My pedicure at a Cambodian nail salon

For someone my age, a pedicure is pure luxury, and also a necessity. The salon I've been using the last year and a half has an all Asian staff, but I didn't know the country. They could all speak to each other, and some spoke a little English, but I didn't feel comfortable asking. This past Monday, the young lady only spoke English and said they were all Cambodians. She was born in the U.S. and told me her step-mother worked there (so I had the impression she was only there occasionally). She told me there were many Cambodians living in the Columbus area. Later when I was under the dryer another customer told me that the owner of this salon had started it after working in another salon in our community. Wow.  What entrepreneurs. And all female! And I was to discover, a lot more to the story.

I looked up Cambodians in the U.S. There was a civil war in the 1970s in Cambodia and the Communists won.  An estimated 1.7 million people out of an estimated total population of 7.9 million died from executions, hunger, disease, injuries, coerced labor, and exposure to the elements. Think of that. They killed about a fourth of the population. After the Communists took over, life became so awful I'll just quote my source. (Chan, Sucheng. "Cambodians in the United States: Refugees, Immigrants, American Ethnic Minority." Oxford Research Encyclopedia of American History.)

"The very afternoon of the day they captured Phnom Penh, they ordered its population (that had swelled from half a million to more than two million during the civil war) to evacuate the city and go to their ancestral villages. Even patients in hospitals were forced to move, some being pushed along while lying on gurneys. Along the way, Khmer Rouge cadres cajoled people, at gunpoint, to tell their life stories so that former government officials and military commanders, educated people, professionals of every kind, merchants, and landlords could be identified. Branded as enemies of the people, these unfortunate individuals were shot or bludgeoned to death. The Khmer Rouge defrocked Buddhist monks, the most revered persons in traditional Cambodian society, forced them to work in the fields, and killed many of them. They used Buddhist temples to store their weapons and ammunition. Barely a year after coming to power, Pol Pot ordered his most trusted henchmen to arrest, imprison, torture, and execute thousands of individuals among the Khmer Rouge’s own officials, political cadres, and military commanders, including a large number of high-ranking ones, whom he suspected of being disloyal to him. The Khmer Rouge closed schools and colleges, and abolished private property, money, banks, markets, hospitals, Western medicine, and all other modern institutions. They let vehicles and machinery rust in the humid tropical climate because they opposed the use of such symbols of Western modernity. They separated husbands from their wives and children who were older than seven from their parents. They also trained children to spy on their parents and interrogated the youngsters about what their parents had talked about.7 The entire country was turned into a giant slave labor camp: people had to plant and harvest crops, as well as build dams and levees, with their bare hands while subsisting on meager bowls of thin rice gruel. Starving individuals who dared to catch fish, mice, lizards, and other creatures or to look for wild plants to eat were severely punished or even killed."

Read that carefully.  You'll notice some oddly familiar themes. Destroying the educated, destroying religion, destroying families, destroying symbols of Western civilization, and finally killing off the very people who helped build the power structure.

This encyclopedia article is very informative but is laced with the usual blame and coulda shoulda woulda complaints about American society. (This is not uncommon in the Oxford encyclopedias.) Still, it's worth reading for an overview. Cambodians in the United States: Refugees, Immigrants, American Ethnic Minority | Oxford Research Encyclopedia of American History

The Hamas Pro-Palestine protests in DC

 Now if they were J-6 protestors, it would be months in jail. Harris left town and didn't meet with Netanyahu. She was in Indianapolis with her Sorority Sisters.

Faster than an assassin's bullet

You've got to give Democrats credit/blame for their head twirling, gaslighting blather. They/he/she/all of them. Now Trump is too old to run. He was traumatized, they gossip, by the assassin's bullet. After years of their/her/his lying to us about Biden! If Trump says anything about Kamala it's a racist, sexist attack, but it's still OK for them/her/him to call Trump a Nazi, white supremist, and threat to Democracy. As soon as they kicked Biden to the curb (when he was sick) for being old and forgetful, all the money came back. It was faster than a speeding bullet! That's their version of Democracy.

Kamala Harris' rise in politics

Since it will come up during the campaign, let's compare Harris' lucrative climb in politics via her boyfriend (twice her age) Willy Brown with Trump's relationship with Stormy Daniels. The devious (and Biden supported) Alvin Bragg managed to find 34 felonies within one misdemeanor; it was clearly election interference on Biden's part. Now if we had an investigative media (dream on), how many felonies could a clever prosecutor of the other party find in the payoff Harris took from Brown? And if the statute of limitations has run out--no problem. That was also the case for the Democrats v. Trump.

"Brown’s decision to appoint Harris raised eyebrows in political circles. “Both boards are reserved for political payback or occasionally for personal rewards for personal service,” said Brett Granlund, a former California Republican state assemblyman who worked closely with the commission while Harris was on the board. “The boards are considered plum appointments as they require no work, no policy credentials, and are paid the equivalent of a full-time [state] senator for arriving at a one- to two-hour meeting each month.”

Kamala Harris launched political career with $120K ‘patronage’ job from boyfriend Willie Brown - Washington Examiner

Cheatle resigns, but Heritage is on the job

The Heritage Oversight Project has been tracking phones connected to Crooks' workplace and home, coming up with some interesting facts. Let's see if the tardy investigative actions of the FBI and Secret Service ever get this far. This is an IMPORTANT read.

"A cell phone associated with the home and work addresses of would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks visited the Gallery Place building in Washington, D.C., that houses a mall and offices of the FBI, the Heritage Oversight Project reported July 22." https://www.theblaze.com/news/phone-associated-with-would-be-assassin-pinged-near-fbi-dc-offices-in-2023-report-says?

Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle has resigned now, but Biden (if he's out there) should have fired her.

The informed Democrat voter

In case any conservatives thought going up against Kamala would be a breeze, let me tell you about today's treadmill gossip. I had to move down the row a bit because a lot of the TVs weren't working, and I ended up next to 3 men (old guys, but younger than me). These guys were talking football--they knew the name of every coach, player and water boy. Then all of a sudden, one guy says, "What do you think of Kamala?" One other says, "Oh she's fine; I'll vote for her, but don't know anything about her," and the others chimed end with approval. Dumb jocks.

It's been a very long week

A long extended week from Saturday, July 13, to Sunday, July 21. From an assassination attempt to a coup; there's a lot of evil, corruption, denial, grifting, lying, disloyalty, DEI failure, hate, and gaslighting oozing and revealing to the world just how deep the swamp is. The Democrats are everything they accuse Trump of being.

Emily Jashinsky, voice of a conservative?

I've never been able to put my finger on it, but I just don't care for Emily Jashinsky, culture editor for The Federalist and occasional guest on Fox (I'm told). I think it's her whiney giggly voice. (I just looked her up and she's quite young--30, unmarried, no kids.) 

For podcasts, voice quality is important to me. I heard her on the "UnHerd with Freddie Sayers" podcast evaluation of Trump's speech of Thursday. Yikes. She might as well have been on the View, a show I don't watch, but because they are such racists and haters one does see clips occasionally on other shows. She even doubted he needed the bandage. I wonder if she's ever had a part of her ear blown off, or even had skin cancer on her head or face and realized the danger of infection? The skin is the largest organ of our body, a protective shield against injury, and infection. The flesh on his ear prevents entry of bacteria and when it's gone--a bandage would cover the scab or prevent it from being bumped by an enthusiastic grandchild or fan. At least she didn't demand to see the medical records as one screechy leftist feminist on Demedia did. She didn't like the tribute to Corey Comperatore who was killed by one of the bullets some on the Left wished for Trump. Perhaps she would have preferred the full-scale riots and defund police parades that honored George Floyd? She said Trump was just being Trump and she didn't see any real change. 

An air-head trying to get inside Trump's head and heart. She's called a "rising conservative voice," and she's just full of herself--something she accuses Trump of.

The lies about Trump--NATO

One of the biggest lies the Democrats tell about Trump is that he wants to destroy NATO. So, paying your fair share (2% of GDP) is now being a Nazi? Hmm. Who is it that talks about "fair share" all the time? But what's crazy is Biden is now given credit for what Trump asked for!

 "Just five years ago, there was still less than 10 allies that spent 2% of GDP on defense,” Stoltenberg said during remarks at The Wilson Center in Washington. “I can only now reveal that this year, more than 20 allies will spend at least 2% of GDP on defense.” (CNN, June 17, 2024)

JD Vance named as Trump's vice president

 

The tale of 3 cities--Korazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum

Today's Gospel reading in Magnificat is the disturbing warning Jesus gives three cities, Korazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum (Matt. 11: 20-24). They not only had a long history of being God's special people, but they'd witnessed the Kingdom of God, Jesus performing his miracles, yet refused Him. We could read that Chicago, New York and LA, or the United States, Canada and Mexico, or Germany, England and France. All have been blessed over the years not just with material wealth, magnificent universities and stunning technological achievement, but the riches of knowing God's word, from parchment to podcast. And still, we don't repent and follow His ways. The events of the last several months, or even since 9-11 come to mind. God seems to be doing something remarkable right now, summer 2024. Trump may never be president again, but God has revealed through his efforts the soft underbelly of a very corrupt system that refuses to honor God and appreciate all His gifts.

Trump's message to America after the shooting

President Trump's statement on Truth Social

"I want to thank The United States Secret Service, and all of Law Enforcement, for their rapid response on the shooting that just took place in Butler, Pennsylvania. Most importantly, I want to extend my condolences to the family of the person at the Rally who was killed, and also to the family of another person that was badly injured. It is incredible that such an act can take place in our Country. Nothing is known at this time about the shooter, who is now dead. I was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear. I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin. Much bleeding took place, so I realized then what was happening. GOD BLESS AMERICA!"

There's more, and I'm looking at various sites. I'm not on Truth Social so have to find it elsewhere.

“Based on yesterday’s terrible events, I was going to delay my trip to Wisconsin, and The Republican National Convention, by two days, but have just decided that I cannot allow a ‘shooter,’ or potential assassin, to force change to scheduling, or anything else. Therefore, I will be leaving for Milwaukee, as scheduled, at 3:30 P.M,” Trump said in a Truth Social post."

 
“Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers yesterday, as it was God alone who prevented the unthinkable from happening,” he wrote.

“We will FEAR NOT, but instead remain resilient in our Faith and Defiant in the face of Wickedness. Our love goes out to the other victims and their families. We pray for the recovery of those who were wounded, and hold in our hearts the memory of the citizen who was so horribly killed.

“In this moment, it is more important than ever that we stand United, and show our True Character as Americans, remaining Strong and Determined, and not allowing Evil to Win. I truly love our Country, and love you all, and look forward to speaking to our Great Nation this week from Wisconsin.” (New York Post)

The iconic photo of a bleeding, fist pumping, defiant Trump being swept off the stage by the Secret Service with the American flag against a bright blue sky waving above him will become famous, but a lot of the sources I've seen clip out the flag. Whether it was space, dislike for Trump or distain for the flag, we can only guess.

A message from Pastor Turnbull--God holds the future

 Our senior pastor, Steve Turnbull, sent this e-mail this afternoon addressing the assassination attempt on President Trump.

"First, as we prayed in our services this morning, let us be faithfully in prayer for President Trump, his staff and his family, and for the families of those killed, injured and traumatized in the attack. Let us also be praying for President Biden and all other candidates for office at our city, state and national level. What we witnessed brings home the danger these public servants put themselves in, and it is right for us to pray for their safety, and for comfort for them and loved ones who now face greater fear. And let’s be praying for our nation – for peace, kindness, and neighborliness even through this election cycle where differences of opinion are strong. This is a moment where we as a country can seek both repentance and healing. I'm certainly praying for this, and I invite you to join me.   

That leads into the challenge I have for you: as a congregation, let us practice the love of our neighbors as a witness to a hurting world. Comfort and care for your friends, relatives and neighbors – maybe especially those with whom you disagree. Jesus has called us to love our neighbors, and our enemies, and we as believers ought to lead the way as the nation reckons with the dire consequences of hatred, division and violence. I challenge myself, first, and then you to be intentionally Christlike in your thoughts, actions, and online engagement in this election season ahead of us. Our neighbors need this from us.  

Finally, I want to share with you a word of hope. Last night, we went to sleep in a world that felt very uncertain. This morning we woke up in the same world, but we gathered across the country and around the world to worship God who Scripture says, “holds all things together” (Col. 1:17). In Psalm 95, it says, “For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also.” While we may not know the future, or be able to control the outcome of historical events, our God can and does. He holds together this fragile, broken world, and he holds the future. " 

Socialists become Communists or Fascists, F.A. Hayek, 1944

"No less significant is the intellectual history of many of the Nazi and Fascist leaders. Everyone who has watched the growth of these movements in Italy or in Germany has been struck by the number of leading men, from Mussolini downward (and not excluding Laval and Quisling), who began as socialists and ended as Fascists or Nazis. And what is true of the leaders is even more true of the rank and file of the movement. The relative ease with which a young communist could be converted into a Nazi or vice versa was generally known in Germany, best of all to the propagandists of the two parties. Many a university teacher during the 1930s has seen English and American students return from the Continent uncertain whether they were communists or Nazis and certain only that they hated Western liberal civilization."

 "The Road to Serfdom; text and documents, The definitive edition," ed. by Bruce Caldwell, (The collected works of F.A. Hayek, vol 2) University of Chicago Press, c1944, c2007. pp. 80-81

Pew Report January 2020 on incomes and prosperity

It must have hurt to have to say good things about the Trump economy or the nation in general in this Pew (left of center) Report, which came out in Jan 2020 before Trump halted some travel from China in an attempt to stop the spread of the virus. (In hindsight lab leaked viruses laughed at those regulations, just like Pelosi did.) The report does take the long view going back decades to find slow growth and little change. But I did notice that the report noted the shrinking middle class--because people were moving up, not down.

"The unemployment rate in November 2019 was 3.5%, a level not seen since the 1960s."
". . . household incomes, which have rebounded in recent years."

"In 2018, the median income of U.S. households stood at $74,600. This was 49% higher than its level in 1970, when the median income was $50,200." (Incomes are expressed in 2018 dollars.)

"On balance, there was more movement up the income ladder than down the income ladder. [since 1970]"

"Since 1980, incomes have increased faster for the most affluent families – those in the top 5% – than for families in the income strata below them." (If you look at the inflation adjusted charts, this doesn't seem to be so, but if wealth creates wealth and there's been a huge increase in dual income families in the last 40 years, I would agree. In the long run, wealth transfers from the government from the middle class to the lower class may help consumption, but it doesn't build wealth to be passed along by generations.)

Several paragraphs in the report note the rising incomes of the upper income, without noting the disparity in marriage rates. Obviously a three person household of a single mother and two children, is going to be less than a three person household of a married mother, father and child. Income gaps between white and Asian households can usually be adjusted for marriage and number of family members. Childhood poverty can almost all be explained by the difference in marriage rates.

https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2020/01/09/trends-in-income-and-wealth-inequality/?

How Black, Hispanic, Asian, White households compare in wealth | Pew Research Center

Parkinson's Disease

I do a slow burn at the wealthy and powerful like Ari Emanuel who are now fuming about not knowing how weak and confused Joe Biden is (and was in 2020). These gazillionaires and their buddies control our lives through the people we "elect." The money and power they control we can't even imagine. I suspected Parkinson's 4 years ago, not because I'm a doctor, but because I know or knew so many people (at least 10) who have/had it. 80% men. There are many kinds and it can be misdiagnosed. The only time I saw emotion on Joe's face was when he'd get angry and start screaming incoherently at a friendly audience, name calling, dredging up old stories, forgetting decades and shouting like a demented person, or when he was eating ice cream shmoozing the kids. But Conservatives were demonized if it was mentioned. We'd been so beaten down with Covid cancellations, many just chose to keep quiet about what we saw.

Ari Emanuel’s Aspen Assault on Joe Biden and the Dems (yahoo.com)

https://www.healthline.com/health/parkinsons/types-of-parkinsons?

Quick cookie recipe

 Took a nap; woke up with the munchies. 1 pkg cake mix; 2 eggs, 1/2 cup oil. 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Mary Roberts Rinehart on War

Joe Biden gave us a humiliating, disastrous withdrawal from one war, and has involved us in two others (by financing them). Let's not forget it was not just the debate that brought us to this point.

“War is not two great armies meeting in the clash and frenzy of battle. War is a boy being carried on a stretcher, looking up at God’s blue sky with bewildered eyes that are soon to close; war is a woman carrying a child that has been injured by a shell; war is spirited horses tied in burning buildings and waiting for death; war is the flower of a race, battered, hungry, bleeding, up to its knees in filthy water; war is an old woman burning a candle before the Mater Dolorsa for the son she has given.”
― Mary Rinehart, American writer

Project 2025

What is Project 2025 which has the Leftists pulling their hair in search of new catastrophic words to describe "white Christian nationalism?"

"With the Biden administration half over [January 2023] and with the immediate dangers inherent to one-party rule in Washington behind us for now, it’s past time to lay the groundwork for a White House more friendly to the right. For decades, as the left has continued its march through America’s institutions, conservatives have been outgunned and outmatched when it comes to the art of government.

One reason is because the Republican establishment never moved on from the 1980s. Beltway conservatives still prioritize supply-side economics and a bellicose foreign policy above all else. Belief in small government, strangely enough, has manifested itself in a belief among some conservatives that we should lead by example and not fill all political appointments. Belief in the primacy of the national security state has caused conservative administrations to defer political decisions to the generals and the intelligence community."

Project 2025 | The Heritage Foundation

2025_MandateForLeadership_P2025-NOTE.pdf (project2025.org)

Joe Rogan on Joe Biden

Joe Rogan, a comedian and now famous podcaster, says in the 80s comedians used to do "Joe Biden nights" as comics, where each performer used someone else's acts. That's how famous he was THEN as a plagiarist. https://open.spotify.com/episode/67haCs3jEOu2mThrqzC3Gc So when Politico or NYT says Trump lies--think of Joe telling lies for over 45 years to the American people.

Joe on gender, race and color

I think we can figure out what Biden was saying in Philadelphia a week after the debate: "By the way, I'm proud to be, as I said, the first vice president, first black woman... to serve with a black president. Proud to be involved of the first black woman on the Supreme Court. There's so much that we can do because, look...we're the United States of America." (Try to diagram that sentence!)

Even though he claims in the interview at WURD to be a black woman and to be involved with a black woman (who couldn't define what a woman is), we know he is not a black lesbian. It's just good old Uncle Joe, the guy half of the electorate said they wanted back in 2020 to bring the country together.

But really folks, is it smart to be proud about another person's ethnicity and political decisions and skills? That's what he seems to be saying--Harris and Obama are nothing without me--I'm the big cheese. They only matter because of their skin color. I'm surprised he didn't tell the black radio hosts he only agreed to the interview because they are black. Back in 2020 when Harris was running for president in the primaries she called Democrats racists, and he seems to prove it.

The Democrat Party "democracy" they say we'll lose

Glenn Greenwald reminds us that the 2016 Democrat election (primaries) were rigged to favor Clinton over Sanders. In 2024 they had NO primaries--no voters had a choice. This is the "Democracy" the Democrats say we'll lose if Trump is elected. Power and money run the party, not the voters.

https://youtu.be/e37KAAbespU?si=tGRuNChL-EyC99tR

1967 and 1968 were scary in presidential politics

Today I was reminded of just how scary 1967 and 1968 were for our country--which put today's problems with Biden and 2 wars in perspective. Our children were born in 1967 and 1968 and this podcast reminded me of how helpless we felt.  You want your kids to have a better life, but it all seemed to be crashing.  Especially awful were the assassinations.  If you were around then and have forgotten what a mess the Democrats (and the country) were in, take a listen to the podcast "Honestly." Bari Weiss is the founder of Free Press and main speaker on the Honestly podcast, but she has a guest host, Eli Lake, for this one. I'd forgotten how much LBJ and RFK hated each other, and the level of disruption the Chicago riots caused. Mr. Lake brings it all back with some of the interviews. Honestly with Bari Weiss: When a President Drops Out: What Biden Can Learn from 1968 on Apple Podcasts

From the transcript: "Today, Free Press writer Eli Lake hosts a special episode about what happened in 1968 when President Johnson decided he was not fit for reapplying for his job. He listened to his critics and backed away from the White House, allowing the Democrats an opportunity to stage an open convention to choose their next candidate for the presidency. But why did the party want him gone so badly? And how did this seismic decision work out? It’s a tale of murder, war, and riots that culminated in the most explosive convention in the history of America."

DEMOCRATIC_CONVENTION_1968_REEL_1_306-1424-r1.webm.720p.vp9

America the Beautiful

"America the beautiful" by Katherine Bates composed on a trip to Colorado is so beautiful I thought I'd write something about it. It's been recorded by so many famous entertainers and bands--Elvis Presley to Aretha Franklin, military bands to small town band concerts. Everything I've read would indicate it is public domain--but alas, even that is being argued and worked out in the courts. But I was certainly shocked to read in my morning devotions (Magnificat, July 2024) that the copyright is held by the Benedictine Nuns of the Abbey of St. Cecilia, Ryde, Isle of Wright, UK. That's either a big typo or perhaps applies to a particular recorded rendition. I'll check with the publisher.

Katharine Lee Bates | Biography, America The Beautiful, Poems, Books, & Facts | Britannica

"Amber Waves" is the title of a USDA magazine. The title is probably taken from that familiar tune. I used to collect first/premiere issues of magazines and have the first issue (in print). It still exists on line. https://www.ers.usda.gov/amber-waves.aspx

Latest, updated list of lies about President Trump

 https://sharylattkisson.com/2024/06/50-media-mistakes-in-the-trump-era-the-definitive-list/?

The list is now at 160, but because they are so often repeated even after debunked, some people are hearing them for the first time.  Like the bleach thing, and the "nice people" lie.

Dr. Zhivago and "The Secrets we Kept"

This is a terrible way to waste 15 minutes, but I've been researching the use of polystyrene foam as disposable coffee cups. I'm reading a spy novel ("The secrets we kept" by Lara Prescott). It's 1956 and the typing pool is gathered at the coffee shop (in Washington DC, and I don't yet know who the spies are but the latest fad in novels is to have bright young women save the West as spies). Here's the line that stopped me. "The Agency's own brew, though brown and hot, tasted more like the Styrofoam cups we drank it from."

Doesn't that sound like an anachronism to you? So of course, I looked it up. Not a lot of history (with dates) for polystyrofoam cups, but AI tried. Seems this environmental disaster was developed in 1954 and the foam cups created in 1957. Sometime in the 1960s they began to be used for disposable coffee cups, and 7-11 popularized them around 1964. The big use expansion of these cups was the 1970s and 80s. That's the bare bones, and right now if you're drinking disposably, it's probably a paper cup with a thin plastic coating (which may be leaching into your coffee), and the BIG advancement was in the development of the lids.

Back to the spies. This novel is built about Boris Pasternak's "Dr. Zhivago," and although I'm not sure I read it, I did see the movie several times. Also I took Russian in college and I can pronounce the names. The author's name is Lara, as was the love interest in Pasternak's novel.

https://youtu.be/WiWWa-T0EIY?si=e22chGIuSSxQafZX  Lara's Theme

Presidential immunity

I think Democrats should be thrilled with the clarification of presidential immunity by SCOTUS. Both Obama and Biden have serious crimes that could come back to haunt them. But Democrats are so damaged by their hate for Trump they think anything in the Constitution they don't support is about Trump.

The decision, written by Chief Justice John Roberts, established a broad new immunity from prosecution, not just for Trump, but for past and future presidents, too. Presidents may not be prosecuted for exercising their “core” constitutional powers, and even in situations where former presidents might be prosecuted after leaving office, they are entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for official actions they took as president.

Such immunity is needed, said the chief justice, in order to protect an “energetic,” and “independent executive,” willing to take “bold” actions and make unpopular decisions when needed. And while Roberts said that private actions by a former president are not protected from prosecution, his opinion seemed to inexorably intertwine private and public actions. Supreme Court says Trump has absolute immunity for core acts only : NPR

Clarence Thomas swipes at Special Counsel Jack Smith's appointment in SCOTUS immunity case | Fox News

Takeaways from the Supreme Court’s historic decision granting Donald Trump immunity | CNN Politics

Angry Democrats upset about Presidential immunity

"The President is not above the law. But Congress may not criminalize the President’s conduct in carrying out the responsibilities of the Executive Branch under the Constitution. And the system of separated powers designed by the Framers has always demanded an energetic, independent Executive," the SCOTUS opinion said.

Democrats are angry and insane. President Trump has all the same rights that all presidents and all citizens had before the SCOTUS decision, yet they believe "Democracy" has failed under a "MAGA court." They don't see that SCOTUS has protected them! Think of all the angry, biased, crazy, befuddled things Biden has said and done in the last 4 years--they better hope he has immunity.

The debate aftermath

I don't know what is more painful--listening to the rehash of how frail and confused the "leader of the free world" was last night, or how disgusting the shock and horror of the Demedia was, especially when they've known this his whole term. The media have lied to Democrats in propping him up.

I asked one of my Fitness Friends this morning if he'd watched the debate (he's 70, but looks 50--don't you hate that). He made an interesting observation: "If the Democrats hadn't cheated in 2020, we'd be done with both of them and both parties could bring in younger candidates."

Taibbi tells all to Tucker

I listened to the entire 2 hour 20 minute interview of Matt Taibbi on the Tucker show this afternoon (waiting for a call back that never came). By the end I was almost tearful. It's sad when one's dreams are dashed--even for leftists. Taibbi was considered the golden boy of liberal journalism. Worked 10 years in Russia (speaks Russian) as a journalist and had his dream job for 16 years with Rolling Stone. He got the big exposé about Twitter, how it was infiltrated by government intel. He now works as an independent (Substack) and is called "right wing" by the Demedia, his former friends and colleagues. He really dislikes Trump, but has had to acknowledge the Soviet/Russian style justice he has received (and Steve Bannon). He was such a huge fan of Obama it was almost painful to listen to his confession of faith. Oddly, he is such a believer in the values of freedom of speech and a journalism ethic that I don't believe ever existed in real practice, that he's about as MAGA as one could be without knowing it.

One odd thing I learned during the interview is both men have fathers who were adopted. Taibbi is actually of Filipino/Hawaiian ethnicity, adopted by Italian Americans with a Lebanese surname.

The Debate between President Trump and Joe Biden

The Democrats' idea of free speech guaranteed to Americans in the Bill of Rights is very fluid.

 
In 2021 you could lose your career if you advocated the use of Ivermectin, a safe, legal, low cost treatment for parasites which also acts as an anti-viral.

In 2024 you can verbally abuse Jews and threaten their right to exist with no fear of arrest or career damage but lose your job for saying a man is not a woman.

Remember that when you watch the debate tonight. It's back to basics . . .

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."

Steve Sailer notices things--trends, seasons, laws, murders

Steve Sailer notices things. Then he writes them down. Then his columns were collected into a book titled "Noticing." He's called a right wing extremist and racist by Media Matters or SPLC because he notices things like 15,000-20,000 blacks were murdered or died in car crashes as a result of BLM's Ferguson (2015-16) and George Floyd (2020) riots. With guns blacks killed each other (44% increase) and when police were told not to patrol or stop cars for searches because that was racist, more blacks died in car crashes (39% increase). He uses a lot of CDC statistics. It seems that Black Lives Don't Matter to Democrats because they want Sailer to stop writing about such uncomfortable topics (which could be compiled and collected by any journalist if they cared). He's been on many podcasts, but today is the first day I'd heard of him.

Steve Sailer: BLM, Karens, Donald Trump, and What Democrats Don’t Want You to Know about DEI (tuckercarlson.com)

The names in DC have changed, but the politics are now criminal

In a summary of post WWII U.S. political history--from the 1950s to today--Joel Ross writes, " It is just that the Dems have now taken it [dirty politics] to a whole new level of criminal behavior in an attempt to consolidate power. Cheating in elections is now a science for them, and so we have 11 million illegal new potential people to sign illegal ballots. That is what this year’s election represents.

 
It is 43 years later [after the Reagan Revolution, 1981-1989], but the same political left vs right battles are being fought, just the names are different, and the tactics are now criminal. The pendulum is now swinging back, and the numbers are very much larger. This election is a historic moment equal to when Reagan got elected and changed the direction of the country away from government control.

Consider, 1979 was the Iran hostage crisis, then came Reagan and it ended immediately. 2024, Gaza war and hostage crisis with Iran proxy. 1979 weak Carter, inflation was 11.3% and the economy was headed in the wrong direction. Now weak bumbling Biden, prices are up over 20% for basics in four years, and there is another hostage crisis involving Iran proxies. Along comes Trump seeking to reverse all of the Biden failures and over regulation. The Dems already have a plan to try to stop him from eliminating deep state swamp dwellers."

Prayers for June 23 from Magnificat magazine

 

Slow down by Iamson

 I was listening to "Pray as you Go" this morning and the song selection was "Slow Down" by Iamson.  That's not a song that "speaks" to me, because at 84, I couldn't go much slower.  But the message is more about where we put our focus, I think. Even when my body won't move, it seems the mind is busy.

https://genius.com/Iamson-slow-down-lyrics

Slow down, where are you going?
What's so important that can't wait?
Tell Me, what are you seeking?
What is it that's keeping you from bringing Me your questions?

Should Republicans use Lawfare as taught by Democrats?

This is from the webpage of Jay Hubbard, 

Regarding lawfare, we shouldn’t unilaterally disarm. We should employ the same tactics they’ve engaged in until we successfully instill a realistic fear which establishes a sense of mutual destruction and allows a “ceasefire” to emerge.

The rule of law is predicated on the same standards supposedly being enforced for all. Therefore, all we’d have to do is persecute them on the same grounds they persecuted us. We wouldn’t even have to lie about any of it.

Impeach Biden for a quid pro quo with Ukraine.

Toss Hunter Biden in jail for falsifying a document.

Hold Biden liable for sexual assault due to a very old and poorly corroborated accusation.

Launch a congressional committee to investigate the multiple “insurrections” that occurred during the BLM riots. Jail hundreds of those criminals.

Prosecute the prosecutors who arrested people for self defense, on the grounds that said cases constituted prosecutorial misconduct.

Toss Attorney General Merrick Garland in jail for failing to appear to answer a Congressional subpoena and thereby getting held in contempt of Congress.

Do the EXACT SAME THING to FORMER Attorney General Eric Holder for, again, the same “crime.”

Jail James Clapper, the former director of national intelligence, for lying to Congress when he falsely testified that the government wasn’t collecting telephone records on millions of Americans.

Prosecute everyone involved in arresting Trump, on the grounds that their behavior constitutes “election interference in the 2024 Presidential Campaign.”

While we’re investigating electioneering, prosecute the 50+ former intelligence officials who lied to squash the Hunter Biden laptop story.

Prosecute former President Obama and FBI director James Comey for breaking espionage laws when they spied on the Trump campaign.

Prosecute members of the FBI for misleading the FISA court by leaking news to the media so they could later present that news article to the FISA judge as though it were independent corroboration of their accusation, thereby securing authorization for continued warrantless wiretapping. This was fabricated corroboration designed to manipulate the court.

Prosecute the politicians in PA who violated their state constitution when they illegally changed the voting rules during the 2020 presidential election (again, just call it election interference).

Every right-of-center news outlet should sue the Whitehouse Press Secretary for libel, for lying about all right wing news outlets supposedly pushing “cheap-fakes” when all they did was show unedited clips from a pool feed (meaning a camera feed shared by all networks). Even if they couldn’t win, sue them anyways.

Launch multiple IRS investigations over the Biden family’s numerous unexplained shell corporations where foreign funds were received and then dispersed amongst family members.

Launch another investigation regarding the coverup of said crimes, as exposed by the two IRS whistleblowers who testified that pressure was placed to steer investigators away from implicating Biden.

Prosecute Clinton for destroying her email servers.

Prosecute Biden for mishandling classified documents when he was a Senator and later the Vice President, both positions which lacked the Presidential authority to unilaterally classify documents.

On the grounds of child endangerment, arrest those involved in all of the “kid friendly” transgender shows, particularly the ones which featured explicit and sexually suggestive dancing.

Arrest pro-abortion protestors for harassment.

For the crime of “trespassing,” arrest the people who stormed the capitol to protest the appointment of Justice Kavanaugh.

For rioting, arrest the protestors who set a fire near the Whitehouse, temporarily forcing the Secret Service to rush President Trump into a secure bunker.

For inciting riots, arrest all politicians who publicly encouraged riots in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death.

Arrest all Democrats who previously went to court to fight ANY election results. Do so on the grounds that their legal argument constituted “a conspiracy to illegally overturn a free and fair election.”

Sue any school district who pushes trans ideology. Do so on the grounds that it’s abusive to children, violative of woman’s rights regarding female sports, and unsafe for girls who face a heightened risk of sexual harassment when males access female locker rooms.

Criminally prosecute all hospital administers and surgeons who partook in gender reassignment surgery for minors.

Ask all Whitehouse advisors to divulge privileged conversations, and when they refuse on grounds of executive privilege, lock them all up.

Indict Biden’s lawyers until you force one of them to flip and testify against him in exchange for a plea bargain.

Just as Biden’s administration sued Texas for enforcing state immigration laws, arguing that federal authority superseded Texas policy, sanctuary cities should be sued on similar grounds.

Even if we lose every case, we must force them to contend with the legal expense and political fallout.

Tea and Memorial for Lakeside Women's Club

 This afternoon the Lakeside Women's Club had a tea on the lawn of the Hotel Lakeside to celebrate 80 years of friendship and programming.  The program began with a memorial for deceased members since last summer.  That included my good friend Nancy Long who was a longtime member and also frequent presenter at the various book reviews. Also, today is her birthday, so the ladies wished her a happy heavenly birthday.   Gretchen Curtis provided an interesting program speaking as Bessie Hoover, the first president of the LWC and wife of A.L. Hoover long time Lakeside director. In July there will be a service for Nancy at the memorial garden at Lakeside.

Zombie eggs?

What or who are these "other people" who produce human eggs to be harvested for IVG?

"During an IVF cycle, women and other people who produce female sex cells have their eggs surgically removed." (From the article "How many IVF babies are born in the US?" at USAfacts.org)

This is the control the culture crazies have over biology. If "fact" compilers at USA Facts are so intimidated by woke activists, then how do we trust them on other "facts" like murder rate by race, or number of illegals during Biden years, or trade data with China?

If a woman who believes she is a man is still producing eggs to be harvested so she or her partner can be a mother, then she is a woman, not "other" person. How hard can it be for educated people in 2024 to grasp that scientific fact?

For a more civil society call them racists

I suspect the pleas that we return to a more civil society without so much polarization with more bi-partisanship is mainly suggested by Democrats. They really take offense at being questioned about their party's abortion platform, their patriotism, about their feeble president, their weaponization of the DOJ and their funding by dark money. They desire our silence and polite understanding. They are also virtue signalers--especially those who say they are Christians. For example. If you want to promote peace, harmony and reasonable dialog in a vacation community--let's say Lakeside, Ohio--where people come to see old friends, to fish or boat, and to take in some stimulating Chautauqua programs--why invite (and pay) a speaker who has written books "The Hidden Roots of White Supremacy," "White Too Long, The Legacy of White Supremacy in American Christianity," and "The End of White Christian America?"

Steve Bannon goes to prison; Eric Holder didn't

Steve Bannon is going to jail July 1 for contempt of Congress, but Eric Holder (same charge) didn't. What's the difference? Bannon was on Trump's staff at one time. It's a misdemeanor. Who goes to jail for a misdemeanor? Only Republicans, pro-lifers, and conservative Catholics. They are going after Guliani for the same reason. Trump got the Soviet 1930s style trial and death in prison; his aides and lawyers, jail time and personal ruin. A Michigan grandmother got a 2 year sentence for a pro-life protest. Democrats don't just play hard ball, they want to destroy the judicial system.

 “In my 20s I served my country on a Navy Destroyer [and] in my 70s I’ll serve my country in a federal prison. It doesn’t make any difference,” Bannon said. https://youtu.be/YGRMp-GkIwo?si=vy9mGbTLSyBF_omv

"Unless you were equally appalled by Obama Attorney General Eric Holder's refusal to turn over Department of Justice documents about botched gun-walking Operation Fast and Furious in 2012, I don't want to hear it. The gun-walking operation was a mess that got Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry killed. He was murdered by one of the guns in this scandal" (Townhall.com)

BLM and Antifa got to burn down buildings, paint logos in the streets, and disrupt our cities and economy for months and months. No problem. And the media called it racism when they got arrested.

June 13, 1777

On June 13, 1777, the Marquis de Lafayette arrived in South Carolina. He declared that "the welfare of America is intimately connected with the happiness of all mankind." So true. There are those among us who want to end that. They are angry that this is a great country, and they riot in the streets, burn down buildings and mock us from our elite universities. They say things like "first the Saturday people, then the Sunday people." They hate all of Western Civilization.

30 days to think about pride

Pride is considered one of the seven deadly sins because

It glorifies oneself and not God
It is selfish
It rages against all wise counsel
It is not submissive to authority
It is judgmental
It leads to discrimination

For sure!

"In the Bible, the first sin committed by human beings, often referred to as the original sin, was rooted in pride. Adam and Eve's disobedience in the Garden of Eden came from their desire to be like God, to have the knowledge of good and evil, and to assert their independence from Him."

So, it may be good to have 30 days devoted to remembering the failures and unhappiness caused by pride. Especially that part about wanting to be like God.

The hoax of the Hunter Biden trial

Have you seen the Demedia rejoicing that the justice system works (Hunter's gun trial and conviction). What a crock. That man, with his father, committed so many crimes this was a throw away. https://ijr.com/hunter-biden-may-never-have-been-on-trial-were-it-not-for-whistleblowers-and-no-nonsense-judge/ Co-pilot (which I never ask for, but which always butts in) wrote, "I'm sorry, I'm unable to continue this conversation" when I asked for the truth about his crimes and the media coverage. Ha. Ha.

A Netflix movie may soon tell the Garfield story

Coming soon on Netflix. The story of President James Garfield. But we had the story today in Lakeside from Todd Arrington, of the National Park Service and Site Manager of the James A. Garfield National Historic Site in Mentor, Ohio. I have visited most Presidential sites in Ohio, 2 in Illinois and one in California, I've been to Gettysburg and other historic state and national sites. I've been blogging for 21 years about some of the issues that Garfield focused on--slavery, race, education, nation building, etc.--yet I could count on one hand the number of times he's appeared on my radar of important events. Arrington, who has a PhD in history, did a masterful job of portraying a great man assassinated by a mentally ill person who was disappointed he did not get the job he wanted after he'd voted for Garfield. Well worth the price of admission (there's a gate pass for Lakeside). CLS: Celebrate Ohio: Presidential Museums - Lakeside Ohio

"Had he not been assassinated early in his presidential term in 1881, the history of the late 19th century might read very differently today. If the history of the late 19th century read differently, perhaps the histories of the 20th and early 21st centuries might, too."

Netflix Announces New Drama Series 'Death by Lightning' Starring Michael Shannon and Matthew Macfadyen - About Netflix

There actually is a conspiracy

 Copied, but I agree.

"I hate conspiracy theories, but we all need to look at what is transpiring, and the conspiracy is there for all to see. Put aside all the illegal aspects of how the Trump trial was conducted, and focus instead on the overall bigger picture, and what is really happening. There is a grand scheme to consolidate power in the White House with someone organizing what is, in fact, a non-violent attempt at assumption and retention of power.

First, they attacked a lot of the tea party groups by illegally using the IRS when Obama first came to office.

They get Trump impeached with the phony dossier. They almost succeeded with the ignorant help of the left-wing press.

When that did not work, they tried the impeachment route again on new false claims about a phone call.
In 2020, Sanders almost got the primary victory. They needed an easily manipulated Biden to win, and to be the puppet Obama could control by getting many of his senior staff into the top positions in the White House. Clyburn was tasked to manage rounding up the black votes and get Biden a win. They supposedly made some deal with Sanders to implement some of his far-left agenda, which they have done.

 
I believe Biden really won the 2020 election even though there were cases of voter fraud, ballot harvesting, no voter ID, same day registration, and mail in ballots.

 
With Biden in the White House, Obama was able to plant Susan Rice, Blinken, Sullivan and others in key jobs, and control policy. It is not clear if Biden even realized what was happening, or he was able to be convinced to have them as his advisors since he had worked closely with them for several years. Now Rice has disappeared for some reason. Don’t you find it odd that she was this very powerful and very high-profile public person, and now she has just disappeared from sight.

Keep in mind congress has paid out millions to cover up affairs and misdeeds by Congressmen. If they prosecuted every CEO who had an affair with an employee, and then paid to keep it quiet, we would have a lot of CEOs in jail. We still do not know exactly what crime he is guilty of as the jury never made that clear.

 
Now it is 2024, and Trump is in the lead, and Biden Harris is a very weak slate. The Bragg case, according to every objective experienced lawyer who has opined, including Dershowitz, has said the entire case is completely not only without any merit, and was run by a judge who made numerous major errors, but is clearly a set up with the judge being selected outside of normal court routine. The jury instructions were essentially a directed verdict.

 
In another case, the Dems rolled out the woman who accused Trump of sexual assault 20 years ago, well beyond the statute of limitations, and they had the NY State legislature change the statute to allow that case to go forward.

 
The real estate fraud case is total crap. Nobody was damaged at all. Every bank was fully repaid on time. Under banking regs, banks are responsible these days to get their own independent appraisals, and to do their own valuations. That case is as concocted and staged as the Bragg case. It was designed to bankrupt Trump.

 And then there is the documents case, which it seems has real flaws with an illegally appointed special prosecutor,

and the GA case with the prosecutor who has real issues of conflict.

All four of the prosecutors went to the White House and met with the lawyers there before filing charges,

and then Bragg gets the number 3 official in DOJ to leave his high-level job and become a low-level local prosecutor for this case. Nobody does that.

Recall the 51 intel officials who signed a letter saying the laptop was Russian disinformation, and now that laptop is the proof they will use to convict Hunter.

There are also the continuing efforts to get Thomas off the court, and now Alito, and to expand the court with Biden appointments. SCOTUS is all that stands between them and saving our nation. If Trump loses, we will lose the Supreme Court and our liberties.

Lastly, they have open borders so they can have millions of illegals vote by mail to be ballot harvested with no voter ID. A few dollars to the illegals and they will sign a ballot. That is exactly how LBJ won his TX governor election. It is also how Daley did it in Chicago, and how JFK became the unelected president. Obama learned from Daley. This is going to be Chicago and LBJ revisited.

 Taken altogether, this is the latest effort by the Dems to get rid of Trump, and to get total control. Piece all of this together for yourself, and you have a many years’ conspiracy, and an attempt to get full control of the government by Obama and Clinton, but mainly Obama. This is the real threat to democracy.

A series of events of this nature and magnitude does not happen without someone planning and directing it-Obama. It is all funded by Arabella. If you are old enough you recall Beria, the secret police chief under Stalin. “Show me the man and I will show you the crime.” You just witnessed this." Joel Ross

Working from home 1962 style--Meditsinsky Rabotnik

Dennis Prager: "Soviet-style “science” is on the rise. The American Medical Association now recommends that “male” and “female” designations no longer be listed on birth certificates. Children’s hospitals are using hormone blockers and performing sex-change operations on perfectly healthy teenagers."

In 1962 I worked from home on a graduate assistantship translating the Russian-language newspaper Meditsinsky rabotnik (Medical Worker). Typical Communist drivel and most readers were poorly paid women, because medicine, law, and engineering were all low ranking in prestige. Communism never delivers on its promises of equality. But even if they'd been well paid, I doubt that a Soviet citizen could have come up with the ghoulish crimes invented by our highly paid, prestigious medical profession. Maiming children in the U.S. is very well paid. The Russians loved their children.

Meditsinsky Rabotnik has a Facebook page, but hasn't posted anything for 12 years.

What the world was before January 2021

The world was not close to WWIII, Jews were not being attacked in the U.S., gas was affordable, groceries were affordable, mortgage interest rates were 2.5%, and the economic outlook was outstanding. A thought that is circulating as people consider the election.

Christian missionaries killed in Haiti

"PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — A U.S. missionary couple and a Haitian man who worked with them were shot and killed by gang members in Haiti’s capital after they were attacked while leaving a youth group activity held at a local church, a family member said Friday.

The attack happened Thursday evening in the community of Lizon in northern Port-au-Prince, Lionel Lazarre, head of a Haitian police union, told The Associated Press."

https://apnews.com/article/haiti-us-couple-missionaries-killed-gangs-a65a4515e0d8610d9acd006d24821efd?

By Rik Swartzwelder on Facebook

"Next time you’re feeling superior to Gen Z or Gen Alpha or… whatever other generational label struts down the catwalk next… remember the names of these two…

Davy (23) and Natalie (21) Lloyd. A young married couple from Missouri, USA, who were Christian missionaries who had committed their lives to serving the youngest and poorest in Haiti.

Along with Pastor Jude Montis (45), the local Haitian native who was the Director of Missions for their ministry organization, they were just days ago savagely butchered by a ruthless gang in Port-au-Prince.
Their names will likely barely be remembered…

None of them ever pranced half-naked on a stage, singing songs and begging for your adulation… for a hefty price…

They never made a billion dollars…

Or won an Olympic gold medal or any kind of athletic championship…

Or grabbed a microphone or exhausted themselves in the mockery or belittlement of others…

Or spent hours trolling others online trying to prove their superiority…

They never sought the spotlight… or lived for their own pleasure alone... or bought into the lie that this world is all there is...

What they did do was lay down their lives in the hopes of bringing a better life to others…

These are heroes. These are the souls that humble me and inspire me and call me into wanting to be more than I am. To serve… to give… to love…

Lord, have mercy… hear our prayer… come soon…

Javier Milei talks with Bari Weiss

At one time Buenos Aires was known as "the Paris of South America." That was 100 years ago. What happened? Socialism. Argentina is a mess of government bureaucracy and control. And now, it has elected the equivalent of a Maga man, South American style. Kick out or reduce the poverty pimps who have abandoned freedom for collectivism. I really don't know anything about Javier Milei, the "skunk at the garden party," but I heard an interview on "Honestly" by Bari Weiss, The Free Press.

Milei and Trump would not agree on many things, but they do agree on the dangers of socialism. Be bold. Be the skunk at the garden party thrown by the Democrats and Totalitarians.

 
In the 21st century we are being hit from all sides by Marxists and political Islam. Stop pretending, you loyal Democrats and weak Republicans, that nothing is wrong. When Obama and Biden promise us that they can totally transform the country, they aren't kidding. It's a promise they intend to keep. We are in crisis. We are fighting psychological warfare (men can be women, abortion is women's rights, more government is good government, the USA is weak and feckless, the swamp is pure, you need another jab to be a good American) and Lawfare (destruction of our values using our own courts and overwhelming illegal immigration). What we saw in NYC last week, what we've been seeing on our elite campuses since last fall, plus all the climate change hoaxes and all the DEI nonsense for 2 decades are all part of the subversion and planned chaos to shake us to the core. They are well funded and patient.

Be a skunk at their garden party.

Latest Episodes | Honestly Podcast

Trump is a threat to the ruling class

"Trump is the greatest threat to this ruling class since Richard Nixon. He has therefore aroused more raw political passion than anyone in recent memory. Making him a convicted felon is a calculated gamble to keep him from returning to the White House. There is a risk it could backfire. But the ruling class knows that Trump is entirely alone in the political establishment. He has the support of millions of voters—almost certainly a plurality of the American people. But he is opposed by virtually all of the influential social, economic, political, and cultural interest groups that determine the outcome of elections.

 
When most elected Republicans and conservatives accepted the legitimacy of the globalist interpretation of the 2020 election, they abandoned the rule of law for hundreds of American citizens. These citizens were called insurrectionists and were denied basic rights by a Congress and courts that funded and conducted what was clearly an elaborately staged hoax."

Convicted by the 'Rational State' (tomklingenstein.com)

I'm not familiar with this author, but it's almost word for word that I've been thinking since 2020. Trump made some huge mistakes with Covid probably because he, like the rest of us, didn't think about how deep the swamp went--into science and medicine and public health. He saw the opportunity to be a hero and make all those haters like him. Ha. First they said he's done all the wrong things (by following the advice of the swamp creatures) but they had a plan. By manipulating us, they could steal the election. Then Biden and Boys doubled down an caused more deaths than there ever were in 2020. Biden will never be able to bring us to 2019 in health, wealth, happiness, respect from world leaders, labor participation, true progress for minorities and respect for women. And nothing could have made me see Trump as a world class orator and brilliant thinker, however, Biden has done that one accomplishment.

Speaking memories at lunch

Lunch today was nothing incredible--rotisserie chicken, alfredo sauce, with macaroni, asparagus, fresh spinach, toasted French loaf with garlic butter, fresh pineapple with blueberries, and a homemade chocolate cookie (for him, I was full). No photo was taken. But we had a lively conversation. I try to tell stories he hasn't heard before (and that I haven't heard either). 

He gets sort of mixed up on the dates. I do remember those. We met in March 1959 and married in September 1960, so it's been 65 years since our first date. We both remembered what we wore because we went to the St. Pat's Ball. He wore his grandfather's sport coat and I wore a friend's lace red dress. 

 I think what started the conversation at lunch today was a photo I had of him in 1975 when he was super skinny. He had propped his painting up against our Ford Pinto in the drive way so I could take a photo.  And he then looked like the guy I met in 1959. In those days some of us didn't know each other very well. I went to summer school in Maine that summer, and he worked in Indianapolis the fall of 1959 while I was at U. of Illinois, so actually, we were practically strangers. We had both been engaged before, and to my knowledge they are also both alive.

I can't seem to find the photo I showed him today in his skinny days, but I remember I bought him this suit in the boys' department at Lazarus. 1974. And that helmet hair I was wearing was all the rage.

Michelle Malkin, what happened to her

 I enjoyed her writing and her feistiness. I wondered what happened to her. Today I came across her last column--published October 25, 2022. This is just part of it. I suspect something similar has happened to Candace Owens, who has disappeared after her dust up with Ben Shapiro. '-30-': An Ending, but Not the End, by Michelle Malkin - The Unz Review

"Because of my peacefully expressed reporting, opinions and speeches, my family has been punished and stigmatized, my reputation tarnished and my voice squelched. It’s not “big government” that waged this war on my career. It’s a constellation of vindictive wrongthink police in the private sector, from the Southern Poverty Law Center and Anti-Defamation League, to foreign newspapers and moneyed interests that have no business influencing American politics, to “conservative” swamp creatures and profiteers such as Bill Kristol, Jonah Goldberg, Mona Charen and Ben Shapiro, and even to former colleagues at the Fox News Channel, which blacklisted me several years ago and told a friend of mine who was a guest on Tucker Carlson’s show not to say my name after antifa rioters had attacked me and others on stage at a Back the Blue rally in Denver a few years ago. (My friend ignored the warning. God bless him.)

I have no regrets. As Paul wrote in 2 Timothy 4:7, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.” I remain thankful to every single reader over the last three decades, and I will be eternally inspired by all the patriots I’ve profiled over the years — especially the ordinary parents, whistleblowers, citizen journalists and activists who have sacrificed far more than I for their truth-seeking and truth-telling."

P.S. Normally, I wouldn't use Unz Review for anything.  As "alternative" press it's also allowing vicious, hateful anti-Semitism, but I think it's the only place I saw her column.

 

I was on a jury once

I've only been on one jury. At first I felt very patriotic and important. Only 45% of Americans ever serve on a jury and if you are called, sometimes the case is settled before you hear it. The case for which I was seated involved Ohio's infamous Scott-Pontzer insurance law which was finally reversed in 2003. It was incredibly confusing and caused me to lose chunks of faith in our laws and our jury system. It was referred to as the Golden Turkey award and had allowed employees and their families injured on their own time in their own cars to collect from their employers’ auto insurance policies.

https://www.porterwright.com/content/uploads/2017/11/216_litdec2003.pdf?

Do the media mavens believe what they say?

Last night I heard a few snippets on Fox of the MSM like Joy Reid (an evil person) and others I can't identify by face, and then the View shrews. Why they matter, I don't know.  The alternative sources of information easily outnumber their audiences.  Joe Rogan. Tucker Carlson. Megyn Kelly. Millions and millions don't trust CNN or MSNBC or the alphabet media. But I am influenced enough by their Trump-hate to hit the mute button on the remote. They don't even question how Bragg could get 94 felonies out of a misdemeanor or how the so-called "second crime" wasn't revealed until the jury instructions (on p, 32). Or how a state can try a federal crime (by Dem definition). These are the same people who thought Kyle Rittenhouse had crossed a state line to kill black people. (Everyone in that case was white, and his father lived in Wisconsin. And they lie constantly about January 6.)  They can't figure out how the media assists in destroying our country. They can't see election interference that the Number Three guy in the Biden's Department of Justice took a demotion to a state court so he can control the case. He's also the guy who prosecuted Trump on the non-victim trial for loans all parties had agreed.

This trial will go down in infamy--Judge Juan Merchan

There was little doubt President DonaldTrump would be convicted, and for no other reason than looking at the behavior and politics of JUDGE JUAN MERCHAN. He was a partisan hack. Merchan has gag ordered Trump, but not me.

 
I've always believed this conviction would be overturned on appeal since it was so obvious even with my limited "Law and Order" TV knowledge. Now I'm not so sure. If the Democrats are this evil, they might just win at the next level, and then pack SCOTUS.

• What are the chances that Merchan would be assigned to two Trump trials if selection is random? One in a million? 500,000,000? He was handpicked.
• Merchan had donated to Biden's campaign, and his daughter is a Democrat party fund raiser benefitting from this trial.
• Merchan demanded gag orders which were illegal and unconstitutional, and fined Trump. No one understands the gag order.
• Merchan allowed irrelevant and salacious testimony that had no relevance to the trial and were intended to embarrass Trump and sway the TV audience.
• Merchan on the other hand disallowed testimony that would have helped the jurors understand federal election law and campaign finance law, a very complicated specialty that even the other lawyers involved don't know.
• Merchan cleared out the court room when Michael Cohen's former attorney was exonerating Trump but allowed the prosecution to bring in Stormy Daniels to talk about whether or not Trump used a condom.
• Merchan reprimanded key defense witness Robert Costello about "proper decorum" although he allowed Daniels to give great detail. Then when Costello wasn't impressed and glared at him, Merchan cleared the court room.
• Merchan gave the jury 54 pages of instructions on how to decide. I've been on a jury (once) and can't imagine trying to wade through that. I saw no information on what the crime was Trump was supposed to have committed with the NDA.  People v. DJT Jury Instructions and Charges FINAL 5-23-24.pdf (nycourts.gov) .
• Merchan had the jury out for many days before final deliberation. No seclusion. Very irregular.
• Merchan set sentencing for July 11. Republican convention is July 15. It's still election interference.

Seat belts--early memory

"Click it or ticket. Buckle up." That is the banner at the intersection of Tremont and Kenny Rds. Golf course on the west. Lutheran church, apartments and city building on the east. And a memory flashes of the first time I wore a seat belt in a car. Does that ever happen to you? Useless memories pop up out of nowhere, but I can't remember how to use the TV remote. I don't have any grandchildren to bore with my stories (however, I loved my grandparents' stories).

I was the receptionist/secretary/labor at Foxbilt Feeds in Mt. Morris, IL. I've forgotten the name of the owner, but he had a fantastic red Ford convertible, probably 1955. I answered the phone and copied down orders for delivery. The car had seat belts, not sure if they were required then or were an add on option. But I must have gone on some deliveries to farmers, otherwise I wouldn't have been in the car. It was a part time, summer job, and my mom took me to work since I was too young to drive. I looked online and Foxbilt does seem to still supply feed and fertilizer.

Google search algorithm

"Google’s search algorithm is perhaps the most consequential system on the internet, dictating what sites live and die and what content on the web looks like." Sure is. When I go back and reread some of my blog entries whether it's about Memorial Day, a recipe, family memories, or how bad Obama was, I can see counts of 150-200 per entry. Now, it's about 17-20. Part of it was change in social media choices, but also it's the algorithm. Commercial sites now get top space. And of course, during the pandemic and lockdown, it was simply censored.

Google won’t comment on a potentially massive leak of its search algorithm documentation - The Verge

Menopause

I wonder how this sentence got past the DEI police. "Approximately 55 million people in the US and approximately 1.1 billion people worldwide are postmenopausal women." Men who declare they are women don't experience menopause, and women who declare they are men do if they have retained their organs.   JAMA. 2024;331(20):1748-1760.

Memorial Day 2024, Monday May 27

The last Monday in May is dedicated to remembering military members who died in service. I've done a number of blogs over the years about my uncle Clare who was killed in WWII in the China Burma India Theater in October 1944. There are only a few nieces and a nephew who remember him, and we are all in our 80s. He came home in October 1947 on the Honda Knot, and from there came by train to Franklin Grove, Illinois where he was buried in the Ashton Cemetery.

What does the Bible say about soldiers? An old blog entry for Memorial Day Week-end

I came across an item about soldiers and wars in my blog entry of June 1, 2008.  I didn't follow through on my question about how have soldiers influenced the spread of the Gospel.  But it's still worth looking at.

"This week our congregation has been reading the book of Acts, and I noticed a number of references to soldiers and centurions. I'm not much of a Bible scholar, but I did wonder about what studies have been done on their influence in spreading the Gospel during the first century of the church. Then yesterday, while looking for a different book (and knocking some items on the floor because I sometimes stack books behind books if they don't have attractive covers), I found an International Sunday School Lesson book from 1944 which I think I bought at a yard sale for a quarter about 10 years ago. If you can find them, these books are packed with study outlines, bibliographies, lesson plans, illustrations and color maps. No wimp-out, touchy-feely, "let's get acquainted" questions in this book!

In the introduction the editor writes:"Inasmuch as we are in the midst of the world's most gigantic military conflict, and the minds of people are so much upon war, some of our readers might be interested in taking up a series of studies in young people's meetings, or in prayer meetings, or in private classes in homes, apart from the International Sunday School Lessons, in Biblical themes that have more or less relation to the subject of war. We here suggest two such series, one a study of the centurions and soldiers of the New Testament [the other was OT battles]. They will be found in eighteen different groups, nine in the Gospels, and nine in the Book of Acts. A fascinating book could be written just about the soldiers of the New Testament.

1. The centurion whose servant Jesus healed of the palsy (Matt. 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-10)
2. The soldiers of the governor who mocked and smote Jesus--between his trial and crucifixion (Mat. 27:27-32; Mark 15:16-23; John 19:2)
3. The soldiers who mocked Jesus at the cross (Luke 23:36,37)
4. The soldiers who parted Christ's raiment at the foot of the cross (John 19:23,24)
5. The soldiers who broke the legs of the 2 criminals crucified on either side of Christ (John 19:32)
6. The soldier who thrust a spear into the side of Christ (John 19:34)
7. The centurion at the cross who confessed that Jesus was the Son of God (Matt.27:54; Mark 15:39; Luke 23:47)
8. The centurion who reported to Pilate that Jesus was dead (Mark 15:44,45)
9. The soldiers who were set to guard the tomb wherein the body of Jesus lay (Matt. 27:65, 66; 28:11-15)
10. Cornelius, centurion of the Italian band, to whom Peter preached (Acts 10)
11. The "devout soldier" who was sent by Cornelius to bring Peter (Acts 10:7,8)
12. The 4 quarternions of soldiers to whom Peter was delivered for safekeeping, and between two of whom Peter was sleeping (Acts 12:4-18)
13. The soldiers and centurions whom the chief captain used to deliver Paul from the mob in Jerusalem (Acts 21:32-35)
14. The centurion to whom Paul declared he was a Roman citizen (Acts 22:25,26)
15. The centurion to whom Paul asked permission to see his sister's son (Acts 23:17)
16. The soldiers who accompanied Paul to Caesarea (Acts 23:23-35)
17. Julius, a centurion of Augustus' band, to whom Paul was committed when he was sent to Rome (Acts 27:1,6,11,31,43; 28:16)
18. The soldiers who were on the ship on which Paul was carried to Rome (Acts 27:31, 32, 42)"

Only the introduction of the 1944 book mentions the war that was on everyone's mind, an introduction which included five annotated bibliographies containing about 80 titles, many multi-volume, for the teacher to consult! Many people never read an introduction, preface or footnote (librarians love the secondary and tertiary stuff), so I suspect this was a concession to some heated arguments in the back room when deciding what was to go into this book.

The editors appeared to have no doubts about who would be the victor, although I don't think my mother, aunts and grandmothers, with ear to the radio and eye on the headlines, waiting for the mailman (my own father plus numerous uncles and cousins were in the service) were quite so confident.

They wrote:  "When the war is over, evangelical Christianity will enter upon the greatest struggle it has known since the days of Constantine in the defense of its great cardinal truths. All of this great and important and sober work will not be done by ministers or theological professors, but much of it by the thousands and thousands of faithful Sunday school teachers throughout our land. Let us prayerfully, carefully, with all the mind and heart we have, prepare ourselves now for this great struggle in the expectation of glorious victory in the ultimate triumph of the truth of God."

Certainly a word for the 21st century. And even they couldn't have imagined it would be our home-grown, gold plated idols (celebrities), our wealth (mind numbing consumerism), our gendered temples (desecration of God's plan for man and woman), our university faculties and our own elected leaders we'd need to fear. Or did they?" (End of June 1, 2008 blog entry.)

Have a thoughtful Memorial Day observance

Testimony wrapped up this week, and closing arguments are scheduled following the holiday.

Judge Juan Merchan, the worst in our history, sent the jury home to stew in the hate and threats in NYC they'll receive for several days if any one of them dares to follow the evidence and the "charge" (which we still don't know) and find Trump innocent of the non-crime. If the Democrats can destroy due process against a former president, they can do it to YOU.

Makes the sacrifices of all the wars and all our lost soldiers look futile, doesn't it?

Democrats are trying to get rid of Alito so they can hire a compliant stooge for the court. Wouldn't surprise me if that's what Merchan is going for.

Dershowitz: 'I've never seen a spectacle' like 'tyrant' Judge Merchan | WND | by Bob Unruh

"Megyn is joined by legal experts Andy McCarthy and Phil Holloway to discuss whether Trump witness Robert Costello helped or hurt his case, if the defense team should have rested after they established Michael Cohen was a liar on the stand during cross-examination, and more.

Megyn, McCarthy, and Holloway discuss Judge Merchan withholding jury instructions from the public, jurors being exposed to outside influence during the Memorial Day holiday, the political pressure on the jury and the judge to get a conviction, and more." (Megyn Kelly podcast May 25.)

Trump NY Criminal Trial, Week 6: The Final Witnesses, Jury Instructions, and More – Megyn Kelly

Morning meditation on conversion

Morning meditation by Fr. Donald Haggerty:

"It should not be surprising that a desire for a simpler lifestyle is a common impulse after a serious conversion. This is not just the result of new discipline. The shock of finding God in a personal encounter, and of being known to him, is a penetrating light cast upon life itself. Standing before eternity, so to speak, is a jolting experience and awakens a realization that so many gratifications sought in this life are empty, and unworthy. The awareness of time catches hold of our soul with a keen sense of the transiency and impermanence of the things of this life. What a year earlier might have been a coveted object to possess, a desire or ambition to be pursued, seems now unmasked for its paltry insignificance. It is truly as though a light from heaven had shone on the worldly pleasures and gratifications that formerly occupied out life with hardly a thought.

This stripping away of the gloss and sheen covering much of life is a kind of revelation to the soul. The emptiness of the pursuit of self-gratification is soon tasted and often leaves a lasting aversion to indulgent habits in life. It is not surprising, then that we turn to a difference source of satisfaction. The life of prayer begins to attract us more. A kind of disinterest in chasing after chimeras roots itself in the soul. The result in part is the greater simplicity of lifestyle seen after every deeper conversion." Magnificat, May 2024, pp. 355-56

Fr. Donald Haggerty, a priest of the Archdiocese of New York, is currently serving at Saint Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City. He has been a Professor of Moral Theology at St. Joseph’s Seminary in New York and Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Maryland and has a long association as a spiritual director for Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity. He is the author of many books.

Do Democrats ask questions about the direction of their party?

Anna at Facebook told me they don't, but I disagree.

"Some do. We were Democrats until 2000. It was their standing on the bloody corpses of the unborn that changed our minds about what else they stood for or who they were crushing. Others might just realize that the current trial could break the Constitution forever and wake up! Some could see that what is now the fringe (campus riots) could go mainstream quickly. Others will see that what was normal and accepted in science and society even 15 years ago is now an abomination to the Democrat party."

Norma

The Platform, 2000: "The Democratic Party stands behind the right of every woman to choose, consistent with Roe v. Wade, and regardless of ability to pay. We believe it is a fundamental constitutional liberty that individual Americans — not government — can best take responsibility for making the most difficult and intensely personal decisions regarding reproduction. This year’s Supreme Court rulings show to us all that eliminating a woman’s right to choose is only one justice away. That’s why the stakes in this election are as high as ever." Online NewsHour: Democratic Platform 2000 (pbs.org)

I'm glad we got out then. Now, in 2024, the party preaches and tries to force on us, death in the womb up to the day of birth, and some on the fringe go further suggestion a year or two after to make sure the child isn't a burden to parents or just not bright enough, and that killing child in the womb is OK if a defect is discovered. Even biological sex is a mystery to the party which can't define a mother, or a woman, which wants to jail people for using the wrong pronoun, and advocate for men using women's restrooms, sports events and scholarships.

Collected thoughts of the week, and it's only Wednesday

I asked AI (co-pilot) "Did Biden tell Black Graduates they had no future in the USA and their country hated them?" and it gave me no answer, but I did see some ridiculous headlines from the Demedia which always covers for him.

This is the guy who told black Americans, "You ain't black if you don't vote for Biden." How racist is that?  Even Kamala Harris during the 2016 primaries reminded Democrat voters that Biden was a racist.

I've been listening to clips from the Demedia opinion writers (that would be all the journalists), and it seems some are fearful that Trump could be the totalitarian monster that Biden is! He might seek retribution if acquitted!! They wrote the playbook on crime and deception in politics and now they are afraid they might be cast!

I was just reading about the top 10 billionaires (all men). Two of them are immigrants (Musk and Brin) and one is the stepson of an immigrant (Bezos). There may be others, but I don't know all their stories. Donald Trump is the son of an immigrant and his beautiful wife is an immigrant. Immigration is good for the United States, and so is following the law by which they come. Biden's plan to overrun the country with illegal immigration is not healthy or patriotic, nor is he offering them a chance at a better life. He wants their votes.

All those female crazies complaining about a man speaking to a Catholic audience, praising his wife for being a homemaker, need to start speaking up for the rights of women they claim they are defending. Look what Biden did to Title IX!! There are real women being denied real rights by real men. Let's get going on that, ladies of the lefty press!

https://capitalresearch.org/article/the-hidden-history-of-bidens-title-ix-butchery/?

Judge Juan Merchan and Alvin Bragg might be the biggest advertisement for how bad the judicial system is. Merchan cleared the court room because he didn't like the look on Bob Costello's face (witness for the defense). Is this an immigrant thing? Is he in middle school? He's crazier than Biden. Bragg ran on putting Trump in jail, and then made up felony charges. The two are the three stooges.

Loren Merchan, daughter of Judge Juan Merchan, is the head of a digital marketing agency called Authentic Campaigns. The agency works with Democratic candidates and non-profits, providing services such as web design, digital fundraising, and mobile messaging. She's making money from this trial.

Trump says Judge Juan Merchan can rehabilitate ‘Justice System of New York’ by dismissing hush money case - Washington Examiner

Bill Maher was interviewed on the Megyn Kelly podcast. He's clueless about what has been happening the last 3 years. He believes, actually believes, that the protestors in J-6 broke down the doors (the guards opened them and showed them around--it's on tape) and that several police were killed. Those are media lies. Only one person was killed, and she was a veteran shot by Capitol police. He believes, actually believes, Hillary Clinton never said the 2016 election was stolen from her. Blind and deaf. We all heard it, why didn't he? Because he is part of the Demedia, yet he claims to be "independent."

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/bill-maher-megyn-kelly-heatedly-231615264.html?

At least 100 terrorism-tied organizations are involved in the campus protests. Almost all these organizations have expressed support for Hamas and the October 7 attacks according to CRC in the News. So how have Democrats become so anti-Jew and anti-Israel all while terrifying their supporters with lies that the Trump supporters are Nazis? It didn't happen overnight, and they were well prepared to launch their US riots on October 8. If you are a Democrat, you need to be asking questions.

Another crazy Democrat female--born that way--running for Congressional office. "Sue Altmann headed South Jersey Women for Progressive Change (SJWPC) from 2018 until at least February 2020, including as co-chair of the political engagement committee. The group describes itself as an "8,000-member action network for intersectional grassroots advocacy and activism, open to all who identify as female or were assigned female at birth."  Another woman who can't tell you what a woman is. Dem Congressional Hopeful Sue Altman Led Group That Called To 'Imagine a Society Without Police' (freebeacon.com)

Our tax dollars hard at work for Gaza/Hamas.  Close to three-fourths of the humanitarian aid transported from a new floating pier built by the U.S. military off the Gaza coast was stolen on Saturday en route to a U.N. warehouse. Pictured: Palestinian men loot a truck carrying international humanitarian aid from the US-built floating pier near Nuseirat in the Gaza Strip on May 18, 2024.   https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/20658/gaza-aid-stolen?  When you think about it, the citizens may know they shouldn't let Hamas to get the aid to them, so they just stole it.