Energize The Base!

The Ahmaud Arbery shooting I noted in April is now going national. CNN aired a video of the fatal confrontation, the case is going to a grand jury and Joe Biden is demanding justice. Now both sides (all sides?) get to grab their scripts and we can fight over whether Ahmaud Arbery is Michael Brown, Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, or someone else entirely. Any chance he's Ahmaud Arbery and this case doesn't fit a template? Naah.

As is so often the case, the vdeo shows what people want it to show. This is CNN:

Brunswick, Georgia (CNN)The fatal shooting of a black man -- apparently recorded on video in February and posted online Tuesday by a local radio station host -- will go to a grand jury in coastal Georgia, according to a district attorney.

Elements of the disturbing video are consistent with a description of the shooting given to police by one of those involved in the incident.

 

Well, yes. Here is the Times version from last April:

 

In a separate document, [local prosecutor] Mr. Barnhill stated that video exists of Mr. Arbery “burglarizing a home immediately preceding the chase and confrontation.” In the letter to the police, he cites a separate video of the shooting filmed by a third pursuer.

 

Mr. Barnhill said this video, which has not been made public, shows Mr. Arbery attacking Travis McMichael after he and his father pulled up to him in their truck.

 

The video shows Mr. Arbery trying to grab the shotgun from Travis McMichael’s hands, Mr. Barnhill wrote. And that, he argued, amounts to self-defense under Georgia law. Travis McMichael, Mr. Barnhill concluded, “was allowed to use deadly force to protect himself.”

 

Where did that take the local prosecutor?

Mr. Barnhill also wrote that he did not believe there was evidence of a crime, noting that Gregory McMichael and his son had been legally carrying their weapons under Georgia law. And because Mr. Arbery was a “burglary suspect,” the pursuers, who had “solid firsthand probable cause,” were justified in chasing him under the state’s citizen’s arrest law.

It's all good!

I'm just a tired old Yankee who is losing patience with this bullshit. Arbery was not jogging down the street carrying a television. And if he was, you're going to shoot him because of it? Why? No one was being kidnapped, no one was being raped, no one was being assaulted - what about this suggested it was a deadly force situation?

 

Or if these vigilantes were gunned up out of fear that the jogger might be armed, well, if the situation is that dangerous just take a deep breath and let it go. I don't care how legal this shooting was, it was stupid and quite likely the law is stupid as well.

 

Now yes, Arbery should not have attacked, as the video suggests he did. Legally that may be exculpatory but I'm not even sure why that is a defense. What, the  vigilante plan was to show up with a shotgun to arrest a guy who, they hoped, would be calm and act responsibly? Just how did they picture this unfolding if the jogger was terrified, hopped up on drugs, had anger management issues, had mental health issues, or whatever? The plan was what - if he's a sensible citizen they'll arrest him, otherwise they'll shoot him? Come on, man.

 

These vigilantes faced a situation where no one was at risk of physical harm and turned it into a situation that had a high potential for disaster. And that's what they got. There ought to be consequences for cranial-anal impaction.

 

 

Comments

[henry]

Vigilantes screwed up. No question. Only police can shoot people for no reason.

[sbwaters]

Spent too much time on this to be willowed:

Ig, DJT's most important skill has been to let others expose themselves for either 1) misunderstanding our founding principles, or 2) not believing in them.

And MM is correct that the country is further gone than anyone of us might have thought.

But we have to take @RealDonaldTrump's lead and persist — not rush — persist. Let the seditious exposure of the FBI, DOJ, CIA, IC, Obama administration, Congress, Democratic governors, foreign leaders, schools, and the media [Wow! All that! Sickening!] proceed apace until what we hope will be a resounding win in for the House, the Senate, and the Presidency in November.

And, if not, ... Time to reassess.

[MissMarple2]

Donald J. Trump
@realDonaldTrump
·
1h
The White House CoronaVirus Task Force, headed by Vice President Mike Pence, has done a fantastic job of bringing together vast highly complex resources that have set a high standard for others to follow in the future. Ventilators, which were few & in bad shape, are now being....

....gloves, gowns etc. are now plentiful. The last four Governors teleconference calls have been conclusively strong. Because of this success, the Task Force will continue on indefinitely with its focus on SAFETY & OPENING UP OUR COUNTRY AGAIN. We may add or subtract people ....

....to it, as appropriate. The Task Force will also be very focused on Vaccines & Therapeutics. Thank you!

[GUS]

The vigilantes are still alive. No so for the "suspect".

What do we know about the suspect.

[MissMarple2]

INSERT THIS TWEET AS THE SECOND IN THE THREAD> TWITTER DISAPPEARED IT ON HIS PAGE>

Donald J. Trump
@realDonaldTrump
·
1h
Replying to
@realDonaldTrump
....produced in the thousands, and we have many to spare. We are helping other countries which are desperate for them. Likewise, after having been left little, we are now doing more testing than all other countries combined, and with superior tests. Face masks & shields,....

[James D.]

From the previous thread:

Wow this is wild - Yelp is replacing restaurant phone numbers with Grubhub-routed numbers that go to the restaurant, but charge the restaurants a fee for “marketing” for each order made.

How is this not fraud?

[James D.]

I'm just a tired old Yankee who is losing patience with this bullshit. Arbery was not jogging down the street carrying a television. And if he was, you're going to shoot him because of it? Why? No one was being kidnapped, no one was being raped, no one was being assaulted - what about this suggested it was a deadly force situation?

If the police had been doing their job and catching actual criminals who victimize actual taxpaying citizens, then the local residents would have felt no need to protect their homes and property.

If somebody breaks into homes throughout the neighborhood, it's not up to the victims to try and figure out whether he's armed or not, whether he's a deadly threat or not, whose house he's going to hit next, or even what the value of the burglar's life is.

Their duty is to protect themselves, and their homes and their property. Especially since Supreme court has declared its not the duty of the police to do that.

I have zero sympathy for the burglar.

[henry]

James D, re Yelp. I have no idea what the click through agreement Yelp / GrubHub makes merchants sign looks like. Thus it may not be fraud. It does strike me as a typical “free service” scalping. In the B to B world, “free AP” services try to force a credit card fee on corporate payments notwithstanding whatever sales / licensing terms are agreed to by contract. Not fraud, but very sleazy. Also becoming ubiquitous as the Silicon Sleaze Merchants expand.

[Ignatz Ratzkiwatzki]

Willowed response to MM and SBW,
I understand your positions and agree with them to a certain extent.
But in the end you are requesting a symptom go away while the disease remains.
So long as progs remain a serious threat to our liberties and do not change their goals, which ideologues don't do, the symptoms will remain and that is because the symptoms are themselves the ultimate cure for the disease.
Like our immune response it can raise havoc and even kill us but in the absence of any effective treatments or a vaccine the persistence of the microbes in the body politic will eventually provoke a cytokine storm.
And that's enough disease metaphors for one comment.

[Tom R]

If that is true, then Flynn allowed himself to be gramed in order to catch some people who were spyiing on the President.

MM @ 6:27 (last thread)
Is that your conclusion or is it also Bongino and McCarthy's conclusion as well?

[Ignatz Ratzkiwatzki]

Before I step out for a day defying stay at home orders I would just like to encourage anyone discouraged to go look at midweek TWIP including the ones in the comments.
Laughter is the best medicine...
...unless one includes M-2 Brownings. :)
Just for you SB. :)

[Greg The Class Traitor]

I'm just a tired old Yankee who is losing patience with this bullshit. Arbery was not jogging down the street carrying a television. And if he was, you're going to shoot him because of it?

Really, Tom?

So everyone is free to steal anything you own, and no one can stop them?

If you're looking for "cranial-anal impaction", look in a mirror.

All laws are backed up by the threat that you will kill people if they don't follow them. That's a great argument for not making a lot of laws.

But it's a piss-poor argument for not enforcing the ones we have.

Don't want to get shot while committing petty theft? Then surrender when you're caught.

[Rocco]

James D.

I couldn't resist!

[Threadkiller]

Tom, your question was answered if you opened MM’s link in he very next post:

Here are her two sequential posts. I bolded what should have caught your attention:

I was listing to Dan Bongino's pod cast and heard what I thought was a statement from the Intelligence IG's report which indicated that Flynn had been told by the Brits that the Steele report was BS BEFORE Comey came to talk to him.

If that is true, then Flynn allowed himself to be gramed in order to catch some people who were spyiing on the President.

However, I want to see something in writing as I was listening as I was drifting off to sleep and I could be mistaken.

Posted by: MissMarple2 | May 06, 2020 at 06:27 AM

MissMarple2
Here is the section of Bongino's show which deals with Flynn. Apparently part of it is the Andy McCarthy piece from National Review, which I didn't read because I have let my irritation with McCarthy get the better of me. I will have to look it up.

Bongino agrees with McCarthy and does a good job of explaining the significance of what McCarthy says. The segment is about 8 minutes.

The Coincidences Continue! Preserve The Probe By Setting Up Flynn?
👇🏻👇🏻🔥https://t.co/wmk5lSQU0I

— Dan Bongino (@dbongino) May 5, 2020

Posted by: MissMarple2 | May 06, 2020 at 06:39 AM

[Captain Hate]

Yelp can suck my balls. They've always been a haven for karens and dipshits.

[Captain Hate]

Maguire going squishy over the new Saint Traytable? Where's my shocked face?

[GUS]

Ahhhh yes, the poor lost lamb go his head blowed off for "doin nuffin". Who the fuck believes that?? Grabbing at someone's rifle and/or shotgun, was the 'CAUSE OF DEATH'. Not grabbing an armed person's weapon is a better path. Burglary is not.

[clarice]

It's been a long time since I took criminal law in school and the law depends on the state jurisdictions, but unless you are preventing a thief from entering your premises, you really aren't allowed to chase him down and shoot him .

[GUS]

11:06 TK, GREAT POST

[rse]

I put up the shelly luther go fund me on the previous thread, but this also resonates.

In times of crisis such as these, the outsized fear of disease enables these despotic tendencies. As we are seeing today, millions of us have tolerated violations of our natural rights on the part of state, local, and federal governments, at the cost of our freedom and autonomy, and the risk of weakening the political order that guarantees both. For as Tocqueville concludes, “No one will ever believe that a liberal, wise, and energetic government can spring from the suffrages of a subservient people.”

If we don’t start resisting more widely the petty Mussolinis in state governments and federal bureaucracies, the biggest victim of the coronavirus will be our freedom. That is the most formidable risk we are facing.

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/2020/05/our-dangerous-illusions-about-risk-bruce-thornton/

[MissMarple2]

TomR,

I haven't decided. I know that is a wimpy answer, but I am trying to be ratioinal and not concoct some sort of James Bond plot in my head.

It does seem like the entire operation was run by the White House. However, whether Flynn and Trump were aware is the part I cannot decide.

[Threadkiller]

Boy oh boy did I make a rookie mistake welding a piece of metal for my mower. I decided to use the oxygen/acetylene torch to fix a small break. Sometimes you can get the metal to flow back together without having to add any filler rod. It was going real well, but I decided to add some filler to make the area a little stronger.

After filling in the spot that concerned me, I moved in for a closer look and forgot the rod was still in my free hand. When I pulled my welding glasses off my face I shoved the hot poker end of the rod into the hair just above my ear. ::sizzle::

I was fortunate I didn’t pop a burn hole in my ear. I am thankful for having skipped two haircuts thanks to the “crisis.” My hippie mop head saved me.

The moral of the story? I dunno, but I’m thinking it is a sign instructing me to let the pile of broken yard tools grow large enough that it covers the whole yard. :-)

[Threadkiller]

Speaking of Saint Traytable, did anyone else watch the free movie that exposes an absolutely stunning discovery regarding Skittles girlfriend?

Here is the link again:

https://www.thetrayvonhoax.com/

My wife and I sat silent for 2hrs watching it. The director has a couple goofy moments, but what he uncovered is tremendous.

[Neo]

Hollywood stars Cate Blanchett, Jane Fonda, Marion Cotillard and Monica Bellucci also added their names to the open letter published in the French daily Le Monde pleading for an end to unbridled consumerism and a "radical transformation" of economies to help save the planet.

"We believe it is unthinkable to 'go back to normal'," said the letter which was also signed by Nobel laureates for medicine, chemistry and physics as well as peace prize winner Muhammad Yunus.

They said the pandemic was a tragedy but it was a chance for humanity to "examine what is essential".

"Adjustments are not enough. The problem is systemic," the letter added.

Clearly we need to shutdown every restaurant in NYC and LA .. every one of them.

[Captain Hate]

Jeez TK. You're lucky you didn't put a hole in your skull. The only time I did any welding/torching work with my gearhead buds it was a multiperson operation because you often need more than two limbs with all the shit required. Plus the machinery wasn't in the best of shape for packing large amounts of juice IYKWIM.

[GUS]

Clarice, I think he was chased down, and he attempted to remove the chasers gun, from the chasers possession.

PAGING MR DARWIN, MR DARWIN to the WHITE HOUSE PHONE.

[Threadkiller]

What, the vigilante plan was to show up with a shotgun to arrest a guy who, they hoped, would be calm and act responsibly?

The Police Plan is to show up with a pistol and pray that a suspect is calm and responsible. The real question is when does the weapon get trained on the suspect.

I will wait for the video that shows the gun being jammed up the deceased nose ala Elmer Fudd during rabbit season.

[GUS]

As predicted, the FULL COMMIE including Jane Fonda.....another CHEECH and CHONG reference, don't want things going back to normal.

[clarice]

https://www.nationalreview.com/2020/05/coronavirus-response-war-between-experience-credentials/#slide-1

[Greg The Class Traitor]

clarice, You're not allowed to shoot someone for simple burglary.

You ARE allowed to try to stop them.

If they escalate and attack you when you try to stop them, you ARE allowed to defend yourself, including with deadly force.

Arbery didn't get shot for burglary. Arbery got shot, legally so, for attacking Travis McMichael, grabbing his gun, and thus clearly posing a threat to Travis McMichael's life.

When you're ready to put all your personal possessions on an outside table where anyone is free to take them, THEN you can complain about Travis McMichael chasing down a burglar and wanting him arrested. Until then? The fact that your local cops are doing a better job protecting you than Travis McMichael's cops were doing protecting him does't give you the right to attack him for doing the job his cops won't do.

[clarice]

I see, I missed the part about the thief grabbing the gun.

keto niks--At my Costco I found something called Keto bars--lo carb (2) ice cream bars covered in dark chocolate--very good.recommend for when you really want dessert.

[Threadkiller]

It was a real dumb move on my part, CH. Welding every day for 20+ years doesn’t mean much when is comes to safety once you go down to using the torches once every 2 years. Shit isn’t as obvious.

[clarice]

Major development --will expose Schiff's lies like nothing else:https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/byron-yorks-daily-memo-exclusive-dni-to-schiff-the-transcripts-are-ready-to-release

[Captain Hate]

TK, my problem was the welding glasses made me blind to everything outside of the bead and I usually needed to know where other things were with a powerful thing in one hand.

[Threadkiller]

Off to finish the repair. I love the smell of burnt hair in the morning... smells like defeat.

[Threadkiller]

Situational awareness, CH. I failed. :-(

Maybe I’ll start doing metal art until my skills return, or I run out of gas..

Later.

[Extraneus]

"I urge you to honor your previous public statements, and your committee's unanimous vote on this matter, to release all 53 cleared transcripts to Members of Congress and the American public as soon as possible," Grenell said. Just in case Schiff is still not interested, Grenell added, "I am also willing to release the transcripts directly from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, as to ensure we comply with the unanimous and bipartisan vote to release the transcripts."

Heh.

[Tom R]

Iggy @ 10:55

You, SBW, MM, & James D all make valid points. We have had this discussion multiple times over the past few years. The threat the Progtards currently present to the survival of the Constitutional Republic and the amount of political power they possess were all acquired peacefully without them having to militarily defeat patriotic Americans in Civil War 2. This occurred over 4+ decades of subversion, deceit, propaganda, indoctrination, etc on their part.

If JOM is representative of all patriotic Americans natiowide, then there is no doubt all patriotic Americans are in agreement on the threat the Progtards represent. The only disagreement is on the solution to eliminate the threat.

There is a sizable percentage of patriotic Americans with the same opinion as James D that the best solution is to just go ahead with a violent Civil War 2 and kill off the Progtards. The problem with James D approach is that should be the last alternative and only adopted when all other alternatives fail.

It's a well known fact Trump is a disciple of Sun Tzu. One of Sun Tzu's most famous quotes is “The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.” There is no doubt in my mind that Trump has a long term strategic plan (that he likely developed over the past 2-3 decades as he prepared for getting elected) to eliminate the threat the Progtards/Deep State Swamp represent to the country.

Actions speak louder than words and if you look at the actions of the Progtards/Deep State Swamp you get the perception Trump's strategy is working and the enemy's actions are clear signs of desperation on their part. What took the Progtards 3+ decades to achieve via subversion Trump is in the process of destroying (via implementation of Sun Tzu approach to strategy) in less than one full term in office.

What has occurred during the COVID 19 shutdown provides clear signals for optimism in the future. There have been numerous viral memes in social media pointing out how the last 6 weeks have been a good example of what life would be like in a Communist/socialist society. The governors in blue states who have gone Full Commie are exposing their true agenda and proving that Progtard ideology is anti-American. If the anti-American actions of the Progtards in this crisis are not enough to convince patriotic Americans to defeat them nationwide at the ballot box at every level of government then nothing will. At that point is the appropriate time to consider implementation of the bloody Civil War 2 alternative.

[caro]

RalphTaco! We will be back home in Park City June 1. Can we plan a meetup? We live about 200 yards from I80.

[James D.]

Hollywood stars Cate Blanchett, Jane Fonda, Marion Cotillard and Monica Bellucci also added their names to the open letter published in the French daily Le Monde pleading for an end to unbridled consumerism and a "radical transformation" of economies to help save the planet.

I suppose all of them, and everyone else who signed the open letter, is going to give away all the money in their bank accounts, donate their spacious homes and second homes and third homes to be used as homeless shelters and move themselves into 400 square foot efficiency apartments, stop eating anything that's produced more than 10 miles from their new efficiency apartment homes, and resolve to never fly again or drive in a car again.

Right? They're all going to get right on that program, aren't they? They're going to set the example to show us the way, I'm sure.

[Captain Hate]

I'm sure you're very adept at it, TK, and are using much better equipment than the crap I used (any claims adjuster would've taken one look at it and said "why didn't you just stand in water?" before denying the claim outright). Conceptually welding fascinated me as an ideal means of repair so I understand your long experience.

[lyle]

https://victorygirlsblog.com/wapo-op-ed-red-america-may-vote-dem-if-coronavirus-grows/

Major awards.

[James D.]

Back on topic, to address TM's initial post, maybe if the national media (and national Democrat politicians) didn't take a purely local story and blow it out of all proportion in order to stoke grievances and exacerbate racial division; rather than treat it as the local story, insignificant except to the people directly involved, that it is, then there would be no ugly national arguments about it.

It isn't property rights advocates or NRA supporters who are making this a national issue, TM. It's the other side who is fanning the flames, making this burglar a martyr and a representative for all racial injustice everywhere. What exactly do you expect the targets of this coverage - people like most of the posters here, and really you yourself since you're a middle-aged well-off white man living in the suburbs - to do? Just sit there and be endlessly called racists and monsters and shouted at?

We tried that, for years, and it didn't work so well.

[KevlarKid]

"And MM is correct that the country is further gone than anyone of us might have thought."

sbw:

i disagree- politely, of course.

coming to the "further gone" realization, exactly when, is a personal matter based on where one has been "sitting" since coming of age.

perspective and judgement on the integrity of our system and its "influencers" is the domain of individuals.

i'm on record here saying: "what's been manifesting in the political mainstream over the last 30 years ( corruption and /treachery) has been field- tested, refined, and weaponized on reservations, ghettos, and barrios."

Malcolm X was right more than once during his short life. But his declaration about the hell descending on the country at the time was true: "Those chickens are coming home to roost."

That reached my ears in '68. I'd just turned 13 and was in my 3rd year of burying 19 year old Marines and Army dead from The Nam.

It wasn't the Country of our Founders anymore when we no longer declared wars. I was taught and studied the Constitution in civics classes since age 9.

Add to it the murderousness of Hoover's FBI at Wounded Knee II, their infiltration and slaughter of the Black Panther Party (right here in the East Bay), their infiltration and murders inside the United Farm Worker movement led by Chavez and Huerta--- those are long shadows cast over a young American's life.

That's what I mean by "sitting". It has taken some Americans longer to realize the "further gone" status of the Republic. No harm no foul. My finger points not.

Final point- we've heard it said before: "The Devil's greatest trick was convincing us he does not exist."

Our "leaders" and "masters" have made the same play. And we're perfectly wired to go along- we've been socialized to BELIEVE the voice in our respective heads that we BELIEVE is "me."

That voice has us believing stuff that we trust is just part of life such as Change Is Hard, Life is Hard and other limiting belief's.

In the end those beliefs limit we citizens to live under tyranny, the Devil's Grand Casino.

The greatest trick by our domestic enemies is their various mantras which have the same lulling effect: We Are You.

Like the Devil, they hide in the last we are ever likely to look- inside.

"Wake up, Mr. Green. You can't see what's right in front of you."

- from the Guy Ritchie film "Revolver"

[Captain Hate]

What do you call it when Cate Blanchett, Jane Fonda, Marion Cotillard and Monica Bellucce are standing side by side?

The waiting room at the cosmetic surgeon's office?
Posted by: JEM at May 06, 2020 11:56 AM (8erNz)

[Tom R]

TK @ 11:06

I posted a simple question to MM asking her if Bongino and McCarthy were making the point that Flynn was running a sting operation to catch some bad guys. No need for you to try and instigate any drama especially since the question wasn't addressed to you.

[GUS]

TK, GEE your burnt hair smells terrific.

[Old Lurker]

Willowed:

SBW, not trying to be a smart ass here, but I would be curious to know at what stage you think free men are justified in using force to protect their liberty?

Is there a point in the curve short of total serfdom where the worst might have been avoided?

Was the 2nd Amendment just to protect against robbers, or was it to protect a free peole against an out of control State?

[Tom R]

Our "leaders" and "masters" have made the same play. And we're perfectly wired to go along- we've been socialized to BELIEVE the voice in our respective heads that we BELIEVE is "me."

That is essentially the same central point that chainsmoking guy made in the video I linked a couple days back that you criticized. He referred to it as "groupthink" and pointed out all the various factions vying for control of the country (to include our side) use the same tactic to control the narrative.

[Captain Hate]

Grenell is flat out awesome. What does it say about Mutt Rombley for running him off because homo bad?

[Captain Hate]

Tom,

The guy on that video just wasn't a good messenger. There's a reason Reagan won in two landslides and Barry Goldwater lost in one despite them having the same underlying philosophy.

[Old Lurker]

Having seen your post to Ig, SBW, about waiting to follow the lead of DJT, what if, just what if, he does not actually place the importance on the restoration of the Constitution that you and I do, or what if, just what if, he is entering his final six months in office?

This of course has been my beef all along: it is too easy to project onto a savior our own hopes and dreams about just what that savior should deliver so that we might be happy.

Why?

I am responsible, me myself, to provide what makes me happy. To ME (others are different), I am most happy if I and mine can live quiety under the compact my forefathers made with each other as detailed in the documents that record those details.

DJT certainly agrees with me on "most" of the details and absolutely more than any other personality living who is interested in leading, but clearly, to me, his ranking of them all is not the same as mine.

[MissMarple2]

OK, what if the Chinese had a long-term plan in which they bought up farmland, ranch land, meat producers, poultry farms, controlling interest in media corporations, entertainment corporations, news channels, newspapers, universities (through endowments and cash-paying students, mining, etc.

I could probably list more, but you get my drift. They are obviously in control of the democrats and the media. NOW add to that shipment of fentanyl to the drug cartels and being in cahoots with the Iranians.

What if they DID manufacture the virus and let infected people come here as students or tourists. Hell, for all I know they could simply have given Chinese citizens vials of the virus and had them scatter it like rose petals all over the major cities.

Someone needs to make a coherent case about how much of this is coincidental and how much is enemy action. In 1939 I don't think that Germans were sold American food-production companies. This is why I proposed the other day that foreign citizens shouldn't be allowed to own certain types of property. It has to be ALL non-citizens, otherwise we will be hit with charges of racism.

To me, this is the least violent way to regain control of the country. I do not want to see this escalate into a civil war.

[Dave (in MA)]

Arbery wasn't trying to sell cigarettes not in compliance with the legally-defined retail and taxation guidelines, so why kill him?

[henry]

Graphic comparing Midwest states Wuhan Flu response.

https://twitter.com/maciverwisc/status/1258063981819789313?s=21

[Tom R]

CH @ 12:15

A message can still be valid despite the lack of charisma of the messenger.

The current narrative getting spread by many conservative pundits and radio hosts about FBI Director Wray trying to cover up release of exculpatory Flynn documents is a perfect case in point. It appears to be an organized effort by a group of influential conservatives to all promote the same narrative like the leftwingers do with the Journolist. Are these influential conservatives correct about Wray, wrong due to ignorance, or wrong but even worse intentionally spreading mis/disinformation? IMO the main point that guy was making is that our own side is doing the latter and many of us don't realize it.

PS I do wonder how much longer before that guy is diagnosed with lung cancer based on how many cigarettes he fired up while making that video.

[Captain Hate]

DJT certainly agrees with me on "most" of the details and absolutely more than any other personality living who is interested in leading, but clearly, to me, his ranking of them all is not the same as mine.

The only way I'd be 100% happy with any President would be if I was it, and I'd surely screw things up beyond all recognition. I think Trump takes it seriously that he's the President of the entire country, including people who don't have the same priorities that you and I have, and tries to accommodate as many as possible while still staying true to the Constitution. That's why he rails so much about fake news because it deliberately counters what he's trying to do. I'm still confident he'll be re-elected but if he isn't, we're not going back to the business as usual GOPe despite what the NTs think.

[henry]

Where Fredo the Elder gets info that lockdowns don’t work:

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/06/ny-gov-cuomo-says-its-shocking-most-new-coronavirus-hospitalizations-are-people-staying-home.html

[narrator: he’ll extend the lockdown]

[Extraneus]

AOC tamps down suggestion she could be Biden’s UN ambassador

[MissMarple2]

Donald J. Trump
@realDonaldTrump
·
1h
The Fake News has reached an all time high!

[KevlarKid]

Incorrect, TomR.

[Extraneus]

Anthony Fauci Checked on ‘Friend’ Chris Cuomo Every Day as CNN Host Fought Coronavirus: ‘I Was Worried’

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI: First of all, you’re a friend. We have a professional relationship, but you’re a friend. I’ve known you, I hate to say it, since you were almost a kid. And the fact is, you were going through some difficult times. I don’t think that people seeing you on this show were really experiencing or realizing how you were really sucking it up to look relatively normal. But when you finished the show, when we started chatting at 11 o’clock, 11:30 at night, you were wiped out. You not only had the acute difficulty of the virus that was replicating in you, but you had some of the secondary effects.

[…]

I cared about you, but I was worried about you. That’s the reason why I kept calling.

[Captain Hate]

A message can still be valid despite the lack of charisma of the messenger.

It isn't so much charisma as wasting my time by pointing out all the hard work he's done. It's like Sundance putting up all those wowie zowie graphics that scream "I WANT YOU TO ADMIRE MY RESEARCH" instead of just giving me the important info and letting me appreciate that. That's why I like JackStraw quickly getting to the point with a minimum of self stroking.

[lyle]

https://pjmedia.com/columns/j-christian-adams/2020/05/05/as-americans-struggle-with-layoffs-federal-employees-to-attend-webinar-on-institutional-betrayal-trauma-n388294

Dr. Freyd and her students investigate the causes and impact of interpersonal violence and institutional betrayal on mental and physical health, behavior, and society. Freyd’s research with adult and child participants investigates predictions made by betrayal trauma theory. In recent years Freyd has focused especially on betrayal and its antidote at the institutional level: institutional betrayal and institutional courage. Current projects include studies of campus and workplace sexual assault and harassment, minority discrimination, gender and sexual orientation, disclosures of abuse, physical and mental health distress, and institutional betrayal and institutional courage.

Don’t worry, these are “essential” government employees.

[Pinandpuller]

Pope Benedict is getting some grief for suggesting that Gay Marriage and Abortion are harkening the Antichrist. They’re going to have to kill him this time, like Scalia.

[Captain Hate]

💥

http://acecomments.mu.nu/?post=387137

[Jane]

I love rick grenell!

[Melinda]

BNO News
@BNONews
NEW: Russian billionaire Dmitry Bosov found dead in apparent suicide near Moscow bnonews.com/index.php/2020…

https://twitter.com/BNONews/status/1258071088875126784

Not supposed to be happening in Oligarchic spheres of influence....

[Jane]

I met Grenell at a cocktail party on one of those dastardly cruises. He was the most normal guy in the room. Had a long, apoltical conversation and it was like hanging out with Caro.

[Melinda]

The receipts on top may have source coding...

https://nltimes.nl/2020/05/06/police-find-record-eu126-million-cash-hidden-eindhoven-home

Any dents from "pallets"?

[lyle]

it was like hanging out with Caro.

High praise, indeed.

[James D.]

CH @ 12:58

And that story is not even remotely surprising.

My only question is, why did the hospital administrators agree to this garbage, rather than telling the CBS news clowns to eff off?

[Jane]

Over $265,000 already donated to the hairdresser on the Go Fund me page.

Excellent!

[lyle]

https://donsurber.blogspot.com/2020/05/highlights-of-news_6.html

ITEM 16: Breitbart News reported, "Ohio University laid off three professors from the gender and race studies departments this week in response to financial burdens imposed by the Chinese virus pandemic. Ohio University also fired 140 unionized employees who worked in the university’s custodial, groundskeeping, and maintenance departments.

"According to a report by the College Fix, Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, laid off three professors this week in response to financial difficulties imposed on the university by the ongoing pandemic. The now jobless faculty members were part of the gender and race studies departments.

"The university has already been criticized for its decision to lay off faculty from the gender and race studies departments. Ohio University political science professor Kirstine Taylor wrote in a viral tweet that she was heart-sick over the university’s decision."

Three profs vs 140 grunt workers and who gets the sympathy from Prof. Taylor?

[James D.]

Dem governors are really competing hard for the title of worst governor in the country.

Today, Gov. Fredo of New York made his pitch for the honor:

https://www.pix11.com/news/coronavirus/health-workers-that-volunteered-to-come-to-ny-during-pandemic-have-to-pay-state-income-tax-cuomo

[Extraneus]

High praise, indeed.

Agreed.

[Pinandpuller]

The mayor of Kansas City studied apartheid in South Africa during the Mandela Administration but I wouldn’t try to read too much into that

https://t.co/X7mtrgwcNR?amp=1

[Captain Hate]

My only question is, why did the hospital administrators agree to this garbage, rather than telling the CBS news clowns to eff off?

Big medicine isn't on our side.

[James D.]

Pin, I don't think there's a unit of measure small enough to chart the credibility of the "Reuters fact check team"

[Melinda]

Byron York has all 53 names that Schiffty's holding back:

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/byron-yorks-daily-memo-exclusive-dni-to-schiff-the-transcripts-are-ready-to-release

Grenell or Ratcliffe, Adam. Who ya gonna choose?

[Extraneus]

ZH:

Fed Study Ties 1918 Flu Pandemic To Rise Of "Right Wing Extremist" Nazi Party

A new academic paper produced by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York concludes that deaths caused by the 1918 influenza pandemic “profoundly shaped German society” in subsequent years and contributed to the strengthening of the Nazi Party.

The paper, published this month and authored by New York Fed economist Kristian Blickle, examined municipal spending levels and voter extremism in Germany from the time of the initial influenza outbreak until 1933, and shows that “areas which experienced a greater relative population decline” due to the pandemic spent “less, per capita, on their inhabitants in the following decade.”

The paper also shows that “influenza deaths of 1918 are correlated with an increase in the share of votes won by right-wing extremists, such as the National Socialist Workers Party” in Germany’s 1932 and 1933 elections.

Together, the lower spending and flu-related deaths “had a strong effect on the share of votes won by extremists, specifically the extremist national socialist party” - the Nazis - the paper posits.

“This result is stronger for right-wing extremists, and largely non-existent for left-wing extremists.”

Some rebuttal as well as leftist professors jumping on this at the link.

[Melinda]

Lemme guess, the co-authors were Killiam Wrystol, Nom Tichols, and Mvan EcMullin?

[Melinda]

Thread:

Muse Scry
@MuseScry
When you provide Scry ADVANCE information and #NobodyListens @almostjingo @DawsonSField @ECEverett1 @2xwide_dreaming @BabeReflex_8 @NotOperaGhost @TinaRevers @FOOL_NELSON @markjohnt2 @RepAdamSchiff

washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/byron-…

https://twitter.com/MuseScry/status/1258078319087702016

[rse]

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/fixgov/2020/05/01/destroying-trust-in-the-media-science-and-government-has-left-america-vulnerable-to-disaster/

david muir or steffi destroy trust every time they open their mouth. Who has done more to cost faith in 'science' than dr fauci?

Who is shaking faith in govt more than governors extending lockdowns statewide despite few cases?

This is the same mindset as that goon judge in texas lecturing shelly lester on obeying all pols. He has an evil understanding of the role of govt and the purpose of the law. Probably learned it at HLS where they call it the "process theory of the law."

[lyle]

“This result is stronger for right-wing extremists, and largely non-existent for left-wing extremists.”

But of course.

[Dave (in MA)]

💥

http://acecomments.mu.nu/?post=387137

Good thing it wasn't NBC or they would have rigged the cars to explode.

[Jack Lillywhite]

Finally, brought down Boccaccio’s “Decameron” from the book case. Why not review again how he used his young Florentine’s to pass the days of the Black Death plague.

I don’t think they would have been impressed with Fauci.

[clarice]

Have they stopped teaching constitutional law in law schools or do the democrats just pick judges who flunked it?

[rse]

Why Americans’ trust is key to America’s success

American institutions are not perfect, of course. We all should want to improve scientific practices, remove bias from news coverage, and enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of government. But a crisis like the coronavirus pandemic highlights the exorbitant costs of undermining trust in media, science, and government for political gain.

People must believe the health advice that they are getting from the CDC and other government agencies who are fighting the crisis. People must receive (and trust) accurate information from major news organizations, rather than rely on rumors and news from fringe websites that their friends might share on social media. Even as states eventually lift stay-at-home orders, people will need to follow expert guidance, transmitted through the media, in order to prevent a resurgence of new cases.

This need not be a partisan topic. Many Republicans and conservatives over the years have been deeply respectful of government professionals, the findings of science, and non-partisan national journalists. But from the beginning of the conservative movement’s takeover of the Republican Party, which started with Barry Goldwater’s nomination in 1964, many in that movement have seen discrediting these institutions as a useful political strategy—a good way to win votes and gain media market share. But this political strategy can have catastrophic consequences when those very institutions are the key to protecting public health and saving lives.

Calling out this long-running, cynical, and ultimately corrosive approach to politics is long overdue. Politicians and media personalities can pursue conservative policies without undermining the public’s trust in the media, science, and government agencies. Now more than ever, they should do that.

How is this kind of article really any different than that judge from Texas sending Shelly Lester to jail for refusing to be properly contrite and remember to bend the knee to all elected officials and accept everything a major network asserts as true?

[Dave (in MA)]

Dem governors are really competing hard for the title of worst governor in the country.

Well, we have a RINO whose pal is a patronage hire with no medical background who was put in charge of a veterans nursing home in Holyoke where the C-19 death toll was 84, last I heard.

[rse]

Clarice--they teach that the purpose of the law is to ensure the common good and deans have told me off the record on more than one occasion accreditation is at risk for any school without that constant drumbeat.

[lyle]

http://acecomments.mu.nu/?post=387130

Mizz Lindsey the coward still protecting his dreamboat, McCain.

[Tom R]

“What a beautiful black sky”. LTG Flynn

https://twitter.com/thunderb/status/1257996436366659584?s=21

[Old Lurker]

RSE,

Would you trust the FBI to come interview you about anything?

Would you trust the NSA/CIA to track your every movement and record every communication?

Would you trust the IRS to keep your business secret and not allow it to be used against your interests?

Would you trust the CDC to keep you safe from a health risk?

Would you trust your navy to not crash your gazillion dollar Aegis ships?

Would you trust the EPA to tell you the fishpond in your garden is not "Waters of the United States"?

Would you trust the Congress to authorize the seizure of half your income and then trust them to use it legally and carefully?

Would you trust SCOTUS or any federal courts beneath it to protect your freedoms, rights and liberties?

The list writes itself.

If you answered YES to any of the above, well then, you are an IDIOT!

And rse is not an idiot.

:-)

[rse]

New Title IX rules released today with an August 2020 effective date. https://www.educationdive.com/news/title-ix-regulations-released/566248/

[lyle]

But from the beginning of the conservative movement’s takeover of the Republican Party, which started with Barry Goldwater’s nomination in 1964, many in that movement have seen discrediting these institutions as a useful political strategy—a good way to win votes and gain media market share.

If my eyes rolled any harder I’d need more serious surgery than Jane’s.

[James D.]

Many Republicans and conservatives over the years have been deeply respectful of government professionals, the findings of science, and non-partisan national journalists. But from the beginning of the conservative movement’s takeover of the Republican Party, which started with Barry Goldwater’s nomination in 1964, many in that movement have seen discrediting these institutions as a useful political strategy

Those institutions have discredited themselves. Pointing that out is not a bad thing, no matter what the government-worshippers at Brookings think.

Oh,and science is a PROCESS, not a set authority that can be appealed to. Science does not proclaim absolute truths; science when done correctly tells us that RIGHT NOW, based on available information, thus and such is the most likely explanation for a given phenomena, but new information or research may well disprove it. And science does not call for absolute policy answers; it lays out likely results of different approaches, which elected leaders - using the temporary authority granted them by the electorate - can then evaluate and apply cost-benefit analysis to, before putting a final policy in place.

Oh, and "non-partisan journalists" is a bad joke, and even Brookings ought to be embarrassed to keep pushing that line.

[lyle]

https://twitchy.com/gregp-3534/2020/05/06/breaking-gov-abbott-calls-for-immediate-release-of-salon-owner-shelley-luther/

Now arrest the “judge.”

[Jane]

Dave,

I think Mary is there. She was sent to a VA earlier this week by the Guard.

"Grenell or Ratcliffe, Adam. Who ya gonna choose?"

I just think this is so much fun, If they reject Ratcliffe again, Rick gets another full year.

[rse]

In general, the new rules offer more due process protections than did the guidance from the Obama administration, essentially setting up a courtroom-style hearing for adjudicating sexual violence. Colleges must hold a hearing to decide cases, but may do so virtually.

Accused students and alleged victims must be allowed to question each other, but through a lawyer or adviser of their choosing. The Obama guidelines and advocates of sexual misconduct survivors have long discouraged direct contact between the two parties. DeVos' rules mandate that a hearing officer must decide whether the questions in cross-examination are relevant.

Colleges are allowed to pick from two evidentiary standards in addressing Title IX cases. One is the "preponderance of the evidence" standard, which is used in civil cases and means there is a 50.1% chance the accused is responsible. The other is the "clear and convincing" standard, which requires a 75% chance. The percentage is determined during the hearing process.

The rules reduce the number of sexual misconduct cases colleges would need to handle. However, colleges would be obligated to investigate incidents that occurred in locations where they exercise "substantial control" over student activity, though not study abroad trips. Colleges must consider cases that occurred in buildings the colleges recognize, such as a fraternity or sorority house. The initial draft of the rules limited colleges from investigating off-campus incidents, so the final version preserves some of colleges' responsibilities to do so.​

OL-that paper makes it clear that what is sought is a feudalistic sense of how the individual is to submit to political authority however it is asserted.