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DECEMBER 10,  2017

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:55 P.M. ET: 

DANGEROUS CARGO – FROM FOX:   Miami police were forced to briefly shut down the area surrounding an art show and clear the site after security dogs reacted to a suspicious crate in Miami, Fla., during the Art Basel festival on Saturday morning.  But when authorities opened the crate outside the Art Miami tent, it contained none other than a “punk” style picture of Hillary Clinton -- complete with pink hair and a studded jacket.  The potential threat, nonetheless, delayed the opening of the tent located at One Herald Plaza, blocking out both event staff and attendees and prompting police to section off Biscayne Boulevard with their cruisers and caution tape, according to the Miami Herald.  Hillary will now say that this picture cost her the election.

WHAT KIND OF GIFT DO YOU BUY? – FROM TRUTH REVOLT:    If anybody was looking to marry 33 year-old Amanda Liberty of Leeds, England, they better move fast, because they've got competition in the form of her fiance. Who is an inanimate object. More specifically, a chandelier named Lumiere.
Yes, like that Lumiere. The woman is marrying an inanimate object, which is a complete debasement of marriage and a symptom of the total collapse of society; could she not at least have given it a more creative name?  Being a modern woman, and the lone human in the relationship, Liberty didn't wait around for Lumiere to propose to her but, rather, proposed to "her" on Valentine's Day (Yes, Lumiere is a "she"). Another modern facet of their relationship? It's an open one. Liberty is currently dating 25 other chandeliers, and chooses one from her collection to sleep with each night. Lumiere understands.  Who are we to object to someone else's culture?  I just learned that my niece is marrying an iPad.  The Pro model.  At least she has taste.

CONTINUING THE MADNESS – FROM THE HILL:  At least 16 NFL players protested during the national anthem prior to Sunday’s games, The Associated Press reported.  San Francisco 49ers players Eric Reid, Eli Harold and Marquise Goodwin, and New York Giants defensive end Olivier Vernon all knelt during the anthem before their teams’ respective games.  Oakland Raiders running back Marshawn Lynch, who has drawn direct criticism from President Trump, sat through the anthem prior to his game.  Each of the five players has previously sat or knelt during the anthem throughout this season.  During the late afternoon games, another 11 players were seen protesting in some fashion. Los Angeles Chargers lineman Russell Okung raised his fist during the anthem.  Meanwhile, some ticket prices are down to three dollars.  Fans are turning away from the NFL.  Who is helped by these protests?

December 10,  2017     Permalink 

POISED FOR GREATNESS? – AT 12:38 P.M. ET:  The anti-Trump press has the president practically out the door.  But there is a growing realization among the grown-ups that, with all his faults, he's a serious man doing serious things, and may be poised for greatness.  From Conrad Black in Canada's National Post: 

It is distressing to read and listen to the nonsense in the Canadian media about Donald Trump. It is too early to predict whether he will be a successful president or not. But no one relying on the Canadian media would be aware that he has more than doubled the economic growth rate, reduced illegal immigration by about 80 per cent, withdrawn from the insane Paris Climate accord, helped add trillions to U.S. stock market values, created nearly two million new jobs, led the rout of ISIL, and gained full Chinese adherence to the unacceptability of North Korean nuclear military capability. He will probably pass the greatest tax cuts and reforms since Reagan, if not Lyndon Johnson, by Christmas, and may throw out the most unpopular feature of Obamacare, the coercive mandate, with it.

He can be a tiresome and implausible public figure at times, and the reservations widely held about him, in the United States and elsewhere, are understandable and not unfounded. He is, however, the most effective U.S. president since Reagan.

COMMENT:  Well said.  The verdict is far from being in, and the president can destroy himself.  But thus far his record is remarkably good.  We recall that Reagan, at this stage in his presidency, was still regarded as an "amiable dunce," and is now seen as an accomplished, possibly great president.

Great presidents usually do one or two great things.  All the rest becomes the background chatter of history.  If Trump can build a great economy, and pull off one major foreign accomplishment, like a Mideast peace deal or the taming of North Korea, he will make his mark, with or without the approval of CNN.

Read the whole piece.

December 10, 2017       Permalink

NAILED – AT 11:45 A.M. ET:  We have a senator from New York named Kirsten Gillibrand.  She got to the Senate by appointment, after Hillary Clinton resigned to become Obama's secretary of state. 

She was appointed by the then-governor, primarily to block the ambitions of Caroline Kennedy, daughter of President Kennedy.  The Democratic Party didn't want to open up another Kennedy power center, which would have diminished the influence of the Dem establishment.  Besides, Caroline Kennedy had difficulty completing an English sentence in public.

So Gillibrand was in, and she got elected to a full term.  And she's there.  And she could walk into any venue in New York, and no one would know who she is.  Ah, but according to a piece in Politico last week, her time has come...even for a run for the presidency.  Her issue always has been sexual harassment.  People, Politico said, are watching Kirsten.

Except, the increased attention has brought increased scrutiny.  And what many see, they don't like.  From The Hill: 

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) has put herself in the spotlight by calling on Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) to step down and saying President Clinton should have resigned during the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

Taking on major figures in her own party has bolstered the New York Democrat’s standing as a voice for change in the nation’s reckoning over sexual harassment and misconduct, which is reshaping society.

But it has also won her criticism. 

Supporters of Clinton blasted Gillibrand as disloyal for her statements about Clinton, with some noting how the Clintons supported her over the years. 

Those sympathetic to Franken suggested it was craven for her to be the first out with a statement Wednesday calling for him to resign, and suggested she was both seeking attention and building her brand on a fallen progressive hero.

Gillibrand has won headlines with her action that could be useful if she chooses to run for president in 2020 against what could be a crowded field. 

Others said the moves could actually hurt her in a primary, where loyalists to Clinton and Franken will have long memories.

“All this reeks of is political opportunism and that's what defines Kirsten Gillibrand's career,” one Democratic strategist said. “Why wasn't she talking about Bill Clinton when he was helping her during her various races for the House and Senate? And would she be talking about Bill Clinton today if Hillary Clinton was president? I think we all know the answer.”

COMMENT:  When you rise in politics, the knives start coming out.  Gillibrand has done strange things in the past, like embracing a Columbia student whose rape accusations were thoroughly discredited by two Columbia investigations, and also embracing a rabid anti-Israel activist, not too wise for a New York senator.  She wants street cred on the far left.

But most people aren't far left, and many Democrats don't appreciate her maneuvering.  Also, she's not known for having a giant intellect. Her greatest accomplishment was that her college roommate was the actress Connie Britton.

You can't write her off, but I think that, if the party wanted a woman as its candidate in 2020, it would choose Kamala Harris of California.  No genius either, but she's better at the political game, and she'd have the entire California delegation with her in a nomination fight. 

December 10,  2017     Permalink

DECEMBER 9,  2017

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:56 P.M.  ET:

GREAT MOMENTS IN COLLEGE DISCIPLINE – FROM COLLEGE FIX:  Tennessee State University warns against “whistling in a suggestive manner” on the grounds that it may constitute sexual harassment, a policy that has helped earn it a “red light” rating from one of the nation’s premier college watchdog groups.  The public university in Nashville currently holds a “red light” rating from the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education for several of its policies that effectively allow officials to punish various forms of free speech as harassment.  Why is it that so many "educators" are so dense? 

SHOULDN'T THIS BE A BIPARTISAN ISSUE? – FROM THE WASHINGTON TIMES:   With some black leaders boycotting the event, President Trump paid tribute Saturday to the heroes of the civil rights movement at the dedication of two museums in Mississippi.  Speaking to a small invitation-only group of dignitaries indoors at the new civil-rights museum in Jackson, Mr. Trump called the facility honoring leaders of the movement “a tribute to our nation at the highest level.”  “Today we pay solemn tribute to our heroes of the past and dedicate ourselves to building a future of freedom, equality, justice and peace,” Mr. Trump said.  The president, who was invited by Republican Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant, didn’t take part in a public ceremony outdoors. The long list of speakers at the larger event was missing Democratic Rep. John Lewis of Georgia, a civil-rights icon who skipped the ceremony in protest of the president’s visit, calling it a “mockery” of black leaders’ efforts.  No, John Lewis has become a mockery.  Why not engage the president and ask for his ideas about improving the lives of inner city people?  I guess that would be too practical.  I wonder if black citizens know how little their "representatives" in Washington actually do for them.  And that includes Barack Obama.

NOT SHOCKED, BUT DISAPPOINTED – FROM FOX:  Olympic gold medal skier Lindsey Vonn says she'll represent the United States, but not President Trump, when she returns to the Winter Games in February.  Vonn, who won a gold medal in the women’s downhill competition in 2010 in Vancouver, skipped the 2014 Sochi games because of knee injuries.  “I hope to represent the people of the United States, not the president,” Vonn said this week amid the buildup to the 2018 games in PyeongChang, South Korea.  I guess it's her equivalent of taking a knee, or a ski.  And no one cares.  The Olympics have always been politicized.  Oh, and someone should tell her she doesn't represent the people of the United States.  They didn't elect her.  She only represents herself and the U.S. Olympic team. 

December 9, 2017       Permalink

TRUMP STICKS IT TO 'EM – AT 12:44 P.M. ET:  Like him or loathe him, President Trump is probably the best gut fighter we've ever had in the White House.  He's had a good week because journalism has had such a bad one.  He lets them know it.  From The Hill: 

President Trump on Saturday accused CNN of making a "vicious and purposeful mistake" when the network was forced to correct an erroneous news report related to the Trump/Russia probe.

In an early morning tweet, Trump called on the news network to fire "those responsible," and commented that an ABC News reporter who was suspended for a separate erroneous report should be fired as well.

"Fake News CNN made a vicious and purposeful mistake yesterday. They were caught red handed, just like lonely Brian Ross at ABC News (who should be immediately fired for his 'mistake')," Trump wrote. "Watch to see if @CNN fires those responsible, or was it just gross incompetence?"
In a second tweet, the president suggested CNN change their slogan after the report to "the least trusted name in news."

"CNN’S slogan is CNN, THE MOST TRUSTED NAME IN NEWS. Everyone knows this is not true, that this could, in fact, be a fraud on the American Public. There are many outlets that are far more trusted than Fake News CNN. Their slogan should be CNN, THE LEAST TRUSTED NAME IN NEWS!" the president tweeted.

COMMENT:  It's very dangerous to attack the media.  There's an old saying:  "Never start up with someone who buys ink by the barrel."  The mainstreamers still control the airwaves, the cable systems, and the printing presses. 

Presidents have dealt with a hostile press in a number of ways.  Reagan, the master, simply spoke over the heads of reporters and directly to the American people.  Kennedy used humor.  Eisenhower intentionally spoke gibberish when he didn't want to answer a question.

Nixon was openly contemptuous, maybe with good reason, but the contempt was returned. 

Trump is the most confrontational of all.  He runs the risk of making enemies needlessly.  On the other hand, the treatment of him has been wildly out of line, and his attacks this week may have found their mark.  It does appear that some news organizations are getting more sensitive about accuracy.   The casualties at ABC and CNN will be noted throughout the industry.

Now that the president has attacked, though, maybe it's time for some graciousness.  Sugar usually works, at least among the sane.

December 9, 2017       Permalink

OH NO, ONE OF OURS – AT 11:58 A.M. ET:  A major conservative judge, a Reagan appointee, has been caught up in the latest round of sex charges.  From NPR: 

Six women have accused a federal appeals court judge of sexual misconduct, according to The Washington Post. Alex Kozinski serves on the Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit and was formerly that court's chief judge.

Heidi Bond, who clerked for Kozinski in 2006 and 2007, said he called her into his office and showed her pornography on his computer. He asked her if she thought the images were "photoshopped." He asked her if they turned her on.

Bond, who now authors romance novels under the name Courtney Milan, wrote on her website that such incidents happened at least three times. She wrote that he also showed her a chart he made in college showing all the women he had had sex with and telling her not to tell any of the other clerks about it. She wrote about the incidents: "When this happened, I felt like a prey animal—as if I had to make myself small. If I did, if I never admitted to having any emotions at all, I would get through it."

A woman named Emily Murphy, who clerked for a different judge on the 9th circuit, told The Washington Post of an incident when she was having a conversation about exercise with some other clerks. Kozinski interrupted to say that she should work out naked. According to Murphy and two others who were present, she tried to switch the subject without success.

COMMENT:  In truth, he has been in trouble before, once for maintaining a collection of pornographic images that had been sent to him.  An ethics investigation found that he had handled the collection too loosely, but his apology ended the matter.

Kozinski was once considered a hot Supreme Court prospect, but some odd behavior ended that dream.  These new charges are the chickens coming home to roost.  It's too bad.  He's a brilliant jurist.

December 9, 2017       Permalink

THE JOBS BOOM – AT 10:54 A.M. ET:  The jobs picture is improving under Trump.   That in itself is great.  But the way in which it's improving is equally great.  Investors Business Daily does a fine analysis:

But the most interesting part of the jobs report, which goes almost unnoticed by the media, is that it's not just a few groups seeing more jobs and opportunity — it's broad-based, with minorities, women, men and even those with low incomes, showing the best gains.

For instance, every education group — ranging from those with no high school diploma, to those with a bachelor's degree or higher — saw significant declines in unemployment in November 2017 from November 2016. And the biggest drops were for those with the least education, not the most.
Meanwhile, groups that have lagged in recent years also show major improvements. For instance, the jobless rate for African Americans dropped from 8% to 7.3%, while for Hispanics it fell from 5.7% to 4.7%. For Asians it stayed at an ultralow 3%.

Among adult men 20 years and over, unemployment has plunged from 4.3% last year to just 3.7% now. Likewise, adult female unemployment declined from 4.2% to 3.7%.

Only one group is doing notably worse: Teenagers. Those aged 16 to 19 have seen their jobless rate rise from 15.2% to 15.9% in the past year. It's no fluke: Hefty minimum wage hikes around the country have slashed youth employment.

Even manufacturing, long a laggard in our economy, has rebounded smartly. The economy added 189,000 jobs in the last year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics notes. At the same time, federal government employment is down by 3,000, CNSNews.com reports.

As for wages, average earnings rose five cents an hour, or 2.5%, from last year. But economists Brian Wesbury and Robert Stein of First Trust add that number to the change in total hours worked to get what they call "total earnings."  Those are up "a sturdy 4.8% from a year ago," they said, and "wages are rising faster in the lower income ranges than in the higher ones."

COMMENT:  Terrific.  The mainstream media won't emphasize the positive news.  They'll emphasize Trump's latest tweets.  But as Americans start to feel the progress in their wallets, added to by a tax cut, they'll understand that real advances are being made.

December 9,  2017     Permalink