Blog

March 12, 2024

Last year the NAACP issued a “travel advisory” warning blacks that Florida was a “hate state” hostile to people of color. This was in response to Ron DeSantis’ rejection of the AP course on black history. That course was more one of political and social indoctrination to the views of the left than one of history with sections on queer blacks in history, Critical Race Theory and the 1619 Project’s re-writing of American history. DeSantis commissioned a group of scholars to write a more accurate rendering of history. Those who jumped on the anti-DeSantis bandwagon said that he was erasing black history when he fact they were the ones who denigrated black accomplishments in the face of the vestiges of slavery and Jim Crow.

Now the NAACP has struck again urging black athletes not to go to Florida colleges and universities in response to the state eliminating DEI staff and DEI programs from its schools. The president of the NAACP (who is from Mississippi) and its chairman (who lives in Tampa) in a letter to the president of the NCAA said “While it is our duty to spread awareness and encourage action around these egregious assaults, we also recognize that protest can come at a price. The sad reality is, for many Black student- athletes, collegiate sports may be their sole opportunity at achieving the upward mobility necessary to propel them into their rightful places in society.” “Florida’s rampant anti-Black policies are a direct threat to the advancement of our young people and their ability to compete in a global economy,” the NAACP’s president said in a statement. “Diversity, equity, and inclusion are paramount (to) ensuring equitable and effective educational outcomes.” “The value Black and other college athletes bring to large universities is unmatched. If these institutions are unable to completely invest in those athletes, it’s time they take their talents elsewhere.” Emmitt Smith, one of the University of Florida’s most notable alumni opined “We need diverse thinking and backgrounds to enhance our University and the DEI department is necessary to accomplish those goals.”

Yet neither the NAACP or Smith did not show how the elimination of DEI would negatively impact the education of black students and in particular black athletes. Moreover, there is no evidence that the existence of DEI has furthered the academic achievement of black students. But evidence does not matter. I presume that the NAACP president wants the five star Florida athletes to also shun the HBCUs in the state that have athletic programs. I am waiting to hear the protests coming from the coaches at Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman. Perhaps he is hoping that those athletes will come to the more welcoming and inclusive state of Mississippi. I suggest that they come instead to the University of Georgia, Ohio State University and of course to the University of Tennessee.

March 9, 2024

I don’t go to movies and I seldom watch them at home. Maybe this was a result of my growing up in the segregated south. The first run movies were in segregated theatres and my parents refused to go sit in the balcony. I can’t remember what our theatres showed but I do remember going to them every now and then with friends. It was a social outing. But I felt imprisoned in the theatre being held captive for 3 hours. I never could get pass the fact that the actors were acting with all the fake imagery – cue the rubber shark! Now the imagery is lifelike but it is still fake and the actors are still acting. I would occasionally watch a movie at home where I could pause the movie and go do productive stuff. Sometimes it would take me days just to get through a single movie. Nevertheless, I actually liked some film noir like the Bogart movies, Pulp Fiction and Choose Me. On a recent flight to Los Angeles, the entertainment video screen in the plane had dozens of movies. None of them appealed to me so I listened to my music instead. On the flight back, I tried to watch Star Trek Discovery and found it simply awful. I did watch the first season of Halo which at least was not boring.

The last movie I saw in the theatre was Saving Private Ryan only because my other half’s father was a Bedford Boy and in the first wave at D-Day. Before that I went with my son and his family to see one of the Star Wars movies when he was in UTs MBA program. Aside from my aversion to the movies, I do not like what the movie makers are peddling. They are among the leading leftists in the country despite gaining their riches through capitalism. Much like their fellow leftists, Hollywood makes all the appropriate clucking noises to appease themselves and their fellow “progressives”. Yet Hollywood remains a predominately white male good old boys club. Few blacks are members of the academy and remember it is the academy that nominates itself and votes itself Oscars. You would think in these “woke” days that the Oscar nominees would be black, women, Hispanic and transgender demonstrating Hollywood’s commitment to diversity, inclusion and equity. So you would expect “Till” to receive a best picture nomination and nominations for Warrior King which starred black women, produced by a black woman and directed by a black woman. But no. There were no blacks nominated in any major category. The white good old boys once again nominated themselves and will vote themselves the Oscars. Not surprising the hash tag “Oscars so white” has resurfaced.

Thomas Sowell once remarked that when some white person professor starts spouting off about diversity and inclusion to ask “How many republicans are in your sociology department?” In Hollywood, one can ask how many black directors do you have? How many black producers? How many blacks actors in meaningful roles? The left pays lip service to DEI and the latest academy award nominations are further evidence of their hypocrisy.

Harold A Black

Knoxville Focus

knoxfocus.com

March 4, 2024

A couple years ago I wrote an article on why the progressive media insists that we capitalize the “b” in black when it refers to race. As was the case with the movement of DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) and the teaching of Critical Race Theory in our schools, the change was motivated by white guilt associated with the death of George Floyd. The Associated Press changed the case justifying it by saying “AP’s style is now to capitalize Black in a racial, ethnic or cultural sense, conveying an essential and shared sense of history, identity and community among people who identify as Black, including those in the African diaspora and within Africa. The lowercase black is a color, not a person. AP style will continue to lowercase the term white in racial, ethnic and cultural senses.” 

What is interesting is that the so-called conservative media has meekly followed suit. Why? I haven’t a clue. The Wall Street Journal capitalizes “b” in its articles but still yields to the wishes of the writers on its opinion pages where some continue not to capitalize “b”. I sent the Journal a query as to why. What I got back was the same Associated Press nonsense. The Journal’s response in part was that “Black is an identifier that is about more than a skin color. The adjective white doesn’t define a cohesive ethno-cultural group in the way Black does, and therefore will remain lowercase in the Journal.” Excuse me? What is the ”cohesive ethno-cultural group” that the Journal talking about? Certainly there is nothing cohesive about blacks in America, Africa, or anywhere else in the world. In fact, American blacks are the perhaps the least cohesive ethno-cultural group in the world. We don’t look alike. We don’t think alike (much to the chagrin of the progressives). Our African ancestors came from hundreds of tribal groups with different cultures and different languages who were as radically different as the Navaho are from the Apaches. Southern blacks are culturally different from northern blacks. There are distinct differences in blacks in education, nuclear family, church attendance by regions in the United States. Outside America, there is nothing virtually common about blacks in the Caribbean, those in South America, Central America, various African countries and those in Europe and Asia save having an African ancestor. So please point out the “cohesive ethno-culturalness.”

Another example of conservatives caving into the progressive nonsense is that of a conservative organization which contracted with me and others to write articles on whether systemic racism exists in education and in housing. In my piece on housing, I did not capitalize black. However, the two white writers capitalized both “black” and “white”. The other black writer capitalized “black” but not “white”. When the papers were edited, the editor capitalized “black” and not “white.” I insisted that my style should remain the same, as did the others. The editor responded that the conservative think tank was adhering the University of Chicago style manual which had adopted the AP spelling. Needless to say, I am disappointed that those who claim to be on the right have succumbed to the dictates of the left. Next thing you know, they will be using their preferred pronouns and calling a trans “male” he and a trans “woman” she. Oh wait. They do that too.

Its whites who make these silly rules. Capitalizing blacks but not whites is an artifice. It is an attempt to elevate blacks above whites in a manner that does not alter any existing inequalities. It is an attempt by whites to feel good about themselves without changing anything material. Ask these progressives “How many blacks are in your country club, live in your neighborhood, go to your church, are in your fraternity or sorority, in your book club, in your poker game, in your life?” If progressives and the left really wanted to do something meaningful, they would address the lack of proficiency in reading and math amongst our school children by raising proficiency levels. They have done the opposite and dumbed down curricula and are deemphasizing math and reading. What is apparent is that the left has no interest in furthering the wellbeing of blacks. Changing our use of the language does not alter a thing. As George Orwell noted, certain word usage narrows the range of thought to the point that individuals in society are not as capable of a broader range of thought. It is time for conservatives to quit adopting the language of the left.

Harold A Black

March 3, 2024

I just returned from California where my niece Dr. Harriet Black Nembhard was installed as the new president of Harvey Mudd College – often referred to as one of the best, if not the best, undergraduate schools in America. Mudd focuses on the sciences, engineering, computer science and mathematics. However, it is a science based institution with a soul. Mudd’s mission statement is that it “seeks to educate engineers, scientists, and mathematicians well versed in all of these areas and in the humanities, social sciences, and the arts so that they may assume leadership in their fields with a clear understanding of the impact of their work on society.” Its students and faculty have serious smarts. The composite SAT scores are 1480-1560 with ACTs 34-36. It has a small student body of less than 1,000. It is expensive with annual cost of $80,000+, a 10 percent acceptance rate and is the college with the highest starting salaries of its graduates. Its literature says that “Harvey Mudd College (HMC) is one of the premier engineering, science and mathematics colleges in the United States. HMC educates engineers, scientists and mathematicians who become leaders in their fields and have a clear understanding of the impact their work has on society. For more than 50 years, HMC has led the way with interactive undergraduate research opportunities on par with graduate institutions. HMC has a strong focus on the humanities, social sciences, and the arts, exceptional faculty members who challenge students to achieve beyond their expectations and one of the nation’s highest rates of graduates who go on to earn PhDs in the sciences. HMC’s graduates are highly trained scientists, technologists, educators, entrepreneurs and other professionals.” Mudd is also dedicated to diversity and inclusion and does so without relaxing its rigorous standards.

My niece is the perfect president for Mudd. Engineers are generally pretty smart but her selection as president also speaks well for their judgment. Harriet is a brilliant and insightful scholar, internationally recognized for her pioneering work in heathcare engineering. She is also a prominent figure in STEM education. I am proud that she has dedicated her academic research to making a difference and has had impacts on medical research including Parkinson’s disease. She is actually coming home to Mudd which is part of the Claremont Colleges. Harriet has undergraduate degrees from Arizona State and from Claremont McKenna College. She has been in place since July 1 and has already made positive impressions among students, faculty and staff. All are highly praiseworthy of her leadership and of course her intellect.

When she told me that she was leaving her position as dean of the college of engineering at the University of Iowa to become Mudd’s sixth president, I was elated. Given her skills, her perspective, her view of academics and college education, I knew she was going into a perfect situation. Surrounded by very smart faculty and smart students who work hard and expect to be worked hard she has been called to lead through example. It is ideal. Harvey Mudd is fortunate to have her and she will lead them to even greater heights.

Random Thoughts

February 25, 2024

Some have said that the game plan for the Democrats is to have noncitizens voting. Well San Francisco has just appointed a non citizen (a Chinese) to its Board of Electors. That’s right. A person who cannot vote is going to be supervising those who can. The new board member gave her acceptance speech in Chinese. Only in California.

Major League baseball has new uniforms. The players hate them. Also the uniforms have proved to be revealing under certain conditions. I am certain that the Dodger fans were excited to see Shoei Othani. But perhaps they are seeing a little too much of him.

A school system in Georgia has fired a teacher who read a pro gender propaganda book to fifth graders that encouraged kids to go “beyond binary.” Certainly Georgia is not California where teachers are fired for not reading pro gender propaganda. Also certainly not in Biden’s woke federal government where the VA suspended a doctor who openly questioned the policy of allowing males to occupy the same private spaces as women veterans.

The judge who fined Trump $350 million was stupid. That figure is excessive and will likely be overturned. Only Trump haters would cheer such a figure. The judge would have been smarter had he found Trump guilty and fined him $1 million. Trump would have likely paid the fine since appealing it would probably cost him more than that in legal fees. The democrats would applaud the guilty verdict and the rest of us could put that episode behind us.

I have not burned one brain cell over the Trump indictments. However, did you notice that all the attorney generals, Fani Willis, Alvin Bragg and Letitia James are democrats and all are black?

I was asked why black men were increasingly favoring Trump. I guess someone must think that I am the spokesman for black men. I am not. Is there a spokesman for white men? I can give an opinion however. It is that blacks sympathize with Trump being the victim of uneven application of the law. Blacks have been on the receiving end of disproportionate arrest, punishment and imprisonment than whites for the same crimes. Now Trump is being indicted for the same or lesser offenses than Joe Biden. Its clear to all and especially revealing for black men who are constantly reminded that justice is not blind.

I don’t watch basketball. But while going through the channels I stumbled on a women’s basketball game. What was interesting was that all of the players on the floor for one team were white and there were only two black players, both sitting on the bench in warmups. In men’s basketball it is reversed with the players on the end of the bench in warmups all most always being white.

It is also interesting to read of all the brouhaha surrounding Iowa’s Caitlin Clark and her setting of an NCAA scoring record. Truth be told, the record is bogus. Clark broke the scoring totals of Kelsey Plum who played for the University of Washington. However, Plum’s “record” of 3,527 points exists because, for whatever reason, the NCAA does not recognize statistics from the AIAA (Association of Intercollegiate Athletes for Women) which was the governing body for women’s sports until 1982. Their record holder is Lynette Woodward who played for Kansas and scored 3,649 points. Many famous figures in the women’s game state that Woodward should be record holder and that Clark’s “record” should come with an asterisk. It is curious that the NCAA has not merged the AIAA’s statistics into its own. The NFL merged the statistics of the AFL when it merged. Major League baseball has merged the statistics of the Negro Leagues. Yet the NCAA is ignoring the accomplishments of women who played before 1981. Moreover, Lynette Woodward is not even the highest scoring women’s basketball player. That distinction is for Pearl Moore who played for Francis Marion college for 1975-1979 and scored 4,061 points. But Francis Marion is a Division II school and the official “record” is for Division I schools.

February is Black History Month. Some wag said it was because there were fewer days in February than any other month. If you are interested in reading about historical blacks that you never knew about, I encourage you to look at Bob Woodson’s 1776 Unites page.

February 25, 2024

This is my daughter’s birthday. So happy birthday. I love you and am proud that you are my daughter.

I voted February 19th in Tennessee’s March 5 primary. No I did not enter a time warp into the future. Rather I voted early. I arrived when the polls opened and there was already a line. We love early voting in my precinct. On election day, the lines are long and the wait is longer, so we vote early. For the life of me I don’t understand the Republican establishment’s opposition to early voting. Clearly, Republicans vote early because in my precinct most voters were Republicans. I can understand the angst that comes from mail in ballots which are ripe for fraud because it seems that only the Democrats have figured out how to cheat. But early voting at polling places is secure. Here in Knoxville we are asked for either a driver’s license or a voter registration card in order to vote. We do not have to show proof of citizenship. However, when one registers to vote, most states (I presume all states) make you swear that you are a citizen. The state is supposed to check to make certain that you swore the truth. Arizona has purged over 400 voters from its rolls when it determined that that noncitizens had registered. Not surprisingly most of the noncitizens had registered to vote when they got their driver’s licenses. 

Perhaps the Republican establishment figures that if voting only occurs on election day, that the Democrats are less likely to vote than Republicans. Economics would postulate that those people willing to stand in long lines for lengthy periods have lower opportunity costs than those who are less willing to stand in line. If opportunity costs are high, then voters are losing considerable earnings by standing in line. Since it is illegal to hire a surrogate to vote for you, the choice would be to either forego earnings and vote or not. Thus, those people with lower opportunity costs such as retirees, the unemployed or stay at home spouses would be the ones to dominate voting. If these voters were predominately Democrats, then the Republicans should embrace early voting. Rather they oppose it. Perhaps the opposition stems from the fact that over 50 percent of Democrats vote early versus 35 percent of Republicans. Also a higher percentage of women vote early versus the men. I hope this isn’t interpreted as sexist, but if women are likely to be the stay at home spouse, then their voting early is contrary to the predictions of economics in that they have lower opportunity costs. However, they do have the greater advantage of being able to vote at any time during the polling window. 

I voted for Ron DeSantis. Yes I know that he suspended his campaign. But DeSantis had proven to me that he would have made the best president. I liked most of the things that he did in Florida and wanted them repeated nationally. I did not like his interaction with Nikki Haley when they were the only two left but hopefully he learned his lessons and will be back for another run in four years. 

I did not like Nikki Haley. She seemed too fond of direct military intervention into foreign disputes. This must be a South Carolina thing because Lindsey Graham always wants to bomb somebody. I didn’t understand her position of having to register to be on the internet and its chilling effect on free speech. Her response on the cause of the Civil War where she omitted slavery seemed to harken on a fear of alienating the die hearts who champion the mournful “Lost Cause” position on southern slavery. Haley impressed me as being not sincere and an opportunist.  Her core values were not evident. I wish that she had run on her record in South Carolina. For a person of color to be elected and reelected governor there is an accomplishment that should be touted. The confederate flag was removed from the state capitol on her watch. She was the one who appointed Tim Scott to the senate. She supported voter ID laws and opposed the resettlement on Syrian refugees in the state. As governor she focused on small business development and cutting of taxes and burdens on small businesses. Surely these would have made for attractive platforms on a run for the presidency. But somehow she seemed to be more focused on other areas. Perhaps she thought her time as US ambassador to the United Nations was more important in a presidential race than being governor of a small southern state. But Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton showed that not to be the case. Haley should have heeded their example.

More random thoughts

February 12, 2024

Happy Birthday Abraham Lincoln

Virtually every story I read on the Israeli-Hamas war contains the following statement “More than 28,000 Gazans have been killed, most of them women and children, according to Palestinian health authorities. The figures don’t distinguish between combatants and civilians.” No matter the source, the statement is the same. The Wall Street Journal especially guilty. This statement is from the supporters of Hamas and the world media is taking it as gospel. While I believe that there are deaths of noncombatants I am skeptical – as should anyone – of the figures coming from Hamas which are meant to elicit sympathy for the barbaric terrorist group. Early in the conflict I wrote that the western press would turn on Israel and Israel would be wise to ignore them. The same goes for our inept president and his equally inept secretary of state whose department is solidly pro-Hamas. Biden telling the Israelis how to conduct the war is akin to Kamala Harris giving advice on how to stop the flow of illegals at the southern border.

Speaking of illegals, have you noticed that there are none that are fat. I guess all that walking is a key to losing weight. One illegal said he wanted to come to America where there were fat poor people. I had never thought about that but he is probably right that America is one of the few countries in the world with fat poor people. I bet that the other countries are western and also have illegal immigrant problems.

I watched the Super Bowl with a group of friends and was pleased that the star for the 49ers was a University of Tennessee player, Juan Jennings and that a University of Georgia player Mecole Hardman played a prominent role for the Chiefs. I am not a pro football fan. I will look at a game when I have little else to do. I wore a Kansas City Chiefs cap to the watch party and was asked why. I said that Kansas City was in middle America and I preferred their politicians to those in California (home of the 49ers). I also liked that they had not succumbed to the pressures from the cancel culture crowd to change their name (Kansas City BBQs anyone?). Some of their fans even wear Indian regalia and war paint, including that young boy who got roasted by the woke media. Hopefully, they will continue doing what they are doing and resist the shrill voices from the left.

I don’t understand the Taylor Swift thing. Yes she is cute but I tried to watch one of her videos and couldn’t get through it.

Press coverage of Biden is pitiful. It is amazing how they are making excuses for his lack of mental acuity and blasting the special counsel and his report. Remember when they would jump on every little misstep by Trump and insinuate that he was in ill health or mentally incompetent? Yet they given Biden, the mother of all incompetence, a pass.

Don’t misunderstand. I do not like Donald Trump. His recent statement regarding encouraging Putin to invade a member of NATO that was delinquent on its payments was just plain stupid and dangerous. Remember when Biden said that it would be ok if Russia annexed a small part of Ukraine? And they did. I once said that if given a choice I would vote for Trump because I was sure he would not try to destroy the country, like Biden is trying to do. Now I am not so sure. If those two run it becomes a Hobson’s Choice. However, I am still convinced Biden won’t run and the nomination will be made at their convention. Trump’s 10 percent border tariff and reciprocal tariffs will spark a worldwide recession. Trump is a big spender and will not address entitlements. His foreign policy is a disaster waiting to happen. At least he will slow down the march toward the green cliff that we are currently on.

Just like the COVID death models, I am convinced that the climate models are wrong. There is considerable evidence that the media suppresses that shows that the climate models overstate the predicted change in the earth’s temperatures. Recall that the COVID models said that over 2 million Americans were going to die? At that time I expressed skepticism. I also noted that all of the measures recommended by the CDC and our local health department had no scientific foundation and they like the politicians were just making up stuff as they went along. Now Fauci has finally admitted that the 6 foot separation rule had no scientific basis. Neither did the masks.

The Europeans are starting to back off their green policies due to the costs to the people who are finally protesting. The Brits have throttled back as well. The Canadians are also getting restless given that their government is trying to mandate heat pumps which are woefully ineffective in bitter cold. I guess it is some comfort to know that we are not the only ones governed by fools. To quote Adam Smith, “Government comprises a large part of the organized injustice in any society, ancient or modern.”

My granddaughter has started her job at Major League Baseball. I told her to go into Rob Manfred’s office and tell him that on Jackie Robinson Day only the Dodgers should wear Robinson’s number 42. All other teams should wear the number of their first black player.

One of the couples at the Super Bowl watch party had a daughter who was at the Super Bowl with her family. Turns out that she works for the NFL. Now if my granddaughter can get me complimentary tickets to the World Series.

February 9, 2024

Chris Murphy a democrat senator from Connecticut calls Illegals “undocumented Americans.” Apparently, Murphy wants illegals to be able to vote (democratic of course). However, the illegals from South America are the antithesis of what the progressive wing of the democrat party wants in America. They are religious with strong nuclear families and a strong work ethic. My bet is that they end up Republicans.

One reader has convinced me that the democrats want the illegals to replace the citizens that are leaving their states so that they won’t lose Federal funds and congressional representation. Makes sense to me. But that places the local democrat mayors in conflict with their national leaders. The local mayors have to deal with the influx of illegals which strain their resources. But it is telling that these mayors want more funding to deal with the illegals rather than advocate policies to expel them. Remember when Trump argued that the census only count citizens and the dems went ballistic? Now we know why. Tennessee’s Sen. Bill Hagerty has introduced legislation that the census count only legal citizens for purposes of congressional representation. Of course there is no chance that the bill will pass the senate.

Joe Biden appeases Tehran. Why? How much money have the Iranians paid Hunter?

Trump appeased Putin and thinks he can use his personal charm to placate Putin, Xi. Kim Jong Un and other petty dictators. He’s wrong. The question is whether he will weaken the NATO alliance and whether he will support Ukraine. If he lets Putin grab territory don’t be surprised if Trump has a Neville Chamberlain moment. Also don’t be surprised if Iran doesn’t get emboldened by Trump’s penchant for isolationism and also expect China to invade Taiwan.

There is very little to like about Donald Trump but even less to like about Joe Biden.

I wonder how many Republican AGs will indict Biden when he leaves office.

The dems strategy was first to indict Trump to make him look like a sympathetic figure to his base to get him the republican nomination thinking that Trump was the only republican that Biden could beat. But since Biden has botched the job of being president so badly, the strategy now appears to just bankrupt Trump making him defend against all the indictments.

Just imagine how the media would have treated Biden were he a republican. Hunter would be in jail. Biden would have been impeached over the border and the illigal possession of classified documents. Sepaking of which, the documents prosecutor looking into Biden’s illegally hoarding of classified documents did not recommend criminal charges – unlike Trump being indicted for the same thing. Rather the prosecutor recommended no prosecution for Biden despite his being guilty on the grounds that a jury would likely be sympathetic to an old man with a bad memory! Mind you this elderly man with a bad memory is president of the United States. 

Random thoughts 

Why are there no fat illegal immigrants? Everyone at the border looks like a marathon runner. I guess its all the exercise from all that walking.

Someone told me that one of the illegals said that he wanted to come to America because it was the only place in the world with fat poor people.

The 24/7 “news” channels often interview their own on-camera personalities. They also spend time talking about what the personalities on their competitors say. Why Fox News thinks what is said on CNN and MSNBC is news is beyond me. Of course, the folks on those networks bash what the Fox News people say too. They probably have an agreement amongst themselves to fill empty space with the empty noises coming from the other side.

Who dictated that we must all now call illegal aliens “migrants”.

A Fox News article about some leftist whose personal pronouns are (they/them) actually referred to that single delusionary individual as “they”. Give me a break.

Why did we need a new border bill? What is wrong with just enforcing the laws on the books?

The Republican effort to impeach Mayorkas as a joke and doomed from the start. Even if the vote were successful in the House, the Senate would have failed to convict. The House Republicans knew this but went ahead anyway. Those criticizing the four Republican members who did not go along with the charade apparently want show over substance. Mayorkas is simply doing the bidding of his boss, Joe Biden. If the House wants to impeach anyone over the border it must be Biden.

The Wall Street Journal was for the border bill claiming that it had provisions that the Republicans wanted but could never get before. The Journal liked the expedited asylum proposal and the tightening of rules for claiming parole. It curiously also like the part that would temporarily close the border if more than 5,000 illegals showed up in a day. The National Review opposed the bill as did Donald Trump who as is his wont is criticizing the Republican on the bill James Langford of Oklahoma who has otherwise impeccable conservative credentials. Most likely, Langford got what he could get in the bill. Still the progressives and open border crowd on the left also opposed the bill. 

Biden started catch and release, stopped the wall and stopped the remain in Mexico policy. He opened the flood gates and the illegals have been pouring in. Some estimate as many as 5 million on his watch and continuing. If this isn’t an impeachable offence then nothing is. 

Biden like Obama before him practices appeasement with Iran somehow thinking that doing so will make them less belligerent. Not likely. Iran wants to erase Israel from the map. The United States remains the great satan. Iran with it dozens of proxies will continue to harass Israel and the US troops in the region and Biden is helping to finance it. Knowing that Israel is not going to be erased Iran is hoping to isolate it by intimidating all its neighbors, especially Egypt, Jordan and the Saudis.

Biden is now seeking to play both ends by giving military aid to Israel with no strings attached plus advocating a two state solution to placate his pro-Hamas left. Only neither the Palestinians nor the Israelis want a two state solution. Both the Palestinians and the Zionists want the other eradicated. The more moderate Israelis want peace, likely with the Palestinians still in Gaza but with a DMZ separating them from Israel. But in any event the Israelis will be fools to have Gaza again run by the militants. Their only choice will be to govern Gaza. But that would present a great opportunity to turn it into a thriving, prosperous area. Singapore anyone?

February 5, 2024

Walmart shrank the size of the salsa I buy from 24 ounces to 16 ounces. The price is the same. I was wondering if shrinkage which is inflationary to the consumer is reflected in the CPI? Consider that the salsa is not the only product I buy that has shrunk. I wish that they would keep the size the same and just increase the price. By keeping the same price but reducing the contents consumers’ real incomes fall. Again if the CPI doesn’t take this isto account then inflation is higher than what is reported.

What are we going to do about the Houthis? They are endangering shipping in the Red Sea with drone and missile attacks. They have also used speed boats to hijack ships. As a result, shipping in the Red Sea has fallen increasing the costs of goods and services. If ships from Asia to Europe are forced to go around the southern tip of Africa rather than through the Red Sea and Suez Canal, it is estimated that inflation will increase by 2 percent. The US and British response has been to use airstrikes to discourage the Houthis. But Saudi Arabia employed airstrikes for seven years in their war against the Houthis and finally gave it up as being largely ineffective. Some want to instead strike Iran, the Houthis mentor, directly to get the Iranians to stop supplying weapons and logistics. Lots of luck with that.

Iran is obviously supplying the Houthis with weapons. They just fired a cruise missile at an American ship. Guess who had to supply them with a cruise missile.

It is obviously to me as an outsider that Biden is afraid of Iran. From Day 1, he has tried to appease them. He wanted to remove the sanctions, restart the negotiations on the nuclear threat and gave them $6 billion for American hostages. What we got in return was a blowing up of the Middle East.

Is it just a coincidence that when Biden came in, the Russians invaded Ukraine, the southern border got overrun with illegals and the Middle East exploded?

Say what you will but the world seemed a bit safer when Trump was president. Was it because our adversaries were afraid of him and what his reaction would be if they attacked our interests?

But Trump is a demagogue – although he likely would spell it demigod. In his first campaign, his rhetoric against Mexicans reminded me of the racist campaigns in the southern democrat politics of my youth. I even remarked that I thought George Wallace was dead. When he became president, he was clearly anti-Muslim with his sweeping travel bans.

The Biden Administration just sanctioned four Israeli citizens for attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank. Its probably a coincidence that this occurred after all the pro-Hamas protests in Washington and elsewhere, the threats from the Muslim American community to sit out the election and the pressure from the pro-Hamas members of his administration. Biden is trying to have it both ways. The majority of Americans support Israel in its efforts to eradicate Hamas from Gaza despite all the negative publicity from the main stream media against Israel. Biden is not going to alienate these voters by not supporting Israel. But he can keep pushing for a cease fire and criticizing Netanyahu. That he has done.

I am almost feeling that this presidential election with be a Hobson’s choice. Again I am reminded of what a close friend of mine said “OMG don’t tell me that I will have to vote for Donald Trump again!”

Biden’s actions against liquid natural gas are a puzzlement. Yes I know it is contended that he did this to shore up his green base. That makes little sense because the greenies are not going to vote for Trump.

I still find it hard to believe that the Democrat establishment will allow Biden to run. Not with these poll numbers. I keep reading that some think that Michelle Obama should run. Why? At least Hillary Clinton was a US senator and Secretary of State. What are Obama’s credentials other than she is married to Barack?

But perish the thought: Gavin Newsom could beat Trump.