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FEBRUARY 8,  2021

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT:

OUTRAGEOUS DOLLY – FROM AMERICAN THINKER:  How is this for obnoxious?  Leftists, one after another, have put a target on country music legend Dolly Parton's back. Her crime against political correctness? Making a Super Bowl ad for Squarespace, an inexpensive website-creating framework for small and start-up businesses.  Here's what enraged them:  "As much as we all love Dolly Parton, it’s still disappointing to hear her literally sing the praises of “working, working, working," thundered a columnist printed at NBC News.  "One job is no longer enough to survive."  Dolly Parton’s Super Bowl ad glosses over the reality for millions of gig workers, critics say.  If Dolly isn't safe, who is?  And who's next?  Mr. Rogers?

ANOTHER RETURN TO THE LAND OF OBAMA – FROM AP:  The Biden administration is set to announce this week that it will reengage with the much-maligned UN Human Rights Council that former US president Donald Trump withdrew from almost three years ago, US officials said Sunday. The decision reverses another Trump-era move away from multilateral organizations and agreements.  US officials say Secretary of State Antony Blinken and a senior US diplomat in Geneva will announce on Monday that Washington will return to the Geneva-based body as an observer with an eye toward seeking election as a full member. The decision is likely to draw criticism from conservative lawmakers and many in the pro-Israel community.  Trump pulled out of the world body’s main human rights agency in 2018 due to its disproportionate focus on Israel, which has received by far the largest number of critical council resolutions against any country, as well as the number of authoritarian countries among its members and because it failed to meet an extensive list of reforms demanded by then-US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley.  The Human Rights Council is a disgrace, a friend to dictators, and President Trump was right to take us out of it. Biden is doing the Obama thing.  In what way will America benefit from rejoining that gang?  It won't.  But the Obama crowd doesn't care.  Their policy is to reward our enemies and attack our friends.

February 8, 2021       Permalink

TO ALL CIRCUS FANS – AT 11:18 P.M. ET:   Get your pop corn, ice cream, Twinkies, the circus is in town!  Donald J. Trump's second impeachment trial is about to begin!  Tickets going fast!  Suitable for children!  In fact, designed for children!

I can't wait.  Can you?  Trump's first impeachment trial just wasn't enough for me. 

But wait.  There is opposition.  Can you believe that anyone disagrees?  From Fox: 

The Senate impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump will determine the future of America, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told "Hannity" Monday.

Democrat officials have pushed to hold the trial, even though many Republicans have dubbed their efforts unconstitutional now that Trump has left office

Graham pressed his colleagues to recognize the weight of the proceedings and the historical precedent their actions will set.

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM, R-S.C.: To my colleagues tomorrow – there are 100 of us – what we do today is going to make history for the rest of the time America exists. What Democrats have done is basically declare war on the presidency itself. The impeachment in the House took place without a hearing, without one witness being called, and without a lawyer for the president of the United States. You can’t get a traffic ticket based on the procedures they used to impeach President Trump.

And we’re also impeaching a man who’s out of office. When you combine a snap impeachment with an impeachment of a president who’s out of office, you’re going to destroy the presidency itself. I know you hate Trump but please pull back before we set in motion the destruction of the presidency by never-ending impeachments based on lack of due process and [with] political retribution as the motive.

You’re about to set in motion an historical precedent that will put at risk every future president. You can be impeached in the future based on hatred – 50 hours, no witness, no hearing, no lawyer. You can be impeached after you leave office. George Washington, under this theory, could be impeached for owning slaves. We’re doing a lot of damage to the country because people hate Trump. Knock it off.

COMMENT:  Well said.  This impeachment trial is an embarrassment to the nation, and sends the worst signals to our international enemies – that we are confused, immature, and weak, and served by a news media that has ceased to perform its most important functions. 

Trump will be acquitted.  Even most Democrats admit that.  But the damage to our national structure and traditions may be permanent.

February 8, 2021       Permalink

BACKLASH – AT 6:55 P.M. ET:  The light has gone on atop the heads of people who realize that Joe Biden's policies are radical, and are starting to hurt real people.  Let the backlash begin.  From Fox: 

The leader on one of the most prominent U.S. labor unions said he regretted President Biden's move to derail the Keystone XL pipeline project on his first day in office in a new interview.

"I wish he hadn't done that on the first day," AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka told journalist Jonathan Swan on "Axios on HBO."

Labor groups have said Biden’s day-one decision to nix the Keystone pipeline eliminated 1,000 union jobs off the bat and could kill ten times more in construction jobs than were expected to be created by the project.

"I wish he had paired that more carefully with the thing that he did second, by saying here’s where we’re creating jobs," he said.

He said Washington politicians should consider that Americans don’t want to move across the country for a new job out of the blue – something he gave Biden credit for subsequently proposing.
"We can do mine reclamation, we can fix leaks and we can fix seeps and create hundreds of thousands of jobs in doing all of that stuff," he said.

That’s an improvement over widely panned calls for energy workers to "learn to code" and job training programs that equip workers with skills sought after on the opposite side of the country.
"If you destroy 100 jobs in Greene County, Pennsylvania, where I grew up, and you create 100 jobs in California, it doesn't do those 100 families much good," he said.

Trumka’s criticism of job training programs may have been a subtle jab at Biden, whom he frequently praises. The president once told laid-off coal miners to "learn to code." (Former President Barack Obama has also made similar comments.)

"I said, 'Where are the computer programmer jobs at?'" Trumka continued. "'Uh, they're in, uh, Oklahoma, and they're in Vegas and they're here.' And I said, 'So, in other words, what we're going to be is unemployed miners and unemployed computer programmers as well.'"

COMMENT:  Trumka is a labor heavyweight, and Biden might consider taking his words seriously.  There is no guarantee that our economy will improve soon, even if the new vaccines defeat the pandemic.  Thus, risking jobs that are already there is a fool's errand.  I doubt if the Keystone Pipeline would have made any difference at all in the quality of the atmosphere.  Canceling it, however, has made a profound difference in the lives of thousands of workers, whose economic existence depended on it.

February 8,  2021     Permalink

FEBRUARY 7,  2021

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT:

OLD SOLDIERS NEVER DIE – FROM CBS SPORTS:  The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are Super Bowl LV champions after completing a victory that exceeded expectations and made all kinds of history on Sunday night at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. In dominating the Kansas City Chiefs 31-9, the Bucs won their second Super Bowl and became the first team to win a Super Bowl in their home stadium. Quarterback Tom Brady secured his seventh Lombardi Trophy, two more than any player in NFL history and one more than any entire NFL franchise has achieved.  Brady's performance at age 43 was nearly flawless, and the suffocating pressure of Todd Bowles's defense was a perfect compliment to the offense's effort. The future Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback completed 21 of 29 passes for 201 yards and three touchdowns, including a pair to his long-time favorite target, tight end Rob Gronkowski and another to wide receiver Antonio Brown.  At 43 he's the old man of football.  He proves that no one should give up just because of age.  We're an overly youth-oriented society, but it was the ancient warrior, with years of experience, who won. 

THE SWEETNESS OF INNOCENCE...NOT – FROM FOX:    Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., has publically denied encouraging supporters to confront and harass members of the Trump administration.  The California Democrat was asked whether she ever "glorified or encouraged" violence against Republicans in a Sunday interview with MSNBC's Ali Velshi.  "As a matter of fact, if you look at the words that I used, the strongest thing I said was tell them they're not welcome," Waters claimed. "[I said] Talk to them. Tell them they're not welcome. I didn't say go and fight. I didn't say anybody was going to have any violence. And so they can't make that stick."  Waters came under fire in 2018 for telling the same network that she had "no sympathy" for administration officials who defended Trump's "zero-tolerance" immigration policy, and urged her supporters to "absolutely harass them" when appearing in public.  "They’re not going to be able to go to a restaurant, they’re not going to be able to stop at a gas station, they’re not going to be able to shop at a department store," Waters said at the time. "The people are going to turn on them, they’re going to protest, they’re going to absolutely harass them."  Her comments came after then-Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and former press secretary Sarah Sanders were confronted with their families in public over Trump's controversial family separation policy.  One of the worst and most useless members of Congress, Waters lives in a multi-million-dollar home outside her district.  Her vile statements about President Trump and Republicans generally, if they don't specifically advocate violence, come awfully close. 

February 7, 2021       Permalink

PROGRESS IN CHICAGO? – I never thought I'd write the words "progress" and "Chicago" in the same sentence.  Chicago, whose heroes include Louis Farrakhan and Barack Obama, is not a place where you expect much progress in anything.  Overly racialized, and controlled by the Democratic machine, it is a shooting gallery every weekend. 

But there may be some progress in getting Chicago's schools, who are in the lock grip of teachers unions, open.  From Fox: 

Chicago schoolchildren are expected to return to classrooms later this week, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Sunday after Chicago Teachers Union and Chicago Public Schools reached a "tentative agreement."

"We are here to announce the very good news that our children will be returning to in-person learning this week," Lightfoot said at a press conference. "These past 11 months have been a whirlwind for our entire city, pushing us to limits countless times. We’ve lost jobs, we’ve lost loved ones… We have all been on a nonstop emotional rollercoaster that we have individually and collectively tried to navigate."

Under the tentative agreement, the start of in-person classes, phased in by grade, has been pushed back from the district's initial plans. Classes for some students would start later week.

But the deal still relies on broader union approval, and it remains unclear when or if a vote will be held for its some 25,000 members, the Chicago Tribune reported.

"We do not yet have an agreement with Chicago Public Schools," Chicago Teachers Union tweeted Sunday, while the press conference was still happening. "The mayor and her team made an offer to our members late last night, which merits further review. We will continue with our democratic process of rank-and-file review throughout the day before any agreement is reached."

The union and district have been fighting for months over a plan to gradually reopen the roughly 340,000-student district, with talks breaking down in recent days. The major issues included widespread vaccinations for teachers, metrics to gauge school infections and accommodations for teachers who have a person in their household who's more susceptible to coronavirus.

"This agreement was about making sure everyone in our school communities just aren’t safe, but also that they feel safe," Lightfoot said.

CPS officials have said opening schools is safe and that remote learning isn’t working for all students, including many Black and Latino students who make up the majority of the district. Union officials had argued that the district’s plan, which included air filters in classrooms and voluntary COVID-19 tests for teachers, didn’t go far enough.

COMMENT:  Lightfoot is no bargain as mayor, but the record will show that there was no progress until she stood up, in a manner of speaking, to the teachers unions.  She suddenly realized there are more parents than union officials.  I personally tend to be pro-union, when the union works for its members and is responsible, but the teachers unions have developed far too much power and are far too politicized.  Not good in school systems.

February 7,  2021     Permalink