Viral singing sensation Oliver Anthony just took to Facebook to reveal who he really is...

 - Revolver News 

"Oliver Anthony is the name we know him by. He’s the viral music sensation from Virginia who wrote the overnight hit “Rich Men North of Richmond,” a song that’s struck a chord with the American working man and become an anthem against Washington, D.C. political elites.\

"By all accounts, Mr. Anthony seems to be a patriotic, Christian young man leading a simple life filled with hard work and faith. He’s transitioned from factory work to outside sales and clearly has a passion and talent for music. Yet, beyond these facts, we don’t know much about Mr. Anthony. That is, until now.

"The artist goes by “Oliver,” but that’s not his actual name. He recently took to Facebook to open up about his real identity. He’s shared how this unexpected fame has affected his life, both in thrilling and daunting ways. Oliver has also offered some candid insights into his faith, music, the opportunities coming his way, and his intentions for this sudden success. It’s a captivating tale with some truly unexpected twists and turns." . . .

Comment by a reader of this post:   

That's absolutely it. So much of today's music would better be described as assembled by technicians rather than performed by musicians. Quantization and pitch correction, etc. have advanced to the point that any competent editor can cobble together a passable song with recordings from even the most talentless hacks. All you need for a hit song these days is a catchy hook and a pretty face. The lyrics are tailored by committee to appeal to their target audience. They're either completely bland and inoffensive, or else they go to the other extreme and fill them with profanity and filth just for the shock value. It's mediocre by design. Studio execs want you to hear it, buy it, listen to it a few times, and then get completely bored with it so you'll be ready to buy the next bit of insipid drool. That all comes crumbling down as soon as you compare it to a real song like this one, though. The fact it's just (in his own words) "some idiot and his guitar" and not some mind-blowing virtuosic performance just makes it even more threatening. That's the main reason all these studios are slithering up to him now. Sure, they'd love to get the profits from his debut album and maybe a follow up or two, but mainly they want to suppress him. They'd happily let him be the flavor of the month every once in a while, but they don't want him constantly reminding everyone how inferior their products are. Best of luck to you, Mr. Anthony. Stay free.

New Images Show Destruction Inside Cargo Ship Set Alight By Burning EVs

 MSN  "Late last month, the Fremantle Highway, a cargo ship carrying new vehicles destined for Singapore, was destroyed in a horrific fire that claimed the life of a crew member and injured many more.

"New images have surfaced on the internet, giving us an inside look at the destruction the blaze left in its wake. Below, we can see several vehicles reduced to ash and burnt metal. Based on the roofline and remnants of the rear-mounted engine, the cars in the foreground appear to be Porsche 911s.

"Further back, a Porsche Taycan was also lost in the fire. While we can't be sure, the hood and body shape suggests it was once an example of Zuffenhausen's electric sedan. Another image shows the incinerated shells of Mini Cooper Hardtop 5-Door models." . . .

"RTL Nieuws, a Dutch news agency, also shared additional pictures of a charred Mini Cooper Clubman." . . .

Fire on Cargo Ship Packed With Porsches and VWs Is Reportedly Fueled by EV Batteries (roadandtrack.com)   

. . ."Once ignited, a lithium-ion battery is incredibly difficult to extinguish. At first, fire damages the structures that separate the chemicals that power a battery. This often leads to spontaneous re-ignition even after the initial blaze is out. Hundreds of gallons of water are often required, and once the initial fire is out, standard procedure is to quarantine the affected vehicle away from anything flammable, applying more water or fire suppressant as needed. Fire crews sometimes place a burning battery inside a giant water tank until the re-ignition risk subsides.

"Neither option is viable on a crowded transport ship. Even if you had a dunk tank or were willing to deal with the environmental consequences of throwing the vehicle overboard, there's usually no way to maneuver or eject the cargo on a ship en-route. Burning cars weighing thousands of pounds and spewing toxic fumes would prove even more difficult to handle." . . .

Biden is on the job

 Biden finally says he will visit Maui. But first, a six-day Lake Tahoe vacation - American Thinker   "After public pressure and an ill-considered "no comment" when asked about the rising death toll in Maui, Joe Biden now says he will visit Maui in the wake of its catastrophic wildfires.

"According to Joe Concha, writing at The Messenger:

Finally, on Tuesday — after six days of silence on the topic — Biden addressed the Maui disaster during a visit to Wisconsin to tout his economic record: “My wife Jill and I are going to travel to Hawaii as soon as we can. That's what I've been talking to the governor about,” he said. “I don't want to get in the way, I've been to too many disaster areas, but I want to go and make sure they get everything they need. I want to be sure we don't disrupt the ongoing recovery efforts.”

"But first, another restful vacation in Lake Tahoe, California, reportedly for six days.

"This follows his extended vacation in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. where he was photographed catching rays and lounging on the shore as Lahaina burned to the ground. Seems one good vacation deserves another, and Joe has his priorities.

"Not surprisingly, the New York Post just ran a piece about Maui's residents not wanting him there." . . .

Maui burned and Biden vacationed.
East Palestine crumbled and Biden vacationed.
Kabul fell and Biden vacationed.
The border collapsed and Biden vacationed.
AMERICA LAST: Joe Biden. pic.twitter.com/RYdBHnSqph

— Wesley Hunt (@WesleyHuntTX) August 15, 2023

Coastal crises, or, 'the end of the world as we know it?'

 Eric Utter - American Thinker

"I fervently wish more Republicans had the mental acuity to properly characterize what is really occurring.  And the integrity—and spine—to oppose it."

. . ."Because the things that used to hold our society together are rapidly being stripped away. The rule of law. Equal treatment under the law. Patriotism. The Ten Commandments. The Golden Rule. (If any of you reading this are thinking, “What an old fuddy-duddy, I bet he’s a Christian extremist, white supremacist-- and supporter of the patriarchy,” you are, inadvertently or not, part of the problem. And also wrong.)

"Exhibit 1: Washington, D.C., Councilman Trayon White is on record as fearing that rampant shoplifting might close the last grocery store in his ward. (In fact, earlier this week, White pleaded for the National Guard to be sent in to assist with the rising crime in our nation’s capital.) This grocery store, which serves an area containing about 85,000 people, has lost hundreds of thousands of dollars to theft in recent times. This is, obviously, unsustainable.

"So-called “progressive” policies are leading to the extermination of farms in Western Europe and Canada. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has imposed such draconian restrictions on fertilizer emissions that Canada’s grain output will be significantly reduced-- at a cost of billions of dollars to western Canadian provinces. Democrats in the U.S. think that is a grand idea and are pursuing policies that would achieve the same result." . . .

. . .San Francisco’s “most intractable problem” is that its residents keep voting for Democrats like Pelosi. Period.

Unfortunately, there are innumerable other “exhibits” I could cite.

We’d all like to avoid high crime areas. We all need food to survive. We need to feed our families.

But we also need to nourish our souls-- by once again respecting decency, discipline, beauty, courage, integrity, and competence—and by having faith.

If we wish to avoid societal collapse, we must simply do the opposite of what Democrats have been advocating for many years now.

Debate Advice for Republicans: Issues, Not Oprah

 Ann Coulter

"As the first Republican debate approaches, I have an urgent appeal to the candidates: Please adopt the good things Donald Trump did and skip the catastrophic parts (i.e., everything after the campaign ended on Nov. 8, 2016).

"Although he presided over the most wasted presidency in history, the 2016 Trump campaign was magnificent, without peer, perfect in every respect. I described the many useful innovations of that campaign in my book "In Trump We Trust." Please start there, Republicans.

"President Trump may have been a pathetic crybaby too ascared to fire his own attorney general -- much less ask Speaker of the House Paul Ryan for wall funding -- but in 2016, it was all image, and candidate Trump came across as strong.

"Don't fall into these consultant-created traps of presenting yourself as a weakling, candidates. Remember that you're running to be leader of the free world. Cat ladies aren't voting for you. Republicans are.

1) Stop using the royal "we," e.g., "We testified before the grand jury ...," "We did our duty ...," "We decided to run ...." Committees did not do these things. You did. Be a man and say so.

2) Do not tell us about the time you were discriminated against -- and yes, I'm looking at you Sen. Tim Scott and Gov. Nikki Haley. We've all had obstacles and don't need to hear about yours, least of all that time in grade school when someone was mean to you.

3) Do not say "When I am president ...." This is a flashing neon sign announcing that you have zero chance of ever being within a thousand feet of the Oval Office.

4) Finally, for the love of God, please stop telling us about your families. We don't care about your spouse, your parents or your kids. In fact, we'd prefer a first lady who doesn't speak English.

Quiz: Who is the greatest president of the last century?   Answer: Ronald Reagan.

You think he won because he had the nicest family? He wouldn't have been elected dogcatcher with that bunch. Yet somehow, Reagan won a 44-state landslide in 1980 and a 49-state landslide in 1984....

Language: Oliver Anthony's 'Rich Men North of Richmond' Causes Deep Emotional Impact In All Types of People

 RedState

The politicians in Washington D.C. were pointed to as the source of the problems we're experiencing, and needless to say, they didn't like that. Immediately, the leftist attack machine began working against Anthony, painting him as a man associated with the "far right," and attempting to make his song politically polarizing. The aim was to divide the people against one another over the subjects sung in the song, thus crippling its rise in the public consciousness and hampering its message. 

"When a red-bearded stranger standing in front of a deer blind and surrounded by dogs began strumming his guitar and singing into a microphone, few people were ready for how deeply his song would impact them. The world was taken by surprise as Oliver Anthony, a no-name farmer from Farmville, Virginia, soulfully sang the woes of a vast swath of Americans so well that his song made him a successful superstar overnight. 

"The song lamented the state of America, including the abuse of welfare, a heavily taxed population, and even the suicide rates of young men, and at the center of it all was the song's namesake, "Rich Men North of Richmond." 

The politicians in Washington D.C. were pointed to as the source of the problems we're experiencing, and needless to say, they didn't like that. Immediately, the leftist attack machine began working against Anthony, painting him as a man associated with the "far right," and attempting to make his song politically polarizing. The aim was to divide the people against one another over the subjects sung in the song, thus crippling its rise in the public consciousness and hampering its message. 

"But judging by a recent video compilation put together by Matt Orfalea, it didn't work. People from all walks of life have been watching and reacting to the song, and it would appear that no matter what walk of life you hail from, this song resonates with you. In fact, it hits some people so deeply that it causes them to weep. 

"Watch the video for yourself below. " . . .

From the comments to this post: I’m a 29 year old black man living in Alabama. I work a mf architecture desk job and this song still resonates with me. We have so much more in common as average Americans than we ever will with these politicians who turn us against each other. They’ve pulled wool over the eyes of a lot of our friends and fellow citizens but we have offer each other grace and hold strong against the true enemies. We are much stronger together! I’d also like to add that I’ve never been a country music fan but this song is so relatable i may reconsider.

I read a Rolling Stone article about this song speaking of disdain for this "right wing anthem" I thought to myself I'm old enough to remember when Rolling Stone would have celebrated a working class person with a guitar singing a song opposing big government corruption. Crazy times.

Obama Judge Tanya Chutkan Joins the Trump Show Trial ›

  Lloyd Billingsley; American Greatness

Barr was recently asked if he would be willing to testify against Trump. “Of course,” Barr responded. Forget the banana-republic comparison. It’s full-on Stalinist now 

EBL: Judge Tanya Chutkan Persecuting J6 Protesters

 "Trump is up against an ostentatiously hostile judge called Tanya Chutkan,” Roger Kimball observes. Judge Chutkan is indeed hostile to the former president, but there’s more about her that people should know.

"The Jamaican-born Chutkan, a University of Pennsylvania law alum, is an appointee of the composite character David Garrow described in Rising Star: The Making of Barack Obama. Consider Chutkan’s role in the case of Imran Awan.

"Of all the IT people in all the IT firms in all the world, House Democrats thought Imran Awan was the best man for the job. Sometimes working from his native Pakistan, Awan and his family team accessed the computers of some 40 Democrats, including those on the intelligence and foreign affairs committees.

"Without their consent, Awan and his team stashed the Democrats’ data on a server controlled by Xavier Becerra, chair of the House Democratic Caucus and once on Hillary Clinton’s short list as a running mate. Capitol Police wanted a copy of the server but the one Awan produced turned out to be a fake.

"In February 2017, Awan and his team got booted off the House computer network, but Becerra had already fled to California where Gov. Jerry Brown appointed him state attorney general. In July of 2017, Awan attempted to flee the country but the authorities busted him for bank fraud.

"For Andrew McCarthy, who prosecuted “Blind Sheik” Omar Abdel-Rahman, “this appears to be a real conspiracy, aimed at undermining American national security.” Some in Congress agreed, but the IT man had his defenders.

"Debbie Wasserman Schultz charged that Awan was “put under scrutiny because of his religious faith and that “the right-wing media circus fringe” was jumping to conclusions. Awan’s attorney Chris Gowen, a former aide to Bill and Hillary Clinton, said Awan’s arrest for bank fraud was “clearly a right-wing media-driven prosecution by a United States Attorney’s Office that wants to prosecute people for working while Muslim.' ” . . .

HOW MANY FREAKS WERE ON FULTON COUNTY GRAND JURY?

 Trump grand juror gives smiling, laughing media tour about possible indictments

   "When we watched Jury Foreman Emily Kohrs’ bizarre performances on one hate-Trump “news” show after another in February, my husband turned to me and said: “Out of 23 jurors couldn’t they have chosen a sane person to be the foreman?”  We assumed that members of the jury chose their own foreman, as they do for jury trials in most states.  We later learned that grand jury foremen are chosen at random in Georgia, much like wearing a blindfold while one chooses a rotten apple out of the barrel.  No brains needed.

"An ethical prosecutor would have made sure this 30-year-old child did not become a juror. THAT is what the voir dire process is for.  But ethics did not hinder Fulton County DA Fani Willis in her pursuit to “get Trump.” Raised in Washington DC by an “old style” terrorist, a Black Panther (her father), Willis became a hate-filled “social justice warrior” as a child.  Now that the 98-page indictment has been issued will this yellow-toothed, self-proclaimed witch, Emily Kohrs, make the rounds of TV studios again?  My husband and I are waiting anxiously for her return performances.

TO ENJOY EMILY KOHRS’ PERFORMANCES, CLICK HERE Share

"Within days of being sworn in as district attorney in January 2021, Willis started her investigation to “get Trump.” She assembled the grand jury in May 2022. Trump declared his candidacy in November 2022, so the race was on to get the indictment issued so the trial process would take him off the campaign trail.

"In order to obtain an indictment, it only takes 12 out of the 23 jurors to vote “yes, we need to indict the leading 2024 presidential candidate and his attorneys.”  [His attorneys? This has never been done before and will be the topic of a future article.] One wonders how many jurors voted for Trump in 2016 and/or 2020.  When selecting the jury, did the prosecutor ask them?  Did this unethical prosecutor dismiss all Trump voters from the jury pool?" . . . 

Alan Dershowitz: Fulton County Is Indicting Trump for What Democrats Did in 2000 – RedState   . . ."Harvard professor Alan Dershowitz, speaking to Fox News Digital, criticized the pending indictment, calling Trump’s actions  "very similar" to that of Al Gore’s legal strategy in the Bush v. Gore case that decided the 2000 presidential election.

"We challenged the election, and we did much of the things that are being done today and people praised us. I wrote a bestselling book called ‘Supreme Injustice. Now they're making it a crime," Dershowitz said.

"In a conversation with Fox News host Sean Hannity, Dershowitz criticized the district attorney’s office for expanding the RICO statute to “include political objections,” observing: 

"You cannot start making crimes out of things that the Democrats did -- Tilden Hayes, John Kennedy election, 2000 election, 2016 election, Jamie Raskin gets up and does some of the same things. These are political actions that the Constitution prefers us to take rather than going out on the streets and rioting. We're supposed to go to court. We're supposed to go to Congress. You can't make those things crimes. And you can't expand the RICO statute to now include political objections." . . .

Biden [Democrats] Declares War on Your Appliances—and Your Wallet Is in the Crosshairs

 The Heritage Foundation  

Biden’s bureaucrats are coming for our appliances and cars, making us poorer with no benefit for the environment. Let’s hope that court challenges prevail. 

 "President Biden’s unelected bureaucrats were never going to stop at taking away your light bulbs. Your gas stove is next, followed by your dishwasher and your water heater—then finally your car. And it’s not members of Congress who are doing this, so you can’t vote them out of office. 

"This isn’t conjecture. This year the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation have announced proposed rules that would force you to give up your current appliances and cars. 

"Additional regulations to pressure companies not to fund American energy have come from the Council on Environmental Quality, the Office of Comptroller of the Currency, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. 

"And it’s going to cost you. DOE’s proposed dishwasher rule would increase wash times and raise costs of the machines, and the agency admits that the rule will result in “$8.6 million per year in increased product costs” while resulting in savings of only $17 a year per household.

"Under DOE’s proposed natural gas stove rule, 90% of gas stoves would have to be redesigned, raising prices and lowering performance. DOE estimates that consumers would pay more than $32 million more for stoves, and many households would have small annual savings or higher costs. 

"In April, EPA released a proposed tailpipe rule that would require two-thirds of new vehicle sales to be battery-powered electric by 2032. The Department of Transportation released a companion rule on July 28, late on Friday afternoon after Congress had left town for its August holiday, a popular time for agencies to release undesirable rules.

"The vehicle rules would raise driving costs—and poor Americans and those with children would be hurt most. New electric vehicles (EVs) cost about $10,000 to $25,000 more than their gasoline-powered equivalents, and the time it takes to recharge is inconvenient for people parking on the street, or drivers on long road trips, especially trips with children." . . . 

Hands off our appliances, President Biden - Washington Times  "The Biden administration recently announced the next attack in its never-ending regulatory war on Americans’ home appliances. This time, it is coming after water heaters.

"It’s just the latest move in a long line of aggressive regulations on gas-powered stoves, dishwashers, washing machines, refrigerators, air conditioners, light bulbs and even cars. It appears that nearly every item Americans count on for making their daily lives more comfortable has been targeted for some sort of onerous regulation in the name of virtue signaling with marginal emission reductions.

"Last year alone, the Department of Energy took more than 110 burdensome actions to ratchet up already stringent energy efficiency standards." . . .

Gavin Newsom's 'California For All' Is Paradise Lost –

  RedState

And if Gavin Newsom has his way, his California For All will be "America For All." Regardless of how conservatives feel about the state and wish it would fall into the ocean, brushing the stories of Newsom's failure aside is extremely dangerous, and could be the way we wake up one morning to a President Newsom in the White House.

"California, once the land of opportunity and prosperity, has now become a failed state, and the Democratic Party - especially its leader in the state, Gavin Newsom - and its progressive policies are to blame. California's high taxes, lack of proper infrastructure maintenance, and high rates of homelessness are proof of the failure of their policies. In fact, as of August 8, 2023, California is ranked dead last in the nation for opportunity.

"Newsom's gubernatorial theme is "California For All," and he means that unironically. Although he claims he's not running for POTUS, he absolutely is, and the thought of a Newsom-style "America For All" should terrify everyone.

"Californians are being taxed to death; its residents pay the highest sales tax, the highest state income tax, and are the 4th highest taxed overall in the nation. Which means we have less money to spend on daily needs. The burden is further compounded by the high cost of living, with California taking the 4th highest cost of living position in the nation. Housing costs are particularly high, with the average home costing over $800,000. This has made it difficult for many families to afford to live in California and has led to residents leaving in search of more affordable living.

"Californians also pay the most for basic necessities such as housing, food, and healthcare, compared to the rest of the nation. The high tax rates have made it more difficult for people to make ends meet and are driving businesses out of the state. Their tax policies are hurting Californians and are a major reason for California's failed state status.

"The high taxes are not just limited to income tax. California also has the highest gas tax in the nation, which has a direct impact on the cost of living. It also makes it even more difficult for businesses to operate in the state. With rising fuel costs, businesses are forced to increase the price of their goods and services, which further increases the cost of living for Californians." . . .

Yet, given the opportunity to rid itself of this governor, California voted to keep him where he still is. TD

What Hunter Biden did on the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma

 

Burisma Owner Thought Hunter Biden Was Dumber Than His Dog: FBI Document (newsweek.com)    "New details from a previously redacted FBI document claim that the owner of Ukrainian gas company Burisma thought Hunter Biden was dumber than his dog.

Republican Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa on Thursday dispersed more details from the FBI's FD-1023 document that has been claimed for months by Grassley and House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer of Kentucky to contain "credible" evidence that President Joe Biden and his son engaged in questionable business dealings.

The document from June 2020 says that Joe and Hunter Biden each received $5 million from Mykola Zlochevsky, a former elected official and current owner of Burisma.

"For the better part of a year, I've been pushing the Justice Department (DOJ) and FBI to provide details on its handling of very significant allegations from a trusted FBI informant implicating then-Vice President Biden in a criminal bribery scheme," Grassley told Newsweek. "While the FBI sought to obfuscate and redact, the American people can now read this document for themselves—without the filter of politicians or bureaucrats—thanks to brave and heroic whistleblowers.

What Hunter Biden did on the board of Ukrainian energy company Burisma

"During his time on the board of one of Ukraine’s largest natural gas companies, Hunter Biden, the son of former U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden, was regarded as a helpful non-executive director with a powerful name, according to people familiar with Biden’s role at the company.

"Biden’s role at Burisma Holdings Ltd has come under intense scrutiny following unsupported accusations by U.S. President Donald Trump that Joe Biden improperly tried to help his son’s business interests in Ukraine.

"Interviews with more than a dozen people, including executives and former prosecutors in Ukraine, paint a picture of a director who provided advice on legal issues, corporate finance and strategy during a five-year term on the board, which ended in April of this year.

"Biden never visited Ukraine for company business during that time, according to three of the people.

Biden shows his true colors in his me-first Maui disaster response -

 A lot more attention needs to be going to this natural disaster than thus far being seen from this crew. The federal response and Joe Biden's interest in keeping the spotlight off himself during this unprecedented events seems to be adding a layer of new suffering on the already beleaguered people of Lahaina.  You can bet the Chinese are watching -- and adjusting their calculations about Biden accordingly. 

 Monica Showalter; American Thinker   "In Maui, a disaster of epic proportions is unfolding, one week after wildfires razed its historic city of Lahaina. It's not just that there was little warning and a chaotic evacuation. Now it's the body count -- 99 people are confirmed dead now, and some 1,000 remain missing. If they're dead, and Lahaina has only 12,000 people, the math isn't pretty -- ten percent of the population may be dead, which has a whiff of Ukraine. The cadaver dogs, with rarified training to detect bodies incinerated to ash in flames, are far too few for a mass casualty event like this, so they still have 75% of the area to search. The lines of cars that tried to escape and got incinerated first weighs heavily, as does the question of why the island's expensive alarm system never went off.

It appears to be the worst natural disaster in a century and certainly Hawaii's biggest catastrophe.

Yet Joe Biden is clueless. His ham-fisted response to this disaster keeps getting worse and worse and worse.

First, he glibly announced that neither he, nor his vice president, Kamala Harris would visit the disaster area.

Then he went on vacation, putting in another beachside time-out, as if there wasn't an apocalypse going on the other side of the country.

After that, returning from his restful rendezvous, he was asked about the scope of the disaster by a reporter, which by then had claimed 93 dead.

His response? "No comment." And then he, kid you not, grinned.

No comment means no coverage, right? Always a bad idea from a public relations perspective to get too close to those failures and disasters, because voters might make associations, right? 

Plus, what the hey, as the New York Post noted in its cover story today, Biden knows that Hawaii's residents will always vote Democrat, so why worry about their disaster?" . . .