Trump Arrives in Pittsburgh
Plus: Results from the Moo Deng Precinct Are In!

Trump is walking to the state now. Not sure what happened with Megyn Kelly.

Below: An important tea leaf.

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 07:20 PM | Comments (346) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Trump's Pittsburgh Rally

Megyn Kelly explains why she'll be endorsing Trump and speaking at his rally in the beginning of this podcast. She says that everyone in the media supports Democrats -- they just lie about it. So she's not going to lie, she's going to put her cards on the table.

In this clip, she makes the case against Harris. She points out that Harris is a "radical leftist" and has spent the campaign speaking in "empty platitudes" to hide who she really is. She also makes the pro-choice case against Kamala Harris -- Harris wants to federalize the abortion laws. If she prevails on that, then any pro-life Republican and Congress could outlaw abortion entirely from the federal level.

I know the left doesn't believe that -- they always insist that there are (D)ifferent rules for (D)ifferent people.

And she's absolutely brutal on Kamala Harris for being a DEI hire, pointing out she only got into law school via affirmative action (which she didn't qualify for), failed the bar exam, and then climbed the political ladder on her back by sleeping with "the most powerful man in California politics, a man 40 years her senior. I'm sure it was love."

And then, of course, Biden straight-up admitted he chose her only for her race and sex.

This might be a preview of her remarks at the rally. I sure hope so.

Meanwhile: Mark Halperin discusses what Obama campaign manager Jim Messina called Kamala Harris's "scary" underperformance in the early vote.

Democrats are now pinning their hopes on 1, independents swinging hard to Harris to make up for the missing Democrats, even though independents tend to favor Republicans, and 2, Democrats swarming to the polls on election day, despite not being enthusiastic enough to bother to vote early.

A lot of this cope is due to the fact that blacks and Latinos aren't turning out for the Democrats, so they are forced to conjure unlikely scenarios in which white Republicans swing hard to Harris. Maybe 6-8% of Republicans swung to Clinton and Biden in 2016 and 2020, but since then, many of these NeverTrumpers have moved back to the right.

The idea that there are more White Republican NeverTrumpers today than in 2016 and 2020 is just a fantasy. Biden has been an absolute disaster.

The Democrat idea that Democrats will win election day turnout would be more plausible if Democrats were early voting at the usual rate, and Republicans were merely doing better in the early vote. In that case, I could imagine that Republicans were mostly just shifting when they voted from election day to early, and that Democrats might then exceed Republicans voting on election day.

But it's not just that Republicans are early voting more. Democrats are early voting less.

And if they're just not animated to vote early, when it's more convenient, why would they suddenly decided to stand in line for an hour or more to vote on election day?

If two solid months of calling Trump a racist fascist woman-hating Hitler have not energized these voters, what is going to happen overnight to get them to the polls?

Oh, and there's a big benefit to early voting: It allows the party to cross those names off its list and put all of its effort into "ballot chasing" the outstanding vote. Democrats benefited from this in the past; now Republicans are able to ballot-chase the more lackadaisical Republican voters.

Democrats are meanwhile ballot-chasing millions of votes they'd hoped to have already banked.

Update, from andycanuck:

Karoline Leavitt
@kleavittnh

I am speaking based on facts. Sorry you don't like them!

Here are the #'s, according to Democrat Data Expert Tom Bonier of TargetSmart:

ARIZONA COMPARED TO 2020:
Urban turnout is down -385,285
Female turnout is down -170,011

GEORGIA COMPARED TO 2020:
Urban turnout is down -153,846
Female turnout is down -46,732

MICHIGAN COMPARED TO 2020:
Urban turnout is down -321,523
Female turnout is down -204,856

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 06:00 PM | Comments (562) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Confirmed: Leftists Believe In None of the Things They Claim to Believe In

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 05:00 PM | Comments (373) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Megyn Kelly Will Lead Trump's Rally Tonight in Pittsburg

Trump will actually make his last campaign stop in Grand Rapids, Michigan, which is where he closed his 2016 and 2020 campaigns.

So I guess this is the next-to-last stop.

The New York Times threw a small scare into me over the weekend, showing Harris ahead in some of the battleground states (with Trump leading in others).

But as Katie Pavlich notes, the NYT pretty much admits they don't trust their own poll.

The New York Times published their final 2024 presidential election poll on Sunday, just two days ahead of Election Day November 5.

"Kamala Harris and Donald J. Trump stayed deadlocked to the finish in the final New York Times/Siena College polls of the 2024 presidential election, though there may be a hint she has ticked up in the final stretch," the New York Times reports. "The race remains essentially even across the seven states likeliest to decide the presidency."

The results show Harris ahead, but there's a big catch: the poll is probably wrong.

"Across these final polls, white Democrats were 16 percent likelier to respond than white Republicans. That's a larger disparity than our earlier polls this year, and it's not much better than our final polls in 2020 -- even with the pandemic over. It raises the possibility that the polls could underestimate Mr. Trump yet again," the NYT concedes.

The Times also has little confidence in its claims that "late deciders are breaking for Harris:"

"A word of caution: Hypothetically, many of these 'late deciders' might have told a pollster earlier that they were Harris voters -- if only we had called them at the time and asked them to formulate an opinion they hadn't yet made. As a result, the responses to this question don't necessarily explain the shift in the polls -- even if they do align with the trend in this case."

Also over the weekend: The Selzer poll made the preposterous claim that Harris was suddenly up in Iowa -- a traditionally solid-red state that no one else even has as a battleground.

Duane Patterson notes there are reasons to consider this poll pure dumpster trash.

Kamala hasn't set foot in that state as a presidential candidate since dropping out of the 2020 Democratic primary before the Iowa Caucus took place. Iowa voted for Donald Trump over Joe Biden in 2020, 53.1% to 44.9%, an 8.2% spread. The ideological makeup of Hawkeye voters was R+8.

There were two polls released on Saturday. The first, by Emerson, showed Donald Trump increasing his margin in Iowa over Kamala Harris, surging to a 10.5% lead. An hour later, Ann Selzer reported a survey that Kamala Harris is up 3. That's a 13.5% spread between two polls in the same day. Suffice it to say, one of them is way off.

Emerson disclosed their sample size and makeup, and it reflects close to what the state was in 2020. Selzer's data, on a whole host of subgroups, is a tad off of that.

...

Her poll was leaked to lefty pundits and the Harris campaign three days before dropping. They knew it was coming, and yet Harris, if Iowa is truly in play, didn't divert and make a play to finish Donald Trump off once and for all by boosting her lead outside the margin of error. You have to ask yourself why they wouldn't react and put any resources there at all. Joe Biden is available. The Clintons are available. Gwen Walz, and her hand mixer, are available. And Mark Cuban's dance card suddenly has freed up for some reason. Of course, if Harris were to win Iowa, Trump winning Pennsylvania wouldn't matter if Harris holds onto Michigan and Wisconsin. The reason Harris hasn't scheduled any event in the closing 48 hours in Iowa is because nobody outside of those suffering chronic anti-Trump fevers, believe Iowa has suddenly moved 11 points to the left in the last month.

John Fund calls this poll a "dud outlier." This same poll shows a comfortably-leading Republican incumbent House member suddenly losing by... 16 points!?

Uh, no:

The [Des Moines, I think] Register reports: "Now, voters prefer a Democratic candidate by a 16-point margin in the 1st District, where Democrat Christina Bohannan, a law professor and former state representative, is in a rematch with Republican U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, who is seeking her third term."

Miller-Meeks first won her seat with 50.1 percent in 2020, but then defeated Bohannan in 2022 by nearly seven percentage points. It is highly unusual for a non-scandal-ridden incumbent to lose a House seat by 16 points. In the 2022 general election, only nine House incumbents lost.

The RCP average shows Trump leading (if only by a little) in all seven of the battleground states -- and just behind in the newly-added swing states of Minnesota, New Hampshire, and Virginia.

Note that Iowa is only included in this list of "toss-ups" because of that preposterous Selzer poll.

Update: Jay from PA says the People's Pundit is calling BS on this poll, basically saying it's a deliberate political stunt:

0 From the People's Pundit:

"I knew about the Selzer poll on Friday... Everybody wondered how I knew... They thought I was lying... I'm going to tell you how I knew..."

"Because somebody who was very upset that Ann was calling, laughing hysterically talking with our surrogates talking about what she was going to do... 'I'm gonna drop a bomb in this SOBs lap'... they got so mad they called me."

Emerson's final polling shows Trump likely to win with 281 electoral votes. I think if he wins, we're going to 312, 322. Whatever gets the job done.

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 04:06 PM | Comments (492) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Is Progressivism Dying?

I'm always skeptical of Peak Woke arguments -- arguments that woke has reached its maximum power and is now receding. We've thought the tide had turned before. We were disappointed.

Ruy Teixeira, the liberal Democrat who wrote with great eagerness about The Coming Democrat Majority based on the immigration and fecundity of Hispanics, has been writing a lot of critical pieces about the Democrats' lurch towards Marxism and identity-politics Maoism.

He thinks the Democrats have killed the progressive agenda -- whether or not Kamala wins or not.

The public, he says, simply "hates" this agenda.

How Progressives Blew It

Defund the police. An open border. Identity politics. End the use of fossil fuels. Is it any wonder America turned against the progressive movement?

This article is reprinted from the Substack newsletter "The Liberal Patriot."

It wasn't so long ago progressives were riding high. They had a moment; they really did. Their radical views set the agenda and tone for the Democratic Party and, especially in cultural areas, were hegemonic in the nation's discourse. Building in the teens and cresting in the early '20s with the Black Lives Matter protests and the heady early days of the Biden administration, very few of their ideas seemed off the table. Defund the police and empty the jails? Sure! Abolish ICE and decriminalize the border? Absolutely! Get rid of fossil fuels and have a "Green New Deal"? Definitely! Demand trillions of dollars for a "transformational" Build Back Better bill? We're just getting started! Promote DEI and the struggle for "equity" (not equal opportunity) everywhere? It's the only way to fight privilege! Insist that a new ideology around race and gender should be accepted by everyone? Only a bigot would resist!

Progressives thought they had ripped the Overton window wide open and it remained only to push the voters through it. In their view, that wouldn't be too hard since these were great ideas, and voters, at least the non-deplorable ones, were thirsty for a bold new approach to America's problems.

In reality, a lot of these ideas were pretty terrible and most voters, outside the precincts of the progressive left itself, were never very interested in them. That was true from the get-go, but now the backlash against these ideas is strong enough that it can't be ignored. As a result, politics is adjusting and the progressive moment is well and truly over.

Astute observers on the left acknowledge this, albeit with an undertone of sadness. Progressive Substacker Noah Smith plaintively notes:

I spent pretty much all of the 2010s--my first decade as a writer and pundit--advocating for various progressive causes. . . . In the late 2010s, it felt like a long wave of progressive sentiment. . . had finally reached a critical level of intensity. . . .

A few years later, I'm not so sure. My values haven't become more conservative. . . . But I have to say that I now doubt the practical effectiveness of some of the policies I embraced in previous years.

...

Finally, David Weigel of Semafor observes in his recent article, "No Matter Who Wins, the U.S. Is Moving to the Right":

The Democratic Party, after two decades of leftward post-Clinton drift, has jerked abruptly right. . . . They've adjusted to an electorate that's shifted to the right, toward the Trump-led GOP, on issues that progressives once hoped were non-negotiable--immigrant rights, LGBTQ rights, climate change policies, and criminal justice reform. . . .

Both parties now face voters, white and non-white, who were open to some left-wing ideas about race, crime, and gender in 2020 but are far more skeptical now.

So how did the progressive moment fall apart? It is not hard to think of some reasons.

1. Loosening restrictions on illegal immigration was a terrible idea, and voters hate it. When Joe Biden came into office, he immediately issued a series of executive orders loosening the rules for handling illegal immigrants, a move that was rapturously applauded by progressives. The real-world effects were immediate, as New York Times reporter Miriam Jordan crisply explained:

It is not just because they believe they will be able to make it across the 2,000 mile southern frontier. They are also certain that once they make it to the United States they will be able to stay.

Forever.

And by and large, they are not wrong.

...

"Americans simply do not like the practice of rewarding asylum seekers for crossing the border illegally," writes Smith. Progressives' epic failure to understand this reality is a big reason why the progressive moment is over.

2. Promoting lax law enforcement and tolerance of social disorder was a terrible idea, and voters hate it.

...

[D]emocrats became associated with a wave of progressive public prosecutors who seemed hesitant about keeping criminals off the street, even as a spike in violent crimes such as murder and carjacking swept the nation. This was twinned with non-prosecutions for lesser crimes that degraded the quality of life in many cities under Democratic control. San Francisco practically became the poster child for the latter problem under District Attorney Chesa Boudin's "leadership."

The most enthusiastic supporters of a Boudin-style approach to policing tend to be white, college-educated liberals--the base, as it were, of the progressive movement. The sentiment among pro-Democratic, non-white, and working-class voters toward policing is quite different. These voters tend to live in areas that have more crime and are therefore unlikely to look kindly on any approach that threatens public safety. A Pew poll found that black and Hispanic Democrats--who are far more urban and working class--are significantly more likely than white Democrats to favor more police funding in their area.

A survey conducted for my new report with Yuval Levin, Politics Without Winners, confirmed the strength of these sentiments. By 73--25 percent, they backed keeping police budgets whole in the interests of public safety over reducing these budgets and transferring money to social services. Among non-white working-class voters there was a 30-point margin against reducing police budgets, which ballooned to 50 points among moderate-to-conservative working-class non-whites, the overwhelming majority of this demographic. By contrast, white college-grad liberals favored reducing police budgets by 20 points. That tells you a lot.

As Smith apologetically admits: "The simple fact is that policing works." Who'da thunk it? Progressives own this one, and it is another big reason the progressive moment is over.

3. Insisting that everyone should look at all issues through the lens of identity politics was a terrible idea, and voters hate it. In recent years, huge swaths of the Democratic Party, egged on by progressives, have become infected with an ideology that judges actions or arguments not by their content but rather by the identity of those engaging in them....

But most voters don't believe that....

4. Telling people fossil fuels are evil and they must stop using them was a terrible idea, and voters hate it.

...

Workers far prefer a gradual "all-of-the-above" approach to transitioning the energy system over the frantic push for renewables that characterizes progressives' Green New Deal--type thinking.... An overwhelming 72 percent in the survey favored the all-of-the-above approach, while just 26 percent backed the rapid renewables transition. Views were even more lopsided among working-class voters.

Predictably, progressives' BFFs, white liberal college graduates, were an exception--two to one in favor of getting rid of fossil fuels. But moderate and conservative white college graduates, who vastly outnumber the liberals, were almost seven to one against.

The hard fact is that progressives' hostility to fossil fuels is not widely shared by ordinary voters. In a recent result from a New York Times/Siena College poll, two-thirds of likely voters said they supported a policy of "increasing domestic production of fossil fuels such as oil and gas."

Two-thirds!

...

What comes next? Certainly Kamala Harris is furiously backpedaling from all these positions, but she is not a particularly convincing messenger for a new approach or even able to articulate what that new approach might be. In all likelihood, it will take some time for a new moment to emerge and influence Democrats the way the progressive moment did. Until then, Democrats are stuck with the fallout from the progressive moment, which may fatally undermine them this November 5. We shall see very shortly.

He doesn't even mention the Left's Sexual Nazis attempting to convert boys to girls and girls to boys. I guess there are some things that a liberal critic of progressivism is too afraid to mention.

If Kamala Harris wins, they'll double down on woke and identity politics and DEI and transgenderism for children.

Even if she loses, they'll double down on it-- it will take 10-16 years in the political wilderness to finally shock the Democrat Party leadership into kicking out the wokies and implementing party-wide ideological reform. Bill Clinton and the Democrat Leadership Council did not win out over the old George McGovern left until 1992, when the Democrats had lost every presidential election except the post-Watergate fluke year of 1976.

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 03:00 PM | Comments (512) | Trackbacks (Suck)

CNN: Kamala Harris Runs Pro-Palestinian Ad in Michigan While Running Pro-Israel Ad in Jewish Suburbs Around Philadelphia

Such obvious dishonesty that not even CNN can stomach it.

Andrew Kaczinsky also notes that the Harris campaign is running a phone call scam pretending to offer information from the Jill Stein campaign, telling Muslim voters how much Stein supports Israel.

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 02:00 PM | Comments (438) | Trackbacks (Suck)

NBC Runs Illegal Ad for Kamala Harris

Deadline:

Following FCC concerns over Kamala Harris' last-minute Saturday Night Live appearance, NBC has given Donald Trump 90 seconds of free ad time.

On Sunday, the network reportedly aired a clip of Trump addressing voters during its coverage of the NASCAR Playoffs race, after Harris' SNL cold open cameo may have violated the FCC's Equal Time Rule ahead of Election Day on Tuesday.

Trump-appointed FCC commissioner Brendan Carr previously accused SNL of a "clear and blatant effort" to evade the Equal Time Rule, which requires broadcasters to provide rival candidates comparable time -- news programming is exempt. The rule is often confused with the Fairness Doctrine, which was abandoned in the 1980s, requiring stations to present different points of view.

Noting that Harris' SNL cameo came just three days before the presidential election, Carr posted on X, "What comparable time and placement can they offer all other qualifying candidates?"

Reed Hundt, a former FCC chairman, wrote on X that Carr is "wrong" that SNL was engaged in an effort to evade the rule. "He's clearly and blatantly trying to help the Trump campaign. That's also wrong," Hundt wrote.

David Strom writes that NBC previously said that neither candidate would appear, "because of election laws."

But then they violated those laws anyway.

Even worse, apparently SNL wrote an entire sketch just to raise awareness of Tim Kaine, who is locked in a tight race in Virginia with a great Republican candidate named Hung Cao.

Obviously, the immigrant Hung Cao is the one who needs name recognition, and "mainstreaming" of his name. But SNL instead flacked for Hillary Clinton's running mate.

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 01:01 PM | Comments (426) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Groups Associated With the Harris-Walz Campaign Are Illegally Paying "Influencers" to Propagandize For Them -- and Change Their Votes

Deb Heine:

When Harris became the nominee, the "precision microinfluencer marketing" company "People First" set up a "creator portal" for influencers to "apply" for the job of promoting Harris. A post on the company's website, titled "Let's Win This Kamala," tells influencers that they will be expected to share three posts reflecting their support for Harris.

Join our campaign to help elect Kamala Harris in 2024! This campaign aims to educate your followers about the stakes of this election, increase positive associations with Harris, and build support with audiences like yours. Your voice is powerful -- and this is your opportunity to inspire, educate, and influence your community.

In a series of 3 posts online, you will share factual information and personal anecdotes that help your audience connect with your commitment to supporting Harris. We want to know your reasons for saying, "Let's Do It, Kamala!"

The website's IP address indicates that it started out as "Let's Do It Joe," but apparently switched to "Let's Win This Kamala" after Biden was forcibly retired.

People First also allegedly reaches out to influencers through email and offers them money to promote Harris.

Nicole Arbour, a Canadian comedienne, singer, actress, and YouTuber, said on her podcast, the Arbour Affect, Friday that she was contacted by several organizations, including People First, and offered $25,000 to support Harris. [Update: Arbour told American Greatness on Sunday that an influencer marketing agency called HypeClash also offered her "six figures" to explain on her podcast why she was switching her vote to Harris.]

TikTok star Meghan Corum went public with her story on Wednesday, claiming she was offered an astounding $50,000 to flip from being a Trump supporter to being a Harris supporter.

During her podcast, Arbour told her followers that she wanted to tell them what's been going on because this would be her last video before the election.

The comedienne noted that she has made fun of both Harris and Trump, but "I need you guys to know that when celebrities, influencers, musicians, whoever are promoting Harris--it's because they're paid."

Arbour said that she knows this because "different PACS, different groups" associated with the Harris campaign have approached her three times.

"They always come out with the same offer: 'we want you to promote Kamala, we want you to say these talking points'" she explained.

Arbour displayed an email she received from People First on Sept 8, offering "compensation" for three pro-Harris posts.

Arbour told American Greatness that other agencies and PACs have also reached out to her with lucrative offers for pro-Harris content.

More at the link. I know some have other theories about Kamala's celebrity endorsers.

Welcome to the Election Eve! Oh boy, was I on a Journey Into Anxiety this weekend due to some (dubious) poll numbers. I'll post about that later.

I'm just glad it's almost over. I'm pretty agitated!

I'm at that point where I'm like, "Doc, I don't care if the test results are good or bad, I just want to know them so that my brain can stop trying to predict the results."

In about 32 hours we'll know whether we still have a country or not.

Here's a little welcome-to-the-working-week for you:

Posted by: Disinformation Expert Ace at 12:03 PM | Comments (641) | Trackbacks (Suck)

THE MORNING RANT: Buck Shots – November 4, 2024

A blessed Election Day Eve to everyone! If you haven’t already cast your vote for Donald Trump and down-ballot Republicans, please plan to do so right when the polls open tomorrow morning, especially if you live in a blue precinct or county. It’s important to get your vote cast before all the vote-suppressing shenanigans are deployed.

*****

Reviled Republicans for Kamala

Twenty years ago when the left was screaming that Dick Cheney was a war criminal and that George W. Bush was literally Hitler, I wouldn’t have predicted that the 2024 Democrat nominee’s closing argument would effectively be, “A vote for me is a vote to defend the honor and integrity of the Cheney family,” nor would I have thought a Bush family endorsement (“George W. Bush's Daughter Barbara Breaks Silence on Election to Campaign for Kamala Harris”) would be anything but an albatross, but here we are.

If obtaining endorsements from the family members of formerly-hated Republicans is how Democrats are trying to obtain crossover votes this election, what about Richard Nixon’s progeny? In the midst of worsening inflation back in 1971, Nixon famously - and unsuccessfully - tried to impose price controls.

Certainly, there is a Nixon descendent somewhere who can vouch for Kamala’s price-fixing / anti-price-gouging proposal.

Speaking of Republicans endorsing Kamala, role-model and husband-extraordinaire Arnold Schwarzenegger is offering his support for putting Harris and her nanny-impregnating husband, Douglas Emhoff, in the White House.

To be fair, Mr. Schwarzenegger may have slapped around some girlie-men in his day, but he was never accused of slapping actual women as Mr. Emhoff has been credibly - and repeatedly - accused.

*****

Bombshell Trial Revelation – Daniel Penny’s Chokehold Did Not Kill Jordan Neely

Daniel Penny’s manslaughter trial is all based on a fraudulent premise – that Mr. Penny’s chokehold on Jordan Neely (to protect fellow passengers) killed the homeless man.

With Mr. Penny on trial, we are only now finding out that Neely was very much alive when the police showed up, but because he was “filthy” and drug-addled, the responding police officers chose not to perform mouth to mouth resuscitation.

“Daniel Penny trial bombshell: Homeless man still had a pulse after chokehold that prosecutors say killed him” [The Daily Mail – 11/01/2024]

Police detected a pulse on homeless man Jordan Neely after he was put in a chokehold by Marine veteran Daniel Penny, bombshell new bodycam footage reveals. The video became public today as Penny's manslaughter trial began in Manhattan.

NYPD officers arrived on the train at Fulton Station at 2:33pm. Two police officers confirmed that Neely still had a pulse when they arrived. “I got a pulse,” one said. A second police officer confirmed that he too felt a pulse. Neely was unconscious, lying on the subway car floor.

The police did administer Narcan to try to reverse Neely’s apparent drug overdose, and then paramedics arrived 15 minutes after the police, with Mr. Neely still alive.

A NYPD Segreant testified as to why none of his team performed mouth-to-mouth on Neely.

“He seemed to be a drug user…he was an apparent drug user. He was very dirty. I didn’t want them to get… hepatitis. If he did wake up he would have been vomiting. I didn’t want my officers to do that.”

“He was filthy. He looked like a homeless individual. You have to protect your officer, I wouldn’t want my officer to get sick if the person throws up,” he said.

This trial is a disgraceful prosecution of an American hero for defending innocents in a pro-crime jurisdiction. Until New York stops coddling criminals and prosecuting crime victims, it should be considered an unsafe place to travel or do business.

*****

The Price of Gasoline Is Way Down…Hooray?

Do you remember how gas prices plummeted in 2020 during the Covid hysteria, during which time the political class was striving to shut down almost all economic activity?

Posted by: Buck Throckmorton at 11:00 AM | Comments (422) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Mid-Morning Art Thread

Mrs. Carl Meyer, later Lady Meyer, and her two Children
John Singer Sargent

Posted by: CBD at 09:20 AM | Comments (596) | Trackbacks (Suck)

The Morning Report 11/4/24

Good morning kids. HOPE YOU HAD A NICE WEEKEND.

Somewhere in a men's room stall (the one with the Tampax dispenser) at Fox News Brett Baier is shpritzing his uvula from Rip Taylor's "$1.98 Beauty Sow" giant clown atomizer to keep it nice and supple in preparation for his big moment when he calls Arizona for Come-Allah Harris. Which no doubt will be happening some time in the next 18 to 24 hours.

Of all the times to be without my computer!!!!! Supposed to have it back by midweek. We shall see. Keep hope alive.

Posted by: J.J. Sefton at 07:00 AM | Comments (786) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Daily Tech News 4 November 2024

Top Story

• The US government is reportedly considering a merger between Intel and AMD. (Notebook Check)
  
  Which is odd because neither company has shown the slightest bit of interest in this, and it would clearly be a complete disaster for both. Well, I guess the complete disaster part is completely in character for the current administration, so maybe no so odd as all that.
  
  
  

Posted by: Pixy Misa at 04:00 AM | Comments (189) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Sunday Overnight Open Thread (11/3/24)

*****

The Quotes of The Day

Quote I

“Voting is among the most important rights that Marylanders have. Any action that intimidates prospective voters, especially on the eve of such a consequential election, will not be tolerated. Let me be clear: These unnerving letters are unacceptable, and Maryland voters should know that their decision to vote this Election Day is entirely theirs to make.” Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown

Quote II

"He is supported today in the public gallery by his mother, sister, brother-in-law and two friends. The fact that he has that support will not surprise your honour, having read what people have written about him." Nigel Power KC, (Defense attorney)

Quote III

"RIP MY BEST FRIEND. Thank you for the best 7 years of my life. Thank you for bringing so much joy to us and the world. I’m sorry I failed you but thank you for everything," Mark Longo

*****

SQUIRREL!!!

Posted by: Misanthropic Humanitarian at 10:04 PM | Comments (679) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Gun Thread: First November Edition!

Howdy, Y'all! Welcome to the wondrously fabulous Gun Thread! As always, I want to thank all of our regulars for being here week in and week out, and also offer a bigly Gun Thread welcome to any newcomers who may be joining us tonight. Howdy and thank you for stopping by! I hope you find our wacky conversation on the subject of guns 'n shooting both enjoyable and informative. You are always welcome to lurk in the shadows of shame, but I'd like to invite you to jump into the conversation, say howdy, and tell us what kind of shooting you like to do!

Holy Shitballs! How in the ever-loving Hell did it get to be November? Did everyone survive Halloween? Any hauntings at the range?

With that, step into the dojo and let's get to the gun stuff below, shall we?

Posted by: Weasel at 07:00 PM | Comments (373) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Food Thread: Generic Thread [Insert Boiled Beef Here]

The Cozy Apron

As we go deeper and deeper into glorious fall (or not...see below), the pull of that wonderful cultural imperative to stew and braise gets more and more powerful

But don't forget hearty soups! When made well, and that means with lots of meat and other toothsome stuff, they can be immensely satisfying and filling. And even better, most soups freeze really well, so make a big batch and enjoy the contentment of knowing that there is a great meal in the freezer for a rainy or snowy day!

My favorite soup is probably chicken and hominy with tons of roasted tomatillos. It's really a stew, but I'm going to call it a soup just because. Typical Mexican spicing, with the addition of mirepoix and a ridiculous amount of hominy. I modified the original recipe a lot, because it called for chicken breasts, and that's just silly. Thighs rule!

What's that? Of course it's pozole!

Posted by: CBD at 04:00 PM | Comments (338) | Trackbacks (Suck)

First-World Problems...

Yup...I buy ketchup in 3-packs. Not because I use it as a condiment...I don't. I make a very nice barbecue sauce whose base is ketchup, and because I am a cheap bastard, why not get enough for a whole year's worth?

But getting the last bit of ketchup out of the container is a mess, because while the top is conveniently wide and flat so that the bottle can sit upside down in the refrigerator, the label does not conform to the upside-down position, and the symmetry of the world would be all akilter if the bottle position and the label do not match.

Yes...this is what keeps me up at night!

Posted by: CBD at 02:00 PM | Comments (319) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Are We In The Endgame Of The Ukraine Fiasco? Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, General Dynamics, And Boeing Hardest Hit!

What a shock! Russia is slowly grinding up Ukraine's resources and army, which should surprise exactly nobody with two neurons to rub together.

This isn't an unexpected twist either. Russia is almost five times the size of Ukraine by population, and 10 times the size by GDP. And in a war in which both sides are using roughly the same tactics and strategy, the larger country will have the advantage.

The West is busily sending its own stocks of advanced weaponry to Ukraine, but the results are resoundingly disappointing. And that shouldn't be a surprise. The Ukrainian army is by now mostly conscripts, and advanced weaponry wielded by a barely-trained army may provide a modest advantage, but not a resounding one.

Russia makes substantial gains in Ukraine's east

October of 2024 was the most militarily successful month for Russia since July of 2022. After months of sustained pressure, and mostly stagnant front lines, Russian troops have broken through and made significant gains in the Donbas region of Ukraine. According to the New York Times, Russian forces have secured more than 160 square miles there, and are capturing strategic towns along the way.

It seems as though the next goal for Russians in the Donbas is to take the strategic rail town, Pokrovsk, which would seriously inhibit Ukraine's ability to resupply its forces in the region. Encirclement of this strategic city is likely as Ukraine has likely lost Selydove this week, a city which is only about 20 miles south of Pokrovsk.

It is tempting to assume that the West's technological advantage over Russian weaponry will save the day for the kleptocrats in Kiev (Kkyyeeevv?), much like the Israeli technological advantage over the terrorists in Iran, Gaza, Lebanon, and elsewhere. But those Israeli soldiers are very well trained, are drawn from a technologically advanced country, and are immensely patriotic. And most of all, the Israeli battle doctrine rarely calls for set battles on defined fronts, preferring to bring force to bear only after developing good intelligence and preparing the battle space. Ukraine does not have that luxury, or possibly even the ability.

Sadly, the West is quite happy to fight to the last Ukrainian soldier, even when the reality is that Russia will probably hold some of Ukraine regardless of future battles. Absent NATO troops and WWIII, is there any rational scenario that ends with a Russian withdrawal to the status quo ante bellum?

One of the many flaws in American and Western foreign policy is the inability to understand the other side. The military theorist Liddell Hart wrote about understanding "the other side of the hill," which is nothing more than what and why the other side is thinking.

The Russian psyche is not complicated. Why does the West not understand that an expansion of NATO to the borders of Russia is a direct challenge to the Russian bear? Fomenting political revolution in a country on Russia's border is a threat in the minds of the Russian political class and, probably, in the minds of its people. This goes back to at least 2008, when George Bush offered NATO membership to Ukraine and Georgia. The Obama administration had a hand in the 2014 Ukrainian revolution that got rid of Victor Yanukovych in favor of a more western oriented president.

How would America respond if Russia did the same thing in Mexico?

This is not an argument in support of Putin and his thuggish behavior and policies, but it is a recognition that in the absence of a clear strategic necessity for America, perhaps the best policy would be, "a pox on both their houses!"

[Crossposted at CutJibNewsletter]

Posted by: CBD at 12:00 PM | Comments (448) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Sunday Morning Book Thread - 11-03-2024 ["Perfessor" Squirrel]

Welcome to the prestigious, internationally acclaimed, stately, and illustrious Sunday Morning Book Thread! The place where all readers are welcome, regardless of whatever guilty pleasure we feel like reading. Here is where we can discuss, argue, bicker, quibble, consider, debate, confabulate, converse, and jaw about our latest fancy in reading material. As always, pants are required, unless you are wearing these pants...

So relax, find yourself a warm kitty (or warm puppy--I won't judge) to curl up in your lap, and dive into a new book. What are YOU reading this fine morning?

Did you remember to set your clocks back last night?

NOTE: I know there's something important going on Tuesday, but let's keep the discussion focused on BOOKS and READING...CBD will be along in a few hours with a political thread. Thanks!

Posted by: Open Blogger at 09:00 AM | Comments (309) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Daily Tech News 3 November 2024

Top Story

• AMD just made choosing a CPU much easier. Or much harder, depending on your perspective. (Tom's Hardware)
  
  The 9000 series CPUs were - at their launch two months ago - overpriced for their performance relative to the existing 7000 series. They are actually great on some server-oriented tasks, but the improvement since the last generation for desktop tasks and gaming is relatively small.
  
  AMD has adjusted the pricing to match. the 9900X is 6% faster than the 7900X on PassMark, for example, and now costs 8% more.
  
  For me, good enough. That will be my next CPU.
  
  If you're more interested in games or have a specific workload that loves large caches, the 9800X3D is due out this week and should also deliver great performance.
  
  
  

Posted by: Pixy Misa at 04:00 AM | Comments (296) | Trackbacks (Suck)

Saturday Overnight Open Thread (11/2/24)

*****

The Saturday Night Joke

It is easier for men to be Happy...


Men Are Just Happier People! What do you expect from such simple creatures? Your last name stays put. The garage is all yours. Wedding plans take care of themselves. Chocolate is just another snack. You can never be pregnant. You can wear a white T-shirt to a water park. You can wear NO shirt to a water park.

Car mechanics tell you the truth. The world is your urinal. You never have to drive to another gas station restroom because this one is just too icky. You don't have to stop and think of which way to turn a nut on a bolt. Wrinkles add character. Wedding dress - $5,000. Tux rental - $100. People never stare at your chest when you're talking to them.

New shoes don't cut, blister, or mangle your feet. One mood all the time. Phone conversations are over in 30 seconds flat. You know stuff about tanks. A five-day vacation requires only one suitcase. You can open all your own jars.

You get extra credit for the slightest act of thoughtfulness. If someone forgets to invite you, he or she can still be your friend. Your underwear is $8.95 for a three-pack. Two pairs of shoes are more than enough. You almost never have strap problems in public. You are unable to see wrinkles in your clothes.

Everything on your face stays its original colour. The same hairstyle lasts for years, maybe decades. You only have to shave your face and neck. You can play with toys all your life. One wallet and one pair of shoes - one color for all seasons. You can wear shorts no matter how your legs look.

You can 'do' your nails with a pocket knife. You have freedom of choice concerning growing a mustache... You can do Christmas shopping for 25 relatives on December 24 in 25 minutes. No wonder men are happier!

Posted by: Misanthropic Humanitarian at 10:00 PM | Comments (815) | Trackbacks (Suck)