Monthly Archives: October 2024

Actions Have Consequences

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On Saturday, The New York Post posted an article about some of the consequences of the pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University last spring.

The article reports:

Columbia University saw donations at its annual fundraiser drop nearly 29% after the spate of anti-Israel protests on campus earlier this year.

The annual “Giving Day” event brought in $21.4 million in 2024, compared to $30 million in 2022, the last time the event was held, according to campus newspaper Columbia Spectator. Giving Day was postponed in 2023 due to the Oct. 7 Hamas attack and the ensuing protests.

The Ivy League university also saw a nearly 28% drop in the number of gifts, falling from 19,229 in 2022 to 13,870, the lowest since 2015, the paper said.

The article concludes:

“Columbia is fortunate to have a dedicated community of alumni, parents and friends who recognize the impact their financial donations, volunteer time, talents, advice and mentoring make in assisting students and supporting the mission of the university and its schools,” a Columbia spokesperson said. “Their participation and support is ongoing and sincerely appreciated, and they continue to ensure the ongoing success of the university.”

The school has faced criticism for its mishandling of the demonstrations.

Anti-Israel protests resumed in September as the 2024-2025 school year commenced.

Columbia was one of the Ivy schools to be investigated by the Department of Education for civil rights violations under Title VI in December.

Someone needs to sit down with our university students and give them an honest history of Israel and the ‘Palestinians.’

Consider the following:

“We considered ourselves Jordanian until the Jews returned to Jerusalem. Then all of the sudden we were Palestinians – they removed the star from the Jordanian flag and all at once we had a Palestinian flag.” ~ Walid Shoebat

Walid Shoebat is also credited with saying:

One day during the 1960’s I went to bed a Jordanian Muslim, and when I woke up the next morning, I was informed that I was a Palestinian.

This is the original mandate for Palestine:

The ‘Palestinian refugees’ should be asking for land in Transjordan–not at Israel. If you study the history of Israel, you discover that the Palestinian refugees are not actually refugees–they left their property in Israel in 1948 because the Arab nations promised them that the Jews in Israel would be driven into the sea and the ‘Palestinians’ could then have the entire country to themselves. Obviously, it didn’t work out that way.

Bad News For America’s Senior Citizens

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On Sunday, Just the News reported that the Biden-Harris administration’s new Medicare prescription drug plan could wind up costing America’s taxpayers up to $20 billion over three years.

The article reports:

The budget analysis arm of Congress said the increased costs are due to the government subsidizing many seniors’ premiums by sending money to insurance firms, and it would cost at least $5 billion extra in 2025 alone and add to the deficit.

“The higher costs are attributable to the increases in subsidies for premiums and risk corridors,” the CBO told key lawmakers this week.

Does anyone remember medicine before the government got involved? Do you remember taking your children to the doctor when they all had ear infections and the doctor was able to look at all of them and charge you a reasonable price? Do you remember when doctors didn’t have to fill out a ton a paperwork just because you went in for your annual checkup. I suspect that if we all calculated what we spend on medical insurance vs. what we used to pay in medical expenses, we would find out we are paying much more. I understand the need for insurance for surgery and serious diseases, but what about going back to the time you could go to the doctor for a minor ailment and the bill was cheaper than your insurance payment for the month? The free market always works better without government interference.

The article concludes:

CBO responded that federal spending would increase between $10 billion and $20 billion in 2025 compared to earlier projections.

Lawmakers blasted the Biden/Harris administration for imposing such new cost on taxpayers

“As predicted, the Biden-Harris Inflation Reduction Act not only quelled investment for new cures, but caused Medicare prescription drug plan premiums to skyrocket, and Democrats are scrambling to cover it up before the election,” Arrington said .

“In July, the Biden-Harris CMS scrambled to create a new federal program that will send billions of tax dollars to large health insurance companies to cover up a massive flaw in their so-called Inflation Reduction Act.”

The new average plan bid for a standard Part D coverage increases by 179% for 2025 partly due to an underestimation of federal coverage of the Part D changes, CBO said.

Taking Action Where It Is Needed

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On Saturday, The Gateway Pundit reported that Representative Nancy Mace has introduced a bill to terminate the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Shelter and Services Program (SSP). I don’t want people to be homeless, but we can’t afford to feed and house all of the refugees of the world at the expense of our own citizens.

The article reports:

Mace blasted the program as a colossal misuse of taxpayer dollars that prioritizes illegal immigrants over American disaster victims, and her bill proposes redirecting all unspent SSP funds to aid Americans struggling to recover from natural disasters like Hurricane Helene.

“It’s unacceptable for Americans to grapple with the catastrophic aftermath of Hurricane Helene while the federal government remains fixated on spending hundreds of millions on a program sheltering illegal immigrants instead of helping our own citizens,” said Representative Nancy Mace.

“Kamala Harris and Alejandro Mayorkas have turned FEMA into a migrant resettlement agency. It’s time to end this mess.”

This is a screenshot of part of the article:

On Sunday Hot Air posted an article that includes a video of two Hispanics explaining how they have been staying in a nice hotel since July with all of their needs being met without being required to work. That is not good for them, and that is not good for America. Someone coming here to work is very different from someone coming here simply to live in luxury at other people’s expense.

The article at The Gateway Pundit concludes:

For the second year in a row, FEMA has been forced to implement Immediate Needs Funding, which puts long-term recovery projects on hold due to a severe shortage of Disaster Relief Funds (DRF).

This shortage, however, has been self-inflicted. FEMA’s own spending choices, including over $1 billion used to house and assist illegal immigrants, have drained its resources while Americans suffer in the aftermath of devastating natural disasters.

Despite FEMA’s claims that their hands are tied, the reality is clear: the agency is choosing to divert critical funds away from disaster-stricken Americans to support the Biden administration’s open-border policies.

FEMA’s actions betray their mission and prioritize political agendas over the well-being of American citizens.

As Hurricane Helene victims continue to wait for meaningful aid, Congresswoman Mace’s bill offers a solution that puts Americans first. It’s time for FEMA and the Biden administration to stop the lies and start prioritizing the needs of their own citizens.

I hope this bill gets passed quickly. Unfortunately the hurricane season is not over.

What They Didn’t Tell You About The Jobs Report

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On Friday, The Daily Caller posted an article about the September jobs report. The article took a look a some of the trends in American employment in recent years.

The article reports:

More than 800,000 fewer native-born Americans are employed than last year as job gains among Americans continue to lag behind those of foreign-born workers, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

The number of foreign-born workers employed increased by approximately 1.2 million year-over-year in September, while 825,000 fewer native workers were employed, BLS data shows. The large annual difference is in spite of the roughly 920,000 upward employment fluctuation for native-born workers in September compared to August, after a 1,325,000 drop from July to August.

The article also notes:

Real wages have decreased by 1.3% in real terms between the first quarter of 2021 and the second quarter of 2024 as Biden-era inflation continues to dog American wallets. Prices have risen more than 20% since Biden took office in January 2021, with the rate of inflation rising from 1.4% at the conclusion of former President Donald Trump’s administration up to roughly 9% in June 2022.

To combat skyrocketing inflation, the Federal Reserve hiked rates to a 23-year high range of 5.25% and 5.50% in July 2023 before proceeding to hold rates steady until issuing a 0.5% cut in September. The combination of elevated rates and high inflation helped push many Americans into bankruptcy, with delinquent credit card balances reaching their highest level since at least 2012 in the first quarter of 2024.

It should also be noted that the majority of growth in the number of jobs created is in government jobs–not in the private sector. When the government is growing, the private sector is shrinking. That is not good for the future American economy.

It’s Not Really Harmless

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On Friday, Hot Air posted an article about the dangers of recreational use of marijuana.

The article reports:

There are now 24 states, plus the District of Columbia, that have legalized recreational marijuana. This change in attitude toward the drug was originally driven by a push to make it legal for medicinal purposes, i.e. for cancer patients and other people struggling with nausea. But over time this morphed into the kind of broader legalization we have today.

But as many have noted, the drug being sold today is not like the stuff some were smoking in the 1970s or 1980s. Today’s cannabis products are often many times more potent and along with that has come a host of problems that are only starting to be recognized by many doctors, everything from addiction to psychosis. As with any drug, the people who use it most frequently are the ones most likely to experience problems.

…In the worst cases, heavy users experience exactly the kind of symptoms that cannabis is generally thought to alleviate, i.e. nausea, vomiting and pain. This is known as cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome and it can even lead to death in extreme cases.

The article quotes The New York Times:

“Not everyone who smokes cigarettes develops lung cancer, and not everyone who has lung cancer smoked cigarettes,” said Dr. Deepak Cyril D’Souza, a professor at Yale School of Medicine and a staff psychiatrist at VA Connecticut Healthcare Systems. “But we now know, after denying it for many, many decades, that the association between the two is very important. The same is true for cannabis and psychosis.”…

A study in 11 sites across Europe found that people who regularly consumed marijuana with at least 10 percent THC were nearly five times as likely to develop a psychotic disorder as those who never used it. A study in Ontario found that the risk of developing one was 11 times as high for teenage users compared with nonusers.

The article concludes:

Weed is not always harmless and it can be addictive. It’s probably especially bad for younger people whose brains are still maturing. Does that mean it should be illegal? Not necessarily. Alcohol kills a lot of people every year but prohibition didn’t work. Nevertheless, anyone who is using potent cannabis everyday is setting themselves up for problems. Hacking your own chemistry to feel good is always subject to a law of diminishing returns. Sorry if I sound like a 1980s after-school special but I’ve been pretty consistent on this since I was 16 myself. Don’t do drugs, kids.

Using any mind-altering substance while you are young and your brain is still developing is not smart.

Charity Should Begin At Home

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On Friday, Breitbart posted an article about the humanitarian aid America is sending to Lebanon to help in the ‘crisis’ there.

The article reports:

The United States announced that it would be providing $157 million in humanitarian aid to address the “crisis in Lebanon” and those who have been affected by it.

In a press release on Friday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken revealed that the “nearly $157 million” in humanitarian assistance would go towards addressing “new and existing needs to internally displaced persons and refugee populations” for communities in Lebanon.

“The United States will provide nearly $157 million in new U.S. humanitarian assistance to support populations affected by conflict in Lebanon and the region,” Blinken said in the press release. “This funding will address new and existing needs of internally displaced persons and refugee populations inside Lebanon and the communities that host them. The assistance will also support those fleeing to neighboring Syria.”

The article concludes:

The news that roughly $157 million in humanitarian aid would go towards helping the people affected by the fighting in Lebanon comes as communities in western North Carolina, such as the city of Asheville and the village of Chimney Rock, were affected by heavy rains and flooding from Hurricane Helene. Other communities in eastern Tennessee, southwestern Virginia, Georgia, and Florida were also affected.

President Joe Biden previously announced that the U.S. would be sending $8 billion in military aid to Ukraine. Days after this announcement, Vice President Kamala Harris announced $750 in assistance for the victims of Hurricane Helene.

“The federal relief and assistance that we have been providing has included FEMA providing $750 for folks who need immediate needs being met, such as food, baby formula, and the like. And you can apply now.”

This represents $50 more than the Biden administration gave to those who were affected by the Maui wildfires.

If you live in an area effected by the hurricane and you vote for Kamala Harris, you are delaying or denying any help you will ever get from the government. Ask the people of Hawaii. I believe that if President Trump is elected, he will do what it takes to restore the areas impacted by the hurricane. I am really not impressed by the response of the Biden/Harris administration.

The Government Relief Efforts For Hurricane Helene Are Not Being Handled Well

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On Saturday, Townhall posted an article about the government relief efforts for the victims of Hurricane Helene. Unfortunately, the government is being more of a hindrance than a help.

The article reports:

Into this hellscape of destroyed cities, overturned cars, and shattered lives have parachuted the Presidential “nominee” of the Democratic Party—the one nobody actually voted for—Kamala Harris. Conservative estimates of the cleanup in Helene’s wake exceed $ 300 billion…but the tone-deaf Harris put on her cheeriest face and announced that victims would be getting reparations from Washington. In an October 2nd speech in Augusta, GA (https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2024/10/02/remarks-by-vice-president-harris-on-response-and-recovery-efforts-following-hurricane-helene-augusta-ga/) Mrs. Time To Turn The Page stunned onlookers with these words:

“…And the federal relief and assistance that we have been providing has included FEMA providing $750 for folks who need immediate needs being met, such as food, baby formula, and the like. And you can apply now.”

Wow! Your home has been leveled, your car is crushed under tons of rubble, your streets are closed, and your cell phone is useless. But it isn’t all bad news: you can “apply” for a $750 gift card from Kamala Harris.

And where’s the Federal Emergency Management Agency? FEMA—according to its inept and impeached head Alejandro Mayorkas, speaking on Air Force One–“…does not have the funds to make it through the hurricane season.”

The article notes:

What rubbish. FEMA—crying crocodile tears about not having enough funds—isn’t mounting any substantial operations in many stricken areas. In fact, FEMA left hundreds of thousands of Helene victims without even cellphone communications until Donald J. Trump stepped in and tapped Elon Musk to provide StarLink™ trucks which are now operating in areas where cell towers collapsed during the hurricane.

This is not to diminish in any way the heroic work of the National Guard, state and local authorities and private citizens who have worked tirelessly in the wake of Helene’s fury to rescue people in their communities. Additionally, we all are blessed that groups like Franklin Graham’s Samaritan’s Purse, The Salvation Army and Team Rubicon immediately rolled up their sleeves and mobilized to literally save lives throughout the hurricane’s path. God bless every one of them.

The private sector always does it better! On August 12th, 1986, US President Ronald Reagan said, “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.’” He was right.

 

The Often Overlooked Problem With Electric Vehicles

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On Wednesday, Hot Air posted an article about an often overlooked problem with electric vehicles. Lithium batteries are prone to catch fire when exposed to salt water. So if you live on the coast, you need to get very far away from any incoming hurricane. Unfortunately, the problem does not seem to be limited to exposure to salt water.

The article reports:

Lithium-ion batteries (LIB) going boom in the worst places and what to do when that happens.

On Thursday, the 26th of September, on the freeway outside of the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro, California, one of “those accidents” happened.

A tractor-trailer carrying large lithium-ion batteries overturned and caught on fire on a highway near the Port of Los Angeles on Thursday, snarling traffic and leading to road closures and the shuttering of several terminals at the port.

The Los Angeles Fire Department said in a statement Thursday night that the fire was expected to burn for at least another 24 to 48 hours and that a roughly seven-mile stretch of California State Route 47, from the Vincent Thomas Bridge to Long Beach,would be closed in that period.

The Port of Los Angeles, the busiest port in the Western Hemisphere, said that several terminals would be closed on Friday.

The crash in the San Pedro neighborhood on Thursday morning did not result in any injuries, but fire crews were taking precautions to block hazardous materials from potentially spreading from the batteries, one of which exploded, the department said.

The article notes:

In the meanwhile, Hurricane Helene was making a beeline for the Florida Coast, and FL officials were out with warnings about EVs and saltwater not mixing. 

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis urged EV owners this week to get their vehicles to higher ground before Hurricane Helene arrived. Although the problem is rare, there have been a number of instances in recent years of electric vehicles igniting after hurricanes.

Keeping electric vehicles out of standing water is the best way to avoid the possibility of a fire.

Tesla offers similar advice about avoiding letting its vehicles become submerged if at all possible, but if that does happen the carmaker suggests towing the vehicle at least 50 feet away from structures or anything combustible until it can be inspected by a mechanic.

The article also notes that the vehicle may ignite well after you thought the danger was over. There is also the issue of what fumes may be released during the fire or the fact that a lithium fire is very difficult to put out. It really is time to re-evaluate the value of the current generation of electric vehicles.

Bringing Aid Without Government Red Tape

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On Tuesday, Hot Air posted an article about communication is being restored in the areas of the country that were devastated by Hurricane Helene. It’s ironic that the very organization that the government prevented from creating an internet infrastructure is the organization that has come to the rescue.

The article reports:

Residents hit by Hurricane Helene are getting internet through Starlink because no other service is working, and in many cases won’t be for weeks or months.

In fact, there are regions with no access to communications at all, but for Starlink, which is why Elon Musk and Donald Trump are rushing in Starlink terminals.

What most people don’t know is that, originally, Starlink was approved as part of Kamala Harris’ plan to connect hundreds of thousands of rural homes to the internet at broadband speeds.

You know, that program that has yet to connect a single home…

I say originally because the FCC–for obviously political reasons–decided to cut Starlink out of the program due to bogus claims that it hadn’t proven that it could provide the service reliably, and there is no way on Earth that the government would spend money on something that wasn’t 100% bulletproof.

As Joe Biden would say, no joke.

Now individuals, local government units, and soon Elon Musk himself will rush into the stricken areas RELIABLE Starlink terminals to provide communications services to people, first responders, and the National Guard. Without Starlink, tens or hundreds of thousands of people would be completely cut off.

This is another example of a person who knows how to get things done vs. a politician who has no idea how the world outside his bubble works. President Trump and Elon Musk are businessmen. Their profits depend on problem solving. Generally speaking, the only way politicians solve problems is to throw more money at them.

This Is NOT A Solution

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The mainstream media is happily reporting that the dock workers’ strike is over. Well, it is for now. There are a few problems with that statement. Both sides have agreed to extend the current contract through January 15th (a Wednesday) while they continue to negotiate. The new President (whoever that may be) will be sworn in January 20th (a Monday). We should be prepared for an extended strike at that point.

A U.K. Daily Mail article updated October 4th states:

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris celebrated the news that the International Longshoremen’s Association union had temporarily paused their strike until after the election.

The union ended their three-day strike until January 15, after reaching a temporary agreement with the U.S. Maritime Alliance.

The port employers offered workers to increase wages by 62 percent, according to reports, which helped reach a ‘tentative agreement.’

That’s a pretty major wage increase. Because it will increase the cost of every item shipped, what will it add to the price of goods and the increasing inflation?

This is not a solution to the problem–it is simply kicking the can down the road so someone else can deal with it.

Priorities, People!

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On Thursday, The EconoTimes posted an article about the role of the government in providing relief to the victims of Hurricane Helene. The Biden/Harris administration has warned Americans that FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) may run out of money before the end of the hurricane season.

The article reports:

In a shocking development, the Biden-Harris administration announced that FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) may not have enough resources to make it through the rest of hurricane season. This warning comes on the heels of billions of dollars being allocated to foreign aid, raising concerns about the government’s ability to respond to domestic natural disasters.

“FEMA’s Running Dry — And They Just Sent Billions Overseas! How Are We Supposed to Get Through This?”

The administration’s statement was made public on Monday, September 30, raising alarm about the depleted state of FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund (DRF). With hurricane season still in full swing, this could leave millions of Americans vulnerable in the event of further catastrophic weather events.

In June 2023, The New York Post reported:

New York City is set to receive $104.6 million in grant funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help cover its growing expenses related to the ongoing migrant crisis, Sen. Charles Schumer’s office confirmed to The Post.

That’s a third of the $363 million left in the pot allocated by FEMA’s Emergency Food and Shelter Program, dedicated to helping municipalities around the US and nonprofits providing shelter and other services to homeless migrants who crossed into the country from the southern border. 

Although it’s also far less than the $650 million total initially requested by NYC Mayor Eric Adams earlier this year, the Big Apple has now received the largest grant from the program compared to other jurisdictions.

The migrant crisis in New York City is a crisis caused by the open-border policies of the Biden/Harris administration. The devastation in western North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida is caused by a natural disaster. FEMA money should be reserved for natural disasters–not man-made crises.

The Strikers Are Looking In The Wrong Direction

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On Tuesday, The New York Post posted an article about the east coast port strike. The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) has gone on strike requesting (according to MSN) a major increase in wages and limited automation.

MSN quotes CNN:

The ILA reportedly opened the talks by asking for a 77% pay raise for its members over the six years the new contract would cover. The union said this amount was necessary due to inflation and years of insufficient pay raises. By Monday, USMX had counteroffered with a 50% pay raise over six years.

But the pay raise isn’t the only issue. The ILA wants a ban on all automation at docks, which it says could put some of its members out of work. However, the USMX only offered to keep the existing limits on automation that the old contract covered.

As a result of these discrepancies, the two sides were unable to come to an agreement before the previous contract expired, and thus the strike began just after midnight.

The New York Post article focused on the leader of the union:

Fiery union boss Harold Daggett has long cast himself as a staunch advocate for blue-collar workers, even as he has lived in luxury, owning a yacht and driving a Bentley — and fought off alleged ties to the Mafia.

Sporting a polo shirt with a chunky gold medallion around his neck, the 78-year-old Daggett, who as president of the International Longshoremen’s Association is leading the port strikes stretching from Maine to Texas, was prone to theatrical flourishes in a September interview as he geared up for the strike.

“They’re gonna be like this,” Daggett said, grabbing his neck in a choking gesture. “I’ll cripple you. I will cripple you and you have no idea what that means. Nobody does.”

…Meanwhile, Daggett — has worked at the ILA for 57 years and took the helm as president in 2011 — raked in $728,000 in compensation last year from the ILA.

He collected another $173,000 as president emeritus of a local union branch, according to labor department filings.

He lives in a 7,136 square-foot house valued at $1.7 million on a 10-acre lot in Sparta, New Jersey, according to Zillow and NJ Property Records.

It seems to me that the dock workers need to take a really good look at their union leadership before following Daggett too far off the cliff.

 

Conservative Replies to Debate Questions

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Author: R. Alan Harrop, Ph.D.

I watched the Vice President candidate’s debate the other night and thought that J.D. Vance did a good job. The following are my answers to some of the critical issues that were raised in the debate.

Climate Change. The climate constantly changes. Always has; always will. The idea that the recent destructive hurricane, Helene, was caused by man-made climate change is pure ignorance and typical of the environmental extremists. Severe hurricanes have occurred as far back as records have been kept–long before man’s burning of fossil fuels could have caused them. The Left continues to spout the idea that man-made climate change is “settled science” when it is not. This allows them to justify ruining our energy production.

Green Energy. The Democrat agenda is to spend more of our taxpayer money on solar and wind projects purchased from China, and importantly, to mandate electric vehicles. Meanwhile, China is building a new coal fired plant about every month and using coal that we ship to them. As Europe has found out, no modern civilization can exist on wind and solar. We need more access to fossil fuels and to start building nuclear plants which the environmental extremists are blocking.

Open Borders. The Democrats want open borders in order to get more voters who will support their socialist agenda. They give illegals free housing, food, cell phones and healthcare and will, if allowed, grant them citizenship so they can vote. They realize that they are losing support from working class Americans, blacks, and Hispanics because of their harmful policies and need to replace these voters. Biden/Harris have had the ability to close the borders just as Donald Trump was able to do. THEY WANT OPEN BORDERS!

Housing Costs. The cost of new homes is up over 30% since Biden/Harris took office. Their reckless government spending caused the highest inflation in 40 years. Soaring fuel prices have increase the production cost and shipping cost of all building materials. Inflation caused a surge in mortgage rates from 3% under Trump to over 7% under Biden/Harris. Their solution–to start another big government program of taking money from working Americans and give it to first time home buyers.

Abortion. There is nothing in the Constitution that addresses abortion as a right. In fact, the Constitution specifically states that if an issue is not specified as the responsibility of the federal government then it must be left to the states. That is exactly what the Supreme Court’s ruling against Roe vs Wade rightfully concluded. The Democrats do not want to follow the Constitution–they want a federal law on abortion. Kamala Harris has promised to remove the filibuster rule and pack the court in order to accomplish this objective. They also want to avoid the reality that terminating a child that can live on its own with proper medical care, is not murder.

As in any debate, there are important issues that were not addressed. For example, the increasing crime rates and the destruction of our cities by failing to enforce the law. Anyone want to visit San Francisco? I do not. Recent reports show that due to the Biden/Harris open border policy, 425,000 criminals, 13,000 convicted murderers, and 16,000 sexual assault offenders were released into this country. The Democrats abuse of the law to go after their political opponents should alarm all Americans. No president has ever been indicted while in office or out of office other than President Trump. Yet, they continue to say that he is the threat to democracy when they are the real threat!

Let’s face reality. Harris/Walz are the most radical socialists ever to run for president and vice president. Their policies will make America a weak, failing, socialist country. Choice: big government socialism or traditional American free enterprise and individual freedom. Easy decision actually.

This Is Not Acceptable

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Hurricane Helene hit western North Carolina very hard. It will be a long time before the Blue Ridge Parkway and the roads along the Tennessee border are up and running.  It will be a long time before the area recovers economically. There will be a significant death toll by the time the rescue efforts are done. This is a serious blow to our country. So what is the response from the White House?

On Tuesday, The Gateway Pundit reported the following:

According to Grok, the United States has committed approximately $175 billion in aid to Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in February 2022.

This figure includes both military and financial aid.

Here’s a brief breakdown from Grok AI:

    • Military Aid: The bulk of the aid has been in the form of military support, which has been crucial for Ukraine’s defense against Russian forces. This includes a wide array of equipment from artillery and ammunition to more advanced systems like anti-aircraft missiles and tanks.
    • Financial Aid: While the exact financial aid amount varies slightly depending on the source, there have been mentions of around $33.3 billion in “budget support” or direct financial aid, although some posts claim a lower figure like $10 billion when considering solely financial support.
    • Contextual Comparison: Critics and supporters alike have noted that this aid, while significant, represents a relatively small percentage of the U.S. annual budget or GDP. For instance, one comparison highlighted that the aid to Ukraine constitutes about 0.25% of the U.S. GDP for the year it was measured.
    • Public Sentiment and Debate: On platforms like X, there’s a mix of support for the aid, citing reasons like maintaining global security and supporting democracy, and criticism, often focusing on domestic spending priorities or the perceived effectiveness of the aid.

How much is the White House willing to give the victims of Hurricane Helene?

On Monday Joe Biden told suffereing Americans in the flood disaster zone, “No,” there won’t be more resources coming… “We’ve given them all we can.”

Joe Biden also snapped at reporters, saying, “I was commanding!” when he was asked why he was away from the White House and DC all weekend amid the catastrophic flooding.

And then later, during a live video feed from the White House, Joe Biden told the American public they need to help the recovery in North Carolina and, “It’s gonna take a hell of a lot of money.”

Meanwhile President Trump and Elon Musk are doing all they can to help restore communications in the area and to bring in relief supplies.

You Can Tell When Israel Is Winning–The United Nations Asks For A Cease Fire

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On Monday, John Hinderaker at Power Line Blog posted an article about the continuing war between Israel and the terrorists that surround it. It is unfortunate that the rest of the world does not understand that in defending Israel they are fighting worldwide terrorism.

The article quotes The Wall Street Journal:

Israeli special forces have been carrying out small, targeted raids into southern Lebanon, gathering intelligence and probing ahead of an expected broader ground incursion, people familiar with the matter said.
***
The Biden administration expects an imminent Israeli invasion of Lebanon, U.S. officials said.
***
An Israeli official said that, if there were to be a broader ground operation, it would feature “localized, limited raids against Hezbollah targets along the border with the objective of destroying the capabilities of the Radwan Forces,” the militant group’s special-operations unit. Israeli forces assess that the group is making preparations for an attack, as Hamas did before Oct. 7, including positioning clothes, weapons and other materials along the border.

The difference is that October 7th was unprovoked and aimed at civilians. Israel’s attack has been provoked by the constant rocket fire on civilians in Northern Israel, and Israel’s attack is aimed at Hezbollah–a terrorist group.

The article at Power Line Blog concludes:

So, what is the Biden administration’s role in these events? Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have remained true to their policy of being utterly irrelevant, when they are not actually destructive, on all foreign policy issues. Biden’s greatest fear, apparently, is that Israel might actually achieve victory in its battle to the death with Hezbollah and other Iranian proxies:

President Biden starkly instructed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday to abandon reported plans for an imminent invasion of southern Lebanon to clear out Hezbollah-held areas days after the assassination of Hassan Nasrallah.

“Israel may now be launching a limited operation into Lebanon. Are you aware of that? Are you comfortable with their plan?” a journalist asked Biden at the White House.

“I’m more aware than you might know, and I’m comfortable with them stopping,” the president replied.

“We should have a cease-fire now,” he added.

There is a pattern here: whenever the Jews are winning, liberal Democrats want a cease fire to give the terrorists time to regroup and live to fight again another day. Happily, no one cares what they think.

If Mexico were firing rockets into Texas every day, would America want a cease-fire?

Clarification On Some Debate Points

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Late Tuesday, MPR News posted an article to clarify some of what was said in Tuesday’s Vice-Presidential debate about Minnesota’s abortion law.

The article reports:

While they are allowed, abortions late in pregnancy are exceptionally rare. According to Minnesota data, in the last five years for which data is available just seven induced abortions have been reported in the third trimester of pregnancy. Abortions later in pregnancy are generally sought due to serious or fatal fetal anomalies, risk to maternal health or life or barriers that delay abortion access such as policy or financial need. It is illegal to kill a baby after birth as former President Donald Trump claimed in the presidential debate in September.

The 2023 law also dropped some state reporting requirements for abortion providers and ended the so-called “Born Alive Infants Protection Act.” Doctors and patients who’d pressed for the law change said the new law doesn’t prevent providers from trying to save the life of a child. Instead, they said it would let them bypass previously required medical interventions in situations where parents want to bond with their infant born with a fetal anomaly that is typically fatal.

These are basically wiggle words. As reported, the Minnesota law does allow abortion in the third trimester. The law also does not require providers to try to save a baby’s life. So Tim Walz did sign one of the most liberal abortion laws in the country.

There were other moments during the debate where the moderators made comments that were misleading or outright lies. One has to do with the fact that the moderators stated that the Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were here legally. That statement is technically true, but very misleading.

As The New York Post reported, Vice-Presidential candidate JD Vance provided some details:

Sen. JD Vance was accurately describing the migrant crisis fueled by Kamala Harris and Joe Biden when CBS moderator Margaret Brennan decided to insert herself with a “fact check.”

“Just to clarify for our viewers, Springfield, Ohio does have a large number of Haitian migrants who have legal status,” she said smugly.

Vance was rightly annoyed by the interruption and said, “The rules were that you guys weren’t going to fact-check, and since you’re fact-checking me, I think it’s important to say what’s actually going on.”

He then proceeded to truthfully, forcefully explain what “legal status” means:

“So there’s an application called the CBP One app, where you can go on as an illegal migrant, apply for asylum or apply for parole, and be granted legal status at the wave of a Kamala Harris open border wand.”

At which point CBS decided to CUT OFF HIS MIC.

This was the most shameful moment in a long history of shameful moments by moderators biased against Republicans. They “fact-checked” the truth, then stopped the politician from responding.

Well played, sir. well played.

It Doesn’t Pay To Lie To People Who Know The Truth

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On Tuesday, Townhall posted an article about a recent appearance on CNBC by Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. It did not go according to the Secretary’s plan.

The article reports:

Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo needs to stop going on CNBC. It might be time for anyone in the Biden-Harris orbit to drop going on a network that reports on the economy because they know the talking points, the spin for this shoddy economy left to us by this administration. Raimondo tried to sell the Democratic Party line on it, but Squawk Box co-host Joe Kernen wouldn’t allow this propaganda to go unchallenged.

He torched Raimondo, adding that there was no recession under Donald Trump, wages were up, the stock market was booming, and the tariff policy he pushed was continued under Biden. Raimondo was trying to paint a picture of economic chaos, only for Kernen to say that everything is in shambles and wages are down under Biden. There’s also an open border and crime crisis engulfing the nation.

These are facts. They are inconvenient to some Americans, but they are facts.

The article notes:

All Raimondo could say was that’s not true, without citing any facts to push against the reality that Biden’s America is one heaping lawless wasteland with no economic activity. The stock market performance right now isn’t sustainable, with everyone and their mother warning that a reset is coming. The unemployment that Democrats like to attach to Trump was over the hysterics brought about by COVID.

Also, no one in the media wants to ask Raimondo and others what happened to the one million jobs never created in 2023. The revised numbers wiped out that figure, discovering they were never created. It’s another damning economic development that Raimondo seemed unfamiliar with, so what does she do all day?

If voters consider the facts and vote for President Trump, we can regain what we have lost under President Biden.

Poking the Bear

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Article: : R. Alan Harrop, Ph.D.

Since the end of WWII, the United States and Russia, the world’s nuclear super powers, have avoided direct armed conflict. This may be about to change. Ukraine, which is not a member of NATO and part of which has historically been linked to Russia, is losing the war of attrition started by its much larger neighbor, Russia. This, in spite of the billions of dollars of American taxpayer’s money and diminishing stockpile of our weapons being sent to Ukraine. We are not replenishing these weapons at the necessary rate. Now we have their leader, Zelenskyy, persuading the Biden/Harris regime to escalate the war by allowing American made missiles to be fired deep inside Russia. This will not end well and must be stopped.

History shows repeatedly that wars once started take on a life of their own and frequently spin out of control. The time to stop a war is before it starts. The perceived weak Biden/Harris regime failed to do this. Now, Zelenskyy is desperate and sees the only path forward is to involve the United States more directly in the conflict. Sending American troops to Ukraine will be next. The missiles in question can reach 300 miles into Russia. Let’s face reality. Putin will never allow Russia to be defeated by Ukraine. Will he use tactical nuclear missiles to keep from losing the war? He says he will. No one knows for sure. If so, the next question becomes, “How would the Biden/Harris regime respond?” The hypocrisy of Biden/Harris is obvious when they put total pressure on trying to get Israel to agree to a cease fire, but no such pressure is placed on Ukraine to negotiate with Russia. How would we respond, if we got into a war with Cuba, and Russian supplied missiles were striking deep into the southern United States? Zelenskyy’s hope that he can persuade us to escalate and get more involved against Russia keeps this war going which is actually destroying Ukraine.

Not only do we risk a war of global annihilation with Russia, we are increasingly pushing Russia closer to China, who is our actual existential threat. We are weakening our military by using armaments at a pace faster than we can replace them. The missiles in question are considered essential to our defense and cost $1.5 million each. China is watching and elated by what is occurring. They get stronger, we get weaker. How will we respond if Taiwan is attacked by China? Good question.

What is needed is a negotiated settlement that concedes some of Ukraine to Russia. Just like what happened in Korea. The cease fire there, gave the northern part to the communists but preserved the south as a free country. And remember, China was not a nuclear power at that time but it was recognized that a compromise was necessary to stop the war and preserve at least part of Korea from communism.

We must not allow ourselves to be drawn into an escalating war that is not in our interest and the consequences could be total destruction of our civilization as we know it. I do not want our existence to be dependent on the decision of one man, Putin, who is being pushed into a corner. Not a good idea. We need an exit strategy and need it fast. The Biden/Harris regime is not up to the task. Consider this when you cast your vote. Who is most likely to resolve this situation favorably for the American people?

Another Terrorist Who Worked For UNRWA

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The United Nations is going to have a hard time recruiting workers in the Middle East if Israel keeps killing the ones who work as terrorists in their spare time. On Monday, Breitbart posted an article about the latest terrorist to be killed by Israel.

The article reports:

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Israel Security Agency (ISA) announced Monday that they had killed Fateh Sherif, who led Hamas in Lebanon. He was also a United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) employee.

In a joint statement, the IDF and ISA said:

Overnight, during a joint IDF and ISA intelligence-based activity, the IAF struck and eliminated the terrorist Fateh Sherif, Head of the Lebanon Branch in the Hamas terrorist organization.

Sherif was responsible for coordinating Hamas’ terror activities in Lebanon with Hezbollah operatives. He was also responsible for Hamas’ efforts in Lebanon to recruit operatives and acquire weapons.

He led the Hamas terrorist organization’s force build-up efforts in Lebanon and operated to advance Hamas’ interests in Lebanon, both politically and militarily.

The IDF and the ISA will to continue to operate against anyone who poses a threat to the civilians of the State of Israel.

UNRWA acknowledged that Fateh Sherif had been the principal of one of its schools, the Times of Israel reported:

Sherif was killed today in an airstrike on the al-Bass refugee camp in the southern Lebanese city of Tyre, along with his wife and children. Reports indicate he had been the principal of the UNRWA-run Deir Yassin Secondary School in al-Bass.

“Fateh Al Sharif was an UNRWA employee who was put on administrative leave without pay in March, and was undergoing an investigation following allegations that UNRWA received about his political activities,” UNRWA says in response to a Times of Israel query.

The article concludes:

In a statement, the IDF and ISA said they had killed Nidal Abdel-Aal, head of the PFLP’s Lebanon branch, as well as Imad Odeh, the head of the PFLP’s military office in Lebanon. They added that Abdel-Aal had directed terror attacks on Israelis in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank), including a bus bombing and a shooting attack, both in 2023.

Israel is make the entire world a safer place while minimizing the number of innocent civilians killed. We should all be celebrating.

Europe Is Waking Up

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Most of Europe has had open borders for a while now. It has not worked well. Even Paris is being pressured to change its world famous culinary habits by Muslim immigrants (story here). There have been drastic increases in crime in Germany and Sweden. Sweden is offering immigrants $34,000 to leave the country (story here). So what can people do? They can vote the people supporting unlimited immigration out of office.

On Sunday, Yahoo News posted an article about recent elections in Austria. The article describes the winning party of the election as ‘far right.’ If you understand the current state of the media, you realize that ‘far right’ means actually representing the common man.

The article reports:

Political parties on the European right celebrated Sunday’s parliamentary election victory by Austria’s Freedom Party (FPO) as a boost for national conservatives amid advances by the hard right fuelled by worries about immigration.

Led by Herbert Kickl, who capitalised on a misfiring economy and concerns that Austria has taken in people faster than it can integrate them, the FPO won around 29% of the vote, a record result that may give it a platform to lead the next government.

Kickl must find a partner to form a stable coalition and he is loathed by other party leaders, who have refused to serve under him and quickly began discussing the possibility of sounding out alternatives to an FPO-led government.

But there were warm words from allies in Europe, where the FPO forms part of a right-wing group inside the European Parliament led by France’s far-right National Rally (RN).

Its leader Marine Le Pen expressed delight at the victory and said it showed those parties were advancing.

“After the Italian, Dutch and French elections, this tidal wave which supports the defence of national interests, the safeguarding of identities and the resurrection of sovereignties, confirms the triumph of the people everywhere,” Le Pen wrote in a post on X.

The recent elections in Europe have not gone the way the European Union and the World Economic Forum want them to go. That is a good thing.

 

Wisdom From Someone Who Executed Successful Middle East Policy

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On Sunday, Legal Insurrection posted an article about the recent events in the Middle East.

The article reports:

Former President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and advisor, Jared Kushner, had some wise words yesterday about Israel.

Israel has to finish the job. Now. She cannot stop.

People have responded, “I don’t agree with you politically at all, but this is true!”

Kushner wrote:

September 27th is the most important day in the Middle East since the Abraham Accords breakthrough.

I have spent countless hours studying Hezbollah and there is not an expert on earth who thought that what Israel has done to decapitate and degrade them was possible.

This is significant because Iran is now fully exposed. The reason why their nuclear facilities have not been destroyed, despite weak air defense systems, is because Hezbollah has been a loaded gun pointed at Israel. Iran spent the last forty years building this capability as its deterrent.

President Trump would often say, “Iran has never won a war but never lost a negotiation.” The Islamic Republic’s regime is much tougher when risking Hamas, Hezbollah, Syrian and Houthi lives than when risking their own. Their foolish efforts to assassinate President Trump and hack his campaign reek of desperation and are hardening a large coalition against them.

Iranian leadership is stuck in the old Middle East, while their neighbors in the GCC are sprinting toward the future by investing in their populations and infrastructure. They are becoming dynamic magnets for talent and investment while Iran falls further behind. As the Iranian proxies and threats dissipate, regional security and prosperity will rise for Christians, Muslims and Jews alike

The article concludes with more of Jared Kushner’s statement:

The philosopher Bernard-Henri Lévy wrote on X, “I keep reading everywhere that Lebanon is ‘on the brink of collapse.’ No. It is on the brink of relief and deliverance.”
Moments like this come once in a generation, if they even come at all.

The Middle East is too often a solid where little changes. Today, it is a liquid and the ability to reshape is unlimited. Do not squander this moment.

Let’s all pray for success, for peace and for the good judgement of our leaders.

Lebanon used to be the garden spot of the Middle East. I pray that someday it will again be the beautiful, free land it once was.