SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – OVERNIGHT: 

ANOTHER WIN FOR FLORIDA – FROM BIZPACREVIEW:  The Florida Board of Education has officially said no to a form of critical race theory in public schools.  Gov. Ron DeSantis and state Republicans opposed the divisive curriculum, which they consider a form of far-left indoctrination.  The newly adopted rule, which occurred after a four-hour meeting Thursday in Jacksonville, where about 30 speakers on both sides participated, does not specifically mention critical race theory per se, but the messaging about how U.S. history, civics, and government should be taught is definitive.  The rule reads: “Instruction on the required topics must be factual and objective and may not suppress or distort significant historical events, such as the Holocaust, and may not define American history as something other than the creation of a new nation based largely on universal principles stated in the Declaration of Independence.”  It also clarifies the role of teachers in that they “serve as facilitators for student discussion and do not share their personal views or attempt to indoctrinate or persuade students to a particular point of view.”  In addressing the state board this morning via a remote hookup, DeSantis similarly said, “We have to do history that is factual. I think it’s important that when we’re doing things like history that it’s grounded in actual fact over narrative…We need to be educating people, not trying to indoctrinate them.” A win for parents and children, and a loss for the militant left.  Ron DeSantis again proves himself to be presidential material. 

AND IN THE REAL WORLD – FROM REUTERS:   Russia is preparing to provide Iran with an advanced satellite that would enable it to track potential military targets across the Middle East, the Washington Post reported on Thursday.  The satellite is projected to have the ability to track long-range targets, including IDF bases, as well as oil refineries throughout the Persian Gulf and Iraqi bases for US troops. The plan would deliver a Russian-made Kanopus-V satellite equipped with a high-resolution camera which could be launched from Russia within months, the Post said.  The report was published days before US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin meet in Geneva and as Iran and the United States are engaged in indirect talks on reviving a 2015 nuclear deal designed to put curbs on Iran's nuclear program in exchange for easing economic sanctions.  The satellite would allow "continuous monitoring of facilities ranging from Persian Gulf oil refineries and Israeli military bases to Iraqi barracks that house US troops," said the paper, which cited three unnamed sources - a current and a former US official and a senior Middle Eastern government official briefed on the sale.   A Russian slap in our face just before Biden meets Putin.  And a very dangerous military development.  We look forward to seeing how President Biden handles this.  Badly, I'll guess, and we'll be seen as losing.

June 10, 2021