Ensuring governments are held accountable.

He is The Boss. The post Watch Bruce Springsteen cover ‘Brown Eyed Girl’ first appeared on Far Out Magazine.

"She looked like a very kind person." The post The Dionne Warwick song that inspired The Shins’ James Mercer first appeared on Far Out Magazine.

SACRAMENTO — A Washington state Senate committee last week passed legislation designed to bolster democratic engagement by requiring eligible Washington voters to not only register to vote but to turn in a ballot for every primary and general election. Nothing screams freedom and democracy better than using government compulsion‚ I suppose. Senate Bill 5209’s sponsor‚ Sen. Sam Hunt (D-Olympia)‚ assured Washington residents the legislation does not actually force them to vote. Per a Washington Standard report‚ the legislation would include this line on every ballot: “You may leave any portion or the entirety of this ballot blank. However‚ you are required by law to submit this ballot to your local county elections office by Election Day.” So you must turn in a ballot‚ but you’re free to leave it blank and you won’t get punished if you refuse‚ at least for now. Hunt told the Standard that he had considered offering some sort of lottery that offered a prize to some lucky voter‚ but decided that amounted to paying people to vote. So instead of incentivizing ballot-casting‚ he decided to require it by law. This mandatory “duty to vote” bill reflects one of the latest progressive fads that ignores the underlying causes of voter complacency — and replaces it with their usual reliance on coercion. Forcing People to Vote Isn’t Democratic There are plenty of constitutional and practical arguments against this approach. It seems like the antithesis of democracy to require people to participate in elections and few things undermine democratic governance more than unenforceable laws that breed cynicism. Having a larger percentage of people vote — especially if the voters are uninformed about who or what they are voting for — doesn’t make for a better-functioning democracy; instead‚ it merely offers a veneer of legitimacy to current leaders. If the percentage of people who vote in an election is the mark of civic engagement and democracy‚ then we should all look to the late Iraqi President Saddam Hussein for inspiration. In October 2002‚ Saddam received 100 percent of the vote from his grateful people — after a boisterous campaign that improved upon the vote tally when he first took his leadership to the ballot in 1995. In that year‚ he only received a measly 99.62 percent approval. Most striking about Saddam’s “democracy” — at least until it was overthrown by U.S. forces six months later — was the large percentage of eligible voters who participated in elections. According to a 2002 report from the Guardian‚ the vice president of the Revolutionary Command Council said that “all 11‚445‚638 eligible voters cast ballots.” Such committed citizens. North Korea is another model of democratic involvement. In that “People’s Republic‚” everyone 17 years or older must show up at the polls and vote (none of this silly mail-in voting‚ either). As the BBC explained‚ voters receive a paper ballot with the name already filled in. North Koreans wait in line and then hand in their ballot paper. They make it so easy! Of course‚ virtually everyone voted in the Soviet Union — and it had nothing to do with free food at polling stations or fear of getting a visit from a party authority. Excuse my obvious facetiousness‚ but the number of people who fill out or hand in ballots is just window dressing. An old friend of mine never voted because he believed that “it only encouraged them” — he was far more informed about politics than most people who diligently voted. It seems like a basic right “not” to cast a vote. I usually vote‚ even though only in the rarest instances has a single ballot ever changed anything. Low Voter Turnout Is a Symptom I think of the economic term “rational ignorance‚” which applies to voting and refers to the fact that it can take much more time and energy than it’s worth to understand the voting records of a politician or to plow through detailed ballot initiatives given the low chance of one’s vote influencing the outcome. Low voter turnout isn’t the problem‚ but the symptom. Requiring a ballot only allows the problem to fester. That Washington Standard article reports that Washington state has a relatively high voter turnout rate‚ but in the last election had “the lowest [rate] the state has seen in modern history‚ checking in under 37 percent.” Maybe Washington lawmakers ought to consider the underlying reasons rather than artificially gin up voting numbers. Left-leaning groups have created a body of work supporting “civic duty voting‚” filled with the usual grandiose and besides-the-point rhetoric. This is from a report of the Universal Voting Working Group convened by the Brookings Institution and the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard Kennedy School: Our intervention reflects a sense of alarm and moral urgency‚ but also a spirit of hope and patriotism. Members of our working group undertook this work to fight back against legal assaults on voting rights guarantees and the proliferation of new techniques and laws to keep citizens from casting ballots. We did so mindful of the public’s declining trust in our democratic institutions. We joined together to end a vicious cycle in which declining trust breeds citizen withdrawal which‚ in turn‚ only further increases the sense of distance between citizens and our governing institutions. Beware whenever anyone proposes laws with a sense of moral urgency. I’d argue that requiring a ballot will only deepen that sense of distrust. It’s a rather large leap from the reasonable goals of removing impediments to voting to requiring it. California‚ for instance‚ has made it easy to vote‚ and yet voting rates are low‚ so perhaps that explains the newfound push for mandates. “Democracy is a pathetic belief in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance‚” is how the late journalist H.L. Mencken cynically put it. Yet‚ we generally do our civic duty because‚ as Winston Churchill famously wrote‚ “Democracy is the worst form of government‚ except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.” Sorry‚ but we’re not going to improve that form of government by turning civic engagement into a mandated sham. Steven Greenhut is the Western region director for the R Street Institute. Write to him at sgreenhut@rstreet.org. The post Forcing Americans to Vote Turns Democracy Into a Farce appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

At first‚ Sen. Mitch McConnell was proud to have worked with Democrats in the Senate to propose the now-infamous border bill. Now‚ he and the GOP are backpedaling just as fast as they can. On today’s episode of The Spectacle podcast‚ hosts Melissa Mackenzie and Scott McKay are here to talk about all things border related (READ Scott’s analysis here). They discuss GOP corruption in the Senate‚ the Marxism driving Democrat support of mass illegal immigration (READ Melissa’s analysis here)‚ and the oddly high number of military-aged men coming up through the border from China. Tune in to hear their analysis! Read Scott’s latest commentary on the border: This Has to Be the End of the Road for Mitch McConnell Order Scott’s new book‚ Racism‚ Revenge and Ruin: It’s All Obama‚ here. Read Scott’s and Melissa’s writing here and here. Listen to The Spectacle with Melissa Mackenzie and Scott McKay on Spotify. Watch The Spectacle with Melissa Mackenzie and Scott McKay on Rumble.  The post <;i>;The Spectacle<;/i>; Ep. 68: Border Crisis Reveals Rot in the GOP Yet Again appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

It was a Capitol Hill press spokesman job for a conservative Florida Congressman that got me to Washington‚ D.C. in 1982‚ where I contracted no Potomac Fever whatever. JFK was right when he described Washington as a city of Southern efficiency and Northern charm — and I was there for the good years when the Gipper was dozing in the White House and it appeared the nation was returning to some semblance of sanity. I’ve never seen so many people per square yard as I did in that bloated company town. Self-importance is pandemic there. To those who asked about my D.C. experiences on my return to Planet Earth‚ I replied‚ “I’d like to buy those people up there for what they’re worth and sell them for what they think they’re worth.” On my decision to return to Tampa and journalism in 1987‚ I was more than once heard to say‚ “At least I won’t have to worry about traffic and finding a place to park anymore.” (I believe the last available parking place in Washington‚ D.C. was filled in 1985. I’ve not heard of a sighting of one since.) I enjoyed this luxury for a short while. But in due course‚ the longstanding inflow of retirees looking to enjoy warm golden years in Florida was larded by a large new cohort of leftugees from blue hells like California‚ New York‚ Illinois‚ and Taxachusetts. So now I idle in traffic like I did in Washington and count myself lucky if I can find a parking place. I’m surrounded by strange accents at my local supermarket. What’s rarer than a day in June? A resident of Tampa who was born here. That’s what. When I tell one of these newbies that I was actually born in Tampa they look at me like I’d said I was from Mars. The population of Florida‚ fewer than five million when JFK was elected in 1960‚ has ballooned to more than 22 million. No wonder I can’t find a parking place. Those who say it’s easy to maneuver and park in downtown Tampa will lie about other things as well. Of course‚ Florida isn’t the only escape destination for those suffering from acute blue blues. Texas‚ Arizona‚ and a few Southern states also received large numbers of these ex-pats. Leftugees Tend To be Converts It’s no mystery why Americans in their millions are trading blue zip codes for red ones. They’re fleeing high crime‚ high taxes‚ and high cost of living as well as crackpot social policies. In an economical and savvy book‚ Roger L. Simon analyzes why these leftugees are fleeing‚ where they’re are going‚ and how most are prospering in their new homes. This tectonic shift in American demography is having far-ranging political and cultural effects on the last best hope of Earth. Simon sorts these to the third decimal place. Our Bruce Bawer must have finished and appreciated the book about the same time I did. But he beat me to the review. That’s just as well. Bruce is a more elegant writer than I am‚ and his review is a fine introduction to this worthwhile book. He calls the book wise‚ witty‚ and winning. Those who take our advice and read the book will find that this is so. (Read Bruce’s Review: Those Who Move to a Different State) Simon is a native of New York City who also logged years as a screenwriter in Tinsel Town‚ and until the scales fell from his eyes‚ he was an off-the-rack liberal. He lived and worked among people who would rather touch pitch than visit the South‚ let alone live there. The catastrophe of 9-11 caused Simon to rethink his view of the world. He became a larval conservative‚ and thus‚ at the hands of his lefty movie biz pals‚ came cross-wise with cancel culture before it was called cancel culture. Fully converted by 2018‚ his road to Damascus led him to Nashville‚ where he still lives. Bluntly but accurately‚ Simon writes of his former home: “California was no longer the paradisal land of the Beach Boys it was when everybody I knew wanted to be in L.A. The state had evolved into a kind of madhouse of the woke‚ with people defecating in the streets‚ homeless encampments lining nearly every freeway underpass‚ and syringes littering once-magnificent beaches‚ making you loath to lie down in the sand or even take your shoes off.” Charming. Simon outlines the reasons he and other refugees have found better lives elsewhere and catalogs some of the frustrations they have encountered in their new homes. With extensive anecdotal evidence‚ he puts to rest the biggest fear the natives of the receiving states have: that the newbies from California and New York would bring their liberal views and voting habits with them‚ thereby helping elect politicians just like the ones that had made their original homes uninhabitable. Au the contraire‚ Simon says. Simon found‚ like others have‚ that the biggest majority of the new Texans‚ Floridians‚ and Tennesseans know why they left their previous homes and are often more conservative than their new neighbors; many get involved in Republican politics. This has led to one of the chief frustrations of the rookie Southerners when they learn that their state’s elected Republicans tend to the don’t-rock-the-boat‚ go along to get alone‚ establishment types who talk a good conservative game at election time but then don’t even try to resist the left craziness when in office. (Lotta that going around‚ and not just in the South.) Simon quickly became convinced that “…most of the politicians and the business community on the right were immune to solutions‚ as if they had an allergy to actually doing anything that might disturb the status quo and effectuate positive change.” You Win Some‚ You Lose Some Political frustrations aside‚ Simon pronounces himself more than satisfied with his new Dixie home. He’s adapted to Southern ways and manners. I don’t know if he’s learned how to say “howdy” and blow gnats at the same time — very useful in the Southern summer — but he says he likes the greater civility found in the South‚ as well as the food. He even says he now likes country music. As my Alabama relations might say: “Well‚ bless his heart.” An area that Simon doesn’t touch on much is the effect this large number of new residents has had on the states where they land. I’ve lamented the new traffic congestion and local authorities are now demanding more tax money to untangle the mess this causes. New apartment complexes and condos to house the rookie Floridians spring up almost overnight like mushrooms after spring rain. And of course‚ as cities grow‚ the cost of living invariably goes up. Growth is a mixed blessing. Localities lose their unique identity when overrun by people from all points. Some of our new residents from New York City have turned out to be nice enough people once they’re out of that pressure cooker. But boy‚ they sure talk funny. There are patterns to the new arrivals in Florida. Midwesterners favor the western part of the peninsula. Tampa now could be described culturally as Peoria with palm trees. So many Northeasterners have set up shop in the southeastern counties of Broward and Palm Beach the area is known by some as Baja New Jersey. There’s no indication that the demographic spigot will be turned off any time soon. Elected officials in blue states show no signs of backing away from the bat-guano-crazy policies they delight in enacting. So it appears I’ll have to continue to endure idling in traffic‚ and as I look at the endless sea of cars asking myself the same question Butch asked Sundance when they were being so efficiently and relentlessly pursued after a botched train robbery: “Who are those guys?” The post The South Is Being Flooded by Leftugees appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

“Bipartisan.” Most people think that the word means that politicians have put on their thinking caps (if they have them)‚ crossed the aisle‚ and had meaningful discussions about the direction Americans — their constituents — want the country to go in. (READ MORE: This Has to Be the End of the Road for Mitch McConnell) That’s what it should mean. But the odd thing about compromise is that it is only a good thing to engage in if there are issues and values that you won’t compromise on. Given that we live in a country with some democratic values‚ I think it’s fair to say that the issues politicians shouldn’t compromise on are the issues the American people care about. But alas‚ politicians breathing in the swamp gas in Washington‚ D.C.‚ don’t always have an accurate reading of what the American people want. They are also easily distracted by green paper‚ and most are so old that they have no reason to care about the future. Sen. Mitch McConnell apparently thought a border bill funding illegal immigration and a war Americans no longer care about was going to work — although exactly why he thought that is unclear. What is clear is that Americans are having none of it. The internet erupted in a veritable storm of protest‚ and GOP senators who still have to face the ballot box may listen. Even if they don’t‚ GOP representatives‚ including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.)‚ have promised that the bill will be a total waste of time. It’ll be dead on arrival. (READ MORE: Chuck Schumer: ‘I Have Never Worked More Closely With Leader McConnell’) Why‚ you ask‚ does this matter? Well‚ according to an NPR/PBS NewsHour/Maris poll‚ just 29 percent of Americans approve of how President Joe Biden is handling immigration — a number that translates into the issues that will be most important in the 2024 election (one that matters for 34 out of 100 senators and 435 representatives). Forty-one percent of Americans think reducing illegal immigration by increasing border security should be the top immigration priority. GOP senators and representatives want to get reelected — and they also may be finally taking the hint that Americans aren’t interested in half-baked compromises that don’t address their needs. One can always hope. This article is an excerpt from The American Spectator’s Spectator P.M. newsletter. Subscribe today to read future letters from our staff! WATCH the podcast: The Spectator P.M. Podcast Ep. 20: New York Times Questions Transgender Insanity The Spectator P.M. Podcast Ep. 19: Nikki Haley Says She Would Be Fine With States Seceding The Spectator P.M. Podcast Ep. 18: Woke Women Can’t Stop Buying Themselves ‘Little Treats’ The post Is Democracy Alive and Well? appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is blaming barriers to high-quality prenatal care and systemic racism for the alarming 30 percent increase in newborn syphilis cases in the past year‚ but the real cause is much more complex than it is willing to admit. The problem is bigger than anyone realizes. In some parts of the country — like Mississippi — congenital syphilis cases have risen 900 percent over the past five years. In just the past year‚ syphilis rates in the general population increased by 17 percent. There has been an especially alarming 80 percent in the rates of syphilis in the past five years. Although Black Americans comprised about 30 percent of primary and secondary syphilis cases with a rate of 67 cases per 100‚000‚ gay men and other men who have sex with men have the highest rates. The CDC reports that “even though gay‚ bisexual and other men who have sex with men (MSM) account for only 4 percent of the United States male population‚ they account for more than one-third of reported syphilis cases.  Men who have sex with men remain disproportionately affected by syphilis.” Rather than blaming the degraded culture that is increasingly promoting sexual behaviors that were once considered taboo‚ and the growing acceptance of polyamorous relationships and non-monogamous marriages in both the heterosexual and the homosexual communities‚ the CDC and mainstream media continue to look for the “easy answers.” Publicly identifying the real causes for this surge is not acceptable in a culture that refuses to judge the sexual behavior of others — no matter how depraved. In 2012 — just a decade ago — even the New York Times was willing to admit that men who have sex with men‚ and then have sex with women are putting both women and their unborn children at risk. The Times reported on a collaborative study in Uganda by the CDC and Makerere University School of Public Health‚ which found that of 306 male respondents who reported having engaged in sex with men in the three months before the survey‚ 51 percent had been or were currently married to women. Sixteen percent of these men were living with and having sex with female sex partners during the period they were engaging in sexual behavior with men. Twenty-nine percent had fathered children. Seventy percent said they were attracted to mostly/only men — but many of them still engage in sexual relations with women. The Times was careful to indicate that Ugandans demonstrate a “much higher incidence of bisexual behavior than occurs among men who have sex with other men in this country.” That may not be true today. Syphilis Among Children Unborn children are the fastest-growing cohort in this surge in syphilis. Congenital syphilis occurs when an infected mother passes the infection to her baby during pregnancy. It can cause miscarriage‚ stillbirth‚ prematurity‚ low birth weight‚ or death shortly after birth. Babies born to infected women can have deformed bones‚ severe anemia‚ and brain and nerve problems like blindness or deafness among other birth defects. As the syphilis rate has risen dramatically in the past year‚ we can predict an exponential increase in newborn syphilis rates especially as there is a growing acceptance in our culture for non-monogamous relationships and marriages. Polyamory was once the practice of bizarre cults on the fringes of society like the Children of God whose members believed that since sex was a “gift from God‚” there should be no limits‚ regardless of age or relationship; or the Oneida community of the 1840s whose communism “included all property of family living and associations” resulting in “complex marriage” in which any member was free to have sex with any other member who agreed. Today’s polyamory‚ also referred to as “consensual non-monogamy‚” has emerged in some of the trendiest neighborhoods in the country. Even the once-conservative HGTV House Hunters show promoted the concept of the “throuple” — a man and two women in a romantic relationship in an episode called “Threes Not a Crowd in Colorado Springs.” The televised threesome is searching for a home with a “very large master bed” and three sinks in the master bathroom. Likewise‚ the New Yorker’s December issue asked: “How Did Polyamory Become so Popular?” and described how consensual non-monogamy is now part of the culture of marriages in the posh Park Slope neighborhood in Brooklyn‚ N.Y. and “prestige television.” Experimenting With Polyamory According to a 2023 Pew Research study‚ about half of all Americans say open marriages — a marriage where both spouses agree that they can date or have sex with other people — are somewhat or completely unacceptable. However‚ 36 percent of all men and 30 percent of all women claim that having an open marriage is acceptable to them. These data vary by sexual orientation. While 29 percent of heterosexual individuals indicate that an open marriage is acceptable‚ 75 percent of gay‚ lesbian‚ or bisexual individuals find open marriage to be acceptable. Not surprisingly‚ those who describe themselves as Democrats are much more likely to endorse open marriages. Only 20 of Republicans or “lean Republican” claim to endorse open marriages while more than twice as many Democrats or “lean Democratic” (47 percent) claim to endorse open marriage.  Pew concludes: “As may be expected‚ conservative Republicans are the most likely to say these marriages are unacceptable (74%)‚ while liberal Democrats are the most likely to say they are acceptable (63%).” What is most worrisome is that 51 percent of all adults younger than 30 told interviewers that open marriage was “acceptable‚” and 20 percent of all Americans report experimenting with some form of non-monogamy. A growing number of elite celebrities‚ like Will Smith and his wife Jada Pinkett Smith‚ are public — and self-congratulatory — about their open marriage.  Last year‚ Time magazine featured the open marriage of former New York City Mayor Bill DeBlasio‚ a Park Slope resident‚ in an article titled: “Does it Really Work to Date Within a Marriage? Bill DeBlasio and Chirlaine McCray Are About to Find Out.” Despite the celebratory headlines in favor of polyamory and non-monogamous relationships published in the past year in Vanity Fair‚ New York Magazine the New York Times‚ and other sites‚ it should be acknowledged that many of these non-monogamous marriages end badly. In 2019‚ former U. S. Representative Katie Porter (CA-D) had to resign her congressional seat when her “throuple” with her then-husband and a female campaign staffer became public. The scandal resulted in her divorce and very public humiliation when her husband shared photos with the media of the throuple engaging in drug abuse and other deviant behaviors. It should surprise no one that these non-monogamous marriages and polyamorous bisexual relationships often end badly. The dramatic increase in syphilis — especially congenital syphilis — should be a reminder that engaging in deviant sexual practices and polyamorous relationships still carries a high price no matter how glamorous it may be presented by the media. The post Kids Don’t Get Syphilis In a Healthy Society appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.