Our controversial commentary of the day

Kneeling as psychodrama therapy for the rich, black, and guilty  "The otiose craze for wealthy black people and their "supporters" to disrespect the American flag by kneeling in public – momentarily play-acting tragedy and grief in front of a TV camera – is psychodrama psychotherapy for the guilt they richly deserve to feel.  The histrionic fad started by Colin Kaepernick that has infected athletes, entertainers, and politicians like Representative Sheila Jackson Lee is expiation for the unconscious guilt these privileged people have earned for their heartless betrayal of black Americans.  Kaepernick's phony first plotline, that the worst problem for black people is the police, engenders defensive anxiety in its sheer stinking falsehood.  The big, deadly lie that white racism is to blame for all the problems of black Americans and that black people remain helpless victims in 2017 is so patently false.  As with all delusional systems, its maintenance causes rage and anxiety when challenged.

"That anxiety is being relieved through anti-American spectacle.  The Democratic Party can still pass off blame-whitey-forever dogma because the left-wing wealthy and powerful benefit greatly from it.  Rich black people cling to toxic lies because blaming white people absolves them of gratitude for America and the bother of real charity or service to their own community.  Having rejected Christianity, the left wing has no inspiration for charity.  Leftists can relieve guilt about their own excesses by showboating concern for the downtrodden while making minimal personal sacrifice for anyone.  A little psychodrama, preferably on national television, is just what the doctor ordered." . . . By Deborah C. Tyler

Rand Paul: How to Achieve Peace on the Korean Peninsula

The National Interest   

Both North Korea and China need further assurance that the United States has no desire to topple the Kim regime.

"To every problem there exists a solution—even for a problem as vexing as the two Koreas. Recently, the rhetoric has ratcheted up, and I, for one, fervently hope that diplomacy and problem-solving can avoid war.

"To solve a problem that seems to stump everyone, it is often necessary to consider what others refuse to consider. To solve the Korean problem, it may take considering options that both sides don’t like and think won’t work. If the problem had easy answers, then someone else would have fixed it by now.

"So, notwithstanding that South Korea may not like this option, North Korea may not accept this deal, or that it might not work for a variety of reasons, I respond: “Tell me a better plan.”

"For the Korean standoff and North Korean nuclear bellicosity, I offer this potential solution: invite China to be part of an international force to monitor the Demilitarized Zone in exchange for cessation and dismantling of North Korea’s nuclear program.

"It is often written that what China fears most is that the collapse or defeat of North Korea would lead to U.S. troops on China’s Yalu River border. Take that fear out of the equation by inviting Chinese troops to participate in keeping the peace.

"For that matter, if North Korea would dismantle its nuclear program, invite them to contribute monitors, as well as South Korea, to an international monitoring contingent." . . . 

"China holds the key to peace in Asia. Understanding how to engage China holds the key to avoiding war on the Korean Peninsula. Let’s hope all sides involved will take a look at their positions and do what it takes to avoid war."    Full Article

(This op-ed has been couriered to our State Department, the Chinese, Russian, South Korean and Japanese embassies and transmitted to intermediaries of the North Korean government.)  Rand Paul is a U.S. senator from Kentucky.

His father and erstwhile presidential candidate, Ron Paul's Iran policy as declared was "if we are nice to Iran, they will be nice to us". 
This smacks of previous failed arrangements with the Kims. If China enforces the arrangement this will be a never-ending sword over America's heads and any conflict with China will carry the threat of their releasing the Norks from restrictions. The Tunnel Dweller

Share via Email Public university students accused of sex assault must get some chance to confront accusers (at least in ‘he said/she said’ cases)

Eugene Volokh  "From today’s Sixth Circuit decision in Doe v. University of Cincinnati:

University of Cincinnati students John Doe and Jane Roe [pseudonyms] engaged in sex at John Doe’s apartment. John contends that the sex was consensual; Jane claims it was not. No physical evidence supports either student’s version.

After considerable delay, defendant University of Cincinnati (“UC”) held a disciplinary hearing on Jane Roe’s sexual assault charges against graduate student John Doe. Despite Jane Roe’s failure to appear at the hearing, the University found John Doe “responsible” for sexually assaulting Roe based upon her previous hearsay statements to investigators. Thereafter, UC suspended John Doe for two years — reduced to one year after an administrative appeal….

The Due Process Clause guarantees fundamental fairness to state university students facing long-term exclusion from the educational process. Here, the University’s disciplinary committee necessarily made a credibility determination in finding John Doe responsible for sexually assaulting Jane Roe given the exclusively “he said/she said” nature of the case. Defendants’ failure to provide any form of confrontation of the accuser made the proceeding against John Doe fundamentally unfair.  . . . Full article here.

Via Wolf & Pravato Law Offices

Can We Please Stop Pretending the NFL Protests Have Anything to Do with Free Speech?

Can We Please Stop Pretending the NFL Protests Have Anything to Do with Free Speech?  . . . "To be perfectly clear, doing so is an exercise in stupidity.  The First Amendment provides Americans protection to enact displays of protest, certainly.  The question that goes continually and aggravatingly unaddressed is, protection from whom?

"It would be wishful thinking, I suppose, to imagine that Americans who support the NFL protesters might take the fifteen or twenty seconds necessary to google and read the First Amendment. 

"It reads:

Congress shall make no law regarding an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or of the right of the people to peaceably assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

" 'Congress shall make no law."  The framers inscribed a document related to the powers and limitations of the federal government.  Therefore, it is only logical to understand that this refers to the federal Congress.  The federal Congress shall make no laws to infringe upon these rights.

"So where is the federal law that outlaws kneeling during the National Anthem at a pro football game?  If there were such a law, it would run afoul of the First Amendment.  But there is no such law." . . .

VFW, American Legion Condemn NFL’s Disrespect of National Anthem  . . . “There is a time and place for civil debate, and wearing team jerseys and using sporting events to disrespect our country doesn’t wash with millions of military veterans who have and continue to wear real uniforms on real battlefields around the globe,” said VFW leader and Vietnam War veteran Keith Harman." . . .

The Progressive Octopus

Indeed, the octopus has formidable and far-reaching tentacles that reach into every crevice of modern American life. Our progressive mollusk is big, and he swims with us everywhere.

Victor Davis Hanson  Politics lost, culture won. 

"It is the best and worst of times for progressives and liberals. Politically, their obsessions with identity politics and various racial and gender -isms and -ologies have emasculated the Democratic party: loss of governorships, state legislatures, the House, the Senate, the presidency, and the Supreme Court.

" Democrats, for the time being at least, are now reduced to largely a coastal, big-city party. It can certainly pile up lots of blue electoral votes. And, thanks to California, Democrats can capture the popular vote, without necessarily winning presidential elections. 

"The old liberal idea that the new demography is progressive destiny did not work out as planned. When the Blue Wall crumbled; Hillary Clinton lost a sure-thing election. Large Latino populations in red Texas and blue California are not likely to turn either one into a swing state. Inner-city voters so far have not transferred prior record levels of turn-out and bloc voting to candidates of the Hillary Clinton sort. Identity politics did not ensure that the white liberals who created it were always exempt from the natural boomerang of their own ideology.  
. . . 
Network news was always liberal. Yet in the last decade, ABC, NBC, and CBS, along with PBS and NPR, as well as their cable counterparts such as CNN, have become veritable progressive operatives. Mention of transgenderism, gay marriage, abortion, global warming, and identity politics will be massaged to promote a progressive position that was once held only by minority — until the position morphs into an intolerant mainstream orthodoxy that does not allow dissent." . . .

Why single payer health care is a terrible option, says CNN

CNN. Wait! What?

• Scott W. Atlas: Democrats are now championing a precarious form of health care -- single payer .  For decades, single payer health care has failed to deliver on quality and care in numerous other countries, writes Atlas

"The Affordable Care Act (ACA) is failing. Without regard for consequences, the law expanded government insurance programs and imposed considerable federal authority over US health care via new mandates, regulations and taxes. Insurance premiums skyrocketed even as deductibles rose; consumer choices of insurance on state marketplaces have rapidly vanished; and for those with ACA coverage, doctor and hospital choices have narrowed dramatically. Meanwhile, consolidation across the health care sector has accelerated at a record pace, portending further harm to consumers, including higher prices of medical care.

"Almost inexplicably, even more top-down control -- single-payer health care, a system in which the government provides nationalized health insurance, sets all fees for medical care and pays those fees to doctors and hospitals -- has found new support from the left. And this despite its decades of documented failures in other countries to provide timely, quality medical care, and in the face of similar problems in our own single-payer Veterans Affairs system.

"Clearly, this moment cries out for the truth about single-payer health care -- conclusions from historical evidence and data.

"Single-payer health care is proven to be consistently plagued by these characteristics:" . . .Read the entire article here.

The main points discussed in more detail are these:

• Massive waiting lists and dangerous delays for medical appointments
• Life-threatening delays for treatment, even for patients requiring urgent cancer treatment or critical brain surgery
• Delayed availability of life-saving drugs
• Worse availability of screening tests
• Significantly worse outcomes from serious diseases

. . . "And make no mistake about it -- America's most vulnerable, the poor, as well as the middle class, will undoubtedly suffer the most if the system turns to single-payer health care, because they will be unable to circumvent that system."

Are you saying this NFL routine began with a player's radical [partner]?

American Thinker is a library of commentary on the NFL today.
Thank you, Mrs. Kaepernick. Michelle Obama added some fuel to the fire as well.


After fifty years of NFL, it’s over for me   . . . "One radical [?]* ("Mrs. Kaepernick") started this whole mess. Now the country has turned on its self.  For nothing.  Between professional sports and my love and appreciation of this country, I chose America." . . .

. . . "This is more than an embarrassment.  Back when Chief Antagonizer started this racial divide mess with the “beer summit” it was laughable because he was weak and feeble and was supposed to go away.  Then we had the media pick up the lies about the “white Hispanic,” “Hands up – Don’t shoot” and the Mizzou lunatics.  Was anyone ever going to stand up and tell the truth – teach our children how this was turning into organized lies designed to tear our country apart?

 "Those Thinkers who know history know the playbook of those who want to destroy America. We have seen the 45 Declared Goals for the takeover of America Communist plan written long ago. Did we ever think it would get beyond Hollywood? Well it did." . . .

. . . "Look at those 45 Declared goals.  When are we going to say something?

2. US willingness to capitulate in preference to engaging to atomic war. (North Korea)

17. Get control of the schools.  Put the party line in textbooks.

19. Use student riots to foment public protests. 

23. Promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art. 

24. Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them violation of free speech. 26. Promote homosexuality, degeneracy, promiscuity as ‘normal, natural, healthy.’  27. Discredit the Bible.

28. Eliminate prayer.

29. Discredit Constitution.

30. Discredit American Founding Fathers.

"And especially relevant today:

42. Create the impression that violence and insurrection are legitimate aspects of the American tradition. . . .

*Correction update:  

*Colin Kaepernick and Nessa Diab "marriage": Yes, the fact is true that Colin Kaepernick and Nessa Diab are recently deeply and madly in love with each other, but the rumors about their marriage are not true. They were spotted together taking some vows in the intimate morning ceremony, but the fact about getting married is not right. They share a wonderful relationship thus are rumored to be married soon."

Villanueva's unconvincing apology and other blunders from the Steelers

. . . "One can only imagine that in light of head coach Tomlin's other remarks that Villanueva probably heard from him.

"After all, Tomlin has the power to cut Villanueva from the team any time he wants. Villanueva himself had a rough road getting into the National Football League as his biography shows, overcoming many disappointments of not being chosen before finally make it into professional football. He's also on record as stating he's one of the cheaper (implied: less powerful) players in the league, making only half a million a year or so." . . .

The NFL and breaking the chains of conformity   "Might the kerfuffle over NFL players kneeling for the National Anthem finally trigger the decline of the victimhood meme in the black community?" . . .

"There are few genuine "individuals" in public black life.  Better to be a clone and operate within accepted parameters.  If anyone strays, he is excommunicated and shunned. " . . . 

Classic media bias: Tebow vs. Kaepernick  . . . "When Denver Broncos unapologetic Christian QB Tim Tebow takes a knee to thank G-d for his successful plays, he is mercilessly mocked by the left and the mainstream media.  When Colin Kaepernick takes a knee to protest what he imagines as American institutional racism, he is ebulliently admired by the leftand mainstream media as a heroic champion for "social justice."  Why?  The answers are simple and obvious but also enlightening." . . .

NFL players and owners can't take criticism  . . . "The fans watch the games to enjoy and relax, not be preached at by overpaid millionaires.  We get enough preaching from overpaid millionaires when we are forced to listen to Hillary, Obama, Pelosi, and the rest of the Democrats." . . .

What if the 49ers owner had put his foot down a year ago?  . . . "Also, tell me what it is that you are protesting about.  Buy some time on TV and tell us about the problems you see and the solutions you propose.  Don't talk about racism or injustice.  Tell me specifically what you intend to do to about black-on-black crime, inner-city public schools, and bringing more jobs to these areas."

 Thomas Lifson: National Review editors fall back on lazy assumptions to criticize Trump on NFL  . . . "So, Black Americans suffer from injustice more than white Americans? Based on what data? Based on what definition of “injustice?”

"I realize that going deeper into the subject via the research of their own contributor is not the sort of thing that wins you invitations to cocktail parties among the swell set in Manhattan and DC. Much better to stand against the uncouth president and engage in ritual shaming."

Starbucks Robber Suing Customer Who Stopped Him, Nearly Killing Him…

Weasel Zippers  "Welcome to 2017. Where criminals sue people for stopping them.

"Via Fox 11:

A man who is accused of trying to rob a Fresno, California Starbucks plans to sue a customer who stopped him for using excessive force.

Fresno police called the customer a “courageous hero” for his actions and did not charge Cregg Jerri for his actions.

It happened on July 20th. Police say that Ryan Florez wore a Transformers mask and showed what ended up being a fake gun before pulling a large knife and demanded money from the barista.

Jerri says what was going on, grabbed a chair and attacked Florez. Jerri was stabbed in the neck but managed to wrestle the knife from Flores and stab him repeatedly.

Keep reading…

Harassment As a Political Weapon

"Of course, the Department of Education, like most other federal agencies, should not exist and should be abolished. Short of that happening, the least the bureaucrats can do is help us get a few tenured sociopaths off the public payroll."

Mike Adams

"Thanks to a recent speech by Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, more people are discussing the real world repercussions of the eight-year war on due process waged by the Obama Department of Education. Out of that discussion, there is a consensus emerging, which recognizes that basic due process protections must be restored on our university campuses. These changes are particularly needed in the context of campus sexual harassment and sexual assault tribunals. But once due process is restored, we need to vigorously pursue campus prosecutions against those who knowingly and maliciously accuse others of sexual assault and/or sexual harassment. Proactive measures are particularly needed to combat false charges of harassment that are politically motivated as the problem has now reached epidemic proportions on many campuses. 

"This politicization of harassment did not start with Anita Hill – but she did accelerate a dangerous trend that was already in progress. After the relatively unknown law professor accused Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment she became a household name. Other professors were watching as she profited from those politically motivated accusations. Thus, it was just a matter of time before such accusations started to spread throughout academia. Here is a brief history of how the problem has manifested itself at the mid-sized liberal arts university where I teach. 

"1995. A feminist philosophy professor was personally offended by another professor’s argument that there should be different degrees of rape – because she thought all rapes were equally horrific. Thus, instead of trying to persuade him to adopt her point of view, she reported him to the Dean of Arts and Sciences for allegedly creating a hostile work environment . . .

"1999. A feminist criminology professor was upset by her department chairman’s decision to run for a second term. So she tried to defeat him by standing up in the middle of a department meeting and accusing him of sexual harassment  . . .

"2001. The aforementioned criminology professor leveled three more accusations of harassment against another professor who had criticized her publicly for making the first four false accusations. These new accusations were also investigated and found to be false. This brought her career total to seven false sexual harassment allegations. Nonetheless, she was retained without any disciplinary consequences. "  . . .

Rich Lowry: 'Sovereignty' is not a dirty word

LaCrosse Tribune  . . . "It wasn’t surprising that liberal analysts freaked out over his nickname for Kim Jong Un and his warning that we’d “totally destroy” Kim’s country should it become necessary. These lines were calculated to get a reaction, and they did. More interesting was the allergy to Trump’s defense of sovereign nations. 

"Brian Williams of MSNBC wondered whether the repeated use of the word “sovereignty” was a “dog whistle.” CNN’s Jim Sciutto called it “a loaded term” and “a favorite expression of authoritarian leaders.”

" It was a widely repeated trope that Trump’s speech was “a giant gift,” in the words of BuzzFeed, to China and Russia. 

"In an otherwise illuminating piece in The Atlantic, Peter Beinart concluded that Trump’s address amounted to “imperialism.” If so, couched in the rhetoric of the mutual respect of nations, it’s the best-disguised imperialist manifesto in history. 

"Trump’s critics misrepresent the speech and misunderstand the nationalist vision that Trump was setting out.

" He didn’t defend a valueless international relativism. Trump warned that “authoritarian powers seek to collapse the values, the systems, and alliances that prevented conflict and tilted the world toward freedom since World War II.” 

"He praised the U.S. Constitution as “the foundation of peace, prosperity and freedom for the Americans and for countless millions around the globe.”

" 'The Marshall Plan,” he said, “was built on the noble idea that the whole world is safer when nations are strong, independent and free.” Just window dressing? 

"Trump returned to similar language in his denunciation of the world’s rogue states. " . . .

Jimmy Kimmel’s Failed Test

National Review  . . . "Kimmel is a late-night comedian and the father of a beautiful three-month-old boy who was born with a congenital heart defect. Kimmel has set himself up as the conscience of the current debate over the last effort at reforming health insurance, and Washington now talks of the “Jimmy Kimmel test,” which demands that insurance companies be obliged to cover preexisting conditions without exception or penalty. Kimmel has on his television program twice called Senator Bill Cassidy, author of insurance legislation under current consideration in Congress, a liar for putting forward legislation that would not treat preexisting conditions the way Kimmel would prefer to see them treated." . . .   Read more.

NASCAR owners won't condone anthem protests

Cartoon by A.F. Branco

Rick Moran

This issue is not going away and will probably explode during the pro basketball season coming this fall.  In a league that boasts 75% black players, anthem protests will no doubt be big news for months to come.

. . . "An "insular oddity in American sports culture"?  The "oddity" is the anthem protests, not the pushback against them.  And NASCAR TV broadcasts, although down in recent years, still outdraw other sports in several regions of the country, including the South.

"Legendary NASCAR owner Richard Petty summed up the opinion of several NASCAR teams:

"Anybody that don't stand up for the anthem oughta be out of the country. Period. What got 'em where they're at? The United States," Petty said in comments reported by the AP.

Richard Childress, a former drive[r] who owns Richard Childress Racing, said any protests from his team members would "get you a ride on a Greyhound bus." 

"Anybody that works for me should respect the country we live in. So many people gave their lives for it. This is America," Childress reportedly said.

The comments from the NASCAR owners come as NFL players took part in protests at games across the country after Trump slammed players who take a knee, rather than stand, during the national anthem." . . .

USA Today:  NASCAR owners side with Trump, take firm stance against anthem protests