Saturday, June 8, 2019

Biden has just blown his cred as a moderate, non-scary Dem

There is now no reason for moderate Democrats, scared of the party's vocal activist base and the hard-left shift they have forced on it, to trust that Biden won't cower and cave in to that base on other issues.  

Thomas Lifson  "The dirty little secret of Joe Biden's frontrunner status is that most traditional Democrat voters are scared of the party's vocal left-wing faction and the politicians who pander to them with ruinously expensive policies like the Green New Deal, racialism like "slavery reparations," and talk of raising taxes and imprisoning Donald Trump on charges to be determined later.
"The inevitable fall of Biden just accumulated downward momentum by his reversal of position on the Hyde Amendment (banning federal funding of abortion except in cases of rape, incest, or threat to the mother's life).  For decades, he has cited his deep Catholic faith as the reason he cannot support taxpayer-funded abortions.  But what's a deeply held religious position when his political career is at stake?" . . .
. . . So why support a bumbling, gaffe-prone (AKA stupid), ancient pol if he is useless as a bulwark against the hard left?" . . .

Where do pro-life Democrats go now?  . . . "ZIP code?  How pathetic!
"The flip is a total crock and makes Biden look weak and foolish.  The Hyde Amendment is about federal funding of abortion and nothing more. 
"Why did he flip anyway?  He is up significantly in the polls.  Standing up to the Left would work for Biden in the general election.  He could say he believes in Roe v Wade but not in forcing taxpayers to pay for abortion.  He could add that he agrees with most Americans who want restrictions on late-term abortions without taking a woman's right to choose.
" 'Pathetic" is not strong enough." . . .
Tony Branco

Donor To Alabama University After Donation Rejection: You Have Put A Shotgun In Your Mouth and Pulled The Trigger

Matt Vespa  . . . "As with any school, you don’t trash it and you don’t tell students to boycott it over something that is not within the realm of their control. The university’s board of trustees returned a $20+ million gift and removed the donor’s name from the law school. This comes after Hugh F. Culverhouse Jr. urged students to boycott the institution over the state’s abortion law that recently passed. The law is one of the strictest anti-abortion laws on the books, which sent liberals into a frenzy. " . . .


Friday, June 7, 2019

Is Germany Becoming Germany — Again?

Victor Davis Hanson
Merkel’s evident anti-Americanism is a familiar refrain. 

"The more things change, well, the more they . . . So it is with the perpetual German resentments of the U.S.

"Recently German chancellor Angela Merkel reminded us of that German fixation, when she made some astounding statements to the German media that revealed what many Americans had long ago surmised.

"Merkel all but announced that Germany, or for that matter Europe itself, is no longer really an ally of the United States: “There is no doubt that Europe needs to reposition itself in a changed world. . . . The old certainties of the post-war order no longer apply.”

"She insisted that Germany views the democratic United States as not much different from autocratic Russia and Communist China: Urging Europe to present a united front in the face of Russia, China, and the U.S., she said, “They are forcing us, time and again, to find common positions.” And Merkel concluded that therefore Germany must find “political power” commensurate with its economic clout to forge a new independent European path." . . . .

Don Surber's Highlights of the News for June 7th; some excerpts.

Don Surber

. . . "ITEM 6: Ladybugs.

"On September 20, 2018, NBC reported, "Where have all the ladybugs gone? Scientists worry as non-pest insect population dwindles. Scientists say light pollution and global warming may be to blame for declining insect population."

"We found them.

"The Associated Press reported, "A huge blob that appeared on the National Weather Service’s radar wasn’t a rain cloud, but a massive swarm of ladybugs over Southern California. Meteorologist Joe Dandrea says the array of bugs appeared to be about 80 miles wide as it flew over San Diego Tuesday."

"That proves global warming is over. Praise President Trump.

"ITEM 7: Climate Home News reported, "Joe Biden has promised to crack down on China’s coal power spree in other countries if elected US president in 2020."

"In 2008, he said, "No coal plants here in America. Build them, if they're going to build them, over there in China."

"He's a political weathervane.

"A big, dumb, creepy, sleepy political weathervane.



"ITEM 8: Agence-France Presse reported, "As most US farmers feel the brunt of the trade war with China, some, like garlic and honey producers who have struggled for years, are applauding new, higher tariffs on Chinese goods.

" "'It's been a pretty exciting time for us in Gilroy, California,' Ken Christopher, whose family runs Christopher Ranch, the nation's largest garlic grower, told AFP.

" 'Though nearly all garlic consumed in America was grown in the US prior to 1993, that changed almost overnight when Chinese exporters began flooding the US market with their product, all but wiping out garlic growers across the country, Christopher said."

"Be American. Buy American. Ward off vampires with American garlic." . . .


California Is The Future The Liberal Elite Wants For You

"California will continue to circle the drain, and barring revolution – a real one, with all the attendant bad stuff for the ruling class – there’s no coming out of it. They’re dining on zebras in the Caracas zoo and yet the socialist revolution marches on. California is no different; it’s just a decade behind the Venezuelan vanguard."
Townhall



"California has morphed from paradise into a garbage state run by garbage people for their own garbage benefit and amusement. The “garbage” part is literal – once the Sierra Nevada mountains symbolized the state; now, towering heaps of trash and human waste do. Welcome to what the Democrats want for all of America. Just watch your step. Literally. 

"If it were not for the climate, something the liberals in charge of my state have nothing to do with as much as they think they do, it would likely be a nearly empty desert once again. But the sun shines, the beach beckons and the palm trees sway over a population of morons who keep electing proggy fascists to run the place. Which they are doing, right into the ground. 

"Where once people flocked to make their dreams come true, you now pay multiples more for a UHaul heading out than heading in. The great California middle class, made up of the Normal people whose hard work and ingenuity made it the Golden State (even though Hollywood types got the publicity), is fleeing to places where they can afford to live, and where the government doesn’t hate them. 

"And hate them Sacramento does . . ."

. . . "
Already, petty crime has been effectively legalized. Crooks get a free pass on the first $950 a day they steal." . .

. . . "It’s doomed. And what’s important to understand is that the liberal elite wants the same thing for the rest of America. To our ruling class, California is not a cautionary example. It’s the goal for our whole country." . . .


Garrison

Illegal Alien Invasion Part Of Left’s Plan To Control Electoral College

OAN "Following the loss of the 2016 election, Democrats are scrambling to make sure they control the electoral college the next time round. Illegal aliens could be a big part of their plan.
"One America’s Pearson Sharp explains."

Joe Biden: Leader-in-Waiting of the Free World

Tony Branco
Joe Biden is relishing a fight with Trump over China
Throughout his long political career, Biden was never known as a bright bulb.  But his comments on China after decades of Chinese economic and cyber-warfare against America are staggering, even for him.
 "The Pathetic Joe Biden " . . . "David Harsanyi has a terrific Twitter compilation of Biden’s long-record of support not only for the Hyde Amendment, but for restricting partial-birth abortion, and once upon a time even the Mexico City policy (first adopted by the Reagan Administration in 1984) that bans U.S. foreign aid for abortion overseas. I especially like this old quote from Slow Joe: “I don’t like the Supreme Court decision on abortion. I think it went too far. I don’t think that a woman has the sole right to say what should happen to her body.”
"The standard line of the media is that it is Republicans who have become extreme on abortion. It might be worth reviewing some history to show just how radicalized in abortion absolutism Democrats have become. Remember George McGovern, the candidate  of “acid, amnesty, and abortion”? Actually the last item in the list is incorrect. McGovern entered the 1972 campaign season with the position that abortion was a matter that should be left to state legislatures (which is the default Republican position today), and he successfully resisted attempts at including a pro-abortion plank in the Democratic platform in 1972. He openly rejected abortion-on-demand.  There must be regulating legislation, McGovern thought: “You can’t just let anybody walk in and request an abortion.” . . .

How can any Republican ever govern with all this liberal propaganda against him?

Rich Terrell
Hillary proclaims she won the popular vote and Bobby O'Rourke is praised for coming close to Ted Cruz; what was all that favorable press coverage worth to them as in-kind campaign contributions?

Today in hating Trump  "The media constantly bends, folds and mutilates everything President Donald John Trump does because the press is run by Peter Pans who will never grow up.
"Their obsession with faking news about President Trump is koi fishing.
"This refers to a particular event on November 6, 2017.
"CNN's story was headlined, "Trump feeds fish, winds up pouring entire box of food into koi pond."
"Feeding fish is a breaking international news story?
"Buried in the story was this paragraph: "The move got Trump some laughs, and a smile from Abe, who actually appeared to dump out his box of food ahead of Trump."
"Appeared?" . . .

CNN Editor Believes Bette Midler Would Destroy Trump in Election . . . "Katz’s claim was posted a day after Midler tweeted a fake quote of Trump calling Republicans “the dumbest group of voters in the country.” Midler later apologized for sharing the debunked quote. However, Midler’s apology made her look a little too sane for her liking, so she proceeded to fume over Trump’s tuxedo." . . .

Central Park Five Miniseries Repeats Lie that Trump Called for Death Penalty for Minors  . . . "It is false to claim that Trump called for the boys to be killed. For one thing, he was calling for bringing back the death penalty in the state of New York in general. He said in an interview with Larry King at the time that he supported the death penalty only "if the woman died" and if perpetrator was "at a certain age. If they're minors, they should be treated very strongly." All of the boys were minors at the time and would not have been subject to the death penalty if it were reinstated, anyway.
"Don't forget, in 1989, New York City was experiencing an extremely high crime rate, and residents were losing patience with city efforts to get it under control. The subject of the death penalty was a popular topic of conversation at the time so it wasn’t particularly unusual that Trump weighed in with his opinion. Nonetheless, ever since, media outlets have continued to promote the trope that Trump wanted to execute innocent children as though it is a current news story in their never-ending Trump derangement.
"It’s not the truth but it fits the narrative that the left pushes about President Trump – that he is a racist and hates black and brown people. It’s ridiculous. Unfortunately, it is not at all surprising."

California City Officials Fight To Keep Chick-Fil-A From Doing Business

Daily Wire



" 'A San Mateo County official is pushing to stop a Chick-fil-A restaurant from opening up in Redwood City," reports CBS Local news. "The McDonald’s restaurant on Whipple could soon be tuning into a Chick-fil-A, making it the chain’s 13th restaurant in the San Francisco Bay Area."
"San Mateo County supervisor David Canepa told reporters he is seeking to prevent the restaurant from obtaining an "architectural permit" due to its founder, Dan Cathy, previously expressing support for traditional marriage and for donating funds to pro-marriage groups.
" 'This would not go before the city council — because it’s an existing use, it would just be administerial for the planning commission," Canepa said. "When people think of the Chick-fil-A logo — what they think of is anti-LGBTQ."
"Canepa hopes the community pressure will be strong enough to persuade Chick-fil-A away from doing business. "What we are trying to do is to make sure Chick-fil-A — if they want to do business here — that there is a lot of pressure here and that they should do the right thing and withdraw their application," he said.
"Craig Wiesner of the San Mateo County LGBTQ Commission supports Canepa in his quest to stop Chick-fil-A from opening in the city. Ironically, he told reporters in the very same sentence that city government should not prevent companies from conducting business while simultaneously calling on the community to prevent Chick-fil-A from conducting business." . . .

Flashback to the Obama days:
One of few non anti Chick fil a cartoons

Trump's hardball on Mexico ... is working


Monica Showalter  "Risky as President Trump's tariff threat tactic on Mexico is, it appears to be ... working.
"Trump's hardball measures have gotten Mexico to deploy some serious measures to keep the migrant surge into the U.S. from becoming a flood. Somehow, a trade treaty works best when there's a security treaty underlying it, and Mexico thus far seems to recognize this. The markets, by the way, are noticing.
"According to Fox News:
Reports in the evening indicated that Mexico's negotiators with Washington have offered to immediately deploy 6,000 National Guard troops to the border with Guatemala. Additionally, Mexico has reportedly agreed to a major overhaul of reasonable asylum protocols, which would require asylum applicants to seek permanent refuge in the first country they arrive in after fleeing their home countries.
"...and...
Also on Thursday, Mexico's financial intelligence agency announced it had frozen the bank accounts of 26 people who it claimed "have presumably participated in migrant smuggling and the organization of illegal migrant caravans."
The agency said it had detected money transfers from central Mexico to six Mexican border cities presumably related to the caravans.
"Here's another one, a particularly satisfying one cited by Breitbart:
Mexican authorities arrested two men suspected of promoting and organizing the migrant caravans that moved thousands of migrants from Central America to the U.S. border. Officials claim that the two men demanded money from Central American migrants in exchange for getting them illegally into the U.S." . . .
How to get Mexico to pay attention to our border incursions...  . . . "The tariff threat appears to be getting some results, as we see in news reports
"At the same time, do not underestimate Mexican public opinion.  In other words, most Mexicans do not like the caravans walking through their country either.
"As I've said before, President Trump's unconventional approach is often a step ahead of his critics.  On this issue, he is again." . . .

Thursday, June 6, 2019

Amazing photographs of the Normandy beaches

Wikipedia
Notice the hedgerow country that was a deathtrap for so many troops that survived the murderous beaches - only to be killed by ambush among the tall hedges.
.
Aerial photos of D-Day Normandy sites captured by drone


. . . "This photo taken on Thursday May 30, 2019 with a drone shows Pointe du Hoc, near Colleville-sur-Mer, Normandy. At the Pointe du Hoc, where Allied forces had to scale cliffs to silence Nazis guns, the limestone and clay cliffs have eroded but remains of the fortified location part of Germany's Atlantic Wall defensive system are a powerful vestige of WWII. (AP Photo/David Vincent)" . . .


. . . "In this photo taken with a drone, a dummy paratrooper representing a WWII paratrooper from the 82nd Airborne hangs on the bell tower of the church of Sainte Mere Eglise, in Normandy, France, Thursday, May 9, 2019. Seventy-five years ago, American paratrooper John Steele dangled from a clock tower in Sainte-Mere-Eglise after his parachute got caught during the D-Day invasion, and survived. (AP Photo/David Vincent)"

Trump hugs the last survivor of Omaha Beach’s company A: The President pays tribute to 'tough guy' who stormed the beaches in ‘suicide wave’ and saw half of his comrades killed in minutes

Actually this Company A suffered more than half casualties; they lost about 95%.

UK Daily Mail



"Donald Trump today offered a rare show of emotion when he hugged a 94-year-old veteran who stormed the beaches of Normandy during the Second World War. 
The President embraced former Private Russell Pickett and praised him as a 'tough guy' at the moving ceremony at the American cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer in Normandy. 
"Private Pickett, who was aged 19, was among the elite troops of Company A, 116th Infantry, who were specially chosen to storm the sands of Omaha Beach during the first wave of the D-Day landings. 
"Their mission was so dangerous it was known as D-Day's 'suicide wave' - and the men gained notoriety for their ferocious fighting of the Nazis 75 years ago today - but unfortunately 50 per cent of them became casualties.
"The former private in the 29th Infantry Division was immediately injured by German gun fire as he ran on the sand and he still suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder." . . .
. . . "During the invasion, Trump said, 'Ray ran back into the water. He dragged out one man after another. He was shot through the arm. His leg was ripped open by shrapnel. His back was broken. He nearly drowned. He had been on the beach for hours, bleeding and saving lives when he finally lost consciousness. He woke up the next day on a cot beside another badly wounded soldier. He looked over and saw his brother Bill. They made it. They made it. They made it. At 98 years old, Ray is here with us today with his fourth Purple Heart and his third Silver Star from Omaha. Ray, the free world salutes you. " . . .
Also in this very same company with Private Pickett were the Bedford Boys: 
The Bedford Boys: A Time for Remembrance and Gratitude




. . . "On D-Day, 34 young men from Bedford and Bedford County were serving in Company A, one of the units spearheading the initial assault on the Normandy beaches. Before the day was over, 19 of those young men of Company A were dead, the highest per capita D-Day losses of any community in the nation. One soldier lost his twin brother. Two other brothers died there. Three more Bedford soldiers died in subsequent fighting. Another young Bedford soldier, Benjamin Hubbard of F Company, also lost his life that day." . . .
Pictured here: Company A, 116th Infantry, 29th Division: 95 % casualties in the first wave at Omaha Beach; June 6th, 1944
The UK Guardian reported in 2003: The suicide wave  "On 6 June 1944, the elite troops of Company A, 116th Infantry, stormed the sands of Omaha Beach as part of the first wave of the D-Day landings. Within minutes, most were dead, including 19 men from one small town in rural Virginia. In this extract from his gripping book, Alex Kershaw details the lives and deaths of these young men, and tells here for the first time how the bravery of a British naval officer helped save many of the Bedford Boys...   Read part two of 'The suicide wave' here" . . .

British singer Chris De Burgh had a deep reverence for those who fought in WW2 and paid homage to them in this song from the 1980s:  Say Goodbye To It All