Normalizing Insanity: Lessons from California’s Crazy, Crazy Politics

"If you [are] transgendered illegal immigrant, California is the place you want to be. For most normal people, the other 49 states are a saner choice."

Legal Insurrection

"Explaining why California’s quality of life is literally in the crapper."

"The data is in, and it turns out that the quality of life in the Golden State is the lowest in the nation, confirming my reports from the front lines of California’s cultural war against the rest of the nation:

…The Golden State ranked 50th in quality of life by fairing poorly in the natural and social environment categories.

The report, released Tuesday, ranks states based on a healthy environment and a sense of community. It takes into account each state’s urban air quality, pollution and voter participation, among other measures.

California ranked last in urban air quality and 45th in “low pollution health risk,” although it was 13th in drinking water quality. The state also found itself second-to-last in voter participation, 44th in community engagement and 38th in social support.

Despite its beaches, redwood trees and Hollywood glam, the state’s blemishes are often highlighted. Los Angeles consistently leads as the world’s most traffic-congested urban area and even its own citizens have tried to secede multiple times.

"I think I have an explanation for this result: The progressives in this state have promulgated regulation after regulation that tries to normalize insanity.

"Two examples that are related to my work as an environmental health and safety professional highlight this point. Both aspects involve postings at worksites that employers are required to make.

"The first of these posting requirements is that employers must post notices when federal agents are intending to conduct a review of employment eligibility records." . . .

"But there even more crazy to enjoy! California’s employers must have a posting about transgender rights." . . .

"Conservative pundit Tammy Bruce, who is also and the newly minted President of the Independent Women’s Voice, noted that the descent into madness accelerated during Obama’s two terms in office." . . .

We wish the State of Jefferson well.

2016 presidential election results, showing a strong Republican presence in the proposed State of Jefferson

Spartan7W

Studio audience of The View erupts in applause at defense of Trump and attack on Hollywood and Hillary

One wonders what the "Applause" sign was telling the audience to do.

basketbalkenners

Thomas Lifson  Progressives in the media live in a cocoon, where dissenting voices are scorned, and liberal platitudes and pieties reign as eternal, unchallengeable truths.  Daytime television, with a heavily female viewing audience, has been a safe haven for Trump-haters, and the studio audiences for chat shows usually behave themselves and applaud or laugh on cue – such as at the latest spew from the lips of the likes of Joy Behar of The View.

"But something is happening, and audiences are applauding at the wrong posts – from time to time, at least.

"Consider this vignette, spotted by Justin Caruso of The Daily Caller.  Meghan McCain, daughter of the Arizona senator and designated sorta-conservative cast member of The View, yesterday unloaded on Hollywood for bias against conservatives, throwing in their Hillary fetish and Trump-hatred, and the audience applauded.  Enthusiastically.

"Courtesy of Caruso and The D.C., here is her little speech and a video below it, where the applause can be savored.

. . . "Consider this vignette, spotted by Justin Caruso of The Daily Caller.  Meghan McCain, daughter of the Arizona senator and designated sorta-conservative cast member of The View, yesterday unloaded on Hollywood for bias against conservatives, throwing in their Hillary fetish and Trump-hatred, and the audience applauded.  Enthusiastically."

How Canada ended up with Justin Trudeau

" . . .he was elected because of massive foreign funding, from the likes of the rabidly leftwing and secretive Tides Foundation, linked to George Soros and radical environmental movements."

Monica Showalter  "With all of Justin Trudeau's blunders - from blowing

Photo added, TD

up Canada's relationship with India (and messing up in China, too), to welcoming floods of unvetted migrants to Canada, to running up the debt, to taking lavish vacations at taxpayer expense, to pushing for all kinds of political correctnesses, it's kind of natural to wonder why this has happened. Seriously, how could Canada have ended up with such an incompetent as its prime minister? His stupidities are legion and likely only to continue. A new Ipsos poll reveals that if a Canadian election were held tomorrow, Trudeau would be thrown out." . . .

This man is another Obama, only with both halves being white. Don't believe me? Then read all the points in this. Well, except point seven I suppose.

Justin Trudeau called a ‘politically correct plonker’ by Piers Morgan for saying ‘peoplekind’ instead of ‘mankind’  . . . "But she used the word “mankind”, saying: “Maternal love is the love that’s going to change the future of mankind.”
"Mr Trudeau responded to say: “We like to say peoplekind, not necessarily mankind.' ”
From this same source:  Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s son wore a pink dress for Halloween  . . . [Morgan] "also called Mr Trudeau the “Chief PC Plonker … spineless virtue-signalling excuse for a feminist”, going on to criticise Trudeau’s use of the word “peoplekind”, and attacking his reluctance to use the word “mankind”, explaining the word’s origin." . . .

ISIS, meet the US varsity

"The last 14 months of getting their butts whooped has taught ISIS an important lesson: it wasn’t America that was weak, it was her former president."  Cartoonist Tony Branco

Tony Branco

Parkland Survivor Writes DNC Fundraising Letter. Perhaps they should consult with Condoleeza Rice on that

Brandon Minoff

Parkland High School Student: Media Politicizing Tragedy To Push Gun Control, Not Focusing On Students  . . . " 'It pains me to see that knowing that 17 of my classmates are dead and they just want to talk about gun control," he continued. "Students have opinions, they say stuff that they’re against guns, and that gun control is necessary, but they’re making it bigger than it needs to be at this moment.' " . . .
"Minoff said that he "definitely" thinks that schools should have armed security guards, a comment he made while discussing football coach and security guard Aaron Feis, who was killed as he shielded students from the shooter.
" 'If coach Feis would have had a gun or any of the other security guards would have had a gun it definitely would have been less fatal," he said. "[The shooter] and coach Feis were face-to-face and he just shielded kids instead of having the ability to kill the shooter.' " . . .

But the Democrat press has got to this young lady: Daily Caller  "One Parkland shooting survivor is now using the mass shooting to fundraise for the Democratic National Committee (DNC).

"In the letter, which the DNC blasted out via email on Friday, Marjory Stoneman Douglas senior Sara Imam cited her classmate’s deaths as reason to support Democrats in the 2018 midterm elections.

“ 'If you’re with me and other Stoneman Douglas survivors, add your name to commit to vote this fall — it’s the only way we’ll do something about gun violence in our country,” Imam writes, urging people to “Help elect Democrats who will take action on gun violence.' ” . . .

The topic of gun violence should be a bipartisan discussion, but it is far from it.  . . . "As some of these students delve deeper into the political world, they are going to face more and more criticism, criticism that the left says is unwarranted. But these students are starting to become significant political actors, and if the DNC is going to use these young adults to further an agenda anathema to conservatism and the Constitution, it will have to expect pushback.
"The young woman is now a legal adult and is, without question, eligible to vote. Without Sara Imam’s permission, this DNC email would not be going out, and while this email is something from Imam herself, one can’t help but be disappointed in the fact that the DNC is capitalizing on the tragedy to generate enthusiasm and hopefully increase voter turn out." . . .

Condoleeza Rice on The View: My Father Used Guns to Repel KKK

“And I’m sure if Bull Connor had known where those guns were he would have rounded them up.”

"Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice reminded the ladies on The View of the importance of the Second Amendment. Her father and neighbors used guns to protect themselves against the KKK and racists while growing up in the deep south. From The Blaze:

Bull Connor's deputies

“I was a little girl growing up in Birmingham, Alabama, in the late fifties, early sixties,” she explained. “There was no way that Bull Connor and the Birmingham Police were going to protect you.”

“And so when White Knight Riders would come through our neighborhood,” she said, “my father and his friends would take their guns and they’d go to the head of the neighborhood, it’s a little cul-de-sac and they would fire in the air, if anybody came through.”

“I don’t think they actually ever hit anybody,” she continued. “But they protected the neighborhood. And I’m sure if Bull Connor had known where those guns were he would have rounded them up.”

“And so, I don’t favor some things like gun registration,” she said to a suddenly silent crowd.

“That said, it’s time to have a national conversation about how we can deal with the problems we have. It’s not going to be any single fix to the terrible events at Parkland,” she concluded.  . . .  

Know why a conservative will always come out second on a TV talk show?

What shows have applause signs?  "Like Dr. Phil, for example. Is there an applause sign or are people actually clapping in agreement with what he says? Same with Oprah?"


 "Best Answer from Gonzo:  all of them. audience members are expected to be robots.

"Every show that has a LIVE audience has an applause sign. Yes, Dr. Phil, Oprah, the View, Regis & Kelly, Rachel Ray, etc.
My friend Julie & her Mom went to see Oprah in Chicago about 2 years ago. It took them about 6 months to get tickets.

"Game shows, talk shows, sitcoms..they either have "laugh, clap, Ahhh and booing, cheer" signs or actually pay someone to stand by the stage to coach the audience.

Studio Audience participation
Awww

• For a close-up of a cute baby, a basket of little puppies, a tender moment between two characters, and other golden moments.
• Some shows have specific audience responses:
• "Jerry! Jerry!" from Jerry Springer.
• Trouble Brewing (Oooh)
  • Not common, but it occurs in sitcoms when one character challenges another, and the second character takes up the gauntlet.
  • Common on talk shows where the subject matter is really lowbrow. The good-for-nothing boyfriend accuses the skanky girlfriend of sleeping around and she makes a bombshell confession: It was his best friend who knocked her up! Cue the indignant crowd.
  • Also happens whenever something offensive is said. This is usually followed up with something else that makes the whole thing funny in retrospect, cuing laughter or applause.
  Full article.

Justice Department reviewing Oakland mayor's tipoff of immigration raids, which led to 232 arrests

LA Times  "The White House on Thursday said the Department of Justice was reviewing the actions of Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf, who last weekend alerted residents in advance of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid in Northern California.

" 'I think it's outrageous that a mayor would circumvent federal authorities and certainly put them in danger by making a move such as that," White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters.

"She said Schaaf's actions were under "review" but would not be more specific.

"Justin Berton, a spokesman for Schaaf, said the mayor's office is unaware of any review and declined to comment further. A Justice Department spokesman in the Bay Area also declined to comment.

"Schaaf has defended her statement, saying she felt it was her duty to warn residents of the ICE action." . . .

Obama's Scandal-Free Delusion

David Limbaugh  "Upon hearing that former President Barack Obama recently boasted that he had a scandal-free administration, my first thought after regaining my faculties was: How can I possibly cram all the evidence refuting this in a little bitty column?

"Then I read that what he actually said was, "We didn't have a scandal that embarrassed us." At first blush, that sounds better, right? Because I assume he doesn't mean he's incapable of being embarrassed. After a little more thought, though, it occurred to me that this construction just highlights the real reason he has apparently deluded himself into thinking he served eight honorable years: The liberal media had his back the entire time, even when he treated them like dirt.

"In fact, Obama was a perpetual power-abusing machine. He was so routinely high-handed and selectively contemptuous of the rule of law that people were beginning to think presidential authoritarianism was the new normal. How ironic that so many of Obama's enablers are now projecting these sins onto President Trump, who -- to this point, at least - hasn't actually crossed the line into flouting the Constitution. The left believes -- and acts on the belief -- that the ends justify the means, and so, it naturally assumes we will do the same. Obama was hell-bent on fundamentally transforming America as founded, and he was willing to scratch, bite, kick, steal and flush the rule of law to accomplish it -- and he did, like no president before him. In other words, Obama's lies were OK because lies are sometimes necessary for the greater good.

"For your review, let me just give you a list of examples, many of them snatched from my two Obama books, which chronicled his two disgraceful terms. Not all technically qualify as scandals, but enough do." . . .  Full article.

When nerf guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have nerf guns

First shock, then remorse, followed by anger, protest, demagoguing, and then silliness. TD

Walmart dances with insanity and bans toy guns  "Walmart, not to be outdone by Dick’s Sporting Goods, has jumped aboard the gun ban trade and sent out a corporate letter that makes clear its own stores would be restricting sales of firearms and ammunition to those above age 21.

Weasel Zippers photo

"And with a sort of “oh yeah, how ‘bout this” flip of the ace card, Walmart also announced it was barring sales of toy guns, too.

"Toy guns. Really now, is this where we are as a society?" . . .

New Jersey high school mulls cancellation of Nerf 
gun tournament over shooting fears  . . . “ 'Although students use Nerf guns during these games, the strategies employed by students to target other teams may be misinterpreted in today's climate,' ” 
"The Nerf gun tournament, known at the school as Dart Wars, has been conducted for more than 10 years, according to NorthJersey.com.
"The tournament normally runs from March to June and is conducted during off hours. The toys are not allowed on campus." . . .

Democrat Senator Proposes Restricting Gun That Does Not Exist, saying, . .  "Certainly somebody who’s 18, 19, 20 years old shouldn’t be able to purchase an assault rifle, an AR-15 or other gas-assisted receiver firearms when they can’t buy a simple handgun, so that should be changed.
. . . "Washington Free Beacon gun expert Stephen Gutowski assessed the matter on Twitter:

He might have had in mind the WW2 M-1 Garand, which was described as "gas-operated, clip-fed . . ."

Understanding the strategy behind President Trump's twitter slam of AG Sessions?

. . .  "but President Trump could have fired him anytime he wishes.  And he would have, if he really thought the prosecutions of his mortal enemies are going nowhere.

Thomas Lifson  "I have a strong suspicion that the current kerfuffle between President Trump and Jeff Sessions is part of a strategy, not merely – as the left has it – a rogue president shockingly, immaturely, and inappropriately attacking his attorney general on Twitter.

"By now, you have probably seen the tweet in question:

Why is A.G. Jeff Sessions asking the Inspector General to investigate potentially massive FISA abuse. Will take forever, has no prosecutorial power and already late with reports on Comey etc. Isn’t the I.G. an Obama guy? Why not use Justice Department lawyers? DISGRACEFUL!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 28, 2018

"Occam's Razor suggests that the president means it and that he really wants DOJ prosecutors charged with going after Comey and is genuinely angry at Sessions.  But I always see Donald Trump as a master of the video narrative, an expert crafter of story arcs that work to his advantage, and which often lure his opponents into positions that redound to his benefit once all the facts and drama have played themselves out before the nation's eyes.  Never forget that Donald Trump is the most successful reality television producer in the history of the medium.  And never forget that he played the media like a Stradivarius violin during the campaign, exploiting their predictable outrage." . . .

What if A.G. Sessions is already conducting serious investigations and has developed evidence that will result in indictments for misbehavior in the surveillance of the Trump campaign and in the FBI?  The very last thing Sessions (or Trump) would want is for Sessions to be seen as Trump's hit man, going after his political opponents.  Wouldn't it better, instead, for Sessions to be regarded by the mainstream media as someone sympathetic, because the POTUS has attacked him? This dispatch from Trump-hating CNN makes my point:

 Full article here.

On the other hand... NRO declares, "We’re with Jeff Sessions"

The president has a point in urging an investigation by Justice Department prosecutors, although nothing justifies his blunderbuss tweet and ongoing campaign of humiliation against Jeff Sessions.

School safety: Beyond gun control

Leftist progressive extremists push confiscation.  But since firearms and ammunition can be made in a basement with metalworking equipment, organized crime views gun confiscation as the biggest new business development opportunity since Prohibition.

Jeff Locke  "President Eisenhower was fond of saying that if you correctly define the problem, then you are 90% of the way toward finding the solution.

"The left defines the problem as weapons in the hands of civilians.  As always, leftists insist that the only solution is government (just pass a law, and the problem goes away).  The right defines the problem as mentally ill people having weapons (so keep them away from lunatics).  The correct definition of the problem is that society is threatened and vulnerable to many modern malevolent forces (insanity and Islamic extremism among them) intent on destruction via many weapon types.  The solution is a threat-solution matrix and an improved, layered defense, not a single solution like banning semi-automatic rifles or truncating magazines.

"One thing was apparent at the Florida school massacre: law enforcement failed us.  We learned that the FBI tip line was being managed not by James Comey or Christopher Wray, but by Inspector Clouseau from the Pink Panther movies.  If you think government or law enforcement alone is going to keep your school safe, think again, or you may die.

"It would behoove school boards, administrators, principals, and police to structure their thinking holistically, so that they have a robust security plan." . . .

Headlines most of the media don't want the public to see

"It is no wonder that Trump is around 50% approval in Rasmussen, which is around 7% higher than Obama at this point in his presidency.  And it is also no wonder that almost all the media ignore the Rasmussen poll while touting low numbers in Gallup and CNN polls" . . .

Jack Hellner  "I understand why most of the media are focusing on the fictional Russian collusion, Hope Hicks resigning, and rumors about Jared Kushner.  Since they hate Trump, they certainly wouldn't focus on how well the economy is doing, which shows up in the following articles on the Drudge Report on March 1.

• Jobless claims plunge to 49-year low...
• Incomes Up Most in Five Years...
• Manufacturing Expands at Fastest Pace Since '04...
• US crude oil output hits all-time high; Takes out 1970 record...
• Foreign Holdings of U.S. Securities Rise to Record $18 Trillion...

"I do find this article in the WSJ, also published on March 1, funny.  They state that foreign investors aren't buying as many government bonds, while the above bullet point says foreign investors hold a record number. 

"I also find the following funny: "Does Fed control Trump 2020 destiny?"

"Predictions about the  2020 election are absolutely nuts.  I will give the authors a clue.  If the economy continues to do so well that the Fed believes that it needs to continually raise rates, Trump will probably do pretty well against the leftists who want bigger government and who want more people to be dependent on government.  My guess is that the majority of people will be happier with better jobs, fewer regulations, and lower taxes, versus more food stamps, more regulations, and higher taxes. 

"Some other headlines that most of the media are virtually ignoring:" . . .

Related: Bloomberg reports Real Disposable Incomes in U.S. Increase Most Since 2015