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NOVEMBER 6,  2017

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

YOU CANNOT MAKE THIS UP – FROM COLLEGE FIX:   Controversy erupted recently after tweets from an Ivy League teaching assistant showed her admitting she only calls on white male students as a last resort.“I will always call on my black women students first. Other [people of color] get second tier priority. [White women] come next. And, if I have to, white men,” University of Pennsylvania teaching assistant Stephanie McKellop tweeted in October.  McKellop’s tweets spotlight a method known as the “progressive stack” in which speaking priority is given to minority voices while those deemed as having privilege must wait their turn.  McKellop’s comments ignited a firestorm over the controversial teaching method and prompted her university to look into the situation, but a College Fix review of online documentation shows McKellop is far from the first instructor to employ the “progressive stack” in the classroom.  Use of the progressive stack, which is lauded by advocates as amplifying oppressed voices and criticized by others as discriminatory, has been used in college classrooms for years, and has roots in liberal activism.   If my child was at a college that permitted this, I'd pull that child out in a second.

AND THE MADNESS CONTINUES – FROM COLLEGE FIX:  Put this one in your peace pipe and smoke it — a Native American faculty member at the University of New Mexico has been condemned for wearing a headdress on Halloween.  She reportedly wore it to a pumpkin carving contest at the school.  “Just because you’re Native American, does not give you a free pass to rock a headdress or a tomahawk,” Joaquina Castillo, co-president of the KIVA Club, a Native American group on campus, told KRQE news.  “She was actually being awarded for most authentic costume, which is just an even more big slap in the face,” Castillo said.  KIVA Club members told the news outlet they found the costume racist and an example of cultural appropriation, arguing that the faculty member who wore it is part of the Navajo Nation and headdresses are not part of that tribe.  Hmm.  She mentioned that being Native American doesn't give you a "free pass" to wear certain things.  Question:  Who gives out the free passes?  How does one get that privilege?  I'd love to hear the answers.

TRUMP GETS IT RIGHT – FROM DAILY MAIL:   President Donald Trump met with Japanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko on Monday, sharing a brief handshake eight years after his predecessor became a global laughingstock by bowing deeply before the monarch.  Visiting with the emperor and empress is routine for heads of state visiting Tokyo, and Trump did his part a few hours before a joint press conference with Prime Minster Shinzo Abe, who wields more power than the aging figurehead.
Trump nodded his head slightly, but did not bend at the waist.  An administration official traveling with Trump on his Far East tour told DailyMail.com that bowing is 'not his style – never has been.'  Americans, by tradition, do not bow down before foreign leaders or foreign royalty.  Apparently, nobody told Obama about this. 

November 6, 2017       Permalink

AGAIN? – AT 12:52 P.M. ET:  Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky was assaulted over the weekend by a liberal neighbor.  The assault occurred at his own home, and Paul was seriously injured.  From the Bowling Green Daily News: 

U.S. Sen. Rand Paul has five rib fractures and lung contusions as a result of an apparent assault Friday by a neighbor at Paul's home in Bowling Green, a spokesman for Kentucky's junior senator said Sunday.

Senior adviser Doug Stafford said Paul's injuries cause pain that could persist for weeks, perhaps even months, but that the Republican plans to return to the U.S. Senate soon.

“Senator Paul has five rib fractures including 3 displaced fractures," Stafford said in a statement emailed to the Daily News by Paul's staff. "This type of injury is caused by high velocity severe force. It is not clear exactly how soon he will return to work, as the pain is considerable as is the difficulty in getting around, including flying."

Rene Boucher, 59, a Bowling Green doctor, was arrested Friday and charged with fourth-degree assault after an incident at Paul's home in the gated Rivergreen community just east of Bowling Green.

Boucher, 582 Rivergreen Lane, was released Saturday night from the Warren County Regional Jail on a $7,500 bond, according to online jail records.

COMMENT:  This is the second major assault against a GOP legislator in recent months.  The first involved a shooting of Republican lawmakers practicing for a softball game in Virginia.  Congressman Steve Scalise almost lost his life in that one.

Some sobriety is needed.

We're still getting details.

November 6, 2017       Permalink

MONUMENTAL CHANGES IN SAUDI – AT 10:31 A.M. ET:  We generally think of Saudi Arabia as one of the most backward nations of the Mideast, the home of radical Islam, the banker for terror groups.  Fifteen of the 19 hijackers on 9-11 came from Saudi Arabia.

But change is in the air.  A new guy is in charge and he wants to move his country past terrorism and nuttiness and into the 21st century.  It won't be easy, and he isn't a softie.  From Reuters: 

RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia’s future king has tightened his grip on power through an anti-corruption purge by arresting royals, ministers and investors including billionaire Alwaleed bin Talal who is one of the kingdom’s most prominent businessmen.

Prince Alwaleed, a nephew of the king and owner of investment firm Kingdom Holding, invests in firms such as Citigroup and Twitter. He was among 11 princes, four ministers and tens of former ministers detained, three senior officials told Reuters on Sunday.

The purge against the kingdom’s political and business elite also targeted the head of the National Guard, Prince Miteb bin Abdullah, who was detained and replaced as minister of the powerful National Guard by Prince Khaled bin Ayyaf.

The allegations against Prince Alwaleed include money laundering, bribery and extorting officials, one official told Reuters, while Prince Miteb is accused of embezzlement, hiring ghost employees and awarding contracts to his own companies including a $10 billion deal for walkie talkies and bulletproof military gear worth billions of Saudi riyals.

The allegations could not be independently verified and members of the families of those detained could not be reached.

COMMENT:  Big stuff, especially the part about Alwaleed.  He's well known here.  His name is on a lot of buildings and institutions within American universities.   I recall that one year he spent more money in one week buying influence in the United States than the entire annual budget of the "powerful" Israel lobby.  He has real power in American banks and companies.

As the lefties like to say, you've got to break some eggs to make an omelet.  A lot of eggs are being broken in Saudi Arabia. 

November 6, 2017       Permalink

VIRGINIA LATEST – AT 9:51 A.M. ET:  The most important race in tomorrow's elections will be the Virginia gubernatorial contest.  It is important mostly for the Dems.  They have the governorship now, and if they lose it, it will be a very big deal.  If they hang on, not much of a story.  If the Republicans win, and take Virginia away from the Dems, again it's a big deal.  The Democrats are looking for an important victory somewhere, anywhere.

As of this morning, Democrat Ralph Northam leads in virtually all polls, but one poll has GOP candidate Ed Gillespie ahead, and another poll shows a tie. 

Conventional wisdom tells us that Gillespie has made progress, but the final polls show that Northam has actually gained in the last few days. 

However, polling has become a bit uncertain in the age of Trump.  My guess, and it's only a guess, is that Northam will pull it out, but I hope I'm wrong.  Turnout will be the key.  It's our ace, as Republicans are seen to be more enthusiastic than Democrats.

Gillespie has to get out the vote.  That's the bottom line here.  The RealClearPolitics average of polls has Northam ahead by 3%.  An upset is clearly possible.

November 6,  2017     Permalink

NOVEMBER 5,  2017

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

WHAT COUNTRY DO THEY REPRESENT? – FROM PJ MEDIA:  In multiple embassies around the world, particularly those staffed entirely by career Foreign Service officers, no portrait of President Trump or Vice-President Pence has been hung. Up until last week, the swamp had an excuse – there was no official portrait and the swamp refused to go to the trouble to find unofficial ones.  But it’s not just the entrances to embassies where it seems the 2016 election never happened. All throughout the government, Obama-holdovers rabidly opposed to President Trump and his policies still hold positions of extraordinary power. The swamp is alive and well.  Consider the National Security Council where Fernando Cutz is enabling Trump’s most mortal enemies – George Soros and the globalist Left – to threaten to topple the pro-American government of one of America’s closest allies, Guatemala.  Cutz is the director of South American policy at the National Security Council. He is a graduate of the Clinton School of Public Service, managed Obama’s cozying up to the Communists in Cuba, was on the Obama National Security Council staff in the “global engagement” office, and is a committed swamp creature of the foreign service genus.  This is poor management on the administration's part.  Drain the swamp.  The swamp dwellers can always get jobs with Castro.

GOOD GUY – FROM CBS SPORTS:   Saturday night, former Dodgers announcer and Hall of Famer Vin Scully was at the Pasadena Civic Center for an event called "An Evening With Vin Scully."  At some point during the event, Scully was asked about the NFL's national anthem protests, in which players have taken a knee during the anthem to protest police brutality and racism. Scully said he "will never watch another NFL game" because of the protests.  "I have only one personal thought, really. And I am so disappointed. And I used to love, during the fall and winter, to watch the NFL on Sunday. And it's not that I'm some great patriot. I was in the Navy for a year -- didn't go anywhere, didn't do anything. But I have overwhelming respect and admiration for anyone who puts on a uniform and goes to war. So the only thing I can do in my little way is not to preach. I will never watch another NFL game."   I remember Vin from the days of my youth in Brooklyn, when he first joined the Brooklyn Dodgers broadcast team.  Always a class act, and a good citizen.

INTELLECTUALS – FROM CONSERVATIVE REVIEW:  The stupid. It hurts. Less than a week after a jihadi drove a rented truck through a crowd of people in a terrorist attack, the lefties at BuzzFeed have come up with a solution. No, it’s not extreme vetting, or ferreting out radical Islamists hell-bent on jihad. No … BuzzFeed wants to ban cars from big cities.   I'm not at all shocked.  The left is anti-auto because...well, because.  It's part of the ideology.  Cars bad.  Subways good.  Cars bad.  Bikes good.  Cars bad.  Private fuel-guzzling jets...real good. 

November 5, 2017       Permalink

GOODBYE TO THE DRIVERS – AT 1:33 P.M. ET:  I'm hearing this discussed frequently.  "Driver" is one of the most common occupations in the United States.  But for how long?  And at whose cost?From NBC: 

Drive just about anywhere these days and you’re likely to spot the signs that have been popping up on the back of big semi-trucks plying the nation’s freeways:  “Help Wanted.”

At a time when a booming economy has led to record freight shipments, the trucking industry is struggling with a severe shortfall of drivers.

And long-haulers aren’t alone. Delivery services, cab companies, even ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft are struggling to find the drivers they need to keep their freight and passengers moving. Ironically, this shortage could wind up turning into a glut in the not-too-distance future that will see a huge disruption in the American workforce.

The shortage of drivers is “a huge inducement for the development of autonomous and fully driverless trucks (and other vehicles),” said David Cole, director-emeritus of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Michigan. While “it isn’t going to happen overnight,” robotic vehicles will soon begin to displace professional drivers in numbers that will be “certainly in the millions.”

And...

One year ago this week a truck rolled into history as it traveled from a Colorado brewing plant to a warehouse 120 miles away carrying 45,000 cans of Budweiser beer. The early morning run was done using a truck developed by a start-up called Otto, now an Uber subsidiary. Though there was a specialist seated in the truck’s sleeper berth to monitor things along the way, there was no driver behind the wheel.

The ultimate goal for many freight-haulers is to take humans out of the truck entirely. Proponents cite a wide range of advantages, including reductions in traffic congestion and a significant improvement in highway safety.

COMMENT:  The safety aspect is key.  If it can be shown that driverless trucks are actually safer than human-controlled trucks, the future becomes absolutely clear, and a profession may well vanish.

November 5, 2017       Permalink  

THE ACTIVE PRESIDENT – AT 12:45 P.M. ET:  While the mainstream media will not emphasize it, Trump is one of the most active presidents in memory, especially in foreign policy.  And he is being taken seriously by foreign countries.  From The Wall Street Journal: 

TOKYO—President Donald Trump said he expects to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin when the two world leaders cross paths in Southeast Asia.

“It’s expected we’ll meet with Putin, yeah,” Mr. Trump told reporters on Air Force One before landing in the Japanese capital. “We want Putin’s help on North Korea, and we’ll be meeting with a lot of different leaders.”

The U.S. president is embarking on his first official trip to Asia, which begins Sunday with meetings with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The trip ends with multinational conferences in Vietnam and the Philippines that Mr. Putin is also expected to attend.

During the flight to Tokyo from Honolulu, Mr. Trump said pressure on North Korea was his priority, and he also wanted to take steps to narrow U.S. trade deficits in Asia...

...On Air Force One, Mr. Trump pushed back on suggestions that he was at a disadvantage heading into Beijing later this week, where Chinese President Xi Jinping is coming off a successful Party Congress that has made him one of the most powerful leaders in his nation’s modern history.

Meanwhile, Mr. Trump’s poll ratings are sagging, his former campaign manager has been indicted on a charge of tax evasion, and he has no major legislative victories.

Still, Mr. Trump projected an air of confidence aboard the presidential aircraft.

“Excuse me, so am I,” Mr. Trump said when told about Mr. Xi’s success. “Highest stock market in history, lowest unemployment in 17 years, a military that’s rapidly rebuilding, ISIS is virtually defeated in the Middle East. We are coming off some of the strongest numbers we’ve ever had, and he knows that and he respects that and he’s a friend of mine.”

COMMENT:  Mr. Trump's trip to the Mideast at the start of his administration was highly successful.  We hope the trip he's on now will top that.  But you won't hear it on CNN.

November 5, 2017       Permalink

THE FIGHT EXPANDS – AT 11:56 A.M. ET:  Niger, where this country recently lost soldiers in an ambush, is now allowing us to deploy combat drones.  This represents the expansion of our fight against militant Islam in Africa.  From Bloomberg: 

Niger permitted the U.S. to use armed drones in the fight against Islamist militants in the West African nation, Agence France-Presse reported, citing Defense Minister Kalla Moutari.

Drone strikes will be a “decisive and key response” to highly armed combatants in the Sahel region, Moutari was quoted as saying on state-owned radio. The U.S. currently deploys unmanned surveillance craft in Niger, which has previously been reluctant to allow the use of armed drones.

While Niger doesn’t have known jihadist groups in its territory, it’s increasingly affected by the spread of Islamist militancy in West Africa. Four U.S. troops and five Nigerian soldiers died on Oct. 4 when their convoy in the Tillabery region was ambushed. 

Last month’s attack highlighted U.S. military involvement in Niger, where it has as many as 800 troops and is building a drone and airbase in the northern city of Agadez.

COMMENT:  At least the Trump administration is taking this seriously.  The Obamans kicked the can down the road, where it ran into all the other cans it had kicked down the road.

November 5,  2017     Permalink