber rattling, Jerry Hendrix proposes that NATO preemptively declare that allied nations will respond in force to any Russian attempt to “escalate to deescalate” the conflict

Scientists at America’s top nuclear lab were recruited by China to design missiles and drones, report says
“China is playing a game that we are not prepared for, and we need to really begin to mobilize,” said Greg Levesque, the lead author of the report by Strider Technologies.

Children as young as FOUR have been raped and tortured by Russian soldiers, UN war crimes probe find, as former detainees describe beatings, electric shocks and forced nudity in detention camps
UN experts cited reports of beatings, electric shocks and forced nudity. Victims of sexual violence range from four to 82 years old, investigators claim. Commission probed reports in Kyiv, Chernihiv, Kharkiv and Sumy

Left-Wing Domestic Terrorism: Woman Gets Six Years in Prison for Damaging Dakota Access Pipeline
The feds finally have successfully prosecuted a real case of domestic terrorism from the left.

Putin taking operational command of Ukraine war, orders Kherson held
What do a KGB colonel and an Austrian corporal have in common? Military command skill, apparently. With Russia’s war effort collapsing in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin has taken a page out of you-know-who’s book and begun to take operational command of Russia’s military in a desperate bid to reverse recent losses.

Zelensky promises three protections to Russian soldiers willing to surrender
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is promising three protections to Russian soldiers who willingly surrender. Zelensky’s offer comes as Vladimir Putin announced plans to call up 300,000 reservists to replenish the troops who have died in battle. Zelensky delivered his offer directly to Russians as he made his nightly video address.

 

National

 

Proud Boys memo reveals meticulous planning for ‘street-level violence’
Document of 23 pages shows the lengths to which the far-right group goes to prepare for potentially violent encounters and exposes the militaristic structure and language it has adopted

Battle of The CRT Mapping Projects – Legal Insurrection versus UCLA Law School
UCLA’s pro-CRT map has money and institutional power behind it. Our CriticalRace.org maps have none of that, just lots of inconvenient facts: “What our database has turned into over time is more than a parent tool. It’s really a documentation of, in many ways, the demise of higher education under this ideology, which has a quasi-religious fervor to it on campuses.”

Pro-abortion student blames ‘capitalism,’ ‘patriarchy’ for Roe v. Wade’s demise
Campus Reform obtained video of a pro-abortion rally where a student blamed “capitalism” and the “patriarchy” for the overturn of Roe v. Wade.

Denver offers cash, goodies to homeless, but only for women, trans or “non-binary”
Just like virtually every city in the United States, Denver, Colorado has seen a significant surge in homelessness over the past couple of years, along with rising crime rates. But rather than seeking to provide more homeless housing, food kitchens, or other typical services, the city is preparing to launch a different type of experiment. They will be giving homeless people $12,000 in cash with no strings attached. The money will be paid out with an initial cash bonanza of six thousand dollars, followed by monthly payments for the following eleven months. This limited form of a basic income guarantee is intended to see if the cash payout will “lift them out of destitution.” That sounds like a pretty sweet deal, doesn’t it? If you are so impoverished that you’re living on the streets, twelve thousand dollars would probably go quite a way and might at least see you through the colder winter months that are quickly approaching.

Gavin Newsom, kidnapper and human trafficker
Democrats have gone head-bangingly insane over Ron DeSantis’ brilliant and compassionate plan to relocate undocumented migrants to locations yearning to help them breathe free.

Bias Response Teams Have No Place on N.C. Campuses
A new report reveals the extent of the problem.

Trump Ally Mike Lindell Must Face Defamation Suit Over Election-Rigging Claims
MyPillow Inc Chief Executive Mike Lindell must face a defamation lawsuit brought by a voting machine company that the Trump ally falsely accused of rigging the 2020 U.S. election, a Minnesota federal judge ruled on Monday.

Constitution Day event at Tulane University puts emphasis on abortion
Tulane University hosted a Constitution Day event on Sept. 16 that focused on abortion rights.

VA strikes back against transgender proselytizing in the schools
Governor Glenn Youngkin was elected governor of Virginia largely because he stood up for the rights of parents against the education cartel. He ran on the radical idea that parents, not educational bureaucrats are the primary decision makers when it comes to kids’ education. Virginia parents agreed.

Beyond Meat COO arrested for biting man’s nose near Razorback Stadium
A food company executive was arrested on a pair of charges after reportedly biting a man’s nose in a parking garage in Fayetteville on Saturday night.

“Is it working the way we thought?” Legislators seek CCSD audit
One week after several area chambers of commerce called for breaking up the state’s largest school district, Nevada Democratic lawmakers announced on Monday that they were calling for a review of its finances.

British Royal Expert Responds To Don Lemon Demand For Reparations: Get Them From Descendents of African Kings Who Sold Them
Expert tells Lemon those who want reparations should start at the beginning of the supply chain: “Where was the beginning of a supply chain? That was in Africa.”

Case Study On How Teachers Learn Critical Race Theory and Teach It To Their Students: Tredyffrin-Easttown in Suburban Philadelphia
Who Teaches the Teachers? TE paid consultant Pacific Educational Group at least $400k to teach CRT to school teachers, administrators.

CNN’s Don Lemon Gets a History Lesson on the Slave Trade
There is a hilariously large gulf between what progressive TV commentators think they know about history and what they actually know. On occasion, they make the mistake of engaging publicly with somebody who knows what she’s talking about. Don Lemon of CNN offered a textbook example. He decided to ask British commentator Hilary Fordwich a mealy-mouthed question about those who see the wealth of the royal family and ask “for reparations for colonialism.” Characteristically, this was framed in terms of other, unnamed peoples’ raising “legitimate concerns.” Lemon wasn’t even willing to make the argument himself: He just assumed that one would either agree with him or make oneself look like a jerk by dismissing it. This is what happens when you only hang out with people who agree with you, and either treat your half-baked opinions as nuggets of revelation or are the ones feeding them to you.

Nasa reveals CLEAREST image of Neptune’s rings taken in over three decades featuring visible glowing moons
NASA has revealed the clearest view of Neptune’s rings in over 30 years.

Soros-Funded Group Sues DeSantis On Behalf of Martha’s Vineyard Migrants
Who is using who?

Three Martha Vineyard Migrants File Lawsuit Against DeSantis
The undocumented migrants who were transferred to Martha’s Vineyard have quickly adopted one common American practice: litigation. A firm, Lawyers for Civil Rights, in conjunction with the migrant-led nonprofit Alianza Americas, filed the action on behalf of Yanet Doe, Pablo Doe and Jesus Doe who are using pseudonyms for the action “on behalf of themselves and all others similarly situated.” The filing is a Jackson Pollock of legal claims with twelve claims thrown against Florida from false imprisonment to intentional infliction of emotional distress to misuse of the Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund. The splattering of claims face considerable legal barriers based on the consent of the migrants, as shown in a waiver released by Florida.

NY AG files civil suit against Trump, Trump org, family
It’s been a long time coming, so the lawsuit over alleged fraud comes as no surprise. Letitia James had a couple of other surprises up her sleeve, however, but we’ll get to that in a moment. As expected, the Attorney General filed a civil action against the Trumps this morning, a filing over 200 pages that alleges fraud in real estate, lending, insurance, and tax transactions

Sherman Oaks business owner: ‘It is literally a psych ward’ on the sidewalk every day
I have watched a lot of local news clips about homelessness over the past few years and this might be one of the best I’ve ever seen. In a little over 7 minutes you get a very up close view of everything that’s going wrong in our cities with the homeless and some insight into why these problems persist despite the pleas of residents for something to change.

When Voyager 1 goes dark, what comes next?
NASA’s 45-year-old probe is one of the farthest traveling crafts in space. But as Voyager shows its age, a new mission could seek to surpass it.

This Washington High School Is Instructing Teachers To Avoid Saying ‘Biologically Male’
‘”Biological boy” is a term anti-trans activists often use to disregard and discredit transgender girls,’ says Seattle-area Lynnwood High School

The coming Shoganate
We have learned in recent weeks that there is such a thing as an Archivist of the United States at the head of the National Archives and Records Administration and that the position is not unimportant. President Biden has nominated one Colleen Shogan to fill the position and she appeared for a confirmation hearing before the Senate Homeland Security Committee yesterday. C-SPAN has posted video of the hearing here. ABC News reports on the hearing here with some useful background.

Video shows ‘desert tsunami’ in Death Valley triggered by earthquake 1,500 miles away
A 7.6-magnitude earthquake 1,500 miles away triggered a “desert tsunami” in Death Valley National Park, rangers said.

Nine Republicans join all House Democrats to pass The Presidential Election Reform Act
The Electoral Count Act of 1887 is in need of reform. The House put up a bill written by the January 6 committee and introduced by Republican Liz Cheney and Democrat Zoe Lofgren for a vote on Wednesday. The Presidential Election Reform Act was written in response to the events that led up to the Capitol Hill riot.

Affirmative Action Cases Lead What Could Prove Another Momentous Supreme Court Term
Affirmative action in school admissions leads the list of cases of interest to educators as the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to open its 2022-23 term, just months after wrapping up a term that saw several momentous rulings for K-12.

Crime Explosion: Restating the Obvious
The record increases in crime many jurisdictions are experiencing are likely to persist for the foreseeable future. That’s partly because a significant percentage of all crimes is committed by a tiny fraction of the population who will continue to reoffend unless incapacitated by imprisonment. And imprisonment is unfashionable among ‘woke’ prosecutors who seek minimal, if any, bail for those arrested, as well as among some judges who impose relatively light sentences even for violent crimes: Michael Palacios, last seen on video wreaking havoc with an axe in a New York City McDonald’s, was released without bail; Darrell Brooks, charged with homicide for mowing down scores of people in last year’s Waukesha Christmas parade, was out on bail at the time of the incident and had previously been arrested multiple times. The list goes on.

Governor Ducey Rejects Grievance-onomics
“I’m a conservative. I’m just not angry about it.” —Bill Lee, governor of Tennessee

NASA gears up to deflect asteroid, in key test of planetary defense
Bet the dinosaurs wish they’d thought of this. NASA on Monday will attempt a feat humanity has never before accomplished: deliberately smacking a spacecraft into an asteroid to slightly deflect its orbit, in a key test of our ability to stop cosmic objects from devastating life on Earth.

Socialist students hold ‘We Won’t Go Back’ march
Florida State University Students for a Democratic Society (FSUSDS) chapter held a “We Won’t Go Back” march supporting abortion and socialism.

NYC Rapist Gets 30-Day Sentence, Then Goes on Vile Sex-Assault Rampage, Thanks to Commie DA Alvin Bragg
When can we end this liberal experiment of letting violent people walk free? Justin Washington raped a teenage family member. In other cities that might send him to prison for 25 years. In the woketopia that is New York City, Washington, 25, snagged himself a preposterous 30-day sentence, plus, he would not have to register as a sex offender, compliments of Manhattan’s commie District Attorney (DA) Alvin Bragg.

Short Circuit: A Roundup of Recent Federal Court Decisions
ATV noise, threat threats, and wasting judicial resources.

And Now Get Ready for . . . Feline Marxism?
Next year Duke University Press is scheduled to publish Marx For Cats: A Radical Bestiary, by Leigh Claire La Berge, who teaches at Free University of Berlin.

University of North Texas Settles With Professor Fired After Mocking ‘Microaggressions’
“I hope it sends a message to UNT and universities across the country. Maybe it will be a wake-up call, but I think it will take a lot more of these incidents because this is all too common.”

 

Economy & Taxes

 

EU Seeks “Emergency Powers” Over Europe’s Supply Chains
Germany’s DW News: “If approved, the plan would give the European Commission powers to force EU states to reorganize supply chains and prioritize production of key goods during a crisis.”

Fed Raises Interest Rates by 0.75 Percentage Point for Third Straight Meeting
Officials project short-term rates will rise above 4.25% by year’s end, signal further large increases at coming meetings

The Fed Is Getting Even Tougher on Inflation. Here’s What To Watch First.
And how the Fed helped create much of the volatility.

Biden Admin Plans to Regulate Cryptocurrency and Digital Assets
Can’t do anything without the government getting involved.

Europe (and Biden) Bullying Hungary to Raise Its Taxes
The Wall Street Journal reports that the Europeans are threatening to boot Hungary out of the EU and punish the country financially because its “nationalist government” is “undermining the bloc’s Democratic values.”

Germany Is Cynical and Ridiculous, Cont.
During the Trump presidency, Angela Merkel was puffed up into something she wasn’t based in large part on the idiotic calculus that Trump was a bumptious nationalist and therefore the opposite — namely, a boring cosmopolitan — was what the world needed. Since then, it’s become more obvious how irresponsible and self-serving Germany was, and is.

Trade Deficit Declines in Q2
Sure, the GDP numbers are negative, inflation is high, and the unemployment rate is predicted to go up as the Fed raises interest rates, but the trade deficit is coming down.

West Coast Share of Ocean Imports at 40-Year Low
Most U.S. imports come from Asia, so the West Coast is the most logical destination. But more businesses have been opting for lengthier routes to the East and Gulf Coasts instead to avoid the West Coast’s inefficiency and congestion.

 

International

 

Another Irish Exodus
Americans are not the only ones suffering from high fuel and food prices, along with rapidly increasing costs for housing and rising mortgage rates.

‘Drunk’ Canadian PM Trudeau is slammed as a ‘tone deaf embarrassment’ for singing Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody at London hotel before Elizabeth II’s state funeral
Wearing a casual t-shirt, Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau was seen standing over a piano during a singalong with other members of his formal delegation at the central London hotel. Trudeau was heard hitting the infamous notes during the jollity, along with lyrics: ‘Easy come, easy go’.

This Is Your City On Chinese Construction Standards
I talked about buildings made of Chinesium and rotten tail buildings, upon which construction stops but upon which mortgage owners are still expected to make payments.

Nikki Haley: Latest Iran Protests ‘Very Different from Anything We’ve Seen Before’
Former ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley said that Washington should step up its support of the growing protest movement in Iran, saying that the demonstrations that have unfolded over the past several days are unprecedented.

Two Bombings in One Night? That’s Normal Now in Sweden.
My country just voted in a right-wing government. The almost 500 bombings since 2018 may have something to do with it.

Hong Kong man arrested under British colonial-era sedition law while mourning Queen outside consulate
A 43-year-old man was arrested near the British consulate on Monday evening on suspicion of acting with seditious intent, whilst police say an officer extinguished tribute candles for “public safety.”

Xi Jinping’s Erroneous Path Threatens the U.S. and China
Xi Jinping’s economic mismanagement has hurt China, but the U.S. still must be better prepared with more defense spending.

Prince Harry Will Be Permanently ‘Exiled’ by ‘Ruthless’ King Charles, Sources Say
Prince Harry faces a life of permanent “exile,” with King Charles plotting to follow the playbook drawn up by the royals as they overcame the crisis triggered by Edward VIII, the king who abdicated in 1936 and was obliged to live the rest of his life outside the U.K., The Daily Beast understands.

Spanish Minister of Equality argues that children have the right to sex with whomever they want regardless of age
Leftists have been inching open the door to legalized pedophilia for a long while now. The French have embraced cultural figures such as philosopher Michele Foucault and film director Roman Polanski. Major political and literary figures have also been open or semi open about their sexual escapades with children, and it has been accepted with customary French nonchalance. France’s Culture Minister wrote about his sex tours in Thailand where he purchased the services of young boys for romps. He enjoyed them very much.

Gordon Chang: China Coup Rumor ‘Untrue,’ but Something’s Up
Unsubstantiated speculation swirled Saturday morning that Chinese President Xi Jinping has been locked down in isolation amid a potential coup.

Big blow for Elon Musk’s Starlink in South Africa
South Africa’s telecoms regulator — the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) — previously told MyBroadband it would not issue any new licences to companies that are not 30% black owned, in line with new legislation for Internet service providers (ISPs).

 

Opinion

 

Thought for the Day: Frederick Douglass
From Frederick Douglass’s speech “What the Black Man Wants,” April 1865, Boston

Both Left and Right Are Converging on Authoritarianism
The problem with American politics isn’t polarization—it’s rising illiberalism.

Challenges from Technology Don’t Make Caesarism Inevitable
Earlier this month, Unherd contributing editor Mary Harrington responded to my criticism of her apparent willingness to consider “Caesarism” — that is, strongman, authoritarian rule — as a solution for the problems that plague the modern world. Harrington begins by describing the odious, anti-republican, and demagogic content and optics of President Biden’s speech in Philadelphia, in which the allegedly comity-seeking politician considerably escalated the partisan warfare against his political opponents. “The remainder of the speech re-invoked American democracy while suggesting that Biden’s political opponents were a threat not to his presidency but to all of that 200-year-old project,” she writes. “Both sides claimed the speech as evidence that the other side is the real threat to American democracy.”

Self-Righteous Leftists’ Double Standard on ‘Book Bans’
The cultural Left never stops trying to drag America into their supposedly glorious “tolerant” future, where we have an ever-expanding array of gender identities and where grade-school children know as much about masturbation as they do about multiplication.

Take College Credentials off Their Legal Pedestal
Many employers (including the federal government) require that job applicants have college degrees if they want to be considered — even if the work could be done by someone without such credentials. That makes the demand for college education (or degrees, anyway) higher than they otherwise would be and also tends to crowd people who don’t have college credentials into the mostly lower-paying part of the labor market where credentials are not demanded.

Shared Identity Does Not Create Safety or Connection
Here’s what can.

Martha’s Meltdown Model
Martha’s Vineyard has been all over the news. The tiny resort community so loves aiding and comforting the undocumented immigrants who were flown in from Florida that it hugged them — for all of 48 hours.