Taking our Pride to the skies with Delight Flights; first-ever LGBTQ+ inspired plane -

Taking our Pride to the skies with Delight Flights & first-ever LGBTQ+ inspired plane - YouTube   "From our inclusive flag raising at HQ, to our parade in the sky on the first & only U.S. Pride aircraft, it’s easy to see that we’re just plane proud. This month, to commemorate Pride, Alaska surprised not one—but four lucky flights on a newly decorated Pride-inspired plane supporting the LGBTQ+ community. The plane, the first of its kind in the U.S., will fly throughout our network for the next year. Learn more: https://blog.alaskaair.com/values/pri...

"So this is what Alaska airline spends their money on rather than ensuring they have safe aircraft and instead we have windows blowing out. Good to know they have their priorities straight. Sickening."

Alaska Airlines Had Its Recent Woes Parodied In An 'SNL' Fake Ad (uproxx.com)

"Sometimes SNL just knocks it out of the park, hitting on a subject that resonates so strongly that we can’t help but talk about it days — sometimes years — later. The most recent viral sketch happened last Saturday when SNL aired a fake commercial for Alaska Airlines addressing the airline’s recent troubles. And by recent troubles we’re talking about that time when the door plug flew off the plane mid-flight — sucking out shirts, phones, and a tray table while passengers sat in the plane unsure of whether or not they’d live to tell about it." . . .

Boeing CEO Assures Nervous Fliers That All 737 Aircraft Are Built To The Highest Diversity Standards | Babylon Bee 

  "Amid growing concerns over safety after several devastating mechanical failures on Boeing 737-9 Max aircraft, Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun assured hesitant travelers that all their aircraft are built according to the highest standards of diversity

" 'I know everyone is nervous about the doors of their planes blowing off the aircraft mid-flight or the entire fuselage buckling due to faulty parts, but let me assure you: Boeing is diverse," said Calhoun in a CNBC interview. "In fact, our design and manufacturing crews are the most diverse in our company's history. Nothing to worry about.' " . . .

Chicago Organized Theft Ring Allegedly Led by Newly Arrived Illegal Aliens

 Breitbart (breitbart.com)  

"The Chicago suburb of Oak Brook has been beset with an increase in retail theft and burglaries over the last year, and police say the leading culprits have been recently arrived illegal border crossers who have filtered out to the suburb from Chicago.

"The Oak Brook Police Department reports that 47 recently arrived illegal aliens have been arrested in connection with retail thefts and home and car burglaries just since October and more than 175 since last year, according to Newsbreak.

"Officials of the suburb — which is only about 25 minutes west of downtown Chicago and only minutes south of O’Hare International Airport where hundreds of illegals have been sheltering for months — noted that the thieves often use bags lined with sheets of tinfoil in an attempt to thwart store anti-theft protection devices at entrances, the New York Post reported.

"The issue has been ongoing in the suburb, especially inside the Oak Brook shopping mall.

"As far back as 2021 the Oak Brook Police Department reported a gang of about 14 individuals entering stores and stealing all they could carry." . . .

Hamas official says ‘no chance’ hostages will return to Israel after Netanyahu rejects deal | Israel-Gaza war |

They watch the pro-Hamas demonstrators in our streets and know Israel has no chance. Can we assume this is the purpose behind the street riots? Do the students and activists not care what was done to the innocent Israelis on Oct 6? TD

 The Guardian

Netanyahu had earlier dismissed the militant group’s conditions to end the war, which he said included leaving Hamas in power and Israel’s complete withdrawal from the territory.

. . ."Netanyahu has repeatedly pledged to pursue the offensive in Gaza until “total victory”, but commentators in Israel have questioned the conduct of the war, arguing that the offensive’s goals are unrealistic, accusing the Israeli prime minister of indecision.

"In his statement on Sunday, Netanyahu also repeated his strong line on the issue of Palestinian statehood. “I will not compromise on full Israeli security control of all territory west of the Jordan River,” he said.

"On Saturday, Netanyahu rejected Joe Biden’s call for a Palestinian state after the war. His office said that in talks on Friday with the US president, Netanyahu “reiterated his policy that after Hamas is destroyed Israel must retain security control over Gaza to ensure that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel, a requirement that contradicts the demand for Palestinian sovereignty”.

"On Sunday, Gaza’s health ministry announced that Israel’s war against Hamas had killed 25,000 Palestinians, with UN chief António Guterres describing the scale of civilian killings as “heartbreaking and utterly unacceptable”.

"Most of the casualties were women and children, the ministry said, and thousands more bodies were likely to remain uncounted under rubble across Gaza." . . .

Israel Gaza: Hamas raped and mutilated women on 7 October, BBC hears  . . ."Police have privately shown journalists a single horrific testimony that they filmed of a woman who was at the Nova festival site during the attack.

"My people!"

"She describes seeing Hamas fighters gang rape a woman and mutilate her, before the last of her attackers shot her in the head as he continued to rape her.

"In the video, the woman known as Witness S mimes the attackers picking up and passing the victim from one to another.

" 'She was alive," the witness says. "She was bleeding from her back."

"She goes on to detail how the men cut off parts of the victim's body during the assault.

" 'They sliced her breast and threw it on the street," she says. "They were playing with it." . . .

"The victim was passed to another man in uniform, she continues.

"He penetrated her, and shot her in the head before he finished. He didn't even pick up

 his pants; he shoots and ejaculates."

"One man we spoke to from the festival site said he heard the "noises and screams of people being murdered, raped, decapitated' "...

Josh Hawley takes it to Mayorkas. Over Hamas supporters in his department.

Dementia And Double Standards

  Issues & Insights (issuesinsights.com)

"Yeah, sure, we know, the corporate media are partisan hacks. But every once in a while their malfeasance is so flagrant it’s worth pointing out."

"At an event in North Carolina last Thursday, President Joe Biden called out for a congresswoman with whom he claimed he’d just been photographed. She was, at the time, in Washington, D.C.

At an event in New Hampshire the next day, presidential candidate Donald Trump appeared to mix up Nancy Pelosi and Nikki Haley when talking about Jan. 6.

Guess which mental lapse was ignored while the other was covered by the New York Times, USA Today, CNN, ABC News, The Hill, PBS, and countless other news outlets.

About a minute into his speech about the taxpayer money he’s dumping into high-speed internet, Biden veered off his teleprompter and apparently forgot where he was, or what day it was.

“Where’s Deborah?” he asks, referring to Rep. Deborah Ross, who was in Washington. “Did she — I just had my picture taken with her. That’s probably why she left. (Laughter.) No, all kidding aside — but, anyway — you — oh, she couldn’t be here, actually. That’s not true. I got it mixed up.”

Later in that same speech, Biden, while carefully reading his teleprompter, said that “We’re the only major company in the world that has come out of every crisis stronger than we went in.” (He meant to say country, but never caught that error.)

One of the signs of dementia is “disorientation in terms of place and time, such as confusion regarding the season, date, day of the week, or time of day.”

You’d think that, given all the other signs of mental decline Biden has exhibited, this bizarre mental lapse would raise some alarms. Only Fox News and the New York Post bothered to it.

Now, switch over to Trump’s – entirely unscripted – remarks in New Hampshire the next day." . . .

TV Ignores Issues & Rivals, Fixates on Bashing Trump

 EXCLUSIVE: (newsbusters.org)

. . ."They Came Not to Praise, but to Bury Him: As was the case in 2016 and during his entire Presidency, virtually all of the media’s 2023 coverage of Trump consisted of negativity and criticism. Yet while his chief rivals faced much less scrutiny, there was no media goodwill for either Nikki Haley or Ron DeSantis last year, either.

"To measure good press and bad press, our analysts focused solely on statements from reporters, anchors and non-affiliated sources (see methodology explanation at the end of this article for more detail). In 2023, evening news viewers heard 1,478 negative statements about Trump, vs. just 143 positive statements. That computes to 91% negative spin, on par with the hostile coverage Trump has historically received from these broadcasts.

"The networks were nearly as negative towards Ron DeSantis: 103 negative statements, vs. just 37 positive ones, for a spin of 73% negative. Most of anti-DeSantis coverage came early in the year, as detailed in an August NewsBusters report.

"While year-end polls showed Nikki Haley surging in New Hampshire, there was little evidence of a boom in her evening news coverage. Haley received the least evaluative coverage of any of the major candidates: just ten positive and ten negative statements throughout 2023. While a 50% positive/50% negative spin score might seem superior to the much more negative coverage of Trump and DeSantis, it’s hardly the kind of Obama-esque positive publicity that candidates desire at the end of a campaign." . . .

House approves resolution denouncing Biden’s ‘open-border policies’

 

Rafael Bernal  . . .The chaotic three-ring circus of border policy, accentuated by the GOP push to impeach Mayorkas, drew criticism from 26 former Homeland Security officials, who characterized the impeachment push as a “grave mistake.”

In a letter to House Homeland Security Chair Mark Green (R-Tenn.) and top committee Democrat Rep. Bennie Thompson (Miss.), the bipartisan group of officials called for a pivot away from the impeachment fight and toward substantial talks.

“We advocate for legislative solutions, including adequate funding, to replace the outdated policies that currently characterize our immigration system. It is crucial that Congress prioritizes solutions that strengthen our borders, treat migrants with dignity, and reduce backlogs that delay decisions on asylum claims, legal immigration petitions, and other cases and applications,” they wrote.

Yet the resolution approved by the House on Wednesday focused more broadly on laying blame on Biden’s policies for current conditions, while extolling Trump-era border policies such as the Migrant Protection Protocols, also known as “remain in Mexico.”

According to the resolution, “the Biden administration refuses to use tools already at its disposal to end the border crisis,” a claim that’s at the center of partisan disagreement on how to address the border.

Democrats have been severely critical of Republicans for not quickly approving the White House’s supplemental budget request, which included aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, but also funding for 1,300 new Border Patrol agents and a host of other border enforcement upgrades." . .  

How Joe Biden and Donald Trump's border policies compare (bbc.com)  ... ."What Trump did: In January 2019, the Trump administration implemented a policy - officially known as Migrant Protection Protocols, or MPP - that forced asylum seekers to wait in Mexico for their US immigration hearings.

About 70,000 people were returned to Mexico under the policy. They were often left there for months at a time and sometimes preyed upon by criminal gangs.

Human Rights First, a charity organisation, estimated that more than 1,500 migrants were kidnapped, raped or abused after being returned to Mexico." . . .

Forget Michelle Obama or Gavin Newsom -- Dems' Choice to Replace Biden is Nikki Haley

 Brian C. Joondeph - American Thinker  

"LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and “one of the Democratic Party’s biggest financiers,” also an Epstein Island visitor, gave $250,000 to a Nikki Haley Super PAC. Why would a liberal Democrat mega-donor support a Republican candidate? Hoffman must approve of Haley’s platform and plans for America." BCJ

 "President Joe Biden is clearly declining cognitively and physically, based on his garbled speech, frequent falls, disorientation on stage, and inappropriate behavior, especially toward young girls.

Voters agree.

In the Democrat stronghold of New York City, 62 percent of New Yorkers believe Biden is unfit to serve another term.

So, who takes his place?

Not Vice President Kamala Harris, whose approval rating, “Is a 2024 problem,” according to Newsweek. She is “notably less popular than Mike Pence, Biden, Dick Cheney, and Al Gore were after the same number of days as vice president.”

Who else is on the Democrat bench to replace Biden? Filmmaker Joel Gilbert makes a compelling case for Michelle Obama swooping into the race at the last minute, avoiding a messy primary season. Her popularity and thin political resume, not to mention her skin color and gender, make her untouchable, buffered by cries of racism or sexism whenever she is questioned or challenged.

Podcaster Dan Bongino says otherwise and makes a good case based on his experience with Mrs. Obama from his time as a Secret Service agent on the presidential detail in the Obama White House. He believes she is far too private, and comfortable in her wealth and idolatry, to go head-to-head with Donald Trump, or whoever the GOP nominee is." . . .

Biden struggling in Michigan, Democrats warn, as level of concern grows: 'The problem is the man' (msn.com)

Democrats Secure Trump’s Nomination

Musings from Dianny

"Now we’re stuck with Trump because the Democrat Party, with the help of the American corporate media, manipulated Republican voters into doing the very thing that will lead the Republican Party to defeat." Dianny

"Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced yesterday that he was suspending his campaign for the Republican nomination.

I admit, I’m a bit disappointed.

Of all the candidates who jumped into the 2024 race, Ron DeSantis was far and away the best of the lot and the only one who could point to a proven track record of turning campaign promises into accomplishments.

It’s too bad Republican primary voters aren’t interested in electing the best guy for the job. They’re much more focused on expressing their anger at a weaponized justice system by nominating the victim of it.

That’ll teach’em!

Donald Trump is getting the nomination for 91 reasons, and each of them is a criminal charge against him.

Early in 2023, DeSantis was the odds-on favorite to deprive Trump of his third bite of the presidential apple.

Naturally, Democrats were in a panic.

They knew an 81-year-old Joe Biden could not compete against a young, competent, successful, popular governor who is a military veteran with a lovely young family.

Just the optics of Biden standing beside DeSantis on a debate stage would have been enough to destroy the senile old coot’s chances.

But then, like manna from heaven, in late March 2023, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg rained down 34 criminal charges on Donald Trump in connection to the hush money payment he made to porn actress Stormy Daniels.

With that indictment, the political winds shifted." . . .

From the comments to this post:   

EODMom   The first thing he should do is announce that he has accepted the resignations of every single federal DA, effective close of business the day of inauguration. Every one. Every district. With thanks for their service. Shut the DOJ place down until a new AG and working professionals confirmed. Then accept the resignation of Wray et al. Shut it down.

Biden Angry With Republicans Trying To Stop Kids Seeing Gay Porn

  ZeroHedge  "During a radio interview, Joe Biden expressed disbelief that Republicans have a problem with gay porn books being made available to children as young as six years old in schools across the country.

"Biden claimed that Republicans are trying to ban books, a tactic that has been repeatedly used to downplay the fact that sexually explicit material and books promoting transgenderism are being placed in school libraries.

“The idea that you can be told that you can’t read certain books. This is the United States of America, for God’s sake!” Biden stated. . .

He added “These guys are afraid of the truth!” . . .

BIDEN: "The idea that you can be told that you can't read certain books. This is the United States of America, for God's sake! These guys are afraid of the truth!"

(He's lying. Nobody is trying to ban reading books.) pic.twitter.com/viuyGO2D8o

— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) January 14, 2024

Hunter's Painting Foray Had Classic Earmarks Of Influence-Peddling

 Margot Cleveland (thefederalist.com)

"Hunter Biden’s “Sugar Bro,” Kevin Morris, testified before the House Oversight and Judiciary Committees on Wednesday. A readout of Morris’ testimony, when considered in tandem with the testimony provided last week by Hunter Biden’s gallerist, suggests Hunter was setting up another front for the family influence-peddling racket when the plan collapsed due to public scrutiny.

On Thursday, House Oversight and Accountability Committee Chair James Comer issued a statement following the committee’s transcribed interview of Hollywood lawyer Kevin Morris. In his press release, Comer revealed that Hollywood producer Lanette Phillips introduced Morris to Hunter Biden during a campaign event at her Los Angeles home for Joe Biden in the winter of 2019. One week later, Phillips called Morris to discuss what Morris apparently framed as an “entertainment” issue. Morris later visited Hunter at his home in L.A., according to the press release. 

"According to Comer, Morris testified he began providing money to Hunter Biden in January 2020. Then on Feb. 7, 2020, Morris emailed Hunter’s advisers and tax accountants, writing, “We are under considerable risk personally and politically to get the returns in.” Less than two weeks later, Hunter Biden filed his long-overdue 2017 and 2018 tax returns, although he didn’t pay his hefty tax bill at the time. Around Oct. 18, 2021, Morris paid some $2 million in overdue taxes for the president’s son." . . .

Margot Cleveland is an investigative journalist and legal analyst and serves as The Federalist’s senior legal correspondent. Margot’s work has been published at The Wall Street Journal, The American Spectator, the New Criterion (forthcoming), National Review Online, Townhall.com, the Daily Signal, USA Today, and the Detroit Free Press. She is also a regular guest on nationally syndicated radio programs and on Fox News, Fox Business, and Newsmax. Cleveland is a lawyer and a graduate of the Notre Dame Law School, where she earned the Hoynes Prive—the law school’s highest honor. She later served for nearly 25 years as a permanent law clerk for a federal appellate judge on the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Cleveland is a former full-time university faculty member and now teaches as an adjunct from time to time. Cleveland is also of counsel for the New Civil Liberties Alliance. 

Jill Biden faces social media scrutiny after unfortunate 'Hunter High'
signage at speaking event (nypost.com)

Iran targets the Kurds...and the US

Joseph Puder - American Thinker

. . ."The ayatollahs are bent on avenging the elimination of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the commander of the elite Quds Force of the IRGC, who was killed in January 2020.  Soleimani was the chief architect of Iran’s terror campaign against American forces in Iraq and throughout the Middle East.

"Iran is determined to expel the U.S. from the region, and its nuclear ambitions certainly have much to do with eventually challenging the U.S. and Israel.  Iran is hostile to the KRG, accusing the Erbil Kurdish government of sheltering Iranian-Kurdish freedom fighters and American troops.

 . . ."Should the Kurds gain their independence, they would most definitely join the Abraham Accords.  In the meantime, Kurds will continue their longstanding ties with Israel, but for now, these ties will remain “covert” because of Kurdish fear of Iran and its loyalist Shiite supporters within the Iraqi government.

"Israel’s hands are tied due to the lack of interest or commitment by the U.S. administration regarding an independent Kurdish state in northern Iraq.  The U.S. and its allies regularly emphasize the territorial integrity of the Iraqi state, neglecting to mention that an overwhelming majority of Kurds reject being part of the Iranian-controlled Iraqi state.

"The problem with the U.S. policy in Iraq is that its previous objectives are incommensurate with Iranian goals.  The objective of a democratic, prosperous, and unified Iraq, especially one aligned with the U.S., has incentivized Iran not only to increase its influence in Baghdad, but also to diminish and expel the U.S. from Iraq altogether.

"Given the corrupt Iraqi politicians and Shiite sectarianism, the U.S. has for all intents and purposes lost Iraq to the ayatollahs of Iran.  It is therefore the right time to support Kurdish independence and leave behind the fallacy of Iraq’s territorial integrity.  Iraq was never an organic state, and Baghdad is more than ever the leader of a failing state.  Finally, Iran’s aggression against the U.S. must be met with direct military action rather than with words."

As Israel-Hamas war continues, Americans remain supportive of Israel in new poll : NPR   However....   "Two-thirds of Americans say the United States should publicly support Israel in the war between Israel and Hamas, according to the latest NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll, but there are wide generational and racial divides on the question.

"At this point, more Americans, but not a majority, think Israel's response has been appropriate, though an overwhelming number of respondents are worried the war will spill over into a broader regional conflict.

"Seven in 10 Americans said they are paying close attention to the war. And, even though most agree that the U.S. should publicly support Israel, President Biden — who has voiced strong public support for the Jewish nation — is not benefiting politically." . . .

‘Is he going to cry again?’ Kinzinger dragged for whining about Trump ‘showing momentum’

 BPR  "Campaign momentum for the former president was viewed as “pretty disheartening” for a crying congressman turned CNN benchwarmer in a Bible-citing lamentation.

"With only 20 of the 1,215 delegates needed to secure the GOP presidential nomination awarded thus far, corporate media has appeared all-too willing to skip ahead to the general election with all the legal trouble that entails for former President Donald Trump. Even acknowledging the primary contest was not yet overcome with sorrowful analysis from former Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R).

"Joining the eponymous host of “Anderson Cooper 360°,” the politician turned senior political analyst spoke to the most recent Republican senator to endorse the GOP figurehead, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott despite having been originally appointed to that position by fellow White House hopeful and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.

“ 'I never expected this from Tim. I know him…as a decent man, as somebody that’s concerned about character. But he chose to put himself and his political career above his character as so many other people have,” Kinzinger said of Scott’s endorsement more than two months after suspending his own campaign for the presidency." . . .