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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.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador‚ known on the street as AMLO‚ took a strident tone during his sit down with CBS’s 60 Minutes on Sunday. He threatened to flood the U.S. border with even more migrants if the U.S. does not acquiesce to his demands including the following: AMLO wants $20 billion a year for poor countries in Latin America and the Caribbean; citizenship for the millions of Mexicans illegally living inside the U.S.; and sanctions to be lifted against both Cuba and Venezuela‚ including the longstanding Cuban Embargo. He doesn’t ask for much.  Obrador’s performance was a study in third-world political communication and revealed a thuggish side to the Mexican leader and his national inferiority complex. He refused to acknowledge that drugs‚ including deadly fentanyl‚ are being made inside Mexico. He didn’t stop there‚ he then went on to claim that Mexicans are not drug-addicted like Americans because their culture and families are superior to those of Americans (so‚ why do millions of them walk hundreds of miles through deserts to get to the U.S.?). Will he take action against the cartels? AMLO was defiant. No‚ he will not. This is‚ of course‚ a continuation of AMLO’s previously stated policy that Mexico will not serve as the police force of any foreign military. But he also refuses to allow the U.S. to take its own actions against the drug pushers along the border who are poisoning our country.  Naturally‚ the CBS journalist conducting the interview missed any number of opportunities to ask hard questions like‚ “Why is one-third of your country under the control of drug cartels?” “Why are your schools so poor that teachers and families have to pool their money to plug leaks and keep roofs from caving in on the kids?” “Why does Mexico expect open borders from the U.S. but put American residents in Mexico through the bureaucratic ringer to get a residency card?” Even having an expired tourist card in Mexico can get you arrested‚ fined‚ deported‚ and/or years in prison. In beach towns all over Mexico‚ immigration police go out daily looking for Americans drinking and dancing in the bars and cantinas who lack papers or who have overstayed their visas. Open borders? Apparently not. Mexico Smells of Death The fact is‚ Mexico‚ for all of its lovely beaches and weather‚ is‚ internally‚ a wreck and ruin. The murder rate in Mexico is four times higher than that of the United States. Drugs and murder are common. Meth-pushing cartels and their lethal rule have almost totally supplanted law and order within the country. In the open wastelands of the desert‚ armed thugs lie in wait for passing cars. In the lifeless towns of Sinaloa and Guerrero‚ young male gang members sing narcocorrido songs‚ drug ballads‚ to each other in the windless afternoon‚ while across the way‚ in an old church bleached white by sand and sun‚ aged women pray for peace to Santa Muerte‚ Our Lady of the Holy Death‚ while the sound of gunshots tells of a blood siesta playing out across town. In the hills above‚ drug lords bathe new inductees in the blood of animals‚ and recruits murmur oaths to a different God. The whole country wears the scent of death. Its weary population numbly watches on‚ both outraged at the carnage and resigned to it. They are tired of trying. Even the government has given up.  In just the past nine years‚ 160‚000 Mexicans have been murdered‚ many at the hands of drug lords and their sicarios. In the 2018 elections‚ an astonishing 132 political candidates were assassinated by criminal groups. Others were threatened‚ causing hundreds of polling stations to be closed for fear of violence against voters and election workers. An American acquaintance was recently framed for drug possession by cops while vacationing in Cancun. He’d gone out to a bar one evening. A cop had stuck a joint in the pocket of his pants‚ arrested him‚ and forced him to pay $500 to be released. These kinds of events are common in Mexico now‚ even in places once thought safe for tourists. The wise foreigner stays in after dark and trusts no one. And the rule among expats is: “Do not get arrested here.” Because if you do‚ you’re going to be given the third degree‚ and forced to pay extortionate fees to get loose again.  In Mexico‚ wrote William S. Burroughs many years ago‚ a policeman commands about much respect as a train conductor. As a result‚ an estimated 90 percent of all crimes committed in Mexico go unreported. AMLO’s Policies Should Have Gotten Him Impeached Long Ago Making everything worse is AMLO’s psychotic policy of abrazos no balazos‚ or “hugs‚ not bullets.” In other words‚ fighting crime by not fighting it at all and hoping the decades-old pandemic of violence will burn itself out — an approach that does not appear to be working. In a healthy country‚ that kind of policy would secure his impeachment‚ along with a visit to a shrink to have his head examined.  Though Mexico is a trillion-dollar economy‚ it certainly doesn’t feel like one‚ or even a place with a future. Rather‚ it feels like a place where hopelessness has settled in‚ whose citizens have accepted that things will not get better‚ and probably will get worse. I’ve felt the same despair in places like Egypt and Haiti.  With the public exhausted‚ and politicians and law enforcement unable or unwilling to crack down on the drug barons and their hoodlums‚ the bad guys know they hold all the cards.  Watching Obrador bat away question after serious question during the painful 60 Minutes interview while engaging in open blackmail against the United States‚ which has done more to help Mexico economically than any other country in its history‚ it occurred to me that AMLO’s arrogance is not just third-world nationalism — rather‚ he has no respect for our first magistrate‚ Joseph Robinette Biden.  A responsible U.S. President‚ one with some spine‚ would call up AMLO and tell him to knock it off with the public threats‚ that political blackmail is not how you get what you want‚ nor is it something one expects from a friend. Of course‚ Biden won’t do that. Just like AMLO‚ he doesn’t care. He just wants to manage his country’s decline‚ enjoy the trappings of power‚ retire rich‚ and be damned to his country’s fate. That’s what these two old men have in common. Obrador‚ like numerous other world leaders‚ has our President’s number. They know they can jerk Biden around‚ make threats‚ meddle in our internal affairs‚ and nothing will happen. We can be sure that AMLO‚ like Putin‚ is hoping Biden gets reelected.  The post Mexico President Threatens U.S. With More Illegal Immigrants appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

So the other day there in the vast wasteland that is MSNBC‚ there was one host after another calling former RNC chair Ronna McDaniel an “election denier. A sample: Mika Brzezinski: McDaniel is “an anti-democracy election-denier”. Rachel Maddow: McDaniel was “about undermining elections and going after democracy.” Nicole Wallace: “NBC News is‚ either wittingly or unwittingly‚ teaching election deniers that what they can do stretches well beyond appearing on our air and interviews to peddle lies about the sanctity and integrity of our elections.”  And back when Mike Johnson was elected by House Republicans to be speaker‚ there was Joe Scarborough assailing the House Republicans by saying: “They’re all election deniers up there.”  And on and on this kind of authoritarian craziness went.  This being the case‚ it is worth recalling for the record just what the real record at MSNBC is on election denial.  As noted here in the U.K.’s Guardian:    Maddow was not only certain that Russians had rigged the election. On air‚ she would talk about the “continuing operation” – the idea that the Kremlin was controlling the Trump presidency itself. In more sober times‚ this brand of analysis would barely cut it on a far-right podcast. In the Trump era‚ it was ratings gold. In addition‚ MSNBC’s Joy Reid tweeted out about “the evidence of collusion with Russia.” The Federalist’s Margot Cleveland recalled: Don’t forget MSNBC’s Chris Hayes‚ who gave air time to Jonathan Chait to push the possibility that “Donald Trump has been a Russian intelligence asset since 1987.” … Doing double duty for NBC and MSNBC‚ so-called reporter Ken Dilanian kept the collusion conspiracy going‚ even if it meant reporting fake news‚ such as the bombshell “that Russian-linked operatives had approached the Trump team in 2016 with access to a looming email dump.” False. To cut to the chase? MSNBC is the headquarters of election deniers. Laughably paranoid‚ resolutely authoritarian — some would say fascist. In fact‚ appearing on Larry Kudlow’s Fox Business show‚ Breitbart’s Alex Marlow said just that. Breitbart reported:  Marlow said‚ “We are having such a blast at Breitbart with this story. This is so fun. It just exposes the fascists over at MSNBC and NBC News for exactly who they are. They are totalitarians. Look at all of them crybabying‚ they cannot handle Ronna McDaniel Larry. They’re so close minded. That is too much for them.” Exactly. What is especially pathetic here is that all of this nonsense appears on NBC. NBC is‚ for those unfamiliar‚ the oldest major broadcast company in the United States‚ as it was founded in 1926. In the almost 100 years since‚ it has racked up a serious record with serious journalism‚ sports coverage‚ and more.  Its journalism stars over the decades included the legendary “Huntley/Brinkley” evening news show with co-anchors Chet Huntley and David Brinkley. As they faded after decades‚ there was Tom Brokaw in the news anchor chair. Over at its Sunday Meet the Press show‚ its starring hosts ranged from the redoubtable founder Lawrence Spivak to Bill Monroe and on. Particularly notable was the hosting era of Tim Russert. It was well known for journalists asking serious questions and never ducking when it came to putting on guests of all political persuasions. But now? As quite vividly seen these last few days‚ the network has become nothing more than a seriously left-wing‚ decidedly partisan redoubt. Whether it was the reams of election-denying air time pushing the Trump–Russia collusion hoax‚ or recoiling in terror at the idea of having former RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel as a colleague‚ the network is being effectively trashed by its own employees.  The message has been sent. Even if asked‚ now highly unlikely‚ no Republican in his right mind should ever venture onto any NBC program ever again. Its hosts are nothing more than bullying left-wing activists who‚ if they freak out at the presence of the decidedly mild and moderate Ronna McDaniel‚ would have serious breakdowns at any other Republican/conservative. The cast of MSNBC‚ in a stroke‚ has ruined the reputation of America’s oldest major broadcast network. Somewhere‚ Huntley and Brinkley are shaking their heads. RELATED: Thank You‚ Chuck Todd‚ for Exposing What’s Wrong at MSNBC The post The MSNBC Election Deniers appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

The shocking and horrific Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore‚ triggered by the Singaporean-flagged cargo ship Dali striking it during the wee hours of Tuesday morning‚ has functioned as something of a Rorschach test. That test cuts to the heart of today’s hyper-online culture and a concomitant willingness — perhaps eagerness — to believe anything sensationalist even if there is no supporting evidence. To be sure‚ the video of the bridge collapse is truly surreal. Watching it on replay in an attempt to comprehend how this could have possibly happened in the United States of America in the year 2024‚ I could not help but think of the old Japanese Godzilla movies and the mid-century depictions of mass urban destruction that now look so fake to moviegoers’ eyes. Amid such a stupor‚ and perhaps especially just a few days after the horrific ISIS massacre in Moscow that left at least 140 dead and 360 more injured‚ it is not at all unreasonable to openly ponder that very question: How? Within hours‚ social media was buzzing with wild speculation and the promotion of innumerable “alternative” explanations for how Dali took down the Francis Scott Key Bridge. Perhaps it was a cyberattack; perhaps the ship’s captain and crew were incompetent‚ hired as a result of affirmative action and the “diversity” agenda; perhaps they were hostile foreign agents who infiltrated Synergy Marine Group‚ Dali’s owner; or perhaps the tragedy was an “inside job” intended to manufacture a crisis that President Joe Biden could then exploit in a presidential election year. Also within hours‚ though‚ we had enough information to know what happened: Dali‚ which was captained by a highly trained and experienced local pilot‚ lost power in a tragic fluke incident. The Dali pilot actually had the foresight to issue a mayday distress signal‚ thus allowing local law enforcement and highway patrol to scamper to close off the bridge. Every innocent life lost is of course a tragedy‚ but it is still somewhat remarkable that one of the most traversed bridges in the entire “Acela Corridor” collapsed like a toy and only six people are presumed dead because of it. Many continued to promote baseless “alternative” explanations anyway‚ inconvenient facts notwithstanding. In fairness‚ we live in an age when many explanations initially dismissed by elites as “conspiracy theories” end up being true. The Wuhan lab-leak origins of the COVID-19 virus and the authenticity of Hunter Biden’s infamous laptop both come to mind as but two recent examples. But in both those cases‚ there was no reason to dismiss the underlying claims out of hand absent an ideological reason for doing so: politically driven fear of enraging China or somehow fomenting anti-Asian racism in the first case‚ and a transparent political desire for Joe Biden to defeat Donald Trump in the latter case. “Alternative” explanations for the Dali catastrophe‚ by contrast‚ bear a closer resemblance to Alex Jones’ infamous rants that the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting was a “false flag” operation. Note to the hyper-online: Sometimes a so-called conspiracy theory is just an actual conspiracy theory. In today’s age of social media‚ when the perverse incentive is for clout-chasing commentators and “influencers” to say the most outlandish thing imaginable (e.g.‚ Candace Owens) to get attention‚ innocent users are regularly misled. This is not a victim-free phenomenon — when deliberate misleading prolongs‚ minds are turned to mush. Critical thinking‚ basic analytical skills and objective assessment of empirical data are all discarded. It can be fun or “edgy” to promote or believe a facially absurd thing‚ either to be a contrarian or just for the lolz. The solution is to limit your exposure to social media and do a better job of getting offline and touching grass. Get away from the cesspool of Twitter/X and Instagram‚ and ground yourself with family‚ friends‚ hobbies‚ and in-person activities. Just this week in South Florida‚ where I live‚ my wife and I attended the Miami Open professional tennis tournament and opening day for the Miami Marlins. Both events were great fun. But even something as simple as putting down the phone to go outside and breathe some fresh air will almost always be a good idea. It’s certainly helpful for avoiding the pitfalls of hyper-online culture‚ to say nothing of maintaining general mental sanity. Maybe after you finish reading this column‚ you can give it a shot yourself. To find out more about Josh Hammer and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists‚ visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com. COPYRIGHT 2024 CREATORS.COM READ MORE: Vice President J.D. Vance The Path to Victory for Trump The post Go Touch Some Grass appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

Go Touch Some Grass

Only Democrats Get to Lie on NBC News

Jon Stewart‚ the Tribeca Trickster of Real Estate