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JULY 16,  2017

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

SAME OLD, SAME OLD – FROM FOX:   Sen. Bernie Sanders’ wife, Jane Sanders, is crying sexism against the man responsible for an FBI investigation into the allegations she fraudulently obtained a loan for the Vermont college she once oversaw.  “I find it incredibly sexist that basically he’s going after my husband by destroying my reputation, and that’s not OK,” Jane Sanders told The Boston Globe.  It won't work, Jane.  The "sexism" card is way overplayed.  This case began under the Obama administration.  Nothing sexist about it.

MARTIN LANDAU DIES – FROM CNN:  (CNN) Martin Landau, 89, a character actor who starred in the 1960s television show "Mission: Impossible" and won an Oscar for playing Bela Lugosi in the movie "Ed Wood," died Saturday, his publicist Dick Guttman said Sunday night.  Landau died at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles following "unexpected complications during a short hospitalization," Guttman said in a statement.  An excellent actor whose work on the iconic "Mission Impossible" series helped define an era in television history.  He starred alongside his wife, Barbara Bain.  Now his ex-wife, she lives on. 

EXPLAIN THIS TO THE INSURANCE COMPANY – FROM THE ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH:  Bruce Redding returned home from the gym Sunday afternoon to find an SUV on his roof and much of the front of his house destroyed.  Authorities say the speeding SUV had hit an embankment and launched into the air, like something out of a Hollywood movie, before crashing down on Redding’s roof in the 5900 block of Lillian Avenue. He was told the SUV sped down Mimika Avenue to where that street ends in a T-intersection in front of his home.  “I can see straight through my house,” said Redding, 66, who had recently paid off the home.   I'd like to know the driver's record.  Not every driver can end up on the top of a house.  Maybe it's global warming. 

July 16, 2017       Permalink

MUST HE? – AT 1:26 P.M. ET:  I guess they all have to do it.  Deposed FBI Director James Comey is writing a book.  It would have been more appropriate for him to wait a year.  From the Washington Free Beacon: 

Former FBI Director James Comey is writing a book about his career in public service, including his dramatic and short tenure in the Trump administration, and all major publishing houses have expressed interest, his literary agent said.

Comey has been meeting with editors and publishers in New York in recent days and is being represented by literary agency Javelin partners Keith Urbahn and Matt Latimer, the New York Times reports. It will not be a "tell-all memoir," the report says, but it will delve into his role in the Hillary Clinton email investigation and his conversations with President Donald Trump regarding the Russian election interference probe:

"It’s a book about leadership and his search for truth, informed by lessons and experiences he’s had throughout his career, including his recent experiences in the Trump administration," said Mr. Latimer, whose agency also represents Tucker Carlson and Donna Brazile. "It will speak to a broader desire in our country for more ethical leadership."

COMMENT:  Seems to me awkward for Comey to be accepting a book contract now, when we know he'll be called to give testimony in the future.  Whether he means to give the impression or not, it looks like a grudge job. 

The tone in Washington is terrible. 

July 16, 2017       Permalink

ON THIS DATE – AT 12:42 P.M. ET:   The world changed on this date in 1945.  It was the date of "Trinity," the first nuclear explosion in history, carried out by the United States at a test site in New Mexico.

Trinity was the culmination of the Manhattan Project, carried out under the direction of Lt. Gen. Leslie Groves and the nuclear physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer.  The Manhattan Project was so named because some of its early work was done at Columbia University in New York's borough of Manhattan.  The urgent objective was to be sure the Nazis didn't get the nuclear bomb first, and use it to win the Second World War. 

But Nazi Germany had already surrendered by the time Trinity was conducted.  The Japanese, though, were still fighting, and plans were being finalized for an Allied invasion of Japan later in 1945.  The casualty predictions were horrifying. 

Once Trinity proved that an atomic bomb would work, American strategists focused on using it to bring a quick end to World War II, without the need for an invasion of the Japanese mainland.  The first operational atomic bomb was thus dropped on Hiroshima by a B-29 bomber named the "Enola Gay" on August 6th.  Please note the remarkable speed with which the United States, under its new president, Harry S. Truman, acted after the Trinity test.   From Trinity to Hiroshima was only three weeks.  On August 9th a second nuclear bomb was dropped on Nagasaki.  The Japanese capitulated on August 14th. 

The nuclear bomb was, and is, the most destructive weapon man has ever developed.  And yet its use by the United States, although it resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands, undoubtedly saved the lives of millions of others by ending the largest war in history.  Over the years, some historians have argued that the bomb wasn't necessary, that Japan would have surrendered within weeks anyway.  But that view has faded in light of facts that have come out, some of them revealed by Japanese historians.  In truth, Japan had no intention of surrendering.  The real power in the country lay with the Japanese army, which believed in a fight to the death.

Today we are facing the same fear of nuclear proliferation that began to emerge at the end of World War II.   Still, we should not regret our development of the nuclear weapon.  It probably saved a generation of young Americans, still fighting in the Pacific in August of 1945.  They deserved to live, too.

July 16,  2017     Permalink

NORTH KOREA – AT 11:52 A.M. ET:  It's the usual story.  At some point we find out that our enemies are "further ahead" than we'd believed.  This time it's North Korea, and the issue is nuclear.  From AFP:  

Seoul (AFP) - New images of North Korea's main nuclear facility show that the isolated regime has apparently produced more plutonium for its weapons programme than previously thought, a US monitor said, as tensions soar over Pyongyang's ambitions.

The respected 38 North website, a monitoring project linked to Johns Hopkins university, said Friday that thermal imagery of the Yongbyon nuclear complex appeared to show that Pyongyang had reprocessed spent fuel rods at least twice between last September and June this year.

"The Radiochemical Laboratory operated intermittently and there have apparently been at least two unreported reprocessing campaigns to produce an undetermined amount of plutonium that can further increase North Korea's nuclear weapons stockpile," it said.

North Korea deactivated the Yongbyon reactor in 2007 under an aid-for-disarmament accord, but began renovating it after Pyongyang's third nuclear test in 2013.

Increased thermal activity was also noted at Yongbyon's uranium enrichment facility but it was unclear whether this indicated a push to increase supplies, possibly for weapons, or if it was part of maintenance operations, the website said.

COMMENT:  We have gotten absolutely nowhere with North Korea.  Years of "agreements" and "strategic patience" have produced no reduction in the growing North Korean threat.

And yet, a military solution is almost too ghastly to contemplate, as even a single "punishment" strike could quickly turn into a major ground war with mass casualties.

Douglas MacArthur once said that all military disasters begin with two words:  too late.  We have been too late in dealing with North Korea, with one administration after the other kicking the can down the road.  Now Trump is stuck with the problem, and the opposition party will oppose him no matter what he does.

July 16,  2017     Permalink

JULY 15,  2017

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

IT'S OFFICIAL! – FROM THE HILL:   Former talk-show host Phil Donahue on Saturday reflected on President Trump's administration, calling it "the darkest political moment in American history."  “This is the darkest political moment in American history,” Donahue said on MSNBC Saturday. “Who’s going to argue that?”  Well, now that Phil Donahue has said it, I'm certainly not going to disagree.  I always put the Civil War at number one, but I'll change it.

ALWAYS GOING FOR THE BEST – THAT IS A JOKE – FROM THE NEW YORK POST:  The Democrats’ “Great Freshman Hope,” Sen. Kamala Harris, is heading to the Hamptons to meet with Hillary Clinton’s biggest backers.  The California senator is being fêted in Bridgehampton on Saturday at the home of MWWPR guru Michael Kempner, a staunch Clinton supporter who was one of her national-finance co-chairs and a led fund-raiser for her 2008 bid for the presidency. He was also listed as one of the top “bundlers” for Barack Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign, having raised $3 million.  Guests there to greet Harris are expected to include Margo Alexander, a member of Clinton’s inner circle; Dennis Mehiel, a Democratic donor who is the chairman of the Battery Park City Authority, even though he lives between a sprawling Westchester estate and an Upper East Side pad; designer Steven Gambrel and Democratic National Committee member Robert Zimmerman.  The party of the people gathers again.  I'm sure this group has its collective finger on the pulse of working families.  And what do those peasants out there want?  Why, they must certainly wish for tofu and solar panels.  That's right, isn't it? 

HAULIN' IT IN – FROM FOX:   The Trump campaign and fundraising committees raised $13.9 million between the start of April and the end of June.  The numbers are close to three quarters of a million more than in the first three months of 2017.  Donations have continued to grow in spite of the administration's struggles with nearly constant accusations that the campaign colluded with Russia during campaign season.  The campaign and two joint fundraising committees (Trump Victory and the Trump Make America Great Again Committee) fundraised for both Trump and the Republican National Committee.  Three donations stood out in the most recent numbers from the Federal Election Commission.  Individual donors who had not previously donated more than $50,000 to Trump gave $300,000, $600,000, and $100,000.  President Trump's campaign meanwhile spent only $4.37 million in the second quarter.  Despite a press onslaught, Trump is holding his own.  He has historically underpolled, and I get the feeling he's much more popular than the pundits think. 

July 15, 2017       Permalink

THE DECLINE OF A CIVILIZATION – AT 3:35 P.M. ET:  What is happening to our once-great colleges is heartbreaking.  At a time when America must grow and be competitive, we're allowing academic thugs to turn our colleges into propaganda factories for Marxism.  From Daily Signal: 

Top public universities pay administrators with jobs related to diversity initiatives an average of  $175,088 per year, substantially more than other professors and faculty members, according to a Campus Reform investigation.

A sheet compiling the salaries of the top diversity administrators at 43 of America’s top public universities shows that virtually all are paid at least $100,000, with some going well beyond $300,000.

The average of $175,088 per year is more than three times the average American’s salary of $44,980. The lowest salary identified by Campus Reform is $83,237, still almost twice as much as the average American salary.

A 2016 report by the American Association of University Professors found that the average professor salary across ranks was $79,424.

In one example, an administrator at Rutgers University named Jorge Schement, vice chancellor of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, made $253,262 in 2016, while most faculty at Rutgers in 2015 made less than $50,000 a year.

COMMENT:   Why do I feel that much of this is the academic equivalent of organized crime's protection racket.  Universities, in my view, buy protection by bringing in highly paid "diversity" experts who know how to keep the lid on.  Don't go along with the game?  Be prepared for trouble.

I stress that is my feeling, but I suspect that many readers agree with it.

Real professors, especially in the sciences, work so hard to learn their specialty.  And yet they're paid far less than political organizers posing as academics. 

For this students pay $60,000 a year. 

July 15, 2017       Permalink

IT'S ABOUT TIME – AT 2:15 P.M. ET:  The leak problem in Washington is critical.  Leaks are illegal in most cases, but occur all the time.  They endanger the proper functioning of government, and can put lives at risk.  They often are politically, not patriotically, motivated.  At least some action is being taken, but not enough.  From the Washington Examiner: 

Rep. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., wouldn't say Saturday whether the House Oversight Committee is going to call former Obama deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes to testify about potentially playing a role in the leaks from the Trump administration of classified information to reporters.

During an interview with MSNBC's Hugh Hewitt, DeSantis admitted he's spoken to his committee's chairman, Trey Gowdy of South Carolina, about it, and while he would defer to Gowdy to identify people of interest, he did say the panel has brought in some "big names." 

"They're doing a lot more than what the press knows in terms of some of the people they have brought in," DeSantis said. "They've brought in some big names that I'm not authorized to say."

Hewitt had asked DeSantis about Rhodes in particular because of an interview he did recently with the Washington Free Beacon in which he accused Rhodes of being a primary source of the leaks causing harm to the Trump administration and called on Trump to remove all Obama official holdovers from his administration.

DeSantis further explained to Hewitt that Rhodes may be in contact with Obama holdovers in the National Security Council, who are behind the "selective leaking" hurting Trump's ability to conduct foreign policy.

COMMENT:  Ben Rhodes is the guy who bragged that he set up a kind of false narrative in selling the Iran nuclear deal.  Not exactly Mr. Integrity.

DeSantis is a terrific guy, and he's right.  Trump must purge his administration of all Obama holdovers.  They are loyal to Obama.

And the leakers must be named and prosecuted.  This isn't funny anymore.  You get this drip drip, day after day, and it's making government impossible.

July 15, 2017       Permalink

TRUMP OVER TRUDEAU – IN CANADA? – AT 11:32 A.M. ET:   The great Salena Zito, a breath of fresh air in journalism, reports on Canadians who are...pro-Trump.  There are miracles.  Can you believe a Canadian would speak this way?  From the New York Post:   

Although they love their country deeply, they are worried about its movement to the left. Interestingly, they admire the direction of the United States under President Trump.

“You cannot deny he is a force of nature. He may be unorthodox, he may get himself in a pinch with his words, but he certainly reminds you that he is always coming from a position of strength,” said Ann as she took a moment from packing up the cottage to head back home to Peterborough, Ontario.

I hope this woman doesn't get thrown out of Canada.

“The man has his weaknesses, that is for sure, but voters knew that going in, and he has as much admitted he is not a groomed politician. Any problem he has faced has mostly come from his use of social media, but his policies are spot-on,” said Dave.

Will the Mounties be sent to arrest Dave?

Trump is a breath of fresh air, said Dave, and he hopes Canada gets a little shake-up, too. “I was watching election night, and I can tell you I have never been so excited for another country’s outcome as I was that night.

“Perhaps if some local elections stirred things up, the bigger politicians might pay attention,” he added.

Canadians. Turns out a lot of them are divided and dissatisfied — just like us.

COMMENT:  Read the whole thing.  You'll like it.  It's good for the morale.  I think only Salena Zito would do a piece like this.  You won't see pro-Trump Canadians on CNN. 

July 15,  2017     Permalink