European Girl Shocked by Rural America

Cori Ander explores the Pacific Northwest, visiting the iconic Twin Peaks diner and experiencing local customs like the imperial measurement system. The journey continues through the countryside to observe wildlife and explore a community rummage sale, offering a unique perspective on life and nature in Washington State.

Cori Ander*

"To experience small-town life in the USA, I rented a car and headed out into the countryside of Washington State. In the idyllic town of North Bend, I visited Twede’s Cafe, the world-famous diner from the Twin Peaks movie. After that, I continued my journey to Snoqualmie to explore some of Washington’s beautiful nature."

*Coriander is an aromatic herb and spice from the plant Coriandrum sativum, with edible leaves (cilantro) and seeds used in cooking worldwide.  Just saying. No particular reason. TD

Communism Hasn't Been Done Right. (Yeah, That’s The Ticket.)

"The current crop of young Democrat/DSA politicians is testing the leftist theory that communism will work if you just put the right people in charge."

Milli Sands

"An admission: I am not a fan of communism, socialism, fascism, or Nazism.

"So, I have a bias.

"That said, I also have an open mind.

"And there seem to be lots of people who are fan-boys/girls/trans of the Democratic Socialists of America (“DSA”) who think that having the conglomerate known as the Democrats/Progressive/Liberals (DPLs) embrace them is the right move.

"I am willing to accept, with sufficient proof (whenever that comes), that the problem with communism/socialism is one of poor implementation.

"After all, great minds such as Noam Chomsky, Richard D. Wolff and Stephen Resnick, and Owen Jones seem to suggest that.

"So, I got to thinking about other brilliant ideas that simply have been poorly implemented, but for that would succeed, as would communism/socialism.

"Many of these persons have won Darwin Awards.

"Some possess skills in their respective areas:" . . .

A sampling of the cast of characters who Democrats expect can "do it right":

What is most encouraging about the near-guaranteed success of the upcoming implementation of communism/socialism, i.e., it being done right? The cast of characters:

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14): Armed with an overpriced Boston University international relations degree, her pre-political résumé boils down to slinging cocktails and a pathetic home-based children’s book startup that died instantly.

Rashida Tlaib (MI-12): Textbook career grifter who leveraged her law degree into instant taxpayer-funded state gigs and cozy progressive nonprofit sinecures.

Ilhan Omar (MN-05): Glided from a political science degree straight into municipal nutrition busywork and policy aide handouts—a lifelong parasite on government institutions. Though, to her credit, she prepped for her Feeding Our Future fraud by having a background in nutrition.

Ayanna Pressley (MA-07): Dropped out of college to latch onto congressional staff gigs and city council, scoring a flawless lifetime on the government teat with zero private-sector contamination.   

Read the author's full list here for other names you should know...

Erasing Little Italy Is About More Than a Map

Ben Shapiro

"New York City has long been celebrated as a city of immigrant neighborhoods. Little Italy, Chinatown, Harlem, Washington Heights, Brighton Beach - these communities tell the story of generations of newcomers who helped build America's largest city while gradually becoming part of it.

"That history makes one omission from Mayor Zohran Mamdani's recently released map of immigrant communities particularly striking.

"Little Italy wasn't there.

Instead, the map highlighted a series of neighborhoods identified as "Little Pakistan," "Little Senegal," "Little Yemen" and even "Little Palestine." City Hall defended the project by saying it was never intended to identify religious enclaves but rather neighborhoods with substantial foreign-born populations from around the world.

"That explanation raises an obvious question: If the goal was to recognize immigrant communities, how does one leave out perhaps the most iconic immigrant neighborhood in New York City?

"Little Italy is more than a tourist destination. It represents one of the defining chapters in the city's history - a reminder of the millions of Italian immigrants who arrived in America, endured discrimination, built businesses and eventually became woven into the fabric of American life. Omitting it while highlighting far newer and, in some cases, unofficial neighborhood designations sends a message, whether intended or not, about which immigrant stories deserve recognition.The omission also fits a broader pattern.

"During the protests of 2020, Mamdani posted a photograph of himself making an obscene gesture toward a statue of Christopher Columbus, accompanied by the caption, "Take it down." Columbus has become a lightning rod in America's culture wars, but for many Italian Americans, his monuments represent more than one historical figure. They symbolize a community that fought for acceptance in a country where Italians were once treated as outsiders." . . ."

NY Italians put Mamdani on notice after ‘sacred ground’ snub: ‘We stand against communists!’  "New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is under fire from an Italian American heritage group after Little Italy was left off a city immigrant-neighborhood map tied to a World Cup tourism campaign — an omission critics called an insult to one of the communities that helped build New York.

"Zohran Mamdani wants to ERASE Italian Americans. First, he denied our permit for Unity Day 2026. Now, he is excluding Little Italy as a recognized location all together on the map," wrote the Italian American Civil Rights League (IACRL) on X along with a press release.

"Italian Americans BUILT NEW YORK CITY. Not third world Ugandans, We stand AGAINST COMMUNISTS," the group added." . . .

The Speech Zohran Mamdani Should Have Made

What if New York's new socialist mayor abandoned ideology and embraced the principles that made America—and New York—prosper?

 American Greatness   

Shoulda said, but didn't: "Socialism, I have reluctantly decided, is not going to work in New York City, because it has never worked anywhere. It is not going to solve our problems. Instead, socialism will just make everything worse. The boring truth is that what works in America is capitalism" . . .

"Zohran Mamdani delivered a speech on July 3 to the entire nation that has earned justifiable criticism. If anything, his critics were easy on him. Watch this video explaining the origins of the democratic socialists in the U.S. Fact-check it. Then let this reality sink in: Zohran Mamdani is a leading avatar of an alliance of communists, Islamists, and globalists that are funding groups bent on destroying Western civilization. That is not an overstatement. And their project is advancing according to plan and on schedule.

"But Mamdani, if he were true to the most seductively high-minded elements of his rhetoric and promises, would renounce the movement that has propelled him to a position of great power and influence. And if Mamdani were to do this, it would be a decisive setback to a movement that to date has only grown stronger. In such a moment, perhaps one we can only dream of, here is a hypothetical transcript of what he would have said:

"“Good morning, my fellow Americans. Happy Fourth of July, Happy Independence Day, and happy 250th birthday to the United States of America. I am thrilled to be the mayor of New York City, and I am thrilled and proud to be an American.

"You may be wondering why I have decided to address my remarks today to a national audience. After all, while I represent the City of New York, what qualifies me to speak to everyone else in the country? I believe I can answer that question, however, in a way most of you will appreciate. Because I have become a rising star in the democratic socialist movement, and as a representative leader in that movement, I have an opportunity to speak to millions of Americans who have placed their hopes and committed their activism to advancing democratic socialism in America.

"Today I had a prepared speech, some 2,500 words of carefully constructed ideas that I intended to share with you. But I’m not going to give that speech today, because my beliefs have fundamentally changed. Over the past few weeks, as I worked with my advisors to craft this speech, I began to see that the policies our movement advocates are alarmingly out of touch with our best and highest goals. And in pursuit of those goals, my responsibility must be to search for the best ways, the best policies, the best projects, to produce the best outcomes for the most people. Suddenly, many of the things I’ve said and the promises I’ve made didn’t feel as certain as they felt when I said those things and when I made those promises.

"Here is the difficult truth we must accept. The democratic socialist movement has lost its way. The policies we advocate will not make New York City a better place. They will not make America a better place. They will have the opposite impact. They are destructive." . . . More...

The Communists Inside the DSA | The American Spectator | USA News and Politics  

Democratic socialism and communism differ on paper, sure. But inside the DSA, communists are not fringe embarrassments being shushed. They have won leadership seats, shaped the platform, repealed decade-old anti-communist guardrails, and are openly calling for other communists to join them.

For most Americans, the site of American flags flying on homes generates pride. For “The View’s” Sunny Hostin, it generates fear.

Could she be too "at one" with Megan Rapinoe, Bruce Springsteen, Hollywood and anyone at MSNOW to ever appreciate our nation and its history? I cannot help but see America as the schoolyard weenie beset by mean girls and bullies, showing off for their campus peers by the abuse they mete out. TD 

 'The View' Host Says American Flags Make Her 'Feel Unsafe'

She called the assassination of a healthcare CEO a normal byproduct of a nation “built on violence.” And despite learning her own ancestors owned slaves, she has maintained that she is still owed reparations.

"The Stars and Stripes have once again become a target on daytime television, with “The View” co-host Sunny Hostin declaring that the sight of American flags flying in neighborhoods fills her with fear and signals white supremacy.

Hostin made the comments Monday while discussing a viral image showing masked Patriot Front marchers riding a Washington Metro train.

“There are times when I walk into a community and I see American flags all over the community and I suddenly feel unsafe because there is a section of this country that has co-opted the American flag and they equate being an American, or an American flag, with white supremacy,” Hostin told viewers.

"The remarks drew swift backlash online, with commentators pointing to an inconvenient detail about Hostin’s own living situation. She resides in Purchase, New York, one of the wealthiest zip codes in the entire country. The average income in her neighborhood hovers around $800,000 per year. The population is between 80 and 85 percent white.

"This isn’t the first time Hostin has expressed anxiety over Old Glory. Back in 2021, she defended an MSNBC analyst who called American and Trump flags in Long Island “disturbing.”

“When someone of color, a black woman, is telling you her feelings, people need to listen and not, you know, repudiate it and not say, ‘Well, that can’t be true,'” Hostin said at the time. She went on to describe her own reaction to seeing flags outside of July 4th or military neighborhoods.

“When I drive into a neighborhood, and it’s not July 4th, and I’m not in a predominantly military household neighborhood and there are flags, American flags, everywhere, alongside Trump flags, alongside flags with stars in a circle, I feel threatened,” she explained.

“Because the message is very clear,” she added. “It’s a message of white supremacy. It’s a message of racism, and it’s a message of their country, not my country. I don’t understand why that would receive backlash. People need to listen when I am saying this is how I feel. This is my experience in this country.” . . .

Can you all see me dissing America?

Cinema Secrets You Missed in Shane!

Golden Glamour Files

One comment on the film said Shane was the first of its kind, but set the tone followed repeatedly many times that established it as a cliche'. TD

Shane movie review & film summary   

. . . "A story depends on who is telling it. “Shane” is told from the point of view of the town and of the boy, who famously cries “Shane! Shane! Come back!” in the closing scene. If we were to follow Shane from town to town, I suspect we would find ritual reenactments of the pattern he’s trapped in. Notice that after stopping for a drink of water at Joe’s place, he’s all set to leave when Ryker’s men ride up. That’s when he interests himself in another man’s quarrel, introduces himself as “a friend,” displays his six-gun and essentially chooses to get involved in a scenario that’s none of his business and will lead to an ending we suspect he’s seen many times before." . . .

Shane (1953) - Full cast & crew - IMDb   Including Nancy Kulp from "The Beverly Hillbillies"

Despicable Joy Reid dances on Lindsey Graham's grave as she says the senator is going to hell

 Daily Mail  

"She has since started a Substack and show on her YouTube channel - joining figures like Jim Acosta and Don Lemon. Sometimes her episodes garner as few as 5,000 views." 

Too contemptible for MSNBC?

"Former MSNBC host Joy Reid tore into the 'legacy' of late Senator Lindsey Graham on her web show this week, calling him 'racist' and a representation of 'actual evil.'

"Graham - a leading Republican voice for decades - died Saturday at the age of 71.

"Reid, 57, made the disparaging remarks just seconds after telling viewers that she hoped they all had a 'fabulous weekend.'

"'Well, you definitely had a better weekend than the Republican caucus in the United States Senate - because hell opened its doors for at least one more,' she quipped.

"Laughing at herself, Reid teased: 'So, we're going to talk a little bit about that.'

"A monologue decrying the 'mainstream media' for failing to condemn Graham's interventionist approaches to foreign policy followed.

"Reid chided journalists for speaking kindly of a longtime Israel supporter who proudly championed the US's use of military force against Iran.

"'I will make the case, I believe, that much like when [former Secretary of State] Henry Kissinger passed away - at age 100 I think - it was, we need to know when bad people pass,' Reid said. " . . .   Daily Mail

‘Diabolically dumb’ Joy Reid blasted for latest rant attacking white people

California destroys its own movie industry, then blames it for wanting to leave

 Spencer Pratt: "Socialists: is there anything they CAN’T destroy?"

Monica Showalter - American Thinker

Not even the wokesters who did their best to ruin Detroit did that much damage. But in California, the leftists have found a way.

"California's film industry is not famous for being conservative, but the leftward tilt of the state has certainly caused to respond like conservatives, as the state's ruling leftists chase it out.

"Which brings us to the whale of all flights outward, the threat by a huge studio giant -- Paramount is weighing whether to leave the state and take their $30 billion in spending, and tens of thousands of 'good-paying' union jobs with them. 

"The movie industry is already struggling.

"In that atmosphere, mergers make sense. It happens in every industry in times of rapid change and falling profits -- cars, tech, toys, foods, what have you. California's pols won't allow the merger, so now the studio needs to go someplace where it can make money since it can't in California.

"That's Business 101 and (compared to California under leftist rule) Atlanta is nice this time of year ...

"This failure to approve the merger with Warner Brothers Discovery isn't the only problem.

"'Accidentally," they said: 

 Gavin Newsom Accidentally Cancels His Hollywood Tax Credit https://youtube.com/shorts/c0ncnzYboz0?si=I_XvQ4eIO05u-cI3 via @YouTube

 More...

Breaking down claim Trump paid himself 2.5% contractor fee on new White House ballroom

 Breaking down claim Trump paid himself 2.5% contractor fee on new White House ballroom

. . . "In short, it was not possible to independently verify whether Trump or anyone related to him received such a kickback, but Snopes found no evidence of this occurring. For this reason, we left the claim unrated. 

"Social media users appeared to misunderstand a document that public interest watchdog Public Citizen obtained in April 2026 as part of a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit. The document is an agreement between the White House, the National Park Service and Trust for the National Mall, a nonprofit organization." . . .  Full article here...

But facts will not matter to Whoopi and the girls. TD

Eric Swalwell said any Democrat candidate had to commit to tearing the ballroom down.
Where is Eric now, by the way?

he FBI Just Told Fox News It Knows Who Funded the Riots and Indictments Are Coming    . . . "That investigation is now running in parallel with one of the most explosive financial crime cases in years.

Federal prosecutors in New York have opened a grand jury investigation into Neville Roy Singham – a China-based tech tycoon who pumped roughly $285 million through a Goldman Sachs philanthropy fund and a network of shell companies into Marxist activist groups across the United States since 2017.

Singham – who relocated to Shanghai after selling his company for an estimated $785 million – has funded CodePink, The People's Forum, the Party for Socialism and Liberation, and BreakThrough News.

These are the same organizations whose affiliated activists showed up at Delaney Hall, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles screaming at ICE agents."

When this all completed and beautiful, I can't wait to see what the next Democrat Administration will do with it. "There were just too many issues with using the ballroom, so we had to go with the usual tent."

The Negative Impact of Socialism

I feel one must look at all the Greta Thunberg clones on streets with their Hamas scarves and raised fists to realize the types who support socialism. TD

Angry ExDemocrat   

"As societies seek to strike a balance between economic equality and individual freedoms, it is crucial to critically evaluate the potential trade-offs of embracing a socialist model of governance."

"Socialism, as an economic and political ideology, has been a topic of heated debate for decades. Proponents argue that it aims to reduce economic inequality and provide essential services to all citizens, while critics often emphasize its potential negative consequences. This article delves into the negative impacts of socialism, exploring its effects on economic growth, individual incentives, innovation, and personal freedoms. While socialism's intentions may be noble, its implementation can lead to a range of unintended and detrimental outcomes.

Stifled Economic Growth

"One of the fundamental flaws of socialism lies in its tendency to stifle economic growth. By placing significant control over the means of production in the hands of the government, socialism often results in inefficiencies, lack of competition, and reduced productivity. State-owned enterprises might prioritize political considerations over market demands, leading to resource misallocation and a decline in overall economic output. The absence of competition diminishes the incentive for businesses to innovate and improve efficiency, ultimately hampering

economic progress.

Incentive Erosion

"Individual incentives lie at the heart of any thriving economy. Socialism, however, can undermine these incentives by redistributing wealth and resources from the more productive members of society to those who contribute less. The promise of equal outcomes regardless of effort or talent can discourage hard work, entrepreneurship, and innovation. When there is no potential for greater personal gain through exceptional effort, individuals might lose the drive to excel and contribute positively to the economy." . . .  More...

Why socialism doesn’t work — Adam Smith Institute 

  "Socialism, when implemented as a political and economic system, has historically led to tyranny and persecution for several reasons:

"Socialism typically abolishes or severely restricts private property. Without private ownership and the ability to reap personal rewards from effort and innovation, productivity declines, and economic stagnation follows.

"Government-controlled economies lack the flexibility and efficiency of market-driven ones. Central planners cannot account for the complexity of supply and demand, leading to shortages, waste, and inefficiency." . . . More...

UPDATE:  A Former Clinton Advisor Is Warning Democrats About the Looming Communist Takeover   

. . . Perhaps. But even then, we've seen some women say they didn't report their rapists because the rapist was black and they didn't want to be racist.  What they would do is turn things that are not crimes—like speaking out against communism—into crimes and jail people for ungoodthink." . . .

The Destructive Consequences Of Socialism

Trump’s CEA reports on an ideology that retards growth—and worse.

Hoover Institution   

"In short, the Nordic tax systems are less “progressive” than ours. U.S. socialist Bernie Sanders claims that he wants the United States to emulate Scandinavia. That would mean driving U.S. tax rates on the middle class well above the levels we have now. I wouldn’t be surprised if Sanders has done so little investigation that he doesn’t know even that basic fact."

AfterMath - Home

. . . "But the CEA economists don’t just rely on empirical economic models. They also use good economic reasoning to point out the basic problem with socialism: bad incentives. Following Milton and Rose Friedman, they note four ways people can spend money: (1) spend their own money on themselves, (2) spend their own money on others, (3) spend someone else’s money on themselves, and (4) spend someone else’s money on others. The fourth way accounts for most government spending. The authors note a huge problem: the spenders don’t economize (they’re spending other people’s money) and they don’t seek the highest value (they’re spending on others.) For that reason, socialism and government spending generally are very wasteful.

"They use this basic spending framework to criticize the idea, which has become popular on the American left, of Medicare for All. They quote New York Times economics columnist Paul Krugman’s statement that under Medicare for All, “most people would gain more from the elimination of insurance premiums than they would lose from the tax hike.” The authors point out that Krugman fails to mention “any of the economic problems with spending someone else’s money on someone else.” (italics added)

"That criticism might account for Krugman’s calling the report “amazingly dishonest.” Krugman claims the report is “basically saying that if you favor Medicare for All, you’re Mao Zedong.” Not true. The authors note upfront that “Present-day socialists do not want the dictatorship or state brutality that often coincided with the most extreme cases of socialism.” Who’s dishonest?

"It’s easy to show that our mixed economy in the United States performs way better than the horrible socialist economies of Lenin’s and Stalin’s Soviet Union, of Chairman Mao’s Communist China, and of Fidel Castro’s Cuba." . . .More...   

David R. Henderson is a research fellow with the Hoover Institution. He is also a professor of economics at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California.

Donald Trump Said Stephen Colbert Got What He Deserved and Now Insiders Are Confirming It

 Renewed Right  

The lesson is one that every liberal late-night host is going to learn eventually – Samantha Bee already learned it, Trevor Noah already learned it, James Corden already learned it – you cannot build a career on hating one man and then act surprised when the audience disappears the moment the bit gets old.

 With Colbert Off The Air, Dancing Vaccines Forced To Perform At Children’s Birthday Parties | Babylon Bee

"Stephen Colbert spent a decade telling half of America it was stupid, racist, and wrong.

"Now insiders say he showed up to the Taylor Swift wedding last week looking like a man with nothing left to say.

"What one source said about why has conservatives everywhere nodding.

"The Party That Left Him Behind

"Hollywood insiders told gossip journalist Rob Shuter that Colbert appeared "unusually subdued and miserable" at the July 3 wedding – a stark departure from the guy who danced in a syringe costume to promote COVID shots to a shrinking audience that stopped caring years ago.

"'This wasn't just a job – it was his identity," a source told Shuter's Substack Naughty but Nice. “Stephen poured everything into that show,” he continued. “Losing it has hit him hard.”

That's exactly the problem.

Colbert didn't build a comedy show.

"He built a ten-year hate letter to the seventy-five million Americans who voted for Donald Trump – twice – and then complained that CBS pulled the plug when the letter stopped selling.

"The Late Show was hemorrhaging $40 million a year.

"A hundred million dollars annually to produce.

"And Colbert averaged fewer than two million viewers a night by the time the end came on May 21.

Trump Said It Better Than Anyone

"When CBS announced the cancellation back in July 2025, Trump posted on Truth Social within hours.

"'I absolutely love that Colbert got fired," the president wrote. "His talent was even less than his ratings." . . .