What Shall We Bake Today?

Food 1 Minute

Since Father’s Day is rapidly approaching, I thought it would be a good time to look at some options to make Dad a special cake for his special day. 

Let’s begin with a super easy one first.  This cake can be made with any flavor box mix baked in a 13 x 9 pan.  When cooled, you simply frost with white frosting and add M&M’s to make the suspenders and the bow tie.  (You can get fancy and make a regular tie as well.)

If that seems too easy and you’d like to try your hand at more involved decorating, I suggest the Beer Mug Cake. (There are 3-D versions of this cake that are very involved, so I suggest this flat version.) It merely requires any flavor cake baked in a 13 x 9 pan, cooled and then inverted onto a baking sheet.  The corners are trimmed into a rounded mug shape and the frosting is piped on in long lines in gold.  White frosting is then piped in swirls to mimic foam and a handle is fashioned from white fondant.  (Roll the fondant into a rope and make an elongated “U”. Insert toothpicks into the 2 ends and attach to the side of the mug.

If you’re feeling even more daring, there’s always the Hamburger cake.  This will require 2 cake mixes—one vanilla (for the bun) and one chocolate (for the hamburgers). The “cheese” in this hamburger is actually colored fondant.  (If that sounds too involved or difficult, skip the cheese!)  The sesame seeds on the top bun are mini white chocolate chips.  The rest of the details, lettuce, ketchup, mustard are all tinted frostings.

If cupcakes are more your style, you can decorate them in numerous ways to honor the sports Dad loves: tennis, baseball, basketball, soccer, are all easy choices.

And while we’re discussing cupcakes, if Dad’s a beer lover, what better cake than one made of both cupcakes AND beer?

birthday cake, but you get the idea…

Lastly, might I recommend a real show stopper?  The Bacon cake!  A vanilla layer cake, frosted with vanilla icing infused with maple flavoring and surrounded by…BACON! 

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Published by pat frederick

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291 thoughts on “What Shall We Bake Today?”

  2. Entire Article @ NY Post (only posting one pic): “More than one-third of all flights at LaGuardia Airport and over a quarter of flights at Newark Airport were canceled Thursday in one of the worst travel days yet this summer.

    The huge percentage of flight cancellations, cited by tracking service FlightAware, was due in part to the chance of storms late in the day. However, the travel chaos was not limited to New York City-area airports, with more than 1,500 flights canceled on Thursday across the country as the peak summer travel season gets underway.

    The travel woes continued into Friday morning when 67 flights departing LaGuardia Airport were canceled. Newark Airport canceled 70 of its outbound flights as of 5 a.m, according to FlightAware.


    Over one-third of flights at LaGuardia Airport were canceled on Thursday.

    Staffing shortages, especially a lack of pilots, are to blame for the nationwide travel headaches, according to industry insiders. Thursday’s cancellations came after 2,800 flights were scrubbed in the US during a five-day stretch around Memorial Day weekend. Unions representing pilots at Delta, American and Southwest Airlines said the companies have been too slow to replace pilots who retired or took leaves of absence during the pandemic.

    Airlines have also placed the blame on poor weather conditions and the Federal Aviation Administration, which manages the country’s airspace and air traffic control centers, which are also struggling with staffing issues. Thursday’s cancellations happened as airline CEOs met with US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a virtual meeting to discuss concerns over airport bottlenecks and frustrated travelers this summer.

    “I let them know that this is a moment when we are really counting on them to deliver reliably for the traveling public,” Buttigieg told NBC News. Buttigieg made a number of requests during the meeting. He asked the CEOs to ensure July 4 holiday travel runs smoothly and pushed the airlines to evaluate whether they can deliver on the flight schedules they have published. He also requested they improve customer service.

    Nicholas Calio, head of the trade group Airlines for America, said the industry leaders were grateful for the chance to discuss their concerns and “shared commitment to prioritizing the safety and security of all travelers” with the transportation secretary in a statement.”

    Liked by 1 person

  3. And this is why I refuse to watch Newsmax! Cowards promptly caved when Dominion filed suit!!!

    Entire Article @ ConservativeBrief: “A Delaware judge has ruled that a defamation lawsuit against Newsmax filed by Dominion Voting Systems can proceed. The voting machines firm accused Newsmax of purposely spreading false information about its voting technology in the 2020 election. Superior Court Judge Eric Davis denied a motion from Newsmax to dismiss the case, saying the company “knew the allegations were probably false” about the voting technology and “there were enough signs indicating the statements were not true to infer Newsmax’s intent to avoid the truth.”

    “Given that Newsmax apparently refused to report contrary evidence, including evidence from the Department of Justice, the allegations support the reasonable inference that Newsmax intended to keep Dominion’s side of the story out of the mainstream,” Davis wrote in his opinion.

    “Dominion Voting Systems, a federally certified company selling voting machines and tabulators across the country, filed lawsuits in August against Newsmax and One America News, as well as Patrick Byrne, the former CEO of Overstock.com, alleging defamation. The lawsuits followed debunked claims spread by former President Trump that the 2020 election was rife with fraud. Trump’s legal team, including Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell, took aim at Dominion Voting Systems, accusing the company’s voting tech of manipulating votes in favor of President Biden,” The Hill reported.

    “In its motion, Newsmax argued the standard of actual malice had not been set and that they were defended by a legal doctrine that allows journalists to report on newsworthy allegations by individuals,” the report added.

    On Thursday, Davis agreed Dominion’s suit had enough basis to move forward. “The Complaint supports the reasonable inference that Newsmax either knew its statements about Dominion’s role in the election fraud were false or had a high degree of awareness that they were false,” the judge wrote. Beyond the ruling, Democrats are facing serious headwinds going into November’s midterms.

    A new survey by the National Republican Congressional Committed shows Democrats in big trouble months out from the midterm elections. The latest NRCC survey of 77 battleground congressional districts around the country found that Democrats are being held responsible by voters for a myriad of problems and issues, including record inflation, sky-high oil and gas prices, and a spend-happy Congress and White House.

    The NRCC’s battleground survey covered the 77 battleground congressional districts that could determine control of Congress after redistricting. The committee surveyed these districts because they are currently held by the most ‘at-risk’ Democrats, whose districts President Joe Biden won by only five and a half points or less.

    Here are some additional findings from the survey:

    — Republicans top Democrats on a generic ballot by 4 points; the NRCC noted again that Biden won these districts by 5 points in the 2020 election;

    — Since February 2021, Republicans have improved by 7 points in the survey;

    — Three-quarters of swing voters said they see Dems as being “out of touch” on the issues and “condescending” towards average Americans;

    — The top concerns among voters in these districts — and around the country, according to previous, separate surveys — are the rising cost of living, jobs, and the economy overall, in which Republicans get better marks than Democrats;

    — A large plurality — 46 percent — of respondents indicated they are most concerned with economic issues, while 26 percent said that the cost of living and inflation should be priorities of the Biden White House and the Dem-controlled Congress, and 15 percent are most concerned about jobs and the economy;

    — The GOP holds a 24-point lead over Dems on the generic ballot, with respondents most concerned about the rising cost of living, and a 20-point advantage with those who are most concerned about jobs and the economy;

    — Fully 52 percent lay the blame on the Biden administration and Congressional Democrats over the party’s unwillingness to allow more domestic oil production, which they say is mostly what has caused gas prices to rise to new highs;

    — Just 31 percent of respondents blamed Russia for the spiking oil prices following its invasion of Ukraine;

    — More than two-thirds, or 66 percent, say that spending by Democrats in Congress is out of control;

    — Fifty-six percent said that high gas prices are hurting their families most, while 41 percent said that high food prices sting more.”

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    1. Fancy that! Same judge!!!! Hmmm….someone look into his campaign fund – how much came from Dominion? Presumably he did some campaigning after being nominated….From December 2021:

      WASHINGTON — A judge Thursday rejected a motion by Fox News to dismiss a $1.6 billion defamation lawsuit brought against the cable news giant by Dominion Voting Systems over claims about the 2020 presidential election.

      In the 52-page ruling Delaware Superior Court Judge Eric Davis said that the voting machine company had shown that “At this stage, it is reasonably conceivable that Dominion has a claim for defamation per se.”

      Denver-based Dominion filed a lawsuit earlier this year against the media organization alleging that some Fox News employees elevated false charges that Dominion had changed votes in the 2020 election through algorithms in its voting machines that had been created in Venezuela to rig elections for the late dictator Hugo Chavez. On-air personalities brought on Trump allies who spread the claims, and then amplified those claims on Fox News’ social media platforms.”

      https://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireStory/delaware-judge-rejects-fox-news-motion-dismiss-lawsuit-81806932

      “Eric M. Davis is a judge of the New Castle County Superior Court in Delaware. He was nominated by Gov. Jack Markell in November of 2012 and confirmed by the Legislature the following month. His current term expires in 2024.[1][2]”

      https://ballotpedia.org/Eric_M._Davis

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  4. Yes, they are being hypocrites since everyone knows about Islam and gay sex, and I certainly don’t condone the killing of gays. Having said that…..it is their country and I can’t truly say that I blame them for this. I would love something along these lines – just not as drastic – here in the US. Children should NOT be exposed to this BS!!!!

    Entire Article @ Newsbusters: “The gays have taken over the rainbow and Saudi Arabia is not a fan. As you’re all well aware, June has been internationally recognized as Pride Month. It’s an excuse for LGBTQILMNOP people to rainbow wash the world and critics are getting tired of it. In Saudi Arabia, new crackdowns on rainbow propaganda have emerged according to this morning’s Vice article.

    Authorities reportedly removed rainbow colored toys and clothes from stores because they “promote homosexual colors.” Suppression is wrong, but the sentiment is understandable. The rainbow is God’s beautiful creation but the progressive left has appropriated it and made it a political symbol of the gay agenda.

    Vice reported:

    “Commerce ministry officials from Saudi Arabia – where same-sex sexual activity is banned and punishable by death – said that colourful toys and clothes such as pencil cases and skirts contradicted “the Islamic faith and public morals.”

    Saudi Arabia is roughly 93% Islamic and according to the faith, homosexuality is a hefty sin. The Saudi regime’s treatment of of homosexuals — and others — is evil. According to footage from the Ministry of Commerce Twitter page, officials walked through several stores and examined rainbow products to confiscate what reportedly will “send a ‘poisoned message’ to children.”

    The tweet was translated to read:

    “Our supervisory teams carry out rounds of sales outlets, seize and confiscate products that contain symbols and indications that call for anomalies and contradict normal common sense, and impose legal penalties on violating facilities.”

    Saudi Arabia has also “stopped the viewing of international films that reference homosexuality.” Most recently Saudi Arabia banned the streaming of Pixar’s ‘Lightyear’ movie as it features a lesbian kiss. In April, the country petitioned to have certain parts of “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” removed due to gay references. In January, “West Side Story” didn’t reach Saudi Arabia theaters due to its transgender references.”

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  5. IMO, we are already in a recession!!!!

    EXCERPT: “(OPINION) Analysts increasingly see a recession looming in the US following the Federal Reserve’s biggest increase in interest rates since 1994 and signs of weaker consumer spending. The Fed hiked its policy rate by 75 basis points Wednesday to a range of 1.5% to 1.75%, as officials intensified their battle against inflation that’s remained stubbornly high.

    According to Yahoo, Wells Fargo & Co. now forecasts a “mild recession” starting in mid-2023, as inflation becomes more entrenched in the economy and eats into consumer spending power — and as the Fed takes more aggressive steps to address it. Meanwhile, Moody’s Analytics said that chances of a soft landing are lower.

    “The Federal Reserve is going to hike interest rates until policymakers break inflation, but the risk is that they also break the economy,” Ryan Sweet, Moody’s Analytics head of monetary policy research, said in a research note. “Growth is slowing and the effect of the tightening in financial market conditions and removal of monetary policy have yet to hit the economy.”

    US retail sales fell for the first time in five months in May as higher prices hit consumer pocketbooks. Also on Wednesday, the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta cut its estimate for second-quarter growth to 0%. And Guggenheim Chief Investment Officer Scott Minerd said the US may already be in a recession, given the slowdown in consumer spending.

    A growing number of economists have recently said a contraction next year would be difficult to avoid. In his note Wednesday, Wells Fargo’s Jay Bryson said he was expecting a soft landing just a week or so ago — but now his base scenario is for a mild recession.

    A key source of US economic growth this year — consumer spending — is showing signs of losing steam, even before Wednesday’s round of Federal Reserve rate hikes kick in. Credit card data show that spending in May was just 10% higher from the same month last year, according to a Barclays report this week. For the rest of 2021, that monthly spending growth has averaged more like 20%.

    That slowing growth, combined with weakening home sales and declines in wage growth, would mean that monetary tightening is already hitting the economy hard. The Fed may be able to tighten less aggressively in July, according to Barclays, which is forecasting just a half percentage point rate hike next month. Rates markets indicate a strong chance of a three-quarter percentage point hike.

    The stock and corporate bond markets don’t reflect the risk of a weakening consumer, wrote Barclays strategists including Ajay Rajadhyaksha, Ryan Preclaw, and Hale Holden, in a separate Tuesday note. The slowing growth of consumer spending underscores how difficult the Fed’s job is now as it looks to contain inflation that’s running at a four-decade high, while trying to avoid tipping the economy into recession.

    The softening only started in the last four to six weeks, but it was visible among both high- and low-income consumers, the strategists said, based on a sampling of Barclays credit card data. And it’s consistent with a report on Wednesday that showed retail purchases fell 0.3% in May from the month before, the first decline this year.

    Amid surging layoffs in the real estate market, slumping homebuilder sentiment, soaring rates, and plunging mortgage applications, it is no surprise that analysts expected a drop in Housing Starts and Permits in May (-1.8% MoM and -2.5% MoM respectively). According to Zero Hedge,

    Those numbers were destroyed as Housing Starts crashed 14.4% MoM and Permits plunged 7.0% MoM… This is the biggest drop in housing starts since the economy was shutdown by the government in April 2020. Starts have fallen to their lowest since April 2021 and Permits to their lowest since Sept 2021.

    Meanwhile, The U.S. stock market rout that has put U.S. equities in a bear market isn’t just reducing the net worth of billionaires like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos. It’s also taking a toll on Americans’ retirement savings, wiping out trillions of dollars in value.”

    https://endtimeheadlines.org/2022/06/global-economic-collapse-may-now-be-underway-wall-street-sounds-alarm-3-trillion-in-retirement-wiped-out-consumer-spending-running-out-of-steam-housing-market-teetering/

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  7. Entire Article @ Bearing Arms: “Joe Biden’s second choice to head up the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives is likely to be approved next week, with both Joe Manchin and Angus King approving of Steve Dettelbach’s nomination over the past two weeks. Those nods give former U.S. Attorney Steve Dettelbach at least 50 votes in favor of his confirmation, and Vice President Kamala Harris could cast the tie-breaking vote to confirm him along party lines when the Senate officially takes up his confirmation.

    That could happen as early as next week, but the preliminary vote will likely happen this afternoon, after the Senate Judiciary Committee deadlocked 11-11 earlier today, requiring the Senate to vote on a motion to discharge his nomination from the committee.

    “Dettelbach unquestionably deserved bipartisan support, but either way he’s going to move forward,” Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Thursday morning.

    “We need a fully functional, fully staffed ATF in order for that agency to fulfill its mission of keeping our communities safe from gun violence,” he said.

    Schumer and company could have had that months ago, but Joe Biden decided to nominate a committed gun control activist to head up the agency, which led to his nomination being pulled over objections by King and Manchin.

    Unfortunately for gun owners and the firearms industry, Dettelbach is just as anti-gun as David Chipman, but in part because he doesn’t have the close ties to the gun control lobby that Chipman had, and partly because King and Machin are now willing to “do something” to help their Democratic colleagues chalk up a gun control win, Dettelbach’s confirmation is almost assured at this point.

    Dettelbach’s time as a U.S. Attorney is fairly non-controversial. It’s the positions he took in his failed bid to become Ohio’s Attorney General in 2018 that have raised concerns among gun owners and Second Amendment organizations. On the campaign trail he endorsed “universal background checks” and a ban on AR-15s and other modern sporting rifles, but claimed during his confirmation hearing that politics would play no role in his position if confirmed to lead the ATF.

    “Politics can play no role in law enforcement. None at all,” he said.

    “I worked under Republican administrations, and I worked under Democratic administrations as a federal prosecutor and I have lived that credo and I vow to continue to do it because people need to have confidence that people in law enforcement’s only agenda is to enforce the law – and if you’re at the ATF to catch the bad guys and protect the public,” he said.

    “I vow to never let politics in any way influence my action as ATF director,” he added.

    Yeah, I suspect that vow will expire the same day he’s confirmed. Joe Biden and his anti-gun allies have specifically been looking for a gun control ideologue to run the ATF, and after Chipman’s failure to launch, Dettelbach was seen as a candidate who didn’t bring as much baggage but still had the same view of guns and gun control.

    For his part, Dettelbach has played his cards close to the vest, even when directly questioned about his past support for bans on modern sporting rifles. Republican Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas pressed the nominee to define the term assault weapon after noting that during Dettelbach’s 2018 campaign for Ohio attorney general he supported a ban. “What is an assault weapon – can you define it for me?” Cotton asked.

    “When I was a candidate for office I did talk about restrictions on assault weapons. I did not define the term and I haven’t gone through the process of defining that term. That would only be for the Congress if it chose to take that up,” the nominee said.

    “I acknowledge that’s a very difficult issue. That is for this body to decide,” he later added.

    “I think it’s very telling that you’re nominated to lead the ATF and and you don’t have a definition of assault weapon,” Cotton said. “The point is there is really no such thing as a category of weapons known as assault weapons. There are rifles, there are shotguns, there are pistols, they have properties, they have features, but there is no such thing as a category of assault weapon.”

    How can you talk about wanting to ban something that you can’t define? Dettelbach knows exactly what he was referring to when he called for banning “assault weapons”; semi-automatic rifles, pistols, and shotguns in calibers larger than, say, .22LR. The cosmetic features don’t really matter to the gun control lobby. Their real definition of assault weapon is simply “a gun I want to ban.”

    I would love to be proven wrong about my skepticism towards Dettelbach. In fact, I’m hoping that I have to write an article at some point where I own up to my own mistake in judgement, but at this point I see no reason to believe that Dettelbach will be any better than David Chipman. The two men may have chosen different career paths, but seem to be in lockstep agreement when it comes to the Second Amendment and regulating away the right to keep and bear arms.”

    Liked by 1 person

  8. Entire Article @ The College Fix: “Reported for ‘harmful speech’

    A recent art therapy graduate sued Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville for violating her First Amendment rights. Alliance Defending Freedom alleged in its lawsuit that SIUE violated Maggie DeJong’s First Amendment rights when it issued “no-contact orders” and asked her peers to report her for “harmful rhetoric.”

    Officials issued the no-contact orders, starting in February, after several students reported DeJong’s speech to the university. The students informed the school that DeJong (pictured) shared conservative views during class discussions, such as support for police officers. DeJong also shared her pro-life views and criticized Black Lives Matter on her personal social media.

    The students alleged that DeJong’s statements constituted “harassment,” “discrimination,” and “microaggressions” and were not “welcome or appropriate,” according to ADF attorneys. SIUE officials then launched an investigation into DeJong and prohibited her from having “any contact,” which included “indirect communication,” with the students who filed the complaints. The university issued the no-contact orders without first giving DeJong an opportunity to defend herself or completing an investigation into the matter.

    SIUE Director of Media Relations Megan Wieser told The College Fix that the university doesn’t comment on pending litigation. Officials did not inform DeJong of the allegations nor state what policies she violated, according to the lawsuit. Officials told her she could receive further “disciplinary action[s]” should she violate the no-contact orders.

    The director of the art therapy program, Megan Robb, “publicly confirmed that Ms. DeJong was under investigation and accused her of ‘misconduct’ and ‘oppressive acts,’” in an email to all 30 students in the program. ADF stated that the email violated a SIUE policy requiring university employees to “take all reasonable steps to ensure confidentiality” during an investigation of a student.

    “SIUE officials are determined to force their graduate students to think and speak exactly the same—or stay silent—and they will punish anyone who steps out of line,” ADF Senior Counsel Gregg Walters, who is representing DeJong, stated in a news release.

    “Maggie has always respectfully shared her religious or political views, which every student is entitled to do under the First Amendment,” according to Walters. “It is a sad day for civil dialogue and freedom of speech when universities can issue gag orders like those issued against Maggie for nothing more than expressing her beliefs — beliefs held by millions of Americans.”

    The attorney told The Fix during an interview that DeJong “asked the university to change their unconstitutional policies, and the university hasn’t done that. So she’s not the last student that will be impacted by these policies that censor student speech.” He told The Fix one of the goals of the lawsuit is “to challenge these policies and ensure that students are able to speak freely on campus about their beliefs.” He also noted that ADF is currently representing three students in Idaho who have had similar no-contact orders issued against them.

    According to Walters, ADF has “seen speech policies that violate students’ rights consistently,” however, since universities and cultures are now prone to “treating speech as violence.” The nonprofit law firm stated it has recently seen an increase in no-contact orders being issued as a method to suppress speech and censor students.

    Liked by 1 person

  9. Entire Article @ JustTheNews: “A school district in Baxter, Iowa, is reportedly teaching a “Social Justice in Literature” course in violation of state law, and attorneys with America First Policy Institute’s Constitutional Litigation Partnership are demanding the district stop.

    The course, offered as an elective at Baxter High School, teaches students to “use a social justice lens to analyze contemporary young adult fiction,” according to a description from the school in attorneys’ demand letter. The group also filed a Freedom of Information Act request for documents in the school district that contain information about social justice, Critical Race Theory (CRT), and similar topics.

    Baxter School District has fewer than 470 students enrolled in grades K-12, Department of Education data shows. Iowa passed a law last summer to prevent the teaching of CRT and other controversial topics in schools.

    “The America First Policy Institute stands with the brave parents of Baxter Community School District, and across the Nation, who are saying no more to the un-American indoctrination of our children,” said Craig Trainor, Constitutional Litigation Partnership’s Senior Litigation Counsel, in a press release.

    “School should prepare students for citizenship in our constitutional republic and colorblind society, not turn impressionable children into social justice warriors who view all that is good and just through the distorted lens of race, sex, gender, power, and politics,” he wrote.

    The America First legal group is demanding the district rescind the course; inform parents, students, and staff about the decision; and follow Iowa’s anti-CRT law.”

    Liked by 1 person

  12. Rules for thee again…..

    Entire Article @ FreeBeacon: “Princeton University learned in December about plagiarism allegations against one of its star progressive professors, emails obtained by the Washington Free Beacon show, but it does not appear to have taken action against him in the intervening six months. On Dec. 6, the economic historian Phillip Magness emailed Princeton’s dean of faculty, Gene Jarrett, with evidence that Princeton historian Kevin Kruse plagiarized several passages of his 2015 book One Nation Under God.

    “I am sharing this information in the interest of academic integrity,” Magness wrote. The email contained detailed comparisons between Kruse’s book and a 1956 New York Times article from which Kruse appears to have lifted passages without attribution.

    The university never replied to Magness’s email, Magness told the Free Beacon, and has not announced an investigation of Kruse. Jarrett did not respond to a request for comment. The university’s treatment of Kruse—a historian known for his searing criticism of conservative media—contrasts sharply with its scorched-earth approach to Joshua Katz, the classics professor who was fired last month after raising hell over the school’s racial politics.

    That contrast raises questions about political double standards at the Ivy League university, which has denied that its firing of Katz had anything to do with ideology.

    Katz was a Princeton pariah: His biting criticism of the school’s political correctness drew flak from students, faculty, and staff, including Princeton president Christopher Eisgruber. The university even condemned Katz as a racist in its 2021 freshman orientation programming, doctoring one of his quotes to make him seem racially insensitive. It began investigating him within a month of receiving “new information” about a consensual relationship he had with a student in 2007, for which he had already been punished in 2018.

    Kruse, on the other hand, is a darling of the online left. He frequently posts Twitter threads debunking conservative “lies” and, in 2017, mocked a member of the Trump administration for plagiarizing his master’s thesis. “We’d expel a student who pulled this,” Kruse tweeted.

    Kruse may have plagiarized his own thesis, Magness argued in a June 14 Reason article, on top of his 2015 book. Passages in Kruse’s 2000 doctoral dissertation are almost indistinguishable from those in two 1996 monographs: Race and the Shaping of Twentieth-Century Atlanta by Ronald Bayor and The Origins of the Urban Crisis: Race and Inequality in Postwar Detroit by Thomas Sugrue.

    Magness highlighted these similarities in another email to Princeton on June 7, this time addressed to the dean of research, Pablo Debenedetti. Debenedetti replied that he forwarded the email to Jarrett’s office, which never circled back to Magness.

    Plagiarism is a “very serious charge at Princeton,” the school’s academic integrity policies state. “It can result in disciplinary probation, suspension, or expulsion.”

    Liked by 1 person

  13. Ummmmm….seriously? “Women are fragile vessels???”

    Entire Article @ FB: “A North Carolina charter school with a female principal and vice principal is violating the Constitution because it requires girls to wear skirts, a federal appeals court has declared.

    The full Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the same court that mandated the removal of war memorial crosses in five states, said Tuesday that the Charter Day School’s skirt requirement for girls is rooted in unconstitutional gender stereotypes. It is the first time a federal appeals court has said charter schools may be sued for civil rights claims, and will almost assuredly be followed by lawsuits involving sports, bathroom access, and transgender rights.

    “The skirts requirement blatantly perpetuates harmful gender stereotypes as part of the public education provided to North Carolina’s young residents,” the majority opinion said.

    The decision is a watershed. Beyond its holding about charter schools, the ruling marks one of the first times an appeals court has applied civil rights laws to dress codes. In dissent, Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson accused the majority of outright hostility to the Charter Day School, writing it shows “pitifully little respect for the value that charter schools might contribute to education. For the majority, this case is all about stomping out any variance at odds with modern sensibilities.”

    The Charter Day School in Leland, N.C., serves about 900 K-8 students. The curriculum is classical, Great Books-style, and espouses “the values of traditional Western civilization,” according to its website. Students adhere to a dress code, use polite forms of address such as “ma’am” and “sir,” and are expected to practice good manners.

    “There was felt to be a need to restore, and then preserve, traditional regard for peers,” a school official wrote in an email to an inquiring parent, Bonnie Peltier, who later sued the school for discrimination. A group of students and parents sued the school after the same official referred to women as “fragile vessels” in his email to Peltier. They said the skirt requirement is a sex-based classification that violates the Constitution and Title IX, which concerns civil rights in education.

    Tuesday’s decision, from a seldom-used “super panel” of all 16 Fourth Circuit judges, sided with the plaintiffs and required the school to rescind its dress code or become a private institution. Judge Barbara Keenan, an Obama appointee, delivered the 44-page opinion for a majority of 10.

    In a rare move, Keenan also wrote a separate concurrence to her own majority opinion to skewer the school for its “antediluvian” views. She went on to cite “expert” testimony to the effect that pants are “a ubiquitous, uncontroversial, and standard part of women’s professional wardrobes today.” And she warned that boys who are raised with values like those of Charter Day School are more likely to become predators.

    In dissent, Wilkinson wrote that Charter Day School’s “chivalric approach” to schooling is not illegal under any reasonable interpretation of federal law. In the majority opinion, Keenan retorted that the medieval “Age of Chivalry” was one of violence and marital rape.

    “Chivalry may not have been a bed of roses for those forced to lie in it,” Keenan wrote. The Charter Day School’s headmaster and assistant headmaster are women, and half of its trustees are female.

    The most significant holding is the decision’s conclusion that charter schools are “state actors” subject to the Constitution. The Constitution only binds the government. The Supreme Court has said private entities can be sued for constitutional violations, however, if the private entity is doing the government’s bidding. The idea is to prevent the government from using nonprofit or private sector proxies to violate the Constitution.

    The standard is high, however. A state actor is an entity performing some function that the government traditionally and exclusively exercises. North Carolina charters count as state actors because they take taxpayer dollars, are designated as public schools, and exercise the state function of education, the majority opinion said.

    At least three federal appeals courts have rejected claims that charter or specialty schools are state actors. That split is likely to attract the attention of the Supreme Court. In recent years the Supreme Court has defined state actors narrowly, emphasizing that “very few” actions elevate a private entity to a state actor in a 2019 case involving public access television.

    Charter Day School has not said whether it will appeal Tuesday’s decision to the Supreme Court. The case is Peltier v. Charter Day School.”

    Liked by 1 person

  14. Bacon Cake? Our Butterfly would go for that!

    Precious Chef! Great Open…

    Good Morning Pat!

    Like

  16. Funny animal stories:

    “You can’t blame a dog for trying—and certainly not when they sound super cute. “My significant other and I had been trying to teach our dog to make less of a mess in our house—specifically, to not pull toilet paper off the roll,” wrote Reddit user ringofstones. “We weren’t sure we’d been making any headway until one day we came home to find that while we’d been out, about two feet of toilet paper had been unrolled…and then somehow rolled back up sloppily. All I can imagine is her playing with it happily, hearing us at the door, thinking, ‘Oh, crap!’ and trying to fix her mess. It was actually pretty impressive.”
    ——————-
    Kittens and puppies are playful—it’s just in their nature. And apparently, so is playing pranks on their siblings. “My biggest female cat (nine to 10 pounds) likes to sit on the side of the full bathtub inside the shower curtain,” wrote Reddit user loner_in_az.

    “My littlest tiny female cat (four pounds) runs from across the house, slides around the corner into the bathroom, shoves the big female into the tub through the shower curtain and takes off like a shot back to the other side of the house. She never knew what hit her.”
    ——————-
    Usually, when a cat injures itself doing something once, it’ll self-correct and never do that thing again. But that wasn’t the case for Reddit user Asharet’s childhood cat. “I had a farm cat when I was a teenager that loved to climb up and sit on the roof. Problem was, he had the habit of rolling over for a tummy rub whenever he saw a person. So it was a distressingly common occurrence to walk near the house and have him roll right off the roof. You’d think after the first three times he’d have learned, but no. He lived a long life despite himself.”
    ——————-
    When Reddit user opkc changed her afternoon routine once, her dog was not having it. “My dog, Libby, rides with me to pick up my kids from school, and she knows exactly what time we leave. The kids had an after-school activity so I needed to pick them up an hour later than usual. When we didn’t leave at the normal time, she started whining at me. Then barking. Then she swatted my shoe with her paw, hard, so it flew through the air and hit me. She threw my shoe at me!” Libby sounds like a Real Dogwife of New Jersey.
    ——————-
    While some cats like to play with stuffed mice, catnip, and jingle balls, Reddit user xenothaulus’s cat likes Easter eggs. “My cat likes to play with plastic Easter eggs. She picks a half up in her mouth, and trots around with it, yowling all the while, with the egg functioning as an amplifier. One year we got the kids these big eggs … and eventually, she found one and tried to play with it the same way.”

    Sadly for this cat, it didn’t work out. “When she picked it up, it flipped up over face and covered her eyes. She panicked and started running around, clanging into the baseboard heaters and whatever else. It was hysterical! She finally dropped it and stood there dazed. And [then she] picked up the egg and did it again. And again. And again.” When will they learn?

    Liked by 1 person

  18. it’s been 4 months since we filed our taxes and they still have NO information available that they even HAVE it yet. there is no reason for these people to be working from home!!!
    FTA
    HHS, which employs more than 80,000 workers and requested a mandatory budget of $1.7 trillion for 2023, did not respond to a request for comment.

    Herrell said the negative impact of telework goes beyond HHS. CNN reported that in the first week of Biden’s presidency several White House national security workers were forced to return to remote work, which prevented them from accessing classified materials crucial to their jobs. The Internal Revenue Service this year has seen historic delays in tax returns that have left its facilities full of unchecked paperwork. The Department of Veterans Affairs has similarly struggled with overdue disability claims amid the pandemic.

    Previous administrations debated telework policies before the pandemic. The Obama administration expanded telework opportunities, but these programs were reduced under former president Donald Trump.

    https://freebeacon.com/latest-news/quarter-of-federal-health-workers-failed-to-check-email-amid-pandemic-report-reveals/

    Like

    1. Holy crap! Four months??!!?? Sheesh! You’re right – it is this “working from home” BS!!!!

      Entire Article @ FB: “In the first months of the coronavirus pandemic, a quarter of employees at the federal government’s top health agency failed to even check their emails as they worked remotely, according to internal documents obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.

      An estimated 25 percent of Department of Health and Human Services employees neglected to log on to the agency’s software suite, which includes their email, work files, video conference calls, and other applications needed to perform remote work, according to the internal documents. The report, commissioned by then-HHS chief of staff Brian Harrison, measured employees’ inactivity on a day-to-day basis between March 2020 and December 2020. The documents, portions of which were leaked by a whistleblower to the Functional Government Initiative and reviewed by the Free Beacon, state that all HHS employees had secure access to these accounts to work remotely.

      Federal employees have begun to return to the office in recent months, but the Biden administration has explored ways to make pandemic telework policies permanent. The effort is backed by House Democrats, who on Wednesday advanced a bill that would require agencies to provide advance notice to Congress and the Office of Personnel Management if they want workers to return to the office.

      Harrison, now a Republican state representative in Texas, said he grew concerned in the early months of the pandemic that lenient telework policies led to inefficient output from employees. He said he began to track office attendance and found fewer than 10 percent of employees showed up at certain points in 2020. The discovery led him to conduct a comprehensive review of how much remote work employees were doing.

      “Almost everyone was home at the federal health agency responding to a pandemic—I found that problematic and worked to safely increase those numbers,” Harrison told the Free Beacon. “Biden sent everyone back home, and you can’t run HHS like that effectively.”

      Harrison did not receive the results of the report until January 2021—a week before the Biden administration took over. Biden on his first day in office issued an executive order that included a mask mandate for federal workers and directed agencies to explore new telework policies. The Office of Management and Budget, which oversees the operation of all federal agencies, implemented guidance days later that stated: “Every effort will be made to maximize the use of remote work during widespread community transmission.”

      Harrison said it is likely that these new telework policies have only worsened work participation. A top official at the Food and Drug Administration admitted the agency lost a 34-page whistleblower report sent in October 2021 that warned about an imminent baby formula shortage, which became a rampant issue for the Biden administration by May. The report, lost in an FDA mail room, did not reach the department’s food policy deputy commissioner until February. FDA commissioner Robert Califf said the lost document was a “technical issue” that could be attributed to poor coordination at the agency.

      Peter McGinnis, the communications director for the Functional Government Initiative, said the Biden administration’s push for unnecessary telework has harmed taxpayers. “Work from home? Perhaps not working at all,” McGinnis told the Free Beacon. “Sadly, this dysfunction now threatens the health of mothers and children.”

      House Republicans introduced a bill in May that would reestablish pre-pandemic telework policies for federal workers and require agencies to submit a report on the impact of their telework policies since 2020. Rep. Yvette Herrell (R., N.M.), who sponsored the bill, said the Biden administration needs to justify the need for expanded telework to taxpayers.

      “Extending pandemic-era telework for no good reason hurts Americans who need in-person attention and care,” Herrell told the Free Beacon. “The first priority of public employees should be to serve their employers, the American people.” HHS, which employs more than 80,000 workers and requested a mandatory budget of $1.7 trillion for 2023, did not respond to a request for comment.

      Herrell said the negative impact of telework goes beyond HHS. CNN reported that in the first week of Biden’s presidency several White House national security workers were forced to return to remote work, which prevented them from accessing classified materials crucial to their jobs.

      The Internal Revenue Service this year has seen historic delays in tax returns that have left its facilities full of unchecked paperwork. The Department of Veterans Affairs has similarly struggled with overdue disability claims amid the pandemic.

      Previous administrations debated telework policies before the pandemic. The Obama administration expanded telework opportunities, but these programs were reduced under former president Donald Trump. Sen. Richard Burr (R., N.C.) has pressed several federal agencies to provide more information on the impact of their telework policies, saying they have hindered the administration’s ability to address ongoing crises, including the baby formula shortage.

      “Americans expect accountability from an agency that deals with some of the nation’s most difficult and complex challenges,” Burr told the Free Beacon.”

      Liked by 1 person

      1. yup…we tried their “where’s my refund” site…no info.
        we tried calling the IRS lines…no one answers…you’re ut into a queue and get transferred and transferred and then someon ehangs up on you…45 minute on the phone for nothing!
        i refuse to file on line.

        Liked by 1 person

  19. Grrrr….since I cut the trumpet vines down so far, they are now popping up everywhere, even 10 feet away in the middle of my Lily of the Valley and out in my yard! I sure wish I had only planted one now…..and they are almost impossible to kill. Yet another lesson learned!!!!

    Liked by 1 person

  24. Liked by 1 person

    2. EDIT: Never mind – I thought they might be talking about the Bureau of Land Management. But I found this one, altho they don’t define “BLM.” I found another link: BLM = Barcelona Licensing and Merchandise.

      “Barcelona assembly approved the sale of 49.9% of BLM and 25% of the Television rights yesterday, in an attempt to save the club from financial ruin.

      The sale of the two of the club’s most important assets is expected to generate a revenue large enough to help Barça pay off their debts, manage the gigantic workforce and finance moves for several top targets in the target.

      Friday’s print edition of Mundo Deportivo has offered details on the exact numbers Barcelona are expected to earn following the sale of BLM and TV rights.

      The Spanish daily speculates a figure of around €700-800 million, which could go a long way in helping the club drag itself out from financial ruin.

      Barcelona have already received a package of around €275 million for BLM. €200 million was offered in cash, while the additional €75 million was to be paid through add-ons. But club president Joan Laporta has swiftly rejected the proposal.

      Laporta is holding out for better offers as he values BLM much higher. He is expecting to generate a €300 million windfall from the sale of the club’s merchandising and licensing.

      Barça are expected to generate even more revenue from the sale of TV rights. Laporta had earlier claimed to have received an offer of around €1 billion for the 100% sale of TV rights, but the proposal was rejected by the board.

      Barcelona are not willing to sell the entirety of the TV rights, knowing it is an important source of constant revenue. They are, however, prepared to listen to offers for the sale of a quarter percentage of the TV rights, for a period of up to 25 years.

      https://barcauniversal.com/barcelona-could-receive-gigantic-e800-million-boost-ahead-of-the-summer/

      Liked by 1 person

              2. The best one I ever pulled was on my last ex-hubby. He had large, beefy hands and liked to smack my butt when I walked past him – it HURT!!!! IDR now how it came about but he head-butted the door to our bedroom that was solid oak, and cracked the door. He was crowing about how tough he is, so I patted the wall next to the door and said, “Head butt this!” I knew it was cinderblock behind the paneling but he didn’t. I LMO when he went to his knees! Ha, MF’er – stop hitting me, asshole!!!

                Liked by 1 person

  27. Pat. Is this your bear ?

    He’s putting out a PR campaign to persuade you that he is warm and cuddly? Don’t fall for it!

    Liked by 2 people

  28. I like Mike Lindell – I really do – but I see the ads occasionally before I FF thru them – $49.95 for a fricking pair of slippers??!!?? Good grief! And they are just mules, not even full slippers!

    Liked by 1 person

  29. OK, this is BULL SHIT!!!! Kash saying there is no way possible to bring back our POTUS in spite of the stolen election. (Kash comes on at the 8:54 minute mark talking about Q, then discusses the stolen election.) The only way is to elect him in 2024!!! What the hell good will that do when they will just steal it AGAIN??!!?? I’m telling you right now – if this isn’t fixed BEFORE 2024, I will NEVER vote again!!!! So much for this “Devolution” BS!!!!

    https://rumble.com/v18s5ud-june-17-2022.html

    Liked by 1 person

      1. It would be wonderful if it’s true but I just can’t believe in any of these fantasies any more. SHOW ME!!!! And stop what? The baby pics? Carry on, my friend – I like babies, too, ya’ know!

        Liked by 2 people

  32. going after bad prosecutors…in this case she lied, excuse me, misled the court about this perp’s record…to get a sweet plea deal. there is currently a recall effort to recall her.
    entire article
    There has been a backlash nationally over prosecutors who were recently elected in a push by far left groups with support from billionaire George Soros. One of those is Loudoun County Commonwealth’s Attorney Buta Biberaj, who is now in middle of a controversy over an alleged misrepresentation of the criminal record of a felon in order to secure a lower sentence in a plea deal. Loudoun County Circuit Court Judge James Plowman removed Biberaj and her office from the case. After Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares wrote the court offering to prosecute the case, Biberaj (who described herself as a “progressive prosecutor”) lashed out at Miyares and told him to “stay in your lane.”

    At issue is the plea agreement given burglary suspect Kevin Enrique Valle, who was charged with three misdemeanors for destruction of property and false identification, and two felonies for burglary. Prosecutor Michele Burton offered a six-month plea deal that Plowman said downplayed his criminal record. The judge said that he was told that the crimes occurred within a matter of hours last year. Instead, the crimes were alleged to have occurred over “a possible 12 burglary crime spree spanning four counties over 10 days.”

    Valle reportedly has more than 40 cases that have been brought against him in various counties throughout Virginia. However, it was the record in Loudoun that drew the ire of the court.

    Judge Plowman accused Biberaj’s office of “deliberately misleading the Court and the public.” He, therefore, ordered “Biberaj and the Loudoun County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office is hereby REMOVED AND DISQUALIFIED from further prosecution as counsel of record in this matter.”

    Biberaj held a press conference in response to the order and letter, declaring “This is a specific message to Attorney General Jason Miyares, ‘Stay in your lane’ Your lane is in Richmond. Your lane is being the attorney general of Virginia. You are not the elected council attorney and definitely nor for Loudoun County. Since his election, he’s been wanting to undermine the good work that we do as progressive prosecutors.” She further questioned Plowman’s authority to remove her office.

    The court did not exactly view this as “good work.” Judge Plowman removed himself from the case.

    The omission in this case is deeply disturbing. This appears a habitual offender and the specifics on this criminal record is key to any court in deciding whether to approve a plea. This was a very generous plea for someone with such a long record, particularly for someone who is only 19 years old. That does not mean that a court could not consider his age in erring on the side of leniency. However, the court must be fully and accurately informed of the defendant’s prior criminal record.

    There is a recall effort targeting Biberaj.

    https://jonathanturley.org/2022/06/16/stay-in-your-lane-prosecutor-lashes-out-after-being-removed-from-case-for-allegedly-misleading-court/

    Liked by 1 person

  33. Just seeing on Fox that 3 Americans have gone missing in Ukraine; they also said there are 2 Americans being held by Russian forces. Will the 3 be treated as POW’s if they have been captured? 2 Britons and a Moroccan man have already been sentenced to death.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. are those the 2 who i read were contractors?
      military/chemical something or other?
      someone suggested nefarious purposes, but there is a nuclear power plant there? i dunno…I will for it

      Liked by 1 person

  34. Okay …

    Who knew BEFORE feb 24th when Russia entered Ukraine … that the Devolution theory outlining the Military being the only solution… referred to the RUSSIAN MILITARY?

    Well, I am awake … and now know that among The Outlaw Empire of Lies’ (as the rest of the world refers to USA) crimes, we have committed bio warfare… (Ukraine)…

    As far as Americans reaching a ‘precipice’ – won’t happen! Wall Street and our eonomy have reached and or tettering on the ‘precipice’ …………….. could happen any minute.

    Americans will experience “the winter of our Discontent” in either a deep recession or … a depression…

    Our Republic is gone… the Khazarians totally run this country … color me negative, but I don’t see another election – at least a national election, happening.

    Turn off FAKE NEWS and take a few moments to read Putin’s speech today if you’re looking for FACTS …

    —————————————————

    https://t.me/intelslava/31423

    About Putin’s speech.

    1. The break with the West is irreversible and final. No pressure from the West will change that.

    2. Russia has regained its sovereignty and will not give it back to anyone. Strengthening political and economic sovereignty are top priorities.

    3. The old world is collapsing and the era of American dominance is over. Now a new world is being formed.

    4. Despite all the support from the West for Ukraine, the operation in Ukraine will continue until all the goals are achieved.

    5. Economically, Russia will not close – the emphasis will be on domestic economic development and the reorientation of trade to countries independent of the US.

    6. The EU is no longer seen as a subjective player – solely as a collection of American vassals devoid of military-political subjectivity.

    7. Big business is once again offered to make a choice – either “nationalization” in Russia, or deprivation of assets in the West.

    In general, the main leitmotif of the entire speech is that the ship is on the same course, there will be no turning back. Those who are still waiting or are afraid of the upcoming changes in Russia and in the world are once again offered to make a choice – with whom they are.

    ——————————————————–

    I posted English translation of about 75% of Putin’s Speech earlier today at Wolfie’s

    https://www.theqtree.com/2022/06/17/dear-maga-tgif-open-thread-20220617/#comment-913554

    it’s in two parts, so if you’re interested… scroll down to “reply”

    I am posting this with the expectation that I will be henceforth ‘persona non grata’ … but I need to focus on my future and that of my family… will I lose my house when the banks fail… will the cash I have on hand will worthless because they are US Dollars? Will I be able to buy groceries when my stash is depleted? Will the grands be able to find gas if they still have a job? Will our pensions be bankrupt? Social Security and Medicare? Will it be like the 30s or worse? (most Americans were farmers)

    Yes, I am at the precipice!

    Liked by 2 people

    2. step back from the precipice!
      I will not believe this is the end.
      we are not a nation to roll over without a fight.
      there might be a lot wrong right now…but we are still in the fight phoenix.
      and we have people working behind the scenes i know we do.
      you’re discouraged, I get it. take a breath. I do not for a moment believe we are in this alone.

      Liked by 2 people

      1. I’m pretty much where PR is now, too. Thankfully, I don’t have to worry about losing my house unless it is in a tax sale if I can’t pay my PPT – but, then, once I pay last years’ tax, I don’t have to pay any more anyway. But I’m serious when I say I will never vote again if 2020 isn’t fixed. It would be a pure waste of time, IMO. What do you mean by “…in this alone?”

        Liked by 1 person

        1. we have people on our side…desantis, trump, and others trying to hold us all together. we can’t allow ourselves to become demoralized…that’s what the left wants. if it takes hopium to keep your head above the water, i will pump you full of some.
          I am not saying the road isn’t bleak at the moment–I’m saying hang tight–hold on– we’ll see each other thru it.
          we have patriots in this country who can only be pushed so far–the british found that out. and that spirit is alive today. I refuse to believe the left killed it…

          Liked by 1 person

          1. No, I don’t think that spirit is dead, either, and truly – more and more people are awake every day. I do think that all of this “red flag” BS just might push a LOT of people over that precipice and they WILL take up arms – no doubt in my mind whatsoever!

            Liked by 1 person

            1. it will NOT be popular…americans love thier 2A. the left needs to be reminded of that.
              2A protects the rest of the rights.
              we need POTUS to declare.
              he can rally people like nobody’s business…

              Liked by 1 person

  37. Entire Article @ The Liberty Daily:

    “You can tell a lot about someone by their allies. When members of opposite political parties in today’s polarized society speak nicely of each other, it’s practically an endorsement. It has to be because of the social media backlash they and their donors receive. When a Democrat gives kudos to a Republican or visa versa, the knives come out from the base on both sides.

    This is why it’s so telling that Washington Governor Jay Inslee paid former VP and perpetual RINO Mike Pence a random compliment:

    ‘Even though I disagree with Mike Pence 90% of the time, his resolute performance on January 6, 2021 in the face of tremendous, and illegal, pressure deserves being honored by all Americans, of every stripe, who treasure the blessings of democracy.’

    Nothing that comes from the Communist offices of Governor Inslee happens without a reason. With the J6 Committee fully engaged in their witch hunt, Pence is at the center of it and not for the side of freedom. The Uniparty is trying to nail Donald Trump and anyone else they can attach to him to the political cross of manufactured crimes.

    It may be none of Inslee’s business, but that may be the point. Compliments from anyone too close to the action in DC would be seen as politically motivated. Coming from Inslee who has no real skin in the game makes it a more powerful piece of propaganda they can use to prop up Pence and trash Trump.”

    Liked by 1 person

  38. Entire Article from BlueStateConservative:

    “The latest bi-partisan “gun control” legislative proposal reeks of “Do-Somethingism.” Again, given the rampant disasters wrought from the numerous foolish policies enacted due to our bout with COVID-19, we should’ve learned our lesson on “Do-Somethingism.” Give Democrats—and their like-minded enablers—a “crisis” and you’re almost certainly guaranteed a catastrophic Big Government “solution.”

    Inevitably, such “solutions” do almost nothing to solve the problems they were meant to solve, and instead burden tens of millions of Americans with a host of new problems that are often much worse than the original “problem.” Again, see the COVID scamdemic. If signed into law—and Biden has said he will sign it—almost certainly the new “gun control” legislation proposed by ten democrats and ten republicans will prove about as useful as most of the anti-COVID-19 measures enacted throughout the U.S. the past two-plus years.

    And like the near-useless anti-COVID-19 policies, this new “gun control” legislation will do virtually nothing to solve the problem intended—mass shootings—and instead will create a myriad of new problems for innocent Americans. In the statement released describing what’s in the legislation (see previous link), much of the focus of the bill is on “mental health.” Additionally, the legislation seems to incentivize U.S. states to enact “red flag” laws. Under the heading entitled “Intervention Orders,” the description of the legislation reads:

    “Provides resources to states and tribes to create and administer laws that help ensure deadly weapons are kept out of the hands of individuals whom a court has determined to be a significant danger to themselves or others, consistent with state and federal due process and constitutional protections.”

    A red flag law is a “gun control” law that permits police or individuals to petition a state court to order the removal of firearms “from a person who they believe may present a danger to others or themselves.” Nineteen states—almost all blue states—and the District of Columbia have some form of a red flag law.

    As Tucker Carlson recently went into great detail to point out, there are huge problems with red flag laws:

    “First, red flag laws won’t end mass shootings. But red flag laws will end due process…Under red flag laws the government doesn’t have to prove you did anything wrong in order to strip you of your most basic rights. All that’s required to punish you is a complaint, possibly even an anonymous complaint, in which somebody says “you seem dangerous.” Now that complaint doesn’t come from a grand jury, it can come from anyone, including someone who hates you or someone who simply doesn’t like your politics…On the basis of that unproven complaint, you lose your freedom and your ability to defend yourself and your family.”

    In other words, who gets to decide who’s “dangerous?” Just a couple of years ago, Democrat Congressman Eric Swalwell thought Ben Shapiro was a good example of why America needed red flag laws. Just as Americans should be very cautious when it comes to enacting red flag laws, Americans should also be very hesitant to embrace any legislation, school policy, and the like when it comes to “mental health” and “gun control.” Because who gets to decide who’s crazy?

    According to a recent (2019) study published in Psychiatry Research, “psychiatric diagnoses are scientifically worthless as tools to identify discrete mental health disorders.” This conclusion aligns well with what practicing psychotherapist Gary Greenburg has long said. Upon the release of the latest version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (the DSM 5) in early 2013, The Atlantic asked Dr. Greenburg, “Can you define mental illness?” His reply: “No. Nobody can.”

    Dr. Greenburg says that not one of the disorders in the DSM is real. He claims that the DSM is nothing more than an exercise in rhetoric; an attempt to legitimize the practice of psychiatry. In a culture that is increasingly more hesitant to use the word “evil,” Dr. Greenburg concludes that having the American Psychiatric Association (who owns and publishes the DSM) classify certain behaviors as “disorders” is a way to remove the moral aspect behind certain behaviors.

    We’ve seen this often with mass shootings. Inevitably, whenever one of these rare but horrific acts of evil takes place, words and phrases like “mentally disturbed,” “mentally ill,” “crazy,” “nut-job,” and “psycho,” are frequently tossed around. This is even done by well-meaning, and sometimes even biblically minded, conservatives.

    I believe this is because sickness is much easier to deal with than evil. Sickness can be treated—or we can at least pretend, or look like, we’re treating it—often with expensive drugs and/or therapy (or masks and lockdowns!). When it comes to those who are financially vested in such things, sickness is good for business. However, dealing with evil requires that we define what is evil, and dealing with evil means that we sometimes must engage in matters in the spiritual realm.

    Additionally, as we pervert what is sickness along with what is good and evil, what was once good and right can be something that needs to be cured or punished. So if you merely vote the “wrong” way, or attend the “wrong” protest, or say the “wrong” things, or refuse to support what someone else has determined is the “right” thing, you could find yourself on the wrong side of a court ruling when it comes to your guns.

    We’ve seen this play out countless times when it comes to cancel culture. Just this week, the NFL’s Washington Commanders (Redskins!) lightened the wallet of assistant coach Jack Del Rio to the tune of $100,000 simply because he didn’t tow the preferred (Democrat) line when it comes to the actions at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, and the numerous (criminal) riots in the wake of George Floyd’s death.

    In other words, the NFL has decided what is “right” when it comes to January 6, 2021, and the George Floyd riots. And if you don’t stick to the (Democrat) narrative on these matters, you will be punished.

    When it comes to courts taking our guns, many will say, “But we have the Second Amendment!” True, however, we’re a few Supreme Court Justices away from having that Amendment “interpreted” beyond recognition. Given the numerous vagaries when it comes to mental illness, and given the importance of gun ownership to a free nation, America simply can’t afford to have the courts tell us who’s “crazy” enough to have his guns taken away.”

    Liked by 1 person

  40. Reply to my post at QTree …

    ——————-

    kalbokalbs
    32 min. ago

    Smiling a bit here. Persona non grata? It’s an opinion. An opinion, that quite frankly I see as, REALITY.

    Russia has zero reason to give a sweet damn about anything “West, Western, EU…”.

    Russia holds MANY ACES over Europe. Quite frankly, Russia can do just fine without American influence over politics.

    Somewhere Chinee play into America’s downfall, that IS BEING EXPEDITED by BiteMe and his handlers.
    THERE IS ZERO EVIDENCE, America’s DESTRUCTION from INTERNAL FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ACTION, WILL BE STOPPED or reveresed

    More and more, November 8th, is NOT a solution. That is assuming there is a sembalance of a fair election. A new Congress is seated January 3, 2223?

    Wonder what will be left of America on 3 January, 2023?

    Will R-CONS have the balls to ACT forcefully AGAINST BiteMe and his CRIMINAL Administration?
    Won’t be holding my breath. R-Cons CONTINUE to enable BiteMe, going on two years.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. no, sorry.
      just as hopium is too much so is doom and gloom fear porn.
      we had it good…we know we did…we had a taste of life under a true patriotic leader–we know THIS right now is not what the founders intended for us.
      it’s one thing to never know how good life could be–but WE DID! we are just realizing what they stole from us–not just an election! but a way of life! amd dammit…I dunno about you, but I WANT IT BACK!
      AND I’M NOT TAKING NO FOR AN ANSWER!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. I’m not into doom and gloom… just trying to be prepared… for whatever comes. Trump and Q and anons have told us to prep… that it WILL be bad BEFORE it is good (The Best is …)

        Well, we have to take the FAKE NEWS… what can we do about it? It constantly brainwashes peeps. We HAVE to take the trashing of the Constitution… what can we do about it? A member of POTUS’ Cabinet is going to stand trial…

        We’re like frogs in what was “hot” now beginning to boil… water. For the first time in my life I understand the German people during WWII …

        What can you or any of us DO?

        End of my rant … I know I’m depressing peeps… so, won’t bring any more 😉 TY for listening… dumping actually. I would go to a shrink, but they’re all DIMs!

        Liked by 1 person

  42. Entire Article @ Fox: “EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Arkansas, said Thursday that U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland should resign over the Biden administration Justice Department’s inaction on more than 50 attacks on pro-life pregnancy centers and churches in recent weeks purportedly carried out by Jane’s Revenge.

    In a letter sent to Garland, Cotton, who is the ranking member for the subcommittee on Criminal Justice and Counterterrorism, the Intelligence Committee, and the Armed Services Committee, also called on the DOJ to investigate Jane’s Revenge as a “domestic terrorist organization.”

    “Houses of worship and pro-life pregnancy centers are under attack. The Family Research Council has compiled a list of more than 50 attacks against churches, pro-life pregnancy centers, and other pro-life groups in the past few weeks,” Cotton wrote to Garland in a letter exclusively obtained by Fox News Digital. “A left-wing extremist group called ‘Jane’s Revenge’ has taken credit for many of these attacks, including firebombings and grotesque acts of vandalism.”

    Cotton noted how the same group on Tuesday “has now issued a letter declaring ‘open season’ on all so-called ‘anti-choice’ groups, and calls for terrorist attacks against these groups by anyone ‘with the urge to paint, to burn, to cut, [or] to jam.”

    The senator included a list of more than a dozen attacks that Jane’s Revenge has claimed responsibility for in recent weeks following the leak of a Supreme Court draft opinion in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that if published, would overturn Roe v. Wade. Given many of these attacks did not result in any arrests, Cotton said the DOJ should bring federal charges against the perpetrators.

    “What is the Department of Justice doing to protect Americans from these violent attacks? At a minimum, you should bring federal charges against the perpetrators, where appropriate, and investigate ‘Jane’s Revenge’ as a domestic terrorist organization, Cotton wrote. “If you are unwilling to protect Americans from these attacks, you should resign-although, in my opinion, you should resign in any case,” he added.

    The list at the end of a letter noted that on May 7, St. John XXIII Catholic Church in Ft. Collins, Colorado, had its windows smashed and was vandalized with the message, “My Body My Choice,” plus an anarchist symbol. The next day, Wisconsin Family Action in Madison, Wisconsin is firebombed and vandalized with the threat, “if abortions aren’t safe, then you aren’t either.” Also on May 8, which was Mother’s Day this year, The Loreto House Pregnancy & Parenting Resource Center in Denton, Texas, was vandalized with the messages “Forced birth is murder” and “Not a clinic.”

    On May 13, The Alpha Pregnancy Center in Reisterstown, Maryland, was vandalized with the messages “Jane’s Revenge” and “If abortions aren’t safe neither are you.” The next day, BirthRight pregnancy center in Frederick, Maryland was vandalized with the messages “Defend Roe” and “F-k Fake Clinic.” A pro-life pregnancy center’s office building in Buffalo, New York, was vandalized and the scene of suspected arson. (CompassCare)

    On May 21, four churches in Olympia, Washington, were vandalized with messages, including “If abortions aren’t safe then neither are you,” “Abort the church,” and “God loves abortion.” Next Step Pregnancy Services had its windows smashed and was vandalized with the threat “If abortion isn’t safe, you aren’t either” on May 27. On May 30, The Respect Life Office in Hollywood, Florida, was vandalized with the messages “Jane’s Revenge,” “If abortions aren’t safe then niether [sic] are you,” and anarchist symbols.”

    That same day, The Dove Medical Pregnancy Center in Eugene, Oregon, was vandalized with the messages “From Jane,” “Not a clinic,” “Abortion is healthcare,” and communist and anarchist symbols. On June 2, Agape Pregnancy Center in Des Moines, Iowa, had its windows smashed and was vandalized with the messages “God loves abortions” and “fake clinic.”

    On June 3, the Capitol Hill Pregnancy Center in Washington, D.C., was vandalized with eggs, red paint, and a message stating “Jane’s Revenge.” Meanwhile, Mountain Area Pregnancy Services in Asheville, North Carolina, had its windows smashed and was vandalized with the messages “No forced birth” and “If abortions aren’t safe, neither are you!” on June 7.

    Also on June 7, CompassCare pregnancy center in Buffalo, New York, was firebombed and vandalized with the message “Jane was here.” Options360 pregnancy center in Vancouver, Washington, was vandalized with red paint and the message “Jane’s Revenge” on June 8.

    And on June 11, The Gresham Pregnancy Resource Center in Gresham, Oregon, was firebombed.”

    Liked by 1 person

  44. Entire Article @ TrendingPolitics: “A Floridian woman who found Joe Biden’s daughter, Ashley’s private diary discarded in a half-way house in Palm Beach is being investigated by the FBI for selling the material. The diary contains some shocking content including Ashley revealing how she used to take showers with her father, the senator, Joe Biden as a little girl which she speculates could have resulted in her sex addiction:

    “I remember having sex with friends @ a young age; showers w/ my dad (probably not appropriate),” she wrote in a January 2019 entry. Ashley, 41, has struggled with drug addiction in the past, and after spending time in rehab, she briefly stayed at a half-way house in Palm Beach before moving back to Philadelphia in June 2020.

    The diary was found by Aimee Harris, 39, who was also staying at the hostel after coming out of rehab. She had found the diary under the mattress of the bed Ashley Biden had occupied before she left. The mom-of-two sold the diary to Republican organization Project Veritas for $40,000. Because she didn’t steal the diary, Harris is not being accused of theft, but sources say “it’s her selling of the property that could be considered a crime. And the fact Ashley is the president’s daughter kicks it to a different legal level”.

    The diary’s pages include some hugely embarrassing material for the Biden family, particularly after the scandal around the content of her brother Hunter’s laptop, which contained footage of the president’s son taking crack cocaine and sleeping with prostitutes. Harris wrote candidly about how she felt she had been “hypersexualized at a young age”: “I remember somewhat being sexualized with [a family member]; I remember having sex with friends @ a young age; showers w/ my dad (probably not appropriate).”

    But at other times she seems grateful to her parents, writing about how they supported her through her addiction:

    “I relapsed. F***ing again,” she wrote on March 16. “The difference this time around was that I told Elizabeth, Mom + Dad this morning. Mom + Dad worried but incredibly supportive. I am so lucky to have them on my side.”

    A few months later, she wrote about how she was struggling again and had made Joe Biden cry with worry before a Democrat party debate: “My dad cried on the phone saying he has the debate in a week + ‘now has to worry about you”, she wrote. “And he cried. Maybe he knows what he is doing + it’s worked but my feelings of guilt often are overwhelming.”

    The diary also reveals that Ashley was in financial ruin and was continually having affairs behind her husband’s back: “Here I am talking about another man when I am married! It all feels strange,” she wrote in 2019. “Started hanging out with a new guy… It’s been refreshing to be able to kiss another man.”

    In other entries, she appears to suggest she was using drugs while campaigning on behalf of her father: “It’s time to get back home + work on the campaign. Headquarters in Philadelphia,” says the August 1, 2019 entry, but followed up two weeks later with “here is anxiety + not sure where it comes from… maybe its ‘lack’ of having substances – it’s been 5 full days. It’s been the longest I’ve gone in a while.”

    The Biden’s reported the diary stolen, probing a Justice Department investigation in 2020. Veritas bought the diary at a Republican fund-raising event the next year but organizer and found James O’Keefe said publishing it would be a “cheap shot”, but transcripts from the diary were leaked by other Veritas members and published on the news site National File just before Trump’s winning election, resulting in the FBI investigation.

    A source close to Harris, who first found the diary said: “If someone tried to queer the election in favor of Trump, that’s not really Aimee’s doing. She had no idea the effect this thing would have. She’s been homeless, moving from place to place throughout Palm Beach County. In the end, she’s been caught in something much bigger than her.”

    Liked by 1 person

  46. Sorry but I have to say this: shame on her!!!! She is caving and it is disgusting! There can be NO equivocation – PERIOD!!!!

    “Gold, a former emergency room physician, said she deeply regrets entering the Capitol during the riot on Jan. 6, 2021, and didn’t intend to get involved in an event that was “so destructive to our nation.”

    “It’s the opposite of who I am,” she told Cooper.”
    ————————–
    After the riot, Gold told The Washington Post that she followed a crowd into the Capitol, didn’t witness any violence and didn’t think she was breaking any laws.

    “I can certainly speak to the place that I was, and it most emphatically was not a riot,” she said. “Where I was, was incredibly peaceful.”

    But prosecutors say she entered the Capitol immediately after a law enforcement officer was assaulted and dragged to the ground in front of her. Gold also joined a mob that was trying to break into the House chamber and later ignored police commands to leave Statuary Hall so she could finish giving a speech, according to prosecutors.”

    https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/anti-vaccine-doctor-sentenced-prison-storming-capitol-jan-6-rcna33938

    Liked by 1 person

  48. Oh, FFS!!! Watching the Five – Judge Jeanine (whom I do NOT like) is wearing a patterned blue and yellow jacket – who wants to bet she did that to show her “support for Ukraine??!!??”

    Liked by 1 person

      1. She’s a putz and a coward! I’d bet money it’s for Ukraine but that’s just me…..you may not remember this. A couple of years ago, she did a segment on her show about the negative aspects of the burkha. Fox slapped her down and gave her a 2 week suspension. Apparently, she is just fine with such censorship because she signed another contract with Fox shortly thereafter. And she is a multi-millionaire!!! I looked it up at the time and she was worth $11M then! So, no, I have ZERO respect for her. On top of that, she is NOT the sharpest tack in the box!!!!

        Liked by 1 person

  49. hmmmm…anyone else see anything about this? 7 people arrested IN the Capitol Building?
    entire article

    Since corporate media, Democrats, and RINOs are calling unlawful entry on Capitol Hill an “insurrection attempt,” we’ll use their false label for the latest story that’s getting next to no attention from anyone in the press.

    Call me cynical, but whenever law enforcement refuses to release the affiliation of suspects in a crime, I instantly assume they were either non-White non-males or part of a leftist organization. Whenever a White male commits a crime, his mugshot is released before the paperwork is filed. Whenever members of a conservative group are involved in a crime, CNN and the NY Times have the scoop and mountains of details provided to them in minutes.

    Thursday, there was a breach of the U.S. Capitol Building. We know it was an actual breach and not some random tourists who got lost because they were removed earlier from the building. According to Just The News:

    Seven individuals were arrested Thursday night on Capitol Hill and charged with “unlawful entry,” Just the News has learned.

    The incident occurred at about 8:30 p.m. in the Longworth House Office Building, across Independence Avenue from the Capitol Building, in Washington, D.C. Law enforcement on Friday confirmed to incident to JTN but did not provide the names of those arrested.

    “On June 16, 2022, at approximately 8:30 p.m., U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) received a call for a disturbance in the Longworth House Office Building,” U.S. Capitol Police said in statement.

    “Responding officers observed seven individuals, unescorted and without Congressional ID, in a sixth-floor hallway. The building was closed to visitors, and these individuals were determined to be a part of a group that had been directed by the USCP to leave the building earlier in the day.”

    The affiliation of the group of people arrested also is unknown at this time.
    If you love the news, check out The Liberty Daily’s homepage.

    “This is an active criminal investigation, and may result in additional criminal charges after consultation with the U.S. Attorney,” Capitol Police also said.

    I will happily retract my theory if proven wrong, but for now I’m leaning towards this crime being perpetrated by members of a leftist group. I have no evidence of that other than the fact that nearly a day after the incident, we still know nothing. It’s likely the facts will be dropped just before the weekend begins, a tactic used by politicians to bury a story they don’t want talked about in the news.

    https://thelibertydaily.com/cover-up-did-radical-leftists-attempt-an-insurrection-on-capitol-hill-yesterday/

    Like

    1. First I’ve heard of it – of course they were leftists – no question in my mind! I did a DDG search – Just The News is the only one that comes up. Same with Brave search.

      Liked by 2 people

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