No, I’m not equating government bureaucrats with rabid squirrels at a rave (that’s totally unfair to rabid squirrels). Yes, I am going to talk about the unnecessary and tragic demise of P’Nut the squirrel and his adopted brother, Fred the raccoon. As most of you probably know by now, a woman in Texas (yes, I’m sorry to say), got a stick up her ass about the Instagram videos P’Nut’s rescuer was sharing. She apparently decided that this was somehow an affront to all that’s good and holy in these United States. So, she filed multiple complaints with the New York state Department of Environmental Conservation regarding P’Nut. I am not privy to the details of those complaints, but I assume she claimed animal abuse or some such. Because a couple of nights ago, the NY DEC decided to RAID the house, with a SWAT team (as one does when confronting squirrel rescuers), tearing it apart (yes, they did, you can read the accounts), and kidnapping P’Nut and Fred, subsequently getting both animals euthanized.
Continue reading “Squirrels, Raccoons, and Government Overreach”Another WTF?? Moment from the Media
I read a recap of JD Vance’s sit-down with Joe Rogan on the latter’s podcast. It was in the Independent (UK) and hysterically biased. They claimed that Vance “stumbled through” the appearance and was a “rhetorical shooting gallery.” Here’s the money quote:
Continue reading “Another WTF?? Moment from the Media”Lockstep Voting and Bullying
How do you do, fellow bitter, clinging, deplorable, racist, homophobic pieces of garbage?
Warning: This is a rant and thus may wander a bit. I’m annoyed, pissed off, and just now caffeinating.
Okay, then. Here we go.
Continue reading “Lockstep Voting and Bullying”Fix It…
Kamala Harris’ campaign slogan is “A New Way Forward.” I find this fascinating because it implies that the last almost four years are NOT the correct “way forward.” And that’s not even getting into how much that slogan matches the slogans put out by the Soviets and the Chinese Communist Party (that’s a story for another post). Harris and her campaign are trying to convince voters that the problems of the last four years are… checks notes… Trump’s fault. Yes, they are trying to blame a man who hasn’t been in office since January of 2021, for everything that has happened since he left office.
Continue reading “Fix It…”Arguing vs. Venting Emotions
Screaming your emotions at somebody is NOT arguing. How many times have you found yourself in an argument or discussion and realized that either the other person, or you, are arguing/commenting from a place of fact-free, analysis-free, and logic-free emotion? I know I’ve done it, and I catch myself doing it still (less often, but it creeps in there). You’d think I’d know better by now, but emotions can overtake before you really realize what’s going on. Emotions are also the strings activists and politicians pull or pluck to get you to fall in line with their side of the issue.
Continue reading “Arguing vs. Venting Emotions”Freedom of Speech and “Misinformation”
Recently, I’ve been thinking about the First Amendment and its relationship to the idea of “misinformation.” There’s a reason the Anti-Federalists put it at the top of their list of amendments to the original U.S. Constitution. When the Founders wrote the constitution, they left out specifics in a number of areas. They reasoned that restrictions on government action in certain areas should be obvious, and didn’t need to be spelled out. The Anti-Federalists (so named by Madison because they objected to an overarching federal government – they felt it could be used to put undesirable restrictions on individual liberties) insisted on including the Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments, because they wanted the inalienable rights to be in writing and thus beyond questioning. Well before Louis B. Mayer, the Anti-Federalists knew that an oral agreement wasn’t worth the paper it was written on.
Continue reading “Freedom of Speech and “Misinformation””Anointing and Appointing and Problems With It All
I haven’t done a politics screed in a while and that’s mostly because there’s just been so much going on that by the time I find or make the time to write about it, something else has come along. So, I’m just going to note and comment on a few things that have pinged my radar in the last week or so.
Continue reading “Anointing and Appointing and Problems With It All”A Weird and Changing Presidential Race
Biden dropped out of the presidential race on Sunday. The first snarky question I heard was “How did they get Jill to agree to that?” Right now, some people are getting up in arms at the suggestion that the woman in the equation is against that simply because she wants to live in the White House for another four years and that she truly dislikes Harris. I’d argue that the question assumes Jill is in charge. Aren’t strong, feminists supposed to be in charge? Of course a question like that also assumes that given Biden’s obvious problems, which many of us have seen for four freaking years, Jill has no regard for the health and well-being of her husband. Anyway, I digress. This announcement significantly changes the tenor and character of the 2024 race. And I don’t just mean because there’s going to be a new Democratic candidate.
Continue reading “A Weird and Changing Presidential Race”Assassination Attempts and “Disastrous” Candidates
This is going to be a sort of combo post covering two issues that have come up. The first is obviously the assassination attempt on former President (and current candidate) Trump. The second is the thought/idea that both candidates are “disastrous” choices and either will harm the country irreparably. The TL/DR for this post: 1) Had the assassination attempt succeeded we all would be in a world of hurt right now. More than you can possibly imagine. 2) No, the candidate choices are not both disastrous for the country. Only the choice of Biden or any other Dem candidate will be disastrous at this point. You have an obligation to pay attention whether you like it or not.
Continue reading “Assassination Attempts and “Disastrous” Candidates”1968 All Over Again?
The 2024 Democratic Convention will be held in Chicago in August. And it’s shaping up to be a doozy of a show. Everyone on the left – media, DNC, governors, House reps, Senators – have been sounding the “please don’t run” horn to Biden. The only people not joining in the newly arising chorus are the White House staff and Biden aides. Oh, and Everybody-Must-Call-Me-DOCTOR Jill, of course. (I have a Ph.D., and yes, I told my students that they would be calling me Dr. Jones or Prof. Jones. I most emphatically did not tell the rest of the world to call me that. That’s a level of insecurity even I don’t possess.)
Continue reading “1968 All Over Again?”