The American left and their "useful idiots"

"Useful Idiots" defined

Berkeley Didn’t Birth ‘Free Speech,’ but It Seems Intent to Bury It  . . . "In 1689, the British passed a law guaranteeing freedom of speech in Parliament. A century later, French revolutionaries incorporated into law the Declaration of the Rights of Man, which established free speech as a universal right. Two years later, the Americans ratified the First Amendment, which guarantees that the state shall not infringe on the right to free speech. Roughly a century and half later, in 1948, the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which says, “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression. . . . ” 

"I mention all of this because every time I read or hear about the pathetic state of affairs at the University of California, Berkeley — where conservative speakers and rabble-rousers alike are banned from speaking lest they be assaulted by a mob — journalists and other commentators insist on pointing out the irony that this is all happening “where the Free Speech Movement was born.' ” . . .  Read more

While we're at it: Climate Bullies Take to the Streets for ‘People’s Climate March’  "Most Americans are unaware of the vicious campaign waged by climate activists against people who do not recite the strictest tenets of the manmade-climate-change creed."

From Mona Charen: Political Violence from the Left Comes to Campus — Again  Quoting Jonathan Haidt:

We are witnessing the emergence of a dangerous new norm for responding to speakers who challenge campus orthodoxy. Anyone offended by the speaker can put out a call on Facebook to bring together students and locals, including “antifa” (antifascist) and black-bloc activists who explicitly endorse the use of violence against racists and fascists. Because of flagrant “concept creep,” however, almost anyone who is politically right of center can be labeled a racist or a fascist, and the promiscuous use of such labels is now part of the standard operating procedure.

. . . "There’s an opportunity awaiting someone, anyone, on today’s campuses too. Stand up to the social-justice warriors, tell the truth, and you may find yourself a household name."

Populism on Pause

So what is populism?  "Populists can be everything from militarists to libertarians. So what does the word actually mean?"

But populism’s belief that the people are always right is bad news for two elements of liberal democracy: the rights of minorities and the rule of law.

That's what it said. 

Charles Krauthammer

"The worldwide movement has not been halted but is temporarily on hold."

"Yesterday’s conventional wisdom: A wave of insurgent populism is sweeping the West, threatening its foundational institutions — the European Union, the Western alliance, even liberal democracy itself. 

"Today’s conventional wisdom (post-first-round French presidential election): The populist wave has crested, soon to abate. 

"Chances are that both verdicts are wrong. The anti-establishment sentiment that gave us Brexit, then Donald Trump, and then seemed poised to give us Marine Le Pen, has indeed plateaued. But although she will likely be defeated in the second round, victory by the leading centrist, Emmanuel Macron, would hardly constitute an establishment triumph." 

. . . 

"The other notable populist victory, the triumph of Trump, has also turned out to be less than meets the eye. He certainly ran as a populist and won as a populist but, a mere 100 days in, he is governing as a traditionalist.

"The Obamacare-replacement proposals are traditional small-government fixes. His tax reform is a follow-on to Reagan’s from 1986. His Supreme Court pick is a strait-laced constitutional conservative out of central casting. And his more notable executive orders read as a wish list of traditional business-oriented conservatism, from regulatory reform to the Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines." . . .

Threats of Violence Shut Down Portland’s Avenue of Roses Parade

Legal Insurrection

“ 'Hateful rhetoric” and the “spreading of views” cited as reason for threatened violence"

"In disturbing parallels to the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) and the Weather Underground of the 1960’s, we are seeing a small band of violent radicals attempt—and thus far succeed—in imposing their will on Americans.  The terrorist acts that the SDS and Weather Underground engaged in are what we most remember, but it’s worth noting that they, too, started out with threats, riots, and destruction of property during their “Days of Rage.”  They ultimately used violence as a means of condemning violence(?!) and of coalescing their “families” and “tribes” behind a “youth resistance,” and we are seeing this all unfold yet again as violent radicals shriek about fascism while engaging in it themselves.

"In the wake of the violent riots that shut down speaking engagements by Milo Yiannopoulos and Heather Mac Donald, the violent radicals of the fringe left have notched up further “wins” in silencing Ann Coulter and in now causing the cancellation of the Avenue of Roses Parade in Portland, Oregon." . . .

New York Times Op-Ed Denounces the Asian Salad as ‘Racist’

Next we'll discuss french toast and German chocolate cake as cultural appropriation.

Weasel Zippers

"Sigh, isn’t everything? The salad doesn’t sound ‘Asian’ in any particular way except perhaps snow peas are a common ingredient in some asian dishes. But whether it is or isn’t, how is that racist? Crazy train…

"Via Free Beacon:

A New York Times op-ed published Thursday night denounced the existence of Asian salad and called on restaurants to remove the “racist” dish from their menus.

“Why Is Asian Salad Still on the Menu?” asked Bonnie Tsui, complaining that the common offering was “something created in the name of Asians by non-Asians [and] has become a touchstone for non-Asians.”

The impetus for the piece was when Tsui came across an “Asian Emperor Salad” on the menu at a San Francisco bar.

“I thought about its grand imprecision, which irritated me as a Chinese-American. And I wondered, who cooked up this thing,” she recalled. “I was reasonably sure it wasn’t anyone Asian.”

Keep reading…

The media that shapes our thinking and the results

Rich Terrell

Resulting from the demonization of groups by media, academia, and entertainment, wouldn't you say?

Smear campaign against Cornell prof who opposed grad student unionization.  "For the past year or so there has been a divisive and ugly unionization drive by some graduate students, backed by the political power of the American Federation of Teachers and New York State United Teachers. Democratic politicians in the state came out in support of grad student unionization."

Threats of Violence Shut Down Portland’s Avenue of Roses Parade  "These cowards are objecting to “hateful rhetoric” and the “spread[ing] of views” with which they do not agree. Regrettably, they do not seem to understand that they are exactly what they claim to reject: hateful fascists policing speech and threatening an event that is attended by families with children and by the elderly."

Photo and article from the Huffington Post.

CNN Mocks Trump as “Captain Obvious,” Morning Joe wonders if his “meds have changed”

"Can you imagine Gregory or Deutsch mocking President Obama like that?"

You remember David Gregory, the NBC guy who trashed President Bush publicly on numerous occasions, including calling him a "failed president" during a TV interview?

Obama lied – and now the truth

"Obama thinks he belongs next to Abraham Lincoln. Some of us think he belongs next to Bernie Madoff"

Arutz Sheva; Israel National News

"The question we have to ask is this – on whose side was Obama operating all those eight years? "

"So how much of our money did Obama ship to the terrorist regime in Iran? We hear $150 billion. We are not sure. Could be a dollar less, a dollar more.
"We’ll never know for sure. That’s because his entire administration operated in the dark. 
"That’s how he governed and that’s how he got himself elected, in lies and in stealth, and the news media did the rest. They covered for him.
"They let him get away with murder – and in this case, that is not a cliché, it’s fact. 
"He got himself elected, in lies and in stealth, and the news media did the rest. They covered for him."Today, in eye-popping news, we learn, from the New York Post via Politico, that to sweeten the Iran nuke deal, Obama released Iranian-connected terrorists in order to keep the mullahs talking – which they were glad to do because the more they talked the more we gave and the more they took.  
"So seven terrorists were let loose; seven that were marked as a danger to our national security by Obama’s own State and Justice departments. 
"We’re not even talking about Israel’s national security. Iran paints “death to Israel” on its missiles.
"Further, Obama dropped charges against 14 fugitives “involved in smuggling sophisticated weapons to Iran,” according to the published reports.

"The question we have to ask is this – on whose side was Obama operating all those eight years? " . . .

Advice for Trump: Revise U.S. Military Manuals Corrupted by Obama’s Pentagon

Jim Kouri

"One of President Donald James Trump’s and Secretary of Defense James “Mad Dog” Mattis’ primary endeavors should be to rollback the damage done to the Pentagon’s military manuals, curricula for training of officers and enlisted men, and the other material compromised by eight-years of political correctness seeping into the military.

"As part of former President Barack Obama’s mission to “win the hearts and minds” of people who despise the United States of America, including those who live in the U.S., the Pentagon released new military manuals that pleased groups such as the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), an organization some allege is a Fifth-Column for radical Islamic terrorist organizations (see video below).

"According to the blog on the web site of a non-profit watchdog group that investigates government corruption and misconduct, in this new era of rampant political correctness, the U.S. Army had published a special handbook for soldiers that appears to justify Islamic jihad by describing it as the “communal military defense of Islam and Muslims when they are threatened or under attack.”

"Because radical Muslim groups consider Islam to be perpetually under moral, spiritual, economic, political and military attack by the “secular west” they consider military jihad a “constant necessity” and use it as a “rallying cry to resist and attack all this is un-Islamic,” according to the new Army manual.

"Judicial Watch’s blogger wrote that the handbook was created to help soldiers become “culturally literate” ambassadors with sensitivity and understanding of Islamic civilization. The goal is to help them understand how vital culture is in accomplishing military missions. Military personnel who have a distorted picture of a host culture make enemies for the United States." . . .

Dame Vera Lynn’s face projected onto white cliffs of Dover to mark her 100th birthday

The White Cliffs of Dover, a sight homesick British Troops fighting Nazis on the continent looked on with affection and homesickness; a sight Adolf Hitler looked on with frustration.  They longed for the day they could all go home again and wept at the sound of voices from home such as that of Vera Lynn. TD

During the Second World War she inspired our troops and stole the hearts of a generation.And today (March 20) the nation will honour Dame Vera Lynn's 100th birthday with a unique and fitting tribute. War veterans, WW11 re-enactors, 1940s singers and supporters of the Dame Vera Lynn's Children's Charity will gather beneath an enormous purpose built structure on the White Cliffs of Dover this morning.  Read more at KentLive

UK Metro   "Dame Vera Lynn famously sang about bluebirds over the white cliffs of Dover – and now the singer’s face will be projected onto the very same location to mark her 100th birthday.

"Dame Vera, who famously became the forces sweetheart during World War Two, will have her image projected on to the cliffs on March 20, the same day that she becomes a centenarian.

"The 350ft image of Dame Vera will also celebrate the release of her new album, Vera Lynn 100.

"The record will feature new, orchestra-backed recordings of her beloved music – and will also make her the first singer to have released an album as a centenarian.

"Hailing the projection as an ‘unprecedented honour’, Dame Vera said: ‘I am truly thrilled by this wonderful gesture." 

" ‘As we look to the white cliffs on Monday, I will be thinking of all our brave boys – the cliffs were the last thing they saw before heading off to war and, for those fortunate enough to return, the first thing they saw upon returning home.

"‘I feel so blessed to have reached this milestone and I can’t think of a more meaningful way to mark the occasion.’ "

"Dame Vera’s latest release comes eight years after she became the oldest living artist to land a UK number one album – and marks an incredible 93 years in the industry after she made her stage debut at the age of seven.

"Happy birthday, Dame Vera!"

 Frequently bombarded by the Germans

Dover in the Crosshairs – Hitler’s Four-Year Artillery Bombardment of Southern England

Spitfires will perform a display above the White Cliffs of Dover for Dame Vera Lynn's 100th birthday

This was as close to Dover as Hitler ever got:  
\

A Ruling about Nothing

A federal judge suspends Trump’s unenforced ban on funding for sanctuary cities

Andrew C. McCarthy  "A showboating federal judge in San Francisco has issued an injunction against President Trump’s executive order cutting off federal funds from so-called sanctuary cities. The ruling distorts the E.O. beyond recognition, accusing the president of usurping legislative authority despite the order’s express adherence to “existing law.” Moreover, undeterred by the inconvenience that the order has not been enforced, the activist court — better to say, the fantasist court — dreams up harms that might befall San Francisco and Santa Clara, the sanctuary jurisdictions behind the suit, if it were enforced. The court thus flouts the standing doctrine, which limits judicial authority to actual controversies involving concrete, non-speculative harms. 

"Although he vents for 49 pages, Judge William H. Orrick III gives away the game early, on page 4. There, the Obama appointee explains that his ruling is about . . . nothing." . . .Read more

Veterans Affairs has 346 workers who do only union work

Washington Examiner

"An estimated 346 employees in the Department of Veterans Affairs do no actual work for taxpayers. Instead, they spend all of their time doing work on behalf of their union while drawing a federal salary, a practice known as "official time."

"That's according to a report by the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office. But exactly what those VA workers are doing and why so many are doing it is not clear. The VA doesn't track that, and the GAO report offers no clue." . . .

Net Neutrality's Days Are Numbered, And That's A Good Thing

Investor's Business Daily

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai has
vowed to roll back Obama administration regulations of the internet.

"Regulations: One of the least appreciated decisions by President Trump has been his appointing Ajit Pai to run the Federal Communications Commission. Pai has long been a skeptic of the FCC's manhandling of industry, and is pushing to get the government out of the internet.

The FCC imposed "net neutrality" rules on the internet in February 2015. The argument made by consumer groups and some industry players was that — without federal intervention — internet service providers would treat traffic differently, charging more for those who seek to get in the fast lane.

Net neutrality would, advocates said, keep the internet "free and open."

But to preserve a "free and open" internet, the FCC had to grant itself sweeping new regulatory powers over it.

Under pressure from President Obama, the commission reclassified the internet as something akin to the old telephone monopoly, which, under a 1934 law, gave the FCC virtually unlimited powers to regulate internet rates, impose fees and require businesses to get approval for a wide range of business decisions.

ACLU Sues Catholic Hospital For Refusing to Perform Transition Surgery on Transgender Patient

The Gateway Pundit  “Transition surgery” or ‘sex reassignment surgery’ should be seen as an elective surgery and hospitals shouldn’t be forced to perform them. These surgeries do not make a man a woman, or a woman a man. It is the height of make-believe." . . .

Because this transgender is unwilling to find a new hospital, she/he is going to make lives for others difficult. Dignity Health’s Mercy San Juan Medical Center, which is a private Catholic hospital in Sacramento, California, is in the middle of litigation with the ACLU after the hospital decided not to play along with a mentally ill individual’s request to become a man via sex change surgery.

"The suit claims that Evan Michael Minton, a woman who thinks she is a man, wants her vagina removed. Minton claims that she was denied the sex change because the hospital was “discriminatory” to her lifestyle.

"Of course, this angle is an easy way to get some attention and ruin other people’s lives because of unhappiness in their own."  More here.