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Jamaal Bowman ought to be a household name‚ but he isn’t. Outside of New York‚ very few people know who he is. It’s not that Bowman‚ a ridiculously awful Democrat congressman from Yonkers‚ is noteworthy for anything good he’s done. There isn’t anything good he’s done. He’s utterly without significant legislative accomplishments. In fact‚ what Bowman is known for is that he’s the member of Congress who pulled a fire alarm to save the Democrats from losing a vote on a continuing resolution that would fund the government with a few budget cuts he didn’t like. Then he told a ridiculous and completely implausible lie about the fire alarm‚ that somehow he was trying to open a door and pulling the lever on the alarm would do that. Nobody believed Bowman‚ who is also by the way the only male member of The Squad‚ the hardcore left-wing Democrat Socialists of America coven in Congress whose better-known members include Ilhan Omar‚ AOC‚ and Rashida Tlaib. In fact‚ he was charged with a misdemeanor‚ namely of willfully or knowingly falsely pulling a fire alarm‚ and he agreed to pay a $1‚000 fine and apologize to the Capitol Police. When what he was really doing was interfering with the procedure of Congress‚ which is the crime for which a great many of the Jan. 6 protesters are sitting in what can best be described as a gulag of federal prisons more than three years after the fact. A dozen members of Congress‚ noting that what Bowman was attempting to do as a member of Congress was to interrupt the good order of the House’s proceedings — when our political process contains mechanisms for interruptions that Bowman was not interested in taking because those mechanisms involve personal accountability and actual argumentation — attempted to expel him from the House for his actions. But the bulk of the Republican caucus balked at that‚ and Bowman got off virtually scot-free. He didn’t suffer any serious consequences for his actions. Instead‚ the House of Representatives did. Because what happened next was that Tlaib essentially sponsored a pro-Hamas rally in the Capitol rotunda after the atrocities of Oct. 7 and while Hamas was holding on to more than a few Americans as hostages. Remember this? Squad Rep. Rashida Tlaib to crowd moments before pro-Hamas insurrectionists stormed US Capitol: "A lot of people are not gonna forget this!” pic.twitter.com/uhGadtIm63 — Danny De Urbina (@dannydeurbina) October 18‚ 2023 So the consequence of not maintaining the good order of the House of Representatives with Bowman was that Tlaib led a bunch of marauding nuts into the Capitol to shout genocidal “From the river to the sea!” rhetoric. And not without some violence; three of the nuts attacked Capitol Police officers. Tlaib was censored. Not expelled. And the escalation by the Squad continues. This time‚ it’s Bowman again. “There was propaganda used in the beginning of the siege‚” Bowman told a Nov. 17 rally of about 50 pro-Palestinian protesters in Westchester. “There’s still no evidence of beheaded babies or raped women. But they still keep using that lie [for] propaganda.” — Daniel Lippman (@dlippman) March 26‚ 2024 The point is that these people get worse and worse‚ for two reasons: first‚ they belong to a political movement that is so utterly radical that it recognizes no limits to its excesses‚ and second‚ no outside actor has moved to create the kinds of consequences that would temper and moderate their lunacy. This isn’t just about The Squad. It’s happening all over society. We won’t invest resources into upholding standards‚ and so those crumble around us. People dress like slobs‚ they treat each other horribly‚ and rates of obesity‚ gambling‚ drug abuse‚ alcoholism‚ divorce‚ child abuse‚ and countless other social ills have skyrocketed. On Thursday‚ I did a podcast interview with Dr. Randall Bock about Racism‚ Revenge and Ruin: It’s All Obama‚ and this issue of failing to impose consequences or even remotely push back against abuse and radicalism (Barack Obama’s two terms as president were a case study in that) featured pretty prominently in the discussion. As discussed in the interview‚ in politics‚ it’s the radicalism. And things are so topsy-turvy that when an Elon Musk‚ for example‚ suggests that refusing to “trans” a kid‚ or promoting a balanced federal budget‚ or insisting that our cities don’t become crime-infested sewers strewn about with fecal matter and used hypodermic needles‚ replete with homeless bums and carjackers and organized gangs of looters replacing shoppers in their stores‚ he’s derided as a “right-winger” for his trouble. Musk was asking for basic standards. To enforce basic standards‚ there have to be consequences for failing to meet them. And everything about the modern Democrat Party is about escaping such standards. Use abortion for birth control‚ because you’re using sex for entertainment. Deny the consequences of both — and those consequences are real‚ and they will come. But when they do‚ there’s a therapeutic‚ redistributive government to make it all better. Rinse and repeat. There is no such thing as a consequence-free life. One purpose of civilization is to harness and control the consequences of bad behavior in ways that might contain its impact. But we’re losing that. We don’t hold political leaders‚ or our rich elites (hey‚ have we ever seen the list of Jeffrey Epstein’s clients we’ve been asking for?) responsible for bad deeds‚ and so the bad deeds multiply. And what we get is a society that’s crumbling. We get Jamaal Bowmans and Rashida Tlaibs multiplying as members of Congress. We get Sam Bankman-Frieds running scams where productive commerce should be. We get charlatans and bums in charge of cultural institutions like Disney. And three-quarters of us tell polling organizations what we can see and feel: the results are unacceptable. The country is on the wrong track and our civilization is dying. Well‚ those are the consequences writ large of failing to impose consequences for the bad acts writ small. Go from broken-windows policing to defunding the police‚ and what you get is chaos. Prosecute the Daniel Pennys instead of the criminal marauders on the streets and in the subways and what you get is a wake for Jonathan Diller. Fail to uphold property rights in the cities and what you get is a squatter epidemic across the country‚ or roving bands of looters utterly destroying urban retail. We’re suffering large consequences because we lack the will — and in the case of the Left‚ the motivation‚ or worse‚ the recognition of the bad act as bad — to impose them on a small scale. You can’t avoid consequences forever. They will come. A society has rules for a reason. And we’re rediscovering that basic lesson more and more as things fall apart in America. READ MORE from Scott McKay: The Spectacle Ep. 89: Our Intelligence Agencies Went Rogue. Now They Feel Threatened. The Ever-Continuous Villaining of Joe Biden and His Minions James Carville and the Has-Been’s Lament The post Consequences Will Come Soon Enough for Jamaal Bowman appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

Boston University‚ Tufts‚ Wellesley College‚ and Yale aren’t the four best schools in the United States — just the four most expensive ones. The private schools each charge in excess of $90‚000 for the 2024–2025 school year‚ the Boston Globe reveals. If you went to any of those schools‚ then you know that means a four-year degree now adds up to more than $360‚000. Speech isn’t the only thing not free on college campuses. Sixty years ago‚ the average cost of college at a four-year institution approached $1‚300‚ or about $12‚000 in current dollars. What changed? READ MORE from Daniel J. Flynn: Biden’s Strange Story Collapses in Bridge Collapse Presser Most obviously‚ our dollar is worth their dime. The Federal Reserve‚ with the encouragement of profligate legislators and presidents‚ inflated the currency. One can maybe blame university economics departments for teaching harebrained ideas regarding money. But it seems more honest to just to give them a pass and put the blame on the central bankers for that. An answer more germane to the universities comes from a 2021 academic journal article titled — of all things — “What’s that smell? Bulls*** jobs in higher education.” The authors of the Review of Social Economy article point out that “between 1976 and 2018‚ the number of full-time faculty employed at colleges and universities in the US increased by 92%‚ during which time total student enrollment increased by 78%. During this same period‚ however‚ full-time administrators and other professionals employed by those institutions increased by 164% and 452%‚ respectively. Meanwhile‚ due in part to the proliferation of part-time and adjunct faculty‚ the percentage of full-time faculty decreased from 67% to 54%‚ whereas the percentage of administrators who were full-time increased from 96% to 97%.” What do these people do? Some act as ideological commissars. We learned earlier this year that the University of Michigan boasts more than 500 diversity‚ equity‚ and inclusion (DEI) full- and part-time positions costing around $30 million annually. This does not include administrators paid to ensure compliance with Title IX and other civil-rights ukases. Tabbye Chavous‚ the university’s top diversity administrator‚ makes $402‚800 annually — more than the president of the United States. Other administrators‚ adopting the role of Your Cruise Director Julie McCoy‚ work in something called “student life.” The University of Iowa‚ Louisiana State University‚ and the University of Missouri all boast “lazy rivers” — a metaphor‚ one gathers‚ for campus life. Baylor students enjoy a 53-foot climbing wall. Washington University in St. Louis features chair massagers in its “Zen Den.” Schools strongarm enormous sums from students and their parents. Where do they get the money? So much of it comes from the federal government. The more Washington doles out in student aid‚ the more lavish the campus perks and nonsense administrative jobs. In fact‚ rather than reduce the cost of college‚ increased aid neatly correlates with an increased burden imposed by schools on the parents and students paying for a four-year degree. Yale‚ Wellesley‚ Tufts‚ and BU charge what they can get away with charging — understanding that imposing more costs creates incentive for politicians to increase aid‚ which encourages more costs‚ which encourages more aid‚ which encourages more costs‚ and so on. Still‚ the president‚ not understanding moral hazard‚ incentives‚ or supply and demand‚ keeps exacerbating the problem he pretends to solve. As a calculation error by the Department of Education delays financial aid for students‚ the president‚ in seeming defiance of an earlier Supreme Court decision‚ last week erased the student loan debts of teachers‚ nurses‚ firefighters‚ cops‚ and other employees of government. This comes atop a February boast that the administration “approved nearly $138 billion in student debt cancellation for almost 3.9 million borrowers through more than two dozen executive actions.” This is a subsidy of the $402‚800 DEI commissar at Michigan and the LSU lazy river. None of it lowers the cost of college for anyone anywhere. We know this because the government keeps pouring more and more tax dollars to decrease college costs‚ and college costs continue to speed past rates of inflation. Somewhere someone laughs. He wears tweed‚ a turtleneck‚ and wire-rimmed glasses. The post Don’t Feed the Pigs: College Costs Soar Past $90‚000 Annually appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

“Holy Week is a small pilgrimage to the Holy Land‚” said Fr. Juan María Solana‚ LC‚ director of the Magdala Center in St. Mary Magdalene’s hometown of Migdal‚ Israel. “It’s accompanying Jesus more or less in a chronological and geographical order in what pertains to his passion.” Holy Week — from Palm Sunday to the Easter Triduum — is the highest liturgical feast for Catholics throughout the world. It is‚ as Fr. Solana says‚ a spiritual pilgrimage to the Holy Land‚ inviting Catholics to enter into the mystery of Christ’s passion. Easter recurs yearly‚ but each celebration draws the Church into the singular‚ eternally present occasion of Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection. It is not just a spiritual feast‚ but a physical one as well. Christ really did die and rise‚ and he did so in Jerusalem.  With Israel at war since the Hamas attacks on Oct. 7‚ Holy Week and Easter in the Holy Land look different than in years prior. The Israel–Hamas war has greatly decreased the number of pilgrims and tourists who would otherwise attend Holy Week liturgies‚ and it has dramatically shaped the Easter celebrations of Christians throughout the Holy Land.  Subdued Celebrations in Jerusalem Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa‚ the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem‚ presided over the traditional Palm Sunday celebrations in Jerusalem‚ though only about 3‚000 people attended — far fewer than previous years. Christians joined the traditional procession from Gethsemane that marks the beginning of Holy Week‚ following the path of Christ’s entry into Jerusalem 2‚000 years ago.  “Even though we are few‚ it is important that there has been this triumphant entry‚” Cardinal Pizzaballa said. “We have many problems‚ but we are truly happy that Jesus is our Lord! He is our joy and our strength.” Cardinal Pizzaballa advocated for permits to allow Palestinian Christians to celebrate Holy Week in Jerusalem. “We insisted‚ saying that as they had given permits to Muslims for Ramadan‚ they should also give them to Christians for Easter‚” he said. “Even if the numbers are smaller‚ we will have several thousand permits both for Palm Sunday and for Easter.” A number of Palestinian Christians from the West Bank had hoped to attend the Palm Sunday liturgy outside Jerusalem. Though 2‚000 permits were issued‚ Catholic News Agency reported that only a limited number of Christians from the Palestinian territories were able to travel on such short notice. “It will be a difficult Easter‚” Cardinal Pizzaballa said. “I think of the loneliness of Jesus in Gethsemane‚ which is now shared by all of us.” Gazan Christians Seek Shelter in Churches In Gaza‚ Church officials report about 750 Christians remaining in the region. Prior to Oct. 7‚ the number of Christians hovered around 1‚017. Since Hamas attacked Israel‚ several hundred Christians have fled Gaza‚ and 31 have died from wounds‚ illness‚ or artillery.  The National Catholic Register reports that nearly all Gazan Christians have been displaced from their homes‚ and many have taken shelter at Holy Family Catholic Church or the Greek Orthodox Church of St. Porphyrius. In October‚ St. Porphyrius — the oldest church in Gaza — was hit by a strike on Gaza City‚ killing 18 people and wounding at least 20 of the 400 displaced civilians sheltering in the church complex.  “There is no safe place in Gaza‚ so we put our faith in Jesus during this Holy Week to give courage and to stop this war. We pray for peace‚ for justice‚ without revenge‚” said Fr. Gabriel Romanelli‚ a parish priest of Holy Family Church who has been unable to rejoin his flock in Gaza since the war began.  On Oct. 6‚ Fr. Romanelli was in the West Bank to get medication for the parish’s sisters. Israel closes border crossings on Shabbat‚ and the surprise attack on Oct. 7 caused Israel to seal its border with Gaza‚ leaving Fr. Romanelli marooned. Despite requests from the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem‚ the Israeli government has not allowed Fr. Romanelli to return to Gaza‚ so he has remained in Jerusalem since the war’s beginning.  With Fr. Romanelli away‚ Fr. Youssef Asaad is the sole priest at Holy Family. The Catholics at the parish pray‚ say the rosary‚ and celebrate Mass each day‚ though the church’s supply of sacramental wine is running very low due to Gazan prohibitions on selling alcohol.  Pope Francis Writes to Holy Land Catholics Before Easter Amidst tribulation‚ Pope Francis has not forgotten his flock in the Holy Land and frequently calls Cardinal Pizzaballa. On March 27‚ just prior to the start of the Triduum‚ Pope Francis wrote a letter to Catholics living in the Holy Land‚ expressing his daily prayers “Easter‚ the heart of our faith‚ is all the more significant for you who celebrate this feast in the very places where our Lord lived‚ died‚ and rose again‚” Pope Francis wrote. “The history of salvation‚ and indeed its geography‚ would not exist apart from the land in which you have dwelt for centuries.”  He expressed the Church’s solidarity with Christians suffering in the Holy Land and thanked bishops‚ priests‚ and religious for serving communities amidst deep suffering.  Jerusalem is far from home for American Catholics‚ but the Scriptures and the celebration of Christ’s passion‚ death‚ and resurrection nonetheless bring it close to the heart. Though the ongoing war has led to an Easter for Holy Land Christians that is‚ in Pope Francis’ words‚ “so overshadowed by the Passion‚” all Christians can trust that their sufferings will be redeemed by Christ’s resurrection‚ which no war can take away.  Mary Frances Myler is a writer from Northern Michigan now living in Washington‚ D.C. She graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 2022. READ MORE by Mary Frances Myler:  Biden’s New Electric Vehicle Policy Will Drive US Auto Workers Out of Jobs England Bans Puberty Blockers‚ American Activists Double Down Biden Stays Silent Despite Spike in Anti-Catholic Attacks The post Holy Land Christians Celebrate Easter Amid War appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.