Reboot of George Floyd; Anatomy of a Failed Moral Panic

American Greatness  

"The second big impediment to a repeat of George Floyd-style riots is the dawning recognition by the public that, as Elon Musk put it, “The Democrats hate ICE because ICE deports their illegal voting base.' ” 

"Killer Agent Unmasked,” screamed a headline in The Drudge Report. I know, I know, hardly anyone sane reads the Drudge Report anymore. But its headline and accompanying stories did stake out the let’s-see-if-we-can-spark-the-George-Floyd-reboot territory. So did a supremely irresponsible opinion column in The Chicago Tribune, which argued that “every last American” should agree that the shooting death of Renée Nicole Good in Minneapolis a few days ago was “an abomination.”

"Should they? Was it?

"Soon-to-be ex-Minnesota governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey certainly think so. Walz has been comparing ICE agents to the Gestapo for years. Frey abetted the “fiery but mostly peaceful” burning of Minneapolis in 2020 after George Floyd died of a drug overdose while resisting arrest, and Frey acted entirely according to form in denouncing ICE and Donald Trump in response to the shooting of Good by an ICE agent.

"The destructive, anti-American left thought they were getting the band back together. Mobs in various cities have been protesting, harassing, and impeding the lawful activities of ICE. In Minneapolis, mobs are going from hotel to hotel in search of ICE agents, smashing windows, blaring horns, and screaming obscenities.

"For just a few days, the city of Minneapolis—and other blue cities across the country—teetered back and forth. Full summer-of-love-smash-everything riots? Or impotent progressive-white-female fury and hysteria, aided by low-testosterone soy boys in the media and ranks of Democrat officeholders?

"Right from the beginning, I thought the second option more likely. Why? For one thing, it was winter in a cold city. Protestors prefer warmer temperatures. Then, too, the person shot was a white woman, not a black criminal, so a large quota of the rage would have to be special ordered from the warehouse. There was plenty of rage on hand. But there were also, almost from the beginning, many dissenting voices. Sean Morrison, a Cook County Commissioner, took on the Chicago Tribune in a post on X: “The Chicago Tribune editorial declaring that ‘every last American should agree’ the death of a Minneapolis woman at the hands of a federal immigration agent is an ‘abomination’ is a textbook example of unethical, ideologically driven journalism.”

"The Minneapolis Fraternal Order of Police put out a statement saying that they stand with ICE." . . . More...

"Roger Kimball is editor and publisher of The New Criterion and the president and publisher of Encounter Books. He is the author and editor of many books, including The Fortunes of Permanence: Culture and Anarchy in an Age of Amnesia (St. Augustine's Press), The Rape of the Masters (Encounter), Lives of the Mind: The Use and Abuse of Intelligence from Hegel to Wodehouse (Ivan R. Dee), and Art's Prospect: The Challenge of Tradition in an Age of Celebrity "

The Captor Who Fell Silent; How faith disarmed terror in a Hamas tunnel

Shmuel Klatzkin  

"We are all in God’s hands. And this insight pierced the heart of her son’s captor. For one moment, they were on equal ground."

 Warehouse of Ideas

"Many news organizations carried the story of the release of Bar Kuperstein two years after he had been kidnapped by Hamas on October 7. Kuperstein was a young security guard at the Nova Festival, the music festival targeted by Hamas for its fat genocidal possibilities, with sides of rape, torture, and kidnapping. After taking some time to begin to reacclimate to freedom and family, Kuperstein began to share his and his family’s experiences.

"Hamas’ strategy to destroy Israel has been based on the perceived weakness of the West for enduring the discomfort of war. As is well attested by their own words, they wish to win by grinding down the political support for the fight against them, both in Israel and in Israel’s supporters in the rest of the world. Protests from the West, and even better, from within Israel itself, are demoralizing to the fighting spirit. In particular, when despairing hostage families protest, demanding that their government capitulate to the demands of the hostage takers, this is prime click bait and especially demoralizing to their hated opponents.

"Kuperstein explained to the press how Hamas tried to get his family to publicly denounce Israel’s fight to rescue the hostages and end the rule of the hostage-takers. They pushed the despair button — we have your beloved son, and no one can stop us from doing to him whatever we want if you don’t comply. Kuperstein said:

During the period I was held captive, one of the terrorists called my mother and told her she was not doing enough to free me and that if she wanted to see me again, she needed to go out, file complaints at The Hague, and really fight.

"Kuperstein’s captor said to his mother that she had no choice, because her son was in their hands. Kuperstein continued: “She simply told him the following: ‘My son is not in your hands but always in the hands of the Creator — and you are too in the hands of the Creator.”

"This was not the expected answer. In Kuperstein’s words: “There was a moment of silence because the terrorist did not know what to answer and then he replied, “All honor to you, madam.”

"Kuperstein showed his interviewer the bracelet his mother had worn all the days of his captivity. On it were inscribed the words: “My son is always in the hands of the Creator.”

"Kuperstein added: “Since then, we carry that motto with us all the time.”. . . 

"When modern Islamists saw the jaded disregard of religion in the modern West, they saw it as a sign of weakness, of absence of the inspiration necessary to face the crises that are the stuff of human life. People with nothing to die for have nothing to live for. There is nothing they won’t give up just to be left alone. The aggressors smell the fear and they salivate.   More...

READ MORE from Shmuel Klatzkin:  In Defense of a Judeo-Christian America; The Lie That Destroys; Uncompromising Principles, Moderated Souls

In-N-Out CEO OFFICIALLY RESPONDS To Governor Of California After Leaving California!

YouTube

"California is facing an uproar as one of its most iconic homegrown brands, In-N-Out Burger, signals a major departure — and the Governor isn’t holding back. "This video breaks down why In-N-Out’s leadership is pushing back against California’s business climate, what drove the company’s heir and CEO to expand and relocate operations outside the state, and how this high-profile move has sparked political backlash, economic debate, and cultural outrage. "We examine the reported layoffs in California, the family-business roots of In-N-Out, the growing corporate exodus trend, and what critics warn this could mean for the Golden State’s economy, jobs, and reputation as a place where iconic businesses once thrived. "As California leadership lashes out and national headlines erupt over this beloved brand’s exit, the question isn’t just why In-N-Out is leaving — but whether this marks a turning point in California’s relationship with its own business champions." . . .

In-N-Out’s Owner Said ‘I’M DONE.’ Here’s What It Costs You!!

"I know In good ole Oakland, California, the In-N-Out closed because of the unspeakable crimes that had taken place, around the clock, just at their location, and that was with armed guards. According to news reports, the so-called journalists cited the reason for burgeoning crime was the pandemic. A side note: Denny's, Starbucks, Walmart, Black Bear Diner, Gas stations, & the 24 Hour Fitness closed.. The 76 Station was looted many times, and the innocent airport travelers are robbed at gunpoint when they drive their rental cars down Hegenberger Road. 18,000 business and something like 9 ML people have fled this prog utopia. In Oakland, there is never a profressor of sociology around when you need one."

The enemies within...

 

White Liberal Women Really Are Bat **** Crazy, and This Proves It

"Earlier this week, Kevin Downey Jr. wrote about what he calls "affluent white liberal women," or AWFLs, pegging them as the biggest internal threat to America. Not foreign enemies. Not terror cells. Just well-off women with pronouns in their bios and too much time on their hands. He described them as attention-seeking harpies who push extreme gender ideology, drag their
kids to medicalized gender clinics, and parade them at sexualized drag shows labeled as "family-friendly." These are the same people, he argued, who want to defund the police, defend criminals no matter how violent or foreign, and censor anyone who steps out of line with their diversity-and-inclusion gospel." 

"That means an overwhelming majority of young white liberal women are fine with lawbreaking and violence if it means blocking ICE from doing its job.

"So what makes white liberal women so uniquely terrible?"  . . .  More...

Plus New York's government.

UPDATED: Amazing what Democrats will choose to protest; The hypocrisy extends for miles.

 Jack Hellner  

"If your “protest” against “fascism” includes you doing a conga line in costume, maybe you aren’t actually fighting fascism. Maybe you’re just bored." 

"Let's look at what they protest and what they don't to see if that is true. 

"First off, you never saw protests against Obama or Biden, no matter what they did or didn't do. 

 

"We have seen many protests against law enforcement. 

 

"When a white cop shot a black criminal teenager who tried to grab his gun in Ferguson, Missouri, we saw massive destructive protests throughout the country with the known lie about 'hands up don't shoot.'

 

"We saw massive destructive protests when a cop killed a black drug addict resisting arrest in Minneapolis. 

 

"We are seeing mass protests throughout the country because a radical white woman was killed when she had a dangerous weapon, a car, and used it on an ICE agent.

 

"We see mass protests when ICE and Border Patrol agents are finally enforcing the laws that Congress passed after years when Biden intentionally flooded America with illegals. 

 

"No matter how many cops are killed by criminals, there are no protests."

UPDATE: AT's Andrea Widberg sees a glimmer of hope:  

Suddenly, the Democrats figure out that Hamas is bad

"Yesterday, with remarkable, robotic unanimity, the Democrats discovered that Hamas is a bad organization. Considering that, beginning with Hamas’s October 7, 2023, genocidal attack against Israel, so many in the Democrat party were loath to condemn Hamas, while the party’s foot soldiers openly embraced it, the sudden turnaround is suspect. None of the possible explanations reflects well on the Democrats." . . .

. . . "The Democrat party foot soldiers, of course, were loud and proud about supporting Hamas or, if they didn’t name Hamas, about supporting its actions. Here are just two examples of many:

"We are Hamas! Yes we are all Hamas btch!"

"Israel Go to Hell!"

. . . "Immediately after the attacks, when the smoke was still rising and the blood was still wet on Israeli soil, Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Gaza) refused to condemn Hamas. Additionally, eight Democrats joined her to vote “no” on an October 25, 2023, resolution to condemn Hamas (as did the execrable Thomas Massie (R-Gaza)), and six others voted present to avoid taking a stand." . . .

. . . "One almost must admire Rashida Tlaib for refusing to join this newfound disdain for Hamas. At least she has her principles.

"So, what gives?

"One thing, which I know from paying attention to the Democrat-voting Jews in my world, is that many Jews have finally decided that, yes, the Democrat party hates them. Albeit reluctantly, they’re turning away from it. And now that illegal and criminal aliens are being deported and exposed, Democrats can’t afford to lose a reliable (and generous) voting bloc.

"Another theory, which I strongly support, is that Democrats know that the mullahs are doomed. Once the mullahs flee, their files will be opened, and those files will reveal a whole lot about how Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis have been funded and the moral support they’ve received. Democrats may be worried that they’ll show up in those files. (Same goes for information in Venezuela, which also helped support Hamas and Hezbollah.)

"There’s also a theory that indictments are finally coming for the loud-and-proud radicals who provided material support for Hamas via the “Free Palestine” movement. The stench will be bad, and the Democrats want some distance.

"In other words, the Democrats aren’t opposing Hamas for principled reasons. If they’d had principles, they would have opposed Hamas over two years ago. Instead, this is a CYA effort that only serves to highlight just how foul Democrats really are."  Much more.. 

  

The Minneapolis Shooting: The Facts

"The Minneapolis ICE shooting story has been evolving the way these stories always do – but not in the direction that the Left would prefer."

American Thinker

. . . "yet another example of the Left’s willingness to lubricate their programs with the blood of their opponents, of innocents, and of their own.

Nekima Levy Armstrong is an attorney and civil rights
 activist who organized many of the protests after the
 death of George Floyd in Minneapolis in 2020. She has
 also been active in documenting ICE operations in
the city.

ICE agent who shot Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis an Iraq War veteran, is believed to have worked as an ICE agent since at least 2013.   

. . . "ICE agents had conducted a traffic stop on Roberto Carlos Munoz, a serial illegal immigrant from Guatemala with a lengthy rap sheet, records show.

"Ross broke the back driver’s side window after Munoz refused to exit his vehicle when officers approached his car.    The suspect then sped away with Ross’ arm caught between the seat and the car frame — dragging him more than 100 yards, the Justice Department said at the time.He was hospitalized with “significant injuries to his arm and hand” requiring 33 stitches, but made a full recovery, according to the feds." . . .

 Court records detail prior incident involving ICE officer who shot and killed Minneapolis woman | CBC News

. . . "The officer needed more than 30 stitches after the June incident in Bloomington, Minn. The suspect in that incident was convicted of assault several weeks ago.

"Vice-President JD Vance and U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem spoke about the officer at length during a news conference on Thursday, doubling down on their account that the agent was defending himself when he shot Good.

"Local and state officials have repeatedly rejected the Trump administration's version of events, saying video evidence directly contradicts the notion that Good deliberately "weaponized" her vehicle to drive at the officer.

“ '[T]hat very ICE officer nearly had his life ended, dragged by a car six months ago," Vance said at the White House on Thursday. "So you think maybe he’s a little bit sensitive about somebody ramming him with an automobile?' " . . . 

ICE Agent Jonathan Ross sustained serious injuries during a June 2025 arrest attempt, including multiple large cuts and abrasions, and was treated with a tourniquet before hospitalization.

. . . "Jonathan Ross, an ICE officer involved in recent high-profile incidents, was severely injured during an arrest in Bloomington, Minnesota, in June 2025. Court records and affidavits describe that Ross suffered multiple large cuts and abrasions on his knee, elbow, and face as a result of the incident.

The injury occurred when Ross was physically dragged approximately 50 yards by a fleeing suspect in a vehicle while his arm remained caught inside the car. This dangerous situation caused significant trauma, requiring immediate medical attention. An FBI agent applied a tourniquet to control bleeding at the scene before Ross was transported to a hospital for further care.

These injuries highlight the risks law enforcement officers face during high-risk arrests, especially when suspects resist and attempt to evade capture by force. Ross’s injuries were serious enough to require emergent treatment but no further details on long-term impact have been publicly disclosed.

Ross’s career includes extensive government and military service, emphasizing his experience prior to this incident. His injury during the 2025 arrest has been cited in news coverage related to his role in subsequent events in Minneapolis.

Overall, the injuries sustained were significant physical trauma due to being dragged by a vehicle and reinforced with visible large cuts and abrasions on critical areas of his body, managed emergency onsite with a tourniquet application. This information is drawn from official court documents and credible news reports.

 BREAKING: Was just sent a video showing the moments before the shooting.
In it, you can clearly see Renee Good’s vehicle blocking ICE agents for over 3 minutes as she’s dancing to her own car horn.
Kinda ruins some narratives, doesn’t it? pic.twitter.com/aXtiTjAtF9

— Dustin Grage (@GrageDustin) January 10, 2026

For Gavin Newsom, selling California may be harder than selling himself

California Political Review  

"Conventional wisdom holds that California is an albatross for Newsom’s widely-anticipated White House bid — a state that is too progressive, too pricey, too polarizing to appeal to swing voters in battleground states."

"Gavin Newsom’s presidential hopes may hinge not only on how he sells his own image, but, as he implicitly made clear on Thursday, whether he can remake his home state’s as well. The latter may be the harder challenge.

"Conventional wisdom holds that California is an albatross for Newsom’s widely-anticipated White House bid — a state that is too progressive, too pricey, too polarizing to appeal to swing voters in battleground states.

"But Newsom sought to flip the script in his final State of the State address, unapologetically trumpeting California as a road map for the rest of the nation, naysayers be damned.

"It was the most robust preview yet of the governor’s likely 2028 strategy: Convince voters to back him not in spite of his California connections, but because of them.

“ 'We are a beacon,” he told state lawmakers and officials in his Capitol address. “The state is providing a different narrative — an operational model, a policy blueprint for others to follow.

”Newsom’s muscular pro-California rhetoric is an extension of the defiant posture he assumed last year as a social media provocateur and vanguard of the national redistricting fight. The “post first, apologize later (or never)” strategy propelled the governor to the heart of the political zeitgeist — and most early 2028 Democratic primary polls. 

"The speech demonstrated Newsom’s intention to rewrite the California crack-up narrative that dominates conservative cable news channels, social media and podcasts, all of which the governor voraciously consumes. He diagnosed the state’s skeptics as suffering from “California Derangement Syndrome,” an unsubtle echo of “Trump Derangement Syndrome,” the preferred way for President Donald Trump’s supporters to dismiss condemnation." . .  .

"The question for Newsom even before it comes to far-flung early primary states is whether his own residents agree. According to the Public Policy Institute of California, which regularly tracks sentiment, a majority of Californians have believed the state is on the wrong track for more than three years. In overwhelmingly blue California, the gloomy outlook cannot just be attributed to partisan Fox News viewers."   Full article here...

Gavin Newsom, ‘King of Fraud’  "During a Fox and Friends broadcast Thursday, First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli branded California Gov. Gavin Newsom “the king of fraud.” He didn’t stop there. He declared, “There’s never been this much fraud in American history.”. . . 

Newsom’s strategy in his State of the State address of fraudulently claiming he achieved greatness in California may just be his interim plan while he remains in office. Once he leaves the governor’s office, he may rush past California’s disasters and hope voters never look too closely at the record he leaves behind.

Who Gets Canonized — And Who Gets Condemned?

The Left’s disparate reactions to Renee Nicole Good versus Ashli Babbitt’s deaths.  

If the person killed is politically useful, they are canonized as a victim regardless of their actions. If the person killed is politically inconvenient, their death is justified, mocked, or ignored — no matter the circumstances. That is not a commitment to justice. It is a commitment to power.

Below: How many anti-ICE rioters cheered for the Hamas murderers of the Bibas family ?

"On Jan. 6, 2021, a Capitol Police officer named Michael Byrd fatally shot Ashli Babbitt — an unarmed, married, 36-year-old U.S. Air Force veteran — as she attempted to climb through a broken window inside the U.S. Capitol.

"Democrats and the media hailed Byrd as a hero. He was later promoted. They offered no sympathy for Babbitt. She was not treated as a victim of a tragic or excessive use of force, but as a villain whose death was justified by her politics. Her military service, her lack of a weapon, and the circumstances of her death were dismissed. She was MAGA, and therefore disposable.

"Six years later, in Minneapolis on Jan. 7, 2026, an ICE agent fatally shot Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old woman who repeatedly refused to comply with federal agents’ lawful commands. Good was using her SUV to block an ICE vehicle. The agent had his weapon drawn throughout the encounter. The fatal shooting occurred after Good hit the gas and accelerated toward the agent standing in her path.

"This time, Democrats and the media immediately declared the federal agent a criminal and Good an innocent victim.

"Both incidents were tragedies. A woman died in each.

"So why was a Capitol Police officer celebrated, and Ashli Babbitt demonized, while an ICE agent was vilified and Renee Nicole Good sanctified?

"The answer is moral relativism.

"The Left’s judgments are not based on facts, law, or consistent standards. They are based on political allegiance and the lies they tell themselves — and each other — about who deserves humanity and who does not. 

"Democrats have fully dehumanized anyone they disagree with.That reality became impossible to deny nearly four months ago, when Charlie Kirk was assassinated. Across the country, from elected officials to professors to college students, Democrats openly justified his murder. Some contextualized it. Others excused it. Many celebrated it outright.

"The response from the left hinged on one question: Was the victim one of us?" . . .

"A society that assigns human worth based on ideology does not prevent violence. It incentivizes it. And history shows exactly where that road leads. The Left’s refusal to apply one moral standard to all is not just hypocrisy.  It is dangerous. And it is getting people killed, including their own indoctrinated activists."   More...

UPDATE, 1/10: Renee Nicole Good’s wife, kids to get $1.5 million thanks to massive GoFundMe donation campaign

(RELATED: Charlie Kirk and the Shame of the ‘However’ Progressives)

(RELATED: Was the Minnesota ICE Shooting Justified?)

(RELATED: The Price of Democrats’ Extremism)

US Army Announces It’s Scrapping One Piece of Female Uniform for Good

 Newsweek 

 "Secretary of War Pete Hegseth ordered new grooming and uniform requirements for the U.S. Army in September 2025."

Staff Sergeant Joanna Romero tries on a campaign hat at Fort Jackson

"The United States Army has announced the end of a piece of uniform used only by women.

"Until now, female drill sergeants in the U.S. Army had worn bush hats, with an upturned rim, while male drill sergeants wore flat-rimmed campaign hat.

"The female bush hat, modeled after the Australian bush hat, was introduced in 1972, when the first female drill sergeants enrolled in the drill sergeant program at Fort Jackson, South Carolina.

"Now, more than 40 years later, male and female drill sergeants will all wear the same iconic campaign hat. Surveys found roughly 70 percent of drill sergeants responding expressed a desire to switch from the bush hat to the campaign one, according to the U.S. Army website.

The Marines had it right all along

"A survey also found that more than 60 percent of drill sergeants believed that the campaign hat worn by males had a more professional appearance compared to the bush hat.

"Sergeant Major Melissa Solomon, who was named Drill Sergeant of the Year in 2010, said: "When I served as the DSOY, the bush hat distinguished female drill sergeants that successfully completed the course and served honorably with their male counterparts.

" 'With deep respect to the bush hat history, I believe a change is necessary to mitigate product quality issues I witnessed firsthand as the Drill Sergeant Academy Deputy Commandant and reinforce uniformity during the critical transformation of a civilian into a Soldier." . . .

U.S. Army Standardizes Drill Sergeant Campaign Hats

Previous bush hat.

The “Enemies Within” Are Out of the Closet

Noisy Room   

"The current predicament for the communist rulers in Cuba is worth broadcasting to the world at large, but especially to American college students hooked on the idea that socialism might work in New York City."

"Now that Maduro is in custody, it is time to identify his supporters in the United States. They are easy to identify, since they have been agitating for the Maduro regime on American soil and in Venezuela. They are now in the streets protesting, and include:

• The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), which “stands in solidarity” with the Maduro regime and counts NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani as a member.
• The ANSWER Coalition, a communist front.
• The People’s Forum, another communist front.
• The “World Beyond War” group, which includes Medea Benjamin, co-founder of Global Exchange and CODEPINK.
• The Party for Socialism and Liberation has announced an “Emergency Rally for Venezuela.”
• The Communist Party USA, which protested “the drive to war against Venezuela and the aggression against China,” and declared its intention to get Communist Cuba off the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism.
• The Revolutionary Communists of America, a group that declares “America Needs a Revolution.”
• The Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism, which condemned “the far-right cabal in the White House for its unprovoked aggression against our Latin American neighbors.
• The Popular Resistance, which said “progressive governments in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC)” have been “delegitimized and displaced,” threatening the so-called Pink Tide governments.
• Drop Site News, which ran an article declaring that “Venezuela’s communes are prepared to face Trump’s illegal naval blockade and U.S. plans for economic asphyxiation.”
• Common Dreams, a far-left “news” site, which quoted Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel as saying about the U.S. action, “This is state terrorism against the brave Venezuelan people and against Our America.”
• The Revolutionary Communist Party has participated in “emergency protests” against the Trump Administration over its policy toward Venezuela.
• The Workers World Party, which reported on a delegation from the U.S. that traveled to Venezuela to attend the “People’s Assembly for Peace and Sovereignty in our Americas,” held in Caracas from December 9-11.

"The communist group said delegates at that assembly from the U.S. represented Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Students for a Democratic Society, Party for Socialism and Liberation, Struggle La Lucha, Workers World Party, and Palaver Collective.