The Johnstown Flood

For John, BLUF:  This is the rich living as they see fit and the rest absorbing the consequences, except that the law changed after this event, and future generations had a better shot at suing and winning.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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The day Lake Conemaugh destroyed Johnstown

From The Washington Examiner, by Reporter Salena Zito, 11 April 11, 2021 12:40 AM.

Here is the lede plus three:

One hundred and thirty-two years later, the truth of what happened here in May 1889 is still difficult to put into words.

Standing on the very soil where Col. Unger, the last president of the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club, had his home overlooking Lake Conemaugh, you can see from the distance where the Pittsburgh elite had their grand fishing club and elaborate cottages along the shoreline.

Look right, and you can also see the remnants of the poorly maintained dam that once held back their pristine private lake.  It gave way on May 31, 1889, after days of relentless rain, sending 20 million gallons of water raging down 14 miles toward the city of Johnstown.

With each inch and foot and mile, the force of the water gathered and carried with it trees, boulders, dirt, barns, animals, mud, people (dead and alive), and houses.  It flung them all at the unsuspecting town, killing more than 2,000 and causing millions of dollars of damage.

My Father watched the flood of 1936, which killed 25 people.  Fortunately, his Brother Bill made it out of downtown Johnstown.

Here is the Wikipedia article on the flood of 1889.

And here is a map of the Grandview Cemetary, in Westmont, with the Number 1 showing the location of the graves of the 777 unknown victims.  I remember visiting the Cemetary with my Father and viewing the graves, in their straight rows.  It made an impression.  It wasn't my first cemetary, but it was the first to imbed in my memory.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Memorial Day Meditation

For John, BLUF:  With the end of the Military Draft a smaller and smaller portion of the nation has participated in Military Service, and in War, which means fewer with understanding of what war is about.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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THE RISKS OF MEMORIAL DAY NOT BEING PERSONAL

From War on the Rocks, by Marine Scott Cooper, 31 May 2021.

Here is the lede plus two:

In 2007, I spent Memorial Day in Fallujah. Although I was on my fifth tour in Iraq, it was the first deployment when I buried friends.  I attended more than three dozen memorial services that deployment.  I remember the names and faces of the dead. Memorial Day was no longer an abstraction.

This year’s Memorial Day carries with it the anticipation that the country might be bringing the 9/11 wars to a conclusion.  America’s twenty-year war in Afghanistan is coming to an end.  The words that echo in my mind each year on this occasion are a phrase from President Abraham Lincoln:  “that these dead shall not have died in vain.”  It’s an unresolved prayer as I mourn lost comrades.

I worry that Memorial Day is personal to a smaller and smaller number of Americans.  As a national community, Americans may no longer have the ability to collectively remember and honor shared sacrifice, because the sacrifice is not shared.  The all-volunteer force created a military that is self-selecting.  The wars of 9/11 created many veterans who are self-regarding and condescending to those who haven’t served in the military.  A 2020 National Opinion Research Center survey found that a full 60 percent of post-9/11 veterans “agreed” or “strongly agreed” that the eligible Americans who did not volunteer to serve during wartime should feel guilty, compared to just 43 percent of older veterans and 22 percent of civilians.  That is dangerous for the country.

The Author, Scott Cooper is a retired Marine Corps officer and a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council.

If this intrigues you, read more of the article at the link, above.

Hat tip to my Buddy, and fellow Air Force Vet, Neal.

Regards  —  Cliff

Memorial Day 2021

For John, BLUF:  Yesterday I attended a short ceremony, in the drizzle, at the Ladd Whitney Memorial, in front of Lowell City Hall.  It was a proper Memorial Day Ceremony, with Colonel Sam Poulten playing taps on his bugle at the end.

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MEMORIAL DAY

It used to be called Decortion Day, because we were putting flowers or flags on the tombstones of those who died while on military service.  It didn't have to be in combat.  It could of been like my classmate who died in 1961 in a plane crash in Brussels, Cadet William Holmes Hickox.  He was enroute to Prague, as a member of the United States Figure Skating Team to the competition for World Championships.

All who have died while on duty were serving their nation by their presence.

And not to be forgotten are those who served and then returned to civilian life, and then passed on.  They too gave part of their life to their nation.

Regards  —  Cliff

Racism in the Great Outdoors

For John, BLUF:  Our past was not perfect.  Nor is the present.  I have some hope for the future.  But we all have to work at it.  by Ann Althouse at 3:38 PM Nothing to see here; just move along.

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"The Great Outdoors Was Made for White People."

Here is the sub-headline:

A great headline at The Nation...  but is it deadly serious?  Actually, yes

Posted by Ann Althouse, 29 May 2021, 3:38 PM .

Here is the lede plus one:

Through military and legislative intervention, such as the Mariposa Battalion’s violent raid of the village of Ahwahneechee in 1851, which expelled the remaining Indigenous people from Yosemite, these places were cultivated primarily for white people.  Early conservationists like Bowles, or the venerated John Muir or Madison Grant (who wrote one of the foundational texts of the American eugenics movement, The Passing of the Great Race:  Or, The Racial Basis of European History), were not shy in advocating racial exclusivity:  When they spoke of the importance of nature for our nation, they meant the white nation....

The complicated relationships that people of color in the United States have developed with the outdoors because of white violence, coupled with the fact that many local parks—and all national parks—either did not admit people of color or, in some cases, segregated them until 1964, rendered it an effectively white domain....

This is a blot on the National Park Service, but also on the Nation as a whole.  The idea whole Parks would be closed to People of Color is an affront to all.

I assume it is better today, but as COVID-19 fades I will be looking at crowds that visit our National Park here in Lowell and pondering who is there and who isn't.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Corbynization

For John, BLUF:  Anti-Semitism is a growing problem in these United States, and an ugly problem.  And, we arenot distinguishing between the casual bad choice of words and vicious actions, that physically harm people.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Rutgers University Chancellor Christopher J. Molloy Condemns the Rise in Antisemitic Violence; and then Apologizes for Doing So

Here is the sub-headline:

Molloy winds up implicitly endorsing the argument that criticizing antisemitism in the United States is anti-Palestinian.

From Reason Magazine [Volokh Conspiracy], by Professor David Bernstein, 28 May 2021, 10:14 AM.

Here is the last paragraph:

If a condemnation of antisemitism in the U.S. because of a recent upsurge in violence, threats, and vandalism, combined with a condemnation of all other forms of bigotry, triggers Students for Justice in Palestine, the chancellor's response could have taken many forms, including silence.  The one response that's completely unacceptable is to endorse SJP's view that condemning antisemitism in the United States makes you anti-Palestinian, or indeed reflects any view on the Arab-Israeli conflict at all.

The Chancellor and Provost at Rutgers University–New Brunswick condemn anti-Semitism, and then when a group, Rutgers Students for Justice in Palestine, pushes back, the Chancellor and Provost back off. 

I don't object to the Rutgers Students for Justice in Palestine raising objections.  I do object to the University caving in to those students.  Where is the intellectual integrity of higher education Administrators.  It is a good thing that Galileo Galilei lived when he did, when thinkers defended their thoughs, even against His Holiness, the Pope.  It appears today they just crumble.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Slight of Hand

For John, BLUF:  Sometimes, when talking about the US Defense Budget, advocates will compare it to the rest of the descretionary budget, rather than the whole Federal budget.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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My vote? Cut Pentagon Bloat!

From an EMail from Peace Action, by Ms Lilly Dragnev, Friday, 28 May 2021.

Here is the letter I received:

Dear Cliff,

President Biden’s FY 2022 budget is scheduled to be released today.  In it, he is requesting $753 billion for the Pentagon, a $13 billion increase over Trump’s last budget!

The real work begins in Congress, however.  Soon the Congressional debate will begin about where to actually allocate our taxpayer dollars.  We need to take this moment to collectively call for their use on sorely underfunded human needs over more Pentagon bloat.  Today, I ask you to speak out against the billions of dollars allocated to the Pentagon year after year.  We have an opportunity to reallocate funds from the Pentagon into healthcare, infrastructure, education, racial justice, sustainable energy programs, and so much more.  Help us urge Congress to seize this important opportunity.

The U.S. spends more on its military than the next eleven countries combined.  Such consistently massive military budgets have been funding wars and overseas operations that disproportionately target and harm people of color around the world — all while simultaneously eating up funding for critical programs here at home, which then takes a greater toll on communities of color.

Even as we face a historic pandemic and another economic crisis, President Biden requested that nearly half of the budget be spent on the military-industrial complex.  He requested a whopping $13 billion more for the military than Trump did.  This increase alone is 33% greater than the entire Center for Disease Control budget! Clearly, our priorities, and certainly our true security, are misplaced.

Demand your members of Congress speak out and vote against ever-growing Pentagon spending by adding your name to this petition today!

With talk of life returning to normal, we need to remind those in charge that “normal” didn’t work for many communities — communities marginalized by the status quo of endless revenue streams toward the Pentagon and simultaneous cuts to the critical programs that could offer change.  Let’s make sure that the world we move toward as we rein in this pandemic is not one where few profit at the expense of many, but instead one in which Congress puts taxpayer dollars into the critical programs we need to help everyone thrive.

For peace and true security,

Lilly Dragnev
Peace Action

Budget numbers are tricky.  Here are the numbers from President Biden's Budget release.

ITEMS	MONIES (Billions)
Receipts	3,421
Outlays	6,550
Deficit	3,129
DISCRETIONARY
Defense	754
Non-Defense	913
MANDATORY
Social Security	1,186
Medicare	767
Medicade	518
Other	1,255
Net Interest	305

That is a lot of money.  And some of it may be optomistic.  Remember, we are talking billions of dollars.  Remember the late Senator Everett Dirksen, "A billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you're talking about real money."

This is what I wrote back to Ms Dragnev:

Lilly

Divert it for what? More domestic spying?  I hope not.  More mental health? Only if we find a program that works.  Homelessness?  I think we are avoiding the hard questions.  And, we need to agree on peace.  The idea that we will support Hamas and not Israel leaves open the question of then what?  I would propose Jewish Dakota.  Where else would they go?  Baring the Second Coming, they have to be somewhere, unless folks are advocating they be eliminated as a race.  The Corbynization of the Democratic Party is an embarrassment for those of us who had supported HHH or Shirley Chisholm or Jimmy Carter.

As for the Pentagon, we need to decide what we wish to do.  Is North Korea, nuclear armed, a threat to South Korea or Japan?  Do we care about Taiwan?  Should India be left to deal with Pakistan and China on its own?  What would that look like?  What about Ambazonia, or the larger danger of Islamification of Africa?

.

You can't rationally pick a defense budget until you have decided what it is that you wish to accomplish.  Strategy, per Colonel Arthur F Lykke, Jr, is matching ends ways and means.  I had Colonel Art Lykke as a Professor at Army War College.  I adapted his view to "Strategy is matching objectives, threats and opportunities in a resource constrained environment."  Either way, you need to nail down the objectives, the "ends".

Is there anything out there worth fighting for?

Regards  —  Cliff

The FBI Changes Its Stance

For John, BLUF:  The idea that someone would travel from Belleville, IL to the Nation's Capitol for the purpose of invoking the police to shot him, seems a little off the wall.  There are plenty of police between the two locations.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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FBI admits GOP baseball shooting was domestic terrorism after previously deeming it 'suicide by cop'

From The Blaze, by Writer Breck Dumas, 14 May 2021.♠

Here is the lede plus two:

The FBI has "quietly" admitted that the 2017 shooting by a far-left radical who tried to murder several GOP members of Congress at a baseball field was, indeed, domestic terrorism, The Washington Examiner reported.

Last month, current FBI chief Christopher Wray was confronted by Republican lawmakers over the agency classifying the shooting as "suicide by cop" under a previous director.

The Examiner found in an FBI-DHS report released Friday detailing 85 "FBI-Designated Significant Domestic Terrorism Incidents in the United States from 2015 through 2019" classified the shooting at an Alexandria, Va., baseball field by a supporter of former Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) as "domestic violent extremism."

Catching up.

I am sad to say I am not shocked here.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  One wonders if Mr Breck Dumas is descended from Writer Alexandre Dumas, or his son, Alexandre, fils?

Governor Baker Promises Opening Shortly

For John, BLUF:  I think that Governor Baker was under some pressure to make an announcement.  I suspect he didn't want to open too quickly, just in case.  On the other hand, he didn't wish to appear to be aligned with Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Mass. to lift all remaining COVID-19 restrictions and relax mask guidance for fully vaccinated people starting May 29

Alternate Headline:

Re COVID, Gov Baker treats Joe Biden as he did Donald Trump

From The Boston Globe. by Reporters Travis Andersen, Breanne Kovatch, Amanda Kaufman, John Hilliard and Matt Stout, 17 May 2021, 11 AM.

Here is the lede plus two:

In a major move heralding the end of pandemic-era restrictions, Governor Charlie Baker on Monday said Massachusetts will lift all restrictions on businesses on Memorial Day weekend, moving up the full reopening date by two months in the most telling sign yet that the state’s returning to something akin to normal after more than a year of death, sickness, and punishing lockdowns.

Baker announced the change at a press briefing, which followed the CDC’s easing last week of indoor mask guidance for fully vaccinated people.  Baker’s office also confirmed the news in a statement.

The statement said “the Baker-Polito Administration announced that the Commonwealth is on track to meet the goal of vaccinating 4.1 million residents by the first week of June and all remaining COVID-19 restrictions will be lifted effective May 29.”

My first question is, given the announcement was at 11:00 AM, how did all those reporters coordinate on this story so quickly?

This is good news for our Commonwealth, and should allow businesses to surge back.

And thank you to the CDC for giving us this update on what the science says, this last Thursday, 13 May 2021.

Now what do we do, come 29 May?

UPDATE:  A couple of days ago I saw a screed about how President Trump had failed us by not mandating a consistent policy across the 50 States.  Aside from the fact that a one, single, solution for all regions and People does not make sense, there is the fact that we didn't actually know what the perfect solution looked like.  Federalism allowed for local adaptation and for more rapid adaptation.  And we can see various State Governors taking advantage of this federalism, to the benefit of the Residents.

Regards  —  Cliff

Be Fully Sensitive

For John, BLUF:  A fundamental question we should ask is why people come to this Country, and then we should ask how we can make that rewarding for them, keeping in mind that they have, de facto, rejected their previous culture.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Lowell School Committee hears plans for culturally and linguistically sustaining practices

Here is the sub-headline:

Member Mike Dillon blasts as “Marxist”

From The [Lowell] Sun, by Reporter Alana Melanson, 5 May 2021, 10:31 PM.

Here is the core of the issue, the Slide Presentation by Chief Equity & Engagement Officer Latifah Phillips.  Is it about helping students or is it part of an effort to implement teaching based on some form of Critical Race Theory.

I, personnally, am sensitive to School Committee Member Mike Dillon's point about a "Marxist" orientation.  In parts of this nation that debate is playing out, often with the local School Board being pitted against the Voters.  Such is the case in Loudoun County, Virginia, where the School Board is up in arms about the voters.♠  In municipal elections in Southlake, Texas, with issues regarding Critical Race Theory, the vote went anti-CRT by roughly 70 to 30 percent, and turnout ballooned to almost three times the normal rate.

Yes, we need to be aware of the ghost of Antonio Gramsci, but we also have to be aware of the need to educate our students and help their parents prepare them for adulthood.

To that extent we need to look at how the Lowell Public School Department is implementing its program of Culturally and Linguistically Sustaining Practices (CLSP).

Because our students come from a number of diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds it is important that we understand how those cultural and linguistic factors impact our students and their ability to learn.

For example, a recent study found that minority teaching assistants in STEM subjects reduces course drop rates and increases course completion rates among minority students.  That should be an important sign that we need to pay attention to cultural and linguistic issues as we set about teaching our students.

At the same time, we should be careful not to replicate, for immigrants, their previous cultures or linguistic settings if the parents are not interested in that kind of accommodation.

People emigrate for a reason and that reason is often disatisfaction.  In turn, they immigrate to the United States for a reason.  It may be as simple as this is where the Coyotes dumbed them.  Perhaps this is the only Country that would accept them.  They are here not by choice, but by happenstance, and that is sad.

However, many people immigrate to the United States for a reason:

• They come because the territory represents a richness of natural resources, set for exploration and exploitation,
• They come because there is a rich jobs market and they wish to take advantge of that market to land a job and earn a living.
• They come because they have some sense that the the People and the Government offer a relatively free envoironment for thought and religious practice.

The second two sets of immigrants may not wish to see their children educated in ways that are reminiscent of the parents old culture.  They may be chary of their children developing a yearning for "the old ways", the "old sod".

Some descretion is required in application.  But, we must be trying to find ways to make the educational experience highly productive for all our students.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  Loudoun County reminds me of East German Poet Bertolt Brecht and his satirical poem "Die Lösung" (The Solution).

Vaccination Lottery

For John, BLUF:  The Governor of Ohio is offering to put those who get vaccinated against COVID-19 into a weekly lottery for $1 million.  That sounds OK to me.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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DeWine Has Lost His COVID-Loving Mind:  Will Bribe Ohioans to Get Vaccine With Million-Dollar Lottery Prizes, Scholarships for Children

From PJ Media, by Ms Paula Bolyard, 13 May 2021, 5:10 PM ET.

Here is the lede:

On Wednesday, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced that he would be lifting his draconian COVID-19 orders on June 2.  (I would not be surprised if Gov. Goalpost finds a reason to rescind his order to rescind the orders between now and then, but that’s a discussion for another article.)  In addition to opening the state back up (except for nursing homes, where everyone is most likely vaccinated), DeWine announced that he will use federal COVID relief funds to bribe Ohioans to get vaccinated—in a stunt that sounds like it was cooked up in a marketing department at a Vegas casino.

I realize the Governor has taken some heat for his use of a lottery to invite folks to get vaccinated.  I don't fault him.  In fact, I like his use of innovative tools to encourage vaccination, while still allowing those who are firmly against vaccination to remain firm.

At this point we need a sense of humor in our governmental dealings.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

It Is Getting Ugly Out There

For John, BLUF:  The exposure of people willng to put down hispanics in the name of putting down Caucasians who don't conform to today's woke definitions.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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On the Hypocrites at Apple Who Canceled Antonio Garcia-Martinez

Here is the sub-headline:

Much easier to ruin a career than mess with a corporate cash cow

From TK News, by Writer Matt Taibbi, 14 March 2021.

Here is the lede plus two:

I’m biased, because I know Antonio Garcia-Martinez and something like the same thing once happened to me, but the decision by Apple to bend to a posse of internal complainers and fire him over a passage in a five-year-old book is ridiculous hypocrisy.  Hypocrisy by the complainers, and defamatory cowardice by the bosses — about right for the Invasion of the Body Snatchers-style era of timorous conformity and duncecap monoculture the woke mobs at these places are trying to build as their new Jerusalem.

Garcia-Martinez is a brilliant, funny, multi-talented Cuban-American whose confessional memoir Chaos Monkeys is to big tech what Michael Lewis’s Liar’s Poker was to finance.  A onetime high-level Facebook executive — he ran Facebook Ads — Antonio’s book shows the House of Zuckerberg to be a cult full of on-the-spectrum zealots who talked like justice activists while possessing the business ethics of Vlad the Impaler:

Facebook is full of true believers who really, really, really are not doing it for the money, and really, really will not stop until every man, woman, and child on earth is staring into a blue-framed window with a Facebook logo.

Writer Matt Taibbi shows nothing but distain for the executives, and workers, at Apple, who hired and then fired, in short order, Mr Antonio García-Martínez.  I don't know Mr García-Martínez from Adam's Odd Ox.  However, it looks like the mob is coming for him and those of us still sane need to stand by him, in whatever way we can.

It isn't like Mr García-Martínez was a buddy of Mr Jeffrey Epstein.  Nor is Mr García-Martínez a known spouse abuser.  However, it is obvious that Apple employees have no sense of humor and no sense of tolerence for the opinions of others if they diverge from the accepted line.  That means we are approaching the French Revolution stage known as the Reign of Terror.

You have been warned.

Regards  —  Cliff

Homelessness on the West Coast

For John, BLUF:  Homelessness is a growing problem, and I an not seeing any solutions.  One thing we can do is write our US Representative (in my case, Ms Lori Trahan, asking for the Federal Government to take the lead on reforming our mental health program.  Not take over, but help the States.  As you have, John.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Homeless Camps Are Taking Over the West Coast

From PJ Media, by Mr Kevin Downey, Jr, 9 May 2021, 12:47 AM ET.

Here is the lede plus three:

Democrat cities have allowed hundreds of homeless encampments to pop up along the West Coast.

Homelessness isn’t new to places like San Francisco, L.A., Seattle, Sacramento, and so on.  I was in Portland 12 years ago for a comedy gig.  The park in front of the club looked like a scene from Michael Jackson’s Thriller video.  Today it looks like the Walking Dead.

Homeless camps are popping up all over the West Coast and bringing violence, drugs, weapons, and defecation with them.  When I was a kid, camping meant fishing and catching toads, not getting shot and stepping in people poop.

Los Angeles has seen a 50% increase in homelessness over the last five years.  LA’s Venice Beach homeless encampment recently had an explosion and a shooting.  The question city officials are asking:  where did they find the ammo?

Homelessness isn't just one problem.  It is at least four different problems.

• Adult Homelessness (Trifecta of mental illness, drug addiction and homeless)
• Domestic Violence (DV) (relocation as a solutIon)
• Homeless families without shelter (Perhaps even one employed)
• Youth Homelessness (Often Couch Surfing at friends' homes)

Each is a separate problem, requiring separate solutions.  Some need mental health help.  Some need affordable housing.  Some need protection from an abusive partner.

On the West Cosast it looks like politicalization has gotten in the way of effective solutions.  That is sad for the victims and for the Citizen taxpayers. Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Reviewing the Vote

For John, BLUF:  As we all know, the Electoral College elected Candidate Joe Biden President of the United States, back in January of 2021.  The question is, do we have a uniformly efficient, honest and effective voting system across the States and Territories?  This is about checking on that.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Inside Arizona’s election audit, GOP fraud fantasies live on

From The Boston Globe, by Associated Press Reporters Jonathan J Cooper and Bob Christie, 10 May 2021, 1:15 a.m..

Here is the lede plus three:

On the floor of Veterans Memorial Coliseum, where Sir Charles Barkley once dunked basketballs and Hulk Hogan wrestled King Kong Bundy, 46 tables are arrayed in neat rows, each with a Lazy Susan in the middle.

Seated at the tables are several dozen people, mostly Republicans, who spend hours watching ballots spin by, photographing them or inspecting them closely.  They are counting them and checking to see if there is any sign they were flown in surreptitiously from South Korea.  A few weeks ago they were holding them up to ultraviolet lights, looking for a watermark rumored to be a sign of fraud.

This is Arizona’s extraordinary, partisan audit of the 2020 election results in the state's most populous county — ground zero for former President Donald Trump and a legion of his supporters who have refused to accept his loss in Arizona or in other battleground states.  Theses ballots have been counted before and certified by the Republican governor.  Much of the country has moved on.

And yet, in this aging arena, Republicans are searching for evidence to support claims they already believe.

The opening is a somewhat snarky look at the ongoing vote recount in Maricopa County, Arizona.

The Reporters then go on to say:

The effort has alarmed voting rights advocates, election administrators and civil rights lawyers at the U.S. Department of Justice, who this past week demanded confirmation that federal security and anti-intimidation laws are being followed.  Senate President Karen Fann responded Friday by telling the department it had nothing to worry about.

Why are various groups "alarmed" about this effort?  If this effort reconfirms the initial results it further tamps down concerns about the November outcome.  If it finds problems it gives us plenty of time correct those problems.

For an alternate view there is, from PJ Media, "The Morning Briefing:  What Are Democrats So Afraid of in Maricopa County?"

The disinformation campaign run by the Democrats about Georgia’s new election law shows how invested they are in making all of the “irregularities” from the last election permanent.  Those of us with questions about what exactly happened are just supposed to shut up.  Curiosity is racism or something now.

. . .

There’s been a lot of recent drama about the audit that’s been going on in Maricopa County.  The Democrats have been trying to shut it down and not having much success so far.  They are persistent little buggers though, and now they’re upping their game.

At this point I don't look to any media for truth.  It is the job of those of us out in Voter-Land to take all available information and to sort through it, looking for the kernals of facts and aligning them.

Good luck to us.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Not All Deaths Are Equal

For John, BLUF:  It is not clear to me we have developed the statistics to help us understand the consequences of the protes, which oten became riots, in 2020.  Part of that equation is the response of local goverments.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Murder rates soar dramatically in cities after BLM protests with up to 6,000 extra deaths nationwide - massively outweighing the decline in police shootings, researcher finds

Here is the sub-headline:

• UMass PhD candidate Travis Campbell published findings in a pre-print study
• Found that police shootings drop 15% to 20% in cities with large BLM protests
• That equates to about 300 fewer police shootings nationwide over five years
• But murder rates rose 10%, an increase of 1,000 to 6,000 additional homicides
• The exact reason for the increase in murders remains a subject of study
• Campbell suggests that a decrease in police enforcement could be to blame
• He stresses that comparing murders to police killings is 'apples to oranges'

From The Daily Mail, by Reporter Keith Griffith, 22 April 2021, 16:01 EDT.

Here is the lede plus three:

A researcher has found that cities that had Black Lives Matter protests saw a significant decrease in police homicides, but a huge overall increase in murders.

Travis Campbell, an economics PhD candidate at the University of Massachusetts, published his findings in a recent pre-print study examining the impact of BLM protests on police use-of-force incidents.

His analysis, which is still undergoing peer-review, found that cities with BLM protests had 15 to 20 percent fewer police homicides than expected if the protests had not taken place, equating to 300 fewer police killings nationwide over five years.

But, in a revised unpublished version shared with DailyMail.com, Campbell finds that cities with BLM protests also saw a 10 percent increase in murders overall, equaling 1,000 to 6,000 additional murders nationwide.

Your average voter eligible citizen should be able to do rhe math.  Perhaps we are having a monologue rather than a discussion.

My speculation is that those hardest hit my a reduction in policing will be middle aged and older Black women.  Millions of them, who have felt some sense of security with the presence of police.  It will take some time for the data to flow in, but that is how I see this evolving.

The worst case outcome would be a demographic shift, with major cities becoming depopulated.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

School Boards Are Hot

For John, BLUF:  School Committees are findinding that the voters who elected them are a bit more restless than normal.  No doubt COVID-19 and accompanying school closures are a part of it.  However, another part is the use of wokeness to explain performance problems and develop paths for improvement  It may be worse if it appears to parents (some parents) that versions of Critical Race Theory are being imported into the local school system.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

---

Asian parent calls out Va. school board over wokeness in powerful speech — gets told to sit down

From The Blaze, by Reporter Breck Dumas, 7 May 2021.

Here is the lede:

Former Wall Street Journal writer and Asian American immigrant Asra Nomani delivered a moving speech before the Virginia school board overseeing her son's education, lambasting officials for their "anti-racism" propaganda push before she was cut off and told:  "Go to your seat."

Unlike most other years, i am seeing a lot of anti-School Board animus this year.  The hotbed may be Loudoun County, Virginia, but it is showing up across the Fruited Plain.  (Northern California, Rochester, Palo Alto, Vail, AZ, Pheonix.)  Some of it is directed toward School Committees going "woke".  However, I expect, some is a result of resentment against teachers and their unions, who won't follow the sciece with regard to COVID-19.

In this case it is wokeness.  I loved this part:

But then a buzzer rang, signifying that Nomani's speaking time was up.  An official immediately began telling Nomani that her "time has expired," and repeatedly calling for the "next speaker" before ultimately telling the mother:  "Please, go to your seat."

In sharing the video of her speech on social media, Nomani tweeted, "I spoke from my heart to the @fcpsnews school board.  Watch board chair Ricardy Anderson rage at me.  Didn't she get the memo that watching the clock is 'white supremacy'?  She reveals the board's true anti-Asian animus.  @ricardy4Mason, YOUR time has expired."

My understanding, from Public School Civics, is that School Committees represent the voters and the interests of the voters with regard to Public Education.  It appears, to use a US Department of State expression, some School Committee members have "gone native".  They now represent the interests of the educators against those of the parents.  Frankly, there is a lot to be said for the professionalism and dedication of the School Staff in sum.  However, the School Committee that makes its allegience too obvious risks being voted out next term, unless the schools are suddenly very high performing.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Critical Race Theory Questoned

For John, BLUF:  Why is this of interest, why it is of importance, at least here in Lowell, is the question of if our new School District program, "Culturally and Linguistically Sustaining Practices" is a form of Critical Race Theory.  So what is Critical Race Theory (CRT)?  This is about one view.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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What critical race theory is really about

From The New York Post, by Investigative Journalist Christopher F. Rufo, 6 May 2021, 7:25pm.

Here is the lede plus two:

Critical race theory is fast becoming America’s new institutional orthodoxy.  Yet most Americans have never heard of it — and of those who have, many don’t understand it.  This must change. We need to know what it is so we can know how to fight it.

To explain critical race theory, it helps to begin with a brief history of Marxism.

Originally, the Marxist left built its political program on the theory of class conflict.  Karl Marx believed that the primary characteristic of industrial societies was the imbalance of power between capitalists and workers.  The solution to that imbalance, according to Marx, was revolution:  The workers would eventually gain consciousness of their plight, seize the means of production, overthrow the capitalist class and usher in a new socialist society.

It didn't happen that way.  What resulted was, generally, misery.  Over 100 million died as a result of really smart people trying to overcome economics and stear nations toward controlled economies.

This article is by Investigative Journalist Christopher F. Rufo, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute.  It was adapted by The New York Post with permission of City Journal.

In summary,

No longer simply an academic matter, critical race theory has become a tool of political power.  To borrow a phrase from the Marxist theoretician Antonio Gramsci, it is fast achieving cultural hegemony in America’s public institutions.

Part of the issue is how one understands "equity".  We tend to think of it in legal and financial terms.  However, the Critical Race Theoriests have a different understanding.  Since the Marxist class based approach didn't work, CRT would offer a different, more obvious classification, with enforcement:

An equity-based form of government would mean the end not only of private property but also of individual rights, equality under the law, federalism and freedom of speech.  These would be replaced by race-based redistribution of wealth, group-based rights, active discrimination and omnipotent bureaucratic authority.

On the one hand, we should all wish that everyone gets their fair share.  On the other hand, it has been American tradition that one earns what one gets.  And to an ever-expanding degree, the number of people with a fair share of the pie has been expanding.  As it should be.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Reaching All Students

For John, BLUF:  The Lowell School Department is under pressure to help students do better.  Thus new lines of pedagogical improvement are being sought.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Lowell School Committee hears plans for culturally and linguistically sustaining practices

Here is the sub-headline:

Member Mike Dillon blasts as “Marxist”

From The [Lowell] Sun, by Reporter Alana Melanson (amelanson@lowellsun.com), 5 May 2021, 10:43 p.m.

Here is the lede plus three:

Lowell Public Schools have been working on a plan to unify and strengthen culturally and linguistically sustaining practices (CLSP) within the district, but some of the components may be a tough hurdle for some school officials.

Committee member Mike Dillon blasted the efforts as “Marxist” and not having enough “diversity of thought or politics.”

Chief Equity & Engagement Officer Latifah Phillips presented the plans to the School Committee Wednesday night, which include a proposal to hire a CLSP coordinator at an estimated $100,000 salary in the next school year to support the initiatives.

In outlining the three-step process of building a CLSP continuum, Phillips said it starts with understanding one’s own culture, lens of viewing of world and personal biases.  Next comes trust and relationship building, followed by developing cultural proficiency and practices that empower students, she said.

It appears that Lowell School Committee Member Mike Dillon thinks CLSP is the thin edge of the wedge of Critical Race Theory (CRT).  (See him talk at this link https://youtu.be/Cz_S1fQkQlg)  He is asking as to if CLSP is a neo-Marxist attempt to replace class consciousness and conflict with racial consciousness and conflict, with an end goal of replacing capitalism (and democracy) with a government controlled economy.

I expect that this will be resolved by discussions at the sub-committee level and by reassuring interactions between School Committee Members and School Staff.

There should be no doubt that there are disparities for students along racial lines.  The above linked Slide Presentation shows that.  But, it appears there are also issues within racial groups, which suggests there are cultural differences within racial and ethnic groups.  These need to be addressed and resolved.  Perhaps CLSP is the answer.  On the other hand, Critical Race Theory only promises misery.  It brings Venezuela on its wings.

Regards  —  Cliff

Building on a Dream

For John, BLUF:  People have dreams of what the perfect world would be.  Not all dreams are the same.  That different groups get to try out there dreams is possible in a nation as land and resource rich as these United States.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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These peeps are building a race-exclusive communist state in the Rockies and I wish them the very best of luck 👍

Here is the sub-headline:

From Not the Bee, by Writer Joel Abbott, 7 May 2021, 10:20 am.

Here is the lede plus one:

In the great nation of America, the land of opportunity, even racist communists can achieve their dreams.

I mean that literally.  A group of ethno-communists is preparing to build a town high in the mountains of Colorado where white people will not be allowed[]

"White People".  Do you think he means Caucasians?

Is this a Great Country, or what?  That a group with unique ideas on Ethnicity and Economics can build a community and govern themselves is a great testimony to this Nation.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

A Work In Progress

For John, BLUF:  Even in hidebound bureaucracies it is possible to foster innovation and creative thinking.  We should encourage such aberrant behavior.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Inside the Secretive Government Unit Saving American Lives Around the World

Here is the sub-headline:

A little-known team of medics and miracle workers—hidden deep within the U.S. Department of State—opens its doors to Vanity Fair.

From Vanity Fair, by Reporter Adam Ciralsky, 6 MAY 2021.

Here is the lede plus two:

In a concrete hangar in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, Katrina Mayes is working with precision and purpose.  Wisps of smoke surround her, wafting off the dry ice she is using to jerry-rig a cardboard vaccine carrier.  Her task:  to create a vapor phase vent to moderate the temperature of the cooling container from around minus 80 degrees Celsius (for storing Pfizer’s COVID-19 vials) to minus 15 degrees Celsius (to accommodate supplies of the Moderna vaccine).

At 29, the biochemist and virologist has spent much of her professional life indoors, where the U.S. government has entrusted her to handle some of the world’s most lethal pathogens—including Ebola, Lassa fever, and Nipah viruses—at top-secret Biosafety Level Four facilities.  “I shower six times a day,” she tells me.  “I’m the cleanest person you’ll ever meet.”  Her winning smile and gallows humor mask the gravity of her work, which has involved diffusing poison-laced letters that have been mailed to federal buildings.

On a Tuesday in March, her mission was just as urgent but more life-affirming. Dubbed “Operation Icebox,” Mayes was helping deliver nearly 200,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine to American embassies, consulates, and other overseas posts scattered across six continents.  It is a complex affair involving two dozen jets that are big enough to fly long distances—carrying ultra-low temperature (ULT) freezers—yet nimble enough to land on a variety of runways.  Mayes’s colleague Taundria Cappel, a Guyanese émigré who began her government career as a secretary, oversees the entire operation—at age 30.  “We are the MacGyvers of the State Department,” she explains.  “People come to us with crises and we develop solutions.”

That our Department of State has a specialized unit, ready to go anywhere to medically treat and evacuate American Citizens is an encouraging sign.  It shows innovation alive and well within the bureaucracy.  It gives me a good feeling.

After a few paragraphs on the lack of diversity of race and ethnicity within the Department of State—there is no diversity—we come to this set of sentences:

“Diversity of opinion and diversity of options,” Walters responded when I asked about the net effect of his hiring practices.  “There’s no groupthink.  There’s not enough people that are similar to create groupthink.”

This is how diverity pays off for America.  "Diversity of opinion and diversity of options" is greatly to be desired.  It generates its own rewards for those who would encourage innovation.

We forget that the clash of ideas has been important since the Europeans came to these shores.  We may think of our Founding Fathers as all cut from the same mold, but a hundred years before they gathered in Philadelphia they would have been running their conferees out of town for holding different and diverse views on issues such as religion  Yet, gathered in Philly in 1776 they were able to come up with some innovative ideas of governance.  Not perfect, but trail breaking.  They hadn't grown alike, but they had learned to get along.  President George Washington, yes, a slave holder, managed to break through some barriers, to give room for Catholics and Jews in the new nation.  A work in progress, which we should further.

Regards  —  Cliff

Who Are the Police?

For John, BLUF:  For over a year now we have had groups carving out their own little territories, like CHAZ in Seattle.  This is not a good will to build a peaceful, happy, community.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Portland BLM/Antifa Draw Guns on Drivers to Enforce No-Go Zone in Broad Daylight

From J Media, by Reporter Victoria Taft, 7 May 2021, 9:36 AM ET.

Here is the lede plus one:

Portland’s revolutionaries from Black Lives Matter and antifa took over a busy street at noon on Wednesday and pulled guns on drivers who dared try to dart past the mob.  The groups were holding a rally for a gangland shooter who was killed by police in 2018.  That shooting was ruled justified (more below).

The chaotic scene included guns being drawn on white drivers by the multiracial BLM and antifa protesters and one driver drew his own weapon in reply.  Someone deployed pepper spray.

I don't think this is a good trend.  For a long time we have depended on the Police to police our streets.  Now, in some parts of the country, we are leaving it to private armies.  Are we turning into Mexico?

Some people think they are building a better America, but they are, in fact, destroying the fabric of our society and creating an alternative culture, and not a good one.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

A Cast System?

For John, BLUF:  Here is a take on the topic of Critical Race Theory, which sees it as a way of binning people and creating a hierarchy, a caste system.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Do You Want a Caste System in America? Keep Pushing Critical Theories and We'll Have It in No Time.

From PJ Media, by Ms Stacey Lennox, 3 May 2021, 4:23 PM ET.

Here is the lede plus two:

The debate about curriculum based on critical theories is getting a lot of hype for how it impacts the teaching of history and civics. Critical theories can absolutely infect those two subjects, but this ideology is far more pernicious than that. There are curricula for math, science, and English that use the underlying thesis of critical theories that are every bit as damaging as teaching a warped version of history that claims America is built on the original sin of slavery.

Critical theories divide society into groups based on their immutable characteristics. Then, it assigns personality characteristics, motives, and societal roles to children based simply on how they were born. This strategy divides children by race, sex, immigration status, disability, and other characteristics they have no control over. It then assigns roles, such as oppressed and oppressor, based on those characteristics. Marxists learned long ago that dividing people by class was challenging. A content middle class was always a barrier to their progress. Dividing people based on immutable characteristics was more straightforward, and creating a coalition of the oppressed groups became the means to gain power, beginning in earnest in the 1980s.

Critical theories are pernicious because they remove agency and free will from one segregated group and blame the other for any disparity in outcomes between groups. It encourages blame and victimhood based on how children were born. The philosophy calls for outright discrimination against groups seen to be “privileged” historically. Generally, these children are white, male, and sometimes Asian. It follows in lockstep with the philosophy articulated by one of the high priests of critical theories, Ibram X. Kendi. “The only remedy to past discrimination is present discrimination. The only remedy to present discrimination is future discrimination.”

For me the lead into the second paragraph is important to understanding the wider impact on society.  I have modified the first two sentences slightly:

Progressives divide society into groups based on their immutable characteristics.  Then, they assign personality characteristics, motives, and societal roles to voters based simply on how they were born.

We are looking at a form of a political caste system in the United States, with implications for voting, at the local, state and national levels.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Reparations

For John, BLUF:  The idea of reparations has been around since at least the American Civil War, starting with 40 Acres and a Mule, an idea put forward by Union General William Tecumseh Sherman.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Why I support reparations — and all conservatives should

From The Washington Post, by Contributing Columnist Gary Abernathy, 22 April 2021, 3:00 p.m. EDT.

Here is the lede plus two:

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) is among the progressive lawmakers whose blunt, liberal outspokenness regularly annoys me.  Recently, she particularly upset me while discussing the latest congressional study of reparations for descendants of enslaved people, when she said, “If you through your history benefited from that wrong that was done, then you must be willing to commit yourself to righting that wrong.”

Only this time I was bothered because her comments hit home.

Like most conservatives, I’ve scoffed at the idea of reparations or a formal apology for slavery.  I did not own slaves, so why would I support my government using my tax dollars for reparations or issuing an apology?  Further, no one in the United States has been legally enslaved since 1865, so why are Black people today owed anything more than the same freedoms and opportunities that I enjoy?

Further on, the Collumnist writes:

The cost can be debated, along with the mechanics of a compensation package.  But in the current drunken haze of government spending, appropriating trillions for the noble purpose of bringing Black Americans who remain economically penalized by the enslavement of their ancestors closer to the fiscal universe of White citizens surely seems less objectionable than some recent spending proposals.

It is a tenet of conservatism that a level playing field is all we should guarantee.  But that’s meaningless if one team starts with an unsurmountable lead before play even begins.

It’s not necessary to experience “White guilt” or buy into the notion of “White privilege,” a pejorative that to me suggests Whites possess something they should lose, when in fact such benefits should extend to all.  Supporting reparations simply requires a universal agreement to work toward, as Jayapal said, “righting that wrong.”

My thoughts:

• Once we accept "Inherited Guilt", what are the future limits of this concept?
• How do we ensure fairness, for example, are Blacks who came to this Nation after 1865, who suffer the indirect consequences of slavery, entitled to compensation?
• Who can we find who has the (cultural) authority to sign off on the Reparations plan, so it is final and does not come up again?

For me, that last point is the most important.  When is this finished?  When can we turn to our fellow Citizens and say it is done?  Will it ever be done?

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Justice Thomas Speaks Up

For John, BLUF:  Associate Justice Clarence Thomas is famous for not asking questions during oral arguments.  However, during the Pandemic, when questions were asked in turn, via telephone, he spoke up when it was his turn.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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"Justice Clarence Thomas, who once went a decade without asking a question from the Supreme Court bench, is about to complete a term in which he was an active participant in every single argument...."

From Althouse, Professor Ann Althouse, 3 May 2021.

Here is the lede plus one:

"The justices now ask questions one at a time, in order of seniority.  Justice Thomas, who joined the court in 1991, goes second, right after Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., asking probing questions in his distinctive baritone....  If Justice Thomas’s questions differed from those of his colleagues, it was in their courtesy.  He almost never interrupted lawyers, though he asked pointed follow-up questions if there was time left.  Some of his most memorable comments were colorful asides.  Over the course of the last term, Justice Thomas mused about the ballooning salaries of college football coaches, said a police officer’s supposed 'hot pursuit' struck him as a 'meandering pursuit,' commented on the 'sordid roots' of a Louisiana law enacted to advance white supremacy and wondered how public schools should address students’ comments 'about current controversies, like protests or Black Lives Matter, antifa or Proud Boys.'...  The justices hope to return to the courtroom when the new term starts in October.  Once he is back on the bench, will Justice Thomas revert to his usual taciturnity?...  '[It's] fair to say that Justice Thomas may well prefer the orderly questioning of the current format as opposed to the feeding frenzy that can dominate when the justices are on the bench together.'  Irv Gornstein, the executive director of Georgetown’s Supreme Court Institute, said that 'there is one and only one way he will not return to form — if they retain justice-by-justice questioning.  And the odds of that happening.... are approximately zero.'"

Writes Adam Liptak in "Justice Clarence Thomas, Long Silent, Has Turned Talkative/The Supreme Court’s orderly telephone arguments, prompted by the pandemic, have given the public a revealing look at its longest-serving member" (NYT).

The only black person on the Supreme Court was silent for a decade, then using a new method, he became a fully equal participant, and the odds of preserving the new method are approximately zero?  Is that racist?

I don't think that Justice Thomas will return to his old ways.  I think he will look for opportunities and voice his questions and comments.  He may have found that he likes asking questions.

To answer Professor Althouse's question, no, it is not racism.  It is personality.  But, I think I could argue the opposite, that Justice Thomas, a Conservative Black member of the Court might feel that to ask questions in a somewhat rowdy environment, with several Progressive women in competition might come across wrong due to his race and political orientation  Yes, he might feel he has what he needs by reading and listening and there is no need to stir things up.  That would be sad.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

Making Nice With Iran

For John, BLUF:  Iran is in the runup to a presidential election in June and the country’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps is stiring up trouble so as to support those running who they favor.  The leaking of a confidnetial taped interview with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Iran Teases Attack on US Capitol Building as Biden Admin Prepares To Lift Sanctions

From The Washington Free Beacon, by Mr Adam Kredo, 3 May 2021, 1:45 pm.

Here is the lede plus one:

Iran released a provocative new video over the weekend that depicts its military forces blowing up the United States Capitol building, a threat that comes as the Biden administration inches closer to providing Tehran with billions of dollars in economic sanctions relief.

The video debuted Sunday on Iranian state-controlled television before Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei delivered remarks, in which he praised the country’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, the paramilitary force that has killed Americans, and celebrated IRGC leader Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in a drone strike by the former Trump administration.

In the video clip, armed IRGC forces are seen marching before the U.S. Capitol’s famous dome explodes.  It also shows Iranian forces marching on Jerusalem.

Foreign Minister Zarif said in the interview:

I believe Iran and the U.S. will never be friends as long as the Islamic Republic preserves its identity. Never will our issues with America be resolved.

This is sad.  All could brenefit if we were able to work together.  However, the Guards of the Revolution see themselves with a God given mission and are not willing to let others stand in the way of their God-given mission.

I am hoping for a more secular Government after the 18 June Presidential Election in Iran.  Perhaps then we can have more fruitful discussions and more peace in the Middle East.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

The Press Not Over 6 January

For John, BLUF:  I am just assuming that my view of the situatoin and that of the Reporters below are different in some details.  That is much better than assuming they are just trying to gaslight me.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Justice Dept. under pressure to resolve some lesser cases

From The [Lowell] Sun, by Reporters Alanna Durkin Richer and Colleen Long, of the Associated Press, 2 May 2021.

Here is the lede plus three:

More than 400 people have been charged with federal crimes in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.

But prison time may be another story.

With new defendants still flooding into Washington’s federal court, the Justice Department is under pressure to quickly resolve the least serious of cases.

While defendants charged with crimes such as conspiracy and assaulting officers during the insurrection could be looking at hefty sentences, some members of the mob who weren’t caught joining in the violence or destruction could see little to no time behind bars.

The article still uses the now discredited term "Insurrection".♠♥

Then there is this paragraph:

After Trump’s impeachment by the House resulted in an acquittal by the Senate, these criminal cases are one possible route for justice.

Your reading may differ, but to me the Reporters are trying to tie the Senate trial and acquittal of President Donald J Trump (February 9, 2021 – February 13, 2021) to criminal action against the 6 January rioters.  At one level that seems backwards.  At a second level it seems that the Reporters are saying that President Trump was guilty as charged by the House and that the Corrupt Republican Senators wrongly voted to acquit him and that the only justice for the American People is to try some of those who supported him and to ensure punishment for them.♦

This was not a good piece of journalism.

Hat tip to The [Lowell] Sun.

Regards  —  Cliff

♠  There is a Wikipedia entry for Insurrection, but it isn't very clarifying.
♥  If the Occupty Capitol Hill movement was an insurrection, then we need a better taxonomy of this kind of activity.  There was only one incident of gunfire.  No one tried to torch the Capitol building.  Aside from one protestor shot (Ashli Elizabeth Babbitt) no one else was shot and few were beaten up.  Most exited the Czpitol Building soon after entering it.  There was no occupation of offices and no calls for like activities elsewhere, in support of the Occupy Czapitol Hill action.  In fact, it was much different from its like action in Seattlem which results in CHAZ.
♦  My take on the Second Impeachment is that Speaker Nancy Pelosi has never been able to forgive Mr Donald J Trump for running for President and that she has felt all along a need to strike back at him and punish and humiliate him.  From Impeachment I to ripping up his State of the Union Speech to Impeachment II.  It seems to me that for Speaker Pelosi President Trump represented the worst side of America and the fact that the People in the hinterlands, the deplorables and irredeamables, are just not able to appreciate what she (Ms Pelosi) and the Democratic Party are doing for them.  In her view, it seems, those people should just sit down and color.

Corrections Deployed

For John, BLUF:  Depending on the mainstream Newspapers and Radio and TV can lead one to draw wrong conclusions..  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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New York Times, WaPo, NBC forced to retract false claims about Giuliani

From The New York Post, by Reporter Kathianne Boniello, 1 May 2021, 9:05pm.

Here is the lede plus three:

The New York Times, Washington Post and NBC News all issued retractions Saturday for their coverage of Rudy Giuliani following a raid of his Manhattan apartment by the FBI.

The Times appended their correction to a story about the role Giuliani may have played in the 2019 recall of ambassador Marie L. Yovanovitch and whether he received a warning from the FBI about Russian disinformation.

“An earlier version of this article misstated whether Rudolph W. Giuliani received a formal warning from the F.B.I. about Russian disinformation.  Mr. Giuliani did not receive such a so-called defensive briefing,” The Times wrote Saturday in a note attached to the piece.

The Washington Post’s correction, on a story about prominent Americans being targeted by Russian disinformation, was similar.

The problem is, the correction gets less attention than the originial assertion.

This does not speak highly of professional journalism.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff

The Cowboy Code

For John, BLUF:  Cowboy Gene Autry, The Singing Cowboy, is an under appreciated standout in the Twentieth Century.  An actor, an aviator in World War II (A Service Pilot, he flew The Humb), the owner of The Los Angeles Angels.  He was a multi-talented individual, and he embodied the Cowboy Code.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Gene Autry’s Cowboy Code

From Ethics Alarms, by Mr Jack Marshall, Timeless.

Here is the whole Code:

1. The Cowboy must never shoot first, hit a smaller man, or take unfair advantage.
2. He must never go back on his word, or a trust confided in him.
3. He must always tell the truth.
4. He must be gentle with children, the elderly, and animals.
5. He must not advocate or possess racially or religiously intolerant ideas.
6. He must help people in distress.
7. He must be a good worker.
8. He must keep himself clean in thought, speech, action, and personal habits.
9. He must respect women, parents, and his nations laws.
10. The Cowboy is a patriot.

We need more like Gene Autry.

Regards  —  Cliff