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I appeared on Silvio Canto Jr's talk show from Dallas last night.  It's here.

FEBRUARY 12,  2018

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

YOU MUST ACCEPT THE NEW ORDER – FROM FOX:  A Utah mother is concerned after finding out her child couldn’t reject a classmate’s invitation to dance at a Valentine’s Day school party because it would be against school rules.  Natalie Richard, whose daughter is in sixth grade at Kanesville Elementary School in Weber County, told Fox 13 Salt Lake City that she was shocked to hear her child tell her she couldn’t tell a fellow student “no” if he asked her to dance at the upcoming event.  Confused, Richard told her daughter that she was “misunderstanding” the situation, because “that’s not how it is.”  The daughter’s teacher, however, confirmed to Richard that, in fact, her daughter “has to say yes” and “has to accept” such a proposal.  It's all about kindness, you see.  Everyone must be included.  A girl must not say no.  Hmm, I wonder what kind of trouble that could lead to.

WILL CORKER UNCORK AGAIN? – FROM THE POLITICO:    Retiring Sen. Bob Corker is “listening” to Republicans urging him to run for reelection, according to a person close to him, a development that would quell anxiety among Republicans over losing a must-win seat to Democrats this fall.
The two-term Tennessee GOP senator decided to call it quits in September amid an on-again, off-again dispute with President Donald Trump that has eroded his standing with the party’s base. But now a faction of Republicans in Tennessee and Washington are worried that the favorite for the Republican Senate nomination, Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), could lose the general election — and with it the Senate majority.  They want Corker to get back in to hold the seat and preserve waning foreign policy experience in the GOP. And there are signs that he is open to it, despite the steep climb a Republican primary might entail.
“While Corker is listening to the concerns that have been raised, he hasn’t made any commitments,” said the person close to Corker. Corker himself said on Monday he had no comment on the race.   Not my favorite guy, but if he has to run again to preserve the Republican seat, I'm all for it.

AMERICANS OPTIMISTIC – FROM BLOOMBERG:   Americans are more optimistic about wage growth than they have been in years. U.S. consumers anticipate earnings will rise 2.73 percent in the coming year, the most since data collection began in 2013, according to the results of a New York Fed survey released Monday and conducted last month. January was only the third month in the survey’s 56-month history in which expected wage growth topped expected consumer price inflation, which fell slightly, to 2.71 percent.   If Trump's policies can keep this going, we may be saved from a Democratic congressional takeover in November.  That is truly the meaning of salvation.

February 12,  2018     Permalink

OUR COUNTRY'S FUTURE?  LET'S HOPE NOT – AT 12:47 P.M. ET:   We now have the ultimate in "diversity" indulgence.  As they say, you cannot make this up.  From the invaluable Heather Mac Donald at City Journal:

The diversity bureaucracy has finally swallowed an entire college. San Diego State University has just named to its presidency a vice chancellor of student affairs and campus diversity, hired from the University of California, Davis. The new SDSU president, Adela de la Torre, is a peerless example of the intersection of identity politics and the ballooning student-services bureaucracy.

As vice chancellor of student affairs and campus diversity at UC Davis, de la Torre presided over a division made up of a whopping 28 departments—not academic departments, but bureaucratic and identity-based ones, such as the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual Resource Center; the Center for African Diaspora Student Success; the Center for Chicanx and Latinx Student Success; the Native American Academic Student Success Center; the Middle Eastern/South Asian Student Affairs Office; the Women’s Resources and Research Center; the Undocumented Student Center; Retention Initiatives; the Office of Educational Opportunity and Enrichment Services; and the Center for First-Generation Student Scholars. This gallimaufry of identity-based fiefdoms illustrates the symbiosis between an artificially segmented, identity-obsessed student body and the campus bureaucracy: the more that students carve themselves into micro-groups claiming oppressed status, the more pretext there is for new cadres of administrators to shield them from oppression. (The causation runs in the opposite direction as well: the very existence of such identity-based bureaucracies encourages students to see themselves as belonging to separate tribes.)

The admission of students who do not share the academic qualifications of their peers also creates a vast bureaucratic genre of retention services, one now taking aim at traditional pedagogy said to handicap underrepresented minorities.

COMMENT:  Just read the whole thing.  You can laugh or you can cry.  There are valid reasons for both.

February 12, 2018       Permalink

THE APPALLING SPECTACLE – AT 11:52 A.M. ET:   We have been treated to the absurd spectacle of American TV networks sucking up to the North Koreans at the Olympics, once again showing the unique ability of American journalists to destroy themselves.  Even Jake Tapper of CNN is rapping his fellow scribes.  From Fox: 

CNN star Jake Tapper appeared to troll his own network on Sunday night when he tweeted against media members who “hate” American leaders more than they “hate the Kim Jong Un regime” on the heels of CNN being mocked for a glowing puff piece about Kim Jong Un’s sister.

“If you hate US leaders more than you hate the Kim Jong Un regime, you really need to read up on North Korea,” Tapper wrote. He also attached three links to websites that highlight various human rights violations that North Koreans face on a regular basis.

The dictator’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, appeared at the Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, and CNN reported over the weekend that she was “stealing the show.” The article, published Saturday afternoon, began with these cooing words about the woman who gave South Korean President Moon Jae-in an invite to visit North Korea:

“If ‘diplomatic dance’ were an event at the Winter Olympics, Kim Jong Un’s younger sister would be favored to win gold. With a smile, a handshake and a warm message in South Korea’s presidential guest book, Kim Yo Jong has struck a chord with the public just one day into the Pyeongchang Games.”

CNN did not immediately respond when asked if Tapper was referring to his own network. CNN did not immediately make Tapper available for comment.

COMMENT:  I'm glad to see Tapper speaking out, although CNN will probably ignore his comments.  When he came to CNN he had a reputation for independence and good reporting, a reputation that has suffered somewhat in his CNN role.  Maybe we're seeing a spiritual reawakening.

February 12, 2018       Permalink

RECOVERY? – AT 11:16 A.M. ET:  There are no guarantees here, but the stock market is making something of a recovery this morning.  From CNBC: 

U.S. stocks rose on Monday as the major indexes rebounded from their worst weekly performances in two years.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 213 points after gaining as much as 369 points. Cisco Systems and Apple were the best-performing stocks in the Dow, advancing 2.8 percent and 2.4 percent, respectively.

The S&P 500 gained 0.6 percent after rising as much as 1.4 percent, with energy and tech as the best-performing sectors. Utilities and real estate were the worst-performing sectors as interest rates climbed higher. The Nasdaq composite advanced 0.6 percent after rising as much as 1.4 percent.

The Dow and S&P 500 both pulled back 5.2 percent last week, notching their worst weekly declines since January 2016. The Nasdaq composite, meanwhile, dropped 5.1 percent, marking its biggest one-week pullback since February 2016. The indexes also dipped into correction territory.

The 30-stock Dow closed more than 1,000 points lower twice last week and rose more than 300 points in two other trading days. The S&P 500, meanwhile, posted moves greater than 1 percent in four-of-five trading days last week.

"This looks like a corrective phase rather than the start of a bear market," said Katie Stockton, founder of Fairlead Strategies. "The biggest risk to the marker prior to this sell-off was sentiment and we've seen that go from overly bullish to overly bearish."

COMMENT:  There are no serious signs of panic.  The economy is strong, and I sense that there is real trust in President Trump to maintain economic growth.

But, as we said, there are no guarantees.

February 12,  2018     Permalink

FEBRUARY 11,  2018

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:44 P.M. ET: 

THE GROWING BACKLASH – FROM RT:  Celebrities criticizing the #MeToo movement have been joined by another big personality from the movie industry. Oscar-winning Austrian film director Michael Haneke called it a “witch hunt” that “poisons” the social climate.  “I regard this hysteria of rash judgments that is spreading at the moment as absolutely disgusting,” director and screenwriter Haneke said in an interview with the Austrian daily Kurier.  “People are just being finished off in the media, [their] lives and careers are being ruined,” he said. “Any kind of rape or [sexual] coercion should be punished,” he stressed, but what bothers him about the ongoing debate around allegations of sexual abuse targeting celebrities is its “totally unperceived malignance, the blind rage that is not based on facts.”  There is a serious backlash against "me too."  Even former Secretary of State Condi Rice has warned that this hysteria can infantilize women.  There are no doubt many serious cases of sexual violence against women or serious sexual harassment, and each one must be prosecuted.  But what we have now is a frenzy that will take investigators' time away from serious cases, and that will also diminish the credibility of women who courageously bring truthful charges.

BYE BYE – FROM CBS LOCAL:  SAN JOSE (KPIX 5) – The number of people packing up and moving out of the Bay Area just hit its highest level in more than a decade...Of course people come and go from the Bay Area all the time, but for the first time in a long time, more people are leaving the Bay Area than are coming in. And the number one place in the country for out-migration is now, right here.  Russell Hancock with Joint Venture Silicon Valley said, “Silicon Valley has been this place that is growing. And it was mostly due to people relocating here and relocating from other parts of the world. That’s changing.”  Joint Venture Silicon Valley’s own study of the out-migration says workers are moving to Sacramento, Austin, and Portland due to a number of factors. But topping the list is the high cost of housing.  Add to that list crime, vagrancy, and the chaos and danger of illegal immigration, and many people think they can do better somewhere else.  The San Francisco mentality has its limits.

NEW HARVARD PRESIDENT – FROM CNN:  In hiring its 29th president, Harvard University is turning to one of its own.  Lawrence Bacow, a former president of Tufts University who has three degrees from Harvard, will succeed Drew Faust, the university's first female president, the school announced Sunday.
"Larry Bacow is one of the most accomplished, admired, insightful, and effective leaders in American higher education," said William Lee, chairman of the university's Presidential Search Committee and a senior fellow for the Harvard Corp., the school's governing body.  Faust has served as Harvard's president since 2007 and announced last June she would step down this summer.  Harvard does not seem to be sending any particular message with this choice.  They did not do any virtue signaling.  Bacow is the kind of highly regarded candidate whom a college would normally turn to for leadership.  We'll see in the next few days if there's public anguish from the identity politics crowd.

February 11, 2018       Permalink

IT'S COME TO THIS – AT 2:18 P.M. ET:   Paying students for avoiding violence.  Well, if it works...  From College Fix: 

This is where we are: A primary school in Philadelphia will give its students a crisp $100 bill at graduation if they go the whole year without getting into any physical scuffles.

According to Philly.com, Mitchell Elementary principal Stephanie Andrewlevich has overseen “significant gains” at the school during her tenure, and the cash payout was her brainchild.

“I wanted to challenge them to be what their families see in them, what we know they are,” Andrewlevich said. “They have a choice — to become the violence they see in their day-to-day lives, or to be peaceful models for our school and our community.”

If she cannot find a sponsor who will pony up the money, Andrewlevich will pay the $3,300 out of her own pocket.

The article cites research by Harvard University which “suggests” rewards like cash are “most effective for things that children can control” — things like completing homework and/or reading books.

Harvard Education Innovation Laboratory researcher Brad Allan says he had not previously heard of financial rewards for not fighting, but “endorsed the idea.”

Interestingly, Principal Andrewlevich employs a “collective punishment” aspect to the incentive — if one student screws up, the entire class loses as a result.

COMMENTS:  In a way, it's the market system.  It's pathetic that we've come this far down, but I'm withholding judgment on this principal's approach.  I hope the press follows the story closely.

February 11, 2018       Permalink

FREE SPEECH IN AMERICA, 2018 – AT 12:51 P.M. ET:  There has been a bad incident at another university.  Our kids are under serious danger, physical danger, from the fringe left, but the coverage in the mainstream media is minimal.  From Fox:   

Five people were arrested as fights broke out and at least one American flag was burned Saturday after a college Republican rally in Seattle drew counter-protesters.

College Republicans at the University of Washington had invited members of Patriot Prayer, a group in Vancouver, Wash., to speak in the university's Red Square for a "freedom rally," the Seattle Times reported.

The goals were to bring conservatives together and promote free-speech rights, College Republicans President Chevy Swanson told the Times. As the event got underway, supporters chanted "U-S-A!,

U-S-A!," and signs included one that read, "We died for liberty not socialism."

But more than 1,000 counter-protesters showed up to oppose the event.

"I learned that they thought my vote was a hate crime,” Kathryn Townsend, who said she voted for Donald Trump in 2016, told Seattle's Q13 Fox.

Some counter-protesters voiced their goals.

“We’re here to fight back against the far right and fascism on our campus,” one counter-protester said.

Added another: “I’m not a fan of the president, and these people are fans. So I want to come out here and say this is not OK. And what you’re doing is not OK.”

After several skirmishes broke out, police responded with pepper spray. University of Washington police said those arrested were charged with disorderly conduct.

COMMENT:  There is some pushback against these attempts to disrupt conservatives.  Many state legislatures are weighing proposals to strengthen, by law, the free-speech rights of students at public institutions.  A similar proposal has been introduced in the U.S. Senate. 

Also, some brave souls on college campuses are waking up to the danger of suppression and chaos in academic settings.  Harvard recently held a symposium on civil discourse.  A number of colleges have established strong free-speech standards.  Alas, a number of other colleges have refused to do so.

Many attempts to protect students' rights will run into tough sledding from the political left, which believes that free speech should only apply to their side.  Anything else is "hate speech."  But, I have guarded optimism that our side will eventually prevail, if not by much.  One factor is that parents are increasingly asking what their kids are getting for $50,000 or more a year.  The market works, if slowly.

February 11, 2018       Permalink 

GLORIFYING NORTH KOREA – QUOTE OF THE DAY – AT 12:18 P.M. ET:  We've noted that ratings for the Olympics are down, and ratings for the NFL this year were also down.  We've asked whether the increasing politicization of sports, and, just as important, sports coverage, has something to do with the declines.  From Fox: 

American mainstream media outlets delivered plenty of propaganda on North Korea’s behalf this weekend. Somehow, as Kim Jong Un’s totalitarian regime continues to starve, torture and murder its own people—western news outlets are mesmerized by the dictatorship’s presence at the 2018 Winter Olympics.

Take, for example, the following headlines – ones you’d normally expect to find in North Korea’s state-run media. On Saturday, I found them in my Twitter feed:

“Kim Jong Un’s sister is stealing the show at the winter Olympics”

“The ‘Ivanka Trump of North Korea’ captivates people in the South at the Olympics”

“North Korea’s cheerleaders steal spotlight at Winter Games with synchronized chants”

“North Korea is winning the Olympics—and it’s not because of sports”

The shameful coverage of this year’s Olympics began even before the opening ceremony. Last month, NBC’s Lester Holt caused a stir for his reporting from a North Korean ski resort in which he gleefully called it a “source of immense pride for a country trying to present a new and modern face to the world” ahead of the games. The flub prompted widespread criticism, but apparently that debacle was merely the precursor for what was to come once the games began.

As the opening ceremony unfolded in PyeongChang, television cameras were fixed on Kim Yo Jong, the younger sister of dictator Kim Jong Un. Some in the media even compared her to Ivanka Trump.

CNN noted that her “warm message” has apparently “struck a chord with the public.”

According to the U.S. Department of Treasury, Kim Yo Jong is the Vice Director of the Workers’ Party of Korea Propaganda and Agitation Department. Unfortunately, it seems that our press made her job exceptionally easy this weekend.

COMMENT:  Very well said.  TV outlets have become hopeless in their obsession with left-wing propaganda.  Someone should ask these geniuses how many missiles or nuclear warheads were given up by North Korea last week.  Not that the commentators care.

We should point out that there is also some fine sports commentary being done at the Olympics, but the political content ruins everything.

February 11,  2018     Permalink